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Today's reviews!

Reviews for 19-12-21 
​Reviews for 18-12-21 Reviews for 17-12-21 Reviews for 16-12-21
​Reviews for 15-12-21 Reviews for 14-12-21 Reviews for 13-12-21
​Reviews for 12-12-21 Reviews for 11-12-21 Reviews for 10-12-21
​Reviews for 09-12-21 Reviews for 08-12-21 Reviews for 07-12-21
​Reviews for 06-12-21 Reviews for 05-12-21 Reviews for 04-12-21
​Reviews for 03-12-11 Reviews for 02-12-21 Reviews for 01-12-21

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By the Horns #1

2/28/2021

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By the Horns #1
Scout Comics 2021
Written by Markisan Naso
Illustrated & Lettered by Jason Muhr
Coloured by Andrei Tabacaru

    Elodie hates unicorns. For nearly a year, she's dedicated her life to tracking down and killing them all for trampling her husband, Shintaro. Now exiled from her farming village of Wayfarer for selfishly neglecting her duties, Elodie and her half wolf/half deer companion, Sajen, search the continent of Solothus for clues to the whereabouts of unicorns. When they discover a lead in the port city of Lycus, their revenge mission suddenly takes a dangerous turn.

    Well now this is interesting.  It has this dungeons & dragons overtones with a cyborg enhanced creatures that feel straight out of a world on Picard.  I was already going to read this regardless of what I thought of it, I mean Voracious is one of those series that I couldn’t get enough of and Markisan & Jason were are team supreme on that one so that they are reunited once again well folks this is going to be one hell of a powerfully good series.  From what I am seeing here it is well on its way to becoming just that.  

    I am in love with the way that this is being told.  The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information is presented exceptionally well.  Elodie is one of those interesting characters and that Markisan introduces us to her in such a way as this and through how she is seen by others and why she is the way she is is utterly phenomenal.  The character development that we see is practically perfect in every way, seriously it really is.  The pacing we see is superb and as it takes us through the pages revealing the twists & turns alongside the world, the characters and the story it’s easy to get drawn into this.

    I like how we see this being structured and how the layers within the story emerge before our eyes.  There are plenty of different avenues that are available to be pursued though only a few seem like they will be and I like that there are options.  This way we are never quite sure which way it’s going to go.  I’m also enjoying how we see everything working together to create the story’s ebb & flow as it’s really extremely nice to see.  

    I am absolutely loving the interiors here.  The linework that we see and how the varying weights and techniques are being utilised to create the detail work that we see is impeccably done.  As always Jason’s creativity and imagination that we see throughout really is quite impressive.  With the utilisation of the backgrounds within the composition of the panels we get some great depth perception, sense of scale and that overall sense of size and scope to the story.  The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a remarkably talented eye for storytelling.  I digging the colour work we see as well.  The choices are fantastic and how we see the various hues and tones within the colours being utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work is exemplary.
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    Oh this is a magnificent start to a new series, this I can guarantee.  The boys here are exceptional storytellers and from concept through execution the work being done here is stellar!  Scout was smart to pick this up from them and let them run with it because the way that this will catch your mind, your creativity and imagination are exactly what the medium and the genre are all about.

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Chasing the Dragon #1

2/28/2021

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Chasing the Dragon #1
Heavy Metal/Magma Comix 2021
Written by Denton J. Tipton
Illustrated by Menton3
Lettered & Design by Gilberto Lazcano

    Explore a dark fantasy world ravaged by the rampant abuse of a drug made from the blood of dragons. When two young slaves discover a terrible secret that could change the course of the world, will a meek alchemist's apprentice and a drug-addled concubine survive long outside their cages? 

    Now I am a huge fan and supporter of stories and books that are far from ordinary and generally speaking whenever Menton3 is attached to a project well you can pretty much bank that it’ll fit that bill.  This is crazy and of course this isn’t your typical cray cray this is that crazy good kind of crazy in that it has these familiar elements to it, like Merlin or Dragonlance infused with a lot of Alice Through the Looking Glass.  The story here is abso-freakin-lutely amazing and  draws you in and makes you question so much almost immediately.  This kind of engagement in the story isn’t something that happens all that often so it’s a nice testament to the talent and skill we see within the pages.  

