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Paper Cuts: 12/5/16

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Number one issues can be tricky.  The writer needs to set a world, give compelling characters and leave with something to come back around for the next installment.  All within the confines of 32 pages.

Bad Moon Rising has some elements that intrigue, but unfortunately get lost in the shuffle because there are too many plot points in this first issue.  The book opens with American soldiers trapped in Vietnam, only to be saved by one of them turning into a werewolf.  Truthfully, you could do a whole series on that alone and it would have been compelling and interesting.  After finishing Bad Moon Rising, I am not even sure that has anything to do with the plot moving forward because there were 3 more story lines crammed into this single issue.  There is a story of fringe science doctor who sees ghosts and is desperately trying to get law officials to believe him.  There is a story of a biker gang who have some sort of connection to wolves, although the connection itself is unclear.  And then there is a story of what sets up to be the main character of the series, a guy who ran away to the city, leaving his small town behind, and is back due to an animal attack on his father that killed him.  That is all in one issue.  These elements could work together, but the story execution felt flat and rushed and never let any of these characters develop and breathe, or give the reader a real reason to care about any of them.

One thing to really give credit to this issue is on the art layout.  Newer and smaller publishers really tend to stick to a simple grid format of storytelling and it was a pleasant surprise to see the creative team work with a much wider scope of formats that moved the story along and kept the reading engaging by changing the format depending on how the story needed to be told.  There is some real talent in that and something that is missing from a lot of the horror comics that are published on a monthly basis.

The art in the rest of the book is all over the map.  There are a lot of misplaced shadows and odd coloring choices.  The line work also seems to be really thick in some places and pencil thin in others.  I was a bit surprised to find that the artist, Ty Dazo, has had success working for the largest comic publishers. Looking back over the credits, there were three different colorists on this single issue. That could be the determining factor on the inconsistencies of art throughout the book.  In today’s comic market, that seems to be the norm, with monthly double shipped, big 2 comics.  But for an indie publisher, it is odd to have that many in one book.

Overall, this book is fine.  The couple elements that I liked – the Vietnam angle and the art layouts – warrant another chance on this series for issue #2.

Ratings: 2.5 out of 5

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Paper Cuts: 11/17/16

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Die Kitty Die #2 (Chapterhouse)

This may have been a little less impressive than the first issue – which was one of my stand-out books of the year – but still delivered a solid read and worthy of any pull list.

The story format continues to delight as the reader is first given a “flashback” comic to our main character Kitty’s heyday in comics, which sets up the story to come in the rest of the issue.  The writing in this issue was little more on the nose with its jokes and jabs at the overall comic industry.  The language was also turned up a little more. That aspect – combined with a couple of drug references – took away from some of the light-heartedness, but still continued to charm and deliver laughs.

The art shone throughout the entire book.  The flashback portion felt like an Archie book of the past, while the present story remained in that updated – yet classic – Archie feel.  Art this well done really helps move the story at a fantastic pace and never get bogged down.  There continued to be a little cheesecake to the art, but it added to the overall fun of the book without making it feel like staring into a 90s long box or a slightly creepy deviant art page.

The two-page spreads by J Bone are worth the price of admission alone.

Overall, this was still a treat to read and was easily the first book off my stack this week.

Ratings: 4 out of 5

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Spell on Wheels #2 (Dark Horse)

Spell on Wheels is doing something very special and commendable.

It gives the reader a fun tale of strong independent women, while delivering a feminist message that is not meant to be beaten over anyone’s head.

These characters are real women – living in this current day and age – but just happen to be a bunch of spell casting witches looking to reclaim their stolen items.

The X-Men taught a lot of us that it is alright to be a little different when we were growing up. Spell on Wheels is teaching us all how to live a little bit better.

It’s a great message.  A well written book and absolutely stunning cartooning.

I want more of this in comics and want to give those books to my nieces.

Ratings: 4.5 out of 5

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Lady Killer 2 #3 (Dark Horse)

At one point, Dexter was the best television show out there.  When the show was at its best, we knew who Dexter was and that was not going to change, but it was the pieces around our main character that made the show compelling and interesting.

