Rocket Salvage #1 Review

Rocket Salvage is a six issue miniseries done by Archaia/Boom who have been putting out a lot of great quality comics like Lumberjanes, Adventure Time, and The Midas Flesh. At first glance with its bright and fun colors Rocket Salvage may seem like it is a book for all ages, it isn’t. Rocket Salvage is closer to Rocket Raccoon by Skottie Young, very bright and vivid colors and yet still gritty. Nothing too bad for young readers mind you just some adult themes (talks of a stripper and some violence isn’t too bad right?) but it is probably suited more toward the same crowd of say Bravest Warriors.

Primo Rocket, Fastest Man Alive, is our star and center of the first issue. It starts with him about to make racing history but as soon as you turn the page you are 15 years into the future and everything that was shiny and exciting is now run down vandalized. It is a great couple of page of art and story of the stark contrast of the two different time periods.

Without going into further details about all that is happening characters in the first couple pages show up throughout the book, Primo has had two kids(Beta Rocket and Rocco Rocket), got fatter, and fixes vehicles but doesn’t race them and doesn’t want his kids too either. There is a political strife essentially between robots and monsters (Republic of Galaxies and Galactic Republic respectively) and it seems Primo and his kids are going to be caught up in the middle of it all! Not sure which characters to trust as of yet looks like most are just after protecting themselves in the lawless town of Rio Rojo. As of now Rio Rojo is the only world we have seen a cool lawless world that is a little reminiscent of Tatooine from Episode 1. Cannot wait to get out and explore their universe some more.

Who will come out victorious in this story: Robots, Monsters, or the lowly humans who know how to race and repair? This is a book I will highly recommend to fans of Star Wars and Speed Racer. Rocket Salvage feels like a great combination of those two franchises and has their own story to tell.

Written and Reviewed by:  

Matt Dempsey

Game On Comics

http://www.gameoncomics.com

 

Wayward #5 Review

Wayward #5

IMAGE COMICS SUPERNATURAL SENSATION! The first story arc ends. Revelation and sacrifice.

Rori has barely adjusted to a new culture, a new school, and the discovery of the supernatural in Tokyo, when she and her newly found friends are faced with powerful revelations…and loss.  

Jim Zub demonstrates his mastery in storytelling, moving beyond his humor in Skullkickers and Legends of Baldur’s Gate, to expertly blend Western and Eastern story elements in the most ambitiously paced chapter of this story so far.   Tamra Bonvillian’s use of blue and contrasting red emphasizes nonstop action, mystical elements, and the emotional impact of the story.   The reader is still learning with Rori the nature and extent of her powers and the role of supernatural elements in her and her friend’s lives.

One of the prominent features of Wayward is that Toyko is more than just the setting; it is as integral and part of the story as Hogwarts was to Harry Potter.  Zack Davisson’s essays into Japanese folklore at the end of the issue continue to be fan-favorites, and will be missed in the first paperback collection due in February; hopefully this omission will be corrected in future editions.

The level of violence and content elevates this series to the more mature YA readers and above. I would feel comfortable sharing this with my almost-15 year old daughter, but would want parental approval before recommending this issue to anyone younger.   Case in point, Rori’s cuts on her arm appear again since their first controversial appearance.  Originally, this aspect about Rori was off-putting to many readers.  Zub contrasts the issue of self-mutilation with Rori reaching an epiphany in that she is not alone; the message I would imagine relevant to such a complex issue.  Although the timing of this self-realization may stretch the credibility of the reader, considering Rori’s loss suffered in this issue, the message is presented beautifully in a well-crafted sequence.

For music to listen to increase enjoyment of this issue, Japanese Popstars Radio on Pandora can emphasize the manga influences well, but it is challenging to find just the right fit for such a wonderful blend of different cultural elements within the story.  Feel free to add any musical suggestions in the comments!

All in all, this wonderful issue reinforces that Wayward is an epic in the making, and an excellent example of the variety of well-written, drawn, and colored series in the comic book market today. Having to wait until February to learn the fallout of these events is the most challenging part of this series.

Rating:

I give Wayward #5  4.5 out of 5 kappa and kitsunes.

Written and Reviewed by: 

 Joe Iconic

Game On! Comics

Game On Comics picks our Comics of the Week for 12-17-14

To see the New Releases for this week click Here: New Releases

2 New Small Press Titles to get into!

"And the meek shall inherit the Earth." The tagline for a 4 issue mini-series called "Squarriors". As the pun filled title would suggest this is a comic based off of the ideas of Squirrel Warriors. This comic is a bit gory but it is used well. It was a great first issue bringing us in during a major plight for this tribe of squirrels but also setting up mysteries for us to discover over this 4 issue run.

            The first mystery we are presented is brought to us by humans! Yes they seem to exist in this world but some kind of apocalyptic tragedy has struck, what it is we don't know yet but it is probably tied to the enhanced human like quality the animals have now. The other mystery I'm sure we will know more about by issue #2 is about all the strife between the squirrel tribes and the other human like animals.

            Overall it was an enjoyable first issue that could be easily overlooked just because of the pun title or the realistic and gory art but it seems to have a cool story to tell and tells it through other means besides the humans. Hopefully by the end of the 4 issue run we will get some good answers but maybe we can get more SQUARRIORS!

Gender bent sci-fi Odyssey in space is the best description for Matt Fraction’s newest book ODY-C. This comic immediately pulls you in the first page with a huge 8 page layout! The art is fantastic and well done never a quiet moment on the page.  

Image always does a great job of letting creators explore new ways to tell great stories and this seems like a great take on a classic story. This comic came out just a couple weeks ago and is sure to be a book with a great run and tons of different stories and new ways to tell them.

The mortal and world and the women invading and battling ships was a fun time and how the Gods are changed is fun and new I especially like the take on Athena and his pet owl. Odyessia is a very strong and powerful leader they all seem to have the same great distinctions just different genders. This is one of the few books that I would highly recommend checking out, a timeless story told in a great new way.

----Matt Dempsey

Game On! Comics

Our Website

New Comics out Dec 10th, 2014

Game On Comics in Vienna Va reviews comics each week.  This is our review for 12-10-14.

Comics included:

Squarriors by Devils Due
Bitch Planet by Image
Spider-Man and X-Men by Marvel
The Valiant by Valiant

New Comics for December 3rd, 2014

New Comic Video Newsletter