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Comic List Highlights (5/22/2013)

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May 182013

Image Comics has the market cornered on genre-based series that stray far away from the capes-and-cowls dynamic. But, as they’ve proven with Invincible, when Image wants to do a superhero book, they do it well. Hence, The Bounce, a new ongoing superhero series unlike any other from Joe Casey. Casey has made his name on creating original properties like Ben 10 and Generator Rex for Cartoon Network, but recently also made a striking return to the world of comics with Sex. Now, Casey brings his unusual touch to a hero who’s smart, fast, and a rebel, The Bounce, along with a rogues gallery of twisted unique villains, as well.

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Tank Girl is back, baby!

Always a notable occasion when a Tank Girl comic shows up, Titan Comics, in its recent relaunching of classic series, is releasing Solid State Tank Girl this Wednesday. Written by series creator Alan Martin, Solid State Tank Girl brings back the gang of Tank Girl, Jet Girl, Booga, and Barney. This time, in the act of trying to save a local record store, the gang unleashes evil alternate reality versions of themselves which they must defeat to live!

Following up Dark Horse‘s Last of Us miniseries, Akaneiro is another video game spinoff series created and written by the mind behind the game, American McGee. A sci-fi retelling of the classic Red Riding Hood fairy tale, Akaneiro, is a Japanese-infused tale of violent demon fighting in a fantasy world. Elegantly designed characters and world brim over the pages of this miniseries that is a must for die-hard gamers!

If you’ve got the green, they’ve got the team.

Following hot on the heels of Gail Simone’s wonderful first issue of The Movement, Green Team #1 is the companion series featuring the upper-class wunderkinds of the DC Universe. A group of billionaire teens set out to spend their money to become super powered jerks, dealing with the limelight of celebrity and the burden of inhuman abilities. Written by Art Baltazar and Franco (Tiny Titans, Superman Family Adventures), this series marks their first venture into adult side of the DC Universe. Considering their talent for fun, traditional comic storytelling, this series should be the newest underdog hit for DC.

Comic List Highlights (5/1/2013)

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Apr 272013

It’s not a crime story, it’s a love story. Just a really, really messed up one.

J. Michael Straczynski returns to his Cup of Joe imprint, this time through Image Comics, for his first new ongoing series, Ten Grand. JMS brings Ben Templesmith (Fell, Choker, 30 Days of Night) with him on art duties, with Templesmith lending his normal gloomy, hazy, atmospheric quality to the tale. And this is a tale that cries for it. Former mob muscle Joe Fitzgerald lost his beloved wife during his “last job” many years ago. However, on that same night, Joe himself lost his life, but also received a special deal on his entrance into hell. Joe was allowed to return to Earth, in order to complete assignments from below, with the benefit that each time he dies in the line of duty, he gets to spend five minutes in heaven with his wife. A noir burnt to a crisp, fans of Fell who’ve been aching for more since the series ended years ago need to pick up a copy of Ten Grand #1.

Tell me how to get, how to get to Sesame Street #1!

For all the kids in the audience, all your favorite friends are showing up at the comic store next Wednesday. That’s Big Bird, Grover, Oscar the Grouch, Elmo, Bert, and Ernie, all in one special issue. And because it’s a comic book you’ve got to have a superhero story. But when it’s Elmo, who has no superpowers, trying to be the hero, there may be trouble. Don’t worry, though, because he’s got all his friends and imagination on his side. Any parent looking to get their kid into comics, need look no further than Sesame Street #1.

With last week’s Jupiter’s Legacy we saw the birth of an alternate world’s super beings. This week we see the origins of our world’s superhumans with Suicide Risk. Set in San Diego during the arrival of the world’s first wave of super beings, Suicide Risk focuses on a police officer out-of-his-depth as these new arrivals being to discover their powers in bad ways. Because, of course, in our world, when you’re given the ability to shoot lasers out of your eyes you use it to melt your obnoxious boss’ car. With the world going to hell around him, officer Leo Winters is left to wrangle up the madness with a bulletproof vest, a shotgun, and some stamina. From Unwitten, X-Men Legacy, and Lucifer writer Mike Carey, Suicide Risk #1 is a taught cop thriller laced with capes and cowls.

