Monthly Archives: June 2013
Update for 6/26/13
New review today for Tortilla #3 by Jaime Crespo, and that’ll do it for updates until I’m in the new place. And hey, if the estimate of the cable company was correct that should be by the start of next week. Anybody believe that?
Crespo, Jaime – Tortilla #3
Tortilla #3
Have I ever mentioned my inevitable first reaction whenever I get a comic with a text story in it? Invariably, it’s “huh, this probably would have made a good/great (depending on the quality of the story) comic.” Which is odd, as I read plenty of novels and books of short stories. But hey, if it’s in the middle of a book of comics, it makes total sense, right? Anyway, Jaime has been on a bit of a roll lately, and he keeps that going here. Things start off with another chapter from his upcoming “Turk Street Serenade” graphic novel, and he’s wisely going to stop putting those chapters in his comic now, as why give away the whole thing for free? Well, not free, but you know what I mean. This chapter deals with him having a shitty day (in more ways than one) at work and his confrontation with a jerk. I can say no more, but it’s always funny to see assholes get their due. Next is the text story I mentioned before dealing with Jaime’s lifelong troubles with math, going back to his early days in middle school and the methods that his teachers used to get him to learn. Well, teaching him wasn’t really their goal, as he lays out in detail, but they seemed to think that cruelty could maybe do it all by itself. Finally there’s a story told from the perspectives of two very different people up until their eventual meeting. It’s another solid mini, and to be fair I do get why Jaime would do a text story instead of a comic about his math troubles: it would have been a lengthy and complex comic and hey, it’s not like him writing this story prevents him from ever making it into a comic. Check it out, and I’m really looking forward to him completing that graphic novel. $3
Update for 6/21/13
New review today for Monkey Squad One #12 by Doug Michel. Expect some sporadic reviews over the next couple of weeks as I move and get settled into a new place, or if everything goes perfectly expect no problems at all. Who else expects that to happen? Happy weekend everybody!
Michel, Doug – Monkey Squad One #12
Monkey Squad One #12
What a perfect comic to read on a Friday afternoon. Have you been following this thoroughly entertaining series for long? Maybe you find yourself a bit confused by the various plot twists and/or other realities and the constantly increasing cast of characters? Yeah, throw all that out the window. This is the last part of the current three part story, and Doug has a tendency to really bring the action in those situations. He didn’t disappoint this time around, as there’s all kinds of mayhem and explosions in here. And important story elements, don’t get me wrong, as one major character gets killed and the status of another one is in serious doubt, but the star of this issue was the non-stop action. The end of the last issue showed us the squidface Nazis, and three cheers for fictional Nazis for being so readily killable. Seriously, you can get away with just about any type of violence if it’s done to Nazis. Or zombies. Eh, at this point they’re the same thing. Anyway, getting into a lengthy review breaking down every bit of this would spoil the fun, but if you’re looking for a good time in comics, buy this issue already. Technically you should get at least the two issues that came before this to complete the story, but if you’re looking for pure mayhem this issue alone should do it for you. $2.50
Update for 6/20/13
New review today for California #3 by Rob Jackson. This week cannot end soon enough, and it’s the next one that’s supposed to be crappy. Oh well…
Jackson, Rob – California #3
California #3
In this issue: shit goes down! There, I’m experimenting with shorter reviews, what with everybody using Twitter and willingly confining themselves to 140 characters per message. Eh, that’s cheating, as I’m assuming people come here to get a little more detail out of their reviews. What’s that? You say it’s mostly just to kill time at work? Fair enough. It’s impossible to say that this is Rob’s strangest comic, because there’s quite a competition for that title, but it’s steadily gaining on his other entries. In this issue Billy confronts Jake in the basement of the church and gets the barest glimpse of what exactly is happening. But when Billy wakes up the next day he discovers that everybody except for the preacher at the other (otherwise abandoned) church has disappeared, he has to go back to his friend from the first issue for advice. And that is when shit goes down. My policy against spoilers has rarely hurt more, but if you think that cover is a rare abstract Rob Jackson cover, nope. That happens in the book, even though you most likely have no idea what’s happening just by looking at it there. Things are “to be continued” again, although I’m guessing from the pace of the story that he meant to say “to be concluded,” but what do I know? This is another impressive series from a man who has built up his own personal library over the last 8 (or so) years, and you should damned well be reading it.
Update for 6/19/13
New review today for Unknown Origins & Untimely Ends edited by Emi Gennis and featuring all sorts of folks that you already know and love.
