Empowered Volume 1

For obvious reasons this is best viewed on a tablet device, and all the artwork is in black and white apart from the front and back covers. Here we see our super heroine getting in a number of scrapes and incidents whilst wearing her skin-tight super costume or other figure-hugging outfits or losing part or all of her clothing. I should point out that even when naked you are not going to see intimate parts illustrated, so if that is what you are looking for then you need to seek elsewhere.There is arguably too much dialogue going on throughout this and so a lot of frames are taken up with some major text, and at times I certainly had the feeling that this was trying to be too clever and funnier than it actually is, so really this is something that I would mark as a teen boy’s comic, where they can get their rocks off and think they are cleverer than they actually are, and of course snigger.The artwork is really good here and I am sure many will enjoy the partially clad main character (and other women) often getting tied up, making me think that perhaps the artist likes a bit of bondage, which there is nothing wrong with. If you do decide to download this, I would suggest trying a sample first and seeing if it is your cup of tea.

I'm into proper bindings. This one is proper. It's a sewn hardback that makes me happy whenever I notice the thread. I bought mine used, which means it's slightly looser than I prefer, but I imagine that it originally compared well to the Deluxe Volume 2 and 3 which I got new. Top notch on packaging, with nice paper and printing.The comic itself is, as all stories are, highly subjective. The so-called "cheesecake" imagery almost managed to make me drop this, but the main heroine (with her all too many, all too human foibles) pulled me in. The story grew into one of the grittiest superhero settings I've encountered (and yes, I've read Ennis) while still managing the occasional humorous moment - and doing this at the same time as making me deeply invested in the personal stories of the protagonists. I stand in awe of mister Warren's storytelling prowess which, his self-deprecating manner tells me, he himself doesn't exactly rate highly. He should, though!For those new to this story, I would describe this as a weird mixture of Girl Genius and TMNT. It shares a certain grittiness and uncertain origins with TMNT, while the world-building and developing stories (as well as art) more closely parallels Girl Genius. As a fan of both, I would actually rate this higher than Girl Genius, probably because the characters feel more relatable and in-context coherent.DO be aware, though, that even if Girl Genius has it's share of cheese and posing, Empowered definitely takes it to another level. This might pull some readers in and push others out, but is something my reading of manga have trained me to just ignore. I imagine otherwise it might have done the latter. Later volumes are starting to shift their focus away from that, but the characters' sex-lives (or lack thereof) is still a part of the storytelling. To the point that some of my favourite scenes are when the Caged Demonwolf (don't ask, read) alliteratively narrates not-quite-factual encounters.Mister Warren has produced a narrative of the highest order, one I will read and re-read for years to come, and I hope he keeps daring to rely ever less on the cheese and ever more on his own skills.TL;DR. Buy everything Empowered. Now.

Not great but not terrible It has this whole feel of a newspaper comic strip (a short story/ comic with punchline at the end)the sort that you would skim read chuckle and then put down. (like Garfield)The characters are fairly boring (sadly) but they also don't need to be complex for the quick gags the comic book provides.(the short comics also have simple plot that follows throughout)The biggest draw for the comic is the art, it's constantly good throughout.

I've never been a true-blue superhero fan; sure, I read a lot of comics, but something about some whiter-than-white knight always being there to step in never rang true with me. It goes the other way too; these supposedly "gritty" antihero-types that cut a bloody swathe through villains with impunity just seem to revel in gore like the worst kinds of horror movies. So when a friend recommended what looked like a pretty run-of-the-mill cape-book to me, I had second thoughts. Thankfully, Empowered is not really a typical superhero book... it's more of an exercise in the three F's: Fun, Fanservice and Fetters.Empowered is a third-string superheroine trying to cope with her lowly status and marginally-useless superpowers. The superteam she works with, a largely odious bunch called The Superhomeys, mock her tendency to get captured and tied-up a lot, while Emp has to deal with the fact her abilities come from a super-suit that makes her both super-strong, durable and able to throw energy blasts, but is so skin-tight it may as well be painted on (she can't even wear anything underneath it and Emp has mountains of body-issues) and the slightest damage to it renders her almost completely powerless - so much as a close encounter with a rosebush leaves her helpless. And usually trussed up and used as a hostage. Despite the constant embarassment, Emp refuses to give up her dream of making a difference and being a real hero.Along the way she picks up a new boyfriend, Thugboy (an ex-minion for various supervillains and genuine nice-guy who believes in Emp's abilities when she doesn't), a new best friend Ninjette (a boozy ninja gal who tries to give Emp a crash-course in fighting and getting sloshed) and an eldritch abomination called the Caged Demonwolf (that Empowered captured while it was thrashing all the Superhomeys, and she got zero props for) that is forced to stay imprisoned in her home due to zoning issues. With her new buddies, Empowered gets the support she needs to cope with the pressures of being a superhero (and the frankly douche-y attitude most of the Superhomeys - particularly the catty sorceress Sistah Spooky, who has... "issues" with pretty blonde girls like Emp) and to make her feel a little better about constantly getting tied up, taken prisoner, and because of her fragile suit, usually ending up almost naked every time some supervillainy goes down.As you might guess, Empowered is a less than serious book. If you're looking for something with the weight of say Alan Moore or Warren Ellis, you might be a little disappointed; it doesn't really have a plotline beyond short vignettes, being an introduction book for a series, is largely comedic, and occasionally points out some of the absurdities of the superhero genre without coming across as mean-spirited the way some studies of the subject do. Some of the gags are suitably broad (a hero called Syndblokk who has... uh... a cinderblock for a head) while others revolve around the age-old damsel-in-distress image of a bound and gagged gal at the mercy of bad guys being our hero. While the book is labelled as having explicit content, it's actually pretty tame; all the naughty words are censored by the artist, and any nudity is either tastefully cropped or is of the Barbie-doll school of anatomy... this is hardly a book like Crossed or The Boys. Sure, there's a lot of sex in the book, and some humour pitched well below the waist, but this is not something that will cause serious offence unless you're seriously prudish. Compared to a lot of other books that are popular at the moment, Empowered is pretty innocent. It's not all chuckles, mind you, as there are promises of darker plotlines; Thugboy's shady past and a particularly sick supervillain called Willy Pete (a wild-bearded man of superheated flame that likes to do seriously deviant things to people's eyesockets... eww) loom here and seem to suggest the books will gather pace and seriousness in future.As first encounters go, I was impressed with Empowered; while I wasn't sure I would like it, I found myself smiling and enjoying it in the end. It's not the deepest or most serious of books, but if you are looking for a fun little deconstruction of the superhero comic with a healthy dose of T&A and traditional good-girl art, with the clear beginnings of something with more weight and interest beyond the bondage, you might just like this book. Adam Warren might just have a fun future classic on his hands here.