Comics: Time First!

BIC 0034

Illustration and Story by: Kirejan Javier

Black Ink Comics

(4/5 ★★★★☆)

"Time first muna!!!

Ito ang karaniwang sinasabi ng mga Pinoy kapag gusto nilang mag-break habang naglalaro ng mga games. Ito din ang naging title ng Pinoy Manga na tungkol sa tatlong magkakaibigan at ang kanilang everyday gaming experiences. Ang mga jokes nito ay hango mula sa sariling karanasan ng author at mula sa mga popular references at ibang ideya na galing sa internet.

PRESS START"

The Good:

The cover was really a head-turner. Personally, it was the biggest factor that made me buy this comic book from Book Sale. The illustrations were really catchy to the eye. If its intention was to get the attention of gamers, as their primary audience, well it certainly got mine.

There were a lot of nods to different games that were placed here. It also included the different misconceptions and stereotypes thrown to gamers. Such were the illustration of a guy's version of shopping and the stereotypes towards female gamers.

The most truthful thing described would be the 6 gaming logics. Most gamers, if you would observe them closely while they are playing, have these habits.

The Bad:

The explanations for the references made in each topic was good for the first time. However, it becomes annoying after it was explained once again in the succeeding pages.

The Verdict:

Very Entertaining!

This comic strips compilation would make you realize the kind of gamer you are because it speaks from the experiences and passion of a gamer.

Time First! will loosen you up as you wait for that loading bar in your gadget to finish. Anyway, that game would wait for you to finish reading this short but entertaining comic book.

So, put down that console and read this comic book!

More of the creator's works can be seen at:

Facebook: "Kir Oh"

More of Black Ink Comics can be seen at:

Facebook Page: "Black Ink"

Twitter: @BlackInkComics

Comics: Tonio Tikbalang ~ Volume 2

BIC0075
Illustration and Story by: Jake Vicente

Black Ink Comics

(5/5 ★★★★★)

"Ano sa tingin mo ang mga

problemang hinaharap ng mga

enkanto na nagpapanggap na

tao at ano ang dahilan kung

bakit nila ito ginagawa?

Sundan ang buhay-estudyante

ni Tonio, na isang batang

tikbalang, sa mundo ng mga

tao kasama ang kanyang

kaibigang kapre na si Kanto.

Isang babae ang nakasalubong

nila sa loob ng paaralan pero

iba ang pakiramdam ni Tonio sa

babaeng ito. Isa rin kaya siyang

enkanto?

Sa dami ng mga tao sa loob

ng paaralan, sino-sino kaya

ang mga enkantong

nagpapanggap lang na tao?"

The Plot:

The second volume of Tonio Tikbalang compiles chapters 4-6. The chapters are titled "Itanong mo sa Barbero", "Girl Next Classroom" and "Urband Legend" for chapters 4, 5 and 6 respectively. Chapters 4 and 5 deals with fun facts on our mythological creatures (kapres and sirenas). But in the end, all three chapters continues its job of giving stories that teaches on obedience and to not believe in a gossip unless it is proven to be true.

  

The Good:

Volume 2 of Tonio Tikbalang has an impressive look as a Filipino manga. The illustrations have improved in comparison to volume 1. Every space was adequately utilized.

Jake Vicente continues his great job in this 2nd volume of Tonio Tikbalang. The stories continue to impart good character to its readers while teaching some fun facts on our kapres and sirenas.

The Bad:

The cover looks more of a draft compared to the art inside. Both the front and back cover could use more of the art style done inside the comic book.

The Verdict:

Tonio Tikbalang's volume 2 shows how a Filipino manga would look like if it is bombarded with our locals (kapres and sirenas).

A few more of this volumes and Jake Vicente would have already given to us his own version of Doraemon stories. Instead of a bullied kid that has a cat, from the future, help him in everyday situations as they learn the basic lessons of life, Tonio Tikbalang differs in such that the Philippine mythological creatures are the ones who teaches us life's lessons on how to be a human who cares and shows respect to everyone.

A must read especially to school aged kids.

