Harley Quinn Road Trip Special - It puts the trip in road trip

Harley Quinn Road Trip Special

Harley Quinn Road Trip Special is written by Jimmy Palmiotti, art by Bret Blevins & various artists, letters by Dave Sharpe and published by DC Comics. I've already voiced my opinion on Harley Quinn before, and as much as I do like the character I feel she is a very dark character and not so much a fun wacky character, as such I was a little reluctant to pick up the Road Trip Special but I was taken in by the fun and colourful cover and really it wasn't a bad read.

The comic begins with Harley Quinn, currently separated from the Joker, living in Coney Island and practising as Dr. Quinzel by day and wreaking havoc as Harley Quinn by night, receiving a call from her mother informing her that her beloved uncle Louie has died and that she will need to travel across country to collect his ashes and a gift he left her. Harley decides to enlist the help of her two best friends, Poison Ivy and Cat Woman, to make the long cross country journey more bearable as an all girls road trip. The story is fairly simple the group travel across country and then return it's really what happens along the way that makes the story. Is it a masterpiece of a story that tackles real world issues and makes you think? No, but is it fun and enjoyable with plenty of giggles? Hell yes.

The art is colourful with something interesting going on in most panels and all together is actually a really nicely illustrated comic. The characters spend half their time dressed in outfits inspired by their classic costumes, which is done really well, and the rest of their time half/completely naked. I'm all for sexy characters I do feel that in this comic it as a little overdone because nobody walks around in their underwear that much.

Girls don't do this at sleepovers, stop pretending girls do this.

The characters, despite being pretty silly, are quite likable and their friendship will actually tug at your heart strings a little. There is a moment between Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn as they look through a photo album that belonged to Quinn's uncle that is done particularly well showing so real compassion between the two characters. The comic heavily implies on a relationship between Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy but doesn't give any definitive answers just a whole lot of innuendo that the characters themselves acknowledge and make jokes about. The comic also has a cameo of one of my favourite duos Bizirro and Jimmy Olsen who hitch a lift and end up play a game of truth or dare.

Yay Bizarro!

Harley Quinn Road Trip Special is not a fantastic comic nor is it a terrible one, being very tongue in cheek and not taking itself particularly seriously in showing a lighter side of characters that are, in their best known forms, a murderous eco-terrorist, a former prostitute turned burglar and a psychotic victim of an abusive relationship. This comic may actually be a pretty good jumping on point for people who have never read a comic but are interested in getting started as you don't need any back story and can really just accept the story for what it is: a story about a woman on a road trip with her two best friends.

A lot of real road trips have a moment like this

I give Harley Quinn Road Trip Special 2.5 out of 5 Bffs

Find out more about Harley Quinn Road Trip Special here.

Archie Issue #1 - A new beginning

Archie Issue #1

Archie Issue #1 is written by Mark Waid, art by Fiona Staples, colours by Andre Szymanowicz, letters by Jack Morelli and published by Archie Comics. Archie first began appearing in comics in 1941 (Pep Comics #22) and has been around since, making him a pretty big deal and spawning some of the most bizarre team ups of all time including The Punisher, Predator, Sharknado, Kiss and zombies (really, I'm not making this up) to name a few. You could arguably say that Archie is on par with other characters such as Batman or Captain America but in more of the teenage high school drama kind of way rather than a super hero way. This year Archie comics decided to reboot the entire series and begin again at issue #1 which was a big surprise to old readers and a great jumping on point for new readers.

Dear Fiona Staples, I love this cover, I love you and everything you do

Archie begins with our main character Archie (duh!) introducing the reader to the town of Riverdale and a quick overview of some of the characters. Archie mentions that the entire school is talking about his recent breakup with long time girlfriend Betty after the "lipstick incident" to which they have both sworn to never speak of again. Archie and Betty's friends are devastated at the news and think that the former couple belong together and begin to hatch a plan at the upcoming school dance to bring them together again.

The reboot of Archie actually had a whooping 21 variant covers in total which is just a staggering amount from some of the greatest artists in comics at the moment. The main art and cover is done by the fantastic and wonderful Fiona Staples of Saga fame who draws the comic world's most magnificent hair. For characters originally designed in the 40's Staples manages to bring them into the modern era while still keeping the characters most identifying features e.g. Archie's red hair, Jughead's crown, Betty's blond hair, etc.The art is bright, colourful, beautiful and realistic, The face's are so expressive my favourite being Betty's sad face while drinking a milkshake alone.

