10/01/09 - Releases for October
IN THE NEWS...
Unless you've been living under a rock for the last couple of weeks, you are probably aware that Marvel Comics has been bought by Disney. Don't really know how to react to this news, as things can go one of two ways. Either Disney will let the creative types continue to run Marvel, or they will start to throw their corporate weight around and drag the company down. Disney, after all, is a media company, but has never run a successful comic book operation and, in recent memory, has treated comics as a sort of bastard step-child that no one wants to talk about (as an example, Disney comics have never been sold at any of the Disney theme parks).
What I found most interesting is that the full acquisition of Marvel won't really be in place until 2011, due to various licensing and such and, in fact, isn't yet a done deal, so we'll have to wait and see what actually transpires down the road...
AND IN THE NEWS...
The story that received less coverage, however, occurred over at DC about a week after the Disney deal. Seems that Time-Warner, the company that owns DC, has been upset that none of the DC characters have gotten the movie attention the corporate bigwigs think they deserve and the solution to this problem was to have Paul Levitz step down as publisher and, in his place, insert a corporate suit into the publisher role who has no previous comic book experience.
Now, the last time something of this magnitude happened, was many years ago when Jenette Kahn became the president and editor-in-chief of DC. Although Kahn came from a non-comics background, DC turned around under her tenure and she helped shape the comic company that DC is today. But, she didn't do it alone. No, she had two comic people under her to help bridge the worlds of publishing and creativity: Dick Giordano and Paul Levitz.
Levitz, to his credit, is one of the few people who started in fandom and rose to the top of the heap (the other who comes to mind is Roy Thomas), moving from writer to editor to publisher. Under Levitz, DC has become a major comic book force and today's direct market, flawed though it may be in many ways, has allowed small press comics and independent creators to have a chance at survival, again, due to Levitz's influence. But even though Levitz was the publisher, he also understood what made good comics and never forgot his roots: becoming the industry's major champion of creator's rights. Yet, for all his accomplishments and abilities, he is now relegated to the role of "writer and consulting editor" leaving the running, and decision making of DC to a corporate "suit", with no comic book experience, who will report directly to the brass at Time-Warner. This means that there will be no comic people in (ultimate) charge of a comic book company and, that looks to me to be a real problem.
We won't know what all this will mean for DC for awhile, but the changes may be much more immediate than those at Marvel. The first change comes from a WB press release, which states that DC Comics is gone and is now DC Entertainment...
AND ALSO IN THE NEWS...
In addition to all the turmoil listed above, the 4 children of of Jack Kirby have just filed 45 separate notices of copyright termination (and, I must admit, I didn't realize that the children of a creator could file this type of motion) that cover characters ranging from the Fantastic Four and The Hulk to the X-Men and, according to one list, even Spider-Man. Legally, these notices are simply a notification to the current copyright holder (in this case Marvel, Disney and everyone who has options on Marvel characters) that the heirs intend to seek termination of copyright when the copyright terms are up for renewal (56 years after first filing). The Kirby children are being represented by lawyer Marc Toberoff, who represented the Siegel family in their case against Time-Warner over Superman (a case, I might add, that some new sites are reporting was decided in favor of the Siegels and they now own a piece of the Superman copyright). In any event, the outcome of this suit will be lots of fun to watch, especially as the actual act of creating a character may come up as part of the proceedings and maybe we will finally get down to the nitty gritty of who actually created what at Marvel.
AC COMICS
Crypt of Horror Vol. 7
Another 140 page collection of pre-code horror, meticulously restored by the folks at AC. Much of the material in this volume (and the previous releases) hasn't been reprinted anywhere else and features art by Kirby, Ayers, Powell and Nostrand just to name a few. Worth a squint, but I find the SRP of $29.95 a bit over the top.
