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Ratings & Reviews for

Die, Vol. 2: Split the Party

Kieron Gillen (Writer), Stephanie Hans (Artist), Clayton Cowles (Letterer)

5 stars
906 (30%)
4 stars
1,269 (42%)
3 stars
657 (21%)
2 stars
134 (4%)
1 star
26 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 354 reviews
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Sean Gibson
Author 6 books5,797 followers
April 3, 2020
Kieron Gillen thinks so obsessively about stories and role-playing games that he must just kill at parties.

Pause for raucous laughter.

But, seriously, folks. DIE is evolving – it’s a quality read with good art, and the deeper dive into each of the characters in Vol. 2 continues to flesh out a very interesting world with a weird meta narrative. It can be a bit inscrutable at times, but it’s a worthwhile investment of reading time, not the least of which is for Gillen’s fascinating discourse on story construction and the influences that inform DIE.
Profile Image for Paul.
Paul
2,309 reviews20 followers
September 21, 2022
Every once in a while a book comes along that feels like it was created specifically for me. ‘Die’ is almost one of those books. If I could give this 4.5 stars, I would, but, as I can’t, I’m rounding up.

Profile Image for Ashley Marie .
Ashley Marie
1,299 reviews393 followers
August 24, 2022
2022 reread: 4.5 stars

- I'm still not huge on the way things jump between locations (it feels almost too fast) and the splitting of the party creates a further chasm, but I looooove this.

- Issue 9 is my favorite. See how my little lit-nerd heart is after the good stuff here? We'll call it a trend.

- Getting more of the in-game rules is excellent too. And with my tpb's I'm able to really dive into the closing essays this time around. To no one's surprise, Research was my favorite.

- And I still need to read a shitload of Bronte. Thus far I've read Wuthering Heights. I never did track down their Juvenilia after the first read, so adding that to Mount TBR was high on the priority list this morning.

#CharlieAndAshleyReadComics

2020 first read:
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KalynAbridged
73 reviews2,273 followers
July 19, 2022
Not as good as the first but I still enjoy it… it felt a little less D&D which is what I loved about the first
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Rod Brown
5,540 reviews196 followers
October 20, 2020
In the first volume, I just did not care for any of the characters in this book, with this volume I actively hate them all.

I wasn't going to read this but relented because I've grown interested in the Brontë siblings' Angria/Glass Town saga, which seems to be having a moment in graphic novels this past year, what with Glass Town: The Imaginary World of the Brontës by Isabel Greenberg and Charlotte Brontë before Jane Eyre by Glynnis Fawkes. This volume of Die delves more deeply into that material than the first one did, but frankly it wasn't worth suffering through all the meta crap and lousy dialogue for the twisted scraps that are served up.

I believe I have learned my lesson from Wicked + Divine, where I suffered through the four awful books at the end of the 9-volume series. I shall give no more time to this series . . . and perhaps its writer even.
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James
2,366 reviews54 followers
February 11, 2021
Before I read this, I was trying to remember how vol 1 ended. I opened that book back up and was skimming through the end and still wasn’t remembering so I just re-read it. Dammit!! Upon the second reading I realized I didn’t like it as much as the first go around. Anyway, book two. This was even worse. The first three issues I found really boring. I found myself forcing myself to finish it. Also that the Chuck character really got on my nerves and him and Isabel are horrible people. Then in the fourth issue (issue 9) this woman pops up real “convenient” like and does this info dump. Going through all this back story that didn’t feel natural or organic. It didn’t flow. Like Gillen needed us to know this stuff and this is how he squeezed it in there. At that point the story started to lose me. Those last two issue left me like, what the hell is happening? This book got real convoluted and muddy towards the end. Needless to say I will not be reading vol 3 whenever that comes out.
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Craig
2,197 reviews26 followers
April 2, 2020
Ugh. I don't understand all the praise this title has received. The story is about as obscure as it gets, though it did start out as a sort of "Jumanji meets Dungeons and Dragons." There's a brief moment of interest when the Brontes enter the story, with the suggestion that they might have created all or part of this fantasy world. But there isn't a single likeable, relateable character to be found. And the story proceeds to go even further into the obscure nether regions. About the only saving grace is the art, but if you can't follow the story, what good is that?
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Robert
1,601 reviews106 followers
July 13, 2020
NEVER SPLIT THE PARTY!

