The graphic novels loved by children and adults alike
Dec 26th, 2011, 8:17 am
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Title: Knights of the Dinner Table Tales from the Vault (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Jolly R. Blackburn (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Terrence Walsh (Review 1) and Robert Gamble (Review 2) (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" This product probably won't be particularly funny to people who have never played role playing games."

Review:
    Review 1 - Don't buy this book unless...You have the money to buy them all!

    I have never been a huge comic book fan. My younger brother was, but despite all his prodding over the years growing up, I never took to many titles with the notable exception of Neil Gamian's Preacher and Dave Sims' Cerebus.

    However, I always enjoyed role-playing games, starting from the old D&D red and blue books we brought to my Catholic grade school in the late 70's and early 80's. I left the hobby for quite a while after high school in order to concentrate on education, marriage and career development, but I returned after the advent of the new edition 3.0 rules for D&D.

    This comic brought the graphic novel together with the rpg in a way and style I could really enjoy and relate to. It revolves around several (fictional!) groups of role-players in the Muncie, Indiana area; most notably the eponymous "Knights of the Dinner Table" consisting of GM B.A. Felton, his "role-playing" oriented cousin Sara, power-gamer Brian and hack-n-slash specialists Bob and Dave.

    The artwork is extremely simplistic, and oft-repeated. It is the dialogue, character interaction and storylines that make this a terrific series. If you've ever enjoyed role-playing, then you should really check this book out. The first thirty issues of the comic are in volumes 1-10 of "Bundles of Trouble", and if you enjoy those, you can do like I did, and find the rest in individual back-issues at or below sticker price on a comic book website. You won't regret it.

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    Review 2 - Funny stuff for roleplayers...

    First off, this product probably won't be particularly funny to people who have never played role playing games. The art isn't particularly great (sometimes a character stays exactly the same in each frame of a story) but once in awhile an image is surprisingly good in capturing an emotion (a character throwing over a table for instance). However, the art is certainly serviceable, and in spite of the minimalist approach when it comes to character 'movement' between frames, it works very nicely.

    The key element that makes this a treasure for those who love role playing games is that they've all heard stories, or even participated in games, like the ones in these comics. The group depicted in this collection is one in which the gamemaster, B.A., and his players are mildly antagonistic towards each other but still generally have a good time and are obviously friends. A running theme is the players assuming that anything mentioned is important (a gazebo, a cow and a rock all play starring roles in different strips). The group also has the inherent resistance to change of many groups (change to rules, different games, etc).

    All in all, my only real complaint is that it just felt too short and I would have probably preferred to get 2-3 times the strips in one book even with a higher price.

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More info:
    Written and drawn Jolly R. Blackburn

Publisher:
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Dec 26th, 2011, 8:17 am
Dec 26th, 2011, 9:28 am
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Title: Route 666 (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Tony Bedard (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Jimmy Z (Review 1) and H. Bala (Review 2) (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" This is a very fun and well written series."

Review:
    Review 1 - The current issue of this is #12. ROUTE 666 takes place in a place called Empyrean. Empyrean seems an awful lot like 1950's era USA. Even down to the paranoia of Communists coming and taking over. The thing about Empyrean though, Communists are the least of their troubles. Seems there are evil shapeshifters inundating their population. The shapeshifters aren't that bad, except that they like to eat the regular folks (and usually refer to them as cattle.)

    Along comes the heroine of the story. Cassandra Starkweather. She has discovered that she can see the true faces of these shapeshifters. Their true faces aren't that cute. Not to mention that their true faces are a dead giveaway that they aren't really human. The problem Cassie has is that when she mentions these creatures she sees it doesn't go over well. Her first stop is an insane asylum. After being falsely accused of murder she manages to go on the run from the authorities. The bad guys have long since discovered that being in the positions of power makes their lives much easier.

    In the early issues of this series we see her coming to terms with not just the new view of the world she can see: Also there is the ghost of her grandfather that keeps popping up and helping to guide her in times of difficulty. She hooked up briefly with a serial killer (which didn't help her too much when dealing with the "human" authorities.) And in the most recently completed story arc she got mixed up with a carnival.

    The current story arc has Cassie in a position of helplessness. She was given a gift from some carnival folk that backfired tremendously. She no longer remembers the events since she discovered the shapeshifters. She can no longer see them for what they are. The last thing she remembers was the math assignment she had to do for school. But the bad guys are still looking for her.

    This is a very fun and well written series. Even though Cassie is living a life that would best be seen on the silver screen, the creators keep it going. They manage to make it into a real life scenario. For all we know, it could be. Just because we can't see the monsters amongst us doesn't mean they aren't there.

    This is one of the many, many comics I get each month. When I get home with ROUTE 666 it goes immediately to the top of the reading pile (in fairness, most CrossGen material goes to the top, but ROUTE 666 is above the other CrossGen titles.)

    I give the series as a whole a strong 4 rabid fanboys. Issue 12 is slightly below par for the series, but it is starting off what looks to be an interesting new story arc.

    One of the wonderful things that CrossGen as a company does is collections. Every comic they print they put into a collection. "Highway of Horror" is the first collection for ROUTE 666. It contains the first 6 issues for $15.95 (hmm…let's see here. I bought every issue as it came out at $2.95. That makes the first 6 $17.70. That means that the collections are a darn good deal.)

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    Review 2 - Bespectacled Cassandra Starkweather has risen very high on the National Bureau of Investigation's wanted list. A deranged serial killer, Cassie wanders state to state, fatally targeting random victims. She claims that these victims are, in reality, disguised monsters who prey on humans. Not too surprisingly, Cassie is an escaped mental patient, so, probably, not too much credence should be given her side of the story. But, then again, just what if...?

    CrossGen Comics trotted out yet another gripping winner in ROUTE 666, a horror series in which the "what if" is the reality. Cassie Starkweather is a teenaged college girl and a gymnast, whose childhood mental illness forces the university to conduct psych evaluations on her. So far the unwitting Cassie has passed these psych evals. Until one sudden tragic moment irrevocably changes things, leaving Cassie traumatized and claiming to have glimpsed into the supernatural world. In her ominous vision, she sees the road sign "Route 666." Her horrified parents, believing that their daughter has regressed, check her into a sanitarium. And old hands that you and I are in the horror genre, we know right away that this is absolutely the wrong move.