More of the creator's works can be seen at:

Facebook Page: "Estranger"

More of Black Ink Comics can be seen at:

Facebook Page: "Black Ink Comics"

Twitter: @BlackInkComics

Comics: Stray Ghost

BIC0073
Story by: Diana Lam

Illustrated by: Crisca Jallorina

Black Ink Comics
(3/5 ★★★☆☆)

"Isang matatakutin na bata...

Si Eddy ay isang batang

may kakayahang makakita

ng mga multo. At isa iyong

sumpa para sa kanya. Ngunit

nakilala niya si Rowan, isang

multo na tumulong sa kanya

nang may magtangkang

sumanib sa katawan niya.

Isang madaldal na multo...

Nais ni Rowan na hingan ng tulong

si Eddy kapalit ng pagligtas niya rito.

Ngunit tumanggi si Eddy. Kasabay

n'on ay ang sunod-sunod na suicide

attempt na nagaganap sa eskuwelahan

ni Eddy. At muli ay may gustong sumanib

sa katawan nito."

The Good:

Good story and illustrations are seen in this comic. The artist had done a good job in using each panels in telling the story.

This is an interesting tale of paranormal case, wherein a ghost is willingly, well mostly he's the one who initiates, in the investigation of the case.

The Bad:

This contains the type of layout that I don't like in a comic book.

The Verdict:

This is still a noteworthy comic from Black Ink Comics. The ending of this standalone has given way for the possibility of having another book to continue the story.

Stray Ghost gives us a good paranormal investigation type of story. A nice scare scene is found in one of the panels that involves a trash can. That sure is scary if you'll incorporate that idea with the Japanese movie "The Grudge".

More of Black Ink Comics can be seen at:

Facebook Page: "Black Ink Comics"

Twitter: @BlackInkComics

Comics: Earth 0

BIC0061
Story by: Herbs Navasca

Illustrated by: Jana Dhel

Black Ink Comics
(3/5 ★★★☆☆)

"Huwag mong hahayaan na lokohin ka nila.

Mabilis ka nilang papalitan, pilit na babaguhin.

Pero iba ka sa kanila.

Patunayan mo na iba ka.

Kahit gaano pa katagal, maghihintay ako.

Sa isang sulok ng kalawakan hanggang sa dulo ng magpakailanman.

Hindi kita buburahin sa isip ko.

Ang alaala natin ang gabay mo.

R.E.M.

14.644956, 121 003507"

The Plot:

The story takes place on Earth RR51. It centers on Sal, a human who dreams of going to Earth Z90 the newest and largest earth, and Rem, a phased-out model of a home robot who dreams of returning back to Earth 0. In  reaching their dreams, they rely on each other for the most important thing that they could give in helping one another. Trust. For how could you trust a human you just met and a robot whose batteries are dying out.

The Good:

This short story was nicely told and illustrated by Navasca and Dhel. The idea of a future wherein humans have the capability of just constructing another planet is a nice concept. Earth 0 is the one designated to be the original earth. Then we have Earth Z90 as the newest and largest earth. Tourism is planetary as Earth N44 serves as the place where all plants and animals were transferred into while Earth N56 houses replicas of the famous attractions like the pyramids of Egypt. It is a strange concept for a futuristic way of tourism.

The Bad:

The story does not give much disappointments. There's just a funny and weird set-up for the early part of the story that can be seen in two consecutive pages. The words "Later that day" and "Later that night" might work better if lunch time, evening, after 6 hours or something of the sort was used. Nevertheless, these did not hinder much in the story.

In the illustrations there were two things that I noticed. The first one was the depiction of trees in Earth Z90. I just presumed they were trees. But regardless if they were a place like a residential house, it was weirdly drawn. It's like an empty speech balloon that looked really odd, especially the ones beside the castle. The next would be the inconsistency of the drawing of the clothing of Rem as he got back to Earth 0. It appears that Rem is no longer wearing a shirt in comparison to the previous pages.

The Verdict:

Despite some of those minor things that I had seen with the illustrations, I would say that the artist had done a good job in showing to us the story about reaching our dreams. Having faith in one another and fulfilling one's promise will bring us one step closer to those dreams.

