BC Refugees Blog

                    BATMAN AND ROBIN #16 (DC, March 2013):  I’ve been reading here and there around the fringes of the “Death Of The Family” storyline and avoiding the main BATMAN title, preferring to read it in one fell swoop once the trade paperback is released.  Just because I’m curious I pick up a Bat-related title here and there and find most of them to be non-essential to the main story.  However, the BATMAN AND ROBIN “ Death Of The Family ” crossover stories are really good and feel directly linked into the main plot.  You’ve got to admire what scripter Peter Tomasi has done with the son of Batman.  He’s really developed Damian in a realistic fashion well beyond the original template by Grant Morrison, and probably created a warm spot in our hearts for what was originally set up to be a completely heartless character.  Issue #16 is a prime example....

          Since I’ve learned of the Indie Comics business model that shares printing costs while providing independent creators a showcase to a much larger audience, I’ve gained further appreciation for the titles released by small Aazurn Publishing .  I’ve had several email exchanges with editor/publisher Gary Scott Beatty and was given the opportunity to preview this latest endeavor, available now for pre-order through the February issue of PREVIEWS and Diamond Distribution: Indie Comics Magazine Presents Gary Scott Beatty’s TALES OF FEAR #1 ( Aazurn Publishing, Spring 2013, $4.75)  Story and Art: Gary Scott Beatty.  Suggested for Mature Readers.           Described by its’ creator as “classic horror modernized for today’s comic readers”, TALES OF FEAR is “six tales of dread that push the boundaries of good taste.”           “ TALES...

  ALL STAR WESTERN #16 (DC, March 2013): The mix-up between JONAH HEX and Mr. Hyde apparently concludes here, and it ends in style. The TOMAHAWK back-up feature also wraps up. If you want a nice short set to help you get a feel for what this title has to offer, pick up ALL STAR WESTERN #13, 14, 15, and 16. Mr. Hyde visits the Arkham estate, which sits high on a hill overlooking Gotham. He wants to check up on his efforts to transform Amadeus Arkham and/or kill him. Dr. Arkham is still in re-hab but Jonah Hex is there, wheelchair bound, sober and still recuperating under a nurse’s close supervision. He needs to fight dirty to get the upper hand on Hex. We also meet Amadeus’ mother, who is quite mad and living a fantasy life through classic novels. Hex shows a little compassion. The best thing about TOMAHAWK is the fabulous art and colors, as well as the great attention paid to historic details. Tomahawk has a final confrontation with the British Colonel Lancaster, who betrayed...

Superhero window cleaners cheer up children at Pittsburgh hospital   . . . . . as published in the Pittsburgh PA METRO NEWS free press . . . . . By Mark Molloy Wednesday 6 Feb 2013 12:37 pm   Grime fighters: The superhero window cleaners (Picture: Barcroft) After clearing the streets of crime, these kind-hearted superheroes decided to tackle the dirty windows of a US children’s hospital. Stunned patients at the Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh were treated to the unusual sight of Spider-Man and Captain America washing their windows. Batman and Superman also joined in the clean-up, with the grime fighters on a mission to brighten the day of children battling illnesses. Organizer Edward Matuizek, president of Allegheny Window Cleaning, said his superhero employees received a hero’s welcome from the surprised kids. The superhero window cleaners in action (Picture: Barcroft) ‘All the guys had tears of joy in their eyes behind the costumes – it was very touching and overw...

  The last five years have seen a renaissance in quality horror and dark fantasy entertainment in comics. That comes as a welcome respite from the avalanche of superhero titles that threaten to bury us under. (“Cut one head off, and several more shall take its’ place!”)  Those who are willing to do a little extra hunting and explore the darker corners of the comic book world shall be rewarded, as I was the day the DARK UNIVERSE entered my inbox. TALES FROM WILLIAM F. NOLAN’S DARK UNIVERSE #1 (Bluewater Productions) William F. Nolan & Jason Brock: writers.  Scott Boyce: Art, Halloween Man.  James Bolton: Art, Heart’s Blood.  Warren Montgomery, Letterer.  Mike Dorman, cover.  http://www.bluewaterprod.com/ That cover is so eye-catching!  It may just be the best “infinity” cover to drop in recent times, and is definitely award-worthy. The only audience member (matinee, perhaps?) of a spacious old-time movie theatre turns his back and flees after...

from the official press release . . . . . The Ghastly Award Judges are proud to announce the Winners of the 2012 Ghastly Awards.  Nominees were chosen from entries nominated by their professional peers: Comic Book Artists, Writers, and Publishers.   Winners were chosen by the Ghastly Awards Judges, Comic Book Creators and the Fans. The 2012 Winners are: Best Ongoing Title:      The Walking Dead (Image) Best Mini-Series:     Deadworld: War of the Dead (IDW) Best One-Shot:     Edgar Allan Poe’s The Conqueror Worm (Dark Horse) Best New Series ( Fans Decided the Winner ):     Mars Attacks (IDW) Best Anthology:     Creepy (Dark Horse) Best OGN:     Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse Book 1 (Heavy Metal) Best Archival Collection:      The Chilling Archives of Horror Comics: Zombies (IDW/Yoe Books) Best Writer:  ...

