This rather charming and visually infectious series (thanks to artist Armand Villavert) from Image centres on a school that trains would-be supervillains. It’s a fun, all-ages read with moments of drama done well, and is actually the only Image series I’m currently reading regularly. Writer Mark Andrew Smith (The Amazing Joy Buzzards) has generously put up the entire first issue for free on Tumblr. Yes, it’s a bit awkward to read, but if you start here, scroll up to read the next few pages, then back down again and hit Newer on the bottom right, you’ll get through it fine. It’s worth your time, especially when you get to the last few pages and the juicy secret contained within.
Oh, and the TPB collecting the first 6 issues was released this week if you’d like to read more, which I suggest you do.
It’s a bit unclear by this press release but it appears that relatively new comics publisher Sea Lion Books is creating new comics based on the fantasy book series, Elfhunter. There’s no mention on format (OGN, monthly series), writer or artist, but either way, it sounds kinda cool.
Sea Lion Books is proud to announce a multi-book deal with acclaimed fantasy fiction author C.S. Marks, whose highly successful self-published series has already garnered high praise from readers and critics alike. Set in the remarkable realm of Alterra, ELFHUNTER is the first novel in this three book series, which has sold over 35,000 copies in the United States and UK. An epic fantasy filled with adventure, danger, and suspense, it is scheduled for release Spring 2012.
The Tales of Alterra – The World That Is
A monster roams the last refuge of the Elves–a creature who has sworn to destroy them one by one until none remain. One headstrong heroine is determined to stand between her people and extinction–Wood-elf Gaelen Taldin. When powerful dark magic creates a terrible and irrevocable spiritual link between them, the result is a journey of terrifying transformation. Elfhunter tells a story of savage combat between predator and prey–a deadly dance wherein the hunter becomes the hunted. Who will prevail?
A fantasy setting rich in imagery and very human conflict, the world of ELFHUNTER pits friendship, loyalty, and love against hatred, prejudice, and despair. In a monster-hunt of epic proportions, it sets one small but determined Wood-elf against a complex and fascinating villain to yield a timeless tale that has captivated young readers and parents alike. Join the Company of Elves, dwarves, mortal men, and delightfully intelligent horses. Come to Alterra – the “World That Is”
“We are thrilled to bring the world of C.S. Marks’ ELFHUNTER TRILOGY to new life.” said Derek Ruiz, Executive Vice President and Publisher of Sea Lion Books. “An amazing new talent, a powerful storyteller, she and her series (newly illustrated by the incomparable Hope Hoover) have an exciting and brilliant future at Sea Lion Books.”
Granted, I only read the first issue of this intriguing undersea adventure/mystery tale from Image, but I was very impressed. The Trade Paperback collecting all 3 issues will be released in January.
THE VAULT TRADE OPENS IN JANUARY
Collecting the sold out 3-issue miniseries
Debuting in the Summer of 2011, THE VAULT miniseries received critical acclaim and quickly sold out of each issue within days of their release. Fans, looking to catch up on THE VAULT, won’t have to wait much longer. Image Comics announces that THE VAULT VOL. 1 TP,written by Sam Sarkar (Caliber: First Canon of Justice), illustrated by Garrie Gastonny (Warren Ellis’ Supergod) and edited by Dave Elliott will be on sale January 18th, 2012.
THE VAULT, recently optioned for a feature film adaptation from Johnny Depp’s Infinitum Nihil and Graham King’s GK Films, is about a small team of treasure hunters, struggling to excavate a dangerous and legendary treasure pit before a massive storm hits Sable Island, the “Graveyard of the North Atlantic.” Equipped with all the latest technology, the scientists believe they are prepared against all of nature’s fury, but nothing can prepare them for what they are about to unleash.
THE VAULT has garnered rave attention from retailers, reviewers and fans:
“THE VAULT lays the groundwork for an exciting heist gone horribly wrong. You don’t want to miss out on this deep-sea adventure!” – Fangoria
“Sam Sarkar and Garrie Gastonny are giving us something very genuine and very scary with this book, and it’s an event I personally haven’t seen the likes of in a long time.” – Comic Attack
“The comic delivers the goods in terms of horror.” – Famous Monsters of Filmland
“I enjoyed this enough that I know I am all in for a follow-up series. If you like slasher flicks or science fiction horror then this is the series for you.” – Comic List
“The Vault is a must read on my list so make it a part of yours… NOW!” – Decapitated Dan Royer (decapitateddan.com)
“What a gem of a book! I can totally recommend The Vault. Get it now.” – Weekly Comic Book Review
“You can judge a book by its cover, because The Vault is a hell of a read, promising even more hell to come.” – Comic Book Bin
THE VAULT VOL. 1 TP, a 96-page full-color paperback, will be on sale in stores January 18, 2012 for $9.99 and is available to order in the November 2011 edition of Diamond Previews (NOV110420, ISBN: 978-1-60706-485-5). For more information, please visitwww.facebook.com/thevaultcomic or www.twitter.com/thevaultcomic.
Following on from Dark Horse’s very cheap Star Wars comics sale is DC’s version, which is on now until November 20. You can get a whole bunch of classic and modern Teen Titans comics for only 99 cents each. Go here to check it out.
