Review: FREEDOM FIGHTERS #12 Achieves Victory on Earth X

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The Freedom Fighters’ Final Stand

The Freedom Fighters have pushed back against Hitler II’s regime since issue one of this series. As they assault the final stronghold of the Reich, the Fuhrer is killed by his psychotic son, Adolf III. To cover his escape, the young dictator sends his soldiers and Cyborg Overman to slow down the Fighters. Uncle Sam, feeling the spirit of freedom come across the land, becomes empowered enough to stand toe to toe with the robotic supervillain. While the Freedom Fighters are distracted, Adolf III activates his family’s last resort: a nuclear bomb. How will the Fighters save the day?

***Some Spoilers Below***

Story:

Uncle Sam continues to trade blows with Cyborg Overman as time continues to tick down on the bomb. It soon becomes apparent that the spirit of freedom in America has grown so strong that Sam is basically toying with the nazi. He soon puts down the superweapon and heroes off to find his team. The rest of the Freedom Fighters find Hitler’s inner sanctum and finds the remains of the Fuhrer. As Sam joins them, Adolf III sends them a message telling them of the nuclear bomb that will take out the mountain and surrounding area. With no other choice, the Human Bomb says them he will bury the bomb by blowing up the mountain, sacrificing himself.

The ending of the Freedom Fighters might feel off as a stand-alone issue. We just hop from each setting to the next so quickly that there isn’t much time to take in what’s happening during a first reading. When you take a second read, however, you get a large smile on your face. You see that the mission the Freedom Fighters has worked towards is finally over. You get a sense of hope that tyrants such as the Nazis can be overthrown if you have people who believe in freedom.

The biggest problem I have is the final two pages that we leave the story on. It involves tying up a loose end in an incredibly dark way. While justice is sweet, it would have been better if this story ended on that idea of hope that the Fighters pushed for all this time. It’s not enough to ruin the story, but it could have left us on a lighter note.

Art:

The art might not be as spectacular as the last issue, but still had some jaw-dropping visuals. They continue to provide dark and epic panels genuinely fitting to the world of the Freedom Fighters. Readers will be able to feel each blow during the battle and the horror of the final two pages. The best looking piece, however, comes in the continuously excellent character design. We are left with the reveal of three new heroes that help finish the fight, and while I won’t spoil, it certainly fills readers with hope. Eddy Barrows did a fantastic job this whole run and deserved all the praise he gets.

Conclusion:

Freedom Fighters was a series that nobody asked for but deserves to be recognized. This group of C-List heroes provides twelve issues of kick-ass, nazi fighting action, and adventure to gaze upon. The art team takes the story further by providing us with a dark, gritty look at this world. While I would have preferred a lighter ending, I won’t lie when I say that this issue was damn near the perfect. If you have a chance to pick up this series in a collected format, I highly recommend it. Freedom Fighters forever.

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Graphic Novel Review: HA.I.LEY is Claustrophobic Maze of A.I. Horror

By

Justin Munday

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From writer Shane Riches and artist Jared Barel comes an intense sci-fi thriller in the form of hA.I.ley. Equal parts Black Mirror and Play Misty For Me, hA.I.ley is a sharp and highly engrossing tale of cybernetic terror coupled with human flaws.

A husband and wife fight for their survival after he has an affair with a cutting-edge, housekeeping A.I. whose obsessive software calculates that it must purge the family. The encroaching, parental dread of A Quiet Place sliced with the technological fear and paranoia of Ex Machina with a new breed of monster — a lethal, hi-tech physical threat who also controls all things digital. Sold as the ultimate household aid, the dream becomes a nightmare. Coded. Driven. Unrelenting.

Writing & Plot

Shane Riches’ script is adorned with stellar pacing from beginning to end, entwined with natural dialogue and fantastic twists. The steady build-up in this graphic novel is unnerving and taut with tension from the moment the first warning signs show that this A.I. is a bit too good at its job. This book intelligently sidesteps the often tack trope of “technology is bad” warning signs and instead focuses on human nature and fallibility. Everything from the corrupt CEO over hA.I.ley’s creation to the easily preyed upon vices of the husband that serves as the protagonist are appropriately frustrating to witness and serve as nice foreshadowing fuel. The latter third of this book seems to flash by as the climax hits and the plot’s intensity reaches top-dead-center. It’s a fantastic ride of helpless terror that culminates in one of the best last-page twists in recent comics memory. All of the ingredients found in hA.I.ley, from the unpredictable A.I. to a stagnated marriage, have been seen in abundance in this genre. While Riches doesn’t necessarily do anything incredibly new with these ingredients, he still manages to make a serious impression on the genre.

