Free Comic Book Day 2014

This happened back in May but it's relevant to current events, I promise.

We had to get up super early, since we'd learned our lesson from Megacon, to get to our other brother's house to wake up our eldest nephew. Mark was respectful of his bedroom while I opened the door and jumped on the bed. I'm his aunt. Nothing can faze me at this point.

It all paid off when we were still one of the first 300 in line so we got the golden tickets.



This meant we got a copy of EVERY single free comic!

Then, we ate Chipotle which Evan and I had never had before. That stuff is AMAZING! It's like Subway for burritos. However, next year, I made them promise that they would try Shawarma. I will convert all non-Vegetarians to Shawarma because it's the most glorious meat product I've ever had.

On top of the Chipotle, which I needed a doggy bag for, we went to a Frozen yogurt place. It's the kind where you can get whatever you want and however you want...I'd never done that before either. It's pretty damn awesome. They just opened one in my town and I definitely want to try it sometime.

Okay, about that haul...

Free Comics:

All You Need is Kill Eh, nothing stood out for me.
Archie Digest It's Archie, it's fun but at least Archie is pretty progressive and soon to have a show on Fox...but will Sabrina or Josie show up?
Armor Hunters This was okay, I was more intrigued by Rai which is Japan in the 41st century and has better artwork.
Atomic Robo I wanted to like this one, but I didn't like the resolution. The monster was just a parent wanting their eggs back. They didn't need to be blown up. I enjoyed Boogie Troll much better; the story was fun and the characters were adorable. Haunted could be fun as well except the preview was so short that I couldn't tell. I also want to know more about Bad Dreams.
Avatar: The Last Airbender, Itsy Bitsy Hellboy, Juice Squeezers So much goodness in one issue! Hellboy is my favorite but Avatar is always nice, too. Juice Squeezers felt like an alternative origin story for Ant-Man. What's Chimichanga and Scary Godmother? They look interesting.
Buck Rogers This was mostly a reprint of some of the classic strips but the idea of a reboot is intriguing.
Courtney Cumrin I LOVE this! The artwork is awesome, the characters are great and the world is full of wonder and magic but with a realism that feels very familiar.
Coverstreet's Comic Book Marketplace So, this is a magazine of comic news, but it was still interesting, like the article about Maurice Sendak's Disneyana collection being sold.
Entropy Yay, a woman's on the front! That's such a sad state of affairs to be excited about. Of course, the actual comic is all about a man as usual. I enjoyed the two small stories better, "Vegetable" by Tihomir Hrlic and "Crosses" by D. Radoja.
FUBAR This issue imagines that Saddam Hussein's biological weapons included those that make zombies, including Saddam himself. It was kind of flimsy. I found the idea of Osama bin Laden a lot more believable since he had the supposed "kidney dialysis" and then, they got rid of his body so quickly. I would probably skip this series in the future.
Grimm Fairy Tales My initial thought is, YES! How could this possibly be bad? Then, they have these Blood Knights that are basically Destroyers from Asgard. However, I did like the Robyn Hood story. I might have to pursue that more.
Guardians of the Galaxy Starring Tony Stark and Agent Venom...okay, whatever. There are brownie points for Spider-Man performing in the Globe Theatre in a short spot although it's not Marvel 1602 related.
Hatter M This was one of the highlights of my comics haul and I was not disappointed. I'm just way behind. I've only read and loved the actual prose books, but I haven't seen any of the graphic novels or comics before.
Hellboy: 20th Anniversary Sampler Everything is awesome especially a Color Comics Fun section with Hellboy parodies of your Sunday favorites, My favorite was the Peanuts one.
Hello Kitty and The Bravest Warriors Whenever I think Hello Kitty can't get cuter, she manages it. I also like the Bravest Warriors. My nephews got me on them.
Help the CBLDF Defend Comics This was another important issue because it explains the Comics Code Authority for those who have probably never heard of it before. I had never heard of it until I started researching for papers I was writing about censorship after Columbine.
Hip Hop Family Tree This was actually one of my favorite free comics. It's a biographical comic about the history of hip hop and rap, including the correct origin of the term, Hip Hop. A lot of people I already knew about, but some I didn't and some I didn't realize were so connected. It's also done with humor and comic references. I need to look up other Ed Piskor stuff.
The Intrinsic: Singularity Zero I liked the artwork because it was like watching a CG cartoon. The story wasn't too bad either.
Ipso Facto Ugh, I feel like this could be better. There's a lot of world building going on, but the story and dialogue was predictable. Also, who actually has an "abortion clinic" in their town anymore? They're always called Women's Health Centers or something similar for better public relations purpose aka Please don't bomb us.
Jellaby It's a girl and her pet T-Rex!!!! I almost don't need the incredibly cute story that goes with it.
Les Miserables and Pride & Prejudice As manga! These were only short previews but I loved them. I also love new adaptations of Austen's work. I might have to buy this one.
Magic Wind I didn't care for the artwork here either, but a Sioux Shaman teams up with Edgar Allan Poe? YES!
Magika/The First Daughter Okay, I loved Magika but The First Daughter was kind of...cringey.
Magnus Robot Fighter This is a Heroes Haven exclusive and was signed. Dystopian futures full of robots are usually not my cup of tea, but this one is pretty good and picked a good cliffhanger to leave people wanting more.
Marvel Knights: Daredevil This was standard Daredevil stuff, but gotta love the random Rocket Raccoon reference.
