The graphic novels loved by children and adults alike
Jan 2nd, 2012, 8:11 am
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Title: Dawn: Lucifer's Halo (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Joseph Michael Linsner (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Stephanie W (Review 1) and Beaky (Review 2) (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

"DOn't read this book, it's stupid and 2D."

Review:
    Review 1 - I remember first reading this book when I was 16, pulled from my father's bookshelf. My mother hated it for the art, my father loved it for the story (legitimately for the story, not just that reading playboy for the articles bullshit, though I'm sure that could be applicable to this book as well).

    Though Linsner's art is gorgeous, it does fit into the "big tits, big pecs, big guns (er...swords)" genre of graphic novels. Full of women with giant breasts, pointing nipples, literally no waist at all and legs into infinity, I can see why my mother was so opposed in my youth. Yet reading this now, I can really see the beauty of the story combining heaven and hell, death and rebirth, the beauty of man and letting go of meaning.

    Despite the story, this is not a book for feminists. None of Linsner's works are. There are misogynistic male characters in every book he has written--it is not merely the physical attributes of the female characters. Even the strongest female characters are vulnerable to the male characters, and even with their infinite power still succumb. But what is life other than submission to another?

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    Review 2 - ** spoiler alert ** I'd give this a 0 if I could. The only thing good about this is the art. The story's sort of silly and not the kind that sticks in your mind.

    We follow this guy named Darrian who has a dream from Dawn or something. ANd while that's happened, god tells Dawn to get down to hell and take back Lucifer's halo..which she does easily because Lucifer's like, 'you don't know the lines of Shakespeare? Screw you, take it then!"

    Then the halo is given to Darrian who goes on a killing spree. Srsly. Angel 'Mikal' comes down to ask for the halo and points his sword at Darrian (not attack yet) then says "she gave it to me, it's a present, you can't have it!" and kills Mikal by stbbing him in the stomach. Some demons gather around, commentind and he kills all of them (except maybe one who got kicked).

    Sometime later, some other demons spot him walking in Mikal's armour so they swoop down to sweet-talk him. But before they get a chance, he kills all of them--except one loser who only gets his arm chopped off and starts talking about his childhood for no reason at all.

    A batch of angels swoop down to ask for the halo back and he kills them all too without any real reason. I mean, they hadn't even started fighting yet and he's got all but one down. When the last remaining angel starts to say something to him, Darrian charges at this guy and stabs him. The angel flies in the air but Darrian throws the sword into his stomach..and he is out!

    And somewhere near the end, ALL the angels and demons SEEM to gather, one on other side to persuade Darrian to hand the thing over. He tells them something like, 'go ahead, fight' and the angels and demons start fighting each other while he's suddenly in the presence of god and Lucifer who are having a lovers' squabble of sorts because they used to be LOVERS. Man, Lucifer acts like such a girl, pulling sorry faces and holding his hand like bend at the elbow. I guess he poses in a feminine manner too at times.

    Then Darrian says something meaningful (I didn't get it) and smashed the halo then everything's AOK and he's moving on with his life...

    DOn't read this book, it's stupid and 2D. It sort of feels like the author's dream or something where all this nonsense happens. What anoys me most is that, whatever she's wearing, Dawn's nipples are always poking through. SHe was also (the bit when God asks her to get the halo back) walking and sticking her butt out at the same time. Who does that? She looks like she never walked straight. Also, not a biggie, all the males have long hair. I thought there were all girls for a long moment, because they acted so whiny. The book makes little sense and the only thing compensating for its crappiness is the art.

    Well, bad book, weak story and characters, nonsensical...I don't advise anyone to read this. But if you do, it's a really short read because it's all dialogue.

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More info:
    Written and illustrated by Joseph Michael Linsner

Publisher:
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Jan 2nd, 2012, 8:11 am
Jan 2nd, 2012, 8:32 am
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Title: American Born Chinese (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Gene Luen Yang (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: School Library Journal (Review 1) Sherrie Willians (Review 2) and (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" An effective combination of humor and drama. "

Review:
    Review 1 - Graphic novels that focus on nonwhite characters are exceedingly rare in American comics. Enter American Born Chinese, a well-crafted work that aptly explores issues of self-image, cultural identity, transformation, and self-acceptance. In a series of three linked tales, the central characters are introduced: Jin Wang, a teen who meets with ridicule and social isolation when his family moves from San Francisco's Chinatown to an exclusively white suburb; Danny, a popular blond, blue-eyed high school jock whose social status is jeopardized when his goofy, embarrassing Chinese cousin, Chin-Kee, enrolls at his high school; and the Monkey King who, unsatisfied with his current sovereign, desperately longs to be elevated to the status of a god. Their stories converge into a satisfying coming-of-age novel that aptly blends traditional Chinese fables and legends with bathroom humor, action figures, and playground politics. Yang's crisp line drawings, linear panel arrangement, and muted colors provide a strong visual complement to the textual narrative. Like Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye and Laurence Yep's Dragonwings, this novel explores the impact of the American dream on those outside the dominant culture in a finely wrought story that is an effective combination of humor and drama.

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    Review 2 - Three seemingly unrelated stories blend into a memorable tale of growing up Chinese American. The book begins with the ancient fable of the Monkey King, the proud leader of the monkeys. He is punished for entering the god's dinner party by being buried under a mountain for five hundred years. Second in the story of Jin Wang, the son of immigrants struggling to retain his Chinese identity while longing to be more Americanized. The fnial story is that of Cousin Chin-Kee, an amalgamation of the worst Chinese stereotypes. Chin-Kee yearly visits his all-American cousin Danny, causing so much embarrassment that Danny must chage schools. The final chapter unifies the three tales into one version of what it means to be American-born Chinese.

    This graphic novel first appeared as a long running web comic on http://www.moderntales.com, where it enjoyed an enthusiastic following. The artwork is clean and distinctive, with varying panel styles and inking that is visually appealing. The Cousin Chin-Kee story line is extremely hyperbolic and at times difficult to read, as it embraces the most extreme negative Chinese stereotypes, but it displays some of the difficulties in perception faced by young Chinese Americans. This graphic novel could be especially cathartic for teens and adults of Asian descent, but people of any ethnicity would find themselves reflected in the universal themes of self-acceptance, peer pressure, and racial tensions. This book is recommended for libraries serving teens and adults, particularly those enjoying graphic novels.

