Welcome once again to another exciting edition of Done-in-One Reviews, the review column where dreams are made, valuable lessons are learned, and hearts are aflutter! And we provide capsule-sized reviews of the latest and greatest comics, as well as a few odds and ends. Yeah. That. Enjoy!
Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight #24 (Dark Horse Comics)
By Jim Krueger, Cliff Richards & Jo Chen
Since Harmony became a celebrity and vampires became public, we haven't really seen how this new world impacts people outside of Buffy's arena of operations. This one-off issue picks up on two characters who have been sorely missed, Faith and Giles. The two find a hidden sanctuary for girls who have rejected the calling of being a Slayer. Of course, in a world where Slayers are being hunted, this isn't exactly a bad idea -- but now they've got the vampire squad looking to chow down on them. Krueger is having fun here. The characters feel very familiar, with a great dynamic. Richards's artwork is good -- solid, communicates the story well, and his renditions of the characters work. I dearly hope their story gets folded back in to the main story before long. I miss seeing these characters, and this short visit with them just makes me miss them more.
Rating: 4/5 --Blake M. Petit
Cars: The Rookie #1 (Boom! Kids)
By Alan J. Porter, Albert Carreres & Allen Gladfelter
In this prequel to the Pixar movie, hot new racing car Lightning McQueen sits down with RSN news to tell the story of how he made it to the Piston Cup circuit. After a disastrous early race nearly kills McQueen's career before it starts, a new friend may be the only path to the big-time. The book has an instant uphill climb. Because it's a prequel, that means the whole story takes place before the movie, which means our lead character is still the self-centered jerk he was when the film began, and he can't develop that much. Writer Alan Porter finds two interesting ways to keep us engaged. First, he paints an interesting division between what really happened and the story that Lightning tells the reporters. Second, he gives us a sympathetic character in Mack, Lightning's driver, who has a much bigger part here than he did in the film. Carreres does a really good job with the artwork -- the characters look good and the coloring job is wonderful. The art team does a fine job of keeping the world of the comic consistent with the film. Another strong entry in the Boom! Kids line.
Rating: 4/5 --Blake M. Petit
Farscape #4 (Boom! Studios)
By Rockne S. O'Bannon,Keith R.A. Decandido, Tommy Patterson, Michael Babinsky, Marshall Dillon, & Andrew Dalhouse
This miniseries wraps up on an upbeat note, suggesting that at the time it was written, no one was sure if there'd be a second series or not. (That's before it started selling like Sham Wows.) Rygel takes the battle to his rather useless cousin Bishan for the throne of Hyneria, whilst the mystery alien after Crichton and Deke reappears and causes some trouble before making a timely escape, and issues are settled between Chiana and Jothee, and Aeryn and Deke. I felt like the whole resolution between Chiana and Jothee and Aeryn and her mother issues was a bit rushed, but again, this was written before they knew there was a possibility of continuation, so I have to give them a break there. The settling of the Rygel story was nicely done. The art is improving, although it remains at its best when focusing on the alien characters. This has been a strong, enjoyable miniseries for us Farscape fans – hope the rest are just as good, if not better.
Rating: 3.5/5 --Andrea Speed
Irredeemable #1 (Boom! Studios)
By Mark Waid, Peter Krause, & Andrew Dalhouse
The Plutonian is one of the world's greatest superheroes. Strong, smart, almost invincible really. If you're thinking “kind of like Superman”, you're not far off the mark. But what happens when he gets so fed up with humanity that he starts killing his fellow heroes – teammates on his version of the Justice League – and their families? This is a dark, cynical take on superheroes and on societies reaction to them (it's the mental derision of the people he saves that seems to get to him the most, dismissing him as a “pervert in a costume” and whatnot) that wouldn't have been out of place in the late '90's and early '00's, when almost all heroes had a very dark side. We see the Plutonian only as a hero in a flashback; the opening focuses on him unleashing his inner beast on a hapless former teammate and his family. While you can't say it's an entirely new concept, the story just zips by like a bullet train, and yes, I want to see what happens next. Will the surviving members of the team figure out a way to stop him, or will they continue to be picked off one by one? Just who is the Plutonian anyways? The art by Krause and Dalhouse is very impressive, with some crisp line work that reminds you a little of old fashioned comics before taking a darker turn, and the coloring has a nice rich look. I've heard the first printing on this one has sold out already, and I can't say I'm surprised. A dark but deeply compelling read.
