Showing posts with label Dan Panosian. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Dan Panosian. Show all posts

Friday, June 26, 2026

I Reads You Juniors: June 2026 - UPDATE #38

by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"

You can support Leroy via Paypal or on Patreon.

Amazon wants me to inform/remind you that any affiliate links found on this page are PAID ADS, but I technically only get paid (eventually) if you click on affiliate links like these, BOOKS PAGE, GRAPHIC NOVELS, or MANGA PAGE and BUY something(s).

TREATS - From AnotherCookie:  There is a new online cookie retailer. It is called "AnotherCookie?" and the cookies are delicious.

NEWS:

DC STUDIOS - From THR:  Warner Bros. Animation and DC Studios are developing an animated series based on the smash-hit "Batman" comic book series, "Absolute Batman."  Series creators, writer Scott Snyder and artist Nick Dragotta, are involved in the development.

From TheWrap:  Currently starring in the film, "Supergirl," "Krypto the Super-Dog" is about to receive an animated series set outside the adventures of Superman and Supergirl.  "Krypto" will be executive produced by C.H. Greenblatt and is from Warner Bros. Animation and DC Studios, and the series will be aimed at younger viewers.  Greenblatt created Cartoon Network's "Chowder" (2007-10) and Nickelodeon's "Harvey Beaks."

From DCBlogJason Momoa talks bringing swagger as "Lobo" to the new film, "Supergirl."
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COMICS TO ANIMATION - From TheWrap:  "Conan the Barbarian" is becoming a new animated series from animation legend Genndy Tartakovsky, Cartoon Network Studios, and Amazon Prime Video.

IMAGE COMICS - From CBR:  Prime Video's animated hit, "Invincible" (based on the Robert Kirkman's Image Comics series), just wrapped up its fourth season (May 2026).  Season 5 is being prepped for 2027. Now, comes word that Prime Video has apparently renewed the series for a sixth season, presumably for 2028.

DYNAMITE - From BleedingCool:  Actress Cassandra Peterson, also known as "Elvira, Mistress of the Dark," has a memoir, "Yours Cruelly: Becoming Elvira."  Now, it is being adapted into a new graphic novel from Dynamite.  It is the production of Cassandra and her frequent collaborator, writer David AvalloneMariano Benitez-Chapo is joining this team as the artist to help bring Elvira’s real-life story to comics.  "Yours Cruelly: Becoming Elvira" arrives in hardcover on September 16, 2026, expanding Elvira’s comics legacy.

MARVEL - From YahooEntertaiment:  Writer-artist Dan Panosian will take Wolverine into the Miami criminal underworld in an upcoming four-issue miniseries, "Wolverine: Paradise."  "Wolverine: Paradise #1" was due October 14, 2026.

ARCHIE - From 9fin:  I didn't know that there was some kind of mega-legal drama going on concerning the ownership of Archie Comics, media rights, borrowed money, and debt.

DARK HORSE/MARVEL - From BleedingCool:  Dark Horse Comics is launching "Marvel Black & White." It is a line of oversized, archival editions that will present iconic Marvel Comics stories in black and white.  The first book in the line will be "Marvel Black & White: Barry Windsor-Smith's Weapon X," which will reprint writer-artist Barry Windsor-Smith's iconic Wolverine origin story, "Weapon X," that was published in Marvel Comics #72-#84 in 1991.  The new book is due November 2026 and will retail for $60.

COMICS - From PopverseRob Liefeld has decided to NOT write his tell-all memoir about his mercurial career in comic books and media. [Sigh]

EN MEMORIAM - From BleedingCool:  The French and Iranian graphic novelist, comics creator, film director, children's book author, Marjane Satrapi, has died at the age of 56, Thursday, June 4, 2026.  Satrapi was best known as the author of the autobiographical graphic novel series, "Persepolis."  The first volume of Persepolis was published by L'Association in 2000. "Persepolis: The Story of Childhood Vol. 1" was published in 2003 by Pantheon.  She was also known for her 2006 graphic novel, "Chicken with Plums."  Satrapi co-directed an animated feature film adaptation of "Persepolis" (2007), which earned an Oscar-nomination for "Best Animated Feature."  Among her live-action films was also an adaptation of "Chicken with Plums" (2011).

DC STUDIOS - From ThePlaylistJames Gunn has revealed an image of Lex Luthor's "Warsuit" that will appear in the "Superman" (2025) sequel, "Man of Tomorrow" (2027).

COMICS - From ComicsBeatMad Cave Studios will release "Denver."  It is a dystopian, post-climate change thriller written by Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray; drawn by Pier Brito; and lettered by the late Bill Tortolini (who died of a heart attack in 2021 at the age of 46).  The series is set in a future where the capital of Colorado has become one of the few safe cities after most of the planet was devastated by rising oceans.  "Denver #1" is set for a August 26, 2026 release.

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MAY 2026 COMICS SOLICITATIONS:
From BleedingCool:  Antarctic Press for May 2026
From BleedingCool:  Bad Idea Comics for May 2026
From BleedingCool:  BOOM! Studios for May 2026
From BleedingCool:  Dark Horse Comics for May 2026
From BleedingCool:  DC Comics for May 2026
From BleedingCool:  Dynamite Entertainment for May 2026
From BleedingCool:  IDW Publishing for May 2026
From BleedingCool:  Ignition Press for May 2026
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics for May 2026
From BleedingCool:  Invader Comics for May 2026
From BleedingCool:  Drawn & Quarterly for May 2026
From BleedingCool:  Keenspot Entertainment for May 2026
From BleedingCool:  Mad Cave Studios for May 2026
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics for May 2026
From BleedingCool:  Oni Press for May 2026
From BleedingCool:  Rebellion/2000 AD for May 2026
From BleedingCool:  Titan Comics for May 2026
From BleedingCool:  Valiant Comics for May 2026

JUNE 2026 COMICS SOLICITATIONS:
From BleedingCool:  Abrams for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  AMP Comics for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  Antarctic Press for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  Archie Comics for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  AWA Studios for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  Bad Idea Comics for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  BOOM! Studios for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  Dark Horse Comics for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  DC Comics for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  Devil's Due Studios for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  Drawn & Quarterly for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  Dynamite Entertainment for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  Fantagraphics for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  HarperCollins for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  Heavy Metal Magazines for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  Hoffman International and Warrant Publishing for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  IDW Publishing for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  Keenspot for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  Mad Cave Studios for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics "Captain America" for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  Massive Selects for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  Midnight Factory for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  Oni Press for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  Rebellion/2000 AD for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  Red 5 Comics for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  Source Point Press for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  Titan Comics for June 2026
From BleedingCool:  Valiant Comics for June 2026

