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Built is the
story of a robot fighting his
programming & his masters.
story & words - Brian
John Mitchell
artwork - Joe Badon
read
a PDF of Built #1 | read
a CBZ of Built #1
order individual issues of Built for $1 ($2 intn'l) |
Reviews:
* Built #1 *
In
a test balloon first issue, we are introduced to a robot who just isn't
like all the other robots. While it is obviously a tenuous position, to
be unlike the others, a story of a robot that is like all the others
simply wouldn't be very interesting. Our protagonist works through a
series of search-for-self activities, which is something a lot of
non-robots have experience in.
The premise is intriguing, and I
think we can all relate to accidentally killing all the humans. I am a
sucker for the self-aware robot trope; I probably read too much Asimov
as a kid. Lucky me, Built #1 is all about the self-aware robot.
Self-awareness is not enough, of course, to put serious meat on the
story, but the story wastes no time providing serious action. It even
ends with a bit of a cliff hanger, unless I have totally
mis-understood, and the robot will simply stroll away nonchalantly.
Joe
Badon's art is raw and a bit sketchy (not in the sense of being
unsavory, but in the literal sense), but very expressive nonetheless. I
know it cannot be easy being confined to such a small working area! The
sketchiness of it actually gives it a feeling of urgency, and edginess.
This is not a story about one of those excessively cute toy robots you
see in a Pixar film, this robot is definitely not safe for toddlers!
Paired
with Badon's art, Mitchell's story and words are delivered in a
decisively streamlined and effective manner. It would take me at least
twice as many words to tell someone what happens in this comic as are
actually used in it! I'm impressed and will be interested to see where
the story goes from here. If you are generally not into anthropomorphic
robots, aka androids, or have truly abandoned the notion of self-aware
androids, skip it. Everyone else will be digging Built #1 and waiting
for the next issue to turn up.
~ Holly von Winckel, Sequential Tart
One
machine a robot goes beyond it's programing. It wants to be more. It
wants to live. Yes it is even willing to fight for what it wants.
The art here is simple. There is not much to it. The robot still his
his emotions come across nicely. This robot will elicit some
feelings from you of pity and joy both as it experiences human
emotions. As it fights for its rights as a being.
~ Richard Vasseur, Jazma Online
This
is the first of a number of mini-mini-mini comics I’m going to be
reviewing by Silber Media, each only the size of a box of matches. Not
a large box for lighting barbeques, but one of the tiny complementary
boxes you get in bars and hotels. Tiny. It’s an interesting approach to
making comics and each comes in a tiny little poly bag too, which makes
the whole thing adorably cute.
For those of you wondering how such a
tiny comic works, each page is given over to a single image and a
sentence or two from the narrator. In this case the main character, a
robot who is always on. Yep, he can’t turn off. Whilst other robots
turn off and recharge, he remains on and spends the time analysing
faults and repairing his flaws. This, it appears, is his biggest
problem. Rather than be perfect, he wishes to be alive. Built for
fighting, the robot plans to make his escape from the arena…
As you
can imagine, being of such size and with only a single image per page,
Built is a quick read, perfect for journeys, toilet breaks and killing
a few minutes during downtime. It’s an enjoyable read and despite being
so brisk, packs a punch. Well written, it is intriguing based upon only
the little bits it gives away which point at a much larger picture. The
artwork is simple and sketchy which prevents it from being too busy on
the page, as well as lending itself well to the pace of the story.
Overall,
Built is worth checking out. At only $1 ($2) international for each
comic Silber put out, or any 10 for $8/$10, it’s definitely something
to try. This is definitely one of my favourites of the comics Silber
have sent.
~ Chris Wigley, Hand Drawn Awesome
This was a real
solid read, that I hate to think might be best as just a one shot. The
idea of the machine having it’s purpose, but wanting more is very
intriguing. Can you say hello Skynet? Just kidding. The pacing on
this story works very well, each page moves it along so nicely. I
really got a great feel for the robot and his internal struggle. The
artwork played nicely with the story as well, and just lead to a great
read.
