My favourite new comic book series...

One of my passions is comics, so I thought I'd share some of my favourite new series...

A-Force

One of my new favourites from Marvel is A-Force. A-Force started as a brilliant five issue run in May introducing an all female Avengers team. Led by She-Hulk, Captain Marvel, Nico Minoru, and one of my favourite Marvel characters Medusa the series features all the Marvel women you could think of and more- even if it's just in the glorious splash pages. It was so popular that it has been kept on and a new story has just started so look out for the new issue 1!

Zodiac Starforce

This is a new series from Dark Horse Comics about a group of badass friends who have magical powers and are pretty good at fighting monsters whilst trying to survive school. The girls powers are all based on zodiac signs and they are all diverse, interesting and flawed characters. I would describe it as a mix of Sailor Moon and Buffy with a bit of the Jem and the Hologram comics thrown in. The artwork for this series is also stunning and the vibrant and often pastel colours are beautiful.This is currently on issue 3, but it's still easy to find the first two.

DC Bombshells

So you can probably tell by my choices that I'm a big fan of comics with badass women in, which leads me to Bombshells, a new series from DC Comics featuring the ladies of DC fighting on the front lines and behind the scenes in an alternate universe World War II. If that doesn't sound cool enough it features the iconic artwork that started off as a collection of vintage themed statues. We are gradually getting introduced to all their stories but so far the comics have featured the likes of Wonder Woman, Mera, Batwoman, Catwoman, Joker's Daughter, Supergirl and Zatanna to name a few. Written and drawn by a female team this series gives a whole new side to the characters. Current issue is 4 but you can still easily find the others.

Paper Girls

This is a new series from Image Comics written by Brian K. Vaughan (writer of masterpieces like Saga, and Y: The Last Man) and features the artwork Cliff Chiang (Wonder Woman, Black Canary). Set in the early hours of Halloween night in 1988 it follows four paper girls who uncover the most important story of all time. Described as Stand By Me meets War of the Worlds this is promising to be a story full of intrigue. Aside from the suspenseful story, the artwork and colours are bloody amazing! So many beautiful pastels and 80s retro goodness :) This is currently on issue 2, but again the first is easy to find still.

Limbo

Another new series from Image this is ’50s pulp with an ’80s VHS visual aesthetic described as 'a noir story set in a world that flatly refuses to adhere to noir conventions.' It follows a detective with no memory, a femme fatale trying to escape a crime lord, a tv that eats goats and a voodoo queen who loves mixtapes. Billed as 'neon noir' (which is a pretty cool term) and inspired by the likes of Carpenter, Cronenberg and Lynch. I've read the first issue and it has definitely got me hooked, oh and look at those colours! Issue 1 is out now.

Recently watched...

 Crimson Peak (2015)

Wannabe writer Edith falls for the mysterious Sir Thomas Sharpe and moves to his remote gothic mansion in England with his even stranger sister Lady Lucille. She soon realises the house hides many dark secrets and ghosts and tries to unravel the mystery. This film looked amazing, the house in particular was a gothic masterpiece. The story was dark and intriguing- full of classic horror eeriness and high dramatics. 4/5 

It Follows (2015)

After Jay sleeps with her new boyfriend she learns he has passed on a curse where death will follow her literally in the form of various people only she can see. Beautifully shot, with a brilliant synthy soundtrack this film is totally original whilst also drawing on the classic horror strengths of high tension and suspense. Genuinely creepy this is the best horror I've seen in a while. 4/5

Horns (2013)

A guy wakes up one morning to find he has grown horns and his day goes downhill from there. I enjoyed this film even though it couldn't decide whether it was a dark comedy, a romance or a horror so just switched between the three. It was at its best when it was a twisted comedy as the romance parts dragged and the religious twist at the end didn't make much sense and just seemed stupid. The film looked good and the music was brilliant. 3.5/5

Ouija (2014)

This was a dumb predictable horror about a group of school friends who open a portal to a demon and have to close it else they'll all die blah blah blah. The only entertaining bit was guessing which order they'd get killed off. 2/5

Payday haul...October

Here's what I've been buying over the past month...

As soon as I got my student discount card I bought some bits in Superdrug I had my eye on, I can't resist brown, and burgundy lip colours at the moment.

I've also had my eye on this galaxy print shirt from M&S for a while. I'm in love with it!

Of course I picked up some comics. This month was definitely a good month for new series.

It wouldn't be a haul without a pop or two. Seeing as it was October I finally got Beetlejuice and also Princess Bubblegum... she's so adorable!

October reading round up...

What She Left by T.R. Richmond
A young woman had her whole life ahead of her until she mysteriously drowns. Nobody knows why, but Alice left some clues. This is a collection of her diary entries, texts, emails and social media history. Sadly I was disappointed with this one. It mainly revolved around a professor from Alice's former university who was hugely unlikeable and not very interesting. There weren't any nice characters in this and I found the ending a little meh and obvious. 2/5  

The Mistletoe Bride and Other Haunting Tales by Kate Mosse
This is a collection of eerie and haunting ghost stories. They are very much in the vein of classic horror (think Poe) and are all based on real life places or folk tales. I enjoyed Mosses notes after each story explaining her inspiration. Some stories were better than others (my favourite was the title story) but this book made for an enjoyable Halloween read.  

Wytches Vol.1 by Scott Snyder & Jock
A new horror series about the Rooks family who move to a remote town to escape past troubles but find that something evil is waiting for them in the woods. Despite the clichés this was a promising start, with likeable characters and intriguing plot twists. The artwork was also a highlight with splats of watercolour layered over the pages to give a really effective look. 3/5

Material Vol.1 by Ales Kot & Will Tempest
"America is unwinding. The world is undergoing massive changes. MATERIAL is a journey through what it means to be alive, today." How can you resist a blurb like that? This comic deals with topics such as racism, police violence, sexism, religion, freedom and misogyny as it switches between a selection of characters. I loved the message and stories, but it was let down for me by the constant changing almost every page between characters. I also wasn't a fan of the stark artwork although I understand the horribly garish colours were intentional to reflect the uncomfortable subject matter. For the themes alone it is definitely worth picking up. 3/5

Catwoman: The Visual Guide to the Feline Fatale by Scott Beatty
Catwoman is one of my favourite ever comic book characters and this book is a guide of her character progression since she first appeared in Batman #1 in 1940. It covers everything from her origin story, her various costumes, her different storylines, her friends and foes and her on off relationship with Batman/ Bruce Wayne. I really enjoyed how this book was laid out, and it was packed full of great artwork- although it's a little old now so it doesn't include The New 52 or onwards. 4/5

Single Issues...

I loved every single issue I read this month but my favourites were Zodiac Starforce, Paper Girls, The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl, and Batman '66 Poison Ivy's Deadly Kiss.

Lately October...

I love Autumn and the cold weather means I can enjoy a nice hot bath (and use up my dwindling stock of Lush bath bombs)

Another thing I love about Autumn is of course Halloween. I've spent the month watching tons of horror films and also my favourite October films including Beetlejuice, and The Addams Family films. 

There's been so many exciting new comic book series out this month, my favourites being Paper Girls and Zodiac Star Force (pictured.)

Also...

- Being powerless to resist Babymetal. They are strangely addictive (and they have their own adorable Funko pops soon to be released!)  

-Finishing Gotham series one and Orphan Black series three. I love both these shows, but Orphan Black especially is brilliant. 

-I've been watching a lot of Halloween make up tutorials and this Pop art zombie is by far my favourite!