Review of "Angelica Tomorrow"--A Comic by David Liss and Allen Byrns

Those of you who have enjoyed my site for awhile are probably familiar with friend of the blog, David Liss. I've interviewed him before about prose-writing and "Black Panther" back when he was doing that title for Marvel and I was enjoying it a bunch. A bit ago I made a post when he and publisher 215 Ink made an announcement about a new comic in the works from Liss and artist Allen Byrns, "Angelica Tomorrow". First coming out digitally and then in Trade Paperback, I wasn't sure what to expect from this comic but thought it sounded intriguing in its description of a "slice-of-life" tale meeting-up with something killer-robot-esque. I figured I would check it out when it debuted.

Well, I've now read the first issue and I can say that I did indeed quite like "Angelica Tomorrow". Liss provides us with a narrator in the form of George Williams, a high-school student who used to have it all before a car accident left him paralyzed, bitter, and often drunk thanks to booze acquired from the older brother of one of his only two friends.

Things don't end well for the police-officer.

Out drinking one evening with his friends, once they take off George witnesses some kind of plane crash, with a responding officer arriving on the scene and then being hideously murdered by some sort of female-appearing robot. Before it can kill George however it finds itself reverting to a "base personality" as it calls it, and becomes a much friendlier and somewhat amnesiac version of itself. The lack-of-memory aspect isn't too annoying, because Angelica knows she is some kind of robot-cyborg, she just isn't sure where she came from and how dangerous she possibly is.

This results in the rest of the story, with its interestingly weird mixture of  themes. It has the usual overtones of a high-school tale, featuring George just trying to suffer his way through classes, but incorporated into this is the story of a dangerous human-machine hybird that currently seems to be in a less aggressive-mode, but who knows for how long? It really does result in a sort of "Ghost World" meets "The Terminator" feeling as it had been described to me before reading it.

Why George doesn't try to escape from Angelica is briefly addressed.

The varying tones actually works out well, but the major question remains, why doesn't George just try to get as far away as possible from this machine-human hybrid knowing what it is capable of? The story slightly addresses this, saying that George is basically so lonely and without anything to care about that having anything be "his" in a sense is enough to give him a reason to live, even if that aforementioned reason to live might end up murdering him.

The other thing that nagged at me is how this first issue already starts to tell us some facts about Angelica, with a scene between a scientist and NSA agent arriving into town with plans to search for her/it. I actually liked there being some more mystery to just what Angelica is and where she comes from, so having the story reveal this early on that she's basically a failed experiment removes some of the mystery and makes this a standard, "Science and the Government went too far and look what it wrought!"-type of Frankenstein's monster brought about by mans and woman's hubris.

The story could have waited longer to introduce the Government-element.

The art is quite good, giving off a strong Ben Templesmith-type vibe. It is both at once moody and oppressive, giving us a good feeling of the hopelessness Ben feels. The way Angelica is drawn and colored as a bright and happy standout in a world of dark and moody colors helps to express how this android is both at once extremely pleasant and friendly, but with that scary edge of turning back into a monster at any moment.

The minimalist and eerie style of the artwork goes with the story well when things are gruesome (such as when Angelica is at first a violent killing-machine), but feels a bit tonally-off during the quiet nicer scenes of bonding between Angelica and  George. Then again, with the story having such different tones that somehow work together I'm not sure how exactly there could have been an art-style to suit all the potential moods. Therefore, it is at least good that Byrn's style works so well for the more alarming and scary scenes.

All-in-all I would say this is a very strong start with only a little that bothered me, such as the too-soon introduction of the scientist and NSA agent, but there was much I enjoyed such as the artwork and good chemistry between George and Angelica that shows an interesting mixture of friendship, flirtation, and fear (on George's part, at the thought that Angelica could turn violent again at any moment).

I would definitely recommend checking this out if you enjoy quirky or scary stories, or tales that merge both genres expertly. You can find yourself a copy of the debut issue of the digital-first "Angelica Tomorrow" on Comixology, right here and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
4 out of 5 stars.

Note: A digital copy of "Angelica Tomorrow" was provided to me by David Liss for review purposes.

David Liss Has Announced an Interesting-Sounding Comic

I don't usually put up standard press releases, but I'm a fan of David Liss' stuff and he's a friend of the blog (see an interview with him here), so when I heard about a new comic of his that was just announced on the eve of New York Comic-Con I was intrigued.

