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Post by thwhtguardian on Sept 6, 2018 22:00:54 GMT -5
I'm glad you're loving the series, and everything you've said is spot on! What elevates this above the other cross overs like Star Trek and GL is that it's clear the team really put some serious care into the work. Sure, it's a cash grab like any cross property book with the impetus simply being property A draws X amount of readers every month and property B draws y amount of readers so if you put them together then you draw more than either does alone, but in this case they actually picked a competent team who decided to use the premise to tell an actual story. I suspect Boom! had less pressure and restrictions placed upon them for the Tarzan and Kong crossovers because neither were established, tightly-controlled franchises with firm boundaries like Trek and Green Lantern are. People aren't going to mind as much if you take a risk with Tarzan or Kong because the franchises aren't financial windfalls these days. They are HUNGRY for change. I think that's why those were the more quality stories: there was more creative freedom. Less oversight and less pressure no doubt aid any project but I think in addition to that is perhaps the greater sales incentive as well. Boom publishes both properties so they don't have to share any profits like they no doubt did with Star Trek and DC; so perhaps with seeing that they get most of the pie instead of just a piece maybe they went in for spending on a better creative team and got themselves a better product because of it. Perhaps that's cynical reasoning on my part, but anyway you slice it I'm glad it happened as it was a good book. |
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Sept 7, 2018 5:26:45 GMT -5
I suspect Boom! had less pressure and restrictions placed upon them for the Tarzan and Kong crossovers because neither were established, tightly-controlled franchises with firm boundaries like Trek and Green Lantern are. People aren't going to mind as much if you take a risk with Tarzan or Kong because the franchises aren't financial windfalls these days. They are HUNGRY for change. I think that's why those were the more quality stories: there was more creative freedom. Less oversight and less pressure no doubt aid any project but I think in addition to that is perhaps the greater sales incentive as well. Boom publishes both properties so they don't have to share any profits like they no doubt did with Star Trek and DC; so perhaps with seeing that they get most of the pie instead of just a piece maybe they went in for spending on a better creative team and got themselves a better product because of it. Perhaps that's cynical reasoning on my part, but anyway you slice it I'm glad it happened as it was a good book. Well Boom! had to coordinate licensing with Fox. Not a comic publisher, so i have no idea whether this was more financially promising a project for them or not. it does, however, mean they were free to pick their own team instead of having to mutually agree. |
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Post by brutalis on Sept 7, 2018 7:41:41 GMT -5
You are lucky to have it all in shot to read through. Imagine my anguish each month waiting for the new issue to be on the racks and then going back and reading each issue(s) that came before. Intentionally I have put the series aside at the moment during the hot summer to wash away acute memories of it and plan to read the entire thing in one sitting during Halloween when I am taking a week off. Even with books I pull from my LCS (a rare thing for me these days), I wait until I have all parts of a storyline before reading. I HATE forgetting details from month to month. I can manage waiting with most comic books these days but when I come across something so tasty and delicious as the Kong/POA I very quickly return to teen-age me who would buy his comics at the neighborhood convenience store and have to read it as I walked home. Yes I am a geek. Sue me  |
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Post by Deleted on Sept 7, 2018 16:47:11 GMT -5
Shaxper -- I just got the six parts Kong/The Planet of the Apes set and I'm planning on reading it later; but first of all the artwork is spectacularly gorgeous and this is one of those rare modern comics that I really enjoyed seeing. The pencilling was superb and the colors just POP!
I'm going to read it tomorrow and focus on that and let you know how I felt about the story itself.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 8, 2018 5:08:25 GMT -5
Kong/The Planet of the Apes shaxper -- This six part comic book series showcasing Kong and the Planet of the Apes is truly a masterpiece and I just glanced all six books and read the 1st one and I had great difficulty doing so because the art is not short of spectacular and it's totally breathtaking and it's one of those Modern Comics that I truly enjoy looking at. The writing is excellent and done by Ryan Ferrier and Illustrator Carlos Magno. Ferrier captured the magic just as Magno did a terrific job illustrating it and got the dynamic of powerful Kong and the essence of the Planet of the Apes. I'm not familiar with Ferrier's work and I'll probably re-read your reviews again and hopefully it will help me to gauge and understand the writing and the style of Ryan Ferrier. My 1st impression is he really nailed the concept of the Planet of the Apes and most importantly he really understand who is Kong really is. This is a real first class book and done with class.
