Welcome to the Comic Bastards end of the year list. Similar to our group reviews, each of the participating writers will be giving their picks for their best and also worst comics of 2017. Without further ado, here are our #1 picks for Best of 2017.
Click here to read #2 on the list!
Click here to read #3 on the list!
Click here to read #4 on the list!
Click here to read #5 on the list!
Read More
Following the success of Jeff Lemire and Dean Ormston’s Eisner Award-winning series Black Hammer and its spinoff series Sherlock Frankenstein & The Legion of Evil, Dark Horse is excited to announce the next installment in the Black Hammer universe, Doctor Star & The Kingdom of Lost Tomorrows. Abe Sapien artist Max Fiumara joins Jeff Lemire in the new four-issue miniseries. Award-winning colorist Dave Stewart (Hellboy) and talented letterer Nate Piekos (Umbrella Academy: Apocalypse Suite) round out this super creative team. Doctor Star & The Kingdom of Lost Tomorrows will feature variant covers by Declan Shalvey and Jordie Bellaire, J.G. Jones, Dustin Nguyen, and Annie Wu.
Read More
Dark Horse Comics has announced that writer Jeff Lemire and artist Dean Ormston’s creator owned Black Hammer superhero saga will return in 2018 with a new ongoing series titled Black Hammer: Age of Doom. The new ongoing series will continue to chronicle the adventures of the forgotten champions of Spiral City, following the events of the cliffhanger ending of issue thirteen of Black Hammer.
Read More
Cleverly disguised as a classic Superhero serial, Jeff Lemire continues to subvert and praise that era with his Eisner winning run on Black Hammer with another fantastic issue of Black Hammer #11. Although this issue isn’t action packed or filled with a huge set piece cornerstone scene, Jeff Lemire continues to write what he writes best: human melancholy.
Read More
Writer Jeff Lemire and artist Dean Ormston have captivated readers and critics alike with their “sad, dark, and brilliant”* creator owned superhero saga Black Hammer, which follows the forgotten champions of Spiral City long after the age of heroes has passed. This fall, Dark Horse Comics will expand the universe of the Black Hammer with Sherlock Frankenstein & The Legion of Evil, written by Lemire and illustrated by artist David Rubín, for the first of several high profile mini-series featuring different artists. While the main, Eisner-nominated Black Hammer series focuses on the heroes of Spiral City—Abraham Slam, Golden Gail, Colonel Weird, Madame Dragonfly, and Barbalien—Sherlock Frankenstein & The Legion of Evil reveals the secret origins of the Black Hammer’s greatest villains.
Read More
Black Hammer is a book I have read and enjoyed as long as it’s been coming out. But I never reviewed it. I’m not really sure why this is. Maybe because I didn’t want to write a review that was basically just OMG GUYS THIS FREAKING BOOK IS AMAZING, TOTALLY AWESOME YES. But I decided to put all that out of my mind and review Black Hammer #9. Mainly because David Rubin is doing the art in this issue. Black Hammer is a great book with solid characters and intrigue and mystery. It’s the perfect book for the comic reader who loves superhero stories but is tired of all the same old bullshit. But you already know that. This is a review for the ninth issue. You know what the overall story is about. But what about this issue, on its own, away from all the other issues that came before it?
Read More
I had to catch up on the past two issues in order to review Black Hammer #8 and let me tell you; it was worth it. Not only were the last two issues incredible, but it made me more excited for this issue. Each issue tends to follow one character’s backstory, and this time it’s Gail, who has become one of my favorite characters of this series due to her predicament. There is something extremely interesting about this old woman trapped in a young girl’s body.
Read More
The first chapter of Dark Horse’s long-awaited superhero science-fiction mystery adventure has arrived! The critically acclaimed action-adventure series by famed creator Jeff Lemire (Essex County, Sweet Tooth) with art by Dean Ormston (Lucifer, 2000 AD) and Dave Stewart (Hellboy), Black Hammer: Secret Origins collects Black Hammer #1–#6 and will hit shelves March 29, 2017.
Read MoreJeff Lemire's grand homage to Golden Age heroes continues with the start of a new arc -- this time exploring the mysterious origins of Black Hammer, the hammer-wielding hero of the streets who sacrificed all he had to save Spiral City. In the spirit of previous issues, two stories of past and present are told concurrently. But how does this week's backstory stack up? Read ahead to find out!
Read More
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.
Read More
Find out why Dark Horse Comics’ Black Hammer made our “Best of 2016” list.
