Dustin Cabeal 1/24/17 Dustin Cabeal 1/24/17

Review: The Rook: Desperate Times

By Dustin Cabeal

The Rook: Desperate Times is inoffensive time travel. It’s a bit like all time traveling stories following a lone man saving time in that it’s entertaining, but lacking anything new. I’m going to paraphrase a quote from the creators of South Park when they were talking about The Simpsons at one point, and they said, “The Simpsons have done everything, so of course anything we do is going to be a bit like The Simpsons.” The idea is that when something compared to something that’s been around longer that there’s going to be some overlap. There’s only so many stories to tell after all. I say that because of course, this feels a lot like Doctor Who and even a large dash of Quantum Leap. That doesn’t necessarily make The Rook bad, but yes it’s a far cry from an original concept.

Chris Tresson 1/23/17 Chris Tresson 1/23/17

Review: Slayer: Repentless #1

By Chris Tresson

Musicians and bands having their own comic books is nothing new in this industry. Bands having good comics, though? That's quite rare (see the latest KISS comic series. It's dog shit.) This one... I had a good feeling about this one.

I’m about to review the first issue of Slayer: Repentless, a three issue mini-series published by Dark Horse Comics. It’s a series based around the videos of thrash metal gods Slayer which were directed by BJ McDonnell, for songs from the album of the same name.

Justin Wood 1/23/17 Justin Wood 1/23/17

Review: Little Tulip

By Justin Wood

Earlier this year, I took to opportunity to see Martin Scorsese's Silence before it hit its wide release. The film, about a priest secretly infiltrating the Christian-persecuting country of Tokugawa-era Japan and enduring unfathomable torment and hardship for his choice, is, to say the least, an endurance test of misery, a beautiful film but a grueling experience. Dover Comic's new release Little Tulip, is similarly a grueling experience.

Daniel Vlasaty 1/23/17 Daniel Vlasaty 1/23/17

Review: The Goddamned vol. 1

By Daniel Vlasaty

The Goddamned is written by Jason Aaron, with art from R.M. Guera – the creative team behind one of my all-time favorite comics, Scalped. I was super excited when this book was announced, but I’m sad to say that I stopped reading it when it was first coming out due to its erratic release schedule, which was most likely because Jason Aaron’s been writing like a dozen books for Marvel on top of his creator-owned titles.

Laramie Martinez 1/19/17 Laramie Martinez 1/19/17

Review: Night's Dominion #5

By Laramie Martinez

Night’s Dominion has been moving away from what made me like its inaugural issue. This issue cements the transition from heist/dungeon crawl to superhero team up. The change, at least for me, is somewhat of a disappointment. I know that this comic was originally billed as having some capes and tights influences, but I feel like the mystery cult and the undead hordes as a potential threats were more appealing when they were underground instead of when they come out in the open. I can’t be mad at Naifeh though, it isn’t as though this change is abrupt. I’ve seen hints of it from the very first issue.

Chris Tresson 1/19/17 Chris Tresson 1/19/17

Review: Black Hammer Giant-Sized Annual #1

By Chris Tresson

I was very much looking forward to reviewing this book. As I'm probably not going to get another shot at reviewing any Black Hammer for Comic Bastards (Laramie Martinez has reviewed the series for CB thus far and I don't see him giving it up anytime soon!) I thought I'd take a shot at this giant-sized annual... This is my review of the Black Hammer Giant-Sized Annual, in stores this week from Dark Horse Comics.

Laramie Martinez 1/19/17 Laramie Martinez 1/19/17

Review: The Wicked Righteous #1

By Laramie Martinez

If you’re considering reading The Wicked Righteous, I’m going to assume you are a fan of the post-apocalyptic genre. As a fan, you will probably be familiar with most of the themes in this issue. References to the rapture, flashbacks of a world descending into chaos, and a mysterious disease are all familiar tropes. What separates The Wicked Righteous from its fellow day after doomsday stories is its focus on the children of the apocalypse. This perspective was what initially drew me to the book. Unfortunately, inconsistent pacing made the issue feel like it was trying too hard to create tension and drama between characters. For the rest of my review take a look below.

Dustin Cabeal 1/18/17 Dustin Cabeal 1/18/17

Review: The Time Museum

By Dustin Cabeal

This is probably going to be one of my shorter reviews for a graphic novel based on a few things. The first being that if you don’t like time travel stories, then you shouldn’t bother reading this one. It’s a brilliant homage to the genre, and while creator Matthew Loux manages to tweak everything just enough to be its own, it’s hard to ignore the influences completely… but then that’s also what’s fun and entertaining about The Time Museum.

Dustin Cabeal 1/18/17 Dustin Cabeal 1/18/17

Review: Decelerate Blue

By Dustin Cabeal

Often when I’m reviewing a comic, it’s an intricate dance of scales. Whatever side ends up with the most weight on it effects the review the most and ultimately decides the score. Decelerate Blue sat in the middle for most of my reading. For everything cool or interesting it did, it managed to do an equal amount of disinterest.

Dustin Cabeal 1/18/17 Dustin Cabeal 1/18/17

Review: Divinity III: Aric, Son of the Revolution #1

By Dustin Cabeal

To start with I haven’t read any of Divinity III, in fact, I haven’t even read Divinity II. I saw all these one-shots that came across very Flashpoint inspired in which it was just a quick look at what the characters in the Valiant Universe would be doing in the “Stalinverse” and thought, well that could be fun. It should have been fun.

