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Step By Bloody Step #1-4
Step By Bloody Step
THERE IS A GIRL. She has no memory and no name. Nothing but a GUARDIAN. An armored giant who protects her from predators and pitfalls.
TOGETHER THEY WALK across an extraordinary fantasy world. If they leave the path the air itself comes alive, forcing them onwards. Why? The girl doesn’t know, but there’s worse than beasts and bandits ahead. CIVILIZATION, with its temptations and treacheries, will test their bond beyond its limits. STEP BY BLOODY STEP is a fantasy opus from the Eisner Award nominees behind CODA (sélection officielle Angoulême 2021): MATIAS BERGARA (Hellblazer, THE SCUMBAG) & SI SPURRIER (X-Men Legacy, Hellblazer, The Spire). Breaking new ground for the possibilities of sequential art, this completely wordless visual feast will delight fans of Princess Mononoke, ISOLA, and the visionary works of Moebius.
Collects STEP BY BLOODY STEP #1-4
TOGETHER THEY WALK across an extraordinary fantasy world. If they leave the path the air itself comes alive, forcing them onwards. Why? The girl doesn’t know, but there’s worse than beasts and bandits ahead. CIVILIZATION, with its temptations and treacheries, will test their bond beyond its limits. STEP BY BLOODY STEP is a fantasy opus from the Eisner Award nominees behind CODA (sélection officielle Angoulême 2021): MATIAS BERGARA (Hellblazer, THE SCUMBAG) & SI SPURRIER (X-Men Legacy, Hellblazer, The Spire). Breaking new ground for the possibilities of sequential art, this completely wordless visual feast will delight fans of Princess Mononoke, ISOLA, and the visionary works of Moebius.
Collects STEP BY BLOODY STEP #1-4
160 pages, Paperback
First published August 30, 2022
12 people are currently reading
707 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 195 reviews
February 13, 2024
There are no words in this story, which is pretty ambitious.
Points for that.
Yes, the artwork is pretty cool. And yes, it does tell a story.
I'm not sure what that story is but it tells the story.
I mean, I saw the story unfold, but I have no idea why any of it happened.
A child is raised by a supernatural warrior and they make their way across their world. The child is special.
And the warrior protects the child from all of the monsters that they meet along the way.
Now, I read the blurb afterward and it said If they leave the path the air itself comes alive, forcing them onwards. What? Is that what was happening?!
I thought it was the warrior doing it.
Ok, see. To me, that means you didn't do a very good job explaining your story without words if the only reason I know what actually went down is due to my reading words you wrote.
And the ending was just...what?
But I thought there would be some purpose. Some explanation of...something.
No.
To me, this was just a gimmick.
And you have to really want to believe that the Emperor is wearing clothes for it to work.
Points for that.
Yes, the artwork is pretty cool. And yes, it does tell a story.
I'm not sure what that story is but it tells the story.
I mean, I saw the story unfold, but I have no idea why any of it happened.
A child is raised by a supernatural warrior and they make their way across their world. The child is special.
And the warrior protects the child from all of the monsters that they meet along the way.
Now, I read the blurb afterward and it said If they leave the path the air itself comes alive, forcing them onwards. What? Is that what was happening?!
I thought it was the warrior doing it.
Ok, see. To me, that means you didn't do a very good job explaining your story without words if the only reason I know what actually went down is due to my reading words you wrote.
And the ending was just...what?
But I thought there would be some purpose. Some explanation of...something.
No.
To me, this was just a gimmick.
And you have to really want to believe that the Emperor is wearing clothes for it to work.
August 9, 2022
Simon Spurrier teams up with Matías Bergara and Matheus Lopes for what is probably the single most emotionally engaging comic I have ever read in my life, as we follow a young girl and a mysterious giant on a harrowing journey across an unknown planet. I usually give a more in-depth summary at the beginning of my reviews, but going into Step By Bloody Step as blind as possible is the best way to experience it.
All 4 issues of Step By Bloody Step are genuine masterpieces, and that is no exaggeration. Each issue contains some of the most flawless uses of sequential art I’ve ever seen in a comic and manages to tell a heart-warming and timeless story with no words, all of which are driven by the bond between two incredible characters that I felt for the entire time.
