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Disclaimer: Anything that can be read from this point onward is based on MY PERSONAL OPINION which may be influenced by a multitude of forces (good and bad) beyond my (or anybody�s) control. These are neither judgments, nor a legitimate basis on what to buy or not, and what to think, say, or believe. I made this article merely to share my opinion and to show my support for independent published works. In short: I�m no authority, so don�t take my word for it! If I give a bad review, or didn�t get a point you were trying to make, please don�t kill me. I pray that you all feedback in a peaceful manner.
All titles are owned by their respective...owners... riiight. I�m just living up my worth in this world.
P.S. Spoilers are all around and if anything here borders on nitpicking...sorry!
Now that everything�s clear, here�s the format for a neat and systematic (and sooo not me) review:
| Title |
| Creator(s) and/or artists | (I don�t have to explain this, do I?) |
| Cover price | (The price written on the cover... if any) |
| Copyright and contact information | (If any) |
| Packaging/production quality | (If each copy produced is given enough TLC...^_^ and my frustrations about the clear plastic cover and cellophane tape. This isn�t much of a factor to an indie�s image because we should consider that these are made more often than not without sufficient financial support.) |
| Synopsis | (What I have picked up on the story so far depending solely on the issue that I hold. Please remember that I have no prior knowledge of the plots and do not know most of the creators personally, and to the others I�m not close friends enough with for them to disclose any information about their comics. So there.) |
| Art and layout | (What I think of the art style, rendering, and layout or paneling) |
| Captivating-ness | (Did this issue leave me hanging and craving for more, or not?) |
| Special features | (Pin-ups, giveaways, etc...if any.) |
| Overall impression | (My practically useless verdict. err...why am I doing this article again??
...-_-;) |
All right, all right! *ducks random flying objects* No more delays! Here they are in order of how I picked them at random (this is gonna be long...):
| Consortium |
| Creator(s) and/or artists | The Saints story and art: Jeremiah de Vera
Whateverfaerietail story and art: Gem Mendoza |
| Cover price | PhP 25 |
| Copyright and contact information | SWOON Studios
8th Bernadette Gracepark West Caloocan City 1400
3301413
(0920)2474864
Nothing in this comic book may be reproduced in part or in whole without the written permission of the publishers |
| Packaging/production quality | Nice paper, nice plastic... with easy resealable scotch tape seal! (I�m not mocking, this *is* a good thing!) |
| Synopsis |
Whateverfaerietail
Reality is divided into two: the world as we know it, and �Kabila� (or the �other side�). Somehow, beings from the �Kabila� cross over to this world like D, a winged female taken in by Ayen in his (??) Malate apartment. Somewhere else in Manila, there�s Ezra, Circa, and Khaylib: students who, in their free time, appear as �guardian protector� characters eliminating destructive beings from the other side with their own supernatural powers. There is another character in Caloocan named G (I think) who seems to have suppressed (or maybe locked) powers itching to get out...which eventually does.
A second part of Whateverfaerietail (after reads and rereads and rereads and more rereads) is a chapter which I think is a flashback. Hmmmm.... It illustrates the �true� forms of Ezra, Khaylib, G, D, and Ayen (oh, taga-Kabila din pala s�ya!), plus some more characters under Ayen�s command (at malakas s�ya! ...pero di ko pa rin sigurado kung babae o lalaki s�ya). Well, if it *is* a flashback, this explains how Ayen got D, and confirms that G and D are truly linked in some way.
The Saints
Basically there�s this little girl (Stina Abaddon...pretty psycho image, if you ask me) in the Hall of Chaos who has a doll (Black Pearl), a woman who wants to see the �other you� of the girl... and she does. �Elsewhere...�, there is a guy at a computer who suddenly senses the presence of a �Je�taime� *insert dramatic horror music here* to be continued... |
| Art and layout | I haven�t much complaint about the art. Whateverfaerietail is sketchy and I *like* sketchy. The Saints, on the other hand, is much cleaner...and you really can�t say no to clean line art, right? I�m just wondering about two things: (1) why are some pages printed in dotty graphic tones while others are in a smoother, painted rendering? And (2) how come the last 2 pages of The Saints were done by Gem Mendoza? I�ve no doubts about this because it was an absolute turnaround in drawing style. ...just wondering... |
| Captivating-ness | I want explanations!! I want flashbacks! I want...I want... aaargh...There�s a lot of things that left me, after reading, with a blank stare thinking �huh?! What just happened there?� and then I reread it again and again and again and again... but there are no answers here. Not in this issue, there ain�t! Better get the next one and clear my mind (or possibly boggle it even more...nyaa!!) |
| Special features | back-to-back pin-ups of both titles; magazine spoof back cover |
| Overall impression |
Whateverfaerietail is... well... a pretty difficult read for me because of the characters that just do their thing with little or no clue/explanation on who and what they are. I�m not looking for the Japanese Sentai-type of complete-explanation-of-any-new-weapon/attack-with-matching-underlying-scientific-theory, but the story could do with a bit more revelations. In a sense, it gave me a lot of stimuli but almost nothing to process into a general idea of the plot.
