Comic Reviews June 23rd 2010

Well, better late than never. I've been away from the computer quite a bit this week, so I'm behind. But, here are reviews of the books I picked up this week.

Predators #3--Dark Horse
Writers--Marc Andreyko, David Lapham
Artists--Guilherme Balbi, Gabriel Guzman



So, let's just get this out of the way. Predators continues to be just okay in it's third issue, trying to push for the upcoming conclusion. Welcome to the Jungle makes strives to make the characters likable for once, but it comes across flat. I wonder what makes Andreyko give such stereotypical dialogue to his characters. Instead of engaging what is actually an interesting scenario for this series (a four year survivor of the predators and the headstrong newcomer who will probably get them killed), and deliver it so lifelessly. Perhaps the fourth issue leads into the film with an ending ready to get us ready for the upcoming film. However, I'm leaning towards doubt, as that would imply that this book has some intelligence. David Lapham's A Predatory Life seems too short for the story it's trying to tell. I appreciate his efforts though, as he is doing more in his six pages than Andreyko is in his fourteen. Royce is an intriguing character, but there isn't enough of him on the page. All of his characterization has been done in subtitles, as he tactically performs his violent acts. Perhaps the prequel series would have been served well if the films main character had gotten a book of his own in lieu of a twenty four page snapshot of the character? Anyway, I will not be sad to see this book go following it's conclusion.

2.5/5

Air #22--DC/Vertigo
Writer--G. Willow Wilson
Artist--M.K. Perker



Like Greek Street, Air is a book that has had it's ups and downs with me. It started strong, with a satirical edge and smart dialogue, and descended into a story about romance and drug addiction during it's teens. Now it's reached issue twenty-two, and the series will be ending after two more issues. Luckily, Wilson has written a great issue playing off of many of the good aspects of the past eleven issues. Sure, the delicious post-9/11 satire of the first story arc is completely lost now, but Air still has a story to finish. Blythe is running into an antagonistic streak, fighting back against a lot of things in this issue, showing some backbone for the first time in the series. Honestly, it's about time she had some real strength, rather than falling on every one of the support characters or her aforementioned drug addiction. Also, the Amelia Earhart section was one of the most poignant moments of the series to this point. Perker's art is light on style, but perfect for Wilson's writing, focusing entirely on the characters rather than backgrounds or unnecessary details. Despite this, there was one or two moments where a couple of side characters looked a little off. This doesn't take away from the fact that this was a stellar entry in a series that isn't long from an ending. Consider this a recommendation for the entire series, with a warning of the middle. It's not as good as the series is capable of.

4.5/5

The Amory Wars: In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3

Writer: Claudio Sanchez with Peter David
Artist: Chris Burnham



"Ambitious" is probably one of the most overused words when it comes to art of any kind. Surely, I've used to too often. However, there aren't many other words I can think of when it comes to Claudio Sanchez's Coheed and Cambria story. Using the mediums of comics and music, he's planning to tell the story of the Keywork, Heaven's Fence, and the characters Coheed and Cambria. This is the second series associated with The Amory Wars. The first, The Second Stage Turbine Blade, was published by Image, and will soon be reprinted in hardback by Boom. They are handling the publishing duties for this series, based on Coheed and Cambria's (the band) second studio album of the same title.

When I read the first issue, I had great hopes for this series. I'd read the first volume of The Second Stage Turbine Blade, and found it a bit clunky, but ultimately entertaining. While I missed the second volume, I can honestly say that Claudio Sanchez has grown immensely as a story teller. The writing has been strong throughout, and the characters interesting. The scenario rings with just enough personal desperation for the main character, Claudio. If this is getting confusing, I'm sorry. The entire work is slightly autobiographical, so I hope you don't mind the nature of this review. Using the framework of an ongoing conversation with his dog, Apollo, Claudio (character) reveals the story of Wilhelm Ryan and Inferno with an honest voice and clear form. The only downside to the book is the art. It shifts from having wonderful environments and a great attention to detail, to being absolutely hideous. Wider shots are handled well enough, but close ups of any character tend to be so jarring to the eye that I questioned how the work passed muster with the editors. I'm not sure if this is just an issue of personal aesthetic, but I'm just going to leave it at that I don't like it. The lush visuals of the Good Apollo, I'm Burning Star IV graphic novel released parallel to the album of the same name were far more appealing, and further set my disappointment with this book's art. However, the story is worth grimacing at the art for, and I fully approve of where Claudio (the writer) is going. If you are a fan of the band, check it out, and the same goes for if you just like sci-fi comics.

