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Legends of Tomorrow: The Seventh and Final Season Soars onto Disc in July

Press Releases
May 13, 2022

BURBANK , CA – Everyone’s favorite Super Heroes need to get back to the future as Warner Bros. Home Entertainment releases DC’s Legends of Tomorrow: The Seventh and Final Season on Blu-ray and DVD July 19, 2022. DC’s Legends of Tomorrow: The Seventh and Final Season features all 13 epic episodes with special features including deleted scenes and a gag reel. The set is priced to own at $24.98 SRP for the DVD ($29.98 in Canada) and $29.98 for the Blu-ray ($39.99 in Canada) and is also available to own on Digital via purchase from all major digital retailers.

After saving the planet from an alien invasion last season, the Legends deserve a break. Too bad their time travel ship, the Waverider, gets blown up by a second Waverider…meaning the Legends are now trapped in 1925 Odessa, Texas! The only way to get home, and get payback on their mysterious new enemy, is to journey across the country to an early pioneer of time travel, who might just be their only hope of returning home. But with no Waverider, no way of knowing how they’re impacting the timeline, and a time-traveling foe hunting them, this will be the toughest mission yet for the Legends.

DC’s Legends of Tomorrow stars Caity Lotz (Arrow, Mad Men), Tala Ashe (Smash, The Carrie Diaries), Jes Macallan (Mistresses, Shameless), Olivia Swann (Doctors), Adam Tsekhman (The Twilight Zone), Shayan Sobhian (The Chosen), Lisseth Chavez (Chicgago P.D.)and Amy Louise Pemberton (Arrow, Suspense), with Nick Zano (What I Like About You), and Matt Ryan (Constantine).

Based on the DC characters, DC’s Legends of Tomorrow is produced by Berlanti Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television, with executive producers Greg Berlanti (Batwoman, The Flash, Supergirl, Black Lightning, Riverdale), Phil Klemmer (Chuck, Political Animals),Keto Shimizu (Arrow), James Eagan (Ash vs. Evil Dead), Ray Utarnachitt (The Tomorrow People)and Sarah Schechter (Arrow, The Flash, Supergirl, Black Lightning, Riverdale).

BLU-RAY AND DVD FEATURES

Gag Reel (Exclusive to Blu-ray and DVD)
Deleted Scenes (Exclusive to Blu-ray and DVD)
Captain at the Helm: DC’s Legends of Tomorrow 100^th Episode

13 ONE-HOUR EPISODES

1. The Bullet Blondes

2. The Need for Speed

3. WVRDR_ERROR_100<Oest-of-th3-Gs.gid30n>NotFound

4. Speakeasy Does It

5. It’s a Mad , Mad, Mad, Mad Scientist

6. Deus Ex Latrina

7. A Woman’s Place is in the War Effort!

8. Paranoid Android

9. Lowest Common Demoninator

10. The Fixed Point

11. Rage Against the Machines

12. Too Legit to Quit

13. Knocked Down, Knocked Up

DIGITAL

DC’s Legends of Tomorrow: The Seventh and Final Season is available to own on Digital. Digital purchase allows consumers to instantly stream and download all episodes to watch anywhere and anytime on their favorite devices. Digital movies and TV shows are available from various digital retailers including Amazon Video, iTunes, Google Play, Vudu and others.

BASICS

Street Date: July 19, 2022

BD and DVD Presented in 16×9 widescreen format

Running Time: Feature: Approx. 546 min

Enhanced Content: Approx. 79 min

DVD

Price: $24.98 SRP ($29.98 in Canada)

3-Discs (3 DVD-9s)

Audio – English (5.1)

Subtitles – English SDH

BLU-RAY

Price: $29.98 SRP ($39.99 in Canada)

3-Discs (3 BD-50s)

Audio – DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 – English

BD Subtitles – English SDH

Edge of Spider-Verse Revisits and Introduces new Variants

Press Releases
May 12, 2022

New York, NY— Announced at Polygon, fans will return to the Spider-Verse this August in a brand-new EDGE OF SPIDER-VERSE limited series! Over the course of five issues, Edge of Spider-Verse will introduce brand-new Spider-heroes as well as catch up with classic favorites such as Araña, Spider-Man Noir, Spider-Gwen, and Spider-Man: India! Each thrilling issue will contain three stories packed with debuts, new status quos, and seeds for an overarching saga that will set the stage for the end of the Spider-Verse, a new epic launching later this year.

