ALL-NEW ALL STAR RECOMMENDS #6:
STAY AWAY COMIC BOOK DAY BONANZA 2022
Hello and welcome to yet another annual
edition of All Star Recommends Free Comic Book Day Bonanza. Of course again
this year, the team will be running the event virtually as Stay Away Free Comic Book
Day - meaning that you’ll need to make your careful selections online via the
website.
This worked a treat last year, so don’t be
discouraged, and there’s a LOT to get excited about in this line up for 2022.
For further instructions on ordering, please
see here:
https://allstarcomics.com.au/collections/stay-away-free-comic-book-day-2022
Below, you’ll find reviews of every single
title All Star has available for you this year and, as mentioned above, this is
a strong line-up of titles.
Ratings are as follows:
A - All Ages
N/R - Not rated
T- Teen
M - Mature
Thanks for reading and for supporting the
store. I know the gang values you all as customers and do their best to ensure
that this event is as amazing as they can possibly make it year in and year
out.
Enjoy!
AVATAR:
THE LAST AIRBENDER / THE LEGEND OF KORRA
(Dark Horse) (A)
Once again, I still have no idea about either
of Avatar: The Last Airbender and The legend of Korra. You think I would after
reading numerous FCBD efforts featuring both properties, but here we are.
Another year, no new knowledge. Sorry. I do maintain, however, that the whole
point of FCBD is to not just service existing readers of the medium, but to
bring new ones in. I, old snooty reviewer person, have issues with just how
many comics based on properties from other mediums not only exist, but are part
of a day that celebrates what is, in my opinion, the single greatest
storytelling medium we humans have ever come up with.
In short, “Does this stand on its own?” is a
question foremost in my mind every year when preparing these things.
Dark Horse brings us a preview of the
forthcoming all ages graphic novel, Aang’s Unfreezing Day, a story about
Airbender Aang as a young boy and the lengths those who care for him go to in
order to ensure his “ unfreezing day” (or birthday) is full of fun and
surprises. Kelly Leigh Miller writes and Diana Sim with Christianne
Gillenardo-Goudreau illustrates this lively little number. It’s accessible and
attractively cartooned. Whether its narrative hooks dig in enough for you to be
gasping to get the whole book in July, I can’t really say. However, this is a
really good little slice of comics for kids - clean, open pages, an easily
understandable plot with a relatable protagonist. That’s good enough for a
thumbs up.
Fast forward here to The Legend of Korra,
where all the Airbender characters are much older and writer/artist Meredith
McClaren provides some pretty distinctive artwork in the story “Beach Wars.” A
friendly but spirited chat about past pranks by “the grandmas,” (at least one
of whom we meet as a little girl in the preceding story) leads to an assemblage
of descendants taking sides and preparing for a prank war at the beach.
This needs much more room to breathe, but man,
are McClaren’s super thicc lines something to see. This is some really
attractively chonks artwork and should be sought out for that alone even if,
like me, you cannot name all characters and have no real idea what’s going on.
AVENGERS
/ X-MEN / ETERNALS: JUDGMENT DAY (Marvel) (T)
An absolutely cracking prologue to the
forthcoming Judgement Day event kicks off Marvel’s first FCBD offering of 2022.
Kieron Gillen writes and Dustin Weaver draws this pretty compelling kick-off,
“Of Deviation and Mutation.” I’ll not spoil much here other than to say, if
Eternals are driven to exterminate “excess deviation” just how would they feel
about the recent X-happenings on the island of Krakoa? Gillen cleverly creates
a historical precedent for the slaughter of monkeys who showed mutation a
million years back creating a logical reason as to why this modern powderkeg of
mutant-Eternal relations will explode. Dustin Weaver turns in some really
great, incredibly detailed pages. This is hands-down the best kick-off to a Marvel
event I’ve seen in an FCBD ever. Civil War II FCBD, you are finally forgiven
and may rest in peace.
A few pages from Bloodline: Daughter of Blade
follows and what comes up must come down I suppose. Danny Lore is the writer
here and is paired with artist Karen S. Darboe for four pages of comics
previewing this latest legacy character.
Bringing us home is a strong X-Men short by
writer Gerry Duggan and artist Matteo Lolli that sows seeds all over the place
- for the upcoming Hellfire Gala X-event and the titular Judgment Day
crossover. “Let’s Talk About Krakoa” brings new readers immediately up to speed
with one of those text pages that Jonathan Hickman made such a staple of the
X-titles. Duggan presents a great bit of foreshadowing as well as backstory
here that should leave many a Marvel fan desperate to know what comes next.
With a cracking opener and a really strong
closer, the flat middle section of Judgment Day is easily forgiven. Overall:
terrific, compelling, attractively illustrated superhero comics.
BARBARIC
#1 (Vault) (T)
Packed with dismemberment, cursing and
smatterings of nudity, I’m a little surprised that Barbaric comes with the same
rating as the Archie comic coming up. To be clear, I have no issues with a
teenager picking this up at all – my 4 year old was obsessed with Man-Thing
comics when he was eighteen months – I’m just pointing out that some parents
MIGHT.
Anyhoo, there’s a full page at the rear
of this that boasts of numerous 10/10 ratings for Michael Moreci and Nathan
Gooden’s work and here is your reminder to be wary of “critical” reviews always
– and this includes the ramblings of yours truly that attempt to pass as such.
The bones of something great are here – a
horrible, Conan-esque barbarian cursed by witches to kill only bad people, a
blood-drunk battle ax that talks to him, some pretty dynamic art highlighted by
an absolutely ripping image of hell, a heavy metal vibe, some really
interesting colour choices. But, I don’t know. It feels a bit like poor man’s
Pat Mills to me. Slaine-lite. It’s absolutely stuffed with expository dialogue
and narration, likely to get all that backstory out of the way before amping
the carnage up even further as quickly as possible.
I do expect, however, that I’ll be in the
minority here and many will wonder why and why I’m being such a stuffed shirt
about something so fun. I do appreciate the enthusiasm with which the creators
are approaching this, and Gooden is one to keep your eye on, for sure.
Recommended for those who value frenetic, bloody action above all else. If this
is you – you’ll likely have a blast with Barbaric.
THE
BEST ARCHIE COMIC EVER! #0 (Archie Comics) (T)
Props to (presumably) Jamie Lee Rotante
and the rest of Archie’s editorial team for thinking outside the box for their
FCBD 2022 offering. The Best Archie Comic Ever! #0 is jam-packed with stories
and creators. However, instead of presenting short, distinct slices from titles
such as The Best Archie Comic Ever!, Archie’s Holiday Magic, Chilling
Adventures in Sorcery and Archie: Love & Heartbreak, readers are given a
cleverly stitched together single-issue that functions excellently as an
introduction to not just the various comics spruiked, but also the characters
themselves.
Presented by six writers and five
artists, and narrated by Archie Andrews himself, The Best Archie Comic Ever! #0
skips around in time and place and but feels remarkably whole, the seams only
showing in a few spots. The Best Archie Comic Ever! Promises to be a romp
through various alternate universes. Archie’s Holiday Magic gives us the Archie
crew as kids. Archie: Love & Heartbreak, as the title suggests, leans
toward romance and Chilling Adventures in Sorcery ups the spooks in a more
kid-friendly way than, say, The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina or Afterlife
With Archie, titles you are probably more than familiar with already. And of
course, all the oversized anthologies these snippets originate from are
available now depending on your own particular story leanings.
This was a pleasant surprise. Too often
FCBD books are just marketing tools with little thought given to content other
than to pimp the product. The Best Archie Comic Ever! #0 is a terrific
exception to this, generous in quality content, satisfyingly whole and leaving
readers with no doubt as to where and what they can go to next.
BEST OF
2000AD (Rebellion) (T+)
Ahead of the new quarterly, Best of 2000AD,
comes this wonderful bite-sized version of the upcoming format. A clever
repackaging of classic 2000AD fare with brand new material exclusive to the
volumes, each Best of 2000AD will feature a brand-new Judge Dredd story, a
classic Judge Dredd story and a complete graphic novel-sized volume
cherry-picked from the decades long history of the title.
For Free Comic Book Day, the folks at Rebellion
give you a brand new short Dredd story, “Hard Talk” by Al Ewing and artist V.V.
Glass, a slice of classic Nemesis The Warlock, “The Terror Tube” by Pat Mills
and artist Kevin O’Neill, another classic short (that I’ve never heard of
before), John Wagner and Mick McMahon’s “Superbean,” a brand new Future Shock
twister, “Journey To The Edge of The Earth” written and drawn by Chris Burnham
and two single-page comics, “Mr. Meat Bingo’s Zombie Umbrella” by an creator
whose work I’ve grown to just adore over the last few years, Henry Flint, and,
plucked from the archives, “D.R &
Quinch’s Agony Page” by Jamie Delano and Alan Davis.
Whatta line-up.
