Mighty Nein Origins: Caduceus Clay

Title: Mighty Nein Origins: Caduceus Clay

ISBN: 9781506723730

Price: $17.99

Publisher/Year: Dark Horse, 2024

Artist: Selina Espiritu

Writer: Kendra Wells

Rating: 4/5

Follow the origin story of the Mighty Nein’s Caduceus Clay in this beautiful hardcover graphic novel written by Kendra Wells, illustrated by Selina Espiritu, with colors by Eren Angiolini and letters by Ariana Maher. Created in consultation with the cast of Critical Role!

Generations of the Clay family have tended to the careful rituals in the Blooming Grove. But when corruption begins to creep in on their sacred space, the Clays depart one by one to seek answers. Soon young Caduceus and Clarabelle are the only ones left, and when a dangerous burial quest falls to Caduceus, he must leave the Grove to do the family’s work.

This is the third The Mighty Nein Origins I have read and I’m enjoying the series so far. I do think this is the weakest so far in terms of giving background on the character, but it also felt a lot shorter than the others. 

What I did really like was that this ends at the exact moment that The Nein meet Caduceus. It was so lovely to see that moment come to life on the page, especially the ‘I think I only have three other cups’ moment. 

That was the moment I knew I’d love Caduceus and he’s so cute in this graphic novel. I love him in this art style and how we get to see him at different points in his life. You can’t tell just how tall he is in this though as he spends most of it alone, as I knew he would as that’s the first thing you learn about him.

His family are also really cute. I wish we got just a little longer with them during this graphic novel, but for the sake of consistency of his character background, it makes sense. Caduceus is a lonely guy and it makes him so endearing. I’ll never forget him trying milk for the first time.

The Blooming Grove is so beautiful. The color palette and style of this instalment almost rival that of the Jester one, but not quite. The slightly toned down hues make sense for a graphic novel about Caduceus as he is a walking pastel, other than his bright pink hair I suppose, but it really brought the cozy vibes that I expect from his character.

While this hasn’t been my favorite so far, it is still a very enjoyable read. I still don’t think these graphic novels will be entertaining for those that know nothing about The Mighty Nein but they are a lovely companion for those that love the characters.

Claw City Clackamas Grand Opening

Clackamas Town Center
12000 SE 82nd Ave
Happy Valley, OR 97086

I am branching out my coverage of events for my blog and have been invited to attend the grand opening of Claw City at the Clackamas Town Center in Happy Valley, OR. I hope you will join me there as my past experiences at other Claw City locations have been incredibly enjoyable!

16 Years and still going

 

In November 2009, I started my first blog which was originally titled Zanziber's Point of View. This was originally going to be an outlet for my writing by reviews for trade paperbacks and graphic novels. In those days, I wasn't aware that I could schedule when my reviews were actually published, so there were days that I would post multiple reviews in a single day. I'm so happy when I finally learned to be able to schedule by reviews to publish on a weekly basis.

A few years later, I wanted an outlet for one of my other long time passions; role playing games. In 2012 I began RPG4EVR which was for all my gaming content. Originally, it was meant to be an outlet for my life in role playing, but slowly opened up to include reviews.

About a year later, my dog Zipper died and I published the #PrednisoneKills blog. I published this out of a place of loss and anger and I wanted to make sure that people would be made aware of the dangers of Prednisone and ignorant/negligent veterinarians. While I felt the need to create this content, I didn't feel the same level of passion as I did for my other blogs.

Over the years, I continued to feel burn-out from writing and I lost my creativity several times. I stopped maintaining a regular weekly schedule and would write and schedule reviews occasionally when the mood hit me and the time felt right. I would also add another level to my Point of View blog by writing about my experiences at comic con events such as Rose City Comic Con and Emerald City Comic Con.

At the end of 2023, I felt the need for some kind of change and that came in the form of combining my passion blogs under a single banner. This is when I brought them together under the banner of The Nat 20, and here we are today.

I've also expanded things including Magic the Gathering decklists and recommendations of YouTube channels. I'm keeping myself open for new possibilities. I'm looking forward to the next several years being incredible and I welcome everyone to stay tuned to see where we go.

Rat Queens: Sisters, Warriors, Queens

 Title: Rat Queens: Sisters, Warriors, Queens

Price: $7.99

Publisher/Year: Image, 2020

Artist: Roc Upchurch

Writer: Kurtis J. Wiebe

Rating: 4.5/5

The story starts so lovely as one of the Rat Queens makes her way to meet another Rat Queen. It is forty years later and things have changed.

Lady Violet Blackforge looks amazing for her age and plans to meet Miss Braga and a few others. Betty shows up next her personality has not changed at all. High Priestess Delilah aka Dee and her son are on their way as well. Things have certainly changed over forty years. Ms.Hannah Vizari is the last to arrive. Then lastly Braga comes out. The Rat Queens are all here.

