REVIEW: Dead Kings #1 Turns Its Anger Toward Failed States

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Dead Kings #1 is due out Oct. 24. Variant cover by Michael Gaydos.

By Zack Quaintance — Dead Kings #1 sees writer Steve Orlando telling another angry retribution tale, one heavy with grit and swagger in which we get interactions like this one: Bartender: I don’t know that name… Anti-Hero: I’ve punched a lot of faces to get here. I think you do. That’s all very telling about the type of world Dead Kings #1 inhabits.

Plot-wise, this story takes place 30 years after a techno-magic war in a place that must have once been Russia but is now called Thrice-Nine, which the book’s preview text describes as a dirty folklore world that limps along, degenerating into a place filled with paranoid and poison. Indeed, we definitely get all of that. Hell, most (if not every) interaction here is brimming with both of them.

Really though, Orlando writing an angry revenge story that promises violence to come is nothing new. Not after his most recent creator-owned book, Crude, or his breakout DC hit, Midnighter. What I find interesting here is the cause of the anger. In Midnighter, the anger was inherent to the titular character, an effect of his status as an embodied weapon. In Crude, the anger came from repression of self, both from one’s family and from one’s society. It’s only one issue so far for Dead Kings, but my early sense is that the anger and violence in this story will be driven by the failure of nation states, by the peasants who have been abused and marginalized by the namesake Dead Kings.

There are, to be sure, also some familiar themes from Orlando’s past work in play too, themes very much evocative of the recently-concluded Crude, specifically that one of the main characters is out to save a lost twin brother persecuted for loving another man. There aren’t really diminishing returns though. Dead Kings is pretty heavily steeped in both the gritty and the fantastical. I mean, this is a story that on one of its first pages has a kaiju-sized steam-powered bear mech.

Matthew Dow Smith and Lauren Affe are a well-suited art team for this story, too, with their work lending the proceedings a punk aesthetic through every frustrated or pained face (and there are a lot of them). The visuals here are equally as capable of action, and based on some of the outsized splash pages at the start, my sense is that the best is definitely yet to come from all involved.

Overall: A gritty first chapter that seems to promise outsized adventure and fantastical warfare to come. There’s a lot to be said about the way states fail their peoples from generation to generation, and this might be the book we need right now to say it. 8.0/10

Dead Kings #1
Writer: Steve Orlando
Artist: Matthew Dow Smith
Colorist: Lauren Affe
Letterer: Thomas Mauer
Publisher: AfterShock Comics
Price: $3.99

For more comic book reviews, check out our review archives.

Zack Quaintance is a tech reporter by day and freelance writer by night/weekend. He Tweets compulsively about storytelling and comics as BatmansBookcase.

REVIEW: Skyward #7 Continues Upward Trend (Heh), Doing Everything Right

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Skyward #7 is out 10/17.

By Zack Quaintance — I keep waiting for Skyward to feel tedious or repetitive, even a little bit, and it just never does. Simply put, this book has been rock solid from its start, juggling a number of feats I’ve often seen trip up experienced writers and artists, especially those who move from established corporate properties to creator-owned work. These feats include world-building, orienting readers, and establishing a compelling rate of revelation (all of which I’ve discussed in previous Skyward reviews as being strengths of this title). Skyward just seems to blow past every challenge with expert use of structure and craft, remaining ever-charming as it goes.

I’m happy to report that Skyward #7 does not break this momentum. I don’t want to go too far into plot specifics, but this is yet another installment that throws massive obstacles at our protagonist (massive giant bugs this time, to be exact), and then shows the audience what she’s made of as she overcomes them. In the course of her battling adversity, the story also continues to seamlessly world-build, revealing more details about how the environment has changed in the wake of gravity lessening to the point that human beings float into space if they aren’t tied down.

This issue even takes a double turn into horror, first with the giant bugs that come out after nightfall and second with the secret it reveals about our hero’s rescuers. One thing I greatly admire about Skyward is how compressed each issue feels. It’s maybe telling that writer Joe Henderson has a television background (he’s one of the producers of Lucifer), because the speed of the plotting here reminds me of one my favorite network sitcoms, The Good Place. Both that show and this series speed from one plot development to the next, almost recklessly, checking off developments that plodding stories would have lingered on for whole seasons (or story arcs). The end result is a narrative that feels urgent, and, by extension, all the more important.

That’s what I think has really powered Skyward to such effective heights (sorry): this is a story that feels like it has something vital to tell us, some deep secret about society to reveal, and it’s hell-bent on using an intense narrative momentum to get us to that place. If I have one complaint about this title it’s that the side character feel a bit amorphous and I often forget who they are or what their relationships are to the lead protagonist, but, admittedly, this could easily be solved with a brief re-read on my part. It also hasn’t impugned my enjoyment of the main story one bit.

Overall: Another great issue in what has been one of the most solid and surprising new titles in years. Skyward #7, like the six issues that came before it, is impeccably structured and paced, accomplishing some of the best world-building in comics without sacrificing any tone or suspense. 8.5/10

Skyward #7
Writer: Joe Henderson
Artist: Lee Garbett
Colorist: Antonio Fabela
Letterer: Simon Bowland
Publisher: Image Comics
Price: $3.99

For more comic book reviews, check out our review archives.

Zack Quaintance is a tech reporter by day and freelance writer by night/weekend. He Tweets compulsively about storytelling and comics as BatmansBookcase.

REVIEW: Black Badge #3 Is a Great Comic—Scout’s Honor

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By Bo Stewart — Matt Kindt and Tyler Jenkins’ Black Badge has been somewhat of a surprise hit for BOOM! Studios, in my opinion. As a fan of the creators’ previous collaboration, Grass Kings, I was initially thrown off by Black Badge’s premise, which is essentially super spies but with boy scouts. It just didn’t seem to fit into their existing body of work. Three issues into this series, however, I am now confident that there is much more to Black Badge than the premise lets on.

That’s not to say that Black Badge has a weak premise. The notion that scouts would make the perfect spies is hysterical, and the creators play off the natural comedy of that scenario without beating the reader over the head with it. Scouts pretending to get lost in the woods truly is a perfect cover for espionage. Kindt sometimes winks at how silly the situation is, but the world is so well developed that he can rest assured that his readers will go with it. The gadgets the scouts use, the casual attitude the team has toward missions (including a trip to North Korea in #1), and the character dynamics of the team all add up to one of the most charming spy tales I’ve read in quite some time.

Like most of Kindt’s work, though, Black Badge’s real charm comes from its central cast of characters. In this issue the scouts are still recovering from the loss of their teammate, Jimmy, desperately trying to figure out how the team will continue, knowing that their friend is no longer with them. They clearly haven’t figured it out yet here, but their superiors don’t seem to care. Instead they hit the scouts with the old I’m tough on you because I care about you argument, and send them out on their next mission. All throughout, this book does a great job of covering up normal teenage struggles with spy thriller trappings.

