Showing posts with label Ty Templeton. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ty Templeton. Show all posts

Wednesday, June 30, 2021

I Reads You Juniors: June 2021 - Update #101

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

You can support Leroy via Paypal or on Patreon.

NEWS

IMAGE/DARK HORSE - From ICv2:   In September, Eisner Award-winning writer Jeff Lemire will launch two new miniseries, "Mazebook" from Dark Horse and "Primordial: from Image.

BOOM STUDIOS - TheBeat:  The site has a five-page story preview and some cover art from BOOM! Studios' "Dark Blood #1."  Written by televisions writer and showrunner, Latoya Morgan and drawn by newcomer Walt Barna, the comic book is due July 21st.

WARREN ELLIS - From BleedingCool:  Artist Ben Templesmith recently announced that he and writer Warren Ellis will finish their old Image Comics series, "Fell." Image has released a statement saying that it will not work with Ellis on anything further until he makes amends.
 
From BleedingCool:   Warren Ellis accepts "So Many of Us" offer.
------------------

DC TV - From DCBlog:   In honor of "DC Pride Month," actor Anissa Pierce talks about playing "Thunder" on The CW's "Black Lightning."

MARVEL - From GamesRadar:   August 3rd, 2021 will mark the 10th anniversary of the first appearance of the Spider-Man character, Miles Morales (Marvel's 21st century Spider-Man).  The comic book, "Miles Morales: Spider-Man #30," will feature Miles in a new Spider-Man costume.

MARVEL - From GamesRadar:   Marvel Comics will celebrate that it has published 300 issues of "Conan the Barbarian" over two eras.  The 300th issue will be "Conan the Barbarian #25," it will feature several creative teams and sport several variant covers, including covers by Peach Momoko and Alex Toth.

DC CINEMA - From GeekFeed:   The site has the first official look at the costumes for the "Shazam! Family" in DC Films' "Shazam!: Fury of the Gods."

DC CINEMA - From HypeBeast:   "Batman" actor Michael Keaton seen on the set of DC Film's "The Flash."

DC CINEMA - From TheDrive:  In "The Flash" movie, Michael Keaton's Batman will drive a "Vision Mercedes-Maybach 6," an EV car.

DC CINEMA - From Collider:  Footage from the set of director Andy Muschietti's DC Film's production, "The Flash," reveals the costume that actress Sasha Calle will wear as Supergirl.

IMAGE COMICS - From BleedingCool:   Artist Ben Templesmith has announced that he and writer Warren Ellis will finish their comic book, "Fell," of which nine issues were published by Image Comics from 2005 to 2008.  There was to be a further 7 issues, but Templesmith says the conclusion may be published as a single-volume work.

DIAMOND - From BleedingCool:   Diamond Comic Distributors has announced the return of the "Retailer Summit" as an online event for 2021 on the 26th and 27th of September 2021.

DC CINEMA - From THR:  Warner Bros. has released an "Early Access" trailer for writer-director James Gunn's "The Suicide Squad," which is due Aug. 6th.

DC COMICS/MANGA - From JapanToday:    Superman will start in a gourmet manga, "Superman vs Food: Superman’s Meals of Solitude" (Superman vs Meshi: Superman No Hitori Meshi), written by Satoshi Miyakawa with art by Kai Kitago.

MANGA - From TheOuterHaven:   Ablaze Publishing reveals to new manga titles it will publish, "Versus Fight Story" and "Crueler Than Dead."

MANGA/EISNERS - From CBR:   The site tells readers how to read the manga nominated for the 2021 Eisner Awards.

BLACK COMICS - From THR:   Nigeria’s Comic Republic, Africa’s largest publisher of independent comic books, has signed a production deal with Emagine Content and JackieBoy Entertainment to adapt its catalog of African superheroes for film and TV.

IMAGE COMICS - From THR:   How Emilia Clarke paid homage to "Game of Thrones" with her new comic book, "M.O.M.: Mother of Madness."

MCU RUMORS - From WeGotThisCovered:  Marvel wants to kill of Iron Fist in the MCU.

MILESTONE - From BleedingCool:   "Milestone Compendium One" is a softcover collection from DC Comics with more than 1,300 pages of classic Milestone Comics stories, collecting the debut story arcs of Blood Syndicate, Hardware, Static, Icon, Xombi, and Shadow Cabinet from the original Milestone creative teams.  It will be published September 2021.

IMAGE COMICS - From BleedingCool: There will be at least nine variant covers for the first issue of "M.O.M.: Mother of Madness," which is co-written by Emmy nominated actress, Emilia Clarke.

