Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Wolves at the Gate

Buffy Season Eight continues. Wolves at the Gate one had an interesting idea: vampires in Japan have taken Dracula's powers and use them to steal the Slayer scythe. Interesting, but it didn't really live up to the potential. The bits with Xander and Dracula were awesome but the bits with Buffy "experimenting" felt out of place. I could have done with more of one and less of the other. The one story that Josh Wheadon contributed was the way I expected Buffy to handle situation.

I'll give it a 3.

Empowered Volume 4

In Empowered Volume 4 Adam Warren sets out to tell a story that's a little more mature than what he's done before. Emp is gaining confidence and it's making better stories than her costume being torn to rags and used to tie her up. Even things that happened earlier in the volume had bearing on what happened later. A story is emerging. I'm honestly surprised considered where the character has come from. I'll give it a 4.

Manga Sutra Volume 2

Like Volume 1, the Manga Sutra is more of a manual than a story. Aki has worked to make his characters involving but it's difficult to see it as a narrative when fun facts are interspersed throughout the story.

I found this one interesting because I felt it gave a peek into the Japanese culture. The love hotels are a foreign concept to me and the idea that hormonal birth control wasn't available until 1999 was a bit of an eye opener.

The way some of the fantasies were introduced made it a fun read so I'll give it a 3.

The Boys Volume 2: Get Some

Garth Ennis continues his series with a second volume containing two stories. The Boys Volume 2: Get Some, with art by Darick Robertson, continues the skewering of the superhero genre with "Get Some" and then turns the Boys into almost heroes with "The Glorious Five Year Plan".

With "Get Some" Ennis turns to all those jokes about Batman and his young ward. Using Tek Knight, his side kick Laddio, and his former side kick Swingwing to stand in for the non-powered playboy billionaire and his ward the story sets the Boys to investigating the death of a young, gay man. It's an interesting idea to explore comic books in a world where super heroes exist but once again Ennis assumes the worst. The epilogue took the story over the top and really didn't need to be written.

In "The Glorious Five Year Plan" they travel to Russia to be CIA operatives. It was a much different story than what had been being told up to this point. They're not really just spying on the heroes to get the dirt on them and then maybe have a bit of a dust up. They're being secret agents. Again, in Ennis style some things were way over the top, but Love Sausage? Really?

This one gets a 4 because it made me laugh. It might be a lower 4 but I've given myself a scale without too few gradations.

The Boys Volume 1: The Name of the Game

Garth Ennis hates superheroes. It's pretty obvious in most stuff he writes but with The Boys Volume 1: The Name of the Game (with art by Darick Robertson) it's prevalent as they're affiliated with the CIA and their whole purpose is to keep the capes in line. As a superhero fan myself I like trying to figure out who Ennis is using as source material for his "heroes". I find it gives them a bit of depth because I already have a vision of them in mind. There's a layer to them that Ennis doesn't have to try to add through exposition.

The Boys wouldn't work as well without Wee Hughie, the common man who's the counterpoint to the super man. I felt it was interesting to give Hugh the face of Simon Pegg. It immediately gave him a voice and a timing in delivery that gave him the same sort of caricature that the heroes would have.

I'm giving this one a 4 out of 5. Only because I'm a Pollyanna and believe that if superheroes were real there would be more than a few good ones.

Wormwood: Gentleman Corpse It Only Hurts When I Pee

Another outing into the craziness that is Wormwood by Ben Templesmith. Wormwood: Gentleman Corpse It Only Hurts When I Pee is a collection of two Wormwood stories. The main story is "It Only Hurts When I Pee" and the after thought is "Segue to Destruction". Of the two I preferred "Segue".

In "It Only Hurts When I Pee" Wormwood and his gang travel to the dimension of the Leprechauns and it becomes a twisted road trip. There's not much plot, just alot of violence, weird sex and a cross-dressing Leprechaun Queen. "Segue to Destruction" is a much better dark comedy. The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse are more bent on enjoying themselves than on bringing about the end of the world. Thanks to Wormwood of course. The scene with Death (or Mr. D as he's known) with the Emos is priceless.

All in all, the main story sort of takes something away from this collection. It's much more over the top than I'm really comfortable so I have to drop the rating to 3 out of 5. Reluctantly.

Wormwood: Gentleman Corpse Birds, Bees, Blood & Beer

Wormwood: Gentleman Corpse Birds, Bees, Blood and Beer by Ben Templesmith is freaky. Freaky and messed up. An intelligent maggot, inhabiting the eye socket of a corpse, with an automaton drinking buddy that has no bits, saves the world. Twice. To really enjoy this book, I'd say you that had to be open to dark comedy. There's some pretty sick things that happen and it's meant to get a laugh, or at least a chuckle.

The art is amazing. It's so rich and layered. I think Templesmith must have refined his style since 30 Days of Nights because I liked it much better here than I did in the other graphic novel. Maybe it's just that he's illustrating his own work. I like it enough to give it 4 out of 5.

Empowered Volume 3

I can't believe I read these books.

I can't believe I like these books.

But I do. Empowered Volume 3 by Adam Warren is more of the same superhero comedy craziness of a girl who wants to be a better hero but whose fragile supersuit, and fragile self esteem, keep her to the D-list. Even though it's really an excuse to draw a pretty girl all tied up, Warren does make the effort to have a story and to move it along. He reveals Emp's alter ego, what's up with Ninjette (her real name as well) and more of Thug Boy's past as a witless minion. I think one has to be familiar with the superhero genre to really get some of the humour but it does make me laugh. It gets a 4 from me.