Wolf TBP Vol #1: Blood and Magic
Written by Ales Kot
Art by Matt Taylor
Image Comics
I’m not exactly sure what was going on in this great book for most of it, and I still use the word great.
Ales Kot has as a strange tale going on here. There are ghosts, vampires, a squid-faced bud, and right at the end the werewolf shows itself.
And oh yes there is a girl named Anita Christ, a not so subtle hint at what she might be, and yes she is a lynchpin character in the overall story.
That this is a bit of crazy ride, and a bit hard at times to follow, that is maybe the book’s greatest strength. Having to think a bit when reading a comic is not a bad thing.
I certainly am curious where Kot takes this story moving forward, because it is left very much up in the air at the end of this one.
But ultimately this one is worth the investment of a bit of a brain burn, at least if you like weirdness in a story.
We Stand On Guard #2
Written by Brian K. Vaughan
Art by Steve Skroce
Image Comics
As we get into issue #2 writer Brian K. Vaughan gets down to making sure readers see the American invaders of Canada as bullies, thugs, and little more.
They have after all invaded for our water, not to make nice with Canadians, and they go about the job of keeping resistance quelled in what is basically Gestapo-style even if the story is set in the not all too distant future.
That is of course why there is a disturbingly eerie feel to We Stand On Guard. We are aware of water shortages in places such as populace California, and there have to be radicals stateside (Donald Trump after all has his support), who see Canadian resources, water included as easy pickings. That twists at the back of your mind as a Canadian reader, that this story might be all too accurate a vision of the future.
On the positive side of national pride up here, there are those building reserves to fight the oppressors, although you get a feeling by the end of this book bad things are about to happen to Canada’s freedom fighters.
I love this series although being set in Canada, with Canadians in lead roles has as much to do with it, as does the pretty darned good story.
