Two weeks later

I'll be honest, I almost didn't post for the second time in two weeks just down to the fact that I feel very exhausted. Sadly, that's December for you.

However, as I sit on the middle of the night trying to settle my youngest back to sleep, I find I have some time to kill.

So, not much has really happened over the last two weeks (to tell the truth, I sure dont remember any of it) but rather than work on my own collection/to read pile, I thought I'd spend a bit of time clearing through my review pile.

As such, I thought I'd talk about all of that briefly.

First up I read Crayta #1 - 4, which was top of my review pile. Now, I have to be honest, I really struggled with the first issue and nigh on wrote the series off. However, I'm glad I didn't as you were right, this is a top quality series.

I thought the world building for this was excellent and the story (after that first issue) was incredibly gripping. As for the art, that too was gorgeous and has a real sci-fi, futuristic look to it (I've likened it to Black Science but I think it looks much more utopian than that). Of course, there is a touch of inconsistency in the art given the number of artists involved but it is so minor it's actually surprising how minor it is.

The series has left me with questions; not least is this some subtle take on environmentalism (given that gAIa could be Gaia, the pop culture term for mother nature), but also how deep are interaction in the 'conspiracy' and if all of them are so zealous in their beliefs in the co-existence and what is the end game for the apparent antagonist.

That said, despite a rough start, sticking with the series has really turned me around and I'm glad that I got the chance to review it, especially four issues worth.

Next up was my review for Like Father, Like Daughter #1-6. I really enjoyed this series. it was pretty straightforward with a good story behind it.

I thought Kat Calamia's writing was really good and that she had a good handle on the various relationship dynamics. there was a 'B' story where the father's origin story was the focus but it was somewhat take or leave until the last minute twist made it REALLY interesting.

The art was solid enough, although a little bit rougher than what I like. That said, I thought Wayne Brown's style gave the content a rather sincere focus, although I will admit that I thought the look of the school girls was a little too sexualised.

I'll be honest, I do worry that Kat Calamia lumbered this series with an unnecessary superhero story. Based on this, I think if she had done something that focused on the emotions, like Alex + Ada, then it would have served her just as well. Regardless though, it was a very fun series and I'm glad I got to read it. I just hope I'll get the chance to finish the arc.

Afterwards, I changed tack a little by reading Giga #1, which I didn't review but Alex's thoughts convinced me to check out. Now, I enjoyed this issue, especially the art which I loved and made me think of the look of Black Science. I have to confess that I'm intrigued about what's going on in this world but I did struggle as the story offered very little information. As such I'm hoping that the future issues will fill in the gaps but, for now, I have so many questions such as 'why was the lead character exiled from the order? And Who is Laurel (the robot)? That said, I feel like this could be the start of something big and epic, in the vein of Descender, and so I'm gonna be keeping my eye on this one with great interest.

Finally, I read Knights vs Pirates, which again Alex's review had me intrigued of but the concept itself convinced me that I wanted to read it. Again, I really enjoyed this, which I'm glad about becauseI was rather excited fie this one. Unfortunately, I found the story to be a bit of a struggle to begin with which almost put me off of finishing it. Thankfully though I ploughed on and I was rewarded as KvP' story really picked up. I thought Jay Martin did a great job in his depiction of both the Knights and the Pirates as both differing sides felt authentic in how they came across. Unfortunately, The overall plot was where I got lost as I couldn't understand the plan of the overall villain. That said, for what the comic was, it worked for me and felt full of great ideas (the Bermuda triangle was cool) as well the entire depiction of both ... legacies(?) (I wonder if Jay did historical research to make this fit in both characters timelines?).

What I truly loved about this comic though had to Chris Imber's art,  which looked absolutely glorious here. I remember how much I loved his style in the Last Sheriff bit his work here just looks on a whole other level and a vast improvement to even that great looking comic. The best example I can offer is quote possibly my favourite page of Knights v Pirates , the depiction of inside the Bermuda triangle.

Long story short, reading this really made me regret not getting in on the Kickstarter for a print copy. Fortunately that is something I can maybe rectify next year if/when the cons start up again.

And that's my last two weeks. On reflection I feel a bit annoyed with myself that I didn't offer more insight here for these books. However, the prior mentioned exhaustion has me struggling to find the words.

I can only apologise for this. Hopefully, next time I'll have a little more energy to put down on the page.