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REVIEW: ‘Adventure Time: Seeing Red’ OGN

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(KaBoom!, 2014)

Writer: Kate Leth
Artist: Zachary Sterling
Inks: Ru Xu
Tones: Amanda Lafrenais
Letters: Aubrey Aiese

“LSP’s Purse”
Writer and Artist: Meredith McClaren
Tones: Amanda Lafrenais

NOTE: Although this book has a nifty “3” on its spine, it’s actually a standalone volume with a self-contained story. In the future, I hope that kaboom! makes a running change to exclude these numbers, as they can sometimes drive new readers away if they climb too high. On to the review. Continue reading →

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REVIEW: ‘Superior Spider-Man’ #28

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(Marvel Comics, 2014)

Writer: Dan Slott
Pencils: Giuseppe Camuncoli
Inks: John Dell
Colors: Antonio Fabela
Letters: Chris Eliopoulos

This is another excellent issue in the final arc on The Superior Spider-Man. There’s your review. I don’t know how many times I have to tell you to pick up this book.

Have you bought it? Good. It’s spoilers from here on out. Rosebud is a sled. Continue reading →

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REVIEW: ‘Haunted Horror’ #9

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(IDW Publishing, 2014)

Writers and Artists: Various
Editors: Steve Banes, Clizia Gussoni and Craig Yoe
Contributing Editors: Mike Howlett, Toxic Tommy O’Brien and Tillmann Courth

Often, there tends to be a bias against purchasing comics in reprints. This could be fueled by the speculator market, in which reprints or second printings might be seen as being inauthentic or worth less because they’re not the original. To that I say, comics are meant for reading. Value should be an afterthought. Continue reading →

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REVIEW: ‘Ms. Marvel’ #1

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(Marvel Comics, 2014)

Writer: G. Willow Wilson
Pencils and Inks: Adrian Alphona
Colors: Ian Herring
Letters: VC’s Joe Caramagna

Yes, I realize this book stars a—Oh my God—Muslim superhero! Gasp. Shock. And no, I don’t think Marvel is pandering or trying to be “politically correct,” which is honestly a go-to for trying to describe a character as veering away from the standard (read male and white) blueprint. Continue reading →

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REVIEW: ‘Superior Spider-Man’ #26

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(Marvel Comics, 2014)

Writer: Dan Slott
Pencils: Humberto Ramos, Javier Rodriguez, Marcos Martin
Inks: Victor Olazaba, Alvaro Lopez, Marcos Martin
Colors: Edgar Delgado, Javier Rodriguez, & Marcos Martin
Letters: Chris Eliopoulos

Note: If you read anything on the internet, you probably know the major spoiler that follows the conclusion of the upcoming Goblin Nation storyline. If you don’t know about it yet, skip this review. Thar be spoilers. Continue reading →

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REVIEW: ‘Disney Kingdoms: Seekers of the Weird’ #1

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(Marvel Comics, 2014)

Review by Kenneth Kimbrough

Writer: Brandon Seifert
Penciler: Karl Moline
Inker: Rick Magyar
Colorist: Jean-Francois Beaulieu
Letterer: VC’s Joe Caramagna

First, a history lesson. While Disney’s Haunted Mansion was still in the concept stage, famed Imagineer Rolly Crump contributed a series of designs for a spill area called “The Museum of the Weird”—a walkthrough section populated with all sorts of strange, supernatural oddities.  Sensing that this was something unique, Walt Disney planned to make the Museum of the Weird into its own attraction Continue reading →

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REVIEW: ‘Superior Spider-Man’ #25

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(Marvel Comics, 2014)

Review by Kenneth Kimbrough

Writers: Dan Slott & Christos Gage
Pencils: Humberto Ramos
Inks: Victor Olazaba
Colors: Edgar Delgado, Antonio Fabela, & Veronica Gandini
Letters: Chris Eliopoulos

All right. Let’s take a minute to address the rumors—no spoilers. If you know what I’m referring to, great. If not, skip to the next paragraph. I listen to a lot of Spider-Man podcasts and read a lot of Spider-Man news, and I’ll admit, it has kind of ruined the comic for me. When you hear enough speculation, some of it is bound to be right, and if you follow the resulting lines of reasoning, it’s difficult to remain surprised. Continue reading →

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REVIEW: ‘Scooby-Doo Team-Up’ #2

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(DC Comics, 2014)