The highlight of this issue comes from the reveal of how Jimmy died. A mysterious figure called Hook Hand has been sneaking into camps, kidnapping a scout, and leaving only a little red flag behind. The team’s leader, Kenny, fell asleep while on watch the night Jimmy disappeared and has been trying to prove Jimmy is actually still alive ever since. Kenny blames himself for Jimmy’s disappearance, and, over the course of the issue, he makes some rash decisions in an effort to fix things. When little red flags start to literally appear around the scout’s camp, we can’t help but wonder if Kenny is leading the team further down a dangerous path.

Overall: Black Badge mixes spy thriller and coming-of-age conventions to great effect. The mystery of Hook Hand plus The chilling cliff hanger has me eager to continue on with this story. I think you’ll enjoy this book too—scouts honor. 8.0/10

For more comic book reviews, check out our review archives.

Bo grinds for the man by day so he can create comics by night. He is the lesser half of the Stewart Brothers writing team and can be found on Twitter and Instagram @stewart_bros

REVIEW: Submerged #3 Ups the Personal Stakes Amid a Descent Into the Underworld

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Submerged #3 is out 10/17, with this stunning cover by Jen Bartel.

By Zack Quaintance — In Submerged #3, the hints of underworld mythology that have been doled out by writer Vita Ayala and artist Lisa Sterle in past issues become central to the plot. Not to go too far into details, but as the New York City subway system faces threat of a flood caused by a raging storm above, it morphs into a supernatural plane of existence, one our protagonist must maneuver, glimpsing along the way haunting ethereal flashbacks to pivotal moments from past days of life.

It’s a compelling way for the story to blur reality while also strengthening our emotional attachment to our central character. What I find most interesting about the way that Submerged #3 is constructed—especially as it relates to previous issues—is that this is simultaneously the chapter with the most fantasy and the most truth, the one that ups the impossibility of the story while also grounding us in emotions so real they sting. There’s an impressive dichotomy at work that really serves this story well.

Indeed, throughout the penultimate chapter of this four-part story, reality is increasingly loose, with underground doors that open onto the street level, a childlike (spectre?) that oscillates from insecure to aggressive, and a train graveyard that seems to extend forever. There is no overt threat to the lead of Submerged aside from nature and concern for a wayward brother, but the creators have done a wonderful job of fostering an unsafe and eerie feeling throughout, of making it apparent how much this all matters. I once had a writing teacher who said short stories (like this one) should not feel like a slice of life but rather like the slice of life. It’s one word, but it makes all the difference.

Submerged very much feels like the slice of life story our hero will contemplate for years to come, and this sense of hefty narrative weight works in tandem with the aforementioned ghostly tone to really push the book forward. As the plot moves toward a climax, the story also does an impressive job of painting a coherent picture of the lifetime relationship between the siblings at its core—Elle and Angel—the disparate expectations from their parents that shaped their youthful conflicts (often due to gender), the ways they were regarded differently by their traditionalist father, and how it has now manifested for them as adults. It’s a credit to Ayala’s script that this all unfolds so cleanly, that it all feels achingly compelling.

And it’s also a credit to Sterle’s artwork, which has a way of seamlessly intermingling the real and extraordinary without ever tipping into jumbled. The dark underground setting is a potentially difficult one visually, but this book handles it well. Most prominently, however, Submerged #3 delivers a stunning last page reveal, one likely to linger until we get the fourth and final issue of this excellent story.

Overall: Submerged #3 is simultaneously the most fantastical and personal issue of this book to date. The action of the overall story rises along with the water levels in the tunnels, ultimately delivering us to a last page that pays off so much of what this excellent comic has been about. 9.0/10

Submerged #3
Writer: Vita Ayala
Artist: Lisa Sterle
Colorist: Stelladia
Letterer: Rachel Deering
Publisher: Vault Comics
Price: $3.99

Zack Quaintance is a tech reporter by day and freelance writer by night/weekend. He Tweets compulsively about storytelling and comics as BatmansBookcase.

REVIEW: Cemetery Beach #2 Sees Warren Ellis at His Most Accessible

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Cemetery Beach #2 is out 10/17.

By Zack Quaintance — In the first issue of this series, we got an adequate amount of backstory, enough to ground us in this world: in 1920, a group of industrialists and scientists invented space travel and sent colonizers to another planet...and we’ve had no communication with that planet in the years that followed. Civilization took hold and has since modernized, but, indeed, still looks anachronistic. Now, a scout has arrived to check things out, and what he’s found is chaos and barbarity, with no enthusiasm about reconnecting with home.

It’s an interesting premise, one writer Warren Ellis and artist Jason Howard established briefly before launching their central character (the visitor from Earth) into a prison escape chase scene that set their plot in motion. This second issue gives us a bit more info, opening as it does with a scene that stars a powerful man from the new world, who notes in no uncertain terms that he will do whatever it takes to prevent the visitor from “old home” (as they call it) from escaping, lest he eventually return with an invading force.

The philosophical argument being made by the presumed leader of the colonized planet is, essentially, that it’s best to be defensive. It’s a paranoid knee-jerk move in which he casts himself as victim to justify whatever he will do next (sound familiar?). In the course of this leader elaborating, we see him portrayed as glutinous, uncaring, and obsessively concerned with upholding power structures that serve him. He orders the capture of our hero and the death of his companion (whom he aggressively brands a dissident), and then smiles as he notes that if capture becomes too difficult, death is also fine.

What Ellis’ script for Cemetery Beach #2 seems most interested in is showing the absurdity of assigning all conflicts a pair of equal sides, noting that we all see ourselves as the heroes of our stories but that alone doesn’t make it so. It’s a timely and interesting concept, and it’s also one that doesn’t really stand out as heavy handed. No, just as with the first issue, Cemetery Beach #2 is first and foremost an action story in which two people flee the state, blowing up flying motor bikes and running through underground tunnels in the middle of the night.

In terms of the artwork, Jason Howard continues to make the most of the idea that a space colony was built with the mechanical capabilities and design sensibilities of 1920. The machines, clothing, and weaponry here are all futuristic, yet clearly extrapolated from what was possible in that era rather than in our own. It adds an extra layer of immersiveness to an already entertaining story.

Indeed, this comic continues to be Warren Ellis at his most accessible, even if the ideas its built upon are, as per usual, heady and complex. This approach blew me away in the first issue, as I wrote in my Cemetery Beach #1 review, and I’m still enjoying it a great deal here. If I have a complaint about this second chapter, however, it’s that it didn’t move the narrative forward in any truly unexpected way. We got confirmation that the colony’s leader was the big bad and we learn from the hero’s new friend that there are layers of inequity a plenty at work here, but we could have mostly surmised that from the subtext in the first issue. I’m still very much in on this book, but here’s hoping the next issue will find some less predictable ground.

Overall: In Cemetery Beach #2, Ellis and Howard continue the high-minded adventure started in the debut issue, pulling the curtain back a bit on the political dynamics at work on this forgotten colony established a century ago on some far-flung planet. This continues to be Ellis at his most accessible, expertly crafted in a way that doesn’t sacrifice complexity. 8.0/10

Cemetary Beach #2
Writer: Warren Ellis
Artist: Jason Howard
Letterer: Fonografiks
Publisher: Image Comics
Price: $3.99

Zack Quaintance is a tech reporter by day and freelance writer by night/weekend. He Tweets compulsively about storytelling and comics as BatmansBookcase.


