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Post by thwhtguardian on Feb 27, 2019 9:25:58 GMT -5
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Post by thwhtguardian on Feb 27, 2019 12:19:43 GMT -5
Savage Sword of Conan #2Written by Gerry Duggan Art by Ron Garney Summary: After surviving a battle at sea Conan and Suty trek through Stygia in a search for treasure.
Plot: Duggan's new tale of Conan is certainly living up to the book's title "Savage" with its towers of rotting corpses, brutal violence and over the top action. While the tale of hunting down treasure in a foreign land is certainly compelling the over the top brutality is at times slightly distracting; his companion Suty gets a crossbow arrow through his hand at one point and in the next scenes it's as if nothing happened...and earlier Conan used the desiccated severed foot of a rotting corpse as a weapon which both took me out of the story.
Art: While the plot is a bit dicey at times Garney's art is absolutely amazing. The scratchy style he employees creates a very raw feeling to the whole story and gives it a fantastically dark, mythical feel that I love.
Grade:6/10 |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Feb 27, 2019 16:13:07 GMT -5
Shazam! #3Written by Geoff Johns Art by Dale Eaglesham Summary: Billy and the Marvel Family find that all in the Funlands is not as they believed.
Plot: What started out as a fun, energetic super hero romp has quickly derailed into drivel. An exploration into magical worlds easily could have been an exciting trip...if Johns had taken the time to build up the family first. It's been three issues and I have no idea who these other kids are and so I can't really get myself worked up about what the mysterious lands of magic might hold in store for them. This story should have been held for the second arc while building up the family and with out it the whole thing just falls flat.
Art: I really wish Cho, who did the cover I got, did the art duties inside too. In that single image on the cover he brought so much more emotional depth to Shazam than Eaglesham did in the whole issue which is a shame. It's not that the interior art is bad, it's perfectly serviceable to the story, it's just that it isn't anything special either and this is a book that really needs some kind of spark to it.
Grade:4/10
Dropped. |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Feb 27, 2019 16:56:25 GMT -5
Marvel Comics Presents #2Written by Charles Soule(Wolverine), Mark Waid(FF) and David Lapham(gorillaman) Art by Paulo Siqueira(Wolverine), Djibril Phan(FF) and David Lapham(gorillaman) Summary: The action packed anthology continues with all new tales featuring Wolverine, Mister Fantastic and Gorilla Man.
Plot: This new anthology series may just be my favorite book coming out right now, it's mix of characters, styles and top tear creators is just truly fantastic. The Wolverine story is the only thread continuing on from the last issue and I'm still loving the narrative time traveling through Logan's life that Soule is using jumping from WWII France to 1950's China here with the flood deaths drawing the demon back once again. In the second feature we get a pre-Fantastic Four adventure with Ben Grimm and Reed thwarting supposed Russian saboteurs...who actually work for Doom. Continuity minded readers might not like the space race connection but for me it was a perfect fit, and I loved the 50's thriller feel. And to end it off tying the Gorillaman into the mythos of the Black Panther was really great.
Art: While both Siqueira and Lapham turned in some awesome work in their sections it was Phan whose work really blew me away. The contrasts between the deep, inky shadows and the bright primary colors gave the story of Reed versus the Red Menace a truly authentic fifties b-movie feel that was just perfect.
Grade:10/10 |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Feb 27, 2019 19:57:46 GMT -5
Hellboy and the BPRD #24Written by Mike Mignola and Chris Roberson Art by Michael Avon Oeming Summary: Stegner and Bruttenholm's mission comes to a deadly conclusion and a search party is sent out to find Hellboy in Mexico.
Plot: The human agents in Mignola's world have always been expendable in the past but since BPRD 19-- stories have been coming out one agent, Stegner, has been immune but here in 1956 he meets his end and unlike the other nearly nameless agents this one really hit home. It wasn't a brutal end, it wasn't wildly supernatural...it was a gunshot to the chest. That quickness made it really feel real, and Trevor's reaction when he got back to base was just devastating. This series has been a little uneven, but man this issue really knocked it out of the park.
Art: Like Mignola and Roberson were on the plot Oeming was really on his game with his art. I knew the imprisonment of Varvara was coming and I knew the specifics from BPRD Russia but Oeming really captured her impotent rage as she's trapped in the glass. It was that of both a little girl but also the demon inside and that juxtaposition is just perfect.
Grade:10/10
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Post by Deleted on Feb 27, 2019 23:45:40 GMT -5
Heroes in Crisis #6: why did I ever add this to my pull list. This issue focuses on Gnarkk, Wally West, And Harley Quinn. Has King ever read a Titans comic? Last time I saw Gnarkk he was totally articulate and thoughtful. The Gnarkk here is a combination caveman/philosopher and it just doesn’t work. Wally misses his family. Poison Ivy receives a visit from Harley Quinn the night the murders at sanctuary occur. The plot is way too difficult to follow and for 6 issues in, more should be happening. The art is nice, especially the nod to the cover of New Teen Titans #1. However nice art can’t save this book which appears to be nothing more than a vanity project for the writer. 1/10
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Feb 28, 2019 14:08:47 GMT -5
Marvel Comics Presents #2Written by Charles Soule(Wolverine), Mark Waid(FF) and David Lapham(gorillaman) Art by Paulo Siqueira(Wolverine), Djibril Phan(FF) and David Lapham(gorillaman) Summary: The action packed anthology continues with all new tales featuring Wolverine, Mister Fantastic and Gorilla Man.
