I Will Have My Vengeance, in This Life or the Next … Gladiasaurs

So, you are sitting at home, bored and cruising Facebook. This article from creationist Ken Ham keeps popping up on your Facebook News feed. Over and over again you see Ken’s claims that dinosaurs had Roman gladiator-style fights against giants. What do you do with such a nugget of knowledge? Well if you are comic book creator Andrew Shay Hahn (calling him Andrew will cost you $2) you immediately call upon your Facebook friends to submit a comic book script based on this concept.

But that is just the start of the story. A. Shay Hahn challenged his friends to create this script in under two hours. At which point he would embark on a marathon to produce a full colour comic book in 15 days, have it printed and ready for sale at the 2017 Toronto ComiCon. Writer Roel Torres answered the call and submitted a full script showcasing those same dinosaurs fighting primitive giants under the watchful eye of a Space God perched high upon his giant temple. Script in hand A. Shay Hahn jumped down the stairs to his basement studio and started drawing, inking, scanning, colouring and lettering this epic tale. And he did it. A full comic book in 15 days!

Roel and Shay’s story is full of all the crazy elements you would expect. The gladiators have epic names like Ulgroth of the Pierced Hide, Vorn the Stone Breaker, and Bolk of the River Tail. Battles are fierce and ferocious. This comic hearkens back to those crazy monster comics of the early ages of comics. Double page spreads, four panel pages and amazing sound effects.

It would be very wrong to call A. Shay Hahn a Jack Kirby imitator as there are distinct differences in style but like Kirby, Hahn’s art is full of detailed pencilwork. Relying on solid inking, his colouring is simple and lets the black ink lines dominate each panel without being heavy. No surprise really that A. Shay Hahn dedicates the issue to the memory of Jack “The King’ Kirby.

A super fun smash ’em up book that you can’t help but enjoy. One of the most ridiculous concepts of the decade spawns one of the most ridiculously fun comics of the decade. Get it. You have no excuses!

Initially available at Toronto ComiCon 2017 the book will be carried at Gotham Central Comics and Collectibles in Mississauga, Ontario and other select locations to be announced. If you are from farther away, you can drop Shay a message at https://www.facebook.com/TheHomelessGMen/. Shay has already mailed copies out to fans of his in the USA, UK and as far as Australia. Also, be sure to check out Shay’s Rumble Watch web comic at https://rumble-watch.tumblr.com/

Issue: Gladiasaurs | Publisher: Mad Crafty Comics
Writers: Roel Torres & A. Shay Hahn | Artist: A Shay Hahn
Price: $5.00 regular cover & $20.00 for blank sketch cover with custom hand drawn sketch

About Author

Martin Boruta

Martin Boruta has been reading comic books and graphic novels for 50+ years (he reads books without pictures too, just sayin’). A lifelong fan of Captain Canuck, Martin is the curator of The Unofficial Yet Definitive Captain Canuck Comicography website. Since 2016, Martin has been reviewing comic books and highlighting great new Kickstarter projects at First Comics News. Martin’s writting has also been featured in Sequential Magazine. For over two-hundred episodes, Martin enjoyed teaming up with his pals and sharing hosting duties on The Hey Kids Comics Radio Show broadcast on Trent Radio 92.7 CFFF FM in lovely Peterborough, ON Canada, and still available at The Hey Kids Comics Radio Show website. Martin is a founding member of the Canadian Comic Book Alliance. In his various adventures, Martin has demonstrated an innate ability to spell “Erik Larsen” incorrectly.

Martin’s “day job” is owner of Shaw Computer Systems Inc., an Information Technology consultancy firm in Peterborough, ON, specializing in Managed Services for small to mid-sized businesses since 1980.

In the past, Martin served in the Canadian Armed Forces Reserve as a member of the Cadet Instructors List (Cadre), reaching the Queen’s Commissioned rank of Captain, was awarded a Baronship of Sealand, and was ordained as a Reverend in the Universal Life Church while watching an episode of Monster Garage.

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