Gail Simone funnels her recent “firing” by “The Man” into a new series from DC called The Movement. The series will focus on the underprivileged of the superhero community. These super-poor are out to take down the social elite, the 1%, protecting the other disadvantaged in the process. And in a world where Bruce Wayne and Oliver Queen are the equivalent of Bernie Madoff, you can expect some major fisticuffs as the series progresses. And who better to draw some shenanigans than local artist Freddie Williams III (JSA All Stars, Captain Atom, Green Arrow). Given that Gail Simone has been killing it on Batgirl lately, and wrote one of DC‘s best series of the last ten years, Secret Six, The Movement is on my must-read radar.

Comic List Highlights (4/24/2013)

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Apr 202013

Take two ticks to tinker with the thought of trying the Terrifyingly Tragic Treasury Edition of Joe Hill’s terrific terse tales.

That’s a fair share of Ts, folks. You’ll notice that one of the above T words is not “terrible”. I would shudder at the idea of associating that word anywhere near Joe Hill’s work, as he is one of the most gifted writers in comics today. Having made a name for himself on his masterpiece, Locke & Key, as well as The Cape miniseries, Hill has quickly become a respected name in the industry. The fact that he’s Stephen King’s son also helps. If you’ve devoured the five hardcover volumes of Locke & Key and are looking to fill the void in your life until volume six comes out, the TTTE special is a perfect option. Containing his Kodiak one-shot, The Cape stand alone issue, and his Locke & Key short story “Open the Moon”, all of which are nominated or won industry awards.

Fantasy adventure comics have been on the rise lately, what with Pathfinder, the Dungeons and Dragons series, Demon Knights, Conan, and, now, Amala’s Blade. Striking a tone somewhere between humor and action, Amala’s Blade #1 is the first part of a four part miniseries following the titular assassin hero. Amala is the head assassin in the kingdom of Naamaron, but has fallen out of favor due to her brash, boastful ways. So, the emperor does the only logic thing: send her on a mission that will likely result in her death. Now, Amala’s skills are put to the test, with a failing grade equaling an end most fowl. Illustrated in a style that bridges sketchy Indy artists like Becky Cloonan and cartoony pop like Avatar the Last Airbender, Amala’s Blade is feisty fantasy.

If you’re daughter’s ever tried to run past the rebel blockade in a giant spaceship shaped like a fist, Vader’s Little Princess might warm your heart. You might also enjoy it if you and your daughter are huge Star Wars fans. Jeffery Brown releases his second Star Wars children’s book detailing the awkward difficulties of raising a daughter who is your worst enemy. Drawn in the same simplistically charming style of Brown’s Incredible Changebots, Cats Are Weird, and Vader and Son, Vader’s Little Princess is made up of vignettes detailing Vader’s struggle with common fatherly duties. Tea parties, teaching Leia how to fly TIE fighters, and keeping her from leaving the house in only her slave girl bikini are the tasks of the day for Papa Skywalker. Grab a copy and bond with your daughter over your shared geekiness.

A legacy can be an awful burden.

The legendary duo of Mark Millar and Frank Quietly (The Authority, WE3, New X-Men) reteam for the first time in years to bring you Jupiter’s Legacy. This soon-to-be-hit series from Image Comics begins in the far future when all of Earth’s heroes have given up and left the world’s protection to their kids. But being a better superhero than your parents can be a demanding task. Trust us when we say that this series will bring the violence, sexuality, and cinematic action unlike anything else out there (except maybe Saga, that book’s pretty raunchy). Grab the hit comic of this year before it vanishes from the shelves.

New Game Stuff (4/19/2013)

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Apr 192013

Restock is the magic word for this week’s New Game Stuff.

Above all else is the return or revenge or attack of the X-Wing miniatures game. After having been out of print for a limited time, all of the wave two ships are back in stock. That’s the Tie Infiltrator, the Millennium Falcon, the A-Wing, and the Slave I. And they’re just in time, too, because this Sunday brings the first Star Wars X-Wing League Play day up at the store. So choose whether you support the Rebel Alliance or the Empire then come knock some ships out of the stars in some head-to-head battle. Sign-up will begin at noon and play will commence shortly after.

