06/01/10 - Releases for June
AC COMICS
Nothing of interest this month.
DARK HORSE
Red Tide
Back in 1976, Pyramid Books began a series of digest-sized graphic novels that were packaged and designed by Byron Preiss. The series itself floundered, producing only 4 titles, but one has remained legendary throughout the years, that being Chandler: Red Tide, which was written and illustrated by Jim Steranko. At the time, Steranko was around 7 years removed from his fondly remembered work at Marvel, but still proved he was capable of re-thinking the comic book genre. Originally promised in 1999 from Dark Horse, it will be interesting to see if this is will simply be a reprinting of the 1976 story, or, as promised back in 1999, a re-working of the original. Chandler: Red Tide was an experiment at the time it was published (Steranko called it a "visual novel") and it was a story told totally in full-page panels with the text and dialogue running at the bottom of each page. At its heart, Red Tide is a detective novel done in the style of Hammett and Chandler and, as such, an homage to most all the detective films you have ever seen. The basic plot concerns the hero of the piece, Chandler, trying to solve a murder in which all the principles keep on dying and, to add to the suspense, Chandler has only 72 hours in which to solve the case... Dark Horse has chosen to present this Steranko classic in a size twice up from its digest version (something only those who have the limited edition have been able to enjoy) with cleaned up printing. Far superior to the hard-boiled material currently available, you will find Red Tide well worth a squint and a place of honor on your sagging bookshelf. SRP $19.99
NOTE: Now that I've gotten you all excited about the book, do be aware that a quick check (as of this writing) shows Amazon listing a release date of July for the book, while Dark Horse no longer has Red Tide listed anywhere on their site. Is it delayed once again? Hopefully someone will let us know and I'll have more news next month...Star Wars Omnibus: A Long Time Ago... Vol. 1
Dark Horse is going back to one of the most successful adaptions Marvel ever did and will be doing a series of color Omnibus editions of the Marvel Star Wars series. This first volume will reprint #1-26 the Marvel series in their entirety and future volumes will include material not previously collected, including the movie adaptions and material done for Marvel UK: some of which has never seen print in the US. Worth a squint. SRP $24.99
DC
The Viking Prince by Joe Kubert
Reprints The Brave and the Bold #1-5, 7-20 and Our Army at War #162 and 163 with scripts by Robert Kanigher and Bob Haney and art by Joe Kubert. I would assume DC wanted to do a complete collection of Kubert's work on the character, but it appears that the Prince and Kubert worked did lots of stories together, many of them cross-overs (such as the Our Army at War issues), so there probably is a second volume in the planning stages. Kubert was one of the mainstays of DC in 50s and 60s and his work on this series is quite well done, although he still hadn't reached his artistic peak. The Prince was a Viking warrior who, although an amnesiac, fought his share of evil rulers, giants, sea monsters and witches all against the backdrop of fifth century Iceland. Simpler tales from a simpler time and worth a squint, but these stories may not appeal to everyone. SRP $39.99
Saga of the Swamp Thing Book 3
Reprints #35-42 Saga of the Swamp Thing #35-38 and Swamp Thing #39-42 by Alan Moore, Stephen Bisette, John Totleben, Rick Veitch and others. Vampires who live underwater, a twist on the werewolf theme and the first appearance of John Constantine are all here as the reprinting of Alan Moore's understated horrors continues. Great stuff that you should read, even if you read it years ago. The actual writing of comics doesn't get much better. SRP $24.99