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More info:
    Written and Art by Gene Luen Yang
    Illustrator by Lark Pien

Publisher:
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Jan 2nd, 2012, 8:32 am
Jan 2nd, 2012, 3:58 pm
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Title: Rogue Angel: Teller of Tall Tales (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Barbara Randall Kesel (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: CCdC (Review 1) and scifichick (Review 2) (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" I’m sending this one back with an F. "

Review: Rogue Angel: Teller of Tall Tales #1
    Review 1 - A few years ago an indie comic company was promising a knockoff of the Black Panther whose hook was that he was the last surviving descendant of the legendary medieval Malian emperor, Sundiata. The only problem was that Sundiata has a lot of surviving descendants, including one of the most famous singers in the world, Salif Keita; a good sign that, when building your fantasy around faulty premises, it’s best to stick to un-disprovable bad science, not immediately googlable made-up facts. Some comics, as anyone who’s survived my year-end review column knows, I give up after one issue; that one I dropped after the solicitation. Whereas Rogue Angel I stuck with all the way to Page 11.

    “When building your fantasy around faulty premises, it’s best to stick to bad science, not immediately googlable made-up facts.”

    This one, based on a successful series of pulp novels about an archaeologist who wields the lost, sorcerous sword of Joan of Arc, finds our heroine on a dig in the American West with a scholar in multicultural studies along to check the prospect that Huckleberry Finn was partially derived from a (fictional) African-American academic whom Mark Twain met in a (nonexistent) Nevada saloon run by a free black owner and frequented by a diverse clientele. Apparently powerful interests are willing to send death-threats to see that this racially-inclusive rewriting of America’s bibliographies and library catalogs doesn’t happen (I guess every day can’t be lost Holy Grails and secret Nazi cabals for your average supernatural archaeologist).

    The only problem is, Twain (though later much repentant) was still a high-profile hate monger in a largely pro-slavery population at the time this comic shows him rubbing elbows with a fairytale family-of-man. The other only problem is it’s been 16 years since a real-life researcher turned up a newspaper column by Twain that claimed to extensively quote a conversation with a black youth which persuasively, if not conclusively, suggests that Huck Finn’s dialogue and persona had an actual black source; not much happened to erode the official authorship of this apparent new entry to the annals of stolen black works by famous white names, but then again, no one was murdered over it either. Reality can be disappointing in all kinds of ways.

    And a whole miniseries turning on a plot point you don’t even have to go to google to discount makes your interest start to flag, leaving only Rogue Angel’s droning West Wing-style course-syllabus dialogue and, of course, lots of pathologically perky manga-boobs in case women being archaeologists, literary scholars and mythic warriors alone doesn’t do it for ya. I’m sending this one back with an F.

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    Review 2 - As a fan since the beginning of the series, I jumped at the chance to review an early copy of the new Rogue Angel comic.

    Annja Creed is a part-time archeologist, part-time tv host of Chasing History’s Monsters, and full-time adventurer.

    When Annja visits an old friend in the former mining town, of Virginia City, she is asked to assist with a dig involving Samuel Clemens’ work. But there are some who are against their exposing what could be an incredible discovery. And soon, Annja and her friend Rashmi find themselves fighting for their lives.

    The creative team behind the new Rogue Angel comic has done a brilliant job of overcoming the challenge of bringing Annja to a new medium. From beginning to end, each page is filled with incredible artwork and fantastic scenes. The story of Annja latest adventure has a promising start, full of humor, history, and action.

    For all the same reasons I love Indiana Jones (minus looking at Harrison Ford, of course), Annja is my second favorite archeologist and adventurer. She’s strong, independent, and smart. Usually accompanying each adventure is a fight against good and evil. And the bad guys don’t stand a chance against Annja, with or without her legendary sword of Joan of Arc.

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More info:
    Writer: Barbara Randall Kesel
    Artist: Renae De Liz
    Letters: Neil Uyetake
    Colors: Ray Dillon
    Publisher: IDW Publishing

Publisher:
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Jan 2nd, 2012, 3:58 pm
Jan 2nd, 2012, 9:02 pm
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Title: Fantastic Four - The End (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Alan Davis (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: lotrking (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" A great read on several levels"

Review: Fantastic Four: The End #1-6
    Fantastic Four: The End is one of the best mini-series, and indeed, one the best comic book stories, I have ever read. Given, I am a huge fan of the Fantastic Four, and granted I have only been reading comics for a little over a year, but if this isn’t good enough to rank amongst the top of what this medium has to offer, I don’t know what does. Whether or not one disagrees with this statement, there is still plenty here to satisfy even the most casual comic book reader.

    The story takes place years in the future long after a horrific battle with Dr. Doom which caused not only his death, but the tragic deaths of Franklin and Valeria. Now the Fantastic Four have drifted apart. Reed has ushered in a utopian period for humanity, inventing life improving machines and life lengthening processes, and continues to do research, secluded on a base in orbit of Earth. Sue has separated from Reed, and has immersed herself in underwater archaeology. Johnny (who now goes by John) has finally matured and is a prominent member of the Avengers. Ben, who has gained the ability to transform back and forth between The Thing and his human form, has finally married Alicia. They have three children and live on Mars, dwelling inside the Inhuman colony.

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    While life may seem bittersweet for the four one-time teammates, old threats are reawakened and old foes unite. Eventually, through a seeming act of fate, the Four slowly come together along with many of the surviving Marvel heroes to once again save humanity. This summary may make the plot sound somewhat generic, but nothing could be further from the truth. The story takes many shocking twists and turns while employing clever foreshadowing techniques. This is also a very sci-fi story. It almost felt more like Star Trek than the Fantastic Four due to its futuristic setting, but this is certainly not a complaint. Fanboys (and fangirls) who love far-flung future tales and stories of super heroics will be more than pleased by this entertaining merger of the two.

    Alan Davis’ art is a perfect match for his story. Too often, I have seen future settings portrayed as being either too cartoony, or too surreal. This is neither. Utopian scenes, while pristine looking, do not have a sterile feel. Instead, they’re full of life. Once again, visuals from Star Trek come to mind. Similarly, when the rougher parts of outer space are being presented, Davis does not hesitate to show us more mechanized and creepy scenery. John Kalisz’s colors match flawlessly, being vibrant and colorful at the right times and dark when necessary, but never too much of either extreme.