JULY 2026 COMICS SOLICITATIONS:
From BleedingCool:  Ablaze for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Abrams for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  American Mythology for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Antarctic Press for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  AMP Comics for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Archie Comics for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  AWA Studios for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Bad Idea for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  BOOM! Studios for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Comics! The Magazine for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Cosmic Lion for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Dark Horse Comics for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  DC Comics for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  DC Comics "Absolute Batman #22" for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  DC Comics "Superman" for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Devil's Due for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Drawn & Quarterly for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Dstlry Comics for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Dynamite Entertainment for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Fantagraphics for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Heavy Metal Magazine for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  IDW Publishing for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Ignition Press for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics Todd McFarlane titles for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Iron Age Comics for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Keenspot for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Mad Cave for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics "Armageddon" for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics "Queen in Black" titles for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Massive for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Midnight Factory for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Part-Time Comics for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Rae Media for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Rebellion/2000 AD for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Rekcah for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Red 5 Comics for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Rocketship for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Ruptura Comics for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Scholastic for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  SHP for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Source Point Press for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Storm King Comics for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Titan Comics for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Udon Studios for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Valiant Comics for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Vault Comics for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Warrant and Hoffman for July 2026
From BleedingCool:  Wise Acre Comics for July 2026

AUGUST 2026 COMICS SOLICITATIONS:
From BleedingCool:  Ablaze for August 2026
From BleedingCool:  Antarctic Press for August 2026
From BleedingCool:  Archie Comics for August 2026
From BleedingCool:  Asylum Press for August 2026
From BleedingCool:  Bad Idea Comics for August 2026
From BleedingCool:  DC Comics for August 2026
From BleedingCool:  Dynamite Entertainment for August 2026
From BleedingCool:  IDW Publishing for August 2026
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics for August 2026
From BleedingCool:  Mad Cave for August 2026
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics for August 2026
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics' "Armageddon" titles for August 2026
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics' "X-Men DNX" titles for August 2026
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics' "Queen in Black" titles for August 2026
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics' "What If" titles for August 2026
From BleedingCool:  Oni Press for August 2026
From BleedingCool:  Titan Publishing for August 2026
From BleedingCool:  Valiant Comics for August 2026
From BleedingCool:  Vault Comics for August 2026
From BleedingCool:  Z2 for August 2026

SEPTEMBER 2026 COMICS SOLICITATIONS:
From BleedingCool:  DC Comics "Wonder Woman Wonder War" titles for September 2026
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Cmics "Avengers Armageddon" titles for September 2026
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics "Queen in Black" titles for September 2026
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics' "X-Men DNX" titles for September 2026


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Wednesday, August 6, 2025

#IReadsYou Review: ARCHIE MEETS JAY & SILENT BOB

ARCHIE MEETS JAY & SILENT BOB
ARCHIE COMIC PUBLICATIONS, INC.

STORY: Kevin Smith
PENCILS: Fernando Ruiz
INKS: Rich Koslowski
COLORS: Matt Herms
LETTERS: Jack Morelli
EDITORS: Jamie Lee Rotante; Vincent Lovallo; Stephen Oswald
EiC: Mike Pellerito
COVER: Fernando Ruiz and Rich Koslowski with Rosario “Tito” Peña
VARIANT COVER ARTISTS: Francesco Francavilla; Phil Hester; Dan Parent; Ty Templeton; Dan Panosian; Michael Allred; Fernando Ruiz and Rich Koslowski with Rosario “Tito” Peña
48pp, Color, $7.99 U.S. (regular covers), $11.99 (foil variants) (September 2025); on sale in comic book shops July 9, 2025

Rating: Teen+/Mature

Eternal high school student and teenage boy, Archie Andrews, and his friends made their debut in M.L.J. Magazines' Pep Comics #22 (cover dated: December 1941), and before long, Archie was the publisher's headliner character.  In 1946, the company changed its named to Archie Comic Publications, also known as “Archie Comics.”

“Archie Meets” is a series of mostly one-shot comic books which features the cast of the Archie comic book franchise meeting other fictional pop culture characters or real-life figures.  The first was Archie Meets the Punisher from Archie Comics and The Punisher Meets Archie from Marvel Comics.  The latest is Archie Meets Jay and Silent Bob.  Film fans know that the characters, “Jay and Silent Bob,” appear in some of the films from writer-director Kevin Smith.  Jay, played by actor Jason Mewes, and Silent Bob, played by Kevin Smith, himself, first appeared in the film, Clerks (1994), and went on to appear in several of Smith's film, including their own Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (2001).

Archie Meets Jay and Silent Bob is written by Kevin Smith, drawn by Fernando Ruiz (pencils) and Rich Koslowski (inks); colored by Matt Herms; and lettered by the great Jack Morelli.  In this new one-shot, a summer job turns into so much more when Archie meets Jay and Silent Bob.

Archie Comics & Secret Stash Press Present “Jay & Silent Bob: Chasing Archie”:

“Jay & Silent Bob: Chasing Archie” opens at “Quick Stop Groceries” where Randal Graves is thinking about the recent passing of his friend, Dante Hicks (as seen in 2022's Clerks III).  He also thinks that he and his coworker, Elias Grover, should not work as hard as they are, although Randal doesn't really work hard.  Enter Archie Andrews – out of Riverdale and in New Jersey looking for a job.

Our All-American boy has entered the world of profanity, scatological conversation, and weed, but there is even more.  Before long, Archie has met Jay & Silent Bob and has entered “RST THC” (formerly “RST Video”), their small business, a legal marijuana dispensary.  Archie's new Jersey acquaintances all think he is square.  Then, they learn that he is in a rock 'n' roll band, “The Archies.”

As luck would have it, The Archies are opening for “Josie and the Pussycats” on the power trio's Riverdale stop of their current concert series, “The Ersatz Tour,” at the “Riverdale Arena.”  Jay's daughter, Millennium “Milley” Faulken,” loves Josie and the Pussycats.  So, now, Randal, Jay & Silent Bob, Millie, Elias, and tag-along Blockchain are heading to Riverdale for the concert.  But when one of the visitors decides to crash one of the bands' set, who knows just how crazy it will get.

THE LOWDOWN:   For several years, Archie's marketing department has been sending me PDF copies of some of their titles for review.  One of the most recent is Archie Meets Jay & Silent Bob.

Right from the start, I have to say that I love Archie Meets Jay & Silent Bob, and I do mean love.  As for as celebrity-written Archie comics one-shots go, Kevin Smith's turn here works out much better than October 2024's mildly disappointing and slightly over-hyped Archie: The Decision, written by DC Comics superstar writer, Tom King.

Kevin Smith makes Archie Meets Jay & Silent Bob read like genuine Archie Comics, even with all the profanity (the F-bomb, among them), sexual innuendo, and drug references.  In fact, the adult, or at least, older-teen elements don't seem all that out of place simply because this comic book is such a fun read.  The happy ending makes me think that Kevin Smith, Jay & Silent Bob, and the “View Askewniverse” should make regular visits to Riverdale and vice versa.

The pencil art by Fernando Ruiz is classic Archie Comics storytelling and conveys a sense of spry, slightly edgy comedy that Kevin Smith brings to this and that frequently yields surprises – some of them shameless.  Rich Koslowski, a frequent Archie Comics contributor, uses his solid inking on Ruiz's pencil art to sharpen the storytelling's focus.  The colors by Matt Herms and the letters by the great Jack Morelli put the finishing touches that make Kevin Smith's characters and situations feel right at home in the world of Archie.

