Review by Nolan P. Smith-Pastrami Nation Writer: Joshua Dysart Artists: Mico Suayan and Pere Perez Publisher: Valiant Entertainment We are a product of the world we live in: nothing is clearer than that after reading the epic zero issue for Valiant’s Harbinger. Toyo Harada is one of the most powerful and influential men in the world, as well as being […]
Review by Nolan P. Smith Writer: Andy Diggle Artist: Jock Publisher: Image Comics Website: www.imagecomics.com It’s a pretty typical occurrence: finding someone’s cell phone. The temptation to keep it is there, as is the thrill of looking through the lens of someone’s private life. But what if you find something that you can’t take back? Something that changes your life […]
The Parker series of novels by Donald Westlake are some of the most entertaining books out there, which is without a doubt. The film Parker is based on the book “Flashfire”, one of over twenty Parker tales in existence. With such a legacy behind it, how does this 2013 Jason Statham vehicle measure up to it’s printed word predecessors? Directed […]
Review by Nolan P. Smith Writer: Robert Venditti Artist: Lee Garbett Publisher: Valiant Entertainment Website: www.valiantcomics.com The Valiant universe came back in 2012 to a extremely strong showing. X-O Manowar led the charge, showing the world why the gold and blue hero has remained a pop culture icon since the previous Valiant run. This current run has reintroduced the world […]
Review by Nolan P. Smith Writer: Brian K. Vaughn Artist: Fiona Staples Publisher: Image Comics Website: www.imagecomics.com Saga has been, hands down, a runaway hit. From the first issue in early 2012, the book has showed originality at its finest. Brian K. Vaughn and Fiona Staples have created a book that continues to get better and deeper with each passing […]
Review by Nolan P. Smith-Pastrami Nation Writer: Michael Avon Oeming Artist: Michael Avon Oeming Publisher: Dark Horse Comics Website: www.darkhorse.com This series has been building to a boiling point, and with the last few issues it’s been going at light speed. Now, with the big finale for this mini series, how does Oeming’s The Victories end? Liked it started: with […]
By Nolan P. Smith-Pastrami Nation When writer/director Quentin Tarantino makes a new film, the masses usually take notice. The man who brought the world Kill Bill, Pulp Fiction, and most recently Inglorious Basterds is back, and back with a bang. Django Unchained brings the over the top violence that fans have come to expect, but how does the rest of […]
By Nolan P. Smith, Pastrami Nation (Apple Valley) The Lord of the Rings film trilogy brought the literary masterpiece by J.R.R Tolkien to a new audience, an audience that was blown away by the epic nature of Middle Earth. Now, in 2012, the world is once again invited back to the world filled with dwarves, wizards, and, of course, hobbits. […]
Fans of Robert Kirkman’s The Walking Dead: you have no excuse not to try his superhero epic, Invincible. Heading towards its 100th issue, the world of Mark Grayson, aka Invincible, looks to be ready for another massive shake up. Issue #98 is the first in the new story arc, The Death of Everyone, so you know this is going to […]
Last year, the world was introduced to the world of Luther Strode. The Image Comic series was a critical hit, as it was the perfect blend and violence and intrigue, with an ending that left readers in awe. Justin Jordan and Tradd Moore had created something special, something we wanted to revisit since we all first saw the teaser at […]
So with the Fantastic Four being relaunched, so was its sister title, the Future Foundation (or FF for short). When the Human Torch died a few months back, the team donned black and white uniforms and became the Future Foundation, with Spider-Man as a member. The book was top-notch, but with Marvel NOW comes change, and I think this book […]
The Fantastic Four: the first family of super heroes. They have seen quite a few changes in their decade spanning career: we saw Reed Richards, The Thing and Johnny Storm die at different times, we have seen replacements and fill in members on the roster, and we even saw the team change to the Future Foundation for a bit. But […]
With the slew of Marvel NOW releases, this one is one of the headliners, and for good reason. This is a relaunch of the flagship character of the Marvel Universe, the sentinel of liberty himself, Captain America. But, like many of the Marvel NOW books, this isn’t the first, or even third time the book has been relaunched at #1, […]
The Merc with a Mouth is back… again. The ultra popular masked madman has always been popular, ever since he debuted in The New Mutants all those years ago. But in the last few years, Deadpool fever hit like never before. He was in the Wolverine movie…kinda. He was in Marvel Vs Capcom 3, and has his own video game […]
Review by Nolan P. Smith-Pastrami Nation Writer: Mark Waid Artist: Leinil Yu Publisher: Marvel Comics Website: www.marvel.com SPOILERS AHEAD The Hulk: the jade giant of the Marvel Universe. The powerhouse of the Avengers, and the self-proclaimed strongest there is. We saw him flatten Loki in The Avengers this year, now he’s back with a brand new series as a part […]
Science is all the rage right now, and why shouldn’t it be? Think of some of the most successful properties out right now, and let’s draw the scientific link, shall we? The Walking Dead is television’s smash hit and an amazing comic book: link to science being the zombie outbreak, how it started and how it works. Breaking Bad, the […]
