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reviewed by Simon Breeze
The previous issue of Danger Girl and the Army of Darkness finished with Sydney Savage of the Danger Girls - my favorite Danger Girl if you're curious - leaving the team on a solo mission to 'help' Ash get out of jail.
We pick up this issue as Sydney stands on a roof-top opposite the building where Ash is being held by the authorities and is about to swing into action by James Bond/Batman style zip-lining between buildings and stealthily laser-cutting her way through a window before smoke bombing and kung-fuing her way through the guards.
At this point we are treated to a bit of back story for the character of Sydney, starting from when she was a young girl and she broke into an aquarium to swim with the octopus, through to her teenage years of sneaking into rock concerts, and then to finally going to military school and being recruited by Deuce into the Danger Girl team. We even get to find out why she wears a vintage black leather cat suit. You didn't even get that bit of information in the original Danger Girl comics!
We now get to meet Doctor Lauren Alia, I would just like to add that if my Doctor looked like Dr. Alia I would be permanently ill. Lauren is tasked with analyzing a new detainee called John Doe (Ash) who suffers form severe paranoid hallucinations. It is not long before Sydney has knocked the good doctor out, stripped her out of her uniform and disguised herself as her.
Oddly, Ash has similar plans for one of the prison guards who he tricks into his cell, knocks him unconscious, steals his uniform and makes his way out of the prison. That is until he encounters his doctor.
After a bit of a scuffle, Dr. Alia (Sydney) and the prison guard (Ash) realise that they are both after the same thing, the Necronomicon!
The story now shifts to North Africa to catch up with the guys who are currently in possession of the deadly book as they plan how to get the book to the buyer. All is not well in the camp though as one of the henchmen is acting a little strange ... and when he is confronted by one of the other henchmen about his behavior he is quickly uncovered as a spy: none other than Agent Zero!
If you have never read Danger Girl this last page reveal will mean very little to you. If like me you are a fan of Danger Girl you will have wee'd in your underpants more than a little when you turned to that last page! [Oh dear - Zaius] To then be teased even further with the solicitation for the next issue stating '... But when Agent Zero crosses paths with an old adversary from the former Hammer Empire, will his thirst for revenge put Abby in the middle of the crossfire ...?'
Now, me, I squealed like a teenage girl at a Justin Bieber concert: The Hammer Empire! Revenge! Old adversary! - Queue squeal!
What an amazing issue this is. No, scrub that. What a fantastic mini series this is turning out to be!
I haven't had this much fun and excitement reading a Danger Girl comic in years. So-much-so I'm even planning to go back and re-read my collection of the earlier Danger Girl stories once this mini series has finished its run. Andy Hartnell's so on the ball with his writing in this series he is falling nothing short of genius. Throw in the brilliant artwork of Chris Bolson and Adriano Lucas and I think my head may just very well explode in a joygasm!
I give this issue a five out of five boomsticks!
Danger Girl and the Army of Darkness #3
Written by Andy Hartnell, art by Chris Bolson, colours by Adriano Lucas, letters by Marshall Dillon, covers by Paul Renaud (50%) and Nick Bradshaw (50%)
Published by Dynamite & IDW
Many thanks to Simon for his thoughts - after his earlier reviews I've started reading some of the original Danger Girl stories and I must say I'm loving them: they have a real sense of tongue-in-check adventure that I'm finding very enjoyable.
Friday, October 7, 2011
Danger Girl and the Army of Darkness #3
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
The Dynamite Art of Alex Ross
Dynamite Entertainment have released details of The Dynamite Art of Alex Ross which is to be published in November this year.
Needless to say I'm a huge Alex Ross fan and this hardcover collection sounds fantastic containing sketches, designs, layouts and pencils, interior work, covers, and a wealth of unpublished art.
Here's the press release with more details ...
