I Read Comic Books discussion
note: This topic has been closed to new comments.
What are you reading right now?
>
What are you reading right now? (April 2024)
date
newest »
newest »
Last week's adventures in comics.A Fire Among Clouds (Codex Black, #1) ★★
This was kind of terrible. It's basically a manga set in Mesoamerica. A boy and a girl become friends as they quest around Mexico. The boy gains the power to fly from falling in a hole. He gathers a bunch of feathers in his hat and suddenly gains the power to fly. WTF? There's a ton of nonsensical writing like this.
Nights Volume 1 ★★
This is set in an alternate 2003 where Florida is part of Spain and there are only 31 states. I'm not sure why that's even noted though because it doesn't play into the story at all and everything culture wise seems to be the same as actual history. The real change is that vampires and ghosts are real and not considered dangerous or scary. There's not much of a through story. It's about a teenager who has to go live with his older cousin after his parents died. There he has a vampire and a ghost for roommates. I guess this would be considered a slacker comedy. I just considered it not all that interesting and a bit pointless.
Usagi Yojimbo: 40th Anniversary Reader ★★★★
If you're an Usagi reader, you aren't going to find anything new here. If you're not, this is a pretty good introduction to Usagi Yojimbo's world. The one really interesting thing is the whole volume is in color which is pretty rare.
The Riddler: Year One ★★★
This started out as the bible Paul Dano used for his Riddler character in The Batman. It actually starts off pretty strong with Nashton finding some discrepancies while working in an accounting firm and figuring out what turns into the plot of the movie. But those fourth and fifth issues go off the rails. Four is the Riddler's childhood while the fifth issue is just Charles Manson's scribbles as he descends into madness. It was so goddamn hard to read. I hated it so much I would like to give Mr. Dano a personal F.U. for making me read it. I don't think I retained any of it as I was just so freaking mad at trying to figure out how to read this absolute nonsense with really no art to speak of. Besides that it settles in about just as well for me as Emo Batman did.
Crave ★★
This was kind of stupid. It's basically a cut Black Mirror episode. It's about a dating app running through a school that is answering everyone's desires, to the point where teens are all having sex right in the hallways of the school. There is the downside that everyone saw coming. It hits about every trope it can. I just don't get the love for Maria Llovet. Her comics aren't very good.
Hotelitor: Luxury-Class Defense and Hospitality Unit ★★★
This was pretty goofy. Why would anyone put a hotel inside of Voltron? Well, for whatever reason, Josh Hicks did. Then he has them get lost in space and take on evil corporations. You know, like giant hotel mechas do.
Killer Queens 2: Kings, Not Wings! ★★★
An all LGBTQ creative team leads a story about two bounty hunters, one a woman, the other a gay man. They get involved in this sci-fi universe when a Prince escapes their home world because their father is a toxic male jerk who wants to cut their wings off. It's not bad. Nowhere near as good as Booher's Canto was, but not bad.
Mirka Andolfo's Mercy: The Fair Lady, The Frost, and The Fiend ★★★
So much of this just leaves you hanging. There's a distinct lack of world building or explanation. It reminds me of John Carpenter's The Thing if it had been set 100 years earlier. It's about this small town where this Lady and her aide arrive. They are secretly some kinds of monsters and this thing is filled with body horror. Andolfo's art is fantastic. Her storytelling is severely lacking though.
Scoop, Vol. 1: Breaking News ★★★
A teenage girl gets an internship at the worst TV station in Miami. There she gets involved in a wacky case involving time travel after reporting on a murder for the station.
Star Wars: Hyperspace Stories Vol. 3: Light and Shadows ★★★
Four single issue stories with a through line of what happens to a stuffed animal. It's fine.
A Fox in My Brain ★★★★
A comic written and drawn by a French woman suffering from a bipolar disorder. She does a great job of making the art seem playful while also getting the points across of how it affects her. Her cyclothymia is represented as this fox who tries to talk her into making snap decisions or feeding off her lows. I thought she did a great job of conveying what it's like to have a disorder like this.
X-Force, Vol. 9 ★★
X-Force moves to the North Pole after Fall of X, but this book continues to be all about Beast. X-Force brings a clone of Beast back with only his memories up until he was part of the New Defenders and they go after one another in a half-baked finale. Percy tries to make some magic with the return team-up of Beast and Wonder Man but I don't think Percy knew much about Wonder Man these days. He was completely out of character and a weakling who for some reason couldn't breathe underwater even though Wonder Man doesn't breathe at all since Kurt Busiek resurrected him in Avengers. I give Percy's run 4 raspberries. If I had 4 middle fingers, I'd give him those too.
Batman: Urban Legends, Vol. 6 ★★★
This wraps up the Urban Legends Batman anthology title with some middling stories. Standouts are Jamal Campbell's Nightwing story. He's making his case to take over as artist on that title with this story. Michael Cho's Wheelman story was interesting. The rest are lackluster at best.
The Amazing Spider-Man, Vol 7: Armed and Dangerous ★★
Man, I was excited when I heard Zeb Wells was taking over Spider-Man. These days, not so much. This insane publishing schedule is really hurting the books. Doc Ock returns and it's terrible. He gets some new arms because his old arms have went traitor on him. Then in the final oversized issue, the wedding of Tombstone's daughter and Robbie Robertson is finally happening. It's all just a lead in to Gang War and then little teasers for the gazillion Spider-related spinoff books. Marvel is going to milk Spider-Man straight into the ground with the way they are overusing him and all his spinoffs. Sony should be happy though with all the additional characters they can make awful movies of though.
The Amazing Spider-Man, Vol 8: Spider Man's First Hunt ★★★
The Goblin Queen and Kraven team up to try and give Norman Osborn his sins back. (It's been a whole deal for awhile now.) Of course, it goes wrong and then we get an inversion of Kraven's Last Hunt. Then Rek-Rap is back for some nonsense. I hate this character. I pretty much hate anything to do with Madeline Pryor or Limbo at this point. The art for all of this is really good with Patrick Gleason on the first story and Ed McGuiness the second one.
