anthony cooley Comic Reviews

This is obviously a passion project by a creative team that loves these characters and poured their hearts onto the page. This made me feel things a comic hasn’t made me feel in decades. It feels effortless as if the characters wrote themselves.

The first issue moves fast, but it still finds room to establish the central mystery and leave Snake facing a threat with real personal stakes. Escape from New York: Escape from Chicago #1 is a strong continuation of the franchise: bleak, violent, and driven by a Snake Plissken who remains compelling precisely because he would rather keep moving than become anyone’s hero.

This is a great first issue: tense, twisted, and visually unique. The sports betting angle really adds a relatable feeling of realistic dread that complements the supernatural elements perfectly, turning every point spread and whispered instruction into another loop in a tightening knot. Tommy’s fear feels real, and the final pages leave the audience with a smile that lasts until they realize they need to wait a month to keep reading!

Ghost of a Ghost #1 succeeds because its weirdness is intentional, accessible, and not a barrier to entry. The story offers enough mystery to pull readers in, while its distinct visual identity keeps the pages turning. It is an energetic and stylish first chapter that expands the Hellboy universe in a fresh direction without losing its fondness for the strange.

Kirkman and Casey deliver an intriguing start to the Terminal Universe (my unofficial name for it). It’s a great setup issue that introduces some really cool characters who feel more like people than plot devices. Kubert and McCaig are electric and really give this book some juice! There are plenty of twists and turns and shocks and even a bit of heartbreak, creating a wild ride that is worth the price of admission and will leave you counting the days for the next installment. But some issues with pacing coupled with, what I assume to be, intentional ambiguity, makes it difficult to call the book perfect.