Archie Meets Jay & Silent Bob is really a big deal.  It is a classic-style Archie Comics comic book, so I automatically love it.  However, dear readers, Kevin Smith and the creative team so completely pull off this crossover slash mashup that I think anyone who has ever enjoyed an Archie comic book will certainly enjoy Archie Meets Jay & Silent Bob.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Fans of classic-style Archie Comics and of Kevin Smith will want to find a copy of Archie Meets Jay & Silent Bob.

A
★★★★ out of 4 stars

EXTRAS:
-- This comic book includes a “Special Feature, an essay by Fernando Ruiz entitled, “Notes from New Jersey … and Riverdale!.” in which Ruiz writes about his collaboration on this comic book with writer Kevin Smith.  This piece also includes preliminary art and a color sketch.]

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"

The Kindle edition of ARCHIE MEETS JAY & SILENT BOB is available at Amazon.

https://archiecomics.com/
https://x.com/archiecomics
https://www.instagram.com/archiecomics/
https://www.facebook.com/ArchieComicsOfficial?ref=tn_tnmn
https://www.youtube.com/user/ArchieComicsOfficial
https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/8914136-archie-comics


The text is copyright © 2025 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

----------------------

Amazon wants me to inform/remind you that any affiliate links found on this page are PAID ADS, but I technically only get paid (eventually) if you click on affiliate links like these, BOOKS PAGE, GRAPHIC NOVELS, or MANGA PAGE and BUY something(s).


Monday, July 7, 2025

BOOM! Studios Comics Releases for July 9, 2025

BOOM! STUDIOS

Hello Darkness #12 (Cover A Miguel Mercado), $5.99
Hello Darkness #12 (Cover B Jenny Frison), $5.99
Hello Darkness #12 (Cover C Martin Morazzo Full Art Variant), $5.99
Hello Darkness #12 (Cover D Dan Panosian BOOM 20th Anniversary Variant), $5.99
Hello Darkness #12 (Cover E Dan Panosian BOOM 20th Anniversary Full Art Variant), AR
Uncanny Valley #10 (Of 10)(Cover A Dave Wachter), $4.99
Uncanny Valley #10 (Of 10)(Cover B Tony Fleecs), $4.99
Uncanny Valley #10 (Of 10)(Cover C Dave Wachter Full Art Variant), AR
Zombie Tales Complete Collection TP, $19.99

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Thursday, April 3, 2025

#IReadsYou Review: CONAN THE BARBARIAN #6

CONAN THE BARBARIAN #6 (2023)
TITAN COMICS/Heroic Signatures

STORY: Jim Zub
ART: Doug Braithwaite
COLORS: Diego Rodriguez
LETTERS: Richard Starkings of Comicraft
EDITOR: Matt Murray
COVER: Mike Deodato
VARIANT COVER ARTISTS: Patch Zircher; Dan Panosian; Joey Spiiotto
32pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (January 2024)

Suggested for mature readers

“Thrice Marked for Death!” Part II: “The Cursed”

Conan the Cimmerian was born in the pulp fiction of Robert E. Howard (REH), first appearing in the magazine, Weird Tales (1932).  In 1970, Marvel Comics brought Conan to the world of comic books via the title, Conan the Barbarian. With only a few pauses, Conan comic books have been published for the better part of five decades.

Titan Comics and Heroic Signatures are the new producers of Conan comic books, and they launched a new Conan the Barbarian series in 2023.  The current story arc is written by Jim Zub; drawn by Doug Braithwaite; colored by Diego Rodriguez; and lettered by Richard Starkings.  Entitled “Thrice Marked for Death!,” the arc finds Conan taking up with a thieves guild known as “The Gloryhounds,” and the target of their latest act of larceny is a fine-cut, dark stone that only Conan realizes is dangerous.

Conan the Barbarian #6 (“The Cursed”) opens with what happens when Conan is ignored.  One of the Gloryhounds has touched their quarry, the dark stone known as “Tarim's Touch,” which only Conan realizes is a shard of the dreaded “Black Stone.”  Now, malevolent specters have emerged from the stone, and they are ready to possess some unwary human flesh.  The thieves will have to use all their skills to escape these dark spirits, but only Conan's savage swordsmanship can save them from the guards of the Temple of Bel.

Also, Conan ruminates on the loss of Belit, captain of the Trigress and Queen of the Black Coast.  Haunted by memories of his greatest love, Conan may not realize that the heist of Tarim's Touch may have caused him to plunge ever deeper into chaos.

THE LOWDOWN:  Titan Comics has been providing me with PDF copies of their publications for review for several years now.  Conan the Barbarian #6 is a recent arrival.

Halfway through this new Conan the Barbarian story arc and writer Jim Zub is still throwing down like he's been throwing down.  His first Conan the Barbarian story arc was a brawny jewel true to the tradition of the weird fiction that spawned Conan over nine decades ago.  This second arc, “Thrice Marked for Death!,” is downright murderous and is unremittingly dark.  And I like it.  I like that Conan is also vulnerable and lost in a kind of grief that is as unrelenting aggressive as he is.

Doug Braithwaite, the artist for this story arc, recalls all the shadowy textures and muscular storytelling that the late great artist, John Buscema, brought to all his Conan comic books.  Braithwaite made the first chapter of this arc, “The Heist,” dark, creepy, dirty, and nasty.  For “The Cursed,” Braithwaite goes full action movie with daring escapes and a kinetic sense that thrums between the panels.  Diego Rodriguez's colors make the action pop all the more.

Once again, Richard Starking's letters give this Conan the Barbarian comic book an audio track so that the reader might imagine to hear the clash of swords.  So, dear readers, you must give this comic book a try.  Every page is a pure Conan joy to read.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Fans of Conan comic books will want to try Titan Comics and Heroic Signatures' Conan the Barbarian.

[This comic book includes the essay, “Robert E. Howard and His Ages Undreamed Of” Part Six, by Jeffrey Shanks.]

A

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"

The trade paperback that collects this issue, CONAN THE BARBARIAN: THRICE MARKED FOR DEATH VOL. 2, is available at Amazon.

https://titan-comics.com/
https://twitter.com/ComicsTitan
https://www.instagram.com/titancomics/
https://www.facebook.com/ComicsTitan


The text is copyright © 2024 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

------------------------

Amazon wants me to inform/remind you that any affiliate links found on this page are PAID ADS, but I technically only get paid (eventually) if you click on affiliate links like these, BOOKS PAGE, GRAPHIC NOVELS, or MANGA PAGE and BUY something(s).


Wednesday, January 29, 2025

#IReadsYou Review: THE MAGIC ORDER 4 #5

THE MAGIC ORDER 4 #5 (OF 6)
IMAGE COMICS/Netflix

STORY: Mark Millar
ART: Dike Ruan
COLORS: Giovanna Niro
LETTERS: Clem Robins
EDITORIAL: Sarah Unwin
COVER: Dike Ruan with Giovanna Niro
VARIANT COVER ARTISTS: Dan Panosian; Dike Ruan
36pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (May 2023)

Rated M / Mature

The Magic Order created by Mark Millar at Netflix

The Magic Order 4 is a six-issue miniseries from writer Mark Millar and artist Dike Ruan.  The is the fourth installment of The Magic Order series, which began with the 2018-19 miniseries written by Millar and drawn by Olivier Coipel.  The Magic Order is a band of sorcerers, magicians, and wizards – with a focus on the Moonstone family – that live ordinary lives by day, but protect humanity from darkness and monsters of impossible sizes by night.  Colorist Giovanna Niro and letterer Clem Robins complete the series creative team.

