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Review: Realm War #11

Posted on August 6, 2015 by

Grimm Fairy Tales stands about halfway in terms of its ability to mange its own content. It has some series which are either standouts or which show signs of something much better, but it also has stories which are so unnecessarily muddled that it becomes hard to make sense of them. The main universe of the Grimm Fairy Tales universe all too often falls into the latter category as it doesn’t really have a clear direction for how much of myths, fairy tales and legends that it has taken on. Part of the problem with this is that it has mostly lacked a lot of character development. It has been there for the likes of Sela and Calie Liddle, but mostly has been absent elsewhere as the stories have assimilated so many characters in so little time. There is an additional compounding problem, in that the company wide crossovers have not really been of a high enough quality to add in a lot more depth, between the Dream Eater’s Saga, Unleashed, and Age of Darkness/Realm War.

Thus far Realm War has been subject to the same level of muddled madness, as characters come and go, die and are reborn, and have all kinds of other random stuff happen to them without really adding much to their characterization. In short so far in this series, the Dark Queen has overtaken the Earth, with Las Vegas as her throne city, and allowed her forces to kill as they like, with a new age of darkness descending on the Earth. The heroes have not fared so well, having suffered numerous setbacks, with even major characters such as Baba Yaga seeming to be on the wrong end of victory and life. With Malec finally on their side though, the characters seem ready to finally take on the Queen and her forces, and in this penultimate issue, the heroes head for the Queen’s stronghold eager to settle it one way or another.

While the quality of the series has never really improved, at least this issue mostly focuses on action as opposed to too many maneuverings by both sides. The characters aren’t really constrained by anything because this is primarily one long battle after it gets underway about halfway through the issue. It is not really an excuse for what has come before, but at least shows that the creative team can know what to do with these characters when it is not too focused on the vast world that has been created. A smaller outlook would work better overall for the main world of Grimm Fairy Tales, and perhaps an issue like this one might signal that it is now time to take care of what they have instead of adding more.

Story: Joe Brusha Art: Sami Kivela
Story: 6.8 Art: 6.8 Overall: 6.8 Recommendation: Pass

Review: Grimm Fairy Tales 10th Anniversary – Snow White

Posted on May 28, 2015 by

For those that have been reading Grimm Fairy Tales from the very beginning, this issue will represent a return to the basics of the series. Whereas the original concept has mostly been discarded or expanded upon into a huge multiverse, it is perhaps the first twenty or so issues of the main series which were so noteworthy and worthwhile. These stories represented a combination of modern morality tale, as highlighted by a classic fairy tale, but with the lack of approachable fairy tales and the need for some kind of a narrative the concept behind the series changed somewhat into what it is now. The series still has its fans, even though it can tend to be a bit too complicated at times with its ties to all kinds of myths, legends, and fairy tales.

This specific story looks at the return of what should have been an old nemesis for Sela, although it is examined through the perspective of the modern mess that the series can resemble. The manner in which Sela is explained the occurrences is a bit lazy. She is upset at Druanna about not being forthcoming with the truth, but it is an easy plot device for just adding new material in which the characters should have known from their past. Aside from that this is a fairly engaging issue which focuses on Sela’s book, long since gone but back now at the hands of what they call a Binder, a person capable of recording all manners of stories. There are some action sequences, and some other sequences that tend towards a bit more gore, but the overall story holds together well enough.

The story telling in this issue is something that the main series has been lacking for a long time. It can be easily said that Grimm Fairy Tales have deviated far from the formula that made it popular to begin with, and despite its continued success, the return to this more simple concept works well for the series, even when it still has some influence from the modern tales. In the end the connection to the titular Snow White is a bit far-fetched, but it d doesn’t matter as the issues manages to work on its own merits.

Story: Joe Brusha, Ralph Tedesco and Lou Iovino Art: Manuel Preitano
Story: 8.2 Art: 8.2 Overall: 8.2 Recommendation: Read

Review: Realm War #9

Posted on May 8, 2015 by

The decision to go for a big company wide crossover is a strange one for Zenescope and Grimm Fairy Tales. First of all, such crossovers are very much hit and miss even at the big two of comic publishers where at the very least fans will get in line for their favorite characters. So too is it a strange decision because the shared universe at Grimm Fairy Tales is really not that big. After tying in a couple of series there is really not that much further to go, and even after giving characters like Cindy their own miniseries, there is not that much ground to expand upon. Thus even before the series started there was an uphill battle for Zenescope to pull this off, and the track record thus far has not been going in their favor either.