Alex Ross' ultra-realistic, painted renditions of iconic superheroes have made him a superstar. In the vein of acclaimed and fan-favorite Alex Ross books such as Mythologies and Rough Justice, we are proud to present the ultimate collection of Alex Ross art from his extensive collaboration with Dynamite, The Dynamite Art of Alex Ross. Containing sketches, designs, layouts and pencils, interior work, covers, and a wealth of unpublished art, The Dynamite Art of Alex Ross can be found at comic stores everywhere this coming November!
Collecting all of Alex's Dynamite covers and interior art in one complete hardcover volume, along with commentary throughout the book by Alex Ross himself, as well as special bonus material, this is a package not to be missed. A must-buy for Alex Ross' legion of fans!
"For all people who had been interested in my art before but may not have taken a close look at the many projects I've served on with Dynamite Entertainment, this book is the perfect collection of all of that work in one," says legendary artist Alex Ross. "I'm thrilled to finally have a portfolio-like collection of these images that can stand next to my work with other publishers."
"Alex Ross's artwork hit the comics industry like an atom bomb, ushering in a new era of heroic realism," states Marvels and Kirby: Genesis collaborator Kurt Busiek. "And the shockwaves are still echoing. I've been working with Alex for over 20 years now, and new work from him is always a thrill."
"To say that Alex Ross' work with Dynamite Entertainment contributed to the success of our company is a HUGE understatement of his importance," says Dynamite Entertainment President and Publisher Nick Barrucci. "I am humbled and grateful that Alex has decided to make his home at Dynamite for the past several years. Wait until you see what we have coming up next!"
More details from CBR.
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Danger Girl and the Army of Darkness #2
reviewed by Simon Breeze
Now here we are one month later and issue #2 just delivered and read, has my opinion changed?
This issue as I assumed (and could it have been any other way?) saw the introduction of Ash from the popular Evil Dead films and the Army of Darkness comic title. I have always been a huge fan of Ash, ever since I watched a copy of Evil Dead as a nipper - me and my friend Marc 'borrowed' the VHS from his older brother's horror film collection one school summer holiday.
This meant that not only was my tiny little mind of the time permanently warped, yet more relevantly, I was really looking forward to the appearance of his character in this issue.
Avoiding spoilers, here is a real quick summary of the story for issue #2 that does it no justice at all:
We are introduced to Ash in his ho-hum everyday life when something weird starts to happen to him and the people around him, and he figures out it is related to the Book of the Dead. Now flash back to Ash's history with the Book of the Dead and then a slight nudge in his present life to get him on track to meet up with the Danger Girls. This is followed by further progression of the last issues story to be concluded by all of the Danger Girls being introduced and moving their story towards them meeting Ash ... to be continued!
This comic is one of two halves. The introduction of Ash in the first half, and the progression of the story that started in issue one in the second. So-much-so that even the page count is practically split right down the middle! Yep, you read the Ash part, there is an advert, then you jump right in to the Danger Girl part. Does this matter? Not really! I just found it interesting! What matters is that it worked.
I think one of the main things that stood out for me in this issue was that it doesn't matter what degree of knowledge or history you have with either of these franchises (Army of Darkness or Danger Girl). You could pick up this comic and have a really good read and an enjoyable adventure. By the end of this second issue, you know about all the main characters, where they come from and for the most part where they are going and why they are on this trip together.
Issue #2, as with issue #1, has brilliant writing and art. However, unlike issue #1 there is the payoff for the fans of both Danger Girl and Ash alike. Now I might just be reading into things, or much like Ash himself in this issue and hallucinating, but the issue appears to be packed with lots of subtile hat tips to the Evil Dead films and Danger Girl comics in both the dialogue, narration and the artwork that the fans of either or both with a keen eye will love! If you have never read a Danger Girl comic or don't know anything about Ash (though I would question why to both!), you have nothing to worry about. The 'hat tips' are done in such a way that you wont notice and therefore will not spoil your reading enjoyment at all.
