@radio_adventure
For the most part, we geeks were all pretty happy to see Fox Mulder and Dana Scully back for their recent six episode run on Fox, even if the results were a bit mixed by most accounts. In order to make it feel more like the 90’s all over again, IDW has put out a brand spanking new The X-Files comic book.
In truth, this feels like a 90’s licensed comic book in every which way. The art done by Matthew Dow Smith (Doctor Who) feels like the ever-so-fun Topps Jurassic Park comics from back when those were a thing…
The story feels very much like a script that Joe Harris (Great Pacific) found outside of the writers room and decided to turn into a satisfying addition to The X-Files cannon, even if it does have the usual more-questions-raised-than-answered sort of thing going for it. Fans of the show should find this comic satisfying and, otherwise, fans of very topical yet very strange sci-fi should also find it enjoyable. 4/5 X-Bibles.
After a hiatus and change in publishers, the micro-team is back!
Well, some of them.
The Micronauts series now returns under IDW, with writing by Cullen Bunn (Sinestro) and art by David Baldeon (Nova), Fico Ossio (Critter), Max Dunbar (Slash & Burn), and Jack Lawrence (Darkham Vale). Marvel originally held the rights to the Micronauts, starting back in 1979 up to 2002. At that time Image Comics took over and kept it through to 2004, where Devil’s Due Publishing took it over. Fast forward to 2015 when IDW gains the rights and now in April 2016 we are seeing the first issue in IDW’s run of the series. As I said though, some of the team is back, since Marvel may have given up the rights to the Micronauts, but they didn’t give up the rights to all the characters in the team. IDW’s Micronauts #1 brings us right back into the Microverse with the familiar face of Acroyear who is now partnered with new comers Oz and Phenolo-Phi, also known as Space-Glider. We also see the return of Microtron and the Biotrons, and even the villain Baron Karza.
@OffTheGeekEnd
It’s definitely good to see the familiar faces return, but the character of Oz just reminds me of Star-Lord. The original character that Oz replaces, Arcturus Rann, was more of an explorer and adventurer, raised by a royal family on Homeworld. Sadly Rann, along with Bug and Marionette and a few others, will not be returning due to them still being owned by Marvel. Phenolo-Phi fits pretty well as Oz’s teammate, keeping him out of trouble and being the more level-headed of the two. The overall team, however, seems to feel like IDW’s version of Guardians of the Galaxy. The story by Bunn is engaging right from the start and did keep this Saint enjoying the action through to the end. Being that the art team involved four artists and four more working on color, you can see some changes between the pages; overall it still flows nicely and the story is portrayed well, but the differences are noticable. While I was hoping for a return of the original team, sadly that is not the case, and so the series won’t be on my subscription list just yet. I will keep an eye to see how well it does, first. 3/5 Micro-Bibles.
@thepattawontron
Sometimes in life you need a break from Earth and just need to get away from humans. The sad part about this situation, though? The fact that not all of us — Yeezy, maybe — can own a spaceship. If the new world was only an open door away from the rat race, I know I’d be down! In television actor/producer Ted Lange IV‘s trippy comic, Warp Zone #1, this such “thing” would be Jack Elsewhere. Trippy because of Lange’s awesome artwork that will have you feeling like you are dreaming or having hallucinations; it will literally warp you into his story’s reality–or, it might be the fact I read it on the date of the release: April 20th. Each page is suspenseful as you join Jack Elsewhere on this search for WTF is going on in this “Megaverse”. My only, albeit minor, complaint is that I want more. I’m ready to leave Earth for a vacation in another reality, so long as I don’t have to run into Calico Jones. #shady! 3.5/5 Bibles.
@RobBex2
Standoff: Assault on Pleasant Hill – Omega #1 is the conclusion of a multitude to Avenger titles that I only found out about after catching up on Captain America. With that, I was a bit hesitant about reading this one-shot and, boy, was I completely mistaken. Nick Spencer (Astonishing Ant-Man) has done a fantastic job of writing these characters, with his Steve Rogers the Captain America that I have been missing for the past few years. Hearing him shout “Avengers Assemble” should give you goosebumps.
Spencer is able to wrap up a whole mini-series in 2-3 panels and just have to shake your head up and down and go “yeah, that totally makes sense.” But DAMN(!), Daniel Acuña (Uncanny Avengers) art is just beautiful and wonderfully detailed. Never once has his art ever looked “phoned in” and every panel has this great mixture of pop art, realism and fantasy. And while he will be doing cover art for various comics, I will sincerely miss his interior artwork. Spencer does a great job of setting up the Civil War II mini-series coming up and lays the groundwork for the upcoming Marvel universe. Overall, Omega #1 is an immensely fun read–even if you haven’t read all the annoying tie-ins. 4.25/5 Bibles.
***EARLY REVIEW – Release Date: 5/4/16***
@travmoody
“If I wanted, I could melt down that face-shrapnel like earwax. I could set fire to the $&% still in your ass.”
Yeah, Weavers #1 is not for the faint at heart. But anyone who knows a good Capo story when they read one — and doesn’t mind a little macabre horror thrown in for good measure — will appreciate (The Spire) Simon Spurrier‘s panel slice of mafia life. It has all the tropes we know and love from the mob subgenre, except that when one squeezes a possible rat, they do it with demonic, eye-glowing spirit instead of a Colt 1911. Chase sequences turn into bamfing mysteries instead of Lincoln Towncar crashes. You get the picture…
Perhaps even more pleasurable are the whimsically expressive sketches of Dylan Burnett (Interceptor). There’s a nice blend of cartoonish and hyper-realism in his characters. The linework isn’t overly pulpy or animated, rather a sleek combination of both, as every panel offers sharp angles and grimacing personalities (i.e. beer bottles stand slanted on tables; shoulders slant in disgust and fear; features scream out of tendons like a rippling vine). Spurrier’s snappy dialogue keeps up, especially from that of the scene-stealing, spunky and ever suspicious Harvest Daughter, Frankie, who owns every moment with her mesh of millennial brashness and old school charm (“Rumor’s going around that life’s a bitch”). It’s in her exchanges with Sid, the newest, nerve-wracked member of this supernatural spider-ingested mob squad–the Weavers–that makes this opening ish a must-have. 4.25/5 Godfather DVDs.