So this week's stack... not a huge one.
Still waiting on my shop to get Veil #2... not sure if this is because they didn't order it or they just missed it. Diamond said LAST Wednesday it should have come out so who knows. Got an order in for it now at any rate.
DARK HORSE:
BPRD 1947 #2
It got weirder. Its hard to explain a Mignola comic past issue one without completely ruining it for people. And I just talked about it in a recent post. Good story, good characters, great art... if you are into Hellboy, jump on it. Its good stuff.
DC:
BATMAN #689 (The Bat Universe in general has its own piece this week cuz my review got long and detailed. Read it here.)
Review of the new issue itself: Batman (the title) has at least remained interesting. Two-Face is damn sure the new Batman roaming Gotham is NOT the one he's used to dealing with and is doing his best to study him for... probably some plot to take him on directly and see who this punk thinks he is. Its a good read. Its dealing mainly with how Dick Grayson actually BECOMES Batman. Sure he fits into the suit, but does he suit Batman? Modifications to both tech and demeanor reflecting the new Not So Dark Knight are brought up and implemented. Its a great companion piece to Grant Morrison's Batman & Robin which seems to be the book we the audience (and I'm starting to wonder if not the other Bat writers as well) must wait for to get any meat around here. But as far as the new Bat direction, this book is still on a well done and interesting course. Good time to jump in for anyone looking to get their Dark Knight reading on.
MARVEL:
DEADPOOL #13
Still written by Daniel Way (thank you very much) but a new artist that makes me scared Marvel isn't going to take this book as seriously. Or the other guy was so awesome (and he was) that he got a great offer he couldn't pass up and this current artist was a last minute replacement. Filler art I guess I'd call it. We left Deadpool rich as HELL after his pseudo stalemate with Bullseye (a stalemate it was obvious Bullseye would have to lose being mortal and all). And what would Deadpool do with so much money? Start his own gig as a pirate! Sounds dumb? You haven't been reading or you'd be on board. Trust me. Its funny. If you haven't jumped on Deadpool yet, perfect time as this new arc has JUST started with issue 13. And you can get by without knowing continuity to get onto Deadpool unlike...
UNCANNY X-MEN #514 (Utopia Chapter #4)
Here, you need your background. It's X-Men! The greatest long running soap ever, of course you need your background! So Osborne exploits volatile situations to gain power and start his own franchises of various factions of super teams. We know this. But now he's exploited the X-Men, even started his own team led by Emma Frost... who's been dating Scott Summers for many years now and just accepts this position? And wait, Scott's not even pissed at her? I read this and I'm screaming 'what the hell writers? I want some s'plainin'!' I'm sure they will. Its all a part of Brian Michael Bendis' (once again) opus, Marvel Universe wide storylines: Dark Reign. Osborne has missed a very important detail in the mutant news feeds as of late however: Cyclops became a bad ass a few years ago after the Mutant population was nearly wiped out (as in under 200 known mutants at this point, the rest are either dead or depowered). Scott Summers does not take shit anymore. Neither do any fellow mutants in his X-men. In this issue, Cyke makes moves to take these "X-Men" head on. A young mutant asks 'but what about Osborne's Avengers?" Cyke says don't worry about it, they're not our concern. Who's concern are they? Enter the new Wolverine led X-Force! (Which has its own ongoing title right now and I HIGHLY recommend it; its a whole team of the most dangerous mutant assassins doing Cyclop's black ops dirty work, its amazing). A throw down between X-Force and the Avengers? Trust me, its gonna be hard to get better than this.
The writing in this book is handled by Matt Fraction who isn't Brian Michael Bendis and he leaves a lot skimmed over in my opinion, but he writes a solid, entertaining book. He hasn't been around that long (to my knowledge) and seeing how this book is a cross-over series with Dark Avengers (which is Bendis helmed), the juggling of such a ridiculous amount of characters must be insane. I can't be too harsh when taking that into account. So far it reads a lot like Secret Invasion did (in the sense that it moved in broad strokes you had to keep up with and ask questions later on certain details). The art is handled by the very welcomed Terry Dobson. The man has a talent and I've enjoyed his work for quite a while. I was glad so see his pencils on this book.