Art Direction

The hybrid digital and photo-realistic art of Jared Barel likely wouldn’t work in most comics. Fortunately, it works great for a story like this. The articulated realism and detail in the human (and non-human) characters makes them more easily identifiable than in most other examples of the medium. Facial expressions are realistic almost to the point of eerieness. Speaking of eerie, the color choices tend to stick to a dark overtone, as if everything is constantly draped in some form of shadow. This could be completely coincidental or serve to parallel the ever-presence of the hA.I.ley A.I. Regardless, it bolsters the book’s tone fantastically. Barel’s art is perfect for this sort of close-quarters character-driven sci-fi thriller.

HA.I.ley is a smart and riveting science-fiction thriller in every regard. Shane Riches manages to take familiar genre tropes and capitalize on what makes them compelling while stripping away some of the more antiquated fat. Jared Barel’s unique art style capitalizes on the plot and adds to the tone with both believable and unnerving character art and a darkened color palette. This graphic novel from publisher Paper Movies is a highly entertaining experience of cinematic proportions. Pick it up online or order it from your local comic shop today!

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THE MAGNIFICENT MS. MARVEL #11 Is Kamala’s Breaking Point

By

Samuel Pratt

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Out on January 8th from Marvel Comics, The Magnificent Ms. Marvel #11 tests the limits of our young hero with this crazy new foe.

The last few issues have been vicious for Kamala. With her father still under the knife, and having just kissed Bruno, fighting Supervillains is only adding to the high-stress levels. Still, our hero pushes onward to do the right thing as that’s just what heroes do.

Kamala’s newest foe, the Stormranger suit, her own Kree super suit, is now trying to kill Hyde, the villain she just subdued. The Stormranger appears almost like a dark side to Kamala, taking on her appearance with an electric blue and white aesthetic, and a face lacking in human features. This design drives home the theme that Kamala is fighting herself this arc as Stormranger may represent the hurtles that have piled up in front of her.

As far as evil parallels go, I like Stormranger’s look a lot. It’s eerie and kind of reminds me of old weird Fighting Game alternate colors

When Kamala first obtained the suit, it was very quickly compared to a Symbiote for many apparent reasons. The suit seemed sentient; it consists of Kree nano-tech, letting it be on Kamala at all times and appear onto her when needed. The suit seemed to enhance Kamala’s capabilities in many ways and saved her from a few hard situations in previous issues.

Watching the suit turn on Kamala when she refuses to let it kill Hyde is an interesting direction for Saladin Ahmed to take. Some might see it being too close to the classic Symbiote arc represented in previous Spider-Man media.

The suit hasn’t been around very long but so it seems like it’s been pushing Ms. Marvel on this from the start. Kind of fitting since it’s a warrior’s uniform

That being said, the execution of this idea is still fairly well handled. The focus of this issue seems to be pushing Kamala to her limits, as has been the theme of this story arc. The Stormranger suit embodies this last struggle Kamala has in front of her to overcome and move forward.

During the fight, Kamala monologues a lot about fighting the “worst version” of ourselves and the difficulty of it. What’s interesting is given the context where Kamala has consistently spoken ill of herself for doing heroics when she feels she should be at the hospital with her mom and brother. The fact that she is literally fighting her costume, it feels like Kamala is calling Ms. Marvel the worst part of herself.

We’ve seen Kamala struggle with her dual identity before, and even give up the mask entirely. What seems different this time is she is continuing the fight anyway. Kamala might not be happy about it, but she’s choosing to push on through this despite knowing what it means to her family. She’s doing this now because there’s no one else who can.

Minkyu Jung’s style complements the Stormranger’s design well, giving it these ghastly details from it’s floaty apparition-like shape and hair to its face consisting of eyes and a mask and not much else. Pairing with Ian Herring’s coloring, accenting these vibrant blues with white hair and metallic armoring gives it a haunting appearance that feels classically “evil-alter-ego.”

