News: "Beasts of Burden" to be Featured in Dark Horse Presents #4!

I LOVE Beasts of Burden. In fact, upon discovering it at San Diego Comic Con last year, it prompted me to start reviewing (click for "Beasts of Burden: Animal Rites review). So really, I owe the Thompson/Dorkin team a HUGE thank you!

Official Press Release

Coming to you fresh from the upcoming 80-page spectacular, Beasts of Burden returns in Dark Horse Presents #4!

Evan Dorkin and Jill Thompson’s lovable and crafty team of critters is back in action for a story that will tempt your taste buds and leave you wanting more!

Adventure, mystery, horror, and humor thrive on every page of Beasts of Burden—a comic-book series that will capture readers’ hearts and haunt their dreams.

Award-winning comics creators Evan Dorkin (Milk and Cheese) and Jill Thompson (Scary Godmother) first introduced these very special investigators in The Dark Horse Book of Hauntings and the other Dark Horse Book of . . . anthologies, for which they won coveted Eisner Awards for Best Short Story and Best Painter.

Evan and Jill will both be in attendance at San Diego Comic-Con 2011!

Looking for more Beasts of Burden? Check out the free comic on DarkHorse.com.

Get Ready to Laugh! Webcomic Review: "Bear Nuts"!

Having a bad day? Bored with life? Stick your head into the "Bear Nuts" world! At the "Discount Zoo", there's never a dull moment. Alison Acton and Jim Charalampidis are the AMAZING team that bring you "Bear Nuts". Think of this as a "CareBears" webcomic for adults that is MUCH funnier and more brutal. Instead of "Love" and "Sunshine" and "Good Luck", the bears have names like "Evil", "Prozac", "Crack", "Gay", and "Tanked". The bears are the main attraction at the zoo, and their lives pretty much suck. They're bored with the gawking faces of children EVERY. Single. Day. To spice up their living quarters, the Zookeepers add a fountain, log, and tire swing. The bears aren't having it. They order a flat-screen TV and make their living quarters more...human-like. The bears face Prozac running out of medication (uh oh!), Evil's tendency to play with Voodoo, and Gay's obsession with being tan/dying his fur. I won't ruin too much, but let me tell you: this comic is DEFINITELY worth your time! While "Vattu" is beautiful, "Bear Nuts" is equally HILARIOUS. I've been reading non-stop and it seems like I've only been sitting here for about ten minutes. I'm nearly all caught up! The webcomic has been going strong since 2008 and continues today.

Before I gush over it too much, let's get into exactly what it is that makes it so awesome.

Creativity of Writing: 5/5 I would LOVE to be inside of Alison Acton's head. For real. There are some jokes/humor in the webcomic that amaze me! How can one person dream up so much awesome?! The writing is TOP notch. Not only is the webcomic action-packed, each bear has its own extremely unique personality. Yes, each bear has its own namesake, but even if the bears were named "George, John, Timmy, etc", I feel like their personalities would still make them memorable. The situations and adventures that the bears get themselves into are highly creative and entertaining. It's such a fast read because there's never a dull moment!

Creativity of Art: 5/5 I'm really diggin' the art style! It's bright color scheme, adorable bears, and large blocks of color make it look very childish (stylistically, not how it's executed!), but the content is definitely not for children! I think that the contrast of the content and art adds to the humor of the webcomic overall. Another thing that impresses me about the art is that it STARTED OUT being great. As with all webcomics that span over a few years, the art does improve. But...it's not an eyesore in it's early days!


Overall Casual Read Rating: 5/5 I highly suggest that EVERYONE read this one! You won't stop laughing and you definitely won't be bored!

Note to the Creator(s): Amazing job! I can't wait to read more! Keep up the awesome work! I would LOVE to do an interview!!

"Mouse Guard: Legends of the Guard" Review!

