The Sweet Tooth Finale

My trip to the comic shop will be bitter sweet today, as it is the last time that I'll walk in and have an issue of Sweet Tooth waiting for me.

For the past couple of years, Sweet Tooth has held that special spot in my heart as my favorite monthly comic.  Not only has this post apocalyptic comic entertained me month in and month out with a story that is packed with emotion, action, a bit of romance, and a bit of bromance, but it has introduced me to Jeff Lemire, a man who has quickly become one of my most favorite comic creators.

His creator owned comics such as The Underwater Welder, Essex County, The Nobody, and Lost Dogs all hold a special place on my shelves, and in my heart.  So when the 40th issue of Sweet Tooth is purchased, read, reread and filed away with it thirty-nine brothers there'll be an empty space in my pull box, and at the top of my most-loved-monthly-comics list.

The ending is just a beginning though right?  Though I'll be sad when I turn that final page, we haven't seen the last of Jeff Lemire.  He's slated to release Trillium later this year, a ten issue mini-series from Vertigo.  I'll be looking forward to that.

If you'd like to read more about the end of Sweet Tooth, check out this USA Today interview.

If you haven't read Sweet Tooth yet, I strongly urge you to check it out. It is one of the very best comics of the last 5 years.

2012 Graphic Novels of the Year

2012 was an epic year of comics reading for me.  In what was probably my most voracious year of reading ever, I managed to read a grand total of sixty-three graphic novels!  Definitely the most comics I've ever read in my life, and there was lots of quality too.  Picking out the titles for list was pretty tough, and there's a lot of great stuff that I read that won't get mentioned.  As always, there's a mix of the new and the not so new on the list here, that's just how I do it here at Battle Hymns.

2012 GRAPHIC NOVELS OF THE YEAR:

#5. Orc Stain: Take some incredibly detailed art, a crazy cast of characters, a hilarious plot, and a fantasy world where orc penis is the main currency, and you not only get the genius wonder-comic that is Orc Stain, but you also get the fifth best comic I read all year.

One glimpse of this comic which was written, illustrated, colored, lettered, and all that good stuff by the one-man comic machine that is James Stokoe and it's easy to see that you are holding something perfectly unique, and wonderfully creative.  There simply isn't anything else like Orc Stain.  Stokoe's art is stunning in it's level of detail, and it's beauty.  He just draws awesome stuff.  Orc Stain is also a hell of a lot of fun to read, as it is hilarious, and creative, and well written. Stokoe pretty much hit this one out of the park. This is an all around gem that will make your life more awesome.  Read it.

#4. King City: A couple years back I came across a couple single issues of King City and instantly fell in love with the art.  All twelve single issues were more or less impossible to track down at that point, so I resigned myself to waiting for the trade to come out.  And boy did it ever come out. When Image released King City, they collected all twelve issues in one thick volume and priced it at the bargain price of $20.

That's by far the best fucking deal you'll find on any shelf.

King City is another work of comics genius.  Brandon Graham, who is pretty much my comic creating hero of 2012, delivers the goods here as writer and artist. His story follows a "catmaster" who can do a number of amazing feats with his cat.  As per usual with Brandon Graham material, the story flows organically, the characters seem like people you know, and there's a heavy dose of puns.  Additionally, Graham makes this one of the more beautiful comics on the shelves with breathtaking art, pages you want to stare at for hours, and mini-games included right on the pages; a recipe for one phenomenal comic.  Just writing about King City makes me want to go grab it off my shelf again and read it.

#3. By This Shall You Know Him: It was the cosmic, geometrical, swirly, floaty art that initially drew me towards this comic, but it was the story and that drew me in.  Becoming fully engaged with both the art and the story of By This Shall You Know Him is a true pleasure and an experience that has stuck with me since I read it back in mid-October.

I've never read something quite like By This Shall You Know Him, and I sort of hope that I don't, as this comic felt like a wholly original piece of art.  I've never seen such layerd or textured illustration like this. Not to mention, the combination of art and writing evoked this really interesting cosmic feeling that you probably can't get without the use of drugs. This was one of my first indie-somewhat-underground-comic reads and I feel like I've been opened up a whole new world of wonder.  This is an absolutely unforgettable comic, an instant classic in my book.

#2. Skyscrapers of the Midwest: There's so much to love about this comic.  Like any top five graphic novel of the year, it has great art, and great writing.  That's a given, but the emotions artist/writer Joshua Cotter was able to evoke is what really impressed me with this graphic novel.

The highlights of such emotional evocation came when Joshua Cotter managed to perfectly capture so much of the experiences, emotions, and wild imaginings of childhood.  I was blown away with the numerous times where he perfectly captured and articulated complex childhood feelings; feelings that in some shape or form everyone experiences.  On top of that Cotter captures the awkward, the bizarre, the sad, the tradgic, the embarrassing, and also the hilariousness that comes with moving from childhood into adolescence.  This is flat out on impressive work of art, one that has stuck with me, and one that I've been recommending to anyone who's willing to listen.  I laughed, I cried, and I even wrote a fan e-mail to the writer/artist. (That should say something!) This is a comic I treasure.

#1. The Underwater Welder: If you know me, and know my comics tastes, then this probably won't come as much of a surprise.  Much like my Comics of the Year post, my most anticipated graphic novel became my most favorite graphic novel.

Jeff Lemire told me a year prior to this release that The Underwater Welder was shaping up to be the comics work of which he was most proud and I can see why.  Though he's responsible for some absolutely great comics, this one stands out as his best both in terms of art, and writing.  Lemire utilizes two distinct art styles here, which help to add to the emotional impact of the story.  As a monthly reader of his comic Sweet Tooth it was cool to see how Lemire adapted his art to a different story.

As usual with Lemire's work, his story is one that packs an emotional wallop, and I can definitely see that this is a story that I'll come back to at various stages of my life and gain new insights and experience different emotions each time I read it.  Any story that can be read over and over and offer new things each time is a treasure and Lemire has created one of my all-time favorite comics with The Underwater Welder.  Lemire is one of the very best writers of our generation and The Underwater Welder is his finest work yet.

Most Honorable Mention:

Batman Snow: Despite Batman Year 100 coming onto the scene later in the year, I gotta give the nod to Batman Snow as my favorite "mainstream" read of the year.  This one gets the edge because the story packed more of an emotional punch.  A great Mr. Freeze story, coupled with some ridiculously fun art.

Ghost World: This comic impressed me with it's cross-generational appeal and with the fact that it's a work that is a cultural touchstone.  It was also a great gateway drug for me towards reading more indie-comics.  It also provided a great look at how to masterfully intertwine art and writing so that the two seem indistinguishable from one another once into the flow of the narrative.


