Oliver Gerlach 11/8/17 Oliver Gerlach 11/8/17

Review: Blood of Gods #1

By Oliver Gerlach

Blood of Gods #1, by Erick Dominguez and Jake Bilbao, is a big loud fantasy comic about a world where demigods (or, in this case, “divine breed”) walk the earth and have magical powers. It’s got swords and dragons and large muscular bearded men who yell a lot. So far, so generic fantasy.

Jonathan Edwards 11/5/17 Jonathan Edwards 11/5/17

Review: Coyotes #1

By Jonathan Edwards

Though far from perfect, I got a fair amount of personal enjoyment out of Sean Lewis’s first book, Saints. His second, The Few, failed to hook me, and I stopped reading after the second issue. Now, he returns to contemporary fantasy with Coyotes, and its first issue falls somewhere in-between those of his previous two books. That is to say, it gets going a lot faster than The Few, but its premise still requires more elaborate exposition to set up than the likes of Saints. That being said, I could easily see Coyotes having the greatest overall appeal of Lewis’s books so far.

Jonathan Edwards 11/3/17 Jonathan Edwards 11/3/17

Review: The Jetsons #1

By Jonathan Edwards

I haven’t really been paying much mind to DC’s books like this. I read the first issue of Future Quest (it was fine), but that’s about it. Honestly, none of them have piqued my interest enough to override the sheer surreality of their existence. When I was a kid, Cartoon Network would routinely air reruns of many old Hanna-Barbara cartoons, so it’s just been kind of weird seeing them pop up, some more recognizable than others, in comic book form. However, The Flintstones was apparently well-received for most of its run. And since The Flintstones and The Jetsons have always been closely related, I figured that, despite my reservations, this book might have something to offer after all. And y’know, maybe it still does. But if so, you wouldn’t be able to tell that from this first issue.

Daniel Vlasaty 11/2/17 Daniel Vlasaty 11/2/17

Review: The Gravediggers Union #1

By Daniel Vlasaty

Ghost and zombies and vampires – and all kinds of shit like that – have been done so many times in comics (and all other forms of media) that it kind of gets to a point where it’s like what’s the point of even trying? You got to think that everything you’re trying to do, someone else has already done, and probably better, too. You’ve got to know that anything you do make is going to be compared to the countless things that have come before it. You’ve got to know that any idea you’ve got, someone’s already had that same idea. This is the mentality I usually have before I go into a new horror book (or movie or blah blah blah).

Justin McCarty 11/2/17 Justin McCarty 11/2/17

Review: Port Of Earth #1

By Justin McCarty

New from Image imprint Top Cow is Port of Earth, a comic with a really interesting twist on an old premise: Aliens finally make the first contact with Earth, but instead of coming with intent to improve how humans treat each other, or with intent to exterminate the human race, they come with a business deal. The aliens in Port of Earth want to onboard Earth to a galaxy-wide network of planets working together for trade. Earth would be a stopping point for ships on their way to other planets. This, of course, complicates things for humans, but the trade seems fair; Earth gets advanced technologies to improve human lives.

Benjamin Snyder 11/1/17 Benjamin Snyder 11/1/17

Review: The Shadow/Batman #2

By Ben Snyder

Picking up exactly where the last issue left off The Shadow/Batman #2 is another enthralling entry into the second crossover of two of the most iconic and historic characters in all of comics. While certainly not perfect in all regards, Steve Orlando and Giovanni Timpano do more than enough to justify the existence of this comic.

Benjamin Snyder 11/1/17 Benjamin Snyder 11/1/17

Review: 1985: Black Hole Repo #1

By Ben Snyder

Gory and gruesome, 1985 Black Hole Repo #1 delivers on its publisher, Heavy Metal, Inc.’s namesake. However, behind the artwork, which seems ripped straight from a Metal album’s cover, it misses the mark on the social and political statements it attempts to make. Often, the criticisms are unceremoniously blunt, lacking any subtlety at all. But I guess in this regard the story encapsulates the essence of its heavy metal inspiration as well.

