Filed under: Exquisite Reviews, Uncategorized | Tags: Amanda Conner, DC, Emanuella Lupacchino, Harley Quinn, Hi-Fi, Jimmy Palmiotti, Ray McCarthy, Soren, Starfire, Tom Napolitano
Written by Amanda Conner & Jimmy Palmiotti
Pencils by Emanuella Lupacchino
Inks by Ray McCarthy
Colours by Hi Fi
Letters by Tom Napolitano
Kori’s attempts to work out just what the Hell is going on with possible murderer Soren are hampered by what seems to be a sporadic new superpower. Not to mention a bounty hunter intent on claiming her life, and the prize attached to it…
Conner and Palmiotti are one of those writing teams that never get enough credit. Their work, for years now, has been characterized by a lightness of touch, love for the characters they’re writing and willingness to engage and listen to their audiences. They’re class acts who do their jobs supremely well, and this issue neatly demonstrates that.
What you’ve got here is three things happening at once. The Soren plot is moved along a little as we see just what he’s done, but remain unsure whether he knew he was doing it. That’s tied to Kori’s chaotic new ability which is itself a pretty interesting idea. Kori’s always been a character whose mind set has been a combination of sweet and brutal and the new ability touches on both those sides of her. It’s a forcible kind of empathy, one that gives her an idea of what her opponent’s done but denies her context. In doing so, it also challenges her fundamentally good nature. When faced with a murderer, whose crimes you’d experienced, what would you do? It’s a question with no easy answers and the book doesn’t shy away from that.
It also uses that dichotomy to deal with what would otherwise seem to be a fairly standard punch up. The bounty hunter who shows up is a charmingly cocky figure and Conner and Palmiotti cleverly use him as a means of catharsis, and questions, for both Kori and the reader. How she beats him, and what she does afterwards in particular, is an uneasy hybrid of both sides of her nature. She’s growing as a person and whether her actions here come back and bite her remain to be seen.
On the art side of things, Lupacchino’s clean lines mesh with the angle and panel choices of the script perfectly. Hi Fi’s colours give the book a convincingly sun drenched feeling that suits both its tone and the character and McCarthy’s inks are subtle but add welcome brawn to the art. Napolitano deals with lots of dialogue, and the interesting, staccato script structure, with aplomb too.
As clever, and fun, as Harley Quinn but a little quieter, Starfire is one of the best books DC put out right now. Fun, clever and, like Kori, far more complex than it first appears.
Filed under: Uncategorized
Written by Ryan North
Art by Erica Henderson
Trading Card art by Joe Morris
Colour art by Rico Renzi
Lettering by VC’s Clayton Cowles
Cover by Erica Henderson
Published by Marvel
£2.85
Doreen’s back! As is Koi Boi and Chipmunk Hunk! Or is that Chipmonk Honk! It is now!
There may not be an odder superhero book on the shelves right now. There’s certainly not one more exuberant as Squirrel Girl returns and runs headlong into the most terrifying danger she’s faced so far;
MOM VISITS
Plus also a Nazi robot from (sort of) space.
North’s gleeful scripting is in full force here, right down to the notes at the bottom of each page. Doreen is endlessly chirpy and up and clearly a little weirded out by being a New Avenger. She’s also deeply uncomfortable about Mom visiting and the tension between her and Nancy over that would drive a full issue of a normal book. Likewise, the glorious reveal that Nancy and Maureen, Doreen’s mom, actually get on like a house on fire.
But weirdly, this is a book where Brain Drain is the star.
Go look him up, I’ll wait.
See?
I KNOW RIGHT?! A Nazi vacuum tube robot is the star of the book! In a very odd way. North uses BD as an exploration of the sort of hero Doreen isn’t. She and Nancy screw up and they realize they have and they fix it. In doing so, they expand the supporting cast, set up a new dynamic for the series and do something genuinely very sweet. This is a book where no one gets left behind and this issue reminds you of that.
