As colder nights settle into the Pacific Northwest, instead of regularly heading out to the movies, I’m all tucked in and reading a comic or two. My go to publisher is always Dark Horse Comics, and I turn to Dynamite and IDW after, and when I’m all out, it’s some random manga!
Out of the books I read from this month, I offer my thoughts on these titles:
Avatar: The Last Airbender
Azula in the Spirit Temple
At long last, the work that writer/artist Faith Erin Hicks told me about during Fan Expo Vancouver least year is available to read! All I really knew at the time is that Azula would finally get her solo adventure, and I’m loving it, plain and simple! This story takes a deeper look into this character, warts and all. Although I want to sympathise, what’s presented shows just how tough she’s become.
What’s shown looks at all the skeletons she wants to shove into the closet, and have a conversation with one more time. When they surface yet again, the big question is that will she be able to lock them up again? I won’t say what happens, but had this been made into an episode of the cartoon series, I’d be willing to bet it’d get fans talking.
This comic book creator’s next story is The Bounty Hunter and the Tea Brewer, which already has a listing on Amazon, and that won’t be out until mid next year. It’s terrific she’s a regular writer of these one-shots, and as for what’s next, let’s hope I get some information when I see her again at Terminal City’s finest fandom event.
Count Crowley
Mediocre Midnight
Monster Hunter #1 (of 4)
More problems lay ahead for Jerri Bartman, a former TV journalist turned midnight horror movie hostess for her hometown’s station. This time, the werewolves are having problems. Quite often, the situations she finds herself in mirrors the television series, Kolchak: The Night Stalker, and it’s scary stuff. Although she doesn’t have the skills of a news reporter, just how she survives is always worth a read.
In this latest, she has to contend with a person who once was Count Crowley too. But when another corpse surfaces, and her monster buddies are afraid for their lives, Bartman will have to man up and help her friends rather than hide out.
Honestly, I’m just collecting this series for the art. Artist Lukas Ketner delivers a lot of wonderful layouts and spreads that should be put on a poster, and as for what he brings to the world is simply a style which recalls those classic covers from EC Comics. Although he’s mostly putting an image to the ideas writer David Dastmalchian is crafting, this team up is simply the best and we got tales similar to what this new host is introducing, but this time, she’s the victim! (sort of)
Mortal Terror #1 (of 4)
This twist of Bram Stoker’s Dracula inverts nearly everything readers know of the novella in over its head. At first, I wasn’t sure what to expect from this work by writers Christopher Golden and Tim Lebbons after catching sight of the title. Here, Jonathan Harker, Lucy Westenra, and Mina Murray are members of Dracula’s exclusive club. They live in the underground, protecting others of their kind and when their opponent is only the Sun, I had to wonder who is the hero? The first issue doesn’t say much, but it seems Gabrielle is a venerated figure to fear.
This story offers a what if scenario where Dracula became the victor and changed London. He finally got to create the dominion he’s always wanted, and it’s shrouded in perpetual darkness. But every once in a while, the sun peeks out and forces that evil to stay in shadow. The art by Peter Bergting plays with those images and gives us a look into a very different world that’s saturated in sepia tones.
One question I have is, where is Van Helsing? If this story is truly about how the king of vampires took over London, then who is the new hero? I’ll have to pick up the rest of the issues as they find out rather than wait for the trade!
Discover more from Otaku no Culture
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