Overall this is a very exciting plot, even if little details are getting clipped a bit more than they should. If you haven't been following Dark Reign at all, you'd probably be ok...? Definitely get your local shop to help you grab Utopia Chapters 1-3 though.
So that's the stack this week. Don't forget to check out my piece on the current state of the Bat Universe.
Showing posts with label BPRD. Show all posts
Showing posts with label BPRD. Show all posts
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Sunday, August 9, 2009
New Comic Reccomendations
So I've been completely failing at writing one of these every Thursday but I'll fix that. Promise. Basically what I want to do is get a comic review post up every thursday covering what I've read from that Wednesday... sort of a "if you missed it, you should be reading this (or not)" post.
For right now, I'll just cover what's been really standing out for me lately:
From Wildstorm: NORTH 40 #'s 1 & 2
Issue #2 just came out and I simply cannot praise this comic enough. It even has an endorsement by one of my favorite horror writers of all time, Steve Niles (30 Days of Night from IDW & the Cal McDonald mysteries over at Dark Horse). The comic is above and beyond from start to finish.
It's written by Aaron Williams with OUTSTANDING art by Fiona Staple. The story (which has some great Lovecraftian elements without being obnoxious about it) centers on a group of people in a small town who seem either immune or empowered after an incantation is read from a very creepy looking book that was previously buried in some archive. Most of the town is very very negatively affected by this incantation and the exact purpose of these changes has yet to be explained or even alluded to. Safe to say, its bad news all around for the town. I can't and won't get into just how weird these changes are because I'd hate to deprive you the "OMFG!" moments I've had at least twice per issue so far. It also has a good sense of humor without being campy.
The characters' dialogue is fantastic, splattered with bits of local country slang and phrasings. There are more modern folk, complete bumpkins and everything in between. I'm sure this will get optioned for a film sooner or later, work this good (and work far LESS good) usually does. But honestly, do not wait for the film. Go grab this right now. If you're shop doesn't have it, order it. Its so very very worth it.
From Darkhorse: BPRD 1947 #1
I'll admit I've fallen off the BPRD/Hellboy train the last couple years and I'll also admit I view this as a mistake. The last BPRD series I read involved the return of the "frogs" from the original Hellboy story arc and the "death" of Roger. I'll be remedying this as soon as I can get the extra paper for it.
So I was lucky enough to find that a new story arc has just started called BPRD 1947. Just like the title implies, the book is about the BPRD back in... 1947. Which allows Mignola the opportunity to flesh out the origins of the organization, get Broom some more page time and have little cameos of a young Hellboy. Only the first issue has come out so far but its off to a very promising start. Broom has just recruited some new military operatives fresh out of WW2, there's a train car full of brutally murdered Nazi troops, a creepy Russian paranormal being who chooses to appear as a little girl and mention of an ancient Count that escaped Broom in the first 40's era BPRD story arc (which I'll also be grabbing the trade of).
Mignola's writing is always a worthwhile read. Its full of classic horror elements, well thought out and maintained characters, and more mythology history than an entire college course. The man knows his mythology. He loves it, he clearly gets it and most importantly, he knows how to turn it into a great story that doesn't ever resort to the cheesy elements most horror films end up being these days (even the Hellboy films, though still enjoyable as their own entity, suffered a bit from that sadly). The art in the book is split between Gabriel Ba (Umbrella Academy) and Fabio Moon (who is new to me, but I like him already). I find it kind of funny that Gabriel Ba is working on a Hellboy book after Tess showed me Umbrella Academy (which she picked up through her My Chemical Romance fandom of Gerard Way) and my main comment was, that guy wants to be Mike Mignola BAD. So Ba's probably pretty happy to be working on BPRD. Now that Mignola is so busy writing nearly four books a month, he only has time to do covers so I totally welcome Ba's Mignola inspired aesthetic. Pick it up if you want some interesting and quirky horror along with some crisp art and Mignola's great writing. And you know you do!