4.75/5 (I really wanted to rate it full score...)

Joe the Barbarian #6--DC/Vertigo

Writer--Grant Morrison

Artist--Sean Murphy

This is the latest in the series that has sold me on Grant Morrison. However, this isn't the strongest book in the run. This issue definitely feels like a transitional chapter, moving the characters into position for the final two issues that will wrap up the series. Don't let this fool you. It's still the best mini-series going right now. Joe's journey to find a soda and end his hallucinogenic nightmare is still as engaging and creative as it was in issue one. Since the book seems to be in setup mode, the art gets all of the chance to shine here. The series has played around the idea of imagination a lot, using Joe's toys and how he uses his own home to play with those toys as the central point for how the visuals work, and how he trips around his house trying to reach the basement. So, there are many splash pages dedicated to setting vast scenes in the beautiful Hearth Castle (Joe's real world fireplace), and the juxtaposition of these fantastic realms and his own simple home still make an incredible impact. If you aren't reading this series, I can't stress enough how empty your collection is without it. If not now, pick it up when it goes to trade. It's worth every second of your attention, and is probably the best mini-series running this year.

4/5 

Next week I'm going to finish reviewing the Predators mini-series, and I've got three Star Wars books coming out. I know, I know, you probably wish I would shut up about Star Wars after this week. Anyway, the penultimate issue of SW:Legacy is coming out, as well as the last issue of SW:Dark Times' Blue Harvest arc. Rounding them out is second issue in the Rescues arc of SW:Invasion. It's going to be a good week for me if nothing else.

3rdstar

Comic Review June 15th 2010

Oh, what a sad week it is. Here I sit, between all of my favorite series' releases, and I have but one book to comment on, the second issue of the Predators, the prequel to the upcoming film.

Predators #2--Dark Horse
Writers--Marc Andreyko, David Lapham
Artists--Guilherme Balbi, Gabriel Guzman

Alright, so I said last week that I wasn't excited after the first issue. Flat, lifeless characters filled the first half, and talky narrations filled every page in both stories. I'm sad to say that nothing has changed, and I already feel that the series will have done all that it can for me by the close of the third issue, and I will be out twelve dollars total by the end of the fourth. Welcome to the Jungle still proves that Andreyko is pulling a paycheck rather than telling a story. Drake is as generic as military characters come, every line streaked with bravado and idiocy so thick that it's hard to take him seriously. The art even suffers this issue, with awkward character models in almost every panel. In A Predatory Life, Royce continues to ramble endlessly about his views on his foes in the jungle and how he maintains who he is in the world. Well, if I hadn't read this in the first issue, I'd continue to be interested. Maintaining character is a good thing, but just rehashing dialogue doesn't make those characters three dimensional. Instead, Royce comes across as a self important jerk more than anything else. Still, the story here is at least more interesting than the former, not relying on the titular monsters to drive the story told. At this point, I don't expect the series to improve. It's a cheap cash-in on a film that I don't expect to be of high quality either. Oh well, I'll continue to do my duty next week, reviewing issue three, and then the fourth in two weeks. At least I will have something to take the taste out of my mouth.

Coming up Friday: It's a toss-up between another Warren Ellis book, Ministry of Space, or the first trade of Fallen Angel from IDW, penned by Peter David. And if time permits, I've got a special surprise for Monday. Stay tuned, folks.

A note:

Looks like I won't be reviewing Ministry of Space. Look for the review of Fallen Angel Vol. 1 tomorrow. Also, I'm still working on the special review on Monday.

3rdstar

Comic Reviews June 9th

For me, it was a light week. The Light #3 released, but since I'm still without issue two, I can't give it a review just yet. Instead, let's look at the latest issue in The Unwritten, as well as the issue one in the prequel mini-series to the upcoming film Predators.

