Either way, it’s great to see Peter David on another high profile book. Look for it on July 22, 2009.

Here’s the synopsis:
When the colony planet Ariel sends out a mysterious distress signal, it’s up to the UNSC’s elite, highly skilled special-ops Marines, the Orbital Drop Shock Troopers from the 105th, to find out what’s happening. Also known as ODSTs or “Helljumpers”, these soldiers are some of the toughest in the galaxy and some of the roughest as well. When the distress signal comes, two Helljumpers will find themselves at the center of the mystery on Ariel, and before it’s solved, they’ll have to put their friendship and their lives on the line. $3.99

And I’m kind of one of them.

I’ve sort of lost my day job recently, you see, and not a week goes by that I’m not hurting for money in some way. But the night before last I found myself, again, leaning over the counter of VGNY (www.videogamesnewyork.com) in the East Village, trying to decide just what game to buy with the extra cash I somehow managed to scrape together this week. Man, it was a sad moment. I felt like a crack addict. Hell, video games are starting to reach crack prices. You’ve got to understand how long I stood there quizzing Dan and Jen of VGNY, on every new game, dozens of customers managing to come in, do their business, and leave the store again, in the time I spent grilling the back of every game box I could get my hands on. Did I mention my girlfriend was with me the whole time? Brilliant date-night – dinner, a walk around the city, and an hour of me complaining about not knowing which game to buy (with money I should be using to pay the electric bill). Thank god she’s a gamer herself, or I’m sure she’d have left me ages ago. I can only imaging how dealing with my vinyl addiction (records, not toys, although you better believe I sink some money into vinyl toys as well) already tests her patience, but throwing in video games too? There’s only so much geekery any woman can reasonable be expected to put up with.

Anyway, after spending the better part of an hour wallowing in indecisiveness in my favorite underground NYC game shop, I settled on Dark Sector. Dan, from VGNY, gave it his recommendation, and after so much Lost Odyssey last month, I guess my desire to kill monsters in brutal and increasingly inventive ways, was reignited. Maybe that’s why the video game industry weathers recessions so well – even when times are tough, or especially when they’re tough, people never loose the desire to vent their frustrations by, say, throwing a razor-blade boomerang through a renegade Soviet soldier’s head.

So I bought a full-priced game, a rarity for me (if any of you have seen my GamerTag – “Dylan Garret” – I’ll have you know any new games I’ve played have been generously donated by the aforementioned girlfriend). And it’s not bad, Dark Sector. It did the trick, giving me some shit to kill while not thinking about rent or how I really need new work.

Here’s where I tell you what Dark Sector plays like, although I’m going to keep it short, because I have the feeling you’ve heard this before. It’s an over-the-shoulder shooter, the kind where you hold the left trigger to zoom in and the right trigger to shoot, where you have to utilize cover to keep from getting killed, and develop some super-human powers to aid in your killing (and to differentiate the game from whatever other third-person, over-the-shoulder shooter you’ve been playing this month). Oh, and you can also buy and upgrade weapons at “black market” shops throughout the game to beef up your guns in addition to your naturally-developing sci-fi powers.

If you said, “Hey, that sounds like Gears Of War!” you’d probably be a bit right. If you thought it sounded a bit like Mass Effect’s battle system and biotic powers, minus the intense RPG elements and coherent storyline, you’d also be right. If you think it sounds like… you know what, whatever game you’re thinking of, I can tell you, you’re probably right. And if you already know the type of game, we can skip the boring exposition and get on to whether or not it’s worth spending any part of your upcoming governmental Economic Stimulus Check on.

There’s something I used to say in music reviews, about what I was looking for in a new album. I’d say that I think a musician should either try to do something original, or try to do something better than it’s been done before. I suppose the same could be said about video games. Dark Sector definitely falls into the latter category. There’s nothing strikingly original about its gameplay, but it does have the balls to think it’s doing the over-the-shoulder shooter genre better than its competitors.

Whether or not it does is up to you. Personally, I think it tries hard enough to count. After finishing the game tonight, I’m not sure if I’m dying to start up another play-through in “Brutal” mode, but I’ve certainly enjoyed the past 10 hours of slicing shit up nice. And let me say, while I’m sure the main comparison made to Dark Sector will be Gears Of War, the holy grail of 360 third-person shooters, I really preferred Dark Sector more.

I’ll give you a moment to collect your hate.

Hey, I’m not going to bullshit you. Gears was okay fun, but maybe because I didn’t pick it up myself until after Halo 3 and a price drop came out, it didn’t revolutionize my world or anything. To tell you the truth, I still haven’t beaten it. Not a bad game, but I just got kind of bored during it and decided to play Dead Rising again. So when I say I liked Dark Sector more than Gears, you’ve got to understand it’s coming from someone who was never that devoted to Gears in the first place.

I guess I just like the pacing in Dark Sector more. The story itself isn’t anything special. The short of it is, there’s some kind of terrible infection going around some fictional former Soviet state, and your bad-ass CIA operative character with a shady past gets infected in the first mission. Unlike the other poor saps who become completely infected and turn into crazed, boil-covered monsters, you were lucky enough to only be wounded in your right arm, granting one of your limbs crazy super powers and a razor-sharp boomerang, while saving your mind from indoctrination (though still leaving you with what appears to be a really bad hangover).