DC TV - From DCBlog:   In honor of Pride Month, "DC Blog" interviews and profiles "Batwoman" actress, Javicia Leslie.

FANTAGRAPHICS - From Newsarama:   The site presents a preview of the upcoming "Red Room #2" from Ed Piskor.

DC COMICS - From GamesRadar:  Aquaman villain, Black Manta, will star in a six-issue miniseries from writer Chuck Brown and artist Valentine De Landro.

DC COMICS - From BleedingCool:  The current Batman/Superman comic book series will come to an end with #22 in September 2021.

DC COMICS - From DCBlog:  A look at Jackson Hyde/Aqualad ahead of his miniseries, "Aquaman: The Becoming."

COMICS - From BleedingCool:   The great comic book creator, Ty Templeton, has stage 3 colorectal cancer, and he is talking about via his online comic, "Bun Toons."

IMAGE COMICS - From BleedingCool:  Artist Stuart Immonen joins Mark Millar for the second volume of Millar's fantastic fantasy comic book, "The Magic Order."

MANGA - From ANN:   In May, the 1st volume of the English version of Reibun Ike's "Dick Fight Island" was ranked as the #1 Romance manga and #1 Yaoi & LGBTQ+ Manga according to Amazon's Best Sellers Rank.

MANGA - From BoundingInto:   Comic book writer, Gerry Conway, who has created hundreds of comic book characters, The Punisher and Power Girl, wants manga creators “taken to task” for their “rampant sexism and misogyny.”

COMICS - From YahooInsider:   This article offers an overview of a recent controversy involving comic book cover artist J. Scott Campbell and the online movement of "art fixing."

BRITISH COMICS - From 2000AD:   Veteran "Judge Dredd" and "Strontium Dogs" artist Trevor Hairsine talks to "2000 AD Thrill-Cast" podcast.

MANGA TO ANIME - From YouTube:  Hiroshi Nagahama is the director of Cartoon Network/Adult Swim's anime adaptation of Junji Ito's seminal manga, "Uzumaki."  Now, Nagahama is sharing a brief preview of the miniseries.

MILLARWORLD - From FlickeringMyth:   The site has an eight-page preview of Mark Millar and Tommy Lee Edward's "Jupiter's Legacy: Requiem #1," which is due tomorrow.

MILESTONE - From TheBeat:  In a web chat, writer Vita Ayala and layout artist ChrisCross talk about "Static Season One," the first comic book series that will mark the return of Milestone.  "Static Shock Season #1" is on sale as early as today.

DC ANIMATION - From Variety:    In an article about a particular group of TV series (including Disney's "WandaVision") that "subvert the superhero" genre, the writer details how DC Comics objected to Batman performing oral sex on Catwoman in the hit animated series, "Harley Quinn."  If this act does happen, it will be seen in the upcoming third season of the HBO Max series.

DC COMICS - From GamesRadar:   "Harley Quinn: The Animated Series" is getting a comic book sequel to the show's second season finale meant to fill in the time before the upcoming third season.  "Bingo Love" writer Tee Franklin, artist Max Sarin, and letterer Taylor Esposito are working on the six-issue "Harley Quinn: The Animated Series - The Eat, Bang, Kill Tour."

DC COMICS - From GamesRadar:  Jackson Hyde/Aqualad is getting his own comic book this fall, "Aquaman: The Becoming."

DC COMICS - From GamesRadar:   The classic DC Comics/Vertigo series, "Fables," which ended in 2015, is returning as an ongoing series in 2022.  In meantime, September will see the debut of the six-issue miniseries, "Batman vs. Bigby!: A Wolf in Gotham."

COMICS - From BI:  Substack, the newsletter platform, is getting into the digital comic publishing business.

MARVEL - From BleedingCool:   Lunar Distribution, LLC plans to join Diamond Comic Distributors and distribute Marvel Comics titles via Penguin Random House, Marvel's new distributor.

DC ANIMATION - From DCBlog:   Dwayne Johnson introduces "DC League of Super-Pets."

BOOK NEWS - From AP: One of the country’s most esteemed novelists, Louise Erdrich, won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction for “The Night Watchman.”  Other winners for books include the late Les Payne and daughter Tamara Payne for their Malcolm X biography “The Dead Are Arising.”

MARVEL - From Nerdist:  Marvel has released a trailer for "X-Men #1" which debuts July 7th.

EISNER AWARDS - From BleedingCool:   The nominees for the 2021 Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards have been announced.  This is for works published between Jan. 1st and Dec. 31st, 2020.  The deadline for voting is June 30th,  and the winners will be announced sometime in July via a virtual ceremony.