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    Perhaps the best element is the theme of family that runs throughout. Even a tragedy cannot keep the Fantastic Four from fully severing their ties with one another. When they need each other the most, they are able to overcome adversity and reunite once more. Themes such as responsibility, heroism, and combating prejudice, while all important, come second when placed with one of the most important benefits to society: the family. Not only does Alan Davis convey this in a very well told manner, he realizes that this theme is what drives a good Fantastic Four story, thus making Fantastic Four: The End a great read on several levels – as an FF story, as a piece of futuristic science-fiction, as a superhero tale, and as family-centered piece. Anyone who enjoys reading one of these categories needs to do him or herself a favor and pick this series up – either as individual issues or in trade paperback form. (Grade: A+)


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More info:
    By Alan Davis (Story and Pencils), Mark Farmer (Inks), and John Kalisz (Colors)

Publisher:
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Jan 2nd, 2012, 9:02 pm
Jan 3rd, 2012, 8:32 am
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Title: Breach (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Bob Harras (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: J. W. De Bolt Jr. (Review 1) and Paul Milligan (Review 2) (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" Mr. Harras makes this story work well. "

Review 1 - Breach #1

    Breach looks like a promising entry into the world of science-gone-wrong super powers. I picked this up after seeing Bob Harras’s name attached (X-Men, Nick Fury vs SHIELD, The Incredible Hulk). And Mr. Harras has been writing comicbooks for many years. So, really, how many new stories can be told in the same milieu? The way comicbook writers can come up with new stories month after month is to use the same patterns with different particularities, and that’s been going on since the 1940s. And we keep buying books, so I guess that works sufficiently. But, somehow, Mr. Harras makes this story work well.

    The plot originates during the Cold War; the Soviets and the U.S. are racing to complete a cyclotron operation involving the opening of a new dimension in space-time. The scientific explanation is a bit puerile, but that’s probably either an effect of marketing requirements or the overall dumbing-down of society in general.

    The characters and their interrelations are developed before the truistic calamity occurs, although you can see the shopworn military-experiment-goes-awry coming a mile away (or, at least, seven pages away). The scientist named Justus Ward is cleverly handled, as the reader isn’t sure if he is in a bad mood or genuinely malevolent. Small digs at American political situations are a little irritating; the author could have been subtler.

    I have to admit that the story is engaging. You have the family element, the man-versus-system appeal, and the man-out-of-time potential (a la Captain America or the unnamed protagonist of The Time Machine). The ending of this issue comes up so suddenly that you are compelled to seek the next issue. Clean, crisp drawing by Marcos Martin (Batgirl: Year One) and Alvaro Lopez (Virtex) clearly portrays the action, with the help of the lightly-toned colors of the Javier Rodriguez Studio. This style is preferable to the highly stylized baroque darkness of some other titles where one has a hard time seeing what is happening. The people, however, are portrayed a bit too sketchily.

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Review 2 - Breach #8

    Rating: 5/5

    Plot: Following last issue’s cliffhanger, Breach takes on the monster unleashed by the evil organization known as the H.I.V.E. And if that wasn’t enough, Superman shows up for the first time after getting severely trounced by Breach in issue #4.

    Comments: When we last left Major Zanetti (aka Breach) he had taken quite a beating at the hands of the terrifying Rifters and was on his last legs when Talia and Lex Luthor unleashed a terrible genetic monstrosity for field testing.

    The monster smacks around Zanetti, whose had no time to recover from his last battle. He seemingly has very little energy left with which to effectively fight back. But then the alien virus that has been threatening to take control of Zanetti emerges. Zanetti blasts the genetically enhanced monster backwards and begins to tear it apart. Reveling in his victory Zanetti holds the beast’s heart for all to see.

    Suddenly Zanetti regains his senses and, fearing the harm he may cause to innocent bystanders, transports himself to a remote forest. After obliterating half the forest in rage and frustration Zanetti is confronted by Superman, who last appeared, and was beaten senseless by Zanetti, in issue 4.

    Zanetti tells Superman (or Groovy Guy as he calls him, having just recently returned to our world after being missing for twenty years and thus never seeing the emergence of the superhero population) that he can feel the urge to kill building inside him and it’s something he can’t stop. Superman offers his help but the virus within Zanetti reemerges and he attacks Superman.

    The two fight once again, with Zanetti goading Superman into using more and more force. While the alien mind seems to be trying to kill Superman, it is Zanetti, reemerging periodically during the battle, who appears desperate for Superman to stop him at all costs.

    So how will the rematch end? Will Superman be able to defeat Zanetti without destroying him? And will Zanetti emerge whole or will he succumb to the alien desires to wipe out the weak things wherever he encounters them?

    Breach is easily one of my favorite new comics of 2005. Each issue continues to get better and better. Writer Bob Harras has crafted a story that is both unique (though interestingly the book started as a Captain Atom revamp) and intriguing. From issue to issue the reader has to wonder whether Major Zanetti will be able to come to grips with the tremendous power that has been forced on him. And the artwork by Marcos Martin is almost enough by itself to make the book worth reading from month to month.

    It’s a shame this book is getting cancelled with issue #11.

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More info:
    Writer: Bob Harras
    Artist: Marcos Martin
    Letters: Clem Robins
    Ink: Alvaro Lopez
    Publisher: DC Comics

Publisher:
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Jan 3rd, 2012, 8:32 am
Jan 3rd, 2012, 10:56 am
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Title: The Executor (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Jon Evans (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Paul Montgomery (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" If you're a fan of Scalped, Criminal, or Robert Mitchum flicks, this is a must."

Review:
    You remember Joe Ullen.

    Everybody remembers Joe Ullen.

    Especially in humdrum Elora, New York, where they took to sporting Kings jerseys once he was plucked away to coast on LA ice. The townies cheered. They spoke up when some tourist nursing the cheap stuff started groaning about Joe's aggressive style, his tendency to play a little harder than the other guys. Took umbrage when they called him a goon. Even after he busted his knee in that mess with the other guy, had to give up the game for good, they still loved Joe Ullan. They remembered him, took pride in the games he skated and weren't too bitter about what might've been lost. Life does that sometimes. People in Elora know that. They can't watch him on TV anymore, but they can remember.