So there you go, my 2012 Graphic Novels of the Year.  A pretty amazing list of work.  There's some heavy hitters on there, and a couple of pleasant surprises.  All told, I had an awesome year of comics reading.  There's lots more good stuff unread on my shelves too, so next year should be equally great.

So, how about some outside input? What stuff did Battle Hymns readers read this year that you loved? Anything you'd like to see me cover? Chime in with comments!

Awesome Announcements from NYCC

Photo from comicsalliance.com

One of the bigger comic conventions around was held this past weekend in New York City.  NYCC is one of those conventions where publishers actually make big announcements for things that are down the road, and after a San Diego Comic Convention where almost nothing interesting was announced,  I was happy to see that some exciting news come out of NYCC.

Up first is the most promising tid-bit, and one that soothes the pain of Sweet Tooth having only two issues left...

Vertigo announced a new Jeff Lemire series titled Trillium.  It's plugged as "The last love story ever told", and since it is written and drawn by Jeff Lemire, that means it will be poignant, heart wrenching and will probably make me cry.

It follows a space-botanist from the far future and an explorer from the 1920's who manage to fall in love despite the separation of space and time. Trillium is set to be a ten issue series, which is good news given that there'll be a gaping hole left in my comics reading when Sweet Tooth comes to an end.  I'll be hard up for some new Jeff Lemire comics come 2013, but I do wish this was an ongoing rather than a limited series...either way, it sounds awesome. This one is published by Vertigo and is set to hit the shelves sometime in 2013.  I'll be there for it.

Photo courtesy of comicsalliance.com

Next up is another Vertigo title, this time from two of the comics industry's biggest up and coming dudes, Scott Snyder and Sean Murphy.  The Wake is a sci-fi horror epic which begins when something terrifying is discovered in the depths of the ocean.  (My fingers are crossed for Cthulhu!)  Snyder and Murphy have worked together before on an American Vampire mini-series.

I personally have fairly limited experience with these two creators.  I've read a year's worth of Snyder's DCnU Batman, but I recently gave that title the drop when DC announced that there'd be a giant sprawling crossover story with the Joker where I'd have to buy a shit load of other Batman-family books just to keep up.  I've also read the first five issues worth of American Vampire, and wasn't that interested, but that's likely more due to that fact that I'm bored by vampires. Anyway, I've only been moderately impressed with Snyder's writing, but I'm willing to give the guy another shot.  He seems to be writing everything these days, so hopefully he isn't spreading himself too thin, and can put together a good run on The Wake.

The big draw here for me is that fact that Sean Murphy will be doing the art.  I have to give a lot of credit to Murphy, his art on Joe the Barbarian was a big reason I got back into reading comics as an adult.  To put it simply, the guy is a phenomenal artist, and I can't wait to see what he does with a sci-fi horror story.

The Wake is set to hit shelves in Spring of 2013.

Photo courtesy of http://scottkowalchuk.blogspot.com/

Last up, comes a slew of announcements from Oni Press.  The publisher who brings me my monthly dose of The Sixth Gun announced a whole bunch of stuff that has me excited.  First off, in January, Oni Press will relaunch it's website and feature new webcomics serials.  Once these webcomic serials finish up, they'll be collected in print as graphic novels.  One of these webcomic serials will be Down Set Fight which will feature the art of Scott Kowalchuk, an artist I'm a big fan of, and a guy who was cool enough to create this sweet birthday commission for me a year ago.  I've been wondering what the dude has been up to for a while now, it's all been a secret, so I'm happy to finally have something tangible to look forward to.

Also on the webcomic-serial front, Oni has a science-fiction-romance meets Blade Runner story
 coming from Jamie S. Rich and Natalie Nourigat. It features the rather drab title, A Boy and a Girl.  Nourigat got her start writing and drawing her bio-comic Switching Gears, and I really like her art, so I'll be checking this one out as well.

photo courtesy of
comicsalliance.com

Rounding things out come two announcements regarding Cullen Bunn, the writer of The Sixth Gun.  Up first is a spin off of that very same series titled The Sixth Gun: Sons of the Gun.

This six issue mini series will feature origin stories for General Hume's four lieutenants from the series' first story arc.  I have always hoped for more Sixth Gun material featuring these villains, and I'm finally getting my wish.  These four were some bad-ass dudes, so this should be one dark and compelling story.  I always like a story about villains.  Also, it should be cool to learn more about the guns of power and the effect they have on their owners.

Brian Churilla will be handling the art for this one.  He's pretty much an unknown for me, but that teaser image looks pretty cool, so hopefully he can do justice to the series and the material.

photo courtesy of
comicsalliance.com

The other Cullen Bunn related piece of news regards another six issue mini series.  Helheim is a dark fantasy featuring Joelle Jones on art.  Bunn describes the series as "Frankenstein in the viking era".  The story follows a hero who is brought back from his peaceful and honorable death and thrust into a war between two witches.

Based on the strength of The Sixth Gun I'll be more than willing to give this series a shot.  Bunn has impressed me with his ability to deliver some awesome fantasy elements in The Sixth Gun, so I'll be interested to see what he does in a more standard fantasy setting.

Jones is another unknown artist for me, but her art from the teaser image looks pretty cool.  It reminds me a bit of Becky Cloonan, which definitely isn't a bad thing.  I'll be looking forward to this one.

Judging from all these great announcements, it looks like 2013 is shaping up to be a solid year on the comics front.  Lots of cool new stuff to check out.  I'm sure most, if not all, of these comics I mentioned above will get some attention here in the future.  Keep an eye out.



Also, this post would not have been possible with out the continually amazing comics coverage of http://www.comicsalliance.com.

Lastly, thanks to Scott's Snazzy Sketchblog for the Down Set Fight art.

Graphic Novel Review: The Underwater Welder

Prior to it's release, Jeff Lemire's The Underwater Welder was probably my most anticipated release of the year.  Shit, I've been talking about it and thinking about it for over a year now.  Then it came out, and I flipped through it, drooled a bit over the art, showed if off to my lady, and proudly displayed it on my shelf next to all my other Jeff Lemire stuff.  When the next opportunity arose for some comic reading I passed it by, and did so again and again for a few weeks.

The reason for the delay was that Lost Dogs had just recently been re-released, and I had jumped at the first opportunity to read that when it came out. With The Underwater Welder coming out hot on it's heels, and Sweet Tooth nearing it's end I thought it would be a good idea to ration out my Jeff Lemire reads as much as possible.