REVIEW: Gideon Falls #7 Feels Like a Fantastic Season Premiere

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Gideon Falls #7 is out 10/17.

By Bo Stewart — Gideon Falls ended its first story arc earlier this year with a bang. Our trip into the sinister and supernatural Black Barn was a high point not only for the series, but for horror comics at large. Coming into Gideon Falls #7, I suspected we would likely face a dip in excitement, but thankfully that isn’t the case. Creators Jeff Lemire and Andrea Sorrentino very wisely treat issue seven like a season premiere of television. It’s maybe not as fast-paced as previous issues, but this comic effectively resets the board while also laying the groundwork for what’s to come in the arc ahead.

Gideon Falls is a strange-people-in-a-strange-town story done right. Ever since Twin Peaks became a cult classic, storytellers have tried and (more often than not) failed to replicate this sort of formula. It’s a delicate balance of finding the absurd in mundane moments, and precious few stories have the patience to let narratives like this build to crescendos. Once the town secret is revealed, the story quickly becomes stale. Gideon Falls #7’s greatest triumph is proving that the story of the Black Barn has legs.

The Barn’s origins, nature, and intent are the central mystery of this story. We got a small peek behind the curtain in #6 (in one of the best sequences of the year), but the full mysteries of the Barn won’t be revealed until the main character, Norton, achieves his goal of rebuilding the Barn…using the original materials that he’s collecting and keeping in jars. The undertaking of finding chips of wood, nails, screws, etc. spread all over town, and subsequently using them to rebuild the original Barn is overwhelming, especially as others continue to question Norton’s mental health. It gives the reader a keen insight into Norton’s mind and the suffocating presence the Barn has had and continues to have on his life.

Indeed, the second arc of this story is appropriately titled Sum of its Parts. Andrea Sorrentino’s art plays off this and engages the reader in ways no other book is currently doing. The panel variety is astounding, with each issue featuring at least one type of layout that I’ve personally never seen before. These innovative layouts give us a far better sense of who Norton is than any dialogue or narration ever could. For example, for the final page of Gideon Falls #7, the art is literally flipped vertically on its side. In most books, this would be a distraction, but here, the disorienting effect actively aids the storytelling. Like the title of this arc, each page adds up to more than the sum of its parts.

Gideon Falls is comics storytelling at its finest. It prioritizes mood and sense of place over fascination with a mysterious barn. Each page is littered with tension and oozes atmosphere. I think it’s this focus that makes Gideon Falls such a success where similar stories have been failures.  It’s a comic that knows exactly what it is and after#7, I can confidently say I’m in for the long run.

Overall: Creators Jeff Lemire and Andrea Sorrentino treat Gideon Falls #7 like a season debut of television. This issue isn’t as fast-paced as some chapters from the first arc, but it thrives in character-driven moments. I’m eagerly awaiting the twists to come. Oh, and that cliffhanger… wow! 9.0/10

For more comic book reviews, check out our review archives.

Bo grinds for the man by day so he can create comics by night. He is the lesser half of the Stewart Brothers writing team and can be found on Twitter and Instagram @stewart_bros

REVIEW: Infinite Dark #1 by Ryan Caddy, Andrea Mutti, K. Michael Russell, & Troy Peteri

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Infinite Dark #1 is out 10/10.

By Zack Quaintance — Infinite Dark #1 is a space survival story, albeit one that functions differently than most stories that fit that description. Space survivalism often sees a protagonist or group of protagonists fighting desperately to return to Earth (or whatever other habitable planet) as oxygen or power or food depletes. What sets Infinite Dark #1 apart is that there is no return waiting for the humans in this comic. There’s nowhere to go at all.

Ryan Cady and Andrea Mutti’s Infinite Dark is set after the heat death of the universe, on a single space arc that has escaped annihilation. There is no pressing concern to be outrun, with the characters here chased only by the knowledge that the vast majority of life has been snuffed out around them. In this story, it’s survivor’s guilt, nihilism, malaise, bleak routine, and lack of a vibrant future that people must confront. It’s powerful stuff, a complex and nuanced dive into human psychology, one that feels forlorn and relatable in ways most dystopian sci-fi stories don’t.

Andre Mutti’s first page from Infinite Dark #1…space has rarely felt so claustrophobic.

Cady builds Infinite Dark atop painfully universal feelings: these characters are safe, at least in terms of having basic needs met, yet that alone is not enough to make them content. The titular infinite dark comes to serve as an effective metaphor for depression so severe, so palpable as to be almost smothering. The plot grows from an inciting incident that threatens to make life even worse. It’s a compelling murder mystery with a great horror tinge, but mood is really what’s for sale here.

Cady’s narration really bolsters the mood throughout, with a number of excellent lines, including That’s what the Orpheus feels like—humanity’s perfect tomb, outwitting the end of all things, the ultimate habitat...and Mutti’s artwork shines especially well in exterior shots of the ship, making it as small as it must feel to those inside. Space has rarely seemed so claustrophobic. This book also builds toward an intriguing crescendo of rapidfire plot points that culminate in a fantastic cliffhanger (as debut comics must). So yes, while it certainly looks like no fun to be aboard the Orpheus, as a reader I’m signing up for the long haul.

Infinite Dark #1 is also an interesting companion to another major creator-owned book launched this week, Daniel Warren Johnson’s Murder Falcon. At their cores, both books are about unthinkable loss. Whereas Murder Falcon takes a fantastical approach to grieving, Infinite Dark’s perspective is rooted in reality, which is a credit to how real the characters are, given Murder Falcon is set in our world and this one takes place in limitless space.

Overall: Infinite Dark tells an intriguing story steeped in depression with a deep and nuanced understanding of human psychology, plus forlorn visuals to match. This complex comic makes readers feel as if they too have boarded a space arc following the heat death of the universe. A must-read for fans of meaningful science-fiction, with extra points for so adeptly incorporating horror and mystery tinges. 9.0/10

Read our recent interview with Infinite Dark writer Ryan Cady.

For more comic book reviews, check out our review archives.

Zack Quaintance is a tech reporter by day and freelance writer by night/weekend. He Tweets compulsively about storytelling and comics as BatmansBookcase.

REVIEW: Murder Falcon #1 by Daniel Warren Johnson, Mike Spicer, & Rus Wooton

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Murder Falcon #1 is out 10/10.

By Zack Quaintance — In the opening of this comic, a kaiju attacks a city, a conversion van speeds to the scene, and a long-haired guitar-slinging protagonist steps out from behind the wheel to save the day, laconic and determined. His early dialogue includes lines like There’ll be no baby eating on my watch; and I don’t need weapons, officer...I brought METAL. The hero (whose name is Jake) commences to rock, creating blue lightning with his guitar riff, from which a muscled and shirtless chicken man emerges and subsequently uses a bionic arm to kungfu fight the kaiju into submission.

