Review: Finder: Talisman Limited-Edition Hardcover

Considered a fan favorite of Carla Speed McNeil's Finder series, the extremely limited edition hardcover of Finder: Talisman is finally collected together in one volume. Set in a world much similar to our own, yet with many shades and hints of a not-too-distant future, Finder: Talisman tells the tale of a young girl Marcie and her search for magic within the pages of a long, lost book.

The most impressive facet of this story relies in the tale's innocent, believable tone. McNeil's account of Marcie's life is dreamlike and whimsical and all the while rooted in a developed and established world. This story is so strong that eventually you feel as if you are reading a journal entry, a past history filled with secrets and confidence meant solely for you. It contains a personal relationship with the reader that is lacking from many comics written today. I am curious to pieces how much of this book stems from McNeil's own life and how much from her imagination. Either way, I applaud her.

Concerning the artwork, McNeil's style is a bit plain for my tastes. The entire book is printed in black and white (which for an extremely limited edition, I would expect an updated color version), but of course some prefer the original untainted by the new. It wasn't that McNeil's art bothered me (it's actually quite nice and different), it just failed to thrill and pull me in deeper. But this is purely aesthetic tastes--look on to the provided samples. If you like what you see I implore you to read.

If you're wondering what the differences are between the Finder: Talisman hardcover book and the limited-edition hardcover book, from what I can tell, there are only a few minor differences. The first is obviously the cover. The limited edition hardcover sets to replicate the sought-after book that the character Marcie searches for, while the normal hardcover looks more modern in design. The limited edition is limited to a print run of 250 copies (which is stands true to the definition of "limited") and is signed and numbered by Carla Speed McNeil herself. Other than that...well, they're practically the exact same, just one is priced more affordable than the other. They're both the same size for Christ's sake! But then again, I'm sure you'll shell out the extra cash for this if it's you're favorite thing under the sun.

Overall rating: 3.5/5

'I'll Take You to the Moon & Leave You There Vol 1' Review

After a successful Kickstarter campain, an entire year's worth of comic book art and short stories created by independent artist Skuds McKinley is now available in paperback format to purchase and own. Almost a year ago one of my dear friends sent me a link to McKinley's website Batshit Art and ever since I've checked up on the Pennsylvania based artist, watching his progress in the comic medium grow, his storytelling strengthen--post by post, panel by panel. And as a comic gossip junky, there is nothing I enjoy more than watching the beginning of a young, up and coming artist's journey. With the launch of McKinley's new book, just where does he wish to take us? To the moon of course.

I'll Take You to the Moon & Leave You There Vol 1 encompasses a medley of artistic styles and story genres. Within the 54 pages of black and white comics, readers will find high-fantasy adventure, requiems for young love, personal, mental anguish, and Bill fucking Murray. All these placed between two lovely colored portraits. If independent comics and anthologies the likes of Dark Horse Presents gets you hard in the morning, consider this your new pulp fleshlight.

After reading I'll Take You to the Moon the most important aspect I noticed about McKinley's work is the broad spectrum he draws from other artists. His work evokes the pulp art from comic legends Daniel Clowes, Charles Burns, and Paul Pope. If you can imagine a blend between all three of those artists, you have the evolving work of McKinley. His art is both unashamedly bold and experimentally daring. And it is my conclusion his work will only continue to mature for the better.

One of my favorite stories from the bunch is "Egg Hunt," a silent tale about a nomadic adventurer's journey to steal eggs from a gigantic larval beast. Not only is the adventurer's garb and character design intriguing but the monster in the tale does not disappoint. This is one of the stories that features McKinley's masterful skills with inking and refuses to be read in anything other than black and white. Another worthy short is the poetic "No Pill Today." Only three pages long, this snippet explores the shadows of pharmaceutical drugs and user's dependency. The inks on the panels of this short will leave you wondering how McKinley creates such amazing detail. And if anything speaks for his unique tongue at storytelling, this is the story to read.

Luckily for all you fine folks out there discovering Monsieur McKinley's art today, Skuds intends to release a new package deal on his personal website that includes "the comic book a dope ass shirt, and two art prints. all limited edition as fuck." Head on over there to check out the latest comics, art, news , and to pick up a sweet copy of I'll Take You to the Moon. Until next time, I'll see you on the moon!

Resident Alien #0 - Review

Of all the avenues to be explored with the tale of aliens amongst us, Resident Alien takes a rather surprising spin. With its introductory issue, there is no large conspiracy hinted at, nor a fight for survival between human and alien. This series avoids the pitfalls of the sci-fi genre and instead takes a turn for the Average Joe, paring down the cliches until you have just the man, or alien. You will not see a spaceship in a single frame of the first issue, except for the smoke billowing from the one our protagonist, the so-called Dr. Vanderspeigle, presumably crashed.