I haven't been so giddy about a comic since...well...ok...I'm a girl that gets giddy about every comic. But! What I'm trying to say is that I'm so excited to be sharing this collection with you guys! Today's review is "Mouse Guard: Legends of the Guard"! by David Petersen and a CRAPLOAD of amazing talents! What makes this "Mouse Guard" so unique is that it all takes place at one time in one place. The entire book is a collection of stories that the mousey citizens are telling, huddled up in June Alley Inn. June, fed up with the guys owing her massive tabs, proposes a story telling contest. She declares that the winner will have his debt forgiven and every other contestant will have to pay is tab up before seven days is through. Eager to get started, each mouse spins his own tale of their history of the Mouse Guard, love, horror, and dismay. Each mouse tells something unique. This would seem tiresome, except it's NOT! The story takes a different direction every few pages but on top of the story changing, the style of art does! I treasure this book not only because it's autographed, but because it's such an amazing collection of art and talent. See that loooong list of names that graces the bottom of the cover? That's a list of artists. As unique as each story is, each of their styles is! There's SO much beautiful artwork and I love that you don't have to chose just one style to look at. There's literally something for everyone in this book. One thing that really REALLY made me fall for it was the fact that Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven" was included. Oh. My. GOSH, guys!! I was so excited to see it incorporated. Not only that, but it was incorporated in a way that did it JUSTICE!!

Let me just state the obvious here, this book is a 6/5 on all fronts. I'm a huge Mouse Guard fan already, but this just sealed the deal for me. Now excuse me while I go play with my Mouse Guard figurines. :)

 BEA-UTIFUL! 

"Hellboy/Beasts of Burden" One Shot Review!

I went to my post office today and guess what was waiting, guys!? YES! The Hellboy/Beasts of Burden One Shot that I've been waiting OH SO LONG for! YESSSS! If you remember back to about two months ago, you'll noticed that I told the world the specific release date for this amazing work of art. Well...after all that wait, here it is and I'm going to be one of the first to review it! I know, I know. You love me.

The issue opens with Hellboy defeating an evil...thing. After his work is done and the children are safe, he turns to notice a dog tugging on the back of his jacket. He follows the fleeing dog into the forrest where he encounters the pack we've all come to know and love- the dogs (and cats!) of Burden Hill! The animals are troubled by three feline bodies that seem to have been sacrificed. Snooping around, of course they find trouble. They wander into what seems to be a train segment. After worming their way into the depth of it, the gang encounters skull golems that steal Whitey away. Not to fear, dear readers! It's not the end of adorable little Whitey. Like true dogs/friends, the gang is loyal and doesn't give up until they find the stolen pup. Unfortunately, a witch plans to use Whitey's blood as part of a sacrifice/ritual to bring back the "stupid zombie-warlock guy" that they'd killed twice already. Before murder can be committed (she does get some of Whitey's blood though...), Hellboy murders the witch. As a result, billions and billions of rats flood the group. Luckily, Hellboy is freaking bad@$$ and blasts them all to smithereens. They escape, but it's not the end of their problems. "stupid zombie-warlock guy" is back and HUGE. Hellboy, once again, takes care of the problem. Why was the reanimated villain so weak? Because Pugs peed on the skull that the witch was using as part of the sacrifice! What's a dog to do when a stationary skull is mouthing off?? Yup! Show 'im who's boss!

Let me get on to the ratings before I write away all I've got planned!

Creativity of Writing: 5/5 This One-Shot really hit a home-run! As far as comedy, it had TONS of it! From Pugs peeing on the ritual skull to Whitey showing Hellboy the hair that he burned off of his butt...it's HILARIOUS! As always, the writing didn't come close to disappointing! There was TONS of action, a plethora of paranormal activity, and a few heart-tugging/suspenseful moments. Extremely well written in that the dialogue is easy to follow and the action is, too. I LOVE the development of Pugs, especially. He's gone from being a whiney, shy little guy to a beast that steals spell books from evil witches/warlocks/demonic forces and pees on ritual/possessed items...that talk! Crazy! I'm so happy to see that the characters aren't static. That really is a selling point for me. If the characters don't seem to grow and mature, then what's the point? They're BORING! The animals DEFINITELY aren't boring! I was happy to see that, for the most part, Hellboy was exactly the same as I remember. Evan Dorkin, you are amazing!

Creativity of Art: 5/5 Anyone who reads this website or knows me even a little knows that I LOVE Madam Jill Thompson. She's not only one of my two favorite comic artists (the other being Skottie Young!) ever, she's one of my favorite artists ever. Period. Her watercolor style is extremely tight and her details are impressive. When I see most watercolor, it's done in blotches. Not Ms. Jill's! Her backgrounds are stunning, too. Whether it's a landscape or a dreary underground dungeon, she's got it covered EXCELLENTLY. My favorite panel is when Pugs is explaining how the ritual blood became tainted. The animals are in COMPLETE disbelief and the expressions on their faces are PRICELESS!

Overall Casual Read Rating: 5/5 You've done it once again, guys! An awesome comic that never disappoints! This one-shot was so full of action that you've never got time to be bored and you're always on the edge of your seat!

