Category Ryan Desaulniers

Feb 16 2016

Injection 7

Alternating Currents: Injection 7, Ryan and Drew

Today, Ryan D. and Drew are discussing Injection 7, originally released February 10th, 2016.

Ryan D: The iconic novel Moby-Dick is peculiar in two specific ways. Firstly, for such an important example of turn-of-the-century literature which spawned many films based off of it and sits as a part of our literary lexicon, a surprising amount of people have not read it, which I attribute to its length (927 pages in the first edition, 635 in the US release) and the abundance of dry non-narrative chapters dedicated to things like an exhaustive cataloging of ships. Secondly, and more relevant to this review, is the idea that though the presence of the eponymous white whale is felt constantly, it does not actually appear until the last three chapters. I would hazard that the influence of this affects much of our modern media, happily adopted by horror films, especially; we never get a full view of the shark in Jaws until the climax, and the same can be said about the organism from Alien. This same feeling of looming danger and presence pervades Injection 7, and this feeling of tension makes this arc wonderful to read. Continue reading →

Feb 8 2016

Marvel Round-Up: Comics Released 2/3/16

marvel roundup17We 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 A-Force 2, Amazing Spider-Man 7, Sam Wilson: Captain America 6, Captain Marvel 2, Deadpool: Mercs for Money 1, Howard the Duck 4, and Rocket Raccoon and Groot 2.

slim-banner4 Continue reading →

Feb 8 2016

Velvet 13

Alternating Current: Velvet 13, Drew and Ryan

Today, Drew and Ryan D. are discussing Velvet 13, originally released February 3rd, 2016.

Drew: I wince whenever someone asks me if I can play chess. I certainly understand the rules of the game, but I feel like that makes me a chess player in as much as understanding the mechanics of applying paint to canvas makes me a painter. That is, the actual playing of chess lies not in my rudimentary grasp of what moves are allowable, but in the nuance of applying those moves towards a goal. Real chess players have so internalized those rules, they can plan several moves ahead, and the strategy ultimately revolves around forcing their opponent into moves they can anticipate. This is exactly the kind of game Velvet has been playing with ARC-7 for most of this series, and she’s damn good at it. But what if the rules she had internalized weren’t the rules of the game at all? That’s the situation she finds herself in this month, as Damian Lake proves to be even more of a wild card than she ever imagined. Continue reading →

Feb 3 2016

Black Magick 4

Alternating Currents: Black Magick 4, Drew and Ryan

Today, Drew and Ryan D. are discussing Black Magick 4, originally released January 27th, 2016.

Drew: I’ve been thinking a lot about genre lately. Specifically, how we might define genre as a concept. I tend to think of genre as a checklist of conventions; guns and horses? That’s a western. Period costumes and overly-earnest impressions? That’s a biopic. But every convention you can think of has numerous exceptions, and writers love deconstructing genres, which means there’s no one trait that would actually be true of an entire genre. Instead, “genre” is more of a cloud of possibilities, and any given story’s placement within that genre is a negotiation of the conventions that fit within that cloud and the subversions of those conventions. Why use those conventions at all? There are a number of reasons, but one of the most practical is that those conventions work as a shorthand — we don’t need the concepts of interrogation rooms or fortresses of solitude explained to us, even though we’ve never experienced them ourselves. This allows writers to skip ahead to the subversions, showing us what’s unique about this particular genre story. We all know what’s unique about Greg Rucka and Nicola Scott’s Black Magick (it’s right there in the name), but issue 4 is the first to hint at just how different that might make this story. Continue reading →

Feb 3 2016

Weekly Round-Up: Comics Released 1/27/16

round up

Look, there are a lot of comics out there. Too many. We can never hope to have in-depth conversations about all of them. But, we sure can round up some of the more noteworthy titles we didn’t get around to from the week. Today, we discuss Cry Havoc 1, Faith 1, Jem and the Holograms 11, Jupiter’s Circle Volume 2 3, Outcast 15, Ringside 3, and Spire 6.
Continue reading →

Jan 27 2016

Marvel Round-Up: Comics Released 1/20/16

marvel roundup15We 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 Deadpool 6, Hercules 3, Ms. Marvel 3, New Avengers 5, Patsy Walker A.K.A. Hellcat 2, Silver Surfer 1, and Uncanny Inhumans 4.

slim-banner4 Continue reading →

Jan 26 2016

Captain Marvel 1

captain marvel 1
Today, Ryan D. and Mark are discussing Captain Marvel 1, originally released January 20th, 2016. 

secret wars div

Ryan: For some time now, one of the largest recurring themes when it comes to Ms. or Captain Marvel is the legacy of the character. The character of the Captain has undergone numerous iterations through the years until the mantle came to rest permanently — or, as is often the case in comics, for now — upon the capable shoulders of the weathered and tested Carol Danvers. This issue heralds in the next chapter of the character, offering her  a new platform and new responsibility as the first line of defense for the Earth. While Captain Marvel has, of late, played important roles in large cross-over events and team-ups, this issue is wholly her own, though it also features a swell cast of supporting characters. While Carol is hoping that her new post will offer her a new purpose, can this creative team solidify her status as legend while respecting the tradition that comes with being Captain Marvel? Continue reading →

Jan 20 2016

Descender 9

descender 9

Today, Spencer and Ryan D. are discussing Descender 9, originally released January 13th, 2016.

Spencer: Despite all the differences between the numerous species of aliens that exist within the world of Descender, they’re united by one fact: they’re not robots. The war between robots and non-robots has been the conflict at the core of Descender since its genesis, but there’s one character who doesn’t clearly fall on either side of that conflict: Tim-21. As far back as the first issue we’ve noticed how Tim-21 was designed to appear as human as possible, but in Descender 9 Jeff Lemire and Dustin Nguyen finally dig into how Tim-21’s alliances with both sides of the conflict make him feel. Continue reading →

Jan 20 2016

Weekly Round-Up: Comics Released 1/13/16

round up

Look, there are a lot of comics out there. Too many. We can never hope to have in-depth conversations about all of them. But, we sure can round up some of the more noteworthy titles we didn’t get around to from the week. Today, we discuss Black Hood 8, Citizen Jack 3, Huck 3, Injection 6 and Limbo 3. Continue reading →

Jan 13 2016

Midnighter 8

midnighter 8

Today, Michael and Ryan are discussing Midnighter 8, originally released January 6, 2016.

Michael: After the intense Prometheus/Midnighter showdown last issue, Midnighter 8 takes a break from the super serious and opts for the wackier corners of the DCU. Midnighter partakes in a good ol’ fashioned superhero team-up with Dominic Mndawe AKA Freedom Beast – the less racist version of B’wana Beast introduced in Grant Morrison’s Animal Man. Mndawe fills Midnighter in on his ability to create hybrid “chimeras” of different animals. An illegal hunting club called “The Sportsman’s Ambition” has abused Mndawe’s powers in order to create deadly chimeras for them to hunt. The majority of the issue deals with the two heroes taking down the aforementioned Sportsmen, while the end shows the release of Marina Lucas (from Midnighter 2) and Helena Bertinelli’s offer for Midnighter to join Spyral. This is all setting up the next arc: Midnighter vs. The Suicide Squad. Continue reading →