    I am loving the way that this is being told.  The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information is presented exceptionally well.  The way we are introduced to the world, to the characters and what is represented here is really something amazing.  The character development that we see is phenomenal and while it appears ambiguous it’s really kind of interesting and complex than it seems.  This excites me in some different ways and I look forward to seeing these characters next issue and how they act and react to the situations and circumstances they encountered this issue.  The pacing here is superb!  As it takes us through the pages introducing us to this world, these characters and the premise behind the story we are slowly drawn into this world of intrigue and abuse that has a powerful grip.

    I am loving the way that we see this being structured as well as how the layers within the story emerge.  There’s a great dynamic happening within the pages and with various characters that I cannot wait to see how they grow.  The way that we see everything working together to create the story’s ebb & flow is beautifully done.

    The interiors here are stunning.  What can you say about Menton3’s work?  The man is a bloody genius and the way we see his creativity and imagination come to life is both creepy as all hell and just as gorgeous!  The way that we see the composition within the panels both with and without the use of backgrounds really does create the mood, tone and feel that the book needs.  The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels shows such a masters eye for storytelling.  The colour work is equally as impressive.  The choice of colours and how we see the various hues and tones within the colours being utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work shows such an incredible understanding of the power colour has.
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    I think that for me personally Heavy Metal Comics is fast approaching one of the few publishing houses that needs more recognition for the work they are doing.  The range and diversity of the projects and the sheer amount of talent, skill and creativity of this book alone shows you exactly why they are currently carving out a big name for themselves.  This is a must have publishing house in your pull list, trust me you’ll never be disappointed.

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Generations Forged #1

2/27/2021

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Generations Forged #1
DC Comics 2021
Written by Dan Jurgens, Robert Venditti & Andy Schmidt
Illustrated by Mike Perkins, Marco Santucci, Paul Pelletier, Norm Rapmund
Bernard Chang, Joe Prado, Colleen Doran, Bryan Hitch, Andrew Currie, 
Dan Jurgens & Kevin Nowlan
Coloured by Hi-Fi
Lettered by Tom Napolitano

    Dispersed through time by the villain Dominus, our ragtag team of generational heroes-featuring 1939 Batman, Kamandi, Superboy, Steel, Starfire, Sinestro, Booster Gold, and Dr. Light-must find a way to restore the timeline…and what they ultimately discover is something far, far greater. You’ll have to read it to believe it as time dies…and generations rise!

    This is so not fair!  While I am thrilled with this I really wish it were a six to twelve issue limited-series.  The idea behind this really should’ve warranted a lot more time and exposure on stands.  After all this kind of team-up just doesn’t happen and with the diversity of the characters of whom many were a mistake to begin with, Kamandi is amazing that way, it just reminded me of the past and how awesome, fun and interesting it was.  This shows me that it’s possible to do this again and have it be something that fans can rally behind and enjoy alongside the current mishegas that is also on stands.  

    I love the way that this is being told.  The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how htea reader learns information is extremely well presented.  While he isn’t named I still believe that’s a Luthor and his family who somehow managed to create a slice of universe for himself.  The character development we see throughout this is utterly amazing as we really do get see them behave as they were when they were taken.  The personalities are incredible to see as they interact with each other.  The pacing here is fantastic and as it takes us through the pages revealing the story takes us on a great journey.

    With the way that this is structured and how the layers within the story emerge is really nice to see and it does open the door for more stories along these lines.  I really do like seeing how everything works together to create the story’s ebb & flow and with more than one writer to see each segment flow so perfectly with each other is a real testament to the talent we see here.

