Sunday, January 6, 2013

#260

Cover - 4 - I got the newsstand cover, I think it's too far towards a simple comic cover, and though it does relate to a story inside, I'm not a big fan of that story.  The subscriber cover by Horley looks nicer.  I'm not a big fan of the multiple covers.  I'm unlikely to subscribe, and even less likely to seek out different covers to "complete my collection".

Emily, Almost - 8 - mysterious and moody, and makes a good point.

The Lottery Party - 7 - So this is perhaps another editorial like Dossier or Metal Media, with a review or something?  I'm ok with that, we'll see if it returns.  This one had a nice review of Fahrenheit 451, which I had only recently read, that I enjoyed as the writer made the case that we live in the times of that story now.  There was also a story about Dax Riggs of Acid Bath.  I didn't know about them, but I enjoyed the article and that it made me recall past HM music reviews from the 80s etc.

The Matron - 7 - written by the author of the previous editorial, an interesting story about a tribal outcast's growth from child exile to matron, in a changing world.  It has a descriptive and imaginative writing style that I enjoyed.  For this and the previous article I wonder if the uncredited art is actually by the author.

Gallery - 5 - the one I liked was Light It Up, just because I like that kind of line drawing.

Carpe Diem - 6 - pretty nicely done, bright and full of action, and there's some fun in the writing, but it just doesn't make a big impression on me.

The Weirding Willows - 5 - another random episode with more critters and ....  mini robots?  In HM it's not unexpected to have gaps in storytelling or episodes, but this was more annoying than usual.  There are some good art examples, though the contrived ways to keep it PG-13 were more annoying than alluring.

Odyssey - Part Two - 6 - a continuation from #259, I think it's ok but not great, at least it goes somewhere.

Elephant's Graveyard - 6 - I want to like what it's trying to say, and the glowing comm-orbs are interesting and offer weird lighting opportunities.  Doesn't really grab me though.

Daniel - 8 - I really liked this, even though the art isn't really precise it is very successful telling me this story.  I imagine the Bible offers many potential illustrated fantasy stories.  (I do have R. Crumb's Genesis)

Dante's Inferno - 6 - interesting and short essay about Dante and his Divine Comedy, and recalling some images it projects as subjects for art.  less interesting to me were the theological implications, though it provides an offer to discuss online for those interested.

Deep Six Odyssey - 7 - Big story with lots of action.  Seeing Suydam credited with coloring caught my attention, and I thought it added a great deal (he did a bunch of stories like Mudwog back in the 90s etc).

Sharky - 6 - the Johnson gallery and Horley art are pretty cool, looks like the story is trying to have some fun.  I'll wait to see if this ever shows up in HM again.

Battle Beasts Preview - 3 - some of the art is good, but seeing a promo for little plastic bits makes me think I'm watching Saturday morning cartoons about 20 years ago, and not in a good way.

There were a couple nice things in this issue, and some things that I wasn't too fond of.  Some of the blatant merchandising and the PG-13 approach are unappealing.  Note the removal of "adult" from the new tagline "The World's Greatest Illustrated Magazine".  Previews on the internet give me a couple things to look forward to, and as long as the print magazine continues to be produced I'll keep trying to find something to like.

Friday, December 28, 2012

Kranburn #5

I got the .pdf of Kranburn #5, I'll wait for one more before I order paper copies.

The cover is another enjoyably detailed pose.  The outfit is especially silly, I'd bet it would weigh 80 lbs at least, with all the stuff hanging on it.  Not that I'm complaining, it's fun to look at and I imagine it's lots of fun to draw this.  I wondered how the chainsaw cut anything with those smooth teeth, until I saw the mangled end of the branch.

The story picks up in a sort of flashback, a young Brand makes his way through his increasingly horrible neighborhood, to find even greater horror at home.  Vicious assault, rapes, stabbings, dismemberment, death, all ensue.  Good God.  The story holds nothing back in showing an awful and formative moment in Brand's life.

