Author: matthewephotography@yahoo.com
Image credit: Valiant/Acclaim They say you should never judge a book by its cover, but we manga readers have been ignoring that rule since the dawn of media. But this time it applies. Behind this horrifying cover that showcases the worst excesses of mid-’90s comics (and a depiction of Bloodshot that would almost feel right at home on the cover of a Rob Liefeld comic) lies a decent second part that does a great job of making the rampaging vampires feel perfectly at home in Bloodshot’s nanite-powered world. It also leads to a really weird next story arc. This is…
Walt Disney alumnus and debut comic book writer Chris Yates teams up with Simone Ragazzoni, an up-and-coming artist known for his work on Robotech: Rick Hunter, Power Rangers Universe, and Dune: Corino House, to launch his first creator-owned series, Marcus Walker: Kingslayer Protocol. The project launched exclusively on Kickstarter on March 3rd and is already gaining traction thanks to endorsements and variant covers from major brands across the industry. The campaign features one-of-a-kind covers by New York Times bestselling authors Sean Murphy (Batman: White Knight, Tokyo Ghost) and Rob Guillory (Chew, Farmhand), as well as Siya Aum (Lady Mechanica, Neo-Wonderland)…
Image credit: Valiant/Acclaim In the mid-’90s, the comic book industry was in a strange place. By 1995, the speculative bubble had burst, and gimmick-driven covers, heavy printing, and a focus on style over substance sealed the fate of the industry. The recovery took years, reaching a low point around 1996, but Valiant’s acquisition by video game publisher Acclaim occurred right in the middle of the comic book crash. Their reboot of the Valiant series (under the weird Birthquake branding, with a story that never spanned between series, even though the branding seems to suggest otherwise) with a more modern-looking comic…
Image credit: IDW Comics Fourth wall breaking, self-referential dialogue, and even a mention of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia? Simply put, this is the fourth issue of the TMNT multiverse mashup, Battle Nexus. Donatello confronts his own creation, the robot turtle Metalhead. However, rather than the exact metal head that this particular Donatello created, we need some of his legendary “Donatello controls machines” skills. Can he become the first Turtle to overcome Savanti Romero’s challenge? Or is he destined to suffer the same fate as his brothers? Of course, there’s a backup story, but it’s just as silly and funny…
Image credit: Jason Brown, midlifegamergeek.com It’s capoeira warrior Elena’s turn to get the Street Fighter Masters treatment. In this issue, Elena invites her friends Ibuki and Makoto to an African village, only to learn that her parents have contracted with a shady construction company to build a giant arena in the area. When she is suspected of cheating, she is drawn into a fighting tournament in a new arena, and she and her friends are forced to stop the exploitation of their people. This is the usual fast-paced, light-hearted fun you’ve come to expect from UDON’s long-running comic Street Fighter.…
Image credit: Jason Brown, midlifegamergeek.com Harley and Elvira somehow team up with Power Girl and enlist her help when a super-powered clown hater is cornered. Yes, this is another review. Because I love this fourth-wall-breaking, dual-intent crossover variety of covers. The comic itself continues to be a bit disappointing. The only reason is that the art is still a little inconsistent (though co-writer Amanda Conner has a few great pages), and the endless puns and references are tiresome. Especially since they’re rarely interesting (Red Tool, for example, always felt like the laziest dig at Marvel without a mouth). Image credit:…
Image credit: IDW Comics Wowie Carter, first officer of the USS Omega, was a remarkable and fearless child, but his hope, optimism, and notoriously brave personality are being eroded by his mission to save the galaxy. As the USS Omega continues its journey, the way it travels causes a time dilation, and each time Carter returns home to visit his family, his family ages a few years at a time, while Carter only ages a few months. The question is, has he given up too much in doing his part to save the universe? The Last Starship isn’t exactly a…
On Tuesday, Clover Press launched a Kickstarter campaign for Ricardo Delgado’s Vampyre: A Horror Folktale. This work is a bilingual illustrated prose novel that is part traditional folktale, part autobiography, set in the same world as Dracula in Transylvania, Costa Rica in the 1940s. Within hours, the campaign had raised more than 10 times its original goal of $1,000. Vampire follows a small town in Costa Rica in the wake of a series of gruesome murders committed by a terrifying monster. This supernatural tale is set in the same town where Delgado’s parents grew up. The hardcover book features historical…
Image credit: Jason Brown midlifegamegeek.com Or, as another, very accurate article title: “Bitten by the Blind Bag Bug.” I had somehow overlooked the Harley Quinn x Elvira series, but when I saw the first issue being sold in a blind bag, I couldn’t help but pick it up. Was it worth it? Harley Quinn is having disturbing dreams and comes to the conclusion that the only way to solve her current psychological problems is to throw a party with Elvira as the guest of honor. Meanwhile, Elvira loses her job as TV’s most ferocious, vampire horror host, and Harley may…
Image credit: IDW Comics I’m by no means the world’s biggest Star Trek fan. Most Trek related shows and movies are take it or leave it, but I really like the ones I enjoy. One example is Deep Space Nine, a Star Trek show from the 90s that I love. The dark and complex themes that run through the entire duration of the show, the unparalleled cast of interesting characters and the high amount of interpersonal conflict (absent in much of classic Trek) truly make Deep Space Nine my favorite of all Trek, and nothing comes close. So when I…