It also reminds you just how phenomenal Erica Henderson is. The art here is always fluid, always crammed full of the same energy as Doreen and always a joy to read. The book’s comic timing is baked into script and art alike and Henderson lands every joke the art is required to perfectly. She’s helped by Renzi’s bright, cheery colour scheme and Cowles’ lettering too.
All of which combines to make this the most cheerful, oddest book about Nazi supervillains and food courts you’ll read this year. Doreen’s back. She still kicks butts. She still eats nuts. And now she backup.
More backup.
Also more buttkicking. And nuts. And fun too. Especially that last one.
Written by Marguerite Bennett & G.Willow Wilson
Pencils by Jorge Molina
Inks by Jorge Molina & Craig Yeung
Colours by Laura Martin
Letters by VC’s Cory Petit
Published by Marvel
£2.85
The inhabitants of Arcadia discover not only who has betrayed them but why. As, again, the iniquities and prejudices of Doom’s rule crash down around a group of innocents, She-Hulk’s team are faced with a choice that is no choice at all; fight or flight.
A-Force is one of the most interesting Secret Wars books because it almost exists as a proof of concept as much as a story. This is a book about the perils of running a fundamentally altruistic, community-driven team with entirely female members in a world designed to oppose that on an almost genetic level.
The team thrives, so does the book.
A huge amount of that is the scripting. Wilson and Bennett are two of the best writers in the business right now and they get to flex some really fun muscles here. She-Hulk in particular is written brilliantly; a complicated, driven woman who is entirely too hard on herself and defined by what she can do for others. But she’s a star not The Star, which is one of the things that works best. The other team members, especially Nico and Singularity, get chances to shine and the entire plot is ultimately structured around Them as a concept not Her. The book’s most emotional moment comes when Singularity shows the women of A-Force not just what they taught her but what they are. It’s the best kind of writing; simple, minimalist and incredibly impactful.
The art side of things is just as good, and Molina, Craig Yeung, Wong on inks and Laura Martin on art give this book an identity as strong as its leads. Arcadia is Greece on its best day crossed with San Francisco on its most beautiful; open, sun-drenched, friendly. The art gives the characters, and the readers, something to fight for and it’s a huge part of why the book works. Plus it’s often very clever. The opening page of issue 5 is the best metaphor for a book like this I’ve ever seen.
Rounded out by typically great lettering from Pettit this is the opening act for a book that deserves to run and run. Brilliantly done.
Written and drawn by Marc Jackson
Published by Marc Jackson
Only 25 available at Thought Bubble this weekend!
£10
Marc Jackson’s work is always great fun, and Man From Space remains one of my favorite books from the last few years. Now he’s got an annual, Weirdo Comics, on sale at Thought Bubble this weekend. 52 pages of Marc’s unique brand of gentle weirdness it’s definitely worth your time, especially as there’s a Mr Pooch story in there.
Mr Pooch works in New York. Kind of. New York yes, work…enh..it’s complex. An amiable put upon dog with great taste in hats Mr Pooch is one of Marc’s best new characters. He’s just a dog trying to make his way in the world and getting into all sorts of trouble along the way and this story is a great example of that. Funny, weird and with one of the most delightfully left field and unexpected closing jokes I’ve heard this year, it’s available at Thought Bubble along with loads of other good stuff. Go get it.
Filed under: Uncategorized
‘A Roll of the Dice’
Written by Rob Jones and Michael Sambrook
Art by Sprecher
‘Vampire Wonderland’
Written by Jones and Sambrook
Art by Paul Moore
‘Slaycation’
Written by Mike Sambrook
Art by Rosie Packwood
‘FPS’
Written by Rob Jones
Art by Dan Butcher
‘Perplexity’
By Gonzo and Burke
‘Profits of Doom’
Written by Rob Jones and Michael Sambrook
Art by Mike Smith
£4 each and available at Thought Bubble this weekend!