How can someone be sad with a milkshake?

The characters seem really well rounded and given the chance I'm sure we will learn more about them as the series continues but so far we have had a good look only into Archie and Betty and they seem like really sweet people. The nicest thing about the two is that they don't want to make anyone the bad guy in the break up and they just want to deal with it in their own way despite everyone elses desire for gossip. One of the things that I really enjoy is the way Archie talks directly to the reader as its very different way to catch the reader up on events before the beginning of the comic and Archie's feelings and inner thoughts.

I'm not normally one for romance stories and the few Archie comics I have read are usually the goofy crossovers like Archie Vs Predator and Archie Vs Sharknado but I really enjoyed Archie #1. It is just beautiful and sometimes its nice to read something that there is no imminent death or end of the world situation.

I give Archie #1 3.5 out of 5 Jugheads

Find out more about Archie #1 here.

Hank Johnson, Agent Of Hydra - Average Guy, Average Henchman

Hank Johnson, Agent Of Hydra issue #1

Hank Johnson, Agent Of Hydra written by David Mandel, art by Michael Walsh, colours by Matthew Wilson and published by Marvel comics. Agent of Hydra is a one-shot comic that follows the everyday life of a Hydra henchman, while you may expect that this involves intensive training, attending top secret terrorist meetings and plotting the demise of The Avengers it actually involves a lot more making school lunches and children's birthday parties. Hank is just an average guy who works for your average evil organisation.

The comic begins with Director Fury (leader of S.H.E.I.L.D.) breaking into a Hydra base knocking out one guard with a kick to the face and shooting another. We later see the guard who received the brutal S.H.E.I.L.D. sponsored face-kicking sitting in his family home, with a bag of frozen peas held to his black eye, as his wife, Becky, begin asking about the school lunches for the children and requesting that they hire a nanny. Being a one-shot and a novelty one at that there really isn't a huge amount of story, which is in no way a bad thing considering the point is to show the everyday life of the average henchman.

The art of Agent of Hydra is simple with the characters looking like just average people, Hank is a slightly doughy father, his wife looks like an average middle-aged mother, there is nothing particularly remarkable about the character designs which works just so well for this comic being about the every day life of the regular Hydra employees rather than those with super powers that are behind the grand plans. The really fun part of this comic is seeing things like M.O.D.O.K. signing amazing grace, the cyborg head of Hydra's human resources and the Jr. Agents versus Tiny Hydra little league baseball game. The story does actually stand up on its own as a coherent story but what makes it really funny and entertaining is the art and character cameos.

I just can't not laugh at this

The characters are great with Hank being just this lovely goof and the relationship between Hank and his wife, Becky, is really genuine as they have their disagreements but are a happy married couple that make compromises and support each other. The characters interact in a normal realistic way that seems so at odds with their surroundings, its great and always gives me a chuckle every time I read it.

Agent Of Hydra is a charming little gem that is really good for some laughs while some of the cameos might be lost a little on the casual Marvel fan but its hard not to find things like M.O.D.O.K. in a suit and tie funny. I would really recommend picking up a copy of Agent Of Hydra.

There is also a super realistic portrayal of what happens when babies drink Red Bull

I give Hank Johnson, Agent Of Hydra 4 out of 5 Black Eyes.

Find out more about Hank Johnson, Agent Of Hydra here.

Yep, still funny

In The Local Pocket #3 - Carmen #2

Carmen #2

Carmen #2 is written by Mike Speakman, art by Matty Taylor, letters by Tom Orzechowski and published by Dumb Skull Ink. Finally the wait is over for the much anticipated second issue of the local comic Carmen, a spy thriller. I was so excited as I eagerly swiped my way through my digital copy (I was far too inpatient to wait for my physical copy) the only downside is now I have to wait for issue #3.

