INDIE BOOK SPOTLIGHT: BETTER EACH DAY

INDIE BOOK SPOTLIGHT:

BETTER EACH DAY

Created, Written and Drawn By: DENNIS HART

        Better Each Day by Dennis Hart was an absolute breath of fresh air from the usual types of graphic novels I find at local, (New England), conventions. This comic featured no capes or cowls, nor zombies or robots, and the only villain of the story was Hart's own inner struggles. Finding himself in a very dark place, Hart almost gave up on his craft and his livelihood over and over again. It seemed to Hart that every attempt he made at following his dream would always fall short. To make matters worse, Hart also found himself on the losing end of a battle with his own negative thoughts and self doubt. However, all of this doom and gloom Hart was going through did not last forever.

        When Hart found himself more than prepared for death, he had to ask himself why he was afraid to pursue his dream if he was not afraid to die. From that moment on, Hart started filling himself with positivity and purpose, and produced this very comic book. No longer would he listen to those negative thoughts and self doubts rolling around in his head, nor would he let himself be affected by other people's put downs. He was now a man on a mission; and the mission has been wildly successful so far with two issues of Better Each Day now published and available for purchase at local conventions and on Hart's ETSY webpage. (see below for links)

         What I loved the most about this publication is how surprisingly uplifting it was. It seemed like a gloomy tale at first, but Hart really inspires his readers to follow their dreams, no matter what demons may stand in the way. Throughout these comic book panels filled with fun, animated and exceptional artwork, Hart tells the very personal story of how he came back from a serious emotional deficit and left his legacy on the independent comics community. As an aspiring independent comic book creator myself who could identify with some of the things Hart went through, I really felt a strong connection to this particular literary work. 

TO BUY A COPY OF ISSUE #1 AND #2 OF BETTER EACH DAY, VISIT DENNIS HART'S ETSY PAGE:

www.etsy.com/shop/DennisDraws

VISIT DENNIS HART ON SOCIAL MEDIA:

INSTAGRAM: HartsyFartsy

TWITTER: HartsyFartsy

FACEBOOK: DennisHart

TUMBLR: www.dennishart.tumblr.com

... AND AS ALWAYS...

STAY VIGILANT!!

HAVE A VERY VIGILANT HOLIDAY SEASON!!!

HAVE A VERY "VIGILANT"

AND HAPPY HOLIDAY SEASON!!!

FROM ALL OF THE GUYS AT

VIGILANT GEEK MEDIA!!!

FROM LEFT TO RIGHT: VGM'S CHRISTOPHER GIRARD, ANDREW PUZAK AND HOLDEN ORME

....AND AS ALWAYS....

STAY VIGILANT!!!

THE VIGILANT GEEK PODCAST: S2: E23: CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS

THE VIGILANT GEEK PODCAST

SEASON TWO: EPISODE TWENTY-THREE

CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS

                As season two of THE VIGILANT GEEK PODCAST approaches the end, Andrew Puzak and Holden Orme of VIGILANT GEEK MEDIA felt that it was appropriate to analyze a classic comic book story arc. Their choice for this task was DC COMICS' CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS!! Enjoy as the guys analyze and dissect this graphic novel masterpiece!!

...AND AS ALWAYS...

STAY VIGILANT!!!!

INDIE BOOK SPOTLIGHT: THE NEW ZODIAX

INDIE BOOK SPOTLIGHT:

THE NEW ZODIAX

STORY & ART BY: Joe St. Pierre

COLORS BY: Andrew Covalt, Rainier Pettier, Ziggy Chen, Benny Fuentes, Chris Summers, Benjamin Carbonero and Atomic Paintbrush

PUBLISHED BY: Astronaut ink

"For over 10,000 years, the zodiacal energies have been available to those whose consciousness is open to the reception and manipulation of them. That access has been achieved only by a select few--twelve, to be exact. One human vessel for each of the houses of the celestial wheel. This is the saga of... THE NEW ZODIAX!!"

- Joe St. Pierre

          According to this outstanding and radical graphic novel journey written and drawn by Joe St. Pierre, (Marvel, DC, Valiant, Image), "the stars are changing." Just as the quotation above states, human vessels that have the level of consciousness required are harnessing abilities and powers from the cosmic power of the zodiac!! This first trade paperback released by Astronaut Ink showcases the first four people to obtain this cosmic power: AQUARIUS or LIBERAIDER, a super computer hacker and "Robin Hood" of cyberspace, PISCES or CRICKET, a ghost hunter with psychic abilities, LEO or THE LION, the first stargazer and equal to the great King Imotep of Ancient Egypt and SAGITTARIUS or MULTAA, a woman of nobility in a far off galaxy who changes into a volcano monster to save her city of Aum'a.

