Edward Scissorhands
Kate Leth (W)
Drew Rausch (A)
IDW
Edward Scissorhands picks up a quarter of century after the film. Edward, being a technological creation, is unaged and largely forgotten in his eerie hilltop mansion. Kim’s granddaughter Megan has grown up listening to her grandmother’s tales of Edward. Kim passes away when Megan is twelve. Once Edward finds out, it stops snowing in the town.
Lonely, Edward looks through the books of his old creator and finds another technological creation who closely resembles Jack Skellington from The Nightmare Before Christmas. Edward sets to repairing him and names him Eli, but soon finds his hopes and dreams for Eli might not come to fruition. Eli has his own agenda.
Meanwhile, it is the anniversary of Kim’s death, and Megan wants to visit her grave, but Megan’s mother who is convinced that Kim was a nutter is less than supportive. Megan goes riffling through Kim’s old stuff where she finds the old snowglobe, and she realizes that Grandma Kim was no nutter.
The art is perfect for the atmosphere of Edward Scissorhands – it is whimsical and equally balances sweetness with sadness. However, at some moments this art makes the story a little difficult to follow especially considering that the scenes with Edward often lack dialogue (which makes sense since Edward is rather taciturn). I love the premise of picking back up with Edward in the present time, so I will tune in for the next issue, but I am currently a little underwhelmed.
— Ginnis
Manifest Destiny #11
Chris Dingness (W)
Matthew Roberts and Owen Gieni (A)
Image Comics
This issue fleshes out Lewis as an equally fierce character as Clark. But their brutality is motivated by different urges. Clark reacts quickly, independently with the primary objective to retain control over the crew. Lewis’ reactions are slowly formulated, supported by research, and he seems almost unaware of the hints of mutiny that threaten their expedition. However, once he has decided on the most appropriate course of action, he takes it (whether or not this entails violence). Lewis attacks the Ranidea with absolute rage, but with his armed with a carefully formulated insecticide sure to kill it good. Through Lewis & Clark’s maneuvering the crew is able to reboard the ship and move up the river to whatever new fun the frontier has planned for them.
Issue #11 also doles out a painful punishment for the would-be rapist Hardy. He is dangled as bait for the Frog Monster, is shot in the leg to chum the water, is nearly eaten by the Ranidea, loses half his leg, has the protruding bone sawed off, and then has the wound cauterized by Mrs. Boniface (who may have taken some pleasure in his pain). This was a bit sadistic, considering they could have either banished Hardy, killed him, or put him in a makeshift jail for the remainder of the trip, but at least this sends a clear message to the rest of the crew that shitty behavior begets getting treated like shit. It also served the purpose of reminding the group who has the ultimate authority over their exploration. Will the crew shape up after this power display? Or will they revolt?
— Romona
God Hates Astronauts #3
Ryan Browne (W & A)
Image Comics
The sheer ridiculous that is God Hates Astronauts continues in issue 3, which is wonderful as that’s the not-so-secret reason I read it. King Tiger Eating A Cheeseburger is still hellbent on vengeance to Earth for the death of his son, while the unsuspecting NASA crew hold a BBQ. Secrets are almost out of the bag in this issue from Dave the Anti-Mugger’s subconscious mess to Star Grass noticing Gnarled’s ghost things get a tab bit weird.
Overall, loved the issue. Still lots of action, weirdness and great art design, especially the coloring. Kudos to Jordan Boyd! I was a little disappointed that King Tiger Eating A Cheeseburger only shows up in the opening pages, not because he’s a deep, well thought out character, but because every time I read that name it cracks me up. One irk, as a sci-fi girl, is that the majority of the species mash-ups are bipedal. Sure, it works since there’s so much creativity baked into the characters and it’s believable to the story line, but still I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention it. Looking forward to next month!
— Brenda
Velvet #8
Ed Brubaker (W)
Steve Epting (A)
Image Comics
The “Secret Lives of Dead Men” arc continues and Velvet is back in frame after a small hiatus in Issue #7. The story backs up a bit to Velvet’s action plan with the director from the end of Issue #6. Even though we’re still not sure why, it shows her process as a brilliant spy. A kick-ass 5-page fight scene is the highlight of this issue for me, proving once again just how badass Velvet is. Score another one for this smart, powerful, older female!
Due to the action in this issue, it made for a super quick read. A little sad really since I look forward to this title every month. It’s solid the entire way through, so I’m not sure it’s something that could have been helped this time around. Also of note in the back page letters, a huge shout out to colorist Elizabeth Breitweiser from fan Daniel McMasters. He’s right that her coloring makes the title fantastic and I’m glad Velvet Underground called attention to it.
— Brenda