An issue so big it is in fact two issues! Papercuts and Inkstains Issue 3 is split in two, giving Jones, Sambrook and a rotating cast of artists a chance to really show off their versatility. It works too, especially with ‘A Roll of the Dice.’ Opening 3a, it’s a story about a botdged together heist in the Old West. Combining a sense of community and fun with a gloriously nasty central cast it’s a piece with blood on its knuckles and a nasty grin in its eye. Sprecher’s art, and the rigid nine panel grid I thrives under, is especially great and reminiscent of Lucky Luke or other classic westerns. Company this story deservedly stands with.
‘Vampire Wonderland’ follows it with even more gorgeous art. This time it’s Paul Moore’s work on deck, in a story that follows a vampire hunter on a very bad day. This is one of the best action stories you’ll read all year, as the heroine uses everything from a supermarket trolley to a parachute to get the job done. But that won’t stay with you. What will is the final scene and the peculiarly hopeful kind of heroism on display here. Not post-apocalyptic, quite, but something better and braver.
‘Slaycation’ closes 3A. It follows a group of friends going on holiday and what they find waiting for them. To say anything more would spoil it but suffice to say this is a highlight of both issues. Packwood’s art is exuberantly and friendly in a gloriously horrible way and Sambrook’s script delivers every beat with the precision of a highly trained and enthusiastic killer. Gloriously nasty fun.
3B opens with ‘FPS’. Written by Jones it’s a skewed perspective action piece that works nicely. Butcher’s art captures the nervy feel required perfectly and while the ending may not surprise some readers, the story itself is intensely confident and effortlessly put together.
‘Perplexity’ is the only story that doesn’t quite land here and it’s not through want of ambition. A reality altering…someone…changes the outcome of a bank robbery and in doing so puts their city on notice that things have changed. Snarky and self-aware without the endless, mechanical aping of Grant Morrison that so often heralds, it’s a fun, clever story. It’s let down by clarity issues in a couple of places but even then the script carries you through. More of this please, and soon.
Finally, ‘Profits of Doom’ continues the story of the world’s most British, least effective cultists. Well, they used to be the least effective. Now they’re very very effective indeed and the world is in the process of ending a LOT. Aided (ish) by a bookstore owner who is either a very affectionate callout to one of the luminaries of modern fantasy or, simply, a man who likes hats, they get some more information about just how much trouble they’re in and grumble a lot. It’s brilliantly funny as ever, and Smith’s art somehow manages to make faceless cowls expressive and sympathetic.
This is about as perfect an example of just why Madius are so good as you’ll get. Hugely varied, hugely inventive and immense fun from cover to cover. And then from other cover to OTHER cover.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Al Ewing, Dono Sanchez Almara, Gerrardo Sandoval, hawkeye, Hulkling, Marvel, Powerman, Songbird, Squirrel Girl, Sunspot, VCs Joe Caramagna, White Tiger, Wiccan
Written by Al Ewing
Art by Gerrardo Sandoval
Colour Art by Dono Sanchez Almara
Letters by VC’s Joe Caramagna
Published by Marvel
The all new AIM is here and WAY less villain-y than it’s ever been before. Led by Sunspot, the new AIM is an Avengers unit/corporation designed to save the world and do better science for it to ensure it can maybe save itself next time. They have an island, a jet, a SHIELD liaison, a vast terrifying invasion of Paris and the real possibility no one trusts them.
YAY!
This is so much fun. Ewing excels at big ideas and tiny character notes and he gets a chance to do both here. He also makes Sunspot interesting inside two panels which has to be some kind of a record. The idea of graduating a relatively minor character like him to the big leagues is inspired and Ewing’s got a fantastic set up here. The idea of hijacking and subverting AIM is a neat reversal of the endless bloody ‘SHIELD was HYDRA all along!’ stuff and also speaks to the fundamental optimism of Roberto and his team. They’ve got a blank slate and a new approach. They want to do better. THEY HAVE SQUIRREL GIRL. This is the Avengers as startup, just with way less fossball and bromance and far more punching and altruism. It’s ace.
