Nerd Culture Podcast

Hi All!

Just a reminder about our awesome competition Name that Game.

Thanks to the awesome guys at All Star Comics Melbourne you can win the first 5 Dark Tower hardcovers!

All you need to do to win this awesome prize is name the boardgame that Joel couldn’t remember in our Tabletop games discussion on our latest podcast #51.

For those of you who missed it here is that bit:

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Be the first to correctly name that game and you win! Entries close midnight June 8th (EST)!

You can contact us by email at feedback@nerdculturepodcast.com, or post on our Facebook wall at www.facebook.com/NerdCulturePodcast, or Tweet us at @NerdCultureCast, or leave a Comment on any post on our website www.nerdculturepodcast.com.

Good luck!

For my review this week I am looking at Archer & Armstrong Issue 0 (2013), an ongoing series published by Valiant Comics.

I started my comics reading journey at a very good time as not long afterwards, Valiant came out with the Summer of Valiant Initiative which involved the release of four new ongoing series:

1. Harbinger
2. X-O Manowar
3. Bloodshot
4. Archer & Armstrong

At the moment I am reading Bloodshot and Archer & Armstrong on a monthly basis and I must say that every issue I have read has been excellent. Great story telling and the artwork has been exceptional.

Archer & Armstrong is my favourite of the Valiant titles I have read so far.  The best way I can describe Archer & Armstrong is The Odd Couple + action + saving the world and it = awesome.

Archer is a naive teenager who has lived a very sheltered life in a religious compound.Armstrong is an immortal larrikin who loves a drink and a laugh and has been around since before AD 529. They run into each other not long after Archer comes to realise that his parents are not who they appear to be.

Issue 0 is written by Fred Van Lente with art by Clayton Henry and colours by David Baron.  The plot for this issue is a comic re-telling of the poem the Epic of Gilgamesh. While not a complete origin story the issue explains some of Armstrong’s history.

I really enjoyed this issue of Archer & Armstrong. Being a one-shot of sorts it did not take long for the story to kick off and Armstrong acting as the narrator to the story was hilarious. The artwork in the issue was also of a very high quality. The landscapes were beautifully drawn and the action scenes looked great (ie, I knew what was happening).

If you are interested in reading Archer & Armstrong I recommend going back and starting from issue 1 and reading through to issue 9 then reading issue 0. That being said, this issue was great.

4/5 Lukes

If you do like this issue and are interested in reading more Valiant titles, Issue 1 of the new series Quantum and Woody (The World’s Worst Super Hero Team) starts in July. So that is a good chance to start a new series from the beginning.

I would love to hear your feedback on Archer & Armstrong and any other Valiant titles. Please comment below or you can contact me via Twitter @bennykane1983.

For my next review I will be looking at Blackacre Volume 1: An Errand into the Wilderness published by Image.

Benny

Episode #51 features:

Popcorn Junkie: Star Trek: Into Darkness

Round Table: Tabletop Games

And an awesome Competition! You can win the first 5 Dark Tower HCs, thanks to All Star Comics Melbourne!

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Shopping List

Star Trek blu-ray

Star Trek – Original Films blu-ray box set

Talisman

Magic: The Gathering

Dungeons & Dragons – starter set

Welcome to the thirty-ninth instalment of Who Review, my ongoing quest to review all available episodes of TV’s longest running SF series, Doctor Who. This week, the Doctor celebrates his 10th anniversary by teaming up with his past selves in The Three Doctors.

EPISODES

The Three Doctors

BROADCAST DATES

30 December1972 – 20 January1973 (4 episodes)

THE DOCTOR

Jon Pertwee

Patrick Troughton

William Hartnell

THE COMPANIONS

Jo Grant

(more…)

Comic Review by a Comics Newbie

For my review this week I am looking at Green Arrow Year One. With the new show Arrow starting a few months ago (which I must admit I have not watched yet) there seems to be a bit of buzz for Green Arrow so I thought I would get in on it.

I came across Green Arrow Year One a few weeks ago when the great folk at All Star Comics posted that the trade was back in print so I jumped on the opportunity and bought one for myself. I must also admit that I went into reading this with a bit of trepidation after hearing on the Nerd Culture Podcast that the Green Arrow’s venture into the New 52 did not go down to well. Thankfully this series was written a few years before the New 52 (phew).

Green Arrow Year One is a limited series containing 6 issues written by Andy Diggle and Jock. You may remember these two names from my previous review of Snapshot. Green Arrow Year One is the story of how Oliver Queen goes from rich play boy with no care in the world to Green Arrow. The stories main location is a seemingly desolate island where Oliver Queen must recuperate after being left for dead in the ocean.

Andy Diggle did a great job with the story. I am not always a quick comic reader in that I usually will take a break in between issues, but this time I got through the six issues in a non-stop session lasting  just over an hour. The story was very well written and each issue kept building the story and the character of Oliver Queen. If I had been sitting on a chair while reading I would have been sitting on the edge of that chair.

The artwork of Jock was of a very high quality. A highlight in the artwork was when Green Arrow was battling with an aeroplane. Another highlight was a panel showing artistically how opium was affecting Green Arrow during his recovery. The opium related artwork reminded me of the novel Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts. If you ever get the chance I highly recommend you give it a read.

I give Green Arrow Year One 5/5 Lukes. This has been one of the most enjoyable comics I have read and definitely the most enjoyable title that I have reviewed so far.

As this was my first Green Arrow read I would love to hear any suggestions for other Green Arrow stories I should sink my teeth into, as well as any feedback you may have. Please comment below or you can contact me via Twitter @bennykane1983.

For my next review I will be looking at Archer & Armstrong Issue 0 which I am looking forward to, as I have been enjoying the Archer & Armstrong series.

Benny