    I'm sorry, but hospitals and sanitariums creep me out, and now I know why: they're plagued by monsters, mister! For Cassie, being committed to an insane asylum allows her deeper insight into frightening paranormal events taking shape behind the curtains. She learns that she isn't crazy, that she can actually see and interact with dead people and, what's more, that she can penetrate the disguise of monsters when in their human forms. She also learns that sheer terror doesn't end after death, that there are dark things in the afterlife which alarm even the departed.

    Cassie's grandfather tells her: "There is a war between this world and the next. You have been drawn into it because of your gift. The gift you deny even having. They know you can see them." That statement would sound really overdramatic, except that it's coming from a man many years dead. The spectre of Cassie's grandfather tells her of the Adversary, an otherdimensional entity which has shapeshifting agents placed in Cassie's world who take on the guise of classic horror movie monsters. These minions are bent on murdering humans, preparing their souls for harvesting.

    Being late to the show, I have no clue how all this turns out. ROUTE 666 ended its run after 22 issues, running from 2002 to 2004, at which point CrossGen Comics went kablooey. Far as I know, ROUTE 666 Vol. 1: HIGHWAY TO HORROR, which compiles the first six issues, is the only available trade to have collected this title. These six chapters set up what I think is the recurring theme of the remaining issues: Cassie, framed and having gained notoriety as a serial killer, on the run from the law and from vampires and werewolves and other creatures of the night.

    Writer Tony Bedard lends this series a genuinely creepy feel. Bedard's pacing is good, building on scenes of normalcy that soon enough give way to foreshadowing and strangeness. The first issue gets off on the right footing by providing a really disturbing death scene halfway thru, a scene which I have to say made my jaw drop. Tony Bedard makes sure that this is rapidly followed by other moments of gristly, graphic murder. Was this disturbing, off-kiltered quality sustained for the rest of the series? Hell if I know... but, if I have to guess, probably...

    This series takes place in the CrossGen universe, on a world called Erebus, in the Empyrean nation. And, yet, in its feel, Empyrean echoes America during the 1950s era. Note the theme of Cold War paranoia which hovers in the story background, the retro diners, and even the name of the NBI director (J. Elgar Purvis). If you've gotten a chance to check out the pre-Comics Code EC titles of the '50s, like TALES FROM THE CRYPT and THE VAULT OF HORROR, then ROUTE 666 serves as a bit of home cooking, being in the same vein of grotesque and all.

    The artwork may not be as accomplished or as realistically rendered as that in other CrossGen titles (SOJOURN, RUSE, CRUX), but there's no gainsaying the energy or depth of detail infused by ex-FRAY penciller Karl Moline. I'd like to single out issue #3 which has a two page spread of a head-on collision. This is an awesome study in violent force and impact, with the shattered glass, crumbled vehicles, and limp figures tearing thru the glass.

    In CrossGen's line of intriguing comic books, ROUTE 666 has a flavor all its own. And, like most of CrossGen's comic books, ROUTE 666 ended prematurely, with unresolved story arcs. I'm actually very tempted to pick up the remaining individual issues (all the way up to #22) to see what does develop with Cassie, her semi-helpful grandfather, Sheriff Cisco, and the mysterious Adversary and that secret war being talked up by ghost grandpa. I do hope that this town to town scamper doesn't go on for too long, as a loss of continuity sometimes tends to surface (think THE INCREDIBLE HULK, the TV series). One thing which does set back the story is that not many moments are given to exploring the central character's personality. Bedard only allows us a brief glimpse of Cassie as a normal college girl, right before the creepy crippitycrap comes down. And then it's Cassie mostly caught up in a state of panic and fear, fleeing or fighting off monsters. But it's not only occult horrors which stalk Cassie. She ends up forming a momentary partnership with the Railsplitter, a psychotic serial killer she meets while riding the rails. Less bent are two more strangers she runs into on her travels: a Fox Mulder-type government agent assigned with nabbing Cassie and a sheriff who just may eventually join Cassie in her fight. If he doesn't get his throat ripped out first. I wouldn't put it past Tony Bedard.

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More info:
    Writer: Tony Bedard
    Artist: Karl Moline

Publisher:
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Dec 26th, 2011, 9:28 am
Dec 26th, 2011, 1:08 pm
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Title: Mark of Charon (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Tony Bedard (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Doc Ezra (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" Buy, borrow, or steal it. A must-read for those playing along at home. "

Review: Mark of Charon #1
    My Verdict: Buy, borrow, or steal it. A must-read for those playing along at home.

    The Crossgen Universe just keeps getting weirder with every new idea Alessi's maniacal crew hurl onto the stands. In Mark of Charon, the god-emperor familiar to readers of Negation retrieves the left-for-dead sigil-bearing healer Javi Cobain. He wants to employ Javi's unique abilities as a healer in his quest to create super-beings of his very own to counter the growing army of sigil-bearers from the "bright universe." But it only works on humans, so Charon's been forced to attempt a radical fusion of human DNA with that of the Negation natives, with truly gruesome and disastrous results.

    But with Javi's healing capabilities, these abominations can be rescued from the brink of death and made whole again, creating a new force that Charon can employ to rule his bizarre negative universe with the iron hand for which he is legend. Despite Javi's protests, he finds himself unwittingly employed to exactly Charon's purposes (because the alternative is watching sentients die a gruesome and slow death right in front of him). But in this forced labor, Javi recognizes a glimmer of hope, an opening that some day might be exploited to Charon's detriment or even his destruction. Because of this long-range view of things, Javi goes along with the mad god's plans, helping him create a quartet of "ligis-bearers" to enforce Charon's will in the cosmos.

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    With this new limited run title, Crossgen has thrown the whole storyline of their sigil titles into confusion again. Just when readers think they might be getting a grip on what's going on in the heads of these maniacs, they come along and drop something like this (or the earlier Lawbringer standalone) and force people to rewrite their entire set of preconceived notions about the cosmology of the Crossgen universe and where all the various books fit into the big picture. Now, while it's great that they can keep everybody guessing, things really need to start coming together at some point, or I think the CGE crew will lose more readers to sheer frustration than disinterest.

