AoaRD #7: Journeyman

Every two weeks, Baker Street Holmes tells the story of Urbal gro-Dushnikh, an orc who just wants to be a blacksmith, even though it seems Skyrim has other plans. You can follow his journey through these journal entries with new entries every two weeks. Enjoy!

Flashback     Part One     Part Two     Part Three     Part Four     Part Five     Part Six

29th of Last Seed, 201

After I got some sleep yesterday, I went to Calcelmo.  He’s eccentric, completely obsessed with the dwarves and the dwarven ruins, but that just means he’s got access to some of the few samples of Dwarven Steel not lost to the mountains.  Despite what he told Ghorza, he insisted I take care of a large spider in the antechamber before he would give me a keep to the actual site.  He neglected to mention the spider was nearly the size of a dragon and that none of his research assistance had come back.  I didn’t find all of them, but clearly none of them were Orcs because that spider may have been huge, but it was a wimp.

He granted me entrance and come to find out the place is swarming with Falmer.  Every Orc can fight but I am not so blinded by battlelust that I would take on four warriors and a mage alone.  I killed off stragglers and loners, grabbing any sample of Dwarven steel that I could as I went if I thought I could smelt it down.  When I had plenty, I got out of there and fast.  I am not a maid, Calcelmo can clean up his own messes.

He had also granted me permission to visit his museum and while I could not spare much time, I did take chance to go in and look at the armor designs they used, later making my own, though probably not quite the same quality as their work since I am quite new to this material, but solid enough all the same.

I right this by the light of the forge as the sun has long since set.  Ghorza set me to an unusual first task making bows rather than knives and told me to work as late in to the night as I felt I could.  She said if my work was satisfactorily, she’d tell me in the morning why I’m doing bows.  I have ten now.  I wonder it that’s enough…  I’ll make a few more before I go to bed.

Urbal gro-Dushnikh

________________________________________________________________

30 of Last Seed, 201

I spoke to Ghorza this morning and she was pleased about the bows I’d made.  She explained that she’s had me work with leather, wood, iron, steel, and now Dwarven steel.  I’ve made everything from helmets which must be solid and never dent to bow which must be supple and still not break.  Then she taught me of Orichalcum, an ore that Orcs have used for centuries to forge their greatest armor, and how to smelt it properly and how to forge it.  She says I’m not ready quite yet to work in it, and that it is quite rare, but that this is the last thing she has that she can teach me.

I am no longer an apprentice smith.  I am a journeyman.  Rather than study under one accomplished smith, trapped in a single city, I am to travel and see different places and different styles of artisanry.  Of course it also means leaving Markarth, which has been my second home for years now.  Ghorza says she knows of an excellent smith in Riften, Balimund, who uses fire salts to make a stronger fire.  I guess I’m going to be crossing Skyrim in the next few days.  Farewell, Markarth.  I’ll return someday.  I promise.

Urbal gro-Dushnikh.

Review: Angel and Faith #23

It should be no surprise to anyone who reads my reviews that I loved Angel & Faith #23 (written by Christos Gage, illustrated by Rebekah Isaacs). That makes these reviews difficult to write, as it’s difficult to say why I find something to be so good without going into details and spoilers. Whenever I read an issue, I’m so drawn in that it takes multiple reads to really see it with a critical point of view. But I’m nothing if not willing to read until I see the flaws, so here goes.

This issue picks up right where the last left off, starting the apocalyptic battle against Whistler, Pearl, and Nash. While the previous issue was the calm before the storm, this one is pretty much constant action, so if you wanted to see more action in this series, this will deliver on that promise.

Gage promised that two characters would not survive the end of the series. The first of those deaths happens in this issue, though I won’t say who. This is where I have my biggest problem with this issue. It’s very abrupt and a little jarring, which is almost normal for this series. With that quick death, however, there are a lot of questions brought up that aren’t answered or even acknowledged. The lack of answers here does leave it feeling unsatisfying, but at least acknowledging what happened in a future issue would give some closure that’s lacking here. Those events are surrounded by a different character’s internal monologue, and while I understand why it’s here, it doesn’t quite have the impact I was hoping it would.

