Title: Damaged (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): David Lapham (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: paladinking (Don't click it, read the review here... )

" If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, I suppose. That said, this was pretty derivative."
Review: Damaged #1

What’s Good: There are certain things in storytelling, particularly genre storytelling, that simply works time in and time out. This is particularly the case with crime comics, and Damaged certainly hangs tight on numerous tropes. For instance, we get the haggard, world-weary detective and we match him up with the young, bright-eyed newbie. We’ve also got the gritty narration by said old-timer and, naturally, the Mayor and the higher ups in the police force are jerks. It’s all sort of familiar, which naturally limits how good this comic can be. However, it also limits just how bad it can be as well. Reading Damaged at times feels like putting on an old, favourite shoe. It’s unremarkable, but it’s also comfortable. If you like crime comics at all, you won’t have any strong dislike for Damaged.

Certainly, David Lapham does do some things quite well. The narration by Frank Lincoln, politically unpopular police captain, is well executed and full of exactly the sort of downcast mood and atmosphere you’d hope for in a comic like this. Indeed, Frank’s voice is strong enough that the narrated pages end up being some of the book’s strongest. The tableside political banter between the mayor, the police department’s higher-ups, and the new recruit is also well done and feels natural and, again, comfortable.

This being a Radical book, the artwork very solid. It does make some frequent use of photo-referencing, but it’s inoffensive. Rather, we’re in a rare situation where we get at times photo-realistic art with high-level of detail that also remains gritty, dark, and full of atmosphere. It’s gritty, hard art to match a story that is like-wise, and yet it also holds to the digital, eye-popping Radical standard. Also, having three colorists on one issue is usually a bad sign, but here, it’s not at all noticeable.



What’s Not So Good: As you may have expected from my pre-amble, originality isn’t a strength of Damaged. Honestly though, the most egregious example of this has nothing to do with its use of generic tropes. Rather, it’s the fact that the anchor of the story is a physically intimidating 50-something guy armed to the teeth, single-handedly waging a bloody war on organized crime in his city. Does that sound familiar to you?

It should….because main character Henry Lincoln is basically the Punisher. Hell, aside from the grey hair, he even looks like Frank Castle. Unfortunately, it seems that the plot of Damaged is simply a hypothetical question of “what if the Punisher’s brother was a police captain?” It really hurts the series and frankly, there’s little to distinguish Henry at all. Independent comics are spawning pool for originality, so it’s a damned shame to see one be so in the shadow of a well-known, licensed character with three Hollywood movies under his belt.

Also, it seems that artist Leonardo Manco struggles a bit with his action scenes. We get random snapshots with no sense of fluidity and frequent close-ups that are at times frustrating to decipher. Layouts also get haphazard and everything is a bit too chaotic. I understand that a gunfight in close quarters IS chaotic, but I need a better idea of what’s going on and a clear sequence of events.

Conclusion: If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, I suppose. That said, this was pretty derivative.

More info:

David Lapham (writer)
Leonardo Manco (art)
Kinsun Loh, Jerry Choo, & Sansan Saw (colors)
Todd Klein (letters)

Publisher:

 

Title: H.E.R.O. (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Will Pfeifer (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: John McGuire (Don't click it, read the review here... )

Review: H.E.R.O. #10

Hero is a concept that by all means shouldn’t exist. From what I gather of the original Dial H for Hero series, it focused on a set of kids whom used the dial’s powers to help people (simplified version, I know). That kind of story is supposed to appeal to each of our desires to be a superhero, playing those games as we grew up. But for me, that seems like it could be a bit too cheesy (and very mid-eighties). Instead Pfeifer has been able to use it as a means of exploring how people might actually act when given power (much more of an up to date concept). Some might use it for good deeds, but certainly not all of them.

This brings us to Tony Finch’s story.

What you need to know:
Tony Finch is a former criminal who has stumbled upon the Dial. He has also discovered that dialing H.E.R.O. into it will bring him a different set of powers upon the dial's activation. For him this is the perfect opportunity to make good on a failed criminal career. He has hired a pair of goons and has returned to the city of Gotham to become the greatest villain of all.

This is part two of a two-part story, so it might behoove anyone thinking of picking up the series starting with issue ten to get issue nine as well.

The plan Tony has is easy enough. Heck, it is something that each of us has probably yelled at a comic as they are reading. Why leave Riddles at the scene of the crime? Why have some kind of odd gimmick that will give the hero of the city in which you are committing your crimes and edge on you. No, Tony has decided to do none of that. He hasn’t even got a villain name yet. But what he does have is a few successful crimes under his belt. And a secret in his past that he is desperately trying to forget.

HERO is a comic that allows its writer to pretty much go any direction he wants (which is certainly never a bad thing). So far we’ve seen what happens when a person allows someone else to get hurt while playing the hero. What happens when a person’s life is consumed by the power (meaning addictive). What happens when people use it for popularity? And that’s only scratching the surface. This to me is the reality of good writing. A concept that is so obvious, and yet no one grabs it.

Art wise Kano’s style is perfect for this book. It shouldn’t be about flash and tights (although certainly there are those moments). It should be about the people when they don’t have the power turned on. How it affects their lives. And Kano’s style is that. It’s down to earth, kind of gritty, and overall not flashy. It is going to contribute to the story, but it is never going to overwhelm the story itself (like the old Image comics did).

