Go Go Godzilla!
Godzilla: Kingdom of Monsters #1
Holy cow, it’s Godzilla! Written by Goon creator Eric Powell! With a sweet Alex Ross cover! Do you even have to ask me to describe it beyond that?!
Okay, okay, it’s basically a reboot of the Godzilla legend, with the monster’s initial emergence in the modern day. When the Japanese government, desperate to stop its rampage, hits it with an atomic bomb, it not only survives, but acquires the ability to breathe nuclear fire. But though Godzilla may be a disaster for Japan, it’s certainly going to cause problems around the world, too…
Verdict: Thumbs up? Oh, yeah, thumbs up. Good giant monster action, with some nice dramatic touches and even a bit of comedy here and there. I’m disturbingly excited about this title — I don’t know if I’m just more of a Godzilla fan than I thought, or if I’m just jazzed about seeing Eric Powell put his stamp on the Big G.
American Vampire #13
A new storyarc for this series. American vampire Pearl Jones has been with her human husband Henry Preston for about 20 years — he’s getting older, and she’s still staying young. Henry’s joined the military, hoping to fight against the Axis powers in World War II, but he’s considered too old for combat, so he and Pearl (she’s serving as a nurse) are stationed in Hawaii. But Henry gets a visit from Agent Hobbes of the vampire-hunting Vassals of the Morning Star — he offers Henry a chance to serve the war effort by accompanying a squad of the organization’s soldiers on a visit to Taipan to wipe out nests of vampires in advance of the U.S. invasion forces. And unbeknownst to the rest of the squad, they’ve got someone following them — the original American vampire, Skinner Sweet.
Verdict: Thumbs up. The series starts its second year with a great beginning for a new story. Excellent dialogue, characterization, and intrigue. Not a whole lot of fanged monsters running around this time, but the excellent personality work for both Henry and Pearl makes this a solid winner.
Today’s Cool Links:
- This is both hilarious and horrifying. Of course I loved it.
- Kalinara writes about gender and competence in fantasy parodies.
- Here’s an awesome video for Jonathan Coulton’s great zombie tune “Re: Your Brains.”
- Getting close enough for Easter yet? Time to start being terrified of the Easter Bunny.