(said every lazy GM, ever.)



Well we're back in the world of DIE and I'm happy to report the art is still toppedy-top-top notch.



As for the writing, let's just say that if you're in the market for a quippy, swash-bucky adventure this is not the title for you. It exudes a general air of mopiness (as described by Alex P., well put!) as the middle aged sad-sacks trapped in this adolescent fantasy world deal with their life choices.

Or not.

I feel Gillen has a larger story he's keen to tell and I hope he gets the chance to tell it, and that the artist can continue making every panel a classically composed painting.
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Tomás Sendarrubias García
744 reviews11 followers
December 25, 2020
Segundo tomo de esta versión adulta de Dragones y Mazmorras (la serie de dibujos), en la que un grupo de jugadores de rol tienen que volver al mundo en el que estuvieron atrapados durante varios años, recuperando las particulares versiones de los personajes clásicos del juego de rol que Kieron Gillen creó para esta serie, en cuyo título se combina Die (dado) con Die (muerte). Después de ver en el primer tomo cómo es el mundo de Die y de presenciar el enfrentamiento entre los protagonistas y Sol (su antiguo máster, ahora ya muerto), y de ser testigos del cisma en el grupo entre los que quieran volver a la Tierra y los que quieren quedarse en Die, ahora vamos a ver como continúa cada grupo, y vamos conociendo a los personajes un poco más, tanto dentro de Die como en sus vidas "normales", aunque hay que tener en cuenta que, como en el mundo real, la normalidad es muy relativa.

Al igual que en el tomo anterior habíamos visto la versión de Gillen de Tolkien, ahora, con la llegada de los personajes al Imperio de Angria, vamos a conocer la relación de Die con las hermanas Bronte (otro giro de estos de tirarte de culo), pero también vamos a descubrir más de los eventos que sucedieron en su anterior estancia en Angria, donde algunos de ellos incluso establecieron lazos familiares sorprendentes...

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Devann
2,439 reviews138 followers
February 11, 2020
actual rating: 2.5

I am very torn on whether to round this down or up but since I do currently plan on reading the next volume I guess I will go with a technical 3 star rating. Also I don't think there is really anything 'wrong' with it but that it might be a little bit too ...technical and high-fantasy heavy for me? Like I do find the mechanics of the game vs. the world interesting up to a point but also I feel like it really makes the story drag in a lot of places. But I'm glad that I stuck this volume out to the end because the last issue was Ash's issue and she is basically the only reason I am sticking around. I know that we probably need all the characters to make a full and compelling plot in the long run - at least I hope, WicDiv floundered a lot in the middle but really delivered at the end - but also if the whole thing was just about Ash and Chuck died horribly I would not complain ...
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Valéria.
749 reviews31 followers
March 2, 2020
Menej zaujímavé, ako volume 1, strašne ma nudili niektoré pasáže a veľakrát som zostala zmätená, čo sa vlastne deje a prečo. Art sa mi hnusil podstatne menej ako v predošlom, resp. krajina sa mi páčila, tváre mi vadili - tu už som si na tom asi zvykla a miestami sa mi to dokonca aj páčilo. Part Brontëových bol fajn, ale prišlo mi, že tomu bolo venované až príliš veľa miesta. Každopádne, furt to baví, furt sa teším (po tom skvelom konci) kam sa to posunie ďalej.
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Inside My Library Mind
657 reviews126 followers
June 3, 2022
I think the first volume is a bit tighter, but this was still a blast! AND NOT THE BRONTE GIRLIES APPEARING wow, truly mind blown. If you're a fan of RPGs and the likes, definitely recommend this series it's so fun. Also if you watch Stranger Things (except imagine if we followed the kids 20 years into the future).
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Jakub Kvíz
299 reviews40 followers
December 16, 2019
Zacinam se v tom politikareni celkem ztracet a asi to bude chtit precist cely v celku, abych poradne pochopil vsechny souvislosti. Prijde mi, ze se v tomhle volume dost odkazuje na udalosti z prvniho "pobytu" ve svete Die, o nemz mame minimum informaci.

