Dig Boston and League Podcast Comics Picks of the Week for Wed. September 16, 2015

COMICS

Chances are the world will end up like The Isles of Los Angeles 2089 in Tokyo Ghost #1 by Rick Remender (Avengers) and Sean Murphy (Chrononauts). In the technology addicted future, people are looking for that next digital fix and will beg, borrow or steal to get it! …Ryan Ferrier and Valentin Ramon’s robot D4VE returns in D4VE2 #1. It will be future soon, who are your robot friends? … After years of being frozen metaphorically, Captain America: White #1 hits the stands joining the Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale Marvel Comics color-based original graphic novels. This includes issue #0. … Picks this week from LeaguePodcast.com.

Triple Shot: ATOMIC ROBO AND THE RING OF FIRE #1, STAR TREK/GREEN LANTERN: THE SPECTRUM WAR #2 & TET #1! at FORCES OF GEEK

IDW Publishing takes over Triple Shot with as many big phasers and constructs as there are handguns. 

That is to say, you’ve heard us gush at the Star Trek and Green Lantern crossover but the publisher’s connections withComics Experience bring Tet to print and independent creator-owned titles like Brian Clevinger and Scott Wegener’sAtomic Robo keep the independent spirit alive among a sea of licenses. 

TET #1 (of 4)

Writer: Paul Allor

Artist: Paul Tucker

Publisher: IDW Publishing

Pub. Date: September 09, 2015

UPC: 82771400916300121

BUY IT HERE

Our friend Paul Allor (TMNT, G.I.Joe) sent FOG! an advance copy of his latest,Tet #1, out today from IDW in association with Andy Schmidt’s Comics Experience class. 

Paul is a comics professional with some great titles under his belt, but also he is a crucial part of the community and staff over at Comics Experience. His title is Pro Critique Provider, helping would-be creators develop scripts and gives students much needed feedback as a professional that has worked with publishers.


Tet is a murder mystery set during the Tet Offensive, one of the key campaigns in the Vietnam War. 

Much like Marvel ‘80s books The ‘Nam and flashbacks in Classic G.I.Joe, Tet offers a look at the war from the soldier’s perspective. 

This book satisfies a lot of checkmarks for an interesting war tale. Romance, a murder mystery and a team up with U.S. soldiers and local authorities to solve said mystery. Of course the new partners don’t get along.

I’m compelled to recommend this issue. Tet is different than Allor’s other work and in my opinion, shows his growth as a writer. Setting the story in the Vietnam War gives a gritty backdrop to the mystery and allows for some great dialogue work.

Much praise to Paul Tucker’s realistic art, in the vein of David Mazzucchelli’s Batman: Year One style as an easy comparison. 

I’m looking forward to reading the rest of the story and recommending the trade. Tet runs four issues.

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

Dig Boston and League Podcast Comics Picks of the Week for Wed. September 9, 2015

COMICS

The Bitches enter into a bloodsport arena - which non-compliant will be victorious? If you ain’t reading Bitch Planet, there is no help for you, check out issue #5 by Kelly Sue DeConnick (Captain Marvel) and Valentine De Landro. …Force Friday sucked our wallets clean but if you can, sell off an old Tessek figure to buy Journey to Star Wars The Force Awakens Shattered Empire #1 from former Punisher team of Greg Rucka and Marco Checchetto! … That’s right, we’re recommending Star Trek / Green Lantern #3 again. Maybe you should get all three issues this time. … Picks this week from LeaguePodcast.com.

$75 Fandango Customizable Gift Card

THE NEW DEAL By Jonathan Case (graphic novel review) at FORCES OF GEEK

Written and Illustrated by Jonathan Case

Published by Dark Horse Comics

ISBN: 978-1-61655-731-7

Price: $16.99

Publication Date: 9/23/15
Buy it HERE

While based in 1936, Jonathan Case’s The New Deal is not a hum-drum historical drama based on FDR’s realignment. 

No sir, this is a beautifully rendered period heist comedy based the Waldorf Astoria highlighting income disparity from the bellhops and chamber maids kowtowing to the needs of the very rich that choose to make the ritzy hotel their home.

Published under Dark Horse’s seldom used, but high end Dark Horse Originals imprint, The New Deal looks as if it was published at Fantagraphics or Drawn and Quarterly, not necessarily at the home of Barb Wire and Itty Bitty Mask. 