I was afraid that, with a battle this big and few characters being capable fighters, Faith and Angel would be the only ones in the spotlight in spite of all the battle planning in the previous issue. It doesn’t play out that way at all, and everyone plays a role in the battle without anything feeling forced. Their contributions don’t make it easy, and the situation only seems to get worse as the battle rages on. I’m not entirely sure where they’re taking things from this point. It doesn’t yet feel like they’ve written themselves into a corner, but the situation is pretty dire, and will be difficult to get out of. I trust this team to get it right, though, and not take a cheap or easy way out.

The art continues to be great, though I find it difficult to explain why yet again. The problems I have are the same as before: we’ve seen almost everything before, and the few new designs would be spoilery to talk about in any detail (in general, they’re not overly original, but there’s nothing wrong with them). The only thing I can say, and it’s not specific to this issue, is that I’m starting to see these designs as the characters more than the actors who portrayed them. I know it’s not very specific, but I think it says a lot.

I’m starting to sound like a broken record, but I give this issue a strong recommendation for the $2.99 cover price despite all the small flaws I kept pointing out. I’d even be willing to pay more for it, for any of the issues in the series, really. Once again, I’ll just ask that any Bufy fans who don’t follow this series check it out, as it really is worth it, and captures the feeling and tone of the show as well as any of the comics have.

Zac Kandell (known mostly on the internet as Mischlings) is dutifully writing this instead of being out on the beach. This shouldn’t surprise anyone, as he tends to not like beaches and sun much in the first place. If you find what he says interesting, follow him on Twitter at @Mischlings for more, shorter thoughts.

Review: House of Gold and Bones #3

I’ve had a hate-love relationship with House of Gold and Bones by Corey Taylor and Richard Clark so far. That is to say I hated the first issue and loved the second one. While the first issue was stilted and seemed indicative of the lack of experience one might expect from a singer-turned-comic-book-artist, the second issue really picked up its stride and matched the passion with quality. But what about the third issue? Does it continue riding the wave of momentum from the last issue, or does it fall into its previous bad habits? Read on to find out.

When we last left our protagonist, there were somewhere between one and eighty thousand* questions that needed to be answered about who Zero is, the Conflagration, and what in the world is actually happening (*all numbers approximate). This issue is titled “The Answers”, but the answers given actually raise far more questions than I had after the last issue, and with only one issue remaining, that’s more than a little worrisome.

This is going to be my shortest review in a while because there’s nothing I can talk about here that doesn’t give something away. The opening gives us an idea of how he got to this place, and the closing supposedly tells us what that place is, though what in the world it actually means is something I have yet to grasp despite re-reading it multiple times. It’s something so out there as a concept that I wonder if Corey Taylor just processes the world differently than I or anyone else I know does. My biggest worry for the final issue is that he deems the concepts introduced so far to be far more intuitive than they actually are, which would be problematic to say the least.

I can talk about the art without spoiling anything, so let’s do that. Like I mentioned in previous reviews, Richard Clark still has a rather large problem with human faces. They just never look quite right, and that’s made more obvious by the opening sequence of this issue. That said, the action sequences here are really well done, and some of the darker elements are handled quite well. It’s still only okay in my book, but he does seem to be improving ever so slightly from issue to issue, for what that’s worth.

House of Gold and Bones #3 would be a great issue in a five-issue miniseries. Unfortunately, this is a four-issue miniseries, and I don’t see any way that Taylor and Clark can answer all the questions presented so far while still having time for proper pacing and development. My preliminary guess is that the final issue will be a rushed mess. If you were in on the series before, you should drop the $3.99 to get this comic, since it is a good effort that advances the story in important and necessary ways. That said, this is not the issue that will change your mind if you were out on it before, and if you were considering starting now, I’d avoid dropping $12 to pick up the miniseries so far until we see how it’s all going to end.