Dustin Cabeal 1/18/17 Dustin Cabeal 1/18/17

Review: Cougar and Cub #1

By Dustin Cabeal

I was a big fan of Nick Marino and Daniel Arruda Massa’s Holy F*ck and its aptly named sequel Holy F*cked. Of course, I was going to check out Cougar and Cub which is a fairly obvious parody of Batman and Robin.

Daniel Vlasaty 1/18/17 Daniel Vlasaty 1/18/17

Review: Kill or be Killed #5

By Daniel Vlasaty

This issue starts with a bang. And ends with a bang, too. Like the rest of Kill or be Killed, this issue starts off at the same place it ends. Brubaker tells us what is going to happen right away and then spends the rest of the issue explaining how it came to happen. You’d think this would get tiring after a while, but it still works here.

Dustin Cabeal 1/18/17 Dustin Cabeal 1/18/17

Review: WWE #1

By Dustin Cabeal

Same as it ever was… same as it ever was. What the fuck are they talking about in that song because it’s not the new WWE comic from BOOM! Studios, though it does apply to it. If you enjoyed that weird one-shot that BOOM! did just to test the waters or have something to sell at Comic Con, then you’ll be happy to see this first issue.

Jonathan Edwards 1/18/17 Jonathan Edwards 1/18/17

Review: The Few #1

By Jonathan Edwards

When I first read Image's description for this book, I wasn't all that interested. "Post-apocalyptic," much like with zombies, is a subgenre I don't tend to inherently like, and it didn't seem like there'd be much else that I'd be excited for. However, the writer is Sean Lewis, who I am somewhat familiar with from his last series, Saints. It followed Blaise, Lucy, Sebastian, and later Stephen, all of which are the reincarnations of Christian saints and granted superpowers based on the attributes of those saints. It was a premise I was super into, and the covers were great, styled after Eastern Orthodox icons. Even if it did go a bit downhill after the first few issues, Lewis still brought some interesting ideas to the table. So, I was curious to see what he might do this with this one.

Dustin Cabeal 1/18/17 Dustin Cabeal 1/18/17

Review: Dollface #1

By Dustin Cabeal

I’ve been waiting to read Dollface since supporting the Kickstarter. Having gotten my print copies and my digital I could have reviewed it early but had too much going on. I’m a big fan of Dan Mendoza’s. Every since discovering the first volume of Zombie Tramp at Long Beach Comic Expo, I have followed his work. Needless to say, I was excited about a new series from him, especially with him illustrating it.

Daniel Vlasaty 1/18/17 Daniel Vlasaty 1/18/17

Review: Batman #15

By Daniel Vlasaty

Batman is supposed to be transporting Selina Kyle to Blackgate Penitentiary to serve out her sentence of life without parole for the murder of 237 people, but instead, they are having sex on a random Gotham rooftop.

Chris Tresson 1/18/17 Chris Tresson 1/18/17

Review: Hook Jaw #2

By Chris Tresson

Well, let’s not fuck around here. This series is probably the best Titan Comics is publishing right now. It’s ace and has a great creative team on it and it has a shark in it. I don’t feel like I need to ramble a big introduction to it, so here we go, this is my review of Titan Comics’ Hook Jaw #2. Out this week at your local comic shop.

Daniel Vlasaty 1/18/17 Daniel Vlasaty 1/18/17

Review: Dept. H vol. 1

By Daniel Vlasaty

Who killed the smartest man on earth…?

Dept H. is billed as a murder mystery and it is that, but also so much more. It’s the story of family and loss and adventure and science and discovery and exploration – from the farthest reaches of the universe to the deepest, darkest depths of the ocean. To the underwater caves home to strange creatures, giant turtles and tentacled things and sea spiders that can mimic human voices much like parrots.

Jonathan Edwards 1/18/17 Jonathan Edwards 1/18/17

Review: Justice League of America: The Ray Rebirth #1

By Jonathan Edwards

Something happened after I read this book. I was comparing it to the previous two JLA Rebirth one-shots, and something occurred to me. The thing I liked most about Justice League of America: The Atom Rebirth #1 was the structure, as it served as a microcosm of Ryan Choi's experiences with Ray Palmer and The Atom. For Justice League of America: Vixen Rebirth #1, it was the color and how it was used to distinguish, but also link, her past and present. And then, there's this one: Justice League of America: The Ray Rebirth #1. As far as I know, this marks Ray Terrill's first appearance in the main DC continuity since 2011. Justin Gray and Jimmy Palmiotti did write a four-issue limited series titled The Ray a few months after The New 52. However, that introduced a new character, Lucien Gates, taking up the mantle. Although, it doesn't look like anything was really done with The Ray after that. Lucien apparently showed up as a supporting character a few times, but that's about it. That is, until now. The reemergence of Ray as The Ray seems to coincide with the announced Freedom Fighters: The Ray animated series, set to appear on CW Seed later this year. Because, like the version of the character starring in that series, Ray Terrill is now gay.

Sarah Miller 1/16/17 Sarah Miller 1/16/17

Review: Love Addict: Confessions of a Serial Dater

By Sarah Miller

As somewhat of a serial dater myself, I was very excited to read Love Addict: Confessions of a Serial Dater. I was looking for some insights into the various experiences I’ve had, and I was also looking forward to reading about the different affairs that someone else has had. I’m a fan of both slice-of-life and memoir comics, and I was hoping for a little something of both with this work. I certainly found those things, but I also found a comic rife with clichés and stories that I have already heard before, that have been told in so many ways they have entered the public consciousness. I found judgement and a lack of true introspection that might have turned that judgement around and led our narrator to some kind of real awakening instead of the half-hearted “maybe this is bad for me” that we get at the end of the book. There is no concern at all for the women that he has been dating; they all merely serve as some kind of reflection of what the narrator is going through.