WWE Then. Now. Forever Volume 4 TPB: Get in the Ring!!

This trade paperback collects some of the best issues from Boom’s WWE comic book line. It even delivers just what the title promises, as it features some of the best stories from Then, Now & Forever. It is a pretty hefty collection of stories, so I’m only going to touch on a few specifically in this review. First up, is probably my favorite story in the book, the story of the formation of 3 time Tag Team Champions: Money, Inc. Writer Arune Singh sheds some light on just how Irwin R. Shyster got teamed up with The Million Dollar Man Ted Dibiase. Singh brings these characters to life, giving them real personality, and just enough cartoon character goodness for them to be as entertaining as you remember they were.

In “I’m Sorry, I love you” author Ryan Ferrier takes us inside the head of Shawn Michaels on March 30^th, 2008 at Wrestlemania 24, when he retired Ric Flair. We get a start to finish retrospective of Micheals’ career during which he tried to emulate “The Nature Boy”, but eventually found his own spot in pro-wrestling as “The Heartbreak Kid”. Ferrier does a fantastic job here, giving us a full-length entertaining story that takes place in about 5 seconds in real-time. There are some more great full-length stories in the book as well. Ones that focus on Charlotte Flair, Jimmy Uso, Naomi, The Undertaker, Kane and more.

There are also some great 2-3 page stories about the men & women on the NXT roster. Relive the “origin” of the Velveteen Dream, Matt Riddle, Tommaso Ciampa, Shayna Baszler and many more from the black & gold brand. These could have been Wikipedia entries with pictures, but the authors do a fantastic job bringing them to life, and making them much more than characters on TV.

The art in this book features a wide range of styles. Some stories are drawn in a style that’s a bit over the top for my tastes, but for the most part, the artists really turn up their skills to give us a different perspective on things that any wrestling fan has seen on TV. Daniel Bayless was one of my favorite artists in this collection, his portrayal of the NXT Superstars is a lot of fun. He gives us some great renderings of them both in and out of the ring. Andy Belanger is another great artist here. His story about Kane and the Undertaker is really moody and creepy. Rodrigo Lorenzo is another outstanding talent. His drawings Adam Cole and the Undisputed Era are fantastic and really capture their look and personality. If I had to pick a favorite, it would have to be Hyeonjin Kim. His story, “Queen vs Empress” is one of the most uniquely drawn stories that I’ve ever seen on a licensed comic. He has a very slight manga touch to his style, you’d have to look twice to notice it, but it’s definitely there. He’s also got a touch of Gary Frank in his style, and when you put them together it equals something that looks fantastic! Boom! Certainly picked the right artists for most of these stories.