Damsels #2

Damsels is an interesting series focusing on the female characters in the fairy tales we all grew up with. Mixing and mashing those stories is a popular thing right now, with about a half dozen different comic book series attempting to put their own spin and stand out. Damsels, has some interesting scheming and mystery surrounding it, enough that could keep me around for a while.

From the tales of Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, the Little Mermaid and Snow White… In Caumont Castle, King Persine and Queen Rapunzel are still reeling from the discovery of a mysterious spy in their midst. The loyal subjects of Caumont must be made aware of the sinister magical threat before it’s too late! Meanwhile, having made her escape from Caumont via the River Esk, Rapa is still struggling to make sense of her situation. Can she really trust the amphibian girl who saved her life, or is she even more confused than Rapa herself?

The second issue is still setting it all up and we’re still figuring out all the players and exactly what the plot is of the comic. It’s a slow reveal that’ll keep me around for at least the first story arc.

Story: Leah Moore and John Reppion Art: Aneke

Story: 7.75 Art: 7.75 Overall: 7.75 Recommendation: Buy

Dark Shadows #8

Barnabas the hunted! What does he have to do with the mysterious deaths of multiple children in a nearby town? Could it be true that Barnabas is to blame? He doesn’t know for sure but he has vowed to get to the bottom of it. With Barnabas’ recent memory problems and need to fulfill his blood lust he fears the worst.

Dynamite’s Dark Shadows is still evoking a lot of the feel from the little of the television show that I’ve seen. The style and story telling is interesting. I think overall, I’d like to see more family interaction, as the first arcs tend to be mystery of the week, which might get old after a while.

Eight issues in, and I feel like I’m still learning who these characters are. Not a bad series, but I think it’s really made for diehard fans of the television series.

Story: Mike Raight Art: Nacho Tenorio

Story: 7.5 Art: 7.5 Overall: 7.5 Recommendation: Read

Evil Ernie #1

Ernest Fairchild was a kind and gentle soul…until one day something in him snapped, leading him to one of the most notorious killing sprees in American history. With 665 kills to his name, “Evil Ernie” requires ONE more murder to complete the ritual he started and seal his deal with the Devil. Problem is: he’s just been EXECUTED! What led an ordinary boy to become a leather-clad angel of death? How does he wield such blasphemous power? And what is the secret behind his hideous smiley-face button? This October, you may hate the sin, but you’ll LOVE the SINNER!

Evil Ernie gets a relaunch… and yeah. I never read an Evil Ernie comic. I have a lot of friends who are huge fans, so I know “of” the character, but that’s about it. The first issue was interesting and an origin story. This is a classic comic, and while it’s not a full story in this issue, you could read it and walk away and get a sense of who this character is. Yes, you read that right, we’re not talking a five issue origin story. It’s all here.

The character itself, not sure if he’s my form of entertainment, but the comic was absolutely interesting. Enough so that I want to check out the second issue and see where Snider takes it.

Story: Jesse Blaze Snider Art: Jason Craig

Story: 7.75 Art: 7.75 Overall: 7.75 Recommendation: Buy

Voltron: Year One #5

The origin of the Voltron team continues. The traitor has been revealed, and #686 finally has the smoking gun necessary to bring him down once and for all. Only one problem though—central command has been infiltrated by zombie robots, and they’re promising to execute a “flesh sack” every ten minutes until their demands are met. And cut off from the rest of his team, Commander Sven has no choice but to form an alliance with the same man he’s sworn to expose at all costs. Finally face-to-face with his enemy, yet on the run from ones even more dangerous, what Sven does next changes everything. “Fearless Leader” goes penultimate, and this is where the future becomes set in stone…

I vaguely remember Voltron when I was a kid, but this series is just a great addition to the regular ongoing series. It adds history that we don’t have to sit through in that series and it’s done in a way that’s interesting and entertaining.

The bad guys in this issue, I shrug my shoulders at. I don’t remember if they were in the cartoon, so my opinions might be due to that. The action itself kind of came out of nowhere too. But, overall the idea of the team figuring out this grand conspiracy has been really entertaining.

Story: Brandon Thomas Art: Craig Cermak

Story: 8 Art: 7.5 Overall: 8 Recommendation: Buy