This is really, really bad stuff. Not even fanzine level, in my opinion. I feel like I'm wasting my time reviewing what you'll probably never see, but I'll go ahead anyway. The story is a cliché. It starts off with a man, beaten by monsters, sees a female in danger. Then it goes back to the beginning of the story. He's being tortured and sees the same female in danger. He breaks free and rescues the girl and they run away together. They go all over the place and finally the monsters catch up with them in Toronto. Then we return to the story where the man beaten by monsters gains a burst of strength seeing the female in danger again. He gets beaten down again by a sneak attack and on the last frame comes a gun totting, sword wielding, shades wearing, trench coat clad, macho man to save the day. At no time are we given the names of any of the characters. The art is worse than the story. Amateur is the only way to describe it. Everything except one panel is drawn as a straight on shot. Perspective really needs some work here. There is some nudity, at least where females are concerned. Men are drawn without peckers, or something blocking or shading that area out. All the characters are crudely drawn. Only thing is, they are all crudely drawn in a different way so you can at least tell them apart. Since most of the panels are big and much white space is used there is an easy storytelling flow. Also within the comic are ads for a variety of comic and non-comic organizations. Plus there is a contest of some sort and subscription based ads. Out of 5 stars, it gets a 0. If your going to kill tree's at least make it for something worthwhile. Help Independent Comics Magazine #1 Lightning Strikes Publishing. President: Mike Gagnon

Inside there is a glossy Publication Dates page that comes out. In the background is a picture of a female putting her hand in your face with the details faded out. It appears she's wearing no clothes. The first page editorial is a rant about how Mike ran into an old high school bully and the guy was nice to him. The News section is about a new comic company that works via Showcase style. They ask fans to submit stories to them and they publish them. Plus they get paid! This is said to be completely original. There is an interview with Paul Quinn who did a series called Suspension of Disbelief. Why was Paul interviewed? Because Mike met him at the same Con last year and is Lighting Strikes Publishing will be publishing a collection of Suspension of Disbelief. Then a section called Fun by Electrocution. It's a one page written ad for their website. Saying Lightning Strikes Publishing is a "company that promises to usher in a new golden era for the medium of independent comics." Then a catalogue section, which is probably the best part of this magazine, giving the basic info on 7 different titles. In the middle of this is a press release for the Suspension of Disbelief collection, published by... you know who. Surprisingly, only two of titles showcased are published by Lightning Strikes Publishing. All of the books can be ordered from... do I need to say this again? Then a one page subscription offer for H.I.C. There is a reviews section, reviewed is Empty Life #15 and Astro City: Life in the Big City. Both reviews are by Mike Gagnon. The back inside cover is a faded out drawing of a costumed muscular guy. The back cover is an ad for a mini comic publishing by . . . guess who! I give this 0 stars out of 5. In short, this is Marvel Age done *wrong* Mini Comics: Insidesout No information on who did this. It's a fucked up little story. A little girl tells her grandfather she wants to become an artist. He goes on a rant telling a story that involves unnecessary amputation. At the end we see a bunch of dead bodies. The art is rough and gritty, but I wouldn't call it bad. The style doesn't fit corporate comics, so don't expect him to be penciling X-men anytime soon. It's very expressive and has no actual word balloons. It's the best free thing I've read from the convention so far. I give it a 3.5 out of 5 stars. Medusa Oblongata The Mini Comic #1 Done by Phil Delisle The front page is an introduction that compels you to read the comic. It's sorta like Wendy the Little Witch. Medusa is a little girl who is supposed to be evil like all the other snake haired people. She's not, so her Mom forces her to hang around with her older brother who's a super villain so he can teach her how to be evil. She resists, of course. Inside the mini comic is done comic strip format with two panels per page, making a four page gag. Despite the introduction, the brother does no super villain-ish stuff. There is a touch of magic used which is done nicely allowing for some decent jokes. The art is simplistic with no backgrounds. The look of the characters are not that appealing to me, which is odd because in giving it a 2nd look I'd say it looks like Fox Trot characters, which I like. But I'll say Phil does draw good birds and pirate ships. I think Phil has definitely started off on the right foot and I hope things get better for him here. This comic gets 4 out of 5 stars, it gives your more bang for your freebee than any other mini-comic I've read. Regards, Jamie Coville

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