MARVEL - From BleedingCool:   The trade paperback collection of the 2003 miniseries, "Truth: Red, White & Black," has been out of print for over a decade. The miniseries focuses on Isaiah Bradley, one of 300 African American soldiers experimented on by the US Army in an attempt to create super soldiers via the serum that would eventually turn Steve Rogers into Captain America.  Marvel will return the collection to print under the new title, "Captain America: Truth," in February 2022.

DC CINEMA - From TheWrap:   Director James Wan has revealed that the title for the "Aquaman" sequel is "Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom," which will be released December 16, 2022.

NEIL GAIMAN - From CBR:   Netflix has release a first-look video featurette at "The Sandman," its live-action adaptation of the classic DC Comics/Vertigo comic book written by Neil Gaiman.

DC ANIMATION - From Deadline:   Dwayne Johnson has just unveiled the voice-over cast for the upcoming animated DC movie "DC League of Super-Pets." The list includes Kevin Hart, Keanu Reeves, Kate McKinnon, Vanessa Bayer, John Krasinski, Diego Luna and Natasha Lyonne. None of their roles were disclosed, except that Hart will be the voice of "Ace" (the Bat-Hound).  Johnson will voice "Krypto" (the Super-Dog).

DC TV - From Variety:   The CW and Warner Bros. TV dropped first-look photos of “Batwoman” star Camrus Johnson, who plays "Luke Fox," suited as the character, "Batwing."

MANGA - From BleedingCool:   Yen Press is producing a graphic novel adaptation of Disney's Oscar-winning animated feature film, "Big Hero 6," which was based on a Marvel Comics title.

DC CINEMA - From LATimes:   DC Film's "Blue Beetle" movie, based on the comic book, will be an HBO Max exclusive.

DC CINEMA - From MurphysMultiverse:   Directing duo Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, who recently wrapped on the upcoming Disney+ series "Mrs.Marvel," will direct the "Batgirl" movie for DC Films and HBO Max.

DC TV - From THR:   Anna Diop, the Senegal-born actress who plays "Starfire" on HBO Max's "Titans," has signed on to M88 for career management.

IDW - From THR:   Beloved "G.I. Joe" comic book writer, Larry Hama, is joining writer-artist Rob Liefeld on the fifth and final issue of Liefeld's G.I. Joe spinoff comic book, "Snake Eyes: Deadgame.  That issue will feature Hama's pencil art on the cover.

COMICS - From ToyNews:   The children’s book publisher AMEET has detailed a new partnership with the multi-platform content company, Skybound Entertainment to launch a new series of LEGO comic books. The first in the series is slated to debut in 2022 and will be published by Image Comics and Skybound.

COMICS TO TV - From BloodyDisgusting:   "Y: The Last Man," based on the DC Comics/Vertigo series from Brian K. Vaughn and Pia Guerra, will reportedly debut on "FX on Hulu" in September.

COMICS TO TV - From EW:  Here is a first look at actor Jensen Ackles ("Supernatural") as "Soldier Boy" from Amazon's "The Boys" Season 3. 

MILLARWORLD - From GhettoManga:  Back in the day (May 2012), Mark Millar provided a preview of "Supercrooks #1."

DC CINEMA - From WeGotThisCovered:    Director Matt Reeves' "The Batman" supposedly has a dark tone - darker than "Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice" - and may be the grimmest Batman film yet.

DC CINEMA - From THR:   Danny Elfman is a four-time Oscar nominee and a Grammy Award winner for his film music.  But Elfman has a wild tale about how he composed his iconic score to director Tim Burton's "Batman" (1989), which he says involved freaking out several flight attendants.

MARVEL - From GamesRadar:  Marvel's newest Captain America will be debut September 2021 in "United States of Captain America #4." She is Ari Agbayani, a Filipino-American college student.

ARCHIE - From BleedingCool:   The site has a preview of Rob Liefeld's "The Mighty Crusaders: The Shield #1 one shot.

MILLARWORLD - From Deadline:  Actor Josh Duhamel reacts to the premature cancellation of his hit Netflix TV series, "Jupiter's Legacy," based on the Mark Millar comic book.

SONY MARVEL U - From Variety:  Actress Issa Rae will provide the voice of Jessica Drew/Spider-Woman in the sequel to Oscar-winning animated film, "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse." 

MARVEL -From BleedingCool:  Will Marvel Comics really kill of Doctor Strange this September?

DC COMICS - From DCBlog:   James Tynion talks to "DC Nation" about his new horror series, "Nice House on the Lake"

DC Comics - From DCBlog: Mariko Tamaki talks about her new DC Comics series, "Crush & Lobo."

DC TV - From DCBlog:   Go behind the scenes of "Sweet Tooth," the new Netflix series based on the DC Comics/Vertigo series.

