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negative x posted:I hope this isn't gauche, but I just worked on a project that I'm really excited about and I was hoping I could share it here: Hey, this is really cool.
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Oct 23, 2014 12:41
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Lazarus chat: It was really interesting to see that, despite the alliances of the various families, their Lazaruses (Lazari?) were pretty much their own little club with their own rules and seemed to get along.
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Oct 23, 2014 15:30
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pugnax posted:Just read the first trade of East of West. I liked it, but it feels to ~big~ to me, like the concepts are just too much. The world is really neat though, it just seems like the supporting cast is more interesting than the main characters. I felt the same way; there is just way too much going on initially to drop readers in media res. However, it does slowly begin to pull everything together and I've grown to both get my head around and really enjoy it.
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Oct 23, 2014 16:30
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I reread it every time a new trade comes out and I like it more every time.
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Oct 23, 2014 16:50
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Soonmot posted:Lazarus chat: It was really interesting to see that, despite the alliances of the various families, their Lazaruses (Lazari?) were pretty much their own little club with their own rules and seemed to get along. Speaking of Lazarus, I feel like I need a chart or something for all the families because I honestly keep getting lost a lot. It probably doesn't help that Rucka keeps tossing in new names and factions without properly introducing the characters that belong to them. I think he mentioned he'd include something like a timeline in a hardcover release of volume 1, whenever that comes out. In other Image chat: did anyone read Wicked + Divine #5? I have no idea if they're trying to imply Lucifer passed on her powers or if she's not really dead but my mouth dropped at the explosion page. Gillen is really going all out with this. lotus circle fucked around with this message at 17:50 on Oct 23, 2014 |
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Oct 23, 2014 17:47
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lotus circle posted:I got this feeling since early on with Forever and Joacquim. Even with tense relationships they still got along well - they seem to understand they're all in the same boat and try not to let politics get in the way of being friendly. I'm glad to see it confirmed with the other Lazari, even it's obvious they'll all be forced to fight inevitably. I really liked the reveal of Sonja Bittner as being actually timid and shy when she's not working. Also is this the first we've heard of Abigail Carlyle and her health problems? And what are the odds of Forever and Joacquim being forced to try and kill each other in the coming issues? Or was Joacquim asking for a dance a tacit display of Morray's support of Carlyle? There definitely needs to be a wiki or something. There's a world map that was released as a wallpaper with all the Families, plus the back matter material that needs to be put in one place. Going off of this months back matter, I wonder what happened to the families of the Carlyle soldiers Eve and Joacquim killed back in issue 4. We're they executed? Imprisoned? Cast down to Waste status? Or were they spared? Mars4523 fucked around with this message at 18:21 on Oct 23, 2014 |
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Oct 23, 2014 18:16
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gently caress! Stray Bullets: Killers #8 was so brutal. Made even worse by the fact that the next arc seems to take place in the past. What the hell is Ginny going to do from here?
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Oct 24, 2014 19:20
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Every year it's like Virginia gets exposed to more and more twisted poo poo, at this rate she'll be in a psych ward by the time she's 25. Orson is one of my favorite characters so I'm excited for the next arc. The idea of a nebbish dude getting manipulated into taking on the most dangerous guy in the series sounds really fun even though we already know how it'll go down in the end.
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Oct 25, 2014 06:46
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Michel Fiffe just announced Copra Round Two. While Copra Round One was this wonderfully driven and frenetic revenge story focused mostly on Benny, the issues collected in Round Two really opens up the scope and scale of the world and its characters. I was already sold on Copra within the first arc but every subsequent issue has reaffirmed my love for it. Expected release for Round Two is January 15 and it looks like the trades will catch up to the current issues in no time at this rate.
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Nov 3, 2014 21:54
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Did anyone else pick up Tooth and Claw? For 2.99 and 44 pages I don't know how anyone could pass it up when the art was so good. I really enjoyed it as a world building story but I guess we'll have to wait and see what the actual story's plot/tone will be. Also calling it now champion is a human.
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Nov 6, 2014 22:20
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I enjoyed Tooth and Claw a great deal. It reminded me of reading my grandfather's hardbound editions of the old Prince Valiant and Flash Gordon weeklies, although it's nothing like those and yet very similar simultaneously. I felt your spoiler was pretty clearly telegraphed? The big mystery for me was why they have government departments with the exact same names as those in the US.
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Nov 7, 2014 01:25
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Thoughts on stuff I read this week: Tooth and Claw was solid but not amazing for me. I found myself wondering why they just let the crazy rogue wizard do a dangerous ritual in the middle of the city. Nailbiter is--I guess--jumping the shark, or at least getting way too tongue-in-cheek for my taste. The Spread might be retreaded territory but I love the art and the minimal storytelling style
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Nov 7, 2014 04:52
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Letting rogue wizards do crazy experiments that will make you famous by association is fantasy downfall path number 2.
