COMIC: Top of the Stack - Star Wars: Blood Ties #1 (Review)

Written by Tom Taylor
Art by Chris Scalf
Cover by Chris Scalf

Publisher: Dark Horse
Price: $3.50

This week there were several highly anticipated big name comic books released but it was a mini-series from Dark Horse under the Star Wars brand that rose to the top of the stack. Star Wars: Blood Ties #1 is a mini-series centered around everyone's favorite father/son bounty hunter duo of Jango Fett and Boba Fett. Tom Taylor is the writer of this series as well as another Star Wars title for Dark Horse, Star Wars: Invasion.

This issue starts the tale in the time of the Clone Wars with Jango Fett and his son/young clone, Boba, in tow. We are treated to a dangerous training lesson that Jango teaches Boba before Jango is sent on a mission by Count Dooku that leads to a last page reveal that leaves the reader with questions that seem obvious in hindsight but were never brought up before this issue.

The art and cover is by Chris Scalf, who does a great job of modeling the characters of Jango and Boba after their movie counterparts. I am sure this probably is due to Lucas obtaining likeness rights, but one of the best things about Star Wars is the recognition of its characters from different mediums. I could take a panel with Jango or Boba and easily imagine it coming from the Clone Wars cartoon series.

I normally don't seek out 'villain' focused books but with it being Star Wars and the Fetts more of hitmen than outright villains this was a book I was interested in reading and I am glad I did so. For being ancillary characters in the movies, the Fetts stir a great interest from fans and it is nice to see them getting their own time in the spotlight. This book should do them justice.

Check out Geek Plate's Tumblr for today's Star Wars themed picspam.

COMIC: Top of the Stack - Darkwing Duck #3 (Review)

Written by Ian Brill
Art by James Silvani
Cover by Giorgio Cavazzano & Joe Macasocol Jr.

Publisher: BOOM! Studios
Price: $3.99

The world of licensed properties is one full of hit and misses as companies try to capitalize on the popularity of a brand and turn it into a multimedia franchise. When it comes to comics made for licensed properties the likelihood of the new stories reaching a similar quality as the original product is higher than other forms of media. BOOM! Studios is one comic publishing company that has its own line of licensed books and has done a great job of keeping the spirit of the licenses in the books.

In a week where readers said goodbye to Star Wars Legacy with its final issue and several Avengers books came out - seems like every week these days - it was a book created around the early nineties Disney cartoon, Darkwing Duck, that captured my imagination.

In this third issue our hero Drake Mallard has returned to his old Darkwing costume and is reunited with his sidekick pilot Launchpad McQuack. They cross paths with the remaining villains of the Fearsome Five: Bushroot, Megavolt, Quackerjack and the Liquidator but another classic Darkwing villain returns as the mastermind behind Quackwerks is revealed.

The story stays true to the spirit of the show and the art of the book keeps to the style of the characters and is a true representation of the tv show in comic book form. The artist, James Silvani has a knack for making the book feel and look like the classic show we all remember.

Fans of the show are still out there and that became clearly visible when BOOM! announced that this series which was originally planned to be a four issue mini was being turned into an ongoing due to the demand. That is exciting news for readers because Darkwing Duck is another successful example of a classic show finding new life in a new media of comic books. Keep reading, you won't be disappointed and let's get dangerous!

Check out Geek Plate's Tumblr for today's Darkwing Duck themed picspam.

TV: Wishlist for Smallville S10 (Commentary)

Smallville's 10th and final season premieres next month on the CW. Before that happens this Smallville fan would like to present a 10 wish countdown to what would make season 10 a memorable one and create a fitting end to the decade-long series.

CON: Celebration V Highlights (News)

Last weekend down in Orlando, Florida sci-fi geeks from around the world came together at the Orange County Convention Center to enjoy the Star Wars mania at Celebration V.


Here is some of the interesting news events to come out of CV:

--On Thursday, there was the 'Thirty Years Later: A Conversation with the Masters' panel starring George Lucas, Irvin Kershner, Lawrence Kasdan, and John Williams as they looked back at the making of Empire Strikes Back.
--The first look of the Droid 2 R2-D2 edition was released just in time for Celebration V.
--Del Rey had a teaser cover on the exhibit floor for the next Fate of the Jedi book, Ascension. And at their panel Del Rey talked about the future of Star Wars books.
--Merchandise for female geeks was well represented at Celebration V with the Her Universe booth.
--During the Main Event with George Lucas, it was announced that the Star Wars series would be coming to Blu-ray in 2011.
--With Knights of the Republic and Legacy coming to an end, Dark Horse held a panel foretelling the future of Star Wars comics.
--For the continuity geeks out there, 'The Dark Side Clouds Everything' Panel talked about The Clone Wars and the continuity around it and how it relates to the existing continuity.
--At CV Hallmark continued its strong support of the Star Wars brand.
--TheForce.net covered the packed Clone Wars Season 3 panel (with video clips).

Check out Geek Plate's Tumblr for today's Star Wars themed picspam.