Review by Kenneth Kimbrough

Writer: Sholly Fisch
Artist: Dario Brizuela
Colorist: Heroic Age
Letterer: Saida Temofonte

Like any fan of the Bronze Age, I have a soft spot for team-ups. Brave and the Bold, Marvel Team-Up, DC Comics Presents… You name it. I’m there. As such, I’ve always loved it when Scooby-Doo teamed up with Batman, especially in The New Scooby-Doo Movies, a series also produced in the 70s. (Surprise!) It makes me so glad that we essentially have an ongoing series based around this very concept. Continue reading →

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THINGS TO COME for January 2014

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Things to Come for January 2014
with Kenneth Kimbrough

Welcome to 2014, the year we first get attacked by kaiju and the year when Solid Snake grows a pretty rad stache. As a part of the new year, I’m introducing a feature to the site in which I highlight new releases, reprints, relaunches and just about anything else that tickles me. All of this information can be found in the retailer catalog—PREVIEWS—which your local comic store should carry. Continue reading →

THE BLIND BUY: A Journey Through The ‘ZATOICHI’ Series

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THE BLIND BUY: A JOURNEY THROUGH THE ZATOICHI SERIES
by Kenneth Kimbrough

PART I – The Tale of Zatoichi

It’s time for me to talk about something very near and dear to my heart—movies. More specifically, Japanese movies. And even more specifically, Japanese swordfighting movies.

Since the front page has been loaded with comics reviews lately (Which is excellent! Keep up the hard work, everyone.), I thought it might be time for me to launch a new series following the exploits of the one, the only, Zatoichi—a blind swordsman just as much expert fighter as he is cunning trickster. Continue reading →

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REVIEW: “Doc Savage” #1

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(Dynamite Entertainment, 2013)

Review by Kenneth Kimbrough

Writer: Chris Roberson
Pencils and Inks: Bilquis Evely
Colors: Daniela Miwa
Letters: Rob Steen

Let me preface this review by saying that I only have a passing knowledge of Doc Savage. That’s not to say that I don’t know anything about him. I know that he represents peak physical and mental condition, that he believes in reforming criminals rather than arresting them, and that Continue reading →

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REVIEW: “Superior Spider-Man” #23

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(Marvel Comics, 2013)

Review by Kenneth Kimbrough

Writers: Dan Slott & Christos Gage
Pencils: Humberto Ramos
Inks: Victor Olazaba
Colors: Edgar Delgado
Letters: Chris Eliopoulos

Sometimes, all you want from a Spider-Man book is some symbiotes, spider-bots, and subplots. In this issue, Dan Slott and Christos Gage deliver that in spades. After the previous issue’s exposition-heavy script, I’m glad to see many of the story threads move forward. Continue reading →

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REVIEW: “Superior Spider-Man” #22

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(Marvel Comics, 2013)

Review by Kenneth Kimbrough

Writer: Dan Slott & Christos Gage
Pencils: Humberto Ramos
Inks: Victor Olazaba
Colors: Edgar Delgado
Letters: Chris Eliopoulos

It can sometimes be difficult to gauge the quality of a story arc from its first issue. If I were to make a list of things I’m sad we didn’t see in the inaugural meeting between Flash Thompson in the Venom identity and his hero, Spider-Man, then those very things could happen in the next issue. Continue reading →

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FILM REVIEW: “Hunger Games: Catching Fire”

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Review by Kenneth Kimbrough

Directed by Francis Lawrence
Written by Simon Beaufoy, Michael Arndt, and Suzanne Collins
Music by James Newton Howard
Cinematography by Jo Willems
Film Editing by Alan Edward Bell

Note: I have not read any of Suzanne Collins’s books. This review pertains to the film and to the film alone.

At first, it was difficult to swallow the idea of a second Hunger Games film, even though I knew it was based on a series of books from author Suzanne Collins. Continue reading →

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REVIEW: “Superior Spider-Man” Annual #1

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(Marvel Comics, 2013)

Review by Kenneth Kimbrough

Writer: Christos Gage
Pencils and Colors: Javier Rodriguez
Inks: Alvaro Lopez
Letters: Chris Eliopoulos

Now that’s more like it! As of late, my complaint with the Superior Spider-Man is that I haven’t felt very much drama in the books. The superhero battles tend to be one-sided in favor of Spider-Ock, and the beats among his supporting cast aren’t given enough room to breathe. Continue reading →