Comic Reviews

Uncanny X-Force #1 Review

I really hope that Rob Liefeld isn’t getting paid for that title still… that being said X-Force re-launched with the moniker of “Uncanny” this month. I’m not sure why the last volume of X-Force was cancelled and re-launched, but I can assume that the whole zombie-rip-off-Blackest-Night-thing didn’t boost the sales like they wanted forcing another re-launch of the series.

Off the bat this series has the writing of Rick Remender going for it. Remender’s most recent writing work being The Last Days of American Crime, a title from Radical Comics that was very good (9.5 good!). The issue begins with everyone’s favorite character Deadpool talking to himself as he infiltrates an underground temple of sorts. He has on what’s become the standard X-Force costume of Black and Silver, which makes him stick out like a sore thumb in the well lite temple.

Tomb of Terror #1 Review

Fans of old school horror rejoice! Tomb of Terror brings you four tales of terror with black-and-white artwork reminiscent of your darkest nightmares, and filled with chilling twists. The fourth tale is unfortunately a boring three-page long short story. It’s still worth buying, however, to see Man-Thing, the Son of Satan and Werewolf by Night within pages of each other.

Man-Thing takes the number one spot in a story known as “Descent of the Beast.” For the moment he has regained his memory and attempts to save a boy from two trigger-happy racist hunters. The story is done by Paul Hornschemeier.

Time Bomb #2 – Review

Time Bomb is the comic equivalent to a summer blockbuster. Although, where its movie counterpart typically fails (the story), Time Bomb delivers an action packed tale full of spy’s and science in one of the richest story settings there is… World War II. Radical has a diverse portfolio of comics that they produce, but even Time Bomb manages to break their own barriers with its mix of apocalyptic future meets science in an espionage war setting. In fact stated as such the book sounds crazy and is in fact crazy, but all of those elements are strung together in a way that makes perfect sense.

Superman Grounded 703 – Review

J. Michael Straczynski’s (JMS) continues Superman’s landmark story entitled: Grounded. As the word spreads that Superman is walking-across-America, families come to greet him. While others will be so glad to destroy him! Superman is not ever too busy to say hello to school children, or help clean up a storeroom. So join Superman in this amazing adventure with him finding his place as a hero.

With the Grounded story arc still just beginning, Superman is still struggling with being a hero. In the last few pages of Superman #701, Superman said “To be a hero – and I’m not saying I am one, I’m just saying – is to live your life in a small cell whose bars are the principles and rules that define what you will and won’t accept. Injustice. Cruelty. Murder…” As Superman continued this conversation with a civilian a few little words stood out to me “… What are you doing out there”? So by Superman saying this I’m guessing it means, why aren’t you out there fighting crime and protecting innocent lives. Superman is conveying that we can all do a certain job that keeps others safe, not just ourselves. Superman continues to help the little guy in this issue and he is greeted by an evil mind controlling magic villain which takes over different host with a single touch!

Soldier Zero #1 – Advanced Review

Half human. Half alien. All hero. Wheelchair user and astronomy TA, Stuart Trautmann, was bonded to a high-tech alien parasite after it crashed on Earth. When both realized that they need one another to survive, the two became one. Forming a symbiotic relationship, Stuart Trautmann and his new partner must now work together to keep Earth safe from an extraterrestrial war. Containing work by writer Paul Cornell and artist Javier Pina. Stan Lee is the leader or pooh bah of Soldier Zero.

Lady Mechanika – Review

Steampunk is a genre that seems to be continuously rising in popularity. Steampunk has influenced games such as BioShock, movies like Wild Wild West and comics such as The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. Comic artist and writer, Joe Benitez, mentioned that he was intrigued by the genre, and thus hurriedly went to work on his next creation.

Batman #699 Review

So, riddle me this. What do you get when you scrunch a two-part story in before the anniversary 700th issue of the Bat? A rushed story that had a lot of potential and still manages to be entertaining.

We were introduced last issue to a new face, Sebastian Blackspell. He copied other previous super-villain fans of the series we know: Poison Ivy, Mr. Freeze, and a dramatic ending with Blackspell using Joker’s toxins on the Riddler, and now the Riddler’s disappeared. Is this the Riddler’s return to super villainy? You’ll have to read the comic to find out.

Sea Bear and Grizzly Shark Review

The concept of this comic alone will make many people want to at least look at it. I know that’s the reason as to why I bought it. The idea makes the imagination run wild, but there is often a downside to this; the customer may build up such a degree of hype in their mind that when they read it they feel something is lacking. I feel that the first story, Sea Bear fell under this problem, whereas the second story Grizzly Shark surpassed it with flying colors.

Batgirl 14 – Review

Third dimensional Dracula’s are on the search for one thing. True love, what all hideous and bloodthirsty monsters desire. However, when Stephanie Brown and Kara Kent’s paths cross, Dracula is going to have to run back to his 1930’s movie because, the Amazing Batgirl and the Sensational Supergirl are on the case! With these two girls fighting multiple Dracula’s, everyone will be able to sleep at night (written by Bryan Q. Miller and artwork by Lee Garbett). With the events of the Road Home coming up for the entire Bat-Family of comic books, this is a good jumping on point for new readers and also those who dropped the series. Writer Chuck “Charles” Dixon and artist Tom Lyle created the character Stephanie Brown.

Lobo: Highway to Hell Part 1 Review

I’ve always been a huge fan of the “smooth” talking and quick fragging Lobo. I picked up the first part of Lobo: Highway to Hell at a convention for 50 cents and read it the minute I got out of there. Unfortunately, it failed almost all of my expectations. Lobo didn’t have as many funny moments as he usually does and the story is not a highway to hell, but a highway to a bad story that is so simplistic it becomes unentertaining. The only redeeming quality is the artwork, which is the best work I’ve ever seen on a Lobo title.

So, the Devil kills a dolphin which causes Lobo to become extremely upset and he takes a cruise ship to hell to kill him. Lobo may not have the greatest stories, but this one is overlooked and the gore is increased to try to disguise this fact. It is one of the oddest ideas I’ve ever heard of, and unfortunately the eccentric tale is not a good thing in this case. I didn’t find myself laughing like I expected to, and Lobo wasn’t as much of a macho man as I would’ve liked. He gets upset when a guy is about to eat a fish! Lobo is supposed to be very close with the dolphins, but for a guy who kills people for a living you would think he could act a little more manly about it.