Feralia.net blog. episode 63: John the Swamp Dude: Who killed Mobie Graye? -Review

Posted on December 5, 2019 by feraliabooks
FB_IMG_1575428344568.jpg

Cover art for John the Swamp Dude: Who Killed Mobie Graye? ©PLB Comics.

So I picked this issue up over the summer at Dover Comic Con, but with my crazy schedule, I wanted to wait until I had some time off from conventions so I could read it at a relaxed pace and get more out of it. Here we are almost four months later, but it was worth the wait, and was a real treat to read.

Published by PLB Comics, this story runs 48 pages and has some nice bonus material which follows it. (Story, pencils & inks by Josh Shockley and letters & edits by James Dufendach.)

One of the first things I noticed was the high quality of the product overall. The extra thick, full color cover is really nice, and the pages are good quality as well, presenting the story in black and white.

That brings me to one of the big points of this review: how good the story looks as a black and white comic, and how easy it is on the eyes. I’ve been reading quite a few Marvel Essential collections lately, and the presentation of this PLB Comic is so much better! Of course, a collection of reprints at a value price is a much different than that of a comic that is originally black and white and on much better paper, but going from one to the other reminded me of how great black and white comics can be, and was really refreshing. Everything in John the Swamp Dude contrasts perfectly. I had no trouble telling what was going on in any of the panels. The lines on the drawings are nice and clean, and the lettering is very easy to read as well.

The art style is cool and fun, and always sits well with the backgrounds. There are a few backgrounds in particular which have really nice detail. It’s obvious that a lot of work went into it. I enjoyed the character design as well, with the villain Kcered being one of my personal favorites.

As usual, I won’t say too much about the story for fear of spoilers. But I will say that I really enjoyed it. It was a lot of fun, and by the end, it comes around full circle. I personally found it be be a satisfying ending while still leaving opportunity for stories to come. The John the Swamp Dude stories got their start in the PLB Halloween Specials, but even if you haven’t read those, this is still a good story that you can jump right into without having read the earlier tales. The bonus stuff at the end gives a nice look into the creation of the title. (Those of you who like to draw or write will definitely appreciate it.)

In conclusion, I feel like this is a solid issue, and I highly recommend picking it up!

5/5

-Clint

 

Posted in Blog, Features, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Feralia.net blog. episode 63: John the Swamp Dude: Who killed Mobie Graye? -Review

Feralia.net blog. episode 62: Classic Review: X-Men: The Fall of the Mutants (vol 1)

Posted on November 15, 2019 by feraliabooks

fotm 6in
Next up in my X-Men reading order is The Fall of the Mutants, part 1. The edition I picked up is ISBN 978-0-7851-6744-0, which is in full color, and collects Uncanny X-Men #220-227, Incredible Hulk #340, and New Mutants #55-61. [Note that the X-Factor issues of this storyline are not in this collection, but can be found in both Fall of the Mutants vol 2 and Essential X-Factor vol 2.]

As far as content, this was the first big event that I’ve read that I found myself just a bit disappointed with. I won’t spoil anything, but I felt like it didn’t live up to the major stories before it, and was pretty anti-climactic despite the sound of its title and in comparison to the previous big story, The Mutant Massacre. That being said, however, I would recommend it if you’re reading all of the major X-Men stories like I currently am, because there are some important moments, and it is one of the big events. I found this collection easy to find, and at a very reasonable price, which brings me to the next important thing to note…

A note on part 2: Unlike part 1, I was unable to find The Fall of the Mutants, part 2 at a reasonable price. Probably because it’s out of print at the moment (and maybe rare now?). The prices I found were ridiculous. Considering that Essential X-Factor vol 2 includes the X-Factor stories from the storyline, and that The Fall of the Mutants, part 1 includes what’s going on with the rest of the main X-characters, I decided to pass on The Fall of The Mutants, part 2.

So, while I didn’t enjoy this one nearly as much as previous stories, I’d still say it’s good to include it because of being one of the big storylines and a few key moments.