Issue #2 begins where issue #1 left off with Carmen the captive of the corrupt Booker King, CEO of King-Dome Come Industries, and being interrogated about her deceased boyfriend Brody. Booker King begins to reveal why Brody needed to be eliminated but still not what their plans are for Carmen. We also learn more about Lucas, the solider, who returns to his family farm with a dark secret and darker memories.

Not the face of a man having pleasant dreams

As I've mentioned before I'm a huge sucker for anything done with water colour and Carmen #2 is no exception. Despite their quirky, yet refreshingly different, design the character's still have expressive face. The backgrounds are mostly single colours but have a fantastic way of setting such a foreboding tone for the entire comic.

This is my favourite panel, poor Vincent.

In issue #2 we get more of an insight into the ruthlessness of Booker King, his shady dealings and hints at just how much influence and power he has (hint: It's a lot). More is revealed about Lucas, the reportedly dead solider returning home, and what exactly happened to him and Brody in the army.

Carmen #1 was a great comic but issue #2 has really hit its stride telling an incredibly story with both frightening and sympathetic characters and using unconventional art style to set a tone full of dread. Carmen so far is telling a story that is not so far-fetched that it couldn't happen (science fiction elements aside) giving it a truly frightening element to it, they aren't fighting the Cobra Commanders trying to conquer the world for undisclosed reasons or Hydra endlessly trying to destroy a small group of super beings, This is a corrupt organisation who's super power is money and influence and you don't get much more realistic than that.

I give Carmen 4 out of 5 thumping hearts

Find out more about Carmen here

Carmen is a local comic supported by Kickstarter which if you haven't used before not only helps support indie comics and other project but gives the people who support projects opportunities for extra bonuses such as signed art work and the chance to be in the comic, so keep an eye out for the next kickstarter opportunity.

The Beauty #1 - Looks To Die For

The Beauty Issue #1

The Beauty is written by Jeremy Huan & Jason A. Hurley, art by Jeremy Haun, colours by John Rauch, lettering & design by Fonografiks and published by Image comics. The beauty is the name of a sexual transmitted disease that effects over half the population, how could a disease possibly become so prevalent?  Worse, why would people intentionally become infected? Perhaps because this disease makes people beautiful and not just good hair day beautiful but perfect supermodel beautiful.

They say die young and leave a beautiful corpse

The Beauty issue #1 begins with an infected beauty on a train coughing up a little blood then suddenly, without warning, bursting into flames. Agent Foster and agent Vaughn, a beauty herself, from the beauty task force head to the crime scene originally reported as a bomb but when they view the strange state of the body it becomes apparent that this was no bomb. The detectives are interrupted by a bio hazard team from the center for disease control removing the agents from the case despite their objections. Foster and Vaughn continue to investigate the case after a suspect on their anti-beauty terrorist watch list becomes active. As the agents chase down the terror suspect he draws a gun and begins babbling about trying to save the beauties and save everyone.

The Beauty has the darker look of a noir style set in modern day with the perfect excuse to have perfect looking, sexy characters. Characters are not highly detailed in most panels with lots of shading over faces and eyes, giving them a dark and somber look but then and faces shown close up are highly detailed showing wrinkles, stubble and sweat on non- beauties and highlighting the perfect features of the beauties. The only thing I don't like about the art is that there are a few panels where characters seem to be missing their pupils, it's weird.

My eyes my beautiful eyes!

The only characters that have had a chance to make an impression in issue #1 is detective Vaughan, who has been reluctantly pulled deeper in the Beauty epidemic than she intended, and detective Foster, a seemingly by the book good cop, good husband and good friend.

Disease hipster?

If you like crime stories and science fiction The Beauty would definitely be a a great addition to any pull list. I'm super excited to see where this comic goes and how it portrays people that intentionally infect themselves with a disease for the purely aesthetic reasons.

I give The Beauty #1 3 & 1/2 out of 5 exploding beauties.

Find out more about The Beauty here.

The XII - The Father #1

The XII - The Father Issue #1

The XII is written by Patrick Trahey, art by Luis Suarez, lettered by MaGnUs and published  by SOL Comics. The XII (as in 12) is a post apocalyptic series that I picked up on Kickstarter and had sitting in my "to read" pile (which was continually getting larger) for a few months and when I finally got around to reading it I was annoyed that I wasted so much time not reading them because they were fantastic and I now eagerly await the release of issue #4.