Anyone who has read my reviews before knows how much I love Simon Spurrier, and don’t get me wrong he does a fantastic job with the story here, but the artistic duo of Matías Bergara & Matheus Lopes are the true MVPs of this series. The entire project hinged on these two and their art, and in every single issue they defied all expectations and delivered a final product that has to be seen to be believed. I know some people don’t love Begara’s work, but these are some of his best pencils ever and I just can’t see too many hating them. Obviously YMWV, but the work in here was flawless.
And Lopes is just showing off how amazing he is with colors at this point. He is at the top of his game throughout this whole book. I won’t spoil any specific moments, but the final issue, in particular, plays with colors in one of the most unique ways I’ve ever seen in a comic. It really just has to be seen to be believed.
Some may call this last issue a cop-out, but I would tell those people they should try unfreezing that cold-ass heart of theirs sometime. To me, it felt earned after what happened beforehand and it didn’t break any previously established rules. I also found it impressive that Spurrier and Bergara were able to keep some story elements ambiguous and confusing, but not in a way that is frustrating to the reader. Rather, in a way that just makes you think for some time after finishing the series.
The story will also play with the emotions of pretty much everyone who gives it the time. I cried so fucking hard at a surprising number of panels, and I don’t think any comic since Preacher has played with my emotions like this one did. And that ending was so perfect. God, my heart:(
If you missed out on the singles, go read it digitally or grab the trade later this year. This is one of the best silent comics ever and I cannot recommend it enough. Hopefully, Image eventually gets their shit together and prints an OHC too, because this series deserves it.
The word masterpiece is thrown around nowadays too much when it comes to describing books, even by me, but this one lives up to that description in every sense of the word. The creative team at hand here is at the top of their game, and this is each creator’s Magnum Opus. Beautiful, heartbreaking, jaw-dropping, and any number of adjectives you would usually use to describe graphic novels wouldn’t do this one justice. It just needs to be experienced firsthand. Get this comic book now!!!!
All 4 issues of Step By Bloody Step are genuine masterpieces, and that is no exaggeration. Each issue contains some of the most flawless uses of sequential art I’ve ever seen in a comic and manages to tell a heart-warming and timeless story with no words, all of which are driven by the bond between two incredible characters that I felt for the entire time.
Anyone who has read my reviews before knows how much I love Simon Spurrier, and don’t get me wrong he does a fantastic job with the story here, but the artistic duo of Matías Bergara & Matheus Lopes are the true MVPs of this series. The entire project hinged on these two and their art, and in every single issue they defied all expectations and delivered a final product that has to be seen to be believed. I know some people don’t love Begara’s work, but these are some of his best pencils ever and I just can’t see too many hating them. Obviously YMWV, but the work in here was flawless.
And Lopes is just showing off how amazing he is with colors at this point. He is at the top of his game throughout this whole book. I won’t spoil any specific moments, but the final issue, in particular, plays with colors in one of the most unique ways I’ve ever seen in a comic. It really just has to be seen to be believed.
Some may call this last issue a cop-out, but I would tell those people they should try unfreezing that cold-ass heart of theirs sometime. To me, it felt earned after what happened beforehand and it didn’t break any previously established rules. I also found it impressive that Spurrier and Bergara were able to keep some story elements ambiguous and confusing, but not in a way that is frustrating to the reader. Rather, in a way that just makes you think for some time after finishing the series.
The story will also play with the emotions of pretty much everyone who gives it the time. I cried so fucking hard at a surprising number of panels, and I don’t think any comic since Preacher has played with my emotions like this one did. And that ending was so perfect. God, my heart:(
If you missed out on the singles, go read it digitally or grab the trade later this year. This is one of the best silent comics ever and I cannot recommend it enough. Hopefully, Image eventually gets their shit together and prints an OHC too, because this series deserves it.
The word masterpiece is thrown around nowadays too much when it comes to describing books, even by me, but this one lives up to that description in every sense of the word. The creative team at hand here is at the top of their game, and this is each creator’s Magnum Opus. Beautiful, heartbreaking, jaw-dropping, and any number of adjectives you would usually use to describe graphic novels wouldn’t do this one justice. It just needs to be experienced firsthand. Get this comic book now!!!!
February 25, 2023
A super fun silent comic. The first couple issues are wonderful. I got a bit confused by the story in the last couple issues.
It is hard to follow with it being silent. I think it could have benefited with dropping the gimmick and adding some much needed text. That said, I do appreciate Spurrier letting the art shine.
It's a beautifully illustrated book and I can't wait to check out more work by these artists.
It is hard to follow with it being silent. I think it could have benefited with dropping the gimmick and adding some much needed text. That said, I do appreciate Spurrier letting the art shine.
