Review: Darth Vader and the Ninth Assassin #2

So, in my last review of Darth Vader and the Ninth Assassin, I was a little hesitant to recommend the comic, as it was unclear where it was going.  Reading the second issue has cleared up some of my questions, but I’m still less than thrilled with it.  What went wrong now?  Check it out after the jump.

Despite my uncertainty last time, the comic did shift focus from the assassin to Darth Vader, which I think makes the comic a more compelling read, since the main character isn’t expected to fail anymore.  And we see an attempt on the Emperor’s life that lures Darth Vader out into the open, so they’ve at least started the true action of the story.  Even the star destroyer that gets attacked, teased on the Dark Horse page for the comic, is pretty spectacular.  But as I noted last time, I still have trouble getting really excited about anything from this time period in the canon, particularly in regards to Vader, because we know he lives to see the original trilogy.

I also feel like there are a lot of wasted frames in this comic.  The attempt on the Emperor’s life is about two pages too long. The conversation the two of them have at the end could also have been more concise.  It felt sort of like the Tim Siedell had a three comic story in mind, but Dark Horse gave him more than that (up to issue #5 can be pre-ordered on Dark Horse already) and he went “Oh, um, okay, I guess I can leave some blank pages for Stephen Thompson to draw on then…”  Overall, it just hinders the pacing, and the whole thing feels kind of slow.

As much as I’m complaining, it is not all bad. I still like the art; Thompson does a great job.  There is also a bit of mystery to the story, as the assassin is never actually said to be behind either of the attacks, and in fact, the attack on the star destroyer doesn’t even really help his cause much, but seems to be perpetrated by the same people who tried to kill the emperor.  Is one of the other eight assassins going to make an appearance?  The first comic did say they weren’t all accounted for.  Or is the ninth assassin really behind that too?  Maybe he has his own agenda.  Honestly, it’s my curiosity over these minor matters that are keeping me reading for at least one more comic, not the main plot.

I still can only give a “so-so” recommendation, because I just find it so hard getting drawn into this time period in Star Wars with anything less than an enthralling plot hook.  But if you want it, it’s $3.50. I’ll be back in a month with issue 3.

Matthew Bryant, aka Baker Street Holmes, just learned that not only might Jar Jar make a return in Episode VII, Robert Pattinson has expressed interest in lending his voice to the role.  Holmes would love to see Binks die a horrible, painful death more than ever.  You can follow Holmes on Twitter at @BStreetHolmes or e-mail him at HMCrazySS@gmail.com.

Preview: Papers, Please

I’ll be honest; I don’t usually look at games before they’re released. As a general rule, I actively try to not get too excited about games before they come out as…yeah, that happens. However, every once in a while, a game will cross my radar that grabs my attention, made by an indie developer who deserves recognition that I just HAVE to talk about. In today’s case, I’ve played the Beta twice and passed it on to multiple friends. It’s that good. So, let’s take a look at the upcoming Papers, Please.

Papers, Please hopes to corner a market I didn’t even know existed. The site lists it as a “dystopian document thriller”, and that’s actually the best way to describe it. You play as a man who’s been forced to run the new border patrol gate in the communist state of Arstotzka. Each day, citizens and foreigners alike will attempt to get through, and it’s your job to determine whether they should be allowed into the country. You’ll examine passports and other important documents, conduct fingerprint scanning, and, if necessary, send people away with the police in tow to ensure no damage is done to your wonderful country. Oh, and you better work quickly, because your daily wages are directly based on how many people you successfully process, and if you can’t keep up, your family back home will be the ones to suffer in the cold, dark, and hungry apartment the state so kindly forced you to live in.

Now, one might look at this and immediately be fearful of a strong political undercurrent. After all, immigration in a country that looks and acts like a member of the former Soviet bloc could easily turn into a politically charged soapbox of a game. Luckily, Lucas Pope, the sole designer of the game, is aware of that risk and seeks to avoid it entirely. “My main goal is just to create an interesting and entertaining game with somewhat original mechanics.” said Pope. “Beyond experiencing some empathy for the tough job that immigration inspectors have, there are no deep political aspects.” A focus on the gameplay over preaching a political agenda? Awesome.

So, if it’s not a political game, what is it? Well, it’s a tightly made game with a heavy emphasis on technical gameplay. You’re constantly scanning documents looking for the most minute discrepancies, as the safety of the country–and your wallet–depends on your ever sharp eye ensuring only those who deserve to get in are able to do so. Every time you screw up, the state sends you a warning letting you know what you did wrong. The first two times are purely warnings, but from that point forward, it results in docked pay. Which, in all reality, neither you or your family can afford. 

The result is a frantic, fast-paced game that’s constantly pushing you to move more quickly while also requiring you to look at more and more things. The state will constantly be reacting to the events happening around you, forcing you to be more strict with certain countries or changing the type of pass a foreigner needs to work there. As such, you are constantly having to check your rulebook to see what’s in effect and using it to point out any discrepancies that may exist. But don’t forget to watch that clock, as after 6:00 P.M., any work you do is unpaid. Ouch.