from BOOM! Studios: Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
Yes, a comic adaptation of THE 'Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?' novel by prolific (to say the least) science fiction author Phillip K. Dick. Just to get some background for anyone new to the work, 'Electric Sheep' is the inspiration for the film Blade Runner. Blade Runner is an amazing film on so many levels, arguably the greatest science fiction film of all time, but at the same time, its only a scratch on the surface of the book. To faithfully adapt the book, you'd need three films just to cover it all. Phillip K. Dick was an interesting man... getting into just how interesting would require an entire entry unto itself. I hate to just skim over his life and do him a disservice in not fully articulating who the man really was.
The comic luckily has a great background piece at the end of the first issue written by the most perfect choice from the world of comics I could ever name to write such a piece: Warren Ellis. That alone is worth buying the issue. Each issue is WORD FOR WORD from the book. All the narration, dialogue, EVERYTHING. It will be 24 monthly issues and each issue will have some interesting background pieces in the back written by important creators commentating on Phillip K. Dick's work and the man himself.
So obviously, the book is written well. The art... I hate to rip on it because its clearly functional art. Its not gonna blow you away or alter the comic medium forever like a Jim Lee, Ashley Wood or Frank Quietly. Normally I'd be a little dismissive towards art of this nature but honestly, for a work as dense as 'Electric Sheep', its fitting. It tells the story, its capable art with nothing inherently wrong with it. Some of the spreads really do look quite good. For anyone who's read Vertigo, its a bit in that realm. Not good, not bad, it gets the story told without being distracting at either end of the spectrum. The fact that it doesn't take from the text but rather helps to clarify it is a perfect fit honestly.
For anyone who's never read 'Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?' I can't tell you enough times how much you should read this. The comic pages will help to clarify and keep the reader up to speed without so much, "wait...what?" that can happen when reading Dick's work. If you have read the book, this is such a fun way to re-experience it.
Phillip K. Dick is probably my favorite science fiction author of all time (along with Robert Heinlein, William Gibson and Jack Williamson). The man's vision is seriously unparalleled. And for someone with such an... outsider's perspective, Dick's work seems more and more grounded in reality with each passing year. So please read this. Seriously. I said please. Read it already!
For right now, I'll just cover what's been really standing out for me lately:
From Wildstorm: NORTH 40 #'s 1 & 2
Issue #2 just came out and I simply cannot praise this comic enough. It even has an endorsement by one of my favorite horror writers of all time, Steve Niles (30 Days of Night from IDW & the Cal McDonald mysteries over at Dark Horse). The comic is above and beyond from start to finish.
It's written by Aaron Williams with OUTSTANDING art by Fiona Staple. The story (which has some great Lovecraftian elements without being obnoxious about it) centers on a group of people in a small town who seem either immune or empowered after an incantation is read from a very creepy looking book that was previously buried in some archive. Most of the town is very very negatively affected by this incantation and the exact purpose of these changes has yet to be explained or even alluded to. Safe to say, its bad news all around for the town. I can't and won't get into just how weird these changes are because I'd hate to deprive you the "OMFG!" moments I've had at least twice per issue so far. It also has a good sense of humor without being campy.
The characters' dialogue is fantastic, splattered with bits of local country slang and phrasings. There are more modern folk, complete bumpkins and everything in between. I'm sure this will get optioned for a film sooner or later, work this good (and work far LESS good) usually does. But honestly, do not wait for the film. Go grab this right now. If you're shop doesn't have it, order it. Its so very very worth it.
From Darkhorse: BPRD 1947 #1
I'll admit I've fallen off the BPRD/Hellboy train the last couple years and I'll also admit I view this as a mistake. The last BPRD series I read involved the return of the "frogs" from the original Hellboy story arc and the "death" of Roger. I'll be remedying this as soon as I can get the extra paper for it.