Well, Then this guy went it reviewed it, which I'm not gonna lie, made me all jealous.  That coincided with a time where I just needed to read something guaranteed to be awesome, and lo and behold, there was The Underwater Welder just sitting there on my shelf waiting for me.  Problem solved.

The Underwater Welder follows Jack Joseph, an underwater welder who works on an oil rig just off the coast of Nova Scotia.  Jack and his wife are about to have their first child. The looming birth and the challenges of fatherhood have put Jack into a state of numbed detachment.  Lacking the ability to work through his stress, fears and anxiety, Jack retreats to the ocean depths.  Jack's diving into the depths is analogous to his pulling away from his wife and his unborn son.  However, as Jack dives, he experiences a supernatural occurrence that brings back long-buried memories of his own father, and gives him insight into his own life's path.

I've had the pleasure of reading damn near everything Jeff Lemire has put into print. With the exception of most of his DC comics work, I've read all of his independent, creator-owned comics work.  I've been very impressed with all his stuff so far.  I mean, the guy is easily one of my favorite comic creators.  Sweet Tooth stands out as probably my favorite monthly comic right now.  The guy is high, high on my list. So I was very happy to discover that The Underwater Welder is his very best work to date.

Courtesy:  http://jefflemire.blogspot.com/

When I chatted with Lemire at the 2011 Emerald City Comicon, he told me that Underwater Welder is the comics work he is most proud of, and after reading this, I can clearly see why.

Never before has Lemire's art looked this good. Sure, it's not for everyone, and I think Niall summed it up well when he referred to Lemire's art as an "acquired taste".  Though I like how Lemire's sometimes rough and sketchy art seems to channel raw emotion, I've talked to people who think he sucks.  Granted, "he sucks" was about the full extent of their argument, but nonetheless, it's an insight.  Anyway, I was impressed.  For my money, this is his best work with the pen and brush.

Lemire uses two distinct styles to tell his story here. There's his familiar ink line and jet-black india ink that dominated his early works such as Essex County and The Nobody.  I thought Lemire's line work when working in this style looked sharp and better than ever. It's impressive how much his skill has developed over the years.

Courtesy:  http://jefflemire.blogspot.com/

The second style Lemire uses is ink line with ink wash, which allows for a softer look and gives the story a variety of grey tones which Lemire often used to juxtapose the straight black and white art.  Flipping back through the book now as I write this review, it is interesting to see how Lemire transitioned between the two styles.  Sometimes this transition is sneakily smooth, and other times it is jarringly noticeable and geared to make an impact.  Not that he ever seems to have any problems delivering an emotional kick, but by using these two techniques, Lemire was able to create a lot of the emotional impact of the story, simply through the style of ink on the page.

If Jeff Lemire had a superpower, it would be the ability to make people break down and cry by using only pictures and words.  As I've experienced through his other works, Lemire manages to deliver a narrative that is written in such a way that the people, their lives and the events, are incredibly easy to understand and relate to.  Lemire always amazes me with his ability to clearly depict humans working through these basic, raw emotions that we all have, but are often unable to articulate or even comprehend.  It's kinda uncanny, but beautiful and heart-wrenching at the same time.

No matter how you look at it, The Underwater Welder is a powerhouse of a graphic novel.  Jeff Lemire is at the top of his game here.  His art has never looked better and his writing, plotting, and scripting is near perfect.  This is an impressive comic, and one that should be read by many.  You wont get punch-ups and tight underpants, but you will get a story about fathers and sons, death and birth, an exploration into the depths of reality.  I loved it, and I think you will too.

Grade: A+

Graphic Novel Review: Lost Dogs

It’s a well-known fact around here that I’m a big fan of Jeff Lemire’s work.  I’m proud to say that, excluding his work for DC proper, I am the proud owner of all his works in comics.  (Keep an eye out for a review of Underwater Welder around these parts soon enough!) So when I caught wind of the fact that Top Shelf had plans to re-release his very first published work, Lost Dogs I was excited to own another piece of the Jeff Lemire comics pie. 

Lost Dogs, in its early stages, is the comic that won Lemire the Xeric grant, a reward that allowed him to complete Lost Dogs and thus begin what has become a successful career in comics.  However, there was a very limited amount of copies published in the initial go-around, so Lost Dogs been tough to come by for folks who are fans of Lemire.  Luckily, Top Shelf decided to republish this one, so no longer will I have to search the used book shelves for this gem. 

Lost Dogs is a story about a man, a massively huge man, who is a simple farmer, and loves his family.  While on a trip to the city for supplies and some sight-seeing, tragedy strikes and the man is forced to fight to prevent the loss of everything he has ever known and loved.  Lost Dogs is a tale that is raw emotions brought up from the depths of the human soul, laid out and exposed in a gritty, brutal display of untamed artistic talent. 

As you might imagine for any artist at the start of his or her career, Lemire’s artwork in Lost Dogs is much rougher and more disheveled looking than his most recent stuff. That’s not to say it isn’t good though because even though it might not look the prettiest, Lemire does a wonderful job of tapping into that fountain of basic human emotion and letting it run all over the pages in black ink.  Lemire’s brush strokes, which are chunkier than an NFL lineman, appear sloppy or rushed at times, but the brush strokes seem to convey the amount of emotion Lemire was trying to pour onto the page. 

Like many of Lemire’s work in comics, Lost Dogs is a story that cuts deep and leaves its mark both mentally and emotionally.  Story-wise, this is a tale that lacks the polish of his later works, but still delivers a story that pulls no punches.  This is a straight forward tale with little in the way of tricks, twists or feints. Instead Lemire chooses to batter the reader over the head with his heart-breaking tale of loss and loneliness.  Sure, this one is uncivilized, a bit wild and only just barely presentable, but all that seems to give the story the emotional kick it needs. 

Lost Dogs might be lacking the refinement of Lemire’s later work both in terms of art and story, but it is cool to see where it all came from and catch a glimpse into an artist’s past to see how that work sparked the work of today.  For fans of Jeff Lemire, this one is a must have.  If you are looking for a no holds barred work of raw emotion, then this is a good place to start looking.  Not the prettiest, or the cleanest, but still, a winner in the end. 

Grade: B

Sweet Tooth Coming to an End

I received a piece of sad news yesterday when I discovered that one of my most favorite comic series is coming to an end in only 7 short issues.  

From it's earliest issues, I have been a big fan of Sweet Tooth and for the past couple of years it has been a mainstay on my year-end best comic series lists.  Simply put, there's never been a bad issue of Sweet Tooth and pretty much every issue writer/artist Jeff Lemire has created has been excellent. 