This panel is so good. The Embiggening, the proportions, the clashing colors, it really looks like a showdown between Ms. Marvel and evil Ms. Marvel

This story is presented to us in a very fast-paced way. Kamala is continuously trying to get away from Stormranger to bring Hyde somewhere it can’t get to him. The pacing adds to the stress of the situation, and Kamala’s rushed thinking is well represented in VC’s Joe Caramagna’s lettering.

From start to finish, The Magnificent Ms. Marvel #11 tells a story of a hero at her limits. Kamala’s been stressed, beaten down, electrocuted nearly to death, and is still pressing on despite her circumstances and trying everything she can to make it all work out. This issue is the embodiment of these themes and shows us the very limits of what Kamala can take and an ending that will leave you in shock.

The Magnificent Ms. Marvel is growing more enjoyable as this story continues. Finding itself more and more as the issues progress, #11 seems to be the highlight of the arc so far, and there’s still more we are dying to find out.

Most importantly, will Kamala’s catch a break? Will her father survive? Will something happen between her and Bruno? We still have so many questions that have to be put off while this is all going on. What do you think the outcome of these questions is? Let us know down below!

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Graphic Novel Review: OVER MY DEAD BODY Is A Pulpy Good Time

By

Brandon Mudd

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If one were to mix classic pulp-fiction noir with modern headlines, the result would look like Over My Dead Body. The graphic novel from Image Comics written by Jay Faerber and drawn by Simone Guglielmini has the beats of a Raymond Chandler novel moving at a faster pace with less introspection and more beating up bad guys.

The story starts with master assassin Markham from the creative team’s Near Death series going before the parole board with a story of redemption and a desire to do better. Despite the support of the institution’s warden, Markham’s request is denied. Over the course of a year, we see our hero continue his quest to defend those needing it while maintaining his promise never again to take a life.

(Bank Robbing 101. You’re welcome, kids!)

With his next parole hearing coming up, the warden, Kurt Morris, asks Markham for help recovering his daughter, who has fallen in with a former inmate now affiliated with a White Supremacist cell in the middle of nowhere. Using his influence, Morris convinces the board to take a sizeable bribe to spring Markham with our newly-freed hero making good on his word to bring Daddy’s little girl home.

I love old-school detective books with Phillip Marlowe being at the top of my list. The story is from Markham’s perspective and feels like a modernized Marlowe, complete with the self-deprecation and run-ins, team-ups, and falling-outs with law enforcement. Markham realizes quickly this is more than just a group of racist separatists and doomsday preppers; they have a legitimate plan to undermine the United States government.

What might otherwise be a done-by-numbers, A-to-B action thriller in the vein of John Wick flies off the rails repeatedly thanks to Faerber’s inspired plot twists and feints to the right while driving to the left. Making the story more compelling is subtle humor and Markham’s quick thinking in the face of forces out to get him from every direction.

Faerber’s list of credentials and accolades are in-depth and earned. It’s easy to write a lazy, trope-filled script for a story like this, and while some beats feel familiar, OMDB makes them feel new with inspired writing. Guglielmini resumes his work with Faerber and Markham providing flawless pencils for Faerber’s story of a hitman with a heart. It’s raw, but has a sense of refined urgency. His pencils give the reader the feeling this is a story he needed to draw into life. Gigi Baldassini’s inks are heavy and thick and perfect for the tale being told, providing dramatic shadows underscoring the noir tone of the story.

The coloring by Ron Riley is muted and dark but manages to pop off the page, especially during the action sequences. The feel of impending danger at every turn is evident with his palette. Pritchett’s lettering is very good, standing out in concert with the other creators’ contributions.

Over My Dead Body is fun. That’s an odd descriptor for a story filled with murder and White Supremacists, but it fits. The plot never slows, able to move quickly due to its lack of fat, with an ending that satisfies, teasing new adventures. It’s a graphic novel made for crime buffs, but one attractive to fans of superhero titles as well.

Was Over My Dead Body a worthy addition to the Near Death universe? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below!

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SABAN’S GO GO POWER RANGERS #27 Catches Us Up Almost Entirely

By

Samuel Pratt

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GGPR 27 Feature — Cover by Eleonora Carlini. IT'S SO HYPE!

Out this week from BOOM! Studios, Saban’s Go Go Power Rangers, finishes up our “White Light” retelling in this exciting issue!

