Black Science #2 & #3 and Furious #1

I somehow managed to space on the December issue of Black Science and by the time I realized it, my shop had sold out of the run. Luckily they had gotten a few more in by last Wednesday when I went in for issue 3; so I guess you're getting a twofer. The second world the dimensionauts have landed in features meched-out Native Americans fighting WWI-ish Europeans in a reverse colonialism type deal. We also discover a little more about the Pillar and characters through the use of flashbacks set before the ill-fated 1st jump. There's a bunch going on, but I don't wanna spoil anything. Between the great art, solid writing, and rad premise, Black Science is quickly becoming on of my favorite books. 

The premise behind Furious is interesting, the first superhero manifests in modern times and must deal with the ramifications of being violent, masked vigilante in the age of twitter, smart phones, and instant media. Unfortunate the comic itself doesn't manage to pan out very well. The dialog is flat, the story is choppy, and the art is pretty meh. It's not terrible, it just feels like everything about Furious could have been done better. I'll probably scope out the next issue, but I suspect after that...

Hacktivist #1 & Midas Flesh #2

As soon as the dude in the fedora who was ringing me up began babbling on and on about how awesome Hacktivist was, I knew I'd made a mistake. Basically, this is all about how rich, young, tech-savvy white dudes will save the world and stuff. Yeeeaaaa....PASS

Ok, so I'm liking this more with the 2^nd issue, but I'm still not fully won over. There's a definite nostalgia for ridiculous childhood sci-fi that this book is playing into. And, what the hell? I'll bite. The art is fairly solid, if a little cartoonish, and the story is developing nicely. The dialog could use a little work thou...“Yea man. Stone-cold boinking.”

EGOs #1 & Gate-Way #1

The story here is nothing new; a group of former superheros must reunite when an old enemy reappears with some new tricks, while simultaneously mentoring the next generation of heroes. Oh, and it's set in the future, too. Sound a little similar to Hypernaturals from a year or two ago? Ok, so the story isn't the most original, but EGOs throws some twists in that make it their own. I won't spoil anything, but it's solid. The art is also pretty rad, especially the color palette; washed out pastels a-la Miami Vice or Manhunter. Totally worth scoping out.

Ucch...I can't believe I threw away 4 bucks on this shit. Gate-Way has the trifecta of terrible; mediocre art, ghastly writing, and a trite premise. Honestly, I don't even feel like getting into why this is so bad, I already wasted enough time reading the stupid thing.

The GodBeast: Mini Mushi Swarm 4-pack

When I found out back in December that GodBeast was doing a Kabuto Mushi MKII in a metallic red to match Onell Designs' Gendrone Rebellion line, you know I had to have one. Unfortunately, I spaced on the date and checked the GodBeast store a day after those sweet red MKIIs went live and they'd sold out. Fuckfuckfuck. As a consolation prize I snagged an assorted color Mini Mushi Swarm 4-pack. These tiny dudes are pretty rad, but they're also seriously little. I'm terrified that with in a week they'll all be misplaced or have fallen under a bookcase. Also, at two bucks a pop, it seems a steep for such small, non-articulated figures. I'd love to have a platoon of the metallic red Mini Mushis, but that'd be like $50 investment. While tiny and expensive, I'm still glad I picked these up. Now I just need to start scouring eBay for one of those Kabuto Mushi MKIIs...

Juice Squeezers #1 & The Twilight Zone #1

Once again, I find my time sucked up with work and holiday related crap, so I'm only just now getting to sit down and read this week's books...

I hate bugs, so the idea of child soldiers crawling into underground tunnels to fight giant bugs with melee weapons terrifies the hell out of me. Seriously, let that sink in a little. These aren't Colonial Space Marines with M41A pulse rifles on a bug hunt, it's 7th graders with pointy sticks and clubs. Anyhow, this is basically a goofy, but fun book. Nothing too heavy, original, or interesting, but enjoyable to read. If you can overcome your fear of tight places filled with gigantic insects, you might like this.

I'd expected this to contain a few short yarns with O. Henry style twist endings, but was pleasantly surprised to find it's a single story that takes up the length of this book and extends into the next issue. The writing was solid; I won't give anything away, but there's a wicked cliffhanger at the issue's end. The art's decent, but it really doesn't add anything to the comic. It's just there, you know? Even so, it's worth checking out.