Volume 3 of “Avatar: The High Ground” doesn’t quite manage to hit the same highs as “Volume 2," either in terms of narrative excitement or contributioVolume 3 of “Avatar: The High Ground” doesn’t quite manage to hit the same highs as “Volume 2," either in terms of narrative excitement or contributions to the broader “Avatar” lore. That being said, it’s still a significant step-up from “Volume 1,” working well as both a conclusion to this particular story, while also nicely teeing up the opening moments of “The Way of Water” in a way that feels completely organic. For “Avatar” fans who are already feeling the pain of having to wait another 2 years for “Avatar 3,” “The High Ground” should do more than enough to satiate the hunger....more
I was pretty lukewarm on the first volume of "The High Ground," mostly seeing it as a retread of story that we already saw inNow THIS is more like it.
I was pretty lukewarm on the first volume of "The High Ground," mostly seeing it as a retread of story that we already saw in the opening moments of “The Way of Water.” The good news? Volume 2 is pretty much entirely all new material. The even better news? Said new material is actually a.) super entertaining on its own terms, but also b.) feels distinctly vital to the broader “Avatar” story, serving to fill in blanks between the events of the first and second films in a way that doesn’t feel shoehorned, but rather, genuinely important and interconnected, as if it was ALWAYS a part of James Cameron’s broader story for the franchise (which, to be fair, it kind of was: the entire “The High Ground” trilogy is an adaptation of an un-filmed script that Cameron wrote – hence why so much of this feels like a direct prequel to TWOW.).
So yeah: I dug this a lot, and if you’re an “Avatar” fan, this is pretty much the definition of a must-read. Bring on Volume 3. ...more
Volume 1 of “Avatar: The High Ground” is essentially a graphic-novel-length appetizer for the new “Avatar: The Way of Water” film, recapping what JakeVolume 1 of “Avatar: The High Ground” is essentially a graphic-novel-length appetizer for the new “Avatar: The Way of Water” film, recapping what Jake Sully and his family have been up to between the events of the first and second film, while also setting the stage for the narrative that we see unfold in TWOW. Strangely, most of what’s included in Volume 1 is more or less recapped in the new film – honestly, there’s not a TON here that you won’t glean from just watching the new movie. However, with Volumes 2 and 3 promising to not only fill in more narrative gaps, but also – hopefully – serve as more self-contained and original stories in their own rights, it’s possible that Volume 1 is basically just the “ground-setter” of the “High Ground” graphic novel series: necessary to set up the main story, but not wholly exciting on its own terms.