More of Black Ink Comics can be seen at:

Facebook Page: "Black Ink Comics"

Twitter: @BlackInkComics

Comics: Hands of the Dragon ~ Book 1: Rise of the Zodiac Circle

BIC0008
Story by: Jeffrey Marcelino Ong

Illustrated by: Gilbert Monsanto

Black Ink Comics
(4/5 ★★★★☆)

This is one among those first books from Black Ink Comics (BIC) that I had gotten since their launch in the previous Komikon.

The Plot:

The story is set on Dongwu, a dimension inhabited by shape-shifters that either belong to the Dark Side or the Bright Light. A race was held in order to secure peace. The safety of the 5 elements and the balance of the universe lies in the hands of the zodiac circle with Xian Long, the dragon warrior, as their leader. Things change as the balance is disturbed when Xian Long is held behind bars by Wang Zhi, leader of the lion clan. It is now up to the little dragon to save the universe from going dark.

The Good:

The story and the plot are nicely told. It is another retelling of the origin of the zodiac signs. The illustrations were also great. But the thing that I really love is the layout of this book. It does not contain any pages whose texts are not easily seen and read. That is remarkable especially since most of the other books that are part of the first batch that were released have that problem.

The Bad:

There are a lot of origin stories about the zodiac signs. That will be the challenge for this comic book to take that story of a race and the fight vs good and evil into the next level. Otherwise, this will just really be a retelling of that race and the similar plots of the good winning in the end without any big obstacles.

The Verdict:

The Hands of the Dragon is a nice comic book. The next books are interesting to look on whether they will better or not.

More of Black Ink Comics can be seen at:

Facebook Page: "Black Ink Comics"

Twitter: @BlackInkComics

Comics: Tonio Tikbalang ~ Volume 1

BIC0069
Illustration and Story by: Jake Vicente

Black Ink Comics
(3/5 ★★★☆☆)

"Naniniwala ka ba sa mga enkanto,

tikbalang, kapre, sirena, duwende,

at iba pang mga lamang-lupa?

Paano kung totoo sila?

Paano kung namumuhay

sila sa ating mundo?

Paano kung ang inaaway at

inaasar natin sa eskuwelahan

ay isa palang enkanto na

nagpapanggap lang na tao?

Ano sa tingin mo ang mga

problemang hinaharap ng mga

enkanto na nagpapanggap na tao

at ano ang dahilan kung bakit

ginagawa nila ito?"

Tonio Tikbalang is a new series from Black Ink Comics. Created by Jake Vicente who is also an artist for Ink Jinks, we are given a story that revolves around the life of the offsprings of supernatural creatures that are part of our Philippine folklore. This volume contains 3 chapters. They are titled; "Hiwaga ng Kasaysayan", "Bigat ng Kamay, Tibay ng Loob" and "May Kaibigan Ka".

The main character of the story is Antonio "Tonio" who is a tikbalang. His bestfriend is Kanto a kapre, whom he usually hangs out with in their school. The other characters are Karissa "Issa" and Alyanna "Anya".

The first story is mainly about history. The pages of life that we should always look back from time to time in order to help us deal with our current problems. Crazy and funny lines were said by the characters in this chapter. It is seen mostly on page 10 wherein Tonio's father explains why tikbalangs should not fall in love with a human.

The second story deals mostly on fighting. It teaches us that fighting is wrong. If anyone challenges us into a duel, one should keep in mind that there is always a more nobler way to deal with it.

The third story is a nice closure for this volume as it shows that every man or creature is always in need of a company. One way to break off one's loneliness is to change your status from being unapproachable and replace it into being a friendly face to others.

This is a nice deviation from Jake Vicente's usually rated OT stories. I can say that despite the humor that has two interpretations on page 10, this could actually be a nice material to teach values to a kid. Each story combined with the nice and light atmosphered illustrations makes this book worth buying. Add in the humor that the creator has written. It gives the right formula if your looking for a nice relaxing story.

