Independent Opinions, News, and Reviews of Graphic Novels, Manga, and Comic Books
Issue #45 guest-stars the Toxic Avenger in a Tromaville comic crossover. I’ve never seen those movies, so I can’t speak to how faithful it is, but with “Toxie” on trial for being a public nuisance, the two properties blend well. After being a town hero, Toxie finds that the people have turned on him in a story narrated by “Judge” Lloyd Kaufman (real-life Troma President and jack-of-all-trades). Turns out that it’s really all a plot by an evil developer wanting […]
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Issue #3 has, within a framing sequence, three short stories featuring some of the best characters in the series — but then I realize that most of the characters are interesting to me, and I want to know more about all of them. So anyway… regular artist Craig Rousseau draws the first one, about what sasquatch-man Big does on his week off. He’s accompanied this time by water-sprite Merrow, whom I don’t recall seeing before but quickly came to love, […]
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Ah, this makes me happy. Love and Capes #8 is more great romantic superhero comedy from Thom Zahler. I was laughing from the cover, where Darkblade shakes down the artist to get featured on the cover. As the issue opens, Abby is having a hard time letting her sister Charlotte go study in Paris. Abby’s got her own concerns, though, as she’s planning her wedding to Mark, aka the Crusader. It’s the little things that make this so funny to […]
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Recently, cancellations have been announced for Manhunter (ending with #38) and Spider-Girl (with #30, although that’s after a previous 100-issue run). Both have faced cancellations before, only to be “saved” more than once; the Spider-Girl title had something like four or five reprieves. Both have devoted fan followings with voices out of scale to their size (by which I mean, they’re talked about more than actually bought). And both star women. That last has Valerie D’Orazio concerned (link no longer […]
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I wasn’t old enough to appreciate how good Max Headroom was when it was on the first time. Now, having recently rewatched the 14 existing episodes, the question of the day is: why isn’t this on DVD?!?! Although it ran from 1987-1988, it’s a remarkably modern show. Visually, its Brazil-meets-Blade Runner approach, using older technology (like manual typewriter keyboards) to suggest the future, is watchable without seeming outdated. In terms of content, the plots tackled still-timely subjects like identity in […]
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Review by KC Carlson In his Forward, DC President and Publisher Paul Levitz states that there really isn’t a “DC Vault”. I, politely, beg to differ. While there may be no DC Vault like Scrooge McDuck’s legendary vault, or the original Fortress of Solitude with its vault-like door and giant key, there is a real DC Vault — and I worked there for about 8 years. It’s the DC office itself, currently in midtown Manhattan, filled with creative, intelligent, and […]
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Blue Beetle: Road Trip is the second book in the series about the young superhero, and it’s where the stories really start clicking. Jaime Reyes has an alien scarab bonded to him, and it gives him the power to fly, to create armor, to fire blasts… and to get in over his head fighting intergalactic threats. Jaime’s got a background different from most teen superheroes: he lives in El Paso, and he’s Hispanic. The art (especially the colors by Guy […]
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Comic Foundry issue 4 was due out on Wednesday, but it’s unfortunately been delayed a week (until October 15), which means I’ve been giving a reprieve and can barely squeak out my comments on the previous issue. I still haven’t finished reading the whole thing — there’s a lot of interesting, varied content here — but I’m confident that this is still accurate: it’s the best comic magazine being published. After a rough start, issue #2 made some important improvements, […]
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