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Nov 7, 2014 17:24
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I picked up an anthology from Maple Key Comics recently, and it was good enough that I grabbed the next two as well. Black and white indie comics, all sorts of genres. Apparently some stories are spread over 3 issues, but none of them felt incomplete. Folks who like anthologies should check them out!
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Nov 8, 2014 00:11
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AmericanBarbarian posted:Has anyone else read the Wrenchies yet? It is super high quality, Farel Dalrymple blew me away. Most likely you'd be familiar with his work on Prophet, but Wrenchies is a much more mature solo effort. He also posts his project "It will all hurt" on Study Group comics website, so if you're interested go read it here http://studygroupcomics.com/main/category/title/it-will-all-hurt/ I finished this today. I think the one downside for me was how its metatextual elements became a bit strained and frayed near the end. The narrative muddiness sort of reflects the overall thematic murkiness of growing up in a hellbent, decaying world but then I feel that the metafictional trappings doesn't entirely serve those aims. There is a moment of hypostasis that sort of transforms the story for the worse, in my opinion, where the characters I was mainly invested in took a backseat to this one character who is pivotal to the plot. Hinging everything on this figure puts a damper on the rest of this cast, who are so vibrant and interesting in their own right, and who perhaps convey the coming of age struggles of the book more articulately in their own particular stories. It's a real shame that Chapter Six almost feels like a bad trade off because it is perhaps the most personal and autobiographical part of The Wrenchies yet doesn't really hold a candle to the earlier parts of the story for me. Despite this flaw, I still enjoyed The Wrenchies immensely. It apparently took five years to create and the artwork within its ~300 pages shows this effort. In the same way that I feel about Paul Pope's Battling Boy, I wish First Second would publish a super large version just to showcase the gorgeous art. There's a lot of fun cutaways of sprawling hamster cage-like underground bases that are filled with intricate details. Dalrymple also has this wonderful ability to paint and draw these evocative establishing shots that convey sheer desolation. There's this one particularly captivating scene where the group stumbles across a skeletal corpse watching the last scene of The Little Princess on a rundown television set in the middle of a crossroads, and something about this image just fills me with profound melancholy, especially in context with everything else that is happening in the story.
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Nov 9, 2014 22:50
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The Wrenchies is probably the best comic I've read this year but the fat kid in a superhero costume segment is awful. It is such an overplayed image and that metatextual theme stinks of the worst insecurities of 90s altcomix authors. It does not feel autobiographical (and same could be said for the other real world character), it feels as a fake, "woe is me" overdramatic bullshit, bordering on a biting parody. Thankfully, Dalrymple seems sorta aware of it and for the most part the metaphors are handwaved aside to make space for imaginative and surreal visuals. He did Omega the Unknown (hella great, hella underrated comic) with Jonathan Lethem and it is sad to see such a great artist awkwardly imitating a writer who is way better at mining and transforming nostalgia. fatherboxx fucked around with this message at 10:30 on Nov 18, 2014 |
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Nov 18, 2014 10:22
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fatherboxx posted:The Wrenchies is probably the best comic I've read this year but the fat kid in a superhero costume segment is awful. It is such an overplayed image and that metatextual theme stinks of the worst insecurities of 90s altcomix authors. It does not feel autobiographical (and same could be said for the other real world character), it feels as a fake, "woe is me" overdramatic bullshit, bordering on a biting parody. Thankfully, Dalrymple seems sorta aware of it and for the most part the metaphors are handwaved aside to make space for imaginative and surreal visuals. What's the premise of The Wrenchies? Some sort of superhero Goonies thing?
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Nov 19, 2014 02:50
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You know, looking back on what I wrote and having had time for the work to sink in, I want to take back my earlier criticism. Going "Oh, the metafictional parts didn't work" was uncritical and just lazy of me, especially since those elements are huge chunks of the story that underpin practically everything. I also probably shouldn't have assumed something is autobiographical or judged whether it was successful under those merits because I don't know what's in the heart of the author to dismiss a big portion of his work like that. I actually felt the opposite of you concerning Hollis, fatherboxx. He was the standout character of The Wrenchies for me because he fulfills so many important roles in it. His chapter is this nice bildungsroman in brief that illustratively lays out the thesis of the story. When he's brought into the world of The Wrenchies, he acts as an everyman narrator that identifies the emotional resonance of events when the rest of the cast is too accustomed or jaded by their world to acknowledge the impact of its many horrors. And most importantly, he serves as a direct foil for Sherwood. I think I was so down on Sherwood's chapter because he's meant to be a darkened reflection of Hollis; Dalrymple deliberately sets him up as a fallen character in his chapter so it is hard to find him likable with that onus hanging over him. If you look at both of their backgrounds, these two character are coming from the same place: youths who are want to grow up and do great but who are at the same time consumed and held back by their religious worries, self-doubt, and the weight of the outside world. The only difference is that we get to see Sherwood grow up and fall short of the promise of his younger years. His worse sin is growing older, letting time pass him by and forgetting his gifts and talents until they are used against him to corrupt the world. On the other hand, I felt that Hollis's story was actually earnest and sweet, not the parody that you felt it to be, and the book actually celebrates him sincerely. It's ironic that while Sherwood spends all his time creating the Wrenchies to ensure his later redemption, it is Hollis, the overlooked boy next door in the neighborhood, who serves as the catalyst for everything, which sort of highlights his actual status in the story. The Wrenchies are interesting in their own right but I think the true heart and dimension of the story is actually being told through Hollis and Sherwood, which makes it a more substantive tale than just some punks living in an apocalyptic world.
