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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 21, 2022 18:15:12 GMT -5
Star Wars #25Written by Charles Soule Art by Phil Noto, Will Sliney, and Giuseppie Camuncoli Summary: Although only issue #25 of the current volume this issue marks Soule's 100th Star Wars issue and he celebrates that milestone here. Plot: I've always loved specials and anniversary issues as they tend to be great vehicles for one and done stories which are incredibly rare these days so I was pretty excited when this was announced...but now that its in my hands it was a little disapointed. The first story, "The Lesson" was actually really fantastic; starting off with a duel between Anakin and Obi-Wan in the years between Episode One and Episode Two its a rare look into how Obi-Wan and Anakin interacted as Master and Apprentice and the lesson about why Jedi use Lightsabers and not Light-Nunchucks or other exotic combinations was a great look into the workings of the Jedi Order. Building on that insight into what the Lightsaber says about the Jedi the second half of the story jumps forward to just after Episode Three with a newly minted Darth Vader dueling his new master, Emperor Palpatine. The contrast between the two scenes is pretty powerful allowing the differences between Sith and Jedi to play out in a really satisfying manner. The second two stories though? Blech! I don't care for the sequel trilogly so I might be biased...but did anyone actually want a story about a resistance fighter who never even had their name said on screen? Sure, Snap got some play in the novels and comics since then...but hardly enough to make at-least this reader care about a eulogy for him. And the other story about Klyo Ren looking for a rematch with Luke's ghost wasn't much more satisfying. It's clear that Soule can tell good stories so it baffles me that he was the same guy who told these two duds. Art: Through out it all, even the dud segments the art is top notch with each delivering a real cinematic feel. It's just too bad Noto and Sliney got given garbage stories. Grade:6/10
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 21, 2022 17:45:15 GMT -5
Han Solo and Chewbacca #4Written by Marc Guggenheim Art by David Messina Summary: When Black Krrsantan kidnaps Han it's up to Chewie to save the day and only a Wookie throw down will get them out. Plot: I've been saying it since this book started that with a title like Han Solo and Chewbacca I was hoping for more Chewie...but now that Guggenheim has taken Han off the board and given us a very Chewie forward issue I'm really regretting my wish. The thing is, you can have an issue or even a whole mini-series with just Chewie grumbling away through an adventure as Gerry Duggan and Phil Noto did just that back in 2015 and I loved it...but you have to focus on Chewie as a person and tell the story largely through the art. Instead of a character building issue though Guggenheim went with a rescue story, which is fine in and of itself but when you can't understand the primary character it feels pretty thin as there are no emotional stakes. And with the meat of the issue feeling so empty the cliffhanger ending with Han's dad apparently stealing the Falcon just doesn't land with a punch. I've already made it this far and it's only a mini so I'll stick with this till the end but normally this big a miss-step would have me questioning whether to stick with a book or not. Art: A lot of this month's giant whiff comes down to the art, when you are doing what is in a sense a silent issue as none of Chewie's dialogue is readable the art has to convey the emotions and message and Messina isn't just that good. He can convey action well enough that you can follow what's happening but he doesn't bring the kind of heart needed to sell the reader on what Chewie is feeling and with out that it just feels like filler. Grade:6/10
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 21, 2022 16:46:55 GMT -5
I haven't seen a cause of death given as of yet but I just heard that Alan Grant has passed away today after 73 years of fantastic storytelling. I think my favorites of his work will likely always be his run on Batman from the late 80's early 90's but he had a pretty prolific career spanning many genres so I'm sure he's likely touched the lives of a great many readers. I hope his friends and family take solace in knowing the immense joy he's brought to comic fans over the years.
