Sand Land Written and Drawn by Akira Toriyama Published by Viz Read in digital format on Amazon Kindle
The Skinny: Akira Toriyama’s “Mad Max”
With a major adaptation of Akira Toriyama’s short manga Sand Land set to be adapted into a video game this spring, I finally decided to fill a hole in my collection of the great manga artist, and I’m glad I did. This single-volume adventure is a charming delight. Originally published in 2001, the single volume is set in a post-apocalyptic Earth where the remaining survivors live in a desert ruled over by a despotic king with control over the dwindling water supply. When the elderly Sheriff Rao embarks on a dangerous journey across the desert, he makes a deal with the demons for help, promising them not his soul, but a rare Playstation 6 video game console. Beelzebub, an apparently adolescent prince of the demons agrees to accompany him along with his servant, Thief. The resulting adventures is a little bit ‘Fist ‘of the North Star,’ a little bit ‘Peewee’s Big Adventure,’ and it oozes Toriyama’s signature humor and charm. From a stolen tank in Toriyama’s signature bulbous design style to a family of bandits dressed as olympic swimmers, this version of the post-apocalypse doesn’t take itself too seriously, while still managing to have a hard-hitting, emotional story at its heart. While not as long-running or complex as some of his earlier work, Sand Land displays all of the skill and humor that Toriyama is known for but sometimes gets lost amid the big fights and drama of his best-known work. It is a work created by a master given the opportunity to just play without the demands of continuity to previous works. The result is a book that is as joyful as it is dramatic, a satire and critique of hyper-masculine action-zests like Mad Max and Fist of the North Star, and an empathetic post-apocalypse where even the demons aren’t bad guys at heart. I’m greatly looking forward to the upcoming video game adaptation of this story, coming this spring for PC and Playstation. Even if you don’t have any interest, I recommend picking up this heartwarming story about survival and justice after the end of the world. You can read Sand Land digitally from Viz and other comics retailers, or in print from your Local Comic Shop or wherever you buy manga.
Hello Readers! Welcome to The Way of the Buffalo, my new weekly roundup newsletter! If you are receiving this via email, it is because you’ve subscribed to my WordPress blog, and they have rolled out email integration. My plan going forward will be to continue blogging during the week, with a digest post on Saturdays with links to the individual posts. I’ll also be including announcements, links, and other thoughts here, with a bonus piece of flash fiction or a serialized story at the end. Thanks for reading!
This Week in Reviews: Since it was Valentine’s Day, this week’s reviews were romantic. I hope you had a good week, wether or not you were spending it with someone.
This was one of my favorite novels from last year, and the narrator crushed it for the audiobook version.
This week’s fiction – “Captcha”
Click on all the images that contain crabs, the computer instructed. I stared at the collection of underwater creatures, choosing the images. My mouse hovered over the last decapod as I considered the features of the creature in the image. It looked like a crab. I clicked on it, and hit ‘submit.’ A dialog box cheerfully informed me that I had failed the security captcha, and that my login would be locked for the next hour. I sighed and closed my laptop. Not for the first time, I was a victim of carcinization. The squat lobsters had gotten me again.
The Skinny: Let’s Make a Deal: Victorian Fey Edition
Deri is an apprentice in the Untermarcht, the goblin market hidden beneath London where anything is for sale for the right price, and no one takes anything so prosaic as coin. Well, not so much an apprentice as an indentured servant to one of the most powerful and cruel fairy merchants. But he’s picked up a few tricks, and he has a plan to buy his freedom. But his plans are all derailed when meets Owain, a young man also laboring under an indenture in a dangerous workhouse in London above. In order to get the guy and escape their bondholders with both their skins intact, Deri is going to have to make the deal of a lifetime. Fortunately, a runaway princess has appeared in the Untermarcht with a destiny to sell… A Market of Dreams and Destiny is a charming fantasy novel set in a very different Victorian London. In a world where King Henry VIII struck a deal with the old gods of the British Isles, the city is filled with mercantile magic with a deadly edge. Galey’s characters spring to life against a strange world where the uncanny is hidden in the fine print, and the loopholes can very literally bind you. The magic system of contracts and deals was delightful and surprising, and it meshed well with the delightful and engaging cast of quick-thinking merchants, greedy factory owners, and put-upon royal bodyguards. The magic elevates the characters from what could’ve been twee Dickensian cliches to fleshed out and engaging players in a gripping drama. But the real charm in this fantasy is the sweet and charming gay romance between Deri and Owain. Not without its complications, this was the best romance I’ve read in some time. I was glad that Trip didn’t shy away from just the right hint of spice and salacious implication. It felt much more well-rounded and believable for it. I listened to this book in audio. The audiobook, read by Will Watt, is a delight. Watt breathes life into the cast and setting, from the tiniest bell to the terrifying merchant lords of the market. A Market of Dreams and Destiny is one of last year’s best fantasies, but has fallen slightly under the radar. This hidden gem is well worth your time. It is available in Audio, print, and ebook from the usual sources.
