BATMAN #156 FACSIMILE EDITION DC COMICS
Wow! The very first time Robin died on the comic page. What more could you ask for. Especially since this became an on-going thing for decades. Didn’t matter who was in the green tights, DC just couldn’t resisting killing the poor kid off over and over again. Even when he reinvented himself as Nightwing, the trend continued. But that’s not all this issue from 1963 has to offer us. How about the first and only appearance of the hero/villain known as Ant Man. Yes, DC Comics had their very own version of Ant Man. It also provides us with another adventure of Batman on an alien world that was a common theme back then. Add in an appearance of Ace the Bathound and you’ve got a pretty good comic. 9 out of 10 Grahams.
CRITTER #13 ANTARCTIC PRESS
The Critterverse continues. Writer/Creator Tom Hutchison continues to prove that he can tell super-hero stories with human interaction, while keeping the suspense at an all time high. However, this issue twist left me annoyed. Super-hero Brawn is rescued from his premature death by the annoying time/space traveller Paradox but may have just revealed a sinister plan of his own. And while I was enjoying his devotion to the plan of partial temporal interaction, to make him out as a villain is sort of ruins the character for me. Plus, HOLY COW! is that Cassia’s mom strapped to a table in Paradox’s future lab? This one just opened up a whole bunch of new questions. And while I’m annoyed it still doesn’t hinder my liking of the story. We are still moving forward and in it for the long haul. 8 out of 10 Grahams.
DOCTOR WHO CIRCUIT BREAKER #1 TITAN COMICS
With the whole of the Doctor Who franchise teetering like a half finished Jenga game, a new title is always welcome. But this issue is only the first part of a multimedia extravaganza over multiple media outlets, it makes my brain hurt and is almost a guarantee that I will be unable to get through the whole story. Websites, magazines, audio adventures, video games, DVD’s, and paperbacks will spread the story out over four monthes. That’s way to much work for the average Doctor Who fan to deal with. We aren’t off to a bad start as we engage with the little known Jo Martin Doctor and Osgood. And in all honesty, she has her own very distinct personality and has a sort of William Hartnell/Colin Baker vibe to her. Dulce Montoya and Dan Watters story shows the first interaction between the Doctor and the Daleks. In ancient Greece with the alien race known as the Metiki. And it does not go well. And now I have to track down a copy of something called the Honourable Magazine in a few weeks. And then get an audio adventure a week after that. And so on and so on. An interesting tale that is going to take just to much effort to enjoy. Part one of the multimedia story gets a 7 out of 10 Grahams.
SPIRIT OF INDEPENDENCE SKETCHBOOK ANTARCTIC PRESS
I can hear you all now. Yelling cheater, cheater! Are you really planning on reviewing a blank sketchbook? Boy, you have a rough life! But that’s not what I’m doing. Actually, the reasoning for me doing this was due to a conversation I had with a comic reader at Doc’s Corner. “Why would you spend $4.99 on a completely blank comic?” he questioned. Every now and then a publisher releases one of these sketchbooks and they are largely ignored. But they have a multitude of purposes. Beginning artists can use these as an introduction to creating a comic without spending larger sums on pricey sketchbooks or art boards. But for the creative collector, these little blank babies can be used for comic conventions to gather themed sketches from a variety of artists. Take this one for example. What if it contained an Alex Ross sketch of Captain America only to be followed by a Mr. America sketch from Dale Eaglesham. How bought a 3rd page of V-Man from the Golden Age of comics by Sean Luke. The possibilities are endless. That’s why it’s worth it to grab a copy of these sketchbooks every now and then. I give this one a 10 out of 10 Grahams due to the unlimited potential of what this book can become!