It’s also nice and complex, Ewing juggling the machinations of the The Thinker (Who’s actually interesting here), with SHIELD checking in on AIM, the arrival of a very logical new teammember and something awful being done to Paris. There’s incident on every page but it always feels frantic rather than rushed. It’s a textbook example of how to script action comics and the art is just as good. Sandoval’s exuberant style worried me a little in Avengers 0 but here it’s absolutely bedded in. The character work in particular is phenomenal and those quiet little moments I wanted? Here by the bucketload.
Almara’s work is hugely impressive too, the colours huge and bold but throwing remarkable subtlety of tone aout. The Thinker scenes in particular are really nicely done and the sense of place in every scene is absolutely bang on. As ever Caramagna’s lettering impresses too, especially in the various HUD displays we see.
This is really fun, and that need restating. If you’re looking for a light on its feet, punching above its weight Avengers book with no baggage whatsoever, then you’ve found it. Fun, smart, expansive comic storytelling.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Deadpool, Gerry Duggan, Marvel, Richard Isanove, Rogue. Brother Voodoo, Ryan Stegman, Steve Rogers, Uncanny Avengers, VC's Clayton Cowles
Written by Gerry Duggan
Art by Ryan Stegman
Colours by Richard Isanove
Letters & Production by VC’s Clayton Cowles
Cover by Stegman and Isanove
£3.60
Published by Marvel
The Avengers Unity Squad was designed to show humans and mutants could work together. When the Inhumans rose, they were folded into the mix too. But tensions are running high, not just in the team but across the world. The Inhumans are everywhere, and not all of them look kindly on the people they share their world with…
There are three things going on here and two of them work. The first is the organic foundation of the book. The Unity Squad is an idea that’s absolutely logical in the current state of the Marvel universe, with the three biological power groups on Earth all jostling forstatus. Conversely, Duggan does a great job of throwing gooey biological singularities at them. I know I invoke this a lot, but Ellis’ seminal Stormwatch run springs to mind here. Both feature a fractious group of superhumans with the best of intentions and both explore what happens when those intentions go awry very well.
The second thing that works is the art. Stegman’s gloriously brawny, Ed McGuiness-like style is given a Hell of a workout here. A big cast and some huge action are all given a chance to shine and the end sequence, especially Quicksilver delivering the quickest briefing ever, is brilliant. Isanove’s colours are exactly what’s needed too; rich, vibrant and a little too alive in the biological tornado the team are dropped into at the end. Cowles lettering, likewise, is as impressive as ever.
Then there’s the thing that doesn’t work and it’s a biggie; most of the characters. Duggan excels at small character beats and his take on Brother Voodoo is the most interesting the character has been in years. Likewise, Quicksilver’s portrayal is really interesting; less the endlessly irritable speedster of classic era X-Factor and more a man hyper aware of time and what he has to do with the time available to him. They’re great, everyone else, right now, not so much.
Spider-Man’s appearance, and subsequent strop off the team here, feels perfunctory because, well…it is. It’s maybe an attempt to acknowledge the fact he’s everywhere but if it’s a joke it doesn’t land and if it’s a plot beat it plays as desultory, not to mention painting Peter as something of an asshole. Likewise, Cap’s return to the field as an old man appears to have shaved 30 points off his IQ. Here he’s less the moral compass and more the grumpy old uncle, something which maybe meant to be a reflection of his mild swing to the right. Again, though, it really doesn’t work.
Most egregious of all though is Rogue. Her venomous outburst about the Inhumans is meant to show how much strain she’s under but plays as hugely overdramatic and, well, pretty hypocritical. The new situation the mutants find themselves in is fascinating and there’s rich ground for stories there. None of that ground is going to be reached by having one of the primary mutants in the world cooking off in a manner she hasn’t for years. Worse still, her grumbling about Deadpool’s financing of the team feels both hypocritical once again and like a huge, and very forced, wink to camera. Wade, for all his numerous sins, is barely in the issue and remarkably well behaved when he is. Which doesn’t stop the newly humourless Spider-Man bagging on him of course.