We find ourselves at a remote cabin where the doctor is called upon by the police to lend his skills as a completely normal human physician or so he is able to make them think with his extraterrestrial powers (presumably some sort of telepathy). We the viewers are blessed to see him in his natural form, sporting purple skin, typically large black eyes, and pointed ears. Frankly, I'm surprised our doctor needs powers to cover up his looks in the first place, being that he's so humanoid in appearance. Though he's been attempting to be as incognito as possible, Vanderspeigle is easily persuaded to take on a role which puts him in direct interaction with the locals.

What Peter Hogan has done with Resident Alien is beautifully craft potential. Part sci-fi adventure, part murder mystery, this story is bursting at the seams with all kinds of exciting possibilities and has you rooting for our other-worldly doctor to fit in despite the perils of doing so. Paired with the beautifully concise artwork of Steve Parkhouse, this series is off to a great start and will leave you itching to find out how it all unfolds. 

By Chandler Levine

Review: 'Murky World'--Old School Corben Keeping it New

Originally published in Dark Horse Presents (#1-3),
Murky World is now collected in a one-shot and available today.

The first time I encountered Richard Corben's artwork was while marathon reading Mike Mignola's Hellboy series. The issue in particular was Hellboy: Makoma--one of the most overlooked Hellboy comic's featuring the big-red guy and his adventures in Africa. I am a Mignola fan through and through--one of the reasons I love Hellboy so much--however, as soon as my eyes poured over the pages of Hellboy: Makoma, I knew this artist, this Richard Corben, could drawn anything and I would be compelled by his artistic talents. I'm sure if he drew a picture of Sarah Jessica Parker I would like it. And that's saying a lot.

Page 2 of Corben's Murky World

Last year Dark Horse Comics serialized a new short by Corben, titled Murky World in their monthly anthology Dark Horse Presents (issues 1-3). Unsatisfied by the hit-and-miss quality in the genre of collection comics (and the steep cover-price), I decided to pass on the first three issues of DHP. Good reason I did too, because out today is a collected one shot of Corben's Murky World with all the original content, a low-low price (beats paying for three copies of DHP--$24+, are you freaking kidding me?), and includes the beautifully illustrated and colored cover featured above. 

Speaking of the cover artwork, this is one of the pride and joys of owning the Murky World one-shot. Corben's use of warm colors is particularly delightful and the detail on Tugat's cloak creates a wonderful illusion, as if readers could grab the cloak from the page and feel it's worn, rugged texture. The comic's title is also worthy of noting. This is the kind of comic title that pops out at readers and distinguishes itself from all the other comic books in the room. The mirror image of the letter "M" and the letter "W" is an extremely clever graphic design. I have seen cover art by Corben created in the late '70's at comic conventions and this  is the kind of title design I am reminded of. Fat, bloated lettering with eye-catching colors. It truly is a treat owning something so aesthetically pleasing.

Richard Corben's legendary talent of title design

on such works as Mutant World and Den

However, we all know the cliche "never judge a book by it's penis." Or was it "never judge a man by his book?" I'm sure you understand my meaning... 

The story in Murky World is extremely simplistic. We begin by following a snarky nomad named Tugat through the desolate and remote lands of Naughton. Our protagonist holds qualities the likes of brave Conan the Barbarian and the arrogant Ulysees. Upon Tugat's travels we encounter female-warrior twins, Sorgof the necromancer, a female cyclops named Butterfly, and deadlings (cursed human slaves--similar to zombies). The story is a neat blend of action-adventure and situation comedy. This being a one-shot, any room for an expansion story is possible but at his point appears null. For comic readers expecting a great story, don't look for Alan Moore or Warren Ellis style prose within these pages. This comic is pure-pulp entertainment and should be treated as such.

My only disappointment with the comic is Corben's decision to keep his work black and white. As much as I love his comics, I feel like they are more pleasing when done in color. Once again, I refer you to look at the cover and see the potential there. Other than this small complaint, Murky World is filled with artwork that shows Corben's skilled talent at character depiction. Each character has wonderfully detailed facial expressions (see Sorgof the necromancer as an example), the women are robust and built, very similar to Corben's other work (large, overly-ripened breasts), and the deadlings show the amount of horror he can achieve through pencil and ink.

Page 3 of Corben's Murky World

By the end of this one-shot, fans of Richard Corben will not be let down. If you are unfamiliar with his talent I would advise starting else where--any of his work on Hellboy is a good start. This story might not hold the attention span of new readers and for 26 pages for the price of $3.50 some comic readers might feel a bit gypped. But for Corben fans the world around, I say pick this copy up before your retailer sells out. As an owner, I'm certainly feeling proud having an original Richard Corben comic.