While I enjoyed the first two issues of Lady Killer 2, it felt like perhaps this was just another romp in the world of this 60s mom serial murderer.  It’s always a fun time, but nothing super compelling.  Luckily, issue #3 added some new wrinkles and dropped in a little lurking mystery around some of our supporting characters.  Those wrinkles made it feel like a whole new world while still keeping us connected to our main character, whom we have come to root for.

Michelle Madsen on art continues to kill on art duties and gives this book a distinct feel.  The first two-page spread of this book is meant to be marveled and poured over.

Ratings: 4 out of 5

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Paper Cuts: 11/4/16

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Hellchild: The Unholy #1 (Zenescope)

This book was simply perplexing.

Zenescope has not been known for its stellar art, but when you first open this book, there was some truly great art.  It had me wondering, “who is this?”  The credits list Renzo Rodriguez as the artist, but the art and lettering is so wildly different from segment to segment that it feels like it had to be a collection of artists.  Assuming Renzo drew the first 4-5 pages, they were incredibly well done.  It went from a book that I felt like I had to read to a book I wanted to read.

However, the book then stops all momentum and gives you a full page of written backstory which is almost never a good story telling device; it usually spells doom for films that do not trust the story they have.

The art after that then appears to have been drawn by a completely different artist.  It is extremely jarring.  The easiest way to take me out of a book is poor lettering, and that’s exactly what happened here.  If that was not already challenging, the book seems to change art styles at least one more time.

The actual story that was told in the beginning of the book seemed to be setting up a great supernatural mystery and had me on board.  However, after the text page, we meet the “hero” of the book.  Hellchild is an uninteresting character and the writers feel like they have to justify how badass she is by turning the remainder of the book into one long, gory fight scene.

After all the fighting, the writers spend a couple pages trying to make Hellchild a brooding loner, but instead the writing is just amateur to put it as nice as possible.

The art in the beginning will force me to pay attention to this series, but if the inconsistencies continue, I will hold out my hopes for Renzo Rodriguez to see what he will do next.

Ratings: 2.5 out of 5

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Nailbiter #26 (Image)

26 Issues in and there has not been a single dull moment in this entire run.

If you need more Hannibal Lecter in your life, this book is a must read.

The payoff in this issue is huge if you have been reading the series from the beginning.  While you could jump in with this issue, the reveal in the book is much more satisfying after spending time with these characters.

I know it is only November 2nd, but after a month of Halloween inspired tales, this tale of murder during the Christmas season seemed refreshing.

Ratings: 4 out of 5

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Eclipse #3 (Image)

If you enjoyed the type of horror in John Carpenter’s The Thing, then you should be reading this wonderful series.

This series is the perfect dystopian future/murder mystery.

The art continues to amaze as it is so bright yet continues to be so bleak.

My only criticism is that the story telling felt very quick and would not have minded to have it breathe a little bit more.

Ratings: 4 out of 5

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Paper Cuts: 10/28/16

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It is October and Halloween is right around the corner.  For most of us, we are marathon watching our favorite horror franchises.  The sequels, no matter the quality, may be entertaining, but never seem to live up to the original.  And in very rare air, a sequel delivers more than the original.  John Carpenter’s Tales for a Halloween Night Volume Two may be in that rare spot even stacked up against its Eisner Winning Volume One.

This second collection was ambitious.  Volume Two is actually double the size of the original. Horror Anthologies that run longer in length tend to lead to more inconsistency across stories, Tales actually bucked that trend and made the book more enjoyable.

The art in this volume is really diverse and stylized and gives each story a distinct perspective.    There is everything from black and white with scratchy lines to bright and bold coloring reminiscent of Jhonen Vasquez’s Invader Zim cartoons.  There is also appreciation for some of the stories that let the art do the heavy lifting of the storytelling.

Each writer found a way to tell their own tale of terror and no two stories felt similar.  Due to the size of each tale it is hard to say too much without giving away, but truthfully, I enjoyed each of the tales.

The only critical critique of this came in the way in the final tale, “House of the Rising Son.”  The lettering was so jarring that it really took away from some beautiful art and was an unfortunate end to a really solid great horror anthology series.