And it was all a dream.  No, really, it's the nightmare Brand awakens from ("been a long time since I last had that dream") after hiding to recover, after absorbing the vicious beating from Brutus.  Two Nong make the mistake of finding Brand, he makes them pay with their lives, and begins his next assault.

During this, the Nong continue to torture Lawton, sending bits of him to taunt the residents of Kranburn.  The Kranburnites are fearful of action, and a frustrated Silvia storms off on her own to search for her parents.

We see Lord ordering increased pressure on the Lawtons and on Kranburn, time is running short for them.  Then suddenly Silvia encounters a Nong scurrying back from dropping a "message" to Kranburn, and a chase ensues.

Certainly this is one of the strongest chapters in the story.  The action, drama, and emotion shown are unsurpassed here.  I really like the artwork, it's easy for me to overlook inconsistencies (BMB's obviously not a cyclist, never seen a bike like that before...) because I enjoy it so much.  The raw black and white is perfect for depicting the unflinching brutality people are capable of.

I'm curious about what the future holds for Kranburn.  The books have run about mid-40s pages long, there are about 18 pages on the webcomic after the last page of this book, and there are about 9 weeks until the beginning of March, when I thought the 5th book would come up, so I don't see how there would be enough pages by then.  I'm sure I'm missing something, and I'm not too concerned, the comic seems to be going strong so I can look forward with anticipation for its conclusion.

Sunday, December 23, 2012

Season's Greetings

Happy Apocalypse!  And happy all the other damn holidays too!

The world ended and I didn't even notice.

Looks like Issue #260 is out, in two covers, one for subscribers by Horley that looks nice and one for newstands.  Time to look for a store that has it.  On the website, you have to look for it in the HM sales pages, but there's a free sample pdf that looks nice.

There are some other new digital downloads, including Sinkha Episode 0 and Episode 1.  There's a sample from the Episode 0, it supposedly is the original "3D Computergraphic Novel" from 1994, and it was interesting that it looks more like a comic than the slick-for-the-mid-90s computer graphics that were in the magazine (in 1996, 2004, and 2010).

Pax Vobiscum

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

and ... ?

So, if I'm counting right, #259 was the fourth issue of HM in 2012.  Ever since the specials were stopped, there were still supposed to be six issues a year, so supposedly we should see two more yet this year.

The internet doesn't tell me anything about #260 being in the works, so I'm pretty skeptical we'll see it in 2012, let alone #261 to get in all six.  Good thing I don't have a subscription, else I'd feel pretty ripped off by now, instead of just annoyed and disappointed.

(edit)

I stand corrected:

http://www.tfaw.com/Profile/Heavy-Metal-260___419534

That might count for 2012, but ...

and #261?  It's encouraging, but I'll believe it when I see it.

(edit again)

this is the letter to fans by Mr. Eastman, that was the editorial in issue #259 (with a few small edits):

http://comicrelated.com/news/17448/heavy-metal-letter

I'll try to remain patient.

Sunday, November 4, 2012

#259

After months of delay, another issue at last.

Issues will now simply be numbered, distribution was changed, it'll be great, we are told.  We get a note from Mr. Eastman, describing the changes, thanking Dave Elliot for guest-editing, and directing our attention to the official web site for future updates.  Meanwhile, my favorite local bookstore never got this issue, so I got it, bagged, at a mainstream store.  The web site only shows this issue on the sales page, the 4 Horsemen still dominate the main page.

I think this is the most direct communication to the magazine's readers from Mr. Eastman in a couple years.  It's interesting that he is pictured with an apparent turtles sketch in front of him.  My impression is that his attentions have been, um, divided, and as such he hasn't given my favorite adult illustrated fantasy magazine the attention I think it deserves.

However, Mr. Eastman can do what he wants, and if the changes allow the print magazine's continued existence then I'm all for it.  We'll see what the future will bring.

