Courage: The Graphic Novel
Red King Press
Writer: Dino Caruso
Artist: Paul Houston
Reviewer: Rob Wrecks
Summary: Years ago, the costumed crimefighter known as Courage suffered defeat at the hands of the nefarious criminal Volatile. Unable to cope with the failure, Courage retired in disgrace. But now...he's back and ready to set things right.
Review: When I got this, I wasn't entirely sure of what to expect. But by the end of this title, I came away pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it. Courage is essentially a throw back to the older days of comics when things were a whole lot more fun and not as serious and broody as some super heroic titles may be. Heck Dino spins such a fantastic tale here that the world Courage himself inhabits could have been something that has been going for years rather then just recently created. From the main man himself straight on down to the villains. Such as the Glove or Volatile for example. Naturally a character called the Glove would be ripe for the mocking, especially for Spider-Man but in this it works. The guy's proven to be no pushover and is actually a smart bad guy too.
Which is pretty refreshing even if he is basically a henchman with thugs of his own. And if you've read this by now via ComiXology, you'll know exactly what I mean when it comes to this guy.
I gotta admit though, aside from Courage himself, the General, Eleina, Vallora to an extent, and the villains themselves, the Original Six (Superhero team Valora is the 6th member of if my understanding is correct) bunch aren't exaclty a bunch I am all that impressed with. Especially if Courage himself has to apparently consult with them about his recent return. A return to the world of crime fighting after years away from the whole thing after a rather unfortunate defeat at the hands of what I would consider to be his arch enemy. Though they don't exactly say how many years it is he was gone from the crime fighting life but the age he returns at is considered to be around the time one involved in crime fighting would be considering retirement.
Which makes sense because the years would be stacking up on them, not to mention all the injuries and the like from various fights over the years of their careers.
Red King Press
Writer: Dino Caruso
Artist: Paul Houston
Reviewer: Rob Wrecks
Summary: Years ago, the costumed crimefighter known as Courage suffered defeat at the hands of the nefarious criminal Volatile. Unable to cope with the failure, Courage retired in disgrace. But now...he's back and ready to set things right.
Review: When I got this, I wasn't entirely sure of what to expect. But by the end of this title, I came away pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it. Courage is essentially a throw back to the older days of comics when things were a whole lot more fun and not as serious and broody as some super heroic titles may be. Heck Dino spins such a fantastic tale here that the world Courage himself inhabits could have been something that has been going for years rather then just recently created. From the main man himself straight on down to the villains. Such as the Glove or Volatile for example. Naturally a character called the Glove would be ripe for the mocking, especially for Spider-Man but in this it works. The guy's proven to be no pushover and is actually a smart bad guy too.
Which is pretty refreshing even if he is basically a henchman with thugs of his own. And if you've read this by now via ComiXology, you'll know exactly what I mean when it comes to this guy.
I gotta admit though, aside from Courage himself, the General, Eleina, Vallora to an extent, and the villains themselves, the Original Six (Superhero team Valora is the 6th member of if my understanding is correct) bunch aren't exaclty a bunch I am all that impressed with. Especially if Courage himself has to apparently consult with them about his recent return. A return to the world of crime fighting after years away from the whole thing after a rather unfortunate defeat at the hands of what I would consider to be his arch enemy. Though they don't exactly say how many years it is he was gone from the crime fighting life but the age he returns at is considered to be around the time one involved in crime fighting would be considering retirement.
Which makes sense because the years would be stacking up on them, not to mention all the injuries and the like from various fights over the years of their careers.
I like though that Courage is willing to put the suit back on, albeit a much newer suit then what he had previously, and go after the guy who gave him a thrashing all those years ago. Why he waited til years later rather then do something about it so long ago is a different matter entirely. Naturally his return doesn't get off to a great start thanks to a little mis-understanding by those who don't exactly have all the facts. Of course said mis-understanding quite possibly leads to a new legend in the making that will most likely put the Original Six to shame if Dino ever decides to do more with his creation here.
Paul's art (but no colors at all to be found aside from the cover) here is something I had no problems with, every character in this GN looked great. Bobby Chaos (love that name!) probably looked the most dangerous though. Which with that suit of his and that scar? I wouldn't wanna make that dude mad! Though with him and his former mentor, Dino left me rather curious over what their final outcome was.
If Dino was to ever do more with his creation here, I would be all too happy to check it out. Especially if it has to do with past events or even where Courage and Hurricane Elaine go in their journey together forward. Sweet tech gadgets, team ups, villains with slightly hokey names (The One-Hundroids anyone!?), and lessons to be learned when it comes to not only super heroics but life as well. This is a title with 106 pages to experience and enjoy.
Editor's Note: If this sounds like it'd be right up your alley, head here for digital or here for pint!
Paul's art (but no colors at all to be found aside from the cover) here is something I had no problems with, every character in this GN looked great. Bobby Chaos (love that name!) probably looked the most dangerous though. Which with that suit of his and that scar? I wouldn't wanna make that dude mad! Though with him and his former mentor, Dino left me rather curious over what their final outcome was.
If Dino was to ever do more with his creation here, I would be all too happy to check it out. Especially if it has to do with past events or even where Courage and Hurricane Elaine go in their journey together forward. Sweet tech gadgets, team ups, villains with slightly hokey names (The One-Hundroids anyone!?), and lessons to be learned when it comes to not only super heroics but life as well. This is a title with 106 pages to experience and enjoy.
Editor's Note: If this sounds like it'd be right up your alley, head here for digital or here for pint!