Chase Wassenar, aka MaristPlayBoy, is the Lead Editor and Founder of the Red Shirt Crew. He’s never been more nervous about the ending of a miniseries in his life. And that’s saying something. Not sure what, but it is something. You can read his other articles at ToyTMA, follow him on Twitter at @RedShirtCrew or email him at theredshirtcrew@gmail.com.

Review: Massive #13

I’ve really been awaiting this issue of The Massive, not because of any big cliff hanger, but because the focus is finally on the USA.  Not that I don’t like hearing about the Indian ocean, the north pole, and everywhere in between, but I’ve really wanted to know: what happened to the United States during the Crash?  Also, Garry Brown is back on art (those who read my review of The Massive #12 will know how unimpressed I was with Danijel Zezelj’s art), who is the artist of The Massive as far as I’m concerned.

Welcome to America.  New York City to be precise.  Under 75 feet of sewage infused water. And somewhere among the canals that used to be Broadway, Wall Street, and Madison Avenue there is a crazy Russian in a nuclear sub.  The story is the same from the Carolinas up to Maine.  Well, except the sub part.  That’s New York’s problem alone.

I was really intrigued by this issue for a number of reasons.  First, like I said before, I was quite curious about the fate of the United States in all of this mess.  Other than a comment here or there that the US had a pretty significant collapse and that their fall dragged a number of other countries under with them, there wasn’t much news about the States until now.  Here we see the government relocated to high ground in Colorado, the new eastern seaboard, not California, which is sinking into the sea.

I’m also wondering about Garry Brown‘s return to the series for issues 13, 14 and 15, after having been absent for the most recent three.  I began reading with issue 8, I believe, with Brown, he has had the longest run with the comics (issues 4-9) and the only returning artist thus far.  Is Brian Wood settling on a more permanent art partner?  I hope so.  I have really enjoyed his work, though I have to admit some of the most beautiful pages I think I’ve ever seen in an comic probably come from Donaldson‘s work in the first three issues.  Anyways, I digress.  My point is that it is so refreshing to see Brown’s work again, and I’m really hoping it’s here to stay.

It’s definitely a good read; go ahead and buy yourself a copy. After all, it’s just $3.50.  While you’re at it, pre-order The Massive #14 and #15.  I just have a feeling this is going to be a good trilogy.  A feeling deep in my comic gland (found in the same place as the appendix, but on the right side).

Matthew Bryant, aka Baker Street Holmes, is an Editor for the Red Shirt Crew and an avid “inventive anatomists”.  He has discover-created three organs: the comic gland, the soul badder and the B9 growth.  For more information please consult your doctor.  You can follow him on Twitter at @BStreetHolmes or e-mail him at HMCrazySS@gmail.com.

Review: Dream Thief #2

If you remember my review of the first issueof Dream Thief by Jai Nitz, with art by Greg Smallwood, you’ll remember that I hated that issue. I found it to be more than just a bad comic, with some moments clearly intended for cheap shock value in a way I found offensive. That said, there was something that kept me interested enough in the series to read a second issue. I guess I thought that the writing was strong enough that things simply couldn’t go wrong every time for each issue. Eventually, something would have to work out for this comic, right? Well, let’s just say I won’t be reading the third issue. Keep reading to discover why.

Once again, we return to the story of John Lincoln, a frontrunner in the Worst Person in America competition. Last issue, he got really stoned with the only somewhat likeable person we’ve met so far, stole an ancient Indian ritual mask, and ended up killing a bunch of gay pornstars. This issue, we discover whyhe killed those pornstars while also gaining some more insight into how the mask actually works.

