GeekMom: Comic Book Corner — Storm, Wonderland, and The Unwritten

Happy Comic Release Day! Welcome to another installment of GeekMom Comic Book Corner, where we recap our adventures in comics for the week. Today on Comic Book Corner, a storm is brewing with Storm, Wonderland, and The Unwritten set to take the stage.

Dakster Sullivan — Grimm Fairy Tales verses Wonderland #1 of 5 by Troy Brownfield and art by Luca Claretti

I’m not a huge fan of Zenescope’s Wonderland series, because it’s a very dark and can be a pretty gruesome story-line to read. When I realized that Wonderland would be going up against Sela in this mini-series, I put aside my feelings about the art and started down the rabbit hole.

My curiosity was rewarded with not one, but two strong female leads, one of whom is also a mother.

The overall first book seems to be just a huge misunderstanding after Sela (Grimm Fairy Tales Heroine) decides to kick tail before asking questions. I’m not surprised though, because she states early on in the story that she hates “Wonderland crap.” The violence that was there wasn’t overwhelming like watching a slicer horror flick. Considering how this issue ended, I’m excited to see what happens next. I might even have to pick this up when it comes out in trade.

Curious to know what I’m pulling this week? Check out my pull list on Comixology.

Kay Moore — The Unwritten Vol. 8: Orpheus in the Underworld and Vol. 9: The Unwritten Fables by Mike Carey and art by Peter Gross
In this collected volume of issues (42-49 of The Unwritten), the story spirals around, with many main characters, including Tom Taylor, visiting Hades. He discovers that right and wrong and debts and gifts are not read the way we write them. Carey subverts my unconscious ideas of the underworld, minions, dark lords, sidekicks, and dozens of other tropes while simultaneously honoring them—an approach that had me wondering about my own interpretations. With The Unwritten series sprawling through all of fiction and all of the world, I was afraid that as it progressed, it would become unreadable, but this graphic novel answered some of my questions, gave me some new moves to admire, and had me breathless again for the next installment.
Age recommendation: 17-years-old and up.

The Unwritten Vol. 9: The Unwritten Fables by Mike Carey, Bill Willingham, Peter Gross, and Mark Buckingham is a cross-over between The Unwritten and Fables, both iconic, idiosyncratic, and entertaining comic storyverses. Our story begins with Unwritten‘s Tommy Taylor seeking to mend the wound that threatens the bonding of stories and the material world. At the same time, in a Fables storyverse, the mundane Earth and many other lands have been overtaken by a dark lord and a small surviving contingent of Fables are using spells to resist him. When Tommy’s and the Fables’ paths and purposes cross, another ingenious story is set in motion. In the Unwritten series, I enjoy the richness of literary references; in this telling, there are all sorts of childhood fables incorporated from Bill Willingham’s popular Fables mega-series. I read it as a natural marriage of stories, weaving the strands of other stories and creating one beautiful tapestry that entertained and occasionally surprised me.

Age recommendation: 17-years-old and up.

GeekMom received a review copy of these titles. 

Kelly Knox — Storm #1 by Greg Pak and Victor Ibanez

X-Men was the first title I read as a kid, and the reason I really got hooked on comics. I loved the team dynamics, and found the characters endlessly fascinating, especially Storm. Ororo Munroe is compelling and mysterious, but always seemed aloof and enigmatic. Storm #1, out last week, re-captured the feeling I had then toward the title character, but is filled with the promise that I’ll finally get to know Ororo Munroe.

The first issue of Storm’s ongoing series opens with her floating in the clouds, and thanks to Victor Ibanez’s gorgeous art, you feel like you’re hovering alongside her. In every panel she seems regal and powerful (which is no surprise since she was once a queen). In this first issue, you see Storm on her own for most of the story, but still get the team dynamic that I love so much about the X-Men as Hank McCoy provides support.

The action also shifts to the mansion, or The Jean Grey School for Higher Learning as it’s known now, showing you both sides of Storm’s life as a hero and a headmistress.

Storm #1 is an excellent place to get into (or back into) comic books. The story is clearly just getting started, and there are no references to other goings-on in the Marvel Universe that might make you feel like you’re missing out on something. If you’ve ever loved the X-Men, pick up Storm #1 to get back into their world.

DRM Free Backups Available from ComiXology…Sort Of

ComiXology announced the latest update to their service allows for you to download DRM free backups of “some” of your purchases. By some, they mean none of the major publishers are included. I can understand why Marvel and DC Comics wouldn’t want their customers to back up their comics. It’s like giving us a paper copy of it to pass along as they…wait…ohh that’s what we do with our regular comics isn’t it? Okay. In that case, I don’t understand why they wouldn’t let their customers have their comics in a form they can back up.

I currently have over 1,200 comics in my ComiXology account, and of those books only about 20 are available to back up. You could say I feel a little bummed and cheated by this new service. Especially since the books that I’m able to download a back up of, I don’t care about because they were free to begin with. Hopefully Marvel and DC Comics will work something out so their customers can actually own the comics they buy, but until then, I’m not holding my breath.

Looking for something else, readers? Check out this week’s listed books:

Adventures Of Superman #15 Ame-Comi Girls Vol. 2 Rise Of The Brainiac TP GM Aquaman Annual #2 Batman Eternal #17 Batman Li’l Gotham Vol. 2 TP Kid Friendly Batman The Dark Knight Vol.  3 Mad TP Batman The Dark Knight Vol. 4 Clay HC Batwing Vol. 4 Welcome To The Family TP Bodies #1 (Of 8) New Mini Series DC Comics Presents Batman Adventures #1 Kid Friendly Detective Comics Annual #3 Doom Patrol Omnibus HC Harley Quinn #8 GM Justice League #32 New 52 Futures End #13 Red Lanterns Annual #1 Sandman Overture #3 (Of 6) Sinestro #4 Smallville Season 11 Special #5 Vertigo Quarterly Magenta #1 Wake #10 (Of 10) Final Issue

100th Anniversary Special Guardians Of The Galaxy #1 Movie comes out Friday! All-New Invaders Vol. 1 Gods And Soldiers TP All-New Ghost Rider #5 Avengers #33 Avengers World #10 Cyclops #3 New Series Deadpool Dracula’s Gauntlet #4 (Of 7) Guardians Of The Galaxy #17 GM Hawkeye #19 GM Human Torch By Karl Kesel And Skottie Young The Complete Collection TP Iron Man Special #1 Iron Patriot #5 Marvel Masterworks The Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 8 TP Marvel’s Guardians Of The Galaxy The Art Of The Movie Slipcase HC Mighty Avengers Vol. 2 Family Bonding TP New Avengers #21 Original Sin #3.3 Runaways The Complete Collection Vol. 1 TP Secret Avengers #6 Spider-Man The Complete Alien Costume Saga Vol. 1 TP Superior Foes Of Spider-Man Vol. 2 The Crime Of The Century TP Ultimate FF #5 Uncanny Avengers #22 Uncanny X-Men #24 X-Men #17 X-Men Magneto Testament TP

Acronym Key: VC = Variant Cover / HC = Hard Cover / TP = Trade Paperback / GM = GeekMom Recommended Reading

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