With Liss' past good stuff I think I'll get me a copy. I mean, who doesn't like cyborgs? Here is the info:

David Liss, bestselling novelist and writer of Black Panther: The Man Without Fear, Mystery Men and The Spider and artist Allen Byrns have teamed up to bring their newest creation to independent publishing company 215 Ink. 

“Liss and Byrns are representative of the new wave of talent we’ve been seeing in the industry,” said 215 Ink President Andrew DelQuadro, “and they’re a welcome addition to the 215 Ink stable.”
Their book, Angelica Tomorrow, is a high school sci-fi romance between a broken high school kid and an equally – if differently – broken cyborg assassin.  Combing slice-of-life humor with action and suspense, Angelica Tomorrow is both an engrossing drama and a gripping page-turner an equally – if differently – broken cyborg assassin.  Combing slice-of-life humor with action and suspense, Angelica Tomorrow is both an engrossing drama and a gripping page-turner


“When we were developing Angelica Tomorrow, 215 Ink immediately came to mind,” said Liss, “they are putting out a number of amazing and original projects, and I’m thrilled that our book is going to part of that exciting lineup.”

Rant-Reviews--Evil,Vigilantes, Arm-Breaking, Old-School Formats, And Last Issues.

Let's Start The Reviewing

Daken: Dark Wolverine #22
Since Rob Williams took over this book it became really, really good. Therefore, that of course means it has to cancelled, and it will be as of the next issue. This issue has an interesting narrative idea of Daken trying to make people hate heroes, and putting aside how in the Marvel Universe people already seem to always hate heroes that is kind of clever. I think perhaps seeing someone being a bad guy and just being unrepentant about it is a bit refreshing in this era of anti-heroes or villains with a soft-side where even Dr. Doom has to cry about something. Plus what Daken does to Reed Richards and says to him is just pretty hardcore.
4 out of 5 stars.

The Punisher #9
Frank Castle is going to have a female side-kick. I am not that excited about this. Why? Well, Garth Ennis did a female-Punisher really well already, there apparently was a good Punisher-Painkiller Jane cross-over that did this, and ehhh. It looks good and the action was well done so that is pretty neat, and the hyper-condensed water that makes a dangerous weapon is kind of cool...and but wha? We're heading into that cross-over with Spider-Man and Daredevil now? Hmmmmm.
2.5 out of 5 stars.

Aquaman #6
Mera, Aquaman's wife, is not to be trifled with. Touch her without permission and you will get a broken arm. Also, make jokes about how she needs water and she will us her powers to dehydrate you. Basically, if you mess with her Mera will fuck you up, without question. That's sort of been the plot of the Aquaman comic in general about Aquaman himself too. Geoff Johns is being kind of clever in making our hero and his wife much more tough and not at all happy to put up with other people's B.S. Plus, Ivan Reis turns in great art. It's not an amazing comic, but it is quite enjoyable.
3.5 out of 5 stars.

Crack Comics #63
Another one of Image Comics, "The Next Issue" things they put out every year or so, this is enjoyable enough. At times it seems to be a straight-up homage to classic golden-age comics, then at other points it is slightly updating them with a bit of humor or making fun of them gently. That, or being minimal and neat such as with the last tale of The Red Torpedo. For my money though, the best story is the depressing two-pager about Slap Happy Pappy. That's some harsh stuff. Overall a fun assortment of material.
3.5 out of 5 stars.

Black Panther #529
The last issue of the Black Panther comic that picked up with Daredevil's numbering, and kept it when Daredevil returned with a new first issue because Marvel comics is just plain weird. Black Panther's run had some ups and downs, at times being meh and at other times being fantastic. I would say it ends decently and that friend of the blog (I interviewed him) and writer David Liss did right by the character over his tenure with T'Challa.
3.5 out of 5 stars.

Nothing too horrible this time, and some quality comics. I guess life doesn't have to be a downer.

Rant-Reviews--Some Month's-Old Comics, And Some New Ones. Quality Varied.

Flip the Switch

Let's talk about comics--some old, some newer, none quite terrible, but some really good. Other ones are just okay. I'll break out the peanut butter and bread so we can enjoy sandwiches whilst reading/writing the reviews. What? You're allergic? Sucks to be you, because I want my chunky peanut-butter.