Another thing that this second issue has done, and it has done it well, is to bring the 'cheesy' humour of both Danger Girl and Evil Dead to the story, something that I felt was very much lacking in the first issue. The humour and cheesyness is something I believe that in the past has underpinned the characters stories in previous titles and incarnations. Without the cheese and humour Danger Girls and Ash don't work. One of the key things that drew me to this title in the first place was the thought of Ash and his macho runaway mouth working with three smoking-hot and strong minded girls! To me it is the perfect recipe for many clever comedy moments, and it would have been a shame to have missed out on them.
All this said, the best bit for me came towards the end (you have to picture me bouncing around like Tigger as I type this) as Sydney, my favourite Danger Girl, put in a proper appearance in this issue. Not only that! She is introduced in such a way that it sets up her character brilliantly to have her play a very interesting role in the next part of the story. (I had a fear, very much supported by the first issue, that the focus would be on, and remain on, Abby Chase to the exclusion of the other Danger Girls). I was (and still am!) almost at the point of bursting with anticipation for the next issue that was reached the very second I finished the last page of issue #2! If I could 'speed up time or alter the harvest' to get issue #3 here in my hands now, I would do it!
If you had any doubts about this comic after reading issue #1, I would now like to take this opportunity to dance about saying, 'I told YOU so!' This comic has met the potential in this second issue that I assumed (be it with crossed fingers) it could, and I am itching to see how it plays out in issue #3 and beyond.
A very well deserved five out of five chainsaws!
Danger Girl and the Army of Darkness #2
Written by Andy Hartnell, art by Chris Bolson, colours by Adriano Lucas, letters by Marshall Dillon
Covers by J. Scott Campbell, Paul Renaud and Nick Bradshaw
Published by Dynamite Entertainment & IDW
Many thanks to Simon for another enjoyable review - remember you can read a new review from Simon here at Escape from Tomorrow each week and pop over to his own blog to enjoy more of his writing and artwork.
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Danger Girl and the Army of Darkness #1
reviewed by guest contributor Simon Breeze
As I was flicking through it, vaguely recalling something I had read about it (keep in mind the internet was still in training pants and a 56Kbps dial up connection was top speed, so information on comics came from an old invention in the form of a magazine called Comics International), my friend Jim, who I was at the expo with, looked up from his Iron Man comic and said, 'You'll like that one Si. It is the kinda rubbish you'd normally read!'
And on that recommendation, how could I go wrong? So I bought it, stuck it in my bag along with my 2000AD, Batman and Spider-Man comics and thought nothing more of it.
I got home that night and, like you do (or is it just me?), sat down on the floor of the living room of my house and spread out all my comics, trades and graphic novels and took account of my purchases. I then spent the next hour leafing through them all and trying to figure out what to read first. That was until I picked up the Danger Girl comic: Bingo!
In his own special way Jim was right, Danger Girl was the, 'kinda rubbish' I normally read. Danger Girl was the kind of comic I had always dreamed of owning, and my hardened superhero comic reading friend had always despised! Here was a comic that was a mix of Indiana Jones, James Bond, Tomb Raider, G.I. Joe and all the things I loved as a kid. Not only that it was full of cheeky humour, action and hot girls. Hot action girls with guns and big explosions drawn by J. Scott Campbell, so really-really hot girls beautifully drawn then!
This was a strange point in my life, a turning point too. This was the day that would not only see the start of my torrid love affair with Abbey Chase and the Danger Girls, but also, and oddly, the birth of my desire to create comics too!
Danger Girl for me is a brilliant concept of all of the above. In summary; hot action girls saving the world like only James Bond and Indiana Jones have done so in the past. However, doing it their way, how a girl would do it. Therein is one of the things I like about Danger Girl, yeah-yeah it plays on the fact it is a team of very attractive girls with some cheeky fun from time to time, but they are all 'strong' girls. Think Princess Leia from Star Wars, very pretty, very sexy and you wouldn't want to mess with her either!
