Hawk the Slayer: The Last of Her Kind (2025)

Hawk the Slayer: The Last of Her Kind (2025)

Author: Alec Worley | Illustrator: Simon Colby (line) / Gary Caldwell (col) | Page Count: 52

"She is like a child absorbed in her own cruel fantasy, forcing us to play along."

A continuation of Hawk's story set after Watch for Me in the Night (2023). The Last of Her Kind was serialised in 10 consecutive issues of the weekly 2000 AD magazine (#2413-22), for a total of just 52 pages. Rebellion might consider that enough page count for a proper TPB of its own, but it's considerably less than the previous story, so it seems unlikely that it'll get one - not unless there's a similarly-sized third part to add to it.

So I decided to feature it as is, with no official cover art - the pic to the right is Cliff Robinson's cover art of #2419 onto which I added a Hawk the Slayer logo. [1]

Judge Dredd: The Movie - Comicbook Adaptation (2025)

Judge Dredd: The Movie - 30th Anni Ed (2025)

Author: Andrew Helfer (based on a screenplay by William Wisher Jr + Steve E. de Souza) | Illustrator: Carlos Ezquerra | Page Count: 80 [1]

NOTE: this post contains spoilers for the Judge Dredd (1995) movie directed by Danny Cannon.

Thirty years after the first Judge Dredd movie took a giant Flesh-sized shit on the franchise that inspired it, its comicbook adaptation got reissued. Why should anyone care? For one good reason: because it was illustrated throughout by Carlos Ezquerra.

Not the cover art - that's by Dermot Power and is the only time it really looks like Sylvester Stallone.

For reasons that I don't know but are probably to do with licensing and/or Hollywood egos, the interior art wasn't allowed to use Stallone's likeness.

But that turns out to be a good thing. The first 4 pages are particularity great. The Judge uniforms and Lawmasters are movie-specific, but otherwise the linework, angles, and colours all work together to make it feel like a proper Ezquerra 2000 AD strip. It's easy to imagine that the city and its people will feel similarly. But then Dredd appears in full on Page 5 and the illusion begins to crack... 🙁

Black Diamond (1983-84)

Black Diamond (1983-84)

Author: Various | Illustrators: Various | 5 Issues, approx 34 pages each

"Don't panic! I just want your outfit!"

A short-lived comicbook that presents itself as a movie tie-in, albeit one that launched before the movie it's supposed to tie-in with. So far so good, but the onscreen version never happened, so the comic is all we have to give us an idea of what the movie's story might've been like. (I've added a few promo shots of lead actress Sibyl Danning in costume at the post's end, for anyone interested.)

The basic premise is as follows: Tiana Matthews is a successful fashion model for Multmonde, a role that sees her traverse borders for fashion shoots, etc. But secretly, Tiana is also an agent for INFO COM THREE, a role that sees her traverse borders for spy antics and action shootouts, etc. Her code name in the second scenario is Black Diamond. [1]

Her greatest enemy is an international crime cartel known as QUANSA. If you're thinking that sounds kinda like James Bond and SPECTRE, then your thinking is correct. It's spy fiction with gadgets and ridiculous world-domination plans.

Masters of the Universe: The Motion Picture [Comic Adap] (1987)

Masters of the Universe: TMP (1987)

Adaptation: Ralph Macchio (from a screenplay by David Odell) | Illustrators: George Tuska (Pencil) / Art Nichols (Ink) / Evelyn Stein (Colour) | Page Count: 46

"Treachery. Suddenly Skeletor's men were everywhere. Someone must have let them through the defences."

A comic book adaptation of the MotU live action movie (1987) that's illustrated in a style comparable with the minicomics. The basic story is largely the same, but visually it's a million times better than the live action atrocity is. The only exception is Beast Man, who, for some reason, resembles the onscreen version.

I wrote 'largely the same' because there's a few notable differences between the two. I don't know if it was author Ralph Macchio's own doing or if he was working from a screenplay that got further edited in the final cut, but the comic has some interesting scenes that the movie lacks, most of which function as much-needed characterisation and/or attempt to better connect or even remedy the levels of stupid in the story. [1]

Dredd: The Illustrated Script and Visuals (2014)

Dredd: The Illustrated Script and Visuals (2014)

Author: Alex Garland  |  Illustrator: Jock  |  Page Count: 240

"You were shit out of luck when you ran into the Ma-Ma clan."

If there'd been a poll asking what people would like to see in a book titled 'Illustrated Script and Visuals', everything that's already included would be on my list. As someone who enjoys reading Dredd comics, screenplays, and can happily waste an hour studying concept art, it seems almost tailor-made.

On the left hand pages is Garland's script, laid out in the usual format. It's also where you'll find trivia, concept art depicting various stages of evolution and full colour production stills, not all of which were used in the final version (unused hall of justice, judge badges, etc), with brief passages of text describing what each one is and how it fits into the overall structure. It's the 'Visuals' half of the book.

