Buy used:

$8.64

Get Fast, Free Shipping with Amazon Prime

FREE delivery Friday, May 17 on orders shipped by Amazon over $35

Select delivery location

Used: Very Good | Details

Sold by Convey Media

Fulfilled by Amazon

Access codes and supplements are not guaranteed with used items.

Other sellers on Amazon

New & Used (53) from $3.71 + $3.99 shipping

Follow the authors

Transmetropolitan Vol. 1: Back on the Street Paperback – March 17, 2009

by Warren Ellis (Author), Darick Robertson (Illustrator)

4.6 719 ratings

Part of: Transmetropolitan

See all formats and editions

DC's new editions of Transmetropolitan begin here, with this volume collecting issues #1-6 of the acclaimed Vertigo series from writer Warren Ellis and artist Darick Robertson! After years of selfimposed exile from a civilization rife with degradation and indecency, cynical journalist Spider Jerusalem is forced to return to a job he hates and a city he loathes. Working as an investigative reporter for the newspaper The Word, Spider attacks the injustices of his surreal 23rd century surroundings.

In this first volume, Spider ventures into the dangerous Angels 8 district, home of the Transients—humans who have decided to become aliens through cosmetic surgery. But Spider's interview with the Transients' leader gets him a scoop he didn't bargain for. And don't miss Spider's first confrontation with the President of the United States... in a men's room.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Warren Ellis is the award-winning writer of Transmetropolitan, Planetary, The Authority, and the writer and co-creator of the graphic novel RED, which was the basis of two major motion pictures. He is also the author of the NYT-bestselling novels Gun Machine and Crooked Little Vein. His newest publication is the digital short-story single Dead Pig Collector, from FSG Originals.

His awards and recognitions include the NUIG Literary and Debating Society’s President’s Medal for service to freedom of speech, the Eagle Awards Roll Of Honour for lifetime achievement in the field of comics & graphic novels, the Grand Prix de l’Imaginaire 2010, the Sidewise Award for Alternate History, and the International Horror Guild Award for illustrated narrative.

Ellis lives outside London, on the south-east coast of England, in case he needs to make a quick getaway.

Darick Robertson is a veteran comic artist who has worked at DC Comics and Marvel for nearly twenty years. He broke into the mainstream drawing Justice League for DC and went on to work for Marvel where he penciled titles including Wolverine, Spider-Man, and most notably the New Warriors. Robertson is best known as the artist / co-creator of the Eisner Award-winning series Transmetropolitan with writer Warren Ellis, which was hailed by Wired magazine as "The Graphic Novel of the Decade." He is currently working on an edgy new monthly series entitled The Boys for WildStorm with writer Garth Ennis.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Vertigo; First Edition (March 17, 2009)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 144 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1401220843
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1401220846
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 7.7 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.73 x 0.35 x 10.24 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #1,024,225 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #283 in Dystopian Graphic Novels
- #2,435 in DC Comics & Graphic Novels
- #4,731 in Science Fiction Graphic Novels (Books)

Customer Reviews:
4.6 719 ratings

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Videos

Help others learn more about this product by uploading a video!

Upload your video

About the authors

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.

Warren Ellis
Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.
Warren Ellis is the author of the Amazon Top 100 2016 book NORMAL and the New York Times- bestselling GUN MACHINE, the writer of award-winning graphic novels like TRANSMETROPOLITAN, PLANETARY and FELL, and is the creator and writer of global top ten streaming hit show CASTLEVANIA on Netflix.
The movie RED is based on his graphic novel of the same name, its sequel having been released in summer 2013. His GRAVEL books are in development for film at Legendary Pictures. IRON MAN 3 is based on his Marvel Comics graphic novel IRON MAN: EXTREMIS. He's also written extensively for VICE, WIRED UK and Reuters on technological and cultural matters.
Read and subscribe to his free weekly newsletter with updates on work and likes at https://buttondown.email/orbitaloperations and orbitaloperations.com.
Warren Ellis lives outside London, on the south-east coast of England, in case he needs to make a quick getaway.
See more on the author's page
Darick Robertson
Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.
Darick Robertson is an American comic book artist, writer and creator with a decades long career in the industry. His notable works include co-creating the award winning “Transmetropolitan”, “The Boys” and “Happy!” He has illustrated for both Marvel and DC Comics on characters including Batman, The Justice League, Wolverine, The Punisher and Spider-man.
www.DarickRobertson.com
See more on the author's page

