I posted a review at ComicBookBin.
Saturday, January 19, 2013
Friday, January 18, 2013
Review: DUB TRUB: “Our World is in Danger Now!”
DUB TRUB: “OUR WORLD IS IN DANGER NOW!”
CANDLE LIGHT PRESS/Warning Comics – @candlelightpres
CARTOONIST: Carter Allen
ISBN: 978-0-9766053-7-9; paperback
PIN-UP: Jeremy Smith
108pp, Color, $10.95 U.S.
Dub Trub: “Our World is in Danger Now!” is a 2003 graphic novel from comic book creator, Carter Allen. Allen is a writer/artist and graphic novelist who has produced several comic book series and graphic novels. “Our World is in Danger Now!” is the first in a sci-fi adventure and comic space opera series that follows a pair of enhanced, female super-soldiers, who lead the fight against an extraterrestrial invasion of Earth.
Originally published in black and white, Dub Trub: “Our World is in Danger Now!” returns in a 2012 color edition. The book looks good, because, as I said years ago, Dub Trub should be in color.
The title characters of Dub Trub are Special Agent Red and Special Agent Black. Red is a brunette who wears red sunglasses, and Black is red-haired hellion who wears black shades. Like a cross between Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the X-Men’s Rogue, this duo is at the forefront of the fight against the Voyd, an extraterrestrial horde invading Earth. The Voyd essentially leads an interstellar Axis of alien races fighting on their side, such as the Khan’Leb, a mercenary race hired by the Voyd to help with human subjugation. Over land, air, and sea, with visits to the moon, New York City, and Moscow, Red and Black lead the charge in the fight to save Earth and humanity.
Not only have I previously read Dub Trub: “Our World is in Danger Now!,” I have also read the other Dub Trub graphic novels. Reading this color edition of “Our World is in Danger Now!,” however, I feel as if I’ve read it for the first time. The color makes the art pop off the page, and it also makes more obvious how Dub Trub relates to other science fiction, fantasy, and comic book works.
With the debut of new versions of such characters as Flash (1956) and Green Lantern (1959), the DC Comics of what is called the Silver Age of comics had a Space Age quality to it. It was a kind of futuristic, forward-looking attitude that remains with the publisher to this day. In terms of story and art, Dub Trub seems like a neo-Silver Age DC comic book. I can imagine Gil Kane and Julius Schwartz tinkering with this book.
Carter Allen also recalls World War II-era comic books with the Voyd ably stepping in for Nazi Germany and the Axis. In the last of the book’s four chapters, Allen juxtaposes WWII-like propaganda with the story of a lonely and weary foot soldier. I never thought of these things when I first read this book, but color brings out so much more subtext and layers to the story.
If you have not before, here is another chance to read Dub Trub: “Our World is in Danger Now!” It’s certainly prettier than before.
A
www.candlelightpress.com
www.dubtrub.com
www.warningcomics.com
Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux
Thursday, January 17, 2013
"Lenore" Character to Die in New Story Arc
A LENORE CHARACTER WILL DIE!
IN A NEW STORY BY ROMAN DIRGE!
Lenore creator Roman Dirge reveals a character will die in a terrifyingly hilarious new story! Who will it be? Who will survive… and what will be left of them? The four-part saga kicks off in March 2013!
Following this year’s unforgettable 20th anniversary celebrations, Titan Comics is pleased to announce four brand-new Lenore releases for 2013! Beginning March 28, 2013, the new storyline will see creator Roman Dirge murderize a key Lenore character from the cult comic series!
That’s right… one of these lovably undead monstrosities is taking a powder-nap, a vacation from existence, a sub-soil retirement, a journey into the void… Well, you get the grimly picture.
The new four-part story kicks-off in Lenore #8 and marks the beginning of the end for one of Lenore’s main characters; with a fight-to-the-death between two of the comic’s most beloved characters, but who will stand victorious and who will die…?
When a film crew from "Ghosty Toasty" TV show: “Where we toast that ghost!" turns up at Lenore's mansion in search of 'ghosts and ghouls' they get more than they bargained for: much, much more!
The new storyline will also reveal the shocking truth behind the mask of Taxidermy (Lenore’s most mysterious and sinister character) including his incredible history, which started back in the days of ancient Egypt.
“There will be an insane battle. I have already started designing the town of Nevermore, just so they can destroy it!” Creator Roman Dirge says.
Lenore #8 comes with two collectable covers drawn by Dirge! Retailers can order Lenore #8 from the February 2013 edition of Diamond PREVIEWS. For updates retailers can sign-up to the Titan Comics retail newsletter, here or follow @TitanRetail on Twitter.
