Black Science #4, King Conan: The Conqueror #1, One-Hit Wonder #1, & Pariah #1

Black Science continues to be one of those books I'm always looking forward to the next issue coming out. This issue the dimensionauts manage to jump from the meched-out Indigenous Americans vs WWI Europeans conflict world, but not without some loss, and come to a safe, but much more alien universe. Oh, and it looks like they're not the only ones dimension hopping...*dun*dun*duuuuun*!

I'm a sucker for Conan stuff, so of course I'm loving this. The second part of the adaption of The Hour of The Dragon, I'll actually have to go back and reread the novel; it's been so long I can't recall how faithful the comic is. Anyhow, it's all the pulp fantasy sword slinging you could ask for. Fuck yea you should go get it.

Oh wow, this is some shit. Everything about this book is terrible, right down to the fucking cover. Honestly, that should have been a huge red flag; the smirking dude in front of the nearly-nude woman he's just shot in the head. The story is asinine; a former child star has turned top hitman, and despite killing someone on TV, prowls Hollywood unnoticed. The art reminds me of something you'd see in Mad Magazine, but colorized and run through one of those Photoshop paint filters. Finally, there's the writing, which tries to be all edgy, but comes off as stupid and flat. Oh, and there's a fair share of misogyny sprinkled in, too. Fuck this rag and everyone associated with it. 

Pariah is one of those books that tosses you into the story, expecting you to figure things out as things go along. It takes skilled writing to pull that off and Pariah manages to do it. Set in a decaying space station populated with young Vitros (whom appear to be super intelligent youths, feared and hated by the rest of the earth), the group finds someone from the earlier crew has sabotaged the station to kill them all.  The art isn't bad, but it doesn't seem the best choice for a sci-fi book, a little too toonish and scratchy, but whatever. I say check it out.

Owlcon XXXIII

Owlcon 33 wrapped up yesterday, which means my entire weekend was spent gaming, with periodic breaks of sleeping and guzzling 40oz of Mickey's at the pub in the basement of the convention. Yes, Rice University has a bar in their student center that serves malt liquor. Anyhow, here's a quick review of the games I got to play:

Cavemaster: This was my favorite of the rpgs I got to play, but due to some of the gamers in the group, also the most frustrating of the 5 session. The C.M. (Cave Master) was one of the game's authors and did bang-up job running the adventure and dealing with two of the shittiest players I've ever had the misfortune to game with. Anyhow, as you may guess from the name, it's a caveman rpg with some fantasy elements thrown in. The character generation & rules were super easy to understand and conflict resolution was done in a novel way, kind of like the player and CM facing off in a shell game. Like I said, my favorite of the games and I can't wait to start a campaign with my group.

Sailor Moon RPG Forgotten Realms AD&D 2^nd Ed : Yes, some friends convinced me to sign up for the Sailor Moon rpg with them. The GM, however, mixed things up and brought the stuff for the AD&D game he would run the next day. So, we got to delve into the The Haunted Halls of Eveningstar instead of whatever the fuck thing you do in Sailor Moon. Even though 1/3 of the game time was spent generating characters, it was still a win.

G.A.T.E.: Wish I could give a review about this, but the person running the game never showed.

Mana Punk: I had a good time playing this and the system seems decent enough, but the setting just isn't my cup-of-tea. It's magic-heavy fantasy mixed with steam punk and psionics...a bit too much.

Mutant Future: A redux of the Albuquerque Starport mini adventure from Gamma World, this was fun, but a little rough to play on the con's final morning.  That said, my shotgun wielding, mutant chipmunk cleared the shit out of that space station...

Midas Flesh #3, The White Suits #1, & Undertow #1

It felt like this issue dragged a little, but Midas Flesh continues to win me over. I do wish we'd get a little more background on the evil Federation and the intergalactic society the story is taking place in, but for now I'll just enjoy the talking dinosaurs and space slugs.

A gritty, noir gangster book with an interesting story and striking art, I found myself a little taken aback by the depiction of several characters in this book. The African-American mobsters have suspiciously ape-like features and speak stereotypical ebonics. The Jewish crime-boss has a huge nose and describes a mob war as "a holocaust". Really?

Aquatic Atlanteans exploring the dry land in the distant past with reverse submarines and water suits? Ha, sure, why not. Part of me feels this is riding on the weird-science, Prophet vibe, but I'm still enjoying it. The color palate is a little rough on they eyes and the Atlanteans all have dumb-ass, similar sounding names, but over all I'd say Undertow is worth flipping through.

