By B. MURACA
Tag: Comics
Pumpkin Night: A gore-filled slasher Manga
By B. MURACA
What’s up my fellow book addicts? As you can see from the blood-splattered picture , we are back with another discussion about a rainbow-filled story. I know comics have been written about on The Book Rant for a while now, but don’t worry, we’re still reading some awesome novels. They are still to come.
This horror manga is, Pumpkin Night. I’ll be honest, the reviews for this book are not the best. A lot of the complaints are from the fact the book has not been “officially” translated into English yet, so the manga a lot of us Americans have read although still readable, has quite a few errors. However, if you are a die-hard horror buff like me, and love bloody stories of psychopaths stalking and butchering people, Pumpkin Night is a story you’ll love.
I literally discovered this story twelve hours ago from the time of writing this article by a friend and fellow creator’s Youtube channel (big thanks to Tyler Carpenter for his video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1k2dGay9824&t=294s). I became addicted as soon as I started. The story follows Naoko and the group of students she stalks in her pumpkin mask. Prior to the beginning of the story, these students bullied Naoko all the time for being a weird girl in school, and finally did something to her so terrible she ended up in a mental hospital. The story does not pull any punches and let’s you know what kind of book this is from page one as it shows our psychopath having killed an entire hospital staff and laughing as she’s covered in their blood.
The bullies then started getting followed on their social media by Pumpkin Night, which was this story’s foreshadowing to tell you this was a character who was in trouble and likely about to be killed.
The deaths in this book are NOT for the faint of heart either. If people passed out and got sick from watching Terrifier 2 in theaters this past year, this book could also cause that if your stomach and head aren’t ready. The characters have slow, brutal deaths, sometimes to the point where one would wonder, “ok they survived, but look at them! They’re not going to have any quality of life.” It was laughable when I was reading today as the doctors tried to bring someone back to life who literally looked so decimated I’m not sure if that character would had been able to even feed themselves if they survived. Some of these people are butchered beyond recognition, and even then, Pumpkin Night keeps throwing bloody hits.
Seriously, this book is a gore fest. Despite the negative reviews, I found myself empathizing with some of the characters like Kazuya and Naoko because of what seemed like a little romance that his friends didn’t know about. The psychological aspect of what drives someone so insane is a continuing theme brought up. Could someone really been driven so angry that they start doing things like this? Sadly, violence in schools is something we already see a lot of in America, so someone going on a rampage for revenge is a common news story these days. Another is that this is my favorite type of horror, which is survivor horror. These characters do try to plan and survive, but because of whatever they did in the past, their resources are limited.
One thinks Naoko really needs to be stopped, but what about justice for her? This is where the detective part comes in, because even though he’s looking for a serial killer, he wants the whole story, and even treats the soon-to-be victims as hostile.
Should American copies be officially made of this book do the right thing, pay the creator for your copy. Until such time, despite some spelling errors and weird wording, horror fans can fall in love with Pumpkin Night here: https://pumpkin-night.com/
Video Review on the horror comic, REVIVAL
By B. MURACA
You guys finally get to see my ugly mug and hear my voice that makes Moe from The Simpsons sound like a fairy godmother. ;p ENJOY!!
Off World, an Amazing Story coming to Earth
By B. MURACA
Hello my fellow book addicts, and welcome back to The Book Rant. This week we step away from novels (you will forgive me) and dive back into the world of comic books! This story is a neat concept, that is still in the crowdfunding stages that it needs to come to life, but it is a project we want to see!
Writer Ruben Romero (he is one letter away from Romeo, how could you not love this guy?) is one of the amazing creative people on the team for the comic, Off World. In which two aliens named Oscar and Ku crash land on Earth, but not at the best time. Sadly, our intergalactic duo are trapped during the zombie apocalypse, where they also meet up with a girl named Roxie who is part of the planet’s main race known as: HUMANS 😉
“For our stranded duo I think at first its as the title suggests, they’re trying to get off the world,” Romero said. He also stated that should the series continue, their objectives could change or expand above just trying to escape this dangerous planet and its man-eating monsters. Romero has written for a number of comic book projects, including his creator-owned fantasy series, The Illusion Witch, which can also be found through the writer’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/RubenRandomRomero
Along with Ruben Romero, is the producer behind this brilliant idea, creator Jose Guizar. His page at: https://www.facebook.com/jose.guizar.33
“The team is rounded out by Luis Morocho on pencils, PH on colors, and Dave Lentz on letters, so pretty much an entire Hispanic creative team from top to bottom…except for Dave, we adopted him,” Romero joked.
