Joel Phillips
May 31, 2004, 12:53 am
<a href="http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/previews/ind/IDW_aleister_arcane02.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/previews/ind/IDW_aleister_arcane02t.jpg" align=left alt="Aleister Arcane #2"></a>Reviewer: Joel Phillips
Quick Rating: Great!
”My dad tried to put me in the oven!”
Story By: Steve Niles
Art & Lettering By: Breehn Burns
Design By: Robbie Robbins
Edited By: Jeff Mariotte
Published By: IDW Publishing
It seems like every week I have another Steve Niles comic to review. And that’s a good thing. This week it’s the second issue of Aleister Arcane, a Niles-penned mini-series about the wronged host of the late night “creature feature” and the revenge he seeks.
My one problem with the otherwise fantastic first issue of this series was the fact that it was mostly set-up and didn’t really tell us what the series was going to be about. This issue rectifies that somewhat, but keeps enough unknown to make us want to keep reading.
After Aleister’s death in the first issue the big question that remained was what he was apologizing for on his deathbed. Aleister had studied the black arts after his show was cancelled, and it seemed he had cooked up something horrible for the town that wronged him and ruined his life. In this issue, we get our first taste of Aleister’s revenge, as all the adults in town are transformed into horrible, blood-thirsty monsters. Now this isn’t quite as original or intriguing as what I had hoped for after issue #1. Everything here is done pretty well, it’s just rather conventional. There’s nothing wrong with that, but I was expecting a little more originality following the promising start.
What did bother me, though, were the reactions of the children to their parents’ sudden transformation. The reactions of the children were almost nonexistent. As thorny protrusions burst from the face of one girl’s parents, and they begin to tear each other apart while chasing her through the house, she seems only slightly surprised and not the least bit frightened. I suppose Niles may be making a point about violent movies desensitizing kids to real violence, but that’s a hard sell given his position in issue #1.
The one thing about the issue which is in no way conventional or disappointing is the art. It’s hard to describe Burns’ art if you haven’t seen it, but it’s absolutely amazing. The variety of monsters the parents turn into makes each new image startling and wondrous at the same time. Some of the panels are so well done that they almost steal focus away from the story (see the bee creature, or the panel just before the girl’s parents transform). After two issues I have no problem calling this the best looking book I’ve seen in years.
Not quite the powerhouse performance I was expecting, but still a good effort. I’m hoping that the children will liven up a bit once the focus is entirely on them, as it promises to be next issue.
ART:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwfull.jpg
STORY:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwnone.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwnone.jpg
OVERALL:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwnone.jpg
Quick Rating: Great!
”My dad tried to put me in the oven!”
Story By: Steve Niles
Art & Lettering By: Breehn Burns
Design By: Robbie Robbins
Edited By: Jeff Mariotte
Published By: IDW Publishing
It seems like every week I have another Steve Niles comic to review. And that’s a good thing. This week it’s the second issue of Aleister Arcane, a Niles-penned mini-series about the wronged host of the late night “creature feature” and the revenge he seeks.
My one problem with the otherwise fantastic first issue of this series was the fact that it was mostly set-up and didn’t really tell us what the series was going to be about. This issue rectifies that somewhat, but keeps enough unknown to make us want to keep reading.
After Aleister’s death in the first issue the big question that remained was what he was apologizing for on his deathbed. Aleister had studied the black arts after his show was cancelled, and it seemed he had cooked up something horrible for the town that wronged him and ruined his life. In this issue, we get our first taste of Aleister’s revenge, as all the adults in town are transformed into horrible, blood-thirsty monsters. Now this isn’t quite as original or intriguing as what I had hoped for after issue #1. Everything here is done pretty well, it’s just rather conventional. There’s nothing wrong with that, but I was expecting a little more originality following the promising start.
What did bother me, though, were the reactions of the children to their parents’ sudden transformation. The reactions of the children were almost nonexistent. As thorny protrusions burst from the face of one girl’s parents, and they begin to tear each other apart while chasing her through the house, she seems only slightly surprised and not the least bit frightened. I suppose Niles may be making a point about violent movies desensitizing kids to real violence, but that’s a hard sell given his position in issue #1.
The one thing about the issue which is in no way conventional or disappointing is the art. It’s hard to describe Burns’ art if you haven’t seen it, but it’s absolutely amazing. The variety of monsters the parents turn into makes each new image startling and wondrous at the same time. Some of the panels are so well done that they almost steal focus away from the story (see the bee creature, or the panel just before the girl’s parents transform). After two issues I have no problem calling this the best looking book I’ve seen in years.
Not quite the powerhouse performance I was expecting, but still a good effort. I’m hoping that the children will liven up a bit once the focus is entirely on them, as it promises to be next issue.
ART:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwfull.jpg
STORY:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwnone.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwnone.jpg
OVERALL:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/idwnone.jpg