Anna ★
I wanted to like this because I like to support Fantagraphics but this was stupid with some real fugly art. It's about 3 generations of Anna who are really tall. That's the whole story. Then it's page after page of legs turned every which way as they spill out of baby carriages and the like.
The Asiri Volume 1 ★★★
A version of Wakanda created by a Nigerian creative team. It's some solid Afrofuturist comics. My only problem with it is there are a lot of characters with little introduction to keep track of, especially with that unexplained cold open.
Adventures of Superman: Jon Kent ★★★★★
Tom Taylor revisits some of his greatest hits with his most bleak series, Injustice, colliding with his most positive one in Jon Kent. There's some other little Easter eggs along the way too for Taylor fans. Ultraman is touring the multiverse killing Supermen when Jon gets recruited to take him down. He winds up in the Injustice universe where he decides to determine for himself what is going on in this world. I love Taylor's approach here and how Jon continues to be one of the most powerful heroes while always being reluctant to turn to violence to solve his problems. It's a cool take on Superman, especially when juxtaposed with the bleakness of a Superman who has failed in his mission and given in to authoritarianism.
Batman Incorporated, Vol. 2: Joker Incorporated ★★★
The Joker starts his own international team of Jokers just to mess with Batman Incorporated. There's not a lot of characterization here as the story is action driven.
Spider-Man 2099: Dark Genesis ★
Here's a shocker, another shitty comic from Steve Orlando. I really don't understand why Marvel keeps giving this guy work. The last thing Spider-Man 2099 needed was a super generic Carnage 2099. Let's just make Marvel's characters more and more derivative instead of doing something original. This story is just bad in every way.
Trick Pony ★
The art in this is so freaking bad. It looks like a little person riding the horse on the cover. It's about a washed up, gay, rodeo cowboy who is riding home to see his sick father. Along the way are all these magical realism interludes with him confronting his past failed relationships. The storytelling is so jumbled and confusing though as it's hard to make heads or tails of the story. Oof, these Comixology Originals are starting to feel like the comics that every other company said no to first.
Batman: Gotham After Midnight ★★
An OK Batman story that's more about the parade of villains then it is about the rudimentary story of its new bland villain, Midnight. Batman is the world's biggest dummy in this instead of the world's greatest detective. He doesn't even figure out who Midnight is until the issue after they already died. Then he finally does his research and figures out who was punching people's hearts out with a cane.
British Ice ★★
This doesn't seem to have much to say other than "Colonialism is bad." It's about a British man in their version of the state department. He's sent to a remote island in the Arctic circle in 1984 to maintain British control of it. As you go along you eventually find out what happened before but for such a short book it sure feels like pulling teeth to get there. The story moves so slow. Maybe it's the massive amounts of dialogue instead of showing us things, there's a whole lot of tell instead.
Killing Red Sonja ★★
The story is fine but oof! That art is terrible! It looks like sketches on cocktail napkins that were then colored with crayons. It is terrible. This is not about Red Sonja at all. It's about the boy emperor whose father Sonja killed in volume 2.
I just finished Ghost Rider/Wolverine Weapon of Vengeance. That pair really works for me, and I’m glad it is because there is some depth to their relationship, and not just fire+snikt=$$$…I mean, there’s plenty of that as well, and it does look pretty…Now I’m finally giving Invincible a shot, thanks to 12 comics from 12 friends…hard not to read it in the cartoon voices.
Also picked up Brubaker/Nguyen’s The Authority and Lemire/Kindt/Rubin’s Cosmic Detective at the library today, so will be running thru those the next couple weeks.
And of course , can’t forget the IRCB book club — entries I’ll read this month are Pulp and an indie book. :)
Invincible is terrific. There are 3 omnibus editions that collect the whole run. I got our library to buy them for their digital collection which makes them way easier to read. Those things are tomes. It does get better too after the first year of stories. I've read through all of it more than once except for the last 6 issues because then it would be over.
Today's trip to my LCS.BTW, Geoff Johns is personally trying to get me in trouble with my wife by launching three new comics today.
Void Rivals #8
Captain America #8
Redcoat #1
Geiger #1
Rook Exodus #1
Avengers #12
Birds of Prey #8
Doctor Strange #14
Immortal Thor #9
X-Men #33
Mod
Here's what folks read on this week's episode:
- Mike: The Displaced #1
- Brian: Life is Strange #2: Forget Me Not
- Nick: Aliens: What If...? (2024) #1
Check out the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts to hear our thoughts on what we read! Or listen now at https://ircbpodcast.simplecast.com/ep...
Read and reviewed a couple of graphic novels by the wonderful Emily Carroll, here and here. My project between April and May is rereading Monstress.
I really need to catch up on the Krakoa era of Marvel mutants, possibily before the summer.
I also have a stack of Monstress GN to reread from the library. The Krakoan era is very hit and miss. I suggest sticking with certain authors. Jonathan Hickman, Gerry Duggan, Kieron Gillen, Al Ewing. There's a ton of ancillary titles and most of it is garbage. I started off buying all of it every week and quickly learned my mistake, that I was just throwing away money on certain titles. If you have Marvel Unlimited, that's probably the best way to read all of it. I think COVID messed up a lot of Hickman's plans. Those initial HoX/PoX miniseries are really cool. The first X-Men and Marauders books are excellent. You really start to feel a slide in quality once Hickman left the main X-Men book to work on the Inferno miniseries. Half of the other titles were terrible by then. You could feel by that point how limited his involvement was. Most of the creators other than Duggan and Ewing had left. Marauders went from my favorite X-Men comic when Duggan was writing it to one of worst things Marvel has ever published when Steve Orlando took over and turned it into something completely different.
I think today is a good day to read about Eclipso.Hoopla has this one: Justice League of America, Vol. 10: The Rise of Eclipso.
Last week's adventures in comics.The Plastic Empire ★
Oof, this was a slog to get through. It's that old school type of sci-fi that just numbs my brain. I read this 100 page comic and could barely tell you what it was about.
Mooncop ★★★
A droll story about being the only cop on the moon. He has a 100% clearance rate because there's never been a crime. Turns out living on the moon is very quiet and lonely.
