Surprises can make or break a comic. It’s all part of good storytelling, of course, but in order for surprise to work as a story development device, it has to be based in the proper context of characterization, backgrounds and established history of the comic. If these things aren’t arranged …

The theme this week is dynamic creativism. That’s just a fancy term I’ve made up to, quite simply, describe the relative levels of creativity that I’ve seen this week – and there are some really good examples. Image Comics Wayward #20 Wayward is a comic that really taps into the …

Looking over my last few reviews, I can’t help but notice a decided lack of Marvel titles on my pages. It saddens me because I would have considered myself to be a ‘Marvel Guy”. I came of comic age in the 1980’s and grew up on the stylings of Dave …

Denise and Michael Okuda sat down with our writer John K. Kirk to talk about 'The Roddenberry Vault' and all the treasures that are stored within it.

The first review of the New Year! Why isn’t there a band around when you need one? Seriously … too much to celebrate this holiday season, yet every new comic review is a chance for celebration. I’m extremely pleased with the selection I’ve managed to assemble tonight. There’s some epic …

The best part of the holidays is the anticipation. When the holidays arrive, sometimes you are too tired to figure out what to do with the time you’ve suddenly got in abundance. Do you sleep? Do you catch up on all your television or reading? For me, it’s the latter. …

It’s hardly what I call a long list for this week, but the good thing about a short list is that you can take your time and savour the experience of reading a good comic. After all, now that winter is here, the best remedy for a cold evening is …

I love the holiday season; a time for renewing and sharing friendships. But sadly, our friends can’t always be there for us because of busy, family commitments or conflicting schedules. … Which is when a good story is something to be appreciated because you can always rely on one to …

'Theology and Science Fiction' is an accessible overview of how theology and sci-fi “speak” to one another. McGrath writes clearly and explains complex concepts effectively. But the book could have benefitted from more detailed analysis of specific examples from sci-fi to illustrate his points.

The American election made for a light reading list this week. After all, it’s hard to read comics when reality makes for more fascinating story-telling than fantasy. Here’s the list we’re looking at this week. DC Comics Action Comics #967 All-Star Batman #4 IDW Comics Star Trek: Boldly Go #2 …

I’m considering the nature of criticism this week. In my class, I constantly wrestle with how to mete out criticism. People forget that one of the toughest jobs of teaching isn’t the teaching itself, it’s the assessment. After all, if you have a teacher who you really respect, doesn’t it …

It’s a different world from the one fans know, when it comes to the shades and intricacies of geek-culture. Comics, like other aspects of nerdstuff, are in the business of selling dreams and we, the loyal followers of fandom, buy them with gusto. Conventions are warehouses of the purest of …

I’m a fan. I go to conventions; my heart literally skips beats at the thought of sharing a few moments of time with my fandom idols and I get euphoric when I’m in their presence. Yeah, I spend money to get into these events and I part with hard-earned cash …

This week is a pretty short list. Hey – a full-time teaching job combined with a veritable universe of geek cultural developments happening all around you, well, there’s a limit to how much a guy can actually report on. You see, at this time, I’m not only figuring out what next week’s comics …

I began reading comics at the age of four. My parents had a convenience store in the UK and every morning, the newspapers would arrive and I would find myself in the front of the store in the early hours of the morning sifting through them to search for the …