    All these years later, Joe should've figured on that. Shouldn't have been surprised to learn that one Elora girl in particular would still have him tucked away in her memory. Miriam Litwiller. She loved him even when he had a mullet. Later, when things got bad, when it came time to thinking about what might happen after she was gone, she looked down at the paperwork and wrote the name Joe Ullen. Executor. She hadn't spoken to him in whole lifetimes, but if anybody could sort this out–should sort this out–it was Joe. So when they found Miriam, or what little was left of her in the driver's seat of that burnt out car, they called Joe. He hadn't thought about Elora in a while, at least not purposefully. It was always there in the darker recesses of his mind, just like the ice. Just like Miriam. Just like everything. But he probably never expected to get that call or to find himself on a plane to the east coast. To have that kind of responsibility. Joe had a steady girlfriend in LA. He had the kind of job where you got big checks and you could keep your old uniform behind glass as a kind of trophy. He hadn't heard from Miriam in ages, was sure she'd moved on just as he had. So why'd she name him executor to her estate? Why saddle him with the task of going through her stuff, making lists, signing papers, delivering low figure checks to all the people in her life? Her friends. Her real and current friends? Why not hand it off to their old friend Naomi or her father the police chief? Why should he have to take the money to her boyfriend on the Mohawk reservation? Nobody likes him up there.

    Joe finds himself in the back of the local bank, alone with her safety deposit box and it's contents. A note addressed to him. A reminder.

    It's not long before people are shooting at him.

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    Life does that sometimes. The people of Elora know all about that.

    This latest release from the Vertigo Crime label is a classic yarn. No hocus pocus, just straight up crime. It focuses on that time-honored conflict of man against his own past. Run all you want, but your history won't just haunt you, it will hunt you unto the ends of the earth. Crime novelist Jon Evans turns in a taut and tense script steeped in the genre's tradition. While early passages include a lot of exposition to get readers up to speed with Joe's ties to Elora and its people, the storytelling evolves into something very economical as it progresses. It was also refreshing to find a modern noir without a narrator. Everything is told through dialogue and visuals, so we're only being guided through the mystery by direct actions and discoveries, not the protagonist's subjective interpretation. It's a very clean approach, and it keeps what's really a very traditional mystery from becoming melodramatic. There's a great simplicity to the story, so the plot is only ever as complex as it can afford to be in 200 pages, a tremendous accomplishment in this combination of medium and genre. It's the kind of compelling crime drama that had me eating out of its hand. I hope this isn't the last we see of Jon Evans in comics, because he has a great handle on the medium. Easy comparisons to Jason Aaron and Scalped aside, I think he has just as sophisticated an approach to ensemble mysteries and writing about some very wicked criminals.

    Artist Andrea Mutti offers some truly knockout visuals. He's tasked with illustrating a very believable small town, and there's a consistently strong sense of place throughout. Joe's LA office, the town of Elora, Miriam's lived-in home, and the Mohawk reservation all feel like distinct settings. Joe really gets to dig around on this mystery, and that's important. It feels grounded, established, so the search and the journey are absolutely compelling. If there is any downside to Mutti's finely rendered locations and characters, it's that there are moments when the art feels a little stiff. By generating so many details and focus to the landscapes, the panels lose movement. There are times when characters are so expressive, that it's like those awkward party photos that never make it from your camera to your hard drive, much less to Flickr. Flipping through though, there are so many fantastic pages, including character moments as well as quiet establishing shots Evans and Mutti work well together, especially in background moments that help to create a suspenseful tone, as in a panel where two character have a conversation told through dialogue boxes over an image of a shadowy owl descending upon a mouse.

    I've read most of the Vertigo Crime offerings, and The Executor is an easy favorite. While some prose novelists haven't made the strongest transition to comics, Evans really stuck the landing. If you're a fan of Scalped, Criminal, or Robert Mitchum flicks, this is a must.


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More info:
    Written by Jon Evans
    Art by Andrea Mutti
    Cover by Lee Bermejo w/ Brainchild
    Letters by Clem Robins

Publisher:
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Jan 3rd, 2012, 10:56 am
Jan 3rd, 2012, 1:21 pm
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Title: Mickey Mouse Mystery Magazine (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Tito Faraci (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: wiki (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" MM was considered a great experiment which was not given any good chance to survive."

Review: MM #0 Anderville
    MM - Mickey Mouse Mystery Magazine is a Disney comic, published in Italy from May 1999 to March 2001, about Mickey Mouse and his investigation in the city of Anderville.

    The series, a noir story starring Mickey Mouse as the main character, is composed of only twelve parts, and it is regarded by fans as one of the best Disney series ever, together with PKNA. It is often called MM or even MMMM and it's set in Anderville, a chaotic metropolis, modelled on the city New York. Anderville is a deceiving city, full of criminals. In this new setting, Mickey Mouse has a hard life, because he has no friends and because the authors wanted to break traditional cliché of his adventures in Mouseton, featured in Italian comic Topolino. Villains are different from Black Pete and even from Phantom Blot, often unsuspected, and even friends act in a rude way toward Mickey Mouse, who often feels disoriented in the big city. These stories were directed to a more adult reader, trying to bring to a new life the "old style Mickey Mouse" of the 1930s and 1940s stories, written and illustrated by the late Floyd Gottfredson.

    Mickey Mouse leaves Mouseton for Anderville, being involved in the case of his missing young friend Sonny Mitchell. To prove his innocence, being mistaken for a criminal, both from Anderville villains and police inspector Jan Clayton, he faces some dangerous situations, running the risk of being killed. He becomes friend with Little Ceaser, a well-respected, and somewhat rude, bartender, and with his friendly customers. He eventually proves his innocence but he is forced to stay in Anderville, waiting for furthermore investigations. He finds out that his friend left to him an investigation agency: Mickey Mouse becomes a detective and, during all the series, was involved in very dangerous events, which led him to act in a more violent way than the usual Mickey Mouse.

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    First number of the series was written by Tito Faraci and illustrated by Giorgio Cavazzano. They created Anderville, through many sketches and decided a specific range of color to use for the stories, preferring the dark and cold tones to the light and warm ones. MM showed the talent of Francesco Artibani and Tito Faraci, main writers of the series, and was a showcase for the talent of some young, at the time, drawers: Silvio Camboni, Corrado Mastantuono, Paolo Mottura, Marco Palazzi, Alessandro Perina, Claudio Sciarrone, Stefano Turconi, Silvia Ziche and Giuseppe Zironi.

