John Carter: Warlord of Mars 2015 Special

Writer – Robert Place Napton
Artist – Rod Rodolfo
Colours – Nanjan Jamberi

Robert Place Napton and Rod Rodolfo deliver a fun tale of action and adventure that sees our heroes, both John Carter and Dejah Thoris, having to deal with an invading force from the neighbouring planet of Sasoom, also known as Jupiter.  This force consists of what amounts to desiccated corpses called Morgors though they are very much alive and sentient.  And so it is that Barsoom finds itself captured and taken over without so much as single shot being fired due to the superior technology of the Morgors.  Taking place outside of the current series as chronicled by Ron Marz, this one-shot ties into the previous volume and is an enjoyable way to spend a little time.  Dejah Thoris and John Carter must not only deal with the invading force, but must enlist the aid of other enemies in the hopes that they can overcome and take back the planet.  Of course, you know going in that they will save the day, but Napton crafts a tale that keeps you hooked from beginning to end with a lot of action and some fun moments too.  It is good to get a story every now and then that involves one of the other planets, aside from Earth that is.  We always see Earth and Mars in John Carter’s stories but very rarely do we see Venus or any of the others.  Just for that alone, it made the story just a little bit more interesting as it opens up more possibilities for further tales as well as creating more allies and possibly villains.  The artwork by Rod Rodolfo was nice and clean and a step up from what the previous series of books used to feature, so that was a nice bonus as well.  Good art, good writing and a good, amusing tale make for a good comic.

3.5 out of 5

Chrononauts #1

Writer – Mark Millar
Artist – Sean Gordon Murphy
Colours – Matt Hollingsworth

Chrononauts, the new science-fiction title from Mark Millar and Sean Gordon Murphy, and also newly optioned for a movie, is actually like watching a film on the big screen.  It reads big, it feels big and is full of big ideas.  It is a grand spectacle of the best kind, never mind being found on the printed page and Millar and Gordon make sure it is a whole lot of fun as well.  Simply put, the story finds two friends who are also scientists and inventors and they soon create a suit that will allow them to travel back in time.  A test run is successful and so the decision is made for them to go back themselves and see what they can see.  Disaster strikes though when one of them is lost in time and it then leaves it up to the remaining member to go back and find him, if he can.  The artwork of course looks absolutely gorgeous and Murphy knows how to make each page pop.  He turns out to be the perfect person to illustrate these pop star scientists and he makes the book really come alive and feel vibrant at the same time.  Corbin and Danny are a couple of goofballs and they do not seem like your average type of hero which is nice and refreshing to see.  But like any good writer, Millar fills them with potential and by the end of the issue that potential starts to show through.  The subject is a fascinating one as well, as the premise does what everyone has always wanted to, which is to travel through time and witness those big events that everyone always thinks of doing.  That is why it makes this series so effective as it plays upon everyone’s dreams of doing the impossible and making it, within the context of these pages, a reality.  With a great cliff-hanger to end the book on, what comes next for our heroes one can only guess, but with Murphy and Millar at the helm it can only be excitement!

4.5 out of 5