Short comic reviews based on initial, lizard-brain opinions. Arranged from BEST to WORST.
Kick-Ass #3 gets an A from Albo
No really! I didn't like the second issue either! But I promise, this one picks the story back up in a big way. There are a lot of refreshing story bits that support the "real world" setting. For instance, after our hero's first successful outing as a vigilante he comes back to school acting like a total badass, showing his classmates a YouTube video of the dustup. He doesn't reveal that he is "Kick-Ass," but it's refreshing to see a teen superhero that doesn't keep acting like a dork and go to great pains to disassociate himself with his alter ego. I mean, what teenager actually HAS that kind of discipline? I don't think I'd even be able to keep my secret identity secret for a week. Anyway, the book's only OK for the first 15 pages or so, but the ending... I haven't audibly exclaimed in surprise at a comic in a long time, but the end of this issue is a real "holy shit" moment that adds a nice wrinkle to the world of Kick-Ass.
Reviews for Locke & Key #5, Young Liars #2, Red Mass for Mars #1 and Wonder Woman #21 after the jump!
Locke & Key #5 gets an A from Albo
If you're not already reading this book I pity you. You're missing out on one of the most consistently good reads on the shelves right now. And forget catching up, back issues of this are tough to find (though a couple of recent reprints do help). Joe Hill's storytelling is very fresh for the comic book world, and his characters are shockingly well developed after only five issues. Also, where many of these non-superhero books written by non comic book writers tend to work better in their collected format, Joe Hill shows a surprising adeptness at maximizing the monthly issue format. Every time you pick up the book you know you're going to get a complete experience, not just an arbitrary slice off the story's timeline.
Young Liars #4 gets a B from Albo
This book is killing me. I hated the first issue, loved the second, used the third as toilet paper... And now I like issue four. I don't like being in this limbo where I'm not sure if I like a book or not. Love it or hate it, I just want to know! Like the second issue, this one stays in one setting long enough for actual story progression to take place, rather than using the supremely confusing time-hopping format of what I shall henceforth call "The Odd Issues." It's a bit of the problem that none of the characters are likable in the least, but there's almost enough wild adventure to make up for it. So I guess I'll be back next month. *sigh*
Red Mass for Mars #1 gets a B from Albo and a C from AHR
AHR: Does anyone actually enjoy reading a character who can see the future? It's always so much smugness and "I know" jokes. I don't like it in Layla Miller and apparently I don't even like it from Jonathan Hickman, who had two major hits with me in Pax Romana and Transhuman. On the plus side there's a fun recap of the various ways that humankind will attempt to destroy itself in the next 100 years, and I enjoyed wannabe National Front superhero who uses his power to force English on the entire world. I'll probably stick with this series if just for tangents like these.
Albo: What is Jonathan Hickman's problem? Why does he feel the need to write so many books at once? Why doesn't the poor bastard take it easy? I feel like every time I pick up an Image comic there's an ad for a NEW Hickman book. What a crazy. Anyway, after having mixed feelings on the other two books of his I've read (wowed by Pax Romana, bored by Transhuman), I'm happy to say that this was a really enjoyable read. Hickman has a real knack for pulling extremely complex societies with rich histories and interesting power players out of thin air. Some bits I found distractingly unbelievable (the superhuman trying to destroy all languages but English), but as a whole I'm totally pumped to see where this goes.
Wonder Woman #21 gets a D from AHR
Wonder Woman meets Beowulf, much olde thyme englishe ensues. Even Gail Simone can't make me enjoy this armored-men-on-horses stuff. When I pick up a superhero comic, one of DC's "big three" no less, I want to see some superheroing.
Read More...
Summary only...
Every week we at Geekanerd rip panels from our comics and put them on display here, recognizing the best, worst, and weirdest moments of the week. Beware some SPOILERS!
Click the pics for high res goodness!
Beatdown of the Week - Young Liars #3
Little Sadie here apparently attended the Jason Bourne School of Resourceful Dustupping. Not only does she pull an IV out of her transsexual junkie friend and jam it in her attacker's eye....
...she then proceeds to squeeze the remaining contents of the IV bag into the guy's face! Holy crapsticks that is hardcore.
Hit the jump for the highs and lows of Amazing Spider-Man #559's art!
Art Worth Praising - Marcos Martin, Amazing Spider-Man #559
I praised Marcos Martin in my review of the book but I'm glad I get to do it with some visual reference now! You can see in this page how deceptively simple his linework is. It feels very spare and uncluttered, but really there is a high level of detail crammed into every inch. The panel-to-panel storytelling is especially great on this page. Martin tells a fun little story with all the details he's packing into Spidey's characterization: the subtle wringing of hands behind the back as he worries about being seen as a psycho, the contemplative hand on the chin in the next panel, and the resolute fist in palm at the end... You would know what was happening in this page even without word balloons, which is really as good as it gets.
One more thing I want to say about Martin's art in this issue of Amazing Spider-Man is that his sense of architecture is spectacular throughout the issue--so many comic artists draw cities as block after block of homogenous rectangle buildings, but Martin does a great job of keeping his setting just as varied as real world New York.
