Geek Culture Reviews

“Circe! Goddess of Transformation: rejected by her Father Helios for her fascination with mortality. Twisting the knife further into her Sun God Father, she saves Prometheus from eternal torture at the hand of the Furies. And now, though her Mother Hecate shields her on the island of Aeae with Dark Magik, how long can she hide from The Sun God’s glare and thirst for annihilation?” Circe is essentially a story about angry Gods with plenty of issues. If Jeremy Kyle was still relevant he would have a field day picking apart the relationship between Circe and her father the Sun god Helios. Basically it all boils down to Helios renouncing Circe as his daughter due to her choosing to not only save fellow god Prometheus, but also due to her affinity with us mere mortals. So in true “angry gods” fashion he sends the rest of the Greek god family after Circe to show her what she’s missing .Thankfully Circe isn’t on her own as she has Slaine wannabe and Son of Zeus  Herakles on her side. Wha...

Swashbuckling Pirates and nefarious necromancy collide as John A. Short brings the legend of Captain Cinnamon Wylde to the Kickstarter tavern…  ‘Year of our Lord 1727... The golden age of piracy! Captain Cinnamon Wylde is the scourge of the waters around Dead Man's Straits... Raiding slaver vessels and freeing their cargo! Along with her clockwork hand (only losers have hooks) and her homunculus sidekick, Erasmus! But she has a deadly rival in the form of Captain Godiva Dunaway who uses black magic and a crew of zombies to rule the seven seas. Dunaway has plans to take Wylde down using an ancient curse and necromancy! She plans to raise the deadly creature known as the Black Reaper from the waves... a headless horror that cannot be killed because it is already dead.’  As descriptions go, the one for Captain Wilde & The Headless Mariner is a good’en. Promising an old-school action and adventure tale on the high seas with a hint of mysticism, you’ll be forgiven if you read i...

Dave Metcalfe-Carr is back with the third issue of his spine-tingling anthology. With interrogations, little dogs, a fabulous T-Rex, demons, and larger-than-life comic book characters, does Shrieek! 3 go bump in the night?  So we’re three issues into Shrieek! And it seems for this issue at least that the pressure of creating an instant impact within the crowded indie market has been reduced. As such Shrieek!3 feels a little different to its sister issues. Where the debut issues focused on old-fashioned body-shock horror, #3 takes on a more psychological role to wow its readers. Much like my reviews for the previous issues I am going to be quite vague when it comes to talking about each strip. With Shrieek! 3 making its way to those who backed the issue on Kickstarter soon, you can safely read this review without any major story spoilers.  Joining Dave Metcalfe-Carr for this issue are the familiar faces of Ed Doyle, Alan Holloway, John H. Short, Christoff RDGZ, and Dan Pollard ...

“An epic set of Myths: Monsters, Madness, War, Betrayal, Redemption, Isolation and Forgiveness all with a deeply psychological steer” Madness & Monsters is a 132-page anthology graphic novel that’s been created by Laurence Alison. Alongside a very talented team of artists, colourists, and letterers, Alison takes us on an epic journey across six tales full of monsters, madness, forgiveness, war, and redemption. As of writing the graphic novel is currently seeking funding via the crowdfunding website Kickstarter. Currently, the campaign sits at 100 % funding with 16 days remaining - so there’s still plenty of time to secure your copy! While I’m now very selective over what I back on Kickstarter, let’s just say that Madness & Monsters impressed me enough to hit that pledge button to add a physical copy to my bookshelf.  Much like my other anthology reviews, I won’t go into too much depth on each strip as I’m doing so will sour the experience. As such this review will almost a...