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 21, 2022 16:37:46 GMT -5
Black Adam #2Written by Priest Art by Rafael Sandoval Summary: Infected by a strange and fatal disease by Darkseid, Black Adam names Malik his successor to the throne...and the power of Shazam! Plot: The mystery of Black Adam's mysterious ailment continues in this second issue by Priest as we both peer into the past and glimpse the future. While there isn't much forward progression the character development with Malik and the teases of Adam's own rise to power were more than satisfying enough to keep me reading. The look into Adam's past, showing how it was originally his nephew who was chosen for the Wizard's power and it was Adam who stole it from him was really compelling and made me wonder how that revelation will tie into the plague he's fighting as the book progresses. On the other side of the narrative there is Malik White, a young med-student thrust into Adam's world and it's really fun seeing him start to come to grips with first being Adam's descendant and then heir to both Adam's throne and his super powers as he's transformed into White Adam. My favorite parts however are the scenes between Malik and Shep (Black Adam’s secretary of state), there is an immediate bond between the two and Shep’s gentle guidance to Malik give the duo an Alfred/Bruce Wayne-type dynamic that is just fantastic to read. I'm not sure where things will go as the book moves forward, as there is no way Black Adam will really die but sometimes the journey is the best part of the trip so I'm locked in. Art: Rafael Sandoval has a sketchy, emotive style that really reminds me of the best of Denys Cowan which is a great fit for this book. So much of why this book works is the strong human element of the book, there isn't a lot of super hero action here so you have to care about the people on the scene and Sandoval sells that perfectly. Grade:8/10
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 21, 2022 15:52:40 GMT -5
WORLD'S FINEST #5. Mark Waid & Dan Mora. The conclusion of the first arc. This series continues to be one of the best on the stands with it's Silver Age "feel" plus the fast pace of storytelling. Superman, Batman, Supergirl and the Doom patrol defeat Nezhra but Robin (Dick Grayson) is still missing in the past. Waid does a great job keeping up a great pace that makes this story so different from the slow pace of today's usual stuff. I really like how well he captures all the different characters personalities. Plus you have beautiful art by Mora that just makes this an almost perfect book. One minor complaint: while the search for Robin is in next months #6, the rest of Nezhra's story is continued in yet another series - Batman vs Robin in Sept. This was another fun popcorn muncher of a story, I really loved the use of the phantom zone and I'm excited to see where the search for Robin goes. As for the Batman Vs. Robin "event" the epilogue teased...as much I don't like the idea of Bruce and Damian at each-others throats yet again Waid has done great here so maybe he can turn a concept I loath into a decent read.
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 19, 2022 14:55:08 GMT -5
Nightwing #94Written by Tom Taylor Art by Geraldo Borges Summary: Just when everything seems to be going Dick's way in Bludhaven, Blockbuster throws a wrench into the works. Plot: I've long sung the praises of this run by Taylor but this might just be my favorite issue yet. I think the reason I loved this issue so much was because that, while this is a superhero book, this issue shows it takes a village to fix society’s problems. While we almost always get heroes in bad neighborhoods or cities the focus usually remains on them and how they punch the problems into submission, rarely do we see how the everyday the citizens help out. But that isn't true here as Taylor did his darnedest to expand the focus to show just how many people it really takes to enact justice; from the DA, regular cops on the street to regular people just trying to live their lives everyone plays a part here which was just fantastic to see. And on top of that there is still action and adventure with Dick and even a great light hearted scene with his dog trying to eat the evidence against Blockbuster. The ending was a bit cliche with Dick's new found sister in danger but I guess that just goes to show that you can't get perfection. Art: While I always do miss Redondo on art Borges style still fits the high energy tone really well. There's a little more grit than Redondo would give us, giving the city a harder look but it's still very fun which is exactly the right feel for this book. Grade:8/10
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 19, 2022 12:49:32 GMT -5
This was rather too crude and violent for me, but it was still kind of fun. Rat Catcher (and Sebastian) was my favorite character. Bloodsport was nothing like in the comics... he was just another Deadshot. Is there really a comics character called the Detachable Kid? If they were going to go hard-R for this film anyway, they should have put some nudity in to balance out the gore. They had a perfect opportunity in the club but passed on it. Why would they need nudity?
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 19, 2022 7:04:58 GMT -5
How generous you all are as a society and a culture is one of my favourite things about America and Americans. Give us your tired, your poor, Your iceless masses yearning to drink cold Yup, little known fact: the Statue of Liberty's torch was originally an ice cold drink.
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 19, 2022 7:01:33 GMT -5
OFF THE RACKS!Real Readers+Fresh Comics=Honest Reviews!
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 17, 2022 19:09:18 GMT -5
I see all your archaic measurements and raise you an assload.
And yes, it was actually a real unit of measurement.
