The 3″ Dunny Penelope McStompsalot pilots her 8″ mecha-inspired Blowback Industries DUNN-7™.
Huck Gee x Kidrobot: Penelope McStompsalot
February 18, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Garth Ennis Presents – Battle Classics
February 11, 2014 by 2 Comments
On this side of the pond, we get lots of War World II stories from the press and Hollywood, but not much from the British POV. Comic book writer Garth Ennis (Preacher, Hitman) with Titan Books gathers an incredible collection of World War II comic book stories from the British perspective. “Battle” was published weekly from 1975 to 1988 and left a mark in British comic book history and gave comic book talents like John Wagner, Mike Western, Cam Kennedy, John Cooper, Alan Hebden and David Hunt freedom to tell honest life and death tales from World War II.
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“… I believe HMS Nightshade to be its writer’s most important work: it is about something that counts. It is not about fantasy of future lawmen, interplanetary bounty-hunters, or assassins in a game of murder.” Garth Ennis, Garth Ennis Presents Battle Classics
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Alien: Out of the Shadows
January 30, 2014 by Leave a Comment
As 80s kids, my brother and me were blown away when we first watched James Cameron’s epic ALIENS (1986) and then we had to grab a VHS copy of Ridley Scott’s ALIEN (1979) to fill in the blanks, because Sigourney Weaver played the iconic scientist hero Ellen Ripley who was such a bad-ass. In our minds Aliens 3, Alien Resurrection and Aliens vs Predator never happened, just like Brett Ratners’ X-Men 3. My head hurts just thinking about this, but I digress. After watching the first two films, you wondered if anything happened to Ellen Ripley during her 57 years of sleep? This “official novel” enlightens ALIEN fans on what happened to Ripley from the end of the first ALIEN film and the start of the second ALIENS film.
Snowpiercer Vol. 1: The Escape
January 27, 2014 by 1 Comment
After 30 years, the wait is finally over, the French sci-fi graphic novel Le Transperceneige by Jacques Lob and Jean-Marc Rochette has now been translated into English. Inspired by reading the graphic novel, Korean director Bong Joon-Ho turned it into the film Snowpiercer which stars Chris Evans, Jamie Bell and Ed Harris. Snowpiercer Vol. 1 – The Escape takes place in a post-apocalyptic Earth where the entire planet has been covered in ice and the only human survivors are left are on a train that runs forever.
NUMBERCRUNCHER
January 14, 2014 by Leave a Comment
My first trade I get to read this year is Numbercruncher from Titan Comics writer Si Spurrier (X-Men Legacy) and artist PJ Holden (Judge Dredd). Numbercruncher was released as a 4-issue mini-series last year and now it’s all collected into one volume. This is not your typical mainstream superhero comic like Batman or Spiderman, Numbercruncher is life-after-death, love, something spiritual and comedy of sorts all wrap-up in one, well kind of.
The Wrong Quarry
January 13, 2014 by 4 Comments
Over the weekend, I was excited to get my hands the new Quarry book “The Wrong Quarry” by author Max Allan Collins (Road to Perdition). His long-running series is about a former US Marine sniper Quarry (no need to know his real name) turned professional hitman. Quarry offers clients that are marked-for-death a unique service, dependent on the fee paid, he gets rid of the hit team after the clients and investigates who hired the hit.
Geeky Graphic Tees for a Fight against Breast Cancer
January 10, 2014 by Leave a Comment
When our team was at New York Comic-Con 2013, we passed by a neat little booth selling cool graphic tees, but we also discovered it’s more than selling nerdy t-shirts. Shirts For A Cure was started by punk-rock photographer Mark Beemer in 2002. The various shirts and accessories sold by The Shirts For A Cure Project go to fight against breast cancer. It helps underprivileged women with financial assistant in the fight against breast cancer.
Wallace & Gromit: The Complete Newspaper Comic Strips Collection
January 6, 2014 by 2 Comments
Over the years, the British have crossed the Atlantic with iconic entertainment, like The Beatles, One Direction (LoL), Monty Python, Are You Being Served?, Mr. Bean, just to name a few, now in the animation realm, it has to be Nick Park and his animated creation Wallace & Gromit. Wallace & Gromit: The Complete Newspaper Comic Strips Collection collects the comic strips published in the UK daily newspaper The Sun, from 2010-2011.
The Casebook of Newbury & Hobbes by George Mann
January 6, 2014 by Leave a Comment
I am ready to kick off the New Year with more Retrenders stuff, but I had some left overs from last year, like this George Mann book of short stories – The Casebook of Newbury & Hobbes, Volume 1. Over the weekend, as I watched American playoff football in-between breaks, I was able to finally finish reading it.