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Post by tarkintino on Sept 9, 2018 16:57:51 GMT -5
This series is generally considered to take place along the same continuity of the other Apes films, though I would argue that it cannot for two simple reasons: 1. We see dogs in at least two episodes of the series (episodes 1 and 5), but all house pets were wiped out by disease prior to the 1990s in the original Apes series. True, but like other details of events in the POTA chronology, can anyone be sure that a disease from the 1990s would be a problem several centuries later? Or did not kill all members and sub-groups of felines or canines? Really, after decades of being a POTA fan, I found the idea of a disease that only affects cats and dogs was...unusual to say the least. I cannot recall if Jerry Pournelle's Escape or John Jakes' Conquest novelization explored the cause of the disease, but only being lethal to conveniently domesticated companions of humans was....convenient (as giving a reason for humans taking on apes as pets). Okay, the difference here is that Central City was located in California, instead of the Ape City of the first two films. Moreover, we are never told that POTA/BTPOTA's Ape city was the only one in existence, and for that matter, why would it be, since we can assume the original timeline ape revolt was not limited to the Eastern Seaboard of America, but communities, or cites scattered across the land. One big detail in POTA-TV's favor is the California setting, which it shares with the last three POTA movies, particularly Battle, where Caesar established his kingdom. Oh, I think the TV series--from the setting in California, to the steady decline seen in human behavior / apes' treatment of humans being the natural outgrowth of both Caesar's reign and the Lawgiver wraparound from Battle) was deliberate, for the practical need of speaking, somewhat intelligent human characters instead of one astronaut (or in this case, two) and a pile of near-mindless savages. |
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Post by Deleted on Sept 13, 2018 6:39:23 GMT -5
shaxper -- The KONG/PLANET of APE - I just gone through all the books and found the art is very impressive and most of all the story is quite exceptional and they did it in a sense of treating KONG correctly. I'm not familiar with the PLANET of APE but I do enjoyed the book itself and all six of them done tastefully, with the right flow of action, drama, and most of all it's has some human elements to be explored as the stories unfold to you. Anyway, this is a class undertaking and I agree that this series of you graded A++ on the average is a honest grade that you've given to it. I truly enjoyed it very much and I your reviews helped me understand the stories better.
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Post by shaxper on Sept 16, 2018 14:34:54 GMT -5
Kong on the Planet of the Apes #5 (2018)  Script: Ryan Ferrier Pencils: Carlos Magno Inks: Carlos Magno Colors: Alex Guimaraes Letters: Ed Dukeshire grade: A- As I had feared, the brilliant character studies and moral explorations all fall by the wayside in service of the larger plot as we move towards the conclusion of this series. Whereas everything felt so meticulously considered before, now entire plot points get wiped away, abandoned, or jump in strange new directions without any kind of warning nor explanation:  It feels every bit as clumsy as so many second rate Apes stories that came before it. Nevertheless, there are some truly positive qualities to this installment. The first is Magno's art, which continues to rock my world and, in this case, gives us an eerily sympathetic view of Ursus. We know what he's doing is wrong, but damn if he doesn't look cool doing it. Magno seems to invite us to understand the allure of Ursus' might-makes-right perspective in these moments -- something no one has ever done with the character nor his imitators before:    The other positive quality is the surprise twist at the end. While this seems a little formulaic and intended as fan-service, it's still damn fun to see this particular big reveal:  Only one other POTA story has ever attempted to explain how Milo exhumed Taylor's spaceship and got it working again by the time of Escape From The Planet of the Apes, so I'm very curious to see if Ryan Ferrier can do a more convincing job next issue. Still, this is a far more shallow promise than that of the deep characterization and moral consideration with which Ferrier was whetting my appetite early on in this series. I'm more than a little disappointed that I can't have my cake and eat it too. Plot synopsis: Ursus and troops easily quell the dinosaur stampede, Kong breaks out when he sees the humans being threatened by overly zealous gorillas, and the gorillas chase Kong off (who is now accompanied by Ni-Ta). Meanwhile, Zaius is now automatically being blamed for all of this and flees with Cornelius in search of Zira outside of the city. And Milo is on the cusp of discovering Taylor's lost spaceship beneath the ocean. |
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Post by shaxper on Sept 16, 2018 15:25:03 GMT -5
Kong on the Planet of the Apes #6 (2018)  Script: Ryan Ferrier Pencils: Carlos Magno Inks: Carlos Magno Colors: Alex Guimaraes Letters: Ed Dukeshire grade: D+ Truly, all I want to say about this issue is, "What the hell did I just read?" Literally every character arc established in the first three issues is utterly abandoned by the close, Kong's existence ends up having no real impact upon the residents of Ape City at all, and somehow his death in the Forbidden Zone inexplicably inspires the mutants from the second film towards...something. And none of it really reconciles with the second film either. Surely, some of these events would have been alluded to in that film if they had occurred as depicted here. Oh, and we never do get any kind of explanation about how Milo restored Taylor's spaceship. What a tease! Even Magno's art was a little less memorable this time around and occasionally a bit unclear. Really, the only moment in this issue that I found at all worthwhile was this little speech Ferrier lends to Ursus which (once again) makes his perspective surprisingly alluring:  It can be refuted in roughly half a second, but for that one half second it sure made sense. As for the rest...meh. Such a disappointment to start a series with such promise and end it like this. Plot synopsis: Ursus and his men nearly kill Kong and Ni-Ta after everyone tries to talk Ursus out of it, Kong and Ni-Ta flee to the Forbidden Zone, Milo finds the spaceship, and the mutants find Kong dying and decide he is an affirmation of their belief in the bomb. |
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Post by shaxper on Sept 16, 2018 15:30:34 GMT -5
Summary of Kong on the Planet of the Apes (Boom!)