This is all in the first five pages of Daniel Warren Johnson’s new comic Murder Falcon, which reads like a Tenacious D song in graphic sequential format. Like The D, Johnson’s new book gleefully embraces heavy metal culture, loving it so hard and so seriously it tips into a delightful self-aware parody of its source material. The opening of this book is, simply put, exactly what its perfect name and kinetic cover imply: a love letter to metal articulated through an action comic, a delightful burst of pop art informed by a hirsute and black t-shirted corner of our culture. It succeeds wildly, powered by an unpretentious good time plus also Johnson’s massive talent as a comic book artist/storyteller.

Daniel Warren Johnson’s immense talent as an artist is on full display in Murder Falcon #1.

And if this were the sum total of Murder Falcon #1’s aspirations, it would be just fine, a light and hilarious exercise in craftsmanship. At page six, however, this story becomes something much deeper. It flashes back to our rocker on a bench in calmer times. He’s subdued and despondent, and soon we get a clear sense that he’s in mourning, that’s he severely depressed, that...something tragic has occurred. We don’t know exactly what (more hints in time), but we know nearly everyone in his life is driven to stop and ask how he’s doing, to be kind in a way often reserved for those who’ve weathered a massive loss.

I don’t want to go too far into the metaphors and juxtapositions in this book, but I’ll just note that there is a dichotomy here—heavy metal cornball rocking vs. heart-rending drama—that elevates Murder Falcon #1 into rarefied air of debuts, placing it among the best new #1 comics of 2018. Essentially, this book is more than a corny rocking homage to metal. It’s a deep meditation on how we cope with tragedy and loss, how severe depression can both push us toward and away from the hobbies we’ve come to love in our lives.

Overall: A powerful debut with much to say about love and loss, Murder Falcon #1 succeeds on a number of levels. Johnson is a massive talent, and he nails this story, letting his kinetic artwork shine during moments of high action while knowing when to backoff and frame emotional moments with simpler visuals. This is a MUST BUY comic. 10/10

For more comic book reviews, check out our review archives.

Zack Quaintance is a tech reporter by day and freelance writer by  night/weekend. He Tweets compulsively about storytelling and comics as BatmansBookcase.

REVIEW: The Weatherman #5 by Jody LeHeup, Nathan Fox, Dave Stewart, & Steve Wands

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The Weatherman #5 is out 10/10.

By Bo Stewart — There’s not much I like more than a comic that gets better with each new issue. The Weatherman, for example, is a comic that knows exactly what it is, featuring a unique blend of dark comedy and sci-fi action that sets it apart from everything else on the shelf. In The Weatherman #5, the creators brought their A game once again, telling this story with a sheer confidence that’s evident on every page.

Over the course of these first five issues, writer Jody LeHeup and artist Nathan Fox have built a fully fleshed out world. The amount of thought that went into every character, vehicle, weapon and architectural design is almost mind-blowing. Let me lay it out like this: every single panel in this comic is a feast for the eyes. This is essentially a book that pushes current products and trends to their logical (and sometimes terrifying) extremes, without anything in it seeming out of place. Weatherman plays within the clear rules that it sets for itself. It’s a perfect example of how a world with real depth can seem more engaging than a world with more breadth. The creators have an intimate familiarity with this world, and they are clearly having a blast playing in it.

While the creators may be having fun making Weatherman, most of the characters in their story are definitely not enjoying themselves. This is a world that’s in deep deep pain. In this story, the Earth was destroyed and the humans now living on Mars are desperate for justice. If justice isn’t available, vengeance will have to suffice…even if it’s gratuitous or misplaced. Our main protagonist, Nathan Bright, is paying the steep price for all of mankind’s pain. I don’t want to spoil exactly what his punishment is here, but, trust me, it’s nightmare fuel. In short, the thematic territory LeHeup explores is challenging, and I admire how the book refuses to take a clear side. Like many of my favorite stories, Weatherman lets you make up your own mind.  

This is a dark and cynical take on the future, to be sure, but the creators leave plenty of room for fun. Riffing off the ridiculousness that is life-in-2018 (and the destructive path we seem so intent on staying on) seems to be the only way to cope with said ridiculousness. And no comic is doing this better than Weatherman.    

Overall: The Weatherman gets better with every issue. Its unique blend of dark comedy and sci-fi action make this a comic you simply cannot afford to miss. 9.5/10

Bo grinds for the man by day so he can create comics by night. He is the lesser half of the Stewart Brothers writing team and can be found on Twitter and Instagram @stewart_bros

REVIEW: The Unexpected #5 by Steve Orlando, Ronan Cliquet, Jeromy Cox, & Carlos M. Mangual

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The Unexpected #5 is out 10/3.

By Zack Quaintance — The first line of this comic is Hawkman saying, You two are trespassing on my past. Which is objectively awesome and also fitting, because if The Unexpected #5 were an episode of Friends (bear with me here), it would be the one where Hawkman joins the team. This joining is a great move for a couple of reasons. One, it gives Steve Orlando—an absolute ace with DC continuity—an opportunity to write a long-time character he hasn’t written before, and two, adding a familiar hero to our compelling newbies gives this story a new layer as it pushes forward into (sorry) unexpected territory.

That unexpected territory is actually something we’ve seen recently—Hawkman’s involvement in Dark Nights Metal and the dark multiverse, where he was enslaved by Barbatos with the help of Mandrakk (I think). One of the things I’ve enjoyed most about The Unexpected is how it seems almost deliberately tasked with expounding upon the ideas from the event it grew out of, more directly than any of its brethren from the New Age of DC Heroes line (which seems to be fading...fast), and we definitely get more of that here, as Hawkman explores his resultant trauma. It’s a compelling hook, and The Unexpected #5 drops it right at its start.

The story then does a great job of giving us motivations for Hawkman to join our team, be it solving the mysteries behind his own life (see the excellent ongoing Hawkman solo comic for more of that) or behind Nth metal—the material that literally makes up one of our main character’s heart—or behind the battle with Onimar Synn, who Hawkman explains is one of Thanagar’s seven devils. Simply put, The Unexpected continues to have one of the most complex and engrossing storylines in all of the DCU.

This is also an outrageously comic book-y story in the best possible way, featuring scenes in the Castle Frankenstein, a villain who absorbs an underling’s soul and then conjures a dragon, and a scene in which gravity gets upended. From its start, The Unexpected has been a journey book, bouncing between twists rather than building toward any sort of repeatable status quo, and this issue again keeps a constant state of flux, introducing new characters and variables.

Artist Cary Nord, who’s been aboard from the start and is off now to draw G. Willow Wilson’s forthcoming run on Wonder Woman, is missed, to be sure, but Ronan Cliquet is a more than capable replacement, an artist whose linework is clean and kinetic. Fortunately, Cliquet will also be on this book for the foreseeable future, assuaging the one concern I have about this issue: that the shelf life for The Unexpected (and indeed, all of the New Age of Heroes books) is limited.