Plot: This new anthology series may just be my favorite book coming out right now, it's mix of characters, styles and top tear creators is just truly fantastic. The Wolverine story is the only thread continuing on from the last issue and I'm still loving the narrative time traveling through Logan's life that Soule is using jumping from WWII France to 1950's China here with the flood deaths drawing the demon back once again. In the second feature we get a pre-Fantastic Four adventure with Ben Grimm and Reed thwarting supposed Russian saboteurs...who actually work for Doom. Continuity minded readers might not like the space race connection but for me it was a perfect fit, and I loved the 50's thriller feel. And to end it off tying the Gorillaman into the mythos of the Black Panther was really great.
Art: While both Siqueira and Lapham turned in some awesome work in their sections it was Phan whose work really blew me away. The contrasts between the deep, inky shadows and the bright primary colors gave the story of Reed versus the Red Menace a truly authentic fifties b-movie feel that was just perfect.
Grade:10/10 This was a good fun issue. I didn't like it as much as you did, but I did like it quite a bit. What I really like is the fact that we're getting stories across time periods and across the gamut of the MU. Essentially what you get in the Reed Richards/Ben Grimm story is an alt-history or alternate universe story. And yay for that! Also great to see characters like Gorilla-Man get a spotlight. The next issue doesn't set my heart afire. At this point in life I'm far less interested in the likes of Wolverine, Spider-man and Captain America than I am in Gorilla Man or a non-powered Reed Richards. But I hope this is a long-lasting experiment that keeps the quality up. I understand the economic reality of having some big guns in the book because superhero funnybook readers are a superstitious and cowardly lot that aren't given to reading anything but "A-list" heroes. |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Feb 28, 2019 14:48:35 GMT -5
Marvel Comics Presents #2Written by Charles Soule(Wolverine), Mark Waid(FF) and David Lapham(gorillaman) Art by Paulo Siqueira(Wolverine), Djibril Phan(FF) and David Lapham(gorillaman) Summary: The action packed anthology continues with all new tales featuring Wolverine, Mister Fantastic and Gorilla Man.
Plot: This new anthology series may just be my favorite book coming out right now, it's mix of characters, styles and top tear creators is just truly fantastic. The Wolverine story is the only thread continuing on from the last issue and I'm still loving the narrative time traveling through Logan's life that Soule is using jumping from WWII France to 1950's China here with the flood deaths drawing the demon back once again. In the second feature we get a pre-Fantastic Four adventure with Ben Grimm and Reed thwarting supposed Russian saboteurs...who actually work for Doom. Continuity minded readers might not like the space race connection but for me it was a perfect fit, and I loved the 50's thriller feel. And to end it off tying the Gorillaman into the mythos of the Black Panther was really great.
Art: While both Siqueira and Lapham turned in some awesome work in their sections it was Phan whose work really blew me away. The contrasts between the deep, inky shadows and the bright primary colors gave the story of Reed versus the Red Menace a truly authentic fifties b-movie feel that was just perfect.
Grade:10/10 This was a good fun issue. I didn't like it as much as you did, but I did like it quite a bit. What I really like is the fact that we're getting stories across time periods and across the gamut of the MU. Essentially what you get in the Reed Richards/Ben Grimm story is an alt-history or alternate universe story. And yay for that! Also great to see characters like Gorilla-Man get a spotlight. The next issue doesn't set my heart afire. At this point in life I'm far less interested in the likes of Wolverine, Spider-man and Captain America than I am in Gorilla Man or a non-powered Reed Richards. But I hope this is a long-lasting experiment that keeps the quality up. I understand the economic reality of having some big guns in the book because superhero funnybook readers are a superstitious and cowardly lot that aren't given to reading anything but "A-list" heroes. I'd like a greater focus on smaller named heroes like Gorillaman myself but I've really been enjoying the Wolverine story so I'm glad it's continuing. |
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Post by The Captain on Feb 28, 2019 18:15:30 GMT -5
Agree with you both, thwhtguardian and Slam_Bradley. Have maybe one A-Lister in the book as an anchor, and then have the other stories focus on newer characters or those who can't carry a solo book, for long or at all. I'd love to see stories for Blade, Daimon Hellstrom, Pete Wisdom, and Union Jack, for instance, than yet another Spidey or even Cap tale. |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Feb 28, 2019 18:34:36 GMT -5
Agree with you both, thwhtguardian and Slam_Bradley . Have maybe one A-Lister in the book as an anchor, and then have the other stories focus on newer characters or those who can't carry a solo book, for long or at all. I'd love to see stories for Blade, Daimon Hellstrom, Pete Wisdom, and Union Jack, for instance, than yet another Spidey or even Cap tale. Those are fantastic ideas, I'd love a really great one and done starring Hellstrom. Hopefully this book is getting a lot of love so it can run long enough to get those kinds of characters some page time. |
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Post by Deleted on Feb 28, 2019 23:42:41 GMT -5
Buffy the Vampire Slayer #2: Boom Studios reboot continues to impress. Buffy has a nightmare (which can’t mean anything good). After an awkward good morning with her mom and her mom’s new live in boyfriend (!) Buffy heads off to school where we meet a new version of Cordelia. Not quite on board with this kinder, gentler Queen C, but maybe it’s a facade for the catty Cordelia? Worth staying on board for. Spike, Drusilla, Giles, And Anya are all present too. Also a giant bat creature. An interesting aspect of this reboot is Willow has already accepted her sexuality and has a girlfriend named Rose. Buffy meets a new potential boyfriend, Robin. Xander seems to be going by the wayside by book’s end when he’s ignored by Buffy and Willow. Supernatural fun, awkward home situations, snappy dialogue, brilliant art, and new twists and turns make this a book for old and new Buffy fans to enjoy.