Tactical Unit: The TV Movies (2008-09)

Tactical Unit: The TV Movies (2008-09)

Dirs. Various (see below)

Note: Five TV Movies that followed Johnnie To's PTU (2003). You don't need to have seen PTU in order to follow the story of each TU movie, but it might be helpful and it's such a good film that I feel compelled to encourage a viewing, anyhow.

Tactical Unit TV Movies in the order released:

01. In Tactical Unit: The Code (2008), directed by Wing-Cheong Law, three members of the PTU are captured on CCTV while beating up a civilian (i.e., crook), but the picture is grainy and their faces aren't clear. While an internal division that deals with corrupt cops tries to uncover the truth, the guilty trio hunt for the one man who can identify them: the man that they left bleeding in an alley. Ultimately, it's a race against time for both parties.

The Ghost in the Shell: Global Neural Network (2018)

The Ghost in the Shell:

Global Neural Network (2018)

Authors: Max Gladstone / Alex de Campi / Genevieve Valentine / Brenden Fletcher | Illustrators: David López / Giannis Milonogiannis / Brent Schoonover / LRNZ | Page Count: 160

"There was something odd. Like an echo.
I need to go deeper."

Kodansha really do like to big-up their derivative Ghost in the Shell tie-in books. Previously they claimed to have delivered a 'definitive history' of the franchise (in the README). Now it's a 'historic collaboration' with series creator Shirow Masamune.

However, there's nothing in the book to suggest that Shirow had any input beyond granting permission for his characters and their world to be used.

It would be wrong of me to assume that was the case for sure, but given the publisher's actions to date I feel they'd be shouting it from rooftops if he'd truly been involved in any kind of meaningful hands on manner. If I ever find out the truth, I'll return and edit it in here.

What I know for sure is that the book includes four stories by four different authors and four different artists. In the order presented:

Hawk the Slayer: Watch for Me in the Night (2023)

Hawk the Slayer: Watch for Me in the Night (2023)

Author: Garth Ennis | Illustrator: Henry Flint | Page Count: 128

"Since last you rode those awful paths, the black woods have almost doubled in size..."

Forty-three years! That's how long it took for a sequel to Hawk the Slayer (1980) to emerge. That's quite a span.

The only downside is the continuation is a comic book, not a movie. Wait, that's not a downside. It's quite the opposite, in fact, given how shit-awful modern fantasy movies are. The comic has no CGI, no extended universe crap, and no woke politics. That's a bona fide upside!

Was it worth the wait? No, but it did inspire me to rewatch the movie, so, again, I'm calling it a good thing.

Its story, written by Garth Ennis, of Hellblazer and Preacher fame, feels like an 80s B-Movie, which is how it should feel, in reverence to its predecessor.

It follows Hawk as he reunites with the remaining members of the Table of Five. Together with a couple of newbies, they go to thwart a great evil.

Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence: After the Long Goodbye (2007)

GitS 2: Innocence: After the Long Goodbye (2007)

Author: Masaki Yamada | Translators: Yuji Oniki + Carl Gustav Horn / Page Count: 197 

"I'm not all that popular. At the same time, I hardly ever meet someone I like. In that sense, my life is balanced out."

A prequel to the second Ghost in the Shell feature film, Innocence (2004). Unlike most TV and film tie-in novels, this one is actually good - damn good.

It creates a singular narrative that doesn't rely heavily on the film, but it remains referential and respectful to it. Knowledge of the characters is obviously necessary to fully appreciate the small intricacies, but the text also manages to stand on its own two feet, admirably.

It's told first person, from the cyborg Batou's perspective. Batou isn't the most intelligent or passionate of individuals, so it may come as a surprise to find that his sensitive side, a secretive part of himself that he reserves for mostly one person in the films, could be so well-developed without compromising the integrity of the character. It gets deep into the mind of the man, the only part of him that's still human, to explore the themes of self that René Descartes popularised. That self-analysis is the novel's greatest strength, and what Ghost in the Shell is perfectly suited to.

The Matrix Comics: 20th Anniversary Edition (2019)

The Matrix Comics: 20th Anniversary Edition (2019)

Authors: Various | Illustrators: Various | Page Count: 400

"The answer. It's right there. I can touch it. It's beautiful. Simple. And it scares the hell out of me."

Beyond the infinite possibilities offered by a virtual world, part of what keeps The Matrix universe so appealing is that it hasn't been milked to death by a greedy studio. Exploitation and oversaturation would've killed it as easily as it does any other commodity.

I assume the Wachowski's had some hand in regulating that, so kudos to them and everyone else who stuck to their guns. Yes, one of the siblings made a fourth film, but not until eighteen years later. (Having said that, I'd really love another anime collection like The Animatrix.)