As the years went by and the stories racked up I must admit the glory days of Danger Girl were short lived, and that despite a few good ones since, it has never reached the heights of that first run for me. But like that girlfriend that you never get over, you always hope that the next one you meet will measure up and out shine the old, or even just be almost as good! You keep trying though! Through thick and thin, through knock backs and bad dates you cling to the hope that there is a light at the end of that long old tunnel.
Here we are. Several years on from the start of that love affair and through the beauty of a 20Mbps broadband connection and from the comfort of an armchair (don't times change quickly) I find out from a comic blog that there is to be a new Danger Girl adventure, this time the girls are taking on the Army of Darkness!
Army of Darkness... Hmmm...?
I do really like the Evil Dead films, especially the Army of Darkness. However, I have never read any of the tie-in comics. Could this mash-up of titles work? On one hand you have Danger Girl, hot girls being James Bond and Indiana Jones and on the other a time travelling shop assistant with a robot hand, chainsaw and Boomstick (shotgun) fighting the legions of the undead?
The first issue of Danger Girl and the Army of Darkness begins with Abbey Chase, the main character from the Danger Girl title, narrating and giving the reader a little insight to the world of Danger Girl. To be expected, not everyone has read Danger Girl, and so they will need a little introduction.
Introduction over, we join Abbey on an assignment to help out on a rescue mission (I'm skimping on details if you are wondering to try and keep this review as spoiler free as possible) which very quickly goes south and introduces us to the existence of a book called the, 'Necronomicon Ex-Mortis' – the, 'Book of the Dead'. The very same evil, bound in human flesh and written in human blood book of all things nasty and foul from the Evil Dead films. Issue number one of Danger Girl and the Army of Darkness over and in the bag.
That was quick!
Okay, it is not that quick of a read, but that's it, that's the plot of the 22 page first issue, which ends very nicely setting up and leading us comfortably into the story for the next issue.
For me something was missing from this story right from the start. In my mind there is one real common ground that ties the worlds of Danger Girl and the Evil Dead together, and that I can sum up in one word: 'fun'. Sadly, it was missing from this issue. The story is full of action, cool gun fights, explosions and enough cheesy action movie moments to even make John Woo blush. It just wasn't fun enough for me though.
This is not to say that I didn't enjoy the story, or any of the action, in fact some of it is awesome! For me (and I am willing to except that I may be alone in this opinion) Danger Girl worked because it was action and adventure with a real good dose of fun. At some point in the Danger Girl series the fun started to become thin on the ground and the title started to take itself a little too seriously, and as I said earlier, there have been a few Danger Girl comics that recaptured this fun element (Back in Black was one of the few story arcs that managed to do this) for the most part though it has been lacking. Danger Girl and the Army of Darkness is a good example (in my opinion) of this.
Why the big deal? Well you might ask. The big deal is this. As any fan of Ash (the hero from the Evil Dead films) will tell you he is the king of the one liners, and the Army of Darkness film is one of the most fun horror films there is. Add in the cheeky fun action-adventure from Danger Girl and you have possibly in your hands the making of something very special. Sadly, I'm just not seeing it in this first issue. It is all just taking itself a little to seriously.
For another thing. Where are the other Danger Girls? The focus of this issue is purely on Abbey Chase (although some members of the team do pop-up in the background of the odd one or two panels they do very little to nothing) Danger Girl is at its best when the team are all there to play-off off one another.
Where is Ash too? I understand that this is a first issue and I am 100% sure that Ash will show up in issue 2. However, don't give me 22 pages of action, story and only a fraction (a tiny one at that) of the cast!
I think there in lies the 'nub' of my slight negativity towards this first issue. You can't help but get the feeling, right from the start, that it could have been better. Do I feel let down? Yes, somewhat. But as a Danger Girl fan I'm used to riding that roller coaster. Do I have hope - and belief - that this could be the great comic I dreamed it could be? Yes! Without out a doubt!
