https://blacknerdproblems.com/ice-cream-man-27-review/
Writer: W. Maxwell Prince / Artist: Martín Morazzo / Image
However weird you think this comic will be, I can assure you it s probably weirder and also probably a lot more philosophical than you’re probably expecting. After becoming enthralled with the series last issue, I made it a point to keep an eye out for the next installment, and Ice Cream Man #27 justified this instinct.
As the name of the issue suggests, Ice Cream Man #27 is an inversion of the famous Kafka story, The Metamorphosis, where a man turns into a cockroach. Which mean yeah, in the 28 some pages, we get the story of a cockroach that turns into a man. And not just any man, but a “Grg” who has a child and a wife and an office job. It’s a brutally simple inversion of an iconic premise, but my god do Prince and Morazzo manage to make it work more brilliantly.
If you’re a bit of an entomophobe, you may want to skip this one. After the obligatory cold open of a man eating ice cream, we are introduced to the cockroach “Grg,” and it is actively impressive how much personality Morazzo manages to give a cockroach given that insects aren’t capable of emoting with facial features. However, there is a surprising amount that can be done with antennae and legs. Now couple that with Prince’s deliberately broken grammar and spelling of the cockroach primitive vernacular, and we get a surprising baseline to understand Grg the insect before he transforms to Greg the humanoid insectoid monstrosity and Greg, the office worker (a pointedly similar type of insect in the grand scheme of the office environment).
The sequence of transition is oddly poignant, as the monologue becomes more refined and more self-confident, although the existential crisis of an insect becoming a human is still very much in play. Between the corporeal dissonance of no longer having an exoskeleton and the mental dissonance of having to deal with a mortgage among other things, Greg’s only comfort and familiarity comes from being confined. And that type of musing and naval gazing digs at you right at the stomach.
The Morphometasis takes a simple concept and does manages to achieve so much within the confines of the pages. This is an expertly crafted book, and you’re able to pick this comic up and be emotionally devastated without any prior investment. It’s a steal really.
9.8 “Sweet Things” out of 10
Enjoying Ice Cream Man? Check out BNP’s other reviews here.
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The post Ice Cream Man #27 Review appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.
Writer: W. Maxwell Prince / Artist: Martín Morazzo / Image
However weird you think this comic will be, I can assure you it s probably weirder and also probably a lot more philosophical than you’re probably expecting. After becoming enthralled with the series last issue, I made it a point to keep an eye out for the next installment, and Ice Cream Man #27 justified this instinct.
As the name of the issue suggests, Ice Cream Man #27 is an inversion of the famous Kafka story, The Metamorphosis, where a man turns into a cockroach. Which mean yeah, in the 28 some pages, we get the story of a cockroach that turns into a man. And not just any man, but a “Grg” who has a child and a wife and an office job. It’s a brutally simple inversion of an iconic premise, but my god do Prince and Morazzo manage to make it work more brilliantly.
If you’re a bit of an entomophobe, you may want to skip this one. After the obligatory cold open of a man eating ice cream, we are introduced to the cockroach “Grg,” and it is actively impressive how much personality Morazzo manages to give a cockroach given that insects aren’t capable of emoting with facial features. However, there is a surprising amount that can be done with antennae and legs. Now couple that with Prince’s deliberately broken grammar and spelling of the cockroach primitive vernacular, and we get a surprising baseline to understand Grg the insect before he transforms to Greg the humanoid insectoid monstrosity and Greg, the office worker (a pointedly similar type of insect in the grand scheme of the office environment).
The sequence of transition is oddly poignant, as the monologue becomes more refined and more self-confident, although the existential crisis of an insect becoming a human is still very much in play. Between the corporeal dissonance of no longer having an exoskeleton and the mental dissonance of having to deal with a mortgage among other things, Greg’s only comfort and familiarity comes from being confined. And that type of musing and naval gazing digs at you right at the stomach.
The Morphometasis takes a simple concept and does manages to achieve so much within the confines of the pages. This is an expertly crafted book, and you’re able to pick this comic up and be emotionally devastated without any prior investment. It’s a steal really.
9.8 “Sweet Things” out of 10
Enjoying Ice Cream Man? Check out BNP’s other reviews here.
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The post Ice Cream Man #27 Review appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.
Creators: Tony Fleecs and Trish Forstner / Colorist: Brad Simpson / Layouts: Tone Rodriguez with Mike Vasquez / Flatter: Lauren Perry / Image
Way back near the beginning of the year, the first issue of Stray Dogs came out detailing the dreary story of a group of dogs that found themselves under the ownership of a malevolent man. Styled after Don Bluth animated films with a distinctively dark twist, Stray Dogs was a series that I kept an eye out on, but wasn’t necessary ready to deal with such an emotional charged premise (although, you’ll be able to decide for yourself as the first issue is available to read for free online). As the year comes to a close though, I found myself intrigued especially with the new anthology.
