A drifter in the Old West gives confession to an alcoholic priest. Demons attack and the drifter, who has special powers, dispels them. That’s the opening to The 9 Circles: Marshal Law Issue One from Jaimie Engle, Kool as Heck, and Kristal Sayers. But is this really the best opening for the story? Tim and Jason find that the second part of this issue has somewhat more going for it. Here’s their critique.
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This time, a Christmas-themed comic. Isn’t it a little late for that? A seasonal comic may be a rather odd choice, especially one that has more military maneuvers in it than good cheer. But it’s appropriate for kids, and looks great! It also raises the question “What makes a good cliffhanger?” Tim and Adam take off in a one-horse open sleigh to critique “Bric-A-Brac” by Ryan Haack, Rafael Sam, Toben Racicot, and Milton Aguiar.
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Weight training is very big in space. At least, on the planet Cankee, where Earth-style weightlifting has caught on like wildfire. That’s the setup for Second Place, by Ben Goldsmith, Ed Smith, and Jay P. Fosgitt. Ryan Cecil Smith joins Tim to discuss in which categories it gets the trophy, and in which ones it doesn’t even place.
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Thready is a comic about a week in the life of a character who is bipolar. That’s him in the picture, although we suspect that appearance is symbolic of how he feels. This time, Tim and Jason discuss the first issue of a promising comic.
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Epic Tavern’s Tales from the Fantastical Crimes Unit gives us a noir-type detective on the case of a kidnapped centaur woman. What’s that? You’ve never heard of Epic Tavern? You didn’t know it’s a video game? Then this comic may leave you scratching your head. And that’s just one of a number of reasons that this comic prompts Tim and Ryan Cecil Smith to urge these admittedly talented creators (writer Shawn French, artist Steve Mardo, colorist Steve Lavigne, and letterer Rob Jones) to up their game. Listen for our (hopefully) constructive criticism!
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Anthologies have traditionally been something of a bear to critique, especially if they’re not very good. Producing the End of the World has solved that problem — both by sending us a media preview with only four of the collection’s stories in it, and by, well, being very good. Tim and Adam discuss a book containing some of the more fun stories about the end times that we’ve seen.
Producing the End of the World on Kickstarter
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David Dye has been one of our favorites here on Critiquing Comics; Tim and Mulele even interviewed him once. He’s back now with Amazing Tales #4, in which he takes a turn toward horror. Jason joins Tim to brave the creepy goings-on.
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Texas Tracts, by Rachelle Meyer, is a series of three short comics, modeled in format after the Christian evangelical “Chick Tracts” by Jack Chick. Rachelle’s well-drawn comics, in contrast, reflect doubts about things she was taught in Catholic school as a kid in Texas. Tim and Mulele discussed part one, Holy Diver, back in January; this time, Tim is joined by Ryan Cecil Smith in discussing the series overall, including the latter two volumes Joy Ride and Rainbow Collie.
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Root and Branch is a comic that flirts with the fantasy genre, but is more concerned about a clash of cultures: a traveling elf meeting humans for the first time. This is a web comic, created by Pink Pitcher, that’s still going strong in its seventh year, and currently has a Kickstarter going. Tim and Adam critique.
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Is Matt Canning‘s Honeymoon in the Afterlife about dying? Is it about life? Unlike some inscrutable comics we’ve discussed recently, this one isn’t frustrating; it’s intriguing, layered, and nuanced, and stands up to — no, demands — repeat readings. Tim and Ryan C. (who wrote a review of the book last fall) discuss.
The In Common review of Honeymoon
Order from Birdcage Bottom Books
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