Gennis, Emi (editor) – Unknown Origins & Untimely Ends
Unknown Origins & Untimely Ends
You should have a pretty easy time knowing whether or not you’d be inclined to like this book from the title alone, and I’m happy to tell you that the contents more than live up to it. Emi has been doing mini comics on this theme for a few years now, and she took her chance to edit this anthology and ran with it, doing a really fantastic job of picking out/accepting these stories. I should say up front that I have no patience for those stupid “ghost hunting” shows with the shaky cams and the loud noises and won’t believe that aliens have visited us until I see solid proof (which is not the same thing as declaring that no other life exists in the universe), but overall this isn’t that type of book. These are all, as Emi says in the introduction, unsolved mysteries, so the reader doesn’t get the satisfaction of getting the story neatly tied up in a bow by the end. Instead you’re left wondering what the hell happened for these 32 stories. If you’re a naturally curious person and/or at all interested in the weird and bizarre then you’ve probably already stopped reading this and ordered a copy. For those of who are too polite to quit reading in the middle of the review (and it’s OK if you do, I’ll never know), subjects include a mysterious gelatinous goo that rained down on a town, the monster with 21 faces, an unexplained shower of meat from the sky, an arcade game that quickly came and went in 1981 under mysterious circumstances, a tumor that was bigger than the carrier, Gef (of which I will say no more but this may have been the most intriguing tale in the book), that weird hum in the air that some people can hear all the time, the Nain Rouge and his continuing destruction of Detroit, the money pit of Oak Island (which some bored billionaire should look into), creepy kids with black eyes trying to enter homes, the Leatherman and theories of who he might have been, unsolved murders at a campsite, the former Prime Minister of Australia vanishing while swimming, the missing body of Addie Mae Collins, why 9 campers in Siberia ran from the safety of their tent (sometimes barefoot) and why they never went back to it, two bodies and their lead masks, Rasputin (an oldie but a goodie), Frederick Valentich and the UFO that seemed to by toying with him, D.B. Cooper and his disappearance (it’s an ever funnier story to anybody who watched Justified this season), a bridge where 600 dogs have committed suicide, the Axeman, and a serious skeleton in the closet of Orson Welles (possibly). DC comics used to do a series of “Big Books” on various subjects, and after seeing this I’d suggest that they start it up again and put Emi in charge. Not every story was perfect, granted, but good luck not having several of these stories haunt your dreams. Also good luck on not taking to the internet to learn more about them, as I already know how I’m spending the rest of my afternoon. And look at that pile of talent in the tags section! Why would you possibly need any more convincing to check this out? $12
Swartz, Frank – Star Pilot #9
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Star Pilot #9
I have this vague sense that Frank tuned down the madness just a touch for this issue which, don’t get me wrong, still leaves plenty of madness. And I mean that in the best possible sense, because the man puts out some ridiculously entertaining comics. Probably just my imagination. Anyway, this one will seem topical, as it’s all about a government that monitors everything and oppresses its citizens. For some reason this is in the news now, in the middle of 2013 (o future readers), and not so much when these actual policies were initially implemented, but that’s a whole other conversation. This one is set in 2084 (wisely following the rule of setting your future stories far enough ahead so that you’ll be dead when that date actually occurs) in a world dominated by Brother Goliath. The motivations for Brother Goliath are left vague, but they’re probably the same types of things that always motivate world conquerors. Anyway, one man is still broadcasting his message of dissent, and he is confronted and shot by another man early on in the proceedings. From there we learn a bit about Mantis Unit, a resistance group that is thought to be long since destroyed, and I’m about to start getting into serious spoilers. Battles ensue, some fantastically over the top actions take place (I particularly enjoyed the guy who shot the broadcaster explaining himself to a quizzical cat), and we get to see an eyeball in the palm of a hand used as a weapon. Frank seems to be keeping these issues more of less self-contained, so don’t worry about jumping in on #9 of a series. You could also solve that problem by ordering some of his back issues, but I’m not the boss of you. $1.25
Update for 6/17/13
New review for My Senior Year by Sarah Friedman. If all goes well I should actually be able to have a regular week of reviews this week, then next week should be a mess (I’m moving out of my current place at the end of the month), then the week after that may or may not be normal, depending on how reliable Time Warner is in getting the internet set up. But hey, quit mailing me review comics for the time being, if you please. I’ll post my new address up here soon and as of July 1st, fire away.