This issue is as good as any other to demonstrate what problems exist within this series, which itself exists as a microcosm of what is wrong in the Grimm Fairy Tales universe. As with the overall theme of Grimm Fairy Tales, characters are borrowed from all across the spectrum of legends, fairy tales and myth to populate the story, but the manner in which this is done is confusing. The Cinderella character is bad and the Little Red Riding Hood character is good. Previously established characters such as Robyn Hood have turned bad with little explanation, and other characters are around who serve as stereotypes of characters that are anachronisms in modern comics, such as the martial arts master. Of all of these characters are thrown together as Sela and her team are fighting back against the forces of the Dark Queen, and for the first time manage to fight back.

While this is still a convoluted mess at times, this issue pulls the story together better than previous issues in this series have managed. There is a stronger focus on the plot and less on all the disparate sub-plots, even if these do include such tangents as Cindy’s own desire for power and Sela making up with her ex in the most intimate way possible. For the first time this series appears to be heading in the right direction which is a positive sign, but it still has some way to go before making this crossover gamble pay off.

Story: Joe Brusha Art: Sami Kivela
Story: 6.2 Art: 6.5 Overall: 6.2 Recommendation: Pass

Review: Realm War #8

Posted on March 26, 2015 by

If one had any questions as to whether the main universe of the Grimm Fairy Tales universe is overly complicated then this single issue would answer that. The entire world is embroiled in darkness as the Dark Queen has managed to merge the realms and is in the process of consolidating her power. Following on the events of the previous issue, Sela is still looking for a weapon which she can use against the Dark Queen, but it would have been a lot easier if she had not been ambushed while doing so at Area 51.

In order to try to make sense of this issue there are Greek gods, characters inspired by fairy tales, characters inspired by legends, characters inspired by fantasy and original characters that have similar qualities to those already mentioned. Also to keep track, there is a triple cross in this story, in which a character is deceived and then deceived again and then the original deceiver get deceived. It seems at times that the writers of this series don’t really understand the need for any kind of restraint, and instead just keep piling on the plot twists and the new characters that act for reasons which are not fully developed.

The lack of a single compelling narrative is where this series falls down. The main series of Grimm Fairy Tales can at times contain stories that are well conceived and well told, but it would seem that with the company wide crossover in mind that the sum is far less than its parts. There are even compelling characters in play here but they get relegated to secondary roles. One can only hope that after the events of Realm War that the main series goes back to the drawing board and tries for something more restrained.

Story: Joe Brusha Art: Sami Kivela
Story: 4.0 Art: 7.0 Overall: 4.0 Recommendation: Pass

Review: Realm War #7

Posted on February 9, 2015 by

Zenescope has a strange property on its hand with Realm War. Company-wide crossovers are familiar enough to comic fans but they are usually restricted to the Big Two, and not to the independents. Part of the appeal of the crossovers is to get fans to read a lot of books that they would normally never touch, and thus to boost sales and to gain exposure for other properties. While comic fans are mixed in their appreciation of this common stunt, it is nonetheless one which is built somewhat on the idea of a large shared universe. Zenescope has tried large crossovers before, most recently with the ongoing Age of Darkness, for which Realm War forms the central narrative of the crossover. What Zenescope is mostly missing though is the shared universe. It has had success with its flagship series Grimm Fairy Tales, and a spin-off from that called Myths and Legends (since canceled.) The only other ongoing series are Robyn Hood and Wonderland, neither too close to the main story lines of Grimm Fairy Tales, but both still tied in. Realm War thus acts as the driving force for a crossover of three series, a scope which is small in comparison to the other companies.

The short version of Age of Darkness is that there is a Dark Queen that has taken control of the Earth and merged the different realms, or at least parts thereof, into one. Real War tells the story of those fighting back against the forces of the Dark Queen, and it is a story that is often lacking in focus. One of the main criticisms of Grimm Fairy Tales is that it draws upon too much from myth, legends, fairy tales and so on, and ends up with too little. Failing to realize that less can be more makes the series hard to follow at times, and even likable characters get lost within. Notably here, Britney Waters, the poster girl for Grimm Fairy Tales (having appeared on the first cover of the main series) is rendered inert by being forced into the story, which is decent on action but fairly weak on plot.

When considered in a meta-sense, of those that analyze comics both inside of the medium and for their place in pop culture, this series is full of unnecessary cliches which don’t advance the story beyond basic levels. Fans will know what these are, that there are things in comics which are never permanent, and they show up here, but so too do other cliches like an unbeatable hero, or a fight against all odds. It feels at times with thee story line of Age of Darkness that the writers are assembling it as if it were a paint-by-numbers, but losing the picture in the end.

