September, 2007
SOME BOOKS YOU SHOULD LOOK AT
Just this last week, I did something I promised myself I would never do: look at the new IDW book The Complete Terry and the Pirates Vol. 1, which reprints a huge chunk of Milton Caniff's masterwork. I have always loved the Terry strip and consider it to be the greatest newspaper strip ever done. The problem, however, is that I've read the strip before in the NBM trade editons from years ago and didn't want to be tempted to buy yet another version. Well, my curiousity got the better of me and all I can say is that you need to look at this book and, if funds allow it, buy it and the subsequent volumes in the series. The reproduction is top-notch, with a clarity to the dailies that I've never seen before, even in the NBM hardcover series. The Sundays look crisp, the color is vibrant and they are printed at a reasonable size. Many have considered Terry to be a kids strip, since much of the focus in on young Terry Lee, but this is adventure on a grand scale that rivals the adventure films of the 30s and 40s without the cheesy special effects. I can hardly wait to read it!
The reason I haven't started Terry is that I just started with Chester Gould's Dick Tracy Vol. 2 the other night. Tracy is probably the second best newspaper strip of all time and I am always impressed by the hard edge that Gould gave to his strip. Tracy is the hero, the villains are evil and there is no gray area in between with the villains usually meeting a grisly end. As an example, the sequence I am in the middle of concerns two crooks that Tracy sent to prison meeting up and plotting their escape. They finally pull it off by blowing up part of the prison wall! I will warn you that Gould's art is rather crude in the early days of the strip (unlike Caniff's), and there are often small glitches in the plot (a can of explosive in the daily becomes 2 pails by Sunday), but this just seems to be Gould being Gould and the strength of the story easily overcomes these small problems. If you are a fan of gangster movies, or are looking for a comic strip version of Hammett and Chandler, than you need to give this series a look!
FOR YOUR CHRISTMAS WISH LIST
It's never too early to start your Christmas list and here's a few of items to add to it. Casually leave this list lying around for friends and family and watch them disintegrate into gales of laughter.
The Completely Mad Don Martin
A humongous 1200 page, two volume, hardcover slipcased collection that will include ALL of Don Martin's published work for Mad Magazine covering 1957-1987. Also included are a selection of original sketches and notes, rare photographs and commentary from other Mad colleagues and famous fans. Introduction by Gary Larson. SRP $150.00!
Kirby: King of Comics
A 224 page tome by Mark Evanier that is part biography and art book that focuses on (what else?) Kirby's art. Described as a "visual celebration". Worth a squint, mainly because Evanier has access to Kirby's files and there will be lots of unpublished material, as well as material shot directly from the original art. SRP $40
The DVD is becoming a storage medium of choice for many and Marvel titles are proliferating like rabbits. Currently, there are 7 sets available (most with "40 years of.." before the title, ranging from Captain America (1964-2004), The Incredible Hulk (1962-2006), the previously mentioned Fantastic Four, Hulk, Spider-Man and X-Men discs and, a losing proposition, Ghost Rider (1973-2006...how's that 40 years?). These collections are on a single DVD and contain every page from each comic: ads, letters pages and covers and contain around 500 comics!. Each have an SRP of $49.95 ('cept Ghost Rider which is $29.95. Don't know if reading comics on a computer screen will ever replace flopping back in a hammock, but a DVD disc certainly takes up a lot less room than a complete set of any of these titles.
Absolutely Mad: 53 Years of Mad Magazine DVD-Rom
Probably the reprint project that has been around the longest is the Mad set, which started life as a set of 13 or 14 CD-Roms. Now, brought up into a single DVD-Rom, this is your chance to own all the issues of Mad from 1952-2005 (over 600 issues) and to continue the warping of your moral character that started when you were a child. Same feeling about reading comics on a computer as the previous item and the disc has an SRP of $49.95.
AC COMICS
Men of Mystery #69
The Origin of The Avenger by Gardner Fox & Dick Ayers along with an early Spy Smasher adventure, the return of Airboy as drawn by Ernie Schroeder, Major Midnite story, The Heap, Dollman, Frankenstein and a host of other short subjects. Artists include Lin Streeter, Chas. Quinlan, Al Bryant and Rudy Palais and, as with all AC comics, reproduction and story quality should be top-notch! SRP $9.95
DARK HORSE
Groo: Hell on Earth #1 (of 4)
Groo is back in a 4 issue mini-series, produced by all the usual unindicted co-conspirators (Sergio Aragones, Mark Evanier and Tom Luth) and featuring Groo doing whatever it is that Groo does. Always humorous, if not fall-on-the-floor bust-a-gut silly, this is one you should pick up and read until your sides hurt. Considering that Groo started out as a parody of Conan, when Conan was at its height, it is hard to believe that 25 years have gone by. SRP $2.99 each
DC
Wonder Woman Archives Vol. 5
Reprints Sensation Comics #33-40 and Wonder Woman #10-12 written by William Moulton Marston and drawn by Harry G. Peter. I really wish someone would do a psychological study of William Moulton Marston, since the bondage, torture and sexual themes that run through these Golden Age stories are pretty far out. If this is your cup of tea, than by all means add this volume to your bookshelf! SRP $49.99
Sword of the Atom
Reprints Sword of the Atom #1-3 and Sword of the Atom Special #1-3 by Jan Strnad, Gil Kane, Pat Broderick and Dennis Janke. When DC decided that The Atom had finally run his course, they basically let the character languish for many years until Jan Strnad was given a shot a reviving Ray Palmer. Jan put a neat twist on the character and made The Atom into a kind of sword and sorcery adventurer who rode a frog, carried a sword and had adventures with a group of tiny aliens in a tiny portion of the Central American jungle. The first section of this series, with pencils by Gil Kane, was pretty neat, but the second portion was not a good, due to the pencils of Pat Broderick. All in all, fairly enjoyable and makes one wonder why Jan Strnad never did a lot of work for either of the Big Two. SRP $19.99