           Each of these tales of celestial empowerment kept me on the edge of my seat. Joe St. Pierre's storytelling is original, vivid and addicting. As soon as I opened this amazing trade paperback, I new my money was well-spent, and I became sucked into the universe created by St. Pierre. Before long, I had found myself caring about these characters and following their stories with emotion as well as pure comic geek-level excitement. I identified the most with the character LIBERAIDER, a young hacker named Benjamin F who was sick of the Dinosaur Corporation controlling society and ruining his life. Since Ben didn't have much going for him in reality, with his foster parents neglecting him, high school a constant drag, etc, etc; Ben had no problem risking his life as LIBERAIDER in cyberspace to try and take what he could from Dinosaur, and expose them as much as possible on the secret hacker webpage, Killer Vapor. I would never want to give all of this incredible plot development away, but just know that Joe St. Pierre really hit it out of the park with these character origins. St. Pierre is an amazing out of the box thinker and writer who came up with something fresh that I have yet to see anywhere else in any medium.

          In regards to the artwork, it is simply top shelf. What else could one expect from a veteran of the comics industry? The attention to detail in each panel of this masterpiece just proves over and over again how much St. Pierre cares about his work, and how much fun his work is to read. The artwork sucked me right into the story almost immediately, and I was damned if I was going to put the book down before the adventure had ended. I am going to be bold here and state the truth. THE NEW ZODIAX was more exciting than anything I have read from the big two in quite some time. If you are looking for something a little different than your standard cape and cowl caper, an escape from the winter cold that delivers big fun or just an example of incredible eye candy in regards to artwork, go check out this book!! YOU WILL NOT REGRET IT!

**To purchase "THE NEW ZODIAX," go to: www.thenewzodiax.com

...and as always....

STAY VIGILANT!!!!

INDIE BOOK SPOTLIGHT: TEAM SYNERGY

INDIE BOOK SPOTLIGHT 

TEAM SYNERGY

Written and Created by: Alan Hebert Jr.

Pencils and Inks by: Scott Shriver

Flats by: Team HB Flatworks

Finished Colors and Letters by: Chris Hebert

Fonts by: Blambot

Published by: HB COMICS

Left to Right: Scatterbrain, Awesome Girl, Glitterbug and Mercedes Elisha

         The comics industry might seem like it has been trying to diversify, with both Marvel and DC showcasing strong female characters. However, it still seems like there just is not enough out there for young girls to read; and there definitely aren't many female role models to look up to. I have YET to come across an all-female team book or even many books featuring a female lead in the independent community. Who are girls going to look up to from DC, Harley Quinn? I suppose DC has it's super heroines in Wonder Woman, Batgirl, Power Girl, Super Girl, etc. DC even has a super heroine oriented cartoon, which I have heard is promising. Marvel has A-Force, Ms. Marvel, Jean Grey, Storm, Rouge, She-Hulk, Captain Marvel, Jessica Jones, Scarlet Witch, Hellcat and not much else featuring women. In regards to animation, besides that DC Super Hero Girls cartoon and the Powerpuff Girls coming back on the air, I honestly cannot think of anything decent for young girls since Sailor Moon.

          This is where the guys at HB COMICS impress me yet again. They see a demand in the market, they zone in on the gap and they fill it with grace and fortitude. The HB COMICS guys have already succeeded in creating their own comic book universe, something extremely hard to do and almost never seen in independent comics, and now they are expanding even more!! Enter: TEAM SYNERGY, the latest publication in the HB COMICS line of independent graphic novels. This brilliant title, created and written by Alan Hebert Jr., follows the origin of five super-powered cousins: Awesome Girl, Glitterbug, Hot Pink, Pinball and Scatterbrain, as they thwart their very first bank heist, or so it would seem. Upon returning home to their Granny who acts as a mentor to the girls, they learn that the bank robbers were after something, or someone else instead of the money!! Each girl represents a different high school click, sort of like The Breakfast Club, which is really cool! For example, Hot Pink is a cheerleader, Awesome Girl is a grandstanding jock, Scatterbrain is a punk rocker.

If you are looking for something new, fresh, extremely cool and safe to give to a child, boy or girl, this holiday season, look no further than TEAM SYNERGY! This book has positive role models for young girls, characters you can really get behind and root for, and amazing artwork by Scott Shriver. TEAM SYNERGY was like being sucked into a great Saturday morning cartoon, with a hint of GIRL POWER!!! In fact, I could very well see this becoming a hit animation some day!!