“Marvel has decided to do the unthinkable, go big, and bring the saga of the comic book Spider-Verse to a fiery conclusion,” Slott shared with Polygon. “Yes, that’s right. Later this year we shall all bear witness to the end of the Spider-Verse!”

Check out designs for three of the new heroes you’ll meet in the series and don’t miss a single spider-verse tale when Edge of Spider-Verse begins this August! For more information, visit Marvel.com.

Edge of Spider-Verse #1
Written by DAN SLOTT

Krypto the Superdog Digs a Hole for your Heart Come August

Press Releases
May 11, 2022

BURBANK, CA – In 2005, a new breed of Super Hero claimed its place of prominence among Saturday morning cartoons with the premiere of Krypto the Superdog. On August 2, 2022, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment brings the acclaimed complete animated series to DVD (USA $44.98 SRP; Canada $49.99 SRP).

Created by Chris Mitchell, Krypto the Superdog follows the adventures of the title character – Superman’s beloved pooch – who also acquires the powers afforded his original Earthbound master. Alongside allies like Ace The Bat-Hound and Streaky the Supercat, Krypto fights the forces of evil, which include the animal companions of Lex Luthor and Catwoman.

Sam Vincent (Ninjago, Sausage Party) voiced the title character to lead the robust cast that included Brian Drummond (Monster Beach) as Streaky, Scott McNeil (X-Men: Evolution) as Ace the Bat-Hound, Alberto Ghisi (Trick ‘r Treat) as Kevin Whitney, Tabita St. Germain (My Little Pony franchise) as Andrea, Terry Klassen (Dragon Ball Z) as Tusky Husky, Ellen Kennedy (Polly Pocket) as Brainy Barker , Michael Dobson (The Deep) as Bulldog. Additional cast members included Peter Kelamis (Beyond, Riverdale) as Tail Terrier, Mark Oliver (Ninjago: Masters of Spinjitsu) as Mechanikat , Trevor Devall (He-Man and the Masters of the Universe) as Hot Dog, and Nicole Bouma (Powerpuff Girls Z) as Snooky Wookums.

Scott Jeralds (Static Shock) and Alan Burnett (Batman: The Animated Series) served as supervising producers , and Linda Steiner (Pound Puppies) and Paul Dini (Superman: The Animated Series) were producers on the series. Sander Schwartz was the executive producer. Burnett and Dini also served as story editors, while Jeralds directed all 39 episodes of Krypto the Superdog.

DISC 1

Ep- 01 Krypto’s Scripto: Pt. 1 and Pt. 2

Ep- 02 Super-Flea / A Bug’s Strife

Ep- 03 Meet the Dog Stars / The Streaky Story

Ep- 04 Diaper Madness / Feline Fatale

Ep- 05 Dog-Gone Kevin / The Dark Hound Strikes!