This is the kind of unique idea that keeps the indie market going strong while the AAA industry is poised to crash. So where does an idea like this come from? Pope said, “Although I’m American, I live outside the US now and have done a good amount of international traveling in the last few years. Going through airport immigration enough times, I slowly got the impression that whatever the inspector was doing could be fun. Once that was marinating in my head I started to see elements of current events and popular fiction that could work well within the concept.”As someone who’s currently living in the UK, I can assure you that he’s on the money with that one; if nothing else, the life of an immigration checkpoint worker must be colourful and interesting. 

There are two features that I feel need to be discussed before I wrap this preview up. The first is a beautiful use of moral choices that actually feel like choices. There isn’t a tangible benefit to these actions, nor is there commentary presented. The ones presented in the Beta are rather straightforward, but Pope tells me that there will be longer stories later in the game that span multiple days. Despite being simple on the surface, there’s a lot that goes into it. Using an example from the Beta, let’s say an old woman wants to see her son, who she hasn’t seen in over twenty years. That seems reasonable, and the idea of her reuniting with her son has to make you feel all warm and fuzzy on the inside. But what’s this? Her documents are not in order, and the odds are good that if she doesn’t get in now, she’ll never get the chance. Do you let her in, knowing that you’ll get a warning for it? And what if you’ve already gotten your warnings for the day? Then it will be a dock in pay, and you run the risk of your family going cold and hungry yet again. You need that money. Do you keep her away from her son? 

It’s a tough call, but the decision is entirely up to you. As Pope explained, “the moral choices are a natural extension of the ‘threads’ that define the story. Like a real checkpoint, the player meets everyone in passing and each person may have a small story to tell. Including moral choices lets the player experience the tough situations that I imagine a real inspector often finds themselves in. Keeping the dialog brief and the choices commentary-free allows the player to project more of their own feelings onto the interaction and makes the game more interesting for me.” Take note, other game developers: this is how morality should work. Not with outlandish moral choice systems that have me either slaughtering fields of babies or picking flowers to give to the elderly, with tangible gameplay benefits for being all the way good or all the way evil. It should be difficult life choices presented straight-forwardly, leaving the player the freedom to act as he or she genuinely would in that situation. Now that is interesting.

The other factor I loved is one I’ve mentioned a couple times already: the use of family as a sign of progress. When things are going well, the family will be well fed, warm, and generally happy. Well, as happy as one could be in a cramped apartment in a communist state in the 1980s. However, if you start slipping up and getting docked for pay, or simply move too slowly, things will start going poorly. Food won’t make it to the table, the heating bill won’t be paid, and worse, people will start getting sick. As Pope explains, “Once I decided on the basic style of narrative, it was clear the player needed influences outside their job. The nighttime screen is a way to motivate the player and apply pressure to the decisions they make during the day. It also nicely inserts the player into the same world as the immigrants they’re approving and denying. Just like the real world, everyone’s got problems.” A genuinely interesting mechanic that both increases the pressure on the player while also increasing their immersion? Yeah, I’m sold.

I’m not going to pretend the game is perfect. A lot of times, I end up finding myself knowing something is wrong, but having no idea how to prove it. The in game tutorial isn’t great at telling you exactly what you need to use to point out each discrepancy (I didn’t even know there was an audio transcript until I started searching for images for this post), and it’s going to take some trial and error to figure out what you need to do. And then there are bugs. In my playthrough, I experienced an issue where I’d be warned for letting someone through with false fingerprints, even though the game seemed to tell me the names matched who they were supposed to be. Pope is aware of that and is actively working to fix these bugs. But see, these bugs are forgivable because the game is still available as a free Beta. This is what Betas are for, after all. 

So, at the end of the day, you have a clever concept with tight gameplay mechanics that are able to provide an interesting storyline with moral choices that don’t feel forced upon you…what more do you need? I’m not a person to hype games before they’ve been released (I keep quiet on my Kickstarter donations for that very reason), but this is a game I truly enjoyed from start to finish. If your interest is piqued, check out the Beta for free here for both Windows and Mac. Pope is aiming for a summer release, though no definite date has been given. Check it out for yourself, and let me know what you think in the comments below!

Chase Wassenar, aka MaristPlayBoy, is the Lead Editor and Founder of the Red Shirt Crew. He sincerely regretted turning the old woman away after her son’s building burned down the next day, but at least his family was fed, right?…Right? You can read his other articles at ToyTMA, follow him on Twitter at @RedShirtCrew or email him at theredshirtcrew@gmail.com.

Shaking up Pokemon

If you are like me, you are snob when it comes to Pokemon.  You know that the original Pokemon were the best and that no matter what anyone says, it’s not just nostalgia talking.  Lately, “new” Pokemon are just the old ones with slight redesigns or type changes.  Tell me this: what does GameFreak do with all it’s time if they’re just rehashing their old work?  After the break, I’ll expend my point about the recent failing in Pokemon creativity and even offer some new, unique concepts.