I spent much of the pandemic revisiting
material from 2000AD and becoming quite reinvested in the product. There is so
much quality on offer, not just in the form of the classics but also much of
the newer work. This Best of 2000AD sampler skews heavily toward the satirical
end of the material (I’m more partial these days to the less “funny”,
straighter works) so if stories about Dredd taking on a right-wing TV pundit
based on Nigel Farage, or Wagner and McMahon’s story about a superhero
that’s literally a vegetable don’t quite
click for you; don’t worry - there’s far more to 2000AD than goofy parody and
ironic story climaxes. Having said that, if you *do* enjoy those things, man,
is this the comic for you.
Best of 2000AD Free Comic Book Day is an
absolute must get - free classic O’Neill, McMahon. Free new Burnham and Ewing.
I mean, from a creator standpoint, this thing is loaded. I believe there’s six
200 page volumes of the main title to come. With all things Dredd and 2000AD on
a massive creative upswing over the last decade, this is a project that could
not come at a better time and this little freebie may just convince many of the
unconverted to join the rest of us already residing in Mega City One and the
endless worlds beyond its walls.
BLOODBORNE
(Titan) (M)
What an oddity this is. I’m all for recaps in
FCBD books and for further pointers as to where readers could and should look
to further explore titles, but Titan’s 2022 Bloodborne freebie, an expansion of
the highly popular video game franchise, literally contains only five pages of
actual comics.
The ever-busy, always reliable Cullen Bunn
joins artist Piotr Kowalski and colorist Brad Simpson (an art team going back
to the days of the highly underappreciated Sex title with writer Joe Casey) for
this the fifth volume of Bloodborne comics from publishers Titan. That’s a
solid creative team right there who, sadly, do not get to flex their chops much
at all. I’m not sure who picks these FCBD comics up for the front/backmatter or
for multiple full-page text recaps of previous volumes, but I hope somebody
does, as this otherwise feels like a bit of a waste.
So, yes, this is a strange pamphlet, more
catalogue than comic. Is this Bloodborne comic actually any good? Well, we have
five very competently put together pages (and pages of process for them) and
promises from all involved that this is quite good. Over to you, dear reader, I
guess…
THE
BONE ORCHARD MYTHOS: PRELUDE (Image) (M)
It’s incredible to think that Gideon Falls,
the five-volume horror series by Jeff Lemire and Andrea Sorrentino was a
warm-up exercise. That’s a crazy sentence to type but judging by the creators’
newest effort, Bone Orchard, (titled The Bone Orchard Mythos: Prelude on the
cover but just Bone Orchard #1 in the indicia - there’s no way I’m typing the
former multiple times) a shared universe of horror stories that are promised for
years to come, that’s exactly how it seems.
Immediately as unsettling as Gideon Falls’
most striking moments, Lemire and Sorrentino hit the ground absolutely
sprinting here with a short little freak-out of a comic that is primarily
designed to transport readers into their singularly nightmarish creative space.
I always read Gideon Falls for mood and atmosphere more than plot and in that
regard, the team has already topped themselves.
This is just supremely confident stuff -
Sorrentino’s mind-bending, reality-altering layouts are at their best and
Lemire’s dread-soaked script gets out of his artist’s way at all times. The
pair has been working together for a decade now and you can almost see the
creative shorthand at work, the trust between them on the page. Dave Stewart’s
colours deserve special mention also - I can’t imagine anyone else doing half
as good a job with Sorrentino’s pages. He keeps things muted and flat to set
the dread and spikes the colour when the shocks come. It’s super work all
round.
I’m not going to say anything else. No plot,
no story recap, nothing. Go in as cold as you possibly can to this mind-bender
and let’s all chew our nails until the series’ official debut, The Passageway,
arrives mid-June.
It’s hard to make comics scary. The best
horror comics rely on atmosphere and structural tricks to make up for lack of
sound design, the one true advantage horror cinema has. With Bone Orchard #1
Lemire and Sorrentino have distilled the best of atmospheric comics horror, spiked
it with the cerebral dread-fest of modern arthouse horror cinema and produced 20-odd
pages of comics you’ll feel viscerally. That’s about as high a compliment as I
can possibly pay this. More please. More please NOW. Subjectively, this is my
favourite FCBD book of 2022.
BUFFY
THE VAMPIRE SLAYER (Boom) (T)
Pretty basic stuff for Boom’s Buffy FCBD
offering this year, but that’s no insult. Readers will immediately be brought
up to speed for the 25th Anniversary of Buffy The Vampire Slayer via a lengthy
Sunnydale Yearbook feature that takes up roughly half of this comic. Featuring
short character bios, a rundown on the updated vampire slayers and events in
recent Buffy comics history, nobody can complain that Boom aren’t trying their
hardest to make sure this is new reader friendly.
Rounding things out is a short comic, “Trust
The Process” by writer Sarah Gailey and artist Carlos Olivares. Further
fleshing out the current status quo, we find Buffy in a therapy session,
telling her therapist about all her recent goings-on. Even with some action
sandwiched in at the end, it’s far from the most dynamic thing you’ll read, but
there’s an intriguing twist at the end for longtime Buffy fans.
This is decent enough for what it is, with
Boom setting the table for a milestone year in the character’s history.
BUNNY
MASK TALES (Aftershock) (T)
Every year there’s something in the FCBD
line-up that I like enough to do more heavy lifting than I really should have
to in order to present both a coherent review and an honest assessment of
whether or not it should get a thumbs-up. This year, that comic is Bunny Mask
Tales by horror veteran Paul Tobin and artists journeyman Andrea Mutti and
Roberta Inganata.
Seriously, a short blurb at the start of this
comic would solve so many issues of initial incomprehensibility. Sure, Bunny
Mask is clearly a weird, somewhat obtuse comic, anchored by a supernatural
entity meting out violent justice to evildoers and connected to an artist named
Bee. Here’s the solicitation pitch from the original Bunny Mask series from
last year .
“Sealed in a cave before the dawn of man,
released by a crazed madman, Bunny Mask walks our world once more. But for what
dark purpose does she use her supernatural powers? And what’s her connection to
Bee Foster, a young girl murdered by her father fourteen years ago? In order to
save his life - and his sanity - one man will have to discover the truth of
what waits behind the mask.”
The creators and publisher just throw readers
in here, both new and old, and whilst the old will likely just slip right in, I
was immediately scratching my head and wondering how something so intriguing
and well-made doesnt come with even the briefest of introductions.
There are two full, Tobin-scripted short
stories here, “They Were Sickness” with art by Mutti and “The Hole Where I
Watch My Neighbor” drawn by Inganata. New readers would be better served by
having these stories flipped. Perhaps the initial reader dislocation is
intentional, but if you are new and curious about this title, do try reading
the main stories back to front. Rounding the issue out is a two-page glimpse of
the upcoming second Bunny Mask volume, “The Hollow Inside,” which is not really
enough to judge anything by other than as a statement that more of this comic
is on the way.
Much better than this review likely makes it
sound, Bunny Mask Tales should be picked up by those who enjoy their comics
weird, horrific and askew. Despite my gripes, It’s solidly crafted stuff
(Tobin’s Bunny Mask dialogue a constant highpoint) and it does linger in the
mind, becoming one of this year’s real curiosities. Give this a shot.
CAPTAIN
UNDERPANTS / DOG MAN / CAT KID COMIC CLUB (Scholastic) (A)
AVAILABLE AS PART OF THE ALL STAR KIDS PACK
Wrap your noggin around this fact: Dav Pilkey
has sold over 26 million copies of Dog Man alone. An absolute sales powerhouse
and virtual household name to anyone with kids, he’s a publishing phenomenon.
Scholastic seeks to somehow further expand Pilkey’s reach this FCBD with a
selection of work from three of his series’, Captain Underpants, Dog Man and
Cat Kid Comic Club.
I’m not going to spend much time here, except
to say that as a bridge between young reader prose and comics, Pilkey’s an
obvious stand out. This is a savvy package from the publisher side of things
also - with clear introductions to each series for new readers and clear
presentation of what to get next from Pilkey’s insanely large body of work
should your youngster develop a hankering for more. Pilkey’s cartooning is
basic and stripped back - looking somewhat like the work a child with artistic
leanings may produce. It’s possibly this immediate artistic relatability that
helps fuel such a large audience over a quarter century of work, as well as the
real energy and fun that pop off his pages.
Pilkey, I literally just learned, was
diagnosed with dyslexia and ADHD all the way back in elementary school. George
and Harold, the two main characters in Captain Underpants, also have ADHD and
their misadventures provide a window into the lives of kids who have, as Pilkey
calls it, “Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Delightfulness.” How wonderful is
that?
Scholastic’s Pilkey sampler is a clear must
for younger readers who have, somehow, remained unfamiliar to the work of this
ubiquitous author. Although I’m truly not sure how that’s possible.