BOOM STUDIOS
Boom continues their Disney releases and along with the continuing Walt Disney's Comics and Stories (#700 this month) and Mickey Mouse and Friends, they are also adding Uncle Scrooge (starting with #384) and Donald Duck and Friends (starting with #347) to the line-up. The Donald Duck issue is obviously European in origin and features Donald as secret agent, while there are no real details about the contents of Scrooge, which are very vague and the creators are listed as various.
DARK HORSE
Groo: The Hogs of Horder #1
Aragones and Evanier return with this first issue in a 4 issue mini-series that features everyone's favorite barbarian. Groo has his hands full when he meets a destructive force that is greater than his own ineptness. Stan Sakai and Tom Luth are also along as letterer and colorist. Worth a squint. SRP $3.99 each
DC
Superman in World's Finest Comics Archives Vol. 2
Reprints the Superman Stories that appeared between 1945 and 1948 in World's Finest Comics #17-32 by Jerry Siegel and a bunch of other people whose names are not listed. Many Golden Age comics were anthologies that featured a variety of characters with one character that was the "star" of the book. Over at DC, the early incarnation of World's Finest had two stars: Superman and Batman, who appeared in separate stories, along with other characters, in the same comic. What we have here is some prime Superman material from the days before World's Finest featured Batman and Superman in a continuing series of team-ups. These are good stories that are serious and fun all at the same time and deserve equal shelf space with your Superman Archives. My only quibble here is why DC has to solicit this item in March for October release. Again, I will mention the tough economic times and question whether I (or anyone else) really wants to commit to a book 9 months before its release. In any event, worth a good long squint and inclusion on your sagging bookshelf. SRP $59.99
Howard Chaykin's re-thinking of Blackhawk is being reprinted this month in Blackhawk: Blood and Iron. It's terrible and should be avoided like the plague.
The Batman Chronicles Vol. 8
Reprints, in chronological order, the Batman stories from Batman #14-15, Detective Comics #71-74 and World's Finest Comics #8-9 by Cameron, Finger, Kane, Robinson, Burnley and Russos. From the days before Batman was a psychotic, boring and even dead hero is a selection of stories that show glory of what the character once was and what it could become again if anybody at DC had any sense. Great stories and great art that belong up on your sagging bookshelf. SRP $14.99
Showcase Presents: House of Secrets Vol. 2
Reprints House of Secrets #99-119 by so many creators that DC won't even try to list them. Here's another heaping dose of DC horror from the Orlando years and features, as did the previous volume, an eclectic collection of seasoned pros and young artists at the beginning of their careers. Wrightson and Kaluta are the most recognizable names of the young crowd, but, unfortunately, there art is mainly relegated to the wonderfully moody covers they contributed to the book and their work is the main reason to give this volume a good squint. Inside there are a few gems here and there, particularly the Alex Nino and Alfredo Alcala work, but for the most part the interior art is done by many of the lesser Phillipino artists that DC employed during this period as a cost-cutting measure. Worth a squint, but most likely not worth buying. SRP $17.99
FANTAGRAPHICS
Gahan Wilson: 50 Years of Playboy Cartoons
A 3 volume, slipcased set that will reproduce over 1,000 cartoons done by Wilson over the last 50 years. The set comes in 2 editions. The first is the standard edition with an SRP of $125. The more expensive edition will include an additional booklet featuring reproductions of Wilson's hand-drawn Christmas cards that he sent to Hugh Hefner during the years he worked for Playboy and has an SRP of $175. Worth a squint and I recall that Wilson's cartoons were the first thing I looked for back in the days when I read Playboy (okay...the second thing...).