When I read the headline at The Beat, I instantly wondered if the decision to wrap up Sweet Tooth has something to do with Lemire's increased workload on DC titles. I've personally wondedered if Lemire's increased workload led to less time for Sweet Tooth?

In my mind there's been a few shreds of evidence: There was a three issie arc where Lemire didn't do the art, and when he has done the art, sometimes, on a few occasions, panels and pages have looked a bit rushed.  But my own paranoid wonderings aside, the quality has still been better than most, and the overall story has never suffered. In fact, the Taxidermist story arc where Matt Kindt did the art for three issues was some of the best Sweet Tooth stuff yet. Also, if you read the whole article, or the orignal at the Vertigo site, you'll see that I'm probably just suffering from an over active case of paranoia. 

Here's what Lemire had to say about the series coming to an end:

"So why end it now? I want to make one thing really clear…Sweet Tooth is not being cancelled. The decision to end it at #40 is entirely my choice. Truth is, I always knew what the ending of Sweet Tooth would be. It was one of the first ideas I came up with when writing the pitch for the book. The beginning and the end of this story were always pretty much written in stone, it was the middle bit that was fluid, and grew and changed as I went along. So, for me it’s incredibly gratifying to finally get to the end of the journey with Gus and Jepperd. Everything I’ve done with the series so far, everything I’ve built month after month, has all been about this, the final story.

I suppose I could have stretched it out a bit longer. I could have had a few more obstacles pop up along the way to Alaska to lengthen the journey (and the series), but it just felt like it was time. Gus wanted to get to Alaska now…and who am I to argue? I’ll miss my little antlered friend. But I owe it to him to finish his story properly. To “leave it all on the ice” as they like to say up here in Canada. And that means not prolonging the series just because I can.

But don’t give up on me. I really feel the best is still to come. The final arc, THE WILD KINGDOM, will be full of everything you’ve loved about Sweet Tooth as well asmany new surprises, new characters and new revelations. And it all builds to one final double sized, fully painted final issue with #40 this December."

It'll be pretty sad to see this one go, but hopefully the ending will do justice to what has been a truly wonderful and powerful comic. My fingers are crossed that Lemire has some more creator-owned ideas up his sleeve and that he wont just become a full-time DC writer. 

Each of the remaining seven issues will likely be bitter-sweet reads for me...but I can't wait to see how this one ends!

Graphic Novel Review: Noir a Collection of Crime Comics

Let's see here...I love crime comics,  more specifically, I love noir crime comics.  So I walked into my local comic shop one day and what do I see? Noir a Collection of Crime Comics! As if anything could make me want to read this more, they go ahead and feature some of my favorite comic creators like Jeff Lemire, Ed Brubaker, Sean Phillips, Fabio Moon, and Gabriel Ba.

On the surface, this seems like it is pretty much the perfect graphic novel for a guy with my tastes.  However, as any good reader and dermatologist knows: you gotta get below the surface to find out what is really going on.

What you get in this slim little number is a bunch of comic shorts written and drawn by a plethora of creators, all working in black and white, pouring on that India ink to achieve the right atmosphere.

Its a pretty cool concept, and it works for some of the stories, but not all the stories.  The biggest problem that I had, was that many of the stories that were included in this collection walked a very fine line between being a crime story and being a horror story, and on a couple occasions, were pretty much straight up horror.  Now don't get me wrong, I don't have any problems with horror, but when I'm reading a collection of crime noir comics, I want the comics to actually be crime noir, not horror.

The highlights here were the stories by Lemire, Brubaker, Phillips, Moon and Ba, but I enjoyed a few others as well, most notably, The Last Hit written by Chris Offutt, and drawn by Kano and Stefano Guadiano.  The remainder of the tales ran the gamut from good to bad, and everywhere in between. As much as I enjoy the short form, and love checking out new comic writers and creators, both of which were amply provided for here, overall, I'd say this one was a bit of a disappointment; Mostly because it didn't really deliver on the crime noir as advertised.

There's definitely some mini treasures to be found here, but not enough of the good stuff to warrant my full recommendation.  If you like your crime with a healthy dose of horror, and want to read some short comics and feel out some creators, this is a good quick read.  If you are looking for some hard boiled crime noir, this doesn't quite cut the cake.

Grade: C-

2011 Comics of the Year

TOP 5 COMIC SERIES of the YEAR:


In a year where I was still finding my feet in the comics medium, discovering what I like, and don't like, the battle for the Top 5 Comic Series of the Year had some stiff competition.  Last year I only featured two titles in what was a tie for my top comic, but this year I read way more titles, and it wouldn't be fair to only cover one title, so this year I'm giving you seven!  Damn, I'm nice.  With last year's co-winners Sweet Tooth and Chew still cranking out issues on a monthly basis, will any fresh contenders be able to unseat the champs? (I'll give you a hint, one of them slipped completely out of the rankings all together...) What am I waiting for?  Let's find out!

#5.  Rocketeer Adventures:  This title was an absolute blast.  Basically, a bunch of the industry's best writers and artists got together and cranked out a bunch of short comics and gorgeous pin-up tributes to Dave Steven's Rocketeer.

Each issue of this four issue mini featured some of the best comics creators in the business. The first issue was pretty astounding, but with each issue, there seemed to be a theme of each creator trying to out-do the others.  The result is some absolutely wonderful comics that offer a wide variety of Rocketeer action.  High caliber writing and art is pretty much standard across the board in this Top 5 list, but Rocketeer Adventures offers more variety and plenty of bang for your buck.

Probably my favorite comics moment of the year came when I discovered Geoff Darrow's lovely double-page spread pin-up.  Jaw Droppingly awesome.

#4. Batwoman: In case you've been living under a giant rock all year long, you know by now that DC relaunched all it's titles and started all their shit over at #1.  This provided me with the opportunity to jump onto a bunch of their titles that looked worthy my attention.  Out of the 52 titles they released, I deemed 7 of them worthy of my time and money.  Of those 7, only one gets the glory of being a Battle Hymns Top 5 comic of 2011. That title is, of course, Batwoman.

Batwoman doesn't spend her time battling classic villains like her compatriot Batman, but she seems to have carved out her niche in Gotham's caped and cowled crime fighting community: the supernatural.  In her most recent adventures she finds herself up against a ghostly child stealing wraith; with lots of personal and professional distractions going on amid all the action.  The writing is solid, Kate Kane's sexuality is maturely handled, and issue after issue, this seems to get better and better.  Oh, and the art?  J.H. Williams III is at the top of his game.  Absolutely beautiful work.