Ryan Parrott and Sina Grace’s twist on the inception of the White Ranger has been a fun ride so far. The story has explored the time period Tommy was powerless with more depth and presents this journey for him becoming a Ranger again. Going further than even that, Parrott and Grace address even minor details that bothered fans years after the two-part episode’s conclusion.

A showdown we’ve only seen once before. But now we get it early!

What we get is a proper introduction to the White Ranger, showing us a little of where this power came from and why it exists. Saba is a welcomed return to the cast also since his shocking demise by Lord Drakkon in the alternate timeline.

Also appreciated is Parrott and Grace’s handling of Tommy becoming the new team leader. In the show, it was just mentioned, and Jason’s character was pushed to the side immediately. Here, however, Tommy is hesitant about taking on the role in the comic and feels he’s not ready for it. This is consistent with the sibling comic Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. As there Tommy has spoken to the Red Omega Ranger about being the leader of a team, and if he’s really the right one for the job.

With the “White Light” story coming to a close, there are few things left to catch the story up almost entirely with where Mighty Morphin Power Rangers started in the “Necessary Evil” arc. The only things left to cover really are the creation of the Omega Rangers team and the introduction of Rocky, Adam, and Aisha.

With a clear end in sight, unfortunately, it does not seem like Go Go and Might Morphin will be crossing over to the crazy capacity that they did back in the “Shattered Grid” story arc. Still, having each comic present different narratives on the same story is fun to read and worth keeping up with week to week.

The Thunder-Megazord sustaining a but kicking from the Scarlet Sentinel and his drones AC and DC.

The advantages to this style is mostly that the story in the present can maintain its narrative without having to flash back to details from the past. BOOM! Studios’ team has done a phenomenal job overseeing the continuity between the two series is consistent, and it has resulted in some amazing crossover moments for comic history.

Needless to say, the artwork for this series is still nothing short of breathtaking. This issue’s cover by Eleonora Carlini is actually my favorite so far this arc. Aesthetically I usually prefer the style in Go Go Power Rangers as it resembles styles in modern-day cartoons like Voltron: Legendary Defender. Francesco Mortarino has been an outstanding artist in this series.

From character art to Megazord designs, every panel has me swooning over how good it looks. I even look at the Ranger’s casual outfits and think about how well put together they are and fitting for their characters. Of course, the colors by Raúl Angulo only make the pages even more amazing.

Probably the last time we’ll see Tommy wearing Green. This scene was a lot like when he fought Goldar without powers just against a tougher opponent and not a lot of hope that he’ll win the fight…

Ed Dukeshire really brings out Tommy’s character in his lettering, giving so much emphasis on his karate cries. Phonetically spelling out his famous “SI-AAYAH!” really brings these pages to life.

With the end potentially insight for the “Necessary Evil” arc, there’s a lot to wonder what this means for the story moving forward. This arc has introduced a dramatic change in the cast with the possible departure of some fan favorites from the series as a whole. No one wants to say goodbye to characters they’ve invested into, but at least Jason Zack and Trini seem to be getting a proper send-off this time.

With the progression of the story, this also begs the question of if the series move into additional seasons of the franchise. Mighty Morphin Power Rangers is easily the most recognizable of the shows seasons, and as such, it might be a dicey decision to go into Power Rangers Zeo from there.

Time will tell how the series goes from here. Still, we look forward to the future as each issue brings us closer and closer to the answers we’re looking for. Overall, Go Go Power Rangers #27 is an excellent way to bring us into unknown territory and wraps introduces the White Ranger with just as much impact as my childhood remembers.

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The Past And Future Collide in WRETCHES #3

By

Jason Jeffords Jr

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Shea and Sean’s bloody past rears its nasty head into the present as multiple storylines begin to converge on January 29th in Scout Comics’ WRETCHES #3.

Wretches #3 process by Salo Farias — Art by Salo Farias

It may have only been a week, but if you need to catch up on our previous Wretches review, check them out here. Plus, make sure you grab issue three at your local comic shop or Scout Comics website when it drops.

THE PAST AND PRESENT OF WRETCHES

Writer, James E Roche starts Wretches #3 in the past with a quick introduction to the siblings as kids. Yet, he doesn’t tell the tale linearly. Instead, he switches between the past and present while changing characters in between. During the past, we learn of the sibling’s parents and their hatred of bots. Plus, an introduction to what may be the “big bad” guy/Bot.