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers This is actually the classic team as in, Hello Amy Jo Johnson! It's kind of MMPR meets Transformers which made it more fun. I've never been a big fan of the series.
Mouse Guard and Labyrinth This was an actual BOOK! It had binding with the title on it and everything. I was very impressed and more so when I looked inside. I wanted to read more of everything. They even had a Labyrinth story with Ludo and everything.
The New 52: Future's End Wonder Woman as a zombie cyborg? NO!
Pandora's Blogs and Duel Identity I liked both of these. Plus, they both have smart, powerful women! Yes! Bonus points for Pandora owning a non-copyright Lotso.
Past the Last Mountain and Finding Gossamyr Dragons! Sort of...not really...the cover was very misleading. I liked the story with PTLM but preferred the artwork with FG.
Previews This doesn't really have previews. It's explaining how they work. However, I did find out that Bryan Lee O'Malley has new stuff!
Project Black Sky I hated the artwork but they do get brownie points for incorporating American Sign Language as dialogue..I don't know if they were influenced by Matt Fraction announcing last year about Hawkeye having the same thing this year.
Raising a Reader When I was little, there were very few comics for my age group. Now, there are TONS of comics for every maturity level and reading level. It's amazing. This comic shows to parents and teachers how to involve comics into educational opportunities especially critical thinking, but how to correctly read a comic panel. This is an important skill because I've had multiple people say they don't read comics because they don't know how to read them without being confused about which panels happen when.
Rise of the Magi I liked some of the characters and artwork so it could be fun.
Rocket Raccoon Oh yes, I need this series a lot.
Scam Crosswords The artwork is simply awful and all the women are horrendous. The only good things I can say about this comic were the ads inside for C is for Cthulhu which I think I NEED and And Then Emily was Gone which also looks intriguing.
Scratch 9 and Run & Amuk EVERYONE IS SO CUTE!!!!! I love it, I need more of this. Also, it has Bo befriending the main character and Obama knocking out a robot imposter. Run & Amuk was also fun, but too short to really say more than that.
Shadow Children/Darchon They were okay.
Sherwood Texas and Boondock Saints It's kind of like Sons of Anarchy in comic form so that was different. I've never seen any of the Boondock Saints before.
Shigeru Mizuki's Showa: A History of Japan Did I ever mention how I minored in History? One of the courses was Japanese history so I love seeing stuff like this. It's not colored but that makes more sense for a lower budget comic. It does a very good job of showing World War 2 from a Japanese perspective.
Skyward and Midnight Tiger Midnight Tiger has some good things going for it like humor, but I liked Skyward better. It felt a little more polished. Plus...dog...
The Smurfs, Annoying Orange, Ariol, Dinosaurs I actually loved the little notes that went with it as much as the story, including their explanation of turning someone into a frog that included the time that Loki turned Thor into a frog. Ariol was totally cute and about a comic book convention. Dinosaurs was cute for someone that didn't like reading about science. It kind of tricks you into learning.
Spongebob This was everything I hoped it would be and more. It even has the introduction of...Mermaid Girl!
Steam Wars *sigh* I wanted a fun parody or re-imagining but this was...no. I did like the ads for Steampunk Snow White, Steampunk Red Riding Hood and ActionTime Buddies.
Street Fighter CHUN-LI!!!!! This was almost perfect with story and art. I'm a little intimidated by how many issues are out there, but I'd definitely read this again.
Teen Titans Go! This is my favorite DC series. Tumblr has made me curious about the new Bat Girl though and Gotham Academy.
Tesla and Wayward Sons Tesla and Mark Twain with action?? Sign me up. The other one is not referring to Supernatural. Actually, it felt VERY Percy Jackson inspired. *rolls eyes*
The Tick The Tick was an acquired taste when I was younger and this feels the same.
Titan Comics 2014 Preview I admit it, it had Ten and Twelve on the cover, how could I pass that up? It was informative. I found out that Tank Girl and Lenore are still coming out with issues!
Top Shelf Kids Club Is there anything published by Top Shelf that's not awesome? This is a legitimate question.
Transformers vs. GI Joe The best part was actually the commentary afterwards about every single page of the comic. Also, I thought this would be the coolest crossover and then I found out that the Transformers had previously teamed up with...the Avengers!
Uber After this, I vowed never to let my warm, feelings for Kieron Gillen writing Young Avengers cloud my thinking. This was more zombies during World War 2. Bleh.
Uncle Scrooge and Donald Duck This actually took place at a family reunion and told a lot about the Duck family. I found that really interesting.
Valiant Universe I still think Rai looks the most interesting. I also like the Goat and Toyo Harada although it turns out that Harada is a villain.
V Wars This is actually not a social commentary on the persecution of women in media. It's about vampires.The preview was a little tropey but the universe looked pretty planned out and the top secret files were kind of fun.
Warhammer 40,000 Tonys little pieces that I'm supposed to make into men? I don't think so. My nephew attempted with his and they fell apart soon afterwards.
Zombie Tramp Considering the cover contained a barely dressed female zombie, I was fully prepared to hate this thing. However, she has magical powers due to a magical book including being able to look alive and she gets to take out all the misogynistic pigs. I'm also curious about the advertised comic, Tomboy.