Quick Cuts:

The Traveler’s Tale – John Carpenter kicks off this book with a wonderfully realized setting and the feel of a perfect Twilight Zone episode.

Ratings: 4.5 out of 5

Carnevil Max –Daniel Leister from last week’s Lord of Gore helps deliver a twisted game show tale with a spectacular creepy ending.

Ratings: 5 out of 5

The Posse –Who doesn’t love horror in the Old West?

Ratings: 5 out of 5

The Finger – My favorite.  The final panel was haunting.

Ratings: 5 out of 5

Patterns – If An Inconvenient Truth scared you, this will leave you terrified.

Ratings: 5 out 5

The Basement – An origin story to the next slasher I want to see on screen.

Ratings: 4 out of 5

So Happy – Killer Klowns from Outer Space run an amusement park.

Ratings: 4 out of 5

Just Stories – Enjoyed the black and white art of Dexter meets mountain man.

Ratings: 4 out of 5

Hands Free – Solid Art. Solid Story.

Ratings: 3 out of 5

‘Til Death –If you thought Gone Girl was scary, this kicks it up a whole new level.

Ratings: 5 out of 5

Mr. Goodnight –Very vivid art, a little short on compelling story telling.  

Ratings: 3 out 5

Safe from Harm – A little confusing, but felt like an old radio drama.

Ratings: 3.5 out of 5

House of the Rising Son – Great Art. Lettering was too bad to ignore.

Ratings: 3 out of 5.

This was a ton of fun and encourage everyone to check out this book.  Also check out my interview with Amanda Deibert and Catt Staggs, the creative team behind the Til Death story talk about their creative process and more here.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

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Paper Cuts: 10/21/16

If there was an Eisner for Best Week of Comics, this one would have to be nominated.

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Die Kitty Die #1 (Astro Comix / Chapter House)

The sign of good story tell can be when you are reading a first issue but you feel like you have known this character your whole life.

Die Kitty Die is the creation of two classic Archie creators who have an undeniable chemistry as a creative team.

The art in this book is simply incredible.  The book opens with a classic “throwback” style of art that resembles Archie comics of the 1960’s.  Here we are introduced to Kitty as a character.  The artwork in this section – paired with the editor’s note – really makes you think you are reading a re-print, and it is delightful.

From that intro, we fast-forward and find ourselves with modern day Kitty, complete with art reminiscent of the Life with Archie or Predator vs Archie series; no surprise considering both creators worked at Archie during that time.

Oh, and there is a beautiful two-page spread from J Bone in the middle of this issue and it is simply stunning.

The colors are bright and vibrant and it matches the story telling.  We meet Kitty, a semi-forgotten comic character who also happens to be a real life witch.  The story is accessible to anyone and is not shy about taking a couple jabs at the current state of comics.

This book was just so much fun and full of energy that I implore everyone to check out the creators’ Kickstarter happening right now.

Ratings: 5 out of 5

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Lord of Gore #1 (Devil’s Due)

The worst part about this book is having to wait until 2017 when the next issue comes out.

The art here is pretty good.  Daniel Leister definitely has an affinity towards Howard Chaykin and it comes through in the best possible way.

This was a fantastic first issue and really set up the world.  After reading the Lord of Gore background story in it, I was not too sure that this was not a real life horror franchise.

This is a fantastic tale of real life Hollywood and life of stars on the horror convention circuit.  If there ever was a perfect book for Horror-Writers, it is this book.

Ratings: 4.5 out of 5

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Spell on Wheels #1 (Darkhorse)

There have been many books and movies that have been trying to capture the same type of fun and coolness of the movie, The Craft. Spell on Wheels finally is a worthy successor and really captures some of the same magic.

Artist Megan Levens delivers some wonderful art.  Her character design is fantastic.  Her cartooning style mixed with real-life-figure-proportions really grounds the book; no small feat, considering it is about witches with fantastical powers.

Writer Kate Leth really crafts a compelling first issue that deals with some real life fears that many women face, but still manages to keep the story light and not bogged down.

The creative team here is worthy of high praise for delivering a story of believable women in a fun road trip that really has some heart.

Ratings: 4.5 out of 5