In the first generation, Pokemon were interesting.  I still don’t know what Lapras is, or what kind of creature Electabuzz is supposed to be.  Jigglypuff is a singling balloon and Farfetch’d hits people with a leak for some reason.  How did a bunch of eggs get to be psychic?  Mr. Mime… well psychic mimes are a little cliche, but you get the idea.  For the most part, Pokemon were new.  Now?  Beartic is just an ice type version of Ursaring, and Liepard is a dark type Persian.  Bouffalant is EXACTLY a Tauros, Unfezant is a Pidgeot, except now it’s ACTUALLY a pigeon   Garbodor is Muk, Excadrill is Sandslash, Conkeldurr is Machamp; I could go on.  But I won’t.

Instead, I’d like to prove that Pokemon has not run out of unused ideas; that they don’t just have to keep rehashing the same old concepts.  Below are four Pokemon concepts I believe to be unique, which is to say that they lack existing Pokemon corollaries.  I hope you enjoy them as much as I enjoyed coming up with them.  (All art was a custom commission by my friend Victoria)

Stalkaffe – (grass) – Stage 3 of 5

First, something I’ve been waiting for since the third generation came out: a Pokemon with more than three stages.  Imagine this: there is a new Pokemon game, and you have forced yourself not to look at the new Pokemon before playing.  In one of the first routes, you encounter a small sprout called Shootly.  As it grows, it begins to take the shape of a little bamboo giraffe.  you think you’ve reached its third and thus final form, Stalkaffe.  But then, it starts to evolve again!  imagine your excitement when you find out it has not three, not four, but five stages!  I love this idea because A) there are no giraffe Pokemon.  There are some long necked things, but they’re more like chimeras.  B) Giraffes fight by whipping their necks at each other, which would be an awesome signature move.  And C) I really want GameFreak to get out of this three stage limit.  It’s boring.

Monitox – (poison) – Stage 2 of 3

Next, we have a poison type called Monitox.  Pokemon has a number of poisonous plants and many, many poisonous snakes.  They even have a poisonous fish.  But they’ve never done a poisonous lizard.  Personally I think Gila monsters and komodo dragons are really cool, and I would love to see a similar creature show up in Pokemon.  The color scheme too is very different. So many poison type Pokemon are green or purple that I think the warm orange and reds would really stand out.  Another thing that I would really like about a poison type lizard Pokemon is that the evolved form could be a basilisk.  Not the basilisk from the Chamber of Secrets, because J. K. Rowling made it a snake just for the whole Slytherin thing.  Basilisks were originally multi-legged lizards and incredibly poisonous.  It’s a fitting final form and GameFreak has never done a poison/dragon type pairing before.

Lashrow – (dark) – Stage 2 of 2

Then there are Frightle and its evolved form, Lashrow.  Dark type Pokemon have almost no creatures that are personifications of shadow itself, excluding Darkrai, who is specifically made near impossible to get in the one generation he’s available.  All the rest are some kind of malevolent animal.  Lashrow builds on moves that ensnare enemies with its shadowy tendrils, lower enemy defenses, and prevent the opponent from fighting back.  I also love the pun of giving him a signature move of “clothesline” because of the cloak he has wrapped around himself.  I think that it would be an interesting ability to have his evasion increase at night, blending him into the darkness.  You have to love those day/night cycles, and while pokemon evolution, and wild pokemon appearances have been effected by time of day, they have yet to have abilities that play in at different times of day.

Hemoski – (bug/steel) – Stage 1 of 1

Lastly, I offer Hemoski, a bug/steel type. This type combination has been seen before in Pokemon like Scizor and Forretress, but this is one of the types of bugs I’ve been amazed they haven’t used: mosquitoes.  I think of a Hemoski fighting very much like a Beedrill, using its speed and flight to use hit and run tactics while also using a lot of moves like Leech Life, possibly with its own souped up version.  It may not look like a steel type, owing to the lack of silvery hues, but between its blood and the oxygen it carries, I liked the rusty color a lot.  It’s much darker colored than either steel or bug types typically are, which gives it a fairly unique look. But also I liked the idea of the parallels between the mosquito’s proboscis and a hypodermic needle.  If you imagine a Hemoski being nearly five feet tall, that’s a big needle!

The average new generation of Pokemon adds 125 new species of Pokemon.  Between all the stages of the Pokemon presented here, that’s 11 Pokemon that I hope you agree are new and unique Pokemon.  That doesn’t include a swordfish water type, a banshee ghost type, an elephant normal type, and a series of ditto like creatures made from magma (fire), mercury (poison) and mud (ground) that didn’t make it into my favorite four, as well as a number of evolutions of existing Pokemon.  All in all, I could probably cover a fifth of the new Pokemon for a new generation from the ideas I already have.  Come on GameFreak.  Step it up a notch.