The 20th Anniversary Edition of The Matrix Comics combines both of the original TPB publications into one larger than normal US comic format HB book.

That in itself is a generous amount, but it also includes four stories that weren't in either of the two previous volumes, which came out in 2003 and 2005, respectively. After doing the maths, the 'anniversary' label must refer instead to the first Matrix film, which was released in cinemas in March 1999.

Planet of the Apes: Visionaries (2018)

Planet of the Apes: Visionaries (2018)

Author: Dana Gould (based on a screenplay by Rod Serling) | Illustrator: Chad Lewis | Page Count: 138

"It's a machine. The whole damn thing's a machine. Sophisticated and very ingenious... But always with the possibility of error."

A comic book based on Rod Serling's screenplay of the first Planet of the Apes movie, itself based on author Pierre Boulle's original La Planète des Singes (1963) novel, aka Monkey Planet. Serling's story was modified before being filmed, in part because it was a little too extravagant for the production team's budget, but much of what made it onscreen is present in the text, albeit occurring in a setting that's far removed from the pre-industrial one featured in the famous movie.

The main protagonist is US astronaut John Thomas, whose exploits take a similar path to that of Taylor in the movie, but his personality is very different.

What's most interesting about the book is the ape society, which is somewhat analogous to that of NY, circa 1950-60s. There are still social divisions between the three different ape types, but the hierarchy is less pronounced, so they work together a lot more closely than they did onscreen.

The A-Team: War Stories (2010)

The A-Team: War Stories (2010)

Authors: Chuck Dixon / Erik Burnham | Illustrators: Hugo Petrus / Casey Maloney / Guiu Vilanova / Alberto Muriel | Page Count: 104

"And, no I don't see it as unrealistic. Maybe impractical. but impractical just takes a little longer..."

Four individual stories, one for each member of The A-Team, collected together into a handy TPB. It's a prequel, so they aren't technically The A-Team herein, but the essence of each character as we'll come to know them later in their life is present and identifiable.

They're all set during the Gulf War but aren't connected in any way, and there's no crossover shenanigans, so you're free to read them in whichever order you choose.

I started with Hannibal's, then moved onto B.A, then Murdock, and finally Face. Structurally, they give each man a single objective or goal, which in three of the four cases is to retrieve/extract something from a potential war zone. The fourth is similar, except it's to procure something, an item that's almost impossible to find at short notice. Neither operation goes exactly to plan, of course, but thanks to the participants' skills and ingenuity things tend to work out in the end.

RoboCop: The TV Series (1994)

RoboCop: The TV Series (1994)

Feature-length pilot and 21 episodes, approx 44 minutes each.

Wisely ignoring the existence of RoboCop 2 and 3 (like many people tend to do), the cheapo TV series is set two years after the events of the first film.

It feels like something I'd have sat down to watch on a Saturday evening as a kid after The A-Team had ended and before the crap variety show with Jimmy bloody Tarbuck came on. If you stumble upon the series while channel-hopping you may give it little more than five minutes before hopping some place else. That's because it takes a couple of episodes before the show begins to justify its existence.

There's a lot of attempted humour; not quite slapstick and certainly not sophisticated, it sits somewhere between the two and ends up mostly face-palm bad.

The aspect that stayed me from pressing the stop button is the relationships. When it finds the human element that's buried within the machine parts it becomes mildly entertaining and raises itself out of the shit-bin for a time. It's still bad, but it has measurable heart beneath the clumsy scripts and the awful villains.

Star Trek: The Return (1996)

Star Trek: The Return (1996)

Authors: William Shatner / Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens  | Page Count: 371

'For a silent moment after, even the rain stopped. When it began again, it felt gentle. Warm. Slow as tears.'

Like The Ashes of Eden (1995) did before it, The Return opens on Veridian III and continues the story of the Star Trek: Generations (1994) film. It's not a flashback narrative this time, though, it's the real deal, an actual continuation of current events.

It engineers a ridiculous scenario that brings together aspects and crew of TOS, TNG and DS9 for a ret-conning adventure that's thick with melodrama and action movie clichés. Some of the connections made are mind-blowing and may have fans either happy-clapping or furiously fighting. Either way, some of the reveals in the last quarter are extremely memorable. It's unfortunate that a large portion of the remainder of the book is such a damned chore to get through.

Star Trek: The Ashes of Eden (1995)

Star Trek: The Ashes of Eden (1995)

Authors: William Shatner / Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens  |  Page Count: 309

'He gulped a mouthful of Scotch. Felt it burn his throat — ice cold and fire hot at the same time. That was his poetry. Sensation. Being alive.'

