Category: Comics & Graphic Novels


Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi #1

Filed Under: Comics & Graphic Novels by Alan Rapp — Leave a comment
February 22, 2012

star-wars-dawn-of-the-jedi-1I understand full well that Star Wars comics are a mixed bag. Although I’m a fan of the Expanded Universe novels that have continued the tales of Luke, Han, Leia and their children, the expanded comics stories have more misses than hits.

When I heard the idea of Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi I was intrigued by how John Ostrander would choose to tell the beginnings of the Jedi Order. I know I should have known better, but I gave it a shot.

This comic is a mess, from beginning to end. Although the art by Jan Duursema has a cinematic quality to it, and is pretty enough to look at, the story itself is a disaster that begins with a 12-page narration of the beginnings of the Jedi Order… and then moves quickly into the future to give us a story seemingly only slightly connected to the “Dawn of the Jedi.”

Also troubling is the fact the series takes at the beginning but Jedi already have lightsabers? And there are Sith (who look like generic Vader wannabes)? The Force is not strong with this one. Pass.

[Dark Horse, $3.50]

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Winter Soldier #2

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February 22, 2012

winter-soldier-2-coverPart of the trouble when starting a new comic is the time necessary to set-up not only the story you want to tell but the characters, the villains, their motivations and relationships, and even the world in which the comic takes place. Despite beginning with Bucky and the Black Widow taking on a gorilla with a machine gun and a jet-pack (which is pretty damn cool) the second issue of Winter Soldier gets bogged down a bit by still setting up what this comic is going to be.

Winter Soldier #2 isn’t a bad read, but I’m still not quite sold on the art by Butch Guice which simply isn’t my taste (although it fits well enough with the Cold War spy story the comic kinda wants to be), and the story gets a little bogged down by stopping to explain more about the Soviet assassins the Winter Soldier trained and give us a little more insight into the plans of Lucia Von Bardas.

The comic is still worth a look but I think once writer Ed Brubaker can spend less time on set-up and let the stories flow more naturally I’ll be happier with the result. Worth a look.

[Marvel, $2.99]

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Daredevil #9

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February 20, 2012

Matt Murdock heads underground (after a rather lame joke as Foggy notices Matt wearing his Daredevil boots under his clothes) to discover what has happened to his father’s body and several others that have been stolen from the cemetery where he was put to rest.

I’ve never been a fan of the Mole Man. The me the Silver Age Fantastic Four villain is better left in the 60′s. So maybe it’s that the latest issue of Daredevil is a Mole Man storyline, or perhaps its the fact that Matt Mudrock’s wild night with the Black Cat isn’t directly addressed (other than one or two thought panels and a momentary hesitation by the thief robbing him), or maybe it’s because so much of this issue felt like LOTR (a ton of walking before we get to any action), but I didn’t think this issue #9 was as good as I expected.

Don’t get me wrong, I still enjoyed the issue, and I’m sure writer Mark Waid’s explanation into the Mole Man’s behavior is a good one. I’m just hoping the arc ends quickly and get back to the Black Cat and the mysterious FF artifact everyone is after. Worth a look.

[Marvel, $2.99]

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Comic Rack

Filed Under: Comics & Graphic Novels by Alan Rapp — 1 Comment
February 20, 2012

It’s a new week so it must be time to talk about comics! Welcome to the RazorFine Comic Rack boys and girls. Pull up a bean bag and take a seat at feet of the master as we offer you this quick list of all kinds of comic book goodness set to hit comic shops and bookstores this week from all your favorite publishers including DC, Marvel, Dark Horse, Archie, Dynamite, Image Comics, and others.

This week includes Aquaman, American Vampire, Archie, Avengers Academy, Blackhawks, Cobra, Deadpool, Fantastic Four, The Flash, Godzilla: Legends, Incorruptible, Jennifer Blood, The Mighty Thor, Morning Glories, New Mutants, Prophet, The Sixth Gun, Superman, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Teen Titans, Uncanny X-Force, X-Men Legacy, the first issues of Last Zombie: Neverland, Nazi Zombie, No Place Like Home, Witchblade/Red Sonja, and the final issues of Avengers Solo, Infestation 2: Dungeons & Dragons, and Magneto: Not A Hero.

Enjoy issue #166

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Nightwing #6

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February 19, 2012

nightwing-6-coverWhile Haly’s Circus travels across the country Nighwing spends his free time beating up thugs for any information about Saiko. But when Raya informs Dick the circus will be returning to Gotham for the anniversary of his parents’ death, Dick knows exactly when his mysterious enemy will choose to strike.

Here’s another New 52 storyline that has been dragged out far too long. At the end of the sixth issue the villain is revealed (which may shock Grayson but does nothing for the reader as we still have no idea who Raymond is or what his insane grudge against Dick is).