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Nov 19, 2014 04:45
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dik-dik posted:What's the premise of The Wrenchies? Some sort of superhero Goonies thing? You could think of it like that but it's kinda hard to describe because of the ways the comic naturally changes as it goes along, though one obvious (and possibly lazy) comparison would be Flex Mentallo if you're familiar with that. It ends up pretty neat and I'd recommend giving it a shot even if you end up hating it.
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Nov 19, 2014 09:26
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I just finished binge-reading Locke and Key over the last few weeks, thanks to the public library having all six volumes. I read through the first three pages of the Horror Comics thread, where nobody mentioned it, so it's quite possible I missed or just skipped over any discussion in this thread. What did people think of it, generally? It had such a "YA lit" feel to it, but every so often, it would go for some real shock value, almost like Stephen King trying to come up with his own YA franchise (and yes, I'm aware that Joe Hill is King's son). Hill went for some pretty familiar King plot elements (flashbacks to a diverse group of teenage friends, kid with a mental disability who has magical powers), but I was most surprised by a lot of the unseemly sexual violence toward the mother and some of the other female characters. I know it was marketed as a horror book, but so much of it also felt like teen-friendly YA fantasy / wish-fulfillment at the same time, so it didn't all seem to gel. Also, what happened with the pilot that wasn't picked up? Was anyone ever able to see it, and was it any good? And did the Calvin and Hobbes homage issue win any awards? That one had some pretty clever storytelling, thanks in large part to the artist.
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Nov 22, 2014 18:41
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Love love love Locke & Key. The Locke family is the most emotionally honest set of characters I can remember reading in comics, so I connected with them in a way like no other. You might be right about Hill borrowing some tropes from his father, but I haven't read King in over 25 years so that didn't bother me. While those threads didn't seem wholly original, they didn't seem contrived either.
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Nov 23, 2014 01:26
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Completely agree with forum poster Shitshow. I definitely see your point on the sexual violence, but while a lot of what the villain did was probably unnecessary i thought the mother was handled well.The rape was underpaid at first, but it showed her trying, and sometimes failing, to deal with it. My wife really liked the series, too, maybe more than I did.
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Nov 23, 2014 05:06
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Please don't get me wrong. I enjoyed it, but I can't say I LOVED it, and reading it so long after all the no-doubt interesting discussion, I was just wondering what other people thought. One thing that tore me up was when Dodge's shadow demons forced all that wine down the mother's throat, after she had been successfully sober for as long as she had been. Sobriety and recovery are very close to my heart due to loved ones' struggles, and it always hits me hard in any fiction when a character relapses after doing a good job staying stay clean and sober. That incident felt almost like another rape, since it was literally forced upon her against her will. One thing I liked was the diversity of the keys themselves, and their striking designs. It astounds me that some company hasn't made their own high-end collectible Locke and Key keys... or have they?
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Nov 23, 2014 05:12
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Big Bad Voodoo Lou posted:It astounds me that some company hasn't made their own high-end collectible Locke and Key keys... or have they?
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Nov 23, 2014 05:24
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Auralsaurus Flex posted:Something like these? They've got a bunch of stuff in their shop. Ah, of course they do. Thank you very much!
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Nov 23, 2014 05:26
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I totally forgot about Locke and Key! I think I started reading them about Christmastime last year, and stopped around volume 3, and now I might ask for the set for Christmas.
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Nov 24, 2014 03:01
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So I've been finally getting around to reading a lot of Mike Mignola's stuff, since I got everything in front of it on my reading list squared away, and I have a question: Does the Baltimore stuff exist in the same canon as the BPRD/Hellboy/Lobster stuff? There's some crossover elements mentioned, and occasionally the characters make reference to stuff that happened in the past that could be a reference to Baltimore events, but there's no concrete details that I've seen. Wikipedia lists it as a separate canon - and the vampires seem to be operating REALLY openly, considering that they're supposed to have agreed to go into hiding. Not that I'm going to stop reading Baltimore at this point - it's good enough that even if it isn't technically part of the BPRD universe, it's still worth buying and reading - but I was wondering about that.