COMIC: Top of the Stack - Zatanna #4 (Review)

Written by Paul Dini
Art by Chad Hardin & Wayne Faucher
Cover by Stephane Roux

Publisher: DC Comics
Price: $2.99

Despite the numerous amount of comic books that come out every week, the number of books that focus on a female lead character are very few. To have a successful title starring a heroine is a tough climb with many obstacles like figuring out the target audience for the book and if that audience exists to support it. DC has made a consistent effort to push female led books and right now might by the golden era for such content with titles like Birds of Prey, Power Girl, Supergirl, Batgirl, and now Zatanna available in comic shops every month.

In a week that saw two particular comic books rise to the top of the stack, I thought Zatanna #4 deserved recognition for the sheer quality that has consistently been a part of the book since it's debut. Writer Paul Dini is no stranger to DC and has written some great stories in Detective Comics in years past and currently is the scribe to Batman: Streets of Gotham and two ancillary Batbooks: Gotham City Sirens and Zatanna. His affinity for Zatanna shows in the issues as he creates a world of characters around her that bring credibility to the character as a hero and a magician.

The issues so far have been about establishing exactly who and what Zatanna battles against and why they would be targeting her - because of who she is and what she can do. A theme that has been common in other issues she has been in prior to the start of this series is the connection to her father and how that brings a mess of trouble her way more often than not. This issue we get a reminder of the bigger DCU she is in as she takes on the Royal Flush Gang while she is in Vegas.

The fantastic cover is drawn by series artist Stephane Roux who has done a magnificent job on the title with his style that looks beautiful but also flows so well in action moments. This issue was not drawn by him however, and it was not until I was looking at the credits for this review that I noticed it. That was how good of a job Hardin and Faucher did of following Roux's style to keep the look of the book consistent.

The knock on Dini at times has been that he spreads himself too thin to support the books he writes as we have seen with fill-in issues in both Streets of Gotham and Gotham City Sirens. But this Zatanna book has been a long time coming and seems to have his full focus as each issue has been captivating and entertaining. If it stays his focus this could become a must read title for everyone looking for a female centered series - a trend DC is developing in droves with their female-led books.

Check out Geek Plate's Tumblr for today's picspam starring Zatanna.

COMIC: Remembering Mike Wieringo (Commentary)

Three years ago today the world lost a talented soul in artist Mike Wieringo. He is probably best known for his work on DC Comics' The Flash and Marvel Comics' Fantastic Four books. He also drew on such books as DC's Robin, Adventures of Superman and for Marvel Wieringo was on several Spider-Man titles over the years.

There was also a creator-owned book, a fantasy series named Tellos that he started with Todd Dezago that was published by Image Comics. His style was so gorgeous to look at that he became one of my favorite artists and I once wanted to emulate his unique style when trying to become better at drawing.

His art had a sense of fun and energy to it that made it simply amazing when he got to draw Spider-Man, the Flash, or the Fantastic Four. It's hard to find but Marvel donated the script and seven pages of completed art Mike had finished before his death of a What if? story that was finished by many of his artist friends into: What If This Was the Fantastic Four: A Tribute to Mike Wieringo.

Mike Wieringo (1963-2007)

In honor of Mike Wieringo, check out GeekPlate's tumblr for today's picspam dedicated to his art.

COMIC: Top of the Stack - Brightest Day #7 (Review)

Written by Geoff Johns & Peter Tomasi
Art by Ivan Reis, Patrick Gleason, Ardian Syaf, Scott Clark & Joe Prado
Cover by David Finch

Publisher: DC Comics
Price: $2.99

In recent years DC has revitalized the market of weekly published comics. It started with 52, continued with Countdown and Trinity before they took a breather and did a shorter weekly run with Wednesday Comics. Now, after the last event, Blackest Night, DC has started a bi-weekly run with the title spinning out of that event - Brightest Day. Behind the minds of Green Lantern and Blackest Night - Geoff Johns and Peter Tomasi - Brightest Day focuses on the characters that were brought back to life and weaves a story among them that now nearly four months in is starting to come to fruition.

The first several issues were about the characters reacting to being back around and trying to get back to the lives they were living back before their deaths. All that time there was Boston Brand aka Deadman being pulled all across the Earth and galaxy by the power of the white ring that had appeared on his finger. In this issue, the power behind the white ring revealed itself and the reasons behind why it chose the characters it did were shown to readers and the characters themselves. And what seems to be in the future for this book looks to be life defining moments for these characters that will really show them how to live.

With a book that comes out more than once a month, the art chores have to be shared and DC split the work by each character's story so there are several artists every issue. And I have to say that the artwork on this book is superb, there is not a page that looks rushed at all, and the best thing is that the different looks and styles flow so well together that it is difficult to find any jarring pauses in the shifts between artists that sometimes plagues books. The cover by David Finch is just amazing and he has been a great addition to the DC titles. Fans of his will enjoy hearing that his own work will be gracing interiors soon in a new Batman book coming out this fall.

The future seems bright for this title, no pun intended but with Geoff Johns and Peter Tomasi as the creative force running it I do not foresee a drop in quality during this title's run. Geoff has literally turned everything he has touched recently into gold and Tomasi wrote a great Nightwing run a few years ago and now is flourishing on the Green Lantern Corps book alongside Geoff's main Green Lantern title. This is a title readers should definitely check out especially now that the plot has certainly thickened.

Check out Geek Plate's Tumblr today for a picspam starring DC's Brightest Day characters.