mysteriousmre's Reviews (1.22k)

A phenomenal conclusion to a series about anger, generational trauma, and recovering from abuse and rejection. I can't recommend this series enough.

Another good volume, but one that I feel wrapped up all the main plot points a little too quickly. I feel like we could have had another whole volume dealing with the ghostbusters knock-off and we especially needed another moment with Egon’s friend. I needed another scene or two showing why he was so willing to release death after stubbornly refusing to give up his new life.

I’ve really only dipped my toe in a little bit when it comes to Transformers stories and lore, but I found this to be an interesting take on the origin of Megatron and the Decepticons. This volume collects the stories in an interesting way, displaying them in chronological order instead of in order of publication like IDW’s Ninja Turtles series. The stories themselves were good, and I appreciated the character focused issues so I could get to know these characters better, but I’m mixed on the art. One of my criticism’s of the original Transformers designs is that they can all look a bit same-y when they’re all blocky and unexpressive. Add in some hyper detailed with futuristic backgrounds and it becomes difficult to tell what’s going on and who/what I should focus on in a given panel. I don’t think this series has me hooked per say, but I’m willing to give it another volume.

I surprisingly liked this volume better than the first, if only because see a lot of drama in Derek's personal life in the last half. The first part of this book is a filler arc to give us a break from the main story. The dialogue is sloppily written and makes no sense given what was going on in JLD at the time, but we get to see Jimmy Olsen as a werewolf and Superman as a wraith so that's cool I guess?

What really boosted my opinion of this book was the last story which quickly attempts to wrap up the main plot of the series: the death of Derek's mom and the impact his hijinks as Sideways have affected his relationships with his family and best friend. Many people have pointed out online that Sideways was supposed to be DCs new stand-in for Spider-Man, and if you've ever read a Spider-Man story then you know the focus of those stories isnt the dynamic between hero and villain (like in Batman for instance). Its about the hero's personal life and their relationships. So even though the villain is very poor, Derek's personal life makes riveting drama. The heart to heart between Derek and Ernestine had some real chemistry to and the fallout with Derek's father felt really raw and emotional. Their attempt to repair their relationship and build a new one as father and son for my money was easily the best written part of the series and I'm sad we wont see it go any further.

After the abysmal first volume I was expecting to hate Sideways Vol. 2. Now I feel disappointed by its cancellation. It seems this book finally found its footing and had the rug pulled right out from under it. Hopefully this isnt the last we see of Derek and his extended cast. Theres a fun teen drama waiting to be told with these characters and I hope to see it one day.

The plot of battling the undead King Arthur takes a surprise twist with the inclusion of some new key characters. The plot is fun, the action is great, and The snarky dialogue is just as sharp and clever as the last volume. Couple all of that with some great art by Dan Mora and you have a great series on your hands.

An interesting team book made up of characters from the films and the recent comics. Being primarily a female team, it’s hard not to compare this to the line-up from the Ghostbusters reboot that featured a gender-flipped cast. Overall, I like this team more. For one they aren’t carbon copies of the original team, and their backgrounds in the occult, the CIA, and the Ghostbusters themselves make them interesting individually and provide interesting plot hooks for the main story. It’s a shame this status quo ended this volume. I would have enjoyed seeing more.

I was a little apprehensive about re-reading Curse of the White Knight. While I loved Murphy’s twists on traditional Batman lore and his takes on the characters in the original White Knight, the honeymoon phase had definitely worn off when I re-read it last year. Curse of the White Knight isn’t without its flaws either. It struggles under the weight of trying to be its own thing and a sequel to a critical darling. But once it finds its footing, it becomes a great continuation of Bruce’s acceptance of the harm Batman has caused and his steps towards finally rooting out all of the corruption in Gotham. What pushes this from a 3 to a 4 star for me is the one-shot detailing the history of Victor Von Freeze and the struggles he and his family endured in Nazi Germany. It’s a well paced tragedy drawn by guest artist Klaus Jansen (who has some VERY personal ties to the subject matter). It’s one of the best Mr. Freeze stories in years and adds some fascinating layers to his character and relationship with Nora. Overall, if you enjoyed White Knight, you’ll likely enjoy Curse of the White Knight as well. It’s a fun continuation with the same rockin’ style of the last book.

A much better volume than the previous one. While I felt the Reg and Riko’s journey felt a little quick, the new characters they introduced are good additions and provide interesting context to the world around them (as well as a few great plot hooks). While it’s safe to say I’m emotionally devastated, I feel far more invested in the story and these characters than I was before.