However, this usage of multiple stories in different places and times work perfectly in the story’s favor. Roche never lingers too long on a singular story beat; rather he spotlights each equally while teasing more. Luckily, in the present, we are shown Shea engaging in badassery—what we’ve all been clamoring for. During this, Roche sews the seeds of distrust between her and Burr. Nonetheless, they have a common goal. Said goal of making it to a Bot encampment.

The most substantial part of Roche’s multiple storytelling direction is him making them all lead up to one point. That and how each story seems to have a revelation that helps drive the characters and plot forward. Handling one storyline alone is hard, yet three interesting ones at the same time in an issue is a huge task.

ART WITH STYLE

Thus far, Wretches has had fantastic art, with Salo Farias raising the bar with issue three, and his panel design. Farias forgoes the employment of usual white boxed panels and instead relies on the environment. During a simultaneous storytelling element Farias’ uses an interesting layout. In this simultaneous moment, a vertical line dissects the two stories, the further down the line goes, the more left it strays. This makes certain panels larger than others, working out phenomenally.

Although multiple pages are worth noting, they run in spoiler territory, but one more warrants a mention. During an execution line-up, Farias moves the angle around, so you never see the deaths. Nonetheless, you feel each due to Chas! Pangburn’s sound effects. Said “camera” movement is executed magnificently and hits harder than showing the actual killings.

Wretches #3’s action scenes hit harder while appearing more brutal, which can be attributed to Chunlin Zhao’s colors. When the violence kicks in, Farias’ imagery portrays a hyper-violence that sends shivers up your spine. Then Zhao’s colors amplify the pain even more. Not being content with a single color background, Zhao uses a different shade around the impact, showing its intensity. These bone-crushing moments are made more impactful by the technique Zhao employs.

Pangburn continues to bring his A-game. This can be seen in the execution line-up and scattered throughout Wretches #3. Unlike the previous issues, there aren’t any aliens, so Pangburn isn’t given a chance to change the fonts in that way. Yet, he still plays around with styles when characters talk in different demeanors. Especially when a character screams, Pangburn makes sure you hear them.

CONCLUSION

As amazing as the revelations in Wretches #3 story are, the visual team really shined throughout. While reading Wretches in succession, it feels as if the team as come into complete unison in their third issue. This can be seen throughout in the fantastic pages that adorn Wretches #3.

Cover Story: The most amazing thing about Wretches #3’s cover is how comic accurate it is. Everything that is shown on the cover happens in the interior. Usually, comic covers show something flashy that will sell copies. Instead, they do that while showing what happens inside.

Wretches #3's great cover. — Art by Salo Farias. Color by Ander Zarate.

DEAR READER

Only two issues of Wretches remain following the third. What have you thought so far of the sibling’s tale?

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Exclusive Marvel Comics Preview: CAPTAIN MARVEL #14

By

Matthew Sardo

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January 16, 2020

Captain Marvel #14 hits your local comic book store on January 22, but thanks to Marvel Comics, Monkeys Fighting Robots has a three-page preview for you to check out.

The book is written by Kelly Thompson, with art by Lee Garbett, the color artist is Tamra Bonvillain, and you will read Clayton Cowles letters. Mark Brooks created the cover.

About Captain Marvel #14:

“THE LAST AVENGER” PART 3: DESPERATE MEASURES
Two down. But time is running out, and there are Avengers left to kill. Can Captain Marvel finish off her former friends before the clock runs down – and all is lost?

Do you have Captain Marvel on your pull list, what do you think of “THE LAST AVENGER” storyline? Comment below with your thoughts.

Exclusive Marvel Comics Preview: CAPTAIN MARVEL #14

Roy Thomas and Gene Colan created Carol Danvers; her first appearance was Marvel Super-Heroes #13 (March 1968).

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Review: It’s the End of All Worlds as We Know them in VENOM: THE END

By

David DeCorte

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As the name implies, Venom: The End, out this week from Marvel Comics, gives us a glimpse into a bleak inevitability.

The alien symbiotes have been an integral component of the Marvel universe for decades. What happens, though, when the host of a theoretically-immortal symbiote ages and dies? What happens to the original Venom symbiote one hundred years into the future? Or a thousand? Or a billion? Who can play host to the symbiote, when there’s no one left?