The Resurrection of Magneto #1 Written by Al Ewing Drawn by Luciano Vecchio Colored by David Curiel Lettered by VC’s Joe Sabino Published by Marvel Comics
The Skinny: Spoiler alert for issue four, I guess. (Also spoilers for Judgement Day)
In Big-2 comics, no character death is forever. Characters get endings, but the nature of serialized storytelling, and Marvel and DC’s highly valuable intellectual property, means that characters move in cycles rather than linear paths, and their stories come around again, through reboots or retcons. As Marvel’s Fall of X enters its finale, The Resurrection of Magneto is writer Al Ewing and artist Luciano Vecchio’s swan song with these characters, and this is by far my favorite book of the final chapter of the X-Men’s Krakoan era. While Magneto’s name is on the event, this issue is focused with laser precision on Storm, following her as she makes the decision to bring Magneto back to life in violation of his last wishes. But while usually resurrecting an X-character is easily accomplished, and in the current era more than most, Storm and Magneto had vowed to forego the chance to return to life, even destroying their ‘backups.’ So instead, Storm has to travel into the afterlife and go get him. She’s assisted by a brief cameo from the Blue Marvel, star of Ewing’s most recent Defenders series, and the ensuing magical journey is filled with symbolic battles and eye-catching, tarot inspired spreads. And let me tell you, Vecchio and Curiel kill it with the art. This is a drop-dead gorgeous book, from the opening panel of Magneto as the 5 of cups from the Rider-Whyte tarot to a climactic battle with a surprising but cool villain, this book hits all the Storm notes, and while it may feel a little bit like it’s going in the same circles, it feels pretty fitting for the end of the era. Magneto’s death was one of the most impressive moments in recent comics history, and is that rare earned ending that characters get so rarely in modern comics. Ewing and Vecchio have their work cut out for them making his journey back to the land of the living as momentous as his end. But this new first issue is a good first step. I can’t wait to see where the journey ends up. The Resurrection of Magneto #1 is available digitally from the usual suspects, and in print at your local comics shop.
If his long-running webtoon Lavender Jack proved anything, it was that Dan Schkade knows how golden-age comics work, and how to take everything that’s great about them and present them for a modern audience. Long-since relegated to reruns, Schkade brings us into his new take on the classic hero in medias res, as we follow the Earthman on an exciting attack on Ming the Merciless that is equal parts rescue and climactic final battle. But when the smoke clears and Ming is seemingly defeated, what happens next? Following a classic newspaper serial format of six short comics and one full page a week, Schkade’s writing is thrilling without getting bogged down or getting confusing by the format, and his art is kinetic and clear in an incredibly tight space. The launch is only a couple of months old, so if you’ve ever been curious about this classic character but hesitant to pick up the originals, this is a fantastic place to start.
Birds of Prey Written by Kelly Thompson Drawn by Leonardo Romero Colored by Jordie Bellaire Lettered by Clayton Cowles Published by DC Comics
Comics are all about reinvention, and this classic team on DC’s super-heroines is getting the band back together in the wake of 2020’s Birds of Prey feature film. Reinventing the team as less of a group of superheroes and more of a heist is always a compelling choice for me, and it puts classic leader Black Canary in an interesting and fun position. The dynamic for the team is fun and explosive, and the requisite inclusion of DC’s breakout star Harley Quinn is well-handled and feels natural. The rest of the team is made up of fun fan-favorites who rarely get their on spotlights like Batgirl (Cassandra Cain) and Big Barda, which is icing on a cool superhero cake.
