Early 2024 reviews

2-25-2024

As usual, I’m starting with some comics I don’t remember well:

FACELESS AND THE FAMILY #2 (Oni, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Matt Lesniewski. The various characters make their way into the walled city. Lesniewski’s art is so detailed and meticulous that it’s cumbersome to read, but it repays the effort. This is a beautifully drawn comic, and it has an original story as well. I don’t seem to have gotten issue 3.

SPEED FORCE #2 (DC, 2023) – “Stacked Supers,” [W] Jarrett Williams, [A] Daniele Di Nicuolo & Francesco Mortarino. Bad, inauthentic dialogue, boring characters, and a low-stakes plot. Even before reading this issue I had already decided to drop this series. I bought this comic because I was hoping it would give me more of what I enjoyed about Jeremy Adams’s Flash – the strong ensemble cast and the feeling of family – but those hopes were disappointed.

JAY GARRICK: THE FLASH #3 (DC, 2023) – “Memories,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Diego Olortegui. Jay and Judy fight a villain who looks like Dr. Alchemy/Mr. Element. Then we’re reintroduced to Fairplay, Mr. Terrific’s son who was raised by Granny Goodness. This character was one of the biggest plot threads that were left dangling when Adams was fired from The Flash, and I’m glad Adams has had the chance to take up that plot thread again. However, it seemed like he was also planning to reintroduce Ceridian and Robert Long, but now those characters will probably remain in limbo.

GIANT ROBOT HELLBOY #2 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mike Mignola, [A] Duncan Fegredo. After a long series of fights, the Hellboy robot seemingly takes on a life of its own. My problem with Mignola’s comics is that there’s very little difference between one Hellboy comic and another; they all have the exact same aesthetic. However, this series is different from other Hellboy comics because of the giant robot.

TERRORWAR #8 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Dave Acosta. The heroes are confronted with their worst fears, but they overcome these fears and make an alliance with the terrors, just in time to fight their own former human allies. Terrorwar is perhaps my least favorite of Saladin’s comics, but this issue is an improvement on previous issues. It gives us much more insight into the protagonists, who until now were interchangeable.

FIRE & ICE: WELCOME TO SMALLVILLE #3 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joanne Starer, [A] Natacha Bustos. Most of this issue consists of the same type of screwball comedy as last issue. At the end, Lot’s Wife becomes possessed and kills and eats the Beefeater. This series is more than just another pastiche of Giffen and DeMatteis’s Justice League. It has an original style of characterization and humor. Also, Natacha Bustos’s art has pleasant associations for me, since I read the entire run of Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur.

FIRE & ICE: WELCOME TO SMALLVILLE #4 (DC, 2023) – as above. The already huge ensemble cast is joined by Lobo, and then Fire and Ice confront some protesters at a drag brunch. Then the salon catches on fire. I have nothing to add here to what I said about issue 3.

FROM THE WORLD OF MINOR THREATS: THE ALTERNATES #4 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Patton Oswalt, Jordan Blum & Tim Seeley, [A] Christopher Mitten w/ Tess Fowler. The Alternates discover that they’re all clones, and they defeat their own original selves and save the city. I liked this series better than the first Minor Threats. A third Minor Threats miniseries has been announced, and I plan to buy it. As before, Tess Fowler’s pages are far better than the rest of the issue.

RUMPUS ROOM #4 (AWA, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell, [A] Ramon Rosanas. Erica escapes from the Rumpus Room and tells the police about Schrunk’s crimes. But the police are in Schrunk’s pocket, and they bring Erica right back to the Rumpus Room, where she’s imprisoned again. In addition, it’s revealed that Schrunk has corrupted Erica’s sister. Reading this series makes me angry, because Schrunk is so loathsome and yet so plausible. And even before reading issue 5, I could tell that the series would not end with him getting his comeuppance, because he’s structured his world in such a way that he can never experience any consequences. He reminds me of a couple other real-life villains whose last names almost rhyme with his.   

CAPTAIN MARVEL #3 (Marvel, 2023) – “Strange Events,” [W] Alyssa Wong, [A] Ruairi Coleman & Jan Bazaldua. While inside Dr. Strange’s mansion, Carol and Yuna fight a purple dragon. Then they get caught by Dr. Strange and Clea, and they have to team up with them to fight a plant hydra. I’m not sure why Clea is living with Doc again. This series is a major departure from Kelly Thompson’s Captain Marvel run, in that Wong’s main emphasis is on Yuna and not Carol herself. I think it was a good choice for Wong to go in a new direction rather than trying to imitate the approach of Carol’s previous writers.

SPIDER-GWEN: SMASH #1 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Melissa Flores, [A] Enid Balam. Gwen and her band go on tour as Dazzler’s opening act, but Mary Jane forces Gwen to promise not to turn into Ghost-Spider. Of course, Gwen is forced to break that promise at once, as the band’s very first concert is invaded by a villain. I was hesitant to buy this comic because I disliked this writer’s previous titles, The Dead Lucky and Radiant Pink. Spider-Gwen: Smash is better than I expected, and I’m going to keep reading it for now. However, this issue’s plot depends on Mary Jane being reasonable and jealous. It’s unfair of MJ to tell Gwen not to use her powers. That’s equivalent to telling Gwen to stand by and do nothing while people are in danger. And yet somehow the writer makes it seem as if Gwen is the unreasonable one. 

SECRET HEARTS #149 (DC, 1971) – “David!”, [W] Gerry Conway, [A] Alex Toth. Irene, a nurse, dumps her boyfriend after catching him kissing another girl. He’s brought into her hospital following an accident, and she thinks he’s dead. He recovers his health, and Irene learns that David was trying to resist the other girl’s advances. This is an example of a very common romance comic plot, where the protagonist believes with good reason that her boyfriend is cheating on her, only to discover that it’s an innocent misunderstanding. Invariably, it’s always presented as the woman’s fault for jumping to conclusions, rather than the man’s fault for causing the misunderstanding. In this particular case, the story is so bad that I didn’t even realize the art was by Alex Toth. The second story, by Len Wein and Win Mortimer, is an even more absurd example of this type of plot. Two women think their boyfriend Rob Tuttle is cheating on him, but it turns out that their boyfriends are two identical twins with the same name. Of course neither of the Rob Tuttles ever bothered to inform his girlfriend that he had a twin brother. There’s also one other new story by Joe Gill and John Celardo, and a reprinted story with art by Jay Scott Pike.

ASTONISHING ICEMAN #5 (Marvel, 2023) – “Out Cold, Part 5,” [W] Steve Orlando, [A] Vincenzo Carratú. Bobby has his final confrontation with Mr. Clean, and survives to return to his boyfriend. This series was much better than Exorcists Never Die, but worse than Sainted Love.

PROJECT: CRYPTID #4 (Ahoy, 2023) – “Monstre Qui Desole le Gévudan,” [W] Henry Barajas, [A] Salomée Luce-Antoinette. A boring werewolf story set in 18th-century France. “Siren Song,” [W] Liana Kangas & Jazzlyn Stone, [A] Ted Brandt & Ro Stein. A cute story about sirens liberating animals from an aquarium. This story has no dialogue other than music lyrics.

CRAVE #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Maria Llovet. This comic is about an app that pairs people with their ideal romantic partners. Other than that I was unable to follow this comic’s plot, because the storytelling was confusing and the characters were impossible to tell apart. I probably shouldn’t have bothered buying this comic anyway, since I was lukewarm about her earlier series Luna.

CANARY #2 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Scott Snyder, [A] Dan Panosian. This appears to be a print version of a digital comic, like Clear and Barnstormers, and like those series, Canary is tedious to read because it’s three double-sized issues instead of six normal-sized issues. Canary also suffers from a confusing plot structure and a lack of appealing characters, other than the black geologist. On the other hand, the turn-of-the-century Western setting is interesting.

THE SCHLUB #5 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Ryan Stegman & Kenny Porter, [A] Tyrell Cannon. Roger and Cirrus fight Wyrm, and then Wyrm reveals the big secret: Cirrus’s powers were originally Wyrm’s, and were stolen from Wyrm by Cloudfather, who is in fact an evil conqueror. So Cloudfather is really Darkseid, not Highfather. This is a satisfying and unexpected plot twist.

SANDMAN UNIVERSE: NIGHTMARE COUNTRY – THE GLASS HOUSE #6 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Lisandro Estherren. Daniel intervenes to resolve the crisis and defeat Azazel, who was empowered by a stolen piece of Morpheus’s sand. But Mr. Agony and Mr. Ecstasy are still out there, and the issue ends by stating that there will be a new Nightmare Country miniseries in 2024. Lisandro Estherren’s artwork in this issue is kind of crude-looking. In particular, I don’t like the way he draws cats.

LOTUS LAND #2 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Darcy Van Poelgeest, [A] Caio Filipe. I don’t remember much about this issue. It just seems like a generic murder mystery with a thin veneer of science fiction. So far, Lotus Land is not close to the level of quality of Little Bird, and it seems clear that Little Bird was successful because of the artist, Ian Bertram, and not the writer. As Matt Seneca argues, Little Bird’s writing was a liability, not an asset. And Lotus Land doesn’t have the same level of artwork, so it doesn’t have much to recommend it.

IMMORTAL X-MEN #18 (Marvel, 2023) – “Happily Ever After,” [W] Kieron Gillen, [A] Juan José Ryp. This issue has one main plot thread about Professor X, and another one about Mother Righteous, a character who I have never understood at all. I truly don’t even get who she is. The revelation at the end is that Mister Sinister is controlling everything, still. Immortal X-Men had some excellent moments, but it was very confusing and pessimistic, and I’m glad it’s over.

NO/ONE #7 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kyle Higgins & Brian Buccellato, [A] Antonio Fuso. The old guy and the journalist decide to collaborate, No/One makes another appearance, and some guy is stabbed, but I don’t remember who he is. This series is gripping and entertaining, but also hard to follow, especially given the amount of time since the previous issue.

SOMNA #1 (DSTLRY, 2023) – untitled, [W] Becky Cloonan, [A] Tula Lotay. This is from a new company that specializes in magazine-format comics, in the same oversized format as some of DC’S Black Label comics, e.g. Aquaman: Andromeda. I don’t quite recall why I ordered Somna #1, since I’m not a huge fan of either creator on her own, but I’m glad I did. Somna is set in early modern England (though I thought it was colonial New England), and focuses on an unsatisfied young wife, Ingrid, who’s ashamed of her own sexual desire. Her village is in the midst of a witch hunt, and her husband is the witchfinder. Ingrid discovers that two of her neighbors are having an affair, and also that the witches and demons appear to be real. Somna is a compelling story of horror and sexual repression, and it benefits from Tula Lotay’s use of two contrasting art styles: a painted style for the dream sequences, and a line-drawn style for the main story.

NATACHA VOL. 12 (Dupuis, 1986) – “Les culottes de fer,” [W] Mittéï, [A] François Walthéry. (Laudec is credited with “décors,” which I’m guessing means background art.) Natacha is a long-running series that began in Spirou magazine. It focuses on Natacha, a sexy flight attendant, and her sidekick Walter. This particular album stars Natacha’s grandmother and Walter’s grandfather, who are also named Natacha and Walter and are completely identical to their descendants. The plot takes them all around the world, from Melanesia to Sri Lanka to Rome. The overall tone is one of light-hearted humor with some mild sexual innuendo. Walthéry was an assistant to Peyo, creator of the Smurfs, and his art is in the “style atome” tradition. This album was fairly enjoyable, other than including some stereotypical depictions of native people, but I’m not in a hurry to read more Natacha.

BATMAN #5 (DC, 1941/2023) – “The Riddle of the Missing Card!”, [W] Bill Finger, [A] Bob Kane, etc. This seems to have been reprinted because it was the first true appearance of the Batmobile. The word Batmobile had been used in earlier stories, but this was the first story where the Batmobile was depicted with a bat motif. Batman #5’s first story is also an early Joker appearance. The second story is a portal fantasy (or isekai) where Batman and Robin are transported into Fairyland. The third story is the best in the issue; it’s about a sympathetic criminal who turns to crime in order to pay for his sick wife’s treatment. The fourth story introduces Linda Page, a love interest who was mostly forgotten after 1943.

DWELLINGS #3 (Oni, 2023) – “Pester’s Call” and “Undergrowth,” [W/A] Jay Stephens. It’s been long enough since I read these stories that I don’t remember them in detail, but both of them are extremely creepy horror stories, with a false appearance of cuteness. Dwellings is certainly the pinnacle of Jay Stephens’s career so far. It may also have been the best miniseries of 2023, though it may be ineligible for an Eisner, since the stories seem to have been published before. Stephens is currently doing a Kickstarter for a new series, Figgy Furthermore – The Spirit Guide Dog, but I’m unclear on whether it will be available in printed single-issue form.

SHIFT #1 (Image, 2023) – “Founders’ Meeting” et al, [W] Kyle Higgins, [A] Daniele Di Nicuolo et al. This is a reprint of the Shift stories that appeared in the Image 20th Anniversary series, and it also includes a new story. I’ve read most of this material before, but the single-issue format makes it easier to follow. Shift is a fairly compelling antihero.

FALLING IN LOVE #101 (DC, 1968) – “I Had No Right to Love! (Conclusion)”, [W] uncredited, [A] John Rosenberger. Jane discovers that she’s afraid to marry Tom because of her repressed memories of her parents’ mutually abusive marriage. This is a rare example of a romance comic with a story that continued across issues, though the second part of “I Had No Right to Love” is understandable without knowledge of the first part. In the second story, also by Rosenberger, Gayle is in love with Brad, but then she also falls in love with a starving hipster artist, Tony. Gayle chooses Brad and marries him, and this proves to be the right choice since Tony is secretly engaged to someone else. The last story is a reprint from an earlier issue of the same series. John Rosenberger is a mostly forgotten artist, but his artwork in this issue is very appealing.

RAWHIDE KID #47 (Marvel, 1965) – “The River Boat Raiders!”, [W/A] Larry Lieber. The Rawhide Kid battles Luther Cragg, a master of judo (Lee and Lieber mentioned judo very often), and another villain who’s accompanied by a little person disguised as a ventriloquist’s dummy. Despite the Western setting, this story is quite similar to a typical Marvel superhero story of the same era. It has the same plot structure of a superhero battling supervillains. There’s also a backup story by Lee and Hartley, starring a one-shot character.

TERMINAL PUNKS #1 (Mad Cave, 2020) – “Here Comes Lady Marmalade,” [W] Matthew Erman, [A] Shelby Criswell. This series got some positive publicity when it came out, and I kind of regretted not buying it. Terminal Punks is about four young bandmates who get trapped in an airport along with a horde of zombified wild animals. It’s an interesting setup, and like Erman’s subsequent series Witchblood, it’s full of musical references. Matthew Erman’s latest series, Good Luck, was a huge disappointment, and I haven’t read anything he’s done since then.

SUPER SOLDIER: MAN OF WAR #1 (Amalgam, 1997) – “Deadly Cargo,” [W/A] Dave Gibbons, [W] Mark Waid. A Captain America/Superman mashup story set during World War II.  This is one of the better Amalgam titles: it has excellent writing and art, as well as lots of funny combinations of Marvel and DC characters. (However, my favorite Amalgam comic is still Spider-Boy Team-Up.) Marvel and DC have just announced a reprint of all the Amalgam comics, except the ones written by Gerard Jones.

COPPERHEAD #14 (Image, 2017) – untitled, [W] Jay Faerber, [A] Drew Moss. Clara goes looking for a murderer, while the former mayor continues to run the town using the new mayor, Budroxifinicus, as his puppet. I just noticed that Budroxifinicus’s species, Cyapbaran, is almost an anagram of capybara. I need five more issues to complete my run of this series.

TOMAHAWK #130 (DC, 1970) – “Deathwatch at Desolation Valley,” [W] Robert Kanigher, [A] Frank Thorne. In trying to save some settlers who are besieged by Indians, Tomahawk’s Rangers team up with a group of female soldiers. The women of Fort Courage are an interesting group of characters, but the main plot of this comic is annoying because it presents the Indians as the villains. In fact, I think the Indians would have been better off if the British had won the Revolutionary War. There’s also a backup story by Thorne and George Kashdan. As far as I know George Kashdan is no relation to me, though I assume our names both come from the Russian word for chestnut.

THE ’NAM #77 (Marvel, 1993) – “Yankee Station,” [W] Don Lomax, [A] Wayne Vansant. A Vietnam war story set during the 1972 Easter offensive, not to be confused with the Tet offensive. This story is written in a very sober and informational tone, with little real excitement. These two creators published many other war comics that I have not read. A consistent flaw of The ‘Nam, as of most American writing on the Vietnam war, is that it’s written entirely from the American perspective, and it ignores the Vietnamese perspective.

BATMAN #110 (DC, 2021) – “The Cowardly Lot Part 5,” [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Jorge Jimenez. Batman fights Sean Mahoney, aka Peacekeeper-01, and there are various subplots, including one about Miracle Molly. I like this Batman run more than I like the current run by Chip Zdarsky (about which more later). Tynion’s plots are exciting, even if I don’t quite understand them, and he avoids dwelling too much on the negative aspects of Batman’s personailty.

LETTER 44 #13 (Oni, 2014) – untitled, [W] Charles Soule, [A] Alberto Jimenez Alburquerque. The President publicly announces the existence of the aliens. Some of the astronauts try to assault the aliens’ ship, but they’re stopped from doing so when the aliens open negotiations. The President blackmails his chief opponent into dropping an impeachment inquiry against him. President Blades is the real protagonist of the series. Letter 44’s key theme is how President Blades, on being put into an unthinkable situation, is forced to make difficult and morally questionable choices. (I decline to comment on the contemporary real-world significance of this theme.)

WALT DISNEY’S COMICS AND STORIES #586 (Gladstone, 1993) – “Raffle Reversal,” [W/A] Carl Barks, etc. Donald wins a raffle where he’s competing against Gladstone.  This seems impossible, but as Gladstone says, “my luck wouldn’t desert me – unless it was to build me up for a big prize!” and this proves to be true. Gladstone is like Teela Brown in Larry Niven’s Ringworld, in that his luck has almost omipotent powers. I even wonder if Teela Brown was inspired by Gladstone. This issue also includes a Li’l Bad Wolf story, and a Gottfredson Mickey Mouse story. #586 was the first issue of the second Gladstone run, though I have the newsstand edition, which has the Disney Comics and Marvel logos on the cover.

INSEXTS #7 (Aftershock, 2016) – “Creeping Things,” [W] Marguerite Bennett, [A] Ariela Kristantina. The two heroines rescue some sex workers who are being held captive by a monster. I’ve gotten sick of Marguerite Bennett’s writing, but Insexts is my favorite series of hers. It’s an interesting and original combination of body horror with sex.

KONA, MONARCH OF MONSTER ISLE #10 (Dell, 1964) – “The Return to Monster Isle,” [W] unknown, [A] Sam Glanzman. Kona and the family return to Monster Isle, where Kona defats a barbarian named Gortd who has set himself up as Kona’s replacement. This comic has a much more sedate tone and a much more conventional plot than earlier issues of Kona, so I’m not sure whether to attribute it to the same person who wrote those issues. Incidentally, someone named Philip Smith claims to have looked at Lionel Ziprin’s archives and found proof that Ziprin really was the mysterious writer of Kona, Voyage to the Bottom of the Deep and other Dell comics. I really hope this person is telling the truth.

SKULL THE SLAYER #4 (Marvel, 1976) – “Time Out of Mind!”, [W] Steve Englehart, [A] Sal Buscema. In ancient Egypt, Skull battles an alien pharaoh named Slitherogue. Then Skull travels forward in time to the Arthurian era, where he meets Merlin and the original Black Knight, but the same Slitherogue is conspiring against them. This issue’s credits box says “together again for the fourth time,” but that must refer to the characters, not the creators, because this was the only issue of Skull written by Englehart. The first three issues were written by Marv Wolfman, and the last four by Bill Mantlo. This revolving door of creators was one reason why Skull was an unsuccessful series, though it had a somewhat interesting premise (a traumatized Vietnam veteran in a time-traveling adventure).

CYBORG #1 (DC, 2015) – “Unplugged,” [W] David F. Walker, [A] Ivan Reis. While visiting his dad’s laboratory, Vic Stone gets involved in a plot involving intergalactic alien robots. DC has tried to turn Cyborg into their version of Black Panther, but the problem with that is that Cyborg had never had a solo title before 2015, and he didn’t have much of a supporting cast or milieu of his own. And David F. Walker did not quite succeed in giving Cyborg a brand identity separate from his role in the Titans. The major supporting characters in Cyborg #1 are mostly borrowed from Wolfman’s Titans run. Cyborg #1 does include some well-drawn machinery and aliens.   

HOLY HELL #1 (Meta Desi, 2015) – untitled, [W/A] Akshay Dhar, Zafar Khurshid & Abhijeet Kini (it doesn’t say which of them did what). I got this for free at NYCC. I think it was given away at a panel on Indian comics. This comic is intended as satire, but it’s completely unfunny, tasteless, and pointless, and I don’t think I would have enjoyed it even if I had understood all of the Indian cultural references. 

First trip to Heroes of 2024:

TRANSFORMERS #4 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W/A] Daniel Warren Johnson. When the Decepticons attack the hospital where Spike is being treated, Optimus has to use the Matrix of Leadership to turn the hospital’s power back on. Spike’s dad comes up with a way for the Autobots to solve their energy problem. Optimus pulls out a weapon which we recognize as belonging to Megatron, and the issue ends with a shot of Megatron’s corpse. Transformers is my favorite current comic besides Nightwing, and the Energon Universe seems to have been exactly the success that retailers were hoping for. Lately there’s been less of the comics-are-dying discourse that was so prevalent in late 2023, and I think this may be due in part to the extraordinary success of Transformers. However, I get the sense that Transformers is aimed at nostalgic older fans. I wonder if this issue’s big reveal, with Megatron’s gun, would make sense to younger readers who aren’t familiar with the ‘80s Transformers cartoon. Or does Megatron’s gun still look like that in more recent Transformers media?

USAGI YOJIMBO: ICE AND SNOW #4 (Dark Horse, 2024) – “Ice and Snow Part 4,” [W/A] Stan Sakai. Usagi and Yukichi finally defeat Jei by making him fall into a frozen river. Even after winning, Usagi and Yukichi are still frozen and starving, but they manage to reach a village as the issue ends. However, we will soon see that their troubles are not over.

ABBOTT 1979 #3 (Boom!, 2024) – untitled, [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Sami Kivelä. Elena and her brother Elmer battle a monster at the Detroit Historical Museum, inside the Streets of Old Detroit exhibit. Then Elena’s husband’s ghost appears to her. I remember visiting the Streets of Old Detroit as a kid, though I had completely forgotten about it until I read this issue. I’ve been invited to write a book chapter about Saladin Ahmed’s comics, and I’d like to take a research trip to Detroit to visit some of the locations in Abbott. I’d love to go to the Detroit Historical Museum again.

MAPLE TERRACE #3 (Uncivilized, 2023) – “Showdown at Vincent’s Pizzeria!”, [W/A] Noah Van Sciver. My copy of this issue has two identical covers. I don’t know if that’s intentional. This issue, Noah finally has to confront the boy whose comics he ruined, but Noah’s little brother (not Ethan) intervenes and saves him. Then Noah goes to Kyle’s birthday party but is refused entry. However, God does Noah a favor by making it rain, which ruins the party. Maple  Terrace is an incredible comic. It powerfully evokes the feelings of fear and shame and embarrassment that are almost constant when you’re a preteen boy. It also brings back memories of my own childhood in the ‘90s, though I’m lucky that my own family was less awful than Noah’s.

SENSATIONAL SHE-HULK #4 (Marvel, 2024) – “Jen-Sational! Part 4,” [W] Rainbow Rowell, [A] Ig Guara. After some slice-of-life scenes, Jen goes out for a girls’ night with Patsy Walker and Carol Danvers, but then they’re attacked by demons. This was a fun issue, particularly because of Patsy’s guest appearance, but it was nothing spectacular.  

ADVENTUREMAN: GHOST LIGHTS #1 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] Matt Fraction, [A] Terry Dodson. Claire is held captive by an evil old ghost, Johnny Caspar, while the Crossdraw Kid and Claire’s sisters try to save her. Much of this issue is a monologue about the history of Claire’s city. I love Adventureman and I’m glad it’s back, but this issue should just have been called Adventureman #10. There was no reason to give this issue a new title and numbering, other than as a cynical attempt to increase sales.

KAYA #14 (Image, 2024) – “Kaya and the Temple of Shazir,” [W/A] Wes Craig. Kaya and Jin search the city of Shazir and manage to locate the princess, but she’s not interested in going back with them. This issue has some exciting action scenes, and Jin’s new powers are visually striking. Kaya remains one of my favorite current comics.

ONCE UPON A TIME AT THE END OF THE WORLD #11 (Boom!, 2024) – “How We Move On from Ruin,” [W] Jason Aaron, [A] Nick Dragotta. The final storyline begins when Maceo and Mezzy have grown old. After the collapse of Golgonooza, Maceo and Mezzy have gone their separate ways. But now there’s a new group of Rangers that’s even worse than the original one, and they’ve found a golden gadget, which will allow them to access Golgonooza’s power source and use it to blow up the planet. So Maceo and Mezzy have to team up one last time to save Golgonooza, their symbolic child.

FANTASTIC FOUR #15 (Marvel, 2023) – “The China Brain,” [W] Ryan North, [A] Ivan Fiorelli. Reed reaches a state of uneasy coexistence with Metamind, until Passi (the Elon Musk character from last issue) murders Metamind by turning off its servers. As a parting gift, Metamind brings the Baxter building back. This is perhaps the best issue of an already excellent FF run. Metamind was previously presented as an awful menace, but its death is a heartbreaking moment. And the return of the kids is bittersweet because it comes at the cost of a friend’s life.

TITANS: BEAST WORLD #3 (DC, 2024) – untitled, [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Lucas Meyer. After a lot of action scenes, Amanda Waller teams up with Lex Luthor in a plot to kill “Garro.” Beast World is a typical example of a crossover series where characterization takes a back seat to plot, but Tom Taylor has the rare ability to incorporate humor and characterization into action scenes. That is, Tom Taylor’s action scenes are not just filler, they actually tell you something about the characters in them.

SHAZAM! #7 (DC, 2024) – “The Captain vs. Black Adam Part 1,” [W] Mark Waid, [A] Goran Sudzuka. Billy’s adoptive parents reveal that they’ve bought a new, much bigger house. But then Billy gets into a fight with Black Adam, and in the fight, Billy’s current house is destroyed, which will leave his family without enough money to afford the new house. When Billy realizes this, the creators vividly convey his despair at what he’s done to his family. There’s also some more funny scenes with the bureaucracy-obsessed alien dinosaurs.

MARVEL MEOW #1 (Marvel, 2024) – untitled, [W/A] Nao Fuji. A series of mostly silent strips starring Chewie, Black Widow and Winter Soldier’s cats, as well as various other animals. This Marvel Meow is a print version of an online Infinity Comic that was published in 2022 and 2023. It does not appear to be the same as the 2021 Marvel Meow book published by Viz. Anyway, Marvel Meow #1 is one of the funniest and cutest comics Marvel has ever published. It’s full of adorable cat stories with perfect comic timing. Nao Fuji has a deep understanding of what cats look like and how they act. A particular highlight is the story where one of the cats tries to use the Sandman as a litterbox. It’s worth noting that the Black Cat’s four cats are all named after famous fictional thieves (Arsene Lupin, A.J. Raffles, Simon Templar and Irene Adler). 

LOCAL MAN #8 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] Tim Seeley & Tony Fleecs. Crossjack continues his investigation, despite still suffering from the effects of the drugs he was given last issue. Crossjack and the sheriff discover that Mackenzie Cheng was murdered by a water-powered woman who can travel through water pipes (including toilets). The issue ends with a brilliant piece of fourth-wall breaking, where Crossjack falls out of the panels and lands on the adjacent ad page, and continues walking across the next few ad pages. Finally he arrives at the upside-down story in the back of the issue, and he sees Inga’s image and realizes she’s responsible for the entire conspiracy. I don’t think I’ve ever read any other comic where a character interacted with the paratextual materials in this way.

ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #1 (Marvel, 2024) – untitled, [W] Jonathan Hickman, [A] Marco Checchetto. In an alternate universe, the Maker prevented Peter Parker from being bitten by a radioactive spider. Peter grew up, married Mary Jane, and had two children, and now works at the Daily Bugle along with Uncle Ben, who’s still alive. Now Peter is contacted by a future version of Tony Stark, who gives Peter the powers he should have gotten many years ago. In this series, Jonathan Hickman achieves the rare feat of doing something with Spider-Man that’s never been done before. Peter’s two young children add a new dynamic to his life, and it’s especially strange to see Peter and Uncle Ben interacting as adults.

BIRDS OF PREY #5 (DC, 2024) – “Megadeath Part 5,” [W] Kelly Thompson, [A] Arist Deyn. The BoP continue their fight with Megaera. This issue feels like filler, and Arist Deyn is a vastly inferior artist to Leonardo Romero.

FISHFLIES #4 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W/A] Jeff Lemire. This issue mostly focuses on the girl and the bug as they evade pursuit and finally make it out of town. Meanwhile, the police are on the girl’s trail, and the mother of the comatose boy has a vision in which she’s told to follow the flies. This issue is compellingly written and drawn, but it doesn’t significantly advance the plot.

W0RLDTR33 #6 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Fernando Blanco. This issue begins with a flashback scene set in 1999, and then we resume the story in 2024, after the Internet has been shut down worldwide. Nothing about this issue really stands out to me.

MECH CADETS #4 (Boom!, 2024) – untitled, [W] Greg Pak, [A] Takeshi Miyazawa. The kids disobey orders and go into space to rescue Olivia and General Park, and they discover that the Sharg are forcing General Park to pilot a robot for them. Somehow I didn’t get issue 5. The central conflict in this volume of Mech Cadets is not between the humans and aliens, but between the kids and their adult superiors.

THE HUNGER AND THE DUSK #5 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] G. Willow Wilson, [A] Chris Wildgoose. The Vangol leader tells the captured human that a doom is coming which is even worse than the Vangol. Then the Vangol let their captive free in order to lure the humans and orcs into an ambush. The humans and orcs win, and afterward, Tara and Cal discuss how human society is collapsing. This last scene indicates how The Hunger and the Dusk is different from other epic fantasies: it takes place in a world where humans are on the decline, instead of being the dominant race. But I’m still not sure what the core premise of The Hunger and the Dusk is.

PINE & MERRIMAC #1 (Boom!, 2024) – untitled, [W] Kyle Starks, [A] Fran Galan. This series’ title characters are two married private detectives living in a small seaside town, Jamesport, in an unspecified part of America. They’re hired to investigate the case of a young girl who appears to have been kidnapped by a biker gang. Pine & Merrimac’s relationship dynamics are interesting, and I like the scene where they’re confronted by the ex-wife of a former client. But I can’t tell what, if anything, is supposed to be new or original about this series.

TITANS: BEAST WORLD #4 (DC, 2024) – as above. The heroes fight Giganta, who’s turned into a giant bear. Waller and Luthor use Chunk, an old supporting character from William Messner-Loebs’s Flash, as a weapon against Garro. Thanks to Chunk’s black hole powers, both Chunk and Gar are killed. Throughout this series Tom Taylor uses this weird narrational technique where the narrator seems to be retelling the story after the fact: for example, “An already terrified world watched a horror grow in real time.” He used this same style of narration in Seven Secrets. I don’t particularly like this style of narration, because I think it decreases the reader’s immersion in the story.

ACTION COMICS #1061 (DC, 2024) – “Hello, Cruel World, Hello,” [W] Jason Aaron, [A] John Timms. Bizarro invades Metropolis and turns all the people into Bizarros. There’s also a scene set on Zerox, the Sorcerer’s World from the Legion. This is a pretty good Superman story, and John Timms’s art is in the classic Curt Swan tradition. Lois’s line “Marry me all over again” sounds like something Mezzy would have said to Maceo in Once Upon a Time at the End of the World. 

BATMAN AND ROBIN #5 (DC, 2024) – “School Daze,” [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Nikola Cizmesija. At school, Damian is bullied by members of the fascistic soccer team, whose coach is the villain Shush. We also discover that one of Damian’s classmates is the son of the serial killer Mr. Zsasz. The major problem with the previous four issues was that they didn’t focus enough on Damian’s school life or his relationship with Bruce. This issue successfully fixes that problem. Also, Nikola Cizmesija is an improvement on Simone Di Meo, since Cizmesija’s art is much clearer and less confusing. I loved Di Meo’s art on We Only Find Them When They’re Dead, but his style is not appropriate to Batman.

SABRINA THE TEENAGE WITCH HOLIDAY SPECIAL #1 (Archie, 2024) – “The Longest Night,” [W] Kelly Thompson, [A] Veronica Fish, etc. Instead of writing a new review, I’m just going to quote my own Facebook post: “I loved Kelly Thompson and Veronica Fish’s Sabrina the Teenage Witch comics, but the new Sabrina Holiday Special is a huge disappointment. Thompson and Fish only got to do half the issue, and their story feels like half a story. It begins in medias res, with a huge amount of context missing, and as a result, the conclusion is meaningless. The other story in the issue is equally confusing. Ever since the pandemic, Archie’s comic books have been consistently awful. Whoever is editing these comics is either incompetent, or doesn’t care, or both.”

GIANT ROBOT HELLBOY #3 (Dark Horse, 2024) – untitled, [W] Mike Mignola, [A] Duncan Fegredo. The autonomous Hellboy robot fights some giant monsters, then gets blown up. This series was not much different from any other Hellboy comic, but it included some very fun action scenes.

SPINE-TINGLING SPIDER-MAN #3 (Marvel, 2024) – untitled, [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Juan Ferreyra. Peter rescues a kidnapped Mysterio, only to learn that Mysterio is just as much a victim as Peter is. Then they both encounter Spidercide, who tells them that the real villain is the Jackal. The plot here doesn’t matter as much as the extremely creepy artwork, which helps the reader share Peter’s terror.

PETROL HEAD #3 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] Rob Williams, [A] Pye Parr. Two other robot drivers, Supercarstar, are introduced into the story. There’s nothing particularly new in this issue, but this is still a very entertaining series. I especially like the vibrant coloring.

FIRE & ICE: WELCOME TO SMALLVILLE #5 (DC, 2024) – untitled, [W] Joanne Starer, [A] Natacha Bustos. Rocky is possessed by the Kooey Kooey Kooey mask, and it starts wrecking the town. There are also various other subplots. This is a hilarious series, and I like it better than Sirens of the City.

POISON IVY #18 (DC, 2024) – untitled, [W] G. Willow Wilson, [A] Luana Vecchio. Ivy teams up with Killer Croc and Solomon Grundy to try to stop the coming zombie invasion, and there’s also a guest appearance by Batman. Ivy suffers a monstrous pregnancy and gives birth to Jason Woodrue. In this issue Solomon Grundy only speaks in lines from the nursery rhyme he’s named after. I don’t remember Grundy having spoken like that before.

LES NAUFRAGÉS DU TEMPS V1 (Glénat, 1974?) – “L’étoile endormie,” [W] Jean-Claude Forest, [A] Paul Gillon. In the year 2990, a 20th-century astronaut, Chris, is revived from suspended animation, and he teams up with a contemporary woman, Mara, to combat a plague of intelligent rats. Mara falls in love with Chris, but all Chris cares about is finding his partner Valerie, who went into suspended animation with him but is now missing. This series is one of the great classics of French SF comics. Gillon draws in the photorealist tradition of Alex Raymond or Stan Drake or especially Al Williamson. His renderings of machinery and alien monsters are impeccable, and he draws better facial expressions than Williamson does. But what equally impressed me about this comic is Forest’s writing. Because this comic was published in serial form, it has an extremely fast-moving plot, but Forest’s poetic prose style gives an immense emotional weight to each scene. Although this is a science fiction adventure story, its plot is driven by the love triangle between Chris, Mara, and the absent Valerie, and makes the reader feel Chris and Mara’s complex emotions. I would love to read more of this series. The first two volumes of this series were translated into English by NBM in the ‘80s, but I can’t imagine that the translation did justice to the original.

NEIGE V1 (Le Lombard, 1987 ) – “Les brumes aveugles,” [W] Didier Convard, [A] Christian Gine. In a postapocalyptic snow-covered Europe, two young parents are killed by pursuers while trying to escape from a city. Their young son is adopted by an old hermit, Northman. When the boy, now named Neige (Snow), is a young adult, he goes looking for his parents’ killers, and he finds himself in a walled city, which controls access to the medication that protects against an endemic plague. Neige has to help defend the city against raiders. Neige (the comic) has a somewhat overcomplicated plot, but Neige (the character) is an interesting protagonist. This comic is most appealing because of Gine’s art and Rita’s uncredited coloring. The series is named after snow, and on almost every page, the whiteness of the snow creates a striking contrast to the black and red tones of the figures. Neige himself is a visually impressive sight with his blond hair and long red bandana. AFAIK none of this series has ever been translated into English.

THE FLASH #4 (DC, 2024) – “The Gallery,” [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Mike Deodato Jr. Wally visits a gallery full of statues of speedsters, while Iris teams up with Jesse Quick. This is the first issue that’s featured Irey, and Spurrier makes her an appealing character, but he also has a darker and grimmer perspective on her than Adams did; he focuses more on the negative aspects of her personality. This tendency is seen even more clearly in the later issue that focuses on Jai. I’m willing to accept Spurrier’s Flash for what it is, but I preferred Adams’s much more optimistic take on the series. At Heroes recently, someone told me that Deodato was a poor artist for the Flash, because his artwork is too static. I agree with that. 

ACID CHIMP VS. BUSINESS DOG #1 (Ahoy, 2024) – “Alone at Home,” [W] Bryce Ingram, [A] Peter Krause, [A] Mark Russell & Steve Pugh. This one-shot is a crossover between My Bad and Billionaire Island. The plot is that some people try to assassinate Business Dog by giving him Acid Chimp as a pet. This comic is no more than a piece of low comedy, but it’s a good piece of low comedy. Acid Chimp is not to be confused with Sniffer Ape from Bronze Age Boogie, who was a more interesting character.  

LOVE EVERLASTING #11 (Image, 2024) – “Just West of Love Part 1,” [W] Tom King, [A] Elsa Charretier. In the Old West, Joan falls in love with Sheriff Henry Huff, but Henry is treacherously murdered by the Brennan gang, who already killed Joan’s father. Henry’s younger brother, Jake, goes on a mission of vengeance and kills all the Brennans. Then Joan falls in love with Jake, but at the moment she accepts his marriage proposal, she vanishes, and Jake resolves to go looking for her. This is an entertaining issue of Tom King’s best comic since Mister Miracle. Tom King always tends to write in an artificial, histrionic style, but that prose style is appropriate for the Western and romance genres.

BATMAN: OFF-WORLD #2 (DC, 2024) – “The Things We Do for War,” [W] Jason Aaron, [A] Doug Mahnke. Batman and Ione manage to escape the slave ship, then Batman lands on an alien planet, where he gives a version of the “you have eaten well” speech from Batman: Year One. This series is entertaining, but it’s not the best thing Jason Aaron has written. I think my favorite part of Off-World is Punch Bot.

KILL YOUR DARLINGS #4 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] Ethan Parker & Griffin Sheridan, [A] Robert Quinn. The protagonist is confronted by some sort of a nightmare monster. The core concept of this series – children’s stories turning real – has been done much better in other comics (e.g. The Unwritten or Kingdom of the Wicked), and there’s nothing new or original about Kill Your Darlings’s take on this theme.

HEXAGON BRIDGE #4 (Image, 2024) – “Libraries” etc., [W/A] Richard Blake. Again, Blake’s artwork is beautiful, especially his renderings of science-fictional architecture, but Hexagon Bridge’s story is not exciting at all. Blake would be better off illustrating someone else’s scripts, rather than writing his own.

BATMAN #141 (DC, 2024) – “Mind Bomb Part 3,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Jorge Jimenez. Batman continues his fight with Failsafe and Zur-En-Arrh, and then he finds himself in a prison cell with the Joker.  There’s also a backup story with art by Dustin Nguyen. The best thing in this issue may be the two-page scene with Nightwing and Batgirl. Chip Zdarsky might be a good candidate to take over Nightwing once Tom Taylor leaves. Other than that, I did not enjoy this issue. The central conflict is between Batman and another version of Batman who’s even more of an asshole, and neither of these is a very interesting character. And the issue ends by reintroducing the Joker, a character I’ve grown sick of. More on that last point later.

SLOW BURN #3 (Boom!, 2023) – “Kary,” [W] Ollie Masters, [A] Pierluigi Minotti. This seems to be a flashback story, narrated from the perspective of the criminal who was pursuing the main protagonists. This comic is an effective depiction of people who are living really squalid, miserable lives. But for precisely that reason, it’s also not very fun.

SPIDER-GWEN: SMASH #2 (Marvel, 2024) – untitled, [W] Melissa Flores, [A] Enid Balam. Gwen and MJ continue to argue about nothing. Dazzler’s next concert, at Wrigley Field, is attacked by Pixie, who is a villain in this universe. So far I don’t dislike this series, but I’m not enjoying it as much as Jason Latour or Seanan McGuire’s Spider-Gwen comics.

DARK SPACES: HOLLYWOOD SPECIAL #4 (IDW, 2024) – untitled, [W] Jeremy Lambert, [A] Claire Roe. Vivian experiences a series of nightmare visions. Claire Roe’s artwork in this issue is quite compelling, but there’s not much new or original about Jeremy Lambert’s writing, and he hasn’t succeeded in making me care about Vivian. I could have skipped buying this miniseries.

SAINTED LOVE #3 (Vault, 2024) – untitled, [W] Steve Orlando, [A] Giopota. John and Mac are captured by St. Sergius and his lover Bacchus. They all eventually become lovers, and they all survive an encounter with the time-traveling anti-gay cult. Sainted Love is my favorite Steve Orlando comic so far. It’s a sexy but tasteful piece of erotica, it’s funny, and it’s also a serious depiction of the history of queer struggle. This issue ends without a real conclusion, leaving room for a sequel, and I hope there is one.

DEEP CUTS #4 (Image, 2024) – “Blue Notes,” [W] Kyle Higgins & Joe Clark, [A] Ramon Perez. A number of musicians share their remembrances of the late Dorian Emmaus, a jazz musician who made only one record – though it was an all-time classic – before dying from his drug habit. This comic feels like an accurate depiction of jazz in the ‘50s. In particular, it depicts how cabaret cards were weaponized against black musicians. I don’t know if Dorian Emmaus is based on anyone in particular, but his story resembles that of many jazz musicians. This issue reminds me of Julio Cortázar’s story “The Pursuer,” about a fictionalized version of Charlie Parker.

UNIVERSAL MONSTERS: DRACULA #3 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Martin Simmonds. This issue begins with Lucy’s funeral and ends with Dracula’s vampirization of Mina. This series is essentially a vehicle for Martin Simmonds’s spectacular artwork. He depicts Dracula’s horror and mystery by using a variety of painterly effects that are rare in American comics.

CRAVE #2 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W/A] Maria Llovet. Before reading this issue I had already decided to give up on this series, and this issue only confirmed that decision. Crave #2 has some well-drawn sex scenes, but its plot is impossible to follow, because the characters are indistinguishable from one another.

SWAN SONGS #6 (Image, 2024) – “The End of… the Sidewalk,” [W] W. Maxwell Prince, [A] Martin Morazzo. Tommy, like most of Maxwell Prince’s protagonists, is a thirtysomething white family man who’s going through a midlife crisis. As his family collapses, he starts having hallucinations, one of which includes a Figglybump, and in the end he commits suicide. Maxwell Prince is a master of the single-issue form, but his stories have an extreme similarity to each other, and he tends to repeat himself. Perhaps he should challenge himself by writing some continued stories. This issue is a parody of Shel Silverstein’s Where the Sidewalk Ends, and many of its pages are illustrated poems, rather than being in comics format. There’s even one two-page spread that’s just a poem with no illustrations at all.

CAPTAIN MARVEL #4 (Marvel, 2024) – “Shifting Lines,” [W] Alyssa Wong, [A] Jan Bazaldua. Carol and Yuna are trying to steal something, and they encounter Black Cat and Blastaar. I like the idea of this series, but I wish Yuna was a more distinctive character. I still don’t feel I know much about her.

RISE OF THE POWERS OF X #1 (Marvel, 2024) – “Data Pages,” [W] Kieron Gillen, [A] R.B. Silva. Most of this issue is set in the far future, and then there’s a sequence set in the modern day, showing how Xavier, Doug Ramsey, and Rasputin IV are trying to prevent some kind of apocalypse. I have the same problem with this issue as with Sins of Sinister: it’s too epic for its own good. This issue’s plot and characters are so epic and cosmic that it’s  hard to be impressed by them, since I know none of them will last beyond the end of the current storyline.

GREEN LANTERN #7 (DC, 2024) – “Nothing to Fear,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Amancay Nahuelpan. A flashback story that explains how Kilowog died. As with all the previous issues of this series, this issue’s Sinister Sons backup story is better than the main story. This will be my last issue of Adams’ Green Lantern.

GEIGER: GROUND ZERO #2 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] Geoff Johns, [A] Gary Frank. Geiger meets a Russian scientist who’s partly responsible for the nuclear war. I think this story is set before the previous Geiger miniseries, but I can’t quite tell. In any case this story doesn’t tell us much about Geiger that we didn’t already know.

SUPERMAN #229 (DC, 1970) – “The Ex-Superman!”, [W] Leo Dorfman, [A] Curt Swan. In a story continued from last issue, Superman is stranded on an alien planet thanks to a plot by the Anti-Superman Gang. On this planet Superman fights an old man wearing a distorted version of his own costume.  This story has an interesting setup, but it’s resolved in an implausible way. In the backup story, Superman accidentally signs his name in the same handwriting that he uses as Clark Kent, and he has to resort to a ridiculous and implausible plot in order to prevent Perry White from deducing his secret identity. This is an original story, but it looks like a reprint because of its old-fashioned lettering and Wayne Boring artwork. This comic is still stuck in an older era of Superman; it feels more like a ‘50s Superman comic than a ‘70s one.  However, just three issues later, Denny O’Neil would modernize Superman with the Kryptonite Nevermore story.

HELLBOY JUNIOR #1 (Dark Horse, 1999) – “Magical Mushroom Trip” etc., [W] Bill Wray, [A] Dave Cooper, Pat McEown & Mike Mignola. This comic’s first and third stories have beautiful artwork, but all of the stories are full of offensive toilet humor, and the second story, “The Wolvertons,” includes a grossly racist depiction of an Alaska Native person. Dark Horse seems to have let these stories go out of print, and that’s a wise decision.

GREEN ARROW #51 (DC, 1991) – “Homecoming,” [W] Mike Grell, [A] Shawn McManus. Ollie and Dinah celebrate Ollie’s return to Seattle by having lots of sex. Then the police visit Ollie and accuse him of two murders. Shawn McManus was a poor choice of a guest artist for this series. He’s fine for fantastic and science-fictional stories, but his art is not suited to a more realist story like this one. His facial expressions, in particular, produce an uncanny valley effect that’s unintentionally terrifying.

MASTER OF KUNG FU #61 (Marvel, 1978) – “Glass Orchids,” [W] Doug Moench, [A] Jim Craig. Shang-Chi fights Skullcrusher, not to be confused with Skullbuster from the Reavers. Clive Reston goes on a date with Melissa Grenville. Leiko listens to Fleetwood Mac’s “Dreams.” Doug Moench must have been fond of Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours; in issue 71, Shang-Chi and Leiko listen to “The Chain,” another song from the same album, while making love. I have a nostalgic fondness for the ‘70s Master of Kung Fu, though I realize that its depiction of Asian people is embarrassing.

MARVEL TEAM-UP #108 (Marvel, 1981) – “Something Wicked This Way Kills!”, [W] David Michelinie, [A] Herb Trimpe. Spider-Man and Paladin team up against Thermo the Thermatronic Man, a villain who returned in the next issue, and has only made four other appearances since. I’ve already read the reprint of this story in Marvel Tales #231. The one thing I remember about this story is when Paladin says he has the strength of three men, and Spider-Man replies “Which three – Moe, Larry, and Curly?” Now that I have MTU #108, my copy of Marvel Tales #231 is redundant, but I want to hold on to the latter issue anyway, because it has a new Todd McFarlane cover.

WELCOME TO SHOWSIDE #5 (Z2, 2016) – untitled, [W/A] Ian McGinty, [W] Samantha Knapp. A comic for a younger audience, written in the Adventure Time/Cartoon Network style. I was unable to follow this comic’s plot, and there were so many characters that I couldn’t tell them all apart. This comic is also tediously long, with 40 pages of often very dense text. I’m actually not sure if it’s intended for kids or for older Cartoon Network fans. In any event, this comic does testify to Ian McGinty’s ambition and passion. Sadly his greatest legacy might be as a martyr to the comic industry’s culture of overwork.

CRY HAVOC #5 (Image, 2016) – untitled, [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Ryan Kelly. All I remember about this issue is that it had something to do with werewolves. Cry Havoc was not one of Spurrier’s more successful series. I seem to recall that he even offered a free review copy of it to anyone who wanted one, because it was getting such little publicity. His more recent series seem to be doing better.

SUPERICHIE #5 (Archie, 1976) – “On the Spot!”, [W] uncredited, [A] Ernie Colón? The main story in this issue is a superhero parody in which Richie Rich is a superhero and Cadbury is his sidekick. Some of the other stories are reprints. Other than the superhero theme, this comic is no different from any other Richie Rich comic.

BATMAN #675 (DC, 2008) – “The Fiend with Nine Eyes,” [W] Grant Morrison, [A] Ryan Benjamin. Bruce goes on a date with Jezebel Jet, but they’re interrupted by the Ten-Eyed Man. In the subsequent events, Jezebel figures out Bruce’s secret identity. Meanwhile, Damian teams up with his “brother” Nightwing. Damian has become such an integral part of Batman continuity, it’s strange to think that he was once a new, unfamiliar character.

DAREDEVIL #206 (Marvel, 1984) – “Every Good and Perfect Gift…”, [W] Denny O’Neil, [A] David Mazzucchelli. Micah Synn sexually assaults Debbie Nelson, then invades Matt and Gloriana’s Christmas party and tries to kidnap Debbie. Matt changes into Daredevil and beats Micah up, but then Debbie fawns over Micah, even though Debbie’s husband Foggy is also injured. Micah Synn is a really disturbing character. Denny wrote him as a horrible, animalistic sociopath who was somehow irresistible to women. And the most troublesome thing is that Debbie responded to his abuse and ended up leaving her husband for him. As Brian Cronin says, “Man, O’Neil really tore that character apart and it was in such a sketchy way, too. The whole “women secretly want to be brutalized” deal. Debbie Nelson just becomes this completely different character.” Come to think of it, Denny also wrote the story where Heather Glenn committed suicide. 

CLASSIC STAR WARS #5 (Dark Horse, 1992) – untitled, [W] Archie Goodwin, [A] Al Williamson. Luke and his love interest, Tanith Shire, are trapped on Tanith’s home planet and are enslaved by tyrants who ride giant serpents. Tanith only appeared in the newspaper strip, from which this comic is reprinted. I wonder if she was named after Tanith Lee. Al Williamson’s art is beautiful as usual, but it suffers from being blown up to overly large sizes.

2020 VISIONS #4 (Vertigo, 1997) – “La Tormenta Part 1,” [W] Jamie Delano, [A] Warren Pleece. The gimmick behind this series was that it consisted of four separate storylines, each by a different artist, all set in the then-remote year of 2020. “La Tormenta” is a crime story set in a dystopian Miami. This story has a powerful sense of despair and squalor, but its plot is only mildly interesting.

NEW LIEUTENANTS OF METAL #4 (Image, 2024) – “Kill ‘Em All!”, [W] Joe Casey, [A] Ulises Farinas. A heavy-metal-themed superhero story, with a nonsensical plot but striking artwork and coloring. This comic would be funnier to someone who understood the references to metal music, but it’s worth reading just for the art. The real problem with this comic is that the main story ends just after the halfway point, and the rest of the issue is a long essay by Joe Casey about his experiences working at Image Comics. I don’t know who would be interested in these ruminations, other than Casey himself.

SEEKERS INTO THE MYSTERY #15 (DC, 1997) – “Book 5: The Death of Lucas Hart: Chest Pains,” [W] J.M. DeMatteis, [A] Jon J. Muth. This is the last issue, so it makes no sense on its own. It seems to be about the protagonist’s efforts to cope with the death of a magician who influenced his life.

DEATHSTROKE #36 (DC, 2018) – “The Republic Arkham: Book One,” [W] Christopher Priest, [A] Ed Benes & Fernando Pasarin. I ordered several issues of this series when they came out, but I only read one of them. My review of Deathstroke #31 was positive, but I don’t remember anything about that issue. I don’t have a clear memory of this issue either. It’s set in Arkham Asylum, and it does have some funny moments.

2000 AD #1850 (Rebellion, 2013) – Dredd: “New Tricks Part 1,” [W] Mike Carroll, [A] Paul Davidson. Dredd supervises some judges who are being retrained. On a mission to the Undercity, Dredd and his trainees discover a former Judge who claims to have found the “Goblin King.” Damnation Station: “The Titanic Sails at Dawn Pat 1,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Mark Harrison. This story takes place during a war between humans and alien invaders, but this chapter is set on Earth, duing carnival in New Orleans. In this story Mark Harrison uses the same type of digital artwork as in The Out, but in 2013 his style was far less well developed. Flesh: “Badlanders,” [W] Pat Mills, [A] James McKay. Some poachers go back in time to capture a tyrannosaur called Gorehead. James McKay’s style of artwork is much cruder and less slick, compared to most other 2000 AD artists. But that style is appropriate for Flesh. Brass Sun: “The Diamond Age Part 1,” [W] Ian Edginton, [A] I.N.J. Culbard. While the protagonist, Wren, tries to get her grandfather’s journal back, her city is invaded by an airship fleet. This story should have been the highlight of the issue, but it’s a bit disappointing because it focuses on domestic politics, rather than the series’ core themes of steampunk and architecture.

NIGHT’S DOMINION SEASON TWO #4 (Oni, 2017) – untitled, [W/A] Ted Naifeh. The protagonists are trying to defeat the Amaraddan dictatorship, but to do so they need to rescue a captured demigod from prison. This was the final issue of Season Two, though it ends on a cliffhanger. There is a Season Three, but it was only published as a trade paperback. I should order that book.

ROXANNA & THE QUEST FOR THE TIME BIRD V1 (NBM, 1983) – “Ramor’s Conch,” [W] Serge Le Tendre, [A] Régis Loisel. Coquettish red-haired Pelisse (renamed Roxanna in this translation) is the daughter of the sorceress Mara. Pelisse’s mother sends her on a quest to obtain the Time Bird. Pelisse’s companion is Bragon, an aging knight who may be her father. Their first step is to retrieve another item, Ramor’s conch, from a city of gray-skinned people. By today’s standards this comic might be considered trite, with its plot-coupon-based narrative. But in 1983 it broke new ground in French comics, and it helped turn epic fantasy into a major commercial genre. Loisel’s depictions of fantastic creatures and architecture are beautiful, and Pelisse and Bragon are two compelling characters who interact enjoyably with each other. The trouble with this NBM edition is that the translation is horrible. In 2015 Titan published a hardcover omnibus edition of the first four volumes of this series, with a new translation. However, that book is out of print, and is now so expensive that it would be cheaper to collect the original French albums.

ELEKTRA: ASSASSIN #2 (Marvel, 1986) – “The Ugly Man,” [W] Frank Miller, [A] Bill Sienkiewicz. I have this entire miniseries, but I’m reluctant to read it because of its intimidating writing and artwork. This issue seems to be about Elektra carrying out an assassination somewhere in South America, but its story shifts between multiple timeframes, making it hard to figure out just what’s going on. Sooner or later I’ll get around to reading the  remaining six issues.

SANDMAN MYSTERY THEATRE #27 (Vertigo, 1995) – “Night of the Butcher Part 3,” [W] Matt Wagner & Steven T. Seagle, [A] Guy Davis. A woman discovers a sheep’s hoof in her toilet, and Wesley and the police both try to figure out where it came from. Meanwhile, Wesley and Dian are having relationship trouble. This issue helped me realize why Wesley Dodds is such a compelling protagonist: because he’s not traditionally masculine. He’s kind and thoughtful, he genuinely cares about other people, and he tries to be a better person. He sees Dian as a person in her own right, not just a sex object. For instance, this issue includes a long monologue by Welsey on why his relationship with Dian is going wrong. Because of these unusual aspects, Wesley might even be considered a queer character, though he’s not gay. 

BATMAN ’66 #21 (DC, 2015) – “The Garden of Death,” [W] Jeff Parker, [A] Sandy Jarrell. Batman and Batgirl travel to Japan, where they battle Lord Death Man. This character appeared in Batman #180 and then in Jiro Kuwata’s Batman manga, and was subsequently forgotten until Grant Morrison revived him in 2008. Batman ’66 is the sort of series where if you’ve read one issue, you’ve read them all. However, this is a funny comic with lots of accurate Japanese references. There’s a scene where a stewardess asks Bruce “Coffee? Tea? Or death?” This is an allusion to Coffee, Tea or Me, a 1967 book which was fradulently presented as a memoir by two flight attendants.

THE HUMANS #3 (Image, 2015) – untitled, [W] Keenan Marshall Keller, [A] Tom Neely. One of the Humans is troubled by traumatic visions of his wartime experiences in Vietnam. This series is a powerful depiction of ‘70s biker culture, though its characters are very unsympathetic and are also hard to tell apart. 

2000 AD #1851 (Rebellion, 2013) – Dredd: as above. We are told who the Goblin King is, and then the trainees go looking for him. Brass Sun: as above. Wren and her friend try to escape from the alien invasion. Flesh: as above. There’s a gross scene where a sauropod dinosaur explodes from methane buildup. Then there’s some plot that I don’t remember. Aquila: “Where All Roads Lead” Part 1,” [W] Gordon Rennie, [A] Patrick Goddard. Aquila, a former slave and gladiator, has arrived in Rome for the first time, and Nero is looking for him. This chapter is interesting because of Aquila’s sense of wonder at the strangeness of Rome. Damnation Station: as above. In New Orleans, an old but youthful-looking astronaut encounters a former companion of his. I don’t understand this story.

ATOMICS #6 (AAA Pop, 2000) – “The Physical,” [W/A] Mike Allred. Zapman, an Atomics member who’s a human-alien hybrid, tells his teammates his tragic origin story. Then

Dr. Flem gives the Atomics some information on how their powers work. This issue is sort of interesting, but none of the Atomics are particularly distinctive as characters.

LITTLE LULU #116 (Dell, 1958) – “The Spider Spins Again” etc., [W] John Stanley, [A] Irving Tripp. This series is annoying to review because all the issues are so similar. This issue begins with a Spider story, where Tubby solves the “mystery” of some footprints below Lulu’s window. There’s also a Groundhog Day story, a Little Itch story (without Witch Hazel), and so on.

SANDMAN #30 (Vertigo, 1991) – “August,” [W] Neil Gaiman, [A] Bryan Talbot. An elderly Emperor Augustus spends a day as a beggar, in the company of a little person, Lycius. In their conversation, Augustus reveals himself as a complex and difficult man who’s done many awful things in his life, but is overall proud of what he’s achieved. However, the punchline to the story is that even as an old man, Augustus is still traumatized by memories of being raped by his uncle, Julius Caesar. Morpheus only appears in one scene. Bryan Talbot was just selected to the Eisner Awards Hall of Fame, and obviously he deserves it.

SUPERMAN ADVENTURES #12 (DC, 1997) – “The War Within Part 2,” [W] Scott McCloud, [A] Rick Burchett. Superman is dying of a rare disease, and his doctor is being blackmailed into not giving him the cure. After a thrilling chase sequence, Lois delivers the cure to Superman, and the doctor decides to cure Superman, at the possible cost of his own career. This is an exemplary Superman story. Superman himself spends the entire issue in a hospital bed, but the whole point of the story is Superman’s moral influence on others. He inspires a whole team of people to develop and deliver the cure, and he convinces the doctor to do the right thing, despite the cost to himself.

RUSE #3 (CrossGen, 2002) – untitled, [W] Mark Waid, [A] Butch Guice. While investigating a murder, Simon Archard consults a psychic preteen girl, and then he gets framed for a murder. I think I’ve read this story before in trade paperback form, but it’s been about twenty years since I read it, and I don’t remember it. However, Ruse was probably the best CrossGen title. It was very funny and cleverly written, and it was mostly free of cumbersome connections to the rest of the CrossGen universe.

THOR: MAN OF WAR #1 (Marvel, 2009) – untitled, [W] Matt Fraction, [A] Clay Mann. This is the last in a series of three one-shots, which together tell the story of how Thor lost his powers because of excessive pride. Oddly, this issue ends with Thor losing his memory and becoming a disabled mortal physician, but his name as a mortal is Arkin Torsen, not Donald Blake, and he lives in the Viking Age. I guess Arkin Torsen is supposed to be a prototype version of Donald Blake, and Thor losing his divinity and becoming human is something that happens cyclically. See here for much more detailed speculation on this topic.

KINGSMAN: THE RED DIAMOND #1 (Image, 2017) – untitled, [W] Rob Williams, [A] Simon Fraser. A comedy espionage series with science fiction elemens, originally created by Mark Millar. I bought this because it’s not by Millar, who I can’t stand, but by a pair of talented 2000 AD creators. However, this issue still has Millar’s characteristic style of offensive gross-out humor. An early page shows an old man with a gag in his mouth, shouting “THOO ENORMUTH BUNTS OTH THUNTS!!!” I think I can skip reading any more of Kingsman.

GHOST MONEY #3 (Lion Forge, 2009/2017) – “Chamza’s Eyes,” [W] Thierry Smolderen, [A] Dominique Bertail. A black ops agent has kidnapped Chamza, a young billionaire, and implanted her with cameras that allow him to see through her eyes. In this issue Chamza tries to escape from a hospital, and there’s also a subplot set in Afghanistan, which is somehow connected to the origin of Chamza’s money. Ghost Money is an exciting thriller story, and Dominique Bertail’s art is gorgeous. I especially like the first page, with its vivid contrast of white, light blue, and red. Lion Forge published a lot of high-quality European comics, and I regret that I didn’t read all these comics when they were coming out.

DETECTIVE COMICS #1052 (DC, 2022) – “The Tower Part 6,” [W] Mariko Tamaki, [A] Max Raynor. Thanks to the Psycho-Pirate’s influence, Gotham descends into chaos. This issue’s main character is Dr. Chase Meridian, who was introduced in the infamous Batman Forever film. Tamaki’s depiction of psychotherapy seems very sensitive and realistic. This issue also has an uninteresting Jason Todd backup story by Matthew Rosenberg and Fernando Blanco.

BATMAN AND ROBIN #2 (DC, 2011) – “Bad Blood,” [W] Peter Tomasi, [A] Patrick Gleason. Bruce and Damian go on patrol together, and Alfred tries to teach Bruce to give Damian more positive reinforcement. This is a cute story, though it’s very fast-paced. Besides Grant Morrison, Tomasi and Gleason are the two creators who have done most to define Damian.

ASTONISHING TALES #17 (Marvel, 1972) – “Target: Ka-Zar!”, [W] Mike Friedrich, [A] Dan Adkins. Ka-Zar and Bobbi Morse fight Gemini, a member of Zodiac. At the end of the issue, Ka-Zar’s brother the Plunderer shows up accompanied by the monster Gog. This is a thoroughly generic and boring comic. Its most interesting moment is a scene where Ka-Zar complains about feeling constrained and stifled by civilization, but even this scene is one which appears in lots of other Ka-Zar comics.

JON SABLE, FREELANCE: ASHES OF EDEN #2 (IDW, 2009) – untitled, [W/A] Mike Grell. Various other characters reflect on their relationships with Jon Sable, and then Jon is hired to prevent the theft of the unsubtly named Maguffin Diamond. This issue isn’t bad, but it includes some mildly exploitative depictions of nudity and sex, and Grell’s art style is not well adapted to modern computer coloring. 

2000 AD #1852 (Rebellion, 2013) – Dredd: as above. Dredd and his trainees  discover the Goblin King’s secret weapon, an unexploded nuclear torpedo. Also they meet someone who says “I was a cartographer. Until someone stole my cartograph.” Brass Sun: as above. Another chapter with lots of action scenes but not much architecture or astronomy. Flesh: as above. This chapter focuses on some characters who are dinosaurs in human form. I don’t understand this story arc’s plot. Aquila: as above. Aquila has been forced to violate the pomerium, the sacred boundary of Rome, by killing some Praetorian Guards. He flees into the sewers, where he meets an entity that may be the original Capitoline Wolf. Damnation Station: as above. A flashback sequence about the main character’s traumatic past in the Soviet Union, or something like that.

THE LEGACY OF LUTHER STRODE #2 (Image, 2015) – untitled, [W] Justin Jordan, [A] Tradd Moore. Luther, Petra and another character visit Russia, where Luther fights a man called the Gardener. All of the Gardener’s dialogue is in Russian, and the reader is not supposed to understand it, although I was able to read it anyway using Google Translate. As usual Tradd Moore’s fight scenes are very well done.

LUC ORIENT V10 (Le Lombard, 1976) – “Le 6ème Continent,” [W] Michel Greg, [A] Eddy Paape. While looking for a missing colleague, Luc Orient and his friends stumble on a hidden civilization of ant people. The first half of this album is an exciting mystery tale set in a realistic Alpine setting. However, after around the halfway mark, the album radically changes direction and becomes a somewhat implausible science fiction story. Eddy Paape does a good job of imagining the ant people and their hidden fortress, but it seems hard to believe that this entire secret society would have existed underground for millennia, or that Luc Orient would have discovered it by pure chance This album wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t one of the best French comics I’ve read lately. Luc Orient was a long-running series that was serialized in Tintin from 1967 to 1994.

GREEN ARROW ANNUAL #6 (DC, 1993) – “Lust Be a Lady Tonight,” [W] Mike Grell, [A] Mike Collins. This annual was part of the Bloodlines crossover event, where each issue introduced a new superhero who was empowered by an alien parasite. Of the 23 new characters introduced in Bloodlines, only one, Hitman, had any lasting success. The new character in Green Arrow Annual #6 is Hook, a veteran who lost a hand in Vietnam. Grell gives Hook an interesting backstory as a Vietnam vet who’s haunted by wartime trauma and by his separation from his Vietnamese lover. However, Grell never bothered to use Hook again. His only other appearances were in the final chapter of Bloodlines, and then in a 2009 story where he was killed by Prometheus.

CYBORG #7 (DC, 2016) – “Reunion,” [W] David F. Walker, [A] Claude St. Aubin. Vic reveals that the person who appears to be his mother is actually a ghost. Meanwhile the government tries to take over S.T.A.R. Labs. There’s some poignant writing in this issue, but this whole series feels boring and unoriginal.

OUTSIDERS #50 (DC, 2007) – “You Killed the Outsiders!”, [W] Tony Bedard, [A] Matthew Clark & Ron Randall. Batman creates a new team of Outsiders, and they fight the Suicide Squad. This isn’t an interesting comic at all. I got this comic for free, and I’m glad I didn’t waste any money on it.

Next Heroes trip:

MIRACLEMAN: THE SILVER AGE #7 (Marvel, 2024) – “If This Be My Destiny,” [W] Neil Gaiman, [A] Mark Buckingham. Miracleman gives Dickie a number of options for his future, all of which he refuses. Instead Dickie decides to be Miracleman’s adversary, the symbolic serpent in his Eden. Dickie goes and sits under a tree in Australia, saying nothing, and a multitude gathers around him. The series ends with Dickie hearing a voice in his head, which I assume belongs to Johnny Bates. This issue is a bit of an anticlimax after issue 6, which was the peak of the series. However, the very fact of this comic’s existence is amazing. Neil deserves great praise for persevering until he completed a story which had been in limbo for thirty years. This issue’s inside back cover says that a Dark Age miniseries is forthcoming, and I hope we hear more about it soon.

NIGHTWING #110 (DC, 2024) – “Beast World,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Sami Basri. This issue has my favorite comic book cover in recent memory: it’s a parody of the woman-yelling-at-cat meme, with Dick and Damian as the woman and cat. The issue itself is a Beast World crossover in which Damian, transformed into a cat, is forced to fight in an animal fight club, until Dick and Jon rescue him. There are two moments in this issue that have gone viral. First, Damian’s opponent is Gail Simone, transformed into a bear. Second, there’s another panel that was photoshopped to make Dick say that he’s an “absolute snacc” and “at least a little queer.” Chuck Dixon was stupid enough to believe this was a real panel, and Tom Taylor publicly corrected him, while also thanking Dixon for his work on Nightwing. Some people criticized Taylor for being nice to Dixon. I obviously agree that Chuck Dixon is a horrible person – I say so every time I review one of his comics – but I can’t blame Taylor for being polite to him in public. Anyway, besides all of that, this is a really fun issue with lots of great dialogue and characterization, and it’s probably the high point of Beast World.

COBRA COMMANDER #1 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Andrea Milana. Somewhere in the American West, Cobra Commander murders a man and steals his vehicle. This sequence was previewed in earlier Energon Universe titles. The rest of the issue is a flashback sequence set in Cobra-La, where Cobra Commander meets Golobulus and then an unconscious Megatron. This is the least visually impressive of the three Energon Universe series, but it’s still exciting. As noted in the letters page, this issue draws heavily on G.I. Joe: The Movie, which I used to love as a child, but have not seen in many years.

POWER PACK: INTO THE STORM #1 (Marvel, 2024) – “Fireworks”, [W] Louise Simonson, [A] June Brigman. While vacationing on the beach, the Power kids and Franklin Richards discover a crashed spaceship containing Kofi and Djinna, a young Snark girl. So one of the gimmicks of this series is that Power Pack gets a new member who’s a Snark. This series has been in the works for a long time, and I’m glad it’s finally come out. Besides the modern coloring, it feels exactly like an issue of the original Power Pack series. Weezie and June still have a perfect understanding of all these characters. One particularly cute moment is Katie insisting on being the one to open the door to the cottage.

TITANS #7 (DC, 2024) – “Royal Blood Part 2,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Travis Moore. The Titans battle Brother Eternity/Xand’r, and Raven eventually defeats him by sending him to the Phantom Zone. Nightwing spends most of the issue as an anthropomorphic fox, and the other Titans make lots of jokes about how appropriate this is. Tom Taylor’s Titans is not quite as good as his Nightwing (though neither is anything else). However, Taylor is the best writer of superhero stories in the industry, and even if Titans isn’t his absolute best work, it’s still full of brilliant characterization and exciting action scenes.

FANTASTIC FOUR #16 (Marvel, 2024) – “Exalt Imagination,” [W] Ryan North, [A] Francesco Mortarino. This is North’s first story that focuses on the FF’s kids. Franklin and Val are attending a new school, and their assignment is to research one of the inventions on Robert Boyle’s wish list. They decide to go above and beyond the assignment by inventing an item on the list that doesn’t exist yet: a universal solvent. With Jo and Nikki’s help, they manage to create it, but then they have to stop it from destroying the world. They succeed in saving the world from their own invention, but they fail the assignment. This is a hilarious story, and it makes me wish that North would use these characters more often. I do have to wonder why Franklin and Val are both in the same class.

BLACK HAMMER: THE END #5 (Dark Horse, 2024) – untitled, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Malachi Ward. There are lots of different plot threads in this issue. The main one is that Rose refuses to assist the evil Joseph. Then Lucy and her family arrive, and Lucy picks up Joseph’s hammer and becomes Black Hammer again. Also, Sherlock Frankenstein recruits an army of former criminals to oppose Anti-God.  

ZAWA + THE BELLY OF THE BEAST #3 (Boom!, 2024) – untitled, [W/A] Michael Dialynas. The kids take Zawa on a tour of the city. On meeting some of her worshippers, Zawa hears a voice telling her to destroy them. She creates a giant fruit tree and then runs away. There’s also some more hints about the Mayor’s hidden agenda. This miniseries reveals that Michael Dialynas is not just an excellent artist but also a talented writer. Zawa is an awesome character because she’s basically a female Cookie Monster.

THE DEVIANT #3 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Joshua Hixson. In a flashback to 1973, a policeman visits Randall to ask him about the murders. Randall stupidly lets the cop in and allows him to use the bathroom, and the cop discovers Randall’s gay porn stash and decides Randall is the culprit. And that’s why Randall is still in prison 50 years later. The present-day sequences focus on Michael’s partner Derek.

SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN #3 (Marvel, 2024) – “Plot Armor,” [W] Dan Slott, [A] Mark Bagley. Now that they’re working together, Peter and Doc Ock return to the Master Planner’s old headquarters in order to recruit some of Doc Ock’s minions. There’s a flashback to the famous machinery-lifting scene from Amazing Spider-Man #33, which was set in this same building. Then Peter has to convince Doc Ock’s troops that he, Peter, is really Doc Ock in Spidey’s body, and he does so by insulting and intimidating them. This is a hilarious scene, particularly when Doc Ock tells Peter to address the minions as “You worthless curs!” and Peter says “You worthless curds!” Predictably enough, the story ends with Doc Ock betraying Peter and trying to switch bodies with him again.

RUMPUS ROOM #5 (AWA, 2024) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell, [A] Ramon Rosanas. Erica finally escapes the Rumpus Room by causing the house’s foundation to collapse. In the ensuing confusion, Erica’s sister is shot dead. Bob Schrunk of course manages to escape any accountability because he’s a rich white man. The small consolation is that at least he can’t continue hurting people. This was perhaps Mark Russell’s best short miniseries. I like it better than Not All Robots, which won an Eisner. It’s such a bleak and realistic depiction of how rich people are above the law.  

JUSTICE DUCKS #1 (Dynamite, 2024) – “Tales of the Srange,” [W] Roger Langridge, [A] Carlo Lauro. I’ve never seen Darkwing Duck before, and I stopped buying Dynamite comics because of their Comicsg*te associations. I bought this comic anyway because it’s written by Langridge. Justice Ducks #1 is a parody superhero story in which Darkwing Duck and his fellow superheroes battle an alien invader. The big reveal in this story – that the alien wants ice cream – is blatantly obvious. I’m guessing that this comic is aimed at young children, and that the child reader is supposed to feel proud of solving the mystery before the characters do. Overall, this is not one of Langridge’s best works, but it’s a fun comic.

THE FLASH #5 (DC, 2023) – “Top Priority,” [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Mike Deodato Jr. This issue focuses on Jai, and as noted above, it’s much grimmer than last issue. Spurrier writes Jai as depressed, lonely, jealous of his sister, and suspicious of his father. This sort of dark tone is characteristic of Spurrier, and it works when he’s writing John Constantine or Hum, but not so much when he’s writing the Flash or Nightcrawler. I also thought that this issue’s plot was both hard to follow and uninteresting. I’m going to continue to read this series, but I think replacing Adams with Spurrier was a mistake.

TITANS: BEAST WORLD #5 (DC, 2024) – untitled, [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Ivan Reis. Amanda Waller uses Chunk’s death as political ammunition against the Titans, and then she proposes to massacre all the beast people. We also meet a new villain called Doctor Hate. Speaking of hate, I hate the current verison of Waller. John Ostrander’s classic version of the character had many negative qualities, but she was well-intentioned, and she was admirable for her iron will and her competence. The current Amanda Waller is just a cartoonishly evil villain who does awful things because she enjoys being evil. She’s really not the same character at all.

BATMAN/SUPERMAN: WORLD’S FINEST #23 (DC, 2024) – “Key to the Kingdom Part 4: The Will and the Way,” [W] Mark Waid, [A] Dan Mora. Gog deliberately leads the superheroes to Apokolips in order to get them all killed. During the fight, Superman realizes that Gog knows the Anti-Life Equation. The Supermen and Batmen manage to convince Magog to switch sides and defeat Gog, but by that time, Darkseid has already shown up. This storyline is both epic and cleverly written.

PHANTOM ROAD #8 (Image, 2024) – “Don’t Leave”, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Gabriel Hernandez Walta. Dom and Birdie have another encounter with the creepy man in the Hawaiian shirt. They make it to a hotel, where they get into an argument, but then the egg hatches into a baby zombie. For some reason the second half of this issue is printed significantly darker than the first half.

NEWBURN #14 (Image, 2024) – “The Other Team,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Jacob Phillips. At long last this issue gives us Newburn’s origin story. He starts out as a cop, but when he intervenes in a war between rival Mafia gangs, the Gianellis, the gang that lost the war takes its revenge by assassinating Newburn’s father. Newburn avenges his father’s death by killing all the Gianellis, and then he sets himself up as a mediator between rival gangs. This story teaches us that Newburn is a murderer and that the police are hopelessly corrupt. I suspect that the second statement is true in real life, though I have no idea if Newburn’s depiction of organized crime is accurate. As before, the backup story in this issue is not worth the time it takes to read.

DAREDEVIL #5 (Marvel, 2024) – “Introductory Rites Part Five,” [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Farid Karami. Matt and She-Hulk go out to lunch, and Jen consumes a disgusting amount of food. Matt finally figures out that Jen is possessed by the deadly sin of gluttony. It was a relief to learn that Jen was mind-controlled, because she was acting wildly out of character. There’s also an incidental appearance by Mr. Hyde. It’s strange that Jen and Matt don’t interact more often, given that they’re both lawyers.

POWER GIRL #5 (DC, 2024) – “Streaky Does a Big Stretch!”, [W] Leah Williams, [A] David Baldeon. I haven’t been reading this series, but I bought this issue because it’s a Streaky the Super-Cat solo story. The plot is that while Power Girl is asleep, Streaky sneaks out of the apartment and rescues some kidnapped pets. This issue is one of a few comic books that are narrated from a cat’s perspective. Others include Astro City #44 and Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #15. Besides being extremely cute, Power Girl #5 also includes a funny gimmick where the humans’ dialogue is unintelligible; a sample word balon is “Bruly vem mo, pob.”

IMMORTAL THOR #6 (Marvel, 2024) – “The Teller of the Tale,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Martín Cóccolo. Loki tells Thor the story of how the two of them traveled to Utgard-Loki’s palace. This is one of the most memorable Norse myths, and it was previously adapted in Thor #272 – and at the end of Immortal Thor #6, we see the Enchantress and Dario Agger reading a copy of that very issue. I think some of the dialogue in Immortal Thor #6 is even taken directly from Thor #272. I don’t quite understand why Al Ewing is retelling this story, but I’m curious to find out.

JOHN CONSTANTINE, HELLBLAZER: DEAD IN AMERICA #1 (DC, 2024) – untitled, [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Aaron Campbell. Simon Spurrier finally gets to continue the Hellblazer run that was cut short in 2020. Constantine, Nat and Noah have been forced to flee England, and now they’re driving around America in a double-decker bus. And Daniel has asked them to track down some of his missing sand. Their first step is to recruit Swamp Thing, though he’s no longer the Swamp Thing that Constantine knew. This is a good first issue, and Spurrier is a much more appropriate writer for this series than for the Flash.

SUPERMAN #10 (DC, 2024) – “Into the West,” [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Bruno Redondo. In the Wild West, Superman and Marilyn Moonlight battle Terra-Man. We also learn Marilyn Moonlight’s origin. Joshua Williamson’s writing here is enjoyable, but Bruno Redondo’s artwork is spectacular. At the moment he’s the best active superhero artist. Redondo and Caio Filipe are both credited with the art on this issue, but the whole issue looks like Redondo to me, so I suspect Filipe only did the inks.

JUSTICE LEAGUE VS. GODZILLA VS. KONG #4 (DC, 2024) – untitled, [W] Brian Buccellato, [A] Christian Duce & Tom Derenick. While Superman recuperates, the rest of the Justice League fights a sea monster, and Aquaman literally releases the kraken to fight it. This series is a lot of fun, but its plot is getting a bit convoluted.

DEER EDITOR #1 (Mad Cave, 2024) – untitled, [W] Ryan Lindsay, [A] Sami Kivelä. Deer Editor was published digitally in 2014, then self-published in print, but this is its first printing from a traditional publisher. I suspect that the writer came up with the title Deer Editor first, and then invented a plot that would go with the title. The plot is that Bucky is a crusading journalist who also happens to be an anthropomorphic deer. While investigating some murders, he discovers that his city’s mayor is implicated, and then he gets shot. Bucky really is a deer – all the other characters perceive him as such – and there’s no explanation of why. And so far there are no other supernatural elements in the comic at all. Bucky’s animal nature is a nice piece of weirdness that enlivens what is otherwise a standard crime comic. My only problem with Deer Editor is that the plot is sometimes hard to follow, because the writer leaves certain plot details implicit.

BLACK PANTHER #6 (Marvel, 2024) – “Reign at Dusk Part 6,” [W] Eve Ewing, [A] Matt Horak w/ Mack Chater. I already took this series off my pull list, but this issue was in my file anyway. This issue is a flashback story taking place in the reign of an earlier Black Panther, and like earlier issues, it’s a boring waste of time. Speaking of Black Panther, I didn’t buy the new Ultimate Black Panther #1, and based on the reviews I’ve seen, I was correct not to. As I’ve stated in previous reviews, the consistent problem with Black Panther as a comic is that it offers an Americanized version of Africa, and it’s almost never been written by anyone with insider knowledge of Africa.

BONE ORCHARD: TENEMENT #8 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Andrea Sorrentino. We’re now on floor 3. Felix tries to sacrifice Isaac to Us’uuul (partly because of Isaac’s symbolic name), but one of the other protagonists intervenes and stabs Felix. That counts as a sacrifice, and the protagonists descend to floor 2. This floor seems to be some kind of heaven, and the dying woman is there.

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES #147 (IDW, 2024) – untitled, [W] Sophie Campbell, [A] Vincenzo Federici. A very confusing time travel story that takes place in multiple different time periods. I’ll be sorry to see Sophie Campbell leave this series, but she’s been writing it for a long time already, and Jason Aaron will be a good replacement.

KILL YOUR DARLINGS #5 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] Ethan S. Parker & Griffin Sheridan, [A] Robert Quinn. This issue is a flashback story about Rose’s mother (whose name is not given, unless I missed it) and how her life was ruined by an unwanted pregnancy. Rose’s mother is a much more interesting character than Rose herself, and if she (the former) had been the protagonist, I’d have enjoyed this series more.

2000 AD #2348 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: “A Fallen Man Part 7,” [W] Ken Niemand, [A] Tom Foster. Asher implements his plot against his employers, but they’re one step ahead of him, and they’ve kidnapped Zoola, the one person Asher cares about. Future Shocks: “Fear and Loathing of Las Vegas,” [W] Ned Hartley, [A] Joe Currie. Las Vegas is taken over by a sentient artificial intelligence. This story is pretty funny. Azimuth: “The Stranger Part 6,” [W] Dan Abnett, [A] Tazio Bettin. Dexter kills Trinary, a Lord of the New Flesh, and his companion Lilith discovers that they’re now trapped in Azimuth. Suzi Nine only appears on the last page. 3rillers: “Die Hoard Part 2,” [W] Eddie Robson, [A] Nick Brokenshire. The hoarder’s alleged heir reveals that her true goal is to destroy evidence of the aliens’ war crimes. As a collector, I like the idea of a story focusing on a giant collection. Hershey: “The Cold in the Bones,” [W]  Rob Williams, [A] Simon Fraser. Hershey returns to Mega-City One, where the person running the illegal lab is arrested. But the last two panels reveal that Hershey is dreaming or hallucinating, and she’s still in the Arctic. We all know that Mega-City One is a horrible dystopia, but this story conveys Hershey’s love for it.

WHITE WIDOW #3 (Marvel, 2024) – untitled, [W] Sarah Gailey, [A] Alessandro Miracolo. In a flashback scene, She-Hulk stops Yelena from assassinating Proximo Best (whose name means “next best”, and his father’s name, Maxissimo Best, means “most best”). In the present, Yelena continues her fight against Armament and discovers that its leader is Maxissimo Best’s daughter Renata. We also learn more about Armament’s horrible methods. In particular, one character has a company-provided artificial leg that’s designed to explode if she violates her NDA. I had low expectations for this series, because first, it’s about a minor character, and second, I disliked Sarah Gailey’s previous work, Know Your Station. However, White Widow has been a pleasant surprise. It’s an entertaining, funny comic that’s also a critique of capitalism.

2000 AD #2349 (Rebellion, 202) – Dredd: as above. Asher manages to save Zoola, but is killed by Dredd, ending his tragic story. Asher made heroic efforts to redeem himself, but his fate demonstrates that in Dredd’s world, redemption is impossible, because the Judges’ purpose is to punish and not redeem. As the final caption puts it: “A truly penitent man, deserving of forgiveness? [Dredd]’ll let you know when he ever meets one.” Azimuth: as above. Suzi Nine tries to kill Dexter, but he repeatedly kills her instead. On her final attempt, Suzi succeeds in killing Lilith, thus dooming the world. 3rillers: as above. The hoarder, Louis Franks, comes back to life as a clone. In the ensuing fighting, all the other characters get killed except for Franks’s clone and one of the archivists, the only one who truly cares about preserving the past. Franks imprisons the surviving archivist in his house until his entire collection is catalogued. To me that doesn’t sound like such a bad fate. Hershey: as above. After some flashback scenes, Hershey dies of her illness. This issue’s cover blurb says “Hershey’s historic final appearance,” and her death is indeed historic; she first appeared all the way back in prog 162 in 1980. This issue is also notable for including the deaths of two major characters, Hershey and Kyle Asher.  

DAMN THEM ALL #12 (Boom!, 2024) – untitled, [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Charlie Adlard. Ellie defeats the main villain, and also realizes that she’s Alfie’s biological daughter. The angels try to intervene and send the demons back to hell, but Ellie frees all the demons at once. This fundamentally changes the nature of reality, though no one really notices. Damn Them All was an excellent series, but its plot was very hard to follow in single issue form. One day I want to read the whole series at one sitting.

G.O.D.S. #4 (Marvel, 2024) – untitled, [W] Jonathan Hickman, [A] Valerio Schiti. This issue’s main plot is about a character named Robert Forson who’s possessed by the In-Betweener. It’s been announced that G.O.D.S. will end with issue 8, and I won’t miss it much. G.O.D.S. is consistently confusing and obscure, and its goal – to explain the mystical side of the Marvel Universe – is both overly ambitious, and not worth achieving. Magic is more magical when it’s not explained.

DARK SPACES: HOLLYWOOD SPECIAL #5 (IDW, 2024) – untitled, [W] Jeremy Lambert, [A] Claire Roe. Vivian has a series of flashbacks involving her troubled relationship with her daughter. This comic has good art, but I don’t like its story. I don’t know why we should care about Vivian, and I don’t see how Hollywood Special is supposed to be different from any other horror comic.

UNCANNY X-MEN #142 (Marvel, 1981/2024) – “Mind Out of Time!”, [W] Chris Claremont, [A] John Byrne. This is part two of Days of Future Past, and it’s also the first issue where “Uncanny” was officially part of the title. When I first read this issue, back in high school, I was disappointed that the future sequences were so short. Most of the issue consists of fight scenes between the X-Men and the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. However, despite their brevity, the future sequences are unforgettable. The deaths of the future Wolverine, Colossus and Storm are shocking moments that had little precedent in superhero comics at the time. Another nice thing about this story is that, in classic horror fashion, the heroes’ final victory is ambiguous. The X-Men manage to save Senator Kelly, but  it’s suggested that they’ve only postponed the apocalypse, or even unwittingly brought it about.

X-MEN #4 (Marvel, 1964/2024) – “The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants!”, [W] Stan Lee, [A] Jack Kirby. This issue is the first appearance of Quicksilver, the Scarlet Witch, Mastermind and the Toad, and also of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants as a group. Reading this issue directly after X-Men #142 was not ideal, because it reminds me that Stan Lee’s X-Men was far sillier and had far worse characterization than Claremont’s X-Men. Lee and Kirby’s X-Men run was one of their worst series, although it introduced a lot of important characters.

OPERATION SUNSHINE #4 (Dark Horse, 2024) – untitled, [W] Henry Zebrowski & Marcus Parks, [A] David Rubín. I thought I ordered the first three issues of this series, but I never received them. I don’t remember anything about this comic’s plot, except that it has something to do with vampires. However, David Rubín’s art is so good that I’m willing to read any comic he draws.

KILLER QUEENS 2 #4 (Dark Horse, 2024) – untitled, [W] David M. Booher, [A] Bradley Claxton. This comic’s indicia title is Killer Queens: Kings Not Wings! In this issue the heroes defeat the tyrants and return to their adventurous life. Killer Queens is a mildly entertaining series, but it feels like an inferior substitute for Kim & Kim or Vagrant Queen.

THE BLOODY DOZEN #2 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] Charles Soule, [A] Alberto Jimenez Alburquerque. The issue begins with some explanation of why the vampires are orbiting the sun. The three protagonists are trained by a World War I veteran who’s almost a vampire. Then they embark on their mission, but when they get to the vampires’ space station, they find that another spaceship has beaten them there. This series is unusual in having three protagonists who are a grandparent, parent and child.

KAPTARA: UNIVERSAL TRUTHS #6 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Kagan McLeod. In order to defeat Earth’s invasion of Kaptara, Keith travels through the portal to Earth, then destroys the portal from the other side. This means Keith is now trapped on Earth and separated from Manton, who he’s fallen in love with. But touchingly, the series ends with Manton opening a portal from Kaptara and bringing Keith back with him. Kaptara is an excellent series, perhaps Zdarsky’s best work as a writer other than Public Domain. However, it’s unfortunate that there was an eight-year gap between the two halves of the series.

SAVAGE DRAGON #267 (Image, 2024) – “We Are Gathered Here Today–!”, [W/A] Erik Larsen. Frank marries Angel, and after some tasteless sex scenes, we get a surprising revelation: Frank is actually Mr. Glum in Frank’s body! The real Frank, in Mr. Glum’s body, is trapped in Dimension X with the young Angel. That’s a brilliant twist. This is a 100-page issue, but the main Savage Dragon story is only the usual length, and the rest of the issue consists of filler material, including reprints of the earliest Vanguard stories from Megaton. These reprints have some historical value, but I could have done without them.

2000 AD #2350 (Rebellion, 2023) – The gimmick in this issue is that it’s a glimpse of an alternate reality in which 2000 AD merged with Battle Action in 1982. All the stories are based on classic series from Battle and/or Action. Dredd: “Juvies Rule OK!”, [W] Ken Niemand, [A] Simon Coleby. Dredd fights an army of feral youths, including his own brother Rico. This story is based on the controversial Action series “Kids Rule OK,” about a world where all the adults were killed by a disease. Death Game 2049: untitled, [W] Geoffrey D. Wessel, [A] Nick Dyer. An adaptation of Action’s “Death Game 1999,” a violent sports story inspired by the film Rollerball. El Mestizo: “Demon with a Six-Gun,” [W/A] Chris Weston. A Western story about a  gunfighter possessed by an alien parasite. The original El Mestizo was just a normal Western story. This version adds a science fictional element, which is similar to what happened when Black Hawk moved from Tornado to 2000 AD. Dredger: “Time to Kill,” [W] Karl Stock, [A] Paul Marshall. Dredger, a Dirty Harry-esque cop, is transported into a far future world that needs someone who’s tough on crime. Again this is the same thing that happened with Black Hawk. Hellman of Hell Force: “Fiends of Ungeistwelt Ost,” [W] Arthur Wyatt, [A] Jake Lynch. Hellman and Hammer Force find themselves in hell, where they have to fight both demons and Nazis. The title “Fiends of Ungeistwelt Ost” is a reference to Fiends of the Eastern Front. Major Eazy: “The Treasure of Solomon,” [W] Gordon Rennie, [A] Dan Cornwell. Major Eazy is charged with preventing the Nazis from acquiring magical items. Overall this issue is an affectionate tribute to classic British comics.

My first comic convention of 2024 was Charlotte Mini Con, held at the Grady Cole Center. I enjoyed this convention more than last year’s edition, but I still don’t like the Grady Cole Center. It doesn’t have as much space as the Concord Convention Center, and so there just aren’t as many comics available as at Charlotte Comic Con. Also, I suspect that there are fewer  quarter boxes or dollar boxes, because table space is more valuable. But I did buy a lot of good comics at this convention, such as:

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #80 (Marvel, 1970) – “On the Trail of… the Chameleon!”, [W] Stan Lee, [A] John Buscema. In his first appearance since 1965, the Chameleon frames Captain Stacy as a thief. Spider-Man defeats the Chameleon when the villain disguises himself as Peter Parker, “the one person [Spider-Man] knew [he] couldn’t be.” Of course JJJ asks the obvious question – how did Spidey know that the Chameleon wasn’t Peter Parker? – and Peter is very lucky that JJJ is too dumb to figure out the answer for himself. This issue includes some excellent scenes. Having read it before, I particularly remember Gwen’s line “Do I know a Peter? You must have a wrong number! The only boy with that name that I know seems to have crossed me off his list!” A mistake in this issue is that George Stacy’s first name is mistakenly given as John.

IN THE DAYS OF THE MOB #1 (DC, 1971) – “Ma’s Boys!” etc., [W/A] Jack Kirby. A series of stories about real-life Prohibition-era criminals, with a framing sequence depicting all the  criminals in hell. The protagonists include Ma Barker, Al Capone, Pretty Boy Floyd, and Alvin Karpis, who is inexplicably called “Country Boy” rather than his real name. These stories are powerful examples of the crime comics genre. Like the classic Lev Gleason crime comics, they encourage the reader to sympathize with the criminals rather than the police. This comic’s large format makes Kirby’s artwork even more stunning than usual. As documented here, many of the stories in this issue are inspired by older Simon & Kirby crime comics. In the Days of the Mob was cancelled before the second issue went to press, but the first issue and the unpublihsed material from the second issue have been collected in a hardcover volume.

UNCLE SCROOGE #21 (Dell, 1958) – “The Money Well,” [W/A] Carl Barks. When the Beagle Boys start drilling through the floor of Scrooge’s money bin, Scrooge buys some vacant land and buries his money under it. But it turns out that the Beagle Boys’ hideout is on the same parcel of land where the money is buried. After further hijinks, Scrooge eventually gets his money back. This story, like many other Barks stories, makes it seem as though the money bin contains all of Scrooge’s money. Don Rosa explicitly denies that by stating that the money bin only contains the part of Scrooge’s money that has sentimental value. This issue also includes a four-page Gyro Gearloose backup story.

SKULL COMICS #6 (Last Gasp, 1972) – “A Gothic Tale,” [W] Tom Veitch, [A] Greg Irons & Richard Corben. Two interrelated stories about a mad scientist named Lucius Rodin and the woman whose life he destroys. Both these stories are full of beautiful and gruesome art. They resemble old EC comics, but with more sex and with even more disgusting imagery. This issue also offers a good opportunity to compare Irons and Corben’s styles.   

BOY COMICS #74 (Lev Gleason, 1949) – “Iron Jaw’s Rampage of Danger,” [W] Charles Biro, [A] Norman Maurer. This is the third Lev Gleason comic I’ve read, though I also have another issue of Boy Comics that I haven’t read yet. This issue consists of several interrelated stories in which Crimebuster battles Iron Jaw, a villain who looks like Trap Jaw from He-Man. These stories are reasonably fun, but they’re somewhat tedious, and this issue wasn’t nearly as thrilling as Crime and Punishment #37.

AVENGERS #30 (Marvel, 1966) – “Frenzy in a Far-Off Land!”, [W] Stan Lee, [A] Don Heck. Hawkeye battles Black Widow and Power Man, also known as Smuggler, Goliath and Atlas. Meanwhile, Hank Pym goes looking for a missing colleague and ends up in the so-called Forbidden Land, home of the Keeper of the Flame. This is a fun issue, though the Avengers didn’t get really good until Thomas and Buscema took over.

GROO #3 (Image, 1995) – “The General’s Hat,” [W/A] Sergio Aragonés, [W] Mark Evanier. Groo decides to become a general, but he needs an army, and the three nearest villages, Aqui, Alba and Aculla, have armies consisting of one, two and four men respectively. Groo leads the two “armies” into a mutual war on each other, and then decides that being a general is a waste of time. The three villages’ names are similar to the Spanish words for “here”, “there”, and “that one.”

FELIX THE CAT #82 (Harvey, 1957) – various stories, [W] unknown, [A] Otto Messmer & Joe Oriolo. Several of this issue’s stories are about a crystal ball that can predict the future. Felix eventually uses the ball to see into the future world of 2057, a dystopia where cats are extinct. I want to collect more of these old Felix comics, but I don’t encounter them often.

STRANGE ADVENTURES #211 (DC, 1968) – “How Close to Me My Killer?”, [W] Jack Miller, [A] Neal Adams. While searching for the Hook, Deadman encounters his brother Cleveland, who is involved in an operation that smuggles Mexican laborers into America. Deadman helps Cleveland defeat the rich politician who was exploiting the laborers. Jack Miller deserves some credit for depicting the politician as the villain, and the Mexican men as his victims. Neal Adams’s art, of course, is brilliant. There’s also a reprinted Space Museum backup story, explaining how Tommy Parker’s parents met. Tommy’s mother is an admiral, but the story depicts her in a rather sexist way.

WHAT’S THE FURTHEST PLACE FROM HERE? #2 (Image, 2021) – “Where Is Sid?” etc., [W] Matthew Rosenberg, [A] Tyler Boss. While looking for Sid, the kids are followed by an even younger kid who will become a sort of mascot to them. Then the kids’ building is destroyed by a rival gang, and they have to look for somewhere else to live. Eventually they arrive at an old retirement home. This series presents some fascinating mysteries, and it makes me very curious to learn what happens next. I’m considering adding this series to my pull list, although it would be nice if I could get caught up on all the earlier issues first.

THOR #185 (Marvel, 1970) – “In the Grip of Infinity!”, [W] Stan Lee, [A] John Buscema. In order to prevent the Odinsword from being drawn from its scabbard, Thor has to fight a creature called Infinity and its minions, the Guardian and the Silent One. This issue has a very generic plot, but Buscema’s art is beautiful. It was revealed in issue 188 that Infinity was a duplicate of Odin himself. This Infinity is not to be confused with the cosmic entity of the same name, who was introduced much later.

KONA, MONARCH OF MONSTER ISLE #5 (Dell, 1963) – untitled, [W] Lionel Ziprin?, [A] Sam Glanzman. This was only a dollar, but I decided not to buy it because it was missing its back cover; however, the dealer was nice enough to let me have it for free. This is my favorite issue of Kona because of the villain: a housecat grown to gigantic size. Lionel Ziprin (?) writes the story in his usual histrionic style, and he describes the cat as a horrifying menace. However, Glanzman makes the cat look utterly adorable, so that the reader wants to cuddle it, even at the cost of being ripped to shreds by its claws. Perhaps unintentionally, the story creates a powerful sense of tension between the cat’s cuteness and the danger it represents, and the reader feels very ambivalent when Kona is forced to kill the cat. As a cat owner (or vice versa), I also thought the depiction of the cat was extremely realistic. Either Glanzman must have had a cat himself, or he must have used photo reference of real cats. I think I met him once at Comic-Con, but I wish I’d had the chance to ask him about this story.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #115 (Marvel, 1972) – “The Last Battle!”, [W] Gerry Conway, [A] John Romita. Dr. Octopus battles Hammerhead, while Spider-Man tries to recover from an injury so that he can save Aunt May from them. However, Aunt May is suffering from Stockholm syndrome and doesn’t want to be rescued from Doc Ock. At the end of the issue, Aunt May almost shoots Spider-Man before being distracted, and then she decides to become Doc Ock’s full-time housekeeper. This is a really fun issue, but it’s hard to believe that Aunt May doesn’t realize that Doc Ock is a criminal. Otto’s passion for May is genuine, but May should still be smart enough to realize that he’s a supervillain. Some writers have a tendency to write Aunt May as if she’s not just old but also senile. This issue includes an in-joke reference to In the Days of the Mob.

A JEW IN COMMUNIST PRAGUE V1 (NBM, 1994/1997) – “Loss of Innocence,” [W/A] Vittorio Giardino. Jonas Fink (Finkel in the original French and Italian) has a happy childhood in Prague until his father is arrested on political charges. Jonas faces prejudice as a Jew and as the son of an alleged dissident, and is forced to leave school despite his obvious intelligence. He goes to work as a delivery boy for a seamstress, until one of his clients seduces him, and then accuses him of rape when her husband comes home unexpectedly. Meanwhile Jonas’s mother is forced to stop giving private lessons in French, which is her only marketable skill. But the silver lining is that Jonas discovers that his father is still alive. This is a heartbreaking story that illustrates the inhumanity of Communist society (not to say that capitalist society is any better). Giardino presents this story in a straightforward way, avoiding authorial commentary and letting readers make their own judgments. His artwork is absolutely beautiful, showing his deep historical research and his mastery of the Clear Line style. I have the next volume in this  trilogy, but I haven’t gotten to it yet. There’s actually a fourth volume, published in 2018, but it hasn’t been translated into English.

BATMAN/SUPERMAN: WORLD’S FINEST #16 (DC, 2023) – “Elementary Chapter 4: Overdrive,” [W] Mark Waid, [A] Dan Mora. A new version of Amazo, appropriately called Newmazo, leads Earth’s artificial intelligences in a rebellion. Batman and Superman have to organize a resistance effort. Mark Waid’s writing in this series is entertaining, but an equally  important aspect of this comic is Dan Mora’s artwork. He’s a brilliant superhero artist, and his art plays a more prominent role here than in Once and Future, where the main source of interest was the writing.

JUST MARRIED #98 (Charlton, 1973) – “Strictly for Laughs!”, [W] Joe Gill?, [A] Charles Nicholas, etc. The only notable story in this issue is “Love is Trusting,” part six of David and Eileen. In this installment, David takes $2000 out of the bank with no explanation, and Eileen thinks he’s cheating. It turns out David used the money to help a coworker, and he gets it back, but Eileen is right to be suspicious, and David’s behavior toward her is borderline abusive. This chapter doesn’t really address the question of David and Eileen’s religious differences. However, I still want to read more of “David and Eileen,” because it’s so rare for a romance comic to tell a continuing story, or to address the question of differing cultural expectations. While in Philadelphia for MLA, I visited the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History, and they had an issue of Just Married on display, with a “David and Eileen” chapter. So I’m not the only one who thinks this storyline is worth remembering. The artist for “David and Eileen” was Julio Cesar Medrano, who published under many different names. See here for a Spanish-language account of his career.

