As I am writing this it has just turned the first of December and while there are more than a few people celebrating the incoming holiday I am trying to battle back the horror that is rising inside me. No, I am not dealing with stress or anything like that I am just wondering what to give to some of the more challenging fans on my shopping list. I have searched far and wide and I found a small company called Alterna Comics and while it might be a company that you’ve never heard of they have BIG aspirations and some even better comics. Here are some of my suggestions to check out to satisfy even those die hard comics fans on your list.
Metaphase: This is a heartwarming graphic novel for all ages about a young boy by the name of Ollie. Ollie looks up to his dad like the rest of us do, however, so does an entire city because of his dad being a superhero. He wants to have superhero powers just like his father, but there is a problem because Ollie has Down Syndrome. His father forbids him to even try because he doesn’t want him to get hurt and with his congenital heart defects it could kill him. When all looks bleak a company called Meta-Makers comes and offers him the powers that he wanted. But at what price will this new decision come?
The Chair: At an early age Richard Sullivan had a hard life. He grew up in a broken home where his mother wanted to keep him forever. Later on he was committed to prison for a crime that he says that he did not commit. Now, ten years later as he is serving his sentence he notices that other inmates are starting to be killed by the warden and his guards. Will he find a way to escape this horrific prison or will he succumb to the whims of the warden? This masterfully done graphic novel was also turned into a feature film that stars a few actors you have seen before. It features greats such as Zach Galligan, Naomi Grossman, Noah Hathaway and Bill Oberst Jr. Also, this was the last film of the late and great Rowdy Roddy Piper and is an amazing piece of cinema to behold.
FUBAR: Empire of the Rising Dead: For me this is one of the best lines you can pick up if you know someone who is a fan of the show The Walking Dead or zombies in general. The FUBAR line focuses on some of the great events in history, but using zombies as a backdrop instead of the main focus of the story. FUBAR: Empire of the Rising Dead is a Second World War tale that takes place during the Pacific theater and each of these breathtaking stories give a unique insight on how some of these conflicts could have happened with zombies. The 5th anniversary edition was recently released so if you have someone on your list who loves zombies I would recommend getting all four of these books (European Theater of the Damned, Empire of the Rising Dead, American History Z and Declassified).
IF Anthology: For even the hardest to shop for friends and family on your list this is the right gift to get them. The IF Anthology is a yearly anthology of stories that revolve around a central theme. In 2016 that theme was superheroes and there were more than a few unique stories that had a cast of colorful characters that gave us great stories to enjoy. This year it was crime and that encompasses a whole broad range of stories that include murder and other deplorable acts. However, instead of just focusing on regular crime stories these tales focus on how did someone get to this point in their lives to what happens after a horrific crime has taken place. Next year’s anthology will revolve around horror and I cannot wait to see what great stories come out of this volume.
These are just four of many titles that Alterna puts out each and every month, so if you want to support creator owned comics, head over to https://www.alternacomics.com and if you want to purchase these comics you can do so either from your local comic shop, bookstore, Amazon or directly from their etsy store at https://www.etsy.com/shop/alternacomics .