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5

719 global ratings

How customer reviews and ratings work

Sort reviews by

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

DVF

Wow, totally original and a great character I think connects with everyone in some level

Reviewed in the United States on November 6, 2023

Verified Purchase

Yeah I was a little uncertain when i took the 1st volume out to read and before I was finished got the next 9 so I can read the entire series lol. The art was fantastic and while some it at times looks like The Boys art, it's the same artist, the art in this is also totally different from it and wholly original. And in some small way I think all the things Spider feels and spews out his mouth, touches on things that I think everyone has felt or thought about certain things in our culture and world. Maybe not as seriously or angrily or even as crazy as Spider but maybe a degree or 2 lol. Also like the assistant angle i really like and i am excited to see her character expand and where her relationship with Spider goes. Really give it a little bit and let the sotry just take over and you'll not want to put this book down. At least that's how I felt. Highly recommended and can't wait to read the next volume.

Helpful

James from the Thames

Unhinged and wonderful.

Reviewed in the United States on April 15, 2024

Verified Purchase

Only 3 issues but a game changer that's still relevant.

Reviewed in the United States on April 21, 2022

Verified Purchase

This is the usual dystopian future comic, but done very well. The protagonist is a reporter who exposes all kinds of malfeasance and gets into good trouble. The setting is a nasty city two centuries from now that is falling apart at the seams. Although I read the Kindle edition, I read it on a Chromebook so I got all of the full color visuals, which matters. Wild and wacky, but not for children. Not a long read, but fun.

Reviewed in the United States on February 20, 2023

Verified Purchase

It was great storytelling and it brought me back to the days I started reading comics! The pure joy I found!

Helpful

James B.

Now this is some great sci-fi

Reviewed in the United States on November 3, 2016

Verified Purchase

Transmetropolitan shows Warren Ellis at his absolute best. Set in a futuristic New York City, Ellis begins with a fantastic satire of news, politics, and entertainment.

Meet Spider Jerusalem. An anitsocial journalist forced out of his temporary retirement by lawyers, Spider embodies the two things we love about antiheroes, he'll fight against all the corruption and exploitation in the world, while still raging at the complacent citizens who let it go on. In this volume, he covers stories about the human-alien hybrid movement, the presidential election, television, and the new religions popping up like weeds. Ellis writes fantastic dialogue and brutal sarcasm to immerse you in these scenes. The artwork is also great, with Robertson loading the background with details and gags so that you want to read every panel twice.

This looks like it's going to be one of my favorite Vertigo series.

5 people found this helpful

Helpful

Patrick L

this has been my absolute favorite serial comic

Reviewed in the United States on April 22, 2016

Verified Purchase

From the opening issue I remember reading hunched over my computer five years ago, the series four or more years defunct already, this has been my absolute favorite serial comic. Living in a future that is a caricature of the present, and that has only grown more gut wrenchingly accurate since these issues were first published, our hero Spider Jerusalem attacks the evils of his world with naught but keyboard, camera glasses, his lovely assistant, and a vast arsenal of mind altering chemicals. Its the kind of antics real life heroism is made of, the stuff you want your journalists out doing, and as our world's news cycle has become more and more white washed and vapid, Spider has become the only comic book hero that has any real need to exist in real life. He transcends the boundaries of the comic book as a fantasy place where fantasy people solve fantasy problems in fantasy ways, by fighting metaphors for our problems in a real way, the way real people can and should be fighting them. Takes all the lessons the medium gained from the graphic novel form and creates a serial that cuts to the bone nearly every issue.

Aside from praise for the series, the volume itself arrived well bound and vibrantly printed.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

Joseph Dewey

One of the best graphic novels I've ever read

Reviewed in the United States on April 27, 2005

Verified Purchase

The media could not be loaded.

This book is so amazingly cool. It only has the first three comics of the 60-issue series of Transmetropolitan, but I actually really liked that. The first three issues really get you involved in the story--after I finished this first book, I decided to read the entire series.

Transmetropolitan is centered around Spider Jerusalem, a journalist. He practices "gonzo" journalism, and I had to look it up...it is "a style of first-person reporting where the usually-anonymous reporter becomes a central character in the story, a conduit of subjectivity."

