Who would win in a fight between Batman and Kenny Omega? How about a showdown between Wonder Woman and “Timeless” Toni Storm? Can the acrobatic Nightwing match the aerial arsenal of Will Ospreay? These questions could be answered when the heroes and villains of All Elite Wrestling (AEW) and DC Comics unite for a groundbreaking collaboration. The main event of this partnership will be a 48-page, two-part comic book saga.
Continue reading “DC Comics and AEW Team Up for Epic Crossover”
Pro Wrestling is often described as a live-action comic book. Both mediums are prime destinations for bombastic storytelling with larger-than-life characters. It’s not a surprise that the two genres often intersect.
Batista and John Cena have earned critical acclaim for their big-screen superhero roles as Drax and Peacemaker, respectively.
Marvel and DC Comics use wrestling as a vehicle to produce the next great issue, with a cover providing a peek of the body slaming goodness within its pages.
Get out your long boxes and search those spin racks. It’s time to look at 15 pro wrestling comic book covers.
Continue reading “15 Wrestling Comic Book Covers”
Written for and published by Forces of Geek October 2018
Green Lantern/Huckleberry Hound Special #1 | Writer: Mark Russell | Artist: Rick Leonardi | Publisher: DC Comics
An image of the KKK waving hello to Huckleberry Hound as they drive by his house on a Mississippi evening utterly conveys the edgier settings of the critically acclaimed Hanna-Barbera/DC Comics one-shot crossovers.
Set against the turbulent backdrop of the early 1970’s, John Stewart, a rookie in the Green Lantern Corps goes home to Earth where the political upheaval of the Vietnam War and the violence of the Civil Rights movement confronts him at every turn.
Many of us have probably wished at some point in our lives for a superhero to leap out of the comics and fix the world’s problems.
Russell examines the pros and cons of this real-world scenario as for whether Stewart, who wields the most powerful weapon in the universe should use it to stop racial atrocities.
The narrative uses a struggling Huckleberry Hound as the voice that is begging for the power ring to be used, while other plot elements argue the opposite.
Stewart’s struggle to resist smacking down those who worship evil’s might is what brings everything together to produce an entertaining and provocative story. Artwork checks all of the boxes and makes excellent use of expressive character work to convey what word balloons can’t.
It can be hard to take these one-shot comics seriously because the Hanna-Barbera side of things is a far cry from what we used to know. Putting that aside makes a pairing such as Green Lantern and Huckleberry Hound an exceptional way to approach serious issues without trivializing them while using a unique hook to provide enough of the escapism readers look for in comic books.
Rating: A-
Written for and published by Forces of Geek September 2018
BORDER TOWN #1 | Writer: Eric M. Esquivel Illustrations: Ramon Villalobos | Publisher: Vertigo
What if your town has a problem with otherworldly monsters, only to bring upon its victims a most gruesome death?
Think about it long and hard.
Now, imagine the cause of that problem being blamed on those “dang illegals” because isn’t everything their fault?
Racial tensions with a supernatural twist ushers in the ongoing weirdness that ensues in Border Town’s setting of Devil’s Fork, AZ.
Part social commentary and part horror story leaves the subtlety at home as writer Eric Esquivel delivers a hyperbolic memoir of his teenage years in Arizona.
The story is told primarily through the lens of a bi-racial Mexican/Irish teen, Francisco Dominguez, who goes by Frank.
Frank is the new kid in school and finds himself in trouble rather quickly due to the complicated relationship he has with his ethnicity.
Being biracial is not as simple as some may believe. Speaking as a biracial African/Irish person, some might feel consumed by the world at large. Society will look at someone in one light while the individual will see themselves in another. Along with his straight hair, Frank’s completion is light enough where he passes as Caucasian until the other half of his ethnicity is revealed.
From there on, his confrontation with a skinhead automatically makes him one hundred percent Mexican. Socially speaking, it’s hard not to have a say in your own ethnicity. In this maiden voyage, however, Frank seems to take it in stride. We meet Frank’s new friends including…well, imagine if Sloth from The Goonies was a masked luchador.
Political themes woven with the narrative’s eerie setting is unapologetic with its staunch conveyance. “Make America Great Again” is vigorously uttered by some Alt-right types while the tear in space and time that allows the monsters to invade our world is literally on the Mexican/American border.
That is the kind of irony that slaps you right in the face.
“What kind of Mexican is that?” asks a border patrol agent, in reaction to a sombrero-wearing, green hulking monster, which encapsulates Ramon Villalobos’ esthetic throughout the book. The style of illustration perfectly matches the story. The color palette of warm orange skies and peaceful desert landscapes highlights the beauty atop the abhorrent nature of things. Some would say this is the perfect way to describe Arizona today considering the state’s political climate.
Vertigo titles tend to make readers think more than your average cape and cowl book. Eric M. Esquivel’s script is as thought-provoking as it is ludicrous.
