REVIEW: Swamp Thing Halloween Horror Giant #1

Writer/artist: various 

Review: Will Dubbeld

Well, ‘it’s the season... 

Halloween is one of my most favorite bits of the year. Ghouls and goblins and panhandling urchins rub elbows with Scary Monsters and Super Creeps whilst all-nite horror marathons ride the airwaves.

Granted I can enjoy these flavors year-round, but the whimsy isn’t the same.

Comic companies ofttimes join in the Halloween festivities with a themed one-shot or standalone regular series issue and this year’s big winner is DC Comics.

Which is not a phrase you’ll hear uttered with frequency...

This 100-pager features an original Swamp Thing vignette and several reprinted All Hallows’ pieces.

“Hollow”

The new Swampy bit is scribed by Brian Azzarello with Greg Capullo pencils and is a frankly intriguing story.

I’m fairly behind on my monthlies and unsure if there’s a frame of reference in a book I’ve not read yet, but “Hollow” seems like it sets the stage for an upcoming Swamp Thing series.

It’s extremely vague but follows a young lady named Twiglet who is acting as Swamp Thing’s herald or acolyte after having been rescued by him at some point. 

The rescue is amazing as it features Swamp Thing fighting a giant albino alligator. There’s the price of admission.

Right there...

Azzarello teases an upcoming war with a being/force called The Barren and flexes Swamp Thing’s muscles in a fight with some demon creatures masquerading as trick or treaters.

While usually nonplussed about Azzarello’s writing and persona, this was a win. He comes off as a pupal version of Warren Ellis and Ed Brubaker’s atomic love child who hadn’t fully gestated and always falls short of truly spellbinding writing.

Greg Capullo really hits his stride here, showcasing his omnipresent slavish attention to detail, accentuated by Jonathan Glapion’s inks and colors from FCO Plascencia.

I’m looking forward to following along with this storyline. 

REVIEW: Beasts of Burden: Wise Dogs and Eldritch Men #1

Writer: Evan Dorkin
Artist: Benjamin Dewey
Letterer: Nate Piekos of Blambot
Review: Art Bee

When I first saw this comic book on the shelf at my LCS my first thought was, “sharp cover”, and my second was the Rolling Stones song which is still bouncing around my skull.
My decision to pick it up and review it was cemented by the owner and operator of my LCS, Shawn, saying that it was, “one of the best new comics he has read in a while”. In the past our opinions have been hit or miss on agreement, but in this case, they are fairly close.

Beasts of Burden #1 almost seems like something aimed at children with talking animals and magic. Even though there is no rating on the comic, from what I read in this issue, it seems fine for most ages (8+).
What hit me sideways was the boldness in the artwork. Dewey’s lines are all bold and deliberate providing a since of deliberate destiny for the characters. This is strictly my interpretation and I stand by it. The scenes are very detailed and keep the reader’s focus well. These qualities are one of the driving forces of the issue.

REVIEW: Eric Henson’s Eden #1

Story & Pencils: Eric Henson
Inks: Michael Babinski
Colors: Stephen Downer
Letters: Robert Dean
Review: Art Bee

Why do I love science fiction so much? The answer is most assuredly anything can happen at any time and anywhere in this or another universe. The only limitation is in the mind of the creator.
This comic’s cover was definitely this issue’s attraction; main reason being the slender four eyed alien on the cover. It sealed the deal wonderfully.

 Alterna Comics has been quickly moving up my list of favorite publishers mostly for two reasons:  newsprint pages and price point (most issues are ony $1.50). Not too long ago I reviewed Doppelgänger #1, and between it and this issue, the publisher seems to be producing some top shelf stories. A bigger investment will provide more information.

Eden #1 is an action-packed story set in 2714 after an alien race, called the Nomads, has conquered Earth and sent the surviving humans to an alien refugee world, Eden.
The main character is Brigadier General Neriah Willis. She is almost a cliché badass, but that is one of the few clichés I don’t mind. Who doesn’t like the hero to be a badass with a putz sidekick, a man called Christian in this case.