    There were also two side stories: one featuring the weird journalist Chester Soup, a comical one, and one called Anderville Confidential.

    Though fans were pleased about these new Mickey Mouse stories, reactions from Disney were not so enthusiastic. Modern Mickey Mouse was a character far away distant from that of the 1930s and the 1940s, and main readers of his adventures on Topolino, in Italy, were considered being mostly kids. MM tried to change the classic beloved cliched Mickey Mouse. For that reason, from the second number to the fifth, we see Mickey Mouse watching the end of each episode in a theater screen, as if the stories were movies, with him as the main character, not being an official development of Mickey Mouse. Those reasons, together with the low sales pushed for the premature closing of the series. Fans were disappointed and MM was considered a great experiment which was not given any good chance to survive.


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More info:
    Written by Tito Faraci
    Illustrated by Giorgio Cavazzano

Publisher:
    Image

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Jan 3rd, 2012, 1:21 pm
Jan 3rd, 2012, 3:29 pm
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Title: Final Crisis (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Grant Morrison (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Sebastian Frank Nye (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" This book is full of wild and fantastic moments that have never seen before in any book anywhere."

Review:
    Wild, dense, confusing, and mind blowing...

    Let's get something straight: no matter what author Grant Morrison says, this book is NOT for the uninitiated.

    If you are:
      - Sick of the typical slugfest event comic
      - Fairly well versed in current DC universe continuity
      - Multiverse literate
      - A fan of Grant Morrison's previous DCU work
      - Not afraid to be confused sometimes
      - A fan of a good mind screw

    Then this book is for you!
    I don't pretend to know everything that went on in this book. The Super Young Team was particularly cryptic to me. I can also understand others' frustration, because this book assumes a lot of previous knowledge, not only of aforementioned current continuity, but also of everything Morrison's ever contributed to JLA, Seven Soldiers, and Doom Patrol. You also have to have read Morrison's Batman, especially his R.I.P. epilogue.
    I know i'm flogging a dead horse now, but if your average comic book was a 100 level college course, than consider this a post-grad dissertation.

    HAVING SAID ALL THAT, This book is full of wild and fantastic moments that have never seen before in any book anywhere. The heroes overcome feats they've never imagined, and Morrison writes variations on classic comic book themes that no one else could possibly touch. There's more story packed into each issue than many events have in their entire run. It gets messy sometimes, but overall it was a thrill of a ride that leaves you breathless in its wake.

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More info:
    Written by Grant Morrison
    Art by JG Jones

Publisher:
    Image

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Jan 3rd, 2012, 3:29 pm
Jan 3rd, 2012, 3:53 pm
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Title: Final Crisis Special Director's Cut (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Grant Morrison (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Michael Leader (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" Offers little to inform, even spark, the readers' theories. "

Review:
    Today I went down to pick up the latest issue of Final Crisis Image . This issue, as well as the latest Batman, was delayed. This is a shame, as I was hoping to pick at least one of these comics up in New York when I was there in July, but nevermind. Final Crisis #3 is a great continuation, and Grant Morrison still surprises with his complex and intelligent approach to the 'epic crossover' event series. I don't feel too qualified to post individual issue reviews yet, so I will defer to Joey Esposito of CC2K, who thinks that Final Crisis is shaping up to be a 'destructive masterpiece'.

    I also picked up a special 'Director's Cut' edition of Final Crisis #1. I initially thought this would be a reprint, with extra material. I was half-right. The original issue is reprinted, although in an early inked form (without colour or lettering). This is pretty cool, although by no means essential. More interesting is the extra material, which consists of Morrison's script and a 'Director's Commentary' by Morrison and artist JG Jones.

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    If there ever was a series that begged for a commentary, Final Crisis is it. Morrison packs in so many references, allusions and foreshadowings that even hardened DC fanboys are often left puzzled. However, Morrison and Jones hold back from real depth in this commentary, and stick with basic reactions, and some anecdotes from the creative process. Equally, as the series is ongoing, and features new twists and revelations in each issue, Morrison can only hint or avoid, as opposed to truly reveal his little details.

    This is the real failing of the product itself. The series is barely halfway released, so a Director's Cut is not only restricted in terms of its relevance, but seems presumptive. Not truly enlightening, there isn't much here to warrant a $4.99 (£3.60) price tag. Readers are much better served by community-led projects, such as Final Crisis Annotations, which works as both a resource for references, but also a hub for discussion and interpretation. Final Crisis #1: DC, sadly, offers little to inform, even spark, the readers' theories.


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More info:
    Written by Grant Morrison
    Art and Cover by J.G. Jones
    Publisher: DC Comics

Publisher:
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Jan 3rd, 2012, 3:53 pm
Jan 3rd, 2012, 4:59 pm
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Title: Final Crisis: Submit (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Grant Morrison (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Greg McElhatton (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" There's as much to enjoy in "Final Crisis: Submit" as one can find."

Review:
    An editor once noted on a panel that when you start seeing multiple inkers on a project, it usually means a deadline or two slipped along the way. With three inkers on board for "Final Crisis: Submit," I think that's more or less a given. The thing is, with "Final Crisis: Submit" originally slated for the month gap between "Final Crisis" #3 and 4, shipping it the same day as "Final Crisis" #4 has effectively removed a lot of the punch that this comic would otherwise generate.

    The idea behind "Final Crisis: Submit" is a smart one, showing what the world is like once evil wins and everything falls apart. Grant Morrison focuses on a hero and a villain here, Black Lightning and the Tattooed Man, and while Morrison's attempt to show how the lines between them are blurring comes across a little heavy-handed, it's still an enjoyable story. I love Black Lightning's relationship with printed material here, both discarded books as well as the copies of the Daily Planet that he's distributing among those still resisting Darkseid. It's a very human and recognizable moment, that sort of thing that Morrison is so good at bringing across the page.

    Unfortunately, this comic wasn't released in its planned gap, and instead people are reading it simultaneously with "Final Crisis" #4 and its resistance movement beginning to pick up. We aren't getting that bleak, "This is what the DC Universe has come to," view that lasts for a long time period. Instead, you blink and it's already starting to come to an end. "Final Crisis: Submit" loses part of its punch right there.

