Comics

Review: Adventure Time #1

Published

12 years ago

March 7, 2012

Cartoon Network’s tv show, Adventure Time with Finn and Jake, has a lot of appeal that stems from its frenetically fast paced A.D.D. mixture of everything awesome. A little of this frantic energy is lost in the new comic book version of Adventure Time, which is bereft of an extremely important part of what makes it so fast paced: the sound. To make up for that, however, is the art work of Shelley Paroline and Braden Lamb. Luckily for Finn and Jake, Paroline and Lamb provide 30 pages worth of great art, the first page of which is dedicated completely to showcasing THE MOST EPIC FIST BUMP OF ALL TIME! Sure it’s not horror per say, but kiss my grits. Read on for the skinny…

WRITTEN BY: Ryan North
ART BY: Shelley Paroline and Braden Lamb
PUBLISHER: KaBOOM
RELEASE: Out now!

The first 9 panels of the comic, in addition to a sweet fist bump, also introduce the post-apocalyptic Land of Ooo, the Ice King, Princess Bubblegum and a lot of great parts of Adventure Time. Beware, if you’re not looking extra hard (or read it on a tablet) you will probably miss a lot of hidden gems, like this quote, “There can never be enough fist bumps in any story, fiction or non-fiction.” The artwork is definitely highlighted in this comic, but the dialogue, aka Finn and Jake’s rockin’ battle burns, get thrown out at a fast pace thanks to the writer, Ryan North.

North reintroduces Jake and Finn’s most evil enemy, the Lich. Pendelton Ward, the shows creator, lists George Romero as one of his top influences, and even goes so far to say, “I’m a big post-apocalyptic movie fan and zombie fan. . . and we’re going to make more zombie episodes…” (Newsarama). So it’s great that a character like the Lich is making his big reappearance outside of the TV show, as well as lending me some credibility for reviewing this on bloody-disgusting.

As far as the plot of the comic goes, Jake and Finn don’t easily defeat the Lich, even in Jake Suit form. Instead, they find themselves sucked into a land that resides in an infinite bag of holding. This is a great plot twist that adds a new dimension to the mythos of the show. I feel that this allows both the show and the comic to maintain a consistency that might not have occured had the comic taken place in Ooo itself. It also lets North introduce some new stuff that hasn’t been seen in the show before. But dont worry, Princess Bubblegum is in the bag as well, which rounds out the set up of what will hopefully be a great comic book series.

While comic can convey a great sense of cinema (see Cole Haddon’s The Strange Case of Mr. Hyde), one thing I miss in the comic version of Adventure Time is the sound. Adventure Time has a really great cast of voices that do a lot to bring the show to life. John DiMaggio, Futurama’s Bender, and appearances by actors like Mark Hammil, really add an extra dimension, especially the Lumpy Space Princes who is voiced by Pendelton Ward himself. I think the only remedy for this must be to watch more Adventure Time, because I’m definitely not going to stop reading the comic.

4 out of 5 skulls

TheSandman

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Comics

‘Witchblade’ is Getting Resurrected This Summer in New Comic Series from Top Cow and Image Comics

Published

1 week ago

April 18, 2024

Meagan Navarro

Witchblade, the popular comic series that initially ran from 1995 to 2015 and launched a TV series, is getting resurrected in a new comic series from Top Cow and Image Comics. It’s set to unleash heavy metal, black magic and blood this summer.

Look for the new Witchblade series to launch on July 17, 2024.

In Witchblade #1, “New York City Police Detective Sara Pezzini’s life was forever fractured by her father’s murder. Cold, cunning, and hellbent on revenge, Sara now stalks a vicious criminal cabal beneath the city, where an ancient power collides and transforms her into something wild, magnificent, and beyond her darkest imaginings. How will Sara use this ancient power, or will she be consumed by it?”

The series is penned by NYT Best-Selling writer Marguerite Bennett (Animosity, Batwoman, DC Bombshells) and visualized by artist Giuseppe Cafaro (Suicide Squad, Power Rangers, Red Sonja). The creative duo is working with original co-creator Marc Silvestri, who is the CEO of Top Cow Productions Inc. and one of the founders of Image Comics. They are set to reintroduce the series to Witchblade’s enduring fans with “a reimagined origin with contemporary takes on familiar characters and new story arcs that will hook new readers and rekindle the energy and excitement that fueled the 90’s Image Revolution that shaped generations of top creators.”

Bennett said in a statement, “The ability to tell a ferocious story full of monsters, sexuality, vision, and history was irresistible.” She adds, “Our saga is sleek, vicious, ferocious, and has a lot to say about power in the 21st century and will be the first time that we are stopping the roller coaster to let more people on. I’ve loved Witchblade since I was a child, and there is truly no other heroine like Sara with such an iconic legacy and such a rich, brutal relationship to her own body.”

“The Witchblade universe is being modernized to reflect how Marguerite beautifully explores the extreme sides of Sara through memories, her personal thoughts, like desire and hunger, in her solitude and when she is possessed by the Witchblade. So, I had to visually intersect a noir True Detective-like world with a supernatural, horror world that is a fantastic mix between Berserk and Zodiac,” Cafaro stated.

Marc Silvestri notes, “This is brand new mythology around Sara, and I can’t wait for you to fall in love with her and all the twists and turns. Discover Witchblade reimagined this summer, and join us as we bring all the fun of the 90s to the modern age and see how exciting comics can be. I can’t wait for you to read this new series.”

Witchblade#1 will be available at comic book shops on Wednesday, July 17th, for $4.99 for 48 pages. And it’ll come with multiple cover variants.