    The same goes for the various art teams here.  The segments might be done by different teams but it all feels like one cohesive book.  The linework throughout is sensational and the way the varying weights are being utilised to create the detail work is phenomenally well achieved.  How we see backgrounds being utilised and how they work within the composition of the panels do more than enhance the moments they bring us depth perception, a sense of scale and that overall sense of size and scope to the story.  Just the way we see the creativity and imagination here and how we see the different worlds in different era’s being showcased is really pretty brilliantly done.  The colour work is gorgeous!  How we see the various hues and tones within the colours being utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work really showcases an great understanding of how colour works.  
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    I really do wish this were more of limited-series than a one-shot as I feel there is so much that can still be done with the premise and the characters or any variation within the DC Universe.  I love seeing that we can still enjoy the universes as they were and not worry about the whole dark and angst ridden stuff that’s currently happening now.  Innocence isn’t always lost it’s just forgotten about.

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Nuclear Family #1

2/25/2021

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Nuclear Family #1
Aftershock Comics 2021
Based of a Philip K. Dick Story
Written by Stephanie Phillips
Illustrated by Tony Shasteen
Coloured by JD Mettler 
Lettered by Troy Peteri

    America, 1957. Elvis dominates the airwaves and apple pie is served after every meal. But, with the dark cloud of nuclear holocaust looming, Korean War vet Tim McClean's major concern is taking care of his family in the atomic age.  When the first bomb does drop on an unexpecting Midwest city, Tim and his family find themselves plunged into a strange new world, where what's left of the Unites States has gone underground while continuing to wage war on Russia with unthinkable tactics.

    Okay I am in.  I really like the premise of what we’re seeing here though I am surprised to see this deviate from the original so much.  Artistic licence and all that but I found myself drawn to Tim in this weird and wonderful way.  The idea of a man coming home from the Korean War, starts a family and has a bomb shelter in his basement.  The outward appearance is more like Leave it to Beaver and inwardly he’s this Prepper, waiting for World War III to start and the way we see this is very well done.  

    I am enjoying the way this is being told.  How we see the story & plot development through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information is presented nicely.  I also like that it’s 1957 and the cold war is in full swing and everyone smokes, so it has this pretty realistic feel to it.  The character development is interesting and it’s easy to see Tim for who he is and a lot more diplomatic and practical than I was expecting.  Dan’s a slick one and I kind of like him though something tells me we won’t see him again.  The family isn’t as fleshed out as much yet but I expect that to change as the story goes on.  The pacing is strong and it takes us through the pages revealing the story in bits and pieces which generates a good deal of interest in the reader.

    The way that this is structured and how we see the layers within the story emerge it’s just enough to garner the intrigue and interest factors but not enough to really tell us much which is interesting.  How we see everything working together to create the story’s ebb & flow is beautifully rendered.

    I am a huge fan of Tony’s work and that happens to be a huge reason why I picked this up.  There is something about the way he’s able to use the linework with its varying weights and techniques to create the level and quality of detail that we see is stupendous.  The way we see backgrounds utilised within the composition of the panels and how they bring us depth perception, a sense of scale and the overall sense of size and scope to the story is utterly marvellous.  The utilisation of page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels showcase a masterful eye for storytelling.  The colour work we see is gorgeous!  How we see the application of the colour with its various hues and tones within the colours utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work is stunning.  The knowledge of how colour works and how it can be seen is just beyond belief.
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    I’m entirely thrilled with how the issue ends to be honest.  It seems a tad off and well it’s a huge leap of faith to believe that they’d refer to him that way.  Also it’s kind of weird hearing that word whether written or spoken even with the cold war going on and it kind of feels out of place but that could just be me and my familiarity with the original short story.  Or maybe I am just remembering it wrong who can say for certain.  Still it’s a gorgeously illustrated tale that really represents the era and the idea we see extremely well.  Aftershock is home to some really bold choices which always pay off in some of the spectacular ways imaginable.

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Two Moons #1

2/25/2021

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Two Moons #1
Image Comics 2021
Written by John Arcudi
Illustrated by Valerio Giangiordano
Coloured by Dave Stewart
Lettered by Michael Heisler

    This issue starts the long journey of a young Pawnee man named Virgil Morris—aka Two Moons—fighting for the Union during the Civil War. When he is suddenly confronted with his shamanic roots, he discovers horrors far worse than combat as the ghosts of his past reveal the monstrous evil around him!

