10/01/08
RANDOM BASHING
I dunno how I missed it, but I just stumbled over a title called Superman and Batman vs. Vampires and Werewolves. The first question that comes to mind is "Why?" Did DC need an excuse to print another comic, or are there maybe requirements that a certain amount of paper be used each month? Issues #3 and 4 even add Green Arrow to the mix with his "wooden and silver-tipped arrows!" Give me a break!
AC COMICS
Men of Mystery #75
Featuring Flag-Man, Dollman, Major Midnight, Radar, Spy Smasher, T-man, Rocky X and Crimebuster!! A selection of post-War stories by Charles Quinlan, Otto Binder, France Herron, Bill Woolfolk, Charles Biro, Al Bryant, Leonard Franks, Ken Battefield, Allan Ulmer, William Overgard and others!! SRP $9.95
DARK HORSE
Bernie Wrightson's Frankenstein
Out of print for nearly 25 years, this is a large (9 x 12) hardback of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein novel lavishly illustrated by Bernie Wrightson. I recall that the earlier edition was the first time I ever read the entire Shelley work and, while the novel does not hold up all that well after all the film versions, the Wrightson illustrations were unbelievably gorgeous and extremely detailed. Wrightson really knocked himself out capturing the feel of a Victorian era that is strewn with shadows and menace. His monster owes some debt to the Karloff version, but is original in its own way and fraught with emotion. No one has ever envisioned Shelley's novel in quite this way and the meticulous pen and ink work is a wonder to behold. This one is worth the price of admission for the drawings (after all you can find the novel for next to nothing) and is probably the last major work that Wrightson produced before he changed his art style to the less detailed style he uses today. Rumor at the time the first edition came out was that Wrightson damaged his drawing hand doing the illustrations and had to lay off drawing for a couple of years as a result. Definitely belongs up on your bookshelf! SRP $29.95
DC
DC Comics Goes Ape
Many years ago, as the story goes, one of the editors at DC put a cover on one of his titles that featured a gorilla. Sales on that title went up. The experiment was tried again with the same result, leading DC to feature more covers with gorillas on them than any other publisher (and to also feature more simian characters than any other publisher). Whether you accept the story as truth, or take the alternate version in which DC featured gorillas on their covers because Carmine Infantino resembled one is beside the point and you just have to accept that this collection will be on sale in October, will feature 11 stories of simian madness from all sorts of titles with a slew of creators and will have an SRP of $19.99. You're on your own here!
DC Universe Illustrated by Neal Adams Vol. 1
The first of 3 volumes that will reprint every cover and story done by Adams for DC that haven't already been collected in the Batman, Deadman and Green Lantern/Green Arrow volumes. My guess is that this also includes Adams inks, since the credits for this first volume include Kubert, Cardy and Dillin. Over the years, Adams has been one of the most saleable, and controversial, artists to work in comics. On one hand, Adams was the main cover artist at DC for many years in the 60s and 70s and, although not as prolific as Gil Kane over at Marvel, his covers were on more lower tier books than any other artist because DC knew that his covers sold better than those by other artists (which is why I suspect that there are more covers than stories in this collection). On the other, he has long been known for his inability to meet deadlines and has always been outspoken over his disagreements with the policies of the comic industry. Yet, Adams has always strived to break new ground and, for many years, his style and Kirby's were the most copied in the industry. Dunno what else to tell you...lots of obscure material here, but I wonder who is doing the coloring. I've looked at the Batman volumes on occasion, and find the new Adams colors to be over-rendered, so I might suggest you look at this one before you buy. Probably worth a squint. SRP $39.99
Showcase Presents: Blackhawk Vol. 1
Here's an oddity! As scheduled, it will reprint Blackhawk #108-127 from the 1950s with story by a bunch of people and art by Dick Dillin, Charles Cuidera and Sheldon Moldoff! Although I wish DC had gone back into the Golden Age vaults for more Blackhawk, it will be very interesting to see this material that I don't believe has ever been reprinted. Worth a squint. SRP $16.99