Now we look back as one Rat Queen needs help with her family and the others all band together. Violet, Hannah, Betty, and Dee.

The Meldhammer Clan’s house is beautifully illustrated. What goes on inside is quite unexpected. Violet is here to help her brother Barrie if he needs it. Something is going on in this town and is not nice. Hannah and Dee begin checking it out. This all leads to one huge battle and Violet and Hannah are opposed to each other.

The updates that are added to the story fit in perfectly. Suppose you loved the Rat Queens before you will even more after reading this.

At this forty-year reunion, Hannah listens as the others each fill in what has happened to them since they last parted and they have all grown and blossomed into beautiful women who should be proud of what they have become. This is written and drawn so emotionally.

This final issue of the Rat Queens could not have been done any better. Violet, Hannah, Dee, and Betty the Queens are so special.

Washington State Toy Show - My Experiences

 

October 18, 2025

Washington State Toy Show – Vancouver

at the Clark County Event Center

17402 NE Delfel Rd

Ridgefield, WA 98642

I've gone to this same show a few times now, and always had a great time. I always leave with some great additions to my collection, spend more than I may have ought to, but still had some money in my wallet from what I hard originally budgeted.

This time was different. For this event I was helping my friend while he was a vendor for the show. This was his first time vending for his new 3D printing business - SpiderWeb3D.

As you can tell, we had a variety of 3D printed items ranging from dice towers to chess sets. The dragon eggs were the biggest sellers and each contained some dice and some mini figures (not Legos) inside. The first event was successful, and we are looking forward to coming back for the next one in Spring.

But of course I wasn't at this event just to help my friend sell his wares. The whole reason I started coming was to increase the size of my action figure collection. I had a relatively small list of things that I was actively looking for, but that didn't stop me from picking up a few things that I thought would make nice additions.

Since I was born in the 70's and grew up in the 80's, I have a nostalgic feel for 3.75" action figures. I still remember going to Payless and K-Mart (and later Toys R Us) with a grip of cash I earned to buy some of the latest and greatest G.I. Joe and Star Wars action figures. Had I known then what I know now, I would have bought 2 of everything and kept 1 unopened.

Growing up in the 80's also meant that I was a fan of the Transformers. I never really had a collection of my own, but there were some that I really liked. Soundwave, Shockwave and Megatron were some of my favorites. When I started seeing these Yolopark model kits on the Weekly Rewind on the Robo Don't Know YouTube channel, I took notice and really wanted to start adding them to my collection. As fate would have it, I found a few at a local Hot Topic, so I decided to get it. It was Bumblebee and after that I wanted more. Thankfully, I was able to find someone who had Megatron. I know they have Soundwave and I missed picking him up at Hot Topic. The hunt continues!

For anyone who hasn't been to one of these events, the layout is very nice and the aisles give enough room to be able to wander around without bumping into people too often. I appreciate this as most other events that I seem to attend have a more crowded feel. That's not to say that there wasn't a large amount of people who attended throughout the days, I just mean to say that I like the setup for the amount of people attending. The biggest reason I stopped actively going to Emerald City Comic Con is because the last time I went it felt too crowded. I haven't been back since they opened the new convention center. I hope that may change for 2026.

As luck would have it, I decided to take a few photos around the event before they started letting people in for the day.

As I mentioned, I enjoyed this event and I am looking forward to coming back. By next time, I should have a larger list of things I'm looking for.

The Boys Omnibus Volume 1

Title: The Boys Omnibus Volume 1 

ISBN: 9781524108595

Price: $29.99

Publisher/Year: Dynamite, 2020

Artist: Darick Robertson & Peter Snejbjerg

Writer: Garth Ennis

Rating: 4.5/5

In a world where costumed heroes soar through the sky and masked vigilantes prowl the night, someone’s got to make sure the “supes” don’t get out of line. And someone will! Billy Butcher, Wee Hughie, Mother’s Milk, The Frenchman, and The Female are The Boys: A CIA-backed team of very dangerous people, each one dedicated to the struggle against the most dangerous force on Earth – superpower! Some superheroes have to be watched. Some have to be controlled. And some of them – sometimes – need to be taken out of the picture. That’s when you call in The Boys! After the opening story arc introducing Hughie to the team (issues 1-6), Dark avenger Tek-Knight and his ex-partner Swingwing are in trouble (issues 7-14). Big trouble. One has lost control of his terrifyingly overactive sex-drive, and the other might just be a murderer. It’s up to Hughie and Butcher to work out which is which, in Get Some. Then, in Glorious Five-Year Plan, The Boys travel to Russia – where their corporate opponents are working with the mob, in a super-conspiracy that threatens to spiral lethally out of control. Good thing our heroes have Love Sausage on their side. 

Like so many people out there, I am a fan of Amazon Prime’s The Boys though I have never once picked up the comic it was based on.  

