Captain Marvel and the Carol Corps by Kelly Sue DeConnick and Kelly Thompson

Captain Marvel and the Carol Corps written by Kelly Sue DeConnick and Kelly Thompson and illustrated by David Lopez and Laura Braga is the Captain Marvel-centred volume that came out of the Secret Wars (Warzones) event. It features Carol Danvers and the Banshee Squadron that we saw in the very first run of Carol Danvers as Captain Marvel, back in 2012. (The volume also contains issue #17 of that Captain Marvel run, which makes for rather odd chronology.)

Atten-Hut! These ladies are the best of the best and will take you down if you threaten their Captain. Welcome to Hala Field, where being a part of the elite Carol Corps, requires guts, guile and a whole lot of grit. So put on your uniform and get ready for a high-fl ying Captain Marvel tale years in the making.

I have to start off by saying I have no idea what on Earth is going on with this event. Somehow Doctor Doom is like god and everyone is living in an alternate reality lacking memories of what we'd think of as the real world. And Doctor Doom's police/enforcement squad is made up of Thors, which he created. It was all very confusing and I don't really blame the main characters for being suspicious of the circumstances they find themselves with.

I liked the characters and the plot, in the most narrow sense, was enjoyable enough. That said, we didn't get any real resolution at the end, which was a bit of a cliff hanger. (If any one knows where that story is directly picked up again, please let me know — unless it's in A-Force which I'm about to read next.) I did like the appearance of the, well, one male character that wasn't a Thor. And the interactions between the Banshees and Carol were great; although I'm not a fan of Helen Cobb, I don't object to her existence. But gah I wanted to know what happened next.

I only flipped through issue #17 of the 2012 run at the end, which I had read before. You can see my thoughts here.

Captain Marvel and the Carol Corps was a weirder volume than I expected. That is mostly the fault of the Secret Wars event making things confusing. So that was disappointing. But I always enjoy reading about Carol and the characters made up for the weird setting, for me anyway. I'm not sure how much to recommend this volume in isolation, however. Hopefully you can decide from what I've said above if this is something you'd enjoy.

4 / 5 stars

First published: December 2015, Marvel
Series: Standalone volume containing issues #1–4 of Captain Marvel and the Carol Corps and issue #17 of the 2012 run of Captain Marvel
Format read: Trade paperback
Source: Purchased in a real life bookshop

Bitch Planet Book 1: Extraordinary Machine by Kelly Sue DeConnick and Valentine de Landro

Bitch Planet Book 1: Extraordinary Machine written by Kelly Sue DeConnick and illustrated and co-created by Valentine de Landro is the first volume of collected comics in an on-going series. As you can probably guess from the title, it's not a comic for children, although I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to mid-teens and older audiences. The blurb on goodreads is quite unhelpful, so instead I'm going to transcribe what is written on the back of my trade.

Are you NON-COMPLIANT? Do you FIT in your BOX? Are you too fat, too thin, too loud, too shy, too religious, too secular, too prudish, too sexual, too queer, too black, too brown, too whatever-it-is-they'll-judge-you-for-today?

You just may belong on... BITCH PLANET!

The quickest way to describe this comic, in my opinion, is "Orange Is The New Black in spaaaaace". It's not quite the same, of course, and the plot follows a different direction and a different kind of woman. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

The premise is a dystopian future where the patriarchy sends "non-compliant" women to a prison on another planet. And being non-compliant can cover anything from murder to obesity to not wanting to be an over-medicated housewife who lives only to please her husband. The women on Bitch Planet are, of course, all interesting characters (while the men that send them there are less so). Even more interesting and yet to be explored in great depth are the women who work on Bitch Planet as guards etc.

The main plot that loosely ties these five issues together is the building of an inmate megaton team. They're to be the first female team and will play against some male teams. Or is it all a ploy to dispose of the most aggressive and athletic inmates? That said, the megaton team organising does not strongly dominate the plot. For example the first issue introduces us to Bitch Planet (with a bait-and-switch) and issue 3 focuses on the back story of one of the inmates, Penelope.

There's a lot of nudity in Bitch Planet, but most of it is not sexualised, which is a nice change. But if you're the kind of person who absolutely does not want to see a large number of naked female bodies in your comic... well that strikes me as a bad reason to skip Bitch Planet, but at least you've been warned.

Bitch Planet is an excellent comic that I will definitely continue reading as the trades come out. It's particularly good at taking unpleasant aspects of modern life and pushing them to the horrifying extreme. Some of those extremes resemble 1950s housewifery, but others don't seem that far away from modern reality, unfortunately. I highly recommend it to most readers, especially anyone interested in a feminist book with a very diverse cast of characters.

4.5 / 5 stars

First published: October 2015, Image Comics
Series: Bitch Planet, ongoing series. Collects issues #1–5
Format read: Trade paperback, although I also got a digital ARC
Source: non-Amazon online bookshop / publisher via NetGalley

Captain Marvel Vol 3: Alis Volat Propriis by Kelly Sue DeConnick

Captain Marvel Vol 3: Alis Volat Propriis by Kelly Sue DeConnick and illustrated by David Lopez is the third collected volume of Captain Marvel comics (well, or the 5th or 6th depending on how you want to count, but there is a "3" on a spine) that started with issue #1 in 2014 (see my reviews of Vol 1 and Vol 2). It's also the collection of the last comic issues before the Secret Wars mega event, when the Captain Marvel series is replaced by Captain Marvel & The Carol Corps.

Captain Marvel's time as an astronomical avenger has pitted her against some of the worst the galaxy has to offer (lookin' at you J'Son). The Haffensye Consortium has been tracking Captain Marvel and Tic for weeks. Now, they've finally caught up to them both! Captain Marvel was barely able to survive the last time she squared-off against the Haffensye - think she'll be so lucky again?

Because this is the last normal collected volume of Captain Marvel of this run, it's a bit shorter than usual, comprising of only four issues. The first two form an arc that's mostly about Chewie the cat (and I suppose somewhat crucially ties up Tic's storyline). Aside from the recurring issues Marvel has with plausibility of space physics — Astrophysics: Marvel's one weakness! — I really loved this story. Partly because Chewie had a bit of a Mad Max moment and partly because I think I finally understand how Carol's suit works in space. So that was issues #12–13 and they were a nice way to tie up Carol's time in space.

However, issue #14 was a dud. It was part of some sort of cross-over event ("The Black Vortex") which has apparently mainly taken place in a bunch of other series. The story only made borderline sense and did not end with an actual conclusion, which was disappointing. I took half a star off the volume's rating for issue #14 being such a nonsensically incomplete story. (Would it have killed them to add in another issue to round things off, especially given how short the volume is?)

