Legion World Forums LEGION COMPANION Dr. Gym'll's Cultural Rarities Random Review Corner

I just put down Image's Drums #3, the penultimate issue of what looks to be an all-too short miniseries based on how much my level of enjoyment demands MUCH MORE!

Drums is basically a crime/horror story in which some FBI agents are called in to investigate an apparent ritualistic mass murder/suicide. In a manner that echoes the X-Files series, our characters learn that there's much more of a supernatural element behind the eerie goings-on.

The setting is Florida in the middle of a full-blown hurricane! These conditions help create a sense of moodiness and isolation that might otherwise have not been capable of being plausibly created in a modern-set tale.

The context for all of this is the mysterious voodoo culture. The exploration and explanation of this culture by writer El Torres, to me, has been the most fascinating thing about the series. In his text pieces at the end of every issue, Torres has a glossary for all the terms used in his stories and explains that he has to simplify and merge aspects of the culture a bit to make them more understandable to the reader. I'd say he does an incredible job with this, and even with all the unfamiliar terms and names and foreign language bits, you don't really need the glossary and backmatter to "get" it all. They enhance the enjoyment, sure, but the script and the art do their jobs very well.

I love the art! Abe Hernando has a style reminiscent in certain ways of Darwyn Cooke and of (Captain America/Gotham Central's) Michael Lark. Hernando also brings home the spooky when he is (frequently) called upon to do so! The colors are subdued, attractive and suited to the darker nature of the story.

Issues 1 and 2 are heavier on the character exploration, the official investigation and the lore of the voodoo culture. ("Voodoo", btw, is rarely used as a term in the book, preferring to use more accurate terminology.) There are plenty of creepy and horrific scenes in those issues, but issue 3 is where all the horror comes out to play and goes BATSHIT CRAZY! This is an action overdrive issue, and, well, it reminds you of what the source of most of the zombie lore actually is! I wouldn't call Drums a "zombie book", but they have a large presence in the story and don't seem to have the traditional zombie weakness amd cliches.

The characters are all really interesting. The two leads are FBI investigators Irons and Poltz. Irons has a mysterious connection to the supernatural goings-on. Poltz is more the comic relief but really shines in issue 3. I like the pair so much, I deeply hope that Torres and Hernando bring us more stories of their adventures (assuming they survive, which is seriously in doubt).

Honestly, if Drums were ongoing, it may very well have been top contender for my best new series in 2011! So far it's THAT good! Hell, if it ends satisfyingly, I might make an exception. If you're in to books with a horror bent that are well-written, well-drawn and have a memorable concept and memorable characters--do yourself a favor and check it out, damnit!

I was hoping you'd review this one Lardy! I totally missed it the first time around and it's been woefully under-ordered by CBS's. I didnt even know what it was about to be honest.

Your high praise is enough to get me to check out the trade when it's released, certainly. Sounds like Image has yet another triumph as they continue to clearly dominate comics as the best publisher in the business these days.

Note to LWers: when Lardy recommends a title like this, you should take note! He's the guy who got LW into Chew, Scalped and bunches of other titles that almost went over-looked!

The Ultimates 01 is a good contrast with Justice league #1.

I'm not in love with it, I picked it up because of the art and the action but, it takes a completely different approach to a first issue.

Everything is up and running, The Ultimates are spread out across the world managing several international incidents.

In the beging some super scientist terrorists hatch some weird big bubble in Germany.

This issue is juggling a lot, and switching back and forth to Nick Fury managing a military incident between Argentina and Uruguay.

(Which is fine in the issue. But in real life, I think it's comical to imagine Uruguay and Argentina going to war. Oh well, The Ultimate Universe is an alternate dimension! )

Tony Stark is doing his usual thing, boozing and ladies.

The EU Captain 'Britains' are sent to tell Thor and the Asgardians to tone it down, which erupts into a free for all.

The fight between the Captain 'Britains' and the Asgardians bring them to the door step of those weird super science terrorists we saw at the beginning .... just as things across the planet in Montevideo heat up.


Overall, there's lots of action, people flying around on almost every spread, and about three plotlines going on simultaneously. Ultimates 01 hits the ground running, and catches us up while it's getting on with the story.