For this issue, difficulties are apparent, and I think I'm lucky this one even made it.  Ad for SDCC events in July, page announcing back cover contest winners for the "three different front covers for this issue" (as far as I can tell there's only one), more 4 Horsemen stuff.  At least it says "Monster Massacre Special" and there are actually monsters in it.  The promotion of DeviantArt and inclusion of some prose work may be signs of good things coming.  I do miss a couple things, like Animal'z by Bilal and Metal Media, that I had hoped would continue.

Cover - 6 - It's ok, hope it sells.

The Weirding Willows:   Where Dwell Monsters - 6 - The Horley page was good, the rest of it was ok.  Too bad it was just a small part of the story.

The Empty Sisters - 6 - It tells such a horrible story in such a sparse way.  I like the idea of the occasional written piece with a picture or two, this one was a bit flat.

Ira Gershwin Monster Puncher - 7 - The monster fight is fun, the story is pretty funny, it's not exactly thought-provoking, but that's ok.

Odyssey - 6 - Tries to tell me something but I'm not quite getting it all.  This is an origin of a Captain America redux?  The art doesn't draw me into it.

The Weirding Willows: Russell's Son - 6 - Badgers and weasels and, what - irresponsibility?  oh my.  Too bad it's not a continuation of the first part of the story we saw.

The Meeting - 7 - I like black and white, I like the execution, it's a nice little story told with just one word.  It says Chapter One, it'd be nice if we actually saw the next ones, but I enjoyed this one just fine if we don't.

Cthulhu is still calling - 7 - Short but intriguing essay about this guy's view of fear of the "other" and how he thinks Lovecraft's character represents an example of a universal mythos.  Picture's pretty cool too.

El Zombo Fantasma - 5 - A couple moments of fun don't really make up for how little this appeals to me.

Pair of Rogues - 7 - Pretty good, looks ok with a bit of imagination and fun.  "I'll have my way with both your corpses!"  now there's a threat for ya.

Odyssey - 7- This one's a bit better, the art is more sketchy than I like but it does well to bring me to the story by the way it's shown to us.  Not needing to look realistic it can convey more immediate emotion.

Weirding Willows:  The Uninvited! - 6 - More uninteresting critters, the story told in the story was pretty good though.

Bandits - 7 - Nice to look at, pretty silly story. 

Back Cover - 5 - Not bad, not great.  I think I would have preferred one of the others.

other reviews

So while looking around the internet for something, I found this guy who wrote a bunch of HM magazine reviews, he called them "recaps", starting with the first issue.  He made it through about a dozen of them.  It's amusing to me that his first impression of HM appears to be the 1981 movie and how it colors his viewpoint, especially how he seems to read them from a present day perspective (he wrote them a couple years ago), without considering the context of the time they were produced.  
He hates Barbarella and doesn't get 1996 (I enjoyed Barbarella, though it was often dumb, and I thought 1996 was hilarious, and it seemed so far in the future then).  
However, they are thorough and well written, and even have scans of pages and covers.  It's an admirable effort, and I think it's worth looking at.  (link starts at the first review and you can go backwards from there):

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

XTIN

Jeremy Ray has been producing XTIN - The Dragon's Dream World, for a while now.  Link is on the "Links" page of this blog.  I signed up for the Donations so I am getting the pages as they are produced.  It appears to be nearing its end.  There have been challenges but it has persisted.

He posted some images and links on the old HM website forums, which got my attention, and I continued to follow it.  Over these many months it's had success and attention on his site rise and fall.   It's my impression that he's been frustrated by its inability to grow its success, which seems understandable given my impression of his considerable ambition for this project.  If one goes to the beginning of the webcomic and reads through it, and also follows the comments, one could see the sometimes wandering nature of how this has been presented.