Observations, winks, nods, bloody imagery along with fun and insightful character development serves as a reminder that everyone has their fight in these politically charged times. Despite the very real message, it’s the ridiculous chronicle of events in this first issue that takes center stage. A skeleton monster demonically screaming, “…you fucked up!” made me wonder what the hell I had gotten myself into…and I can’t wait to see what happens next!
Rating B+
Street Fighter V: Wrestling Special | Writer: Ken Siu-Chong | Artists: Jeffrey Cruz & Hanzo Steinbach | Publisher: Udon Capcom
Another Free Comic Book Day is in the books. Once again, I journeyed to Silver Moon Comics & Collectibles to peruse all of the offerings. One book in particular immediately grabbed my attention and as someone who grew up on WWF and the Street Fighter II video game, this was a must.
Our first of two stories focuses on the over the top master of “strongest style” Dan Hibiki and his professional wrestling debut. Dan is the comic relief of the series and wears a pink gi similar to Ken and Ryu.
Continue reading “Street Fighter V: Wrestling Special – Comic Book Review”
Two years ago, when Seth Rollins’ shocking heel turn put an end to one of most prevailing factions in wrestling history, The Shield, fans were treated to the typical answer when such things occur in the world of WWE. It all added up to Rollins being tired of splitting the glory three ways and wanted it all for himself. Continue reading “WWE Books the Impossible with New Comic Book”
Normally, a comic book series based a popular television show delivers more of the same at best while often providing a watered down version of the source material.
Kyle Higgins makes BOOM! Studios’ run of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers a compelling exception to the rule by using familiar elements to serve the narrative in a fashion that triggers nostalgia while touching on things that the kid-friendly show ignored.
Here, Higgins and company sprinkle in safety concerns and protocols that remind, or perhaps, enlightens the reader that no sane person would want to live in Angel Grove due to the amount of monster activity that plagues the city.
Also, how come no one ever attacked the Rangers at home? Why is it that only Jason and Tommy’s Zords saw one on one combat? All of these things and more come into play throughout the book.
Click here to read the entire review at Forces of Geek.com
I’ve lost confidence in my writing as of late. I second guess every word and rewrite every sentence more times than I would like to admit. My friends tell me not to worry and that I’m my own worst critic. Last weekend, I learned that a critically acclaimed writer goes through something similar.
I covered a panel at Boston Comic Con, where Batman writer Scott Snyder and artist Gregg Capullo shared their experience crafting such an iconic superhero. Snyder is arguably the definitive narrative voice of the caped crusader and the love and admiration he has for the character is clear with every turn of the page.
Snyder was extremely open with some of the trials and tribulations he’s endured since he took on Batman’s ongoing series in 2011. “That sentence sucks” is a constant voice of creative doubt that is interlined in his thoughts.
In many respects, Scott Snyder’s work is the perfect example of everything I aspire to be as a writer. It was refreshingly honest to hear that he has fears, doubts and anxiety when he writes, just like me.
I wrote a review of Scott Snyder’s panel, and to avoid getting paralysis by analysis, I focused, found my direction, typed it up, and stayed the course in spite of the urge to highlight, right-click, and press delete.
Click here for my review of the panel at Forces of Geek.com
The year is 1995 and like many teenagers entering high school, football practice, parties, social status, pro wrestling, (which didn’t bode well for my social status) and that pesky thing called homework occupied my time and took me out of the comic book game.
That didn’t stop me from noticing the onslaught of promotional material, whenever I would walk by my local comic book shop for the first DC/Dark Horse crossover featuring the Man of Steel and the Alien Xenomorphs from the film series.
For the first time, the Dark Horse Comics/DC: Superman, a 400-page trade paperback version of this intergalactic smackdown as well as other cross company collaborations featuring Superman, has been released just in time for the 30th anniversary of the sci-fi blockbuster Aliens.
Featuring a cover promoting Superman fighting Aliens seems a little misleading, as I was surprised that the second half of the book has nothing to do with the Alien franchise. The stories of Superman/Tarzan: Son of the Jungle and Superman/Madman Hullabaloo do little to augment the event advertised on the cover. Superman vs. Aliens and the 2002 sequel Superman vs. Aliens: God War spearheads this collection.
Click here to read the entire review at Forces of Geek.com
When MMA star Randy Couture fought Tim Sylvia in March 2008, he did so against the wishes of the MMA faithful. People were concerned for his safety as Couture was 43 years old and coming out of retirement to battle the much larger champion who stands at 6 feet, 8 inches, tips the scales at 300 lbs. and is 13 years his junior.
Couture rocked the monstrous Sylvia with his first punch eight seconds into the fight and dominated the entire affair in an awe-inspiring performance to capture his third UFC Heavyweight Championship. That night, “Captain America” went from hero to legend.
In the pages of Dynamite Entertainment’s Cage Hero, high school student and wrestling sensation Ryder Stone learns about his true destiny when he joins a super-powered team of mixed martial arts fighters and strives to live up to his adopted name, Legend.
Click here to read my full review at Forces of Geek.com
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