Monday, July 28, 2014

Vacation week! Or, more stuff that doesn't really fit in the scanner.

Yep, I'm on vacation this week, but we'll take a little time to run down some things that either don't need a full-on write-up, or are too awkward or bound wrong to fit in the scanner.

For starters, John Byrne's photo-novel from last year, Star Trek Annual (2013), "Strange New Worlds" Without going too nuts in the photo manipulation, Byrne delivers a sequel to the classic episode "Where No Man Has Gone Before." It's not bad at all, although I can see how it might not be for everyone: some people are going to think photo-comics look weird.

Chris Roberson's novel X-Men: the Return uses a trope I'm pretty sick of: that humanity was solidly useless without alien intervention. In this case, the alien Kh'thon return to earth, claiming they had been there thousands of years ago, and created the X-gene that gives mutants powers. Still, the bulk of this book is the X-Men versus super-powered aliens and their terrible masters, so that's a point in its favor. It's Psylocke heavy, if that's a plus for you; from her pre-ninja assassin days. I liked it--it was a bit of a throwback to when the X-Men occasionally had adventures and weren't completely overwrought: they're facing what could be the end of the world, but it's not heavy like oppression or racism or anything.

Finally today, I have two Vampire Batman action figures, so why not another Vampire Batman trade? Batman: Vampire collects the three books from Doug Moench, Kelley Jones, John Beatty, and Malcolm Jones III: Red Rain, Bloodstorm, and Crimson Mist. Really need to sit down again with it; since I'm not positive I have or have even read Bloodstorm. Probably maybe? Well, we have it now, so...

2 comments:

Mr. Morbid's House Of Fun said...

John Byrne did a photomanipulation book huh? Is there nothing that man won't steal from kirby?

I have that vampire batman trilogy and it is awesome. Well awesomely depressing for batman.....
Solid read goo! Goes great with those vampire batman figures, and if you find one, the vampire batman statue.

SallyP said...

I have to admit that the cover of the Bat-Vampire scares to heck out of me.