Borderlands Volume 1 Origins

by Mikey Neumann

[inlibrisveritas]

Being a fan of the game, Borderlands I immediately scooped this one up when IDW placed it on Netgalley. The game is a ton of fun and really witty, but you don’t get a lot of back story about the characters you can play as, so I was anxious to see exactly how our Vault Hunters came to be on Marcus’ crappy bus to begin with. I wasn’t disappointed but at the same time I wanted more.

We get to see how each Vault Hunter is perceived by others and we get some good glimpses about their personalities as well…you know other than the one liners we get when were’ blasting skags sky high (“It’s like Christmas!”). I personally think that Roland and Brick get the really good stories in this one, we get to see the exact reason Roland left the Crimson Lance and Brick’s real colors are shown. Lilth’s story was good as well and as my preferred character I wanted to see more of her (*hint* I would be willing to buy graphic novels about their individual adventures before or after the game). We get a bit more info on what a Siren is and just how lonely it is to be a part of something that only allows 6 at one time. I think Mordecai’s story was the one that fell a bit flat for me, it didn’t really tell me what he was doing on Pandora before the event that leads to him getting on the bus. Well I guess it did tell me but I kind of wanted to see a bit of it for myself.

The art is surprisingly not cell shaded like the game, and I think I”m actually a bit thank for that…I’m not sure it would have worked. It’s consistent and I think that Agustin Padilla did a pretty good job with it.

I think it’s a great companion piece for those who really loved the game and the characters, and if IDW decides to put out more like this I would certainly seek them out.

I received this in exchange for an honest review.