The Amazing Spider-Man, Vol 9: Gang War ★★★★
Best arc of this run so far. This is what Spider-Man should be doing, stopping city wide gang wars, not dealing with Limbo or any of that Dark Web nonsense.
Gannibal Vol 1 ★★
Eh, this one didn't thrill me. It's about a local cop in a small town in Japan. His predecessor went missing and kept talking about how members of the town were cannibals. It's kind of boring and a lot of the conflict relies on overreacting with this small town family constantly threatening the cop with guns. Also, this seems to be another manga obsessed with breasts.
Superman: Ending Battle ★★★
Someone has discovered Superman's identity and is going after everyone Clark Kent has ever known. He has to wade through tons of villains including unnamed analogues of Marvel villains. It's a nonstop never ending battle for 8 issues.
Star Trek: The Motion Picture--Echoes ★★★
Star Trek seems to be dipping into the alternate timeline well way too often. That being said, this was solid. It takes place right after Star Trek: The Motion Picture. An Uhuru and Chekov from another universe enter ours with a doomsday weapon in tow. Chekov gives it to the Romulons which , of course, causes a lot of conflict. The problem with these between the numbers stories is that you know how they are going to end because you've already seen what comes after.
The Mighty Barbarians ★★★
Not bad. It's kind of your standard sword and sorcery story. Some evil sorcerer is taking over people's minds and the mighty barbarians have to team up to stop him. They are your proto-Avengers from pulp and mythology. Morgan Le Fey, King Kull, Anansi, Nanook and two other characters I wasn't familiar with.
The Avengers, Vol. 2: Twilight Dreaming ★★★
The Avengers fight another team from another dimension that seems somewhat based on King Arthur's court. The overarching plot doesn't get advanced a whole lot. In the last issue, Jarvis comes to the Impossible City to work for the Avengers again. This run has been OK so far, but not to the level of Mackay's other work for Marvel yet.
Star Trek: Day of Blood ★★★
A solid crossover of IDW's ongoing Star Trek All-Stars comics. A faction of the Klingons are trying to take over the empire and killing everyone with everyone else stuck on Qo'noS. Not as much happens as I would have expected. It's mainly a lot of running around. Still it was fine. That Lower Decks issue was unnecessary but pretty funny.
Star-Crossed ★★
This starts off well enough, with a first contact scenario. But then one of the scientists decides to get his willy wet with an alien instead of following any kind of logical protocol with mankind's first alien encounter. He just goes all Captain Kirk and does whatever he wants, while there's all these really heavy handed references to racism, including the main character's backstory. It just turns kind of comically bad. Like a toned down, weirdo porn story you'd find on the internet somewhere.
Carnage Reigns ★★★
I'll just start by saying that I hate Carnage. He may be the least interesting villain at Marvel. So he's crazy and kills people nonstop. That's not at all interesting. Still, with Miles and the Red Goblin involved, it's not half bad. Carnage has taken over a building and that's just the start. He's gained some new powers and is living in an Iron Man suit, no longer having the symbiote. You probably need to read the previous 12 issues of Carnage's book to get all of the why. It didn't really affect the story much though. All you need to know is that Carnage is a nutjob. Miles Morales and this Cape Killer crew are trying to stop him.
Miles Morales: Spider-Man, Vol. 2: Bad Blood ★★
Eh, not great. The story is OK. The art is subpar. It starts off with a two-parter with Hobgoblin that's really bland. Meanwhile, Miles is struggling with some anxiety after everything that's happened to him lately. This Hightail character keeps popping up and making a nuisance of herself. She's kind of annoying. Then we get to two terrible issues with Blade and Bloodline. Miles gets this stupid new costume for hunting vampires that looks ridiculous. You'd think Marvel is making toys from it or something with how blatant it is.
Tolkien: Lighting Up The Darkness ★★
Unfortunately, this wasn't very good. It's about J.R.R. Tolkein's life. Well it's mostly about his teenage years at school and his time in World War I. It's overfilled with passages of reciting poetry instead of actual information about Tolkein's life. And nothing about his time after the war is in there
Cherry Blackbird ★★★
A solid story about a rock star who sold her soul to a demon. She has one year left on her deal when the demon shows up offering to let her out of her deal if she sends seven demons back to Hell before she turns 27 (It's always 27 in the rock world.). This thing is definitely for adults only. It's extremely graphic with things like (view spoiler)
Mucho Mojo: A Hap and Leonard Graphic Novel ★★★
Joe Lansdale is a good writer so I was excited to see he'd adapted some of his Hap and Leonard novels into comics. In this one, Hap inherits his uncle's house and the two stumble into the hunting grounds of a serial killer.
Batman, Vol. 2: The Bat-Man of Gotham ★★★★
Batman has been sent to another universe by Failsafe. A universe with no Batman or Bruce Wayne. It's the darkest timeline as everyone's amped up on Venom and residents are being sent to Arkham for being "insane". And we get something of an answer to "Is there only a Joker because there's a Batman?" I really like that Zdarsky has a long term plan and these arcs seem to be building one atop another. Good stuff.
Four Eyes: A Graphic Novel ★★★
A true story about the author having to get glasses when he gets to sixth grade. His mom and step dad are pretty poor and his rich dad is a jerk. Of course, like every kid his age, he can be pretty terrible as well. It takes place in the 90s so kids today may find it a little dated, especially with how much nerdy stuff like comics and video games are accepted nowadays. We had to keep that stuff on the down low growing up.
Namesake ★★
The premise of this book is pretty good, it's the execution and trying to pack in 6 years of worldbuilding into a 4 issue story that's lacking. It's set on a world where a fantasy world crosses with ours for a week ever 7 years. This guy has two fathers, neither of which he grew up with. He receives a magic orb filling in what happened with his fathers when he was a baby. Then it becomes an action revenge story as he has to release their ashes on this fantasy world. This thing is packed with so much fake slang that it's distracting. I was constantly trying to figure out what was being said instead of following the story. I almost needed a translator. It would not surprise me at all to find out this was originally a much longer story that Boom then told Orlando, "Well you've got 4 issues." and that's where he biffed it.
