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| Presenting the Rai Book One Trade Paperback |
Everyone enjoys a good quest story now and then, and that's what Valiant Comics gives us with writer Dan Abnett's ongoing Rai series. Rai's mission is to protect mankind, as well as the lives of all sentient-biological creatures, by locating and destroying the Offspring. In order to do this, he and his brother, fellow robot (or positronic) Raijin, set out across the blasted lands and deserted cities of North America.
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| Raijin attempts to placate the Anarcho-Baron clan |
The Offspring are the remnants of an Artificial Intelligence (A.I.) once known as Father, which ran a vast, orbital city of New Japan. As with the Horcruxes in J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter series, if Father, or Bloodfather as he is now known, can assemble enough of them, the A.I. can regather his strength, and exercise his powers to their fullest extent. Thus, Rai sees locating and destroying these as key to the preservation of intelligent life on Earth. For if Bloodfather reclaims them first, he can remake all biological life in his image. The Humans and Positronic Robots who survived the destruction when New Japan fell to Earth, and the intelligent animals known as the Kor'Tunga who now call our planet home, will be robbed of free will. Through the use of nanites, their bodies will be possessed, and their identities rewritten, if Bloodfather becomes all-powerful.
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| Beware the Bloodfather |
No one feels this mission quite as personally as Rai. It was his disagreement over how New Japan should be run that led to his battle with Father, and the destruction of New Japan. After pieces of the orbital city fell to Earth, some of the survivors gathered in Sontaku City, where Rai attempted to cobble together a functional--if not a utopian--society in this post-apocalyptic world. What happened there when the A.I. Father awakened, and became Bloodfather, propelled Rai on this quest. As a Positronic imbued with a sense of Humanity, as Rai seeks to find and destroy all the Offspring, he is also discovering what it means to be Human.
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| Gilad Anni-Padda, the Eternal Warrior, questions how Rai treats Raijin |
Along the way, many will criticize him for his single-minded approach. Friends will accuse him of being uncaring. Survivors of New Japan will blame him for the death of family and friends, and insist he aid them in remaking their lives. The inhabitants of this damaged and changed world will blame him for the devastation caused by fallen debris, and how the influx of refugees from New Japan have strained their communities' resources. Even his brother Raijin will insist that he moderate his stance, and balance his all-consuming desire to destroy Offspring with aiding isolated communities.
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| Raijin and Rai discuss Rai's ability to empathize with Humans |
Rai is not wholly wrong about the virtue of his cause. But neither is he totally right as to how best to achieve it. Like many of us, he finds growing up means taking on responsibility, not just for himself, but also for those around him. As a robot with the ability to think and act as a Human, he finds it no easier to juggle responsibility, mission, and caring for others. Yes, he can be obstinate at times, and shut others out, believing he knows best. But as he can feel and learn, he becomes no stranger to personal growth.
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| Rai meet Loci, a forgotten smart-home A.I. |
Traveling to distant places, and interacting with the people there, can promote personal growth. In Rai and Raijin's case, they meet up with technology scavengers capable of taking on any of the isolated communities in the Mad Max franchise. In an abandoned city, they find a pristine home managed by an A.I. called Loci, who after eight hundred years still yearns to fulfill her programming, and care for those who walked through her door.
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| Raijin greets a hungry Torvosaurus |
Sauropods and Theropod dinosaurs--positronic constructs that roamed entertainment zones of New Japan--pursue and attack them. In an attempt to contact them, a well-meaning friend will inadvertantly reveal Rai's physical location to Bloodfather. And at a community farmed for nineteen generations, a fifteen hundred year old piece of terraforming equipment--once used in an attempt to colonize Mars and now essential to the community--attracts an army summoned by Bloodfather.
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| Bloodfather's army attacks. |
Rai Book One collects the first five issues of the ongoing Rai series. At $9.99, this represents a real bargain. And that's before you consider all the extras that Valiant throws in, such as copies of covers and interior art. Issues that entertained on a monthly basis function equally well when read in a single sitting. Story aspects that seemed incidental will combine, making aspects of the characters and this future world more clear.
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| The Eternal Warrior in Black & White. |
Tying Dan Abnett's intricate and evolving story together is the beautiful penciling of Juan Jose Ryp, the vibrant coloring of Andrew Dalhouse, and the energetic lettering of Dave Sharpe. Through the guidance of Series editors Lysa Hawkins and David Menchel, Collection editor Ivan Cohen, and Collection Designer Steve Blackwell (as well as many other talented people), Valiant Comics has produced a must-have trade paperback for your bookshelf.
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| My beloved Rai #1-5 Pre-Order issues |
When I say must-have, I mean what I say. For even though I already own the individual issues, and have read each through several times, I purchased the trade paperback as well. This will save wear-and-tear on my bagged-and-boarded issues, and make rereading the series much easier in the future.
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| Rai Book 1 finds its place in my home |
All of which goes to say that there can be no question as to whether Rai Book One is worth your time and money. And look: it's even Rai-approved!
Dragon Dave
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