Category Archives: Reviews

Review: Destiny, NY

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We as human beings are pressed upon by society to have goals and think about our future. These things become expectations and when you don’t achieve these expectations or exceed them, then one des feel like a disappointment. There are many words to describe this path to your achievement but one usually is used, is potential. Potential in human beings are hard to assess, as no one really knows how far you can go.

Regret and Reminiscing takes place, when these don’t occur, as age only compounds the anxiety with not reaching your full potential. I bring up all these elements within the psyche of reaching your potential, to think of it within a magical world. How interesting of a story, it could have been, if Harry Potter never went to Hogwarts but still possessed magic or if Quentin Coldwater had not gone to Brakebills? A variation of this scenario is explored in Destiny, NY, where magic is real and accepted.

The readers are introduced to Logan McBride, who as a child was part of a prophecy, and just like many child stars, they are forgotten, burn out or excel, and the reader gets to find out exactly which one she is within the first few pages. What follows are characters who would otherwise be outcasts in other stories be the normal part of society in this one, a refreshing take that drives the story in beautiful twisted directions that other writers would petrified to take. We follow Logan, as  she works the class system within Destiny University’s school for Prophecy Kids and a Lilith, a hardened outcast whose family, is actually trying to kill her .By the end of the first story arc, the school is a little bit more connected than one would ever believe and as a bonus, the reader gets treated to some mini-stories involving some of the main characters.

Overall, an excellent book, which far outshines most stories with supernatural settings, and the fact that LGBTQ and includes people of color. The story by Pat Shand is complex, seamless and is by far the best fantasy storytelling I have read in a while. The art by Manuel Preitano is elegant, detailed, and lifelike. Altogether, this is type of book the world needed yesterday as this shows a world where magic and realistic relationships exist in the same world.

Story: Pat Shand Art: Manuel Preitano
Story: 10 Art: 10 Overall: 10 Recommendation: Buy

Review: Liar

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I remember years ago, when I was a senior in high school, I took a college class at night one semester. I was the only one my age there and everyone was older, not only college age but also beyond that. There was on woman I met, who was in her 30s, one night me and her end up having a conversation, at a pizzeria near the school. She pretty much told me her whole history of trials and tribulations that lead her to going back to school at her age.

The main takeaway from that conversation I got, was life is unpredictable and finding your place in the world is harder than one would ever imagine.  She never once held anything back, about how hard anything was and how her kids really did not appreciate what she was doing. Years later, I went through my own mini crisis of conscience, as I was getting gout of the military, and did not know if I could adapt to civilian life, then for a moment, realized how much more difficult it was for her. So, when I read Liar, it brought me back to that question of finding one’s place in this world.

In the story we meet, Chepi, a magical outcast from the human world, who is forbidden from any contact with humans. This is until he meets Janek, who he clearly has a strong attraction to. In this prelude comic, the reader is invited to find out how magical Chepi, as his power over plants and flowers are on full display. By the end, if the issue, Janek calls Chepi on his unassuming nature, which Janek soon realizes he can’t hide.

Overall, an excellent story that uses botany in the most interesting and alluring of ways that only sequential art can fully realize. The story by Hari Conner is uses setting in the most stimulating fashion, while realistically showing attraction at its most primal. The art by Conner is striking, alluring, sensitive to the characters and engaging to look at. Altogether, a great introduction to this story and these characters, that will no doubt leave the reader ensconced in this beautiful world.

Story: Hari Conner Art: Hari Conner
Story: 10 Art: 10 Overall: 10 Recommendation: Buy

Review: Billie Holiday OGN

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The first time I ever heard of Billie Holiday was a record my grandad had, he used to talk about he heard her sing live so many years ago. I was seven years old, the first time, as he used to put on his vinyl records on all the time, which he kept in immaculate condition. I wish I knew where those records are now, as the quality of those recordings, he crisp snap of vinyl and the way music was made, was true alchemy. Although he had many records by many different artists, not too many trances like Ms. Holiday, especially on songs like Body and Soul.