IDW
Bloom County: The Complete Library Vol. 1
Few comic creators have been able to walk the fine line between fantasy and reality as well as Berke Breathed. On the one hand, Bloom County is set in the reality of our world and the strip acts as an ongoing commentary about what was going on in the world during the time it was published. Yet, on the other hand, Brethed created a stable of fantasy characters (such as Opus and Bill the Cat) who temper the harshness of reality through comedy, satire and parody. The result is a topical and comic look at society, politics and the human condition with a lighter touch than Trudeau used (and is still using) with Doonesbury. This will be the first of 5 volumes that will reprint the entirety of Berkeley Breathed's masterpiece with contextual pages included throughout the collection to assist the reader with historical references. This first volume will reprint the full Sundays and dailies for 12/8/1980-9/28/1982 with the Sundays presented in full color. A slam dunk as far as I'm concerned and worth a long squint and inclusion on your sagging bookshelf. SRP $39.99
Jon Sable returns to comics this month as Jon Sable, Freelance: Ashes of Eden hits the newsstands in a series written and drawn by his original creator, Mike Grell. Hopefully Grell still has the ability to pull off a regular series and that this one won't up and quit after a couple of issues. SRP $3.99
The Rocketeer: The Complete Adventures
A new hardcover collection that will reprint all of Dave Stevens' Rocketeer material in one volume. All the pages will be shot from Stevens' original art and new coloring will also be applied for this edition. I'm in a bit of quandary as to what to suggest with this one. The art is beautiful, but I've always felt that Stevens' passion for the character ended with the first series and that the second was done to make a buck. I'll leave it to you as to what you wanna do... Two editions: Standard edition with an SRP of $29.99 and a deluxe edition that will include over 100 pages of art from Stevens' personal archives with an SRP $75.00
The Complete Little Orphan Annie Vol. 4
Reprints the dailies and Sundays for January 1932-July 1933 with the Sundays now in full color. Our spunky heroine with no pupils, must face the Sisters of Suppression and a new wife for Daddy Warbucks (who has no pupils, either). Worth a squint. SRP $39.99
MARVEL
Marvel Masterworks: The Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 3
Reprints Amazing Spider-Man #20-30 and Annual #2 by Lee and Ditko. here's another entry in the trade paperback reprinting of the Masterworks and, if you don't have these stories in some other form, run right down and grab a copy. Ditko had a lot of input on Spidey and these stories are just down right excellent in both art and story. Trust me, you need this on your sagging bookshelf! SRP $24.99
Tomb of Dracula Omnibus Vol. 2
Reprints Tomb of Dracula #32-70, Giant-Size Dracula #5 and Dr. Strange #14 by Wolfman, Colan, Palmer and others. Just in time for Halloween comes the second massive volume of Marvel's Tomb of Dracula series. The stories presented here pick up from where the first volume left off and continue to the end of the series. Wolfman and Colan (ably abetted by inker Tom Palmer) had hit their stride by this time in the series and all the stories here are well worth reading with nary a clunker in the bunch. In fact, probably the weakest sequence here is the stories at the end of the run, since although Marvel allowed the creators to wrap up the series, they gave them very little time to craft their ending. Lots of guest stars throughout and if the thought of being undead gives you the shivers, then this is the series for you. Worth a good long squint and inclusion up on your sagging bookshelf. SRP $99.99
Marvel Masterworks: Atlas Era Menace Vol. 1
Reprints Menace #1-11 by Lee, Everett, Heath, Maneely, Romita Sinnott and a whole slew of other people. Marvel has gone back into the vaults to 1953-54 for this volume and is including the all 11 issues of the series in a larger than normal Masterworks. Menace was a particularly interesting title, since it was an attempt, on the part of Atlas, to emulate the success of the EC horror books. Aside from the standard "monster" type horror, there are ghost, ghouls, truly icky deaths, gruesome covers and the volume also includes the oft-reprinted "Zombie!" story by bill Everett that eventually was turned into its own series in the 70s. Also lots of the third person narrative style that (thankfully) has disappeared from comics of today ("Your name is Simon Feldspar. The ghost is sitting on your lap. You like it."). As with the other Atlas era volumes, Heath, Everett and Maneely really shine, but there is also early work by Colan, Sinnott, Tuska and others who's names are familiar (and some who aren't). Much of this material was reprinted by Marvel in the 70s, so take a look at what you already have before you jump in. Worth a squint, at least. SRP $59.99