The new VALIANT books are all worthwhile, combining engaging story and intriguing art. The best of the bunch is HARBINGER , which recently supplanted X-O MANOWAR as my favorite of the new titles based on recent issues. Get them both - - but if you’re on a tight budget then pick up HARBINGER . Issue #0 , which drops in comics stores today (2/06)  is a great starting point.  Just in case you’re not a regular reader of this website, HARBINGER was named my PGHHEAD PICK FOR THE BEST REBOOT OF 2012 and you can read more about the first story arc in our Blog Archive for January 8, 2013. HARBINGER is a thoroughly entertaining look at the seemingly unlimited power of the mind as exhibited by various characters and epitomized by the two main protagonists - - the wealthy “humanitarian” Toyo Harada and Peter Stanchek the extremely powerful but uncontrollable rebellious student who didn’t last long before breaking out of Harada’s school for mentally gifted.  They are two defined...

                                          GARTH ENNIS TALKS ABOUT HIS RETURN TO HORROR WITH CROSSED: BADLANDS #25 Although every title they publish is available in several variant covers, AVATAR PRESS does not ordinarily conduct big promotional campaigns or create huge crossover events to promote their books - - with one exception (C-Day).  While my first love is comics, I also have an interest in the marketing side of this business =  so I’ll share some of the information I obtained with our readers.  This article was assembled from the AVATAR   official press release, a Garth Ennis interview at BLEEDING COOL website, and WIKIPEDIA.     The Second Annual C-Day this March will do more than just celebrate a year of publishing two issues of Crossed: Badl...

  Courtesy of Avatar Press , here are some previews of the first four pages  (just art by Raulo Caceres, no lettering completed yet) of CROSSED: BADLANDS #25 coming out this March.               If this lovely depiction of some scenes from Britain’s military history doesn’t whet your appetitive for this book, then how about this?  CROSSED: BADLANDS #25 begins a new story arc written by CROSSED creator Garth Ennis , and marks his first return to the title since the original creation of the series. I can’t wait to read the book and see how Ennis ties these scenes into the main story.  Look to this website in the coming days for more details and insights into this “ C-Day” event.          

  WIZZYWIG: PORTRAIT OF A SERIAL HACKER (Top Shelf, 2012 $19.95 hardcover 296 pages, black & white) Written and illustrated by Ed Piskor What began as a serialized web comic has been revised (and in some cases, redrawn) and re-packaged in a new 2012 hardcover edition of the high quality that we’ve come to expect from the folks at Top Shelf Comix . It also earns my vote for a 2012 PGHHEAD PICK as “Best Indie Book” of the year. During his years of collaboration with Clevelander Harvey Pekar on AMERICAN SPLENDOR comics and THE BEATS and MACEDONIA graphic novels, Pittsburgh cartoonist Ed Piskor developed an interest in phone phreaking and computer hacking. Based on his extensive research, he created a character, Kevin “Boingthump” Phenicle, who was a composite of several hackers that Piskor learned about or interviewed. He chronicled his adventures and faux biography in the original mini-comic called The WYSIWYG Technical Pamphlet , with the acronym standing for “What You Se...

  ALL STAR WESTERN #13, 14, 15 (DC): I picked this up because of the TOMAHAWK back-up feature that begins in Issue #13, but ended up appreciating the JONAH HEX main feature much more. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde sail to the Americas, and mayhem ensues. Dr. Jekyll’s formula is stolen and mistakenly sold through a carnival barker, as the major populace gets transformed into a raging crowd with a severe mad-on. In issue #13 the carnival clown embraces the dark side and has to be put down by Hex and hanger-on one-eyed Tallulah Black along with Dr. Arkham. There is a side plot involving the Golden Dragons and the Barbary Ghost, who proves much more interesting in this story than she did in her bland spotlight back-up feature many issues ago. In Issue #14 Dr. Arkham is induced to drink some of the formula and begins acting peculiar and very out of character. The massive Mr. Hyde escapes and Hex begins to track him down, now minus Miss Black who left with the Barbary Ghost with the promis...

  TODD, THE UGLIEST KID ON EARTH #1 of 4 (Image, January 2013) Story by Perker & Kristensen.  Written by Ken Kristensen.  Art & Cover by M. K. Perker.  Colors by Cemal Soyleyen. Letters & Logo by M. K. Perker.    There’s been a bit of advance press about this book.  Sometimes that makes the critics a little skeptical.  I was fortunate enough to get an advance preview of Issue #1, so I could judge for myself.  This book may just live up to expectations.  It’s funny and deliberately so, in a time when many books that attempt to be humorous end up failing to even make me smile.  TODD coaxed several chuckles out of me. TODD, THE UGLIEST KID ON EARTH is irreverent and satirical, poking fun at suburban life in the United States, parenting, and social mores, among other things.  Would you buy a comic book version of the SOUTH PARK cartoon series?  This isn’t it - - but it’s the closest thing you can find in a c...