Batman Chronicles Vol. 6
Reprints, in chronological order, the Batman stories from Batman #10-11, Detective Comics #62-66 and World's Finest Comics #5-6 by Finger Hamilton, Kane, Robinson and others. The key to the characters of the Golden Age was their simplicity and Batman was no exception. No psychosis, no dark and brooding, just a man who wanted to make the world a better place by fighting the wrongs he saw around him. Batman enjoyed what he did in the old days and even though he battled a number of weird villains, he still kept himself together. Granted it was a simpler time, but these stories should serve as a model for today's creators in that the hero is heroic, not just a little better than those around him. This is another bargain priced collection of Golden Age Batman that deserves squinting and a place of honor up on your sagging bookshelf if you don't already have these stories in another form. SRP $14.99
Diana Prince: Wonder Woman Vol. 4
Reprints Wonder Woman #190-198 and World's Finest #204 by Sekowsky, O'Neil, Giordano, Dillin and others. More of Wonder Woman from the 70s, but why these are being reprinted beats me. By the 70s, Wonder Woman tends to be more independent than in her earlier years, but she isn't quite a feminist role model, nor is she a heroine who is outstanding on her own. The original Wonder Woman from the Golden Age was an anomaly in that she was one of the first female super-heroes and could go toe to toe with the male heroes of her time (she was in the Justice Society for corn's sake!). Unfortunately, her early adventures were more about bondage and women's place in society (under the glass ceiling), due to her creators: William Marston and H.G. Peters. Both were well respected, but I really don't think that all their cogs were meshing. I've never warmed to the character and so, I'll leave this one to you, since I, most likely, won't even give it a squint. SRP $19.99
Showcase Presents: World's Finest Vol. 2
Reprints World's Finest Comics #112-145 by Coleman, Herron, Finger Swan, Sprang and a whole bunch of others. Fun stories from back in the days when Superman and Batman were best buds and took time out each month to hang together and fight evil. What evil, you may ask? Well, Luthor and the Joker, Mr. Mxyzptlk and Bat-Mite, or, my personal favorite, the Composite Superman (half his body was Superman and half was Batman and he got his powers from a lightning strike and he...ah, it's too hard to explain, you just have to see it to believe it!). Heck, in these olden days, Superman and Batman even had time to pull practical jokes on one another. Worth a squint and, if you are looking for some light reading, here it is for your sagging bookshelf. SRP $16.99
Showcase Presents: Wonder Woman Vol. 2
Reprints Wonder Woman #118-137 by Kanigher, Andru and Esposito. The 60s version of Diana Prince, complete with costume, plane and Paradise Island. For my feelings about Wonder Woman, see above. I'll leave this one to you. SRP $16.99
The Spirit: Femmes Fatale
Reprints 23 Spirit stories that feature the female adversaries of Denny Colt. Sex was a big part of The Spirit strip and Eisner featured female characters that were sexy, sultry and just downright dangerous. P'Gell, Sand Sareff and Silk Satin are just a few of them and you will find that Eisner's femme fatales are on a par with those that Caniff created in Terry and the Pirates. In fact, if Wonder Woman had been done with as much independence and character as Eisner's females, I might feel different about the character than I do (see above)! Skip the Miller film and pick this one up, since it will be one heck of a lot better! SRP $19.99
DIGITAL WEBBING
E-Man: The Idol
Nick Cuti and Joe Staton are at it again in a new story that features everyone's favorite alien with Einstein's formula on his chest. Mike Mauser will be along, as will also colorist Matt Webb and we can only hope that Teddy Q will also be along for the ride! After the last issue (around a year ago) I look for great things once again. Definitely worth the squint!! SRP $3.99
FANTAGRAPHICS
Popeye Vol. 3: "Let's You and Him Fight!"
Reprints the heaping dose of Segar's wonderful epic that will include the arrival of Swee'Pea and also lots of strips that feature J. Willington Wimpy. The volume is also slated to feature the 1933 strips that were done to commemorate the Chicago World's Fair! A bargain at an SRP of $29.99!
GEMSTONE
Nothing worth mentioning...
