Review: Worm
GENRE : fantasy: superhero
word count : 1.7 million
OTHER web serials BY AUTHOR :Pact, Twig
“I will take this gamble and perhaps kill those people in the process."
I will kill those people who can make me smile and feel more human than I am, i will grieve their deaths, and I will take that gamble again.
Because one city, however how grand, is worth that chance."
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Credit to "ImSkeptical" on Deviantart, artist name Cameron Lai.
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"Do morals matter, if our alternative is a grim and hopeless end?"
An introverted teenage girl with an unconventional superpower, Taylor goes out in costume to find escape from a deeply unhappy and frustrated civilian life. Her first attempt at taking down a supervillain sees her mistaken for one, thrusting her into the midst of the local ‘cape’ scene’s politics, unwritten rules, and ambiguous morals. As she risks life and limb, Taylor faces the dilemma of having to do the wrong things for the right reasons.
Have I mentioned how much I love the web serial Worm by Wildbow? There’s nothing much to complain about here, besides the awesome world building, the successful execution of the “superhero” concept, and finally, a smart protagonist. It is engaging, action packed, and epic. But enough of the gushing.
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| Credits to Sandara on Deviantarthttp://www.deviantart.com/art/Worm-Endbringer-Behemoth-582896539 |
Worm features a broken, crime-ridden city: Brockton Bay, with both heroes and villains vying for control. There’s the protectorate: the heroes, much like the police of the city, who enforce and protect the citizens with varying success. Then there’s the villain gangs, with powers of their own, interesting gang philosophies ( respectively an Asian supremacist gang with a delightful name such as the Asian Bad Boys headed by a parahuman who can turn into a dragon) and unique powers. Amongst all this conflict lies the Endbringers- huge unkillable goliaths that periodically siege and lay waste to the cites. Super powers are gained by Trigger events, which occur on “the worst day of your life”. Overall, fascinating world.
Our protagonist Taylor Hebert serves as the smart, level-headed narrator. After a bullying campaign she gains powers, with hopes of becoming a hero and fixing Brockton Bay. Things don’t go as smoothly- the “heroes” are not all heroic, and reasons becomes muddy in morality as she tries to do the right things. It only gets worse for her and situations escalate. I always enjoy when authors shove their characters into a terrible situations.
I loved how the author created a whole world outside the protagonist’s bubble - people with their own endeavours, relationships, loves, struggles, and backstory. The relationships are particularly well done. There’s a plethora of detail, and realism between every character, even amongst the villains. Another strong point for this story was the creativity the author had for all the different powers the characters had, and how they utilized them. For example, Taylor Hebert has the power to control anthropoids. Not very noteworthy, but she used them for recon (eyes and ears), as humanoid doubles, and used bugs to mask her movement. Of course there are stronger examples of this, but the majority of characters had intriguing qualities. Lastly, Taylor’s strong character was the clincher that caught my interest. She was particularly well written - with rational decision making skills, intelligence, and a strong voice. Her character development across the different arcs of the story is massive.
The only disagreeable thing in this story were the number of characters I had to deal with. I couldn’t keep track of them all, or care enough for a couple of them. It was a tad overwhelming at first, but not enough to deter me.
Overall, I cannot stop recommending this story (even got my sister hooked) and give it a 4.9 out of 5 stars rating.
If you enjoy stories along a similar vein, I recommend Continue Online, Mother of Learning, and Curveball.
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