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Poison Candy Volume 1

MSRP: $9.99

PAGES: 192

ISBN: 1-4278-0080-4

EAN: 978-1-4278-0080-0

ITEM #:

AVAILABLE: NOW

Volume 1

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VIEWS TOTAL: 14706

POPS: 33

CLIPS: 26

COMMENTS: 29

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Poison Candy Volume 1

Poison Candy Volume 1

The SKAR virus has infected a handful of adolescents worldwide, giving them superhuman, telekinetic powers along with a death sentence. When the government and the private sector both set out to find a cure for the deadly illness, their humanitarian effort belies a power race that could set up an entirely new world order. Enter the young Sam Chance, who finds himself SKAR-positive. The imminent end of his life just might be the beginning of an entirely different world...

Evil corporations are threatening to destroy the world, and superpowered teenager Sam Chance is destined to stop them. There's just one problem: Everybody wants Sam's power...but him.

From comic vet David Hine (X-Men: Collossus Bloodline TPB, District X, Spawn: The Armageddon Collection) and global manga artist Hans Steinbach (A Midnight Opera) comes an unflinching look into a future that's closer that we all would like to admit.

Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Poison Candy v.1
by David Hine, art by Hans Steinbach
Published by TOKYOPOP

Slugline: How can it get worse than finding out you have a fatal cancer that gives you super powers? Well...

I wanted to see what this artist did after Midnight Opera, and here it is -- overcaffeinated and raw. I mean that as a compliment. And finally, a manga by a comics writer that I can give an unreserved thumbs-up to.

Sam's rock-star dreams get sidetracked by the SKAR virus -- seriously sidetracked. Volume 1 is a prologue, and if the action sequences and the time spent on even throwaway characters are any indication, this could be a fun ride. Sam spent a century in deep freeze waiting for a cure, and how he's healed, mutant-powered and freshly traumatized by realizing that he has nobody left now. What happens next is very much up in the air.

I hope to catch volume 2 when it comes out. Hopefully, in less than a hundred years.

Poison Candy v.1 is available to buy from Right Stuf, Intl., an online retailer specializing in anime and manga. It's also at Amazon.

~Miranda

This review of Poison Candy Vol. 1 by Miranda originally appeared at Prospero’s Manga on blogspot.

Poison Candy Vol. 1

Sam Chance is just a teenager who wants nothing more than to jam with his band The Raging Hormones and make out with his lead singer, girlfriend Donna. He doesn't pay much mind to the global outbreak of the virus SKAR, which targets teens and gives them supernatural powers before it kills them a few months later -- until he gets infected.

Faced with a death sentence, Sam decides to live life to the fullest, ditching school and spending some alone time with Donna. Not long after his diagnosis, a medical researcher shows up and offers to cryogenically freeze Sam until a cure is found. The only problem is, how long before they find a cure?

Drama, action, comedy, science-fiction -- everything gets thrown into the blender for a well-paced read. There are glimpses of Sam's potential power and the struggle among groups to use these supernatural teens for their own agendas, but the plot really starts boiling when Sam finally awakens after his frozen slumber. It's a tense cliffhanger.

This review of Poison Candy Vol. 1 by Jessica Severs originally appeared at the Pittsburgh Trib P.M.

Images and text copyright © 2007 by The Tribune-Review Publishing Co.

G4
Okay, we know you’re thinking “Bloody hell, not another non-Japanese wannabe manga!” but hear us out.

Normally, we wouldn’t pick this up either; but when a friend literally put Poison Candy in our hands, who were we to refuse? We figured, what the heck, give it a shot. Frankly, we’re glad we did. It’s surprisingly good.

Poison Candy by David Hine and Hans Steinbach centers around teenage rock-legend-hopeful Sam Chance. Like everyone else in the world, Sam is infected with a virus called SKAR. In the immortal words of Douglas Adams, SKAR is “mostly harmless.” But to an unlucky few like Sam, it produces unusual abilities such as telekinesis and enhanced strength.

Oh yeah, and it kills you in about four months.

Sam’s life is turned upside-down when he is approached by Henry Raven of conglomerate Elektroactive. Raven offers to help Sam with his condition, but as expected, things aren’t always what they seem.

This manga feels like a cross between Fooly-Cooly and Akira. It has a grungy and unique look that doesn’t “try” to be manga; yet, it’s not quite western-style either. It’s well balanced between both worlds, and we would recommend it for someone who enjoys western comics and wants something to transition them into manga.

We can’t find too many flaws with Poison Candy. It has a few over-the-top moments that led to eye rolling, but those were few and far between. The characters are easy to understand, yet not archetypical. There’s just enough there to give you a little insight and depth. The story itself is also very well balanced between predictable and so-insanely-complicated-that-your-brain-hurts. Middle ground isn’t always a bad thing.

Overall, the first volume makes for a great introduction. The story will completely change in the second volume and beyond, so there is a slight twinge of doubt (thank you for that one, GunGrave); but if the second volume is as strong as the first, it has the potential for greatness.

Please...don’t...blow it.

~Courtney Kraft, G4
http://www.g4tv.com/thefeed/blog/post/685111/Poison_Candy_Acceptable_from_Strangers.html