Matt Smith (11)Recensioni

Yet another Twilight-Zone-like Hellboy story.

Coming out of the mist in the remote parts of Russia, Hellboy comes across the derelict train station. Sitting in front of it is an old man and for some reason he seems like he was expecting Hellboy, Talk between them starts like something out of the Reservoir Dogs, hints and then even more hints about the two of them. Suddenly three strangers appear but they are definitely more than they seem to be and they seem to be at the station for a very specific task.

Story is what one might call yet-another-day-or-night-of-daemon-slayer. New and interesting part s story of the old man who proves to be an unexpected and very capable ally.

Art is great, very dream-like. You are constantly expecting for story to end as one of the Hellboy's nightmares.

Recommended to all fans of Hellboy.

It's a coming-of-age quest in a sinister storybook fantasy world. References to The Lord of the Rings, On the Road, the works of Edgar Allan Poe, and the tale of Hansel and Gretel get hashed up into a fairly standard hero's journey. It reminded me of Vertigo's Fables and The Unwritten. I liked the characters and the way the plot unfurled.

It's an enticing opening chapter, especially given the set-up at the end, but three years later I don't see any info that a continuation is coming anytime soon or at all.

A wonderful set of graphic novels full of some really weird stories. All the books are amazing. But, my personal favorite would be Hellboy Universe Essentials: Witchfinder. The stories are so creepy and full of horror. Also, the graphics are amazing with some very different characters. Although, we don't see hellboy's character as one of the main in all the books. But, still the books are enjoyable and best for horror lovers. The Witchfinder is superb.

I would like to give the book 5 stars. Thanks to Edelweiss and Dark Horse Books for providing me an opportunity to read and review the book.

Folklords takes fairytales and folklore and mixes them together. Ansel lives in a fantasy world and when he turns 18, goes out on his quest to find the Folklords. He dreams of modern technology and creates the inventions he sees in his visions.

The first four issues are strong and adventures, the fifth does get a tad bit confusing but it's also the beginning of something much bigger.

I can't wait to see where it goes.

This could have been 5 stars, if they managed to stick the landing. There's no conclusion, and very few answers. It's as if there's intended to be a sequel, but even so this squanders what started as an excellent premise with lots of promise.

HRAAHH! There is a lot of grunting dialogue in the comic, and stilted language that masquerades as poetry. The drawing and inking is black and white on nice paper. My comic fiends have read it--but they read everything I have.

It’s an interesting start to a new series. The cover made me think the kid got transported to a fairytale land, that is not the case. Our Modern world is the “other world” and he is out to find the truth of a group of people called the Folklords. I’m intrigued as to where this might go, but I wouldn’t say it’s a good solid first issue. It either sparks your interest or doesn’t, just kind of mellows out between the two sides or continuing or not.

Interesting but falling into the predictable phases already. Nothing really stand out, but I am a little intrigued about Ansel’s dreams.

I’ll continue to keep a look out for more issues as they hit my library.

This was pretty good. I enjoyed some of the stories a lot more than some of the others.

Maybe the least satisfying of the Storyteller collections so far, just from the perspective that the theme - fairies - seems full of potential, most of which is never met. Although it certainly includes good material and shouldn't be ignored outright, this volume just seems (figuratively, not literally) thin: the last three of the stories four are more fables than full-bodied fairy tales. What mostly saves the book is that finally, after three other volumes, there seems to be a conscious attempt to use the Storyteller and his dog as they were utilized in the TV series; "Faerie Hill," in particular, tries hard to homage John Hurt's unique cadence in the title role, and it's mostly successful. The final story, "The Fairy Pool," is perhaps the least detailed - you don't really even get a sense of characters beyond the protagonist - but Celia Lowenthal's art is so gorgeous it's easy to forgive a familiar and somewhat forgettable tale. The other stories don't have that strength to fall back on - especially Tyler Jenkins' "The Pond," which is drawn so loosely as to almost feel unfinished.

Not a triumph, but not a failure, either. I keep waiting for this series to knock it out of the park.

Finally, a comic book which seeks to emulate the pithy sayings of the Icelandic Sagas as told by Snorri Sturluson. The art style is a little towards the cartoon style, at least when it comes to faces, but natural forms are great. A lot of care was taken to write clever dialog consistent with skaldic traditions. Clever jokes abound and many easter eggs paying tribute to Robert E. Howard, Star Wars, and Tolkien. Not really a mash up, but more of a stew. If this were a cartoon on television I would buy the box set. A very surprising and satisfying find.

Touches of Beowulf, Tolkien, Norse mythology, and PG-rated Game of Thrones in this action-centered tale.

This was a graphic novel that I read and really enjoyed! I found it nice to read a very shortened and condensed version of the much longer novel version.

I got this to review through the Amazon Vine program. I love graphic novels and was excited to read this one. It probably wasn't fair to this book that I just finished reading Vinland Saga, since that book is absolutely awesome and deals with similar subject matter.

This is about a Barbarian Lord who gets exiled from his home country and is forced to seek refuge in a neighboring kingdom. There he must prove his worth through a series of quests.

I honestly didn't enjoy the art style that much. The lines are very heavy and very cartoony, none of the characters show much expression and the artwork didn't add a ton to the story.