#3. The Sixth Gun: I love westerns, and I love fantasy so it should come as no surprise that I love The Sixth Gun, because those two elements have never been so wonderfully intertwined.

Sometimes I feel like the creators, Cullen Bunn and Brian Hurtt had me in mind when they came up with this concept, because it is very much geared to my tastes. I've been loving this title since issue #1 and have gladly been hooked for the whole journey so far.

The most recent story arc, Crossroads has been extremely entertaining and full of tense, shocking moments.  This comic is pretty much guaranteed to deliver engaging characters, fun western-style action like train hijackings, and crazy supernatural moments like re-animated evil spirits each and every month.  The art seems to just be getting better each go-around too, so there you go.  All around awesomeness.

#2. The Intrepids: The Top 5 list would be sadly incomplete if I failed to mention the awesomeness that is The Intrepids.

Mad science, a tech-ed up teen team battling crazy creations like cyber bears, battle baboons, and robo-squids are all involved in this crazy fun, crazy awesome 5 issue mini series.

Series creators Kurtis Wiebe and Scott Kowalchuk definitely delivered the goods here.  The writing by Wiebe is fantastic, and he delivers action, drama, tension and jokes with equal aplomb.  Kowalchuk's art is some of my favorite from the year.  He draws mad-science creations extremely well, and makes them look incredible...oh, and the rest of his art is great too, but those mad science creations...*sigh*

What astounded me the most about The Intrepids is that the story delivered on multiple fronts, and even packed in some emotional moments, and still managed to be the most fun comic to read on the shelves.

If you still haven't checked this title out, do so immediately.


#1. Sweet Tooth:  You're still the one Sweet Tooth.

Impressively, despite some stiff competition, Sweet Tooth manages to find itself at the top of the heap once again, and really, it was an easy decision to put it at number one once again.  The reason is simple: Sweet Tooth gets better with each issue.  Not only that, but writer/artist, Jeff Lemire continues to explore new ways of telling the story, and by doing so, stretches the boundaries of the comics medium.

Not only is this my favorite on going comic, but it is steadily creeping up the list and becoming one of my favorite all time stories, period.

For as much as I think, discuss, and gush on and on about this series, I still have almost no idea how this will all turn out.  So much of the bigger picture is still shrouded in mystery, but Lemire has done an excellent job off hiding his cards and slowly revealing them one at a time.  I can't wait to see what the next year of Sweet Tooth will bring.

Runners Up:


Who is Jake Ellis?: Wonderful action packed espionage thriller.  Great writing, satisfying ending to the series, and really cool art.

Blue Estate: A seedy Hollywood crime story with plenty of ins and outs.  Crafty, twisty crime writing at it's finest.


BEST SINGLE ISSUE of the YEAR:

Who is Jake Ellis? #1: In a year where I read more comics than I ever have in my entire life, one issue stands out from the crowd, and that is Who is Jake Ellis? #1. When I read it, I felt like I was reading something completely new and unique, which is very rare these days.  Both the writing and the art had a very fresh feel to them.

This issue pretty much did everything perfect.  The writing by Nathan Edmondson was captivating, it introduced the primary characters, set up the plot, and delivered some great action and chase scenes.  The art by Tonci Zonjic has an incredible vibe and personality that gave the series a signature style that is one of a kind.

This issue pretty much stormed the gates... and the whole damn castle fell with the following issues.  In a year bulging with "#1" issues, this one easily takes the cake.

Runner Up: The Intrepids #1: I've got two words for you: Cyber Bear.

Welp, there you go, my favorite comics from the year.  Are there titles I completely overlooked?  What were your favorite comics from the year?

Welcome to the DCnU Issue #3 Edition (Part 2)

Batwoman #3:  Well Batwoman, you're still the one.  This is hands down my favorite title from the new DC stuff, and overall, one of my favorite titles on my pull list.  The reasons why are pretty simple, strong writing and absolutely beautiful art make this a must read.

I've said all that before though, so in an attempt to say something new and original I'll add that I'm really falling in love with the Batwoman/Kate Kane character.  I like that she is on the one hand highly skilled, and good at ass kicking, but on the other hand, a bit head strong and prone to getting in over her head.  Her alter-ego, Kate Kane is no less interesting, and I find that the story around her personal life is quite engaging.  The writers handle her sexuality in a mature way that is nice to read. Tack on an interesting sub-plot with her side kick and you have comic gold.

The Shade #2:  Not technically a "New 52!" title,(though he is "Marked for Death!"), but it's a DC title, and it's new, so I'm lumping it in with these ones.

I'm sad to say this, but no matter how badly I want to like this title, I can't bring myself to get into it.

The first two issues haven't done me any favors.  The first one was ok, but this one didn't do a damn thing for me, and didn't capture my interest at all.  The writing is a bit on the cheesy side, and while there are lots of great artists lined up for this title, that factor isn't enough to keep me around.  If I want I can always flip through the new issues and oogle the art, but I wont be carrying on with The Shade any longer.      A theme that will be recurrent with this edition of Welcome to the DCnU.

Animal Man #3:  Another case of the dropped title here.

I was on the fence with this one for the past two months, and I figured the ol' baseball adage, "three strikes and yer out" worked well here.  Jeff Lemire's writing has been decent so far, but in my opinion, certain plot points seemed to happen or come together a bit too easily.

The writing isn't my biggest concern though, as I haven't been a fan of Travel Foreman's art since issue one.  I'll hand it to him, the man does have his occasional moments of really great, wonderful looking art, but the spaces between those moments are not that good at all.  I think I've called it flat, lacking in detail and sterilized looking in the past, and I think that pretty much sums it up.  There isn't nearly enough here to keep me interested, so I won't be reading this title anymore.

 Detective Comics #3:  Forming the final head on this three-headed beast of dropped titles is the latest installment of Detective Comics.  Once again Tony Daniel underwhelms the reader with his steady knack for telling a Batman story the reader feels like he/she has read a million times before.

Not only does the story seem dull and well worn, but Daniel's approach to Batman has a paint by numbers feel to it that is equally lame.  It's as if the man has a check list that he makes sure he works through for each issue.  Gadgets, fisticuffs, bat-cave, goofy detecting, and on the list goes on.  But I wont.

I like to think I'm an easy man to please.  Just give me some strong writing, and solid art, with compelling characters and I'm happy.  Detective Comics fails on all levels.


And with that major downer of a Welcome to the DCnU installment I conclude this series of posts.  From now on, if they are good enough or noteworthy enough, I'll pepper some of these titles in with my Comic Quickies posts.  There are some VERY awesome titles hitting the shelves in the next few months that I'm really excited about, so expect some good comic reading tips coming your way soon!