TAoE begins just a few hours after the ending of the Star Trek: Generations (1994) movie, so you'll need to have seen it first. But to really get the most from the book you'll need to have seen all the TOS movies because the story is one of reflection on what's passed as well as a look to the future. Even though it's technically set post-Generations, ninety-nine percent of it is a flashback to an era before Kirk stepped aboard the Enterprise-B, shortly after the political upheaval that occurred at Camp Khitimer (Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991)).

Without a ship to command Kirk is a little lost, as if his reason for living has been suspended, and daily Starfleet duties do little to assuage the feelings. He's secretly hungering for adventure, and more often than not someone with that goal will either find what he's looking for or set it in motion himself.

Star Trek: Countdown (2009)

Star Trek: Countdown (2009)

Authors: Mike Johnson / Tim Jones | Illustrator: David Messina | Page Count: 98

"It's worse than we thought."

A prequel comic to the 2009 reboot of the Star Trek franchise. I consider such tie-ins to be mostly easy milk from the cash-cow, but ST:C is mostly water.

Set post-Nemesis (2002) it attempts to link The Next Generation cast with events from the film, acting as yet another passing of the torch, but it's ham-fisted. In most cases cameos from TNG's crew exist for no reason other than to have cameos from TNG crew.

Their actions and dialogue aren't properly tailored to fit how their TV show counterparts would act or speak in the same situation; change the facial likeness and it'd be difficult to guess who it's meant to be. Speaking of which, the artwork is generally good, with characters looking like the actors they represent, and both light and shadow are handled well by the colourist(s).

Ghost in the Shell README: 1995-2017 (2017)

Ghost in the Shell
README: 1995-2017 (2017)

Author: Shirow Masamune (?) | Page Count: 160

'How am I supposed to stay motivated without my bassets?' - Mamoru Oshii

Described by publisher Kodansha as 'The definitive history of the most influential cyberpunk anime of all time!', the Ghost in the Shell README is perhaps more accurately described as being little more than a cash-grab tie-in detailing the plots of the various filmed versions of Shirow's original manga.

It opens with a brief look at the 2017 live-action movie. An attempt is made to sing its praises but it seems halfhearted at best, and a failure at worst. Having viewed the film, I can understand the trouble the writer must've had, because, besides its visuals, the live-action movie is the worst interpretation that GitS has had thus far - to put it more plainly, the movie is garbage.

Species Design (1996)

Species Design (1996)

Author + Illustrator: H.R. Giger | Page Count: 86

"I cast worms in silicon […] Instead, in the film, reddish brown computer-generated sausages burst out (but very quickly, to hide the computerised embarrassment)."

A large format coffee table book (approximately the size of a vinyl LP) that doesn't fit on any of my shitty Argos flat-pack shelving. Grrrr.

Inside its pages are a number of the Swiss artist's illustrations. It's primarily early stage concept sketches that rarely get released to the public, most of which are black ink on paper.

Giger's sketches have an almost obsessively hurried appearance. Seeing what he'd envisioned for the creature, that didn't make it into the film, is perhaps the only notable reason to purchase.

Big Trouble in Little China: Volume 5 (2017)

Big Trouble in Little Heaven (2017)

Author: Fred Van Lente |  Illustrator: Dan McDaid |  Page Count: 112

"Not in the face!! That's the money-maker!!!"

I felt that Volume 4 had reignited the BTiLC series, but I feel also that Volume 5 pisses on it again, even though both collections are written by the same author.

It places Jack in a peculiar environment that's chock-full of supernatural beings, namely the Kunlun Casino as it hosts Source Con, a sorcerers convention, most of whom are egotistical a-holes. But Jack's not braving it alone, he has Wang's daughter Winona to aid him. Oh, and Wang's there, too, but he's currently an emotional mess and seemingly about as useless as tits on a bull.

Much of the book is taken up by a lengthy poker game, and if you don't know how to play poker (specifically Texas Hold 'Em) it teaches you. As a fan of the game I enjoyed the setting, but a lot of the dialogue therein seems like little more than word-count boosting filler.

Big Trouble in Little China: Volume 4 (2016)

I Hate the '80s! (2016)

Author: Fred Van Lente |  Illustrator: Joe Eisma |  Page Count: 112

"Stop me if you've heard this one before, but I wouldn't mind just getting my truck and getting out of here..."

I don't know how much input creator John Carpenter actually had to the comic book continuation of his film, but his name is absent from the credits of I Hate the '80s!, so perhaps his involvement ended with Volume 3? Time will tell. What's certain is that regulars Eric Powell (author) and Brian Churilla (illustrator) are both gone.

That means it's a new creative team at the helm for Volume 4. I was hopeful that they could rescue it from its Volume 3 slump, return it to the standard set by the first book, and, by Jove, they almost did! BTiLC is good again. Thank you, Mssrs Van Lente and Eisma.

The new setting is kind of crazy, but, in my view, it's a good kind of crazy and, more importantly, it once more recaptures the feeling of fun that the movie had.