It's a beautifully illustrated book and I can't wait to check out more work by these artists.
June 2, 2022
Fantastic Storytelling, if I were to describe the story (& art) it will be like Nausicaa with a mix of Moebius. I've been reading this comic as the issues (chapters) were coming out (so monthly for 4 months), and I am happy to say the ending delivered. Silent Comics I feel are rarer these days, especially to this quality. I'm glad that Si Spurrier (author) and Matias Bergara (artist) were able to collaborate and give us something so fantastic. This is a simple yet effective story about a pilgrimage. Because the storytelling is told purely from the art, the panel work featured is fabulous and he is able to capture so much humanity to the characters through their posturing, reactions etc. The worldbuilding is very intricate what I love about these types of narratives is that it really depends on you how deep you want to go. Like in BLAME (by Tsutomu Nihei) there is a lot of intricate environment storytelling with hardly any exposition its having that sense of discovery and coming to your own conclusions which is very rewarding. Furthermore, I love the use of colours, in a lot of modern comics, there are a lot of generic and bland colour designs. But here it's very vibrant and alive and gives more depth to the scenes. The other people in the team did an A-class job. In conclusion, buy this comic, this type of comic should be rewarded in this industry. When the physical edition comes out, you bet I will buy and reread it. If I had a negative for this comic, I wanted it to be longer as I didn't want to say goodbye.
August 17, 2022
9/10 ⭐⭐⭐⭐�
"Estación de sangre" deja todo el peso de la narrativa al dibujo ya que no existen diálogos. Solamente encontraremos texto al principio de los cuatro capítulos como si de un enigmático poema se tratase. ¡Y funciona realmente bien! De este modo nos vemos obligados a mirar cada viñeta, con tiempo y mimo, para entender el guión de "Simon Spurrier" y no solo para disfrutar del arte a los lápices de "Matías Bergara". Eso sí, exige una relectura para ver detalles que no se tienen en cuenta en la primera lectura.
La edición física que he comprado es la francesa, pero imagino que sacarán la edición en español en breve.
Sobre el argumento os dejo la traducción de la contraportada: “Una niña pequeña avanza. Ella no sabe nada más que DEBE avanzar, siempre en línea recta, a través de un mundo peligroso, hermoso y fantástico. Si intenta detenerse, hacer un cambio de sentido o cambiar de dirección, el aire a su alrededor cobra vida y se llena de sombras furiosas que la empujan a reanudar su viaje. Está aterrorizada pero avanza hacia un destino tan extraordinario como inesperado. Para protegerla de los peligros, un poderoso guerrero con armadura le hace de guardaespaldas. Mientras cumple su destino, descubrimos su increíble secreto...�
"Estación de sangre" deja todo el peso de la narrativa al dibujo ya que no existen diálogos. Solamente encontraremos texto al principio de los cuatro capítulos como si de un enigmático poema se tratase. ¡Y funciona realmente bien! De este modo nos vemos obligados a mirar cada viñeta, con tiempo y mimo, para entender el guión de "Simon Spurrier" y no solo para disfrutar del arte a los lápices de "Matías Bergara". Eso sí, exige una relectura para ver detalles que no se tienen en cuenta en la primera lectura.
La edición física que he comprado es la francesa, pero imagino que sacarán la edición en español en breve.
Sobre el argumento os dejo la traducción de la contraportada: “Una niña pequeña avanza. Ella no sabe nada más que DEBE avanzar, siempre en línea recta, a través de un mundo peligroso, hermoso y fantástico. Si intenta detenerse, hacer un cambio de sentido o cambiar de dirección, el aire a su alrededor cobra vida y se llena de sombras furiosas que la empujan a reanudar su viaje. Está aterrorizada pero avanza hacia un destino tan extraordinario como inesperado. Para protegerla de los peligros, un poderoso guerrero con armadura le hace de guardaespaldas. Mientras cumple su destino, descubrimos su increíble secreto...�
October 10, 2022
This comic attempts to tell a story without words. It's not entirely successful since there were several points of the story where it's not clear what is going on. However, the art in this is some of the most beautiful I've seen. It's worth picking up for the art alone.