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    A lot more of its lost punch, unfortunately, comes from Matthew Clark's art. Clark seems particularly off of his game here, providing confusing and muddled storytelling on more than one occasion. There's a very early moment where Black Lightning runs up a flight of stairs, before pouring water after himself and then electrifying the water to stop his pursuers. The only problem is, the actual panel of him pouring the water is so small you've actually got to squint to see what's happening; most of the page is instead devoted to an overly-large portrait of Black Lightning zapping the ground (and with no sign of the water itself).

    That's not the only place where the art goes off the deep end, either. I never thought I'd see the Tattooed Man swing his hips out to one side and have a "come hither" look on his face in order to attack someone. And as for the big climactic final scene with Black Lightning and the Tattooed Man together? There's an event in it that is so badly laid out and executed that it is almost impossible to figure out what happened without reading and re-reading the dialogue. Even then, part of the big escape there still doesn't make much sense, presumably due to some sort of artistic hiccup having to do with perspective, and/or placement of characters.

    I think it's ultimately very much to Morrison's credit that there's as much to enjoy in "Final Crisis: Submit" as one can find. Between a bollixed schedule and wildly inconsistent art, the deck was highly stacked against it. And yet, in the end, I still enjoyed it well enough. Like the characters trapped in "Final Crisis: Submit," I found myself with a little hope at the end of the day.


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More info:
    Written by Grant Morrison
    Art by Matthew Clark & Norm Rapmund
    Covers by Matthew Clark and Rodolfo Migilari


Publisher:
    Image

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Jan 3rd, 2012, 4:59 pm
Jan 3rd, 2012, 5:43 pm
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Title: Final Crisis: Rage of the Red Lanterns (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Geoff Johns (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Comic Book Revolutio (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" Action junkies will enjoy Final Crisis: Rage of the Red Lanterns."

Review:
    The Good
      There is no doubt that action junkies will enjoy Final Crisis: Rage of the Red Lanterns #1. Johns lives up to his reputation as a writer who cannot resist butchering characters as often as possible.

      As a general rule, I am completely sick and tired of the endless amount of death, gore and ultra-violence that has become mind numbingly ever-present in DC’s comic books. However, I did not mind it at all in Final Crisis: Rage of the Red Lanterns #1. This is a war story dealing with competing paramilitary police forces. It makes sense that in a universe spanning war story there would have plenty of violence and death.


      I dig how Johns is handling the complex relationship between Hal and Sinestro. I know that the theme of mentor, friend and enemy that Sinestro has played in Hal’s life may not be the most original theme, but Johns has done a fine job with it and it makes for an interesting read. I do think that before the Blackest Night is over that Hal might be forced to realize how he and Sinestro are more alike than he would want to admit.

      Johns proceeds to tease the reader with several little twists in the plotlines that we have been getting over in Green Lantern. Clearly the scarred Guardian has her own agenda. And I am wondering of she is working with Sinestro or if she is simply playing every single side against each other in an attempt to demolish all of the different colored Corps. It also appears that Johns has several surprises in store for the reader when it comes to the chase for the various colored power sources.

      This was a dynamic looking issue with the best artwork being reserved for the action scenes.

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    The Bad
      Many readers may not dig the dark somber nature of this issue and the graphic violence and killing.

      I found the Red Lanterns to be simply way too over the top. The constant blood puking and how the Red Lanterns all manage to synchronize it with their teammates was too much. And the fact that the Red Lanterns can evidently burn people to death with their blood puke just made it that much more silly. I do not know if Johns was trying to be campy with the Red Lanterns, but if he wanted me to take the Red Lanterns seriously and not chuckle at them then he failed.

      Another problem with this issue is that it had nothing at all even remotely to do with Final Crisis. I have no idea why DC even bothered to call this a Final Crisis tie-in issue. This issue simply read like the newest issue of Green Lantern. It might have been wiser for DC to delay this issue until the end of Final Crisis and then bill this issue as a Blackest Night prelude instead.

      Once again, DC seems determined to flood the reader with a myriad of “big events.” It would have been a smarter move for DC to let one big event end before cranking up the hype machine for the next big event. I swear, readers are going to end up getting “big event” fatigue at the rate that Marvel and DC are going.

    Overall:
      Final Crisis: Rage of the Red Lanterns #1 was a solid advertisement for the upcoming Blackest Night event. Johns made this issue as new reader friendly as possible and presented enough interesting mysteries to drum up interest in the Blackest Night event.


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More info:
    Writer: Geoff Johns
    Pencils: Shane Davis
    Inks: Sandra Hope

Publisher:
    Image

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Jan 3rd, 2012, 5:43 pm
Jan 3rd, 2012, 6:41 pm
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Title: Final Crisis: Resist (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Greg Rucka (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Dan Phillips (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" Another top notch tie-in to Final Crisis... "

Review:
    Final Crisis's tie-in projects have all, up until this point, fallen into one of two categories – they either 1) attempt to flesh out Grant Morrison's plot by focusing on one or two significant story beats; or 2) they serve as a vehicle (or an excuse, if you want to put it bluntly) for one of DC's A-list writers to return to one or more of their favorite properties, with any service to Morrison's plot coming as a welcome byproduct. Final Crisis: Resist is the first tie-in that I can honestly say falls into both categories, which is why, in some regards, it is the strongest tie-in so far.

    On the surface, Resist is a lot like its sister issue, Submit, in that it introduces one key plot point into Final Crisis' story and moves a group of characters from point A to point B, where Morrison no doubt needs them to be for future issues. However, where as Submit was essentially just one long action sequence - one not important enough to land in the pages of Final Crisis proper, but too important to land entirely on the cutting room floor - Resist is an engaging, fully realized story in its own right. It also happens to be a vehicle (or an excuse) for Greg Rucka (alongside Eric Trautman) to return to the world and characters of Checkmate. And it's this last detail that elevates the book to the level of such quality projects as Rogues Revenge, Revelations and Legion of Three Worlds.

