The Tithe #1 // Review

New this week is “The Tithe” brought to by Matt Hawkins and Rahsan Ekedal from Image Comics and Top Cow Productions.  This first issue follows a group of hackers who target corrupt super churches and give the money they take to charities.  Basically this is a modern version of the classic Robin Hood tale that we've been told minus the appearances of Kevin Costner and Morgan Freeman.  The Pastor Tibbett character is very much in the shade of Joel Osteen and his form of religious prosperity teaching.  Obviously he hasn't been found funneling money to an island, but you get the point. 

The hacker group known as Samaritan robs the church and gains access to the vault.  They then hack the projection screens and show the good pastor in a scene of decadence.  They proceed to detonate a bomb which causes a mass of confusion.  During all of the confusion the line “It's the Muslims” is a very telling statement for our current attitude of the masses unfortunately. 

The FBI is brought in to investigate and Pastor Tibbett proclaims innocence during all of his interviews.  There is some connection made between the Samaritan group and an FBI agent before we learn where the group is heading next.

With the overtly religious tone of this comic, it might not be for everyone.  I'm just putting that out there right now.  However, if you can see beyond the very obvious social commentary then this might be something you want to pick up.  The group's actions certainly are done in a moral gray area.  They have guns, they threaten violence to the families of the corrupt and even set off a bomb.  At the same time, they expose corrupt leaders who are essentially stealing from people, then take this money and give it to charities.  This comic walks a very fine line, and it does so very well.  Pastor Tibbett is not at all likeable despite the fact that he is robbed.  He's a slick, fast talking evangelical pastor in charge of a super-church. 

Rahsan Ekedal does a great job with the art in this issues.  It's nothing fancy, but it's well done.  The showing of the congregation passing their money to the collection plate while singing praises is captured perfectly.  The church is well drawn and doesn't take your attention away from the characters.

The first issue of Tithe shows some real promise and does a great job of introducing us to the story.  It should be interesting to see where they take this story on future issues.

Like this review? Then pick up both The Tithe #1 and Variant #1 covers now!

Tithe #1 (Cover A - Ekedal) - $3.59
Retail Price: $3.99
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Tithe #1 (Cover B - Ekedal) - $3.59
Retail Price: $3.99
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Posted by: Jeff

Comic Book Day 4/15

Good morning and happy Comic Book day to you! So, what do you plan on picking up today at your local comic book shop? Thanks to PreviewsWorld.com here are the new releases this week!

Here are some our pickups this week! Pick yours up too!

Archie vs. Predator #1 - $3.59
Retail Price: $3.99
You Save: $0.40

Convergence Suicide Squad #1 - $3.59
Retail Price: $3.99
You Save: $0.40

Ghosted #19 - $2.69
Retail Price: $2.99
You Save: $0.30

Ms Marvel #14 - $2.69
Retail Price: $2.99
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Comic Book Day!

Uncanny Inhumans #0

Another Wednesday is here and that means its another day to get this weeks comics at your local store!

Whats on your to get list this week?

Thanks to PreviewsWorld.com for the list of books and merchandise out today!

 

Here are some of our "Books To Get" This Week! 

No Mercy #1 - $2.69
Retail Price: $2.99
You Save: $0.30

Witcher: Fox Children #1 - $3.59
Retail Price: $3.99
You Save: $0.40

Avengers Ultron Forever - $3.99
Retail Price: $4.99
You Save: $1.00

Teen Titans Annual #1 - $4.49
Retail Price: $4.99
You Save: $0.50

Avengers Ultron Forever (Young Variant Cover Edition) - $4.49
Retail Price: $4.99
You Save: $0.50

Convergence #0 - $4.49
Retail Price: $4.99
You Save: $0.50

Southern Cross #1: Review

New from Image Comics this week is “Southern Cross.”  In the beginning, we find lead character Alex Braith traveling to the moon, Titan.  She is traveling aboard the Southern Cross in an attempt to bring back her dead sister, Amber.  So, immediately this series begins with a bit of a mystery.  We find out that Alex is the rebel and that her sister, Amber, is the good one.  Somewhat of a cliched storyline, but we'll run with it for now.  

This plot and storyline have certainly been told before and the question for this series becomes, how will the story be told?  Will the characters be fresh and pull you into the story? Unfortunately, that just doesn't happen here.  Alex isn't the most personable character and doesn't exactly interact well with the other characters that are introduced in this issue.  She's very stand-offish and cold. While you understand her desire to know what happened to her sister, there is nothing else that is you can relate to with her character. We do discover that she had some issues on Earth, but nothing is explained further.  It's like the writers drop a seed and seem to forget that it was mentioned.  The inner dialogue is dry and doesn't pull do anything to make you want to know more about the character, except to find out what happened to her sister, Amber.