Spy Monkey Creation: Weaponeers of Monkaa - Veridiohm

So, this rad dude arrived in the mail a week or two ago, but I'm just now managing to post about it. The sculpt has a great retro 80's sci-fi cartoon feel and the translucent, lime-green coloring is wicked cool. There's a selection of 5 different heads (which also double as hands, blasters, etc), but skull one is the obvious choice. You also get the two weapons shown, but I'm kinda meh on the sickle. The dude a robo-Marxist or something?

What I'm not liking about Veridiohm is that the joints are super loose. You get arms and legs flopping everywhere. The Close Combat Armory kit I bought along with this could have done with out a duplicate set of the blades that came with the figure, perhaps replaced by a few more connecting pegs. Minor gripes, but still...

The Bunker #1, EGOs #2, & The Fuse #1

I almost didn't pick this up because apparently The Bunker is available online and I was thinking of just scoping it out for free, but I'm glad I ponied up for a physical copy. A story of time travel, the apocalypse, and the college kids behind it all, The Bunker is a little jarring at first. You get thrown into the story, taking place simultaneously in the future and present, with the back-story skillfully sprinkled in. The art, scratchy lines and faded neons, is also a little offsetting initially; but once you get used to it, you realize what a rad ambiance it adds to the book.  Definitely something you should be reading.

As much as I'm liking EGOs, I was a little put off by the numerous, graphically depicted dismemberments and disembowelings that occurred in this issue. That cover is just the tip of the iceberg. Unnecessary gore aside, it's a solid 2nd issue. The story is progressing nicely and the art continues to grow on me. Even the villain is rad, dude has a black hole inside himself.  Check it out.

How can you not dig The Fuse? It's like Law & Order in outer space. They could have gone all far-flung, exotic space cops with this, but decided to make it a little more gritty; i.e. the cablers, homeless people on the space station that inhabit the maintenance shafts and ventilation ducts. The art is a little too jangly for my tastes. It's not terrible, but it looks amateurish and the faces are constantly jacked up. Other than that, I'm liking this.

Batman: Joker's Daughter #1, Juice Squeezers #2 & The Twilight Zone #2

Yes, once again I'm incredibly late reading and reviewing these, but what are you going to do?

I have no idea why I bought this. I knew it was going to be terrible with out even opening the damn thing up and guess what? It is. This just so, so, so dumb; psychotic teenager randomly finds the Joker's face in a sewer, beings worshiping him as some sort of deity/father, has Dollmaker sew said face onto hers, shoots up the Joker's blood, Joker approves. Whatever. They even manage to fuck up the art. An entire page near the middle is randomly pixelated, like they drew that shit with PC Paintbrush...

Combine a campy 50's horror flick with an 80's teen (well...tween, in this case) film and you've got Juice Squeezers. Issue #2 moves away from the bug smooshing to focus more on the Juice Squeezers, the new kid in town, and general middle-school awkwardness, combined with the looming gigantic insect invasion. The dialogue is enjoyable, if a bit cheesy and the art is simple and cartoonish, in a pleasant way. Check it out, why not?

It's only two issues in, but so far The Twilight Zone has surpassed my expectations. I'm really liking the story's twist on the doppelganger concept, that the protagonist's double is actually the good one. There are also some sub-plots unfolding that will be interesting to see how they effect the main story itself. The art is still a little hit and miss, but if that's the worst part of this book, I can't complain. Definitely worth checking out. 

This week in video games

MagMax

Platform: NES
Publisher: FCI
Developer: Nihon Bussan
Release Date: 1988


For a game that allows you to play a robot with what appears to be a colossal lightsaber cock, people sure do bitch about MagMax. OK, the name is idiotic, the soundtrack horrible, and gameplay can get repetitive, but...Giant robot? Laser penis? C'mon. While by no means a great game, MagMax doesn't really deserve the bad rap it gets. This is actually kind of a quirky, unusual shooter that grows on you the more you play.

Is that a lightsaber in your pocket...

The first thing that sets this apart is that each level possess two sections, there's the isometric above-ground part and the side scrolling underground part. Not only does each have unique enemies, but your weapon power-ups function slightly differently as well. The power-ups are another unusual aspect of the game, you start out as a ship and are able to add legs, head/torso, and the afore mentioned laser dick to become a full on mech. You get increased fire power and life, but your size triples, making you a magnet for bullets. Finally, there's a solid mix of opponents with unique combat patterns that keep things interesting.

Where it does fall short is that MagMax is a looping shooter. Sure, each run-through of the four levels offers a different arrangement of enemies, but fuck that...I want to finally slay that three headed mechanical dragon for good and be done with it.  MagMax isn't great, but it's a solid 2nd tier game. Bust out the NES Advantage, blast through it a couple times, and when the soundtrack finally melts your ear drums, file it away for another time.