Some short, quick reviews

A few quick takes:

ALICE COOPER VS. CHAOS: A great looking cover made me have high hopes for this title from Dynamite. Unfortunately, Jim Terry and Tim Seeley’s writing doesn’t hold that much weight and neither does Terry’s art. Sure, we get those classic Chaos Comics characters, but the story is incredibly silly. I guess it might have helped if I had read the PREVIOUS Cooper series. All in all, I found this to be a horrible first issue that just makes me realize how much the old MARVEL PREMIERE issue and the Gaiman mini-series were!

BEAUTY: So half of the country has contracted a new sexually transmitted disease that makes people become beautiful.  Unfortunately, this disease has deadly side effects. Following the police officers working the case of a beauty who combusted form within, we learn these people have more at stake than they knew. Jeremy Haun, who go wrote the story with Jason A. Hurley, also handles the art. The condept is fresh, although the idea of a sexually transmitted disease changing an individual for the better has already been worked with in DEATH SENTENCE and DEATH SENTENCE LONDON, even if the results of the STD is different. A great first issue and promise of a great story to come.

DANGER GIRL RENEGADE: If the idea of a DANGER GIRL comic sounds familiar, that’s because J. Scott Campbell and Andy Hartnell created the character of Abbey Chase and the Danger Girl team some 17 years ago. Since then, no less than 14 mini-series or one-shots. This time around, IDW brings Hartnell and Stephen Molnar together for a fun romp that begins a dozen years ago with a great bit of back story and then races to the present where we find our heroine in danger again. I was really skeptical about this title, but gave the first issue a try and it was filled with that wondrous Nineties feel to it. In other words, although I wish the book carried a 1998 price tag, it’s a fun, mindless romp.

DARK CORRIDOR: From the warped mind of Rich Tommaso, the guy responsible for such great comic works as CLOVER HONEY and 8 ½ GHOSTS, comes DARK CORRIDOR: an anthology title set within the city of Red Circle.  We get two tales here: “The Red Circle” and “Seven Deadly Daughters”. In the first tale, we get a dog covered in blood that leads to a little detective work and a twist! In the second tale, police detectives question a man in the Emergency Room of a hospital, leading to a case of Karma biting him in the butt! Tommaso’s art style is a lot like Charles Burns meets Herge while his writing just WANTS to be Miller meets Spillane, even if it isn’t. Most will have issues with the art style because it’s not “typical comic art”, but work past it. 

KING TIGER: Leave it to Dark Horse to resurrect another of their old superhero titles. And once again, they hit it out of the park! Randy Stradley teams up with the ever-amazing Doug Wheatley for a legendary tale! Action, adventure, blood sacrifices, evil despots and scary monsters. The story is a rocket ride with great characters and cool dialogue, the art is killer and the only bad thing about this is that it’s only a four issue mini-series. With reboots this good, can we get more from the Comics Greatest World like X and THE MACHINE!

NEW ZODIAX: Joe St. Pierre. You know the name, as he has worked on a bunch of comics, both as a writer and an illustrator. You’ve seen his work on SECRET WEAPONS, RAI, SPIDER MAN, SUPERBOY, and many more. Now he’s out on his own and NEW ZODIAX is his baby. This wild ride features the orgin of a new hero in every issue of the series and obviously the heroes are inspired by and tie into the signs of the Zodiac. The action is incredibly fast moving, the plot is amazingly complex and the art is bombastic, over the top, superhero stuff in the very best way. The only drawback, if you want to call it that, is that you will find yourself going back and rereading earlier issues to make sure you don’t miss something in the plot. It is THAT complex and detailed. Read them all in one sitting or, if you can’t find the single issues, order the upcoming trade paperback. This is a great addition to your regular pull list!

PHONOGRAM THE IMMATERIAL GIRL: Nine years ago, the team responsible for the critically acclaimed THE WICKED + THE DIVINE, Kieron Gillen and Jamie McKelvie, created a title called PHONOGRAM. This is the third volume in the series, which revolves around a coven of phonomancers. It is a series that is filled with musical references, wild parties, and magic with the focus on Emily Aster, who once sold half of her personality for the power to rule the coven. The main concept is Music is Magic and that will run through the whole mini-series as our heroine ends up living in the world of video. The book looks great and, if you’re a fan of THE WICKED + THE DIVINE, you’ll be wanting to read this!

PUBLIC RELATIONS: I totally don’t know how to tell you about this title. We have egotistical characters, flying dragons, romance, innuendos, sex, horny moms, castles, kings, wizards and so much more. The hero of our piece is Dan Clover who has suddenly reconnected with his father and a brother he never knew he had. The story by Matthew Sturges and Dave Justus is a riot and I found myself standing in my comic shop laughing out loud as I read some of the lines. David Hahn’s art is perfectly suited for the story; somewhere between cartoon and comic style. From Devil’s Due, you may have to have this book special ordered for you. But it’s worth the wait and worth the read.

SHO-TIE: The newest work from prolific creator Eric Lebow and his Deadboy Press is a great example of more bang for your buck. 68 pages, if I count right, for five bucks! Divide into two huge chapters, we start in Japan with the arrival of two sons to a barren couple and from there, it’s a non stop action ride with a great superhero, a magic dragon, and a bunch of classic 1930’s gangsters. Lebow writes and inks this huge tome with art from Bernard Kolle and Antonio Rojo. Actually, it’s a worldwide effort as there are contributions from France, Spain, Brazil and Slovenia. It’s a great undertaking with a fun, roller coaster ride of a story. My only real complaint is that I wish Lebow had drawn one of the two chapters as I am a long time fan of his art. Seek this out and lend some support to the small indys.

THIS DAMNED BAND: It’s 1974 and Motherfather is the hottest band in the world. Unfortunately, they are a heavy metal band that ingests far too many drugs and are devil worshippers. At a concert in Tokyo, their faith is totally tested. This book is like THIS IS SPINAL TAP on acid! It is a funny look at the life of a rock band in the Seventies who are having trouble controlling their own destinies. Paul Cornell’s story is great, complete with a two-page discography and fake T-shirt ad! And Tony Parker’s art is a mind-blowing trip without the drugs. This is a wild ride. You need to dive into this and just enjoy…preferably with some sweet Sixties psychedelic music for your soundtrack.