Reviewed by Marc Mason

Three new ones that have arrived in the post recently…

MERMIN #3 (Tragic Planet) is the latest in writer/artist Joey Weiser’s new minicomic series. The story of a young… well, Mer-man… that has left his undersea home and moved into a suburban neighborhood and befriended the local kids, MERMIN has balanced humor and absurdity through its first two issues. However, issue three takes a different step, raising the actual stakes for Mermin and throwing an intense action sequence into the mix. The ending is actually quite a stunner, proving that you still don’t quite have a full grasp of what is happening in this series yet and that Weiser intends to keep you on your toes. Like the first two issues, this is a terrific effort, and money well spent.

Z-BLADE XX #2 (Atomic Basement) sees writer Steve J. Palmer and artist Guy Lemay take a nice step forward in their strange hybrid take on armored superhero tropes and flat-out parody. This issue introduces us to a pair of waitresses, one of whom moonlights selling sex toys at an adult toy expo. What she doesn’t know is that one of her regular customers is Z-Blade XX in his civilian identity and he recognizes her when he winds up having to fight a bad guy at the show. Throw in a ridiculous bad guy, a wacky double date, and a sudden dark shift in tone, and you have a book that throws everything at you bit the kitchen sink. I’m not sure that the story actually works in the grander scheme, but I admire the ambition. Lemay’s art, very Grist like, is also pretty snazzy.

Finally, we have THE GHOSTS OF MARKO DARC (Atomic Basement), an anthology title written by Palmer and drawn by Lemay, Chris Dyer, and Christopher Booth. The stories revolve around a demon-slayer and all-around tough guy (the title character), his adventures, and the sub-characters that make up his world. This one isn’t quite as fully formed as Palmer’s other book; the character isn’t deeply defined, and he barely appears in the book, which puts the onus on the other elements and they just aren’t as strong. The book is also hampered by the wildly different art styles of the three guys that did the work. It makes Darc’s world feel inconsistent in its threat level. There’s hope and room for improvement, but right this first effort just doesn’t fly.