The Magic Order 4 focuses on a coup within the order, one that has left the Moonstones defeated … seemingly … by the dark one who always wanted to rule the order – the supposedly defeated Madame Albany.  Now, to save everything, Cordelia Moonstone, the now deposed leader, will have to go way down in the dirty dirty to restore order.

The Magic Order 4 #5 opens in the world/dimension known as “Kolthur,” the realm of the Wizard King.  Cordelia must face her brother, Perditus, her parents' eldest child, the one who was given to the Hordes of Kolthur when he was but a child.  Now, Perditus just wants to kill his li'l sis, Cordelia Moonstone.

It is looking like Cordelia won't be able to defeat her powerful sibling, but she must if she is going to return to Earth.  Madame Albany is already plotting to destroy reality.

THE LOWDOWN:  My favorite Mark Millar Netflix creation is The Magic Order.  It always surprises me, and before I read each issue I wonder not if, but how I will be surprised.  Every time I think I might creep away and choose a new Millarworld favorite to love, The Magic Order drags me back.

I mentioned in my review of the final issue of Millar's superhero miniseries, The Ambassadors, that he is really good at writing penultimate issues.  I referenced The Magic Order series as being great examples of what Millar can do with penultimate (second-to-last) and last issues.  The Magic Order 4 #5 perfectly encapsulates how well Millar sets up the penultimate issues of The Magic Order.  It's the end of the world and more, if our heroes can't save the day, and it feels like it.  I don't have any idea how the sixth issue will conclude this arc, but I'm sure it will be heart-stopping.

Artist Dike Ruan has turned in some of his best work here.  He creates the visual and graphical landscape of reality in the throes of madness as it approaches oblivion, and Giovanna Niro's colors lights it all on fire so that this issue resembles a view of a Hellscape.

So batten down the hatches, it's rough sailing to the end of this great big fuck-apocalypse of a miniseries.  If you want to really be here for the ending, dear readers, catch up on The Magic Order 4.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Fans of Mark Millar and of The Magic Order will want to read The Magic Order 4.

A+

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


https://www.mrmarkmillar.com/
https://twitter.com/ImageComics
https://twitter.com/mrmarkmillar
https://twitter.com/netflix
https://twitter.com/themagicorder
http://www.millarworld.tv/
www.imagecomics.com


The text is copyright © 2023 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

--------------------------

Amazon wants me to inform/remind you that any affiliate links found on this page are PAID ADS, but I technically only get paid (eventually) if you click on affiliate links like these, BOOKS PAGE, GRAPHIC NOVELS, or MANGA PAGE and BUY something(s).


Sunday, July 21, 2024

#IReadsYou Movie Review: LOGAN

Logan (2017)

Running time:  137 minutes (2 hours, 17 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for strong brutal violence and language throughout, and for brief nudity
DIRECTOR:  James Mangold
WRITERS:  James Mangold & Scott Frank and Michael Green; from a story by James Mangold (based on the characters and stories appearing in Marvel Comics)
PRODUCERS:  Simon Kinberg, Hutch Parker, and Lauren Shuler Donner
CINEMATOGRAHER: John Mathieson (D.o.P.)
EDITORS:  Michael McCusker and Dirk Westervelt
COMPOSER:  Marco Beltrami
Academy Award nominee

SUPERHERO/ACTION/DRAMA

Starring:  Hugh Jackman, Patrick Stewart, Dafne Keen, Boyd Holbrook, Stephen Merchant, Elizabeth Rodriguez, Richard E. Grant, Eriq La Salle, Elise Neal, Quincy Fouse, Jason Genao, and Bryant Tardy

Logan is a 2017 American drama, action film and superhero movie from director James Mangold.  Starring Hugh Jackman in the title role, it is the tenth film in 20th Century Fox's X-Men movie franchise and is also the third entry in the Wolverine film series.  Logan is based on the Marvel Comics character, Logan/Wolverine, that was created by writer Len Wein and artists John Romita and Herb Trimpe and first fully appeared in the comic book, The Incredible Hulk #181 (cover dated: November 1974).  Logan the movie focuses on a legendary mutant trying to save a mutant child from the evil people determined to capture her.

Logan opens in the year 2029.  Mutants are nearly extinct, and no new mutants have been born in 24 years.  The aging and ailing Logan (Hugh Jackman) works as a limousine driver in El Paso, Texas.  Once upon a time, he was known as “Wolverine,” and he was a member of the legendary band of mutants, the “X-Men.”  Now, he and the elderly founder of the X-Men, Charles Xavier (Patrick Stewart), live in hiding. Xavier suffers from a degenerative brain condition, and he sometimes has telepathic seizures that render anyone in the vicinity virtually helpless.  A mutant known as “Caliban” (Stephen Merchant) helps Logan care for Charles.

Logan has plans for escape, but a complication arrives in the form of a small girl named Laura (Dafne Keen), also known as test subject “X23.”  She is a mutant and her abilities are remarkably similar to those of Wolverine's.  However, she is being hunted by Donald Pierce (Boyd Holbrook) and his band of killers, the “Reavers.”  They are in service of the research institute, Alkali Transigen, and the scientists there want her back no matter what it costs in terms of lives.  Will Logan become the hero Wolverine, again, and help Laura get to a place called “Eden?”  Or will he run away from his fate, again?

Having seen the first two Wolverine films, X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009) and The Wolverine (2013), I did not go to the theater to see Logan when it was originally released in 2017.  [In my defense, I was knee deep in catastrophic family drama at the time.]  With the impending release of the upcoming Marvel Studios film, Deadpool & Wolverine, I decided it was time.

My was I missing an excellent film.  Logan is by far the best of the Wolverine films, and at the time of its release, it was the best X-Men since 2011's X-Men: First Class.  Truthfully, Logan would end up being the last really good X-Men film produced by 20th Century Fox.

Logan, which was rated “R” by the MPAA, is one of the most violent superhero films that I've ever seen.  Logan, Laura, and a surprise character called “X24” disembowel, dismember, behead, eviscerate, stab, and chop up what seems like a small town's worth of deserving men of various stripes.  Although I can sometimes be a prude about what I see as gratuitous violence in cinema, I love the brutal violence of Logan.  In fact, all the action scenes in Logan are brilliant, from the standoffs to the fights and car chases.

However, director James Mangold, a filmmaker with a hugely diverse filmography, makes Logan turn on dramatic storytelling and performances.  It is obvious that Hugh Jackman as Logan and Patrick Stewart as Charles Xavier would give fine performances.  Still, actor and comedian, Stephen Merchant, is simply wonderful in the important supporting role of Caliban, bringing pathos and depth to a role that could have ended up being an extraneous freak character.

