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Want your comic book reviewed on Project Fanboy? Email a PDF file of your comic book to reviews@projectfanboy.com or alternatively you can snail mail it to us at:
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Dead Future #5
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Aug 19, 2010 - 5:54 AM - by MichaelRoberts
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Title: Dead Future #5
Rating: 
Publisher Website: Grim Crew
Writer: Matt "Doc" Martin & Martin Brandt II
Pencils: Drake Harris, Michael Odom, & Nathan Wiedemer
Number of pages: 36
Price: $3.99 print, $.99 digital
Color: Black & White
Safety Content Label: PARENTAL ADVISORY - 15 years and older. Similiar to T+ but featuring more mature themes and/or more graphic imagery.
Reviewer Comments:
At this point as a comics reviewer, I’ve seen a lot of zombie comics. Hell, I’ve even tried writing some, too. You can imagine my surprise when I read Volume 5 of Dead Future and found 2 types of zombie stories that I have never seen anywhere… Zombies in the Vietnam War and Zombies vs. a Leprechaun. That’s right, you just read “Leprechaun,” but more on that later.
Fade to Death is the tale of a group of American soldiers on patrol in Vietnam. They’ve been joined by a strange Army man who seems to have some evil secrets and who will do anything to eliminate those who oppose him.
Matt “Doc” Martin’s script was tight, but it was the originality of this piece that really struck me. It’s a while into the story before the first zombie pokes its head out, so he and artist Drake Harris have enough time to orient the reader to the era of the war and the soldiers fighting it.
Homecoming is a story of a group of astronauts in the future who board a space station only to find out that the former inhabitants of the station are all dead. Worse still, the unseen killer or killers are still onboard.
I was absolutely blown away by artist Michael Odom! Stories set in outer space can easily look very cheesy, but Odom put in a surprising amount of detail on the on all of the future technology. Not only that, but his dynamic figure work on the characters conveys a sense of heroism that gives the reader hope that this crew might actually make it off this creepy station.
Last but not least, O’Doulls Strikes is the tale of a cranky leprechaun who has his humble home disturbed by a big oaf scrambling to escape a horde of zombies. The leprechaun, of course, will not stand for the disruption, and he goes out to set things right.
This is a tale that could have come straight out of Mad Magazine. The zany, cartoony style and wacky subject matter transported me back to being 12 years old and trying to fold that back cover to get the “secret” joke at the end of each issue. This story was a lot of fun, and I appreciate is levity in a series that is often understandably grim.
I can easily say that this is the best single issue of the series so far. If you haven’t tried an issue yet, this is the one to get.
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4 Comments | 451 Views
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7 Psychopaths #3 (of 3)
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Aug 03, 2010 - 5:22 AM - by MichaelRoberts
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Title: 7 Psychopaths #3 (of 3)
Rating: 
Publisher Website: Boom Studios
Writer: Fabien Vehlmann
Pencils: Sean Phillips
Inks:
Colors: Hubert
Number of pages: 24
Price: $3.99
Color: Color
Safety Content Label: PARENTAL ADVISORY - 15 years and older. Similiar to T+ but featuring more mature themes and/or more graphic imagery.
Publishers Blurb:
The stunning conclusion to the thrilling series! 7 men, 1 impossible mission – assassinate Hitler! With World War II in full swing, there’s only one-way to draw the war to a quick end: kill Hitler. But who would be insane enough to try? Joshua Goldschmidt knows just the men to do it. Insane? Psychotic? Mad? Call them what you will, but the Seven Psychopaths are now the only hope the world has!
Reviewer Comments:
For a long time now, I’ve heard of this elusive ideal in the comics words that I always wanted to see… European Comics (not British Comics, for some reason those don’t count). Regarded in the same reverence as those wacky, independent foreign movies, European comics and stories in general challenge American audiences. And we are not always good at accepting those challenges.
The funny thing about this book is that I had no idea it was a European book until I read the afterword by Sean Phillips (Criminal, Incognito). I thought that there were a few unusual differences in this book: several pages with high-panel counts (oftentimes 10 panels!) and some rather literary, poignant moments. And all of this from a book that I though was just going to be another big, violent story like Inglorious Basterds. (Just for the record – this book was published in French back in 2007.)
