Author Archives: Phil

About Phil

With 40 years of experience in comic reading, collecting and reviewing, English Professor Phil Mateer has an encyclopedic mind for comics. Feel free to ask Phil about storylines, characters, artists or for that matter, any comic book trivia. He will post your questions and answers on the AABC blog. His knowledge is unparalleled! He is also our warehouse manager, so if you are looking for that hard to find comic book, ask Phil!

Phil”s Reviews: Stuff I Bought #264

Young Avengers #13 — Writer: Kieron Gillen;  Art: Jamie McKelvie I know I put this at the top of my list every time it comes out, and you’re probably tired of hearing about it, but I don’t care: it’s been a wonderful series, with pretty and precise art, great characterization and plotting, and a smooth teamwork between Gillen and McKelvie that’s just made the whole story hum and surge like a racing-car engine. This ends the big story/fight, and resolves a number of issues, especially involving Loki; the final two books will be mostly a well-deserved curtain call and wrap-up … Continue reading

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Phil’s Reviews: Stuff I Bought #263

Young Avengers #12 — Writer: Kieron Gillen;  Pencils: Jamie McKelvie;  Inks: McKelvie, Stephen Thompson and Mike Norton The sad news is that this incarnation of Young Avengers is ending in January, with issue #15; the good news is that Gillen and McKelvie are walking away on their own terms, having completed one overall “season,” and it’s been great: funny, wise, exciting, sometimes experimental, and always fun, both to read and to look at (McKelvie’s characters have become so sharply-drawn, so laser-focused and clear, that they leap right off the page). This issue is the next-to-last of the mega-storyline, so it’s … Continue reading

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Phil”s Reviews: Stuff I Bought #262

Kinda boring Marvel/DC titles this week — and does anyone following DC need me to tell them Forever Evil #3 came out? Everyone who cares knows, right? Instead, let’s look at some of the indy books you may not know about, including a quintet of first issues…. Drumhellar #1 — Story, Art: Riley Rossmo; Script: Alex Link Rossmo was last seen drawing Dia De Los Muertos, an anthology mini-series where he illustrated horror scripts from a number of different writers, about this time last year; that established him as a careful craftsman with a knack for appealing-looking, realistic characters caught in fantastic … Continue reading

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Phil’s Reviews: Stuff I Bought #261

Velvet #1 — Writer: Ed Brubaker;  Art: Steve Epting Image’s creator-owned titles have just been knocking it out of the park (ooh, World Series baseball metaphors!) all year, and this one is no exception; it’s by an established team (Brubaker and Epting spent years together on their well-regarded Captain America run), within an established genre (’60s/’70s-style spy thrillers, ala James Bond or Man From U.N.C.L.E.), but with an interesting twist (it focuses on the secretary/love interest of the spy agency, normally a throwaway character, who of course turns out to be much more than she seems). Brubaker is very good … Continue reading

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Phil’s Reviews: Stuff I Bought #260

After all those weeks of DC 3-D books, let’s take a break from the Marvel and DC heroes, and look at all the cool comics published by other companies this week instead: Battling Boy Graphic Novel #1 — Writer/Artist: Paul Pope Pope’s art is like a fusion of Jack Kirby and Robert Crumb; he’s got all their crackling energy and sure lines, and straddles the divide between mainstream superheroics and underground anarchy just perfectly. He’ll work for a major company, but on his own terms (see the remarkable Batman: Year 100), but he’s always been happiest charting his own course, … Continue reading

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