Who’s Afraid of 2024 with Hellboy Winter Special: The Yule Cat?

In this year’s Hellboy Winter Special, our favourite lonely soldier boy is in Iceland to face off against a feline!

Hellboy Winter Special The Yule CatDark Horse Comics

As longer days of darkness settles in Iceland, and everyone is getting ready for the end of year festivities, Red has other concerns to face. In this year’s Hellboy Winter Special: The Yule Cat, he is in Reykjavík investigating recent unsettling sightings concerning a kaiju-sized feline! Although his adventure is nothing like my fight with it (namely in a Call of Cthulhu RPG session last year), the fact I’m familiar with the legend before reading this side story inspired me to delve into why I must read this comic book.

Writer/artist Matt Smith included falcons, trolls, a spear maiden and a völva! All these creatures feature prominently in Viking lore, and in addition to these earth elementals, there’s an old crone (with the gift of seeing into the future) to which I’m curious about. Also, this author is no stranger to everything Mignolia, as he’s penned many works, namely the Young Hellboy series which is worth the read!

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In IDW’s A Haunted Girl, Life is Never Easy When Considering the Nightmares Cleo Sees….

Every once in a while, there’s a remarkable comic book that explores the battle people with Depresssion has, and A Haunted Girl adds an extra supernatural depth to make the read work.

A Haunted Girl #1 Comic Book CoverIDW Publishing

Life has not been the same for Cleo Newman ever since she claims she can see dead people. In A Haunted Girl #2, this young teenager will have to be careful about whom she tells about her visions as she attempts to reintegrate back into society and school. In the first issue, readers find her in the hospital, recovering. She attempted suicide as she could not cope with her life; And in the latest chapter, readers get a glimpse at why her world became what it is.

Following her sports injury, nothing has been the same. As a result, she’d rather let the days wither away, instead of thinking that maybe she should find a new sport or hobby to enjoy. Her father (a single parent) is trying his best to motivate, but when these spirits show up, either they’re holding her back or she’s part of a prophecy which still has to reveal itself.

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Not the Same Ol’ Song. Ghostbusters: Back in Town Instead of Cleanin’ Up….

Dark Horse Comics loves their supernatural, and it’s only natural they’re continuing the story based the film. Ghostbusters: Back in Town is sure to appease fans looking for that bridge for next year’s sequel!

Ghostbusters: Back in Town Dark Horse Comics

If you haven’t heard about this news yet, then now is the time to prepare for another publisher to provide some equally fun and exciting action, Ghostbusters style! Usually, IDW Publishing offers up these mini-series, but in March 2024, all of that is going to change! I’m excited to read Ghostbusters: Back in Town. It looks like they’re taking a cue from Stranger Things and as that franchise winds down, this publisher is looking ahead and will focus on all new adventures for the team– and that’s terrific!

The other publisher is better known for its more cartoon style presentation and to have a work that’s entirely different is very welcomed!

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Best Dark Horse Comics Reads of November 2023

It was tough to decide on which comic books and trade paperbacks released by Dark Horse Comics would make the November must read list, and what’s presented are titles I’ve actually read from beginning to end!

Dark Horse Comics LogoAs 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

Azula in the Spirit Temple Book Cover

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.

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When Going Green is Environmentally Friendly for Scott Duvall’s Latest Comic Book Crowdfunding Project….

What’s offered in Going Green looks very Stranger Things-ish, and and it’s a work I’m sure even Steven Speilberg would love.

Going Green Comic Book CoverScott Duvall and his team are “Going Green” with their latest comic book idea. They describe it as Locke & Key meets the biological horror of Annihilation in a modern-day monster comic with a heart. It’s being crowdfunded so that it can be delivered directly to fans of their work, and this listing can be found on Zoop.

In this story, Cliff and Molly are your usual teens, enjoying life out in what appears to be somewhere in the Pacific Northwest. However, one day, their dad gets injured and recovery isn’t possible. The boy has a difficult task of identifying the body, and afterwards, instead of the traditional burial, the individual they talk to suggests the family should inter the remains another way and help restore the forests nearby. But as for what kind of strange magic exists deep within the woods, something is causing the dead to come alive!

The kids are curious as to why it’s happening, and while they go searching for answers, more recently deceased individuals are rising! It’s as though Halloween isn’t over. There’s a teaser promo video made to showcase the work that’s been done so far. What’s presented has a Stephen Spielberg type vibe to it, and that’s enough for me to say let’s help these creators! Continue reading “When Going Green is Environmentally Friendly for Scott Duvall’s Latest Comic Book Crowdfunding Project….”

TheNFB’s Beyond Paper. From Print to the Cloud, Why Studying Matters of the Heart & The Humanities Matters.

While what’s presented in Beyond Paper offers a look at what the future should do to preserve the past, we should never forget.

Beyond Paper Promo PosterAvailable to view on TheNFB

In Oana Suteu Khintirian‘s excellent documentary, Beyond Paper, she looks at why the written word is important, and what’s the method of preserving it. Without pen and paper, all the world is not a stage to chronicle the best of times, and even the worst of times shaped not only literature but also the passing of culture from one generation to another. While that sounds like a very loaded introduction, not every bit of knowledge can be passed down orally. And when it’s a document, will it be easily accessible?

Here, she is not only looking at how to preserve her own Romanian and Armenian heritage, but also humanity’s collective history. It’s not as easy as digitising it to the cloud, a digital version of what some may call the collective consciousness. Some nuances will get lost. For example, calligraphy is a craft few can master, and those studying Chinese style will know there’s a lot to consider when allowing those splashes of ink outside the line to exist! Sometimes examining how that stroke was made is significant.

When considering creating comics involves lettering, even this branched aspect of the literary to sequential art deserves equal preservation as well.

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