Ep- 06 My Pet Boy / Dem Bones

Ep- 07 Bathound for a Day / Dog Bot

Ep- 08 Old Dog, New Tricks / Talk to the Animals

DISC 2

Ep- 09 My Uncle, the Superhero / Top Dog

Ep- 10 Puss in Space Boots / Teen Tiny Trouble

Ep- 11 Dogbot To The Rescue / Bad Bailey

Ep- 12 Bathound’s Bad Luck / Circus of the Dog Stars

Ep- 13 The Living End / The Dog Days of Winter

Ep- 14 Bad Hair Day / The Cat and the Bat

Ep- 15 Melanie’s Monkey / Funny Business

Ep- 16 Now You See Him. . . / Bones of Contention

DISC 3

Ep- 17 Superdog? Who’s Superdog? / The Good Life

Ep- 18 Streaky’s Super Cat Tale / The New Recruit

Ep- 19 Up, Up and Away / Dinosaur Time

Ep- 20 Puppy Problems / Switching Sides

Ep- 21 Leaf of Absence / Big Sister

Ep- 22 Bathound Meets The Dog Stars / A Dog’s Life

Ep- 23 Stray for a Day / Ruffled Feathers

DISC 4

Ep- 24 Bathound and the Robin / Furry Fish

Ep- 25 Tusky’s Tooth / When Penguins Fly

Ep- 26 Storybook Holiday: Pt. 1 and Pt. 2

Ep- 27 Kids in Capes / Attack of the Virtual Vegetables

Ep- 28 Mechani-Bot / Stretch-O-Mutt to the Rescue

Ep- 29 Growing Pains / K-9 Krusader

Ep- 30 Andrea Finds Out! / Magic Mutts

Ep- 31 Reptile Round-Up / Streaky’s Field Trip

Ep- 32 Pied Pussycat Piper / Solar Specs

DISC 5

Ep- 33 Too Many Cooks / Join the Club

Ep- 34 Bailey’s Back / Streaky’s Inner Struggle

Ep- 35 Face Time / Catopia

Ep- 36 The Parrot and the Pirates / Robbie’s Return

Ep- 37 Revolt of the Beavers / Invasion from the Planet Peanut

Ep- 38 Mechanikalamity / Barrumpbarrump

Ep- 39 Iguanukkah

Batwoman Season 3 Comes Home in July

Press Releases
May 6, 2022

BURBANK, CA – Javicia Leslie returns as DC Super Hero Batwoman to lead the Bat Team when Batwoman: The Third and Final Season arrives on Blu-ray^TM and DVD July 12, 2022 from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment. Featuring all 13 epic episodes from the third season with all-new bonus features including deleted scenes and a gag reel, Batwoman: The Third and Final Season is priced to own for $29.98 SRP Blu-ray/ $24.98 SRP DVD ($39.99 SRP Blu-ray/ $29.98 SRP DVD in Canada).

Season two was transformational for the Bat Team and the entire city of Gotham City with the arrival of Ryan Wilder as Batwoman. In season three, Ryan must now lead the Bat Team in stopping the next wave of villains created by the weapons lost in the Gotham River during the suspenseful season two finale. On top of everything ,”type”:”1″} –>

Mad As A Hatter
Loose Tooth
Freeze
Antifreeze
A Lesson From Professor Pyg
How Does Your Garden Grow?
Pick Your Poison
Trust Destiny
Meet Your Maker
Toxic
Broken Toys
We’re All Mad Here
Are We Having Fun Yet?

DIGITAL

Batwoman: The Third and Final Season is currently available to own on Digital. Digital purchase allows consumers to instantly stream and download to watch anywhere and anytime on their favorite devices. Digital movies and TV shows are available from various digital retailers including Prime Video, Apple TV, Google Play, Vudu and others.

BASICS

Street Date: July 12, 2022

BD and DVD Presented in 16×9 widescreen format

Running Time: Feature: Approx 545 min

Enhanced Content: Approx 28 min

BLU-RAY

Price: $29.98 SRP ($39.99 SRP in Canada)

3 Discs (3 BD-50s)

Audio: English 5.1

Subtitles: English SDH

DVD

Price: $24.98 SRP ($29.98 SRP in Canada)

3 Discs (3 DVD-9s)

Audio: English 5.1

Subtitles: English SDH

Assholes by Bram Algoed & Micah Stahl

Reviews
May 6, 2022

Does this count as a foreign comic? It’s written by an American (Micah Stahl) but drawn by a Belgian (Bram Algoed), and was originally published in Dutch – this edition is a translation, and comes from an outfit (Europe Comics) specifically devoted to bringing Eurocomics to Amerireaders.

That’s foreign enough for my purposes, but there’s an additional wrinkle: this is a satire, with two main characters who are, well, Assholes . One is American, one is British. So to restate the original issue: does this count as someone else picking on those people, or is it all within the family?

It’s familiar enough, and the satirical targets (rich , self-obsessed TV celebrities! golf!) are broad and obvious enough that I don’t think anyone will actually care. But it does make the is-the-call-coming-from-inside-the-house? question more interesting here than usual.

Anyway , this book takes place all during one morning, at a presumably exclusive golf club, the Royal Marabou, which seems to be somewhere in the LA area. Two popular game-show hosts, the American Chuck Atkins (of Spin Your Luck) and Simon Kennedy (of Enigma) are starting a round there. Chuck is a big bluff sort with a brushy moustache, on his fourth wife – you know the type. Simon is toothy and slick – you know that type as well.

They both are tremendous assholes, though in my personal scorecard Chuck pulls far ahead on points and the race is never in doubt. The book is structured around their golf round , with chapters for each hole after some brief scene-setting among the caddies and groundskeepers, early that morning. We see Chuck and Simon interact with their fans, insult and belittle each other, do a lot of hitting balls with highly-engineered sticks, drink, and generally act out.