    I really enjoyed this a whole lot more than I was thinking I was going to from my first glimpse of it and boy howdy is this something special. The whole premise of this being set in the midst of the civil war is something more than simply clever it’s incredibly inspired.  You can see the influence of what’s been happening in one character and part of me likes that and another part of me is a little disappointed because i’d rather that have been a surprise.  Regardless what’s done is done and certainly didn’t or doesn’t diminish the enjoyment of the story in the slightest.  The ending is something of a twist as well so that was a stellar part of how this whole thing unfolds.

    I like the way that we see this being told.  The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information is presented exceptionally well.  I like that the we are already in the midst of war and that Two Moons is there without explanation or backstory being hit upon at the moment.  I’d rather we not revisit his past per se and just keep moving forward with bits and pieces talked about as needed.  The moment with his grandfather is a perfect example of this and how I hope we continue to see his life unfold.  The character development that we see is sensational.  I like how we see them act and react to the situations and circumstances they encounter as well as the dialogue between characters as it fleshes them out.  The pacing is superb and as it takes us through the pages revealing the story we are treated to a really interesting and fascinating read.

    I do like how we see this being structured and how the layers within the story are emerging so that we can see different avenues that could possibly develop.  Then there’s the way that we see everything working together to create the story’s ebb & flow which is beautifully done.  I love how easy this reads as it allows us to follow along.

    The interiors here are absolutely beautiful.  The linework that we see is strong yet also soft and how the varying weights and techniques are being utilised to bring about this level and quality of detail work is stunning.  The sheer creativity and imagination that we see and how the backgrounds are utilised into the composition within the panels shows so much talent and skill here.  The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a stupendous eye for storytelling.  The colour work is absolutely gorgeous as well and how we see the various hues and tones within the colours being utilised to create the shading shows some great understanding of how colour works.  I am utterly and completely impressed with the level and quality of the work we see within these pages.
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    This is an off the beaten path style horror story and I think that this kind of creativity in the storytelling, see writing, is exactly the kind of adrenaline we need infused in the genre.  I love that this feels so incredibly original and unique that stands out from the crowd, head and shoulders above the rest really.  I am excited to see what’s going to come next and this fuses that compelling drama of the era along with mythology of an indigenous people to introduce a new generation to the excitement of the past.

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The Picture of Everything Else #2

2/22/2021

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The Picture of Everything Else #2
Vault Comics 2021
Written by Dan Watters
Illustrated by Kishore Mohan
Lettered by Aditya Bidikar

    Marcel has abandoned painting for the glamorous world of criticism. But a monster has returned to Paris with a Faustian offer he cannot refuse. Old wounds will be opened. New wounds will be formed with paintbrush and gun smoke.

    Wow what a jump from the last issue!  With Marcel now alone and seemingly lost and adrift he’s got his few friends and the one person he loved and counted on the most has up and left him changing his life.  So here we are with the aftermath of all that and I have to say that the unexpectedness of what we see here is utterly amazing in so many ways.  After the way we left things I wasn’t sure which direction this was going to go so that it went this way is kind of exciting and thrilling to me.  I love being surprised and since it seems that this is going to do just that every step of the way which makes me even more excited to see what’s coming next.  

    I am a huge fan of the way that this is being told.  The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information is presented in such a magnificent way.  This has all the earmarks of a romantic period piece thriller and it rivals even that of Frankenstein, The Picture of Dorian Gray or even the Great Gatsby and in that vein this has those twists & turns impeccably down.  The character development that we see is rather marvellous as well.  Seeing how they act and react to one another and the dialogue that we see is stupendous in how it keeps fleshing them out further.  The pacing is superb and as it takes us through the pages revealing the twists and turns along the way we continue to see just how intoxicating this story can be.

    With the way that this is structured and how the layers within the story continue to emerge and those from last issue grow stronger we can marvel at the complexity and depth of range they encompass.  I am also enjoying how we see everything working together to create the story’s ebb & flow as the story does manage to move much to quick for my comfort.  

