SCC's Comics Talk

Ratings out of 5 stars. The mainstream stuff are available at Absolute Comics (Plaza Singapura).   The Zodiac Legacy Vol 2: The Dragon’s Return Story: Stan Lee and Stuart Moore Art: Andie Tong Disney Press At the age of 93, Stan Lee is still going strong. He created the world of The Zodiac Legacy with Stuart Moore and Andie Tong a few years ago and the YA series is going strong. The Dragon’s Return is second book and sees the return of Steven Lee and his friends, recipients of the Zodiac power – each of them chosen to possess the strength and wisdom of one of the Zodiac animals in their fight against the evil Vanguard led by Maxwell. Steven is the Tiger and in this latest volume, he struggles to keep the team together as allies start to mistrust each other. By having Asian characters and background, The Zodiac...

Ratings out of 5 stars. Shipment was delayed to Saturday, 12 March. Comics couresy of Absolute Comics (Plaza Singapura).   Dr Strange #6 Story: Jason Aaron Art: Chris Bachalo Marvel Dr Strange #1 was an impressive debut. The same creative team of Aaron and Bachalo continues and this issue marks the start of The Last Days of Magic crossover. The mysterious force known as the Empirikul have arrived on Earth to destroy all magic and mystical landmarks. Number one on their hit list is the Sorcerer Supreme. Others going down: Dr Voodoo, Scarlet Witch and Shaman, etc. Bachalo’s art has evolved over the years. For this series, he has adapted a style that reminiscent of Frank Miller and Mike Mignola. There is a backup story in this issue drawn by Mike Deodato and the story will continue in the Dr Strange: Last Days of Magic one-shot and the regular Dr...

Ratings out of 5 stars. Shipment only came on Thursday. Swamp Thing and A-Force courtesy of Absolute Comics (Plaza Singapura).   Swamp Thing #3 Story: Len Wein Art: Kelly Jones DC Len Wein and Bernie Wrightson created the Swamp Thing 45 years ago and Wein returns to the character he is best known for (other than the Bronze Age X-Men). DC has paired him up with an artist who is firmly in the Wrightson school, Kelly Jones. This should be a dream team, except Wein is writing this title as if it is still in the 1970s. Not his fault entirely as Alan Moore’s retcon of the Swamp Thing’s origins (‘The Anatomy Lesson” of 1984) has itself been retconned in 2011 as part of The New 52. Alec Holland is back as the Swamp Thing and he is trying to be human again – what’s the point? In this issue,...

Ratings out of 5 stars. Mainstream comics available at Absolute Comics (Plaza Singapura).   Rampokan Story/Art: Peter van Dongen Gramedia I just heard about Peter van Dongen’s Rampokan from my friend, Tita Larasati many years ago. A story set in Indonesia in 1946 and spanned the islands of Java and Celebes, the background of the Dutch police action is only the setting. Other than the political intrigue, double-crossing and betrayal (and a huge cast of characters), it is a story of a sentimental young man trying to look for the Indonesia of his past and making fatal mistakes in the process of doing that. In a way, Johan Knevel represents the old Dutch who still thinks the Indies would welcome them back with open arms. He is trapped in the past and there will be hell to pay for those who cannot live in the present and see the future...

Ratings out of 5 stars. Shipment was delayed till Saturday because of bad weather in the US. The mainstream stuff are available at Absolute Comics (Plaza Singapura).   Broken Frontier Editors: Frederick Hautain and Tyler Chin-Tanner A Wave Blue World Lots of comics coming out on Kickstarter now, even though they eventually get published with Image. We first heard about the Broken Frontier anthology last year and it’s finally out. The good thing if you have funded this, is that you get the digital version first. This was sent to us two weeks ago – the traffic to download it was so heavy that it was suspended temporarily. But it is worth the wait. Broken Frontier started out as a web comic magazine in 2002 by editor-in-chief, Frederick Hautain. Later, it became a physical magazine edited  by Andy Oliver but that folded in 2014. Now, Hautain is back to co-edit...