The Saints is very short compared to the other story, and isn�t any more revealing. Ahmmmm....I really can�t say much about it because there isn�t really much to say. eheheh... |
| Nardong Tae: Umutot Ka Hanggang Gusto Mo (issue2) |
| Creator(s) and/or artists | Luis Cordero (acually, his name wasn't written in the comic, I had to look for it in CCish14) |
| Cover price | PhP 50 (actually this isn�t on the cover... it was on a slip of paper that also says �Winner: Best Indie Comic, the 2nd Philippine Comicbook, Gaming and Anime Convention 2003�) |
| Copyright and contact Information |
Manufactured and distributed by AbangGuard Productions, Inc. (nothing more, nothing less) |
| Packaging/production quality |
Okay plastic, the tape was easy to remove and reseal! Thank goodness... and the paper doesn�t smell. ^_^ |
| Synopsis | Unfortunately enough for me, I got Issue2 due to stock shortage. But I think all that I�ve missed out on the story is what happened in Nardo�s day 1 of being �Public enemy #1�. As for the reason why he is �Public enemy #1�...I think I can imagine why. In this issue, anyway, Nardong Tae *almost* gets away from his pursuers the ambitious Major and��Manila�s Finest��the police. Nardo is defeated by the secret weapon: the Good Morning Towel that shields the police force from the stink. BUT he is resurrected by certain natural phenomena (sufficiently explained in the comic, thank you very much). Somewhere in the universe, one alien Sergeant has lost its tae and was forced to search for it because of its importance in the self-sustaining system of the Shipshit (as explained by an attached diagram). So this alien (shit alien pala)went off in a single occupant shipshit to search for his tae... which is Nardong Tae!! |
| Art and layout | The layout is more like storyboards than the typical paneling of comics (complete with labels and directing arrows) with pages divided into no more than three panels. The art perfectly depicts a squishy, stinky, disgusting feel (that I had to smell the paper first). Very effective! |
| Captivating-ness | Since I haven�t died of laughter yet, I�d definitely take on the previous and subsequent issues! |
| Special features | Issue 3 teaser back cover |
| Overall impression | ABSOLUTELY HILARIOUS!! Thankfully I don�t have a weak stomach that I can actually enjoy these things! Oh wait...my lunch is ready. |
| D-koi Junkie |
| Creator(s) and/or artists | According to the issue, �Story & Art: I. M. Nut� (don�t ask) |
| Cover price | PhP 20 (also $85.95 US ^_^) |
| Copyright and contact information | D-koi Junkie 2002. Photocopied/published by Point Zero. A member of IPAP. All rights preserved. The story, characters and incidents in this comic book are entirely fictional. Any similarity with anything in this dimension is none of your business. Printed in UPSC, Diliman, Q.C., Philippines.
[email protected] |
| Packaging/production quality |
I�d better stop commenting on the paper now... and the plastic...and the tape... nyaaa I was just frustrated at the other too-thin plastic that I had to nearly rip just to open the darned thing... fine, I�ll take out this part already... D-koi�s packaging ain�t bad, btw. |
| Synopsis | So says the back cover, �Abby Tifio is a 14 yr. old high school student, who goes gaga over super hero stuff. One day, she got herself involved in saving a stray dog from becoming into a snack... Mayhem starts thereon... Parang ganun...�
Since that incident, Abby is under the impression that she has superpowers and begins her life as a �super hero� foiling criminals and saving the helpless and all that (with a badly-made disguise). Little did she know that her �powers� were actually of this guy Seith who just happened to chance upon helping the unknowing Abby. Bad luck for him, he always bumps into Abby who seems to have a magnet for trouble. |
| Art and layout | D-koi Junkie is in comic strips! as the �Intro...Chuchu...� part said, it came out as a daily strip in Manila Times in 2001 then on the Internet. The art is in manga style, and, if you noticed the art�s similarity to another indie comic (especially the hair treatments), you�d realize who this I. M. Nut is (who occasionally does cameos to explain things and recap).
