Author: Alex Clark-McGlenn

What’s The Furthest Place From Here #1 Image Comics Storytellers: Tyler Ross, Matthew Rosenberg Letters: Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou Every now and then–perhaps once a year, maybe every other, a comic comes along that has me in its grip from the very first panel. My thought process, as I read this comic, is something like this: Oh this is good. Oh, this is really good! OMG, can I get an omnibus this yet? Oh, the first issue isn’t even out yet. F. What’s The Furthest Place From Here #1 is my favorite #1 this year, and maybe my favorite comic of…

Comic Review: The Rush #1 Vault Comics Writer: Simon Spurrier Artist: Nathan Gooden The Rush is a frontier-era horror comic. While its most obvious strength is the spectacular art, which is atmospheric, the epistolary form and writing deserve praise as well. These elements combine to make a beautiful and well-told first issue that holds plenty of promise. The Rush title is in reference to gold found in the Yukon territory. Territory, that should be noted, was stolen from indigenous peoples. While portrayals of these First Nations people don’t feature in this #1, you can learn about them here: First…

World of Darkness: Crimson Thaw #1 Vault Comics Writer: Jim Zubb Artist: Julius Ohta I’ve always been curious about The World of Darkness. I’m not just talking comic books here. For anyone who plays Tabletop (or Pen and Paper) Roleplaying games, you’ll have least heard of World of Darkness, namely Vampire: The Masquerade. It’s not the juggernaut to ttrpgs that Dungeons & Dragons is, but it fills the space of urban fantasy/horror. I’ve always been curious what the world is like, so I took the kickoff of this new arc as an excuse to educate myself. Also, Jim Zubb wrote it, and I’ve always liked…

Image Comics Writer: Scottie Young Art: Jorge Corona Colors: Jean-Francois Beaulieu Letters: Nate Piekos (of Blambot) The Me You Love In The Dark #3 turns every ghost story on their heads. It looks like the shadowy monster our painter friend, Ro, has fallen in love with is a supportive partner. What started as a horror story about an artist in a haunted has turned–fittingly–into a love story. Issue #3 picks up in what looks to be a honeymoon phase of a relationship. Everything is beautiful. Ro and her unconventional partner can’t seem to keep their hands off each other.…

Image Comics Writer: Doug Wagner Art: Daniel Hillyard Colors: Dave Stewart Letters: Ed Dukeshire Vinyl is a horror/gorefest of a comic that is as beautiful as it is disturbing. While the weird-terror genre this comic squares itself in can lead to a creeping and mysterious dread, Vinyl #4 throws open the door to the monsters in the characters’ closets. . . literally. What follows is a disturbing yet beautifully illustrated bloodbath this reader could have done without. Vinyl #4 plants protagonists in a maze of horrors. The ravenous zombie-esk creatures are tearing people apart. Dennis, Walter, Guy, et al,…

Maw #1 Boom! Studios Writer: Jude Ellison S. Doyle Artists: A.L. Kaplan and Fabiana Mascolo Maw #1 is a comic that offers up a lot of intrigue without trying to do too much. While some #1s will try to pack a beginning, middle, and end between the covers, Maw presents a beginning and a before, and while I’m usually not one to be in love with flashbacks, this issue flows in a way many #1s don’t. From the very first pages, the premise grabs readers. The here-and-now story takes place at a women’s empowerment retreat on the east coast of the…

Down We Go Lead Designer: Markus Linderlum Game Developer: Tony Vasinda Lead Artist: Simone Tammetta Have you ever seen a crowdfunding project that you just had to back as soon as you saw it? That’s how I felt when I saw this campaign. It is only better now that I’ve played the beta. Down We Go is a gritty, rule lite Old School Renaissance TTRPG. It’s being crowdfunded on Gamefound.com right now, so check it out. This game prides itself on a simple-to-learn/play promise. For anyone familiar with Dungeons & Dragons, it might feel weird to know that Down We Go…

Deadbox #1 Vault Comics Writers: Mark Russell Artists: Benjamin Tiesma, Vladimir Popov Deadbox #1 grabbed me from the very first panel. This horror comic blends in sharp social commentary, with fantasy and science fiction elements. All these elements make for a superb first issue that will certainly draw me back for #2. This story, at least for #1, is a story about. . . well, stories. Who creates them and for what purpose? This issue asks how we, as a society, define ourselves with the shared stories of our culture. This issue explores stories tied to land. It examines…

The Beauty: All Good Things Image Comics Writers: Jeremy Haun, Jason Hurley Artists: Jeremy Haun, Matthew Dow Smith Welcome back to The Beauty. A story about the things people do to look a certain way. But young on, I thought that story was all wrapped up? It was. This one-shot is an after-story. This one-shot is the aftermath. As the authors note in their letter at the end of the issue, The Beauty felt prophetic in some ways once the COVID-19 pandemic swept the world. While everyone has faced some of the most difficult times of their lives since those early…

Dark Blood #2 Boom! Studios Writer: Latoya Morgan Artists: Walt Barna & Moises Hidalgo I have a confession. I didn’t read issue 1 of Dark Blood. But, you know what? it didn’t matter. Dark Blood #2 is so tight, well written, and illustrated, that I was catapulted into the story and invested in the character from the third play* page. *This issue starts with visions. Certainly divine, and perhaps a little contrived. Dreams are used so often in fiction of all mediums, starting a story (even a second issue of a comic) with a dream can be dicy. It’s easy to…