I am new to the Newbury & Hobbes books and the various characters created in this universe. I was a little weary reading these all-new short stories in this collection, wondering if I needed to read the “The Affinity Bridge”, “The Osiris Ritual” and “The Immorality Engine” to get what is going on, but I was well relieved by Mr. Mann kicking off with nice introduction chapter about his characters and his first book. Newbury & Hobbes revolves around 3 main characters, the sleuth Sir Maurice Newbury, assistant Miss Veronica Hobbes and police friend Sir Charles Bainbridge as they solve crimes and murders in Victorian London. The book collects 15 short stories as Newbury and Hobbes face the weird and strange crimes. Mr. Mann also includes a helpful timeline of where these short stories took place over the course of his 3 books and a chapter of story notes on all the short stories (they include spoilers, so please read the short stories first!).
Lost Planet: First Colony
December 30, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Well, if you’ve been playing Capcom’s Lost Planet 3 on your PS3 or Xbox 360 and really want to figure out how this all happened on ED.N. III, you can now read this hardbound trade Lost Planet: First Colony. Humanity thought they found the hope for Earth on E.D.N. III, but the first colony was tragic failure unleashing an icy storm and bad-ass monsters.
EDM Festival Tomorrowland Graphic Novel
December 30, 2013 by Leave a Comment
One of the great yearly weekend music festivals these past few years takes place in Belgium – the EDM (Electronic Dance Music) Festival known as Tomorrowland. Now dance fans and comic book aficionados come together in this genre mixing story Tomorrowland from writer Paul Jenkins (Wolverine: Orgin). Originally printed as a 4-issue mini-series this past summer 2013 by Titan Comics, now we get the whole saga in one volume in this hardbound trade – Tomorrowland. It’s like Glastonbury getting its own graphic novel! Tomorrowland follows DJs Dimitri Vegas and Like Mike on their DJ gigs as they battle evil from other dimensions on this cosmic/portal opening/spiritual/metaphysical journey to save Earth! It’s kind of like the anime The Super Dimension Fortress Macross and Macross Frontier (or Macross Plus, or just whatever Macross incarnation/reboot you prefer) as the heroine uses her singing prowess to stop war and save the universe.
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Tracklist 1 – Epic Stadium-Masher: 1. Armin van Buuren feat. Trevor Guthrie – This Is What If Feels Like [Audien Remix], 2. Zedd feat. Hayley Williams – Stay The Night [Extended Mix], 3. Adventure Club – Do I See Color [Dubstep Mix], 4. NERVO – You’re Gonna Love Again [Extended Version], 5. Coldplay – Every Tear Drop Is A Waterfall [Swedish House Mafia Remix], 6. Calvin Harris feat. Florence Welch – Sweet Nothing [Extended Mix], 7. ATB feat. Ramona Nerra – Never Give Up [Club Mix], 8. Filo & Peri feat. Eric Lumiere – The Anthem [John O’Callaghan Remix, 9. David Guetta feat. Usher – Without You, 10. Armin van Buuren & DJ Shah feat. Chris Jones – Going Wrong, 11. Alice Deejay – The Lonely One [Hit Radio Mix], 12. Ian Van Dahl – Will I [UK Radio Edit], 13. Benny Benassi feat. Kelis, apl.de.ap & Jean-Baptiste – Spaceship, 14. Kaskade feat. Rebecca & Fiona – Turn It Down, 15. Avicii – Levels [Extended Version] and 16. Swedish House Mafia feat. John Martin – Don’t You Worry Child [Extended Version].
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The Tour de Force Street Fighter Tournament: Capcom Cup 2013
December 26, 2013 by 1 Comment
Capcom’s iconic 2D fighting video game Street Fighter II cost me a lot of quarters in middle school and now there are pro-Street Fighter button-mashing gamers. This year’s Capcom Cup took place at the Hyatt SFO in the SF Bay Area on December 14th, 2013. The Ramen crew interviews Street Fighter gamers and check out the announcements for Ultra Street Fighter IV.
Cosplay model YAYA HAN at NYCC
December 24, 2013 by 1 Comment
Ramen and a Half’s Jonelle Marie interviews pioneering cosplayer model – Yaya Han, at New York Comic-Con.
Cosplay Model – Yaya Han
Back then when the term “Cosplay” was unheard of – Yaya Han and very few alike, simply loved the art of creating costumes of super heroes, villains, and not to mention fantasy and science fiction characters in between. The art of what became Cosplay for them was simply how convincing, how imaginative, and how ornately detailed their costume design can be from make-up to inseam.