Boyd Holbrook also brings range and a variety of moods to Donald Pierce, another character that could have been a generic mercenary type.  Dafne Keen matches the rage and range of Jackman as Logan.  Laura could have been lost in the hurricane that is Logan/Wolverine's story in this film, but Keen makes Laura a force of her own.  Also, I would be remiss if I didn't mention that Eriq La Salle makes the most of his short time on screen as Will Munson.

Logan is a mournful film.  It really is not a sequel to the earlier Wolverine films so much as it is the completion of Logan/Wolverine's tragic, but heroic story arc that buttressed the earlier films.  Logan is both an ending and a beginning, and I wish that the care and effort put into this film had been put into some of the other X-Men films.


A
★★★★ out of 4 stars

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


NOTES:
The mock X-Men comic books that appear in this film were produced by writer Joe Quesada and artist Dan Panosian.


The text is copyright © 2024 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site or blog for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

-------------------------------


Tuesday, February 13, 2024

#IReadsYou Review: CONAN THE BARBARIAN #1

CONAN THE BARBARIAN #1 (2023)
TITAN COMICS/Heroic Signatures

STORY: Jim Zub
ART: Roberto de la Torre
COLORS: José Villarrubia
LETTERS: Richard Starkings of Comicraft
EDITOR: Phoebe Hedges
COVER: Dan Panosian
VARIANT COVER ARTISTS: Roberto de la Torre; Artgerm; Patch Zircher; Mike Mignola; E.M. Gist, Dan Panosian; Jae Lee; Colleen Doran; Chris Jones; Dave Wilkins; Mark Schultz; Junggeon Yoon; Ian Nicholls; Eric Ray; Jay Anacleto; Chris Ehnot
32pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (August 2023)

Suggested for mature readers

“Bound in Black Stone” Part I: “Scourge of the Dead”

Conan the Cimmerian was born in the pulp fiction of Robert E. Howard (REH), first appearing in the magazine, Weird Tales (1932).  In 1970, Marvel Comics brought Conan to the world of comic books via the title, Conan the Barbarian. With only a few pauses, Conan comic books have been published for the better part of five decades.

Titan Comics and Heroic Signatures are the new producers of Conan comic books, and they start with a new Conan the Barbarian series.  It is written by Jim Zub; drawn by Roberto de la Torre; colored by José Villarrubia; and lettered by Richard Starkings.  The new series finds Conan returned to his homeland of Cimmeria just when it faces a terrible new threat.

Conan the Barbarian #1 (“Scourge of the Dead”) opens in Northern Aquilonia, specifically at the outpost known as “Hauler's Roam.”  Recently arrived, Conan the Cimmerian is the closest that he has been to his homeland of Cimmeria in eight years.  But first, he must extricate himself from “the Bleeders,” the band of mercenaries of which he has been a part.

A weary Conan has returned to his homeland to seek rest and solitude, but a mysterious scout, Brissa, rides into Haurler's Roam” with a warning of an imminent threat on the march from the Pictish wilderness.  Will Conan and his new ally be able to hold off this new horde of invaders?

THE LOWDOWN:  Titan Comics has been providing me with PDF copies of their publications for review for several years now.  Their debut Conan title, Conan the Barbarian #1, is the latest.

When Marvel Comics resumed publishing Conan the Barbarian comic books in 2019 – for the first time since the late 1990s – I was somewhat exited.  I read a few issue, and while they did recall some of the best of classic Marvel Conan for me, I saw no reason to keep reading past the first six months of the revival.

Titan Comics and Heroic Signatures' debut Conan the Barbarian #1 seems a bit edgier than Marvel Comics' 2019 Conan the Barbarian... at least, in hindsight to me.  Part of it may be that writer Jim Zub's introductory story fits itself in with some of the literary Conan chronologies.  For instance, “Scourge of the Dead” references the “Sack of Venarium,” also known as the “Battle of Venarium,” which is depicted in the 2003 Conan novel, Conan of Venarium, written by Harry Turtledove.

Conan is apparently 14 or 15 at the time of the battle, but Zub may be setting his age at 16.  Eight years later, this story, “Scourge of the Dead” begins, and Zub references Conan's “twenty-four summers.”  In an interview, Zub said that this story takes place after the original Robert E. Howard Conan short story, “The Frost-Giant's Daughter.”  In some Conan chronologies, Conan is almost 30 at this point.

That said, by firmly planting Conan in a literary tradition, Zub makes this story feel like something substantial in the catalog of Conan fiction and storytelling.  This is something more than just another licensed comic book tie-in.  Also, having Conan face a seemingly unstoppable horde of ravenous killers also gives the story a kick.

The art and storytelling by artist Roberto de la Torre is what really sells Zub's script.  De la Torre's art here resembles of mix of the late John Buscema's Conan the Barbarian comic books and the late Joe Kubert's Tor comics.  De la Torre makes me feel the blood, violence, and the heat of bone-breaking, and he creates a sense of foreboding and then, terror when the horde strikes.

The art looks even more gorgeous under the colors of José Villarubia, one of the best and most skilled comic book colorists working in American comic books over the last three decades.  Richard Starkings' lettering is the cherry on top of this excellent graphics package.

Will I lose interest in this new series?  There is a good chance that I will, eventually, but I may stick around for longer than I did with the Marvel relaunch.  This new series is not standard Conan the Barbarian, and I like Conan enough to have watched three Conan films:  Conan the Barbarian (1982), Conan the Destroyer (1984), and Conan the Barbarian (2011), many times.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Fans of Conan comic books will want to try Titan Comics and Heroic Signatures' Conan the Barbarian.

[This comic book includes the essay, “Robert E. Howard and His Ages Undreamed Of,” by Jeffrey Shanks.]

A

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


https://titan-comics.com/
https://twitter.com/ComicsTitan
https://www.instagram.com/titancomics/
https://www.facebook.com/ComicsTitan


The text is copyright © 2023 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Wednesday, October 4, 2023

#IReadsYou Review: BLACK TAPE #4

BLACK TAPE #4 (OF 4)
AWA STUDIOS

STORY: Dan Panosian
ART: Dalibor Talajić
COLORS: Ive Svorcina
LETTERS: Steve Wands
COVER: Dan Panosian
VARIANT COVER ARTISTS: Cary Nord; Chris Ferguson; Dan Panosian (B&W)
32pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (May 2023)

Rated: “Teen+”

Black Tape is a four-issue comic book miniseries from writer Dan Panosian and artist Dalibor Talajić.  Published by AWA Studios, the miniseries follows the widow of a rock'n'roll god who is dealing with her grief, even as dark forces conspire to obtain her late husband's last album, which supposedly has special powers.  Colorist Ive Svorcina and letterer Steve Wands complete the series creative team.

In Black Tape, Jack King, one of the most influential rock 'n roll musicians of all time, suddenly dies on stage.  Jack's mysterious death causes his widow, Cindy, both to grapple with grief and to ask some very important questions.  For instance, was his death an accident or was it something far more sinister?  And now, malevolent people are seeking the master tapes for the album Jack produced shortly before his death.  Entitled “Black Tape,” it just might open a doorway to hell.