Nice production design, classy art deco endpapers and a black and white plus wash look to the pages make for an excellent looking hardcover.

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

Dig Boston and League Podcast Comics Picks of the Week for Wed. September 2, 2015

COMICS

Mark Millar’s (Kick Ass, Kingsmen: Secret Service) wraps up volume one of his family superhero prequel Jupiter’s Circle #6. Imagine this is what the Minutemen was to The Watchmen as a love triangle threatens to break up the team! … Daredevil #18 is the final chapter in the Autobiography of Matt Murdock, written by someone who may surprise you! … We can’t stop picking Star Trek/Green Lantern as pick of the week. Issue #3 (of 6) has Captain Kirk teaming up with Hal Jordan and a ring bearing Enterprise crew. … The crossover event is not to be missed for fans of space cops and space explorers! … Picks this week from LeaguePodcast.com.

SALAD DAYS: A DECADE OF PUNK IN WASHINGTON DC (review) at FORCES OF GEEK

Wishing for the days
When I first wore this suit
Baby has grown older
It’s no longer cute
Too many voices
They’ve made me mute
Baby has grown ugly
It’s no longer cute

But I stay on, I stay on
Where do I get off?
On to greener pastures
The core has gotten soft

— Minor Threat, Salad Days (1985)

Reflecting on these lyrics thirty years later, the documentary Salad Days: A Decade Of Punk In Washington DC serves as a backstage pass to one of the most explosive and important hardcore punk scenes in this country. 

One could argue that Ian MacKaye’s bands and Dischord Records label defined the look, attitude and stage behavior of East Coast hardcore and straight edge kids from up in Boston down to Gainesville for years to come. 

This documentary puts the spotlight on McKaye and Jeff Nelson (Minor Threat, Dischord Records), Henry Rollins (Black Flag), Dave Grohl as well as horror comic writer Steve Niles (Gray Matter) among many others to patch together a decent image of D.C. punk in the 80s.

I was pretty stupid back then.

Well, let’s say uncultured. Let me go back. I was a teenager once.

Like many teenagers, I needed to rely on older siblings to clue me into my next move. It wasn’t my sister (Guns-N-Roses fan) that got me into punk rock. Rather, it was a complex web of a social circle and older siblings that circulated mix tapes of everything cool from Violent Femmes (who’s ‘Add it Up’ connected with me the way it could only connect with a virgin’s sex drive) to Minor Threat, we had it figured out. 

And then we started our bands. The rest as they say is a rather boring personal history that means nothing besides that it was real. Real to us. Music, expression, Minor Threat and the Dead Kennedys and the through line to McKaye’s later band Fugazi and $5 shows was very real. 

Hot summertime basements were filled with our bands. We scrawled giant X’s on our hands one week and then asked the same older brothers to buy us beer the next. We played next to washing machines and bicycles in the cellar and waited for the cops to come.

We bought army jackets, paint, sewed patches and made our own version of ‘The Sound of Punk to Come’. We weren’t very cool, but that’s what we were.

90% of what we were TRYING to do every day was to be like Minor Threat.

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

ARMY OF DARKNESS: ASH IN SPACE TPB (review) at FORCES OF GEEK

Writer: Cullen Bunn

Artist: Larry Watts

Cover: Gabriel Hardman
Publisher: Dynamite Entertainment
Pub. Date: August 26, 2015
UPC: 978160690691051999
$19.99

Buy it HERE

The recent Ashley Williams hack has exposed information that has global and interstellar consequences.  

Ash in Space has revealed that Sheila (his bride from Army of Darkness) is long dead and there may have had some hanky-panky between The Chosen One, the real Ash Williams, and a female astronaut on the International Space Station.

What are we talking about, here?


Come on, baby! We’re just using the latest click bait headlines to get you into the world of the Deadites once again as we review Dynamite’s Army of Darkness: Ash in Space! 

Cullen Bunn (The Sixth Gun, Harrow County, Magneto) brings Ash, his new hand and a chainsaw all the way past the stratosphere to fight Deadites and an evil satellite. Larry Watts (Robyn Hood, Grimm Fairy Tales) slays it on the art.

I wonder if Ash’s boss at S-Mart ever wondered where he went. He’s been gone awhile in the time stream, thanks to the spells in the Necronomicon.

If he times his return right, maybe he’ll be able to cash in some sick days.