Welcome to the DCnU Issue #3 edition (Part 1)

Batman #3: Allow me to take a BIG  sigh of relief.  Why? Because I didn't hate the art in this issue.  Truth be told, this is the best issue of Batman so far.

Not only is there some sweet bat detective stuff going on, but I thought Greg Capullo's art was pretty solid in this issue.  I think what enamored me to it the most is that Capullo seemed to be experimenting with his "lens" and how the panels were viewed by the reader.  This led to some strange panel art, like the one where a conversation between Bruce and Alfred is viewed through the eye holes of the Bat-cowl sitting on a nearby table.  The technique worked best when Batman was doing his detecting and Capullo would highlight clues so that it felt like the reader was detecting alongside Batman.

This title is probably the best written title out of all the new DC stuff I'm reading, and for that reason alone, I will tough out Capullo's art.  Hopefully, this issue is a sign that he's growing into the job, and growing as an artist.

All Star Western #3: The first arc of this new series is tied up in this third issue, which was a surprise, and for my money, felt a bit rushed.  It was like, all of a sudden, boom, on to a new arc!  It looks like Hex will be sticking around Gotham though, and hopefully Amadeus Arkham will continue to be a character, because he's pretty much the only likable character in the title.  Don't get me wrong, Jonah Hex is fun to read, but the man's an asshole.

Aside from the weirdly rushed writing, I felt like Moritat's art looked a bit rushed in this one too.  The beautiful high detail that was prevalent in the first two issues wasn't there, and often there was little to no background art in the panels.  On the other hand, there were two sweet double page spreads, so it almost balances out in the end.  Hopefully Moritat can recapture the thunder in the next issue.

Action Comics #3: I was freaking out when I read the first few pages of this issue, because I thought that all of a sudden Rags Morales had gotten amazing at art.  I figured he must have taken some sort of magical elixir because if I wasn't mistaken, his art was looking a lot like it was drawn by Gene Ha...then I realized it was Gene Ha doing the art on the first few pages.

WOW.  Amazing.  His depiction of planet Krypton before the destruction is bee-yoo-tee-ful.

Back on planet Earth, things aren't going so well for Supes.  He's got the po-po breathing down his neck, some anti-alien animosity aimed in his S-chested direction, and from the looks of things, a showdown with a battalion of robots and a freaky cyborg dude in his future, oh, also the threat of an alien invasion.  Sounds FUN!  I know I can't wait.

Frankenstein Agent of S.H.A.D.E. #3: In this issue Frankenstein and his fellow monster buddies travel to a planet that is literally covered in monsters, and attempt to kill them all.  Then they discover that three other areas of the planet are monster infested as well, and have a giant epic monster to defeat in each of those regions as well.  Can you say "Boss Battle"?

It is almost silly how simplistic and straight forward this comic can be at times, but that simplicity is primarily what makes this a fun title to read.  Yes, this title is sort of a guilty pleasure for me, but so far it has been consistently fun, and highly entertaining.  Plus, as I mentioned before, I am a sucker for monsters, and this is pretty much the mecca of monsters.

Welcome to the DCnU Issue #2 Edition

Welcome to the DCnU second issue recap of all the DC comics I tend to read.  If you've been keeping up, you'll know that I liked some of the new DC titles I picked up last month, while some others left me sitting on the fence.  So how'd those titles fare the second time around?  Let's see....

Action Comics #2:  I wanna say that I'm really glad they toned down Superman's powers a bit for this comic.  He's still a strong dude, but Morrison has done a good job making Supes seem like he isn't an unstoppable force.  I also like the way they're handling Lex Luthor.  The guy is faced off against Superman, but for believable reasons: with the safety of humanity in mind...the guy's not wrong, he's just an asshole.

I think I'm officially not a fan of Rags Morales.  Superman is supposed to be a young man in this, but there are times he looks more like an middle aged going on towards old man.  (Just look at that cover)  Also Lois looks like a frumpy, worn out cougar on casual Friday in this issue.  Morales' character designs look totally different from one page to the next.  Not impressed.

Inconsistent art aside, this is a fun take on Superman, and Morrison makes the Man of Steel fun to read.  I'm definitely on board for the first full arc, and probably Morrison's entire run.

Animal Man #2:  A lot of people are totally in love with Animal Man.  I am not one of those people.  I was firmly on the fence after the first issue, and not a lot has changed after the second.

I stuck around for this second issue on the strength of the three page dream sequence at the end of issue one, and like that issue, a few cool things happened that got me excited, which helped balance out the other not so cool parts. For example: Animal Man's eyes bleeding a crazy map-tattoo onto his chest. Animal Man's daughter turning a neighbor's hand into a chicken leg.  However, I realize I can't just keep reading this issue for the one or two pages of thrills it provides each issue.  The whole issue needs to be worth reading not just a few pages.

A big hang-up I have with this title is that I don't like Travel Foreman's art.  He can draw some creepy and cool beasties, but most everything else looks flat and generic, or too clean and sanitized.  Because this is written by Jeff Lemire, I'll give it one more issue, but it needs to improve drastically.

Frankenstein Agent of S.H.A.D.E. #2:  Does Frankenstein bitch-slap a deranged and creepy old church lady who's been sacrificing children to monsters from another dimension? Hells to the yes.  Does Frankenstein do some underwater sword wielding against some crazy creatures?  Mmm hmm.  Does Frank and his crew travel to a planet completely covered in monsters?  Yes!

Unlike Lemire's Animal Man, which focuses on characters and their interactions, Frankenstein Agent of S.H.A.D.E. is all about the balls to the walls action and monster slaying.  Yeah, there's some character development in there, but it's not the focus of the comic, nor am I inclined to care.

I do get the sense that the light/popcorn feel might not be able to hold my interest over time, but for now, it's pretty enjoyable, and this one scores high marks for sheer escapism.  My one gripe: Frank rocks some really dorky platform combat boots...what the hell is up with that?

Detective Comics #2:  I think Batman is supposed to be flying in the bat-plane or something on that cover, but I'm not so sure...he could be on the bat-toilet.

I wasn't instantly in love with this title after the first issue, but a shocker ending made  me interested enough to read more.  I wish I could say otherwise, but this issue felt like more of the same.  More bat-toys, a fight, and lo and behold, another shock-tastic ending.

Tony S. Daniel, who does both the writing and the art, seems to be relying on the cheap thrills approach with Detective Comics, and I'm not sure how much more I can take.  It doesn't seem like a sustainable form of story telling.  I can only take so many big shockers before they achieve mundane status, and lose their ability to make an impact.  I'm considering dropping this one from my pull-list.

