Back in the 1980’s, no one property dominated televisions and TV more than the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles did. No comic company personally could tell the animated adventures of the turtles in book form better than Archie comics taking the Turtles from your TV to the comics.
What made these issues so great was the inclusion of all the wacky figures that may or may not have shown up in the cartoon show.
IDW collected issues 17 to 20 of the Archie comics. Within that series, there’s an awesome adventure with the Turtles and April hanging with Man Ray. At times, it feels like a public service announcement but these books were geared toward the youth of the late 80s and early 90s.
Overall, if you have kids and/or you had own these issues as a kid, I give this collection a solid 3/5. It’s fun, it reminds me of a bygone day that maybe we can relive via nostalgia.
As far as animation goes, Avatar the Last Airbender was probably one of the greatest TV series created in the last decade. It would be no surprise that a follow up to the series would be made: The Legend of Korra.
This art book collects some of the most impressive art and concept drawings from the series. It makes me wish I had liked the new show better. The art is just as breathtaking as the Last Airbender, yet you can see the subtle differences.
If you are a fan of the new series or just a collector of art books, this is a solid 4/5 and after reading this book, I am going to watch season two when it starts up in the fall.
Every micro-series comic that has come out have been nothing but pure pleasure to read. Solid artists, solid story and solid enjoyment.
It’s become abundantly clear to me that comics about the TMNT extended cast of villains and allies are some of the best comics made to this day.
This issue is no exception. We follow the back story and creation of one of the Turtles’ biggest and most talented villains. With this issue, we learn the level of depravity that The Shredder will go through to have loyal soldiers.
Every page was by far more exciting than the next and made this comic a fast read. I say this every review, if you can only pick up one comic book series, you would be doing yourself a disservice if you pass up these awesome TMNT books. And this issue is no different, this is a must read.
I give this issue a strong 5/5 and, so far, for the TMNT comics in total a 5/5 for the whole line of comics.
If you have not been watching the mega hit Nickelodeon show, then you are either living under a rock or a fan of Michael Bay. Either way, you are missing one of the best animated shows of the last decade.
With that comes this amazing companion book for the series. That’s right, it’s not a rehash of the show but what I like to call mini episodes that fill in the gaps and fill the time between the shows. This, right-off-the-bat, is done with as much care and love as the series itself.
The dialogue and art fit in perfectly, the artist captures the facial expressions of the turtles as if you are actually watching the cartoon. This is perfectly fitted into this comic. In this first issue, April and Donatello break into a “top Secret” Junk yard and, needless to say, all hell breaks loose.
The “Nick” TMNT issue 1 is a solid 5/5 and a must buy for Turtle fans of all ages. I hope this series becomes the gateway to a whole universe of new young readers.
Spinning straight out of the hit Nickelodeon cartoon comes an all-new, all-ages book perfect for fans both old and new! When things take a dangerous turn on a covert mission, the Turtles will have to use their super-ninja skills as well as some moderately-Super gadgets to help save their friend from some big trouble!
I am and will always be a sucker for anything that takes place in Japan. What this does unfortunately, makes me a complete and total critic to a degree that is almost unhealthy.
First lets look at the synopsis from Comixology:
In the opening issue, we are introduced to the world of the Rider via the opiate of its inhabitants: television. During the media frenzy leading up to the launch of KenkyūCorp’s newest mobile phone, a brazen terrorist attack kills their lead spokesman and shocks the nation. In the days that follow, Japan’s most watched news program, Channel 8 OmniNews, and its lead anchorman, Shintaro Fukasaku, follow the subsequent attacks by the mysterious individual, clad in an outfit reminiscent of old superhero TV shows and apparently capable of superhuman acts of violence.
There are a ton of elements that I think work well in the story.First and foremost is the Rider’s look, it reminds me heavily of Kamen Rider.
Which is a cool little twist and an homage to the style of Japanese hero (well in this case Anti-Hero)
The story itself is solid enough for a simple indie comic book and has tons of potential in future issues. The art does pull me out of the story quite a bit. The lack of a solid artist does lead to a bunch of confusing panels that make it hard to fall in love with the over all comic.Last but not least is the generic buildings, this is a pet peeve of mine. you have Google Images and tons of Google maps, so why are we still getting crappy generic images? As an artist make the attempt to draw actual places in Japan be it Tokyo Tower or the Skytree. Adding Iconic locations will help the reader dive into the world you create!