Lenore #8 is available from comic stores on March 28, 2013. The series will also be available to read day and date on the iPad, iPhone, Web, Android and Kindle Fire, exclusively through the comiXology app and comiXology.com
To keep up-to-date with news from Titan Comics, visit www.titan-comics.com or join us on Facebook or Twitter.
About Titan Comics
Titan Comics is a bold new publishing initiative from Titan Publishing, offering readers the best new stories from new and established comics creators – and offering those creators a great deal to bring their stories to a worldwide audience!
From editorial to design, Titan Comics helps creators shape their ideas into the best comics possible – while they retain full rights over their creations and intellectual property.
Combining unique voices and idiosyncratic visions with strong marketing and a trusted brand, Titan Comics is the ultimate expression of our extensive editorial, design and sales experience.
Titan Publishing has been a purveyor of comics, graphic novels, fiction and licensed publishing for over thirty years.
Since 1981, we have been instrumental in the field of licensed film and television properties, including The Walking Dead, Star Wars, Transformers and Star Trek, as well as creator-owned successes such as Tank Girl and Lenore – but now is the time to nurture a new generation of creators, characters and properties.
As well as all-new monthly comics titles, Titan Comics continues to restore and reprint the best classic comics, bringing back seminal titles of yesterday in deluxe and lovingly-produced volumes.
Titan also has a broad and active digital portfolio, with all comics and magazines available for simultaneous purchase across major tablet and web interfaces.
Titan’s comic titles and trade paperbacks are distributed to the Direct Market by Diamond, with our trade paperbacks distributed to the book trade by Random House.
For more information, visit: www.Titan-comics.com
For information about Titan Comics new imprint, visit:
http://titan-comics.com/news/launch01/
Connect with Titan Comics:
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www.twitter.com/comicstitan
www.twitter.com/TitanRetail
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Review: THE BLACK BEETLE #1
THE BLACK BEETLE #1
DARK HORSE COMICS – @DarkHorseComics
CARTOONIST/COVER: Francesco Francavilla
LETTERS: Nate Piekos (of Blambot)
PIN-UP: Mike Norton
28pp, Color, $3.99 U.S.
“No Way Out” (Part 1 of 4)
Francesco Francavilla is an Italian comic book artist. Francavilla won the 2012 Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards trophy for “Best Cover Artist” for providing cover art on such titles as Black Panther (Marvel Comics); Lone Ranger (Dynamite Entertainment), and Archie Meets Kiss (Archie Comics), among others.
The Black Beetle is a comic book character created by Francavilla. The character has been appearing on Francavilla’s blog and in the anthology series, Dark Horse Presents. The Black Beetle has more than a passing resemblance to DC Comics’ Batman because they share conceptual DNA.
The Black Beetle blends the aesthetics of pulp fiction, mystery, noir, and the superhero. The character is not only part superhero, but he is also a costumed vigilante and weird detective in the vein of such classic pulp heroes as The Shadow and The Spider, with some of Zorro and Sherlock Holmes thrown into the mix. Black Beetle is a super-heroic sleuth, and his base of operation is Colt City, a classic pulp and noir-type urban landscape. Black Beetle debuts in his own comic book series, entitled The Black Beetle.
As The Black Beetle #1 begins, the Black Beetle is about to make himself an uninvited guest in a meeting of two crime families, the Galazzos and the Fierros. In this summit, which will determine the future of Colt City’s criminal empire, Black Beetle sees an opportunity to take out two major crime bosses, Don Pasquale Galazzo and Joe Fierro. When the hero makes his move at Spencer’s, the neutral sight where this crime conference is being held, he discovers that he is not the only hunter.
The Black Beetle: No Way Out #1 is clean comic book storytelling. This is classic, two-fisted, masked-man comic book action. It’s gritty and pure, lacking in pretension or the goal to be the soap opera version of character drama that most superhero comic books offer. This is the kind of pulpy mayhem that first made me fall in love with comic books.
I don’t think that I can adequately describe just how gorgeous Francesco Francavilla’s art is. Some of the pages use a standard comic book page layout, but most of them are more imaginative and inventive. Some pages resemble movie posters and movie theatre lobby cards; others are similar to narrative paintings. Some pages are designed as splash pages, but with details and assorted art embedded on them.
The Black Beetle is pure pop comics. Between the new Stars Wars series and The Black Beetle, Dark Horse Comics is doing their own version of Marvel NOW and The New 52. Dark Horse is just doing a better job of making classic seem so fresh.
A+
http://pulpsunday.blogspot.com/
Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux
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