Welcome back to Graphic Breakdown!
It’s been a tough week…but let’s get talking about comic books and liven things up!
The Mummy: Palimpsest #1 (Hammer Comics)
Written by Peter Milligan
Illustrated by Ronilson Freire
Published by Titan Comics
I love myself some Peter Milligan. He hasn’t been in comics as much as I would like him to be lately, so when I see a new Milligan book hitting the stands you bet I’m picking it up!
And I was rewarded for that: this book is pretty awesome.
For 2000 years the Sect of Anubis have prolonged their life spans through human sacrifice and the enslavement of an Egyptian High Priestess cursed to walk the afterlife for all eternity.
On one night every 30 years the Sect must offer up a human vessel to house the spirit of the priestess Nebetah so that they can kill her and drink her blood, thus granting them immortality.
But this is the year they have chosen the wrong vessel. And then everything goes to hell.
Milligan creates one hell of a world here set in the present day. There is a large cast, and not all will survive. That’s part of the fun here. Angelina Kostenko is the character we get to know most and she well written. The whole thing is.
The art blew me away. I have never heard of Freire yet the art is genius. Just genius. Detailed, exuberant, gorgeous. It’s fair to call it a masterwork. Because it is.
This is a hell of a good book. I need the second issue. Like right now. Kudos to this creative team and this excellent book.
RATING: A
Betty and Veronica #2
Written and Illustrated by Adam Hughes
Published by Archie Comics
I love Archie Comics. I love the direction they have taken. I love their line of books, and the quality they have now. And I love this book, written and Illustrated by one of the great comic artists of our time, Mr. Adam Hughes.
The latest hit New Riverdale series continues to defy expectations with some major surprises: including besties turning into enemies! The battle no one expected hits its peak as Betty and Veronica declare all-out war on each other!
It’s a battle of benefits as Betty tries to raise money to save Pop’s, while Ronnie’s staging her own competing fundraisers in move destroy Betty’s efforts. All bets are off as the girls go from best pals to cutthroat competitors. You’ve never seen a car wash like this! Will the two icons find their way back to friendship, or is this the end of one of the longest-running partnerships in history?
This book is fun and fizzy and moves quick. Hughes can write as well as he can draw, both of which are excellent. The only downside thus far is the delay between the two issues…but I’ll gladly wait if the books are this good. And they are.
Kudos to Archie for making another amazing book in a line of excellent books. This is some seriously great stuff and I couldn’t ask for more.
RATING: A
4001 A.D. TPB (Collecting Issues #1-4)
Written by Matt Kindt
Illustrated by Clayton Crain
Published by Valiant Comics
Wow. That’s all I can say about Matt Kindt’s Valiant writing. It’s mind blowing. Seriously.
Pick up his Rai and then everything that leads to this series. I reviewed the first few issues of this book awhile back but now got to sit down and read the entire story. And it’s great.
A thousand years from today, Father will create the first Rai, founding a lineage of technologically enhanced heroes engineered to defend New Japan and sworn to protect it from all enemies.
For hundreds of years into the future, the Rai will single-handedly enforce New Japan’s justice well…and serve Father without question.
Now, at the dawn of 4001 A.D., the latest Rai is about to inherit the dark truth behind the origin of his kind…and discover the sinister secret at the heart of Father’s existence. For New Japan to live, Earth must die…and as Rai challenges his former master for the first time in more than a millennium, the lone guardian of New Japan will be cast out of his own Father’s kingdom…
Exiled from the only realm he’s ever known, Rai now walks the ravaged world of 4001 A.D. in search of forgotten heroes like himself…on a mission to collect the last surviving legends of a broken planet…and to forge a rebellion with the power to bring the most advanced civilization in history crashing back down to Earth. Earth must rise! Father must fall! And that’s where the nuttiness begins!
This book is so well written. Kindt is almost an alien he writes this sci-fi epic so well and real. And Crain is the best, most underrated artist in the field. This was awesome. Go pick up Kindt and Crain’s run up til now. It won’t cost that much. But you’ll be rewarded and you’ll thank me for recommending them to you.
RATING: A
Legend TPB
Written by Sam Sattin
Illustrated by Chris Koehler
Published by Z2 Comics
At least once a month I review a comic book about an animal (a dog, a cat, a monkey) in a post apocalyptic setting.
Not to be outdone is this series from Z2 Comics called Legend. And it’s actually pretty good!
The story for this comic goes like this, “What if a biological terror agent wiped out most of humanity, and our domesticated animals were left in charge? How would our dogs and cats set about ruling and rebuilding the world?”
Ransom, the leader of the Dog Tribe, has been murdered by a creature known as the Endark. An English Pointer named Legend reluctantly rises to lead in his place, vowing to kill the monster once and for all.
From acclaimed novelist Samuel Sattin and award-winning illustrator Chris Koehler comes Legend, where cat technology rules, dogs partner with hawks, and humans may be the most beastly creatures of all.
The story by Sattin is very compelling, and I read this in one sitting, enjoying it quite a bit. The art is also pretty special. Koehler is yet another artist I’ve never heard of, yet he’s brilliant. This is a solid book. It stands out from all the other post apocalyptic animal tales out there….and some of the other comics on the stands as well.
RATING: A
Reggie and Me#1
Written by Tom DeFalco
Illustrated by Sandy Jarrell
Published by Archie Comics
Another fun, cool new comic from Archie Comics. This one is a revival of an old comic book. And I think it’s pretty great.
The synopsis of the book came in like this: There is no one more loved, revered, admired and adored in Riverdale than… Reggie Mantle?
Well, at least Reggie doesn’t think there’s anyone as loved and admired as himself. And his best friend can back that idea up — his best friend, of course, being his dog, Vader.
The unstoppable duo is known around town for pulling the funniest pranks, getting the hottest dates and throwing the best parties. And if anyone even dares to compete with them, there is going to be hell to pay.
This is of course, a good time through and through. It’s great to see Tom DeFalco back writing a comic book. DeFalco is one of the best unsung writers in the business and he just nails the character of Reggie in this. It’s great to see an old favorite writer still writing well.
The art by Jarrell is wonderfully done as well. You can’t help but like what you are looking at…and the art and Defalco’s script work well together.
I said it before and I’ll say it again: Archie Comics are producing some of the best comic books on the stands. Pick one up. You’ll be happy you did and most likely they will make you smile from ear to ear.
RATING: A