It’s all amusing, and often quite funny – assuming you enjoy comedy about assholes. But, then, if you didn’t, the title would be enough to keep you away. There’s no higher goal, no frisson of discovery or breakthrough: assholes these two men began and assholes they will remain. If that’s enough for you, this book provides snappy dialogue and bright art that, to my eye, sits somewhere between ligne claire and a modern North American art-comics look.

Reposted from The Antick Musings of G.B.H. Hornswoggler, Gent.

John Stewart Takes the Ring in Green Lantern: Beware My Power

Press Releases
May 5, 2022

BURBANK, CA (May 5, 2022) – Witness the action-packed induction of John Stewart to the Green Lantern Corps, and his first thrilling adventure alongside some familiar faces, when Warner Bros. Home Entertainment releases Green Lantern: Beware My Power on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Combo Pack (USA $29.99 SRP; Canada $34.99 SRP), Blu-ray (USA $24.99 SRP; Canada $29.99 SRP) and Digital on July 26, 2022.

In Green Lantern: Beware My Power, recently discharged Marine sniper John Stewart is at a crossroads in his life, one which is only complicated by receiving an extraterrestrial ring which grants him the powers of the Green Lantern of Earth. Unfortunately , John Stewart remains one of greatest and most beloved heroes of the DC Universe – and of the many universes that he has protected in his groundbreaking 50-year career as a Green Lantern. His courage, strength, conviction, and compassion have been his source of his abundant power, as well as the reason for his immense fanbase. This documentary examines his adventures on the printed page, the animated screen, popular culture and beyond, featuring all-new interviews with the creators, writers, artists, and performers who helped shape John’s legendary stories, including Aldis Hodge, the voice of John Stewart in Green Lantern: Beware My Power.

BASICS

4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital Combo Pack, $29.99 USA

Blu-ray + Digital, $24.99 USA

4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray Combo Pack, $34.99 Canada

Blu-ray, $29.99 Canada

Trese, Vol. 2: Unreported Murders by Budjette Tan and KaJo Baldismo

Reviews
May 5, 2022

I feel like I did this already, but that was a decade ago, so maybe I need to do it again.

Also, and probably more importantly, the last time I talked about this book, it wasn’t actually available at my end of the Pacific at all, which made my praise slightly beside the point for most people. But, luckily, the Trese books are now coming out from Ablaze: the third volume hit in January and the fourth (which is beyond where I saw the first time around) is coming in May.

But, here we are with Trese 2: Unreported Murders , collecting what were four issues of the floppy-comics series of the same name, originally published in the Philippines sometime in the mid-Aughts. (See also my post from last year on the first book in its Ablaze edition.) Trese is our main character: Alexandra Trese, who runs a bar in Manilla and also is called in by the police on “weird” cases.

This is an urban fantasy, of the common subset that assumes every folkloric or imagined creature is real – they’re all out there somewhere, and they interact with each other and mankind in complicated and often violent ways. Sometimes they need to be dealt with, or just figured out. That’s what Trese does, and what – as we get some hints in these stories – her father did before her.

On a base level, Trese is just good urban fantasy: taut, exciting, full of action and mystery and strangeness. For Filipinos, there’s the added frisson that the fantasy creatures are all part of their folklore – this isn’t yet another story full of the same old boring werewolves and vampires and tedious brain-eating zombies. For non-Filipinos, I think that’s an even better point: these are strange creatures. I don’t know what they are, what they might do, how they connect to the world, what their powers and concerns are. Fantasy all too often falls into the familiar; Trese has no truck with that.

And even more than that, Trese has the secret weapon of KaJo Baldismo’s art. Writer Budjette Tan gives him a lot to work with, true – all of those strange and frightening creatures, all of the odd corners of urban life where they lurk – but Baldismo’s pages, more often with black backgrounds than white, are gloriously detailed and atmospheric, moving from sketchy figures obscured by mist to tight close-ups on detailed faces quickly and confidently. And don’t get me started on the creatures he draws: Baldismo draws the details of horror as well as anyone since Swamp Thing-era Steve Bissette , and has a similar taste for both small things crawling and damp things flying.

As I said, this book collects four stories, four cases. They all have a similar structure: something bad is happening, Trese is called in, and it all gets worse before she fixes it, with the aid of her two bodyguards (not explained here, though they’re clearly something folklorically specific, like all of the other supernatural elements), her connections, and her knowledge. They’re good stories , creepy and specific and dark and ominous and startling. And, these days, they’re easy to find in the USA, so there’s no excuse not to read them.

Reposted from The Antick Musings of G.B.H. Hornswoggler, Gent.