    Besides its significant contributions to Final Crisis, Resist is essentially Rucka and Trautman's Checkmate swan song, their attempt to give the their run on the property a proper farewell after Bruce Jones drove the title off course and towards a premature death. And as a bookend to Rucka and Trautman's twenty-five-issue stint on Checkmate, Resist works wonderfully. Not only do the two scribes give proper care and attention to their two main characters, Mr. Terrific and Sandra Bordeaux, but they also cleverly bring their story full circle by incorporating the OMAC Project into this plot. There's a feeling of tragic inevitability at work here, as this particular version of Checkmate rose from the ashes of the first OMAC disaster and now finds itself once again staring down this technology in their most dire hour.

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    But again, Resist works on a number of levels, and can definitely be enjoyed by those unfamiliar with Rucka and Trautman's work on Checkmate. Like Submit, the book is an effective look at the underground resistance that surfaces following Darkseid's rise to power at the end of Final Crisis #4, with the important distinction being Resist accomplishes far more in terms of story depth than Submit managed.

    The plot follows a ragtag group of the last uninfected Checkmate operatives as they struggle to scrape together a formidable resistance. The group includes Mr. Terrific, Sasha, Thinker, Thalib Beni Khalid, and, perhaps most prominently, Snapper Carr, who soon find himself in the seductive claws of the villainous Cheetah. And as rewarding as it is to see Rucka and Trautman return to the regular Checkmate cast, their work with the Snapper/Cheetah dynamic ends up stealing the show, and provides a number of brilliant moments. (Cheetah is having quite a good week, actually, as she managed to steal a few scenes in Secret Six #3 as well.)

    Artist Ryan Sook, whose interior work is all too hard to come by these days, provides his usual brand of fantastic pencils, making the art perhaps the most obvious area in which Resist greatly outshines Submit. I first fell in love with Sook's work in the pages of Arkham Asylum: Living Hell, and it was great to see him back in the interior game. Sook captures the dark desperation of Rucka and Trautman's script perfectly, always making sure to remind us of the grim reality of this situation. It's always amazing to witness this artist's versatility, and here he actually shows flashes of J.G. Jones' style of penciling. I have no idea whether this was purposeful or not, but the similarities were a welcome bonus for a project that's losing more and more of any visual consistency with each passing month.

    To summarize, Final Crisis: Resist is another top notch tie-in to Final Crisis proper, a book that contributes significantly to Grant Morrison's story while also succeeding on its own terms. Fans of Rucka and Trautman's work on Checkmate in particular can't afford to miss this issue, as it's the powerful last installment we've been waiting for ever since the two unceremoniously left the ongoing series.


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More info:
    Writtenby Greg Rucka
    Art byEric Trautmann
    Colors by Ryan Sook.

Publisher:
    Image

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Jan 3rd, 2012, 6:41 pm
Jan 3rd, 2012, 7:43 pm
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Title: Final Crisis: Superman Beyond 3D (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Grant Morrison[/url] (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Jesse Schedeen (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" Your Crisis reading experience is incomplete without this one. "

Review: Final Crisis: Superman Beyond #2
    You know, Phillips catches a lot of flack from some readers for his supposedly undying love of all things Grant Morrison. However, If you want proof that he doesn't immediately slap a 9.0 on all of Morrison's books, look no further than his review for Final Crisis: Superman Beyond #1. You could double that score and still only have a decent rating on your hands. If anything, Superman Beyond has proven even more divisive among Morrison fans than Final Crisis itself.

    I, however, found issue #1 a very enjoyable experience, all things considered. To me, the story Morrison is presenting here is not as confusing as it initially seems. Sure, there's a great deal of Morrison-esque, pseudo-scientific sci-fi jargon being spouted from half a dozen different mouths, but I came into this story expecting the surreal, and that's what I've been given. With both issues now in the bag, I feel Superman Beyond has outdone Final Crisis itself in at least two major ways.

    Firstly, Morrison's writing is given much more room to breathe here. Perhaps the most common complaint with Crisis is that Morrison's scripts jump from scene to scene in rapid-fire fashion. With so much material crammed into each issue, individual scenes and characters rarely enjoy the intimate focus they deserve. I'm never quite left with that impression here. The cast is smaller, even though the scale is much more epic and grand. Morrison delves into the mindset of these five Supermen in a way that wouldn't have been possible in the main series. Surprisingly, it's Earth-5 Shazam and his alter ego who really stand out this month. Superman himself is bit more iffy, unfortunately. His dialogue is solid, but his internal monologue is over-the-top even by Morrison's standards. The Superman I know would never busy himself thinking lines such as, "Gurgling underneath our feet, precious Bleed is siphoned away towards a grim, basalt monument."

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    Say what? Supes' sudden loquacious boost never stops being jarring, and it detracts from what could have been a truly classic issue. Had Captain Adam been the one to narrate this book, the effect might have worked better. The ideas Morrison tosses around are almost awe-inspiring at times. His conception of the multiverse as a living and growing being really takes shape in this book. Furthermore, he lays out the true scale of the Crisis in a way that the main book never has. I actually look back at recent issues of Final Crisis less fondly now for focusing so much on Darkseid and his minions. Truly, they're but a small piece of a much larger and more fascinating puzzle Morrison has cooked up. It's a shame that puzzle will only become fully apparent in Final Crisis #7.

    It's also a shame the main series couldn't look this good. Doug Mahnke has impressed me ever since Black Adam: The Dark Age, where he seemed to reach a new level of clarity and cinematic appeal in his work. Superman Beyond looks how Final Crisis should have. Morrison throws out all manner of weird creatures and zany situations, and Mahnke renders them all without question. Where the hodgepodge of artists in Crisis is, at best, wildly inconsistent, Mahnke's work is clear and very consistent. Dan complained last time about Mahnke's transitions, or lack thereof, but I honestly don't find that to be much of a problem here.

    What is problematic is the use of 3-D imagery. DC - here's a helpful guide to consult when wondering whether or not to use 3-D in a comic. Don't! It looked terrible in Superman: Last Son. It looked terrible in League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: The Black Dossier. And it looks terrible here. If artists like Adam Kubert, Kevin O'Neil, and Doug Mahnke don't benefit from the format, it just isn't meant to be. Reading this comic is an uncomfortable chore without the glasses, but a disorienting, headache-inducing trial with them. And with or without the glasses, the cardboard inserts make turning pages a chore in and of itself. So knock it off. Thank you.