The story begins with an unknown man being chased by by heavily armed, gas mask wearing men screaming asking what happened to his family and seems to meet an unfortunate end. We then flash back to a week earlier to find out how this man got into such a glum predicament. We find out that this man, our main character Caleb, is the leader of a small group of survivors consisting of his wife, Anna Bell, their 5 children, his brother-in-law, Alvin, and friend Hank. The adults of the camp are concerned how they will make it through winter with a failing crop and so many mouths to feed that they begin to consider going out of the "dead roads" despite Anna Belle's objections. These problems quickly take a back seat when a suspicious old man turns up requesting food or harbour saying that "The 12", a dangerous group that murder and mutilate travellers, are on the road. Caleb and his group know better than to trust strangers and dismiss The 12 as a ghost story. Their suspicions proven true as the old man and his group steal their livestock and burn their house to the ground. This forces Caleb and his family to move to their secret base and they now have no other choice then to head out on the dead roads to search for some kind of salvation.

Not exactly looking promising

The thing that distinguishes the characters and their situation from other post apocalyptic titles is that these characters have already established a way of living without modern comforts and begun to truly work for a better future by farming and teaching the children to read and how to prepare for the future. These characters have their problems and disagreements but still have some semblance of a functioning family.

The art of The XII is black and white with the only colour present being orange, usually for fire. The characters are all different in design with the children being incredibly cute and the adults having a tough hardened look about them as you would expect people who had scraped a living out of nothing to look.

The XII is a great comic that has heart warming family moments, tragedy and fear all topped off with a little hope. Every struggle that Caleb and his family face they still have hope that they will some how make it, as the series progresses their hope and resolve will be tested as dark futures come to pass and darker pasts are revealed.

I give The XII 4 out of 5 flaming arrows.

Find out more about The XII here.

Bizarro #1 - It Am The Worst!

Bizarro #1

Bizarro #1 is an all ages six part miniseries written by Heath Corson, art by Gustavo Duarte & Bill Sienkiewicz, colours by Pete Pantazis, letters by Tom Napolitano and published by DC Comics. Bizarro is an warped copy of Superman, created by Lex Luther, with a child like mind who speaks in a muddled up backwards English. I was a little unsure when I first picked up Bizarro as to what on earth could fill a six issue mini series that wasn't just pretty pictures for kids but I was pleasantly surprised that Bizarro #1 was a fantastic mixture of innocence, comedy and charm.

Bizarro #1 begins with Jimmy Olsen and Bizarro on a road trip together as Jimmy narrates that he is taking Bizarro to "Bizarro America", also known as Canada, as he is causing too much trouble in Metropolis despite his good intentions. Jimmy hopes to publish a coffee table book about the trip but within two hours of leaving Metropolis Jimmy has already decided that this was probably a mistake. After a car accident caused by Bizarro's pet chupacabra, Colin, totals Jimmy's car they come across the evil used car salesman King Tut who uses his mystical powers to hypnotise everybody in town to buy his (slightly) used cars.

The character of Bizarro is just adorable and reminds me of a little brother that follows his siblings around wide eyed, doing their best to help but usually just getting in the way. Bizarro is constantly telling Jimmy how much he likes him in just a way that makes it impossible to not to love him. Jimmy, despite being constantly annoyed with Bizarro, is extremely patient and never yells at him or puts him down making him a really likable character.

Every parent in the world has pulled that face

The art has an endearingly goofy quality to it that seems to fall somewhere between children's book and comic. Duarte & Sienkiewicz have done a really good job making Bizarro's face expressive despite the design of the character not allowing for a huge amount of detail. I love how Colin is randomly placed in panels either sitting on Bizarro's shoulder, hanging off his arm or just watching the commotion from the sidelines, it's adorable.

I want a Colin

I'm not really much of a Superman fan so when I heard about Bizarro I didn't take too much notice and just happened to pick it up because I thought the art looked cute and I wanted to show it to a friend who is a big Superman fan, after reading issue #1 and enjoying it so much I decided that I would just recommend it to her and she could buy her own copy because I wasn't about to hand over mine.

I give Bizarro 4 out of 5 Chupacabras

Find out more about Bizarro here.