Should you buy this comic? On the plus side there is not a worry about it being on issue 10 and needing to get all the previous issues. Each story arc is probably 95% self-contained (and normally that 5% is showing you how the next person gets the dial). In fact, it is probably one of the easier books to get into. I, personally, would add one of the Marvel “previously” pages to catch you up on the Dial itself and you would be set.

So yeah, I’d say you should buy it.

More info:

Writer: Will Pfeifer
Artist: Kano

Publisher:

Title: The Spider (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Martin Powell (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Ray Tate (Don't click it, read the review here... )

Review: The Spider #1

Norvell Page did not create the Spider, but without this amazing pulp writer, the Spider never would have been so well regarded. When Page took over the house name of Grant Stockbridge, he did away with the Spider's simple domino mask. He instead made up the Spider's face as a modern day Mr. Hyde. Gone also were the simple criminal rackets. The Spider instead faced things like a judge that shaped his victims, male and female, into bloody letters of the alphabet.

By our standards, the Spider was stark-raving mad. He probably would agree, laughing gleefully as he stamped crimson arachnids to the foreheads of his victims. Some would argue that the Spider was a sociopath. I disagree. The Spider was a different kind of madness altogether, one that the depraved of humanity deserved to meet.

Moonstone began its foray into the Spider property with an anthology of books, followed by a bizarre, visceral Christmas comic strip and then one of their illustrated short stories in comic book form. Finally, they kick off a bona fide comic book series, and it's dead on.

One thing that readers will pick up on immediately is how the Spider influenced Bill Finger in his writing of Batman. Richard Wentworth, secretly the Spider, poses as an amateur criminologist who accompanies his friend Commissioner Kirkpatrick to various crime scenes, and thanks to the elegant artwork of modern master Pablo Marcos, Wentworth and Wayne may as well be suave, sophisticated cousins.

Kirkpatrick knows that the Spider and Wentworth are one in the same. However, they play an enjoyable game throughout the series. Kirkpatrick can intimate his knowledge all he wants, and Dick Wentworth can tease as well as deny, but if Kirkpatrick ever finds proof, he will shut the Spider down for good. We get a sense of this in the comic book as Wentworth visits Kirk to answer questions about a previous adventure. At that moment the phone rings, and Nita Van Sloan calls.



Nita Van Sloan is just as nuts as Wentworth. Some might think that her fighting "zombies" in Moonstone's latest is something new, something writer Martin Powell allowed for as a nod to modern sensibilities. Uh-uh. In one of Norvell Page's adventures, Nita believes the Spider is dead. So she does the only rational thing a person can do. That's right -- she assumes the guise of a gruesome black widow, takes over the Spider's crusade and adds to the body count. So, yes, Nita would occasionally be used as a hostage in the Spider adventures, and yes, she would occasionally become the sexual object of the villain's desires or simply spice up the pulps by being divested of her clothes, as happens in this adventure, but Nita and Dick belong together as a kind of vicious Nick and Nora Charles.

Powell's story reads almost as pedestrian pulp, until the very end, the sucker punch, the gotcha that throws the tale way over the top into the outrageous, grotesque that the Spider wallows in. If I have just one caveat, it's that the short story form really doesn't do the Spider justice. The Spider was tailor-made for novel length abnormalities. The medium just gives the characters room to let their various mental problems breathe.

Powell and Marcos also contribute an Operator 5 back up piece. Operator 5 was a more sedate pulp character. He was a master of disguise and given no other name but Operator 5. He blended into secret organizations that wished to overthrow the government at the cusp of World War II and destroyed them from within.

Unlike the Spider story, Powell and Marcos strive for verisimilitude to reflect a period of time in America where Nazi-sympathizing Bunds sprang up like cancerous mushrooms and madmen owned ego stations to broadcast propaganda and racist filth. I know. You probably thought that Fox News was a new invention. Surprise. In fact, the Bunds sound a lot like the Tea Party who want to form their own government and over throw the established checks and balance system. The idea of the Big Bad in Powell's and Marcos' story claiming to be a descendent of Cotton Mather is pure genius.

It's nice to see a tale with such bite, such unwavering loyalty to a true picture of what it was like to live in the United States during a period of chaos. We like to think that all of America unified behind the single idea to destroy the Nazi regime. We did, eventually, but that mindset didn't spontaneously generate. The genesis was much messier, and Powell's and Marcos' story is a reminder to beware of false prophets using scapegoats and persuasive words in a time of economic turmoil. I almost wish that they hadn't pulled the plot twist and kept the Operator 5 story pulp trappings free. Still, up to that point, the story is remarkable for its unsettling truth.

More info:

Writer: Martin Powell
Artist: Pablo Marcos

Publisher:

Title: Batman: Dead to Rights (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Andrew Kreisberg (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Kevin (Don't click it, read the review here... )

Review:

I purchased Batman: Dead to Rights, not knowing too much about what the storyline was about. All I knew was that it was Batman vs. The Joker, which is usually always a good read. Though I would have to say the writing in this disappointed me quite a bit. The Joker is captured and while still behind bars, manages to have people killed. The Joker prank calls a GCPD detective's wife, who impersonates a doctor and tells his wife she has a disease and that she is pretty much a nuisance to the people close to her, and tells her she should just kill herself. And within' a few minutes she does...The detective who's wife killed herself is upset and starts to become unpredictable. He's portrayed as a person with a bad temper, and a drinker, at least before he met his wife. But, now that she's gone he's back to his old ways, but worst this time. The detective shoots his partner in the spine leaving him paralyzed and in a wheelchair for the rest of his life (Which I'm positive is a reference to what happened to Barbara Gordon, they also have The Joker tell the bad-detective what a horrid act it is to shoot someone in the spine leaving them paralyzed and strapped to a wheelchair or the rest of their life) and the detective also shoots Jim Gordon, not sure if he's a Commissioner or a Captain at this point. They don't bother to mention that.