Friedman, Sarah – My Senior Year
My Senior Year
Is it me or is a little odd for a comic with this title to just barely touch on school? Granted, there is one brief (and funny) strip about her plans after graduation, but other than that it’s all life stuff. Not that there’s anything wrong with that! Overall it’s a pretty good comic, although I had a few issues that I’ll throw out there because hey, why else am I here? Oh crap, I better pull back in a hurry or I’ll start questioning why anything is here, then you’re in for a lengthy ramble that nobody wants to see. Her strip about her roommate making a comment while they were watching tv flew right over my head (and I am pointing out early that I am older than her and some things are very likely to fly over my head). Without any sort of context of her life and with this as an opening strip it made no sense to me, other than to imply that people can never have enough blogs. The strip where she was woken up by music from a neighbor in the wee hours of the morning could have been creepy as hell, but I couldn’t interpret her expression on that last panel. I’m guessing “backing away slowly,” as that would make the most sense, but that’s a difficult thing to pull off in a single panel. The babysitting strip was cute; no complaints there. I thought her strip about not having time for real weekends could have used a bit more room to breathe, but it was still kind of funny. The cat adoption story was cute as hell and damned near perfect, although it is a little cruel to leave your readers not knowing what happened after that last panel. Her final strip (outside of the strip I mentioned at the start of the review) about sleeping in was a good example of taking a small victory and making a strip out of it. I get the impression that this is her first comic, in which case she should definitely keep it up, as there’s plenty of potential here. No misspellings or grammatical mistakes are, sadly, a rarity, and a good step in the right direction. Maybe she should try a longer piece or two the next time around to see what comes up. So yes, it might not be perfect, but it is worth a look. $5
Update for 6/14/13
New review today for Blammo #8 by Noah Van Sciver, because there’s always time for Blammo. Happy weekend everybody!
Van Sciver, Noah – Blammo #8
Blammo #8
I often end reviews here by pointing out that you should buy the work of whoever it is I’m reviewing that day, because if enough of you do that then that person will eventually be able to make a living purely from their art, enabling them to create exactly what they want to create. Well, after a year without Blammo (he was working on a few other projects that didn’t leave him much time for it) Noah has concluded that he’s better off just working on pages after work when he gets the time. So never mind! Although I get the sneaking suspicion that he’d change his mind if somebody dumped a million dollars in his lap and told him to draw whatever the hell the wanted, but who knows? Maybe he has a fantastic day job. But hey, how about this comic of his? As always, you won’t get more out of your comics dollar than an issue of Blammo. An actual letters page, bunches of stories, there’s even a comic on the back cover for the gentler souls who may have trouble with… well, anything. Stories in here include the origin story for a dog on wheels (a creepy little toy who compels you to tell it your deepest secrets), a young man trying to reconnect with friends after backing away from them during a breakup where both members of the couple had mutual friends, Charles the chicken trying to bring Bill back to life in a series of hilariously hopeless ways, an adaptation of an old Grimm’s fable about the wolf and the fox, a man and his ill-fated attempt to get a woman to date him while he’s wandering around with a tiny grotesque man, a dream of sleeping and waking in an old apartment with serious emotional ties, punks vs. lizards (starring John Porcellino, sort of), and all kinds of strips packed into the final two pages. It’s comics like Blammo that keep me from declaring comics in this form dead entirely. It all seems to be trending towards collections or graphic novels, but this format is much more suited to a comic like this. Hey, there’s room for both. $5
Update for 6/10/13
New reviews today for Uncles #1 by Desmond Reed and Scorched Earth #1 by Tom Van Deusen. It’ll probably be another spotty week around here for reviews unless I manage to find a new place to live tomorrow, in which case… eh, that mind up spotty too. Expect spottiness for the remainder of June and be pleasantly surprised if that’s not the case, how about that?
Van Deusen, Tom – Scorched Earth #1
Scorched Earth #1
Are there any guys out there who need to feel better about their awful dating life? This might be the comic for you! Or it might not be, as at least this guy is going on dates, and maybe that is not true in your situation. Anyway! This is the story of Tom, who is either partially or not at all based on the Tom who made this comic (I’m guessing “not at all”) and a series of his dates based on women who responded to him on OKCupid. Which is the dating site for people who don’t want to pay to be on a dating site, in case you haven’t heard of it. The trouble is that Tom (the character) is an unrepentant asshole in just about every way, which makes dating difficult. His first date is with a vegan hippie lady, so his choice to start it off with a joke about “fags” doesn’t go over too well. Still, booze is a hell of a thing, and drinking enough of it would make just about anybody attractive. Tom has a shallow (but hilarious) moment, things do not end up going well and he ends up drunk at home by himself. The next morning is awful, but Tom is a trooper and already has a date lined up for dinner that night. Unfortunately the lady from his previous awful date is there as well, and the date that he did line up looks nothing like her profile picture, and there’s still all that wonderful booze around to confuse things, which is about where I have to stop getting into this to avoid spoilers. There are also three short strips at the end in the style of the old Peepshow strips (lots of tiny panels on one page, just in case any of you philistines haven’t read the early work of Joe Matt). One deals with one of the worst job interviews I’ve ever seen, one is about a party and Tom’s attempt to win everybody over, and the last one is one more date to round things out. This is funny as hell and you’re going to have a hard time reading this without ending up feeling better about yourself. After all, chances are that you aren’t nearly as big of a dick as this guy, and that’s something, right?
