Comic Reviews this Week

Yes, friends—it's that time of the month where I tell you exactly what is wrong with the comic books currently out on the market. As always, the publishing industry should be ashamed of itself.

Man-Moth #1

Oh, what a surprise. A new Man-Moth movie is out this weekend and they're rebooting the franchise. I hope they don't attempt to change the timeless story of someone motivated to fight crime by losing the ones dearest to him—oh, nevermind. Whereas the original story had it where the stepfather of Martin Mathers (AKA Man-Moth) was killed by the Gecko Girl (Man-Moth's girlfriend), this one makes it where the old man was killed by the gun industry for some untold nefarious reason. Great! We've traded a nice bit of kink in Gecko Girl and Man-Moth's relationship for vague villains and vanilla romance. Certainly worth that extra dollar they tacked on the issue.

Priestess #388

Priestess , as a comic, is nauseating. I simply don't understand what's so alluring about the juxtaposition of religion and sexuality. Conversely, the art certainly pops from the page—something they really milk for all it's worth.

Coyote Kid #36

One would think there'd be a proper end to this three-year “mini” series, but that would be hoping for far, far too much. We've spent years in the surreal desert with the eponymous Coyote Kid, and the creators did a perfect job of recreating the feeling of being lost in a world that doesn't make any sense. I'm surprised we didn't all die of mental starvation somewhere along the way, but they're relaunching the series next month, so somebody must be left alive who wants to read this pap.

Anteater Lad #709

Normally, I encourage buying indie titles in order to support culture outside of the big publishing companies. This weekly comic, however, continually makes me feel as though I am in some nihilistic nightmare. The world is burning down around Anteater Lad and he simply continues to complain about office politics and celebrity gossip. It's like being able to gaze into the abyss and have it gaze into you each week for only $2.99!

Yes, this is another moment of failure for the world of comic books. At least we don't have to put up with those awful Hands of our Grandmother/Sewer Heroes mash-up stories again like we did last year. Small victories.

--T