So I was lucky enough to find that a new story arc has just started called BPRD 1947. Just like the title implies, the book is about the BPRD back in... 1947. Which allows Mignola the opportunity to flesh out the origins of the organization, get Broom some more page time and have little cameos of a young Hellboy. Only the first issue has come out so far but its off to a very promising start. Broom has just recruited some new military operatives fresh out of WW2, there's a train car full of brutally murdered Nazi troops, a creepy Russian paranormal being who chooses to appear as a little girl and mention of an ancient Count that escaped Broom in the first 40's era BPRD story arc (which I'll also be grabbing the trade of).
Mignola's writing is always a worthwhile read. Its full of classic horror elements, well thought out and maintained characters, and more mythology history than an entire college course. The man knows his mythology. He loves it, he clearly gets it and most importantly, he knows how to turn it into a great story that doesn't ever resort to the cheesy elements most horror films end up being these days (even the Hellboy films, though still enjoyable as their own entity, suffered a bit from that sadly). The art in the book is split between Gabriel Ba (Umbrella Academy) and Fabio Moon (who is new to me, but I like him already). I find it kind of funny that Gabriel Ba is working on a Hellboy book after Tess showed me Umbrella Academy (which she picked up through her My Chemical Romance fandom of Gerard Way) and my main comment was, that guy wants to be Mike Mignola BAD. So Ba's probably pretty happy to be working on BPRD. Now that Mignola is so busy writing nearly four books a month, he only has time to do covers so I totally welcome Ba's Mignola inspired aesthetic. Pick it up if you want some interesting and quirky horror along with some crisp art and Mignola's great writing. And you know you do!
from BOOM! Studios: Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
Yes, a comic adaptation of THE 'Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?' novel by prolific (to say the least) science fiction author Phillip K. Dick. Just to get some background for anyone new to the work, 'Electric Sheep' is the inspiration for the film Blade Runner. Blade Runner is an amazing film on so many levels, arguably the greatest science fiction film of all time, but at the same time, its only a scratch on the surface of the book. To faithfully adapt the book, you'd need three films just to cover it all. Phillip K. Dick was an interesting man... getting into just how interesting would require an entire entry unto itself. I hate to just skim over his life and do him a disservice in not fully articulating who the man really was.
The comic luckily has a great background piece at the end of the first issue written by the most perfect choice from the world of comics I could ever name to write such a piece: Warren Ellis. That alone is worth buying the issue. Each issue is WORD FOR WORD from the book. All the narration, dialogue, EVERYTHING. It will be 24 monthly issues and each issue will have some interesting background pieces in the back written by important creators commentating on Phillip K. Dick's work and the man himself.
So obviously, the book is written well. The art... I hate to rip on it because its clearly functional art. Its not gonna blow you away or alter the comic medium forever like a Jim Lee, Ashley Wood or Frank Quietly. Normally I'd be a little dismissive towards art of this nature but honestly, for a work as dense as 'Electric Sheep', its fitting. It tells the story, its capable art with nothing inherently wrong with it. Some of the spreads really do look quite good. For anyone who's read Vertigo, its a bit in that realm. Not good, not bad, it gets the story told without being distracting at either end of the spectrum. The fact that it doesn't take from the text but rather helps to clarify it is a perfect fit honestly.
For anyone who's never read 'Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?' I can't tell you enough times how much you should read this. The comic pages will help to clarify and keep the reader up to speed without so much, "wait...what?" that can happen when reading Dick's work. If you have read the book, this is such a fun way to re-experience it.
Phillip K. Dick is probably my favorite science fiction author of all time (along with Robert Heinlein, William Gibson and Jack Williamson). The man's vision is seriously unparalleled. And for someone with such an... outsider's perspective, Dick's work seems more and more grounded in reality with each passing year. So please read this. Seriously. I said please. Read it already!
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