More information on Richard Corben can be found at his personal website here.

Check back to Go Suck a Comic next month for a review of Richard Corben and Jan Strand's new Dark Horse Comic series Ragemoor #1!

Review: "Dark Horse Presents" #8--B.P.R.D., Beasts of Burden, Concrete Park, and MORE!

Fresh this week is a brand new collection of comic shorts titled Dark Horse Presents, issue 8. From famed comic publisher Dark Horse Comics, this first collection in the new year gives readers a wide sampling of what Dark Horse comics is all about. Writers include Mike Mignola, John Arcudi, Evan Dorkin, Tony Puryear, Neal Adams, Howard Chaykin, Alan Gordon, Brian Wood, Martin Conaghan, Rich Johnston, and M.J. Butler. Art is provided by Duncan Fegredo, Jill Thompson, Tony Puryear, Howard Chaykin, Thomas Yeats, Kristian Donaldson, Jimmy Broxton, Simon Rohrmuller, and Mark Wheatley.

 DHP, #8 Duncan Fegredo (left), DHP, #8 Kristian Donaldson (right)

Considering this 80 page comic contains ten stories by different writers and artists, making the content extremely diverse, allow me to begin my assessment by offering my favorite portions. The first three comics were my absolute favorite of the group. The first is the B.P.R.D. epilogue of Hellboy's death, titled "An Unmarked Grave." This story gives audiences their first glimpse on the aftermath of the apocalypse and B.P.R.D. characters reconciling and coming to terms with the loss of the big red guy. Although not much action takes place in this 8-page-er, fans of the series will appreciate the respectful service of a beloved character. Unlike most creators, the team working on Hellboy and company give a delicate and respectful adieu and send off Hellboy in a gracious style which will be most cherished by the series fans. 

Dark Horse Presents, issue 8 "B.P.R.D.: An Unmarked Grave"

"The View from the Hill"--one heck of a read!

My next favorite was Evan Dorkin and Jill Thompson's newest tale in their Beasts of Burden series, titled "The View from the Hill." Honestly, the only reason I jumped aboard these DHP collections was for this series, and other than the first story back in issue 4, I was a bit unimpressed with Dorkin and Thompson's return to Burden Hill. Fortunately issue 8 of DHP offers a great new story for our four footed friend and the best about it is it's self-contained. I won't spoil your appetite with this sugary treat but I highly recommend reading this one, even if you don't want to shell out the cash for the issue, thumb through it at your shop and READ this little 8-page-er. I tell all my friends how dear and sweet Beasts of Burden is yet how awfully disturbing and dreadful it is too. If ever there were a better example of showing that odd yet perfect ballance "The View from the Hill" is it. 

The next surprise favorite is the continuation of Tony Puryear's Concrete Park, titled "Chapter 2." In the last issue of DHP we were given the first chapter to this new series. My expectations were not dramatically high but as I read onward my curiosity got the better of me and I wanted more and more. The story so far is awfully hard to describe, yet from what I can uncover we are in a future, dystopian world set in the urban decay of a gangland LA (or someplace very much like it). Surprisingly, most of the characters are American racial-minorities which creators rarely use in the comic medium. But this Tony Puryear is a clever one. Concrete Park could easily be mistaken for a generic Spike Lee urban tale. However, Puryear goes the route of literary master Octavia E. Butler and transcends that urban struggle with the captivating blend of a dystopian struggle. I believe most readers will grasp onto the science-fiction aspects of this new series more so then they would notice the race-class-urban challenges. This is a series to keep your eye out for. 

Dude, Tarzan, seriously? A gun?

The next selection of comics are the ones I deem passable. 

Al Gordon and Thomas Yeates' The Once and Future Tarzan is stunning and baffling all in one sitting. Yeates' art is to the eyes what a rose is to the nose. Gorgeous. Classic. Talented. Many more words come to mind in this ageless style of art. My only problem with the story is just that--the story. It's only 8 pages and I'm already confused. Supposedly Tarzan is kind of immortal and lives in our world, yet it's not our world. It's a world filled with normal people and also mutants. He lives not only in a secret underground safe-house in the middle of the jungle, but in a secret underground safe-house beneath the first underground safe-house. Yeah, it's that confusing. There are also beautiful and ugly primitive women attacking him for questionable reasons (why are some of them attractive and others hideous? I have no clue). And also (as pictured to the left in next month's issue), since when does Tarzan carry a freaking gun? As beautifully rendered this comic is, questions abound by the page. Hopefully the second installment offers some answers.