IDW
The Complete Terry and the Pirates Vol. 5
Nearing the end of the saga, this volume will reprint dailies and Sundays from 1943-44 as Terry Lee has grown up and becomes involved in the war in the Pacific! Great stories and superb reproduction that belongs up on your sagging bookshelf!! SRP $49.99
Complete Little Orphan Annie Vol. 2
Reprints more adventures of the plucky red head with no eyeballs, this time from October 1927-November 1930. IDW also claims that they are shooting the strips from the original artwork! SRP $39.99
INSIGHT EDITIONS
A real oddity here found in the Will Eisner's The Spirit: A Pop-Up Graphic Novel. The description says this is a "recreation of The spirit's final two issues," then goes on to mention the Frank Miller film (a project that I have absolutely no interest in whatsoever). Further reading of the description mentions "panoramic cityscapes, three-dimensional action sequence pop-outs, frame-by-frame mini-booklets, and scene change pullouts." Exactly what all this means beats me, but apparently this is going to be a pop-up book to beat them all. Then we get to the bad news: the book is 16 pages long and has an SRP of $34.95. So, I will leave it to you if the novelty is worth the price of admission!
MANUSCRIPT PRESS
Comics Revue #271
Sixty-four pages of comic strip reprints, including anything from Gasoline Alley to Tarzan. Captain Easy is featured on the cover this month. Well worth a squint and a great place to start exploring the world of comic strips. SRP $6.95
MARVEL
In what I'm hoping is a mis-print, but may not be, Marvel has announced that they will release a Secret Wars Omnibus in October (although that date seems to have been moved back to November). Much as I diliked the series when it originally appeared and, for that reason, don't see why it's getting the Omnibus treatment, there is something else in Marvel's solicitation that I find a bit worrisome. Seems that this particular Omnibus is only going to have 384 pages, which is less than half of most of the other Omnibus collections of the same price. Up until now, books of this size have been in the $75 range. So, is Marvel raising prices once again and, if they are, what will this do to the full sized Omnibus books yet to come...?
Marvel Masterworks: Atlas Era Journey Into Mystery Vol. 1
Reprints Journey Into Mystery #1-10 by lots of writers and art by Russ Heath, John Romita, Jerry Robinson, Bill Everett and others too numerous to mention. From the early days of the 50s, here's a heaping helping of Marvel pre-Code horror in all its wonderment. Marvel's horror comics of this period were a bit tame when compared to their competition (just look at some of the EC or Avon comics of the same period and you'll know what I mean), but are still quite interesting since there were a number of notable artists in the Atlas stable. You'll find Russ Heath hard at work here, along with a young John Romita, Sr. and Gene Colan. Everett does some interiors and covers. Then, some other familiar names crop up, among them Joe Maneely, Jerry Robinson, Jay Scott Pike, Paul Reinmann and...the list goes on and on. Some of the material here was reprinted by Marvel in the 70s, but the vast majority hasn't been seen since its original publication. At the very least, worth a squint, if not a spot up on your sagging bookshelf. SRP $59.99
Essential Marvel Horror Vol. 2
And if you thought that a Secret Wars Omnibus was scraping the bottom of the barrel, here's a collection that hits a new high in lows. Reprinting such luminairies as Brother Voodoo, Golem and Gabriel the Devil Hunter from a variety of sources, I will mercifully omit the names of the creators, since they don't need to be reminded that they once worked on such drivel. Save your money! SRP $16.99
PURE IMAGINATION
Skyroads Vol. 1
Rescheduled for October is this collection of almost 100 strips by Russell Keaton from 1935. SRP $18.00
Steve Ditko: Edge of Genius
It seems to me that this item has been solicited before as well, but it is set to reprint 160 pages of Ditko's work from the first 3 years of his career. Great stuff and worth a squint! SRP $25.00
TWOMORROWS PUBLISHING
The Hawkman Companion
A full 208 pages of the history and creators of Hawkman in all his incarnations. Includes lots of art, interviews with creators and a timeline of all appearances. SRP $24.95
Alter Ego #81
Special Halloween issue with a look at Web of Horror magazine (including an interview with the editor, Terry Bisson), an interview with Raymond Everett Kinstler, Roy Thomas on the origin of Man-Thing and Bob Rozakis on All-American Comics. SRP $6.95
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