CLEMENTINE
/ EVERYDAY HERO: MACHINE BOY / SEA SERPENT’S HEIR
(Image/Skybound
Comet) (T)
Into an utterly jam-packed YA comics market
steps Robert Kirkman’s Skybound company with Skybound Comet, an imprint of
books designed for younger readers.
There’s so much choice for kids who want to
read comics, such a massive abundance of quality from publishers everywhere,
you have to wonder how wise it is for anyone to just jump on in. Confidence has
never really been one of Kirkman’s problems however, and with Skybound Comet he
has every right to remain that way - the three titles presented here look
absolutely phenomenal.
Clementine leads us off. Designed as a three-book
series spinning off from Kirkman’s own The Walking Dead, you might just be
wondering how many more grey-toned zombie comics you’re willing to read. The
hiring of Tilly Walden for the project is, however, something of a
masterstroke. Walden, at the age of just 25, has drawn more comics pages than
many a seasoned pro and her sharply character-driven stories and ability to
keep things grounded no matter how fantastical their setting is the perfect
choice for a teen Walking Dead book. Walden appears to be having a blast here
also, creating more action on her introductory pages than I can recall seeing
in much of her work.
Clementine is a teen girl, hobbling her way
through the zombie apocalypse on one flesh-and -blood foot and one dodgy
prosthetic. She’s adept at smashing zombies with crutches and stabbing them
with knives. She is welcomed into a strange little community that on the
surface seems puritanical. She’s skeptical, but the offer of a new prosthetic
foot proves hard to resist.
There’s far more to come across what’s
projected to be a three book series, but Walden’s immediately at home in this
world (assisted mightily by Cliff Rathburn on tones, who gave the original
series its distinctive tonal work) and Clementine is immediately intriguing.
It’s more than just a fresh coat of paint on a drying franchise; this is
distinct and individual - exactly the kind of thing you’d hope for with an
auteur of Walden’s stature at the helm
There’s a short little interview at preview’s
end in which Walden outlines her work method. In short: she does not script,
she just goes straight to the pages. Editors everywhere are having palpitations
at the thought, I’m sure, but it might just be why her work is so consistently
fresh.
Everyday Hero: Machine Boy is next up in this
chunky comic, with creators Tri Vuong and Irma Kniivila turning something that
could potentially be some eye-roll-inducing update of Astro Boy into a
beautifully cartooned, vibrant, warm comic.
Machine Boy is a karate-fighting young robot
obsessed with boy band-slash-superhero group, Orphan Universe. The chance to
see the group live is now, can he score tickets? Pick this up to find out, be
thoroughly charmed and experience some really lovely comics pages in the
process.
Taking us home is Sea Serpent’s Heir by writer
Mairghread Scott and artist Pablo Tunica. Again, visually, this is just a
knock-out. The spindly, scratchy lines of Tunica taking Scott’s dreamy script
and building a quaint cobblestone town,
a roiling sea, expressive characters and a sense of epic fantasy with ease.
You can practically smell the brine as young
Aella and her crab-creature Nix hit the sea in their fishing boat. Aella, in
true young adult fantasy style, yearns for more than her cliffset home offers,
to travel someplace where she can be free from the shadow of her famous mother.
But the sea she sails through turns rougher than expected, in more ways than
one.
In summary: Clementine (and Friends) is a
standout comic amongst this year’s crop of books. If Skybound Comet has even
more up its sleeve than these three launching titles, put some extra money
aside, because Robert Kirkman and co. aren’t just dipping a toe into a surging
market demographic - they’re coming to take it over the pool.
DARK
CRISIS: SPECIAL EDITION (DC) (T)
The crises in the DCU have always been pretty
dark. Barry Allen died in the original classic by Marv Wolfman and George Perez
and it's not like things got any easier in Infinite Crisis (ironically only
running for seven issues) or Final (not final) Crisis. Essentially shorthand
for “We’re changing up some shit,” the Crisis moniker looms large over comics
fandom and still, I’d argue, carries much weight. So then, how does Dark Crisis
fare?
Veteran superhero artist Jim Cheung is on
board for the lead story, “Who Are The Justice League?” which sets up a
post-League world where most of the heroes are dead, but Wally West lives.
Given the history of The Flash in these mega-event stories, this is a good
twist by writer Josh Williamson. Cheung has clearly been looking at a lot of
Andy Kubert art, or perhaps it’s unconscious but there are panels and faces
throughout (and Cheung is inking himself here) that deadset look Kubert. That’s
not a knock, I just find it interesting and given my overall dislike of this
story from the writing side, let’s just ponder that and move on…
A “sneak preview”of Dark Crisis #1 follows,
again written by Williamson with art by Daniel Sampere. I am, quite honestly,
unable to champion this with much enthusiasm, so here is a synopsis I took from
the internet: “Dark Crisis is a celebratory event that will spread across seven
issues, and it chronicles an epic event set in motion after the “death” of the
Justice League, and the heroes from Earth-0 who band together to continue
protecting the planet from supervillain Pariah.”
If you’ve ever wanted a cheat sheet for DC
continuity, Williamson, co-writing with Dennis Culver here and drawn this time
by Rafa Sandoval and the great Chris Burnham do their admirable best to provide
one. “The History of The DC Multiverse”is a story that needs way more than five
pages but, man, do these creators try. The lesson new readers should take from
this dense recap of DC mega events is that you need to put some respect on
Swamp Thing’s name and that, as we see
below with a similar effort in Sonic and The Incal Universe, these recaps must
be murder to write.
Clearly I’m not jumping for joy about this.
But if you are a currently invested DC reader, this will already be considered
vital, necessary reading and more power to you. If you are a DC fan, however, I
would advise you please read the review of Galaxy: The Prettiest Star below and
perhaps don’t put all your multiversal eggs into this one basket.
DISNEY
MASTERS: DONALD DUCK (Fantagraphics) (T)
AVAILABLE AS PART OF THE ALL STAR KIDS PACK
Surely the best thing to happen to Disney
comics in decades in the treatment that Fantagraphics gives the best of the
work. From the gorgeous Floyd Gottfriedsen Mickey Mouse collections to the Carl
Barks library of Duck Tales, finally the presentation matches the artistic
skill on display. Much of this material might be a blind spot for many readers
- it was for me for many a year - but you really should seek some of this stuff
out if you’ve never read it before, there’s some gorgeous, brilliant comics
work to be had.
For Free Comic Book Day 2022, Fantagraphics
presents a great little selection of tales from its Disney Masters series.
Collecting the finest in international Disney comics, the series collects work
by individual artists into single volumes. For this freebie, we get Donald Duck
tales by William Van Horn (first published in America in 1990) and writer Dick
Kinney and artist Al Hubbard (also American, although this story was first
published here in Australia in 1965. I would love to know how that worked…Aus comics
historians please do drop me a line) along with a Super Goof story by Girogio
Cavazzano and Sandro Zemolin (from a 1982 French Disney comic) and a great Big
Bad Wolf story by Bas and Pasqua Heymans (first published in a Dutch Donald
Duck comic in 2015).
This is a terrific little collection. Van
Horn’s opener, “Snore Losers” (great title) probably steals the show. One
person’s dream is another’s nightmare, as we are reminded here.
Donald dreams nightly of being given a million
dollars by his Uncle Scrooge. Scrooge, meanwhile, simultaneously dreams of
giving a million dollars to his nephew, Donald. You can imagine who wakes up
happy and who….does not. There’s some great stuff here, with Scrooge
complaining that he would go broke (in his dreams) in 800 years if this keeps
up! Enter Dreamologist Slumberbunk Swoonsnooze who, with a name like that, is
clearly the only one capable of sorting all this out.
The other stories included are of near
comparable quality (Big Bad Wolf is my runner-up) and the shift in the styles
of the artists while keeping characters consistent is fun to watch unfold.
Disney Masters: Donald Duck is a treat from start to finish. For some reason,
it comes marked with a Teen rating. Not sure what’s up with that, this is
heartily recommended for all ages as far as I’m concerned.
DOCTOR
WHO (Titan Comics) (A)
I am so busy these days I didn't even know
that there was a new Doctor! I love the set-up of the newest series - The
Doctor has discovered that they have lived even more lives in different
regenerations than they were aware of - a number of these “ lives” have been
wiped from The Doctor’s memory and this is story of one such life, played by Jo
Martin in the latest TV series. Showrunner, Chris Cribnall, has refused to
reveal where exactly Martin’s Doctor fits in the chronology - layering further
intrigue onto what’s a pretty clever way to further extend Doctor Who, perhaps
infinitely.
The “new”
Doctor is “an operative for the
dubious Division,” and (from this comic) spends her time apprehending fugitive
aliens this “Division” wants caught. Jody Houser writes this little number. Not
a whole lot happens - honestly, the most intriguing part is the set up of the
new TV show. Roberta Ingranata is good with the character work, but if there is
a way to not draw a background, she will take it and the art suffers from this.
