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New Comic Book Day Megathread

Started by The Adventurer, 08 March, 2012, 09:36:36 AM

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The Monarch


Fungus

Noticing the silly number of "Black ..." books on the pile, I tackled them together...

Black Widow 6
Bit of a downturn from excellent earlier issues, but with Waid/Samnee it's still quality comics.

Black Science 22,23
Onto the next arc, and Remender's banging-on-about-family continues. So far, so repetitive. Another dimension and Grant's daughter is a princess this time, but doesn't appreciate the family reunion. That aside, the epic art is still in evidence and enough happens to keep the tale rattling along. I'll keep reading for now, but the similarities with Low are clear - and don't know how I'll feel about the imminent Seven To Eternity, will it be any different?

Black Hood 6
A guest issue drawn by Chaykin  :) Tale did little for me (Judge Dredd's Swierczynski), so that's that. Meanwhile, Chaykin's Midnight of the Soul is 3 issues in and ticks all the boxes - but nothing you wouldn't expect in HC and everything you would. Stylish.

The Black Monday Murders 1
Reads a bit like Hickman's (other title) East of West but rooted in the real world of financial... well, not quite conspiracy, it's beyond that...! Nicely coloured and great realistic art, dark but never confusing. Extra-long issue 1 has me hooked.

Black Hammer 1,2
Jeff Lemire and Dean Ormston working wonders, soapy and engaging take on ex(iled) superheroes. Ormston's art was the highlight of Bodies for me, it's even better here. A bit Ridgway, bit Dowling and even Willsher now too in facial expressions. Add great characterisation across an interesting cast, and this book should do really well.

Colin YNWA

Quote from: Fungus on 27 August, 2016, 12:36:42 AM
Noticing the silly number of "Black ..." books on the pile, I tackled them together...

No Black Road then - you should be reading that.

Fungus

Quote from: Colin_YNWA on 27 August, 2016, 06:31:42 AM
Quote from: Fungus on 27 August, 2016, 12:36:42 AM
Noticing the silly number of "Black ..." books on the pile, I tackled them together...

No Black Road then - you should be reading that.

Yes Sir right away Sir!  :)

Maybe someone else has mentioned it, but Dean Ormston's recovery from serious illness described in Black Hammer 2 came as a shock. Comic book artists have it tough enough (it seems), hope this sells by the bucketload.

TordelBack

It ought to. This is the best work Ormston's done, and that's not faint praise. I've had Black Hammer 2 since Monday and I'm holding off even opening it until I have secured  a decent chunk of quiet relaxed time* to fully savour a read. I don't do that very often.



*Just finishing my thirteenth day without a break, one more day to go to until I get Monday off, then 11 more days til the next break. Profitable madness, but not conducive to comic appreciation.

Hawkmumbler

Well heres my belated round up of the last month....part one of....I dunno, a few?...

Anyhow, i'll throw in my praise for Black Hammer #1 and #2, because they ARE fucking good comics, brilliantly good comics. I really adore is kind of take on the cape genre, a strangely unreal, almost dark horror attitude to the silver age asthetic. Delightful! Equally delightful is Invincible #130 which provides a real catch 22 dilema, and an undeniable feeling that SOMETHING is going to go very wrong. One of the best comics on the stands right now, sorry to hearthats it's ending soon(ish).

I've already doffed my hat to Johnny Red #8, and on reread my evaluation are just confirmed, it's a bloody brilliant war comic. More please! And my my, Rob Williams is doing a number in Unfollow #10, despite an odd change in artist i'm still bowled over by this series, simply magnificent stuff. And another series that co tinues to go from strength to strength is Doctor Who 11th s.2 #12, which is simply magnificent stuff. It's just good old fashioned Who and as a dire hard fan i'm delighted to see this continue gor another run.

Meanwhile, in the Weekly Shonen Jump #34-37, everything is par for the cour....oh who am I kidding, NISEKOI IS DEAD YYYYYEEEEEEAAAAASSSSSS!!!!!!!! Oh, and Bleach ended as well, in possibly the biggest hatchet job of a finale since Lobster Random. It was bad, really bad! Thank god for Toriko actually doing a conclusion as well as could be done in the present time frame or else I might have lost all hope!

Finally, for now, The Maxx #34, the penultimate issue. It's first half ties neatly into a prior one but leaves the meaning of #33 ultimately unadressed, hopefully keith can wrap all the plot threads up nicely in 22 pages next month, and I can look at The Maxx for just what it was, a delightful roller coaster ride of madness.

The rest is to follow!!!

Colin YNWA

Quote from: The Cosh on 30 June, 2016, 09:40:39 AM
Unfortunately, I can never just be happy about something though so, in contrast, the first volume of Hickman's Manhattan Projects was in the same bundle and it was dreadful.

Quote from: Fungus on 30 June, 2016, 09:59:52 AM
Curiously, I also gave Manhattan Projects vol. 1 a try recently - it was in the library, a no-brainer - and it didn't click for me. I admire Hickman's ambition, even if it sometime misses the mark.

Well have to say I'm with you both. In theory I should love this but just tried to get through the first 10 issues from the Humble Bundle we all got (I think) and its just not clicking and after 6 issues I can't be fussed to read any more. Such a shame but it has a real disconnect. I think its to do with the fact there's all this weird and gloriously interesting stuff happening but there's no one to ground it and no sense that its trying to address and explain the things I'd like to delve into a little more because of that. Its seem very satisfied with some interesting, if not earth shattering storytelling technics. It seems to be very satisfied with some interesting but not earth shattering ideas and themes.