It is a dark and stormy night when Black Tape #4 opens.  The acolytes of Jack King have gathered at the home he shared with his widow, Cindy.  One of the acolytes, Frank, is spoiling for a fight with Cindy's friend, Cody.  Soon, the “Black Tape” will be played, and Cindy will be sacrificed as part of a ritual – to open up a portal for Satan!  Of course, nothing will go as expected.

THE LOWDOWN:  AWA Studios' marketing recently began providing me with PDF review copies of their comic book publications.  One of PDFs received is Black Tape #4, the second issue of the series that I have read.

I have not read the first two issues of Black Tape, but AWA Studios' marketing department has written up some perfectly detailed and aptly intriguing summaries for them.  I can say that the publisher knows how to sell the book.  I find myself intrigued by what I have read.

Writer Dan Panosian, who is also a hugely talented illustrator and comic book artist, has cast a devilish spell with Black Tape.  In turn, Dalibor Talajić has transformed Panosian's story into powerful comic book and graphical storytelling.  Black Tape looks and feels hoary and diabolical, and Ive Svorcina's colors creates a sense of shifting realities and nightmares.  The cherry on top is Steve Wands' patient and matter-of-fact lettering,  This resulted in a powerful penultimate chapter.

That said, Black Tape #4 is a bit of a letdown.  It takes the easy way out.  It can't go all the way in on the Apocalypse, nor can it play happy ending.  This final issue is more like the end of the first chapter and the beginning of what will come next.  That is not necessarily a bad thing, but it cheats the great ending that I know Panosian and Talajić could have delivered.  Still, Black Tape will make a … helluva read in trade paperback form.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:   Fans of fiction about people who sell their souls to the Devil and the subsequent consequences will want some Black Tape.

A-

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


AWA Website: https://awastudios.net/
AWA Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/awastudiosofficial/
AWA Twitter: https://twitter.com/AWA_Studios
AWA Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/awastudiosofficial


The text is copyright © 2023 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

-----------------------

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Tuesday, August 1, 2023

Titan Comics Returns "CONAN THE BARBARIAN" to Comic Books Shops on August 2nd


"Conan the Barbarian #1 COVER D." "Retro Theme" variant cover art by Patch Zircher.

ROBERT E. HOWARD'S LEGENDARY CONAN IS BACK IN A NEW TALE OF BRAVERY AND HEROISM! CONAN THE BARBARIAN FCBD EDITION LEADS INTO THE DEBUT ISSUE

Years after the battle of Venarium, a weary CONAN returns to his homeland to seek rest and solitude. However, a mysterious scout rides in to warn the Cimmerians of an imminent threat on the march from the Pictish wilderness. Will CONAN and his new ally be able to hold off this new horde of invaders?

CONAN THE BARBARIAN #1 (ONGOING):
Writer: JIM ZUB
Artist: ROBERTO DE LA TORRE
Colorist: JOSÉ VILLARRUBIA
Letterer: RICHARD STARKINGS OF COMICRAFT
Publishers: HEROIC SIGNATURES & TITAN COMICS
FC, 32pp, $3.99, On sale: August 2, 2023

Issue #1 covers:
MAY231133 COVER A: DAN PANOSIAN
MAY231134 COVER B: ROBERTO DE LA TORRE
MAY231135 COVER C: ARTGERM
MAY231136 COVER D: PATCH ZIRCHER RETRO THEME
MAY231137 COVER E: MIKE MIGNOLA
MAY231138 COVER F: E.M. GIST
MAY231139 COVER G: WRAPAROUND HYBORIAN AGE MAP
MAY231140 COVER H: COLORED BLANK SKETCH
MAY231141 COVER I: FOIL CONAN MOVIE NOVEL REPLICA VIRGIN 
MAY231142 COVER J: 1:10 INCENTIVE: ROBERTO DE LA TORRE VIRGIN B&W INKS
MAY231143 COVER K: 1:25 INCENTIVE: DAN PANOSIAN VIRGIN B&W INKS
MAY231144 COVER L: 1:50 INCENTIVE: MIKE MIGNOLA VIRGIN B&W INKS
MAY231145 COVER M: 1:100 INCENTIVE: ARTGERM VIRGIN B&W INKS
APR238820 FOC JAE LEE VIRGIN
APR238821 FOC MIKE MIGNOLA VIRGIN

---------------------------------



----------------------------------

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Wednesday, July 12, 2023

#IReadsYou Review: BLACK TAPE #3

BLACK TAPE #3 (OF 4)
AWA STUDIOS

STORY: Dan Panosian
ART: Dalibor Talajić
COLORS: Ive Svorcina
LETTERS: Steve Wands
COVER: Dan Panosian
VARIANT COVER ARTISTS: Dave Johnson; Chris Ferguson; Dan Panosian (B&W)
32pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (April 2023)

Rated: “Teen+”

Black Tape is a four-issue comic book miniseries from writer Dan Panosian and artist Dalibor Talajić.  Published by AWA Studios, the miniseries follows the widow of a rock'n'roll god who is dealing with her grief, even as dark forces conspire to obtain her late husband's last album, which supposedly has special powers.  Colorist Ive Svorcina and letterer Steve Wands complete the series creative team.

In Black Tape, Jack King, one of the most influential rock 'n roll musicians of all time, suddenly dies on stage.  Jack's mysterious death causes his widow, Cindy, both to grapple with grief and to ask some very important questions.  For instance, was his death an accident or was it something far more sinister?  And now, malevolent people are seeking the master tapes for the album Jack produced shortly before his death.  Entitled “Black Tape,” it just might open a doorway to hell.

As Black Tape #3 opens, Cindy is searching the home she shared with Jack.  With her friend, Deveney, by her side, she hopes to find answers.  Instead, what she finds should not only worry her, but also should make her run away.  But Cindy won't leave, and the party is about to begin.

THE LOWDOWN:  AWA Studios' marketing recently began providing me with PDF review copies of their comic book publications.  The third PDF received is Black Tape #3.

I have not read the first two issues of Black Tape, but AWA Studios' marketing department has written up some perfectly detailed and aptly intriguing summaries for them.  The publisher certainly knows how to sell Black Tape, and after having just finished my first and only issue, Black Tape #3, I find myself really into the narrative.

Writer Dan Panosian, who is also a hugely talented illustrator and comic book artist, has cast a devilish spell with Black Tape.  In turn, Dalibor Talajić has transformed Panosian's story into powerful comic book and graphical storytelling.  Black Tape looks and feels hoary and diabolical, and Ive Svorcina's colors creates a sense of shifting realities and nightmares.  The cherry on top is Steve Wands' patient and matter-of-fact lettering, which carries this penultimate chapter to its shocking end.

I look forward to the fourth and final issue of this series.  Although I have only read one issue, I think Black Tape will make a … helluva read in trade paperback form.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Fans of fiction about people who sell their souls to the Devil and the subsequent consequences will want some Black Tape.