Overall, the art is decent in this issue.  The drawing of the ship and the loading of the ship is impressive, those aspects really are well done. There are some other scenes with the Gravity Well that look pretty awesome as well. As a whole, the colors are VERY dark throughout the issue, but the coloring does match the general feeling and atmosphere of the issue. The storyline is dark and the colors reflect that well. There is a scene where Alex shuts her door on her neighbor and with the way the door is closing it looks like the neighbor should be pulling his arm through the door but the panel doesn't portray that very well.  Instead, it looks like he was just placed there and the scene was drawn around him.  Scenes like that add to the overall lack of emotion that permeates throughout this issue.

As a whole, I think that “Southern Cross” is a decent first issue that is off to a precarious start. I'm left wondering is whether or not future episodes will make this series a compelling read?

Posted by: Jeff @jeff201

Suiciders #1 Review

Vertigo's “Suiciders” starts off in an interesting way.  The main character, The Saint, knelt before a large statue of the scourged Jesus on the cross.  “Suiciders” is a comic series that occurs in a dystopian society, thirty years after the “big one” hit Los Angeles.  Los Angeles is now known as New Angeles and is separated by a large wall keeping half of the remaining living population out.

The story revolves around the character “The Saint” who participates in a blood sport like show that is known as “Suiciders.”   Just like the other participants, The Saint is surgically enhanced and on performance enhacing drugs.  In addition to having to face each other, the coliseum where “Suiciders” takes place is filled with additional weapons and obstacles that serve to increase the level of danger faced by the participants.  In this first issue, we don't get much a feel for the character of The Saint, other than the fact that he doesn't exactly live up to his name.  At least, his opinion of the people on the other side of the wall certainly wouldn't win him any humanity awards.

The other half of this issue revolves around the smuggling of people from the other side of the wall into New Angeles, and the two police officers patrolling the wall.  It is here that the reader gets a sense of the motivation for deciding who would stay beyond the wall. The exact thought process is pretty nebulous, so it's hard to say without any confidence how they make these decisions, but I think that seeing more during the duration of this series will help to reveal why people are on either side of the wall. Based upon what I've seen so far, the make-up of New Angeles seems to be upper class individuals, while those beyond the wall are the less fortunate.  It's unknown at this point if the smugglers are going to be in the story more often, or they are only here to show us the underside of this society.

I liked the story so far and I'm definitely curious to see where this goes and what happens with The Saint.  I also want to see more of New Angeles and what society is really like after the “big one.”  This issue was laid out well and leaves the reader wanting to know more.  Hopefully the story keeps evolving and we discover more about how this society really operates.  Learning a little more about The Saint's background and motivations will help keep the story moving as well, since that is one thing that readers are left questioning.  My impression of this character is that he enjoys what he does, but beyond his interactions with other characters, I can't really say that as readers we don't learn much about him.

Lee Bermejo, who wrote this issue, was also the artist and truly did a wonderful job on the artwork.  It's dark and shadowy, which really enhances the darker theme of the issue.  The action scenes are good even if they are limited in their display.  The violence is intense and extremely graphic and this series is definitely not for little kids or those opposed to violence. But, you'd think that the title “Suiciders” would dissuade those who don't want to read about violence in the first place.  

Overall this isn't on my must pick up list.  I'll definitely pick up the next few issues to see where this goes and it really wasn't bad at all.  I enjoyed it the issue because the writing was good and the art was great.  Overall though, this just didn't grab me completely.

Posted by: Jeff @jeff201

Comic Book Day: 2/25

Spider-Gwen #1

Again another day of comics are upon us! Do you have anything that you plan on bringing home from your local store? 

Thanks to previewsworld.com here are the list of todays releases! 

What say you? Did you find what you were looking for? 

Posted by: Joe @thee.social.nerd

Comic Book Day: 2/18

Multiversity: Mastermen #1

Today is comic book day! What are you picking up? 

Need help deciding? Thanks to previewsworld.com here is the list of this weeks releases.  

So whats the verdict? What are you picking up today? 

Posted by: Joe @thee.social.nerd

Divinity 1: Review

Valiant Entertainment brings us the new release of the book “Divinity” this Wednesday. This series is done by Trevor Hairsine and Matt Kindt.  I have to admit that from the first issue, it really shows a great deal of promise.  

The series revolves around Abram Adams, who was abandoned on a doorstep as a baby in Soviet Russia. I know the abandoned baby thing is kind of cliché, but it works here. As an orphan, Abram Adams ends up being raised by the state and is recognized as a particularly brilliant individual early in his life. As he is being trained to be a Cosmonaut for the U.S.S.R., he is chosen for a special mission that will take him to the very edge of the galaxy. This issue, while divulging some pertinent information, does leave room for character development where Abram is concerned.  Readers do learn a fair bit about Abram from an unknown character and readers glean information through Abram's interactions with some of the characters.  As a reader, you are able to understand his motives and it is easy to relate to this character.