It is towards the opposite extreme of character development, but I will be getting number 2 quite happily.

A few weekends ago, I went to a local comic book convention and had a fantastic time. In addition to looking for some Golden Age World's Finest comics my Dad and I need for our collection, I made sure I checked out the artist's alley section to see some true 'small press' independent creators. These were true struggling artists who were publishing their own comics and trying to make it; as this was a small convention, these guys came out there on their own dime hoping to tech any fan they could. Naturally, I talked to them all, and bought a bunch of their comics. I even promised I'd review them online and spread the word.

Many of these look like they'll be very rough around the edges, however some look quite good. The best looking of the bunch is a comic called Bushidan by a publisher called Interverse Comics in Norwalk, CT. Unlike some others going the superhero route, this group had several high-concept genre titles. This one is about a Japanese samuri in the 12th century who is lost at see in the Pacific Ocean and survives all the way across to Southern California. It really brilliantly combines samuri fiction with naval fiction with pre-white man western fiction. There are even hints to come of the Aztecs or Mayans being a factor. The creators obvious knowledge of history is very impressive.

What was so terrific about this story was the artwork by Rowel Roque, who is penciler and inker. He's obviously the driving force here and already shows some incredible talent. I hope this guy makes it! Great composition, rich backgrounds and strong looking figures--it was a beautiful issue to read, as good as stuff from any major publisher.

The writer / editor is Richard Errington, who I believe is also publisher and the guy running the show. He's doing a good job story wise (and production wise) but his dialogue is a little rough. This is enhanced by the lettering not being as professional I'm used to seeing; obviously when you're small press you make due with what you got.

At the end of the day, I actually enjoyed this quite a bit and glad I bought it (I suspect it may be the best in the bunch). I definitely hope these guys succeed. Their website is www.interversecomics.com.

Warlord of Mars #9 from Dynamite.

The best issue yet of a very solid series. Action, romance, science fiction and a bit of history thrown in. What's not to like? We've been waiting for the big kiss scene and it was beautifully executed.

I don't do variant covers, and my comic book shop always gets plenty of all options. I always pick the one where John shows the most skin. I'm shallow that way. How does everyone else decide?

I like the Joe Juska ones! But I feel you on embracing your shallowness--I usually pick a sexy Dejah Thoris one that isn't *too far* over the line (meaning my wife and mother of my young son wont think it's porn).

So ... I've started on SCALPED based on some recommendations from this board.

FYI: It's a dramatization of modern life on a reservation. There's a lot of crime and a lot of mystery.

moving right along, I'm on issue 18. It's a shame I just got them at a back issue sale and it's really a shame I don't have each and every one because the stories really really add up together.

for example, there's a whole issue on some random kid ... but it turns out he's the crime boss' janitor. it's a subtle connection but turns out be a somewhat regular role and a very poignant role.

This works for me much better reading them all in marathon style as the first few issues took some time to get going. Especially since there are some highlight issues which are totally based on one character and you don't get any of the other overall plot at all, and then that character will disappear for about six issues before they come back into play.

However, when reading them all at once, it's awesome how intricate and 'full' the plots and story lines are over a range of many issues.

At issue 18 I'm still left with more questions than answers and just starting to have characters I will root for. It's a huge cast, and while characters are developed, it takes some time to get to know them ... especially since there's several mysteries going on.

Why does everyone hate Gina Bad Horse? for one.

Aaron seems fluent with the subject matter and easily portrays the complicated lives of each character without being cheesey. There's a lot of drama in here but the sense is that this is some gritty underworld where everybody's life is so messed up it's believable. Aaron doesn't rely on stunts to push the plot's envelope. It would be easy to be exploitative with this gritty subject matter of a debauched, criminal, and oppressed life on the reservation but ... Aaron dosn't do that.


A few words about the art:
It can be murky and messy at first but ... when reading it last night in bed, I hit issue 18 that had a fill in artist ... and I loyally set it down and went to sleep.

Whereupon, I had violent nightmares.

That's a rich comic.


My dramatic tagline for this series:

It's a Walking Dead for adults.