Overall: The Unexpected #5 is a book set in a series of rapid moments, which inherently makes it one best not fretted about long-term. Basically, this story is a wild ride and I’m content to sit back and enjoy the fireworks. Of the New Age of DC Heroes books, The Unexpected continues to be my favorite. 9.0/10

For more comic book reviews, check out our review archives.

Zack Quaintance is a tech reporter by day and freelance writer by  night/weekend. He Tweets compulsively about storytelling and comics as BatmansBookcase.

REVIEW: Dead Rabbit #1 by Gerry Duggan, John McCrea, Mike Spicer, & Joe Sabino

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Dead Rabbit #1 is out 10/3.

By Bo Stewart —  2018 has been the best year of Gerry Duggan’s comic writing career. He wrapped up a long (and excellent) run on Deadpool, he’s currently writing Infinity Wars—the biggest Marvel event of the year—and his Image title Analog was optioned as a feature film. Quite the list of accomplishments. Duggan keeps his win streak going with the debut of his crime thriller Dead Rabbit.

Reminiscent of films like The Town and The Departed, Dead Rabbit is a blue collar, Boston-centered crime story. The issue opens with a newsreel telling us Dead Rabbit was an “equal opportunity offender”. Didn’t matter if you were a bank, a drug dealer, or Fenway Park. If you had a large supply of cash on hand, chances were that Dead Rabbit was coming to pay you a visit. But that was years ago and the thief has since retired. The opening pages show us several different venues (a police station, a dive bar, a prison, etc.) tuning into the newsreel, thereby establishing that although he was a criminal, Dead Rabbit was well respected. Somewhat like a poor man’s Robin Hood.

Really, all of Boston seems to miss Dead Rabbit, but this is especially true of the former thief himself. Dead Rabbit’s real name is Martin, and he’s finding that he might not be cut out for retirement. Money is an issue for him, and he’s secretly holding a greeting job at Wal-Mart, which isn’t solving the problem fast enough. Martin is slowly but surely finding himself sucked back into a life of crime. When a customer is carting around all the items necessary to dispose of a body, Martin just can’t sit on the sidelines anymore.

Artist John McCrea does an excellent job of communicating Martin’s discontent. The pages where Martin is the Dead Rabbit are far more dynamic and visually engaging than the scenes where he is at home or at work. Martin is his best self when he is the Rabbit and the visual storytelling emphasizes this point in some really creative ways.   

In general, Dead Rabbit #1 doesn’t attempt to pave a bold new path in the crime genre. It leans heavily on tropes like the retired criminal forced back into the game and a criminal does bad things but is loving to his family. There’s nothing necessarily new here, but this is still a first issue that is undeniably well executed.

Overall: The debut issue of Dead Rabbit does an excellent job of introducing the characters, if not the conflict. Martin is crawling back to his life as Dead Rabbit, which is an interesting start, but Duggan hasn’t taken us too far down the rabbit hole just yet. 7.0/10

For more comic book reviews, check out our review archives.

Bo grinds for the man by day so he can create comics by night. He is the lesser half of the Stewart Brothers writing team and can be found on Twitter and Instagram @stewart_bros

REVIEW: Wonder Woman #55 by Steve Orlando, Raul Allen, Patricia Martin, Borja Pindado, & Saida Temofonte

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Wonder Woman #55 is out 9/26.

By Zack Quaintance — Let’s just get this out of the way: Steve Orlando’s brief run on Wonder Woman, which concludes with this issue, has been an absolute delight, right up there with the work that Greg Rucka, Nicola Scott, and Liam Sharp did with the character at the start of Rebirth. He’s had an outstanding lineup of collaborators—from Laura Braga on Wonder Woman #51 to ACO to Raul Allen/Patricia Martin—and his scripts have delivered concepts that have given them all a chance to shine.

This issue, bittersweet as it is, is a fitting end, so much so that it makes me look forward both to the future of this book as well as to the work Orlando has coming with other DC characters (including Martian Manhunter, and a new concept set in a Kirby-molded corner of the DC space-time called Electric Warriors). Orlando is a writer who really excels in two primary areas: drawing sensical plot points from continuity, and swagger. You can see the latter is his villain dialogue here, when Rustam yells at our heroes, “Life? These soft-brained idiots are drunk on blind faith. I weep for them, but they must be put out of their misery...So there’s all of that.

Wonder Woman #55 as an individual comic book is itself quite good. It’s largely an issue consumed by a large-scale battle, a fitting end for a two-part story arc with a scope that has seen Diana negotiating nation boundaries for the formerly nomadic Bana-Mighdall. In this story, Diana must be equal parts forceful and diplomatic. She must show that she’s not afraid to throw down while also pushing peaceful alternatives. It is, simply put, yet another way that Orlando has found to derive a compelling narrative from this character’s core values, and I loved it. (A line that stands out as particularly superb is Diana telling Artemis: People are fighting for no honest reason. I expect help.)

Patricia Martin and Raul Allen’s artwork once again shines in Wonder Woman #55.

I also loved the artwork here from the team of Raul Allen and Patricia Martin. As I said in my Wonder Woman #54 review, they’re one of my favorites in all of comics, and it’s a real treat to see them teaming with a writer as thoughtful as Orlando. What I find most striking about their work in this issue is the sheer variety of it. The way they can make a pair of disembodied slowly-closing eyes in the darkness as compelling as kinetic combat sequences. There’s a confidence of vision and a clarity of execution here that I just find remarkable. The scenes where we go inside Diana’s prefect are crucial to the plot, and the team gives them the visual weight they demand.

Overall: A fitting end to a stellar 5-issue Wonder Woman run from writer Steve Orlando, one that has reminded me of the vast and unique potential of this character, while putting her in an excellent place for the next creators. 9.5/10

For more comic book reviews, check out our review archives.

Zack Quaintance is a tech reporter by day and freelance writer by  night/weekend. He Tweets compulsively about storytelling and comics as BatmansBookcase.

REVIEW: Cold Spots #2 by Cullen Bunn, Mark Torres, & Simon Bowland

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Cold Spots #2 is out 9/26.

By Bo Stewart — In just two issues, Cullen Bunn and Mark Torres have firmly established the eerie atmosphere of Cold Spots. Everything in this comic simply feels cold. The colors invoke moods of winter, the characters are distant and evasive, and, of course, ghosts linger in the background, ramping up the creepiness. While I am interested in the larger narrative, the real draw of Cold Spots for me is this spine-chilling ambiance. If you’re a fan of stories like The Shining, Insomnia, or Shutter Island, you should definitely be reading this comic.

Every scene is littered with unease, and Bunn expertly builds tension before each major scare. At its heart, Cold Spots is a ghost story, one with infrequent use of the ghosts that makes their eventual appearance more effective. Both of the splash pages with ghosts in this issue haunted me for hours, long after I’d put the comic down. If that’s not effective storytelling, I don’t know what is. It’s also worth mentioning that the ghosts’ designs are frightening and well-imagined.  