The Unwritten #14--DC/Vertigo
Writer: Mike Carey
Artist: Peter Gross

Oh, Mike Carey, you know just how to keep me coming back.

When The Unwritten started last year, I'd just gotten into comics, and was broke. Since the first issue was only a dollar, I jumped on it because the cover art looked nice. What I got in return for that dollar was my first ongoing series to follow, and recommend to every breathing soul that I spoke to in a comic shop.

The Start of Something Beautiful

So, here we are just a little over a year later, second issue of a fresh new story arc, and I'm having to hold back on a lot of story details. But here's a little synopsis of what to expect from The Unwritten.

Tom Taylor is a mediocre celebrity, living off the success of his fathers series of fantasy novels in which the name character was named from him. These books are similar to the Harry Potter novels in that two young boys and a girl fight an evil wizard. His identity is questioned at a convention, and his life falls apart. This is just the setup, mind you, and a lot has happened since the first issue. Let's get down to issue fourteen!

After all that has happened in the first thirteen issues, it's expected at this point that Carey will continue to end every issue with a story beat that will make any reader want the next issue sitting right next to him a second later. However, it's the middle book in this arc, and proving to be maddening as changes take place. But it's done with such careful attention to the pacing of the series, while being unrelenting. Carey's love for classic fiction is still shining in full force, especially in regard to Lizzie Hexam's story taking an unexpected twist in this issue. Perhaps if I read my Dickens, I'd have expected...

As for the art, #14 doesn't slack. Peter Gross switches between lush fantasy visuals and simpler tones and details for the real world while going between the different narratives that run parallel. The fantasy aspects are a little weaker this issue, but I think that was intentional to reflect the nature of the story being told in this arc. The cover by Yuko Shimizu isn't as lovely as the earlier expisodes, but is still a strong piece of art.

Ultimately, If this review sounds like the rant of a gushing fanboy, it might just be. I can't cease to recommend this fantastic series. Between the fact that the second trade paperback is going to release in the fall, and the fact that gaining a set of all fourteen issues wouldn't be too difficult, I think that there isn't much better you could put your comic book money into.

5/5

Predators #1--Dark Horse
Writer: Marc Andreyko, David Lapham
Artist: Guilherme Balbi, Jose Verissimo, Gabriel Guzman, Mariano Taibo

I've never been a fan of the Predator series. Not sure why, but it never really struck me. They aren't bad films or anything, just not really my cup of tea. However, this doesn't bother me to the point of having my critical focus blurred when reading the prequel stories in the first issue of this mini series from Dark Horse. The book is divided into two stories.

The first is Welcome to the Jungle, focusing on a soldier named Drake with his unit out in the woods. This story is the only one to feature one of the titular creatures, so guess where this story is going. It proves to be a bit flat, but I think that it was limited by the amount of space provided by the book itself. We get eleven pages, with very little dialogue and character development. The action was quick, and well executed, but not much else can be said about this half of the book. Perhaps Andreyko will have more in the second chapter.

On the other half of the book, A Predatory Life, we get the backstory of Royce, the main character of the upcoming film portrayed by Adrian Brody. It's introspective, and a provides an interesting look at his character, which is a far cry from the action-only approach of Welcome to the Jungle. David Lapham seems to have more interest in investing time in the character of the film people will be going to see rather than letting the monster get screen time.

However, the biggest flaw for the overall book is the artwork. It's a bit erratic, shifting from careful details to blocky nondescript ugliness. Facial structures are either really strong or a little murky depending on the angles. There is also a dependency on blacks in play that just seems a bit too much, despite the gritty brutality depicted in both stories.

I don't know if it's time to offer a recommendation for this book. If you are a fan of the Predator films and read comics, it's likely you have already read this book yourself. As for me, I'm going to continue to read as it plays out this month, and possibly even read the follow up story written by David Lapham called Preserve the Game. While Lapham has started his run on Predators off with a good setup, Andreyko has to pick up the pace in order to keep my interest in his half of the book.

3/5


Next week, I'll continue reviewing the Predators prequel mini series. It doesn't look like anything else I'm reading drops next week. In the meantime, I'm preparing a review of the Warren Ellis graphic novel Orbiter. Look for it over the weekend.

