Drew Bradley Comic Reviews

Every panel is an amazing work of art, and it's always a little sad when the group leaves a world behind, never to be seen again.

This series is shaping up to be a slow burn. There's not a lot of plot development in this issue; it's mostly world building with a sprinkle of intrigue. And you know what? I'm ok with that, because I trust Faeber to deliver. His past work has repeatedly proven that stories he writes has legs and ages gracefully.

It sounds like I'm really knocking "Daredevil" #8, and I don't mean to. I like the creators and the series. This issue was weak compared to the rest of the series, but is still head and shoulders above most of the other superhero comics out this week.

"Eerie" (and its sister book "Creepy") has a good track record, but this issue just doesn't measure up.

At 32 pages, this book is worth your $3 more than most comics on the stands. This should be a purchase for anyone interested in crime comics, and the only reason to pass it up is to tradewait it. But why would you? In an industry overflowing with tights and capes, genre comics and the teams behind them, especially good ones, deserve to be supported monthly

It's also not clear who the comic's target audience is. The show hasn't been on TV for quite a while, so there are very few kids who would even know what a fraggle is, let alone want to read about one. The story line is too base and expository to be for an older fan. Maybe Boom! thinks there's a huge market of Fraggle Rock-raised parents who will find their way into a comic shop and blindly buy this for their kids?

Overall, this was an ok issue, but not good enough to entice me back next month.

The pacing, the dialogue, the characters, the moody shading and evocative facial expressions " everything about this book makes me wonder why these creators aren't household names yet. After just one issue, this book has so much going for it that it's already earned multiple spots in my best of 2014 list.

Chee continues to put out some of the most expressive black and white art in recent memory. Don't be fooled by the B&W tag, though " there are few (if any) actual whites or blacks in this issue. Everything is on a gray scale, reminding us the world Charlie lives in isn't simple. The shading and textures are rich and wonderful, making otherwise boring scenes like a classroom lecture feel alive. This book is a treat to read, but each page is also worth examining on its own.

A strong debut, and I look forward to #2

This is probably sounding negative, but don't be fooled. "Umbral" is a book you should be reading. Johnston's a first class writer, and Mitten's work is far better than average. It's worth going through the book a second time just to marvel at his skill at making your eye look exactly where he wants it to go. It's a very different style, but this is some Alex Toth worth work on some pages.

On the whole, “Who Will Make the Pancakes” surprised me. I was surprised by how long Megan Kelso has been working. I was surprised by how much I liked it. I was surprised by the title never appearing anywhere in the book. If you give it a chance, I think you'll be surprised, too.

The art also had a few awkward moments which didn't seem to fit the story. At one point, a woman is pretending to be a prostitute as bait for a serial attacker. Over the course of a couple pages, she turns down several potential johns, which is fine. In one panel in particular though, she's appears to be turning him down by bending over in front of him while he pulls his pants back up. Making matters worse, the perspective makes it look like she's supporting herself by leaning on the top of a streetlight which is across and above the street. Eric Nguyen has done great work on "X" in the past, but this was not his best showing.

If you haven't tried "X" yet, you're really missing something special. This is a fresh take on the vigilante genre, and it's still only $2.99 an issue. It's tough to beat this kind of value.