Tag: Comic Book

Once Upon a Time in the Weird

On By BrandonLeave a comment

There are few things that satisfy me more than a good western. Throw in some cursed six shooters, a half-mad Confederate general back from the dead and a bevy of ghoulish henchmen, and you had me at cursed six shooters. Doesn’t hurt that I just finished a weird western short story of my own not long ago (still waiting on word if that one was accepted for the anthology so yo uwill know when I do). 

I am describing  a collection of a comic book called The Sixth Gun. The first six issues are collected in the trade paperback I picked up at the local convention last week. The series is written by a fine fellow named Cullen Bunn with pretty pictures by the infamous (more than famous) Brain Hurtt. 

Mr. Bunn knows how to weave a fantastic yarn that will blow your socks off and occasionally slip you the willies. There are six cursed guns, you see, with most of them in the hands of wicked men (and a woman) hell-bent on reviving their former general and bringing about a mess of death and destruction to rain on the world. Each gun carries a unique power and can only be held by their current owner until their death. Good thing we have such shiftily (yeah, I made that up) upright men as Drake Sinclair and friend Billjohn O’Henry to avert the oncoming apocalypse.   Ms. Montcrief is just an innocent thrown into the mess by accident, or fate. The story moves along at a cracking pace with smooth dialog and precise prose.

The art by Mr. Hurtt is a beauty and that is no small feat when your tasked with illustrating a lived-in Old West, zombie clay warriors, horses, a river of chains and one mighty ticked off thunderbird. I can’t think of an artist more fit for this story.

If you are a fan of westerns and the weird, check this one out. 

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I Spy A Monster

On By BrandonLeave a comment

You often have a lot of time to think about things when on watch at the front lines. You try not to think of what hideaous monstrosity may lie just inside the edge of darkness and divert your attention elsewhere. What if the world fell away at that darkness? Was that a bat or a bird? Do my socks match today? What if a Frankenstein monster fought for the good guys or ghouls? He would probably become an agent for a secret government agency with a cool acronym and get to fight alongside other monsters and save the world. That’s what writer Jeff Lemire and artist Alberto Ponticelli envisioned for the comic book Frankenstein: Agent of S.H.A.D.E.

Go get 'em Frank.
Go get ’em Frank.

This particular comic book was launched during the new 52 reboot of DC and you’re probably wondering what S.H.A.D.E. stands for; Super Human Advanced Defense Executive, a military operation that investigates, assesses and contains paranormal and superhuman activity. The agency is run by a little girl called Father Time and Frank has such brothers in arms as the fish creature Dr. Nina Mazursky, the mummy Khalis, winged vampire Velcoro, Frankenstein’s bride and a werewolf. I wouldn’t mind having that sort of team on my side down here for sure.

Is it weird? Yeah. Is it awesome?Yeah. is it canceled? Yeah.

The series lasted 16 issues and was promptly dumped. Never any love for the good monsters. I would be remiss in mentioning that writer Matt Kindt took the reigns of the series for the last half. He did a wonderful job but it didn’t have the same zing that Jeff gave it. The fabulous art was always by Alberto for the whole series and his line work was expressively frantic and yet elegant. If a hardcover collection is made of the series, hold one for me at the castle and grab one for yourself as well. If you attend the upcoming Planet Comicon in Kansas City, you can even get Matt to sign it for you.

I like to think Frankenstein is still out there, roaming the hillside and saving the world. What is a canceled series to a being that death itself cannot seem to claim.

So…what’s up with Deadington?

On By BrandonLeave a comment

I’m glad you asked.

A few posts ago I said that I was thinking of starting a story and posting a sentence or paragraph or two each week on the blog to keep it updated. It sounded like a good plan at the time. However, it turned into a monster that decided he didn’t want to do my bidding. Not only that, but he prefered to crash through the castle walls and ravage the countryside.

My web story became an idea for a comic book series. It fits very well for a comic book series even though that is not what I started out creating. I have posted a few teasers the last few days and will soon have a proposal for the series posted. I am a bit leery about posting a series proposal on the web but my hope is it’s just too good of a bait for an artist/collaborator to pass up. Plus, by putting it on my website I effectively put a BRANDON JIMISON CREATED THIS stamp on it. Expect a new proposal for Count Obsideo to follow.