sixthreezy readsies

This book was really cool, and on the much darker side of fiction. The story was kind of hard to follow at times, so that's where I subtract a star. Otherwise it's a beautiful comic, and I'm looking forward to reading more Fabian Gray!

Side note: If you're scared of spiders, like me, then this book may not be for you. I got the heebies a few times...

I'm not really the biggest fan of Green Lantern because I didn't grow up enjoying his stories, but I have grown at least a slight bit interested as an adult. Green Lantern is one of the more fun characters, and light hearted, and I think that's why I am not as into him as I am other characters. However, with Red Lanterns, we get the darker side of the Lantern universe and I was really awestruck that this even existed. Atrocitus is the leader of the Red Lanterns, and it's his rage that is his power. The bad things that have happened to him in the past, drive who he is today as the Red Lantern leader. Though he is the leader of the Red Lanterns, he finds that even he is not enough to conquer the rage on his own. He slowly brings other Red Lanterns into the picture by throwing them into a Blood Ocean to confront their reasons for rage. As they come out, Atrocitus finds that rage comes in more than one form, and it's that discovery that leads him into a situation he never had seen coming. This book is awesome, and I was really so happy to be reading a book that was based off of a main DC character, but spun off to be a darker side. There is plenty of red on every page, as the rage is basically characterized as red blood and spews from the Lanterns and congeals as if it were in space. There was plenty of gruesome illustrations which I really enjoyed, as usual, because I'm a fan of horror. The writing was pretty good, and I liked the story of Atrocitus and I enjoyed how one of the book's minor villains came about. There is really a bright future for this title, even though it may be bright red.

Originally posted at sixthreezy at the movies & more!

The Lost Boy is not anything out of the ordinary, especially when it comes to teen fiction. It’s a story of a young man who moves into a new place with his family, but finds himself lost in his new environment. Struggling to find a place, or person, to help begin constructing his new home, Nate Castle (the book’s protagonist) immerses himself in a mystery left behind by those who came before him. Through a series of old tape recordings he finds in the floorboards of his new house, Nate embarks on a journey to discover the boy who left the strange recordings and where he went. The mystery follows Nate as he follows in the footsteps of Walt’s recorded words, and discovers a new world full of mysterious talking creatures that want a key that they believe he has. Nate befriends Tabitha, who is kind of a tomboy and adventurous soul, and has experience with the mystery of Walter Pidgin. Through the adventures he meets new friends, crosses the path of unknown enemies, and fights through a whole new world to discover the Lost Boy. The book does an extraordinary job at taking concepts like moving to a new place at a young age, and struggling to find yourself as an individual, and putting them in an imaginative way that speaks to the age group the author is writing for. The art is not done in color, which will sway some kids from reading it, but the black and white inking is excellent, top notch work. This is definitely an age appropriate, action/adventure fantasy graphic novel that will keep teens interested throughout their journey with Nate and Tabitha as they discover the origin of the Lost Boy.

***I received a copy of this book from Goodreads Giveaways in exchange for a fair and honest review***

Louis L'Amour is without a doubt, the definitive author for western fiction. His list of works is nearly endless, and there's a reason that most western fiction collections you see in libraries or bookstores are predominately consisted of L'Amour titles. When I saw that a graphic novel had been adapted from one of his stories, I found it kind of strange but interesting as well. It's not the kind of story that a typical graphic novel reader would pick up and read, but more and more we are finding that some of the timeless fictional stories are being converted into graphic novel form for fans old and new to enjoy.

I would like to start by saying I'm not a huge fan of western fiction in any of its forms, but recently I have started to have an appreciation for newer western films that stick to classic western styles. This is the first time I've ever read anything western, and I think this was a good way to start. Lopez is a great character, and his story told throughout the book is the driving force behind its greatness. His association with other characters in the book makes him the main protagonist, in my eyes, and it causes you to look at everyone else with a careful eye because of Lopez's apparent wisdom. He seems to know more than the rest of the characters in the book, which in turns exudes confident and wholesome qualities about a character that maybe 40 years ago would have been the one to have watched with a careful eye.

