Tag Archives: ashes: a firefighter’s tale

Around the Tubes

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It was a long weekend for the GP team, but we’re getting back into the swing of things heading in to the end of the year. Check out some geeky news and reviews from over the weekend to start off your week!

Around the Tubes

Santa Fe New Mexican – Udall goes to bat for small businesses, puts spotlight on comic store owner with ‘real courage’ – This is pretty cool to see. Probably would have been smart for staff to brief the elected official before.

iO9 – The Heartwarming Story Behind R2-KT, And How She Joined Star Wars Canon – This got us to shed a tear. Absolutely touching and heartwarming.

 

Around the Tubes Reviews

CBR – The Abbadon

CBR – Ashes: A Firefighter’s Tale

Talking Comics – The Dark Knight III: The Master Race #1

Meniscus – Deadly Class Vol. 1 – 3

The Herts Advertiser – Guardians of Knowhere

Talking Comics – Ringside #1

CBR – Two Brothers

Review: Ashes: A Firefighter’s Tale

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ASHESMatt always had an easygoing life. Girls liked him, his friends were more like family, and being a firefighter came naturally. Then the accident happened. Now, after the loss of his leg, Matt struggles to cope with his new handicap as he attempts to rebuild his shattered family and once budding career.

Written by Mario Candelaria with art by Karl Slominski, Ashes: A Firefighter’s Tale is a Kickstarter success (one which I backed) and has been released by Z2 Comics this week. The story focuses on a firefighter who after an accident has to persevere.

The comic has a lot of potential, and is not a bad read as an independent/small press Kickstarted graphic novel. But, for me the small issues added up.

The story is good, and touching at times. I’m not a firefighter (and don’t know any) so I can’t say how close to reality Candelaria’s story is to reality. I will say he touches a lot on a bunch in the graphic novel moving from a person dealing with a tragic on the job accident to the fallout in his personal and professional life. The story weaves through that in a nice way that feels real, which is great.

It’s the small details beyond the story that bothered me. The art is ok, but at times the character design is a bit rough and inconsistent. What really drew me nuts is lettering (and some dialogue) issues that haven’t been corrected in the time this was released to backers and now. There’s enough, and they’re noticeable enough, that it took me out of it at times.

Ashes though is a good read and if you enjoy a more family focused Backdraft, you’ll dig this graphic novel. It’s a bit rough at times, but a satisfying read, and a comic I was happy to back through Kickstarter to make sure it got made.

Story: Mario Candelaria Art: Karl Slominski
Story: 7.15 Art: 6.9 Overall: 7.1 Recommendation: Read

Z2 Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Exclusive Preview: Ashes: A Firefighter’s Tale

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ASHES: A FIREFIGHTER’S TALE

Written by: Mario Candelaria
Art by: Karl Slominski
Release: November 7th
Z2 Comics

ASHES: A FIREFIGHTER’S TALE takes readers along for the ride with New York firefighter. Matt always had an easygoing life. Girls liked him, his friends were like family and being a firefighter came naturally. But his life changed in an instant when he lost his leg trying to save the last person trapped in a burning building. A riveting tale about perseverance, hard work, and overcoming the odds, ASHES is a gripping tale told in evocative black and white.

Check out the exclusive preview below.

Z2 Comics Announces Fall Graphic Novels including Ashes, Pawn Shop, The Abaddon, and Harvey Pekar’s Cleveland

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ASHESZ2 Comics announced today their fall 2015 graphic novel slate, including a reprint of one of Harvey Pekar’s final graphic novels and three graphic novels. The biggest surprise of the bunch is a new printing of Pekar’s Cleveland, one of his last graphic novels, and a love letter to his home town. It was originally published by Top Shelf in April 2012.

Check out below for the full slate of graphic novels being released.

Ashes: A Firefighter’s Tale written by Mario Candelaria with art by Karl Slominski.

(September 22, 2015; $19.99; 120 pages; black and white)

Matt always had an easygoing life. Girls liked him, his friends were more like family, and being a firefighter came naturally. Then the accident happened. Now, after the loss of his leg, Matt struggles to cope with his new handicap as he attempts to rebuild his shattered family and once budding career. A riveting tale about perseverance, hard work, and overcoming the odds, Ashes is a gripping tale told in stunning black and white.

PAWN SHOPPawn Shop written by Joey Esposito with art by Sean Von Gorman

(September 22, 2015; $19.99; 120 pages; full color)

A widower. A nurse. A punk. A Long Island Railroad employee. New York City is an ecosystem where everybody is connected, if only by the streets they walk on. This original graphic novel is the story of four people, in a city of eight million, whose lives unknowingly intersect through a Manhattan pawn shop.

Written by Joey Esposito (Footprints) and illustrated with a gorgeous mixture of watercolor and digital elements by Sean Von Gorman (Toe Tag Riot), Pawn Shop explores the big things that separate us and the little moments that inexplicably unite us.

The Abaddon written and illustrated by Koren Shadmi

(November 10, 2015; $24.99; 240 pages; full color)

cover_updatedLoosely based on Jean-Paul Sartre’s play No Exit, The Abaddon is the story of a young man who finds himself trapped in a bizarre apartment with a group of ill-matched roommates. He discovers that his new home doesn’t adhere to any rational laws of nature and comes to realize that everyone living in the apartment is missing crucial parts of their memories and identities.

Cleveland by Harvey Pekar and Joseph Remnant

(November DATE TK; Price TK; 128; black and white)

A lifelong resident of Cleveland, Ohio, Harvey Pekar (1939-2010) pioneered autobiographical comics, mining the mundane for magic since 1976 in his critically acclaimed series American Splendor. Legendary comic book writer Harvey Pekar’s collaboration with artist Joseph Remnant, titled Cleveland, was originally published by Top Shelf Shelf Comics and Zip Comics in 2012 and includes an introduction by Alan Moore. The book presents key moments and characters from the city’s history, intertwined with Harvey’s own ups and downs, as relayed to us by Our Man and meticulously researched and rendered by artist Joseph Remnant. At once a history of Cleveland and a portrait of Harvey, it’s a tribute to the ordinary greatness of both.