So…how about those midterm elections, eh? As I write this the polls are still very much open and things could go horribly sideways as they tend to do. By the time this column publishes, that first sentence could be read with the tone of exasperated relief OR “I’ll be seeking asylum and hoping the BBP! offices have a couch I can sleep on.”
BUT…it’s the MIDdle of the week which means new comics! My preferred method of escapism…onward!
ADVANCE ALERT!
William Gibson’s Alien 3 #1
Johnnie Christmas (W/A)
Dark Horse Comics
Out next week from Dark Horse is William Gibson’s Alien 3 and if you know ANYTHING about the franchise, Gibson’s script is the stuff of legend. Alien 3, the film, is…not great and the chance we’re getting now to see the arguably better version realized in some fashion is fantastic.
I recall watching Alien 3 while home sick from school, probably on HBO, and just being let down by the squandered potential of the movie. How could they do Hicks like that?!? Director David Fincher (yes, that David Fincher) is well know for his hatred of the movie he (mostly) directed and that dubious distinction has clung to the movie like an albatross ever since.
The screenplay on which this adaptation is based has been floating around the internet since nearly the beginning of internet time. It became shorthand for “the version of Alien 3 they SHOULD have made” during my college years and that sentiment has persisted long enough to get this comic made…and I’m glad it did.
The adaptation, expertly executed by Johnnie Christmas, feels like a proper Alien movie so far. The opening issue has a tone reminiscent of the first movie in the series, while ramping up the tension those damn xenomorphs are synonymous with. A great first issue that feels like the opening to a better movie than what we ended up getting in 1992.
ADVANCE ALERT!
God of War #1
Chris Roberson (W)
Tony Parker (A)
Dark Horse Comics
This year has been a flat-out great year for video games with Spider-Man, Grand Theft Horse, and of course, God of War all somehow coming out within months of each other. I was able to borrow a copy of God of War from a friend and it was an absolutely gorgeous game with an even better story.
While playing the game, I kept wanting to put down the controller and let the characters tell the story. Probably the opposite effect a video game should have had on me, but I kept thinking how I would love to watch it as a movie or read it as a book.
Mercifully, the God of Tie-Ins heard my prayers and delivered the God of War tie-in book unto me. The book has everything you could possibly want from a God of War story. Is Kratos going to grapple with his violent past? Check. Is he going to have a strained and awkward relationship with his son? Check. Is he going to call him “Boy”? You’d better believe it! That bear on the cover, is he going to fight it? You’re just going to have to pick up the book.
The only thing the book didn’t have was quick time events and switch puzzles like the game had…which made me love the book all the more! So if you’re in the market for a solid adaptation of a beautiful video game, this is for sure a book you’ll want to pick up.
