Archive for December, 2004
December 6, 2004 | Comics
Breakdown #1
****
The Blade Of Kumori #1
*** 1/2
Defex #1
***
Aftermath/Devil’s Due Publishing
$2.95 US each
Welcome to the new superhero universe.
After several years of success reviving the G.I. Joe franchise and dabbling in a few other titles, Devil’s Due Publishing, through the Aftermath imprint, rolls out it’s first line of superhero titles: Breakdown, Defex and The Blade Of Kumori.
Featuring a solid list of creators, such as: Marv Wolfman (New Teen Titans), Ron Marz (Green Lantern), Chuck Dixon (Nightwing) and Dave Ross (Birds Of Prey), Aftermath starts with a solid foundation.
Breakdown, the best of the early lot, sees the rise and fall of a hero in one issue.
Paragon, an extremely powerful and successful crime fighter is shown at the peak of his game, before a vicious attack leaves him in agony and sorrow. Will his next move be to exact revenge?
Defex has a very familiar feel, like a Teen Titans or Gen 13 book. This debut issue sees a group of students fooled into developing technology that is supposed to boost people’s immune systems. But instead they are themselves are transformed into metahumans and, perhaps, something scarier.
The Blade Of Kumori kicks off with a soaring martial art fight scene and ends with a twist that leaves readers wondering whether our protagonist is good or evil.
It’s always exciting to see some new options on the market and DDP is committed to making Aftermath work, so it could be a long run for these new books. The company also claims they have not intention of putting these series out in trade paperbacks to entice readers to grab the monthlies. Time will tell on that one.
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December 6, 2004 | Comics
Angeltown #1 (of 5)
Gary Phillips, Shawn Martinbrough
Vertigo/DC Comics
$4.50/$2.95 US
**** (out of five)
Nate Hollis is a tough, smart P.I. — and he’ll need to be those things to solve the case of his life.
Set on the gritty streets of L.A., Angeltown begins with the murder of the ex-wife of a local basketball star. Nate gets dragged into the action after the star’s lawyer hires him to trying to find the “baller” before the cops do.
But that may be easier said than done.
Weaving intricate subplots involving the murder of Nate’s dad, a couple of goons sent to nab the P.I. by a crime boss and a fired-up bail bondsman, er, woman, who’s hot to catch the “baller,” too, Angeltown is a highly compelling read right from the opening page.
Writer Gary Phillips and artist Shawn Martinbrough may have started something really great here.
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December 6, 2004 | Comics
Firestorm #7
Dan Jolley, Liam Sharp, Andy Lanning
DC Comics
$3.85/$2.50 US
*** (out of five)
Bloodhound #5
Dan Jolley, Leonard Kirk
DC Comics
$4.50/$2.95 US
*** 1/2
Firestorm and Bloodhound: two heroes destined to meet — if only because the same guy writes both series.
Dan Jolley, along with artists Liam Sharpe and Toronto’s Leonard Kirk, bring together two the DC Universe’s newest stars, Jason Rusch, the latest incarnation of Firestorm the nuclear man, and Travis Clevenger, A.K.A. Bloodhound, the metahuman tracker and the result actually comes off pretty well.
Juxtaposing the inexperience of Jason with the veteran savvy of Clevenger is a smart idea and giving readers of each series a chance to see what’s going on in the other is never a bad marketing plan, either.
Bloodhound has quietly been a very solid surprise from DC and Firestorm has been decent, if a tad inconsistent. Hopefully this crossover will be a launching pad for better things for both.
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December 6, 2004 | Comics
Transformers/G.I. Joe II #1 (of 6)
James McDonough, Adam Patyk, Pat Lee
Dreamwave Productions
$2.95 US
*** 1/2 (out of five)
And now for a natural crossover… back together for the fourth time in two years, G.I. Joe and the Transformers.
This time, James McDonough, Adam Patyk and superstar Canadian artist Pat Lee bring us a more classic take on these two classics with Divided Front.
Set in 1985, the height of the popularity of both G.I. Joe and the Transformers, Divided Front puts all your favourite characters in their original costume, or configurations for the ‘bots, and kicks off with the Joe team being sent into the wilds of Oregon in search of a crashed alien vessel in a race against their evil nemeses, Cobra.
Issue #1 is a fun start, featuring great art from Lee (what else would you expect?) and sets the stage for what should be an interesting series.
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December 6, 2004 | Comics
B.P.R.D.: The Dead #1
Mike Mignola, John Arcudi, Guy Davis
Dark Horse Comics
$2.99 US
*** (out of five)
The dead won’t stay dead and the Frog Cult may be to blame.
In the world of Hellboy, that means you call in the B.P.R.D., or Bureau For Paranormal Research and Defense, the agency which used to employ the big, red dude from hell and still features such film-famous characters as Liz Sherman, the pyrokinetic, and Abe Sapien, the amphibious man.
While Abe is busy trying put together the pieces of his forgotten past, the rest of the B.P.R.D. is in upheaval, with a relocation of headquarters from Connecticut to Colorado and the selection of a new field team commander, the mysterious, and apparently resurrected Benjamin Daimio.
Creator Mike Mignola, along with writer John Arcudi and artist Guy Davis do a solid job of keeping the interesting world of Hellboy alive in a world of continuing oddness.
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