Rating: 4/5 --Andrea Speed
Jonah Hex #42 (DC Comics)
By Justin Gray, Jimmy Palmiotti & Jordi Bernet
Jonah Hex gets a nice greeting from some childhood friends -- the sort of friends who chain heavy weights to your wrists and use you for target practice. We've gotten the origin of Jonah Hex before. This issue goes back even earlier, to his childhood, and how the torment of his father and the taunts of the other children helped to shape him. This is a really strong look at the character, who he was, and who he is. And Jordi Bernet is the best possible choice to illustrate the story. His style is perfectly suited for westerns in general and for Jonah Hex in particular. People looking for a strong westner, awesome art, or just a comic that you can read in one sitting without worrying about getting dragged in another universe-shaking crossover (or even a "next issue" box) should jump on this one.
Rating: 4.5/5 --Blake M. Petit
Masquerade #2 (Dynamite Entertainment)
By Alex Ross, Phil Hester and Carlos Paul with Debora Carita
Masquerade is a super-hero in conflict with herself. The world has changed since the War, but to her it’s only becoming worse and worse still is that the number of super-powered heroes left to fight evil are dwindling. She tries her best to convince the other heroes that things aren’t what they seem and that perhaps something bad is going to happen. Only time will tell if she’s right. In the meantime her mind slips back into the past when she was first beginning to wear her mask, and the horrors she faced that come with such a decision. This book is really good, the flow and the pace of the story is solid. Even without knowing much about the character, I have a connection with Masquerade and I want to see more of her. The art is clear and crisp. Well, it took only two issues to convince me that this is going to be a fun series. I recommend this title wholeheartedly.
Rating: 4/5 --Terry Verticchio
The Mighty #3 (DC Comics)
By Peter J. Tomasi, Keith Champagne & Peter Snejbjerg
At the scene of a murder that Alpha One wasn't there to prevent, Cole talks to a child that seems startlingly familiar. Cole makes an important decision about his career, and Alpha One decides to reach out to him. I was a bit let down by the first issue of this series, but by this third issue I feel totally justified in staying with it. Tomasi and Champgne have crafted a really unique superhero story. It seemed like the story was going one way, and now this issue turns that idea on its ear as we learn much more about who Alpha One really is personally. This isn't at all the take I expected, and it's all the better for it. We also get some realy snazzy art by Peter Snejbjerg, who proves solidly this issue that he should be a much bigger name in comics than he is. His art is solid and his design is imaginative. This book is really getting good.
Rating: 4.5/5 --Blake M. Petit
Noble Causes #40 (Image Comics)
By Jay Faerber & Yildiray Cinar
In this final issue, Gaia makes a play to retake Doc Noble from his wife Olympia. As he struggles with his choice, the rest of the family struggles with the sudden scandal that has -- once again -- thrown their happy household into turmoil. Faerber really delivers as he shuts this title down. The Doc Noble stuff is wonderful here, and it's nice to finally see some real development for Olympia. She's probably been the weakest thing in the Five Years Later jump, an interesting idea for a character that was never really adequately developed until now. The question of where Race and Liz have been is answered in a totally unexpected fashion. That's a twist I never saw coming, but I found very entertaining. And in true Faerber fashion, he even ends this final issue with a cliffhanger. I understand his reasons for ending the series -- he's been living with these characters for a very long time and a writer may want to move on. But man, this issue has so many new elements, so many new ideas, that it's hard to believe he was running out of steam. It was a fine issue, and a sad farewell.