Also in this issue, a second character is introduced named, David Camp...or is it supposed to be Camp David?  His introduction is made to readers with the re-appearance of Abram Adams, who has not changed at all, with the small exception of new superpowers.  In this issue, readers are not told too much about David Camp. Rather, we learn that Abram Adams has returned from his mission and is being tracked by either government agents or private contractors.

The art is particularly well done and I thoroughly enjoyed the beginning scenes of Abram looking back at the footsteps that left him when he was just an infant.  We are given panels of Abram at school and daydreaming during his studies that are all vivid and incredibly well done.  We are easily able to see the emotions artfully portrayed on the faces of the characters and even the more surrealistic aspects are brilliantly done.

This first issue will leave you with a lot of questions and I think that this is truly a GREAT thing to do here.  Not all questions need to be answered immediately.  Where the story leads for Abram is anyone's guess, but what I do know is that this series will definitely be worth reading to find out.

Posted by: Jeff @jeff201

Rumble #1

Written by Arcudi with art by Harren and Stewart 

Image Comics has been on an incredible roll with new series this past year. New offerings like The Wicked + The Divine, Black Science, and Low are my most anticipated issues of every month. Their new release “Rumble”, their latest foray into the fantasy genre has captured my attention and is a great setup for what may be another great story in this ambitious company’s collection of new and exciting universes.

The series is being billed as “Louis C.K. meets Robert E. Howard in a David Fincher universe.” The description is fairly spot on.

The story starts with lovelorn and desperate bartender, Bobby, breaking up a massacre of a barfight between an ancient scarecrow warrior god and a deadbeat drunk that may be more than he appears. Claiming thecomedically giant and unwieldy sword of the hay filled deity as his own, Bobby finds himself pulled into a situation that the narrator of David Fincher’s fight club would describe as “Jacks sense of instant regret”

The artwork of this issue does a great job of depicting the fragility of its human characters. The characters, if not skinny emaciated looking stalks on long spindly legs and arms are instead globular sacks of dirty mashed potatoes with homemade tattoos. Seriously nothing in this book looks like it smells good which is kind of part of its charm. The city looks like it could fall apart at any minute just like the lives of its inhabitants. The introduction of two grotesque demons and a murderous medieval scarecrow actually are an improvement to the town and make me excited to see what they are doing there that makes the grimy, depressing looking place so important to them.

I’m looking forward to seeing this universe expand in the coming issues and hope that it lives up to the same excellence that Image has been putting out lately.

Posted by: Levi Bushue

New Suicide Squad: Issue 6

What happens when you throw in an army of genetically engineered beings, China and a group of convicts in a lab? Not sure? The answer is you have issue number six of the "New Suicide Squad." The last issue left off with Harley Quinn setting off the alarm and unwittingly letting out the genetically engineered beings. 

The promotion for the heavily featured Harley Quinn issue is actually pretty deceptive, so for those of you who are hardcore Harley Quinn fans, prepare for potential disappointment. The members of the Suicide Squad are given equal footing in the issue, with the exception of Man-Bats, who provides some late issue distraction for the team when they need it most.

The issue revolves around the team fighting off the army of genetically engineeredd beings. Reverse Flash took up the bulk of the panels trying to grab as many bombs as he could, at least until his knee seemed to go out on him with the rest of the team being overwhelmed. The interaction between the team was limited, and the issue featured, and revolved around, the actions of the Suicide Squad. 

For me, where the issue dragged was places in which the Suicide Squad handlers were featured. The dialogue was dry, and with the exception of Victor Sage being approached in the bar, it didn't really lead anywhere or give an indication of a potential future storyline. In order to effectively advancce the storyline, you need dialogue and that dialogue should have meaning. In this particular issue, I really felt like the dialogue was just there to provide a break from the action.

The issue ends in a spectacular blast, an angry man, and a promise of revenge. Will we see another member fall? What will Sage do? 

You won't find anything Earth shattering in this issue of Suicide Squad, though I guess that's expected with Suicide Squad. If by chance you're reading anything by this team, you're probably expecting violence and very little else. You have some deccent action in this issue, but I wouldn't say that it's an absolute must-grab either. In all honesty, I put this issue down feeling a little disappointed in it's overall execution. Unfortunately, it seems that DC is still stuck on giving us a mediocre issues for the Suicide Squad. You would think that with a movie coming out next year, DC would want to create as much buzz and excitement as possible. Everything could be leading up to some great issues, but sadly it's just not happening yet.  

Posted by: Jeff