The literary mystery concludes in this issue, wrapping up another satisfying small-town miniseries. Dr. Harry doesn’t have to use his alien abilities to figure out who the real author-in-hiding is, or why the writer went underground for so long. He just has to ask the right questions and understand how difficult it can be for a woman to leave an abusive husband and survive as a single mother. Writer Peter Hogan and artist Steve Parkhouse have come up with a […]

Now that Fred has returned, we get to see her helping out Faith on a new undercover mission. And keeping in mind that the Buffy the Vampire Slayer has always been best when the kids were in school, we’re back in that environment — only this time, Faith is undercover as a teacher. Given my dislike of the writing of Victor Gischler, I was surprised that there were certain scenes that worked for me in these issues. They don’t add […]

The concept is well-suited to today’s economy: Some heroes who borrow money for their super-gadgets and secret hideouts can’t pay their bills. When they get caught, they’re pressed into acting as debt collectors for others in the same situation. The Paybacks are thus a repo team, sent to repossess fancy weapons and such. It’s a risky job, since those convinced they’re doing the right thing don’t want to have their toys taken away from them. The Paybacks is written by […]

After the conspiracy theory that wove through Resident Alien: The Suicide Blonde, it’s a pleasure to get back to a more literary small-town mystery. In The Sam Hain Mystery, Dr. Harry Vanderspeigle — secretly a space alien stranded on earth — is seeking out Sixties pulp mysteries, only to find that one of the genre authors, Rex Monday, may have connections to the town. Few people remember his Sam Hain series character, but Harry would like to find out the […]

There are many benefits to continuing a beloved property in comic format: Storyline size. No budgets means bigger scope. Characters. Expand your cast regardless of whether actors are available, in shape, or as youthful as they used to be. Existence in perpetuity. Which can be a mixed bag, as there’s a drive to keep series going whether the writer has good idea for it or not. Sometimes an ending is a blessing. Which brings me to Angel & Faith Season […]

Like a bad Saturday Night Live sketch, I got more entertainment out of the title and concept than I did from sitting through the content. Archie vs. Predator #1 is mostly a tease, as the title characters don’t even encounter each other — presumably, that’s to save something for the remaining three issues. It’s written by Alex de Campi, drawn by Fernando Ruiz, and inked by Rich Koslowski. The kids win a beach vacation to Costa Rica, where the girls […]

I can’t tell how much of my enjoyment of Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 10 comes from great comics with snappy dialogue and interesting character relationships, and how much of it is nostalgia for the show, since the comic does such an excellent job of capturing the high points. It’s particularly tricky with this storyline, since it revisits one of the flash points from the show: Buffy getting involved with Spike. These are older, more mature characters, though, with more […]

This coming Wednesday, Dark Horse debuts Shaper, written by Eric Heisserer and illustrated by Felipe Massafera. It’s an interesting title, because it’s a throwback. It’s the kind of story that was more popular decades ago, a boys’ adventure tale in space. I wasn’t won over by it, but I could appreciate its skill and intentions. Clearly, Heisserer loves his vision, so much so that he transformed it from a movie script into a limited comic series because no one would […]