And that’s the gimmick. The infection develops over time, hardening the skin, and granting powers to the infected. This leads to some cool pacing, where early stages of the game feature your arm, boil-covered and fairly useless, battling against fleshy zombies that can be killed in one hit, and are much less of a liability than the renegade Soviet hazmat soldiers chasing you. As the game progresses, the skin on your arm hardens into something sleek and superhero-like in its power and visual appeal, while the infected enemies also develop from weak zombies into walking tanks with powers equal to your own. It keeps you playing. The game will start to get tough, then an evolution of your own powers gives you some skill that enables you to decimate a room full of enemies without so much as messing up a single strand of your indie-chic hair-do, then slowly gets harder again until reaching a point where you don’t know how you’re going to keep playing, when another power-up hits you and you’re back to badass. The timing is just right.

And the powers are nice too. They’re fun, simply put. The glaive, your razor-boomerang, is fairly useless to start, hard to aim, and weaker than two pistol shots to the head. You’re likely (no pun intended) to stick to your guns early on. Once you develop the ability to use After Touch (slowing down Matrix-like after throwing the glaive, and being able to control its flight with the right analog stick to navigate around corners and enemy cover for the picture-perfect decapitation), the glaive becomes more and more handy. Other powers include shields, invisibility, energy bursts, and increased damage. Soon you might fight entire levels without a bullet fired, preferring you take down your enemies with a little more style using only the glaive. There’s even an Achievement for it.

And yes, I’m well aware that it’s a gimmick. All these games have to have one. You know, something cool to put on the back of the box and make the game seem different from all the other games like it (and believe me, I looked at the backs of many boxes in that game store the other night). But this one works really well. I mean, it worked well enough to keep me playing, and finishing the game in a couple of days, while Marcus Fenix is still sitting in suspended animation somewhere on a middle-chapter save-file in Gears Of War.

I guess the final verdict is, if you’re as poor as me, you aren’t missing out on any new revelations in gaming by holding off until a price drop or some more expendable income. Dark Sector is one of those games where you’ll play through its 10 hour story, maybe rock a few online matches with your friends, then probably shelve for a while (until, one random day, you remember how fun it is to navigate the glaive through a tight hole in a fence and cut a bad guy standing beyond in half, and decide to put the game back in for another run). If you’re not like me, and don’t need to agonize over which game to pick-up for fear of how long it’ll be until you can afford a new one, definitely give Dark Sector a shot.

Available for 800 Microsoft Points exclusively on Xbox LIVE Marketplace, each map offers a unique experience. Standoff’s symmetrical valley, with its entrenched bases and fields of boulders is ideal for mid-sized objective and Slayer game types, while Rat’s Nest’s vast, labyrinthine passages bring something new to the “Halo” multiplayer experience: an indoor vehicle paradise, strongly influenced by the Campaign mode, ideal for big team battles. Finally, Foundry is the ultimate Forge map – players can edit every single object in this voluminous industrial warehouse, place stairways, walls, bridges and tunnels to create an entirely new play space and build almost any kind of map they can think of.

As if the legions of “Halo 3″ players needed more reasons to stay logged on to Xbox LIVE and fragging, Forge also allows players to edit and customize all three maps, keeping “Halo 3’s” multiplayer experience fresh, exciting and evolving. In addition, ongoing updates to “Halo 3’s” matchmaking playlists ensure that ranked and social gameplay remains dynamic and competitive.

The maps of the Heroic Pack are available in matchmaking today to those who have purchased the download. All three maps will become available as a free download via Xbox LIVE Marketplace in Spring 2008, just prior to the next wave of all new “Halo 3” multiplayer maps.

Platform: Xbox 360
Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios
Developer: Bungie

The third time is the damn charm. Let’s cut to the chase right off the bat and skip the beating around the bush part. Halo 3 is superior to its predecessor in just about every way. Indeed this game was hyped up like no other and indeed it is expected to be a record setter for multimedia sales, but we can honestly say that for once the title lives up to the hype. Not many stories maintain any momentum by the third installment and even fewer end in a fashion that meets the expectations of its followers but Halo actually seems to step up a notch this time around.

Halo 3 begins where the second left off with the Master Chief crash landing to be recovered by a squad of marines and the Arbiter. After that warm welcome between the Master Chief and the Arbiter, the action immediately starts and doesn’t ever let up.

The first thing you’ll probably notice is just how vast a difference there is between the visuals of Halo 2 and the latest installment of the series. This game really shines on a high definition TV with a smooth and seamless framerate and after countless hours of play not one slow down occurred. Without ruining the story, we’ll just mention that you’ll visit some areas that look very similar to some of the locations in the first Halo. The difference in the visuals is staggering. There is still a beautiful contrast between the natural environments, drab indoor areas, the colorful aliens and bright projectiles that always seem to be on screen. Is this the prettiest game on 360 so far? Probably not though some fanboys may disagree. However the polish is top notch, the levels never look or feel barren even when in the wide open, and they never seem to feel repetitive. There are so many minuscule details that are added to every environment that it keeps things feeling lush and lively at all times. Another reason things never seem barren is because there is so much going on at once most of the time as areas seem to fill with wreckage from downed vehicles and newly created cover.

Halo 3 makes you feel like Master Chief really is a one man wrecking crew. As opposed to let�s say the Call of Duty series where you often felt like you were just trying to survive, in Halo 3 it’s obvious that Master Chief turns the tides of the battle everywhere he goes. With the AI obviously stepped up this works like a charm. Allies behave like allies should (although the Arbiter seems to swing from worthless to badass in zero seconds flat) and enemies apparently hold their lives with a lot more value than they did in Halo 2. More often enemies will choose to take cover and recharge their own shields versus going for the finishing blow. Take out your first scarab and you�ll know just how empowering it feels to be the chief.

