February 2017 Comic Bento Box Review

The theme for the February 2017 Comic Bento box is "builders". These books feature some interesting ideas and worlds from a variety of comic creators. They showcase the range that comics can take. This box holds some cool looking books.

First up is Habitat by Simon Roy. As an original world, this book explores some intriguing ideas. From the art I can tell this mixes an ancient looking civilization akin to the Mayans with sci-fi/technology. It will be interesting to see how this one plays out as the protagonist finds the world he though he knew crumbling around him.

Next is 4001 A.D. (Matt Kindt and Clayton Crain; Valiant Entertainment). I've read this one before, but I am looking forward to coming back to it again at some point. I will probably read the other books featuring Rai before I pick this one up. The book is set roughly 2,000 years in the future in the Valiant universe. Similar to what I picked up from Habitat, the story revolves around a significant change in the status quo. Rooting for the underdog is encouraged with this book. I loved it for the art, which takes on an anime style with a color palette trending toward purples and blues. There are some great splash pages that showcase the ideas behind this book.

The book I am most looking forward to from this box is Wild Cards: Hard Call (George R.R. Martin, Dan Abraham, and Eric Battle; Dynamite). I love this series. This is the first comic adaptation I've read from it, but the premise behind the books is great. An alien virus is introduced to Earth that transforms people in strange ways, essentially creating superheroes. This book is set roughly 60 years after the first book. It features a murder and a resurgence of the alien virus. The version shipped with the Comic Bento box is a hardcover, which is excellent quality. The art looks fantastic too.

Last up is Invincible Iron Man: Reboot (Brian Michael Bendis, David Marquez, and Mike Deodato; Marvel). Brian Michael Bendis has written some great books in the Marvel universe, so I am excited to see his take on Iron Man. As the title indicates, this is a fresh look at the character. It doesn't start from the beginning though. I like the art from my initial flip through the book. It appears that Tony Stark is suffering a bit, but it's nothing he can't overcome.