I hope everyone is having fun this holiday; I know I am. I’ve been getting lots of goodies (look for a Hump Day Happy Deal in the near future, once everything dies down) and I finally found some time to sit and read a graphic novel I received in the mail from Titan Comics. The graphic novel is titled Lost Planet: First Colony and is a prequel to the video game, Lost Planet 3. I didn’t in the least bit have any interest in playing LP3, but after reading this wonderful and exciting graphic novel, I can’t wait to purchase the game and give it a play. First things first, is telling you why you should check it out…
Short nitty-gritty plot description from the back cover is as follows: Humanity thought E.D.N. III was its salvation. Rich reserves of T-ENG lay beneath its icy wastes: enough thermal energy to save our poisoned Earth.
The first colony there was a disaster. For some, disaster spells opportunity – and so the crew of the pirate vessel Crusader are heading to E.D.N. III to pillage its rich technology.
But this wintry world jealously guards her secrets – secrets that may kill all of the Crusader’s crew!
Tatlock’s Quick ‘n Dirty Recap: Taking place 40 years before the video game Lost Planet 3, we follow a group of space pirates, led by Captain June, a tough female commander, who have crash-landed on E.D.N. III, an icy planet, which is home to a deadly alien species known as the Arkid. June, along with a few of her team, travel out for medical supplies and along the way, experience several deadly run-ins with the creatures. Nearly dying, the group run into some survivors, who seem friendly enough, but not everything is as it seems, especially on E.D.N. III.
Tatlock’s Opinion: Like I’ve said above, I haven’t played Lost Planet 3, so I was going kinda blind into this graphic novel, but thankfully it did everything it was meant to do and didn’t require you to have any past knowledge of the series. Plus, thanks to the graphic novel laying the foundation for the bigger story in Lost Planet 3, it got me pretty interested in the history and mythology behind the planet of E.D.N. III and it’s creatures (some who are gigantic and frightening) and ended things on a pretty big cliffhanger, which is explained in the video game.
I only have a few small nitpicks. There are times where I had a hard time distinguishing who is who. I would find myself looking at the panel a few times, before figuring out who it was. I will note, it only happens a few times and doesn’t really take you out the story. Speaking of the story, my last nitpick has to do with the length. Thanks to the graphic novel being such a good read, I was disappointed it ended so soon. I really wanted to keep reading and before you know it, the last panel was being read. I suppose this could be seen as a negative or a positive.
Verdict: Thanks to some awesome artwork by Massimo Dall’Oglio and a straightforward, albeit short story by Izu, Lost Planet: First Colony is a no brainer for fans of the video game and anyone else who enjoys a highly interesting, icy quick adventure.
Rating: 4/5 (-1 for some confusion with the character art and the story ending a little too quickly. +4 for getting me really into the Lost Planet mythology and serving up a fun and exciting story.)