    The opening shot in this limited series certainly does everything it's supposed to do. It hooks readers right up front with the resurrection of Javi, a known character, by the guy who's ostensibly the greatest force of evil in the entire Crossgen universe...except maybe he's not. It will be interesting to see where Bedard takes us over the next four issues, and where he takes the Crossgen continuity in the same span. Here's hoping he answers more questions than he raises in that time.


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More info:
    Written by Tony Bedard
    Pencils by Joe Bennett
    Inks by Jonathan Glapion
    Colors by Dave McCaig
    Lettered by Troy Peteri

Publisher:
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Dec 26th, 2011, 1:08 pm
Dec 26th, 2011, 2:38 pm
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Title: Witch & Wizard Operation Zero (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): James Patterson (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: W. Westphal (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" This series is the worst series for kids I've read in the last few years."

Review:
    So,this is not just a review of this book(but I promise that I WILL review it),but a review of the whole series.
    This series is the worst series for kids I've read in the last few years. There are no rules for the magic,unrealistic villians,unrealistic heroes,etc.
    No rules for magic: Okay,there are SOME. But basically anything can be done in these books,so it's a piece of cake to escape a speeding bullet,turn into an animal and so forth. There is NO limit. So how can there be any suspence? Often throughout the series a chapter will end with the villians about to capture the heroes or a bullet about to hit Whit,and the next chapter opens with magic saving the day. "Epic yawn." I know what you are thinking: This is just fantasy! A writer can do anything in fantasy! Well no. There must be order in fantasy. Otherwise the reader will feal as if he is inside a world that is likely to change based on the whims of the author. Rowling,Tolkien,and others proved that fantasy is better with laws.

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    Unrealistic villians: The One is just a cry baby. That's how I describe him. He's not scary,he's just pathetic. He is so childess. Like when he threatened the One who makes Weapons for "bringing him news he didn't like." It doesn't make sense that anyone like him could ever come to power. I know evil people have come to power,but at least they are smart enough to know that they can't kill all their officers. I'm surprised ALL his people didn't rebel. Yes,I know they are scared by him,but they probably have better chances of staying alive by staying with the rebels.
    Oh yes,that brings me to the heroes. It is ridiculous that they were able to evade capture from the One. The One can control people,cause storms,kill people,turn them into animals,steal their powers,and he CAN'T get rid of a bunch of kids?! Woa,someone explain this.


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More info:
    written by James Patterson
    Illustrated by Dara Naraghi

Publisher:
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Dec 26th, 2011, 2:38 pm
Dec 26th, 2011, 2:41 pm
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Title: Witch & Wizard Battle for Shadowland (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): James Patterson (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Brigid Alverson (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" An enjoyable stand-alone graphic novel for readers who like a lot of action and a bit of teen angst in their stories."

Review:
    The setup is your basic Teens Against the Machine story, with some good supernatural twists thrown in. A sinister group called the New Order has taken over society and suppresses not only all dissent but also all magic (except the magic under their control). Teenage siblings Whit and Wisty are a wizard and a witch, like their parents, and they are destined to be the liberators of their people, but they are also on their own, as their parents have gone underground to escape the New Order.

    Whit, Wisty and their fellow teenagers have set up their own resistance movement, and they hide out in an abandoned department store while plotting missions against the New Order. Being psychic, the siblings can travel to the Shadowland, an alternate world inhabited mainly by ghosts. In this volume, the agents of the New Order figure out how to get to Shadowland, and Whit and Wisty, together with several other teenagers, must figure out how to keep them out.

    Being teenagers, they also have to deal with different personality types and issues of trust --- one of their companions has betrayed them in the past, while another was apparently rude to Wisty, although he ultimately redeems himself, showing that people are sometimes deeper than they seem.

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    This is a fairly complex book. The point of view shifts back and forth between Whit and Wisty, and the story encompasses alternate worlds (each with its own set of rules) and different types of characters with different powers. The story also moves fast, with plenty of action sequences, and sometimes two simultaneous strands of the story are presented in parallel. That makes this book a better choice for readers who are familiar with graphic novels.

    While there is violence in the story, it is never gory, and the seriousness is mitigated somewhat by the fact that characters who die come back in the Shadowland. There is a strong supernatural element, but the characters behave as if this is a normal part of life --- this is not a horror story, more a magical-world story in the tradition of Harry Potter.

    Victor Santos's colorful art is manga-influenced but still accessible for readers who don't favor that style. His anatomy is shaky at times, but the characters are well defined, and he illustrates the many action sequences clearly. Everyone on the page seems to be in motion, which works well with the fast-paced storyline.

    This story makes a nice addendum to Patterson's prose series as well as an enjoyable stand-alone graphic novel for readers who like a lot of action and a bit of teen angst in their stories.


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More info:
    written by James Patterson
    Illustrated by Dara Naraghi
Publisher:
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Dec 26th, 2011, 2:41 pm
Dec 26th, 2011, 3:28 pm
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Title: Dead Irons (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): James Kuhoric (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: J.C. Vaughn (Review 1) and tonyrak (Review 2) (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" If you're into horror and westerns, this is definitely one you should think about adding to your buy list."

Review: Dead Irons #1
    Review 1 - I had a chance this week to preview Dead Irons #1, the first issue in a new horror-western mini-series from Dynamite Entertainment written by Jim Kuhoric, writer of Freddy vs. Jason vs. Ash (I think they should have added vs. Hilary vs. Ghandi vs. Mechagodzilla, but maybe that's just me) and Army of Darkness, illustrated by Jason Shawn Alexander, and art directed by Jae Lee, most recently known for Marvel's adaptation of Steven King's The Stand.
    It's not too late to get your retailer to increase his or her orders for this, but you don't have long. It goes on sale at the end of February. There are a lot of comics competing for rack space and more importantly for your hard-earned money, so sometimes you have to speak up and let your retailer know you're looking for a specific title before it ships...
    If you're into horror and westerns, this is definitely one you should think about adding to your buy list!