In the end it is worth a read but I can only give this really short first issue a 2/5 with the lack of a solid artist and better settings. But I hope that they continue telling a very cool story and maybe the art will catch up!
Nothing at our end of the animated realm was ever as well produced and well written as Avatar the last Airbender. The continuation of the series in comic book form has been pretty much stellar.
The art and story are spot on identical to the cartoon, this is a great thing. The art makes you feel like you can hear the voice actors actually saying the words written. Book two keeps the adventure going from book one and fills the gap between the end of the series and the start of the Legend of Korra.
Finding Zuko’s Mother is a great story that fans always wanted to know about and this collection is a 5/5 and a must buy. IF you haven’t picked up book one do so now!
In search of their long-lost mother, Fire Lord Zuko and his deadly and insane sister Azula have brought Avatar Aang and his friends into a mysterious forest, but what they discover within may be more than they can face. Will they too be lost in these woods forever?
Writer: Gene Luen Yang, Michael Dante DiMartino, Bryan Konietzko
Artist: Gurihiru
Cover Artist: Gurihiru
Genre: Action/Adventure
Features: 2 Desktops
Publication Date: July 10, 2013
Format: FC, 80 Pages, TP, 6″ x 9″
Price: $10.99
Age range: 8+
ISBN-10: 1-61655-190-9
I grew up on Godzilla movies, I had hand me downs of the Shogun warriors Godzilla and Rodan toys. I cried when I thought Godzilla died in the Volcano at the end of Godzilla 1985. Godzilla and comics have a strong heritage together; my favorite memory would be Godzilla against the Avengers.
The only thing I ever hated was to sit and watch the old films and see people talk when all I wanted to see was giant monsters fight! Godzilla Ruler of Earth combines that all into one. Solid storytelling and some really good art.
The people we follow are actually there to help the reader along to the monster fights and in this first issue they hit almost every monster known to human kind. I cannot wait to issue two so we can see Godzilla mix it up!
I give Godzilla Ruler of Earth a monstrous 3/5
Godzilla Rulers of the Earth #1
Writer: Mowry, Chris
Artist: Frank, Matt
On Sale: June 26, 2013
Publisher: IDW
Diamond Id: APR130313
Format: COMIC
Price: PI
UPC: 82771400467000131
I have sung the praises of TMNT and IDW a lot these past few months. Honestly I want to be the one to say “This Book Sucks!” But I can’t.
It would be an outright lie if I told you I hated this series and there is no reason to say that. TMNT has been the most consistent story and solid read for months now. Their spin-off one shots are masterful and each color classics makes me happy that I can still say that I love being a turtle fan.
The issue in question made me grab my mouth a few times in that “OMG” type moment, something films have left me not doing in a long time. This issue continues and ties in two other one shots “Old Hob” and “the secret origins of the Foot Clan”. (Both I highly recommended)
Casey is near death and Leo kidnapped, this is how we start this issue and from here on in it goes straight into the pits of hell. The Remaining Turtles lead by Master Splinter search for Leo as Casey fights to stay alive.
This Issue is striking and gripping and all within 32 pages. I think Marvel and DC need to read what a solid book looks like!
This is a no brainier 5/5 and a must add to your pull list.
TMNT (Ongoing) #23
Writer: Waltz, Tom
Artist: Santolouco, Mateus
Cover Artist: Eastman, Kevin
On Sale: June 26, 2013
Publisher: IDW
Diamond Id: APR130356
Format: COMIC
Price: $3.99
UPC: 82771400271302311
Kryptonite is a material from DC comics very own Superman mythology. The ore form of a radioactive element from Superman’s home world of Krypton. It is famously known for being the ultimate natural weakness of Superman and most other Kryptonians.
The word Kryptonite has since become known as an Achilles’ heel, the one true weakness of an otherwise invincible man.
The concept of Kryptonite was conceived in an unpublished 1940 story “The K-Metal from Krypton”, by Superman co-creator Jerry Siegel. The K-metal in the story was a piece of Krypton which robbed Superman of his strength while giving humans superhuman powers, a plot point which decades later made its way into the Smallville.
Jerry Siegel also stated that the name of the planet Krypton was taken from the element Krypton due to the common denominators of high density and viscosity between the two.