Arkham Asylum is apparently a condo, until Gordon calls the mayor to have it become a place for the criminally insane, and the Arkham Asylum that we are familiar with. The Joker becomes the first inmate and the detective becomes the second. Both inmates have neighboring cells and The Joker is constantly making jokes and laughing, which drives the detective completely insane. The Joker than tells the detective to escape Arkham, which he does. He than goes on to kill cadets at a police academy, which ironically brings his partner who the insane detective had shot and paralyzed, before anyone else can rescue the remaining cadets. The insane detective is now calling himself "Bad Cop", yes, Bad Cop...Who is now telling his friend that he killed the cadets so that his friend could come to him, and kill him. Demanding that his former partner take his life. When his partner refuses, he becomes violent and than the Batman comes to save them.

Oddly enough, the Batman is taken out by this mere detective...Which I really didn't like. Perhaps this detective has had a lot of training in hand to hand combat, at least enough to take out the Batman. Which I find to be ridiculous.



Since the 'Bad Cops' former partner refused to kill him, he walks away from the scene and plans to see someone else. While Gordon is out with his young daughter Barbara at an arcade, before they leave, Bad Cop shows up and threatens to kill Barbara, and tells Gordon to kill, like he demanded from his former partner. Gordon is then pathetically taken down by Bad Cop, and is being held with a knife to his throat. The Batman comes to 'attempt' to save the day for a second time, and all he does to stop Bad Cop is, talk to him with one or two sentences. The Bad Cop drops his knife and goes back to Arkham himself...Once back at Arkham Batman see's the Joker's cell door opened with a messaged written in blood. The story ends...

I absolutely dislike the way Batman and Gordon were portrayed. They stooped them to a level where a troubled drunk detective could disarm and subdue them. As if they were anyone else. The Batman has trained himself for nineteen years at this point if not twenty. To 'fight' criminals, fighting is his element, which he says so himself. So to be beaten by a low-life cop is embarrassing. They might as well have made a common thief take out the Batman.

Also, Jim Gordon is a great person when it comes to hand to hand combat as well. He isn't just some random cop, he's fought his way out of tougher situation than a cop with a night stick. They don't show Bad Cop as having any other kind of special training, that makes him such a "tough" opponent for Gordon and the Batman.

I don't think I would recommend purchasing Batman: Dead to Rights, unless you are a collector, such as myself. The story is definitely one of my least favorites. And the portrayal of characters (new and old) are bad, except for the Joker, he was the only well written character in this story

More info:

I.L.L. colorer
Andy Owens inker
Andrew Kreisberg writer
Scott McDaniel penciler
Stephane Roux cover
Jared K. Fletcher letterer
Mike Carlin editor
Rachel Gluckstern production

Publisher:

Title: Galactica 1980 (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Marc Guggenheim (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Jason Sacks (Don't click it, read the review here... )

Review: Galactica 1980 #2

Are you in the mood for a lot of death and destruction, with nukes flying and lots of shooting and violence? Then this is the comic for you.

Galactica 1980 is an almost cartoonishly intense series. If there ever was a comic that rumbles from one intense event to the next, it's this one. On the very first page the comic starts with four intense scenes and just rumbles onward from there.

Panel one on page one shows the reaction in the White House to a missile strike on the Soviet Union. At the height of Cold War tensions, the residents of the Battlestar Galactica have somehow been mistaken for an attack by the Soviets by American generals, which caused the generals to attack in reprisal.

Panel two shows the reaction of one Viper pilot to the seeming death of his companion. The scene is somewhat related to the panel above but provides individual drama for the moment.

Panel three shows the North American Aerospace Defense Command watching the missile attack, like a game of the classic video game Missile Command.



And panel four shows Boxey after the death of Commander Adama and aboard the Galactica, watching all the events unfold in front of him on a series of monitors, literally hovering above the fray and watching it all.

The first page really sets the tone for the issue. This is a pretty much unrelenting action adventure story, in which the massive ramifications of horrific decisions play out in terrible ways. People die, the Earth seems to be on the edge of eternal destruction, and, as the last few pages play out, the worst may be yet to come.

Your enjoyment of this issue will be proportional to your ability to enjoy such a crazily intense story. A reader never knows what events will happen from page to page, but almost all of it seems grim. While the events in the final pages are exciting and logical given the story, much of the rest of the story in this issue is the result of fairly unrealistic hotheadedness. It's difficult to imagine that a nuclear first strike would occur on such flimsy evidence, or that the reaction to a first alien contact would be so unrelentingly negative.

Throughout the book I was struck with the feeling that Guggenheim was trying to keep the intensity level of the story high to match the revived Galactica TV series, but was constrained by the expectations that fans would have. The plot seemed the result of a cascading series of tough decisions. Once you have the US government decide that the Galactica vipers are a first Soviet strike, the story has to flow along darker lines.

Cezar Razek delivers serviceable artwork in support of the story. His work isn't flashy, but it is effective, and he has a good feel for the bigger and more dramatic moments in the story. The scene in which Galactica Vipers fly above the US Capital building is very dramatic, and the final page would excite any long-time fan of Galactica.