-Andrew Puzak, The Vigilant Geek

TO PURCHASE TEAM SYNERGY OR ANY OF THE OTHER HB COMICS TITLES, GO TO:   

www.hbcomics.com

....and as always...

STAY VIGILANT!!!

INDIE BOOK SPOTLIGHT: RETURN TO RANDER

INDIE BOOK SPOTLIGHT

RETURN TO RANDER

Return to Rander "The Lone Savior" trade paperback 

         This fresh, new, epic adventure written and drawn by Tony Sedani has been raved about in past VIGILANT GEEK book reviews. This series even took home the award for "Best Independent Story Arc 2014," in 2014's VIGILANT GEEK AWARDS, (see THE VIGILANT GEEK AWARDS 2014). The book had very strong influences from both the wild west and eastern asian, (dare I say samurai?), archetypes. The first scene of the first issue of The Lone Savior kicks off in a classic western saloon with a shady character buying a beer for a man about to meet his doom. I immediately felt like I was in the middle of an opening scene to one of Sergio Leone's classic "spaghetti westerns," except instead of the dastardly Lee Van Cleef sending the beer over to the man in peril, it was the cold, calculated Matador!

          This story arc, which is the complete brainchild of Sedani, really blew me away. It is by far the most original idea I have seen in a long time. Also, Sedani's art and writing styles have a certain ability of taking the reader out of reality and into the realm Sedani created. Will our hero find Rander some day? I am itching all over to find out in the next story arc! Buy the Return to Rander: Volume One: The Lone Savior trade paperback out now at returntorander.com

...BUT WAIT...THERE'S MORE!!!

THE RED EDGE GHOST:

             In this riveting R2R short, we get to learn a little more about the character of Sheriff Blane. As Blane revisits a spot he ritually goes to once a year upon personal reflection, a place known as "Red Edge," we see first hand what kind of a man Blane truly is, how he carries himself and what he stands for. It might have been the whiskey, or the ghost of a man Blane once knew may have fired a crucial shot from beyond the grave.. The shot that saved Blane from his mortal doom yet again.. Either way, Blane believes his life was spared for a reason, and vows that, "This will be the last of the whiskey, and I'll leave it for you three, (his deceased family members). I'll see you all next year. I got five points to protect."

Buy your Return to Rander books and get caught up on the epic tale at:

www.returntorander.com

...AND AS ALWAYS...

STAY VIGILANT!!!

THE VIGILANT GEEK PODCAST: S2: E22: THE WALKING DEAD

THE VIGILANT GEEK PODCAST

SEASON TWO: EPISODE TWENTY-TWO

THE WALKING DEAD

       Andrew Puzak and Vin Scorpion of VIGILANT GEEK

MEDIA, along with special guest, horror expert Steph

Desouza, discuss everything about THE WALKING 

DEAD, including both the t.v. series and the graphic 

novels!!

....AND AS ALWAYS....

STAY VIGILANT!!!

THE VIGILANT GEEK PODCAST: S2: E21: BEST FIGHTERS DC

THE VIGILANT GEEK PODCAST

SEASON TWO: EPISODE TWENTY-ONE

BEST FIGHTERS OF THE DC COMICS UNIVERSE

Join ANDREW PUZAK, HOLDEN ORME and VIN

 SCORPION of VIGILANT GEEK MEDIA as they go toe-to-

toe on the BEST FIGHTERS of the DC COMICS 

UNIVERSE!!!

...and as always...

                     STAY VIGILANT!!!

THE VIGILANT GEEK PODCAST: S2: E20: BEST FIGHTERS MARVEL

THE VIGILANT GEEK PODCAST

SEASON TWO: EPISODE TWENTY

BEST FIGHTERS of the MARVEL COMICS UNIVERSE

      Are you curious as to who the BEST FIGHTERS of the MARVEL COMICS UNIVERSE might be?? This VIGILANT GEEK PODCAST is for you!!! Listen in as Andrew Steven, Holden Jack Orme and Vin Scorpion pit the best fighter of Marvel against each other!!!

...AND AS ALWAYS...

STAY VIGILANT!!!

