Review: UNICORN: VAMPIRE HUNTER #1 Is Fun Fairy-Tale Action

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Yes – Unicorn: Vampire Hunter – the title to this fantasy comic book series comes across as a little frothy. It kind of sounds like the creator threw darts at a board of random nouns and this is what stuck. But don’t be deceived, dear reader. If you give this book a chance, you will find a well-crafted concoction of fairy-tale concepts, mixed with heart and magical action.

Written by Caleb Palmquist, with illustration by Daryl Toh and letters by Dave Lentz, Unicorn: Vampire Hunter #1 is wrapping up a successful campaign on Kickstarter, which you can still help support.

Story

There is one thing vampires fear more than anything else…

…and it’s not the sun. Everyone knows that wooden stakes and holy water kill vampires, but not many people know that the best weapon against a vampire is a unicorn’s horn.

Unicorn: Vampire Hunter is a fantasy adventure comic about a curious young woman, a wise old wizard, and a unicorn with a penchant for killing vampires. It is a heartfelt story about friendship, love, and finding purpose in an unpredictable world.

“In a faraway land…” is how writer Caleb Palmquist starts off this tale of a vampire-hunting Unicorn, setting the whimsical storybook tone quite succinctly. Palmquist expertly crafts this unique world — part medieval fairytale, part steampunk fantasy. It’s an easy book to consume, perfect for both kids and kids at heart. Palmquist manages to craft a wholly enjoyable fantasy adventure, while tugging on just the right amount of Disney-esque nostalgia strings.

Art

Artist Daryl Toh brings a robust and whimsical quality to the artwork. It really shows in the character designs. Character expressions akin to a Disney animation pack this first issue. This really helps with the charming nature of the book. Toh has also developed a landscape that is engaging and vibrant. The detail of the world drawn behind the characters is unique and filled with such soul.

Conclusion

Don’t let the silly title mislead you — Unicorn: Vampire Hunter #1 is a stellar introduction to this fantasy comic series, filled with real emotion, an interesting premise, and vibrant visuals.

You can support Palmquist, Toh, and Unicorn: Vampire Hunter by supporting the book on Kickstarter. You can also learn more by following their Facebook page, and visiting their website.

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Review: CYBERPUNK 2077: TRAUMA TEAM #3—The Client & The Medic

By

Elizabeth Buck

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Available now from Dark Horse, Cyberpunk 2077: Trauma Team #3 is the second-to-last issue in the limited series. The creative team of writer Cullen Bunn and illustrator Miguel Valderrama with colorist Jason Wordie and letterer Frank Cvetkovic keep the readers on their toes.

Issue three picks up from the final cliffhanger moment of the previous issue. Nadia’s gun is pressed to the back of the client’s head. But, after a tense struggle, the team leader, Stratter, stops Nadia from killing the man. Valderrama uses inset panels and close-ups on the weapon seemingly to stretch time, to convey the weight of Nadia’s actions. We want Nadia to pull the trigger and blow that smug smile off this murderer’s face. But we can’t have that satisfaction because Nadia can’t stoop to his level. She isn’t a murderer; she’s a medic.

Nadia wants revenge on her murderous client. — NADIA HESITATES TO TAKE REVENGE.

So far, Bunn has given small hints to Nadia’s past and her character. We know she’s traumatized, and we know she’d do anything to save her team. However, her reason for staying in this job has caused her so much pain wasn’t clear until this issue. In one of the most intimate scenes of the entire series, Bunn wrote an interaction between Nadia and a young girl, showing just how compassionate and dedicated the protagonist is to her job.

No Way Out

As the team made their way out of the building, another team member, Knapp, gets gunned down. To treat him, Nadia, Stratter, and the client enter an apartment. A mother and daughter occupy the apartment, and the mother asks Nadia to help her sick daughter in the middle of working on Knapp. In the time it takes for Nadia to consider helping the girl, Knapp dies. Stratter blames Nadia for this and argues with her over treating the girl. To stop their arguing, the client offers to “do their job for them” and handle the armed mob outside the door.

