We start things off with a book that I've been very excited for ever since it was announced at last year's SDCC, Axe Cop: Bad Guy Earth. This is the first issue of a three issue mini-series that has Axe Cop and his team of heroes facing off against the entire world in what is sure to be one amazing adventure. Heads will get chopped, dinosaurs will be armed to the teeth, and babies and chickens will be dumb. For those of you uninitiated with Axe Cop (which can be found at Axecop.com), it's a series about a cop who finds the perfect fireman's axe and does the only logical thing; he fights crime with the help of his partner Flute Cop (or Dinosaur soldier, Avocado Cop, or any number of his different forms that he takes at any given time.) The series is a web comic created by brothers Ethan (age 30, the artist) and Malachai (age 6, the visionary) and their playtime adventures. The comics has been online for a over year now and in that time the characters have teamed up with Moon Warriors to battle, fought the Ultimate Battle, and even saved Christmas. So needless to say, this series rocks more than a Viking riding in the sky on top of a fire breathing robot dinosaur while playing a wicked guitar solo.
This first issue of Bad Guy Earth is no different and is packed full of amazing moments, such as Axe Cop and Dinosaur Soldier blowing up a bad guy planet. One moment that I loved in particular is in the middle of the issue, when Axe Cop has a dream about a crying dinosaur and immediately knows that he must go back in time and save the dinosaurs. Yes, when your comic has the line "I have no time for that, I have to go back in time and save the dinosaurs" there's no way your book isn't awesome. Another spectacularly hilarious moment is when Axe Cop and Dinosaur Soldier are facing off against the normal cops (actually, just the panel of Axe Cop scoffing at the normal cops alone is hilarious) who want to arrest them for breaking all the cop rules and our heroes have to use weapons like "knock out gas" and "knock out bullets" because the normal cops are good guys. It's exactly something that I could see myself coming up with as a kid and it's wonderful for it.
Of course Malachai's story (which is the main draw) is only half of the awesome here, because Ethan's art is what brings Malachai's vision to life and translates it perfectly. You can tell that he really has a love and understanding of his little brother's creation and wants to show the world the kids vision as best as he can. His art is a crystal clear window into the mind of pure fun and adventure that exists within young Malachai. Everything in this book, be it Axe Cop himself or any of the other colorful characters like the pet T-Rex Wexter are all rendered so well because this is clearly a labor of love for the older brother. And it's that love that really makes this comic into something special.
You can buy Axe Cop: Bad Guy Earth #1 at your nearest comic shop and you can also pick up the first volume of the web series while you're at it. If you want to read more from Ethan Nicolle, he'll soon have "Bearmageddon" up on the web or you can pick up copies of his old comic "Chumble Spuzz".
The other book I'm highlighting this week is Usagi Yojimbo by Stan Sakai. Usagi is a character that just about everyone from my age group should recognize, as he appeared in a few episodes of the old and new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and even had a figure or two in the TMNT toy line. He's also starred in his own series for over two decades now. In fact, when I think of creator owned comic books characters, Usagi is definitely the first character that comes to mind for me.This issue we find Usagi coming across the path of the Lord of the Owls, a mysterious figure who may or may not be the grim reaper. Every line of his is about how his opponent shall live or die and when he's just a down right creepy character. When Usagi mistakenly thinks he's murder some priests, he attacks and there's actually a moment where you think Usagi is about to meet his end. Sakai really does a great job with the suspense here and I really felt myself feeling anxious when it looked like this was the end for our long eared samurai hero.
While Sakai's writing is great, it is immensely over shadowed by his art. The man is a master cartoonist and every page is full of eye candy. His facial expression tell you exactly what his characters are feeling at that moment. One of my favorite things that Sakai does is how he expresses death in this book, which is to show a rough looking though bubble with a skull in it. It's a rather creative way to show that someone has died and it's one of the various ways that help Sakai stand out in a medium where so many artist just blend into the crowd.
You can pick up Usagi Yojimbo at your local comic shop and there's plenty of material to dig into.
And there you have it, two more really good creator owned comics that everyone should be reading. Come back next week for some more indie comics that you should be reading.
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