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 17, 2022 8:40:00 GMT -5
I don't have an opinion on the price, but man some of that guy's comments are just crazy. "To see the industry go in the direction that it’s gone kind of lights a fire under you." Comics, especially superhero comics, have always been incredibly liberal and socially conscious. If you believe for instance that Black Panther was given that name by chance just because it sounded cool with zero thought to the connection to the social movement in the 60's then I have a bridge in New York that I'd love to sell you. The Marvel character Black Panther was introduced in July 1966. The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense (BPP) was founded in October 1966 in Oakland, California by Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale. Do I get my choice for a bridge? I had always heard that the name was inspired by the 761st Tank Battalion the "Black Panthers" from WWII, could be apocryphal though. Either way, social justice was undeniably baked into that character: And a black man taking down the kkk certainly doesn't seem any less like "beating the reader over the head" than Jane becoming Thor or Tim Drake coming out as bi...or whatever else is bothering right wing comic readers and creators these days.
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 17, 2022 7:50:28 GMT -5
I don't have an opinion on the price, but man some of that guy's comments are just crazy. "To see the industry go in the direction that it’s gone kind of lights a fire under you."
Comics, especially superhero comics, have always been incredibly liberal and socially conscious. If you believe for instance that Black Panther was given that name by chance just because it sounded cool with zero thought to the connection to the social movement in the 60's then I have a bridge in New York that I'd love to sell you.
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 13, 2022 19:29:23 GMT -5
We have a general rule here, and I'm sure it applies in other places as well--
If you are hiking the forest or mountains in a group, make sure that you're not the 3rd person in line. They're the ones that are often bitten by copperheads (copperheads don't have rattles, so you don't have much in the way of early warning).
The folklore logic is like this-- first person in line walks by and unknowingly arouses or alerts the snake in the nearby underbrush, second person walking by makes him feel threatened, by this time, the snake is pretty irritated that its slumber was disturbed, and takes it out on the next person in line.
While there is a touch of truth in this, it's obviously not a hard and fast axiom. I'm usually running point when hiking with others, and I've spotted many a copperhead simply sunning themselves right in the middle of the trail path.
I came upon a pretty sizable rattle snake hiking Blue Hill once doing just that, it had to be close to six feet long. You can bet I turned right back around and aborted that hike.
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 13, 2022 13:41:00 GMT -5
The Mandalorian #1Written by Rodney Barnes Art by Georges Jeanty Summary:The Mandalorian travels the galaxy from bounty to bounty, with an unshakable code of honor, until he takes one fateful job... Plot: As you might have guessed from the plot synopsis above this series is an eight issue adaptation of the Disney + show. With a run time of just eight issues it seems evident now that each issue will adapt an episode of the show, which is slightly troubling. When the series was announced my first complaint was that I would much rather "in between" adventures of Mando and baby Yoda than adaptations but hey I don't call the shots so my druthers don't matter so I consigned myself to adaptations. When I saw that there were eight issues I immediately had a new worry however as I thought that a single issue wouldn’t nearly be long enough to adequately tell these stories with out severely cutting them down or changing the intended pace, and sadly that proved the case with this issue anyway. While Barnes nailed the stoic nature of the Mandalorian, the faster pace of the issue really killed the sense of gravitas that many of the scenes from the episode and there was next to no character work for Greef Karga, Kuiil or even the enigmatic imperial client. Maybe the lack of character work wouldn't seem like a big loss if this was your first introduction to the Mandalorian, but for a fan of the show the difference really killed my interest in the book. Art: I think this is another aspect where reading this as a big fan of the show really colors my impression of the art. For someone who had never seen the show I'm sure Jeanty's pencils are more than serviceable...but for someone like me who loved the visuals of the show he just fell so far short. I think the biggest short coming however was perhaps largely out of his hands: the likenesses of the actors involved. So much of what made the characters of Greef and the Imperial Client so memorable was down to the visuals provided by their actors( Carl Wheathers and Werner Herzog respectively) and with out that the characters here feel flat. Heck even lesser characters like the Mythrol bounty and the ferryman from the opening scene largely work thanks to their performers(Horatio Sanz and Brian Posehn) so not having that visual fidelity hurt the book in my eyes.
Grade: 4/10 for fans of the show...maybe 6/10 if this was your first introduction to the show.
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 12, 2022 19:04:28 GMT -5
OFF THE RACKS!Real Readers, Real Reviews!
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