Swords, sorcery, mystical creatures, and elementals fill the world of Michael Moorcock’s epic fantasy world.  Though this is my first time venturing to Melinbone and her Emperor, as someone who grew up on Dungeons & Dragons in the '80s, I feel right at home.  Magic swords, epic quests, and gods dallying in the lives of poor confused mortals . . . such grand fun!

And then, there were four.

The second issue certainly cashes in on the promise of the first, and though there are some issues, I think this will be a series I’m going to enjoy.

There are a lot of storytellers who like to cloak and hide their lessons in fantastical tales of might and magic, or in the actions of anthropomorphized animals who allow them to reduce complex characters to acceptable stereotypes, because they’re not human.  Jennifer Crute is NOT one of those storytellers.

Inheritance can always cause strife in a family, siblings vying for position and influence over each other with parents or relatives, striving to attain some legacy from them, either monetary or property.  How much harder must it be if the property involved had its own goals?

I love David Petersen’s Mouse Guard series, and some of my favorite stories are the ones that have been released as part of the Archaia Free Comic Book Day anthologies, which have always disappeared quickly from the shelves.  These stories have been collected in a lovely edition, with a couple of new ones added to the mix.

So, Jesus had a pretty rough go of it. Begat by Mary and the Holy Spirit, he suffered and died for the people who killed him, allowing people into the kingdom of Heaven.  And, what do we reward this sacrifice with?  The world is . . . pretty awful in certain places, and sometimes in the very churches built in his name.  So, what if Jesus . . . got fed up?  That’s the idea behind Creator’s Edge’s release, Prince of Pieces. Jesus comes back with a vengeance.

The Storyteller series was one of my favorite Jim Henson creations, doing what he did best: telling amazing stories in interesting ways.  Blending live action with creatures from the shop, the Storyteller featured John Hurt’s incredible presence weaving tales of the old world, with very little in the way of censoring the unfortunate or scary events, but leaving the tales complete with the bits usually removed for children.

Corporatica presents us with a world in a fever dream.  Seen through the perceptions of a man who might be crazy, who might be the only sane person left, we are treated to a cacophony of sight and text that beguiles with its confusion, drawing us in, because we simply aren’t given much to go on, but what is there . . .

Before my editor handed me this book to review, I had never heard of Harvey Kurtzman. I didn’t know that he was the man who created MAD Magazine, who had built the first graphic novel, and had subverted so much of this country’s youth for many, many years.

Minsc is everything.

The third issue of Legends of Baldur’s Gate is exactly the fun, smashing time I was looking for after Issue #2 got its exposition out of the way.  Though there’s just as much gleaned in these pages as in that issue, it all happens on the fly during an episode of Little Rascals Go to Downton Abbey.