SWITCHING TO DIGITAL

By: Holden Jack Orme

I love collecting comics and have done so for years, but it is time for me to stop... Every month it seems that a new book comes out, or there is a special variant cover, or there is a big crossover event. The methods the publishers use to lure readers in are very clever and often welcome to the comic book fan. Who doesn't want to read something cool that is also a collectors item? In the end, the issue of space wins out. Humans ages 16-30 tend not to have much space to put things. Between economic hardships and lack of adult level employment, most people have tiny living conditions. My situation isn’t half as grim, however the space issue is still familiar to me. I became aware one day when I was thinking of all the books I had on my sub list. I saw the exact number because i went with an online service when my local comic store shut down and neglected to tell the customers. The number at its peak was 72 books a month, which meant i was going to average purchasing 864 books a year. Just to show the mentally ill commitment  I have to be a Vigilant Geek. This was just too many books, and the thought of that many every year for the rest of my life had me freaked out. Thankfully, I can quit collecting the books and still be able to read them. The whole practice of collecting has to stop. Between Funko Pops and comics, I'm on track to become one of those dick heads you read about that was buried alive beneath his precious collection. Well, no longer! From now on I'm going to focus my energy on picking up my books digitally. Digital has its upside, with books becoming available the date of their release, and the obvious ability to save space. All you need is a decent cell phone, a laptop, or a tablet and you’ll be all set. The downside is it runs on batteries and you're screwed if you have no internet connection. Other than those issues, digital is looking good. However, this method won't be cheaper as the books cost just as much as a hard copy. Still, I cant put a price on my peace of mind at this point. I’m going digital and I will let you know how it goes....

- Holden Jack Orme, VIGILANT GEEK MEDIA analyst


..and as always...

STAY VIGILANT!!

THE VIGILANT GEEK PODCAST: S2: E19: LUKE CAGE

THE VIGILANT GEEK PODCAST

SEASON TWO: EPISODE NINETEEN

LUKE CAGE

                Andrew Puzak and Holden Orme of VIGILANT GEEK MEDIA discuss, pick apart and analyze the 

latest of MARVEL COMICS' Netflix series, LUKE CAGE. Please like our videos on youtube, (the vigilant geek),    

comment and subscribe to our channel and tune in to our weekly show!!

..and as always...

STAY VIGILANT!!!

THE VIGILANT GEEK PODCAST: S2: E18: DOCTOR STRANGE

THE VIGILANT GEEK PODCAST

SEASON TWO: EPISODE EIGHTEEN

DOCTOR STRANGE & THE M.C.U.

***SPOILER ALERT***

   VIGILANT GEEK MEDIA analysts Andrew Puzak, Holden Jack Orme and Vin Scorpion discuss current MARVEL CINEMATIC UNIVERSE continuity regarding CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR, the whereabouts of all of the INFINITY STONES and especially the recent MARVEL STUDIOS release, DOCTOR STRANGE!!!

... and as always...

STAY VIGILANT!!!

INDIE BOOK INITIATIVE: ROADHOUSE SONS

THE VIGILANT GEEK

INDIE BOOK INITIATIVE

ROADHOUSE SONS

Andrew Puzak of VIGILANT GEEK MEDIA provides an in-depth review of the ROADHOUSE SONS graphic novels DANGEROUS GAMBLES and RENEGADE. ENJOY!!

TO PURCHASE ANY OF THE ROADHOUSE SONS BOOKS, GO TO:

www.roadhousesons.com

...AND AS ALWAYS

STAY VIGILANT!!!

INDIE BOOK SPOTLIGHT: VINDICATION

INDIE BOOK SPOTLIGHT:

VINDICATION

STORY: Chris Hebert and Alan Hebert Jr.

WRITTEN, CREATED and LETTERED BY: Chris Hebert

PENCILS AND INKS: Daniel White

COLORS: Team HB

FONTS: Blambot

         Who in their right mind doesn't love superhero team-ups? Chris Hebert and Alan Hebert Jr. have delivered exactly that. However, this is no ordinary team-up. Most superhero teams, such as the X-Men or the Justice League, meet, train, learn how to work together and then go off and fight their adversaries as a well-organized strike team with grace and fortitude. These four misfit heroes on the other hand, had no knowledge of each other until they were all captured by a mysterious foe and his cybernetic resources. As we join Surge, Pitchshift, Imogen and Speedfire while they are in captivity, the reader gets a small glimpse of how each hero found him or herself in this predicament, and in turn, the reader gets to know a little about each character and their meta-human abilities. For instance, Surge has the ability to absorb immense quantities of energy, Pitchshift can manipulate and focus sound waves, Imogen has the ability to command powerfully-concentrated beams of light and Speedfire can travel at unmatched speeds as well as generate and manipulate fire. This HB COMICS title has a ton to offer, including an incredible plot, stellar artwork and intriguing dialogue. DO NOT MISS VINDICATION!!!!

BUY VINDICATION @ www.hbcomics.com

... AND AS ALWAYS...

STAY VIGILANT!!!