Drova: Forsaken Kin, a grim dark pixel ARPG that’s not afraid to see you wander off alone within its unforgiving wasteland… I’m not going to lie, when I first stumbled into the gothic world of Drova: Forsaken Kin I thought I was in for a rough time. From a quick explanation of how to defend yourself, you’re then thrown into the thick of it with zero handholding. Where you go and what you do is completely up to you. All you have to guide you is the fleeting words of your character's companion and your sense of adventure. With no map to guide you, and no waypoints for you to follow, the world of Drova is yours for the taking.  The epic story of Drova takes place within a harsh Celtic/Slavic-gothic land. You’re a stranger within this world as you’ve been pulled into a vast conspiracy that all started when your character witnessed the druids of their village stealing a crystal with magical powers. With the druids dead, you’re then thrown into the world of Drova to reunite the crystal w...

“What’s that coming over the hill, it’s Falcon #2!” The brainchild of Alan Holloway and Ed Doyle is back for its second issue. That’s right, Falcon , the A3 tabloid-style comic anthology has had a successful funding campaign on Kickstarter which means Holloway and Doyle have yet another successful project on their respective chalkboards.   For those who don’t know, Falcon is inspired by comics such as The Eagle where each story takes place over 1/2 pages. Featuring a smorgasbord of digestible stories created by a vast array of writers and artists, the content of Falcon is just as unique as its page format. Normally when it comes to reviewing an anthology I’d dive into each strip and give a brief overview of its plot, art, and writing. Much like my review for Falcon #1 , I’m going to deliberately ignore this format. With Falcon #2 being a collection of single-page spreads this means that any in-depth review will probably end up spoiling the experience - which is something no on...

Alan Holloway and Ed Doyle are back with a glam rock opera-inspired tale of a boy with big dreams… The Story of Johnny Rocket is in part a collaboration with the rock band Cats in Space . Taking inspiration from the song ‘ Johnny Rocket’ from the band's ‘ Day Trip to Narnia ’ album, this comic adaptation is about a young boy whose life takes a very unexpected turn.  Taking place in 1960s America, Johnny Roquet is a young boy with big dreams of heading into space. Teased by his classmates, and supported by his parents, Johnny lives for the day he’s accepted into Space Fleet Academy. When the day finally arrives John ships out for his training and soon graduates with flying colours. Not long after his graduation, John is accepted on to man’s first foray to the Moon. But in true comic book fashion, it’s not quite that simple. As a young boy who once dreamed of space, both The Story of Johnny Rocket and the character resonated a lot with me. While poor grades and life would get in my...

A poignant tale of self discovery in amongst a galaxy unlike our own… When I first started to read Emily & Laurence Alison and David Hitchcock ’s sci-fi tale Out There , I was reminded of Dan Abnett ’s phenomenal sci-fi tale “ The Out ”. Both sci-fi operas feature a strong female lead character who’s taken well and truly out of her comfort zone and thrust into a galaxy that’s packed full of weird and wonderful beings. While “ The Out ” soon took its story down the familiar route of galactic war, Out There takes us on a grand journey that’s full of adventure, mischief, and most importantly heart. The narrative of Out There follows human being Lucy and her grandad, Len. Growing up on Earth life hasn’t been easy for Lucy. Pandemics, global climate change, and government corruption have made Lucy’s world quite a scary place. With a need for control, what’s left of humanity is governed by a group dubbed “the Palindrome” (two architects, a robotics expert, an aerospace engineer, an ...

Stealth Hammer is a self-published all-ages superhero adventure set in a world of high-tech gadgetry and supernatural mythology. Created by writer Ryan Drost with art by Joel Jackson, and Alexandra Scott , with colours by Evan Evens, Laci Julio Santos, and letterer Dave Sharp, Stealth Hammer   aims to be a cross between Stargirl, Mega-Man and Jim Henderson’s Creature Shop. With Stealth Hammer #3 currently funding over on Kickstarter, there’s no finer time to jump on board.  Stealth Hammer tells the story of Jami Taylor an ordinary girl living an ordinary life in a somewhat quiet suburban town. Our adventure begins with Jami taking her boyfriend Karl home to meet her inventor father and her uncle Alexander - also an inventor/scientist. We start to get a slice into the sci-fi element during this home visit as Jam takes us - and Karl - into her basement which also happens to house her father’s experiments. Various equipment and experiments litter this area with everything fr...