World Comic Book Review

26th March 2024

Alpha King #1 (review)

Alpha King #1 (review)
(Image Comics, May 2016)
Writers: Brian Azzarello, Nick Floyd and Simon Bisley

Promotional tie-ins between comics and various goods and services are commonplace. Most usually these tie-ins are linked to toys or movies. Some of these have been exceptionally successful, for example, “Transformers”.

More blatant, perhaps, is various American publishers’ efforts to promote cars. In one instance, “Rush City” (DC Comics, 2006-2007), the comic’s existence was to facilitate the promotion of the Pontiac Solstice, a sports car. Dark Horse Comics’ “The Hire” (2004) similarly promoted BMW, a car brand. The Wall Street Journal has reported on Marvel Comics’ efforts to promote DaimlerChrysler AG’s Dodge Caliber car in various titles including Spider-man, and also on Marvel Comics’ deal with Nike’s “swoosh” logo, whereby Marvel Comics undertook to feature the logo within various comic titles over a four-to-six month period.

“Alpha King” is an unabashed promotional tie-in. The goods promoted by the comic, however, are novel: a microbrewery called 3 Floyds Brewing Company uses the comic to promote the brewer’s pale ale in the context of an interdimensional war involving sword-wielding demons. This is as ridiculous as it sounds. The plot begins with an amusing-enough gag: some soldiers in an army of ogres discuss Tolkein, before being rallied to a siege. The story then jumps to a bearded brewer in modern day America, who encourages kids to slip around the corner of the vat and sneak in consumption of the beer.

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Star Wars: The Force Awakens #1 (review)

Star Wars: The Force Awakens #1
(Marvel Comics, June 2016)
Writer: Chuck Wendig

This is a six issue mini-series by Marvel Comics based upon the movie, “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” (2015, LucasFilms Ltd / Walt Disney Studios).

“Star Wars” comic book adaptions are very popular, and recent spin-off titles have centred many of the main characters (we have recently reviewed “Vader Down”, by way of one example). Some of these stories are bubbling with creativity, fuelled by the sheer enthusiasm which so many imaginative and ardent writers have for the franchise.

With that in mind, we warn you: Do not buy this comic book if you expect that the title contains anything new.

It does not contain any tangential plot lines arising from the motion picture. It does not contain any new backstory to any of the characters. In promoting this title, Marvel Comics should have (but did not) make it extremely apparent from the copy on the cover that this comic is a very strict film adaption. The story does not deviate at all from the movie, save that it is an edited version of the first few chapter of the movie plot. Here is an example:

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Prometheus: Life and Death #1 (review)

Prometheus: Life and Death #1 (review)
Dark Horse Comics, June 2016
Writer: Dan Abnett

Motion picture director Sir Ridley Scott made the movie “Prometheus” (2013, Twentieth Century Fox) with great anticipation from the avid fans of the original “Alien” movie (1983, Twentieth Century Fox). The movie was a self-indulgent and at one point dreadfully misogynistic disappointment. Yet a sequel is nonetheless in production.

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REVIEW: Symmetry #1

Symmetry #1 (review)
(Image Comics/Top Cow, December 2015)
Writer: Matt Hawkins

This intelligent, compelling comic by writer (and editor) Matt Hawkins has its roots manifestly embedded in “The Time Machine”, a book written by H.G. Wells in 1895 (Heineman).

In “The Time Machine”, the nameless English voyager in his time travelling machine heads into a far future (802701 AD) where humans have evolved into two different species: the golden, beautiful, harmless and thoughtless Eloi, who live above the world’s surface, and the brutish subterranean Morlocks, who tend to machines, perform tasks the purpose of which is long forgotten, and who prey upon the frivolous Eloi. It was and remains a haunting tale which has not dated at all, but it carries a significant social message.

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