Matthew Bryant, aka Baker Street Holmes, is an avid Pokemon fan, despite the decline in creativity.  He is anxiously awaiting the release of Pokemon X and Y this Fall.  You can follow him on Twitter at @BStreetHolmes or e-mail him at HMCrazySS@gmail.com.

Review: Star Trek: Into Darkness

Today, Chase (MaristPlayBoy) and his good friend Sam discuss the new Star Trek movie, Star Trek: Into the Darkness. It’s actually pretty good, but don’t expect to be blown away.

Chase Wassenar, aka MaristPlayBoy, is the Lead Editor and Founder of the Red Shirt Crew. You can read his other articles at ToyTMA,  follow him on Twitter at @RedShirtCrew or email him at theredshirtcrew@gmail.com.

Review: Creepy #12

Well, the time has finally come for me to review an anthology comic. To be honest, I was rather sad when I first handed over Dark Horse Presents to Baker Street Holmes, since Dark Horse’s anthologies are known for being among the best the world of comics has to offer. But today, I get to look at another great anthology series, Creepy #12. With good ole’ Uncle Creepy providing some opening and closing narration, Creepy #12 tells five spooky stories with three cartoons to lighten the mood. Does this issue warrant a purchase, or will it fail to deliver the creeps? Let’s find out.

Since each story features a different creative team, there aren’t many overarching points to be made about the comic as a whole. With the exception of the front and back cover, the comics included are black and white. This isn’t an issue for most people, but since some people prefer colour comics, I figure it’s worth mentioning. But now, let’s get into the actual stories.

“Uncle Magnus” by Richard Corben is the first story of the bunch. Now usually, I would be ecstatic to see a Richard Corben piece in anything, as his legendary status (he’s a member of the Will Eisner Hall of Fame) speaks for itself, but if I learned anything from my Last Day in Vietnam review, it’s that great creators are capable of mediocre work. “Uncle Magnus” avoids that pitfall by being quite good, if not as fulfilling as it could have been. The art is fantastic, nailing the facial expressions such that the art itself tells the whole story. However, the ending fell a little flat for me. Without giving anything away, a character is punished at the end of the story without anything being presented that would make the reader believe she should be punished. Maybe it’s meant to emphasize how terrible things can happen to people without due cause, but I wasn’t rooting for that character’s demise like I rooted for the demise of the other characters. There’s no real moral to be taught from this one, and if there had been, a very good story would have been a great one. Still, it is an enjoyable piece.

“Fishing” by Ron Marz (story) and Richard P. Clark (art) was my favourite piece. The art here is also well done, making the scenes really feel as if they’re playing out in front of you. It also really does a good job of handling the horror bits, with injuries looking as gruesome as one would hope they would. What really makes this story great, however, is the irony of the tale. Without giving anything away, the story is able to be terrifying and amusing at the same time, and the whole thing struck me as being incredibly clever. Well done by both artists, and I hope they team up on something else again soon.

Next up is a one page comic called “Role Models” by Dan Braun and Peter Bagge. Not much to say about it, honestly. It’s okay. The joke might be funnier if you’ve read previous issues (I have not), but as it stands, it’s simply okay.

“Local Talent” by Matthew Allison is another excellent piece (you might be noticing a trend at this point), focused on a horror movie production gone wrong. When the director, who acts like a complete jerk, loses his make up man and monster actor, a local named Kino promises him some local talent to help complete the movie on time. It’s another one of those “be careful what you wish for” stories, but it’s executed very well. And the art in this piece is brilliant, really emphasizing the gore in some of the later parts of the story in a truly rewarding way. Well done across the board by Allison.

The next comic is actually a reprint of a classic tale by some of the most legendary creatores in comics. “The Spirit of the Thing” by Archie Goodwin (story) and Steve Ditko (art) features a very different set up than the rest, having the character involved tell the story of what happened to him instead of showing the events play out in real time. In this way, the reader becomes a member of the group of tenants who searched to see what was going on themselves, and the technique really works. The story is not as scary or amusing as some of the others in this book, but it more than makes up for it with its creativity. The other stories included were somewhat predictable in that they covered tropes that have been cornerstones of horror for quite some time. This story, while not being without its influences, didn’t fit into a single trope, and thus actually kept me guessing what would happen next. There’s a reason these creators are considered classic, after all.

“Mother’s Little Helper” by Peter Bagge is another one page comic. It’s pretty funny, but that’s all that I cna really say about it, so let’s move on.

“Pack Leader” by John Arcudi (story) and Julian Totino Tedesco (art) stands out from the other comics in this book, as it doesn’t have any opening or closing narration by a member of the Creepy family. The art is also quite experimental, with certain images being so detailed as to be nearly photorealistic, yet other pages have no art whatsoever, existing merely as white pages with narration and dialogue. It’s a very different kind of horror story, going more for building a tense and harrowing atmosphere without having to rely on any over the top scares. It’s a heartbreaking tale, well told and amazingly executed. This one will stick in your mind long after you’ve finished reading it. Just…wow.