The new Dynamite Galactica 1980 is an exciting series. It's a bit bold and dark and has its weak moments, but the drama is unrelenting, and the series is fun for any long-term Galactica fan.

More info:

Writer: Marc Guggenheim
Artist: Cezar Razek

Publisher:

Title: Servant Of The Bones (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Mariah McCourt (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Sparky Bobby King (Don't click it, read the review here... )

Review: Servant Of The Bones #1

Servant of the Bones is a “historical” horror/romance novel Anne Rice wrote back in the 1990’s and why the comic adaptation took almost two decades is lost on me. At the height of Anne Rice’s popularity an adaptation would be a great seller, but since she’s basically written herself out of pop culture (remember her Jesus phase) I’m really questioning this resurgence of her work.

Luckily, Servant of the Bones isn’t one of Rice’s played out Vampire stories, but instead a story about a different kind of beautiful immortal being with perfect skin and long gorgeous hair that women would kill for questioning his existence while chronicling his long perilous life to a caring mortal. So it’s JUST LIKE her vampire stories, but instead a sorrow filled Genie named Azriel.

Bitchiness aside, Servant of the Bones is a straightforward adaption of the hit novel; Fans of the New York Times Best-Selling Author, Anne Rice will not be disappointed. Mariah McCourt draws right from the source material and can clearly visualize what Rice had in mind while writing SOTB all while capturing that heavy mellow drama aura in Anne Rice’s work. Pair this with the art by The Last Unicorn team, Renae DeLiz and Ray Dillion & we have a Gothic Romance that can capture the heart of the most die-hard Twilight fan (Anne Rice might be a bit too intelligent for Twilight fans though. DIS!!!!).

Do I think Anne Rice is past her prime… Totally. She kept cranking out the same work over and over in different packaging, but I still think it’s groovy to see a new comic adaption of her work. The art is lush and I do love her world of beautiful, but damaged men. Count me in on this one…

More info:

Creator: Anne Rice
Writer: Mariah McCourt
Art team: Renae DeLiz and Ray Dillon

Publisher:

Title: Revelations (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Paul Jenkins (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Kelvin Green (Review 1) and Shaun Manning (Review 2) (Don't click it, read the review here... )

" This comic is packed full of interesting characters and witty and meaningful dialogue, all based around what looks to be an engaging and well-structured mystery plot."
Review:

Review 1 - Revelations #1 - Hard-nosed chain-smoking London copper Charlie Northern takes time out from appearing in Warren Ellis comics to help a friend investigate a bizarre apparent suicide in Vatican City. It’s good to see that even though there is a conspiracy at the Vatican, and even though we’re introduced to some less than savoury men of God, this isn’t heading straight into All Catholics Are Evil And Sinister territory; I’m no big supporter of that particular branch of Christianity, but from a purely aesthetic sense, villainous Catholics are getting a bit boring. So it’s immediately refreshing to see a story in which the criticisms of Catholicism are valid but at the same time, the religion as a whole isn’t portrayed as a cartoonish organisation headed by a Supreme Pontiff reclining in a leather chair while stroking his white Angora cat.

Also refreshing is the handling of the mystery plot. I’ve seen so many mysteries, particularly in comics, that just aren’t very good. Usually they’re either inept and obvious (Jeph Loeb’s Hush) or inept and impenetrable (Jeph Loeb’s Long Halloween), lacking many or all of the basic features of a good puzzle. It’s too early to tell how things will pan out, but I get a good feeling from this comic, as puzzles and clues abound and nothing is too vague and indistinct at this point; the central mystery of the suicide is still a..., umm..., mystery, but Jenkins presents the clues quite clearly, immediately involving the reader in the game, which is exactly the right thing to do. Putting the reader at a distance so that they’re merely an observer is an easy mistake to make, but so far Jenkins avoids it.

I’ve always enjoyed Ramos’ art style in the past; it’s cartoony and expressive and full of energy, and as a result absolutely perfect for the superhero work he’s famous for. However, I wasn’t at all sure about his suitability when I heard he was illustrating this particular story, but I’m pleasantly surprised to see that he does an excellent job. There’s been a slight change in Ramos’ style, as he seems to have abandoned the clean open look of his recent superhero work in favour of something with more meticulous rendering (it also looks like the art was coloured directly over the pencils), which gives the book a richer, more textured look that fits in well with the more realistic setting. The unfortunate flipside of the more detailed look is that sometimes storytelling clarity is lost, but it only happens occasionally and should occur less frequently as Ramos eases into the new style.

If I’m to be honest, I picked this up largely because of Ramos’ art, and promotional materials promised a bold evolution of his style. That promise is certainly fulfilled here, but what I find myself most interested in is the writing; this comic is packed full of interesting characters and witty and meaningful dialogue, all based around what looks to be an engaging and well-structured mystery plot.

I came for the pretty pictures but instead found an unexpectedly compelling mystery thriller.



Review 2 - Revelations #4 - What could cause the leading candidate for Pope to commit the mortal sin of suicide? Detective Northern draws closer to the answer, even as those around him insist he "does not know what he thinks he knows." Brought in from England to investigate a crime the Italian police won't touch, Northern dodges attempted drive-bys, outmaneuvers Satanic cults within the Vatican, and braves the perils of cheap cigarettes. There are some perks, though, as the detective romances a young financial investigator tracking the Holy See's misappropriations. Meanwhile, the current Pope, on the cusp of death, reveals his order's greatest secret.