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

Dig Boston and League Podcast Comics Picks of the Week for Wed. August 26, 2015

COMICS

Jack Kirby and Jim Steranko celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Strategic Hazard Intervention Espionage Logistics Directorate in S.H.I.E.L.D. issue #9 written by Mark Waid. This includes Previously unpublished panels from Jack ‘King’ Kirby inked by S.H.I.E.L.D. master artist Jim Steranko. …On the other side of the fence are our friends at HYDRA! Ever wonder what the workaday life of a HYDRA agent is life? Look no further than Hank Johnson Agent of Hydra #1! Written by Curb Your Enthusiasm executive producer David Mandel, this looks pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty good. All Marvel Picks of the week wrap up with Nick Spencer’s Ant-Man Last Days (One-Shot). Is it the end of the world? It is still to late to change the name. … Picks this week from LeaguePodcast.com!

FOG! Chats With IAN McGINTY, Creator of WELCOME TO SHOWSIDE at FORCES OF GEEK

Ian McGinty is familiar name to Bravest Warriors, Hello Kitty and Adventure Time comics fans, drawing countless issues for the weirdo all ages bubble pop space adventures contained therein.

Z2 Comics (formerly Zip Comics) recently tapped Ian for a new creator owned title that even caught the attention of spoken word artist and punk rock singer Henry Rollins.

Today Ian talks to us about his new book for Z2, Welcome to Showside, Hank’s roll in voicing the pilot for Showside and introduces the heart attack-inducing Mallo-Butter-Waffles. 

Who said bubble-gum pop with a hint of punk edge should be relegated to the turntable?

Looks like we have a sticky cotton candy comic book in the world of Welcome to Showside hitting shelves in October.


FOG!: Ian, thanks for joining us today! We know you are probably super busy! Are you working on a ton of books at the moment or just concentrating on Welcome to Showside?

Ian McGinty: Absolutely, my pleasure. At the moment I’m working on six different licensed properties that include comics, animation, card games and video games.

Some I can’t talk about right now, but the ones I can include Steven Universe, Munchkin, FLUXX and, of course, Bravest Warriors. 

Added on to that is my own book, Welcome to Showside, so it’s been quite a month, to say the least, but wow, what a rad month.

Thankfully, I’m someone who thrives on being busy and I love juggling all the different characters/storylines.

It’s weirdly invigorating to switch from having to be strictly on-model for some projects and then getting to go crazy with my own stuff, so I’m having a blast, and I’m definitely most excited about Welcome to Showside coming out soon.

I just love drawing and creating, so it’s been extremely fun overall.

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

Dig Boston and League Podcast Comics Picks of the Week for Wed. August 19, 2015

COMICS

Star Wars: Rebels is a sure fire way to get jacked up about The Force Awakens! Check out the last issue of Kanan The Last Padawan #5. … Archie #2 continues Mark Waid and Fiona Staples’ reboot of Riverdale. Can Archie score a new job? … Yo Joe! With a new Snake-Eyes in town, Cobra inches in on the Joe’s turf in G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero #217! … Picks this week from LeaguePodcast.com.

Triple Shot: THE BEAUTY #1, STUMPTOWN #6 & #7 & STAR TREK/GREEN LANTERN: THE SPECTRUM WAR #2 at FORCES OF GEEK

Today’s Triple Shot cheats the numbers a bit to include the latest two issues of Rucka’s Stumptown as the meat surrounded by Jeremy Haun’s incredible debut of The Beauty at Image and the ‘most likely to succeed’ crossover Star Trek/Green Lantern #2 putting Lantern Rings on all the right crew members.

Be sure to treat your LCS like your favorite place to be this Wednesday, because it probably is. 

Unless you are like me, of course, reading on my iPad behind closed doors like some malnourished shut-in.

Some stereotypes just don’t need debunkin’.

THE BEAUTY #1
WRITERS: Jeremy Haun, Jason A. Hurley
ART: Jeremy Haun

Publication Date: August 11, 2015
Price: $3.50
Publisher: Image Comics
UPC: 70985301933600111
Buy it HERE

Previous winner of Top Cow’s Pilot Season 2011 is Jeremy Haun’s The Beauty. My prediction is that this will end up at the top of lots of people’s stacks this week.

The premise is simple and deadly. There is a disease, ‘The Beauty’ that makes you look amazing but has a major side effect, a chronic fever. 

At the opening of the book, it appears that the symptoms have grown more severe and these good-lookin’ folk will start dropping like flies.