While the comic book is considered to be for mature audiences, the team has promised that the comedy and gore are well-balanced, and nothing is just brought forward for mere shock value (even though I, B. Muraca, personally love shock value, yes, strike that main character!) However, not every comic set during the apocalypse has to spread as much blood across its pages as other stories like The Walking Dead, or Crossed. The two aliens we love and follow have the classic look of big eyes, green and red skin, with flashing lights to compliment their space-tire. The zombies have earned high praise for the sneak previews that have been seen so far such as the one below. While having a cartoon-like, goofy look, they nonetheless are seen devouring brains with blood dripping down their faces. I would have to say that if you are a fan of Rick and Morty, then this is a book we should be helping back and spread the word about.
As for Ruben Romero, he feels you can know more about him as a person with the character known as Oscar, and I would have to agree there. Oscar just wants to connect with the people who is he meeting, and like us writers, we want the same. It is why I am home right now typing away instead out at a bar with beautiful women and lots of friends (ok, that and I am not as popular and tall as Mr. One Letter Away from Romeo, who writes awesome stories like Off World.
Well my fellow book addicts, let’s get this book funded and spread the word about its awesomeness. Follow the link below to do so: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/powerninjatoons/offworld-1?fbclid=IwAR0803pZSLp4FWFjFACg0Ge0mAkoHQ40Z6DrSAsckiQsTh77AVjEWb_gUH4
Pop into the Indie Comic Community
Hello my fellow book addicts! As promised, we are back with another blog post, this time diving into the world of indie comic books! I would like to discuss a few comic writers I’ve come to know over the last couple years on a professional and personal level (sort…they are online friends after all, haha!)
First off, we have Tyler Carpenter who you can follow on Twitter and his awesome Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/DrawandTalk/about
Tyler is someone who has created a platform to discuss not just new books that are coming out in the indie community, but he is a writer and artist who asks the tough questions and dives head-first into topics about comic books others might find controversial, due to worrying about how others might feel when it comes to things such as properly running a kickstarter campaign, or how some of the mainstream comics like Marvel and DC are turning towards taking on social issues rather than focusing on better stories (if you’ve seen the most recent Texas Chainsaw movie, you would see Tyler has a point).
He has a new book coming out called The Girl with Mega Fists, which you can back on Kickstarter at: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/entitycomic/the-girl-with-the-mega-fists-vol-1/
And also check out here at: https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/the-girl-with-the-mega-fists-/list?title_no=709612&webtoon-platform-redirect=true#:~:text=THE%20GIRL%20WITH%20THE%20MEGA%20FISTS%3A%20a%20new%20ongoing%20series,partner%20presented%20by%20the%20gods.
Next up, we have Chuck Pineau. One of his most recent comics is Belia, a dark comedy. Chuck is a freelance writer and editors on all things comics, and knows a lot for the young man that he is. His strongest advice that even I took is to simply sit down and get to writing (unless you write better jumping on a trampoline, then to each their own). On his Facebook page which you can access through the following link, Chuck does regular, live podcast videos on the comic book industry, interviewing other writers and artists. The best part is if you have questions and are eager to learn, he always answers. Chuck also is one of the friendliest, and most upbeat people I’ve met. If there’s a source you’re looking for in the comic industry, follow Chuck!
https://www.facebook.com/charlie.pineau/about_contact_and_basic_info
Do you love horror, heroes, and mayhem? Get on the Ruben Romero train! Another friendly guy who is always willing to answer questions for up-and-coming writers like himself. Ruben has numerous projects going at once ranging from freelancing to his own stories. “I don’t want to be just a comic book writer, I want to be THE comic book writer.” Those were his words as to the kind of comic book writer he wanted to be, and his magical stories such as The Illusion Witch prove just that. Dive into the magical world he created with Aayda Locke, who encounters real magic and demons. You can also follow Ruben’s facebook page for his reviews on all things books and movies (and he’s such a king, never spoils anything!).