    For sometime now we’ve been singing the praises of writer James Kuhoric, who has scripted Army of Darkness and Jason vs. Freddy vs. Ash for Dynamite Entertainment and Wildstorm Productions, respectively. He’s done a remarkable job of succinctly capturing the disparate voices of characters created by other people. Now we get to see what he does with his own characters. Teamed with artist Jason Shawn Alexander and art director–cover artist Jae Lee (The Dark Tower), Kuhoric tells the tale of three bounty hunter siblings who are leaving a trail of death and destruction across the old west. Monsters who only travel by moonlight, they are in turn tracked by their brother, Silas Irons, perhaps their only hope of redemption. It’s 99 innocent souls, six undead monsters, and one shot to save the world. Look for it at the end of February.

    Not for the kids.

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    Review 2 - The Story: What is the story? I’ve read this issue twice now and can safely say that it does little more than barely introduce the Irons siblings, supernatural bounty hunters in the Old West who are just as happy killing the townsfolk they encounter in their travels as they are the bounties they pursue.

    The Good: Jae Lee’s cover is wonderfully morbid and evocative, and I’m sorry to say it totally sold me on the issue in the first place. Alexander’s art is clearly influenced by Lee’s, who also serves as Art Director for the title, and is heavily saturated in scratchy inks and shadows. It’s a great style for this kind of story though, and one of this issue’s few redeeming qualities.

    The Not So Good: Kuhoric’s script here is a confused mess of disconnected scenes that suggest the idea of a story without actually telling one. The dialogue is a melodramatic nightmare that had me groaning as hard as I was laughing. For example, take this passage from the first page: “Pain. It’s the only thing in this world you can count on. We’re born in pain. Suffer with it every day on this land. And die in it. If we’re lucky, the pain leading us to death is brief and not an extended agony.” What!? Who talks like that? Hard to say, as Kuhoric never even introduces his characters. The whole issue is full of these moments, and while I’m sure Kuhoric is taking his story quite seriously, it’s that same emo streak that comes off looking ridiculous.

    Conclusion: A moody, pretentious first issue that goes to great lengths to convince you how dark and serious it’s going to be, but forgets to be entertaining in the process. You don’t need this.

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More info:
    Written by James Kuhoric
    Artist: Jason Shawn Alexander
    cover artist & character design: Jae Lee

Publisher:
    Image

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Dec 26th, 2011, 3:28 pm
Dec 26th, 2011, 4:49 pm
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Title: Batman: Room Full of Strangers (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Scott Morse (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Don MacPherson (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" There seems to be some creative indecision plaguing this book. "

Review:
    Mildly Recommended (6/10)

    I was really looking forward to this unconventional one-shot from DC Comics. Not only did it place one of the publishers best supporting characters in the spotlight, but it's written and illustrated by one of the most unique and consistently entertaining creators in the industry today: Scott Morse, the man responsible for several of 2003's best graphic novels. The good news is that his painted artwork is as strong and charming as ever. The bad news is that the plot here isn't nearly as engrossing or promising as it sets out to be at first. Nevertheless, even lesser Morse works make for a good read. This will do doubt be a must-read for his fans, and it will hopefully expose a wider audience to his unusual but effective storytelling style.

    Retired Gotham police commissioner Jim Gordon heads to a small coastal inn for some much needed rest and relaxtion, not to mention the fast pace of life in the city. Old instincts kick into high gear, though, when another guest at the inn turns up dead. Gordon picks up the trailer of the person responsible, but he soon discovers he has some help... a seemingly familiar figure in a dark cape and cowl.

    I love how Morse uses unusual mixes of soft, pastel colors to achieve an eerie atmosphere in a story. They bring an unsettling, tense mood to this book. Morse manages to achieve a nice balance in his depiction of Jim Gordon as well. His age and wisdom shine through, but there's strength and energy to the character as well. Morse never fails to surprise me with action sequences. His quirky, cute style is surprisingly effective at conveying fast-paced action sequences as well.

    The setup for the story in the first act leads the reader to believe he or she is in store for a gripping whodunnit, with Jim Gordon in the role of the Hercule Poirot type. The mystery riff is quickly abandoned, though, as the story shifts in focus from one of murder to one of hero worship. The shift is a jarring one. Morse has two plotlines on his hands here, and either one could have worked well. There seems to be some creative indecision plaguing this book.

    What the book does demonstrate, though, is that Jim Gordon is a rich character full of potential. Gordon comes off as a quiet but content guy who just wants to be left alone, but one who knows when to take charge of a situation. The peripheral characters come to life thanks to some strong dialogue as well.

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More info:
    Writer/Artist: Scott Morse
    Letters: Janice Chiang
    Editor: Bob Schreck

Publisher:
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Dec 26th, 2011, 4:49 pm
Dec 26th, 2011, 9:10 pm
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Title: The Big Book of Urban Legends (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Jan Harold Brunvand (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: A Customer (Review 1) and A Customer (Review 2) and D. Aviva Rothschild (Review 3) (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" You'll love this book! I did!"

Review:
    Review 1 - A light-hearted, fun look at this amazing facet of Society...

      A babysitter realizes that threatening calls have been coming from inside the house. A roomate comes home in the dark and in the morning finds her roommate dead and the words "Aren't you glad you didn't turn on the light?" written on the wall. A girl dared to sit on a grave marks the spot with a knife, gets pinned there, and dies of fear. We've heard them all, they are a part of our culture, our history, and we swear they're true. "That happened to my cousin's best friend's neighbor's aunt, it was in the papers and everything!" Urban legends can be a lot of fun and this book captures the spirit of that! Each of the 200 stories is illustrated in comic strip style by different artists and each captures the humor (and sometimes horror) of these well-known tales. Think you've heard 'em all? Check out this excellent book and find yourself saying "oh yeah...I remember hearing that! But it really happened!" You'll also hear a few new ones along the way. A great rainy day book, coffee table addition, or means to survive a boring day. Like to read about urban legends? You'll love this book! I did!

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    Review 2 - A fantastic book on a fascinating subject!

      Did I ever tell you about what happened to my cousin's college roommate's best friend? No? Well ... Who out there can honestly say he's never fallen for an urban legend, told as true by some acquaintance? The maniac in the back seat? The Mexican pet? The doped-up babysitter who microwaved the baby? The spider in the hairdo? We've all been the victims of these stories at some point in our lives. People pass them around at cocktail parties and office water coolers, always claiming that they really happened to a friend of a friend (but never able to offer a name of the unfortunate victim). And Jan Harold Brunvand is the master collector and debunker of the stories. Paradox Press wisely got Brunvand to write its mega-comic, "The Big Book of Urban Legends." Even for UL aficionadoes, there are a few new ones here. And the irreverent comic format is perfect for these just-plausible-enough modern tall tales. It's also a great way to introduce friends to ULs (or to disprove the stories your friends try to pass off as true).