Okay, bad bits out of the way, now on to the good bits.
Written by Andy Hartnell – Check!
Cover by J. Scott Campbell – Check!
(Awesome) Page art by Chris Bolson – Check!
Action, lots of – Check!
Lots of things going BANG! - Check!
Cheesecake moments – Check!
Weird supernatural stuff – Check!
Some guys hand gets possessed and trying to kill him! - Check!
So there is a short list of some of the brilliant stuff that this comic has used so far to good advantage. I still feel that Danger Girl and the Army of Darkness has the ability to be something very special. Scrub that, I know it can be something very special. Right now it is good comic, it could be a great comic though. I guess it is too early to tell if that will happen. Yet, it has done enough in my eyes to get me reading the next one, and if it stays as good as this first issue, I will not only be sticking with the series until its conclusion I will also be investing in the collected edition when it is published too.
Danger Girl and the Army of Darkness is a good comic. A good read with some fantastic art and moments. It's not a great comic, not yet anyway. I'm going to give Danger Girl and the Army of Darkness a 3.5 chainsaws out of 5 and sit in twitching anticipation of issue 2 arriving on my doorstep. I won't be spoiling anything by saying that Ash is going to be in the next issue for sure and maybe, just maybe, the addition of one of the coolest guys in horror history will inject that missing element for me. Abbey Chase and Ash in the same comic together! This is where things could go from good to great in the space of one page or even a single panel! Mixing these two characters and worlds together was a stroke of genius, and with what I've seen of Danger Girl and the Army of Darkness so far, I am willing to take that gamble that it will be.
Danger Girl and the Army of Darkness #1
Written by Andy Hartnell, art by Chris Bolson, colours by Adriano Lucas, letters by Marshall Dillon
Covers by J. Scott Campbell (main), Paul Renaud (one in ten) and Nick Bradshaw (one in fifteen)
Published by Dynamite Entertainment & IDW
Massive thanks to Simon for another enjoyable review. Don't forget you can check out Simon's writing and art over at his blog and his excellent weekly webcomic - JesseKane.
Friday, April 22, 2011
Warlord of Mars - Dejah Thoris #1
reviewed by guest contributor Simon Breeze
Dynamite have now produced a five issue spin-off mini series called Warlord of Mars – Dejah Thoris. This new series follows the Martian Princess and her role in the conflict between the twin Martian cities of Helium, her home on Mars, in events set 437 years before the arrival of John Carter and the current events of the Warlord of Mars ongoing comic series.
Dejah Thoris, despite being set in the same 'world' as Warlord of Mars is a very different story to the classic Sci-Fi that is John Carter's tale. If John Carter's tale is Star Wars, then Dejah Thoris is the Sci-Fi version of Game of Thrones with a wardrobe inspired by the film 300: so I'd describe it as being more about politics than the adventure. That's not to say that there isn't any action, far from it, just there is a lot of political manoeuvring involved too, and there-in lies the hub that the story telling revolves around - political manoeuvering.
This isn't a bad thing, as I said, in fact it is really quite a good thing. I am finding all the back stabbing and alliance-building and double-crossing fun and interesting, yet it is at a level to not have me scratching my chin in bewilderment. I guess what I'm saying (and hoping not to come across sounding like I'm an idiot and I need things spelt out to me with a green crayon!) is that the story is not overly complicated: in a good way. You can sit down, read, enjoy and get caught up in the whose-doing-what-to-who - and why - and what their end game might be and you don't feel like you're getting lost anywhere. It is like eating a really well prepared and beautiful looking meal: you know it looks good, it tastes good, it smells good and only the chef knows how it all goes together. But that's okay, you know what you've got and it's all good!