MICKEY MOUSE #107 (Gold Key, 1966) – “Assignment Time-Lock,” [W] Don R. Christensen, [A] Dan Spiegle & Paul Murry. Mickey and Goofy are recruited into a secret police organization, and they’re assigned to investigate the case of a computer that makes strangely accurate disaster predictions. This was the first Mickey Mouse, Secret Agent story. Turning Mickey into James Bond was a weird idea, and this premise was abandoned after just three issues. However, the Mickey Mouse, Secret Agent stories are fun to read because of the contrast between Mickey and Goofy’s cartoon images and Dan Spiegle’s realistic artwork. The problem with “Assignment Time-Lock” is that it doesn’t take itself seriously enough; the dialogue is full of dumb jokes. The story would have been more entertaining if everything about it had been played straight, except for Mickey and Goofy themselves.

X-MEN ARCHIVES FEATURING CAPTAIN BRITAIN #1 (Marvel, 1995) – “The Return of Captain Britain” etc., [W] Dave Thorpe, [A] Alan Davis. This issue reprints Alan Davis’s earliest Captain Britain stories. The Alan Moore stories begin midway through the following issue. The Thorpe/Davis stories introduced some important characters like James Jaspers and Saturnyne, but Thorpe is obviously not as good a writer as Moore or even Jamie Delano, and Davis’s style was not yet mature. The stories here are among his earliest professional works. A useful bonus feature in this issue is a column by Davis where he reflects on the beginning of his career.

RUSE #9 (CrossGen, 2002) – untitled, [W] Mark Waid, [A] Butch Guice. Simon Archard investigates a crime at a huge country house, and he discovers that his former partner Lightbourne is somehow responsible. This is another entertaining issue. It includes a character  named Yrondyne who claims to be a dryad priestess. This character is probably a reference to cat yronwode.

AGENTS OF ATLAS #5 (Marvel, 2006) – “The People’s Leader,” [W] Jeff Parker, [A] Leonard Kirk. Jimmy Woo and his team fight… something, I’m not sure what, except that it’s connected with the Atlas organization. This comic isn’t bad, but there are other Atlas comics that are more fun. An interesting thing about all Jeff Parker’s Atlas comics is that it’s never quite clear whether the protagonists are the good guys.

STRANGE TALES #142 (Marvel, 1966) – “Who Strikes at—S.H.I.E.L.D.?”, [W] Stan Lee, [A] Jack Kirby. Nick and his agents fight Mentallo and the Fixer. The art here is great, but Nick Fury didn’t become a truly classic comic until Steranko arrived. In the backup story, Dr. Strange has to battle three of Baron Mordo’s minions despite being blindfolded and unable to use his hands. I have to admit that Ditko is not my favorite artist – I think he tended to repeat himself too much – but Dr. Strange is probably my favorite work of his, with the obvious exception of Spider-Man.

GUNG-HO #2 (Ablaze, 2013/2019) – untitled, [W] Benjamin von Eckartsberg, [A] Thomas von Kummant. Ablaze is another company that’s published a lot of good European comics over the past decade. Gung Ho is by two German creators, though it was published in French first. It’s about some teenagers who are growing up in a postapocalyptic jungle and are being taught to survive. I’m not fond of von Kummant’s art style, in which everything consists of blocks of solid color with no outlines. His art looks weird and overproduced to me; it seems more appropriate for a video game than a comic. However, Gung Ho still seems like a well-done comic. I have a couple more issues of it that I haven’t read yet.

ATOMIC ROBO/NEOZOIC/BONNIE LASS FCBD 2012 (Red 5, 2012) – untitled, [W] Brian Clevinger, [A] Scott Wegener. Robo and his team have to work with Dr. Dinosaur to prevent the CERN particle accelerator from destroying the universe. Dr. Dinosaur is an even funnier character than Robo himself, and this is a hilarious story. There were so many Atomic Robo FCBD comics that I wasn’t sure if I already had this one or not, but it appears that this story was new to me. This issue also includes previews of two other Red 5 titles.

2000 AD #2351 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: “Poison Part 1,” [W] Rob Williams, [A] P.J. Holden. A statue is built in honor of Hershey, and Judge Dredd tries to trace the poison that killed her. Feral & Foe: “Bad Godesberg,” [W] Dan Abnett, [A] Richard Elson. The previous installment of this series was published in 2022, but I don’t remember what happened in it, and I couldn’t figure out what was going on in this new story arc. Helium: “Scorched Earth,” [W] Ian Edginton, [A] D’Israeli. In a postapocalyptic future, the only surviving humans live above the toxic atmosphere. This chapter is a flashback sequence depicting the deaths of the protagonist’s parents. So far Helium looks very similar to Brass Sun. One-shot:“Judge Dredd vs. Robo-Hunter,” [W] Garth Ennis, [A] Henry Flint. A funny story in which Sam Slade meets Walter the Wobot. It’s too bad that this story includes Stogie, perhaps the most racist character in 2000 AD’s history.

DAREDEVIL #97 (Marvel, 1973) – “He Who Saves,” [W] Gerry Conway & Steve Gerber, [A] Gene Colan. Daredevil fights Mordecai Jones, aka the Dark Messiah, and his three disciples, who all have Old Testament names. This is a silly story, and Gene Colan’s art is not well served by Ernie Chan’s inking. Mordecai Jones’s only other appearances were in Daredevil #98, 105 and 106, all written by Gerber.

JAY GARRICK: THE FLASH #4 (DC, 2024) – “The Waiting Game,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Diego Olortegui. This issue is mostly a flashback depicting the origin of Dr. Elemental, who was originally Professor Hughes, one of Jay Garrick’s college instructors. In the flashback, we learn that Dr. Elemental was responsible for giving both Jay and Judy their powers. The next-issue blurb mentions the name Joel Ciclone, which is what Jay Garrick was called in Brazil.

JAZZ MAYNARD VOL. 2 #1 (Lion Forge, 2010/2018) – “Hopeless Part One,” [W] Raule, [A] Roger. This comic is by two different creators, Roger and Raule, who go by a single name each – and not by a single creator named “Roger Raule.” Jazz Maynard is a crime comic with some mystery and adventure elements, set in Barcelona. Roger’s artwork is very detailed and attractive, with beautiful linework, but I don’t remember much about Raule’s story. Both these creators are Spanish, but I believe Jazz Maynard was first published in France.

MIGHTY SAMSON #25 (Gold Key, 1974) – “The Fugitives,” [W] Gerry Boudreau, [A] José Delbo. Samson saves a young couple, Janus and Valyn, from being eaten by a giant mole-worm monster, but the two rescuees are not grateful to have been saved. They worship the monster as their god, and they willingly volunteered to be sacrificed to it. Samson has to defeat the evil leader of the monster’s cult, but meanwhile Janus and Valyn are trying to redeem themselves by assassinating Samson. I’m surprised to see that this comic was written by Gerry Boudreau, a very talented writer for Warren. Sadly we just lost José Delbo. I was lucky enough to meet him at least once.

WHAT’S THE FURTHEST PLACE FROM HERE? #3 (Image, 2022) – “What Was This Place?” etc., [W] Matthew Rosenberg, [A] Tyler Boss. The Academy kids discover that the old folks’ home is already inhabited by some creepy teenagers who dress like old people. After some mayhem, the kids are allowed to leave, but a couple of them choose to stay behind with the “old” people. This proves to be a bad decision, because the “old” people start torturing the former Academy kids. The remaining Academy members continue on their journey and are  invited to a carnival.

RESURRECTION OF MAGNETO #1 (Marvel, 2024) – “The Lightning Path,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Luciano Vecchio. Despite its title, this comic focuses on Storm. The cool part about it is that it includes a guest appearance by Ewing and Javier Rodriguez’s version of the Defenders. Otherwise this is just another issue of Al Ewing’s ongoing Storm-solo-series-in-all-but-name.

BATTLE ACTION #5 (Rebellion, 2023) – “Hellman of the Condor Legion,” [W] Garth Ennis, [A] Mike Dorey. This is a prequel to Hellman of Hammer Force, set during the Spanish Civil War.  Hellman is forced to kill some prisoners who are trying to surrender, after one of them pulls out a grenade. In exchange, when Hellman discovers a fellow fascist soldier raping a woman, he kills the soldier and saves the woman. It’s nice to see a new piece of work by Mike Dorey, who must be quite old. “Nina Petrova and the Angels of Death: Night Will Fall,” [W] Torunn Grønbekk, [A] Patrick Goddard. A story about a female Soviet aviator. Nina Petrova originated as a supporting character in Johnny Red, and she didn’t get her own series until 2022.

BATMAN: CITY OF MADNESS #2 (DC, 2024) – untitled, [W/A] Christian Ward. Batman fights some sort of Lovecraftian entity that’s buried under Gotham. Christian Ward’s artwork and coloring here are spectacular, especially with the large page size, but City of Madness has a boring and unoriginal story. I’ve asked for this series to be taken off my pull list, although I won’t mind if it ends up in my file anyway.

UNIVERSAL MONSTERS: DRACULA #4 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Martin Simmonds. Harker and Van Helsing follow Dracula to Carfax Abbey and destroy him, with much less effort than in the original novel. (I’m not surprised that the movie eliminated the idea of putting communion wafers in each of Dracula’s coffins.) Since its story is not original, this comic is effectively a showcase for Martin Simmonds’s phenomenal artwork.

HEXAGON BRIDGE #5 (Image, 2024) – “The Oblique Horizon,” [W] Richard Blake. Another issue with beautiful art but a vapid story. This is the last issue, though it’s hard to tell because the plot never goes anywhere. I hope Richard Blake draws more comics – and that he gets someone else to write them.

THE SCHLUB #6 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] Ryan Stegman & Kenny Porter, [A] Tyrell Cannon. Roger masters Cirrus’s powers, but Cirrus comes up with a plan that requires destroying the entire city in order to beat Wyrm and get his body back. Roger is not happy with that, and he instead destroys the body-switching device and then defeats Cirrus all on his own. Roger and Cirrus are now stuck in each other’s bodies, which is appropriate since Roger has proven that he deserves to be Cirrus more than Cirrus does. The series ends with an apparent happy ending, but the last page reveals that Earth is about to be invaded by aliens. This was a fun series, and if there’s a sequel, I will definitely read it.

SLOW BURN #4 (Image, 2024) – “Zach,” [W] Ollie Masters, [A] Pierluigi Minotti. Another very bleak and depressing crime comic. I ordered this series in the first place because it was set in a town with an underground coal mine fire, and I thought that was an interesting idea. But in fact the underground fire plays no role in Slow Burn’s plot at all.

PROJECT: CRYPTID #5 (Ahoy, 2024) – “Tall Tale Tour,” [W] Melissa F. Olson, [A] Lane Lloyd. A funny story about made-up folklore that turns out to be real. “Cryptids Anonymous,” [W] Hanna Bahedry, [A] Lane Lloyd. A meeting of a cryptid support group. “Ultraterrestrials,” [W] Zander Cannon, [A] Gene Ha. An annoying social media content creator describes his affair with an extradimensional creature. This is the best story in the issue.

LOTUS LAND #3 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] Darcy Van Poelgeest, [A] Caio Filipe. Another boring crime story with a science-fictional setting that’s irrelevant to the plot. That is to say, this comic could have been set in modern-day Vancouver instead, and the story would be the same. I’ve lost patience with this comic, and I asked Heroes to cancel my orders of the last two issues.

CAPTAIN AMERICA #106 (Marvel, 1968) – “Cap Goes Wild!”, [W] Stan Lee, [A] Jack Kirby. The Red Chinese create a Life Model Decoy of Captain America in order to frame him for crimes. They are assisted in this by two filmmakers named Lucas. This issue has beautiful art, and the ending, where the surviving Lucas brother welcomes his assassin, is somewhat poignant. The Chinese general in this issue is an obvious caricature of Mao Zedong. It’s an uncanny coincidence that the filmmakers in this issue are named Lucas and are directing a science fiction film. George Lucas was not yet a public figure in 1968, and I doubt if Stan or Jack would have known of him. Kirby was later involved in a big-budget film project himself, and although that film, Lord of Light, was never completed, Kirby’s designs for it had a significant afterlife.

ACTION COMICS #902 (DC, 2011) – “Reign of the Doomsdays Part 2,” [W] Paul Cornell, [A] Kenneth Rocafort. The Superman Family fights an army of Doomsdays. This is a fun, quick read, but it feels kind of pointless, because it’s the third to last issue before the New 52.

AVENGERS #33 (Marvel, 1966) – “To Smash a Serpent,” [W] Stan Lee, [A] Don Heck. The Avengers battle the racist Sons of the Serpent, who turn out to be Chinese saboteurs in disguise. As Chris Gavaler has documented at length, Marvel’s Sons of the Serpent stories have a tendency toward unintentional racism, and this story is no exception. The main problem is that it counters one type of racism with another, by asserting that anti-black racism is a Chinese conspiracy. See here for Gavaler’s discussion of this point. (Gavaler assumes here that Marvel’s Senator Harrington Byrd is the same as the real-life Senator Harry Byrd, an infamous segregationist, but I can’t find a definitive explanation of how Harrington Byrd got that name.) A slightly more nuanced moment in this issue is when Hank Pym tells Bill Foster that he (Hank) has a reason for appearing on stage with the Sons of the Serpent, but Foster refuses to blindly trust Hank about that. However, the impact of this moment is lessened because in the next panel, Hank is given the last word, and he claims that he refused to tell Foster his plans in order to keep Foster safe.

SAMBRE V1 (Glénat, 1986) – “Plus ne m’est rien…”, [W] Balac (Yann Le Pennetier), [A] Bernard Yslaire. In 19th-century France, the wealthy Hugo Sambre has just died.  His son, Bernard, falls in love with Julie, a mysterious red-eyed peasant girl. Bernard’s sister Sarah is not happy about this, because Hugo had a theory that eye color was determinative of personality, and that red-eyed people would cause the ruin of the Sambre clan. Bernard and Julie eventually have sex, but then things take a dark turn, and the album ends with a murder. This is an emotionally absorbing comic, with a powerful Gothic atmosphere of predestination, violent passion, and inevitable doom. It feels like a horror comic, though it lacks explicit supernatural elements. The book is also visually striking because almost no colors are used other than red, so the reader’s eye is drawn to the Sambres’ red hair and Julie’s red eyes. I would love to read more of Sambre. It consists of eight albums of Sambre so far, covering two generations of the Sambre family, and there’s also a spinoff series, La Guerre des Sambre.

BATMAN/SUPERMAN: WORLD’S FINEST #17 (DC, 2023) – “Elementary Finale: Showdown,” [W] Mark Waid, [A] Dan Mora. The superheroes resurrect the original Amazo in order to defeat the new Amazo. Since each Amazo has the ability to duplicate the other one’s powers, their powers interact to create a feedback loop that incapacitates them both. A highlight of this issue is a two-page splash depicting an army of robot heroes and villains, including a couple I don’t recognize.

FANTASTIC FOUR #143 (Marvel, 1974) – “The Terrible Triumph of Doctor Doom!”, [W] Gerry Conway, [A] Rich Buckler. The new FF, with Medusa replacing Sue, battles Dr. Doom. This issue includes appearances by Wyatt Wingfoot and Darkoth, who was introduced last issue. It’s also the next-to-last appearance of Sam Thorne, the college football coach from issues 50 and 51. There is little else to say about this rather boring comic.

FIRE POWER #6 (Image, 2021) – untitled, [W] Robert Kirkman, [A] Chris Samnee. This issue includes a cute scene where the protagonist, Owen, tries to train his preteen children to throw fireballs. Owen’s relationship with his kids is probably the best thing about this series, other than Samnee’s art. However, I continue to insist that Fire Power is an offensive piece of cultural appropriation. It’s notable that Owen is supposed to be Chinese-American, but he’s completely assimilated, to the point where his ethnicity is hardly ever mentioned at all. I suppose the explanation is that he’s a transracial adoptee, but see Sarah Myer’s Monstrous for a much more nuanced depiction of transracial adoption.

JULIA #11 (Bonelli, 1999) – “L’eterno riposo,” [W] Giancarlo Berardi, [A] Sergio Toppi. Julia is a detective series with a female protagonist, but I don’t remember what this issue is about specifically.  And it’s hard to refresh my memory by flipping through the comic, because all the text is in Italian. Okay, now I do remember, it’s about old people who are being bullied into leaving their nursing home, so that it can be demolished by a corrupt developer. Julia’s concern for the elderly victims is quite touching. Sergio Toppi’s linework in this comic is amazing, but his artwork takes a back seat to the story, unlike in his solo work, where the artwork is the  whole point. I have one of the Collected Toppi volumes, and I want to read it soon. There’s one scene in this comic where Julia is interviewing a suspect in hospital, and the suspect says that he’s always liked eating semolina. It took me eight more pages before I got the joke: Julia has broken the man’s jaw, so semolina porridge is the only thing he can eat. For the same reason, the man pronounces the letter S as F, making his dialogue even more difficult to translate. All of this shows why it’s hard to read comics in a foreign language that I’ve never studied.

RANGERS OF THE DIVIDE #1 (Dark Horse, 2021) – untitled, [W/A] Megan Huang. In a vast jungle on the border between two warring nations, a squad of cadets is trained to fight monsters. This is a pretty fun comic, and it includes some beautiful depictions of creatures. I enjoy the “Silly Zilly” comics that Megan Huang has been posting on social media, and I want to read more of her work.

WHAT’S THE FURTHEST PLACE FROM HERE? #4 (Image, 2022) – “Sure I Am, You Know My Name” etc., [W] Matthew Rosenberg, [A] Tyler Boss. The Academy kids arrive at the carnival, where, in addition to failing to find Sid, they have hostile encounters with various other families. A brilliant pun in this issue is a kissing booth labeled “Something is Kissing the Children.”  

SUPERMAN #19 (DC, 2017) – “Reborn Part 3: Don’t Pass Go,” [W] Peter Tomasi, [W/A] Patrick Gleason. Superman has to climb a giant tower in order to rescue Jon from Mr. Mxyzptlk. This is a fun issue with cute art. I read this series when it came out, but I must have skipped this issue. At the time I was only reading it intermittently because it had gotten really confusing. It was more or less ruined by being excessively tied in with crossovers.

ALL-NEW ATOM #17 (DC, 2008) – “The Atom & the Amazon,” [W] Gail Simone, [A] Mike Norton. Ryan Choi goes on a date with Doris Zuel, aka Giganta, but their date is interrupted by Wonder Woman, who is doubtful of Doris’s good intentions. This is a pretty funny comic. I ought to collect the rest of this series.

COPPERHEAD #19 (Image, 2018) – untitled, [W] Jay Faerber, [W/A] Scott Godlewski. Clara investigates the murder of one of the planet’s native creatures. Clara’s son suspects that he’s not really her son. Budroxifinicus realizes that the old mayor doesn’t have pure intentions. This was intended as the first issue of a new storyline, but it turned out to be the final issue of Copperhead, as the series was silently cancelled.

JAMES BOND 007: A SILENT ARMAGEDDON #1 (Dark Horse, 1993) – untitled, [W] Simon Jowett, [A] John M. Burns. This comic feels very dated, since its plot revolves around obsolete computer technology. The main reason to read this comic is because of John Burns’s beautiful painted artwork. According to the letter column, this was Burns’s second project for the American market, although it may actually be his third; he previously did Espers for Eclipse, and a Wild Cards story for Epic. This was supposed to be a four-issue miniseries, but only two issues were published. It says here that the reason was because the art for #3 was late.

THOR #215 (Marvel, 1973) – “The Demon Brigade!!”, [W] Gerry Conway & Len Wein, [A] John Buscema & Don Perlin. Thor and the Warriors Three are defeated and imprisoned by reptilian aliens – not the Badoon or the Snarks or the Skrulls, but a different alien race that never appeared again after this issue. Thor realizes that the aliens are drugging his food, and he escapes and leads a revolt against them. John Buscema’s art is much less impressive here than in issue 185, thanks to worse inking.

ACTION COMICS #965 (DC, 2016) – “Lois Lane Back at the Planet, Part 1,” [W] Dan Jurgens, [A] Stephen Segovia. Lois returns to her job at the Daily Planet, but she’s actually an alternate version of Lois Lane from a different universe, and she has to prevent her coworkers from realizing it. I grew up reading Dan Jurgens’s Superman, and he still writes Superman’s supporting cast quite well. There’s one scene in this issue where Clark destroys Lois’s computer by spilling coffee on it. I’ve destroyed a couple of my own laptops in that way, and that was bad enough. If someone else spilled coffee on my laptop, I’d be enraged.

GREEN LANTERN #60 (DC, 1968) – “Spotlight on the Lamplighter!”, [W] Gardner Fox, [A] Gil Kane. Green Lantern battles a villain called the Lamplighter who dresses in 18th-century clothing. There’s also a subplot about three different regular people who encounter the Lamplighter. This issue has some excellent art, but the Lamplighter feels like far too trivial a villain for Green Lantern to bother with. He never made another significant appearance after this issue. By coincidence, the parody version of Green Lantern in The Boys is also called Lamplighter.

AIRBOY #10 (Eclipse, 1986) – “Tooth and Claw,” [W] Chuck Dixon, [A] Stan Woch. Airboy and Valkyrie fight a villain named Kronenberg, who is finally killed by a werewolf. There’s also a backup story with art by Larry Elmore, who is far better known as a fantasy illustrator. Nothing about this issue stands out to me.

THE PHANTOM #27 (King, 1967) – “The Story of Hero,” [W] Gary Poole, [A] Bill Lignante. The Phantom tells Diana the story of how he acquired his horse Hero, and how Hero helped him rescue a kidnapped princess. Bill Lignante drew a large number of Phantom comics, but shortly after this comic was published, he left comics to become an animator and later a courtroom artist.

THOR #610 (Marvel, 2010) – “Siege: Ragnarok – Conclusion,” [W] Kieron Gillen, [A] Doug Braithwaite. This issue depicts the aftermath of the Siege crossover, which I don’t remember at all. I guess it was the conclusion to Dark Reign. The only notable event in this issue is that Kelda visits Valhalla and finds Bill there. Kelda and Bill’s relationship was by far the most interesting thing about J. Michael Straczynski’s Thor.

GREEN ARROW #61 (DC, 1992) – “Signs of the Times,” [W] Mike Grell, [A] Frank Springer. The remote Olympic Peninsula town of Sutton Mill declares itself a sanctuary city for draft resisters. This leads to a nationwide controversy, and the town becomes a powder keg waiting to explode in a riot. Ollie and Dinah only appear at the beginning of the issue, when they go on a camping trip, and again at the end, when they drive into Sutton Mill. With its theme of draft resistance, this comic feels like it’s set in the ‘70s rather than the ‘90s. To my knowledge, resuming the draft was not a serious possibility in the ‘90s, even at the height of Operation Desert Storm. (See this paywalled article.)

PARA #2 (Penny-Farthing, 2004) – untitled, [W] Stuart Moore, [A] Pablo Villalobos. Some grad students participate in a mysterious particle accelerator experiment. This very obscure indie comic is of some interest to me because I’ve been enjoying Stuart Moore’s recent works for Ahoy. I got this comic for free, but if I ever see any more issues of Para, I might pay for them.

HARLEY QUINN #26 (DC, 2016) – “A New Day, a New Fray,” [W] Amanda Conner & Jimmy Palmiotti, [A] John Timms. Harley spends most of the issue hanging out on the beach, and then the issue ends with the debut of Red Tool. I think I’ve said this before, but I don’t like Harley Quinn as a solo character, because she’s too wacky. She needs a straightman/woman character to act as a contrast to her.

MARVEL TWO-IN-ONE #77 (Marvel, 1981) – “Only the Swamp Survives!”, [W] Tom DeFalco, [A] Ron Wilson. Ben Grimm is hired to pilot an experimental plane, but the plane crashes in the Florida Everglades, where Ben encounters the Man-Thing. This is a moderately fun issue. A strange thing about it is Alicia’s terrified reaction when Ben agrees to be a test pilot again. It’s as if Alicia is convinced that Ben is going to get killed, even though Ben puts himself in far worse perils on a daily basis.

Next Heroes trip:

THE CULL #5 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] Kelly Thompson, [A] Mattia De Iulis. The kids create a Voltron suit to defeat the invading kaiju, and then they return home, but they realize that they’re on an alternate Earth instead of their own. I wish this series had had a character guide in each issue, because it’s hard to remember the kids’ names and backstories and powers. Other than that, The Cull is Kelly Thompson’s most accomplished work so far. I hope it continues soon. I’m glad to see that according to the ad at the back of this issue, Black Cloak is coming back in June.

SENSATIONAL SHE-HULK #5 (Marvel, 2024) – “Jen-Sational! Part 5,” [W] Rainbow Rowell, [A] Ig Guara. Jen, Carol and Patsy fight an army of demons. Carol tries to recruit Jen into the Avengers. This issue is entertaining, but it feels insubstantial, and it’s more about Patsy than Jen.

DARK RIDE #10 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Andrei Bressan. Samhain and Halloween have a tense confrontation, and Halloween reveals that she’s on her father’s side. Samhain discovers that his daughter has been taken to the Devil’s Due ride, the same one that caused Owen’s death in the first issue. Sam and the security guard, Hayter, get on the ride, but Hayter gets out of the car and is fatally injured by demons. This is a really good horror comic, and I’m sorry there are just two issues left.

CODA #5 (Image, 2024) – “False Dawns Chapter 5,” [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Matías Bergara. Serka convinces some of the cultists to abandon the cult, although not all of them. Hum destroys the gnomads’ machines and kills their leader. The series ends on a note of ambiguous positivity. Hum and Serka didn’t save all the cultists, but they saved some of them, and they lost the baby, but they didn’t lose hope. That’s about as positive an ending as one can expect from Spurrier. The key lines in this issue are “I think people don’t need to feel complete. I think they can’t. But […] we can’t go on – we can’t even muddle through – if we can’t admit to the things we crave.” And: “Even a gap doesn’t have to feel like an absence.”

ONCE UPON A TIME AT THE END OF THE WORLD #12 (Boom!, 2024) – “A Mother’s Despair,” [W] Jason Aaron, [A] Nick Dragotta & Alexandre Tefenkgi. In flashback sequences, we see how Mezzy created her army of rats. In the present, Maceo and Mezzy get in an argument, but then the Rangers knock them both unconscious by throwing bricks at them. The flashback sequences in this issue are drawn by Tefenkgi, and the present-day scenes by Dragotta. The contrast between their styles works very well, highlighting the difference between the idyllic past and the horrible present.

DUKE #2 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Tom Reilly. Duke visits Clutch for assistance, but they’re attacked by Rock ‘n Roll and Stalker, and Duke and Clutch are thrown in jail. In the cell next to them is the Baroness, who offers mutual assistance in escaping. This is a high-quality series whose best feature is Tom Reilly’s super-strong visual storytelling. I think he’s comparable in talent to Doc Shaner or Chris Samnee.

W0RLDTR33 #7 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Fernando Blanco. There are so many characters and subplots in this issue that I’m not able to summarize it, and I’m not sure what the main plot development is. I did notice that this issue includes a family of siblings who are all named after science fiction writers – Clarke, Asimov, Bradbury and Gibson.

TITANS: BEAST WORLD #6 (DC, 2024) – “Finale,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Ivan Reis et al. The Titans gather up all the spores and use them to resurrect Gar. Doctor Hate is revealed as a doppleganger of Raven, and then Raven apparently defeats her in single combat. But the end of the issue reveals that it was really Doctor Hate who won the fight, and she’s now posing as Raven. Amanda Waller emerges as the Titans’ public enemy. Beast World was as stupid as any other crossover, but at least it was fun, and it kind of leaned into the silliness of its premise. As stated above, I hate how Waller has been turned into a supervillain, but I assume Tom Taylor is not at fault for this.

LOCAL MAN #9 (Image, 2024) – untitled,[W/A] Tim Seeley & Tony Fleecs. Crossjack accidentally reveals to Brian, Inga’s husband, that he’s been sleeping with Inga. Brian gets angry and throws Jack in jail, but Jack escapes and returns home, only to discover that Inga has poisoned his father. Inga’s business summit begins, but is interrupted when the town is attacked by the water creature. Jack is forced to let Inga escape in order to deal with the disaster. Then Brian releases a video to the media that shows Jack killing the Camo Crusader. The backup feature is the conclusion to Inga’s supervillain origin story.

KAYA #15 (Image, 2024) – “Kaya and the Temple of Shazir Part 3,” [W/A] Wes Craig. The princess takes Kaya and Jin to the Temple of Shazir, which has sacred healing springs. She tells Kaya and Jin that she’ll get them on her uncle’s ship if they help her with her rebellion. This issue is a refreshing pause in the action, after a series of very intense stories.

SPIDER-BOY #3 (Marvel, 2024) – “Nonstop Action Figure,” [W] Paco Medina, [A] Erick Arciniega. Spider-Boy battles an evil young billionaire, Killionaire, and his toy soldier, which has the powers of the Super-Adaptoid. Spider-Boy convinces Toy Soldier to switch sides and abandon its master. Also, Bailey comes up with his own theme song, but it doesn’t rhyme. In the backup story, Bailey encounters Thor battling a giant spider. Bailey can speak spider language, so he talks to the spider and discovers that it’s the pet of Ulik the troll. This is a really cute story, although every Spider-Boy story is cute.

FANTASTIC FOUR #17 (Marvel, 2024) – “Salvaged from the Wreck of Ages,” [W] Ryan North, [A] Carlos Gomez. In an archaeological dig site in Arizona, a skeleton is discovered that belongs to a European, even though it’s far older than 1492. Reed and Sue travel back in time to investigate, and they encounter Rama-Tut, who, in his personal timeline, has just been defeated the FF for the first time. Sue and Reed defeat Rama-Tut by using Braille to communicate. This issue is a touching depiction of Reed and Sue’s relationship, but its plot is almost too complicated to understand. It’s also weird that this issue is set in the Southwest again, even though the FF are supposed to be back in New York now. It almost feels as if this issue was meant to be published earlier in the run. I tried to decode the Braille messages in this issue, but it was tough because I wasn’t sure which direction they were facing.

SHAZAM! #8 (DC, 2024) – “The Captain vs. Black Adam Part 2,” [W] Mark Waid, [A] Goran Sudzuka. Billy convinces Black Adam to go away, then he deals with the dinosaurs by getting his little sister Darla to pester them until they leave on their own. Then Billy gets Black Adam to convince Zeus to rebuild the destroyed house. This is another fun issue.

DARK SPACES: DUNGEON #3 (IDW, 2024) – untitled, [W] Scott Snyder, [A] Hayden Sherman. The rescued prisoner gives Bodhi a message, which describes how closely the villain has been surveiling him. Bodhi is taken off the case because he’s too personally invested in it, but he and Tyler continue their independent investigation, and they follow the villain’s trail to an old closed-down juvenile prison. This is a terrifying horror comic, and it’s on an entirely different plane of quality from Dark Spaces: Hollywood Special.

ROGUE SUN #18 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] Ryan Parrott, [A] Abel. After a lengthy fight scene, Aurie destroys Caleb’s spirit, and Dylan finally gets his own body back. Dylan’s crazy mother is locked up, and Dylan comes to an accord with his dad. This was an entertaining storyline that significantly advanced Dylan’s character arc. The series will resume in May.

MY LITTLE PONY: VALENTINE’S DAY SPECIAL – ROMEO & JULIET #1 (IDW, 2024) – untitled, [W] Megan Brown, [A] Jenna Ayoub. The subtitle “Classics Reimagined” appears on the cover, but not in the indicia. This one-shot is worse than either of the previous two Classics Reimagined series, because it’s not written by Jeremy Whitley, and it doesn’t include nearly as much metatextual humor. Also, Romeo and Juliet is far less child-friendly than Little Women or The Wizard of Oz, and in order to adapt it into a pony comic, Megan Brown has to alter the plot beyond recognition. (That is to say, it’s less child-friendly by modern standards.  In Shakespeare’s time, there was no concept of children’s literature or drama as a separate market segment.)

POISON IVY #19 (DC, 2024) – “Origin of Species Part 1,” [W] G. Willow Wilson, [A] Marcio Takara. In this flashback story, Poison Ivy is an undergrad student working in Jason Woodrue’s lab, along with Alec and Linda Holland and Phil Sylvian. (I assume this university was Evergreen State.) Woodrue seduces Ivy, both emotionally and physically, and convinces her to commit crimes in order to support his unethical research. This issue is a realistic depiction of a toxic mentor-student relationship. The idea that Ivy, Woodrue, and the Hollands all attended the same university was introduced in Neil Gaiman’s Black Orchid miniseries, of which more later.  

BIRDS OF PREY #6 (DC, 2024) – “Megadeath Part 6,” [W] Kelly Thompson, [A] Leonardo Romero. The BoP finally beat Megaera, who becomes a symbiote with Sin. The adult Maps reveals that she prevented Barbara from going on the mission because she foresaw that Babs would inevitably die. This storyline was pretty good, but it wasn’t Kelly best superhero story. It seems as if the slightly off-register coloring is intentional.

FIRE & ICE: WELCOME TO SMALLVILLE #6 (DC, 2024) – “Finale,” [W] Joanne Starer, [A] Natacha Bustos. Fire and Ice battle Kooey Kooey Kooey, and also an ancient Scandinavian undead guy. Things end happily for everyone (except Beefeater), but Fire and Ice have to decide what to do next. This miniseries was a pleasant surprise. I enjoyed it much more than I expected to.

BENEATH THE TREES WHERE NOBODY SEES #3 (IDW, 2024) – untitled, [W/A] Patrick Horvath. Sam sneaks into her next-door neighbor’s house and discovers that the neighbor’s husband is dead, and the neighbor is keeping a dummy in his bed. Then Sam gets a clue to the actual murderer. The biggest surprise in this issue is that Sam is female. I don’t recall if Sam’s gender was ever specified before, but I assumed she was male.

TRAVELING TO MARS #10 (Ablaze, 2024) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell, [A] Roberto Dakar Meli. In a flashback, we learn that Mark and Candace divorced because Mark unwittingly caused Candace to become infertile. In the present, Mark receives a letter from Candace, which includes her severed toe. This is… actually just as disgusting as it sounds, but it’s also kind of cute. My concern about this story is that Candace’s infertility seems implausible. We’re told that Candace got a reversible operation that made her infertile, but then the operation somehow became irreversible. I’ve never heard of a contraceptive procedure that works like that.

LOVE EVERLASTING #12 (Image, 2024) – “Just West of Love,” [W] Tom King, [A] Elsa Charretier. Jake tries to get to Rochester to find Joan, but he keeps encountering obstacles in his path, and he’s forced to kill a large number of people. Finally, just as he’s about to be hangd, Jake is rescued by a familiar-looking woman, and she hires him to kill Joan. We then realize that Jake is the cowboy who’s been pursuing Joan for the entire series. Again, this is easily Tom King’s best comic in recent years.  

STARSIGNS #7 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Megan Levens. This issue begins with a cute scene where the good Starsigns are hanging out in a park, and the Native American character describes his backstory. But then the two evil protagonists appear, and in the resulting fight, Rana, the original protagonist, is tragically killed. This series is thematically tied to some of Saladin’s other work because it tries to imagine a multiethnic America, in which Arab Americans play an integral role. Of course Starsigns is also about the barriers to such an America.

AVENGERS INC. #5 (Image, 2024) – “The Prodigal Son,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Leonard Kirk. In a somewhat confusing conclusion, it’s revealed that Victor Shade is not the evil Ultron but the good Ultron, formerly known as Ultron-12. Victor takes control of the other villains who are possessed by the bad Ultron, and the series ends happily. It’s too bad that this is the last issue. It wasn’t Al Ewing’s best work, but it was a nice follow-up to his Wasp miniseries, and the idea of a detective-themed Avengers comic was a good one.

FEARLESS DAWN: THE BOMB #3 (Asylum, 2023) – “Breakout!”, [W/A] Steve Mannion. Dawn and her friend Betty fight a villain called The General. As usual this issue has a stupid plot, but beautiful artwork that’s a blend of Dave Stevens, Kevin Nowlan and Richard Corben. There’s a backup story, “Chicks on Bombs,” that’s even dumber.

SPINE-TINGLING SPIDER-MAN #4 (Marvel, 2024) – untitled, [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Juan Ferreyra. Spidey defeats the Jackal and returns to his normal life, but his fear stays with him. I think this series may have achieved its goal of being the scariest Spider-Man comic ever. At some points in this issue, particularly in the two-page splash where Spidey is beating up the Jackal, the page layouts become hard to follow, but I think this is deliberate.

BATMAN: OFF-WORLD #3 (DC, 2024) – “The Galaxy’s Most Dangerous Alien,” [W] Jason Aaron, [A] Doug Mahnke. Bruce and Ione escape the alien planet and return to the slave ship, where they free the slaves, but Bruce now has a new mission: to defeat the Blakkla sun Mining Company. Doug Mahnke’s art in this series is quite good. He’s a somewhat underrated artist.

HARRIET TUBMAN, DEMON SLAYER #5 (Massive, 2024) – “Safe House,” [W] David Crownson, [A] Courtland Ellis. I must have ordered this before I read issue 1, because I didn’t like issue 1. This series has a clever premise, but otherwise there’s nothing new or interesting about it.

PINE & MERRIMAC #2 (Boom!, 2024) – untitled, [W] Kyle Starks, [A] Fran Galan. The protagonists travel to an island which is owned by a sex cult, and we learn that the cult is supported by a senator with presidential ambitions. So far this isn’t as immediately compelling as Kyle Starks’ earlier titles, but I’m curious to see where it goes.

SOMNA #2 (DSTLRY, 2024) – “Whisper and I’ll Come to Thee” etc., [W] Becky Cloonan, [A] Tula Lotay. The situation in the village goes from bad to worse. Sigurd reveals that he killed his own wife and his affair partner’s husband. Ingrid’s husband discovers that his wife is possessed by the devil. This comic reminds me a lot of the Scarlet Letter; in particular, the preacher is basically the same character as Mr. Chillingworth. As before, Tula Lotay’s artwork is beautiful, especially in the painted dream sequences, and she takes advantage of the large page size.

DEADLY HANDS OF KUNG FU #2 (Marvel, 2024) – untitled, [W] Greg Pak, [A] Caio Majado. The gang war continues, and Shang-Chi fights some other crime bosses, but next he’s going to have to fight the heroes. I’m glad to see this version of Shang-Chi again, but Gang War is a stupid crossover, and this miniseries doesn’t have the strong mythological themes of Gene Luen Yang’s Shang-Chi. And I just realized that Yang didn’t even write this miniseries.

THE ONE HAND #1 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] Ram V, [A] Laurence Campbell. A detective investigates a series of murders where the common thread is the murder’s use of an illegible script. The series takes place in the 29th-century city of Neo Novena, but Neo Novena looks like a 20th-century American city, and so far the future setting is not yet relevant to the plot, as with Lotus Land. This is one of two interconnected series, along with The Six Fingers, which will be discussed below. I haven’t enjoyed all of Ram V’s recent work (in particular, I gave up on The Vigil), but this series looks promising.

BATMAN #142 (DC, 2024) – “The Joker: Year One,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Giuseppe Camuncoli & Andrea Sorrentino. Most of this issue is drawn by Camuncoli, except for a few sequences by Sorrentino. The latter artist’s art here is excellent, but it’s not enough to make up for the fact that this issue is a Joker story. I have said before that I’ve gotten sick of the Joker. I believe it’s no longer possible to tell an interesting story with this character, at least not without coming up with a unique take on him. Every Joker story is ultimately about how awful the Joker is, and how powerless Batman is to stop him, and why should I want to read about that? It also occurs to me that the earliest Joker stories, as well as Englehart and Rogers’s classic “Laughing Fish,” ended with the Joker dying or vanishing. But nowadays every Joker story ends with Batman sending the Joker to Arkham, only for him to escape again. In addition to my frustration with the Joker, I’ve noticed that I just haven’t been enjoying this series, except for the original Failsafe story arc. I’ve decided to drop it from my pull list.

SAUCER COUNTRY: THE FINALE #1 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] Paul Cornell, [A] Ryan Kelly. We learn about a Russian conspiracy to convince the president of the existence of aliens. However, even though the aliens were a hoax, there are also some real aliens, and the series ends with President Arcadia Alvarado making first contact with them. The aliens on the last page look really bizarre, like giant living flowers. Saucer Country is sort of a blend of Letter 44 and Department of Truth, though it’s older than either of them.

MOON MAN #1 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] Scott Mescudi & Kyle Higgins, [A] Marco Locati. Scott Mescudi is better known as the musician Kid Cudi, but I don’t know his music. I bought this comic because of Kyle Higgins. In Moon Man, some astronauts return from space to Earth, but they have an unexplained seven-minute gap in their memories, and they start seeing bizarre visions. The depictions of the astronauts’ visions are excellent, and the protagonist, Ramon, is a well-developed character. I look forward to reading more of this series.

JILL AND THE KILLERS #1 (Oni, 2024) – untitled, [W] Olivia Cuartero-Briggs, [A] Roberta Ingranata. A teenage girl named Jill has just returned from school after taking time off because of her mother’s mysterious disappearance. Her friends are all playing a new subscription-based alternate reality game, where the players investigate fictional murders. Jill starts playing the game with her friends, but they soon discover that the murders they’re investigating are real. I had to remind myself what this comic was about, but now that I do remember, I think it’s a compelling mystery/horror story.

GHOST MACHINE #1 (Image, 2024) – various stories, [W] Geoff Johns & Peter Tomasi, [A] various. A series of previews of upcoming Ghost Machine titles. These previews are all too short to have much of an impact. Of the previously unseen titles, the most interesting ones are the two family-themed series written by Peter Tomasi: The Rockefellers, about a time-traveling family, and Hornsby & Halo, about an angel child and a devil child who swap parents.

SIRENS OF THE CITY #6 (Boom!, 2024) – untitled, [W] Joanne Starer, [A] Khary Randolph. Layla defeats the Rat King and gives herself an abortion, and the series ends happily. Sirens of the City had some very strong characterization and artwork, but it also had an overcomplicated plot and an overly large cast. This was also true of Fire & Ice: Welcome to Smallville, but it was less of a problem in that series, since I was familiar with most of the characters already. I still plan on continuing to follow Joanne Starer’s work.

SANTOS SISTERS #1 (Floating World, 2022/2024) – “The Hotter the Lobster the Sweeter the Juice,” [W/A] Greg & Fake. A series of teen humor stories drawn in the Archie style, with superficial science fiction and superhero elements. I guess that’s the joke of the series – the two sisters are superheroines, but they care more about romance and fashion and sex than about saving the world. Annoyingly, this issue includes the same Bloody Mary story that appeared in the recent Halloween special.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #252 (Marvel, 1984/2024) – “Homecoming!”, [W] Roger Stern & Tom DeFalco, [A] Ron Frenz. Spider-Man returns from Secret Wars with a new black costume, and has to resume his interrupted life. This is a key issue because it’s considered the first appearance of the black costume, although Marvel Team-Up #141 came out earlier. Secret Wars #8 was the black costume’s first chronological appearance, but it was published later. See here for more information on this question. I’m not a big fan of DeFalco’s Spider-Man, but I felt obligated to buy this reprint, since the original ASM #252 is beyond my usual price range. Marvel Team-Up #141 is also not cheap, and it may be a hindrance to my eventual goal of collecting every issue of MTU.

BATMAN AND ROBIN 2024 ANNUAL #1 (DC, 2024) – “The Most Dangerous Road Trip,” [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Howard Porter. Batman and Robin go on a camping trip, but it turns out that Roulette is using their campsite to stage The Most Dangerous Game (hence the title of this story). So Batman and Robin have to survive being hunted by a horde of supervillains. Of course they succeed, and it turns out to be a fun bonding experience. This is a fun issue, but it contains the worst art I’ve ever seen from Howard Porter. I’ve never much liked his art, but in this issue it’s so blurry and indistinct that I’m sometimes confused as to what’s going on, or how many people are in each panel.

BATMAN/SUPERMAN: WORLD’S FINEST 2024 ANNUAL #1 (DC, 2024) – “IMPeriled,” [W] Mark Waid & Cullen Bunn, [A] Edwin Galmon. A battle between the fifth-dimensional imp versions of the Justice League and the Injustice League. This story is quite funny, but the rest of the issue consists of three other stories not written by Waid, and the only good one among them is the Bumblebee flashback story by Stephanie Williams and Rosi Kämpe.

YOUNG ROMANCE #125 (DC, 1963/2024) – “Intruder of Love!”, [W] unknown, [A] Jay Scott Pike. The comic reprinted here was the first issue of Young Romance published by DC; the first 124 issues of Young Romance were published by Prize. In the first story, Pearl discovers that her boyfriend Tim has a secret wife and child, so she runs away to a remote town. But her nosy old landlady figures out why she ran away, and she contacts Tim, who comes to town and reveals that the wife and child were his sister-in-law and nephew. Also, the reason Tim was absent in the evenings was because he was taking an evening course. This is an example of the same type of romance plot that I discussed in my above review of Secret Hearts. Even though Tim wasn’t really cheating on Pearl, she was completely justified in believing that he was – particularly since Tim never bothered to tell her that his sister-in-law and nephew were staying with him. And the landlady had no right to meddle in Pearl’s love life. Yet the writer wants us to think that Pearl was wrong, and Tim and the landlady were right. This issue also includes three other stories which I’m not going to bother discussing.  The artists on these stories are Bill Draut, Mike Sekowsky and John Romita.

MEGA-CITY MAX #nn (Rebellion, 2023) – This series is a new 2000 AD spinoff. DeMarco PI: “Snake Oil,” [W/A] Hannah Templer. A flashback story about a female private detective who’s a contemporary of Hershey and Anderson. I liked this story, but I find it hard to believe that Hershey and Anderson are the same age. Walter the Wobot: “Don’t Be Cruel,” [W/A] Roger Langridge. Walter the Wobot becomes a stand-up comedian and has to endure heckling. This one was pretty funny. Devlin Waugh: “Wedding Hells,” [W] Oliver Gerlach, [A] V.V. Glass. Devlin Waugh prevents a wedding between a celebrity and a demon. I wish V.V. Glass would finish The Last Witch. “Cranium Chaos,” [W/A] Lucie Ebrey. A dumb humor story with ugly lettering. Harlem Heroes: “Vs. the Venetian Vipers,” [W] Ramzee, [A] Korinna Mei Veropoulou. A standard Harlem Heroes story, with a style of coloring that reminds me of Jorge Corona.

YTHAQ: NO ESCAPE #1 (Marvel/Soleil, 2009) – “No Escape,” [W] Christophe Arleston, [A] Adrien Floch. Christophe “Scotch” Arleston is a very popular writer of fantasy comics, though he seems to have some detractors, and his major series, Lanfeust of Troy, has the exact same premise as Piers Anthony’s Xanth. I believe Ythaq is his only work that’s been translated into English. I’ve already read the first Ythaq comic that Marvel has published, though all I remember about it is the hairy tusked creatures who are obsessed with books. This issue has a complex planetary-romance plot in which a party of adventurers is trying to reach the site of a crashed spaceship. Overall this comic is quite fun, though it clearly comes from the commercial rather than the artistic end of the French comics industry.

ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #641 (DC, 2005) – “Innocence,” [W] Greg Rucka, [A] Karl Kerschl. Clark Kent visits the imprisoned ex-President Pete Ross in his prison cell. I can think of another ex-president who I’d like to see in prison. Superman then has to fight the female version of the Parasite. This is a quick and fairly entertaining read.

THE WOODS #23 (Boom!, 2016) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Michael Dialynas. I’ve given up on reading this series in order, at least for now. There are many plotlines in this issue, but the main one is that Calder switches places with his brother Casey, who’s about to be executed. I honestly don’t understand why Calder keeps allowing Casey to abuse him, but I guess it’s out of a misplaced sense of loyalty.

DESPERADOES: QUIET OF THE GRAVE #2 (Homage, 2001) – “Thin Air,” [W] Jeff Mariotte, [A] John Severin. This seems like a rather generic Western story, and I don’t remember much about its plot. However, John Severin’s artwork in this issue is excellent. Desperadoes was one of the only Western comic books of its time, along with John Severin’s Blaze of Glory and Apache Skies, and Marvel’s gay-themed Rawhide Kid.

MARVEL TEAM-UP #29 (Marvel, 1975) – “Beware the Coming of… Infinitus! Or, How Can You Stop the Reincarnated Man?”, [W] Gerry Conway, [A] Jim Mooney. The Human Torch and Iron Man battle a villain named Infinitus, who claims that he’s the reincarnation of Amenemhet III, a pharaoh of the 11th dynasty. After staying up all night reading Egyptology books, Johnny discovers that there really was an Amenemhet III, but he belonged to the 12th dynasty, not the 11th, and therefore Infinitus must be an impostor. It’s too bad Google didn’t exist back then, because I was able to find out the same information in one second. (Also, as someone pointed out on my Facebook page, the historical Amenemhet III wouldn’t have known that he belonged to the 11th dynasty.) This issue was Infinitus’s only appearance.

BACCHUS #40 (Top Shelf, 1998) – “Sure enough, at midnight the genie transported the bed,” [W/A] Eddie Campbell. A story-within-a-story about a cursed bed. The typographic lettering in this story is rather ugly. There’s also a Hale story by Michael Evans; a Hermes vs. the Eyeball Kid chapter, which must be a reprint; and a few autobiographical stories from 1987.

THE OMEGA MEN #9 (DC, 2016) – untitled, [W] Tom King, [A] Barnaby Bagenda. Kyle Rayner moderates a peace conference between the Omega Men and the Citadel. During the conference, Doc destroys the planet that contains the universe’s only source of stellarium, whatever stellarium is. This causes the war to intensify. In this issue it quickly becomes clear that the Omega Men are just as bad as the Citadel, and that makes me wonder why I should even care which of them wins. This Omega Men maxiseries was one of Tom King’s first acclaimed works, but I’ve grown tired of Tom King, and I no longer have much interest in Omega Men.

FORBIDDEN WORLDS #101 (ACG, 1961) – “Time is a Two-Way Thing!”, [W] Richard Hughes, [A] Al Wenzel. Ned Williamson travels back in time to medieval England and falls in love with a princess. “Convict #14612!”, [W] Hughes, [A] Bill Walsh. A falsely accused prisoner dies in prison, but his ghost takes revenge on the real culprit. “The Revenge of Kolara!”, [W] Hughes, [A] Tom Hickey. Some criminals steal an idol from an African tribe, but it takes its revenge on them. All the stories in this issue are charming and well-written. Richard Hughes appears in Grace Ellis and Hannah Templer’s graphic novel Flung Out of Space, where Patricia Highsmith insults him for being Jewish.

NIGHTHAWK #4 (Marvel, 2016) – untitled, [W] David F. Walker, [A] Ramon Villalobos. During a riot, Nighthawk beats up some white supremacists with assistance from Dr. Nightshade. This  series was controversial at the time, but it may be David F. Walker’s best work, along with Power Man & Iron Fist and Bitter Root. Nighthawk is one of the few comic books that entertains the possibility of violent solutions to racism. It seems more topical after the George Floyd riots than when it was first published. Also, Ramon Villalobos’s art in this issue is really good.  

DAYTRIPPER #2 (Vertigo, 2010) – “21,” [W/A] Fábio Moon & Gabriel Bá. Brás and his friend visit Salvador, the center of Afro-Brazilian culture. Brás sleeps with a mysterious woman, and she invites him to a festival celebrating the water deity Yemanjá, but while attending the festival, Brás drowns. I think I’ve read this issue before, but Daytripper is always worth revisiting. A notable scene in this issue is when Brás realizes that as a white man, he feels like an outsider in Salvador. The Salvador Iemanjá festival is real (see this Portuguese Wikipedia article), but I don’t know if anyone’s really drowned while celebrating it.

UNCANNY X-MEN #270 (Marvel, 1990) – “First Strike,” [W] Chris Claremont, [A] Jim Lee. I first read this issue in trade paperback format many years ago – probably within five years of the comic’s original publication. I still remember most of this issue’s dialogue, but the issue takes on added poignancy now that I’ve read almost all of Claremont’s run. The key scene in this issue is Ororo and Jean’s reunion, which is a touching moment. The weird thing about this scene is that according to the continuity at the time, Jean and Ororo only knew each other for a very short time, from Giant-Size X-Men #1 to X-Men #101. The “Jean” who Ororo knew after that was actually the Phoenix entity. But in this issue Claremont seems to have forgotten or ignored that. In the second half of the issue, the Genoshans invade the mansion and kidnap some of the New Mutants. This scene reveals Jim Lee’s heavy manga influences, both in his page layouts and in the way he draws machinery.

SANDMAN MYSTERY THEATRE #21 (Vertigo, 1994) – “Dr. Death Act One,” [W] Matt Wagner & Steven T. Seagle, [A] Vince Locke. Dian has figured out that Wesley is the Sandman, but she’s hesitant to tell him that she knows his secret identity. Meanwhile, a mysterious doctor gives a man a prescription that causes his death. The doctor’s next victim is the pianist Vladimir Velikovsky (possibly named after Immanuel Velikovsky, a famous proponent of pseudoscience). This is another extremely well-written issue. I like this series better than anything else by either of the two writers.

SHERIFF OF BABYLON #2 (Vertigo, 2016) – “The Things They Left Behind,” [W] Tom King, [A] Mitch Gerads. This was Tom King’s first major creator-owned series. It’s an espionage story set in American-occupied Iraq, but I can’t tell what exactly it’s supposed to be about. I’m also not sure whether or not it’s a sensitive depiction of Arab people. It does include one scene where a hijabi woman is shown naked, and that seems inappropriate. Given my loss of faith in Tom King, I have little interest in reading the rest of this series.

FANTASTIC FOUR #385 (Marvel, 1994) – “Into the Deep!”, [W] Tom DeFalco, [A] Paul Ryan. This issue is part of Starblast, a very obscure crossover, which Ben Herman discusses here. This issue has some dramatic scenes between Johnny and Lyja, who, at this point, was believed to be pregnant with Johnny’s child. Also, Namor learns that Reed is (temporarily) dead. I imagine that Namor’s reaction to this would have been “Woo-hoo, Reed’s dead! That means Sue’s fair game now!” But Namor doesn’t actually say that.

ALL-STAR WESTERN #3 (DC, 1971) – Outlaw: “Death Deals the Cards!”,  [W] Robert Kanigher, [A] Gil Kane. Rick Wilson, an outlaw, is pursued by his father, a Texas Ranger. This story has some excellent action scenes. El Diablo: “Call Him Satan – Call Him Saint!”, [W] Robert Kanigher, [A] Gray Morrow. This is El Diablo’s second appearance. Lazarus Lane stands by and does nothing while his friend is shot. Then he’s struck by lightning and is believed dead himself. Lazarus comes back to life, as his name predicts, and becomes the vigilante El Diablo. Again, Gray Morrow’s art in this story is beautiful. He deserves to be in the Eisner Hall of Fame.

SECRET INVASION: FANTASTIC FOUR #1 (Marvel, 2008) – “No One Gets Back Alive!”, [W] Roberto Aguirre-Sacassa, [A] Barry Kitson. The Skrulls transport the Baxter Building to the Negative Zone, and Ben has to protect Franklin and Valeria. Johnny discovers that Sue has been kidnapped and replaced by a Skrull, and not just any Skrull, but his ex-wife Lyja. This series is not to be confused with Dark Reign: Fantastic Four, in which Franklin and Valeria also had a prominent role.  

THE FLASH #107 (DC, 1995) – “Fade to Black!”, [W] Mark Waid, [A] Oscar Jimenez. In an Underworld Unleashed tie-in, the Flash and Captain Marvel battle the Shadow Thief. I must have gotten this comic out of the library when it came out, because I remember the scene where Wally “saves” Billy Batson from being struck by lightning. This is a fun comic, and it’s also a sort of preview of Waid’s much later Shazam run. Oscar Jimenez is perhaps the worst of the many cartoonists named Jimenez or Gimenez.

2000 AD #1853 (Rebellion, 2013) – Dredd: “New Tricks Part 4,” [W] Mike Carroll, [A] Paul Davidson. The Judges fight the Goblin King’s army. Brass Sun: “The Diamond Age Part 4,” [W] Ian Edginton, [A] I.N.J. Culbard. Wren and her friend escape from the person who’s holding them at swordpoint. Flesh: “Badlanders Part 4,” [W] Pat Mills, [A] James McKay. The poachers capture the tyrannosaur Gorehead, and one of them soothes it by tickling it under the chin, which is a pretty cute moment. The verb she uses for this action is “guddle,” a word I’ve never heard before. Aquila: “Where All Roads Lead Part 3,” [W] Gordon Rennie, [A] Patrick Goddard. A diviner investigates the murder of some Christians. Aquila talks to the Capitoline Wolf. Nero acts like the spoiled brat he is. Damnation Station: “The Tail of the Dragon Part 1,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Mark Harrison. Some human starship crew members negotiate with some aliens. Mark Harrison’s art is striking, but much less so than in The Out.

THORGAL V3/4 (Cinebook, 1981/1982/2007) – “The Three Elders of Aran” and “The Black Galley,” [W] Jean Van Hamme, [A] Grzegorz Rosinski. This Cinebook edition is a single volume that combines the third and fourth French-language albums. “The Three Elders of Aran” is a one-shot story in which Thorgal and Aaricia visit a strange village, and the village’s rulers, the Three Benevolent Ones, force Thorgal to compete in a contest. “The Black Galley” is the first part of a trilogy. Thorgal and Aaricia are now living in a farming village, and Aaricia is very pregnant. A local teenage girl, Shaniah, tries to seduce Thorgal, but he resists her advances. Later, when some soldiers come through the village looking for a fugitive, Shaniah falsely claims that Thorgal knows his whereabouts, and the soldiers imprison him aboard a galley ship. Thorgal escapes thanks to the intervention of some other Vikings, but when he gets back to his village, he discovers that it’s been destroyed and that Aaricia is dead (though he later discovers her alive). Thorgal has become one of my favorite Franco-Belgian comics. Rosinski’s art is stunning, and Van Hamme’s plots and characterization are also excellent, reminding me a bit of Prince Valiant. I recently bought a collection of French comics that included several more albums of Thorgal, and I also just ordered the third Cinebook volume, covering the fifth and sixth albums. Counting all of those, I now have the first eleven albums of the series, plus a few later ones.

2000 AD #1854 (Rebellion, 2013) – Dredd: The judges defeat the Goblin King, who turns out to be a former competitive eater. I’m not sure what the point of this story was. Brass Sun: as above. Wren gets her grandfather’s journal back, and it leads her to the library, which is utterly gigantic. The splash-page depiction of the library is the best thing in this storyline so far. It reminds me of a page by Schuiten. Flesh: as above. One of the poachers explains why he was  sentenced to imprisonment in the past. Aquila: as above. The murderer of the Christians is revealed as the Veiled Virgin, a fallen Vestal Virgin who was resurrected as Rome’s divine protector. Then she confronts Aquila, who has learned that he’s the champion of the African deity Massim Biambé. Also, there’s an omen of a black hawk, which is a reference to the similarity between Aquila and the earlier 2000 AD character Black Hawk. Many sources say that Massim Biambé is a deity of the Mundang people of the Congo, but as far as I can tell, all these sources can be traced to a 1907 French book which is not available online (see here). Also, the Mundang people live in modern Chad and Cameroon, not in either of the modern countries known as the Congo. Damnation Station: as above. See previous reviews of this storyline.

NIGHT’S DOMINION #4 (Oni, 2016) – untitled, [W/A] Ted Naifeh. The city’s temple catches on fire, and one of the protagonists has to put it out. Then the city is invaded by soldiers wearing skull masks. I’m not sure how this miniseries’s plot is connected to that of the following miniseries.

TRANSFORMERS: MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE REVOLUTION #1 (IDW, 2016) – “Nothing Will Ever Be the Same Again!”, [W] Nick Roche & James Roberts, [A] Alex Milne. Six Decepticons team up with some characters from the M.A.S.K. and G.I. Joe franchises. I loved the M.A.S.K. franchise as a small child, but I have no interest in it as an adult. This issue has some funny dialogue, but it’s part of a dumb crossover, and its plot is stupid and pointless.

INSEXTS #8 (Aftershock, 2016) – “Belle Époque,” [W] Marguerite Bennett, [A] Ariela Kristantina. Little Will gets a new governess, one of his mothers emerges from a cocoon with new wings, and a gorgon goes around turning people to stone. Again, I like this issue better than Marguerite Bennett’s other comics.

DC COMICS BOMBSHELLS #18 (DC, 2016) – “Uprising Part 2,” [W] Marguerite Bennett, [A] Mirka Andolfo & Laura Braga. Mera declares Atlantis to be a safe haven for refugees from Berlin, and other stuff happens that I neither remember nor care about. One of the many reasons I dislike this series is because its plot never seems to go anywhere or make any progress, and the end of the war never gets any closer.

WORLD’S FINEST COMICS #264 (DC, 1980) – “Vengeance of the Altered Man,” [W] Denny O’Neil, [A] Rich Buckler, etc. From issues 244 to 282, World’s Finest was an oversized anthology title with multiple features in each issue. The higher page count was not a good thing, as most of the stories were crummy filler material. This issue’s featured characters include Superman and Batman, Green Arrow, Hawkman, Aquaman, and Captain Marvel, but only the Captain Marvel story is any good, because it’s drawn by Don Newton. The twist in the Green Arrow story is that the villain is a man dressed as a woman.

SUPERMAN #380 (DC, 1983) – “A Mind-Switch in Time!”, [W] Cary Bates, [A] Curt Swan. Superman and Superboy cross paths with each other while traveling in time, and each one’s mind is sent into the other’s body. The story of Superman-in-Superboy’s-body is continued in Superboy #38, while the rest of Superman #380 deals with Superboy-in-Superman’s body. It’s entertaining to see Clark’s shocked reaction to seeing (what for him is) the future Metropolis and the future Lana Lang. The next issue is memorable because of young Clark’s realization that his foster parents are dead. I kind of want to read Superboy #38 now and see how the older Clark reacted to encountering his late parents again.

FANTASTIC FOUR #368 (Marvel, 1992) – “Day of the Dark Side!”, [W] Tom DeFalco, [A] Paul Ryan. In an Infinity War crossover, Johnny battles the doppelgangers of various other superheroes. This issue wastes a lot of space on characters other than the FF. The only really notable thing in this issue is the scene where Agatha Harkness is reunited with Franklin, who she cared for when he was an infant.

INSEXTS #9 (AfterShock, 2016) – “Pretty Pictures,” as above. The governess takes the protagonists to a secret academy for female artists, and she reveals that the academy’s students are being kidnapped and turned into works of art. This is somehow connected to the gorgon plotline. This issue is an example of a standard feminist trope: the idea of excavating the memory of women who were as talented as men, but who were denied proper recognition.

NIGHT’S DOMINION #5 (Oni, 2017) – as above. The city selects a new prime minister, and the protagonists try to organize resistance against the invasion. Again, this is not bad, but I’m not sure how these events are connected to what happens next.

JACK PALMER V12 (Albin Michel, 2000) – “L’Enquête corse,” [W/A] René Pétillon. Private detective Jack Palmer goes to Corsica to look for Ange Leoni, a notorious separatist rebel. Everyone assumes Palmer wants to arrest Leoni, but Palmer’s real mission is just to tell Leoni that he’s received an inheritance, which proves to be worthless. However, Palmer’s arrival leads to an epidemic of violence between the police and various separatist factions. This book won an award at Angoulême as the best French album, and was adapted into a film. It’s easy to see why this book was so well-liked, as it’s a hilarious treatment of Corsica and Corsican separatism. As an example of Pétillon’s humor, early in the book Palmer walks into a bar and asks if anyone’s seen Leoni, and then he asks where the bathroom is. No one answers either question. At night, a man comes to Palmer’s hotel In secret and tells him, very tentatively, that the bathroom is in the courtyard on the left! Pétillon’s draftsmanship is minimalistic, and the humor comes mostly from the dialogue and the comic timing. Besides being hilarious, this album also has a serious message about how mainland French people perceive Corsica as a foreign country, and vice versa. This album really ought to be translated into English.

GREEN LANTERN #150 (DC, 1982) – “From Qward with Hate!”, [W] Marv Wolfman, [A] Joe Staton. Hal Jordan is trapped on Qward, and he’s just quit the Green Lantern Corps, so the Guardians are unwilling to help him. On her own initiative, Arisia comes to Qward and saves Hal. Afterward, the Guardians agree to reinstate Hal, but only if he leaves Earth for good. Hal agrees to do so as long as he can visit Earth one last time. There’s also a backup sequence focusing on Carol and Carl Ferris. The portrayal of Arisia in this issue is disturbing. She’s supposed to be a child, but she has breasts. And when she makes romantic overtures to Hal, he turns her down because she’s a fellow Green Lantern, not because she’s underage. Steve Englehart has rightly been criticized for his portrayal of Arisia, but she was problematic even before that.

JOSIE AND THE PUSSYCATS #3 (Archie, 2017) – untitled, [W] Marguerite Bennett & Cameron DeOrdio, [A] Audrey Mok. Josie and the band are playing a concert in Cancun. Alexandria crashes the concert, and then they all have to work together to apprehend a DJ who’s smuggling animals. This story is just 20 pages, even though the comic is $3.99. But that’s still a better deal than any of Archie’s current comic books.

FCBD 2016: GENERAL (Dark Horse, 2016) – Serenity: “The Warrior and the Wind,” [W] Chris Roberson, [A] Stephen Byrne. River Tam tells baby Emma the story of her mother Zoe and her father Wash, who was killed before Emma was born. This story is similar to Kitty’s Fairy Tale, but it had little impact on me since I’ve never watched Serenity. Of more interest to me is Mignola and Corben’s Hellboy story “The Mirror,” about a haunted mirror. There’s also an Aliens story written by Brian Wood.

THE OMEGA MEN #11 (DC, 2016) – as above. Kyle trades the last piece of Stellarium for a mercenary army. Then there are some scenes that show Tigorr, Primus and Kallista’s roles in the war. The main theme of this issue is that war is awful and that the Omega Men are just as bad as the Citadel, and again, I don’t know why I’d want to read a comic with this theme.

1602: WITCH HUNTER ANGELA #4 (Marvel, 2015) – “In Which a Witch Will Beget a Very Excellent Piece of Villainy,” [W] Marguerite Bennett, [A] Stephanie Hans, etc. This issue has beautiful art, but a boring story in which various Marvel characters appear in Renaissance guises. The backup story is a bit more interesting, since it’s written by Kieron Gillen, and it’s a historically informed account of Shakespeare and Christopher Marlowe.

BLACK ORCHID #2 (DC, 1989) – “Going Down…”, [W] Neil Gaiman, [A] Dave McKean. I bought this about a decade ago, when I was still living in Atlanta, but I never got around to reading it. Before reading it I had to skim issue 1 to refresh my memory. This issue, the late Susan Linden’s abusive ex-husband, Carl Thorne, murders her colleague Phil Sylvian (who also appears in Poison Ivy #19). Then he goes to work for Lex Luthor. Meanwhile Black Orchid and her daughter Suzy, who are both clones of Susan Linden, are trying to figure out who they are. Batman directs them to Arkham Asylum to see Poison Ivy, but she has no useful information, so Batman tells them to go to Florida and look for Alec Holland. This is a classic miniseries, with beautiful artwork and an intriguing script. It was Neil Gaiman’s first work for the American market, and led directly to Sandman. My one problem with this issue is that Batman’s dialogue doesn’t sound like the way he usually talks. The version of Poison Ivy in this issue is also very different from the modern Ivy, but my sense is that the current version of Poison Ivy, like that of Mr. Freeze, was introduced by Paul Dini in the animated series.

GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY: MOTHER ENTROPY #5 (Marvel, 2017) – “The Bitter End”, [W] Jim Starlin, [A] Alan Davis. The Guardians fight a villain called Mother Entropy. This comic has a forgettable story, and is only worth reading for Alan Davis’s art, which is excellent as always. This is probably the only comic where he’s drawn Rocket Raccoon.

DEMON DAYS: RISING STORM #1 (Marvel, 2022) – “The Yashida Saga Part 3,” [W/A] Peach Momoko. Peach Momoko is a popular artist, but I haven’t read anything by her before. This issue, like 1602: Witch Hunter Angela, is an alternate-universe story where various Marvel characters appear in the form of people from an earlier historical era. But the similarity ends there, because Demon Days is actually interesting. Most of the story is drawn in a manga style, but with effects that resemble East Asian ink painting, while the flashback sequences are drawn in the style of Japanese prints. All of this creates a powerful sense of defamiliarization: we recognize the characters, but they’re depicted in a different cultural idiom than usual. The story also takes place in premodern Japan, and its plot is based on a made-up Japanese myth. I’d like to read more comics by this artist.

THE WOODS #25 (Image, 2016) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Michael Dialynas. This issue’s first scene is set back on Earth in the protagonists’ hometown, two years after their entire high school vanished. This scene is a convincing depiction of the traumatic effects of the kids’ disappearance. In the second half of the issue, the kids all attend a party, and then Isaac offers to take them all back home.

Most recent Heroes trip:

NIGHTWING #111 (DC, 2024) – “There’s a Child” (my title), [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Sami Basri. In Gotham, a father is murdered by Heartless. Dick visits the man’s orphaned young son, who is overjoyed to see him, saying “You’re on my pencil case.” These scenes are interspersed with flashbacks to Dick’s early days with Bruce, and the orphaned boy is a clear parallel to Dick himself. The boy’s uncle takes him in, but at the end of the story we learn that the uncle is a horrible criminal who’s abusing the boy. The story ends with a shot of the boy’s pencil case, lying abandoned as the uncle drags him away. This is a beautiful story, and I feel sorry for that poor kid. The backup story is a waste of space. We now know that Tom Taylor is leaving this series. That sucks, because Nightwing is easily my favorite current comic, but all good things come to an end.

TRANSFORMERS #5 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W/A] Daniel Warren Johnson. At Sparky’s suggestion, the Autobots come up with a way to use hydroelectric power to revive their fallen warriors, including Arcee. But the Decepticons interfere and stop the project prematurely. The autobots’ next step is the Ark, and Carly insists on joining them against Sparkplug’s orders. At the Ark, the Autobots are confronted by the Constructicons in their combined form of Devastator. This is another great issue, but I hope this series can maintain its success after Johnson is replaced as the artist by Jorge Corona. One thing I really like about this comic is that Bumblebee isn’t in it. His role as the reader’s surrogate seems to have been taken over by Cliffjumper.

ABBOTT 1979 #4 (Boom!, 2024) – untitled, [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Sami Kivelä. Elena’s husband’s ghost sacrifices itself to empower Elena. Then Elena fights a hydra and wins, but next she’s confronted by her former lover Amelia. I’m planning to submit a conference paper proposal about Saladin Ahmed’s comics, with Abbott as the primary example.

USAGI YOJIMBO: ICE AND SNOW #5 (Dark Horse, 2024) – “The Village,” [W/A] Stan Sakai.An old villager complains to his wife about having notohing to eat but thin barley gruel. Then Usagi and Yukichi shamble into the couple’s hut, asking for food and shelter, and the man says “We have some delicious gruel!” Heh. It soon becomes clear that the people of the village are man-eating cat demons (although all cats are demons in a way), and Usagi and Yukichi barely manage to escape from them. The remaining members of Jei’s bandit gang also arrive at the village and are killed by the demons. The next story arc is The Crow.

COBRA COMMANDER #2 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Andrea Milana. Cobra Commander visits the Florida Everglades, where he meets the Dreadnoks Buzzer, Ripper and Zarana. Then he falls into a swamp filled with monstrous fish. So far this series is worse than Transformers or Duke, but it’s still quite good.

TITANS #8 (DC, 2024) – “The Dark-Winged Queen,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Stephen Segovia. The evil Raven meets with her father Trigon. The Titans are publicly attacked in the media, and when they try to save people from a natural disaster, they find that the people are afraid of them. This storyline reminds me of Bethany Snow’s media crusade against the Titans, from back in the Wolfman/Perez run.

ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #2 (Marvel, 2024) – untitled, [W] Jonathan Hickman, [A] Marco Checchetto. Peter fights his first supervillain, the Shocker, and loses thanks to his own gullibility and inexperience. JJJ and Uncle Ben go to a Turkish bath. The relationship between these two old men is cute. I can’t think of any other comic book where they interacted. Finally, Peter’s daughter discovers his secret identity by accident. This is an even cuter moment,  though it’s disturbing that Peter is asking his child to lie to her mother. Ultimate Spider-Man has a totally different vibe from Spider-Boy or Superior Spider-Man, but all three titles are enjoyable in different ways.

I HATE FAIRYLAND #11 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] Skottie Young, [A] Brett Bean. Having made it into the real world, Cloudia gets run over by a bus. Then she comes back to life and dies again, and then a third time. There’s also a running joke about Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce and their fart fetish. This issue is a stupid, immature piece of toilet humor, but that’s kind of the whole point of I Hate Fairyland.

SAVAGE DRAGON #268 (Image, 2024) – “Schoolgirl Crush!”, [W/A] Erik Larsen. In a scene which has gone viral, Malcolm and Maxine meet Mickey Mouse, who proves to be a disgusting pervert. And it’s perfectly legal for Erik to have this happen, because Mickey is in the public domain. The rest of the issue is about a bullied schoolgirl who uses a drug to gain superpowers. She uses her powers to kill her bullies, then dies of a heart attack. This is a very bleak and brutal scene.

THE DEVIANT #4 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Joshua Hixson. In a flashback to 2019, Michael and Derek go on a date, and we see that even then, Michael was already obsessed with serial killers. Then Michael goes to see Randall again (this scene seems to be another flashback), and then Paul, the homophobic man from issue 2, attacks Michael and beats him. Meanwhile, a cop visits Derek’s apartment and finds some Santa Claus stuff in Michael’s closet. At this point it’s getting hard to believe that Michael isn’t the Santa Claus killer.

THE CABINET #1 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] David Ebeltoft & Jordan Hart, [A] Chiara Raimondi. Avani’s parents have a magical cabinet that can do various amazing things, but only if the right “doodads” are placed in its drawers in the right order. As a child, Avani uses the cabinet incorrectly, causing her parents to be killed by a demon. Seven years later, Avani and her friend Trent have to find the doodads again so that they can fix Avani’s mistake. This is a really interesting setup, and I like Chiara Raimondi’s somewhat cartoonish or mangaesque artwork. It’s notable that the main character seems to be half-South Asian.

BATMAN/SUPERMAN: WORLD’S FINEST #24 (DC, 2024) – “Heir to the Kingdom Chapter 5: The Man of Tomorrow,” [W] Mark Waid, [A] Dan Mora. Darkseid is about to absorb the Anti-Life Equation from Gog’s mind, but Magog prevents this by killing Gog. The superheroes are unhappy about this, not only because Magog committed murder, but also because he doesn’t understand why it was wrong. Thanks to the Supermen and Batmen’s public rebuke, Magog learns better, and the worst version of the Kingdom Come future is averted. Kingdom Come is an outdated comic which was never very good to begin with, but this storyline made use of its legacy in an interesting way.

MECH CADETS #6 (Boom!, 2024) – untitled, [W] Greg Pak, [A] Takeshi Miyazawa. I never got issue 5. This issue, the kids disobey the adults’ orders and save General Park, and then they leave the army, along with their robot friends, and go off on their own. Deprived of her best weapons, General Felix decides to forge an alliance with the Sharg. It was already clear that the human leaders were as bad as the Sharg, but this issue makes that explicit. This issue clearly leaves room for a sequel, and I hope there won’t be another five-year wait before it comes out.

SPIDER-BOY #4 (Marvel, 2024) – “Nightmare Scenario,” [W] Dan Slott, [A] Paco Medina. Bailey goes bowling but can’t afford snacks, and then he discovers that Peter is teaming up with Miles but didn’t invite him. That night, a boy-spider creature rampages around town causing havoc. Miles and Peter both assume that Bailey has gone bad, but it turns out to be a case of mistaken identity, and Bailey gets mad at Peter for not trusting him. The backup story explains how Madame Monstrosity created Boy-Spider, and we also learn that Madame Monstrosity’s cat sidekick is Bailey’s mother, or a clone thereof. This issue’s plot is similar to that of Amazing Spider-Man #13, in which Mysterio disguises himself as Spidey to commit crimes.

BONE ORCHARD: TENEMENT #9 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Andrea Sorrentino. The first half of this issue is Us’uuul’s origin story, which is based on the myth of the expulsion from Eden. Sorrentino’s artwork here is even more spectacular than usual. It’s in a style that resembles old engravings. Then the characters explore what appears to be paradise, but it has a serpent in it, namely Felix, and he takes Isaac down to the final floor.

DAREDEVIL #6 (Marvel, 2024) – “Introductory Rites Part 6,” [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Aaron Kuder. Dr. Strange shows Matt a vision which reveals to him that there are four deadly sins remaining. Matt’s costume turns white. Matt goes to the Bar with No Name and encounters a possessed Wolverine. I assume the sin that’s possessing Wolverine is Wrath.

ZAWA + THE BELLY OF THE BEAST #4 (Boom!, 2024) – untitled, [W/A] Michael Dialynas. Zawa enters the mountain and encounters an earlier Guardian, who explains that all the Zawas are part of a parthenogenetic lineage. The older Zawa wants to destroy the humans to stop the environmental destruction they’re causing. The townspeople start a riot against the Mayor, but while that’s going on, the mountain begins to erupt. This is a good issue, though it’s not funny, unlike the first three.

SINISTER SONS #1 (DC, 2024) – “Bad Sons Rising,” [W] Peter Tomasi, [A] David Lafuente. Sinestro’s son Sinson and General Zod’s son Lor-Zod encounter each other for the first time while planning different crimes. The Sinson backup stories in Green Lantern were much better than the main stories, and I’m glad Sinson has been spun off into his own title. As the title indicates, this series is the dark version of Super-Sons. David Lafuente’s art is very charming and attractive, and is effectively complemented by Tamara Bonvillain’s coloring.

THE HUNGER AND THE DUSK #6 (IDW, 2024) – untitled, [W] G. Willow Wilson, [A] Chris Wildgoose. This issue focuses on the main orc character, Gruakhtar. In a very cute flashback sequence, the child Gruakhtar meets her future husband and her friend. Then she kills some human bandits, and then there’s another flashback where she has to separate from her boyfriend. The current story arc ends here, to be followed by a second story arc this summer. The Hunger and the Dusk is pretty good, but it’s not G. Willow Wilson’s best solo series (that would be Invisible Kingdom), and I’m still not sure what its main premise is.

SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN #4 (Marvel, 2024) – “Two Minds,” [W] Dan Slott, [A] Mark Bagley. Peter and Doc Ock fight a mental battle for control of Peter’s body. Peter eventually wins thanks to assistance from the brain patterns of an alternate version of himself. I think this character may be Peter Palmer from last year’s adjectiveless Spider-Man title.

NADIA & THE NOMOBOTS #1 (Opus, 2023) – untitled, [W] Diego Agrimbau, [A] Juan Manuel Tumburus. In a dystopian future, the world is ruled by robots. They keep humans alive only to make recordings of their emotions, so that the robots can experience things that are outside their programming. Two robots kidnap a human woman named Nadia so that they can make their own “emopills”. I bought this comic because it’s by two important Argentine creators. Nadia and the Nomobots #1 has an interesting premise, and I’d like to read more of it. Unfortunately I can’t. When I bought this comic, I didn’t notice that Opus Comics was the publisher. Opus has been accused of failing to pay their creators, and I have been reliably informed that this problem has been solved yet. Until Opus starts paying people what they’re owed, I won’t read any more of their comics.

SUPERMAN #11 (DC, 2024) – “Lex Luthor Revenge Squad,” [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] David Baldeón. Luthor’s mother, who is just as bad as her son, executes her plot to take over Supercorp. Luthor’s failsafe plan is triggered, causing the release of a synthetic form of Kryptonite that’s deadly to humans. This issue is okay, but it’s far less impressive than the last two issues, thanks to the lack of Bruno Redondo art.

BATMAN AND ROBIN #6 (DC, 2024) – “Family Ties,” [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Nikola Cizmesija. Damian defeats a villainous classmate, Zack, and we learn that Zack isn’t really Mr. Zsasz’s son, he just wishes he was. Then there’s a very touching scene where Bruce looks at Damian’s manga art. Damian’s interest in manga has been a running theme in this series and the Robin title that preceded it. The last two issues of this series have been a big improvement over the first four. Nikola Cizmesija is not as talented an artist as Simone Di Meo, but his style is far better suited to a Batman comic.

PETROL HEAD #4 (Image, 2024) – “The City Protests…”, [W] Rob Williams, [A] Pye Parr.  There’s a funny opening scene where one of the city administration robots makes a mistake, and all the others point at him. Then the main characters get to the administration building, and the bird flies up to the top and discovers that the top floors are above the layer of smog. But then an administration robot kills the bird. This is another fun issue, but I have nothing new to say about this series.

ANIMAL POUND #2 (Image, 2024) – “A Rabbit Can Only Run,” [W] Tom King, [A] Peter Gross. The animals’ efforts at democracy are frustrated because each animal only cares about the interests of its own species (cats, dogs or rabbits). The animals come up with a voting system where each animal’s voting power is based on its weight. Then the animals have another idea: they can fund themselves by posting videos on social media of themselves. This comic is kind of clever, but it still feels like a less politically sophisticated ripoff of Animal Castle. However, Animal Pound does explore a problem that Animal Castle hasn’t gotten to yet: once you’ve overthrown the dictatorship, how do you create a functioning democracy?

JUSTICE LEAGUE VS. GODZILLA VS. KONG #5 (DC, 2024) – untitled, [W] Brian Buccellato, [A] Christian Duce & Tom Derenick. Aquaman’s kraken fights the underwater kaiju. Gorilla Grodd helps Supergirl defeat King Kong. Luthor creates a Mechagodzilla robot. This series is still fun, but its plot is getting too confusing.

SCARLET WITCH & QUICKSILVER #1 (DC, 2024) – untitled, [W] Steve Orlando, [A] Lorenzo Tammetta. Wanda receives a mysterious letter from Magneto, addressed to both herself and  Pietro, but she refuses to tell Pietro what the letter says. They get into an argument, and then Wanda fights the Wizard. This issue seems to assume knowledge of Steve Orlando’s previous Scarlet Witch series, which I didn’t read. But I really like Wanda, and Orlando seems to have a good understanding of her, so I plan to continue reading this series. In this issue Wanda uses the oath “Kaka rocka nixis!” Steve Orlando also had Wanda say this in one other comic (Darkhold Alpha #1), but I’m skeptical as to whether it’s a real Roma phrase. The earliest source I can find for it is a 2014 blog post which, according to Google Translate, is written in Bosnian.

THE BLOODY DOZEN #3 (Image, 2024) – untitled, [W] Charles Soule, [A] Alberto Jimenez Alburquerque. The protagonists discover that the other spaceship is a Soviet space shuttle, containing a vampire that’s younger than the ones they’re looking for. Then the protagonists meet the nine imprisoned vampires and forge an alliance with them. We also learn that Isaac Newton is still alive and is a member of the Shrouded College. Neither this series nor Hell to Pay is among Charles Soule’s best works, but they’re both worth reading anyway.

DEER EDITOR #2 (Mad Cave, 2024) – untitled, [W] Ryan Lindsey, [A] Sami Kivelä. In a flashback, Bucky’s colleague Dan is enslaved by the mayor and his friends, who all turn out to be vampires. The vampires kidnap Bucky and cut his antlers off. Bucky frees himself and Dan, but Dan is mortally wounded. Thankfully Bucky’s mutilation is not permament; deer shed and regrow their antlers every year.

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES #148 (IDW, 2024) – untitled, [W] Sophie Campbell, [A] Vincenzo Federici. After a lot of confusing plot developments that make little sense, Donatello realizes that Armaggon is trying to prevent the Turtles from having existed in the first place. This storyline is a disappointing finale to Sophie Campbell’s excellent TMNT run, because its plot is so complicated as to be beyond my understanding.

TONGUES #2 (Fantagraphics, 2018) – untitled, [W/A] Anders Nilsen. I’ve been buying this series but not reading it. Now that issue 6 is out, I’ve decided it’s time to get caught up on the previous issues. This issue has a number of different plotlines with no obvious connection, and their relationship doesn’t become clear until the following issue. The focal characters are an imprisoned god, an East African girl, and an American man who’s kidnapped by a Russian soldier. Most of the story seems to take place in Afghanistan. I had thought of Anders Nilsen as a minimalist artist, but his art in this series is spectacularly detailed, his page layouts are radically creative, and his coloring and publication design are impeccable. However, this issue is annoying to read because of all the nighttime scenes that are colored so dark as to be almost unreadable.

 SUNFLOWERS #nn (Silver Sprocket, 2024) – untitled, [W/A] Keezy Young. An autobiographical account of the author’s experience with bipolar disorder. It’s a very honest and informative comic that makes effective use of page design and lettering. The first seven pages of this comic represent the manic phase of the cycle, so they have very vivid coloring and lots of text boxes. Then the depressive phase is represented by five completely black pages. Ordinarily I would be pissed if I bought a 24-page comic that had five blank pages, but here it makes sense. The author states that they wrote this comic in order to encourage empathy for bipolar people, and I think the comic succeeds at that goal.

G.O.D.S. #5 (Marvel, 2024) – untitled, [W] Jonathan Hickman, [A] Valerio Schiti. This issue’s plot is about some evil man-eating monsters who are disguised as nurses. I really have no idea what’s going on in this issue, or how any of it connects to earlier issues. I’m going to read the remaining three issues of G.O.D.S., but I won’t be sorry when the series is over.  

BATMAN #143 (DC, 2024) – “The Joker: Year One Part Two,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Giuseppe Camuncoli & Andrea Sorrentino. Another pointless Joker story. It’s also a sequel to Batman: Year One, so there are some scenes where Jim Gordon is trying to deal with police corruption. Batman: Year One didn’t need a sequel to begin with, and Zdarsky fails to add anything new to Miller and Mazzucchelli’s original work. This is going to be my last issue of this Batman run.

DARK SPACES: HOLLYWOOD SPECIAL #6 (IDW, 2024) – untitled, [W] Jeremy Lambert, [A] Claire Roe. Vivian has another series of horrific visions, and the series ends with nothing having been achieved and no lessons having been learned. This series had some fairly good art, but its plot was completely pointless. If there are any more Dark Spaces series, I won’t buy them unless they’re written by Scott Snyder.

BLUE BOOK 1947 #1 (Dark Horse, 2024) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Michael Avon Oeming. A historical account of Kenneth Arnold’s 1947 UFO sighting, which led to the modern UFO craze. This comic is worse than anything else James Tynion has written, other than the previous Blue Book miniseries. It reads like a plot summary, and it lacks any real humor or characterization. But as a purely informational comic, Blue Book 1947 is interesting enough that I’m going to continue reading it. This issue’s backup story is about a cryptid sighting in New Brunswick. It’s written by Zac Thompson in an annoying prose style.

CEMETERY KIDS DON’T DIE #1 (Oni, 2024) – untitled, [W] Zac Thompson, [A] Daniel Irizarri. I had mixed feelings about Zac Thompson’s earlier works, so I’m not sure why I ordered this comic. It’s kind of interesting, though. It’s about some teenagers who play a role-playing game that takes place during their dreams. Like Lonely Receiver, this comic also some creepy biological technology that looks like it came from a Cronenberg film.

ACTION COMICS #1062 (DC, 2024) – “Live Bizarro or Die,” [W] Jason Aaron, [A] John Timms. The people of Metropolis all turn into Bizarros, and they resist Superman’s attempts to help them. Finally, Superman is forced to seek aid from the Joker. This is an example of a way of using the Joker without just repeating his standard catch-and-release narrative pattern. At one point in this issue, Bizarro Lois tells Clark “Divorce me, you hideous man. Divorce me all over again.” This line again reminds me of Maceo and Mezzy’s repeated marriage proposals in Once Upon a Time at the End of the World.

BLANCHE GOES TO SAN FRANCISCO (Headless Shakespeare, 2022) – “Blanche Goes to San Francisco,” [W/A] Rick Geary. This is the fourth installment in a series that began back in 1992. The first three Blanche stories were collected by Dark Horse in 2009. Blanche is an adventurous young woman of the early 20th century. In this one-shot she has an adventure involving Dashiell Hammett, Harry Houdini, spiritualism, and the assassination of President Warren G. Harding. Rick Geary is a master of historical fiction, and this comic is both historically accurate and funny. Geary’s work has the same sort of bizarre, lightly macabre aesthetic as the work of his near namesake Edward Gorey.  I want to read the other three Blanche stories.

SPIDER-GWEN: SMASH #3 (Marvel, 2024) – untitled, [W] Melissa Flores, [A] Enid Balam. Dazzler is kidnapped by Rick Jones, who is this universe’s version of the Hulk. There are also some cute scenes with Gwen and her bandmates. This might be my least favorite Spider-Gwen comic, but it’s good enough that I’ll continue reading it.

IF YOU FIND THIS, I’M ALREADY DEAD #1 (Dark Horse, 2024) – untitled, [W] Matt Kindt, [A] Dan McDaid. Some humans and an embedded reporter land on a hostile alien planet. The soldiers are all promptly killed except one, who also gets killed at the end of the issue, and the reporter has to survive on her own. This issue has a pretty exciting plot, and Dan McDaid’s art is impressive. His style reminds me of Paul Pope.

BUDDY LONGWAY V5 (Dargaud, 1977) – “Le Secret,” [W/A] Derib. The nominal hero, Buddy Longway, spends most of this volume in a cast, and the story focuses on his Indian wife Chinook and his biracial son Jérémie. In this volume, two Blackfoot warriors are looking for a third warrior in order to kill him. Jérémie secretly finds the fugitive and helps him, but the two pursuers eventually discover what he’s doing. Buddy resolves the situation peacefully, but one of the pursuers is not happy with the outcome, and he gets his revenge by burning down Buddy’s cabin. This is a charming and tender story whose main focus is on Jérémie’s acquisition of maturity, as he’s forced to make a difficult moral decision. Derib’s linework is somewhat crude, but his visual storytelling and action sequences are excellent. Derib is from Switzerland, but he seems to have a particular affection for Native Americans; his other major series, Yakari, is about a little Lakota boy. He also drew Go West, in which Native Americans played a major role. Fredrik Stromberg is a fan of this series, and he tells me that it benefits from being read in order, so as to appreciate the gradual development of the characters.

DEADLY HANDS OF KUNG FU: GANG WAR #3 (Marvel, 2024) – untitled, [W] Greg Pak, [A] Caio Majado. There are more fight scenes, and for some reason the heroes team up with Tombstone, a vicious murderer. Now that I realize Gene Luen Yang didn’t write this series, I like it even less. (Yes, I do know the difference between Greg Pak and Gene Luen Yang, I just blindly assumed that this series was written by the same writer as the previous Shang-Chi titles.) Deadly Hands of Kung Fu has little in common with Yang’s Shang-Chi, and it’s part of an idiotic crossover plot.

LOTUS LAND #4 (Boom!, 2024) – untitled, [W] Darcy Van Poelgeest, [A] Caio Filipe. Another boring crime story, with a confusing and uninteresting plot, and a science-fictional setting that has no effect on that plot. I asked Heroes to cancel my orders of issues 5 and 6. I now realize that Darcy Van Poelgeest is not a good writer, and that Little Bird was only good because of Ian Bertram’s art.

GREEN LANTERN #87 (DC, 1971/2024) – “Beware My Power!”, [W] Denny O’Neil, [A] Neal Adams. When Guy Gardner is incapacitated, Hal Jordan has to recruit John Stewart as the new backup Green Lantern. This is John’s first appearance. This story has some questionable racial politics, but in 1971, even the idea of a black Green Lantern was revolutionary. Because of the 2000s Justice League series, some people think of John rather than Hal as the original Green Lantern. “What Can One Man Do?”, [W] Elliot S! Maggin, [A] Neal Adams. This is Maggin’s first  comics publication. Wikipedia says it started out as a college term paper. In this story Ollie Queen is asked to run for mayor, and decides to do so after being unable to save a little boy who’s killed in a race riot. The highpoint of this story is the sequence depicting Ollie’s reaction to the boy’s death. This two-page scene is narrated with quotations from Hemingway’s A Farewell to Arms, and it ends with the words “It kills the very good… and the very gentle… and the very gentle… impartially.” The last word is juxtaposed with a 2/3 page splash of Ollie’s angry, tear-streaked face. José Villarrubia calls this the best page of the best story of this Green Lantern run, and I can’t disagree. It uses the formal resources of the comics medium to create a powerful emotional effect. Another memorable moment in this story is Superman telling Ollie that his secret identity would be ruined if there were two blond, bearded celebrities in town.
This issue also includes a reprinted backup story that explains why Abin Sur was in a spaceship when he died. Alan Moore’s later story “Tygers” provided a much better answer to that question.

FACELESS AND THE FAMILY #4 (Oni, 2024) – untitled, [W/A] Matt Lesniewski. I never got issue 3. This issue, the protagonists arrive in Palm City, but they’re attacked by members of Faceless’s old gang. In order to save his new family, Faceless has to reveal himself as a former member of the gang. This means he can’t go back to his old family, because the gang has promised to kill them if he does so. Matt Lesniewski’s art here is so beautiful that it’s difficult to read, and in order to finish the comic, the reader has to avoid looking too closely at his painstaking crosshatching.

JOHN CONSTANTINE, HELLBLAZER: DEAD IN AMERICA #2 (DC, 2024) – untitled, [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Aaron Campbell. Constantine visits New Orleans to consult the Cumaean Sibyl. They eat the Swamp Thing’s psychotropic tubers, causing them both to see a vision of the three Furies, or Kindly Ones. Then they each try to doublecross the other, but Constantine escapes safely, and the Swamp Thing comes back to life. I don’t quite understand everything that happens in this issue, but it’s all interesting. I had a sense of shocked recognition when I Googled the line that begins “For I indeed once saw…” It turns out this comes from T.S. Eliot’s The Waste Land, and it ends with the Sibyl saying that she wants to die. There is no answer to the question of how you confuse a vegetable. In Swamp Thing #51, Constantine asks Swampy that question, and then vanishes mysteriously. I guess the answer is that you confuse a vegetable by vanishing while talking to it.

NIGHT THRASHER #1 (Marvel, 2024) – “Remix Part 1: Don’t Call It a Comeback,” [W] J. Holtham, [A] Nelson Daniel. Night Thrasher returns to Harlem for his adoptive father Chord’s funeral. He decides to dissolve his charitable foundation, and then he discovers that his former New Warriors teammate Rage is leading a criminal gang. There’s also a backup story with Chord’s daughter Silhouette and her criminal brother Midnight’s Fire. This issue is a nice nostalgic tribute to the original New Warriors series. My major problem with this comic is that I have trouble believing that anyone actually lives in Harlem anymore. Real estate prices in Manhattan are so insane that I don’t know who can afford to live there, other than the very rich.

RISE OF THE POWERS OF X #2 (Marvel, 2024) – “Out of Space,” [W] Kieron Gillen, [A] R.B. Silva. Another issue with an incomprehensible time travel plot. It’s hard to care about that plot anyway, because none of it is actually happening. Everything that “happens” in this comic is part of a hypothetical future. If I hadn’t already ordered the rest of this miniseries, I would skip buying it.

CAPTAIN MARVEL #5 (Marvel, 2024) – “Family Matters,” [W] Alyssa Wong, [A] Jan Bazaldua. After a fight scene, Carol visits Yuna’s family. This issue is an improvement on previous issues, since it gives Yuna more of a personality and a supporting cast. However, this series is still sort of underwhelming.  

PROJECT: CRYPTID #6 (Ahoy, 2024) – “Cabron,” [W] Matt Bors, [A] Daniel Irizarri. A woman discovers that her wealthy, evil employer is subsisting on chupacabra blood. This story is better than Justice Warriors, Matt Bors’s previous attempt at writing comic books. “Big Shoes to Fill,” [W] Mattie Lubchansky, [A] Maki Naro. A horribly annoying social media influencer encounters a sasquatch. This story is a funny parody of the influencer phenomenon. Project: Cryptid has been extended to 12 issues, making it IDW’s first ongoing series.

THE SIX FINGERS #1 (Image, 2024) – “In the Gaps,” [W] Dan Watters, [A] Sumit Kumar. This is the same story as The One Hand, but told from the perspective of the criminal rather than the detective. Johannes is a grad student in architecture who moonlights as a sanitation worker.  Because of his exposure to mutagens at his job, he grows an extra finger. It’s hard to feel much sympathy for him, because he’s a complete prick; when his girlfriend breaks up with him, he predicts what she’s about to say, without giving her the chance to say it himself. After that, Jonas starts killing people. It’s going to be interesting reading The One Hand and The Six Fingers in tandem.

SHUTTER #29 (Image, 2017) – untitled, [W] /Joe Keatinge, [A] Leila Del Duca. A flashforward story detailing the future lives of the main characters. Notably, Kate’s friend dies of cancer, and then Kate gets pregnant and has a baby. This is a touching issue, but I don’t remember who any of the characters are.

HELLBLAZER #79 (Vertigo, 1994) – “Rake at the Gates of Hell Part 2,” [W] Garth Ennis, [A] Steve Dillon. Tower Hamlets is about to be embroiled in race riots. Constantine tries to save a junkie friend, Helen, from herself, but he’s unable to prevent a villain from entering her hotel room. The First of the Fallen kills the other two lords of hell. This issue includes some very powerful writing. It’s a real pity that Garth Ennis squandered the talent he displayed in this series.

PLANETARY #12 (Wildstorm, 2000) – “Memory Cloud,” [W] Warren Ellis, [A] John Cassaday.  The title of this issue is probably a reference to cloud-based storage; the word “cloud” was already being used in that sense in 2000. In this issue Elijah Snow realizes that his memory has been selectively edited by the Four, and that he himself is Planetary’s unknown fourth member (so in fact there are only three members). There’s also a flashback where Elijah meets Sherlock Holmes. This scene is revisited next issue. Planetary uses fake names for characters such as the Fantastic Four, Doc Savage, and Tarzan, but it refers to Sherlock Holmes by his original name, since he’s in the public domain.

TONGUES #3 (Fantagraphics, 2019) – “Might and Violence” etc., [W/A] Anders Nilsen. In the opening sequence, it becomes clear that the Prisoner is Prometheus, and the Swan King is Zeus, who’s torturing Prometheus in order to learn the name of the person who will overthrow him. I was surprised to realize that Tongues is a fantasy story based on Greek mythology. I guess I assumed it was a work of surrealism or absurdism or something. Its plot structure seems more conventional than I would expect from an alternative comic. Anyway, there are also some plotlines involving Teddy Roosevelt and Astrid, who seems to be the real protagonist. As before, Anders Nilsen’s art and design work are amazing, and thankfully this series has fewer unreadable night scenes than issue 2 did.

BLACK ORCHID #3 (DC, 1989) – untitled, [W] Neil Gaiman, [A] Dave McKean. Flora and Suzy make it to the Brazilian Amazon, but Carl and Luthor’s goons follow them there. In the resulting encounter, Carl is killed, and Flora sends the other henchmen back to Luthor to tell him to stay away from her. This is a beautiful miniseries, although it’s less accomplished than Gaiman and McKean’s later work.

ANIMAL MAN #57 (Vertigo, 1993) – “Wild Bunch,” [W] Jamie Delano, [A] Steve Pugh. Buddy takes Cliff and Maxine to the mall, and Maxine causes a riot in a pet store, but oddly, this scene is portrayed as a touching moment of family bonding. Also, Ellen is implied to be having an affair. This is perhaps the only comic I’ve read in which Buddy and Ellen are shown having sex (off-panel).

KULL THE DESTROYER #18 (Marel, 1976) – “The Keeper of Flame and Frost!”, [W] Doug Moench, [A] Ed Hannigan. Kull leads the army of Atlantis against an evil wizard. This is a generic fantasy story with a slightly confusing plot, but it’s less bad than I expected from Moench, who I don’t think of as a fantasy writer. He wrote a few Conan stories, but I can’t recall if I’ve read any of them. Ed Hannigan’s artwork in this issue is completely overwhelmed by Alfredo Alcala’s inking.

DOCTOR SOLAR, MAN OF THE ATOM #15 (Gold Key, 1965) – “Doomsday Minus One Minute,” [W] Dick Wood, [A] Frank Bolle. An insane scientist tries to prevent nuclear war by setting off a bomb at the United Nations building. By traveling to the future, Solar discovers that the scientist’s plan is going to cause the very holocaust it was intended to prevent. Solar goes back to the past and prevents the bomb from being set in the first place. While in the past, Solar has a poignant encounter with his love interest Gail, who he can’t marry because of his radioactive body. This is a better comic than I expected, and it’s an effective depiction of ‘60s concerns about nuclear war.

ROCK CANDY MOUNTAIN #7 (Image, 2018) – “The Jungle Fires Were Burning,” [W/A] Kyle Starks. The penultimate chapter of a complicated story about hobos, railroad bulls, and the devil. This series is a bit like Six Sidekicks of Trigger Keaton, but with hobos instead of stuntmen. I don’t know why I didn’t read it when it came out. Kyle Starks is a talented artist, but he seems to have switched to writing stories for other people to illustrate.

HARLEY AND IVY MEET BETTY AND VERONICA #4 (DC, 2018) – untitled, [W] Marc Andreyko & Paul Dini, [A] Laura Braga & Mirka Andolfo. Harley and Ivy have switched bodies with Betty and Veronica, and this leads to a lot of fun confusion. There’s one scene in this issue where Veronica, in Ivy’s body, visits a clothing store and encounters an acquaintance, who refuses to believe that she’s Veronica. This scene was confusing to me because I had assumed that Harley and Ivy existed in a separate world from Betty and Veronica.

TUG & BUSTER #1 (Art & Soul, 1995) – “Babe Quest,” [W/A] Marc Hempel. Tug is a little shrimpy dude who still lives with his mother, and appears to be underage. His friend Buster is a hairy he-man type who never talks. They go out to a bar and try to pick up women. This comic got a lot of acclaim from other alternative cartoonists, but it feels like an immature male sex fantasy, and the women in the comic seem unrealistic. It kind of seems like Buster is a figment of Tug’s imagination, not a real person, but other characters besides Tug are able to see Buster.

CRITTERS #6 (Fantagraphics, 1986) – “Birthright,” [W/A] Steve Gallacci, etc. As usual the Birthright story in this issue is of no interest to me. The main attraction in this issue is an Usagi Yojimbo story, “A Quiet Meal.” Usagi is eating at an inn when some crooks barge in and start harassing the other patrons. Usagi intimidates them by slicing some bugs in half. This story is clever, but the modern Usagi would have intervened much sooner, before the crooks could hurt anyone. There’s one panel that depicts a random three-headed hydra. The issue ends with a funny animal story by Mark Armstrong, who I’ve never heard of, but he draws kind of like Don Rosa. He later did some Spider-Ham stories for Marvel.

TONGUES #4 (Fantagraphics, 2021) – various chapters, [W/A] Anders Nilsen. Astrid gains the assistance of Gyges, one of the Hekatoncheires. There’s also some progress on the various other subplots, Hephaestus appears for the first time (unless he was in issue 1), and some stuff happens that doesn’t make much sense. Bound into the center of the comic is an eight-page minicomic in which Astrid opens the duffel bag she’s been carrying around, and discovers a statue of her own head. Finally, Astrid is renamed to “No One,” implying that she’s playing the role of Odysseus.