After selling out swiftly last week, Dixit Quest has returned from whatever magical land this game hails from. For those who’ve been awaiting the return of Dixit 2, this is your chance. Dixit Quest is an eighty-four card expansion for the base Dixit game, adding a gallery’s worth of psychedelic, gorgeous artwork to this Apple-to-Apples-esque party game. If you’re not familiar with Dixit, then allow me to inform you. Play revolves around players taking turns offering descriptive words, sounds, or phrases, then everyone who didn’t lays down a full-art card which they feel best encompasses the description. From there, everyone chooses the card they think the person who offered the descriptor laid down. Points are awarded based on who is correct and incorrect. An extremely well illustrated game, Dixit is fun for the whole family.

Magazines are supposed to have gone the way of the dodo, but here’s a brand new one in the tradition of Dungeon and Dragon Magazine called Gygax Magazine. As they say in the forward, the name of the publication was chosen out of respect to the originator of the RPG and as a statement of the traditional approach the magazine is going to take to its content. The first issue of this nostalgic treat features stories about “The Future of Tabletop Gaming,” “The Cosmology of Role-Playing Games,” and “DMing for Your Toddler.” A system-neutral play setting is also included, being Gnatdamp a tiny hamlet in the middle of a swamp, full of rowdy cutthroats. Come reminisce with issue #1 of Gygax Magazine.

And, finally, a moment of Warhammer 40K zen featuring (the late arriving; thanks Games Workshop) the XV88 Tau Broadside Battlesuit. Soak it up.

Comic List Highlights (4/10/2013)

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Apr 062013

Regular-sized Batman is cool and all, but Li’l Batman is where it’s really at!

Dustin Nguyen, artist extraordinaire known for his covers and interiors on Batgirl and Batman: Streets of Gotham, brings his painterly pencils and ability to cute the reader out of existence to the Batman universe. Batman: Li’l Gotham #1 is the beginning of a new ongoing series featuring short stories packed to the brim with tiny versions of every famous Gotham resident. Think Charlie Brown noir. The first issue is a cavalcade of holiday tales featuring Batman, Robin, The Penguin, and more. If you’re kids having been begging for some Batman, but you’ve kept them away from Scott Snyder’s recent run for obvious reasons, Li’l Gotham is the answer.

Zombies. Robots. Aliens.

Generally, a combination of the above three creatures would be a bad thing. In the case of IDW‘s The Colonized miniseries, it is actually a very good thing. Written by Chris Ryall, the creator of Zombies vs. Robots, and graced with covers by the reclusive Dave Sim (Cerebus), The Colonized blends horror and sci-fi by dropping aliens into the middle of a zombie apocalypse. A surviving member of a zombie resistance camp has his hands full when a spacecraft lands in the middle of town and a government agent begins pulling tricks in order to nab the compounds gun stash. What follows is when there’s no leader for the martians to be take too.

Your mind is not your own.

Matt Kindt, the ingenious comic creator behind Revolver, 3 Story, and the Justice League of America back-up stories, has been writing one of the most unusual, inventive comics being published for the last year and few have noticed. Now, that may be because one of the agents from the books has been blocking your interest to hide its secrets or it may be because it’s far outside the norm of mainstream comics. Basically, Kindt has constructed an intricate world of espionage based around the Mind MGMT agency, a secret organization that uses mental powers to control the ebb and flow of history. They can wipe your mind, insert memories, make you hate your lover, stop you (or themselves) from feeling pain, or plant subconscious suggestions in the media, and there’s nothing you can do about it. Kindt uses every last inch of the comic page to tell his story, even writing secret code in the margins and on the back cover of each issue. This first hardcover collection includes the first six issues of the series…or maybe that’s just what it wants you to think?

The Fantastic Four have always been my least favorite Marvel team.

That is, until Matt Fraction took over the series with Marvel NOW! For the last six issues, Fantastic Four has proven to be one of the best Marvel series on the stands right now. And if you’ve missed these first issues, don’t fret because Fantastic Four v.1: New Departure, New Arrivals comes out Wednesday. Not only does this volume contain the first three issues of the main Fantastic Four series, but also the first two issues of FF, the companion series. This first arc involves the departure of Marvel‘s first family, as Reed and Sue take their kids on a cosmic field trip, and their replacement by four stand-in Fantastics. Fraction balances classic Marvel storytelling in Fantastic Four and post-modern wackiness in FF beautifully, offering two entirely different reads in one great package.

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