Rating: 4.5/5 --Blake M. Petit
Seaguy: The Slaves of Mickey Eye#1 (DC Comics/Vertigo)
By Grant Morrison and Cameron Stewart with Dave Stewart
Seaguy lives in a perfect world. Then why is he so depressed and why does he continue to see images of his dead pal, the floating fish, Chubby Da Choona all around him? Could it be that Mickey Eye, the menacing force that controls humanity doesn’t want our hero Seaguy to remember the truth about who he is? Okay. Ummm…yeah. Seaguy. Where to start? That description I just wrote is about as bare bones as you can get, pretty much the perfect example of “Morrison For Dummies”. What goes on between the covers of this comic is pretty surreal. Lots of non-sequitur dialogue, or at least it seems that way. And more strange characters than you shake a fish’s skeleton at. The art by the way is great, very clean and though it is rather tooney there is a grim quality to it that makes the style perfect for the surreal nature of the story. So is it good? Well, it’s Morrison-good, and let me leave it at that. If you are fan of Grant Morrison and have read the first part of Seaguy then you probably already picked up this issue. If you are new to this series, and if you have bucket full of patience and a mind as open as the night’s sky then by all means pick it up.
Rating: 3.5/5 --Terry Verticchio
Shrapnel: Aristeia Rising #4 (Radical Comics)
By M.Zachary Sherman, Bagus Hutomo, & Leos “Okita” Ng
Sam's ragtag Venusian team takes it to the Marines this issue, and end up getting a little help from the Martians. But this new alliance has troubles of its own, as the Martians are “splicers”, genetically enhanced Humans, who look down on the mostly “helot” Venusians as a lesser race. So Sam has to smooth out that racial divide, on top of all her other problems. Meanwhile, the Earth Alliance brings in a new person to handle the Venusian uprising, a person from the bad time in Sam's Marine past. You just know this can't end well. The art seems to have been lifted from its visual fog, and the space battle sequence is great looking, just what digital art was made for. Solid military sci-fi.
Rating: 4/5 --Andrea Speed
Super Human Resources #3 (Ape Entertainment)
By Ken Marcus & Justin Bleep
Tim finds himself being treated as part of the "SCI family" when time rolls around to pull the Secret Santa names and get ready for the company Christmas party. Gifts are exchanged, Roger goes Dark, Manboto looks for new targets for his affections... and Gordon makes an announcement that no one saw coming. Following up on a strong issue two, we've got an equally strong issue three. It's a little bizarre to read a Christmas issue in April, but once you get past that you have a lot of laughs here and a really solid plot that ends on a good cliffhanger. Marcus and [b]Bleep[b] develop some of their core characters here and push their world forward in the process. And if that's not enough to get you to try this comic, I've got three words that will win you over: Megalomaniacal. Copy. Machine. That's right. Check this out, laugh out loud, and pass it on.
Rating: 4.5/5 --Blake M. Petit
Ubu Bubu #4 (Slave Labor Graphics)
By Jamie Smart
Well, it's the apocalypse, as Lucien – Satan in child form – runs amok, and we get a flashback to him and his life before things all went to poo. And I do like the way that, child of evil that he is, he seems like every other person you encounter on the internet. (He thinks everything is “geh”, his favorite term.) Bubu also accidentally unleashes another demon, this one a potential threat to him and his crew as well, and they figure out that while the apocalypse is fun and all, if hell comes to Earth, how are they going to torment anyone? They're having too much fun driving the normals crazy and sadistically killing them. How can you have a reign of terror without victims? So at the last second, Bubu and company decide they have to stop Lucien. But the apocalypse has already started! How do they stop it? If you've read any of these issues, you know what to expect: many bodily fluids, and much perverse and dark humored mayhem. This comic is certainly not for the easily offended, but the adventurous should find much to like and laugh at here, even if some of the humor is a bit juvenile. And I've always been a fan of Smart's high energy and strangely adorable (even while being disgusting) artwork. I've enjoyed this series a whole lot, even if I can't adequately describe it.
Rating: 4/5 --Andrea Speed
April 4th 2009, 02:55 PM
Linear Mode