The Nobody ★★★
Lemire's version of The Invisible Man if it was set in rural Canada. It's OK. It's basically Griffin sitting in a seedy motel room for 3 issues.
Ed wrote: "I think today is a good day to read about Eclipso.Hoopla has this one: Justice League of America, Vol. 10: The Rise of Eclipso."
I'm planning to go back and reread some of the event DC did back in the annuals in 1992. Eclipso, the Darkness Within. I'm going to assume they are on DC Infinite. There was an Eclipso series after the success of this too.
In response to Chad above. At the time I read the first six Dawn of X trades (basically the first half-season of the era) and it was clear even then that not everything was up to standards: see Fallen Angels, Vol. 1.
So I stopped reading the anthology trades and promised myself to stick to quality: my surefire names would be Hickman and Ewing. Then stuffed happened, and I couldn't keep up with the series.
Meanwhile I've read several complete runs, and decided it's the approach that works best (for me) (at the moment). So now's the best time to retrieve the Krakoan era.
I have a sentimental attachment to the mutants, because the X-Men were the first series I read as a pre-teen. I was hurt that they were undersold for a long time in recent history, and what Hickman has done will probably remain the best thing that happened to the X-series for a while.
I'm right there with you A.G.E. I've been reading the X-Men since the 80's. I finally stopped buying them when Marvel was actively trying to kill off the brand and replace them with the Inhumans because Fox had the movie rights. Most of that era was terrible. I started picking them up all again when the Krakoa age started. The initial Krakoa era comics are fantastic. Well, besides Fallen Angels and Excalibur which were terrible. Around the time of X of Swords, things take a turn. Hickman really scaled back his involvement. I think he's said it had something to do with COVID. Kieron Gillen stepped into his place and his stuff has been good. Some other writers stepped in too, Si Spurrier (who I hate, but others enjoy), Steve Orlando who is terrible. That Marauders comic he did is only good for lining the bottom of a bird cage. Leah Williams is OK. There's probably some others I'm forgetting. Here in the states we're in the last stage of the Krakoan era and all of the comics are ending in May. Then new X-Men books over the summer from Gail Simone, Jed Mackay and Eve Ewing. With the three teams scattered in different places. I'm looking forward to going back to actual team based books. Most of the Krakoan era stopped with characterization and character growth. It was more event driven with little moments with a character before they'd just disappear. Then Benjamin Percy turned Wolverine and X-Force into his personal character assassination of Beast making him worse even than Dark Beast. At this point, I can't wait for it to all be over.
X of Swords was pretty early in Krakoan era, that doesn't look promising. Currently starting A Man's Skin for a book club of university students.
I restarted my X reading when Destiny of X was current, so last night I *finally* started HOX/POX...Also read 4 kids walk into a bank yesterday, which I quite enjoyed.
Shane wrote: "I restarted my X reading when Destiny of X was current, so last night I *finally* started HOX/POX...Also read 4 kids walk into a bank yesterday, which I quite enjoyed."
Those are some terrific comics Shane. Enjoy!
Today's trip to my LCS.House of Slaughter #22
Incredible Hulk #11
Invincible Iron Man #17
Resurrection of Magneto #4
Transformers #7
Wolverine #47
Ultimate X-Men #2
Silicon Bandits #1
Batman / Dylan Dog #2
Thundercats #3
Outsiders #6
Mod
Here's what folks read on this week's episode:
- Mike: Mountain by Emily Reisbeck
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/...
- Kait: Crater City by Michael J. Ruis-Unger and Marko Djeska
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/...
- Zach: Frankenstein: The Unconquered by Dalton Shannon and Wells Thompson and Mary Landro
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/...
Check out the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts to hear our thoughts on what we read! Or listen now at https://ircbpodcast.simplecast.com/ep...
---
The Thrilling Adventures of Lovelace and Babbage★★★★
This has been quite an undertaking to read. It's been on my to-read list basically since it came out. It's about Ada Lovelace and Charles Babbage, who together drafted plans what could be recognized as an early computer in the mid-1800s. I believe it began as one-panel comics online and bloomed into this collected graphic novel with footnotes explaining and adding context to the jokes. I'm probably not going to remember any of the historical details, but it's been a really interesting and occasionally funny read.
Snotgirl, Vol. 2: California Screaming★★★
The protagonist of this book is a train wreck and there's probably only one character I actually like in this series but I find this book pretty unpredictable, which makes me want to finish the short series.
Rusalka★★★★★
I really enjoyed the art in this. The art is ethereal and playful as the spirits in the story. All the spirits in the story are nude but not in a sexualized way. This story started really slow for me. A lot of time was spent developing the world with only hints at Rusulka's character arc and backstory. Once her story picked up I finished the book very quickly. For being so magical, this story has some very real themes.
Slightly Exaggerated★★★★
I like this writer, Curtis Clow, and the artists he finds to work with, but this wasn't my favorite book of his. The protagonist is an Indiana Jones-esque "archeologist" but the story never directly addresses the issue of removing artifacts from their original locations (it IS loosely touched on at the end). I loved the art of the flying sea animals and the variety of animal people. The story is a quick read.
Last week's adventures in comics.Skybound Presents: Afterschool, Volume 1 ★★
Four horror stories inspired from those afterschool specials of the Eighties. It's difficult to write a one issue horror story. That trend continues here.
The Traveler's Guide to Flogoria ★★★★
It's about a guy filled with anxiety who falls through a portal into another world. One that's a lot like ours but also different. He travels through Flogoria looking for a way back home while being pursued by a corporation who wants to use him to make new products to sell. It's a weird book with nice watercolor art.
Radium Girls ★★★★
A true story about the Radium Girls. They worked in a watch factory in New Jersey painting radium on the dials of watches so they'd glow in the dark. The women were encouraged to lick the brush tips to get a finer point, each time ingesting radium. Even after the girls started getting sick, the company's lawyers drew out the trial trying to wait out the women so that most of them would die before the case was settled. This case was part of the impetus used for getting better workplace protections for workers in place and things like OSHA. Apparently this happened in multiple locations because Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine wrote a song about this same thing happening in his hometown in Illinois.
