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[Dustin]

Nightmare Unknown: Crimes Against Humanity

Issues 1-3
Written by James Maddox
Art by Rob Dumo
Grayscales by Vladimir Popov

I remember sitting in front of the television waiting for The Twilight Zone to begin. The creepy music, the black and white swirls, and Rod Sterling’s monologue infused me with anxiety. That strange anxiety all horror fans feel just before the terrible story begins: a welcomed mixture of fear, anticipation, and excitement. Whether it was Tales From The Crypt or Tales From The Darkside, this anxiety bubbled in my guts and made me nervous. I felt this same, wonderful anxiety the second I read the first page of Broken Icon’s Nightmare Unknown.

Nightmare Unknown is an anthology series set in fictional Masson City. The first story, Crimes Against Humanity, encompasses the first three issues and centers around Lou, an immortal on the run from two corporations, The Crypt and The Factory, attempting to use him for personal gain. When Lou sleeps, which is only on rare occasions, his consciousness mysteriously causes humanity to accelerate up the evolutionary ladder. It was his sleep cycles that caused cavemen to invent the wheel- to move from grass huts to stone buildings- to move from spears to guns. Upon discovering Lou as an immortal, two brothers dedicate their lives to capturing him. One brother creates The Crypt: a corporation dedicated to forcing Lou back to sleep for the betterment of all man-kind. The other brother creates The Factory: a corporation dedicated to dissecting Lou to see what’s inside. The story is set in modern day and has a great pulp detective/horror feel to it.

James Maddox, the writer, does an incredible job keeping the story line coherent even though we see snippets of Lou’s life from the first awakenings of primordial man to the wild west. The reader never gets lost in the varying timelines. Nicely paced and intelligent, the story moves smoothly from beginning to end and the dialogue rings true from character to character. They all have distinct voices and nuances that keep the character interactions crisp and vibrant. The only complaint I have is that there are a few extras in the story that I would have liked to have had more information on and/or more explanation of. I understand their purpose to the story, just not how they got there. Rob Dumo’s art is superb to the story with great emotion capturing on the characters’ faces. He has a talent for body positions and anatomy. Great depth in the city layouts and cramped fighting scenes truly capture the scope of the story. Vladimir Popov’s grayscales set the mood of the entire story arc with heavy black and stark white. These first three issues were a great read and I’m looking forward to more stories from Masson City.

You can check out all of Broken Icon's books here:

http://www.brokeniconcomics.com/

This post has been edited by Dustin: Jun 7 2012, 11:23 AM

[Dustin]

Blue Water Comics 'Saturday Night Live'

Writer: Chad Lambert
Artist: Patricio Carbajal
Colorist: Michael Langdale
Letterer: Jaymes Reed
Cover: Rohvel Yumul

I grew up on Saturday Night Live. We all did. From skit to skit, comedian to comedian, year to year, we have witnessed an incredible assortment of political satire, social commentary, and outright outrageousness. And the greatest part...the most exciting thing...it all happened live in front of us. From a break in character to a tear of the pope's picture, we watched anything- and everything- happen without interruption or ten second delay. Ever wonder how it all began? Ever wanted to see behind the sets to the origins of the show? Well, you can in Blue Water's 'Saturday Night Live'.

Chad Lambert jumps inside Lorne Michaels mind and takes us on a 24 page journey through the 37 years of SNL. From its early conception to its continuing presence, Lambert manages to explain SNL's history without out-pacing the story. We never feel rushed or force-fed and he nicely incorporates a mention to every comic that ever appeared on the show-quite a feat for a one-shot comic. Crisp and concise, Lambert's writing leads us through the history SNL.

Patricio Carbajal captures the famous faces of SNL with precision. He transitions us through the panels the way SNL has transitioned us through the decades. Michael Langdale's colors fit the mood nicely. Jaymes Reed's letters do exactly what they are supposed to do- stay out of the way. He revolves his balloons around the story and leads us cleanly through the pages. If you have ever been curious about SNL, this is an informative and entertaining read.

To check out all the goodness Blue Water has to offer: http://www.bluewaterprod.com/comics/comics.php

or, to read more of Chad Lambert's books: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?u...ds=chad+lambert

[G-Man]

Great review, Dustin! I picked this up from Chad at Gem City and loved it....very well done! Chad did a fantastic job with this.