Tag Archive for 'Teshkeel Comics'

ComicShocker Week 11 2008

It’s baaack. Reads You Need. This has been a busy week for me, but I want to let you know about a few comics that came out last Wednesday that you should be checking out.

The Last Defenders #1: This exceptional first issue is the best book I read from the whole stack of Wednesday, March 12. Joe Casey and Jim Muniz take the notion of an average, if not troubled, superhero team and reinvent it for the post-Civil War Marvel Universe. It’s almost like a superhero sitcom full of sci-fi, big fights, and quirky characters (with Nighthawk at the center of the storm). The writing takes chances but it still provides solid traditional superhero story elements.

The 99 #6: If you follow my weekly posts on here at all, you probably know how much I love The 99. I even emailed scripter Fabian Nicieza to see if he would like to do an interview on the AudioShocker podcast. He graciously declined due to the fact that Stuart Moore is soon to be the new series writer. Still, this issue by Nicieza is terrific and well worth picking up.

Wonder Woman #18: I tried this series earlier in its relaunch and it just didn’t do it for me. But the combination of Gail Simone and Bernard Chang is stupendous in this issue, and I highly recommend you pick it up. Chang’s art is a fantastic blend of Steve Dillon and Aaron Lopresti, bringing both grace and personality to the page. Simone’s story is solid and fun, promising more great future issues.

On a side note, comic fans should keep their eyes glued to the AudioShocker site tomorrow as we release an interview with Gotham Chopra, the creative director behind the upstart comic book publisher, Virgin Comics. Gotham talks about the difficulties of launching a new comic book publisher. He discusses his experiences working with creative talent such as Nic Cage, John Woo, Jenna Jameson, and many more. And at the end of the episode, Gotham makes an exclusive announcement about the next celebrity soon to work with Virgin Comics.

Comic Pick - Week 49 2007

Mumita from The 99The 99 #3. The third time this series is a Comic Pick. What can I say? It’s damn good. Granted there was less competition than usual. It was just an average week for comics. Dynamo 5 #9 almost made it as Comic Pick, but at the end of the day it just didn”t deliver like The 99.

In this issue, we meet Mumita the Destroyer. John McCrea was in top form, proving that being a good comic artist is all about enhancing the flow of the story. The back up story was awesome. The baddie, Rughal, takes us on a short narrative journey highlighting his relationship with the Noor Stones. It’s an interesting piece set across history.

I have to hand it to Dr. Naif Al-Mutawa. He really brings everything together at the end. He compares the relationship between Jabbar and Mumita to therapist and patient. Looking at the story through that angle - literally seeing the therapy process come alive as a fist fight - makes the story so much more meaningful.

(And how can you go wrong with this? The first two American issues of The 99, along with two other issues, are available for free as PDFs on the99.org. That’s awesome.)

Comic Pick - Week 46 2007

The 99 #2The 99 strikes again. This was a big week for comics, but the quantity didn’t really live up to the quality. World War Hulk #5 was a stinker, and both modern Avengers books weren’t as great as their other recent issues.

But The 99 #2 was every bit as good as #1, and continued to develop this fascinating all-ages story of young adults and teens who come into contact with the life-altering Noor Stones. This issue introduces Jami the Assembler to readers, a fantastic character that becomes the first victim of the 99 program.

I’ve read work by Fabian Nicieza for over 15 years, and this feels like some of the best I’ve seen him do. It’s earnest and intriguing. It reminds a lot of Chris Claremont’s work on the Uncanny X-Men from around issues #100-175. It has spunk and suspense, but mostly heart.

Comic Pick - Week 42 2007

The 99 #1How do you pick a winner when there are so many good choices? Really, I think it would be Mighty Avengers #5 by Brian Michael Bendis, Frank Cho, Jason Keith, and Dave Lanphear. But they’ve set such a ridiculously high standard for this Ultron story arc that their outstanding quality almost seems average.

Then there was Marvel Adventures The Avengers #17, a surprise hit that features the Marvel Adventures Universe introduction of Vision. The story used Storm as a sort of beginning and end to the tale, so you know I was hooked. On top of the amazing art penciled by Ig Guara, the story by Ty Templeton offered up some interesting perspectives on artificial intelligence and the creation (and modification) of life.

Ahh but there was also The 99 #1 from Teshkeel Comics. The story (written by Fabian Nicieza, drawn by John McCrea, and conceived by creator Dr. Al-Mutawa) tells of young adults and children who come into contact with Noor Stones, thus releasing super powered potential. The book smacks of teamwork and diversity. That means they found my soft spot. It’s like an even more international re-imagining of everything the X-Men concept does right. There’s a free preview issue of The 99 online (I still have yet to read it). I know it’s only the first issue of the American version of this series, but it seems rich with potential. For that reason, The 99 #1 is my comic pick of the week.

And I didn’t even read Justice League of America #14 yet by Dwayne McDuffie! The guy’s on a roll and I can’t wait to see what happens. What a great week for comic books…