4TH DIMENSION
Lackadaisy Vol. 1
A couple of years back, I was sent a link by a friend that led me to a website that featured a wonderfully rendered online comic called Lackadaisy. The creation of graphic artist Tracy J. Butler, the comic is about a large cast of characters whose adventures take place in St. Louse of the late 1920s. Excellently rendered and featuring excellent stories, the strip has only been seen by a few who happened on the website. Now, the first sequence of stories is being offered in book form, assumedly self-published by the creator. This one deserves a good, long squint and, if you head to the website (lackadaisy) you can even read the strip and decide if it belongs up on your sagging bookshelf. SRP $19.95
IDW
Archie: The Classic Newspaper Comics Vol. 1
As part of the new Archie reprint series, we have here the complete dailies that were written and drawn by Bob Montana. The Archie newspaper strip had no strict continuity, but was a "gag-a-day" strip. Montana's art is really a pleasure to view and it is kind of interesting that these strips, per IDW, have never been reprinted before. I've always preferred the early Archie comics (read pre-1960) as they represent a simpler time and these strips only re-enforce my opinion. So, give it a good long squint and decide whether you agree. SRP $39.99
The Complete Chester Gould's Dick Tracy Vol. 10
Reprints the dailies and Sundays from 9/20/45 through 3/16/47. Gould was having fun during this period and his inventiveness really shines, particularly with the introduction of the Two-Way Wrist Radio: a device that, in its own way, predicted the cell phones of today. Also along for the ride is Diet Smith Vitamin Flintheart and the villains Shoulders, Itchy, Nilon Hose and Gargles. I've said much about Gould's strip in the past and still enjoy it with each new volume. Run out and grab a copy and add it to your sagging bookshelf! SRP $39.99
Best of Dick Tracy Vol. 1
All IDW is saying about this one is that it features "fan-favorite stories and characters...". What does that mean? I dunno. The cover reproduction adds that these are the "...greatest stories from four decades." Guess you'll have to give it a squint and, if the Complete series isn't to your liking, you can read what I assume will be edited story arcs. Up to you! SRP $19.99
Felix The Cat The Great Comic Book Tails
Most of us are familiar with Felix the Cat from the cartoons that seemed to run forever on TV (another link to Felix is Felix Chevrolet up in Los Angeles, that features Felix the Cat on its sign), but there were also Felix the Cat comic books done for Dell and Harvey during the Golden Age. This book will reprint around 200 pages of Felix stories done by both Otto Messmer and Don Oriolo (in color, no less) with an introduction by Craig Yoe. Should be worth a squint. SRP $34.99
MARVEL
As announced last summer, Marvel has gotten the rights to reprint Marvelman: the English version of the American Captain Marvel (the Shazam! version). To kick off the start of the reprints (apparently, there will be two reprint titles), Marvel is offering a Marvelman Classic Primer #1 this month that will give a complete history of the character along with some pin-ups and interviews. Should be worth a squint and I'll give you a bit of history of the character when the reprints start (I'm wondering if Marvel will mention how the character was born out of necessity...). SRP $3.99
Also of interest is that one of two covers to the Namora one-shot will be by Ramona Fradon—someone long-time fans will remember for her work on Aquaman and other DC books way back when...