But what would the Master Chief be without his marines? The answer is on co-op, because the biggest addition in Halo 3 is perhaps the online cooperative play. This finally allows you to enjoy the whole TV screen while playing with someone thousands of miles away to progress through the campaign on Legendary. The beauty is that the game is still a challenge even with human backup and at times strategy is essential to success. One strategy that seems to work well is one player carrying energy draining weapons and the other direct projectiles to finish enemies off. People familiar with the Halo series will instantly be comfortable with the multiplayer with the main differences in strategy arising from the new weapons and items. For instance, a well placed shield can completely nullify a snipers stranglehold on one side of the map while a grav lift can lead to a round winning sneak attack. Your creativity is really the only limit here because if it sounds possible it probably is.

Especially neat this time around is the new Forge mode of gameplay that allows for customization of the objects in a map to change the strategy of it. Forge allows you and up to eight other players to edit maps by changing spawn points and weapon locations, as well as placing vehicles and moving terrain objects. You can even do things like flip vehicles over and rotate spawn points. Once finished you can save your edited map and load it to play on Xbox Live against friends or foes.

Another interesting addition is the ability to record your gameplay into videos that you can share so that you can actually prove how amazing you really are at the game. The free roaming camera views are truly impressive to behold.

Halo 3 is all in all an impressive experience. There isn’t anything bad that we can really say about the game, it’s exactly what we expected and little bit more. What you get is more than enough to satisfy and many will be replaying the game on different difficulties with the online co-op now available. With enough plot twists to cause neck pain, you probably won’t be putting Halo 3 down for a while.

Three years in the making by renowned developer Bungie Studios, ‘Halo 3′ is now finished and will begin its journey to store shelves around the world in less than four weeks. ‘Halo 3,’ which has already set new records as the fastest preordered game in history, has exceeded one million presales in North America alone. The title is set to shatter day-one entertainment sales records when it is released worldwide beginning Tuesday, Sept. 25.

‘This is a huge milestone for us and a big cause for celebration at Bungie and Microsoft Game Studios,’ said Harold Ryan, Studio Head at Bungie Studios. ‘This is the game we’ve always wanted to make and certainly the best game our studio has developed. We can’t wait for gamers to get their hands on it on Sept. 25.’

Created by legendary developer Bungie Studios and exclusive to the Xbox 360′ video game and entertainment system, ‘Halo 3′ will set a new standard for interactive storytelling and social gaming by engaging consumers worldwide in Master Chief’s epic battle to save humankind. In November 2004, the world’s view of video games changed forever with the release of ‘Halo 2,’ which generated a record-setting $125 million (U.S.) in sales within the first 24 hours and changed the way people think about interactive entertainment. Three years later, it remains the most-played game on Microsoft’s Xbox LIVE’ online gaming and entertainment network, with nearly 1 billion hours of online gaming logged to date.

“Comics like this are important,” gushed Brendan McGuirk of PopCultureShock.Com. “This issue is an accomplishment. The insanely talented creative team of Bendis and Maleev deliver a thoughtful, beautiful, action-driven story for hardcore Halo fans and n00bs alike.”

Halo: Uprising has also received heavy mainstream media coverage from the following outlets:

MSN— http://halo.msn.com/articles.aspx?cp-documentid=5336924

IGN— http://comics.ign.com/articles/814/814538p1.html

GAME SPOT– http://www.gamespot.com/news/6176589.html

And you can’t miss Marvel Spotlight: Halo, in stores this week and offering fans a special behind the scenes look at this groundbreaking limited series. With the quick sell out of the first issue and continued mainstream demand for Halo: Uprising, Marvel urges retailers to check their orders for upcoming issues of the series. As the Covenant’s quest for the Key continues, the Master Chief must find a way to stop his enemies from gaining the ultimate power…but that’s not going to be easy while he’s a prisoner of the Covenant!

HALO: UPRISING #1 (of 4) SECOND PRINTING SKETCH VARIANT (JUL078095)
Written by BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS
Pencils and Cover by ALEX MALEEV
17 and Up/$3.99
FOC—9/06/07, On-Sale—9/26/07

HALO: UPRISING #2 (of 4) (JUN072119)
Written by BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS
Pencils and Cover by ALEX MALEEV
17 and Up/$3.99
FOC—9/06/07, On-Sale—9/26/07

MARVEL SPOTLIGHT: HALO (JUN072120)
Written by JOHN RHETT THOMAS
17 and Up…$2.99
On-Sale—8/29/07

“My reaction is: yay!” exclaimed Brian Bendis when told of the sell-out. “I’m so, so happy for Alex Maleev and Matt Hollingsworth who poured every ounce of energy into this book that any comic fan could hope to get from their favorite artists. And our editor Ruwan who made all this happen on numerous levels! Issue two is even better—and that’s a promise.”

Now that the Covenant have arrived on Earth, it’s up to the Master Chief to find a way to stop them—if they don’t find the Key first! Don’t miss Halo: Uprising #2 (of 4), continuing this red-hot limited series and deciding the fate of planet Earth! And for an exclusive behind the scenes look at this landmark series, don’t miss Marvel Spotlight: Halo!

Please note that Marvel may go back to press on Halo: Uprising #1.

HALO: UPRISING #2 (of 4) (JUN072119)
Written by BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS
Pencils and Cover by ALEX MALEEV
17 and Up/$3.99
FOC—9/06/07, On-Sale—9/26/07

MARVEL SPOTLIGHT: HALO (JUN072120)
Written by JOHN RHETT THOMAS
17 and Up…$2.99
On-Sale—8/29/07

Battlestar Galactica: Season Zero #1

Adan: This new Battlestar series that takes place before the Cylons attacked the Twelve Colonies feels like a harder edged Star Trek: The Original Series, and not in a good way..

