Category Archives: Fantasy & Sci-fi

Enter the Multitude / Death of Krypton

By: Andrew Hines

There's not much DC hasn't done in it's nearly 75-year history, except maybe for what you'll see in this issue. With two parts of equal importance in this issue, with the first being these Weeping Angel-like beings, collectively called the Multitude. The second is a cameo by a renowned astronomer and astrophysicist. We may not all be fans of the Last Son of Krypton, but there's been no denying that the new direction has been...interesting. Not inherently good or bad, but definitely different. This is one of the few New 52 titles I've been interested in from square one.

Grant Morrison may not have been at his best in the last year but this is a nice turn around on that. The dialogue is good and the pacing is better than it has been for several issues. The same can be said of Superman as a character. Morrison has been going out of his way to explain exactly what's going on with the abrupt power shift that occurred between issues 7, 8 and 10. Now that he seems to finally be beyond that, he actually written a good story that stands on its own.

The pencils by Rags Morales are pretty damned good. I'm not always a fan, but these pages have made me one. Then there's Mark Probst's inks, which are pretty good. This page at right (sorry for the Maxim label at the top) should be a great example of that and Brad Anderson's colors. Really, this is the best example of the artwork in this issue. It all comes together quite well. Those colors are astounding, to say the least. Given that the main story takes place on Mars, I'm pretty sure that the reds in the background are fitting.

Sholly Fisch is the writer for the backup story in this issue. The story is actually really cool and gives us a look at the hero's perspective on his home(s). The dialogue and exposition are good, as is the sciencey stuff in here. It's an awesome backup story and maybe should have been it's own issue.

The pencils from Chris Sprouse and inks from Karl Story are good. It seems like a mix of the old Superman cartoons from the 90s and an astronomy-themed episode of Bill Nye. The colors from Jordie Bellaire are pretty good too. They are part of what helps give it the cartoon feel, that I love.

The issue is actually great, both parts of it. I give it an "A". There's something awesome in both parts of the issue. There's great art and good writing. What else do you need?

Along Came a Doctor

By: Andrew Hines

As many of you may already know I'm a Whovian (Doctor Who fan). That being said, my solitary heart skipped a beat when I saw this comic on the shelves of my local comic shop this week. It's got history, the Doctor, Amy and Rory, and alternate dimensions. No Daleks as of yet, but give it a few issues, they'll show up.  AnyWho (see what I did there?), it's set in London in the 1850s and in the middle of a bit of mild oddness. A perfect setting for an entrance by the Doctor and the Ponds.

Andy Diggle scripts the first bit of a two-part story arc that is actually very in the feel of the current Who-niverse. There's the classic shtick of the Doctor, where he just pops in unannounced and begins to take things over without much of a fuss. This is Doctor Who at its best in the comic book realm. The writing is good, pacing is adequate and the dialogue feels as if Steven Moffat himself were writing it for Matt Smith. Amy and Rory are exactly as they are in the show, so there's very little missing if anything at all.

Mark Buckingham's art isn't the best I've ever seen, but fits the story beautifully and for that I love it. If it had been in the future, his style would not have worked as well. Given, however that it was London shortly before their industrial revolution, it's spectacular. It works even better when paired with Charlie Kirchoff's colors. It really does feel like the 1850s as you read it. It's a wonderful feeling once you see the machine as a whole. I honestly don't think anyone else' art or colds would have worked for this story.

I give this one an "A", simply because the writing and the art work splendidly with each other. If you're a fan of Doctor Who and a Matt Smith fan to boot, I highly recommend this one.