Morbius Descends onto Digital in May, Disc in June

Press Releases
May 3, 2022

SYNOPSIS
One of the most compelling and conflicted characters in Sony Pictures Universe of Marvel Characters comes to the big screen as Oscar® winner Jared Leto transforms into the enigmatic antihero Michael Morbius. Dangerously ill with a rare blood disorder and determined to save others suffering his same fate, Dr. Morbius attempts a desperate gamble. While at first it seems to be a radical success, a darkness inside him is unleashed. Will good override evil – or will Morbius succumb to his mysterious new urges?
BONUS MATERIALS

4K ULTRA HD™, BLU-RAY™, AND DIGITAL
Outtakes & Bloopers
Featurettes:
Defining The Antihero
From Human to Vampire – Visual Effects
Lights, Camera, Action
The Good, Bad & Ugly – Supporting Cast Doing the Stunt Work
Living Vampire from Comics to Screen
Nocturnal Easter Eggs
DVD
Featurettes:
Defining the Antihero
The Good, Bad & Ugly – Supporting Cast Doing the Stunt Work
CAST AND CREW
Directed By: Daniel Espinosa
Written By: Matt Sazama & Burk Sharpless
Produced By: Avi Arad , Jared Harris, Al Madrigal and Tyrese Gibson

SPECS
Runtime: Approx. 104 minutes
Rating: PG-13: Intense Sequence of Violence , Some Frightening Images and Brief Strong Language.
4K UHD™: Feature: 2160p Ultra High Definition / 2.39:1 • Audio: English Dolby Atmos (Dolby True HD7.1 compatible), French (Doublé au Québec), Spanish, English & French (Doublé au Québec) – Audio Description Tracks 5.1 Dolby Digital • Subtitles: English, English SDH, French, Spanish.
Blu-ray™: Feature: 1080p High Definition / 2.39:1 • Audio: English, French (Doublé au Québec), 5.1 DTS-HD MA, Spanish English & French (Doublé au Québec) – Audio Description Tracks 5.1 Dolby Digital • Subtitles: English, English SDH, French, Spanish • Mastered in High Definition.
DVD: Feature: 2.39:1 Anamorphic Widescreen • Audio: English, French (Doublé au Québec), Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital, English & French (Doublé au Québec) Audio Description Tracks Dolby Surround • Subtitles: English, English SDH, French, Spanish.

Four More Images from Constantine: House of Mystery

Press Releases
April 30, 2022

It’s basically Groundhog Day in Purgatory for the Hellblazer in Constantine: The House of Mystery, the never-before-seen centerpiece of the four DC-centric animated shorts that comprise DC SHOWCASE – CONSTANTINE: THE HOUSE OF MYSTERY.

Produced by Warner Bros. Animation , DC and Warner Bros. Home Entertainment, DC SHOWCASE – CONSTANTINE: THE HOUSE OF MYSTERY – which also includes the shorts Blue Beetle, The Losers, Kamandi, The Last Boy on Earth! – will be available everywhere on Blu-ray and in 4K on Digital starting May 3, 2022.

Matt Ryan (Constantine, Legends of Tomorrow) reprises his live-action and animated role as the Hellblazer himself in Constantine – The House of Mystery. In the all-new short , John Constantine wakes up in the eerie House of Mystery with no recollection of how he got there. Fortunately, Zatanna and his friends are all there. Unfortunately, they have a bad habit of turning into demons and ripping him to shreds, over and over again! Constantine – The House of Mysteryis directed by Matt Peters (Injustice) from a script by Ernie Altbacker (Batman: Hush).

Zatanna torments Constantine in an unending number of methods in Constantine – The House of Mystery. Camilla Luddington (Grey’s Anatomy) reprises her role from Justice League Dark: Apokolips War as Zatanna.

No Constantine tale would be complete without his pal Jason Blood and his rhyming alter ego, Etrigan. Ray Chase (Licorice Pizza) reprises his role from Justice League Dark: Apokolips War as Jason Blood/Etrigan.

Constantine never hesitates to negotiate with anyone, regardless of whether or not he has a sliver of leverage – and that’s extremely evident when he visits the cosmos to seek a release from his otherworldly prison. Matt Ryan (Constantine, Legends of Tomorrow) reprises his live-action and animated role as the Hellblazer himself in Constantine – The House of Mystery.