Let’s address the elephant in the room: the idea of killing a bunch of gay pornstars is one that, while likely causing people to feel uneasy, is not downright offensive or evil in and of itself. It, like everything else, comes down to context. If there is a good reason that these characters are designed this way, and if the story would not exist in its current format without these details being the way they are, then while still uncomfortable, it would be unfair to call it an offensive, shock value move. As I pointed out in my reviewof Victories: Touched, it’s good to explore some of the darker or taboo areas of life when done properly.

But that’s my biggest issue with this comic, and the main reason I find myself so repulsed by it: it’s not handled properly. The story presented in this issue and the central conflict of the characters involved has nothing to do with their sexuality. It could have just as easily been a mixture of men and women in any other industry and none of the central elements would have changed. Their sexuality does not inform their character in any way. It does not lead to them making the decisions that they do, and it most certainly does not affect Lincoln’s feelings towards the situation. It’s a move that makes me dislike the writer, a man I don’t personally know in any capacity, for even doing something like this. It’s tasteless in the worst way.

Even if you can get past that (though I don’t know how one could), this is not a well-written comic. It breaks the most important rule of comic writing: show, don’t tell. Almost the entire comic is done using Lincoln’s internal monologue. We don’t see any of these characters interact before he enters their lives. We do get a few flashbacks, but instead of letting the art speak for itself or seeing the moments play out naturally, they’re ruined by those overly large and rambling narration boxes.

I do want to give Greg Smallwood the credit he deserves, however, as the art in this comic is really well done. The colouring is excellent, and he really seems to have a handle on how to place characters so that their angle conveys the emotion for which he’s searching in any particular panel. The facial expressions are really strong as well, helping create the only truly nice moment in the entire issue towards the end. He deserves a far better book to be working on than this one.

It’s a shame that this book is the way that it is, because the central idea is still one that fascinates me. But if the ending is to be believed, there is little hope that Nitz will learn his lesson here. I cannot say this more emphatically: stay away from this comic. Don’t buy it for $3.99. Don’t buy it for $0.99. Hell, don’t read it if someone gives it to you for free. It’s a disgusting piece of work at its core, poorly handled throughout, and the narration boxes mar the pretty art anyway.

Chase Wassenar, aka MaristPlayBoy, is the Lead Editor and Founder of the Red Shirt Crew. This is the first book he’s given up on while reviewing Dark Horse comics. He certainly hopes it will be the last. You can read his other articles at ToyTMA, follow him on Twitter at @RedShirtCrew or email him at theredshirtcrew@gmail.com.

Review: King Conan – The Hour of the Dragon #2

King Conan: The Hour of the Dragon #2 picks up right where the first issue left off: Conan faces off against the Nemedian army and the mysterious wizard Xaltotun. As with the first issue and the rest of this series, Timothy Truman, writes this issue, Tomás Giorello does the artwork, and José Villarrubia the colors. Most of my comments about the writing and artwork in my review of the first issue still apply, so I won’t repeat myself here. Instead, I’ll discuss what’s different in this issue as well as significant plot developments, hopefully without spoiling too much.

When we last saw him, King Conan was staring down the entire Nemedian army with only a sword in his hand. So, a typical day for the Cimmerian. The battle began in the first issue, but only now does Conan actually enter the fray, refusing to surrender even after his army has been routed. But it doesn’t work out for him this time, thanks to the sorcerous powers of Xaltotun. Conan finds himself in the prisons of the city of Belverus, where he meets Zenobia. Readers of the previous issue probably remember she was mentioned as Conan’s first queen.

This issue has just enough pages to show how Conan and Zenobia met, but it doesn’t go any further into their relationship. This comic spends more time with a recurring theme of Conan stories: the power of magic against Conan’s strength and wits. Here Conan has been imprisoned by an arrogant and incredibly ancient wizard; on top of that, Conan’s own army thinks he was killed in the battle. But Conan’s been in worse situations before. What makes this time different is the political angle. Xaltotun hasn’t trapped Conan without reason; Conan is a king now, and the sorcerer wants to use him for political gain. Xaltotun’s intentions aren’t completely clear yet, but it’s fairly obvious that he wants to rule, not just help the Nemedians. 