Some of this comfort comes from the knowledge that most of the characters are based on classic archetypes: the beautiful princess; the evil lord; the evil lords bumbling son who is going to come good at the end; the honourable father and his heroic son who are at the mercy of the evil lord ... they are all there. Again, this is all good and very enjoyable. The moment you see these characters you know who they are and their role, which gives a story of this type some speed to its telling. You don't need to say 'this guy here is the evil lord of Mars and he is going to do bad things' over three pages! You know that is his role the moment you see him in the first panel he puts in an appearance. Just like that moment in Star Wars when you see Luke Skywalker for the first time: you know he is the hero just as you know Darth Vader is the villain when he strolls through that blasted, smoky doorway flanked by Stormtroopers.
Arvid Nelson's writing is spot on for this comic book. Welled paced with good understanding of the characters and where he needs to take them in this five-issue story-arc. Okay, so the writing is good, but what about the art? What can I say, Dejah Thoris, has there ever been a Sci-Fi Princess that wore less clothing? I think Princess Leia from 'Star Wars: Return of the Jedi' comes a distant second in that poll, and Carlos Rafael renders Dejah Thoris very nicely indeed. Though I must add that in some panels I do have the passing thought that she has the expression of an actress in the 'adult entertainment' industry when the pizza delivery boy has arrived on her doorstep!
The art has a simple look to it, more lines than shading with bold and bright colouring giving the pages a fantastic eye-popping reading experience. This first issue has a five cover variations by Arthur Adams, Joe Jusko, Sean Chen, Paul Renaud, and Ale Garza, there is also much to my surprise a 'Risque, Nude Art' cover by Arthur Adams too: my mind boggles! The poor girl wears so little clothing in the first place, I'm sure she's risking a cold at the very least, so why take that little bit of clothing away and escalate that risk further? Maybe it's my age talking there?
Any-who. A fun bit of Sci-Fi adventuring and political manoeuvring with some awesome artwork. I give Warlord of Mars – Dejah Thoris #1 a 4 out of 5 bikini clad space princesses.
Warlord of Mars – Dejah Thoris #1
Written by Arvid Nelson, illustrated by Carlos Rafael, coloured by Carlos Lopez, lettered by Marshall Dillion
Published by Dynamite Entertainment
I say this every time Simon sends us a contribution and I genuinely mean it - massive thanks for another enjoyable review. Don't forget you can check out Simon's writing and art over at his blog and his excellent weekly webcomic - JesseKane.
Find out more about all of Dynamite Entertainment's publications, including Warlord of Mars – Dejah Thoris, over at the excellent Dynamite Entertainment website.
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Jennifer Blood #1
reviewed by guest contributor Simon Breeze
How would I describe Jennifer Blood? When I first came across this title I knew very little known about it. Just that it was written by Garth Ennis and that it followed the story of a female vigilante who dressed in black and was armed to the teeth with more guns than you could shake a stick at.
I enjoy Garth Ennis's work, and I am a big fan of Tim Bradstreet's cover art too, so I guess I had nothing to lose by adding issue #1 to my monthly pull list from this tiny amount of information. I must admit I did wobble just a little as from promotion to pull list to arriving in my sticky mitts for when I heard the rumours that Jennifer Blood was going to be Dynamite's answer to Marvel's Punisher. Yes that's right, it is a female Punisher – Awesome! Or maybe not in my case. If I want to read Punisher, I'll go buy an issue of Punisher.
So you can only guess at my joy when I received my copy of Jennifer Blood and it turned out that its has own identity and has very little in common with Punisher. In fact once I got reading I very quickly forget the comparison and was quickly drawn into the world of Jennifer Blood.
Phew!
So who is this Jennifer Blood? I had visions from the cover art and previews that I'd seen of a Mr & Mrs Smith, only Mrs Smith was the one with the uber cool double-life that her husband and kids were in the dark about; some kind of super cool CIA agent or hit woman maybe? Well, kind of.
