Comic Book Reviews Category |
Dancer #1 ReviewWritten by TommyHancock on May 18, 2012Filed in: Comic Book Reviews, Image Comics Reviews | No Comments » 
Rating: 4/5 Writer: Nathan Edmondson Publisher’s Blurb: Reviewer’s Comments: This first issue did exactly what a first issue should do: Made me want to read issue 2. My only complaint is that I feel a little too much time was spent making the snipers identity overly-mysterious. Because of that, and only because of that, I was able to figure it out pages before the reveal. Aside from that one issue, which may just be a product of me putting on an overly ambitious detectives cap anytime I read the words “mystery”, “thriller”, or “spy, a damn fine read. The sense of danger and intensity is present throughout every single page. Bottom line(cause Stonecold said so): One of the better suspense/thriller comic issues I’ve read in a long while. These types of comics are generally not my cup of tea, but this baby was put together so well I can’t help but anticipate the next issue. I WOULD say head out and buy it, but the puupy has sold out and is going into second print. So, once they rehit stores, check it out. With how well the first issue did sells-wise, and how badly it leaves you wanting more, I’ve got two words for those who want to ppick up issue 2: Pull box.  |
The Shadow #2 ReviewWritten by TaliAdina on May 18, 2012Filed in: Comic Book Reviews | No Comments » 
Rating: 5/5 Writer: Garth Ennis Publisher’s Blurb: Reviewer’s Comments: |
Fanboys VS. Zombies #2 ReviewWritten by TommyHancock on May 17, 2012Filed in: Boom Studios Reviews, Comic Book Reviews | No Comments » 
Rating: 4/5 Writer: Sam Humphries Publisher’s Blurb: Reviewer’s Comments: When you boil it down, Fanboys Vs. Zombies is the most fun approach to murderous, rotting corpses I have seen in any media. Unlike the Walking Dead, which can be enjoyed by folks who have never read a comic before in their life, FbZ has a much clearer niche: Comic nerds. Big time zombie enthusiasts should check it out as well, just to see a new approach to their favorite ghoulies. In the end though, this is a comic made by comic nerds, for comic nerds. And I just find that to be downright beautiful! Bottom line(cause Stonecold said so): If you’re a pop culture geek, especially when it comes to comics, I can nearly guarantee you’ll like this book as long as you go into it with the right mindset. Meaning, expect some giggles and good lighthearted jabs and references. If you’re a deadhead(phrase I totally just invented for zombie fans, pretty original, huh?), it’s a less safe buy, but I’d recommend at least checking it out. As long as you’re not one of those pretentious people who can’t take a new take on anything they like, that is(Soooo a comic book fan?(BURN!)). |
Batman #9 ReviewWritten by TommyZimmer on May 14, 2012Filed in: Comic Book Reviews | No Comments » 
Rating: 5/5 Publisher’s Blurb: Reviewer’s Comments: Bruce recalls how when Solomon and Joshua Wayne bought Wayne Manor, there was infestation of bats, and they brought in a number of animals to combat the infestation including owls. He then says how they disappeared then. The action now moves into the present with Bruce fighting the talons. While Alfred tries to remind Bruce about what they can do, Bruce refuses to give in fighting them where he can as he puts it: “let loose.” As the talons gain the upper hand, Bruce realizes Alfred is right. Yet, Bruce always has a contingency plan where the giant dinosaur in the cave is activated attacking the talons. While Alfred tries to open the armory doors to come help Bruce, Bruce re-seals them refusing to expose Alfred to any danger. Bruce then begins to recall the opening lines of the issue continuing his reminiscence on the past. He notes the bats simply went deeper into the cave when threatened by other animals. The owls could not operate there. The bats then came back with a vengeance. The talons are attacked by the incoming bats Bruce unleashed, and they run. One tries to escape, and is stopped by the Batmobile. Bruce goes out to stop the owl signal plagued on the Batsignal. We also get an update on everyone else. Bruce goes after Lincoln March after finishing up with Arkham from the last issue of Detective. He finds a half dead Mr. March with a handgun defending himself from one last talon. He tells Batman in his last dying breath his message to give to Bruce Wayne: Don’t give up on Gotham. Bruce then decides he is going to burn the Court of Owls to the