GI Joe and ROMMEL - Guest Review by Chris Yother

I got this email recently from longtime fan Chris Yother a few days ago and thought it was pithy and entertaining enough to post here (with his permission of course.)

Dude

Major bummer this weekend!! First, where was my favorite comic guy on Friday? - oh yeah, that's right, had his Irish buddies to hang out with :))) It's cool, hope you guys had a great time.

So, I stopped in this weekend in particular to pick up my last Joe comic from DDP. I did that intentionally. I sat down Saturday morning and read all 12 issues straight through. What an AMAZING series this 12 part adventure turned into!! Couple little things I didn't like but it just rocked!!! The tempo was a bit slow in the beginning - which was good - as I like character involvement and depth but I had a feeling they (DDP) were going to have to speed things up to give us a good conclusion. Smart move on their part to make installment 6 a two parter - that smoothed the story tempo out really well.

There were a lot, I mean A LOT of little subplots which I lost track of when reading the story on a monthly basis - especially around installment 8 or so. But reading it all together brought it all home. It was nice for me, as I have been a fan of the Joe comic since issue six came out (I never saw the first 5 issues on the newsstand rack!!) :)) This story line was to GI Joe fans what I think Civil War was to you Marvel fans - one big "HOAAH" bonanza!!

So, as the final installment was passing into my collective memory of Joe lore, I felt myself becoming really sad - I mean, WHAT HAPPENS NOW?? :)) The reality of me losing the Joes and not having a comic there each month was depressing. Fortunately, Larry Hama will be back with IDW in October. I really dig what they have done with DR WHO Classics so I am hoping this transition will be pretty smooth - still - OCTOBER!! At least that gives me time to catch up on all those war comics I have bought from you guys.

DDP did a wonderful job. It's a Golden time to be a Joe fan with the WW3 story and the 25th anniversary figures and vehicles and a movie due in 2009.

So, not only did I get that enjoyment - I also bought that ROMMEL solitaire game from DVG I saw on your rack. I got it because I cannot get ANYONE to steady commit to wargaming with me, so the solitaire option works perfectly. Anyway, I did Rommel moderately proud - the Axis got rocked but I did OK. Screwed up the rules - it was my first time playing the game, so that was bound to happen - unfortunately, the British forces benefited from it!! :)) Anyway, PLEASE PLEASE preorder me the Alexander the Great Solitaire game they are going to do - I really want that one!!

Hope you had a great 4th - I am!!
C

Thanks Chris!
So... any other GI JOE fans out there? What did you think?

Guest Review: CLOVERFIELD

By Phatmogera

Hey Bill and friends, just a quick non-spoiler review of Cloverfield for you. If you like giant critter attack movies, and I'm sure a lot of Comix Connection customers do, you must see this movie. It is the dream some giant monster fans have been dreaming of for decades (yeesh, I'm soooooo old). So, some quick points:

1. The whole movie is footage taken from a hand held camera during the attack. If you get motion sick easy, take precautions! Also, sit back a bit further from the screen. They do a great job with the shooting to get as much of what they want you to see on screen.

2. Hud, our intrepid cameraman and overall most identifiable character, is really funny. His name is short for Hudson, but I couldn't help thinking there is a great in-joke for gamers as your point of view is like a first person shooter's HUD (Heads-Up-Interface). He really steals the show with his lines.

3. You see the critters. Yes, critters. And they are WAY cool.

4. If you are expecting to see the scientists, presidents, or generals planning to stop the critter, or hippie environmentalists trying to commune with the critter, you need to pick a different movie. Cloverfield's stars are the poor schmucks caught in the way of a rampaging monster.

5. No false scares or cheap tricks, just genuine emotions. The cast does a great job. They all have bright futures.

I hope they don't make a sequel, I think it could ruin it. But go see it! I think both theaters in the Comix sidebar are showing it. Between last year's The Host and and now Cloverfield, it is a great time to like people-stomping creatures!

CLICK HERE to view the trailer!

(Thanks, Phatmogera!)

OTHER SIDE - Guest review

Today, I turn things over to avid reader Chris Yother, and this review of the comic OTHER SIDE, by Jason Aaron and Cameron Stewart:

Sunday is comic day for me - whenever I have a moment to read on Sunday, the comics get cracked out.

Just finished "The Other Side"- a Vietnam War graphic novel I bought from you a couple months back - pretty good- heavy hitter with Dale Dye doing the intro - he is a military technical adviser on such movies like Saving Private Ryan (which he is in) and Band of Brothers.

