WALL-E #0 begins what presumably will be a series that will serve as a prequel to last year's hit Pixar movie. It attempts to tell the story of the little trashbot and how he became the last robot on earth. Unfortunately, there is just not very much story going on in the pages of this comic. The fact that very little happens in the book is compounded by the fact that there is no dialogue to speak of. It is as though you took that first silent hour of the movie and removed all of the great filmmaking techniques that made it so memorable. Hopefully WALL-E #0 is focused on setting the tone of the series and future issues will be more eventful and story-oriented because this is a great property will lots of possible stories to tell.
Patrick Garone
Staff Reviewer
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Boom Studio's series The Unknown: The Devil Made Flesh is a curious mix of procedural and occult story with a strong noir influence. Issue #2 continues the story of Catherine Allingham, the "world's greatest detective" who has been diagnosed with terminal cancer. Allingham has set out to solve the greatest mystery of what happens after death while she is following clues regarding the death of her partner. Her investigation takes her to Mountain Oak, Alabama on a lead provided by an almost supernaturally precocious child investigator. The small town is the site of a grisly mass murderer.
There are a lot of great ideas in The Unknown and it is obviously a big sprawling story that is difficult to evaluate from just one issue. I particularly like the character of the mysterious boy investigator, who seemingly attained an adult level of maturity over night and has to pretend to be a normal kid. The story also plays with the idea of Catherine's hallucinations which pop up every now and then and even features a cameo from Freddy Mercury, of all people. It is an interesting choice to balance Catherine as both mentally competent and also someone who is clearly psychologically unwell.
Despite the strengths of the writing, the art lacks a certain amount of subtlety. Catherine and her new partner, Adriana are designed as busty sexpots, which is a bit tired. Facial expressions are often exaggerated and cartoony and the overall color palette is over saturated for what should be a dark, film-noir detective story replete with amnesia and double crosses. A story that features a detective with terminal cancer and lumber mill where human bodies are being ground up should be a bit darker. If you can over look the rather pedestrian artwork, The Unknown: The Devil Made Flesh presents a good and involving story that keeps you guessing as to what will happen next.
Patrick Garone
Staff Reviewer
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Boom Studios has released previews for their books coming out on November 11th.
THE ANCHOR #2 – Heaven's hulking enforcer is on the hunt for both demon blood and the truth about his origin. His never ending battle takes him to a wild horse preserve in England where he must destroy or be destroyed by a hellish, bestial huntsman who feasts on unwitting campers. On a scale of 1 to 10, this comic goes to eleven. Retailers — clear racks on either side of The Anchor for the safety of lesser books.
CARS: RADIATOR SPRINGS #3 – Lightning McQueen is hanging out with his friends in Radiator Springs when he realizes that everyone knows his story, but he doesn’t know anyone else’s. McQueen wants to know how his friends ended up in Radiator Springs...and why they decided to stay. Issue #3 explores Luigi and Guido's journey from Italy to America!
FARSCAPE: D'ARGO'S TRIAL #4 – The origin of one of Farscape’s most fascinating characters concludes! D’Argo faces a Peacekeeper court for a crime he didn’t commit…the murder of his wife! In the middle of such injustice D’Argo’s life becomes even stranger when his only hope for freedom is Bailar Crais!
THE INCREDIBLES #2 - Baby Jack-Jack, everyone’s favorite superpowered toddler, battles…a nasty cold! Hopefully the rest of the Parr family can stay healthy, because normal denizens of Metroville are starting to exhibit superpowers. Can The Incredibles discover the cause of both outbreaks before the city is left in total shambles?
THE MUPPET SHOW COMIC BOOK: THE TREASURE OF PEG-LEG WILSON #4 – Roger Langridge's celebrated run on THE MUPPET SHOW comic continues! Scooter learns that a cache of treasure is hidden somewhere within the theater...and when Rizzo the Rat overhears this, the news spreads like wildfire! Meanwhile, Animal's acting very strangely—he's now refined and well-mannered! And why is Kermit acting like he's too cool for school?
NOLA #1 – After cheating death, Nola Thomas wakes up alone in a deserted New Orleans hospital. Bruised, broken, and badly burned, she emerges from the floodwaters of Hurricane Katrina with one thing on her mind…revenge. From Chris Gorak, the writer/director of the critically-acclaimed film, Right at Your Door!
WALL-E #0 – Superstar writer J. Torres (TEEN TITANS GO!) chronicles Wall-E's life before the events of the hit film. Wall-E is not yet the hardworking robot we know and love. Instead, he lets the few remaining other robots take care of the trash compacting while he collects interesting junk. But when the other robots start breaking down, Wall-E must learn to adjust his priorities...or else Earth is doomed!
DO ANDROIDS DREAM OF ELECTRIC SHEEP? Vol. 1 HC – THE BOOK THAT INSPIRED THE FILM BLADE RUNNER COMES TO BOOM! Worldwide best-selling sci-fi writer Philip K. Dick's award-winning DO ANDROIDS DREAM OF ELECTRIC SHEEP? has been called "a masterpiece ahead of its time, even today" and served as the basis for the film BLADE RUNNER. BOOM! Studios is honored to present the complete novel transplanted into the comic book medium, mixing all new panel-to-panel continuity with the actual text from the novel in an innovative, ground-breaking series experiment illustrated by acclaimed Warhammer artist Tony Parker! Deluxe hardcover editions - Volume 1 of 6.
FALL OF CTHULHU: NEMESIS TPB – Michael Alan Nelson, the critically acclaimed author of HEXED, concludes his FALL OF CTHULHU maxi-series with NEMESIS — an epic origin story revealing the secret history behind Nyarlathotep’s favorite companion. Who is Nemesis you ask? Get this book and find out. Be prepared for the shock of your life as BOOM!’s bestselling horror title comes to a shocking conclusion.
FARSCAPE: D'ARGO'S LAMENT HC – Ka D'Argo lives on — only in this pulse-pounding FARSCAPE graphic novel set in continuity during season 3 between episodes "Revenging Angel" and "Fractures”! Follow the adventures of John Crichton's best friend D'Argo as he's forced to not only save the day and end planetary war, he's got to do it all with mouthy Princess Jool along for the ride. And that means trouble! Executive Produced by Farscape creator Rockne S. O’Bannon!
WALT DISNEY CHRISTMAS CLASSICS HC – Don't be a Scrooge McDuck this Christmas season! It's the perfect present! BOOM! Kids! has raided the Disney publishing archives and searched every nook and cranny this Christmas season to find the best and the greatest stories from Disney's vast comic book publishing history for this "best of" compilation -- Disney's universally appealing characters starring in stories written and drawn by creators who are legends in the field! A timeless classic from the world's most iconic characters that should be on every shelf, Walt Disney's Christmas Classics are an essential this holiday season for family fun!
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