I might be a touch unfair - I had similar complaints about a Stranger Things
FCBD comic from a few years back which Houser set in a house and everything was
subsequently very….brown. This story is, similarly, largely set in a log cabin
in the woods which doesn’t really give Ingranata and colourist Warnia K.
Sahadewa much to work with visually, apart from their cast. They make the best
of it.
For Whovian completists and the curious only,
I would say.
ENEMIES
(JY) (NR)
AVAILABLE AS PART OF THE ALL STAR KIDS PACK
Svetlana Chmakova, author of Awkward, Brave
and Crush returns this September with her latest work, Enemies, and you get the
scoop on it this FCBD.
I like Chmakova’s work quite a bit - she’s got
a great grasp on her early-teen cast and their ever-changing, always
complicated relationships. Enemies charts one such relationship, this time
between Felicity and her former long-time friend Joseph. Felicity is smart and
artistic, but struggles (as many of us do) with actually completing projects
she starts. When the chance to win a contest with a healthy cash prize takes
her fancy, Felicity joins the school's entrepreneur club unaware that her old,
estranged friend is also involved.
Powered by top-notch character work, Enemies
seems sure to continue Chmakova’s streak of strong, YA- focussed material.
Really good.
FUZZY
BASEBALL (Papercutz) (A)
AVAILABLE AS PART OF THE ALL STAR KIDS PACK
John Steven Gurney’s Fuzzy Baseball is
Papercutz’ FCBD effort this year, showcasing sequences from three separate adventures
of the all-animal baseball team, The Fernwood Fuzzies. Gurney’s the creator of
over 140 chapter books for kids, among them four Fuzzy Baseball books and
Dinosaur Train (which you might know from the annoyingly catchy theme song of
the TV adaptation).
Gurney’s work is charming, detailed and his
animal caricatures are on point. The three excerpts are each cut off rather
abruptly, but your younger readers probably will not care - my four year old
just wants me to finish this review as quickly as possible so that he can look
at all the animals again.
The first three Fuzzy baseball books (1.
introduces Blossom Honey Possum - a superfan who ends up playing on the team,
2. features a game against the Sashimi City Ninjas, and then 3. another game
against the Geartown Clankees - robots wearing animal suits) are collected into
a single edition for new readers titled Triple Play. There’s almost a
quaintness about these stories with their cheating robots and how important it
is to keep your chin up. While it’s far from my favourite title this year,
Fuzzy Baseball is easily the most wholesome. America’s favorite pastime doesn’t
really get much love here in Australia but forget baseball; if you have kids who love animals half as
much as my son does, ensure you add this to your FCBD list.
GALAXY:
THE PRETTIEST STAR (DC) (T)
Hear me out right now, I have another crazy
theory. Yes, it’s crazier than the time I wondered whether anthologies would
make a huge comeback in the American comics market right before all the cool
anthologies died (there’s still NOW. You should buy NOW). Here we go:
DC’s YA comics are shaping up the new Vertigo.
There it is, I wrote it and unless I sober up
and edit this out it shall live on at the All Star blog in infamy forever for
five people to read and scoff at.
I do present this FCBD comic, Galaxy: The
Prettiest Star as evidence, however, and I think I have a case.
Galaxy: The Prettiest Star:
a)
Is more artistically adventurous
than any main DC title
b)
Features promotional material that
appears more daring, risky, unique and modern and cool than any main DC title.
(I will forever remember the “One Must Be Absolutely Modern” ad for Shade The
Changing Man painted by Sean Phillips)
c)
Is separated from the continuity
of the main DC Universe
d)
Is way better than Dark
Crisis
Seriously, pick this up.
Oh. The plot.
Okay, so once again DC’s marketing department
does a wonderful job of including a compelling little pitch and here it is: “An
alien princess disguised as a human boy faces her fears and finds her power.”
This is about as unsubtle a metaphor for coming
out as you’re likely to ever find and if
only all unsubtle metaphors were crafted this incredibly! This comic is just so
objectively well made (from what we have here), I honestly don’t know how
anyone could find too many faults with it.
Jess Taylor, who are you and do you have time
to draw, like, a dozen comics a month? Taylor is Brecht Evens and Bill
Sienkiewicz and Shag and Christian Ward and, outside of one page where things
don’t flow so well panel-to-panel, the art here is outstanding.
Jadzia Axelrod, I googled you. You've been “a
circus performer, a puppeteer, a graphic designer, a sculptor, a costume
designer, a podcaster and quite a few other things,” but I have a feeling
comics might just work out for you. They should if there’s any justice in the
world.
Some of the ads for a couple of other YA books
at the rear look a little pedestrian, but between this, Nubia and Whistle (a
new skateboarding Gotham teen hero who fights crime with her dog!), I’m telling
you all, the kids are gonna be alright.
Hands down the surprise of the year, Galaxy:
The Prettiest Star is an absolute must get.
GUARDIAN
OF FUKUSHIMA (Tokyopop) (A)
Manga lovers may recall Ichi-F, a manga memoir
by Kazuto Tatsuta who worked at the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant after the
awful events of the 2011 earthquake and subsequent tsunami. I had a LOT of problems with Ichi-F, chief
among them was how much of a company man Tastuta comes across as, a real Yes
Man type, although the level of detail about the day-to-day routine of the
workers is exhaustive.
If you were also left frustrated by Ichi-F, or
just want to learn more about the Fukushima disaster, enter Guardian of
Fukushima by French creators Fabien Grolleau and Ewen Blaine. Guardian of
Fukushima really puts a human face on the subsequent events following the
tsunami in the form of the true life tale of Naoto Matsumura. Matsumura, a
farmer and lifelong Fukushima resident
refused to leave his home after the disaster and instead dedicated his life to
helping the innumerable pets and livestock left behind. The biography at the
rear of the comic points out that not only is Matsumura doing this illegally,
he’s doing so whilst soaking in over 16 times the normal level of radiation
people absorb every single day. He’s still at it, by the way…
Tokyopop gives us the opening few pages of
Guardian of Fukushima, depicting the life of Matsumura and his extended family
from the day before the disaster to the day of the earthquake and subsequent
tsunami itself. Fabien Grolleau’s art is cartoony and colourful, clearly
manga-inspired. His characters are emotive, his storytelling clear. For those
unfamiliar with the details of March 11, 2011, Guardian of Fukushima FCBD also
presents a timeline of events and relevant statistical data, such as the wind
speed of the tsunami topping 700kms per hour and the 19,747 lives tragically
lost.
Even with this short snippet, we can see
Guardian of Fukushima is going to be emotive stuff, the other side of the
comics coin that is Ichi-F. Informative and entertaining, Guardian of Fukushima
looks promising; how could the story of a man stranding himself inside a
nuclear zone to save as many animals as he can not be? It also stands out as the only slice of
non-fiction comics on offer this Free Comic Book Day which also makes it pretty
unique.
HOLLOW
(Boom! ) (A)
Been a while since Washington Irving’s
classic, 19th century slice of children’s Gothic, The Legend of
Sleepy Hollow, had an update, especially one as bright and bubbly as Hollow.
Coming to us from the co-writing team of
Shannon Watters (Lumberjanes) and Branden Boyer-White, illustrator Berenice
Nelle and colourist Kaitlin Musto, Hollow may be set in modern times but
cleverly threads its way all the way back to Irving’s tale.
Not much has changed in Sleepy Hollow
over the centuries, the town residents remain fascinated by the supernatural
and superstitious, particularly the tale of The Headless Horseman. The high
school football team is named after that ghostly figure and modern-day
sightings are treated with gleeful fascination.
Halloween has, of course, come early in
Sleepy Hollow and into the autumnal festivities comes young Isabel “Izzy”
Crane; bookish and shy. Izzy’s keen to settle in, but readers of Irving’s
classic may note that her surname does not make it easy for her, especially in
the eyes of the popular Victoria Van Tassel, who is well aware of the history
linking the Crane and Van Tassel names. It’s a pity, as Izzy’s quickly smitten
and here lies the probable engine of Watters and Boyer-White’s story going
forth, punctuated by visitations from the terrible Headless Horseman.
Hollow
is fun and colourful stuff, a solid cast fleshed out early and some appealingly
slick character art (aided mightily by Musto’s colors which cover up some
skimping on backgrounds by Nelle). There’s an Archie and Scooby-Doo vibe about
this whole caper, with its gang of vastly different characters and spooky
mystery at the core. Good stuff.
THE
INCAL UNIVERSE (Humanoids) (M)
Well, it was only a matter of time before
Humanoids expanded the line of comics based on characters and events from the
classic The Incal. In case you were unaware, none other than Taiki Waititi is
stepping into the director’s chair to adapt this hugely influential comic to
film. It’s something I never thought I’d ever see happen and it’s undoubtedly
got many fans curious.