PLANETARY #13 (Wildstorm, 2001) – “Century,” as above. In a flashback story, Elijah Snow visits what appears to be Frankenstein’s castle. Then he visits Sherlock Holmes, who is accompanied by Dracula. In Snow’s conversation with Holmes, it becomes clear that Holmes is part of a conspiracy designed to modernize the world. Other members of the conspiracy are Robur, Carnacki, the Invisible Man, and H.G. Wells. Then Holmes agrees to teach Snow his methods, and the flashback panel from last issue is seen again.

INSTANT PIANO #1 (Dark Horse, 1994) – [E] Stephen DiStefano. The highlight of this issue is an Eltingville Club story by Evan Dorkin, where the boys have hteir regular club meeting, and then they all try to masturbate but fail. This story was reprinted in Dork! #6, but that’s one of the two issues of Dork! that I don’t have. Instant Piano #1 also includes a few other Dorkin stories, and some short stories by Kyle Baker. The other stuff in the issue, by Stephen DiStefano, Mark Badger and Robbie Busch, is not nearly as good.

RASL #5 (Cartoon Books, 2009) – untitled, [W/A] Jeff Smith. Rasl spends this issue running around between various realities and sleeping with different women. Rasl is probably the worst of Jeff Smith’s major works. It’s just not unique or interesting.  

APOCALYPSE NERD #1 (Dark Horse, 2005) – untitled, [W/A] Peter Bagge. Two men are vacationing in the Cascade Mountains when they discover that Seattle has been nuked by North Korea. They’re forced to survive in the woods. This is a pretty fun comic. The art and dialogue are in exactly the same style as Bagge’s other works. This issue includes a backup story about John Adams and Benjamin Franklin’s time in Paris. Franklin is shown romancing two young women, which is a bit odd since he famously preferred older women.

LUCIFER #12 (Vertigo, 2001) – “Children & Monsters, Part 3,” [W] Mike Carey, [A] Peter Gross & Ryan Kelly. Los Angeles is attacked by an army of angels. Elaine Belloc and her ghost friend Mona encounter a man who claims to be Elaine’s father. This is an interesting issue, but Lucifer only appears in it very briefly, if at all.

VALKYRIE! #3 (Eclipse, 1987) – “Trial,” [W] Chuck Dixon, [A] Paul Gulacy. The Soviets put Valkyrie on trial for allegedly leading a raid on civilians during World War II. Valkyrie claims that the raid happened after she left the Airmaidens, but this defense is rejected for lack of evidence. Valkyrie’s friends find the old woman who really led the raid. She testifies at the trial and gets Valkyrie exonerated, then commits suicide in custody. This is a touching story.

WRAITH #3 (IDW, 2013) – untitled, [W] Joe Hill, [A] C.P. Wilson III. The Wraith leads some criminals to Christmasland. This is the worst Joe Hill comic I’ve ever read. I had to check to make sure he really did write it, because it didn’t seem like him. The main problem is that each of the word balloons and captions is way too long, and so the comic is cumbersome and annoying to read. The reason may be that this comic originated as a deleted section of Hill’s novel NOS4A2. Perhaps when Hill reworked this material as a comic script, he neglected to rewrite the dialogue in a style that was appropriate to comics.

PRISM STALKER #4 (Image, 2018) – untitled, [W/A] Sloane Leong. The protagonist is about to  flunk out of her school, and she has to master her psychic powers. What’s most striking about this comic is its bizarre depictions of aliens. There’s also a notable scene where the protagonist meets some fellow humans who belong to a tribe related to hers, but they rebuff her efforts at friendship, because their tribe is prejudiced against hers.

LETTER 44 #8 (Oni, 2014) – untitled, [W] Charles Soule, [A] Alberto Jimenez Alburquerque. In order to make short work of the war in Afghanistan, President Blades deploys some secret U.S. military technology, despite knowing this will lead to hostile international reactions. We also learn that newborn Astra is developing strangely, and that the crew’s doctor is keeping this a secret.

TONGUES #5 (Fantagraphics, 2022) – “The Prisoner’s Visitors” etc., [W/A] Anders Nilsen. Prometheus receives a visitor who I can’t identify, and there’s a flashback explaining the origin of modern humanity. Astrid tries to open the mysterious box that serves as the series’s McGuffin, but Zeus comes and takes it. Prometheus is finally freed when a plane crashes into his mountaintop. Just one issue to go before I’m caught up. Tongues is a fascinating work, and it’s going to compete for awards when it’s released in book form.

TRENT V3 (Dargaud/Cinebook, 1993/2017) – “When the Lamps Are Lit,” [W] Rodolphe, [A] Leo. Tired of his solitary life as a Canadian Mountie, Philip Trent travels to Providence, Rhode Island to propose to his old girlfriend, only to discover that she’s married someone else. (I lived in Providence for four years, and the depiction of Providence in this comic doesn’t look accurate to me.) Devastated, Trent goes back to Canada and becomes a hopeless drunk. It turns out that his drunken dissipation is a façade, and he’s actually working undercover to apprehend a gang that’s been stealing from elderly people. Trent returns to his job, but is still sad to be alone. Trent (the series) is an effective example of the Western genre, though it’s techincally a Northern, since it’s set in Canada. Leo’s linework is not flashy, but he does a great job of depicting historical scenes in a realistic way. I last encountered Leo in a completely different series, The Worlds of Aldebaran.

And we’re done. I need to write these reviews more frequently, so I don’t have as many comics to get through at once.  

Last reviews of 2023 and first of 2024

12-28

Last reviews of the year. Starting with some comics I can barely remember reading:

SPIDER-BOY #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “An Urban Myth or a Monster Among Us?”, [W] Dan Slott, [A] Paco Medina. Spider-Boy fights a monster called Hellifino, which is the punchline to an old joke (what do you call a cross between an elephant and a rhino?). There’s also a backup story where Spider-Boy teams up with Squirrel Girl. This story includes Thanksgiving parade balloons that look like Planet Terry, Forbush Man and other Marvel humor characters.

PHANTOM ROAD #6 (Image, 2023) – “Monsters Don’t Make Campfires,” [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Gabriel Hernandez Walta. Theresa and Deputy Donnie continue investigating, while Dom and Birdie fight a horde of zombies. This comic is always an entertaining though quick read.

STARSIGNS #6 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Megan Levens. While escaping the bad guys, the good guys stop to smoke a joint (except the mother and child), and they encounter another new Starsign. Meanwhile, Cathy is tortured to death, and Dan, previously a despicable character, realizes he’s on the wrong side.

POISON IVY #16 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] G. Wilow Wilson, [A] Marcio Takara. This issue is mostly about a man named Chuck who was one of the incidental victims of Ivy’s lamia plague. The story follows him as he gradually gets worse and worse until he turns into a zombie. One reason why this series is effective is because of its emphasis on the regular people who get caught up in Ivy’s schemes. Also, Ivy has a telepathic encounter with the flower-headed villain, Undine.

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES #145 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Sophie Campbell, [A] Vincenzo Federici. Donatello, Venus, and Bob the mandrill (a character from the Archie continuity) perform a time travel experiment. Bob’s future self comes back in time and tells Bob’s present self to sabotage the experiment. Thanks to Bob’s sabotage, Donatello accidentally causes a prehistoric shark to transform into Armaggon, the very creature that Donatello has been terrified of. This is a reasonably good issue, but I would rather it had included more of the supporting cast.

IT’S JEFF! THE JEFF-VERSE #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “Midnight Snack” etc., [W] Kelly Thompson, [A] GuriHiru. A series of short pantomime stories where Jeff the land shark interacts with other Marvel characters. The best story is the one where Jeff teams up with the Pet Avengers to save some animals from a cruel pet store. These two Jeff one-shots are among the most fun comics Marvel has published lately, and GuriHiru’s storytelling is crystal clear despite the lack of spoken dialogue.

2000 AD #2335 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: “In the Event of My Untimely Demise Part 4,” [W] Mike Carroll, [A] Paul Marshall. One faction of criminals manipulates the Judges into defeating their enemies. Like many of Mike Carroll’s stories, “In the Event…” is overcomplicated and hard to follow. Void Runners: “Part 2,” [W] David Hine, [A] Boo Cook. Captain Shikari discovers a giant Pleroma, an alien that produces dust whose users can predict the future. Boo Cook’s art in this series is brilliant, particularly the coloring. Durham Red: “Mad Dogs 10,” [W] Alec Worley, [A] Ben Willsher. Durham has a flashback to her first sight of Johnny Alpha, and she continues her pursuit of Kanka. Enemy Earth: “Book 2 Part 10,” [W] Cavan Scott, [A] Luke Horsman. Jessica sacrifices her life so that Zoe and Julius can escape from the Cthulhu worshipper’s ship. Frankly I don’t miss her. Rogue Trooper: “Blighty Valley Part 10,” [W] Garth Ennis, [A] Patrick Goddard. Nothing really happens in this chapter except for some conversation.

CAPTAIN GINGER: THE LAST FEEDER #1 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Stuart Moore, [A] June Brigman. The previous Captain Ginger series was cancelled midway through and was completed as a trade paperback, so I’m very glad that this new series was published in periodical form again. In this issue the cats and dogs discover the last surviving feeder, which is what the cats call humans. I love Captain Ginger because it’s such a perfect depiction of cats; it captures how cats are both dignified and ridiculous at once. My favorite moment in this issue is when the human tells Captain Ginger not to come too close to her, because she’s mildly allergic.

ABBOTT 1979 #2 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Sami Kivelä. After being arrested for disturbing the peace, Abbott encounters the ghost of her old friend Sebastian. He tells Abbott that she needs to defeat some kind of force of darkness. I suppose that this “darkness” is a metaphor for the pervasive sense of malaise that was gripping the nation in the late ‘70s. The previous issue of this series was very bleak and depressing, but this issue feels more hopeful.

DAREDEVIL #2 (Marvel, 2023) – “Introductory Rites Part 2,” [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Aaron Kuder. Matt and his orphans are harassed by the police, and Matt works out his anger by beating up some criminals. He figures out that his old friend Ben Urich is somehow behind the conspiracy against his orphanage. So far, Saladin Ahmed has achieved the extremely difficult task of creating an original take on Daredevil. This is the first Daredevil story I’ve read, other than Born Again, where the primary emphasis is on Matt’s religious identity.

MY LITTLE PONY CLASSICS REIMAGINED: THE UNICORN OF ODD #3 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jeremy Whitley, [A] Jenna Ayoub. This issue begins with the poppy field and ends with the Wicked Witch of the West being melted. The Wizard of Oz appears to be Trixie, the Wicked Witch is Queen Chrysalis, and Rainbow Dash appears as the leader of the flying monkeys, though she complains about not having a bigger part. We still haven’t seen Twilight Sparkle. This series, like Little Fillies, is incredibly fun, mostly because of the metatextual jokes. There is a lecturer at my school who does research on Oz adaptations, though I haven’t met her yet.

G.O.D.S. #2 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jonathan Hickman, [A] Valerio Schiti. We are introduced to the Centum, 100 people who are responsible for “studying magic from the perspective of science,” and they recruit a human woman named Mia into their ranks. This issue makes a lot more sense than the previous issue did, and Mia is an effective POV character. Part of this issue takes place in the Columbia University library. However, I am told, by someone who knows Columbia’s libraries very well, that there is no library interior on that campus that looks like the one in this comic.

PETROL HEAD #1 (Image, 2023) – “Welcome to the Non-Human Race,” [W] Rob Williams, [A] Pye Parr. In a dystopian future city, a major form of entertainment was street races between robots called Petrol Heads, until all of the Petrol Heads were  destroyed by the city’s totalitarian rulers. Some years later, the last surviving Petrol Head encounters a scientist and his daughter, who have stolen a potentially world-changing secret. This is a strong debut issue. In particular, the action scenes are thrilling, and the coloring is beautful. Both the creators are veterans of 2000 AD, and this story would have fit in well in that magazine.

GAY COMIX #7 (Bob Ross, 1986) – [E] Robert Triptow. This was part of a mycomicshop.com order. I feel guilty for ordering from that site, given the owner’s conservative views, and I probably won’t do it again for a while. The main reason I did it was because they had three issues of Gay Comix, a very hard series to find. Of the artists in this issue, the only ones I was previously familiar with are Tim Barela, Roberta Gregory and Jennifer Camper, and each of them only did one-pagers. The other stories in the issue are somewhat amateurish, but at least they’re written and drawn with great enthusiasm. On Gay Comix in general, and Roberta Gregory and Lee Marrs’s contributions to it in particular, see Margaret Galvan’s recent book In Visible Archives.

THE FLASH #772 (DC, 2021) – “Job Hunt,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Will Conrad. Wally needs to get a job, but has no marketable skills, and also has large gaps on his resume. Luckily Mr. Terrifc gives him a job at Terrifictech. Also, Heat Wave is diagnosed with terminal cancer, so he decides to fight the Flash one last time. I only began collecting this Flash series this year, and now I have all but one issue.

 PRINCELESS: TALES OF THE FAMILY ASHE #1 (Action Lab, 2013) – “The Princess’s New Clothes” etc., [W] Jeremy Whitley, [A] Adriana Blake. This is one of the most obscure Princeless comics. It consists of three short stories about Adrianne’s parents and two of her sisters. I really miss Princeless. Unfortunately its rights are currently tied up with the ongoing Action Lab lawsuit. The last I heard, the plaintiffs voluntarily dismissed the lawsuit in order to file it again in state court, but that was back in August.

2000 AD #2336 (Rebellion, 2023) – Cadet Dredd: “Animal Instincts,” [W] Liam Johnson, [A] Neil Cameron. Dredd and Rico investigate a scientist who’s trying to hybridize humans and animals, and they also engage in a lot of bickering with each other. Dredd’s sibling relationship with Rico in these stories helps to humanize him a little. In the adult Dredd stories, Dredd rarely seems to care about anyone. Lowborn High: “Buried Secrets,” [W] David Barnett, [A] Mike Walters. Two of the kids, Ali and Zack, get trapped in a cave full of monsters, and we  learn how they both ended up at Lowborn High. There’s also a subplot about a conspiracy among the teachers. Lowborn High is my favorite 2000 AD story of this year. Future Shocks: “Tempus Fugitives,” [W] Geoffrey D. Wessel, [A] Zander Cannon. A family of time travelers is trying to hide from temporal bounty hunters. This one is pretty cute. I assume ths is Zander Cannon’s first story for 2000 AD. Finder & Keeper: “The Substitute,” [W] John Reppion, [A] Davide Tinto. A story about two high school students who have accidentally discovered some ghost-hunting tools. This story is continued from earlier Regened progs that I didn’t read. John Reppion is Alan Moore’s son-in-law.

WHITE WIDOW #1 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Sarah Gailey, [A] Alessandro Miracolo. Yelena Belova, aka White Widow, moves to a new town that’s being taken over by an evil corporation. Her violent career as an assassin is juxtaposed with her attempts to get to know her new neighbors. This comic is better than I expected, given my lack of interest in Yelena as a character. She has some funny interactions with her neighbors, and it’s fun to see her trying to adjust to a “normal” life.

TRAVELING TO MARS #9 (Ablaze, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell, [A] Roberto Dakar Meli. The robots explain to Roy why they perpetuated the natural gas hoax: they wanted to lure a human to Mars, so they could ask why they were created and then abandoned. Along with Second Coming, Traveling to Mars is probably Mark Russell’s greatest work – and like Second Coming, Traveling to Mars is about religion, sort of. However, Traveling to Mars’s story is too decompressed.  

FIELDER #2 (Fantagraphics, 2023) – “Maps and Calendars” etc., [W/A] Kevin Huizenga. A series of short slice-of-life stories, many of them starring Glenn Ganges. In one of these stories, Glenn is recovering from cancer; in others he’s a professional cartoonist who attends SPX. It’s not clear that all the people named Glenn Ganges in Huizenga’s stories are necessarily the same character. Glenn is not necessarily supposed to be a consistent character with a specfic history (for instance, in “The Feathered Ogre,” the story that gave its title to this blog, he has a child, but I don’t think this child is ever mentioned again). I remember reading an interview where Huizenga said he considered giving Glenn a different wife than Wendy, although I can’t find this interview anymore. None of the stories in this issue particularly stand out in my memory, but this issue is another beautiful piece of work by one of my favorite current cartoonists. I’ve done research on Huizenga before, but that was over a decade ago, and I would like to write more about him someday.

DAMN THEM ALL #10 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Charlie Adlard. Ellie visits the Houses of Parliament, and meets some villains who are using the demon Asmoday to manipulate the public. Ellie’s friend Cillian uses Ellie as a Trojan horse to defeat these villains. I’m enjoying this series, but I find it extremely confusing. I can never remember who all the demons are, or what they can do, or who is on which side. I suspect this series would read better in collected form.

FLAMING CARROT COMICS #8 (Renegade, 1985) – “To Dream… Perchance to Live!”, [W/A] Bob Burden. The Carrot has a bizarre journey through a series of alternate dimensions, and then he wakes up in a hospital bed, covered in bandages. This issue is a series of absurd non-sequiturs, but so is every other issue of Flaming Carrot. It was only recently that I started to actively look for Flaming Carrot comics, and I haven’t found very many of them.

GAY COMIX #8 (Bob Ross, 1986) – [E] Robert Triptow. This is a superhero-themed issue. It’s published in flipbook format; the backup cover shows a scene set on Bizarro World, with a logo that says Yag Tragix. This issue includes mostly unknown artists, other than Jennifer Camper. There are no contributions from Gregory, Cruse or Barela. As with issue 7, the stories are of varying quality, but they all show great passion. One of the stories in this issue is by two French creators, Patrick Marcel and Jean-Pierre Brèque. By coincidence, earlier today Jean-Paul Gabilliet made a Facebook post about a very rare 1982 album by these creators, Le Cinquième Coin du Monde. I don’t know anything else about these creators.

SPIRIT WORLD #6 (DC, 2023) – “The Promise of Eternity,” [W] Alyssa Wong, [A] Haining. I don’t know what happened in this issue. This was a very disappointing series. I wanted to like it, but it ended up being confusing and pointless.

WHAT IF? DARK: TOMB OF DRACULA #1 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Marv Wolfman, [A] David Cutler. An alternate version of Tomb of Dracula. I felt obligated to buy this one-shot because Tomb of Dracula is one of the finest Marvel comics ever. But I was unsurprised to discover that this issue was not nearly as good as the original series. Tomb of Dracula is 50 years old now, and its style of writing now feels outdated. And David Cutler is no match for the late Gene Colan.

BLAKE & MORTIMER VOL. 7 (Catalan, 1956/1990) – “The Atlantis Mystery,” [W/A] Edgar-Pierre Jacobs. Due to the machinations of their archenemy Olrik, Blake and Mortimer find themselves trapped in the lost city of Atlantis, where they discover a plot to overthrow the king. After a series of very complicated plot twists, Atlantis is destroyed, and the Atlanteans leave Earth for space. This was one of three Blake & Mortimer albums that were published by Catalan. I’ve already read the other two. I believe Cinebook has now published the entire classic series, as well as most of the continuations by other artists. Blake & Mortimer is one of my favorite Franco-Belgian comics, though it’s hard to say just why. It has brilliant artwork, exciting plots, and a generally optimistic attitude, and while the two protagonists are somewhat wooden, they act as effective foils to each other. A notable feature of this album is its extreme wordiness. Almost all the panels have caption boxes, many of which are redundant, and when there isn’t a caption box, there’s often a giant word balloon instead. It’s also worth noting that Blake & Mortimer’s world is entirely male. I don’t think this comic includes a single line of dialogue spoken by a female character. This appears to have been due to censorship imposed by the Journal de Tintin.

THE FLASH #773 (DC, 2021) – “First Day on the Job,” as above. Wally fights Heat Wave again and discovers that he (Heat Wave) has cancer, and he gets through his first day on the job. On the last page, Heat Wave is recruited by Amanda Waller. Not much else happens in this issue.

PRINCELESS: TALES OF GIRLS WHO ROCK #1 (Action Lab, 2013) – “The Girl with the Giveaway Ears,” [W] Jeremy Whitley, [A] Tara Abbamondi. Another one-shot consisting of three short stories, each starring different peripheral characters from the series. The first story has some cute art that reminds me of John Allison, but the other two stories are ineffectively drawn. This issue shows off Whitley’s excellent worldbuilding.

X-MEN RED #17 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Avatar of Life,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Yildiray Cinar. Storm obviously decides not to commit genocide. Then she creates a new living island called Kaorak, another anagram of Krakoa. I suggested on Facebook the other day that Al Ewing should write an ongoing Storm series, since X-Men Red is pretty much a Storm solo series anyway. But someone objected that it would be bad optics for a white man to write the adventures of Marvel’s flagship black female character, and I think that’s a valid point.

2000 AD #2337 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: as #2335 above. Dredd meets with a crimelord in a stadium, but the other crimelords blow the stadium up. Void Runners: as above. Captain Shikari and her companions travel inside the Pleroma. Captain Shikari has a beard, but uses female pronouns. Durham Red: as above. Durham finally captures Kanka, and he tries to talk her out of killing him. Azimuth: “A Job for Suzi Nine Part 1,” [W] Dan Abnett, [A] Tazio Bettin. In the city of Azimuth, a “Cadavatar” named Suzi Nine is offered a job by two twin deities. Dan Abnett’s dialogue in this story is full of puns; for instance, there’s a character named Nestor Vipers (nest of vipers). Tazio Bettin’s art is full of bizarre details. Azimuth appears to be a new story, but is later revealed to be a continuation of a different long-running series, as will be explained below. Rogue Trooper: as above. While Rogue and the World War I troops are fighting the Norts, the British soldiers have a vision of an enormous war cemetery. “Blighty Valley” is Garth Ennis’s best story in recent memory, but it seems as if war comics are the only thing he does anymore, other than stupid crap like Jimmy’s Bastards or All-Star Section Eight.

SANTOS SISTERS HALLOWEEN SPECIAL #1 (American Nature, 2023) – “Frankendirk” etc., [W/A] Greg & Fake. A series of interrelated horror-themed stories, with special guest stars Cassie Hack and Vlad, Gutt Ghost, and Mercy Sparx. This was the first Santos Sisters comic I really liked, although I no longer remember just what I liked about it. This issue offers a nice mix of humor and creepiness, and it’s full of visual Easter eggs.

UNTOLD TALES OF I HATE FAIRYLAND #5 (Image, 2023) – “Fairy Road,” [W/A] Scott Brown, [W] David DelGrosso, etc. The first story this issue is just a litany of pointless mayhem, though to be fair, that description also applies to the regular I Hate Fairyland series. The backup story, “Judge Gerty” by Derek Laufman, is better. As community service, Gert is forced to judge a legal case. She makes a horrible decision, gets angry at the two parties for looking at her funny, and kills them both.

PLANETOID PRAXIS #4 (Image, 2017) – untitled, [W/A] Ken Garing. Onica’s daughter Zuri is offered the opportunity to study abroad. The Heliocor company continues trying to exercise imperial domination over the Slab, and in the end they use a giant sunshield to prevent the Slab residents from getting any sunlight. This is a good issue, though it’s been a while since I read the earlier issues of this miniseries, and I don’t remember much about the characters.

SAINTED LOVE #2 (Vault, 2023) – untitled, [W] Steve Orlando, [A] Giopota. John is wounded while fighting anti-gay fascists, but recovers, and he and Mac have lots of sex. They leave the club in the hands of some local allies. I believe these are Barbara Gittings, Marlene Dietrich, Audre Lorde, Reed Erickson, James Baldwin, Bayard Rustin, and Christine Jorgensen. Then Mac and John use the Chronocollars again. I expected them to go forward in time again, but instead they go back to Roman times, where they meet St. Sergius, the “gay saint.” Steve Orlando’s work is uneven and sometimes even bad, but Sainted Love may be his masterpiece. It’s a powerful story about gay oppression, but it’s also funny and sexy.

SUPERGIRL SPECIAL #1 (DC, 2023) – “Two Steps,” [W] Mariko Tamaki, [A] Skylar Partridge. This is a spiritual sequel to Tamaki’s Supergirl: Being Super, though it stars a different version of the character. This Supergirl grew up in Argo City, and this issue is largely about her trauma over the destruction of her home. It also deals with Supergirl’s complex relationship with Power Girl, who is essentially the same character as her, both in-universe and in the real world (Power Girl was created as the Earth-2 counterpart to Supergirl. In this issue, as in her (She-)Hulk run, Tamaki writes very powerfully about a character who is dealing with trauma.

I still haven’t gotten her latest graphic novel, Roaming, but I probably should; it’s appeared on a lot of year-end lists.

THE FLASH #787 (DC, 2022) – “Time to Shine!”, [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Fernando Pasarin. Some aliens use Central City as a venue for their intergalactic wrestling championship. Though he’s exhausted from his busy schedule as a father, superhero and scientist, Wally finds himself participating in wrestling matches as a partner of a purple alien named Omega Bam Man. Afterward, Wally realizes how lucky he is, despite his immense responsiblities. This is an extremely fun issue of the best Flash comic since Mark Waid’s first run.

DARK SPACES: HOLLYWOOD SPECIAL #3 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jeremy Lambert, [A] Claire Roe. Viv has a series of horrific visions, many of them involving her daughter. Then she emerges from the tunnel, but without the missing girl, Molly. My store did not pull issue 4 of this series for me, and I don’t really mind, because it’s just an average comic. It has good artwork, but its plot and characters are not truly compelling or original.

NO/ONE #6 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kyle Higgins & Brian Buccellato, [A] Geraldo Borges. After a lot of dramatic encounters between the various characters, No/One fights a man in a copycat version of his costume, and is seriously hurt. I like this series, but its plot is too complicated, and it has too many characters. Perhaps it could have been a few issues shorter.

DYLAN DOG #70 (Bonelli, 1992) – “Il bosco degli assassini,” [W] Claudio Chiaverotti, [A] Gianluigi Coppola. Dylan battles a gang of brutal assassins who are trying to kill his client, Meggan Page, since she’s the only witness to their acts. This comic is a brutal piece of slasher horror; it’s far bloodier than the other Dylan Dog issues I’ve read. It includes one scene where a little girl’s father’s head explodes, her mother is hanged, and then the girl herself is poisoned with an arsenic lollipop. There’s also a strange scene with a Woody Allen lookalike who uses a crystal ball for divination. This is the first Dylan Dog comic I’ve read in which Dylan doesn’t sleep with his female client, although in this case it’s because his client is completely covered in bandages.

GINSENG ROOTS #12 (Uncivilized, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Craig Thompson. This final issue is a sort of epilogue to, and commentary upon, the entire series. It’s a thoughtful piece of work with beautiful artwork and coloring, and I think it’s Thompson’s best work since Carnet de Voyage – although I haven’t read Space Dumplins or Habibi, and I’m not sure I want to read the latter. One disturbing thing about this issue is Craig’s evident affection for his parents. Craig may have forgiven his parents for his repressive upbringing, but as a reader of his work, I only know his parents from his negative depiction of them in Blankets, and I find it impossible to sympathize with them now.

FACELESS AND THE FAMILY #1 (Oni, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Matt Lesniewski. On a bizarre fantasy planet shaped like a hand, several different characters team up to try to get into the  exclusive “Pinky Town,” each for their own reasons. Matt Lesniewski previously drew Matt Kindt’s miniseries Crimson Flower, where his artwork was beautiful, but somewhat unsuited to Kindt’s plot. Here Lesniewski is able to develop a story that fits his style, and his artwork is phenomenal. His linework is so fine and detailed that it’s hard to tell if it was done with pencil or pen, and his bizarrely proportioned characters seem appropriate to the bizarre nature of the series’ world.

2000 AD #2338 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: as above. Dredd escapes the explosion, of course, and goes looking for survivors. Void Runners: as above. Shikari discovers that the Pleroma includes enough dust to keep the empire running forever. That means Shikari herself is no longer necessary, and the imperial troops prepare to kill her. Durham Red: as above. Durham gets Kanka to reveal everything he knows, then leaves him to be eaten by monsters. Azimuth: as above. Suzi begins working on her assignment, and there are more puns and more excellent art. Rogue Trooper: as above. The fighting starts, and one of the soldiers has a vision of a future space war.

CANARY #1 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Scott Snyder, [A] Dan Panosian. In 1891, U.S. Marshal William Holt investigates a murder. The murder is somehow connected to an old enemy of his, Hyrum Tell, and also to the town of Canary, which has a curse that turns people into murderers. A subtheme of the comic is racism: on his initial visit to Canary, Holt is accompanied by a black geologist who is subjected to constant racist microaggressions. Canary is a creative blend of the Western and horror genres, but it’s not as immediately compelling as Clear or Barnstormers. Like both those series, Canary is a cumbersome reading experience, and this issue would have been easier to read if it were divided into two issues. However, at $4.99, it’s essentially two comics for the price of one

BATTLE ACTION #3 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredger: “O Mother, Where Art Thou?”, [W] Garth Ennis, [A] John Higgins. A brutally violent crime comic, whose climax occurs when the hero crushes a man with a steam shovel. Dredger originated in Action, and its extreme violence contributed to the public outcry that led to Action’s cancellation, so it makes sense that Ennis and Higgins’s story here is similarly violent. Major Eazy: “The Devil’s Garden,” [W] Rob Williams, [A] Henry Flint. A war story set in WWII North Africa, starring a laid-back, carefree officer. Major Eazy was originally published in Battle Picture Weekly from 1976 to 1978, and ended when the artist, Carlos Ezquerra, left to work on Strontium Dog for Starlord.

ACTION COMICS #808 (DC, 2003) – “Hungry Ghosts,” [W] Joe Kelly, [A] Pascual Ferry. While Superman is unconscious, a number of female characters fight over him. Pascual Ferry’s artwork in this issue is excellent, but I can’t understand Kelly’s plot at all.

CHEVAL NOIR #40 (Dark Horse, 1993) – [E] Jennie Bricker. This issue’s lead story is a chapter of Masashi Tanaka’s Demon. For some reason Cheval Noir published two of Tanaka’s short stories, even though, first, Cheval Noir was supposed to be an anthology of European comics, and second, neither of these stories were worth translating. “Demon” is just a generic samurai story, and it has nothing in common with Tanaka’s major work, Gon. The other long story in this issue is a chapter of Andreas’s Rork album Starlight. This chapter doesn’t make sense on its own, and Andreas’s work was meant to be seen in color. Besides these stories, there’s also a four-page installment of Moebius’s Man from the Ciguri, and short pieces by Rick Geary, Phil Elliott and Tom McWeeney.

CAPTAIN AMERICA #366 (Marvel, 1990) – “Remote Control,” [W] Mark Gruenwald, [A] Ron Lim. In an Acts of Vengeance crossover, Captain America battles the Controller and the Voice. This issue includes the infamous panel where the sound of Cap throwing his shield at the Controller is represented as WANK. Another significant moment in this issue is when Magneto discovers that the Red Skull, his fellow member of the Acts of Vengeance conspirators, is the same man as the Nazi supervillain of that name. In the following issue, Magneto, a Holocaust survivor, takes his revenge on the Skull by burying him alive.

COPPERHEAD #11 (Image, 2017) – untitled, [W] Jay Faerber, [A] Drew Moss. The issue begins with a cute moment between Clara’s son and his friend, an artificially created human. Then Clara tries to investigate a murder case, but her partner, Budroxifinicus, agrees to sabotage her investigation in exchange for being appointed the town’s mayor. The other day I was looking for examples of comics in the space Western genre, and Copperhead appears to be the most prominent such comic, although there was a 1952 Charlton series that was actually called Space Western.

LES 7 VIES DE L’ÉPERVIER VOL. 1 (Glénat, 1983) – “La Blanche Morte,” [W] Patrick Cothias, [A] André Juillard. We begin with a scene set in 1601, depicting the birth of two children. One is the future Louis XIII, and the other is the daughter of a woman who flees her abusive husband, then freezes to death after giving birth. Eight years later, the French court is troubled by a mysterious man in a red mask, who is actually the uncle (and suspected illegitimate father) of the girl born in the opening sequence. This first volume is mostly setup, but it’s a fascinating start, and Juillard’s Clear Line-influenced art is gorgeous. This series apparently began as a spinoff of the same authors’ series Masquerouge, but both Masquerouge and 7 Vies were subsequently incorporated into a massive shared universe consisting of 55 albums and ten series. Here is an image of all or most of the comics in this universe. Along with Les Passagers du Vent, reviewed above, Les 7 Vies de l’Épervier helped turn historical fiction into a major genre of French comics. AFAIK, Juillard’s only works available in English are some Blake & Mortimer albums, and the diptych The Blue Notebook and After the Rain, both of which I’ve read already.

SCENE OF THE CRIME #4 (Vertigo, 1999) – “A Little Piece of Goodnight Part 4,” [W] Ed Brubaker, [A] Michael Lark. Jack Herriman finally solves the disappearance and murder of Maggie Jordan, and discovers that at the bottom of the case is a sordid history of child sexual abuse. It’s too bad that Scene of the Crime ended with this issue. It was a compelling detective series, and I liked Jack’s relationship with his uncle Kurt. However, Brubaker and Lark both went on to bigger and better things.

MADMAN COMICS #5 (Dark Horse, 1995) – “Comes the Blast!”, [W/A] Mike Allred. Madman dreams about an Irish terrorist named Mick Monihan who gains superpowers. Then he meets another of the Three Nephites, then there’s a cameo appearance by Hellboy, and the issue ends with a fight between Madman and Monihan. A fun and weird issue.

2000 AD #570 (Fleetway, 1988) – Rogue Trooper: “Hit Two,” [W] Simon Geller, [A] Steve Dillon. With Venus’s help, Rogue escapes from his second successful assassination. Strontium Dog: “Stone Killers Part 11,” [W] Alan Grant, [A] Carlos Ezquerra. Johnny, Middenface and Durham fight some alien criminals with stone bodies. They learn that the criminals were hired by a certain Gurt Morlock, and Johnny and Durham go off to confront him. Dredd: “Dredd in Oz Part 26,” [W] John Wagner & Alan Grant, [A] Jim Baikie. Chopper loses the race to Jug McKenzie in a photo finish, then refuses to surrender to Dredd, even to save his own life. When Dredd shoots at the fleeing Chopper, McKenzie spoils Dredd’s shot and saves Chopper’s life, and the local Australian police protect McKenzie from Dredd’s reprisals. The story ends with Chopper having lost the race, but won his freedom. “Dredd in Oz” is one of the classic Dredd stories. Future Shocks: “Disconnected,” [W] Jon Murphy, [A] Massimo Belardinelli. A man’s sunlght is cut off because he hasn’t paid his bills. Then the same thing happens with his reality, his time, and finally his existence.

KORG: 70,000 BC #4 (Charlton, 1975) – untitled, [W/A] Pat Boyette. While looking for his missing children, Korg encounters a gorgon. This comic isn’t actively bad, but there are much better caveman comics.

RARE BIT FIENDS #6 (King Hell, 1994) – untitled, [W/A] Rick Veitch. A “story” based on the creator’s dreams. The trouble with adapting one’s dreams into a narrative is that dreams don’t follow narrative logic, and this comic is a tedious series of absurd non sequiturs. Rick Veitch has somehow managed to keep this comic going for 25 issues, but I’m not sure why anyone would be interested in it besides Veitch himself. This issue includes a backup story by Aleksandar Zograf.

KILL OR BE KILLED #9 (Image, 2017) – untitled, [W] Ed Brubaker, [A] Sean Phillips. While buying drugs, Dylan is ambushed by some Russian gangsters. He manages to escape with his life, but his dealer, Rex, is shot, and Dylan feels obligated to drop Rex off at the hospital. Rex dies anyway, and Dylan is caught on camera, though he has a mask on. Besides Criminal, Kill or Be Killed might be my favorite Brubaker/Phillips collaboration, thanks mostly to its thrilling plot and compelling protagonist. I don’t have the same passion for The Fade Out, Fatale, Incognito or Sleeper.

MARTHA WASHINGTON SAVES THE WORLD #1 (Dark Horse, 1997) – “Comin’ In on a Wing and a Prayer,” [W] Frank Miller, [A] Dave Gibbons. While Martha is on a mission in space, her AI pilot, Venus, takes over the ship and kills her passengers. When Martha gets back to Earth, no one is willing to believe her claims that Venus is evil, not even Martha’s boyfriend Wasserstein. Martha goes back into space on a mission to observe an asteroid collision, but this, too, is part of Venus’s plot. After reading this issue I really want to know what happens next. However, Dave Gibbons’s beautiful artwork in this comic is badly hurt by ugly, outdated  digital coloring. This comic looks more outdated than Gibbons’s 2000 AD stories from twenty years prior.

RADIOACTIVE MAN VOL. 2 #8 (Bongo, 2003) – “The Official Movie Adaptation,” [W] Batton Lash, [A] Jason Ho & Bill Morrison. An adaptation of a nonexistent Radioactive Man movie, possibly the same one that was filmed in the season 7 Simpsons episode “Radioactive Man.” This comic is an obvious parody of the 1989 Batman movie, but other than that it’s played fairly straight, and it doesn’t have a lot of truly funny moments.

MADMAN ALL-NEW GIANT-SIZE SUPER-GINCHY SPECIAL! #1 (Image, 2011) – “If I Should Live to See the Day I Die!”, [W/A] Mike Allred. Madman fights a villain named Cadaver and has a vision where he’s falling endlessly, but he’s saved by the Atomics. This story takes up less than half the issue, and after that there are three Madman stories by guest artists: Emi Lenox, Matt Kindt and Tonci Zonjic. (The latter artist’s story in this issue is one of his few works that he both wrote and drew.) There’s also about 20 pages of pinups by other artists.

THE SPECTRE #42 (DC, 1996) – “The Poisoned Land,” [W] John Ostrander, [A] Tom Mandrake. The issue starts with two flashback sequences, one set in 1788, the other in the mid-20th century. Both of these scenes focus on racism and the legacy of slavery. In the present day, Barnabas, an enslaved person who appeared in the first sequence, is somehow still alive, and he seeks revenge on America. This story is part of a larger storyline involving an evil conspiracy called the National Interest, and a talisman that represents the essence of America. Given that it was created by two white men, this story feels like a sensitive treatment of historical African-American trauma, although as a white man myself I’m not in a position to judge that.

NAUGHTY BITS #2 (Fantagraphics, 1991) – “Bitchy Bitch Goes to Hell but First She Goes to Church!”, [W/A Roberta Gregory. Bitchy goes to church and doesn’t enjoy it. Then she allows her coworker Marcie to take her to a different church, which is even worse. There’s also a backup story which is a satire of erotic comics intended for men. This story seems to be targeting Eros Comics, which was an imprint of Naughty Bits’s own publisher Fantagraphics, and it specifically calls out Anton Drek, i.e. Don Simpson. Roberta Gregory’s earlier work, Dynamite Damsels, is discussed in Margaret Galvan’s aforementioned book.

I took a short trip to Minneapolis over Thanksgiving, and while there I visited two of my all-time favorite stores, the Comic Book College and Dreamhaven. The Comic Book College has changed its location since my last visit, but it has all the same furniture and boxes, so it felt very familiar. Both stores were having Black Friday sales, and I bought a bunch of comics, including:

ZOT! #33 (Eclipse, 1990) – “Normal,” [W/A] Scott McCloud. This was the only issue of Zot! I was missing, and it may be the best issue of the entire series. It focuses on Jenny’s friend Terry, a closeted lesbian. In a climate of homophobia and even gay-bashing, Terry feels obligated to conceal her sexuality and try to be “normal.” With help from Zot, she finally decides to trust that her real friends will accept her for who she is, and she gathers the courage to talk to her love interest, Pam. The final two pages are a heartwarming moment: Pam says hi to Terry, and Terry ignores her and walks on, before turning around and saying hi back. Ironically, this last page is printed right next to a homophobic letter by the late David Malcolm Porta, the biggest homophobe in comics fandom. The response to the letter, I assume by Scott himself, ends with “sorry to see you go.” This comic rang true to me because I grew up in the ‘90s, and I remember when it was common to use the word “gay” in the pejorative sense – and I lived in a very liberal place. Since Zot! #33 came out, our society has made great progress in its acceptance of homosexuality, and I can only hope this progress doesn’t get reversed.

I’m writing the following reviews while sitting on my new couch that was just assembled:    

TITS & CLITS #2 (Nanny Goat, 1976) – “Persephone” etc., [W/A] Joyce Farmer & Lyn Chevli. DreamHaven had a box of underground comics for half off, including some really nice stuff. Without the discount this issue would have been $10, and I wouldn’t have bought it. Like #1, this issue is entirely by Farmer and Chevli. Tits & Clits is different from Wimmen’s Comix in that it’s more focused on sex, although later in their run the two series started to resemble each other more. As a cat person, I liked the story “Persephone,” about an aging cat who’s thrilled that she’s going through menopause (which doesn’t happen to cats in real life). However, the stories drawn by Farmer are significantly better-looking than the ones by Chevli. Some of the stories are about Mary Multipary, who also appeared in issue 1.

SECOND COMING: TRINITY #6 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell, [A] Richard Pace. Sunstar and Sheila are forced to send Jordan to an alien planet, so he can grow up normally without destroying the world. The analogy between Sunstar and Jordan, and God and Jesus, is very clear. But it turns out that Jordan’s new planet is ruled by Sunstar’s archenemy Cranius, so the story is not over, and I hope there will be a fourth miniseries soon.

STRANGEHAVEN #9 (Abiogenesis, 1998) – “First Born” etc., [W/A] Gary Spencer Millidge. Megaron, the villager who’s descended from Amazonian Indians, tells part of his origin story. The doctor’s wife tries to poison him, but it doesn’t work. The local cult decides to invite Alex to join them, whether he likes it or not. Strangehaven is fascinating because of its meticulous depiction of rural England, and its large cast of distinctive characters.

ZAP COMIX #1 (Apex Novelties, 1968) – “Whiteman” etc., [W/A] Robert Crumb. This is one of the most important comics ever published in America, due to its role in popularizing the underground genre. There’s a famous legend that Crumb and his then-wife Dana walked around the Haight-Ashbury selling copies of Zap #1 out of a baby carriage, though the accuracy of this account is disputed. This entire issue is by Crumb. It begins with “Whiteman,” which is one of Crumb’s classic depictions of a neurotic middle-class white guy, and which also includes some blatantly racist imagery. There’s also a story that’s an early example of abstract comics, and a Mr. Natural/Flakey Foont story. There’s also a one-page strip that introduces Crumb’s famous “Keep on Truckin’” image.

SWEET TOOTH #12 (Vertigo, 2010) – “The Singh Tapes,” [W/A] Jeff Lemire. Most of this issue is a pantomime story in which Gus is sent to prison, and is then reunited with Wendy and Bobby. On the bottom of each page is a separate strip in which Dr. Singh speculates on the origin of the hybrids. At the end of the issue there’s a note that says “For Wolfman & Pérez,”  which suggests that this issue is an homage to the “Monitor Tapes” strip in Crisis on Infinite Earths #10. However, the concept of a topper strip (which, despite the name, could also appear at the bottom of the page) is much older than that.

CEREBUS #35 (Aardvark-Vanaheim, 1982) – “Two Days Before,” [W/A] Dave Sim. Astoria gives Cerebus a hangover cure, then she and Cerebus try to convince Iest’s business community to support Cerebus’s candidacy. At the end of the issue, Jaka arrives to see Cerebus. This is a very funny issue, largely because of its characterization. One problem with later stories like Melmoth and Reads was that Cerebus was barely in them at all. This issue includes a backup story by William Messner-Loebs, about Benjamin Franklin’s afterlife. This story is a sort of prototype for Journey, which began in Cerebus #48.

THE FLASH #784 (DC, 2022) – “The Search for Barry Allen Part 2,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Amancay Nahuelpan. While searching for Barry, the various Flash family members – Jesse and Max, Irey and Jai, and Wally and Barry – each find themselves in different realities. Amancay Nahuelpan achieves the difficult feat of making each scene of this issue look like it’s drawn by a different artist. In the last sequence, which is a Silver Age pastiche, everything is even colored with Ben Day dots. My favorite sequence is the one with Irey and Jai.  

BETELGEUSE VOL. 2 (Cinebook, 2003/2010) – “The Caves,” [W/A] Léo. This is part of a vast SF series whose umbrella title is The Worlds of Aldebaran. So far it includes 27 albums across seven separate series. Cinebook has published all the volumes except the newest one. The English albums are unfortunately censored to remove some casual nudity. In this volume, the protagonist, Kim, and three of her friends are trapped on an alien planet. While trying to return to their home base, they travel through a cavern and encounter some bizarre alien creatures. Léo is really good at drawing alien-looking aliens, including some cute aliens that look like pandas. I don’t know how this book fits into the larger continuity of the sries, but I thought it was intriguing, and I want to look for more of the translated volumes. Actually I’m willing to buy just about anything Cinebook publishes.

FATALE #12 (Image, 2013) – “A Lovely Sort of Death,” [W] Ed Brubaker, [A] Sean Phillips. A one-shot issue starring Mathilde, a separate character from the main protagonist, Jo. In 13th-century France, Mathilde is burned as a witch, but comes back to life and is nursed back to health by an old man, Ganix. Then Ganix is killed by, I think, the same people who tried to kill Mathilde, and Mathilde takes her revenge on them. This issue is interesting, but I’m not sure how it’s related to the rest of the series.

FRONTLINE COMBAT #9 (Gemstone, 1952/1997) – [W] Harvey Kurtzman. A Civil War-themed issue. “Abe Lincoln!”, [A] Jack Davis. An old black man tells the story of Abe Lincoln’s life up to the start of the Civil War, and the story ends with the narrator’s ironic prayer that nothing bad should happen to Lincoln. “First Shot!”, [A] John Severin. An account of the raid on Fort Sumter from the Union defenders’ perspective. Ironically, no one dies during the actual bombardment of the fort, but after the fort is surrendered, while the defenders are firing a salute to the American flag, a Union soldier is killed in an accidental explosion. This really did happen, and there were two soldiers killed, not one. “Choose Sides!”, [A] Wally Wood. As hostilities are starting, an old man visits St. Louis and gets involved in a riot between Union and Confederate supporters. The old man’s beloved mule is killed as collateral damage. Again, this story is based on real events. “Bull Run!”, [A] John Severin. The First Battle of Bull Run is expected to be a Union romp, but the Confederates win, and the Union troops realize it will be a long war.

STEELDRAGON STORIES #1 (SteelDragon, 1983) – [E] Emma Bull & Will Shetterly. I never knew this comic existed until I found it at DreamHaven. It has a local connection, since SteelDragon was founded by two Minnesota SFF authors, and most of the authors are from Minnesota. The most exciting thing in this issue is Reed Waller’s short apocalyptic story “Sassafras Jones,” one of his only comics that’s not Omaha or Speakingstone. There’s also a story written by Shetterly and apparently drawn by Bull. The issue ends with Matt Feazell’s “The End,” which, unlike most of his work, is drawn in a realistic style rather than with stick figures. I was wondering if this was his only story in this style, but I had forgotten about his miniseries Ant Boy. I met Emma Bull at ICFA last March. I have conflicted feelings about her. On the one hand, I love her novel War for the Oaks, and she collaborated with Steven Brust, one of my favorite authors. On the other hand, she’s married to Shetterly, who I believe was a Sad Puppies supporter.  

Next trip to Heroes:

NIGHTWING #108 (DC, 2023) – “The Crew of the Crossed Part 3,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Stephen Byrne. Beatrice escapes an assassination attempt, then the ship arrives at the secret pirate island that’s the Crossed Keys’ capital. And there’s a Sundollar (i.e. Starbucks) there. But as soon as they arrive, Beatrice’s brother Dirk stabs her and throws her off a balcony into the ocean. The best line in this issue is “Quiet, consort.” There’s also a forgettable backup story written by Michael W. Conrad.

SENSATIONAL SHE-HULK #2 (Marvel, 2023) – “Jen-Sational! Part 2,” [W] Rainbow Rowell, [A] Andres Genolet. Jen meets her cousin Bruce Banner, who claims that he’s not Banner, only Hulk, and that Jen has been following him around. Then they both fight April and Mark Booth from the previous series. In the backup story, Jen and Wyatt Wingfoot fight Blastaar after having just lost a tribal sovereignty case. I think this is the only story I’ve ever read that makes any attempt to depict Wyatt Wingfoot in a realistic way. She-Hulk is easily the best current Marvel title, but there’s no particular reason why it had to be rebooted from issue 1.

THE CULL #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kelly Thompson, [A] Mattia De Iulis. The kids return to their own town, which has already been attacked by aliens from the other dimension, and they reunite with their family members. Then the town is attacked again. That summary doesn’t do justice to this issue. What makes this comic work, besides De Iulis’s brilliant art and coloring, is Thompson’s nuanced depictions of the main characters’ diverse personalities. However, I do find it hard to remember the characters’ names and backstories.

TITANS #5 (DC, 2023) – “Out of the Shadows,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Nicola Scott. The Titans fight the Demolition Team, then Swamp Thing helps them repair the damage that the villains have done to Borneo’s ecosystem. Brother Eternity executes his plot to assassinate Wally, but Dick foils the plot, having already predicted what Brother Eternity would do. This issue reveals that Gar can turn into multiple animals at once, and this would soon become a key plot point.

CODA #3 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Matías Bergara. Hum and Serka team up to defeat Mildew, the prophet of the dead king, but even after they destroy all of Mildew’s resources, his followers still believe his bullshit. Hum and Serka decide to go on a quest, though Hum insists on not calling it that. This series is fascinating, but I continue to have difficulty following its plot. A fun thing in this issue is Hum’s alphabetical list of ridiculous baby names, but in issue 4 his excitement about the baby will be brutally crushed.

FANTASTIC FOUR #13 (Marvel, 2023) – “A Thing or Two,” [W] Ryan North, [A] Iban Coello. The dinosaur heroes fight both the dinosaur Dr. Doom and the real one. Ben finally defeats the two Dooms by asking them which one is going to betray the other one first. This is a ridiculously fun issue, especially since it’s written in a deadpan style. The human Doom’s line “he strikes as he pleases” is a reference to the “Doom toots as he pleases” meme.

SCRAPPER #5 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Cliff Blezinski & Alex De Campi, [A] Ryan Kelly. Mostly a series of action sequences. Scrapper defeats the robot dog, then is reunited with his long-lost mother, and then the villains reveal their plot to enslave everyone in the city.  

BLACK HAMMER: THE END #4 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Malachi Ward. In Spiral City, the heroes attack Anti-God with no effect. Back in Spiral City, Lucy and the others realize that Rose and Inspector Insector have run off. Rose and Insector find Colonel Weird, but also Rose’s evil grandfather. This is one of two current Jeff Lemire comics in which a young girl teams up with a human-sized insect, the other being Fishflies.

WORLD’S FINEST: TEEN TITANS #5 (DC, 2023) – “Blitzkrieg Part 1,” [W] Mark Waid, [A] Emanuela Lupacchino. The Titans fight Haywire’s Terror Titans and lose. Robin tries to give his team a pep talk, but they don’t trust him, and to win their trust, he has to unmask himself, despite knowing that Batman will punish him. This series is Mark Waid’s best work in a long time, at least since Daredevil, and it’s one of my favorite miniseries of the year. Emanuela Lupacchino’s excellent artwork and Chris Samnee’s beautiful covers are part of the reason for its success.

MARVEL UNLEASHED #4 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kyle Starks, [A] Jesus Hervas. The animals fight Blackheart and win, and Lockjaw drops off Blackheart with Black Bolt, who is not pleased that Blackheart threatened his dog. Unfortunately, D-Dog is killed in the fight, but she goes to Valhalla. This was easily the best Pet Avengers comic. It’s funny and cute, but unlike the earlier miniseries by Marc Sumerak, it also feels like an epic superhero story.

BIRDS OF PREY #3 (DC, 2023) – “Megadeath Part 3,” [W] Kelly Thompson, [A] Leonardo Romero. The Birds of Prey invade Themyscira, and Dinah rescues Sin. Green Arrow fights Wonder Woman to distract her, but she quickly figures out it’s a distraction, and she returns to Themyscira, furious. Leonardo Romero is a masterful visual storyteller, but this series’ off-register coloring is very distracting. It seems like this coloring technique is not a mistake and is being used on purpose, but I don’t see what effect it’s supposed to achieve.

CON & ON #5 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Paul Cornell, [A] Marika Cresta. The last issue is set at the hybrid 2022 Comic-Con. The convention center is half empty, and there’s an oppressive atmosphere of sadness and exhaustion. Deja Drummond wins a Kerunkle (Eisner) Award, but in her acceptance speech, she denounces Julius Kerunkle (Julie Schwartz) for sexual harassment. This scene does not correspond to anything that happened in real life – Julie Schwartz was indeed a sexual harasser, but the Eisner Awards were not named after him, and Eisner himself seems to have been mostly above reproach. Still, this scene is a powerful distillation of a lot of things that were happening in the comics industry and related fandoms around 2020. Overall, this miniseries succeeds in summarizing twenty years of comics history in a concise and entertaining way. However, I would like to read it again in one sitting, so as to see the connections between each of the issues. I did notice that in each issue, the same two exhibitors keep saying that this will be their last year.

BONE ORCHARD: TENEMENT #6 (Image, 2023) – “Floor 4,” [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Andrea Sorrentino. The various characters are each forced to relive their worst memories, until finally most of them wake up, but Vicki, the seriously ill woman, seems to have died. Felix leads them down to the next floor. Now that I’ve read issue 7, I have a much better idea of just what’s going on here.

THE DEVIANT #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Joshua Hixson. In 1973, a man in a Santa costume raped and murdered several teenage boys and wrapped their bodies up like Christmas presents. Randall Olsen was arrested for the murders, though he insists on his innocence. Fifty years later, a young writer named Michael interviews Randall in prison as research for his self-published comic book about the murders. Michael is interested in the murders because when he heard about them as a child, it was his first inkling that gay people existed. Meanwhile, the Santa murderer seems to have returned. Ths is another impressive work by the best horror writer in comics, although I admit that when I read issue 2, I had difficulty remembering what issue 1 was about. Michael appears to be a surrogate for Tynion himself; like Michael, Tynion is gay and grew up in Milwaukee.

AVENGERS INC. #3 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Man Who Died Twice,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Leonard Kirk. Skurge the Executioner has been murdered, and that’s very odd, since he was already dead. Jan, Vic and Jane Foster travel to Valhalla to investigate. They figured out that Odin himself faked Skurge’s death so Skurge could help foil Odin’s prophecy of Thor’s death. This series has already been cancelled, which is a shame, because it was a really good idea.

BATMAN/SUPERMAN: WORLD’S FINEST #21 (DC, 2023) – “Heir to the Kingdom Chapter 2: Doppelgängers,” [W] Mark Waid, [A] Dan Mora. Superman and Batman try to rescue Thunderman, but they have to fight their own counterparts from the Kingdom Come reality, and eventually they’re confronted by Gog and an army of superheroes. I have no particular interest in Kingdom Come, and this storyline isn’t as good as Waid’s other recent comics. However, this series is worth reading anyway, largely because of Dan Mora’s art.

DAREDEVIL #3 (Marvel, 2023) – “Introductory Rites Part 3,” [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Aaron Kuder & Farid Karami. Matt spies on Ben Urich and discovers that he’s acting out of character. After a meeting with a CPS worker, Matt continues to work off his anger by beating people up. Then he discovers that Bullseye is involved in the plot against him. So far I’m liking this series better than Chip Zdarsky’s run.

BATMAN AND ROBIN #3 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Simone Di Meo. Batman and Robin try to save White Rabbit from Shush. This White Rabbit is a different character from the ‘90s Superman villain. Simone Di Meo’s art style was perfect for We Only Find Them When They’re Dead, but while he’s great at drawing starscapes, he’s not as good at drawing action scenes, and his storytelling is somewhat unclear. I wish this series had less Batman and more Robin.

SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “Mistaken Identity Crisis,” [W] Dan Slott, [A] Mark Bagley. The issue begins with Spider-Man and Spider-Boy fighting Supernova, and Doc Ock doesn’t appear until halfway through. At the end of the main story, Doc Ock figures out that he used to be Peter Parker. In a backup story, Spider-Boy and Superior Spider-Man team up against Mister Negative. This story includes a rare guest appearance by the Fraction/Allred version of the Fantastic Four. At Heroes Aren’t Hard to Find, they decorated the Spider-Man and Dr. Octopus statues for Christmas, and they gave the Doc Ock statue a Christmas present labeled “To my May from Otto.”

CAPTAIN MARVEL #2 (Marvel, 2023) – “Two Way Street,” [W] Alyssa Wong, [A] Jan Bazaldua. While trying to figure out their new relationship, Carol and Yuna fight a possessed Genis-Vell. This series is very different from Kelly Thompson’s just-concluded run, but not in a bad way. Wong’s focus is more on Yuna than Carol, and again, I think that’s fine.

IMMORTAL THOR #4 (Marvel, 2023) – “To Possess the Power of Thor,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Martín Cóccolo. Thor recruits Loki, Beta Ray Bill, Storm, and Jane Foster to become the new Thor Corps, though in the case of Storm it’s more like kidnapping than recruiting. They figure out that they can all be Thor at once, since they’re all worthy (except Loki, who can hold the hammer if someone else is also holding it). All they have to do is keep passing the hammer around so that each of them holds it once every 60 seconds. Thanks to this stroke of genius, they now have enough firepower to deal with Toranos. On Al Ewing and Storm, see the above review of X-Men Red #17. Storm’s Thor costume in this issue is the same one she wore in Uncanny X-Men Annual #9.

BATMAN: OFF-WORLD #1 (DC, 2023) – “First Knight Among the Stars,” [W] Jason Aaron, [A] Doug Mahnke. Early in his career, Batman travels into space, apparently in order to get training that he can’t get on Earth. This miniseries is Jason Aaron’s first work for DC. This first issue is just okay. It’s most interesting to me because of the lead female character, a female Tamaranean space pirate. She learns Batman’s language because of a “lingo-chip,” but she could also have learned it by kissing him. Everyone seems to forget that Tamaraneans have that power.

FISHFLIES #3 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Jeff Lemire. Frances tries to get the giant fly to escape for its own safety, even though it cares much more about her than her father does. But when Frances’s father starts hitting her, the fly intervenes and beats him senseless, and then the fly and Frances hop away together. This last sequence is very cathartic. I’m still quite confused about how the fly, the comatose boy, and the wounded man are connected.

SUPERMAN #8 (DC, 2023) – “The Chained Part 3,” [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Gleb Melnikov et al. Luthor reveals that the Chained is Sammy Striker, the son of Stryker’s Island’s founder, and that he was the template for Superboy (Kon-El)’s tactile telekinesis. I didn’t even realize that Kon-El existed in this version of the DCU. Ironically, the Chained’s only weakness is kryptonite, and to defeat Stryker and save Luthor, Superman has to expose himself to kryptonite. This series isn’t nearly as good as the previous series starring Jon Kent, but it’s entertaining.

JAY GARRICK: THE FLASH #2 (DC, 2023) – “The Coming Dread,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Diego Olortegui. First there’s a long flashback set in 1941, without Judy in it. Then in the present day, Judy goes to the mall with Stargirl, but Jay has to save them from the robot bear from the flashback sequence. This series is not as good as Jeremy Adams’s Flash, thanks to the more restricted cast of characters, but it’s entertaining enough.

JUSTICE LEAGUE VS. GODZILLA VS. KONG #2 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Brian Buccellato, [A] Christian Duce. Just a series of fights between superheroes and kaiju. This series is silly but very fun, much like the Godzilla franchise itself.

HACK/SLASH: BACK TO SCHOOL #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Zoe Thorogood. While investigating a murder, Cassie and her fellow students are somehow sucked into the world of a video game. One of Thorogood’s strengths as an artist is her ability to draw in a wide range of different styles and techniques, and in this issue she shows off that ability, as well as her very detailed linework. A highlight is the sequence that’s drawn in the pixelated style of old video games.

SPINE-TINGLING SPIDER-MAN #2 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Juan Ferreyra. Spidey escapes from the train but finds himself inside a haunted house, where he encounters JJJ, MJ and Aunt May. As he’s rescuing them, they all turn on him. This is a very creepy comic, due mostly to Juan Ferreyra’s gruesome, spooky art.

UNCANNY X-MEN #141 (Marvel, 1981/2023) – “Days of Future Past,” [W] Chris Claremont, [A] John Byrne. I have most of Claremont and Byrne’s X-Men run, including #129 and #137. But issue 141 is beyond my price range, so I’m very glad it was reprinted as a facsimile. There’s also a facsimile edition of #142, but Heroes hasn’t gotten it yet. Until now I’ve only read this story in trade paperback form. When I first read it, back in high school, I was disappointed by it. I thought there should have been more space devoted to the future sequences, rather than to the X-Men’s present-day fight with the Brotherhood. On rereading, I like this issue better. The art is beautiful, of course, and the pacing is better than I realized. The opening Danger Room sequence seems like a waste of space, but it’s actually essential because it emphasizes the present-day Kitty’s inconfidence and lack of experience, as compared to her much older and more mature future self. The plot of Days of Future Past is quite similar to that of The Terminator, which came out three years later. However, Byrne has claimed that he unconsciously borrowed the plot of the Doctor Who episode “Day of the Daleks.”

RUMPUS ROOM #3 (AWA, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell, [A] Ramon Rosanas. In the prison, Erica discovers that her fellow inmates are in the grip of the same corporate mentality that got them into prison in the first place. The older inmates all vote as a bloc and refuse to let any of the newer inmates get any power. By doing this, they stay alive, but they foreclose any chance to escape. Erica decides to escape anyway by voluntarily going into the cage. Meanwhile, Bob Schrunk has a conversation with his lawyer. Bob is perhaps Russell’s most appalling villain; he simply refuses to believe that anyone is a person except for him.

PEEPEE POOPOO #80085 (Silver Sprocket, 2023) – “Boobs” etc., [W/A] Caroline Cash. I saw a previous issue of this at Heroes, but did not buy it. The price was quite high, and I didn’t want to have a comic called “Peepee Poopoo” in my collection. I decided to give this series a try after my friend Andrea Gilroy praised it. This issue’s issue number is an obvious joke since it spells BOOBS. Its cover is an homage to Wimmen’s Comix #1. The issue itself consists of short slice of life stories, most of them about LGBTQ+ topics. They’re all quite funny and insightful, and Cash has some impressive graphic skills. The highlight is the one about the fate of a Schlitz sign from a defunct bar. I’m always glad when people decide to publish alternative-style comics in the periodical format, and I hope there will be more issues of Peepee Poopoo,  though I wish it was called something else.

UNIVERSAL MONSTERS: DRACULA #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Martin Simmonds. Van Helsing appears for the first time, and Dracula apparently kills Lucy. Universal Monsters: Dracula has a well-known plot, even if it diverges from that of the original novel in some ways. What elevates this adaptation over other versions of the same story is Martin Simmonds’s art. His painted pages are beautiful, and he emphasizes Dracula’s terrifying menace.

HARRIET TUBMAN, DEMON SLAYER #1 (Massive, 2023) – untitled, [W] David Crownson, [A] Courtland Ellis. Harriet Tubman saves some escaping enslaved people from slave catchers who turn out to be vampires. This comic isn’t bad, but I didn’t feel motivated to read the next issue. This comic’s gimmick is similar to that of Abe Lincoln, Vampire Hunter or Pinocchio, Vampire Slayer.

IMMORTAL X-MEN #17 (Marvel, 2023) – “The White Hot Danger Room,” [W] Kieron Gillen, [A] Juan José Ryp. Hope and Exodus battle Apocalypse in the White Hot Room, and Professor X talks with Mr. Sinister’s ghost. I’m getting tired of this series, and I’m glad it’s ending next issue. I’m biased against Juan José Ryp because he worked for Avatar, a company I associate with ugly and quasi-pornographic art.  

GEIGER: GROUND ZERO #1 (Dark Horse, 2023) – “From Monster to Man… and Back Again,” [W] Geoff Johns, [A] Gary Frank. Some flashback sequences depicting Tariq’s origin story, plus some other scenes set after the end of the first miniseries. Geiger is okay, but I don’t like it as much as Junkyard Joe.

UNCANNY SPIDER-MAN #4 (Marvel, 2023) – “Slice and Dice,” [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Lee Garbett. The real Spider-Man stops an anti-mutant lynch mob, and Nightcrawler and Silver Sable go on a date. With regard to the first of these scenes, I’m annoyed at how everyone in the Marvel Universe’s America seems to have totally bought into Orchis’s anti-mutant propaganda. Like, I know I shouldn’t overestimate the intelligence or good will of the American public. But even when George W. Bush led us into a pointless war, there were lots of people who disagreed with it. Yet Marvel expects us to believe that everyone in America has suddenly turned into a rabid anti-mutant bigot, and that there isn’t anyone who doubts Orchis’s propaganda.

KILL YOUR DARLINGS #3 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Ethan S. Parker & Griffin Sheridan, [A] Bob Quinn. Rose and her companions discover a portal into Rose’s old fantasy world, which  has turned into a dystopia. This comic is covering some very familiar territory: its premise is similar to that of The Unwritten or Kingdom of the Wicked or even the first Bone Orchard miniseries. And Kill Your Darlings isn’t doing anything new with that premise. I’m not sure if I want to finish reading this miniseries.

FROM THE WORLD OF MINOR THREATS: THE ALTERNATES #3 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Patton Oswalt, Jordan Blum & Tim Seeley, [A] Christopher Mitten & Tess Fowler. The POV character this time is the founder of the Alternates, a sunglasses-wearing hippie named Tripper. This issue they discover that Searcher, one of the A-list superheroes, has been following them and letting them do her work for her. The Alternates defeat her, but are then confronted by alternate versions of themselves. I like this series better than the original Minor Threats. The three pages by Tess Fowler are far better than the rest of the issue, and I wish she was drawing the entire series. Speaking of Tess Fowler, Kurtis Wiebe apparently has some sort of beef with her, and he refuses to reprint the Rat Queens comics that she drew. On the other hand, Wiebe is perfectly okay with supporting his friend Roc Upchurch, an unrepentant sexual abuser and alleged rapist. I used to love Rat Queens, and I’m sorry that both its creators turned out to be such disappointments.

GREEN LANTERN #5 (DC, 2023) – “Gift of Fear,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Xermánico. Hal stops Sinestro’s drone attacks, then confronts Sinestro himself. I’ve decided to quit reading this series, because it’s not nearly as fun as Adams’s Flash. As in previous issues, the backup story with Sinestro’s son is better than the lead story, and it makes me excited about Tomasi’s upcoming Sinister Sons series.

SWEET TOOTH #21 (Vertigo, 2011) – “Endangered Species Part Two,” [W/A] Jeff Lemire. By coincidence, this issue also consists of two parallel stories, one on the top of each page and another on the bottom. The first story is a pantomime strip in which Tommy saves Gus from a bear. The bear’s thoughts are depicted as thought balloons containing images rather than words. In the bottom story, the girls have dinner with Walter Fish. I seem to recall that Walter Fish had some kind of dark secret, but I’ve forgotten what it was. After some research, I am now reminded that “Walter Fish” was really the villain Haggerty, who killed the real Walter Fish and assumed his identity.

THE FORGED #6 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Greg Rucka & Eric Trautmann, [A] Mike Henderson. A faction of rogue admirals tries to assassinate each of the Forged, but the soldiers all successfully defeat their assassins, and the loyal General Davian has the traitor admirals killed. This issue is more fun than the last two, but I wish The Forged wasn’t the only comic Greg Rucka was currently writing. I also wish each issue didn’t end with a bunch of cumbersome text pages that I nonetheless feel obligated to read.

THE MAN FROM MAYBE #2 (Oni, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jordan Thomas, [A] Shaky Kane. The hero and the kid sidekick pursue the evil aliens, and the evil dictator decides to resolve the situation by dropping an atom bomb. This series has a much clearer and more interesting plot than Weird Work. I think Shaky Kane’s artwork has become less groundbreaking and original since his early days in Deadline, but he’s still an excellent artist.

THE ODDLY PEDESTRIAN LIFE OF CHRISTOPHER CHAOS #5 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Tate Brombal, [A] Isaac Goodhart. Adam Frankenstein takes the kids to the underground monster market, and then the kids realize that one of them has been unknowingly communicating to the enemy. This series has good art but a pointless story, and I’m dropping it after this issue.

PROJECT: CRYPTID #3 (Ahoy, 2023) – “The Loveland Frogman Never Did Anything for Me,” [W] Bryce Ingram, [A] Peter Krause. Unlike most of the cryptids in this series, the Loveland Frogman is kind and helpful. A desperate man tries to kill the frogman because it hasn’t done anything to help him, but when the frogman is injured, the man has to help it get medical care. The main thing I noticed about this story is that the frogman looks like Kermit. “Demon in the Pines,” [W] Paul Constant, [A] Peter Krause. Some bear-like cryptids help a pioneer woman kill her abusive husband.

KILLER QUEENS 2 #3 (Dark Horse, 2023) – “Kings, Not Wings! Part 3,” [W] David Booher, [A] Bradley Clayton. The protagonists escape from prison and confront the evil king, and then one of the protagonists has to fight her evil father’s champion in a duel. I can’t remember the names of this series’ characters, or which two of them are siblings. Also, this series is kind of like Vagrant Queen, but worse.

TERRORWAR #7 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Dav Acosta. We find out what’s causing the terror, and then the heroes confront Representative Ronali, who appears to be the real villain. This series feels pointless to me, and I’d consider dropping it if it wasn’t ending after two more issues. It’s certainly not on the same level as Abbott or even Starsigns.

THE FLASH #791 (DC, 2023) – “The One-Minute War Chapter 2: A Ten-Second Week,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Roger Cruz. The war begins. Iris appears to be dead (she later came back), and Jai is stuck in slow motion. We meet Miss Murder, who looks like a female Batman Who Laughs. At this point, the only issues of this run that I’m missing are #768, #769 and #790.  

HEXAGON BRIDGE #3 (Image, 2023) – “The Departure” etc., [W/A] Richard Blake. Adley begins her interdimensional journey. As before, Richard Blake’s artwork is spectacular, reminding me more of French than American comics. However, Hexagon Bridge’s story is of little interest. As I mentioned in my review of #2, each page of Hexagon Bridge has a large white border at the top, bottom, and outside edge, which makes me wonder if this comic was originally intended to be published at a different page size.

ASTONISHING ICEMAN #4 (Marvel, 2023) – “Out Cold, Part 4,” [W] Steve Orlando, [A] Vincenzo Carratú. Iceman and Spider-Man fight some heroes who have been mind-controlled by Orchis, and then they have lunch together. On returning to his palace, Iceman discovers that Mr. Clean, from issue 3, has beaten him there and attacked his boyfriend. Compared to other recent Steve Orlando comics, Astonishing Iceman is better than Exorcists Never Die, but worse than Sainted Love.

DANGER STREET #11 (Image, 2023) – “Codename: Assassin,” [W] Tom King, [A] Jorge Fornés. The title of this issue is odd, since I thought Codename: Assassin was already dead. This issue, Lady Cop shoots both the Creeper and Warlord, and Orion claims that the world is about to end. I never understood Danger Street’s plot to begin with, and I’m even more confused by it now. However, unlike most Tom King comics, Danger Street is fun.

MONSTER FAN CLUB #1 (Floating World, 2023) – [E] Jason T. Miles. An anthology title published in a large format. The main story is drawn by Shaky Kane, whose art is even more impressive at the larger size. There’s also another shorter story by Kane, and the rest of the issue is by artists I’ve never heard of, but almost all the stories have very striking coloring. None of the stories in this issue are of much interest from a narrative perspective, but the comic is worth owning purely for its visual appeal.

ALL-STAR COMICS #3 (DC, 1940/2023) – “The First Meeting of the Justice Society of America” (title from GCD), [W] Gardner Fox, [A] E.E. Hibbard et al. This was the first comic book that depicted a team of superheroes. However, if All-Star Comics #3 is the starting point of the superhero team genre, it’s a false start, because the story does not depict the Justice League having adventures together. Instead, they get together and tell each other stories of their recent individual adventures. Each of these inset stories is by a different artist, and sometimes a different writer as well, and none of them have any connection to the others. The individual stories are all rather generic, and the art is of varying quality. The best artists in the issue are Sheldon Moldoff on the Hawkman story, and Bernard Baily on the Spectre story. The original female Red Tornado also appears on one page, where she’s depicted in an embarrassing, sexist way. In the next few issues of All-Star Comics, the JSA members each continued to appear in separate vignettes, but their individual stories all formed part of a larger plot. I don’t know when the characters all started to appear together in the same stories, if they ever did.

GODFELL #5 (Vault, 2023) – untitled, [W] Christopher Sebela, [A] Ben Hennessy. This is very late, but I’m glad it was published at all. I suspect that this issue was originally intended to be published as two separate issues, since it’s double-sized. In this issue, Zanzi and Neth make it to God’s brain, Zanzi defeats the villain with the bloody chest, and then Zanzi and Neth reanimate God’s body and use it to kill the other gods, because they’re sick of the gods ruling humanity. We also learn that Zanzi’s family is already dead. This miniseries was interesting, but extremely gruesome, and it wasn’t Christopher Sebela’s best work.

TITS & CLITS #3 (Nanny Goat, 1977) – [E] Joyce Farmer & Lyn Chevli. This is the first issue that includes contributions by artists other than Farmer and Chevli. The other contributors include Trina Robbins and Roberta Gregory, as well as some less well-known artists. Again, all the stories are sex-themed. Farmer and Chevli’s stories include the characters Persephone and Mary Multipary from earlier issues. Another Farmer-Chevli story is about a woman who keeps getting interrupted while trying to masturbate. In Roberta Gregory’s first story, two women are having sex in the woods when they’re discovered by Girl Scouts. As for the stories by less well-known creators, Dotty Bucher’s “I Was a Sex Junkie!” is beautifully drawn. She also contributed to Wimmen’s Comix and Quack! Ruth Lynn’s story is visually unappealing, but it’s drawn in a meticulous, hyper-detailed style.

DE CAPE ET DE CROCS VOL. 1 (Delcourt, 1995) – “Le Secret du janissaire,” [W] Alain Ayroles, [A] Jean-Luc Masbou. In 17th-century Venice, a wealthy man hires two swashbucklers – Lope, a Spanish wolf, and Armand, a French fox – to rescue his daughter who’s been kidnapped by Turks. But the mission turns out to be a setup: there’s no daughter, and what the old man really wanted was a treasure map. Once he has it, he betrays the two heroes and has them imprisoned as galley slaves. With the help of a rabbit, the heroes escape from captivity and prepare to chase the villain and claim the treasure. This series was a big hit in France, and no wonder, because it’s a thrilling adventure story. It also feels historically accurate, and it’s full of cute moments and cultural references. Some of the characters, including the two protagonists, are anthropomorphic animals, but their animal nature is not relevant to the plot; as in Usagi Yojimbo or Omaha the Cat Dancer, their animal appearance is just meant to indicate what sort of characters they are. I would love to read more of this series. I’d also like to read Ayroles’s collaboration with Juanjo Guarnido, Les Indes fourbes.

STRANGEHAVEN #10 (Abiogenesis, 1998) – “Paranoid” etc., [W/A] Gary Spencer Millidge. A man who claims to be an alien gives a lecture about UFOs. This sequence is reminiscent of other coimcs like Saucer Country and Blue Book. Suzie tells Petey’s wife that she (Suzie) and Petey are having an affair. Like most issues of Strangehaven, this issue is mostly dialogue, but it’s fascinating dialogue, and Millidge does its best to make the dialogue scenes visually interesting.

CONVERGENCE: SUPERMAN #2 (DC, 2015) – untitled, [W/A] Dan Jurgens. Lois gives birth to Jon Kent, and there are also some pointless fight scenes that I neither understand nor care about. This would just be some random forgettable issue if it wasn’t Jon Kent’s first appearance. There’s also a backup story written by Scott Lobdell, who, thankfully, is no longer getting work for DC.

AVENGERS #64 (Marvel, 2023) – “Avengers Assemble Part 4: The War for the Dawn,” [W] Jason Aaron, [A] Javier Garrón. I keep trying to like Jason Aaron’s Avengers, and I keep failing. Without Wasp, Vision, Scarlet Witch or Hawkeye, it barely feels like an Avengers comic to me. This issue consists of fight scenes which are well-drawn but not understandable out of context.

CRIME DOES NOT PAY #147 (Lev Gleason, 1955) – “Hitchhike to Doom,” [W] unknown, [A] Joe Kubert, etc. DreamHaven had a whole box of cheap Golden Age and ‘50s comics, and this was the only one I bought. It’s the first Lev Gleason comic I’ve read, but it was not a good one to start with. It consists of boring police procedural stories that all end with the criminal being caught due to his own mistakes. The issue sends the overarching message that criminals are stupid and that the police are always win. After reading this issue, I wasn’t sure what was so great about Crime Does Not Pay. However, there is a reason why this issue was unimpressive: it was published with the Comics Code seal. The Code mandated that criminals couldn’t be presented sympathetically and had to be punished for their crimes, and that [p]olicemen, judges, Government officials and respected institutions shall never be presented in such a way as to create disrespect for established authority.” All of that meant that Lev Gleason’s classic style of storytelling, an example of which will be seen below, was no longer possible. After the imposition of the Code, Crime Does Not Pay only lasted five more issues, and the series was cancelled with #147. Basically, Crime Does Not Pay #147 is the comics equivalent of the Itchy & Scratchy episode where they sit on the porch and drink lemonade.  

FIRE POWER #22 (Image, 2022) – untitled, [W] Robert Kirkman, [A] Chris Samnee. I can write the same review for every issue of this comic: beautiful art, great action sequences, but an inexcusable amount of cultural appropriation. I’m ashamed of myself for liking this comic, and I’m only willing to buy it when I can get it for $1 or less.

SLOW DEATH #9 (Last Gasp, 1978) – [E] Ron Turner. This is a special issue about nuclear power. It begins with Greg Irons’s “Our Friend Mr. Atom,” which is a history of nuclear power, plus a gloomy prediction of what might happen if it continues to be used. Irons’s text is cumbersome, but his artwork is spectacular. The rest of the issue is by artists I haven’t heard of, and their stories are average at best. The second story, “Faustus II” by Michael J. Becker, is an illustrated text story rather than a comic, and it’s also completely incoherent.

EERIE #74 (Warren, 1976) – I bought a bunch of Warren comics at DreamHaven and at the December convention (see below), and I still haven’t finished reading them. “Demons of Jedidiah Pan,” [W] Bill DuBay, [A] José Ortiz. A humorous Western story in which a snake oil salesman encounters some Mexican bandits. As usual Ortiz’s black-and-white art is gorgeous, though DuBay’s story relies too much on Mexican stereotypes. “Father Creator,” [W] Bill DuBay, [A] Paul Neary. In an obvious riff on the story of Jesus, an elderly astronaut sends his cloned son to be the ruler of a female-only planet. Paul Neary’s stories for Warren were the high point of his career. Merlin: “A Secret King,” [W] Budd Lewis, [A] Gonzalo Mayo. A retelling of King Arthur’s early life, from his birth to the sword in the stone. This version of Arthur’s story is influenced by T.H. White’s The Sword in the Stone, but it introduces an original character, Merlin’s familiar Snivel, who acts as Arthur’s surrogate mother. Gonzalo Mayo was one of the few Peruvian artists in American comics. “The Expedition!”, [W] Budd Lewis, [A] Leopoldo Sanchez. Two men, Stone and Turner, go on vacation to a Louisiana swamp, but it turns out that Turner brought Stone there to sacrifice him to a swamp monster. Then Turner drops the Native American talisman he was using to control the monster, and it eats him too.

YOUR HYTONE COMIX #1 (Apex Novelties, 1971) – “Pete the Plumber” etc., [W/A] Robert Crumb. In the main story, a man gets sucked down the drain and encounters an underground society of literal shitheads. This story is disgusting, even for Crumb. Then there’s a Mr. Natural/Flakey Foont story, and then “Horny Harriet Hotpants,” in which a hypersexual woman has an orgy with a horde of Snoids. Almost every time I read Crumb, I find myself wondering what’s so great about him, other than his phenomenal draftsmanship. In stories like “Horny Harriet Hotpants,” he’s just inflicting his offensive sexual fantasies on the reader. I guess the answer is that Crumb helped to pioneer the use of comics for artistic sexual expression, but precisely because of his influence, the medium has evolved to a point where Crumb’s own work has come to seem embarrassing.

CRIME SUSPENSTORIES #21 (EC, 1954/1997) – “Mother’s Day,” [W] Al Feldstein, [A] Reed Crandall. Donna Kingsley shows blatant favoritism to her son Harold, while neglecting her other son, Fred. Harold grows up to be a criminal, while Fred constantly covers for him. Eventually, Harold attacks his mother and leaves her paralyzed, and is later killed by the police. Afterward, Fred tries to get his mother to forgive him, but when she refuses, Fred shoots himself, not knowing that his mother is no longer able to talk. This is a horrifying story about bad parenting. “Understudies!”, [W] Al Feldstein, [A] Jack Kamen. Gail and Jim are each being abused by their respective spouses. They conspire to kill their spouses, and to cover it up, they each disguise themselves as the other one’s spouse. But in the end, they become as toxic to each other as their dead spouses had been, and they end up killing each other. If Gail and Jim could have just divorced their spouses, there would have been no story here at all. But apparently in 1954 it was very hard to get a divorce, especially in New York where EC’s comics were published. “In the Groove,” [W/A] Johnny Craig. A radio DJ murders his wife, while giving himself an alibi by playing a recording of his own voice on his radio show. However, his plot fails when the record player’s needle skips. “Blood Brothers,” [W] Al Feldstein, [A] George Evans. Alex murders his brother Fred at Fred’s beach house, then goes swimming in the ocean to wash off the blood. He’s not aware that the water is infested with sharks.

FATALE #13 (Image, 2013) – “Down the Darkest Trail,” [W] Ed Brubaker, [A] Sean Phillips. Like issue #12, this issue is not about Jo herself but about an identical precursor of hers, a woman named “Black” Bonnie who lived in the 19th century. She’s captured by a bounty hunter who takes her to a snake oil salesman. After a big fight with the cult from the previous issue, the snake oil salesman dies, and Bonnie and the bounty hunter spend the rest of their lives together. At the end of the issue it’s suggested that Bonnie was somehow responsible for the 1906 San Francisco earthquake.

YELLOW DOG #21 (Print Mint, 1972) – [E] unknown. The earlier issues of this series included some good artists, but the only major artists in this issue are George Metzger and Justin Green, and the latter only drew the back cover. The rest of the issue consists of amateurish work. The story “Erbe”, by the otherwise unknown R.W.B., has some impressive psychedelic art, but it’s reproduced very poorly.

ARCADE #2 (Print Mint, 1975) – [E] Art Spiegelman & Bill Griffith. There’s so much good stuff in this issue that I can’t list it all. Crumb’s “Modern America” is a much more serious, meditative work than anything in Your Hytone Comix. Kim Deitch’s “Where Are They Now?” is a rare Deitch story that includes no fantastic elements. Griffith’s “A Couch in the Sun” is a biography of the painter Henri Rousseau. Spain’s “A Day on Mission Street” is just a two-page pinup, but it’s gorgeous. Justin Green’s “Classics Crucified” is an adaptation of the “Prologue in the Theatre” section of Goethe’s Faust. Other artists included are Gilbert Shelton, Jay Lynch, Michael McMillan, Willy Murphy, Spiegelman, and Diane Noomin. Arcade is a classic series which represents the missing link between underground and alternative comics, and I wonder why Fantagraphics hasn’t released a complete edition of it. I only need issues 1, 3 and 6 to have the complete run of Arcade.

STRANGEHAVEN #11 (Abiogenesis, 1999) – “Cycle of Vengeance” etc., [W/A] Gary Spencer Millidge. Alex starts his new job as a teacher, but discovers that there are just two students. Megaron reveals some more of his origin story, and explains that he had to leave his village to avoid perpetuating a cycle of ritual murder. Janey’s old boyfriend Bobby Bates gets out of prison and returns to town. Peter learns that he has a terminal illness. Another excellent issue.

EERIE #67 (Warren, 1975) – Coffin: “Death’s Colors,” [W] Budd Lewis, [A] José Ortiz. Coffin encounters a caravan of monks who he believes to have kidnapped a girl, but he discovers that the girl was actually Satan, and the monks were trying to destroy her/him. I don’t quite get this story, but José Ortiz was a world-class artist. His black-and-white work is amazing, and I love his scratchy inking effects, however they were achieved. Hunter II: “Phoenix Fire,” [W] Lewis, [A] Paul Neary. A new Hunter takes up the mantle of the previous hero of that name, who I believe was his ancestor. “The Hacker’s Last Stand!”, [W] Steve Skeates, [A] Alex Toth. A generic crime story, elevated into a spectacular work of art by Toth’s brilliant visual storytelling and his striking juxtaposition of black and gray tones. Papa Voodoo: “The Man Named Gold!”, [W] Lewis, [A] Leopoldo Sanchez. Rufe Gold, a former enslaved person, discovers that his wife and children have been abducted by Apaches. He takes his revenge upon the Apaches until he finally finds his family alive, but his wife has married an Apache man. When Rufe kills his wife’s second husband, she kills herself. This is a trite story. It was intended as a revival of an earlier Eerie series, Spook, but no further chapters were published. Merlin: “The Kingmaker,” [W] Lewis, [A] Esteban Maroto. This is the prequel to the Merlin story from issue 74. These two Merlin chapters seem to have been the only ones. This story begins with the Roman conquest of Britain, and ends with Arthur’s conception. Snivel is an interesting addition to the Arthurian mythos.

ALONE VOL. 9 (Cinebook, 2015/2018) – “Before the Midnight Child,” [W] Fabien Vehlmann, [A] Bruno Gazzotti. I bought this at Heroes Con, along with a few other Cinebook albums. Alone, or Seuls in the original French, is an example of the “Lord of the Flies” motif: it takes place in a world with no adults, where all the children are immortal and unaging. The primary focus is on five specific children. Unlike with some French comics, Seuls volume 9 doesn’t make sense on its own if you haven’t read all the previous albums. However, this comic has some interesting characterization and plot twists, and Gazzotti’s art is serviceable, though it takes a back seat to the plot. Heroes has the first volume of this series, and I want to get it sooner or later.

PLANETOID PRAXIS #6 (Image, 2017) – untitled, [W/A] Ken Garing. In an anticlimactic ending, Heliocor succeeds in bullying the protagonists into leaving the planetoid. Given the disappointing and inconclusive nature of this ending, I wonder if Garing planned on writing a third volume. I don’t know what he’s working on now. His latest work was The Book of Gogor, which included 64 pages of new material.

CUD COMICS #5 (Dark Horse, 1996) – Eno and Plum: “The Old Folks at Home,” [W/A] Terry LaBan. Eno and Plum are evicted from their apartment and have to move in with Eno’s parents. But Eno’s sister and her kids are already living in the basement, and Eno’s bedroom has been rented out. Things get even more ridiculous from there, and Eno is reduced to prostituting himself, until Plum’s dad gives her enough money to rent a new apartment. Eno’s sister reminds me of Buddy Bradley’s sister, who also has two awful kids, but Eno is otherwise a very different character from Buddy. “Sparky and Me” is a presumably made-up account of the author’s meeting with Charles Schulz. A prophetic moment in this story is that Schulz says he’s contractually obligated to draw Peanuts “until the day I die,” and the final Peanuts strip was indeed published on the day Schulz died. The last story explains why Plum’s dad was incommunicado during the first story: he was arrested for marijuana possession, only to discover that the judge was an old stoner buddy of his. Overall Cud is a really fun comic that deserves to be brought back into print.

THE SPECTRE #43 (DC, 1996) – “Shattered Glass,” [W] John Ostrander, [A] Tom Mandrake. A book editor, Helen Belcanto, is denied promotion due to institutional sexism. (To my knowledge, publishing is a less male-dominated field than some others, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have a glass ceiling.) Helen happens to possess a piece of the American Talisman, and she uses it to become an incarnation of women’s rage against sexism. We also learn that Helen is Madame Xanadu’s daughter. Meanwhile, a woman named Jenny Michaels murders her abusive husband while he’s asleep, and the Spectre seeks revenge on her. This is a rare case where the Spectre is completely in the wrong. Jenny not only should have avoided punishment for killing her husband, she should have been given a medal for it.

FATALE #14 (Image, 2013) – “Just a Glance Away,” [W] Ed Brubaker, [A] Sean Phillips. Now we’re back to Josephine. During World War II, Jo is kidnapped by a Nazi cult that tries to sacrifice her to a Lovecraftian monster. She’s rescued by an Allied soldier named Walt, who becomes her lover, but she knows that Walt will die eventually, “and who will protect her then, when the monsters finally return?” All three of these issues were good, but I still don’t like Fatale as much as Criminal, or Kill or Be Killed.

KORAK, SON OF TARZAN #37 (Gold Key, 1970) – “The Wrath of the Mullah,” [W] Gaylord Du Bois, [A] Dan Spiegle. Korak visits a lost city, one of many such cities in Tarzan comics, where an evil mullah is trying to seize power from the sick queen and the underage princess. To foil the plot, the princess chooses Korak as her regent. Korak accidentally kills the mullah, but saves the day thanks to his animal friend, an albino buffalo. The backup story is Mabu by Du Bois and Tom Massey.

ARZACH (Humanoïdes, 1976/2000) – various stories, [W/A] Moebius. I bought this in France during a visit to Europe in high school. It was one of the only comics I bought there, since it was wordless. I would have bought some more comics if I had known that one day, 20 years later, I would own a device that allowed me to translate French to English effortlessly. This edition of Arzach begins with “La Deviation,” a parodistic science-fictional account of Moebius’s family vacation. The stories that follow are perhaps his most famous work. Each of them is a wordless adventure starring a man in a pointed hat who rides an albino pterodactyl. In each story, his name is spelled differently. The plots are sometimes confusing and enigmatic, especially in the story “Arzak,” but Moebius’s art is incredible. Each page is so perfectly composed and so full of fine linework that it’s like a little painting. Arzach is an indispensable comic, and it’s shameful that Dark Horse has declined to reprint it, preferring instead to reprint late Moebius works that nobody cares about. I assume the reason Dark Horse hasn’t reprinted Arzach or The Airtght Garage, or the other stories from that period, is because Moebius’s estate is forcing them to reprint his later works first. The only other plausible reason I’ve seen is that Moebius’s classic works are already available in English, but they’re really not, since the older English editions of Moebius have become prohibitively expensive. At Heroes Con I saw an Epic Blueberry volume that was selling for 50 dollars. Moebius is probably the greatest French cartoonist, and it’s unfortunate that American readers don’t have access to his work.

ARZACH (Dark Horse, 1976/1996) – as above. I bought this book long after I bought the French edition, and I can’t recall if I ever read it. This English edition includes all the same material as in the French one, except for a single three-page story, and it also includes some other non-Arzach short stories. However, the Dark Horse volume is printed at a tiny size that doesn’t do justice to the art. I’m going to keep both the English and French volumes, since they each include something that the other doesn’t.

FRONTLINE COMBAT #10 (Gemstone, 1953/1997) – [W] Harvey Kurtzman. “A Baby!”, [A] Wally Wood. A boy named Ok-Dong is born in North Korea in 1948. His first two years are depicted in loving detail. In 1950, his house is destroyed by shelling, and little Ok-Dong is left crying in the rubble, next to his father’s corpse. This is a brutal depiction of the human cost of war. Stories like this one, emphasizing the victims of war, were the highlight of EC’s war comics. “Geronimo!”, [A] John Severin. Geronimo leads the Apaches in a war wth the U.S. government, but loses. The story ends at the 1904 World’s Fair, where the aged Geronimo is reduced to selling  postcards of himself. This story is more sympathetic to Indians than other comics of this period, though it doesn’t unequivocally side wth the Apaches. “Napoleon!”, [A] George Evans. An account of Napoleon’s victory at Austerlitz, emphasizing Napoleon’s strategic brilliance. “Anzio!”, [A] Jack Davis. An account of the American victory at Anzio. It includes a disturbing scene where a soldier calls for an artillery barrage on his own position.

THE SPECTRE #44 (DC, 1996) – “Righteous Anger,” [W] John Ostrander, [A] Tom Mandrake. The Spectre fights Helen Belcanto, aka Hellion. His partner, Nathan Kane, is sent back in time to the Salem witch trials, which are implied to be the zero point of America’s hostility to women. The Spectre and Hellion’s fight is resolved peacefully, and the Spectre finally admits that women have been excluded from the American dream.

WIMMEN’S COMIX #12 (Renegade, 1987) – [E] Angela Bocage & Rebecka Wright. This is the worst issue of the series, simply because it’s in 3D, but my copy doesn’t include 3D glasses. To read it I used some 3D glasses from a different comic, but they didn’t really work. As a result, reading this issue was such a cumbersome experience that I found it hard to enjoy the stories, and I can’t remember any of them specifically. Some creators included in this issue are Carol Lay, Lee Binswanger, Diane Noomin, Dori Seda, Cynthia Martin, Krystine Kryttre, and Trina Robbins.

MICKEY MOUSE #60 (Dell, 1958) – “The Search for the Buried City,” [W] Carl Fallberg, [A] Jack Bradbury. Mickey and Goofy go on an expedition to a lost city, and they encounter some stereotypical Bedouin bandits. This is a fairly exciting adventure story, though Fallberg was no Barks. In a backup story, “The Bad Actor” by Fallberg and Frank McSavage, Mickey and Goofy team up to catch a criminal master of disguise.  

KATHY #24 (Marvel, 1963) – “Kathy Becomes a Celebrity!”, [W] Stan Lee, [A] Stan Goldberg. A series of boring and unfunny teen humor stories. The first story is mildly interesting because it includes caricatures of Frank Sinatra, Fred Astaire, and other contemporary celebrities, some of whom I don’t recognize. Marvel’s ‘60s teen humor comics are interesting from a historical perspective, because they remind us that superhero comics weren’t the entirety of Marvel’s output, but they’re not much good.

ZOMBIE WORLD: CHAMPION OF THE WORMS #1 (Dark Horse, 1997) – untitled, [W] Mike Mignola, [A] Patrick McEown. A team of ghost hunters foils a plot to resurrect an ancient deity. This is basically a Hellboy story without Hellboy or the BPRD. It has the same atmosphere as any Hellboy comic, and even uses the same sort of invented language as Hellboy, e.g. “Sancti abbram gazdish nam-um rama” (the last two words resemble “Anung Un Rama,” Hellboy’s real name). This is really my problem with Mignola – that his stories are all so similar.

STRANGEHAVEN #12 (Abiogenesis, 1999) – “Hot Stuff,” [W/A] Gary Spencer Millidge. After three issues that were mostly talkfests (though not in a bad way), this issue has some real action. Janey tells her father that she’s heard Alex is going to be inducted into the Knights of the Golden Light, her father becomes furious and threatens to kill her unlss she reveals who told her this, and Janey answers Suzie Tang. The Knights hold a meeting where they sentence a traitor to death. Peter’s wife commits suicide. Then Suzie discovers Peter’s hanged corpse, and then someone apparently kills Suzie herself. After this I was very curious to know what happens next.

2000 AD #574 (Rebellion, 1988) – Rogue Trooper: “Hit 3: The Violent Majority,” [W] Simon Geller, [A] Steve Dillon. Rogue prepares for another assassination attempt. Summer Magic: “Episode 4,” [W] Alan McKenzie, [A] John Ridgway. Luke Kirby and his uncle Elias prepare to confront a vampire. This series deserves to be better known because it’s a precursor to The Books of Magic and Harry Potter. Dredd: “Simp About the House,” [W] John Wagner & Alan Grant, [A] Cliff Robinson. Dredd is called to a domestic dispute between Nobby Klunk the simp and his wife Clovis, whose wedding was depicted in #527. Dredd forcibly divorces the Klunks and throws Nobby out of his apartment. Desperate, Nobby returns to the apartment, but Clovis has had enough of him. She hides him under a trapdoor, then nails the trapdoor shut.  I. don’t know if these characters appeared again. ABC Warriors: “The Black Hole,” [W] Pat Mills, [A] SMS. Mostly some action sequences. SMS’s pages were beautiful and full of fine detail, and i wish he’d produced a larger body of work in comics.

MILLIE THE MODEL #183 (Marvel, 1970) – “Just His Dish!” etc., [W] Stan Lee, [A] Stan Goldberg. This comic is barely distinguishable from Kathy #24. Some of these stories were reprinted in Millie the Model Annual #12, which I’ve already read, but I can’t remember having read any of them before. Millie the Model lasted until 1973, and I assume it was the last of Marvel’s teen humor titles.

On Decemebr 10, I went to the latest Charlotte Comicon. I bought some great stuff at this convention. There seemed to be more things I wanted than at the last two Charlotte Comicons. I also felt more willing to spend $5 or $10 on single issues. Unfortunately, one of the regular dealers, Larry Allen, passed away between this convention and the previous one, and there was a display honoring him.

AVENGERS #19 (Marvel, 1965) – “The Bitter Taste of Defeat!”, [W] Stan Lee, [A] Don Heck. This is the second oldest non-reprint Avengers comic in my collection. It’s notable as the first appearance of Erik Josten, aka Smuggler, Power Man, Goliath and Atlas. He’s introduced as one of Zemo’s anonymous goons from issue 9, which implies that he’s a Nazi, but this part of his origin was later ignored. After Zemo’s defeat, Erik is recruited by the Enchantress for her plot to make the Avengers look bad. As with most classic Avengers stories, this issue is most interesting because of the character interactions, and especially because of Cap’s feud with Hawkeye.

CRIME AND PUNISHMENT #37 (Lev Gleason, 1951) – “Death Can Wait,” [W] Carl Wessler, [A] William Overgard, etc. This was $10, more than I’m usually willing to pay, but it was worth it. Crime and Punishment was the sister title to Crime Does Not Pay. The tone of this issue is completely different to that of Crime Does Not Pay #147. Here the criminals are the main focus, and they’re portrayed sympathetically, in exactly the way that the Code prohibited. In the first story, three criminal brothers exploit and abuse their cousin, until finally the cousin is shot while protecting the three brothers from the police, and he snaps and kills all three of them. In the second story, a criminal tries to smuggle himself out of Chicago in a coffin, but unsurprisingly he dies for real. The third story, “The Beauty Contest Murder Case,” is a whodunit in which the reader is invited to compete with the detective in identifying the culprit. The last story, “The Four Punks,” is about four ne’er-do-wells, whose picaresque adventures end with three of them being arrested for the murder of the fourth. These stories have the same gritty, realistic aura as contemporary crime fiction, and they’re terrifically entertaining. I want to read more Lev Gleason crime comics.

TALES OF SUSPENSE #66 (Marvel, 1965) – Iron Man: “If I Fail, a World is Lost!”, [W] Stan Lee, [A] Don Heck. Tony fights Attuma and wins, but Senator Byrd gets angry at him and threatens to get his military contracts revoked. Senator Byrd was a constant presence in this era of Iron Man. Captain America: “The Fantastic Origin of the Red Skull,” [W] Stan Lee, [A] Jack Kirby. In a story set during World War II, the Red Skull hypnotizes Cap into serving him, and also reveals his origin. This story includes the famous scene where Hitler tells his subordinates that he can make a bellboy into a better Nazi than them.

MAGNUS, ROBOT FIGHTER #6 (Gold Key, 1964) – “Alone Against Talpa,” [W] Robert Schaefer & Eric Freiwald, [A] Russ Manning. This issue has sentimental importance for me because when I was in college, Magnus, Robot Fighter #35, which reprints issue 6, was the first Russ Manning comic I read. I was amazed at how good it was, and Manning became one of my favorite Silver Age artists. Technically issue 6 is redundant since I already have issue 35, but as a completist, I prefer to own the original issue. (Magnus #6 also includes an Aliens backup story that’s not in #35, though I think I have a reprint of that story too.) In “Alone Against Talpa,” Magnus travels underground to rescue some kidnapped scientists from an evil robot, and he succeeds thanks to assistance from the scientists’ wives and children. This is 1964, so the scientists are all men, but the wives and kids get some good scenes. Like all of Manning’s Magnus stories, “Alone Against Talpa” is full of thrilling action scenes and realistic, slick robots. This was a fun comic to revisit. I believe I now need only issues 1, 6 and 8 to have the complete run of Manning’s Magnus.

STRANGEHAVEN #1 (Abiogenesis, 1995) – “In Circles” etc., [W/A] Gary Spencer Millidge. While driving in a remote area of England, Alex Hunter crashes his car and wakes up in a strange little town. With a girl named Janey at his guide, he meets a number of weird local people. This is a good debut issue, though most of the information in it is already familiar to me. Millidge’s art and lettering both improved significantly as the series went on.

POGO POSSUM #16 (Dell, 1954) – “Pieces of Ate” etc., [W/A] Walt Kelly. I’m amazed that I own this comic. I had assumed that Pogo comic books were beyond my price range. I do have one other issue of Pogo, but I think it’s incomplete. The stories in this issue have typical funny-animal comic plots, but they’re elevated above conventional funny animal material by Walt Kelly’s brilliant artwork and lettering, as well as his witty dialogue, written in his unique prose style. Also, Pogo and Albert’s characters are distinctive, and they’re perfect foils for each other. This issue is purely humor-focused and doesn’t have any of the political satire that characterized the comic strip. I don’t understand how he was able to do both a comic book and a comic strip at the same time, unless he didn’t do the comic book himself, and all the sources attribute it to him. Perhaps the excessive demands on his labor were the reason why the comic book was cancelled after issue 16.

DUNC AND LOO #8 (Dell, 1963) – “Camping Out,” [W] John Stanley, [A] Bill Williams. This is a John Stanley comic that I haven’t read before. Like Thirteen Going on Eighteen, Dunc and Loo is a teen humor comic. The difference is that Dunc and Loo’s protagonists are male, and the setting is an urban apartment building, rather than a small town. All the stories are full of Stanley’s brilliant plotting and comic timing. The best story is the first one, where Dunc and Loo decide to go “camping” on the roof of their building. Or maybe the one where they encounter aliens who look like trees.