Finally, there’s one more comic from Dan Braun and Peter Bigge; this one’s called “Reflections of My Life”. My biggest problem with it is that it comes at the end of the comic, when “Pack Leader” provided the perfect end point for the issue. It’s actually the funniest comic of the three, but I just wish they’d structured the comic as a whole differently so that we could end on “Pack Leader”. This is, admittedly, a nitpick.

Creepy #12 delivers in every way you could want it to. Each of the five tales is sufficiently scary and entertaining, with a couple that will most assuredly stand out in your mind long after you’ve read them. “Pack Leader” wins the top prize in this collection, with “Fishing” as a close second, but each story included is worth reading. For $4.99, you’re getting more than your money’s worth with this collection. Do yourself a favour and go buy it. It’s worth every cent and more.

Chase Wassenar, aka MaristPlayBoy, is the Lead Editor and Founder of the Red Shirt Crew. “Pack Leader” may have scarred him for life, but it was totally worth it. You can read his other articles at ToyTMA,  follow him on Twitter at @RedShirtCrew or email him at theredshirtcrew@gmail.com.

Review: Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 9 #21

Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 9 #21 (written by Andrew Chambliss, illustrated by Georges Jeanty) is the first issue in the final arc of Season Nine, “The Core”. If you’ve read my review of Buffy Season Nine Volume 3, you’ll know that I don’t have the same unbridled enthusiasm for the main series that I do for the Angel & Faith series. While I still have my reservations, this issue is a step forward and gives me hope that the end of the season might be able to redeem this otherwise lackluster season.

The art in this issue is good, for the same reasons I mentioned in my review of Angel & Faith #21. Like I said there, the characters are just slightly abstracted from the actors who played them. This can be slightly confusing, but only to people who haven’t already been following the comics, and if you haven’t, don’t try to jump in at issue #21. The specific thing that jumps out to me in this issue is Dawn. As the storyline of her fading from existence continues, she’s drawn in grayscale instead of full color, reminding the reader what is happening and reiterating how high the stakes are. For this, I have to credit Michelle Madsen, who did colors in this issue and whose work probably does unnoticed most of the time.

As of this issue, the main three characters are finally reunited, explaining the name of this arc, “The Core”. This is important, as these characters were the main reason that people were so invested in the TV show during its run. While the comics aren’t the show, that dynamic was very important for seven seasons of TV. Obviously, something about it worked, and seeing that restored in the comics gives me some hope.

More importantly from a story standpoint, this issue has finally brought together each of the different storylines in the season. The Big Bads have now been firmly established and are moving forward with their plan from the previous issue. We know what the stakes are, and for the first time this season, we know exactly where the story is going without all of the confusing diversions and side plots that felt like pointless wandering to kill time until the end of the season.

Georges Jeanty Variant Cover

Something else of note is the continuing trend established earlier in the season of finally implementing parts of the Angel series into the main Buffy series. Though I can’t say what, something very important to the Angel series appears is this issue and becomes a major plot point. This helps make the world feel more cohesive, something which was often lacking both in the TV series and the Season Eight comics.

Speaking of crossovers and cohesion, this episode has a mild crossover with Angel & Faith #21. It’s not something you need to have read that book to understand (but you should because it’s awesome), but it’s there if you need everything to be explained.

On the execution side, I need to bring up Willow. In her miniseries, she struck me as boring and badly written. In this issue, she’s starting to sound like Willow again. While the miniseries focused a bit too much on her otherworldly side, she still grew up in California in the ’90s, and she has the speech patterns to match. This issue restores that second bit to her character, which was sorely missing in that series.

I’ll give this a tentative recommendation and say that this issue is worth the $2.99 cover price. They’re moving in the right direction again, which is nice to see. This is a good issue and a good start to the last arc of the season, but I can’t make any guarantees that the rest of the arc will live up to the promise with which it starts, hence the tentative recommendation.

Zac Kandell (known mostly on the internet as Mischlings) really wants this to get better, but knows much better than to get his hopes up. Follow him on Twitter at @Mischlings to read his other thoughts in bite-sized pieces when he actually has any worth sharing.

Review: Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season Nine Vol. 3 Guarded

Guarded, the third volume of Season Nine of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, collects two separate story arcs: Guarded (written by Andrew Chambliss, illustrated by Georges Jeanty) and Billy the Vampire Slayer (written by Jane Espenson and Drew Z. Greenberg, illustrated by Karl Moline and Ben Dewey). These are two very different storylines, only included in the same book because they add up to five issues. They even have different writers and artists, so there’s even less cohesion between the two stories. Sadly, this is only really an issue because one story is so much better than the other.

Guarded (the story arc) follows Buffy working with Kennedy’s bodyguard service, trying to protect a social networking mogul who’s being threatened by Wolfram and Hart. He’s managed to keep a link to their dimension alive through technology, which is my only major issue with the story. Since the loss of magic, the writers have gone to great lengths to write magic-based stories without using magic instead of embracing such a fundamental change to the universe and using it to tell some really different stories. The constant handwaving and general confusion over what the loss of magic really means is a particular pet peeve of mine, so it might not bother others as much as it bothers me. It’s also not unique to this arc, so I try not to hold it against this arc compared to the good that it does.

