Comic Book Review: Dustin Smith's Knight Hunter

There are super powered individuals and, based on the early narrative, it's become a bit blase'.  Apparently, so has kidnapping.  Kyle is one of the main characters of the book and, while he's talking to a group of friends, his brother Trent is kidnapped by a van full of thugs just across the street.  One of Kyle's friends basically shrugged it off as something that happens on a day that ends in "y."

As for the rest of the book, I actually had fun reading it.  It's a bit rushed and some of the dialogue felt a bit forced, but overall I feel Dustin Smith did a fine job.  I assume he did the whole thing as there are no credits, issue # or price on this comic book.

My favorite character was a guy in a smiley face mask.  He uses old movie lines when he enters a room(or rather, he starts to say them but thinks better of it).

If you get a chance to read this book, check it out.  It's full of violence and is a nice introduction as there are now more questions than answers which is what you want in an on-going series(if this is an on-going series).  I received this comic book from the Indy Stash Subscription Service and you can read my review of the contents from that package here.

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Comic Book Review: Red Lance #2

"Behind the Curtain"

Written by Gary Bloom
Art by Brian McCranie

It is now known that former employee of MedryTech, Dr. Ky Perrels, is the villain Cataclysm.  Head of MedryTech, Rupinella Daniels, is looking to keep things she needs covered exactly that.  The super-group known as Red Lance is out stopping crime and have some of their own processes when dealing with Cataclysm's former lab.

This issue confused me a bit.  I still am not real sure if I am going for Red Lance or not.  It really feels like Red Lance is a background item while the villains(or theperceived notion of villains) are at the forefront.  After the first issue I thought questions would be answered but I just ended up with more.  With that said, comic book series are more of a long haul story investment.  Most of the comic book reviews I do are on an issue by issue basis.

The art works for the story being told.  This time around, the action poses looked much better than the facial expressions.

There are at least three issues of Red Lance and I look forward to reading what happens next.

What are your thoughts on independent comic books?  What other comic books would you like Maskerpiece Theatre to review?  Please respond in the comment section below.

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Comic Book Review: Red Lance #1

Written by Gary Bloom
Art by Brian McCranie

A group of super-powered individuals are looking to stop menacing robots who are controlled by someone known as Cataclysm.  Cataclysm and his robotic army of n'er do wells are spreading an airborne plague to "cleanse the city."

The first issue was a strange one to follow as there is a ton of action taking place and there are flashbacks to give you some insight as to why all this fighting is taking place.  As far as first issues go, it has my attention more from a story standpoint than the characters(other than the main villain).  I found myself going for the villain just so I could see where this story was going next.

There is a brief introduction to the heroes of Red Lance and there was short dialogue going on during the fight scenes to give you a bit of insight as to what motivates them and where they stand morally.  I hope the next couple issues have a bit more dialogue and we can find out where these characters are coming from mentally.

With all that said, thankfully this wasn't an origin story for a super-group.  I love a comic book that just goes right into it and doesn't assume the audience is stupid and can recognize a superhero story when they see one.  Hopefully, upcoming movies will take this to heart.

I liked the art in this book.  I like that facial expressions were more of a focus rather than having flashy pages.  The puppet-master like pages were absolutely wonderful.

This book is crowd-sourced and I'm glad the creators found some backers to put their work out for a larger audience.

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Comic Book Review: Like Father Like Daughter #1 - Short Fuse Media Group

Written by Kathryn "Comic Uno" Calamia
Art by Wayne A. Brown

Casey is a high school student who is being raised by her single mother.  Her father left at a young age to be a superhero known as Invulnerable.  Casey has resented her father for this but is now finding out she has more in common with her father than she ever realized.

This is a fun first issue and gives the reader a nice opening into a world that will no doubt become much larger for the main character.  Having the life of a teenager can be tough enough and now add in super powers that you want to keep a secret, and you have a recipe for what could be a fun book.  I like that there were nods to other stories such as the Spider-Man movies.  No sense in hiding it and it made for great interactions between Casey and her best friend Stephanie.

Wayne A. Brown is the artist for this book and did well capturing emotion in faces and the smashed vehicles looked wonderful.

This comic book came in the March 2016 Indy Stash Subscription box and you can read my review of the entire box here.

What are your thoughts on independent comic books?  What other comic books would you like Maskerpiece Theatre to review?  Please comment below or let us know on Twitter: @MaskedBlogster or @MPTheatre2015

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Comic Book Review: Bulletproof Chicken - King Bone Press

Written by Jon Westhoff
Art by Bobgar Ornelas & Mat Nixon

BP is one of the baddest on the force.  Fowl mouthed, excuse me, foul mouthed and and full of rage.  Nobody stands a chance against BP, until one day in a gunfight with a lizard gang he is gunned down in an attempt to keep his now one legged wife alive.  Everyone thinks BP is dead but they had no idea what was about to happen next.