Justin McCarty 11/1/17 Justin McCarty 11/1/17

Review: Deadman #1

By Justin McCarty

So, this is Deadman. The latest attempt to resurrect Deadman might be DOA. I hadn’t read any Deadman comics before this. And, as far as I can tell, Deadman has never had a true ongoing series, not since the very first series debuted in the late sixties. He pops in and out of the DCU in much the same way he possesses the bodies of unwitting accomplices to his mission. He either appears in other character’s stories or in his own limited series. With a first issue, you might want to go easy on the newcomers to the lore. Adams has shown us no mercy.

Oliver Gerlach 11/1/17 Oliver Gerlach 11/1/17

Review: Stain the Seas Scarlet

By Oliver Gerlach

Ryan K Lindsay and Alex Cormack’s Stain the Seas Scarlet, coming soon to Kickstarter, is an efficient 22 page oneshot tale of space resistance and revenge. It’s nice to see something so self-contained and confident in its brevity, and for the most part everything attempted here is handled deftly.

Oliver Gerlach 10/30/17 Oliver Gerlach 10/30/17

Review: The Ghost Butterfly

By Oliver Gerlach

The Ghost Butterfly is the latest project from Rick Quinn, the writer of the beautiful and highly enjoyable Saltwater. This is a completely different project, but one with a lot of the same strengths and weaknesses as Saltwater; Quinn seems to have a very well-defined style, and whether or not it works is up to the reader.

Dustin Cabeal 10/26/17 Dustin Cabeal 10/26/17

Review: DC House of Horror #1

By Dustin Cabeal

For ten bucks you get 80 pages of horror set in the DC Universe. I’ll start by telling you the good thing about this comic. If you like EC Comics style of stories, then you’ll probably love the hell out of DC House of Horror #1. Unfortunately, the other half that has refined their tastes in horror from digesting a massive amount of horror over the years may end up being a little bored by this issue.

Dustin Cabeal 10/26/17 Dustin Cabeal 10/26/17

Review: Nightwing: The New Order #3

By Dustin Cabeal

After recording this week’s episode, I thought about this issue more, and I realized that there was one big thing I left out of my podcast and it’s the main reason this issue isn’t as strong as the previous two. It’s actually right there on the cover, the Bat-Family. Batwoman and Red Robin are injected into this issue and that’s actually the problem.

Justin McCarty 10/26/17 Justin McCarty 10/26/17

Review: Brilliant Trash 1 & 2

By Justin McCarty

What do you get when you do a mashup of sci-fi social commentary and superheroes? That would be Brilliant Trash. Here we have a superhero story that leans heavily on the trashy, pandering media culture, and the SJW narrative of the last couple years, all wrapped up in a tight superpowered bow. The final product isn’t perfect, and the themes are a little heavy-handed, but that doesn't take away from the truly unique presentation and use of the comics medium.

Daniel Vlasaty 10/26/17 Daniel Vlasaty 10/26/17

Review: The Hard Place #3

By Daniel Vlasaty

Getting back to normal life after an extended prison sentence is hard. It's really fucking hard, which is probably why something like 75% of people re-offend and end up back inside. It's a never-ending cycle for some people. I know. I've been on both sides of the law and now I work every day with people recently released from prison – in my job, though, it's mostly people locked up for drug charges, but I've had a few bank robbers come through my place. I actually see a lot of some of the people I work with in AJ Gurney – people trying their hardest to do the right thing, but no matter what they just keep fucking up over and over again. Like they can't help themselves. It's sad and scary and fucked up, but it's also part of living that criminal lifestyle. I don’t know. Whatever. Here's my review of The Hard Place #3.