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    Review 3 - GENRES: Nonfiction (sort of), folklore, reference

      AUDIENCE: Adults, teens; some adult situations; some graphic scenes, but little direct gore; little profanity.

      SYNOPSIS: This book adapts some 200 urban legends into comic form. The legend forms are divided into "Moving Violations" (car-related legends), "Wild Kingdom," "Campfire Classics" (the horror stories we told one another around the campfire and at sleepovers), "Comic Calamities," "Caught in the Act" (sex and scandal), "Crimes and Misdemeanors," "Occupational Hazards" (business, government, and professional legends), and "FOAF-a-Rama" (miscellaneous). Most legends are told in a single page of eight or nine black-and-white panels; only a few legends earn two pages.

      EVALUATION: I love urban legends and am pretty well versed in them. This book is amusing but disappointing. The legends themselves are worth reading (and you have to wonder how anyone can be stupid enough to believe many of them). Some I’ve heard told as jokes, not as true stories. However, the sameness of the artwork began to get on my nerves after a while. You’d think that with "200 of today’s most popular comic artists" there would be a lot of artistic variation, but relatively few of the adapted legends stand out from the crowd. There seems to have been an attempt to emulate the old EC horror comics style (down to the "Good lord! <choke>"), but most of the contributions are too artistically bland to succeed at this. The storytelling is occasionally ham-handed, thanks to the attempt by the adapters to turn some legends into first-person or third-person narratives. Finally, in some pieces the story is not clear; the combination of art and text fails to explain why some things worked out the way they did. Some stories, in fact, are confusing if the reader doesn’t read their titles.

      For the more scholarly among us, this publication has little in the way of interpretation or evaluation of the legends. The introduction by Brunvald, the man who popularized the study of urban legends, is just a quick history of his involvement with the legends, his publication history, and his approval of adapting the legends into comic form. Nor is there any real organization (subject or title indexes would have helped) within the book. Overall, a lightweight effort, pleasant enough in small doses.

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More info:
    Written by Jan Harold Brunvand
    Art by Robert Fleming

Publisher:
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Dec 26th, 2011, 9:10 pm
Dec 26th, 2011, 11:40 pm
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Title: Edgar Allan Poe's The fall of the house of Usher and other tales of terror (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Richard Corben (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: placido (Review 1) and Kan (Review 2) (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" Very rare surviving Richard Corben gem."

Review:
    Review 1 - CORBEN'S AIRBRUSH PERIOD...

    This is a fantastic comic book and Corben manages to convey the dramatic essence of Poe's original story. It is a very "Corbenian" work though: from the magical, almost impossible purple and violet colors of the landscapes in the original panels to the huge breasts of Ms Usher in the last panels. It is very 1980s and allows us to see a Corben that is stuck into his airbrush techniques, a Corben that is far too busy to continue producing Symbads, Mutant Worlds and Den's and who is looking for shortcuts. Corben being Corben, it works. A great album with a few nice extra stories from his underground period.

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    Review 2 - One of the Best Corben collection available...

    Corben lovers, purchase this book now, because this is one of the few Corben books thats still available at affordable price, printed on high quality paper. It collects Corben's adaptations of Edgar Allan Poe's legendary horror short stories/poems, including "The Oval Portrait", "The Raven" apart from the main titles story "Fall of the house of Ushers". Dont miss this book, since apart from this collection, its only "Werewolf" and "Best of Creepy and Errie" which is available at regular price online. And if you guys dont know, the quality of "Best of Creepy and Errie" leaves much to be desired, print quality is horrible, but thats another story. Very rare surviving Richard Corben gem.

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More info:
    Written by Richard Corben
    Art by Richard Margopoulos

Publisher:
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Dec 26th, 2011, 11:40 pm
Dec 27th, 2011, 10:10 am
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Title: Grendel: War Child (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Matt Wagner (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Kid Kyoto (Review 1) and Zachary (Review 2) (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" Check it out, and hopefully you'll get sucked into the rest of the Grendel stories. "

Review:
    Review 1 - Mutants, vampires, chases and fun, this one has it all!

    Grendel is a long-running series of comics by the great Matt Wagner. The story started with a charismatic thief named Hunter Rose and ended with his death. Wagner could have been lazy and followed the example of most corporate comics by quickly bringing Hunter back to life and using him again and again until no one cared. But he didn't. He moved forward from there, later stories involved others taking up the name and methods of Grendel until we arrive at an ending of sorts. A post-apocalyptic world Grendel-based warrior clans rule the world and are united under the Grendel Khan.

    But the Khan is dead and his only heir has been stolen.

    Most of this 300 page book is an epic chase as the empire hunts for the Heir and his kidnapper Grendel Prime. There are pages of silent action as they flee through deserts, swamps and ruined cities. They fight everything from biker gangs to samurai to mutants to vampires to a gorilla. There's more than a little of Lone Wolf and Cub in the concept. Although it sounds like it could get tiring the action is never dull and the pay off is well worth it. In this book you'll also find love, humor, politics and madness, it's amazing how well Wagner shifts gears throughout.

    McEown's art deserves a lot of praise. It's not just that he can do fights, mutants and monsters, lots of guys can do that. But he has a good eye for smooth action, panels flow into one another, fights are thought-out and make sense, they're not just a collection of pin ups.

    I read this when it first came out in the 90s and had fond memories, I'm happy to see how well it's held up.

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    Review 2 - It's hard to start anywhere but the beginning with Grendel, but this collection is how I first discovered and became obsessed with Matt Wagner's great creation.

    There's a lot of backstory, but the setting is the 26th century in a world united under the Grendel banner. Orion Assante, the first Grendel Khan, has died and his power-hungry wife has seized control of the empire and claimed herself regent until Jupiter Assante, the Khan's only son, is old enough to claim his title. However, she has no intention of abdicating her power. Little does she know is that Orion has planned for this eventuality. In secret before his death, he oversaw the creation of Grendel Prime, a super soldier loyal only to the Khan. Grendel Prime's one and only mission: to rescue Jupiter from his step mother and ensure his ascension to the throne of the empire!

