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Marvel’s Ike Perlmutter Helps Choose the Next Secretary of State?

Posted on November 28, 2016 by Brett

This Presidential election has been anything but normal so why should choosing the next Secretary of State be? The New York Post has reported that during President-Elect Donald Trump‘s Thanksgiving he was asking attendees who he should pick as his top diplomat. The three names thrown about were Mitt Romney, Rudy Giuliani, or John Bolton.

Why do we care and are reporting on this?

Joining Trump at the Mar-a-Lago festivities was an interesting mix of individuals including Richard Nixon grandson Christopher Nixon Cox, Don King, Fabio, and Marvel Entertainment CEO Ike Perlmutter. If Trump was asking everyone as reported, that means Perlmutter got his say in who he thinks should be the next Secretary of State.

Perlmutter has been a Trump supporter and a Republican supporter in general. During the Presidential primary, Perlmutter’s name was thrown about by Trump as a supporter. Perlmutter himself rarely donates directly to campaigns, the last being $4,600 to Rudy Giuliani’s Presidential campaign in 2007 according to the Federal Election Commission. Perlmutter’s wife Laura also donated to Giuliani, $4,600 total in 2007 with $2,300 returned in 2008. Laura Perlmutter also donated $2,000,000 to Conservative Solutions PAC. The PAC supported Marco Rubio for President. The Perlmutters live in Florida where Rubio is Senator.

With the donations to Giuliani, I’m guessing that’s their pick… but with those dollars, maybe Rubio is the dark horse choice of the two?

Where the Data Ranks 2016’s Comic Book Films

Posted on November 28, 2016 by Brett

The summer movie season is wrapping up and we’ve seen an interesting year when it comes to comic book films. For months debates have raged as to who is more successful, Marvel or DC, which movies were successes, and which were flops. The answers aren’t so simple and black and white, which is why I like to turn to data to give actual rankings as to who were winners and losers.

So far this year, seven films have been released based on comic books (counting Batman: The Killing Joke). This feature will be weekly until the end of the year, as some films are still in the box-office and there’s till more to come.

Of note:

Suicide Squad now stands at $745.6 million. There was no new dollars in over the past two weeks, so looks like that’s the end of it’s run. The film is $2.2 million short of X-Men: Days of Future Past and currently the fifteenth top-grossing comic film of all time.
Doctor Strange currently sits at just under $616 million. The film is about $8 million behind Iron Man 2 when it comes to worldwide totals. It’s also about $1 million behind Thor: The Dark World when it comes to domestic totals. It should pass both this week.
Officer Downe is being added to the mix, sort of. The film based on an Image Comics series opened but it was just 2 theaters… and it earned $470. So, I’m going to treat it like Batman: The Killing Joke. The film is mostly a video on demand release, so it likely won’t see a wide release.
The Chair is currently not included in these stats. While the film is based on a comic, its release was done so through a service where receipts aren’t tracked in traditional ways.
DC’s films average $315.5 million a film domestically compared to Marvel’s $300.5 million. Internationally, Marvel earns $474.7 million and DC earns $446.8 million.

Here’s where this year’s movie crop stands as far as the actual numbers. Numbers are presented with and without The Killing Joke and Officer Downe which did not have an international run or wide release, so was not included in that average to start:

Total Domestic Gross: $1.873 billion ($1.869 billion without Killing Joke and Officer Downe)
Total International Gross: $3.091 billion
Worldwide Gross: $4.964 billion ($4.960 billion without Killing Joke and Officer Downe)
Total Reported Budgets: $1.215 billion ($1.211 billion without Killing Joke and Officer Downe)
Total “Profit”: $3.750 billion ($3.749 billion without Killing Joke and Officer Downe)

Average Domestic Gross: $267.0 million ($208.1 million without Killing Joke and Officer Downe)
Average International Gross: $441.6 million
Average: Worldwide Gross: $708.6 million ($551.6 million without Killing Joke and Officer Downe)
Average Budget: $151.8 million ($173 million without Killing Joke and Officer Downe)
Average Profit: $535.6 million ($468.7 million without Killing Joke and Officer Downe)

Now that we have those numbers down we can get a better idea as to how films have actually done this year. Below are various rankings of where films stand so far and if the films are above average (green) or below average (red):

The Walking Dead S7E6 Swear Review

Posted on November 27, 2016 by Brett

Away from all the tragedy caused by Negan and his Saviors, Tara and Heath run into trouble after crossing paths with a mysterious new group. A brand new society unlike anything seen before.

The Walking Dead‘ really shifts the focus with an episode completely focused on Tara and Heath who have been awol for the season. I honestly had forgotten about both of them until this point, which I’m not sure what that says about their two characters.

We knew that Corey Hawkins (Heath) would be leaving the show in some way as the actor is the lead in the 24 reboot, 24: Legacy which begins soon. It’s just a question of how, not an if, and this episode sort of answers that.

The episode bounces back and forth between the present with Tara stumbling upon a new group of individuals and her and Heath’s journey. It’s an interesting episode as we learn about this new community as Tara does with little bits of information being teased out little by little. We don’t know if they’re friend or foe and honestly I’m not quite sure what the answer is by the end of the episode.

We learn they’ve had their run in with the Saviors. That they’re very distrusting. That they’re pretty well armed. And my guess is they’ll come into play later this season. It’s just a question as to how. And I have some ideas, but I’m not 100% sure.

The biggest thing about the episode is Heath’s good-bye. It’s an interesting sendoff and one… well I don’t want to spoil it at all.

But, the real emotional punch is the end of the episode as Tara makes it back to Alexandria. She’s been away through all of the events so how will she react? The last few minutes are the real punch to the gut and few words are said as Tara and Eugene exchange glances. It plays into something Tara says earlier in the episode and the impact is felt instantly. The show does some of its best work with what’s shown visually instead of verbally and that scene in particular is a perfect example.

The episode is a slow but interesting one that pays off in the last 15 minutes which show the emotional rollercoaster the show excels at and reminds us at its heart it’s all about those still living.

Overall rating: 8.15

Join Our Team!

Posted on November 27, 2016 by Graphic Policy Team

Graphic Policy is always on the hunt for talented contributors. If you’re interested in becoming involved with one of the internet’s most unique, fastest-growing entertainment and pop culture websites, now’s your chance!

Please note that all of the positions offered by Graphic Policy are volunteer positions. Our staff runs this site because we love comics, politics, pop culture, games, movies, television, and geekdom.

We can not guarantee anything but your name in the writing credits (perfect for someone building a portfolio), but we will work with you to help you cover and write about the things you’re interested in.

Graphic Policy will open up its ability to obtain review copies, press passes and more for those who regularly post to the site. Your posts belong to you and you are free to post them here and other sites as well!

All applicants must be over the age of 18 years old and have excellent writing skills.

Please fill out the form below and let us know more about you, and what you’d like to write about and cover.

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Random

Mini Reviews For The Week Ending 11/26 [Updated with even more reviews!]

Posted on November 27, 2016 by Alex K Cossa

Sometimes, the staff at Graphic Policy read more comics than we’re able to get reviewed. When that happens you’ll see a weekly feature compiling short reviews from the staff of the comics, or graphic novels, we just didn’t get a chance to write a full review for. These are Graphic Policy‘s Mini Reviews.

Alex:

Action Comics #968 (DC) When Rebirth began, I never expected Superman and the Green Lantern comics to emerge as my favourite books… but that’s what happened. Action Comics #968 is an action packed fight that builds on a lot of the previous issue’s plot points without ramming it down your throat. An excellent issue that sets the stage very well for what’s to come next.Overall: 8.75 Recommendation: Buy

After Death Book One (Image) Jeff Lemire and Scott Snyder team up to produce something that is as much prose book with pictures as it is a comic book, but it will completely take you away from your couch as you read this (though I’d recommend reading a physical copy); the art is superbly suited to the story with a water-coloured blends in fantastically as background art for the prose sections, yet works very well for the more traditional comic pages. The book is 825 years after death, and while the events that brought us to where the comic begins aren’t explained, yet, the back story is told by the prose sections of the comic in an almost journal like fashion, written by the main character; Jonah Cooke. After Death Book One is a fantastic read that clocks in at over 70 pages, and had me enthralled right till the very end. Highly, highly recommended. Overall: 9.75 Recommendation: Buy

The Goddamned #5 (Image) Holy shit, I forgot how brutal this series is. Issue five brings the first arc to a close probably later than was originally intended, and while I’d love to say that it closes with a bang… that’s not quite the case; although the more I think about it the better the ending actually is. This is a must read issue if you’ve been with The Goddamned from the start, but if you haven’t you’ll enjoy the trade quite a bit (probably more since you can read it all at once). Overall: 8 Recommendation: Buy

Prowler #2 (Marvel) …. if you’re looking for an average story with some brilliant art, look no further. There’s nothing here that adds to the over all Clone Conspiracy arc, so the budget concious reading the event shouldn’t feel pressured into picking this up. Overall: 6.5 Recommendation: Flip through for the art, pass on the story.

Venom #1 (Marvel) This issue was far more interesting in terms of it’s concept than execution (but not by much). Unfortunately talking too much about that will rob the book of the realization it lets you have mid way through, so I’ll save that for next issue, but what I will say is that if you have a passing interest in Venom then you should read this. Venom #1 is a fantastic start to a new series, but I’d be lying if I didn’t say I had some reservations about the series’ future – but that’s a concern for another day. Overall: 8.5 Recommendation: Buy

Joe

Civil War 2 #7 (Marvel) – I don’t know if I enjoyed this more because it is finally almost over, or because things actually happened, but this issue was better than the last few. We get a very cool trip for Ulysses to a different place, which he couldn’t control, complete with the artist drawing these scenes from that title that I do not want to spoil. After that awesome cameo, and some information that puts Ulysses on a path to stop Carol Danvers from confronting Tony Stark, we are left with a very big moment at the end. There’s only one more issue left, and after all of the delays, and wasted issues, I just want the event to end and see what happens. Overall: 7.5 Recommendation: Read

The Mighty Thor #13 (Marvel) – This issue has Steve Epting on art, and he is a fine artist, but I have become so used to Russell Dauterman on this series, that the change took me a bit to get used to. Dauterman is one of my favorite artists working today, so this may not distract everyone as much as it did me. This issue sets up some things with the League of Realms that will be working with Thor to stop Malekith, Loki, and company. While it was a little slower than what I am used to in this fantastic series, seeing Ud the Troll, Screwbeard, Angela, and other fun characters together was fun. Overall: 8.0 Recommendation: Buy

Dept H #8 (Dark Horse) – The claustrophobic deep sea murder mystery continues. Matt and Sharlene Kindt have done a fabulous job with this series, and as water fills the base and everyone is doing what they can to survive, this issue mostly focuses on Bob. Fantastic art and water colors as always, and this book just keeps its pace up somehow and keeps me excited to read every month. Overall: 9.0 Recommendation: Buy

Kingsway West #3 (Dark Horse) – This issue had been delayed a few weeks, and it did leave me trying to remember exactly what happened in the second issue. Once I got past that, this issue was fun. There’s not anything revolutionary by Pak and company, but there is an entertaining story thus far. This is a miniseries and I believe we only have one final issue coming, so it will be worth seeing how this ends. Will the gunslinging former soldier find his wife? Save all of the other people? I will be sticking around to see. Overall: 7.5 Recommendation: Read

Patrick

Hellboy and the BPRD 1954 #13 (Dark Horse)** – I’m a sucker for stories of the underbelly of the Perfect Fifties, which is why I’m here for this series. But the stories don’t go deep enough into it for me, and this issue is no exception. On the other hand: murderous ghost monkey. Overall: 7 Recommendation: read

Masked #1 (Titan) – Having lived in Paris, I’m a bit of a sucker for genre stories based there. But this super-hero/sci-fi mashup set in Paritropolis lacks a certain je ne sais quoi – maybe just the chaotic nature of the City of Lights. There’s a certain interesting idea of using Fantomas as a kind of Guy Fawkes-type symbol, and this military brat certainly appreciates characters who come from the French armed forces (yes, they have an army). But the story feels a mile wide and an inch deep, and unfocused. Overall: 6.5 Recommendation: skip.

Superf*ckers Forever #4 (IDW)** – Into the Stupid Zone! SuperDan has taken the boys to Dimension Zero to find his sidekick Percy 2. But when Ultra Richard finds out the truth, he decides to go rogue, and Jack goes with him. Meanwhile, back at HQ, the girls get up to smashing stuff. This feels like a placeholder issue, with the mayhem hopefully to come soon. Overall: 7.5 Recommendation: read.

Ryan C

Cage! #2 (Marvel)** – Genndy Tartakovsky unleashes more mind-bending fun with a psychedelic, far-ranging second issue that’s certainly a feast for the eyes — but can be read in all of about two minutes. Worth a look for sure — but better to do so when it comes out in trade, as this just simply ain’t worth four bucks. Overall: 6. Recommendation: Read.

Vigilante Southland #2 (DC)** – Gary Phillips and Elena Casagrande plunge us deeper into their modern-day, inner-city updating on “Chinatown” with a second issue that’s considerably more clunky to read than the first, but the art more than picks up the slack of the story and the proceedings remain uniformly intriguing and reasonably authentic to the urban experience. Overall: 7. Recommendation: Read

Lake Of Fire #4 (Image)** – The penultimate chapter of Nathan Fairbairn and Matt Smith’s sword-and-sorcery-meets-Lovecraftian-sci-fi epic delivers an action-packed and admittedly breezy sprint toward the finish line, but it’s all kinds of breakneck-paced fun and sets things up for what promises to be a memorable conclusion. Overall: 8. Recommendation: Buy

Jim Thompson’s The Killer Inside Me #3 (IDW)** – Devin Faraci and Vic Malhorta have been doing a bang-up job with their extremely faithful adaptation of this still-shocking pulp novel, and this third issue is no exception as our protagonist’s descent into a hell of his own making locks itself in an iron grip around him even as it seems like he’s about to get away with everything. Cringe-worthy stuff, in the best possible way. Overall: 8. Recommendation: Buy

Shean

Athena Voltaire and The Volcano Goddess #1 (Action Lab): I remember listening to the serial radio dramas with my Grandfather when I was a kid, especially The Shadow and Modesty Blaise, on his old 45 player. Since then, the closest to those dramas, we have is Indiana Jones and Allan Quartermain , so when I read a few months ago that a Kickstarter for Athena Voltaire, it definitely piqued my interest.In the first issue, we catch-up with Athena as she fights a gargoyle and a plot which involves Nazis. By issue’s end, Athena quickly finds out just what power the Volcano Goddess has and how many people want it.
Overall: 9.4 Recommendation: Buy

Cage!#2 (Marvel):When I heard Grady Tartatovsky was doing a his own run on Luke Cage, I was more than excited as I was a fan of Samurai Jack. So when I read the first issue, I was distracted by the blaxploitation references, but I had to remember the character’s origins. So in the second issue, our hero gets caught up in a wooden box, and sent on a mysterious island to be part of a hunt.By issue’s end, Luke suffers a hallucination before succumbing to the real reason why they brought him there. Overall: 9 Recommendation: Read

Well, there you have it, folks. The reviews we didn’t quite get a chance to write. See you next week!

Please note that with some of the above comics, Graphic Policy was provided FREE copies for review. Where we purchased the comics, you’ll see an asterisk (*). If you don’t see that, you can infer the comic was a review copy. In cases where we were provided a review copy and we also purchased the comic you’ll see two asterisks (**).

Reviews

Review: Bloodshot USA #2

Posted on November 26, 2016 by Alex K Cossa

There are more than eight million people in New York City. And every single one of them just became Bloodshot.

With the flip of a switch, Project Rising Spirit has just infected every man, woman, and child in New York City with a designer “nanite virus,” instantly transforming them into hard-coded killing machines. Now, block by block, the citizens of America’s greatest metropolis are falling prey to their own destructive urges…and Bloodshot is the only soldier tough enough to go head-to-head with the entire Big Apple gone bad! With the humanity of an entire city on the line, Bloodshot is waging a one-man assault on Manhattan to root out the source of this machine-made infection before it hits the heartland… but will bullets and brute force be enough to stop the spread of a pandemic deadlier than anything in human history?

Let’s call a spade a spade, and get this out the way at the beginning; this miniseries can be easily summed up in three words – Valiant Does Zombies. It’s an oversimplification of the story, and the build up that begun way back in Bloodshot Reborn #1, but at the core the nanite-zombie outbreak, and the fight for a cure, is the premise behind the comic.

Last issue saw the infection of one Valiant’s more popular characters, and the immediate impact from that is felt early in the comic with a violently frantic fight scene that spells out the danger of nanite infection better than any text heavy narration box. Once we’re past that, with a reminder of one possible way the nanite infection could be dealt with, we’re treated to a wryly humorous sequence that isn’t quite laugh out loud funny, but should elicit a smile at the very least. The sequence is a nice breather from the End Of The World vibe that the story has had up until that moment.

Jeff Lemire continues to impress with his run across the multiple Bloodshot series and stories, and while the scope of this miniseries feels huge, it’s the little moments that make this standout, and it those same moments that will have you coming back for the next issue.

Bloodshot USA #2 wasn’t a perfect issue, but it was good enough for me to tune out the world for twenty minutes, and that’s all I ever wanted in a comic.

Story: Jeff Lemire Artist: Doug Braithwaite Colours: Brian Reber
Story: 8.5 Art:9 Overall: 9 Recommendation: Buy

Valiant provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review.

Review: Ninjak #21

Posted on November 26, 2016 by Alex K Cossa

To the death with Dr. Silk!

Far in the future, it’s a race against the clock as two longtime allies – Ninjak and the Eternal Warrior – reteam to prevent Dr. Silk from conquering the secrets of life, death, and everything that lies in-between! But will their united might be enough to stop the lethal combination of Silk’s technical prowess and criminal psychopathy? Meanwhile, in the present, the Deadside cancer consuming Colin King presents more visions of the dark future yet to come… Will his battle across two timelines soon come full circle?

Do you ever read a comic and think and then realize that said comic did absolutely everything right, yet there was something missing? Some spark that wasn’t quite bright enough, or a character that didn’t jive with how you’ve seen them presented elsewhere?

I’ve been harder on Ninjak as a series than anything else Valiant have published over the past year and a half, because when done well it has this … this gumption about it that is tough to explain, but the closest I can come to without being too melodramatic is that there’s a certain magic to most Ninjak issues that propels it to the top of my pull list. When that magic isn’t there, however, it’s very noticeable, and Ninjak #21 – for me at least – is missing that something.

Quite what it is, I can’t quite put my finger on, because there’s nothing this issue does inherently wrong – the writing and artwork are solid – it just doesn’t do enough to make it stand out from the crowd, and for a Valiant comic that’s a shame*. Now before you think I have nothing nice to say about the issue, there were some thoroughly enjoyable character moments (almost all featuring Ninjak) sprinkled throughout the issue, along with some very well done fight scenes early in the book.

Like I said this was never a bad issue, it just wasn’t as great as I hoped.

*You may have noticed my biggest problem with this comic is that it was merely good and not great. I’m aware that I’m judging the series by a higher standard, but when a publisher puts out as many consistently brilliant comics as this company does, then my expectations are going to be much higher than they are for any other company.

Story: Matt Kindt Art: Khari Evans, Andres Guinaldo and Eric Nguyen
Story: 7.8 Art: 7.75 Overall: 8 Recommendation: Read

Valiant provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review.

Review: Buffy Season 11 #1

Posted on November 24, 2016 by Logan Dalton

With only twelve issues to work with, writer Christos Gage, artist Rebekah Isaacs, and colorist Dan Jackson start out Buffy Season 11 #1 in blockbuster fashion with a battle against a blue Chinese storm dragon. But Gage doesn’t neglect the character arcs that have been the backbone of both Buffy the TV show and comic checking in with all the major players, including Buffy, Xander, Spike, Willow, and Dawn to see how they’re holding up during this supposed time of peace and quiet. The main inner conflict for Buffy in Season 11 looks to be her feeling of being “left behind” as her friends and family move on to bigger and better things like becoming a Wicca guru or a high scoring college student while she is still just a monster fighter. But, hey, at least, she’s getting paid for it as a supernatural consultant for the San Francisco PD.

In Buffy Season 11, Rebekah Isaacs continues to remain “on model” with her characters while still remaining highly emotive in her art style. She also uses a bunch of different panel compositions to keep both the action and talking heads scenes fresh like framing Buffy and Spike together in shadow as they know that San Francisco is in ruins, but their relationship is in a good place unlike most of Season 10. Also, when the dragon pops up, the panel size increases adjusting to the scale of the monster with Buffy and her friends as tiny, ineffectual dots, who can merely piss it off. Dan Jackson makes the Chinese storm dragon a gorgeous shade of blue, and its lightning attack is Godzilla’s nuclear breath epic, but uses a bleak, grey palette for the backgrounds and scenes before and after the attack. The design for the dragon is super cool too and reminded me of the majesty of the classic Pokemon, Gyarados with the abilities of Yu Gi Oh’s Blue Eyes White Dragon.This battle is going to have a big effect on not just the Scoobies and San Francisco, but the world too.

Along with Isaacs’ stellar art, Christos Gage’s skill at writing Whedonesque dialogue continues in Buffy Season 11 #1. The banter is especially snappy during the Scoobies’ rooftop cookout where Xander jokes around about Spike and Buffy being cops while Spike good-naturedly quips about technically being an undocumented immigrant. However, this joke could connect to Buffy Season 11’s upcoming conflict as the president is pretty furious about the dragon attack on San Francisco and isn’t big into working with members of the supernatural community to help fix it. On a lighter note, the remarkable chemistry that Sarah Michelle Gellar and James Marsters shared as Buffy and Spike in the Buffy TV show has transferred to the comic with their rapid fire pecking and poking at each other while they fight monsters that turns slightly sexy until their “backup” shows up. It will be interesting to see how their relationship holds up in the face of disaster movie level threats with a side of government interference.

As far as Willow is concerned, Gage and Isaacs seem interested in exploring her Wiccan faith as she opens a better version of the “wanna blessed be” Wiccan group that she joined in college back in Buffy Season 4. The meeting scene explores the spiritual, not just physical connection that she has to magic and also introduces a nonbinary character to the Buffyverse as Willow says that Wicca transcends the gender binary. Jackson gives the meeting a peaceful glow with his colors, and hopefully there will be more of these quiet, soul searching moments in the midst of frantic action.

In Buffy Season 11 #1, Christos Gage, Rebekah Isaacs, and Dan Jackson establish a more blockbuster action movie look and plotting while not giving the arcs of these beloved characters short shrift. The external and internal conflicts are deftly set up for the upcoming season with quips, brooding, and dragons a-plenty.

Story: Christos Gage Art: Rebekah Isaacs Colors: Dan Jackson
Story: 8 Art: 8 Overall: 8 Recommendation: Buy

Dark Horse provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

TV Review: The Flash S3E7 Killer Frost

Posted on November 23, 2016 by Brett

Caitlin’s inner Killer Frost is unleashed after she uses her powers to save Barry; on a rampage. Killer Frost goes looking for Dr. Alchemy, kidnaps Julian and battles both the Flash and Vibe. Joe and H.R. have an honest discussion.

The Flash is interesting as it gets Caitlin to go full Killer Frost and begin to become the villain we knew she’d become. There’s some good and some bad with this.

The good is, Caitlin as a bad guy is bad ass. It’s some solid acting and it’s a character I’ve liked as far as a villain for some time. The bad is she was a solid female lead who was also a scientist. The show has a bad habit of spotlighting their female characters in a negative way. Iris has gotten better but she was originally the love interest Barry couldn’t have and Jesse was a damsel when she started on the show. Caitlin was the one character who was competent and a scientist. Now she’s a slightly loony bad guy…

That was the big chunk of the episode until we got to the end, where one of my predictions totally was revealed as the identity of Dr. Alchemy is exposed. It wasn’t a hard one to figure out at all, but it’s nice to see it confirmed at this point.

The episode also shakes things up for Barry who has to make a decision about Caitlin’s actions and if she should face justice. It’s a plot we’ve seen in comics a bunch of times, but cool to see it be brought over to the series.

The negative of the show is a certain someone getting their powers in a flash and zipping away. It’s something we expected to see, but out of everything that happens in the episode, it feels like too much packed in. And that’s the big thing about the episode. Some is really good and is given the proper amount of attention while other plot points are just too quick and aren’t focused on enough.

There’s a lot to unpack from this episode and for the series to explore for the rest of the season so in that it’s pretty good.

Overall Rating: 7.85

Review: Go Home

Posted on November 23, 2016 by Brett

Stranded on a secluded island during World War 2, a young man discovers the true horrors of war.

Go Home written by Dan Hill with art by Andrew Herbst really caught me off guard in a good way. The story is more of a poem and how it’s written is an interesting one. The story is written like a letter home as the protagonist writes home to his father exploring his time growing up and his experiences during the war.

The comic is like reading a personal diary entry with images and that style really makes it stand out. It all gives a look into the mind and even has the main character rethinking some of what he’s saying. It provides an insight into the character you don’t often get making the comic a character study in many ways. It creates a depth you often don’t see with comic characters.

Herbst’s art is fantastic and with Hill’s writing style it becomes even more important. The design is solid and reminds me a bit of Nate Powell’s work in a way. The drama is emphasized and the heartbreak too with the combination of writer and artist coming together to tell a great solid.

Overall, the comic wasn’t on my radar, but this is really solid and one I’d suggest checking out digitally. It stands out as a prime example of the type of entertainment that indie comics can deliver that you often don’t see in the big publishers.

Story: Dan Hill Art: Andrew Herbst
Story: 8.4 Art: 8.4 Overall: 8.4 Recommendation: Buy

Graphic Policy was provided with a FREE copy for review

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