How could I explain
Being told still no Sixth Gun bad news
Now I can explain
I got my copy
Do you remember
This past Wednesday ahaha
When comics lined the shelves
You walk in man oh man oh man
I skip through the aisles light as a feather
Miss titles? Never
Reading books forever
Scaring me, oh my, hold me
Donist says it's Locke and Key I love
Knock them socks, knock them off now
Together with Bode, Tyler, Kinsey
It's Locke and Key that I love
Hello there all you happy people. We here at Donist World would like to apologize for being late with the post--I try to have these up early in the morning--but today I've spent most of the time chasing Obie, my friends' Boston Terrier and Donist World CFO, around the office in an attempt to get him to cough up the petty cash that he "borrowed" last week for his failed attempt to see The Dark Knight Rises. For a 20 lb dog it's pretty easy for him to squirrel away behind a dresser or squeeze between the couch cushions while he attempts to avoid the wrath of the Donist, but he's only delaying the inevitable. The problem is that he also read the absoludicrously great Locke & Key Volume 5: Clockworks and he's so scared he must have really dug in somewhere. How many companies do you know that have to reprimand their CFO with a broom? Man, things are tough all over, but at least we have...
Friday Slice of Heaven
***Possible Spoilers Below***
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| Locke & Key V.5: Clockworks |
The first issue reveals both the tragic history of the Lovecraft Keyhouse home and the mystery of the whispering metal from which the keys are made. Issue two reminds the reader that one of the Locke kids is not who he is supposed to be with a startling page one tragedy that leads back to the head key and the discovery of a new one. Then we learn what the time key can really do as we travel back in time to see where it all went wrong for the Locke kids' father and his friends when they foolishly agree to retrieve more of the whispering metal to disastrous effect. We also learn of how Dodge came to be so evil. The final two chapters of "Clockworks" ends with Rendell Locke and his friends dealing with the problem that has become Dodge and possibly making things worse. Tyler and Kinsey are left knowing the past, but unsure of what they want to do with that knowledge as Locke & Key leads into its sixth and final volume.
Locke & Key is exactly the type of comic book that horror, comics, and well-told stories fans should be reading. Gabriel Rodriguez continues to provide beautiful sequentials and succeeds in having you almost feel the emotions right alongside each of the characters whether that is despair, horror or relief over a minor victory. Jay Fotos provides brilliant colors accentuating Rodriguez's art and brings even more mood to each panel. Then there's Joe Hill. Ever since the first issue from the first volume, I was drawn to Tyler, Kinsey, Bode and the tragedy their family has been forced to endure. Hill not only gets you to love his characters as much as he clearly does, but also the world of wonder he has created. Because of this I did not notice that the Locke kids were only really in two of the six issues in this volume, but the world around Keyhouse is so fascinating that I was fine having a break from the kids as secrets were revealed and the history developed. Keyhouse is essentially a character in its own right. At this point, Hill and Rodriguez can reveal the "baking key," which allows the user to unlock a secret compartment in the oven that bakes the best damn chocolate chip oatmeal cookies in existence, have it run for six issues and I would be completely on board.
In a way, I'm thankful for lagging on reading this fantastic book as it allowed me to read the first four volumes almost back to back, but now comes the hard part, folks. The wait for the final chapter, for that beautiful hardcover with the color-coordinated ribbon marker to display proudly on the "treasures" shelf. I don't think I'm going to be able to wait for the next six issues to finish. It looks like I'm going to go digital with a double dip on the lovely final hardcover volume; this series is worth it and I cannot praise it enough. Now it's time to reread all five volumes back to back while I wait, and I can also pass the time by cursing the executives that shutdown the Locke & Key TV pilot that I still need to see. If you are not reading this fine comic you are missing out on one of the best books on the stands, and one that will be remembered for its greatness for years later. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
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| The Sixth Gun #23 |
Now here's someone we haven't seen for a long time. Kirby Hale is back after he put poor Becky Montcrief through an emotional ringer in his attempt to get ahold of five of the "six guns," relics of devastating power and the ability to raise hell...literally. As far as good-looking, charming strangers go, Kirby's one of the more attractive and beguiling of the lot, but he's also a liar who'll sweet talk you outta your boots as you thank him for doing so. Also back in this issue is Missy Hume, who wants Kirby to retrieve the guns from the missing Drake and Becky, but luckily Missy knows just how to find them, provided Kirby's fine with talking to some dead folk to answer his questions.
For an interlude issue with a guest artist, there's still much to enjoy in this glimpse into Kirby Hale, who looks to play an important role in the upcoming storyline. Bunn offers a deeper look into the character who is just as charming as his mini-bio on the inside cover states, and you can't help but like the carefree (or is it careless? read and see) cowboy even as he lies his ass off on the very first page. It's great to see the return of the first graphic novel's spectral hanging tree, and the ever-creepy Missy Hume showing up means life is about to go from worse to abysmal for Becky and Drake. Brian Hurtt's art is of course missed in this issue, and Tyler Crook steps in to do just as good a job as he did last time, but it is Bill Crabtree's wonderful colors that cement the fact that this is still The Sixth Gun we know and love. This book continues to be a blast and remains a must read for fans of supernatural mischief, Westerns, and the tales that come when the two collide. RECOMMENDED!
Other Heavenly Items:
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| I, Vampire #11 |
The Dark Knight Rises - Film reviews are not necessarily my thing, so I will keep this one brief and spoiler free. Let's get down to the nitty gritty...did I like it? Hell yes, I liked it. I did have some issues with the movie, but those issues won't stop me from seeing it a second time and I will definitely be buying the Blu-Ray when it is released. We had dark, we had dreary, we had hopeless situations, broken relationships, heartache and betrayal...and a wee-little bit of hope to spice things up. This was fine. The action scenes were tremendous, the characters bold--although I would have liked to have seen more of Bruce Wayne/Batman--and the story complex, which is all great, but there were times that I could not understand the muffled Bane, or the raspy Bat. There were also some sketchy bits of dialogue during the first hour as well as some in-your-face exposition, but after that people began to talk like well...actual people. I guess what I'm saying is that even at nearly three hours, things seemed a little rushed and I wanted more. Maybe this movie could have stood to have the Twilight 4 (Spooning to New Heights or Nearly-Nekkid Dudes With Cut-Offs or whatever it was called) treatment of two movies to round out the chapter. My wife would not have been happy with two movies, but I'm sure I would have been. Also, if the movie was going to tie into the whole 1% versus 99% thing, I would have liked to have seen that carried through a little more, but regardless, TDKR (as the cool kids call it) was an intense, fun ride. I still preferred The Dark Knight, but I knew it was going to be hard to beat going in to this third and final chapter. Still, definitely worth seeing and HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!
Slice Into the Woods
Let's Keep it Mellow - No complaining this week. We're gonna keep it mellow, have a beer and bust out the lawn chair while we prepare to start Locke & Key from the beginning again. Cheers.
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