A-
★★★½ out of 4 stars

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


AWA Website: https://awastudios.net/
AWA Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/awastudiosofficial/
AWA Twitter: https://twitter.com/AWA_Studios
AWA Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/awastudiosofficial


The text is copyright © 2023 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

-----------------------

Amazon wants me to inform you that the affiliate link below is a PAID AD, but I technically only get paid (eventually) if you click on the affiliate link below AND buy something(s).


Wednesday, October 13, 2021

#IReadsYou Review: DEEP BEYOND #2

DEEP BEYOND #2 (OF 12)
IMAGE COMICS/Arancia Studio

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

STORY: Mirka Andolfo and David Goy
ART: Andrea Broccardo
COLORS: Barbara Nosenzo
LETTERS: Fabio Amelia
DESIGN: Fabrizio Verrocchi
EDITOR: Rossano Bruno
COVER:  Andrea Broccardo with Andrea Meloni
VARIANT COVER ARTISTS: Mirka Andolfo; Dan Panosian; Marco Checchetto
28pp, Colors, 3.99 U.S. (March 2021)

Rated “T+/Teen Plus”

Deep Beyond created by Mirka Andolfo, David Goy, Andrea Broccardo, and Barbara Nosenzo

Deep Beyond is a new twelve-issue comic book miniseries from writers Mirka Andolfo and David Goy and artist Andrea Broccardo.  Published by Image Comics, Deep Beyond is a science fiction comic book that follows a small group of people trying to discover what is hidden in an abyss.  Colorist Barbara Nosenzo and letterer Fabio Amelia complete the creative team.

It is the year 2085 on Earth.  The planet has been devastated by the dire consequences of the “millennium bug” (December 31st, 2000?).  A small number of people, mostly talented scientists, work to ensure the survival of mankind.  Now, Jolene leads a mission to rescue one of those scientists, her twin sister, Pamela Bell, and Pamela's colleague and ex-lover, Dr. Paul Bailey, has joined the mission.  What the survivors don't know is that there is something worse in the deep beyond.

As Deep Beyond #2 opens, Jolene and Paul are on the run from a marine monster.  Luckily, Jolene's compatriots come to the rescue, only to find themselves in peril from this seemingly unbeatable beast of many tentacles.

Now, on to getting equipped for the rescue of Pamela Bell.  Will the equipment work?  And do the rescuers know that someone powerful is willing to kill them to stop them?

THE LOWDOWN:  Thanks to a PDF copy for review of Deep Beyond #1, I had my first Mirka experience.  I had seen writer-artist Mirka Andolfo's name around for the past several years, but I had not read any of her work, including her other Image Comics series, Mercy.

Andolfo does not draw Deep Beyond.  The art team is comprised of illustrator Andrea Broccardo (Star Wars: Doctor Aphra) and colorist Barbara Nosenzo, and this artist-colorist team is delivering some absolutely gorgeous work on Deep Beyond.  In the first issue, their work bares the naked truth about Deep Beyond's dystopian future:  things are really, f*****g screwed up.  Broccardo creates the bleakness and Nosenzo's colors create the terror, but in this second issue, the team draws exciting action scenes with beautiful illustrations and vivid colors.  It's a dark future, from an eye candy point of view.

Co-writers Andolfo and David Goy threw a lot of narrative curve balls at the readers in the first issue.  In Deep Beyond #2, the writers offer straightforward action and provide more insight into the characters.  Yes, the story is still unclear about all the adversaries and about what awaits the rescue mission, but Andolfo and Goy are good at keeping us intrigued.  I think I want more, dear readers, and maybe you will to.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Fans of Mirka Andolfo will want to go Deep Beyond.

8 out of 10

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


https://twitter.com/ImageComics
https://imagecomics.com/
https://twitter.com/Mirkand
https://www.mirkaandolfo.com/
https://twitter.com/aranciastudio
https://aranciastudio.com/


The text is copyright © 2021 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

--------------

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Monday, October 2, 2017

Image Comics from Diamond Distributors for October 4, 2017

IMAGE COMICS

AUG170621    BLOOD STAIN TP VOL 03    $16.99
JUN170736    CANNIBAL #8 (MR)    $3.99
APR170805    ELEPHANTMEN #78 (MR)    $3.99
AUG170646    ELSEWHERE #3 CVR A KESGIN & RILEY    $3.99
AUG170647    ELSEWHERE #3 CVR B ASRAR    $3.99
AUG170648    ELSEWHERE #3 CVR C WALKING DEAD #93 TRIBUTE VAR    $3.99
JUL178860    ELSEWHERE #3 CVR D B&W WALKING DEAD #93 TRIBUTE VAR    $3.99
AUG170649    EXTREMITY #7 CVR A JOHNSON    $3.99
AUG170650    EXTREMITY #7 CVR B WALKING DEAD #108 TRIBUTE VAR    $3.99
AUG170567    I HATE FAIRYLAND SPEC ED CVR A YOUNG (MR)    $5.99
AUG170569    I HATE FAIRYLAND SPEC ED CVR C WALKING DEAD #100 TRIBUTE VAR    $5.99
JUL178851    I HATE FAIRYLAND SPEC ED CVR D B&W WALKING DEAD #100 TRIBUTE    $5.99
AUG170568    I HATE FAIRYLAND SPEC ED F*CK (UNCENSORED) IMAGE VAR (MR)    $5.99
JUL170847    MANIFEST DESTINY #31 (MR)    $3.99
JUN178588    MANIFEST DESTINY #31 CVR B LORENZO DE FELICI VAR (MR)    $3.99
JUL170848    MOONSTRUCK #3    $3.99
AUG170697    MOTOR CRUSH #7    $3.99
JUL178524    MOTOR CRUSH #7 CVR B STEWART    $3.99
JUL170853    OUTCAST BY KIRKMAN & AZACETA TP VOL 05 (MR)    $16.99
AUG170699    PAPER GIRLS #16    $2.99
AUG170700    PLANETOID TP VOL 02 PRAXIS (MR)    $16.99
JUL170861    POSTAL #23 (MR)    $3.99
JUL178342    POSTAL #23 CVR B WALKING DEAD #51 TRIBUTE VAR (MR)    $3.99
JUL178861    POSTAL #23 CVR C B&W WALKING DEAD #51 TRIBUTE VAR (MR)    $3.99
AUG170712    REGRESSION #5 CVR A LUCKERT & ENGER (MR)    $3.99
AUG170713    REGRESSION #5 CVR B WALKING DEAD #145 TRIBUTE (MR)    $3.99
AUG178000    REGRESSION #5 CVR C B&W WALKING DEAD #145 TRIBUTE VAR (MR)    $3.99
JUL170866    RINGSIDE #12 (MR)    $3.99
AUG170716    ROCKET GIRL #10    $3.99
AUG170587    SLOTS #1 CVR A PANOSIAN (MR)    $3.99
AUG170588    SLOTS #1 CVR B WALKING DEAD #100 TRIBUTE VAR (MR)    $3.99
AUG170737    SPREAD #22 (MR)    $3.99
JUL170911    STRAY BULLETS SUNSHINE & ROSES #28 (MR)    $3.99
AUG170744    WALKING DEAD #172 (MR)    $2.99
JUL170766    WALKING DEAD HERES NEGAN HC (MR)    $19.99
AUG170601    WARFRAME #1    $3.99