Its not as smart as I think it is and I find both story and art to be a little jarring.

Shame as I say I think I should be loving this. Its like a 2000ad story that's got a little too big for its boots without a genius like John Smith to justify it!

The Adventurer

#1942
I was a fan of Manhattan Projects for a while, I thought it was brilliantly mental. And managed to not really fall into the usual Hickman trap of taking real world 'conspiracies' so seriously. (seriously, if you want to see some tin foil hat nonsense, check out his Nightly News or Pax Romana books. Oof) Instead distilling the idea of conspiracies through the lens of something bonkers and out there. World wide conspiracies make more sense when unrealistic super science is involved.

I did eventually drop Manhattan Projects when it became a series of mini-series, but I still read Hickman's East of West. And I enjoyed Red Mass for Mars and The Red Wing

THIS SPACE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK

Fungus

All that said, The Black Monday Murders is a good romp and I'd recommend it. He's definitely still the Conspiracy Guy though  :)

Hawkmumbler

Well sorry for the delay chaps, but heres the rest of that catch up...

Of the many manga series i'm reading right now, the one i'm stock piling is Ultraman, now at 5 volumes in length (and a reread of the first volume is in order) I think it's time I dived in there and seen what the deal is, as unlike Godzilla and Gamera, i'm notall that clued up on the Ultraman franchise. In contrast to this, Saga #37 heralds the glorious return for the series as it enters it's first war arc. Promises to be truly good stuff for one of my most polerising titles in my pull list.

Elsewhere, Groo Frey of the Gods #2 and Lumberjanes/Gotham Academy #3 continue to be superb additions to already fantastic series, with the new Groo maxi shaping uo nicely. Maybe not Usagi Yojimbo nicely, but still very good indeed. Savage Dragon #215 is a fantastic finale to the present story line with a punch drunk mad cliffhanger, and a cracking back up strip to boot thats apparently becoming it's own ongoing series called Aquaria, will have to keep an eye out for that.

Colin YNWA

Quote from: Hawkmumbler on 30 August, 2016, 08:44:22 AM
Saga #37 heralds the glorious return for the series as it enters it's first war arc. Promises to be truly good stuff for one of my most polerising titles in my pull list.

Is Saga polarising? I think most people, the vast majority love it don't they. I enjoy it but don't think its the bees knees as a lot do and hence I find I'm more critical of it than is possibly fair, mainly as I seek to understand the absolute love of so many.

ANYWAY in more important (i.e. self important) news I got a double boon this morning as Corto Maltese - The Ethiopian AND Bacchus Omnibus 2 were waiting for me when I returned home. Both will get a cheeky boost up the reading list (if you'll excuse the euphemism).

Hawkmumbler

Quote from: Colin_YNWA on 01 September, 2016, 12:17:18 PM
Quote from: Hawkmumbler on 30 August, 2016, 08:44:22 AM
Saga #37 heralds the glorious return for the series as it enters it's first war arc. Promises to be truly good stuff for one of my most polerising titles in my pull list.

Is Saga polarising? I think most people, the vast majority love it don't they. I enjoy it but don't think its the bees knees as a lot do and hence I find I'm more critical of it than is possibly fair, mainly as I seek to understand the absolute love of so many.
I was more referring to my own personal back and forth with the title, my battle of extremes between adoring it unreservedly and loathing it's very being. It's most certainly an odd relationship for a comic I refuse to boot off of my pull list, but at times I do find myself outraged by the cheapness of Vaughns shock tactics, sometime bordering on Miller level tripe. But...invariably something will happen in the next few pages that makes me absolutely fall in love with the title again. If ever I could describe a reading experience as a roller coaster, it's the average issue of Saga.

QuoteANYWAY in more important (i.e. self important) news I got a double boon this morning as Corto Maltese - The Ethiopian AND Bacchus Omnibus 2 were waiting for me when I returned home. Both will get a cheeky boost up the reading list (if you'll excuse the euphemism).
Yay and double yay! That means Travelling Man have my copies in as well as the new Dylan Dog book as that was forecast the same release period. It'll have to wait until next payday but my lord is that going to be a lovely stack of books to buy. :D

The Monarch

X men 92 was good yes?

Deaths head was a treat in it yes?

Colin YNWA

Anybody reading Nailbiter?

Just read the 1st trade and its pretty infuriating. See I really enjoyed it, but it was God awful. So many moments that completely pulled me out the story by incredulity. So many 'what the fuck' turn of events, it was just poor. Yet it had a compelling mystery, was a quick simple page turner and really engaging, when I stayed in the story. Art was effective if not mind blowing.

It felt a little like it wanted to be Twin Peaks but just lost sight of how and why that worked (I have no idea if anyone involved has any interest in Twin Peaks, just the feeling I got from it).

Anyway I was just wondering if it sharpens up. I suspect if I see later issues on sale digitally I'll pick them up just to see what happens. Just don't want to hate myself for that as it was pretty poor... just very enjoyable!

Dan Banks

I've read all 4 trades and that's pretty much how it is all the way through. It's that wonderful kind of bad-good.

There is a genuinely brilliant issue in book 2 though where Brian Michael Bendis turns up, in story. Well worth reading!