Independent Opinions, News, and Reviews of Graphic Novels, Manga, and Comic Books
The “Family Reunion” storyline that began in issue #4 with the appearance of Scooter’s sister and continued bringing in Muppet relatives with Randy and Andy Pig in issue #5 concludes in these two issues. It’s written by Roger Langridge with art by Amy Mebberson. I admit, I wasn’t quite as thrilled with the back half of the storyline as I was with the first two comics. But please keep my criticisms in balance; a bad Muppet Show issue is still […]
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Keith Knight‘s first successful* comic strip was The K Chronicles, running in alternative weekly papers. (*I’m judging success here by longevity, running for over a decade, and that it’s usually quite funny.) In May 2008, Knight added to his repertoire, which also included the editorial-style (th)ink, a more traditional newspaper comic strip, The Knight Life. Like K Chronicles, the daily Knight Life is autobiographical. Chivalry Ain’t Dead contains the first year and four months of the strip in over 200 […]
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I approach comics written by Kathryn Immonen with curious trepidation, because I know no matter what subject she covers, I’m going to be challenged. She doesn’t talk down to her readers, and her structures and characters are refreshingly complex. I’m left thinking about what I read long afterwards. That’s even more true with Moving Pictures, since the subject matter is particularly unusual and affecting. Ila is a low-level museum worker in Paris; Rolf is a German bureaucrat. It’s World War […]
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The Guild #3 concludes the miniseries as expected: Cyd winds up forming a Guild with the characters viewers already know. I didn’t expect as much that events in Cyd’s daily life would start becoming more outrageous, as though her reality was ramping up to meet the excitement of her gaming fantasy. Her boyfriend might be gay, and he’s definitely fooling around on her while guilt-tripping her into writing the new music style that’s helping out his band. She’s seeking advice […]
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Abby Denson continues exploring the themes of fitting in and coming out she tackled in Tough Love: High School Confidential, only with more symbolism in Dolltopia. Kitty is a ballerina doll who wants to take charge of her own life instead of being manipulated by others. She and a renegade soldier doll set out for Dolltopia, where they can be themselves. They learn to appreciate their independence, their unwillingness to fit in, and their unique fashion sense. Dolls who aren’t […]
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Each story I read with these mice siblings is better than the one before. I think it’s because the characters grow on me with exposure — I get more sense of them and their adorable little personalities. In Benny and Penny in The Toy Breaker, the third book in the series (after Just Pretend and The Big No-No!), cousin Bo comes to visit. Benny and Penny have to hide all their toys, because Bo always breaks them. Bo is grabby […]
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America’s Teenager Preaches for Spire Comics (This article originally appeared in Hogan’s Alley #16, March 2009.) Most of the larger American comic publishers are willing to create licensed publications for various organizations that aren’t sold through the usual markets. DC Comics, for example, has done free Superman giveaways for the United Nations, warning children in war areas of the dangers of land mines, and for the Doris Day Animal Foundation, telling kids not to torture pets. Marvel Comics created a […]
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Rapunzel’s Revenge is a twisted take on the fairy tale that sparkles with life, intelligence, wit, adventure, and just plain fun. For the first time, the story of a girl locked in a tower by an evil stepmother and her excessively long hair makes a certain amount of sense. Writers Shannon and Dean Hale give Rapunzel character and motivation — she’s active, making choices, instead of someone bad things are done to. Oh, there’s plenty of that, too, but she […]
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