Bryant Dillon (330)
Favorite TV Show: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Dark Horse Comics continues to succeed this month in building a multifaceted comic book Buffy-verse, and Spike: A Dark Place #3 is no exception. Writer Victor Gischler and the art team of Paul Lee (pencils), Andy Owens (inks), and Cris Peter (colors) continue to build an engaging mini around the redemptive blonde vampire that successfully interweaves into the greater plots of Buffy: Season 8, Buffy: Season 9, and Angel & Faith!
SPOILERS BELOW
With their extremely successful sitcom Husbands, creators Jane Espenson and Brad Bell have exceeded expectations, earned rave reviews and praise from critics and fans, and pushed the classic premise of the newlywed sitcom into the modern American world where marriage equality is an ever-present issue (check out FBC’s interview Espenson and Bell here). Having mastered its online sitcom format, Husbands made the jump this week (with Espenson and Bell) into the sequential art universe in the form of a digital release from Dark Horse Comics, and, honestly, from where this Comic Book Slayer is sitting, Husbands: Drawn In #1 scores a near-perfect landing!
The life of a coffee barista can be a rough one. You’ve got the danger of severe burns from scalding hot coffee. There’s the stress of the rude and indignant customers and their demands. And, of course, you’ve got the annoyance of your co-worker and roommate disappearing for long periods of time due to possession by a spectral detective who defends and protects the city you live in. At least, that’s the premise of Tales of the Night Watchman #1, an original comic book from Dave Kelly and Lara Antal, two promising independent creators.
SPOILERS BELOW
This month brings the return of fan favorite Jane Espenson to the Buffy comic world. Fresh off her heroic success with the web series Husbands, Espenson has teamed with former Buffy writer Drew Z. Greenberg and Fray artist Karl Moline to once again push the boundaries of what it means to be a slayer.
SPOILERS BELOW
Created by Ben Acker and Ben Blacker, The Thrilling Adventure Hour stage production is performed each month at the Coronet Theatre and has become known throughout Los Angeles (and far beyond) as an outright success when it comes to the quality of the productions and the entertainment it delivers to its audiences. The show (and Nerdist Industries podcast) is performed in the style of an old-time radio production and features cast members and guest stars such as Nathan Fillion, Ed Helms, and Neil Patrick Harris.
The fantasy genre (and many other geeky genres) is full of beloved, unpolished, and hulking warriors. They've become a character archetype to themselves, represented by the 'barbarian' or 'warrior' in tabletop RPG manuals and counting Conan, Khal Drogo, and even He-Man among their ranks. For most fantasy fans, there's something inherently charming to the big oaf who crushes his opponent with a single blow (and a single utterance of "Me crush"), drops his battle axe at the door of the local tavern, and celebrates his day with an overflowing mug of hearty mead. Creator/writer/colorist Courtland Brugger and penciller/inker Frank Fosco (Image’s TMNT, Savage Dragon) play to these innate strengths of the fantasy genre with their new independent comic book, Gronk, featuring a hulking, unpolished, and, perhaps in time, beloved hero by the same name.
To those unfamiliar with author James Lowder and his work, you have my sympathies. Lowder has carved out a respectable name for himself in the fantasy genre, he has had a strong presence as a writer in the world of Dungeons & Dragons, and he has worked as both an editor and writer for numerous comic book titles. Lowder’s geek cred is solid gold and, in person, he’s an enthusiastic, intelligent, and warm individual. (Check out my interview with James Lowder at SDCC 2012 by clicking here!) He has also been the editor of the popular horror comic Hack/Slash for some time now, even having followed the book when it moved from Devil’s Due to Image. This week, Lowder finally tries his hand as Hack/Slash scribe, and the result is an entertaining, creepy, and fanboy-friendly edition of the beloved slasher comic.
Some graphic novels are beyond description. They simply must be experienced. Such books are a rarity, but they do exist. Kuzimu is one of these books. No matter how I describe it to you, to truly understand this insane, free-form, dream-like walk through the afterlife in graphic novel form, you simply must read it.
While the young adult genre has exploded in the last few years and broken boundaries regarding the intended readership, it’s still a rarity to find a young adult novel that appeals equally as well to teens and adults. Twilight, Harry Potter, and The Hunger Games have all successfully made this “leap,” and now a new competitor has entered the field in the form of author Ned Vizzini’s (Be More Chill, It’s Kind of a Funny Story) The Other Normals.
Calling all geeks! Calling all geeks! Fanboy Comics has another extremely worthy Kickstarter campaign that needs your help to reach its goal!
The Odds is a post-apocalyptic action-comedy novel and is described by its author as an “. . . extended ode to John Carpenter's Big Trouble in Little China and its redoubtable goofball hero, Jack Burton.”
The Odds is written by Robert J. Peterson (CC2K), who has appeared on numerous episodes of The Fanboy Scoop - Week in Review podcast. He’s a true geek’s geek, and we can’t wait to experience his epic sci-fi action-comedy!