Steeple by John Allison with Sarah Stern and Jim Campbell

Reviews
April 28, 2022

I have two theories about John Allison’s best stories, or maybe two versions of the same theory. One goes that his best works are organized around triumvirates – I should perhaps say triumfeminates – such as Bad Machinery and Giant Days , which allows the three main characters to bounce off each other in complicated ways. This theory goes on to say that the more straightforward, less convoluted Allison works are more likely to have two main characters (q.v., By Night ) who contrast each other in a more obvious way. [1]

The other theory is more straightforward: in every generation of Allison protagonists, there is a female character who embodies chaos, around whom reality itself sometimes bends, who is a force of nature, who both the complications of the narrative and the audience love. Shelly Winters, Charlotte Grote, Esther De Groot – that kind of character. The Allison stories that feature one of those characters are the best ones.

Steeple is a contrasting-two-people story, and neither of them (yet?) have risen to the level of an Allisonian Chaos Magnet. So I might perhaps say at this point that it’s not quite as zany as his best work, but that might also be said, in a different way, that it’s more accessible and less likely to hare off in random directions for no obvious reasons.

This story is set in the same universe as Tackleford – though, like Giant Days, it touches other parts of that world only very lightly. We are in the small town of Tredregyn, Cornwall – that’s in the far Southwest of England, for those geographically challenged, about as far you can get from Tackleford’s Yorkshire and still be in the same country. In Tredregyn, there are two churches. And, in each of those churches, there’s a young woman with good intentions.

Just arriving at the local parish – I think it’s CoE , and I think it’s St. something-or-other’s that only gets mentioned once in the book and which I can’t find now – at the beginning of the book is the new parson Billie Baker, to help out the Rev. David Penrose.

On the other side of town, there is a Church of Satan, run by Magus Tom Pendennis and Warlock Brian Fitzpatrick – though I had to look up their full names online; they’re just “Tom & Brian” in this book – where Maggie Warren does what she wilt as the whole of the law when she’s not slinging pints at the local pub. (First lesson: God pays better than Satan. Maggie needs a side job; Billie does not. Who knew?)

Billie and Maggie meet cute when Billie arrives in town, and become friends, even though their lives are deeply opposite to each other.

So that’s one major conflict: they’re friends but they work for (to put it mildly) competing organizations.

The other major conflict is weird supernatural stuff, as it often is in Allison: Tredregyn is in danger from a race of aquatic monsters who want to drag the town and surroundings back beneath the sea whence it came, and apparently they could be successful in this if the local priest doesn’t spend his nights punching said monsters in the cemetery. Penrose keeps asking for strong, burly assistants to aid him in biffing the salty foe, but his superiors keep sending him thin and weedy types. Like Billie, for example.

Now, those sea monsters are said to be sent from the devil, but they don’t seem, at least in this first storyline, to have any connection to the Church of Satan. So it may be that the devil has legions who know naught of each other, or perhaps the sea beasties are actually the spawn of Cthulhu or Belial or some different evil entity. Or perhaps the Church of Satan is the modern, free-living kind of Satanism, and has mostly or entirely sworn off actual evil in the sense of conquering the world and dooming souls to eternal torment and suchlike.

This first volume of Steeple stories – it doesn’t have a “Vol. 1” anywhere on it, though a second volume has since appeared, and a third is coming this summer – collected five comics issues, written and drawn by Allison with colors by Sarah Stern and letters by Jim Campbell. Each issue is basically a standalone story, mostly along the lines of Giant Days, so my assumption is that the hope was to do a few issues, assess, and then do more issues for years and years. That did not actually happen; subsequent Steeple stories have appeared on Allison’s webcomics site , so my guess is that the American comics market continues to Be Difficult.

As I said, both Billie and Maggie are pretty sensible , though they are in one of those weird Allisonian towns. I could wish for a bit more mania and craziness from both of them, to juice the stories up, but these are early days yet. These five adventures are quirky and fun, and the status quo gets upended pretty seriously at the end, which I hope will lead to odder, stranger stories for the next batch. So far , I’m counting this as solid B+ Allison, with signs that it could ascend to the top tier quite easily. And it’s entirely standalone, thus being a good entry point for new readers.

[1] Potential counter-argument: what about things like Bobbins and Scarygoround, which have larger casts around whom the plots circle? How do they fit into this schema? There I pull out a timeline, and argue that the count of Allison’s central characters for a given story tend to diminish over time, and so, therefore, in about 2030 he will publish a comic featuring no central characters!