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August 3, 2022The creators of Coda reunite for another widescreen fantasy, in which a girl makes her way across a fabulous, dangerous landscape, accompanied only by an enormous armoured figure. According to the blurb, "If they leave the path, the air itself comes alive, forcing them onwards. Why?" Well, I didn't notice that about the air (I just thought it was bad weather), and I still couldn't answer the 'Why?', because the gimmick here is that the comic is silent. Ish; there are no sound effects, and sometimes when someone opens their mouth we get a speech bubble with incomprehensible glyphs, but most of the time not, which makes me wonder why they didn't just go the whole hog, not least because then you'd save £££ on a letterer. Still, you can understand the formal appeal; as writers go, Spurrier tends to be a chatty bastard, something his bio here admits (albeit not in so many words), and his protagonists likewise, even if much of that tends to be between themselves and the reader. So good on him to try writing something without that to fall back on, and this was definitely a sensible project on which to give that a go, because it means we get to see more of Bergara's gorgeous, fantastical world, its mountains and monsters, impossible trees and glamorous balls. While it has plenty of dangers, Matheus Lopes' colours definitely play a part in making it look more seductive than the toxic, post-cataclysmic world of Coda; I can't see the double-page spread of a floor carpeted with petals working nearly so well in the earlier book, nor the vistas of fields and valleys having the same appeal, even if the blasted battlefields feel like a much closer point of contact. All the same, while there were moments beyond the scenery which moved me, I could seldom entirely avoid thinking about how much more connection I would have felt had anyone been allowed to say something.
(Edelweiss ARC)
(Edelweiss ARC)
August 18, 2022
It's hard enough to tell a 'Nuff Said story usually. A whole issue with no spoken words? Yeah, that's difficult. So of course, the idea of doing four oversized issues of that, must be daunting. And yet Si Spurrier and Mattias Bergara make it look easy.
These four issues tell the story of a little girl and her enormous robot (?) companion as they make their way across the world. It's hard to talk about the story without ruining the twists and turns along the way, but the worldbuilding is incredible, and all without a single intelligible word being spoken. And then the conclusion comes along and kicks you right in the feels with steel-capped boots on.
Bergara's artwork walks the line between whimsical fantasy and sci-fi seriousness as needed. He and Spurrier have worked together before, and only an artist/writer team so in sync would be able to pull off a book like this. Mat Lopes' colours are also beautiful, of course.
You'd think Step By Bloody Step would be a quick read, having no words to read, but it's somehow denser than most comic books you'll read these days, and you'll want to revisit it time and time again once you know the twists to see how it's all teased as you go along. A masterclass in comics storytelling.
These four issues tell the story of a little girl and her enormous robot (?) companion as they make their way across the world. It's hard to talk about the story without ruining the twists and turns along the way, but the worldbuilding is incredible, and all without a single intelligible word being spoken. And then the conclusion comes along and kicks you right in the feels with steel-capped boots on.
Bergara's artwork walks the line between whimsical fantasy and sci-fi seriousness as needed. He and Spurrier have worked together before, and only an artist/writer team so in sync would be able to pull off a book like this. Mat Lopes' colours are also beautiful, of course.
You'd think Step By Bloody Step would be a quick read, having no words to read, but it's somehow denser than most comic books you'll read these days, and you'll want to revisit it time and time again once you know the twists to see how it's all teased as you go along. A masterclass in comics storytelling.
October 31, 2022
The creators of Coda reunite for another stunner in Step By Bloody Step. It's a fantasy epic across a vast sweep of weird world-building, this time with the added complexity of no dialogue - or at least no dialogue in English. We follow a young girl and her giant knight protector as she moves across the landscape, the living embodiment of the seasons.
If that sounds like a High Idea, it definitely is, but the writing and drawing duo mostly make it work. There are moments of confusion that certainly would have benefited from words and a colorful, largely incoherent conclusion, but the overall impact of the book is one of sheer joy and fascination. I absorbed every detail of the gorgeous artwork and found myself highly engaged in the fairly complex story being told. Suffice it to say, the young girl is easily distracted as she makes her way across the world - and there are some potent distractions on hand.
Step By Bloody Step isn't perfect, but it's wildly ambitious and nearly works, so it gets a huge thumbs up from me.
If that sounds like a High Idea, it definitely is, but the writing and drawing duo mostly make it work. There are moments of confusion that certainly would have benefited from words and a colorful, largely incoherent conclusion, but the overall impact of the book is one of sheer joy and fascination. I absorbed every detail of the gorgeous artwork and found myself highly engaged in the fairly complex story being told. Suffice it to say, the young girl is easily distracted as she makes her way across the world - and there are some potent distractions on hand.