Thursday, August 17, 2017

Review: SCOOBY APOCALYPSE #1

SCOOBY APOCALYPSE No. 1
DC COMICS – @DCComic

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

PLOT/BREAKDOWNS:  Keith Giffen
DIALOGUE: J.M. DeMatteis
ARTIST: Howard Porter
COLORS: Hi-Fi
LETTERS: Nick J. Napolitano; Travis Lanham
COVER: Jim Lee with Alex Sinclair
VARIANT COVERS: Howard Porter with Hi-Fi;Dan Panosian; Neal Adams with Alex Sinclair; Joelle Jones with Nick Filardi; Ben Caldwell
40pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (July 2016)

Rated “T” for “Teen”

“Waiting for the End of the World”

Based on a concept by Jim Lee; Scooby-Doo created by Joe Ruby and Ken Spears and Iwao Takamoto

Scooby-Doo is a media franchise that began with the animated, Saturday-morning, television series, “Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!” in 1969, which was produced by American animation studio, Hanna-Barbera Production.  The series featured four teenagers:  Fred Jones, Daphne Blake, Velma Dinkley, and Norville "Shaggy" Rogers and Scooby-Doo, a talking Great Dane-ish dog.  Together, they solved mysteries involving supernatural creatures that usually turned out to be frauds.

That first series basically gave birth to numerous follow-up Scooby-Doo animated cartoon series that used the original as a pattern to one extent or another.  DC Comics recently launched a Scooby-Doo comic book that takes the characters introduced in “Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!” but largely reinvents the character relationships, personalities, histories, and their mission.  Entitled Scooby Apocalypse, the new comic book is based on a concept created by Jim Lee.  The comic book is written by Keith Giffen (plot) and J.M. DeMatteis (dialogue); drawn by Howard Porter; colored by Hi-Fi; and lettered by Nick J. Napolitano.

Scooby Apocalypse #1 (“Waiting for the End of the World”) finds Daphne and Fred at “The Blazing Man Festival.”  Daphne is the host of a once-popular television series, “Daphne Blake's Mysterious Mysteries.”  She hopes that an informant that she is supposed to meet at the festival will provide the lead to a story that will return the show to the big time.  Fred, her long-suffering cameraman, thinks that he and Daphne should move on to bigger things.

Nearby is Shaggy, a dog-trainer at a secret facility, and his trainee, Scooby-Doo.  A misunderstanding forces an encounter between Shaggy and Scooby and Fred and Daphne.  Now, both parties are about to hear an amazing story from Dr. Velma Dinkley who works for a secret government program, the Elysium Project.  What she tells them will change their lives.

I would not call myself a Scooby-Doo purist, but I probably am.  I am not crazy about anything that strays too far from “Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!” (1969-1970) and the follow-up series, “The New Scooby-Doo Mysteries” (1972-1973)  Thus, I am inclined to not like Scooby Apocalypse, and I had planned on not reading it.  However, word that some of the early issues were selling-out in various places piqued my interests.  I picked up some copies at a my local comic shop and turned to eBay for the ones I could not find there.

After reading the first ten pages, I was disgusted and even insulted, as a Scooby-Doo fan.  Then, I found myself intrigued by the goings-on inside the Project Elysium facility, and then, I bought in to this comic book.

I'd be lying if I called it great, but I really want to see where this goes.  I have the first four issues, and I think that will be enough to decide if I want to keep reading.  Honestly, I would recommend this first issue to any adult who is or was a fan of Scooby-Doo, reading it as a lark or out of curiosity.  Considering the creative team behind this, Scooby Apocalypse could be good.  The bonus story, “When Shaggy Met Scooby!” about the first meeting between fiction's greediest boy-and-his-dog combo is a novel spin on the classic animated cartoon comedy duo.

I'll review a future issue, dear reader, and I promise to keep it real, one way or the other.

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


The text is copyright © 2016 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Wednesday, February 10, 2016

Review: JAMES BOND Volume 1 #1

JAMES BOND, VOL. 1 No. 1
DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT – @dynamitecomics

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

WRITER: Warren Ellis
ART: Jason Masters
COLORS: Guy Major
LETTERS: Simon Bowland
COVER: Dom Reardon
VARIANT COVER ARTISTS: Francesco Francavilla; Steven Mooney; Dan Panosian; Gabriel Hardman with Jordan Boyd; Glenn Fabry; Jock; Gabriel Hardman; Joe Jusko; Aaron Campbell; Timothy Lim; Dennis Calero; Robert Hack; Ben Oliver; Jason Masters
32pp, Color, $3.99 U.S.

Rated T+

“Vargr”

“James Bond” is a fictional British Secret Service agent created by Ian Fleming, a British writer and novelist.  Fleming introduced James Bond in the 1953 novel, Casino Royale, and featured the character in 12 novels and two short-story collections.  Of course, most people know Bond because of the long-running James Bond-007 film series, which began with the 1962 film, Dr. No.

After Fleming's death, a number of authors continued to produce James Bond novels, including the recently released Trigger Warning from author Anthony Horowitz.  Over the past 50+ years, Bond has made sporadic appearances in comic books.  The latest James Bond comic book appears courtesy of Dynamite Entertainment.

James Bond, Volume 1 is written by Warren Ellis, drawn by Jason Masters, colored by Guy Major, and lettered by Simon Bowland.  The first story arc is entitled is entitled “Vargr.”  According to Ellis, this James Bond comic book series will feature a James Bond that skews closer to the character that appeared in Ian Fleming's writing than in the film series.

James Bond, Volume 1, #1 opens in Helsinki, Finland.  There, James Bond-007 is settling a matter concerning 008.  Back in London at MI6 headquarters, M (Bond's immediate superior) informs Bond that he must take on a larger workload.  That will take him to Berlin and into danger.

When actor Daniel Craig was cast as James Bond around a decade ago, it was announced that the James Bond film series would return to the idea that 007 was a blunt instrument used by the British Secret Service.  That was evident in most of Craig's first outing as Bond, 2006's Casino Royale, although the film ultimately returned to the action movie theatrics that have defined the series for most of its existence.

In 22 pages, writer Warren Ellis makes it clear that the James Bond of “Vargr” is not only a blunt instrument, but also is a man who can be both suave and ordinary-like, as necessary.  This Bond is also classic and cool, like Sean Connery operating with a jazzy soundtrack in the background.  There is, however, also a touch of the edginess found in Richard Stark's Parker.

Jason Masters' art and graphical storytelling deglazes any cinematic sheen from both the subject and the story.  With Guy Major's colors, Masters' art does not seek to make this a matter-of-fact Bond, but rather it emphasizes the story and genre as much as it does the famous character.

I highly recommend this to fans of James Bond and to those who have been waiting for a James Bond comic book.  I must also note that not only is Moneypenny a Black character (as she is in the current films), but so is M.  I'll be waiting in Berlin...

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux


The text is copyright © 2015 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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