The one thing I had a problem with is that Seith and Abby�s hairdo�s look so much the same that I sometimes can�t tell who is who if it weren�t for Abby�s braid. Ah, well. |
| Captivating-ness | What�s this trouble going on in Romblon that Seith has to spy on? Why does Abby have to have her vacation in Romblon of all places? And what is Abby the �Supah Lifeguard� up to now??? I would definitely love to know the answer to these, especially the last one... eheheheh |
| Special features | none |
| Overall impression | D-koi Junkie is really funny because Abby finds herself in real trouble but actually gets away with it and she truthfully thinks that she did it by herself. And seeing Seith frustrated is fun!
I can actually imagine where the story is leading to. I wouldn�t call the plot �formulaic�, but I can see some references here and there. And even though the school uniforms are sailor-type, this is definitely Philippines because of the long skirt! nyahahaha!! |
| Sapak sa Buwan |
| Creator(s) and/or artists | Peter Cancho and Mikey Jimenez |
| Cover price | PhP 40 |
| Copyright and contact information |
err...uh...*searches comic* none indicated... |
| Synopsis | As the lady in the store (I really should�ve gotten her name) said, Sapak sa Buwan is about Ismael Adonis (Age: 20) who wants to fight (and defeat) Manny Pacquiao...and he�s absolutely determined to do it! He even stole a colored TV just to watch his �opponent�. He trains in his shanty with buckets of weights and a sandbag of sand and gravel. When he chanced upon a Buddhist Kung-fu TV program, he tried their strengthening exercises (hard as they may be).
Together with his friend, Mael plans on going to Manny Pacquiao�s parade the next Thursday to fight, although they get into a fight that day themselves (abaa, may laban naman pala talaga itong si Mael). |
| Art and layout | If you want to see rough, THIS is rough. Rough sketch, that is. Rendered in black washes of either watercolor or ink and everything done by hand, I doubt if the creators even made preliminary sketches for this comic. The flow is okay, though. And the paneling tells the story sufficiently. |
| Captivating-ness | It *is* interesting. yep. that�s it. |
| Special features | none (the 2nd issue has a free sticker, tho) |
| Overall impression | Reading Sapak sa Buwan feels like looking at a friend�s study sketchbook. It could do with a little definition on outlines and better layout with the speech balloons because if the lines aren�t dark enough they�re not picked up by the photocopier that well. But storywise, it looks promising (shoot, I can�t think of anything else to put here...sorry!). |
| Carpool |
| Creator(s) and/or artists | Syeri Baet |
| Cover price | PhP 25 |
| Copyright and contact information |
No specific copyright babble...there�s Syeri�s website, tho:
http://www.syeri.tk |
| Synopsis | Carpool is a collection of comic strips about a clique of four guys, a girl, and a car based on the real-life experiences of the creator and her friends (and their car). |
| Art and layout | Simple and effective. Isn�t that what comic strips should be? It could do with a little more detail, though, especially in the solo and group shots (like the cover). But as it is, it�s already pretty good. Syeri has truly established her style that�s just good enough to illustrate whatever expression is needed in each strip. |
| Captivating-ness | Since Carpool isn�t serialized, you don�t really have to be hooked to a plot. But what grabbed my attention was the concept of a group of friends and a car...reminds me so much of my own (friends, not car.). |
| Special features | Carpool profiles (some info on our main characters); Armor Troopers and Ibangis ads here and there (to be reviewed in Batch 2); Back cover illustration by Jon Zamar (huh? is this special??? yikes!! *ducks a rock from Jon*) |
| Overall impression | Carpool is a nice concept put to paper, especially if you have a �kwelang barkada� like Syeri has.
Hmm... gives me an idea... |
want some more???
really?!?!?
fine...
Here's Batch 2 (coming soon)
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