Comic Reviews Jonathan Edwards Comic Reviews Jonathan Edwards

Review: Helena Crash #1

By Jonathan Edwards

Helena Crash is a book I very likely would've skipped if I weren't reviewing comics on a weekly basis. The premise is high concept enough to draw attention, but it's only a shallow hook and not enough to make me really want to drop the $3.99 to find out more. At the same time, that's kind of what made me want to read and review it. After all, sometimes it takes looking where you normally wouldn't to find the hidden gems. And after reading through this first issue, I am glad I picked it. While not necessarily anything special, Helena Crash is an enjoyable read that doesn't take itself too seriously, nor does it make everything into a joke.

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Comic Reviews Dustin Cabeal Comic Reviews Dustin Cabeal

Review: Star Scouts

By Dustin Cabeal

At times Star Scouts is an entertaining read full of imagination and a positive message about being different. Other times, it hits you over the head with its characterizations and paced far too slowly. Star Scouts is obviously aimed at younger kids as the message and outcome of the story are very easy to figure out. This wasn’t a deal breaker, but it did make for a bumpy ride to the end.

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Comic Reviews Ben Boruff Comic Reviews Ben Boruff

Review: Popova #1

By Ben Boruff

Writers Dre Torres and Alex Valdes are not afraid of difficult tasks. The two creators of Popova, a Tarantino-style comic that "explores the idea of reversing society's gender stereotypes by depicting women in the role of the aggressor," also created a documentary called The Last Taino. Here is the documentary's description as noted on the film's Indiegogo page: 

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Comic Reviews Laramie Martinez Comic Reviews Laramie Martinez

Review: Death Be Damned #2

By Laramie Martinez

After reading the first issue I thought I knew what kind of story Death be Damned was going to be. And despite a warning from Andrew Miller over on Twitter, I went into issue two thinking that I was going to get more of the same. And while there was plenty of zombies and shootouts, there are some key revelations which take this series to another level of uncanny.

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Comic Reviews Ben Boruff Comic Reviews Ben Boruff

Review: Paper Crown

By Ben Boruff

Deep below the colorful lithosphere of indie comics lies a core of melancholy, aphoristic, and often minimalistic comics that explore the more nuanced elements of loneliness, solitude, and longing. Occasionally, these comics bubble to the surface of the indie comic zeitgeist, but more often they remain hidden, churning below the consciousness of casual fans. I call this subgenre of indie comics "epigrammatic gloom," and it is oddly refreshing. Comics of the "epigrammatic gloom" genre eschew the usual dressings of intricate plot, and they favor the power of artwork over the power of dialogue. Like the beginning of Up and the end of 2001: A Space Odyssey, an "epigrammatic gloom" comic allows visuals to lift the weight of the story's emotional elements, and this tactic is almost always effective. Without the burden of dialogue, panels are able to burn with color, and background artwork—often vast and simple to enhance the protagonist's isolation—is not obstructed by overbearing bubbles and squares. Claire Connelly’s clever comics contain copious amounts of this molten melancholy, and Paper Crown is among the best of Connelly’s impressive work.

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Comic Reviews James Anders II Comic Reviews James Anders II

Review: American Gods: Shadows #1

By James Anders II

The hype has been heavy.  The promotion? Intense.  The look? Impressive early.  The outcome? Not quite sure as of yet.  American Gods, arguably one of the best novels written here in the early 21st Century has gone full circle.  Written by master scribe and Literary legend Neil Gaiman in 2001, this multi-awarded visually descriptive tale of myths and legends and old vs. new has always been ripe for development in other mediums.  It was too good not to expand.  It simply demanded more. 

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Comic Reviews Robert Larson Comic Reviews Robert Larson

Review: The Best We Could Do

By Zeb Larson

I grew up with Vietnam stories, but on the American side. My grandfather lived in Bien Hoa during the war, and when he left the country on April 29, 1975 he smuggled several people out of the country in his car; one of them was adopted into the family and became my aunt. He went into the war a true believer in the United States, and by its end was far more pessimistic about the country’s goals and intentions. He loved the country and kept going back there for the rest of his life; he even took me in 2006. He also passed on a love of American and Vietnamese literature about the war: The Quiet American, A Bright and Shining Lie, Memories of a Pure Spring, The Destiny of Love, or more recently The Sympathizer…

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Comic Reviews Dustin Cabeal Comic Reviews Dustin Cabeal

Review: Super Sons #2

By Dustin Cabeal

Hey, there’s the Damien that everyone knows and despises or at the very least loves to despise. The first issue of Super Sons was shockingly good. You might think after an opening sentence like that, that the second issue manages to disappoint, but you’re wrong. Read the review, find out why.

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Comic Reviews Daniel Vlasaty Comic Reviews Daniel Vlasaty

Review: Coady and the Creepies #1

By Daniel Vlasaty

I’d like to start this review by saying that Coady and the Creepies isn’t really the kind of comic book I normally read. But I’ve also noticed that some of my reviews here on the site are getting repetitive and redundant. So, this week I decided to read something different. I wanted to try something new and fun and lighthearted. I hadn’t heard anything at all about this book, so I went in without knowing what to expect.

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