My only regret with this book is that it wasn’t longer. There are some fascinating ideas and twists that French author Fabien Vehlmann set up that I never saw coming, and Sean Phillips’ work is the perfect mix of gritty and realistic. Seriously, his rendition of Hitler is stunning and utterly believable.
If you’ve ever considered reading a European book before, this is probably one of the best that you could try as a large portion of the artistic influence is already familiar. You’ll be glad you took the chance; this tale lures you in with a big concept and bigger action and delivers a haunting finale that will stick with you.
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0 Comments | 650 Views
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Ryder on the Storm Radical Premiere (preview)
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Jul 31, 2010 - 5:57 AM - by MichaelRoberts
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Title: Ryder on the Storm Radical Premiere (preview)
Rating:
Publisher Website: Radical Publishing
Writer: David Hine
Pencils: Wayne Nichols
Inks:
Colors: Feigian Chong and Sansan Saw
Number of pages: 16
Price: $1.00
Color: Color
Safety Content Label: PARENTAL ADVISORY - 15 years and older. Similiar to T+ but featuring more mature themes and/or more graphic imagery.
Publishers Blurb:
Ryder on the Storm follows Ryder, a private eye hired by the beautiful femme fatale Katrina Petruska to investigate the horrifically bizarre suicide of her lover, Michael Hudson. Ryder’s journey to solve the case and finish Hudson’s work leads him to discover a truth more sinister and terrifying than he could ever have imagined – daemons walk among us. Now, he must team up with the last daemon hunter, Charles Monk, to take down the cabal of ancient evil controlling the city while struggling to reconcile the dark side of his own nature.
Reviewer Comments:
A violent murder, a private eye, and a sexy woman all wrapped up in a sci-fi future. What more could you ask for? Maybe this sounds like Blade Runner to you, but I promise this is something altogether different. If anything, Ryder on the Storm follows the 1940’s detective films even more closely than Blade Runner in that this book by Radical Publishing starts off with a murder and a “whodunit” angle. But forget the simple plot device of a gunshot victim. The deceased in this tale drilled several holes into his own skull with a power drill.
Is it a suicide? Is it a cover-up? Well, this preview issue of Ryder on the Storm hints that there is much more at stake than just a bad rivalry, but we’ll find out when the main series starts.
Writer David Hine handles the noir detective elements very well, and the dialogue is fresh and crisp with nods to the past rather than pulling every Cagney quote into the book. The lead detective has some depth, and Hine teases us in this issue with the character’s true potential.
Artist Wayne Nichols brings a detailed, realistic look to the future that causes the tech geek in me all excited about all of technological advances. That same attention to detail also creates a visceral reaction when it comes to the bloody violence.
Speaking of the violence, it’s simply mention this book and not describe the work of the colorists Feigian Chong and Sansan Saw. That first scene with the corpse and the blood coming out of the drilled skull is even more haunting in full color. That red drips and smears just like real blood.
Ryder has a great premise set up so far, and I’m very intrigued to see where this book will go. It’s definitely worth your dollar to go and pick it up.
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1 Comment | 492 Views
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TIME BOMB # 1 (of 3)
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Jul 29, 2010 - 7:49 PM - by SebastianPiccione
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Title: TIME BOMB # 1 (of 3)
Rating:
Publisher Website: Radical Comics
Writer: Jimmy Palmiotti & Justin Gray
Pencils: Paul Gulacy
Inks:
Colors: Rain Beredo
Number of pages: 56
Price: 4.99
Color: Color
Safety Content Label: T+ TEENS AND UP - Appropriate for most readers 13 and up, parents are advised that they might want to read before or with younger children.
Publishers Blurb:
From Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray (Jonah Hex), with interior illustrations from multi-award winning industry veteran Paul Gulacy!
When a hidden city is discovered beneath the streets of Berlin, Hitler’s ultimate doomsday weapon – an Omega bomb designed to wipe out the human race – is accidently activated. Now, crews of specialists with state-of-the-art weapons and equipment must travel back in time to stop the bomb from going off. However, they soon discover that, rather than going back in time as intended, they’ve been sent back into the heart of Hitler’s Germany.