That’s the bad news. Here’s the good. It looks like a lot of the character beats I have problems with here are either start up issues or en route to being directly addressed in the plot. I certainly hope so because when it’s on form this is great. The ideas are big, the action’s neatly paced and the story is excellent. The characters are, I hope, on the way.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Betty, Deedee, Ed Brisson, Hannah, Image, Palisade, Rat Queens, Roc Upchurch. Kurtis Wiebe, Sawyer, Stjepan Sejic, Vi
Story by Kurtis J. Wiebe
Art by Roc Upchurch and Stjepan Sejic
Letters by Ed Brisson
Published by Image
£10.99
Hurray, everyone’s fine and had sex and there are flapjacks and colossal world ending monsters!
Wait.
Flapjacks?
The most epically profane mercenaries in all of fantasy are back and this time they’ve brought some pretty serious threats with them. Picking up straight after volume 1 this marks two pretty major gear changes for the series, both hugely successful.
The first is the art handover from Upchurch to Sejic. The reasons for Upchurch’s departure are disturbing, saddening and very personal. Google his name if you want to know.
Wiebe deals with the changeover in the smartest way possible, by changing the focus of the story. Sejic is thrown into a series of vignettes looking at the past of three of the Queens as all Hell actually does break loose over Palisade. It’s a brilliant, and highly effective strategy that not only eases the transition but makes the nebulous stakes of the story to that point very personal.
Even better, it solves the one problem the book had in its first volume. There, the Queens were gloriously brutal, highly competent swearing and violence machines but at times felt like little else. Here they’re given context and depth and history in a way that makes them all unique, complex women with nothing but agency. Hannah in particular has a fascinating past that goes a long way towards explaining her connection to Sawyer and the dark elements of magic she constantly battles to control. DeeDee likewise has an interesting, complicated background that drives this entire arc along. It also looks set to define the book for a while, as we get a look at her life outside the Queens and the people who used to be part of it.
But it’s Violet who stays with you. The dwarven bruiser’s past is the least directly tragic, and actually features one of the best jokes in the book, but is the most interesting. Wiebe’s take on dwarves touches on the traditional elements but combines them with a blunt, head on look at sexism in physical occupations. Violet’s the best there is at what she does but she’s not allowed to do it. Until, realizes she doesn’t have to ask for permission. It’s subtle, sweet even moving storytelling that adds a welcome dimension to both her and the book.
Plus Sejic is an incredible artist. There’s a brawn and weight to his fight scenes that makes them feel real and desperate and untidy. Better still for this book he’s got a real eye for sweeping gestures and subtle nuance. Dave (You’ll know which one) gets a glorious splash page with Vi here that’s so great you can hear the orchestra rise under it. Conversely the snarky banter between the four leads has never been better portrayed than it is through his work.
This is a transitional arc, for more reasons than were ever planned, but it works. Brisson’s lettering gives every gloriously filthy line room to breathe, Sejic’s style is a superb fit and the personal spotlights help immensely. The Rat Queens made their big entrance, now they’re getting to work. And based on this book, no one is going to stop them.
Filed under: Uncategorized
Written and drawn by Laura Ellen Anderson
Published by Fickling/The Phoenix
£7.99
So you’ve decided to be a super villain! Well done! You have your symbol, your loyal octopus butler, your number 1 minion Eugene and…you’re…a…Emperor Penguin.
In a cape, I’ll grant you, but still, scowl aside…aren’t you a little cute to be a world conqueror.
(Sound of a weapon firing and a Reviewer being buried beneath rain of clouds and unicorns. Nearby, a voice hisses; ‘EUGENE! I SAID DEATH RAY! NOT UNICORN CLOUD CANNON! AGAIN!’)
Welcome to the world. It belong to Evil Emperor Penguin. We just don’t know it yet.