Story: Joe Brusha Art: Sami Kivela
Story: 5.0 Art: 7.5 Overall: 5.0 Recommendation: Pass

Zenescope provided Graphic Policy with a free copy for review.

Review: The White Queen #1

Posted on February 4, 2015 by

Readers of Zenescope main focus will know that the main universe involving Sela Mathers has a tendency to push its way into all the other series in one way or another. Those series that stand alone are best able to deal with their own storylines without being bogged down by the stories about the five realms and Myst and all the other stuff that goes hand in hand with the main series and its spin-offs. The stories of Wonderland have manged to stay mostly free of the confusion, even if they occasionally get dragged in by way of association to the company wide events. The titular White Queen in this series is Calie Liddle from Wonderland, which bodes well for this series, but this is an Age of Darkness tie-in miniseries, which does not bode well for the series.

The story follows Calie as she is given a task by the Dark Queen. Calie doesn’t have the option of refusing, because her evil counterpart controls the locket which can end Violet’s life. She is bound by certain obligations as a Queen and by certain obligations as a mother. She is to murder a group of refugees seeking passage across Wonderland, but she tries her best to figure a way out of the deal, to satisfy the conditions but not to murder and to keep Violet safe.

The duality of the series and even the company as a whole is shown as a microcosm in this series. The parts where Calie is forced to deal with the Dark Queen are laborious, but when she is allowed to cut loose on her own the story picks up a lot of momentum. For those who enjoy comics for their action sequences, they are unlikely to find a more interesting fight sequence this week than when Calie takes on the killer mushrooms, which is noteworthy for both its whimsy and its brutality, even if it is a bit short on length. In the end the story ends up slightly bogged down again by the Dark Queen, but the overall result is still enjoyable, and more so for fans of the Wonderland series.

Story: Joe Brusha, Ralph Tedesco, Troy Brownfield Art: Luca Claretti
Story: 7.8 Art: 7.8 Overall: 7.8 Recommendation: Read

Zenescope provided Graphic Policy with a free copy for review

Review: Grimm Fairy Tales versus Wonderland #4

Posted on October 20, 2014 by

When it comes to comics series involving the word “versus” and any combination of heroes, there is almost certainly one thing which is bound to happen. The heroes will not really face off against each other in the long run, and will most likely being allied to each other in fast time, though probably after they have at least tested each other’s skills. It should be no surprise therefore that the series Grimm Fairy Tales versus Wonderland turned out this way. Really though there could be no other way, both by comic clichés and by what the company has going. Despite some of its questionable representations of women on its covers, Zenescope and Grimm Fairy Tales does tend to have a lot of female heroes, far better than the usual proportion of male to female, so much so that Grimm Fairy Tales probably is the only comic universe that has a better than 50% ratio in favor of women. At the head of this world are two heroines, Calie and Sela, representing Wonderland and the main world of Grimm Fairy Tales. Here they are matched up against a character intent on taking over Wonderland, not the first time that this has happened and presumably not the last.

One of the byproducts of the meeting of heroes is often the triviality of it. The meetup is set up as if to settle some kind of hypothetical question of who is better, but both heroes being heroes end up on the side of the righteous and end up fighting together. What usually gets glossed over in these cases is the villain, as the combined power of the two heroes is generally enough to overcome any one bad guy. In this series, this doesn’t seem to be the case. The main villain looks as though he will be playing a part in the ongoing story of Wonderland, but that brings up another problem particular to the series of Wonderland. The characters of this series have been mostly self-contained in scope to the rest of the Grimm Fairy Tales multiverse, and the popularity of the concept of Wonderland a land of madness and nightmares was presumably one that the original creators could not have foreseen. In the meantime, there has been an explosion of Wonderland books, and reading through any one of the main ongoing series of Wonderland reveals this, as it is pockmarked by information boxes with details like “See Madness of Wonderland TPB”. In the growing world of Wonderland, Grimm Fairy Tales versus Wonderland provides yet another reference point to the main series.

If this is going to reach some breaking point is a more relevant question. As long as the series remains self-contained and away from the main problems of Grimm Fairy Tales, then it shouldn’t be a problem. This was a perfect setup therefore in this series, as Sela comes to Wonderland to fight and not Calie to Earth. The end result is pleasing enough, although perhaps a little mundane at times, but it does provide an easy access to a future problem for Calie. Indeed this issue alone sums up the entire series effectively, and someone reading the main Wonderland series but not Grimm Fairy Tales, might like to get this issue just for a bit of context as to what is going on.

Story: Troy Brownfield Art: Luca Claretti
Story: 7.3 Art: 7.5 Overall: 7.4 Recommendation: Read for fans of Wonderland, Pass for Everyone Else

Zenescope provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review