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Pilot: The Guild

If you like Felicia Day, or just about anything Joss Whedon touches, then chances are you’re already a fan of “The Guild.” With Felicia Day writing the new story, the popular web series graced comic books last week and tells of the colorful guild’s origin.

Welcome to another installment of Pilot! As comic book readers ourselves, we at Impulse know how important it is to get a quality bang for money spent on a single issue. Comic prices add up, after all! So every so often we’ll take an in-depth look at a new title or mini-series. We’ll give you the heads up on whether it’s is worth getting into or passing up. If it’s good, then you’ll know. If it’s not so good … well, we read it so you don’t have to.

Internet sensation Felicia Day invented The Guild, a web series that thousands of fans popularize, the mass-market Xbox Live (Microsoft) continuously distributes, and company Sprint sponsors. The Youtube hit has grown out of its purely loyal PayPal donation shell and flourished into a fan favorite that has claimed numerous awards, including the SXSW, Youtube, and Yahoo Awards Series Awards. Day’s home project has even garnered thrice the praise from the internet famous Streamy Awards. Now The Guild, which the commonly recognized Joss Whedon television actress engineered for her fellow MMORPG (massive multi-player online role-playing game) gamers, charms its way into Dark Horse’s comic book realm.

Read the rest at Impulse Creations.

Tags: Dark Horse, Felicia Day, Impulse Creations, Jim Rugg, Pilot, The Guild
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RadInk: A Wind Named Amnesia/Invader Summer

Dark Horse recently passed along A Wind Named Amnesia/Invader Summer, two excellent novellas rolled into one pretty little book. Vampire Hunter D fans will want to grab this one, as it’s written by the series’ creator. Those unfamiliar with Kikuchi’s work will definitely enjoy the two stories, as well.

Most books and comics never make it out of their papery, multi-colored form or burst out of their speech bubbles, and that’s okay—we nerds like ’em just the way they are. Here at RadNerd, we don’t always need fancy pants movie adaptations endorsed by big budget Hollywood mouths or plastered with Nicholas Cage’s face. A little less Nick is good for everyone. We love movies and TV just as much as the next joe, but sometimes going back to to the roots of what we adore just sounds better. You know … all those crazy words and stuff. Letters are like atoms for the literately-inclined.

Vampire Hunter D writer Hideyuki Kikuchi unleashes a science-fiction double feature with the new A Wind Named Amnesia/Invader Summer book. The merry folks of Dark Horse Comics pack two novellas into one paperback collection featuring the sporadic black and white illustrations of Yoshitaka Amano. You can now swipe the English translation and enjoy a refreshing culture switch.

Read the rest at RadNerd.com.

Tags: A Wind Named Amnesia, Dark Horse, Hideyuki Kikuchi, Invader Summer, RadNerd, Vampire Hunter D
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Pilot: Mass Effect: Redemption

Mass Effect aficionados might want to snag a copy of this month’s Mass Effect: Redemption #1 (out now), which preludes the new Mass Effect 2 video game. Yesterday’s Impulse Creations article determines whether it passes the quality test as a comic, but chances are you’ll want to purchase the issue regardless if you’re a fan.

Welcome to another installment of Pilot! As comic book readers ourselves, we at Impulse know how important it is to get a quality bang for money spent on a single issue. Comic prices add up, after all! So every so often we’ll take an in-depth look at a new title or mini-series. We’ll give you the heads up on whether it’s is worth getting into or passing up. If it’s good, then you’ll know. If it’s not so good … well, we read it so you don’t have to.

Another video game series enters the comic book world this month with Mass Effect: Redemption #1 (of 4), penned by the lead writer of the upcoming Mass Effect 2, Mac Walters. Published by Dark Horse, the mini-series agrees to test its weight against the demands of an audience who favors a printed, visual medium. The transition between mediums—and in this case, from the screen to the page—usually requires a certain toll, and many times the cost proves high. Either the nature of the source gives way to convolution or the end product doesn’t try to function as a new work. I might not be a Mass Effect familiar, but the comic feeds more than just the interests of the original fans: By stepping foot into comic book waters, readers with little or zero Mass Effect education are going to flip through the pages. In fact, the point of the transfer lies with reaching new audiences and inviting them to dip into the video game experience, as well.