Mystery Men #5

Yes, this came out forever ago, and yes the last two issues seemed a bit rushed and it still wasn't quite clear why this had to tie in with the main Marvel continuity as the company made a big deal about--"Hey, this takes place before the normal heroes you know of existed and it's in continuity for you 'it has to count' nerds!"--but damn-it, all those complaints aside that should hurt this I still really enjoyed this series. It's like you are dating some girl and you know she's got some serious flaws, but you can't help but be enamored with her. Sure, she's got some human bodies in the basement, but she makes such a delicious mac-and-cheese! This comic may have the flaws, but it's still a really enjoyable pulp adventure with interesting characters that's just plain fun.

David Liss wrote up a good tale even if he had the whole, "It's in continuity, read it!" cloud hanging over his head that Marvel made a big deal of, even if at the end of the day it didn't matter if this comic took place in the Marvel Universe or a some other reality like this one where it seems no matter how many times you say you don't want mustard or mayo on your sandwich you always have to send it back. I don't want mayo, it makes me gag! This comic didn't activate that reflex though, and I'm pretty sure it's out in trade now so you ought to pick it up.

4.5 out of 5 stars.

Captain Swing And The Electrical Pirates of Cindery Island #4

Wow. It took forever for the fourth issue of this to come out and then once it did they couldn't pump out the trade fast enough. Then again this was Warren Ellis writing this, and even though he is a great writer, it seems when he is doing something for the Avatar comics line you never know when or if the project will be completed (this applies to other comic-lines and Ellis too, but it is especially bad with he and Avatar). How was the final issue though? Well, it was...decent?

I'm sorry, but it just took so long for everything to come out I had trouble remembering certain things, but I did remember this started out a lot more fun than it ended. If I may return to the theme of relationships, it was like one that starts out really great but by the end just sort of fizzles out--mainly because you realize you no longer have enough money to pay her fee. What? That isn't a relationship, that's prostitution? Well you and I just have different views, my friend. Seriously though, this was passable but not that amazing. It looked nice though.

2.5 out of 5 stars.

Captain Atom 100 Page Special

Well, that was weird. I like Captain Atom, he is a cool character. I was one of the few people who enjoyed that comic which took him to the Wildstorm Universe back when it was actually its own Universe. I mean I absolutely love that series for some odd reason. Then he became some bad guy named Monarch in a terrible DC comic event that counted down to an interesting but weird one by Grant Morrison (Countdown to Final Crisis and Final Crisis, respectively). And then...who knows what happened. Hell, this comic isn't sure. Basically it just kind of goes, "Yeah, some weird stuff happened, but now Captain Atom wants to get over it, so let's put tell a cool tale of him in another dimension that is all sword-and-sorcery style."

Originally these were back-up strips, but this collects them into a...well, a 100 page special. James Robinson and Greg Rucka both wrote them, and its pretty good, even though that terrible temporary team from the "Justice" mini-series Robinson did that was more painful than having a Piranha biting your nether regions while listening to any Celine Dion album. This though, this was pretty decent even if it was a bit busy giving us a tour of the DC Universe at times, or trying to awkwardly explain away Captain Atom's last few years of confusing continuity (which were wiped out in the re-launch that happened anyways). Yeah, this was good.

3.5 out of 5 stars.

The Cape #1 & #2

First off, this has nothing to do with the apparently atrocious NBC mini-series. No, this is a mini-series related to the one-shot comic based off a short story by Joe Hill of Locke and Key comic fame (along with various books and such). This builds off of that one shot with a story of a man who has powers and does what a lot of people probably would if they suddenly gained some--become quite evil. It's a decent yarn but the main character is just so horrible and doesn't seem to have too much of a reason to be. Everyone was supportive of him, he just turned out to be nightmarish. I guess what he says in issue #2 sums it up. The fact he isn't good at anything but he is good at this, with "this" meaning being a monster. It's fine for what it is, but I like my bad-guys to be a bit like someone you can relate to and not just total sociopaths. The new issue comes out this 28th I believe. I'll be reading it, but more-so out of curiousness. 

2.5 out of 5 stars.

Uncanny X-Force #18

Have you ever read something just totally awesome that you and everyone else loved, but in a weird twist the part some people enjoyed most actually rubbed you the wrong way? Yeah, that happened with this comic. Not to spoil it, but there is this one waaayyyy too sweet moment that occurs that just had me rolling my eyes. However, that is overpowered by the rest of this issue which is just sheer amounts of incredible. Whether it is being serious, funny, full of action, or introducing that last twist that I didn't predict after the ones that I did see coming, this is a quality good time. It took forever for the story to get here in its 9 or so parts, but boy if it wasn't a gas.