Yaya Han : www.yayahan.com facebook/yayahan yayahan.bigcartel
A1: The World’s Greatest Comics, Vol. 1 Annual
December 11, 2013 by 1 Comment
Get ready for some fun and laughs ‘cuz don’t you get tired of reading typical Marvel and DC superhero stuff all the time? Take a break, try out A1: The World’s Greatest Comics, Vol. 1 Annual from Atomeka and Titan Comics. This graphic novel anthology brings together top writers and artists from various comic backgrounds and art styles like Alan Moore, Jim Steranko, Kevin Eastman, Simon Bisley, James Robinson, D’Israeli, Dave Elliott, Bill Sienkiewicz and others. You know, it’s kinda of like a 2CD compilation of Now That’s What I Call I Music. What is it up to now in the UK? Like Vol. 90? Okay, let’s move on to the wild action, mystery, art exhibit coolness and coffee trivia from the A1 Vol. 1 Annual.
The James Bond Omnibus Vol. 005
December 11, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Many of you are too young to remember James Bond in daily black and white comic-strips in newspapers back in the day. Titan Books’ James Bond Omnibus Vol. 005 collects 9 full stories: Till Death Do Us Part, The Torch-Time Affair, Hot-Shot, Nightbird, Ape of Diamonds, When The Wizard Awakes, Sea Dragon, Death Wing and The Xandadu Connection from the original daily comic strips re-sized and reprinted for the first time.
Kidrobot S.F. VIP Party 2013
December 9, 2013 by Leave a Comment
image via Kidrobot SF Facebook
There always cool things happening in San Francisco’s Haight/Ashbury District and one neat event is the Kidrobot SF V.I.P. Party. Of course the Ramen crew was there to enjoy the festivities and our host Eddie also grabbed a sit-down interview with local Dunny artist Big C and as they talked about his charity Dunny fundraiser for Bad Rap and 2013 Designer-Con.
Assassin’s Creed: Hawk
November 22, 2013 by Leave a Comment
The Assassin’s Creed comic book team of writer Corbeyran and artist Defali are back with the 4th comic book installment Hawk in the Assassin’s Creed universe. The story picks up right after the previous 3 comic book installments – The Ankh of Isis trilogy. This time the team travels back to 13th centure Egypt when an long lost artifact is found.
Max Payne 3: The Complete Series
November 21, 2013 by 2 Comments
I still remember the enjoyment of shooting mobsters in slo-mo with two guns blazing in original Max Payne game on my Xbox. The Max Payne 3: The Complete Series collects 3 stories – After the Fall, Hoboken Blues and Fight & Flight and ties everything together and is prequel to Max Payne 3 video game which was released last year on Xbox 360/PS3 and PC.
Marada The She-Wolf
November 21, 2013 by Leave a Comment
The original She-Wolf … and I don’t mean singer Shakira’s “She Wolf” song back in 2009. Remember the video? That was a sure-fire booty-shaking epileptic seizure attack, but I digress. Now back to the original She-Wolf, the 1980s creation by X-Men famed writer Chris Claremont and British artist John Bolton, the two created Marada the daughter of Rome, warrior and sorceress.
Welcome to NINJA NEW YORK
November 17, 2013 by Leave a Comment
While we enjoyed NYCC by day we ended up dining at NINJA NEW YORK by night.
Our host of Ramen’s other Half, Jonelle Marie, shares her first impression of fine dining in Tribeca’s one-of-a-kind Ninja New York Restaurant!
While there, we were looking for that secret door – you know, the one you would open and discover the artistry of Ninja acrobatic sword fighting and trickery like a James Bond flick, but it was impossible. The place was a maze and when we asked to take us to your leader, they sent us numerous of Ninja PR henchmen to divert us from straight answers about what laid behind the echoing walls of their zigzagging cave-like paths that only Batman would appreciate. Though mystified by their stories, we had one of the most entertaining dining night outs I’ve had in a long time.
I would have to say Ninja New York is one of the most entertaining and delightful places to dine if you’re looking for fun and hearty authentic Japanese cuisine food. And you’re almost guaranteed not to have a dull moment from your first step in and out of this place!
The Art of Battlefield 4
November 12, 2013 by Leave a Comment
DICE recently released it’s latest Battlefield incarnation to the masses and fans looking to destroy things on a large scale will probably dive into this game. While I step aside from the multiplayer destruction, I take a look at The Art of Battlefield 4.
Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag Review
November 6, 2013 by Leave a Comment
So here we are with another Assassin’s Creed game. They seem to be coming out with a new one every year just like all of the Call of Duty games. After playing the the previous game, Assassin’s Creed 3, I wasn’t so sure if I would be picking up this game at all, but I ended up getting my hands on it anyway. Right from the start I didn’t like the protagonist. He didn’t seem that likable during the beginning of the game, but after a few hours, he sort of grows on you.