The last issue was lovely though. Carol goes back to Earth and the story ties up the loose ends of her relationship with Tracy, who has been a constant background presence throughout DeConnick's entire time on Captain Marvel. It was bittersweet but a really nice way to leave things. I love it.

If you've been enjoying Captain Marvel thus far, I strongly recommend picking up this volume, even if you're a bit put off by its shortness. That said, if you have the option to grab just issues 12, 13 and 15, then that's probably a satisfactory alternative. In the meantime, I am eagerly awaiting the collected Captain Marvel & The Carol Corps and also A-Force.

4 / 5 stars

First published: September 2015, Marvel
Series: Captain Marvel (2014) Volume 3 and the end of the run, though it is followed by Captain Marvel & The Carol Corps
Format read: Trade paperback
Source: Non-Amazon online book shop

Pretty Deadly Vol 1: The Shrike by Kelly Sue DeConnick and Emma Rios

Pretty Deadly Vol 1: The Shrike written by Kelly Sue DeConnick and illustrated by Emma Rios is the first volume of a comic series/serialised graphic novel, containing issues #1–5. To summarise, it's a western about death, his daughter, and another girl.

KELLY SUE DeCONNICK (Avengers Assemble, Captain Marvel) and EMMA RÍOS (Dr. Strange, Osborn) present the collected opening arc of their surprise-hit series that marries the magical realism of Sandman with the western brutality of Preacher. Death's daughter rides the wind on a horse made of smoke and her face bears the skull marks of her father. Her origin story is a tale of retribution as beautifully lush as it is unflinchingly savage.

I don't really like westerns that much and I only read this because a) it came highly recommended by some friends and b) because I've liked everything else DeConnick has done. I probably should've stuck to my first instinct of not liking westerns, though. (I think it's a combination of the gun culture and the general Americaness.) To be fair, Pretty Deadly is as much fantasy as it is western, but still. It more or less tells the origin story of Death's daughter with a focus on other character's whose relationship to that story isn't immediately obvious.

My favourite part of Pretty Deadly was the opening (per issue) narration by a butterfly and a skeleton rabbit. They were morbidly cute and framed the story nicely, putting the story in context at the start and the end. There were some non sequiturs in the middle issues, but those were still fun. So that was the highlight for me. I also liked Sissy, who struck me as more of a central character than Ginny, Death's daughter. That said, Sissy was one of the people telling Ginny's story and enabling it to happen.

Overall, I wasn't a huge fan of the art style. It's not that I didn't like it as art (and unlike some comic art, it definitely wasn't offensive), but I found it difficult to follow. A lot of the story is told through the art with only sparse words and I found I didn't take that in as well as I would have hoped. I'm not sure that more words would have helped because the presentation very much fit with the overall style. I think the busyness of many of the panels was the real culprit. There were times I felt a bit lost and had to do more work keeping up with the story than I would prefer for a comic. This was especially true of the scenes set in Death's domain (possibly a combination of the dark colours and large amount of small detail).

I haven't yet decided whether I'll be reading Volume Two. It won't be out for something like a year, so I have a while yet in which to decide. I would suggest having a look at the art style before committing to reading Pretty Deadly and I should point out that the cover is pretty representative of the interiors (albeit larger, obviously). On the other hand, the story itself is one that I think would appeal to a lot of spec fic fans, especially those that also enjoy the western genre and stories about anthropomorphic Death.

3.5 / 5 stars

First published: 2014, Image Comics
Series: Pretty Deadly Vol 1, containing issues #1–5. There will apparently be a volume 2, but beyond that is a mystery.
Format read: Trade paperback
Source: Non-Amazon-affiliated online book shop

Avengers Assemble by Kelly Sue DeConnick and Al Ewing

Avengers Assemble is the first full(ish) series I've read using my shiny new Marvel Unlimited subscription. I skipped the first eight issues because they featured only the movie Avengers, about whom I'm ambivalent, and started with Issue #9 because that's the first one written by Kelly Sue DeConnick. Most of the run is her work, although there are a few written by Al Ewing in the middle which I also read. Since this isn't a collected issue (and these comics were collected in a variety of disparate volumes) I'm going to break my review down by story arcs.

Issues #9-11 were a hilarious arc about a bet made between Tony Stark and Bruce Banner. When a scientist they both know goes missing, they bet on who can rescue him first. Spider-Woman teams up with the Hulk and Thor teams up with Tony while Captains Marvel and America agree to judge. When the teams reach the Antarctic research base, it turns out things have gone worse than they expected along the lines of a bad guy trying to destroy the world. It was a pretty hilarious arc and I liked the resolution and the banter between all the characters.

Issues #12-13 are about Black Widow balancing her red ledger. When someone calls in one of her debt-chips she (and Hawkeye and Spider-Woman) go off to Omsk to see what needs to be done. Of course, it's never anything simple and a lot of reptile-things are involved.

Issues #14-15 are about Ultron (and not written by Kelly Sue DeConnick but by Al Ewing), first featuring Black Widow and then some less famous Avengers. Issue #14 was a bit depressing and was basically Black Widow surviving an Ultron attack and trying to save some other people while she was on holiday in San Francisco. Issue #15 was set in London with Captain Marvel and some obscure/old (I can only assume) superheroes trying to save as many people from Ultron as they can. There was a hilarious Doctor Who reference along with Computer Graham, who was pretty amusing as a superhero. (I assume he was more of a thing in the 80s.)

Skipped #16-19 because I already read them when I was reading Captain Marvel.

Issue #20 (written by Al Ewing) features Wasp, Scarlett Witch and Wonder Man, left on Earth while the other Avengers are fighting the Builders in space, and there is a terrigen gas incident.

Issues #21-25 are an arc set during a general world-wide terrigen emergency. Spider-Girl (Anya Corazon and not an Avenger) comes to the Avengers for help after her teacher turned into a terrigen cocoon and then was stolen. The arc has Spider-Girl being helped by a rotation of the main Avengers and they go through several phases in the find and rescue the teacher mission. Of course there is also a villain to deal with.

And the whole Avengers Assemble series ended with an awesome poem by Kelly Sue DeConnick (which completely validated my earlier "wtf is with that sink" thoughts).

I had a lot of fun reading this series and I would recommend it to fans of the characters I've mentioned above. Especially Spider-Woman, who I think appears the most.

4.5 / 5 stars

First published: 2013-2014, Marvel
Series: Avengers Assemble, Issues #9-15, #20-25
Format read: Digital
Source: Marvel Unlimited subscription

Avengers: The Enemy Within by Kelly Sue DeConnick

Avengers: The Enemy Within by Kelly Sue DeConnick is the third volume of Captain Marvel collected issues. It's a crossover event, though, so it collects Avengers: Enemy Within #1, Captain Marvel #13, Avengers Assemble #16, Captain Marvel #14, Avengers Assemble #17, and Captain Marvel #17 in that order (and yes, that's skipping two issues of Captain Marvel which are apparently collected in an . Because comics weren't confusing enough. The story follows on directly from Captain Marvel Vol 2: Down, which I have reviewed here.

Vicious echoes of the Avengers' past are cropping up all over Manhattan...but Captain Marvel, grounded since a recent and mysterious power loss, refuses to be left behind. Who is the sinister figure behind these incursions, and what does it have to do with Carol Danvers' mysterious condition? And the most disturbing question of all...is this villain even real? Or just a figment of Captain Marvel's increasingly deadly imagination? Be here as Carol Danvers demonstrates that you just can't keep a good Captain down!

There is kind of a gap between the last two issues collected here, which is probably not surprising since there are indeed two missing issues. It really felt like it jumped between those two and I really wanted to know what happened in the interim. So I got myself a Marvel Unlimited subscription to find out. This review includes all the remaining issues of the 2012 Captain Marvel run and also Avengers Assemble #18 because that helped explain WTF once the Infinity event struck and messed everything up. (This is the point at which I realised the whole purpose of Marvel comics is to trick you into buying/reading more Marvel comics. And also, events are silly.)

Anyway. The story in The Enemy Within follows on from everything that was set up in the first two volumes of this run. I was actually surprised at how much it all tied together, particularly with the latter part of Down, which I suppose isn't that surprising. It also harked back to events in In Pursuit of Flight, which probably shouldn't surprise me since both were connected to the origin story of Carol's powers. It continued the somewhat heavy tone from Down and culminated in a pretty epic series of battles for the Avengers and a very significant stand-off for Captain Marvel herself. It was also my first introduction to Wasp who I now want to know more about. She can line up behind Spider-Woman.

The two-part story in issues #15 and #16 (or three-part story if you count Avengers Assemble #18 which I thought really helped with the context) is set entirely during the Infinity event which involves Builders (aliens) trying to kill everyone. There wasn't a huge amount of character growth for Carol in it (but a non-zero amount) but it did give some context for the references to the Builders which crop up in the later run of Captain Marvel. It was basically fighting aliens in space. About what you'd expect. (And for the record, Avengers Assemble #19 tells Spider-Woman's side of the story during Captain Marvel #16.) It doesn't tie in very strongly with Issue #17, so I can see why they left it out of the main collected edition (the two issues are apparently in Infinity Companion, though). It did make me feel like the event ruined the flow of the story a bit, which I suppose is also why it was left out of the collected volume... but I'm a completist.

Issue #17 takes us back to the Captain Marvel we've come to know and love. In a longer-than-usual issue, we see her struggling to re-learn her lost memories, hanging out with Kit, her biggest fan, and worrying about where to live after the earlier events in the volume. This is also when she moves into the Statue of Liberty as we see in the later volumes. It was a nice little story to round out the volume, and happier note to end on.

Obviously if you're a fan of Captain Marvel, I definitely recommend getting your hands on this volume. It completes an unfinished story and brings more of the Avengers into the story of Captain Marvel, if that's your sort of thing. It deals with some heavy issues, much more so than the later books if those are all you've read. Also, I wouldn't particularly recommend reading this volume without reading In Pursuit of Flight and Down first.

4 / 5 stars

First published: 2013, Marvel
Series: Captain Marvel, Volume 3 of 3 before the soft reboot of 2014.
Format read: Digital
Source: Marvel Unlimited, because I couldn't wait for the out-of-stock trade to arrive

Captain Marvel Vol 2: Down by Kelly Sue DeConnick

Captain Marvel Vol 2: Down written by Kelly Sue DeConnick and illustrated by Dexter Soy and Filipe Andrade is the direct sequel to In Pursuit of Flight which I have previously reviewed. This volume collects the comic issues #7-12.

Marvel NOW! Captain Marvel goes head to head with...Captain Marvel? Former Captain Monica Rambeau returns, but what's her problem with Earth's new Mightiest Hero? What threat is lurking below the ocean's surface? And can both Captain Marvels stop it before they get ship wrecked? Then: Carol finally returns home, but is changed. What is weakening Captain Marvel's powers? How will the lifelong high-flyer react when she discovers that she can no longer fly?

This volume starts with an entertaining two-issue arc featuring Carol teaming up with Monica Rambeau to find missing ships and then fight a monster. I've never heard of Monica Rambeau before but after having read this arc I want to know more about her. As far as I can tell she's never had a stand-alone title, just been in a bunch of Avengers comics, which is disappointing (but do correct me if I'm wrong). The only thing I didn't enjoy in this issue was the stock standard description of Monica's powers, which includes the mistaken belief that neutrinos and electricity are part of the electromagnetic spectrum. Sigh. I suspect comics aren't the place to be worrying about physics, but I can't help myself. There's also the issue of Carol needing oxygen in this run, where she didn't in the later run, but I'm holding out hope for that issue to be resolved in the final volume of this run. (Haha, well it might be.)

After that we have a much heavier arc, set entirely in New York. Carol acquires a grad student minion, we see her cat for the first time in this run and Carol has to deal with some serious issues. Also, obviously, fight some bad guys and save some days. But really, compared with the general upbeat nature of superheroes saving the day, this was definitely less cheery. Which isn't a bad thing, it was just a bit unexpected, although maybe it shouldn't have been since the previous volume wasn't exactly a laugh-riot.

But the worst thing is, it ended on a cliff-hanger! And the next volume, which I have ordered, is out of print and won't be in stock for at least two weeks! What am I supposed to do?! Sadface.

Anyway, I definitely recommend Down to any fans of Captain Marvel, because, duh, Captain Marvel. For new readers, it's probably better to start with the previous volume, In Pursuit of Flight, but there shouldn't be too much confusion starting with this one if it happens to cross your path first. I will now desperately await the next volume, which is called Avengers: The Enemy Within (but is really Captain Marvel Vol 3, because why should comics chronology make any sense?).

4 / 5 stars

First published: 2013, Marvel
Series: Captain Marvel volume 2 of 3 in that sequence. Collects issues #7-12
Format read: Trade paperback
Source: All-star Comics in Melbourne

Captain Marvel Vol 1: In Pursuit of Flight by Kelly Sue DeConnick

Captain Marvel Vol 1: In Pursuit of Flight written by Kelly Sue DeConnick and illustrated by Dexter Soy and Emma Rios is the origin story of Carol Danvers taking on the mantle of Captain Marvel. Chronologically, it comes before the other trades of Captain Marvel that I've reviewed, which were volumes 1 and 2 of a series reboot, the purpose of which is beyond me. But this is the place to start if you want to read about Carol Danvers as Captain Marvel (formerly she was Ms Marvel, but that role has been taken up by Kamala Khan).

The "Mightiest" of Earth's Mightiest Heroes is back! Ace pilot. Legendary Avenger. One hundred percent pure bad-^&*. Carol Danvers has a new name, a new mission - and all the power she needs to make her own life a living hell. As the new Captain Marvel, Carol is forging from a challenge from her past! It's a firefight in the sky as the Banshee Squadron debut - but who are the Prowlers, and where has Carol seen them before? And how does secret NASA training program Mercury 13 fit in? Witness Captain Marvel in blazing battlefield action that just may change the course of history! Avengers Time Travel Protocols: engage!

This is not your standard origin story because Carol Danvers was already a superhero before she became known as Captain Marvel. In fact, the story starts with Carol and Captain America fighting some monster before she's actually made a decision on the name. (Captain America in fact suggests using the moniker of Captain Marvel.) After a bit of existential angst, she makes the decision and the story continues.

The main plot involves time travel and revisiting people and situations of the past (World War II and the 60s). It's all a rather clever way of filling new readers in on Carol's backstory while also providing a new story. Also, I feel sorry for the new comic creators who have to stick to decades old cannon that can be incredibly cheesy.

On a different note, I really didn't like the art of the first four issues, especially in issue #1, I think it toned down a bit as it went along. It was just not to my taste with the style of detail and shading and actively put me off. Good thing the story was interesting enough to keep me reading.

As has been established in other reviews, I love Captain Marvel and so it should not come as any surprise that I enjoyed this volume. I didn't enjoy it quite as much as the others I've read, but at the same time I'm glad to have actually seen some backstory instead of having to infer it. I would recommend it to anyone interested in Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel; it's a pretty sensible place to start. I will definitely be reading the sequel ASAP.

4 / 5 stars

First published: 2012, Marvel
Series: Yes. Start of Carol Danvers as Captain Marvel. Volume 1 of 3 in that run. Contains issues #1-6
Format read: Trade paperback
Source: Non-evil empire online bookshop

Captain Marvel Vol 2: Stay Fly by Kelly Sue DeConnick

Captain Marvel Vol 2: Stay Fly written by Kelly Sue DeConnick and illustrated by Marcio Takara, David López and others is the sequel to Higher, Further, Faster, More and contains issues #7-11. It picks up right where the previous volume left off with Carol and friends in space. I kind of think the blurb is a bit spoilery, but the fun is in the reading, not necessarily in the not knowing what to expect, right?

Captain Marvel’s space adventure with her pet cat, Chewie, continues! But when they have an unexpected alien visitor, Carol learns that Rocket Raccoon was right: There’s more to Chewie than meets the eye! Chewie is a Flerkin…and a mom to hundreds! Is this the end for Carol and her pet? Then, Carol has her hands full with a special guest-star from the X-Universe: rock and roll maven Lila Cheney! And Christmas comes to the Carol Corps as we celebrate 100 issues and nearly 50 years of Carol Danvers’ high-flying adventures!

But after tracking Captain Marvel and Tic for weeks, the Haffensye Consortium has finally caught up to them both! Carol was barely able to survive the last time she squared off against the Haffensye — will the astronomical Avenger be so lucky again?

Where the previous volume was all one story arc, this volume is contains three. There's a two-issue arc featuring Rocket Raccoon's shenanigans and a large number of cats — 118 to be precise — as the cover fairly accurately depicts, then there's a one-shot on a planet where everyone speaks in rhyme which is a bit weird, and finally another two-issue arc involving Carol's old enemies (about whom read anything else) and a Christmas special. The last arc in particular involves some characters I'm not familiar with and, as I said in my last review, I'm hoping reading the Carol as Captain Marvel origin story set of volumes will clear that up (c'mon mail, you can do it).

So obviously I liked the first story arc best because of all the cats, obviously. I'm still not a fan of the raccoon, but he was less annoying in this issue and had a better dynamic with Chewie, Carol's pet cat, after some initial terribleness. And there's a swarm of kittens so I really don't see what's not to like. Also tentacles and pocket dimensions, thrown in for good measure.

The middle issue is just weird. Carol and Tic follow Lila Cheney (who is a character in other Marvel comics, I think?) to a planet where everyone has to speak in rhyme. It was a super weird issue and reading it just before bed made my thoughts try to rhyme which was also a bit weird. The final arc was more fun, taking us back to what Carol's friends on Earth were up to via a letter she gets. We get to see Spider-Woman dealing with a plague of super-rats, which was entertaining and made me want to read Spider-Woman. The letter leads Carol to pay Earth a quick visit and the 100th issue (I assume that's 100 issues of Carol Danvers) was a Christmas issue with a kind of weird deus ex machina resolution.

I enjoyed this volume and will definitely be picking up more of Carol Danvers as Captain Marvel. I'm still waiting for the first of the earlier series to reach me, and I'm looking forward to Volume 3, whenever that comes out.

4.5 / 5 stars

First published: April 2015, Marvel
Series: Captain Marvel (2014) #7-11, (Volume 2 of ongoing)
Format read: Paper!
Source: All Star Comics in Melbourne

A pocketful of issues

Mostly thanks to Free Comic Book Day downloads on Comixology, but also thanks to a few other sources, I recently read a bunch of free-floating issue #1 comics. Also because I was jetlagged and Comixology suddenly seemed like a good idea. I might not want to give the evil empire money, but where's the harm if it's free downloads?

Anyway, so I'm posting short reviews of the issues I read. I'm also dividing them into three categories of interested-in-reading-on-ness.

Definitely going to buy the trade paperback

The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #1 by Ryan North and Erica Henderson (Marvel)

This was an issue #1 that a friend bought as a floppy and let me read while we were hanging out. It is awesome. Squirrel Girl can talk to squirrels and has a tail and super strength (the proportional strength and speed of a squirrel)! In this new comic series she is off to college, disguising her tail by tucking it into her pants. Everything about this series looks awesome, including the voice and the art. I am very much hanging out to buy the trade volume when it comes out (though it looks like I'll be waiting till September).


Bitch Planet #1 by by Kelly Sue DeConnick and Valentine De Landro (Image)
 

This has been on my radar for a while but I wasn't sure whether it would quite be my thing. It definitely is. I don't think describing it as "Orange is the New Black in space" is inaccurate. There's a lot of very positive female representation, especially from a body-positivity sense, although the setting is aggressively misogynistic. I mean, women are sent to a prison planet (hence the title) for minor crimes such as not being perfect wives or daring to age. It was quite horrifying, actually, but I'm confident this is going to be a great series and I look forward to the trade coming out in July.

Considering Reading On

Wayward #1 by Jim Zub and Steve Cummings (Image)

An Irish-Japanese girl moves to Tokyo to live with her mother. While still very jetlagged, she wanders around the city, runs into a band of ruffians and also a swarm of cats. The ruffians turn out to be evil turtles and our heroine is rescued by a superhero girl and also discovers super powers of her own. It caught my fancy and I am definitely interested in reading more, just not quite as urgently as the two books mentioned above. Mind you, the first volume is already out, so I might pick it up impulsively if I see it reasonably-priced. Also cats. I want to know more about the cats.


Trees #1 by Warren Ellis and Jason Howard (Image)

Set a decade after aliens come to Earth and leave mysterious cylindrical towers all over the place ("trees"), this series looks like it will be looking at the ongoing consequences in a variety of places around the world. Just in issue #1 we see Rio de Janeiro, Manhattan, somewhere polar, and a weird Chinese artists' enclave. So it seems like it will be a fairly diverse story and, of course, the premise is pretty interesting and I'd like to see where they take it. I'm leaning towards wanting to read this one on more than an impulse buy level.



Batgirl #1 (New 52) by Gail Simone, Ardian Syaf, Vicente Cifuentes (DC)

Promising and whether I keep reading will come down to laziness (or lack thereof). I know they've just rebooted this character too with a new costume (better, though the old one's not that bad) so I'm a bit torn as to whether I'd want to keep reading this version or start with the new one. That said, they did a pretty good job of dealing with the fact that the character spent three years in a wheelchair. Insofar as you can ever magically cure a disabled character well, this could have gone a lot worse. She remembers and acknowledges her time in a wheelchair (and gets rightfully annoyed at her new house mate for suggesting that being in a wheelchair is the worst thing ever) and also suffers from PTSD from the incident which caused her injury, another nice touch. Having written all that, I am definitely interested in continuing this story.


Shutter #1 by Joe Keatinge and Leila Del Duca (Image)

A woman whose father was some sort of possibly-supernatural/superpowered Indiana Jones type character (except an explorer) is lamenting her father's death a decade previously and gets attacked my supernatural monsters. Promising but no idea where it's going. I am intrigued and would be interested in finding out. If anyone has read more of this series, feel free to chime in. It's another one where the first trade is already out, so I might impulsively buy it if I see it, but I'm less certain than with the above two.

Not Interested in Continuing

Alex + Ada #1 by Jonathan Luna and Sarah Vaughn (Image) — Not the worst thing ever but not for me. Dude whose grandmother gives him a female robot for companionship. Eh.

Roche Limit #1 by Michael Moreci and Vic Malhotra (Image) — Too much man pain (even though turns out one of the main characters is female) and baffling physics. Might have potential, but I'm not going to bother to keep reading.

Planetary #1 by Warren Ellis and John Cassaday (DC) — I feel less strongly against this one than the two above. I didn't actively dislike it, but I didn't feel it brought anything particularly new or exciting to the table, so I'm not interested in pursuing it.

Captain Marvel, Vol 1: Higher, Further, Faster, More written by Kelly Sue Deconnick and illustrated by David Lopez

Captain Marvel, Vol 1: Higher, Further, Faster, More written by Kelly Sue Deconnick and illustrated by David Lopez is the first volume in the second story arc/sequence starring the new Captain Marvel (the first sequence thingy had two volumes and included her origin story and I haven't read it as of this writing). A friend recommended starting with this volume (and described it as "Captain Marvel in SPACE", which is accurate) but there were a few characters that were obviously in the earlier comics that I wasn't familiar with. Now I want to go back and read those two earlier volumes. (I should also admit that part of the reason I decided to start here is because the Volume 2 immediately following this one has a swarm of cats on the cover...) Goodreads leads me to believe that this is the first volume of the 8th... volume of Captain Marvel stories. The Carol Danvers version of Captain Marvel seems to have begun with the 2 or 3 volumes of the 7th... volume. (Wow, turns out you have to be quite awake to understand comic chronology.)

Hero! Pilot! Avenger! Captain Marvel, Earth's Mightiest Hero with an attitude to match, is back and launching headfirst into an all-new ongoing adventure! As Captain Marvel, a.k.a. Carol Danvers, comes to a crossroads with a new life and new romance, she makes a dramatic decision that will alter the course of her life - and the entire Marvel Universe - in the months to come. But as Carol takes on a mission to return an alien girl to her homeworld, she lands in the middle of an uprising against the Galactic Alliance! Investigating the forced resettlement of Rocket Girl's people, Carol discovers that she has a history with the man behind the plot. But when the bad guy tries to blackmail Carol and turn the Avengers against her, it's payback time! Guest-starring the Guardians of the Galaxy!

To summarise my review: Captain Marvel is awesome and she should have all the movies. ALL. THE. MOVIES.

This was my first exposure to Captain Marvel (Carol Danvers or otherwise) unless you count Tumblr fanart. Turns out, she's incredibly awesome. Basically, Captain Marvel, aka Carol Danvers, is night impervious (bullets bounce off her, she doesn't need to breath in space — and can magically talk in space without a helmet...), can fly, and shoots energy/fireballs from her hands. AND she has a pet cat which she takes to space with her. WHAT is not to like? Seriously.

As I'm sure you can tell, I have a new favourite superhero. I'm not sure I had a strong favourite superhero before (but right now Ms Marvel is probably number 2), but I do now. I am lacking a bit of background on her, so I'm sure I missed some references at the start (and there were a couple of characters who I had zero context for) but the actual story made sense the whole time. Captain Marvel is sent to a "poison planet" whose inhabitants are all getting sick but don't want to evacuate. Along the way she runs into the Guardians of the Galaxy (exactly like the movie set of characters) and the annoying raccoon is mean to her cat. (I already didn't like the raccoon from the movie, so this is just another point against him.)

The main action in this volume's story arc is Captain Marvel saving the planet in a roundabout way — a lot is made of the fact that just because she's an Avenger doesn't mean that her mere presence is magical or wanted. Although she enjoys punching people in the face, the day-saving has to be a little more indirect than that. And the important thing is, the cat is unharmed. (The cat is, in fact, on the cover of Volume 2.)

I loved Captain Marvel and highly recommend her to anyone who likes superheroes, kickarse women, or cats. I'm not 100% sure that Higher, Further, Faster, More is the absolute best volume to start with, but it's not a bad place to come into Captain Marvel's story. I will definitely be reading more Captain Marvel.

4.5 / 5 stars

First published: 2014, Marvel
Series: Um. Captain Marvel (2014) #1-6, (Volume 1 of ongoing) and the third volume since Carol Danvers became Captain Marvel.
Format read: Trade paperback
Source: All-Star Comics, Melbourne

Sex Criminals Volume 2 by Matt Fraction and Chip Zdarsky

Sex Criminals Volume Two, written by Matt Fraction and illustrated by Chip Zdarsky, is, as the title would suggest, the second collected volume of Sex Criminals comics in the ongoing series. It contains issues #6–10 and the subtitle is "Two Worlds, One Cop" which is terrible if you get the reference (and I have to wonder how broad the generation that does get it is). You can read my review of Volume One ("One Weird Trick") here.

The second storyline from the Eisner-award winning SEX CRIMINALS finds the honeymoon to be over for Jon and Suzie. Once the thrill of new lust fades, where do you go? Come along and laff and love with Matt and Chip as they brimp back ceaselessly against the past

Volume Two is actually quite different in tone to Volume One, although thinking back, Volume One was already shifting in that direction. Where the story of the two main characters started with them meeting and having a lot of sex and fun together, Volume Two now deals with issues that arise for them after the honeymoon period is over. To be fair, the honeymoon was already fading in Volume One when the threat from the Sex Police became apparent and dangerous.

The opening really focusses on Jon and his mental health issues, which were being masked in the glow of a new crazy relationship before. He spirals, tries to cope alone, has some conversations with shrinks and so forth. I thought it dealt with the issues it raised very well, including the fact that he was worrying that he and Suzi weren't having "enough" sex any more. Of course, when the narrative cuts to Suzi's point of view, we quickly learn that Jon had barely been paying enough attention to realise what Suzi's problems were.

As well as a nuanced take on what happens after the beginning of a relationship, the superhero aspect of the plot also moves forwards significantly. The Sex Police are still after them but as well as focussing on Jon and Suzi, we also learn some backstories of a couple of other characters. Quite how one of them will fit into the overarching plot, I'm not sure but the other character's role was a bit more obvious (lack of details because spoilers).

If you enjoyed the first volume/five issues of Sex Criminals, then I definitely recommend picking up the second volume/next five issues. It's less "fun" than the opening, but I think the seriousness was needed for the story to progress in anything other than a flippant way. If you haven't picked up any Sex Criminals yet, then I do recommend giving it a go. But start at the beginning or it won't make a huge amount of sense.

4 / 5 stars

First published: January 2015, Image Comics
Series: Sex Criminals Volume 2 of ongoing series (containing issues #6–10)
Format read: Trade
Source: Purchased from physical comic book store

Saga Volume Four by Brian K Vaughan and Fiona Staples

Saga Volume Four by Brian K Vaughan and Fiona Staples is the fourth volume of collected comic issues of the ongoing series Saga. It includes issues 19 to 24 inclusive. If you haven't already, you can read my reviews of Volumes One, Two and Three. This review is definitely going to contain some spoilers for the earlier volumes. Blurb from the back of my (paperback) edition, not Goodreads:

Saga is the sweeping tale of one young family fighting to find their place in the universe. As they visit a strange new world and encounter even more adversaries, baby Hazel finally becomes a toddler, while her star-crossed parents Marko and Alana struggle to stay on their feet.

I always find it hard to review these, because how much is there to say about such a short snippet of story. I can't imagine choosing to read them issue-by-issue. So this review will be brief.

The main new thing this volume brings — thrusts upon us with the opening page — is a baby born to the robot prince couple. What happens to the baby is a significant storyline that is followed throughout the volume. (Side note, if baby robots poop, how do they eat with screens for faces? Inquiring minds need to know.) Related to that, we also learn more about the Robot Kingdom and it's hierarchy. The Prince and Princess have sort of shiny fancy screen faces, as we've already seen, but peasants and other lower classes have crappier TV screens, like with knobs and/or in black and white. And we finally meet the Robot King, but I won't spoil his appearance. Suffice to say lol.

The story of the main family — Hazel, Marko and Alana, and co — jumps forward to Hazel's toddlerhood and the family eking out a relatively stable existence (for the time skipped, anyway). The cover art features Alana bringing home the bacon by acting in entertainment on "the Circuit". It may the source of some tensions. Other characters from earlier in the story also make brief appearances throughout the volume.

I think I enjoyed Volume Four more than some of the earlier ones (although they have blurred together a bit). Mainly, I suspect, because there's less squick factor. Or at least less of my personal squick factor, though I suspect others will beg to differ. Anyway, if you've been enjoying Saga thus far, why wouldn't you pick up the next volume? If you haven't read the series, I strongly suggest starting with Volume One, since the story is highly dependent on continuity.

4.5 / 5 stars

First published: January 2015, Image
Series: Saga Volume 4 of ongoing series (containing issues 19 to 24 inclusive)
Format read: Trade paperback
Source: Purchased from a real life bookshop's online preorder page ;-p

Sex Criminals Volume 1 by Matt Fraction and illustrated by Chip Zdarsky

Sex Criminals Volume 1, written by Matt Fraction and illustrated by Chip Zdarsky is the trade collection of the first five issues of the ongoing comic book series. As you may gather from the title, it is not a comic book for children. I picked it up because of Tansy spruiking it on Galactic Suburbia podcast (and then again in person at WorldCon).

Suzie’s just a regular gal with an irregular gift: when she has sex, she stops time. One day she meets Jon and it turns out he has the same ability. And sooner or later they get around to using their gifts to do what we’d ALL do: rob a couple banks. A bawdy and brazen sex comedy for comics begins here!

The difficult thing about reviewing comic books is that the plot moves relatively slowly over an issue and even a collected volume, so it's hard to say much without spoiling the entire plot. So I'm going to keep this short.

Both characters, Suzie (our main narrator) and Jon, recount how they tried to deal with their time stopping sex power when they were teens. Now as adults, they have finally found someone else who shares that power and that doesn't leave them alone after/during sex (other people freeze when time freezes). They get a bit carried away with this information.

There is much humour and it's definitely worth looking closely at the backgrounds of the panels (especially the ones set in the sex shop), so as not to miss any jokes. The plot really takes a turn when the two discover that they are not the only two special snowflakes in the world... Issue #4, I believe, is called "Sex Police" to give you a hint. Also, the antagonist is called (by Suzie and Jon) Kegelface, which shod tell you something about the humour.

So. Sex Criminals is pretty funny and entertaining. I am much looking forward to the next volume (apparently the next two issues are out already, but I've decided comics work better on bookshelves if they're trades). I recommend it to, well, anyone who thinks sex-based time stopping magic sounds amusing. It's a good read.

4 / 5 stars

First published: April 2014, Image Comics
Series: Yes, Sex Criminals ongoing, Volume 1, containing issues #1–5
Format read: Trade paperback
Source: Purchased from Forbidden Planet stall at LonCon3

The Girl Who Loved Doctor Who by Paul Cornell and illustrated by Jimmy Broxton

The Girl Who Loved Doctor Who written by Paul Cornell and illustrated by Jimmy Broxton is a graphic story celebrating the 50th anniversary of Doctor Who (which was last year in 2013). I mainly read it because it was shortlisted for a Hugo Award this year.

In this special one-shot story celebrating the 50th anniversary of Doctor Who, a strange force flings the TARDIS and the Doctor into our own universe! Once here, the Doctor encounters a 10-year-old girl who happens to be a huge fan of the Doctor Who TV show. The Doctor grapples with being a fictional character and monsters lurking at the girl's school on the way to coming face-to-face with the actor who portrays him, Matt Smith!

Honestly, I found this a bit meh. The story was all right and the illustrations were OK but not my favourite. What I liked best was the premise of the story. The TARDIS malfunctions and punches through to our universe from the Doctor's default universe. The Doctor encounters a twelve-year-old girl who at first mistakes him for Matt Smith, until he shows her (and her mother) the real TARDIS.

To be fair, it was an amusing story, especially when they go to a Doctor Who convention, but I couldn't help feeling that it could be more. More funny, more deep, more something. But it wasn't a bad way to spend half an hour.

I recommend The Girl Who Loved Doctor Who to completist fans and anyone interested in a quick read. Also anyone wanting to read a complete story arc in one hit (which is always nice). I'm not sure people not familiar with Doctor Who will get as much about of this.

3.5 / 5 stars

First published: 2013, IDW Publishing
Series: No.
Format read: PDF
Source: Hugo voter packet

Saga Volume Three by Brian K Vaughan and illustrated by Fiona Staples

Saga Volume Three, written by Brian K Vaughan and illustrated by Fiona Staples, is (obviously) the third volume of collected comic issues, comprising of issues 13 to 18.

Saga is the sweeping tale of one young family fighting to find their place in the universe. Searching for their literary hero, new parents Marko and Alana travel to a cosmic lighthouse on the planet Quietus, while the couple's multiple pursuers finally close in on their targets.

When I read the first two volumes (my reviews of Volume One and Volume Two), I was a little weary of the number of female characters. But as the story has progressed, it seems to have accreted more of them, which I appreciated. The cover art of this volume is a good example; neither of those two characters were proper characters when the story started.

Gwendolyn, the woman on the cover, while not wearing what I would call sensible clothes (but they could be worse), proves herself to be an interesting character. We first learn of her only through Marko, who was engaged to her before he went to war. She initially sounds relatively insignificant but when she shows up in person, we find out that, just as Marko changed when he went to war, so to did Gwendolyn when she stayed back.

One of my favourite characters, who's been around since Volume One but who I haven't mentioned, is Izabel. She's the ghost of a teenage girl who died stepping on a landmine. More accurately, the ghost of half a teenage girl. She's pretty great and not the kind of character I would have expected to see. (Even if we can see her intestines.) Also, she provides a counterpoint to everyone being wrapped up in the war. Although her parents were freedom fighters and despite the way she died, she's not invested at all.

We also get to know two new characters with their own story line: two reporters who have caught the trail of the story of Alana, Marko and their child. They run around trying to chase down leads and, in the process, we learn about their home world. Really, I think it's fair to say that the more we learn about each character, the more interesting they become.

I've been enjoying Saga and I'm sad that I now have to wait for an indeterminate time for the next volume. I also recommend starting from the start if this is the first review that you're reading.

4 / 5 stars

First published: March 2014, Image Comics
Series: Saga, Volume 3 of ongoing
Format read: Paper! Glossiness!
Source: Purchased from the Science Fiction Bookshop

Saga Volume Two by Brian K Vaughan and illustrated by Fiona Staples

Saga Volume Two, written by Brian K Vaughan and illustrated by Fiona Staples is the second volume of collected comic issues. It contains issues 7 to 12. It continues the story right where Volume One left off, telling us more about the background and history of Mako, the narrator's father.

SAGA is sweeping tale of one young family fighting to find their place in the universe. Thanks to her star-crossed parents Marko and Alana, newborn baby Hazel has already survived lethal assassins, rampaging armies, and horrific monsters, but in the cold vastness of outer space, the little girl encounters her strangest adventure yet... grandparents.

I didn't think about it that much when I was reading Volume One, but I quite like the style of the narration in Saga. The way it's included puts me in mind of voice overs in movies which take place over action-y scenes and that was exactly how I pictured it. It also means that, despite the narrator still being a baby in the comic (not much time has passed since it started), we can start to get to know her as an adult.

Volume Two introduces a few new characters — one in particular that I wasn't expecting to see so soon — and progresses the plot incrementally. That is one of the frustrating things about reviewing comic books; the nature of the medium makes them very brief and difficult to go into much depth over. (I say this before having listened to the Galactic Suburbia Spoileriffic episode; I'm sure they found plenty to talk about for almost two hours.) So I present a few random thoughts.

I was amused that the language written in blue letters is called Blue. I also checked what it was with Google Translate. I had suspected it was Esperanto, and turns out it is. It was an interesting choice to have a couple of pages of dialogue written entirely in Blue. That was the point at which I decided to check what the language was, but I ended up not translating all of it because it wasn't mysterious from the context (and also because lazy). Still, it was an interesting contrast to other scenes where only one person is speaking in Blue and the other doesn't necessarily understand them.

I was also really taken by the style of the historical vision art. (I would call it a flashback but it flashed to before the character's lifetime.) The way it sort of blurred was really cool. It was only used in one bit, but it was memorable.

Saga Volume Two is a recommended read for people who have read and enjoyed Volume One. I don't recommend starting at Volume Two because of plot continuity. I am definitely going to read the third volume.

4 / 5 stars

First published: 2013, Image Comics
Series: Saga, Volume Two of ongoing (? Three so far)
Format read: Paper!
Source: Purchased from the Science Fiction Bookshop

Saga Volume One by Brian K Vaughan and illustrated by Fiona Staples

Saga Volume One, written by Brian K Vaughan and illustrated by Fiona Staples, is the first volume in a science fantasy/space opera comic book series. First volume in the sense that it's the first trade collection of the first six individual issues. I picked it up because I've been hearing some good things about it (and some less good things that still made me curious) and because Volume 2, which I shall get to shortly, is on this year's Hugo shortlist for Best Graphic Story. Also Volume 1 won the same Hugo last year.

When two soldiers from opposite sides of a never-ending galactic war fall in love, they risk everything to bring a fragile new life into a dangerous old universe.

From New York Times bestselling writer Brian K. Vaughan (Y: The Last Man, Ex Machina) and critically acclaimed artist Fiona Staples (Mystery Society, North 40), Saga is the sweeping tale of one young family fighting to find their place in the worlds. Fantasy and science fiction are wed like never before in this sexy, subversive drama for adults.

The story opens with the baby on the cover being born and is lightly narrated by her future self. This opening volume sets up several story lines: there's the parents trying to keep their baby safe and not get themselves killed in the middle of a warzone, and there are two unrelated character groups trying to track them down and kill them (and capture the baby).

The story deals with forbidden love — the parents come from different races (who, obviously can interbreed) — particularly in the reactions of other characters when they are confronted with the couple. It's also pretty gritty, in that there's a lot of violence and hardly anyone is a nice person (although possibly not as literally bloody as grimdark fantasy, but I'm not so sure). Also there are a lot of boobs, some of them needless. Like the spider lady bounty hunter really didn't need to be topless (and as a bounty hunter, I have to wonder why it seemed like a good idea). By contrast, the only penises that appear are in the background on a (weird) prostitute planet, which still contains more boobs. If you didn't pick it up from the last few sentences, this is not really a PG read; it's definitely intended for adults.

So far, I'm enjoying the story, which is just as well because I already have volumes two and three ready to go. It's definitely aimed at SFF readers and I wouldn't call it anything other than science fantasy, genre-wise. (OK, I lied, I might also call it space opera, but I remain faintly confused about what space opera actually is.) There are some interesting species represented, like the robots that book completely human (to the point of reproducing the same way) except for having screens for faces. By contrast, the welcoming committee on the prostitute planet was a bit weird and alarming.

Saga seems not to be for the faint of heart, but it's not as dark as quite a lot of fantasy books I've read.

4 / 5 stars

First published: 2012, Image Comics
Series: Saga, Volume 1 of (ongoing?)
Format read: Paper! Gasp!
Source: Purchased from Bokus.com (Swedish retailer)

Red Sonja Volume 1: Queen of Plagues by Gail Simone

Red Sonja Volume 1: Queen of Plagues written by Gail Simone and illustrated by Walter Geovani is, somewhat obviously, the first volume of a new Red Sonja reboot. It contains the first six issues of the ongoing series. Long-time readers of mine will know that I've only gradually started getting into comic books this year, so I do not have a lot of background to go off. I got this comic (and a bunch of others) from the most recent and still-running (for 11 more days, as of writing) Humble Bundle, an excellent deal.

Gail Simone (Batgirl, Birds of Prey) gives the iconic fantasy heroine a fresh new attitude! Red Sonja, the She-Devil with a Sword, intends to pay back a blood debt owed to the one man who has gained her respect... even if it means leading a doomed army to their certain deaths! Who is Dark Annisia, and how has this fearsome warrior accomplished what no god nor demon has been able to do: force Sonja to her knees in surrender? An epic tale of blood, lust, and vengeance, Queen of the Plagues takes Red Sonja from the depths of her own grave to the heights of battlefield glory. 

This is forms an introduction and origin story for Red Sonja. Not having read about her before — in fact, the main reason I'd even heard about her was thanks to my mother talking about her in the context of Conan the Barbarian books. But I wanted to give it a go because of the female lead character and because I've heard lots of good things about Gail Simone.

The story is split between the "present" and events that happened three years earlier. Sonja's city is threatened by both plague and a supernatural (or, well, non-human) army, and it is her job to defend it. With the help of two teenage body guards. The story is filled out by flashbacks to Sonja's time as a gladiator-type slave three years earlier and to her childhood.

It was an interesting story and I enjoyed learning about Sonja as I turned the pages. I also liked the progression of her clothing. Although the start of each issue had a full-page illustration of the traditional chainmail bikini, and she was wearing aforementioned bikini at the start, she gradually acquires more clothes as the story progresses. By the end she was even in full-body armour, which was exciting. I don't know if it will stick in subsequent issues, but it made me happy. That chainmail bikini is SO incredibly stupid.

Anyway, I highly recommend Red Sonja Volume 1: Queen of Plagues to anyone with a passing interest in the character or barbarian-type stories in general. I'll definitely be getting the second volume when it comes out (later in the year, according to Goodreads).

4 / 5 stars

First published: February 2014, Dynamite Entertainment
Series: Red Sonja Volume 1 of ongoing
Format read: ePub comic (on iPad iBooks — not a bad experience, almost as good as ComiXology, which I shall be avoiding in the future)
Source: Humble Bundle

Supurbia Volume 4 by Grace Randolph

To say this is a review of Supurbia Volume 4 is not entirely accurate. As I write this, Volume 4 has not been released yet and, according to Goodreads, won't be until August or possibly July. What this is a review of, is the four issues that will make up Volume 4. They're also the last four issues of the complete story arc, with an epilogue and everything. I have previously reviewed Volumes 1, 2 and 3.

In this (set of) installment(s), we learn some more uncomfortable truths about Hella's past and her present, particularly with Sovereign. The tensions between Night Fox and Agent Twilight were resolved somewhat dramatically and if there wasn't so much other stuff going on, I would have liked to have seen more of that. There's a lot of action in this last set of issues as the climax builds on, well, everything that's come before it.

Just as Supurbia is an unconventional superhero story, so does the resolution of this story arc follow an unconventional path. Honestly, I'm not sure I can say much without spoilers. I will say, however, that everything is tied up nicely; there's even an epilogue section set some time after the main action. There are also some unanswered questions left as a hook for (hopefully) more issues in the future.

Overall, Supurbia was a very enjoyable read. As I've said my my reviews of the earlier instalments, I highly recommend Supurbia to fans of superhero comics, especially the more unconventional ones, and anyone who enjoys narratives which buck the status quo. I think it's a good place to start for people unfamiliar with comics but with any passing familiarity with — for example — superhero movies. I think we've all absorbed the tropes through cultural osmosis, even if we're not hardcore fans.

4. 5 / 5 stars

First published: August 2014? BOOM! Studios (Individual issues published 2013)
Series: Yes. Supurbia Ongoing issues #9–12 out of 12 so far (where #12 ties off a complete story)
Format read: eComic on iPad
Source: Purchased (as individual issues) from ComiXology