DC TV - From BleedingCool:  Word has come down that the DC Comics/Vertigo title, "Red Thorn," is being adapted for television.

MARVEL - From BleedingCool:   Here is a first look at the Wolverine vs. Deathlok battle in the Free Comic Book Day 2021 title, "FCBD 2021 Marvel Gold Avengers Hulk #1"

COMICS - From BleedingCool:   Lunar Distribution, the DC Comics direct market exclusive distributor created by their biggest customer, DCBS, is moving (along with DCBS) from Fort Wayne, Indiana, to New Haven, Indiana.  They will receive up to a million dollars in tax credits for the move.

DYNAMITE - From SyFy:   The site has a preview of Dynamite Entertainment's upcoming "Elvira meets Vincent Price #1."  The miniseries is written by David Avallone and drawn by Juan Samu.

NEIL GAIMAN - From IndieWire:   Neil Gaiman says he gives "all the fucks" about "The Sandman." But he gives "zero fucks about people who don’t understand/haven’t read ‘Sandman’ whining about a nonbinary Desire or that Death isn’t white enough." Re - Netflix's "The Sandman" TV series.

DC COMICS - From Polygon:  Writer James Tynion IV talks about his new horror comic book series, "The Nice House on the Lake," from DC Comics' new horror imprint, "DC Horror."

MILLARWORLD - From THR:   Netflix has cancelled its TV adaptation of Mark Millar's comic book, "Jupiter's Legacy, after one season.  However, it has ordered a live-action and anime adaptation of "Supercrooks," which is set in the same universe as "Jupiter's Legacy."

DIAMOND - From BleedingCool:  Comic book retailers are learning what their new Marvel order discount will be if they stick with Diamond Comic Distributors rather than go with Marvel's new distributor, Penguin Random House.

MARVEL - From BleedingCool:  Artist Bryan Hitch will join writers Ram V and Al Ewing on a new ongoing "Venom" comic book that begins in November.

BRITISH COMICS - From 2000AD:  Writer-artist Chris Weston talks about his new Judge Dredd story, "Adios, Rowdy Yates."

From 2000AD:  The House That Dredd Built: A Brief History of Rowdy Yates Block
-----------------

DC TV - From YahooEntertainment:   The Tulsa Race Massacre turns 100: How HBO's "Watchmen" helped teach America a crucial history lesson.

BLACK PANTHER - From YahooWashPost:  Ta-Nehisi Coates took the Black Panther comic book to dark places - and it paid off.

DC COMICS - From BleedingCool:   "Mister Miracle: The Great Escape" is a new young adult graphic novel from DC Comics out in January, 2022.  Created by Varian Johnson and Daniel Isles, it re-imagines Scott Free as a young Black student attending school on the planet of Apokalips.

NEWSPAPER COMICS - From BleedingCool:   ABLAZE announced today a deal with Tribune Content Agency to publish a collection of the groundbreaking comic strip "Friday Foster." The series was the first US newspaper comics strip to feature an African-American woman as its main character.

ARCHIE - From BleedingCool:  David Gallaher is now writing Archie Comics "The Shield," that Rob Liefeld has previously worked on.

DC COMICS - From BleedingCool:   DC Comics will publish four titles for Free Comic Book Day 2021 (August 14th): "Batman FCBD Special Edition," "Suicide Squad FCBD Special Edition," "Teen Titans: Beast Boy Loves Raven Special Edition," and "Batman And Robin And Howard and Amethyst: Princess Of Gemworld Special Edition Flipbook."

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

JUNE 2021 COMICS SOLICITATIONS:
From BleedingCool:  Ablaze for June 2021 
From BleedingCool:  AfterShock Comics for 2021
From BleedingCool:  BOOM! Studios for June 2021
From BleedingCool:  Dark Horse Comics for June 2021
From BleedingCool:  DC Comics for June 2021
From BleedingCool:  Dynamite Entertainment for June 2021
From BleedingCool:  Eaglemoss for June 2021
From BleedingCool:  Hero Collector for June 2021
From BleedingCool:  IDW Publishing for June 2021 
From BleedingCool:  Mad Cave Studios for June 2021
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics for June 2021
From BleedingCool:  Scout Comics for June 2021
From BleedingCool:  Source Point Press for June 2021
From BleedingCool:  Valiant Entertainment for June 2021
From BleedingCool:  VIZ Media for June 2021
From BleedingCool:  Zenescope Entertainment for June 2021 
 