The dialogue and story are very simple and the writing didn't flow all that well, I had to reread portions to figure out what was being said. Given the fact that there wasn't much here, it was pretty slow to read.

I had trouble figuring out if this story was supposed to be taken seriously (if it is then this was horrible) or if it was more tongue in cheek and meant to be a parody (if this is the case then this was somewhat funny). The fact that I couldn't tell the difference though tells you something about the story.

I did read the afterword and Matt Smith mentions drawing inspiration from He-Man. This book totally reminds me of some sort of Viking He-Man novel. So I guess if you were a huge He-Man fan you might enjoy this. It even has a skeleton-like villain.

Overall an okay read but not great. As I said if this was a parody, it was kind of funny. It it’s meant to be taken seriously it’s a disaster. I am going to settle on...eh...it was okay. I would recommend taking a quick look through it before purchasing to see if you are a fan of the artwork style...I wasn’t.

Some would say that little Despereaux was not a very good mouse, and they might be right in that. He didn't scurry or quake in fear or nibble on bits of paper. Worse than that, he READ the pages he should have been eating, and actually talked to people! Those things that made Despereaux a not-very-good mouse made him an excellent hero and friend, in the end. This book is his story.

Q4P5
Nice solid narrative, exciting, a quick read.

Summary:
This is a story about Roscuro. Roscuro fell into the queens soup and was chased by royal guards. Soup day was banned after the queen died, and rats were illegal. Despereaux was being taught to eat books, but instead he started reading them.

personal reaction:
This is a good book. I don't know if I would read it out loud.

classroom extension ideas:
1. Have a stone soup day. Everyone can bring one item from home, and fix a pot of stew that could be eaten at the end of the day.

2. Learn to read incintive. Go to library, and find books that are related to rats, cooking, or royalty.

Summary:
This story is about a mouse. A special mouse that loves adventure. He falls in love with a princess he meets. They send the mouse to a dungeon and they capture him. He gets away from the dungeaon just in time. And the mouse becomes a hero.

Personal Reaction:
This was a cute book. I liked it. It got a little confusing because it is in a comic book format. This was this first time i had ever read any type of comic book.

Classroom extension Ideas:
This could be a good book to read aloud just to entertain the kids. Its also a good book to read to kids because it just like a comic book.

Summary: This is a book about the royal family having some famous soup when a rat falls in the Queen's soup bowl. Then one day a little mouse was born named Despereaux Tilling with big ears. He discovers the rats but he also discovers reading the books instead of eating them. So all in all, this book is about the exciting life of despereaux.
Personal Reaction: I liked this book but I didn't like this book if that makes any sense. I guess I'm just not into graphic novels. I never read them as a kid so I guess that is why.
Classroom Extension Idea: 1. The kids could learn about a mice life. 2. The kids could probably use this book more than I did.

This story is about Despereaux a brave little mouse who loves adventure. He and his friends Roscuro, Pea, and Mig all go on a quest to save the human princess. This book is divided up into four different parts and each part is told by four different characters. The illustrations in this novel is are very cute. It is a well thought out story.

My Thoughts:
I do not personally care for graphic novel style books. If this book was written in a traditional format I think I would enjoy is a lot more.

Extensions:
i would use this story in a lesson about adventures. I would have my students recreate their own adventure story.
I would also have them draw their own graphic novel of Despereaux and his friends. They can share their illustrations with the class

The story of Despereaux Tilling, a mouse who is in love with music, stories, and a princess named Pea. This graphic novel is good for struggling or reluctant readers.

The main plot follows the adventures of a mouse named Despereaux, who sets out on his quest to rescue a beautiful human princess. The novel is divided into four books and a coda. Each book tells the story from the perspective of a different character. The original series novel is a 2004 Newbery Medal winner.
The story is accompanied by paneled illustrations, but is also told through an ongoing narration, giving the tale more prose than most graphic novels. The cartoon-style artwork depicts the movie-concept characters in a straightforward fashion that sometimes seems oversimplified for the sophisticated text.
It is recommended for children in grade 3 to 7.½

An easy, fun to read and brightly illustrated version of the Newbery winner "Tale of Desperaux". A good alternative for struggling readers.

Personal Response:
This book was a bit hard to follow at first because several stories are going on at the same time but they all come together in the end. I much prefer the original novel. I'm not a fan of graphic novels but I did enjoy the story.

Curricular Connection:
I would use this with reluctant readers. I would also like to compare/contrast the original novel, movie, and graphic novel.

The Tale of Despereaux is about a one silly little mouse who thinks he’s human, and he wants to become a knight. He sets off on his adventure with his rat friend Roscuro. They go on a noble quest with their friends Pea and Mig to rescue the princess and save the kingdom.
This is a cute book with great color illustrations. Despereaux is mouse with large oversized ears that captures the heart of the reader.
Kids like heroes and they react well to being told that anyone can be a hero. If the teach has students that have problems reading. This would be a good book to help encourage them to read. The class could also watch the movie together and do a writing assignment that the students could write about the differences between the movie and the book. They could also possibly write about 2 or 3 of the characters in the book and tell something that they liked or disliked about them and why.