3rdstar

Comic Reviews for June 3rd

Greek Street #12--DC/Vertigo
Writer: Peter Milligan
Artist: David Gianfelice

I can't remember the last time Greek Street actually kept my interest the way the first few issues did. The first story arc ran out of steam quickly, and the second did very little to get a fresh hold on my attention. However, as Peter Milligan starts the Ajax story arc, he finally hits something fresh and interesting after the quickly staling work on the first two arcs. In Ajax, we meet Phil Jackson, fresh from the war in Afghanistan, having flashbacks of his trials in the Middle East, and being visited by the ghosts of Spartans. It's here that I feel like Werther Dell'edera gives the series it's first strong artistic moments, where David Gianfelice could not. This tied in with Milligan's strong story telling, which has been conspicuously absent for the past arc, gives me some new faith in the series. If you fell off reading this one before, this is where you should start back. Otherwise, it might serve you better to check out the trades.
4/5

Electric Ant #3--Marvel
Writer: David Mack
Artist: Pascal Alixe

Marvel tries to impress me once again with their third issue in the adaptation of the Phillip K Dick work of the same title. Electric Ant has it's moments. The concepts about how Garson Poole tries to modify how he senses reality are intriguing, but I don't feel any reason to care about the character. His story is just interesting enough to read, but what really sells the book to me, personally, is the art. The hand painted visuals serve the future-punk visuals well, especially as Poole continues to meddle with his body. While I'm disappointed that there is little to keep me interested in the characters, I can't say it's a series worth abandoning. I hope that it picks up a little more, and the end of the third issue implies that there will be something coming in the last two issue that will provide a little bang alongside the heady speculation about reality that Dick originally wrote about. Again, it's a fascinating concept to play with, but I'm not sure how well the comic serves the story other than with the art.

3/5

I, Zombie #2--DC/Vertigo
Writer: Chris Roberson
Artist: Michael Allred

From the first moment I read about this series in Previews, I had a good feeling about it. Chris Roberson was coming off of the entertaining, but ultimately shallow, Fables spinoff Cinderella: From Fabletown with Love, and and here comes an ongoing series with an interesting premise: a zombie who maintains her humanity by fulfilling the final wishes of those whose brains she eats. So, I entered the first issue with decently high expectations and was served a rather decent introduction to the characters and their personalities and issues. So, here comes issue two. And it's miles better than it's predecessor. Roberson is starting up an interesting story now, involving vampires who crave the blood of young men, and continuing to develop the interesting characters from the first story. The quirkiness of the book is what makes it so much fun, and why it is such a fulfilling departure from other stories rooted in traditional horror themes. The art in this series is rooted in a 60's pop art feel, which was obvious from the covers used for the first issue. Everything just adds to the fun that this book seems to bleed from every crevasse.

4.5/5

Serenity: Float Out (One Shot/Issue 7)--Dark Horse
Writer: Patton Oswalt
Artist: Patrick Reynolds

I don't know what is keeping Joss Whedon from indulging in an ongoing Firefly/Serenity comic series. Season Eight of Buffy wraps up with issue 40, so it's time he does something with a franchise that has an ever growing fan base. Float Out is a story about Wash, told from the point of view of three different shipmates from his past. Patton Oswalt has done well here, but it's by no means perfect. I felt that the story started a bit slowly, and the focus of the story, Wash, wasn't present enough in the story. The first story told didn't even really hold my focus as much as I would have liked. However, it improved through to the finale, which ultimately led to my desire for more. I can't say that wanting more from a comic is a bad thing except this is the only thing that we as readers will get for now. Patric Reynolds put a nice face on the book, with detailed pages, and a beautiful layout for some of the more impressive moments in the book. I chose the Jo Chen cover when I picked mine up, deciding after reading that it was actually more in line with the tale told. A pleasant surprise was the announcement that the long awaited graphic novel about Shepherd Book is going to finally release in the Fall. If nothing else, this was a nice way to help pass the time.

4.5/5

Look for reviews of Unwritten #14, Predators #1, and possibly something else next week. I'm still waiting for issue two of Captain Swing, and the second issue of The Light never came into my shop when it released last month. Until next time...

3rdstar