Hawkgirl Written by Jadzia Axelrod Drawn by Amancay Nahuelpan Colored by Adriano Lucas Lettered by Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou Published by DC Comics
This one is a gimme for my list. Hawkgirl isn’t a character I’m very familiar with, aside from a similar character from the early-00’s Justice League cartoon. Rising star Jadzia Axelrod clearly knows her stuff, though, and tells a compelling and satisfying story in six short issues. Accompanied by her own hit creation Galaxy, who debuted in a graphic novel in 2022, this is a showcase of cool high concepts and character-defining moments, delivered with the force of a superhero diving through a skylight. This is how you do legacy right, stitching character around (and sometimes through) established history while making something new and exciting. This was a six-issue mini, but I hope we see more of these characters (and this creative team) in the future. I could’ve read thirty issues, easy!
Fantastic Four Written by Ryan North Drawn by Iban Coello Colored by Jesus Aburtov Lettered by Joe Caramagna Published by Marvel Comics
I will admit that of all of the various Marvel characters and teams, The Fantastic Four has always ranked near the bottom, personally. They have a fun cohesive design, and smarter writers than I have written about how cleanly their debut marks the end of the Golden Age and the rise of the Silver Age. But aside from The Thing, I’ve never really cared much for them. They feel a bit too rooted in their time and place of creation, products of the Cold War, a nuclear family for the nuclear age. They’ve never really caught with me, and Mr. Fantastic in particular has always struck me as being a cliched relic, a Man of Science accompanied by his literally invisible housewife. But Ryan North has managed to find the great in these characters by driving them out of their secure and comfortable Manhattan skyscraper and sending them out on a trip across the country. As an X-Men fan, making your heroes pariahs is always going to be a step in the right direction for me, and giving them some meaty super-science problems to tackle outside of the mad scientist of the week has done wonders. This is going to be a run for the ages, and it’s (hopefully) just getting started. This is North’s Squirrel Girl writing all grown up.
X-Men Red Written by Al Ewing Drawn by Stefano Caselli, Jacopo Camagni, and Yildiray Cinar Colored by Federico Blee Lettered by Ariana Maher
It was difficult to choose just one X-book to put on this list, but X-Men Red takes the edge in terms of drama, scope, and shout out loud superhero moments. X-Men books are all about being outsiders, but what could be more outsider than an ancient civilization of super-powered beings finally trying to learn how to be at peace after milllenia of war? Marvel has a collection of these types of hidden civilizations, most of which came from the Fantastic Four’s rogues gallery, in fact. But the Araki have something a bit extra that groups like the Atlanteans and the Inhumans just don’t have going for them. Ewing knows his stuff and brings it to the table. It helps that we aren’t really supposed to be sure where we stand with the Araki, with their strange powers and alien morality. But where Blackbolt and his kin feel like plantation owners, perpetually ruling over an underclass they don’t view as human, the Araki are Klingons, strange and difficult, but with a refined sense of honor that can be tested. Having characters like Storm and Sunspot to bounce against them, forming rivalries and friendships, helps. That the strange warlords, who felt like they might invade Earth at any moment felt like they were also on their own back foot, from antagonists like Uranos and Genesis helped immensely as well.
Birds of Prey #1 Written by Kelly Thompson Drawn by Leonardo Romero Colored by Jordie Bellaire Lettered by Clayton Cowles Published by DC Comics
The Skinny: A bold and intriguing first step for a brand new team. Plus Harley Quinn is also here.