Showcase Presents: Batman and The Outsiders Vol. 1
Reprints Batman and the Outsiders #1-19, Brave & The Bold #200 and New Teen Titans #16 written by Mike Barr and drawn by Jim Aparo (among other writers and artists). Batman and The Outsiders was nearly a continuation of Brave and the Bold: DC announced the new book at the same time they announced the cancellation of the other and a preview appeared in the last issue of Brave and the Bold. The problem was that no one seemed to have an idea of what the new book would be about. Even though it came before the massive Bat-Glut of later years, it seemed to be an after-thought. It was a Batman team book, but the dynamics of the group never seemed to come together. Also, Batman was increasingly being portrayed a a loner during these years, so the group idea didn't quite make sense. I recall reading this book for a number of issues, but I can't tell you what it was about, nor what happened. If memory serves me right, I picked it up for Jim Aparo's art, but he was kind of wasted here. Only for the completeist. SRP $16.99
Showcase Presents: Captain Carrot Vol. 1
Reprints New Teen Titans #16, Captain Carrot and the Zoo Crew #1-20 by Roy Thomas, Mike Sekowsky, Scott Shaw and a host of others. I dunno, one person's fond memory is another's "HUH?" and that's kind of how I feel about this one. Captain Carrot came out around the same time as the previous listing, and, since I was buying most any comic that came out, I remember buying a couple of issues, but really wonder why they are bothering with this collection. It seems that Thomas wanted to revive the funny animal genre at DC, but didn't realize that "funny" and "lame parody" were two different things. If this is your cup of tea, by all means go for it. SRP $16.99
MARVEL
Marvel is going back to print with Marvel Masterworks: The Fantastic Four Vol. 5, which I hope will bode well for the Masterworks series. There are a couple of Masterworks volumes that are currently unavailable and, since I'm missing one Fantastic Four volumes, here's hoping that Marvel will bring them all back in print and not abandon the format for the Omnibus format, although this particular volume is a no-brainer for reprinting (saleswise, that is), since it features the first appearance of the Silver Surfer. SRP $54.99
Marvel Masterworks: Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. Vol. 1
Reprints Strange Tales #135-153, Tales of Suspense #78 and Fantastic Four #21 written by Lee, Kirby, Thomas and O'Neil with art by Kirby, Steranko, Severin, Sinnott, Heck, Purcell and Whitney. Once it became obvious the Human Torch series had run its course, Marvel started looking for a new feature that would complement the Dr. Strange series that was already running in Strange Tales. Since secret agents, spies and whatnot were becoming popular in the media (particularly James Bond), Lee and Kirby simply updated Sgt. Fury, promoted him to colonel, and made him the head of a super-secret organization. The early adventures might be considered low-tech by today's standards, yet, in an era when Bond didn't have every gadget known to man at his beck and call, they were quite a bit ahead of their time and are very enjoyable. Kirby's designs for S.H.I.E.L.D., the heli-pad and the weaponry are all excellent and the series takes the same spin that other Marvel titles of the period featured: take a basic premise and stretch it, twist it and see how far it can be taken. This volume could be considered a bookend edition for those of you who are long-time collectors. Marvel released two volumes of Nick Fury a number of years ago that only covered Steranko's run on the character. But fear not if you have those, because this book covers Fury's adventures from the very beginning and only reprints 3 stories that the other books reprinted. Ergo, you can, with the two previous books and this one, come up with all that needs to be read of Nick Fury's adventures! SRP $54.99
SANCTUM PRODUCTIONS
Doc Savage Double Novel Vol. 10
Doc and his crew head into the Amazon jungle in "Death of Dust, then head to Arizona to encounter a lost race and a strange mist that turns men to stone in "The Stone Man, both stories incorporating text from the original manuscripts that has never before been reprinted. Covers by Walter Baumhofer and Emery Clarke, interior illustrations by Paul Orban and commentary by Will Murray. These are really wonderful reprints and, if I didn't have the Bantam series, I would be buying them each and every month. Doc's adventures cover the gamut of adventure, horror and science fiction, without spending too much time in any one genre. Even today, they are very readable and you will get enjoyment out of each adventure. SRP $12.95
The Shadow Double Novel Vol. 11
The Shadow helps a former criminal reform in "Road to Crime and then suspicion falls on two supposedly reformed criminals in "Crooks Go Straight". Covers by George Rozen and interior art by Tom Lovell with commentary by Will Murray. SRP $12.95
TWOMORROWS
Image Comics: The Road to Independence
A 280 page overview of the history of Image Comics, including behind the scenes details of the company's successes and failures. Written by George Khoury and, most likely, includes lots of art by the company founders and others. Should also include a visit from one of the founders, with an SRP of $34.95!
Alter Ego #72
Cover and article on the Roy Thomas created Captain Carrot with art by Scott Shaw! and others. Also an interview with Dick Rockwell, who was not only an established Golden Age artist, but also worked as ghost artist on Steve Canyon. Plus, the usual features of the FCA. SRP $6.95
Back Issue #24
An interview with Michael Golden; long section on Dr. Strange with Gene Colan, Paul Smith, Frank Brunner, Carl Potts and Kevin Nowlan; a tribute to Marshall Rogers and lost of other features. SRP $6.95
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