(I like Walking Dead btw)

You had individual issues, Peebs, but some missing here and there? Is that what you mean? If so, which issues did you have?

One thing to always remember about Scalped is that driving the overall plot forward is secondary to exploring the characters pretty much always. There are storylines that advance things significantly, followed by runs where we justy get to know characters better. Character is what sells me on a given series better than anything, and Scalped is my favorite for that very reason!

"Walking Dead for adults?" If you mean because of its focus on character, I can see that. Otherwise, I'm lost!

I've read 4, 6,7, and 9 - 17 so far and ... I should have like 18 t about 38 with more regularity. So I've got a lot of Scalped to go.

Re: Walking Dead for Adults comment ... I meant that Walking Dead, while the best parts IMO are character driven ... I think relies on stunts, and shocks, and some science fiction tricks to make impacts while ... Scalped is more of an embellished world with rich characters that act and react in 'believable' ways.

.. maybe that is 'its focus on character'.

They're both gory, dark, and going for some sort of realism but I would say that the realism in Walking Dead is 'hyper realism' where as the realism in scalped is 'really messed up people realism.' Not meaning to take anything from the Walking Dead, it's just that it's more of a roller coaster type story. Walking Dead is somehow more instantly gratifying where Scalped builds more on itself over time. IMO.

If that makes sense.

Scalped has very very quickly become one of my favorites too.

Yes, it does. I getcha!

I guess you can say that TWD would also have a wider, more built-in appeal (even before the TV series) with the current zombie craze than something like Scalped that is often slow burn and more heavily nuanced with its seasoned characterizations. Love them both, though. They're my two fave books!


Wow! Glad to hear that!

I think a Scalped TV series (on HBO or something) would potentially be the best EVAR if done right!

I think it would translate verbatim to tv ... but i'd be so afraid they wouldn't do it right i'd prefer they not try.

So before SCALPED ... I was reading POWERS.

POWERS is like Batman the animated series meets Prime Suspect (.. the original gritty british version with Helen Mirren. )

The premise is ridiculous and utterly real at the same time. After a major disaster involving super powers the federal government outlaws the use of super powers. All the heroes retire like good law abiding citizens ... and all the villains .... still break the law and start to run the cities.

Powers follows two main detectives on the super powered crime beat. Neither have super powers, one is a former hero.

Bendis does a great job in the first issues of translating a characters voice to real life, so well I can almost hear their words in my ears.

I've read 1 - 12, 15, 22, 23, 24, 25

I have to say I like the initial story lines better ... the two cops against super villain crime lords, the return of a dead hero mysteriously back to fighting super villains, and the eventual return of this world's justice league. I think this book excels in portraying these characters moving along in this world. In some of the later issues, the focus shifts from cases and stories to explain the world and our characters situation in them ... to being stories about the defined characters. Around, issue 24 it's pretty serialized and more like other comic books where the characters have adventures and things happen to them but there's less of a spotlight on their struggles and motivations ... or maybe just getting to know them and their position in this strange situation.

I think the art is fantastic, it's like Bruce Timm's evil twin drew these pages.

The stories are not light, they are heavy but they are on the short side of heavy. So, each issue can be read pretty quickly but there's some meat there.

despite my criticisms ... POWERS is frickin awesome, and one of the very best comics i'm reading right now.

It's exciting to read and makes me excited about comic books.

I'm also a fan of Powers! I started a LW thread but only Dev and I seemed to be talking about it.

Great, well-written series. It's where Bendis shines the most with his dialogue (and why he gets the rep for writing dialogue well).

Of course I wouldn't want just any ol' hack to adapt it! But if someone cares about the material and is faithful to it, then it could be the best thing ever to grace a TV screen. I'd LOVE to see some known and unknown Native American actors get a chance to shine in such meaty unconventional, meaty and challenging roles!

you guys gotta stop reading and reviewing such good comics ... I can't keep up!

(I'll have to save Morning Glories and Chew for the trades and a rainy day or lonely train/plane ride. )

Actually, there's a lot of great stuff out there now!!!! ...... I never would've just tried them on my own.

I'm working on Unwritten ...

"Thank" us by convincing us to spend OUR hard-earneds on stuff we'd otherwise overlook!