The unease of the atmosphere also extends to the characters, and Bunn gives us plenty of reason to doubt their motivations. Everyone has a hidden agenda or secrets to protect or both. The main protagonist, private investigator Dan Kerr, is no exception. One of the major reveals of this issue is that Grace, the girl Kerr has been hired to locate, is in fact his daughter. Grace’s role in the unnatural cold will be one of the big mysteries of the arc. I have always been a sucker for stories that use creepy kids effectively, and Grace certainly fits that bill.  

Torres’ visuals perfectly compliment the script, doing a lot of the heavy lifting in this issue. The gothic setting is gorgeously rendered with the scenes on Quarrels’ Island being a stand out. We are told that it is the dead of summer but the art exudes cold feelings of winter. This adds to the general sense of unease and disconnect. Even if you can’t see the ghosts, on page, you can feel their presence lingering just off panel. This is storytelling through atmosphere at its best.

Unlike a lot of horror comics that use gore and shock values as the foundation for their scares, Cold Spots instead finds value in leaving much of the story unexplained. We don’t know where these ghosts are from, we don’t know what their intentions are. Hell… we don’t even really know what they look like. It feels as if anything can happen at any moment. Bunn and Torres lean on tension, atmosphere, and the unexplained to build horror. This is a slower burn, but I have every inclination that the real scares are just getting started.

Overall: Cold Spots has managed to establish a perfectly-eerie mood with only two issues. The visuals and characters here all support the same chilly vibe, and the end result is a great Halloween season read. 8.0/10

For more comic book reviews, check out our review archives.

Bo grinds for the man by day so he can create comics by night. He is the lesser half of the Stewart Brothers writing team and can be found on Twitter and Instagram @stewart_bros.

REVIEW: Bone Parish #3 by Cullen Bunn, Jonas Scharf, Alex Guimaraes, & Ed Dukeshire

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Bone Parish #3 is out 9/26.

By Bo Stewart — Cullen Bunn is one of the best horror writers in comics. He excels at creating horrific scenarios, using touches of both the surreal as well as the ordinary. One of the best things about Bone Parish’s premise is that it allows Bunn to engage readers on both of those levels. We see surreal horror through the hallucinogenic properties of Ash (the drug at the story’s core), and we also see the more traditional, real-life horrors that led the Winter family to pursue drug production. Bone Parish #3 further examines these everyday horrors, showing how out of their league the Winter family has truly become.

A power struggle at the top continues to ail the Winters. The thing is, neither Grace (matriarch and current leader) nor her underboss/son Brae are particularly up to the task of running the family business. Grace’s loneliness leads her to seek attention in destructive ways. She abuses Ash, which allows her to relive the companionship provided to her by her deceased husband, while at the same time she is also romantically courting a would-be buyer of their operation.

Brae, meanwhile, excels at running day-to-day operations but foolishly shares trade secrets with an untrustworthy cop. Both Grace and Brae want to run the family business, but neither appear to have the acumen to run it effectively. With the cartel breathing down their necks, the Winters are starting to see exactly how steep the cost for maintaining control of Ash will be. It’s a great predicament, one that’s really driving this series forward.  

Problems with the business of the drug trade aside, in Bone Parish #3 we also start to see that no one truly understands the drug Ash itself. As we saw in #1, Ash is mysterious, capable of duplicating the life events of the dead. But what if Ash can also show us the thoughts of the living? As the drug’s creator, Lucien, says, what we do here…will give us control over both life and death. We can live forever. Our protagonists the Winters, however, don’t understand the potential of what they’re selling, and they stand to pay a steep price for their ignorance.  

This is a good place to mention the expert coloring from Alex Guimaraes. Most of the New Orleans setting in this book is colored with shades of green that lend an uneasy vibe to the Big Easy setting. The scenes where a character is abusing Ash utilize an alluring color palette of blues and purples. The end result is a simple message: Ash, good…real world, bad. Ash is selling at a rapid rate and the coloring helps inform why that’s the case by conveying how it makes its users feel.

We haven’t had a truly terrifying image since Winter Family dealer, Dante, was eaten alive during a bad Ash trip. But every panel in Bone Parish #3 is littered with tension as the stakes continue to rise with each issue. The tight linework from Jonas Scharf is crucial in making those stakes feel compelling and real.

Overall: In Bone Parish #3, the ramifications of dealing Ash are catching up with the Winters family quickly, making for a compelling and tense issue that shows readers exactly how woefully unprepared the protagonists of this story are for the challenges to come. 8.5/10

For more comic book reviews, check out our review archives.

Bo grinds for the man by day so he can create comics by night. He is the lesser half of the Stewart Brothers writing team and can be found on Twitter and Instagram @stewart_bros.

REVIEW: Patience! Conviction! Revenge! #1 By Patrick Kindlon, Marco Ferrari, Patrizia Comino, & Jim Campbell

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Patience! Conviction! Revenge! is out 9/19.

By Zack Quaintance — The solicit copy for this comic mentions crime syndicates and cyberpunk Las Vegas, before doing that new comic book formula thing and landing on Elmore Leonard novels with a touch of Blade Runner...which is all a means of saying that the preview peaked my interest in this book, even though I am admittedly unfamiliar with these creators. I will note, however, that AfterShock Comics has somewhat quietly been putting out very strong science fiction stories in a marketplace brimming with them (you’re all reading Relay, right?). But I digress.

Let’s get to the question of whether this comic is good! The dialogue is definitely strong, pithy and clever, fast. I’d wager Kindlon grew up reading or was heavily influenced by Brian Michael Bendis. His script here does a very Bendis thing, taking snippets of conversation, turns of phrases, and cadences one commonly hears somewhere mundane—riding public transit, at the next table in a coffee shop, in the breakroom at a job, etc.—and juxtaposing them with the fantastical sci-fi action comic books demand.

The result isn’t as honed as what you get from Bendis (that guy is the master of this), but it’s strong none the less, a solid tone-setting choice for a book that seems determined to be entertaining. Given his protagonist Renny’s genius-y skillset, the best description for how this comic reads is probably Bendis by way of Rick and Morty (or vice versa, I’m not entirely sure how that construction works), which I think is a more recognizable reference for its target audience than Elmore Leonard.

As for the art, Marco Ferrari’s linework and Patrizia Comino’s colors make a great team, especially in this comic’s many two-page spreads, whether they be of a heavily-detailed and intricate robotic workshop or a cave wall being used as a canvas with varied light on it that demands tricky bits of shading. Where the visuals really start to shine is in exploring the past, outside of the onenote desert setting. The art, really, is probably this book’s greatest strength, as impressive as it is.

That said, I think at times the wordiness of the script gets in the way of the plot and artwork, both of which I liked quite a bit. A little bit of editing could be helpful in drawing focus to the best jokes in here (which are quite good), allowing the strongest writing to shine. In the end, I think the art and ideas do enough to bring me back for a second issue.

Overall: Clever dialogue abounds in this one, which reads like a Brian Michael Bendis comic by way of Rick and Morty. The artwork, however, really stands out as the biggest reason to pay attention to this book. 7.0/10

For more comic book reviews, check out our review archives.