Very well illustrated storyline was OK - a little confusing and somewhat drawn out. The end was kind of anticlimactic - if it weren't for the illustration, the story wouldn't stand on its own.

I give it a solid "B" :)) Still not 'The NAM". I can see something like this coming about in 15 years or so with Iraq - wonder how that one will shake up.

Thanks, Chris!

And any time rest of you want to send me a review, please feel free! I'm a genuinely lazy person, and will put your review up here rather than actually have to come up with something myself. Thanks!

A near-unanimous Pick of the Month?

Is it possible? Could ALL the Comix Connection Counter Monkeys be in unanimous agreement just this once? Behold the object of contention, quite possibly the most overlooked and underrated book of the year:



Originally appearing as an eight-part backup in DC's TALES OF THE UNEXPECTED, DOCTOR THIRTEEN: ARCHITECTURE AND MORALITY is writer Brian Azarello at his best... a delightful romp with forgotten DC characters battling The Architects (the four real-life writers of DCs universe-changing series 52), filtered through the sensibilities of the no-nonsense paranormal debunker, Doctor Thirteen. All delineated by the spectacular art of Cliff Chiang.

HERE'S a much better review/summary than I could hope to pen. Check it out, all in a snug trade paperback for a mere $14.99 and available now.

Ten Comix Connection Counter Monkeys agree: DOCTOR THIRTEEN: ARCHITECTURE AND MORTALITY is awesome!

(Did I mention the Nazi Gorillas? The VAMPIRE Nazi Gorillas? You can never get enough Vampire Nazi Gorillas.)

Guest Review: Stop Forgetting to Remember

My wife Karen happened upon this book on my stack and read it cover to cover. She says it's great and that she couldn't put it down! Author/artist Peter Kuper is roughly my age and Karen says she can see a lot of parallels with Kuper's semi-autobiographical book and my life. If that's not a ringing endorsement, I don't know what is! Thanks, Sweetie! Now gimme back my book so I can read it!

HERE'S a link to Random House's site for Stop Forgetting to Remember... it's very cool.

(Peter Kuper is the current creator of MAD Magazine's SPY VS SPY, and a long-time underground/alternative artist.)

Graphic Lit/ Panels and Pixels

If you aren't already, you should be reading Chris Mautner's review column, Graphic Lit, that appears regularly in the Harrisburg Patriot-News. Always insightful and entertaining, Chris has gotten me to check out various comics and graphic novels that I somehow overlooked. A great example of Chris' spot-on reviews can be found HERE where he checks out the first issue of WORLD WAR HULK. His videogame/comic review weblog is Panels and Pixels, found HERE.

It's nice to see that an excellent comic review column can flourish here in Central Pennsylvania. Kudos, Chris! And the rest of you, go read and enjoy!

The Plain Janes - A Guest Review

Have you seen this book on our shelves?


It's THE PLAIN JANES, the first book of a new line from DC Comics... the MINX line of "manga digest"-sized graphic novels. What is THE PLAIN JANES? Well, you're in luck! Local fan Olivia Hayes sent along this review:

The Plain Janes
Reviewed by Olivia Hayes, 14

Plain Janes is a graphic novel written for high school girls. Jane is a girl who lives in the big city. One day, while walking down the street, a bomb goes off. She manages to save the life of an unknown man, who goes into a coma. In response to the horror that just befell her, the once preppy Jane cuts her hair and dyes it black. She gets into art, and her friends don't know what to say. Her parents are overprotective, so they move to the suburbs to feel safer after the bomb. The popular girls at Jane's new school want her to sit with them at lunch, but she would rather sit with the rejects. All the girls at the table are named Jane. Soon, she creates P.L.A.I.N., which stands for People Loving Art In Neighborhoods. In an attempt to beautify the town, the P.L.A.I.N. Janes go out in the middle of the night to attack the town with art! Unfortunately, most residents think P.L.A.I.N. is a group of terrorists. The Janes aren't sure how to get the people to realize they're really trying to help. No matter what acts they do, (such as beautifying the animal shelter to try to get people to adopt a pet) nothing seems to work. I really enjoyed this graphic novel. I love art, and I really liked the ideas the Janes had to beautify the town. They really went all out with this book. There was romance, action, rebellion, comedy, and even some tragic moments. The writers were very insightful and the art was well done. Plain Janes was only the first to come out in a series of graphic novels for girls, so if you don't like the look of this book, try out another! And, if you DO like the look of this book, you should still try the others!

The Plain Janes
Written by Cecil Castellucci; Art and Cover by Jim Rugg
Minx - 176pg - B&W - Softcover - $9.99

Thanks, Olivia!