First up: how about that cover, eh? Colorful and dramatic, this one tells potential readers that this is something they will definitely want to look at. And the interiors are gorgeous, as well. Humberto Ramos adapts a manga "chibi" style with impossibly detailed linework and shadows. I will say, though, that the nudity in this issue really surprised me; something about seeing characters with giant heads and improbable hairdos in the buff is vaguely upsetting.

Coloring by Leonardo Olea and Edgar Delgado saturate Ramos's work beautifully. And hell, let's hear it for the Comicraft's Richard Starkings on letters, as the varied text treatments go a long way toward setting the tone.

The story is interesting in that it doesn't much feel like a mystery, yet there is a murder (or possibly a suicide) to solve. The clues so far have not been much help, but more importantly have not instilled this reader with any particular desire to put the pieces together. While it is possible to reach some conclusions based on Detective Northern's findings and Cardinal Toscianni's machinations, too much is withheld to inspire an active interest. And the holy mysteries, which should keenly engage my appetite, are just a bit too pat. "You do not know what you think you know" is no "The owls are not what they seem."

That said, I like Detective Northern. I enjoy his story and his denunciation of Italian smokes. I like that he throws out British slang that his Roman colleagues don't understand, and corrects Lucy's malapropisms. Would this be enough to sustain this book if the art not so damned beautiful? It's hard to say.

More info:

Writer: Paul Jenkins
Artist: Humberto Ramos

Publisher:

Title: Simon Dark (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Steve Niles (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Bryan Joel (Review 1) and Henry Northmore (Review 2) (Don't click it, read the review here... )

" It's a promising start and definitely deserves some attention."
Review:

Review 1 - Simon Dark #1 - A mysterious yet fulfilling addition to Gotham.

It's often hard to make definitive critiques of the first issue of a series starring a brand new character because, really, if the writer's doing his job, he's intentionally keeping readers in the dark about roughly 85% of what's going on. This is especially true here, where Steve Niles of 30 Days of Night fame brings his notorious brand of macabre to the DC Universe proper with the introduction of Simon Dark, an amnesiac (maybe?) urban legend (perhaps?) stalking the city streets.

With more in common with your standard horror movie than superhero comic (look me in the eye and tell me that sweater isn't biting Freddy Krueger hard), it had me checking twice to make sure it wasn't a Vertigo title -- and that's definitely a good thing. This issue is eerie and mysterious at all the right times, but builds well-rounded characters within that. The medical examiner who's presumably being set up to be Simon's foil in the series is the only weak spot I noticed. In a title so full of left-field concepts and what-the-hell moments, she seems out of place by virtue of being normal in a NBC "Must See TV" way.

If Niles's script is purposely cryptic and offbeat, Scott Hampton's art leaves nothing to argue: it's absolutely a selling point of the issue. He's obviously very talented at body language and gives Simon a distinct visual personality somewhere between Michael Myers and Daredevil. The cover of the issue proudly proclaims our hero "Gotham City's Other Protector," but without that header I would never have known the story was set there; Hampton does a fantastic job of making Gotham look dreary and pale but simultaneously alive, a paradox I've rarely seen in a Bat-family book.

I'm hesitant of being too overzealous about this book after only the first issue because, to be honest, without some great stories behind it the quirky premise will wear thin since it's not especially new. But so far it's a promising start and definitely deserves some attention.



Review 2 - Simon Dark #1 - Steve Niles is probably the biggest name in horror comics at the moment. The man who brought us the gothic vampires of 30 Days of Night (now a big budget horror flick) is now launching his first big monthly title with DC, Simon Dark, starring ‘Gotham City’s other protector’.

First issues are often tricky but Niles draws you in with a grim action set-piece and high intrigue surrounding the mysterious central character who’s a patchwork anti-hero with echoes of Frankenstein’s monster and Nightmare on Elm Street’s Freddy Krueger. Strangely there’s no mention of the Batman, though you assume that if Dark is operating in Gotham it can’t be too long before the Dark Detective makes an appearance. Artist Scott Hampton draws on Gotham’s rich fictional history to instantly set the tone, creating a macabre atmosphere that really suits Niles’ writing. A strong start.

More info:

Written by Steve Niles
Art by Scott Hampton

Publisher:

Title: A Small Killing (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Alan Moore (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Silkcuts (Don't click it, read the review here... )

" If you are new to Moore and wonder what to read after his superheroes, A Small Killing is a must."
Review:

Alan Moore, a name that brings well deserved attention. Most famous for his acclaimed Watchmen, Moore would retreat to this original graphic novel as proof to himself that he is more then just Superheroes. A Small Killing is likely the most overlooked of the "Keystone" Alan Moore books. It was the winner of the Best Original Graphic Novel in 1994 and it also marks Moore's first major work outside Superheroes.

A Small Killing is not a coming of age story, but more a story of self-discovery. Our main character Timothy Hole (Pronounced "Holly") is an adman for a big American soda pop company. His big challenge would to sell this soda to the Russian market. The adman thing is more back story since Timothy Hole spends his whole time chasing this Young Boy, while the Young Boy chases him as well. This chasing of the boy is symbolic of the innocence he has lost over time.

Timothy Hole has become empty, much like the word "Hole" implies. Speaking of the name, I love it. Hole, an empty space. This is what Timothy has become, a hole, void of real emotion. Another neat twist Moore does with "Hole" is change the pronunciation of it to "holly". This is a nice juxtaposition. Holly is a celebrated beautiful plant of nature, used mostly as decoration in Christmas. For it to be decoration it must die, but Christmas is a celebration of Jesus' birth and life. Very interesting that this would be the name of the main character.