3/5

-Clint

Posted in Blog, Reviews | 1 Comment

Feralia.net blog. episode 61: Classic Review: Essential X-Factor vol 2

Posted on November 15, 2019 by feraliabooks

exf2
Next up in my X-Men reading quest is Essential X-Factor vol 2 (ISBN 0-7851-2099-8. See the above cover image for the collected issues.) It’s 544 pages, and black & white.

Like volume 1, this collection has a lot of the early, important stories going on. My favorite thing about it is the continued story of Angel’s transformation into Archangel, which ties directly to one of my favorite villains, Apocalypse. Also featured are Cyclops and Jean Grey’s relationship, Cyclops’ son, and events that lead into the Inferno storyline. And not to mention, some important, long awaited moments for Beast!

Another big plus that deserves mention is the inclusion of the X-Factor issues of The Fall of the Mutants storyline. I’ll get into this more as I review that collection in an upcoming review, but this ended up being important for me because the trade paperback collection (or, part 2 of it, to be exact), which includes these issues is at the moment out of print and very expensive. So being to read those issues here in Essential X-Factor volume 2 was a big help despite having to read them in black & white.

As far as reading order, I read Incredible Thor #378 and X-Factor #17-29 and Annual #2 in Essential X-Factor vol 2, then jumped over to the trade paperback of The Fall of the Mutants so that I could complete that storyline, before finishing the rest of Essential X-Factor vol 2. (One additional note is that the last issue in Essential X-Factor vol 2 – X-Factor #35 – is included in the next story collection, Inferno, so you could skip it here and read in in full color if you’re reading that collection next.) I have all that broken down in my X-Men reading order.

In conclusion, this is another collection with really great, important stories, especially for the original 5 X-Men.

4/5

-Clint

Posted in Blog, Reviews | 2 Comments

Feralia.net blog. episode 60: Currently Reading!

Posted on November 11, 2019 by feraliabooks

Just a quick reading update. In between work and writing my third story, I’ve been all about the X-Men (in case it wasn’t obvious from recent posts). 😉 Right now I’m working on Essential X-Factor vol 2 and the trade paperback collection of The Fall of The Mutants.
exf23 fotm 3H
What books/authors are you currently reading? Let me know in the Facebook comments!

-Clint

Posted in Blog | Leave a comment

Thanks Southern Maryland!

Posted on November 11, 2019 by feraliabooks

Thanks so much to everyone who stopped by at Southern Maryland Comic Con! Next up will be my last show of a long 2019 con schedule (and one of my personal favorites) – Ocean City Comic Con, on December 14th! I’ll post again with more info as the show draws closer.

-Clint

Posted in News | Leave a comment

Southern Maryland Comic Con!

Posted on November 8, 2019 by feraliabooks

SOMDCCMaryland friends! Come out and see me at Southern Maryland Comic Con tomorrow! This will be our 5th year attending and it’s a great, hometown show that we always look forward to! I’ll be at the Alicia’s Anime booth, as usual, with plenty of copies of Feralia Revised Edition and Feralia: Requiem of Mist! Come out and see me there!

-Clint

Posted in News | Leave a comment

Con Catch-Up!

Posted on November 8, 2019 by feraliabooks

Just a big thank you to everyone who stopped by to see me at a convention recently! My schedule has been crazy – tomorrow I’ll be doing my 5th con in 4 weeks! Thank you to all the staff and attendees of all of the cons I’ve attended recently and haven’t taken the time to mention specifically: Fairfax Comic Con,  A Video Game Con,  Retro Con,  TooManyGames Game Swap,  UMBC Comic Con,  Baltimore Comic Con,   Hampton Comic Con, & Nekocon! …To everyone at Anime USA – sorry I missed you this year!! Our exceptionally crazy schedule with overlapping cons prevented me from being there this year, but I hope to see you at AUSA 2020!

-Clint

 

Posted in News | Leave a comment

Feralia.net blog. episode 59: Classic Review: X-Men – The Mutant Massacre

Posted on November 7, 2019 by feraliabooks

MM
After reading a couple of thick black & white essential volumes I was excited to jump back into a full color collection. The edition I picked up is 320 full color pages (ISBN 978-0-7851-6741-9) and collects Uncanny X-Men #210-214, X-Factor #9-11, New Mutants #46, Thor #373 & 374, Power Pack #27 and Daredevil #238.