Batwoman #2:  Batwoman is easily the best title coming out of the DCnU, and for my money, is one of the best buys on the shelf these days.  J.H. Williams III is probably the best artist in the game right now, and Batwoman is an amazing looking book, not to mention a compelling read.

Kate Kane/Batwoman is a really interesting character to read about both in and out of the bat-suit.  Her budding love interest with Detective Sawyer adds an interesting dynamic to the whole deal too.

On top of a budding love story, there's some strange wraith-like creature abducting Gotham's children, and a D.E.O. spook pulling rank all over town trying to figure out and unmask Batwoman.  Batwoman is great stuff, I highly recommend this very accessible series.

Batman #2:  Batman is the better of the two Batman titles, but it still has a major weakness.  The art.  I didn't like it in issue one, and I like it even less in issue two.  I wrote in my review of issue one that I hoped to grow accustomed to, and one day like Capulo's art, but I think I kinda hate it.  Not only is it fifteen years or so out of date, but it just doesn't work on multiple levels.

The first thing that drives me nuts are his action sequences, which are poorly planned out and confusing to figure out what the hell is going on. There was a really poorly executed action sequence where Batman jumped the bat-cycle onto an oncoming train (no ramp needed) in physics defying fashion that was just plain cheesy, but it gets much worse.

The other aspect of Capullo's art that drives me nuts are his character designs.  Simply put, the people look ridiculous.  Why is Bruce Wayne's head a fucking cinder block?  There's another confusing action scene where Bruce Wayne battles some assassin in an owl-combat suit.  Bruce tries kicking and punching the guy, both of which are easily blocked by the assassin, yet somehow, Bruce is then able to run up, and put the guy in a head-lock no problem.  There's then three increasing close up panels of Bruce trying to choke the guy out, then comes the worst panel of the entire comic:

Bruce Wayne has had some nutty work done to his face...or Capullo simply does not know how to draw lips.  Lips don't square off like that nor do they meet the teeth at a right angle.  What did the guy do, bust out a ruler to draw that panel?  That will not do.  By the way Bruce, those are some smooth-ass teeth you got there buddy.

What makes this story even more tragic is that Scott Snyder is a great Batman writer.  I really like the story that he's got going on with this first arc, too bad I can't stand the art.  Please get a new artist.  Soon.

All Star Western #2:  Last but not least comes the western that really isn't a western.  When we last left Jonah Hex he was investigating the plot of From Hell (Review coming on Halloween!). Now he's caught up in a brutal shoot-out at Amadeus Arkham's casa with minions of Gotham's own elite secret society.  When the gunsmoke and dust clears Hex is still standing, and in his no bullshit fashion, discovers the whereabouts of the bad-guys hang out.  With Arkham in tow, he heads off to deal out some more six-shooter justice.

Thankfully, it turns out this opening story arc isn't a total rehashing of the From Hell plot, Gotham's secret society is actually following the teachings of the "Crime Bible" a dark faith based on the story of Cain and Abel.

So basically this opening story arc is setting up to be Jonah Hex versus rich religious nut-jobs.

Amen to that.

Comic Quickies: Tales of Death

The Unexpected: 'Tis the season for horror, and The Unexpected, a one shot from Vertigo, is packed full of the stuff from the glorious cover drawn by Rafael Grampa to the back cover, which has an ad for The Big Bang Theory which is a wholly different brand of horror.

Vertigo managed to pull together some pretty big names to contribute to this anthology, but for the most part, I was disappointed with the content.  There was a decent ghost story in there from Joshua Hale Fialkov and Brian Wood delivered the goods with his tale Americana, (though it was a story that didn't actually feel like horror) and I enjoyed looking at Farel Dalrymple's art, but aside from those few high points I was pretty underwhelmed.  The rest of the content seemed to fall into one of two categories: "gore-fest" horror, which I don't care for at all, or "shocker endings!" which were never very shocking and at times outright predictable.

The $7.99 price tag makes me feel like I was ripped off.

 The Shade #1 of 12: After Batman, The Shade is my favorite DC character.  I say this despite my only previous experience with the guy being the first Starman Omnibus.  His shady demeanor, (pun intended), his ambiguous morals, and his creepy ability to make shadows come to life as beastly constructs makes him a memorable and like-able character.  The fact that this twelve issue mini-series is written by James Robinson, who wrote the Starman stuff and has an all-star lineup of artists working on the issues made this title a must have for me.

The first issue got things off to an odd start.  From what I can tell, The Shade basically spends his time sipping tea with superheros, and engaging in post-coitus repartee with his lady.  He also takes a stroll.

Robinson seemed to more intent on showing who The Shade is and only gives readers a very small taste of what he is capable of.  There is a shocker ending that was actually shocking, and has me pretty excited for the next issue.

Also, Cully Hamner handled the art for this issue, and he makes everything look beautiful.  Definitely worth checking out.  It'll be interesting to see where the hell this one is going.

Who is Jake Ellis #5 of 5: FINALLY!!

I think it was about at two or three month wait (it felt like longer!) for this final installment of what has been one of my favorite comics of the year.  Delays suck, but Who is Jake Ellis is worth the wait.

Since the very first issue, this has been an comic steeped in mystery, with a healthy dose of espionage action tossed in to make a delicious concoction of comic genius. I loved everything about this comic, from the writing, to the art, and the colors, and the final installment delivers on all fronts.  (Except for the ugly gray-tone cover, what the hell?)

I've always said that good endings are hard to come by, and the ending here (or is it?  More Jake Ellis please!) is pretty well handled.  Writer Nathan Edmondson wrapped up much of the mystery that was swirling around the primary characters, and answers most of my burning questions, and manages to leave the door open for potential sequels.  Not too shabby by my book.

If you aren't already reading this in single issues, buy the trade when it comes out. You will thank me.  Who is Jake Ellis is one of the best titles to hit shelves this year.

Sweet Tooth #26: Jeff Lemire is a busy dude lately.  He's writing and illustrating Sweet Tooth, plus writing  two other comics, and working on his creator owned graphic novel Underwater Welder in his spare time.  So when I heard that he was taking a three month hiatus from his Sweet Tooth drawing duties, I wasn't that surprised.

His sub, Matt Kindt, has been the subject of much scrutiny between myself and other Sweet Tooth readers at the comic shop.  I wasn't too thrilled to think that someone other than Lemire would be drawing the likes of Gus, Jeppard and the other Sweet Tooth folks, a feeling that seemed to be universal.