Jennifer Blood follows the life of an everyday suburban wife and her loving husband, two young children, car problems, housework and the million and one other things you would expect from the normal everyday life of a housewife in the 'burbs'. However, things take a turn for the darker for Jennifer when night time comes as she takes on the persona of the aforementioned, Jennifer Blood – black leather clad, gun slinging, martial-arts swinging vigilante, who is so cool that she even wears sunglasses at night!
Issue #1 is a clever mix of both aspects of Jennifer's life, the suburban wife and the vigilante, telling a neatly flowing story that is not only pretty much self-contained to this issue, yet also sets up the ongoing threads for a larger story arc and leaving plenty of mystery about what the hell is going on to keep you engaged and wanting more.
The story itself is told from a first person view through the eyes of Jennifer via her diary, called a 'War Journal' (did someone say Punisher?!): a pink and fuzzy diary that would not look out of place in a teenage girls top draw along with her socks.
As the story progresses you soon realise that you are getting a 'day in the life' of Jennifer Blood with this issue. What better way to introduce a new character and their world than to spend a whole day with them? We join Jennifer and her family in the morning, then follow her throughout her day from getting the car fixed, to cleaning the house, cooking the tea, helping the kids with the homework, putting them and the husband to bed (I liked this bit, I did wonder how she managed to sneak out unnoticed at night – well here is how you do it), getting tooled-up in her 'Batcave', kicking the bad guys butts and hitting the sack at the end of a long day.
It sounds bizarre doesn't it? Family life for the first part of the story, uber cool vigilante at night for the second part: however that is the genius of it. By the time we see Jennifer going on her night time mission, you have already brought in to her 'mum' role, so to see her beating a guy built like a brick outhouse with her bare hands comes as a surprise. Not only that, you start to worry about her! Is she going to make it back okay? What if she gets wounded, how is she going to explain that? What if she does get killed, what will that do to her husband and kids, how will they cope? You also can't help but enjoy the violence when it comes too, despite the nagging worry - it is full-on, tense and doesn't hold back.
There are some nice touches in the story, the comeuppance of the 'hands-on' garage owner who got what he deserved - and I'm sure what hundreds of women have fantasied about doing in a similar situation too. This comic also has quite possibly, after Alias #1, the best sex scene in a comic – EVER! I will leave that little gem for you to discover on your own and let your imagination go bonkers until then.
The comic is 100% worthy of its Mature Readers warning. It is gory, sexy, sweary, violent and very brutal in places too, yet it never feel like it is for the sake of it, more that that is just the way it is. I can't help but get a good 'Dexter' vibe from Jennifer Blood, in that it is a clever split life of opposites, and although you know you shouldn't be rooting for the 'Dark Avenger' personality, you can't help it. The humour throughout is brilliant and perfectly matches whichever of Jennifer's persona's she currently inhabits, light and fun as the wife, dark for the vigilante.
All of the covers sport fantastic and diverse art, Garth Ennis's writing is top notch as always and Adrino Batista and Romulo Fajardo Jr's interior art fits the story brilliantly. This single issue is a shining example of how a first issue should be and I can't help but feeling that Jennifer Blood is going to get amazing as things progress.
I give Jennifer Blood a 5 out of 5, it is simply brilliant and I can't wait for more!
Jennifer Blood #1
Written by Garth Ennis, illustrated by Adriano Batista, coloured by Romulo Fajardo Jr., lettered by Rob Steen, covers by Tim Bradstreet, Jonathan Lau, Ale Garza, Johnny Desjardins
Published by Dynamite Entertainment
My thanks to Simon for another enjoyable review. I haven't read Jennifer Blood but judging by Simon's review I think I ought to be picking it up - time to contact my shop I think and see if they still have this first issue in stock. Check out more fantastic Dynamite titles - including Warlord of Mars and Red Sonja at the Dynamite Entertainment website.
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Warlord of Mars #1 - Guest Review by Simon Breeze
The original warrior of Mars returns from Dynamite!