Birds of Prey #1 by Kelly Thompson and (artist) is a delightful first issue for a new team book, and like many such books, the first issue is mostly centered around getting the team together. it’s a bit of a whirlwind tour of the DC Universe as Black Canary gathers a team for a dangerous mission to save her adopted sister. There’s lots of action while most of the plot is teased at as being off the page for now. The hook, and the engaging characters, keep the pace going. The team is one of contrasts, with Dinah not having her first pick of DC’s usual heroes. It’s a fun mix of characters that is appealing to long-time fans as well as newcomers such as myself. I never knew I wanted a scene of Cassandra Cain Batgirl and Big Barda fighting 4th World vampires, but it sings on the page. Harley Quinn is the anchor of the team in what feels like editorial reasons, but Thompson turns the unlikely recruitment around in an interesting way that builds up the characters.The art is the real MVP on this book. Romero delivers a clean, heavy-lined style that makes the action easy to follow, with a drop-dead gorgeous splash page early in the issue that I will not spoil. Along with Bellaire’s bold, solid colors, the art has a classic DC style to it that is very appealing. If they added some dot printing, it would feel like this book could have been picked up off a spinner rack in the ’70s or ’80s.This is still an early book, but this first issue delivers with a fun premise, an intriguing mystery, and a last-page reveal that made me shout out loud. I’m placing a large bet that this is going to be the DC book to watch going into the next year, and it is entirely my jam. I heartily recommend you pick up a copy from your local comics shop, or check it out digitally wherever you get your comics.
Bad Writer Developed & Published by Riddle Fox Games Available for PC and Nintendo Switch Played on Nintendo Switch
The Skinny: The Waiting Game (abbreviated) Created by one-man studio Riddle Fox Games, Bad Writer is a short game about short stories. This bite-sized pixelated story puts players in the shoes of Emily, an unemployed writer who sets out to follow her dreams of becoming a published author. Players will have a month to guide the character on the path to traditional publication. If she doesn’t get some sales, or becomes too depressed, she’ll go back to her old job and give up on her dreams forever.This simple, charming game only takes about a half an hour from start to finish and is laid out like Harvest Moon or Stardew Valley. The only stat players will have to manage is Emily’s happiness, which goes up when she talks to her wife or cat, or succeeds in her goals. It goes down when she gets a rejection or doesn’t write. If the gauge reaches zero, it’s game over.While simple and short, Bad Writer is very faithful to the life of a full-time author, and realistic in its depiction of the actual success rate of traditional submissions, even if it fast forwards through the actual writing and editing parts. It’s a wonderful, chill little gem to play if you want to learn what the writing life is like, or just want to procrastinate for an hour from your own writing.
Chainsaw Man Volume 1: Dog and Chainsaw Written & Drawn by Tatsuki Fujimoto Published by Viz Media
The Skinny: Three chainsaws and one brain cell.
Chainsaw Man is a delight of a manga that is taking the world by storm, and I can see why. It follows Denji, a young man saddled by the Yakuza with his father’s debts. Forced to pay an impossible sum, Denji’s only companion and source of income is his pet Pochita, a dog-like devil with a chainsaw for a snout. Denji uses his monster pup to hunt other demons for cash. But when his yakuza debtors turn on him, Pochita sacrifices itself, merging with Denji to make him the eponymous Chainsaw Man, a powerful combination of human and devil.Chainsaw Man is one of those manga that sits squarely in the Venn diagram of a number of genres. It isn’t quite a horror comic, and it has a lot of comedic elements, and Denji sort of, but doesn’t quite fit into a superhero mould. The book sits somewhere uncomfortably between all three genres, allowing the tension of that placement to drive the story.In a world where devils walk the Earth, this is the type of story that examines the humanity, or lack thereof, of its characters. From the abusive Yakuza who hounded Denji’s father to suicide to his new boss Makijima, who threatens to have Denji executed if he doesn’t produce results, the humans take advantage of Denji’s situation as a half-devil for their own ends, leaving him to suffer. But Denji isn’t without flaws himself, as he uses his newfound freedom to support his one goal in life: To ever touch a boob. Largely the inhumanity of these characters is played for laughs or pathos rather than as a serious societal critique. Denji is a character raised outside of civilization, and becomes a lens to view civilization’s flaws, ramped up to eleven by the threat of marauding devils. Denji himself is so simple that he is played as a sort of a noble savage, alongside zombie-like devil girl Power. In other situations, this could be very uncomfortable, but Fujimoto pulls the trick off, for the most part. Fujimoto’s art is detailed, and often grotesque without being overly complex or difficult to read. I read the manga on my tablet, and it came through very legibly, and is easy to follow. His monster designs are clever and unexpected, and manage to never cross the line into being too gross. Part horror reflecting man’s inhumanity to man, part workplace comedy, part gristly spectacle, Chainsaw Man walks a thin line, but the fresh writing and fast pace propel it along fast enough that it never falls into any pits. If you’re looking for something new to read, it’s well worth your time.