Read More
Black Hammer # 5 is a bold departure from what we’ve seen of the comic so far. In a lot of ways it’s what you would expect from the family’s strangest character. From the structure of the plot to the layouts of the pages themselves, this issue breaks the mold to create a jarring departure form the narrative. In the end its flaw isn’t in what the creators do differently, the problem stems from what stays the same. Keep reading to find out what that is.
Read More
Abe gets his Mrs. Dalloway on and throws a dinner party! Gail makes a bold accessory choice! And someone gets a whole new look! But all joking aside, this is another great issue. I don’t know why you’re even reading this. Have you missed reviews 1-3? You can’t still be on the fence, can you? Why haven’t you bought this comic? Are you waiting for the trade? Cause that’s cool. I can respect that.
Read MoreJeff Lemire’s superhero comic series is getting the super treatment: Dark Horse is proud to announce that Black Hammer will have an oversized anthology issue in early 2017. Black Hammer Giant-Sized Annual features an all-star slate of guest artists illustrating five stories by Jeff Lemire. Dustin Nguyen (The Authority, Batman: Streets of Gotham), Emi Lenox (Plutona, EmiTown), Nate Powell (March, Any Empire), Matt Kindt (MIND MGMT, Dept. H), Ray Fawkes (One Soul, The People Inside), and Dave Stewart (Fight Club 2, Black Hammer) bring Abraham Slam, Golden Gail, Colonel Weird, Barbalien, and Madame Dragonfly to life.
The forty-page Black Hammer Giant-Sized Annual will be available on January 18, 2017.
Black Hammer is currently available as an ongoing comic series from Dark Horse. The popular series is from the prodigious brain of Lemire (Descender, Sweet Tooth, Essex County, A.D.: After Death, Plutona) and brought to life by Ormston (Lucifer, The Sandman), with colors by none other than Eisner Award–winning veteran Dave Stewart.
This is the second issue to focus on a backstory of one of the characters in the “family.” Although the story does revolve around the theme of alienation, the main character, Barbalien, is an alien after all, that is where the predictability stops. Instead of producing the same tired narrative of a stranger in a strange land who longs for his home, Lemire has created a character who faces true isolation. He also uses this inner conflict to expose other details about conflicts other characters are facing. Another great issue from an outstanding creative team.
While the last issue we focused on Gail, this issue we dive into the past of Barbalien. Forced into traveling to Earth to prevent an interplanetary war, from his first moments on earth he faces pain and alienation. His plight in some ways is similar to Gail’s. Both are outsiders and both feel as though they are trapped by circumstances beyond their control. But while Gail’s conflict comes from being trapped in her own body, Barbalien’s struggle comes from a sort of imposter syndrome. This is an exciting new take on the “alien” character in comics. An outsider on his home world and on planet earth, this issue gives us a look as Barbalien searches for belonging.
While Barbalien’s struggle to find belonging is the main frame of the issue we also witness other characters struggles. Specifically, we see his interaction with Gail reveal more about her character. We also see a little bit of Abe’s relationship with Tammy develop, but we also see some foreshadowing of future conflict within the family since as it’s de facto head, anything he does influences the rest of them as a unit.
Dean Ormston and Dave Stewart continue to put out amazing work. Juxtaposing human language with alien qualities, Ormstrom doesn’t just try to make an alien human. He also emphasizes Barbalien’s strangeness for dramatic effect. He truly makes him look like a monster in one particular panel. He counters this close up of his otherworldliness with several panels depicting his all too human feelings of isolation. Who knew a silhouette could be so sad.
The story continues to move forward, diving deeper into characters and raising the stakes for the family as a unit. From the cover of issue #4 it looks like Abe will be getting the background treatment next, and as for rest of the family, it looks like there might be some hope for them yet.
[su_box title="Score: 5/5" style="glass" box_color="#8955ab" radius="6"]
Black Hammer #3 Writer: Jeff Lemire Artist: Dean Ormston Publisher: Dark Horse Comics Price: $3.99 Format: Ongoing; Print/Digital
[/su_box]
Dark Horse is making it easy for you to find your next favorite series! Dark Horse is excited to announce the Dark Horse Number Ones trade paperback, which will allow readers to familiarize themselves with some of our most talented creators in a value-priced collection. Dark Horse Number Ones opens the door to new storytelling worlds with eight first issues from a diverse selection of genres:
Gerard Way and Gabriel Bá’s The Umbrella Academy is the story of a group of superpowered children, born on the same day and subsequently adopted and raised by a scientist as secretive as he is wealthy.At over 200 pages, the Dark Horse Number Ones trade goes on sale March 29, 2017, for an unheard-of price of just $5.99! Comics fans, prepare to find your next obsession!