Comic Review: Red Agent #2

• Story by Joe Brusha, Ralph Tedesco, and Lou Iovino
• Written by Lou Iovino
• Artwork by Diego Galindo
• Colors by Grostieta
• Letters by Fabio Amelia
• Cover A by Edgar Salazar and Erick Arciniega
• Cover B by Caio Cacau
• Cover C by Michael Dooney and Ivan Nunes
• Cover D by Diego Galindo and Grostieta

The first issue of Red Agent disappointed me. It's odd calling a futuristic spy story with crazy technology generic, but it was. Red Agent #2 puts that concern to rest. It's more potential than execution, but moving in the right direction. 

Comic Review: Dead Vengeance #2

• Created by Bill Morrison and Kayre Morrison
• Script by Bill Morrison
• Pencils by Tone Rodriguez
• Inks by Keith Champagne
• Colors by Carlos Badilla
• Letters by Nate Piekos
• Cover art by Bill Morrison with Carlos Badilla
• Published by Dark Horse Comics

In its first issue, Dead Vengeance was this fun thing that I kind of liked reading. It was a fun read, but not something that I was going to go out of my way to try and sell people on or sing its praises. At risk of spoiling my opinion, this issue takes it from there to must-read in the span of a single issue. This started with a body in a circus exhibit coming to life, and with this issue, it throws out an idea that feels so completely out there that I cannot help but love this book now. I won't spoil what it is, but I will do my best to get across why I love this.

Comic Review: Power Cubed #2

• Written and illustrated by Aaron Lopresti
• Colors by Hi-Fi Design
• Letters by Michael Heisler
• Published by Dark Horse Comics

I picked up the first issue of Power Cubed just because it was a #1, and it turned out to be a really fun surprise. I've really been looking forward to this second issue, which manages to avoid the slump many second issues fall into. It keeps everything that made me love the first issue and avoids showing the cracks that many stories would by this point.

Comic Review: The Paybacks #2

• Script by Donny Cates and Eliot Rahal
• Art by Geoff Shaw
• Colors by Lauren Affe
• Letters by Michael Heisler
• Published by Dark Horse Comics

I loved the first issue of The Paybacks, and that puts the second issue in a bit of a difficult place. Now that the idea is no longer so new, it's time for the book to really get into the story that it will be going forward. This is the problem all second issues have to deal with, and it's hard to contend with. Here, this issue isn't quite as good as the first and starting to show weaknesses, but it's still good enough that I'm not going anywhere.

Comic Review: Mirror's Edge Exordium #2

This was originally posted as a review for Word of the Nerd. Reposted here with slight modifications.

• Script by Christofer Emgard
• Art by Mattias Haggstrom, Henrik Sahlstrom, and Eric Persson
• Colors by Davi Comodo
• Letters by Michael Heisler
• Published by Dark Horse Comics

I did not expect to come back to this series. When I reviewed the first issue, I loved the way that it looked, but found the story very lacking. Still, the art was so good that, when I saw this comic come in, I decided that I wanted to give it another shot, just to see more of the art if nothing else.

Comic Review: Zodiac Starforce #2

This was originally posted as a review for Word of the Nerd. Reposted here with slight modifications.

• Script by Kevin Panetta
• Art, Colors, and Lettering by Paulina Ganucheau
• Color Flats by Savanna Ganucheau
• Published by Dark Horse Comics

As a small warning, it is impossible to talk about Zodiac Starforce without making constant references to Sailor Moon. It's very much based on it, being part of the magical girl genre, but several elements are so specifically and strongly influenced by Sailor Moon that I can't help but reference it all the time. Despite all that, Zodiac Starforce is not a carbon copy, borrowing elements and taking them in its own direction so that it stands alone as a good series in its on right.

Comic Review: Dark Corridor #2

This was originally posted as a review for Word of the Nerd. Reposted here with slight modifications.

• Story by Rich Tommaso
• Art by Rich Tommaso
• Cover by Rich Tommaso
• Published by Image Comics
• Release date: September 2, 2015

Last month, I was quite pleasantly surprised by the first issue of Dark Corridor. Many other comics are about crime in dark and depressing worlds, but this one was different. The different style made it stick out from similar comics, something that continues in Dark Corridor #2.

Comic Review: Over the Garden Wall #2

• Created and Written by Pat McHale
• Illustrated by Jim Campbell
• Additional Colors by Danielle Burgos
• Letters by Warren Montgomery
• Publisher: BOOM! Studios

Despite never having watched the TV series it comes from, I loved the first issue of Over the Garden Wall. It felt like such a weird and inventive comic, and don't hold the All-Ages audience against it. Without knowing the TV series, it's a bit hard to follow the jumps in time that it takes, but it makes up for that with continuing how fun and off the wall it is throughout.

Comic Review: We Stand on Guard #2

This was originally posted as a review for Word of the Nerd. Reposted here with slight modifications.

• Story: Brian K Vaughan
• Art: Steve Skroce
• Colors: Matt Hollingsworth
• Letters: Fonografiks
• Publisher: Image Comics

When I read the first issue of We Stand on Guard, I was not over the moon about it. I liked it enough that I wanted to keep reading, but I was curious how well it would work as a continuing series. I loved the fact that it was all about the US at war against Canada (something that the creators liked to encourage), but I was having trouble actually being pulled into the characters and storylines. After reading We Stand on Guard #2, I continue not really knowing what I think about the series, but I see enough promise that I don't want to quit yet.