Welcome back to Graphic Breakdown, the Friday edition!
Here’s a look at some comics to get your weekend started!
Spacebat and the Fugitives (Book One):
Tacos at the End of the World
Written and Illustrated by Chris Sheridan
Published by Top Shelf Productions
This is truly a delightful book to read. The artwork is bold and fast and the writing is quite quirky. I was surprised by just how much I liked it. This is worth a look if you have never heard of it before.
Three children find Spacebat and they pressure him into doing a job for them. The job is to stop one of those crazy mad scientists. He has a bunch of robots, and physics and he is quite angry! He also has one of those machines that can bend reality. Can Spacebat stop him?
The characters are wonderfully quirky on this series. You’ll find yourself caught up in the story and laughing your head off. Pick this up. It’s well worth the read!
RATING: A-
Monstro Mechanica #1
Written by Paul Allor
Illustrated by Chris Evenhuis
Published by Aftershock Comics
Aftershock had been putting out some excellent titles. They are smartly done and unique. I wasn’t excited to read this from the description, but it won me over with creativity and ingenuity. It’s a good time and I’ll be reading this on a regular basis.
This series has Leonardo Da Vinci as it’s lead character.
Wait! Don’t run away! It’s actually really sharp.
Set during The Renaissance, it features a bunch of baddies trying to get Da Vinci’s deadly arsenal.
However, they weren’t figuring on having to face a young apprentice nor a nine foot tall mechanical bodyguard!
This leads to the two trying to save Da Vinci himself.
Allor writes a compelling story here and it’s quite enjoyable. The art is decent too. Pick this up. Expand your mind. It’s quite good.
RATING: A-
Rough Riders Volume 2: Riders on the Storm
Written by Adam L. Glass
Illustrated by Pat Olliffe
Published by Aftershock Comics
This book is awesome! This picks up three years after the last volume ended, but the creative team hasn’t missed a beat.
This tale is about Roosevelt gathering a team of historical characters to form a super team. The results are smart and engaging and action packed.
So again, three years have passed. And assassination has been made on President McKinley. Roosevelt must become the President and track down who that assassin is.
He enlists his compatriots Harry Houdini, Jack Johnson, Thomas Edison and Annie Oakley to band together again. But time has strained the bonds that once united them. It leads to some of the best storytelling I’ve seen this year.
The writing is superb. Glass is one of my favorite writers out there. The art is excellent as well. Olliffe has always been great and here he just shines. Pick this up. It’s a sharp title. It deserves as big as an audience as it can get.
RATING: A
World Reader: Volume 1
Written by Jeff Loveness
Illustrated by Juan Doe
Published by Aftershock Comics
This book is a beautifully illustrated comic from start to finish. I really love Juan Doe. He knows how to make a comic book visually Interesting in a way we haven’t seen before. The story isn’t half bad either on this one as well.
This story focuses on Sarah, an astronaut who goes from dead planet to dead planet.
Why is she doing this?
Well, she is talking to the ghosts of these planets trying to figure out who the heck is trying to kill the entire universe! Her crew think she’s nuts.
And Death?
Well, Death might be tracking her down.
The writing by Loveness is very good. It’s an interesting concept and he follows through well. The art is the real star here. Doe just knocks it out of the park and the art shines. A very good book overall and it’s full of plenty of twists.
RATING: B+
Evolution #1, #2, & #3
Written by James Asmus, Joseph Keatinge,
Christopher Sebela, Joshua Williamson
Illustrated by Joe Infurnari
Published by Image Comics
This is one hell of a freaky comic book. It’s also extremely well written. It should be though: it’s got four amazing writers working together. They work amazing as a unit too, and the story is fluid as well as slow building. When the dramatic twists happen, they are earned.
Each writer brings something to the stage with each new plot thread.
In one story, a doctor sees that evolution is coming an society must be warned. In another, a nun in Rome has to figure out her faith for the coming storm. There are more but you should read it. It all leads to something great.
The art by Joe Infurnari is incredibly awesome. He keeps the series consistent and level. It’s an exciting book, especially for the readers who like Cronenberg films. It’s a slow build book that leads to something truly great indeed.
RATING : A-