(Yeah I don’t quite get it either. Science > Rob Base)
The first “published” use originated in the Superman radio series in June 1943 in the story arc “The Meteor from Krypton”.
Kryptonite covers a variety of colored substances, but usually refers to the most common “green” form. The material is usually shown as having been created from the radioactive remains of Superman’s home planet Krypton, and generally has adverse effects on Superman.
As well as it’s use as a plot device and some “rumors” state it was also a means to allow Superman’s voice actor, Bud Collyer, to take occasional time off. (which was for the most part been debunked – check Comic Book Urban Legends Revealed #76 )
It would take many years for the big evil K -word to make it into the comics. It wasn’t till 1949 that comic book writers incorporated Kryptonite into their stories, as a new danger and weakness for Superman and to add an “interesting” element to his stories.
Editor Dorothy Woolfolk claims she brought Kryptonite to the comics. She told the Florida newspaper “Today” in August 1993 that she had found Superman’s invulnerability dull, and that DC’s flagship hero might be more interesting with an Achilles’ heel (So to speak) such as adverse reactions to a fragment of his home planet.
By the end of the 1940′s comic book heroes became passé and needed to stay relevant in a changing landscape. Kryptonite helped Superman not only stay relevant but made him seem more fallible.
Kryptonite, in its first comic appearance (Superman #61, in 1949), was a rare and unique. It came to earth inside a single meteorite from the exploded planet Krypton. Superman captured the two small pieces of Kryptonite, one from a fake swami (pretending to “hex” Superman with it) and another he purchased from a jewelry store, (wonder what the value of Kryptonite was in 1949?) and threw them into Metropolis’ river.
Overtime, Kryptonite was depicted as being so abundant that many two-bit criminals kept a stock pile as a precautionary measure.
Later it was explained that the explosion of the planet Krypton had opened a “dimensional warp” (similar to a wormhole) which allowed the ship that was carrying the young Kal-El to reach Earth in a relatively brief time, and a large amount of planetary debris had also passed through this “warp” and emerged near Earth at virtually the same time, accounting for the seemingly improbable abundance of Kryptonite material and its availability to Superman’s enemies.
Kryptonite is most commonly depicted as green in coloring, with a few exceptions; it was red in its first appearance in Superman #61 (November 1949). When Superman followed the time trail of a piece of red rock that weakened him, he was able to trace his origin back to Krypton for the first time. Other colors of Kryptonite, having different effects, began to show up frequently beginning in late 1950s comics, reaching a peak in appearances in 1960s Superman series.
To reduce the amount of Kryptonite used in Superman storylines, all known Kryptonite on Earth was transmuted into “k-iron” in a 1971 storyline titled “The Sandman Saga”, though Kryptonite could still be synthetically manufactured by a variety of known and unknown means, and additional material left over from the destruction of Krypton would continue to fall from space.
In the years to come, Kryptonite would continue as a thorn in the side of our big blue hero. Though after John Byrne rebooted the Superman mythos (after Crisis on Infinite Earths), Kryptonite became much rarer in the DC Universe and many of the multicolored varieties were eliminated.
Yet it wouldn’t stop future writers and editors from messing up the K-Metal from Krypton.
I have been a life long Transformers collector and enthusiastic about all its properties (except for the Michael Bay stuff).
Up until the first Bay film, I had over 7000 unique pieces of Transformers toys. I also had every single comic and a few imported books from Japan and one even from Korea.
My love for this property has led to people referring to me as a purist. This really couldn’t be further from the truth.
I accept all the Transformers incarnations. Be it G1 or Prime, I have followed this property with open eyes. I remember the first Transformers comic I got and how utterly confused I was as a kid because the comic didn’t follow the cartoon show.
Heroes like Grimlock where highly intelligent and not some dumb Dinobot. Villains like Rabbat lead the evil Decepticons into battle.
IDW has done an amazing job with the continued adventures from these old Marvel books. But I feel its important to know that if you are a new fan these issues will not help you catch up on the franchise.
So if I was to review each issue I’d be forced to do a 6 page catch up/History lesson on all the books to date. No casual fan can just jump on without reading the Transformers wiki for days.
So I say if you love the Transformers and grew up as a G1‘er you will love the current crop of comics.
