Comic Reveiws: Anomaly

I can just imagine what it must have been like to pick up a copy of The Fantastic Four #1 off the stands or The Watchmen or The Dark Knight Returns.  To sit there and read them and just know that the game has changed.  That from that moment on the art form of comics had just taken a giant leap forward and could never go back.  That is the feeling I had reading Anomaly, the original graphic novel written by Skip Brittenham and Brian Haberlin with art by Brian Haberlin and Geirrod Van Dyke.

If Avatar and The Lord of the Rings had a love child it would be named Anomaly.  The year is 2717.  Having stripped the Earth of it’s resources a handful of power companies under the banner of The Conglomerate have banded together to exploit distant planets.  The Conglomerate controls a powerful army lead by Enforcers and the best of them is Jon, at least he was the best until an accident on a planet leaves many of his men dead.  Years later he is given the opportunity to redeem himself by accompanying a group determined to try to peacefully contact another planet.  A betrayal by the Conglomerate leaves this group of humans stranded on a planet controlled by dangerous mutants and it is up to Jon to figure out how to gather the free “people” of the planet together to battle the mutants.

If the story seems a little bit basic and “been there read that” it is.  The idea of the outsider coming in and leading the natives has been in used in so many books and movies by now (the latest being Avatar) that it is almost a cliché and that’s not a bad thing.  If the formula works why change it?  The story is there only to serve as the hooks to hang all of this beautiful artwork on and after 7 or 8 pages I stopped actually reading the story and just experienced it.  It was like watching a big screen epic play out in front of me and I just had to hang on for the ride.

When you buy the book you get a free UAR (Ultimate Augmented Reality) app to download.  Just point it at certain pages and the creatures pop off the pages and perform some basic animation.  Since we are on an alien world the UAR segments didn’t feel out of place but instead kind of functioned as a moving encyclopedic guide to the strange creatures on the planet.  Click on THIS LINK for a demo to get a taste of what I’m talking about.  If you don’t have the ability to use the app don’t worry as this will not affect your enjoyment one bit.

While the book might set you back $75.00 every bit of this 12 x 16.5”, 6 pound, 370 page book is worth the price you pay.  And even though it is the longest original graphic novel ever published when it ends it STILL feels like it ended too soon.  This is easily the best graphic novel of the year hands down, period, end of sentence.  If you love comics you owe it to yourself to make sure this is at the top of your Christmas list.  

Interview: Ted Naifeh

After way too many delays (all Adam’s fault) the Dollar Bin is proud to bring to you our interview with Ted Naifeh, creator of Courtney Crumrin, as well as other great books.

Runtime 1 hours 19 minutes 54 seconds

Interview: Ted Naifeh

Discussion: Thor Movie Review

The Thor movie has been in theaters for a few weeks now and a few Dollar Bin contributors have made the time to bring you the most accurate review of the top office hit to date.  Join Adam, Joel, Shawn, and Ted as they discuss the this Marvel movie adaptation.

Runtime 47 minutes 47 seconds

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Discussion: Thor Movie Review

Interview: Bob McLeod

About a year ago, that’s right I said a year ago, Joel and Adam weaseled some time out of Bob McLeod (The New Mutants, Spider-man, Star Wars, Conan the Barbarian, Superman) for an interview.  With apologies to Mr. McLeod here is the result of that well overdue posting.

Runtime 1 hour 05 minutes 40 seconds

Interview: Bob McLeod

Interview: Mike Carey Part 2

Thanks to the mad contact skills of Joel, he and Adam got to chat for a few hours with writer Mike Carey.  In this, Part 2, we will discuss what he puts into being a writer, the Minx line (Confessions of a Blabbermouth, Re-Gifters), X-men, and his novel writing on Felix Castor.

Runtime 44 minutes 39 seconds

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Interview: Mike Carey Part 2

Interview: Mike Carey Part 1

Thanks to the mad contact skills of Joel, he and Adam got to chat for a few hours with writer Mike Carey.  In this, Part 1, we will discuss his earliest memories of comics, Lucifer, Crossing Midnight, and Unwritten.

