Healed #2

Weekend of bonus reviews continues. I got this one at New York Comic Con.

Title: Healed
Issue: #2
Date: 2010
Publisher: Homeless Comics
Writer: George O'Connor
Artist: S. Griffin
Editor: Tracy O'Connor

Second issue of this story of the world suddenly cured of all diseases.

The opening segment is a stand-alone story about an alcoholic who was dying of liver disease before the Healing, and how he squanders his second chance at life.

From there, the book turns to some of its ongoing plotlines as pharmaceutical executive Donna Gibbs begins her investigation into the Healing... and how to undo it. Meanwhile, the government is considering a pretty extreme response to what has happened.

I would have liked to see this develop a bit more before the mass-murdering government conspiracy gets started, just because it seemed like it was a bit rushed. The series is doing a nice job of showing how the event affects individuals. It needs more time to show how the Healing has affected society as a whole in order for the reader to see what has some leaders so panicked.

Still, this story continues to do a good job of finding new angles to approach the initial scenario.

Rating: 6/10

Yen Press 2011 Manga Sampler

Manga freebie featuring the writing of mega-bestselling prose author James Patterson. I picked this one up at the New York Comic Con.

Title: Yen Press 2011 Manga Sampler
Date: 2011
Publisher: Yen Press
Writer: James Patterson, Gabrielle Charbonnet, Michael Ledwidge
Artist: NaRae Lee, Svetlana Chmakova, SeungHui Kye

This digest-sized book features three previews, all authored or co-authored by mega-bestselling author James Patterson, one of the few really successful writers who seems to work comfortably in a wide variety of genres.

First up is Maximum Ride, which proved to be my favorite of the three. The story features a family of teenaged winged people who are living in an isolated house away from the forces of civilization who would imprison them or worse for their differences. Nice job of introducing the cast up front, followed by an attack by (mutated, apparently) agents of the government, who lay a pretty brutal beatdown on the heroes. NaRae Lee's artwork is gorgeous, especially once the wings are in play, and the fight scene is well handled. I felt like I came to care about this group of characters very quickly and the cliffhanger ending left me eager to find out what happens next.

The second story was Witch & Wizard, and featured the (awesome) artwork of Svetlana Chmakova, who wrote and drew one of my all-time favorite manga titles, Dramacon. Unfortunately, I was not as impressed with the story here. A brother and sister living in a pretty generic near-future dystopian dictatorship are imprisoned for the crime of witchcraft. They have no idea why they are being accused of such a thing, until their (generic) magical powers manifest right on schedule. This is a very black-and-white world. The dictator is almost a parody of evil dictators, and the political statement about how the rights of the people were basically stripped away because no one was really paying attention is heavyhanded and not terribly interesting. Chmakova does a nice job on the artwork, especially with the villains, but there just isn't enough of a hook in the preview story to make it interesting.

The third story has more of a shonen flavor than the first two. It's Daniel X, the story of a young hunter charged with killing dangerous extraterrestrials who have taken up residence on Earth. Daniel has the power to conjure up objects from subatomic particles. Daniel creates constructs to replace his dead parents while he spends his time hunting down the fugitive aliens. Daniel is an interesting character who shows a good amount of complexity even in this short preview. The quest to defeat the list of aliens is a bit of a video game style plot, but it accomplishes the objective of keeping the plot moving.

This was free, and I would say it was definitely worth taking the time to read. Patterson has done his homework. The pacing and timing of the stories matches that of Japanese manga, and I was interested enough to want to follow two out of the three books.

Rating: 6.5/10

Meridian City: Preview Edition

I picked this one up at New York Comic Con after meeting writer Georgia Lee. Glad I did.

Title: Meridian City: Preview Edition
Date: October 2011
Publisher: Alpha Girl Comics
Writer: Georgia Lee
Penciler: Silvio DB
Inker: Silvio DB
Colorist: Cabbral
Letterer: Amy Chu
Editor: Amy Chu

Clever SF setting for this crime story. The planet Glisa is tidally locked, meaning that one side of the planet always faces its sun and the other side always faces away. The result is a world that is half-burning and half-frozen, with a narrow overpopulated urbanized zone encircling the planet's prime meridian. With the habitable zone shrinking, Glisa is a harsh and crowded landscape. It's a difficult place to be a cop, especially if you volunteer for duty on the outer edge where heatstroke will kill you as quickly as the criminals will.

Detective Cannon Hunter (okay, admittedly the name is a bit hokey, but I'm willing to go with it) is tracking down a serial killer who makes his victims look like heatstroke deaths. But when she encounters a group of heat-tolerant people known as Firewalkers, she finds a link to the mysteries of her own past.

The setting is not the only good thing here. Cannon Hunter and her partner Dax have a tough noir-style partnership, but there is a good amount of depth in the characters and their interactions are fun. The action is realistic and the artwork looks great.

I've seen plenty of SF detective stories, but it was nice to see one that really evoked some thoughtful science fiction while still functioning as a hard-boiled cop story. Cannon Hunter is the kind of tough-while-realistic female character that is sadly too rare in comics and I look forward to reading more of her adventures.

Rating: 8.5/10

Hellvis Teaser Issue

This is a freebie I picked up at the New York Comic Con.

