Massive comic book reviews! (Spoilers)
Reviews for Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight, Shazam!: The Monster Society of Evil, the first two issues of Stephen King's The Dark Tower, and Walt Disney's Spring Fever.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer "The Long Way Home: Part 1"
Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful. I had serious misgivings about this comic but it's SO in the spirit of the show. I loved Giant Dawn and would have loved seeing that on television. I also loved the retconning of the Immortal (thank you Joss!) and how it looks like Andrew was playing Angel and Spike. I like Xander's new role as Watcher too. Looks like the government is back and that Amy is going to be the new Big Bad. I'm not sure how I feel about that. I always found Amy's turn to evil on the show kind of forced and I'm quite frankly not sure if she is up to Big Bad standards. We'll see.
I loved the comic and I wish it was part of my personal canon (but because of Fray it isn't). *****.
The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger Born: Part One
I think the comic story recounting the backstory from the Gunslinger and how he got his guns was pretty good but for my money the best part of the book was the text at the end explaining the Dark Tower and the Beams. It made a LOT of things I found confusing about the books much clearer and I'm glad they are going to be a part of every issue. Cort looked suitably nasty in my opinion and his fight with Roland was great (if a little bit gross). ****.
The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger Born: Part Two
I'm still trying to reconcile this spidery version of the Crimson King with the crazy old guy at the Tower screaming "Eeeeeee!" but other than that I liked it. I had always pictured Rhea of the Coos looking MUCH nastier and funky though. She looked like a decomposed Puritan rather than a rasta mama as I had always pictured. Her checking Susan Delgado's "purity" STILL grosses me out though. ***1/2.
Shazam!: The Monster Society of Evil: Part Two
Yay! Ms. Marvel! I have to say this book is turning out QUITE fun and I love Mary's relationship with Billy and the Big Red Cheese. The ending was hysterical with Mary zooming everywhere. I was a little bit nervous about the Alligator people trying to eat the little kids though. Putting little kids in jeopardy has always struck me as cheap. ****.
Spring Fever #1
Donald Duck in "Mystery of the Swamp" by Carl Barks: It's a classic story but Donald is QUITE the stinker here. I don't blame the Gneezles at ALL for what they put him through. The Gneezles are little swampland people who I have the sneaking suspicion were the inspiration for Darkwing Duck's Jambalaya Jake. Good and funny story. ****.
Uncle Scrooge in "Lost on a Dog" by William Van Horn: Ah, the first Baron Itzy Bitzy story. Really fun short story with a really funny ending. ****1/2.
Donald Duck in "Nap in Nature": A gag story that isn't really that funny. But I can give it some slack since it IS only two pages. ***1/2.
Mickey Mouse in "Spooks Island": This story WAS kind of creepy in my book. I like how smart Pete was this story and the amnesia bit was a great gambit. I DO have to question how the professor managed to remember that tattoo on the captain but couldn't remember his face. His "people zoo" was quite deranged and scary. ****.
Goofy in "Cyrano De Maniacs": Ugh. Awful Goofy story. Dumb, dumb, dumb. *.
Chip 'N' Dale: "Romantic Antics" Not much better but it isn't as bad as the Goofy story. **.
Donald Duck in "Holy Cow" I was a little bit nervous about this story to be honest. It seemed to be a smack at Hinduism more than anything else and I kind of groaned how Grandma seemed to be the one who took the best care of the cow. **1/2.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer "The Long Way Home: Part 1"
Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful. I had serious misgivings about this comic but it's SO in the spirit of the show. I loved Giant Dawn and would have loved seeing that on television. I also loved the retconning of the Immortal (thank you Joss!) and how it looks like Andrew was playing Angel and Spike. I like Xander's new role as Watcher too. Looks like the government is back and that Amy is going to be the new Big Bad. I'm not sure how I feel about that. I always found Amy's turn to evil on the show kind of forced and I'm quite frankly not sure if she is up to Big Bad standards. We'll see.
I loved the comic and I wish it was part of my personal canon (but because of Fray it isn't). *****.
The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger Born: Part One
I think the comic story recounting the backstory from the Gunslinger and how he got his guns was pretty good but for my money the best part of the book was the text at the end explaining the Dark Tower and the Beams. It made a LOT of things I found confusing about the books much clearer and I'm glad they are going to be a part of every issue. Cort looked suitably nasty in my opinion and his fight with Roland was great (if a little bit gross). ****.
The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger Born: Part Two
I'm still trying to reconcile this spidery version of the Crimson King with the crazy old guy at the Tower screaming "Eeeeeee!" but other than that I liked it. I had always pictured Rhea of the Coos looking MUCH nastier and funky though. She looked like a decomposed Puritan rather than a rasta mama as I had always pictured. Her checking Susan Delgado's "purity" STILL grosses me out though. ***1/2.
Shazam!: The Monster Society of Evil: Part Two
Yay! Ms. Marvel! I have to say this book is turning out QUITE fun and I love Mary's relationship with Billy and the Big Red Cheese. The ending was hysterical with Mary zooming everywhere. I was a little bit nervous about the Alligator people trying to eat the little kids though. Putting little kids in jeopardy has always struck me as cheap. ****.
Spring Fever #1
Donald Duck in "Mystery of the Swamp" by Carl Barks: It's a classic story but Donald is QUITE the stinker here. I don't blame the Gneezles at ALL for what they put him through. The Gneezles are little swampland people who I have the sneaking suspicion were the inspiration for Darkwing Duck's Jambalaya Jake. Good and funny story. ****.
Uncle Scrooge in "Lost on a Dog" by William Van Horn: Ah, the first Baron Itzy Bitzy story. Really fun short story with a really funny ending. ****1/2.
Donald Duck in "Nap in Nature": A gag story that isn't really that funny. But I can give it some slack since it IS only two pages. ***1/2.
Mickey Mouse in "Spooks Island": This story WAS kind of creepy in my book. I like how smart Pete was this story and the amnesia bit was a great gambit. I DO have to question how the professor managed to remember that tattoo on the captain but couldn't remember his face. His "people zoo" was quite deranged and scary. ****.
Goofy in "Cyrano De Maniacs": Ugh. Awful Goofy story. Dumb, dumb, dumb. *.
Chip 'N' Dale: "Romantic Antics" Not much better but it isn't as bad as the Goofy story. **.
Donald Duck in "Holy Cow" I was a little bit nervous about this story to be honest. It seemed to be a smack at Hinduism more than anything else and I kind of groaned how Grandma seemed to be the one who took the best care of the cow. **1/2.