In the midst of the client’s carnage, Nadia stands her ground with Stratter and treats the girl. She gives the mother antibiotics and sweet reassurance. She touches the girl’s face and smiles. Here, colorist Wordie contrasts the dark red of the client’s rampage with light blue and warm yellow, providing a reprieve from the death and violence. This is when we get the sense that Nadia is more interested in this side of being a medic and that she will do anything to save a life. This isn’t just some job for her.

If we weren’t invested in Nadia’s story before, we are now. Bunn and his team have delivered a slow burn of a series rooted in the psychology of a memorable heroine. But the mission continues. The team still has to get out of the building, and they may not make it out alive. Could the client turn on them? Whatever happens, the stakes are high going into the final issue.

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PUNCHLINE #1 Gives Us Background to the New Clown Princess

By

Jose "Jody" Cardona

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Punchline Stands in the Spotlight!

When James Tynion IV started his run of Batman, he introduced the character of Punchline to the world. Joker’s new right-hand woman would play a major role in the Joker War story, from being Joker’s middleman to the villainous bank brokers to concocting a new Joker toxin. In the real world, this character has also gained popularity for her design and attitude. With the war behind us, the clown princess of crime is heading to trial, but under her true identity. She proceeds to make dozens of videos proclaiming her innocence and posts them online. This couldn’t possibly swing the public in her favor, would it?

*Some Spoilers Below*

Story:

We open with Punchline revealed to be Alexis Kaye, stating to the court that she is innocent. After getting approved by Leslie Thompkins, the trial is pushed forward, with Kaye defending herself. This causes a schism between the youth of Gotham and other Gothamites as she uses social media to promote her innocence. One such example is the Row siblings, Cullen and his sister Harper, also known as Bluebird. While Harper understands and believes Punchline must be charged, Cullen begins to change gears when finding Alexis’ old blog. From there, the tale of how a senior in college met the Clown Prince and began.

Punchline isn’t innocent. We learn that not only did she descend into the madness, but she is pulling strings to manipulate Gotham. The argument between Harper and Cullen should be the heart of this issue. The pair butt heads of whether Punchline is guilty or not. It’s actually a surprisingly topical comic, showing how a person could abuse social media. If it wasn’t for the fact that we see Punchline’s origin, this could have been a great issue to have the fans debate.

Unfortunately, we do see the truth, and it ruins the potential. Punchline’s actual origin is in the same vein as Harley Quinn, being twisted due to trauma caused by Joker. However, the main difference is that she searched for the Joker and demanded to be treated as an equal by stabbing him. The difference between Harley and Punchline had to be clear, or else it could lose readers, but to get that difference out, Johns and Tynion IV lost the opportunity to make a story that people could debate about.

Art:

Mirka Andolfo is the artist behind this issue, and she does a great job. The way she frames Punchline during the flashbacks gives off an unhinged feel. The panels start off being straight, but slowly over time, the angles become more apparent until she kills a rat. By that point, Mirka cements her style and delivers a great look for Punchline and the other characters of Gotham. When the story picks back up, hopefully, Mirka returns to bring it to life.

Conclusion:

Overall, despite a very cool look and topical subject matter, the writers don’t take a chance to invest in the latter. Comics are a great platform to take a stance on societal topics, and while they touch on it here, it could have been done better. This issue was designed to have us understand who Punchline is, and it did succeed in that. This comic does deserve some praise, but it isn’t essential for reading.

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X OF SWORDS Aftermath: Unreliable Narrators, Religion, and Prophecy in X-MEN #14

By

Matthew Brake

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November 13, 2020

X of Swords has relied on several twists and unreliable narrators in its telling.

First, Summoner misled Apocalypse and the X-Men about his intentions and the fate of Arakko. Then Apocalypse’s children, the original horsemen, claimed that their mother Genesis, Apocalypse’s wife, had been killed, which readers then discovered was not true at the end of X of Swords – Stasis #1.

With each new telling of Arakko’s history, parts of the story that have been told have been misleading. With X-Men #14, Genesis provides us with the whole story, about her ongoing battle with the Amenthi forces, about her defeat of Annihilation, and about the Amenthi helm that drives her to conquer Krakoa.