ground…. The backup starts off quite nicely. Jarvis Pennyworth, Alfred’s father, recalls how he is frightened for his life. He reminds Alfred that Alfred must take over if Jarvis passes. Jarvis says he does not want this life for his son anymore. He reveals to Alfred in this note Wayne Manor is cursed. He remarks about how blinded he was by the grandeur of the Waynes, and he was unable to see the underlying darkness and danger of it all. What seems to be a talon starts to hunt him. As Jarvis is on the move, he jumps into his car, and the story returns to his relationship with the Waynes. He is playing with young Bruce, and having a good time with Mr. and Mrs. Wayne. She is disgusted about the mayor shutting down another five schools. She says to Thomas that they need to do more. Jarvis agrees but he remarks in his letter how wrong they were. He says what happened to the Waynes and what happens to him is his entire fault. He has doomed them all….. Scott Snyder in both the main story and backup just does a fantastic job. He is in total control of his craft, and is re-writing the Batman mythos in the process. James Tynion IV is also able to demonstrate his writing talents alongside his teacher and mentor Mr. Snyder. Greg Capullo does probably his best issue yet, and he continues to hammer out better art (if it wasn’t already good enough) each issue. Rafael Albuqerque does some fantastic work, and I want to see more work from him at DC. His art in the backup is simply marvelous. This book is definitely one of my favorite books on the stand still….. |
Batgirl #9 ReviewWritten by TommyZimmer on May 14, 2012Filed in: Comic Book Reviews | No Comments » 
Rating: 2/5 Publisher’s Blurb: Reviewer’s Comments: The issue starts off with a young girl in 1944 Japan. She has left home, and seems to live at a boarding school. She is amongst many other young girls creating letters. These letters are attached to bombs which are planned to explode in different parts of America. The story transitions to Gotham City two years later. Mr. Haly finds himself a new aerialist who has tape over her face, and cannot speak because she does not have a tongue. Her name is Mary, and she proves to be quite an interesting character. We then move into the battle with the female talon Batgirl is facing. She notes it moves like Nightwing, and she gives us some background about what she has been investigating that night. She continues to fight, and finds a weird piece of paper after the talon vanishes. Looking like a man from the flashback with the young aerialist Mary, a man drops a talon coin near Jim Gordon. In a great fashion, the man questions whether Jim can survive as traumatic an event as Barbara could. As Barbara returns home, she gets something to eat, and remembers the piece of paper the talon left reading it. She gives us a history lesson on its use in 1944’s Japan. As Gordon calls his daughter to warn her of the talon threat he received, he walks outside police headquarters to find Gotham being bombarded with parachutes and bombs attached to them. Batgirl tries to get there in time but does not get there in time to stop the headquarters from blowing up. The talon then shows up, and the two women fight. She is quite scared as she has never fought someone like that. Her mask falls off as more bombs bombard the city. In a strange turn of events, it turns out to be the little girl from Japan. As Gordon gets to the top of police headquarters, he turns on the signal to find a talon has replaced the bat. Batgirl is upset about that, and she certainly has reason to be. This is the first ever comic Gail Simone has wrote in which I found hard to follow. My first complaint is if Mary is that young girl, how the heck did the young girl get to America and why were their eyes different? I was greatly confused by that, and then the talon turns out to be that young girl from Japan when the young girl named Mary chosen to be a talon seemed to be African-American. Whatever. The writing was confusing, and it seemed Mrs. Simone was trying to do too much. Ardian Syaf however goes to town with this issue. As always, his art is great but Mrs. Simone really lets Mr. Syaf go to town illustrating this issue. This is the best work he has done on the series thus far. However, it’s unfortunate it is Ms. Simone’s worst work on the series…… |
Mondo #2 ReviewWritten by TommyHancock on May 14, 2012Filed in: Comic Book Reviews, Image Comics Reviews | No Comments » 