Marvel Masterworks: Captain America Vol. 5
Reprints Captain America #125-136 by Lee and Colan with unnamed inkers. The stories presented here are the attempts to give the character of Captain America a sense of relevance and are often laughable in their execution. Cap goes to Vietnam, Cap visits a rock festival: these were the type of stories that Lee envisioned as tapping into the consciousness of "young" America (and, if memory serves me right, Cap began to ride a motorcycle around this time, as well). The golden era of the Silver Age Captain America basically ended with the Steranko issues, since, left to his own devices, Lee alone couldn't really find a direction for the character. After all, America of the 70s was distinctly anti-war and Cap, a product of WWII, was seen as a symbol of all that was wrong with the country. *And, in what is probably the worst idea of all time, Cap becomes saddled with a new sidekick, The Falcon-another attempt at relevance that proved that non-African Americans can't write convincing African American characters (The Falcon was added to the title of the book with #134 and remained there, sadly, until #222). On the flip side, the Red Skull is here, Bucky returns (albeit it briefly) and you get some great penciling from Gene Colan, who had firmly hit his stride in both Cap and Iron Man. So, this is one of those "maybe" books that is most likely for the completist only, but should be given a squint by the casual reader for the art. SRP $54.99
Speaking of Captain America, Marvel is reprinting in comic book form another of their web comics. Captain America: The 1940s Newspaper Strip is a 3 issue series done by Karl Kessel for the Marvel website and features Captain America (the real one) and Bucky in a World War II adventure. I've never seen the strip, since I refuse to pay to view comics online, but I will recommend this one on the basis of Kessel's abilities as both the writer and artist of the piece. Worth a squint! SRP $3.99 each
Marvel Masterworks: Atlas Era Strange Tales Vol. 3
Reprints Strange Tales #21-30 by a ton of folks, most notably, Joe Maneely, Joe Sinnott, John Forte, Bill Everett and Bernie Krigstein. Here's another dose of Marvel pre-code horror that, like the previous books of this type, is filled with fairly tame stories that are often beautifully illustrated, but won't keep anyone up late at night (although some of the covers are stunning). Of greatest interest is the work of Krigstein (never realized he did any work for Marvel), Everett, Sinnott and Maneely, since their work was always excellent, and there's even an early story by John Buscema. Overall, however, this is just an over-priced collection that is for the completist only. SRP $59.99
Marvel Masterworks: The Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 4
Reprints Amazing Spider-Man #31-40 by Lee, Ditko and Romita. What you get in this low-priced volume is the end of Ditko's run on Spider-Man ( through #38) and the first two issues of John Romita's tenure on the book. Ditko was the main architect of Spider-Man and understood how the character worked better than any other creator. His run on the title is probably some of the best work he ever created and, while Romita had his own style, the tone and direction of the book changed dramatically once Ditko departed. Stories here are all excellent and if you don't have them in any other form, you need to add them to your sagging bookshelf immediately. As an added bonus, Marvel says this volume will include the complete pencils for #31. SRP $24.99
Marvell Masterworks: Daredevil Vol. 1
Reprints Daredevil #1-11 by Lee, Wood, Everett and Orlando (and an inker or two, I'm sure). I've long believed that the early Marvel titles were all the result of Lee working with an artist who could both draw AND write. Spider-Man, Dr. Strange, the Fantastic Four and most of the other early Marvel titles would seem to to bear this out: especially when one looks at these titles after Lee had to write them solo. So, it should come as no surprise the Bill Everett, the creator of Sub-Mariner and artist supreme, should have been Lee's choice to work on Daredevil. Everett has long been neglected by comic fans and the fact that he could both write and draw on an equal footing with any other creator is a fact that is slowly coming to light. What we have here is the Everett/Lee collaboration on Daredevil #1, which was legendary for its lateness and caused Lee to remove Everett from the book after the first issue. With Everett gone, the tone of the stories changes with issues #2-5, when Joe Orlando (inked by Colletta) takes a stab at the character (these stories seem closest to Lee in tone, but Orlando was a writer, too). Issues 6-11 feature Wally Wood (also a competent writer) on pencils and inks (later Bob Powell comes on board on pencils) and these are the best stories of the early run next to the Everett origin (the red costume also makes its debut during Wood's run). This quick change in tone according to artist is what makes this collection fun to read. For the student of comic history, it becomes pretty obvious in the post-origin issues that Everett had a large amount of input into the character and, of all the early Marvel characters, Daredevil is one of two characters that had (seemingly) no Kirby input (the other being Dr. Strange). All the basics of the series are laid out in these early issues and these would remain pretty much unchanged until Miller started working on the character in the 80s. For the casual reader, however, these stories, like so many of the other early Marvel stories, are just great fun to read, especially as new ground is laid in nearly every story. this is a collection that belongs up on your sagging bookshelf if you don't have these stories in another form. SRP $24.99