What that means basically is that the journalist is in the middle of the story, isn't objective, and can affect the outcome of the story. Something that reflects his style is Spider's saying: "The Truth, no matter what"

So, if you're a journalist, you'll probably love this series. It overglorifies journalism. I'm not a journalist, and I still love it. I think it would appeal to anyone who likes comics "for mature readers."

And, the first issue is really cool where Spider has Weird Al hair.

7 people found this helpful

Helpful

Top reviews from other countries

Translate all reviews to English

Pablo8a

Una joya poco conocida.

Reviewed in Mexico on June 28, 2020

Verified Purchase

Inceiblemenge divertido totalmente recomendable.

Translate review to English

Rodger McLaren

excellent

Reviewed in Australia on August 2, 2020

Verified Purchase

just as described

Cliente Amazon

perfetto

Reviewed in Italy on October 12, 2016

Verified Purchase

libro bellissimo consigliato uno dei migliori fumetti di sempre. disegni imperdibili. storia affascinante. un vero capolavoro da avere in tutte le librerie.

Translate review to English

Loki

An Amazing And Beautiful Work Of Comic Genius

Reviewed in Canada on August 4, 2016

Verified Purchase

Transmetropolitan is a graphic novel set in a science fiction setting starring Spider Jerusalem, who is for all intents and purposes, Hunter S. Thompson. But this is not a simple parody, the writer demonstrates a deep understanding of his character. It IS Hunter. For instance, and I will try to avoid spoilers wherever possible, at one point Spider's assistant criticizes him because his Ex-Wife has gone into cryostasis and won't come out until he's dead. Spider replies “Who told you that?” she points at him angrily and says “You did.” For some people this is just meaningless banter, but that is exactly what Hunter was like. For instance in his feuds with Garry Trudeau, the author of Doonesbury, Hunter became quite paranoid trying to figure out how Trudeau was learning all of his secrets, but he was getting all of his information from Hunter's articles. Hunter despised cartoons, and I can only assume he would have nothing but contempt for this comic. But screw what he thinks, this is a classic. Crank up the violence by a factor of 10, to the point that Spider can be somewhat homicidal at times, set it in a rich detailed world that describes a future which is both amazing, but also very human, and mirrors our own society in all the important ways, throw in a bowel disruptor, and bring everything together with the artistic genius of a master doing his own best work, with beautiful scenes full of an endless array of little details, tiny things, throwaway jokes. It adds up to a very beautiful and wonderful overall work. Rather than 1984 or Brave New World, I think we are condemned to a future like this. A world full of slimy politicians and thuggish police, where the rich live in extravagant luxury while vast swaths of people are condemned to a meager existence in slums and ghettos, living on the street and pumping their bodies full of many new, strange and dangerous narcotics, and modifying their bodies with technology and surgical alteration. Spider enjoys many of these vices and demands a shopping list full of drugs such as Vasopressin, Washed Caffeine, Jumpstart, Ginko Biloba, Guarana, and Intelligence Enhancers in order to get his article done. The dealer is perplexed by this and writes him off as a health freak. Spider's first story is very interesting, reminiscent of the social media craze of modern day society, and the scene where Spider encounters the first transient is particularly satisfying. Many of the things described in this book are no longer science fiction. Pulling out a laptop and broadcasting your opinions is no longer a novelty or a fantasy, it is a part of everyday life. We may not have widespread use of our sunglasses to take pictures and video, but everyone has a camera now. What we do not have is the makers, which are sort of like the replicators in Star Trek, however Transmetropolitan has it's own warped take on this, where Spider's maker is addicted to drugs it manufactures itself, and most people are too poor to afford them anyway. There is a classic retelling of Hunter's encounter with Richard Nixon in a bathroom, and Spider also tackles television, and there is a religious scene which mirrors an angry Jesus Christ. Overall it is just a fantastic story, and any fan of Hunter Thompson, or just a fan of good science fiction and well written mature graphic novels, or beautiful artwork, should definitely pick this up. I look forward to reading and reviewing the entire ten part series. It is a crime against humanity that this has not been made into either a film starring Johnny Depp, or an anime series covering the entire plot arc, or even a TV show. It's probably the best Graphic Novel I've ever read, and you should read it too. Do yourself a favor, then tell a friend.

2 people found this helpful