Yet another in the never ending stream of immensely fun books from the pages of The Phoenix, Laura Ellen Anderson’s magnificently inept creation will appeal to anyone who’s ever wanted to rule the world or have an octopus butler. EEP (Yes), is a wonderfully dour, intense lead who loses almost none of that. He’s like the Sam the Bald Eagle of villains. Always intense. Always focused. Always…just a little unlucky.
A big part of that is down to Eugene. An abombinable snowman clone with a love of unicorns, clouds and lovely things Eugene is the nicest cloned snow monster you will ever meet. He means well, all the time, it’s just that sometimes he and EEP don’t see eye to beak. But, with the help of Number 8, EEP’s glorious butler, things normally sort out.
For the world. EEP’s world ruling plans…enh, not so much.
What’s brilliant about this is how Laura continually plays with the world she’s set up. There’s surprising amounts of character growth here and while EEP’s dour, regal exterior remains intact we see just a flash of the soft, gooey hearted penguin beneath it. A lot of that comes from the surprisingly sweet friendship he has with Eugene and the fact that Laura’s done the near impossible; made an endlessly cheerful, happy character not only interesting but deeply likeable. You want everyone to be okay (And the world to be a bit, y’know, ruled) and a big part of that is how nice Eugene is. He’s a minion anyone would be proud to have, even if he is terrified of jelly babies. The pleasant, competent Baldrick to EEP’s endlessly scowling Blackadder, he’s a real stand out in the book and one of the best characters you’ll meet this year.
And this is one of the best books. The Phoenix have a huge tradition of turning out some of the best all-ages comics in the West right now and this is no exception. Clever, very funny and wearing a cape like no one else can, it’s a delight. Much like EEP. Just don’t tell him…
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Berry, Boom, Ed Dukeshire, John Flood, Jorge Coelho, Justin Jordan, Lyta, Tamra Bonvillain
Written by Justin Jordan
Illustrated by Jorge Coelho
Colours by Tamra Bonvillain
Letters by Ed Dukeshire
Cover by Jorge Coelho
Published by Boom!
£2.85
WOW this is fun. Seriously, as pilot episodes go this is about as good as they get. John Flood is a detective, and a very good one. One of the reasons for that is he doesn’t sleep.
Ever.
It’s not that he can’t, it’s that he doesn’t, thanks to an experiment carried out on him years previously. He says. As a result, John’s got a lot of time on his hands and has decided to use that to do some good. It’s going well so far too. Although, Berry, his new assistant, may not think so…
Jordan excels at dialogue and he establishes John’s cheerful, unfiltered stream of verbosity from the first panel. He’s the 10th Doctor with no filter, Sherlock with a sunnier outlook. He’s also, as the final panel of the page shows, in a lot of trouble. Coelho’s art has the gangly exuberance of the series’ lead but that final panel is the one that will stay with you. John, deadly serious all of a sudden, hands covered in blood, trying to explain that something bad is coming.
That willingness to shift tone on a dime is at the core of the book. There’s a later moment with Berry where he goes from all business to completely crrushed in the space of a panel that’s heart breaking for the same reasons. If he’s Watson to Flood’s Sherlock, then this is the most mournful, guilty Watson we’ve seen in decades. In contrast, Lyta, Flood’s current assistant is cheerful, experienced in dealing with him and absolutely relentless. She’s stepping away, hence the job opening, but looks set to be back further down the line. I hope so as the three are huge fun together.
Bonvillain’s colours are a huge part of the book’s success too. She has an incredible eye for location, with the diner-set opening flooded with comforting, slightly yellow light. The forest scene that follows is entirely different and as location changes, so does the palate. It’s intuitive, subtle work and it’s always impressive. Likewise Ed Dukeshire’s lettering that catches the vast amount of information in the book faster than Berry does.
This is immensely fun, energetic storytelling. It never slows down, it never stops and it’s never less than gripping, eccentric and a joy to read. Go get it.
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