5 out of 5 stars.

Shut The Power Down

There wasn't anything too horrible, just some stuff that was a bit mediocre to go with readings that were quite delightful. The moral of the story is that comics aren't always terrible--though I've clearly run into plenty of those if you look through the blog at all.

Rant Reviews--Marvel's Various Mutants, Mystery Men, Dark Horses, and Superman Hallucinates

I've got two books with mutants in the Marvel Universe--one is Wolverine and the other is New Mutants even though everyone in it has been around for at least 20 years I think. Then Mystery Men switches its focus to some newer characters, Dark Horse keeps presenting stories, and DC Universe Online Legends has Superman utterly freak out. In a slightly unrelated story I had Bananas Foster French Toast for brunch today and would give it 4 out of 5 stars. That means I found it more satisfying than 3 out of the 5 comics. That's either sad or a testament to the quality of French Toast made with challah bread and bananas.

Rant Reviews--Gotham Gates, Agents with T.H.U.N.D.E.R., Suicide Girls, Superman Takes Action, and a Black Panther.

Today we look at Batman: Gates of Gotham #2, T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents #8, Suicide Girls #3, Action Comics #902, and Black Panther: The Man Without Fear #520. Talk about jumping around thematically.

Rant-Reviews--What does it mean when I enjoyed the $2.99 comics more than the $3.99 and $4.99?

Alright, so I read Deadpool #39 and Mystery Men #2 which are $2.99 and enjoyed them a fair amount. Then Wolverine #11 is interesting and chock-full of allusions to other stories that would make a trivia geek go wild, but I just don't have as much fun as I would like--and it costs $3.99 for the standard 22 pages. Then I get the, "Double-Sized Special" of Thunderbolts #159 and other than the first story by the guy who normally writes the series, I'm left feeling pretty cold for my nearly-five-bucks. What does it mean when the cheaper comics are more fun than the comic that costs a dollar more but adds nothing, and a lot more enjoyable than the comic packed with substandard content? I guess it brings a new twist to the phrase, "Getting your money's worth." Let's break down why I feel how I do about these comics.

Rant-Reviews--Extreme Violence, Acrobartics, and Explosions.

Today we've got a a bunch of fancy-fighting on the rooftops in Black Panther #519,  Butcher Baker The Righteous Maker #3 has a high-speed car-chase/fight with everything blowing up, Caligula #2 is just gruesome, and Deadpool #38 has more buildings being destroyed than I know what to do with. So yeah, a pretty good batch of comics.

A Solid Start--Mystery Men #1

Mystery Men #1
Marvel promoted this in a cagey-manner, using "classified" solicits and otherwise being secretive for what is pretty much just a neat little pulp-style romp set in the normal Marvel Universe before the era of heroes began. It's definitely worth reading, however.

Interview Time--David Liss

A picture of David Liss because I find it helps to imagine the person talking when reading an interview with them.

 In early April I read Black Panther #516 and wrote about how amazing I thought it was seeing as how before that issue I had been pretty hard on the series. Every issue after has been great, and I was such a big fan I contacted the writer, David Liss, and asked him to do an interview, he was kind enough to agree to discuss Black Panther and his other projects such as Mystery Men. He was of course tight-lipped about certain subjects (I couldn't get a peep about all this "American Panther" business) but he was eager to discuss a bunch of stuff so I encourage you to enjoy the interview.

Rant Review--Dull Avengers, Black Panther Does Well, And Deadpool Family Is Just Awful

New Avengers #12 keeps jumping around in time to a point where I've pretty much lost interest, Black Panther #518 wraps up its first story-arc nicely, and Deadpool Family has a terrible one-shot.

Rant Reviews--New-Yet-Old Avengers, Black Panther, and Wolverine

In this late-day post, the New Avengers continue to take have a storyline both in the present and past with neither garnering that much attention, Black Panther continues to be really good, and Wolverine fights his inner-demons in a literal sense.

The Newest Rant Podcast Episode 2--Starting To Figure This Out.

My second-ever Podcast show--downloadable here--where I start to figure things out and develop a basic show format. First I discuss some of the latest news in comic-dom (which isn't necessarily tagged in labels due to getting just a brief mention) then say some extended reviews of comics I have discussed or am going to discuss on my blog, namely:

• Venom #1
• Incognito: Bad Influences #1
• Halcyon #4
• Tarot #67
• Black Panther #516

With a weird assortment like that you know I'm going to have a thing or two to say...

