Dark Horse Fire and Stone (Prometheus/Aliens/AvP/Predator/Omega): All Reviews

[happypred]

@HappyPred

Spoiler

Yes, the regular Pred gets some nice screentime. He teams up with Elden for a bit, and they go on a nice Xeno rampage. Then he betrays Elden. The comic ends with them two fighting. As of now, I'd give my vote to the hulk pred if he were to fight Elden.

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Just finished reading AvP #3. I have to say it reminds me of Deadliest of the Species with all its craziness. However, I don't mean that in a bad way. AvP #3 is much less rambling. I think the most disappointing aspect of the current AvP series is Olivetti's predators and xenomorphs. They look really off

[janenad]

Not to mention that the xenos in AVP aren't really dangerous, they haven't killed anything but the fodder humans (which I liked) but now the xenos are just aggressive fodder for everyone else, sadly. I hope they do some real damage in the final issue.

[RakaiThwei]

I think the most disappointing aspect of the current AvP series is Olivetti's predators and xenomorphs. They look really off

Have you looked at Batman and Superman vs Alien and Predator? If you looked at that, then you shouldn't be surprised about Olivetti's Predators and Aliens.

[Ultramorph]

Another's review of Prometheus #4 has gone live. It's also positive, and contains some spoilers, so read at your own risk.

http://www.rockshockpop.com/forums/content.php?4538-Prometheus-Fire-And-Stone-4

[CONKERSBADFURDAY]

First impressions of Prometheus 4 are as follows: it's really good, it's awesome violent, it does not end the arc despite saying 4/4 on the cover. That last bit is something I take a bit of an issue with despite knowing more is to come. Full review will go up tomorrow after I read it again.

[happypred]

Have you looked at Batman and Superman vs Alien and Predator? If you looked at that, then you shouldn't be surprised about Olivetti's Predators and Aliens.

I think the aliens in that look better than the aliens in AvP Fire and Stone. The predators in both look equally wonky

[CONKERSBADFURDAY]

I gave it a 9.7 http://wethenerdy.com/advance-review-prometheus-fire-and-stone-4-review/

[Ultramorph]

My copy of AvP #3 came this morning, and I definitely thought it was better than issue #2. Some brief, spoilery thoughts below.

Spoiler

I'm enjoying watching Elden evolve, both physically and mentally. It was refreshing to see him experience doubt in this issue. It will be interesting to see where he goes by the time AvP and Omega wrap up. I like his look in this issue, as he's moving further away from the Engineer and more into strange, unknown territory. I do agree, though, that I can't help but be reminded of DotS to an extent, but it's not ruining it. Elden has more story and personality than the white hybrids or the bug-men.

The lack of actual "Aliens fighting Predators" action in this AvP comic is pretty disappointing. It's not that the black goo mutant melee isn't cool, but it would have been nice if at least a bit more page space had been devoted some traditional AvP action. Issue #4 might rectify that, but given the development with Francis, I doubt that. Still, this series is certainly unique, and I'm looking forward to seeing how crazy things get.

The art isn't massively better than issue #2, and the Xenos still look a bit phoned in, but Elden's evolution somewhat makes up for that.

Overall, I still think AvP is one of the weaker parts of Fire and Stone, and I agree with the sentiment that I can't root for any of these characters. The behavior of the main Predator is a big factor in this. One minute he's blooding Elden, the next he's fighting aliens with him, only to be attacking Elden shortly after. I just don't get what he's after, and it's hurting the series for me. Still, the finale promises to be an interesting bloodbath.

[close]

[happypred]

My copy of AvP #3 came this morning, and I definitely thought it was better than issue #2. Some brief, spoilery thoughts below.

Spoiler

Overall, I still think AvP is one of the weaker parts of Fire and Stone, and I agree with the sentiment that I can't root for any of these characters. The behavior of the main Predator is a big factor in this. One minute he's blooding Elden, the next he's fighting aliens with him, only to be attacking Elden shortly after. I just don't get what he's after, and it's hurting the series for me. Still, the finale promises to be an interesting bloodbath.

[close]

Originally, I thought Aliens was the weakest part but now I'm leaning more toward AvP. Compared to the mutant mayhem in AvP Fire & Stone, even the Yautja vs. "Buggers" action in AvP Hunter's Planet is closer to "classic" AvP

I applaud Sebela for having the balls to do something different...but this might be a case of being too different. It doesn't feel like AvP. Olivetti's weirdly drawn predators and aliens alienate (pun intended) me even more.

That said...I agree with the sentiment expressed in this review:

Chris Mooneyham's Predator is so perfect that someone at Dark Horse should seriously consider signing him to exclusively draw the character until he dies.