Podobne jako se v prvni knize objevil Tolkien, tak tady v jednom sesite hrajou prim sourozenci Brontëovi, coz byla velka parada.
Profile Image for Connie.
Connie
1,479 reviews26 followers
June 24, 2021
I own this book.

Not to be dramatic, but this volume contained some of the most beautiful artwork I have ever seen in a graphic novel. In this volume, we see our party split, we have Ash, Angela, Matt and Fallen Sol in one party and Izzy and Chuck in another. Chuck as usual is a colossal but ultimately it works in his favour. Izzy, I believe redeemed herself a little in my eyes in this volume and I left it thinking more kindly about her character. When they reunite after their uneasy parting, we also meet some new characters who provide a very interesting role in the story of Die. I'm most interested in seeing how things go between Ash and Augustus,
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Dakota Morgan
2,447 reviews34 followers
April 27, 2022
Die's second volume is a big improvement on the first, at least in terms of getting the reader to care about the characters. With the big twist out of the way, Keiron Gillen settles down to introduce us to the band of adventurers, each issue offering some necessary backstory. The plot itself slows down too. The twists and turns therefore feel a bit more natural, .

Stephanie Hans' art continues to be spectacular, with continued improvements in facial work and battle scenes. I could see what was going on most of the time! I also bothered to read the backmatter of both the first and second volumes this around - Gillen's explanation of his world- and character-building is surprisingly fascinating. Consider me hooked on this series.
Profile Image for Alexander Peterhans.
Alexander Peterhans
Author 2 books193 followers
January 27, 2020
Not as strong as the first volume, which is always an extremely hard feat after making something truly good and unique.

This arc seems for the longest time to miss a clear sense of direction, and lacks some of the innovation that made every issue of the first volume such a thrill to read.

And yes, there's too much exposition and waffling, and an overreliance on a character that I can't remember even having been mentioned in the first volume (Zamorna - I reserve the right to be utterly wrong about this). Oh and a son that seems to come out of nowhere.

I'm also not sure I buy Ash's decision to .

The art remains, as ever, truly exceptional.

3.5 stars

(Read as five single issues)
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Anja
164 reviews7 followers
August 1, 2022
Still love the artstyle to bits.
Still enjoy the world and the characters... but this time, everything felt so confusing. Characters made decisions I didn't understand, they brought up new conflicts and parties and events I didn't understand and new characters were introduced, which I.. you guessed it, didn't understand (their motives and relationships primarily, others.. I didn't even get their names or their functions).
Also, why the fuck was Charlotte Brontë part of this world??? Where did this correlation come from and why??
I will definitely finish this graphic novel series, but whew they really lost me in this volume and I doubt it will get less confusing in the next ones. :')

Bonus: I really love the nuanced exploration of Ash's gender.. it's confusing for them and for the readers, but I like it!
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Shadowdenizen
829 reviews36 followers
August 15, 2020
4 stars.
Originally read as single issues.

This book continues on from book 1, now that the rules and basic premise of the series has been laid out. (All the "players" must agree to escape before anyone can leave.)

This book delves deeper into the characters (who are all fascinating and multi-layered), but the real standout is the scope of the world-building (coupled with the GORGEOUS art to bring the world alive). The world seems like a living, breathing organism, which is a hallmark of all the best fantasy fiction, but it also seems to be internally self-consistent.

Looking forward to seeing where this title goes in future issues!

