Quick Reviews #39
Daylight Savings, More Like Chill Time Stealing
First post of the month, and I gotta make enough time for myself. So let’s go on a feeling.
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And yeah, no Boom! this week. Gotta conserve hours.
Mad Cave
Amelia Shadows and the New Head Ghost - Dry humor at a brisk pace and has decent character dynamics? My kind of little time. 8/10
Leo da Vinci: Renaissance Kid - Fun, adventurous, artsy, great character dynamics, settings that feel sublime, and a compelling mystery that encourages rereading. 9/10
Secret STEAM Society: Music - This is alright, even has some character development that makes things more lived in. But that’s not much, it’s mostly lesson exposition. 6.5/10
Penny and the Yeti - Never thought this would touch me the way it did. The feeling of being a kid getting stuck in a family problem, trying to connect with them despite it all, the feeling of not having everything figured out. And above all, the heightened sense of reality where you don’t know who’s the imaginary friend. 9.5/10
Speed Racer Adventures - This was fun, expressive, and oddly nostalgic. Must’ve been the Hanna-Barbera style mixed with real old school anime art. Kept everything in pace like a race should. Even the dialogue and exposition came with expressive visuals didn’t slow that down. 9/10
Where Does the Rainbow End? #3 - Non mi stancherò mai di questo universo. All of the expressions, the environmental storytelling, the scale, and the pace matching the stakes of actions. Especially since the climax of this story coming. 9/10
Cyberarchy #4 - Still as epically scaled as ever. And this time it feels just right that it comes with a sense of bliss. You can feel every reflection on the matters at hand and just get some bittersweet relief. 8.8/10
Circus Maximus #5 - So ends the show as character arcs and dynamics reach their peak. It just requires a bit more intertextual knowledge to get a bigger satisfaction. 8.5/10
Gatchaman #16 - Good feel of downtime and action. Some of the dialogue was good fun banter that give the Science Ninja Team good personalities. The rest of it was kind of cheesy though. 8/10
Theory of K.O. Vol. 2 - Now we’re getting somewhere. Inter-personal conflicts, character motivations and dynamics, and twists that feel right. All with weighty, full-stakes action. 9/10
YAHGZ - Definitely entertaining, eye-catching, and keeps a good pace. Feels like a sketchbook of fun ideas a kid gets into. But the characterizations aren’t as engaging. 7.5/10
Hero Bear and the Kid Vol. 2 - I’m a sucker for black and white artwork, it’s just easier on the eyes. So is the dialogue that sound like they actually come from kids. Very expressive designs and lettering to make them even more memorable. Smooth presentation too…most of the time. Problem is the dialogue can drag on after a while and get kind of redundant with the narrations. 7.5/10
It Killed Everyone But Me: Had to see if I was right. And it is a better read as a whole than as pieces. The atmosphere, the parallel arcs, and the payoffs of little things that work better down the line. Feels like a short film, or a pilot to a TV show with more potential. 8.5/10
Dynamite
Space Ghost Vol. 2 #9 - Can’t help but get attached to dream scenarios. They say a lot about character. Whether it’s survivor’s guilt, what they want in the now or future, and what it says about the ones who caused it. Plus the presentation and surprises feel like they match the stakes and consistency with past issues. Always a plus. 9/10