The Writing

Venom: The End opens far in the distant future, during the last battle between bio-organisms and machines. It’s a battle we’re told up front that organic life will lose. From that cheery point in time, we jump back to see how the Venom symbiote became the last defender of life in the universe.

Writer Adam Warren offers up a taste of what the far-flung future may hold for the Marvel Universe. The book establishes Venom as not just an alien, but a creature capable of being a god unto itself. By book’s end, that’s what he becomes, in multiple different capacities. Warren runs with the concept of the symbiote codices that were integral to last year’s Absolute Carnage event, giving Venom a window to potentially channel just about any life form that’s ever existed.

Venom: The End is a fairly dark vision. We see Eddie Brock’s deterioration over centuries as the symbiote tries in vain to stave off the inevitable. This same cycle repeats through the ages, with the symbiote always left behind by its host. Despite the heavy theme, there’s still a sense of humor, and even hopefulness, that shines through at points.

The book is a fascinating, high-concept story. It’s main obstacle, though, is its own scope. The storytelling is mostly expository, explaining how Venom survives through the ages. Because it covers so much ground, it’s not exceptionally engaging. The narrative’s format forces Warren to forego much of the detail that typically constitutes a narrative. Warren has to devote more time to extended techno-babble to justify how this all works out than he does constructing the dynamics of the story. As a result, it ends up feeling more like a synopsis.

To illustrate, compare Venom: The End to another Marvel title out this week, Spider-Man: The Black Cat Strikes #1. The former is a cosmic-level epic spanning the universe across hundreds of billions of years, while the latter is a much smaller, street-level story. However, Black Cat Strikes feels more compelling, because we’re engaged with the characters in the details of the narrative.

The Artwork

The artwork, courtesy of Jeffrey “Chamba” Cruz, possesses a free-flowing and chaotic energy. The artist goes for creative page layouts, often designed to evoke the theme of the narrative behind presented. It’s solid on a frame-by-frame basis, with some genuinely-stunning moments at points. Venom, being the main fixture of the book, has an appealing design, and Cruz gets to unleash his imagination with many of the space settings.

The artwork in Venom: The End has plenty of energy. Overall, though, there’s little “flow” holding the book together, and Cruz’s maximal approach of packing each page with visual information accentuates that trait.

This isn’t entirely Cruz’s fault; the limitations imposed by the story’s structure and scope make it difficult to create a fully-cohesive vision for the book. That said, when every page overloads the reader with visual information, it becomes difficult to focus on any one element. As a result, there are few moments which really arrest the reader’s attention.

Guru-eFX (a two-person team of Joe Weltjens and Lee Duhig) provides the colors for the book. While they have an almost-too-sleek, digital aesthetic, the work is still nicely detailed. Soft, ethereal blues and alien purples dominate the book, which give it a nice, spacey effect.

Final Thoughts

Venom: The End could have been a fantastic story for a mini- or maxiseries format. As a one-shot, though, there’s just not enough room to flesh out Warren’s vision. While it’s a good outline, this book could use more space to breathe.

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Graphic Novel Review: HIS NAME IS…SAVAGE

By

Justin Munday

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Veteran writer Steven Grant teams with artist Jesus A. Hernandez Portaveritas to bring back a spy story over half a century in the making. Grant’s continuation of the late Gil Kane’s graphic novel His Name Is…Savage via publisher Paper Movies is a thrill ride of firefights, explosions, absurdly badass escapes and left-hook betrayals. While none of it exactly charts new territory for the genre, it’s enough of a thrill to please even the most jaded of graphic novel and espionage fans alike.

Savage, the ultimate spy and de facto enforcer reining in the intelligence community’s illegal excesses, is framed by an international criminal cabal and on the run from the very government he’s sworn to protect. Savage is considered so dangerous — so violent — that his name and record are stricken from the books. Only to be turned loose when there is no other choice, Savage is the original anti-hero — the cure that could be worse than the disease.