(2017-2018)
Overview: Immediately after the events of the first film, a dead Queen Kong is found washed up on the shores near Ape City. Ape City is in a crisis of faith following the events of the first film, and so an excursion to Skull Island in search of the truth about the over-sized ape seems like a means of arriving at easy spiritual answers. They bring a King Kong back, but Ursus' quest for power quickly leads to the inevitable.
Worthwhile To Read?: Breath-taking artwork, and an incredibly powerfully written first three issues, but it all falls into a meaningless and somewhat nonsensical resolution by the close.
Key Issues/Highlights?: The second issue is the best showcase of Magnos' artwork, IMO.
Worth Re-Reading?: Probably not. It started so well, but ultimately went nowhere.
This volumes includes: Kong on the Planet of the Apes #1-6
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Post by brutalis on Sept 17, 2018 8:20:07 GMT -5
Yeah, this one could have used a few more issues I think to tie up issues and concepts. They had so much to start off with and then like many a comic book the ending came up rushed and unfulfilled. Is this blame on the writers or editors I wonder? Makes you wonder how much of a vacuum these kinds of series are done in? Did they pitch an amazing concept and then got lost? Did they have a strong beginning and an ending designed but unable to connect/rationalize the 2 together? Personally I can go back and read this one again shaxper every so often. The artwork alone is worth the read over and there is enough in the initial writing to have me want to check it out once more or twice or thrice more. A regular read not so much but for certain it is worthwhile reading again more than many of the current monthly big two stuff. This is great rainy day reading with an Apes or Kong movie running on the television  |
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Post by Deleted on Sept 17, 2018 9:30:34 GMT -5
I say this, the first four issues were exceptionally good and the last two were good -- but in terms of stories was slightly better than average. Artwork is fabulous and I would look it over again just by the art alone and that something worth noting for.
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Post by shaxper on Sept 17, 2018 10:24:28 GMT -5
Personally I can go back and read this one again shaxper every so often. The artwork alone is worth the read over and there is enough in the initial writing to have me want to check it out once more or twice or thrice more. A regular read not so much but for certain it is worthwhile reading again more than many of the current monthly big two stuff. This is great rainy day reading with an Apes or Kong movie running on the television Fair enough. I look at it in comparison to the larger body of POTA works. Does it do anything to stand out from the crowd? Mango's art is worthwhile, but Ferrier's writing ultimately isn't. I'd much rather revisit Moench, Ploog, and Sutton's work in the Curtis magazines or several other earlier POTA series than retread this one. |
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Post by brutalis on Sept 17, 2018 10:45:06 GMT -5
Personally I can go back and read this one again shaxper every so often. The artwork alone is worth the read over and there is enough in the initial writing to have me want to check it out once more or twice or thrice more. A regular read not so much but for certain it is worthwhile reading again more than many of the current monthly big two stuff. This is great rainy day reading with an Apes or Kong movie running on the television Fair enough. I look at it in comparison to the larger body of POTA works. Does it do anything to stand out from the crowd? Mango's art is worthwhile, but Ferrier's writing ultimately isn't. I'd much rather revisit Moench, Ploog, and Sutton's work in the Curtis magazines or several other earlier POTA series than retread this one. Agree with you but since I (and many others) cannot afford the original or reprinted Curtis magazines I will make do with any current finds I can get. What about the future? Will any of the current Apes comics fall under the "classic" heading in 10 to 20 years? I think Kong/POA stands a stronger chance of being well liked and remembered fondly than Apes/GL or Apes/Trek... |
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Post by shaxper on Sept 17, 2018 19:44:58 GMT -5
What about the future? Will any of the current Apes comics fall under the "classic" heading in 10 to 20 years? I think Kong/POA stands a stronger chance of being well liked and remembered fondly than Apes/GL or Apes/Trek... Well that's setting the bar insultingly low. To get a truly classic POTA series, the furthest you really need to go back is to 2005's Revolution on the Planet of the Apes. And, while Planet of the Apes (2011) wasn't as thoroughly to my liking, it was still a far stronger effort than anything Boom! has produced since. And, for what it's worth, I got most of the Curtis mags for $4 a piece. Roughly the same as the cost of a new comic book. You can't always find them at that price, but I've seen many others with similar luck on the POTA facebook pages. They are out there and often undervalued. |
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