The story in this game was pretty good, even if I did have a few questions at the end of it all, but I wasn’t able to get as invested in it as I did in the previous games in the series. The main reason was because of who you controlled in the modern time; it was just some random guy. You play him in first-person mode while out of the Animus and are never given a name and you aren’t able to even see what you look like. The one character I enjoyed the most out of the whole game was the I.T. guy, John. He made the modern portion of the game bearable and had an important role in the story. The characters Rebecca and Shaun showing up was also a plus – it was nice seeing and hearing them bicker again.
Besides that though, the real fun was when you were able to sail your ship all around the seas. Taking on little gunboats for small loot or attacking the large Man o’ Wars for some better salvage, it never got old. There was so much to do out in the ocean; sail to a nearby island and search for treasure, go deep sea diving, harpooning for sea creatures like whales and sharks, or just have fun destroying ship after ship. Finding floating pages of shanties was pretty neat also. Singing songs while sailing around was like listening to a pirate song radio station – and it did get annoying pretty quick. One could probably get really drawn into all the pirating or even the side-quests and forget all about doing any of the story missions. And to be honest, is that such a bad thing?
I give Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag a 7/10.
The Art of Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag
November 4, 2013 by 2 Comments
It’s been a busy couple of weekends just button-mashing in the living room after big releases like GTA, Arkham Origins, Battlefield 4 and now comes Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag. This new installment takes you back to 1715 where Pirates rule the seas and you are thrown into the dark, gritty world of pirate life.
Batman: Arkham Origins Review
October 30, 2013 by Leave a Comment
I had been waiting a long time to play Batman: Arkham Origins – the third installment in the Batman: Arkham series. The first one (Arkham Asylum) was pretty good and I had fun with it and the second one (Arkham City) had me playing the game to 100% completion. In Origins, the game world is double the size of the one in Arkham City. Starting off in a new area, Blackgate prison, was nice, but the game soon kept sending me back to places I’d already been to in Arkham City, like the Steel Mill, the Gotham City Police Department, and in the Final Offer (Penguin’s ship). Visiting the BatCave saved me from all the familiarity though, where one can walk around and talk to Alfred plus you can even get to see a prototype Batmobile in the cave. It was actually pretty cool since you didn’t have to stay inside the city for the entirety like you did in the previous game.
Throughout the game, Batman is being hunted by eight assassins. The first is Killer Croc and the fight here was a lot better than in Arkham City. The fight with the Electrocutioner was useless and it actually bothered me that they put him in this game since he didn’t seem to have anything to do in this game, apart from giving you a new upgrade. The other bosses, on the other hand, were fun to battle against, such as Copperhead and her many shadow clones who got on my nerves a bit until I got a rhythm down, Firefly who was easy to beat but enjoyable to fight with, and even with Deadshot and Shiva – and they weren’t even a real boss fight. By the way, you could skip those two if you didn’t care about completing everything in the game.
One other thing that irks me is that even though this game takes place five years before Arkham Asylum, you seem to have much better technology in this game which just messes with the continuity of the story. For instance, in Origins you can get a glue grenade, so why wasn’t there a glue grenade in the Asylum and City? Plus, what about the Electrocutioners’ gloves? This game gives you many new upgrades that would make the Batman from the first two games say, “What’s that?”
Although, even with all the stuff that makes me just shake my head, the game is still pretty darn fun to play. The story in this game is well written and it’ll have you hooked. And when it comes down to it, the game was good – not great, but good. I give Batman: Arkham Origins a 7.5/10. One final note, don’t forget to check out the scene after the credits. Trust me, you won’t want to miss it.
Pokemon XY Review
October 24, 2013 by Leave a Comment
I have been playing the Pokemon games since Red/Blue. I bought the new Pokemon game (Pokemon Y) that recently came out for the 3DS, and I’ve been enjoying it to no end. I’ve been stuck on the “Wonder Trade” section of this game, helping me trade for the other starters in the game. Wonder Trade is a function in the game that lets you trade away any Pokemon you don’t want for another to anybody around the world. You won’t know what Pokemon you will be getting though so it is a bit of a risk. You might give away a level 50 Pikachu and receive a level 3 Caterpie. However, if you don’t want go sit through all the random trades to get what you want, you can always try GTS (Global Trade Station). GTS lets you choose which Pokemon you are looking for and see if anybody is trading it, provided you have Pokemon they want to trade for. The only thing that’s not great about GTS is getting the message “A communication error has occurred”, which forces you to end the game and restart it. Just be ready to get that message over and over.
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Retrenders 