Brian Wood and Kristian Donaldson's first part in their new comic The Massive is interesting. Within the 8 pages not many details are told except that rogue waves are extremely gigantic waves. Ask me just what this comic is about and I can't tell you more than guys with guns in a chopper fly out to a huge compound in the middle of the ocean and then one of the guys goes outside to find a wall of water headed for them while the other men take people hostage. Yup, that's about it. Donaldson's art is neatly done. A wee bit realistic for me, slightly unflavored. A big thanks goes to Dave Stewart for working on the colors. Beautiful as always.

Not that massive compared to a rogue wave...

Another interesting read is the first chapter of The Many Murders of Miss Cranbourne, by Rich Johnston (founder and editor-in-chief at Bleeding Cool) and Simon Rohrmuller. Meet Miss Cranbourne, comics very own Dexter rip-off. With a twist! She's pushing 80 years and kills people she deems worthy of killing. Is she psychotic or is she doing the world a favor? The comic is a bit tongue-in-cheek. I'm still not sure how I like it. It seems too much like a stolen idea. However, the art has an incredibly indie feel to it that may appeal to some readers. It's a little too early in the game to say whether it's good or not. Until next issue.

Other stories in this collection of Dark Horse Presents include the continuations of Neal Adam's Blood and Howard Chaykins Marked Man, (not quite worth reading since they're in their 7th and 8th chapters) the boring and dismissive Skultar, chapter 2, by M.J. Butler and Mark Wheatley and the limp-dick, waste of 8-pages, Time To Live by Martin Conaghan and Jimmy Broxton. It's okay Jimmy, I don't blame you for the crappy ending to that horrible story. But I will blame you on agreeing to illustrate it.

Review: "Dark Horse Presents" #4-- Beasts of Burden, Criminal Macabre, Age of Reptiles, and MORE!

When it comes to comics, anthologies are the best place for beginning readers. Take for instance the most popular comic anthology in our nation: the comics in the Sunday newspaper. Not all readers dive into the comics section of their paper knowing they like Zits over Blondie, or Peanuts over Garfield. Not all readers understand the office jokes in Dilbert and the political laughs in Doonesbury (I sure know I didn't as a kid). And most indefinitely, not all readers are lucky enough to pick up their favorite comic-strip from it's first printing through it's entirety. But as devoted anthology readers we understand our tastes tend to vary in the comic medium, and without the pairing of the good, the bad, and the ugly, we could never understand just what we like. Continuing this ritual, Dark Horse Comics released their 4th issue of an on-going monthly anthology called Dark Horse Presents.

This 80 page full color comic features a number of different artists and writers with the added bonus of NO adds (eat that, you DC $#*t-heads). The first reason I picked up this copy was for the all new eight page Beasts of Burden story, written by Evan Dorkin and illustrated by Jill Thompson--I just can't get enough of those cute critters fighting paranormal oddities (click here for more Beasts of Burden). My second reason for the pick is Geoff Darrow's gorgeous cover illustration (just look at the cover pictured above, from his "Shaolin Cowboy" series, and the immense detail put into his work). Everything else in the comic was a complete mystery. New works by new artists and new writers. Just what any comic fanboy or fangirl needs.

Of course, with the obvious difference of opinion in anthologies, how does one go about critiquing it? Well, how about the orderly fashion of story by story "+" meaning good, "-" meaning bad.

"Beasts of Burden: Food Run,"
story by Evan Dorkin, art by Jill Thompson (+)

"Rotten Apple" Chapter 3,
story by Chuck Brown, art by Sanford Greene (-)

"The Adventures of Dog Mendoca and Pizzaboy" Chapter 1,
story by Felipe Melo, art by Juan Cavia (+)

"Number 13" Chaper 3,
story by Robert Love and Dave Walker, art by Robert Love (+)

"Resident Alien" Chapter 1,
story by Peter Hogan, art by Steve Parkhouse (+)

"Criminal Macabre: Die, Die, My Darling!" Chapter 1,
story by Steve Niles, art by Christopher Mitten (+)

"Marked Man" Chapter 4,
story and art by Howard Chaykin (+)

"Age of Reptiles: The Body,"
story an art by Ricardo Delgado (+)

"Finder: Third World" Chapter 4,
story and art by Carla Speed McNeil (-)

"The Protest,"
story by Dara Naragi and art by Victor Santos (+)

All in all, that's eight +'s and two -'s, giving this comic anthology an 80 percent. My only complaint is the price of this comic which happens to be $8, but if you look at it this way, you're actually getting your dollars worth and then some. Not convinced yet? Check out the following preview of five of the featured comics as well as two other variant covers by Fiona Staples and Michael Kaluta (all images courtesy of Dark Horse Comics).

For more information on Dark Horse Presents check out Dark Horse Comics website here.