Step By Bloody Step isn't perfect, but it's wildly ambitious and nearly works, so it gets a huge thumbs up from me.
January 16, 2024
This is definitely stuff you need to read more than once. Maybe more than twice. It it wordless and says more than some books with thousand words. And I believe it everybody can interpret it in a different way. Needless to say, it is gorgeous. The artwork and layout is absolutely amazing.
August 16, 2022
Let's start with the star of this show: Matias Bergara's art. His designs, his drawings, all of them are exquisite. You should read this book for the art alone.
Spurrier's wordless-but-not-actually-wordless story is less of a success. I had several moments where I wasn't sure what was happening - I'm generally for using the least amount of text possible in comics, but here I feel the story could've used more. I completely understand Spurrier wanting to challenge himself to write completely visually, I'm just not sure this was the story to do that.
It also doesn't help that the wordlessness feels compromised. Each chapter (originally each issue) begins with a poetic little introduction, which are nicely written, sure, but the book could've done without them. Then there are the characters that do talk, it's just that they do so in glyphs.
Spurrier has decided not to include sound effects, which had an odd effect, one I didn't see coming - it made the images more static. It actually removed the sense of movement.
Look, these aren't complaints, merely observations. The book is a beautiful thing and you should absolutely read it.
(Picked up an ARC through Edelweiss)
(Thanks to the GR redesign: click on the review's date (upper right corner) to see larger versions of the screenshots.)
April 20, 2023
Fabuła Krok po kroku ukazuje małą dziewczynkę, która podróżuje przez nieznaną planetę razem ze swoim strażnikiem, ogromnym robotem. Dba on o swoją podopieczną i trzyma ją z dala niebezpieczeństw i wszelkich oznak cywilizacji, co często doprowadza do konfliktu między tą dwójką.
Możliwość odkrycia tej historii bez dodatkowych szczegółów jest ogromnym plusem, bo każdy może ją odebrać nieco inaczej, przefiltrowując ją przez pryzmat swoich doświadczeń. Jest to bowiem komiks niemy, w którym nie znajduje się żaden dialog. To moje pierwsze spotkanie z takim medium, gdzie tekst można znaleźć jedynie na początku każdego z czterech zeszytów. Całość historii przedstawiana jest jedynie za pomocą kadrów i pod względem graficznym jest to chyba najpiękniejszy komiks jaki kiedykolwiek widziałem.
I choć niektóre dwustronicowe ilustracje z powodzeniem nadawałyby się do oprawienia w ramkę, niekiedy odczuwałem brak typowych dla tej formy dymków. Historia, choć angażująca i zmuszająca do refleksji, w pewnych momentach powodowała, że się gubiłem i wciąż nie jestem pewny, czy dobrze ją zrozumiałem. Być może w tym cały urok tej historii, bo przez kilka ostatnich dni przyszło mi na myśl kilka możliwych interpretacji. Bardzo podobał mi się jednak wątek podróży, który pozwala bohaterom nie tylko lepiej zrozumieć siebie nawzajem, ale również siebie samych.
Co więcej, fabuła zamyka się w tym jednym wydaniu, więc to świetny pomysł, jeśli chcecie poczynić pierwszy (lub kolejny, jednak wciąż nieco niepewny) krok w stronę tego medium.
Możliwość odkrycia tej historii bez dodatkowych szczegółów jest ogromnym plusem, bo każdy może ją odebrać nieco inaczej, przefiltrowując ją przez pryzmat swoich doświadczeń. Jest to bowiem komiks niemy, w którym nie znajduje się żaden dialog. To moje pierwsze spotkanie z takim medium, gdzie tekst można znaleźć jedynie na początku każdego z czterech zeszytów. Całość historii przedstawiana jest jedynie za pomocą kadrów i pod względem graficznym jest to chyba najpiękniejszy komiks jaki kiedykolwiek widziałem.
I choć niektóre dwustronicowe ilustracje z powodzeniem nadawałyby się do oprawienia w ramkę, niekiedy odczuwałem brak typowych dla tej formy dymków. Historia, choć angażująca i zmuszająca do refleksji, w pewnych momentach powodowała, że się gubiłem i wciąż nie jestem pewny, czy dobrze ją zrozumiałem. Być może w tym cały urok tej historii, bo przez kilka ostatnich dni przyszło mi na myśl kilka możliwych interpretacji. Bardzo podobał mi się jednak wątek podróży, który pozwala bohaterom nie tylko lepiej zrozumieć siebie nawzajem, ale również siebie samych.
