A relatively small shipping week leads to a small
Done-In-One review column – but here’s your chance to take a look at some books you may otherwise never have heard of! Let’s look at what our reviewers dug up for you this week…
Caliber #3 (Radical Publishing)
by Sam Sarkar, Garrie Gastonny, & Imaginary Friends Studio
Arthur tries to figure out what the gun means and why it’s chosen him, but it’s a bit hard to work it all out, especially since he and Whitefeather are on the run. Things look bad, especially when Lance Lake the gunslinger joins the hunt for them. But if you know the Arthurian legend, then you know Lance Lake is Lancelot, so he can’t be all bad … or at least not yet. Other enemies start to gather, and the group had no choice but to return to where they came from, and unite with another person in the legend. This issue has a feel of minor filler at times, but it still moves well, and I must admit that the art has sharpened up this time out. At times the figures are so lush they could be traced photographs - I’m not saying they are, I’m saying they could be. Lance, in at least one panel, has a young, clean shaven Colin Farrell look about him. But it looks gorgeous, and the story is still moving along nicely. But considering this is a limited series (to my knowledge), I wonder how quickly this is going to wrap up.
Rating: 4/5 --Andrea Speed
The Clockwork Girl #4 (Arcana Studios/Arcana Kids)
By Kevin Hanna, Sean O'Reilly & Grant Bond
One of the truly great young readers' miniseries in recent years comes to its conclusion here. The Machine Man, creation of Tesla's father, has come to seek out Huxley, uncaring of the friendship that Tesla and Huxley have forged. When someone else takes the brunt of the Machine Man's attack, though, Huxley's rage may spell the end of everything. From the beginning I've been comparing this story to Romeo and Juliet, but it's never been more pronounced than it is in this issue. Until now, the comparison was just thematic, but now the writers seem to use the climactic sequences of that play as a plot blueprint (although the story of Tesla and Huxley has a very different ending). It's a powerful story in any medium or genre, and it works as well here as it ever did. Bond and Hanna's artwork is really wonderful here as well -- inventive, magical characters, beautiful colors, and rich backgrounds and worlds. And you know what else? Arcana did the whole thing for less than two bucks and issue. All the bigger publishers trying to put out comics for kids could learn a lesson here. As for the readers -- if you haven't read this magnificent series, the graphic novel is coming out soon.
Rating: 4.5/5 --Blake M. Petit
Contract #0 (First Salvo Productions)
By Garan Madeiros, Franchesco!, Ariel Padilla, Dave Ross, Yvel Guichet, Joe Rubinstein, Kevin Sharpe, Mark McKenna & Anthony Cannonier
One of the smartest things comic publishers have started doing in recent years is make cheap comics to preview or launch a title. I'll try almost anything for 25 cents. (Heck, anything up to 99 cents is almost a guaranteed sale for me.) Contract, the premiere offering from First Salvo Productions, seems to be the story of a sort of sci-fi cowgirl bounty hunter. In truth, this preview issue doesn't really give me enough of the story to make a judgment about if it'll be my kind of comic or not. I do like blending the sci-fi and western genres, and writer Garan Madeiros seems to have found a strong way to do it. Of more interest is how impressive the line-up of artists is: Ross, Guichet, Rubinstein, Sharpe and McKenna are all very familiar names, and they do pretty good work here. I do hope, however, that the final product will be in color. I have no problem with black-and-white comics, but the artwork has to be approached differently, and this is art that's begging to be colored. For two bits, this isn't a bad book to get a taste of what First Salvo is going to offer, especially if you're a fan of any of the artists involved here.
Rating: 3/5 --Blake M. Petit
Hercules: The Thracian Wars #3 (Radical Publishing)
by Steve Moore, Admira Wijaya, Imaginary Friends Studios & Sixth Creation
Probably the most shocking thing about this series is how good it continues to be. The group has been betrayed and ambushed, but this a group of demi-god mercenaries - how do you think they’re going to do? Still, it seems tougher than you’d think, and they suffer a loss. But the biggest, most obvious problem comes later, when it seems like Cotys is stalling on paying what he owes them (not smart - these are not the people you stiff). But that isn’t the biggest problem; the biggest problem is leaving Cotys with an army, especially when Hercules realizes what Cotys’s next target is. You know, maybe training an army for a guy who has proven himself to be a complete jerk wasn’t a bright idea, Herc. Not criticizing, just saying. Anyways, the art continues to look really good, a smooth painted style that keeps the violence artistically bloody. This story continues to be (bloody) fun on the bun (to pointlessly quote Bender). A really impressive effort from Radical Publishing.
Rating: 4/5 --Andrea Speed
The Oz/Wonderland Chronicles #3 (BuyMeToys.com)
By Ben Avery, Casey Heying, Caesar Antomattei & Joe Jusko
Here's one of those books that's always fun, but seems to take forever between issues. Alice and Dorothy have returned to an Oz taken over by the risen Wicked Witch of the West. A confrontation between Dorothy and the witch blast the two girls to Alice's old stomping grounds, Wonderland, where Dorothy quickly learns that the rules of magic she's used to no longer apply. Back on Earth, the powerless Shaggy Man and Wizard of Oz attempt to find their way back to the worlds of magic to join in the fight. What I think I like the most about this series is the way Avery and Heying have so cleanly and clearly drawn the distinctions between the three realms. Oz, Wonderland, and Earth are all very different places with very different rules, and it will certainly take some adjustment for the travelers to learn what the rules of the three worlds actually are. Heying and Antomattei's artwork isn't bad. They're at their best when emulating the works of the original artists from the two series, but their "ordinary" humans (as ordinary as Dorothy Gale can be) could use a little work. The coloring job is really fantastic and helps quite a bit when it comes to selling the artwork. I do wish this would come out more frequently, because it's a book that's a lot of fun when you finally get to see it.
Rating: 3.5/5 --Blake M. Petit
June 28th 2008, 03:06 PM
Linear Mode