Title: Hellvis Teaser Issue
Date: 2011
Publisher: Hellvis
Writer: Patrick Vitagliano, Eric Fontana
Penciler: Craig Marier
Inker: Corey Marier
Colorist: Craig Marier
Cover: Corey Marier

Oversized magazine-format freebie. Full color.

The title character is an undead soldier of the Civil War, condemned to walk the Earth with an insatiable need for human flesh. He's accompanied on his mission of venegeance by two wolves, who are apparently possessed by (female and nekid!) spirits.

In this six page preview, Hellvis is something of a scavenger. He satiates his cravings by feeding on dead bodies, of which there are plenty, as well as finding a creative solution at a field hospital.

The book is gory, and the nudity with the spirits seemed a bit like generic fanservice, but the overall look was great. The narration was a bit heavy on exposition, but that was probably just a function of this being the introductory chapter. Dialogue was on the wordy side too, but again, this should smooth out as more characters are introduced.

It's hard to fully get a sense of a series in six pages, but this certainly shows potential. This preview is also available from the Hellvis website as a free download.

Rating: 6.5/10

The Hall of Insides

My second review from the New York Comic Con.

Title: The Hall of Insides
Date: 2011
Publisher: Sea Lion Books
Writer: Anne Elizabeth
Artist: Siya Oum
Colorist: Mauro Salgado
Letterer: Dave Lanphear

This is a standard-format comic short story set in Anne Elizabeth's Pulse World, and specifically in Vivant, the sentient extradimensional store that caters to the supernatural residents of New York City.

Ginger, Mac, and Noah discover the door to Vivant's insides, and they get treated to a behind-the scene tour. Unfortunately for them, one of the group has already committed a dangerous transgression.

This plays out as part teen drama, part adventure, and a large part cautionary horror tale. The various rooms of the insides are cleverly concieved, and Oum's art captures the wonder of the supernatural emporium nicely. Writer Anne Elizabeth loads Ginger's narration with alliteration, which gives an odd light tone to the story that contrasts with a somewhat grim ending.

Mac is by far the most likable of the characters, which is part of the point as Ginger is in line for some serious comeuppance (possibly more than she actually deserved; I suppose part of the point is to emphasize the danger of the setting, although this is accomplished a bit heavyhandedly).

This is a solid introduction to the setting, especially visually, and it works as a horror story, but aside from Mac, the lack of sympathetic characters makes it difficult to really get engaged with the story.

Rating: 6.5/10

Salt Water Taffy 1: The Legend of Old Salty

Here's my first review from New York Comic Con. This was purchased on a whim and it turned out to be a pretty good choice.

Title: Salt Water Taffy
Issue: Volume 1: The Legend of Old Salty
Date: 2007
Publisher: Oni Press
Writer: Matthew Loux
Artist Matthew Loux
Design: Matthew Loux, Steven Birch
Letterer: Douglas E. Sherwood
Editor: Randal C. Jarrell

First in a series of trade-paperback format graphic novels about the adventures of Jack and Benny Putnam (ages 11 and 8) in the not-quite-normal town of Chowder Bay, Maine.

The opening scene has the kids riding in the back seat of their parents' car en route to a summer vacation on the Maine coast. The inevitable "Are we there yet?" gets thrown in, as the brothers fight in the back seat and older brother Jack prefers to keep focused on his Gameboy rather then the scenery.

But once they arrive in town, a live lobster lurking in the salt-water taffy bin is the first sign that Chowder Bay is not quite a normal town. The adventure that follows involves a monstrous lobster queen, and grizzled old fisherman, and a state inspector who turns out to be, well, something really weird.

This was a good story that mixes quirky fantasy with some very realistic moments of the kids on summer vacation. The scene of them first exploring the summer home and jumping on the beds was just spot-on. The dialogue is amusing throughout, and the setting is loaded with potential for more stories.

This reminded me a lot of early issues of Bone, where the comedic bits existed against a background where an epic story was brewing. I'm looking forward to seeing where this story goes.

Rating: 8/10

New York Comic Con This Weekend!

This weekend is the New York Comic Con, and Dandelion Studios artist Missy Pena (Perils of Picorna) will be on hand at the New York Anime Festival Artists Alley (NOTE: This is separate from the Comic Con Artists Alley; info on the NYAF side of the show can be found here).



Missy will have her full array of prints, button sets, her bunny zipper bags (!), and the first two issues of Perils of Picorna. She'll be there with her Four the Win partner Finni, who has provided this handy map! Look for Finni and you'll find Missy as well!



Dandelion Studios writer/editor Rick Silva isn't set up at the convention, but he will be there on Saturday as an attendee. In addition to Perils of Picorna at Missy's table, you can also catch the debut of the Iconic II anthology at the Comic Book Artists Guild table over on the comics side of the convention.

Rick's story in Iconic II is called "The Mastermind of Paris". It's a Lovecraftian pulp adventure tale set in France in the year 1784, and features the investigative team of Antoine Lavosier, Jean Sylvain Bailly, Benjamin Franklin, and Joseph-Ignace Guillotin as they attempt to unravel the mystery of Anton Mesmer and his seemingly supernatural abilities!