MANUSCRIPT PRESS
Comics Revue Presents: June 2010
Flash Gordon, The Phantom, Mandrake the Magician, Modesty Blaise, Tarzan and other strips in this large, 120 page package that includes 8 pages of color! Look for Flash Gordon on the cover. SRP $19.95
TITAN
Beetle Bailey: The Dailies and Sundays 1965-66
Titan enters the American newspaper strip reprint bonanza with this volume that will reprint all the daily and Sunday (in color?) strips from 1965 (hence, the title). Beetle Baily, a comic strip about a private in the army who just can't seem to do things correctly, turns 60 in 2010 and is still produced today by its original creator, Mort Walker. A fun gag-a-day strip with a rich supporting cast (particularly the long suffering Sgt. Snorkel), Beetle Bailey may be something worth your squinting time. SRP $19.95
The Wizard of Id: The Dailies 1970-1971
Another gag-a-day strip, The Wizard of Id is the creation of Brant Parker and Johnny Hart and is set in the medieval kingdom of Id where each episode deals with the misadventures that occur within the kingdom. Often focusing on the Wizard, the strip has a large number of supporting characters, including Rodney the Chicken Hearted, the Spook (a prisoner in the dungeons), Bung (the alcoholic court jester) and the ruler of the fiefdom, the King. The strip also comments on current events and many modern items may crop up in any given episode, depending on what is needed for the payoff to a gag. Worth a squint. SRP 19.95
The Simon and Kirby Superheroes
Hot on the heels of last year's The Best of Simon and Kirby is the next installment in this massive reprint project. Titan has managed to compile all the superhero characters Simon and Kirby worked on that were not published by either Marvel or DC. As a result, we are looking at a massive 480 page full color collection that will include the following:
- The Black Owl-Some of the team's earliest work from Prize Comics #7-9 done just before Captain America.
- Stuntman-All the Stuntman stories that were done for Harvey in the 40s and, as a bonus, a story that was partially completed but never saw print when the series was canceled.
- Vagabond Prince-All 3 stories, again produced for Harvey, and the story, "Trapped in Wax" that has never been published in its entirety.
- Captain 3-D-Published complete, in 2-D and in color for the first time.
- Fighting American-All the stories, including those not done by Simon & Kirby, along with a cover and story that have never been printed.
- The Shield (Private Strong)-All Simon & Kirby stories from 1959 and done for Archie.
- The Fly-Another Archie series and its not clear whether all the stories will be included, or just those done by Simon & Kirby.
This a a huge collection. Simon & Kirby, throughout their career together, constantly redifined and refined comic books. Their storytelling techniques were usually ahead of the rest of the creators and the way the team would take established art styles and turn them on their ear is a wonder to behold. This collection, although it does not include the Marvel and DC material, gives one an overview from the late 30s to the 50s and a tremendous chance to sample just what Simon & Kirby could do. Not only that, but, for you long-time collectors, the previously unreprinted material just makes the book that much better. It belongs on your sagging bookshelf without a second thought.. Intro will be by Neil Gaimen and the SRP is a remarkable $49.95 (although the book won't be as physically large as the previous one).
TWOMORROWS PUBLISHING
Alter Ego #94
The Earth-Two Companion Part III with lots of art and focus on The Huntress, Power Girl, Dr. Fate and more. Plus, the second part of the George Kashdan interview and profiles of C. C. Beck and Marc Swayze as part of the FCA section. SRP $7.95
Carmine Infantino: Penciller, Publisher, Provocateur
An overview of Infantino's career covering his contributions to the comic industry, including details never made public until now. As with most any TwoMorrows publication, lots of art and the hardcover edition features a 16 page color section not included in the softcover. SRP $26.95 (softcover) $46.95 (hardcover)
Back Issue #41
A :Red, White, and Blue" issue with looks at Captain America in the Bronze Age, the Red Skull, American Flagg, Wonder woman, the Freedom Fighters and Team America. SRP $7.95
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