Reviews For Punisher: Butterfly & Girl Comics #1

I want to thank everyone who has supported Girl Comics #1 & Punisher MAX: Butterfly: your emails, Tweets, and Facebook messages are deeply appreciated. Thanks to those who came out to attend the signing at Jim Hanley's Universe, and thanks to Jim Hanleys for really doing a great job and making us at Girl Comics feel very welcome!

And these stories would not have been possible without the talented artists, Nikki Cook & Laurence Campbell, who brought them to life, and editorial teams who were smart, sensitive, and very supportive.

First, some "Butterfly" reviews:

On a review posted on the iFanboy site, The Last Champion wrote:

"It takes a lot of guts to publish a comic that doesn't have the title character in it. It all depends on whether the story ends up being good to justify the 'disappearance'. I'm not familiar with the work of Valerie D'Orazio but I will say one thing about her writing skills. She could've made this a story about a random thug in the MAX universe and I'd still be intrigued to read it."

Dan Philips @IGN gave it an 8 out 10:

"Having read Valerie D'Orazio's Occasional Superheroine blog and her Goodbye to Comics series of posts in particular, I fully expected her mainstream comics debut to be as unflinching and unapologetic as anything she's written about herself or the comics industry. I just didn't expect it to be as impressive and polished as Punisher MAX: Butterfly is. D'Orazio doesn't just channel the same passionate, extremely personal style of writing she's shared over the Net into a crime story set in the periphery of the Punisher MAX universe, she also makes it a slick moving, intricately layered page-turner. It's one hell of a read."

And The Reverend's Weekly Comic Reviews at Comics Con Queso wrote a somewhat spoilery review:

"I think this book simply proves my point that the Punisher is only as interesting as the people he kills. Garth Ennis knew this. Jason Aaron knows this. And Valerie D’Orazio knows this."

Next, a smattering of Girl Comics #1 reviews. Me & artist Nikki Cook did the Punisher story.

IGN's Miguel Perez enjoyed Girl Comics #1, writing:

"Like any good collection, Girl Comics #1 offers a fantastic mixture of art, subject matter and tone. There truly is something for everybody in this book."

Perez went on to say:

"If I have to pick a favorite, I'd go with the Punisher story by Valerie D'Orazio and Nikki Cook. This hilarious short story used juxtaposition wonderfully as I just could not stop laughing at the sight of both men getting ready for their eventual confrontation. Little artistic details like the clown shower curtain and the guy's creepy pedo-smile made this story stand out for me. What can I say, I'm a sucker for a good Punisher story."

The Nerdy Bird from Has Boobs, Reads Comics called Girl Comics "great" and went on to declare it "the Tampax Pearl of...girl comics." For the guys reading this, trust me, comparing it to the Pearl is big endorsement.

Randy Lander wrote in his blog,

"...some great art throughout, and is worth it for the "posies" panel in Valerie D'Orazio's story and the Colleen Coover intro pages alone."

And @LarrysComics Tweeted:

"How do you illustrate the "SOUL" of a character in 4 #comics pages? Ask @ValerieDOrazio She SHOULD be writing the ongoing Punisher series"

Overall, I'm pretty happy with the buzz, and really just grateful that I have been given the opportunity to write this stuff. That's pretty much it. I know my life has had its ups and downs, but in the end, I think I turned out to be a very lucky and blessed person.