Zack Quaintance is a tech reporter by day and freelance writer by  night/weekend. He Tweets compulsively about storytelling and comics as BatmansBookcase.

REVIEW: Crude #6 by Steve Orlando, Garry Brown, Lee Loughridge, & Thomas Mauer

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Crude #6 is out 9/19.

By Zack Quaintance —  It all ends here...unfortunately. I can’t help but feel like this story deserved to be longer. Clearly, there were plans for that at some point. The solicit for Crude #6 says END OF STORY ARC, not end of series. But, alas, writer Steve Orlando’s note in the back of this comic makes it pretty clear that our story has now ended, and, really, so too does the action on the page.

Crude hit its emotional heights last issue, with a revelatory chapter in which the protagonist finally got what he really wanted all along—a better idea of who his son was and what his son’s life was like. Throughout this series there has been somewhat of a duality, a physical plotline in which the main character battles the actual villains, thugs, and conspiracies responsible for his son’s murder with his highly-skilled fists; and an unseen subconscious struggle the main character has waged against guilt he felt over being dishonest with his son about who he was.

It’s been a powerful book, to be sure. There are surface level lessons about acceptance, but those stories are ones that have been told quite frequently in recent years. How Crude sets itself apart is with the case it makes for familial honesty. The exact nature of the secrets that our father and son duo kept from each other matter less as our story progresses. Piotr is not guilty per se about having been a government tough, and when he learns of his son’s bi-sexuality he’s accepting. It’s the lack of emotional courage that kept them from being honest with each other that engendered the deep guilt and regret, not the nature of their lives.

And it’s actually this notion that makes me most regret we won’t get more issues of Crude. It’s an intriguing one rarely (if ever) tackled by such a macho story. I’d have liked to have seen it tackled at a slower pace. Orlando and the art team of Garry Brown and Lee Loughridge, however, do a great job here of wrapping up the physical action on the page, making it both satisfying and cathartic. The foil for Piotr is aggressively awful right up to the point our hero doles out his comeuppance. It’s a classic revenge plot resolution, executed to perfection by skilled creators. I just wish we could have seen more of the lead-up and aftermath, of what Piotr’s life and grieving will be like.

Overall: A cathartic and fitting end to a book that packed as much of an emotional punch as it did a physical one. This final issue felt a bit compressed, but the creative team should still be proud of the emotional journey it put its protagonist through. If you missed out on Crude as a monthly comic, I HIGHLY recommend picking it up in trade. 9.0/10

For more comic book reviews, check out our review archives.

Zack Quaintance is a journalist who also writes fiction and makes comics. Find him on Twitter at @zackquaintance. He lives in Sacramento, California.

REVIEW: Skyward #6 by Joe Henderson, Lee Garbett, Antonio Fabela, & Simon Bowland

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Skyward #6 is out 9/19.

By Zack Quaintance — With its first arc done (and done well, I might add), Skyward finds itself in an interesting place, one where it now has motivated characters with compelling goals inhabiting a world that the story can continue developing in unexpected ways. A key aim of any great storyteller is throwing myriad obstacles into characters’ paths, separating them from their desires and thereby forcing them to act in ways that complicate situations.

What Skyward has essentially done through five issues is convincingly create a situation—the  Earth is plagued by diminished gravity—in which the setting is liable to assail the protagonists at any time. As we saw in Skyward #5, something as traditionally innocuous as a rainstorm is vastly altered by the new environment, turned perilous and far more dramatic. One can only imagine how much fun it is to tell a story with so many possibilities, imaging the ways the changed world can pose new threats.

These creators definitely seem to be enjoying all their status quo enables as they catapult from one new environmental development to the next at a breakneck speed. This, simply put, is the type of comic that moves so quickly the novelty becomes part of the attraction, and, when the plot does slow down, the change in pacing makes whatever's happening on the page all the more serious or poignant. Basically, I’m as bullish about this book’s future now as I was at its start (which is very bullish, indeed).

Skyward #6 is the first chapter in which our main character also faces a new status quo. In the context of the hero’s journey, the intro arc ended with her experiencing a tragic call to action: the death of her father and revelation she can save the world by restoring earth to its normal gravity, subsequently undoing the top down classism that now afflicts the planet, thereby honoring the sacrifice her dad made to save her. She, however, is now a wanted terrorist pursued by the most powerful man in the world, a corporate exec responsible for her father’s death (who’s also profiting like crazy from lack of gravity).

It’s all in here, the good stuff that makes for a compelling story: character with searing motivation, high stakes, commentary on power, villainy, a treacherous setting where just about anything is possible. There are, to be sure, many books with solid foundations. I was reminded again in this issue, however, that veteran artist Lee Garbett’s vast talent in particular contributes so many near-intangibles to the story, little things like individual page pacing and slight facial expressions, making the book feel organic and real, allowing the whole package to really shine.

Overall: Skyward #6 is another great issue in an impeccably constructed and perfectly executed comic. It’s the first of a new story arc and status quo, and all indications are that this will continue to be a book to follow. 9.0/10

For more comic book reviews, check out our review archives.

Zack Quaintance is a journalist who also writes fiction and makes comics. Find him on Twitter at @zackquaintance. He lives in Sacramento, California.

ADVANCED REVIEW: These Savage Shores #1 by Ram V, Sumit Kumar, Vittorio Astone, & Aditya Bidikar

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These Savage Shores is due out 10/10.

By Zack Quaintance — Earlier this year, the good folks at Vault Comics announced plans for books from each of the writers in London’s White Noise Collective, including the eco-fantasy series Deep Roots, plus the forthcoming comics Fearscape and Friendo (both of which I’ve read and absolutely adored). Due out Oct. 10, These Savage Shores from writer Ram V, artist Sumit Kumar, colorist Vittorio Astone, and letterer Aditya Bidikar is the latest to join this White Noise wave.

Cards on the table: of all Vault’s books this year, These Savage Shores was the one I found myself most strongly drawn to based on its description, which involves merchanteering in India circa 1766 and also vampires. I can’t really intellectualize it, but the book’s tagline—Along these savage shores, where the days are scorched, and the nights are full of teeth—is the type of poetic-yet-gaudy teaser that makes me mutter to myself, cool, especially when coupled with Kumar’s appropriately savage cover artwork.

The poeticism of the summary and tagline actually permeates much of the prose in the book, with lines like I hear it is found beyond the water’s edge on fairer shores, where men die with dignity and learn to live with shame. This lyrical, flourish-heavy writing is something I’ve come to expect from Vault, lines more likely to be found in literary journals than comic books, and Ram V’s work in These Savage Shores is rich with them.

Silent panels like this one do wonders to convey These Savage Shores interests in colonialism and power structures.