Co więcej, fabuła zamyka się w tym jednym wydaniu, więc to świetny pomysł, jeśli chcecie poczynić pierwszy (lub kolejny, jednak wciąż nieco niepewny) krok w stronę tego medium.
November 22, 2022
A giant robot with a human head inside it escorts a young girl across a fantastical landscape. I think there might be an (evil?) empire chasing them, or it could just be unaffiliated incidental encounters. Or maybe they're flashbacks? No way to tell.
I don't know where they come from or where they're going.
Sometimes the robot is sad but I don't know why.
Occasionally the girl is angry with the robot but I can't tell why.
The robot's head is that of a girl except when it is briefly elderly.
Occasionally there are natural disasters out of nowhere, tsunamis and duststorms, and hell if I can figure out why.
The illustration is stunning. Epic two-page spreads and small inset panels and creative layouts. Vibrant colors and steampunk cityscapes and natural wonderlands and bizarre creatures big and small and sometimes sentient.
But as gorgeous as it is, the art is absolutely not up to the task of telling this story unaided. The experience is closer to that of flipping through a portfolio than to reading a book. It's a laudably ambitious experiment that unfortunately doesn't succeed.
I don't know where they come from or where they're going.
Sometimes the robot is sad but I don't know why.
Occasionally the girl is angry with the robot but I can't tell why.
The robot's head is that of a girl except when it is briefly elderly.
Occasionally there are natural disasters out of nowhere, tsunamis and duststorms, and hell if I can figure out why.
The illustration is stunning. Epic two-page spreads and small inset panels and creative layouts. Vibrant colors and steampunk cityscapes and natural wonderlands and bizarre creatures big and small and sometimes sentient.
But as gorgeous as it is, the art is absolutely not up to the task of telling this story unaided. The experience is closer to that of flipping through a portfolio than to reading a book. It's a laudably ambitious experiment that unfortunately doesn't succeed.
July 3, 2022
I love it. Very creative, very beautiful. Not quite as easy to follow as I'd expected, but I enjoyed the challenge of a wordless book.
January 30, 2023
Probably one of the most visually astonishing graphic novels I’ve read so far.
July 17, 2024
Wow, this was really great! I was a bit skeptical after realizing this is a wordless comics, but Simon Spurrier and Matias Bergara did a great job of telling the story through their panels.
While you know nothing about the main duo of a little girl and her gigantic armored protector, I got instantly hooked by their journey through the rough fantasy landscape. The concept of the changing seasons and the dynamics between the girl and her protector was nicely done.
The final part was a little chaotic, but everything clicked for me at the end. This was one of the rare occasions when I was happy to read through the bonuses to see how the script was written and transferred to the panels.
While you know nothing about the main duo of a little girl and her gigantic armored protector, I got instantly hooked by their journey through the rough fantasy landscape. The concept of the changing seasons and the dynamics between the girl and her protector was nicely done.
The final part was a little chaotic, but everything clicked for me at the end. This was one of the rare occasions when I was happy to read through the bonuses to see how the script was written and transferred to the panels.
June 4, 2023
3.5/4* actually.
A wordless adventure set in a dark and cruel fantasy world with monsters, human-looking and non-human-looking sentient beings, a mystical-mechanical guardian and a special child. I admit that the total lack of words is a unique and bold choice, and the creators are certainly trying to tell a story, however I'm not sure I understood any of it.
On the other hand the artwork and the colouring are stunning. Every frame is like a beautiful painting and my eyes couldn't have enough of the visual depiction of this story's strange world.
A wordless adventure set in a dark and cruel fantasy world with monsters, human-looking and non-human-looking sentient beings, a mystical-mechanical guardian and a special child. I admit that the total lack of words is a unique and bold choice, and the creators are certainly trying to tell a story, however I'm not sure I understood any of it.
On the other hand the artwork and the colouring are stunning. Every frame is like a beautiful painting and my eyes couldn't have enough of the visual depiction of this story's strange world.
January 19, 2023
*Attempt 2: I deleted my original review due to shenanigans.