Note to the Creator(s): Jill Thompson, Evan Dorkin, and Mike Mignola...you are an amazing team. I would LOVE to see more Hellboy/Beasts of Burden. In fact, get started on a nice, hardcover volume. :)

"Mouse Guard: Fall 1152" Review!

This year, I had the opportunity to meet and chat with David Petersen, creator of the "Mouse Guard" series. He's a charming, witty, and opinionated guy with lots of talent! I'd already bought the PVC figures of the mice at San Diego Comic-Con, so I figured I should read the comics. :) Tonight's review is my determination to do just that. I'm starting out with "Mouse Guard:Fall 1152"! 

Webcomic Review: Digger!

"Digger" is definitely a comic like I've never seen before. It's got a lot of things that set it apart from other webcomics out there. For one- the comic is going on 900 pages long! What does that mean for a webcomic? That it has a strong, loyal following, that it's worth reading, that the author is developing the characters and plot at an nice rate and in a progressive way. The comic also captures it's audience's imagination and interest. But that's just my speculation about "Digger"...

"Chi's Sweet Home" Volumes 1 and 2 Review!

If I were diabetic, I'd be screwed. That's how sweet "Chi's Sweet Home" is!

The graphic novels follow the life of "Chi", a little kitten who's been lost from her mother and siblings. She is found by a family and taken home and what follows after is pure cute. Chi learns to use the litter box, but not before soiling clothes and blankets! She has her first bath and it's terrifying! She fights and fights but can never get away. From new cat food to learning what a "cat" is, Chi's adventures aren't just a story about learning about the world. What makes this collection so effective is that the story isn't told through the eyes of an outsider. Chi herself tells her story. The reader is made aware of her emotion about certain things and her confusion about other new things. Her observations are the best part. Things that we, as grown human beings, take for granted look completely different through the eyes of a baby cat. Not only is there the immaturity and vulnerability that we as humans naturally find attractive in our own young, but there's the ignorance (it's not meant in a bad way!) that comes with such a young age. Before I go more into detail...

let's rate! 

Creativity of Writing: 5/5 Sure, there's lots of manga/comics/graphic novels out there about animals. Yes, a good majority of those books are about CATS. However, the fact that Chi is so young is refreshing. When Chi speaks (even though her family can't understand her) her talk is all baby talk. It's so adorable! The creativity of writing isn't simply in the personality of Chi. It's also in the situations that Chi gets herself into and the problems that her family faces trying to cover the fact that they're hiding a cat (cats aren't allowed in the apartment!). 

Creativity of Art: 5/5 The poses that Chi takes and the expressions that she makes are very well executed. It's not just the fact that she's an adorable kitten. The art is AWESOME. They style is very detailed, but at the same time, it has a watercolor look to it. The color scheme is very easy to look at and very light on the eyes. The panels are laid out perfectly and I never once got lost on a page. 

Overall Casual Read Rating: 5/5 Perfect for any animal lover! I LOVE animals and I was sucked into these! My only complaint is that it goes by too fast! Even if you're not crazy about animal, I think that any reader could appreciate something so funny and well-done! 

Note to the Creator(s): Keep it coming! I love reading about Chi! I think I'll get a Chi tattoo, in fact! :) 

Webcomic Review: Lackadaisy (Cats)!

I know I say this sometimes, but I seriously think I've found my favorite web comic ever! Don't get me wrong! The Abominable Charles Christopher is still waaaay up there, but I feel like Lackadaisy Cats by Tracy J. Butler speaks more to the nerdy history-loving photographer in me. There's something about it that just wows me. There's so many awesome things about it that this may end up being quite a lengthy review, my friends!

News: Beasts of Burden/Hellboy One-Shot Announced!

 Ho. Le. Crap, guys! I'm so excited I could pee my pants. Of course I'm just kidding. No one's done that since like...14, right? RIGHT? Well...whatever. Today I have some really freaking exciting news! Beasts of Burden/Hellboy is available for pre-order! It's the one-shot I've been waiting for since San Diego Comic-Con! If you've been following me long, you'll know that I had an amazing opportunity! I interviewed Jill Thompson about her art, creative process, and what was (at the time) to come for Beasts of Burden! Find the video interview here  and my review of Beasts of Burden here! I'm so excited!!! As soon as I get my new debit card, that sucker is MINE! :) YOU can pre-order here!