Runtime 48 minutes 16 seconds

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Interview: Mike Carey Part 1

Interview: Paul Chadwick

Back in August Joel and Adam minus the Ted did a interview with creator of Concrete, Paul Chadwick.  Paul discusses the origin and his work on Concrete as well as what’s to come.  He also discusses some of his other work and general comic industry happenings.

Runtime: 32 minutes 53 seconds

Interview: Paul Chadwick

Interview: Marv Wolfman

Like many interviews before it this Dollar Bin great has been locked in the queue and bursting to come out.  That’s right, Marv Wolfman takes time out of his very busy schedule to talk comics with Brian and Joel. With a combination like that you know some questions got answered.

Runtime: 1 hour 01 minutes 21 seconds

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Interview: Marv Wolfman

Interview: Neal Adams Part 2

Just before the dawn of Batman Odyssey the Dollar Bin gang (plus a silent mystery guest) sat down with the “Living Legend” Neal Adams to catch a glimpse into the life of the man himself as well as a sneak peak of his upcoming series.  Now that the series is a few issues in we feel it may be safe to spill the beans.  This episode takes place halfway through the interview.  To know what you missed listen to the first half, duh.

Runtime: 53 minutes 13 seconds

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Interview: Neal Adams Part 2

Interview: Neal Adams Part 1

Have you not been offended by the Dollar Bin in the past?  Now’s your chance.  Just before the dawn of Batman Odyssey the Dollar Bin gang (plus a silent mystery guest) sat down with the “Living Legend” Neal Adams to catch a glimpse into the life of the man himself as well as a sneak peak of his upcoming series.  Now that the series is a few issues in we feel it may be safe to spill the beans.

Runtime: 1 hour 06 minute 38 seconds

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Interview: Neal Adams Part 1

Interview: Tom DeFalco and Ron Frenz Part 2

A few months back Adam, Joel, and Tee of the Dollar Bin got together for their first two guest skypephonerview.  Who were the lucky test subjects?  Why none other that former Editor in Chief of Marvel comics, Tom DeFalco and his comics life partner and artist extraordinaire, Ron Frenz.  Listen as they discuss dealing with the Direct Market, Spider-Girl, Thor, Thunderstrike, and how much Joel sucks.

Runtime: 1 hour 18 minute 05 seconds

The Dollar Bin audio player requires javascript to work. Please enable javascript or use the download link below to listen to our show.

Interview: Tom DeFalco and Ron Frenz Part 2

Interview: Tom DeFalco and Ron Frenz Part 1

A few months back Adam, Joel, and Tee of the Dollar Bin got together for their first two guest skypephonerview.  Who were the lucky test subjects?  Why none other that former Editor in Chief of Marvel comics, Tom DeFalco and his comics life partner and artist extraordinaire, Ron Frenz.  Listen as they discuss their work with Spider-Girl, Marvel Team-Up, and a plethora of other greatnesses.

Runtime: 1 hour 18 minute 47 seconds

Interview: Tom DeFalco and Ron Frenz Part 1

Interview: Darick Robertson

A few months ago Dollar Bin’s own Adam, Joel, and Tee “sat down” with Darick Robertson, artist on many works including Space Beaver, New Warriors, Transmetropolitan, and The Boys. Yes, the main course of the discussion is Trans-met, but the appetizer and the dessert are what make this podcast interview a complete meal.

Runtime: 1 hour 10 minute 56 seconds

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Interview: Darick Robertson

Interview: Troy Hickman

Joel and Adam of the Dollar Bin discuss with Troy Hickman his works Common Grounds and the Pilot Season 2 winner Twilight Guardian in this first ever Dollar Bin Skype/phone/studio hybrid (meaning it was recorded about 5 months ago).  Troy also tells us about his early years with comics as well as working with Pilot Season from Top Cow.  Will the real Troy Hickman please stand up?

Runtime: 1 hour 0 minutes 52 seconds

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Interview: Troy Hickman