Tags: Dark Horse, Impulse Creations, Mass Effect, Pilot, Redemption
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Buffy’s Karl Moline Talks Willow Magic

Man, it’s been a busy week! Good thing I like this job so much. It does have its perks, after all—like getting to talk with Karl Moline, guest artist on the Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 8: Willow one-shot out today. In the interview, Karl discusses the comic and the There’s Something about Willow issue.

A very special one-shot ships today from Dark Horse—and it’s just in time for the holidays. Avid Buffy the Vampire Slayer fans might not be able to have their favorite witch gift-wrapped under the tree this year, but they can snatch a generous dose of Willow action in today’s comic. Guest artist Karl Moline agreed to sit down and answer some of our pressing questions. Who is that serpent lady on the cover and what does she want with Willow? What’s it like working with Joss Whedon? And most importantly, who’d win in a pillow fight: Spike or Angel? Okay, I made that one up, but Moline does give us the behind-the-scenes skinny on the Willow extravaganza.

GEN: Thanks so much for taking the time out of your day to talk shop with us, Karl! Let’s get down to business: the upcoming Willow one-shot. Regular Buffy artist Georges Jeanty is stepping aside for this issue. As co-creator and artist on the Fray-themed comics, what made you turn your focus from the future Vampire Slayer to the series’ number one redhead? How did you become involved with the one-shot?

Karl Moline: Well, while Fray has been my major focus with Dark Horse, I’ve developed a good working relationship with my editors and that has led to a few non-Fray related projects. I had a really good time drawing the Buffy characters, and Willow was probably my favorite of the bunch. I guess the Powers that Be felt I did a good a good job drawing her and thought of me for the one-shot.

GEN: That serpent lady on the cover—Willow has met her before, right? She seems to know a lot about Willow and her powers. How much of a role does she play in this issue?

Moline: We have seen her before, although her appearance was brief and somewhat mysterious. This issue will shed light on her ties to Willow and explain who she is and why we should care. Their history is important to Willow’s magic powers and fans will want to read this to get a clearer picture.

Read more at the Girls Entertainment Network. And while you’re at it, make sure to check out TheNerdyBird‘s chat with Georges Jeanty.

Tags: Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 8: Willow, Dark Horse, Girls Entertainment Network, Interviews, Karl Moline, One-shots
Posted in Comics, Features, Girls Entertainment Network, Writing | No Comments »

Review: BPRD: The Warning

You can tell by the snazzy new publisher-oriented banners that you’ll be seeing in future comic book reviews on the Girls Entertainment Network (just click the cover above to see what I mean) that I’ve been way too dedicated to graphics work lately. You’d think after I took on the design of this blog that I would allow myself a nice vacation from Paint Shop Pro 9, but psych! You were wrong. Plus, I’ve been working my ass off creating a shitload of graphics for a special July feature that will make all of this seem like child’s play. [Insert maniacal, world-domination laugher here]

Anyway, in the meantime you can catch up with the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense by checking out my review of B.P.R.D.: The Warning. This comic just abuses amphibians in so many wrong ways … it’s great.

Dark Horse, along with a gazillion other creators and publishers (or at least it feels like a gazillion), have sent over plenty of review copies to keep me busy, so stay tuned. I’ll probably tackle Top Cow’s premiere of Berserker—yes, created by that guy on Heroes who formerly played Jess on Gilmore Girls (he’s all grown up now)—sometime tomorrow. Actually, I have so many mixed feelings for that show that I’m regretting even bringing it up now.

The expressions in the picture below nicely sum up how I feel … ironically.

Ventimiglia: The last name that sounds like something you should dissect immediately.

Tags: BPRD Vol. 10: The Warning, Dark Horse, Dave Stewart, Girls Entertainment Network, Guy Davis, John Arcudi, Mike Mignola is a comic book god, Milo Ventimiglia
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Review: BVS Vol. 2: No Future for You

I adore the Buffy the Vampire Slayer (and Angel) series, and even though the television stories have ended and now flood the colored panels of comic books, the switch between mediums was incredibly successful. BVS Season 8 continues to rake in the praise like demons to the Hellmouth.

Dark Horse sent the second volume (“No Future for You”) of the title my way, and God, it was so good. Brian K. Vaughan wrote most of the trade alongside Georges Jeanty’s illustrations, but creator Joss Whedon and artist Cliff Richards took hold of the reigns for issue #10. You can read my review over at the Girls Entertainment Network.

Tags: Brian K. Vaughan, Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 8, Cliff Richards, Dark Horse, Georges Jeanty, Girls Entertainment Network, Joss Whedon, No Future for You
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