One detail we learn from Genesis’s account is that Amenth has bred mutants with their own demonic forces (a possible allusion to the chimeras that House of/Powers of X pointed to?) from which has emerged a group of Amenthi Summoners who work with their Arakko Summoner fellows to build and man prisons for mutants in Arakko. Even though the Amenthi Summoners are products of demonic breeding, the prose page reveals that the Arakko Summoners may be the more insidious. As the text says, “the latter [reveal] the corruptive nature of that station and their undying allegiance not to the Golden Helm or the mutant state, but to the expansion of their own power and twisted religion.”

One is reminded of the Black Swans who appeared in Hickman’s Avengers run, the followers of a religion of destruction, whose own agenda often made them an untrustworthy ally to hero and villain alike. Religion, myth, and creation/apocalypse are big parts of Hickman’s writing, and the Summoners appear to be a “return to the well” thematically for him. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Summoners play a role throughout the remainder of Hickman’s run on the X-titles.

To that end, X of Swords will more than likely end with the reuniting of Krakoa and Arakko, with the mutants of Arakko, including the Summoners, being integrated into the life of Krakoa, changing it forever. There is some indication of this reunion in the prophecy of Idyll, the last late prophet of Arakko: “Only under the black moon will the two become one. A white light will judge them, and a red land will see them split forever.”

Whatever the black moon is, it probably refers to the islands’ merging after the “white light” judges them (probably Saturnyne). However, there is some foreboding here, with the promise that “a red land will see them split forever.”

Who are the two that become one? What exactly is split forever?

We will probably have to wait until the end of X of Swords to find out.

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Review: THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #52.LR – Three Enthralling Storylines

By

David Weber

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The Amazing Spider-Man #52.LR, out now from Marvel Comics, is an enthralling issue full of many evenly balanced storylines and gorgeous art.

About the Book:
Doctor Strange and Black Cat are on a magical quest to save Spider-Man’s soul, and they need the help of the recently unpossessed spider-powered friends of Peter. Simultaneously, Norman Osborn, now cleansed of sin, needs to convince Mary Jane to help him talk down the demonic villain Kindred, whose identity we now know to be Harry Osborn. As they attempt to do good, the Sin-Eater and his cronies enact a plan to return them to their previous level of power: by taking it from the fearsome Morlun.

The Amazing Spider-Man #52.LR Story

Matthew Rosenberg and Nick Spencer do it again in The Amazing Spider-Man #52.LR, where three separate storylines are well-balanced in a single issue. The stories themselves are deeply engaging. Each set of characters perform actions that are surprising and hard to predict for the reader but are still are the next logical steps of their journeys. This provides for believable yet enjoyable stories. The best part of the issue’s story lies in how the scenes are laid out. Spencer and Rosenberg do a phenomenal job of juggling each of the storylines. They never dwell on one scene for too long or little, and whenever a scene consists mostly of dialogue and little action, it is followed by an intense, visually exciting scene. This fantastic setup of the issue causes it never to have a dull moment and makes it a delightful read.

Art

Federico Vicentini provides some stunning art in The Amazing Spider-Man #52.LR. It is evident from the incredible amount of detail in every panel that Vicentini put lots of effort into the issue, and it pays off by making the world feel more real. The debris that can be seen flying through the air in one panel is particularly notable and shows just how talented and dedicated Vicentini is. Another remarkable aspect of Vicentini’s art is his wonderfully expressive faces. This is very important, especially for the dialogue-heavy scenes of the issue. Without any visually gripping action in a scene, facial expressions need to be superb, and this issue certainly delivers on that.

The colors of Marcio Menyz and Erick Arciniega give life to The Amazing Spider-Man #52.LR. There is an admirably broad color palette that shifts for each scene to reflect the tone. There is an impressive tint to panels that are flashbacks. This tint allows the reader to distinguish that a panel is a flashback but does not overpower its colors. Menyz and Arciniega also use the technique of having a bright, single-colored background for panels where the action needs to be emphasized. This is a highly effective technique that provides an extra punch at the right moments in the story.

The Amazing Spider-Man #52.LR features some brilliant lettering thanks to the work of VC’s Ariana Maher. Throughout the issue, there are many sound effects with large bold fonts, and the issue features a different style of lettering for nearly every case of this. Some of the fonts used are not common in mainstream comic books but still fit nicely with the rest of the story and are a refreshing new choice. Maher does an incredible job of keeping the lettering interesting, and there is never a single stale moment.

