This week’s 5 and kicks off with a Big Shiny Robot! This BSR is very cool and comes to you on the cover to It Came! #4 from Titan Comics. Dan Boultwood is the storyteller behind the comic book that is styled in the vein of a B-movie alien invasion flick. Dan is a hell of a cover artist as this pulpy style cover should really be a collectible movie poster from the 50’s! I don’t know about you, but I’m rooting for the robot.
Take a closer look at Manifest Destiny #1. You may think it’s just another “frontiersman looking over the horizon” image unless you peer deeply at that cliff side. Image Comics drops another Creator Owned series into the laps of the comics industry. This one looks to be a creepy crawly historical monster hunting adventure book.
Harbinger is my favorite of the Valiant reboot and for good reason. Peter Stanchek’s mind is being laced with the blood of the Bleeding Monk. For those following, you’ll get the visual metaphor of the knowledge of the monk, the manipulation of his machinations and the power of Peter. For those that don’t get the visual metaphor, you should go get every issue of this book. You’ll be binging on sweet and savory storytelling at its finest. A friendly warning though, binging on this book will bloat your monthly pull list and the contents may be addicting.
The cover Rocket Girl #2 is what made me pick up issue 2, despite the fact that even though I liked issue one, I just didn’t think the story was for me. I’ve fallen in love with Amy Reeder’s art though. Her rendering of Montclare’s Rocket Girl is simply beautiful. The genre melding and execution though make this a spectacular read.
The Superior Foes of Spiderman gives me a simple joy that reminds me of the unique feeling Fraction and Aja’s Hawkeye brings me. The coloring to the cover of issue 5, with the offset of the blue and white, is what sealed it as the final cover pick this week. Rachelle Rosenberg gets the muted tone of the villain’s costumes perfect. It is because of that the blade of the boomerang appears to spin against the bright blue background.
I didn’t mean to pick two moments from one book but I liked two moments in the same book so much that I wasn’t about to throw either one of them out. With that being said, let’s start the panels with some Batman!
If there is one thing I’d pick about Greg Capullo’s art that I like the best it would be his ability to tell story through character. Sure his action is great. Sure his design and backgrounds are full and fleshed out. I love all of that, but it is the expressions he puts on the mugs of The Bat cast that take Snyder’s Batman story to that level of greatness that will be remembered for years to come.
Is it a Shocker that The Superior Foes of Spiderman makes a second appearance this week? The cover featured Boomerang so it shouldn’t have been a surprise to anyone that it would come back around to give us all another taste. In this panel a Super Villain gives a kid some good advice. That’s not the only crazy thing that happens in this book. If you’re the person that doesn’t think this book is for you, pick it up. You’re the comic fan this book was made for.
This week’s 5 and 3 closes out with some Gotham City Police Department blimps. I’ll be back next week around the same bot time on this bot channel. If you’re wondering where I’ll be until then, I’ll be somewhere in the shadows of a glowing screen. I’ll be watching old Batman: The Animated Series episodes thanks to the nostalgic itch courtesy of Scott Snyder, Greg Capullo and some nice coloring by FCO Plascencia.
