Comic Reviews: October 2019

As we inch ever closer to Christmas and all of the stresses that come with it (not to mention that my almost entire family decided to be born between now and then) I'm finding myself under a little bit of pressure to live real life while also keeping up with my reviews for Pipedream Comics.

This isn't helped by the rather large pile of comics I started October with which needed to be checked out.

(Well, need is a strong word as it sure isn't a chore but, gosh darn, if it isn't a lot. And more get added every week. Oh the hardship ;-) )

Fortunately, now October is done, that's five more of them are out of the way and, as is becoming tradition, I figured I'd just post a little something so I could air my more personal views on those comics which maybe didn't make the review proper.

The Odyssey Initiation #1

So, the first review was for The Odyssey Initiation #1. Now, I enjoyed this, but I also didn't and I'm not sure I can totally explain why. In truth, there is nothing essentially wrong with this comic as the story is fun and has this feel of classic sci-fi adventure. However, the biggest mark against it is that, as I read it I felt like I've seen it all before. This was because the Odyssey Initiation feels so very similar to the story from the first Mass Effect game. Even the ship looks the same as the Normandy from that series and so much of the world feels like the ideas were ripped directly from it.

Of course, I've tried to review it on its own merits and it is an interesting story. The characters, while rather basic thus far, are intriguing and do I want to know more. Meanwhile, while the art isn't the best, it does have a wholly unique style which I think fits rather well to the book, story and world. This a book which deserves more of my time. However, all things being equal, I can't shake those original thoughts about Odyssey and, while I certainly hope I'm wrong and it's just a coincidence, there are still too many similarities to ME. I'll be honest, I really hope that it's just my brain putting 2 and 2 together to make 5, but while I'd check the next issue out, if the story went the way I think it would (or remember Mass Effect going), I probably wouldn't feel the need to go beyond that.

Rok the God #1

So, moving on from space was .... well, space and football with my review for Rok the God #1. In truth, I wasn't sure what to expect from this going in and was a little hesitant to check it out. However, I'm glad that I did because it was really fun and really enjoyable. I have to admit that I'm not sure for my reasons for my enjoyment, but I felt that it just had this vibe and tone which was refreshing and different, more akin to British comics that I had read rather than American ones. The art was good, very reminiscient of Valiant's style (which is one I love), although I did feel that the colour choices let it down a little. That said, it was a really good read (which I hope the review gets across), which annoyed me that I had never seen the original series. Fortunately, I found it on Comichaus, so I can check that out soon enough.

Relics of Youth #1

I followed that up with my now seemingly mandatory visit to Vault Comics library with review of Relics of Youth #1 and, again I really enjoyed this comic, a lot!!! It was a little slower than a lot of the stuff that I've read recently, but I did think it was incredibly engrossing with the whole 'certain people connected for some reason' shtick. I did think the basic explanation of the plot was a little vague here, but the characters and the overall mystery within the story certainly did enough to hook me on this. The art, meanwhile just looks glorious in my opinion, with the visuals looking very Alex + Ada but a little less clean (that's the best term I can think of, it looks almost like the art of someone in a desert, if you get what I mean). This is helped by the colours, of which I thought were really good, especially at the beginning where the creative look to have assigned a colour to introduce each main character. All in all, Vault gave me another great one for which I'd really like to see more of.

Elk Mountain #1

Then came the review for Elk Mountain #1. Now, I really loved this issue as it looks visually stunning all the way through in a style similar to another artist who's work I adore and it also tells a story that both does and doesn't seem to subvert a regular superhero story, but yet does both in the best of ways. However, I didn't think it was perfect as the art slipped on one panel and the writer aged it badly with a Trump reference (given that he'll probably be gone by next year) and villains I didn't really care about. However, probably its worst failing was the ending which saw a reveal which I don't think was necessary as I feel it's taken the focus of the story away from the townsfolks (who I felt were made more intriguing by just before this page). Hopefully I've gotten that across. Overall, I really loved this issued and would love to read the rest of the series.

The Family Graves

And finally, just before October ended I hammered out a review for the Family Graves by Source Point Press. First up, I'm not going to lie, the opening paragraph sucked and so, that is editor Alex Thomas' work (or will be once it is posted I would bet). The rest, though, is all me and I really, really enjoyed this book, which I think tapped that part of me that relates and loves the Fantastic Four. I thought a lot of the dynamics felt mostly realistic for a family (the language was a bit wooden for those emotional scenes, but not enough that you'd notice so I didn't really include it). The plot didn't really seem very important here, as it felt a little simplistic (although the it also felt a bit convoluted in places but maybe that was just me). However, the character dynamics were fun and the humour hit the mark. Meanwhile, I loved the art, which has a fun vibe to it and made me think of the late 90's FF (a lot of references to that series in here). What I especially liked was the depiction of the mum, Bjanka, who looked threatenly awesome as her monstrous alter ego and was written really strongly. Honestly, while it didn't catch me like a lot of other comics recently, I still enjoyed it immensely and look forward to future instalments.

So, another month done and, I've got to admit, while they were all of varying levels a strength/quality from the perspective of my reviewers hat, I did actually enjoy everything I got the opportunity to read in the last 31 days (although admittedly some more than others). I'm now certain that this is the third or fourth month in a row that I've said this and that is a testament to the great creators and the fantastic ideas that they are all so professionally putting together (sometimes better than those who make a lot more money).

All I can say, if this keeps up into next month then I'll be stumped how I'll contribute to Pipedream comics top 50. They'll be just far too many options.