https://www.facebook.com/RubenRandomRomero
Finally, let’s hear a little bit about Aaron Wroblewski. His most recent book, Blood & Fire, is set in 16th Century Japan, a time when the country is in chaos. A samurai tale of family, honor, love, and betrayal. Melding action and horror, it follows Nakaaki whose revenge takes him beyond… blood and fire, as the great Aaron tells me. His stories are gritty and gruesome, but damn are they works of art. You can back books of his like Blood and Fire here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/a-aron/blood-and-fire-a-samurai-tale-chapter-1-of-3?ref=project_link&fbclid=IwAR2DOkfwES6tzAuFifzQLBk2ybIkOKNQ6vYnOsE-FXkRbWpf7SJwdfDK_cg
You can follow many of his other works here: https://www.facebook.com/ajwroblewski1
Comic Books are great things, and if you’re a reader, get reading comics. They provide all the benefits in becoming more intelligent and creative as regular books do, with the bonus of also having drawings! Until next time folks!
-B.N. Muraca
TITANS, 3×01-3×03 (A DC comics adaption)
Hello my fellow book addicts! Let’s get to some ranting. We’re going to be getting out of our comfort zone today of books for a while, and dive into an adaption of comic book.
DC’s live adaption show Titans, based on the popular Teen Titans, hits a home run in the first part of its new season’s arc.
Seasons one and two of Titans were not by any means horrible, but did suffer from some of Greg Berlanti’s problems that have occurred on his other shows like Riverdale and The Flash. The storylines were dragged out and all over the place. They repeated characters arguing with each other over similar issues, as if the audience was watching a soap opera. Let me RANT here. Just because writers have decades of comics to work their adaptions off of, doesn’t mean they have to. Short and sweet is the way to go.
Season three of Titans starts off months where the last season ended. Dick Grayson leads the Titans as Nightwing, with Superboy, Beast Boy, Starfire, and everyone’s favorite dynamic dog, Krypto. Brenton Thwaites has remained a great frontman on the show as Dick Grayson, and the rest of the cast does well in following. Kory, who is also known as Starfire, and Connor (Superboy) have adapted into becoming their own people, while adjusting well still into society. From her being an alien from another world and him a genetic science experiment, fitting in wasn’t easy for them when they started on the show, but both have adjusted well becoming collected and sometimes goofy people like all of us. Same with Beast Boy. While it would have been nice to see him have more combat and transformations than just tiger, he too is struggling with Rachel being away, but remains focused on saving people as a superhero. Seeing these gritty adaptions of superheroes lots of us got to read in comics for years deal with real-life emotions and issues on the side really helps one care about them and make the show better.
The show also wasted no time in these first three episodes with getting into action. By the time the second episode starts, we have lost a couple great heroes, and a new brutal villain rises: Red Hood. He is introduced as multiple criminal leaders meet, and jumped in guns blazing and dropped a bag of heads of others in the criminal underworld. While that was a good job in having illustrated how brutal Red Hood could be, it is also revealed this is not going to the vigilante from the comics who tried to control crime and keep drugs away from kids. He forced innocent people into horrifying situations, and filled just as many more with bullets. Fans have wanted to see the Red Hood storyline come to live-action screens for a long time, and so far Titans has nailed it while also using its own original plot elements to mix things up.
It is clear no one is safe this season. Every one of our precious Titans should be cherished every episode considering we lost so many in just three for the premiere, as well as how Donna Troy and Deathstroke were killed off last season. Titans may be a fictional series, but it’s grounded into reality as shown through its grittiness and real-world language of blowing off steam and not holding feelings back. When they are held back, you see the characters struggling to do so. Such as the scene where Barbara Gordon lashed out on Bruce Wayne for the death of so many of her loved ones due to his war on crime, meanwhile Dick held back his grief, even though it could be seen through the disappointment in his eyes while he stared at Bruce that Barbara was not wrong. However, when Bruce crossed the line later, Dick let out his fury that had been held in all these years. Keeping these characters as real-world as possible while putting them up against an intense villain such as Red Hood, is shaping this up to be a season that easily outmatches the previous two and other superhero shows out there.
If one enjoyed the dark mystery, and action-packed scenes mixed with heavy dialogue that rocked Daredevil on Netflix, get HBO Max now and put on Titans season 3. An excellent adaption of some of our favorite comic books.
5/5 for these first three episodes of season 3. We are given a small arc that packed out so many punches there are high hopes the writers keep this up for the rest of the season.
-B.N. Muraca
The Book Rant 