The art I think is very symbolic as well. There are few times it is just pencils or inks or half-tones or whatever. Most of the art is in watercolor and I love that about it. Watercolor to me is a form of painting that gives a life to it that no other paint can. Much like the human body contains anywhere from 55% to 78% of water, watercolor is mostly water. This connection to the building block of life I honestly believe has an affect on us that we cannot understand. Timothy and his world has a life to it because of the water bleeding into the pages of this story and that is what A Small Killing is about.... Life.



Life is what A Small Killing is really about. Timothy Hole killing the life of his childhood innocence: Timothy's lust being the reason for the death of a baby, Robin eggs in which he collected, bugs he captured in a jar. There are so many ways to kill innocence.

A Small Killing is not just the work of Alan Moore, but was a joint effort with Oscar Zarate. Both of the creators invested parts of themselves into this story, a story which is almost like an everyman story. It is every easy to relate to Timothy Hole and this ability to relate to him gives a sense of a personal work to Moore and Zarate. Both men deny that it is based on their own experiences and it is really fiction. It does not matter how much is fact or fiction, for the moral truth is consistent. Humans error this is history and it is up to a person to embrace their darker sides or to run for it.

A Small Killing is a great book and it really is overlooked when people start looking into Moore's body of work. Thanks to Avatar Press, this book is in print again and is not remastered and contains a new commentary article adapted by Antony Johnston. If you are new to Moore and wonder what to read after his superheroes, A Small Killing is a must.

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Written by Alan Moore
Art: Oscar Zarate

Publisher:

Title: Green Arrow (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): J.T. Krul (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Chris Bushley (Don't click it, read the review here... )

" You will definitely miss the mark if you pick up this book!"
Review: Green Arrow #1

Well, I knew that with changes there will inevitably be some disappointment. But I didn't think it would with this magnitude and from one of my favorite DC writers -- J.T. Krul.

Where to begin? Okay, I am not going to pull any punches, it's not fair to you nor me at this point and hopefully I can save you a few bucks. This was a horrible book! From the costume, thank you Smallville, to the haircut, thank you military, to the pitiful secondary characters -- this book did not have one good thing going for it. And yes, I like all of the people that worked on this book - especially Krul, but the book that they came up with as a whole reminded me of reading some DC Showcase book from the late eighties! The concept and art were both hokey and were sub par for the caliber of the creators that conceived it.

Green Arrow is one of my favorite DC characters, and I was so excited to have him finally be released from the trappings of the entire Brightest Day nonsense! But this, this -- is just so disheartening for a fan that has seen the pinnacle of Krul's writing. Writing that made Ollie Queen breathe with such a resounding voice over the last year. To be given a book that has him fighting third tier characters on a boat while using a bow that retracts from his hand -- COME ON!

So far The New 52 is about a fifty-fifty shot. But it's a sure bet that you will definitely miss the mark if you pick up this book!

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Writer: J.T. Krul
Pencils: Dan Jurgens
Inks: George Perez
Colors: David Baron
Letterer: Rob Leigh
Cover: Dave Wilkins

Publisher:

Title: DC RETROACTIVE BATMAN THE 90S (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): ALAN GRANT (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: TheNextChampion (Don't click it, read the review here... )

" Now THAT’s a comic I wouldn’t be disappointed at!"
Review: DC RETROACTIVE BATMAN THE 90S #1

Since I was born in 1989….wow I’m old….anyways, since I was born in 1989 I technically grew up in the 90s in regards to comics. But I never really read that much comics when I was little, it took until the late 90s and early 2000s to really get into them. So the Batman I technically grew up with was the Bruce Timm animation version and the Tim Burton/Joel Schumacher film adaptations for the most part. But looking back at older Batman comics, I did love reading the Alan Grant/Norm Breyfogle era of the character. It was action packed but it had this weird, campy value to it. Plus Breyfogle is a pretty damn fine artist. So the Retroactive book I was looking forward to the most was this 90s one-shot. Is this one-shot a great blast to the past? Or should we just stick with the original?

Well it definitely feels like a 90s comic, that’s probably the biggest praise I can give to this thing. Alan Grant certainly hasn’t changed in the twenty or so odd years since writing Batman. This book can be preachy at times and at other times it’s nothing more then just a huge punch-fest. But to be honest the story really isn’t that strong. I mean it’s enjoyable in one aspect but in another it just feels like another Batman story and nothing is really special about it. The moments involving action is pretty fun to read, but Grant really does nothing with The Ventriloquist here other then to be a macguffin for this bizarre plot of a dead mafia guy coming back to life killing people. It really feels like Grant had no idea how to get twenty pages or so out of this new story.



It’s also amazing to see just how different the style of Breyfogle has changed. I guess not doing a Bat book in twenty years will do that for an artist. But when you look at this new story in regards to the reprint in the back of this thing, the change is staggering. In this new story, Breyfogle just looks so cartoony now, although not as cartoony as it shows on the cover. At first I thought I was looking at a Bruce Timm comic more so then a Breyfogle comic. It doesn’t help that there are two colorists involved in this issue, even though I think the colorists are the least of the concern here. His Batman just doesn’t look the same as you see in the reprint. He actually looks like Scott McDaniel to be frank….which isn’t a good thing. At the end of the day it’s something good to look at, but I would’ve preferred to see the old Breyfogle if that was somehow possible.