Stray Dogs: Dog Days #1 is a collection of stories that detail the backstories of six of the dogs that occupied the Master’s house. The stories vary in length and time frame, although the vast majority of them act as a prologue to the main series. Fleecs and Forstner do a spectacular job of crafting these short stories. Each one manages to evoke different layers of emotional resonance and manages to capture the anthropomorphism of each of the different dogs to different degrees.
Out of the six stories, I would like to give a particular mention to Gucci’s and Roxanne’s. Gucci’s story is one of the shortest in the extra sized anthology, but it’s use of the Instagram framework is stellar and manages to be very compact and efficient with its storytelling. We’re able to get a very complete picture of the dog/owner dynamic relationship, and the final page lands an incredible one-two punch of a conclusion. Conversely, Roxanne’s story is one of the longer ones, but takes us through the emotional ringer and even knowing how everything turns out, manages to amplify all of the tension in the world.
All in all, let this review serve two purposes: 1) to go check out Stray Dogs if you’re in the correct mental space for that, and 2) if you’re already into Stray Dogs, to check this out. It’s a unique aesthetic and emotionally compelling storytelling, and everyone involved should be commended for their work in extending the universe.
9.0 “Canine Chronicles” out of 10
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Happy New Year to our stalwart supporters and listeners! We're keeping it simple, citizens! This will be the last show for 2021, so we will keep it topical for the last week of the year as well as an assessment in Black blerd pop culture in '21. Check out this special Year in Review during the "Mid-Week" tonight at 8 p.m. eastern on the mighty BTalk 100 internet broadcasting network. Included with a rundown of notable events in 2021, the crew will be discussing: Gen-Z' apparent discovery of the classic hiphop trio, De la Soul, courtesy of the end credits song, "Magic Number" featured in Spider-man: No Way Home; iconic football coach, sports commentator and VG brand master, John Madden passes at 85; Dburt admittedly winced at the sight of a very human-like android, Amera and how society may be on the cusp of the "uncanny valley" as AI advances:
Another MCU IP, Ghost Rider, might be next for the reboot treatment but who will portray the demon of vengeance? Another The Batman trailer hits the cyberverse and we have our thoughts:
As the popular Black female-centered HBO series, Insecure comes to a close, some folks on Twitter were inquiring about the need for Black male-oriented "crew" series. Unfortunately, the request was met with a strange bit of vitriol; Basketball greats, Kareem Abdul Jabbar and Lebron James have a bit of a virtual dust-up online over COVID, and lastly, #ihadawhitefriend trends on Twitter for another "shame on you" reason.
One thing that Dburt is doing (finally) is investing in cryptocurrency, courtesy of Roundlyx. We would implore our followers to investigate, discern and then explore by using our referral code: afro-87A4BF
Call us LIVE at 508-645-0100. AFTER CLICKING ON THE HIGHLIGHTED LINK, GO DIRECTLY TO AFRONERD RADIO!!!
Also, Afronerd Radio's podcast format can be heard via BTalk 100 Pandora, Spotify and, IHeartRadio....more formats to follow!
Writer: Nicole Andelfinger / Artist: Simone Ragazzoni / Boom! Studios
I know what you’re thinking: there have been a lot of Power Rangers comics these last couple of years. You’re right, and we’ve only covered a small portion of the available offerings. That said, the reason we keep finding ourselves here is because the Power Rangers occupy a very beholden place in our childhoods (or at least my childhood), and given the franchise’s long-lasting tenure, there is a wealth of lore and mythology that is always worth delving into. Our latest venture: the origins of the Phantom Ranger (conveniently, one of the last characters I vaguely remember because I fell off of the franchise around Turbo).
Andelfinger takes ample opportunity to play with classic sci-fi tropes, setting the first page in “The Distant Past” where an unnamed proto-Ranger gets stuck in the Morphin Grid to keep an unspecified, but obviously evil entity in. Then, we flash forwarding “584 years” a couple pages later where a different group of scientists/teenagers with an attitude must deal with the consequences of said actions. There are a lot of different named characters (Ori, Kartor, Vivavli, Phiro, Rhian, Telosi, Xev) that we get very cursory introductions and who are all concerned with the events that befell Namize. With such a large ensemble and only very brief characterizations to go off, there is a little bit of a tracking issue, but that’s not entirely uncommon with first issue science fiction comics.
That said, while it took me a minute to keep all of the character names straight, there is still plenty of charged dialog and clever quips. I enjoyed Andelfinger’s writing as a whole, and I don’t envy the task of having to establish so many worldbuilding elements within a mini-series. And Ragazzoni does a fantastic job bringing the Rangers of the distant past plus five hundred eighty four years to life and also displaying the awesome power of the Morphin’ Grid. The book looks like exactly what you’d expect a Power Rangers book set in such era would look like. The costumes are dramatic, the set pieces are extravagant, and the monster design is sharp. It’s a vibrant first issue.
Out of all of the Power Ranger titles, this one’s probably going to appeal particularly to the already enfranchised and specifically to those who are explicitly familiar with the Phantom Ranger. Andelfinger and Ragazzoni do a great job bringing the story to life, but this is a bit of a deep dive with a lot of moving pieces, but if you’re into it, you’re gonna be really into it.
8.6 “Grids” out of 10
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