Profile Image for Guilherme Smee.
Guilherme Smee
Author 21 books124 followers
August 29, 2021
Esse quadrinho é ao mesmo tempo divertido e profundo demais. Acompanha vidas que foram modificadas por um jogo de RPG quando foram transportados para dentro da realidade do mesmo. Neste segundo volume, a aventura e o drama se intensificam, trazendo mais camadas sobre os personagens em suas duplas existências e sobre o mundo "de fantasia" em que estão presos. Kieron Gillen trabalha bem a metalinguagem aproximando o quadrinho de um grupo de mulheres muito conhecido da literatura universal. Contudo tive que avaliar esse quadrinho com menos de cinco estrelas porque a arte de Stephanie Hans dá uma caída nesse segundo volume. Também achei o texto da edição brasileira extremamente truncado, como se o combo tradução, adaptação e revisão não tivessem tido o devido cuidado. Foi difícil me recolocar de volta na história nas primieiras páginas por causa disso. De toda forma, aguardo ansioso pelo terceiro volume que já foi anunciado pela Panini Brasil para outubro de 2021.
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Artur Nowrot
Author 8 books44 followers
Read
April 24, 2023
re-read for research in 2023: less meta snarking, more diving into characters results in am even stronger volume that gets to play once the premise has been established. great plot developments, the exploration of teen desire through Zamorna, some fascinating mythos expansion with .
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Wealhtheow
2,446 reviews548 followers
November 16, 2021
The adventuring party tries to free themselves from the fantasy world they're trapped in, but quickly split up based on differences in their ultimate desires. I really liked seeing Ash unleash her full powers on courtly intrigue.

The art continues to be gorgeous.
Profile Image for Dan.
Dan
2,132 reviews49 followers
April 11, 2021
Ugh Volume 1 shown and had so much promise, but this....They introduce the Bronte's. LAME! I get it you must enjoy their literature, but to introduce them in an RPG-based comic series????
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Nick
174 reviews73 followers
March 23, 2022
4.5⭐️ Just keeps getting better! D&D lovers— don’t miss this series!
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Josh
Author 1 book25 followers
March 10, 2020
I love the art, and it's a fascinating world with complex characters and a dynamic storyline. The main issue with volume 2 is that it has some weird pacing and development that get in the way of the story experience. Even though this is an original work--it feels like trying to compress a full fantasy novel into graphic format--sometimes it works great, and other times there are pieces left behind.
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Jacqie
1,653 reviews80 followers
May 28, 2020
So here's a miss in my classical education: I had never heard of Glass Town or Gondal before, had no clue that the Brontes had come up with such things. My lack of knowledge here might have affected my enjoyment of this book, because I didn't have a lot of context.

So, the art is still gorgeous. I'm not sure the story advanced much, though. Also, I find that I am getting over the "I will think and show you a bunch of backstory inserted randomly in the story so you know my tragic background" thing. Maybe there's another way? Although with comics, it's probably easier just to infodump and then you get cool imagery, get to see characters in their pasts in different contexts and such. But the infodump of past tragedy seemed to happen a LOT in this book and it felt clunky to me. Characters talking and reminiscing out loud to themselves, to a god, to their dogs, so that the reader can learn about these characters.

You know how in a lot of comics it feels like there's buildup and buildup and buildup and the tension never quite gets resolved? This was one of those books.
Profile Image for Shannon Appelcline.
Shannon Appelcline
Author 22 books141 followers
July 28, 2020
Gillen's Die continues to be the best fantasy roleplaying comic ever, taking the tropes of kids entering a fantasy world, found from Narnia through The Realm, and making them amazing.

Much of that is the brilliant characterization. We learn so much more about these characters than in the first volume that I definitely want to go back and remember who they all are.

Part of that is the sly references to roleplaying and video game playing.

And, yeah, there's plot and adventure too.

There's an amazing issue early on that focuses heavily on the horrible, immoral grind of video game production (within the clever context of this story).

But the highlight is toward the middle as we learn the history of this fantasy realm, and what may have been the earliest characters ever sucked into a fantasy land. It's a brave shocker.

A terrific read. I'm already looking forward to the hardcovers to collect this story, and already upset that it's presumably just 20 issues.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 354 reviews

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