I don’t think this is a disappointing comic by any means. The story is good enough to get a new Grant script out there and Breyfogle’s art, while incredibly different then before, is still good to look at. But when you read the reprint in this comic I think you’ll be with me in that you really can’t go home again when it comes to particular creators. Again I’m glad to see these two work again a Batman comic, but it’s not as strong as I thought it could be. I’m sure we’re never gonna see another Retroactive series again because of the reboot but how about this for a creative team for the 90s: Doug Moench and Kelley Jones. Now THAT’s a comic I wouldn’t be disappointed at!

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Written by ALAN GRANT
Art and cover by NORM BREYFOGLE

Publisher:

Title: Men of War (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Ivan Brandon (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: dfstell (Don't click it, read the review here... )

" I really enjoyed the parts of this comic that were content to be a war comic, but the inclusion of superpowers means I’ll stay away from issue #2."
Review: Men of War #1

The Story: DC returns to war comics and one of them’s last name is Rock.

What’s Good: The most exciting thing about the new DC 52 titles is that there is a heavy helping of non-traditional superhero fare. Most of it is still in the same sci-fi vein (Swamp Thing, Animal Man, etc.), but the inclusion of a title like Men of War is all kinds of exciting for the comics industry because our hobby could use a LOT of diversification.

The highlight of this issue was really the Navy SEALs back-up feature. The main story featured a couple of negatives that I’ll discuss below, but this back-up was a pure war story. I can’t really comment on how accurate the depiction of Navy SEALs was, but this was just a quick story of American soldiers on a patrol, they get shot at by a sniper, one get’s wounded and the others have to go sort out the sniper. Good stuff, great art! Very solid war comic. More of this please!

The main story had some good parts and was enjoyable enough. It spends a lot of time establishing this Corporal Rock as a modern day US Army soldier who has a familial relationship to THE Sergeant Rock. Probably the best thing about this story was the US soldiers are the good guys. Sure, some of their commanding officers are dicks, but I am so sick of every fictional story about US soldiers have the token guy who rapes prisoners or the redneck racist guy or the drug-using guy. I’m patriotic and want to see positive depictions of the US armed forces… Sue me!



What’s Not As Good: I didn’t love the art in the main story. It is attractive… Perhaps a little soft, but still attractive. The trouble is a typical one of war comics: It was hard to tell who was who because they’re all wearing helmets. This comic probably could have used more establishing shots and a little more diversity in the characters. There is kinda a list of people to have in these comics: fu-manchu guy, black guy, red beard guy, guy with scar on cheek, etc. But, most of these guys were generic white dudes and I got them confused. Also, as much as a I appreciated the footnotes referring to actual military weapons, the drawings of those weapons weren’t quite spot-on. If you’re going to call out a particular weapon, you need to make it look precisely right down to the small details. In fact, the error is probably calling the weapons out in the first place. Just draw them 90% accurately and let them just be “guns”.

What I Didn’t Enjoy At All: Here’s a bit of a SPOILER WARNING… There are super-powered beings in this comic and for that reason I don’t think I’ll be back for issue #2. It seems like the goal might be to show what it is like to be an elite soldier in a world full of superpowers, but that just isn’t an interesting story because we’ve already seen elite soldiers in superpower comics: They get smashed by the Hulk, Superman, Wonder Woman, ROM Spaceknight, Wolverine, etc. We’ve all read those comics where the “Army” is summoned to control the villain or out-of-control hero and except in very rare cases where they have kryptonite or a special suit of armor, the super-powered beings smash them. So, that means that a comic about those dudes is just the same as reading a comic about weak superheroes or the redshirts in Star Trek and no one is interested in that at all. And, if the soldiers are effective at fighting superheroes, then it makes everything we’ve seen before just look stupid. Bad idea folks! I don’t want to cheer for B-listers in my comic books.

Why can’t we just have a plain old war comic?

Conclusion: I really enjoyed the parts of this comic that were content to be a war comic, but the inclusion of superpowers means I’ll stay away from issue #2. I’m not interested in reading the perspective of the guys who get mauled every time a super-villain goes on a rampage.

More info:

Ivan Brandon (writer)
Tom Derenick (art)
Matt Wilson (colors)
Rob Leigh (letters)
Kate Stewart (assistant editor)
Joey Cavalieri (editor)

Publisher:

Title: Masquerade (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Phil Hester and Alex Ross (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Ray Tate (Don't click it, read the review here... )

" Masquerade is a refreshing variation on the origin of the super-hero."
Review: Masquerade #1

I've read a handful of Miss Masque stories. In terms of plot they're mostly indistinguishable from the adventures of Lady Luck and the original Black Cat. These detectives, however, behave differently. Lady Luck for example was the more humorous of the characters. Black Cat was the most athletic. Despite her high society identity, Miss Masque was more like a gumshoe. Miss Masque could have been a very generic character, but there was always a spark behind the mask. There was something in the writing that made her lively.

Masquerade reignites that spark. Hester and Ross analyze what makes Miss Masque tick. Batman is a product of vengeance. Spider-Man is a product of guilt, but what motivates Miss Masque here known as Masquerade? Rather than follow the patterns of others, Hester and Ross boldly try something new. They take a very common trait shared by many and expand upon that trait to make it the core of Miss Masque's personality.

The plot is relatively simple. The story starts in mid-adventure where the Nazi madman has Masquerade at his mercy. The screwball intends to animate a giant bucket of bolts in a spectacularly lunatic way and at the same time use Masquerade as the robot's literal stepping stone.