Stuff I Bought:
Marvel 1602: New World/Fantastic Four I need the Spider-Man trade paperback and then, I will all of the 1602 series. It's so much fun. I will admit that even though it's Neil Gaiman's baby, I didn't seriously consider reading 1602 until the episode of Super Hero Squad Show.
Marvel Previews Now, I know that these are free through the Digital Apps. Well, learning process...the best part was this was how I found out about the Figment series.
Pop! Phil Coulson Because he's awesome.
Secret Avengers 1,2 First of all, a series where Coulson is on every SINGLE cover? Heck yeah, I want that. It's also fun and funny and has most of my favorite people. It's also not as squicky as the previous run without all the memory manipulations. I managed to find 3 later but now, they're on 9 so I guess I'll buy the trade paperback.
Serenity Yay, more Serenity! If you're a fan, you NEED this.

Stuff I May Want to Buy in the Future:

ActionTime Buddies
And Then Emily was Gone by John Lees and Iain Laurie
Archaia everything??
Bad Dreams
Boogie Troll
C is for Cthulhu by Jason Ciaramella
Courtney Crumrin by Ted Naifeh
Duel Identity
Ed Piskor writings
Figment
Hatter M
Hellboy
Itsy Bitsy Hellboy
Jellaby
Magic Wind
Magika
Marvel 1602: Spider-Man
Mishka and the Sea Devil
New Avengers/Transformers
Pandora's Blogs
Pride & Prejudice by Manga Classics
Rai
Rise of the Magi
Robyn Hood
Rocket Raccoon
Scratch 9
Seconds by Bryan Lee O'Malley
Secret Avengers
Steampunk Red Riding Hood
Steampunk Snow White
Tesla
Tomboy
Top Shelf EVERYTHING?
Ugly Doll Comics
Vamplets

Free Comic Book Day 2014, Part Two

Did you know there;s another Free Comic Book Day in October?

I just learned that this year. It's the last Saturday before Halloween. I got scheduled 9:30 AM-3 PM but I thought that could still leave plenty of time for afterwards. Then, I called my brother to find out that he and oldest nephew had done everything without me, including Chipotle and Frozen Yogurt.

However, he did at least give me his stash of free comics and my bank account is probably better for having missed all those awesome sales:

Afterlife with Archie and Chilling Adventures of Sabrina
I wasn't expecting it but this was one of the best comics out of all of them! Both had much darker takes on Sabrina that I LOVED. The second even had Sabrina's aunts using magic for her to be conceived but then, demanding to raise her which causes Sabrina's mom to end up in a psychiatric facility. I'll probably skip the zombie series but I want more of the Sabrina one.

Angry Birds
Of course, the story and illustrations were cute, but again with the zombies...

Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight
I liked Jeph Loeb's story of Batman trying to track down Scarecrow on Halloween, but I hated the way Tim Sale drew Bruce and Alfred.

Betty and Veronica
This was more normal, but I also loved it. I hope this is the sort of thing we see in the Fox series.

Boom! Studios Halloween Fright Fest 2014
Adventure Time was weird but I loved the Peanuts and Fraggle Rock segments. They even had commentary on one of the Peanuts strips from Charles M. Schulz that I had never read before.

The Extinction Parade
I'm beginning to think there should be a moratorium on zombies. Oh, this one also has vampires so that's something...but I could do without all the very vivid details of entrails eating.

LBX
I don't feel like I'm given enough to even form an opinion.

Marvel Comics
You might remember when Batman turned 75 so they reprinted his original story? This is a reprint of the very first issue of Marvel Comics, but without the modern retelling like the Batman issue had.

Mermin
Hehe, alien culture does trick or treating, including dressing up as humans!

Plants vs. Zombies
This was cute.

Resident Evil
Yay, zombies! Even worse are the obligatory boobs and ass...it doesn't make me want to watch the films more. I think I only played the games once or twice in college.

Scooby-Doo Team-Up!
I don't think Scooby-Doo is capable of a bad crossover. This one had Batman and Robin.

Vamplets
This was everything I hoped it would be: extremely cute with lots of interesting world building.