JULY 2021 COMICS SOLICITATIONS:
From BleedingCool:  Artists, Writers & Artisans for July 2021
From BleedingCool:  Bad Idea for July 2021
From BleedingCool:  BOOM! Studios for July 2021
From BleedingCool:  Dark Horse Comics for July 2021
From BleedingCool:  DC Comics for July 2021
From BleedingCool:  Dynamite Entertainment for July 2021
From BleedingCool:  Heavy Metal for July 2021
From BleedingCool:  Hero Collectors for July 2021
From BleedingCool:  IDW Publishing for July 2021
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics for July 2021
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics for July 2021
From BleedingCool:  Titan Comics for July 2021
From BleedingCool:  Valiant Entertainment for July 2021
From BleedingCool:  Vault Comics for July 2021
From BleedingCool:  VIZ Media for July 2021

AUGUST 2021 COMICS SOLICITATIONS:
From BleedingCool:  Free Comic Book Day for August 14, 2021 
From BleedingCool:  Action Lab for August 2021
From BleedingCool:  AfterShock Comics for August 2021
From BleedingCool:  Archie Comics for August 2021
From BleedingCool:  Artists, Writers & Artisans for August 2021
From BleedingCool:  Behemoth for August 2021 
From BleedingCool:  Black Mask for August 2021
From BleedingCool:  Dark Horse Comics for August 2021
From BleedingCool:  DC Comics for August 2021
From BleedingCool:  Dynamite Entertainment for August 2021 
From BleedingCool:  Heavy Metal for August 2021
From BleedingCool:  IDW Publishing for August 2021
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics for August 2021
From BleedingCool:  It's Alive for August 2021
From BleedingCool:  Oni Press for August 2021
From BleedingCool:  Rebellion for August 2021
From BleedingCool:  Scout Comics for August 2021
From BleedingCool:  Second Sight Publishing for August 2021
From BleedingCool:  Source Point Press for August 2021 
From BleedingCool:  Titan Comics for August 2021
From BleedingCool:  Valiant Comics for August 2021
From BleedingCool:  Vault Comics for August 2021

SEPTEMBER 2021 COMICS SOLICITATIONS:
From BleedingCool:  Ablaze Publishing for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  Action Lab for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  Archie Comics for September 2021 
From BleedingCool:  AWA for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  BOOM Studios for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  Dark Horse Comics for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  DC Comics for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  Dynamite Entertainment for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  IDW Publishing for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  Image Comics for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  Marvel Comics for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  Oni Press for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  Scout Comics for September 2021
From BleedingCool:  Titan Comics for September 2021

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


Thursday, May 14, 2020

#IReadsYou Review: THE BATMAN ADVENTURES #1

THE BATMAN ADVENTURES No. 1
DC COMICS – @DCComics

[This review was originally posted on Pateron.]

STORY: Kelley Puckett
PENCILS: Ty Templeton
INKS: Rick Burchett
COLORS: Rick Taylor
LETTERS: Tim Harkins
EDITOR: Scott Peterson
COVER: Ty Templeton
32pp, Color, $1.25 U.S., $1.50 CAN, 60p UK (October 1992)

Batman created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger

“Penguin's Big Score”

Although it was originally simply entitled, “Batman,” one of the best animated television series of all time has been lovingly known as “Batman: The Animated Series” for well over two decades.  It aired from September 1992 to September 1995 on the Fox Broadcast Company's “Fox Kids” programming block.  Its first season was comprised of 65 episodes (Sept. 1992 to Sept. 1993).  The second season (May 1994 to September 1995) was comprised of 20 episodes, with the last 15 episodes given the onscreen title of “The Adventures of Batman & Robin.”  [By “airdate,” the series officially had four seasons.]

“Batman: The Animated Series” (also known as “Batman: TAS”) was developed by Bruce Timm, Paul Dini, and Mitch Brian.  It featured DC Comics' Batman in an animated setting that visually and graphically used Film-Noir aesthetics and an artistic presentation.  The stories had a darker and more complex tone than what most superhero animated TV series had at that time.

Arriving within a week of the debut of “Batman: TAS,” DC Comics launched a comic book series entitled The Batman Adventures.  It was a tie-comic book to the TV show and featured Batman stories set in the continuity of “Batman: TAS.”  The Batman Adventures, which also copied the visual and graphical style of the TV show, ran for 36 issues (cover dated: October 1992 to October 1995).  The creative team for the comic book's first three issues were writer Kelly Puckett; artists Ty Templeton (pencils) and Rick Burchett (inks); colorist Rick Taylor; and letterer Tim Harkins.