The comic tells a different (though similar) story, following the CIA operatives known as The Boys. There is less tension between the crew, focusing on their work rather than their personal lives and any conflict that may arise from their differences (at least with this first omnibus). This sort of makes the characters seem flat and one-dimensional which can leave the reader who’s familiar with the show wanting more. I will hold off on judging the character development until later in the series as I get the feeling the larger picture has yet to be revealed. 

It was fun seeing certain scenes and details that were lifted for television series – that whole thing with Tek Knight? Holy fucking shit! I thought that was just Seth Rogen influencing the show he helps produce.  

The artwork skirts the series’ grittiness and graphic nature while not feeling toned-down by comparison. (In other words, much like the series, do not read this at work.) 

I’ve heard some complaints and suggestion to stay away from the comic books; however, it was still a fun read and do recommend it to fans of the Amazon Prime series.  

Amazing Spider-Man: Kraven's Last Hunt

Title: Amazing Spider-Man: Kraven's Last Hunt

ISBN: 9780785134503

Price: $14.99

Publisher/Year: Marvel, 2022

Artist: Mike Zeck

Writer: J.M. DeMatteis

Rating: 4.5/5

As a wide-eyed youngster taking his first steps into the wide world of comic books, I somehow managed to avoid all the twee, wholesome superhero stories lining the shelves of my local comic shop in the late ’80s and instead found myself picking up J.M. DeMatteis and Mike Zeck’s Kraven’s Last Hunt Spider-Man arc.  And with my only real American comic experience prior to that being Secret Wars (also drawn by Zeck, coincidentally enough), it’s safe to say that my per-pubescent mind was completely and utterly blown from the first page to the last.

For those of you who don’t know, the story sees Kraven the Hunter planning one last great hunt for himself by not only taking down but actually supplanting Spider-Man, proving that he’s more than equal to his long-time adversary by actually donning the mask himself.  He shoots and drugs Spider-Man before burying him alive and single-handedly taking down long-standing and incredibly dangerous Spidey foe Vermin, seemingly proving his claim to be true.

Peter returns, Kraven surrenders without a fight, Vermin nearly kills Peter, Kraven actually saves his enemy but then takes his own life, feeling that his work is finally done.  Oh, and then Spidey cleans up the Vermin mess himself.  It’s a poetic arc filled with emotion and gravitas, and feels far deeper and more nuanced than a lot of the ‘punch the bad guy, save the girl’ Spider-Man stories I’ve read since. What’s doubly impressive about this story is the fact that is succeeds in spite of Spider-Man himself – for the most part, at least – almost feeling like a supporting character.  And while Peter’s personal arc undoubtedly provides the beating heart of the series, it can’t be overstated just how bold a decision it was to keep Spidey in a goddamn grave for the bulk of the early part of this story, or just how well that decision ultimately paid off.

DeMatteis makes some equally bold decisions with his narration and storyline choices, from the subtle tweaking of William Blake’s poem “The Tyger” into “The Spyder”, to the frequent blood, cannibalism and death that punctuates the story.  This is a darker, edgier Spider-Man story, and DeMatteis has the characters narrate their own scenes beautifully, from the single-minded determination of Kraven to the claustrophobic, terror-fueled doubt of Peter to the feral, animalistic instincts of Vermin.

What’s also impressive is that, unlike a lot of other 80s comics, Kraven’s Last Hunt still holds up incredibly well.  Zeck and inker Bob McLeod’s artwork is slick and polished even by today’s standards, and DeMatteis’ writing is some of the absolute best from that era. And, while a lot of other “classic” stories suffer from the diminishing returns of rose-tinted nostalgia, Kraven’s Last Hunt still feels fresh and exciting almost thirty years later.

It’s no exaggeration to say that the artwork in this arc was perhaps the first thing that really opened my eyes to just how amazing comics could be.  Between this and Marvel’s Secret Wars, Mike Zeck basically illustrated my childhood, but as much as I love his art on the character-heavy Jim Shooter event, his work alongside McLeod here feels like Zeck taking things to a whole new level.

There are so many memorable pages and moments here, from Kraven’s flash of elation as he buries his greatest prey, to the gradual accumulation of spiders on Peter’s grave, to the iconic scene where Spidey is forced to dig himself out of that very same grave, emerging in a dramatic splash page as lightning erupts in the background.

The artwork here is truly stunning in a lot of different ways, from Kraven’s almost hallucinogenic preparations to the classic Spidey action shenanigans to the almost Eerie Comics-esque sequences featuring Vermin.  Zeck’s layouts are superb, mixing simple panel structures with more thought-provoking and unconventional pages, giving the book a unique aesthetic that really sets itself apart from a lot of other books of the era.  McLeod’s inks are light enough to let Zeck’s mastery shine through, but skillful enough to stamp his own unique mark on the proceedings, managing to different sequences of the story their own unique visual styles.