UNCLE SCROOGE #60 (Dell, 1965) – “The Phantom of Notre Duck,” [W/A] Carl Barks. Scrooge designs a new vault door that can only be opened by playing “My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean” on a certain fife. Then he takes the fife to the local Gothic cathedral to dunk it in a fountain, which will supposedly make the fife safe from harm. But the fife is stolen, and Scrooge and the nephews have to reclaim it from the thief. After a thrilling chase sequence, we learn that the thief wears a mask to conceal his ugliness – because he just looks like Scrooge! This story is a classic example of Barks’s mastery of adventure storytelling. As the title indicates, its plot is a combination of The Phantom of the Opera and The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

YOUNG LOVE #87 (DC, 1971) – “Too Proud to Love,” [W] Mary Skrenes, [A] Vince Colletta. Patricia is super proud and privileged, but she’s humbled when she falls off her horse and is temporarily paralyzed. Then she and her doctor fall in love, which has to be a violation of medical ethics. This may be the first romance comic I’ve read that was written by a woman, but it hardly seems any different from the ones written by men. In the next story, Louise thinks her husband is cheating on her, but it turns out his “other woman” is a picture of her, back when she was less angry at him. In this story, as often in romance comics, the problems with Louise’s marriage are presented as being entirely Louise’s fault. The story makes no attempt to consider how Louise’s husband might have provoked her anger. In the last story, drawn by Jack Katz, Paul and Anne fall in love on a cruise, but Paul lies and says he’s married because he’s afraid of Anne’s love. I’m always excited when I find old romance comics that I can afford, but I’m always disappointed to find that they’re not very good.

HOUSE OF MYSTERY #204 (DC, 1972) – “All in the Family,” [W] Mary Skrenes (as Virgil North), [A] Bernie Wrightson. Young Fred and Mary are trapped in a haunted house with two hideous shapeshifting monsters. Wrightson’s artwork here is absolutely spectacular. His cover for this issue is also a classic. I need to figure out which other DC horror comics include his art. Other artists in this issue are Alex Niño and Win Mortimer. The stories in this issue are all pretty dumb, though the last one is written by Carl Wessler, who also wrote Crime and Punishment #37.

DEADLINE USA #8 (Dark Horse, 1992) – [E] Chris Warner. This issue starts with a Wired World story in which one of the girls is kidnapped by an ice cream truck. There’s also Hugo Tate by Nick Abadzis, Johnny Nemo by Milligan and Ewins, and a series of beautiful short strips by Dave Cooper. Other contributors include D’Israeli, Shaky Kane, Evan Dorkin and Julie Hollings. Like the original Deadline, this issue also includes some text articles on music.

AVENGERS #102 (Marvel, 1972) – “What to Do Till the Sentinels Come!”, [W] Roy Thomas, [A] Rich Buckler. This was one of the only Avengers issues I was missing between #100 and #300. Avengers is perhaps my favorite Marvel title, and I’m always excited when I find an issue of it that I haven’t read. In this issue, the Grim Reaper asks the Vision to help him resurrect Wonder Man, but Vizh refuses. Then the Sentinels, who last appeared in X-Men #59, come back to Earth and kidnap the Scarlet Witch. Rich Buckler’s art style in this issue is a blatant ripoff of Neal Adams’s style. A subplot in this issue is Wanda’s growing love for the Vision, and a very creepy moment is when Hawkeye kisses Wanda without her consent, and calls himself “the future father of your little witch-brood.” Eww.

FRONTLINE COMBAT #1 (Gemstone, 1951/1995) – [W] Harvey Kurtzman or unknown (according to the GCD, John Benson says that Kurtzman only wrote the first story). “Marines Retreat!”, [A] John Severin. During the fighting retreat from the Changjin Reservoir in Korea, an American Marine is mortally wounded, and he sacrifices himself to help his comrades escape. He’s given a fallen soldiers’ precious bottle of wine to drink, but he throws it away. This story’s ending is eerily similar to that of Russ Heath’s classic “Give and Take” from Blazing Combat #4. Two-Fisted Tales #26 (#9 in Gemstone’s numbering) was also devoted to the retreat from the Changjin Reservoir. “Enemy Assault!”, [A] Jack Davis. In the Korean War, an American soldier is trapped in a trench with a Chinese soldier who speaks English. They befriend each other, but then the American soldier has to kill the Chinese soldier. “O.P.!”, [A] Russ Heath. Not much of a story, but a brutal depiction of World War I trench warfare. “Unterseeboot 113,” [A] Wally Wood. A German U-boat commander is caught outside his submarine when it dives. He’s almost rescued by a British ship, but then his own submarine attacks the ship, forcing it to sail away and leave the commander to die.

CAPTAIN AMERICA #105 (Marvel, 1968) – “In the Name of Batroc!”, [W] Stan Lee, [A] Jack Kirby. Cap watches some combat film of himself and Bucky, and then he fights Batroc, the Swordsman and the Living Laser. It goes without saying that this issue has some spectacular action sequences, although its plot is rather flimsy. Captain America didn’t have the same soap opera drama as other ‘60s Marvel titles, since Cap didn’t have much of a secret identity.

TUBBY #5 (Dell, 1953) – “The Indian Fighter” etc., [W/A] John Stanley (possibly with Lloyd White). Tubby hits his head on a log and has a vision where he fights some stereotypical Indians, and is then forced to marry a fat Indian princess. In this story, it’s hard to enjoy Stanley’s brilliant storytelling because of his use of Indian stereotypes and fat-shaming. In the backup story, Tubby and his friends trick the West Side Boys into getting sprayed by a skunk.

WARRIOR #5 (Quality, 1982) – [E] Dez Skinn. I have never before seen an issue of this series that I could afford, but at the Charlotte Comicon I found three of them. This issue includes one chapter of Marvelman and two chapters of V for Vendetta. I’ve already read these stories, of course, but it’s fascinating to see them in their original context. Garry Leach’s Marvelman art was intended to be seen in black and white and at the British page size, which explains why the first few Eclipse issues look kind of strange. I believe I’ve also read the Laser Eraser and Pressbutton story before, though I don’t remember it. A story that I don’t think I’ve read elsewhere is “Shandor, Demon Stalker,” which includes some very detailed art by the obscure David Jackson. There’s also The Spiral Path by Steve Parkhouse, and Madman by Paul Neary and Mick Austin, which has some ugly lettering.

BETA RAY BILL #5 (Marvel, 2021) – “Argent Star Finale,” [W/A] Daniel Warren Johnson. Bill, Skurge, and Bill’s ship Skuttlebutt team up to prevent Surtur from reclaiming the sword Twilight. This issue is based on Walt Simonson’s Thor, but its style of art and writing are Johnson’s own, and his draftsmanship and action scenes are excellent. I wish I’d bought this miniseries when it came out, but the other four issues aren’t too hard to find.

FRIDAY #1 (Image, 2021) – “The Girl in the Trees,” [W] Ed Brubaker, [A] Marcos Martin. Friday Fitzhugh, a former teenage detective, returns from college to the small town of King’s Hill, where her best friend, Lancelot Jones, enlists her help in solving a mystery. The mystery seems to have a supernatural horror angle. This comic is an homage to kids’ mystery stories like Encyclopedia Brown and Nancy Drew, though Criminal: The Last of the Innocent included a more direct parody of Encyclopedia Brown. Marcos Martin’s visual compositions and coloring are beautiful. I think this was the only issue of Friday that was releaesd in comic book form, as a Local Comic Shop Day exclusive. The rest of the series is available as a webcomic and as a collected edition. I ought to get the collection.

CEREBUS #119 (Aardvark-Vanaheim, 1989) – “Jaka’s Story 6,” [W/A] Dave Sim. Half the issue consists of illustrated-text flashbacks to when Jaka was ten years old. The other half is set in the present day, but nothing much happens in it except that Cerebus is forced to hear Jaka and Rick having sex. At this point, Cerebus was still good, but its annoying tendencies had begun to develop.

LOCKE & KEY #5 (IDW, 2008) – untitled, [W] Joe Hill, [A] Gabriel Rodriguez. Sam Lesser arrives at the mansion and takes Nina hostage. Dodge’s spirit appears to Bode and forces him to bring her the Anywhere Key, since it’s the only way to save Bode’s family. Sam Lesser is a horrifying villain, with his sociopathic indifference to human life, and his ability to manipulate others. Yet somehow Dodge is even worse.

AMAZING ADVENTURES #4 (Marvel, 1971) – Inhumans: “With These Rings, I Thee Kill!”, [W/A] Jack Kirby. The Inhumans battle the Mandarin, and Black Bolt defeats him by hypnotizing him. I think this was Kirby’s last published Marvel comic before he moved to DC. Fantastic Four #108 was published later, but was based on material originally produced for #103. Black Widow: “Deadlock!”, [W] Mimi Gold, [A] Gene Colan. Black Widow negotiates with some teenagers who have occupied a building. Mimi Gold had a very brief career for Marvel. Her name is the same as Screaming Mimi/Songbird’s secret identity, but Kurt Busiek says that this is a coincidence. Bill Everett’s inks over Colan’s pencils are striking.

OPTIC NERVE #6 (Drawn & Quarterly, 1999) – “Hawaiian Getaway,” [W/A] Adrian Tomine. I’ve read this one before in collected form. It’s the one where the protagonist, Hillary Chan, gets fired for saying “We’ll beam these right up to you, Mr. Shatner.” After that, she starts amusing herself by making prank calls to people standing by the pay phone outside her apartment. Like Ben in Shortcomings, Hillary is an unsympathetic protagonist, and this story has a somewhat slick and unemotional tone to it. Hillary’s Asian-American identity is a minor theme in this story.

VAMPIRELLA #47 (Warren, 1975) – “Mother’s Coming Home!”, [W] Bill DuBay, [A] Gonzalo Mayo. Vampirella is desperate for blood, so she decides to take it from an insane woman who’s already killed her abusive mother, and who, in Vampirella’s judgment, is better off dead. “The Secret Legacy of Gaslight Lil!”, [W] Bill DuBay, [A] Luis Garcia (miscredited as José García). A young sex worker gains sex worker powers, and uses them to enslave two gunslingers as her personal army. The two cowboys are obviously drawn to resemble on real people, but I’m not sure who. García’s art is gorgeous, though it suffers from poor reproduction. This story originated as one of his Crónicas del sin nombre. “Children of Wrath,” [W] Gerry Boudreau, [A] Ramón Torrents. Some rich people establish an abbey full of kidnapped female sex slaves. The slaves revolt and take over the abbey, though it’s not clear whether they kill the men or enslave them. This is an interesting story, but it sort of implies that feminism means making men subservient to women. “Gamal and the Cockatrice,” [W] Bruce Bezaire, [A] Raphael Auraléon. A Bedouin tribesman claims to have killed the mythical cockatrice, but no one can verify this claim, because anyone who looks at the cockatrice instantly dies. Whether the cockatrice ever existed is never made clear. I think David Roach included this story in his list of the best Warren stories. “The January Man,” [W] Gerry Boudreau, [A] Luis Bermejo. Some children go on an adventure with a man who claims to be the incarnation of the month of January. He serves for one year, and after that, he passes on his duties and dies. It’s implied that one of the children, Tommy, is going to be the next January Man, and will die in turn.

POWERS OF X #6 (Marvel, 2019) – “House of X,” [W] Jonathan Hickman, [A] R.B. Silva & Pepe Larraz. In a flashback, Charles meets Moira for what he thinks is the first time. When Charles reads Moira’s mind, he has a vision of a dystopian far future, in which Wolverine kills a future version of Moira and restarts time. Moira tells Charles that every reality ends with him losing, but Charles resolves that this time will be different. Then there’s a big party to celebrate the founding of Krakoa.

STUMBO TINYTOWN #11 (Harvey, 1966) – various stories, [W] unknown, [A] Warren Kremer. Stumbo has some of Warren Kremer’s most striking art, thanks to the main character’s immense size, which encourages vertical page layouts. However, Stumbo Tinytown has the same problem as all the Harvey humor comics I’ve read: its writing is very crude. The stories are all very short, they’re mostly about how big Stumbo is, and they have no continuity, narrative depth, or genuine pathos. In 2022 I made an effort to collect Harvey comics, but the more of them I read, the less they interest me.

LITTLE LULU #106 (Dell, 1957) – “Soda Money” etc., [W] John Stanley, [A] Irving Tripp. I still haven’t read all the Little Lulu comics I bought in June 2020, so of course I bought some more. This issue is full of hilarious and clever stories, though they’re all variations on familiar themes, like Tubby’s quarrels with his friends. I think the best story in this issue is “Surprise Party,” where Lulu tries to get a date with Wilbur by inviting him to a party with no other guests, but then the other kids show up at the party anyway.  

CAPTAIN MARVEL #12 (Marvel, 1969) – “The Moment of the Man-Slayer!”, [W] Arnold Drake, [A] Dick Ayers. Having obtained new powers from the cosmic entity Zo (who was later revealed to be a hoax), Mar-Vell seeks revenge on Yon-Rogg, but first he has to fight a robot called Man-Slayer. This issue is another example of the series’ early period, when it hadn’t yet settled on a definitive status quo.

WONDER WOMAN #225 (DC, 2006) – “Nothing Finished, Only Abandoned,” [W] Greg Rucka, [A] Cliff Richards. In the next-to-last issue of Rucka’s first Wonder Woman run, Diana meets with the gods, then she closes her embassy and bids a sad goodbye to her staff. This issue is a bookend to Rucka’s first issue, which introduced the embassy and its staff. Rucka is tied with Gail Simone as my second favorite Wonder Woman writer, though neither of them was nearly as good as Pérez.

WHAT’S THE FURTHEST PLACE FROM HERE? #1 (Image, 2021) – “Are You Sick Too?”, [W] Matthew Rosenberg, [A] Tyler Boss. This first issue is set in a postapocalyptic world, where a gang of teenagers lives in an old record store and fights with other gangs for territory. One of them, a girl named Sid, is obviously pregnant, but she doesn’t seem to realize it. Also, it seems like the kids alll die when they grow up. This issue sets up an interesting world, and arouses curiosity about how this world works, and how it came to be. Now that I know what’s going on in What’s the Furthest Place from Here, I want to read more of it.

HALO & SPROCKET #1 (SLG, 2002) – “Half Wits,” [W/A] Kerry Callen. I love Kerry Callen’s Super Antics strips, but until now I hadn’t read his comic books, except the 1987 Directory to a Non-Existent Universe. Halo and Sprocket is about a young woman named Katie whose roommates are an angel and a robot. It’s a cute humor comic, where most of the humor comes from Halo and Sprocket’s misconceptions about human life. Kerry Callen continued to work on Halo & Sprocket until 2022, when he self-published the definitive edition of the series.

Next trip to Heroes:

SOMETHING IS KILLING THE CHILDREN #35 (Boom!, 2023) – “Showdown at the Easy Creek Corral Part 5,” [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Werther Dell’Edera. Erica beats the crap out of Cutter and finally kills her, and good riddance. Cutter was just a festering pustule of a person. But Gaby is already fatally poisoned, so she gets the Duplicitype to eat her hand, which is contaminated with the anti-Duplicitype poison. The Duplicitype and Gaby both die, and since the Duplicitype looked like Erica, Cecilia pretends its corpse is Erica’s. But now Riqui is determined to kill Erica someday. This was an epic conclusion to the past two story arcs. Something is Killing the Children was the best ongoing title of the year other than Nightwing and Saga.

TRANSFORMERS #3 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Daniel Warren Johnson. Optimus fights Skywarp, and finally wins by tearing off his own arm and beating Skywarp with it. I’m not sure why that was necessary, but it looks cool. The humans finally realize that the Autobots are on their side. Spike is shot in the fight, and Optimus vows to save him. To me this is the best Transformers comic ever, and perhaps the best new series of the year. The action scenes and the draftsmanship are spectacular, and the series feels like it’s more than just a comic for Transformers fans. Conversely, I have a Facebook friend who’s a hardcore Transformers fan, and he doesn’t like this series very much.

TITANS: BEAST WORLD #1 (DC, 2023) – “Beast World Part 1,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Ivan Reis. Earth is attacked by a planet-sized “Necrostar” monster, which has only ever been defeated by Starro. In order to defeat the monster, Gar has to turn into a copy of Starro and destroy it. But then a new villain, Doctor Hate, causes Gar to go insane and release smaller starfish that turn people into beasts. The premise of this crossover is kind of silly, but I’m still willing to read this miniseries because it’s written by Tom Taylor.

CAPTAIN GINGER: THE LAST FEEDER #2 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Stuart Moore, [A] June Brigman. The last human dies, but she helps the cats and dogs rescue the new humans, who are green-skinned newborns with heat vision powers. The cats and dogs are now the new Feeders. The best moment in this issue is the human telling the humanoid dog that “all dogs are good boys.” I hope this won’t be the last Captain Ginger comic.

FANTASTIC FOUR #14 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Ryan North, [A] Ivan Fiorelli. The FF visit the site where the Baxter Building is scheduled to reappear, and they discover that some people are erecting a new buliding on the site, because they’re being paid to do so through a crowdsourced labor app, Metamind. The FF meet Metamind’s creator Dan Passi, an Elon Musk type, and he explains that the app is shockingly powerful and works like Asimov’s psychohistory. We incidentally learn that Metamind was responsible for the Marvel Universe not having a COVID-19 pandemic. Reed tricks Passi and destroys the app because it’s way too powerful to exist. But then when the Baxter Building is supposed to reappear, it doesn’t. Besides She-Hulk, Fantastic Four was the best Marvel title of the year.

THE HUNGER AND THE DUSK #4 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] G. Willow Wilson, [A] Chris Wildgoose. The orc tribes have an acrimonious council, and some of them advocate breaking the treaty with the humans. One of the party members is abducted by the Vangol and meets their leader, who can speak English. It’s now clear that the Vangol are “fighting a different war” than the humans and orcs, but what does that mean?

RADIANT BLACK #27 (Image, 2023) – “Accretion,” [W] Kyle Higgins & Joe Clark, [A] Eduardo Ferigato. Marshall fights the next challenge, which is a battle against some warrior priests. But while Marshall is fighting some of the priests, the others kidnap Nathan, and Marshall is unable to stop them from killing him. Marshall’s mistake is apparently that he “cannot function alone… without support,” so perhaps Nathan’s death happened because Marshall called for help last issue, which seemed like the correct choice at the time. But what would have happened if Nathan and Marshall’s roles had been reversed? Well…

RADIANT BLACK #27.5 (Image, 2023) – as above except [A] Thobias Daneluz. The challenge is the same, but Nathan tries to resolve it peacefully. It doesn’t work, but Radiant Red shows up to help, and with her aid, Nathan convinces one of the warrior priests to take his side. From this ally, Nathan learns that Marshall is going to be killed, and he saves him. Marshall tells Nathan that “you would have done the same for me,” which, as we’ve seen, is not true. So it looks like this time around, Nathan succeeded where Marshall failed, while in the previous pair of issues the opposite was true. This whole storyline has been a fascinating and unprecedented narrative experiment.

LOCAL MAN #7 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Tony Fleecs & Tim Seeley. Crossjack is pulled into the river by some sort of monster, and he wakes up in the hippie camp, where he’s given some psilocybin. This leads to a funny scene where he physically interacts with word balloons and panel borders. Then he continues investigating Mackenzie Cheng’s murder. In the backup story, we see how Inga decided to start her bakery.

MS. MARVEL: THE NEW MUTANT #4 (Marvel, 2023) – “What It Means to Be a Mutant,” [W] Iman Vellani & Sabir Pirzada, [A] Carlos Gomez. Kamala and Bruno team up and defeat the Iron Man Sentinel, and Kamala gains a new sense of confidence. This miniseries wasn’t the best Ms. Marvel comic, but it wasn’t the worst either. There’s a new Ms. Marvel series starting in March, but unfortunately it’s just another miniseries.

KAYA #13 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Wes Craig. Kaya and Jin go on a dungeon crawl with their new friend, an anthropomorphic cat woman named Phaedra. They succeed in overcoming “the dozen deaths of Pirate Mountain,” but the reason they did it was to get a ride to Monk Island from some pirates, and the pirates refuse to help. However, another pirate offers to give Jin and Kaya a ride if they complete another quest, rescuing the pirate’s niece from some alleged radicals in the city of Shazir. Phaedra leaves Kaya and Jin, and the two siblings go to Shazir, which is ruled by robots. A highlight of this issue is when Jin uses his new shapeshifting powers to turn into a squirrel.

WORLD’S FINEST: TEEN TITANS #6 (DC, 2023) – “Blitzkrieg Finale,” [W] Mark Waid, [A] Emanuela Lupacchino & Mike Norton. The Titans defeat the Terror Titans, but Dick says a sad goodbye to his team, assuming that Batman is going to fire him. Donna and Garth break up. Batman gives Dick a slap-on-the-wrist punishment and grudgingly praises him for his leadership. To reiterate what I’ve said before, this was probably my favorite comic about the original Titans, and it was Mark Waid’s best work in many years.

TITANS: BEAST WORLD #2 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Ivan Reis. After a cute scene with Nightwing, Batman gets infected with a parasite and turns into a wolf (not a bat, oddly). Black Adam turns into a lion. Amanda Waller informs the president of the dire situation, and he replies, “You think I don’t know that? My wife is a damn otter!” So at least this comic isn’t taking itself too seriously.

ZAWA + THE BELLY OF THE BEAST #2 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Michael Dialynas. Bandit and Thatcher discover Zawa, and they realize she’s the Guardian who the city worships. She eats lots of food, and then they ask for her help in defeating the Mayor. Michael Dialynas’s artwork in this series is beautiful, and his writing is also excellent. Zawa is basically a female Cookie Monster; she even says “cookie” at one point. This comic also includes an adorable black cat.

SCRAPPER #6 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Cliff Blezinski & Alex de Campi, [A] Ryan Kelly. The series ends with the animals defeating Smite. Overall Scrapper was not quite as good as, for example, Beasts of Burden, and Ryan Kelly is not ideally suited to drawing animals, but I still enjoyed Scrapper anyway. A fun thing in this issue is that the rats agree to help out against Smite in exchange for fifty pizzas with extra cheese.

DARK SPACES: DUNGEON #2 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Scott Snyder, [A] Hayden Sherman. Madoc and Tyler search in the desert and find another of the killer’s victims, but the victim reveals that they were a decoy, and the killer has already gotten to Tyler’s son. This is a terrifying piece of psychological horror. Despite being by the same creative team as Dark Spaces: Wildfire, it has an entirely different feel.

BENEATH THE TREES WHERE NOBODY SEES #2 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Patrick Horvath. Sam begins his murder investigation. A horrible woman named Cherry Gherkins, who resembles Miss Piggy, causes a big scene in public. Then she becomes the killer’s next victim. Her death made me feel a sense of guilty pleasure. This is a fascinating miniseries and I’m excited for the rest of it.

WILD’S END #6 (Boom!, 2023) – “Lights Out,” [W] Dan Abnett, [A] I.N.J. Culbard. Thom sacrifices his life to detonate the mine. The local population of Martians is wiped out, but the country is still full of other Martians. At the end of the issue, the protagonists receive a radio transmission from an alleged safe house full of other survivors. So maybe there will be another Wild’s End miniseries, starring these characters as well as the ones from the first three volumes.

BIRDS OF PREY #4 (DC, 2023) – “Megadeath Part 4,” [W] Kelly Thompson, [A] Leonardo Romero. The Birds of Prey fight Wonder Woman and the Amazons, and after a series of thrilling fight scenes, the BoP lose and are sent to jail. They escape and confront the real villain, Megaera. I like everything about this comic except the coloring.

PHANTOM ROAD #7 (DC, 2023) – “Mirror in the Bathroom,” [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Gabriel Hernandez Walta. Theresa is taken off the case, but decides to keep investigating anyway. Dom and Birdie fight a mob of zombies, but a lifesize bear mascot saves them, only to attack them in its turn. Theresa recovers some unpleasant memories, and a mysterious man threatens her. Phantom Road’s plot is getting really interesting.

SHAZAM! #6 (DC, 2023) – “Meet the Captain!”, [W] Mark Waid, [A] Dan Mora. Freddy’s acceptance of the poweres turns out to be a trick. The three other kids and the dinosaur arrive and create a distraction. Billy convinces Solomon to make the Captain wiser, so he can convince the other gods to stop squabbling. It works, but at the cost of widening the divide between Billy and the Captain. The dinosaur aliens invade Earth, but are confronted by Black Adam. This is my favorite Shazam comic since Jeff Smith’s miniseries.

BATMAN AND ROBIN #4 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Simone Di Meo. In a flashback, a younger Damian is slapped by his aptly named teacher, Mistress Harsh, and Talia fires her. In the present, Batman and Robin save the White Rabbit from various other villains (apparently her gimmick is that she makes other villains follow her), and then Damian goes back to school. But he recognizes his new teacher as both Mistress Harsh and Shush. I liked this issue better than last issue. I hope we get more scenes with Damian at school.

DAMN THEM ALL #11 (Boom!, 2023) – unttiled, [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Charlie Adlard. Ellie meets the main villain again, and she gives a lecture on the pointlessness of religion. Here Spurrier touches on some of the same themes that are present in Coda and Way of X. Ellie finally gets to open Alfie’s coffin, but it’s empty. I remain confused as to just what is happening in this series. I assumed that Ellie had some sort of plan to doublecross the villain, but if she does have a plan, she hasn’t revealed it yet.

PETROL HEAD #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Rob Williams, [A] Pye Parr. The robot and the humans manage to escape to safety, but the father is badly hurt. This issue is mostly a long car chase sequence. As before, this comic’s artwork and coloring are excellent, and the overall style is similar to that of 2000 AD. Speaking of which:

2000 AD #2339 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: “In the Event of My Untimely Demise Part 7,” [W] Mike Carroll, [A] Jake Lynch. Dredd rescues a criminal named Fischer, but the main villain orders a corrupt Judge to kill Fischer before she can be interrogated. However, Dredd interferes with this plot by asking to participate in Fischer’s interrogation. Rogue Trooper: “Blighty Valley Part 13,” [W] Garth Ennis, [A] Patrick Goddard. Just two of the soldiers survive, and one of them blinds himself after seeing horrible visions of the future of war. Rogue continues on his way. This was a clever story, though I have a certain distaste for Garth Ennis. Void Runners: “Part 5,” [W] David Hine, [A] Boo Cook. Shikari inhales a lot of Kali’s Dust and has a bizarre vision. This story’s style of art and coloring reminds me a bit of Brendan McCarthy. Laser Lennox: “In the Lair of the Sinister Skull,” [W] Elizabeth Sandifer, [A] Jimmy Broxton. Elizabeth Sandifer’s second story for 2000 AD is worse than her first. This one is about an aging Dan Dare/Flash Gordon hero who becomes an unwitting pawn of a mind virus. Jimmy Broxton’s art is very good, reminding me of Paul Gillon and David Roach. Azimuth: “A Job for Suzi Nine Part 3,” [W] Dan Abnett, [A] Tazio Bettin. Suzi meets a robotic “Marie Antonaut” who says “Let them eat quake.” Unusually, this story ends on the back cover.

HOWARD THE DUCK #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “Into (Looking at) the Multiverse,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Joe Quinones, etc. This is a 50th anniversary one-shot. It consists of three short What If? stories, each by a different creative team. Regrettably, only the framing sequence is by Chip Zdarsky, who’s the only good Howard the Duck writer besides Steve Gerber. The three inset stories are amusing but not memorable.

TITANS: BEAST WORLD TOUR: GOTHAM #1 (DC, 2023) – “The Good Boy,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Miguel Mendonca. In the lead story, Batman, now a wolf, fights Killer Croc, now an actual crocodile, and then Nightwing captures Batman and takes him to the zoo. The next story, in which Harley Quinn becomes a rabbit, is one of Grace Ellis’s only stories for DC. There are two other stories by creators I don’t care about, and then a Batgirl story by Kyle Starks and Kelley Jones. The latter artist’s work has always been very similar to that of Bernie Wrightson. I didn’t buy the other Beast World Tour specials, since the lineup of creators wasn’t as exciting.

IMMORTAL THOR #5 (Marvel, 2023) – “Caveat Emptor,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Martín Cóccolo. After some fighting, Thor lets Toranos hold the hammer, and judges Toranos worthy of holding it. This causes Toranos to develop an unwanted sense of morality, and he abandons his attempt at conquest, but first he tells Thor that he (Toranos) was doing the bidding of Thor’s own mother, Gaea. At the end of the issue, the Enchantress and Skurge team up with Dario Agger.

KAPTARA: UNIVERSAL TRUTHS #4 (Image, 2023) – “The Ballad of Skullthor,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Kagan McLeod. A character named Skullthor is transported from Kaptara to Earth, where he falls in love with a human woman, but is then captured by the government and used as an experimental subject. I couldn’t remember who Skullthor was, but apparently he appeared or was mentioned in the first series, as Villektra’s second-in-command who was sent to conquer Earth.

ROGUE SUN #17 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Ryan Parrott, [A] Abel & Marco Renna. There’s lots of fighting, both on Earth and inside the Sunstone. Marcus and Dylan travel back to Earth in Owen’s suit. Then they intervene to save the rest of the family from Caleb. The overarching theme of this storyline is that the Rogue Suns are a toxic lineage of bad fathers who inflict their own childhood trauma on their sons. In teaming up with Marcus, Dylan is at least trying to break the cycle.

ARCADE KINGS #5 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Dylan Burnett. Joe and Ken team up to defeat Vic, then they both go to work in Ken’s arcade. At the end of the issue, they get invited to compete in the “Infinity Islands Maximum Masters Tournament.” I hope there’s a sequel, because this miniseries was a very fun tribute to old arcade games, and it had excellent art and coloring.

THE BLOODY DOZEN #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Charles Soule, [A] Alberto Jiménez Alburquerque. This is the second Shrouded College miniseries, after Hell to Pay. It has the same creative team as Letter 44, which is kind of appropriate since both series are about space exploration. In The Bloody Dozen #1, the Shrouded College contacts an astronaut, Greta Hill, who never got the chance to go into space. She helps them recruit another astronaut and his granddaughter, and the three of them are sent on a mission to rescue some vampires from a space station. This miniseries’ premise is less compelling than that of Hell to Pay.

THE WRONG EARTH: WE COULD BE HEROES #2 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Tom Peyer, [A] Jamal Igle w/ Russ Braun. The various heroes recapture the city from the villains. Dragonflyman refuses to tell the people of his Earth about the existence of the multiverse, since this fact implies that morality is relative. At the victory celebration, Stinger II is referred to as “a credit to his race,” which makes him furious. This is probably an homage to a scene from the Justice League cartoon, but see here for other examples of this trope. At the end, the heroes discover that they’re trapped on the Earth they’re currently on, again. The next Wrong Earth series begins in March. The Wrong Earth’s longevity is impressive; I think it’s the longest-running Ahoy title.

BATMAN #140 (DC, 2023) – “Mind Bomb Part 2,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Jorge Jimenez. In the real world, the Batman of Zur-En-Arrh fights the Joker. In Batman’s mind, he fights to regain control of his body, but when he wakes up, he finds that Zur-En-Arrh has taken over the Failsafe suit. This issue was not that great. If DC never published another Joker story again, I wouldn’t mind at all. As I explained in my review of #135, I think the Joker’s narrative potential has been exhausted.

2000 AD #2340 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: as above. Dredd prevents Fischer from being assassinated. The second-in-command crime boss kills the main boss. This story was both confusing and overly violent. Portals and Black Goo: “Night Shift,” [W] John Tomlinson, [A] Eoin Coveney. Kroy Plemons is a driver for Devouroo, which is like Doordash, but the customers are monsters. But another driver keeps stealing Kroy’s deliveries. The premise of this story – Doordash for monsters – is utterly amazing. Void Runners: as above. In her vision, Shikari learns that the universe is about to be overrun by “Subjugators.” Again the art and coloring here are excellent. Future Shocks: “A Temp Problem,” [W] Geoffrey Wessel, [A] Russell Olson. Despite making record profits for his company, Venkatesh Varma is laid off, and he dies in a fall while being escorted off the premises. However, he’s already built a backup of himself into his company’s systems. Azimuth: as above. Suzi is beaten up by other Cadavatars, and then she’s sent to the lair of a creature called the Glitch.

POISON IVY #17 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] G. Willow Wilson, [A] Luana Vecchio. I just realized that Luana Vecchio is not the same person as Luciano Vecchio. Ivy, Harley, and Janeth have some mutual sexual tensions, then Ivy goes to Slaughter Swamp to work on the cure for the lamia, and she encounters Killer Croc and Solomon Grundy.

GRIM #15 (Boom!, 2023) – “Simple Twist of Fate,” [W] Stephanie Phillips, [A] Flaviano. Jess fights Annabel in a new monstrous form, and more stuff happens that I don’t care about. I’ve decided to give up on this series because it’s just not very interesting.

LOTUS LAND #1 (Image, 2023) – “No One Ever Says Goodbye,” [W] Darcy Van Poelgeest, [A] Caio Filipe. In 2648, a man named Bennie is summoned from rural British Columbia to Vancouver in order to respond to a threat to the Keeper Program. I don’t think it’s explained what the Keeper Program is, except that it keeps the city alive. Lotus Land’s Vancouver setting is interesting to me since I’ve been to Vancouver three times, but otherwise this comic made little impact on me. I loved Van Poelgeest’s previous miniseries, Little Bird, but the promised sequel to that comic, Precious Metal, has been indefinitely postponed.

GREEN LANTERN #6 (DC, 2023) – “The Will to Rage,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Xermánico & Scott Godlewski. Hal creates a green mecha to fight Sinestro’s red kaiju. Razer, a character from the animated series, visits Hal, and Hal tells Razer that Kilowog is dead – the Kilowog we’ve been seeing was a ring construct. This is a mildly interesting plot twist, but it’s not enough to retain me as a reader. As before, the Wayward Son backup story is better than the main story.

CITY BOY #6 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Greg Pak, [A] Minkyu Jung. Cameron finally defeats Dr. Mokkarison and comes to terms with the loss of his mother. While it was the best of DC’s three Asian-themed series, City Boy wasn’t as good as some of Greg Pak’s other works. However, Cameron’s powers are fascinating and unique, and I wouldn’t mind seeing him again. It would be interesting to compare City Boy with N.K. Jemisin’s Great Cities books.

WHITE WIDOW #2 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Sarah Gailey, [A] Alessandro Miracolo. Yelena has a brief team-up with Wolverine, she decides which vegetables she likes and dislikes, and she fights Asp and Diamondback. When Armament starts sending eviction notices to everyone in town, Yelena decides it’s time to tell her neighbors that she’s the White Widow. This miniseries is much better than I expected. It succeeds in making me care about a character in whom I previously had no interest.

ORCS: THE GIFT #1 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Christine Larsen. The orcs, elves and crows gather for a festival, and the elves bring one basket of vegetables to make stew with, and another basket of herbs for use in the witch’s potions. However, Pez unknowingly casts a spell that switches the contents of the two baskets, and everyone who eats the stew goes crazy. This is inconvenient because the wolves have just arrived, and they think the orcs trespasssed on their land and destroyed the Tree of Memory. The orcs manage to defuse the situation, but the wolves are still pissed at them. This series is full of raucous, anarchic humor, and I’m glad it’s back.

SIRENS OF THE CITY #5 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joanne Starer, [A] Khary Randolph. The various characters all try to impose their own agendas on Layla’s baby, including Lilith, who wants the baby to be born so that she, Lilith, can die, even if it kills Layla. This issue is primarily intended as setup for the upcoming conclusion.

DANGER STREET #12 (DC, 2023) – “Starman,” [W] Tom King, [A] Jorge Fornés. The series concludes, but without really achieving anything. Like the Simpsons episode “Blood Feud,” it was just a bunch of stuff that happened, without any particular moral. But at least Danger Street didn’t have a disappointing ending, as Tom King’s comics so often do, and it was consistently fun, except for issue 9. I’d say this was Tom King’s best recent comic other than Love Everlasting.

2000 AD #2341 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: “A Fallen Man,” [W] Ken Niemand, [A] Tom Foster. We are reintroduced to Kyle Asher, the judge who returned from Titan. Now he’s working as a hired assassin for some horrible criminals. Azimuth: as #2340 above. On her way back to town, Suzi Nine collides with a car driven by Ramone Dexter. We begin to realize that this story is an unannounced continuation of Dexter’s saga. Portals & Black Goo: as above. Kroy talks with two reguluar clients: a djinn, and a vampire who believes, correctly, that someone is stalking her. Then he makes a delivery to a Chinese hungry ghost. Void Runners: as above. Shikari comes up with a plan which involves destroying the Pleroma. Hershey: “The Cold in the Bones Book 2,” [W] Rob Williams, [A] Simon Fraser. This story is continued from #2309. Hershey tries to prevent the spiders from invading Antarctic City.

CAT FIGHT #5 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Andrew Wheeler, [A] Ilias Kyriazis. After a complicated series of plot twists and reversals, Felix destroys the Red Rosette and recruits the other three good guys as the new Kit Kat Crime Syndicate. This was a really fun miniseries. It’s not actually about cats, but it is about humans who act like cats. I especially like the closing sermon about how “cats are the only animals that choose family,” and also the emotional support binturong.

X-MEN RED #18 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Mended Land,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Yildiray Çinar. Kaorak fights Arakko, but eventually they reconcile, and some other stuff happens that I don’t understand. This is the last issue of X-Men Red, and I’m not sorry. It was consistently confusing, and it never developed a clear identity or plotline, other than being a Storm solo series in all but name.

UNDERHEIST #1 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] David Lapham, [W] Maria Lapham. Some criminals are plotting to steal money by taking it through an underground tunnel. Some other criminals, the protagonists, plot to take the first criminals’ loot after they’ve already stolen it. The original heist succeeds, but since this is a David Lapham comic, the second heist ends in brutal violence. This is an interesting miniseries, though it’s in the same style as most of David Lapham’s previous work. I still have a bunch of unread issues of Stray Bullets, and I’ve stopped buying more issues of that series until I read the ones I have.

THE MAN FROM MAYBE #3 (Oni, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jordan Thomas, [A] Shaky Kane. In the climactic confrontation, one of the good alien dinosaurs is killed, but the other one survives and escapes with the doomsday device. This series wasn’t my favorite, but it was much better and more original than Weird Work.

SWAN SONGS #5 (Image, 2023) – “The End of… Anhedonia,” [W] W. Maxwell Prince, [A] Alex Eckman-Lawn. A man named Albert goes through hypnosis in order to cure his anhedonia, i.e. his inability to be excited or happy about anything. He succeeds in reconnecting himself with his inner child. The psychology in this issue seems trite, but Alex Eckman-Lawn’s collage artwork is fascinating. I missed issue 4 of this series, and I don’t really feel obligated to read it. W. Maxwell Prince is a master of the single-issue story, but because those are the only stories he writes, his work never develops any continuity or any sense of connection between one story and another. Sometimes one of his stories will reference an earlier one, but only as an Easter egg.  

BATMAN #428: ROBIN LIVES! (DC, 1988/2024) – “A Death in the Family Chapter 5,” [W] Jim Starlin, [A] Jim Aparo. This is not a straight-up reprint of Batman #428, but an alternative version that was produced in case the infamous phone poll, where readers voted to save or kill Jason Todd, went the other way. Batman #428: Robin Lives! is kind of like Phoenix: The Untold Story #1, which was the original version of X-Men #137, before Marvel made the decision to kill Dark Phoenix. I haven’t read the original Batman #428, but I compared the Robin Lives! edition with an online version of the original issue, and the two are surprisingly close to each other. In both issues, Batman finds Jason, either alive or dead, and then returns to Gotham, either to bury him or take him to the hospital. Then he discovers that he can’t take revenge on the Joker because of Robin’s death or maiming, because the Joker is the new Iranian ambassador to the UN. (This story is heavily based on ’80s geopolitics.) Between the two versions, much of the dialogue is different, but there are only two places where the artwork is different: the entirety of page 10, and the top two-thirds of page 16. Even the scene of Jason’s funeral is identical in the two versions, except that in the Robin Lives! version, it’s Jason’s mother who’s being buried.

2000 AD #2342 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: as above. Asher kills one of his targets, but lets another one live because he’s innocent. While investigating a seemingly unrelated crime, Dredd finds the body of Asher’s victim. Portals & Black Goo: as above. Kroy escapes the ghost by giving her the food he’s bringing to another client, a dybbuk. (I’m not sure if this comic’s account of dybbuks is accurate to Jewish folklore.) Then Kroy has to visit the dybbuk empty-handed. Meanwhile, the vampire confronts her stalker. Void Runners: as above. Shikari becomes a new universal messiah. This story deserves a sequel, even though the conclusion leaves little room for one. Hershey: as above. Dirty Frank insists on being terated for drug addiction, even though it might kill him. Azimuth: “The Stranger Part 1,” [W] Dan Abnett, [A] Tazio Bettin. This story has a new title, but it continues directly from “A Job for Suzi Nine.” “The Stranger” focuses on Dexter, who realizes that Azimuth is the same as Downlode. I’ve never understood what Downlode is. I guess it’s a big city that covers most of Central Europe.

HULK #8 (Marvel, 2009) – untitled, [W] Jeph Loeb, [A] Art Adams, and “Like a Woman Scorned,” [W] Loeb, [A] Frank Cho. In two separate stories, the green/gray Hulk fights Moon Knight, Ms. Marvel, Sentry and Wendigo, and the red Hulk fights She-Hulk, Valkyrie and Thundra. Both stories have minimal plots, but beautiful art. Adams and Cho are a good artistic pairing because they’re both good at drawing sexy women. In Frank Cho’s case, that’s about the only thing he’s good at. He has massive talent, and he could have been a truly great artist, but he decided to squander his talents by becoming a professional troll.

THOR #273 (Marvel, 1978) – “Somewhere – Over the Rainbow Bridge!”, [W] Roy Thomas, [A] John Buscema. A journalist, Harris Hobbs, wants to visit Asgard to do a TV special. Thor refuses, but then Loki contacts Harris and tells him the story of when Thor went fishing for the Midgard serpent. Meanwhile, Thor has agreed to take a giant adamantium computer to Asgard. When he gets there, he finds Harris and his camera crew hiding inside the computer. One of Harris’s crew is Red Norvell, who briefly becomes Thor a few issues later. This story is a lead-in to the fake Ragnarok saga, one of the few classic Thor stories from between Kirby and Simonson’s runs.

POTIONS INC. #1 (Mad Cave, 2023) – untitled, [W] Erik Burnham, [A] Stelladia. In a fantasy world, a young man named Ran has been groomed to run his family’s potion store, but he wants to be an adventurer. After some mishaps, he and his friends travel through a portal to Seattle, in our world. I was kind of tempted to buy this comic when I came out, but it’s just as well that I didn’t, because this first issue is entertaining but not spectacular. I would buy the remaining issues if they were cheap.

RED MASK #46 (Magazine Enterprises, 1955) – [W] unknown, [A] Frank Bolle. I think this is the first M.E. comic in my collection. It’s a Western story with a masked protagonist. The first story in this issue is ridiculously offensive: Red Mask defeats some Apaches by infecting them with smallpox. Old Western comics are full of racist portrayals of Indians, but this story goes beyond the usual anti-Indian racism by literally justifying genocide. The second story is more innocuous, but in the third story, Red Mask behaves in a sexist way. The story begins by asking “How reliable is the testimony of a girl witness?” The “girl” in question, actually an adult woman, claims that she saw Jim Emerson robbing a train, but Red Mask insists that he knows Jim Emerson to be an honest man, and so the “girl” must be hysterical.  It turns out the “girl” is wrong, but only because the man she saw was Jim Emerson’s unknown evil twin. The last story in this issue is drawn by Dick Ayers, and stars Ghost Rider – obviously not the one with the blazing skull, but the Western character with the all-white costume. This character was originally created for M.E., but when the company went bankrupt, they apparently let their copyrights lapse, so Dick Ayers moved to Marvel where he re-created the same character. After the supernatural Ghost Rider was created, the Western Ghost Rider was renamed as Phantom Rider. (By coincidence, there was also a G.I. Joe character named Ghost Rider, and in the G.I. Joe comic, there was a running joke about how no one ever mentioned this character’s name.)

THE WALKING DEAD #177 (Image, 2018) – “New World Order Part 3 of 6,” [W] Robert Kirkman, [A] Charlie Adlard. This issue mostly consists of character interactions, which I don’t understand because I’m not up to date with the series. There’s also one scene where the governor’s son is making out with a woman in a field, and his armored bodyguard saves him from zombies, and the governor’s son is totally ungrateful.

THE ULTIMATES #4 (Marvel, 2002) – untitled, [W] Mark Millar, [A] Bryan Hitch. This past month Mark Millar more or less threw his lot in with Comicsgate. He publicly accepted praise from EVS and JDA, he popularized a term (with the initials CP) that’s so offensive I don’t want to mention it, and he was also accused of slandering Gail Simone, though the latter accusation was based on a misunderstanding.  I’d like to say that I’m boycotting Millar, but I can’t boycott him because I never read his work to begin with. I think his comics are mean-spirited, overly reliant on shock value, and devoid of genuine passion or emotion. I honestly bought Ultimates #4 just for purposes of hate-reading. I do have to admit that this particular issue doesn’t include anything offensive, and that the characterization of Captain America is pretty good. However, I’m not convinced by Millar’s depiction of Thor as a hippie.

X-MEN + FANTASTIC FOUR #2 (Marvel, 2020) – “Broken Borders / The Time is Now,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Terry Dodson. I bought the last two issues of this miniseries when they came out, but not the first two. This series is a direct sequel to the 1980s Fantastic Four vs. X-Men miniseries, which is an underrated classic, and one of the best Franklin Richards stories. The conflict in this current miniseries is that the X-Men want Franklin to move to Krakoa, since he’s a mutant. I don’t think this new miniseries is as good as its predecessor, but it has some strong characterization and attractive art.

TUBBY #10 (Dell, 1954) – “The Stamp Collector,” [W] John Stanley, [A] Lloyd White. Tubby is collecting rare stamps, so Wilbur gives him a painful “stamp” on his foot. In revenge, Tubby sells Wilbur’s dad a fake Chinese stamp. The other stories are similar examples of the Little Lulu formula, except without Lulu herself. As in Tubby #5, there’s one story in which Tubby encounters alien invaders. Drawn & Quarterly has reprinted some of Stanley’s run on this series, but the original issues are not too hard to find.

UNCANNY X-MEN #458 (Marvel, 2005) – “World’s End Part 4: The Enemy of My Enemy,” [W] Chris Claremont, [A] Alan Davis. In the Savage Land, some of the X-Men team up with Ka-Zar against the Savage Land Mutates. This story has great art, but there’s nothing that stands out about its plot. It feels like a rehash of older Savage Land stories. I’ve never understood why Vertigo was a member of both the Savage Land Mutates and the Marauders.

SUBGENRE #2 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Matt Kindt, [A] Wilfredo Torres. Unlike issue 1, this issue maintains a single genre for the entire issue, until the last page. The hero, Vee,   has an epic fantasy adventure, and then he wakes up in a hospitla and is told that a corporation now holds the intellectual property rights to his story. This series is an interesting continuation of Matt Kindt’s theme of metafiction.

2000 AD #2343 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: as above. Dredd starts investigating Asher’s crimes, not knowing yet that Asher is the culprit. The man who Asher previously spared gets himself into more trouble. Portals & Black Goo: as above. The djinn fights some thugs. Kroy narrowly escapes the dybbuk. The vampire’s stalker tries to kill her. At this point, the story is no longer really about the idea of a Doordash app for monsters. Tharg’s 3rillers: “Maxwell’s Demon Part 1,” [W] David Barnett, [A] Lee Milmore. This is a continuation of a previous 3rillers story from #2297-2299. In that story, Herne rescued a girl who was going to be sacrificed by the people of Cudd. Now Herne is trying to get the girl to safety, but Cudd has hired a bounty hunter to retrieve her. Hershey: as above. Dirty Frank rcovers from surgery. Hershey calls Mega-City One for emergency assistance. Azimuth: as above. Dexter and his friendly AI go looking for the rogue AI. Suzi Nine does not appear in this chapter, which explains why the series is not named for her. Perhaps the best thing about this serial is Tazio Bettin’s bizarre depictions of creatures and objects. Like, in the first chapter there’s a fishlike creature selling “freshly squeezed optimism.”

DOOM PATROL #99 (DC, 1965/2023) – “The Deadly Sting of the Bug Man,” [W] Arnold Drake, [A] Bruno Premiani. Negative Man’s powers have stopped working properly, and he has to overcome this obstacle in order to help the Doom Patrol defeat a bug-themed villain. This is a generic Doom Patrol story. “The Beast-Boy,” [W] Arnold Drake, [A] Bob Brown. This is the reason the comic was reprinted: it’s the first apperance of Beast Boy, the pivotal character of the current Beast World crossover. I still think of him as Changeling, but his original name seems to be better known now. In this story Gar is portrayed as an irritating egomaniac, and his origin is left unrevealed. He also has a girlfriend named Jill, who appears to be the same character as Jillian Jackson.

ADVENTURE COMICS #260 (DC, 1959/2023) – Superboy: “The Kents’ Second Super-Son!”, [W] Jerry Coleman, [A] John Sikela. While Superboy is away from Earth, the Kents adopt a superpowered alien boy named Vidal. It turns out that Vidal was just testing the Kents to see if they would be good adoptive parents for Superboy, and he doesn’t realize that they already are Superboy’s parents. The writer expects us to believe that despite his powers, Vidal was unable to figure out Superboy’s secret identity. Aquaman: “How Aquaman Got His Powers!”, [W] Robert Bernstein, [A] Ramona Fradon. In order to stop the U.S. Navy from setting off depth charges, Aquaman reveals his origin as a human-Atlantean hybrid. This is considered the first Silver Age Aquaman story, hence why this issue was reprinted. Aquaman was published continuously throughout the Golden and Silver Age, but issue 260 is considered the beginning of the Silver Age Aquaman, because it gave the character an entirely new origin. In the Golden Age, he was just a regular human whose father taught him to live underwater. As of this writing, Ramona Fradon may be the oldest living comic book artist. Green Arrow: “Green Arrow’s New Partner!” [W] Robert Bernstein, [A] Lee Elias. Green Arrow gets a new partner, and Speedy is afraid that he’s been fired. It turns out that the whole thing was just a misunderstanding caused by bad communication. It wasn’t until Brave and the Bold #85 that Green Arrow became more than just a Batman clone.

BATTLE ACTION #4 (Rebellion, 2023) – “Cooley’s Gun,” [W] Garth Ennis, [A] Staz Johnson. A story about a foul-tempered machine gunner and his timid assistant. This story feels like a realistic depiction of artillery operations, and the two characters’ personality clashes are interesting. “Death Squad,” [W] Rob Williams, [A] P.J. Holden. The protagonists are disgraced Nazi soldiers who keep getting sent on suicide missions, since no one cares if they die. In this issue, they’re forced to rescue a field marshal’s son, but they discover that the son has been passing on information to the Russians. They inform the marshall, who leaves the Death Squad to do as they like with his son, and then commits suicide in shame. This story puts the reader in the position of rooting for the bad guys.

BARBARIC #2 (Vault, 2021) – untitled, [W] Michael Moreci, [A] Nathan Gooden. A sword-and-sorcery story about a barbarian and his talking axe. Bleeding Cool claims that this comic is quite popular, but I didn’t think it was especially enjoyable or original. The only truly distinctive thing about it is the vulgar dialogue.

INCREDIBLE HULK #208 (Marvel, 1977) – “A Monster in Our Midst!”, [W] Len Wein, [A] Sal Buscema. After Jarella’s death, the Hulk fights some criminals piloting a tank, then as Bruce, he moves into an apartment owned by a woman named April Sommers. It seems like she was being set up as an important character, but she only made a few more appearances, the last of them in issue 223. At the end of the issue, They Who Wield Power, who appeared in many of Len Wein’s comics, enlist the Absorbing Man to battle the Hulk. Brian Cronin has revealed that Jarella was not supposed to stay dead, but that Len Wein left the series before he could bring her back.

STRANGEHAVEN #15 (Abiogenesis, 2003) – “Cracked,” [W/A] Gary Spencer Millidge. This issue includes a very useful gallery showing all the characters. The local cop investigates Peter and Beverly’s deaths and Suzie’s disappearance. Maureen makes an unsuccessful attempt to poison Dr. Houseman. The Knights of the Golden Light kidnap Alex and demand that he join them, or else they’ll kill him. At this point I only need issues #16-18 to complete my run of Strangehaven. Some further chapters of Strangehaven were published in an anthology called Meanwhile…, and there is a collected edition of that anthology.

2000 AD #2344 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: as above. Kyle is forced to kill the man he previously allowed to live. Kyle’s horrible employers beat him up, but let him live. Zoola, the daughter of Kyle’s victim, is reintroduced; she’s in a relationship with some asshole who keeps demanding money from her. Portals & Black Goo: as above. The vampire continues her fight with the stalker. Kroy realizes that the Japanese ghost has been stealing the dybbuk’s food, and that he can get the food back. 3rillers: as above. Not sure what happens here, but it ends with Herne’s dog Shuck gets possessed by a demon that constantly recites trivia. Hershey: as above. Judge Dredd leads an army to Antarctic City to wipe out the spider invasion. Azimuth: as above. Dexter beats up some people and demands that they lead him to the Lords of the New Flesh.

THE CONFESSIONS OF JULIUS ANTOINE, VOL. 1 (Fantagraphics, 1985/1989) – “Lea,” [W] Serge Le Tendre, [A] Christian Rossi. Our protagonist, Julius Antoine, agrees to babysit an acquaintance’s fifteen-year-old daughter, though this is a bad idea because Julius has obsessive pedophilic fantasies. The girl, Lea, tries to seduce Julius, but he resists her. Then she gets drunk and wanders off, and later turns up dead. Julius is the obvious suspect, and though her death is later proven to be an accident, Julius hardly seems innocent: as another character says, “he didn’t actually do the deed himself, but he could have done!” This is a disturbing, sordid story. Julius’s thoughts toward Lea are presented as shameful and embarrassing, and therefore the reader feels shame as well, since Julius is the protagonist and we’re invited to sympathize with him. However, Claire Napier criticizes this book for its patriarchal attitude and its exploitative depiction of Lea, and I think that’s a fair reading. Le Tendre and Rossi make it hard to sympathize with Lea, even though she’s a child who dies tragically. Rossi’s artwork is excellent; his backgrounds are realistic, and he balances light and shadow beautifully. There are three volumes of Julius Antoine in French, but Fantagraphics only published the first one.   

DEFENDERS #9 (Marvel, 1973) – “Divide… and Conquer,” [W] Steve Englehart, [A] Sal Buscema. This is part 4 of the Avengers-Defenders War. I must have read this before in trade paperback format, but I don’t remember it well. Like a classic JLA-JSA teamup, it consists of several chapters, each focusing on a pairing of a few characters from each team. One of the featured Avengers is Englehart’s pet character, Mantis. At this point I just need Defenders #1, 2, 4, 6, and 10 to have a complete run up to #41, and I don’t have much interest in the issues after #41.

MARVEL PREMIERE #60 (Marvel, 1981) – “City of the Cursed Part 2,” [W] John Wagner & Pat Mills, [A] Dave Gibbons. The Fourth Doctor finds himself in a city where all the people are deprived of emotions. He teams up with a gang of rebels, each of which specializes in a single emotion, and they succeed in restoring emotions to the rest of the city. The newly emotional people decide to pattern their lives after the Doctor. This comic is written and drawn in a similar style to the creators’ classic 2000 AD stories. The issue also includes a preview of the upcoming Fifth Doctor, Peter Davison.

JONAH HEX #54 (DC, 2010) – “Shooting Stars,” [W] Jimmy Palmiotti & Justin Gray, [A] Jordi Bernet. Hex teams up with a man named Starman who kills corrupt sheriffs, and they succeed in liberating a town from some villains. Getting Bernet to work on Jonah Hex was a great idea. He’s a master of visual storytelling, and his style is perfectly suited to Western comics. However, DC’s computer coloring was not appropriate for Bernet’s art. His art would have looked better in black and white, or with flatter colors.

EX MACHINA #15 (Wildstorm, 2005) – “Off the Grid, Part 1,” [W] Brian K. Vaughan, [A] Tony Harris. In a flashback, a woman gets angry at Mitchell for rescuing her before her child. In the present, a woman barges into Mitchell’s office and flashes him in protest of toplessness laws. This was the earliest issue I didn’t have. Then Mitchell gets a phone call from his estranged mother. He drops everything and rushes across the country to see her, and she claims that she killed his father. I don’t have issue 16, and I want to know what happens next.

WILDGUARD: FOOL’S GOLD #2 (Image, 2005) – untitled, [W/A] Todd Nauck. The original Wildguard miniseries was about a reality show where people competed to become members of a superhero team. I read most of the original miniseries and enjoyed it, but there were two other miniseries and a one-shot, and until now I’ve never read any of them. In Fool’s Gold, the winners from the original miniseries team up with some other heroes against a dragon. This comic feels more generic and less innovative than the first miniseries. At the end of the issue, it’s suggested that Wildguard takes place in the same universe as Noble Causes.

G.I. JOE #57 (Marvel, 1987) – “Strange Bedfellows,” [W] Larry Hama, [A] Ron Wagner. The G.I. Joes help Destro liberate his ancestral Scottish castle from an impostor, who is eventually unmasked as Major Bludd. Destro is one of Hama’s more compelling characters. He’s like Dr. Doom, except he really is noble, rather than just pretending to be. This comic’s depiction of Scotland seems completely made-up.

JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #133 (DC, 1976) – “Missing – One Man of Steel!”, [W] Gerry Conway, [A] Dick Dillin. Some aliens kidnap Superman and force him to fight Despero, with the aid of a team of aliens disguised as Justice Leaguers. Intriguingly, all the impostor Justice Leaguers are female, even though most of them are disguised as men. If I’m reading this correctly, JLofA #133 was only Despero’s third appearance, after issues 1 and 26. To me, the most memorable story he appeared in was Justice League America #38-40. The last of those issues was one of the first comics I owned.

DON MARTIN MAGAZINE #2 (Welsh, 1994) – “Doctor Zork” etc., [W/A] Don Martin. After leaving Mad in 1987 due to a dispute over royalties, Don Martin moved to Cracked for six years. After that he launched his own self-titled magazine, which only lasted three issues. Unlike Mad, it was published in comic book format, though it’s slightly taller than a standard comic book. It consists mostly of gags, plus one longer story, “Fester and Karbunkle in National Gorilla-Suit Day,” which is a series of gags. Don Martin is one of the great gag cartoonists in American comics, but his work is meant to be read in smaller doses, and a 32-page comic of nothing but Don Martin cartoons is somewhat tedious to read.

EERIE #94 (Warren, 1978) – The Rook: “The Coming of the Annihilator,” [W] Bill DuBay, [A] Luis Bermejo. The Rook and Vampirella, with their respective sidekicks, team up against something called the Annihilator. This issue is annoying because the supporting characters’ names are not given, and it’s not clear which name corresponds to which character. Sybil: “Honor and Blood,” [W] Nicola Cuti, [A] Leo Durañona. In a Satanic ritual, the vampire Sybil Vrykola is impregnated by a man wearing a deer mask, and gives birth to a son named Ian. A  certain Dr. Hopkins kills Sybil and raises Ian as his son. Ian later marries and has his own son, but is murdered, and comes back to life as a vampire. Ian then discovers that Dr. Hopkins is his biological father. Hopkins kills Ian, but Ian’s son will grow up to be Jack the Ripper. These first two stories are continued next issue. “Dead Man’s Ship,” [W] Nicola Cuti, [A] Isidro Monés. A confusing story about a time loop involving a sailing ship. I don’t think its plot actually makes sense. The artist’s name is spelled both Isidro and Isidre. I think the latter is the Catalan spelling. “Divine Wind,” [W] unknown, [A] Esteban Maroto. An account of the failed Mongol invasion of Japan. I don’t think either the Mongols or the samurai are drawn accurately. “Don’t Drink the Water,” [W] Gerry Boudreau, [A] Martin Salvador. Easily the best story in the issue. A boy finds a canteen that had belonged to an alien, who died while trying to deliver the canteen to another alien. The boy drinks from the canteen, goes crazy, and starts murdering people. Fleeing from the police, he falls into a river and drowns, taking the canteen with him. The river feeds into a reservoir, so now anyone who drinks the local tap water is going to go insane too. This is an example of Warren horror at its best. Oddly, Gerry Boudreau is credited on the first page of the story, but does not appear in the list of writers on this issue’s masthead. “Bruce Bloodletter of the IRS,” [W/A] Fernando Fernandez, [W] Bill DuBay. An absurd story about spacefaring tax collectors.

SANDMAN #26 (DC, 1991) – “Season of Mists Chapter 5” (plus a long subtitle), [W] Neil Gaiman, [A] Kelley Jones. This is the one with the banquet. It’s an important issue because it  identifies the major magical realms of the DC Universe – Heaven, Faerie, Asgard, Chaos, Order, etc. – and it lays out the relationships between them. This one issue must have given rise to a whole host of Vertigo stories. A memorable moment in this issue include Bast sexually harassing Thor, who Gaiman depicts as a sleazy, overmuscled, drunken brute, the polar opposite of his Marvel incarnation. I also love Morpheus’s meeting with Odin. The Odin in this issue is perhaps my favorite version of Odin ever. Gaiman depicts Odin as a calm, collected, ageless man who seems to know everything. The Odin in American Gods is quite different: he’s much more grandiose and theatrical.

UFOLOGY #1 (Boom!, 2015) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV & Noah Yuenkel, [A] Matthew Fox. High schooler Becky Finch has somehow been accepted to Stanford, despite having a poor work ethic. Her classmate Malcolm is obsessed with UFOs. Becky visits a strange house where she has an encounter with an alien. I don’t quite understand what happened in this issue, but Ufology is a much better UFO comic than Blue Book.

YOUNG ROMANCE #169 (DC, 1971) – “No Wedding Ring for Me!”, [W] Robert Kanigher, [A] Werner Roth. Mary falls in love with Johnny, a total stranger, only to discover he’s already married. His wife says that she’s driven him away because he acted like only a wife and not a sweetheart. That sounds like a load of sexist bullshit to me. As in Young Love #87, this story implies that when a marriage goes bad, it’s automatically the wife’s fault. It’s also annoying that Mary thinks she’s in love with Johnny despite not knowing anything at all about him. After this story there’s a two-page fashion pinup by Elizabeth Safian, aka Liz Berube. She had a fascinating art style that reminds me of contemporaneous Spanish artists. It’s too bad that she almost exclusively drew illustrations rather than full stories. “Tell Me That You Love Her!”, [W] Jack Miller, [A] Jay Scott Pike. Bonnie has to sacrifice everything for her younger sister Susan, but Susan fails to steal Bonnie’s love interest for her. This story is a gender-flipped version of “The Courtship of Miles Standish”: Bonnie is supposed to court  Chris on Susan’s behalf, but it’s Bonnie herself who ends up with Chris. The last story is a reprint from 1959. My overall problem with romance comics is that they just aren’t that good. They have formulaic plots, with no continuity or recurring characters, and they tend to be quite sexist. And they were the only genre of comics that were specifically aimed at teenage girls. In Britain at the time, they had romance comics, but they also had girls’ comics, which covered a wide variety of genres. I just read the Misty hardcover collection, and I thought it was stunning.

CAPTAIN VICTORY AND THE GALACTIC RANGERS #7 (Pacific, 1982) – “Wonder Warriors!”, [W/A] Jack Kirby. This issue introduces several new characters, including Paranex the Fighting Fetus, one of Kirby’s weirder creations. Overall this issue is rather confusing and incoherent. I’ve never understood just what this series was supposed to be about. Like some of Kirby’s Fourth World comics, this issue includes a backup story starring one of the characters from the main story.

FELIX THE CAT #4 (Harvey, 1992) – “The Shutter Bug” and “Voice Luck,” [W/A] Otto Messmer. Two stories reprinted from ‘50s comics, one about photography, the other about ventriloquism. The GCD page for Felix the Cat (1991) #4 says that “The Shutter Bug,” from 1951, is Messmer’s first original Felix comic book story. That can’t be right, because the GCD also says that Messmer drew at least one of the stories in Felix the Cat #1 from 1948.

SANDMAN #27 (DC, 1991) – “Season of Mists Chapter 6,” [W] Neil Gaiman, [A] Kelley Jones. Before Morpheus can decide what to do with the key, the angels ask for the key back, and Morpheus gives it to them. This resolution is a bit anticlimactic, but for Morpheus, the angels’ request is a godsend (literally) because it allows him to get rid of the key without causing further conflict. No one can blame Morpheus for giving Hell back to its original owner, while if he had given it to any of the people who wanted it, everyone who didn’t get it would have been pissed. What Morpheus would have done with the key, if the angels hadn’t wanted it back, is a fascinating question. After that there’s the scene where Morpheus kicks Azazel’s ass, and then he prepares for a task that’s even harder than deciding Hell’s fate: apologizing to Nada.

2000 AD #2345 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: as above. Asher meets Zoola and asks her for the names of her boyfriend’s creditors. Dredd figures out that Asher has been giving him anonymous tips. Portals & Black Goo: as above. Kroy makes a successful delivery to the dybbuk. The vampire is blamed for beating up her stalker. 3rillers: as above. Herne defeats the demon that’s possessing Shuck the dog, and the bounty hunter lets Herne escape with the kid. Hershey: as above. The Judges beat back the invasion, and Hershey talks with her old ally Dredd about the circumstances of her resignation as Chief Judge. Azimuth: as above. Dexter finally meets one of the Lords of the New Flesh.   

ROY ROGERS #8 (Dell, 1948) – “Roy Rogers and the Headless Horseman,” [W] Gaylord Du Bois, [A] Al Micale, etc. A rather tame and sanitized Western story in which Roy Rogers tracks down an outlaw. This story includes some anti-Indian racism, though it’s not nearly as awful as the lead story in Red Mask #46. The backup story is about a dog who rescues a little girl.

BATMAN #32 (DC, 2014) – “Zero Year: Savage City,” [W] Scott Snyder, [A] Greg Capullo. A flashback story depicting an early encounter between Batman and the Riddler. The Riddler is my favorite Batman villain, but he tends to be written badly, because most comic book writers don’t know how to write riddles that are difficult but solvable. Jason Shiga or Ryan North could write good Riddler stories if they had the opportunity.

GOITER #5 (self-published, 2020) – [W/A] Josh Pottinger. I ordered this because it was included in the official selection for the 2024 Angoulême festival. This issue’s main story is about 20-year-old Willy, who works at a beach chair rental hut, and is obsessed with a movie star named Bruce Walker. He gets fired and thrown out of his parents’ house, and then he builds a raft out of beach chairs and apparently drowns himself. The best part of this story is when Willy argues with a rude man who’s exceeded his chair rental time. Otherwise, Willy is such an ineffective, aimless protagonist that it’s impossible either to sympathize with or hate him. Josh Pottinger’s style is similar to that of Daniel Clowes or Nick Drnaso. Overall I was not that impressed with this comic, and based just on the evidence of this issue, I’m not sure why the artist was nominated for an award.

WARRIOR #6 (Quality, 1982) – [E] Dez Skinn. This issue’s Marvelman story includes the classic scene where Kid Marvelman occasionally says his own name. Somehow I didn’t realize that in the original story, the word he says is “Marvelman”, not “Miracleman.” The V for Vendetta story is the one where Evey and V have a conversation about Faust, and then Evey and V begin their plot to asssassinate the bishop. The Spiral Path story has excellent art, but the Madman story still looks ugly. There’s also a “Van Helsing’s Terror Tales” by Steve Moore and Dave Gibbons, about a little old lady who murders a bunch of people, not realizing that she and they are dead already. This story is reprinted from Hammer’s Halls of Horror. The Shandor story has art that reminds me of Charles Vess. The Pressbutton story is reprinted in Axel Pressbutton #2, whichI’ I’ve already read. The most fascinating thing in this issue is a lengthy lettercolumn response by Alan Moore himself, in which Alan responds to a fan’s complaints about blasphemy and taking the Lord’s name in vain. This response can be read in full here.

NANCY #164 (Dell, 1959) – “Catch-Cat-as-Can,” [W] John Stanley, [A] Dan Gormley. In the first story, Nancy adopts an unrealistically drawn cat. The second story is about ice fishing, and there are a couple others, as well as a Peanuts story. Dan Gormley reproduces the stranger aspects of Bushmiller’s art, including the weird clothing, and the visual mismatch between Nancy’s and Fritzi Ritz’s faces. (Nancy has neither pupils nor lips, but Fritzi has both.) John Stanley’s Nancy is very similar to his Little Lulu, and both characters are examples of the “funny girls” genre that Michelle Abate discusses in her book of that name.

2000 AD #577 (Fleetway, 1988) – Bad Company: “The Krool Heart,” [W] Peter Milligan, [A] Brett Ewins. This story is about Danny’s link with the Krool, but other than that, I don’t understand it. I’d like to read it all in order. Summer Magic: “Episode 7,” [W] Alan McKenzie, [A] John Ridgway. Luke kills the werewolf, but it turns out to have been Uncle Elias all along, and Luke’s innocence is lost. Dredd: “The Sage,” [W] John Wagner & Alan Grant, [A] Glenn Fabry. A Chinese sage named Yu-Tsu visits Mega-City One, and Dredd subjects him to various tortures. Finally Yu-Tsu punches Dredd and is sentenced to ten years in the cubes. This story is funny, though also a bit offensive, given 2000 AD’s lack of other Chinese characters. ABC Warriors: “The Black Hole,” [W] Pat Mills, [A] Simon Bisley. I don’t understand this chapter, but Bisley’s art is spectacular.

2000 AD #2346 (Rebellion, 2023) – A Regened issue. Cadet Dredd: “The Exchange,” [W] James Peaty, [A] Joe Currie. A European cadet judge named Boniek travels to Mega-City One on an exchange program. The reader is misdirected into thinking Boniek is a spy, but in fact he’s being framed. Joe Currie’s art kind of resembles that of Moebius. Lowborn High: “Wishing Well,” [W] David Barnett, [A] Mike Walters. We learn how Maisy, the wheelchair-using girl, ended up at Lowborn High. Then she sells her soul to a demon in exchange for the ability to walk, so Andy will want to date her. While the kids are distracted by this revelation, the professors teleport them all to “the Plateau of Ming.” The collected edition of Lowborn High is coming out in April. Future Shocks: “Autocop,” [W] Karl Stock, [A] Toby Willsmer. In a world where almost no one has a job, a desperate man is hired as the pilot of a police robot. When he’s ordered to beat up a crowd of protesters, he quits his job instead, but now that he’s no longer a cop, he’s personally responsible for all the injuries he caused while he was one. This story could just as easily have appeared in a regular prog. Renk: “Twinkle Toes,” [W] Paul Starkey, [A] Anna Readman. Another detective story set in a fantasy world. This character last appeared in prog 2296.

2000 AD #2347 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: as #2345 above. Asher kills Zoola’s abusive boyfriend, then tries to save Zoola. Portals & Black Goo: as above. Kroy and Nona the vampire discuss their recent experiences. The other driver, the one who kept stealing Kroy’s deliveries, is eaten by the Japanese ghost. Hershey: as above. Hershey finally returns to Mega-City One from exile. It’s kind of a cathartic moment when she sees the city for the first time. It’s a horrible dystopia, but it’s her home. 3rillers: “Die Hoard Part 1,” [W] Eddie Robson, [A] Nick Brokenshire. In the wake of an alien invasion, much of humanity’s knowledge has been lost. An old hoarder dies, and the government tries to collect the contents of his house for purposes of historical research, but his great-niece is determined to throw everything away unless the government can pay her for it. Azimuth: as above. Dexter negotiates with Lord Trinary, and somehow he also meets a man named Glenn who appears to be a regular human.

LONE RANGER #95 (Dell, 1956) – “The Kid,” [W] Paul S. Newman, [A] Tom Gill. A young would-be gunslinger tries to join an outlaw gang because he feels like he doesn’t belong in his hometown. The Lone Ranger and Tonto steer him onto a better path. “The Spy,” [W] Newman, [A] Gill. The Lone Ranger convinces some Pawnee Indians to allow an anthropologist to work with them. As usual, both of the first two stories include patronizing depictions of Indians. Young Hawk: untitled, [W] Gaylord Du Bois, [A] Rex Maxon. Young Hawk, Little Buck and a third warrior, Strong Eagle, meet some Ojibwe people (or “Chippewas”), and they help the Ojibwes resist an attack by Hurons. Strong Eagle decides to stay with the Ojibwes and marry an orphaned woman. Compared to other comics of its time, Young Hawk was a much more positive and respectful depiction of Indians, and one reason is because the Indians in Young Hawk all speak coherent English. By contrast, in this issue’s second Lone Ranger story, the Pawnees say things like “Him study Pawnee ways like him say! Him not forget anything I tell-um!” They talk like this because they’re not native English speakers, but the reader can easily assume that they talk like this because they’re stupid. However, Young Hawk makes it clear that the Indians can all speak coherently in their own languages.

DONALD DUCK #51 (Dell, 1957) – “The Secret of the Glacier,” [W] Carl Fallberg, [A] Tony Strobl. Scrooge travels to the Arctic to recover some gold nuggets that he left behind during his gold prospector days.  While there he encounters his nephews, and the ducks have to protect themselves and the treasure from Black Pete. This Pete appears to be the same character as Peg-Leg Pete. He doesn’t have a peg leg, but Don Markstein says that from at least 1941, Pete was usually depicted with two normal-looking legs. In this issue, as in Mickey Mouse #60, Carl Fallberg shows himself to be a good writer of adventure stories. There are also a few backup stories.

FRONTLINE COMBAT #12 (Gemstone, 1953/1998) – [W] Harvey Kurtzman. Each story in this issue is devoted to a different type of Air Force aircraft. “F-94!”, [A] George Evans. Some civilians think they’ve spotted an invading Soviet plane, and Air Force observer planes are scrambled to intercept it. The alleged Soviet plane turns out to be a false alarm. “F-86 Sabre Jet!”, [A] Alex Toth. An account of a dogfight between American and Soviet planes during the Korean War. This is a classic example of Toth’s mastery of aviation art. Some of this story’s pages are so stripped-down that they look almost abstract. “B-26 Invader!”, [A] Jack Davis. A bomber plane goes on a night mission in Korea. The plane blows up an ammunition depot, but the pilots don’t realize they’ve achieved anything. “H-5!”, [A] Wally Wood. An American fighter pilot is stranded in North Korea. A helicopter is sent to retrieve him, but is irreparably damaged, and a second helicopter has to be sent to rescue the original pilot and the crew of the first helicopter. But the Air Force considers it all to be a fair trade for the pilot’s life. The issue ends with the line “You know… this is a pretty gol-durned good air force!”

GAY COMIX #9 (Bob Ross, 1987) – “Poppers,” [W/A] Jerry Mills. This issue is a collection of Mills’s “Poppers” strips from other gay publications. Poppers focuses on two gay roommates, Billy and Yves, as well as their anthropomorphic pubic lice. Most of the strips are about Billy and Yves’s romantic escapades, but the very last strip takes a more somber tone, as the protagonists discuss the tragic impact of the AIDS crisis on gay life. Mills himself sadly died of AIDS in 1993. This comic is a very lengthy read because of the dense text in the strips, but all the strips are very funny and sexy. I don’t know if there are any more Poppers strips that aren’t collected in this issue. If there are, then someone ought to publish the entire run of the strip as a book.

LITTLE LULU #113 (Dell, 1957) – “The Voyagers,” [W] John Stanley, [A] Irving Tripp. The boys trick Lulu into giving them food, by telling her that they need it for a Columbus Day play. Then Lulu turns the tables on them. In the next story, Tubby causes mayhem on Halloween, despite being forced to stay inside. There’s also the usual Poor Little Girl/Witch Hazel story, and another story where Tubby destroys a library book.

AMERICAN VAMPIRE #29 (Vertigo, 2012) – “The Blacklist Part 2,” [W] Scott Snyder, [A] Rafal Albuquerque. I don’t actually like this comic very much. I just keep buying it because it’s cheap. This issue seems to take place in Hollywood during the blacklist era, and it includes a scene where two vampires fight a pack of lionesses.

BLOODSHOT USA #3 (Valiant, 2016) – untitled, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Doug Braithwaite. This miniseries came out between Bloodshot Reborn and Bloodshot: Salvation. The bulk of this issue is a scene in which Bloodshot and Geomancer are turned into children.

2000 AD #1838 (Rebellion, 2013) – Dredd: “Wastelands Part 2,” [W] John Wagner, [A] Dave Taylor. Dredd fights some bandits who are attacking an apartment building. Terror Tales: “Rattle,” [W] Montynero, [A] Simon Bowland. A scientist breeds a strain of intelligent rattlesnakes. This story is confusing because some crucial elements of the plot are only implied and not directly stated. Cadet Anderson: “One in Ten Part 6,” [W] Alan Grant, [A] Carlos Ezquerra. Anderson and her colleagues track down the owner of the cannibal restaurant. He turns out to be a robot. Defoe: “The Damned Part 3,” [W] Pat Mills, [A] Leigh Gallagher. Defoe’s ally, Tomazine, is asked to let vampires into the Tower of London, in exchange for her son’s life. Sinister Dexter: “Witless Protection: In Plain Shite, Part 3,” [W] Dan Abnett, [A] John Burns. Sinister fights a man named Melczarek, whose name he can’t pronounce. Sadly John M. Burns just passed away. He was a brilliant artist, and he had an extremely long career; he started working in comics in the mid-‘50s, and his last work was published in 2023.

EX MACHINA #21 (Wildstorm, 2006) – “Smoke Smoke Chapter 1,” [W] Brian K. Vaughan, [A] Tony Harris. The issue begins with a car chase, then Mitchell publicly admits to using marijuana, and a woman named January gets a job as Mitchell’s intern, but her real intent is to sabotage his next campaign. On the last page, a woman immolates herself on the city hall steps.

RAHAN INTÉGRALE VOL. 1 (Soleil, 1969-1974/2019) – “L’enfnace de Rahan” etc., [W] Roger Lécureux, [A] André Cheret. This is a collection of seven stories, each 20 pages except for the first, that were all published in the magazine Pif Gadget. The series wasn’t published in album format until later, and these intégrale (i.e. omnibus) editions appear to be the definitive version of the series. Rahan is the most famous French caveman comic. Its closest equivalent in American comics would be Anthro or Tor, but Rahan had a far longer run than either of those. This volume begins with Rahan’s origin story, which was published some years after the other stories in the book. Rahan is orphaned twice: his birth parents are killed by sabertooth tigers, and he’s adopted by a man named Crao, but then Crao’s entire tribe is wiped out by a volcanic eruption. Crao bequeaths to Rahan his necklace of bear claws, which has five claws representing his tribe’s five values, and he invites Rahan to add a sixth claw. In subsequent stories, Rahan is motivated by his desire to know why things are the way they are. He travels to the west, trying to figure out where the sun goes, and eventually figures out that the world is round and the sun is going behind it. In later stories, Rahan meets various other groups of people and invents things like rafts and fishing poles. The complete edition of Rahan includes 25 more volumes, all the same size as this one, and I hope I can read them all someday.

OPTIC NERVE #2 (Drawn & Quarterly, 1995) – “The Connecting Thread” etc., [W/A] Adrian Tomine. This issue contains four short stories. The longest, “Summer Job,” is about a rather unsympathetic young man who works at a copy shop over the summer. It mentions the urban legend about Procter & Gamble supporting Satanism. I think the best story is the shortest, “Pink Frosting,” about a man who gets assaulted in public. It reminds me of when the same thing happened to me, although I was fine afterward, and the implication is that the man in “Pink Frosting” won’t be fine.  

DENNIS THE MENACE #72 (Fawcett, 1964) – “Garden Goofy,” [W] Fred Toole, [A] Owen Fitzgerald, etc. In one story, Dennis harasses Mr. Wilson while the latter is gardening. In another story, Dennis invites his friends to take a bath with him. This story would probably not be considered appropriate today. The last story is a boy-who-cried-wolf tale in which Dennis plays some April Fool’s pranks on his parents, and then they don’t believe him when he truthfully claims that the garage is on fire.

PATSY WALKER #117 (Marvel, 1964) – “The Soldier’s Sweetie!”, [W] Stan Lee, [A] Al Hartley. Patsy deludes herself into thinking that Buzz Baxter is no longer in love with her. This story is written in the mode of romance comics rather than teen humor comics, but its plot requires all the characters to act stupid. Patsy sees Buzz driving another woman and instantly assumes he’s cheating on her, and because of this, she falls in love with two different men she’s never met before. Buzz Baxter was introduced into Marvel’s superhero comics in Amazing Adventures #13, and later became the villain Mad Dog. In current Marvel continuity, the original version of Patsy Walker is not the same character as the Patsy Walker who became Hellcat; rather, the old Patsy Walker comics were fictional stories created by the superheroic Patsy Walker’s mother. (We need better terminology for distinguishing between different layers of diegesis.)

WONDER WOMAN #219 (DC, 2005) – “Sacrifice Part 4,” [W] Greg Rucka, [A] Rags Morales et al. For some reason this issue has five different pencillers and as many inkers. In an OMAC Project crossover, Diana battles Superman, who’s under the mental control of Max Lord. Max insists that as long as he’s alive, he’ll keep on controlling Superman, and without a second thought, Diana kills him. Diana later faced serious consequences for this, but it was unquestionably the right decision, and it was consistent with her character. In only the fifth issue of this same volume of Wonder Woman, she was shown cutting off Deimos’s head with her tiara.

2000 AD #1848 (Rebellion, 2013) – Dredd: “Bender Part 4,” [W] John Wagner, [A] Ben Willsher. Another adventure of Bender and Lock. Bender is the one who keeps killing  suspects. In this story, Lock starts to get sick of Bender’s constant rule violations. Age of the Wolf: “Wolfworld,” [W] Alec Worley, [A] Jon Davis-Hunt. The old one-eyed woman kills the main villain, then declares her intent to kill her own daughter. Slaine: “The Book of Scars Part 5: The Horned God,” [W] Pat Mills, [A] Simon Bisley. A flashback to the most famous Slaine story. Bisley’s art in this story is gruesome, bloody, highly detailed, and vividly colored. Past Imperfect: “Origins,” [W] T.C. Eglington, [A] John Charles. In Africa, Charles Darwin and his companion Perry encounter a were-ape. It’s implied that on his return to Europe, Perry becomes the murderous ape from Poe’s “Murders in the Rue Morgue,” though that ape was an orangutan from Borneo. The Ten-Seconders: “Godsend Part Ten,” [W] Rob Williams, [A] Ben Willsher. Another incomprehensible chapter of a story that never made much sense.

TREES #4 (Image, 2014) – untitled, [W] Warren Ellis, [A] Jason Howard. Several unrelated  sequences set in different regions of the world. This issue suffers from a lack of any connection between the characters. My overall sense is that in Trees, Ellis attempted to do far more than he could achieve in a monthly series.

INVINCIBLE IRON MAN #525 (Marvel, 2012) – “The Future Part 5: Beating Down the Posthuman Condition,” [W] Matt Fraction, [A] Salvador Larroca. Tony fights the Mandarin, with help from four villains wearing Stark-designed armor. Meanwhile, James Rhodes is revealed to have been faking his death. I don’t know if the Mandarin still exists in current Marvel continuity. Given that Zheng Zu has ten rings, he could be seen as a replacement for the Mandarin. In the MCU, the character Xu Wenwu is a replacement for both Fu Manchu/Zheng Zu and the Mandarin. Of course, the original Mandarin in the comics was a ripoff of Fu Manchu in the first place.

BATMAN #114 (DC, 2021) – “Fear State Part 3,” [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Jorge Jimenez. An overly complicated crossover segment in which the main event is a battle between two characters named Peacekeeper, and Batman himself only appears midway through the issue. There’s also an appearance by Miracle Molly, whose one-shot solo issue was my favorite of Tynion’s Batman comics. There’s also a Clownhunter backup story by Brandon Thomas and Jason Howard.

BLOODSHOT REBORN #2 (Valiant, 2015) – untitled, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Mico Suayan. Bloodshot, who has lost the nanites that give him his powers, goes and buys a bunch of guns. The gun-buying scene is a funny piece of satire. There’s also a subplot about a bespectacled female special agent, Diane Festival.  

SUDDENLY ONE SUMMER CAMP FROM HELL #1 (Off Register, 2023) – “1971-1974,” [W] Shelly Bond, [A] Liz Prince. I must have ordered this online, but I don’t remember how I learned about it. This self-published comic is a collection of slice-of-life stories about Shelly Bond’s summer camp days. All the stories are lighthearted and humorous in intent, and none of them are very interesting. If there are any more issues of this series, I think I can skip reading them.

2000 AD #1849 (Rebellion, 2013) – Dredd: as above. Bender causes his partner’s death, and gets off scot-free. I don’t know if he’s appeared again since this issue. Age of the Wolf: as above. The old lady, Rowan, is forced to kill her granddaughter Keira for some reason.  The story ends with the faces of Keira, Rowan, and Keira’s mother (I think) appearing in a cloud of smoke. Ten-Seconders: as above. The overdue end to this indecipherable story. Slaine: “Moloch,” as above except [A] Clint Langley. In an extra-length story with beautiful photorealistic painted art, Slaine avenges himself on Moloch for the murder of his wife. Slaine confronts the Guledig, who is responsible for the events of the entire storyline, and the story ends with a poem in which Slaine proclaims “I am the book of scars.” BTW, one thing I love about Slaine is its deliberately understated dialogue, which is a feature borrowed from old Irish literature. The catchphrase “He didn’t think it too many” is an example of the sort of dialogue I’m referring to.

SHUTTER #30 (Image, 2017) – untitled, [W] Joe Keatinge, [A] Leila del Duca. The final issue is set many years in the future, and includes a gallery of never-published future issues with  numbers ranging from 31 to 360. The first two-thirds of Shutter were excellent, but the series jumped the shark in issue 22, when most of the cast was killed off for no reason.

DEFENDERS #133 (Marvel, 1984) – “The Pajusnaya Consignment!”, [W] Peter B. Gillis, [A] Alan Kupperberg. In the main story, the Defenders team up with two detectives named Cutlass and Typhoon, who kind of remind me of Nick and Nora Charles. These characters’ only other appearance was in issue 148. I bought this issue because of the scene where the Beast is on the college lecture circuit, and he runs into Northrop Frye and praises Frye’s book on Blake. This scene is evidence of Gillis’s academic background. I have the book that’s referenced in this scene, Fearful Symmetry, but I’m waiting to read it until I’ve read more Blake. There are two problems with this scene: the depiction of Northrop Frye doesn’t look anything like him, and the scene is implied to be taking place in America (it’s one of the Beast’s lectures “across the nation”), but Frye spent his entire career in Canada.  

AQUAMAN #31 (DC, 1997) – “Shark Bait,” [W] Peter David, [A] Roger Robinson. Aquaman is slowly turning into a shark. Meanwhile, the Shark (not the same character as King Shark) creates an army of humanoid sharks, and also takes control of the floating city of Poseidonis and moves it back to the ocean surface. Aquaman finally defeats the Shark by de-evolving him and his minions into ordinary sharks. This issue is inferior to most of PAD’s Aquaman comics because of the lack of either Marty Egeland or Jim Calafiore.

THE DREAMING #22 (Vertigo, 1998) – “Unkindness of One Part 1,” [W] Caitlin R. Kiernan, [A] Paul Lee. Matthew the Raven turns back into the human Matt Cable, and there’s another plot thread about a character named Echo. I didn’t understand this issue. I liked Caitlin R. Kiernan’s novel The Drowning Girl, but I defriended them on Facebook because of their racist posts.

BOMBSHELLS UNITED #3 (DC, 2017) – “American Soil Part 5,” [W] Marguerite Bennett, [A] Siya Oum. Wonder Woman and Donna Troy fight Clayface. The second half of this issue is drawn by Luciano (not Luana) Vecchio, and it looks much worse than the first half. I still have a bunch of issues of DC Comics Bombshells that I can’t be bothered to read.

NIGHT’S DOMINION SEASON TWO #3 (Oni, 2017) – untitled, [W/A] Ted Naifeh. An oppressive dictatorship has taken over the city of Umber, and on the night of the annual sex festival, they send an army of police to make everyone go home. We then follow various characters who are trying to resist the takeover. I didn’t know who any of the characters in this comic were, but it was an interesting issue anyway. I should have been buying Night’s Dominion more consistently.

SUPER POWERS #2 (DC, 1986) – “Escape,” [A] Paul Kupperberg, [A] Carmine Infantino. I bought this thinking it was by Kirby, but it’s not. Kirby only did the first two Super Powers miniseries, and this is the third one. This issue explains the origin of two new heroes, Golden Pharaoh and Samurai, and it introduces two villains who are new to this universe, Tyr and Mr. Freeze. This whole comic was designed to sell toys, and it’s of no interest on its own. I don’t know why they chose to make a toy out of Tyr, given his extreme obscurity. He only appeared in Superboy #197 and 199, then in LSH vol. 2 #2-5 as a member of the Legion of Super-Villains, and then in two other issues of that series. I guess his gun hand was a good accessory. The Mr. Freeze in this series has nothing in common with the modern version, who was essentially a new character created by Dini and Timm for the animated series.

CLEAN ROOM #14 (Vertigo, 2017) – “One Step Over the Abyss,” [W] Gail Simone, [A] Walter Geovani. This issue’s second and third pages are a disgusting illustration of a bridge made of human flesh. Then Chloe is forced to enter the mind of a certain Artus Greenhand, an utterly horrible murderer who deserves to be killed just for the smug way he talks. Artus traps Chloe and her companion in his mind, and pulls a gun on them. This is the most recent issue of Clean Room that I have.  

NOWHERE #4 (Drawn & Quarterly, 1998) – “Summer of Love Part 4,” [W/A] Debbie Drechsler. The protagonist, Lil, promises to join the high school art art club, but gets cold feet, and her friend Claire gets pissed at her for it. Also, Lil gets constant uncomfortable attention from a creepy boy. There was one more issue of Nowhere after this one, and I believe that issue was Drechsler’s last work in comics.

CYBORG #8 (DC, 2016) – “Target: Cyborg!”, [W] David F. Walker, [A] Felipe Watanabe et al. Cyborg and Captain Marvel team up against some anthropomorphic animals. This series was of no real interest, and I shouldn’t have bought it.

NON #2 (Red Ink, 1998) – “Too Tired” etc., [W] Jordan Crane et al. An anthology of alternative comics by Jordan Crane, Jeff Lewis (I assume the same one from Statics), and a couple other artists. This issue has some impressive design work, but only Crane’s stories are visually exciting, and none of the stories are well-written. Crane’s recent graphic novel Keeping Two was widely praised, but I had problems with it. The protagonists were difficult to sympathize with, and if they had done a better job of communicating with each other, there would have been no plot at all.

HAPPYDALE: DEVILS IN THE DESERT #1 (Vertigo, 1999) – untitled, [W] Andrew Dabb, [A] Seth Fisher. On the run from police, three serial killers arrive in the town of Happydale. One of them, “Belial,” is a complete sociopathic monster, while the other two, his girlfriend and his sidekick, are his enslaved, abused minions. On arriving in Happydale, where all the people seem unusual in one way or another, Belial causes some more havoc. Seth Fisher’s art in this issue is spectacularly detailed, and he uses a Clear Line-esque style of linework and coloring. He draws in a similar vein to Geof Darrow. His death at age thirty-three was a sad loss to the industry. Wikipedia says he died from falling off a nightclub roof while partying.

SUPERBOY #28 (DC, 1996) – “Losin’ It! Part 4: Tough Love,” [W] Karl Kesel & Steve Mattsson, [A] Chris Gardner & Jason Armstrong. Supergirl goes looking for Superboy, but has to fight Knockout first. When Supergirl finds Superboy, she’s so disgusted with his recent behavior that she tears the S-shield off his chest. This issue is clearly meant to titillate the reader, but neither of the artists is much good at drawing cheesecake.

NAUGHTY BITS #11 (Fantagraphics, 1994) – “Bitchy Takes a Trip! Part 2,” [W/A] Roberta Gregory. Bitchy has won an all-inclusive vacation, but she has to deal with the annoyances of travel, including a creepy, dirty seatmate who won’t leave her alone. When she gets to her destination, she’s terrified of the local food and the local people. This story shows off Bitchy’s racism, which is one of her many unattractive qualities. It should be remembered that we aren’t always supposed to sympathize with Bitchy, and that her views don’t reflect those of the author. To that extent she’s like Buddy Bradley.

Last Heroes trip of 2023:

NIGHTWING #109 (DC, 2023) – “The Crew of the Crossed Finale,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Stephen Byrne. Dick saves Beatrice from drowning, then insists on helping her overthrow her asshole brother Dirk. Beatrice and Dick defeat Dirk and bring him to justice, and Beatrice gives Dick the package that was waiting for him in the Hold: a photo that proves Boss Zucco was responsible for Dick’s parents’ deaths. In the backup story, Damian is infected by a Starro parasite and turns into an adorable catboy. Nightwing was my favorite ongoing series of the year, other than Saga.

DUKE #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Tom Reilly. Duke is a perfect soldier, but no one is willing to believe his claims of having encountered giant robots (see Transformers #3). The only person who does believe him is Adele Burkhart, a recurring character from the Marvel comics. Duke investigates a lead that Adele has given him, and while he doesn’t discover the Transformers, he does stumble across Destro’s secret private army. When Duke goes to see Adele again, he finds that she’s been murdered. Meanwhile, Duke’s commanding officer, Hawk, sends two soldiers to hunt him down: Stalker and Rock & Roll. This comic isn’t quite as amazing as Daniel Warren Johnson’s Transformers, but it’s almost as good, and it’s a promising start to Image’s new version of G.I. Joe. I’m glad that Tom Reilly got this high-profile assignment, because he’s a very talented artist.

SENSATIONAL SHE-HULK #3 (Marvel, 2023) – “Jen-Sational! Part 3,” [W] Rainbow Rowell, [A] Andres Genolet. Jen and Bruce fight April, who now calls herself Anathema, and Mark. Then Jen and Bruce have a disappointing conversation. This wasn’t Rowell’s best issue. The best part is the end of the issue, where Mallory and Andy are playing a role-playing game, and Andy uses his slate to write “I search the bodies.”

UNDISCOVERED COUNTRY #27 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Scott Snyder & Charles Soule, [A] Giuseppe Camuncoli & Leonardo Marcello Grassi. Pavel explains what he’s been doing since the first storyline, and he describes a lot of other zones that we’re not going to visit. Janet berates Chang for lying to her, and declares that their friendship is over. The team gets on the train that’s leaving Zone Bounty, and they talk about how this is the first place they’ve been that seemed truly benevolent. But on the last page, we see that the train is heading off a cliff,  below which is a junkpile of previous trains.

USAGI YOJIMBO: ICE & SNOW #3  (Dark Horse, 2023) – “Ice & Snow Part 3,” [W/A] Stan Sakai. Jei and Yuki-Onna fight each other, and Yuki-Onna seems to have won, but when she tries to suck out Jei’s life force, nothing happens. Then Jei stabs her to death. Then Jei and Keiko locate Usagi and Yukichi by noticing the smoke from their fire. There was also a new Space Usagi comic this week, but I believe it’s just a colorized reprint.

CODA #4 (Boom!, 2023) – “False Dawns Chapter 4,” [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Matías Bergara. Hum and Serka go on a quest to find the Lunar Magus, but when they find him, he’s already dead. Also, Serka has a miscarriage. This is one of the grimmest comics I’ve read all year.

TITANS #6 (DC, 2023) – “Royal Blood Part 1,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Travis Moore. The issue begins with a flashback to Kory’s traumatic childhood. It’s implied that Kory’s parents were killed at the same time Kory was sold into slavery, while in previous continuity, they were alive for most of Wolfman’s run, until they died in New Titans #128. The flashback also introduces a new character called Xand’r. In the second half of the issue, the Titans try to defend Titans Tower from Brother Eternity, but Kory returns to the tower to discover that the Titans have already lost that fight. Then Brother Eternity reveals himself as Xand’r. This series isn’t quite as good as Nightwing, but neither is anything else, and Taylor’s Titans is far better than any previous revival of the Wolfman/Pérez Titans.

X-MEN BLUE: ORIGINS #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “Lament in Blue,” [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Wilton Santos & Marcus To. In a story set between Uncanny Spider-Man #4 and #5, Mystique reveals that Nightcrawler’s previous origin is a lie. Azazel and Mystique were believed to be Kurt’s parents, but instead Destiny is Kurt’s mother, and Mystique is his father. This retcon caused some controversy, but it’s been public knowledge for a long time that Claremont always meant for Mystique to be Nightcrawler’s biological father. So this retcon is really a canonization of a piece of continuity that was too controversial for its own time. The retcon does require Mystique’s powers to be significantly increased, but who cares.

RARE FLAVOURS #3 (Boom!, 2023) – “Raan,” [W] Ram V, [A] Filipe Andrade. Raan is a type of goat leg roast. It appears to be an extremely labor-intensive dish. I’ve never heard of it before, and it seems very hard to find in America. I consider myself to be well-informed about Indian food, compared to most non-Indian Americans, but Rare Flavours keeps reminding me of the gaps in my knowledge. In this issue, Mo and Rubin have a falling out, then Rubin tells the story of a man who abandoned a career overseas in order to return to India and make raan. Then Mo finds Rubin about to eat the man in the story, and finally realizes that Rubin is a cannibal.

BATMAN/SANTA CLAUS: SILENT KNIGHT #1 (DC, 2023) – “Ghosts of Christmas Past,” [W] Jeff Parker, [A] Michele Bandini. Gotham is being invaded by bat demons. To deal with them, the Bat-Family and Zatanna have to team up with Santa Claus. This version of Santa is similar to the one from Klaus, but this Santa remembers everyone he meets, and knows where they lived as children. This issue is an example of Jeff Parker’s ability to take silly-sounding premises and turn them into entertaining and plausible stories. The other three issues of this miniseries are already available, but I didn’t see them on my last Heroes visit.  

KAPTARA: UNIVERSAL TRUTHS #5 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Kagan McLeod. Earth is invading Kaptara, and the various characters team up to resist the invasion, although some of them, like Villektra, use it as an opportunity to fulfill their own agendas. Compared to issue 4, this issue is much harder to understand, unless you have a good memory of all the previous issues.

THE DEVIANT #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Joshua Hixson. Michael interviews one of the few surviving victims of the Christmas murders, but the man turns out to be a homophobic Trump supporter. In reading this scene, I realized that although I’ve interviewed a number of people for my research, they were all people I liked and sympathized with. I’ve never interviewed anyone who I disliked or actively hated, and if I were in Michael’s position, I’m not sure what I’d do. At the end of the issue, there’s another Christmas-themed murder in Chicago, and Michael’s own ID card is found at the site.

SPIDER-BOY #2 (Marvel, 2023) – “Twas the Fight Before Christmas!”, [W] Dan Slott, [A] Paco Medina. Spider-Boy’s phone is stolen, but instead of getting it back, he has to help Captain America fight the Taskmaster. Spider-Boy beats Taskmaster, who has never seen his moves before, but loses the phone, which had the last remaining photos of his family. In the backup story, Bailey and Squirrel Girl team up with Santa to defeat the evil balloons, and on a final page, drawn by the artist of the first story, Santa gives Bailey a replacement photo of Bailey with his mother.

MY LITTLE PONY: CLASSICS REIMAGINED – THE UNICORN OF ODD #4 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jeremy Whitley, [A] Jenna Ayoub. In the conclusion, Dorothy returns to Odd, and the Scarecrow, Lion and Tin Woodsmare each get their rewards. Twilight Sparkle finally appears in the story, as the Good Princess of the South. This was the worst issue of the series, thanks to the smaller amount of metatextual jokes, but it was still funny.

ANIMAL POUND #1 (Boom!, 2023) – “The Proud Dog Dies,” [W] Tom King, [A] Peter Gross. In an obvious rehash of Animal Farm, some animals are in a shelter waiting to be euthanized, but they revolt and free themselves. I had very low expectations of this series, since it’s a similar idea to Animal Castle, and I don’t think Tom King is capable of writing anything as good as Animal Castle. However, Animal Pound is better than I expected. It’s much less nuanced and politically savvy than Animal Castle, but it’s still poignant. The animals are well-drawn, and their psychology seems realistic. A key point in this issue is that humans derive their superiority from their ability to open doors. This strikes a chord with me because my cat kept waking me up in the early morning, and so I started sleeping with my bedroom door closed, and now my cat keeps scratching at the door.

I believe I finished reading the following comics after midnight on the 31st, but I’m still going to count them for 2023:

BOOK OF BUTCHER #1 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Werther Dell’Edera. A new Black Mask, Maxine Slaughter, receives training from a swamp-dwelling Black Mask, Louis Boucher. He gives her a book to read that lists all the known types of monsters, and also tells the history of La Maison de Boucher. The pages from this book are included in the comic, and they provide the clearest explanation we’ve gotten about the different kinds of monsters. Maxine figures out that there’s a monster in Louis’s swamp that doesn’t match any of the types of monsters listed in Louis’s book. And Louis hasn’t killed the monster, because it’s not dangerous. So Maxine knows that the House of Slaughter isn’t telling her everything. This is an interesting start to the next story arc of the series.

THE SCHLUB #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Ryan Stegman & Kenny Porter, [A] Tyrell Cannon. Roger-as-Cirrus meets Cirrus’s father, who turns out to be a universe-conquering tyrant, not a benevolent Odin/Zeus type. Cirrus-as-Roger suffers through a dinner with Roger’s equally awful father, until Roger’s father’s house is invaded by the villain from the first issue. This isn’t my favorite current series, but it’s readable.

BONE ORCHARD: TENEMENT #7 (Image, 2023) – “Revelations,” [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Andrea Sorrentino. This issue is a flashback about a private detective named Felix McKenzie who discovers a mysterious apartment building. Reading this issue made me wonder if private detectives do anything other than investigate divorce cases. Felix figures out that the apartment building is a portal to the “Silver City,” which is ruled by seven demons. One of the seven is Us’uuul, whose name was mentioned previously. To reach the Silver City, Felix needs to sacrifice seven people. And that’s why this story is relevant to the rest of the series: Felix is the old man from issue 1, and the other characters are his victims. So now we finally know what this series is about.

G.O.D.S. #3 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jonathan Hickman, [A] Valerio Schiti. This issue is mostly a bunch of dialogue scenes, but it introduces the idea that the Marvel Universe is governed by eight “abstracts” in four pairs. We know that one of them is Oblivion. My guess is that the others are Eternity, Infinity, Death, Master Order, Lord Chaos, Ego, and Galactus, and I’m not sure about the last two.

FLASH #3 (Marvel, 2023) – “Angles,” [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Mike Deodato Jr. Bart and Max appear for the first time in the series. We meet Edwin Gauss, aka the Folded Man. Linda and the kids don’t appear at all. This issue isn’t bad, but I liked Jeremy Adams’s Flash much better.

Total for this year: 2406, the most ever

First reviews of 2024.

We are now in year 12 of this project.

SUPERMAN #9 (DC, 2023) – “Aftermath,” [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Bruno Redondo. Lois reads fan mail to Superman until he wakes up. Wearing Luthor’s battlesuit, Superman fights Graft alongside Marilyn Moonlight. Superman gets sucked through a portal to the 19th century. Reading this issue, I was like, wow, this art is really good, I wonder who did it. Then I realized it was Bruno Redondo.  