Part X-Files, Part Chew, part The Killing, this self described sci-fi police procedural takes an alternate world view or problem (see Chew) and wraps it around gumshoe detective work and departments stepping on each other’s toes. 

Many contagions are not obvious to the beholder, but the attractiveness of a symmetrical human form is for all to see. What makes this STD especially deadly is that people want to get it, not matter what the long term effects can be.

Haun and Hurley are able to explore classism, narcissism and vain behavior through the lens of your buddy cop tropes and a uniquely terrifying prospect.

Beautiful people dying next to you on the subway? What can be scarier than that? I’d rather take my chances with Rick and the rest in that zombie book.

Cheers to Jeremy Haun (Batwoman) for making a huge leap from the drawing board to the typewriter and back to the art again. This is absolutely great storytelling on the page and from the minds of Haun and his co-writer Jason A. Hurley.

I may grab a couple copies of this one at the store.

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

Dig Boston and League Podcast Comics Picks of the Week for Wed. August 12, 2015

COMICS

Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.:1952 from superstar team of Mike Mignola, John Arcudi and Alex Maleev follows Red into his first mission with the team and his first swig of booze (allegedly). … Agent Carter played by Hayley Atwell captivated our TV this past season and also was a big hit at Boston Comic Con. Check out her comic adventures in Agent Carter: Operation S.I.N. this week for more 50s spy action stuff! … The Beauty #1 takes on social diseases and vanity all at once from Jeremy Haun (Darkness, Constantine). …Picks this week from LeaguePodcast.com!

Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: 1952 TPB (review) at FORCES OF GEEK

Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: 1952 TPB

Written by Mike Mignola, John Arcudi

Art by Alex Maleev

Colored by Dave Stewart

Cover by Mike Mignola

Published by Dark Horse Comics

Cover Price: $19.99

Diamond ID:APR150064

ISBN: 978-1-61655-660-0

Published: August 12, 2015

Buy it HERE

Hellboy embarks on his first mission with the B.P.R.D. Team and wouldn’t you know it, there are demon monkeys, drunken priests and someone out to get the Big Red One.

Returning to Hellboy for the first time since 2003 is frequent Bendis collaborator Alex Maleev for art duties on this Mike Mignola & John Arcudi penned tale set in 1952.

Of course, regular Hellboy colorist Dave Stewart joins the fun on this fantastic adventure.

Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: 1952 is part mystery, part adventure story and explores some growth and development to how Hellboy came up in our world.

The 5 issue series is collected in one volume to hit shelves next week. This is a highly recommended addition to your Hellboy collection and also a great introduction this world as it focuses on a younger Hellboy and Maleev’s art fits the world of the B.P.R.D. so well.

Hellboy fanatics have likely grabbed these issues in floppy form, or perhaps are waiting until this trade drops to line up the spines perfectly with their other Hellboy volumes. However you end up consuming this (Dark Horse is finally onComiXology, FYI), be prepared for some familiar faces as well as some creepy introductions.

Mignola admits to being a bit of a control freak when it comes to other artists drawing his stories. What evolved from tweaking camera angles on Alex’s initial sketches eventually became Mike sending his own thumbnails to the artist. I’m sure the two got along fine, however. The pages and storytelling have the patina of classic Mignola Hellboy tales or old vampiric horror movies. You know how you feel when you read Hellboy Vol. 1: Seed of Destruction? You feel the same here.

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

Dig Boston and League Podcast Comics Picks of the Week for Wed. Aug 5, 2015

COMICS

Adam.3 #1 from Scott Kollins (Larfleeze, The Flash) gives us a widescreen wild-man born into a futuristic island utopia! The Tarzan of Tomorrow! … Paul Cornell (Wolverine) drops This Damned Band #1, a Spinal Tap style comic that promises to go to 11 — the 11th level of Hell that is, when worshipping the devil becomes a none-more-black situation. … The Shadow #1 from Cullen Bunn pits The Shadow in the deadliest game against a cabal of magicians searching for the secret of The Last Illusion! Only The Shadow Knows! … Picks this week from LeaguePodcast.com!