Step By Bloody Step, by Simon Spurrier, is a gorgeous graphic novel billed as a "wordless fantasy". There is no dialogue in this novel, and the entire story is told through panel. We follow a young girl and her armoured guardian through a lush fantasy world filled with marauding armies, fantastical and dangerous creatures, laser rifle totting bandits, and more. The worldbuilding here is top notch, and as a fan of this style of story telling in books, film and video games, this was a favourite of mine for the year. It reminds me of the detailed worlds of Samurai Jack, with its mixture of sword-play fantasy and futuristic science fiction. I really enjoyed this book, and would recommend to fans of science fiction and fantasy, and for those who enjoy a detailed visual experience in their graphic novels.
Step By Bloody Step, by Simon Spurrier, is a gorgeous graphic novel billed as a "wordless fantasy". There is no dialogue in this novel, and the entire story is told through panel. We follow a young girl and her armoured guardian through a lush fantasy world filled with marauding armies, fantastical and dangerous creatures, laser rifle totting bandits, and more. The worldbuilding here is top notch, and as a fan of this style of story telling in books, film and video games, this was a favourite of mine for the year. It reminds me of the detailed worlds of Samurai Jack, with its mixture of sword-play fantasy and futuristic science fiction. I really enjoyed this book, and would recommend to fans of science fiction and fantasy, and for those who enjoy a detailed visual experience in their graphic novels.
June 21, 2022
Just a lovely mini series. I read it as it came out, but it really needs a reread or graphic novel in order to make sense of everything. The art and coloring is fantastic, which is necessary since it has no legible script. There is a bit of a pictograph type written dialog, one symbol of which is pretty decipherable (and the others may be as well, for the cryptography inclined), but that's it.
It tells the story of a young girl and her huge protector. Her protector is doing her best to shield her from physical harm and from loss of innocence, so this is essentially a mom and daughter type tale. There are several scenes where the protector is doing battle with some monstrosity while the girl is blissfully unaware. But, as we do, the girl begins to chafe under the protection of her knight in armor and yearns to rebel.
The art has to do all the narrative work here, so it takes some careful scrutiny and memory to follow along. But they keep things simple enough, even if there's no way to explain the finer details. The art is amazing. Many gorgeous two-page spreads. And the story is touching and sweet. I'm glad my local comic store suggested it.
It tells the story of a young girl and her huge protector. Her protector is doing her best to shield her from physical harm and from loss of innocence, so this is essentially a mom and daughter type tale. There are several scenes where the protector is doing battle with some monstrosity while the girl is blissfully unaware. But, as we do, the girl begins to chafe under the protection of her knight in armor and yearns to rebel.
The art has to do all the narrative work here, so it takes some careful scrutiny and memory to follow along. But they keep things simple enough, even if there's no way to explain the finer details. The art is amazing. Many gorgeous two-page spreads. And the story is touching and sweet. I'm glad my local comic store suggested it.
February 24, 2022
I assume this version is for the trade paperback. This review is for comic #1. It's beautiful. The lack of words means we need to linger on the panel and interpret the story. At face value, the story is interesting with fantasy and sci fi elements that invoke metal giants, fae folk, monsters, and Dr. Seuss. ;) But, figuratively and metaphorically, this speaks loudly of how a child, protected from the ugly world at large, sees wondrous beauty instead of violence and giant spines interspersed within the tree trunks of the forest. That despite walls erecting between them and what they want that they may or may not still get it, and that if they don't get it immediately, they may be able to hone their abilities to create it later. That even as they grow, children are curious and delighted in play even as their protector engages in battle. It's absolutely beautiful on both fronts.
June 30, 2022
Incredibly well delivered story, I wouldn’t change a single thing about it! The best part is how powerfully emotional Bergara’s art can be, not a word is spoken but holy fuck does this bring the feels!
January 29, 2025
I read this for Book Riot’s Read Harder 2025 Challenge- Prompt 23: Read a wordless comic. So like on one hand, I probably never would have picked this up otherwise and I really liked the artwork and I never ever read a wordless comic before! But, for me, following the story was a challenge, I never knew how much I relied on words to get the story across in a comic. That sounds stupid now that I’ve said it out loud but what can I say, I’m stupid.
August 6, 2023
Although a wordless adventure, it encourages mental exercise with the help of amazing art. My visuospatial skills were put to the test by having to extrapolate a narrative surrounding an arduous journey involving a mother/daughter reincarnation.
March 16, 2023
So good! This was a little like finding an amazing comic in another language. I don't speak German, so I can imagine picking up a gorgeous German comic and following along just through the artwork.