There seem to be three different time periods vying for attention, and while one obviously happens before another, I’m not sure where the third one fits in. Storyline one is Adama and Tigh on the Galactica as Adama goes on a planet mission (thereby invoking TOS) to rescue his previous Commander, Julian Dimarco. Then we get a flashback to when Adama was serving under Dimarco as they did some black ops stuff out on the edge of Colonial space. There is third time period in which Tigh and Adama are with their wives and talking about how they’re done with black ops stuff, but I can’t figure out where that takes place.

But even if I wasn’t having temporal issues, this book still feels like Galactica-lite. Brandon Jerwa just doesn’t give it the same resonance that the show has (which isn’t that big a surprise, but still), and I’m not entirely sure that this book is even an adequate placeholder while the show is on hiatus (until 2008! why!?) Jackson Herbert’s pencils over Stephen Segovia’s layouts make it very difficult to figure out who is who, but colorist Adriano Lucas may be equally at fault, as everything is murky and indecipherable, especially on the planetside story and its accompanying flashback.

The regular Battlestar Galactica series by Dynamite hasn’t exactly wowed me, but it’s still much better than this. If you’re a hardcore fan, you’re not going to be able to help yourself, but everybody else: you can skip this. Just wait a little longer.

Brendan: This was very forgettable. I can’t even pretend to have a lot to say. The art was less than impressive, and the storyline was too scattered. I had a hard time telling one character apart from another, which is always a sign of doom. The action lacked, and the characters didn’t look or sound distinct enough to create any real drama. I sort of dig this show, but not enough to want to follow this obscure book.

Comic Foundry Magazine #1

Adan: Here is the new comics magazine that purports to be the happy medium between Wizard and The Comics Journal. So, is it any good?

Short answer: Yes. Long answer: Yes and here’s why.

I got this magazine back when Editor-in-chief Tim Leong and my sister/erstwhile partner-in-reviewing Laura Hudson debuted it at the San Diego Comic-Con. They were obviously really excited about it, and when I bought it, I could only think, “I hope this doesn’t suck.” The next day, as I was waiting in line for a Warren Ellis signing, I read the magazine cover to cover. It is important to note two things here: I had a bunch of other comics in my bag (as well as a copy of Douglas Wolk’s excellent Reading Comics) and I hadn’t read a magazine cover to cover since the Wizard: X-men Special back when Grant Morrison was about to start New X-men. That right there is a huge endorsement.

As for the claim that Comic Foundry is a happy medium between Wizard and The Comics Journal? Well, it is and it isn’t. It certainly covers both mainstream comics and indy comics (though I think this issue skewed more toward the indy side), it doesn’t come off as either fratboyish (like Wizard) or snooty (like TCJ), but it also does some things neither magazine does, and that’s the Life+Style section that EIC Tim touts so much. Where else can you learn to Rasterbate, have Kieron Gillen teach you how to fake taste in music, have Matt Fraction teach you how to make love to Kieron Gillen, and learn Michel Kupperman’s favorite jokes? On top of that you get an interview with two of my favorite people: Kristen “Veronica Mars” Bell and Bryan Lee “Scott Pilgrim” O’Malley.

I know what you’re thinking: “Of course you love it, your sister’s writing for the magazine. You have to like it.” Untrue, dear reader. I don’t have to like shit (I didn’t even mention the two great articles she has in here). I like this magazine because it’s good, and I do have some problems with it. Two, to be exact: one, the Costume section of the magazine could really have used some color, especially the bit on the Voltron shoes (which one’s the green lion?); and two, the copy editing is really not good. I will let the copy editing slide for two reasons: it’s their first issue and they’ll fix it (and they will fix it) and my own copy editing is quite atrocious, so I really have no leg to stand on.

Final word: it’s good. Go buy it already, my sister writes for this thing, dammit!

Brendan: Who is this “Laura Hudson,” and what does she think she’s doing “writing?”

This was a very strong launch issue for the magazine that seeks to fill the void between Wizard‘s thinly veiled infomercial approach and The Comic Journal‘s “Everything you like is wrong, books haven’t been good in twenty years,” insular approach. Foundry takes a lot of different risks in regards to content, with features on comics-influenced adult beverages, LAAPPAS alum’s article “Sex and the Superhero,” (hey, I hear that stuff sells), and Matt Fraction’s tutorial on how to bag the dude that writes Phonogram. There is more traditional fare also, like the ever important “Now we interview a blonde,” article, this time concentrating on Veronica Mars‘ Kristen Bell, but even this seems thought-out and worthwhile. I thought there were issues with the structure of the magazine. The heavier content was weighted towards the back, and the “Life+Style” section could have been pushed further towards the end, if not shortened. These things will happen with a launch issue, though, and are hardly big enough hiccups to worry. The short story is a refreshing addition, and the piece on “The Judas Contract,” gives a sense of history and credibility.

There is tremendous potential in this mag. It feels like a regular, newsstand magazine, which is an accomplishment. The fashion section is original and ambitious, recreating some familiar pages with trendy new digs, and the interviews, notably the final piece with Scott Pilgrim‘s Bryan Lee O’Malley, are honest and fully realized.

And c’mon, it’s one cent cheaper than Wizard. At the very least, you gotta try it out.

Halo Uprising #1

Brendan: Comics like this are important. Books like this, Dark Tower and Buffy offer the unique opportunity to actively grow the comic book market. This book will be actively sought out by a crowd that may not be aware that books are released on Wednesday, or of who Brian Bendis is. This is a rare chance to grab someone who doesn’t care, and turn him or her into a reader.

That said, this issue is an accomplishment. The insanely talented creative team of Bendis and Maleev deliver a thoughtful, beautiful, action-driven story for hardcore Halo fans and n00bs alike. Matt Hollingsworth’s disturbing but consistent colors are hugely effective in solidifying the Halo world and look, while Chris Eliopoulos proves to be more than the guy that makes the Franklin Richards books go, and provides pitch perfect lettering.