More of the creator's works can be seen at:

Facebook Page: "Estranger"

More of Black Ink Comics can be seen at:

Facebook Page: "Black Ink Comics"

Twitter: @BlackInkComics

 

Comics: Dark Side ~ Book 1: 2:00 AM

BIC0027
Story by: Ron Mendoza

Illustrated by: Erwin J. Arroza

Black Ink Comics
(4/5 ★★★★☆)

"Whenever a case that

seemingly involves

supernatural reaches NBI,

it is automatically assigned

to Agents Roddy, Nick,

and Janet. Cases from the

Dark Side, they call them.

And the three were known

as "The Shadowcatchers"

because they chase suspects

that, just like shadows, could

not be arrested."

This is one of the goodies that I got from FCBD 2014. I like this comic book as a whole, most especially its layout. Comic books that requires its pages to be spread out in order for the texts to be read is a pain for me. As a collector of worth-reading books, I like the spine of my books to be in good condition and each pages still attached to it.

The Dark Side is a story about NBI agents that handles paranormal cases. There are three agents namely; Roddy, Nick and Janet who are part of the team and often are called as the Shadowcatchers. Here in book 1, the case revolves around the death of a vampire's fiancee. Dave, the vampire, called up Roddy at 2:00 a.m., hence the title, to seek help. He called for the agents' aid to restrain him from looking for the killer of his beloved and unleash a vampire nightmare to that person. He says that his vampiric powers remains inactive unless he gets a taste of human blood, in which he does not wishes to do so. The case is solved with a neat twist that involves an apparition of the soul of a vampire.

Once again, Ron Mendoza amazes me with the nice stories he comes up for Black Ink Comics. He always gives us an interesting new twist to old and familiar elements that we have been accustomed to. Although this may be compared to the ongoing Trese series, which also has a paranormal investigation theme, I would still be looking for more stories from this series. Another thing that makes this worth collecting is the nice art cover made by Erwin Arroza. The cover is a plus in attracting the attention of anyone into this genre. The image depicting Roddy surrounded by supernatural entities is also a nice art from him that can be found on two pages of this book.

Overall, I'd say that this is another keeper from Black Ink Comics. It is a series that I'll surely be putting on display in my bookshelf.

More of Black Ink Comics can be seen at:

Facebook Page: "Black Ink Comics"

Twitter: @BlackInkComics

Comics: The Reaper ~ Book 3: To Kill A Reaper

BIC0052
Illustrated by: Vovoi Lim

Story by: Nald Tabuzo

Black Ink Comics
(4/5 ★★★★☆)

"Sometimes people get sick without apparent

reasons that lead them to death. The Morbus

class of reapers could be the explanation.

Firmus is one of them. He can make someone

severely ill by merely touching him or her.

He harvests souls that succumbed to diseases.

Firmus gave Mika an illness that will make

her live like a vegetable for the rest of her life.

Daniel has to kill the reaper to stop the curse

on her beloved girl."

If has been a while since I last bought a new material from Black Ink Comics (BIC). The third book of The Reaper series is the 1st for 2014 that I had gotten. It is to my delight that the problem that I had seen in the previous books of BIC was addressed. This is regarding how the text dialogues and narrations are placed in each page. This is a good sign that BIC is eager on improving the quality of material they are producing by also considering some inputs from their readers.

This 3rd book of The Reaper series gets back from the story of how Mika is continuously frightened to death by Noctis and Firmus. It is their way to get back to Daniel after interfering with their duties as a reaper. It had eventually led to Firmus making Mika severly ill. This book laid out for the start of a match between Daniel and the reaper responsible for Mika's sickness. The book ends with a surprising twist that involves Vi, a calamitas type of reaper.

The Reaper is a good story to follow among the BIC works. The writer continues to feed us interesting information on stories with regards to grim reapers. The new character introduced in this book will make one wonder on how that could affect Daniel in the story. This book also poses the questions if there is indeed a Calavaren Tower in Makati, how is it visible to other non-reapers and how does one access its 13th floor. There are still a lot of books left for this series that can tell more about the nature of reapers. I'd still give a thumbs up on this series.