Reviewer Comments:
Palmiotti and Gray have proven there is no genre they can't write. In fact, there's almost no genre left out of this espionage-action-mystery-science-fiction-WWII-thriller.
When, in the near future (next year) a German construction crew stumbles (literally) upon a secret underground city/fall-out shelter from WWII the pros are called in. And when the pros accidentally launch Hitler's derelict Omega Bomb, the pros call in some specialists. These guys are going to be sent back in time to stop the launch...but end up overshooting to WWII Germany!
Fun!
Fast paced and well thought out, this book makes for one cinematic read. To me, it had that vibe of a BBC sci-fi series and Quentin Tarrantino’s INGLORIOUS BASTARDS. Which means it was a lot of fun, folks! And, the legendary Paul Gulacy's art gave it just the right look and tone, bringing me back to his James Bond series in the 90s.
This bang-up first issue gets us rolling, and does a great job of introducing us to the characters as it sets the stage for what promises to be a fantastic (in the original sense of the word) and surprising series.
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1 Comment | 504 Views
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The Calling: Cthulhu Chronicles #1
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Jul 15, 2010 - 3:20 AM - by MichaelRoberts
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Title: The Calling: Cthulhu Chronicles #1
Rating:
Publisher Website: Boom Studios
Writer: Michael Alan Nelson and Johanna Stokes
Pencils: Christopher Possenti
Inks:
Colors: Stephen Downer
Number of pages: 24
Price: $3.99
Color: Color
Safety Content Label: T+ TEENS AND UP - Appropriate for most readers 13 and up, parents are advised that they might want to read before or with younger children.
Publishers Blurb:
An all-new ongoing Lovecraft-inspired supernatural horror series with a decidedly modern spin from superstar writing team Michael Alan Nelson and Johanna Stokes! A cruise ship comes to port, hundreds are aboard dead – but why? Clayton Diggs is a pharmaceuticals salesman who discovers his sister has committed herself to an insane asylum; she’s checked herself in, fearing she’ll hurt herself or someone else. All across the world, ordinary people in an ordinary world find themselves drawn by fate to see darkness and despair unlike anything they ever could imagine. Meanwhile, a cult makes its move, believing that there is a great one sleeping that will hear… The Calling! Cover by Criminal’s Sean Phillips and Federica Platti!
Reviewer Comments:
Equal parts intrigue, mystery and horror, “The Calling” is a modern take on H.P. Lovecraft’s Cthulhu mythos. While I have enjoyed some of the Cthulhu stories in the past, I had trouble connecting with some of the miniseries. “The Callling” is refreshingly placed solidly in today’s culture, and the action kicks off when a cruise ship full of corpses runs aground. No one is able to tell how or why everyone aboard had sudden heart failure, but one person prophesied the horrific event days before it happened.
My favorite part of this issue was the reveal at the very end, and writers Joanna Stokes and Michael Alan Nelson set it up beautifully. It had one of those “Oooh” kinds of effects on me when I turned the last page. Without giving anything away, I will say that artist Christopher Possenti used the comics medium in a powerful way, weaving in visual clues in the background that reveal themselves in a surprising way.
As soon as I finished this issue, I had to rush back and check the length of this series, and a smile came to my face. “The Calling” is a new ongoing series from Boom, and this first issue proves that there are plenty of plot threads to keep the story driving ahead.
The real test for this series will be what happens next. Consider stories like M. Night Shyamalan’s “Unbreakable,” Guillermo del Toro & Chuck Hogan’s “The Strain,” and several others. Each of these stories have an intriguing opening act where large groups of people die suddenly in public transit, but the payoff for these stories vary wildly. The idea itself is fascinating in every case, and I hope “The Calling” is able to deliver. The real telling points reveal themselves in how well the creative team structure their opening chapter, and Boom’s team has done an excellent job so far.
Here’s a five-star rating to the newest title I’ve added to my monthly must-read list.
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0 Comments | 827 Views
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