8/10
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Post by hondobrode on Mar 1, 2019 0:32:50 GMT -5
The Terrifics # 13 More Doctor Dread and the Dreadfuls. Mr T finds a companion ? Multiple earths, another guest star, or is that recurring character (that I mucho like and fits perfectly here), Plas and Offspring, and more. All in all another solid issue. Long-time Joe Bennett fan but I noticed the inking in particular in this issue and liked it and went back to see Mr. Dexter Vines credits, a welcome addition.
Fantastic Four # 7
Doom, Victorius (good idea there Dan), Galactus and Doom's plan to promote Latveria and punish the 4. Well done; probably the best issue yet and I much prefer Aaron Kuder's art here. It has a rich lushness and meshes well with the title in an Art Adams way. Good stuff.
Freedom Fighters # 3
First of all, I loves me some Freedom Fighters. Great great concept. Been solid so far. Eddy Barrows is delivering his best work yet and, as always, I have the utmost respect and faith in Robert Venditti, who has yet to disappoint. Loving this version of the team and would love to support a monthly again.
Shazam ! # 3
Still a big fan. King Kid is, weird, but I liked the aversion to adults, all things considered. We still don't know as much about all the family members except Mary being the stand out. Johns is playing up the fantasy angle here, which is fine. Eager to hang on and find out more about these lands and what's going on, and eventually get to Mr. Mind, one of my favorite villains.
Can't remember the last week I've bought 4 new books. Book of the week goes to the FF, though they were all solid.
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Post by Hoosier X on Mar 1, 2019 11:37:03 GMT -5
Detective Comics #999This appears to be the conclusion to the "Mythology" storyline that DC has been running during the "Countdown to 1000" for the thousandth issue of Detective Comics. I'm not 100% sure it's the conclusion because this storyline has been so bad, and the big revelation in #999 so trite and so awful, that I wouldn't be surprised if somebody thought it would be clever to add another twist in #1000 on top of the stupid twist in #999. But #1000 is probably going to be an anthology with numerous creators providing short stories about Batman. Stop reading if you don't want it spoiled! It turns out that all the crazy stuff happening in the last few issues is happening in Bruce Wayne's head. It seems that once a year, he puts himself in a deprivation chamber so that he can deal with the demons in his head. because it makes him a better batman. So, yeah, it's the "It was all a dream!" plot. And he does it on his birthday! It's so bad, James Robinson might be embarrassed to have written this. It's like Grant Morrison on one of his all-too-common bad days. Nice art! So happy this storyline is behind us! I'm crossing my fingers that #1000 will be better. It has multiple covers and they look great! I can't decide if I'm going to get the Michael Cho cover or the Frank Miller cover.
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Post by Hoosier X on Mar 1, 2019 11:44:35 GMT -5
Freedom Fighters # 3 First of all, I loves me some Freedom Fighters. Great great concept. Been solid so far. Eddy Barrows is delivering his best work yet and, as always, I have the utmost respect and faith in Robert Venditti, who has yet to disappoint. Loving this version of the team and would love to support a monthly again. I am enjoying this too. I have a feeling that the limited series is going to end with the defeat of the Nazis, so any ongoing series will be dealing with the aftermath and rebuilding the world. Let's hope that the Freedom Fighters don't decide that that means there's nothing to do on Earth-X anymore and so they should emigrate to Earth-1 for some reason and become fugitives! |
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Post by Hoosier X on Mar 1, 2019 11:50:24 GMT -5
True Believers: Captain Marvel - The All-New Ms. MarvelThis reprints Ms. Marvel #20. I read the original Ms. Marvel series when it first came out, but I missed two or three issues near the end, and #20 was one of the issues I missed! So it was great to get this reprint for only a dollar. The highlight is the Dave Cockrum/Bob Wiacek art!
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