[Ultramorph]

I just finished Prometheus #4, and I have to say I was left feeling disappointed.  I'll post my in-depth thoughts later.

Full review, many spoilers:

Spoiler

I should start by saying that even though I'm left feeling disappointed overall, this issue has several excellent components. They just don't really add up to a satisfying conclusion.

First off, the art remains one of the strongest aspects, and I would say that Ferreyra's art as the best in Fire and Stone, and his xenos are possibly some of the best in all the comics that Dark Horse has done. The fact that they retain biomechanical detail in every panel is just above and beyond what I've come to expect. If Mooneyham should do all subsequent Predator comics, Ferreyra should do all future Aliens comics. The only aspect of the art I found lacking was the designs of the test tube creatures in the Engineer lab. More could have been done with them, and I feel an opportunity was missed to include some A:R, Ripley clone style mutant horror.

My main problem with this issue was one that several other reviewers have noted: namely, that despite the "4 of 4" on the cover, it just stops on a totally anticlimactic note. I know that this is obviously bound to happen given the place of the Prometheus series in the larger Fire and Stone arc, but I feel that there should have been more effort at some level of closure. Angela looking out over the lake and saying "Damn it" just leaves me feeling a bit cheated. Even the Prometheus movie has more closure than this.

I almost feel like FaS has come full circle in a bad way: I've gone from being burned out with #1s to being burned out of looking forward to Omega for an end. This whole thing will probably read much, much better come February when it can be read as one continuous, chronological story. Hopefully the other three #4s feel more like actual endings.

That being said, I liked several of the scenes in this book. The brief bit with Elden and the xenos was short but effective, and I enjoyed how Ferreyra illustrated the xenos coming to Elden's side as he tore down the poster. I'm definitely starting to get the "Elden as underdog" angle.

Similarly, the scene where the Engineer blasts away the xenomorphs was a nice way of illustrating the Engineers' power. On the other hand, though, I feel that this scene sort of ruins the logic and vibe behind the Derelict on LV-426. It's hard to picture a ship of Engineers being brought down by the aliens when one single Engineer with a rifle can take out a hive's worth of xenomorphs. At least the aliens were effective in the rest of the series, which is more than can be said of the AvP side of things.

It's also worth mentioning that while Tobin's Prometheus was a good Aliens comic, I wish more had been done with the Engineers. Roberson's Aliens is more or less shaping up to be more of a Prometheus comic, and I'm fine with that overall, but I can see where that might alienate some fans. I also really like Derrick Russel in that series, whereas none of the characters in Prometheus (Elden aside) really resonates with me. I hope Angela grows and becomes interesting in Predator and Omega.

All in all, this wasn't a bad issue, but it was a bad conclusion, because of the placement of the various parts of FaS. I'm still onboard, but I find myself looking forward to when it has all been released.

[close]

[Corporal Hicks]

I finished #4 last night and I completely agree. I think Ferreyra's artwork is the best of the lot so far and possibly the best since Den Beauvis. His humans, his Elden, his Xenos, his Engineer, his environments. I had absolutely no complaints with the visual side of the story, at all. I really hope Dark Horse take him for future projects.

That said, it didn't feel like a conclusion at all, as you said. It's quite clearly Part 1 in a 3 part story. I don't think the others will end on such an anti-climatic note as they both have their own individual stories to wrap up - Elden, Francis & Predators in AvP, and Galgo, Ahab, the Engineer and LV-233 (I think that's the right planet, I don't have the comics with me atm). I think Aliens has the potential not to end adequently but we'll see.

Spoiler

#4 did have some awesome moments in. The Engineer vs the Aliens. And then towards the humans. I was like "Daaaammmmnnn". I loved seeing Elden lose his shit like that.

[close]

It was a good comic. Just a terrible conclusion. Once everything is finished and we've gotten Omega, I'd be interested to see how it all reads then.

[Son Of Kane]

Message me when there's a collected hardback of the entire line.

[Ultramorph]

The first review of Predator #3 is up, and it's a positive, 4/5 stars. Beware of spoilers.

http://bigcomicpage.com/2014/12/16/review-predator-fire-and-stone-3-dark-horse/

[CONKERSBADFURDAY]

My review of Predator: Fire and Stone 3 will go live tomorrow (didn't get the issue until today). My overview thoughts are: It's good, and the Ahab/Galgo teamup is great. I really like them as a duo, and I think this comic does the human/predator pairing the best. That being said, I don't feel like all that much happens in this issue. I also feel like there are better things to explore than Ahab's want to kill an Engineer just because.

[happypred]

My review of Predator: Fire and Stone 3 will go live tomorrow

How much action is there? How good is the action? I'd like to see Ahab kick ass and take names. The predators in the AvP series don't do much