Also contributing to the great look of this issue is Javier Rodriguez on colors. He is a perfect compliment to Martin, with a coloring job every bit as subtle and smart as Martin's linework. EXCEPT...
(Mis)Adventures in Computer Coloring - Amazing Spider-Man #559
Yes, this is the third time I've gotten on this book for grievous misuses of Photoshop. What happened, Javier? Every other page of this book is beautiful, so why did you lose all sense of subtlety and restraint for the nightclub scene? It's so unpleasant I can only hope you were just trying to make a statement about how distasteful you find clubbing.
Read More...
Summary only...
Short comic reviews based on initial, lizard-brain opinions. There are probably some spoilers herein. Arranged from BEST to WORST.
Amazing Spider-Man #559 gets a B from Albo
Dan Slott returns as the best of the Brand New Day herd. The real star of the issue, though, is artist Marcos Martin who throws down some really good looking pages that come off as something like a Tim Sale/David Lapham lovechild. The only problem with the art is some ugly ugly ugly coloring in a night club scene that buries Martin's work under a layer of splattered Day Glo vomit.
Wolverine: The Amazing Immortal Man and Other Bloody Tales gets a B from Albo
This one-shot contains three David Lapham-penned short stories that take place in different eras of Logan's non X-Man life. The first, a story of Logan working as a circus act in the 30s, is by far the best, even if it doesn't quite fit with what we know of his history. Only the third story falls flat, mainly because it just seems like a very normal Wolverine story after you've been given two alternate perspectives on the ole Canucklehead.
Reviews for Newuniversal: Shockfront #1 and Young Liars #3 after the jump.
Newuniversal: Shockfront #1 gets a C from Albo
I'm willing to bet that my inability to grasp what this comic is going for is 100% due to the fact that I'm completely ignorant of previous newuniversal stories. That being said, this book certainly didn't do anything to make me want to rid myself of that ignorance.
Young Liars #3 gets a C from Albo
Yes, this is the third review this week wherein I evoke the name of David Lapham. Call me a fanboy. I was less than impressed by this issue for many of the same reasons I wasn't sure about the first issue... The story's chronology skips around so much that I have a hard time getting caught up in the stakes of any given moment. Hopefully things settle down a bit for issue four (like they did in issue two) so I can relax and really get into this promising story.
Read More...
Summary only...
Short comic reviews based on initial, lizard-brain opinions. There are probably some spoilers herein. Arranged from BEST to WORST.
B.P.R.D 1946 #4: A
Dense story and crazy action, a winning combo in my book. In past issues this book's adventurous tone has felt bogged down by some extremely grim plot-points, but this issue focuses on more fantastic elements of the story and wisely pays extra attention to the best character to come out of this series, Little Evil Russian Girl. -AHR
Young Liars #2: A
David Lapham's Vertigo book reads a lot like his on-hold opus Stray Bullets, but with enough twists to make it feel like it's own animal. The story of a desperate kid's life falling apart has enough "oh shit" moments to make it stick in your mind for quite some time. -Albo
Simon Dark, Wild Cards, Amazing Spider-Man, Wonder-Woman and Fantastic Four all after the jump!
Simon Dark #7: B
Violence, violence! The most unsettling issue yet with a heavy emphasis on scrazy zombie carnage, but also in evidence are many elements of what has made the book great from the start; perfectly timed moments of deadpan humor, excellent artsy art, and a gentility to the character of Simon which strikes a sad contrast with the realistic vision of Gotham he inhabits. The only thing missing is a memorable storyline. -AHR
Wild Cards #1: B
Based on a series of sci-fi novels that started in 1987, this book is about an alternate earth where an alien virus has killed 90% of humans (referred to as "drawing the Black Queen"), horribly mutated 9% (called "Jokers") , and given superpowers to 1% (those would be the "Aces"). Pretty exciting first issue that definitely makes me want to stick around for issue 2. -Albo
Amazing Spider-Man #556: B
A little boring, but the art is pretty fantastic. Three pages of fat Spidey are funny. -Albo
Wonder Woman #19: C+
A lot of the resolutions in this issue hinge on one character convincing another character to do something huge by offering them a song-lyricesque platitude about peace and understanding. I guess that's superheroes for you but it's less than I expect from Simone. I do like the way she's writing Wonder Woman, combining the military detachment of Batman with the humanitarian idealism of Supes....she's an interesting balance between the two extremes. -AHR
Fantastic Four #556: C
What the heck? I was so excited about this book a couple issues ago, and it's already devolved into mediocrity. The art (which I praised extensively) has become a hard to decipher jumble. The characters for some reason are all dumb as bricks (when arriving at a battle scene where a killer robot has demolished 22 heroes including Iron Man, the Sentry, Wolverine, Dr. Strange and others, the Thing says "Take it easy, I got this guy."). And then all those heroes that were bleeding and unconscious all spring back into action at once, none the worse for wear. Sigh. -Albo
Read More...
Summary only...
Short comic reviews based on initial, lizard-brain opinions. Arranged from BEST to WORST.
