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Issue: Mack Turner: Slayer of the Dead #2
Writer & Creator: Kevin Powers
Pencils & Inks: Israel Gonzalez
Colors: Nephtali Leal, Israel Gonzalez, Danny Morales
Letters: Creative Webhead
Publisher: Timeless Journey Comics
Price: $3.99
Pages: 24

“Mack Turner is a cop in a small suburban town whose life seems to be crumbling in front of him. He’s already been kicked off the City’s police force, and now he’s being suspended for tasing an old woman. Mack was going to be featured on a police reality show but lost the opportunity and now his shallow girlfriend is ready to leave him. One night, Mack encounters a group of zombies and narrowly escapes. Back at the station, no one believes him and he’s forced to turn in his badge. But when the zombies make their way towards the town, Mack Turner may be the only hope! But there’s more to these “zombies” than meets the eye, and the big question is, “where did they come from?”

Story: 3 out of 5
The storyline is still going strong from issue #1. No need to have to back track as a nice recap page is given at the beginning. While the story is meant to have some humor to it, I found at some points it was a little over the top. I didn’t buy that the main character was suspended then told he was the best cop around. But aside from that I love the action and the idea. It’s a fun, almost 90’s style take on the zombie scene. The dialogue shines brightest when the use of the word “Zombah” comes in. That had me laughing pretty good!

Dying Breath: 3 out of 5
Like I said before, this is fun, and much needed in a genre that can be over used on a scary style zombie story. While it’s pretty on the eyes, some of the jokes seem to be a bit much, but a solid story can still be found. If you love that 90’s style of humor and action, this one is worth reading and I look forward to more! I think there is something here but it’s not 100% found just yet.

Decapitated Dan
decapitateddan@comicattack.net

Issue: The Argonauts #2
Writer: Keith Dallas
Artist: Robert Saunders
Colors: John Towry
Publisher: Timeless Journey Comics

“In the 27th century the D’Ent Empire rules the galaxy with an overwhelmingly powerful  military force. Markis Shard- the super-powered leader of the revolt against the D’Ent- executes a last ditch plan as the D’Ent assault his sole remaining stronghold: he travels back in time to the 21st century to change history. If he stops the D’Ent invasion of Earth, he will stop the D’Ent from ever conquering the galaxy. Unexpectedly though, Shard’s device causes others to travel through time as well: two D’Ent Imperial officers from the 27th century, along with a young sorceress, her companion and an angry mountain Giant from 12th century Norway. They all arrive in Argon City, a mid-Atlantic American port city patrolled by a crime fighter code named D.A.R.T. After a melee- which causes the Giant’s death- Shard abducts Dart in order to warn him about the malevolent evil heading toward Earth…”

Artwork: 3.5 out of 5

Saunders has upped his game here since issue #1, cleaning up some of the rough edges and putting forth a nice looking sci-fi superhero book! I really dig his interpretation of the D’Ent: the alien avian race who conquered the galaxy in Shard’s timeline. These alien creatures remind me of the Skeksis from The Dark Crystal movie, which is a reference you probably won’t get if you were born after 1990 (and if that’s the case you should check it out!).

A scene I really liked artistically was when Shard described his time leading the insurrection against the D’Ent to D.A.R.T.; via three consecutive panels we see how his brothers in arms changed and developed over the years of war. Each panel marked the passage of time, and it was cool to see Shard’s resistance army slowly fade as characters died, or see those who underwent some physical changes: like the guy who by panel 3 had totally become a robot! I still think the inking and shading is too heavy at times, taking away from the detail, and the background characters can look a little funky, but overall, Saunders should be proud of this issue.

Story: 3.8 out of 5

Keith Dallas does a nice job with the pacing and flow of this issue; we go back and forth between Shard delivering the necessary exposition to D.A.R.T. about the urgency of stopping the impending invasion of the D’Ent, and the two D’Ent super soldiers and the pair of 12th century Norway warriors who are trying to figure out what the heck is going on, and how they were teleported out of their respective time lines. Shard is the main character of this issue as we learn his back story and how he came to oppose the avian D’Ent; He was once one of their super soldiers, but turned on the evil alien race when they eliminated an entire world of peaceful beings in order to mine the land for resources.

My favorite moment was when the cops arrive on the scene of the defeated troll from issue #1, and they begin to issue warnings to the four strange, otherworldly beings surrounding the body (these four of course being the D’Ent soldiers and Davin and Karina, the Norway folk). Eventually the cops open fire, and while one of the D’Ent soldiers tells his comrade to never mind the “harmless” lead attack, the other soldier doesn’t care and just cuts loose on the officers. After this moment the beautiful, blonde, and otherwise peaceful looking Karina lets on that she wants the power she just witnessed, leading us to believe that she may not be as good-natured as she appears…

A humorous moment worth mentioning was when Davin, Karina and the two D’Ent super soldiers realize they’re permanently stuck in the timeline of D.A.R.T. Their reactions to this news are mixed, but Karina loves the idea, claiming that she’s happy to be away from those “nattering Christians.” Given that she’s from the 12th century, the comment feels appropriate.

Dying Breath: 3.9 out of 5

Overall I’m really liking this series. It has a great indie superhero vibe going on, and the story is fun and easy to follow. This issue ends with Shard trying to talk some sense into D.A.R.T. about how important it is to prepare for the oncoming D’Ent invasion, but HO!! The D’Ent have arrived!

Be sure to join us for issue #3!

If you would like to know more about Mack Turner: Slayer of the Dead #2 or The Argonauts #2, please go to www.tjcomics.com.

If you missed our Dandy Review of the first installments for these two titles, CLICK HERE! And visit this link to read more Dandy Reviews!

Andy Liegl
andy@comicattack.net