This book, however, is never overly reliant on prose. It uses letter writing as a framing device in a way that enables Kumar and Astone to create kinetic action sequences that give readers vital exposition. Kumar and Astone’s artwork is overall very strong, especially as it pertains to tone. There’s one panel in particular this applies to, depicting a proper vampiric Englishman as he surveys Calicut from beneath an umbrella, standing at the bow of an approaching rowboat, posture ramrod straight with one hand kept behind his back. You can almost hear the bustle of the shore and feel the oppressive humidity as this man condescendingly absorbs what to him must be an exotic locale, one in which he will clearly be an interloper.

Tone and feel are two of These Savage Shores most noticeable strengths, both conveyed often and with much versatility, in scenes that range from the one I described above to a creepier set piece in which an ancient tree erupts with a bat colony to a character placing a tender reassuring hand on a pensive lover’s face to, finally, another scene intercut with sensual dance and primal nightstalking. If this sounds like a unique book, that’s because it is, one I highly recommend following.

Overall: Thematically, this comic promises contemplation of power dynamics and colonialism, piloted by a creative team with the clear storytelling chops to turn deeper concern into compelling narrative. Yet another strong book from Vault Comics, These Savage Shores is one to watch. 9.0/10

For more comic book reviews, check out our review archives.

Zack Quaintance is a journalist who also writes fiction and makes comics. Find him on Twitter at @zackquaintance. He lives in Sacramento, California.

REVIEW: Amazing Spider-Man #5 by Nick Spencer, Ryan Ottley, Cliff Rathburn, Laura Martin, & Joe Caramagna

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Amazing Spider-Man #5 is out 9/12.

By Zack Quaintance — We as readers have maybe come to take for granted twice-monthly flagship superhero books, now basically standard at both Marvel and DC, with Amazing Spider-Man and Batman both on that schedule (plus others too). To write and edit a title at that pace surely means a yeoman effort of planning, an inability to have even a minor misstep in terms of completing one’s work, lest a high-selling title in a publishing line skip a week and cost the company all kinds of money.

As much as I’ve loved Tom King’s Batman (and overall I have loved it, quite a bit), there’s no denying the sometimes major gaps in consistency, story arcs flawed in both conception and execution. For whatever reason, Dan Slott’s recently-concluded Amazing Spider-Man run seemed to suffer from slightly different problems. Whereas King’s scripts never lack for the grandiose or poetic, leaving him prone to mischaracterizations or over-writing in service of grand ambitions, Slott’s run on Amazing Spider-Man at times mired in the minutiae of seeding the future, leading to occasionally slow or less than fully-satisfying comics.

That struggle, I think, is also an issue with Nick Spencer and Ryan Ottley’s Amazing Spider-Man #5, the end of this new team’s first story arc. I absolutely loved Amazing Spider-Man #4, to the point I wrote an effusive and glowing review, but this finale landed for me with a bit of whump. That’s right, a whump. Spencer lays quite a bit of track for the future—be it with MJ, Boomerang, or two other villains I won’t mention here for fear of spoilers—leaving the actual hero versus villain conflict of this story to resolve itself in the space of less than four pages.

And I get that the real conflict here is between two versions of the protagonist—Spider-Man and Peter Parker, who’ve been separated via sci-fi hijinx—but their conversations with each other don’t hit any ground that wasn’t covered in more interesting and concise scenes in prior issues, and, really, what resolves their plight is pretty convenient and lucky, with neither side acting in a way we haven’t just seen last issue. And, yes, this is superhero comics and growth for the main character is all but forbidden, but Spencer’s past work (especially on Astonishing Ant-Man) has found ways to obscure that stagnation with poignant heart-to-hearts or conflicts that force telling choices from the hero.

All that said, Spencer continues to have a knack for Peter’s world and voice, and Ottley’s art is sharp as ever. Slott on his run did have an established pattern wherein he absolutely nailed the biggest issues of his run, the anniversaries and events and the like. Spencer certainly showed in Amazing Spider-Man #1 that he has it in him, too. In an age of high-pressure double-shipped books, that kind of writing rollercoaster may very well be inherent to these characters.        

Overall: The end of Spencer and Ottley’s first Amazing Spider-Man arc does a better job laying track for the future than paying off this first story arc. It has quite a bit to say about the Spider-Man ethos, but it’s all stuff we heard last issue. Still, the voice and ambitions here remain strong, and I’m optimistic for this run’s future. 6.5/10

For more comic book reviews, check out our review archives.

Zack Quaintance is a journalist who also writes fiction and makes comics. Find him on Twitter at @zackquaintance. He lives in Sacramento, California.

REVIEW: Wasted Space #5 by Michael Moreci, Hayden Sherman, Jason Wordie, & Jim Campbell

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Wasted Space #5 is out 9/12.

By Zack Quaintance — Through four issues, Wasted Space has done a tremendous amount of world-building, character development, tone-setting, and plot setup. This is a book built on a foundation of Star Wars-esque high action space heroics. Said space heroics, however, are also laced with high ideas about religion, chemical escapism, terrorism, and the merits of political stances ranging from complacent apathy to total anarchy. It’s a lot, to be sure, and a less confident set of creators might buckle under its weight.

Not this team. Wasted Space #5 is the conclusion of this comics’ first arc, and it’s also this book’s most entertaining issue to date, paying off so much of the dense track that has been laid while having an absolute blast doing it. That’s not to say this book is irreverent or escapist. No, far from it. The complex and increasingly-relevant battle of one man’s desire to be loved and happy versus his responsibility to combat societal injustice and oppression at great cost to himself continues to rage. Indeed, there are choices made here as dramatic as all get out, yet still executed in a way that mercilessly tickles the brain, be it via machine gun quips, kinetic page-busting linework between panels, or a plot that feels equal parts inevitable and surprising.

What is perhaps most impressive about Wasted Space is the way that Moreci and Sherman have built a tone that gives them so much freedom to tell their story. In this issue, there is a scene wherein two blue robots designed to have sex and murder have a soap opera exchange about why one left the other at the altar. In this very same comic, there’s a three panel set of close-cropped shots of teary characters faces, one of which belongs to a possibly-hallucinated robotic god. None of this feels at odds or out of place. It speaks to the confident imagination and high craft of the storytellers that all of this is now possible and coherent within the space of a single issue.

On top of the big ideas and high adventure, Wasted Space is a sharply hilarious comic.

I see nothing but a bright future for this book. It’s already come such a long way since we reviewed its first issue way back in April, regularly popping in features written by national pop culture outlets about comics that are not to be missed (welcome to the party folks, btw). Its publisher, the very cool and very smart Vault Comics, has also wisely made Wasted Space an ongoing comic. Simply put, Wasted Space is a comic that reads like Star Wars by way of 2018, determined to honor the tradition of the space opera

Overall: Simply put, Wasted Space is a comic that reads like Star Wars by way of 2018, determined to honor the hijinx and high adventure of the space opera while fearlessly exploring the central conflict of our times: where should one’s desire for comfort end and their obligation to combat oppression begin? 9.5/10

For reviews of Wasted Space #1 - #4, plus many other titles, check out our review archives.

Zack Quaintance is a journalist who also writes fiction and makes comics. Find him on Twitter at @zackquaintance. He lives in Sacramento, California.