Dig Boston and League Podcast Comics Picks of the Week for Wed. July 29, 2015

COMICS

A leader emerges in Invisible Republic #5. Gabriel Hardman and Corinna Bechko’s off-world future tale concludes it’s first arc, in this summer’s breakout sci-fi political thriller. …Mulder investigates a missing child to honor the memory of his sister’s abduction in X-Files Annual 2015. …Last week we gave you Gods & Monsters: Batman, this week it’s JLA Gods And Monsters Superman! This Superman was raised by immigrant farmers as he rails against injustice! See you at Boston Comic Con 2015 featuring Stan Lee, natch! Excelsior! … Picks this week from LeaguePodcast.com!

‘NUFF SAID: THE LEGENDARY STAN LEE ON ANT-MAN, BOSTON, AND CAMEOS AT DIGBOSTON (EARTH PRIME TIME)

‘NUFF SAID: THE LEGENDARY STAN LEE ON ANT-MAN, BOSTON, AND CAMEOS

July 26, 2015 By CLAY FERNALD

92 years young, Stanley Martin Lieber never did quite get to write that Great American Novel.

He did something far more impactful to generations of people: After changing his name to Stan Lee, he created the Marvel Universe. All praise its name.

Before I could make out the letters, I could understand fantastic cars whizzing through the sky in the comic books he’s been behind since the Marvel Universe big-banged its way into my life and the lives of countless other fans.

The Generalissimo himself continues to reign supreme in Hollywood thanks to the blockbusters emerging from his canon of work, and he still teaches online courses, writes and creates brand new comic characters, maintains his role as chairman and chief creative officer of POW! Entertainment, Inc, and of course remains chairman emeritus of Marvel Comics. On top of that, he is a certified movie star (just don’t call them cameos anymore).

Since the man behind Spider-Man and Thor and all the rest is coming to Boston Comic Con 2015, I had roughly 10 minutes to keep a tidal wave of geek freak out in check and chat with him over the phone.

So, how are you doing?

I guess that depends on how you treat me! I’m feeling fine and looking forward to coming to Boston and meeting my friend Ken. [Ed note: Ken Bold is Guinness World Records title holder of the world’s oldest comic artist, born Aug 1, 1920, and is celebrating a birthday at Comic Con].

What, if any, are some of your memories of Boston?

When were we in Boston last? Two years ago. I have great memories of it; we went to a convention and had a wonderful time. People were terrific.

How did you feel Ant-Man went? Was it great to see it come alive on the screen?

Ant-Man was terrific: The critics loved it, the fans loved it.

THIS IS AN EXCERPT!
Read the rest at the Dig Site, please.

Share with this link:

‘NUFF SAID http://bit.ly/stanleebostoncon

NOTE: Thanks for all of your support & kind words!

[READ MORE at DIGBOSTON.COM]

JUSTICE LEAGUE: GODS AND MONSTERS (review) at FORCES OF GEEK

Doomed planet. 

Desperate scientists. 

Last hope. 

Kindly couple. 

Superman.

— Grant Morrison, All-Star Superman

Grant Morrison is most certainly capable of distilling Superman down into a few words, especially when introducing what has since become considered one of the greatest stories of all time of the iconic character.

Another master of the DC Universe  is Bruce Timm, the mastermind behind Batman: The Animated Series, Superman: The Animated Series, Justice League and Batman Beyond (to name a few).

Timm is back in with his latest project,  an alternate reality version of Justice League with Justice League: Gods and Monsters, which debuted on Machinima last month with three shorts and has been released this week as a feature length animated movie.

These new interpretations include Superman / Hernan Guerra (Benjamin Bratt, 24, Modern Family), the spawn of General Zod and Lara Lor Van’s DNA (in vitro, you pervs) raised by a Mexican farming family.

Batman is the creature of the night we know in our world as Man-Bat, Kurt Langstrom (Michael C. Hall, Dexter).

Rounding out the un-holy trinity is Bekka, granddaughter of Highfather from New Genesis aka Wonder Woman (Tamara Taylor, Bones, Lost).

With a reimagined DC Universe including dozens of Easter Eggs and a President Amanda Waller calling the shots, Alan Burnett (Batman: Mask of the Phantasm, Batman Beyond) and Timm’s PG-13 alternate reality gets a little racier thanThe Animated Series ever could. A member of the new guard for DCAU Sam Liu (Batman: Year One, All-Star Superman) directs.