Understandably, with the success of Harry Potter, and Twilight, there are a lot of young adult books getting adapted into film these days. I’m not familiar with the Hunger Games books by Suzanne Collins, but this March releasing film looks OK. It stars Jennifer Lawrence (Mystique in X-Men: First Class) and Liam Hemsworth (younger brother of Thor’s Chris) and does remind me of the Japanese film, Battle Royale. There’s also a nice list here of similar games to the death tales in comics and films.
I saw this a while ago and forgot to mention it, but thankfully it’s jumped on my radar again. A Lego clock, designed by Hans Andersson which uses Bluetooth apparently. Very cool.
Spotlighting 8 characters for the May 4 releasing Avengers film are these new banners. Below are (from L to R) Captain America (in his new modern duds), Bruce Banner/Hulk, Iron Man and Thor, followed by Nick Fury, baddie Loki, Hawkeye and Black Widow.
53 mins. We analyse the purpose of the love-interest character, how they play off of the heroic lead, and what makes the archetypal Lois Lane memorable while others are forgotten. Also, Jean Claude van Damme. Just because.
The female love interest/damsel in distress has a specific role to fill in the stories of comics, and most notably superheroes. We examine the following.
The pulp novels including Doc Savage, and The Shadow
Hollywood’s genre mashing of sorts
Female versions of male superheroes
Peter Parker’s loves, including Gwen Stacy, and his dissolved marriage with Mary Jane Watson
Bruce Wayne’s escorts
The complicated relationships in Crying Freeman, and Preacher
Text-free preview below of December’s Avenger’s issue by one of my fave artists, Daniel Acuna.
Your First Look At AVENGERS #20
The latest and greatest roster of Avengers head down the rabbit hole to find out who is behind the all-new H.A.M.M.E.R. in your first look at Avengers #20! Just when the world thought it was safe, Norman Osborn has recruited a powerhouse team of new Dark Avengers and he’s out for revenge. Combined with the might of the former leaders of H.Y.D.R.A. and A.I.M., the Avengers will need serious firepower to tackle this threat. Luckily, that’s where their new recruits come in. Get in on the action, courtesy of the red-hot creative team of Brian Michael Bendis and Daniel Acuña this December, in Avengers #20!
DC Nation is an upcoming TV series that will air on Cartoon Network in 2012. This new ad shows cut scenes from the Lego Batman game, and the upcoming Gotham City Imposters, as well as Green Lantern and Young Justice, and behind the scenes stuff. It looks good and should serve to get the DC brand out there and entice new readers.
My review of the second issue of this dystopian series from muso/writer Tom Morello is now up at Broken Frontier here. I actually enjoyed it more than the first issue.
You don’t have to read French to enjoy these well designed pics. Hulk, Spider-Man and Green Lantern below, and more including Superman, Iron Man and others at the link.
This week is fairly indicative of my new comic purchasing habits, with DC Comics and their largely disappointing relaunch taking a back seat to some truly entertaining tales at Marvel.
The Incredible Hulk #1. Writer Peter David got me hooked on the Green Goliath, as I began following him towards the end of his stellar 14 year run. Now I’m collecting all the Hulk Visionaries Trades that gather his epic. This new series finds Bruce Banner and Hulk separated, and writer Jason Aaron (Ghost Rider, Scalped) promises to explain how in future issues, as well as just why Hulk is hanging around deep below the earth, and how Banner managed to fund a laboratory in the middle of the jungle for his Island of Dr. Moreau experiments. Guided by Hulk’s Banner hating narration, and begrudging friendship with the mole men he feeds with huge subterranean beasts, is this worthy intro issue. Marc Silvestri’s sketchier style than usual works a treat with the angry action on display, although he’ll be getting help in coming issues. If you’ve been away form the Hulk for a while, this is a great place to return to.
Shame Itself. And now for something completely different. This ish doesn’t takes itself seriously at all, whcih makes it such an enjoyable romp. As an anthology one-shot mocking Marvel’s antics, I found this surprisingly funny. Despite the title, this doesn’t focus on the recent Fear Itself epic that ran throughout Marvel’s titles. Kicking things off with an awesome 5 pager by Victor Varnado and Clayton Henry, it finds various baddies including Galactus, Dormammu and Thanos (“He’s got jewellery!”) all turning up at New York to announce their latest world domination plans and then awkwardly realising that they can’t all rule the world and need some sort of schedule. Elliott Kalan and Dean Haspiel bring us Reed Richards and The Thing’s high school reunion, in which much to “Read’s” (as his name tag suggests) chagrin, Ben Grimm is much more popular than him. A Wy-If, as opposed to Marvel’s alternate universe What If series, by Wyatt Cenac, Kalan and artist Colleen Coover present 5 one page gags that work rather well. There’s a 2 pager prose piece from Michael Kupperman and a piece called “I Hate Peter Parker,” that doesn’t work. Overall, the whole ish does though, but only in the same way DC’s Tiny Titans does – for fanboys who know their stuff. If you’re new to Marvel, you won’t know most of these characters so the jokes won’t work. It’s awesome to see new writers here (a few from the land of TV), all of whom have a clear love of Marvel’s costumed adventurers.