What really sticks out here is Kennedy. It’s not at all a stretch to say that Kennedy is the most hated character from the TV series. She’s so reviled by the fans that general fan opinion on episode quality is inversely related to how many lines she has (no, really — people have done the math). The main complaint is that Kennedy is very one-dimensional, something this arc fixes by giving her actual character traits. On the show, she was just Willow’s girlfriend, but since they broke up near the end of Season Eight, she has to define herself in some other way. She’s still a lesbian, but that’s no longer her only defining trait — she’s now trying to help other Slayers who feel lost in a world without magic, including Buffy. And even though her relationship with Willow is over, she shows an actual attachment to her and still cares for her, even though she knows the relationship is done for good. This character development is far and away the most noteworthy part of this arc, since it made me actually like a character I used to hate — and even if you still don’t like her, she does get punched in the face at one point, so there is that.

Billy the Vampire Slayer follows Billy, a boy from a small, unnamed California town, who wants to do something about the zompire problem despite having no supernatural powers or abilities. His friend, Devon, serves as his watcher in an attempt to emulate being a Slayer as they actively try to fight zompires the town.

Taken from http://www.darkhorse.com

I really want to like this storyline, but there are multiple reasons why this just doesn’t work. The first and simplest reason is, in the middle of the main Buffy series, we’re suddenly taken away and thrown into another story. If that was the only problem, I’d suggest just expanding the story and making it a mini-series, similar to the Willow and Spike miniseries. This type of plotline even has some precedent — Robin Wood was a demon hunter with no supernatural powers, so it can work.

The real problem comes from something that I haven’t yet mentioned: Billy is gay. That’s not the problem. The problem is that it’s his only defining characteristic. In case you were hoping for subtlety, he’s wearing a “No H8” shirt in the first panel, and that’s just the beginning. Every interaction he has with anyone is either him being bullied for being gay or trying to hide his obvious crush on Devon, who (spoilers) becomes his boyfriend by the end of the story. It feels like the writers are trying harder to make a statement than to tell a good story, and it doesn’t even do a good job at that. I don’t even know how to appraise the story since it’s barely anything more than a few events in the background of a public service announcement.

This confuses me to no end. The writers seemed to figure out that was the problem with Kennedy, and fixed that in the previous story arc. Having Billy’s storyline fall into the same trap right afterwards makes it seem like no one was paying attention. Given that it had different writers, they might not have been paying attention, or just missed the point completely. It’s a really jarring shift in tone that happens when so many different writers tackle a comic series, which doesn’t work in that way like a TV series does.

Related to the shift in tone is a shift in the art. There are different artists for each arc in this book, which isn’t that noticeable right away, due to the shift in characters and location. In a way, the change is fitting, since it’s obvious that they wanted a different feel for that storyline. It’s a little disconcerting at the end, however, when they tie Billy’s story back into the main story and Buffy suddenly looks different than she did earlier in the book. This may be making a big deal about nothing, but it’s really jarring when the main character suddenly looks different. This isn’t a reason not to buy given how insignificant it is (and how big the other problems are), but this is just a warning for when you get to that point yourself.

The extras in the back of the book are fairly standard: all of the variant covers (interestingly, all drawn by Georges Jeanty, even though he wasn’t the artist on #14 and #15), along with some rough sketches to show how they evolved. The most interesting cover to me is #11, which is designed like the old Star Wars posters, and is given a prominent position at the front of the book instead of the back, with all the pencils and rough sketches in the back. My favorite, though, is a script page from issue #12, along with rough sketches of the layout and the final version, showing the process of going from script to finished page — I’m a sucker for features about the processes of making things. Noticeably absent is a small extra story like was included in both volumes 1 and 2.

Overall, unless you’re a completionist, I’m really not going to recommend this book, especially since it’s releasing for $18. I might be able to recommend it for around $10, but it’s just cheaper to buy the individual issues for Guarded ($3 each for issues 11, 12, and 13 physical, $2 each digital) and skip the Billy story — you won’t miss much, as it’s barely relevant to the rest of the season, and also isn’t good.

Zac Kandell (known mostly on the internet as Mischlings) is amazed that he suddenly likes Kennedy now, and also hates that this story forced him into an awkward, almost political situation. Follow him on Twitter at @Mischlings to read his thoughts in bite-sized pieces when he actually has any worth sharing.

Review: X #1

This week, we get to see X return, and while I was a little trepidatious about what I’d find, it turned out better than expected.  When I reviewed X #0, I enjoyed X’s bad-ass rating of over 9000, but I did wonder where they could really go with it.  X #0 was fun in its gratuitous violence, but after a while, nothing but blood and gore would undoubtedly get boring.  X #1 shows that writer Duane Swierczynski has more planned than just horrible violent deaths.