NEWBURN #13 (Image, 2023) – “The Man with the Plan,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Jacob Phillips. Emily’s position becomes more precarious. Her partner Henry is apparently shot, and she discovers that the Mafia knows she killed an Albano family member. Finally, Emily confronts Newburn and learns that all his actions have been done to protect his mother. This issue includes a five-page backup story which is a complete waste of space.

BATMAN/SUPERMAN: WORLD’S FINEST #22 (DC, 2023) – “Heir to the Kingdom Chapter 3: The Gospel of Gog,” [W] Mark Waid, [A] Dan Mora. The Kingdom Come Batman and Superman finally realize that our Batman and Superman have good intentions, and that the multiverse is real. Meanwhile, Gog turns Thunderman into Magog, and we learn that Gog is a survivor of the world that preceded the Fourth World, and that Gog’s goal is to send all of Earth’s heroes on a suicide mission against Apocalypse.

JUSTICE LEAGUE VS. GODZILLA VS. KONG #3 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Brian Buccellato, [A] Christian Duce. Superman apparently dies fighting Godzilla, while the rest of the JLA fights various other kaiju. This comic is silly, but highly entertaining.

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES #146 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Sophie Campbell, [A] Vincenzo Federici. After some confusing plot developments, Donatello realizes that Armaggon’s goal is to prevent its own existence. At the end of the issue, we meet three characters who appear to be the future versions of Raphael, Lita and April. This issue was too confusing.

UNCANNY SPIDER-MAN #5 (Marvel, 2023) – “Fade to Blue,” [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Lee Garbett & Simone Buonfantino. Nightcrawler, Mystique and Silver Sable defeat the Vulture with help from Warlock. Nightcrawler gives up being Spider-Man, and realizes that the little Bamf in his head has been Legion all along. This issue and X-Men Blue: Origins were Simon Spurrier’s best Nightcrawler comics yet. Uncanny X-Men #5 is a satisfying conclusion of the miniseries, and I feel that Spurrier has finally gotten a good handle on Kurt’s personality.

AVENGERS INC. #4 (Marvel, 2023) – “Who is Victor Shade?”, [W] Al Ewing, [A] Leonard Kirk. Jan and Vic team up with Moon Knight to solve a series of supervillain murders. They discover that Hank Pym is apparently still alive, and he’s been faking the villains’ deaths in order to enlist them into his army, with the goal of defeating Ultron. Unfortunately, Victor Shade reveals that he is Ultron. It’s too bad this series was cancelled. This issue is a sort of sequel to Ewing’s Ant-Man miniseries.

DEADLY HANDS OF KUNG FU: GANG WAR #1 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Greg Pak, [A] Caio Majado. This issue is part of a crossover, but all the reader needs to know is that New York has been divided into territories controlled by different gangs. Shang-Chi insists on keeping the Five Weapons troops inside Chinatown rather than conquering anymore territory. Because of Shang-Chi’s supposed cowardice, one of his subordinates betrays him and steals his rings. Luckily Shang-Chi is perfectly capable of fighting barehanded. There’s one issue left in this miniseries.

SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN #2 (Marvel, 2023) – “Suit Up!”, [W] Dan Slott, [A] Mark Bagley. Spider-Boy is severely burned fighting Supernova, who kidnaps Anna Maria and flies off. Doc Ock demands that Peter “suit up” and join him in looking for Supernova. This series is comparable in quality to the original Superior Spider-Man, although it probably won’t be as popular because it’s not the main Spider-Man title.

SPEED FORCE #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “Double Juggle,” [W] Jarrett Williams, [A] Daniele Di Nicuolo. I bought this because it’s a Flash spinoff, and I’ve been enjoying the Flash lately. However, I soured on this comic even before I finished reading it. The main problem is that Jarrett Williams’s dialogue is extremely awkward: a typical line of dialogue is “Let’s scope whatever this energy is out” (instead of “Let’s scope out whatever this energy is”). Also, some of the dialogue is in Spanish, but the writer’s Spanish seems incorrect, unless he knows something I don’t. For example, he has Avery Ho say “¡Despertar por favor!”, using the infinitive of the verb, when it should be “¡Despiértense por favor!,” using the imperative. These are nitpicky points, and I would be willing to overlook them if the comic was entertaining otherwise, but it’s not.

AFTER/SHOCK: BULLETINS FROM GROUND ZERO #1 (Last Gasp, 1981) – [E] Rebekah Wilson. I didn’t know this comic existed until I saw a page of it reproduced in Margaret Galvan’s book. And this is an example of Galvan’s point: part of her argument is that comics archives are constructed in a way that emphasizes some types of knowledge while obscuring others. After/Shock is a collection of stories by various female creators, with an overarching theme of resistance against the repressive tendencies of Reaganism. One notable story in this issue is Mimi Pond’s “What a Girl Tells Her Pillow,” which seems to be her first published multi-panel comic. It’s drawn in a very different style from her two much later graphic memoirs. “What a Girl…” is linked to her latest book, The Customer is Always Wrong, in that they both mention a drink called a pink squirrel. The other most impressive story in the issue is Melinda Gebbie’s “Nuvoids,” a beautifully drawn account of an antifeminist dystopia. Melinda Gebbie is an artistic genius, and it’s a shame that there isn’t a collected edition of her underground work. There’s also “The Mutant” by Sharon Rudahl, another dystopian story, and Aline Kominsky-Crumb’s “Hotsy Bloato,” about her pregnancy. Aline Kominsky-Crumb and Robert Crumb’s reputations have been going in opposite directions in recent years. Mary Wilshire’s “More Nasty Women’s Humor” is a colllection of gag strips, but it ends with a page that warns the reader about the looming dangers of Reaganism. This page is the one that’s reproduced in Galvan’s book. On the last page is a strip by Florence Cestac, misspelled Cestak, which may be her only comic published in America. Other contributors include Trina Robbins, Diane Noomin, Phoebe Gloeckner, and several artists I haven’t heard of.

Penultimate reviews for 2023

10-28-2023

THE ODDLY PEDESTRIAN LIFE OF CHRISTOPHER CHAOS #3 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Tate Brombal, [A] Isaac Goodhart. The kids, all of whom are monsters of some sort, battle the white-cloaked people, who are some sort of anti-monster cult. I really like the artwork and coloring in this series, but the story is of very little interest.

EXORCISTS NEVER DIE #5 (Mad Cave, 2023) – untitled, [W] Steve Orlando, [A] Sebastián Píriz. The next sin on the agenda is Envy. This series is very formulaic: every issue, the two protagonists fight one of the sins and summon an angel to defeat it. The only thing about this series that’s even mildly interesting is the two protagonists’ relationship.

SNARLAGON #1 (self-published, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Andrew MacLean. Heroes Aren’t Hard to Find held a signing event for this comic. I was unable to attend, but I bought the comic on my next visit. Snarlagon is a deliberately silly Godzilla parody, with a little kid character who provides even more comic relief. It’s drawn in MacLean’s trademark style, which is cartoonish and horrifying at once. It’s published in a magazine format, with various shades of blue as the only colors. MacLean takes advantage of the larger pages in order to draw some extremely dramatic images, and this comic has his most accomplished artwork yet. Overall it’s an impressive piece of work, and it shows his continued development as an artist.

ICE CREAM MAN #36 (Image, 2023) – “Whale Song,” [W] W. Maxwell Prince, [A] Martín Morazzo. A fisherman thinks his daughter has been swallowed by a whale. He gets swallowed by the same whale himself, where he meets Pinocchio and another character who I think is Captain Ahab. Then the fisherman finds that the daughter is dead, but he’s able to retrieve her corpse. Ice Cream Man sometimes feels monotonous because all of the issues have the same emotional tone: they’re all rather bleak and depressing, with only occasional intervals of hope or joy. But Prince does lots of interesting things with the single-issue format. Some of the depictions of whales in this issue are very impressive.

MARVEL AGE #1000 (Marvel, 2023) – [E] Tom Brevoort. This issue consists of eight long stories, instead of a large number of one-pagers, as with Marvel Comics #1000 or Amazing Fantasy #1000. I will only mention a few of these stories: Ryan Stegman’s “Sunday Dinner” is a cute Spider-Man story. Rainbow Rowell and Marguerite Sauvage’s “People Wonder Why” is an excellent tribute to the Lee-Kirby X-Men, a series that wasn’t much good to begin with. It also manages to make Scott and Jean’s relationship feel exciting, when it’s long since become stagnant. This is the best story in the issue. Slott and Allred’s “Earth’s Greatest Weapon” is an untold story of the original Captain Marvel. It reminds me of this same creative team’s Silver Surfer run. Steve McNiven’s Silver Surfer story is heavily indebted to Moebius’s Silver Surfer graphic novel. Jason Aaron and Pepe Larraz’s “The Girl Who Hates Super-Heroes” is about a teenage girl whose mother died when superheroes failed to save her. But it’s also about Jane Foster as Thor. Finally, J. Michael Stracyznski and Kaare Andrews’s “Observations from the Backyard” is an appalling piece of revisionist history in which Lee, Kirby and Ditko are presented as childhood friends. It ignores the very serious conflicts between these three men. Ditko, in particular, would roll over in his grave if he could read this story.

BLACK PANTHER #3 (Marvel, 2023) – “Reign at Dusk Part 3,” [W] Eve Ewing, [A] Chris Allen & Mack Chater. T’Challa disguises himself as a street vendor and learns about a gang war that’s brewing. Later, as Black Panther, he encounters Deathlok. This is another boring issue, with a trite plot and a lack of compelling themes. The low quality of this series is a surprise, given that I loved Eve Ewing’s Ironheart. I have some thoughts about why Eve Ewing didn’t do a better job with Black Panther, but I will reserve those thoughts for a later review.

BLACK’S MYTH: THE KEY TO HIS HEART #3 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Eric Palicki, [A] Wendell Cavalcanti. Rainsford Black’s son is buried. The protagonists continue their investigation, but then they get pulled in for questioning by the police. This is a well-done series, though it’s never among the first comics I read.

XINO #3 (Oni, 2023) – “Visceral,” [W] Justin Jordan, [A] Molly Mendoza: Some teenagers get eaten by a monster disguised as a small town. Molly Mendoza’s art and coloring are very evocative. “Sticky Tape,” [W/A] Dan McDaid. The government tries to weaponize a man’s incredible bad luck. The title refers to his inability to find the end of a roll of tape. “Easy Beazy,” [W/A] David Hahn. Some college students steal a problem-solving robot. After the robot saves them from a robbery, they ask him to ensure that they can never have such an awful experience again, and the robot complies with their request by killing them. “Chateaubriand,” [W] Michael W. Conrad, [A] Shawn Kuruneru. Some astronauts crash-land on a planet where they get turned into giant snails. “Buster,” [W] Andrew Carl, [A] Sophie Franz. If I understand correctly, a cat murders its owner to prevent him from starting a union. Overall, the quality of Ximo’s stories was sometimes uneven, but it was an exciting showcase for work by lots of good creators. I’m sorry it was just three issues.

TERRORWAR #5 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Dave Acosta. Muhammad escapes from captivity, but then the situation in the city deteriorates even further. This series isn’t nearly as interesting as Starsigns. I think the most notable scene in this issue is the flashback where Muhammad’s mother asks him to make mandu. Saladin suggests here that Muhammad is both Lebanese and Korean.

NO/ONE #5 (Image, 2023) – “I’m Innocent,” [W] Kyle Higgins & Brian Buccellato, [A] Geraldo Borges. Ths issue focuses on the aftereffects of Aaron Kern’s recantation of his confession. This is a well-written and realistic series, with a rather grim tone, but it has such a large cast of characters that it’s rather confusing to read.

SANDMAN UNIVERSE: NIGHTMARE COUNTRY – THE GLASS HOUSE #4 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Lisandro Estherren. The heroes visit Lucien’s library for assistance, and Azazel’s plotting continues. This series has been coming out rather slowly, and its plot is not easy to follow, though Estherren’s art is quite good. This series would have been a Vertigo comic if Vertigo hadn’t been discontinued in 2020. The person responsible for the end of Vertigo was Pam Lifford, who has just left DC. It seems like her departure is generally viewed as a positive development.

LAND OF NOD #1 (Dark Horse, 1997) – untitled, [W/A] Jay Stephens. A very young superheroine sneaks out of her own eighth birthday party to fight some villains. There’s also a  second story, appearing on the bottom tier of each page, that’s about another superhero named Space Ape Number 8. Jay Stephens’s ‘90s work was entertaining, but at that point in his career, he was largely imitating the style of Mike Allred. His work in Dwellings is more distinctive and original.

KULL THE DESTROYER #19 (Marvel, 1977) – “The Crystal Menace!”, [W] Doug Moench, [A] Ed Hannigan. There were two important writers on this series, Roy Thomas and Don Glut, but this issue is by neither of them. It’s a confusing mess, with way too much text and a plot that’s both convoluted and boring. The best thing about this issue is Alfredo Alcala’s inking, though, as usual for him, it’s very heavy inking.

ALBANY & STURGESS VOL. 2 (Dargaud, 1984) – Le Dossier Harding, [W] François Rivière, [A] Jean-Claude Floc’h. This album was originally published in Pilote. It was part of a trilogy which was completed in 1984; one additional volume was published in 2005. In terms of genre, Le Dossier Harding is a classic cozy murder mystery in the Agatha Christie style, set mostly in London and the surrounding countryside. Christie herself makes a cameo appearance at the start of the album. The murderer turns out to be a man dressed as a woman, whose motive was to take control of a publishing business, if I recall correctly. As for the art, Floc’h is an imitator of the classic Clear Line style of Hergé (not the same as the “style atome” of Jijé and Franquin, of which more later). Everything is drawn in solid fields of color, with clear outlines. It’s a beautiful style of art to look at, and Floc’h helped to revive it at a time when it was already seen as obsolete. I would love to read the rest of this series. The same creators also published another English-themed trilogy, about the London Blitz.

NEW TEEN TITANS #27 (DC, 1986) – “The Brotherhood of Evil!”, [W] Marv Wolfman, [A] Kerry Gammill. The Titans are forced to flee from Zandia, and not only do they fail to rescue Dick or Raven, but they also leave Vic and Joey behind. When Brother Blood ties Joey to a lightning rod during a thunderstorm, Donna actually wants to surrender in order to save Joey’s life, and Kory has to convince her otherwise. Eventually the Titans save Vic and Joey, and Brother Blood’s castle blows up, but it hardly feels as if the Titans have accomplished much. Throughout NTT #26 and #27, the Titans never feel confident or sure of themselves; it’s as if they’ve already given up, even before trying to fight. Because of that constant sense of futility, the Titans comics from this era are frustrating to read.

CAPTAIN AMERICA #190 (Marvel, 1975) – “Nightshade is Deadlier the Second Time Around!”, [W] Tony Isabella, [A] Frank Robbins. Cap and the Falcon fight Dr. Nightshade and her army of mind-controlled SHIELD agents. The Falcon recovers his memories of being Snap Wilson, a petty criminal. This was a horrible, racist retcon which was finally abolished in 2015. As Brian Cronin explains, Steve Englehart introduced Snap Wilson in issue 186, but left the series immediately afterward, so we don’t know if he intended for the Snap Wilson retcon to be permanent. By the way, it pisses me off that I have to turn off my adblocker to view CBR’s website, when I spent about fifteen years of my life creating free content for them.

JSA #25 (DC, 2001) – “The Return of Hawkman 3 of 3: Seven Devils,” [W] David S. Goyer & Geoff Johns, [A] Stephen Sadowski. The JSA battle a villain named Onimar Synn, and all the different versions of Hawkman are apparently merged into a single character. At this point Hawkman had the most complicated continuity of any DC character (for example, see the Hawkworld review below), and this story represented a valiant attempt to sort out all of his continuity problems and create a definitive version of Hawkman and Hawkgirl. And it seems to have worked, because I don’t think the character has gone through any major retcons since.

THE FOOZLE #3 (Eclipse, 1985) – “Slab,” [W] Steve Englehart, [A] Marshall Rogers. This series was previously called Cap’n Quick and a Foozle, but Cap’n Quick is not in this issue. I can’t quite remember the plot of this issue, and it’s a very confusing plot anyway, but it’s an SF story about a talking cartoon bird and his escapes from various pursuers. Marshall Rogers’s linework in this issue is extremely detailed and intricate, and his visual storytelling is thrilling. The Foozle is his only major solo work, and it’s a pity that he didn’t get to produce more of it. For unclear reasons his career went into a decline after the mid-’80s.

THE ROCKETEER: CARGO OF DOOM #3 (IDW, 2012) – untitled, [W] Mark Waid, [A] Chris Samnee. Cliff battles some sort of Nazi plot involving dinosaurs. Chris Samnee’s artwork in this issue is beautiful, with exciting action sequences and attractive spotting of blacks. However, Dave Stevens was such a transcendental, irreplaceable talent, that any Rocketeer comic by anyone else is bound to feel disappointing.

HARLEY QUINN #1 (DC, 2016) – “Afterbirth!”, [W] Amanda Conner & Jimmy Palmiotti, [A] Chad Hardin. Harley Quinn reminds readers of the status quo, then she teams up with Red Tool (i.e. Deadpool). They investigate an incident in which an alien shapeshifted into a cow and was slaughtered for meat, causing the people who ate its meat to turn into zombies. This plot is borrowed from Fantastic Four Annual #17 and Skrull Kill Krew. I’m not a big fan of this series, because it’s too absurd and implausible for my tastes. It’s all comic relief, with no straight man to serve as a point of contrast. I like Harley Quinn better when she’s used as a foil to more serious characters. An example of this is the scene in Poison Ivy #9 where Harley is pulling random weird stuff out of her purse, and Ivy just watches her do it, bemused. To me, that’s funnier than most Harley Quinn solo comics.

MARVEL PREMIERE #34 (Marvel, 1987) – “Life with Volstagg,” [W] Alan Zelenetz, [A] Charles Vess. Asgard’s future depends on the successful completion of young Una and Mord’s wedding. But on the eve of the wedding, the groom, Mord, is turned into a goat, and Volstagg is informed (by Loki in disguise) that he’s the only one who can restore Mord to human form. There’s a brief appearance by Volstagg’s wife and kids, who seem to be drawn to resemble the Katzenjammer Kids. This story is mostly a piece of slapstick comedy, but it has some beautiful draftsmanship. For me, one of the highlights of this year’s Heroes Con was watching Charles Vess drew a large piece of art. I think he’s the best draftsman I’ve ever met, and watching him work is a thrill. As he was working on the piece, I guessed it was supposed to be Prospero and Caliban, but it turned out there was no particular story behind it. IIRC, it sold for several thousand dollars at the following night’s auction.

THE LEGACY OF LUTHER STRODE #5 (Image, 2016) – untitled, [W] Justin Jordan, [A] Tradd Moore. This was the second of the two sequels to The Strange Talent of Luther Strode. As usual for this franchise, this issue is full of deliberately excessive gore and violence. Tradd Moore’s art was getting really good by this point. It was in this series that he began to develop the style that he uses in Doctor Strange: Fall Sunrise.

THIS DAMNED BAND #6 (Dark Horse, 2016) – untitled, [W] Paul Cornell, [A] Tony Parker. At an open-air concert, the leader of the band, Clive, tries to sacrifice the entire audience to Satan, but his plot backfires, and Satan takes Clive instead. This scene is kind of an exaggerated version of the infamous 1969 Altamont Free Concert. This whole miniseries was just average. As a nostalgic evocation of the ‘70s, it’s not as good as Humans, which came out around the same time.

WARLORD #12 (DC, 1978) – “Trilogy,” [W/A] Mike Grell. This is really more of a duology. It consists of a framing sequence, plus two inset stories in which Machiste and Mariah describe their past encounters with Morgan. The whole story, like many of Grell’s comics, is a sort of wish fulfillment fantasy; Grell writes Morgan as the sort of man he wishes he could be.  In Machiste’s story, Morgan meets a young boy who wants to become a knight. This scene is nearly identical to the scene at the end of T.H. White’s The Once and Future King (and its musical adaptation Camelot) where King Arthur encounters a young boy named Tom of Warwick, the future Sir Thomas Malory. Grell even borrows the phrase “might for right” is from White.

HERBIE #19 (ACG, 1966) – “Race Through Space!”, [W] Richard Hughes, [A] Ogden Whitney. Herbie needs $50,000 to build a swimming pool, so he decides to enter his dad in a space race to an alien planet, since it comes with a $100,000 prize. Herbie builds a preposterous-looking rocket out of wood, and it somehow works, so Herbie gets his pool. In the backup story, when Herbie’s mom goes on vacation, his dad, Pincus, sees the 1963 Cleopatra film starring Elizabeth Taylor. Falling in love with Liz, Pincus asks Herbie to bring him “Cleopatra,” but Herbie thinks his dad means the real Cleopatra, and he brings her instead of Elizabeth Taylor. And he discovers that the real Cleopatra was quite fat. Herbie is funny because its stories are grossly absurd, but are depicted with a straitlaced, deadpan prose and art style. It’s well documented that Rorschach’s speech pattern is based on Herbie’s.

PREACHER #32 (DC, 1997) – “Snakes in the Grass,” [W] Garth Ennis, [A] Steve Dillon. I read most of Preacher when I was in college, by borrowing a friend’s copies of the trade paperbacks. I never made much of an effort to collect it myself. This issue has one scene where Jesse learns what Genesis knows about the Saint of Killers, and then Jesse says “Where the fuck is God?” That line is the only thing I remember from this issue. In the other plotline, Tulip and Cassidy have a tense conversation about how Cassidy is sexually harassing Tulip. Then some of Cassidy’s old enemies appear and cut Cassidy’s head off. (BTW, I suspect that Cassidy was based on Shane MacGowan.) My overall problems with Preacher are that first, it relies too much on sensationalism and low comedy, and second, it’s a glorification of the worst things about America. For example, Jesse sees John Wayne as his personal hero. The character played by John Wayne is the archetypal example of American toxic masculinity: a rugged man of action who refuses to accept help or acknowledge his feelings, and who sees women as lesser than men. And John Wayne himself was a horrible man.

MR. MONSTER #7 (Dark Horse, 1990) – “Origins: Chapter VII – Jim’s Story!”, [W/A] Michael T. Gilbert. In a flashback, Jim Stearne, the original Mr. Monster, discovers that his wife is a monster, and that she’s trying to murder their son Strongfort. Jim is forced to resume his Mr. Monster identity and save his son, even though it’s likely to get him killed. In a framing sequence, Kelly discusses this story with her parents, and she says some interesting things about her relationship with Strongfort; in particular, she mentions his “insufferable male ego.” Strongfort is sort of an example of the John Wayne archetype that I described in the previous review, but Gilbert presents Strongfort as a problematic and frustrating character. As an separate observation, the trick to reading Mr. Monster is to not take it too seriously. The series is written in a grim, melodramatic, histrionic tone, but it’s also supposed to be funny.

JONNY QUEST #31 (Comico, 1988) – “Social Work,” [W] William Messner-Loebs, [A] Marc Hempel. Benton thoughtlessly calls his girlfriend Kathy “stupid.” Kathy, who is a social worker, takes Jonny and Hadji to work with her, and they witness all the horrible situations that she has to deal with on a daily basis. They also see how when she does do good things, she gets no credit for it. In the end, Benton apologizes to Kathy, and they apparently decide to get married. Sadly this was the last issue. Jonny Quest was the best licensed-property comic of the 1980s, and one of the finest comic books of the ‘80s, period. It had clever storytelling and great emotional depth. It really ought to be reprinted.

RIP OFF COMIX #1 (Rip Off, 1977) – “The Parakeet That Outwitted the D.E.A.”, [W/A] Gilbert Shelton, etc. This was an eBay purchase. Some of the material in this issue is redundant – for example, the Freak Brothers story also appears in Freak Brothers #6, and there are also some Griffith Observatory strips that are duplicated in the comic book of that title. But this comic is worth owning anyway. It’s full of funny stories, and it includes an impressive roster of talent. Besides Shelton and Griffith, there are also stories by Justin Green, Frank Stack, Ted Richards, and Dave Sheridan.

GRENDEL: WAR CHILD #2 (Dark Horse, 1992) – “Chapter 42: Devil in the City,” [W] Matt Wagner, [A] Patrick McEown. A Grendel (there are many Grendels at this point in time) abducts a young boy named Jupiter, the heir to the Grendel-Khan. The boy’s stepmother tries to get him back. Meanwhile she neglects her own biological daughter. I have never quite understood either the continuity of Grendel, or the overall point or premise of the series. But Patrick McEown’s art in this issue is much better than the Pander brothers’ art in the Comico series. Some of the coloring in this issue is by Bernie Mireault.

SON OF AMBUSH BUG #6 (DC, 1986) – “Walking Papers,” [W/A] Keith Giffen, [W] Robert Loren Fleming. Ambush Bug is “fired” by DC Comics. Most of this issue consists of metatextual and fourth-wall-breaking humor. Ambush Bug was one of the most radically experimental comics ever published by DC, and it was one of DC’s best efforts at self-parody. Unfortunately Keith Giffen just passed away. Since I don’t have much of an audience for these posts, I have to admit that I have complex feelings about Giffen. He was also infamous for his swipes from Druillet and Muñoz. I think some of the things I disliked about the v4 Legion were attributable to him, and not the Bierbaums. And when the Legion was cancelled in 2013, Keith’s dismissive comments just added insult to injury. But he was also a very talented creator, and his death is a loss to the industry.

HARLEY QUINN #30 (DC, 2016) – “A Tree Blows Up Brooklyn,” [W] Amanda Conner & Jimmy Palmiotti, [A] Elsa Charretier. This issue has an excellent cover, where Harley’s name is written across her body. “A Tree Blows Up Brooklyn” is another story that’s too absurd and ridiculous for its own good, though it does have some touching scenes involving elderly people who are being scammed. On page 3 there’s a cameo appearance by Carl from Up.

NEW TEEN TITANS #32 (DC, 1987) – “Trivial Pursuits,” [W] Paul Levitz, [A] Eduardo Barreto. In their civilian identities, the Titans go on vacation and get involved in a murder mystery. This is a cute issue, with some nice characterization. However, it’s ruined by the scene at the end, where Kory tries to rekindle her romance with Dick, and Dick refuses because Kory is still married to Karras. Dick’s inability to accept Kory’s marriage was one of the lowest points in Dick’s character arc. What’s especially frustrating is that Dick seemed to act as if Kory did something wrong by marrying Karras. It was a forced marriage, entered into for political purposes, in order to prevent a worse disaster. Neither Kory nor Karras viewed it as a real marriage. They were both in love with other people, and in their culture, extramarital affairs were not considered immoral. So if Dick viewed Kory as being Karras’s property, that was entirely his own problem, and he shouldn’t have acted as if his breakup with Kory was her fault.

SECRET SIX #7 (DC, 2015) – “There’s Something at the Door, Darling,” [W] Gail Simone, [A] Dale Eaglesham. The Justice League Dark becomes aware of some sort of evil entity that’s trying to attack the entire universe. Meanwhile, the Secret Six are still trapped in the weird Pleasantville town. I have nothing specific to say about this issue.

THE JAM #8 (Dark Horse, 1995) – “…Said the Madman Chapter 3,” [W/A] Bernie Mireault. While running around in his costume at night, Jam/Gordon Kirby is shot with a pellet gun, causing him to suffer hallucinations. Or at least that’s my understanding of what happened.  My impression is that The Jam is not really a superhero comic, it’s more of a slice-of-life comic where the protagonist happens to have a superhero costume. Mireault’s linework in this issue is gorgeous.

SUPERMAN #57 (DC, 1991) – “Return of the Krypton Man,” [W] Dan Jurgens, [A] Dan Jurgens and four others. Superman battles the Krypton Man, formerly the Eradicator, who is now a humanoid being rather than a little glass egg on a pedestal. The Eradicator tries to turn Earth into another Krypton, and while trying to stop him, Superman gets thrown into the sun. Late in the issue, the Eradicator replaces an old dilapidated slum building with a Kryptonian-style building. This is actually a significant improvement, and to his credit, Superman says that he’s less worried about this act than about the Eradicator’s motives for it. Also in this issue, Ma and Pa Kent meet Perry and Alice White aboard a cruise ship. This may in fact be the first time Ma and Pa Kent ever met Perry White. Remember that in pre-Crisis continuity, the Kents were already dead when Clark moved to Metropolis and met Perry.

CONAN AND THE SONGS OF THE DEAD #1 (Dark Horse, 2006) – “The Root of All Evil,” [W] Joe R. Lansdale, [A] Tim Truman. Conan saves a man who’s been buried up to his neck in the desert, and the man involves Conan in a mystic Lovecraftian adventure. I was concerned that Lansdale and Truman’s style wasn’t appropriate for Conan, but they actually write Conan quite well. As in their Jonah Hex run, they include a liberal dose of humor. At the end of the issue, after Conan has slept with a female djinn, she summons some mummies to attack him, and Conan quips “Crom. Nothing is simple with women.” Earlier, to get into the djinn’s compound, Conan has to unlock the door with a “demon’s root”. The phallic/vaginal symbolism of the root and keyhole is really obvious.

CROW OF THE BEAR CLAN #2 (Blackthorne, 1986) – “Brothers in Arms,” [W/A] Tim Tobolski. A sword-and-sorcery comic where the hero is an anthropomorphic bear. This comic has passably good art, but its story is of no interest, and its dialogue is poorly written; for instance, “wouldn’t” is spelled “would’nt.” I think I won’t bother collecting any more of this series.

MIDDLE CLASS FANTASIES #2 (Keith Green, 1976) – “The Return of the Frogman” etc., [W/A] Jerry Lane. This issue has perhaps the most boring cover of any underground comic. The main story is about a recently divorced woman who’s having hallucinations about a diver. This issue is mildly intriguing, but it’s not truly great. Jerry Lane vanished from comics after this issue, and efforts to track him down have been unsuccessful.

THE DESERT PEACH #10 (Mu Press, 1991) – “Two Timers,” [W/A] Donna Barr. Pfirsich thinks that his brother Erwin is going to be assassinated by a spy. He disguises himself and sneaks into the English camp, hoping to save both Rommel and the spy. Meanwhile Pfirsich lieutenant, Winzig, has to disguise himself as Pfirsch. All sorts of typical hilarity results. This is a very funny issue, though it takes some time to read, thanks to the highly detailed art and lettering and the convoluted plot. As in other issues of Desert Peach, the page numbers are part of a separate, silent comic strip.

TARZAN #187 (Gold Key, 1969) – “The Lions of Cathne,” [W] Gaylord Du Bois, [A] Doug Wildey. In an adaptation of Tarzan and the City of Gold, Tarzan is captured by an insane queen, Nemone. I don’t remember much about this issue, except that Nemone seems a lot like La, queen of Opar. Doug Wildey’s draftsmanship in this issue is quite good, but it looks quite different from his later works, Rio and Jonny Quest Classics, which are his only works that I’m familiar with.

METAL MEN #1 (DC, 2007) – “Et in Arcanum Ergo,” [W/A] Duncan Rouleau. This issue has some beautiful art; in particualr, Rouleau is very good at drawing robots and machinery. However, this issue’s plot is a load of incoherent nonsense. Rouleau seems to have had more success in animation than comics: his biggest claim to fame is having co-created Ben 10 and Big Hero 6.

POP GUN WAR #4 (Absence of Ink, 2002) – “Sinclair and Addison,” [W/A] Farel Dalrymple. I’m pretty sure I’ve already read this story in trade paperback form. It’s part of the same ongoing saga as The Wrenchies, It Will All Hurt and Alpha Centauri. Like most of those comics, it has beautiful draftsmanship, but a story that doesn’t make logical sense. (The exception is The Wrenchies, which does have a coherent story.)

MR. MONSTER #2 (Eclipse, 1985) – “The Hemo Horror,” [W/A] Michael T. Gilbert, [A] William Messner-Loebs. This story focuses on “Hemo-Boy,” a boy whose head is a bottle full of blood, making him look like Kool-Aid Man (the story explicitly points out this resemblance). Hemo-Boy’s abusive mother forces him to assist her with a faith healing scam. But when Hemo-Boy’s blood causes disease in people who’ve been injected with it, Mr. Monster has to intervene. He defeats Hemo-Boy’s mother, who’s a monster herself, and Hemo-Boy himself vanishes. Hemo-Boy’s first victim is named after David Scroggy, a longtime comics executive.

BATMAN #299 (DC, 1978) – “The Island of Purple Mist!”, [W] David V. Reed, [A] John Calnan. A man named Baxter Baines claims that he knows Batman’s secret identity. Meanwhile, a voodoo cult is trying to assassinate both Batman and a man named Aldrich. It’s weird how this story seems to divide into two distinct halves. Baxter Baines vanishes from the story after page 9, and the voodoo cult only appears after that point. Oddly, the voodoo cult is composed entirely of white people.

NEXUS #55 (First, 1989) – “A Job for the Guccis,” [W] Mike Baron, [A] Paul Smith. Zeiffer Meird, Nexus’s first (unsuccessful) assassination target, invades Ylum, trying to capture Sundra. With Nexus busy elswhere, Judah the Hammer organizes Nexus’s defense, and he kills both Meird and his hired Gucci assassin. Meird’s son, Zeiffer Weird, later appeared in the Nightmare in Blue miniseries. In my opinion, Nexus was in a slump between approximately issue 50 and Nexus: The Origin, and I still haven’t bothered reading all the later issues of the First Comics series.

DESERT PEACH #23 (aka Desert Peach: Visions) (Æon, 1995) – “Visions,” [W/A] Donna Barr. I got this from Donna herself at the 2017 Short Run festival in Seattle, and she signed my copy. In this issue, Pfirsich builds a bridge across a gorge, he and Erwin discuss a previous adventure involving a bridge, and then there’s a visit from a local Berber tribe, who are the in-laws of one of Pfirsich’s soldiers. Donna’s artwork in this issue is even more stylized than in earlier issues of Desert Peach.

PEEPSHOW #6 (Drawn & Quarterly, 1994) – “Bins-Whacker Part 3,” [W/A] Joe Matt. Joe saves a bird from being eaten by cats, then he tries to seduce a younger girl, but she does not reciprocate his interest. Later, Joe meets some acquaintances who appeared in one of his earlier issues, and are not happy about how Joe portrayed them. This scene is only possible because Peepshow was a serialized comic book, so the people who were depicted in it were able to read it as it was coming out. I can’t think of another example of a scene like this, where a character in an autobiographical comic reacted negatively to how they were portrayed in it, although I’m sure there are other examples of such scenes – perhaps in Bechdel’s Are You My Mother? Anyway, later in this issue, Joe has a threesome with two girls, but he’s unable to perform. I forget whether I read this before or after I heard that Joe Matt had passed away. His death is another sad loss. He was the most self-deprecating of all the autobiographical cartoonists, and based on the reactions to his death, he must have been a better person than he depicted himself as being. I regret that I never met him, although I have met Seth and Chester Brown.

XOMBI #7 (DC/Milestone, 1994) – “School of Anguish Part 1: Man of Tears!”, [W] John Rozum, [A] J.J. Birch. Xombi battles a villain named Manuel Dexterity, whose body from the waist down is replaced by a giant hand. Manuel Dexterity is killed, but on the last page, we learn that there’s also a woman who looks just like him. This issue is mostly memorable for the extreme bizarreness of the villain, though it does have some good character moments. I saw this issue’s cover in Wizard many years ago, but I never read it until now.

BLACK GOLIATH #2 (Marvel, 1976) – “White Fire, Atomic Death!”, [W] Chris Claremont, [A] George Tuska. Black Goliath fights a villain named Atom-Smasher, and he also has a sexual encounter with a woman named Celia Jackson. This is one of Claremont’s most obscure works of the ‘70s, and it’s not very interesting. I just read Eisner’s The Dreamer, which BTW is a powerful work, but also self-serving and dishonest. In it, Eisner depicts an incident in which Bob Powell was acting sleazy toward Toni Blum, the only woman in the Eisner-Iger shop, and George Tuska got up and punched Powell. I wonder if there’s any source for this incident other than Eisner’s own memories. I don’t know if George Tuska was ever asked about it.

CONAN THE BARBARIAN #11 (Marvel, 1971) – “Rogues in the House,” [W] Roy Thomas, [A] Barry Windsor-Smith. This is the first of several comics adaptations of the eponymous REH story. Conan is in prison – which, in this version, is due to his fickle girlfriend Jenna’s betrayal – and a nobleman named Murilo offers to free Conan in exchange for Conan’s promise to kill a priest named Nabonidus. Conan and Murilo sneak into Nabonidus’s house, Conan battles a giant intelligent ape and wins, then Conan kills Nabonidus. BWS’s art in this issue is beautiful, though he didn’t reach his full artistic maturity until issue 24 of this series. I always confuse “Rogues in the House” with “The God in the Bowl,” since they’re both set in mansions.

JONAH HEX #8 (DC, 1978) – “The Mark of the Demon,” [W] Michael Fleisher, [A] Ernie Chan. This issue begins with a flashback sequence that explains the origin of Jonah Hex’s infamous scar. At thirteen, Jonah was sold by his father to an Apache band and was raised as the chief’s son, but the chief’s biological son, Noh-Tante, envied Jonah and eventually betrayed him to another tribe. Jonah escaped and returned to the Apaches, only to discover that Noh-Tante had married Jonah’s intended, White Fawn. Jonah challenges Noh-Tante to a duel, then uses his knife to kill Noh-Tante, which is against tribal law. Therefore, Jonah is branded across half his face, resulting in the scar, and is expelled from the tribe. Back in the present, Jonah encounters the same Apaches again while trying to rescue a kidnapped white girl. As a result of this encounter, White Fawn and the chief, Jonah’s former adoptive father, are both killed. I believe this is still the standard version of Hex’s origin. This story was retold in issues #13-15 of the 2006 Jonah Hex series.

GRIMJACK #19 (First, 1986) – “Trade Wars: Maelstrom,” [W] John Ostrander, [A] Tim Truman w/ Steve Erwin. This issue, Dancer is conspiring against the city of Cynosure, and a deeply depressed Grimjack goes on a mission of vengeance against him. This story is rather grim even compared to other Grimjack comics. The Munden’s Bar story, by Ostrander and Erwin, is actually part of the main story. Unfortunately, Steve Erwin, too, has just passed away.

MOTHER PANIC #8 (DC, 2017) – “Victim Complex Part 2,” [W] Jody Houser, [A] John Paul Leon. This issue has some nice-looking art by John Paul Leon, yet another artist who’s no longer with us, though his death was somewhat less recent. Otherwise this is another bad issue of a bad comic.

PLANETARY #24 (DC/Wildstorm, 2006) – “Systems,” [W] Warren Ellis, [A] John Cassaday. This issue is mostly a talkfest, in which Elijah reveals a lot of information about the history of Planetary and the Four. Then the Four try to kill Elijah, Jakita and Drummer by blowing up the building they’re in. It doesn’t work, because the three of them are in an impenetrable bunker, but a lot of bystanders are killed. I’ve been hesistant to read any Warren Ellis comics lately, thanks to the allegations against him. My impression is that he’s made no significant effort to atone for the harm he’s caused.

CHALAND ANTHOLOGY #1: FREDDY LOMBARD (Humanoids, 1981-1986) – various stories, [W/A] Yves Chaland. This is the first of two omnibus volumes collecting Yves Chaland’s main series, Freddy Lombard. I read the second volume soon after it was published. Chaland was the great prodigy of French comics in the 1980s, but he tragically died in a car crash in 1990, at just 33. I always thought of Chaland as a Clear Line artist, but in the early part of his career he was more influenced by the “style atome” of Franquin and Jijé, though these two styles seem to be more similar than different. His Clear Line influence was more visible in the last couple Freddy Lombard albums.

Freddy Lombard is an adventure strip in the vein of Tintin, starring Freddy and his two companions Dina and Sweep. The first two albums are the most conventional of the five. In the first one, Freddy and his friends search for the lost treasure of Godfrey of Bouillon. The second album consists of two separate stories set in Africa, and it’s full of unfortunate black stereotypes. The third album, The Comet of Carthage, is the most notable. It’s a confusing, mysterious story that draws heavily upon Flaubert’s Salammbô, which I have not read. The events in the plot make very little sense; for instance, in panel 3 on page 101, why is Carrier- Deleuze walking with his index fingers next to his ears, and why does he ignore Freddy? This album’s confusing nature seems to be deliberate. I’d like to read it again more carefully. An article by Pierre T. Richard may shed some light on the mysteries of this album, though I haven’t read the article in full.

BRIAN BOLLAND’S BLACK BOOK #1 (Eclipse, 1985) – “Vampire Carnival,” [W] Steve Parkhouse, [A] Brian Bolland, etc. Two colorized reprints of stories that originally appeared in Dez Skinn’s House of Hammer. The first one is about vampires, the second is about a sacrificial cult. The artwork on the second story is credited to Trevor Goring as well as Bolland. Neither of these stories made a huge impression on me, but any comic with interior art by Bolland is worth reading. Sadly, his interior art is usually not as good as his covers. The style of his covers is so elaborate and labor-intensive that he can’t draw an entire comic in that stlye.

MOTHER PANIC: GOTHAM A.D. #5 (DC, 2018) – “Different Bat Channel Part 5,” [W] Jody Houser, [A] Ibrahim Moustafa. Another comic that I shouldn’t have bought. Catwoman makes a guest appearance in this issue, but otherwise, nothing about it is of any interest.

QUACK! #6 (Star*Reach, 1977) – “The Quark Son of Quack,” [W/A] Ted Richards, etc. This issue includes anthropomorphic stories by Ted Richards, Steve Leialoha, Frank Brunner, Lee Marrs, and Michael T. Gilbert. This lineup of creators is characteristic of “ground-level” comics, which used talent from both the mainstream and the underground. The highlight of this issue for me is the Lee Marrs story, since I really like her work. The Brunner story is a reprint from issue 1. The editor, Mike Friedrich, explains that this slot was going to be filled by a You-All Gibbon story by Scott Shaw!, but Scott dropped out of the issue due to higher priorities, as well as “a loss of respect for QUACK and myself.” As a result, Brunner was forced to replace it with a reprint. The planned You-All Gibbon story instead appeared in Wild Animals #1.

HATE #28 (Fantagraphics, 1997) – “A Day in the Life of Buddy Bradley,” [W/A] Peter Bagge. Buddy is awakened after noon by his annoying sister and his kids, then he goes to work, and the Starbucks employees across the street make fun of his lack of hygiene. Jay tries to convince Buddy to sell turntables at the store, and Buddy meets a woman and fails to realize that she’s coming on to him. Then he spends the night browsing the World Wide Web, which was still in its infancy at the time. This issue has numerous backup features, including Bagge and Adrian Tomine’s “Shamrock Squid,” a parody of the alternative comics scene at the time. It takes place at Comic-Con, back when alternative cartoonists still went there.

DEATH RATTLE #5 (Kitchen Sink, 1986) – “Junkyard Dog,” [W] Mike Baron, [A] Rand Holmes. Two convicts escape from a space prison. When they encounter an attractive female guard, one of the convicts tries to rape her, and she turns into a monster and kills him. The surviving convict stays with the guard, but is traumatized by the sight of the other convict’s death. I imagine that if Rand Holmes was still alive, he would be horrified to see what Mike Baron has turned into, though maybe Holmes would have gotten more conservative in his old age. Anyway, Holmes’s art here is gorgeous, as ever. This issue also includes a reprinted Wolverton story, and then a chapter of Jack Jackson’s Bulto.

LASSIE #30 (Dell, 1956) – “The Thieftakers” etc., [W] unknown, [A] Bob Forgione. This issue begins with two adventure stories set in Brazil, during the period when Gerry and Rocky were Lassie’s owners. Bob Forgione’s artwork here is competent but boring. It says here that he was an assistant to Jerry Robinson, who also drew Lassie. In this issue’s last story, the protagonists visit the “Yagans” (more often spelled Yaghans), the indigenous people of Tierra del Fuego, who are described as “the most primitive tribe of Indians in South America.” Gerry and Rocky teach the Yaghans to fish with nets, thus improving their sad lives. The patronizing tone of this story is rather offensive. A more recent French comic, Cape Horn by Perrissin and Riboldi, offers a much more nuanced treatment of native Fuegians.

STINZ V2 #1 (Brave New Worlds, 1991) – “On a Pale Horse,” [W/A] Donna Barr. In a flashforward, Stinz’s elderly father dies. In a flashback, Stinz gets on a train to go to an army camp. A late-arriving recruit tries to jump aboard the train while it’s moving, and is brutally killed. At the camp, two of the company’s horses are found to have anthrax, so all of the horses have to be killed, including the commanding officer’s beloved personal mount. I think I like Stinz better than The Desert Peach, perhaps because of its more varied plot. In Desert Peach, all the stories are set in North Africa during World War II, while Stinz’s plot is not temporally or spatially confined in the same way.

BUZZ #1 (Kitchen Sink, 1990) – [E] Mark Landman. I bought this from my old friend Tim Kupin at my last Comic-Con. This issue has a very impressive list of creators, including Jim Woodring, Richard Sala, and Drew Friedman. Unfortunately, a big chunk of the issue is taken up by Landman’s own “Carl Lafong, Detective for Hire,” a hardboiled detective parody. This is an unfunny story with ugly done digital lettering and coloring, and the main character has a parisitic twin attached to him, which is rather disgusting. There’s another unimpressive story by Roy Tompkins. I haven’t heard of this artist before. His solo series, Trailer Trash, was published by Tundra and Fantagraphics, and lasted nine issues, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen an issue of it. The highlight of Buzz #1 is Jim Woodring’s one-pager that introduces Pulque, the god of intoxication.

BATMAN #94 (DC, 2020) – “Their Dark Designs Finale,” [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Guillem March & Rafael Albuquerque. In a flashback, a young Bruce Wayne meets Cassander Wycliffe Baker, who is basically Sherlock Holmes, but Baker refuses to train Bruce. As this Bleeding Cool article mentions, Batman met the actual Sherlock Holmes in Detective Comics #572. In the present, Batman loses his fortune, and a severely injured Catwoman is abducted from her hospital bed by the Penguin.

Next trip to Heroes:

THE CULL #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kelly Thompson, [A] Mattia De Iulis. The kids encounter an unbelievably cute creature that looks like a technicolor red panda with a squirrel tail. Kaity discovers that Cleo is still self-harming, and Lux and Will decide to have sex. Finally, the panda-squirrel creature shapeshifts into humanoid form and asks Wade “What is God?” This issue had some impressive characterization and narrative density, and Mattia De Iulis’s coloring is gorgeous.

CODA #1 (Boom!, 2023) – “False Dawns,” [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Matías Bergara. After the previous series, Hum and Serka are trying to live a quiet life. But some people go around proclaiming that a certain blond-haired little boy is a prophesied king, and they steal Hum’s unicorn for the “king” to ride on. When Hum tries to recover his unicorn, violence results. Meanwhile, Serka goes on a mercenary mission with some “gnomads,” and we learn that she’s pregnant. Coda is probably Simon Spurrier’s greatest work, and I’m excited that it’s back. However, this comic makes heavy demands on the reader because of its density. Before reading Coda #2, I had to reread issue 1 to remind myself what happened. As in the first Coda series, Matías Bergara’s artwork is spectacular.

DARK RIDE #8 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Andrei Bressan. Samhain is attacked by monsters that come out of a TV, and then he finds himself transported back in time to his mother’s death. Summer rescues Samhain, but then they discover that the monsters have assaulted Samhain’s ex-wife and abducted his daughter. My guess is that Arthur made some kind of deal with the devil in exchange for his children’s souls, and then he defaulted on the deal, so the devil is claiming Arthur’s grandchild instead.

FANTASTIC FOUR #11 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Ryan North, [A] Iban Coello. After being tormented by his unwanted new dog, the Thing wakes up alone to discover that his house has lost gravity and is in freefall. By using science, Ben is able to determine that this is all an illusion. The culprit is the Miracle Man, who was introduced in Fantastic Four #3 but has made very sporadic appearances since. Ben thinks he’s beaten the Miracle Man, but realizes this is another illusion, and defeats him for real. Ben decides he’s stuck with the dog. This is an effective Ben Grimm solo story, and it’s also another demonstration of Ryan North’s ability to incorporate science into his stories. It’s easy to think of Ben as stupid, but in this story Ryan reminds us that as a test pilot, Ben knows a lot of practical science.

UNDISCOVERED COUNTRY #25 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Scott Snyder & Charles Soule, [A] Giuseppe Camuncoli & Leonardo Marcello Grassi. The heroes reach the agricultural zone, where they fight giant insects, and are saved by giant Greek gods. This sequence reminds me of the Brobdingnag scenes in Gulliver’s travels; in particular, the little girl who braids Valentina’s hair reminds me of Glumdalclitch. Subsequently, Charlotte discovers that Chang has been in secret contact with the Chinese government. She knocks him out and picks up his phone, and the person on the other end tells her that her team has already released the sky virus cure and saved the world. That’s news to us.

ONCE UPON A TIME AT THE END OF THE WORLD #9 (Boom!, 2023) – “A Failure to Communicate,” [W] Jason Aaron, [A] Leila del Duca. Golgonooza is plagued by a green mist that causes nightmarish hallucinations. Besides killing a lot of people, the mist causes Mezzy and Maceo’s relationship to deteriorate, as shown by a page where they’re lying on opposite ends of an enormous bed. When Mezzy and Maceo take off their gas masks and look at each other, each perceives the other as a deformed monster. This is a grim, depressing issue, but #10 is even grimmer.

MECH CADETS #2 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Greg Pak, [A] Takeshi Miyazawa. Disobeying direct orders, the kids help the little alien against the Sharg. General Felix, who has been the villain of the first two issues, explains why she didn’t want the kids to help: she thinks that there’s a bigger enemy that’s responsible for both the Sharg and the robots. In the battle, Hero Force One gets its arm ripped off, and Olivia’s dad apparently sacrifices himself so the kids can escape. This miniseries has some strong characterization, but it’s missing the first series’s theme of class conflict and upward mobility.

BIRDS OF PREY #1 (DC, 2023) – “Megadeath Part 1,” [W] Kelly Thompson, [A] Leonardo Romero. Black Canary recruits a new Birds of Prey team to help rescue her adopted sister Sin. The team members are Batgirl, Big Barda, Harley Quinn, Zealot, and Meridian, a future version of Maps Mizoguchi. Kelly Thompson is an excellent writer of team comics, and I really like the composition of this team. In particular, I like the juxtaposition of the stone-faced Big Barda and the wacky Harley Quinn. As stated above, I like Harley best when she serves as a foil to more serious characters. Zealot, however, is kind of a nonentity. Leonardo Romero is one of the best artists Kelly Thompson has worked with, and his art in this issue is excellent, but it sometimes seems as if the coloring is misaligned with the line art.

WORLD’S FINEST: TEEN TITANS #3 (DC, 2023) – “Welcome to Titanscon!”, [W] Mark Waid, [A] Emanuela Lupacchino. The Titans go to a comic convention dedicated to them. After a number of funny scenes, the convention is invaded by Toyboy, an obsessed fanboy with the power to telekinetically manipulate toys. The Titans defeat him, ‘but then he gets forcibly recruited into a new team of Terror Titans. This is a very entertaining comic, with beautiful art and funny metatextual humor. A notable moment is the panel on “Wonder Girl: Empowered Hero or Manic Pixie Dream Girl?” World’s Finest: Teen Titans may be the best-written comic about the original Teen Titans.

I HATE FAIRYLAND VOL. 2 #9 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Skottie Young, [A] Brett Bean. We discover that Duncan only imagined killing Gert, and didn’t really do it. Duncan and Gert go off to have a drink, but Gert drinks a potion prepared by the witch Terribella, and it causes her to turn into a dragon. Gert battles Terribella and is badly hurt, but of course she survives. Then she and Duncan have to go rescue Cloudia from prison, since Cloudia is the only one who can give Duncan his map. At this point the series’s plot has returned to its status quo as of the previous volume.

BARNSTORMERS #3 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Scott Snyder, [A] Tula Lotay. Bix and Tillie have their final confontation with the authorities. Their plane is shot down, but it turns out that they weren’t in it; they switched planes with another pilot. The antagonist, Mr. West, figures out the trick and tracks Bix and Tillie down. He later claims to have killed them, but it’s heavily implied that he allowed them to escape to South America. This is a touching conclusion to a story which seemed doomed to end in tragedy. The main story ends before the staple, and the second half of the issue consists of concept art. Barnstormers was one of Scott Snyder’s best shorter works, but it really ought to have been five issues rather than three.

FENCE: REDEMPTION #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] C.S. Pacat, [A] Johanna the Mad. Harvard goes on a date, we learn about the history between the two opposing coaches, and Seiji and Nick visit Nick’s old gym. Actually this is sort of a date too. The tournament is over now, and the next step is the state championships. This was a very cute miniseries, but given the slow pace of Fence’s plot, combined with its low frequency of publication, I can’t see how its story can ever be finished.

PROJECT: CRYPTID #1 (Ahoy, 2023) – This is an anthology series, a partial replacement for the old Edgar Allan Poe’s Snifter of… series. In the first story, by Mark Russell and Jordi Pérez, a rich white guy climbs Mount Everest, demands to take the most difficult route, and is eaten by a yeti. Entitled rich white dudes are the standard villains in Mark Russell’s comics, particularly Billionaire Island and Rumpus Room (see below). The backup story, by Paul Cornell and 2000 AD artist PJ Holden, is about a cryptologist and his pet Mongolian death worm. This issue also includes the first installment of an exquisite-corpse prose story, “Partially Naked Came the Corpse.” For me, reading this story is a chore, rather than a pleasure. I don’t much like the exquisite corpse technique, and I hate it when comics include prose texts.

SHAZAM! #3 (DC, 2023) – “Meet the Captain!”, [W] Mark Waid, [A] Dan Mora. Billy has lost most of his powers because his empowering gods (Shazam, Hercules, etc.) have turned against him. Despite this, Billy is forced to risk becoming the Captain again, and he finds that he’s saved some citizens of Gorilla City. Billy goes there with them, and they send him on a mission to the moon, to recover stolen technology from the “Moon Emperor.” It turns out that the Moon Emperor is an old Doom Patrol villain, Garguax. Meanwhile, the other Marvels have to deal with the alien bureaucrat. Mark Waid has been doing some great work lately: Shazam! and World’s Finest: Teen Titans are both extremely fun.

KILL YOUR DARLINGS #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Ethan S. Parker & Griffin Sheridan, [A] Bob Quinn. In 1995, a little girl named Rose has an exciting fantasy life, but her single mother is in dire financial straits. One night Rose’s house burns down, and her mother is killed. It’s not clear to me what caused the fire, but Rose blames herself. This is a fairly good default issue, but by the time issue 2 came out, I had forgotten what the series was about.

UNTOLD TALES OF I HATE FAIRYLAND #3 (Image, 2023) – “Till Death Do Us Part,” [W] Skottie Young, [A] Rachele Aragno, etc. Gert and Duncan attend a wedding, then Gert tells Duncan about the time she was married to a vampire, until she got sick of him and killed him. The art in this story is very odd and distinctive; it’s colored in very pale watercolors, so it looks like something out of a kid’s paint-by-numbers book. There are two backup stories, one by Dean Rankine, the other by Fábio Moon and Gabriel Bá. The Moon & Bá story is just a typical example of the I Hate Fairyland formula, but it contains some excellent art.

CAT FIGHT #3 (Dark Horse, 2023) – “Caught the Canary,” [W] Andrew Wheeler, [A] Ilias Kyriazis. Felix survives Ginger Tom’s attack and makes it into Kitty’s lair. In a recorded message, Kitty tells Felix that she’s left him a  priceless necklace as his inheritance, but the necklace is missing. Ginger attacks Felix again, and he’s saved by Tabitha. Felix and Tabitha go to Tokyo, where Tabitha is poisoned by yet another thief, Claude. Then Claude forces Felix to help him in exchange for both the necklace and the antidote. Perhaps my favorite thing about this series is the nondiegetic drawings of cats that appear at the beginning of some sequences. This issue includes three of these drawings, all depicting the same black cat.

ALLIGATOR LOKI #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “Family Bonding” etc., [W] Alyssa Wong, [A] Bob Quinn. I believe that Robert Quinn, Bob Quinn and Bob Q are all the same person. This issue consists of a number of silent strips, all starring Thor and Alligator Loki. There are guest appearances by Squirrel Girl and lots of other characters. This comic is very funny, and the stories are all easy to understand despite the lack of dialogue. Alligator Loki #1 is bascially the same idea as It’s Jeff #1, but neither comic is clearly better than the other.

KNIGHT TERRORS: POISON IVY #2 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] G. Willow Wilson, [A] Atagun Ilhan. Ivy’s nightmares continue, until eventually she wakes up. This was one of the better Knight Terrors titles: it was frightening, and it was by the same writer as the main series. Still, I’m glad that we’re done with this awful, pointless crossover, and that this is the last Knight Terrors comic I’ll have to read. I don’t know what DC was thinking when they decided to interrupt all of their titles for two months.

BATMAN/SUPERMAN: WORLD’S FINEST #18 (DC, 2023) – “The Origin of the WorlPhantom Riddles Part 1,” [W] Mark Waid, [A] Travis Moore. In their first encounter (within current continuity), Batman and Superman team up against the Riddler, who’s being manipulated by the Phantom Zone villain Jax-Ur. This issue isn’t quite as good as Shazam #3 or World’s Finest: Teen Titans #3, but it’s entertaining. It’s a fun retelling of Superman and Batman’s first encounter.

AVENGERS INC. #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Man Who Wasn’t There,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Leonard Kirk. Six villains have recently been murdered while in prison, including Janet Van Dyne’s old stalker, Whirlwind. Jan goes to the prison to investigate, and all the villains come back to life except Whirlwind. Then Whirlwind also comes back to life, but he has red eyes and a diamond on his forehead (which, come to think of it, is characteristic of Mr. Sinister as well as the Vision), and he thinks his name is Vic Shade. This is more of a Wasp solo comic than an Avengers comic, but I don’t mind, since I really like Jan. So far this series is an entertaining blend of the superhero and mystery genres.

FROM THE WORLD OF MINOR THREATS: THE ALTERNATES #1 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Patton Oswalt et al., [A] Christopher Mitten, [A] Tess  Fowler. I’m not sure whether to file this under Alternates or Minor Threats (filing it under “From” is out of the question). In this Minor Threats spinoff, the protagonists are a support group of people who have traveled to an alternate dimension (“the Ledge”), and who are now trying to adjust to their life in the real world. And they’ve discovered a drug that can take them back to the Ledge. It’s a pretty interesting setup. And one of the characters is a crab-man named Crab Louie. I wasn’t that impressed with the original Minor Threats, but I think it was better than I gave it credit for, and this sequel also looks good.

BATMAN AND ROBIN #1 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Simone Di Meo. Bruce and Damian move into a brownstone apartment, and Bruce sends Damian to public school. In their other identities, Batman and Robin battle White Rabbit and other villains. This comic is a sequel to Joshua Williamson’s earlier Robin ongoing series, which I enjoyed. I like the idea of Bruce and Damian living alone together. In its emphasis on their domestic life, this comic seems a bit like the immensely popular Wayne Family Adventures webtoon, though I haven’t actually read that comic.

POISON IVY #14 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] G. Willlow Wilson, [A] Márcio Takara. Ivy investigates the building where she discovered a flower-faced corpse. A company named Undine appears to have built the building, so Janet tries to get hired by Undine in order to spy on them, but Undine’s HR person sees through her ruse. As Janet is leaving the interview, Batman tries to intimidate her into abandoning Ivy, but Janet insists on staying with Ivy, against her own better judgment. Harley is impressed by this, and she and Janet start making out. Meanwhile, Ivy encounters a living person with a flower for a face. This is a good issue, but I wish it had come out right after issue 13, instead of three months later.

GODZILLA: WAR FOR HUMANITY #1 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Andrew MacLean, [A] Jake Smith. I have no particular interest in Godzilla, but I bought this comic anyway because Andrew MacLean wrote it. This miniseris is about Dr. Yuko Honda (named after Godzilla’s creator Ishiro Honda), a kaiju scientist and single mother, who’s recruited onto an anti-kaiju task force. A significant theme in this comic is parenting. Yuko was abandoned by her parents as a child, and she’s afraid that Godzilla will abandon her too, because ironically Godzilla is focusing on his own child, Minilla, rather than protecting humanity. Jake Smith’s art style is similar to MacLean’s own style, and is very manga-influenced.

FIRE & ICE: WELCOME TO SMALLVILLE #1 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joanne Starer, [A] Natacha Bustos. Fire and Ice move to Smallville, along with L-Ron, and purchase a beauty salon. Humor and drama ensues, Superman makes a cameo appearance, and Ambush Bug appears on the last page. This series is partly a tribute to the Giffen/DeMatteis Justice League, and if that was all it was, I could have done without it. In reviving that property over and over, DC is just flogging a dead horse – and in a sense that’s literally true now, since we’ve lost Giffen. However, this series’s focus is less on nostalgia for the ‘80s than on Fire and Ice’s personalities and their interactions with the people of Smallville. So it feels like an original work, not a revival. Natacha Bustos is an excellent artist, and her artwork gives me fond memories of Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur.

BLACK PANTHER #4 (Marvel, 2023) – “Reign at Dusk Part 4,” [W] Eve Ewing, [A] Chris Allen & Mack Chater. T’Challa has a boring fight with Deathlok, and then some other boring stuff happens. There’s a cameo appearance by the lawyer N’yobi, who was actually a more interesting character than T’Challa himself, but after issue 1 he’s mostly vanished from the series. This is another very disappointing issue. See my review of #5 below for my explanation of the problem with this series.

CITY BOY #4 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Greg Pak, [A] Minkyu Jung. City Boy meets Nightwing, and they also encounter the incarnation of Blüdhaven, which manifests as a hideous bat-thing. Swamp Thing appears at the end of the issue. City Boy isn’t Greg Pak’s best work, but it’s far better than The Vigil or Spirit World.

BATMAN & THE JOKER: THE DEADLY DUO #1 (DC, 2022) – untitled, [W/A] Marc Silvestri. I only got this because it was a free “Batman Day Special Edition.” If I’d paid for it, I would have felt cheated. This issue includes some effective depictions of Gotham’s architecture, but its story is a waste of space. The gimmick is that Batman and the Joker are forced to team up for some reason. This is hardly an original idea; it already happened in The Brave and the Bold #111, and it was probably an old idea even then. Anyway, I hate Joker comics. Marc Silvestri is perhaps the second worst artist among the Image founders, after Liefeld.

SWAN SONGS #3 (Image, 2023) – “The End of… the End of the World,” [W] W. Maxwell Prince, [A] Filipe Andrade. In a parody of the Book of Genesis, two people named Evan and Adeline emerge from their bomb shelters and discover that everyone else in the world is dead. They become the new Adam and Eve. Then some scientists emerge from a different bomb shelter and contact Evan and Adeline, but Evan and Adeline kill them. This issue is okay, but its Biblical references are too obvious, and I think I preferred the previous two issues.

BATMAN #137 (DC, 2023) – “The Gotham War Chapter 2,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Jorge Jimenez. Batman is getting increasingly obsessed with his war against crime, to the point where his fellow Bat-Family members are worried about him. Eventually Jason Todd attacks Bruce, and the rest of the Bat-Family has to intervene to help Jason. Subsequently, Wayne Manor is repossessed, and Bruce has to hurry there to make sure that nobody finds the Batcave. This issue was entertaining, even though it’s part of a crossover, of which I’m not reading any of the other parts. One of the panels in this issue is an apparent tribute to the “you have eaten well” panel from Batman: Year One.

DAREDEVIL #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “Introductory Rites,” [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Aaron Kuder. Following his death in the previous series, Matt Murdock has returned to life without his memory. Matt is now a priest, and is running an orphanage. However, his memories are haunting him, and he’s pursued by some kind of devil. The problem with every new Daredevil run is how to tell an original story without just rehashing Frank Miller’s version of the character. Saladin Ahmed’s new approach to Daredevil is to focus on his religiosity. Religion is a major theme in Saladin’s work, and it’ll be interesting to see how he applies this theme to Daredevil.

WEIRD WORK #3 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jordan Thomas, [A] Shaky Kane. I have no idea what happened in this issue, and I can’t remember any of the characters’ names, even the protagonists. It doesn’t help that they have names like Looch and Welt and Heepo Krit. I can’t remember which of these names corresponds to which character. Shaky Kane is a brilliant artist, and anything he draws is worth buying. But if it weren’t for his art, this comic would just be a completely generic hardboiled detective story.

GREEN LANTERN #3 (DC, 2023) – “The More Things Change…”, [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Xermanico. This comic’s title is a cliché. The GCD lists 17 different stories with this phrase in the title – and one of those comics is Jay Garrick: The Flash #1, which is by the same writer as Green Lantern #3, and was published just one month later. In this issue Sinestro returns to Earth and contacts Hal, and meanwhile Hal continues his creepy pursuit of Carol Danvers. There’s also a John Stewart backup story by a different writer. I’m really only reading this series because of how much I liked Jeremy Adams’s Flash, and I’m probably going to drop it unless it gets significantly better.

SPINE-TINGLING SPIDER-MAN #0 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Juan Ferrerya. This was first published in 2021 and 2022 as a digital Infinity Comic. Every time Spider-Man tries to sleep, he hears a song in his head that begins “Close, close your eyes, go, go to sleep.” This is an actual song written for this comic, and it can be accessed via a QR code included in the issue. Because of the song, Spidey is unable to sleep, and he loses his effectiveness as a superhero. Spidey discovers that a demon called the Sleep-Stealer is responsible for his plight, possibly in collaboration with Spencer Smythe. Spidey eventually defeats the Sleep-Stealer with the aid of the other people that the demon possessed, but afterward, he still can’t sleep. This was billed as the scariest Spider-Man comic ever, and I’m not sure it’s not. The premise and the artwork are both terrifying.

X-MEN RED #15 (Marvel, 2023) – “Nothing and Nobody,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Yildiray Cinar. This issue is entirely about Arakko’s civil war. I know this whole comic is supposed to be about Arakko, but I’ve never had much interest in Arakko or its inhabitants, and it’s hard to remember the Arakki’s names or their powers. And anyway, X-Men Red is less about Arakko than it is about Storm. X-Men Red is really not so much an original series as a continuation of Al Ewing’s S.W.O.R.D., and that perhaps explains why the Arakki X-Men feel like side characters in what is supposed to be their own series.

FASTER (Bulgihan, 2021?) – untitled, [W/A] Jesse Lonergan. A self-published, small-format comic about auto racing. It can be ordered here. Faster has a fairly simple plot – most of the comic depicts a single auto race, and there are a few flashbacks to the drivers’ past lives. However, Jesse Lonergan’s unique style of visual storytelling is perfectly suited to auto racing. He does brilliant things with page layouts and motion lines. I especially like his use of lines that intersect with the panel borders. This technique reminds me of how John Workman’s word balloons merge with the panel borders. It creates a very striking visual effect. Lonergan’s coloring is also highly effective, even though (or because) the only two colors used are yellow and bluish-green. I hope he continues doing innovative work like this.

BATMAN/CATWOMAN: THE GOTHAM WAR PRELUDE SPECIAL EDITION #1 (DC, 2023) – [W/A] various. This was another free comic. It includes two stories I’ve already read – an excerpt from Batman #137, and the backup story from Batman #136 – as well as unlettered previews of two other Batman comics. Even though it’s free, this comic is disappointing.  It was supposed to have an original story, but no such story was included, and no one seems to know why not.

RED ROOM: CRYPTO KILLAZ #4 (Fantagraphics, 2023) – “140 Days of Sodom,” [W/A] Ed Piskor. A girl named Roma is exiled from Christvania, a European village run by a fundamentalist cult, and is sent to the nearby big city. Due to her isolated upbringing, she becomes a victim of human trafficking and ends up as a prospective Red Room victim. Due to some plot twists, she instead becomes a Red Room executioner, under the name Sarah Jane Payne. Back in Christvania, her dad watches one of her Red Room videos. Sarah Jane Payne has appeared or been mentioned before in this series, but I don’t remember in what context. This is an extremely brutal and disturbing story, but that’s typical for Red Room. According to the cover, this is the last issue of Red Room. It doesn’t feel like a conclusion, and I feel that there’s still room for lots of other Red Room stories, so perhaps Ed decided to end this series because he’s ready to move on to something else.

ASTONISHING ICEMAN #2 (Marvel, 2023) – “Out Cold: Part Two,” [W] Steve Orlando, [A] Vincenzo Carratù. Iceman travels to the town of Fort Washington, where he battles the Elements of Doom and is reunited with his mother. By this point Iceman’s father is dead, and that’s good, because that guy was a huge asshole. I liked this issue better than issue 1, but I can’t remember just why.

DANGER STREET #9 (DC, 2023) – “Doctor Fate,” [W] Tom King, [A] Jorge Fornés. This was one of my least favorite comics of the year. The entire issue is devoted to a fight between Manhunter and Codename: Assassin. While beating each other up on a rooftop, they engage in a long, rambling discussion about various philosophical topics. It’s really more of a monologue than a discussion, because the two characters are impossible to distinguish from each other – they have the same personality and the same speech pattern. Because of the extreme amount of dialogue, this comic is incredibly tedious to read. And also, in my opinion, the dialogue is just stupid – it’s supposed to sound profound, but it doesn’t actually say anything. Before I was even halfway through the comic, I was already thoroughly sick of it. Reading it felt like self-imposed torture. On the other hand, when I stated these opinions on Facebook, one of my friends said that this was his favorite issue of the series, so I guess YMMV.

IMMORTAL X-MEN #15 (Marvel, 2023) – “Thirst Things First,” [W] Kieron Gillen, [A] Paco Medina. Selene and Shaw make another attempt to invade Krakoa. In the desert, the stranded mutants are attacked by an army of Wolverine clones, but then they arrive at the “Atlantic Krakoa,” a terrestrial paradise. However, Apocalypse is still hunting them. We just learned that Kieron Gillen is going to write a new X-Men Forever series after Immortal X-Men ends.

CROSSED PLUS ONE HUNDRED #1 (Avatar, 2014) – “124C41+,” [W] Alan Moore, [A] Gabriel Andrade. In a postapocalyptic society, a young woman named Future Taylor is part of a group that searches pre-apocalypse ruins for treasure. She and her group encounter a breeding population of incestuous zombies. Alan Moore’s Avatar Press comics don’t feel like “real” Alan Moore comics to me, because Avatar’s comics have terrible production values, and also their art always looks pornographic. But I suppose that by working for such an awful company, Alan has more creative freedom than at Marvel or DC, just like when he worked at Image in the ‘90s. Crossed Plus One Hundred is an intriguing story, but it’s hard to read because the dialogue is written in an invented future dialect of English; for example, “That’s what sadded me enough to pipe the wana, that caspered me all the way up here.”

THE LEGACY OF LUTHER STRODE #3 (Image, 2015) – untitled, [W] Justin Jordan, [A] Tradd Moore. This issue is another long fight scene, taking place in two neighboring buildings. Again, Tradd Moore’s art here is at a higher level than in the previous two Luther Strode miniseries.

SECRET SIX #8 (DC, 2016) – “House of Strangers Part 2: Atlantis Confides,” [W] Gail Simone, [A] Dale Eaglesham & Tom Derenick. We are told about the origins of the White Gate, which is composed of four alabaster pillars. Its role is to protect the world from Lovecraftian Great Old Ones. The Secret Six’s mission is to destroy the pillars, while the Justice League Dark is trying to protect them. Like #7, this issue is entertaining.

CYBORG #6 (DC, 2016) – “Techno-Takedown!”, [W] David F. Walker, [A] Ivan Reis et al. Cyborg and the Metal Men fight some alien computer viruses or something, and then there are some scenes with Vic in his secret identity. I don’t really understand what’s going on in this issue. In recent years DC has heavily promoted Vic as a solo character and as a Justice League member, but I haven’t read very many of his comics, other than the classic New Teen Titans.

LUCIFER #4 (DC, 2016) – “Wild Heaven Part 4: Hosts,” [W] Holly Black, [A] Lee Garbett. This comic has an intriguing subplot about a Haitian child in a foster home. However, the main plot just feels like a rehash of older Sandman and Lucifer comics. Lee Garbett is a subtly effective artist.

LE GENIE DES ALPAGES VOL. 4 (Dargaud, 1978) – “Un grand silence frisé,” [W/A] F’Murr. This series was originally published in Pilote. The artist, whose real name was Richard Peyzaret, spelled his name with varying numbers of R’s; he once said that the real number was three and a half R’s. Le Génie des alpages is a series of short gag strips about a flock of sheep, their shepherds and sheepdog, and various other characters. There’s not much continuity or consistency of theme between one strip and the next. The humor tends to be rather absurdist. F’Murr is the only French cartoonist I know of who’s influenced by Herriman. The influence is visible both in his general poetic, surreal tone, and his backgrounds that change rapidly from one panel to the next. Sometimes there’s random stuff happening in the background that’s not relevant to the main strip, such as on page 6, where the characters are standing below two mountains talking, and then two mechanical cuckoos emerge from the mountains.

STARMAN/CONGORILLA #1 (DC, 2007) – “Now & Then,” [W] James Robinson, [A] Norm Rapmund. The Starman in this comic is Mikaal Tomas. In this issue he teams up with Congorilla, Rex the Wonder Dog and Detective Chimp. All of this is connected to a then-current storyline in Justice League. Mikaal Tomas is a character from James Robinson’s Starman run, but Starman/Congorilla doesn’t feel like an issue of Robinson’s Starman. Rather, it feels like another example of the awful comics he was writing in the 2000s, such as Justice League: Cry for Justice, which must have been the nadir of his career. The unimpressive nature of this comic is partly the result of Norm Rapmund’s ugly art.

BATMAN #1 (DC, 1940/2023) – “The Joker” etc., [W] Bill Finger, [A] Bob Kane & Jerry Robinson. This issue includes the first appearances of the Joker and Catwoman. In the first Joker story, the essential nature of the character is already well-developed. This story directly influenced Englehart and Rogers’s Laughing Fish two-parter, which, in my opinion, is the definitive Joker story. Similarly, in the first Catwoman story, the basic ideas behind the character are already in place: she steals jewels from rich people, and she tries to romance Batman. This issue also includes a Hugo Strange story, which was reprinted in The Greatest Batman Stories Ever Told, as well as a second Joker story. The Hugo Strange story has some of what TVTropes calls Early Installment Weirdness: Batman kills one of Hugo Strange’s mutants, remarking, “Much as I hate to take human life, I’m afraid this time it’s necessary!” On top of that, he uses a gun to do it. This issue also includes an assortment of filler material, including a prose biography of Kane, which, of course, does not mention Finger or Robinson.

CROSSED PLUS ONE HUNDRED #3 (Avatar, 2015) – “Glory Road,” [W] Alan Moore, [A] Gabriel Andrade. I do not have issue 2. Like #1, #3 is named after a classic science fiction novel. This issue, Future attends a town meeting, then joins a river expedition from Chooga (Chattanooga) to Murfreesboro. In her spare time, Future reads John Clute’s Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, and she comments that Cormac McCarthy’s The Road must have been fantasy, because there was only one baby being cooked. Again, this is an interesting series, but the future English makes it cumbersome to read.

SCARY GODMOTHER: BLOODY VALENTINE #1 (Sirius, 1998) – untitled, [W/A] Jill Thompson. I believe this was the first Scary Godmother comic book. The character’s previous appearances were in picture books. I bought this comic years ago, but never read it because it’s super long and has very detailed art. The main plot this issue is that Max and Ruby, the parents of Hannah’s vampire friend Orson, are having marital problems, and the various other characters help them reconcile. Scary Godmother is basically a perfect comic for young children, except for its dense amount of text. It’s cute, but not so cute as to be syrupy. It’s also intelligent enough for adult readers, and it’s full of funny inside jokes – for instance, “Ackerman Forest” on the first page.

WEIRD WESTERN TALES #39 (DC, 1977) – “Scalphunter,” [W] Michael Fleisher, [A] Dick Ayers. This is Scalphunter’s first appearance. According to the letter column, Joe Orlando and Sergio Aragonés created the character, but then assigned him to Fleisher and Ayers. In this story, a Kiowa warrrior, Ke-Woh-No-Tay, is captured by some soldiers who thought he was attacking white prospectors (it was the other way around). The warrior turns out to be a white man raised by Kiowas, and not only that, he’s the son of a wealthy landowner, Matt Savage. (According to a later retcon, this Matt Savage was the same as the earlier DC Western hero of that name.) In a flashback, we see how Brian Savage/Ke-Woh-No-Tay was captured by the Kiowas. Then he’s sent to prison, but he escapes and is exonerated, even though he kiled several people during his escape. Matt dies, and Brian inherits his property, but turns it down. Scalphunter is a moderately interesting series, but as a depiction of a white man raised by Indians, it’s not nearly as good as Firehair. As explained here, the name Scalphunter is offensive. Marvel used to have a character with the same name, but he’s been renamed Greycrow.

BATMAN #302 (DC, 1978) – “The Attack of the Wire-Head Killers,” [W] David V. Reed, [A] John Calnan. Batman battles a cult of people who have been implanted with platinum ankhs in their skulls. In the event that the leader of their cult dies, these “wire-heads” have to kill any person involved in his death. To prevent the ankhs from being triggered, Batman is forced to confess to a murder he didn’t commit. Batman defeats the wire-heads, and then in his Bruce Wayne identity, he apparently sleeps with some random woman. David V. Reed got his start in 1940s pulp magazines, and he seems to be remembered as a stodgy, old-fashioned writer. However, he was capable of writing some really weird and wacky stories.

INSEXTS #6 (Aftershock, 2016) – “Bordello,” [W] Marguerite Bennett, [A] Ariela Kristantina. Insexts has some interesting themes of queer sexuality and human-animal transformations. Ariela Kristantina’s artwork is also very good. However, I can’t follow Insexts’s plot, and in addition, its plot never seems to make much progress. I stopped reading this series after issue 4, but to my regret, I continued buying it until issue 13.

FEAR #21 (Marvel, 1974) – “Project: Second Genesis!”, [W] Steve Gerber, [A] Gil Kane. Morbius is contacted by some aliens called the Caretakers, who want him to defeat a villain named Daemond. The Caretakers claim to be responsible for the evolution of the human race, but this claim is hard to accept. The Caretakers have been subject to multiple retcons, and they’ve hardly ever appeared in any comic not written by Gerber. Then Morbius battles a cat-creature named the Balkatar. This character, renamed Grigar the Balkatar, later appeared in West Coast Avengers, where he had a cringeworthy sexual encounter with Tigra. This issue also includes a reprinted horror story with art by Bill Everett.

THOR #268 (Marvel, 1977) – “Death, Thy Name is Brother!”, [W] Len Wein, [A] Walt Simonson. Thor fights a dumb villain named Damocles, who dies at the end of the issue and has never been seen again. This is an unimpressive issue of Simonson’s first Thor run, which has been totally overshadowed by his second run. Tony DeZuniga’s inking is inappropriate to Simonson’s pencils, and the only thing in the comic that looks Simonson-esque is Damocles’s cannon.

ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #543 (DC, 1997) – “The Honeymoon’s Over,” [W] Karl Kesel, [A] Stuart Immonen. Several of Superman’s minor villains form a new Superman Revenge Squad. To my surprise, one of the villains is Misa, the rebellious girl from Project Cadmus. She didn’t seem villainous to me, only misguided. This is an average issue, but I have fond memories of the “triangle era” of Superman.

INVINCIBLE IRON MAN #28 (Marvel, 2010) – “Stark Resilient Part 4: Grand Mal Tokyo Moron Party,” [W] Matt Fraction, [A] Salvador Larroca. Iron Man and War Machine meet Detroit Steel in Japan, and Mrs. Arbogast screens some new job applicants. This issue has no fight scenes at all, but some good characterization. Mrs. Arbogast is one of Iron Man’s best supporting characters, and I also like the scene with the former auto worker who’s created an underground barter economy.

CARTOON DIALECTICS #1 (Uncivilized, 2020) – “Negative Intuitions,” [W/A] Tom Kaczynski. Topics covered in this comic include Baudrillard, office furniture, kung fu, and utopia. This comic is heavily influenced by critical theory: for instance, its price is listed as “accursed share $5.00”, and the back cover says “It is easier to imagine an end to the world than an end to Capitalism.” Nothing in this issue is quite as fascinating as the “flat ontology” discussion from issue 4, but this is still a very thought-provoking comic.

BARBIE FASHION #6 (Marvel, 1991) – “Ability” etc., [W] Lisa Trusiani, [A] James Brock. From Baudrilllard to Barbie. Perhaps not as big a step as it seems. In the first story, Skipper participates in a scavenger hunt, but is disappointed that she has a wheelchair-using girl as her partner. Many Barbie comics focused on Skipper rather than Barbie, because Skipper, unlike Barbie, was allowed to make mistakes. In the backup story, Skipper learns that being a model is harder work than it seems. There’s also a third story about an inept painter.

JLA #51 (DC, 2001) – “Man and Superman,” [W] Mark Waid, [A] Mike S. Miller. The Justice Leaguers are confronted by six random people who claim to be their own alter egos (Clark Kent, Eel O’Brien, etc.). Subsequently, random people on Earth find that their wishes are being granted, and one such person turns into a giant golden Greek god and attacks Washington DC. This issue is a bit confusing, but it has a really interesting premise. I don’t understand why Wonder Woman asks Aquaman “Did the League just defeat a man by operating on his brain?” Is this some kind of inside joke?

HILDA VOL. 3 (Flying Eye, 2012) – Hilda and the Bird Parade, [W/A] Luke Pearson. I’ve been aware of these books for a long time, but this is the first Hilda book I’ve actually read, except for one FCBD comic. In this volume, Hilda has moved from a rural town to a much larger city, and she’s disappointed that her mother won’t leave the apartment anyway and explore. Hilda sneaks out anyway and falls into the company of some juvenile delinquents. Then she gets lost and finds herself in the middle of the town’s annual bird parade. This comic is absolutely charming, with beautiful artwork and colors and realistic psychology. It’s also the only English-language comic I’ve ever read that makes successful use of the bande dessinée album format. That is to say, the Hilda books are slim volumes of 40 to 60 pages in length, they come out on an annual schedule, and they have highly elaborate artwork. This is the standard format in France and Belgium, but it’s never caught on in English-speaking countries, except for the specific case of Hilda. I also have one other Hilda volume, and I look forward to reading it.

THE YOUNG INDIANA JONES CHRONICLES #3 (Dark Horse, 1992) – untitled (“The Search for the Oryx”), [W] Dan Barry [A] Gray Morrow. Ten-year-old Indiana Jones goes on a safari to British East Africa (i.e. Kenya) along with Theodore Roosevelt. In the company of a Maasai boy his age, he goes looking for the East African oryx, an animal whose existence is disputed. This comic mostly accepts the existence of colonialism without questioning it, but it does show awareness of the problematic nature of big-game hunting. Dan Barry was almost seventy years old when he wrote this comic, and it must have been one of his last works. This comic was adapted from a TV episode, and I know I saw that episode when it first aired, because I remember the title, but nothing about its plot was familiar to me.

KICK-ASS #1 (Image, 2018) – untitled, [W] Mark Millar, [A] John Romita Jr. A black female veteran returns from war and discovers that her husband has run off with another man, abandoning her and her children. She can’t find any kind of work to support her family, so she decides to dress up as a superhero and commit crimes. Besides my general distaste for Millar, my problem with this comic is that the premise feels implausible. If Patience’s husband abandoned his children, she should have sued him for child support. And I would assume that as a service member, Patience would have had access to some sort of resources for legal and career assistance. I don’t know what exactly happens if a military veteran’s civilian spouse abandons their children. Google is only showing me resources for the opposite scenario, where it’s the military veteran who abandons the children. But I assume that Patience should have had some help available to her. Or if she didn’t, the writer should have explained why not. I just get the impression that Millar doesn’t know or care how the American legal system works.

SCRIBBLENAUTS UNMASKED #5 (DC, 2014) – “The Genius and the General,” [W] Josh Elder, [A] Adam Archer. This comic has some cute art, but a pointless, overly complicated story. I felt obligated to buy this comic because I wrote about Scribblenauts in my dissertation. However, I now think that Scribblenauts was a valiant but unsuccessful experiment. And one problem with both the game and the comic is its lack of a plot or characters. Scribblenauts is a sandbox game, where the authored content is much less interesting than the player’s own experiments with the game’s system. Maxwell, the “protagonist” of the game, is a blank slate with no personality or character traits, and the comic fails to turn him into a character.

SHADE, THE CHANGING MAN #50 (Vertigo, 1994) – “A Season in Hell Part 6,” [W Peter Milligan, [A] Chris Bachalo et al. After some strange events that I don’t understand, Kathy is shot while visiting a supermarket. She gives birth prematurely, and she and the baby both die. This seems to be the result of intervention by the devil. This series, like Peter Milligan’s work in general, tends to be rather depressing, but this issue is one of his grimmest moments ever.

ORION #25 (DC, 2002) – “Children of the Pact!”, [W/A] Walt Simonson. Orion hangs out with Mr. Miracle in Metropolis’s Centennial Park, and they observe that the local frogs are strong enough to drive away rats. This is a funny reference to Simonson’s Frog Thor story. While Orion, Barda and Scott are having dinner, Scott is attacked and injured by Apokolips soldiers. Orion has to complete Scott’s annual ritual of planting flowers in Armagetto, to commemorate a past incident where Scott accidentally used the Anti-Life Equation and caused a massacre. Then Metron figures out that Scott knows the Anti-Life Equation, and tries to use this knowledge to blackmail Scott. Instead, Orion goes back in time and manipulates events so that Metron never learns that Scott knows the equation. Unfortunately this was the last issue of Orion. Simonson’s Orion was probably the best Fourth World comic by anyone other than Kirby, unless you count the Great Darkness Saga.

MAJOR BUMMER #5 (DC, 1997) – “No Matter or How I Started Worrying and Saved the World,” [W] John Arcudi, [A] Doug Mahnke. Major Bummer fights a giant Nazi dinosaur, and it’s defeated with the aid of a giant housecat. This issue is very funny, but I don’t remember anything specific about it.

THE SCUMBAG #10 (Image, 2021) – untitled, [W] Rick Remender, [A] Matías Bergara. This comic has some excellent art and coloring, but I didn’t understand its plot. And to the extent that I did understand its plot, it feels like just a bunch of old-man-yelling-at-cloud. Like, there’s one character who complains about “posting your f***ing tweets on Instagram because heaven forbid anyone be free of your f***ing two cents!” I’ve never had any interest in Rick Remender’s work, and I only bought this comic in order to see if I ought to give him another chance. I think the answer is no.

2000 AD #555 (Fleetway, 1988) – Bad Company: “The Bewilderness,” [W] Peter Mililgan, [A] Brett Ewins. This story has good art, but I’m not sure how it fits into continuity. Nemesis: “The Two Torquemadas,” [W] Pat Mills, [A] John Hicklenton. Again, not sure what the plot is here, but John Hicklenton is perhaps the most bizarre artist who ever worked for 2000 AD. Dredd: “Dredd in Oz Part 11,” [W] John Wagner & Alan Grant, [A] Will Simpson. While competing in Supersurf, Chopper is caught in a snowstorm and finds himself on a boat captained by a man-eating robot. ABC Warriors: “The Black Hole,” [W] Pat Mills, [A] Simon Bisley. I believe this was Bisley’s first published comic story. Even at the very start of his career, he was already a super-talented draftsman, with a style unique to him. This first chapter is mostly devoted to reintroducing the characters, who hadn’t appeared regularly in the prog since 1979.

EAST OF WEST #6 (Image, 2013) – “To Do Justly, and to Love Mercy,” [W] Jonathan Hickman, [A] Nick Dragotta. I bought the first couple issues of this series when they came out, but I quickly abandoned the series because it made no sense. Issue 6 still makes no sense, though it has some effective art. Unlike most creators, Hickman seems to do better with work-for-hire comics than with his own intellectual properties.

SAUCER COUNTRY #4 (Vertigo, 2012) – “Run Part 4,” [W] Paul Cornell, [A] Ryan Kelly. The governor’s team interviews some people who claim to have been abducted by aliens, and then she asks to be hypnotized so she can understand her own alien experiences. This is a fairly forgettable issue.

My next Heroes trip was on September 30. This was perhaps my most eagerly anticipated comic store visit of the year, since there were new issues of Saga, Miracleman, Nightwing and Titans. After getting comics, I had a very disappointing lunch at Dish, a classic Charlotte restaurant that seems to have gotten much worse under new ownership.

SAGA #66 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Brian K. Vaughan, [A] Fiona Staples. In a flashback, we see Gale’s first encounter with Alanna. He made a pass at her, was rejected, and called her a “f***ing c***”. In the present, Gail tries to assassinate Ianthe and is captured by her current captors, Upsher and Ghus. Instead of killing Gale, as he richly deserves, the two decide to rehabilitate him. Hazel doesn’t appear in this issue. And now the series is on a hiatus which will hopefully be shorter than the last one.

NIGHTWING #106 (DC, 2023) – “The Crew of the Crossed Part 1,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Stephen Byrne. Finally this series is back, after a very unfortunate two-month interruption. The most annoying thing about Knight Terrors was that it deprived me of Tom Taylor for two months. In a flashback, the amnesiac Ric Grayson deposits a package with the Quartermaster. In the present, Dick finally has time to collect that package. But when he visits the Hold, he finds that Heartless has already beaten him there, the Quartermaster has been murdered, and the entire ship is missing. In searching for his killers, Dick encounters a pirate named Captain Blūd, who is also Ric Grayson’s girlfriend Bea. Gar Logan makes a cameo appearance in this story. There’s also a backup story by Michael W. Conrad and Serg Acuña, starring Dick, Steph and Cass.

MIRACLEMAN: THE SILVER AGE #6 (Marvel, 2023) – “Who Is… Dickie Dauntless?”, [W] Neil Gaiman, [A] Mark Buckingham. Dickie finally recovers his memories, which are depicted in a flashback sequence. After being orphaned in 1949, Dickie was sent to a brutal orphanage where the boys were subjected to rape by rich men. The scene where Dickie is raped for the first time is a beautiful use of the comics medium. What happens in this panel is unrepresentable, so instead Dickie substitutes his last happy memory, of when his mother took him to see Ruddigore. Then Dickie becomes Gargunza’s test subject and was subjected to years of adventures that only happened in his dreams. Having confronted his past, Dickie is finally ready to return to Miracleman. So far this is the best issue of the revived Miracleman. It’s a powerful story that excavates the awful history of postwar England.

TITANS #3 (DC, 2023) – “Out of the Shadows Part 3,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Nicola Scott. It’s been three months since part 2, and that’s another example of why Knight Terrors was an awful idea. The Titans invade the Church of Blood, and Wally comes along, even though he’s going to die in 48 hours. The Titans rescue Brother Eternity and Aqualad from the evil cultists, but Aqualad insists on staying in the church. Then in an epilogue, we discover that Brother Eternity was the leader of the evil cultists, rather than their victim, and that Aqualad is still under his mind control. This has been a very exciting series so far. It may be a bit light on characterization, but it feels like a modernized interpretation of the classic Titans. One of Tom Taylor’s rare skills is that his action sequences feel integral to the story, while in other superhero comics, the action scenes are often just filler material.

SOMETHING IS KILLING THE CHILDREN #33 (Boom!, 2023) – “Showdown at the Easy Creek Corral Part 3,” [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Werther Dell’Edera. Cutter sneaks into the farm, where Erica and the other protagonists are hiding out, and tries to turn Erica’s octopus doll against her. Back in town, the sheriff starts doing his own investigation of Cutter. This whole storyline has maintained an extremely high level of tension.

MS. MARVEL: THE NEW MUTANT #2 (Marvel, 2023) – “Hiding in Plain Sight,” [W] Iman Vellani & Sabir Pirzada, [A] Carlos Gomez & Adam Gorham. Kamala witnesses an anti-mutant riot, she meets Tony Stark and Emma Frost, and then Bruno comes up with a way to monitor her sleep, in order to determine the cause of her nightmares. This is a fun series, and the writers clearly understand Kamala’s character in a way that Jody Houser, for example, did not. I’m just sorry this is only a miniseries. I hope Marvel has plans for Kamala after this miniseries ends.

USAGI YOJIMBO: ICE AND SNOW #1 (Dark Horse, 2023) – “Ice and Snow Part 1,” [W/A] Stan Sakai. This is LGY #270. The legacy numbering includes the Senso miniseries and the four Color Specials, but not Space Usagi or the TMNT crossovers. This issue, Usagi and Kenichi are traveling in snowy mountains when they meet a strange woman. As the reader can easily tell, the woman is Yuki-Onna, the Japanese snow demon. Meanwhile, Jei and Keiko are traveling through the same mountains. They encounter some bandits, and instead of killing them all, as is his habit, Jei kills their leader and sets himself up as their new leader.

MONEY SHOT COMES AGAIN #4 (Vault, 2023) – untitled, [W] Tim Seeley, [A] Gisèle Lagace. As part of his conspiracy with the jellyfish, Brooks Frowd has trapped the Money Shot team in memories of their past experiences. At the end of the issue, they all find themselves in Cherry Poptart’s world. This issue was okay, but it didn’t particularly stand out. After reading this series, I’m kind of curious about the original Cherry Poptart comics, but I don’t know if they’re any good.

SCRAPPER #3 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Cliff Blezinski & Alex de Campi, [A] Ryan Kelly. The raccoon, Daisy, shows Scrapper how to use his superpowered collar. Scrapper, Daisy, and the raccoons and pigeons invade SMITE’s drug lab, but some SMITE troops intervene and subject the animals to mind control. Scrapper’s collar is removed, and he’s forced to jump out a window to his apparent death. But he survives by landing in a dumpster, and he recovers to see that he’s surrounded by blinking eyes. The cats have finally arrived. Scrapper is an extremely fun series. It does what talking-animal stories ought to do: it depicts animals who think and behave like animals, not like humans with fur or feathers.

KAYA #11 (Image, 2023) – “In the Poison Lands Chapter 5,” [W/A] Wes Craig. My copy of this issue has an excellent variant cover by Jesse Lonergan. The robots and monsters’ argument  erupts into open violence, while Jin struggles to wake up. Jin somehow turns himself into a snake, allowing Kaya and Seth to rescue him and escape the monsters’ captivity. Jin and Kaya head past “the Wall” to the next stage of their adventure, while Seth has to return to his tribe. This is a truly thrilling series, and I can’t wait for the next story arc.

MARVEL UNLEASHED #2 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kyle Starks, [A] Jesús Hervas. Chewie uses her Flerken powers to defeat Kraven singlehandedly. D-Dog uses the “midnight bark” to summon Dr. Strange’s ghost dog, who in turn summons Throg, the Frog of Thunder. Blackheart transports the animals to the tenth circle of hell. This is a very fun comic, and it’s all the funnier because it pretends to take itself seriously. This series is much better written than any of the previous Pet Avengers miniseries.

FISHFLIES #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Jeff Lemire. Franny hangs out with the giant fly dude. The boy who was shot – Paul, I think – meets the short-haired adult man, who seems to have a gunshot wound in the exact same place. I’m frankly mystified as to what’s happening here. It seems clear now that Franny is not the same person as any of the other characters, but what’s the connection between the fly, the man, and the boy? This comic has a real sense of local specificity; it explicitly takes place in Essex County, Ontario. The first time I ever visited Canada was when some relatives took me on a day trip from Detroit to Windsor. I didn’t realize at the time that Windsor is south of Detroit, not north. This is because the US-Canada border follows the Great Lakes, and most of southern Ontario is a peninsula located between Lakes Huron, Erie and Ontario.

IN HELL WE FIGHT! #4 (Image, 2023) – “Trouble in Paradise,” [W] John Layman, [A] Jok. The protagonists are attacked by a horde of demons, but manage to escape. Then they’re contacted by Midori’s demon dad, who wants both Midori and the angel. This issue is less dramatic than #3, but In Hell We Fight is probably John Layman’s most fun comic since Chew.

RARE FLAVOURS #1 (Boom!, 2023) – “Masala Chai,” [W] Ram V, [A] Filipe Andrade. We are introduced to Rubin Baksh, a grossly fat man who travels around India looking for the best food and drink. Meeting a filmmaker named Mo, Rubin tells Mo the story of a tea vendor who made incredible tea, but fell victim to poor economic times. Against his better judgment, Mo agrees to accompany Rubin. Meanwhile, two men named Dilkush and Dilshan are searching for Rubin, and they discover that he killed and ate the tea vendor from his story. It’s also implied that Rubin is Bakasura, a character from the Mahabharata. I’ve never heard of Bakasura before, but Wikipedia says that he was a gluttonous cannibalistic demon who was killed by Bhima, the second of the Pandavas. Like many of Ram V’s works, Rare Flavours expects non-Indian readers to be willing to do a bit of extra research. Rare Flavours is a sort of follow-up to The Many Lives of Laila Starr. Like that series, it’s a fascinating exploration of Indian culture. I’m especially interested in Rare Flavours because I love Indian food – I just had masala chai with lunch today.

TALES OF THE TITANS #3 (DC, 2023) – Donna Troy: “The Truth Cuts Deep,” [W] Steve Orlando, [A] Kath Lobo w/ Bob Quinn. Donna Troy invades the nation of Markovia and overthrows its dictator, Baron Bedlam. At the end of the issue she gets a letter from a man claiming to be her father. The last panel of this issue is an obvious reference to “Who Is Donna Troy,” which is still probably my favorite single comic book. Donna Troy has replaced Hawkman as the one DC character with the most complicated continuity. She was initially the same character as Wonder Woman, and Bob Haney seems to have turned her into a separate character by accident. After Crisis, her origin could no longer be reconciled with Wonder Woman’s, and various writers, most notably John Byrne, tried to solve this problem by making it even worse. This comic basically ignores all the continuity problems and returns to the classic version of Donna. On its own merits, it’s a pretty average story. I’m not sure I believe in the idea of Donna as an interventionist who overthrows governments singlehandedly.

NOCTERRA #16 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Scott Snyder, [A] Tony Daniel. Val has read Emory’s letter from his mother, and she tells him that his mother didn’t abandon him, she was just prevented from returning to him by the cataclysm. This revelation allows Emory to fight off Blacktop Bill’s influence, and as a result, the Glares defeat Nox, and sunlight is restored. And thus ends one of Scott Snyder’s better ongoing series.

W0RLDTR33 #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Fernando Blanco. More buildup to the apocalypse that begins in the following issue. Fernando Blanco’s art in this issue is beautiful, especially his depiction of the effects of the digital virus. His art here reminds me of some of Andrea Sorrentino’s weirder pages.

NEWBURN #11 (Image, 2023) – “A New World,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Jacob Phillips. A Japanese yakuza boss is being flown into America for a liver transplant, presumably in exchange for giving information to the FBI. Newburn has to find out what information he’s told the authorities. Newburn and Emily conspire to kidnap the yakuza boss from the hospital and interrogate him. Meanwhile, people begin to figure out that Shigeyuki Shiroo’s confession to Mario Albano’s murder was false, and Newburn’s position continues to erode. This comic is kind of depressing to read because all the characters hate and distrust each other, and they’re only kept from killing each other out of fear.

BONE ORCHARD: TENEMENT #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Andrea Sorrentino. The remaining survivors continue to descend the stairs, until they finally reach what appears to be Felix’s apartment – Felix being the old man who died at the beginning of the series. This issue includes some beautiful page layouts, though it’s more conventional than some of Sorrentino’s comics.

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES #143 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Sophie Campbell, [A] Gavin Smith. The Turtles and their allies, except Raphael, go looking for Jasper Barlow and Leatherhead. One of Barlow’s minions causes the Turtles to suffer visions of their worst fears, until Venus uses magic to end the visions. It’s interesting to see what each of the Turtles is most afraid of. Then the big fight between the Turtles and Barlow begins. This is another in a string of good issues.

THE FLASH #1 (DC, 2023) – “Strange Attractor,” [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Mike Deodato Jr. I hated Si Spurrier’s story in Flash #800, and I wasn’t planning to read his Flash run. But people were saying good things about his first full issue, so I decided to buy it, if only for hate-reading purposes. In this issue, the Flash encounters some Lovecraftian entities called the Stillness or the Uncoiled – I’m not sure if those are the same thing or not. Spurrier is a wildly different writer from Jeremy Adams, and he seems mostly interested in the bizarre potential of the Speed Force, something which always seemed like a bunch of lampshading to me. In other words, the Flash’s powers are unexplainable, so DC decided to “hang a lampshade on” the inexplicable nature of his powers, by inventing the concept of the Speed Force. But Spurrier wants us to wonder what the Speed Force really is. Spurrier maintains Adams’s focus on the Flash’s family, though so far he’s not focusing on them as much as Adams did. He seems to understand Linda, Jai and Irey’s personalities, although he writes Wally and Linda as less of a perfect couple than in Adams’s run. Overall this was a reasonably good issue, and I’m going to continue reading this series. However, I don’t like Mike Deodato Jr’s habit of including little partial panels at the edges of each page (see here for what I’m talking about). This technique is distracting, and I don’t see the point of it.

CON & ON #3 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Paul Cornell, [A] Marika Cresta. We are now in 2008. The comics industry is changing, but is still mired in many of its old problems. Eddie’s formerly meteoric career has gone stagnant. Deja is offered a high-profile assignment, but turns it down when she realizes that it’s being offered in exchange for sexual favors. The executive who makes this tainted offer may be based on Eddie Berganza or Scott Allie. We’re told that he was fired financial misconduct twelve years later, i.e. in 2020, the height of the #MeToo moment in comics. There are also a bunch of other side stories. It’s hard to remember all the characters from one issue to another, and this comic might be easier to read in collected form, since it will be easier to reconstruct each character’s story arc. Having been reading comics for almost exactly the same period covered in this series, I find Con & On to be a fascinating trip down memory lane.

KAPTARA: UNIVERSAL TRUTHS #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Kagan McLeod. The heroes meet Keith’s crewmate Casey, an awful homophobic jerk. After a journey across the desert, they encounter some of the villains who were introduced at the end of the previous series. Kaptara is a very fun piece of (mostly) silliness.

SUPERMAN #6 (DC, 2023) – “The Chained Part One,” [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Gleb Melnikov. This comic’s splash page is a beautiful depiction of Superman flying toward the reader. The main plot of this issue is that Superman discovers that Luthor has been holding a prisoner in chains underground, and Superman frees the prisoner, which may not have been a good idea.

HEXAGON BRIDGE #1 (Image, 2023) – “Elena” etc. [W/A] Richard Blake. A couple named Jacob and Elena are lost in an alternate dimension. Their daughter, Adley, has to free them, with the aid of an artificial intelligence. This comic has beautiful art, but a rather flimsy plot. More about Hexagon Bridge in my review of issue 2 below.