Conclusion

The Amazing Spider-Man #52.LR is another excellent issue to go along with the current Amazing Spider-Man issues. It is great to focus on secondary characters’ actions, and each LR issue gets more and more exciting. Spencer and Rosenberg weave together the many storylines perfectly, and the art and colors tell the story beautifully. Not to mention the lettering of Maher, which adds an incredible amount of depth to the story. This issue is a gripping read and is a wonderful companion to the recent The Amazing Spider-Man books.

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Review: POWER RANGERS #1 Brings The Omega Rangers Home

By

Anthony Wendel

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Power Rangers #1 out this week from Boom Studios brings the other side of the new direction for comics. While Mighty Morphin focuses on the team on Earth, Power Rangers will focus on the Omega Rangers as they explore the cosmos. The action comes together thanks to Ryan Parrott (writer), Francesco Mortarino (line art), Raul Angulo (colorwork), and Ed Dukeshire (lettering).

Summary

POWER RANGERS #1 reveals a new cosmic threat that only the original Power Rangers, now known as the Omega Rangers – Jason, Trini and Zack – can hope to defeat!

Writing

With Ryan Parrott writing both of the new Power Ranger series, one of the common traps could be both books telling a similar story. Instead, Parrott makes sure to point out each series will have its own unique mission or mystery. With Mighty Morphin it will focus on the identity of the new Green Ranger. Power Rangers meanwhile explores the mystery of the Empyreal and where they come from.

The issue reintroduces the characters of Jason, Trini, and Zack and calls out how the comic series has diverted from the original show. There even is a joke poking fun at the “Peace Conference in Switzerland” where the characters disappeared to in the show’s continuity. As the Omega Rangers, the trio will do whatever it takes to stop the Empyreal from harming anyone else.

Artwork

The artwork by Francesco Mortarino focuses heavily on body language. This comes in to play heavily as the cast visit Drakkon in his cell. All of the characters convey a mixture of tense, angry, and frustrated without a single word bubble needed.

The colorwork by Raul Angulo helps to make the visual effects feel alive. From the holograms to the robots and alien creatures the use of color gives the science fiction elements an otherworldly feel. This comes into play heavily later during the last few pages of the comic.

The lettering work by Ed Dukeshire helps to move the story along. Thanks to the change in panel layouts from page to page the lettering acts as a guidepost helping to direct the reader through the issue. Special care is paid to ensure the sound effects don’t distract the reader.

Conclusion

Power Rangers #1 is the other side of the power coin for the new direction the franchise is taking. The amount of action and drama contained in both series is more than enough to keep the readers engaged. Fans of the franchise should make sure to check it out because the internet will be talking about what happens moving forward.

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Marvel Comics Exclusive Preview: SPIDER-WOMAN #6

By

Anthony Composto - EIC

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November 12, 2020

marvel comics exclusive preview spider-woman #6

SPIDER-WOMAN #6 hits your local comic book store November 18th, but thanks to Marvel Comics, Monkeys Fighting Robots has an exclusive four-page preview for you.

About the issue:
ROAD TRIP…TO SPACE!

After learning some startling secrets about her family, Jess goes on a mission to find the one person who might know more…the High Evolutionary! But to do that, she’s going to have to go into space. And to do that, she’s going to need her good friend…

CAPTAIN MARVEL TEAM-UP TIME!!!

SPIDER-WOMAN #6 is by writer Karla Pacheco and artist Pere Pérez, with colors by Frank D’Armata, and letters by Travis Lanham. The cover is by Junggeun Yoon.

Jessica Drew was created by Archie Goodwin and Marie Severin. She is expected to co-star alongside other versions of Spider-Woman in an upcoming spin-off to Into the Spider-Verse.

Check out the SPIDER-WOMAN #6 preview below:

Are you reading SPIDER-WOMAN? Sound off in the comments!