The Batman Adventures #1 (“Penguin's Big Score”) opens with The Penguin and his henchman eating dinner and having one of Penguin's self-improvement sessions.  That session isn't going very well, but someone is willing to help them.  A large, clumsily-wrapped gift has arrived at the gang's hideout.  The gift turns out to be a “new Interactive TV unit” sent to Penguin and company by a well-known, fellow adversary of The Batman.

That member of Batman's “rogue's gallery” is none other than the Joker.  Speaking to Penguin and company through the TV unit, the Joker presents a plan that he says will make Penguin “the most popular man in Gotham City.”  This plan will also allegedly provide Penguin with a chance to get under Batman's skin.  However, in the end, who will really benefit from this plot when Batman puts all his brains and brawn and skill to the challenge of the Joker's plot?

Some fans, reviewers, critics, etc. consider “Batman: TAS” to be the best adaptation of Batman anywhere outside of comics.  I agree, even when considering director Christopher Nolan's incredible 2008 Batman film, The Dark Knight.  Back in the 1990s, I often came across commentary in both print and electronic media that declared that The Batman Adventures was the best Batman comic book of the time.  I cannot stay that definitively, as I did not read very many Batman comic books in the 1990s.  The few issues of The Batman Adventures that I did read during its original run did interest me more than any contemporaneous Batman comic book.

Prior to reading The Batman Adventures, I had been able to read reprints of many of the Batman comic books and stories published in the early years of the character, from 1939 into the early 1940s.  I also read Batman comic books published in the 1950s and 1960s – either in reprint form or as tattered old originals.  As much as I loved Frank Miller's seminal, 1986 miniseries, Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, I preferred (and still prefer) the Batman comic books that were published during the character's first 25 years of existence.  I also came to discover a world of wonderful Batman comic books that were published from the mid-1960s to the mid-1980s.

Back in the 1990s, The Batman Adventures reminded me of the Batman of the “Golden Age” of American comic books and of the early years of the “Silver Age.”  Reading it today, The Batman Adventures reminds me of all that Batman comic books that I truly love.  I really cannot say that about the Batman comic books being published today.

Returning to The Batman Adventures also makes me want to watch “Batman: TAS,” which I have not done in probably over a decade.  So my review of The Batman Adventures #1 is this:  It has a simple, clean, classic look that summons the pure essence of Batman, in terms of art, illustration, graphics, and visuals.  It has a straightforward story that plays off what is familiar about Batman, his allies, his adversaries, his world, and his mission.  That is why The Batman Adventures is a comic book worth reading again, from time to time.

The Batman Adventures should not be forgotten.  That may be why DC Comics recently began publishing a new comic book miniseries that returns us to the world of “Batman: TAS.”  It is entitled Batman: The Adventures Continue.  I think I'll try it.

[This first issue contains an afterword by editor Scott Peterson.]

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


The text is copyright © 2020 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.


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



Thursday, November 9, 2017

Review: Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures #1

BATMAN/TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES ADVENTURES No. 1
IDW PUBLISHING/DC Comics – @DCComics @IDWPublishing

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

STORY: Matthew K. Manning
PENCILS: Jon Sommariva
INKS: Sean Parsons
COLORS: Leonardo Ito
LETTERS: Shawn Lee
COVER: Jon Sommariva
VARIANT COVER ARTISTS: Kevin Eastman with Tomi Varga; Ciro Nielli; Hilary Barta with Jason Millet; Ty Templeton; Ben Bishop; Alex Kotkin; Ken Haeser; Steve Lavigne and Peter Laird with Ben Bishop; Tony Fleecs; J. Bone; Ian Nichols; Dario Brizuela; Eddie Nunez; Derek Fridolfs with Heather Breckel
32pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (November 2016)

“The Face of Two Worlds”

Batman created by Bob Kane with Bill Finger; Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (also known as TMNT and Ninja Turtles) are a media empire that began with four fictional characters created by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird.  The comic book, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1 (cover dated: May 1984), introduced four teenage anthropomorphic turtles (meaning they walk and talk like humans).

Donatello, Leonardo, Michelangelo, and Raphael were adopted by an anthropomorphic rat, Master Splinter, who was their sensei and who trained them in the art of ninjutsu.  The Turtles live in the sewers of New York City and battle every bad guy from petty criminals and overlord-mastermind types to alien invaders and mutated creatures.

DC Comics and IDW Publishing united last year to publish the crossover comic book, Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.  Now, IDW Publishing has just released the second such crossover, Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures.  It is written by Matthew K. Manning; drawn by Jon Sommariva (pencils) and Sean Parsons (inks); colored by Leonardo Ito; and lettered by Shawn Lee.

Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures #1 (“The Face of Two Worlds”) opens in the Turtles' New York City, where we find them fighting crime in their own unique way.  Meanwhile, in Gotham City, Batman is trying to find out why select denizens of the infamous prison, Arkham Asylum, are disappearing and sometimes returning... and telling strange tales.

When I first heard about the first Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles crossover comic book (published by DC Comics), I wanted to read it, of course.  However, I was and still am cynical about crossover comic books, so I did not expect much from Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.  I was more than pleasantly surprised.  It is one of the best inter-comic book company crossover comic books that I have ever read.

Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures #1 takes its leads from those “Adventures” comic books.  Back in 1992, a syndicated animated television series named “Batman” debuted.  Commonly known as “Batman: The Animated Series,” it featured Batman in a visually striking manner that recalled the art and design of the 20th century's early decades and also the early years of Batman comic books.  DC Comics published a comic book based on “Batman: The Animated Series,” entitled “Batman Adventures,” which was also friendlier and more open to younger readers than regular Batman titles.  Since then, other comic books based on animated TV series have followed the lead of Batman Adventures, including IDW's (which has the license to publish TMNT comic books) Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures.

Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures is certainly an “Adventures” comic book.  Honestly, I have mixed feelings about such comic books, so I am not as excited about this new comic book miniseries as I was about Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, which was darker in tone and more like Eastman and Laird's early TMNT comic books, with their raw, edgy, DIY aesthetic.  However, I want to give Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures a chance.  I want to see where this is going.  Truthfully, I would like to see Batman and the Ninja Turtles crossovers past this new series

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.

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



Monday, May 29, 2017

Dark Horse Comics from Diamond Distributors for May 31, 2017

DARK HORSE COMICS

MAR170017    ALIENS DEAD ORBIT #2    $3.99
MAR170082    JOE GOLEM OCCULT DETECTIVE OUTER DARK #1    $3.99
NOV160057    KINGSWAY WEST TP    $14.99
MAR170092    LOBSTER JOHNSON PIRATES GHOST #3    $3.99
JAN170138    MISTER X ARCHIVES TP    $24.99
JAN170140    STARSLAYER TP LOG OF JOLLYROGER    $24.99
MAR170097    VISITOR HOW AND WHY HE STAYED #4 (OF 5)    $3.99

Friday, March 3, 2017

Review: SIMPSONS COMICS KNOCKOUT


SIMPSONS COMICS KNOCKOUT
HARPERCOLLINS/HarperDesign – @HarperCollins @harperdesignbks

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

WRITERS: Chuck Dixon and Elma Blackburn; Ty Templeton; Scott M. Gimple; James W. Bates; Ian Boothby
PENCILS: John Costanza; Ty Templeton; James W. Bates; Phil Ortiz
INKS:  Phyllis Novin; Andrew Pepoy; Mike DeCarlo
COLORS: Art Villanueva
LETTERS: Karen Bates
EDITOR: Bill Morrison
COVER: Matt Groening
ISBN: 978-0-06-256891-5; paperback (February 21, 2017)
128pp, Color, $15.99 U.S., $19.99 CAN

“The Simpsons” is an American animated television situation comedy created by Matt Groening.  “The Simpsons” began in 1987 as a series of animated shorts that were part of “The Tracey Ullman Show” (1987-90) that were eventually developed into a half-hour animated TV series.  “The Simpsons” began broadcasting in December of the 1989-90 television season on the Fox Broadcasting Company, where the series continues to this day.

“The Simpsons” presents a satirical depiction of a working class family which consists of Homer Simpson (the father), Marge Simpson (the mother), Bart (the oldest child and only son), Lisa (the precocious and brilliant elder daughter), and Maggie (a baby girl).  It also parodies American culture, pop culture, society, etc. via the denizens of The Simpsons home town, Springfield.

Bongo Comics (Bongo Comics Group) has been publishing comic books based on characters featured in “The Simpsons” since 1993.  HarperDesign, an imprint of HarperCollins, has been publishing trade paperback collections of various Bongo Comics' Simpsons titles and the short stories that have appeared in those comic books.

The latest is Simpsons collection is Simpsons Comics Knockout, which reprints the Simpsons clan' adventures that were first published in Simpsons Comics issues #116, #117, #118, #119, and #120.  These issue-length tales take Matt Groening’s first family of American satire from the local mall to continental Europe.  In “Mall or Nothing,” after refusing to sell their home to developers, the Simpsons wake up to find that they now live in a mall.  In “Sandwiches are Forever,” Homer's trip to the nation of Turkey for a sandwich lands him in jail where he meets the secret agent, Scorpio.