Jonathan Edwards 10/25/17 Jonathan Edwards 10/25/17

Review: Mr. Higgins Comes Home

By Jonathan Edwards

Mr. Higgins Comes Home surprised me in a couple of ways. First and foremost, by just how short it is for an OGN. The story itself is only forty-nine pages long, just barely over double the length of a normal-sized issue. What’s more, I’ve seen a handful of single issues come out that match or even exceed that page length. I mean, Sacred Creatures #1 boasted a whopping sixty-six pages, so it’s honestly more surprising that Mignola and Johnson-Cadwell gave this one the full hardcover treatment rather than a mere one-shot. The second big surprise is the plot. See, the book’s vampiric premise may be a tried and true one, but it’s the execution that really sets this one apart. Mignola is well-enough aware of the expectations for where this type of story is going to go that he is able to lean into it somewhat during the setup before several curveballs in a row once it really gets going. And, he does it with such economic storytelling that there’s not a single wasted nor excessive moment, something that really goes to show the breadth of his skill as a writer and creator.

Dustin Cabeal 10/25/17 Dustin Cabeal 10/25/17

Review: Jughead: The Hunger #1

By Dustin Cabeal

Fear not, if you missed the one-shot issue that leads to this ongoing series, you don’t need to track it down in order to enjoy this issue. I mean, you can still track it down, but it’s not required reading at this point. In fact, this issue pretty much spoils the one-shot.

Patrick Wolf 10/25/17 Patrick Wolf 10/25/17

Review: Our War - The Truth Untold vol. 1

By Patrick Wolf

Tired of post-apocalyptic stories that involve zombies, aliens, and floods? Looking for an end-of-the-world story that uproots society from a political standpoint? Then Our War: The Truth Untold is the book for you. But don’t worry, just because this series is political, doesn’t mean it’s preachy. There’s tons of gritty action and raw suspense. So, if you like punk, anarchy, and politics, you’re definitely going to want to pick up volume #1 of this series.

Dustin Cabeal 10/25/17 Dustin Cabeal 10/25/17

Review: Hack/Slash: Resurrection #1

By Dustin Cabeal

Something that happens a lot with creator-owned comics is that the creators end up writing them for years and years and it gets to the point that you have to wonder if they have anything left in the tank. The crazy thing is that by the time they get to this point, their title becomes a known quantity and something that people buy out of habit more than anything else. For instance, I couldn’t tell you anything happening in Spawn, but the book does quite well each month or at least well enough that it continues.

Justin McCarty 10/25/17 Justin McCarty 10/25/17

Review: Void Trip #1

By Justin McCarty

The Universe is real big, man. Void Trip is a new comic published by Image coming out next month. Created by Ryan O’Sullivan and Plaid Klaus, Void Trip is a psychedelic road trip comedy in the vein of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, their words, not mine. In fact, O’Sullivan bills this as Guardians of The Galaxy meets Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. Those are big shoes to fill. If you want to invoke drug culture and free-thinking, Fear and Loathing is a good place to start, though. I get the vibe, but I would amend all that by saying this is more of a Cheech and Chong meets Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy kind of story. There is a lot here, and I think it was amazingly executed.

Jonathan Edwards 10/25/17 Jonathan Edwards 10/25/17

Review: Justice League of America #17

By Jonathan Edwards

“Panic in the Microverse” is finally over and thank god. I addition to the regular problems with this book, this particular arc has really dragged. And, it’s no mystery why. Injecting two full issue-length flashbacks right in the middle of your story, and before the cliffhanger you previously ended on, does no favors for pacing. That’s especially true when neither of said flashbacks provide any useful or necessary information and plot progression. But, that’s the past. How is Justice League of America #17 here in the present? Well, to be honest, it’s not bad. There are still a few hiccups along the way, but the core premise of how to stop the Microverse from being destroyed is sound, and we actually get a good chunk of time dedicated to developing Ryan’s character. Not counting any of the JLA Rebirth one-shots, this might be the best issue of this series to date.