Legends and Lattes Written by Travis Baldree Audiobook read by Travis Baldree
The Skinny: What if the Coffee shop A. U. was the story?
Viv is a barbarian warrior ready to get out of the mercenary’s life. But before she hangs up her greatsword for good, she needs a plan. Fortunately, she has two things going for her: A lucky, if gross charm in the Skalvert Stone, a sort of a magical bezoar she takes from the skull of a monstrous giant insect. Trophy in hand, she travels to the town of Thune, following the ley lines to the place where she’ll start her new life: Opening a coffee shop. Unfortunately, there are a few hurdles for her to overcome, including the local organized crime boss, the fact that nobody in town has even heard of coffee before, and her prime location is in fact an abandoned livery. But with the help of some new friends, and the occasional assistance of her former adventuring party, she’ll give her new life a go. Legends and Lattes is the coziest of cozy fantasy stories. Not so much a tale of adventure and blood, but of steam and baking. There is some tension as Viv attempts to break from her old life and settle into the new one, but most of this audiobook’s six-hour run time is more concerned with the day-to-day running of the shop than fighting monsters or fantasy politics. It’s clear that these things are all going on somewhere, but this story is all about the beans. As a professional narrator, Baldree does an outstanding job reading, and the text feels right as an audiobook. His voices for the characters feel distinctive without becoming forced, which is no mean feat as a male actor reading a book with two female leads. While the story was engaging and satisfying, It did feel a bit on the short side to me. We get an eclectic cast of characters, both from Viv’s old life and her new one, but they are mostly supporting Viv. It would have been nice to have spent more time with Cal, Thimble, Tandry and the rest of the supporting cast. Also, this is a romance, but a very fluffy one. It doesn’t go much farther than awkward stammering and acknowledged feelings. I would have liked it to have been more, well, steamier. Legends and Lattes is a +5 cozy little story that is sure to warm your heart like a warm cup of coffee on a cold winter’s morning. It is available as an audiobook, print or ebook from the usual locations.
Revenant: Star Trek Deep Space Nine Written by Alex White Audiobook read by Robert Petkoff Published by Simon & Schuster Audio
The Skinny: A thrilling and thought-provoking stand-alone story set in the middle of a sci-fi classic. Revenant by Alex White is an excellent reintroduction to the world of Star Trek Deep Space Nine. Set midway through the series, it follows one crewmember, Jadzia Dax, as she delves into a mystery concerning her own past. Dax is actually, technically speaking, two people in one. The humanoid Trill Jadzia and Dax, a long-lived symbiotic creature that is surgically implanted. The symbionts are implanted in the best and brightest of Trill society and can remember their hosts’ lives with such clarity that they are effectively a gestalt, granting their hosts lifetimes of experience. But when an old friend of both herself and Dax’s previous host comes to her with a problem, Dax becomes trapped in a conspiracy that stretches through lifetimes, and the highest echelons of their society. White does an excellent job of telling a fascinating science-fiction mystery that delicately balances introducing the story to new readers and giving sly nods to long-time fans. This is no mean feat for a series that has been off the air for over two decades. They pull the trick off by not merely presenting the characters who flit in and out of the story but establishing the characters from Dax’s point of view. As in their excellent Salvagers series, White balances character development and world-building to fill out their universes with style and panache. From the gaming tables of an alien casino to the tunnels beneath a sinister hospital, these don’t feel like a TV soundstage, but a living, breathing universe. As someone who fell off of Star Trek midway through the series, I felt like I got just enough of the characters to be reminded of who they were, and managed to catch a few of the winks directed to long-time fans. I listened to this book in audio, and narrator Robert Petkoff does a good job. The performance is not over-produced and doesn’t distract from the story. It was an exciting, fast-paced read as Jadzia and her allies delve into Dax’s past and uncover an imaginative sci-fi conspiracy. If you are completely uninvested in the series, this book probably won’t be what changes your mind. But as a former fan who hasn’t seen the series in decades, Revenant lit a nostalgic fire in my heart. You can find it wherever books and audiobooks are sold.
Hugh J. O'Donnell 