When an image of a horned demonic girl in armor crossed my Twitter timeline in 2018, I felt drawn to her. Illyana Rasputin looks like an untamed demon and a battle hardened human. In the recent trailer for the New Mutants film, I feel like we see a glimpse of both demon and human in…
Pound for Pound Is an MMA Comic that Doesn’t Pull its Punches
TV writer and producer Natalie Chaidez joins Southern Cross artist Andy Belanger for her first comics offering. Pound for Pound explores the seedy world of underground MMA, the effects of past traumas, and manages to include more than one horrifying cult. The book tries to meld fast, violent action with emotional struggle whilst taking a…
Darth Vader #1: Inside Darth Vader’s Dark Mind
Darth Vader has just confronted Luke Skywalker on Cloud City. But his attempts to seduce the boy to the dark side failed, and Luke has since disappeared. If Vader is to find his son, he needs to return to the beginning—and find the people who hid Luke from him.
First Second Pubwatch: March 2020
Welcome to the new Pubwatch series for First Second Books! Stories about the magic of friendship and social issues that affect young people dominate my reviews of the graphic novels this month from the publisher First Second. This will regularly be the new place to learn about what’s happening with this innovative publisher for comics…
Sweet Heart #1 Faces its Monsters
Dillon Gilbertson has openly spoken the fact that Sweet Heart #1’s monstrosities represent his own struggles with diabetes, but the first issue quickly establishes itself as an analogy for the many mental and physical horrors that plague us.
Spider-Man Noir #1: A Christie-ish Take on Everyone’s Favourite Webcrawler
A robbery, a dead dame, and an ancient brooch set all of Spider-Man Noir’s senses tingling. To solve this mystery, our friendly neighbourhood 1930s Spider-Man is going to have to leave his comfort zone.
X-Men/Fantastic Four #2: The Island of Doom
Welcome back for Kate and Rachel’s second review of the X-Men/Fantastic Four miniseries! You can find the review of the first issue, here.
A Man Among Ye: Stephanie Phillips and Craig Cermak Take on Anne Bonny
There is very little information on the Irish pirate known as Anne Bonny, save what Captain Charles Johnson’s A General History of the Pyrates has to offer, which leaves so much for writer Stephanie Williams and artist Craig Cermak to play with in A Man Among Ye. With a collected trade coming soon from Top…
Pretty Deadly, Pretty Cautious
I have loved Pretty Deadly since I first heard about it. The title, the creators, and the ideas fit everything I wanted from a new creator-owned series in 2014. And it has delivered. The Shrike, The Bear, and The Rat are awesome tales, combining the best parts of comics as a storytelling media. A wonderful…
Sex Criminals #26: The Long-Awaited Cumback
Your favourite comic about time-stopping sex criminals is back from its 19-month hiatus for a final 7-issue arc called “Six Criminals.” Issue #26 is stuffed *wink* full of everything makes this series great: melancholy, introspection, childhood trauma, and roller rinks, of course!
IDW Pubwatch March 2020
Welcome to the March IDW Pubwatch! I couldn’t be more excited to share my finds with you. It’s been a busy month at IDW and I’ve got all the top news coming out of the publishing house, as well as tons of IDW comic book reviews. Plus, I have a selection of my favourite covers…
New Mutants #8: When in Nova Roma…
Following the conclusions of the first two story arcs, New Mutants returns with an issue that stands on its own, while sparking a larger, ongoing story. Amara Aquilla, the New Mutant known as Magma, takes center stage as the New Mutants back on Earth find themselves shifting gears following their mishaps in Nebraska. This has…