Kolchak The Night Stalker: Terror Within ★★★
I wasn't even aware these Kolchak comics existed until I came across them at the library. For those of you who aren't aware, Kolchak: The Night Stalker was an old short-lived TV show in the 70s that inspired The X-Files. This features 3 stories from some comic book veterans. It's set in current times instead of the 70s but still maintains the same vibe.
Road Trip to Hell Vol. 1 ★★★
A kid finds out he's the new king of Hell and that his father is Satan. However, every demon and renowned killer from history has escaped from Hell and trying to stop him from taking his throne. It's a fun book actually with exaggerated art reminiscent of Humberto Ramos.
The Incredible Hulk, Vol. 2: War Devils ★★★★
The Hulk and his young friend Charley continue to hobo across the country with the mother of monsters sending creatures after them along the way. This contains 2 3 part stories. The first is in the Southwest where the Hulk comes across a Ghost Rider from World War II along with a monster. Then Danny Earls fills in as artist for a story taking place in New Orleans. Earls art isn't very good. I am digging the horrific transformations Banner goes through when he changes into the Hulk. They are pretty metal.
Stabbity Bunny Vol. 2 ★★★★
The creature behind things is finally revealed as part one of the story ends. There's some good stuff here.
Trakovi: The Slav With No Remorse ★
This couldn't decide what it wanted to be. It's a revenge fantasy wrapped around some Slovenian gangsters in Canada dressed up as superheroes. The art made it extremely difficult to follow at times. It had some Bill Sienkiewicz influences mixed with Tradd Moore and the Pander brothers. At times I quite liked it. Others I couldn't tell at all WTF was happening. There's also the abundant use of a certain curse word that begins with "C" that Americans find very offensive and Brits use all the time, so be aware.
Batman: Wayne Family Adventures, Vol. 2 ★★
Some slight and quick stories revolving around Batman's sidekicks and there's a LOT of them. None of these are very good and this seems to be directed towards a pretty young audience. I'd like to see some actual stories with villains in these. No one's reading Batman for the feel good stories.
Gutt Ghost ★★★
Gutt Ghost is a traditional ghost with a sheet over his head but also his entrails hanging out that he'll sometimes wrap around people who piss him off. The storytelling meanders a lot. It's got a stoner comics vibe to it without any drug use, just that same mundane nothingness vibe to it. This collects all of the one shots including the crossover with Stabbity Bunny which is surprisingly the worst comic included.
Outsiders Vol. 1 ★★★★★
This is easily my favorite thing that Lanzing and Kelly have done. It's not really an Outsiders comic though. It's really Planetary set in the DC universe. This time the group consists of Batwing, Batwoman, Lucius Fox, and the Drummer except the Drummer is now female. They are still doing their "Archeologists of the Impossible" thing. Robert Carey's art is really good. That 6th issue is exceptional. Love that they go to "The Place Between the Pages" where everyone has just lived through a Crisis event or cancellation. Really looking forward to the back half of this series as it looks like we'll get some explanation how this all fits together with the Wildstorm characters.
Resurrection of Magneto ★★★
Three kind of boring issues where Ororo goes to the afterlife to get Magneto back. There's a ton of exposition and the issues are kind of boring. Then one good issue where he's back that leads into Iron Man.
Dark Spaces: Good Deeds ★★★
A completely unrelated story as this Dark Spaces title Scott Snyder created is just kind of a catch all for spooky stories. This one is about a woman and her daughter who move to St. Augustine to open a diner. A disgraced journalist is also headed there for a puff piece to get her career back on track. There some weird things happen including some murders and the plot begins to thicken.
All My Bicycles ★★
A nonlinear biography where a woman talks about little snippets of her life revolving around the tons of bicycles she has owned. It's OK. My biggest takeaway is that she's lived in a lot of places in the Western Hemisphere.
Cyberpunk 2077: XOXO ★
This stunk. I could barely tell what was going on. So many pages of all red art really obscured things. Then interspersing things with that pointless cartoon nonsense. Just completely awful and not worth the paper it's printed on.
Indiginerds ★★★
As with most of these anthologies, some stories are more interesting than others. I didn't think most of these revolved around nerd culture, but just culture in general. My favorite was about a person that started up a bunch of pirate radio stations in Mexico. I didn't like the part where white people tried to take them over and push any minorities out. But it was a really cool and original story, plus it was true.
Tear Us Apart ★★★
Two kids raised in a kung fu murder cult fall for one another and decide to run away. Beset by the rest of the cult, they find some help along the way. Which means they also have something to lose. I liked the use of the limited color palette and the art was solid. This is the rare celebrity co-written comic that wasn't half bad.
Youth Season Two ★★
Not much better than volume one. The story is confused and doesn't make much sense. The art is terrible. I can only tell characters apart from their haircut. Not even the coloring helps because everyone's in shadow so I can't even tell what race a character is to help me differentiate and tell who's who. Then these clowns have the audacity to have their main characters find a comic book from Curt Pires and Alex Diotto and they compare themselves to the terrific Brubaker and Phillips. Oh, the hubris!
Birdking Volume 1 ★★★★
I quite liked this. It's about a teenage apprentice, Bianca, and her father figure smith. They are the last of a line of smiths that can forge magical weapons. Because of this they are the only two left alone in this kingdom perpetually at war. Things happen and Bianca goes on the run with an ancient undead king who has been sitting on his throne in an abandoned castle, the Birdking. This sword and sorcery book is full of dark elements, the kind of which I dig. Crom's art brings to mind if Mike Mignola and Daniel Warren Johnson had a baby.
The United States of Murder Inc. Vol. 1: Truth ★★★★
I'm a huge fan of Powers so I was ecstatic when I saw the same creators were involved in this. The mob more or less operates in the open in New York, Chicago, and Vegas and there's a detente with the government. When a Senator is killed, a newly made man and a hitwoman are blamed and go on the run to determine who actually killed him.
Cheryl ★★
This starts off fine with a woman figuring out in her forties that she's gay. She's obsessed with spiritual alignment and goes on some bad dates with New Age types. Then this thing devolves into being abducted by aliens and visited by a demon. It turned into very much of a WTF is happening?