    I know, I know, pretty awesome right! This book has everything: political intrigue, light sabers, violence, drugs, lesbian sex, mutants, vampires, pirates, and even fighting gorillas! Check it out, and hopefully you'll get sucked into the rest of the Grendel stories.

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More info:
    Writer: Matt Wagner
    Artists: Patrick McEown and Bernie Mireault.

Publisher:
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Dec 27th, 2011, 10:10 am
Dec 27th, 2011, 10:14 am
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Title: Grendel: Devil Quest (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Matt Wagner (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Alan Rapp (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" Grendel: Devil Quest is a curiosity"

Review:
    “In a place where everyone claims to be such a bad-ass…you’ve got to do something to get their attention.”

    Grendel: Devil Quest is a curiosity, the less interesting alternative view of Grendel Prime’s travel through time searching for the original Grendel, Hunter Rose. Told through the perspectives of other characters in the future world first established in previous works such as Grendel: God and the Devil, Grendel: Devil’s Reign, and Grendel: War Child.

    Those unfamiliar with the convoluted history of the futuristic versions of Grendel in the 26th Century may want to take a pass, or at least do some research before jumping into Grendel: Devil Quest.

    The story’s main function is to show what is happening in the future after Jupiter’s coronation as the new Grendel-Khan. Most of the story revolves around the unsuccessful search by various factions for the missing cyborg Grendel Prime, who only makes the shortest of appearances here before vanishing in a time travel experiment before reappearing on final page (those wanting to know what happened should pick up Batman/Grendel).

    Hunter Rose, the original Grendel, has always been an interesting character to me. Grendel Prime’s search for Hunter raises some interesting possibilities, but sadly that’s not what this tale is about (though the machine used by Grendel, and what it runs on, is pretty cool). The tale is more about the dysfunctional future than Grendel’s quest, and does little more than fill in gaps from other, better, Grendel stories.

    The surreal look of the book, much like the story itself, will probably make you pause and wonder how many drugs Wagner was taking while penning these issues. Released in a new hardcover by Dark Horse Comics this tale is much more geared to hardcore Grendel fans than casual readers.

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More info:
    Writer: Matt Wagner
    Artist: Matt Wagner

Publisher:
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Dec 27th, 2011, 10:14 am
Dec 27th, 2011, 10:18 am
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Title: Grendel Devil by the Deed (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Matt Wagner (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Robert M. Tilendis (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" Devil by the Deed is an essential part of the Grendel story, and to have it in a nice sturdy hardbound edition with a new introduction by Wagner is a definite plus"

Review:
    Matt Wagner's Grendel, as I've mentioned before, was in many ways revolutionary. In spite of the initial, mostly negative, reaction, it proved to be one of the milestones in the development of comics as a form. Some of the thematic and character elements have become standard, and while I'm not going to stick my neck out and say that Wagner was the first, he was certainly at the leading edge of what became the mainstream.

    Grendel: Devil by the Deed represents another breakthrough. It is, in general terms, the story of Grendel's first incarnation, the novelist Hunter Rose, as told from his journals by his granddaughter, Christine Spar. It gives, in summary form, the full if somewhat elliptical story of the rise of the mutant genius Grendel and his ongoing struggle with the wolf-shaman Argent, including their climactic battle. Also featured is the role played by Rose's adopted daughter, Stacy Palumbo, in his ultimate downfall.

    What is unique about this one, which began as a backup to Wagner's previous serial, Mage, is the formal treatment. It may seem odd to talk about formal elements in relation to comics, but bear with me: comics as a genre are as much a formal idiom as any other medium, even if we don't always recognize it. (I once read a fascinating bit about the formal structure of popular songs -- and yes, there is one, and if you listen you can hear it. It runs roughly, if I can trust my memory: verse, chorus, probably another verse/chorus, and again if the songwriter has anything on the ball, instrumental break, verse/chorus (which is really a sort of resolution), reprise, and maybe a coda. All within two to four minutes, as a rule. Interestingly enough, stretching that time frame usually involves an extended break and/or coda.)

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    So, what about the formal elements of comics? As far as Devil by the Deed is concerned, as Alan Moore points out in his introduction, Wagner has created a bridge between the standard comics structure of narrative carried by illustrations in frames and dialogue in word balloons, and the illustrated novel, in which occasional pictures give visual representation to incidents in the text. In Wagner's hands, the illustrations become the frames and the narrative is rendered in captions that occupy their own frames. The narrative flow becomes much less linear, the illustrations take on much more of the narrative burden than they do in a novel, although not quite as much as they do in comics, the text becomes much more of a visual element, and the possibilities for ambiguity are greatly enlarged. (I mention this last because, looking through this example, I note that the reader is often faced with choices balanced between the normal reading habit and the demands of the layout, which offers possibilities not inherent in a straight, linear narrative form.)

    Graphically, this is stunning. For starters, Wagner has adopted a fairly cavalier attitude toward the standard frame arrangement, which is a characteristic of what I've seen of modern graphic novels: fluidity has become a formal element that works against the traditional arrangement of boxes across and down a page. In Wagner's hands, this translates into page layouts that owe nothing to the way we habitually read and everything to the control a graphic designer can exert, leading us to read the way he wants us to read. There are several pages here that, simply in terms of pure design, are breathtaking. Add in the Grendel color scheme of black, white and red, and you have an arresting visual treat.

    My one cavil is the size of the type in the captions. I am reassured that my difficulties with this are not a sign of advancing age or diminution of my faculties: a much younger colleague -- a visual artist, as it happens -- looked at the book and said, "You can read this? From that far away?" I rest my case.

    When it comes right down to it, Dark Horse's reissue of this segment of Wagner's work is more than welcome. Devil by the Deed is an essential part of the Grendel story, and to have it in a nice sturdy hardbound edition with a new introduction by Wagner is a definite plus.