Before we get to the good here, I’d like to
address the inexcusable downplaying of the role of Moebius to this comic, to
the life of the writer Alejandro Jodorowsky in not just the announcement of the
film (“Jodorowsky’s The Incal coming to film from Taikia Waititi!”is the kind
of headlines that made the rounds) but also here in this very comic based on
the visuals of one of the greatest artists comics ever had.
Interestingly, this expansion of Incal comics
is largely spear-headed by creators working in the American mainstream. To see
Mark Waid’s name on an Incal title is a supremely weird thing, but at least
Waid, and Humanoids as a whole appears to be pivoting away from that really
ill-advised H1 superhero effort from a couple of years back.
Waid, who has probably written more short
comics recapping large events than I’ve had hot dinners, turns in a typically
polished effort, condensing the original Incal epic into 10 pages for new
readers. He’s assisted greatly here by Stephane Roux, whose Moebius by way of
Kevin Nowlan artwork is a real treat.
The excellent art continues next in a preview
of The Psychoverse by Yanick Paquette from a script by Mark Russell. We
reacquaint ourselves with The Metabaron, a pivotal and enduring character in
this universe of comics, and meet a group of Psycho-Nuns whose actions may
prevent the events that unfolded in The Incal from happening. It’s again solid
stuff - Paquette turns in a particular two-page spread that’s a highlight of
the comic as a whole.
Rounding us out is a preview of Dying Star by
writer Dan Watters and, a personal fave, artist Jon Davis-Hunt (whose work we
are lucky enough to see in the pages of Valiant’s FCBD book reviewed
below). A few scant pages of Dying Star
are included here, about the space pirate Commander Kaimann, whose ship Flying
Star is rechristened the titular Dying Star,
and “a nun in a far-future convent” who worships decay and awaits “her
own imminent destruction.” The set-up here is that Kaimann and the nun, named
Aurora, become mystically connected across time and space. This looks awesome,
a kind of deeply weird, metaphysical Space Captain Harlock with typically top
shelf art by Davis-Hunt who I’m so pleased is keeping very busy. I enjoyed this
a great deal, what there is of it and am disappointed this title will arrive in
2023.
Tremendous artwork throughout, intriguing
stuff all round. Humanoids may be looking to cash in on The Incal but, man, is
the publisher doing it in style.
JONNA
AND THE UNPOSSIBLE MONSTERS (Oni) (A)
AVAILABLE AS PART OF THE ALL STAR KIDS PACK
One of the true joys of FCBD 2021 was
discovering Jonna and The Unpossible Monsters by Chris and Laura Samnee in
Oni’s multi-series sampler.
This year, Oni jettisons any extra material
and devotes their entire offering to the work of The Samnees and colourist
Matthew Wilson, giving newcomers even more pages to stare goggle-eyed at in the
form of the first full issue for FREE. I’m not sure what choice Oni had –
there’s not much else in any publisher’s arsenal that can compete with Jonna,
certainly on an artistic level.
Chris Samnee is one of mainstream comics’ true
gems - an outstanding artist of incredible range. Jonna represents, to my
knowledge, one his first forays into creator-owned work and, co-written by his
wife Laura, it’s a knockout. Dedicated to, and inspired by, their three
daughters, Jonna and The Unpossible Monsters is a clear labour of love for the
Samnees. Particularly so for Chris who just pours himself into these pages and
gives readers a gorgeous, stunningly-detailed first issue with big heart and
bigger moments: a double-page splash page that could be framed, incredibly
choreographed action, perfect character design and body language as well as
expansive world-building. I have no idea how well this thing sells, but
honestly you’d be hard pressed to find a better drawn comic issue-to-issue and
it deserves to sell by the metric tonne-load.
If it endures, Jonna may in fact prove to be
the best all ages book since Jeff Smith’s Bone (a claim backed up on the back
cover of this issue by former Comics Journal editor RJ Casey). The only
possible hindrance to that boast is The Samnees’ as yet unproven long-term
plotting record. Truthfully, the first complete volume does have its flat spots
story-wise, but all of which are more than made up by the level of
craftsmanship brought to every panel by its artist.
Rainbow’s and Jonna are sisters. Jonna’s the
younger and the wilder of the two,
incredibly strong and fast, treating the forest where they live like her own
personal jungle gym. One morning, Rainbow’s searching for Jonna and is witness
to her hyperactive sister punching a monster that has shown up in their world.
A year later, Jonna’s still missing following this monster fight and Rainbow’s
searching everywhere in a world now filled with these huge, “unpossible”
creatures. It’s such a simple little first issue, introducing its lead
characters and the world in which they live, but the Samnees execute it to
perfection. Every page is exquisitely composed and drawn and the tease at its
conclusion should have many adding the (excellently designed and formatted)
collected editions to their shelves. This reminds me that I myself don’t have
volume two yet. Gotta fix that.
Hopefully sure to bring in a legion of new
fans, ensure you pick up Jonna and The Unpossible Monsters this FCBD if you’ve
not read it yet. It’s an example of perhaps the perfect first issue and we’re
spoiled to be getting this for free.
KAIJU
NO. 8 /SAKAMOTO DAYS (Viz) (T)
Fun stuff in this Viz double-feature freebie
highlighting two of the more recent titles from the manga publisher.
Kaiju No.8, written and drawn by Naoya
Matsumoto, features a pair of Kaiju attack clean-up workers keen to stop
cleaning and start fighting the monsters by joining the Japanese Defense Force.
However, the tests are rigorous and you only get so many tries. At 32 years of
age, Kafka’s about to make his final attempt. However, there’s one huge problem
- he has the habit of turning into a monster himself.
Kaiju No.8 is bouncy stuff, with lively
characters and exactly the kind of cartooning you’d expect from a manga title
about a guy who constantly turns into a monster and his partner, desperate to
keep the whole thing hidden. The dynamic between Kafka and Ichikawa is a fun
one and while so much detail is sacrificed in Mastsumoto’s art (an increasing
trend in shonen manga) the concept is a great one and the bigger moments are
given the artistic attention they deserve.
Sakamoto Days is similarly off-the-wall even
though it’s way more grounded in concept. Taro Sakamoto is a retired hitman who
lives out his days running a convenience store and being a doting dad to his
daughter Hana. The hijinks come in the form of his training as an assassin
which kicks in at random moments. Here, we find Sakamoto and a youngster he
employs (who appears to be psychic?) at the mall trying desperately to get the
last very special backpack in stock for Hana to take to school. Other parents
are also after this backpack, and Sakamoto is forced to go to ridiculous
lengths to ensure he’s the one who brings it home. Writer-artist Yuta Suzuki’s
art is even more bare bones than Matsumoto’s, but it’s still strong enough to
convey the story well, especially the multiple visual gags that play out.
We really seem to be well into a period where
mainstream manga generally (let me stress that - GENERALLY) becomes less about
artistic craft than it is about the strength of concept, particularly for a
potential shift to anime. It might also have something to do with how little
the target audience in Japan generally lingers over panels and pages when reading.
If true, that’s a shame, but despite not being the best-drawn manga on the
shelf, both Kaiju No.8 and Sakamoto Days are good fun and easy to follow - two
very different kinds of sitcom in a way. Both also have the potential for
increasing stakes and an eventual shift toward the dramatic - Sakamoto Days’
synopsis even hints that the former hitman’s past is coming to catch up with
him. Good stuff from Viz.
LEAGUE
OF SUPERPETS (DC) (NR)
AVAILABLE AS PART OF THE ALL STAR KIDS PACK
Just ahead of the forthcoming League of
Superpets animated movie comes this timely preview of the tie-in graphic novel,
The Great Mxy-Up. Superman’s dog, Krypto, Batman’s dog, Ace and a bunch of
other hero pets I won’t bother listing are feeling somewhat anxious - they love
their superhero “best friends,” but their concerns about just how deep and
reciprocal these relationships are spike significantly when they find
themselves shut out of a Justice League tema meeting and alienated from a
sudden emergency. Heath Corson writes and Bobby Timony draws this one and I can
see it clicking well for the youngsters amongst us - my son is going to rip
through this, I’m sure.
Timony has a great grasp of his menagerie of
characters and if you think drawing animals is easy, you’re dead wrong: the
late, great Steve Dillon could draw anything except a convincing looking dog,
for instance. Kyrpto, Ace and co pop off the pages perfectly and not just when
they are in action - their facial expressions and body language are lively
throughout.
A short preview of another DC kids graphic novel,
Primer, is included. There’s not a lot to go by - Primer is “DC’s most
colourful hero” and she’s apparently paint-powered. Jennifer Muro, Thomas
Krajewski and Gretel Lusky are the team here and this is all fine with me - a strong, empowered new female superhero
for kids is never a bad idea, especially when it appears to be executed as
professionally as this. It’ll be interesting to see if Primer catches on.
Numerous attractive promotional material for
various other DC Kids books is sprinkled throughout (the Green Arrow: Stranded
ad is particularly striking) and I really like this as a package. A synopsis of
Primer so that the included scene feels a little less “cold” would’ve been a
good idea but this is overall a good little comic for the young ones in your
life.