An Outbreak of Witchcraft: A Graphic Novel of the Salem Witch Trials ★★★★
A well told story, just one that's difficult to read. Over 20 people were murdered basically on the say so of tween girls with no evidence other than the testimony of those who thought they'd be called out too if they didn't comply. People were just making up nonsense stories as "spiritual evidence" and it was taken as fact. (Kind of like stories on the internet.) The prejudices and demagoguery actually remind me of people now and that's difficult to put to paper that that many people could be so stupid and myopic.
Edgeworld Season One (Comixology Originals): A Little Chaos In Your Life ★★★
A solid space western with steady art from Pat Oliff. I gotta say, I didn't expect to like something from Chuck Austen after his terrible Marvel and DC comics but this wasn't bad.
Victory Point ★★★
A quiet and short graphic novel about a woman returning to a small seaside town to visit her dad. Not much happens but I really liked the languid and crisp illustrations.
Today's trip to my LCS:Dead X-Men #4
Ultimate Black Panther #3
Cobra Commander #4
Giant-Size Hulk #1
Avengers: Twilight #5
World's Finest #26
Fall of the House of X #4
Nightwing #113 <--- 300th issue of Nightwing
Titans #10
Roxxon Presents Thor #1
Spectacular Spider-Men #2
Blow Away #1
Animal Pound #3
Mod
Check out the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts to hear our thoughts on what we read! Or listen now at https://ircbpodcast.simplecast.com/ep...
---
Our Not-So-Lonely Planet Travel Guide, Volume 1★★★★★
I re-read all four volumes in this series and I love all of them. It's about two guys who are engaged visiting multiple countries around the world, meeting new people, trying new food, and settling into their relationship. There's another volume coming out this summer.
Portugal★★★
I was hoping for something more like the series above with this book, with one country and culture being explored. It ended up being about three generations of men exploring their relationship with their country of origin (Portugal). Much of the book actually takes place in France. This was slow in some parts but ends nicely.
Witch of Thistle Castle Vol. 1★★★★
I read three volumes of this. It reminds me a whole lot of The Ancient Magus' Bride, Vol. 1. A teen boy has a whole lot of power, doesn't know how to use it, has other people after him, and gets taken in by a sorcerer who plans to train him. Like Ancient Magus Bride, this quickly became a magic school story. Parts of this get a little creepy with the people who are interested in the teen's pwoer.
Last week's adventures in comics.Hockey Girl Loves Drama Boy ★★★
Faith Erin Hicks' latest graphic novel. A high school rom-com about a girl who is really good at hockey and extremely bad at everything else. She is relentlessly bullied by the team captain and it boils over to an uncontrollable rage one day and gives the girl a beating. (And yet, the girl still continues to berate and needle her throughout the book.) Wanting to control her rage, she sees a bisexual drama kid turn the tables on the school bully verbally without losing control and asks him to teach her how to do that. (It's to no one's surprise that these two bullies are the school's power couple and everything people hate about their high school years.) So begins a friendship and more. It was refreshing that this didn't fall into the miscommunication tropes that are in almost every story of this type.
Edge of Spider-Verse: Bleeding Edge ★★★
This is a weird mixture of Spider-Verse characters and Spider-Man spinoff characters. So you've got stupid stories like Spider-Rex (a T-Rex Spider-Man) mixed in the same anthology as Spider-Boy and Arana from the 616 universe. I'd say we don't really need any more of these but there's another one coming down the pipe for 2024.
The Case of the Bleeding Wall ★★★★
This was cool. It's about a woman who is a famous supernatural (or supernormal as she calls it) investigator. She and her new assistant go to Rome to help an old boyfriend. He and his fiancé bought a house that has a painting on a wall that is bleeding. Things spiral from there.
Edgeworld Vol. 2 ★★★
Not as focused as the first volume. Still you say space western and I'm in. I hate that it ends on a cliffhanger.
The Worst Ronin ★★
This was alright. It's about a female ronin in a feudal Japan that also has TVs and cell phones but no cars and still treats women like they are lesser. The art is pretty poor and the story kind of basic, especially considering it's over 300 pages long.
Codex Black (Book Two): Bird of Ill Omen ★★★
Basically a manga set in Mesoamerica by Latin creators. It can be way too wordy at times but it's not half bad. The main characters are a girl with super strength and a boy with wings who are trying to stop a secret cabal from starting a war throughout the area.
Carnage: The Court of Crimson ★★★★
This was a real surprise. It was probably the first time I've liked a Carnage story. Cletus Kassidy and the symbiote have split. The symbiote is on its own for the first time and found a serial killer groupie to pal around with and stroke its ego. It's going around absorbing the powers of D level villains. The one thing the book is missing is that this was a real chance to mess around with the look of Carnage since Cletus isn't around and in charge. The symbiote isn't human. I'd like to see it constantly take on new looks and aspects as it learns about itself.
Carnage, Vol. 2: Carnage In Hell ★★★
Starting to lose focus a bit as we prepare for the Carnage Reigns crossover. The symbiote heads to Hel to take something from Malekith. Meanwhile Cletus is still on Earth but somehow maintaining his old powers even without the symbiote. It's all a bit confusing.
DEAD X-MEN ★★★
I'm getting real tired of the X-Men being a puzzle that you have to figure out how to read (and I've been reading all the books week to week). It starts off real strong with a team of X-Men trying to go back in Moira's first timeline to stop her. (If you have no idea what I'm talking about, just skip the whole Krakoan era of X-Men instead of trying to understand it. By the end you'll need a map that looks like an FBI team trying to put together the pieces of a vast conspiracy on a cork board with multiple spools of yarn connecting a nest of dots all over the thing.) With a crazy Moira following the team through the various timelines screwing with every one of her past timelines. Then you begin to realize that this is all tied in to what's happening in both Rise and Fall of the Powers of X. That's when I began to get really mad, because none of these comics can stand on their own.
Critical Role: The Mighty Nein Origins: Caduceus Clay ★★★★★
This was short but terrific. I'm not all that familiar with Critical Role but that didn't really matter. A good fantasy story is a good fantasy story. This one is also filled with gorgeous art (which hasn't always been the case with these Critical Role origin stories). My only complaint about this is that I wanted more.