Warlord of Mars is an enhancement of the Edgar Rice Burroughs story, Princess of Mars! If you thought you knew the story, think again! The series captures the grit and action of the original while expanding on it with new elements. The story is about John Carter, an ex-cavalry officer in the Confederate Army who finds himself mysteriously transported to Mars!
Joining him in his adventures there are Tars Tarkas, his Martian comrade, and Dejah Thoris, a Martin Princess. This series is written by Arvid Nelson and is illustrated by Stephen (Avengers/Invaders) Sadowski and Lui Antonio, and features covers by Alex Ross, J. Scott Campbell, Joe Jusko and Lucio Parrillo!
I'm a huge fan of retro pulp science fiction, especially fantasy science fiction so when I found out that Dynamite were publishing the classic Edgar Rice stories of the War Lord of Mars as comics, I couldn't wait to get my hands on a copy and had it added to my pull list right away.
Then the fear set it! What if they mess it up? It is a classic after all, and there seems to be a strong history of stories like this being re-envisioned and turning into a big pile of Martian goo!
The days passed by, and honestly I would lay in bed at night drifting of to sleep dreaming of Martian Moon Princesses and green alien warriors wondering 'Have I made a mistake? Maybe I should cancel the subscription now while I have the chance?' To drift off in to the strange realms of my weird dreams with the final thought being 'It is only costing you a dollar, take a gamble!' Floating into faded thoughts.
Then the day came that settled my nerves and changed my worry to excitement and wishing the days away until my copy arrived. Dynamite posted the cover art on their website, and oh-boy what a treat! A five cover variant, each cover created by the artist in a classic fantasy science fiction style, the likes I haven't seen since I last looked at work by Frank Frazetta or Boris Vallejo - two of my biggest inspirations no less. Not only did they post the covers, but sample pages too! And how amazing did they look!
A week or so later my fevered and impatient wait was over - my comic subscription had arrived!
I took a gamble with the cover, I love them all, however I decided not to specify and let the fates decide. I pealed the packing back, and there it was, the cover I was dreaming of, one of my comic art heroes: J. Scott Campbell! I let out a triumphant whoop! My girlfriend rolled her eyes with an expression on her face of 'nerd' - eleven years of putting up with me you'd think she'd be getting use to it by now. I madly flicked through the pages, trying to take in as much as I could without blowing the story, we've all done that at one time or another, haven't we?
This looked good!
Then I sat down and read it. I couldn't believe it. So I had to read it again, what we're they playing at? I closed the cover, shock on my face. The crazy, crazy fools! They had pulled it off ... in spades!
This comic has checked all of my nerdy fantasy science fiction and comic boxes with a giant fat red marker pen. This has to be one of my favorite first issues for a while now. Arvid Nelson writing is bang on, the way he slips the story telling between Mars and Earth in 1866 is seamless, you never find yourself questioning any of it, no matter how 'fantasy' it gets. Stephen Sadowski art fits the story perfectly, again, right at home drawing cowboys and the wild-west as he is drawing the savage plains of Mars and alien creatures. The combination of the entire creative team behind this comic have click brilliantly to put together a wonderful story and reading experience.
The warlord of Mars is now a permanent item on my comic pull list, not only that I'll be getting the trade for sure. I can even see myself hunting down those variant covers as well.
A solid, ray-gun totting, scantly clad moon-princess rescuing 5 out of 5.
Warlord of Mars #1
Written by Arvid Nelson, pencilled/inked by Stephen Sadowski, coloured by Adriano Lucas, lettered by Troy Peteri
Cover Variants by Alex Ross (30%), Joe Jusko (30%), J. Scott Campbell (30%), Lucio Parrillo (10%)
Published by Dynamite Entertainment
Thanks to Simon for another enjoyable review - you can check out Simon's blog to see more of his work including a couple of features on the recent Bristol-CON10 event.
