Our Fresh Friday Features returns with mysteries and magic! A strange place designed to murder you, bringing back old friends from a secret coven to save a town, a suspicious bottle of bathwater, and powers that a god would envy!
Each week, KeepingitGeekly and ArtCrumbs have picked out four titles that they feel deserve more reads! In our line-up this week, we've got one comic from each category to give you a varied list of must-reads for your weekend!
- Comic - LandLine: Journalist Orlanda "Land" Line is trapped in an alternate universe designed for murder!
- Graphic Novel - The Emergency Coven: When the cult that destroyed his life comes back to spread terror in town, Adrian knows that it’s time for the coven to reunite.
- Manga - Bottoms Up: Hard Liquor: Suspense horror where the killer is... a bottle of booze?? Must be some strong stuff!
- Webcomic - POWERS: After Genjin God of the Universe becomes unsealed Earth is reshaped where only the “gifted” and Humans live.
Now that we've met our four fresh picks, let's dig into each of them! KeepingitGeekly and ArtCrumbs will provide comments about the comic and why you should read it too!
LandLine, 75 pages - Published by Ben Guilfoy, (cc/ @bkguilfoy)
Journalist Orlanda "Land" Line is trapped in an alternate universe designed for murder! With dwindling supplies, no allies, and being hunted by killer 'bots, Land must solve the mystery of the MurderVerse to escape!
Story and Art by Ben Guilfoy
Comments from @ArtCrumbs:
One of the things that appealed to me first some time ago was the unique coloring on this cover. I tend to think the cover gives a peek into the inside, and I was not disappointed. Color is something that I, as a creator, struggle with, so when I see a colored cover that really captures my attention, I know I need to investigate more. High contrast work is my favorite and the art throughout this comic is all kinds of awesome! Colors vary based on scene, which helps clarify when it changes group to group, place to place, and yet it helps offer mood and atmosphere as well. It's clearly chosen very intentionally. Expressions, poses, color choice, it's all here and dynamic and unique, that alone is one reason to pick up this comic.
Another interesting choice was the page format itself, lending it to an unusual square/horizontal format, which I think is used very well, starting us off storywise with a hot, blazing scene and a not-so-friendly looking robot. Yikes! We unravel the past as we visit what started all this, moving between our lost female-lead, her robot "friend", and other lovely robotic creatures designed to kill.
I don't want to spoil too much, but I'll never look at a helicopter the same! lol Fantastic work Ben, I'm so glad to feature this amazing work and I hope others will read, and enjoy, it as well.
The Emergency Coven, 114 pages - Published by Llyrel, (cc/ @Llyrel)
When the cult that destroyed his life comes back to spread terror in town, Adrian knows that it’s time for the coven to reunite. Except that the old members are dead and the only person who could help him is powerless. Will Adrian find the allies he needs before it is too late? // Updates every other Monday.
Story and Art by Llyrel
Comments from @ArtCrumbs:
If there's anything I love, it's a good supernatural story! Small towns, home towns, sometimes "town" life is hard and you just want to get away right? Well live has a way of pulling you back, and when Adrian returns, he's not too happy to see the return of a cult that literally made his life hell.
It's an exciting read from the beginning, a mysterious murder to solve in a supernatural town. Werewolves, vampires, and a threatening seal. Clues are hidden well throughout and not all of them are obvious! It's very well-planned. This is going to be one of those graphic novels with a lot of re-read value, and I'm excited to go back and read it again once I'm done. Since it's a mystery I don't want to spoil too much!
Amazing job, Llyrel, I can't want to see more!
POWERS, 47 pages - Published by Defiant, (cc/ @DEFIANT)
Three-billion years ago Earth was filled with “gifted” individuals separated by family hierarchy’s of who is the strongest, although after Genjin God of the Universe becomes unsealed Earth is reshaped where only the “gifted” and Humans live.
Story and Art by Defiant
Comments from @KeepingitGeekly:
Right from the beginning I was drawn to the different color palettes and speech bubbles that were utilized within POWERS, and of course starting off with the characters playing a Dark Souls like video game is always an easy way to win me over. The fun and games are quickly over though when the crew realizes that Taijin is still alive and doing well as 600News CEO?! Riajin, Genjin and Yukihna and Emilia are fun and energetic protagonist to start off with and the seeds are planted early on that Taijin is far more sinister than a CEO should be!
Buckle in for one fun ride as we see how the “gifted” and humans live after Earth has been reshaped due to Gejin’s God of the Universe becoming unsealed!!
Bottoms Up: Hard Liquor, 110 pages - Published by Joe Cabello, (cc/ @cabellocomics)
Suspense horror where the killer is... a bottle of booze. An alcoholic party girl on the brink of going sober partakes in one last night of drinking with her friends, but a deadly bottle of booze may truly make it her last drink. An homage to Street Trash (1987) and the iconic body horror of the 80s, Bottoms Up: Hard Liquor is full of melting bodies, suspense, and a dash of 80s horniness.
Story by Joe Cabello
Artist - Laura Mondragon & Kent Esmalla
Comments from @KeepingitGeekly:
Bottoms Up: Hard Liquor is a 80’s Slasher where interestingly enough the killer is actually a bottle of booze which is such an awesome concept. The intro art is done by Laura Mondragon and she does a fantastic job with environments as well as capitalizing on the lack of color to symbolize a Videl’s Bath Water liquor bottle. From the start this Manga balancing a menacing feeling along a more humorous atmosphere but that is quickly “melted” away as our first victim takes his first sip of that red devilish booze.
Cabello writes a story that puts one expectation in your mind and quickly comes out of left field with a different outcome, leaving you craving more!
That's all for now, but we'll have another set of Fresh Friday reading recommendations next week. If you're looking for more recommendations, make sure to opt in for our weekly reading list email! You can find that in your User Profile Notification settings. You can also browse through our Featured Comics news section!
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