REVIEW: Unnatural #1

Writer, artist & colorist: Mirka Andolfo
Colors assistant: Gianluca Papi
Lettering & production: Fabio Amejia
Review: Will Dubbeld

Leaps and bounds above manga, in my opinion, are Eurocomics.
Though wildly popular, manga tends to adhere to a handful of stylized artistic choices for the most part and simply lacks the diversity I’ve come to expect out of comics.
European comics, in contrast, run the gamut. 
From Moebius to Manara and all points in between, there’s a layered artistic aesthetic I don’t find in their Japanese counterparts, leading me to choose Schtroumpfs over Dragon Ball any day.

Unfortunately, manga is much more prevalent in the casual market. Domestic companies have done far better a job at translating, importing, and marketing manga in an affordable manner so kudos to them. Euro books are much more scarce and oftentimes collected in pricier collections.

I nearly passed over Unnatural at first glance but, upon learning it was a domestic translation of an Italian comic, quickly ordered a copy.
I was not disappointed.

REVIEW: Rob Guillory’s Farmhand #1

Created, written, and drawn by Rob Guillory
Colors by Taylor Wells
Letters by Kody Chamberlain
Review by Art Bee

When you first enter into a bakery, the smell that hits you makes you aware of the comfort within the door, dazzling you with an airy spell-like seduction. Our local bakery is one of my very favorite places to go and sit for a donut and a cup of joe, since the bakery is connected to a café. The blend of the smells makes me feel like the world is right.
Farmhand #1 gave me a similar feeling, and I think I am going to live here for a spell.

This comic started enchanting me through the beautiful images I saw as I thumbed through the issue at my LCS. More on that soon...
When I bought this comic book, my first thought was, “another zombie book”.
Guess what…
I was dead wrong (pun intended).

The story starts with Ezekiel (Zeke) Jenkins and his sister, Andrea (Andy), investigating an attack in the chicken coup when they find their father buried in the ground. This obviously freaks the kids out as they are under the impression he is on a business trip. While trying to dig him up something strange happens to Zeke when he touches his father. 

REVIEW: Shanghai Red #1

Art/Colors/Cover: Joshua Hixson
Script/Design: Christopher Sebela
Letters: Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou
Review: Art Bee

At some point in each our lives, aren’t we all enthralled with pirates?
Through most of my teenage years, I was. That was quite a while before Pirates of the Caribbean hit the silver screen but from the sound of many that triggered or retriggered their interest. Since that movie series hit theatres, pirates seem too much of a grand stand for me.

A week ago when I picked up my comics from my LCS, staring at me was a cover that was attractive and intriguing. Without any more knowledge aside from the cover, my guess was it was a pirate story, and I decided to give it a try.

For many centuries the seas have been the lifeline of commerce. It was the job of people called, “boarding masters”, to supply ample bodies for shipping crews. Along the west coast of the U.S. it became common to incapacitate a man and forge his name on a contract to serve on a ship. Once contracted to serve it was illegal to abandon the job until the end of the contract. Most of these voyages were connected to Shanghai, China, which gives the name to the practice (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shanghaiing). 

REVIEW: Batman #50

Writer: Tom King
Artist: Mikel Janin
Colorist: June Chung
Review: Madman

Well, here we go. The long awaited super-sized issue jam-packed full of Bat-Goodness, and the world shattering wedding of the Batman and Catwoman has finally arrived!
I’ve read through the issue a couple of times now and, for the life of me, can’t make up my mind if I like it or not. Maybe the build up and energy DC put into this climactic issue raised my expectations and made me want it a little too much…

After reading the Prelude to the Wedding books, which I really enjoyed, as well as The Best Man story arc in Batman issues 48 and 49 I expected this issue to blow my mind... Well, it was more like a soggy Snap Pop. Batman #49 was so, so good. I’d go as far as to say it is my favorite issue of Batman I have read in a long time…and Batman didn’t even have that big of a part to play in the issue. Most of the heavy lifting went to The Joker and Catwoman.