Rating: 3/5 Writer: Todd McKeevers Publisher’s Blurb: Reviewer’s Comments: That’s not to say I don’t enjoy this comic. I do. I laughed out loud a few times because of some of the things that are said and done within the pages. Plus, the art. You can easily waste a day just marveling at what McKeevers(who does it all in Mondo) can do with a pencil and some ink. I just feel that more time was spent on the weird than on the story, is all. Bottom line(cause Stonecold said so): If you are the type of comic fan who is more about the art than the story, ignore my rating outright and go check out this comic. If you’re looking for something weird and abstract, this is also right up your alley. For those writer/story-centric comic fans out there, the books still worth picking up and looking at, but I don’t feel as comfortable recommending it to you. Although, with their only being 3 issues, it might be worth gambling on this series if you’re not too strapped for cash. |
Mind the Gap #1 ReviewWritten by TommyHancock on May 13, 2012Filed in: Comic Book Reviews, Image Comics Reviews | No Comments » 
Rating: 5/5 Writer: Jim McCann Publisher’s Blurb: Eisner-winning writer JIM McCANN joins RODIN ESQUEJO (MORNING GLORIES) and SONIA OBACK (S.H.I.E.L.D., The Defenders) unite for a psychological thriller that will leave you guessing at every turn! Reviewer’s Comments: Add to all of that the fact that, following the 46 page story, there is going to be, not only a letter’s page, “Mind the Post”, for fans to interact with the creators in the back of the book, but also a column, “Filling in the Gap”, where McCann reveals some of the clues that were hidden in the background of the panels that you missed(and yes, you will miss them). In this column, McCann promised, “The attacker has been named in these 46 pages”. With the column pointing out clues, and him telling us that we already met the attacker in this issue, it seems he is going out of his way to challenge readers to solve the remarkable mystery he has created. Honestly, after reading the back of the book, I had to go back and reread the entire issue and it felt like a new experience. If that can be kept up, month after month… I repeat, wow. Plus, we get to see a panel go from script, to pencils, to finished product within the column as well, that’s always fun to see. Honestly, I’m generally let down with mystery comics. It seems they are almost always a little more obvious than the creators thought while make them. That, or they have to come so far out of left-field with their reveals that it doesn’t feel like a mystery solved, but a big “WTF” when I finally reach the end. I don’t get that feel with this book. Sure things are kind of crazy, but that’s really only the things that are happening within the comatose mind of the victim. There is also a cliffhanger ending that is so crazy it promises issue 2 will be as different to issue 1 as issue one is to most comics period. Bottom Line(Cause Stonecold said so): If the following issues keep the incredible standard this opening issue has set for me, then, to my knowledge, there is no comic on the stands that offers its readers as much as Mind the Gap. And for 2.99? SO cheap for this amount of content. |
Alan Moore’s Supreme: The Story of the Year ReviewWritten by Bill Jameson on May 11, 2012Filed in: Comic Book Reviews | No Comments » 
Title: Supreme: The Story of the Year Writer: Alan Moore Artists: Rick Veitch, Joe Bennett, Alex Ross, Chris Sprouse Publisher: Checker Book Publishing Pages: 332 Price: Out of Print, $13.99 Kindle Edition Publisher’s Blurb: The acclaimed Alan Moore run of Supreme is collected in trade paperback at last! This is the first of two volumes, and contains Moore’s ground-breaking The Story of the Year arc in its entirety. Checker adds a never before published Alex Ross cover to create the supreme graphic novel of the season. Review: Alan Moore supposedly “left” comics for a good while after 1988. While this was in reality going off to do some independent works such as A Small Killing, Moore was out of the mainstream for a while. By the time he got back in 1992 the world of mainstream superhero comics had changed. The Image Rebellion had begun and an age of grim and gritty comics began to dominate the market (and still partially do). Despite Moore and Frank Miller being credited for ushering in the Dark Age of comics for their respective work on Watchmen and The Dark Knight Returns, Moore (and Miller) both were quick to dismiss this ultra-serious dark tone to superheroes. Moore quickly