The opening six page scene lays low any fear that this series would be the typical, dialogue driven storytelling that Bendis is loved and loathed for. This book is about fucking shit up. By the fourth page’s third panel we are reminded of why we’re reading this book, with a subtle “first person shooter cam” shot. The inclusion of Cleveland, Bendis’ hometown, feels like an ego-stroke, but is forgivable in that it is always refreshing to see somewhere other than New York or L.A. demolished. While the Master Chief story is obviously the driving force for this book, the common man storyline gives a much needed grounding to the world of Halo, and proves to interesting in its own right.

Licensed books, be they Halo, or the Transformers, GI Joe, and Star Wars books of yesteryear, are what get people into comics. While the comic inspired-movie boom has helped grant some mainstream credibility to the world of comics (read: money buys respect), the fact is that people who see the Spider-man movies tend to like the Spider-man movies. It doesn’t necessarily follow that they pursue the books. But, if you have an audience that clamors for more substance from their obsession of choice, (looking at you Buffy fans), then they will follow regardless of medium. They say comics can’t compete with video games. Maybe they can’t, but they can sure as hell help each other.

Adan: I don’t know about being an “accomplishment” or even “grow[ing] the comic book market,” but it was enjoyable, in a weird, awful watching-someone-else-masturbate kind of way.

Yes, Master Chief doesn’t say a single word (for two four-page stints, some kind of record for Bendis), but the hotel concierge guy who is in Cleveland when the Covenant attack is really just a better-looking, Indian Bendis. His mouth is potty and his mannerisms are that of a short, troll-looking mother, but the dude’s hawt. Which segues nicely into how awesome Maleev is. I think he could draw Brendan’s face and make it look good, that’s how good he is.

This book is kind of ridiculous, but Halo fans will buy it because whatever. That’ll probably the only thing they buy, but even only one Halo guy picks up a Daredevil trade, I guess it will have been worth it.

Mouse Guard: Winter 1152 #1

Brendan: I’ll be honest- the first volume of Mouse Guard didn’t blow me away the way it did some others. I thought it was solid and beautifully drawn, but the story felt a bit stretched. There were points of confusion in the storytelling, and at times it was hard to tell characters apart. Of course, I still think it deserved an Eisner and was eagerly awaiting the beginning of the second volume. I was pleased to see that David Petersen continued to evolve and improve with his work. The art continued to provide stunning portrayals of animal life while still giving insight into the characters and their world. I think Petersen has become more comfortable with his pacing, and has managed to find a story that suits the season in which it is set. These dudes are little heroes, and everyone should pay attention.

Plus, you get a bonus Geof Darrow pin-up.

Adan: More awesome mousy action from Eisner-winning David Petersen. It’s winter now, and Midnight’s attack in the fall has left the Guard with little food and medicine. The Guard Mice have to travel to the nearby cities and basically beg for food, medicine, and continued support of the Guard. It’s a hard life, being a Guard Mouse. It’s even harder trying to read Gwendolyn’s script. Good God, could you have chosen a more difficlut script. I mean thanks for not using Wingdings, but man.

Regardless, I love this book. I loved it the first time, and I’m gonna love it this time.

Also, I love Saxon.

Order of the Stick vol. -1: Start of Darkness TP

Adan: Another black and white prequel for Rich Burlew’s Dungeons & Dragons-themed online comic Order of the Stick, which is just as hilarious as his strip.

Where the last prequel focused on the heroes, this one focuses on the villains of the tale, Xykon the Lich and Redcloak, his goblin cleric. In his introduction, Burlew says that it is difficult to write a story where the villain is the main character without making him sympathetic. Fear not, for Xykon is an evil, evil jerk who can elicit no sympathy from anybody. Burlew does a good job of fleshing out Xykon’s character without giving him some kind of tortured past to explain away all his nefarious deeds. Xykon’s just an evil dick.

Redcloak, on the other hand… Well, you should read it.

Burlew packs this volume with a bunch of comics in-jokes, from a magical X-men team, to a slightly funnier rendition of that fateful night of Dick Grayson’s. Even with all the evil and smiting, Burlew makes sure you can yuk it up.

Like in his last prequel, Burlew chooses to tone the bulk of the story in grayscale and not add in color. While I can understand that printing costs would be much, much higher, Burlew’s stick figure representations of all that is Dungeons & Dragons look a lot better in color.

Regardless, I will be adding this to my collection because I do love OotS very much, and even though Burlew says you don’t need to read this book to follow the main story arc in his online strips, fans should still check it out. And if you’re not already a fan of OotS, then by all means, start now.

Brendan: What if Bone spent most of its energy making D&D jokes with Microsoft Paint graphics? It turns out, you’d have a lot of fun, and it would be a lot like this. This story was surprisingly serialized, with a plot that managed to move forward. It was generally funny, even to a reader not immersed in a “Vitality +9″ lifestyle. The balloon layout was confusing at points, and the page size was jarring. The best sequences were rendered in perfect Crayola bit graphics that accidentally carry into the main story. Oh, and cockroaches can breach the fourth wall, much how they can breach any other wall. I would probably not buy this without first being a fan of the web-work, but this does make the web publication more enticing and is a fine volume unto itself.

Stormbringers #1

Adan: First off, “womb energy?” Seriously?

Second off, five thousand women have been murdered and the cops have no leads? That there is the worst police force in the history of ever.

But back to the womb energy: apparently, there are women in the city of New Frontier (I think Darwyn Cooke and Peter David live there) who have manifested superpowers, “pregnant with … inexhaustible sums of energy.” This womb energy allows them to shoot laser beams, or run fast, or be an honest-to-God angel, apparently. Also, there are men who don’t have powers per se, but by exerting their wills real hard, they can be more than normal men. This isn’t the most ridiculous premise in the world, but it comes close. It’s not helped by the fact that the entire issue is exposition, and clunky exposition at that.