Youth Volume 3 ★
While the story is more focused this go around, it's also just dumb with logical errors and even spelling errors in the lettering. The kids are now living on Mars and can somehow breathe the unbreathable atmosphere there and differences in how sound or gravity work there are ignored. People on Earth are controlling this kid on Mars even though even sending just text to Mars has a latency of 6 to 40 minutes. (This took me less than 30 seconds to find out on the internet so there's really no excuse for Pires.) Science is just completely ignored, as is grammar. Apparently no one at Amazon or Dark Horse knows the difference between here or hear, to or too or even from and form.
Anyone who is struggling to make it in comics and needs some encouragement should just be handed a Curt Pires comic. Because if this person can make it, anyone can. Of course, you'll probably find out he's a nepo baby.
The Oloris: Heroes Will Unite ★★★★
A lot of the series Youneek has been building towards culminate in this series. It's basically the Justice League of this universe as all of the heroes come together to try and stop this despot from taking over most of the countries in Africa.
Hellsing, Vol. 1 ★★★
This was OK. It felt very 90's. Big on action and short on story. It's about an organization in the UK that hunts down and kills vampires with the main vampire hunter also being a vampire. There's some odd rules. If you're not a virgin and get bit by a vampire you become a ghoul instead (which in this is really just a zombie. It has no will of its own.)
Hellsing, Vol. 2 ★★★★
I thought this was better than the first volume. The characters can be very exaggerated but it works for the villains. After a major encroachment to the Hellsing Organization's home base, they finally get an inkling of who is behind all this. So we've got vampires vs. Catholic priests from the Vatican vs. Nazis. Yeah, I can work with that.
Hellsing, Vol. 3 ★★
Goofier than the first 2 volumes. Then it devolves into just nonstop extreme violence against the Brazilian police. The page after page of violent deaths was all a bit numbing.
Hellsing, Vol. 4 ★★
This volume is all setup for the future as the Nazis make themselves known to the Hellsing organization. The characters are WAY over the top and stereotypical.
Loud: Stories to Make Your Voice Heard ★★★★
Some good short stories revolving around violence towards women, slut shaming, self harm, things of that nature.
Ms. Marvel: The New Mutant ★★★
Written by Ms. Marvel herself from the MCU and one of the writers on the show. It's actually not bad. Kamala heads to the ESU campus for a summer program. She's still dealing with finding out she's a mutant while Orchis is on the prowl for mutants, having established a secret base under the campus.
Watership Down: The Graphic Novel ★★★★★
Now this is how you adapt a classic story into a graphic novel. Who would have ever thought the story of some rabbits in the English countryside could be so compelling? And so fraught with danger. This adaptation does a wonderful job of translating the story to the visual medium. The illustrations are exquisite. So is the story. This is top notch stuff, my friends. There's a very good chance this ends up as a Christmas gift for friends and family this year.
Poison Ivy, Vol. 2: Unethical Consumption ★★★
For what's supposed to be a horror story with Poison Ivy, it feel toothless and banal. Too many one note stories about taking down corporations that say they are doing things ethically when they are not. Blah blah blah.
Ant-Man: Ant-Iversary ★★★
Al Ewing writes an Ant-Man story in honor of the character's 60th anniversary. Each issue focuses on a different Ant-Man with the fourth issue culminating in the far future. It's OK. It never quite lands, though, like I expected it to given Ewing's pedigree.
Venom, Vol. 2: Deviation ★★
I'm finding the Ram V. / Dylan story way more compelling than the Al Ewing / timey-wimey bs. It's all boring as all get out. Dylan's story is way more straight forward and interesting to me. The time travel stuff is so cliche that none of it is surprising at this point. It just seems like a complete waste of time. Hitch's art is, of course, very good even with three different inkers.
Quentin by Tarantino ★★★★★
This is more of an illustrated novel than a graphic novel but I have to say that didn't lessen my enjoyment of it at all. It goes really in depth on Tarantino's early life and then each of his films. It's really interesting for any film buff in general and Tarantino fans in particular are going to be like pigs rolling around in the mud with how much they'll enjoy this. It's excellent.
Today's trip to the LCS.Avengers #13
Gods #7
Rise of the Powers of X #4
Something Is Killing the Children #36
Ultimate Spider-Man #4
Wolverine #48
X-Men Forever #2
Duke #5
Batman: Dark Age #2
Mod
Here's what folks read on this week's episode:
- Mike: Ain'T No Grave #1
- Kara: Dark Reign: Fantastic Four
- Pat: Uncanny Valley #1
Check out the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts to hear our thoughts on what we read! Or listen now at https://ircbpodcast.simplecast.com/ep...
Check out Pat at https://www.instagram.com/patloikapho...
This month I’ve already read: - Monstress, Vol. 1: Awakening & Monstress, Vol. 2: The Blood: I wasn’t sure about it after the first volume but now that it’s picking up speed I’m enjoying just a little bit more. I’m still not a fan of the main character but I love her companions.
- Shepherdess Warriors, Vol. 1: It was cute and a little bit dark. Overall fine for me but I wish there was more even pacing.
- Haru: Book 1: Spring: It was okay. Very cute art. I’m not sure if I’ll continue.
- Kodi: An adorable, light read.
- Always Never: The art in this is gorgeous. There some problematic stuff that it kind of brushes off but I enjoyed the backwards in time storytelling.
- Brindille: It felt too disjointed for me. It was like I was missing huge parts of the story.
- Blacksad: Out of the 3 stories I enjoyed the first mystery the most. It started to lose me a little bit more with each one but I’d like to read more of this series.
- Issunboshi: A Graphic Novel: There was a lot I loved with this one. The one thing I wish is we just had a bit more time with the characters to get to know them and let them develop.
- Marvel's Secret Reverse: I read this purely because I was interested in what the creator of Yu-Gi-Oh would do with the Marvel property. It was about what I expected. I found it to be a nice, fun onetime read.