Her voice, told of so much truth, heartbreak, love, hope, despair, weariness, struggle, and the eternal cycle of the beautiful struggle. Her record is my connection to him but to also to my childhood, something that I find myself constantly reaching back to. It was not until I read her book (Lady Sings the Blues) and saw the movie based on her life starring Diana Ross, did I understand where all those emotions came from and how resilient she was despite life’s many obstacles. So, when I heard that there was a graphic biography based on her life, I instantly was drawn to this book.

In this book, the reader is first introduced to her through her music, which is her legacy but soon fast forwards to a reporter doing a story on her thirty years after her death. The reader gets into the tragic aspects of her life, her being a child prostitute, her multiple addictions, and her bad luck with men. The book gets into her many relationships and her many run-ins with the law, as her life ended with her in a hospital handcuffed to the bed as she was under arrest. The book ends, with her legacy in full retrospect, as the two men in her life left living pay their respects.

Overall, a heart wrenching glimpse into an iconic and somewhat mythical figure, whose likeness and music. The story by Muñoz is heartbreaking and gives her the respect that is long been overdue. The art by Sampayo is prominent, and uses the color of black like no artist I have seen before. Altogether, an excellent graphic memoir, that pulls no punches and will leave the reader breathless.

Story: Jose Muñoz Art: Carlos Sampayo
Translation: Katy MacRae, Robert Boyd, and Kim Thompson

Review: Active Voice: The Comic Collection

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In the world we live in, rapidly “being accepted,” is such a rare trait for humans to have. Suddenly, in our world, it has become so vogue to hate people. No longer are morals and good will, commonplace, but more of a trait that only exists in certain human beings and ones that people try to fake. As the recently passed Nelsan Ellis once said, “Being different makes me beautiful”.

Never has truer words been said and needs to be said especially in our current social and political climate which begs one to wonder are we seeing the decline of civilization? I like not to think so, I would like to think that people can accept everyone for who they are and we thrive because of our differences, not because of our shared commonalities. Recently, I heard of the PRISM awards, and was glad to hear of some of these comics that do not necessarily get the spotlight they deserve. One of those books was Active Voice – The Comic Collection, which incidentally started out a column.

In the first comic, “The Birth of An Activist,” P. Kristen Enos dives into what is not only an educational and horrifying look into racism and homophobia during the 1980s. In “First Day in The Sun.” Enos dives into the first LGBTQ parade they attended where they witnessed the beauty of queer diversity. In the comical “Mind Games,” Enos has multiple nightmares, where they dream of living a societal conformant life. In “The Republican Toastmaster,” Enos dives into a Toastmaster meeting, where everyone gets to do a speech, and one of them being clearly biased against LGBTQ individuals, infuriates them to the point where Enos introduced themselves as a Lesbian. In one of my favorite stories from the collection, “Above and Beyond,” Enos dives into a classmate’s unspoken family connections where her mother never identified to her children that was a Lesbian, despite the numerous clues, which leads her to be a minor sleuth.

Overall, an excellent collection of stories, although I highlighted a few of the stories, every one of the is equally germane and powerful, which just so happens to be true and allows to reader to check themselves in their behaviors and attitudes. The stories by Enos, is funny, smart, eye opening and very much relevant. Altogether, an interesting set of stories that will give the reader, a better understanding of who we are as humans.

Story: P. Kristen Enos and Heidi Ho
Art: Derek Chua, Leesamarie Croal, Casandra Grullon, Beth Varni, Dan Parent
Story: 10 Art: 10 Overall: 10 Recommendation: Buy

Review: The American Way: Those Above and Those Below #1

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Ten short (from where I’m sitting, anyway) years ago John Ridley was far from a household name in the entertainment industry, yet alone an Oscar winner. That was well before 12 Years A Slave and American Crime, though, and now it’s a different story. A different world. Or is it?

Certainly Ridley returning to the only-slightly-fictionalized world of The American Way a decade after he and artist Georges Jeanty first created it is both a pleasant surprise as well as something of a coup for DC Comics‘ perpetually-struggling Vertigo label, but 10 years (or thereabouts) have passed in the four-color world, as well, and the opening salvo in the new six-part The American Way: Those Above And Those Below shows that they haven’t necessarily been kind to protagonist Jason Fisher, a.k.a. The New American, or his surviving former Civil Defense Corps teammates. As 1972 dawns, Fisher is cleaning up the Baltimore ghettos by means both direct and decidedly brutal, while Amber (Waves) Eaton has become a Weather Underground/SLA-style revolutionary, and Missy (Ole Miss) Devereaux, now married to the governor of Mississippi, is being maneuvered into political office in the same way George Wallace’s wife was when that miserable old racist bastard was term-limited out of office. We know the paths of these one-time “allies” in an officially-sanctioned US government PR sham operation are bound to converge, but how and why remains to be seen yet. This issue guarantees one thing, though — it will invariably be fascinating to see the chess pieces moved (or fall?) into place.