John Stinsman’s art is serviceable, but not great. Some of his forms are a little off, but overall okay. I really have beef with the colorist Megan Spence. She puts too much shadow on everything, even when it’s light out or people are in an office building with plenty of light. The area under someone’s chin should not be that dark in an office.

Also, I’m all for diversity, but making everyone in this book black is not diversity. I guess it’s possible that some of these people are Hispanic or something, but man, there’s like three pale-skinned people. Whatever, it’s not really a complaint; more of an observation.

The premise is too ridiculous to not keep reading this book, but it’s definitely not worth five bucks.

Brendan: This book sort of floored me. I thought the packaging was disappointing, and entered with low expectations. All of a sudden, there was womb energy and an Ultimate Nick Fury, modern Luke Cage, and Shaft 2000-era Sam Jackson protagonist. Oh, and after a passable first four pages artist John Stinsman leaps from passable to fucking superstar. It helps that his character work seems to echo that of Mike Mckone, an all time favorite of mine, but what Stinsman achieves is much more. His storytelling is fluid and natural. He is as good looking on the close shots as the full ones. His action is as visually interesting as his character interaction. Best of all, his inking is perfectly saturated to tell the story at hand. Usually, the best way to tell if an artist is ready for prime-time is to see how consistent their work is from page one to twenty-two. People inevitably mail it in on scenes they don’t love, and the result is so uneven an audience will tune out or put the book back down. I think his cover was a bad representation of his skill, and that he turned a corner during this project.

The story was incredibly charged and ambitious. The characters were well-written enough to keep me interested in turning the page. I worry that the allegory here may be laid on a bit thick but didn’t stray too close to feel like a book with an agenda. I don’t mind not seeing many light skinned folk in this book, because there are plenty of comics with exclusively light skinned casts. This book was a real surprise, and well worth hopping onboard early.

Adan: But why can’t I see anybody’s neck!? Even in a brightly lit room, that also has a huge window that lets in natural light, I can’t see people’s necks ‘cause there’s so much shadow. Did Stinsman just spill a bottle of ink or something?

Brendan: Necks are no longer necessary. They have been sacrificed in the name of mood.

Superman #666

Brendan: Welcome back to Superman‘s issue 666 Satanniversary, (the joke so nice I used it twice). Regular series writer Kurt Busiek teams with industry legend Walt Simonson to bring this tale of a Superman gone wrong. Simonson’s powerful portrayal of Krypton’s Last Son is a treat, but the meticulous hand lettering of John Workman is a huge standout. You will never enjoy a good “THOOM” as much as one by John Workman. Simonson’s Superman, like that of fabled studio-mate Howard Chaykin, is not always “pretty.” The line work may be jarring to readers with modern sensibilities, but the strength of the work lies in its ability to convey the emotional beats of the story. The composition and style is perfectly realized. There is real power in this Superman, and it feels a great deal like I imagine a Jack Kirby Superman story would feel.

The plot itself is an eerie negative to Kurt Busiek’s Astro City story, wherein the Superman analog, Samaritan, dreams about his freedom to fly without responsibility. Here, Superman acts without the burden of responsibility he must shoulder, and the results are frightening. The story itself reads like a dream, with jumps in logic and time, but an internal consistency to make it feel real. I thought this story employed interesting narrative tricks, as well as a neat twist to Kryptonian mythology. Timeless and original, this was maybe one of my all-time favorite Superman stories.

Adan: Of all-time? Lay off the hyperbole, buddy. I’m not saying you didn’t enjoy it, but all-time? C’mon now.

I didn’t like this issue at all. The story was forced and contrived, the art was dense and hard to parse, and the damn book cost $3.99, a full dollar more than a regular (and usually better) issue of Superman. I’m not gonna pay $3.99 for some story about a Kryptonian demon (who didn’t exist before this issue, by the way) who tries to take Superman’s soul and make him into the Beast of Revelation. It’s quite silly and I’m not down at all.

Tales from the Crypt #2

Brendan: Is the classic Tales from the Crypt cover layout simply the best layout because of the baggage it brings? I think it may be more; I think the composition of it may be the pinnacle of the standard sized comic. Or maybe I just think gross looking shit is cool.

This book is dedicated to all the right people, and I think it is great to have this title back in print. Imagine a world where Tales from the Crypt went on unimpeded. Why, it would be somewhere in the seven hundreds, had it stayed in print. It could have rivaled 2000 A.D. as a proving grounds for comics’ best talent. Who knows, maybe some of comics’ most accomplished writers would have been American!

This first of this book’s two tales of horror is the story of the landlord from Hell, or rather the landlord put through Hell. Although this is a Crypt revival, The Tenant is a full on Spirit homage. Everything from the street names, Iger, of Eisner and Iger Studios, and Colt of the Spirit’s alter-ego, Denny Colt, is in honor of the man who brought literature to comics. Even the headstone at the story’s finale gives the gag away with the name “Willis Rensie,” Eisner’s one-time pseudonym. The story echoes the parable-like nature of Eisner’s classic Spirit stories with a morale of social responsibility and compassion. The art is good enough, but suffer when the panels are closer up. In fact, the production value on this book was way off. The entire chapter looks like second rate scans, and really distract from art that has moments of real potential. Artist Steve Mannion provides a spectacularly rendered cover, but fails to carry that level of quality throughout his chapter.

The Garden is the issue’s second chapter, and is a chilling story delivered by Action Philosophers’ Fred Van Lente and artist Mr. Exes. The story is a strangely haunting one, with a true perversion of paradise.

