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Blackest Night: Green Lantern Corps #41 Review
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DC Writer: Peter J. Tomasi Pencils: Patrick Gleason Inks: Rebecca Buchman, Tom Nguyen, Prentis Rollins Colours: Randy Mayor, Gabe Eltaeb While Blackest Night has been pretty consistent, the rise of almost every fallen hero into the ranks of the undead appears to be reaching its point of exhaustion. Whereas Sinestro was a fascinating villain, wily…
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Detective Comics Annual 11 Review
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DC Writers: Fabian Nicieza, Mandy McMurray Art: Tom Mandrake, Kelly Jones Colours: Nathan Eyring, Michelle Madsen While the first part of Fabien Nicieza’s Azrael story ‘The Eighth Deadly Sin’ was pretty underwhelming, it’s nice to see this conclusion improve on it considerably. This is mainly due to the appearance of the Question, a character who…
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Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2 Xbox 360 Review
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Punch. Blast. Level up. Repeat. Ultimate Alliance 2, the latest in Activision’s series of button–bashing Marvel “RPG ‘em ups,” would make for a very interesting study on the change in brain activity over the course of a game. Its single player story mode is capable of invoking such incredibly contrasting responses, ranging from delight to…
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Uncanny X-Men #516 Comic Book Review
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Marvel Writer: Matt Fraction Pencils: Greg Land Inks: Jay Leisten Colours: Justin Ponsor Magneto’s back, and he’s more civil than ever before! Perhaps the biggest surprise with this issue was the way in which Matt Fraction handles the X-Men’s most formidable foe’s return. Not with a world-threatening bang, but with as understated an entrance as…
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Deadpool #900 Comic Book Review
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Marvel Writers: Jason Aaron, Fred Van Lente, Mike Benson, Joe Kelly, Duane Swierczynski, Victor Gischler, Charlie Huston, James Felder Artists: Chris Staggs, Dalibor Talajic, Damion Scott, Rob Liefeld, Shawn Crystal, Sanford Greene, Kyle Baker, Pete Woods…and many more It’s hard to believe that we’ve laughed and cried our way though 900 issues of Deadpool… no,…
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Batman Annual 27 Comic Book Review
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DC Writers: Fabian Nicieza, Mandy McMurray Art: J. Calafiore, Kelley Jones, Mark McKenna Colours: Nathan Eyring, Michelle Madsen Reaction to the Batman Reborn event has definitely been a surprise. Not in the sense that it has sold copies (that was a given) but how quickly fans have warmed to the Dick Grayson and Damien duo.…
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Kill Audio #1 Comic Book Review
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Boom! Studios Story: Claudio Sanchez, Chondra Echert Art: Mr. Sheldon The trouble with surrealist storytellers such as Robert Crumb and David Lynch is that they make their own brand of weird look so easy. One thing their legions of imitators often overlook is that their approaches are entirely natural; it’s impossible to imagine post-80s Lynch…
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King of Fighters XII Review
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KOF XII’s excellent new system and graphical overhaul are let down by limited single player modes and redundant multiplayer offerings. When Street Fighter IV rejuvenated interest in 1-on-1 fighting games, SNK Playmore wasted no time in announcing the twelfth instalment in their flagship series. King of Fighters XII would be the first in several aspects;…
Shelf Abuse
Storytelling, comic books and self-publishing
To better focus my efforts, Bothersome Books, my wee publishing imprint and home to my novel and short stories, has merged with Shelf Abuse. Expect several new releases this year.
Shelf Abuse: Sporadically Singing the Unsung Since 2006
Welcome to Shelf Abuse, the blog of British writer, web/graphic designer and occasional illustrator Carl Doherty.
What started out in 2006 as a blog about comics, gradually leaning more towards self-published and creator-owned works, has slowly transitioned into a home for my own self-published efforts, and a place to share my opinions on art, literature, cinema, storytelling, publishing, design, animal rights, depression… and yes, still comics. You’ll also find the occasional guest article amidst my mercifully brief rants.
Current Site Status
Due to an increasingly dense schedule, I’m no longer officially accepting review submissions. Hopefully this will eventually change, but not looking likely any time soon.
However, my love for indie comics hasn’t diminished in the slightest. Please do feel free to follow me on social media, add me to your mailing list or inform me of your new book. I can’t always reply, but I always appreciate hearing about new books.