Marvel Masterworks: The Inhumans Vol. 1
Reprints stories from Thor #146-152, Amazing Adventures #1-10, The Avengers #95, Marvel Super-Heroes #15 and Not Brand Ecch #6-12 by Kirby, Lee, Thomas, Adams, Colan and others. The Inhumans were a supporting group of characters that began back in the middle of the Lee/Kirby run on Fantastic Four (with Crystal figuring heavily into the continuity as the main squeeze of the Human Torch). Once Tales of Asgard (soon to be collected as a Masterwok) had run its course as a backup in Thor, the Inhumans ran for a time as back-up stories to Thor's main adventures. From there, they got their own series as part of Amazing Adventures, where they shared the book with the Black Widow (and also appeared under Kirby's byline as both writer and artist). Kirby left Marvel after the first 4 issues and Thomas and Adams came onboard to expand on Kirby's framework and even incorporated their plotlines into the Kree/Skrull War that was running in The Avengers (hence the inclusion of #95). Thomas and Adams moved on and the last 2 stories in the series are totally forgettable, with bad story by Gerry Conway and even worse art by Mike Sekowsky. The Marvel Super-Heroes story featured Medusa in a one-shot tryout and the stories from Not Brand Ecch (3 of them?) were nifty parodies that Marvel produced in the late 60s. From there, they jumped around from book to book and seem to crop up every so often even today (once they moved to the moon, they seemed to drop out of the continuity a bit). This is an attempt to collect all the early Inhuman stories into a single volume and I'm not real sure what to suggest with this one. Many of these are good to excellent stories that seem to explore the world of the Inhumans beyond the FF and to incorporate them into the Marvel Universe. As a group of heroes, however, The Inhumans were always constrained by their separation from humanity in general and the stangeness of their world and society: something that was never really explored to its fullest. Kirby understood what made the group work, but, but as with many other Kirby concepts, no one else really grasped how the characters worked and interacted, although the Thomas/Adams team came close. I wish they had done a complete collection of the first 10 issues of Amazing Adventures so we could also see the Black Widow stories, but there's probably a Masterworks planned for that too (and I wouldn't expect a second volume of The Inhuman, since although they had their own book for a time, it was pretty durn awful, with artwork by a very young George Perez). . So this probably belongs on your sagging bookshelf, but I'll leave it to you to decide. SRP $54.99
Spider-Man Newspaper Strips
The two volume collection that was solicited some months back never surfaced, so Marvel tries again with a single volume collection that collects all the daily and Sunday strips from 1977-1980 as done by Stan Lee and John Romita. I never really warmed to the Spidey newspaper strip, as both Lee and Romita seemed a bit puzzled by the format. Since Marvel gives no dates here, don't know if this is the complete Romita run, as he did a partial sequence at the end of his run that was finished by Fred Kida. At least the Sundays will be in color, but I'll leave it to you on this one. SRP $39.99
Marvel is also doing a new printing of Fantastic Four Visionaries: John Byrne Vol. 1 this month and, if you don't have these stories somewhere else, you should take a look at it. It reprints Fantastic Four #232-240 and features the beginnings of Byrne's run on the FF: a series he was born to do! These stories are the best that were ever done in the post-Lee/Kirby era and really deserve a good , long squint and inclusion on your sagging bookshelf-comics don't really get any better than this. SRP $24.99
TWOMORROWS PUBLISHING
Alter Ego #89
A special issue focusing on the horror comics produced by Harvey Comics in the pre-Code era. Interviews with Sid Jacobson, Warren Kremer, Howard Nostrand and Ken Selig, Mr. Monster presents the wit and wisdom of Fredrich Wetham and the usual features from the FCA. SRP $6.95
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