I started following X in Dark Horse Presents some months ago, and while the character was a bucket and a half of awesome, there was little to no plot in the zero issue.  Bad-ass kills three guys using gratuitous violence.  Simple.  While I won’t spoil the details, we see a lot more happen this time.  Things I will mention, because they don’t spoil much: the police find the mess X made in the previous issue, a blogger starts investigating, and X has announced his next victim.  All of that is just on Dark Horse’s page for the comic, and that doesn’t even cover the couple major twists!

I didn’t really talk about the art in the last review, but Eric Nguyen is the artist for both X #0 and #1, and his art is grungy and dark, which makes it great for this kind of comic.  He does a lot of shadow play, covering X’s face in the few scenes we get where he’s not in costume, and using a lot of darker backgrounds to bring out the action.  It’s smart: the comic is not about where things are happening; it’s what’s happening that holds the emphasis.  Also, and I don’t know if I just missed it in issue #0 or if this is truly new, but the red X motif exists on far more of his costume than just the big X on his face.  Honestly, I don’t really like that he does this, as it draws too much attention away from that face and de-emphasizes that mystery a bit.  I would just have him in all black, with the X on the face and that awesome torn up cape, but not on the belt, vest, gloves or anything like that.  But what do I know?  I have trouble drawing a decent bunny.

I really want to comment on a number of other things that are going on, but I don’t want to give away any more about the plot.  Here’s what we’ll do: go buy this comic, and read it. It’s good (definitely worth the $2.99 cover price), and I’m very interested in seeing what happens in issue 2.  When I review issue 2, I believe many of the points I want to make now will still be relevant, so I can comment on them, referencing this issue. Until then, just trust me on this one: it’s worth the read.

Matthew Bryant, aka Baker Street Holmes is wondering if next time we’ll find out why Dave Wilkins seems to like putting strip joints on the cover.  Because there’s like two or three this time and a couple next time.  This whole series could take a major genre shift.  You can follow Holmes on Twitter at @BStreetHolmes or e-mail him at HMCrazySS@gmail.com.

Free Comics? Free comics!

As some of you may know tomorrow (Saturday May 4, 2013) is the 11th annual FREE COMIC BOOK DAY!  If you no longer care about what I have to say about free comics, because you are too excited and want to get your comic right now, you are free to leave.  Free comic book day isn’t about you.  Free comic book day is all about those who aren’t yet comic fans.

We read a lot of comics around the Red Shirt Crew office, in case you didn’t notice.  Personally, I love that part of our job, because I grew up with comics and comic book characters.  But maybe you’ve never really gotten into them, perhaps you never understood the draw.

That’s precisely why Free Comic Book Day exists, so people like yourself have a chance to pick up a comic or two (or five, if you’re at a well stocked store) and give it a shot and see what you think.  But just because the offer is there, doesn’t mean you’re necessarily going to take advantage of this opportunity.  That’s why I want to give you 6 reasons to go out and get a comic tomorrow, if you aren’t already a comic fan.  If you are a comic reader, some of these will still have useful information for you too so read on!

6.  Even if you aren’t a big superhero fan, there are still plenty of comics to choose from!

Tomorrow you can get Superman and Judge Dredd comics, sure, but the video game fans can get a Mass Effect or Sonic the Hedgehog comic, Sci Fi fans can get Star Wars.  There are even some television show based comics like Spongebob, The Waking Dead and Grimm.  There’s over 50 comics in total involved this year, and while not ever comic shop will have every comic, pretty much any comic shop will have something for you.  Which brings us to…

5.  Participating locations are easy to find, so don’t fret if you don’t know where your nearest comics book store is and whether or not they are participating.

Just go here, and type in your Zip code (or look up an international location!).

4.  Comics are a great way to help kids learn to read.

Maybe you’re not there to get a comic for you.  Comics are a great place for kids to start to learn to read.  They’re short, they teach good lessons and even when they aren’t free, they’re an inexpensive way to get kids to read regularly.

3.  It’s a great way to get introduced to new writers and new series.

Whether or not you are a comic fan already, Free Comic Book Day is a way that you can find writers and series you didn’t know you’d love.  Like Neil Gaiman? (note: I don’t think any of the comics this year are from Neil Gaiman)  You may not keep reading comics, but you might watch his upcoming episode of Doctor Who or one of his novels, like American Gods.  You never know where a single read might take you.

2.  Many major comic shops across the United States and around the world are having comic signings by comic writers.

If you’re not a comic reader already, this might be a bit of a stretch reason to go to a Free Comic Book Day event, but many places arrange to have comic book authors in their stores to sign comics that day.    This is of course in addition to other events such location might arrange around Free Comic Book Day including other kinds of free merchandise or movie viewings of comic book movies.

1.  Because Hugh Jackman told you to.

If you’re still not convinced, go pick up a comic anyways (it is free after all).  Give it a shot.  Maybe it’ll be nothing, but if it is, you haven’t lost any money over it and you’ll never know unless you try.