Tight, intricate plotting is a hallmark of all Ridley’s work, and if you haven’t read the first American Way series, rest easy: the basics of what happened in it are introduced into this one in a naturalistic, almost non-expository way that doesn’t hamper the forward momentum of the plot here in the least (and Vertigo has recently re-issued it in trade, as well, if you find yourself sufficiently motivated to see how it all began). The racial, economic, and social divisions explored with such candor last time out have clearly not improved and are certain to form this series’ thematic background, which should surprise no one, and while it can certainly be argued that Ridley is less than subtle in his proselytizing, it’s nevertheless effective and he at least uses his characters’ life circumstances to illustrate his points rather than taking the lazy and uninspired way out and simply utilizing them as authorial mouthpieces. The one potential “strike” against the relatively large ensemble cast on offer here is that Jason’s paralyzed Panther brother comes off as being more interesting and fully-rounded than does our titular hero himself, but hey — it’s part one, so we’ll see how all that goes.

Jeanty, for his part, absolutely nails it on the art in this book. Action scenes have a crisp and dynamic flow to them, lower-key “talky” segments remain visually interesting and employ inventive-without-being-ostentatious “camera” angles, subtleties of expression and body language are right on the money, and the period setting is evoked smoothly and authentically. Danny Miki‘s inks are faithful to the pencils in the best way, accentuating and enhancing detail without burying them under an extra layer of faux “style,” and Nick Filardi finishes everything off with expertly-chosen and highly atmospheric colors. “Cinematic” is not too shabby a shorthand description for this comic’s overall look, but it probably sells the effort by these firing-on-all-cylinders creators a bit short, truth be told. Maybe we should call it “Oscar-level cinematic” or something?

Still, it’s not a completely flawless effort : the decision (whether called for in the script or “ad-libbed” by the art team I have no idea) to slip a John Constantine doppleganger into the works for a panel threatens to take readers out of the book for a moment, it’s true, but what the hell — it’s high time he migrated back over to Vertigo by any means necessary, and if that’s the only gripe I’ve got, it’s a pretty small one. Almost seems petty to even bring it up. Still, in a comic that’s all about big (and, sadly, eternal) questions about race and class, a cheap (if admittedly fun) little aside like that stands out like a sore thumb and really does disrupt the rhythm of the storytelling, if only briefly.

Apart from that and the drug-pusher villain that Jason is out to take down being a bit too broad of a caricature (he’s also a cold-blooded killer who flat-out enjoys the taking of human life rather than viewing it as unfortunate reality of his chosen “profession”), though, there is very nearly flawless comic-booking going on in the pages of The American Way: Those Above And Those Below #1. Topical and provocative without being preachy, accessible to new readers without resorting to “info-dump” condescension, and smart without feeling the need to call attention to its own intelligence, this is supremely effective, thought-provoking, resonant stuff. I’m down for the whole ride — and I respectfully suggest that you should be, as well.

Story: John Ridley  Art: Georges Jeanty and Danny Miki
Story: 8.0  Art: 9.0  Overall: 8.5  Recommendation: Buy

Movie Review: War for the Planet of the Apes

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Somebody get Andy Serkis an Oscar, stat. And possibly Woody Harrelson. Then get ready to think deep thoughts about what it means to be human, to feel all the strong feelings you can think of, and to watch one hell of a summer action movie.

War for the Planet of the Apes is one of the few third films in a trilogy that in no way disappoints. It is, in some ways, the best of the three. It’s the strange summer blockbuster that doesn’t skimp on the action but still manages to leave us deeply pondering our own existence.

The new film ends only a few years after the close of the last film. Caesar (Serkis as the masterful CGI-mocap ape creation) is considering leading his people out of their home in the woods north of San Francisco to a new promised land. (They lay on the Moses symbolism pretty heavily). far away from the humans whose soldiers continue to lead attacks against them.

Their leader is The Colonel (Harrelson) whose soldiers form a squad (really more of a cult) called Alpha-Omega.  Their attacks on the apes are not without purpose, as we learn (slowly, deliberately) the Colonel’s tragic backstory and why they believe they are fighting for their lives. As part of this, they end up enslaving most of Caesar’s people and force them to build a giant wall around their base, setting up a final act that is mostly a prison break.

There is a battle of wills between Caesar and The Colonel, and an internal ethical struggle they both face on the brink of extinction. How far will I go? To see revenge? To protect my people? They are perfect foils for one another and especially amazing performances given that Harrelson and Serkis are playing off each other with one of them in a mocap suit.

But one of the best parts of the film is one of the new characters– a former zoo chimp who calls himself Bad Ape (Steve Zahn) who dresses in human clothes and adds very needed comic relief to a very otherwise heavy, dense narrative.

And for those who missed the first two films? Everything you need to know is told in a couple of title cards at the opening. You’d be fine walking into this completely unaware of any of the other films — a true rarity for a franchise film such as this.

Perhaps even more spectacular, there are numerous nods, references, homages, and Easter Eggs to the other films in the series. Fans will get payoff in ways the rest of the audience won’t quite grasp, but it never feels like fanservice or like anyone is left out.

In short– it’s the perfect film no matter how familiar you are with the Apes universe.

Speaking of homages, they are almost too numerous to mention. But needless to say that the fact that Harrelson is playing a Colonel should not be lost on anyone, as the second half of the film could basically be described as Colonel Kurtz from Apocalypse Now running the prison camp in The Great Escape. Having mentioned the heavy Moses symbolism, this also draws heavily from both the Old Testament story and The Ten Commandments as there is a definite Charlton Heston vs. Yul Brenner level of gravitas in the interplay between our two lead characters.

There is also a surprising amount of prescient social commentary in the film. The fact that the humans are trying to build a wall should not be lost on anyone and may, perhaps, date the film a little bit. The Colonel plays the best on-screen fascist in a big budget Hollywood film since Domhnall Gleeson yelled at stormtroopers in The Force Awakens. So the commentary hits home, if a bit on the nose. But if you take it as a human instinct to desperately and futilely build walls in order to protect ourselves from forces beyond our control, the commentary lands a little more softly.

But, regardless of politics, it should inspire all of us to consider how desperation and grief lead us to make decisions opposed to our morals.

It bears considering, however, in a world filled with CGI apes that the film still can’t manage to pass the Bechdel Test. One can even bring the claim that female characters are “refrigerator-ed” to provide reason for the male characters to act. This was a trap the second apes film managed to avoid with stellar performances by Judy Greer and Keri Russell that did not transfer over to this final chapter. A lone ray of hope here is the continued stellar work by Karin Konoval as Maurice the orangutan, who continues to act as Caesar’s conscience. While tropey (and it should be mentioned Maurice is apparently canonically male, which is why the film fails Bechdel) her performance here is so excellent that it deserves praise among of cast of apes who all do amazing work. Amiah Miller also puts in a great performance as the mute human Nova, adopted by Caesar. But unfortunately those do nothing for the gender politics of the film. Even in a post-apocalyptic future, both and ape and human society remains rigidly patriarchal. *Sigh*

Oh, and did I mention that are some great action scenes with giant explosions? The film begins with an assault on Caesar’s camp, and ends with a climactic battle between opposing forces. While the Apes franchise is never trying to be The Fast and Furious, there’s enough action in here to be enjoyable.

Some may complain the 142 minute runtime is too long, it’s hard to say what deserved to be cut. A great movie can never be too long, and a bad one can never be over too quickly.

It’s worth noting that director and co-screenwriter Matt Reeves will next tackle Batman, taking over directing duties after Ben Affleck decided starring in and directing the film would be too much. Given Reeves’s work on the Apes film and his study of nuance and character, ability to weave action and dark characterization, The Bat should be in good hands.

As amazing as Spider-Man: Homecoming and Baby Driver have been, this, by the width of a chimp’s hair, is the best movie currently in theaters.

4.5 stars out of 5

Review: Weapon X #5

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516408__SX1280_QL80_TTD_The mysterious new director of the reformed Weapon X program has assessed the data from their latest adamantium cyborg attack and the results look good… They are ready for the next stage of their plan to eradicate all of mutantkind!  Warpath and Domino follow leads into a remote part of the Midwest… but what vicious secrets will they find hidden in a sleepy gated community?

I guess it was inevitable; in every series or crossover there is going to be that one issue that brings things to a screeching halt. For me, this was that issue in this Weapons of Mutant Destruction crossover. Greg Pak doesn’t really give us anything new or exciting with this issue. We have Logan and Sabretooth chasing one lead, Warpath and Domino chasing another and Amadeus Cho linked in with all of them on comms, with Deathstrike just watching him at his side. The team does find out who it is there dealing with, but that reveal just comes across as ‘eh, ok’ with no real reaction. To be honest, the only character I was interested in was one of the scientists working for Weapon X. She had a lot more going on then our mutant heroes, and whether or not Pak meant for that, I would have liked to see more from the key players.

And I never thought I’d say this, but I miss Greg Land’s art on this book. I know people either like or hate his work, but I fall in the middle. I don’t mind his art, but I get tired of him using the same scenes or poses over and over again. But I did like his work in this book and his vision of these characters (and I was very happy there weren’t 10 panels of Domino with her tongue sticking out). But Marc Borstel has taken over art duties, and though I didn’t dislike the art, it just really made an impact on me, after being used to Land. Overall it wasn’t bad, but there are some panels with weird facial expressions and a lot of wide eyed people.

Overall, I was a little disappointed with this issue. Not big on action, and it didn’t do much to push the story forward. The focus seemed to be on a background character and though I did like that little journey, I wanted more of the key players and more story to be fleshed out. We all know that Weapon X is working on an adamantium reinforced Hulk to take on and eradicate mutants, and maybe I’m just impatient, but I really just want that to happen and see our band of clawed and bladed heroes take on the new threat.

Story: Greg Pak  Art: Marc Borstel
Story: 5.0 Art: 5.0 Overall: 5.0 Recommendation: Read (if you’re following the crossover)

Marvel Comic provided Graphic Policy with a FREE issue for review

Review: Josie and the Pussycats #8

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Josie8In the penultimate issue of Josie and the Pussycats #8, the band does Japan with the Archies in tow. Writers Marguerite Bennett and Cameron DeOrdio also bring a boatload of romantic angst to their script as Alexandra Cabot (who recently became friends with Josie again) becomes friends with benefits with the Pussycats’ manager Alan M, who broke Josie’s heart a few issues back. Audrey Mok and Kelsey Shannon’s art is glorious per usual, and they get to fly high fashionwise when the Pussycats and Archies visit the Harajuku District, which ends up to be a calculated move in former supervillain, Alex Cabot’s bid to be their new manager.

The crossover with the Archies is handled in DeOrdio and Bennett’s usually clever way as Alex slips that it was a “PR move” on Josie’s part to let a bunch of cool teens who believe the world revolves around them (Except for Jughead, duh.) open for them. This joke has another, meta, comic book industry level because companies often bring in more popular characters to save lower performing books from cancellation, which is like Deadpool’s only job. And who’s more popular at Archie Comics than Archie? The Archies are used mainly for comedy/cliffhanger setting up, but Deordio, Bennett, Mok, Shannon, and colorists Kelly Fitzpatrick and Matt Herms include a wonderful shopping montage featuring Veronica and Melody, who bond over great outfits and selfie filters.

Other than the frankly insane and Saturday morning cartoon type ending, the main conflict in Josie #8 comes from the not-so-great people that still have an influence onjosieInterior the band, namely, the Cabot siblings and Alan M. Alan M and Alexandra spend most of the issue eating tasty ramen and having cringeworthy banter about their relationship status. It’s the dark mirror of the Josie/Alan M adorableness in Josie #4 so Fitzpatrick and Herms’ palette is more restrained and not so romantic. They do pour on the intense blues and pinks when Josie finds out about their tryst in an extremely emotional sequence. Josie, Valerie, and Melody are a cool right now, but they should really find a new manager who isn’t a total player or supervillain-turned-sycophant, who makes random Sean Connery references. Those kind of people are great for drama purposes though.

In Josie and the Pussycats #8, Audrey Mok and Kelsey Shannon demonstrate that they’re the perfect artists to draw high grade angst with close-up shots of Josie and Alexandra crying over their shared soft boy experience. This builds nicely from a quick shot/reverse shot sequence at the Shinto festival the bands go to where Josie almost puts together the Alexandra/Alan M shaped pieces and is cushioned in a few panels that focus on Josie, Valerie, and Melody’s flawed, yet amazing friendship. Yay, hugs!

Josie and the Pussycats #8 has comedy, sadness, and a few great Jughead one-liners plus Audrey Mok and Kelsey Shannon’s intricate attention to costuming and setting, which makes me excited for Mok taking over as the main artist on Archie. Marguerite Bennett and Cameron DeOrdio craft a solid story out of the lingering feeling Josie has for Alan M plus the drama bomb that is the Cabot siblings and then go bonkers at the end because the next issue is the last one.

 

Story: Marguerite Bennett and Cameron DeOrdio Art: Audrey Mok and Kelsey Shannon Colors: Kelly Fitzpatrick and Matt Herms
Story: 8.5 Art: 9.0 Overall: 8.7 Recommendation: Buy

 Archie Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

DC Weekly Graphic Novel Review: Shade the Changing Girl Vol. 1 Earth Girl Made Easy

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It’s Wednesday which means it’s new comic book day with new releases hitting shelves, both physical and digital, all across the world. We’ve got one trade from DC Comics.

Shade the Changing Girl Vol. 1 Earth Girl Made Easy collecting issues #1-6 by Cecil Castellucci, Marley Zarcone, Ande Parks, Ryan Kelly, Kelly Fitzpatrick, and Saida Temofonte.

Find out what the trades have in store and whether you should grab yourself a copy. You can find it in comic stores July 12 and bookstores July 18.

Get your copy now. To find a comic shop near you, visit http://www.comicshoplocator.com or call 1-888-comicbook or digitally and online with the links below.

Shade the Changing Girl Vol. 1 Earth Girl Made Easy
Amazon/Kindle/comiXology or TFAW

 

DC Comics provided Graphic Policy with FREE copies for review
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Review: Catalyst Prime: Accell #2

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Daniel DosSantos is Accell, the first speedster superhero in a brave new world, but just how fast is he? Accell’s quest to test the limits of his powers throw him into a sideways dimension where horrors exist, and death comes at him faster than the speed of sound.

I really enjoyed the first issue of this series from Lion Forge that’s part of their Catalyst Prime universe. While speedster superheroes are a dime a dozen, Daniel feels like he stands out a bit as a relatable guy who plays video games and is pretty unsure of himself and powers. And this second issue feels like it has a more of a focus exploring those final two points as Daniel heads into the desert to find out how fast he is.

Writer Joe Casey gives us an entertaining story that feels trippy at times. While it doesn’t quite stand out as original as that first issue and has a bit too much in common with a certain force about speed, it’s still interesting as there’s just enough to set it apart. What happens when Daniel goes really fast? What’s might happen? Well, we kind of find some of that out.

Things get trippy and the visuals feel like a nice LSD trip which is all made wildly entertaining by Damion Scott. The art, along with inks by Robert Campanella and colors by Sigmund Torre (both of Mosh Studios) is what sucked me into the story. It’s creative and interesting and had me trying to figure out what was happening. There’s even some nice creative use of pages with the flow and a point where you’ll need to rotate the entire issue. That use of movement is solid in the series and I hope we get more of that as it goes on.

The second issue is a little of a dip in story but the visuals more than make up for it. I want to find out more about what Daniel is seeing and experiencing and that wanting to come back is a success. Definitely an interesting series that’s getting its footing down to launch and make itself really stand out from the pack.

Story: Joe Casey Art: Damion Scott
Ink: Robert Campanella Color: Sigmund Torre
Story: 7.5 Art: 9.0 Overall: 7.75 Recommendation: Read

Lion Forge Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

 

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