|
Reviews
 Crossing
Midnight #19
Crossing Midnight joins a long list of ongoing
Vertigo titles that only managed a short shelf life. It's
a crying shame. This title could have been the next Fables
but for whatever reason, it just didn't catch on.
 Madame
Xanadu #1
Matt Wagner's new ongoing series takes a look at the
origin and early life of Madame Xanadu, a character created
by David Michelinie and Val Mayerick in the DC comic Doorway
to Nightmare #1 in 1978.
 Weekly
Wanderlust - Shipped June 25, 2008
A look at some of the comics that shipped the previous week.
This time around it's all Marvel all the time: Fantastic
Four #558, Hulk #4, New Avengers #42, Thor: Reign of Blood.
 The
comics of C2D4
Martin Buxton and Tony Wicks are the two Brits behind the
recently created self-publishing venture known as C2D4.
Launched at the Bristol Expo in May 2008, C2D4 has five
titles currently in their roster: Last of the Chickenheads,
Jack in the Box, Crowman, The Hack
and Alameda.
 Weekly
Wanderlust - Shipped June 18, 2008
A look at some of the books that shipped the previous week.
This time around we stay away from superheroes and focus
on some lesser known reads that deserve some attention:
Anna Mercury #2 (of 5), Dead Space #4 (of 6), Hellblazer
#245, Scalped #18.
Wolverine #66
It is fifty years in the future and the good guys lost
the war. The heroes are gone, dead or forgotten, and the
spoils formerly known as the United States of America have
been divided by the powerhouses that now rule the country.
 Angel:
After the Fall #9
Whenever I read the Angel comic all I can think
about is how much I'd rather be watching the television
show. The comics will never be as good as the show, and
reading the comics leaves me feeling depressed about that
very fact.
 Weekly
Wanderlust - Shipped June 11, 2008
A look at some of the books that shipped the previous week.
We've got three to look at this time. They are Jack
Staff #17, Newuniversal: Shockfront #2 (of 6), Secret Invasion:
Who Do You Trust?
 Trinity
#2 (of 52)
Trinity, DC's newest weekly, continues where
52 and Countdown left off, but on a different
scale. Where the other two comic series tried to connect
B-grade characters to huge events transpiring in DC's universe,
Trinity focuses on the "big three" characters.
 Tor
#2 (of 6)
Joe Kubert is a living comics legend, and in his advanced
age he is still working his craft. Most recently he has
been revisiting some of the characters most closely associated
with his long comics career, such as Tor.
 Glamourpuss
#1
Glamourpuss is a history of photorealism in comics.
Dave Sim employs the style used by the greats of photorealism--
Al Williamson, Alex Raymond, John Prentice, Neal Adams--
to demonstrate visually the style and to describe through
writing the techniques and history of the style.
 Centerfield
Centerfield features a cartoon style of art that
captures the awkwardness of teen years thus painting both
an unflattering and yet realistic, sympathetic picture of
its young characters.
 The
Walking Dead #48
This latest issue of The Walking Dead is so good
that four comic reviewers wanted to have their say. So,
we gave them each a few hundred words and together they
heaped on the praise.
 Secret
Invasion #1 (of 8)
From a writing standpoint, I'm going to have to give
Bendis high marks on this one. The villains have overcome
their past weaknesses and managed to pull off the first
stage of a very well-planned invasion at a time where Earth's
heroes are at their most disorganized.
|
What's
New
 Manga
For Beginners:
Kindred Spirits
If you're new to manga and
have been researching the subject, you're likely getting
frustrated as your searches keep turning up Web sites dedicated
to anime rather than manga.
 Canceled:
Captain Canuck
There are a handful of Canadian
superheroes scattered throughout the ages such as Johnny
Canuck and Northern Light, but there is one truly Canadian
hero that has stuck in the collective minds of Canadians.
 Review:
Pride of Baghdad
After reading it, I found
many reasons to recommend it to others. The book is full
of ‘surface versus substance’; its pieces (art,
dialogue, plot) can be read for the story as presented,
or considered more deeply.
 Using
comics to introduce the Classics
My wife isn't the only educator that liked to use comic
books in the classroom. There are many such open-minded
and forward thinking teachers. For them, the goal is to
entice children to read. Comics are a great way to turn
reluctant readers into readers.
 Manga
For Beginners:
An Abridged History of Manga
In Japan, manga is traditionally published in serialized
form in anthology magazines that introduce new characters,
stories and artists to the public.
 Wanted
In name only
Wanted is a six-part miniseries by Mark Millar and
J.G. Jones originally released in 2003 and 2004 by Top Cow.
This violent, rude, lewd and darkly funny tale, which features
(among other questionable things) a character composed entirely
of feces from history's greatest villains, is slated to
be released as a motion picture on March 28, 2008.
 Why
Don't Heroes Age?
Pop culture references place characters in a given time
period, causing anal-retentive readers like yours truly
to question their so-called agelessness. By ageless, I am
referring to the fact that comic book heroes, villains,
and supporting cast members seldom age, or, if they do,
they age contrary to "real" time.
 Custom
Clix
Objects, Barriers and Villains (oh my)
Hey there, HeroClixers! It's been awhile but rest assured
I'm back and working hard. As the headline suggests, objects
are the first order of business. In the past several sets
released by Wizkids, we have seen special object pogs included
with our HeroClix.
 Hellboy:
A Retrospective
Hellboy remains unique even after I learned about
and explored its inspirations, and encountered the numerous
comics by comic creators that tried to emulate Mignola whether
in art, writing or genre blending paranormal storytelling.
Hellboy remains even after all these years a unique
comic experience. It is a landmark in comics' history. I
finally understand that now.
Mainstream
Year in Review 2007:
|
Jeph
Loeb and Tim Sale's collaborations once turned hardened
comic readers into giggling school girls. But, Loeb has
lost his touch the last few years, ruining such excellent
books as The Ultimates, Wolverine, and Hulk.
It looks like Cap is next. God bless.
Marvelites
always praise Silver Age creators Jack Kirby and Stan Lee,
but seem to leave the great Ditko out of the equation. As
you should know, Ditko's Dr. Strange and Amazing Spidey
were among the best. Yet Ditko contributed much more.
2104b
Grant Rd
2000
12th Avenue
#105-1501
Dunmore Rd