~ Decapitated Dan, From the Tomb
Comic books don’t need
to be complicated. They don’t need a complex story, 3D effects, well
known writers…. you get my point. Comic books are fun, are meant to be
fun & entertaining. There are different genres & styles for
everyone.
Have you ever seen mini-comics the size of a pack of matches? I have, & let me tell you, they are pretty sweet!
Silber Media was kind enough to send us a few of their mini-comics our way.
The
one I read was “Built”. This one has a little drama to it. Is not a
funny story. “Is the story of a robot fighting his programming &
his masters.”
Click Here for a free preview. This robot wants to be
perfect, & on his quest for perfection, he realizes he is becoming,
human…you gotta read it. I was able to embrace this story, I really
liked it, it might sound funny but you can really feel this robot’s
struggle & what he is going through. & that is what is so cool
about these mini-comics!
I really recommend you check them out: http://www.silbermedia.com/comics/ support indie comics & tell us what you think.
~ Agent Burgos, Comic Book Therapy
The
art of Built possesses some of the sketchy mechanical grace of someone
like Matt Dye or Mike Kunkel. The sentient robot is concerned with
improving itself in an aspirational story. It’s fun to see the robot
attempting to fight its programming and exert some free will. The basic
narrative touches on this existential dilemma that everyone, robot or
human, must contend with. What is our purpose in life? My only real
complaint with Built is that too many of the shots are zoomed into
close-up. I’d like to see the artist pull the camera out to reveal the
backgrounds and the surrounding world a bit more. There’s this
repetition of figure in foreground, figure in foreground, figure in
foreground, from panel to panel that eventually starts to feel a little
claustrophobic. One of the other issues I’ve noticed with the library
of Silber Media books I’ve encountered is that they are never
hand-lettered, and always use a pretty mechanical font, which gives a
cold clinical feel to the work. In my mind, the entire line of books
could be improved with just this one key adjustment.
~ Justin Giampaoli, Poopsheet Foundation
* Built #2 *
This
is a follow up to last year's Built #1, the story of a robot who has
lost his grasp of purpose. Having left the known environment and
ventured into the unknown, he discovers that the unknown kinda sucks.
As is often the way, the unknown sucks less when one uses the buddy
system, and our hero goes home with the first sympathetic individual he
encounters.
Conceptually, Built is poised somewhere between
speculating about machine intelligence and commenting directly on human
folly. Perhaps this is familiar territory, at least for science fiction
fans, but the good news is that there is nothing jaded or predictable
here. There is a sort of naivete or just a lack of pretense about this
story that makes it engaging and relevant.
Visually, this mini-comic
is done in a rough, somewhat sketchy style. Each panel is divided
between text and image, and some of the images are especially
evocative. The story is moved by the robot's narration, but the images
fill in all the nuances of emotion that are not expressed in the text.
If
you are into introspective comics and not shy about looking at things
from a point of view perhaps very different to your own, Built #2 might
be just the comic for you.
~ Holly von Winckel, Sequential Tart
Our
robot seems confused as he hides in an alley way. A woman happens along
who seems really nice. She is beautiful and the robot is big.
The woman takes him home and we see a bit about how a robot might see humans.
The
story and art are both simple. We could use some more information like
their names. Not a lot happens. These two meet and like being with each
other. The robot seems content that he has found a purpose now.
~ Richard Vasseur, Jazma Online
* Built #3 *
Is
it possible for a comic to be one long “awwwww!!!” And just to clarify
that, I mean that sound effect to indicate cuteness, not terror. This
time around our hero the free robot has taken refuge with a lady who
seemingly likes to take in strays. As such, in this issue the robot
gets to know a stray cat she has taken in, and gets to observe the
behavior and speech patterns of this creature. The bits about it not
functioning properly (as it’s a bit panicked about being taken in
initially) and it malfunctioning but being strangely endearing
regardless (while purring) were hilarious. I’m generally against
spoiling such moments in a review, but there are more than a few of
them sprinkled in here. I have no idea of the direction of this series
overall, as this entire issue was confined to the house, but I’m still
intrigued to see where this is going. This issue, all by itself, is
adorable, and one of those issues that you could show non-comics
reading people to get them on your side.
~ Kevin Bramer, Optical Sloth