MARVEL
VOICES (Marvel) (T)
Kicking off with a great little brand new Moon
Girl and Devil Dinosaur story, “Time Is On Your Side” by Nadia Shammus and
Luciano Vecchio, Marvel Voices is jam-packed with creators and characters as
diverse and interesting as the Marvel Universe itself.
Stitched together from numerous Marvel Voices
anthologies, readers are treated to a history of Native American characters,
multiple trips to various countries and the Marvel characters that live within
them, a rousing recap of LGBTQ+ superheroes in the MU and, perhaps my personal
favourite, a Miles Morales story where writer John Ridley cleverly reworks
frequently used comics adjectives like “strange” and “different” by literally
scrubbing them out on the page and placing far more positive and empowering
words in their place as artist Oliver Coipel runs a montage of Miles in action
both in and out of costume. It’s that kind of positivity that runs right
through this comic - “difference” is spun into “uniqueness” throughout.
All the voices collected here (both characters
and creators) are proud and the messaging is celebratory. This comic does not
pander or preach or feel cynical in any way, it’s authentic, well crafted and
all hangs together remarkably well as a single package for something designed
to showcase multiple titles. There’s some cracking art too, in case that bears
repeating.
Readers, particularly younger ones, do deserve
to see reflections of themselves and their cultures on the pages of comics that
they read - this is really important. Marvel has from the start been about
showcasing difference through the lens of its superheroes. It’s terrific to see
Marvel (and DC as well) really embracing what that means, and thoughtfully at
that. Effervescent, forward-thinking and really interesting superheroics on
offer here.
MAX
MEOW: CAT ON THE STREET (RH Graphic) (A)
AVAILABLE AS PART OF THE ALL STAR KIDS PACK
Given super-powers by an alien meatball (not a
typo), reporter Max Meow also fights crime as The Cat Crusader alongside
partner Mindy, a scientist and adventurer also known as Science Kitty.
Lots of fun to be had in John Gallagher’s Max
Meow: Cat on the Street with Gallagher and a gang of assistants taking readers
through multiple Max Meow adventures. Following a good little introductory strip
that opens up Max Meow’s world to readers and provides a perfect recapping of
events and characters, The Cat Crusader and Science Kitty take on cake-thieving
The Penguin Perps and, in a preview of a forthcoming adventure, Taco Time
Machine, face the giant monster known as Trash Panda.
Right at the rear of this is a short guide to
making comics that’s a great way to introduce kids to the actual process and
craft of this artform we all love so much and is recommended for this alone.
While not a standout title, lovers of fuzzy
things with super-powers having offbeat adventures should get a kick out of Max
Meow: Cat on the Street.
NEVERLANDERS
(Razorbill/Penguin) (T)
Literally the other day, I was digging through
some boxes of old stuff my dad brought over and amongst them were several
copies of an old Australian comic from the ‘90s that shall remain nameless.
They were awful. Just terrible. I appreciate anyone who actually puts in the
work and gets things done, but it is honestly incredible how far comics
produced by Australians have come. The speed of the catch-up is honestly pretty
incredible.
That useless preamble brings me to
Neverlanders by the all-Australian team of Tom Taylor and Jon Sommariva, whose
work here is as sharp, speedy and compulsive as anything comparable for the
audience and comes to us from one of the world’s biggest publishers of words,
Penguin.
Really the only complaint I have here is a
quibble - this is an excerpt from the larger work and, as such, the opening
moment is a little rough. Aside from that, this is as slick as anything Taylor
might pen for DC or Marvel. Sommariva echoes, in the best way, the effervescent
cartooning of a vintage Humberto Ramos or Eiichiro Oda - big eyes, hands, feet,
smiles. This is over-the-top mainstream comics pop-expressionism in the best
possible way - enthusiastic and grandiose and without any trace of irony or
self-seriousness. Sommariva is a
terrific artist and, although I know he’s been very very busy, the fact that
he’s not an even bigger name is kind of crazy.
Anyway, upon opening we are shotgunned into
the world of a collective of unhomed teens who share every cent they make
equally and make a home of wherever they all are together. They’ve welcomed a
newbie, Paco, into the group after he saved some of the crew in an earlier
scene, cropped from this particular comic.
As soon as he ingratiates himself into the
gang, however, an ulterior motive surfaces - he has ties to the realm of
Neverland, where “the Pan” has fallen and help is badly needed.
We’ve got a cursing, punk rock Tinkerbell,
flying mobile homes, psychedelic. pink cloud-filled splash pages and a diverse
cast of rough diamonds bursting off the page. This is an odd, cheeky re-working
of Sir J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan but it (at least here) totally works. I’m often
impressed by Taylor’s ability to just keep things revving without red-lining
his stories. He works really hard to make things look this easy. He also understands
that, in mainstream comics particularly, a large portion of the writer’s job is
to fill up the creative tank of his artists and then get the hell out of their
way.
In short: I imagine this will whet the
appetite of many, many a reader for the forthcoming graphic novel.
NOTTINGHAM (Mad Cave) (M)
The elevator pitch of “What if The Sheriff of
Nottingham was a good guy and Robin Hood and The Merry Men were bad guys?” is
one that would have me desperately punching the button for the next possible
floor, but here we are.
David Hazan and Andrea Mutti are the team
behind this, delivering a solidly constructed one-shot in which our good
Sheriff must solve the grisly, Hood-inspired murders of a wealthy family on
Christmas Eve. As he digs deeper, personal ties to one of the killers are
discovered and The Sheriff is left with only a couple of different choices,
neither of them good.
Mutti’s work here is not as strong as in Bunny
Mask Tales, reviewed above, but he’s quite at home in the England of 1192. I’m
not a fan of his own colouring here (it’s a pretty sickly palette), but the
pages are consistently clear and easy to read.
In a world with increasing inequality of
wealth and at a time here where the minimum wage needs a desperate increase, I
remain at odds with painting the Merry Men as a bunch of ruthless terrorists
while The Sheriff gets to play detective, but this comic was originally
scheduled for five issues and it has gone well beyond that, to at least nine I
believe. So, I’m hopeful that Hazan and Mutti have been able to flesh this
concept with some more shades of grey. There aren’t a lot of mature reader
books on offer this year, so if you’re intrigued, do give this a look despite
this less than resounding endorsement.
There’s a few pages of a comic called A Legacy
of Violence included at the rear. Also featuring art by Mutti (busy guy), this
one’s set in Atlanta in 1985 and finds a young doctor treating a new patient, a
man who's been tortured by a skull-masked psychopath. Not much to see here in
either page count or quality of content.
PRIMOS
(AWA) (T)
Lesson time with grandpa Cam. Do you know what
a grawlix is, young’un? It’s the time-honoured comics tradition of replacing
curse words with a string of symbols such as: @#$%&.
Used sparingly, grawlix can be pretty fun.
Used too often they become irritating and pretty distracting and that is very
much the case with Primos, which has grawlix out the @$$.
The good: this comic written by comedian and actor Al Madrigal is extremely
earnest. His heart is absolutely in the right place here in trying to beef up
the amount of superheroes with Mexican heritage we have in the world of comics.
Artist Carlo Barberi is a solid choice, producing slick work that would fit at
home with either of the big two. The story is presented both in English and
Spanish, which is a really awesome touch and furthers Primos’ attempt to bridge
the gap between superhero comics and its intended audience - which is a large
one.
The bad: armed with an incredibly hackneyed
premise and set-up (young boy discovers his genetic links to magical powers and
must harness said powers and join with other superheroes to overcome an
existential threat who just so happens to be his uncle), Primos feels pretty
clumsy. It’s loaded with exposition,clunky dialogue, direct references to
Marvel and has the kind of cut-and-paste plot that would end up in the
rejection list of any commissioning editor if its writer did not have some
Hollywood clout. And, yes, there’s all that annoying grawlix.
I do wish this were better and maybe Primos, a
four-issue series, does improve as it goes on. If you wish to see further
diversity in your comics (and you should), pick this up and give it a shot. I
understand Madrigal retreading the wheel rather than reinventing it, and again
- I respect the intent, but a little more innovation would have gone a long
way.
POKEMON:
JOURNEYS (Viz) (A)
AVAILABLE AS PART OF THE ALL STAR KIDS PACK
Every Free Comic Book Day there’s a Pokemon
comic and every year, I feel like I really don’t have the right to critique it
in any way.
That’s why I am here though, so here we go -
in 2022 we are given two slices of Pokemon; the first from a new ongoing manga
titled, Journeys (tying into a Netflix show) and the second from Pokemon
Adventures X-Y.
Journeys, by Machito Gomi and three other
writers seems pretty much a sequence of events without too much context. It
does, however, introduce readers to Ash and Pikachu’s new companion, Goh,
includes a pretty cool spread of some underwater action and dumps our
protagonists in a strange land where (presumably) new Pokemon await to collect.
Pokemon Adventures X-Y focuses on X, a former
star Pokemon trainer turned recluse, and Y, his best friend who does all she
can to drag X from his room. There’s a panel of Y swooping through the air in a
colourful glider suit that looks bang out of a Tezuka manga - a great shot
amongst some otherwise decent work by Satoshi Yamamoto. The intrigue here is
why exactly X hung up his training boots and what exactly it will take to get
him back out there training once more. According to a little synopsis included,
there’s an attack on the way…
Ultimately, this is Pokemon. You will know if
you want it or not.
RED
SONJA (Dynamite) (T+)
Know also, O Reader, that in the bygone age of
the nineteen hundred and seventies, the adventures of Robert E. Howard’s Red
Sonja hit comic racks everywhere and, Lo, did none other draw a chainmail
bikini quite like the late, great Frank Thorne.
Free Frank Thorne is pretty much all I need to
write here, really, but not only is this free Frank Thorne, it’s also written
by Bruce Jones. Jones always could turn in a cracking short little shocker and
the opening of two Sonja tales Dynamite gives us here is absolutely bonkers.
“Eyes of The Gorgon” first appeared in the
pages of Marvel Feature #4 in 1976 and sees our female vagabond sword-swinger
arrive in a creepy, seemingly deserted little town. Aching for a beer (swoon),
Sonja hits the tavern only to find it empty, save for a man seemingly turned to
stone. Turns out, the townsfolk are being regularly visited by a gorgon, who is
turning every resident into a statue, one by one.
The flame-haired, statuesque Sonja is quickly
thought to be a witch, triggering a chain of events and a potboiler of a plot
with Jones turning his stove all the way up to eleven. This is Red Sonja by way
of EC comics, right down to the ironic ending. I’ll say no more here other
than, man, that Jones can write when he wants to and what a loss Thorne’s
passing in 2021 was. Goddamn, this is good.
We then are transported into the modern era of
Red Sonja comics via “Silent Running” by Cullen Bunn and Jonathan Lau. It’s
apparently from Red Sonja #1973, which doesn’t sound quite right to me….Anyway,
as the title suggests, this is a silent story - a great choice by editorial to
juxtapose the panel and dialogue heavy comics of the early Bronze Age of comics
with the far more open and flowing work of the modern era. I clearly adored
Jones and Thorne’s tale, but man, Bunn and Lau’s work hums along extra fast in
comparison as Sonja, ever alone, battles all manner of enemy across all manner
of landscape, all without dialogue or caption. It’s sweeping and epic and also
manages to squeak in a terrific closing character moment - a tough ask for a
story of only seven pages.
I suspect Dynamite’s Red Sonja offering might
get slept on so don’t miss out - it’s a great little package. A highlight, no
less, of this year’s material. No, seriously.
SONIC
THE HEDGEHOG (IDW) (A)
Up first in 2022’s Sonic offering from IDW is
the short, “Deep Trouble” by writer Ian Flynn and artist Bracardi Curry. It’s
textbook Sonic stuff, with Sonic and Tails visiting Knuckles on an island he’s
exploring. Dr Eggman of course ruins the friends’ escapades, bursting onto the
scene in a huge mining craft with which he’s been drilling for rare minerals.
Colourful fiisticuffs ensue.
Rounding things out is “Prelude to Disaster” a
thorough recapping of recent Sonic happenings leading to the forthcoming Sonic
#50 which kicks off a brand new storyline. David Mariotte is the brave soul
writing this, cramming in everything from metallic viruses, chaos emeralds and
a kind of Infinity Gauntlet called The Tricore. Who knew there was so much
happening in the world of Sonic? Not me, that's for sure. Stitched together
from panels of multiple comics by different artists, this is still a fairly
cohesive little strip. It’s pretty caption dense - unsurprising with the amount
of information Mairotte is covering - but you’ll be left with no doubt as to
what’s been happening and where things are going in the world of this little
blue hedgehog.
SPIDER-MAN
/ VENOM (Marvel) (T)
Spidey and Venom return again for free this
year with hints of big doings a-happening in 2022.
The Spider-Man short by writer Zeb Wells and
artists, the legendary John Romita Jr along with inker Scott Hanna (there’s a
name I haven’t heard in a while), kick us off with “Lost in the Mail,” in which
Spidey battles a mailbox turned sentient monster. It’s wacky stuff, but with a
payoff that longtime Marvel readers should get a kick out of as we head into
Dark Web, presumably the Spidey event of the year.
It’s always a treat to see Romita Jr drawing
Spider-Man, his family’s history with the character going back almost as long
as Spider-Man comics have been printed and his work is as evergreen as always.
Over in Venom, Stefano Raffaele presents
passable facsimile art to that of Bryan Hitch, the original artist on this
latest volume of the title, and co-writers Ram V and Al Ewing further smash
bits of status quo left lying around by the outgoing previous writer, Donny
Cates. This ain’t new reader friendly at all, but packed with all manner of
symbiotes, a symbiote hand of glory and a discussion on the differences between
black and white magic, it’s intriguing. I’m not so sure how much further you
really want to push this concept before it totally breaks - this version of
Venom really feels like everyone trying to go all Alan Moore’s Swamp Thing
re-defining “The Anatomy Lesson” - but hey, you can’t argue that things are
static or stagnant in symbiote land.
An editorial at the rear of the comic fills in
some blanks for those maybe scratching their heads and then there’s three pages
from upcoming title All-Out Avengers by Derek Landy and Greg Land in which
Captain America, She-Hulk and Thor punch several things including Ulik the
troll. *shrugs*
STRANGER
THINGS/RESIDENT ALIEN (Dark Horse) (T)
You’ve got to hand it to artist Pius Bak, who
might not be the flashiest artist you’ve ever seen but really makes an effort
to nail those likenesses. I sometimes wonder what it must be like to draw a
licensed comic and somehow walk the line between making the characters on the
page look like the actors on the screen and still somehow make the work your
own.
Annnyyyway, this is a Stranger Things comic.
In it, Jonathan and Will and Eleven have gone to the drive-in to catch some old
monster flicks, but Eleven is still suffering from the events of the TV show.
This is perfectly fine if unremarkable stuff by Michael Moreci (back again!)
and the aforementioned Bak. Much better than I recall last year’s tie-in comic
being.
But hold up. Just as the Stranger Things
characters are taking in a double feature, so are we readers here and there’s a
Steve Parkhouse alert! The opening panel
of Resident Alien short story, “The Ghost” may well be one of my favorites
across all this year’s comics - it’s just so great. I’ve not read a comic drawn
by him in a number of years - he appears to have shorn some of the more
excessively cartoony edges from his style, but it’s still very much
recognisably him.
Anyway, Resident Alien is now a TV show, which
I had no idea happened and makes me very happy for the simple fact that long
underrated writer Peter Hogan (who worked on everything from 2000AD to The
Dreaming to Alan Moore’s Tom Strong) and the aforementioned Steve Parkhouse
would have got a sizeable cheque for their efforts. Yay.
Stranded alien, Harry Vanderspeigle waits to
be rescued from our planet while working as a doctor in the “supposedly sleepy”
town of Patience, alongside his trusty nurse, Asta. As we all know, there’s no
such thing as a sleepy town in any form of entertainment, and Harry and Asta
wind up in all manner of charming strife, including murder mysteries and, as we
see here, supposedly haunted houses.
Many will come for Stranger Things but I hope
everyone stays for Resident Alien - it’s by far the superior comic of the pair,
one of the best across the board this FCBD, in fact. It’s a savvy move by Dark
Horse to pair the two properties and devote the back cover entirely to Resident
Alien, what it is and how to read it. I myself did not know that there’s an
omnibus edition out, collecting the first three volumes and, damn it, now I am
going to have to get it….
STREET
FIGHTER: MASTERS #1 (Udon) (T)
Ahhh, my annual taste of Udon’s Street Fighter
comics. The 2022 FCBD offering, featuring the character of Blanka in a
stand-alone story, is easily the best single issue of the franchise that I’ve
read over the years. No knowledge of the cast, or ongoing plotlines, or feuds
is required this year as writer Matt Moylan (how does one human write so many
Street Fighter comics?) serves up a totally silent one shot that squeezes in
some nice character moments and a heaping of action for artist Genzoman.
Moylan’s clearly modeled this story, and perhaps his take on Blanka as a whole,
on the classic Hulk story model of misunderstood monster just trying to do good
and be left alone. We open in the Amazon jungle, Blanka’s home, where Blanka
finds a lost girl and becomes determined to return her to her family. He does
so, after facing off against some native predators but soon encounters some
loggers marking trees for the felling. A neat little conclusion follows, tying
Blanka’s own abandonment issues in with the girl, her family, and the wider
issue of deforestation. It’s a conclusion that doesn’t bear too much thinking
about or the whole thing will fall apart somewhat, but for a silent,
single-issue, this is a decent little package.
TEENAGE
MUTANT NINJA TURTLES (IDW) (T)
Quite the curio IDW and the Turtles team give
us this year in the form of a prelude to the forthcoming Turtles epic, The
Armageddon Game.
Returning long-time scribe Tom Waltz and
current scribe/artist Sophie Campbell throw readers in the deep end with their
opening short - a remix of the first ever Turtles comic by Eastman and Laird
that pays near panel to panel homage to the original story but with new
narration by a mysterious character and turtles wearing flak jackets and white
masks. It’s deliberately attempting to throw longtime readers a curveball and
they should dig this offering - particularly its intriguing climactic reveal.
The art is not Campbell’s best, but that’s a purposeful choice given the
homaging at work. I actually think the overall feel would be improved by
stripping away the colour and adding tones similar to the original story, but
perhaps I’m just weird like that.
Where things get pretty fun with TMNT FCBD
2022 is with the inclusion of Eastman
and Laird’s original Turtles story at the rear. It’s not only great to revisit,
but opens up a few reading opportunities - you can flip back and forth between
Waltz/Campbell and Eastman/Laird and compare page by page or panel by panel,
for instance. This is a fun and unique little Turtles presentation, showcasing
the new and the old and cleverly acknowledging the debt that the franchise owes
to its two originators. Fans should get a real kick out of this.
TRESE:
LAST SEEN AFTER MIDNIGHT (Ablaze) (M)
Always nice to get comics from places you’ve
never seen them from before. Such is the case with Trese, a comic from the
Philippines brought to English by publishers, Ablaze, and to Netflix in the
form of an anime series.
Alexandra Trese runs a bar called The
Diabolical, patronised by all manner of supernatural creatures. Knee-deep in
the mythological beasts of her homeland, Trese also acts as something of a
detective, solving crimes too spooky for the police to handle. Such is the case
in this preview comic, in which a murder involving elemental creatures unfolds.
Overall this is a slightly clumsy, not
expertly created comic. The art is average and it reads like a forgotten black
and white self-published effort from the ‘80s. It oozes potential, however, and
you can easily see why an outfit like Netflix, keen to expand its international
reach, might be keen to exploit it for views. But I have to say, I’m actually
more curious to see the anime than to read any more of this comic. I’m not sure
that’s the effect Ablaze and the creators are after, but so it goes.
Trese: Last Seen After Midnight is an
undeniable curiosity given its origins and its move into both our comics market
and another medium. Treated as exactly that, it is worth your time despite
being at the lower end of reading experiences you’ll likely have this FCBD.
VALIANT
2022 (Valiant) (T)
I maintain that five features is just way too
much for one single FCBD comic, particularly when what’s included is not
tailored to fit. Yet Valiant continues with their stuff-it-to-the-brim
mentality for Free Comic Book Day yet again so let’s unpack it all, eh?
First up, we get a preview of the new
Bloodshot creative team of writer Deniz Camp and artist Jon Davis-Hunt with the
short, “Instead.” I dig Davis-Hunt’s work a lot and am still not sure why he’s
not on some marquee superhero book. Not that his efforts here are unappreciated
- far from it, we’ve got pages jam-packed with detail and multiple panels of up
to thirteen (!).
Davis-Hunt is the anti-widescreen comics
artist, the kind of illustrator who eschews big, wide three-panel pages in
favour of crisp, tightly-edited close-ups and mid-shots. This is not to say he
can’t handle the big moments - far from it. Bloodshot’s fighting some cyborg
super-soldier here, a kind of nightmare Captain America, and Davis-Hunt’s shot
choices on these busy pages are great. The whole thing feels epic but intimate
in a weird way. Deniz Camp’s script is
strong, presenting Bloodshot with a kind of mirror-image of himself, a clunky,
lower-grade man of the military industrial complex. I liked this quite a bit.
Armorclads by writers JJ O’ Connor and Brain
Buccellato and artists Manuel Garcia and Raul Fernandez is up next. There’s not
a lot to go by here, but this is seemingly about troubled teens being forced to
suit up in extravagant armour to mine a substance called “The Pure” on an alien
world, however there’s something out in the jungles waiting…I don’t know. More
space would have helped here, I think, and there’s just been SO MUCH armour in
Valiant comics…
And, yep, Valiant’s main armoured hero, X-O
Manowar is featured on the page turn in the form of a two-page ad trumpeting
the arrival of the great Becky Cloonan and her co-writer Michael Conrad. Pete
Woods draws the striking image of the titular character but I was under the
impression that Liam Sharpe was drawing the book. There’s no artist mentioned
here, so I guess we will see this November when the new series launches.
Archer & Armstrong by writer Steve Foxe
and artist Marcio Fiorito is next. Comics’ wackiest buddy act returns with
Armstrong stripped of his immortality and the duo tracking down some kind of
Lovecraftian cult in a furniture store not unlike Ikea. This is perfectly fine.
Another interview with writer Cullen Bunn is
next (see Bloodborne above for more of that) for his forthcoming Book of
Shadows, which is some kind of Shadowman-forms-a-team thing. Pretty pointless,
honestly, and further reinforces my own annoying (sorry) position that less is
so often more in FCBD books unless you get the balance just right (see
Clementine above or even Marvel Voices which crams just so much in but somehow
does it fairly organically).
Exhibit B here of this prosecutor’s case is
the mere four pages of a new Ninjak title we are provided with for a series
debuting in, wait for it….February 2023. Jeff Parker and Mike Norton are the
solid creators working on that, assuming you have a memory good enough to
remember this next year. (There’s also another guy in armour here, for those
playing a drinking game at home). Sigh.
This really should have just been more
Bloodshot (which is accceee), something from one other book and then some
promos for this “Year of Valiant.” But, as with every FCBD, Valiant gonna
Valiant and throw everything at the wall in the hopes that something, anything,
sticks, at the expense of all these titles wearing their logo being hurtled at
the wall for attention on a day when yours is going to get seriously pushed for
space because you already have SO MUCH AMAZING CHOICE. They need a new PR
person, I swear…I’m open, team, I want to love your books, I go back to the Shooter/Lapham/Layton/Windsor-Smith/Hall
days (I own Unity #0!), I work in Comms and I’m tired of being mean to your
FCBD books every year.
Anyway, Bloodshot - yay!
WANDANCE
/ BLACKGUARD (Kodansha) (Older Teen - 16+)
Two new slices of manga from Kodansha and a
new rating I don’t believe I’ve ever seen before on an FCBD title - Older Teen
16+. I wouldn’t sweat that rating much if you’re a parent, this is absolutely
harmless stuff.
Wandance focuses on a shiftless teenage boy
named Kaboku, who is desperate to not stand out and simply “be normal.” He’s
experienced some sort of bad experience with dance in the past and has gone
very much into his shell. That is until he sees a newcomer to his school, a
striking blonde girl, take a leaflet for the school’s dance club. Written and
drawn by a creator named Coffee, Wandance would seem to very much slip
comfortably into manga such as Blue Period (about an artist) and the *amazing*
Boys Right The Riot (about a fashion designer) - comics featuring young,
outsider protagonists going against the expectations of traditional Japanese
culture.
The Dance Club leaflet featured in Wandance
mentions that there are “now over 6,000,000 street dancers around the country.”
I spent a lot of time in Namba, Osaka, and was always struck by the local
dancers. None ever had a bowl or a hat out for coins - they weren’t buskers,
they were expressing themselves and their art in public spaces for the pure
enjoyment of it. It’s this world that Wandance wants to explore, where the
creation and expression of the artist means more than anyone’s expectations or
pressures - it’s for the act of creation
and the need to express oneself. Wandance is off to a promising start and while
it may seem a little niche, the aforementioned size of the contemporary dance
subculture in Japan should make us all rethink that.
Blackguard by Ryo Hanada is up next - a
post-apocalyptic comic about a virus that transforms humans into monsters
called shojo. What remains of humanity resides in “ aerial cities” protected by
squadrons of guards. There is however, one guard who patrols alone - known as
the Blackguard, he’s saved whole units of guards by himself. This is his story.
Hanada’s work is fairly simple but dynamic -
there’s some dramatic panels of Blackguard zip-lining across the skyline of
ruined buildings - and although readers aren’t given too much to chew on here,
this is off to an intriguing start for manga fans.
A solid presentation from Kodansha this year
(I really like the new logo!) that casts a net over a potentially wide
audience. From the grounded teen drama of Wandance to the expansive,
monster-filled Blackguard, I’d wager there’s something here for most readers.
And there you have it. One of the most detailed reviews of this years FCBD selection.
As also a massive thank you to Cameron for putting this all together.
Each year he warms up and trains like a heavy weight boxer going into his prime fight and each year it's a TKO!
Join us in thanking Cameron for his massive efforts and we hope you find these reviews as helpful as we have in guiding you to the picks you'll want to make on the day!
The All Star Team