The story is superbly crafted, told in "present day" with flashbacks scattered throughout. On the first read through, I found it kind of complicated with the flashbacks mixed in throughout. Part of me wishes the story could have been more linear, but it may have taken away from the final impact of the story. I think I would have been able to follow the plot better had it been straight through the first time around, but the use of these flashbacks helps to further the emotional impact of the story and delay the final punch until the end of the book. I think a little more background on Marone before the chase begins would have been neat, but it wasn't necessary in telling this story.

The thing I liked most about this book is the art. Usually, black and white illustration in graphic novels is not my favorite, but there are stories that should only be told in black and white. This is one of those stories, being that it takes place in a western setting and most stories like this told in film were during the black and white era of motion pictures. Westerns are no longer, and haven't been for awhile, the most popular genre of film, but it only seems appropriate to tell a story like this in shades of gray. The shading and the art on each page was breathtaking, and I haven't been this impressed with black and white in a long time. It suits the book really well. The only problem I had here is that sometimes it was hard to tell which character was which on the page, or who was on the page to begin with. When everyone and their father wears cowboys hats, has a horse, and wears the same style clothes, it's hard to tell who is who.

Other than the few minor annoyances, I enjoyed this book and I would recommend it to mostly adult graphic novel readers. The combination of character illustration issues, and the flashbacks threw me for a loop at first, but with a more studious second read I found it to be a quality graphic novel. I would especially recommend this to an older crowd, as I've already passed this along to older family members who are fans of the western genre. I would definitely be interested to see if more of L'Amour's work shows up in graphic novel form, and I'd hope that the illustrative duties would be taken care of just as perfectly as they were here. The book is hefty, and while large, it enables the art more room to pop off the page and display Thomas Yeates excellent black and white illustrations. A lot of credit goes to the team that brought this book to life for a new generation, and possibly a younger audience. 3.5 stars.

Originally posted at sixthreezy at the movies & more!

I love Pym hacking the teenagers' phones and accounts and humiliating them online as revenge for what they had done earlier in the volume, which was similarly hacking one of the FF. That was just great, and his comment that "I'm not Reed Richards. Change your passwords boys." LOL! This book is actually really great, mainly because of the awesome character development with Bentley, Pym, Jen, and the rest of the crew. I would recommend it to Fantastic Fans, Marvel fans, and those who like Matt Fraction's Hawkeye as it is kind of similar in writing style and with the art. The art doesn't wow me, but it gets the job done and has a retro look to it. This book is definitely fun, and not as serious as some of the other titles out in Marvel NOW!

In preparing to write a review for this book, I have discovered that this title has since been cancelled by Marvel and will end with the twelfth issue. What the hell are you guys thinking?! This is easily one of the best titles that I've read out of Marvel NOW!, most of which are pretty awful, and this is the one that's been cancelled over multiple other offenders? I'm really sad to say that Marvel doesn't quite know what quality is, because when I read the other more "popular" titles, I can't believe they're even being written. Captain America and Deadpool are about the only two characters that haven't been ultimately ruined by Marvel NOW!, and it's a shame to see that this third candidate for greatness will be no more. I am not familiar with these characters, so that may be why I was so pleased, but I thought the book was awesome. Valkyrie and Misty Knight are cool heroines which Marvel has so few of, and this book is not afraid of anything. There's a decapitation, lots of censored curses, and chicks kicking the living crap out of everything that threatens them. I liked seeing the assembly of a lot of the female characters in the Marvel Universe, and it's a damn shame to see a title that showcases these heroines in such a bad ass light, be shut down. I would say if you're a fan of the darker side of Marvel, and the more Asgardian-like characters and stories, this is definitely for you. Fans of female-centric comics will also really enjoy this, as I barely remember a dude in the book at all. I'm also starting to discover that I have very heavy metal tastes, because if the book has blood, magic, and epic wars with warriors in elaborate armor illustrated on the page, I'm automatically sucked in. Also, the covers are freaking awesome as hell.