There are some nice moments including Raya wavering on her part of Raymond’s plan and an uncoonected scene involving a cops retreiving one of Nightwing’s batons from a murder scene. Whether this is frame job is part of Raymond’s plan, or something else, we’ll just have to wait and see. Worth a look.

[DC, $2.99]

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Red Hood and the Outlaws #6

Filed Under: Comics & Graphic Novels by Alan Rapp — 1 Comment
February 18, 2012

red-hood-and-the-outlaws-6-coverThe latest issue of Red Hood and the Outlaws takes a look back at the first meeting between Jason Todd and Starfire months before the events of the first issue. Writer Scott Lobdell has taken quite a bit of heat for the current version of Starfire and this month’s comic is obviously an attempt to try and molify some of the criticism the title has garnered.

You can certainly argue Lobdell’s writing has been lacking in how he has expressed the character’s redesign on the page, but I’m actually like the idea of expanding on the character’s existing alien look at emotional and physical relationships. In more than one way Kory saves Jason Todd in this issue, first from his wounds and later by offering her friendship and a simple view of the world that at least begins to put him on a better path.

Would I like this version of Kory to be a little more sentimental and care about the past? Sure. But as a concept her current outlook fits not only the redesign of the character but also the comic and relationship with Todd she finds herself in.

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Super Dinosaur #8

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February 18, 2012

super-dinosaur-8-coverAs Doctor Dynamo and his team learn the Exile has taken control of Squidious’ former soldiers and is working on gaining access to inner-Earth Derek must also deal with the gravest threat to his world – a homeschool evaluation.

Derek’s quandary over taking part in the mission and reporting to Miss Finkle for his grade school exemption is solved by doing both at the same time, with the help of an android duplicate. Of course when things get too crazy in the field and the android malfunctions Derek finds himself under fire from two sides.

Although the idea of Derek fighting off monsters underwater while controlling the android from thousands of miles away is an interesting (if highly implausable) one, the reveal doesn’t work as well as it should.

There’s plenty of actions, and a couple of fun moments, but I’m a little afraid Robert Kirkman and Jason Howard’s latest comic (much like Astounding Wolf-Man) may have peaked too soon. Here’s hoping next issue ramps up the zany fun. Worth a look.

[Image, $2.99]

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Atomic Robo and the Ghost of Station X #5

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February 17, 2012

atomic-robo-vol-6-5-coverIt’s always fun to get to the final issue of an Atomic Robo series and see how writer Brian Clevinger will tie things together and what crazy climax artist Scott Wegener will save for each series’ finale.

Atomic Robo and the Ghost of Station X has given us a trips to space and Nebraska (which more action-packed than you might initially expect), and Japan, a well-financed shadowy government conspiracy, and a convoy of truckers (for science!). The final issue reveals who has been behind the attacks on Atomic Robo‘s life, and why. And as the title states it’s a ghost… well kinda. It’s a computer ghost.

Under Hashima Island, Japan, Atomic Robo discovers an “Automatic Learning Algorithm Network” built by Dr. Alan Turning in 1951. The program has been running unsupervised since Turning lost security clearance the following year. Over time the artifical intelligence has used beureaucrazy, secrecy and telecommunications to influence the world and predict the collapse of human civilization.

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Young Justice #13

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February 16, 2012

young-justice-13-coverIn the sewers below Gotham City the Young Justice team tracks and fights the new character of Clayface (who was introduced in last month’s issue). The team soon discovers the difficulty in fighting a villain who can assume the shape and mannerisms of anyone he comes into contact with.

With Aqualad distracted with thought of Atlantis and the team divided Clayface takes them down one-by-one. It’s only the arrival of Batman that saves complete disaster.

Although it’s a bit of a letdown after a terrific Batman and Robin issue and well-done Talia al Ghul issue that introduced the character of Clayface, Young Justice #13 continues to define this new version of Clayface and bring Aqualad’s indecision to the forefront as the team is bested far too easily by this new enemy. It will be interesting to see if Aqualad’s story plays out in similar fashion to the similar arc on the television show or if the comic takes a different path beginning next month. Worth a look.

[DC, $2.99]

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Batman and Robin #6

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February 15, 2012

batman-and-robin-new-52-6-coverDamian‘s true colors are shown as Nobody attempts to turn him into his new sidekick. Not surprisingly, Nobody finds him as hard to control as Batman has ever since the New 52 DC reboot.

As Batman searches for his son we get more of the flashbacks of his early days with Henri Ducard and his son and the confrontation that led to the end of their partnership. The flashbacks are told almost as if Bruce is making a recording for Damian in case anything happens to him, to let him know the truth.

Damian’s turning on Nobody is hardly surprising, but I’m thankful writer Peter J. Tomasi didn’t milk the story for another issue or two. It’s also good to see Damian standing up for something other than himself for a change (even if there’s no one else to witness it). The final panels, suggesting some serious injury to the boy, should lead to a brutal confrontation between Batman and Nobody in next month’s conclusion of the arc. Worth a look.

[DC, $2.99]

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