    Despite these few problems, I really enjoyed my experience with Superman Beyond. It has proven itself the most important of the Crisis tie-ins, and it offers a tantalizing glimpse of how the story as a whole could have played out. I may very well be in the minority on this one, but I'd say your Crisis reading experience is incomplete without this one. For better or worse.

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More info:
    Story by Grant Morrison
    Art by Doug Mahnke, Christian Alamy, Tom Nguyen, [more...]
    Colors by David Baron
    Letters by Ken Lopez
    Cover by Doug Mahnke, J.H. Williams III

Publisher:
    Image

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Jan 3rd, 2012, 7:43 pm
Jan 3rd, 2012, 8:44 pm
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Title: Final Crisis Sketchbook (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Grant Morrison (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Koppy McFad (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" Very interesting to fans who are more concerned about what the big name creators are doing and thinking."

Review:
    This is both a sketchbook and a scorecard. containing character sketches and advance information on the key players in the upcoming FINAL CRISIS Image miniseries. We get to see the new designs for characters like Darkseid and the new batch of Japanese heroes that Morrison has created as well as explanations for these designs, what influenced them and even some of the background on these characters that led to their new designs.

    It is very informative and is even quite fascinating as it sheds light on the thought processes of the creative team behind the CRISIS. The new costume of Darkseid isn't just something whipped up to make him look different. It sends a message about who the character is and how he has changed. Anyone who reads this would have to be impressed at how creative Morrison and Jones are, to come up with designs that involve squealing Japanese schoolgirls, inverted sun-symbols and cynical art school students and then transform them into figures that are both highly original but still distinctly linked to the world of superheroes.

    There is surprisingly little in this issue on Superman and the rest of the DC mainstays-- despite their prominent place on the cover of this sketchbook. Some people may feel cheated by this.

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    There is something deeply conflicting about this 'sketchbook' however. It comes out BEFORE the FINAL CRISIS miniseries so it functions as a form of advance promotion for the big 'event." But it also introduces us to these new designs and new characters even before we get to meet them in the story itself. We do not get to feel the excitement of actually discovering these new characters, of being stunned by the new design for Darkseid, et al. It also spoils the surprise for us since we now know that CHARACTER X will be appearing in this miniseries after all, despite what we saw happen to him three or four months ago.

    This "spoiler" aspect will inevitably detract, in a certain way from the fun of the actual comic itself. This sketchbook (and others like it) should be treated as 'extra features' that are normally included in DVDs, released AFTER the movie has hit the theaters. Of course, if they released these sketches in the FINAL CRISIS trade paperback, then DC Comics would probably forefeit the earnings it makes by selling a sketchbook even before the actual miniseries comes out.

    In a sense, this makes it hard to actually 'rate' a sketchbook like this. Let us just say that this sketchbook will be very interesting to fans who are more concerned about what the big name creators are doing and thinking but may be a huge spoiler for those who want to be surprised by the miniseries.


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More info:
    Written by Grant Morrison
    Art and cover by J.G. Jones

Publisher:
    Image

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Jan 3rd, 2012, 8:44 pm
Jan 3rd, 2012, 10:49 pm
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Title: Final Crisis: Requiem (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Peter Tomasi (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Doug Zawisza (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" This book is as close to a perfect read as I have encountered lately."

Review:
    This book is the best read to come out of Final Crisis. This book is also wonderfully independent of Final Crisis for you to be able to enjoy it.

    While it carries the "Final Crisis" trade dress, and expands upon the sadly diminutive exodus of everyone's favorite Martian in "Final Crisis" #1, this book is so much more. Truly, it is a Requiem for a fallen friend.

    While I have no doubt I brought some emotional baggage into this read (my aunt just died last week) this issue gave me so much more baggage. Frequently in comics, we lose our favorite characters. In comics, however, no sooner does the hero fall before the readers are declaring that the character will be back in the next big falderall. I'm not so sure here. Peter J. Tomasi doesn't base this book around the hope that J'onn J'onzz will be alive and kicking, but rather focuses on the hero J'onn was -- the things he did and the people he touched.

    Tomasi does all that and more. He understands what the Martian Manhunter was all about. He clearly has some love for the character. In this book, Tomasi gets a chance to eulogize his fallen friend through the mouths and thoughts of Manhunter's fave five. Tomasi further gives tribute to those who came before him in penning the adventures of the Martian Manhunter. He also gets a chance to point out to DC the treasure that they never quite realized they had, and offers a steaming plate of potential for the first superhero of the Silver Age.

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    Doug Mahnke steps up to the plate here, as he has with every assignment he has ever taken. His style may not be the flashiest, but it is the best selection for this issue. His collaborations with Tomasi are sure to become the stuff of fond comic book remembrances for decades to come. Mahnke pushes J'onn's look here, just as he did in "JLA". That said, Mahnke also delivers the details. Every page has more to look at every time you turn back to it. Take a look at the cityscape spread before Nightwing or the locker room Hal Jordan is in. The heroes and villains turn up in spades this issue, and Mahnke delivers recognizable characters with each face and costume. Honestly, I wouldn't be at all surprised if Mahnke worked through a whole set of pencils crafting this book. Why he isn't mentioned in the same breath as George Perez and Art Adams escapes me.

    The powerful coloring from Ruffino deepens the emotive qualities inherent in Mahnke's style. The title has no shortage of occurrences and costumes, all of which are masterfully colored to the point of perfection by Ruffino. Certainly the final plunge of Libra's javelin would have been less impressive without Ruffino's skills.

    This book is as close to a perfect read as I have encountered lately. Once the cover was closed, I looked around the house for someone to share this with, but the wife and kids were gone. Undoubtedly, this will be a book I point to time and again when someone asks me why I read comics. Without hesitation, consider me the chairman of the "Let's get Tomasi and Mahnke to do he next big event book" committee. At the very least, know that I'll be right there waiting for the next title these two creators get to sink their ideas into. The only thing missing was a nice plate of Chocos and a glass of milk sitting next to me when I wrote this review.


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More info:
    Writers Peter Tomasi
    Pencilers Doug Mahnke
    Inkers Christian Alamy, Rodney Ramos
    Colourists Nei Ruffino
    Letterers John J. Hill
    Editors Adam Schlagman, Eddie Berganza


Publisher:
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Jan 3rd, 2012, 10:49 pm