theSandman Comic Reviews

While comic can convey a great sense of cinema (see Cole Haddon's The Strange Case of Mr. Hyde), one thing I miss in the comic version of Adventure Time is the sound. Adventure Time has a really great cast of voices that do a lot to bring the show to life. John DiMaggio, Futurama's Bender, and appearances by actors like Mark Hammil, really add an extra dimension, especially the Lumpy Space Princes who is voiced by Pendelton Ward himself. I think the only remedy for this must be to watch more Adventure Time, because I'm definitely not going to stop reading the comic.

As the protagonist pushes the killer to confess his crimes, to explain his motives, to reveal some way of understanding the atrocities, the reader is drawn into this brilliantly written and illustrated black and white graphic novel. Jensen's superb dialogue and Jonathan Case's artwork combine to implant the story, as well as the same question that obsesses the protagonist, into the head of the reader. At times I was unsure if they had the right killer, but the question of guilt quickly fades as it is replaced by the omnipresent question of why? I will not spoil the ending of this graphic novel, but I highly recommend that anyone who wants to keep themselves up at night not reliving gristly murders (although the details of the crimes are EXTREMELY heinous, more so because they are based on real events), but instead pondering a portrait of humanity stripped down to something so lacking it will make you shudder, should pick up this graphic novel.

The love part of the title happens at the end of the comic, where the narrator, whose name is Lou, meets a girl, Ella, who shares his curse. While he watches her narrowly avoid death, and saves her life once or twice, I began to think that this comic is based on the real life situation of two clumsy nerds falling in love and trying to bump uglies while all sorts of exaggerated shenanigans (like death) get in their way. Hopefully whatever the narrator is getting a second chance to do, won't just be losing his virginity to his similarly cursed love interest after one of their funerals. While I cant decide if that would be hilarious or disturbing, I'm going to keep reading because I can't see how a comic with this many graphic death scenes, and awesome cosmic death/rebirth via galactic monster scenes, could turn out to not have more awesome plot twists.

As of now I can't make any guesses as to what exactly will happen. Maybe the "talking dolphins" will enlighten us in the next issue. I highly recommend this series for any scifi fans out there, especially if you like work by authors that twist your mind like Phillip K. Dick.

There is, however, a way off of the Planetoid, which gives the reader a glimmer of hope for Silas, whose prospects were otherwise looking very bleak. Of course, the evil robot army may pose a bit of a problem, but I'm rooting for, "Lord Silas," and his pea shooter.

My favorite part of "Planetoid" are the full page panels. In this issue Garing takes a full page to depict a solitary, lazy kite flying in the sky. This image, which appears near the end of the issue, is symbolic of the "spirit of humanity," linking perspective, the sky and hope inextricably . Of course this all comes crashing down on the last page of the comic, setting up the confrontation between Silas and the evil robots. The introduction of beauty was short lived in "Planeotid," but a much needed addition. The reader has seen that Silas is no mere survivalist, and that he now has something to fight for besides himself. I can't wait for what will surely be a stunning conclusion in the next 2 issues of "Planetoid".

The second issue of Brian K. Vaughan's Saga hit stands earlier this week and, as a follow up to the sold-out first issue, it doesn't disappoint. In my review of the first issue of "Saga", I commented on the immensity of the world the reader is thrown into. While it felt a bit overwhelming, Vaughan's masterful writing successfully ignites the fuse on the plot and shoots his new comic into hyperdrive, even while presenting multiple story lines.

Vaughan's writing is such a clutch part of making this comic series enjoyable, but pairing it with Staple's artwork makes it unf*cking believable! There are grotesquely hilarious scenes like the one in which Izabel (the ghost with dripping intestines instead of legs) is making baby faces at Hazel. And then there are the questions that this issue left spinning in my head. Will The Will's decision to enter Sextillion without Lying Cat affect him later in the series? What kind of monster is The Will exactly? And of course what happens when Marko really gives up his pacifism and lets 'er rip on that spaceship? Questions like these drive me to pick up the next issue, and with the character development I'm invested in finding out what happens to everyone. "Saga" is truly a great read and ocular pleasure. I can't wait for the next issue!

Violence and morality are emphasized in all of the plot lines, and the decisions related to violent actions will have far reaching impact on the character's futures. Whether violence pushes some characters together, or drives others apart, will be exciting to find out. Either way I'm definitely in on this series for the full ride. I can't wait to see what Vaughan and Staples have in store for the rest of the issues as every aspect of this comic is spot on. The action, character development, plot and artwork all have an amazing synergy that keeps building.

Being a comic reviewer I get the sweet perk of receiving most comics for free digitally (muahaha), but I am definitely going down to my local comic shop to pick up a hard copy of this series (maybe even multiple editions to get all of the covers) just so I can really look at the awesomely detailed artwork. I am not sure how many comic books I have given 5 skull reviews to, but this is the only one I wish I could give more. I am looking forward to the next issue, and hopefully you will be too after reading this.

If you aren't at least a little awed by this turn of events, and have built up some burning anger towards the foxes (and maybe other confusing emotions??) then you should probably go buy the comic to figure out how the gang gets out of this sticky situation. I promise it involves a cat fight which takes up a few pages of action-packed fighting featuring the awesome artwork of Matteo Scalera (I freakin' love this guy!), a new addition to the ragamuffin team and another cliff hanger ending which reintroduces Tyroll, who, if you don't know his name, you will remember as Korrus Null's mysterious, adolescent killing-machine who made his appearance at the very end of issue #1.