"The happiness I saw in her eyes eventually helped ease my pain. As long as she was happy, I was happy. Love was that stupid." - Jake Imperial

More of Black Ink Comics can be seen at:

Twitter: @BlackInkComics

Facebook Page: "Black Ink Comics"

Comics: Pepe: The Lost Years of Rizal ~ Book 1

BIC0007
Story by: Ron Mendoza

Illustrated by: Arnold Renia Cruz

Black Ink Comics
(3/5 ★★★☆☆)

"Jose Rizal - or Pepe as a young boy - while lost in a forest, meets a mysterious old hermit who gives him a pendant. The pendant turns out to be a magically powerful amulet which could grant him all his wishes and could give him anything he wants - even his country's freedom from Spain.

There is only one problem: the governor-general is also looking for the said amulet, intending to use it to shackle the Filipinos more - and make him the most powerful man on earth."

This is an interesting fictional historical book. It tells of Jose Rizal's supposedly unknown adventures when he was still a young boy. So far the first book was an interesting start. It has been a good introductory story. The thing that I noticed most with this comic was its art. In my opinion it seems some of the expressions made by different characters seemed inappropriate for each given situation. Most of them were smiling in the face of a serious situation. I know that Filipinos are known to be seen to still be smiling despite being faced with great problems, its just that when faced with a life and death situation I don't think you'll find yourself smiling that much. This is evident on the 2nd frame of page 16 wherein after being held up at gunpoint most especially by a Spaniard, in which he'd be the last person you would still be able to smile even if he has a gun pointed at your face. In the next scenario that I noticed, I could say that maybe in here one can still manage to smile despite the given situation. This scenario can be seen on the 3rd panel of page 40, regarding the character of Jose Rizal's Ate Neneng. Another descrepancy regarding emotions can be seen on the 3rd panel of page 46. It is regarding the narration which says that Pepe, the young Jose Rizal, didn't feel any tiredness. But from the looks of the art which tells otherwise. It can be seen that Pepe has that tired expression on his face. Well those are just bits of my view regarding the art.

In general, the story from the first book attracts readers due to the fictional fantasy that has happened to Pepe. I just hope that the layout artist would do a better job or at least the publisher tries to see the final layout of the book before it gets printed. It is a shame that parts of the book, both the illustration and texts, are not easily seen due to way it was laid out. Hope that these won't be encountered in the rest of the books.

Note: Images were taken from the internet.

More of Black Ink Comics can be seen at:

Twitter: @BlackInkComics

Facebook Page: "Black Ink Comics"

Comics: The Reaper ~ Books 1 & 2

BIC0009
Book One: Acerbus The Lord Of The Reapers
(5/5 ★★★★★)

BIC0022
Book Two: Love And Death

(5/5 ★★★★★)

 

                                             Book 1                                                                        Book 2

Illustrated by: Vovoi Lim

Story by: Nald Tabuzo

Black Ink Comics

Black Ink Comics, brings to us a new set of comics that started last year with their introduction at the Winter Komikon 2012. Among those they released first is book one of The Reaper. The second book was released on Summer Komikon 2013. As of now, only two books out of the eleven for The Reaper series have been released.

The Reaper tells an interesting story on the point of view of those entity that guides the souls after a person dies. They are the temporary care takers of the souls until a judgement has been made and the souls are made to ride either an ordinary or an airconditioned bus, haha hanep nu, on the way their respective final destinations. Book 1, introduces to us all of the different reapers and their abilities on how they collect souls. On the other hand, Book 2 picks up the story of how a reaper thinks of getting back at a human that has hindered him from collecting a soul in time. So far as the story was written, it is quite enjoyable to read such as a part on book 2 wherein it depicts that despite the reaper's busy schedule, he'd still do yoga in order to relax and destress after a busy day of collecting souls. :p As for the illustration, it goes along nicely with the way the story is being told. I just hope that this series goes out well from the beginning until the end. As much as I am anticipating for the release of the rest of the books for this series. hehe.

So far, I recommend buying this comic which can easily be found at most bookstores nationwide.

Note: Images were taken from the facebook page of Black Ink Comics