Both stories prove to be good enough reads to warrant a look. They are neither children nor adults’ comics, a feat accomplished by telling topical stories with a meaning and a resonance without resorting to stupid fucking things like cursing.

Adan: Moreso than the individual stories, which were good in their own ways, I enjoyed the Hell out of the framing bits. The puns that Cryptkeeper throws down are hilarious and “What the Wertham–!” is the best exclamation ever and I have to start using it in my everyday speech.

Brendan is right in that “The Tenant” is just a love letter to Will Eisner, from the art style, to the plot points, to the themes, all the way down to the Easter eggs. Unfortunately, Brendan is also right in that the production value is just awful. “The Garden” was a much more interesting tale to me. It had a pretty sweet twist ending that I will not ruin because then it will cease to be pretty sweet.

Look, you just need to read this book. The Cryptkeeper is hilarious and these puns need to make out into the world.

Wolverine #56

Brendan: The creative team of Jason Aaron and Howard Chaykin on Wolverine packs so much testosterone you may need a pill to offset it. Grit itself would cower at the grit within these pages. A refreshing change of pace from the incoherent “Romulus,” storyline, this is a standalone story of how Logan can destroy a man without touching him. It is actually very reminiscent of Mark Millar and Kaare Andrews’ concentration camp issue (that’s issue 32 if you like editor’s notes). It is funny to see Aaron taking the reigns on the world’s most fearsome Canuck just a week after his pilot issue of Ripclaw, which, as Adan pointed out, is not a wholly *ahem,* original character template, but by delivering, all slings and arrows are left in their upright and locked position. The actual plot, with Logan trapped in a pit while a man guns at him for a full work day, echoes the story of Cassidy and Frankie the Eunuch in Preacher. While I won’t say the story isn’t original, it definitely wears its influences on its sleeve.

I’m not sure this is a logical follow up to Loeb and Bianchi’s previous story arc, nor do I understand how this would fit in any sort of current continuity, but I am sure that I do not give a shit. While Chaykin is not in top form, his jagged, bestial portrayal of Wolverine suits this one-and-done perfectly. The blood in this issue, (and oh, is there blood in this issue) practically sticks to your hands off of the page. It isn’t pretty, but nor should it be.

Adan: Yes, yes, Jason Aaron is a good writer and Howard Chaykin’s art makes my eyes bleed. And overall, I like the issue, but that’s not what I want to talk about. I want to talk about whether or not a mainstream superhero book can even have a done-in-one story anymore.

Obviously, this book begins a new story that then ends in twenty-eight pages. But is it a done-in-one, really? Most, if not all, mainstream superhero books are too hampered by continuity and a shared universe (not necessarily a bad thing) to be able to tell a done-in-one story. Taking this issue of Wolverine as an example (also because I am ostensibly reviewing it), at the end of the issue, you find out that the mastermind behind Logan’s imprisonment is that Romulus guy Loeb and Bianchi introduced in the last arc. Even the new and leathered Wild Child shows up. A reader completely unknown to comics could not pick this up and understand the whole story. He’d have to ask friends who the leather-boy is, who he is talking to, and why do they hate Wolverine so much? These are, of course, beyond the initial questions of who Wolverine is, why can he be shot a lot and not die, etc. which we don’t count because they fall in the purview of introductory questions (everybody asks these kinds of questions when about to consume new media, especially if they’re joining up in medias res).

And I don’t think even longtime readers can consider this a done-in-one. The entire time I was reading this issue, as narration boxes told me weeks were passing, that Logan was in the pit for about two months, give or take a week, all I could think was, “Where are the X-men or New Avengers? This guy belongs to about twenty teams, and none of them have noticed he’s missing? Maybe there was a scheduling conflict and all the teams think he’s currently with a different team?” I still half expect there to be a New Avengers or Astonishing X-men issue later on where Wolverine chastises Luke Cage or Cyclops for not coming to spring him from the pit.

The age of the one-and-done is long gone for mainstream superhero comics. There is too much continuity for this to be able to happen anymore. Throw in the fact that most mainstream superhero characters regularly appear in more than two monthly titles (Wolverine being the worst offender of the whole bunch), and you have the death of the done-in-one story.

But hey, Jason Aaron did write a good story, and I hope this gets you Wolverine readers out there to pick up his Other Side or his Scalped, both by Vertigo, as they are much, much better.

The Eisner Award-winning team of superscribe Brian Michael Bendis and artist extraordinaire Alex Maleev unleash an epic story of mankind’s struggle against the alien threat of the Covenant. Picking up from the conclusion of blockbuster video game Halo 2, the must-read issue reveals how the Master Chief, while onboard a hostile ship headed towards Earth, is battling against Covenant forces! Intertwined with Master Chief’s interstellar one-man-war is the saga of a great American city’s rebellion and downfall, two disparate lives’ collision and shared fate, and the Convenant’s hunt for an ancient relic of untold power and value. With hope dwindling and the fate of humanity hanging by a thread, is there any chance for a future? Read this debut issue to start the journey into the Halo universe!

40 PGS./17 and Up …$3.99

This comic book is based on a Mature-rated video game.

Microsoft, Bungie, the Bungie logo, Halo, the Halo logos, the Microsoft Game Studios logo, Xbox 360, the Xbox logos are either registered trademarks or trademarks of
Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries and are used under license from owner. © 2007 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

PRICE: 3.99
IN STORES: August 22, 2007

The Eisner Award-winning team of writer Brian Bendis, artist Alex Maleev and colorist Matt Hollingsworth are back to bring you one of the most anticipated new series of the year—Halo: Uprising! Based on the hit video game series, but perfect for fans both new and old, Halo: Uprising #1 begins the tale of the heroic Master Chief’s struggle to reach Earth before the evil Covenant’s engines of war get there first! Set in the time period between Halo 2 and Halo 3, Halo: Uprising answers all those questions that fans have been asking for years, and introduces new characters into the Halo mythos! And now fans can get their first look at the stunning interior art of Maleev, along with the first three covers to this can’t-miss limited series!