The first issue of Bedlam was quite the accomplishment. The outright gore, the maniacal villain who is trying to change his ways, it was an awesome start to the series. Now, with issue #2, we dive deeper into the world of former villain Madder Red, and his path to trying to do some good in a world that he has […]
Review by Nolan P. Smith- Pastrami Nation Publisher: Image Comics Release Date: November 2012 Website: www.imagecomics.com Todd McFarlane is an icon in the comic industry. From his groundbreaking work at Marvel Comics, which included the first appearance of the memorable Spider-Man villain, Venom, to his creator owned work as one of the founders of Image Comics, McFarlane is a visionary […]
Review by Nolan P. Smith- Pastrami Nation Writer: Mike Baron Artist: Steve Rude Publisher: Dark Horse Comics Release Date: November 2012 Website: www.darkhorse.com Space: the ultimate setting for a comic, movie, video game, you name it. The unknown of the vastness of space, the unfamiliar planets and their inhabitants, the brave hero that outshines adversity: Halo, Mass Effect, and Saga […]
Review by Nolan P. Smith-Pastrami Nation Writer: Yasuhiro Nightow Artist: Yasuhiro Nightow Publisher: Dark Horse Comics Website: www.darkhorse.com He’s the most feared person on the planet Gunsmoke. He blasted a hole through the moon, and he leaves a path of destruction wherever he goes. He has a bounty of $$60 Billion Double Dollars. He is the Humanoid Typhoon, Vash the […]
Review by: Nolan P. Smith- Pastrami Nation Developers: SuperBot Entertainment, SCE Santa Monica Studios Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment Genre: Fighting One of the most revered and respected franchises in video games today is Smash Bros, the Nintendo fighting game brawler. Pitting classics characters such as Mario, Link, Starfox and more into a battle arena was in an instant recipe for […]
Review by Nolan P. Smith- Pastrami Nation Writer: Joshua Dysart Artist: Phil Briones Publisher: Valiant Entertainment Website: www.valiantentertainment.com In the last issue, we saw Peter Stanchek, the young psionic harbinger, escape from Harbinger Foundation and its leader, the immensely powerful Toyo Harada. This issue, we see some of the fallout from that, as well as what is to come for […]
Review by Nolan P. Smith- Pastrami Nation Writer: Robert Venditti Artist: Lee Garbett Publisher: Valiant Entertainment Website: www.valiantentertainment.com Valiant’s relaunch of books have, so far, proven to be a roaring success, especially X-O Manowar. The Visigoth warrior Aric, time displaced in modern times and bonded to the X-O Manowar armor, hasn’t had it easy as of late. The Vine, the […]
Review by Nolan P. Smith-Pastrami Nation Writer: Matt Wagner, Diana Schutz Artists: Matt Wagner, Tim Sale, Arnold and Jacob Pander, and Bernie Mireault Publisher: Dark Horse Comics Release Date: December 2012 Website: www.darkhorse.com FOR MATURE READERS In the first omnibus for Grendel, which I reviewed here on Pastrami Nation, we read about Hunter Rose, the original Grendel. A cold, calculating […]
By Nolan Patrick Smith- Pastrami Nation If you are a fan of Japanese animation, also known as anime, then you most likely heard of a violent little series called Berserk. A well-known manga (Japanese comic book) and anime, Berserk was created by Kentaro Miura and instantly became a hit. When it was announced that Berserk would be getting the anime […]
Review by Nolan P. Smith- Pastrami Nation Writer: David Lapham Artist: Mike Huddleston Publisher: Dark Horse Comics Website: www.darkhorse.com FOR MATURE READERS Guillermo Del Toro and Chuck Hogan’s critically acclaimed novel, The Strain, was an instant hit. It was the first in a trilogy of books depicting one of life’s biggest supernatural fears: vampires. Not the sparkling vampires seen in […]
Reviewed by Nolan P. Smith-Pastrami Nation Writers: Justin Jordan and Patrick Zircher Artist: Patrick Zircher Publisher: Valiant Entertainment Website: www.valiantentertainment.com In 1992, Shadowman blasted on the comic scene, and wow did he make an impact. One of the most memorable characters out of the Valiant Universe, Shadowman went on to cross media success with two highly rated video games and […]
By Nolan P. Smith-Pastrami Nation (Apple Valley) Action flicks are the bread and butter of the film industry; there is no denying that. We love to go to the theatre, check our brains at the door, and witness overdone explosions, thousands of bullets, and tougher than cheap beef jerky heroes. So, can you achieve this when the action hero in […]
Review by Nolan P. Smith- Pastrami Nation Writer: Mike Richardson Artist: Stan Sakai Publisher: Dark Horse Comics Website: www.darkhorse.com Stories are one of the greatest things to be passed on by humanity, generation to generation. One of the greatest stories is the legendary tale of the 47 Ronin as they avenge the demise of their disgraced master. It’s one of […]
Review by Nolan P. Smith-Pastrami Nation Writer: Paul Tobin Artist: Juan Ferreyra Publisher: Dark Horse Comics Website: www.darkhorse.com Don’t let the cover scare you away: Colder, at least this first issue, isn’t a spill your guts, blood to the gills book, but it is definitely a horror book. The latest in a strong of original horror books from Dark Horse, […]