Product Description

War: The Ultimate Reality Show In the future, war is entertainment--scheduled, televised and rated. Its stars are the Psychic Commandos--"Psy-Comms." Enter Mark Leit, a young man destined to become the greatest Psy-Comm of them all. But a tragedy from his past, and an unexpected encounter with the enemy, will cause him to question everything his life has come to represent. In this chillingly prophetic sci-fi epic, Jason Henderson, Tony Salvaggio, and Shane Granger have created a disturbing depiction of a future in desperate need of hope.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #605832 in Books
• Published on: 2005-11-08
• Released on: 2005-11-08
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 192 pages

From Publishers Weekly
This latest homegrown manga effort focuses on a group of genetically engineered psychic commandos, or Psy-Comms, all of whom are the assembly-line-pretty sort one has come to expect from this genre. Precog Mark and shape-shifter David survive a mission that kills Raven, their teammate and Mark's lover. They are then assigned to travel behind enemy lines and assassinate the scientist who is masterminding the creation of a rival force of young soldiers, each armed with a startling array of paranormal abilities. When the assassination is discovered, the two Psy-Comms must escape from the enemy barracks and contend with the bloodthirsty horde of young soldiers who seek to avenge their "father." Things take an unexpected turn when Mark saves the life of Snow, an enemy soldier who resembles his dead lover, and the two must fend for themselves while their own opposing factions seek to hunt them down like mad dogs. Traveling well-worn youth-with-superpowers territory covered in the various X-Men titles for the past 25 years, this series is competently drawn and moves at a brisk pace, but acts mostly as a setup for future volumes. (Dec.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From School Library Journal
Grade 7 Up–This is an ambitious beginning to a new series with a plot that is both timely and plausible. The story takes place in the future–a time when wars are fought not for territory, power, or greed, but for mere entertainment. In an era when reality TV seems to be the rage, this theme seems strikingly relevant. Mark Leit, a young commando, is one of the heroes of the televised war; he is a stereotypical gung-ho soldier at the start of the book, but he takes on real dimension when a reminder from his past makes him begin to question why hes fighting. The art is lively, reminiscent of old GI Joe comics, and captures emotion well; the story is full of battle scenes, and the illustrations portray the action well. However, little time is spent addressing how and why the war is started, and how the soldiers are convinced to continue fighting. These questions leave plenty of fodder for the forthcoming books.–Scott La Counte, Anaheim Public Library, CA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Customer Reviews

The start of something good.
Psy-Comm is a fun romp through a sci-fi future in which war is a form of entertainment controlled by the media. It's running-man meets Mutant X. Its got a little bit of everything: action, politics, super-powers, romance...

This first book (in what I hope ends up as a long on-going series) sets up the world and story very quick and very efficiently. I think it uses a lot of familiar themes from old cartoons/comics to its advantage, yet does not feel like more of the same. The writing does not over/underexplain and the art is very detailed. You can tell alot of thought and effort went into both.

All around this is a quality book and if you are interested in US-bred manga then it is not one to pass up. Can't wait til the next one comes out.

Go Psy-Comm!
I'm terribly excited about this book and where it's going! The art was absolutely beautiful and polished (in just about every way conceivable), and the story was captivating. And as far as a book made by Americans under the name of "manga", this is definitely one of the best I've seen so far. It's clearly not imitating and it has a lot to offer! Most importantly, it's not the type of sci-fi that only sci-fi fans will be able to enjoy. It has some real human elements that I think will help it to cross all types of genres. Take me--I read almost nothing but shoujo (Japanese comics geared toward girls that are more drama based), and yet I can't wait to read their next book. Go Psy-Comm!

Best Non-Japanese Manga I've Read
Non-Japanese, yet Japanese-style comics haven't really been so popular in the past. The Japanese largely think of them as rip-offs, and for the most part they'd be right. Every once in a while something comes along that's so good it ranks among the top of the art form it imitates. This is one such manga.

The first volume quickly sets up a distopian sci-fi world that somehow seems all-too-familiar. Super-corporations wage wars and make stars of the combatants. Super-powered soldiers wipe out normal ones in huge swaths of carnage, and everything is a super-coated reality tv show version of a grim reality.

The world of Psy-comm is cool, to be sure, but that's not the hook. What is, is the wonderful anime-style character development. There's two friends who are stars of the battlefield, but while one of them loves his celebrity status the other couldn't care less and more or less does what he does because it is his job. He's your typical anime/comic style loner who can't get over his past (a girl he cared about died in a battle and he blames himself). When he's on a mission and sees a girl who looks just like her, he decides there and then that he's done with killing, and runs away. Simple plot. Even clique'. But guess what? It works.

The art style is clean and sharp and pulls you in, the action sequences are fantastic, moving at a fast pace and continually throwing surprises your way as powers are used in unusual ways. The pacing and way the story unfolds keeps you in anticipation of what will happen next.

I waited years after the first volume was released for the second one, and feared that it had been canceled. Now I'm desperately anticipating the third volume. Right now, this is the ONLY comic I am still following volume by volume. If you enjoy anime, sci, or especially anime sci-fi, this is the manga for you.