As I continue to wade thru my backlog of August books, I present a few mini-reviews of some of that months DC books. Here, instead of their own threads, in an effort to keep the DCnU flow goin' without pesky flashbacks....

Jonah Hex #70:

The story title "Weird western" is apt here as Jonah heals from an injury and imagines his death in a few similar-but-different scenarios. Lotta symbolic stuff happens, that's mostly over my head, especially with the girl claiming he's her father. Beautiful Ryan Sook/Mick Gray art in the "dream" portion. The guy Diego Olmos who closes the book with the "real" portion also looks great under some Palmiotti inks.

The end really seems a way to literally close the book here prior to GrayPal moving on with Jonah to the DCnU. Several memorable characters from the run pop up and have some nice moments with Jonah.

A pretty good issue. But not up there among the best one's I've read from this run.


Adventure Comics # 529:

I think Levitz closes off the Legion Academy arc off in good fashion here, giving the students a chance to save the day against Cosmic King. The Borges/Alquiza art is attractive. Though it felt almost obligatory of Levitz to kill off one of the students, I have to admit that the scene comes off pretty nice.

It'll be nice to see several of the characters graduate to this weeks new LSH #1, but I wish they included Gravity Kid and Jed Rikane among them. I like that Paul officially "outs" them here, but it seems wasted when the characters are being taken off the board.


Batman: Gates of Gotham #4:

This is a good, overlooked miniseries from my current favorite writer Scott Snyder and co-writer Kyle Higgins. I love that they are deepening Gotham's history here and tying in the Elliotts (Hush's family) and Cobblepots into it, along with the Waynes. I'm certain that this is a blueprint that Snyder will be building upon as his run resumes in DCnU Batman.

One thing I'm suddenly a bit apprehensive about is that Snyder has written Dick Grayson so well as Batman that having him switch to writing Bruce in the relaunch could suffer in comparison. Snyder sold Dick as Batman as so uniquely Dick (better than Morrison, IMO) that I wonder if he'll write Bruce in as interesting a way. We'll know soon enough.

This is also a tense, exciting thriller that also utilizes Cassandra, Tim and Damien very effectively. It's also a good mystery! Can't wait to read the conclusion soon. Definitely recommended!


Flashpoint #4:

You know what? I enjoyed this penultimate issue of Flashpoint quite a bit! It was packed with character and plot and was serviced very well by Andy Kubert on art. Flashpoint is much-maligned for many reasons, but if you read it by itself (thru 4 issues, at least), it's not a bad story. These things are often hurt by the greed of the publishers blowing it up into a mega-event. Few books can live up to that kind of hype. But if you take it as what it really is--a nice Flash-centric alternate reality yarn--then it's not bad at all.

Unfortunately, it's blown up to be not only a mega-event, but the conclusion of an era of the DC Universe. I've little doubt that the conclusion will disappoint in that respect. But issue four was an exciting, full read that was also, dare I say it, fun! Loved for example, the twist on the Captain Marvel concept that got a chunk of the spotlight, this go-round.

Yeah, there was a bit of carnage thrown in, but it's all in good fun with a reality reset/reboot around the corner.

Punisher Max #16 concluded the third arc "Frank" that gets us a rare look into the past of Frank Castle before he donned the skull of the Punisher. We see flashbacks of Frank returning home from Vietnam and having difficulty reconnectiong with his family and settling down into a normal job. Vietnam has changed him completely.

Frank is reflecting on this as he's recuperating in solitary confinement in prison. The last arc "Bullseye" left him badly injured and incarcerated. You can imagine what this stirs up among his fellow prisoners, many of whom have friends and family executed by the vigilante.

So in this issue both past and present storylines conclude. We see again what happened to Castle's family, what his last conversation with his wife was and how that having been the way he left off with her haunts him. In the present we see Castle get out of his situation and where he will go from there.

Really, this continues to be an excellent series that never disappoints. Aaron's scripts are very interesting and full of character and action. And it's a sheer pleasure to see Steve Dillon again on a monthly basis. He's a natural for a Punisher book. Together, they bring more depth to Frank in this particular arc than he's rarely had over his existence. Here, we learn that he's punishing himself in his mission in his own way as much as he's punishing the scum he encounters.