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Nov 25, 2014 22:54
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I can't imagine how Baltimore would exist in the same canon, since the premise seems to be that World War I stopped due to literally everyone in Europe dying from plague and/or vampires. I've only read the first couple Baltimores though, so not sure if this gets expounded on any further in the series. And I'll also say, I think I actually liked what I've read of Baltimore more than (again, the admittedly little) I've read of Hellboy.
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Nov 25, 2014 23:36
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Chairman Capone posted:I can't imagine how Baltimore would exist in the same canon, since the premise seems to be that World War I stopped due to literally everyone in Europe dying from plague and/or vampires. I've only read the first couple Baltimores though, so not sure if this gets expounded on any further in the series. I enjoy Hellboy, though the later stuff is a LOT better than the early stuff. But the real good stuff comes in the BPRD books after Hellboy leaves. Fake Edit: No, I'm not sure the spoiler was necessary, but better safe than sorry. Real Edit: So I just worked my way up to The Garden, one of the Abe Sapien books, and in the letter column in the comic book it's confirmed that the Baltimore and BPRD books take place in different settings. Ah, well, they're still fantastic, both of them. FrozenGoldfishGod fucked around with this message at 01:57 on Nov 26, 2014 |
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Nov 25, 2014 23:53
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If and when you get to Hellboy in Hell volume 1, please post about it in here because I'm interested to see what other people think of it. A decent handful of internet critics didn't like it because some dumb reasons but I think it rules.
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Nov 26, 2014 14:13
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Is Jeff Parker's Flash Gordon over already? I'm way behind, but the two issues I read were great. http://www.bleedingcool.com/2014/11/27/exclusive-first-look-inside-new-flash-gordon-series-from-dynamite/ Teenage Fansub fucked around with this message at 23:37 on Nov 27, 2014 |
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Nov 27, 2014 23:35
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Why does Rat Queens release so slowly  Also, have they figured out who the new artist is going to be?
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Nov 28, 2014 18:06
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FrozenGoldfishGod posted:I enjoy Hellboy, though the later stuff is a LOT better than the early stuff. But the real good stuff comes in the BPRD books after Hellboy leaves. Oh man you're only up to Garden of Souls? You have some really, really good stuff to come from BPRD. Basically it's all uphill from here. Martello, I really enjoyed Hellboy in Hell. It took me an issue to get used to the much slower pacing, but it's great to see Mignola just do his thing and draw whatever it is he wants to draw. The Three Golden Whips was probably one of my favorite one-off issues of last year.
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Nov 28, 2014 19:02
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I haven't really read any of the Mignola stuff. I grabbed one of the Baltimore issues, but felt like I jumped in the middle of something and didn't understand the world or story context, and just sort of gave up. Maybe I should just try and start with Hellboy.
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Nov 28, 2014 19:47
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Apparently a lot of Baltimore's side matter stuff was introduced in Christopher Golden's novel. The comic gives a briefing on characters like Thomas, the doctor, and Demetrius, but I still had the feeling I was missing out on something essential by not reading the book.
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Nov 29, 2014 01:36
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I've really liked Lazarus and I know it's petty but I really thought this series was beyond stereotypical over-sexualized covers. #13 (and upcoming 14) just makes me tired since it was a book that kind of prided itself initially on having a strong/badass heroine that wasn't a sex object.
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Nov 29, 2014 01:44
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Campbell posted:I've really liked Lazarus and I know it's petty but I really thought this series was beyond stereotypical over-sexualized covers. #13 (and upcoming 14) just makes me tired since it was a book that kind of prided itself initially on having a strong/badass heroine that wasn't a sex object. An over-sexualized cover, in my opinion, makes the subject not a person with agency but something to oogle. Forever has agency in both covers.
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Nov 29, 2014 02:03
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Eh maybe you're right. Boobs and butt covers kind of annoy me at first glance nowadays. Especially considering past covers usually had some interesting take on the characters or universe aside from having boobs and/or butts. Just seems like a change in direction lately. Also regarding 14, pretty sure people don't bend that way Campbell fucked around with this message at 02:22 on Nov 29, 2014 |
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Nov 29, 2014 02:13
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FYI in case you were planning to get a giant omnibus or something off Amazon, there's a 30% off coupon for any one book (up to $10 savings): HOLIDAY30
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Nov 29, 2014 02:47
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Does anyone have any opinions on The Red Star? I noticed that it was recently reprinted in HC, so I was wondering if it was worth picking up. I've heard good things about it, but that is the extent of my knowledge.
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Nov 29, 2014 19:41
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