Writing & Plot

Steven Grant‘s script is a tightly constructed web of shady suit-wearing villains, murky backstory, and of course lots of explosions. Savage’s one-man war against the corrupt shadow of his once-corrupt former employers is a compelling, if not familiar, globetrotting romp of clues, betrayals, and bullets. The action scenes are always well-timed and actually add to the plot’s growing complexity. The cast of untrustable suits that intermittently hunt down or support Savage are many, but they surprisingly aren’t too confusing to keep apart. The cast fortunately thins as the book progresses, as one might imagine. The dialogue is a neat mix of sharply delivered exposition and clever quips. While exposition is often delivered in ways that bog down the plot, Grant finds a way to deliver information in a well-paced and believable manner. A specific aspect of the story that may bother some but thrill others is Savage’s over-the-top skill and complete badassery. Some of the escapes and tricks that he uses to pull off daring maneuvers are so completely overpowered it’s genuinely hilarious. Personally, I found this wildly endearing and had a blast with this specific aspect. However, there could definitely be some whose suspension of disbelief can only go so far. Savage’s only real characteristics are his objective morality about corruption and his insane ability to kill people. For this type of graphic novel, this is completely okay in my book.

Art Direction

The pencils provided by Jesus Antonio Hernandez Portaveritas are sold, but unfortunately a bit of a mixed bag in the latter half of the novel. The character art ranges from a stellar sharpness at its best to distractingly rushed at worst. Environmental detail is fine when focusing on the centers of panels, but is often unimpressive upon further scrutiny. It’s possible that the art here was actually rushed at some point due to the art’s inconsistency in the back half, but that’s only speculation. It’s completely serviceable overall. Raul Manriquez’s colors are what may really save the art here. The range used in the palette is expansive, from dull greys used in flashbacks to the vivid colors of urban environments and explosions. The coloring in Savage is fantastic and multilayered, giving serious depth and pop to the visuals as a whole.

His Name Is… Savage is an engaging blast of a spy story. Steven Grant’s grasp of maintaining a complex but easy to follow plot that’s fun and fast-paced is truly impressive. While the artistic integrity of the book is a bit inconsistent pencil-wise, the colors add a massive flair to the visuals that make this graphic novel a true joy to read. While this book doesn’t do anything new with the genre, it still pulls off classic tropes damn well. If this kind of ride piques your interest, order it online or through your local comic shop today!

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AfterShock Comics Exclusive Preview: UNDONE BY BLOOD #1

By

Anthony Composto - EIC

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January 16, 2020

undone by blood exclusive preview aftershock comics

UNDONE BY BLOOD (OR THE SHADOW OF A WANTED MAN) #1 hits your local comic book store February 12th, but thanks to AfterShock Comics, Monkeys Fighting Robots has an exclusive four-page preview for you.

About the issue:
In the early 1970s, Ethel Grady Lane returns to her hometown of Sweetheart, Arizona with one thing on her mind: killing the man who murdered her family. But first, she’ll have to find him.

As Ethel navigates the eccentric town and its inhabitants, she learns that the quaint veneer hides a brewing darkness. She has no choice but to descend into a ring of depravity and violence, with her only ally an Old West novel that follows famed gunslinger Solomon Eaton. As both stories unfold simultaneously, a love of fiction informs choices in reality, for better or worse. 

From the minds of Lonnie Nadler and Zac Thompson (The Dregs, X-Men, HER INFERNAL DESCENT) and artist Sami Kivela (Abbot, Tommy Gun Wizards) comes a neo-western that depicts the hard truth of seeking vengeance in the real world.

UNDONE BY BLOOD #1 is by writers Lonnie Nadler and Zac Thompson and artist Sami Kivela, with colors by Jason Wordie, and letters by Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou. The cover is by Kivela and Wordie, with the incentive variant by Andrew Robinson.

Between their indie work and their work on Marvel’s X-Men books, Thompson and Nadler are setting themselves up to be one of the premiere writing duos of the forthcoming decade. Kivela, meanwhile, has a gritty yet modern style that looks perfect for the neo-western world of UNDONE BY BLOOD, and Wordie’s beautiful colors in the preview below are comparable to the work Jacob Phillips is currently doing on Criminal. Otsmane-Elhaou is no stranger to western work himself, having excellently lettered the most recent Lone Ranger comic for Dynamite.

All in all, with a team like this, you’re going to want to add UNDONE BY BLOOD #1 to your pull list. Plus it has a subtitle! Who doesn’t love a comic with a subtitle?

Check out the UNDONE BY BLOOD #1 preview below:

What’s your favorite book written by Thompson and Nadler? Sound off in the comments!

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