Free Comic Book Day is always a success and this year was no exception. In fact by the time I stopped by a local shop, many comics were gone. I have a wonderful job to thank for the lack of time. Still I managed to grab a few. Read on to see what I found.
First up I found myself reading Mega Man: Origin Of A Hero. Now there is a character every gamer should recognize! Here we get part one of Mega Man’s origin and it’s not too shabby. The artwork is solid and still cartoonish. It’s a good fit for Mega Man and few others, but nags at me for some strange reason. The writing and dialogue while well written, did not captivate me and I found myself easily distracted while reading. Then again that could be a side effect of all the sugar in my system today.
Next we have Sonic The Hedgehog: Two Steps Back. Here Sonic and Sally must save the world from Eggman once again. The artwork here is edgy and enjoyable. The writing kept me entertained, but the story left a little to be wanted. Maybe I beat too many Sonic games as a kid and the stories seem so much the same. Still worth a read if you managed to pick it up.
Laugh if you will but next I did read Top Shelf Kids Club. Naturally this is for the younger audience. The comic contains six short stories with artwork ranging from very basic and mundane to very detailed. The first two stories are told through pictures and the others told with dialogue and pictures. For the younger ones this is a good start into the comics realm and the the writing is fair.
Next is the DC Nation Super Sampler that contains three short stories. We get a side story from Green Lantern: The Animated Series. The story feels like filler and the artwork is fair going from vague to detailed. Then a few pages of Young Justice with Green Arrow and Artemis trying to stop a robbery and then fades to another crime scene being interrupted by Batman and Robin. That’s all there is to that bit. The artwork does look good. Clean and detailed. Last we get Superman Family Adventures. A short with Superman saving the day, dealing with Perry White (As Clark Kent) at the Daily Planet, and then dashing off again to save the day! The artwork is very cheesy with little to basic details. The writing is again basic and quick, but well written.
Dark Horse brings us Buffy The Vampire Slayer….in Space….with Aliens. Yes, remember them crazy things and the flamethrowers we needed. It’s short as a story goes and leaves you hanging. The artwork and writing are enjoyable though. Also we have The Guild with artwork that reminds me of the 90s. Otherwise, it failed to grab my attention at this late hour.
Vertigo has giving us The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. The artwork is very well done, detailed where needed and vague where appropriate. The story is more complex and appears to be darker. Looks to be very intriguing. Still a cliffhanger like most of the free comics, but this one was a bit longer.
I missed out on a few others that were long gone before I reached the Comic Book Shop. Still the trend of a partial story seems prevalent with the free offerings this year. I must say I miss the free comics in the days of yesterday. Maybe I was too young to see anything differently, but it would seem they were more enjoyable. Did you get your free Comic Books year? What did you think?