Reed, Desmond – Uncles #1
Uncles #1
Uncles! Rarely is the word said in terror, but Desmond does his level best here to show why that should change. This one starts off with a young man and his girlfriend wandering off into the dark woods to try and find their missing dog. They stumble across a group of Uncles eating stuff out of a dumpster, which seems a bit odd out in the middle of the woods, but ignore that bit. Possibilities race through the mind of the young man, as he’s well aware of what a terror these creatures are, but he finally settles on a solution: running away. Unfortunately this plan leaves out his girlfriend, and the rest of the issue is their eventual reunion and what happens to her after the fact. I’m used to seeing Desmond’s stories crammed into smaller pages after his last book, and this time around her really lets his characters breathe and show some full page reactions. And if you thought that maybe he chose to use a simpler style of artwork on occasion because he was hiding a lack of talent, well, worry no more, as this issue looks fantastic. I have no idea where he’s going with this (who would in a series about the terrors of Uncles?) but I’m thrilled to be along for the ride, as Desmond rarely fails to get at least a few solid chuckles out of me. Check it out, be the first on your block to learn the terrors of this strange group of people. Cartoonists, that is. Or Uncles! That works too.
Update for 6/5/13
I found the time for two reviews today: Morbid Dork #2 by Alex Nall and Tall Tales for Short Kittens #2 by Jason Payne. Maybe I’ll have time for more this week? Eh, probably.
Payne, Jason – Tall Tales for Short Kittens #2
Tall Tales for Short Kittens #2
I’m still not entirely sure how he did it, but I feel unclean after reading this. Not that there’s anything overtly gruesome or offensive about this, which is why I’m not sure how this happened. Maybe it’s the horrifying appearance of Chastity and Grace, the two sisters of evil? Chastity is basically a living beanbag with the hair of a pinhead and a gigantic bow while Grace is a… monster? Sure, let’s go with that. Anyway, this issue is another collection of thoroughly bizarre stories, although this time around some of them are going to be continued later on. Assuming that there’s a third issue, and hey, why not? Stories include the one with the three creepy sisters I mentioned before (“to be continued,” although I have no idea where it’s heading), the drunk wolf and the prank, a life lesson for a young bear (?), the nightmarish image of a female Jelli Bunni using the lower half of a human woman to rocket into space, and one page that I can’t help but use as the sample. There’s also another activity page, as Jason’s quest to warp young minds with a seemingly innocent title and promises of “fun pages” continues. This is pretty much the perfect blend of creepy and funny, although I am legally obligated to be annoyed at the (very few) spelling errors because hey, so easy to fix. Check it out! $3.50
Nall, Alex – Morbid Dork #2
Morbid Dork #2
Who likes awkward party comics? Oh, be honest, you all do. Who hasn’t either been to an awkward party or been an awkward person at a party? Every single one of you. Probably. Eh, play along. This is the story of the three guys who were introduced in the last issue going to a party. They decide that this is the best course of action despite the fact that Alex (the “normal” one of the bunch, not the creator of the comic (unless they’re one and the same)) practically goes into a crying fit at the thought of attending a strange party, much to the consternation of his friends. I’m using far too many big words to describe this comic, as the premise is simple: two out of the three of the guys are there to get laid, while Alex is apparently just hoping to survive it. As the party goes on Coop homes in on an older lady who seems interested, Jamie finds a woman who is attracted to his fro and beard, and even Alex gets shoved into a room with a gorgeous foreign exchange student who is going to be leaving the country the next day and only regrets that she “never got to have American sex.” Who thinks that everything turns out happily ever after for these three gentlemen? That wouldn’t end up being much of a story, now would it? So obviously hijinx ensue, which I’m not going to tell you about because why ruin it. It’s funny, which is all you can ask for out of a comic like this (and by “like this” I mean “meant to be funny”), and Alex (the person) did an excellent job with this story that covered the whole comic instead of a comic of short pieces. There was one copier problem where I couldn’t see what was being said, but other than that I have no complaints. $3