Matthew Bryant, aka Baker Street Holmes, will not be participating in Free Comic Book Day only because it’s a $28 train ride to the nearest comic shop, and that defeats the point of Free Comic Book day.  But he wants that Grimm comic SO MUCH!  You can follow him on Twitter at @BStreetHolmes or e-mail him at HMCrazySS@gmail.com.

Review: The Victories #1

The Victories #1 is truly a rare treat when it comes to comics. Originally having a run in Dark Horse Presents, Michael Avon Oeming was granted a miniseries, the collection of which I’ll be reviewing in early June when it’s released. Now, it’s received its own ongoing, becoming the first real superhero team Dark Horse has seen since The End League in 2008. Does the story live up to the promise from the miniseries that got it this far? Let’s find out after the break.
Full disclosure: I sadly missed the original miniseries run of The Victories, so I’m reviewing this comic purely on its own merits. There is a character that appears in the end that feels like a character that would have appeared earlier in the series, given his lack of proper introduction, so I’m not going to say anything about him that could spoil it for other readers except the power set is awesome and I’m looking forward to seeing where Oeming goes with him.

First, let’s talk about the art. If you’ve read an Oeming comic before, you know what to expect. I for one am a big fan of his style, and am happy to see it appear in a non-diluted form. There’s a lot of pressure given the permeance of superheroes in comic culture to create something that matches what one would expect a superhero to look like. And with characters like Metatron, that ends up being the case. Yet Oeming’s style helps them stand out, even when using a more traditional template. Look at the cover here to see what I mean. I might not know how to describe it well, but I really do enjoy it.

The story presented here is excellent, and serves as a nice introduction for those, like me, who were unfortunate enough to have missed the initial miniseries run. The Victories are a team of superheroes brought together by Metatron, the most powerful hero of the bunch. At some point in the past, there was an accident that turned everything to shit. The power’s gone, people, including villains, are panicking, and no knows if things will ever go back to the way they were before. However, this accident has also granted certain individuals these superpowers, most of which seem to relate to the individual possessing them on a personal level.

The hero on which this particular issue focuses is D.D. Mau, and fortunately for this comic, she doesn’t fall into anything you’d usually think of when you think about female superheroes. She’s portrayed as strong willed, but quite insecure on the inside. The changes granted to her by the accident are both for the better and worse, as they grant her abilities she’s always wanted while also having a downside that preys upon her worst insecurities. I won’t spoil anything here, but believe me when I say there’s a ton of depth to the character worth exploring, and I look forward to learning more about her and the rest of the cast.

The other really great positive of this issue is the dialogue presented. If you’re anything like me, superhero comics at DC and Marvel can feel way too wholesome at times. Are we really supposed to believe that Batman doesn’t want to drop a few F-bombs when the Joker is causing chaos all over the city? Obviously, those companies are restricted by the audience they want to pursue and the image they hold, but without those restrictions, Oeming has created a far more natural team of superheroes. They’re flawed people. They get angry. They fight amongst each other. They even use each other for personal reasons. And they curse as often Louis C. K. does on his standup. But you know what? That’s exactly what characters in this situation would do. They want to keep the peace and pursue good, but that doesn’t mean they’re angels that always do the right thing. And through these characters, there’s a lot of natural conflict that can develop, in addition to the standard “hero vs. villain” fare.

Finally, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention The Strike, a former hero that’s now…well, I’m not entirely sure, actually? He could just be a druggie, or he could be a new villain just waiting to happen. I honestly can’t predict where his story arc will end up (though having a couple friends who partake in…recreational activities on a regular basis, his comments on ‘expanding the consciousness  were particularly funny to me), but I know I am utterly fascinated by the character, even more so than D. D. Mau. That’s not a knock on D. D., mind you, but The Strikes philosophies are utterly fascinating, and touch on the underlying theme of transformation that pervades this issue in a really powerful way. I knew I was going to love this comic after his opening narration, and when he appeared again later in the comic, I found myself being strangely drawn to the guy. I don’t know if he appeared before (D. D. seemed to recognize him), but I sure hope this isn’t the last we see of him.

I can’t honestly remember the last time I rambled this long about a single issue of a comic. It’s not that I haven’t read great comics before; heck, I read a great comic earlier this week. Perhaps its just refreshing to see a true superhero comic done by a writer and artist I really enjoy. Actually, yeah, that and really excellent theming just about sums up why this comic is more than worth the $3.99 cover price. Don’t worry if you’ve haven’t read a Victories comic before. Just makes sure you read this one.

Chase Wassenar, aka MaristPlayBoy, is the Lead Editor and Founder of the Red Shirt Crew. He’s always happy when he can add a new superhero team to his list of “must reads”, and this certainly ends up on that list. You can read his other articles at ToyTMA,  follow him on Twitter at @RedShirtCrew or email him at theredshirtcrew@gmail.com.