Also, I mentioned the narration in the previous issue as being a bit lackluster. Perhaps I spoke too soon. In this issue, it’s back to first-person narration by Conan himself. This kind of narration is a bit unusual for Conan, but it seems to work pretty well in this series. It adds a bit of personality to a comic that is otherwise very similar to other Conan stories, at least for now. There have been some hints at what might happen next, and there’s probably more to Xaltotun than is apparent at first glance. Hopefully the next few issues will go more into his character and motivations, as well as those of Zenobia. 

I think it will be difficult to judge Hour of the Dragon before the plot develops further. Truman and Giorello have their work cut out for them, adapting Robert E. Howard’s only Conan novel into only twelve issues. An adaptation like this is bound to lose some of the unique qualities of the original, especially with it being condensed the way it is. Truman and Giorello have introduced a quite a few characters and plot points in just these two issues, and they’ll have to make sure they can tell this story effectively and concisely with only the remaining issues. That being said, Hour of the Dragon #2 gets a recommendation from me. With a $3.50 cover price, it promises to be a great story for those who already read Conan. For those who don’t, issue #1 of this series is a better place to start. It doesn’t have much action, but it does set up the events of this series. Truman and Giorello have long-since proved that they know how to tell a classic Conan story, and Hour of the Dragon is no exception. 

Danilo Culibrk, aka Augustus, is a staff writer for the Red Shirt Crew. He knows that hokey religions and ancient wizards are no match for a good sword at your side. You can follow his quest to reclaim his throne on Twitter at @Augustusing or leave a comment below.

Review: Baltimore – The Inquisitor

Baltimore: The Inquisitor by Mike Mignola and Christopher Golden, with art by Ben Stenbeck and colours by Dave Stewart, is another one-shot that follows Lord Henry Baltimore and his quest to rid the world of demons in the early twentieth century. You might remember my review of Baltimore: The Widow and the Tank, one of my earliest reviews, and if you do, you hopefully remember how much I loved that particular comic. I found Baltimore to have a lot of depth despite only having two short stories from which to process this information, and I really appreciated the art and tone that pervaded the comic. Does The Inquistor meet those high standards? Keep reading to find out.

Before we begin, I want to compliment the world building of this story. The basic concept is that with all the demons and dark forces that have been roaming around the world lately, the Church (which one is purposefully, and smartly, omitted) has started a second Inquisition, hoping their holy men will be able to purge the world of these new evils. This makes a lot of sense in the context of the world around them, as any Christian church would turn to God and hope for that particular brand of salvation when the world as they understand it begins to crumble around them. I can’t wait to see what else, if anything, is done with this idea in the future.

Anyway, one of these Inquistors, Judge Andre Duvic, has made it his mission to track down Baltimore, a man he believes to be a force of darkness that must be destroyed. The comic begins with him interrogating one of Baltimore’s allies (if he’s appeared in comics before, I do not know; he’s new to me), and its goal is an examination of the Judge’s character.

The biggest strength of this comic is also its biggest weakness, with your decision on whether you like this comic hinging on your answer to the following question: is an in-depth study of a brand new character that may never been seen again worth your time and money?

The comic has an open ending, but there’s nothing that says he has to return. And if you’re here for Baltimore, you’ll be saddened to hear he has exactly one word of dialogue in the entire comic, and only appears at the very beginning and end. In all reality, Lord Baltimore is little more than a framing device for an entirely different brand of story than one might be expecting, and that’s inevitably going to turn some people off to the comic.

That said, if you’re anything like me, you’ll appreciate this comic for everything it has rather than criticising it for everything it doesn’t have. Yes, Baltimore is little more than a footnote here, but that means there’s far more time to study Judge Duvic’s character, and he is a character with more than enough depth and complexity to fill a comic. In my desire to avoid spoilers, I can’t really tell you why he’s so intriguing as a character, but I can say that I’m really hoping we see him again, if only because I see so many different possibilities with the character.

The art here is fantastic, but what else did you expect from a Hellboy Universe comic drawn by Ben Stenbeck? His attention to detail is magnificent, and he’s truly a master at character expressions. We learn so much about who these characters are and what matters to them through the art alone, and the few moments where he’s free to do more monstrous designs shine. His art with Stewart’s always strong colouring is just another reason to love this book.

Is it as good as Baltimore: The Widow and the Tank? Hard to say, really, as the books are so entirely different I can’t make a solid comparison. If you’re the kind of person that enjoys a strong character study and really delving into what makes a character so special, you need to drop the $3.50 and pick this up right now. If you’re looking for something with a bit more action, however, this may not be exactly for what you’re looking.

Chase Wassenar, aka MaristPlayBoy, is the Lead Editor and Founder of the Red Shirt Crew. He’s really hoping this isn’t the last we see of the Inquisitors. You can read his other articles at ToyTMA, follow him on Twitter at @RedShirtCrew or email him at theredshirtcrew@gmail.com.

Dresden Files Defiled

I’m a big fan of the Dresden Files universe.  I’ll be honest, I haven’t read many of the books, but I’ve read a few, played the tabletop RPG, recently did a Fiasco game that will be going up on Red Shirt Crew soon.  I also love television, particularly investigation or supernatural themed shows like NCIS or Supernatural (or Grimm which does both).  So when I found out that there was a Dresden Files television series I was rather intrigued.  Sure, it only had one season, 12 episodes, but Firefly only had 11, so that’s not necessarily a sign it’s a bad show.  I should have just watched something else.

Little background on the setting for those unfamiliar: Harry Dresden is a wizard living in modern day Chicago, where he acts as a private detective, and occasionally a consultant with the Chicago police, on “the weird cases”.  He deals with werewolves, vampires, outsiders (think demons), and faeries (in the larger sense: pixies, centaur, goblins…) as well has having to worry about the wizard’s white council and their wardens.  I don’t know about you, but to me, that sounds like a good starting point for building a show.

Of course, no show can be carried entirely by it’s concept.  It needs good acting, strong writing, decent special effects (if you’ve ever seen bad CGI on a show… *shudder*), and so on.  I can give Dresden Files a pass on special effects because they weren’t painful to watch and obviously some random show isn’t going to have the special effects budget of a Hollywood sequel to the latest mega-hit.  The acting, in general, isn’t that bad.  But the show just collapses in every other respect.

But of all the problems the show had the biggest and the most demonstrative of the problems with this show is the writing.  I just couldn’t understand what they were thinking.  Anyone who has discussed more than about three movies with me knows that I am terrible at spotting plot holes.  So when, in the course of 12 episodes, I can find multiple glaring plot holes, there’s something terribly terribly wrong.  There’s an episode where the bad guys literally seem to do something just for the hell of it, because the writers needed a reason for Harry to get involved in the case.  Or characters that conveniently (or inconveniently) show up at random times, for no good reason.  Just “because”.  Oh, and they happen to have useful information for Dresden.  Not that they knew this when they arrived, he just mentions something that he hasn’t figured out and “poof!” a clue from the dumb-luck gods.

Sometimes people have bad days or a team that doesn’t work together.  Other people just shouldn’t make shows.  Especially when they have so much potential, and just turn out sad.  Or we can just clone Joss Whedon and put him in charge of his own tv network.  I’d be okay with that.  We could call it the BAF channel (Buffy, Avengers, Firefly).  I’d tune in and then put my remote in the microwave.

Matthew Bryant, aka Baker Street Holmes, is an editor for the Red Shirt Crew and deeply saddened by this attempt at murdering a beloved character.  How would you like it if Holmes tried to strangle your favorite fictional character?  Because he’d do it.  For a klondike bar.  You can follow him (and call in literary hits) on Twitter at @BStreetHolmes or e-mail him at HMCrazySS@gmail.com.