tried to rectify this with a mini-series called 1963, which was Moore’s tribute to Marvel Comics. While this was being written Moore was being approached by everyone at Image to write for their respective series. To everyone’s surprise he settled for working on Rob Liefeld’s Supreme. Supreme was a thinly veiled Superman who was more of a caricature of the Man of Steel who in 30 issues of Liefeld’s series had done nothing but be a psychotic violent version of Superman. Moore pulled the same trick he did on Marvelman/Miracleman, Swamp Thing and Captain Britain by having the character learn everything in the past did not happen. This time around though there was a self-awareness at changes being made in continuity. Moore quickly created an elaborate, intricate and fun new universe for Supreme where he was a meta-textual commentary on Superman and comics itself. The meta-moments of Supreme seem a little overly familiar and cliché in this day and era, yet they work very well in being an entertaining commentary on the “brilliantly stupid ideas” as Moore puts it of 60s Superhero comics. The cynicism of Moore’s most popular DC Superhero work is not here, this tribute shows a man who loves superheroes. In fact Moore mocks himself as the alternate identity of Supreme writes the comic “Omniman” and has to deal with an obnoxious British comic writer named Billy Friday who wants to include rape scenes and killing the entire supporting cast. Many have stated that this was the best Superman series being written at the time, and it still stands as one of Moore’s most pure fun series of all time. It’s worth noting that the artist of the series is a revolving door term, as rarely does an artist return for more than one issue. Yet this isn’t as troubling as one might suspect because the majority of Supreme: The Story of the Year has Golden/Silver/Bronze Age flashbacks all drawn by former Swamp Thing artist Rick Veitch. Veitch’s talent as an artist is prominently displayed as the backstory Golden Age/Silver Age are lush reminders of how fun and charming comics are supposed to be. Overall, it may not be the best work ever by Alan Moore, but it certainly some of his most purely fun comics ever written. Rating: 4.5/5
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Tall Tales From the Badlands: The Runt & A Thousand Deaths ReviewWritten by TommyZimmer on May 9, 2012Filed in: Comic Book Reviews | No Comments » 
Rating: 3/5 Publisher’s Blurb: Reviewer’s Comments: “The Runt” starts off with a dog running up to this master. He sees other animals trying to get his master. So, he tries to move his master’s body. He’s almost taken by vultures but fights back. He then defends his master against a snake. He then fights to his death against coyotes. A gang of cowboys comes along, and sees man and dog lying together where they decide to leave them to the vultures. “A Thousand Deaths” begins by going into the mechanics of a gunfight. We get the feelings of the two men, and the aging gunslinger’s thoughts on what will happen. He is obsessed with his future demise. He keeps reminding the reader about his upcoming death. The mechanics of it all continue until the ager wins the duel. He goes into his thoughts about heroes, his wishes he could impress a lady, and then his later wish to go back to his room. He stops to enjoy the view while he sees someone with a minigun, and is reminded his time is up. They try to shoot, and he dodges it falling in the process but still alive. Sean Fahey who wrote “The Runt” does a fairly good job writing a different take on the dog and his master category of westerns. He twists it, and surprised me a bit. J.C. Grande does some great artwork here, and it is quite impressive. “A Thousand Deaths” writer Seamus Kevin Fahey does not really step outside of the box. His dialogue is a bit redundant at times overemphasizing the themes of the story, and the dialogue seems more suited to be in a poem. Yes, it has a poetic tone to it but it sounds like he was trying to detail a poem that should not be detailed. On the other hand, Juam Romera adequately captures the feel of an old west town, and gives us some nice depth in the different locales the ager goes. Overall, these two entries continue to be average in the end. |
GI Joe Retaliation Prequel #4 ReviewWritten by TaliAdina on May 8, 2012Filed in: Comic Book Reviews | No Comments » 
Rating: 4/5 Writer: John Barber Publisher’s Blurb: Reviewer’s Comments: |
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