The artwork. Dude. It's so stunning. I loved it. Not having any intelligible dialogue really forced me to focus in on the artwork and appreciate it. You really have to use your context clues to parse what's happening in the panels. It can be a little disorienting. But what it really made me want to do was go right back to the beginning and read it again after I had my bearings. That's the mark of a good graphic novel if you ask me.
The story is great, well-constructed and well-told. I loved the setting. I enjoyed the swift aging of our protagonist. So much fun, so beautifully crafted.
The artwork. Dude. It's so stunning. I loved it. Not having any intelligible dialogue really forced me to focus in on the artwork and appreciate it. You really have to use your context clues to parse what's happening in the panels. It can be a little disorienting. But what it really made me want to do was go right back to the beginning and read it again after I had my bearings. That's the mark of a good graphic novel if you ask me.
The story is great, well-constructed and well-told. I loved the setting. I enjoyed the swift aging of our protagonist. So much fun, so beautifully crafted.
January 20, 2023
The artwork is amazing, that's the only thing I can say. I get what the team was trying to do here, but it missed the mark. I just breezed through this. Wanted to actually enjoy it, but couldn't. The no words thing is just too gimmicky.
January 10, 2023
I'm often mixed on wordless books. I mean, this one is aight, it doesn't really need words to tell the story.
I've sometimes wondered if something bad happened in my life, whether I could get away with telling everyone I'm taking a vow of silence, as my religion dictates. Which religion? Well, I don't know, pick one. Have you read THE WHOLE book for that thing? Didn't think so!
Think of the meetings you could avoid! The boring chatter! The social situations!
I feel like it'd be a productive year for me.
I've sometimes wondered if something bad happened in my life, whether I could get away with telling everyone I'm taking a vow of silence, as my religion dictates. Which religion? Well, I don't know, pick one. Have you read THE WHOLE book for that thing? Didn't think so!
Think of the meetings you could avoid! The boring chatter! The social situations!
I feel like it'd be a productive year for me.
June 12, 2022
Mon coup de cœur BD de cette première partie de l'année.
Une fille doit marcher inexorablement vers un destin dont elle ignore tout. Guidé par un robot étrange, elle ne peut dévier de sa route sous aucun prétexte. Alors que les saisons s'enchaînent, la fillette évolue et grandit dans un monde qu'elle découvre au fur et à mesure de son périple. Mais dans quel but, et que l'attend-il au bout du chemin ?
Saison de sang est récit muet porté par les dessins magnifiques et oniriques de Matías Bergara, non emprunt parfois d'une certaine violence. On le dévore sans s'en rendre compte, faisant défiler les pages pour découvrir ce qui attend cette jeune fille, jusqu'au dénouement final qui peut surprendre, mais qui, personnellement, m'a beaucoup plu.
Une BD qui je recommande 1000 fois et que je vous invite à au moins feuilleter si vous en avez l'occasion.
Une fille doit marcher inexorablement vers un destin dont elle ignore tout. Guidé par un robot étrange, elle ne peut dévier de sa route sous aucun prétexte. Alors que les saisons s'enchaînent, la fillette évolue et grandit dans un monde qu'elle découvre au fur et à mesure de son périple. Mais dans quel but, et que l'attend-il au bout du chemin ?
Saison de sang est récit muet porté par les dessins magnifiques et oniriques de Matías Bergara, non emprunt parfois d'une certaine violence. On le dévore sans s'en rendre compte, faisant défiler les pages pour découvrir ce qui attend cette jeune fille, jusqu'au dénouement final qui peut surprendre, mais qui, personnellement, m'a beaucoup plu.
Une BD qui je recommande 1000 fois et que je vous invite à au moins feuilleter si vous en avez l'occasion.
October 24, 2022
Ufaaa! This was f. amazing!
It has:
- Gorgeous, but, gorgeous artwork!
- No spoken words!
- Kind of an unpredictable story!
- A f. psychedelic ending, but... I felt that it made sense, in a way!!! (Strange!! I know!!!)
I was blown up! Now I have another graphic novel that I need to add to my collection!
It has:
- Gorgeous, but, gorgeous artwork!
- No spoken words!
- Kind of an unpredictable story!
- A f. psychedelic ending, but... I felt that it made sense, in a way!!! (Strange!! I know!!!)
I was blown up! Now I have another graphic novel that I need to add to my collection!
March 3, 2022
7 caption bubbles and not a single one in a language any of us, but the author who created it, can understand. Still, I'm intrigued. The art really told a great story and I'm interested to see where this goes.
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