Podcast Powered By Podbean

Oh, and for those who like when I talk about things besides comics, don't worry. I will do Podcasts where I talk about a book I read, movie I saw, or television show I watched sometime too in the future.

Not Just An Amazing Turnaround, But Flat-Out Amazing--Black Panther #516

Black Panther: The Man Without Fear #516
I'll admit it, I've given this series some harsh words. I wasn't big on its use of Luke Cage, I was getting bored with it seeming to meander about, and it didn't seem to have a focus, as if David Liss didn't know where he was taking the story. Then I see Spider-Man on this cover and expect some lame team-up issue that will be dull and cliche. Well, I"m not above admitting I was horribly wrong and this was an incredibly awesome comic.

Oh, so that's what Mystery Men is.

Back around the start of February I had a post about a strange Marvel teaser for the, "Mystery Men," and wondered aloud what it was. Well, wonder no more as much has been revealed by Marvel at the latest comic convention.

Apparently the current scribe of Blank Panther, David Liss, will be writing and Patrick Zircher (whom I've never heard of until now) will be doing the art. Zircher seems to have experience with stuff in this theme, having apparently done Spider-Man Noir. This has been described in the press as a pulp-styled adventure, and it has two issues shipping as soon as this June. It seems to be worth a look.

Rant Reviews--Two Teams of Teenage Avengers, Black Panther, And Why Not Some Deadpool?

Avengers in training, Black Panther improves, Young Avengers has some good action, and Deadpool finally gets around to honoring his friend Cable.

 Avengers Academy #8
The issue that provides some closure to the whole "Tigra getting beaten up by the Hood" storyline from New Avengers that made Tigra look like a victimized wimp with it taking some time to get her to this point where she seems like a strong individual who was forced into a weak moment. Also, because this has the character of the Hood, e.g. Parker Robbins, this ties in to the main Avengers book, taking place a bit before issue #7 where Robbins was climbing a mountain--and us readers not knowing how the hell he got out of prison until issue #9 of that series setting that plot in motion. Therefore, if you are reading this book that knowledge may be useful, and if you aren't it may be a bit confusing. Either way a solid book with an ending that I imagine will not stick in future issues, but could have some fun short-term consequences.
3.5 out of 4 stars.

Black Panther: The Man Without Fear #515 
 David Liss has improved over the last issue but things still aren't as good as his debut on #513. In this issue Luke Cage doesn't seem as out-of-character, and the fighting scenes have a great flow. Plus, some sub-plots start to form that are interesting. Above-average
3 out of 5 stars.

Young Avengers: The Children's Crusade #4
As I noted in another post, this is the issue where it is explained why Wonder Man is chatting with the Avengers in this book but swearing to take them down in another--thanks to quick piece of dialogue to clear that continuity up. This issue also has hints that while it seems the Scarlet Witch may not have her powers anymore, something is definetely amiss with Doctor Doom himself noting how odd it is for his wanting to marry Wanda. Plus some cool fights happen, and the plot inches forward. A pretty good issue.
3.5 out of 5 stars.

Deadpool and Cable #26
Cable died in the big X-Men crossover event half-a-year ago-ish, so seeing as how he and Deadpool shared a comic for a long time it would make sense to have Deadpool acknowledge this. Wrtier Duane Swierczynski has a pretty good handle on Deadpool (as was shown in the 25th issue of this series that came out a year or so ago) and makes me want to check out his Marvel Knight's title, "Wade Wilson's War". The sad thing is that this comic comes off as an afterthought to a series that ended awhile ago and I have no clue where they are going to collect it. Anyways, the story itself is fun with Deadpool going to a third world country and trying to turn it around in the same way Cable liked to do. There is nothing too amazing, but the peeks into Deadpool's mind and how he is genuinely missing his friend Nate Summers are sweet and show how Deadpool can have depth when written well.
3.5 out of 5 stars.

Rant-Reviews--Nothing terrible, and a few things that are quite good.

This time we've got a mediocre panther, adventures in space with a superhero-gone-bad, yet even more Deadpool, Heroes you can hire, and everyone's favorite gang of mutants. I swear it was a coincidence the scores steadily go up as you read further down, I didn't design it that way.