Daniel Traeger 6/27/18 Daniel Traeger 6/27/18

Review: Farmhand #1

By Dan Traeger

Rob Guillory is an absolute genius. Just putting that out there in case any of you who’ve ever read his long-running Chew series had any doubt. For those of you who don’t know who Rob Guillory is, he’s half of the creative team behind the aforementioned series that won two Harveys and Two Eisner awards, so I’m not the only one who thinks the man is a genius. With his new series Farmhand, he splits off from his former partner John Layman and goes solo. Scary territory to be sure, but after reading Farmhand #1 I feel he is more than up to the task.

Daniel Traeger 6/20/18 Daniel Traeger 6/20/18

Review: The Magic Order #1

By Dan Traeger

For a writer who learned at the hip of Grant Morrison, you’d think by now Mark Millar would know better than to half-ass out a plot and try passing it off as a fully developed story. But that’s the fun and ultimately frustrating thing about Millar. He’s inconsistent as fuck. Back in the day, Millar was either brain bleedingly bad (The Ultimates, The Unfunnies, Nemesis) or absolutely on point (Civil War, The Authority, Aztek) and it was a pretty rare occasion where you’d find him phoning it in. Lately, though, he still has the great (Kingsmen, MPH, Chrononauts) and his bad stuff has morphed into an all over the map series of meh. (War Heroes, Kick-Ass, Starlight, The Jupiter Cycle, Huck.)

Daniel Traeger 6/20/18 Daniel Traeger 6/20/18

Review: Stowaway To The Stars

By Dan Traeger

Oh, John Byrne, I just can’t quit you. Try as I might, I admit it; I'll never leave your side. Back in the 1970s when you were working for Charlton Comics, I started following your career. You were the best artist on Space 1999, and I loved Doomsday +1. I followed you to Iron Fist at Marvel, and there you stayed for many years. Your tenures on The Uncanny X-Men and The Fantastic Four reset the bar higher than it had been since the days of Kirby and Lee.

Daniel Traeger 6/15/18 Daniel Traeger 6/15/18

Review: Mage: The Hero Denied #9

By Dan Traeger

Now kids, did I ever tell you the story of how Matt Wagner’s wonderful semi-autobiographical fantasy series changed my life? No? Well it really didn’t… well actually it did. Sort of. Better sit down, let me explain. No, no take the comfy chair. Here’s some nice hot tea. Don’t worry, I put a little spiced rum in it. Don’t tell mom. You see I’ve always had this theory that most of what makes up the kind of person you are can be gleaned from three things. Everything else will work itself out in the wash, but your core is really what music you listen to, what movies you watch, and most importantly, what books you read. Ridiculous? Kind of. Shallow? Most definitely. Like I said it’s a theory.

Daniel Traeger 6/12/18 Daniel Traeger 6/12/18

Review: Tap Dance Killer #1

By Dan Traeger

I have a little secret to share with you all. It’s kind of embarrassing because it involves a colossal multinational corporation that holds an illegal monopoly on my favorite industry. I hate big corporations. They’re faceless and soulless and they swallow up people in their destructive wake like Great White Sharks on a bait ball of Mackerel. But…

Daniel Traeger 6/6/18 Daniel Traeger 6/6/18

Review: The Ballad of Halo Jones Vol. 1

By Dan Traeger

So, Halo Jones...yeah. Is there really anything new to say about her? She’s like that girl you used to date a hundred years ago and you keep running into her at the gas n’ sip often enough where it seems like it could be a coincidence but maybe not. Then you find out she’s friended to a bunch of your friends online, and you suddenly realize she’s been Facebook stalking you for a few years and the whole thing is just kinda creepy. It’s not like Fatal Attraction, boil the kids pet rabbit creepy or anything but you can see it from there. I’ve read buckets of reviews on The Ballad of Halo Jones over the years and they all boil down to the same keywords, fluffy pet bunny not included: amazing, groundbreaking, cult classic… blah, blah, blah.

Daniel Traeger 6/6/18 Daniel Traeger 6/6/18

Review: Highspot #1

By Dan Traeger

Scene 1: Fade in on a comic book opened to its splash page, showcasing the artwork. The pages of the comic reveal a slight patina of yellow, marking it as having a little age and a little usage but still eminently readable. The pages begin turning slowly one by one as a voiceover chimes in.

Daniel Traeger 6/6/18 Daniel Traeger 6/6/18

Review: Catapulted #1

By Dan Traeger

I love it when comics teach me something without actually beating me over the head with it. Catapulted does just that. Writer/Artist Sebastian Chow has a soft touch with heavy subject matter, and he spins a good yarn in the process. The central conceit of Catapulted is rooted in the real world French space program that in 1963, in an effort to make themselves appear as contenders in the burgeoning space race, sent a cat into orbit because, you know… cats. Apparently, the United States and the Soviet Union had all the dogs and primates pre-scheduled for missions already, so you know… cats.