IMMORTAL THOR #2 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Wisdom of the Fool,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Martín Cóccolo. Thor battles Toranos and has to use the All-Power to defeat him, so now he’s going to fall into the All-Sleep. In order to continue the fight against Toranos, Thor has to admit that he trusts Loki, and Loki turns into their female form and (as explained next issue) sends Thor to an extradimensional prison. This issue didn’t make much of an impression on me at all. It felt too heavy and ponderous. Ewing is clearly influenced by Simonson’s Thor – more on that in my review of issue 3. But while Simonson’s stories were epic and cosmic, he also made sure to include lots of comic relief, and that was part of the secret to his success. Even at the height of the climactic battle against Surtur in #353, he included a funny line – Loki’s battle cry “For myself!”

STAR TREK: DAY OF BLOOD – SHAX’S BEST DAY #1 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Ryan North, [A] Derek Charm. I bought this because it was by the Squirrel Girl creative team. However, I did not enjoy it much. First, it’s based on Lower Decks, which I’m not familiar with, so I don’t know who any of the characters are. Second, this is the most bloody, violent Star Trek comic I’ve ever read, and I found it rather distasteful. At least it has North’s trademark bottom-of-page captions.

LONESOME HUNTERS: THE WOLF CHILD #3 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Tyler Crook. Lupe tries to help the wolf mother, but the hunters find her, and violence erupts. The wolf is mortally wounded, and Lupe comes up with the clever idea of using Howard’s sword to heal her. This has been a fun miniseries, though it should really be an ongoing series. Eight issues are not enough to finish the story Crook wants to tell.

BATMAN/SUPERMAN: WORLD’S FINEST #19 (DC, 2023) – “Phantom Riddles Part 2,” [W] Mark Waid, [A] Travis Moore. Superman and Batman battle Jax-Ur and eventually manage to defeat him, and after that, the Riddler is no problem. While in the Phantom Zone, Alfred encounters Aethyr the Messiah. Aethyr was introduced in Steve Gerber’s Phantom Zone miniseries, and then reappeared in DC Comics Presents #97, but I don’t remember anything about this character.

WILD’S END #4 (Boom!, 2023) – “Deep Water,” [W] Dan Abnett, [A] I.N.J. Culbard. The heroes go to the quarry, but are driven off by the aliens before they can recover any explosives. Then Edmund remembers that there’s an old blind recluse named Thom who’s been collecting unexploded mines from the war (not sure which war). When the characters go to see Thom, he holds them at gunpoint. This was an okay issue. Perhaps the best thing about this series is its depiction of early 20th-century rural England.

THE ODDLY PEDESTRIAN LIFE OF CHRISTOPHER CHAOS #4 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Tate Brombal, [A] Isaac Goodhart. There are some interesting things in this issue, particularly the scene with the transgender Afro-Brazilian kid, but overall this series suffers from a severe lack of theme or direction. Four issues in, I’m still not quite sure what it’s about, and the only thing I like about it is the art. I’ve had enough of this comic, and I’ve dropped it from my pull list.

SPIDER-MAN INDIA #4 (Marvel, 2023) – “Seva Part 4,” [W] Nikesh Shukla, [A] Tadam Gyadu. Pavitr fights the Lizard and Giri Sahib, who’s obviously Kraven but also resembles the Kingpin. The local people finally start to realize that Giri Sahib has been lying to them about Spider-Man. I like this series a lot; it really does feel like a translation of Spider-Man into an Indian cultural context. One Indian reference in this issue that I had to look up was the word bevakoof, which apparently means idiot.

EXORCISTS NEVER DIE #6 (Mad Cave, 2023) – untitled, [W] Steve Orlando, [A] Sebastian Piriz. The male exorcist is killed fighting the latest sin, Pride. The female exorcist is forced to complete the mission alone. This was a very formulaic and boring miniseries, and I don’t even want to read issue 7, though I will buy it if it’s in my pull box.

ALIX VOL. 7 (Casterman, 1967) – “Le Dernier Spartiate,” [W/A] Jacques Martin. Alix is one of the greatest works of Franco-Belgian comics, and in particular, it’s one of the masterpieces of the Clear Line tradition associated with Hergé and Tintin magazine. However, hardly any of it has ever been translated into English. Alix is a historical adventure series set in the late Roman Republic, starring a young Gallic boy who was sold into slavery and then adopted by a Roman. Alix is accompanied by an Egyptian boy named Enak, and the two almost seem to be more than friends. In this album, Alix is separated from Enak in a shipwreck, and eventually finds that Enak has been taken to a hidden city of Spartans who are planning to reconquer Greece from Rome. The first sight of the city, on page 16, is a stunning moment. Alix sneaks into the city and is captured, but eventually becomes the queen’s confidant and the tutor to her orphaned son. However, when Roman legionaries discover the city’s assistance and mount an assault, the queen is forced to sacrifice her life, and her son becomes the “last Spartiate” of the title. This album is a genuine masterwork, a thrilling adventure story. Alix is notable for his Roman virtue and his unflinching courage. My favorite moment in the book is when Alix is arrested, and the city general slaps him across the face. Alix pauses for a moment, then decks the general and knocks him flat on his back! Jacques Martin’s artwork and coloring are gorgeous, and he vividly depicts the visual environment of ancient Greece. I would really like to read more Alix. There’s also a much more recent sequel series, Alix Senator, by different creators.

JACK KIRBY’S STARR WARRIORS: THE ADVENTURES OF ADAM STARR AND THE SOLAR LEGION (Image, 2023) – three untitled stories, [W/A] Jack Kirby w/ Tom Scioli. This is a very odd comic. It consists of reprints of three early Kirby stories from Crash Comics #1-3. However, it’s not a straight-up reprint, because Scioli rearranges the panels, turning each page of the original stories into several pages. On the other hand, this isn’t an original work by Scioli either. The original Adam Starr stories are in the public domain and are availalble online, and by comparing them to the Image comic, we can see that Scioli didn’t add very much to them. So if this is neither a new comic nor a reprint, I’m not sure what it is supposed to be. Also, the Adam Starr stories are all fairly crude and immature works, though maybe that’s why they appealed to Scioli.

FEARLESS DAWN: THE BOMB #2 (Asylum, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Steve Mannion. In a story set during World War II, Fearless Dawn fights some Nazi zombie robots. Also she teams up with Bettie Page, who is her obvious inspiration. These Fearless Dawn stories seem to lack any consistent continuity or timeframe, but I don’t mind; I’m not reading them for their plots. There’s also a backup story about “Brownhole Jones,” a Popeye-esque character.

THE SCHLUB #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Ryan Stegman & Kenny Porter, [A] Tyrell Cannon. Cirrus and Roger try to get adjusted to each other’s bodies, and then they finally meet the Vigilant, this world’s version of the Avengers or Justice League. The humor in this series is rather unsubtle and amateurish, but it’s an entertaining series despite that.

SIRENS OF THE CITY #3 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joanne Starer, [A] Khary Randolph. Layla kills Marisol’s mother while trying to escape from her, and Marisol becomes the new leader of the Sirens. Layla is kidnapped by incubi, but is rescued by a character who will soon be identified as Lilith, the mother of demons. Rome and Layla are finally reunited. Khary Randolph’s art style in this series reminds me of that of Sophie Campbell.

GODZILLA: WAR FOR HUMANITY #2 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Andrew MacLean, [A] Jake Smith. The MOGUERA team fight Zoospora. MOGUERA is the name of a robot creature that appears in some Godzilla movies. I didn’t know that because I’m not a Godzilla fan. Also, Godzilla and Minilla are drawn into the fight against Zoospora, and we meet Dr. Honda’s mother and daughter. Jake Smith’s artwork and coloring are sufficient to justify buying this series.

TRAVELING TO MARS #8 (Ablaze, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell, [A] Roberto Dakar Meli. Roy finally lands on Mars and claims it in the name of the meat company. Then he meets Perseverance, the robot that reported the existence of natural gas on Mars. And Perseverance tells Roy that the gas is a hoax! Quite a plot twist. Mark Russell said on Facebook that he thinks Traveling to Mars may be his best work, and I think he may be right. It’s annoying that each issue includes the same ten-page preview of Animal Castle vol. 2 #1, a comic I’ve already bought.

GRIM #13 (Boom!, 2023) – “Interlude,” [W] Stephanie Phillips, [A] Flaviano. A flashback to the nineteenth-century origins of Marcel and his lover Henri. This is just an average issue, and I probably ought to give up on this series. It’s remained on my pull list because it has good art and it’s not positively bad, but it’s also not particularly good.

SAINTED LOVE #1 (Vault, 2023) – untitled, [W] Steve Orlando, [A] Giopota. In 1907, John, a boxer, and Mac, a scientist, are lovers. Mac builds a time machine, and he and John both have to use it in order to escape a homophobic detective. John and Mac both emerge in 1954, only to find themselves facing the same sort of persecution again. Steve Orlando’s work has been rather hit or miss. Exorcists Never Die was one of the misses, but I think Sainted Love could be one of the hits. It tells an intelligent story about the history of the gay liberation struggle, and it includes some tasteful and well-drawn male-on-male sex scenes.

STRANGE ACADEMY: MOON KNIGHT #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “Solve for X Part 2,” [W] Carlos Hernandez, [A] Julian Shaw. The Strange Academy kids team up with Moon Knight against the fairy mathematician dude. I was willing to buy this because it’s Strange Academy, but it’s nowhere near as fun as the regular Strange Academy series, and Carlos Hernandez is a less skilled writer than Skottie Young.

SPIRIT WORLD #5 (DC, 2023) – “Undue Influence,” [W] Alyssa Wong, [A] Haining. The artwork in this issue is quite good, especially in the first few pages, where Haining creates some convincing renderings of Chinese settings and creatures. However, Spirit World’s plot is still completely impossible to follow.

DARK SPACES: THE HOLLYWOOD SPECIAL #2 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jeremy Lambert, [A] Claire Roe. Vivian Drake has an encounter with the “Mish Mash,” the creature in the mine. This issue has some beautiful draftsmanship and page layouts, though I don’t think this issue did much to advance the plot.

THE EXPANSE: DRAGON TOOTH #5 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Andy Diggle, [A] Fernando Pisa. Even though I’ve read the first three Expanse novels, I still can’t understand this comic. It assumes a detailed knowledge of the Expanse universe, and it does nothing to refresh the viewer’s memory of the premise or the characters. I can barely even remember who Jim Holden is, let alone any of the stuff he’s done. Therefore, this comic is making no real impact on me, and I’ve decided to give up on it after this issue.

THE FLASH #105 facsimile (DC, 1959) – “Conqueror from 8 Million BC!”, [W] John Broome, [A] Carmine Infantino. This was in fact the first issue of the Silver Age Flash’s solo series. It continued the numbering of Flash Comics, which had been cancelled ten years earlier. It includes two stories. In the first one, Flash fights an alien named Katmos who never appeared again. The second story is far more interesting, in that it introduces Mirror Master, one of the Flash’s best villains. I like these facsimile editions because they allow me to own comics that I would never be able to afford, although the stories in these comics are sometimes tedious to read.

BLACK’S MYTH: THE KEY TO HIS HEART #4 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Eric Palicki, [A] Wendell Cavalcanti. Strummer continues to investigate, and we discover that her intern, Claire, is some kind of demon. I like the characters in Black’s Myth, particulary Strummer, but the current miniseries’s plot is difficult to understand.

DETECTIVE COMICS #58 facsimile (DC, 1941/2023) – “One of the Most Perfect Frame-Ups of All Time,” [W] Bill Finger, [A] Bob Kane. This story is the first appearance of the Penguin. This character barely seems to have changed since his debut. All his essential elements – the costume, the trick umbrellas, the stuck-up personality – were present right from the start. This issue also includes a Crimson Avenger backup story, and a number of other backup stories whose protagonists are non-superhero detectives.

UNCANNY SPIDER-MAN #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “Park Life,” [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Lee Garbett. I kind of want to file this under Nightcrawler rather than Spider-Man. After the Hellfire Gala, Nightcrawler has managed to avoid being banished from Earth, and now he’s disguising himself as Spider-Man. This issue he meets the actual Spider-Man. Spurrier’s handling of Kurt Wagner’s personality has been problematic at times, but in this issue it feels like he finally understands who Kurt is. However, I did not like Spurrier’s version of the Vulture. Spurrier presents this character as a technological genius who’s working with Orchis to capture mutants. I don’t think this is accurate. Adrian Toomes may have invented his own wings, but he’s not some kind of super-genius; he’s a petty old curmudgeon who only cares about money and about trying to feel young again.

TERRORWAR #6 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Dave Acosta. Muhammad’s allies free him from the Terror, the other team of terror-fighters are all killed, and then the terrors organize themselves into the shape of a giant face. This series has been disappointing. It doesn’t have much of a point or message, and its only characters of any note are Muhammad and the transgender doctor, and neither of them is being given enough character development. (As for Muhammad’s teammates, I can’t remember anything about any of them.)

RUMPUS ROOM #1 (AWA, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell, [A] Ramon Rosanas. A woman named Erica Hernandez arrives at the home of a billionaire, Bob Schrunk. Erika is looking for her sister Olivia, who used to work for Schrunk until she disappeared without a trace. Schrunk poisons Erika and imprisons her in his “rumpus room” along with other people who have displeased him. Evil tech billionaires are a common theme in Mark Russell’s work, particularly in Billionaire Island. And no wonder, because actual billionaires are some of the worst supervillains in the real world. Rumpus Room is Russell’s most direct assault on the scourge of entitled super-rich people. Bob Schrunk is a scarily plausible villain: he thinks that because he’s rich, he can get away with kidnapping and murdering anyone who inconveniences him slightly. And it’s not clear that he’s wrong.

THE FORGED #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Greg Rucka & Eric Trautmann, [A] Mike Henderson. The Forged return to the imperial throneworld and meet the Empress, a flighty, irresponsible child in an adult body. Then the team go on shore leave. Overall this is a well-done series, but I wish it didn’t include multiple pages of worldbuilding text at the end of each issue. When I finish a comic, I want to put it away and go on to the next comic on my stack. I don’t want to have to slog through a series of text paegs that are only of peripheral relevance to the story.

DYLAN DOG #67 (Bonelli, 1995) – “L’uomo che visse due volte,” [W] Tiziano Sclavi, [A] Andrea Venturi. A man named Matthew Pascal reappears, without his memory, after having gone missing for seven years. Meanwhile, a dead criminal named Adrian Mehis, who looks similar to Pascal, returns to life and starts killing people. This comic’s plot, as well as the name Matthew Pascal, are references to Luigi Pirandello’s novel The Late Mattia Pascal. Unlike in the previous two Dylan Dogs that I’ve read, this issue’s plot does not have a rational explanation. In order to save Dylan from Mehis, Pascal shoots himself, and this inexplicably kills Mehis too. However, this comic, like the other two, includes a sexual encounter between Dylan and an attractive female client. A subplot in this issue is that Mehis shoots Inspector Bloch, Dylan’s father figure, and Groucho has to save Bloch’s life by telling him bad jokes.

EERIE #139 (Warren, 1983) – “Voyage of the Space Beagle,” [W] Rich Margopoulos, [A] Luis Bermejo. This issue consists mostly of one long story, which is adapted from A.E. Van Vogt’s novel The Voyage of the Space Beagle. In the comic, an alien named Ixtl sneaks aboard a human spaceship and starts murdering the crew members, as well as laying its own eggs inside their bodies. Eventually the human crew tricks the alien into leaving the ship. The plot of this comic is obviously similar to that of Ridley Scott’s Alien movie, and Eerie #139 emphasizes that similarity. Luis Bermejo’s version of Ixtl looks very similar to a xenomorph, especially because of its elongated skull. In the original novel, the resemblance is not quite as blatant. The novel is a fix up of four different short stories, two of which were about aliens invading a spaceship. One of the aliens killed the crew members by draining the phosphorus from their bodies, and the other one used the crew members as incubators for its eggs. Despite that, Alien was similar enough to Voyage of the Space Beagle that Van Vogt sued the film’s producers and won a $50,000 settlement. The only other story in Eerie #139 is “Infinity Force” by Bill DuBay and Rudy Nebres, a generic space adventure story. The format of “Infinity Force” is odd: it’s in color, and its pages are normal comic book size rather than magazine size. It’s essentially a separate comic book inserted into the middle of the main magazine. Unfortunately this was the last issue of Eerie. In the editor’s note, it says that Creepy #146 was going to include a translation of Trillo and Altuna’s The Last Recess, but there was no Creepy #146, and The Last Recess still hasn’t appeared in English.

MARVEL TEAM-UP #44 (Marvel, 1976) – “Death in the Year Before Yesterday!”, [W] Bill Mantlo, [A] Sal Buscema. In part three of a three-parter, Spider-Man, the Vision, the Scarlet Witch and Dr. Doom have traveled back in time to 17th-century Salem, where they’ve been imprisoned by a villain named the Dark Rider. Moondragon and Iron Man have to intervene to defeat the Dark Rider and his partner, Cotton Mather, a historical figure who was involved in the Salem witch trials. The superheroes defeat the villains, but are unable to prevent the accused witches from being hanged. This issue is pretty average, and I’m not sure Mantlo is correct in presenting Cotton Mather as the main protagonist behind the witch trials.

SHADOW SHOW #2 (IDW, 2014) – “The Man Who Forgot Ray Bradbury,” [W] Mort Castle after Neil Gaiman, [A] Maria Fröhlich. In an adaptation of a Neil Gaiman story, a man tries to recover his lost memories of Ray Bradbury’s works. I’m not sure this story was much good to begin with, and the adaptation doesn’t seem to add very much to the original. Also, I have never been particularly fond of Bradbury – I think his works are overly nostalgic – and so this story fell flat with me. I do like the final panel, which is just a silent panel depicting Bradbury’s face. The backup story is Eddie Campbell’s adaptation of a story by his wife Audrey Niffenegger, but this story has the lowest-effort artwork I’ve ever seen from Eddie Campbell. The pages contain much more prose than text, and the images look as if they wre drawn with Mac Paint or something. Overall this comic is a shoddy attempt to cash in on Bradbury’s memory.

CROSSED PLUS ONE HUNDRED #4 (Avatar, 2015) – “A Canticle for Leibowitz,” [W] Alan Moore, [A] Gabriel Andrade. Future visits Murfreesboro, where she strikes up a sexual relationship with a fellow archivist. A funny line is “Mustaqba talked archive with me. Three times, once in my hair.” But when Future gets back to Chattanooga, a conflict develops between the two towns. I have issues 5 and 6 of this series, but I haven’t read them yet.

THUNDERBOLTS #44 (Marvel, 2000) – “Keeping an Ion the Crowd! The Nefaria Protocols Continue,” [W] Fabian Nicieza, [A] Mark Bagley. The Avengers and Thunderbolts team up against Count Nefaria. There are cameo appearances by the Fantastic Four and by Doctor Malus, a minor villain from the ‘80s. This comic is overly complicated, and I’m not sure why I bought it, given that I’m not even all that fond of Kurt Busiek’s Thunderbolts, let alone Fabian Nicieza’s Thunderbolts.

THE LEGACY OF LUTHER STRODE #1 (Image, 2015) – untitled, [W] Justin Jordan, [A] Tradd Moore. There’s a flashback sequence that retells the biblical story of Samson, and then another flashback to five years ago, and then we resume the story of Luther Strode and Petra. As usual, this comic is ridiculously violent. I appreciate the craftsmanship of Luther Strode, but it’s not the kind of thing I like.

BATMAN ’66 #22 (DC, 2015) – “The Penguin Turns the Tables,” [W] Mike W. Barr, [A] Michael Avon Oeming. Batman and Robin fight the Penguin. This comic reads like a generic Batman story, rather than a clever parody of the ‘60s Batman TV show. I am generally not fond of Mike W. Barr’s writing.

SILVER SURFER #14 (Marvel, 1988) – “Silver Mirrors!”, [W] Steve Englehart, [A] Joe Staton. Two different Silver Surfers fight each other. Nova (Frankie) tries to guess which is the real one, and guesses wrong.  The fake Surfer reveals himself to be a Skrull named Bartak, who’s been trapped in the Silver Surfer’s form since Captain Marvel’s funeral. Then Ronan the Accuser appears out of nowhere and kills Bartak. This story is partly an attempt to fix an error in The Death of Captain Marvel: Mar-Vell’s death took place on Titan, and yet the Silver Surfer was present at his deathbed, even though the Surfer was unable to leave Earth at that time. Englehart explains this by revealing that the “Surfer” in The Death of Captain Marvel was an impostor.

MARVEL ROMANCE REDUX: RESTRAINING ORDERS ARE FOR OTHER GIRLS #1 (Marvel, 2006) – “Too Smart to Date!”, [W] Robert Loren Fleming, [A] Jack Kirby. This comic consists of old romance comics which are relettered with new dialogue, so as to turn them into absurd self-parodies. That’s not a new idea; John Lustig was already doing it at least as early as 2001, and he did a better job of it. In Marvel Romance Redux, the new dialogue is unfunny and full of non sequiturs, and also the art is reproduced badly. I wish Marvel had just reprinted the old romance comics themselves, with their original dialogue. Romance comics are appealing targets for parody because they often were quite bad, but they’re important historical sources, and they ought to be more easily accessible.

DC COMICS PRESENTS #40 (DC, 1981) – “The Day the Elements Went Wild!”, [W] Gerry Conway, [A] Irv Novick. Superman and Metamorpho team up to defeat Simon Stagg and Java’s latest plot. This is a rather formulaic Metamorpho story, with Rex, Stagg, Java and Sapphire all playing out their usual roles. But the Metamorpho formula is a good one, and this story is fairly enjoyable. The backup story, by Rozakis and Saviuk, is about the death of the original Air-Wave, and it serves as a prequel to the adventures of the second Air-Wave in Action Comics. I think Bob Rozakis was the only person who ever thought that Air-Wave II was an interesting character.

NEW TEEN TITANS #15 (DC, 1985) – “This Road to War!”, [W] Marv Wolfman, [A] Eduardo Barreto. Dick and Kory travel to Tamaran, where Kory learns that in order to prevent a civil war, she has to marry Prince Karras. Back on Earth, Raven is kidnapped by Brother Blood’s church. There’s also a backup story about the traumatic childhood of Kory’s father. It helps explain why he’s willing to sacrifice anything to prevent a war. Kory’s marriage to Karras was one of the lowest points of Marv’s Titans run. Dick and Kory are perhaps my favorite couple in all of comics, and the Karras storyline caused irreparable damage to their relationship.

INCREDIBLE HULK #108 (Marvel, 2007) – untitled (Warbound Part III), [W] Greg Pak, [A] Leonard Kirk. The first half of this issue consists of two parallel sequences, in which Rick Jones and Miek the Unhived each reflect on their relationship with the Hulk. Finally they decide to collaborate to help their mutual friend. This is a pretty good issue, but I don’t like World War Hulk as much as Planet Hulk.

ZAP COMIX #11 (Last Gasp, 1985) – [W/A] various. This was an eBay purchase. It begins with a long Coochy Cooty story by Robt. Williams. Unfortunately his draftsmanship and lettering are not his best. Next is Crumb’s biography of Charley Patton, the so-called father of the Delta Blues. It’s a poignant story with beautiful artwork and historically accurate settings, and it’s mostly free of Crumb’s usual misogyny and racism. While reading this story I listened to some of Patton’s music, and I didn’t much like it. Next is a Trashman story by Spain, then some shorter pieces by Williams, Crumb, Moscoso and S. Clay Wilson, and the last story is Spain’s biography of the World War II Soviet flying ace Lydia Litvyak. I’ve read this story somewhere else before, probably in the My True Story collection. As always with Zap, the worst part of the issue is the disgusting material by Wilson.

ORION #16 (DC, 2001) – “The Abysmal Plane!”, [W/A] Walt Simonson. Orion finds himself in the netherworld, where he meets his mother Tigra. Finally he meets the guardian of this place, an old god named Clockwerx, and Clockwerx tells Orion about the Ecruos, the anti-Source. There are also subplots about Mr. Miracle and Metron. This issue wasn’t quite as impressive as #25, but I like the splash pages where the Ecruos gradually gets bigger and bigger, absorbing the background surrounding it.

HARLEY AND IVY MEET BETTY AND VERONICA #3 (DC, 2018) – untitled, [W] Paul Dini & Marc Andreyko, [A] Laura Braga & Adriana Melo. Harley and Ivy wake up in Betty and Veronica’s bodies, and Betty and Veronica experience the opposite transformation. This is a very funny comic. As discussed earlier in this post, Harley really needs a straightman character to act as a foil for her wackiness, and that’s why she benefits from being paired with Ivy.

STAR WARS #27 (Marvel, 1979) – “Return of the Hunter,” [W] Archie Goodwin, [A] Carmine Infantino. Luke is pursued by a bounty hunter, Valance, who hates droids, because he’s embarrassed about being a cyborg himself. Eventually Valance tracks Luke down, but lets him go after seeing his friendship with C-3PO and R2-D2. I’ve never heard of Valance before, but he was reintroduced in the current run of Marvel comics, where he’s become a major character. His half-cyborg, half-human face makes him look similar to Two-Face or Tharok.

OUR ARMY AT WAR #207 (DC, 1969) – “A Sparrow’s Prayer,” [W] Robert Kanigher, [A] Joe Kubert. During the North African campaign, Easy Company acquires a new member named Sparrow who’s constantly praying. After Easy defeats some German tanks, it’s implied that Sparrow’s prayers might have saved them. This story has excellent artwork but a flimsy plot. In the first backup story, a soldier fights to capture a ridge, while remembering his civilian life when he worked building skyscrapers. In the second backup story, some starving soldiers send out a request for food, but their message is garbled, and they receive useless ammunition instead, ensuring their deaths. This is sort of an imitation of the EC style of war comics. But the logical problem is, if the soldiers’ superior officers didn’t know what the soldiers needed, why didn’t they send ammunition and food?

SILVER SURFER #8 (Marvel, 1988) – “Soul, Sweet Soul,” [W] Steve Englehart, [A Marshall Rogers. The Surfer has a series of bizarre visions, in one of which he’s married to Mantis. The issue begins with a funny exchange: “Honey, where’re my pipe and slippers?” “I don’t know, honey. Have you looked under the rat?” There’s also a subplot about two Skrull lovers, one of whom, Aptak, is a man shapeshifted into a female body. Aptak is probably the first example of a Skrull who changes gender. Much later, in Runaways, it was established that all Skrulls are inherently transgender. Silver Surfer #8 is a weird comic, but it’s interesting.

MERIDIAN #14 (CrossGen, 2001) – untitled, [W] Barbara Kesel, [A] Steve McNiven. I buy CrossGen back issues occasionally, but I’ve never made an active effort to collect them. I’m not sure what Meridian #14 is about, but it has nice art. However, it’s also an example of the consistent problem with CrossGen. Their comics had very complicated plots, and were also part of a single shared universe, so it was hard to understand any of them if you weren’t reading all of them. The only CrossGen comic I read when it came out was Solus, and I was reading it exclusively for George Pérez’s art, so I was annoyed that the story made no sense on its own. Still, CrossGen was an ambitious effort to expand the types of stories told in American comics, and it’s a pity that the company made poor financial decisions and went bankrupt.

2000 AD #561 (Fleetway, 1988) – Strontium Dog: “Stone Killers Part 2,” [W] Alan Grant, [A] Carlos Ezquerra. Johnny and Durham Red go looking for some silicon-based criminals. ABC Warriors: “The Black Hole,” [W] Pat Mills, [A] SMS (Simon Short). Hammerstein is possessed by a parasite, and the other robots have to kill him in order to purge the parasite. SMS was an incredible draftsman, and it’s a pity that his eight ABC Warriors chapters were the only comics  he ever did. Dredd: “Dredd in Oz Part 17,” [W] John Wagner & Alan Grant, [A] Will Simpson. Morton Judd and his Judda plan an assassination attempt on Dredd. Chopper is not in this chapter. Nemesis: “Purity’s Story,” [W] Pat Mills, [A] David Roach. Purity remembers her disturbing fake romance with Torquemada. Hap Hazzard: untitled, [W/A] Steve Dillon. A slice of life story about a young man trying to pick up girls. This comic reminds me a bit of Pirate Corp$/Hectic Planet.

ARCHIE’S MADHOUSE #34 (Archie, 1964) – various features, [W] untitled, [A] Joe Edwards & Bill Kresse. A bargain-basement version of Mad Magazine, consisting of a series of stupid, unfunny gag strips and short stories. One of the stories is about a cowboy who wears a yellow shirt, black vest and red bandanna, just like Lucky Luke, and I wonder if this is a coincidence or not.

BARBIE FASHION #48 (Marvel, 1994) – “Who’s Haunting Whooooo?”, [W] Barbara Slate, [A] Mario Capaldi. Barbie, Midge and Skipper go to a Halloween party at an allegedly haunted house. Skipper tries to trick the other girls into thinking that there’s a ghost in the house, but it turns out that there really is a ghost. This story has more narrative depth than a typical issue of Barbie Fashion, and it has some mildly funny jokes. Mario Capaldi was an Italian artist who had a long career working mostly for the British market. His only American publications were in Marvel’s young-readers titles.

SEVERED #6 (Image, 2012) – “Permanent Teeth,” [W] Scott Snyder & Scott Tuft, [A] Attila Futaki. In the early 20th century, an orphaned young boy goes looking for his missing father, while being pursued by a murderer. When he finally reaches his father’s house, he finds that it’s empty, and the murderer is waiting for him. This is an interesting issue, and it makes me want to collect the rest of Severed. Attila Futaki is a rare example of a comics artist from Hungary, and Scott Tuft seems to be a personal friend of Snyder. The Comics Beat recently published an article about Severed.

TARZAN #244 (DC, 1975) – “The Bloody Shah,” [W] Joe Kubert, [A] Joe Kubert w/ Redondo Studio. A king from an unspecified Asian country invades Tarzan’s jungle and kidnaps a baby ape. Tarzan gives him his comeuppance. This story has some good art. Kubert’s style of visual storytelling and Redondo’s style of draftsmanship were an effective combination. However, “The Bloody Shah” compounds Tarzan’s usual racism by adding a big dose of Orientalism.

ANYTHING GOES! #1 (Fantagraphics, 1986) – [E] Gary Groth. This series was published as a fundraiser for Fantagraphics’s defense against Michael Fleisher’s libel lawsuit. (BTW, Fantagraphics won the lawsuit but had to pay lots of money in attorneys’ fees.) The title “Anything Goes” indicates that Fantagraphics was willing to publish any submissions they received from sufficiently well-known cartoonists. Thus, Anything Goes #1 contains a wide variety of material, including a pinup by Alex Toth, a silly autobio story by Jan Strnad with art by Gilbert Hernandez, and an excerpt from Gil Kane’s Savage. The high point of the issue is a Flaming Carrot story by Bob Burden.

OUR FIGHTING FORCES #181 (DC, 1978) – Losers: “American Kamikaze,” [W] Robert Kanigher, [A] George Evans. The Losers fight some stereotypical Japanese soldiers. There’s also a backup story drawn by E.R. Cruz, about an unsuccessful kamikaze attack. The last story, “Code Name – Falcon!” by Kanigher and Maurice Whitman, was intended as the start of a new ongoing feature, but #181 was the final issue of Our Fighting Forces, and I assume that Code Name – Falcon never appeared again.

SON OF SATAN #7 (Marvel, 1976) – “Mirror of Judgment,” [W] John Warner, [A] Sonny Trinidad. A confusing, overwritten, overly complicated story in which Son of Satan battles a villain named Mindstar. Some of Sonny Trinidad’s pages in this issue are quite impressive, but otherwise this is an unimpressive issue. The letters page says that this is the last issue of Son of Satan, unless Marvel can “iron out the technical difficulties” of publishing an additional issue. A message like this one is rather unusual; normally a comic book is either cancelled or it’s not. Son of Satan #8 did in fact come out, and it’s probably the only good issue of the series, since it has art by Russ Heath.

DARK KNIGHTS OF STEEL #4 (DC, 2022) – “Child of the Gods,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Bengal. A flashback story explaining the origin of this continuity’s Superman and Batman. In this world, Jor-El and Lara survived the destruction of their kingdom, but gave their son to Thomas and Martha Wayne to raise. Thomas was impotent, and Jor-El had a brief affair with Martha, resulting in Bruce. Later, Martha was murdered by Lex Luthor, who’s also this world’s version of the Joker. I like how the Dark Knights of Steel continuity has significant differences from the mainstream DCU. It’s not just the same exact characters transplanted into a medieval setting.

MARTHA WASHINGTON DIES #1 (Dark Horse, 2007) – untitled, [W] Frank Miller, [A] Dave Gibbons. Well, that title is a spoiler if I’ve ever seen one. Except it’s not really a spoiler, because this story takes place on Martha’s 100th birthday, when she’s been leading revolutions for an  entire lifetime. She has also had a husband and three sons, all of whom she outlived. Martha’s husband appears to have been Wasserstein from Martha Washington Goes to War (see below), but I don’t see where this is stated. With her dying words, Martha inspires her descendants to lead yet another revolution against the latest corrupt government. This one-shot consists mostly of splash pages and is a very quick read.

HINTERKIND #5 (Vertigo, 2014) – “Unearthly Creatures,” [W] Ian Edginton, [A] Francesco Trifogli. I don’t remember much about this comic, except that it’s about human-animal hybrids. Ian Edginton is an excellent writer of British comics, but he never seems to have caught on in America.

2000 AD #563 (Fleetway, 1988) – ABC Warriors: “Queen of Wands,” [W] Pat Mills, [A] Simon Bisley. We get a glimpse of the villains of this storyline, then the robots prepare for an ambush. This chapter has some more brilliant Bisley artwork. Strontium Dog: as above. Johnny and Durham arrive on the stone aliens’ planet. Dredd: as above. Morton Judd sends a nuclear bomb into the Grand Hall of Justice, but Dredd teleports the bomb back into Judd’s base. In a color two-page splash, Judd’s face is superimposed over a mushroom cloud, and he dies screaming “CURSE FARGO AND HIS SPAWN!” Nemesis: as above. Purity battles Torquemada’s creation, the Mimesis. Future Shocks: “One Man’s Meat,” [W] John Smith, [A] Massimo Belardinelli. A wealthy space tycoon is obsessed with eating alien meat. But when he eats one particular alien, its mind takes over his body.

BATMAN #45 (DC, 2015) – “Superheavy Part 5,” [W] Scott Snyder, [A] Greg Capullo. At this point, Batman is a robot operated by Jim Gordon, while Bruce Wayne is living a civilian life. In this issue the new Batman fights a plant-based villain named Mr. Bloom. I like the art and coloring in this issue, but the writing did not leave any impression on me.

Next Heroes trip:

TRANSFORMERS #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Daniel Warren Johnson. This is perhaps the most hyped comic of the year. It’s a perfect combination: a superstar artist with a classic nostalgic intellectual property. This first issue is narrated from the perspective of Spike Witwicky and his friend Carly, but Johnson succeeds in turning Spike into an interesting character rather than an annoying sidekick. The dominant tone of the issue is Spike’s amazement and incomprehension when he discovers a ship full of giant robots, then gets caught in their battle. The fight scenes in this issue are spectacular, and Johnson’s draftsmanship and coloring are beautiful. I don’t know if this is the best Transformers comic ever, or if it’s the Transformers’ version of the Dark Knight Returns (and if it was, I’m not sure that would be a good thing). But it’s certainly a strong debut issue.

THE CULL #3 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kelly Thompson, [A] Mattia De Iulis. The shapeshifting panda creature starts speaking intelligible English, then it gives all the kids superheroes except for Cleo, who it tries to kill. The kids are forced to flee back to their own world, but when they get there, they discover a giant alien plant growing in front of their town. This is another good issue, though I’m not sure if six issues will be enough to complete this storyline.

G.O.D.S. #1 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jonathan Hickman, [A] Valerio Schiti. This is another heavily hyped comic. it attracted some controversy for its high price point, which is supposedly justified by its extreme length. G.O.D.S. #1 is reasonably good; it seems like a serious and mature take on the Marvel Universe’s magical aspects. However, I’m not sure the high price is justified, and the issue’s length made it tedious instead of epic. I’m still going to keep reading this series, and I also ordered Hickman’s Ultimate Universe.

ABBOTT 1979 #1 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Sami Kivelä. In 1979, Detroit is in steep decline, and Elena Abbott’s collapse parallels that of her city. She’s become an underemployed alcoholic, and she keeps making harassing phone calls to her ex, who left her at the end of the previous series. Her drug-addicted brother is in an even worse state. And at the end of the issue she discovers that she’s even losing her light-generating powers. It’s depressing to see the depths to which she’s sunk. I can only hope that her character arc has reached its nadir and is now on an upward trajectory.

GROO IN THE WILD #3 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Sergio Aragonés, [W] Mark Evanier. Groo meets some indigenous people who have been driven from their village by hunger. They head to the nearby river to look for fish, but there are no fish because King Putrio has dammed the river, so Groo destroys the dam. After all of Groo’s interference, King Putrio’s wealthier subjects are getting sick of him, but Putrio tells them that he’s going to bail himself out by catching all the fish he can. And he’s hired the perfect captain to command his fishing fleet: Captain Ahax! When I read this issue, I somehow thought I hadn’t gotten issue 2, and I emailed Heroes to ask if they still had a copy of it. And I began the email “Dear Groo” instead of “Dear Heroes.” So I committed two different Grooisms at once.

FANTASTIC FOUR #12 (Marvel, 2023) – “Saur Winners,” [W] Ryan North, [A] Iban Coello. The FF go through a dimensional portal and find themselves on an alternate Earth where dinosaurs are the dominant species. So the FF have to fight dinosaur versions of the Avengers. After the two teams figure out each other’s identities, the FF realize that the dinosaur versions of the FF must be on the human world right now. The FF return to their own world and discover that the dinosaur Dr. Doom is there as well. This is another extremely fun issue, and the scene with Ben and the dinosaur versions of Jo’Venn and N’Kalla is a cute moment.

BATMAN #138 (DC, 2023) – “The Gotham War Chapter 4,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Jorge Jimenez. Batman continues fighting his own best friends. Meanwhile, Vandal Savage and Scandal Savage kill Ra’s al Ghul and take over Catwoman’s gang. The problem with this storyline is that first, Batman is acting like a complete jerk, and second, Gotham War is a crossover with Catwoman, which I’m not reading.

KAYA #12 (Image, 2023) – “Kaya and the Oracle’s Vision,” [W/A] Wes Craig. A solo story about Lord Vox, the main robot villain. He makes his report to the Oracle, the leader of the robots, and then takes his anger out on his own servant. There’s also a cute backup story, with art by Gabriel Hernandez Walta, in which a monkey saves Kaya and Jin from a murderous robot – by attaching the robot’s on-off switch and then turning it off.

SPACE USAGI: YOKAI HUNTER #1 (Dark Horse, 2023) – “Yokai Hunter,” [W/A Stan Sakai. In the Edo period, the original Usagi tries to rescue a peasant girl who’s been kidnapped by yokai. He fights a horde of demons, and then Jei. In the last three pages, we see that this entire story is a comic book being read by Space Usagi’s daughter Akemi. This character’s existence was hinted at in Usagi Yojimbo: Senso, but I don’t recall if she’s ever appeared before. What confuses me is that this comic feels like a reprint with a new framing sequence, but I can’t figure out whether it’s a reprint, or, if so, where it’s reprinted from. I believe the upcoming Space Usagi: Death and Honor miniseries is just a reprint of one of the previous Space Usagi miniseries.

WORLD’S FINEST: TEEN TITANS #4 (DC, 2023) – “Fish Outta Water,” [W] Mark Waid, [A] Emanuela Lupacchino. Roy and Garth visit Wally West’s house for a sleepover, resulting in various personality conflicts, mostly caused by Roy. Also, Mal Duncan and Karen Beecher are attacked by an insect-themed villain. There’s some excellent characterization in this issue. Mark depicts Wally’s parents more positively than he has in the past; he used to write them as frankly abusive. Overall this series is my favorite of Mark’s comics in a long time. The writing and artwork are both excellent.

THE HUNGER AND THE DUSK #3 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] G. Willow Wilson, [A] Chris Wildgoose. Tara’s party discovers that the Vangol have been using old dwarf tunnels to move around secretly. They send a messenger to inform Troth and Faran of this. The Hunger and the Dusk is less original than some of G. Willow Wilson’s work, but it’s entertaining. A clever thing in this issue is that the captured Vangol speaks a language that diverged from the humans’ language 500 years ago, so his dialogue is “translated” as a barely intelligible dialect of English.

DAMN THEM ALL #8 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Charlie Adlard. We start with a flashback to Ellie’s past with her old flame Cillian. Then a villain holds Alfie’s corpse hostage until Ellie brings him the demon Beleth. There’s also a plot about goblins and fairies, excuse me, the hidden folk. Damn Them All has some very impressive worldbuilding and characterization, but its plot is hard to follow. I can never remember the different demons or their powers.

SHAZAM! #4 (DC, 2023) – “Meet the Captain! Chapter 4,” [W] Mark Waid, [A] Dan Mora. Shazam discovers that Garguax isn’t doing anything wrong; he has an army, but he’s only using it to rule the moon. Garguax introduces Shazam to his love interest, Zazzala the Queen Bee, and Shazam falls in lust with her. Then the gorillas invade the moon and attack Garguax. To save himself, Shazam has to turn back into Billy, but then he can’t change back to Shazam again. During all this the other kids are stuck at home, filling out endless forms for the dinosaur lawyer. This is a very fun and wacky series, and along with World’s Finest: Teen Titans, it shows that Waid’s career is enjoying a resurgence.

MECH CADETS #3 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Greg Pak, [A] Takeshi Miyazawa. Olivia’s dad and Cadet Franklin are both abducted by the aliens. On returning to Earth, the cadets and their mechs are placed in quarantine. Despite Captain Tanaka’s efforts to calm them down, the cadets break out of quarantine and escape. This miniseries is fun so far, but I think the original Mech Cadet Yu had greater depth of theme and characterization.

MY LITTLE PONY: CLASSICS REIMAGINED – THE UNICORN OF ODD #2 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jeremy Whitley, [A] Jenna Ayoub. Dorothy (Applejack) and the Scarecrow (Pinkie Pie) meet the Tin Woodsmare (Rarity) and the Cowardly Lion (Fluttershy, obviously). As in earlier Classics Reimagined comics, the humor in this issue is mostly metatextual, and also depends on the reader’s knowledge of the source text. The next-issue image suggests that the Wizard of Oz will be Trixie, so I wonder if Twilight Sparkle and Rainbow Dash are going to appear in the comic at all.

UNDISCOVERED COUNTRY #26 (Image, 2023) – “Trust in Us,” [W] Scott Snyder & Charles Soule, [A] Giuseppe Camuncoli & Leonardo Marcello Grassi. Most of this issue takes place in the world outside America. The Asian and Euro-African forces almost go to war over Taiwan, but Uncle Sam intervenes to defuse the war and release the sky virus cure. Also, a scientist named Joshua gets infected with the sky virus, and allegedly dies off-panel. We learn at the end of the issue that Janet is the son of Janet Worthington and the Chinese admiral Liu. Finally,  Pavel returns after having been absent from the series since the first storyline.

BIRDS OF PREY #2 (DC, 2023) – “Megadeath Part 2,” [W] Kelly Thompson, [A] Leonardo Romero. The team prepares for their assault on Themyscira. I really like the characterization in this series, but the plot is not very compelling. Also, Leonardo Romero’s artwork is brilliant, but the entire comic has a blurry appearance, as if the artwork and coloring aren’t lined up properly.

CAT FIGHT #4 (IDW, 2023) – “Curiosity Kills,” [W] Andrew Wheeler, [A] Ilias Kyriazis. Felix battles ninjas by throwing fish at them. He escapes and meets up with a contact at a cat café. Finally this comic has some actual cats in it, and they’re adorable. In the end, Felix discovers that Claude wasn’t Schrodinger, as he thought. Instead the real villain is Tabitha Scratch. This is a fun series, and of course the best thing about it is all the cat references.

POISON IVY #15 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] G. Willow Wilson, [A] Marcio Takara. Ivy confronts the flower-headed villain, Peter Undine. Killer Croc somehow finds himself in the building, even though he was in Slaughter Swamp before, and he rescues Ivy. This is one of the weaker issues of the run, partly due to the absence of either Janet or Harley.

BATMAN AND ROBIN #2 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Simone Di Meo. Bruce and Damian fight a villainess named Shush, a female version of Hush, and Damian attends his first day of school. This comic is entertaining, but this issue could have had more of a focus on Bruce and Damian’s relationship.

DUNGEON MONSTRES VOL. 1 (NBM, 2001/2008) – “John-John the Terror” and “The Crying Giant,” [W] Lewis Trondheim & Joann Sfar, [A] Mazan and Jean-Christophe Menu. I used to read Dungeon when NBM was publishing it as individual issues, but I never got around to reading the trade paperback collections that they published. Dungeon (Donjon) is a massive series consisting of a flagship title, Dungeon Zenith – which was the first one that NBM translated – and a number of spinoffs. This particular spinoff series, Dungeon Monstres, is about the various peripheral monster characters inhabiting the dungeon. The current album collects the first two French-language albums of that series. The first of these albums is named after John-John, a monster with two parallel symmetrical bodies. However, it’s mostly about a con man named William Delacour, the previous bearer of the sword of Destiny, which is carried by Herbert in Dungeon Zenith. The art is by Mazan, whose other works include L’Hiver d’un monde and Philibert. He seems like a less famous artist than some of the other contributors to Dungeon. In the second album, The Crying Giant, the wizard Alcibiades owns a magical giant’s eye which is mystically linked to the original giant. But the eye keeps crying and flooding the dungeon, so Alcibiades has to track down the giant and stop the crying. I think this is the better of the two albums. A funny plot twist is the revelation that Marvin the dragon is sleeping with the giant’s crush. Jean-Christophe Menu is one of the most important artists of French alternative and autobiographical comics, and he was a co-founder of L’Association. Unfortunately, this Dungeon album seems to be his only work that’s ever been translated into English. It’s also unfortunate that Dungeon’s English translator is Joe Johnson, perhaps the all-time worst translator of French comics into English.

GREEN LANTERN #4 (DC, 2023) – “Fast Friends,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Xermanico. Hal talks with Sinestro at a diner, and then he enlists Barry Allen’s aid to get rid of the bombs Sinestro has set. Because of the Barry-Hal scenes, this is the best issue yet. However, this series is still far less interesting than Jeremy Adams’s Flash, and I’m close to dropping it. In the first panel of this story, there’s a diner menu where the special dish is zorza, or paprika-marinated chopped pork. Google says that this is a specialty of Galicia in Spain. I assume that’s where the artist is from. The backup story, by Peter Tomasi and David Lafuente, is about Sinestro’s abandoned son. It has better art and coloring than the main story.

SPIDER-MAN INDIA #5 (DC, 2023) – “Seva Part 5,” [W] Nikesh Shukla, [A] Tadam Gyadu. Spidey defeats the Lizard and Kraven with the aid of his friendly neighbors. There are no real surprises in this issue, but I enjoyed this miniseries, and I’d like to see a sequel to it.

UNTOLD TALES OF I HATE FAIRYLAND #4 (Image, 2023) – “Arcade Love Song,” [W/A] Morgan Beem. A romantic story about Glam Bam and his lover Purty Pretty Princess. As far as I can tell, these characters’ only previous appearance was in issue 8 of the first I Hate Fairyland series, and I don’t remember anything about them. The art in the story is good, though. The backup story, by Jorge Corona, is about a caveman version of Gert. It has excellent art, but its writing is not the best.

BLACK PANTHER #5 (Marvel, 2023) – “Reign at Dusk Part 5,” [W] Eve Ewing, [A] Mack Chater. A completely generic gangwar story with nothing of any interest. Compared with Eve Ewing’s Ironheart, this series has been a huge disappointment, and I’ve decided to drop it. My explanation for the failure of this series is that it’s a work of Afrofuturism rather than Africanfuturism. Eve Ewing is extremely effective when writing about African-American life. But she has no direct knowledge of African life, so when writing a story set in Africa, her only option is to resort to clichés. The previous two Black Panther runs have had the same problem. I only know of one Black Panther writer – Nnedi Okorafor – who has either lived or traveled extensively in Africa. Black Panther has hardly ever been an #OwnVoices work, even when written by African-American writers. A further problem, of course, is that Wakanda is not based on any specific African country, and instead it’s just an amorphous blend of lots of African cultures. This is an additional barrier to any attempt to write Black Panther so that it feels culturally accurate.

This, by the way, is a problem with the Afrofuturist genre. Around the same time I read this comic, I read Tomi Adeyemi’s novel Children of Blood and Bone, and I hated it. The author is from a Yorùbá background, but she’s writing for an audience that knows nothing about Nigeria or Yorùbá culture. And according to some reviews by Yòrubá readers, she herself shows limited knowledge of Yorùbá culture. Her work appeals to American readers because it’s essentially an Avatar: The Last Airbender fanfiction, and it offers little that’s truly challenging. By contrast, Okorafor’s work, or the work of clasic Nigerian authors like Achebe and Soyinka and Tutuola, is challenging because it’s not like standard Western literature; it relies upon a different set of cultural assumptions and narrative conventions. And that’s the sort of experience I value when reading literature from a culture other than my own.

SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN RETURNS #1 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Dan Slott & Christos Gage, [A] Mark Bagley et al. In current continuity, Doctor Octopus is alive but has mostly lost his memories of being Spider-Man. In this issue he visits one of his old lairs and recovers his memory of a previously untold episode that occurred during the first volume of Superior Spider-Man run. Otto-in-Peter’s-body hired a lab assistant, Estrella Lopez, who was possibly even smarter than himself. But she developed solar powers, becoming Supernova, and Otto/Spidey had to imprison her inside a containment pod to prevent a nuclear meltdown. In the present, Otto accidentally frees Estrella (whose first name means “star”, BTW), and this leads into the upcoming Superior Spider-Man revival. Superior Spider-Man was probably the best Spider-Man comic since the ‘80s, and I’m glad it’s back.

FIRE & ICE: WELCOME TO SMALLVILLE #2 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joanne Starer, [A] Natacha Bustos. Fire hires some supervillains to work at the beauty salon as part of a rehabilitation program. They include Gentleman Ghost (a very cool and underutilized villain), a salt-powered villainess named Lot’s Wife, and King of Cats, who is surrounded by cats. And also Ambush Bug. Jimmy Olsen makes a cameo appearance on the last page. I’m not very fond of either Fire or Ice, so I had low expectations of this series, but it’s been very fun so far.

WEIRD WORK #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jordan Thomas, [A] Shaky Kane. A confusing finish to a comic that never made a lick of sense. I didn’t understand Weird Work’s plot, and I wasn’t willing to make the effort to figure it out, since as far as I can tell, it’s just a trite film noir plot. Shaky Kane’s comics are always worth reading, but I wish this comic had been written better.

DANGER STREET #10 (DC, 2023) – “The Outsiders,” [W] Tom King, [A] Jorge Fornés. Thankfully this is a normal issue, rather than a repetition of the infuriating slog that was issue 9. As usual with this series, Danger Street #10 consists of many vignettes whose connections to each other are hard to see. This issue finally introduces the Outsiders – the bizarre team of outcasts created by Simon and Grandenetti, not the later superhero team that included Batman and Metamorpho. These Outsiders have apparently made just two appearances prior to Danger Street: their debut issue, First Issue Special #10, and then Superman #692.

STRANGE ACADEMY: AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “Solve for X Conclusion,” [W] Carlos Hernandez, [A] Vasco Georgiev. This artist’s Twitter profile says that he lives in Switzerland, but his name suggests that he’s of Bulgarian descent. This issue, the Strange Academy kids team up with the original Spider-Man to finally defeat Equation. This miniseries was not nearly as good as the real Strange Academy series.

DETECTIVE COMICS #140 facsimile (DC, 1948) – “The Riddler,” [W] Bill Finger, [A] Dick Sprang. The Riddler’s first appearance. The Riddler is my favorite Batman villain, but he tends to be written badly. It’s hard to craft riddles that are challenging without being unfair, and the Riddler’s riddles are usually disappointing. Perhaps this is why my favorite Riddler stories are not comic books, but the Arkham Asylum and Arkham City video games. Backup features in this issue include Robotman (the Golden Age hero, not the later Doom Patrol member), Slam Bradley, and the Boy Commandos. The Boy Commandos story looks as if it’s drawn by Kirby, but it’s not.

BATTLE ACTION #2 (Rebellion, 2023) – “Crazy Keller Meets Hot Wheels,” [W] Garth Ennis, [A] Chris Burnham. A crossover between two different stories from the original Battle Action. This story was kind of confusing, particularly given that I’m not familiar with either of the features that it’s based on. “D-Day Dawson,” [W] Dan Abnett, [A] Phil Winslade. During the Normandy invasion, a British soldier saves a woman and child from a Nazi patrol. This was much better than the lead story.

BATMAN: CITY OF MADNESS #1 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Christian Ward. Batman battles the Court of Owls, and there’s also some kind of a Cthulhu Mythos angle. Christian Ward’s art and coloring in this issue are as amazing as ever. However, City of Madness’s story is so boring and unoriginal that it makes me question whether I want to finish this miniseries. Christian Ward is a brilliant artist, but he really ought to work with a writer other than himself. His first work as a writer, Tommy Gun Wizards, was okay, but his next series, Blood-Stained Teeth, annoyed me so much that I had to drop it.

IMMORTAL X-MEN #16 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Island of Doctor Xavier,” [W] Kieron Gillen, [A] Lucas Werneck. Hope and several other X-Men fight Apocalypse, and they find themselves in a desert which is actually the White Hot Room. Professor X continues to resist the invasion of Krakoa. Then he looks in a mirror and sees a diamond inscribed over his face, with a message that says DON’T KILL YOURSELF PLEASE. Immortal X-Men is very well written, but it’s also a depressing reading experience, and it’s always one of the last new comics I read.

PROJECT CRYPTID #2 (Ahoy, 2023) – “Chupahuahua,” [W] Alisa Kwitney, [A] Mauricet. An elderly woman’s chihuahua disappears after protecting its owner from a pack of chupacabras. Some time later, the chihuahua returns and gives birth to a litter that includes a baby “chupahuahua.” “Diana Montalvan and the Ivory-Billed Woodpecker,” [W] Alex Segura, [A] Steve Bryant. A Miami woman is hired to track down a rare and valuable bird. Since I don’t have much to say about either of these stories, I should mention that each recent Ahoy comic includes a chapter of “Partially Naked Came the Corpse,” and I always skim over these stories without paying too much attention.

X-MEN RED #16 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Fall of Prometheus,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Yildiray Cinar. The battle of Arakko continues. Storm fights the new Horsemen of Apocalypse, and has to decide whether to release Uranos from captivity at the cost of eliminating all of her enemies. For Storm, who once worried about having to hurt some bees (X-Men vol. 1 #128), it should be obvious that the answer is no. This issue also includes a pointless backup story, not written by Ewing, starring Sunspot and Shark-Girl.

AMERICAN VAMPIRE: SECOND CYCLE #1 (Vertigo, 2014) – untitled, [W] Scott Sndyer, [A] Rafael Albuquerque. Several different sequences taking place in different eras of American history. I’ve never understood this comic, and this issue is no more clear than any other issue. At least Rafael Albuquerque’s art is quite good.

WILDC.A.T.S #50 (Image, 1998) – “Old Feelings,” [W] James Robinson, [A] Jim Lee. This was the only issue of Alan Moore’s WildC.A.T.s that I haven’t read. However, he only wrote the third of the three stories, “Resurrection.” It’s a pretty short story, but it has some extremely clever dialogue, as well as highly detailed art. The other two stories are of no interest to me.

JETCAT CLUBHOUSE #1 (Oni, 2001) – “It Plopped from Outer Space!” etc., [W/A] Jay Stephens. A collection of short stories, mostly featuring Jetcat (the same character from Land of Nod #1) or her supporting cast. Some of these stories are reprinted from Nickelodeon Magazine or from a similar publication called YTV Whoa! Magazine. Compared to Dwellings, all these stories are minor works, though they’re entertaining.

SOLDIER ZERO #4 (Boom!, 2011) – “One Small Step for Man,” [W] Paul Cornell, [A] Javier Pina. I must have bought this because it was cheap and because I like Paul Cornell’s writing. However, it’s also one of the many comics based on concepts by Stan Lee, and that makes it much less interesting. I doubt if Stan had much real involvement in any of the comics that were published under his name in his last years. And if he had been more closely involved in them, that wouldn’t have been a good thing. There is this myth that Stan was some sort of great creator of concepts, but really all his good characters were co-created by Ditko or Kirby. The most significant character he created without either of them was She-Hulk, who was an obvious derivative of a Kirby creation. Stan had many talents, but character creation was not one of them. Yet the general public continues to have this skewed idea that Stan was responsible for all of Marvel’s best ideas, and it’s this misconception that makes comics like Soldier Zero possible. Anyway, I don’t remember anything about Soldier Zero #4 at all.

LES PASSAGERS DU VENT VOL. 1 (Glénat, 1980) – “La fille sous la dunette,” [W/A] François Bourgeon. Historical fiction is a major genre in French comics, and Les Passagers du Vent is perhaps the pinnacle of that genre. Indeed, Wikipedia says that Glénat launched their popular Vécu collection, which is devoted to historical fiction, in order to capitalize on the success of Passagers du Vent. This album takes place in the 18th century aboard a French ship. A common sailor, Hoel, catches a glimpse of a stunningly beautiful woman inhabiting the captain’s quarters. He tries to spy on her and find out her identity, but is caught in the act and imprisoned. However, the woman, Isabeau, allies herself with Hoel and becomes his lover, and she tells him about her tragic past. She was born into nobility, but due to a childhood prank that went wrong, her identity was switched with that of her commoner companion Agnes. When Isa tried to get her brother Benoit’s help in regaining her identity, Benoit raped her instead. Isa is now seeking vengeance on Agnes and Benoit, who is now the captain of the ship that Isa is on. After a fight with the British navy, Isa and Hoel are marooned near Hispaniola, and are then rescued but separated from each other. This comic is frankly incredible. Its artwork is phenomenal, it shows extreme depth of historical research, and it has a complex and fascinating plot. Bourgeon is great at drawing sexy women, but can also draw convincing characters and settings, and exciting sea battles. In the remaining four albums of the first cycle, the plot seems to have gotten even more deep and complex; for instance, slavery is a major theme of the later albums. I really want to read the rest of the series. At least the first seven of the ten albums are available in English, but only in digital form.

SAVAGE DRAGON #225 (Image, 2017) – untitled, [W/A] Erik Larsen. This is a 100-page giant. In the first story, Darklord and Mr. Glum fight each other for control of Earth, and Dragon has to intervene against them both. Mr. Glum kills himself by firing God’s Gun, while Dragon defeats Darklord by injecting himself with Malcolm’s blood, so that he gains Malcolm’s electricity powers. However, the blood transfusion causes Dragon to explode, and the series’ original protagonist is gone for good. Dragon dies and goes to heaven, which, for him, is a bedroom full of scantily clad women. This issue also includes a number of backup features, all of which are significantly worse than the main story. One of the backup features is a reprint of Graphic Fantasy #1, but I’ve already read that story.

MARTHA WASHINGTON GOES TO WAR #3 (Dark Horse, 1994) – “The Valley of Death,” [W] Frank Miller, [A] Dave Gibbons. After an aerial battle, Martha crashlands near Oklahoma City, which has become a radioactive wasteland. She encounters some deformed mutants who look like the mutant gang from Dark Knight Returns. Then, in pursuit of some “ghosts,” she travels straight into the center of the radiated zone. But she discovers that the radiation is fake, and the center of Oklahoma City is a beautiful paradise. Dave Gibbons’s artwork in this  issue is hampered by bad computer coloring. His art looks much better in black and white, or with a flatter style of coloring.

MARTHA WASHINGTON GOES TO WAR #4 – “The Promised Land,” as above. Martha’s future husband, Wasserstein, shows her around the formerly radiated zone, and it turns out to be an idyllic utopia. I especially like Martha’s fascination at how the food has “wild colors and tastes that explode in my mouth.” Of course, the Pax, the tyrannical U.S. government can’t stand the existence of anything good, and so they bomb Oklahoma City into nonexistence. Martha and Wasserstein survive, and are now resolved to destroy the government.

MARTHA WASHINGTON GOES TO WAR #5 – “Kingdom Come,” as above. Martha and Wasserstein lead a successful revolution against the Pax. Faced with apparent defeat, the Pax decide to nuke their own country, but almost all of their nukes fail to explode. The miniseries ends with Martha devoted to the creation of a better world. This issue covers too many events too quickly; it could have been expanded into an entire miniseries of its own. Martha Washington Goes to War is a classic, but I don’t think it’s quite as good as Give Me Liberty. Besides the awful coloring, this miniseries suffers from incoherent political ideology. It’s not entirely clear just what sort of ideals Martha is fighting for.

HARLEY QUINN #2 (DC, 2016) – “The Coney Island of the Damned,” [W] Jimmy Palmiotti & Amanda Conner, [A] Bret Blevins et al. Harley, Red Tool and their friends fight a horde of zombies. This is another issue full of unrelieved wackiness, with no serious elements to counterbalance the wacky stuff.

WEST COAST AVENGERS #4 (Marvel, 1986) – “Master Pandemonium!”, [W] Steve Englehart, [A] Al Milgrom. Hawkeye tries to convince the Thing to join the team, despite Ben’s explicit refusal. Firebird, whose only previous appearance was in Hulk #265, crashlands at the WCA headquarters. Tigra is gradually succumbing to her feline personality: she gets instantly jealous of Firebird, and she tries to seduce Wonder Man, who’s not interested. Then the team fights Master Pandemonium, who makes his first appearance in this issue. Master Pandemonium is a disturbing character, in that his arms have been replaced by demons. He’s best remembered for an even more disturbing moment, in #51 of this series, when he absorbs the Scarlet Witch’s babies into his arms.

AQUAMAN #30 (DC, 1997) – “In Darkness He Waits,” [W] Peter David, [A] Marty Egeland & Jim Calafiore. Aquaman and Black Manta escape from a giant undersea monster, then they encounter some even bigger Lovecraftian creatures. These creatures are not to be confused with the Trench, a race of undersea creatures who were introduced after the New 52. This was one of the less exciting issues of PAD’s Aquaman.

RADIOACTIVE MAN #1000 (Bongo, 1994) – “In His Own Image,” [W/A] Steve Vance. This is actually the sixth issue. As the title suggests (the word IMAGE is capitalized on the title page), it’s a parody of the grim-and-gritty comics of the 1990s. Also there’s a worm villain who’s an obvious reference to Mr. Mind. When the worm gets electrocuted, Radioactive Man says that he’s spared the state “the expense of building a little tiny worm-sized electric chair.” This actually is how Mr. Mind is executed in the original Monster Society of Evil story. BTW, DC was going to reprint that story in 2018, but the reprint was cancelled due to concerns over racism. And speaking of racist old comics…

THE SPIRIT: THE ORIGIN YEARS #7 (Kitchen Sink, 1993) – “Dr. Prince von Kalm” etc., [W/A] Will Eisner. Four reprinted stories from 1940. I’ve always heard that the postwar Spirit stories are worse than the prewar stories, but the four stories in this issue are quite good. The fourth one, “The Haunted House,” has one of Eisner’s greatest splash pages. And the third one begins with a beautiful (if disturbing) depiction of the Spirit about to spank Ellen. However, on all the stories except the third one, the reproduction is quite poor. It’s also unfortunate that some of these stories include Ebony White. Eisner was never quite able to overcome the embarrassment of having created this character, even if he did his best to portray Ebony in a positive light.

DARK KNIGHTS OF STEEL #7 (DC, 2022) – “United,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Nathan Gooden. Bruce has a nightmare about a Kryptonian invasion. Then he wakes up in Jonathan and Martha Kent’s orphanage, whose other inhabitants are the Teen Titans. This is another fun issue, and it’s exciting to see the medieval versions of Kory, Gar, Raven and Vic. I should have been buying this series when it was coming out.

HOUSE OF X #6 (Marvel, 2020) – “I Am Not Ashamed,” [W] Jonathan Hickman, [A] Pepe Larraz. Krakoa makes its deal with the rest of the world: Krakoa will provide the world with miracle drugs, in exchange for recognition as an independent nation, as well as automatic Krakoan citizenship for all mutants. Having settled this, the Quiet Council meet and decide on their three laws: make more mutants, murder no man, respect this sacred land. Then they take their first collective action: imprisoning Sabretooth inside the island. And thus begins the most exciting and innovative X-Men era since Grant Morrison’s New X-Men. The Krakoa saga is over now, but it succeeded in returning the X-Men to the status of a flagship title.

BLUE BEETLE #52 (Charlton, 1965) – “Magno the Man Who Shakes the World,” [W] Joe Gill, [A] Tony Tallarico. This was actually just the third issue. As was common practice for them, Charlton gave this series the numbering of an earlier series, Unusual Tales. The Blue Beetle in this issue is the original one, Dan Garrett. This Blue Beetle series is as bad as Silver Age superhero comics ever got. It’s a completely lifeless comic, with boring art, a total lack of characterization, and Leroy lettering. It was Charlton’s second attempt at a blue Beetle comic in as many years. Both the 1964 and 1965 Blue Beetle series lasted just five issues. Charlton subsequently launched a new Blue Beetle character, Ted Kord, as a backup feature in Captain Atom, and in 1967 the second Blue Beetle received his own series. That series also lasted just five issues, but Ted Kord became the classic version of the character.

TARZAN #219 (DC, 1973) – “Trial by Treachery,” [W/A] Joe Kubert. In an adaptation of The Return of Tarzan, Tarzan travels to Europe to look for Jane Porter. While there, he gets involved in a conflict between a noblewoman, Countess Olga de Coude, and her evil brother, Nikolas Rokoff. This is a very unusual Tarzan comic in that it’s set entirely in “civilization,” rather than in Tarzan’s usual jungle venue. The Return of Tarzan is only the second Tarzan novel, which is perhaps why it has such a different setting from the rest of the series.

FIRST ISSUE SPECIAL #7 (DC, 1975) – “Menace of the Human Firefly!”, [W] Michael Fleisher, [A] Steve Ditko. This comic is a disappointment considering the high caliber of its creative team. It’s not particularly weird or creepy, as a Creeper comic should be. Also, the villain, Firefly, has a very stupid-looking costume, with a polka-dot belt and a giant FF symbol. The Creeper didn’t get another solo series until 1997.

MADMAN ADVENTURES #3 (Tundra, 1993) – “Inevitability of the Impossible,” [W/A] Mike Allred. Madman, Flem and Boiffard go on a camping trip, but Boiffard is becoming seriously ill. Meanwhile, Madman encounters an alien stranded on Earth, and has to defend the alien from some men who appear to be Men in Black. Then Madman meets a costumed character named Cozmo Carson. At the end of the issue Frank meets a man who claims that he’s “one of the Three,” and that he’s a Nephite and his enemies are Lamanites. Another of the Three appeared in the subsequent Madman series, but I don’t know if we ever met the third one. The Three are a reference to Mormonism, as indicated by the words Nephites and Lamanites. Allred’s Mormon faith is rarely  mentioned in his comics, except The Golden Plates. Allred’s art at this point in his career was more detailed and Clear Line-influenced than it is now.

HOUSE OF X #4 (Marvel, 2019) – “It Will Be Done,” [W] Jonathan Hickman, [A] Pepe Larraz. A team of X-Men invades Orchis’s satellite and destroys the Mother Mold, but they’re killed in the process. We already know that their deaths are temporary, but Professor X is devastated, and he meditates on all the recent instances of mutant genocides. The irony of this last sequence is that the Krakoa era is ending with yet another mutant genocide. The mutants haven’t actually died, but humans seem to hate mutants now more than ever.

TRANSFORMERS: RODIMUS VS. CYCLONUS #1 (IDW, 2011) – “Rodimus vs. Cyclonus,” [W] Simon Furman, [A] Boo. An adaptation of part of the Transformers movie, the part where Cyclonus and Scourge go hunting for Autobots, while the Autobot ship crashlands on the planet of Junk. This comic was not sold through the direct market, but was packaged with some Transformers toys. That explains its lack of original content. My guess is that Boo is the same artist as Boo Cook, but I’m not sure.

JESSICA JONES #13 (Marvel, 2017) – “Return of the Purple Man Part 1,” [W] Brian Michael Bendis, [A] Michael Gaydos. I must have bought this by mistake, thinking it was written by Kelly Thompson or another writer I like. I would never voluntarily buy a Bendis comic. Especially not one that’s about the Purple Man. It’s frustrating how Jessica Jones’s character has come to be defined primarily in terms of her relationship with this one particular villain. This issue is full of Bendis’s usual insufferable dialogue, and it also has six pages that are just grids of dozens or hundreds of faces. When reading these pages I feel compelled to look at each of the faces individually, even though none of them have any relevance to the story.

MAGE: THE HERO DEFINED #2 (Image, 1997) – “When We Three Shall Meet,” [W/A] Matt Wagner. I read the Mage: The Hero Discovered trade paperback a long time ago, but I didn’t really get it, and I don’t get this issue either. I’ve never been able to understand the sensibility of Matt Wagner’s work. Mage is supposed to be a retelling of the King Arthur myth, but it feels like something else entirely, and I’m not sure what sort of effect it’s going for.

SKYBOUND X #3 (Image, 2021) – [E] Sean Mackiewicz et al. The highlight of this issue is a new Assassin Nation story by Starks and Henderson. It ends with “to be continued,” but I don’t know of any plans for a second Assassin Nation series, and that’s a pity. Other stories in this issue include Rick Grimes 2000, Murder Falcon and Science Dog. The Rick Grimes story reintroduces Negan, a character I’ve come to despise. In the Science Dog story, Science Dog wins four consecutive chess games by checkmate, but none of the ending positions look like checkmate to me, and all four positions have the board facing the wrong way, with a black square instead of a white square at lower right.

FATALE #3 (Image, 2012) – untitled, [W] Ed Brubaker, [A] Sean Phillips. In the present, a man named Nicholas Lash goes looking for the mysterious immortal woman Josephine. There’s another plot about Nicholas’s grandfather Hank’s involvement with the same woman. The art and writing in this issue are excellent, but I’m not sure how this story arc fits into Fatale’s rather complicated continuity.

2000 AD #567 (Fleetway, 1988) – untitled, [W] John Smith, [A] Steve Dillon. Tyranny Rex encounters some clones of Prince, Elvis Presley, and various other popular musicians. Two of the clones sing the then-popular Mel and Kim song “Respectable.” I hadn’t heard that song until I read this issue, but I’ve listened to it now, and it’s stuck in my head. Strontium Dog: “Stone Killers Part 8,” [W] Alan Grant, [A] Carlos Ezquerra. This chapter mostly focuses on Middenface’s fight with the stone aliens. I think I like Middenface better than Johnny Alpha. After this chapter there’s a two-page recap of Rogue Trooper’s past adventures. Dredd: “Dredd in Oz Part 23: All or Nothing,” [W] John Wagner & Alan Grant, [A] Will Simpson. Chopper seems to have crashed out of the Supersurf race, but he claws back into contention. Future Shocks: “Plastic Surgeon,” [W] C. Smith, [A] Glenn Fabry. A boring but beautifully drawn story about an evil robot surgeon. “C. Smith” is unidentified, and has no other credits for 2000 AD. Hap Hazzard: untitled, [W/A] Steve Dillon. Hap gets himself into some fights because of his big mouth.

HAWKWORLD #23 (DC, 1992) – “Escape from Thanagar Chapter 7: Lies and Legends,” [W] John Ostrander, [A] Graham Nolan. This issue begins with a flashback that clarifies a serious continuity problem. Just after Crisis, Hawkman and Hawkwoman were members of Giffen and DeMatteis’s Justice League. But in 1989, DC published the Hawkworld miniseries and subsequent ongoing series, which created a new version of Hawkman and Hawkwoman. Also, Hawkworld depicted Katar and Shayera’s first trip to Earth, and it took place at the same time as the then-current issues of Justice League. So who were the Hawkman and Hawkwoman who joined the Justice League, if those stories took place before Katar and Shayera came to Earth? Hawkworld #23 provides the answer: that Hawkman was a Thanagarian spy named Fel Andar, and his Hawkwoman was a human woman who he had duped. This is a rather awful retcon, which could have been avoided if Hawkworld had just been stated to be taking place in the past. Indeed, I always thought the original Hawkworld miniseries was supposed to have taken place several years ago. See here for Brian Cronin’s discussion of this retcon. In the rest of Hawkworld #23, Katar and Shayera help foment a revolution on Thanagar.

PRYDE AND WISDOM #3 (Image, 1996) – “Mystery Train,” [W] Warren Ellis, [A] Terry Dodson & Aaron Lopresti. Kitty Pryde and Pete Wisdom battle some uninteresting villains and sleep together. This comic had an interesting premise – a British-style spy story starring Kitty Pryde. However, just like Joss Whedon several years later, Warren Ellis ignored Kitty’s existing characterization and instead wrote her as the realization of his personal sexual fantasies. Also, the artwork in this miniseries is terrible.

I LOVE THIS PART (Avery Hill, 2017) – untitled, [W/A] Tillie Walden. This graphic novel is a collection of loosely related vignettes, all of them telling the story of a romance between two high school girls. Tillie Walden’s artwork is beautifully evocative, and this comic somehow seems to capture the essential nature of adolescence, in the same way as This One Summer does. Every page of I Love This Part is a splash page, so despite being 60 pages, the book is an extremely fast read.

FOUR COLOR #714 (Dell, 1956) – “Spin and Marty,” [W] unknown, [A] Dan Spiegle. Spin Evans attends summer camp at the Triple-R Ranch, where boys “learn to be real cowboys.” His cabinmate, Martin Markham, is a rich orphan who’s never done a lick of work in his life.  After a variety of adventures, Spin and Marty become friends. The conflict is that Spin doesn’t have enough money to go back to camp next summer, so he has to earn the money by winning a rodeo against a rival summer camp, and he can only win the rodeo if Marty helps. Somehow everyone forgets that Marty is rich, and he could have paid for Spin to attend camp. Overall this comic is a trite but entertaining summer camp story. Spin and Marty was adapted from a segment of the Mickey Mouse Club TV show, which was itself adapted from a 1942 novel. There were three other Spin and Marty issues of Four Color, followed by a short-lived ongoing series.

EUGENIC #1 (Boom!, 2017) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Eryk Donovan. In 2022, most of the human race has become infertile because of a virus. A scientist named Cyrus Crane develops a cure for the virus, and women start having babies again, but the babies are born horribly deformed. At a conference, Cyrus reveals that he intentionally designed the virus to cause birth defects. His specific intent was to create a new race of “Numans” who would all have identical appearances except for randomized facial features, so there would be no separate races, and no basis for prejudice. This is a terrible idea: as a black scientist says to Cyrus, “There wil never be another black child again! You think that’s what I want? The eradication of my entire race? You’re an upper middle-class white man, for God’s sake!” But Cyrus doesn’t care, and he kills himself and everyone else at the conference, so that no one can stop him. This whole premise may have been inspired by contemporary fears about the Zika virus, and it also resonates with more recent concerns about the effects of the Covid vaccine. Eugenic #2, which I reviewed last year, takes place much later, after the Numans have become the dominant species.

Next Heroes trip:

NIGHTWING #107 (DC, 2023) – “The Crew of the Crossed Part 2,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Stephen Byrne. Beatrice Bennett is the new Captain Blüd. She tells Dick that in exchange for the property that was held for him in the Hold, he has to  defeat her adoptive brother Dirk Blüd, the alternative candidate for the captain of the Crossed Keys. Dick goes looking for Dirk, while wearing a ridiculous romance-novel-cover costume. In a backup story, Dick and Jason Todd fight some guys at a bar. This story has an obvious gay subtext: the villains are called the Three Bears, and two of them look like Tom of Finland’s Kake.

SENSATIONAL SHE-HULK #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “Jensational!”, [W] Rainbow Rowell, [A] Andres Genolet. This series continues directly from the previous volume of She-Hulk. Nothing is different about this new volume except for the numbering. In this issue, Jen defends two old Kirby characters, Karnak and Ransak the Reject, from an eviction, and then she and Jack both go to fight club. A cute moment in this story is when Jen walks into the office and finds Mallory Book and Andy having a romantic moment. In the backup story, a college student named Luis visits Jen to shadow her for the day. Luis watches Jen as she beats up some men who are smuggling pumpkin bombs. Then Luis tells Jen that he’s a prospective lawyer, not a prospective superhero, and he wanted to watch Jen do her other job. And in the last panel, we meet the student who wanted to shadow Jen as a superhero. This twist ending is predictable, but it’s funny too.

SOMETHING IS KILLING THE CHILDREN #34 (Boom!, 2023) – “Showdown at the Easy Creek Corral Part 4,” [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Werther Dell’Edera. Erica, Riqui and Gabi prepare for their showdown with the Duplicitype, but Cutter has already followed them to the ranch, and while Erica is fighting the nonhuman monster, the human monster is holding Erica’s friends hostage. Erica tries to shoot Cutter with the poison from issue 32, but Cutter grabs Erica’s arrow from midair and stabs Riqui with it. Cutter is the most loathsome character in this series by far, and it will be a cathartic moment when she finally dies.

TITANS #4 (DC, 2023) – “Out of the Shadows Part 4,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Nicola Scott. Raven and Gar fight some bullies who are threatening some Haven residents – this is the same Haven from Nightwing. Then the Titans go off to fight the Demolition Team, but Wally has to stay home in order to hide from his impending death. While the Titans are gone, Aqualad visits Titans Tower and infects Linda Park, who is also there, with some kind of alien plant. Then the Titans come up with a way to protect Wally from his fated death: they lock Wally and Linda into a vault on the planet Mars. So just like in Greek myths, Wally’s attempts to avoid his fate are instead causing that fate to happen. The problem with this story arc is that there’s a footnote saying “this story takes place before Flash #1,” and Wally is still alive in that issue, so we already know that he’s not going to die for real.

RADIANT BLACK #26 (Image, 2023) – “The Protocol,” [W] Kyle Higgins & Joe Clark, [A] Marcelo Costa. Marshall is now the sole Radiant Black. To defeat the robot invasion, he has to pass several challenges, the first of which requires him to survive an attack by other robots. Marshall gets Radiant Pink to evacuate all the civilians who are stuck on Lake Shore Drive, and then he uses the empty roadway as a staging area for his battle. In the end he passes the challenge successfully. But there’s another reality where things happened differently…

RADIANT BLACK #26.5 (Image, 2023) – as above. Radiant Black #26 through #30 each have two versions, one with Marshall as the hero, and one with Nathan. In Nathan’s version of issue 26.5, the initial scenes are mostly the same as in Marshall’s version, except that Nathan is much less talkative. However, after the fight begins, the two versions diverge radically. Nathan doesn’t ask Radiant Pink for help, and he fights the robots at sea, and then at a steel mill. At the end of the issue, we see that all the cars on Lake Shore Drive have been destroyed, along with the people in them. The next-to-last panel has the line “You’re not always going to make the right decision,” and in the following panel, we see a car full of charred bodies. The exact same car appears in issue #26, where Radiant Pink saves the car and the people in it. So when we read the two comics together, we realize that Nathan made the wrong decision, and Marshall made the right one. Overall, the two different versions of Radiant Black #26 are a brilliant narrative experiment, and anyone who reads one of these comics should also read the other.

SCRAPPER #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Cliff Blezinski & Alex de Campi, [A] Ryan Kelly. Scrapper is rescued by cats, who help him lead an assault on SMITE. In the SMITE plant, they encounter a pack of robot dogs. Ever since this series began, I’ve been waiting to see the cats, and now that they’ve arrived, they don’t disappoint. They act just like real cats, with their defiant attitude, their love of sardines, etc. I especially like the fat cat who’s carried in a bag by pigeons. However, Ryan Kelly isn’t the best artist at drawing cats.

MS. MARVEL: THE NEW MUTANT #3 (Marvel, 2023) – “Waking Nightmare,” [W] Iman Vellani & Sabir Pirzada, [A] Carlos Gomez. Kamala has a series of dreams about the characters from her own fan fictions. Dr. Gaiha and Omega Sentinel almost manage to find Kamala, but Bruno comes up with a way to trick their scanning device. Having excised the agent that was causing her nightmares, Kamala finally wakes up, only to be attacked by a Sentinel. This is an excellent miniseries, but I’m sorry that it’s just four issues.

LOCAL MAN #6 (Image, 2023) – “The Dry Season,” [W/A] Tim Seeley & Tony Fleecs. While Crossjack is visiting his affair partner/secret enemy Inga at her donut shop, the store is attacked by a right-wing terrorist. The man is finally shot by a policeman. Crossjack investigates some cult-related murders. The backup story is a flashback to Inga and Crossjack’s past relationship. This issue continues the theme of white nationalist terrorism which appears in many of Tim Seeley’s works. Many of Seeley’s comics are about the economic decline of the Midwest, and the toxic effects of this decline on white people.

MONEY SHOT COMES AGAIN #5 (Vault, 2023) – untitled, [W] Tim Seeley, [A] Gisele Lagacé. The team members wake up from their trance, the two alien lovers expose the Highest Authority’s corruption, and Brooks Frowd is eaten by his own androids. This is a satisfying conclusion, but I hope this isn’t the last Money Shot comic.

I HATE FAIRYLAND #10 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Skottie Young, [A] Brett Bean. Gert gets herself imprisoned in the same prison as Cloudia, then she breaks both of them out. After a “find the key” montage, Gert and Duncan are about to use Duncan’s key to return to the real world, But instead Cloudia double-crosses them and uses the key to go to the real world herself. A nice plot twist.

KAPTARA: UNIVERSAL TRUTHS #3 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Kagan McLeod. After a fight scene, Keith discovers a message from his aunt Patni. She came to this planet to look for Keith, but she arrived 20,000 years in the past, and was responsible for the evolution of the planet. However, she was unable to find a way back to Earth.  Keith discovers that there’s still a wormhole to Earth on Kaptara, but the new ruler of the planet, Villektra, is unwilling to let Keith use it. But to Villektra’s surprise, soldiers and tanks from Earth start streaming through the wormhole. This issue has a more serious tone than the last two.

CODA #2 (Image, 2023) – “False Dawns Chapter 2,” [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Matías Bergara. The false king is killed trying to protect the unicorn from a firing squad. The king’s death does not result in the end of his religion; instead, the king’s followers go around encouraging people to kill themselves. Hum and Serka are reunited, and Serka confirms that she’s pregnant. It’s also hinted that Hum and Serka have had previous pregnancy losses. This issue has fascinating art and writing, but the series’s plot is already quite hard to keep straight.

BONE ORCHARD: TENEMENT #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Andrea Sorrentino. The characters explore the old man’s apartment and have various interesting interactions. Then things start getting weird. We hear the word “Us’uuul,” the apartment is invaded by crawling red hands, and finally the little boy finds himself alone in a landscape that looks like a giant enlarged brain, where he meets Felix himself.

MARVEL UNLEASHED #3 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kyle Starks, [A] Juan Gedeon. Mostly a series of fight scenes, and some setup for the climactic battle with Blackheart. One highlight of this issue is Chewie singlehandedly defeating a horde of demons with her mouth tentacles. Another highlight is the ghost dog’s description of the Rainbow Bridge, not the one that leads to Asgard, but the one where pets meet their owners on the way to the afterlife. Issue 4 already came out, but the store did not have it when I went there today.

IN HELL WE FIGHT! #5 (Image, 2023) – “Born to Be Bad,” [W] John Layman, [A] Jok. The protagonists confront Midori’s dad, the demon dragon. Balphie manages to scare him away, and then the protagonists find an oracle, who tells them that to get to heaven, they have to defeat Bufobeelz, the frog demon. That fight is depicted in the last couple pages. Unfortunately this is the last issue for now. I hope the series will continue before too much longer.

ONCE UPON A TIME AT THE END OF THE WORLD #10 (Boom!, 2023) – “The Beast and Me,” [W] Jason Aaron, [A] Leila del Duca. Mezzy and Maceo each stalk the other through the depths of Golgonooza, each believing the other to be a horrible demon. They can’t recognize each other even when standing side by side. Finally Golgonooza is destroyed in an earthquake, and the hallucinatory mist disappears. Mezzy and Maceo finally recognize each other again, but only after they’re separated by an uncrossable abyss. Then we flash forward to their next meeting, when they’re both old. This series has had some depressing moments, but this issue is a new low.

WILD’S END #5 (Boom!, 2023) – “After Dark,” [W] Dan Abnett, [A] I.N.J. Culbard. Thom agrees to help the survivors by giving them an old unexploded mine. The captain and the reporter manage to turn on the lighthouse to distract the aliens, and the rest of the team transports the mine to the aliens’ headquarters, only to discover that a single tripod remained behind as a guard. In a backup feature, we learn how Thom lost his eyesight in the first place.

RARE FLAVORS #2 (Image, 2023) – “Mirchi,” [W] Ram V, [A] Filipe Andrade. Rubin and Mo travel to the desert of Rajasthan in search of a rare variety of chili peppers (which is what mirchi means). Rubin makes laal maas, a meat and chili dish, and then he and Mo have to escape from the two men pursuing them. This issue offers some more fascinating information about Indian food. I’ve never heard of laal maas before. There are some Indian restaurants in America that serve it, but apparently none in Charlotte.

BLACK HAMMER: THE END #3 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Malachi Ward. I didn’t get issue 2 until later. This issue, various teams of superheroes try to resist Anti-God, while the evil Black Hammer goes looking for Lucy, the last Black Hammer in the multiverse. Back on the farm, Golden Gail recovers her powers, and Lucy’s daughter Rose drives away from town with Inspector Insector, looking for Colonel Weird.

RORK VOL. 1 (NBM, 1984/1990) – “Fragments,” [W/A] Andreas. This comic was produced for the French market by a German artist. Rork is an occult detective who resembles Dr. Strange, or Tom Sutton’s Fathom Haunt from Eerie #53. This album consists of seven short stories, originally published in Tintin magazine. The stories seem unrelated at first, but they gradually become part of a larger narrative, revolving around an amnesiac woman who Rork names “Low Valley” after the place where he finds her. What’s really fascinating about Rork is Andreas’s artwork. The early chapters are drawn in a conventional style. But as the album goes on, Andreas starts to use extremely complex page layouts with 15 to 20 panels for page. And his draftsmanship becomes very intricate. One of Andreas’s major influences is Bernie Wrightson, who he homages by naming a character “Bernard Wright.” But his art also resembles that of P. Craig Russell. A high point of the album is the splash page in chapter five that shows Rork’s house coming apart, like a jigsaw puzzle in reverse. The first five of the eight Rork albums have been translated into English, though the third and fourth albums were printed as one volume, and the fifth album was only published in serialized form. Two of Andreas’s other works, Coutoo and Cromwell Stone, have also appeared in English.

TALES OF THE TITANS #4 (DC, 2023) – “Surrounded by Wolves,” [W] Andrew Constant, [A] Ro Stein & Ted Brandt. Gar Logan is kidnapped by a werewolf named Anthony Lupus. While fighting Lupus, Gar has to confront his own traumatic memories involving Deathstroke and his parents. (There’s no mention of Terra, though I’m not sure what her current continuity status is.) I liked this issue, though I still think it’s weird that Gar and Raven are a couple.

GIANT ROBOT HELLBOY #1 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mike Mignola, [A] Duncan Fegredo. I bought this because of the concept. It’s exactly what the title indicates – a giant Hellboy robot fighting a kaiju – and that’s a pretty cool premise. Also, this comic, unlike most Hellboy comics, is farily accessible even if the reader isn’t familiar with Hellboy’s continuity. Duncan Fegredo is an excellent artist who was drawing in Mignola’s style even before Mignola himself was.

FLASH #2 (DC, 2023) – “Stepping Out,” [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Mike Deodato Jr. Wally fights Gorilla Grodd, and also a group of strange multicolored energy creatures. Linda and the kids only appear on a couple pages. This issue is just okay. I hope Wally’s supporting cast gets more exposure soon, and I’m still annoyed by Deodato’s art style.

CAPTAIN MARVEL #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Omen,” [W] Alyssa Wong, [A] Jan Bazaldua. A bird-themed villain called the Omen tries to steal Genis-Vell’s Nega-Bands. A young thief, Yuna Yang, is trying to steal the bands at the same time, because she somehow needs them to rescue her mother. Yuna acquires the bands, and while falling out a window, she taps them together. This causes her to teleport to the Negative Zone, while Carol switches places with her. Carol and Yuna are now linked by the bands in the same way as Mar-Vell and Rick Jones used to be. This is an interesting premise, and it helps to distinguish Alyssa Wong’s Captain Marvel from Kelly Sue DeConnick and Kelly Thompson’s takes on the character.

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES #144 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Sophie Campbell, [A] Gavin Smith. The assembled Turtles free Leatherhead and defeat Jasper Barlow, and then the Turtles split up to go on separate trips. Donatello asks April and Venus to help him “fix everything.” This is a satisfying conclusion to the first post-Armageddon-Game storyline.

AVENGERS INC. #2 (Marvel, 2023) – ‘The Ghost of Avengers Mansion,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Leonard Kirk. Avengers Mansion has been turned into a tourist experience. While having brunch there, Janet Van Dyne and Vic Shade meet the Vision – the original Victor Shade – and then the three of them investigate the murder of a person who was visiting the mansion. It turns out the victim was part of a gang that was trying to rob the mansion, and he was double-crossed and murdered by one of his accomplices. I like the idea of blending the Avengers with the murder mystery genre. At the end of the issue, we learn that next issue’s murder victim is Skurge the Executioner, but the strange thing about that is that Skurge was already dead.

DWELLINGS #2 (Oni, 2023) – [W/A] Jay Stephens. In “Quiet, Suki,” a young woman storms into a nursing home, accusing the staff of having lost track of her grandmother, Perta Holt. The nursing home staff try to drug the young woman, and she’s forced to flee. After lots of weird stuff happens, we learn that the young woman herself is the patient in the nursing home, and Perta Holt was her mother. In “The Public House,” an infuriating, smug influencer buys an old house and sets it up as a haunted house attraction. But then it turns out that the house really is haunted. This was another excellent issue, though it wasn’t quite as awe-inspiring as issue 1. Both the stories in this issue left me somewhat confused after I finished reading them; it felt like the stories left some vital questions unanswered. But maybe that’s the point. A notable aspect of Dwellings is its local specificity – it’s obvious that these stories are occurring in Canada instead of the U.S. Overall, I think Dwellings is the best miniseries of the year.

BATMAN/SUPERMAN: WORLD’S FINEST #20 (DC, 2023) – “Heir to the Kingdom Chapter One: The Golden Calf,” [W] Mark Waid, [A] Dan Mora. A young Batman and Superman travel to a future version of the world of Kingdom Come, and they see a huge field filled with superheroes’ graves. Then they travel back in time to an earlier state of that same world, and they find Superman’s missing sidekick Thunder Boy, but he’s been plotting revenge against them. Kingdom Come is probably Mark’s most renowned work, and it’s interesting to see him revisiting it more than 25 years later. (However, in my opinion Kingdom Come’s influence was not positive, and Mark’s real masterpiece is The Return of Barry Allen.)

DAMN THEM ALL #9 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Charlie Adlard. It seems like he signs his creator-owned works as “Simon Spurrier” and his works for hire as “Si Spurrier,” but I’m not sure if that’s a consistent pattern. Humorously, this issue is narrated by a demon in the form of a dog. The big revelation this issue is that there’s a plot involving the demon Beleth and the Houses of Parliament. I’m still very confused by Damn Them All’s plot, and after the series is over, I’d like to reread it at one sitting.

CON & ON #4 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Paul Cornell, [A] Marika Cresta. In 2015, Eddie’s career is stagnating, while Deja has become the biggest star in the industry. Her success began with webcomics, and it seems like her primary audience is little girls. So she’s basically a black Raina Telgemeier. Meanwhile, the Eddie Berganza character from last issue is still employed, but his predatory behavior has become public knowledge. We also learn that Anthony Mole is giving female creators exposure in exchange for sexual favors, and then at the end of the issue he falls over dead. So Anthony Mole is Warren Ellis, except for the part about being dead. This issue also includes a cameo appearance by Paul Cornell himself, and it alludes John Lewis’s famous march through Comic-Con, which really did happen in 2015. This issue also references the naïve optimism of the late Obama years. One woman sees the “arc of the moral universe” slogan and expresses skepticism about it, and another woman says “When Hillary wins, I’ll debate you.”

SPINE-TINGLING SPIDER-MAN #1 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Juan Ferreyra. After a fight with his clone Spidercide, Spider-Man wakes up in a world where nobody remembers him, even Aunt May. Peter receives a text message telling him to go to track 31 at Grand Central Station. When he gets there, he’s attacked by a monstrous train conductor who accuses him of not paying his fare. This is another incredibly scary comic, due in large part to Juan Ferreyra’s gruesome art. My guess is that Mysterio is somehow behind Spidey’s predicament, but it’s just a guess.

BENEATH THE TREES WHERE NOBODY SEES #1 (Ahoy, 2023) – “Bicentennial Days,” [W/A] Patrick Horvath. Woodbrook is an idyllic community of anthropomorphic animals. But the local hardware store owner, Sam, likes to go to the nearby big city, abduct random people, and chop them to pieces. During the town’s bicentennial parade, someone besides Sam murders a man and suspends his body from a parade float. Now Sam has to solve this crime before his own crimes are discovered. The joke of Beneath the Trees… is that it’s a horror version of Richard Scarry’s children’s books. It’s also an interesting murder mystery. I’m glad that IDW is still willing to publish interesting creator-owned work.

NEWBURN #12 (Image, 2023) – “Someone Who Was Feared,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Jacob Phillips. Emily’s old boyfriend, Armand, tells her that he’s been hired to steal old report cards from a high school. Emily discovers that this is part of a plot to create fake passports. Also, someone tries to assassinate Newburn, and Newburn’s formerly untouchable position continues to erode, while Emily gradually gains in confidence. The backup feature in this issue is a waste of space, even if it’s drawn by Nick Dragotta.

ROGUE SUN #16 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Ryan Parrott, [A] Abel & Marco Renna. Caleb, in Dylan’s body, organizes a team of villains, and Dotty has to help Dylan’s family solve this problem. Dylan himself is still trapped in his own sunstone. Owen reveals that he was faking before and is actually on Dylan’s side, and he apparently sacrifices himself so Dylan and Marcus can escape. Also, Owen tells Dylan that he was an abusive parent to Marcus “because if he let up, it could get him killed.” This is a toxic mentality, and I hope Dylan doesn’t continue this cycle of abuse.

LONESOME HUNTERS: THE WOLF CHILD #4 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Tyler Crook.  The mother wolf kills the hunters, and Lupe blames herself. Lupe and Howard flee from the pursuing cultists. The magpie meets the original owner of the sword, a hairy naked man. This miniseries ends on a cliffhanger, so hopefully there will be a third volume of Lonesome Hunters soon.

IMMORTAL THOR #3 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Riddle of Raidho,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Martín Cóccolo. Thor solves Loki’s riddle and escapes from Loki’s prison, but to continue the fight against Toranos, Thor will have to speak to Al Ewing’s pet character, Storm. So far this series is not nearly as good as Immortal Hulk, but I liked this issue better than the first two. Al Ewing seems to be inspired by the Eddas, which were also a major source for Simonson’s run. Each issue of Immortal Thor begins with a quotation from the Elder Edda.

KILL YOUR DARLINGS #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Ethan S. Parker & Griffin Sheridan, [A] Robert Quinn. The issue begins with a flashback to the year 1700, then we rejoin Rose, who’s now living in an asylum after some years in foster care. Rose is rescued by a pink elephant creature from her fantasy world, and another of the boys from the asylum joins her. This series is interesting, though it covers the same territory as other comics like Bone Orchard: Ten Thousand Black Feathers or I Kill Giants. A cute reference in this comic is the card game that’s obviously Magic: The Gathering – one of the cards is based on Serra Angel.

JUSTICE LEAGUE VS. GODZILLA VS. KONG #1 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Brian Buccellato, [A] Christian Duce. This comic takes place in an alternate DCU that resembles the Super Friends universe. Just as Clark Kent is about to propose to Lois Lane, the Legion of Doom sumons Godzilla to attack Metropolis. I bought this comic on a whim, and it was a worthwhile purpose. Brian Buccellato’s dialogue is funny, if somewhat awkward, and I love the idea of the Justice League fighting Godzilla and King Kong. I’m not really interested in the kaiju genre on its own, but I do like it when kaiju are combined with other genres. Giant monsters are just inherently goofy and fun.

STARSIGNS #5 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Megan Levens. The good Starsigns enjoy a rare moment of peace, but then they’re attacked by the bad Starsigns. Clarence stabs Dan Kang, but then Cathy has to stay behind so the other good guys can escape. Starsigns is a far better series than Terrorwar. It has much better characterization, as well as a clear political message.

COOKING WITH MONSTERS: FEASTIARY HALLOWEEN TRICK-OR-READ (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jordan Alsaqa, [A] Vivian Truong. This comic was given away for free as part of a “Halloween Trick or Read” event. It’s a preview of an upcoming YA graphic novel about kids who train as “warrior chefs.” Oddly, the preview occupies only the second half of the comic, and the first half consists of profiles of various monsters. And the comic itself seems only mildly interesting.

JAY GARRICK: THE FLASH #1 (DC, 2023) – “The More Things Change…”, [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Diego Olortegui. On this story’s title, see the above review of Green Lantern #3. In 1963, Jay Garrick goes on an adventure with his daughter Judy. But then Jay realizes that he doesn’t have a daughter, because he and his wife are infertile. In 2023, Judy meets her mother, who is now an old woman, while Judy is still a teenager. It seems that Judy was “plucked out of time,” so her existence was forgotten until the recent Stargirl: The Lost Children miniseries. So now Judy has to adjust to a world where she never existed. I wish Jeremy Adams was still writing the main Flash series, but this miniseries is better than nothing.

STAR WARS: THE HIGH REPUBLIC – ATTACK OF THE HUTTS HALLOWEEN TRICK-OR-READ 2023 (Marvel, 2023) – “Attack of the Hutts,” [W] Cavan Scott, [A] Ario Anindito. This was another free comic. It’s a reprint of Star Wars: The High Republic #5. I don’t much like the Star Wars franchise in the first place, and also, this comic’s story makes no sense out of its original context. Apparently this issue is the “first comics appearance of Vernestra Rwoh,” but I have no idea who that is.

HEXAGON BRIDGE #2 (Image, 2023) – “Staden” etc., [W/A] Richard Blake. This comic’s artwork and coloring are beautiful. They’re closer to the standards of European comics than American comics. (Indeed, the comics’ pages seem to have the aspect ratio of European album pages, and I’m not sure why.) Richard Blake is really good at drawing both futuristic and modern environments. However, Hexagon Bridge’s story is much less interesting than its art. It lacks any tension or excitement, and Adley is a boring protagonist.

THE SCHLUB #3 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Ryan Stegman & Kenny Porter, [A] Tyrell Cannon. Roger escapes from an awkward meeting with the Vigilant, then he tries to use his new superhero body to impress his ex-wife, but it doesn’t work. Then Roger is summoned by Cirrus’s dad, who is some kind of god. The emphasis this issue is mostly on Roger in Cirrus’s body, and I’d like to see more of Cirrus’s interactions with Roger’s acquaintances. The highlight of this issue is Cirrus’s ex-wife’s date with a guy who’s the worst kind of toxic dudebro.

SIRENS OF THE CITY #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joanne Starer, [A] Khary Randolph. Layla confronts her adoptive mother, Diane, and her real mother, Lilith. Neither of them is particularly helpful. The incubi and sirens prepare for a giant battle of the sexes. Again, this issue makes very effective use of a limited color palette.

DARK SPACES: DUNGEON #1 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Scott Snyder, [A] Hayden Sherman. A man named Tyler discovers a hole in the woods which leads to an underground dungeon. A federal agent, Madoc, goes to investigate, and explains that he himself was imprisoned in a similar dungeon as a child, and that the person who built the dungeons was never found. While Madoc investigates, Tyler flees to an apparently secure location with his wife and family, but that night he gets a phone call saying “You shouldn’t have done that. I’ll be seeing you soon.” This comic is a scary piece of psychological horror. However, I feel that the Dark Spaces imprint is deceptive, because there are now four Dark Spaces titles, and none of them have anything to do with each other. Even Wildfire and Dungeon seem to belong to completely different genres, despite having the same creators.

FROM THE WORLD OF MINOR THREATS: THE ALTERNATES #2 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Patton Oswalt et al., [A] Christopher Mitten w/Tess Fowler. The featured character this issue is the brilliantly named Crab Louie. Having returned from the Ledge, he misses the feeling of being one with the ocean. The pages drawn by Tess Fowler, depicting Crab Louie’s memories of his oceanic life, are far more appealing than the rest of the comic. The main plot of the issue is that the Alternates try to track down a drug that gives people access to The Ledge.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN: THE BIRTH OF TOMBSTONE #1 HALLOWEEN TRICK-OR-READ 2023 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Zeb Wells, [A] John Romita Jr. Another free comic. This issue is a reprint of Amazing Spider-Man (2022) #3. “The Birth of Tombstone” is based on various Spider-Man comics of the late ‘80s. It includes three different villains from that era – Tombstone, the Rose, and the White Rabbit – and its main story is very similar to that of the original Tombstone story in Spectacular Spider-Man. Those late-‘80s Spider-Man comics weren’t all that great to begin with, and Zeb Wells just rehashes those stories without adding anything original to them.

CITY BOY #5 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Greg Pak, [A] Minkyu Jung. While having a panic attack, Cameron accidentally creates an incarnation of an anthill, which counts as a city. Swamp Thing comes to help out, and Cameron and Swampy have an interesting encounter. This issue is a departure from the previous four issues because of its non-urban setting, and yet it still feels like a comic about cities. This series deserves more than a seven-issue run.

THE WRONG EARTH: WE COULD BE HEROES #1 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Tom Peyer, [A] Jamal Igle. With Dragonflyman and Stinger absent, the Fortune City of Earth-Alpha (the good Earth) has been taken over by criminals. To protect the city, the mayor, bank president, and police chief have to turn into animal-themed superheroes. They do their job pretty well despite being out-of-shape old men, until at the end of the issue, the original Dragonfly and Dragonflyman return to Fortune City with their sidekicks. This is a funny issue that extracts some extra mileage out of a somewhat limited premise.

UNIVERSAL MONSTERS: DRACULA #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Martin Simmonds. This is a project that Tynion and Simmonds worked on while taking a break from Department of Truth, which will hopefully be finished soon. Universal Monsters: Dracula is an adaptation of Universal’s Dracula movie, so its plot has some notable divergences from Bram Stoker’s original novel. However, this comic is interesting not because of the plot, but because of Martin Simmonds’s spectacular art. He uses media and methods that are otherwise unknown in current periodical comic books. Each of his pages is a beautiful painting.

