Category Contributors

Apr 18 2017

The Wicked + The Divine 28

Alternating Currents: Wicked + The Divine 28, Drew and Spencer

Today, Drew and Spencer are discussing The Wicked + The Divine 28, originally released April 12th, 2017. As always, this article contains SPOILERS.

Drew: Fatalism has always been baked into the world of The Wicked and the Divine. Right from the start, we understood that the pantheon were destined to die, though the exact reasons for their death remained mysterious. In the wake of Ananke’s death, our characters have begun to question whether or not they are truly doomed to die — they know only what Ananke told them, but no longer trust her words. As the pantheon variously pursue their different paths, some in hopes of defying what may-or-may-not be their destiny, I can’t help but wonder if their names might offer some hint about what those destinies might be. Continue reading →

Apr 17 2017

Captain America: Sam Wilson 21

Today, Ryan M. and Drew are discussing Steve Rogers: Captain America 12, originally released February 22nd, 2017. As always, this article contains SPOILERS.

Ryan M: Empathy and understanding can only be built by listening. That’s why representation is so important. Reinforcing norms of exclusion only bolster the narrative of inequality. An outsider telling your story, however well-meaning, influences the message. The speed and breadth of modern media only add more veils between the truth and the version people hear. In Captain America: Sam Wilson 21, Sam wrests back control of his own story.

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Apr 17 2017

Unbelievable Gwenpool 14

Today, Taylor and Patrick are discussing Unbelievable Gwenpool 14, originally released April 12th, 2017. As always, this article contains SPOILERS.

Taylor: When you read an issue of Deadpool you know what you’re in for. Violence, cursing, and most of all, irreverent humor. Gwenpool falls much in the same line as the character that inspired her creation. Being a character who once read the comics about the other characters she’s interacting with, she can’t but be the living embodiment of meta-humor. This type of humor lends itself to the same kind of irreverence that we’re used to seeing in Deadpool but that doesn’t mean it is by any means easy to create. In Gwenpool 14 these types of laughs are present, but show the first signs that perhaps they are growing a bit stale as well.

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Apr 14 2017

DC Round-Up: Comics Released 4/12/17


How many Batman books is too many Batman books? Depending on who you ask there ain’t no such thing! We try to stay up on what’s going on at DC, but we can’t always dig deep into every issue. The solution? Our weekly round-up of titles coming out of DC Comics. Today, we’re discussing The Flash 20, New Super-Man 10 and Wonder Woman 20. Also, we discussed Gotham Academy Second Semester 8 yesterday and will be discussing Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps 18 on Tuesday. As always, this article contains SPOILERS.

slim-banner4 Continue reading →

Apr 14 2017

Godshaper 1

Today, Spencer and Michael are discussing Godshaper 1, originally released April 12th, 2017. As always, this article contains SPOILERS.

Spencer: Power, as they say, makes the world go round. Whether it be fame, money, authority, or any other form of strength, some sort of power and influence is behind just about every dealing in the world, no matter how large or how small the stakes. Simon Spurrier and Jonas Goonface’s Godshaper aims to explore the nuances behind the use and abuse of power, but what’s remarkable is how the creative team does so, consolidating nearly all forms of power to one central metaphor: a personal god for each citizen whose might determines their standing in society. Continue reading →

Apr 13 2017

Marvel Round-Up: Comics Released 4/12/17

We try to stay up on what’s going on at Marvel, but we can’t always dig deep into every issue. The solution? Our weekly round-up of titles coming out of Marvel Comics. Today, we’re discussing Amazing Spider-Man 26, Old Man Logan, Silver Surfer 10, Unbeatable Squirrel Girl 19, and Unstoppable Wasp 4. Also, we’ll be discussing Captain America: Sam Wilson 21 and Unbelievable Gwenpool 14 on Monday and Black Panther: The Crew 1 on Wednesday, so come back for those! As always, this article contains SPOILERS.

slim-banner4 Continue reading →

Apr 13 2017

Gotham Academy: Second Semester 8

Today, Taylor and Drew are discussing Gotham Academy: Second Semester 8, originally released April 12th, 2017. As always, this article contains SPOILERS.

Taylor: The history of a place has a weird way of informing its present. Take the city of Chicago, for example: well known for gangsters and crime in the roaring ’20s, Chicago is well-known these days for an epidemic of gang related violence. On the flip side, New York was a bastion for immigrants early in its history and that holds true today in the modern era of xenophobia. While not all locations are tied to their past in such apparent ways, history has a curious way of making itself known in the present. Such is true in Second Semester 8, when the ghosts of Gotham’s past, both figurative and literal, collude to threaten the city once more.
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Apr 12 2017

Paper Girls 13

Today, Spencer and Patrick are discussing Paper Girls 13, originally released April 5, 2017. As always, this article contains SPOILERS.

Spencer: The best sci-fi creators find a way to distill their grand ideas and concepts down to situations and emotions their audience can connect with and relate to. Brian K. Vaughan and Cliff Chiang have been wizards at this throughout Paper Girls, using their story to explore themes as weighty as prejudice and generation gaps and as mundane as family and growing up. Issue 13 distills that idea even further, slowing their ongoing story to a crawl and instead using the journey to naturally draw out the cast’s view of themselves, their families, and growing up in general. The result is never anything less than completely engaging. Continue reading →

Apr 12 2017

Batman 20

Today, Michael and Drew are discussing Batman 20, originally released April 5th, 2017. As always, this article contains SPOILERS.

Michael: I have been beyond impressed with Tom King and David Finch’s “I Am Bane” — an arc that contextualizes every issue of Batman that can before it. Previously I wasn’t won over with King’s take on the Dark Knight but “I Am Bane” makes me ready and willing to see where he takes the character next. Continue reading →

Apr 11 2017

Hawkeye 5

Today, Spencer and Drew are discussing Hawkeye 5, originally released April 5th, 2017. As always, this article contains SPOILERS.

Spencer: A defining trait of Hawkeye is that they’re a bit of a “hot mess.” For all their skill as archers, both Clint Barton and Kate Bishop tend to be disheveled, disorganized, and often immature in pretty much all other aspects of their lives. This likewise applies to Kate’s new job as an L.A. P.I., a job she’s thus far succeeded at largely through luck and improvisation rather than skill. Thankfully for her, though, it turns out that this may actually make the job a perfect fit for her. Who better to teach that lesson than fellow P.I., and the “Queen of Hot Messes” herself, Jessica Jones? Continue reading →