INTERIM

Site construction on the new place is nearly complete. But in the meantime, the pile must be addressed…

X ISLE #1
Written by Andrew Cosby and Michael Nelson and Drawn by Greg Scott
Published by Boom Studios


Dr. Alex Keller is a man who has some trouble balancing the priorities in his life. Unfortunately, that isn’t going to improve anytime soon; just as his daughter arrives to meet him in Hawaii (after she’s given up a vacation in France), he’s called to the shore, where a creature never seen before by man has washed up dead. And when the stomach of the creature yields more bizarre life forms, it’s clear that family time is about to get pushed to the side once again.

Of course, all of that could change in a hurry when a freak storm pushes Alex, his daughter, and his crew of scientists off course and onto the shores of an uncharted island…

Part JAWS, part LOST, and part JURASSIC PARK, the plot and concept of X ISLE more than make up for the shallowness of the character set-ups. You’ve seen the parent-child conflict in this situation plenty; plus you get the requisite surly sailor, and plenty of supporting cannon fodder as Keller’s associates. Still, you go to these types of movies, and buy these types of comics, expecting the tropes of the genre to be in place to push the tale along. Therefore, X ISLE reads true to itself.

Greg Scott’s art looks really good here, supporting the suspense and mystery being laid down, too. I probably sound like a fuddy-duddy, but I really liked X ISLE; it’s a tight piece of pop entertainment, and that’s all I was asking for.

SIBAM?

After TALENT got optioned a couple of weeks ago, I’d imagine that Hollywood’s eyes are trained a bit more closely on Ross Richie and company’s output. I can’t imagine that X ISLE, which reeks of summer tentpole flick, won’t wind up in a producer’s pocket soon enough.

PARADOX #2-3
Written by Chris Gage and Drawn by Luis Henrique Ribeiro
Published by Arcana Studio


Detective Sean Nault must leave his magic-based world and enter ours as LAW AND ORDER scribe Gage concludes his tale of sorcerers and bullets. When last we left Nault, he had discovered that parallel worlds existed, and someone in our science-based reality was crossing over and causing big trouble. Aided and abetted by a science believer from his own world (the standard love interest), Lenoir Rhyne, he must unravel the clues and expose a conspiracy to destroy two universes.

PARADOX is a clever book, and it reads almost purely as a screenplay in many ways. The art is pretty static for the most part, almost purposefully lacking dynamism, instead interpreting its role as more of a set of storyboards. That’s acceptable, of course, but you wouldn’t be disappointed if Ribeiro stretched himself a bit. Story-wise, my one qualm is that the story feels a bit rushed by squeezing it into three issues. I’d have liked to have seen a bit more in the way of fleshing out some of the smaller pieces of the plot, and in adding some extra character material. Still, I expect this to serve its purpose and find the story a Hollywood home at some point, even it winds up being to expensive to ever film.

CRY YOURSELF TO SLEEP
Written and Drawn by Jeremy Tinder
Published by Top Shelf Comix


It’s sort of difficult to know what to make of CRY. The book focuses on three very distinct individuals: Jim, a rabbit who lives an unfulfilling life while working at a sandwich shop; Andy, a young writer struggling to find his voice; and Robot, who decides he wants to find his humanity by following a bird out to the forest and following its example.

Tinder chooses to make Robot a robot for obvious purposes; a machine finding its soul is a common literature trope. But it’s the decision to make Jim a rabbit that really offers up some questions to the reader. Jim is a sad spirit, and his parents put him upon horribly. His father doesn’t accept excuses for losing a job because he’s a rabbit; it’s a tantalizing take on race, but Tinder doesn’t quite sink his claws as deep into it as you’d like. I like that he made the attempt, though.

Each character’s quest for self and meaning winds up coming together in different ways, as the trio’s path will intersect in ways they couldn’t imagine, but Tinder manages to put together a conclusion that feels right, fair, and satisfying. CRY YOURSELF TO SLEEP isn’t a book to set the world on fire, but it is a very solid debut from this creator.

MOUSE GUARD #2
Written and Drawn by David Petersen
Published by Archaia Studios Press


As the mice from issue one were on their mission, others were also working, too. Issue two of this fantastic book follows Guard member Sadie as she heads off to the shore of the Mouse territory to find out why fellow guard member Conrad has suddenly stopped responding to messages. Needless to say, that silence is a very bad sign for all mice…

Petersen’s tale of heroic mice picks up steam with this second issue. It could have been severely damaging to the story to move away from the characters we met in issue one, but he manages to make Sadie and Conrad more fascinating characters than our prior protagonists. The story movement also allows for an expansion of the story’s scope and the picture we get of the backdrop the tale is playing against.

The primary action sequence this issue involves our heroes taking on an armada of crabs bent on taking their lives. Petersen makes this scene exhilarating, putting aside thoughts of what the creatures involved are and delivering perfectly executed scenes of mayhem. Unfortunately, that leads to the one problem MOUSE GUARD faces in this issue: the story feels pretty thin and doesn’t get as far forward as it really needs to in order to keep momentum. Still, this remains a wonderful surprise, and I look forward to reading more.

STRANGETOWN #1
Written by Chynna Clugston and Ian Shaughnessy and Drawn by Chynna Clugston
Published by Oni Press


Mysterious circumstances send a young girl named Vanora on a ship ride far away from home. However, an accident at sea leaves her stranded and living in a small town off the coast of Oregon. Stranger circumstances yet then leave her looking for a room to rent, and she finds one located above a bar named THE CUTTY SARK TA HOUSE. But as weird as all that may sound, her housemates might just be weirder. And sadly for Vanora, the past is not so easily outrun.

I’ve just written that paragraph, yet I read it knowing that it’s all somewhat of a lie: by the end of STRANGETOWN, you have absolutely zero clue as to what’s going on or what the real plot of the book is going to be. But no matter; it’s all executed with such gusto and energy that you can’t help but be drawn into the tale without a problem.

Much of that is due to the presence of Chynna Clugston as co-writer and artist. Clugston is one of those creators who can do almost no wrong in my eyes. I’ve been a fan since I first laid my eyes on BLUE MONDAY, and her excellent SCOOTER GIRL did nothing to dull that shine. Chynna has a gift for making the absurd seem perfectly rational and normal, which is precisely why STRANGETOWN works. More please. Soon.

PAUL JENKINS’ SIDEKICK #1
Written by Paul Jenkins and Drawn by Chris Moreno
Published by Image Comics


Eddie Edison’s life is full of hassles. By day, he delivers pizza to people who treat him like dirt and try and screw him over. When night rolls around, though, he’s the sidekick to Mister Excellent, the greatest superhero in the city. Of course, Mister Excellent is also a dimwitted, pain-in-the-ass, prig. So you’ll pardon Eddie if he doesn’t feel guilty about fucking Mister Excellent’s wife.

Of course, Eddie’s hassles also extend to his having a voluptuous, kinky stripper for a girlfriend. So, yeah, Eddie’s kind of a dick who’s due for a little comeuppance himself. So when he schemes to get away from Mister Excellent and earn a little side money sidekicking for another hero in town, he bites off a bit more than he can chew when they all hire him…

SIDEKICK is pretty damned funny, scouring modern pop culture and classic superhero comics for every little cliché it can find, and then taking a leak on them. Whether it’s poking fun at Superman, or taking swings at hip hop culture, Jenkins observes no boundaries and no fear in aiming at his targets. Moreno finds just the right mix of slapstick and action to sell the gags. As disappointed as I was in THE LAST CHRISTMAS, I’m surprised, happy, and enthused about SIDEKICK. This is a winner.

/Mason