One thing to note is that while Essential X-Men vol 6 and Essential X-Factor vol 1 both include much of the Mutant Massacre storyline in black & white, neither of those collections include every issue included in this trade paperback. This high quality collection has a cover price of $34.99 (really not a bad price for such a nicely printed and bound collection), but I was able to find it for much cheaper by shopping around.

This is another one of those classic X-Men stories that you  won’t want to miss. As usual, I won’t get into too many details story-wise to avoid any possible spoilers for anyone who may be reading this story for the first time, like I was, but needless to say, this one deserves a spot on your shelf next to the other important X-Men stories before it, and sets up some others to follow.

One thing I personally found surprising was how attached I found myself growing to characters I’d never found interesting before, namely some of the Morlocks – Leech and Caliban especially, and even Callisto, who I’d previously found to be a bit annoying. Also, Artie. He and Leech are adorable!

So the Mutant Massacre is definitely a dark storyline, and also very important part of the overall X-Men story – another highly recommended collection! If you haven’t read it, even if you’re somewhat familiar with it, it’s definitely worth picking up.

5/5

-Clint

Posted in Blog, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Feralia.net blog. episode 58: Classic Review: Essential X-Factor vol 1

Posted on November 6, 2019 by feraliabooks

Essential X-Factor vol 1
Today I wanted to take a look at Essential X-Factor Volume 1. (ISBN 978-0-7851-2) This another thick one at 568 pages, and is black & white. (See the collected issues on the above cover image.)

I highly recommend this volume, especially for the early part, which features the return of Jean Grey and the formation of X-Factor. The annual is also very good, and also featured is the first appearance of the major, long time villain Apocalypse!

Also (like Essential X-Men vol 6), much of the Mutant Massacre storyline is included in this collection. I decided to jump over to the Mutant Massacre trade paperback and read that story there in full color, and then read the remainder of this great collection.

After the Mutant Massacre, the collection continues with X-Factor #12-16. I’d definitely recommend continuing with these stories as they’re important to the transformation of Angel and are really good and pretty dark.

In conclusion, this is another black & white Essential collection that can be picked up for pretty cheap if you shop around, and contains some very important moments for our beloved merry mutants! Great stories and highly recommended!

5/5

-Clint

Posted in Blog, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Feralia.net blog. episode 57: Classic Review: Essential X-Men vol 6

Posted on October 24, 2019 by feraliabooks

Essential X-Men vol 6
Next up in my X-Men reading project is Essential X-Men vol 5. (ISBN 0-7851-1727-X) This black & white collection is 656 pages and collects Uncanny X-Men #199-213, New Mutants Special Edition #1, X-Men Annual #9, X-Factor #9-11, New Mutants #46, Thor #373-374 and Power Pack #27. There are so many different titles because the collection includes most of the very important Mutant Massacre storyline.

So for this volume, I decided to read from the beginning of the book to where the Mutant Massacre starts (Uncanny X-Men #199, New Mutants Special Edition #1, X-Men Annual #9, and Uncanny X-Men #200-209), and then jump over to the Mutant Massacre Trade Paperback, which I’ll be reviewing soon, so I could enjoy that major story in color.

So this review will cover roughly the first half of this book, since the Mutant Massacre is special enough to feature on its own. These stories aren’t major, but they do feature the Trial of Magneto and cover the early parts of his time leading the X-Men, which was a surprising turn for the story. Also featured is Nimrod, who is a major character even today, in 2019. It’s for these that I would recommend this volume if you’re catching up on the overall major stories, though I wouldn’t say they’re critical. Another plus is that, like the other Essential volumes, if you shop around, it can be found for well below the $19.99 cover price. Also, if you don’t mind reading the Mutant Massacre in black & white, having it included here is a major value.

4/5

-Clint

Posted in Blog, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments