Next week is Free Comic Book Day 2013, and once again, Blake and Erin are here to walk you through the books being offered. What are this year’s can’t-miss titles? What are books you’ve never heard of that may be worth your time? And what special treat has Blake cooked up for you guys? Contact us with comments, suggestions, or anything else at Showcase@CXPulp.com!
Music provided by Music Alley from Mevio.
2 in 1 Showcase Episode 288: Free Comic Book Day Preview 2013
Since I’ve more or less decided to review all the chapters of Blackest Night here at Evertime Realms, I went back and pulled out the zero issue released in may for Free Comic Book Day. Produced by the same creative team — Geoff Johns and Ivan Reis — that will handle the regular miniseries, this issue takes place just after the Green Lantern #43 I reviewed the other day.
Hal Jordan is joined by his best friend, Barry Allen. Both the Green Lantern and the Flash are heroes who have come back from death, a feat that has been accomplished by a lot of people across the DC Universe. Today, though, they ponder those who haven’t come back from death’s door, and perhaps more importantly, why they did.
One of the central themes that Johns says will be explored in Blackest Night is the question of why so many superheroes seem to be able to cheat death again and again, and this issue sets up that theme nicely. It’s also a good focus on Hal and Barry as friends. Their own friendship is explored, as is their relationships to certain fallen heroes that we know will show their faces as Black Lanterns. (At this point at least five different Black Lanterns have been confirmed through solicitations and the like, but I won’t mention them here). Basically, the point of this book is to show the readers the chessboard. It reminds us where all the pieces are, who is in play and who isn’t, and gets us ready for the main event.
The book also features a series of pages drawn by Green Lantern artist Doug Mahnke. Each spread features a different one of the eight corps and points out the key players in each one. For those who may not have been reading the last two years of the two Green Lantern titles (more the fool you), it’ll get you up to speed quickly.
So that’s it. The prologues have been read, the players are all in place, and the Blackest Night is about to be unleashed. More than any time in my life of reading comics, I just can’t wait for Wednesday.
RATING: 7/10
Since we all do have to wait for Wednesday, though, how about you take a look at some of the other reviews I’ve written lately over at Comixtreme?
With a major motion picture hitting this week, Blake and Chase got together online to record a look at the past, present, and future of Star Trek. The guys talk about all incarnations of the franchise, their favorite and least favorite episodes and series, the history of Trek in comics, and why Chase is dreading the movie Blake is looking forward to. Come back on Tuesday for our thoughts on the film! In the picks this week, Chase loved Buck Rogers #0 and Blake finally makes his Free Comic Book Day pick, Resurrection #0. Our graphic novel pick of the week: The Complete Peanuts: 1971 to 1972. Write us with comments, suggestions, picks of the week, “Ask Chase Anything” questions, or anything else at Showcase@comixtreme.com!
2 in 1 Showcase Episode 118: Star Trek
Inside This Episode:
PLUS: This week, Blake and Chase weep like little girls over the final episode of Scrubs. Then, it’s time to get into the latest episode of Lost, Follow the Leader. (If you want to remain Lost-free, skip from 7:35 to 25:25 on your iPod!) After the Lost chat, the guys talk about the newly-greenlit Deadpool and Wolverine 2 movies, give a few more thoughts about X-Men Origins: Wolverine, and Blake explains how Amazon.com has broken his heart, just a little.
Week in Geek #20: My Follow the Leader
PLUS: It’s time for part two of our three-part podcast from the floor of the 2009 NOLA Comic-Con! In this episode,we interview the publisher of Creeping Hemlock Press, the gang from Mass Casualty Comics, former Superman and Youngblood artist Derec Donovan, and creator of Dice Jockies, Charlie Brown! Plus, if you want to show your Showcase love, Chase has set up a CafePress store with lots of cool apparel, including a “classic” logo T-Shirt.
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