The work itself appeals to me with its spectacular draftsmanship and mysterious storytelling.  To be honest, some of it I just don't get, but in this case that adds to my interest.  The art is fantastic, I happen to like black and white, and he has some great technique.  Often there are depictions of horrible cruelty and violence, that I'm sure many would find offensive.  Though the fact that much, certainly not all, of the violence is shown with female victims is scary, it seems the intent is to show the horror that people (so to speak) are capable of, rather than to arouse perversions.  Again, the presentations are often obtuse, and the deeper meaning I think it contains can be obscured by the images that are first seen.  This reminds me in several ways of the early days of HM magazine, where powerful stories were told in ways beautiful and often incomprehensible, and sometimes vicious and unsettling.

I'm looking forward to seeing it completed, then looking at it over and over to try to find more of what's inside it.  I was encouraged to hear that he has a line on publishing it, I'm really interested in owning this on the printed page.  I'll believe it when I see it, but there's something for me to look forward to.

If you're able to read through some renderings of horror and incomprehensible meanings, I'd recommend this, and if you're interested in supporting a struggling artist you should consider donating to his cause.

Sunday, October 14, 2012

Kranburn #4

I got the digital copy of Kranburn #4 a little while ago, and I also managed to order the paper copies of #3 and #4.  Looking forward to getting them after their journey halfway around the world.

The cover is something of a change of pace.  Rather than a fairly detailed piece with a pose, the art is a stark portrait of a shadowed Brand, and it's also a page in the comic.  It does grab your attention.

Kranburn #4 is noted as the start of chapter 2.  At three books a chapter, and I'll guess a few more chapters, we may be at this for a while.  That's good, the webcomic is maybe a full book or so ahead, and it looks like there's still a lot of story to tell.

Brand starts his assault on the Nong in revenge for the kidnapping of Lawton and his wife.  (It seems to me it's more personal than that.)  Immediately the nasty violence begins.  An ambush, a trap, then Brand absorbs a vicious beating and barely escapes.  Meanwhile, the kidnappers terrorize the Lawtons, and deliver the digit to Kranburn, to terrorize its inhabitants.  Finally, we see Lord, and the guy who beat up Brand, Brutus, who took a few lumps as well, presents Lord with Brand's machete.  Lord is quite pleased with this.

This is a bunch of fun to read.  There's loads of action, some drama, not a lot of exposition but a few foreshadows.  The art has more breathless renditions of nasty violence, and some nice composition.  I'm anticipating what I've seen coming in the webcomic as I read the story, and it actually adds to my enjoyment of it.  Though it almost looks like it's building to a climactic battle, it seems to me there are other parts to the story that will grow more significant.

You should really check out Kranburn.  You can see it for free, and own it for cheap.  Check the Links page on this blog and see for yourself.

Friday, October 5, 2012

tick ... tick ... tick ...

it's quiet, too quiet

the new issue #259 was said to ship in late September, now there's eff-book jabber about it just coming off the press and getting checked.  incomprehensible.  I wonder if my favorite local bookstore will ever get it.

I did find that many new books that are offered on the HM website as digital downloads also have free .pdf samples.  better than nothing.  the Llarena Divergent Dimensions appear to be mostly reprints.

I did get Kranburn #4 digital, I'll put up a review soon.  I'm trying to buy the paper books but now they are sold via their effin-book and it's not cooperating yet.  oh cruel fate.

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Gates

I waited long for something to come of Gates, it seems that I will remain unrewarded.  While it continues to be linked on the HM main page, and the Links page of this blog, pretty much nothing is happening.

An interesting premise of transhumanism and hints of a great deal of background work, led me to anticipate a rich and interesting story and imaginative artwork.  After more than a year of plodding storytelling and underachieving art, it stopped.  Now it appears Mr. Hefner is working on a prequel to Gates involving visits to his roots and more background development, said to be presented as "transmedia".

I admire the effort and passion he brings to his work, but the results continue to leave me wanting more.  Often the blog posts beneath the webcomic page were more interesting than the story.  His defiant attitude to naysayers and his commitment to his craft earn my respect, but the results in this story have not satisfied me.

I'll go take a look occasionally so you don't have to.  I'll let you know if something comes up.  Until then go look at Kranburn, or read some Rod Kierkegaard Jr.