    The interiors here are so very lovely.  I am a loving the linework that we see here and how it does wonders to set the stage for the colour work we see.  Because of the combination that we see utilised throughout and we see backgrounds being created is beyond sensational.  The detail work that we see throughout and how it’s created is something that takes extreme talent and skill to do.  The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show such a masterful eye for storytelling.  The colour work we see is beyond gorgeous.  I mean the watercolour painted style that we see and how the various hues and tones within the colours are being utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work is extraordinary.  I mean just the way the colour works to add depth and detail to the work is almost indescribable.  It takes a mastery of knowledge for not only how colour works but how they affect what we see and how we see it and it is without a doubt some of the most mindbogglingly good work I’ve even seen.
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    I have seen many variations and iterations of the Picture of Dorian Gray and this one by far is my favourite among them.  That it takes the art of the subject and is able to kill the subject or cause them direct and massive harm well it’s a new one on me.  This is why vault is the leader in the science fiction genre.  

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White Lily #1

2/22/2021

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White Lily #1
Red5  Comics 2021
Created & Written by Preston Poulter
Pencilled by Lovalle Davis
Inked by Walden Wong & Diana Greenhaigh
Coloured by Alonso Espinoza
Lettered by Taylor Esposito

    Lilya Litvak is destined to become the greatest female fighter pilot of all time, flying for the Russian Army in World War II against the Germans who conquered who home in Poland. But first she's got to survive harsh commanders, sexist trainers and bad equipment before she'll get the chance to face German planes and bullets.

    I rather like this story already.  It’s set in WWII, the Soviet Union, and our heroine of the hour is a nice Jewish girl from Poland whose family has already suffered mightily at the hands of the Nazi’s and the Russians.  There’s more to her than just simply this however you’ll have to learn what that is on your own.  Suffice it to say that this is not what I had expected to see and it certainly raises the stakes in many regards.  If you look at history we see women in the armed forces at this time and usually they are fly girls but this is the first time we’ve really seen from the Russian standpoint which is pretty darn interesting.

    I am enjoying the way that this is being told.  How we see the story & plot development through the sequence of events upholding and how we learn information is presented beautifully.  I do appreciate seeing the air-raids not having the real desired effect they should have, when something is so constant in ones life it tends to get ignored and blasé if you will of course until it’s really too late.  Kind of the boy who cried wolf for example.  The character development is extraordinary to me.  Seeing how the act and react to the circumstances and situations they encounter and how they are treated by Captain Kazarinova.  Oh yeah we can see how this is going to be interesting.  The pacing is great and the way we see the story, the world and the introduction of characters is extremely nice to see.

    With how this book is being structured and how the layers within the story are emerging it highlights some nice skill and talent from Preston.  Also I do very much like how everything works together to create the story’s ebb & flow.  There is a lot happening here and as we get started it’s nice to see that no matter how much there is, nothing feels rushed, glossed over or simply put into this.

    The interiors here are pretty stunning.  The linework is gorgeous and how the varying weights we see work to create the details is phenomenal.  I am impressed with how we see the utilisation of backgrounds throughout the book and how they work within the composition of the panels.  They enhance the moments as they also bring some nice depth perception, sense of scale and that overall sense of size and scope to the story.  The utilisation of the page layouts and including the suddenly sideways pages and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a remarkably talented eye for storytelling.  Though this is one that needs to be read physically because the flipping to sideways on a computer isn’t as fun or easy.  The colour work is beautifully rendered as well.  How we see the various hues and tones within the colours being utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work is brilliantly done.  I’m also a huge fan of the various blues in the sky and how that is seen through gradation.  The way colour is laid down through various techniques is wonderful to see.
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    This may be based on a true story and it just goes to show that everyday people in the real world do extraordinary things.  We’ve all heard that truth is stranger than fiction and without what we know and have seen or experienced we wouldn’t have mediums such as this.  This is a beautifully told story that has everything you could possibly want and so much more.

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Savage #1

2/21/2021

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Savage #1
Valiant Entertainment 2021
Written by Max Bemis
Illustrated by Nathan Stockman
Coloured by Triona Farrell
Lettered by Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou

    Teenage heartthrob. Feral social icon. Dinosaur hunter? Born and raised on an uncharted island full of prehistoric dangers, Kevin Sauvage has a taste of home when a mutant dino threat invades England!

    I love Max, I really do.  I wasn’t sure what to expect out of this but it certainly wasn’t anything remotely close to this.  Now I am not entirely sure that Kevin wouldn’t be better suited in the Faraway but that’s not my choice to make and the one that has is fantastic.  Seeing Kevin with his brother Henry is an interesting take on this and I have to say for someone who’s lived away from society for fifteen years Kevin really understands people and human nature.  So far the only thing about Henry that I like is that he calls Kevin out on not showering.  I mean I get it jungle boy doesn’t bathe but that’s not really an excuse he should’ve bathed on his Island.  Regardless of that the fact I am mentioning it at all showcases how in the span of so few pages how invested and involved I am in this story.

    I love, love the way that this is being told.  The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information is presented extremely well.  I also like how we see his life here versus there and the differences as he sees them.  With the character development that we see it’s easy to understand how being lost for the first fifteen years of your life is able to change how you see the world once you are reintroduced to it.  With every page I begin to like Kevin more and more.  The pacing is superb and as it takes us through the pages revealing the story and the world he now lives in is extremely fun.

    I think that the way we see this being structured and how the layers within the story work to weave different aspects into this story is sensational.  I mean some of these are pure fun/funny and others have threads that can lead to other places.  I like seeing how everything works together to create the story’s ebb & flow as well as it creates this smooth reading experience through it’s pages.

    The interiors here are nice.  I wasn’t quite expecting such a pure comic book style so that was a surprise to me, a good one mind you.  What I do love to see is the attention to detail we get from how the linework and it’s varying weights are being utilised.  Also I am impressed with the way backgrounds are being utilised and how they fit within the composition of panels so they bring us depth perception, sense of scale and that overall sense of size and scope to the story.  The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a sensational eye for storytelling.  The colour work is magnificent as well.  I like the choice of colours and how we see the various hues and tones within the colours being utilised to create the shading highlights and shadow work.  I’m also impressed with the way that colour is being utilised to define musculature as well.
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    Yeah this is a bit silly towards the end on but that’s okay.  These are obviously not the same creatures that came from his Island reality and that we see how they arrive well that leads into the final page, a really good cliffhanger!  So now I’m not sure this Valiant Universe proper still and I hope it’s not and that Kevin gets the chance to be the hero the world needs and that his new nemesis, which I’m guessing will be these folks, will meet time and time again.

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Grimm Universe Presents Quarterly: Darkwatchers

2/21/2021

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Grimm Universe Presents Quarterly: Darkwatchers
Zenescope Entertainment 2021
Written by Brian Hawkins
Illustrated by Donny Hadiwidjaja, Allan Otero, Eman Sasallos
Coloured by Maxflan Araujo, Jorge Cortes, Walter Pereyra
Lettered by Kurt Hathaway

    Legend has it that long ago a coven of witches and warlocks sought to perform a ritual that would grant them immeasurable power and eternal life for a cost. But this cost was not fully understood, and those who performed it were forever held between the veil of our world and eternity, cursed to watch the living and trapped with an insatiable hunger. They became known as the Darkwatchers!

     Along the Santa Lucia Mountain Range there have been tales of beings who watch travelers from the horizon, and some said to look upon them vanish, never to be see again. These stories have been happening more frequently, and as Gretel and Calabar are making their way through this stretch of land, they are about to be pulled into something not even the nearly three-hundred year old witch hunter has come across in her life!

    I have to say that I was really looking forward to this after the last Gretel story.  With Brian at the helm of this I surely wasn’t disappointed in the slightest.  Plus the fact that it’s near 70 pages doesn’t hurt any either, this is what a Quarterly should be for in story and page length.  Gretel is so conflicted as she eats the heart of the witches she defeats, gaining their speciality in the process, so how does this make her different from those she hunts?  That’s the eternal question that she needs to come to a grip with and it doesn’t look like that is going to happen anytime soon.  It is also part of the reason we love reading her adventures.

    I am a huge fan of the way that this being told.  The story & plot development we see through how the sequence of events unfold and how the leader learns information is presented exceptionally well.  The way that this is structured showcases how each encounter is meant to be seen and this highlights the skill and talent Brian has.  With the character development we see and feel the concern and love within this friendship these two women have and it continues to make grow and evolve.  The pacing here is sensational and as it takes us through the pages revealing the twists & turns along the way takes us on a journey most foul.  The way that everything works together to create the story’s ebb & flow is amazing to me.

    The interiors here are really gorgeous.  You wouldn’t know that there are so many different folks responsible either when you read through this.  Sure there are minor things here and there but overall nope it’s all good.  I like the linework we see and how the varying weights are being utilised to bring about the detail we see is utterly marvellous.  The way we see backgrounds being utilised and how they work within the composition in the panels really bring this to that exceptionally high level.  The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show some really wonderful eyes for storytelling.  The colour work is glorious!  I love seeing the neon inspired magic that we see and how we see that rendered is pure magic.  The way we see the various hues and tones within the colours being utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work showcases some real talent here.
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    What Brian and the art team has done here is expand Gretel’s sphere of influence even further.  This is why I want to see more of her and Calabar in a more frequent manner, so the series of arcs that are perfectly by Zenescope needs to have some focus on these two.  I wouldn’t mind seeing Brian stay with her either as this was incredibly well written issue so that it stands out in some great ways.

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Shadow Doctor #1

2/20/2021

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Shadow Doctor #1
Aftershock Comics 2021
Written by Peter Calloway
Illustrated by Georges Jeanty
Coloured by Juanchoi
Lettered & Backmatter Design by Charles Pritchett

    Years in the making, this is the true story of writer Peter Calloway’s grandfather, Nathaniel Calloway, a Black man who graduated from medical school in the early 1930’s. Unable to get work at any Chicago hospitals because he was Black, and unable to secure a loan from a bank to start his own practice because he was Black, he turned to another source of money in Prohibition-era Chicago: the Mafia, run by none other than Al Capone.

    I would have been incredibly impressed with this even if it hadn’t been based on his family but that it is and Peter is chronicling his family history in comics is absolutely, completely and utterly phenomenal.  Well I have to say I am already in love with this story and mainly because of when and where it’s being set.  The opening doesn’t prepare you for what’s to come but that’s find because the first two pages are extraordinary in how they manage to capture the readers’ attention.  We are drawn into this very quickly and it doesn’t really register how involved and invested you are in this until the book is over, which makes you sad because you want to know more.

    The way that this is being told is pretty brilliant.  The story & plot development we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information is presented exquisitely well.  The circumstances where Nathaniel is telling his son this story is a little heartbreaking but it’s also the perfect time to come clean.  It’s kind of funny because I can totally relate this as my mother’s father had a bar in the Bronx and his “friends” got him his liquor license because he couldn’t get one, mother said they were connected.  The character development we see is completely spot on because I believe in who these people are and how genuine they come across.  The pacing is superb and as it takes us through the pages revealing the story, the characters and this world is impeccably done.

    The way that this is structured and how the layers within the story emerge we are reminded that real life is much stranger than fiction.  How we see everything working together to create the story’s ebb & flow is beautifully done.  This really is a pure treat of a read and it doesn’t get much better than this.

    The interiors here are sensational!  The linework is utterly beautiful and how the varying weights and techniques we see being utilised to create the detail in the work we’re seeing is fabulous!  The imagery is so amazingly rendered that we can see how innocent he is in his youth and with the clothes and cars we see how much research went into making this as realistic as possible.  That we see backgrounds as we do with how they enhance the moments and bring us such great depth perception, sense of scale and that overall sense of size and scope to the book.  The utilisation of the page layouts and how they show the angles and perspective in the panels show a stellar eye for storytelling.  The colour work is utterly gorgeous!  How we see the various hues and tones within the panels being utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work is expertly rendered.
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    There is something very special about our own family history that for many of us we just think that’s our family, nothing special.  But the reality is what is normal for us is going to be something else to an outsider and it’s going to be nearly larger than life to hear what we consider normal.  This is superb example of that and even more so that the first issue comes out at this time of the year, black history month and all.  This could a feature film or one of the movies of the week and this doesn’t even do it justice.  This is THE book of week that you’ll need to be reading.

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