My Tops!

I’m assuming it’s my job to inform you when I like something, because that would mean that you might possibly like it too. So I decided to pull 3 comics out of what I got from Wednesdays new stack, and tell you what I liked and didn’t like about them.

First up is one I mentioned on Wednesday as something I was looking forward to. The reason I always look forward to this book is because it never disappoints. There might’ve been one issue where nothing big really happened, but other than that one issue, the whole story constantly feels like things are moving along.

And as I said before, this book contains massive amounts of mutilation and violence. In this issue we see Dara reattach her jaw, slice a man’s eyes out, and then we watch them grow back after a series of three panels. I feel like there’s no limit to what this comic can get away with, and I completely trust the Luna brothers to deliver one kick-ass story when it’s all said and done.

You can catch up in “trade-paperback” form if you want, it’s not too late!

A really good indie title that’s out there right now is Terry Moore’s Echo. I personally love it because of it’s mix of real life drama and certain sci-fi elements that use a lot of real science knowledge to give it even more depth. I won’t spoil the whole story for you; but all you really need to know is that a scientific experiment went a bit haywire and resulted in our main protagonist getting this strange metal coating on her chest. Since the incident, she’s been on the run from the government who’s trying to get it back. She wants to get rid of it, but she’s not entirely sure what the government would do with her once they’ve got her.

Terry Moore writes and draws this comic all by himself, while his other family members help edit and publish it. Considering he has to to do most of the heavy lifting himself, he does a damn good job with putting out this comic every month. His art and writing has grown over time. His first long running series, Strangers in Paradise, finished up in ‘07, which was comprised of 90 issues. I’ve yet to read it, but from what I hear, it was nothing like Echo. So to see him write a story with so much action and solid human drama,  it just makes me love this comic even more.

And finally we have Battle for the Cowl, written and drawn by Tony Daniel. Which I was really worried about when I first heard that the artist on Grant Morrison’s previous Batman run was going to take up writing duties. But so far, I’ve been quite pleased with how everything is turning out.

Recently Batman (Bruce Wayne) has disappeared, and now anybody that was loyal to him, or maybe just wanting to take up the mantle, are duking it out for the title of Batman. There’s currently one mad man out there with two pistols and a crazy-mean looking mask, doing his best to clean up the streets. Every body’s saying he’s Jason Todd (The second Robin, he died, then came back) but it feels like someone else because they still haven’t shown his face.

In this issue we actually see the current Robin wear Batman’s costume, which apparently fits him perfectly. He ends up getting in a fight with the crazy Batman who gives him a pretty nasty injury at the end of this issue.

Another plot point is that Dick Grayson finally feels the need to put on Bruce’s tights, when all of a sudden, he discovers that Tim is wearing them.

SO yeah… I think I’m enjoying this so far. It’s got all the right twists and turns with out selling anyone out too soon.

Those are my tops!

-Ben, the comic guru

The Comic Guru, Ben!

If you’re wondering what’s going on, it’s because there’s a guy talking about comic books on a site called Gizmo Loco. But don’t worry, everything is going to be okay. The site covers a pretty wide range of what some people might call “Geek” related things. Whether it’s tech news or gaming news, you’ll find it here. And if it’s movie news, you’ll find it over at Reel Ninja.

But what about comic books?

Doesn’t any one speak for the ever growing popular culture that is comic book geekdom?

The answer is yes. Because I do.

For those who know of Kris (aka Xuntra) he asked me if I’d be interested in being the Comic Guru here at Gizmo Loco, to which I replied with a very enthusiastic “HELL YES!” Nothing excites me more than having the opportunity to just talk about comic books on a some-what daily basis.

So what is my purpose?

I plan on reporting any news that I hear through the grapevine, plus I will review comics and even write… well, I’ll pretty much write anything I can, as long as it’s comic book related.

Speaking of news! I was at Emerald City Comic-Con on Saturday and attended the DC Nation panel. The most exciting part about the panel was when I realized that Dan Didio, the Executive Editor and Senior Vice President of DC Comics, was actually there. From what I understand it was a last minute thing that he decided to just fly out to help spread some news.

Right now the DC universe is sort of getting over a lot of things. Final Crisis ended a few months ago. Batman has dissapeared, which also means that Gotham is in turmoil and everyone is trying to replace him. Then there’s the situation with the Green Lanterns. Right now there is, almost literally, a Rainbow Coalition ofringbearers scattered throughout the universe. Not only are there Green Lanterns, but there’s Yellow, Red, Blue, Violet, and now Orange. And this all seems to beramping up to an event that is being called ” Blackest Night,” which is a reference to The Green Lantern’s oath.

So the little bit of news that Dan Didio actually went up to ask the panel of artists and writers to announce, was that there will be tie-in comics that will co-incide with the launch of Blackest Night. It’s not really big news. Matter of fact, it’s the kind of news that just puts a really big strain on your wallet. But it was still pretty exciting to actually see Didio there in person.

So that’s sort of a taste of what I’ll be reporting here. It isn’t much for now, but I plan on expanding upon any news that I hear. Plus, be prepared for reviews and recommendations, because that will be my other job: getting all of you to read comics and graphic novels.

-PEACE!

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