Originally posted at sixthreezy at the movies & more!

3.5 stars. Preferred Blacksad to this one, but still pretty cool in the fact that it's a pretty adult story told using animal characters. BADGERS?! WE DON'T NEED NO STINKIN' BADGERS!

The last issue in this volume was great, but other than that I was unimpressed. Something about getting into time travel and alternate universes and dimensions just disinterests me. It takes so long to get everything out onto the page that you need to explain what's going on, that I become bored and rather insulted by the lack of actual story occurring from page to page. Space and time in comics needs to be brief, to allow a central story to form. This volume took several issues, really in my mind, just to set up the last issue which was great. So while I can't say I was a fan of the whole volume and the time it took to set up the last issue, it's probably worth a read if you're a Fantastic Fan.

Again, I'm not sure how this could possibly be considered anywhere near one of the best titles in Marvel NOW! Who is saying this? Avengers Arena is so unoriginal it is shocking. I cannot believe this title has any positive buzz surrounding it, because for an "original" title this is so disappointing as a reader.

Anything British is usually not my cup of tea, but I wanted to read this because of the involvement of zombies, obviously. I wasn't expecting to love the story, but I figured that I would at least enjoy the undead aspects of the story. What I got was a very well-rounded tale of Chief Inspector George Suttle, who is one of the young, which most of us would call a vampire. He sets upon a case to solve the murder of a well off man in the new Deadwardian Age, and in doing so begins the investigation into his own life after spending countless years losing any desire to do so. What this graphic novel does really well is support its protagonist Suttle, as his story is told through narration of his own and then the events that take place in his surroundings. Funny enough that it was the love story aspect of this book that I took a liking to, as usually that's something that when included in a story of horror or undeath, I do not find suiting. But for this story, it was perfectly aligned with Suttle's investigation into a murder, as well as his own existence. The art is not exactly phenomenal in this book, as I've seen some others point out in their own reviews, but it does a good enough job to help the story along. It's not the most detailed work, but it is all there, and the zombies and vampires all have their particular looks. I would most definitely say that if you are a fan of British mystery, the undead, and adult graphic novels, you should pick up this book. Even if British oriented stories aren't your thing, this may be worth checking out, as I found it entirely enjoyable and I'm hoping that Dan Abnett has an opportunity to continue the splendid story of George Suttle, the Young who renews his desire for life and happiness in solving Scotland Yard's new kind of crime.

Originally posted at sixthreezy at the movies & more!

I love Matthew Inman's comics. They make so much sense to me. Must read if you like to laugh.

I enjoyed this more than I did any other volume of Ghostbusters except for maybe the first. This was really cool, and well done.

This was basically a villains showcase in the context of Arkham City. I enjoyed it for what it was, as there's no central story to the entire volume. If you enjoy the video games this is based on, this should be a fun read. The art is pretty well done as well, really giving the characters greatly translated 2D looks from the games. Killer Croc is particularly terrifying in a couple of the cells in his issue.

I would typically write a lengthy review for this considering it's newer and it's one of the Valiant comics. However, I didn't find this one anywhere near as impressive as the other titles I've read so it completely underwhelmed me. The characters weren't all that badass or cool, and I didn't find myself all that absorbed into the book. It's a little disappointing, but I guess they can't all be perfect. We'll see how this goes into a second volume, because some of this story was setting up the titular partnership.

Kind of different for author Brian Michael Bendis, at least in comparison to his other works I'm familiar with. Definitely more adult than his previously read work too. I enjoyed this, but it wasn't nearly as good as I'd expected it to be. The dialogue is hard to follow at times, because it's written to be so naturally spoken, but doesn't translate well to the page. Also, for how big this one volume is, I'm surprised a lot more of the plot wasn't covered.

This is my favorite volume so far solely for the fact that the single issues were each a story of the Ghostbusters trip across America. Very fun.