This is a fun read.  Chicken puns, bloody violence, and language not suitable for youngsters.  If you have the chance to read this comic book, pick it up.  The laughs and the 1980s pop culture references are fantastic.  C'mon who doesn't like Robocop and take a look at the logo; I instantly thought of the video game Contra..up up, down down, left, right, left, right...

The art totally works with the story and it's pretty cool that midway through the book, the artist changes yet it all fits.  Lots of blood and dismemberment fill these pages and I'm sure Bobgar Ornelas and Mat Nixon had a great time drawing this fun book.

I was fortunate enough to receive this book from the Indy Stash Subscription Box.  I received a few other books as well and you can read the review of the entire box here.  

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Independent Web Comic Series Review: Who Is the Girl

Who is the girl - Webcomic
Creator: Cary Polkovitz

The recent entry is a single page in black and white. We meet two characters who have some degree of familiarity with each other. There is a decision that needs to be made and the characters involved disagree on what the decision should be.

The art work for this single page issue creates a darker tone for this world. The shading adds depth to each panel, helping develop this into a more three dimensional visual story. There's one panel where the artist focuses on the action of kicking a can and blurring the can itself which I found a bit confusing. The blurred can actually pulled me out of the story and I took a second look to make sure it was in fact blurry. I'm still not certain how that helped the story and considering it pulled me out of the moment, it might be avoided in the next comic. If there were more panels with blurred items I probably wouldn't have noticed. Perhaps slightly more consistency could be explored to prevent reader confusion.

The two characters are nameless but it's understood they have a pre-established relationship. I was not sure why they cared for each other either since this comic entry provided zero back story. It did have an endearing moment at the end where the truth of knowing someone is written quite nicely. I don't know anything about these characters but seeing that relationship in the last panel did make me chuckle.

Overall, it didn't take long to read and the single moment of confusion could easily be avoided in future comics. Cary seems to have an idea on where he wants this series to go and I hope the characters are explained more, either by action or description, in future entries. I'd like to care about the characters but I need to understand their motives, their personalities and the consequences of their decisions more.

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Battle Hymn Vol 1 - Trade Paperback Review

Battle Hymn, Farewell to the First Golden Age (Vol1) 

Written By: B. Clay Moore

Art By: Jeremy Haun

The year is 1944 and the first gathering of hero’s commences to help stop the second World War. The Americans are beginning to wage a brand new form of specialized war fare in recruiting individuals with unique abilities. We meet a new crop of hero’s who all bring something particular to the group and each has a skill set the United States Government prizes… or so we think. 

There was so much that happened in this origin story. It’s a collection of the first five issues and what a fantastic read. Sure, some of the characters are similar to popular characters from other comic book stories or share similar powers. Once you are able to get past that and enjoy the personalities of these new characters the story develops into something new that feels fresh. 

The deviousness and cruelty personified by certain characters is matched by noble and upright characters who stand for certain values otherwise missing in this story. It’s a spy thriller meets action comic and it’s superb. I’m not surprised this hasn’t been turned into a movie yet; however, I am surprised I haven’t heard anyone considering this for the big screen. This story is primed for film. The relationships between characters, clashing personalities and goals, espionage and combat are all front and center. This first volume literally has it all. There’s even a robot that can ignite things and people on fire and a fish/man thing that is super strong and intelligent! 

I wasn’t sure if I would enjoy this initially, to be honest. I picked it up because it looked like a familiar story with a unique twist and was it ever enjoyable. I finished volume one and was upset I didn’t pick up any additional volumes. If you’re looking for something familiar but different this is a fantastic collection to read. If they made this first volume as a Netflix film I’d be happy. It begins strong and ends with a twist and keeps you guessing throughout. Great read. So much fun. 

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Original Comic Book: Twisted Magic

"If the moral compass created by your past didn't exist, who would you become? If you had no one to tell you who you were, who would you think you are?"

The questions above are from writer Kalani Nazarro, the author of Twisted Magic.  These questions are the basis for the mysterious main character of this horror-fantasy comic.  

We were going for a new look with this comic book and we are hoping you enjoy it.  As the artist, I had a bit of difficulty finding the look that matched Kalani's vision.  The first page itself went through multiple looks.  He told me one day he wanted to get away from comic book panels and that's when the light bulb came on.  I drew the first page and sent it to him and at that point we were off and running.  

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Twisted Magic

Written by Kalani Nazarro

Art by Dalyn Viker