New comic book Wednesday has come and gone. The dust at your local comic shop has settled. An eerie silence descends as you finish reading your last superhero book of the week. Now it's time for something a little more sinister. Welcome to Bagged and Boarded: comic reviews of the sick, spooky, twisted and terrifying!
Abe Sapien No. 3Abe Sapien, the amphibi-man sidekick to Hellboy, is off on the run. He was almost killed, then spent some time unconscious in an isolation tank. But when we woke up in the B.P.R.D. headquarters (that’s his job; an agent for the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense) he wordlessly slipped out and is now wandering the country during a terrible monster plague. This issue finds Abe in the middle of a small town that seems to have gone mad. The residents try to lynch their priest, and a strange, monstrous transformation occurs.
Bag it or board it up? For being such an intelligent and thoughtful guy, Abe Sapien the comic sure does have a lot of high octane action. There were explosions, giant monsters, fist fights, and shotguns in this issue! And the final panel in this issue is so artfully drawn and serene that it’s clearly all about balance for creator Mike Mignola and crew.
The Colonized No. 3The Colonized is an action/sci-fi/horror/comedy comic book about a saucer full of aliens that land in a cemetery and accidentally reanimate all of the town’s dead. It’s a small town, a secluded, sequestered, independent colony. Now that cut off colony, without anyone to reach out to for aid, is in dire straits. This issue a secret stash of weapons is revealed and a new plan of hatched on the back of a runaway train.
Bag it or board it up? This is a great comic that gives you a lot of bang for your buck (well, for your $3.99). The comic oscillates between slapstick buddy comedy (between an uptight bunch of aliens and southern renegades) and intense action. And it’s a great length, too! Check it out - it has zombies and aliens for crying out loud!
Haunted Horror No. 5Here’s another serving of classic, archived horror comics for you nostalgia freaks. Haunted Horror collects tons of classic horror comics in one thick book. This issue features a few sports stories (Baseball, Football, and Bowling), a story about a dragon egg that hatches a monster man, and an amazing story about a bunch of skeletons in burgundy robes called Valley of Horror.
Bag it or board it up? This is a real trip to read. Some of these comics are amazing... and some are duds. The bowling episode in particular really cracked me up. It’s a story about a couple who get obsessed with bowling... and the results are deadly! It’s cheesy, antiquated, and a real dud. But with these classic comics, even the dud stories are entertaining as historical content.
The Victories No. 2Michael Avon Oeming’s The Victories is my kind of superhero comic. Presenting a cast of misfits and powerful do-gooders and do-not-so-gooders, Victories shows a lot of sass, attitude, filthy language, action, gore, and charm. It doesn’t hurt that the villain of this issue is a beast-man who can tear superheroes in half and starts the comic off by eating the head off of a beloved hero. This is wild, high-gore, splatterhouse fun!
Bag it or board it up? I normally don’t go for cel-shaded, highly stylized artwork, but this comic is a beauty. The use of shadow and light in this issue is very masterfully crafted. And this villain, Tarcus, he’s silent. He just shows up, rips a hero (or twelve) into shreds, and moves on. It’s creepy and it’s right up our alley!