Ben Boruff Comic Reviews

In a 2016 video essay, YouTuber and pop culture critic Lindsay Ellis accused Disney's Hercules of having a "tone problem." Ellis explained that the film "is a comedy"arguably more than any other Disney movie that came out that decade"at least as far as the marketing goes. That wouldn't be a problem or even noteworthy except that this has some of the darkest stuff in all of Disneydom." AA Squad suffers from a similar problem. The artwork and some of the dialogue are typical of more lighthearted narratives, but some of AA Squad's panels are surprisingly somber. In one panel, a tiny robot shifts into a tiny robot poodle, but a following page features a melancholic inner monologue ("I wasn't restoring the timeline. I was scrubbing its toilet.") The first issue of AA Squad, though entertaining and thoughtful, is jumbled, but I am still excited to see how the second issue responds to the first issue's cliffhanger.

This arc promises to be action-packed, and I cannot wait to see where it leads. My hope is that future issues continue to incorporate minor, intriguing DC characters into the narrative.

All The Things We Didn't Do Last Night is a brilliantly tantalizing story. It represents the best of what the Soft Swindle Chic genre can be: luxurious, sultry, mysterious, and effortlessly fun. The first issue of this three-part series has set the bar high. I have no doubt that the next issues will continue to seduce readers.

The characters of Blue Moon, fictional and otherwise, scrutinize the usefulness of truth, but Blue Moon does not shove readers toward any specific conclusion. Tim's father approaches the topic with conviction, asserting that "the truth, it doesn't always work out, but it's never wrong." As a whole, Blue Moon questions this claim. Truth is never vilified, but it is not embraced either. If reality is difficult, why not dream? Even if the dreams are as difficult as reality"even if the dreams are dangerous"at least they are yours.

Perhaps future issues will push beyond the first issue's disturbing exposition. If they do, I look forward to reading them.

After Banchitta's impressively choreographed battle sequence, a couple characters begin fighting over a sword, and one character suggests that "some type of competition suited towards strongmen like yourselves" could settle the argument. Unlike the kill-count banter between Legolas and Gimli in Lord of the Rings, this conversation completely shifts the tone of the narrative. An important, character-building battle has just ended, but readers are given no time to process its events. One character even points out the absurdity of this: "We just were attacked and now we're fighting over a sword. This is mad!" But old Irwin replies, "No, this is perfectly normal...It always starts out this way."

Most of us want to believe that we are like Daisy, but few of us are. That said, all of us can appreciate Daisy's story, and I encourage you to do so.

The first issue of Cyberpunk 2077: Kickdown offers little new: it is a collection of science-fiction tropes communicated through semi-juvenile dialogue and electrifying color. However, I have some trust in Marchewkas ability to craft a compelling story, and I imagine the next issues will deliver.

Daredevil: Woman Without Fear #1 is well worth reading: for the action, the poses, the colors, and more. Its enough to wake you up inside.

I read Deer Editor shortly after watching the producers of Spotlight"the biographical film about the journalists from The Boston Globe who exposed sex abuse in the Boston area by Catholic priests"take home the Oscar for Best Picture, and I believe that, though Spotlight deals with some heavier issues, audiences today appreciate the relevance of both stories. Maybe that appreciation is fueled by pervasive cynicism and a widespread belief that the inveterate criminals of today need to be exposed. Maybe we see ourselves, on some level, as investigative antiheroes, flawed individuals who search for truth, so we relate to characters like Bucky. Whatever the reasons, Deer Editor is a fun, meaningful read, and I recommend it.

Whatever you do, pick something majestic, something mysterious, something that matches the strangeness of Whitman's "Unknown." Anything else would dishonor this pleasantly bizarre comic. Because "truth, like the future, is a moving target."

Most readers will gain a better understanding of the consequences of hunger. Follow the Leader seems to assert that nourishment is a solemn sacrifice from one entity to another. Near the end of the comic, a park-dwelling creature asks Paris an important question: "Remind me…of Cain and Abel's two offerings, which did God favour the most?"

On its surface, Follow the Leader is a story about the friction between the mafia and a cannibalistic cult, but most readers will find more than escapist entertainment in the comic's pages. The narrative explores significant issues like longing and innocence, and it does so with an impressive level of empathy. Though the young cultists are ferocious, they are nave. The mafia is both aggressive and tired. Readers are not coerced into connecting with any specific character. Instead, McCluggage fans the characters out in front of the reader like a deck of cards and says, "Pick one."

Barfly is The Boys meets Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem. Its funny, well-paced, and surprisingly insightful. I recommend giving it a try.

Reading Godshaper is a refreshing experience"notably different than reading the often trite, two-fisted pages of simpler stories. Godshaper is a groundbreaking comic, full of exciting motion and thoughtful commentary. In an animalistic world filled with subpar stories and derivative artwork, Godshaper stands tall as proof that comics can evolve.

The comic's original Kickstarter page notes that Gritt is "the character who will inspire you to dig deep and find the hero inside us all," but I do not want to be a hero like Gritt. I root for other famous antiheros"Dexter, Snape, Batman"because I understand their somewhat flawed motivations, but I am too confused about Gritt to care about him as a character. Like a violent, undeveloped version of Woody Allen, Gritt rambles through a series of blood-filled panels, provoked only by self-deprecation and testosterone. Gritt has potential, but this issue does not offer much beyond clichs and violence.

This comic should appeal to Viking fanatics and individuals of Icelandic heritage, but others may find it cumbersome. Though many pages are peppered with clich dialogue and overused tropes, the comic has some moments of true creativity, artistic ingenuity, and narrative finesse. Much like Gunnveig herself, Gunnveig's Saga has the potential to offer an original approach to some important topics, but so far it lacks the substance to effectively do so.

The first issue of Halfworld: The New Pioneers is intriguing, but it is not captivating"not yet. Much of the comic's social commentary has been made before. Brave New World and Fahrenheit 451 warn us about the dangers of technology and escapism, and Spike Jonze's Her explores the extent to which artificiality invades our reality. This issue of Halfworld: The New Pioneers offers only fragments of an intellectually stimulating dystopian world, and my hope is that these fragments will come together in future issues. I am interested in Halfworld, but I am not yet concerned about its citizens.

Legacy Rising Publications has created an elaborate superhero universe"one that, over time, could become a successful indie alternative to DC and Marvel"and Hotshot is an intriguing part of that universe. As a comic, Hotshot has flaws, but it also sports an undeniable charm, an underdog-ian magnetism that sugarcoats narrative irregularity as swift foreshadowing. And despite his brash characterization, Hotshot shines as a likable protagonist. I cannot help but root for the Saint Walker lookalike"even if I do not know exactly why. I am excited to see how Hotshot fits within the larger Legacy Rising universe, so I will continue to read this comic. And I will encourage my friends to do the same.

I teach high school students, so my understanding of elementary education is limited. But I believe that most kid-filled homes and classrooms will benefit from a having a few copies of Ink Island scattered around for children to read. And if Ryan K Lindsay and Craig Bruyn's teaching guide for Ink Island is as impressive as the comic, I suggest getting a copy of that too.

Whether you read it with Newman's music or not, remember to read Josephine with a compassionate and attentive eye. Look at the faces. See the feelings. And before you open your mouth or your laptop to discuss the novel, sit for a moment in silence and consider the story.

Fans of Judge Dredd will enjoy this comic because it offers Dredds quintessential no-nonsense intensity. New readers will also appreciate Judge Dredd: False Witness #1: it offers a lens through which to see our own world. And it judges our worldharshly.

Little Man in the Big House has its flaws, but it is entertaining. The dialogue is clich at times, and some of the characters are cookie-cutter versions of tired archetypes. If you want to wrinkle your brain, look elsewhere. But if you want to read about an Atom-like hero who attempts to smother a prison riot, read Little Man in the Big House, which is available for free online.

So if you like stories that feel like a 1990s Jim Carrey acting out Hieronymus Bosch's fever dream, you will enjoy The Ludocrats. It has violence, fourth wall breaks, and a character named Voldigan the Perfidious. If nothing else, comics like these help us appreciate the silliness of life and the value of spontaneity. For those reasons, I recommend it.

I hope that future issues of Luminous Ages will take time to effectively develop Thrakos and other characters so that the comic can be both visually and narratively engaging. Though the first issue has its blind spots, I am excited to see what the next issue adds to the universe.

Claire Connelly's comics are more targeted than those of her contemporaries. Tom Gauld, author of Goliath and Mooncop, favors the relative complexity of situational irony. Red Giant's Rich Foster, a promising comic creator in the San Francisco Bay Area, takes time to highlight the grittiness of character flaws. Image's Malachi Ward, author of From Now On, injects his stories with more dialogue than most writers of "epigrammatic gloom" bother to include (though, in the case of From Now On, the dialogue works well). Paper Crown, however, explores a single experience, strips that experience raw, and then exposes it to the reader with thick, black silhouettes and volcanic color. Paper Crown is a tricky comic: Connelly filled the five-page story with ideas that are both plain and potent. Seemingly dormant"until they erupt.

Past the Last Mountain is more than a fantasy comic: it is an exciting, heartfelt action story that uses interactions between fairy-tale characters and government officials to create an effective social commentary. Allor's narrative soars gracefully from page to page on the wings of Joyce's nuanced artwork. The characters are complicated, which makes them refreshingly relatable, and the story is relevant. In a 2013 lecture for the Reading Agency, author Neil Gaiman noted the benefits of escapism, arguing that fantasy worlds offer readers a safe place to acquire knowledge and tools with which to better tackle problems in real life. Past the Last Mountain offers this sort of fantasy world"use it.

Ultimately, it doesn't matter whether you prefer Madame Alexe Popova or Elena Ivanovna Popova. This story isn't about either of them: it is about Scarlet Rose. And Scarlet Rose is a badass, Trinity-esque hero who hates bullshit.

Maybe. The one thing I know is that Andy is, as he says, "not a bad guy." That point is clear. So to all who want to read a story about a decent man, I encourage you to read about Andrew Peters. He is a decent man.

I do not know why my mind often revisits the pages of this comic. Maybe I identify with the Baron's single-minded pursuit of lasting recognition. Maybe I wonder if my dreams are Red Giants, unattainable and empty. Maybe, on some level, I perceive the impossibility of meaning. Whatever the reason, I choose to read the first issue of Red Giant as a cautionary tale: Regardless of their intrinsic value, my dreams are ultimately worthless if I must hurt everyone to achieve them. Even if the Baron had achieved his goal, he still would have ended his story alone on a mountain covered with snow.

Santeria: The Goddess Kissis an ambitious comic, and I appreciate the attempt to pack one comic with a variety of locations, characters, and moral questions. Though the first issue was weighed down by exposition, it presented some exciting themes, and maybe the next few issues will offer fewer words and more characterization. If so, I look forward to reading them.

If the previews are accurate, the second issue of Sara Rising will offer some intriguing social commentary. I would like to see more narrative risk-taking in the next issues of the comic. Sara is an impressive character, and I want her to exist in a unique universe that offers new challenges. Bobarrak can exist there too, but this is Sara's story, not his.

In Sara Rising #2, Sara begins to rise, literally and figuratively, toward an elevated state of self-awareness and power. Sara Risinghas hit its stride.

Sara Rising #3 continues Sara's saga, and it does so with comedy and narrative finesse. The issue flows well, and Sara continues to provide an entertaining and curiosity-driven lens through which readers can explore Rodriguez's rich universe. Sara is mesmerized by her new surroundings, and most readers will share her sense of wonder. With its witty humor, clever social commentary, BioWare-esque universe, polished artwork, and smooth pacing, Sara Rising is a must-read for sci-fi comic fans.

Snow Brigade's dedication page notes a second song, and I recommend that readers play this song immediately after reading the comic's last panel. The song, "Cartoons and Macram Wounds" by Mew, is a seven-minute ode to the sad whimsies of those who create worlds for other people. The song starts with a somewhat light melody that acknowledges good intentions""You drew me cartoons / So playful""and slowly evolves into a percussion-heavy, multi-voice climax that lasts for several minutes. The lyrics of the song's last few minutes""Drawn and held with you / This is what we do / We are leaving wounds""suggest unresolved pain, and this is the same feeling that lingers after reading Snow Brigade.

The comic contains ample amounts of the teenage comedy and melodrama that may be expected of something titled Super Ready Battle Armor"and some readers will not bother to look past those elements"but slapstick action and stylized male bonding do not seem to be the only (or even the most important) aspects of this comic. The comic's narrative flows well, focusing on the present story and often eschewing backstories entirely. Reading Super Ready Battle Armor is like falling down a Slip 'N Slide, and experiencing the panels that end this first issue feels like hitting the grass at the bottom. This issue does not answer many questions about Infector or B.A., but it does not need to. It's entertaining, and it may have a lesson to share. If nothing else, the goofiness of Professor Insanus will tempt most readers to seek out the second issue of this story, which is available for free on the comic's website.

Deep Singh will likely face many obstacles in future issues. And I'll be rooting for him as he overcomes each one.

Supermassive 2024 is a crossover event you dont want to miss. Brush up on your Massive-Verse knowledge and join the fun.

Test Tube communicates complicated ideas, and it scorns the status quo. The nature of subversive art is that we desire it, in part, because it rejects dominant paradigms. Though its narrative and artwork are bizarre, Test Tube offers a nuanced and important commentary on modern life, and we should embrace critical thought in whatever form it appears.

As a reading experience, The Anywhere Man is, in many ways, a simulation of despair. The art's noir-ish staccato of fatigued eyes and mutated fingers nurtures uncertainty, and many readers will empathize with Frank's confusion and frustration. As a character, Frank is somewhat of an unknown, a protagonist with a flowing, moveable identity (a literal "anywhere man"), so readers can place themselves in Frank's shoes with relative ease. And it is this level of empathy"this ability to relate to such a flawed character"that lingers long after the last page is read. Figuratively, Frank's situation is common: many people believe that, throughout their lives, they are tossed about like dolls, manipulated by larger forces. Other fictional portrayals of teleportation feature stoked teenagers discovering efficient travel options, but teleportation in The Anywhere Man is frightening"and unwanted. Frank wants to stay, to belong, to be happy, but he frequently finds himself reliving past pains. Thou

Because of the nature of the narrative, many short comics end with a punch line, an emotional shift intended to leave the reader with a new thought or emotion. All three stories in the first issue of The Groveland Cleaver accomplish this task. Some ideas linger longer than others"and some seem almost trivial"but each story offers readers a thought to digest for several moments after reading the last panel. Some readers will roll their eyes at these stories, and others will reread them several times. But all readers will find something worth discussing.

Many plot-based questions remain after the last panel of this issue, but the characterization of Jason causes most of my confusion. Reactions to this protagonist come in two mutually exclusive forms: apathy or disgust. Either Jason is an empty vessel that carries the reader from moment to moment, or he is an intensely lonely sociopath who falls in love with Wendy, his pet finger. Hopefully, future issues will point us in the right direction.

I refuse to believe that The Living Finger's living finger is just a living finger. It means something, and I will figure it out. In the meantime, this comic offers enough intriguing action to satisfy my need for bizarre entertainment, and I look forward to more in the next issue.

Intentionally or unintentionally, Piscopo plagiarized to the extent that the comic toes the line between problematic art and unapologetic kitsch. The comic's copyright page houses this disclaimer: "No similarity without satiric purpose of any living or dead person, product or institution is intended. Any similarity that may exist is purely coincidental." Assuming that Marvel's Thor and DC's Hawkman are "products," I call bullshit. Some may argue that such comics are meant to be fun, not original. I disagree. But even if that is the case, I still hesitate to recommend this comic. Find fun elsewhere"there are plenty of comics that do it better.

At times, Warp Zone is bizarre, but there is nothing in the comic that is notably more outrageous than anything in Homer'sOdyssey. Despite the outlandish nature of the writing and the artwork, Warp Zone is oddly accessible. The characters, though simple, are relatable, and many readers will connect to the desire to step into a portal and wander through the cosmos. That said, if you are ever lucky enough to travel around the galaxy, remember to take Jack Elsewhere's advice: "When exploring other realms"weapons, spaceships, and magical items are not necessary. All one really needs is a comfortable pair of shoes."

My advice: Enjoy the comic's "wild shit." And if you're looking for more meaning, talk to Jack Elsewhere"and join the club.

The comic's last panel features a big brother looking at his younger sister. "I hope you grow up being able to choose what you want," he thinks.