HACK/SLASH: BACK TO SCHOOL #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Zoe Thorogood. A girl named Cassandra Hack joins a school for serial killer hunters. I don’t know anything about the original Hack/Slash series, but I bought this comic because of Zoe Thorogood’s art. Her artwork in this issue is spectacular, with beautiful linework and innovative page layouts. I especially like the “welcome to the academy” double-page splash, where the other academy kids are fighting a giant tentacled thing. Thorogood also makes Cassandra an intriguing protagonist.

KILLER QUEENS 2 #2 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] David M. Booher, [A] Bradley Clayton. The two protagonists try to protect the runaway prince from his pursuers. This issue was fun, but also quite hard to follow. I had to read the first two pages several times in order to figure out which two of the three characters were siblings.

UNCANNY SPIDER-MAN #2 (Marvel, 2023) – “Blue Streak,” [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Lee Garbett. Kurt meets Mystique and Dagger, then fights the Rhino, and while doing that, he has an intimate moment with Silver Sable. So far, Uncanny Spider-Man is the best of Si Spurrier’s Nightcrawler comics.

SANDMAN UNIVERSE: NIGHTMARE COUNTRY #5 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Lisandro Estherren. There are a couple different plotlines in this issue, but the main point is that Desire is the real villain of the series, and is backing the angel Moroni. This series has been hampered by an overly complicated plot and a slow publishing schedule.

BLACK’S MYTH: THE KEY TO HIS HEART #5 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Eric Palicki, [A] Wendell Cavalcanti. This issue resolves the entire mystery, and then Strummer goes to work for Rainsford Black full-time. I really didn’t understand this issue at all, and it doesn’t feel like a satisfying conclusion to the series.

GRIM #14 (Boom!, 2023) – “Black Sheep,” [W] Stephanie Phillips, [A] Flaviano. The various characters are sent to hell and are exposed to their worst fears. I think I’ve run out of patience with Grim. Its plot and characters are just not particularly interesting, and its artwork is good, but not good enough to justify the price of the series. I believe I ordered issue 15 already, but that will be my last issue.

SLOW BURN #1 (Boom!, 2023) – “Roxane,” [W] Ollie Masters, [A] Pierluigi Minotti. Some young criminals are escaping from a heist in which they unknowingly stole a priceless Stradivarius violin. They find themselves in a mining town which has been abandoned because of an underground coal mine fire. I must have ordered this comic because of the premise. There really is a town in Pennsylvania that’s been abandoned due to a coal mine fire that’s been burning since 1962, and may continue burning for 250 more years. The Centralia mine fire has inspired many other works of popular culture, but I don’t know of any other comics based on it.

ASTONISHING ICEMAN #3 (Marvel, 2023) – “Out Cold, Part 3,” [W] Steve Orlando, [A] Vincenzo Carratù. Bobby protects some people who are being hunted because they voluntarily gave themselves mutant powers. I enjoyed the parts of this issue that are about Bobby. However, the current Orchis storyline is rather depressing. It seems like all of Professor X’s progress toward better human-mutant relations has been reversed, because humans hate and fear mutants more than ever before. I’m not sure just what happened in the Hellfire Gala special, but I can’t imagine anything the mutants could have done to justify this hatred.

ICE CREAM MAN #37 (Image, 2023) – “Flight of the Figglybumps,” [W] W. Maxwell Prince, [A] Martín Morazzo. This issue’s main storyline is about the Figglybumps, a race of furry creatures that are so cute as to be disgusting. One of the Figglybumps is drafted into the army and subsequently killed, and his pregnant widow is taken by the Ice Cream Man to his secret arctic base. In the other plot thread, the artist who created the Figglybups has committed suicide, and his brother and sister have to sort through his possessions. Ice Cream Man has an unrelentingly grim, depressing tone, which makes it somewhat tedious to read.

SUBGENRE #1 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Matt Kindt, [A] Wilfredo Torres. This comic starts out as a a cyberpunk murder mystery, but then, shortly after the halfway point, it turns into an epic fantasy. I’ve had mixed feelings about most of Matt Kindt’s recent work, but Submerge is his most interesting series in some time, thanks to its metatextual nature. The comic appears to be a metatextual exploration of the topic of genre. It’s also full of references to Kindt’s earlier works. For instance, the first panel shows the protagonist reading a copy of Bang! Later on we see a stack of other books written by Kindt. I’m excited to see where this series is going.

RUMPUS ROOM #2 (AWA, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell, [A] Ramon Rosanas. We now know that Erica is really a cop, and she starts interviewing her fellow prisoners, all of whom are completely pessimistic about their chances of escaping. She also discovers that one of the prisoners is Bob Schrunk’s daughter, who Schrunk imprisoned for being transgender. This comic is a chilling depiction of how rich people are above the law.

STATICS #2 (Fantagraphics, 2023) – “When Heroes Clash in Fundamental Ways” etc., [W/A] Jeffrey Lewis. This is the second issue of Jeffrey Lewis’s self-published series. The cover is an homage to All-Star Comics #3, and I kept thinking that Statics #2 was a facsimile edition of All-Star Comics #3. One of the stories in Statics #2 is a superhero parody which is also a discussion of the Ukraine war. As in issue 1, the most interesting story is about the author’s parents’ travel adventures. This time around, Lewis’s “dad’s boat story” is retold by his mother, and the differences between their versions are significant. It’s always nice when  someone uses the moribund comic book format to publish a distinctive, personal work such as this one.

TANGUY ET LAVERDURE VOL. 17 (Dargaud, 1972) – Mission “Dernière Chance”, [W] Jean-Michel Charlier, [A] Jijé. This series is about two French Air Force pilots, Michel Tanguy and Ernest Laverdure. The first eight albums were drawn by Uderzo, and the next fourteen by Jijé. In this album, Tanguy and Laverdure travel to a fictional Middle Eastern microstate to help out its ruler, Azraf, an old friend of theirs. Azraf is fighting a revolution bankrolled by European mercenaries, and Tanguy and Laverdure have to help evacuate the Europeans stuck in the country, as well as Azraf’s wife and child. This comic is mostly a thriller, but it does have some funny moments, including a scene where Laverdure has to babysit some badly behaved children. To me the “style atome” seems more suited to comedy than adventure, but Jijé was an excellent aviation artist, and the aerial fight scenes are the highlight of the album. Charlier’s writing is also exciting. Charlier is familiar to American readers as the writer of Blueberry, but Jijé is unknown in America, despite being one of the most important creators of Franco-Belgian comics. He was the founder of the “style atome” or “école de Marcinelle,” whose greatest representatives were himself and Franquin. He is probably the most important Franco-Belgian cartoonist whose work has never appeared in English, with the possible exception of one Blueberry album that he assisted on. (The second most important, I think, is Gotlib.)

ALL-AMERICAN COMICS #16 facsimile (DC, 1939/2023) – “The Green Lantern,” [W] Bill Finger, [A] Martin Nodell. The lead story is the first appearance of Alan Scott, the original Green Lantern. This Green Lantern has nothing in common with later versions of the character, except for the name and the powers. DC later had to do some complex retconning in order to make Alan fit within Green Lantern Corps continuity. The first backup feature is Hop Harrigan, an aviation hero who is totally forgotten today, but was one of All-American Publications’s most successful characters. (From 1939 to 1944, All-American was a separate company from DC, though the two companies’ characters appeared in each other’s comics.) Some of the other backup features in this issue are reprints of newspaper strips, including Mutt and Jeff as well as the much more obscure Ben Webster. Another backup story is Sheldon Mayer’s Scribbly. This story is undistinguished, but it’s the only Scribbly story I’ve ever read. Scribbly is often described as a masterpiece, and I wonder why it’s never been reprinted.

SUPERMAN #7 (DC, 2023) – “The Chained Part Two,” [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Gleb Melnikov et al. This issue has a legacy number of 850, which unfortunately means that Superman, Son of Kal-El is not included in legacy numbering, even though it replaced Superman on the schedule. This issue’s main story is devoted to Superman’s fight with the chained guy from the prison. I thought for a minute that this character might be Mordru, since he loses his powers when he’s buried underground, but he doesn’t resemble Mordru otherwise. There are also several other vignettes by different artists. One of these vignettes introduces Lex’s mother and his daughter Lena. This version of Lena Luthor was introduced in 2000, replacing the original Lena Luthor, who was Lex’s sister and not his daughter. In the pre-Flashpoint continuity, Lena had some circular marks on her forehead from being possessed by Brainiac, and she has the same marks in Superman #8.

THE MAN FROM MAYBE #1 (Oni, 2023) – “The Crate of Death!”, [W] Jordan Thomas, [A] Shaky Kane. On a postapocalyptic Earth, a mysterious cowboy befriends an abandoned child, and there’s another plot thread about some alligator-like aliens. This comic has the same creators as Weird Work, and like Weird Work, The Man from Maybe has beautiful art. Man from Maybe’s plot isn’t the best, but at least it’s better than that of Weird Work.

THE FORGED #5 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Greg Rucka & Eric Trautmann, [A] Mike Henderson. The soldiers continue their shore leave. The Empress reveals herself as a frivolous overgrown child who seems totally unequal to her responsibilities. These last two issues have been less exciting than the first three, thanks to the lack of action or tension. Like earlier issues, The Forged #5 includes eight pages of text at the end. These pages are boring to read, and they don’t tell the reader anything truly essential. I suppose they’re intended as worldbuilding, but the strength of The Forged is not its worldbuilding but rather its depiction of female soldiers.

DETECTIVE COMICS #382 (DC, 1968). “Riddle of the Robbin’ Robin!”, [W] Frank Robbins, [A] Bob Brown. I suspect this was one of those comics where the cover was designed first, and then the story was written to fit the cover. In this case, the cover shows Robin cracking a safe. The story is about a man named the Armorer who runs a hideout for criminals, but then he steals the loot that the criminals have stored in his safe. Somehow the criminals are too stupid to realize that it’s the Armorer who’s been stealing from them. There’s also an Elongated Man backup story by Gardner Fox and Sid Greene, about a boy who thinks he has wish-granting powers.

SPACE FAMILY ROBINSON #8 (Gold Key, 1964) – “Peril on Planet Four,” [W] Gaylord Du Bois, [A] Dan Spiegle. Landing on an alien planet, the Robinsons are imprisoned by alien ants. They escape with the help of another prisoner, a bug-eyed alien named Eeyarvel. Then they help Eeyarvel’s people win a war against the ants. This is a rather tame story, but it includes some elegant artwork. There’s also a backup feature, Captain Venture, by the same creators.

HOUSE OF X #5 (Marvel, 2019) – “For the Children,” [W] Jonathan Hickman, [A] R.B. Silva. Professor X recruits Emma Frost to the Quiet Council, and asks her to invite Sebastian Shaw as well. In exchange, Emma demands two of her own seats on the council. In the end it turned out that the really problematic Quiet Council member was not Emma but Mr. Sinister. This issue also includes a scene with the Phalanx, set 1000 years in the future. I have no idea what the point of this scene was, and I don’t remember the Phalanx appearing anywhere else in Hickman’s run.

VELVET #11 (Image, 2015) – “The Man Who Stole the World Part 1,” [W] Ed Brubaker, [A] Steve Epting. A secret agent, Maximillion Dark, reflects on his career as a spy, and makes the surprising observation that spy work is really boring. Then Max starts a romance with Velvet, an old acquaintance, but Velvet figures out that Max is actually betraying her.

CAPTAIN AMERICA #187 (Marvel, 1975) – “The Madness Maze!”, [W] John Warner, [A] Frank Robbins. Cap is trapped in a maze by Dredmund Druid, also known as just The Druid. This issue has some good action scenes, but its story is boring. John Warner was a far worse writer than his predecessor on this series, Steve Englehart.

TREES #2 (Image, 2014) – untitled, [W] Warren Ellis, [A] Jason Howard. This issue has several different plotlines, one taking place in an Arctic base, and another in Somalia. Trees had a fascinating premise – giant alien treelike structures appearing out of nowhere. But Ellis makes the unfortunate decision to focus on several trees at once, and as a result, his story lacks unity. In the sequel miniseries, Trees: Three Fates, Ellis addressed this problem by focusing on just one tree for the whole miniseries. However, that miniseries had a separate problem, in that it was barely about the trees at all.

CLEAN ROOM #11 (Vertigo, 2016) – “Red Inventory,” [W] Gail Simone, [A] Jon Davis-Hunt. A disgustingly evil businessman, Reston Wenuka, tries to take over Astrid’s corporate empire while Astrid is indisposed. Meanwhile he also orders an assassination attempt on Astrid herself, but it fails. Back in the Clean Room, the demon Spark saves Chloe from a different assassin, but turns evil again in the process. Clean Room is perhaps my favorite of Gail’s comics other than Birds of Prey.

FELIX THE CAT #31 (Toby, 1952) – “Food for Naught” and “Come On Up and See Me Some Crime,” [W/A] Otto Messmer and/or Joe Oriolo. In the first story, Felix agrees to babysit a bratty child, but only so that he can raid the child’s parents’ refrigerator. Felix never manages to get any food from the fridge, and he’s paid with a check that proves to be bad. In the backup story, Felix inherits a fish market, then has to defend it from the local protection racket. The second of these stories is better than the first, but neither of them includes any of Felix’s signature fourth-wall-breaking moments.

MADMAN COMICS #8 (Dark Horse, 1995) – “The Puke,” [W/A] Mike Allred. Madman fights a man who’s been turned into a living mound of vomit. This is a funny and exciting issue, but its plot is not particularly deep. The letters page includes a baby picture of Katie Mignola, who won an Eisner award in 2003 for a story co-written with her father.

2000 AD #568 (Fleetway, 1988) – Rogue Trooper: “Hit Two,” [W] Simon Geller, [A] Steve Dillon. Rogue assassinates his latest target. Strontium Dog: “Stone Killers Part 9,” [W] Alan Grant, [A] Carlos Ezquerra. Another chapter that mostly focuses on Middenface. In this chapter he weeps at the destruction of some Eldorado Mist, which I assume is a brand of whisky. Dredd: “Dredd in Oz Part 24: Cosmic Surfin’!”, [W] John Wagner & Alan Grant, [A] Barry Kitson. Chopper heads for the finish line, despite knowing that Dredd is waiting there to kill him. Tyranny Rex: untitled, [W] John Smith, [A] Steve Dillon. Tyranny Rex is sentenced to death and executed for the crime of stealing the musician clones. However, the Tyranny Rex who gets executed is herself a clone. Future Shocks: “Conquering the Galaxy on $10 a Day,” [W] Philip Barber, [A] Simon Harrison. An alien overlord writes a book on how to conquer the galaxy, but then his own methods are used against him.

FREEDOM FIGHTERS #3 (DC, 1976) – untitled, [W] Martin Pasko, [A] Ramona Fradon. A boring story about six old Quality Comics characters. None of these characters ever had much success in the DC Universe, with the possible exception of Uncle Sam. The villain of this issue is a man who’s given super-sniper powers by aliens, but even before acquiring his powers, he had already murdered his wife because she was annoying.

NEVADA #1 (Vertigo, 1998) – “Another Damn Suck-Egg Corpse,” [W] Steve Gerber, [A] Phil Winslade. As explained in Gerber’s editorial note, this story is inspired by a text piece from Howard the Duck #16, about “a three-way battle among a Vegas chorus girl, an ostrich, and a killer lampshade.” Accordingly, the title character of Nevada is a Las Vegas chorus girl who has a pet ostrich, though I didn’t notice any lampshade. (BTW, I love Howard the Duck #16,though I understand why other readers hate it. In particular, I think “Ramsludge Hawthorne” is the funniest name ever.) In this issue, Nevada’s ostrich helps protect her from a stalker, and there’s another plot about some mysterious murders. Nevada is one of Gerber’s few major works that I haven’t read, and I need to correct that. Nevada and her ostrich have a similar relationship to Howard and Bev, though the ostrich can’t talk.

CHARLTON PREMIERE #3 (Charlton, 1968) – “Sinistro, Boy Fiend in Too Many Happy Endings!”, [W] Grass Green, [A] Henry Scarpelli. A teenage boy gives himself superpowers and becomes a supervillain, fighting thinly disguised versions of Captain America, Superman and Spider-Man, as well as Charlton’s own characters Blue Beetle and Peacemaker. Charlton Premiere #2, “Children of Doom,” was one of Charlton’s best comics ever. Charlton Premiere #3, however, is an unfunny, idiotic waste of time. Sinistro never appeared again, and no wonder.

WONDER WOMAN #54 (DC, 1991) – “Mind Games,” [W] George Pérez, [A] Jill Thompson. Hermes decides to destroy Boston, and Diana has to stop him. It turns out that this scene is happening entirely in Diana’s mind. Meanwhile, Vanessa’s guidance counselor, Helen, becomes suspicious about Vanessa’s psychiatrist, Dr. Stratton. Helen goes to Dr. Stratton’s house to investigate him, and discovers that he’s actually Dr. Psycho. In later issues, Diana manages to defeat Dr. Psycho and save both Helen and her unborn child. I still think George was the best Wonder Woman writer ever. He was far better than Marston, who is the only other obvious candidate.

SCENE OF THE CRIME #3 (Vertigo, 1999) – “A Little Piece of Goodnight Part 4,” [W] Ed Brubaker, [A] Michael Lark. Private detective Jack Herriman tries to solve the murder of a woman named Maggie, and discovers that her death is connected to a sexually abusive hippie cult. Scene of the Crime was a really interesting comic, and it’s a shame that there was never a sequel to the initial four-issue miniseries. Michael Lark’s pencils in this issue are not well served by Sean Phillips’s inks.

RAWHIDE KID #57 (Marvel, 1967) – “When the Scorpion Strikes,” [W/A] Larry Lieber. Jim Evans, an apothecary, is dating the prettiest girl in town, but another man beats Jim in a gunfight, then publicly humiliates Jim and steals his girlfriend. Seeking revenge, Jim disguises himself as the Scorpion, and he coats his bullets with a paralytic solution. The Rawhide Kid beats him by using his own bullets against him. The Scorpion’s only other appearance was in Ghost Rider (1967) #4 , where he called himself the Sting-Ray. At the time of this comic, Marvel already had a much better-known villain named the Scorpion. Larry Lieber is one of the only surviving people who worked in comics in the ‘50s.

OUR ARMY AT WAR #250 (DC, 1972) – “90 Day Wonder,” [W] Robert Kanigher, [A] Russ Heath. Sgt. Rock and Easy Company are saddled with an arrogant commanding officer, Lt. Kenton, who has no combat experience, but who thinks he knows better than his men. He gets himself killed in the end through his cowardice. At the time this comic was pubished, American officers like Lt. Kenton often got “fragged,” i.e. murdered by their own men. Russ Heath’s artwork in this story is incredible. He drew beautiful combat scenes and machinery, and he had an unmatched ability to make two-dimensional drawings seem three-dimensional. I think he may have been the greatest American war comics artist, though he has stiff competition from Joe Kubert, John Severin and Jack Davis. In the backup story, by Bob Haney and E.R. Cruz, a soldier escapes from a snowbound prison camp, then has a vision of a tiger fighting a snake made of ice. This turns out to be a metaphor for the victory of the sun over the snow.

CHARLTON ACTION FEATURING STATIC #11 (Charlton, 1985) – “The Armed Man,” [W/A] Steve Ditko. Stac Rae is transformed into a superhero with static energy powers. But his female companion, Fera, thinks his powers are dangerous, and tries to convince him to stop using them. Static is perhaps my favorite Ditko solo creation because he’s a figure of raw, unfettered energy. I am not a big Ditko fan, but I do like his comics’ atmosphere of frenetic action and energy, and Static is one of the best examples of that sensibility. In the backup story, a villain uses a pet monster to murder people. Oddly, the story also includes an additional murder not committed by the monster, and we never learn who this other murderer was. The other backup feature, Brak, looks as if it was designed as a comic strip, and it’s tedious to read because of its tiny panels and abundant dialogue. An odd thing about this issue is that it includes an ad for Fantagraphics comics. It’s surprising to realize that Charlton and Fantagraphics both existed at the same time.

THE DEEP #6 (Boom!, 2017) – untitled, [W] Tom Taylor, [A] James Brouwer. The family discovers that the island they’ve been investigating is actually a giant turtle. They recover some Atlantean relics from inside the turtle’s shell, and then they all escape safely. The issue ends with a hook for a possible sequel, which would be focused on the family’s exploration of their own Atlantean heritage. The Deep was a really interesting series, and it’s a shame that it hasn’t gotten a sequel, though it did get adapted into a TV show. James Brouwer’s artwork is too strongly influenced by animation.

I went back to Heroes yesterday. However, they did not have a couple comics I had been wanting, such as Abbott 1979 #2 and Captain Ginger: The Last Feeder #1.

GROO IN THE WILD #4 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Sergio Aragonés, [W] Mark Evanier. King Putrio hires Ahax to lead a fishing expedition which will supposedly discharge all of the kingdom’s debts. Predictably, however, Groo sinks both of Ahax’s fishing vessels. This causes King Putrio’s councilors to lose patience with him and remove him from his throne. Afterward, Groo finds what might be the last two ortix in the world, but instead of killing and eating them, he spares them so they can breed more ortix. This shows that Groo is occasionally capable of learning a lesson.

USAGI YOJIMBO: ICE & SNOW #2 (Dark Horse, 2023) – “Ice and Snow Part 2,” [W/A] Stan Sakai. Jei discovers that Usagi is nearby, and leads the bandits to look for him. Meanwhile, Usagi defeats Yuki-Onna by setting her on fire. She flees the cabin to look for easy prey, and happens across Jei and his men. So Usagi’s two problems may be about to solve each other.

TRANSFORMERS #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Daniel Warren Johnson. While admiring the beauty of nature, Optimus Prime accidentally steps on a deer, and is crushed to discover how fragile everything on Earth is. The Decepticons fight a human pilot, who turns out to be Duke from G.I. Joe. Spike’s girlfriend Carly returns home to discover that her father has been killed. I think this is quite likely the best Transformers comic ever. It’s certainly the only Transformers comic I’ve read that felt as if it had a higher purpose, rather than just being a commercial for toys.

DARK RIDE #9 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Andrei Bressan. This issue’s timeline partly overlaps with that of the previous two. Halloween argues with Arthur, and he tells her that he’s been using her to help Samhain realize his responsibilities, because “you are a tool, not unlike this screwdriver!” Halloween runs away, furious. Then she’s contacted by a creepy man who’s been stalking her, and she kills the man with the same screwdriver. I just noticed this parallelism. Finally, Halloween reveals that Arthur sold both of his children’s souls to the devil. I already predicted this in my review of issue 8.

LOVE & ROCKETS #14 (Fantagraphics, 2023) – [W/A] Gilbert Hernandez and Jaime Hernandez. Gilbert’s story is another adaptation of one of Fritz’s B-movies. It’s an okay story, but it leaves me cold, like most of Gilbert’s recent work. In Jaime’s story, Maggie and Ray finally get married after several decades of courtship, and Hopey has complex feelings. Maggie’s wedding is a very touching moment. Jaime’s half of the issue also includes a science fiction story about the Ti-Girls, or at least I think that’s who they are.

BATMAN #139 (DC, 2023) – “Mind Bomb Part 1,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Jorge Jimenez. Batman has abandoned his family and is fighting crime all on its own. In this issue he fights the Joker again. This story isn’t particularly interesting. There’s also a backup story starring Vandal Savage, with art by Jorge Corona.

BLACK HAMMER: THE END #2 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Malachi Ward. Sherlock Frankenstein and Colonel Weird recruit a team of alternate-dimensional superheroes to fight Anti-God. Lucy’s son, whose name I forget, accidentally triggers Golden Gail’s powers. Rose gets sick of having to stay on Black Hammer Farm. She also discovers that in this world, the Black Hammer heroes are characters in a comic book, and the writer of the comic book is R. Walden Lari – an anagram for Randall Weird. For what happens next, see the above review of issue 3.

ZAWA + THE BELLY OF THE BEAST #1 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Michael Dialynas. The town of Mesa’s Boon is ruled by a dictatorial mayor who controls the town’s food supply. Three teenagers decide to rob the Mayor’s factory. While there, they accidentally liberate a monstrous girl with an enormous appetite. The volcano above the town appeals to the girl for her assistance in overcoming the town’s hunger. This comic has excellent draftsmanship and a fantastic premise, and I’m excited to read more of it. Michael Dialynas did some very effective artwork for The Woods and Wynd, and Zawa shows that he can write as well as draw.

ULTIMATE UNIVERSE #1 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jonathan Hickman, [A] Stefano Caselli. The Ultimate versions of Dr. Doom and Iron Man free Thor from his prison on Asgard. But then some villains destroy midtown Manhattan and conspire to blame Tony for it. I haven’t read any Ultimate Marvel comics in a long time, but this comic seems reasonably interesting, though I’m more excited for Hickman’s Ultimate Spider-Man. On the last two pages, the list of victims includes Norman Osborn and May Parker.

SHAZAM! #5 (DC, 2023) – “Never Too Late,” [W] Mark Waid, [A] Dan Mora. Mary uses her own lightning to activate Billy’s powers. Billy and Mary team up to save the moon and defeat Garguax and Zazzala. Mary figures out that Billy is being driven crazy by his own six gods. Billy confronts the gods and demands that they put his powers back under his own control, or else he’ll quit being Captain Marvel. But then Freddy arrives and undercuts Billy by asking the gods to give him the powers. And that’s the last comic for now.

July and August reviews

SUPERMAN #32 (DC, 1989) – “Gladiator,” [W] Roger Stern, [A] Kerry Gammill. Superman, bearded and dressed in rags, is trapped on Mongul’s Warworld. Eventually Mongul kills him, but the Eradicator saves him. Meanwhile, an amnesiac man who looks like Clark Kent is wandering around Metropolis. I assume this “man” is Matrix, a.k.a. Supergirl. This is an exciting issue, but its most notable quality is Kerry Gammill’s often stunning artwork. He is quite underrated.

FLASH #182 (DC, 1968) – “The Thief Who Stole All the Money in Central City!”, [W] John Broome, [A] Ross Andru. Angry at being rejected from a magician’s convention, Abra Kadabra commands the Flash and his fellow citizens to steal all the money in town and give it to him. Barry defeats him by sending him back to the future. The backup story, “The Flash’s Super-Speed Phobia!”, is by the same team. As the title indicates, the plot is that Barry is afraid to use his powers, and this turns out to be caused by an inner ear injury.

Next trip to Heroes:

SAGA #65 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Brian K. Vaughan, [A] Fiona Staples. This issue’s soliciation is a cute piece of metatext. The solicitation just says “Everything’s going to be fine,” but the cover art is a picture of Lying Cat. In the main storyline, Alana searches frantically for the kids, and manages to find them just before the deadline to leave the planet. Also, Squire Robot learns to talk again. This storyline ends with what Hazel calls “an actual happy ending.” However, in the B plot, The Will and Petrichor try to kill each other, and Sophie gets killed as collateral damage. The next issue isn’t coming out for another month.

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES/USAGI YOJIMBO: WHEREWHEN #3 (IDW, 2023) – “Wherewhen Part 3,” [W/A] Stan Sakai. The Turtles, Usagi and their allies fight the Mogura ninja, and Kitsune is killed. I assume that this explains why she doesn’t appear in Senso, although I can’t actually remember if she appeared or was mentioned in that series. The one surviving ninja tells the heroes how to find Dr. Wherewhen, but meanwhile, Dr. Wherewhen decides he no longer needs the ninjas, and he has his robots kill them. The panel with the horde of ninjas is full of cute Easter eggs. One of the ninjas is holding an ice cream cone, another has a pineapple for a head, and a third is Waldo.

ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN: JON KENT #5 (DC, 2023) – “Countdown to Injustice Chapter 5: Takedown,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Clayton Henry. Jon meets up with Batman and all the other heroes who are resisting Superman’s tyranny. But Superman has been tracking Jon, and as soon as Jon leaves, Superman captures the heroes and sentences Bruce and Harley to death. Also, Jon discovers that Clark has imprisoned Ma and Pa Kent in the Fortress of Solitude for their own “protection.” DC has now confirmed that the upcoming Superman #7 is also Superman #850, which sadly means that Superman, Son of Kal-El is not included in the legacy numbering.

I HATE THIS PLACE #10 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kyle Starks, [A] Artyom Topilin. Trudy’s dad tries to force Gabby to turn on the doomsday device, but Trudy kills her dad before he can do it. The world is saved, and Trudy and Gabby decide they might stay on the farm and start a family. This is a much happier ending than I expected. However, the last panel depicts someone shouting HELP. I don’t understand what this implies (see here for some theories), but it does suggest the possibility of a sequel.

FANTASTIC FOUR #9 (Marvel, 2023) – “Art is Long – and Life is Short,” [W] Ryan North, [A] Ivan Fiorelli. The issue starts with a flashback in which Ben reads comics to Alicia. This is interesting in the context of Nick Sousanis and his collaborators’ work on creating comics for the blind. Then the FF team up to defeat Xargorr, taking advantage of Alicia’s sculpting ability and Xargorr’s unfamiliarity with her. They ultimately win by making Xargorr forget her own powers. I think the best thing about this storyline was Flame-O.

SHE-HULK #14 (Marvel, 2023) – “Girl Can’t Help It Part 4”, [W] Rainbow Rowell, [A] Andrés Genolet. After stressful encounters with the FF, Jack, and Mallory Book, Jen goes on another date with Scoundrel. But then Scoundrel reveals that he’s been stealing bomb parts so an alien named Drapurg can use them to blow up New York. It is of course no surprise that Scoundrel was up to no good. I was afraid this series had been cancelled, and I’m glad that Marvel is restarting it with a new #1.

FENCE: REDEMPTION #2 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] C.S. Pacat, [A] Johanna the Mad. Another issue full of queer relationship drama, with occasional breaks for fencing. Fence has amazing characterization and is also a landmark example of LGBTQ representation, and I’ve always loved it. On the other hand, there are so many characters that it’s hard to remember them all. Also, the plot is so slow-paced that there’s no chance it will ever arrive anywhere. At this rate, it would take hundreds of pages for Nicholas to actually make it onto the Olympic team or something.  Slow pacing is not a problem in manga, where there actually are hundreds of pages available, but it is a drawback in an American comic.

ONCE UPON A TIME AT THE END OF THE WORLD #7 (Boom!, 2023) – “City of Many Loves,” [W] Jason Aaron, [A] Leila del Duca. Mezzy and Maceo turn their new city, Golgonooza, into a utopian paradise of invention, play, and sex, though of course we already know it’s not going to last. A fascinating thing about this issue is the way Maceo and Mezzy deliberately embrace “childish” pleasures. Golgonooza has a BDSM dungeon, but it also has waterslides and pillow fights and a “candy vault.” When you’re an adult or even an older child, you’re supposed to feel ashamed of enjoying childish things (for an infuriating example, see this Reddit post), but Maceo and Mezzy instead value childhood for its sense of playfulness and creativity. Once Upon a Time… has become one of my favorite current comics, and I think this might be the best issue. It’s also notable that this issue includes an extended quotation from one of Blake’s prophetic books. I really need to read more Blake.

LOCAL MAN #5 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Tony Fleecs & Tim Seeley. The real killer reveals himself, but I don’t think his name is mentioned, and I don’t recall seeing him before. I think he’s just some random local dude. Crossjack manages to kill the murderer, then sleeps with Inga, but the twist ending is that Inga was working with whoever was behind Camo Crusader.

VANISH #8 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Ryan Stegman, [W] Donny Cates, [A] Ken Marion. Oliver gets in an extremely gruesome fight, then disappears. Some months later, Elyn has given birth, but Oliver is hanging around outside her house, stalking her. We now know that Donny Cates was in a severe car accident and has been unable to write for six months, and Ryan Stegman has been writing Vanish uncredited. Stegman finally received a writing credit with this issue. Perhaps this explains why recent issues of Vanish have been a bit hard to follow, but more importantly, I wish Donny Cates all the best, and I hope he recovers quickly.

WEIRD WORK #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jordan Thomas, [A] Shaky Kane. A police procedural mystery set in a city full of brightly colored bizarre-looking people. I can’t remember much about Weird Work’s plot, but I’m willing to buy anything drawn by Shaky Kane. He’s one of the most innovative imitators of Kirby.

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES/USAGI YOJIMBO: WHEREWHEN #4 (IDW, 2023) – “Wherewhen Part Four,” [W/A] Stan Sakai. I got this on the same day as issue 3. This issue begins by reintroducing Ino, a character not seen in thirty years. His last full appearance was in “The Last Ino Story” in issue 38 of the Mirage series, and he was last seen on the back cover of Dark Horse issue 47. We also meet his daughter Ichiko, who only “appeared” in those same two issues, as an unborn fetus and a newborn. Besides the Ino/Ichiko scene, the rest of the issue consists of fights between the heroes and Dr. Wherewhen’s robots.

PHANTOM ROAD #5 (Image, 2023) – “Jackknife,” [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Gabriel Hernandez Walta. Dom and Birdie continue to fight the zombies, then they discover that the thing in the back of the truck is hatching. The government agent, Theresa, becomes increasingly suspicious. This issue ends with the caption “End of Book 1.” This series is clearly not yet complete, but issue 6 has not been solicited yet. (Edit: Now it has been.)

TRUE CRIME FUNNIES #1 (Jim Rugg, 2023) – “A Diet of Danger” etc., [W/A] Jim Rugg. I saw this at Heroes Con and later at the Heroes store, but I hesitated to buy it because of its $10 price tag. On  a later trip to Heroes, I decided to go for it because I was buying fewer comics than usual that week. My copy is signed by Rugg. This issue’s first story is in color, and is adapted from the memoirs of a San Francisco cop named George White. It includes some gory violence, and the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers make a cameo appearance in the last panel. The second story, “Gold,” is about the legendary professional wrestler Frank Gotch. These stories are both quite well-crafted, and this issue is a good use of the comic book format.

BARNSTORMERS #1 (Dark Horse, 2023) – “A Ballad of Love and Murder,” [W] Scott Snyder, [A] Tula Lotay. In 1927, Hawk, a barnstorming pilot, crash-lands his plane in the middle of a wedding party. To his surprise, the bride, Tillie, is happy the wedding was ruined because she was being married against her will. She convinces Hawk to take her away with him, and they get involved in a complicated steampunk plot. Barnstormers has a compelling story, and Tula Lotay’s art is excellent. The scenes with Tillie in her wedding dress are a particular highlight. However, like Clear, Barnstormers would have been more readable if it was split into six issues rather than three. Both series were first published digitally, so the division into print issues is arbitrary.

SPIDER-MAN #10 (Marvel, 2023) – “Maxed Out Part 3: Shocking Behavior,” [W] Dan Slott & Christos Gage, [A] Mark Bagley. Spidey and Spider-Boy defeat Electro together, and Spidey realizes he can use his maxed-out spider-sense to help save lives. But then Norman Osborn arrives and restores Peter’s spider-sense to normal. Peter is not happy about this. We also learn that Spider-Boy has fangs with paralyzing venom.

THE ODDLY PEDESTRIAN LIFE OF CHRISTOPHER CHAOS #1 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Tate Brombal, [A] Isaac Goodhart. Christopher Chaos is a teenage boy who can see patterns everywhere, so he kind of has the same power as Amadeus Cho used to. In this issue he encounters a werewolf who’s being pursued by ghosts, and then he restores a dead pigeon to life. Isaac Goodhart’s artwork in this issue is excellent, and Christopher is an intriguing character. However, by the time issue 2 came out, I was unable to remember anything about issue 1. A CBR review said that “the first issue feels somewhat unfocused, lacking a clear sense of unity in its themes and not feeling anchored in any particular genre,” and I agree.

SPACE JOB #4 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] David A. Goodman, [A] Alvaro Sarraseca. The space funeral turns into an embarrassing disaster, but the other subplots are resolved without anyone else dying. This series was quite funny, although as a Star Trek parody it wasn’t as good as Outer Darkness.

HAIRBALL #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Matt Kindt, [A] Tyler Jenkins. The issue begins with a hypothetical version of the cursed cat’s origin. Then Anna follows the cat’s trail and finds it in Greece, in the possession of a woman who’s being abused by her boyfriend. In a very cathartic scene, Anna gets the cat to kill the boyfriend. Then Anna and the cat drive off into the sunset. This was Matt Kindt’s best recent work, mostly because of its depiction of a murderous yet adorable cat.

BLOOD TREE #6 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Peter J. Tomasi, [A] Maxim Simic. Fincher succeeds in killing Maria, but Dario finally catches him, and chooses to arrest him rather than kill him, as much as he deserves it. In classic horror fashion, the series ends by suggesting that Dario’s own son is infected with Fincher’s madness: the boy draws a picture of winged animals flying up to heaven. This was an effective horror/crime comic, by a writer I don’t associate with either of those genres, but it would have benefitted from a more exciting artist.

EDGE OF SPIDER-VERSE #4 (Marvel, 2023) – Dream-Spider: :”Here Comes the Ruckus,” [W] B. Earl & Taboo, [A] Juan Ferreyra. A grim and gruesome horror story about a Spider-person who fights nightmares. Headline: “The Spider-Reporter of Earth-1755,” [W] Daniel Kibblesmith, [A] ChrisCross. J. Jonah Jameson becomes Spider-Man and investigates his son’s tragic death. JJJ becoming Spider-Man is such a natural idea that I’m surprised it hasn’t been done before. Oddly, in What If? vol. #7, “What If Someone Else Besides Spider-Man Had Been Bitten By The Radioactive Spider?”, one of the three alternative Spider-people is John Jameson, not his father. Araña: “Charging Station,” [W] Alex Segura, [A] Enid Balam. Araña fights Electro while rescuing a different Electro.

CITY BOY #2 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Greg Pak, [A] Minkyu Jung. Cameron is tortured by a villain who’s in league with Darkseid, and then he meets Superman. City Boy is the best of DC’s three new Asian-themed superhero titles, but that’s only because the other two have been rather unimpressive.

TERRORWAR #3 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Dave Acosta. Muhammad Cho and his team are arrested and brought before a rich oligarch woman. She threatens Muhammad into working with her to defeat the terror creatures. This issue was a bit more interesting than the previous two, thanks to its depiction of the class divide in Muhammad’s city. But I still think Terrorwar is worse than Starsigns.

BLUE BOOK #5 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Michael Avon Oeming. After Barney Hill’s death, Betty comes back into the news when an amateur astronomer claims to have identified the stars in the Hills’ story. After that, Betty dies and is reunited with her husband and the aliens. There’s a backup story about Helen Duncan, a fraudulent medium, and Harry Price, who debunked her claims. Overall, Blue Book is the worst James Tynion comic that I’ve read. It’s written like a plot summary, its characters are wooden, and its art is boring. The only good thing in this issue is Betty’s death scene, which is at least kind of poignant. Now that I know the Hills were real people, I like Blue Book even less. A common problem I encounter when grading student writing is that the student describes but fails to interpret: the student tells the facts of a story, but fails to show what the story means or why it matters. Blue Book has the same problem. Tynion retells the Hills’ story, but fails to derive any insight or meaning from that story.

DAREDEVIL #13 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Red Fist Saga Part 13,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Marco Checchetto. Matt travels through hell until he encounters the patron demons of the Hand and the Fist. He realizes that both demons are equally bad, and he sacrifices his soul so that Foggy can escape from hell. I was not impressed with the Red Fist Saga, but this issue is a fairly satisfying conclusion to it.

SILVER SURFER: GHOST LIGHT #5 (Marvel, 2023) – “Secret Journey Part 5,” [W] John Jennings, [A] Valentine De Landro. After a lot of fighting, the planet is saved, and Al is reunited with his family. The series ends with Al meeting his son again. Silver Surfer: Ghost Light is a good example of Afrofuturism, because it shows how a black family’s history is intimately linked to an epic, cosmic SF plot.

UNTOLD TALES OF I HATE FAIRYLAND #1 (Image, 2023) – This series’s full title is so long that I can’t remember it all. “Bruud the Brutal,” [W] Skottie Young, [A] Aaron Conley. Gert meets a giant muscular heavily-armed barbarian. They fight, and of course Gert defeats him, takes his axe, and cuts his head off. “Don’t Trust the P.I.G. in Apartment 23,” [W/A] Dean Rankine. Gert battles her neighbors, the Three Little Pigs. Rankine’s draftsmanship is influenced by Cartoon Network animation, though I’m not sure what specifically it reminds me of, and he uses mostly flat colors, so his pages look like they came from a coloring book.

KNIGHT TERRORS: POISON IVY #1 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] G. Willow Wilson, [A] Marcio Takara. I have already said that Knight Terrors is a terrible idea. Instead of the usual issues of each DC title, we’re getting a two-issue miniseries that’s a tie-in to a stupid crossover, and on top of that, many of these miniseries are by different creators than the titles they’re replacing. So we’re losing two issues of Tom Taylor’s Nightwing, to take the most egregious example, and in exchange we get two comics that won’t be nearly as good. It’s also frustrating that the new Titans, Green Lantern and Flash titles are being interrupted just as they’re getting started. I don’t know why DC thought this was a good idea. Knight Terrors: Poison Ivy is at least less bad than the other Knight Terrors titles. It’s by the series’ usual creators, and it feels genuinely disturbing. I like how Poison Ivy’s worst nightmare involves living a normal suburban life.

THE SEASONS HAVE TEETH #3 (Boom!, 2023) – “Autumn,” [W] Dan Watters, [A] Sebastian Cabrol. While trying to get a photo of Autumn, Andrew Bates meditates on his wife’s gradual decay as she died of breast cancer. As in the previous two issues, Sebastian Cabrol’s depiction of the current season is beautiful. I also like how each issue’s plot and themes are aligned with the symbolism of the season that the issue is about.

THE GIMMICK #4 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joanne Starer, [A] Elena Gogou. Luckily, the people who took Shane’s photo fail to recognize him.  We also learn why Shane and Alicia broke up. After some more setup, most of the characters head to a wrestling convention in Vegas. This series has been a pleasant surprise. I had no particular expectations from it, but it’s very funny, and it has strong characterization. This issue includes one scene where Alicia is pumping breastmilk (in a disguisting grimy bathroom), and there’s a panel that’s a close up of the stretch marks on her belly. I don’t recall having seen either of these things – pumping or stretch marks – in any other comic book.

THE NEIGHBORS #4 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jude Ellison S. Doyle, [A] Letizia Cadonici. Oliver and Janet each experience a series of disturbing visions, and then Casey kidnaps the baby. I have mixed feelings about this series. Doyle’s depiction of Oliver’s transgender journey is very powerful, and Janet is also a compelling character. But on the other hand, The Neighbors’s horror plot is very underdeveloped, and does not mesh well with the series’ themes of transgender identity and blended families. Maybe this series would have been better if it were just a realistic story with no horror elements, although in that case Boom! would have been unlikely to publish it.

HELL TO PAY #6 (Image, 2023) – “The Shrouded College Book 1,” [W] Charles Soule, [A] Will Sliney. The villain, Bhutto, manages to create enough Qurrakh to summon the devil himself, but the devil is unwilling to grant Bhutto’s wish that the human race be freed from the curse of capitalism. Bhutto is killed, and Sebastian and Maia are freed from the Shrouded College, but they have to indenture themselves to the College again in order to ensure their unborn child’s safety. This series includes some very clever and original writing, but it’s hard to read because its worldbuilding is so bleak and brutal. It depicts a world that’s completely ruled by capitalism, with no room for altruism or humanity. Though to be fair, that’s the world we live in.

LOVE EVERLASTING #9 (Image, 2023) – “Too Hip for Love” (again), [W] Tom King, [A] Elsa Charretier. The kids grow up, Don and Joan get older, and Don begins to suffer from heart trouble. He dies the day after his older son’s wedding. This is no great loss, because he was kind of a sexist jerk. This whole storyline is notable because of its depiction of what happens after the typical romance comic plot is over. It’s rare for any comic book, or any fictional text, to show a couple growing old and eventually dying. Love Everlasting is easily my favorite recent Tom King comic. 

ORBITAL VOL. 1 (Cinebook, 2006/2009) – “Scars,” [W] Sylvain Runberg, [A] Serge Pellé. In a flashback, Earth is about to vote on joining a confederation of spacefaring races. Young Caleb Swany’s parents are major proponents of confederation, until they’re murdered in a terrorist attack. In the present, Caleb becomes the first human member of the confederation’s police force and is partnered with an alien, Mezoke Izzua. Mezoke’s biological gender is a secret, but they’re clearly coded as female. Caleb and Mezoke’s first mission is to try to defuse a conflict between aliens and human settlers, and the album ends while their mission is still in progress. A major theme of Orbital is anti-human prejudice: humans are very unpopular among the other alien races, largely due to our isolationist and imperialist tendencies. The French Wikipedia quotes Runberg as saying that this plot is inspired by real-world politics. Wikipedia also points out that Caleb and Mezoke are a lot like Valerian and Laureline, but Pellé’s (gorgeous) art is more photorealistic and painterly than Mézières’s. Wikipedia compares him to Bilal and Juan Gimenez among others. This is an excellent debut album, and I’d love to read more Orbital, but at the moment I’m trying to read as many different BD series as I can.

RED ROOM: CRYPTO KILLAZ #2 (Fantagraphics, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Ed Piskor. In this issue’s present-day plotline, a man named Marky is brutally tortured to death during a Red Room broadcast. In a sequence of flashbacks, we see why he’s being killed: because he’s responsible for various scams that caused the cryptocurrency market to crash. This is a very gruesome story and it’s not meant for everyone. Marky looks kind of like Ed himself, especially when wearing a hat and Adidas jacket.

GRIM #11 (Boom!, 2023) – “Ghouls Just Wanna Have Fun,” [W] Stephanie Phillips, [A] Flaviano. The protagonists are stuck in hell, and Annabel is unhappy with the reward she got in exchange for turning them in. There’s also another plot about Jess’s mother. At the end, Jess is offered Death’s scythe. I like this series’s art and coloring more than I like its story.

NO/ONE #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kyle Higgins & Brian Buccellato, [A] Geraldo Borges. Ben Kern continues his investigation. Julia the reporter confronts her mother, an awful abusive woman. Nothing in this issue was as powerful as the attempted shooting in issue 3. This issue does not have a chart of the characters, and it probably should have had one, because this series’s plot is too hard to remember from one issue to another.

SWAN SONGS #1 (Image, 2023) – “The End of… the World,” [W] W. Maxwell Prince, [A] Martin Simmonds. Having just read issue 2, I think the gimmick of this series is that first, each issue is about the end of something, and second, each issue is by a different artist. In this issue, the world is about to end, and the protagonist, Brian, is trying to find the final published issue of Better Gardens Magazine, so he can read it to his dying mother. Like most of Prince’s work, this story is powerful but also very grim and sardonic. Martin Simmonds’s art is beautiful as always.

MOSELY #5 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Rob Guillory, [A] Sam Lotfi. The family confront the gods, and they all survive, but now they have to rebuild society without the aid of technology. I think the best thing about Mosely was the depiction of the protagonist’s relationships with his daughter and ex-wife, but overall I enjoyed it less than Chew or Farmhand. Guillory posted on Facebook that he’s finished writing the last six issues of Farmhand, and I hope they come out soon.  

JUNK RABBIT #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Jimmie Robinson. Ashleen gets taken inside the dome, where she tells the dome’s leader what she knows about Junk Rabbit. Back outside, the two boys realize that Junk Rabbit is Sylv and Ashleen’s mother. Then we see that the dome leader has captured the rabbit. This series has an entertaining story, but I’ve already said that its artwork feels outdated.

MY GREATEST ADVENTURE #80 facsimile (DC, 1963/2013) – “The Doom Patrol,” [W] Arnold Drake w/Bob Haney, [A] Bruno Premiani. The three Doom Patrol members’ origins are explained, then they have to team up to save the world from General Immortus. By Silver Age DC standards, this issue is reasonably well written and entertaining. My Greatest Adventure #80 was published less than three months before X-Men #1, and some people think the X-Men were a ripoff of the Doom Patrol, but Mark Evanier argues that this is unlikely, and that both series were inspired by the Fantastic Four.

DARK SPACES: GOOD DEEDS #2 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Che Grayson, [A] Kelsey Ramsay. Some more creepy stuff happens in town, and there are hints that the events in St. Augustine are connected to Ponce de Leon and the Fountain of Youth. This series has sloppy artwork and its plot feels unfocused. IDW recently cancelled several unannounced series in their Originals line, and Heidi McDonald even suggested that the entire IDW Originals line has been axed. That’s too bad, but honestly, most of the IDW Originals titles were underwhelming. The only truly good one was Dark Spaces: Wildfire.

THE EXPANSE: DRAGON TOOTH #3 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Andy Diggle, [A] Rubine. Still not sure just what’s going on here. This series seems well-crafted, but I don’t know if it’s worth reading it when I’m not caught up on either the books or the TV show.

EXORCISTS NEVER DIE #3 (Mad Cave, 2023) – untitled, [W] Steve Orlando, [A] Sebastian Piriz. The two heroes fight Gluttony, except it acts more like Envy, because it convinces them to hate each other. As usual, they defeat the sin by summoning angels. This series is okay, but it’s not Steve Orlando’s best work.

Some more old comics:

WHAT’S THE FURTHEST PLACE FROM HERE #5 (Image, 2022) – untitled, [W] Matthew Rosenberg, [A] Tyler Boss. This seems to be set in the same town where issue 7 ended. This issue depicts a fight between various factions in this town. Distractingly, every few pages a new “chapter” begins – the issue starts with chapter 33 and ends with chapter 39. Each chapter has its own title page, so that’s a total of seven pages wasted. This series is sort of intriguing, but it doesn’t make much sense when read out of order.

METAL MEN #35 (DC, 1969) – “Danger – Doom Dummies,” [W] Robert Kanigher, [A] Mike Sekowsky. Platinum is kidnapped by a volcano-powered monster, and the other Metal Men battle a horde of living mannequins. This issue’s plot is just average, but Mike Sekowsky’s artwork is often spectacular. A particular highlight in this issue is page 18, a splash page where Volcano Man tries to incinerate the Metal Men. Mike Sekowsky is sometimes considered a boring artist, including by me, but he was quite gifted, and he’s also historically important for co-creating the JLA and for revitalizing Wonder Woman. He would have been a better choice for the Hall of Fame than Win Mortimer.

PETER THE LITTLE PEST #2 (Marvel, 1970) – various stories, [W] Stan Lee, [A] Joe Maneely. (Who also ought to be in the Hall of Fame.) This issue is a reprint of Melvin the Monster #2 from 1956, except that the protagonist is renamed, and his hair is recolored from blond to red. These stories are well-drawn but unremarkable Dennis the Menace parodies. It’s worth remembering that even in the Bronze Age, superheroes were not the only genre of comics Marvel published. Marvel continued to publish Western, teen humor, and romance comics until the mid-’70s. Later in this post we will see more examples of Marvel’s forgotten non-superhero comics.  

DEADLINE USA #3 (Dark Horse, 1992) – [E] Chris Warner & Jerry Prosser. Confusingly, there were two series both callled Deadline USA, and they both started in 1993. This issue is from the second of those series, and it says “Night of the Living Deadline USA” in the indicia. A high point of this issue is Philip Bond’s Wired World, in which the two protagonists suspect a man of being a Russian spy. There’s also a Max Nasty strip by Jamie Hewlett, which is mostly a metatextual joke, but it has some beautiful art. I assume these stories were originally from the British Deadline. Other features include a three-pager by Shaky Kane, Johnny Nemo by Milligan and Ewins, and Timulo by D’Israeli (this is the strip where you have to rotate each page twice in order to read the marginal text). North American contributors include Richard Sala and Ho Che Anderson.

TARZAN #47 (Dell, 1953) – “The Ancient Terror” etc., [W] Gaylord Du Bois, [A] Jesse Marsh. In the first story, Tarzan and a scientist friend visit a lost world inside a crater, where they help a tribal man and his girlfriend escape from a witch doctor. The natives in this story have African facial features but white skin, thanks to the lack of sunlight inside the crater. In the second story, Tarzan rescues Jane and Boy from a sheik’s harem. The third story stars Boy and Dombie, who I believe is Muviro’s grandson. Finally there’s a weird-looking Brothers of the Spear story, drawn by Russ Manning in his immature style. His art is full of unnecessary linework, and thus it lacks his characteristic slickness. This issue’s back cover has a Wheaties ad starring Stan Musial.

SPACE FAMILY ROBINSON LOST IN SPACE #18 (Gold Key, 1966) – “Sleep No More, Sir Thomas,” [W] Gaylord Du Bois, [A] Dan Spiegle. On an alien planet, the Robinsons discover a medieval knight, Sir Thomas Haldane, who’s been kept in suspended animation by aliens. The Robinsons wake him and his people, as well as the aliens who put them into suspended animation. But the alien gets sick, which is a problem because he’s the only one who knows how to get back to Earth, and the story ends on a cliffhanger. Sir Thomas is a stereotypical depiction of a medieval knight, but Du Bois at least tries to show how a medieval person might react to science-fictional technology. Dan Spiegle’s art is quite good, especially in the creepy scene where the Robinsons discover the crypt. There’s also a Captain Venture backup story.

2000 AD #533 (IPC, 1987) – Strontium Dog: “The Royal Affair Part 2,” [W] Alan Grant, [A] Carlos Ezquerra. Everyone is terrified that the king wants to marry a mutant, Vera Duckworth. Johnny and Middenface have to hire their own private security force to protect Vera from assassination. This story is interesting because it depicts mutants in racialized terms; people are terrified about Vera becoming queen because she’ll corrupt the royal bloodline. Tales from Mega-City One: “Taxi Driver Part 2,” [W] Alan Grant, [A] Paul Hardy. The taxi driver finishes his origin story, only to learn that his passenger has died. Dredd: “Revolution Part 3,” [W] John Wagner & Alan Grant, [A] John Higgins. The march continues, but quickly turns into a riot, thanks to Justice Department’s agent provocateurs. The Chief Judge gives a speech explaining how these events prove that democracy just doesn’t work, as Kent Brockman once said. However, the revolution’s last remaining leader is still determined to try again. This whole story is very powerful. Mean Team: untitled, [W] Alan Hebden, [A] Massimo Belardinelli. As usual this story has beautiful art, but a totally incoherent plot, as well as annoying Bloo-Baloo dialogue. Future Shocks: “Alternators,” [W] Alan McKenzie, [A] Simon Harrison. This two-pager is the first appearance of Bradley, the evil alien infant, who later starred in his own strip.

Y: THE LAST MAN #40 (Vertigo, 2006) – “The Hour of Our Death,” [W] Brian K. Vaughan, [A] Goran Sudzuka. Yorick’s sister Hero finds a woman named Beth who’s pregnant by Yorick. It’s not Yorick’s girlfriend Beth, but another woman of the same name. Then they both get captured by Vatican agents who think that Beth’s unborn baby is the next pope. Hero and Beth manage to escape, and Yorick makes a brief appearance at the end of the issue.

DOCTOR WHO: THE TENTH DOCTOR YEAR TWO #8 (Titan, 2016) – “The Wishing Well Witch Part 1,” [W] Nick Abadzis, [A] Eleonora Carlini. The Tenth Doctor and his companions visit the fictional English village of Dewbury, where a paranormal festival is going on. And of course there’s also an actual paranormal phenomenon, a witch living in a well. This comic is pretty fun. I feel kind of guilty that I’ve been reading Doctor Who comics but not watching the TV show. Maybe I will watch the new season when it comes out.

SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN #20 (Marvel, 2013) – “Spidey Still Standing,” [W] Dan Slott, [A] Giuseppe Camuncoli. Superior Spidey meets Black Cat for the first time, but he beats her up instead of “dancing” with her, as she puts it. This is another funny example of Peter and Otto’s differences in attitude. Peter/Otto and Anna Maria set up their own company, Parker Industries. However, Peter/Otto fails his PhD thesis defense when one of his committee members realizes that his work is plagiarized from that of Otto Octavius! Finally, Doc Ock’s former girlfriend, Stunner, reappears and vows revenge on the current Spider-Man.

AGE OF X-MAN: THE AMAZING NIGHTCRAWLER #5 (Marvel, 2019) – untitled, [W] Seanan McGuire, [A] Juan Frigeri. Kurt discovers that this isn’t the first time he’s recovered his lost memories. In order to protect Meggan and Teena, he’s forced to return to his old career and give up his memories yet again. This is a depressing ending, but Amazing Nightcrawler is a pretty good take on Kurt Wagner. Seanan McGuire certainly writes him much better than Si Spurrier does.

STAR TREK #50 (DC, 1988) – “Marriage of Inconvenience,” [W] Peter David, [A] Tom Sutton. The Enterprise crew discover a Klingon/human hybrid, later known as Bernie, who’s a developmentally disabled dwarf. Seeing him, Nancy Bryce reconsideres her marriage to the Klingon Konom. But when Spock advises Nancy that there are unknowns in everything, she changes her mind again, and the issue ends with Nancy and Konom’s wedding. This is not Peter David’s last comic where a wedding is cancelled and then uncancelled; see also Rick and Marlo’s wedding in Incredible Hulk. All this is actually the B plot of the issue, but the A plot isn’t as interesting. I don’t know if Konom or Nancy ever appeared again, though Bernie was reintroduced in PAD’s Next Generation novel Strike Zone. Of course the Star Trek franchise has included several other Klingon/human hybrids.

INCREDIBLE HULK #191 (Marvel, 1975) – “The Triumph of the Toad!”, [W] Len Wein, [A] Herb Trimpe. The Hulk and Jarella are captured by the Toad Men, who hold Jarella hostage in order to force the Hulk to bring them the Shaper of Worlds. The Hulk completes this mission, but the Shaper refuses to help the Toad Men. This issue is pretty average, and it’s most notable for being one of Jarella’s few appearances before she died.

TOWER OF SHADOWS #8 (Marvel, 1970) – “Sanctuary!”, [W/A] Wally Wood. A king steals a crown from a cursed tomb. To save himself from the curse, he has his court wizard build a sealed tower to protect him. But the twist ending is that the wizard is actually the entity responsible for the curse, and the tower is not meant to protect the king but to entomb him. “Sanctuary” is a beautifully drawn story that bears some resemblance to Woody’s late masterwork The Wizard King. In particular, the wizard/demon’s giant staring eyes remind me of the villains in The Wizard King. The other stories in this issue are reprints. One of them is drawn by Ditko, and the other two by Don Heck.

CUD COMICS #8 (Dark Horse, 1997) – “Mall Crawl,” [W/A] Terry LaBan. Eno and Plum go to the mall, and Eno gets an overdose of a chemical that induces “consumer frenzy,” causing him to go on a shopping spree. Malls were a common target of satire in the ‘90s, but now they’ve become a nostalgic symbol of the pre-Amazon era. The next story, “Mickey Pimple, Teen Adventure,” is a parody of Tintin or Terry and the Pirates or both, and then there’s a two-pager about Eno and Plum’s superpowered cat. Sadly this was the last issue of Cud. Terry LaBan is a very talented cartoonist who’s been unjustly forgotten, and his work deserves to come back into print.

DOOM PATROL 108 (DC, 1966) – “Kid Disaster,” [W] Arnold Drake, [A] Bruno Premiani. Elasti-Girl is trapped on a micro-world located on a single atom, and Mento has to rescue her. When they escape, they have to battle the entire Brotherhood of Evil. The issue ends with most of the Doom Patrol apparently being killed by Garguax. Doom Patrol had a Marvel-esque style of characterization, with lots of weird characters and internal conflicts among the team. Arnold Drake was one of the few writers who wrote superhero comics for both Marvel and DC in the 1960s.

2000 AD #534 (Rebellion, 1987) – Strontium Dog: as above. The Queen Mother (incorrectly called the “King Mother”) tries to assassinate Vera, and Parliament attempts to arrest the King. Both these plots are foiled. Johnny decides to prevent future plots by holding the wedding immediately. D.R. & Quinch: untitled, [W] Jamie Delano, [W/A] Alan Davis. This is just a one-pager, but it’s worth mentioning because it’s the last new story with these characters, except for one FCBD story in 2018. Nemesis: “A Bedtime Story,” [W] Pat Mills, [A] Tony Luke. A photocomic starring Nemesis and Torquemada’s ex-wife Candida. The photographic art is not effective. Dredd: “Bug,” [W] John Wagner & Alan Grant, [A] Liam Sharp. Judge Dredd investigates some murders that were committed using insectoid drones. Dredd can’t solve the crimes, but on the last page we’re shown that the murderer was PJ Maybe, a 12-year-old homicidal maniac. This was his first appearance, but he went on to become one of Dredd’s best villains. Mean Team: as above. Nothing new to say about this one.

THE DESERT PEACH #12 (Mu, 1991) – “Menschenkind,” [W/A] Donna Barr. While Pfirsich is agonizing over his same-sex relationships, he learns to his surprise that he’s just become the father of an illegitimate son. The scenes with the unborn baby are very cute. I still have trouble reading Desert Peach because of its very elaborate artwork and the unusual length of its stories, but it’s an excellent comic.

SILVER STAR #6 (Pacific, 1984) – “Silver Star Battles the Angel of Death!”, [W/A] Jack Kirby. Silver Star battles Darius Drumm, who’s become the Angel of Death, causing him to look kind of like Desaad, but with wings. I recently saw someone say on Facebook that Silver Star was better and less confusing than Kirby’s other late works. But if that’s true, it’s hard to tell from this issue. The backup story is Last of the Viking Heroes by Michael Thibodeaux and David Schwartz.

HAUNT OF FEAR #14 (EC, 1952/1996) – “A Little Stranger,” [W] Al Feldstein, [A] Graham Ingels, etc. I’ve read all these stories before, because I already have the 1991 version of Haunt of Fear #1, which includes all the stories from this issue plus additional material. However, I prefer to collect the 32-page Gemstone reprints, rather than the 64-page ones, so I’m going to keep this issue in my collection. The best story in this issue is “A Little Stranger,” the Old Witch’s origin story.

LES BIDOCHON VOL. 1 (Audie, 1980) – “Roman d’amour,” [W/A] Christian Binet. This series is one of the mainstays of the humor comic Fluide Glacial. In this first album, we see how Raymonde Gallopin and Robert Bidochon meet and get married through a dating service, and then proceed to make each other miserable. Les Bidochon is basically a satire on French middle-class life – the Bidochons are the embodiment of the worst tendencies of petit-bourgeois French people. Because it’s about an unhappy marriage, Les Bidochon is superficially similar to The Lockhorns, but it’s actually more like Family Guy. A curious similarity between the two series is that like the Griffins, the Bidochons have a talking dog, Kador, who’s smarter than both of them combined. (In fact, Kador started out in his own series, of which Les Bidochon is technically a spinoff, though the latter series became far more significant.) Les Bidochon is a bit hard to understand because of its French cultural references, but it’s also hilarious. A typical scene is when the Bidochons are looking for an apartment, and they visit an apartment building that obviously used to be a brothel. Robert suggests that they should rent the pink room because it’s the largest, and then he has to explain to Raymonde why he knows that. Binet’s humor, at least in this volume, is mostly verbal, and he uses a gimmick where instead of drawing things, he includes captions explaining what the objects would look like if he could see them. However, the gruesome appearance of the Bidochons is a major aspect of the humor.

CUD COMICS #3 (Dark Horse, 1996) – “The Green-Eyed Monster,” [W/A] Terry LaBan. Eno gets jealous of Plum for having had an earlier boyfriend, Chet, who was a Republican football player. Eno finds Chet, brings him to his apartment, and slips Chet and Plum an aphrodisiac. Then he runs off, meets some random woman at a bar, and almost marries her. This story presents Eno in a very negative light, but it’s funny. Next is a Muktuk Wolfsbreath story where Muktuk’s body gets possessed by a different shaman. The Muktuk saga was reprinted in a self-published book in 2012, but it deserves a reprint from a major publisher. In the last story, Eno goes dumpster diving with a friend, Henry Kollins, who I just realized is based on Henry Rollins.

ACTION COMICS #691 (DC, 1993) – “Secret Weapon,” [W] Roger Stern, [A] Jackson Guice. Superman and Steel invade Engine City, while Mongul and the Cyborg Superman pursue their schemes. This is the third-to-last chapter of Reign of the Supermen. I must have read it when it came out, but I don’t remember anything about it specifically.

!GAG! #2 (Harrier, 1987) – [E] Phil Elliott. This issue begins with a Captain Oblivion story by Glenn Dakin. I forget what it’s about, but it has an appealingly subtle style of humor. Other stories in this issue are by Paul Grist, Eddie Campbell, and John Bagnall. The latter artist’s story features Dakin’s character Paris the Man of Plaster. This issue is a good snapshot of British small press comics, though nothing in it made a huge impact on me.

AKIKO #45 (Sirius, 2001) – “The Battle of Boach’s Keep Part 6,” [W/A] Mark Crilley. Akiko meets an evil corporate executive named Kimbir Kriznik, who’s trying to destroy the planet of Nostoram. Beeba, Spuckler and Poog are trapped on the same planet, and Spuckler visits his parents’ graves. Akiko was trying to be the second coming of Bone, but Mark Crilley was far less talented than Jeff Smith. In particular, while Crilley’s characters are drawn well, his digitally illustrated backgrounds are very ugly.

LIFE WITH ARCHIE #180 (Archie, 1977) – “Radio Rogues,” [W] unknown, [A] Stan Goldberg. Archie and Veronica solve a series of thefts of CB radios. This story includes a lot of CB radio jargon. In the backup story, “Linebacker Larceny” by Doyle and Stan Goldberg, a Riverdale football player is threatened into sharing his team’s playbook with the opposing team. These two stories have more serious plots than typical Archie comics, but they’re still written and drawn like standard Archie material.

THE GOON #32 (Dark Horse, 2009) – “Happy Birthday Goon!”, [W/A] Eric Powell. Frankie throws the Goon a birthday party, but of course the Goon is too depressed to enjoy it. I’m not sure if this scene was the first time the Goon was seen without his hat, but if so, I wouldn’t be surprised. Then the director Frank Darabont makes a cameo appearance, and then the Goon, now with his hat again, has to save some hobo children from a gluttonous zombie. This series is a typical example of the Goon aesthetic, which is not comparable to anything else. This issue also includes a sketchbook section with pinups by artists like Mike Mignola and Jeff Smith.

CLEAN ROOM #9 (Vertigo, 2016) – “Hell Above Us and Heaven Below,” [W] Gail Simone, [A] Jon Davis-Hunt. Chloe convinces Astrid’s assistants to allow Astrid to be possessed by the Spark creature, so she can be operated on. The Spark saves Astrid’s life, but as soon as she wakes up, she has the creature killed. There are also some other subplots that I couldn’t follow. The artwork in this issue is very gruesome and effective.

THE WALKING DEAD #119 (Image, 2014) – “All Out War” part ???, [W] Robert Kirkman, [A] Charlie Adlard. The first half of the issue is a series of dialogue scenes, taking place during a lull in Rick and Negan’s war. Then Negan’s army arrives at Rick’s compound, and Negan releases a prisoner to Rick, but she’s actually a zombie who Negan is using as a Trojan horse. In reading All Out War, I felt that it was shameful how Rick and Negan were wasting their lives and resources on fighting each other for dominance, when they should be working together to ensure the survival of humanity.

SONS OF ANARCHY #13 (Boom!, 2014) – untitled, [W] Ed Brisson, [A] Damian Couceiro. A boring crime comic about a rivalry between biker gangs. It’s adapted from an FX TV show. I don’t know why I bought this comic, and I wish I hadn’t.

THE PHANTOM #1643 (Frew, 2012) – “Bigfoot,” [W] Terje Nordberg (as Falco Pellerin), [A] Joan Boix. The Phantom travels to Grant’s Pass, Oregon to visit Diana, who’s working on inspecting redwood forests. It’s lucky that the Phantom is there, because a paper company is trying to intimidate a local businessman into selling his part of the forest. To do so, they have a man dress up as Sasquatch and set the businessman’s store on fire. The Phantom defeats this plot with the assistance of a real sasquatch. This is an entertaining story that also contains some interesting scientific information about redwood trees.

CORPORATE CRIME #1 (Kitchen Sink, 1977) – [E] Leonard Rifas. A series of short stories about corporate crime. The issue begins with R. Diggs’s account of the suspicious death of Karen Silkwood, who was allegedly murdered for exposing unsafe conditions in a nuclear fuel plant. Meryl Streep later got an Oscar nomination for playing Silkwood in a film. R. Diggs would be a good candidate for a career-spanning reprint collection, though I’m not sure if he did enough work to fill an entire book. Other stories in this issue are by Trina Robbins, Pete Poplaski, Sharon Rudahl, Kim Deitch, Rifas himself, and Greg Irons. The stories in this issue are all quite powerful condemnations of corporate crime, though they all have an annoying amount of text.

JOE HILL’S RAIN #2 (Image, 2022) – untitled, [W] David Booher, [A] Zoe Thorogood. This was the only issue of this series that I didn’t buy when it came out. In this issue, Honeysuckle tries to get to Denver, but she’s ambushed by some creepy cultists. Then she’s saved by a man who was trying to rescue his cat, and then she discovers that Templeton has been following her. Zoe Thorogood’s draftspersonship and page layouts in this issue are beautiful, and they turn what could have been an average comic into a genuinely good one.

DIRTY PLOTTE #12 (Drawn & Quarterly, 1998) – “My New York Diary Part 3: Autumn,” [W/A] Julie Doucet. This issue depicts the long-overdue end of Julie’s relationship with her creepy, controlling jerk of a boyfriend. This story is sadly not all that unusual – based on my reading of Reddit advice forums, I get the impression that men like Julie’s boyfriend are quite common. What’s perhaps most impressive about My New York Diary is Doucet’s hyperdetailed, cluttered, frenetic drawing.

Y: THE LAST MAN #41 (Vertigo, 2006) – “Buttons,” [W] Brian K. Vaughan, [A] Goran Sudzuka. This issue is mostly a flashback that reveals Agent 355’s origin. The young Agent 355’s comfortable middle-class life ends when her parents and sister are killed in a car accident. She’s sent to a foster school, where she’s punished for defending herself from racist violence. Then she gets recruited into the Culper Ring, but she eventually has to kill her own mentor, who’s betrayed the country due to her dislike of Bill Clinton. In the framing sequence, Yorick and his friends are being chased by cannibals in Papua New Guinea. This issue also includes a preview of American Virgin.  

GREEN LANTERN #105 (DC, 1978) – “Thunder Doom!”, [W] Denny O’Neil, [A] Alex Saviuk. Hal fights Sonar, and also discovers that an alien creature has robbed his friend Itty’s grave. I’m pretty sure that the creature is Itty in a different form. This issue is rather boring and I barely remember anything about it.

CONAN: THE LORD OF THE SPIDERS #3 (Marvel, 1998) – “To Hell on Eight Legs,” [W] Roy Thomas, [A] Stefano Raffaele. Conan and his female companion Helliana are held captive by an evil spider wizard. This comic is okay, but it feels like a rehash of earlier Marvel Conan comics, and Helliana is very similar to Red Sonja, Valeria, Isparana, and many other such characters.

AVENGERS #179 (Marvel, 1978) – “Slowly Slays the Stinger!”, [W] Tom DeFalco, [A] Jim Mooney. The Avengers battle two dumb new villains named Stinger and Bloodhawk. These characters’ only appearances were in this issue and the following issue. Avengers #179 and #180 were an obvious fill-in story, and they’re among the few truly bad Avengers stories between #1 and #200.

STRAYER #5 (AfterShock, 2016) – untitled, [W] Justin Jordan, [A] Juan Gedeon. This issue has some elegantly simple art and some excellent coloring, but I wasn’t able to understand its plot. I still haven’t really been able to get into Justin Jordan’s comics.

KAMANDI #29 (DC, 1975) – “Mighty One,” [W/A] Jack Kirby. Some apes mistake Ben Boxer for the Mighty One, i.e. Superman. To test whether he really is the Mighty One, they take him to “Nashnil” for some tests. “Nashnil,” i.e. National, is a reference to the DC offices. One of the tests requires Ben to move a giant boulder called the Daily Planet. Finally Ben passes the test, and his reward is Superman’s costume, which, being indestructible, is still intact. Ben leaves the suit for Superman to reclaim if he returns, and then he and Kamandi continue on their way. This issue exhibits Kirby’s underrated sense of humor.

PROJUNIOR #1 (Kitchen Sink, 1971) – many vignettes, [E] Denis Kitchen. A series of short starring Pro Junior, a character created by Don Dohler in a 1963 fanizne. The stories are by an all-star cast of underground cartoonists, and a couple of them are “jam” stories with two cartoonists collaborating. The most interesting thing in the issue is a three-page jam story by Art Spiegelman and Justin Green. This must be the only time these two collaborated, and it might even be the only story where Spiegelman collaborated with anyone. Other artists in this issue include R. Crumb, Evert Geradts, Bill Griffith, Jay Lynch, Trina Robinson, Skip Williamson and S. Clay Wilson. The artwork in this issue is certainly better than the writing, but this is definitely a worthy addition to my underground comics collection.

BLUE RIBBON COMICS #1 (Archie, 1983) – “The Strange New World of the Fly,” [W] Joe Simon, [A] Jack Kirby. Most of the stories in this issue are reprinted from The Fly (1959) #1 and #2. A couple of them are reprinted in the wrong order, to the reader’s confusion, and the coloring is totally new. It’s odd that this issue has no original material, unlike the rest of the ‘80s Red Circle line. Kirby’s late 1950s superhero work is somewhat obscure now, but Blue Ribbon #1 includes some excellent writing and art. The first story, which depicts how the orphaned Tommy Troy becomes the Fly, is a grim depiction of orphanage life. Kirby only worked on the first two issues of the Fly, and Simon only worked on the first four. I’d love to own those issues, but I fear they are beyond my budget.

THE LORDS OF MISRULE #1 (Tundra, 1993) – untitled, [W] John Tomlinson, [A] Gary Erskine. A commercial artist named Kieron Wallace visits the remote English town of Callow to visit the writer whose book he’s illustrating. On arriving, he finds that he’s gone back in time to 1944. He’s soon returned to his own time, but strange things continue to happen; he has visions of the town’s earlier history, as well as his own traumatic past. All these scenes are interspersed with scenes from a kitschy fantasy novel by the aforementioned writer, Yolanda Marchant. Finally we learn the origin of Kieron’s trauma: Kieron had a childhood friend named Ned who was a better artist than Kieron himself, and in revenge, Kieron cut off Ned’s hands. At the end of the story, Kieron himself is killed by Callow’s accumulated curses, and his own hands are amputated. This is a scary horror story with a distinctive and vividly depicted rural English setting.

JON SABLE, FREELANCE #31 (First, 1985) –”Gauntlet,” [W/A] Mike Grell. While in bed with Myke, Jon realizes he’s forgotten to go to Zimbabwe and put flowers on his wife’s grave. This is a poignant scene, but it also feels like an excuse for Grell to draw Jon and Myke naked. Then

some government dude hires Jon to go to Nicaragua and photograph a Russian ship, and we meet the other people Jon is working with, but the issue ends before the mission begins.

THE WRAITH #1 (IDW, 2013) – “Welcome to Christmasland Prologue: Phantoms,” [W] Joe Hill, [A] Charles Paul Wilson III. A ghoulish chauffeur is driving a little girl in a car whose license plate reads NOS4A2, a reference to a Joe Hill novel, to which this series is a prequel. The driver, Charlie Manx, tells the girl his origin story. of how he grew up in dire poverty, then was cheated out of his life savings by a con man, who falsely promised to invest the money in a Christmas-themed amusement park. Then Charlie’s wife and three daughters somehow turned into bloody-mouthed monsters. This is a pretty scary horror comic, but I’d have enjoyed it more if I’d known it was a prequel to NOS4A2, which I haven’t read.

DARK HORSE PRESENTS #93 (Dark Horse, 1993) – “Eno and Plum Part 1,” [W/A] Terry LaBan. This issue’s lead story is the first part of an Eno and Plum three-parter. Eno and Plum’s utilities have been shut off, and Plum threatens Eno with eviction. Rather than get a job, Eno tries to illegally connect to power, but only succeeds in setting the apartment on fire. Just as Plum is about to throw Eno out, Eno is offered a cushy job working for Plum’s dad, though we already know that this job is part of a plot by another man who’s obsessed with Plum. There’s also a story by Robbie Morrison and Frank Quitely. It has good art, but I don’t understand its plot. The issue also includes a pretty good Too Much Coffee Man story by Shannon Wheeler.

NAUGHTY BITS #25 (Fantagraphics, 1998) – “True Love’s Weight,” [W/A] Roberta Gregory. Midge goes on a date with Chuck, a decent if unexciting man, but the date turns into a disaster when Chuck can’t get it up. However, Chuck is somehow willing to go out with Midge again. Meanwhile, Marcie and Ramona attend a Christian-themed “True Love Waits” event, hence the story’s title, but it only makes them uncomfortable about their own sexual desires. “True Love Waits” is also a Radiohead song.

ANGEL AND THE APE #2 (DC, 1991) – “The Apes of Wrath!”, [W/A] Phil Foglio. Some people are trying to kidnap Sam, and we eventually learn that this is because Sam is Gorilla Grodd’s grandson. This was one of two major retcons introduced in this series; the other was that Angel is the sister of Dumb Bunny from the Inferior Five. Also, Angel tries to confess her love to Sam, but he mistakenly thinks she’s talking about Merryman from the Inferior Five, not himself. This series was a pretty good revival of the Bob Oksner original. The only other Angel and the Ape revival, by Chaykin and Tischman, had little to do with the original series.

KORAK, SON OF TARZAN #16 (Gold Key, 1967) – “Peril at Jade Lagoon,” [W] Gaylord Du Bois, [A] Warren Tufts. A scientific expedition has been searching for lost jewels buried underwater. The scientist’s assistant, Bull Ryker, decides to steal the jewels himself, and forces the expedition’s African bearers to dive for the jewels. One of the Africans, a young boy, escapes and finds Korak, who defeats Ryker and saves the day. Warren Tufts is a rare example of a cartoonist who moved from comic strips to comic books, instead of in the opposite direction. The backup story, by Du Bois and Nat Edson, stars Mabu the jungle boy, a character who had previously appeared only in text stories.

BLOOP #1 (Day One, 2004) – “The Picnic Guest” etc., [W/A] Steve Conley. Two stories about the green space monkey from Astounding Space Thrills, followed by a third story that’s not about him. The first story has computer coloring, while the second story has traditional line art. This comic is fun, if not groundbreaking. The cover has a blurb encouraging the reader to get the comic signed in Artists Alley at the 2004 Heroes Con. I was not at that convention, but I must have bought this comic at a subsequent Charlotte convention.

REAL GIRL #5 (Fantagraphics, 1993) – [E] Angela Bocage. By far the best story in this issue is Roberta Gregory’s “Queer, Too,” about two bisexual people of opposite genders who are in a new relationship. When they go out in public, their friends act like they’ve betrayed the LGBTQ movement by being in a heterosexual relationship. But then they go home and have some great sex. Gregory provides an effective depiction of the two characters’ ambivalent feelings and their mutual passion. The other stories in the issue are much worse, and some of them are amateurishly drawn. Besides Gregory, other contributors include Trina Robbins and Joan Hilty. This issue includes a column that mentions the old Amazon Bookstore in Minneapolis. I never went in there, though I remember passing by it. A similar now-defunct feminist bookstore was Wild Iris in Gainesville, Florida.

ADVENTURES OF THE FLY #30 (Archie, 1964) – “One Minute to Doom!” etc., [W] Robert Bernstein and Jerry Siegel, [A] John Giunta. An issue full of boring and unoriginal superhero stories. The last of these stories reintroduces the Comet, a Golden Age Archie character. All of this issue’s creators were Golden Age veterans, and by 1964, their style of art and writing was outdated. Archie’s Adventure/Mighty Comics line was basically the nadir of Silver Age superhero comics, with the exception of Dell’s horror/superhero line.

REID FLEMING, WORLD’S TOUGHEST MILKMAN #8 (Deep-Sea, 1997) – “Another Dawn Chapter 2,” [W/A] David Boswell. Reid Fleming is decapitated in a milk truck accident, but comes to work anyway. Reid’s coworker claims to have seen Reid digging for treasure in his basement, but it’s not clear if this was real or a dream. After more shenanigans, Reid gets off work and wants to watch his favorite TV show. However, it’s pre-empted for a 3 Tenors  concert. As always with this series, the plot doesn’t really matter, it’s just an excuse for Reid’s ridiculous antics and outsize personality. Boswell’s art here is less detailed than in earlier issues.

ASTOUNDING SPACE THRILLS #4 (Image, 2000) – “Hostile Takeover,” [W/A] Steve Conley. Argosy Smith prevents Earth from being taken over by a multi-brained corporate executive named Redmond. I assume that name is a reference to Microsoft, and this issue also includes some jokes about Bill Clinton. This is a fun comic that makes effective use of the aesthetic that TVTropes calls Raygun Gothic. In its overall sensibility, Astounding Space Thrills reminds me of Zot!, though without the same level of talent. It has a confusing publication history; many of its issues seem to have been released only at conventions.

THE PHANTOM #1708 (Frew, 2014) – “The Test,” [W] Norman Worker, [A] Kari Leppänen. This story was first published in 1990, and #1708 was its third printing in the Frew series. It seems to be something of a classic. In a flashback, the current Phantom takes a test to prove his worthiness to succeed his father. Kit is supposed to collect some items from the jungle and then return to his dad, but while doing so, he discovers a tribal princess who’s been kidnapped by white criminals. Kit feels obligated to get the girl to safety and defeat the criminals, even though this means he can’t get back ot Skull Cave on time. When Kit’s dad finds him, Kit refuses to explain why he didn’t return to Skull Cave on time. Of course, his father has already discovered Kit’s heroic acts, and he decides that Kit has passed the test. In the last panel, Kit declares that when his son and daughter grow up, they will both take the Phantom test, instead of just the son. Even in 1990, this was a progressive moment.

WASTELAND #9 (DC, 1988) – “Del & Elron,” [W] Del Close & John Ostrander, [A] David Lloyd. This issue’s first story is an account of Close’s hypnosis session with L. Ron Hubbard. Apparently Close and Hubbard did know each other, and the science fiction scholar Alec Nevala-Lee thinks that the account in this story is accurate, because of the story’s wealth of specific detail. L. Ron Hubbard has an… interesting reputation, and it’s interesting to see him depicted by someone who knew him before the period of his greatest notoriety. The next story, “Raoul,” by Ostrander and Simpson, is sort of a riff on “A Contract with God”. The title character challenges God to a fight, and when God doesn’t show up, Raoul is judged to be tougher than God. But eventually God does accept Raoul’s challenge, and Raoul is never seen again. In the last story, drawn by William Messner-Loebs, Close monologues about a time when he tried to seduce a woman, forgetting that he had cole slaw in his underwear for some reason.

THE DARK KNIGHT STRIKES AGAIN #2 (DC, 2002) – untitled, [W/A] Frank Miller. DK2 is a good candidate for the all-time worst comic book by a formerly great creator (although Cerebus #186 is probably worse). DK2’s art is hideous, its politics are disturbing and incoherent, its story is rambling, and each issue is tediously long. The excessive length is partly because of Miller’s inclusion of way too many splash pages. Also, despite its title, it’s more about Superman than Batman. A particularly uncomfortable moment in this issue is the Superman/Wonder Woman sex scene. It feels like Diana is asking Kal to rape her: “Where is the hero who threw me to the ground and took me as his rightful prize?” And afterward she announces that she’s pregnant, as if to indicate that Superman is so super-manly that he can get women pregnant automatically. By contrast, Miracleman really does have super-fertility powers; however, this is presented as a sign, not of his manliness, but of his disturbing lack of humanity.

TARZAN: THE BECKONING #3 (Malibu, 1993) – “The Return,” [W/A] Tom Yeates, [W] Henning Kure. Tarzan’s plane crashes off the African coast, and he finds himself in a rural Congolese village, but he needs to head further inland to seek counsel from a certain wise woman. Jane goes looking for Tarzan and is waylaid by an African man with ulterior motives. This issue’s writing and art are quite good, although I think Malibu’s other Tarzan series, Love, Lies, and the Lost City, was even more visually appealing.

2000 AD #543 (IPC, 1987) – Zenith: “Enter the Dragon!”, [W] Grant Morrison, [A] Steve Yeowell. Zenith helps the alcoholic Siadwel Rhys regain his powers, and Siadwel reappears at the end of the story in a new costume. Universal Solider: untitled, [W] Alan McKenzie, [A] Will Simpson. This appears to be a samurai-themed story, but I couldn’t make any sense of it. “Freaks,” [W] Peter Milligan, [A] John Higgins. An ordinary human is kidnapped by three-eyed aliens. When they discover his lack of scientific knowledge, they label him “mentally subnormal” and decide to dissect him. Dredd: “Killcraze,” [W] John Wagner & Alan Grant, [A] Liam Sharp. Killcraze Combat Park offers its visitors a chance to participate in various historical episodes of violence, using weapons loaded with paint pellets. But it turns out the weapons are loaded with real bullets, and chaos ensues. Strontium Dog: “A Sorry Case Part 4,” [W] Alan Grant, [A] Colin MacNeil. Jinx Sorry Bobbs causes disasters wherever he goes, kind of like Calamity King from the Legion of Super-Heroes. Johnny Alpha’s job is to deport him from Munro’s World. But when Johnny gets Jinx aboard the deportation shuttle, Jinx’s powers continue to operate, and Johnny has to return Jinx to Munro’s World before he destroys the ship.

SPAWN/WILDC.A.T.S #3 (Image, 1996) – untitled, [W] Alan Moore, [A] Scott Clark. As with many of Alan Moore’s Image comics, the best thing about this comic is its dialogue. Its artwork and production values are terrible, and its plot isn’t especially interesting. In this issue Moore does draw upon some of the mythology he introduced in Spawn #8.

HOT STUF’ #4 (Sal Quartuccio, 1977) – [E] Sal Quartuccio. In his book Dreaming the Graphic Novel, Paul Williams mentions Hot Stuf’ as an example of ground-level comics. This surprised me a bit because I thought that the term ground-level comics only applied to Star*Reach. As the term indicates, Hot Stuf’ is midway between mainstream and underground comics, though far closer to the former than the latter. The best thing in this issue is “The Vanguard,” a beautiful superhero story by Alex Toth, which was later reprinted in Manuel Auad’s Toth: Black and White book. It says here that The Vanguard was originally intended for Atlas/Seaboard’s Scorpion comic. Another source claims that the Vanguard started out as a Fox story, but this account seems less likely. Every time the name “Vanguard” appears in the story, the name “Scorpion” would also have fit in the same space, and on the title page, it sort of looks like there’s a letter S behind the letter V in Vanguard. The other important story in this issue is Gray Morrow’s Orion, which was later completed in Heavy Metal. Other creators in this issue include Jan Strnad, Mike Vosburg and Ernie Colón.

KINGSWAY WEST #3 (Dark Horse, 2016) – untitled, [W] Greg Pak, [A] Mirko Colak. A horror-western-SF story with an Asian-American and indigenous cast. This series had good intentions, but it tried to do way too much in too few issues. It should have been ten issues or more, like Ronin Island and Mech Cadet Yu.

Next visit to Heroes:

SOMETHING IS KILLING THE CHILDREN #31 (Boom!, 2023) – “Showdown at the Easy Creek Corral Part 1,” [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Werther Dell’Edera. On realizing that Erica stole her doll, Cutter goes into a homicidal rage. The sheriff begins to suspect that Cutter isn’t a real Interpol agent, but when he calls Interpol to check this, Cutter tracks him down and kills him too. Cutter is a far worse monster than the Oscuratypes, and as her doll tells Erica, she really likes to kill people and not monsters. Next, Cecilia arrives in town and tells Erica that she regrets bringing Cutter in, and that she wants to work with Erica to resolve this mess.

TALES OF THE TITANS #1 (DC, 2023) – “Starfire: Alien Princess,” [W] Shannon Hale & Dean Hale, [A] Javier Rodriguez. I was eagerly loking forward to this because Starfire has always been my single favorite character. In this issue, she has an adventure with some Tamaranean refugees, she saves the Titans from Zazzala the Queen Bee, and she and Gar argue over stealing each other’s food. In terms of Kory’s character arc, the story is about her frustration at being perceived as strange and overly emotional. The Hales’ version of Kory is a lot closer to the Wolfman/Perez version than the animated version, and I feel that overall they have a good understanding of the character. As a nitpick, the writers claim that Kory’s heightened emotions are because of the Psions’ experimentation. I’ve always thought that her personailty is just the way she is. Also, I hate how Kory’s nickname is now “Star” instead of “Kory”. As usual, Javier Rodriguez’s art throughout the issue is gorgeous.

RADIANT BLACK #25 (Image, 2023) – “The Catalyst War,” [W] Kyle Higgins & Joe Clark, [A] Marcelo Costa & Eduardo Ferrigato. A flashback sequence shows us some of Marshall and Nathan’s shared past. In the present, Marshall and Nathan are having trouble getting their powers to work. They’re summoned to Existence along with the other three Radiants, and the Colossals (i.e. the five robots) order Nathan and Marshall to choose one or the other to be the sole Radiant Black. After a discussion, they both agree that Marshall should be the Radiant Black. Or at least that’s what happens in my copy, because there are two different versions of this comic, and in the other version, it’s Nathan who becomes Radiant Black! And the next few issues are each going to have two different versions, one starring Marshall and the other starring Nathan. To my knowledge, this experiment, where two different comics share the same title and issue number, has never been tried before. The only similar example that comes to mind is Milorad Pavic’s novel Dictionary of the Khazars, which has two versions with different text, but the two versions only have one sentence that’s different. I might actually have to get two copies of issue 26.  

DARK RIDE #7 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Andrei Bressan. After a flashback to Samhain and Halloween’s childhood, Arthur invites the two of them and Summer to dinner at his private club. At once Arthur starts acting like a creepy, controlling ogre, and he baits Samhain into attacking him. Samhain quits working for Arthur, and Arthur has Summer banned from the park. All this happens before any food has been served. And to make everything worse, at the end of the issue, we see that something weird is happening to Samhain’s daughter.

FISHFLIES #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Jeff Lemire. The first half of this issue is a reprint of the Fishflies #1 FCBD comic. I’m annoyed to discover that by buying Fishflies #1, I’m paying for material I’ve already gotten for free. In the second half of the issue, we see the aftereffects of the robbery and gunshot, and we begin to suspect that the three protagonists of the three sequences are all somehow the same person. Fishflies resembles Royal City or Essex County in its setting, but it’s more like Trillium in its narrative structure. And it uses color in a similar way to Mazebook. Fishflies is mostly in muted colors, and the only exceptions are the blood and Fran’s coat, which are both the same shade of orange. Overall Mazebook looks like it’ll be another of Lemire’s major works.

FALLEN FRIEND: THE DEATH OF MS. MARVEL #1 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] G. Willow Wilson et al, [A] Takeshi Miyazawa et al. Ms. Marvel’s “death” in Amazing Spider-Man was a stupid, offensive publicity stunt, and I wouldn’t have been willinig to buy Fallen Friend, except that it’s already been confirmed that Kamala is coming back. Fallen Friend #1 consists of three stories taking place at Kamala’s funeral, each written by one of Kamala’s past writers. Besides Wilson, the other two are Saladin Ahmed and Mark Waid. This is a heartfelt and powerful comic, even if its very existence is problematic. I’m glad there’s a new Ms. Marvel series coming. Marvel really should be capitalizing on the popularity of the Disney+ show.

GROO IN THE WILD #1 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Sergio Aragonés, [W] Mark Evanier. I’m very surprised that this comic was published so soon after Gods Against Groo. Of course Sergio is the fastest cartoonist in the world, but I was expecting him to take another long break, like he did after Play of the Gods. The previous miniseries ended with Groo and Rufferto floating at sea, but in this issue they make it to shore, and Groo tries to find food. However, he discovers that there’s no meat or fish available, because all the animals’ habitats are being destroyed in the name of capitalism. And when the local king discovers that Groo is in the kingdom, he sends an army against him. Like the earlier miniseries Hell on Earth, Groo in the Wild is primarily about ecology, though it focuses on habitat destruction instead of pollution. A funny moment in this issue is when a little girl asks Groo “What is that blue thing on your chest?” Of course she doesn’t get an answer.

THE GREAT BRITISH BUMP-OFF #4 (Dark Horse, 2023) – “Sinister Strawberry Shortcake,” [W] John Allison, [A] Max Sarin. Shauna figures out that Will and Francoise conspired to commit the murders, because Will wanted to break the traditional cycle where certain types of contestants always win. Will and Francoise are apprehended, and their crimes are edited out of the televised version of the series.

SCRAPPER #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Cliff Blezinski & Alex de Campi, [A] Sandy Jarrell. The city of New Verona is ruled by an evil corporate dictatorship called SMITE. Our protagonists are two talking dogs, Scrapper and Tank. When Scrapper’s humans are murdered by a SMITE robot, Scrapper’s previously unknown superpowers activate, enabling him to destroy the robot. This is a fun first issue. It reminds me of Stray Dogs, of course, but also the video game Stray. The similarity to Stray may not be accidental, since the co-writer, Cliff Blezinski, is a well-known game designer. One cool thing about this issue is the other talking animals. The rats are depicted as anarchic, aggressive punks, and the pigeons are chatty and forgetful. There are no cats in this issue, but the solicitation text suggests that we will meet some cats by issue 4, and I can’t wait to see what they’re like.

SAVAGE DRAGON #266 (DC, 2023) – “The Next Chapter!”, [W/A] Erik Larsen. Malcolm and Maxine decide to move to San Francisco, though Maxine is reluctant, and Malcolm’s son Jackson is actively opposed. When they visit San Francisco to check it out, the city looks like an idyllic paradise. But when the family moves there, the first thing they see is a giant tent city. I’ve only been to San Francisco once, as a young child, and I barely remember it. I’ m reluctant to go back there, because it’s been turned into an unaffordable capitalist hellscape.  There really is a restaurant in San Francisco called The Stinking Rose.

IN HELL WE FIGHT! #2 (Image, 2023) – “Hell’s Angel,” [W] Erik Larsen, [A] Jok. We start with Midori Fukada’s origin. Then the protagonists try to decide what to do with their new angelic companion. This is a fun series, and I especially like the little demon kid. However, I find it hard to remember all the characters, and I’m not quite sure what this series is about. Jok, not to be confused with Jock, is an excellent artist, and his style is sort of like Rob Guillory’s.

THE HUNGER AND THE DUSK #1 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] G. Willow Wilson, [A] Chris Wildgoose. In a fantasy world suffering from ecological catastrophe, a human village is invaded by orcs, and then by the Vangol, a race of creatures even worse than orcs. Six months later, some humans and orcs have to team up against the Vangol for their mutual survival. This is a promising debut issue that offers an original take on the epic fantasy/Dungeons and Dragons genre. It feels like a big improvement over some of IDW’s other creator-owned titles. Perhaps IDW cancelled some of their Originals titles because they’re more interested in promoting titles by estabilshed writers. Of course, the problem with this is that it means there are fewer outlets for new writers to build a reputation. G. Willow Wilson herself got into comics thanks to Vertigo, a creator-owned imprint that no longer exists.

I HATE FAIRYLAND #7 (Image, 2023) – “Crisis on Infinite Gerts,” [W] Skottie Young, [A] Brett Bean. That title is my invention. The various alternate versions of Gert battle each other to determine which of them will get to go home. After a hilariously gruesome fight, all the Gerts are killed except for the current Gert and her younger self. The younger Gert kills the older one. I guess that means she’s killed her own future self, but neither she nor the writer seems to notice this.

NOCTERRA NEMESIS SPECIAL #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Scott Snyder & Tony Daniel, [A] Liam Sharp. Emory tries to execute his plan to save the world, but is pursued by Bill. As far as I can tell, this issue doesn’t advance the plot very far beyond where it was at the end of issue 15, and it’s also not well drawn. Liam Sharp seems to be trying to draw like Bill Sienkiewicz – Blacktop Bill’s creepy smile is a particularly Sienkiewicz-esque touch. But Sharp doesn’t have Bill Sienkiewicz’s skill, and his pages just look muddy and overproduced. I think we could have done without this issue. BTW, the 2000 AD series Enemy Earth reminds me of Nocterra, in that they both have the premise that everything in the world is trying to kill you.

WORLD’S FINEST: TEEN TITANS #1 (DC, 2023) – “Follow the Leader,” [W] Mark Waid, [A] Emanuela Lupacchino. A flashback series set in the Teen Titans’ earliest period̉, with the retcon that Bumblebee is now a charter member. I keep mentioning how I’ve lost confidence in Mark Waid’s writing, but maybe it’s time to stop saying that, because this issue is really good. It’s in the same spirit as Bob Haney and Nick Cardy’s Titans, except with better writing and characterization. Donna’s relationship with Garth (instead of Roy) and her overly forceful personality are both unusual touches, but both these ideas are acceptable modifications of past continuity.

CON & ON #1 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Paul Cornell, [A] Marika Cresta. To my knowledge, this is the second creator-owned comic that’s set at a comic convention, after The Long Con. Con & On takes place at the 1992 “Vista al Mar” comic convention, which of course is based on the San Diego Comic-Con. Many of its characters are equally obvious versions of real people; for example, the three British guys are Alan Moore, Neil Gaiman and Grant Morrison, and Julius Kerunkle is Julie Schwartz. The focal character in this issue is Deja, a young black woman who’s attending her first Comic-Con, along with her white friend Eddie. She wants to get invited to a private party so she can do some networking, but she’s bitterly disappointed when Eddie gets invited to a party and she doesn’t. Deja has a chance encounter with John Stamley, a black actor who’s faced racism throughout his career, and he gives her the strength to go on. By itself, this issue seems to lack a clear premise or protagonist, but subsequent issues will be set at future Comic-Cons, and the point of the series is to show the gradual evolution of Deja and Eddie’s careers and of the convention itself. As a longtime Comic-Con attendee, I’m in favor of this. In the scene with Ray Autumn (i.e. Ray Bradbury), the caption describing the history of comic conventions is not accurate. There was never any dispute about including fan fiction in the Hugo Awards.

BLACK PANTHER #2 (Marvel, 2023) – “Reign at Dusk Part 2,” [W] Eve Ewing, [A] Chris Allen. T’Challa meets the local superhero Beisa, then talks with Shuri, then visits Beisa in her secret identity (if I interpreted the last scene correctly). Also there’s a brief scene with Deathlok. I’m disappointed that the lawyer from last issue does not appear in this one. Another reviewer complains that Eve Ewing is writing T’Challa as if he were Batman, and that this series is unfocused and plotless. I can’t entirely disagree with these criticisms, though I really want this volume of Black Panther to be good, because the two previous runs were highly disappointing.

WILD’S END #2 (IDW, 2023) – “Home,” [W] Dan Abnett, [A] I.N.J. Culbard. Some of the ship’s crew stay behind in Gullstone, and they find that there’s one more survivor, a reporter named Bernadette Pye. The two cat kids go looking for their families, accompanied by the captain and his grandson. This second group discovers that all the townspeople have been hypnotized by (what we know to be) a Martian tripod, and the tripod kills one of the kids. This is a good issue, though it’s no different from any previous Wild’s End comic.

SIRENS OF THE CITY #1 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joanne Starer, [A] Khary Randolph. In 1987, a pregnant teenage girl named Layla has been thrown out by her adoptive parents. Layla goes to New York to look for the woman who placed her with her adoptive family. Her sperm donor, Jerome, follows her all the way there. In New York, Layla and Jerome both fall in with different communities of magical creatures. We also begin to realize that Layla is a siren and Jerome is an incubus, although I’m not sure if both these things are revealed this issue. Joanne Starer’s debut series, The Gimmick, is very good, but Sirens of the City promises to be even better. It’s an intriguing urban fantasy story that also, unfortunately, has contemporary relevance because of its abortion theme. Khary Randolph’s art is beautiful, and I also love the  minimal coloring. Most of the art is in black and white, but things associated with incubi and sirens are blue and red, respectively.

WHAT IF? DARK LOKI #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Song of Mjolnir… in Minor,” [W] Walt Simonson, [A] Scot Eaton. This story’s point of divergence from the 616 universe occurs in Thor #153, when Loki gained the ability to lift Mjolnir. In the original story, Thor got Mjolnir back, but in this story Loki keeps Mjolnir and kills Thor and Sif, then proceeds to take over Asgard and cause Ragnarok. Walt Simonson’s Thor is perhaps the greatest Marvel comic since the Silver Age, and it’s wonderful to see Uncle Walt writing Thor again, even with someone else drawing it. This issue includes some nice homages to Simonson’s original Thor run, particularly in the scene where Loki battles Surtur. And Simonson’s writing has the same epic yet humorous tone as in his original run.

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES #141 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Sophie Campbell, [A] Gavin Smith. Jennika bails Raphael out of prison. Raphael and Jennika investigate the murders, and they discover the three weasel kids and Leatherhead, who I guess is the killer. Leatherhead kidnaps one of the weasels and escapes to the lair of Jasper Barlow. Leonardo gets angry at Raph and Jenny for going off alone. Meanwhile, Donatello is locked in his lab, obsessively studying something called Armaggon. Now that the boring Armageddon Game crossover is finally over, this series is finally worth reading again.

KNIGHT TERRORS: NIGHTWING #1 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Becky Cloonan & Michael Conrad, [A] Daniele Di Nicuolo. Nightwing dreams that he’s incarcerated in Arkham Asylum because he’s killed Batman. At the end of the issue, Babs is also locked up in the asylum. This comic is rather boring, and it lacks any impact or suspense, since we know that everything that happens in it is a dream. What’s even worse is that we’re getting this comic instead of an issue of Tom Taylor’s Nightwing, perhaps my favorite current series. Cloonan and Conrad are good, but Tom Taylor is irreplaceable. I probably should have just skipped ordering this comic.

KNIGHT TERRORS: SHAZAM! #1 (DC, 2023) – “Night Magic,” [W] Mark Waid, [A] Roger Cruz. This issue is narrated from Mary Marvel’s perspective, and her nightmares reveal her fear that she’s not worthy to hold the Shazam powers.  This issue is better than Knight Terrors: Nightwing #1 because it’s by the series’ regular writer, and because it takes advantage of the nightmare gimmick in order to tell us more about the series’ characters.

ARCADE KINGS #3 (Image, 2023) – “The Row,” [W/A] Dylan Burnett. Joe’s younger brother Ken now owns a video game arcade, but some hired goons are bullying him into selling out to his “father” Victor McMax’s corporation. When their persuasion becomes violent, Ken is forced to use his superpowers to repel them. Then Ken’s brother Joe appears at the arcade. Ken is a vividly realized character, and this issue also gives further evidence of what a monster Victor McMax is, even though he doesn’t appear in it. I like this comic’s emphasis on arcades. As a kid I used to go to video arcades all the time. Going to the arcade was the main thing I did at the mall, other than going to the bookstore. But arcades are almost extinct in America, and where they do exist, they appeal to nostalgic adults rather than kids. The death of the arcade was due in part to the gradual improvement of home consoles, but it also seems to be part of the “bowling alone” phenomenon where there’s just not as much stuff to do in public. By contrast, Japan does have a thriving video arcade culture, although even there the arcade industry seems to be in crisis. Arcade Kings is an appealing vision of an arcade culture that I no longer have access to.

