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The Long of it:
I am trying to keep an open mind. I
want to be able to try new things. I want to be captured and enthralled within
the time it takes to read approximately 22 pages. I never picked up the Walking
Dead by Robert Kirkman when it first came out because I wasn't into Zombies nor
did I like black and white comic books. I never picked up Morning Glories either.
This time I didn't have the Zombie black and white comic excuse either. It was because I was biased against Image. I
remembered how much they let me down in the nineties.
DC rebooted and I wanted to try
many different titles but I chose two and am now at three. Marvel began their
Marvel Now program, which as they say is not a reboot, but a perfect
opportunity for New Readers. Marvel captures the majority of my comic book
budget. Image’s Whilce Portacio’s work on
Non-Humans gave me the opportunity to purchase a digital comic book. Although
this book is in print, this was the title I decided to purchase only digitally.
Being that it was touted as a limited series I was only in it for four issues.
It didn't help that Comixology.com has
sales every Monday. Other than certain Marvel issues being .99 they also occasionally
have the same price for a three day sales event; allowing me to finally try
issue #1 of Morning Glories, then issues two, but decided I would stop at issue
three.
After purchasing all twenty five
issues I figured I would stop and wait for the rest to be sold digitally and
for .99. I figure I would have to wait until issue 50. Image surprised me by
publishing issue 26 for only $1 and its digital counterpart for the sale price
of one cent less. They conspired against me because how can you not pick two
formats on a brand new comic book for the cost of a cup of coffee. Twenty seven
was back at full price, and now Morning Glories is one of my monthly books to
purchase.
With more of an open mind East of West was
picked up on the date of its release. Currently, issue three is waiting to be
read, but Ten Grand captured me. I picked issue one up and looked through it. I
put it back. There was enough for me today and Wizard World Philadelphia just
had their convention this first weekend of June and garnished a good amount of
my funds. I checked to make sure I had all the books I wanted, and the book
called out to me again. The original reason I picked up the book because the
title itself, the way it was written looked like it read Neil Gaiman. Maybe it
was an omen.
I looked at the book again, this
time issue two and the art by Ben Templesmith reminds me of Bill Sienkiewicz,
an artist I hated when he first took over the New Mutants. Since I have aged, I
have grown and learned to truly appreciate what a grand scope of an artist he
is. The thought of not giving Bill a chance all those years ago and only buying
it because of the Story Chris Claremont weaved, could I do no less for this
tale from J. Michael Straczynski. Ironically enough, cover B of Ten Grand is
from Bill Sienkiewicz, and what was even better at the end of issue one; there
is a notation by Tom Mandrake for a future book called SideKick. At the end of
issue two I get to see the original artwork I fell in love with splashed on the
pages of my favorite hobby again.
I couldn't wait to get home. I read
one other book first and made my way into Ten Grand. I was on the second issue
before I knew it and began to conspire what to write. I sent out a picture on
Instagram immediately to tell anyone paying attention that issue one and two are
worth picking up. The scope of the story feels like the waves of the ocean as
it flows up the beach; knowing the vastness beyond with the glimmer of the
sunrise over the open sea are just pieces of what’s to come.
OK Image, you have my attention, what are you
going to do with it?
The short of it: WOW!!!
