The second in the Max and the Midknights series by Lincoln Pierce, Battle of the Bodkins brings back the young adventurers in an all-new fantasy battle with intriguing thematic undertones. After the kingdom was rescued in the first book, Max is now in knight school. She doesn’t like her new teacher, because he thinks only boys should be knights. She’s lost her confidence, as fellow student Sedgewick is better than she is, and she is questioning herself for the first […]

I wasn’t familiar with the Assigned Male webcomic by Sophie Labelle, so this comprehensive collection seemed an excellent starting point. Stephie, a trans girl (11 years old when this series starts), and her non-binary friend Ciel hang out together. Ciel names themself at a camp for trans and queer youth. Stephie gets a boyfriend. The events here are so low-key as to almost be non-existent, but that’s not the point. Instead, the goal is, per the author, to show “non-conforming […]

Lincoln Peirce, the author of Big Nate, takes us to a fantasy land in a sword-and-sorcery tale with kid protagonists, told in the popular mixed-media format of short text sections interspersed with comics, in Max & the Midknights. Max is voyaging with Uncle Budrick, a struggling troubadour. As an apprentice, Max is supposed to become a traveling entertainer, just because of family expectations. However, Max is more practical, smarter, courageous, and very competent, which makes her (yes, her) the perfect […]

After I wrote about Cutaway Comics last year, they got in touch to see if I wanted to check out their comics. Of course, I said yes, so they sent some digital copies to review. As I mentioned previously, Lytton was a mercenary who appeared in the 5th Doctor story “Resurrection of the Daleks” (Tegan’s last episode) and the 6th Doctor story “Attack of the Cybermen”. Lytton #1 (written by former Doctor Who script editor Eric Saward, art by Barry […]

Darryl Cunningham has a unique style for his non-fiction comics, which include How to Fake a Moon Landing (a collection of arguments for science and against popular myths) and The Age of Selfishness (about Ayn Rand and the international financial crisis). His graphic journalism would, without the pictures, work effectively as essays, although the images contribute to the ease of reading and the compelling arguments. His pages manage to combine passion and facts over panels of remarkably blocky people and […]

Sometimes, I am very grateful for the opportunities I’ve had. I was recently on an episode of Comic Beat Insider where we talked about The Extraordinary Adventures of Adêle Blanc-Sec. The other guest was Ian Culbard, an artist whose work I was unfortunately unfamiliar with. When I looked him up later, I discovered that, among other graphic novels, he’d done versions of the four Sherlock Holmes novels, adapted by Ian Edginton. (He’s credited for that work as I.N.J. Culbard.) Just […]

Violet Holmes and the Agents of H.I.V.E. Volume 1: Adventures of a Teenage Detective is a graphic novel about Sherlock Holmes’ daughter. It’s got a lot of reasons to recommend it, although it’s a pretty bad comic. I am going to try and avoid using that unwieldy title again, to start. Violet Holmes is one of the early publications from Orange Pip Books, started in 2019 as a division of the longer-established MX Publishing, which puts out Holmes-related books, both […]

Midnight Western Theatre is a high concept done right. And that concept is “vampires in the old West”. (The writer calls it “goth cowboys”.) Red Tom and his gang have taken over a town and are kicking back in the saloon when two strangers come to town. (They’re the ones shown on the cover.) The tables turn on Tom when he tries to scare them off. It’s written by Louis Southard and illustrated by David Hahn, an old favorite of […]