It's a dark, gritty, violent book, but not one with out an element of dark humor. Not for everybody, but still very solid.

I read The Red Wing #2 today. Red Wing is an Image Comics mini written by FF's Jonathan Hickman. This is a book about war being waged thru time travel, via rocket planes (the titlular Red Wing) that fly cross space and time.

The art is by Nick Pitarra, whose style reminds me a bit of Geoff Darrow's style. It's very detailed but rough at the same time.

This issue deals with 2 storylines as we follow a pilot who crash landed in, I believe, pre-conquest Incan South America, while in the "present" we follow his son who is attempting to follow in his dad's path as a pilot/time-traveller. It ends with a bit of a shocker that links the two in a way while revealing more about the Red Wing's mysterious enemy.

It's a pretty strong effort so far that I feel dwarfs Hickman's work at Marvel to this point. This one is not open-ended and drawn out like everything he does there. No, I wouldn't be surprised if Red Wing continues in future volumes, but knowing that this one will end after 4 issues, makes me feel like there will be some sense of closure at least. I suspect, also, that most creators put their all into concepts that they actually own than the work-for-hire stuff, anyway.

Good first two issues--hoping for a strong concluding two!

Red Wing! Waiting for the TPB, but I'm glad to hear you enjoy it so far.

I'm also loving it. Utterly fantastic so far!

(I should note I also enjoy Hickman's FF and SHIELD much more than Lardy. I consider SHIELD better than 98% of DC and Marvel's comics.)

Mark Millar and Johnny Romita Jr.’s Kick-Ass (vol. 2) continues to be a huge amount of fun whenever an issue comes out. The recent #3 was the perfect balance act between over the top humor with ultra-serious moments that happen like a blitzkrieg, shocking the reader and advancing the plot.

I resisted this comic throughout its first volume and it was only when I got the movie on a plane last year that I got to see just how fun this was. I picked up this second volume and have been enjoying it since.

I happen to like a good amount of what Millar does, especially his creator-owned stuff. I’m also a huge fan of JR Jr. So if you like these creators, you’ll love this—its 100% Millar with 100% Romita Jr. with no restraints. If you dislike even one of them, you’ll probably hate this.

But the bottom line is that this is fun, fun, fun. Despite things like decapitations and crazy violence and sex related stuff, though that kind of enhances the fun too.

War of the Green Lanterns: Aftermath #2: After what I thought was a decent #1, the second issue was a whole lotta "meh". Basically, it was predictable as hell. GLs disagree with Guardians and go after them. Guardians stay aloof and tell the GLs to get the hell back to their sectors. Further instructions on a need-to-know basis. How many times have we seen this exact same plot?!?!

This was most definitely a place-holder/money grab, and I'm sorry I blew $8 of my hard-earneds. Stay away from it unless you've got THAT much moolah to blow. Instead, try out a new Image book, and you'll likely find something a lot more interesting.

Blue Estate #5

I know Cobie's been curious about this one for a while. Blue Estate is kind of a mish-mash of a mob story, celebrity dirty deeds analogs and private eye genres with a little helping of skimpily-clad ladies in tow.

After five issues, I find that there's stuff to like in each issue, but the story tends to be difficult to keep straight in monthly doses. This is even with clever recap pages that begin each issue. Even with those, there are a lot of half-remembered references and forgotten characters popping in and out. They're all connected, but as some characters take an issue off, you forget who they are.

In other words I think Blue Estate will read better in trade form or with a bunch of issues hoarded and read together. Actually, maybe I'd recommend the latter because I don't see the trade collecting 1-4 as being all that satisfying of a read as it is.

The art for this issue lists 5 names as the book's artists with the lead artist also being the principle storyteller Viktor Kalvachev. The art looks about as inconsistent as the number of artists would imply. They mesh together fairly well, but the book could benefit from a single penciller, etc.

I guess this review trends toward the negative, but it's not really bad at all. Maybe most people could keep track better than I am? If you'd like to read a serialized monthly drama with some action, a web of intrigue and a dose of humor, then you could do a lot worse.

I'm on the fence as to whether I get issue 6.