In “The Flunky,” Homer finds himself in a reality show created by C. Montgomery Burns to distract from his lack of popularity with the people of Springfield.  In “Homer Drops the Ball!,” Homer and Bart show the worst sides of their personalities after catching a record-setting baseball.  In “The 'X' Men,” Principal Seymour Skinner leads a group of men who become extreme sports stars after being dumped by their girlfriends, but what happens when love returns?

I had not read a Simpsons comic book in ages, maybe at least a decade.  Then, HarperCollins/HarperDesign started sending me copies-for-review of their Simpsons trade paperbacks.  I always enjoyed Simpsons comics titles, so I don't remember why I stopped reading them.  Simpsons Comics Knockout and the other one I read, Simpsons Comics Colossal Compendium Volume 4, are quite entertaining.  Truthfully, Bongo's Simpsons comics remain some of the best American satirical comic books published over the last three decades.

Rare is the comic book trade paperback collection in which every story or chapter collected within is a great or exceptional work, and Simpsons Comics Knockout is not the exception.  However, of the five stories collected here, one is great, “The Flunky.”  Two are really good, “Mall or Nothing” and “Homer Drops the Ball!”  One is surprisingly poignant, “The 'X' Men.”  Finally, one gets credit for poking fun at the Fox Broadcasting Network, “Sandwiches are Forever.”

The one thing that connects them is that each story feels free to skewer American society, politics, culture, and pop culture.  “Mall or Nothing” satirizes consumerism, but reveals that even the oppressed will bow down before the chance of a cash windfall.  “Homer Drops the Ball!” revels in the fickleness of the public and the shamelessness of naked greediness.  “The 'X' Men” has fun with our need to be loved and wanted.

For the better part of three decades, American television audiences have devoured reality television.  Still, one can be surprised that so many people are willing to debase themselves in the hopes of attaining fame, fortune, and glory in reality TV.  In “The Flunky,” writer Scott M. Gimple focuses on the master manipulators who create reality TV programming for their own benefit, making decisions to serve themselves and not in the best interest of their TV “stars.”

Simpsons Comics Knockout is not just another Simpsons comics collection for the book market.  It is a collection of high-quality humor comics.  The people behind Simpsons Comics are not content to merely create licensed comics; they want to create comics that capture the spirit of “The Simpsons,” which is really a domestic comedy that loves to poke fun at the home front.  The truth is that outside of Simpsons Comics, few people are creating consistently good comic book comedy.

A

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


The text is copyright © 2017 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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

Wednesday, December 10, 2014

I Reads You Review: SUPERIOR IRON MAN #1

SUPERIOR IRON MAN (2015) #1
MARVEL COMICS – @Marvel

WRITER: Tom Taylor
ART: Yildiray Cinar
COLORS: Guru-eFX
LETTERS: VC's Clayton Cowles
COVER: Mike Choi
VARIANT COVERS: Yildiray Cinar; Tom Fowler with Brad Anderson; Mike Perkins with Andy Troy; Sara Pichelli; Alex Ross, Ty Templeton; Skottie Young
28pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (January 2015)

Rated “T+”

“Be Superior” Chapter 1: Nightmare Scenario

Superior Iron Man is a new Iron Man comic book series, launched as part of Marvel Comics' “Avengers NOW!” initiative.  The series follows the events depicted in the miniseries, Avengers & X-Men: Axis.  One of the changes to come out of that story is that Tony Stark a/k/a Iron Man now has a changed personality.  A more sinister Tony Stark has special plans for the world.

As Superior Iron Man #1 (“Nightmare Scenario”) opens, She-Hulk is fighting a new villain that calls himself “Teen Abomination.”  The Lady Green Behemoth gets a helping hand from Iron Man, but all isn't as it appears.  Meanwhile, Stark has launched a new app called “Extremis 3.0.”  This is a techno-virus designed to make people the very best they can be – physically, at least.  This is the dawn of a new day in San Francisco...

I didn't expect much from Superior Iron Man #1, but I also hoped that it would be good and that I would enjoy it.  I thoroughly enjoyed it.  I often read the first issue of a new comic book series and decide not to even try the second issue (the recent Deathlok, for example), but I have already purchased the second issue of Superior Iron Man.

Tom Taylor's script is clever and filled with mystery and also with a sense of dread that really awful things are coming.  I like Yildiray Cinar's matter-of-fact storytelling and his conservative Bryan Hitch-like style.  The art emphasizes the darkness beneath the pretty surface, a darkness that is going to get really ugly, really soon.  There is potential here for Taylor and Cinar to be one of the great Iron Man creative teams, and I hope that comes to pass.  I recently decided not to give first issues a letter grade, but I am going to break that new policy for Superior Iron Man.

A-

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux


The text is copyright © 2014 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for syndication rights and fees.