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LOST SOLDIERS #4 (of 5) – The Loop Of The War Drum’s Tune Deafens

By

Jake Palermo

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Lost Soldiers #4 brings Ales Kot’s mini-series to its climax for this week’s release courtesy of Image Comics. The artwork by Luca Casalanguida displays a surreal grim-and-gritty situation that colors by Heather Marie Lawrence Moore make more terrifying. Aditya Bidikar further demonstrates this by showing how distant or smaller noises make more impact than direct actions.

Lost Soldiers #4: Looping The Signs

Ales Kot precedes the issue with a quote from Yuri Herrera’s Signs Preceding the End of the World. The novel details surviving in a violent world between US and Mexico borders while trying to bring back loved ones. The main conflict turns out to be how detached people become when they invest in that world. This translates well when it comes to the protagonist in Lost Soldiers #4. As the last issue demonstrates, he is so driven to hunt down his former squadmate he lost everything to that obsession.

That same former squadmate also can’t escape the Vietnam War; like the protagonist, the war has become his life, to the point of joining a drug cartel. But unlike the protagonist, the former squadmate is burned out by the battles and is genuinely tired of living. The only pleasure he gets from it now is the impressions he made on the protagonist. This brings out a genuine tragedy on both of these characters, which shows them shaped by war, but the war left them behind. Instead of affection, these characters could only communicate through conflict.

Art of War

Luca Casalanguida gives Lost Soldiers #4 a bleak atmosphere. Most of the scenes featuring the protagonist are in places full of shadow. This gives the protagonist a sense of being part of the shadows. Sometimes that’s taken to literal strides like when he appears behind his former squadmate like his own shadow. It demonstrates the dark place the protagonist is where he constantly chases a past event. Everything grinds to a halt when the page following this becomes pitch black, almost like everyone, including the reader, has been cut off from the protagonist.

The coloring by Heather Moore makes this illusionary feeling all the more apparent. The lighter colors of the setting look warm despite child gangsters holding rifles. But when that area is sprayed with red, the reader backs up as the splash page accompanying this blackens the area. Moore shows that the protagonist is not exactly comfortable in the shadows in a surreal flashback within Lost Soldiers #4. Within his hideaway, the protagonist experiences splotchy artwork in green and reds to reflect his Vietnam experiences. Often this gives way to hallucinations of him being back in Vietnam, almost like he’s in a neverending loop.

The Deadly Silence

Aditya Bidikar gives Lost Soldiers #4 a unique voice through a surprising lack of it. At the start, a sniper rifle and the reloading actions make noise. However, the noise can only be heard from a notable distance. People in the surrounding area hear it, but to anyone close is only a deafening silence. This repeats later where there are no wordmarks displaying gunfire or explosions. The protagonist and his former squadmate are used to it, but after the reader has been exposed to it all, silence remains. When the characters finally clash, readers have to read the white captions to know what happened. Because by this point, they’ve lost all connection to the protagonist.

Lost Soldiers #4 Readies One Last Tour

Before this mini-series closes out, readers see a protagonist from a safe distance because they’ve grown detached from the central conflict. Instead, they see two men clashing over practically nothing, and they know it. Lost Soldiers #4 isn’t even over yet, so will the protagonist finally get peace? Or will he just be stuck again for some meaning?

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RED MOTHER VOLUME 1: Beware, You Will Become Emotionally Invested

By

Jake Palermo

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Red Mother Volume 1 from Boom! Studios is out now, by writer Jeremy Haun, illustrator Danny Luckert, and letterer Ed Dukeshire. In it, a woman suffers a trauma that leads to a Lovecraft-esque encounter.

Red Mother Volume 1 Story

Trauma is at the heart of Red Mother, one that may just give a new definition to the phrase “seeing red.” The main character Daisy, lost both her boyfriend and her right eye to an otherworldly encounter. After losing a significant portion of her life, she goes through different forms of therapy. These treatments try to rationalize everything that’s happening to her, including seeing out where her eye used to be. Anyone familiar with these symptoms will likely try to find as much comfort as Daisy does. That is until they see the terrifying horror from the titular antagonist. What is this Red Mother’s motive, and what does a smiling figure have to do with it?

