Wednesday, May 26, 2021

#IReadsYou Review: CHAOS CAMPUS #33

CHAOS CAMPUS: SORORITY GIRLS VS ZOMBIES #33
APPROBATION COMICS

STORY: B. Alex Thompson – @ApproBAT
ART: Ricardo Mendez
COLORS: Alivon Ortiz
LETTERS: Krugos
POST-SCRIPTING/POLISH: John P. Ward
EDITORS: B. Alex Thompson and John P. Ward
MISC. ART: Ricardo Mendez with Alivon Ortiz
COVERS: Ricardo Mendez with Alivon Ortiz
24pp, Color, $4.99 U.S. print/$1.99 U.S. digital (2017; digital release date – December 20, 2017)

Rated: Teen 13+ / 15+ Only – comiXology rating

Chaos Campus: Sorority Girls vs. Zombies created by B. Alex Thompson

“Higher Learning, Part l of 4”


Chaos Campus: Sorority Girls vs. Zombies is the long-running zombie apocalypse comic book series from Approbation Comics.  Mixing in elements of comedy, horror, adventure, and magic, it is the creation of B. Alex Thompson.  The series is set during a zombie invasion and follows the adventures of three members of the sorority, Epsilon Alpha Zeta Upsilon (EAZY):  ass-kickin’ Jamie Lynn Schaeffer, brainy and magic-wielding Paige Helena Patton, and sexy goddess-type Brittany Ann Miller.

Chaos Campus: Sorority Girls vs. Zombies #33 opens in the aftermath of “Lineage” (from issue #32).  Paige is having bad dreams, and the uncertainty and the frustrations with the responsibilities and hopes placed on her begin to push her to a breaking point.  Her friends and her mother, Morgan, and brother, Tyler, try to comfort Paige.  Even Oliver offers help, but Paige is not sure about his motives.

However, the fam and the friends are not the only ones who have been noticing Paige's emotional and mentally vulnerable state.  Tech Locke, always one dream or portal away, makes his move in trying to recruit Paige to his side.   What could Tech possibly have that would make Paige turn her back on her family, friends, and mission?  It's a secret.

THE LOWDOWN:  After bringing “The Road to Salvation” story line to an end, writer B. Alex Thompson continued to bring levity to Chaos Campus via a series of standalone stories.  However, in the most recent standalone story, “Lineage,” writer B. Alex Thompson revealed that Brittany shares her body with an ancient Greek goddess known as “the Twelfth.”

Now, Thompson turns Chaos Campus' narrative eye to Paige Helena Patton with the beginning of a new story arc, “Higher Learning.”  At first Tech Locke, the mystery man who is obsessed with Paige, seems like nothing more than a pest.  Thompson throws in a twist when he uses not Locke's own secrets, but the secrets others keep as the hook to pull readers into this new arc.

As usual, Ricardo Mendez's art and graphical storytelling are strong, and in many ways, he has become the second signature “voice” of Chaos Campus.  This series' narrative engine runs smoothly under the guiding hands of Mendez's compositions.  It seems that, at least for now, no one can transform Thompson's Chaos Campus scripts into comic book art and storytelling better than Mendez.

Good coloring has blessed Chaos Campus, and the colors and dazzling color effects by Alivon Ortiz make even the quite pages in issue #33 pop. Letterer Krugos continues the steady beat of this series, and that beat may very well carry more of you, dear readers, to Chaos Campus #33.

POSSIBLE AUDIENCE:  Fans of zombies and of horror-comedies will want to try Chaos Campus: Sorority Girls vs. Zombies.

A
9 out of 10

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


Buy Chaos Campus #33 at comiXology.

www.ApprobationComics.com
https://twitter.com/ApproBAT
www.AlexThompsonWriter.com


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

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Tuesday, May 25, 2021

#IReadsYou Review: CROSSOVER #1

CROSSOVER #1
IMAGE COMICS

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

STORY: Donny Cates
ART: Geoff Shaw
COLORS: Dee Cunniffe
LETTERS: John J. Hill
DESIGN: John J. Hill
EDITOR: Mark Waid
COVER: Geoff Shaw with Dave Stewart
VARIANT COVER ARTIST: Ryan Stegman with Dee Cunniffe
32pp, Colors, 3.99 U.S.(November 2020)

Rated “T+/ Teen Plus”

Crossover is a new comic book created by writer Donny Cates and artist Geoff Shaw.  Published by Image Comics, Crossover is set in a world where a real-life superhero crossover event occurs.  Colorist Dee Cunniffe and letterer/designer John J. Hill complete the series' creative team.

Crossover #1 opens with a question to ponder.  Who is more real: Superman or we the people in the real world?  On January 11, 2017, in Boulder, Colorado, the skies over the state open up and a “superhero summer event” explodes in the real world.  Almost every fictional comic book character ever seen by readers is sighted in the chaos that ensues.  But when it comes to “The Crossover,” the real story might be happening in a comic book store in Provo, Utah.

THE LOWDOWN:  I have read very few comic books written by Donny Cates, and I did not really care for any of them.  Honestly, I found the two issue of Cates' Texas vampire comic book, Redneck, that I did read to be clumsily written.

But I like Crossover #1.  It is the kind of first issue that, like something addictive, makes you come back for more.  This is true although Cates is initially quite secretive and coy with this series' secrets.  Artist Geoff Shaw speaks multiple comic book graphical languages in this first issue, and most readers will recognize all of them.  I found myself drawn ever deeper into this story by what Shaw presented on this page, each page featuring pitch-perfect coloring by Dee Cunniffe.

John J. Hill's lettering balances the story's sense of mystery and of the unknown against the cacophony of superheroes.  This is the finishing touch to a comic book first issue that hints at a series with great potential.  I really want to know what happens next.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Fans of Donny Cates will want to read this comic book Crossover.

A-
7.5 out of 10

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


https://twitter.com/Doncates
https://twitter.com/GeoffShaw12
https://twitter.com/ImageComics
https://imagecomics.com/


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

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Monday, May 24, 2021

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