Review:Dark Horse Presents #25

Dark Horse Presents!  My favorite time of the month.  Those of you who read these comic reviews regularly, already know that, though.  We’ve got lots of returning stories, two new “Chapter 1’s” and two one shots.  As always with Dark Horse Presents, we’ve got a lot to cover so let’s get going.

Chapter 1 of Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Love vs. Life is a continuation from the season 9 story arc regarding a fairly new slayer named Billy, which our writer Mischlings covered a while back.  It’s a strange story because while it continues the ‘zompires’ story from season 9, the zompires are really just a backdrop for the romance story between Billy and Devon. There is no need for it to be in the Buffyverse, and honestly it sort of detracts from the romance storyline which is clearly the real focus for comic, not the zompires.

The Time Ben Fell in Love is a one shot by Matt Fraction and acts as a cautionary tale against time traveling to talk to yourself.  It’s a deep work, metaphoric and philosophical.  For a one shot, I think this is the way to do it; with a message, not a story (especially in 8 pages).  The art is beautiful, it’s just so smooth and flowing, very much like watercolors in a lot of places, but bolder than watercolors usually are.

Chapter 1 of Underground doesn’t leave a lot to be said.  A story is being told by a man who we know little about in a setting we know less about.  The story told is the actual meat of the comic’s plot, but mostly in this chapter we get the set up: people living underground in some kind of organized gang system based on common interests like videogames, potion making and so on.  I don’t really know what’s going on.  I’m going to reserve my opinion on this series until Chapter 2.

Chapter 3 of Brain Boy is the conclusion to Fred Van Lente‘s series.  But it’s not the end.  In the last chapter, Brain Boy learned he’s not the only super powered person in Albright’s employ, while trying to hunt down a special ops team that attacked the president.  This is a good solid conclusion to the story and even an announcement to return in the Fall with issue #1!  Very pleased with this series as a whole and cannot wait for it’s return.

Chapter 2 of Trekker: Train to Avalon Bay is a little disappointing to be honest.  I was quite impressed with the first chapter in last month’s Dark Horse Presents, but this one took an interesting character and sort of turned her into a Mary Sue.  Problem arises, problem solved by the end of the page.  Boring.  I don’t know if Ron Randall was just trying to fit a bunch into the middle to get to the conclusion faster or what, but it’s not his usual work.

Chapter 3 of King’s Road: The Long Way Home is probably the best chapter I’ve seen in this series.  The first chapter piqued my interest, the second was a little too backstory heavy and slow.  This chapter gives a good balance of action, plot and setting development.  Hopefully it was just a little introduction/settling in that is out of Peter Hogan‘s system now.

Chapter 5 of Crime Does Not Pay: City of Roses is… well, I didn’t understand the last one, but I guess at least this one had a plot?  Honestly, I’m already tired of this series.  This time it was a little romantic tryst, presumably in the same town, but it might as well be a whole different story.  I don’t feel any connection to the characters (admittedly, I missed the first 3 chapters) and while there was a plot this time, still very little happens.

Chapter 3 of Nexus: Into the Past sees our hero Nexus working with Sherlock Holmes to track down the murderer who stole H. G. Well’s time machine.  And that’s before the events of this episode.  Nexus is a little bit of a Gary Sue (male Mary Sue, see above), but unlike in Trekker, he really only has one moment of “well that was far too easy”.  And honestly, he has superpowers.  Superman could have done it, and he’s not overpowered at all.  (In fairness, Superman isn’t always a god.  It depends on the writer.)

The Chapel Chronicles is not only a one shot, but a one page comic.  It’s not that impressive, to be honest. Very amusing, just not long enough to really make anything exceptional of itself.  The author/artist is, however, pretty impressive.  Emma T. Capps is only 15 years old, and this comic is from the style of her webcomic of the same name.  So yeah, it’s not a Spawn or a Buffy the Vampire Slayer, it’s still a heck of a lot more than you probably had published when you were 15!