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

Dig Boston and League Podcast Comics Picks of the Week for Wed. July 22, 2015

COMICS

Let the punishment end!The Activity team of Nathan Edmondson and Mitch Gerads took over The Punisher for an extended run so hopefully we’ll see some of this Frank Castle in Netflix’ Daredevil Season 2. Punisher #20 promises to go out with a BANG! … We’re going dark with this week’s picks. JLA Gods And Monsters Batman (One Shot) puts alternate reality Man-Bat Kirk Langstrom in the Bat Suit! Be sure to check out the latest from Bruce Timm and DC Animation on iTunes or wherever you get your movies. … Titan brings us Blacklist #1 based on the James Spader TV series of the same name. Will the Concierge of Crime Raymond Red Reddington help the FBI? Tune in to your Local Comic Shop to find out! … Picks this week from LeaguePodcast.com!

FOG! Speaks With DEAN HASPIEL About THE FOX! at FORCES OF GEEK

Distilling comics to their ultimate essence and having fun, Silver Age superhero stories is happening regularly today at one of the most unlikely publishers.

Writer and artist Dean Haspiel joins us this week to talk The Fox from Dark Circle Comics. Last summer we reviewed The Fox: Freak Magnet and the exploits of Paul Patton Jr. and family, so it was a pleasure to get with Dean about the new direction he is taking this classic Archie Comics owned superhero under the Dark Circle imprint.

Dean, who writes and draws the book, collaborates with Mark Waid on the writing and that relationship is explained here as well as some of the new heroes popping up in The Fox world.

The most recent chapter of the latest story arc, Fox Hunt, can be found in The Fox #4, out today wherever comics are sold, and that most certainly includes the device you are reading this freaky interview on!


FOG!: Thanks for joining us, Dean! After the success of Freak Magnet were you eager to get working on your next arc for The Fox?

Dean Haspiel: Thanks, Clay! I originally proposed a different idea for the Freak Magnet sequel that involved an ex-girlfriend who was a therapist for disturbed superheroes, the power of fossil fuel and the resurrection of a Tyrannosaurus Rex dinosaur buried underneath the center of Impact City, and a zombie-version of The Jaguar.

But, my then editor, Paul Kaminski suggested we do something called Fox Hunt, and I wrote a different idea.

Things are a little more violent and bloody this time around, while maintaining true to The Fox as we saw in the last volume. How is it for you to get to write and draw some of the more visceral scenes?

My favorite genre is horror. So, turning up the gross factor in Fox Hunt wasn’t hard for me to do. I just wanted to keep some of the zany, Silver-Age superhero tone I established in Freak Magnet, while decorating some of the scenes with terrifying tentacles, exploding heads, and puddles of viscera.

[READ MORE AT FORCES OF GEEK]

THEY’RE NOT LIKE US Vol. 1. ‘Black Holes for The Young’ (REVIEW) at FORCES OF GEEK

They’re Not Like Us V. 1: Black Holes for The Young TPB

Writer: Eric Stephenson

Artist: Simon Gane

Colorist: Jordie Bellaire

Published by Image Comics

Cover Price: $9.99

Diamond ID: MAY150507

ISBN: 978-1632153142

Published: July 8, 2015

Buy it HERE

Eric Stephenson (publisher of Image Comics, Nowhere Men) along with Simon Gane (Godzilla, The Vinyl Underground) and popular colorist Jordie Bellaire released a very punk rock comic on Christmas Eve last year.

Great time of year for gift-giving, maybe not so much for launching a new number one. Regardless of the timing, the first volume of They’re Not Like Usintroduces us to a band of telekinetic teenagers led by the mysterious mod pretty boy The Voice.

Perhaps drawing inspiration from other Image titles like Phonogram, Chew and Morning Glories as well as the Valiant series Harbinger and IDW’s Locke and Key, these uniquely powered and outsider youngsters are forced to give up their previous lives to get on with a clean slate.

Image Comics is creeping on the Big Two for market-share and that’s largely due to the biggest names in creators bringing books to the creator-owned imprint.

At the top of the pyramid of the unique comics publisher is Eric Stephenson. It caught my eye to see what he is capable of as a comic writer, and I was not disappointed.

Peppered with Manic Street Preachers and Morrissey song titles, musical references for post-punk bands, jazz musicians and a poster for the telekinetic 1978 box office bomb The Medusa Touch, They’re Not Like Us wears its heart out on its sleeve. An allusion to how closely this ‘team’ resembles teen heroes like The X-Men is quite deliberate as well, with all the mind invasion and somewhat similar skill sets of the boys and girls herein.

[READ MORE at FORCES OF GEEK]