We Will Bury You #1 review

I was already looking forward to Choker when I walked into the comic book shop, so the Templesmith-esque cover of We Will Bury You from IDW caught my eye. The zombie cover, that is actually from the pencil of Ben Templesmith, is the highlight of the issue.

The story takes place in 1927 and the form-fitting collared shirt and pants outfit of our dykie heroin Fanya seem completely out-of-place, even if she is going for a manly look. Her Harry Potter glasses don’t seem to fit either. Fanya and her friend Mirah are drawn with clean, smooth lines. Every other character looks hairy, dirty and disgusting, often with distorted facial expressions. We haven’t even got to the zombies yet. This contrast is purposeful in creating an atmosphere and tone, but Kyle Strahm may have done the job too well as the characters are so vile and ugly that I barely want to look at the pages.

Yes, this is only the first issue, but I really can’t tell what direction Brea Grant and Zane Austin Grant are going to take this story. From what I can tell, the only two non-wretched beings is this city have a forbidden love, which will have to be put on hold while they deal with the zombie apocalypse.

In the end, this horse is slow coming out of the gate, but since it involves zombies, I’ll probably give issue #2 a chance.

2 out of 5

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Captain Swing and the Electrical Pirates of Cindery Island #1 review

One glance at the cover of Warren Ellis and Raulo Caceres’ Captain Swing and the Electrical Pirates of Cindery Island and I was hooked. This book oozes sci-fi coolness. Beautifully drawn and richly colored comic pages quickly immerse the reader into Ellis’ version of 1830 London.

Two competing police forces, the Bobbies and the Bow Street Runners, are trying to keep the streets of Georgian era London under control. A rogue given the monicker Spring-Heeled Jack, who appears to have harnessed the powers of static electricity, has taken up the hobby of tossing police onto spiked wrought iron fences. Of course, conspiracies abound as we get hints that the Bow Street Runners and their Magistrate masters may not only have justice as their motive for taking down Jack and the mysterious Captain Swing.

Raulo Caceres employs a plethora of short black strokes to add shading and detail to most every surface. You can see and feel the emotion on every character’s face. The biggest accomplishment is that Caceres seamlessly blends the fantastic and the style of the 1800’s to keep the story “realistic” in a sense.

This comic provides a full $3.99 worth of entertainment. The 21 pages of comic goodness are supplemented by six additional brown parchment looking pages with a fitting script font and technical drawings that go further in solidifying the idea that there is some mad scientist lurking about that is way ahead of his time. The text also provides details of the actual historical events that are being used to frame the story.

The only real criticism I have is that this is issue “1 of 4″. I’m already wanting more.

4 out of 5

Days Missing #1 review

I was compelled to buy Achaia’s premiere issue of Days Missing for several reasons. First, it costs less than a dollar; bargains are always a plus. Its tagged with “Roddenberry Presents” so I thought it would be an interesting sci-fi story. The cover and back were sharp and the concept seemed original. Was it worth a buck? Buck, no!

Comic industry veterans Phil Hester and Frazer Irving should be ashamed. Hester’s script just falls flat. I was interested by the concept but bored by the poor execution. The story is about a mysterious figure who intercedes on behalf of humanity to keep us from extinction. This white haired, crazed eyed hippie has been around since earth’s creation and has been waiting for humans so he could hang out with someone similar to him. The issue begins with a viral epedemic that could destroy the earth’s population. The cosmic hippie lends his hippie hands and once again humanity is saved from annihilation. The pages are littered with too much unnecessary back-story and the pace is deathly slow.

Artist Frazer Irving’s skills are uncharacteristically poor and sloppy. I think Irving realized that the story sucked and just drew these panels in a drunken stupor. Large black lines outline every character, giving them a cookie cutter appearance. The bland cast is drawn just as they are written – boring.

I will never have the dollar I spent on this drivel back or the 10 minutes it took me to read this. Take a pass on Days Missing.

1 out of 5

Stumptown #2 review

Did you ever pick up a comic on a whim, not hearing any hype surrounding its release, and strike gold with your chance purchase? That’s what I did with Stumptown. Oh yeah, solid gold, baby.

Dex is a private investigator and proprietor of Stumptown Investigations. Writer Greg Rucka creates a female character, both flawed and loveable. The series first arc The Case of the Girl Who Took Her Shampoo, But Left Her Mini follows Dex as she seeks the whereabouts of a missing girl. Taking the case to settle a gambling debt, Dex is quickly pulled into a quagmire of shady villains with hidden motives and itchy trigger fingers. Rucka nails the atmosphere and intrigue behind the protagonist and the plot. I love the layers that Greg Rucka weaves and builds as Dex gets deeper into finding answers.

Artist Matthew Southworth draws a pitch perfect match for Greg Rucka’s extraordinary narrative. In a character driven comic, the artist must be able to convey the story without relying on action sequences and muscle-clad heroes. His silent panels are well structured and flow perfectly.

Get onboard right now so that you can say, I was there at the beginning. This is a smart comic that should be at the top of pulllists.

4.5 out of 5