To finish off this month I’ll be reading
Mouse Guard: Fall 1152
Monstress, Vol. 3: Haven
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Survival Street
Last week's adventures in comics.Jean Grey: Flames of Fear ★★★
It was nice to see Louise Simonson return to writing comics. Unfortunately, she was given a nothing burger to write. Jean Grey is in the White Hot Room performing What Ifs? on her life, with each issue being a different spot where something changed.
Realm of X ★★
Oof, this was real bad. Magik, Marrow, Mirage, Typhoid Mary and Dust get shunted off to Vanaheim along with Curse after Fall of X begins. Curse may be the most annoying mutant ever created, with powers that are little defined and allow her to do almost anything by wishing it. While in Vanaheim they fight Saturnyne. Anything even tangentially related to Otherworld in the Krakoa era has been utter crap.
I haven't even mentioned how it took 3 artists and 2 color artists to complete 4 issues. What the hell Marvel! You can't even get your creatives in line for 4 issues? Parts of this book look like a tryout book that should have never left an assistant editor's bottom desk drawer.
Hellsing Deluxe Volume 1 ★★★
This deluxe version collects the first 4 volumes of this 90s manga about the Hellsing organization fighting vampires in Great Britain. The main hunter is a badass vampire named Alucard (Yeah, it's not all that original.) However, they spend as much if not more time fighting a militant Catholic church and Nazis from South America as they do vampires. It's a lot of over the top action and craziness.
Teen Titans: Year One ★★★
Karl Kerschl's art is just terrific. He draws tweens that look like actual tweens. The story on the other hand could use a tighter focus and just one story instead of the smaller 3 stories in this.
Alpha Flight: Divided We Stand ★★★
Actually one of the better Fall of X titles. It makes sense to make Alpha Flight part of this since they got their start in the X-Men and half their members have been mutants. And at least this story has a coherent story and solid art, unlike some of the others.
Astonishing Iceman: Out Cold ★★★
This was fine. It's very one note though. Iceman shows up somewhere to save people and it's all an Orchis trap. Wash. Rinse. Repeat. each issue.
Children of the Vault ★★★★
Huh. Turns out this was easily the best of the Fall of X miniseries. Cable and Bishop team up to get down and dirty to defeat the Children of the Vault. After the Hellfire Gala, the Children woke up and planted a virus in their message to humanity. Now it's up to two men who hate one another (See the Duane Swierczynski Cable series to see them fight across millennia.) to stop them. This was excellent. It's got me excited now to see what Camp can do with the Ultimates this summer.
Strangers In Paradise Volume Two ★★★★
Another terrific volume of SIP. The way this one is broken up can be a little confusing at times. We start with Katchoo back working with the Parker Girls. Then after a change we flash back to high school. After those issues we flash forward 10 years into the future where things are drastically different before heading back to the current time and begin to see why things have changed. That's my only criticism, that it may be a little more difficult to piece together the storyline for first time readers. Otherwise it's a perfect combination of a terrific story with fantastic artwork. Terry Moore is in my short list of favorite comic creators.
United States vs. Murder, Inc. Vol. 1 ★★★
Jagger Rose gets a backstory while things ratchet up between what's left of the United States and Murder Inc. There's some great stuff in this but there's also some jedi handwaving moments where things are just glossed over, especially towards the end. It's almost like there's a couple of different stories mashed together.
Dark Horse has made a mess of naming this series. It's actually volume 2. DH rebranded it this go around as Murder Inc.
Django, Hand On Fire: The Great Django Reinhardt ★★★★
Django Reinhardt's early life told in graphic novel form. If you aren't familiar with Django, he's one of the first guitar greats. He was a child prodigy, playing professionally with adults by the time he was 10 or 11. He originally played banjo until a fire badly burned his hand leaving him without the use of a couple of his fingers. At that point he had to teach himself how to play again, this time on guitar.
Hellsing, Vol. 5 ★★★
Hellsing goes after the British carrier the Nazi vampires captured. Then things get even crazier. The way this Nazi leader talks though is just ridiculous.
Murder Inc. Volume 3: Jagger Rose ★★★
Now that the five families have finished their war with the United States, the Pope wants to see them so the heads of the New York mob head to Rome. Then things get really crazy. It's starts off pretty strong. The second half is really compressed though. There's lots of hand waving and then finishing up with a new status quo. It feels like multiple arcs condensed down into one. I'm still not a fan of the coloring on this book either. Too many reds and purples instead of actual coloring.
I'm also in the middle of doing an Invasion! buddy read, but DC never collected anything but the three main issues so it's a ton of individual reviews.
A few recent highlights…Ice Cream Man vol 1-4 - rankings: 1, 4, 2, 3
Quick reads, satisfying little stories
Star Trek #19 - this is the start of a new arc. I love the artist they brought on, her character designs are excellent, and I’m intrigued by this story line. I see a lot of potential.
Helen of Wyndhorn #2 - these books are gorgeous
Wonder Woman #8 - the last couple issues weren’t as exciting as the first few, this one brings it back to the top of my current books
I'm reading Kafka: A Graphic Novel Adaptation by Nishioka Kyoudai.While I like Kafka's novels more than his short stories, the art here is very nice, and doesn't look anything at all like any other Manga I've ever seen. For lack of a better word, it is more "surreal" and abstract.
Finished up a full read of “Widdershins.” 1,126 pages (including covers, etc, since I’m counting my PDF copies) of a cozy Victorian England with a clever magic system, witty banter, and solid character development. Kate Ashwin has been publishing this since 2011 and is gearing up to end it, so maybe another 50–150 pages still to come. Website: https://www.widdershinscomic.com/wdsh...
First book here on GR: Widdershins Volume One: Sleight of Hand
This topic has been frozen by the moderator. No new comments can be posted.
I Read Comic Books
Books mentioned in this topic
Widdershins Volume One: Sleight of Hand (other topics)Far Sector (other topics)
Kafka: A Graphic Novel Adaptation (other topics)
Spring (other topics)
Monstress, Volume 2: The Blood (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Nishioka Kyoudai (other topics)Emily Carroll (other topics)
Tell us all about what you're reading in the thread below!
As always, if you'd like to check out what the IRCB crew is reading, take a peek at the Top of My Pile posts over on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ircbpodcast