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More info:
    Created, written and illustrated by Matt Wagner
    Inker: Rich Rankin
    Colors: Chris Pitzer

Publisher:
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Dec 27th, 2011, 10:18 am
Dec 27th, 2011, 1:53 pm
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Title: Grendel: Devil’s Legacy (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Matt Wagner (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Ian R Shaughnessy (Review 1) and Daniel V. Reilly (Review 2) (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" The eye just wants to linger over the exquisite layouts..."

Review:
    Review 1 - My favorite graphic novel, ever.

    Though this may not be the best storyline in Matt Wagner's GRENDEL epic, this book remains to be my favorite standalone graphic novel of all time.

    The story follows Christine Spar, daughter of Stacy Palumbo who was raised by Hunter Rose - the first Grendel. She has just written a best-selling novel, "Devil By The Deed" that chronicles the life and death of Hunter Rose and Grendel. After her son is kidnapped, Christine snaps mentally and goes on a crusade to first find her son, and then enact revenge on the person who kidnapped him. Along the way, she dons the mask of Hunter Rose's Grendel character and assumes the mantle of this devilish persona.

    As time goes by, and the outlook of finding her son alive seems more grim, Christine spirals deeper and deeper into the character of Grendel. She soon captures the attention of Argent, the werewolf arch-enemy of Hunter Rose who eventually killed him and ended up crippled himself in the process. Argent now wants this "new" Grendel brought to him, and to find her he uses her own friends for information against her.

    Now almost totally mad, Christine puts an end to the reign of terror caused by her son's kidnapper and sets her eyes on putting an end to Argent - the one task that Hunter Rose started as Grendel almost 30 years before, but never finished. Will she succeed or will Argent claim the life of yet another Grendel? The answer may surprise you.

    Matt Wagner's story is flawless, and this book is just the beginning of a truly epic story, with DEVIL BY THE DEED acting as a prelude for everything to come. Matt Wagner is a comics genius. GRENDEL was a comic book that was originally published in the 1980's, but still is far more intelligent and holds more weight than most of the comics being published today. GRENDEL was years ahead of it's time, and Matt Wagner held no limits to what he would do with the characters he created within the pages of his books.

    The Pander Bros.' artwork is amazing, and this volume features totally remastered color which makes their artwork shine even more.

    So far only this volume and the final volume WAR CHILD have been put into print, but expect the next volumes - THE DEVIL INSIDE, GOD AND THE DEVIL (My favorite storyline), and DEVIL'S REIGN soon.

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    Review 2 - Hell Hath No Fury...

    With "Grendel: Devil By The Deed", Creator Matt Wagner introduced readers to Criminal Genius Hunter Rose, and his alter-ego, Grendel, a masked fiend who holds New York City in his gloved hand.

    Devil's Legacy introduces us to the newest recipient of the mask & fork: Christine Spar, adopted granddaughter of Hunter Rose. Chris has just written a best-selling book about Hunter/Grendel; Now she finds herself thrust into a parents worst nightmare....her son Anson is missing, and Christine has reason to believe the responsible party is Tujiro, a mysterious, seductive Kabuki artist. When Christine discovers the true nature of Tujiro, she also discovers an inner strength she never knew she had. She takes up the weapons of Grendel, and seeks her revenge.

    Unfortunately, she attracts some attention from the wrong people, in particular Hunter Rose's old nemesis, Argent the Wolf....

    Wagner divides the book neatly into two sections: Christine's battle with Tujiro, where she discovers her courage and strength, and her confrontation with Argent and his minions, where she discovers her rage, and puts it to good use. Wagner gets great marks for introducing (in the course of the entire Grendel canon) the concept of Super-Hero as a virus, for lack of a better description; The identity of Grendel hops from person to person, almost as if these people don't really become Grendel; Grendel becomes THEM. He has a knack for creating realistic characters; Christine's journey is fraught with dangers, and I found myself really worrying about her, hoping that she wouldn't really go down that path. Great writing, Matt! The art by The Pander Bros......well, I can't really call it art- It's more like beautiful architecture. The eye just wants to linger over the exquisite layouts. There's a double-page layout towards the end (involving severed fingers...) that is among the most perfect examples of comic-book art I've ever seen. The battle between Grendel & Argent is stunning.....

    If you enjoy this book, pick up Wagner's Batman/Grendel Image , among the best Batman stories EVER.

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More info:
    Writer: Matt Wagner
    Penciller: Arnold Pander & Jacob Pander
    Inker: Jay Geldhof & Rich Rankin
    Letterer: Steve Haynie
    Colorist: Jeromy Cox
    Editor: Diana Schutz
    Designer: Cary Grazzini
    Cover Artist: Matt Wagner

Publisher:
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Dec 27th, 2011, 1:53 pm
Dec 27th, 2011, 2:01 pm
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Title: Batman/Grendel (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Matt Wagner (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Andrew Wheeler (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" Purely diverting – in both sense of the word."

Review:
    Batman Grendel collects two short series – each one was just two 50-page issues long – originally titled Batman/Grendel and Batman/Grendel II. The slash has disappeared for the collected edition – perhaps because now the names of two male characters separated by a slash brings with it entirely different expectations?

    (I’m reminded of Terry Pratchett’s never-quite-named character, from a tribe who are called after the first thing the mother sees after birth, who wished, desperately, that his name was Two Dogs Fighting.)

    (And the very small “Vs.” on all of the online bookshots does not actually appear on the book itself, which is simply titled Batman Grendel, as if it were the product of some comic-book equivalent of a corporate merger.)

    So what we have first is a 1993 story with Batman battling the original Grendel, Hunter Rose – who is in many ways something like an evil Batman, or a twisted mirror image. Rose is a self-made man, master of arcane fighting arts, and the scourge of the underworld in his hometown…although that’s because he took over in his town. Rose is incredibly violent in a very comic-booky way – he has the typical nonpowered superhero’s utter control of violence and movement, but uses it to slaughter at will.

    The plot is typical of that era of Wagner’s Grendel work, filled with overlapping internal-dialogue narration from all of the main characters – Batman and Grendel plus two young women roommates who are caught up in Grendel’s schemes – lots of small panels in complicated layouts most of the time, and Byzantine plotting on the part of Grendel.