The attitude of Masquerade differs from other super-hero titles featuring renowned heroes. Rather than depend on nostalgia or the plot, Hester and Ross depend on the force of the characterization to persuade the reader to turn the page. Masquerade's reasoning and origin is simply compelling.

Carlos Paul and Deborah Carita provide Hester and Ross with heroic moments that are accented by the elements and atmospheric hues reflecting these forces. These heroes that Ross has been promoting through Project Superpowers lack the exposure of DC and Marvel heroes, but through their actions and the art, they walk the walk. Paul builds these heroes with potent strokes. They crackle lightning. They plow through steel. They look and act convincing.

Miss Masque at first seems to be visually overwhelmed by these more powerful characters, but as soon as she dons her mask, she becomes one of them. She doesn't suddenly gain abilities beyond those of mortals. She instead grows more confident. The reader puts his faith in her, and ultimately it's Masquerade who saves the day.

Masquerade is a refreshing variation on the origin of the super-hero. Miss Masque's motivation gibes with what was unsaid by the original character, and her wants make her an enticing hero.

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Writers: Phil Hester & Alex Ross
Artists: Carlos Paul, Debora Carita (c)

Publisher:

Title: Vengeance of the Mummy (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Justin Gray (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: George Haberberger (Don't click it, read the review here... )

" ...gives a modern and erotic spin to the old classic horror story."
Review:

Derek, Jenna and Shawn worked for Sire Pharmaceuticals. Together they developed a system of bandages containing nanotechnology that repaired and reconstructed hopelessly damaged bone, muscle and skin on a cellular level.

The celebration of their success was blunted for Derek Totenkopf by the revelation that during the close working conditions Jenna and Shawn fell in love and are going to be married. After the couple left, Derek, in a fit of rage, broke the neck of a laboratory rabbit that was wrapped in the bandages. He was astonished when the animal came back to life after an hour, although with an aggressive temperament and strength to match.

Calling Jenna and Shawn back, he explains this amazing new development and is ready to experiment on something larger. Shawn advises caution and wants to report these finding to the administration. But by this time Derek is mad with power and Shawn and Jenna end up dead. Although for Jenna, that is a temporary condition.

The mummy of the title is a maddened, revenge-seeking Jenna, who wrapped tight in the miraculous bandages gives a modern and erotic spin to the old classic horror story.

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Writer: Justin Gray
Artist: Zeu

Publisher:

Title: 12 Reasons Why I Love Her (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Jamie S. Rich (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Johanna (Don't click it, read the review here... )

Review:

This charming/frustrating graphic novel captures the key points of a relationship in twelve well-chosen scenes. (Each has a theme song listed to start, too, in case you want the full sensory experience.) Gwen’s a fascinating character, turning expectations on their head from the first chapter, their first date. She buys Evan flowers, which makes him grumpy and petulent. He doesn’t understand her meaning, but instead of asking about it, he jumps to his own conclusions.

Their lack of communication continues into the next scene, where they’re shown to have very contrasting approaches to life. She’s creative and playful, to the point of annoyance, while he’s practical, sometimes even stodgy. If Evan would let her make her own choices, he’d wind up happier. To be fair, there may be reasons for him to be suspicious, since she plays with his expectations too much.

It’s around this point that I started thinking that the two of them would never work out, although I wanted them to. It takes two tries for them to have a successful first date, for instance, although the second is quite charmingly philosophical. Later we see how he can be thoughtless and judgmental, probably due to his inability to read other people’s reactions. He pushes too far because he doesn’t know how he’s coming off. And that’s why I say frustrating — they’re interesting people, I want them to be happy, but I don’t believe they’re happy together. Even though I want them to get what they think they want.

Joelle Jones makes her debut in stunning fashion. Her style impressively changes to match the mood of each piece. And that’s necessary, because Jamie Rich’s script relies on her art — he’s comfortable letting the images tell the story when needed. The reader gets to see the leads interact instead of being told what they’re thinking and feeling. That’s still obvious, though, through the well-drawn gestures and attitudes of the two. And they’re both cute. He’s got a Dean Cain-ish charm, with glasses and a great smile, while her punch of her gorgeous body is lightened by a sprinkling of freckles across her nose.



The first real show-offy moment (although I don’t think that was the intent, it’s just shockingly good and could be used as a presentation piece) is chapter four, where Gwen gets a monologue. Each page is a moody closeup in keeping with the feel of the season she’s describing, backed with a grey wash. Evan gets a corresponding chapter later on, done in high-contrast, mostly black pages. His section also starts off being about her, the way he sees her.

That’s the odd thing about the book — we get more of an impression of how he thinks, with her motivations remaining opaque. That’s a common quality of romance comics written by men. They understand the male and create complex motivations for that side of the relationship, but the woman retains some mystery. Here, that’s even the case although more characters talk about her and her history than about him. But then, that’s also part of her background, that she doesn’t know certain things about herself. Or maybe I’m reading more into it than intended, because I’ve known people like him but not so much like her.

With careful attention, the chapter pieces can be reassembled into time-based order, but I do wish I knew how the author views them winding up, eventually. That lingering question is part of what makes the book so fascinating.

A preview is available at the publisher’s website. The two creators have been interviewed online. The writer and artist both have websites. For another example of Rich’s take on romance, see Love the Way You Love.

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Written by Jamie S. Rich
Art by Joelle Jones

Publisher: