katrina mae hao Archives - Graphic Policy

Tag Archives: katrina mae hao

Review: Dungeons & Dragons: At The Spine Of The World #1

Posted on November 11, 2020 by Josh Rathbun

First off, a bit of a confession. I love the Dungeons & Dragons comics that IDW Publishing has put out and because of that, I jumped at the opportunity to check out the debut ot the latest mini-series, Dungeons & Dragons: At The Spine Of The World #1. I was a bit down on the fact that it wasn’t going to be another series starring Minsc and it was not going to be written by Jim Zub. For the last few years, he’s written the adventures of one of D & D’s best characters. But, I still love D&D and I thought the non-Zub story A Darkened Wish was exciting.

At The Spine Of The World, so far, is a tale thick in chardalyn, a magical rock of high power, and the mining expedition at the Spine Of The World go berserk on their travel to Ten Towns and more-or-less wipe each other out. A member of the Uthgardt clan sworn to protect the mountain comes across the wagon dogs. As they come back to the wreckage of the wagons, a Remorhaz breaks through everything, looking to finish what’s left of the expedition. From there, it’s a trip to Ten Towns and more trouble, courtesy of the chardalyn.

Part of the fun of these books is seeing what locals or beasts are being used in the story. Getting a town set in Icewind Dale is awesome enough. I’m sure with the Icewind Dale: Rime Of The Frostmaiden campaign being fairly new, it may have been a no-brainer for series writers Aimee Garcia and AJ Mendez to put something together that placed a party within Icewind Dale. They’ve put together a very exciting story with the first issue that feels like a random encounter in a campaign.

My favorite moments with the art was due to the battle. Martin Coccolo’s art was eye-catching in this issue. I loved how the fight between the main characters and the Remorhaz went down. I feel like Coccolo’s detail in his art reminds me a bit of both Andy and Adam Kubert and I mean that as a compliment. He implements a good amount of character detail but nothing too heavy. I wasn’t as impressed with the art when it was a variety of characters just standing around talking. The colors by Katrina Mae Hao were very vibrant. I especially thought the snowy mountain scenes had great color. The 1:25 cover was really superb and well worth checking out.

I love the world that Dungeons & Dragons encompasses and IDW Publishing continues to do right by the properties with their comics. Dungeons & Dragons: At The Spine Of The World #1 has me excited for more issues. There’s something for everyone with these kind of stories and they put a spotlight on folks from all sorts of fantasy walks of life. At The Spine Of The World explodes with a rush of adventure from the get-go and is just the sort of tale any hardened fan of fantasy can enjoy.

Story: Aimee Garcia and AJ Mendez Art: Martin Coccolo
Color: Katrina Mae Hao Letterer: Neil Uyetake Edits: Megan Brown and David Hedgecock
Story: 7.5 Art: 7.0 Overall: 7.5

IDW Publishing provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Purchase: comiXology – Amazon – Kindle – Zeus Comics

Review: Rising Sun #1

Posted on January 15, 2020 by Brett

I’ve never played the board game Rising Sun. Despite my love of board games, I couldn’t tell you what the game is even about. Rising Sun #1 adapts the popular board game from CMON into comics and does a decent job of it all. Written by Ron Marz and David Rodriguez the story focuses on warriors from different clans brought together to take on the monsters ravaging their lands and put a stop to the source. It’s a story we’ve seen before many times. This spin on the familiar plot stands out a bit due to its focus on the characters.

I can’t compare the comic to the game, or how well it adapts it, but the comic itself is an entertaining read. The plot is something we’ve seen but Marz and Rodriguez deliver something a bit more. Through the injury of one of the warriors, we learn about the others. It’d be easy to do flashbacks to reveal who each is but between the initial battle and subsequent events in trying to save their friend, we get a good sense of every character. There’s a lot packed into the issue explaining the world and it all flows easily.

The art by Martin Coccolo helps keep the focus on the characters. With colors by Katrina Mae Hao, each has personality in their design. Looking at each character, you get a sense of their clan and who they are. The body language too helps convey it all. Like the overall plot, the art feels familiar but at the same time stands out. It does a solid job of giving us details on the world and characters without being too obvious and saving the need for clunky dialogue explaining the clans and personalities.

Who knows how well the comic reflects the board game but what’s presented is an entertaining read taking us through a familiar plot but doing so with a lot of personality. The comic also comes with some material to use for those who do play the game adding a nice bonus and reason for gamers to get it. A good start that stands out as more than a cheap cash in on a property.

Story: Ron Marz, David Rodriguez Art: Martin Coccolo
Color: Katrina Mae Hao Letterer: Deron Bennett
Story: 7.5 Art: 7.5 Overall: 7.5 Recommendation: Read

IDW Publishing provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Knightingail: Shadow Divisions #1 to be Released by Big Dog Ink

Posted on May 28, 2013 by Brett

Big Dog Ink and Wayne Gardiner have announced that Knightingail: Shadow Divisions will be released nationally in comic book stores this coming July. Knightingail: Shadow Divisions is an all-ages, fantasy-adventure comic book series that will be released as a 6-issue monthly mini-series from July to December 2013.

Knightingail: Shadow Divisions continues the adventures of Knightingail where the first mini-series volume, Knightingail: The Legend Begins, left off. Knightingail and her four Centurion companions must use their combined powers to destroy Luceus and his invading army. At first, they find that their combined powers are able to easily overcome the evil Whitesticks, Lava Dogs, and fire and acid breathing Dracons. However, the stresses of war soon bring their toll on the five over-worked Centurions, and divisions erupt between even the closest of friends. Taking advantage of these divisions, Luceus contracts with a tribe of assassin warriors called the Shadow Ravens to assassinate the isolated Centurions. Sicari, Queen of the Shadow Ravens, leads the assault herself against the a lonely and distraught Knightingail, who must somehow find the will to survive and re-unite her friends once more.

Knightingail: Shadow Divisions will include the same phenomenal, full-color artwork seen in the first volume. Mel Joy San Juan is the new penciller/inker and colorist Katrina Mae Hao returns as well.

Two covers will be released nationally in stores. The Cover A artwork will be provided by interior artists San Juan and Mae Hao. Cover B artwork will be illustrated by the amazing team of Nathan Seals and Kate Finnegan (issues 1-3) and Val Hochberg and Finnegan (issues 4-6).