“It was an honor to be asked to add something to the Halo pot,” said writer Brian Michael Bendis. “To bring to Halo what the graphic novel brought, some humanity and perspective—something you can’t get in the game based solely on the nature of the different mediums. Alex and I also have tried to create a juicy sci-fi story that even if you don’t play or know anything about Halo, you could buy this and enjoy it just on its own character and storytelling momentum. But if you are a Halo die-hard you will find connections, characters, and references to not only the three Halo games, but the novels as well.”

Fans have fallen in love with Halo’s mix of intricate storytelling, stunning visuals and intense action, all of which Bendis & Maleev bring to Halo: Uprising #1. If you’re looking to quench your thirst for authentic Halo action and thrills, then don’t miss this bold new limited series!

This comic book is based on a Mature-rated video game.

Microsoft, Bungie, the Bungie logo, Halo, the Halo logos, the Microsoft Game Studios logo, Xbox 360, the Xbox logos are either registered trademarks or trademarks of

Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries and are used under license from owner. © 2007 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

“It was an honor to be asked to add something to the Halo pot,” said writer Brian Michael Bendis. “To bring to Halo what the graphic novel brought, some humanity and perspective—something you can’t get in the game based solely on the nature of the different mediums. Alex and I also have tried to create a juicy sci-fi story that even if you don’t play or know anything about Halo, you could buy this and enjoy it just on its own character and storytelling momentum. But if you are a Halo die-hard you will find connections, characters, and references to not only the three Halo games, but the novels as well.”

Fans have fallen in love with Halo’s mix of intricate storytelling, stunning visuals and intense action, all of which Bendis & Maleev bring to Halo: Uprising #1. If you’re looking to quench your thirst for authentic Halo action and thrills, then don’t miss this bold new limited series!

HALO: UPRISING #1 (of 4) (MAY072085)
Written by BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS
Pencils and Cover by ALEX MALEEV
17 and Up …$3.99
FOC—6/28/07, On-Sale—7/18/07

Specifically, gamers will be able to receive an invitation by doing one of the following:

· Qualifying over Xbox Live and then being one of the first 13,333 “Halo 2” gamers to register for the “Rule of Three” program at http://www.halo3.com in early February

· Purchasing the upcoming game “Crackdown™,” which hits store shelves in the U.S. on Feb. 20

The “Halo 3” multiplayer beta, which is a pre-release version of the multiplayer experience of “Halo 3,” is scheduled for availability in spring 2007 exclusively on Xbox 360™. The beta also represents an opportunity for gamers to participate in the testing and refinement of the multiplayer gameplay of “Halo 3,” the most anticipated game of 2007. Through the resulting feedback, Bungie Studios will be able to further hone the end result of “Halo 3.”

Beginning Thursday, Feb. 1, 2007, at 12:01 a.m. EST, all gamers need to do is participate in at least three hours of “Halo 2” multiplayer sessions, via Xbox Live, before Feb. 3, 2007, at 11:59 p.m. EST and then be among the first 13,333 to register at http://www.halo3.com. The “Rule of Three” program is currently planned for gamers in the 50 United States (includes District of Columbia) age 17 years and older who have access to an Xbox 360 Pro console or an Xbox 360 Core console with hard drive, a valid Xbox Live Gold subscription and the “Halo 2” game. Gamers around the world are encouraged to visit http://www.halo3.com in the coming weeks for more information on the “Rule of Three” program in their region.

As well, when “Crackdown” hits store shelves, gamers eager to take home a copy of the highly anticipated exclusive action title for Xbox 360 will find marked boxes of “Crackdown” that include an invite to participate in the coveted “Halo 3” multiplayer beta program when it becomes available. When the “Halo 3” multiplayer beta surfaces in spring 2007, owners of “Crackdown” with access to an Xbox 360 Pro console or an Xbox 360 Core console with hard drive and a valid Xbox Live Gold subscription simply need to load their copy of “Crackdown” into Xbox 360 and use the disc as a key to download the beta from Xbox Live Marketplace and join the battle in “Halo 3” multiplayer. “Crackdown” will be available in the U.S. on Feb. 20, Asian territories on Feb. 22 and European markets on Feb. 23.

With Ensemble Studios at the helm, the title is certainly in good hands. We’ll have more as it’s released.

The second series will be an entirely original property targeted at bringing new audiences into the captivating world of interactive entertainment. In addition, Microsoft Game Studios will partner with Jackson and Walsh to establish Wingnut Interactive, a studio dedicated to the creation of world-class interactive entertainment.

“Microsoft has built an amazing living canvas with Xbox 360 and Xbox Live, which allows the storytellers of our time to express themselves in a new medium. They have fundamentally changed how people think about games,” Jackson said. “My vision, together with Microsoft Game Studios, is to push the boundaries of game development and the future of interactive entertainment. From a movie-maker’s point of view, it is clear to me that the Xbox 360 platform is the stage where storytellers can work their craft in the same way they do today with movies and books but taking it further with interactivity.”

When we contacted a spokesperson for Microsoft a few minutes ago, they confirmed that this ‘Halo’ title Peter Jackson is collaborating with them on is NOT Halo 3, but an all new Halo title. It doesn’t get much bigger than that folks, Peter Jackson and Bungie together on Halo 4.