Art

Luckert inserts Red Mother Volume 1 with plenty of foreshadowing imagery. At the beginning of each chapter, the titular queen is forming without her right eye. The color red has a history in comics for signifying danger and its use throughout this trade reinforces that perception. Only Daisy isn’t letting her anger get the best of her despite the above phrase’s meaning. Rather seeing the world in red out of her missing eye has a dual meaning, one of frustration at not finding the answers she needs and a seductive calling towards Daisy. Given how frequently it appears and the fact that barely anyone reacts to Daisy’s panic with enough concern, it forces the reader to question who is trustworthy among Daisy’s peers.

Dukeshire uses lettering as he sees fit throughout Red Mother Volume 1. It’s very uniform, never going out of panel. Even the word marks that would shift out of normally seen boundaries are perfectly contained. In this case, it matches with the panels by Luckert. Everything seems fine and uniform like it’s all going according to the Red Mother’s design. Nothing that Daisy or any of her friends or potential helpers do seem to reach one another. It’s a transitional sense of isolation to a feeling of helplessness.

Get Hooked On Red Mother Volume 1

Red Mother Volume 1 is a puzzle that readers are encouraged to solve alongside the main character. With all of the back and forth moments where the reader feels the need to empathize with a woman in need, they emotionally invest in a great story—one where they might be compelled to seek out the next issue.

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Review: THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #52 – The Long-Anticipated Battle

By

David Weber

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In The Amazing Spider-Man #52, out now from Marvel Comics, the confrontation between Spider-Man and Kindred has arrived — a battle that has been set up over dozens of issues.

About the Book:
We all knew this day would come. As his friends rampage through the city streets after being infested with sin by the demon Kindred, Spider-Man makes his way to once and for all end the wicked demon. But is Spider-Man powerful enough to stop the magical foe?

The Amazing Spider-Man #52 Story

Nick Spencer’s long story finally reaches its climax in The Amazing Spider-Man #52, and it is easy to feel excited as the two foes clash. Spencer’s writing has done a remarkable job of building up to this moment, and it begins to pay off in this issue. Kindred is further characterized in this issue through some horrendous actions that cross a line many villains will not even go past. Kindred is vicious in the issue and maniacally toys with Peter’s emotions, making sense given the recent revelation about the character’s identity. In addition to the malevolent characterization of Kindred, this issue also features a shocking ending that leaves readers dying to purchase the next issue. Spencer is a master of writing serialized fiction and always knows how to make an ending leave the readers wanting more. Nearly every issue contains an example of this, and The Amazing Spider-Man #52 is one of the clearest cases.

Art

The art of Patrick Gleason is stunning in The Amazing Spider-Man #52. His spectacular forms bring the monumental battle between Kindred and Spider-Man to life and make the conflict feel truly epic. A wonderful part of the issue is that we can see more of the designs of Spider-Man’s friends while they are possessed. We had seen them on covers of issues, and we were able to see Silk in The Amazing Spider-Man #51, but we never saw drastic changes in most of the spider-powered heroes. That changes in this issue, where we see freakish versions of them all, and it is an utter delight.

Edgar Delgado’s coloring in The Amazing Spider-Man #52 is astounding. He uses a dark palette for the climactic battle, which perfectly fits the conflict’s tone and setting. As the setting changes in the issue, the palette does as well but can still retain the dark tone. Also, the backgrounds of many panels often have pleasant gradients that showcase Delgado’s talents exceptionally well.

The Amazing Spider-Man #52 has some brilliant lettering that adds to the work as a whole, thanks to VC’s Joe Caramagna. During the fight between Kindred and Spider-Man, sound effects are large, bold, and brightly colored, which does wonders to add to the battle’s intensity. The issue also features an uncommon use of lettering: as a means of censoring. The bold text overlaps an important action in the issue, which is a fantastic way to allow the reader to imagine the horrific image behind it. The lettering choice is similar to how the suspense in a horror tale is often more terrifying than the reveal, and it works phenomenally in the issue.

Conclusion

The Amazing Spider-Man #52 features the confrontation that Nick Spencer has been building towards for the entire series, and it does not disappoint. The art and coloring are astonishing, and the lettering considerably enhances the story. The ending is yet another brilliant cliffhanger that will leave you clambering to read the next issue.

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