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[Comic Book Review] X #21 Is Jaw Dropping Spectacle… With A Tank!

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If you’re not a wearing a bat on your chest, guns, guts, glory and half-blind luck can only take you so far in the vigilante game. Our favorite one eyed-crusader X finds out how he measures up to real powerhouses in “X” #21. With a dynamite cover to kick it all off, shock, awe, lots of lethal killing machines and a tank escalate things page by page in this issue with some jaw-dropping spectacular ultra-violence for all to see.
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WRITTEN BY: Duane Swierczynski
ART BY: Eric Nguyen
PUBLISHER: Dark Horse Comics
PRICE: $2.99
RELEASE: 14 January 2015
Reviewed by: Your Friendly Neighborhood Brady

Twitter: @mrbradysteele

Awhile back, our bad boy anti-hero X got a royal whipping from an out-of-town visitor called the Archon. Up until then, our gun-loving, sword-wielding “savior” of Arcadia had only battled corruption, self-mutilated freaks and psychopaths. This month, we find out how he measures up to real, super-human power. It’s taken some time for this to finally happen. Thanks to Dark Horse’s Project Black Sky, there is more of a shared universe for the heroes to interact in. Personally, it was a treat to see how writer Duane Swierczynski introduces actual super powered foils for X to interact with.

Having never ever played nicely with others, you can guess how X meeting powerful beings goes down.
What makes it all so much fun to read and see are artist Eric Nguyen’s pages. Warehouse of thugs and weapons for sale: check. Silent killer skulking around with a sword offing said thugs: check. Our would-be “good guy” taking out the scoundrels in extravagant, gruesome fashion: check. Nguyen knows how throw down a mighty violent party and does so with gusto in this chapter.
The hero with no name versus the Archon will no doubt be a major focus as this storyline continues. What also will no doubt happen is readers will see how our mere mortal copes with not being the most dangerous guy in the room. Swierczynski and Nguyen have been slowly building up to a moment like this so I’m in to see how it all affects our one-eyed bandit.

Comics

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

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Witchblade cover

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 (AnimosityBatwomanDC Bombshells) and visualized by artist Giuseppe Cafaro (Suicide SquadPower RangersRed 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.

  • Cover A: Marc Silvestri and Arif Prianto (Full Color)

  • Cover B: Giuseppe Cafaro and Arif Prianto (Full Color)

  • Cover C: Blank Sketch Cover

  • Cover D (1/10): Dani and Brad Simpson (Full Color)

  • Cover E (1/25): Marc Silvestri and Arif Prianto, Virgin Cover (Full Color)

  • Cover F (1/50): J.Scott Campbell (Full Color)

  • Cover G (1/100): Bill Sienkiewicz. (Full Color)

  • Cover H (1/250): Line art by Marc. Virgin Cover, Inks (B/W)

Witchblade #1 will also be available across many digital platforms, including Amazon Kindle, Apple Books, and Google Play.

Witchblade comic panel Witchblade #1 cover image

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