Avengers Origins: Vision. The first in a series of Avenger centred one-shots is this painterly beauty. I’ve never been a massive fan of the avengers, but I do have a fondness for their low-key heroes such as Wonder Man, and this androgynous android. If you don’t know much about Vision, this is a nice teacher, although it won’t bring you up to speed on what he’s doing now. I haven’t seen him in a Marvel comic for ages, so I don’t know if he’s dead or what.
This tale, written by Kyle Higgins and Alec Siegel with gorgeous art by Stepahne Perger focuses on Vision’s creation by the evil Ultron 5, himself a robotic creation of Hank Pym of the avengers. Vision trains under Ultron, learns that his sole mission is to destroy Earth’s mightiest Heroes, which he fails at. He does arrive at a crying Janet van Dyne’s (Wasp) bedroom window and begins silently taking out the team, as Hawkeye, Pym (known as Goliath at this stage), Black Panther rush to each other’s aid. No sign of Thor, Cap or Iron Man though, which is just as well as that’d be too much to fit in this one-shot. Vision is impressed by their heroism and friendship and decides that Avengers aren’t worth his killing mission, and focuses his wide array of powers on his silver creator instead. It mixes some well constructed action and emotional touches as Vision goes beyond his original programming to become something more.
Perger’s art is lush and vivid, and reminded me of Alex Ross’ early work in Marvels. The fight scenes are filled with bold reds and yellows and laid out on the page very dynamically. I hope Perger does more superhero work. It fits in this nostalgic context but the balance of high action and emotion is splendid and would work in any series really.
Wolverine and the X-Men #1. No, it’s not based on the cartoon, but is set after the events of the recent Schism mini-series in which Cyclops and Wolvie had an ideological falling out, so Cyke and his students remain on the island of Utopia while Wolvei and his return to their old school, now called the Jean Grey School for higher Learning, in honour of their fallen comrade. This debut was a lot more light hearted than I was expecting, beginning with Wolvie and Kitty Pryde stressing out about being headmasters on the opening day, coupled with the visitation of two inspectors who are unimpressed on their tour with all the dangers around them.
It’s a good intro to the state of the new series and the faculty and students. We see glimpses of Husk, Beast, the once evil Toad (who only wants a bed) and new arrivals Kid Gladiator (his alien father has given the school lots of cool tech) and his bodyguard Warbird. There’s bound to be tension from within and attacks from outside, as Prof. X (he can walk now apparently!) tells Wolvie to expect lots of explosions and to get the number of a good debris removal company. Jason Aaron has done well to fit in humour, and lots of character moments here, and Chris Bachalo’s art is much more refined than his sometimes messy style. The exaggerations and light manga touch work a treat.
Marvel: Point One. This one-shot has been touted as an important pointer to some upcoming Marvel stories, so it mainly serves as an extra-sized anthology hinting at what’s to come. Consisting of 7 different tales, it begins with two explorers looking at the all-knowing Watcher’s records and then has spacefaring Nova (in a new suit that makes him look like’s been de-aged) fighting Terrax before fleeing to warn everybody that the Phoenix force is coming. It’s good to see Jeph Loeb and Ed McGuiness teaming up again, even if it’s for a short tale like this.
Next up is a future set Age of Apocalypse tale in which mutants rule and humans are the hunted species. David Lapham’s scripts works with Roberto De La Torre’s slightly gritty pencils to present an interesting tale that does very well to present a handful of new characters in as many pages. The Scarlett Spider and Yin and Yang tales are OK, but Matt Fraction’s and Terry Dodson’s Dr Strange story gives us a look at December’s The Defenders series (which I’m looking forward to, only because of the creators) and Brian Michael Bendis and Bryan Hitch show Spider-Man and Hawkeye fighting a losing battle against a few vicious Ultrons in their intense style.
Avenging Spider-Man #1. Zeb Wells and Joe Madureira know how to do fun and funny comics. It’s good to see Joe Mad back doing comics again, with his heavily manga inspired pencils lending Wells’ all-out action story a vibrant visual panache. Yes, Spidey’s a popular guy, but if , like me, you don’t read his monthly series (any of them), this new team-up book is awesome and will hopefully serve as a godo intro to the wider Marvel Universe as Peter Parker battles alongside various fellow costumed adventurers.
Here, it’s the turn of Red Hulk (former enemy of Hulk, General Ross) as they finish fighting a massive robot with a few other Avengers, before Ross gives Spidey a lift back to New York, in a most humiliating fashion. Of course, they arrive just in time for an invasion by the subterranean Moloids, who kidnap New York’s new mayor (and Parker’s old boss), J. Jonah Jameson. This ish is mostly fight scenes, including Hulk destroying a flock of seagulls, and a double pager of a mass of Moloids jumping on a mass of marathon runners, so it means it’s slightly unsatisfying due to it being a quick read. Perfect for newbies though, as this ish (and assumedly, all future ones) consists of a neato intro summarising who Spidey and this new red Hulk are.
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