    Hunter Rose comes to Gotham specifically to…well, he obviously has a plot, and it involves Batman, but it’s not entirely clear what that plot is. He isn’t out to kill Batman, since he could have done that if he wanted to, and he isn’t out to discover who Batman is. I suppose the whole thing was an excuse to fight Batman, under the assumption that neither of them would win. Rose is incredibly arrogant and self-assured – and, as Wagner writes him, with good reason to be, since he’s fated to die in a story already told and nothing can seriously harm him except that – but that still comes closer to a naked “let’s you and him fight” than I’m comfortable with. But, of course, it was 1993, when fight scenes were their own reason.

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    The plot convolutes from there, as Grendel plots ceaselessly, kills ruthlessly, and torments those two young women I mentioned before. (One thing that annoys me about the Hunter Rose Grendel these days is that he not only uses people for his own ends – you expect that from villains – but that he’s a true sociopath, and uses people, or kills them, just because they’re there.) Batman chases him, and plots some on his own. Grendel is also pretending to be the Riddler, for no good reason, and the knowledge Batman and Grendel have of each other varies wildly depending on what the particular page of the story requires.

    The ending is inconclusive, as it needed to be – crossovers like these can never end with one character getting the better of the other, since both need to be put back neatly in their boxes for the next set of stories. But the way these two characters both basically think “Wow, that was a tough fight. I’ll just utterly ignore that person for the rest of my life, and everything will be fine” is more than slightly silly. But, again, it was 1993, and much, much sillier things were a few inches away on the new-comics racks.

    The second story was from 1996, and sees Wagner turning to a more streamlined storytelling style. His art is still as detailed, though more open, less crabbed, and Wagner still is fond of complicated page-layouts, but the flood of internal monologue has ebbed back to just Batman, and he’s more laconic than he was.

    It’s four years later – Hunter Rose died a year after the first miniseries (in his own story) and now there’s a major exhibit of supervillain memorabilia at the Gotham Museum, including what’s left of Rose’s skeleton. An unexplained event brings Grendel-Prime – a cyborg killing machine originally from about five hundred years up the Grendel timeline (but here taken from much later in his life, possibly around AD 3000) – to the Gotham Museum, and into an immediate firefight with Commissioner Gordon and a large number of cannon-fodder cops. Batman is nearby, and he fights this new Grendel.

    The rest is a more straightforward cat-and-mouse game – well, cat-and-wolf, maybe, since the “mouse” is bigger, tougher, and vastly more dangerous than the putative “cat.” Grendel-Prime claims to want to get back to his own time, and seeks the technology to do it – but he may want to leave a giant smoking hole behind him where Gotham used to be. (For what reason isn’t clear – or perhaps just because he’s a killing machine; that’s just what he does.)

    And then this one ends slightly better than the first story, but pretty much as you’d expect – both characters go back to their own individual milieux, unchanged.

    As major-character inter-company crossovers go, these two were quite good – Wagner is a compelling storyteller and a gifted artist. All of the pages look wonderful, read well, and propel the story forward. It’s just that the whole thing, taken all-in-all, is purely a sidebar, and by design cannot affect or influence either character’s central story. So it’s purely diverting – in both sense of the word.


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More info:
    Story and art by Matt Wagner

Publisher:
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Dec 27th, 2011, 2:01 pm
Dec 27th, 2011, 6:32 pm
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Title: Grendel: Devil Child (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Diana Schutz (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: Henchman21 (Don't click it, read the review here... ;) )

" If you have the money, I’d pick up both."

Review:
    I’ve been catching up on the Grendel cycle lately, thanks to Dark Horse releasing some of the stories in a nice set of affordable hardcovers, so I was pleasantly surprised to see both of the titles at the store last week. Both of them are minor entries into the larger story, but they shed light on some of the characters and both have fantastic art. I mean really fantastic art. Amazing art, art worth buying these collections for by themselves.

    For those not familiar, Grendel is writer/artist Matt Wagner’s magnum opus, dealing with the nature of evil and how it affects the world. Evil is personified in many forms, but they are all tied into the Grendel force, typified by the black and white mask. The saga starts with the story of Hunter Rose, continues through the tale of his (sort of) granddaughter, and then continues into the far off future. I haven’t read a ton of the stories yet, mostly since a lot of it has been out of print for a long time, but I’m buying everything I can get my hands on, and can’t wait for the current series, Behold the Devil, to be collected.

    Devil Quest Image takes place towards the end of the Grendel timeline, and deals with the leader of the world trying to track down the robot Grendel-Prime, while Grendel-Prime tries to conduct a ritual to contact the spirit of Hunter Rose. The story is a little light, and doesn’t make a ton of since if you haven’t read the later Grendel stories (like me) but it’s easy enough to follow. Really, its Matt Wagner’s painted art that is the highlight here. The colors are bright, the characters look great, and it’s just a pleasure to read.

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    Devil Child deals with a character from the Hunter Rose story, Stacy Palumbo, who was Hunter’s adopted daughter, and ended up being responsible for his death. Now she’s in an insane asylum and begins a relationship with her therapist. Let’s just say the relationship doesn’t end well. The story is mostly a bridge between the Hunter Rose stories and the next set of Grendel stories dealing with Stacy’s daughter Christine Spar. Again, the story works better if you’ve read the stories it’s a bridge for, and since I’ve read the Hunter Rose story, I had a better time with this one than Devil Quest. That said, the story is pretty brutal, very adult, and quite amazing. The art is by Tim Sale, who works in his usual style here. It’s got his usual angular line, but he really captures the characters and the horror of the situation. Fans of his work that may have missed this when it was originally out will want to give this a look.

    So fans of the Grendel series will want to check out these two collections and readers new to the series may want to look into these to see if the series is for them. They are kind of minor works in the overall story but they add a lot to other stories, and the art makes them worth checking out on their own. My only issue is that both collections are fairly slim, and at $15 they may be a bit overpriced, but they both have nice binding and printing so I feel they are worth the money. If you want to pick up on over the other I’d suggest Devil Child, just because the story is a bit easier to get into, but if you have the money, I’d pick up both.


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More info:
    Writer: Diana Schutz
    Artist: Tim Sale
    Colorist: Teddy Kristiansen
    Editor: Matt Wagner & Diana Schutz
    Designer: Cary Grazzini
    Cover Artist: Matt Wagner & Tim Sale

Publisher:
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Dec 27th, 2011, 6:32 pm