Well, boy was I surprised when I cracked open issue #26, Kindt's first call of duty, to find that he would be handling the art for a three issue side story titled The Taxidermist that is set one hundred years prior to the events of the main story line.

The story follows Dr. James Thacker on his sea-faring journey to the icy northern wastes of Alaska in search of his brother in law, who has gone missing while attempting to set up a Christian mission for the native Alaskans.  As soon as Thacker, the ship's captain and first mate hit land and begin their trek towards the settlement, things start to get weird, and before too long, their sled dogs are mysteriously killed, and things go south from there.

An awesome start to what looks to be an interesting side story.  Oh, and Matt Kindt's art is a good match to the strange story of icy Alaskan mystery and mayhem.

Near Death #1: Would I read a crime thriller set in Seattle? Sign me up!  Well, that's just what you get with Jay Faerber's Near Death.

Markham is a killer for hire, but from the looks of things in the early pages, his most recent job went to shit.  Now Markham is severely injured, and racing to save his own life.  He winds up on the operating table of a friend who runs an animal hospital and flatlines during surgery.  During his near death experience Markham is confronted by the hundreds of souls he's put to death, and told he needs to make amends for his sins.  Markham eventually is saved, and during his recovery, decides to use his skills to save people rather than kill them.

This first issue delivers the concept for the series in a pretty straight forward and workman like manner.  There is a no nonsense feel to the comic, which is possibly meant to make the story seem more spare and hard boiled, but to me it made the characters, especially Markham come across as empty vessels.  There is an interesting twist at the end that makes me think there might be more to this fledgling series than meets the eye, but I'm definitely on the fence with this title.  I do have the second issue waiting to be read, so I'll see if #2 can deliver the goods before I decide whether to carry on with this series or not.

Comic Quickies: Welcome to the DCnU part 2.

Batwoman #1: After reading Batwoman: Elegy, I had the feeling that Batwoman would be one of, if not the only, sure-fire hits for me in the DCnU.  It is hard to go wrong with J.H. Williams III on art, and his writing efforts, teamed up with co-writer W. Haden Blackman are pretty solid here too.

This comic begins by setting up a creepy new supernatural villain who is stealing children in Gotham City.  Given Batwoman's past, this seems like a great villain for her to square off against.  This issue also sets a few other interesting balls rolling for the series.  Detective Sawyer, the officer who is investigating the missing children, looks to be a little love-interest in the making for Kate Kane.  In other action, Batwoman also appears to be training herself a side-kick.  This prospective hero is none other than Kate's cousin, Bette Kane, who was formerly Flamebird in the Teen Titans.  This section of the issue was slightly confusing for me, as my knowledge of any DC heroes not Superman, Wonder Woman or Batman is terrible, and I felt like I was missing something.

The best part of this comic came when Kate has a confrontation with her estranged father.  This sequence, told over a double page spread, displays three important things:  JH3's ability to visually tell a story better than any other, the writing team's ability to script and deliver some tense, yet succinct writing, and an amazing montage recap of what went down in the Elegy story.

All told, this was a very strong issue, and for my money, the best of the DCnU relaunch comics so far.

Frankenstein Agent of S.H.A.D.E. #1: Jeff Lemire is writing two comics for the relaunch. While Animal Man is a serious story with some family drama, and horror elements, Frankenstein Agent of S.H.A.D.E. is balls out action.

This one starts out with a little walk-through of S.H.A.D.E.'s new HQ, which is a three inch indestructible ball, which is currently hovering 2,000 miles above NYC.  In order to visit said three inch ball one must get shrunk, then teleported aboard this mite-sized base...and that crazy kind of shit is exactly why I think this is going to be an awesome comic.

That's just the beginning of the zaniness too.

From the looks of things, S.H.A.D.E. is run by none other than...Father Time, who is using the body of a uniformed school-girl to act as his host.  Then, there's a small town in rural Washington that is overrun by a host of ugly-ass monsters.  S.H.A.D.E. has sent in their best agent, the four-armed, gun toting Bride of Frankenstein.  Her efforts aren't enough to contain such a massive threat, so Frank, and his newly assembled team of monsters are sent in to do some damage.  The team includes a werewolf, vampire (neither are sparkly), a mummy and the creature from the black lagoon.

So far, this is pretty much exactly what I want this comic to be: classic monsters fighting monsters, with a lot of weirdness and tons of action.  Lemire's writing is decent, and the art, by Alberto Ponticelli is pretty great too.  There were a couple times his work looked a little sloppy, but most of the time it looked solid.  He seems to excel at drawing lots and lots of monsters.

From the looks of things, Frankenstein Agent of S.H.A.D.E. is shaping up to be pretty nutty, yet entertaining as hell at the same time.  Looking forward to what comes next.

Meanwhile (Graphic Novel):  Up last is a non DC title.  Conceived, written, and illustrated by Jason Shiga, Meanwhile is a choose your own adventure style graphic novel with over 3,500 different possibilities and it all begins with one simple (or is it?) decision: chocolate or vanilla.  Depending on your choice of ice cream, you are launched into a story filled with mad scientists, insane inventions and the fate of the world in the palm of your hands.

Meanwhile is a pretty unique piece of comic creation.  Instead of reading the panels left to right, you have to follow these colored tubes that lead you up, down and all over the page.  When it comes time to make a decision, you follow the tubes to tabs, and flip to that page, and carry on.  A careful read of the text, and a sharp eye for detail is brilliantly rewarded as there are a few hidden codes throughout the comic that will aid you in your quest.  Some of these codes were easier to unlock than others.

Aside from code breaking, and decision making, there's also a coin-toss scene that felt about as realistic and chancy as a real coin-toss, as well as some cool inventions (time travel anyone?) that, when you have to choose which invention to investigate, makes for some tough decisions...As tempting as the doomsday device was, I ultimately chose time travel as my initial adventure.

I spent a good chunk of a day trying to max out as many story possibilities as I could, and I think I came pretty damn close.  By the time I felt like I'd covered most of the options, I did what any good choose your own adventure reader does, and cheated.  After flipping though each and every page of the book I found only two pages I hadn't been to; One was an easter egg for cheaters like me, and could only be found by, well, cheating, and another that I still haven't been able to work my way to yet.  Still, there is a lot of material here, and Meanwhile is a pretty amazing feat of choose your own adventure style story telling.

I consider Meanwhile a must have for any fan of this style of story, and a must read for anyone who loves to have fun.  Hopefully Shiga will dip back into this style of comic again in the future.  Great stuff.

Grade: A