Chapter 3 of Boodhound: Plain Sight completes the story as Clev and Agent Bell set a trap for their invisible killer.  It’s great end to the story, and gets to show Clev in “fight mode” which was less prominent in the last chapter.  There is also a collection of other Bloodhound stories out this week, if you like comics if you like action films, check it out.  If I have the time, I may be reviewing that too?  There will be a link right here, if I do, how about that?

Chapter 2 of Blackout is a bit of a let down, just because the action sequence is over, the novelty of his weird portals has started to wear off and the main focus is on the chapter is saving a woman who has information about this suit he’s using, but they don’t really give enough of a teaser to really get you excited about what she has to say.  But there is a promise of a fight scene in the next chapter, and if we’re lucky we might get some real information too.  This chapter wasn’t great, but if it were the middle third of a 25 page comic, with what happened in the first chapter and what they’ve set up for the third, I think it would come together quite nice.

As always, the good definitely outweighs the bad this month and I would definitely say this is worth the $7.99.  But seriously, I don’t get City of Roses.  If someone understands what’s going on, please comment below and fill me (and other readers) in.  I’m just so bored of it.

Matthew Bryant, aka Baker Street Holmes, is an editor for the Red Shirt Crew and if he could be any fictitious character he’d be his inner self.  His inner self is a wizard-ninja, with his own pirate ship and a brand of timepiece named after him.  You can follow him on Twitter at @BStreetHolmes or you can e-mail him at HMCrazySS@gmail.com.

Review: The Fall of the House of Usher #2

The Fall of the House of Usher #2 is the last issue of Richard Corben‘s adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe’s short story. When I reviewed the previous issue, I said that I’d have to wait for the end to give a final verdict, which I think is fair for a miniseries, especially one this short. Unfortunately, that length works to the detriment of the story, and leaves me wishing it was longer so the story could be told in a satisfying way.

I continue to enjoy the art for the same reasons as before. My main issue is that the odd panel layouts continue, becoming a problem here. There is a fight between a couple of characters, and the odd layouts made it quite difficult to follow. That is my only real issue with the art here, as the rest of it uses its unique style to create the atmosphere that was used to such great effect.

In the previous issue, the narrator character had been relegated to the background, letting the atmosphere created by the art do the job of replacing the narrator. He’s brought back to a prominent role in this issue, and that’s what makes this issue start to fall apart. His narration covers large pieces of the story without letting us see what happens, seemingly in the interest of rushing through the story. Events that should have been set up in the previous issue or played out through a slightly longer arc are quickly set up through narration, though not organically.

I also have issues with the ending, but not because it feels different than the original. Instead, it’s the presence of the narrator. His narration ruins what could be a good ending with an odd attempt at humor that doesn’t work. I hate to say that something so small can ruin a story, but the attempt at humor simply falls flat and leaves a bad taste in my mouth to close out the book.

I have to mention that there are no extras in the back like in the previous issue. This isn’t a dealbreaker, but I’m slightly disappointed, since the previous issue led me to believe that there might be some more extras here to round out the creative process that led to this book.

Sadly, I don’t think that I can recommend this issue for the $3.99 cover price. The story is too rushed to try and fit it in such a short series. I’m also wondering if my original idea about Poe’s stories not working in comics is right – this relies on a lot of narration, one of the defining aspects of his stories, and it just doesn’t work in this medium. I still think that Poe’s stories could be adapted to comics in some way that works, but for all the hope I had, this isn’t that adaptation.

Zac Kandell (known mostly on the internet as Mischlings) thinks he knows better than to have hope, but doesn’t really. He also can’t believe that that log line applies to this review as much as the last. If you find what he says interesting, follow him on Twitter at @Mischlings for more thoughts occasionally.