SECOND COMING: TRINITY #4 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell, [A] Richard Pace & Leonard Kirk. Sunstar gets his grandmother to babysit Jordan, since she babysat Sunstar himself when he was a superpowered child. Sunstar’s grandmother hints that Sunstar’s memories of his childhood may be incorrect. Sunstar returns to his childhood home and discovers a cache of “Rememberium.” Upon drinking it, he discovers that his parents were giving him power-blocking pills throughout his childhood. When the pills ran out, Sunstar’s parents made him choose between keeping his powers, or taking the last pill and losing his powers forever. Of course Sunstar chose to keep his powers, and the first thing he did with them was to kill his parents by accident. He then drank “Forgettium” so he would forget what he did. After this heartbreaking revelation, Sunstar goes home and discovers that Jordan has set the apartment on fire. The last power-blocking pill is supposedly gone, but I suspect that it might turn up again in issue 6.

ANIMAL CASTLE VOL. 2 #3 (Ablaze, 2023) – untitled, [W] Xavier Dorison, [A] Felix Delep. Miss B is locked up in the dungeon, and the animals go on strike, demanding that Silvio free her and hold fair elections. With the animals no longer working, Silvio can’t afford champagne, and he’s forced to grant their demands. It looks like the animals have won, but Silvio already has a plan to rig the election so that he wins. Also, Caesar asks Miss B a painful question: “What’s the point of being free if you’re starving and orphaned?” This is a truly incredible comic. Its depiction of politics is extremely sophisticated and nuanced, and it also has great characterizaiton. The only problem is that it hurts to read. The animals keep winning concessions from Silvio, yet there’s a consistent sense that their efforts are futile, and that Silvio is going to win in the end. And even if the good guys do win, it will be at a high cost. Boom! just announced a second comic based on Animal Farm: Animal Pound by Tom King and Peter Gross. I’ll probably give that comic a try, but there’s no chance it’ll be nearly as good as Animal Castle.

STARSIGNS #3 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Megan Levens. We start with a flashback showing that Tatiana, one of the evil Starsigns, was orphaned in a bombing raid during the Bosnian war. Then the good and bad Starsigns fight each other for custody of the Guatemalan boy, Alejandro. This series is different from its obvious inspiration, The Wicked + The Divine, in that the twelve signs are not even nominally on the same side, and the conflict between the two groups of signs is a racialized conflict. The two evil signs are both white, while the good ones are all people of color, with one exception who we’ll meet next issue.

CAT FIGHT #2 (IDW, 2023) – “Out of the Bag,” [W] Andrew Wheeler, [A] Ilias Kyriazis. Felix’s grandmother told him that if he lost her, he should look for her at the Chat Noir in Paris. He  takes a train there, and is promptly attacked by a series of other thieves. He has to jump off the train and make his own way to Paris, but just as he’s about to uncover the secret of the Chat Noir, he’s attacked by yet another thief, Ginger Tom. The “cats” in this comic are mostly metaphorical rather than real, yet this is still a pretty good cat comic.

VOID RIVALS #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Robert Kirkman, [A] Lorenzo De Felici. We learn some information about the war between the Agorrians and the Zertonians, and then the two protagonists collaborate to escape the planet, but they land on a space station where they’re attacked by a pig-like alien. This issue has no Transformers content. Its plot is mildly interesting, but not interesting enough to make me want to continue reading, and I’m not going to buy issue 3.

BLACK’S MYTH: THE KEY TO HIS HEART #2 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Eric Palicki, [W] Wendell Cavalcanti. Strummer and Ben have been sent a package containig some pages from the Key of Solomon. They go to visit Rainsford Black, who’s missing half his face. He hires them to find out where the pages came from, and also to track down his possible illegitimate son. Back at their office, they have to fight off an attack by a demon, and Carly is horrified to discover her new employer is a werewolf. Another not-bad issue.

W0RLDTR33 #3 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Fernando Blanco. Another issue in which not a whole lot happens. W0rldtr33 is a creepy horror comic, but it has too many characters, and I can’t remember who they all are. It looks like issue 4 already came out, but I didn’t receive it.

MISS TRUESDALE AND THE FALL OF HYPERBOREA #3 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mike Mignola, [A] Jesse Lonergan. This issue has the same flaw as all the other Hellboyverse comics: its plot is impossible to understand unless you’ve read every previous Hellboyverse comic. Also, I still think this comic is an inefficient use of Jesse Lonergan’s talent. His art looks good, but there are only a few places in the issue where he gets to exercise his creativity with page layouts. I keep thinking of buying his new graphic novel Arca. Maybe I will get it next time I go to Heroes.

KNIGHT TERRORS: SUPERMAN #1 (DC, 2023) – “Man of Screams!”, [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Tom Reilly. Superman has a series of nightmares, and then Aquaman shows up on the last page. This is another lackluster Knight Terrors comic. It doesn’t tell us anything we didn’t already know about Superman and his fears. The silver lining is that Tom Reilly is a very solid artist who deserves more exposure.

EARTHDIVERS #8 (IDW, 2023) – “You Want a Death Ritual?”, [W] Stephen Graham Jones, [A] Riccardo Burchielli. After issue 7, I was willing to give Earthdivers another chance, but with this issue, I’m back to being completely confused about what’s going on. Stephen Graham Jones is not yet able to tell a coherent story in comics form. He hasn’t mastered the trick of using images, rather than narrative text, to help the reader understand his fictional world. He  should have co-written this series with a more experienced comics writer. I’m giving up on this series.

TERRORWAR #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Dave Acosta. Representative Ronali tells the Terrorfighters that the terrors are spreading, and Muhammad’s team is the only one that’s been able to reduce their numbers. We meet the team’s new advisor, a nonbinary scientist named Doctora Z. Then, on their first mission, the team encounters a mysterious child, and Muhammad is captured. I like the silent scene showing the team’s activities on the night before the mission. We don’t get to see their thoughts, but just by seeing what they’re doing before battle, we get some insight into their personalities. The definitve example of this pre-combat scene is in X-Men #137.

SPIRIT WORLD #3 (DC, 2023) – “Piece by Piece,” [W] Alyssa Wong, [A] Haining. Xanthe, Cass and Constantine fight some monsters, but I’m not sure what they’re fighting or why. I like this series’ characters and mythology, but its plot is confusing and unclear. This was not a problem with Alyssa Wong’s previous series, Iron Fist.

NEW MUTANTS: LETHAL LEGION #5 (Marvel, 2023) – “Vampire Heist II,” [W] Charlie Jane Anders, [A] Enid Balam. The New Mutants attend/invade a convention at the Javits Center, where Count Nefaria is planning to use his Weird Engine to restore his powers, at the cost of numerous lives. The New Mutants save the day, and Shela and Morgan reconcile. Charlie Jane’s New Mutants was entertaining, but also confusing, and it seemed unable to decide whether it wanted to be taken seriously. In her major prose work, All the Birds in the Sky, she does a better job of balancing humor and genuine emotion.

KNIGHT TERRORS: GREEN LANTERN #1 (DC, 2023) – “Doorway to Death,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Eduardo Pansica. Another incoherent story full of boring nightmares. The incoherence of the plot is appropriate, in that the story follows dream logic rather than normal narrative logic, but that still doesn’t make this comic fun to read. I do think this is the first comic I’ve read that explicitly identified Hal as Jewish (Christmas with the Super-Heroes #2 is ambiguous enough that it doesn’t count), but Hal has been canonically Jewish since 2016. This comic also includes a Sinestro backup story, which only adds to the length of the comic, without making it more interesting.  

DANGER STREET #7 (DC, 2023) – “The Creeper,” [W] Tom King, [A] Jorge Fornés. The one thing I remember about this issue is how Lady Cop is waiting all day to see the Commodore, and the Commodore’s secretary keeps telling her that he’ll be right there. But after she’s waited until 8 pm, the secretary tells her that the office is closed, and that she’ll have to come back in seven weeks – as if anything would be different in seven weeks! If this happened to me, I would be unable to control my rage, and I would just kick the guy’s office door down. The various other protagonists also appear in this issue, but none of their scenes are very interesting.

X-MEN RED #13 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Annihilation of Arakko,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Jacopo Camagni. This issue is entirely about Arakko’s internal politics, and I didn’t understand it at all. I sort of understand what Arakko is and where it came from, but the Great Ring members, besides Storm, are all new characters, and I can never recall who they are. As mentioned in my review of #12, the problem with X-Men Red is that it has no clear theme or story arc, except that every issue stars Storm and takes place on Arakko. I’m still willing to read this series, but only because of my perhaps misguided loyalty to Al Ewing.

PSYCHODRAMA ILLUSTRATED #6 (Fantagraphics, 2023) – “Savage World,” [W/A] Gilbert Hernandez. Oh, look, another series that I’m mostly reading out of loyalty. At least this issue has a more coherent plot than some of Beto’s other recent work. In “Savage World,” a woman and a young boy are stranded on a desert island, and they get involved in a sordid saga of violence and incest. At the end, the woman and the boy are dead, but are survived by their daughter, “Girl,” who’s pregnant by her own father. A separate story, “Journey’s End,” is told across the bottom tier of each page. This is an interesting experiment (and a throwback to the old “topper strips”), but the plot of this second story was hard to follow.

THE VIGIL #3 (DC, 2023) – “Shadow,” [W] Ram V, [A] Lalit Kumar Sharma w/ Sid Kotian. The Vigil goes on a mission to Cambodia. The issue is narrated by the team’s liaison, Nia Saha. In her caption boxes she gives her opinion of the various team members. I liked this issue more than the previous two.

Between reading this comic and the next one, I went to the Comics Studies Society conference in Denton, Texas. This was a great conference, despite the extreme heat. Besides the actual conference, a particular highlight was my two visits to Recycled Books, a huge used bookstore that reminds me of the ones I used to visit as a kid.

ULTIMATE INVASION #1 (Marvel, 2023 ) – “Good Artists Copy,” [W] Jonathan Hickman, [A] Bryan Hitch. Andy Kunka gave this to me at the conference, since he had a duplicate copy. In this issue the Illuminati team up against the Maker, the evil alternate version of Reed Richards. This comic has an epic plot and excellent art, but somehow it didn’t grab me enough to make me continue reading the series. I do think I might read Hickman’s upcoming Marvel comic G.O.D.S.

X-MEN #101 facsimile (Marvel, 1976) – “Like a Phoenix, from the Ashes!”, [W] Chris Claremont, [A] Dave Cockrum. An all-time classic issue. The “hear me, X-Men” speech is one of my favorite pieces of dialogue in any Marvel comic. In a modern comic it would sound kitchy, but in its original context, it’s a stunning, epic moment. I haven’t read this story in a while, and on rereading it, I notice that at this point, Scott, Jean and Logan had a genuine love triangle going. Also, Ororo and Peter act like a potential couple, rather than a big sister and little brother. On the letters page, a commenter even suggests that Ororo and Peter should get married and leave the team. The second half of this issue is much less well-known than the first half; Jean’s transformation to Phoenix is forgotten for the moment, and the team goes off to Ireland to fight Black Tom Cassidy and Juggernaut.

GROOT #3 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Dan Abnett, [A] Damian Couceiro. Captain Marvel struggles to escape from Agz, the rogue Flora Colossus. Groot and Yondar seek help from Planet X’s living consciousness, Granopy. This issue is mostly setup for next issue. This series really should have been called CAPTAIN MAR-VELL AND GROOT.

EIGHTBALL #14 (Fantagraphics, 1994) – [W/A] Daniel Clowes. I bought this at Recycled Books for $5. The price tag says AS IS, because when I opened the comic, several of the pages were stuck together. I was able to separate them without affecting the comic’s readability. The issue begins with a color story, “The Gold Mommy,” a disturbing blend of noir fiction and surrealism. Then there’s a five-pager about how professional sports are all about repressed sexuality. Next is a chapter of “Ghost World,” and then the final Dan Pussey story, in which Dan’s career declines and he dies. Most of these stories are very sordid and sardonic, and they leave the reader feeling disgusted and uncomfortable, as Crumb’s comics do. The first 18 issues of Eightball were virtuosic demonstrations of Clowes’s versatility and his skill with short stories. Because he was so good at the short story form, it’s almost a shame that, with Eightball #19, he switched to graphic novels exclusively. But even some of his later works, like Ice Haven and The Death Ray, are collections of connected short stories.

IMMORTAL X-MEN #13 (Marvel, 2023) – “Deadlocked,” [W] Kieron Gillen, [A] Lucas Werneck. Selene joins the Quiet Council and immediately begins turning its other members against each other. After a lot of infighting, Doug Ramsey moves to dissolve the Quiet Council and transition to democracy. The motion carries, but then Krakoa grabs Doug and transports him to an unknown location, and Destiny says that a mistake has been made. This issue is frustrating to read because it’s mostly about the X-Men fighting with themselves, rather than doing anything productive (compare my review of Walking Dead #119 above). And in the current Fall of X storyline, things are going to get even worse.

INCREDIBLE HULK #181 facsimile (Marvel, 1974) – “And Now… the Wolverine!” [W] Len Wein, [A] Herb Trimpe. A reprint of the most valuable post-Silver Age comic. I’ve read this story before, and I don’t remember very much about it. It’s a pretty average Wein/Trimpe Hulk comic, consisting mostly of fight scenes. The following issue, with the Crackajack Jackson story, is a genuinely excellent comic on its own merits, besides including an early Wolverine appearance. Wolverine must have been an instantly appealing character because of his claws, but he might be forgotten today if Len hadn’t reintroduced him in Giant-Size X-Men #1.

2000 AD #544 (IPC, 1987) – Zenith: “Storm Warnings,” [W] Grant Morrison, [A] Steve Yeowell. Masterman intimidates the future Prime Minister, Peter St. John. This is a very frightening scene. Zenith and Siadwel head back to London, where Masterman is going on a rampage. Freaks: untitled, [W] Peter Milligan, [A] Johhn Higgins. The alien doctor Kilgo frees the human captive Carl, but is promptly murdered. Carl escapes in the back of Kilgo’s daughter’s car. Future Shocks: “Letter to Ernie,” [W] Win Wiacek, [A] Mark Farmer. A young girl wins a lottery and is allowed to enter a dome that preserves the only remaining area of unspoiled nature. Dredd: “Killcraze Part 2,” [W] John Wagner & Alan Grant, [A] Liam Sharp. Dredd stops the violence, and discovers that the dummy bullets were replaced with real ones because of a clerical error. Future Shocks: “Tourist Season,” [W] Mike Collins, [A] Simon Harrison. Some aliens kidnap tourists and replace them with robots. At the end of the story, the protagonist has forgotten that he’s a robot, but he’s fallen in love with his lamp. Strontium Dog: “The Rammy Part 1,” [W] Alan Grant, [A] Carlos Ezquerra. Johnny and Middenface are put on trial for kidnapping a criminal from a sanctuary zone. The meaning of the story’s title is not explained yet.

LETTER 44 #34 (Oni, 2017) – untitled, [W] Charles Soule, [A] Alberto Jimenez Alburquerque. A writer (not sure if this is President Blades or someone else) meditates on the impending end of the world. Each page of this issue is a two-page splash, showing darkness gradually encroaching on various parts of the world. This is only the next-to-last issue, and I have no idea what happens in issue 35.  

PATSY WALKER #105 (Marvel, 1962) – “On with the Dance!” etc., [W] Stan Lee, [A] Al Hartley. This was part of an eBay order. This issue consists of a series of teen humor stories, focusing on Patsy Walker’s rivalry with Hedy and her romance with Buzz. Patsy and Hedy are very similar characters to Millie and Chili, except that they’re high school students instead of models. Until now I only knew Al Hartley as the creator of those weird Archie Christian comics. If this issue is any indication, he was a shockingly bad artist. He only knew how to draw one facial expression. His characters all look identical to each other, and their faces don’t change from one panel to the next.  It’s as if they all have smiles permanently frozen on their faces, like in the Simpsons episode where Lenny gets plastic surgery. Compared to Hartley, even Stan Goldberg seems like a master artist, to say nothing of Dan DeCarlo or Harry Lucey.

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: CASEY AND APRIL #1 (IDW, 2015) – untitled, [W] Mariko Tamaki, [A] Irene Koh. Casey and April go on vacation, and they encounter a mysterious skull-faced man who controls rats. As one would expect from Mariko Tamaki, this issue includes some excellent characterization. However, it also includes a cliched scene where two out-of-towners visit a small-town diner and are greeted with prejudice and suspicion. I think the first time I saw a scene like this was in Green Lantern (1990) #77, but I suspect it was a cliché even then.

THE MIGHTY AVENGERS #21 (Marvel, 2009) – “Earth’s Mightiest Part 1: The Smartest Man in the Room,” [W] Dan Slott, [A] Khoi Pham. Stature and Iron Lad/Vision meet the resurrected Scarlet Witch, the Avengers travel to Transia to fight Modred and Chthon, and lots of other stuff happens. This is an okay issue, but it doesn’t feel as clever or original as Slott’s Spider-Man comics.

MY LITTLE PONY 40TH ANNIVERSARY #1 (IDW, 2023) – “Friendship is Forever,” [W] Sam Maggs, [A] Keisha Okafor. Four little girls love playing with their My Little Pony dolls, but as they grow up, their friendship starts to fade, and only one of them still likes My Little Pony. But the girls’ favorite place, their local stable (i.e. for actual horses), is about to be bulldozed, and the girls have to save the day, with the aid of the real versions of their favorite pony characters. This is a cute story. Its art is very crude and amateurish, as if a child drew it, but I assume this was done deliberately to match the story’s childish theme. There are two backup stories, one written by Jeremy Whitley and the other by Tony Fleecs. Both these stories are about the similarities and differences between the various generations of the MLP franchise. I especially like the second story, where a little girl and her aunt compare their respective versions of the franchise.

XINO #2 (Oni, 2023) – “Finale,” [W] Alex Segura, [A] Xander Cannon. A woman is trained to fight a monster, Shard, which has killed her parents and all her friends. She’s unable to damage the monster in any way, but she discovers that what she can do is destroy the monster’s eggs, so she can “hurt Shard the way Shard hurt me.” “Free Hugs: The Ballad of MegaVortex!”, [W] David Lapham & Maria Lapham, [A] Francesco Segala. This story is set in a future world where everyone lives in an individual pod, and children are conceived remotely, without their parents ever meeting. While the protagonist is trying to decide on his future child’s name, a woman approaches his pod offering free hugs. He eventually decides to blow her out the airlock. This is the best-written story in the series so far. “Testimonial,” [W] Hagal Palevsky, [A] Carson Thorn. A man dies, but his corporate employer brings him back to life. However, they still won’t give him a raise, and it’s implied that he was better off dead. “B&B,” [W/A] Alissa Sallah. A man named Dom Bonchamps has a record of causing horrible disasters, so he’s sent to Mars, but even when on Mars, he manages to destroy the Earth. So basically this is a Groo story. “The People,” [W] Francois Vigneault, [A] Artyom Trakhanov. Some primitive people discover an item of advanced technology, but decide to get rid of it. Then we learn that one of the people is secretly a scientist from a more advanced human society. Overall, even if some of the individual stories in this comic are underwhelming, the existence of this comic is a good thing, because it offers an opportunity for new artists to break into the industry.

DEEP CUTS #3 (Image, 2023) – “K.C. Blues,” [W] Kyle Higgins & Joe Clark, [A] Diego Greco. In 1940, Otis, a former professional bassist, has retired in order to work a normal job and raise his two daughters. When he gets offered an opportunity to join a professional band again, he has to choose between his career and his family. Much of the story is narrated from the POV of Otis’s older daughter, and there’s a suggestion that she might eventually win the fame that eluded her father. I think this is my favorite issue so far. It’s written in an affectionate and bittersweet way, and it offers a nuanced and plausible depiction of black life in the 1940s. Otis and his wife Cindy aren’t exactly living the American dream – they both have to work themselves to the bone – but their life isn’t entirely defined by poverty or racism. It’s also worth mentioning that they’re an interracial couple, since Cindy is Hispanic. So far, each issue of Deep Cuts has been independent of the others. The common thread in the series is that all the stories are about marginalized people working in the music industry.

A VICIOUS CIRCLE #2 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mattson Tomlin, [A] Lee Bermejo. This issue seems to be a flashback, explaining the origin of the conflict between the two time-traveling enemies. The gimmick seems to be that whenever either of the enemies dies, they’re both transplanted to a different historical era. The writing in this comic takes a back seat to the art, though the sequence set in Nazi Berlin is quite well-written. Lee Bermejo draws most of the issue in a hyperrealistic style. In fact this style is too realistic for my tastes, though Bermejo is a master of it. I prefer the sequences set in the future and in Nazi Germany, because these scenes look drawn rather than painted, and they each have a distinctive style of linework. For me, one sign of a truly gifted artist is the ability to draw in multiple different styles. J.H. Williams III and Andrea Sorrentino can do this, and Lee Bermejo can do it too.

CLASSICS ILLUSTRATED #116 (Gilberton, 1954) – “The Bottle Imp,” [W] unknown (adapted from Robert Louis Stevenson), [A] Lou Cameron. I know this story very well; I first read it as a kid, and then again in college. It has an awesome gimmick: the title object can grant any wish, but anyone who dies while owning it is automatically condemned to hell, and the only way to get rid of it is to sell it at a loss. This story also has some very vigorous prose writing. I love the sequence where Keawe discovers that his uncle has died and left him the money for his new house. The Classics Illustrated adaptation has some incidental differences from the original (for example, the second time Keawe buys the bottle, it costs two cents rather than one), and it generally feels less exciting and vivid. Also, Keawe and Kokua are native Hawaiians, but they barely look different from the Haoles they meet. The backup story is an adaptation of “The Beach of Falesa,” another Stevenson story with a Polynesian setting. It lacks an explicit supernatural element, and Wikipedia says that Stevenson saw it as his pivot from romance to realism. The adaptation is by the same artist, and presumably the same writer, as the lead story. I have a bunch more issues of Classics Illustrated, but I hesitate to read them because they’re very long and text-heavy.

A DISTANT SOIL #19 (Image, 1997) – “Ascension Part VI,” [W/A] Colleen Doran. This series is very difficult to read because of its convoluted plot and its excessively large cast of characters, at least one of whom has multiple names. I have no idea what exactly happened in this issue. It has lovely art, though.

THE PHANTOM #1714 (Frew, 2015) – “The Crystal Skull,” [W] Scott Goodall, [A] José Casanovas. A reprint of a 1989 story that previously appeared in Frew #963. Like the 2008 Indiana Jones film of a similar name, “The Crystal Skull” is based on dubious legends about Mesoamerican crystal skulls. “The Crystal Skull” is an exciting Barksian treasure hunt story that also includes SF and horror elements, as well as detailed depictions of rural Mexico. It’s quite fun. José Casanovas’s style reminds me of that of Rudy Nebres.

THE PUNISHER MEETS ARCHIE #1 (Marvel/Archie, 1994) – “When Worlds Collide,” [W] Batton Lash, [A] John Buscema & Stan Goldberg. I heard about this when it came out, but never actually read it, and I decided to buy it on eBay. The Punisher Meets Archie (also published by Archie, with identical content but the characters’ names in reverse order) is perhaps the silliest comics crossover ever. But it works because the creators are fully aware of the silliness, and they lean into it. The Punisher segments are written in a deadpan, fully serious style, and they gain poignancy from the Punisher’s meditations about how Riverdale represents the sort of life he might have had, if his family hadn’t been killed. Meanwhile, the Archie segments are written and drawn in a typical teen humor style, and the joke of the comic is the clash between two styles. The Punisher characters are drawn by John Buscema, and the Archie characters by Stan Goldberg, and both artists sometimes collaborate on the  same panel. The plot, based on the Punisher’s pursuit of a criminal who looks identical to Archie, is choreographed extremely well. This issue is also full of inside jokes – for instance, the villain is named Mel Jay (MLJ), aka Montana Bob (Bob Montana). In summary, Punisher Meets Archie is not just a historical curiosity, but also an excellent comic.

LEGION WORLDS #5 (DC, 2001) – “You Are Here: Steeple,” [W] Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning, [A] Steve Dillon. Karate Kid and Ferro are on the planet of Steeple, which periodically becomes inaccessible for ten years. Val is trying to decide whether to spend the next ten years in spiritual isolation, or go back to the United Planets. Then some villains invade the planet, and Ferro is injured fighting them and can’t change back to his human form, and Val has to stay behind to take care of him. This is a very anticlimactic and frustrating way to write two characters out of the series, though they both came back in The Legion #22. This issue also includes a pointless backup story starring M’Onel.

THE WOODS #24 (Boom!, 2016) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Michael Dialynas. This issue mostly focuses on Calder, the kid whose life was ruined by his criminal brother, and the issue ends with his apparent death. I meant to try to read this series in order, but I haven’t found the time.

FLASH #758 (DC, 2020) – “Legion of Zoom,” [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Christina Duce w/ Scott Kolins. Barry fights his own future children Don and Dawn, who are now members of Reverse Flash’s Legion of Zoom. This Flash run is of limited interest to me because I don’t care about Barry. He was never “my” Flash – I started reading the Flash with Mark Waid’s run – and he’s never had much of a personality.

L.E.G.I.O.N. ’90 #18 (DC, 1990) – “From the Jaws of Victory…”, [W] Alan Grant, [A] Barry Kitson. The L.E.G.I.O.N. fights a villain named Dagon-Ra. They win when Dagon-Ra is betrayed by his underling Telepath, who later becomes a member of L.E.G.I.O.N. Captain Comet also offers unexpected assistance. The latter character is mostly remembered for being one of DC’s few  superheroes created between the Golden Age and the Silver Age. He also played a small but crucial role in James Robinson and Paul Smith’s Golden Age miniseries.

LEGIONNAIRES #74 (DC, 1999) – “Aftershocks,” [W] Tom McCraw & Roger Stern, [A] Jeffrey Moy. The Legion fights four enemies with elemental powers. One of them is Sun Boy, and another is a Dryadian named Brika, who seems like a replacement for Blok, except that she dies. Incidentally, Blok was always identified as male, but I seem to remember that near the end of v3, we were told that he didn’t know anything about his own physiology. This is a rather boring issue. At this point, the “Archie Legion” creators had run out of ideas and were just marking time until they were replaced by Abnett and Lanning.

CONAN THE ADVENTURER #1 (Marvel, 1994) – “Barbarians at the Gate!”, [W] Roy Thomas, [A] Rafael Kayanan. I think this is Roy Thomas’s most complete depiction of the battle of Venarium, the event that launched Conan’s career. In his first major battle, Conan fights alongside a coalition of Cimmerian tribes to resist Aquilonian imperialism. The Cimmerians win, but the battle makes Conan curious about the world outside Cimmeria, and before long he leaves his homeland for good. The issue mostly focuses on Conan’s friendship with an older warrior, who unsurprisingly dies during the battle. Conan the Adventurer was supposed to be aimed at a younger audience, but this issue is even bloodier and gorier than a typical issue of Conan the Barbarian.

DARK HORSE PRESENTS #100-1 (Dark Horse, 1995) – [E] Bob Schreck. The main feature in this issue is Frank Miller’s Lance Blastoff, a Flash Gordon parody, where the twist is that the story is an advertisement for dinosaur meat. The other long story is Anina Bennett and Paul Guinan’s Heartbreakers. The most interesting things in this issue are a pair of two-page stories: “Peeling and Eating a Tangerine” by Harvey Pekar and Joe Sacco, and Milk & Cheese in “The Devil Made Them Do It” by Evan Dorkin. The back cover is drawn by Dave Stevens.

MARVEL TEAM-UP #51 (Marvel, 1976) – “The Trial of the Wraith!”, [W] Bill Mantlo, [A] Sal Buscema. Jean DeWolff’s brother, the Wraith, and her father Philip are put on trial. Phillip tries to use his mind-control powers to sabotage the trial, and Spider-Man, Iron Man and Dr. Strange have to stop him. The depiction of legal procedure in this issue is ridiculous. Instead of a jury, there are five judges, and after the trial is over, they take a one-hour recess to decide their verdict. There isn’t any kind of trial that works this way, at least not in America. I am told that Bob Ingersoll discussed this issue in his “The Law is a Ass” column, which focused on depictions of the law in comic books, but that particular column is not available online.

SHOWCASE ’96 #12 (DC, 1997) – “Roots,” [W] Tom Peyer, [A] Derec Aucoin. The Legionnaires trapped in the 20th century battle the original Brainiac, and there are also cameo appearances by Vril Dox, from L.E.G.I.O.N., and his son Lyrl Dox. It’s kind of fun to see four of the five Brainiacs interacting. IIRC, Vril Dox was originally created to explain how Brainiac 5 could have been Brainiac’s descendant if the first Brainiac was a robot. There are two backup stories, starring Jesse Quick and King Faraday.

MARVEL: NOW WHAT?! (Marvel, 2013) – “Now What?!”, [W/A] Skottie Young et al. A series of stupid, unfunny humor stories, with a framing sequence by Skottie Young. This comic contains a few pages drawn by Colleen Coover, but otherwise it’s a waste of time.

BLOODSHOT REBORN #15 (Valiant, 2016) – untitled, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Mico Suayan. Bloodshot has a dream about his cartoon version, Bloodsquirt. Then he teams up with several other versions of himself, including a Vietnam War soldier with an Afro and sideburns, and they try to survive being hunted by a villain named Deathmate. Jeff Lemire’s Bloodshot was an interesting comic, but I never really got into it.

INSUFFERABLE #1 (IDW, 2015) – untitled, [W] Mark Waid, [A] Peter Krause. Nocturnus, i.e. Batman, is the biological father of Galahad, i.e. Robin, but Galahad has gotten sick of Nocturnus’s oppressive parenting and has struck out on his own, and now he’s a showboating jerk. This is a sort of interesting premise, but it’s obvious that this comic was designed for digital publication first. Every page consists of two separate horizontal halves, with an oversized border between them. This must be because each half-page was meant to be viewed separately on a screen. With more recent digital-to-print comic books, like W0rldtr33 or Barnstormers, it’s impossible to tell that they weren’t designed for print.

Next Heroes trip:

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES/USAGI YOJIMBO: WHEREWHEN #5 (IDW, 2023) – “Wherewhen Part Five,” [W/A] Stan Sakai. Usagi, the Turtles and their allies fight their way into Dr. Wherewhen’s castle. They defeat him, but Yukichi is killed, explaining why he doesn’t appear in Senso – though of course the real-world reason is because he hadn’t been created yet. The issue ends with a cameo appearance by Ino’s daughter. This was a very fun miniseries.

SHE-HULK #15 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Girl Can’t Help It… Part 5,” [W] Rainbow Rowell, [A] Andrés Genolet. Jen and her friends team up to defeat Scoundrel and Draupurg, and Jack of Hearts flies off into space again. This is the last issue, but the series is about to be relaunched. Scoundrel is an interesting villain, but the conclusion to The Girl Can’t Help It is a bit anticlimactic.

FANTASTIC FOUR #10 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Long Way Home,” [W] Ryan North, [A] Leandro Fernandez. Aboard a generation starship, an alien wakes up to find a flame-powered creature attacking the ship. The same thing happens three more times, at intervals of a century, and each time the attacker is a different member of the FF. Finally one of the alien caretakers decides to bet his people’s lives on his guess that the FF are trying to help them, not destroy them. Then we finally see these events from the FF’s perspective, and we discover that the ship is trapped inside an artificial space-time manifold where time goes really fast. The FF fix the ship’s engine thanks to the aliens’ willingness to accept help, and the aliens continue to their destination. This is another example of Ryan North’s unique style of FF storytelling: he sets up a little puzzle, then asks the reader to solve it along with the FF. “The Long Way Home” relies on events happening in two different time scales, just like Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #31, which is probably Ryan’s masterpiece. However, the two stories go in very different directions.

ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN: JON KENT #6 (DC, 2023) – “Retake,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Clayton Henry. Jon intervenes to stop the execution, and then he surprisingly hugs his father, rather than punching him. Then he shows Clark the message that Lois left before her death, ensuring the end of Clark’s regime. Then Jon returns to his own Earth, and the series ends with a cliffhanger that leads into the upcoming Beast World crossover. I’m sorry this run is over now. Tom Taylor’s Superman run was the best Superman comic in many years, and I hope  he gets to write Jon again soon.

ONCE UPON A TIME AT THE END OF THE WORLD #8 (Boom!, 2023) – “The Mist Between Us,” [W] Jason Aaron, [A] Leila del Duca. Golgonooza continues to be an idyllic paradise, but then people start getting driven crazy by a green mist, which makes them hate each other and think that they don’t deserve happiness. The cause of this is unclear, though I wonder if the Wasteland Rangers are somehow responsible. This is a really good series.

FENCE: REDEMPTION #3 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] C.S. Pacat, [A] Johanna the Mad. More fencing, more relationship drama, and at the end of the issue, Harvard gets asked out on a date. An interesting aspect of Fence is its completely male cast – the only female characters are the coaches, and the romances in the series are exclusively between boys. Boys’ love comics like this are common in Japan, but almost unknown in the commercial American comics industry. I feel obligated to mention how often this series uses the phrase “low lines.”

BLACK CLOAK #6 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kelly Thompson, [A] Meredith McClaren. The heroes discover that Freyal’s own mother killed him in order to conceal that she was illegally draining blood from (cute) magical creatures. Phaedra defeats the villain and destroys her device, even though it leaves the city of Kiros without enough magical energy. For the first time it becomes relevant that Kiros is the last remaining city in the world. This is an exciting climax that makes me excited about the next storyline.

BONE ORCHARD: TENEMENT #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Andrea Sorrentino. The boy, Isaac, uses the old man’s key, and it transports the entire building into some scary alternate dimension. The other apartment-dwellers prepare to follow the boy. The first half of this issue is drawn in a conventional style but after Isaac uses the key, the page layouts and artwork get really weird. It would be useful to have a list of the seven (possibly now six) protagonists and their supporting casts, because I’ve already forgotten this information.

THE BUILDINGS ARE BARKING #1 (Fantagraphics, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Bill Griffith w/ Diane Noomin. This is Bill Griffith’s first new story published in periodical comic book format in at least 25 years. It’s an affectionate and anguished tribute to his late wife Diane Noomin. All the images of Diane and her characters are taken from their own work. This comic is an account of a loss that I’m not even able to imagine – Bill was married to Diane for longer than I’ve been alive. There’s really no way to capture such a loss in textual form, but Bill does so as best he can. I’m particularly struck by his point that his favorite version of his wife and himself was the one from the ‘70s and ‘80s, a time period that I can barely remember. This comic has personal relevance to me because I know someone else who’s been bereaved in the same way as Bill. I think I’ll recommend this comic to him, but I’ll do it very gently. This comic had a powerful impact on me, but I imagine that it would have an even greater impact on someone who was in the author’s position.

2000 AD #2321 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: “Succession: 01,” [W] Ken Niemand, Leonardo Manco. When Declan Curare, owner of Curare Corp, passes away, his corporation’s employees all start ruthlessly murdering each other. Dredd has to intervene to stop any further deaths. The Out: “Book 3 Part 10,” [W] Dan Abnett, [A] Mark Harrison. Cyd Finlea and Cheerio visit an oracle on an alien planet to try to get some answers. But then Cyd discovers that the oracle is useless, and Cheerio just took them there to avoid pursuit from the Unanima. And it didn’t work, because the Unanima are coming anyway. Mark Harrison’s art is so fascinating and hyperdetailed that in order to even read the story, I have to ignore much of the detail. Joe Pineapples: “Tin Man 10,” [W] Pat Mills, [A] Clint Langley. Joe Pineapples and Ro-Jaws are rescued from a supernova by space pirates. Blackblood appears at the end of the chapter. Clint Langley’s art is not well adapted to digital coloring. The Order: “Heart of Darkness Part 5,” [W] Kek-W, [A] John Burns. This chapter is mostly about Ben Franklin, but I’m not sure what happens in it. Proteus Vex: “Crawlspace Part 10,” [W] Mike Carroll, [A] Jake Lynch. I’ve never read a Proteus Vex story that made any sense. I’ve only just figured out which character is Midnight Indicating Shame.

NEWBURN #9 (Image, 2023) – “Your Old Life,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Jacob Phillips. I’m glad this is back. After the events of the previous storyline, Newburn is under increasing pressure. A  mob boss, Michael, hires Newburn to find a mobster, Dez Gammino, who faked his own death and fled. Newburn tracks down Dez and his boyfriend, and despite Emily’s pleas, Newburn takes Dez back to town to be murdered. Newburn thinks that if he tries to tell Michael that Dez really is dead, Michael will find out otherwise, and then Newburn and Emily themselves will be the next victims. At this point Newburn basically loses the reader’s sympathy, and perhaps Emily’s as well. The issue ends with Emily being contacted by a woman who appears to be a journalist, and it seems like Emily might be willing to answer her questions.

LOVE EVERLASTING #10 (Image, 2023) – “Too Hip For Love” again, [W] Tom King, [A] Elsa Charretier. Joan is now a widow and a grandmother to a girl named after herself. In her nursing home, Joan falls in love with a man her own age, and for the first time, she finds herself in a truly equal relationship. But of course it doesn’t last, because Joan dies of old age and wakes up in a new and younger body. This is Tom King’s first genuinely enjoyable comic in some time. So far it hasn’t fallen victim to his characteristic inability to write a satisfying ending, although the series isn’t over yet.

THE NEIGHBORS #5 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jude Ellison S. Doyle, [A] Letizia Cadonici. The family manage to escape from the poorly explained evil supernatural forces, and they decide to stay in the town. This comic had some fascinating characters, especially Oliver, but it failed to tell an interesting story about those characters. It would have been better if it was just a slice-of-life story about a trans blended family moving to a small town. The horror elements detracted from the comic rather than adding to it.

ASTONISHING ICEMAN #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “Out Cold: Part 1,” [W] Steve Orlando, [A] Vincenzo Carratù. Bobby Drake is fighting Orchis, and he’s also created a Frozen-style ice palace, where his current lover, Romeo, is forced to hide out. This comic is sort of an interesting take on Bobby’s powers and his queer identity. But Bobby is not one of my favorite X-Men (actually, neither are any of the original five), and I’m not sure if I want to continue with this series.

THE ODDLY PEDESTRIAN LIFE OF CHRISTOPHER CHAOS #2 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Tate Brombal, [A] Isaac Goodhart. When I started reading this comic, I couldn’t remember what this series was about, and even when I finished reading it I still wasn’t sure. One of the kids at Christopher’s school has vanished, and another is secretly a werewolf, and Christopher is still trying to reanimate some dead animals, and also there are some creepy characters in white suits, and none of these plots seem to have anything to do with each other. I’m going to give this series at least one more issue, but unless its plot starts to make more sense, I may have to drop it.

FEARLESS DAWN: COLD #1 (Asylum, 2023) – “Cold,” [W/A] Steve Mannion. Fearless Dawn is freezing to death and is also being pursued by Nazi soldiers. We eventually realize that this is all a dream. As usual, Steve Mannion’s artwork is spectacular; he draws like a cross between Richard Corben and Dave Stevens. His art is what makes Fearless Dawn a comic worth reading, rather than just a pile of fanservice and silly plots. This entire issue is in a sideways format.

ROGUE SUN #14 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Ryan Parrott, [A] Abel & Marco Renna. Dylan and his father, Marcus, are stuck inside the Sun Stone. They encounter an earlier Rogue Sun, Rune, who’s a homicidal barbarian. Back in the real world, we meet Marcus’s mother, a horrible old battleaxe who is probably responsible for Marcus’s awful personality. And she says that Marcus’s father, Owen, was even worse. Inside the Sun Stone, Marcus and Dylan meet Owen. This issue suggests that all of the Rogue Suns have been complete assholes, and not just the three we know about. Perhaps Dylan can break that cycle, but he has a lot of growing up to do first.

THE GIMMICK #5 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joanne Starer, [A] Elena Gogou. Almost all the characters converge at a wrestling convention in Las Vegas, Shane and Alicia finally meet again, and Shane learns he has a child. This is all setup for what promises to be an explosive conclusion. The Gimmick has been an unexpectedly excellent miniseries.

STRANGE ACADEMY: MILES MORALES #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “Solve for X Part 1,” [W] Carlos Hernandez, [A] Juann Cabal et al. Some of the Strange Academy kids go to a speech by a fairy scientist. Another fairy appears and tries to arrest the scientist and the entire audience. The kids have to team up with Miles to save the day. Then the scientist imprisons the Strange Academy kids inside a book. I liked this more than I expected, given that it was written by someone unknown to me, rather than by Skottie Young. However, I also thought this comic’s plot was kind of silly, and there was no real explanation of what “enchantimatics” was.

2000 AD #2322 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: as above. The murders continue. Justice Department starts investigating Curare Corp’s finances. Joe Pineapples: as above. Joe rejoins the ABC Warriors. This issue includes a list of company names that takes up almost an entire page. The Out: as above. Cyd and Cheerio travel to a monastery, where they try to get more information on the Up. The Order: as above. Ben Franklin leads a rebellion against George Washington’s illegitimate presidency. Proteus Vex: as above. Again I can’t summarize this story.

On August 6, I went to the latest Charlotte Comic Con. I was a bit disappointed with my purchases at this convention. I think I could have spent more time digging through the dollar boxes. Also, I was looking for Warren comics, but I didn’t see any that were affordable. I still got some good stuff, though, and there’ll be another convention in a few months.

FOUR COLOR #882 (Dell, 1957) – “Presenting Señor Zorro” and “Zorro’s Secret Passage,” [W] unknown, [A] Alex Toth. Don Diego de la Vega returns home to California from Spain, but discovers that an evil captain is tyrannizing the local people. To defeat the tyrant, he has to become Zorro. In a backup story, Zorro has to evade being identified as Zorro. Alex Toth’s Zorro is probably his greatest work besides Bravo for Adventure. The swordfights are a particular highlight, but the stories are full of thrilling artwork and action. Toth’s art is far more detailed than in his later work, where he eliminated as much linework as possible in order to focus on the most essential details. Toth drew almost thirty issues of Four Color, and I’m missing at least twenty of them.

AMERICAN SPLENDOR #7 (Harvey Pekar, 1982) – “Miracle Rabbis” etc., [W] Harvey Pekar, [A] various. I paid $8 for this, I think, which was quite a good deal. I’ve already read some of these stories in collected form. The centerpiece of this issue is “The Day Before the Be In,” drawn by Budgett. Harvey gets up early and goes to buy groceries, but gets sidetracked and comes home without the coffee his wife wanted, and it’s obvious that his marriage isn’t going to last. Besides the powerful depiction of Harvey and his wife’s conflict, this story is memorable for its loving depiction of ‘70s/’80s Cleveland. “Spring Sunday Twilight” and “Boston, November 1980” are each about Harvey’s encounter with a friend. I was able to find the full name of “Marty,” the friend in the second story, and he’s still alive and is now an emeritus professor. There are three stories drawn by Crumb, each of one or two pages. “A Compliment” is a minor classic; it’s the one where Harvey talks about how cheap his clothes are, and one guy makes fun of him for it, and another guy says “That’s all right! The boy knows what t’ do with his money!” “The Maggies (Oral History)” is about a 1930s gang of con men who sold linoleum. I can’t find any other account of the Maggies that doesn’t reference Pekar and Crumb’s story, though I did find a blog post that includes a second oral account of the Maggies. By the way, it would be nice if someone would write an actual biography of Harvey Pekar. I’d like to know more about his first two marriages.

TOMAHAWK #132 (DC, 1971) – “Small Eagle… Brother Hawk!”, [W] Robert Kanigher, [A] Frank Thorne. I was specifically looking for Tomahawk #132 and #136 at the convention, and I managed to find them both for $6 each. In this issue’s main story, Tomahawk’s young son Small Eagle is harrassed by racists. Two of Tomahawk’s old war buddies arrive with a priceless treasure for Tomahawk – later revealed as the quill with which Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence. The entire family, including Tomahawk’s older son Hawk, has to team up to protect the treasure. The real reason I wanted this issue is for the Firehair backup story, “Brothers,” by Joe Kubert. Firehair saves Rico, a Spanish-American boy his age, from a bear, and befriends him. But then Rico and Firehair go to a party with Rico’s  white friends. Rico chooses to join in the white boys’ mockery of Tomahawk, rather than lose all his other friends, even though they’re all racist assholes. This story is a powerful account of how racism operates through peer pressure and cowardice.

AMAZING ADVENTURES #5 (Marvel, 1971) – I was surprised that I didn’t have this already. Inhumans: “The Brother’s Keeper!”, [W] Roy Thomas, [A] Neal Adams. Black Bolt leaves Attilan and goes to New York, and we later learn that Maximus has given him amnesia. Back in Attilan, the other Inhumans resist Maximus’s takeover attempt. This is an average story, but Neal Adams’s artwork is spectacular. Black Widow: “…And to All a Good Night”, [W] Roy Thomas, [A] Gene Colan. Ivan saves a boy from committing suicide. While the boy is recuperating from Natasha’s apartment, a crook called the Astrologer tries to kill him, since he (the boy) knows about the Astrologer’s attempt to steal from a blood bank. During the fight, the boy falls off a roof and dies, even though Natasha could easily have saved him if the writer had felt like it, and we realize that we never learned his name. This story includes a striking page where Natasha gets out of the shower.

DAMAGE CONTROL #1 (Marvel, 1991) – “The Sure Thing,” [W] Dwayne McDuffie, [A] Kyle Baker. Damage Control are accused of causing disasters on purpose in order to repair them. Some of the Damage Control executives go to a ball game where they find themselves seated behind the Hulk. They almost manage to avoid causing a disaster, but then the New Warriors show up and escalate the situation unnecessarily. This issue isn’t as funny as the previous Damage Control miniseries was, and it has far worse art. Of course I love Kyle Baker’s art, but this issue is not his best effort. It’s full of grotesquely ugly faces and bodies that don’t match the semi-serious tone of the story.

UNCLE SCROOGE #23 (Dell, 1958) – “The Strange Shipwrecks,” [W/A] Carl Barks. Several of Scrooge’s ships have run aground on a certain reef, while carrying cargoes of gold. Scrooge and the nephews go to investigate. They discover that the Beagle Boys are causing the shipwrecks, by tricking the ships’ crews into thinking they’re being pursued by a ghost ship. Donald and the nephews solve the case, and the Beagle Boys are doubly frustrated, because their fake ghost ship was so expensive to build that they lost money on their scheme, even after stealing all the gold. This comic reminds me of Groo (Image) #10, which I read last year. In both stories, the villains construct a specially built ship in order to steal or extort money, but the modifications to the ship is so expensive that the villains can’t make a profit. Uncle Scrooge #23 also has two backup stories, one about Gyro Gearloose and one about Scrooge.

DEN #9 (Fantagor, 1989) – “Strange Nativity,” [W/A] Richard Corben. Kil (who looks like Kath) is traveling with a troglodytic character named Zomuk, as well as an egg that may contain the last of her people. Kat is ambushed by enemies and knocked unconscious, and the egg hatches into a baby. I don’t think Den appears in this story. Backup stories include “The Drinkers of Dust” by Jan Strnad and Alex Niño, in which a warrior is confronted by the ghosts of his victims, and “The Wreck of the Katerra-Dan” by Strnad and Corben, a postapocalyptic story in which a warrior, dying of thirst, discovers a ship that crashed in the desert. The other backup story is a colorized version of Strand and Corben’s “To Meet the Faces You Meet” from Fever Dreams #1. I have that comic because my father gave it to me along with his other old underground comics. Otherwise I might not have been able to afford it. I’m still looking for some of Corben’s other early publications like Rowlf and Grim Wit.

THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD #50 (DC, 1963) – “Wanted – the Capsule Master!”, [W] Bob Haney, [A] George Roussos. The two protagonists in this issue are Green Arrow and the Martian Manhunter. At this time, neither of these characters was particualrly well-defined, and Green Arrow and Speedy were just knock-offs of Batman and Robin. As a result, this story is rather tedious, and George Roussos’s artwork is boring. However, B&B #50 is historically important becaus it’s the first issue of B&B that was devoted to a team-up story. Earlier issues had consisted of non-superhero adventure stories (#1-24) or try-outs of potential new series (#25-49). With #50, Brave and the Bold became a team-up comic for almost its entire remaining run. At first the team-ups involved various different characters, but from #74 onward, B&B focused on Batman team-ups exclusively.

FLAMING CARROT COMICS #22 (Dark Horse, 1989) – “In the Lion’s Mouth,” [W/A] Bob Burden. The Carrot is captured by aliens that whose heads look like Easter Island statues, and lots of other stuff happens that I don’t remember. Flaming Carrot’s plots are totally incoherent, and there’s not much difference between one issue and another, although neither of those things is really a problem.

SUPERMAN’S GIRL FRIEND LOIS LANE #51 (DC, 1964) – “The Three Wives of Superman!”, [W] Jerry Siegel, [A] Kurt Schaffenberger. Superman successively marries Lois Lane, Lana Lang, and Lori Lemaris. Each of them gets killed almost immediately, and each of their deaths is somehow Superman’s fault; for example, he gives Lois a super-power serum that turns out to be poisonous. This story is meant to be sad, but it’s hard to take it seriously when its plot is so contrived. I mostly bought this comic for nostalgic reasons. As a kid, I read about this issue in a book (possibly Jones and Jacobs’s The Comic Book Heroes), and then later I saw a copy of it at a flea market in a mall. I started reading the comic, and then the flea market dealer reprimanded me and told me I was lowering its value. He was right, of course.

HEAVY METAL #1.1 (HM, 1977) – [E] Sean Kelly & Valerie Marchant. I got this for $5, not even realizing which issue it was, and I was shocked to discover it was the first issue. That price seems like an incredible bargain. This issue includes the first chapters of Corben’s Den, Moebius’s Arzach, and Gal and Dionnet’s Conquering Armies, as well as a lot of lesser stories. Mézières’s “Space Punks” is a short space-war story that has no obvious collection to Valerian, though it’s been reprinted in Valerian collections. “The Adventures of Yrris” is an entertaining sword-and-sorcery story by Druillet and Alexis. It appears that Druillet wrote it and Alexis drew it, though some sources claim it was the other way around. There’s also another short story written and drawn by Druillet, and a story each by Chantal Montellier and Vaughn Bodé. The lowlight of the issue is a preview of Terry Brooks’s The Sword of Shannara, a novel that was super-popular because of a lack of competition: it was a poorly written Tolkien ripoff, but it was the only epic fantasy novel available besides LOTR itself. Overall, Heavy Metal #1.1 is a high-quality product, despite including some unimpressive material. It’s hard to imagine the impact it must have made in 1977, when its customers wouldn’t have seen anything like it before.

GREEN LANTERN #75 (DC, 1970) – “The Golden Obelisk of Qward!”, [W] John Broome, [A] Gil Kane. Hal’s sometime girlfriend Olivia Reynolds is abducted by the weaponers of Qward. Hal and a random doctor have to travel there to rescue her. To infiltrate the city of Qward, they have to disguise themselves as wandering troubadours. This is a pretty standard Silver Age comic, with excellent Gil Kane artwork. The letters page mentions that Denny O’Neil would return as the writer next issue, “with a bold new direction” and “an added plus with the presense [sic] of Green Arrow”. But there’s not much indication that Green Lantern #76 would be one of the most important comic books of the ‘70s.

DAMAGE CONTROL #4 (Marvel, 1991) – “Cleanliness is Next to Godliness,” [W] Dwayne McDuffie, [A] Ernie Colón. The Damage Control team meets the cosmic entities – Eternity, the Living Tribunal, and so on – and one of them becomes a god and decides to destroy the universe. His boss defeats him by firing him, though it’s not clear why this works. This issue is better drawn than Damage Control v3 #1, but it’s still not much good. It’s a dumb parody of Infinity Gauntlet and similar crossovers, and it gets too far away from the series’ original premise, where Damage Control were the people who cleaned up after superhero disasters. This was actually not Dwayne’s last Damage Control story. He returned to these characters in a 2008 miniseries, World War Hulk: Aftersmash – Damage Control, which I hadn’t heard of until just now.

FIREBREATHER: THE IRON SAINT #1 (Image, 2004) – “The Iron Saint,” [W] Phil Hester, [A] Andy Kuhn. Duncan goes on a high school class trip to England, and he and his classmates learn about an ancient armor that has the power to protect England from dragons. It turns out that Duncan’s teacher, Mr. Martinez, arranged the entire trip in order to get access to the armor, because Duncan’s father, Belloc, killed Martinez’s family, and Martinez wants to avenge himself on Duncan. In the end, Duncan offers to sacrifice himself so that Martinez can’t hurt anyone else, but when Martinez stabs Duncan, the armor crumbles to dust. Because the armor is cursed so that it’ll turn to dust if it draws human blood… and Duncan counts as human. This is an entertaining and touching story. It’s too bad that this was probably my last chance to read a new Firebreather story. It’s been twelve years since Firebreather: Holmgang #2 was published, and the creators seem to have no plans to complete that series. (Addendum: After I wrote this review, I read a newly released comic in which Firebreather makes a guest appearance. See below.)

TOMAHAWK #136 (DC, 1971) – “A Piece of Sky!”, [W] Frank Thorne, [A] Robert Kanigher. Tomahawk and his family take in a pair of escaped enslaved people, Jason and Mary, who are expecting a child. Jason and Mary’s owner comes looking for them, and Jason is killed in the resulting fight, just as his son is born. This story attempts to be antiracist, but to me it just feels patronizing. In the Firehair story, which was the reason I wanted this comic, Firehair tries to capture a wild stallion, but instead decides to let it stay free. This story’s splash page includes a beautiful depiction of Indian deities. The rest of the issue is a reprint of a dumb old story from issue 87.

RESIDENT ALIEN: AN ALIEN IN NEW YORK #4 (Dark Horse, 2018) – untitled, [W] Peter Hogan, [A] Steve Parkhouse. In New York, Harry meets another alien, who’s gone into a state of living death after accidentally killing his friend. Harry helps cremate the alien, allowing his human girlfriend to move on with her life. Harry ends the series by visiting the Statue of Liberty. This miniseries was followed by Your Ride’s Here, which was where I started reading Resident Alien.

CINEMASTOCK VOL. 1 (Dargaud, 1974) – various stories, [W] Marcel Gotlib, [A] Alexis. This album consists of four separate parody stories, all originally published in Pilote. The first story is about the genre of “films of chivalry,” and the other three are about literary works: Hamlet, Gogol’s Taras Bulba, and Dumas fils’s La dame aux camelias. All these stories are hilariously over the top, in the vein of Mad Magazine, and they’re full of both visual and verbal humor. For instance, in the Taras Bulba story, the protagonist has a habit of drinking and then throwing his drinking vessel over his shoulder, where it always hits someone. As the story continues, his drinking vessels get bigger and bigger. I’m not familiar with either Taras Bulba or La dame aux camelias, but I was able to understand the parodies anyway. I’ve already reviewed another work by Gotlib in an earlier post. Alexis was a brilliant draftsman who tragically died of an aneurysm at only 30 years old. His only claim to fame in America is that he was the original artist on Snowpiercer, but he only drew about 16 pages of it before he died, and the series was completed by Jean-Marc Rochette.

BATMAN: DARK VICTORY #12 (DC, 2000) – untitled, [W] Jeph Loeb, [A] Tim Sale. Batman investigates the murder of Harvey Dent’s former lover Janice Porter. I didn’t quite understand this issue’s story, but it has some beautiful draftsmanship, coloring and page layouts.

MICKEY MOUSE #68 (Dell, 1959) – “Pirate Panic,” [W] Carl Fallberg, [A] Paul Murry. In the main story, Mickey and the nephews go on a diving trip, and some crooks try to steal their boat. There are also a variety of backup stories. In the longest one, Mickey and his nephews go camping with Goofy and discover that Goofy’s cabin has been taken over by a bear. My copy of this issue is missing the four center pages. I bought a couple other old Mickey Mouse comics at the convention, but I haven’t gotten to them yet.

RASL #4 (Cartoon Books, 2009) – untitled, [W/A] Jeff Smith. This issue begins with an account of the origin of the Bermuda Triangle myth, then the protagonist talks to a villain named Sal, and then he visits the house of an alternate-dimensional version of his girlfriend Annie. RASL is the outlier among Jeff Smith’s major works, because it’s the only one that’s not intended for a younger audience. I read some of it when it was coming out, but I didn’t really get into it, and I had trouble getting into this issue too.

MARVEL PREMIERE #57 (Marvel, 1980) – “The Iron Legion,” [W] Pat Mills & John Wagner, [A] Dave Gibbons. The Fourth Doctor battles General Ironicus, the leader of a Roman-inspired civilization that’s been using robot legions to conquer the universe. This story is reprinted from Doctor Who Weekly #1-4. Marvel Premiere #57 is the first Doctor Who comic published in America, except for the 1966 Dell adaptation of the TV movie Doctor Who and the Daleks. Doctor Who wasn’t televised in America until 1972, and it had only been available nationwide since 1978. Thus, Marvel’s audience was expected to be unfamiliar with the series’s premise, and Marvel Premiere #57 includes a two-page-long “Who is the Doctor” text column. This column makes the odd claim that the Doctor’s real name is “d³Σx²“. That name has been used in a couple other places, but it’s no longer considered his canonical name, if it ever was.

EXTRA! #1 (EC/Gemstone, 1955/2000) – This was a New Direction title, foucsing on stories about journalists. “Dateline: Cayo Romano, Cuba!”, [W/A] Johnny Craig. A journalist investigates a former Nazi who’s fomenting revolution in Cuba. Just four years after this comic came out, Cuba actually did have a revolution. “Camera!”, [W] Colin Dawkins, [A] John Severin. A journalist investigates an attempt to sabotage a peace conference in Geneva. The plot revolves around two identical cameras, one of which has a gun in it. Colin Dawkins also collaborated with John Severin on the American Eagle series in Prize Comics Western, which are about to be reprinted by Fantagraphics. Wikipedia suggests that Dawkins may have been Native American. “Holiday for MacDuff,” [W] unknown, [A] John Severin. A Scots-speaking reporter discovers a scientist and his daughter, in hiding on a remote island. “Dateline: Key West!”, [W/A] Craig. While spear-fishing, a journalist discovers a dead body and tries to solve the mystery. In general, this issue makes journalism seem like a far more exciting and dangerous profession than it really is. My uncle is a retired journalist, and I doubt if this comic is an accurate depiction of what he does all day.

STAR TREK #3 (DC, 1989) – “Death Before Dishonor,” [W] Peter David, [A] James Fry. This issue starts with a funny scene where two Klingons, Klaa and Vixis, are having rough sex while reciting poetry. In the main plot, Kirk tries to resolve a war between two insectoid alien races, without violating the Prime Directive. In the end he pretends to have killed the alien who’s the primary warmonger, but instead he teleports him to a peaceful planet. A subplot in this issue is that Scotty and Uhura are implied to be romantically interested in each other. This was also hinted at in Star Trek V, but I’m not sure if I’ve ever seen that movie.

SAUCER COUNTRY #10 (Vertigo, 2013) – “The Reticulan Candidate Conclusion,” [W] Paul Cornell, [A] Ryan Kelly. Despite some assassination attempts, Governor Arcadia chooses to stay in the race for president, and refuses to speculate on whether she’s the target of a conspiracy. When she debates her primary opponent, Senator Kersey, an audience member asks him whether he’s ever had an encounter with aliens, and he’s unable to answer. Kersey then offers Arcadia a spot as his running mate. This series is worse than Letter 44 or Department of Truth, but quite a lot better than Blue Book.

DENNIS THE MENACE #16 (Fawcett, 1956) – “All Aboard” etc., [W] Fred Toole, [A] Al Wiseman. Some pretty typical Dennis stories, as well as one story about Screamy Mimi, a little girl with a loud voice. In the lead story, Dennis and his family go on a trip by overnight train. To my surprise, this story includes some black characters, while most Dennis the Menace comics, and most ‘50s comics in general, have exclusively white casts. However, the black men in the story are Pullman porters, an occupation which was exclusively black. According to Wikipedia, Pullman porters were widely stereotyped and abused, but they also made a significant contribution to the civil rights movement and the creation of the black middle class.

AGENTS OF ATLAS #1 (Marvel, 2009) – “First Contact,” [W] Jeff Parker, [A] Carlo Pagulayan. This is the first ongoing series starring this team, which had been introduced in an earlier miniseries, though most of the characters date back to the 1950s. In this issue, which is a Dark Reign crossover, the Agents of Atlas begin an ongoing conflict with Norman Osborn. This is a reasonably entertaining comic. Confusingly, this issue includes two characters – Sentry and Marvel Boy – who look similar, have similar powers, and are both named Bob. It took me a while to figure out that they weren’t the same character.

RUMBLE #2 (Image, 2015) – untitled, [W] John Arcudi, [A] James Harren. Rathraq encounters an old man who has a pet hydra, and there’s a subplot about a giant cat named Mr. Bildad. I didn’t understand this issue’s plot, but James Harren’s art is very good, though not at the same level as in Ultramega. I wonder if Ultramega is ever going to be completed.

AMELIA RULES! #4 (Renaissance, 2001) – “Amelia McBride and the Other Side of Yuletide,” [W/A] Jimmy Gownley. At Christmastime, Amelia and her friends try to prove that Santa exists. Amelia also discovers that her friend Pajamaman is so poor that his parents can’t afford to get him anything for Christmas. On Christmas Day, Amelia is given a “Red Captain Ninja” action figure, which is what she and Pajamaman are both hoping for. Angela decides to give her action figure to Pajamaman, thus proving that there really is a Santa. In the early 2000s, Amelia Rules! was probably the best kids’ comic book in America. It was perhaps the only comic at the time that appealed to a female middle-grade audience. It received at least three Eisner nominations for Best Title for a Younger Audience. It deserved to win that award in 2003, when it lost to Herobear and the Kid, a series I don’t like nearly as much.

BATMAN/SUPERMAN: WORLD’S FINEST #2 (DC, 2022) – “The Devil Nezha Chapter 2: The Devil Himself,” [W] Mark Waid, [A] Dan Mora. Negative Man saves Superman from red kryptonite poisoning. Then the World’s Finest team and the Doom Patrol join forces against Felix Faust, who is in the process of torturing Billy Batson. Felix misdirects Superman and Batman and sends them and Billy to hell. This is a fun issue, and I probably ought to start reading this series, since Mark is still writing it. The Nezha in this comic and the one in Shang-Chi are based on the same mythological character, and this character is also the inspiration for Nezha in R.F. Kuang’s Poppy War series. The standard account of Nezha’s story is the novel Fengshen Yanyi, which has been translated into English, but is not widely available.

WONDER WOMAN #256 (DC, 1979) – “The Return of the Royal Flush Gang,” [W] Paul Levitz, [A] José Delbo. Diana fights the Royal Flush Gang, and her potential love interest, Mike Bailey, is revealed to be one of the gang’s members. Paul Levitz could have been a great Wonder Woman writer, but in this issue he fails either to give Diana much of a personality, or to tell an interesting story. A year later he returned to Wonder Woman as the writer of the Huntress backup stories, which were always better than the Wonder Woman stories in the same issues.

DEFENDERS #12 (Marvel, 2002) – “Silent but Deadly,” [W/A] Erik Larsen. In a wordless “Nuff Said” story, the Defenders have to defeat some poorly explained villains, despite having lost the ability to speak. This story reads like an issue of Savage Dragon. In the backup story, by Jo Duffy, Kurt Busiek and Ivan Reis, Nighthawk figures out that the Defenders have been replaced by evil impostors. This story leads into the subsequent miniseries The Order. It does not follow the Nuff Said constraint.

DOCTOR STRANGE: THE OATH #5 (Marvel, 2007) – untitled, [W] Brian K. Vaughan, [A] Marcos Martin. At this point Strange has recovered the elixir that can cure anyone, but his old “friend” Nicodemus is holding it hostage and intends to destroy it, due to his distrust of magic. Strange defeats Nicodemus, who dies in the process – and good riddance, because he was a horrible, infuriating asshole, and even after he dies, his astral form gives Strange a smug lecture. Strange is only able to recover one drop of the panacea. He chooses to use it to cure Wong’s cancer, instead of trying to reproduce it so it can save everyone in the world. At the end of the issue, Dr. Strange and Night Nurse became a couple, but that didn’t last. Marcos Martin’s art in this issue is excellent, but BKV’s story is even more praiseworthy.

FOUR COLOR #1010 (Dell, 1959) – “Grandma Duck’s Farm Friends and the Flying Farm Hand” etc., [W] Vic Lockman, [A] Carl Barks. Four stories in which Donald and the nephews visit Grandma Duck’s farm. There are guest appearances by Dumbo, Scrooge, Daisy and  Gyro Gearloose. All these stories are pretty stupid, and they’re not nearly as good as Barks’s usual work. This issue and its sequels, Four Color #1073 and #1161, are among the very few comic books that Barks drew but didn’t write. Brian Cronin suggests that Barks didn’t write these two issues because he was too busy, and also because he didn’t care much about Grandma and Gus and their farm. He didn’t create these characters (Al Taliaferro did), and their stories are intentionally nostalgic and anachronistic, and not quite compatible with Barks’s creative vision.

FOX COMICS #26 (Fantagraphics, 1992) – [E] David Vodicka. Fox Comics was an anthology of Australian small-press comics. The first 23 issues were self-published, and the last four were published by Fantagraphics. I think this is the first issue of Fox Comics that I’ve ever seen. My favorite story is the first one, Stuart and Tony Thorne’s autobiographical account of their great-aunt and great uncle. Dave Hodson and Greg Gates’s “Tattoo Man” has high-quality art, but a confusing plot. Ed Pinsent’s “New Savagery in Jaystown” is a surrealistic detective or urban fantasy story about talking animals. Ed Pinsent was a major figure in British alternative comics, but I can’t recall if I’ve read any of his work. Another small highlight is Glenn Dakin’s one-page account of a visit with Eddie Campbell and his young daughter. David Vodicka’s autobio story has some cute and unusual art by Martin Trengrove.The only other creator in this issue whose name I recognize is Daryl Cunningham.

L.E.G.I.O.N. ’89 #10 (DC, 1989) – “Internal Affairs,” [W] Keith Giffen & Alan Grant, [A] Barry Kitson. Phase arrives at L.E.G.I.O.N.’s headquarters and meets some of the team. Vril Dox fights Lobo and somehow wins, but is seriously hurt. In a separate subplot told entirely through captions, Lyrissa Mallor negotiates with an insurance company. Phase is a good example of the post-Crisis Legion’s hopelessly tangled continuity. At first, Phase was clearly supposed to be Tinya Wazzo (Phantom Girl) from the 30th-century Legion, transported back in time with amnesia. Then when the Legion was rebooted with Zero Hour, the original Tinya no longer existed, so instead Phase was retconned to be Enya Wazzo, Tinya’s never-before-mentioned cousin. And then the Legion writers revealed that Tinya was a Carggite, and Phase was one of her three bodies. As explained here, neither of these retcons made much sense.

KATHY #15 (Marvel, 1962) – “When Tulip Comes to Town” etc., [W] Stan Lee, [A] Stan Goldberg. This series is barely any different from Patsy Walker, except that Stan Goldberg was a far better artist than Al Hartley. As in Millie the Model and Katy Keene, all of the costumes in Kathy are designed by readers. Given its title, I wonder if Kathy was created as a ripoff of Katy Keene, though I can’t find any evidence to confirm or deny this. The second story in this issue is disturbing from a modern perspective: Kathy thinks she’s gaining weight, so she decides to have just three peas and a grape for lunch. And then her crush says that he prefers full-figured women, so she starts overeating instead.

WEIRD WORLDS #4 (DC, 1973) – This was the last issue I needed to complete my run of this series. John Carter: “Thuvia,” [W] Marv Wolfman, [A] Sal Amendola. I assume this is an adaptation of the novel Thuvia, Maid of Mars. It’s a typical ERB story. Pellucidar: “Jubal the Ugly One,” [W] Denny O’Neil, [A] Michael Wm. Kaluta. David Innes and his friends escape from the Sagoths’ captivity and eventually find David’s love interest Dian. The title character, Jubal, only appears in the last panel. I’m always excited to read a new story by Kaluta. At this point in his career, he could draw beautiful action sequences and backgrounds, but he had some trouble with faces.

CITY BOY #3 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Greg Pak, [A] Minkyu Jung. Thanks to a villain named Dr. Mokkarison (i.e. Mokkari from Kirby’s Jimmy Olsen), the city of Metropolis has been physically embodied as a giant metal dragon. Superman and Cameron have to team up to prevent disaster. At the end, Cameron leaves Metropolis for Bludhaven. I like the idea of Cameron visiting various DCU cities and interacting with their local heroes. That was sort of the idea behind Greg Pak’s previous DC series, Monkey Prince.

RED ROOM: CRYPTO KILLAZ #3 (Fantagraphics, 2023) – “Thomas Fucking Edison Invented the Red Room!”, [W/A] Ed Piskor. Q. Turturro (i.e. Quentin Tarantino) gives a speech to the FBI’s Red Room unit, explaining the history of snuff films. We also learn that Q has himself gotten into legal trouble for collecting snuff films. Afterward, Q is himself abducted by Red Room filmmakers who want his help in improving their production quality. After they’re done with him, they shoot him dead. Q’s death made me very glad, because he was an infuriating, smug, egotistical jerk who’s always swearing unnecessarily. I believe that this issue’s backup story is the first color story in the series. It’s about some creepy children who discover a sasquatch in the woods.

2000 AD #2323 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: as above. More brutal murders, and no real plot advancement. The Out: as above. Cyd meets her daughter Joy again in a vision. Joey tells Cyd some information about the Out. Back in reality, Cheerio is killed defending Cyd from the Unanima. Future Shocks: “Volition,” [W] Liam Johnson, [A] Steve Yeowell. Earth is dying, and a robot rover named Volition is sent to look for another habitable planet. Volition discovers a planet that already has an indigenous civilizaiton, and rather than wipe the aliens out, it lies to its human masters, claiming that the planet is uninhabitable. The coloring in this story is excellent. The Order: as above. Ben Franklin proclaims New York a free state. Francis Bacon menaces the other members of the team. Proteus Vex: as above. Vex and Midnight Indicating Shame are reunited. No idea what else happens.

TRAVELING TO MARS #7 (Ablaze, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell, [A] Roberto Dakar Meli. Roy meditates on how the end of the world is never obvious when it occurs. Conditions on Earth deteriorate so badly that interstate travel is banned. Roy thinks back to his own wedding. Nothing much “happens” in this series, but the slow pace is kind of appropriate, since space travel is all about waiting. I was lukewarm about this series at first, but it’s evolved into one of Mark Russell’s best works.

GRIM #12 (Boom!, 2023) – “Lust for Life,” [W] Stephanie Phillips, [A] Flaviano. The incarnation of Life tries to get Lilah to give up her amulet, but Lilah refuses. Jess uses the Grim Reaper’s scythe to escape from her cell. By now the main reason I’m still reading Grim is because I like the art.

THE X-CELLENT #5 (Marvel, 2023) – “Unsocial Media Finale,” [W] Peter Milligan, [A] Mike Allred. Zeitgeist becomes a god. Venus Dee Milo returns to life and uses her powers to teleport Zeitgeist to some awful dimension. This is an anticlimactic ending because Zeitgeist is a huge jerk, and I wanted to see him dead. Now he’s probably going to come back the next time this franchise is revived.

SPIDER-MAN: INDIA #2 (Marvel, 2023) – “Seva Part II,” [W] Nikesh Shukla, [A] Abhishek Malsuni. The Lizard fights Pavitr and wrecks his neighborhood. Thanks to the corrupt influence of the Kingpin character, the local people turn against Pavitr, and he throws his Spider-Man costume away in a trash bucket (an obvious reference to ASM #50). I like this series a lot more than Vigil, another current series with an Indian setting. The line “He’s fine. Hurt his knee only” demonstrates a characteristic feature of Indian English. See here for some more examples of this use of “only.”

OLD DOG #6 (Image, 2023) – “Home Truths,” [W/A] Declan Shalvey. Old Dog’s own bosses send a team to assassinate him. He escapes being assassinated, obviously, but then he realizes that he’s currently in a different reality than the one he came from. This series is reasonably fun, but the first issue was the best, and none of the subsequent issues have been as good.

DARK SPACES: GOOD DEEDS #3 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Che Grayson, [A] Kelsey Ramsay. The journalist continues to investigate the Fountain of Youth mystery, and in a flashback, we discover that her breakthrough story turned out to be fraudulent. Some other stuff happens that hardly seems to matter. This series has no plot to speak of, its art is unimpressive, and I’m going to give up on it.

BRZRKR: POETRY OF MADNESS #1 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Steve Skroce. I wasn’t planning to get this, because it’s not by Matt Kindt, but it was in my file anyway. This issue depicts Unute’s adventures in Atlantis, and Atlantis’s eventual destruction by Cthulhu. It’s an okay issue, but I could have done without it.

JUNK RABBIT #5 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Jimmie Robinson. The mystery of Junk Rabbit is finally explained, and the leader of the Dome is defeated. The ending provides a hook for a possible sequel. This was a fairly fun series, but I didn’t much like the art.

EXORCISTS NEVER DIE #4 (Mad Cave, 2023) – untitled, [W] Steve Orlando, [A] Sebastian Piriz. The two exorcists fight Greed, a hoarding dragon. I can’t tell the difference between Greed and Gluttony. This series has had the same formula every issue, and it’s not a very interesting formula. I’m considering dropping it, but at least it does have a coherent story, unlike Dark Spaces: Good Deeds.

THE EXPANSE: DRAGON TOOTH #4 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Andy Diggle, [A] Rubine. The title of the series is explained, and the war plotline continues to progress. I think I may have had enough of this series. I just don’t know enough to understand its plot.

THE SEASONS HAVE TEETH #4 (Boom!, 2023) – “Winter,” [W] Dan Watters, [A] Sebastián Cabrol. Andrew is about to be killed while photographing Winter. A younger photographer, Cindy, saves him. While hiding out, they talk to each other and share their grief: each has lost a loved one with the same name as the other. The end of the series suggests that they survive the encounter and move on with their lives. This was an excellent series, with powerful, subtle writing and imaginative creature designs. It’s easily my favorite Dan Watters comic yet, and it makes me more likely to read his future work.

2000 AD #2324 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: as above. The murders continue until there’s just one Curare Corp employee left. The last surviving employee gloats as he’s being taken to the cubes. Then the judges reveal the punchline: the company was actually insolvent and was going to be broken up to pay its debts, and Declan Curare initiated the civil war so that there would be no assets left for the creditors to take. Succession was another entertaining story from Ken Niemand. The Out: as above. Cheerio dies for real. The Unanima arrive to put Cyd on trial. Future Shocks: “Love Birds,” [W] Tom Watts, [A] Mike Walters. A female scientist falls in love with an alien bird. In a perhaps unnecessary twist ending, it’s revealed that her husband manipulated them into falling in love, so that the bird would devour his wife after mating with her. The Order: as above. The fight with Francis Bacon continues. One of the good guys gets shot, but I don’t know his name. Proteus Vex: as above. Thankfully this is the last chapter.

THE GOON NOIR #2 (Dark Horse, 2006) – [E] Matt Dryer. An anthology series consisting of Goon stories (mostly) by creators other than Eric Powell. Kevin Nowlan, who must have been an influence on Powell, contributes a story where the Goon is the target of a celebrity roast. The striking thing about this story is the giant spider in a top hat. Roger Langridge’s story, about two rag and bone men, is a demonstration of his excellent visual storytelling. There’s also a Little Unholy Bastards story by Powell himself, written by Tom Sniegoski. The other two stories are by Hilary Barta, and Scott Allie and Todd Herman.

PATSY AND HEDY #90 (Marvel, 1963) – “Their Dude Ranch Romance!”, [W] Stan Lee, [A] Al Hartley. Patsy and Hedy go to a dude ranch and try to romance some cowboys, and there are a few other stories, none of them of any interest. Al Hartley’s art is still terrible. These ‘60s Marvel teen humor comics are probably much cheaper than Marvel superhero comics of the same period, but I wonder if they’re also harder to find in good condition.

RAWHIDE KID #72 (Marvel, 1969) – “The Menace of Mystery Valley!”, [W/A] Larry Lieber. Whlie traveling in the wilderness, the Rawhide Kid is falsely accused of kidnapping two missing children. He flees and finds his way into an isolated, fertile valley, where he encounters a white grizzly bear that looks like Xemnu. He then discovers that the “bear” is really an old man, Cragg, who’s trying to prevent anyone from learning about his isolated, fertile valley. Cragg has also found the two missing kids, and he tries to kill Rawhide Kid and the two kids to protect their secret. But eventually he lets them go in exchange for their promise to stay quiet. This comic isn’t spectacular, but it has a coherent and original plot, unlike Patsy and Hedy #90. Larry Lieber must be the oldest surviving Marvel creator from the ‘60s.

LARGO WINCH VOL. 1 & 2 (Cinebook, 1991/2008) – “The Heir” and “The W Group,” [W] Jean Van Hamme, [A] Philippe Francq. Largo Winch is one of the most popular French-language comics. This Cinebook volume reprints its first two albums, which form a single story. In the first album, Corporate magnate Nerio Winch is assassinated by one of his subordinates, and his son Largo Winch, a carefree adventurer, inherits his company. Due to a further plot by his dad’s enemies, Largo is locked up in prison in Turkey, but he escapes with the help of his friends Simon, Freddy and Charity, and he learns that his father is dead. In the second volume, Largo has to track down the documents that will give him ownership of his father’s company, the W Group. But Nerio’s murderer is still searching for Largo, and Largo is also wrestling with his complicated feelings about his late father. Overall I can see why this comic is so popular. It’s a thrilling adventure series with excellent art and a compelling protagonist. It’s unusual in that its plot revolves around the apparently boring topic of corporate law and finance, and yet it’s an exciting comic anyway. Jean Van Hamme has written lots of other comics, notably including XIII and Thorgal. Philippe Francq has devoted almost his entire career to Largo Winch.

BATMAN #328 (DC, 1980) – “Double Jeopardy,” [W] Marv Wolfman, [A] Irv Novick. Aman named Carl Ternion is acquitted of killing another man named Anton Karoselle. After the trial, he proclaims that he’s guilty, but that he can’t be prosecuted again due to double jeopardy. Also, he says that he somehow killed Karoselle twice. After the trial, Carl romances a woman named Gilda who was married to two men, the first of whom was named Harvey. In investigating all of this, Batman discovers that Ternion has had plastic surgery. By now it’s really obvious that Ternion is Two-Face, though this isn’t stated until next issue. In the backup story, by Wolfman and Don Newton, Batman helps Commissioner Gordon solve the murder of a childhood friend, a case which has been unsolved for 35 years. This is a poignant story.

MAGE: THE HERO DENIED #12 (Image, 2018) – “Misery Acquaints a Man,” [W/A] Matt Wagner. I read the trade paperback of Mage: The Hero Defined a long time ago, and I felt lukewarm about it. I’ve never quite understood Matt Wagner’s work. In this issue Kevin Matchstick is now married with two children, and he and his wife have separate adventures. This comic seems fun, but I’m not going to make any special effort to collect more Mage comics.

2000 AD #2325 (Rebellion, 2023) – A “Regened” issue. Cadet Dredd: “Dream Team,” [W] Ned Hartley, [A] Toby Willsmer. Dredd has to travel into Rico’s mind to wake him from a coma. This story has some nice painted art. Lowborn High: “Old Familiars,” [W] David Barnett, [A] Olga Morozova. The kids summon a panda bear familiar, but it turns into a monster, and the kids have to return it to the animal realm. In the process, they discover that one among them is a werewolf. This story includes a hilarious parody of the “Here’s Johnny” scene from The Shining. Lowborn High returns in #2336, which has not yet reached America, but I wish it would be promoted to the regular progs, so its stories could be longer. It’s easily my favorite series from these Regened progs, besides Pandora Perfect. Future Shocks: “Vin-E, Blow the Doors!”, [W] James Peaty, [A] Gary Walsh. A thief’s career comes to an end when his pet robot, VIN-E, gets sick of his abuse and betrays him. The thief is sent to a prison full of other robots of the same type. This story could have been published in a normal prog. Mayflies: “The Scarab,” [W] Mike Carroll, [A] Simon Coleby. The Souther Army tracks the kids down. Two of the kids decide to rejoin the army and abandon their teammates. The other four kids escape and continue their life on the run.

THAT WILKIN BOY #16 (Archie,  1972) – “The Heart Doesn’t Lie,” [W] Frank Doyle, [A] Dick DeCarlo, etc. The GCD says that this issue’s first story is the first of several stories that are written with romance-comics-style captions and dialogue. If this story is a romance comic parody, it’s hard to tell, because other than the captions, it reads like a standard Archie story. The last two stories in this issue, “Mr. Smythe’s Clean Scene” and “There’s Something About a Soldier” by Dick Malmgren and Gus LeMoine, are much more interesting. In the first of these, Bingo Wilkin and Samantha Smythe start picketing against pollution, Samantha’s conservative father tries to get them to stop. In the latter story, Mr. Smythe mistakenly thinks that Bingo is a draft dodger, and they have a debate about the morality of avoiding the draft. These stories are very unusual, relative to other Archie comics, in that they explicitly refer to contemporary social issues. The GCD suggests that Mr. Smythe’s conservatism is inspired by Archie Bunker from All in the Family.

ANIMAL MAN #22 (DC, 2013) – “Splinter Species Part 2,” [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Steve Pugh & Francis Portela. This issue consists of two sequences by different artists. In the real world, Animal Man battles some Dr. Moreau-esque hybrid monsters, and at the end of the issue, we learn that Brother Blood is responsible for creating them. In the Red dimension, Maxine tries to resurrect her brother Cliff, but only manages to create a zombie version of him, and is forced to accept that he’s dead. I thought the Maxine section of this issue was more enjoyable than the Buddy section, in terms of both writing and art.

THE WALKING DEAD #123 (Image, 2014) – “All Out War” part ???, [W] Robert Kirkman, [A] Charlie Adlard. Watching his well-fed and happy people, Rick starts to feel optimistic about his chances of beating Negan. Then Negan leads another assault on Rick’s compound, and Rick gets shot through the stomach with an arrow. One frustrating thing about Negan is that unlike Rick, Negan is not fighting for any sort of principle, or in order to make anyone’s life better. All he cares about is proving that he has the biggest dick.

ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #542 (DC, 1997) – “Power Trip!”, [W] Karl Kesel, [A] Paul Ryan. Superman visits Project Cadmus to see if they can explain why his powers are fading. Then he has to assist the Cadmus scientists against Misa, the telepathic daughter of two of the Hairies. Also, Lex Luthor is put on trial. One thing I like about the post-Crisis Superman is its use of concepts from Kirby’s Jimmy Olsen, like Project Cadmus, the Hairies and the Guardian. Karl Kesel did a great job of incorporating these and other Kirby concepts into Superman and Superboy stories.

JUDGE DREDD: YEAR ONE #3 (IDW, 2013) – “The Long Hard Road Part 3: All That Remains,” [W] Matt Smith, [A] Simon Coleby. Dredd finds himself in an alternate future Mega-City One that’s suffered some kind of apocalypse. He meets one of the Judges from this reality, and tries to figure out what’s happened. Compared to other American-produced Judge Dredd comics, this comic feels much closer to the British version of 2000 AD. Judge Dredd: Year One was only published in America, but its creators are both 2000 AD veterans, and it doesn’t make any concessions to American tastes, or to American readers’ lack of familiarity with Dredd. Matt Smith hasn’t written very many actual comics, but he’s certainly an expert on Dredd, having been the editor of 2000 AD since 2002.

IRON MAN #7 (Marvel, 2013) – “The Godkiller 2 of 3,” [W] Kieron Gillen, [A] Greg Land. With the assistance of a Rigellian Recorder, Tony Stark participates in a trial by combat on an alien world. He almost clears himself of all the crimes he’s accused of, but on the last page, he discovers that his final opponent is Death’s Head. I like this issue’s surprise ending, but Kieron Gillen was not the best Iron Man writer, and Iron Man was not among his best works.

2000 AD #2326 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: “Shrine,” [W] Ken Niemand, [A] Nick Dyer. Some people put up an unauthorized memorial to the “Unknown Vic,” a symbol of all the people killed by Judges. Dredd keeps taking the shrine down and arresting the people who erected it, but it keeps reappearing. This is a very powerful story which addresses the recurring theme of the Judges’ dictatorial power. According to a letter in #2330, this story was inspired by the real-life case of the Maltese journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, who is the namesake of the street where the Unknown Vic shrine is located. Durham Red: “Mad Dogs 01,” [W] Alec Worley, [A] Ben Willsher. We begin with a scene in which a little girl is murdered. Then Durham Red survives an assassination attempt in prison, and is contacted by an intelligence agent. The Order: as above. Francis Bacon returns in a robot body. Enemy Earth: “Book Two Part 1,” [W] Cavan Scott, [A] Luke Horsman. While searching for Jules’s father, Zoe and Jules are ambushed by monsters. Rogue Trooper: “Blighty Valley Part 1,” [W] Garth Ennis, [A] Patrick Goddard. Rogue Trooper travels back in time to a World War I battlefield. This story must have been inspired by Charley’s War.

CEREBUS #24 (Aardvark-Vanaheim, 1981) – “Swamp Sounds,” [W/A] Dave Sim. Cerebus is still hiding out in Madame’s orphanage. Madame’s orphans tell Cerebus some ludicrous stories about Lord Julius and Elrod. Then Cerebus goes to the basement and discovers that Madame is really a man named Charles X. Claremont, and that he’s created a “Woman Thing” monster. This story is partly a Marvel parody, and to that extent it feels outdated and confusing, but otherwise it’s pretty good. It’s certainly far better than most issues from Cerebus’s late period. I’ve been collecting Cerebus seriously for less than three years, and I already have almost all the issues I want.

SUGAR BUZZ #1 (Slave Labor, 1998) – “Valenteen in Bad Hair Day!”, [W] Ian Carney, [A] Woodrow Phoenix. An angelic superhero battles a plague of animate, sentient hair. There are several other stories, featuring other characters like Urban Gorilla and Upchuck Duck. This comic has the same sort of retro aesthetic as Madman or Atomic City Tales, although since the creators are British, perhaps a closer analogue would be Andi Watson’s work. Sugar Buzz and its companion series, Where’s It At, Sugar Kat?, are pretty obscure now, but they’re worth reading.

SERGIO ARAGONES MASSACRES MARVEL #1 (Marvel, 1996) – various stories, [W/A] Sergio Aragones, [W] Mark Evanier. Mark and Sergio visit the Marvel offices, but no one is there. Sergio finds a note saying that all the Marvel comics are late, so he decides to draw them all himself. The bulk of the issue consists of Sergio’s stories about various Marvel characters. Each of these vignettes has a different inker, and each story includes an appearance by a new villain, the Seagoing Soarer. Finally, all the heroes fight the Soarer in a crossover story. The twist is that the Soarer is Sergio’s evil twin, and “Seagoing Soarer “is an anagram of “Sergio Aragones.” Sergio has to defeat the Soarer and clean up the mess he created. This is a very funny and clever comic. It was the companion to Sergio Aragones Destroys DC, published the same year, and Sergio Aragones Stomps Star Wars, published four years later. All three of these comics included framing sequences with Mark and Sergio.

AQUAMAN #10 (Marvel, 1995) – “Revelations,” [W] Peter David, [A] Jim Calafiore. Aquaman has a prophetic dream, then he’s summoned to rescue a shark that was accused of attacking a human. The shark claims that the human attacked him first, and that he wouldn’t have eaten him, because “humans taste lousy, like old birds.” Aquaman comes into conflict with the current Green Lantern, Kyle Rayner, who’s trying to capture the shark. Aquaman wins, since he has weaker powers but far more experience. Meanwhile, Thessily, the current king of Atlantis, tries to assassinate Koryak, but is crushed in an earthquake, and Koryak lets him die.  

METAL MEN #49 (DC, 1977) – “The Dark God Cometh!”, [W] Martin Pasko, [A] Walt Simonson. The Metal Men battle Eclipso. This issue consists mostly of conventional fight scenes, but Walt Simonson’s art is stunning. His page layouts and compositions are dynamic, and he comes up with inventive ways to depict the Metal Men’s powers. He might be the best Metal Men artist ever, even though he only drew them for about five issues. I’m writing this review on the day after his 77th birthday.

WONDER WART-HOG AND THE NURDS OF NOVEMBER #nn (Rip Off, 1988) – untitled, [W/A] Gilbert Shelton. The President is assassinated, and shortly afterward, everyone else in the presidential line of succession also dies mysteriously. The country falls into the hands of an evil corporation, Gloptron. Philbert Desanex, aka Wonder Wart-Hog runs for president and wins, since nobody else is willing to run and risk assasination. However, Gloptron forces the electoral college to nullify Philbert’s victory. Philbert proposes a new constitutional convention, which is hijacked by a revived Adolf Hitler. This comic’s political satire is kind of incoherent; it doesn’t identify the source of the problems with America’s political malaise, nor does it propose any real solutions. It’s a hilarious comic, though. It’s comparable to Howard the Duck #8 or to the Simpsons segment “Citizen Kang.” A particularly memorable moment is when Gloptron sends a robot to assassinate Wonder Wart-Hog, and WWH sends back a series of photos showing the robot crashing into the moon and then getting disassembled.

PRIME CUTS #2 (Fantagraphics, 1987) – [E] Gary Groth. I’ll just mention the stories in order. Alec Stevens’s adaptation of an Oscar Wilde story is surprisingly effective, considering that I’m not familiar with the artist. However, Stevens’s linework is not reproduced well. The story is about a woman who pretends to be more mysterious than it is. Spain’s story “How I Almost Got Stomped to the “Still of the Night” by the “Five Satins” is a funny autobiographical account of a concert he attended in 1955. This story was reprinted in the My True Story book, which I have, but I don’t recall reading it. Mark Martin’s “Clouds” has beautiful painted art but not much of a story. Alex Toth’s “UFO” is one of the low points of his later career. It has good art, of course, but it’s a credulous piece of conspiracy theorizing. After this there’s an excerpt from John Horne Burns’s novel The Gallery. It’s a presumably autobiographical account of the exploitation of Italian citizens by American soldiers during World War II. I haven’t heard of Burns before, but now I want to read The Gallery. Glenn Dakin and Phil Elliott’s “Skiff” is a charming, contemplative story about a foreign visitor to Scotland. Mitch Manzer’s “Rory Randall” has beautiful art, in a style resembling that of Kevin Huizenga, but a totally incoherent story. This issue also includes shorter stories by Dori Seda, Richard Sala, Norman Dog, and Joe Sacco.

THE P.I.’S: MICHAEL MAUSER AND MS. TREE #1 (First, 1985) – “Four Color Crime Part 1: The Odd Couple,” [W] Max Allan Collins, [A] Joe Staton. I have this entire series, but I’ve been hesitant to read it because of its bizarre premise. Mike Mauser and Ms. Tree are both hard-boiled detectives, but Ms. Tree’s stories are serious, while Mike Mauser is a parody character. This issue, Mike and Ms. Tree find themselves working on opposite sides of the same divorce case, and they find that their clients seem to be conspiring to steal rare comics. The combination of these two characters doesn’t quite work. Collins is of course very comfortable writing Ms. Tree, but he makes Mike Mauser seem like a more serious character than he is.

DYNAMO #4 (Tower, 1967) – I bought this comic years ago, but never felt like reading it, thanks to its great length. I finally decided to read it because I bought another issue of the same series at the latest convention. “The Maze!”, [W] Wally Wood, [A] Dan Adkins. This may be the strangest T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents story of all. Dynamo has a series of bizarre Ditkoesque visions, and then we learn that these visions were meant to prepare him for an encounter with aliens. Dynamo travels to the alien planet and meets some aliens called the Immi, and both Dynamo and the aliens decide they’re better off without each other. This story feels closer to Woody’s fantasy stories than to the rest of T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents, and Woody also used the name Immi for the elves in The Wizard King. “The Secret Word Is…”, [W] Ralph Reese, [A] Joe Orlando. Dynamo keeps getting captured and having his hands tied, preventing him from turning his belt on. To prevent this, Weed suggests adding a voice control to the belt, so it turns on or off when Dynamo says “Excelsior!” (probably a reference to Stan Lee). This idea backfires when Dynamo’s enemies make a recording of him saying “Excelsior!” “Dynamo’s Day Off!”, [W] Ralph Reese, [A] Chic Stone. After some relationship drama with Alice,  Dynamo goes on a date with a new love interest, but she’s really an agent of SPIDER. “The Weakest Man in the World!”, [W] Ralph Reese, [A] Chic Stone. Dynamo has to fight alongside with the Iron Maiden, his enemy-slash-love-interest. “Once Upon a Time…”, [W] Ralph Reese, [A] Steve Ditko. Weed tells his niece and nephew a story involving the Iron Maiden and a love potion. Overall this is a terrific comic, a perfect blend of superheroic action with humor and characterization. T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents and its spinoffs were probably the best non-Big-2 superhero comics of the Silver Age; they were certainly the only such comics that could  came close to Marvel’s depth of character development.

SUPERMAN #82 (DC, 1993) – untitled (Reign of the Supermen), [W/A] Dan Jurgens. An issue-long fight scene in which Superman, Supergirl, Green Lantern, Steel, Superboy and Eradicator battle Mongul and Cyborg Superman. As a kid I felt rather cynical about the Death and Return of Superman stunt, and the resolution to Reign of the Supermen, in which the original Superman just comes back to life on his own, felt anticlimactic. However, Superman #82 is a serviceable conclusion to the saga. Jurgens’s art reminds me of that of Gil Kane or Walt Simonson.

THE GOON #16 (Dark Horse, 2006) – untitled, [W/A] Eric Powell. The Goon gets involved in a gang war. He wins, but finds himself surrounded by glowing-eyed creatures. This story has good art, but its plot is uninteresting. In a backup story by Tom Sniegoski and Michael Avon Oeming, the Goon and Frankie try to rescue a kidnapped baby, but Frankie kills the baby by accident.  

DETECTIVE COMICS #675 (DC, 1994) – “Midnight Duel,” [W] Chuck Dixon, [A] Graham Nolan. In his first appearance in the “Azbat” suit, Azrael battles Gunhawk, a villain who recently reappeared in Batgirls. The best things about this issue are the foil-embossed cover, and Gunhawk’s cool-looking costume. Azrael himself is an awful character who thankfully did not last long as Batman. On the letters page, most of the letters are about the controversy over Azrael. I remember reading (perhaps in Wizard) that the Batman writers deliberately wrote Azrael to be dislikable, and that they succeeded too well at this.

AIR WAR STORIES #4 (Dell, 1964) – “One Was Doomed” etc., [W] Paul S. Newman, [A] Sam Glanzman. A series of stories themed around air combat. The first two stories are typical examples of jingoism, though Glanzman’s artwork is excellent. The most notable story is the third, “You Only Lose Once.” A World War II bomber crew are on their 25th mission, their last before their tour of duty is finished. This is very unlikely since each bombing mission has average losses of 8%. (Compare the 1961 novel Catch-22, where a major plot point is that Yossarian’s required number of combat missions is repeatedly extended.) The 25th mission seems like it’ll be easy, but then the crew discover an unknown nest of German anti-aircraft guns. The bomber manages to destroy the guns, but all the crew are killed in the process. This story is rare among American war comics, other than those by Kurtzman, in that it doesn’t end happily for the protagonists. Paul Gravett included this story in his Mammoth Book of Best War Comics.

INCREDIBLE HULK #213 (Marvel, 1977) – “You Just Don’t Quarrel with the Quintronic Man!”, [W] Len Wein, [A] Sal Buscema. The Hulk battles the Quintronic Man, a robot whose head and limbs are each operated by a separate person. So it’s like Voltron, except that its parts aren’t detachable. The Quintronic Man manages to capture the Hulk, even though one of its operators tries to act independently of the others, but the Hulk later escapes and destroys the robot. There’s a subplot about Jack of Hearts, and Len himself makes a cameo appearance on page 23. The Quintronic Man reappeared in Nova (1999) #3 and a few other comics, but none of its original five operators were ever seen again, and two of them never got names.

2000 AD #2327 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: “Down by Law,” [W]  Ian Edginton, [A] Leigh Gallagher. A rogue chef commits a series of murders, but Dredd apprehends him. This story includes one particularly effective page. The first five panels are silent, as Dredd gets into an  elevator, and then several other people get into it with him. Finally in the last panel Dredd says “I know what you did.” Durham Red: as above. Durham Red is sent on a mission to capture a villain who’s producing illegal drugs. Her partner is an annoying young woman, Burt Wardrowe. Ben Willsher’s art in this story is excellent. The Order: as above. The fight with the Francis Bacon robot continues. Enemy Earth: as above. Zoe and Jules reencounter Jessica, the villain who cut off Zoe’s arm and ate it. Rogue Trooper: as above. Rogue is introduced to the British soldiers. The writer, Garth Ennis, has a longstanding interest in military history, and his depiction of World War I soldiers feels very authentic.

NIGHTWING #79 (DC, 2021) – “Leaping Into the Light Part 2,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Bruno Redondo. I finally found an affordable copy of this issue on eBay, and thus I now have a complete run of Tom Taylor’s Nightwing, the best superhero comic of the past decade. This issue begins with a brief recap of Dick’s history, and then he and Babs visit “Marv & George’s Pizza,” an obvious homage. Dick buys pizza for some homeless people, but then a homeless kid steals Dick’s wallet. While searching for it, Dick has to save the pickpocket and his friends from being murdered by Boss Maroni’s goons. Continuing to follow the wallet’s trail, Dick finds an entire encampment of homeless people. He’s shocked by this, and decides to use his money to improve Bludhaven. There’s also a cameo appearance by Heartless, which is why this issue is so expensive.

LES EAUX DE MORTELUNE V1 (Glénat, 1986) – “L’Échiquier du rat,” [W] Patrick Cothias, [A] Philippe Adamov. I bought this at Dreamhaven in Minneapolis last January, along with two other French comics that I haven’t read yet. Les Eaux de Mortelune (The Waters of Deadmoon) is a postapocalyptic story, set in a future Paris where water and fuel are super-rare. While looking for animals to kill for meat, a butcher, Pancrasse, encounters one of the city’s leaders, the Prince of Mortelune. The prince invites Pancrasse to his upcoming party along with Pancrasse’s daughter, Violhaine, and his mute, superpowered son, Nicolas. Subsequently, a woman tries to sell Pancrasse a baby with a rat’s tail, and Nicolas and Pancrasse have to flee with the baby, which turns out to have been stolen from the prince’s lab. All these plot threads come together at the prince’s party. This comic has some incredible art. Adamov was clearly influenced by Moebius, but he has his own style, and his art looks dirtier and more sordid than Moebius’s. He also includes some body horror, particularly in the party scene, where we see the products of the prince’s unsuccessful experiments. Cothias’s writing is bleak and disturbing. His story focuses on a conflict between super-rich magnates, and the common people, including the co-protagonists Violhaine and Nicolas, seem like powerless pawns. I’d like to read the rest of this series, but I have lots of other French comics to read first. The first five albums of Les Eaux de Mortelune were translated in Heavy Metal, each in a single issue, but the translations were never published in book form.

2000 AD #2328 (Rebellion, 2023) – “The Disciples of Death Part 1,” [W] Ken Niemand, [A] Neil Googe. The Judges interview a woman, Moira, who’s emigrated from Scotland to Mega-City One. Moira’s partner, Callum, has come with her, bringing the skull of “Brenda the Witch-Queen of Ecclefechan,” and he offers it to a cult that worships the Dark Judges. Moira and Callum both speak in exaggerated Scots accents. A funny line is when a judge tells Moira that she’s more likely to die in a disaster in Mega-City One than anywhere else in the world, and she replies “Aye, but it’s still better than Coatbridge.” Durham Red: as above. Durham and Burt parachute onto the drug manufacturer’s planet. The Order: as above. The heroes finally beat Francis Bacon, then proceed with another quest. Enemy Earth: as above. Jessica and Zoe fight some monstrous kittens, then Jessica forces Zoe and Jules to take her with them. They arrive at the location of Jules’s dad’s signal, then they encounter an undead monster that seems to be Jules’s dad. Rogue Trooper: as above. Rogue and the soldiers battle a German tank. We’re introduced to the notion of a “Blighty one,” a wound that’s non-fatal, but that results in evacuation back to England.

DYNAMO #2 (Tower, 1966) – “The Web of S.P.I.D.E.R.”, [W] Wally Wood, [A] Dan Adkins. Dynamo infiltrates a country that’s been taken over by SPIDER. He also encounters the Iron Maiden, who saves his life at one point. “S.P.I.D.E.R. Strikes at Sea!”, [W] Wood, [A] Adkins. SPIDER hijacks an American nuclear aircraft carrier. Dynamo defeats them and saves the carrier, using a combination of powers and trickery. Late in the story, the hijackers try to defeat Dynamo by dropping a nuclear bomb on him. This scene was perhaps not as shocking then as it would be now, since in 1966, surface nuclear testing had only been illegal for three years. “The Priceless Counterfeit!”, [W] Ralph Reese, [A] Dick Ayers. A complicated spy story revolving around a counterfeit statue. In this story a stewardess asks Dynamo “Coffee, tea or milk?” This formerly common phrase was parodied in the title of a bestselling book, Coffee, Tea or Me? “Between Two Enemies,” [W] Wood, [A] Mike Sekowsky. One group of villains replaces Dynamo’s belt with a booby-trapped replica. Then a different villain steals the booby-trapped belt and is killed when he tries to use it, so the two plots cancel each other out. Weed: “The Hyena,” [W] Wally Wood, [A] George Tuska. Weed wants to graduate from the THUNDER Agents’ support staff and become a THUNDER Agent himself. He puts on a costume and has an adventure, but the adventure turns out to be a test set up by THUNDER’s management, and Weed fails the test. Weed was based on Woody himself.

2000 AD #2329 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: as above. Callum and Moira become citizens, and we learn that they’re going to betray Mega-City One to the Dark Judges. I guess this story was setup for a future epic. The Order: as above. This overly long story finally ends, although it ends with a hook for a sequel. Durham Red: as above. Durham and Burt finally land, and they start tracking down the drug producer. Enemy Earth: as above. Jules, Zoe and Jessica think they’ve killed Jules’s dad, but then Jules’s real dad arrives. Rogue Trooper: as above. The British soldiers figure out that Rogue isn’t a normal soldier, and he decides to tell them his true identity. Also, the soldiers take custody of a German prisoner of war.

YELLOW DOG #25 (Print Mint, 1973) – [E] unknown. The only well-known contributors to this issue are Trina Robbins (with Leslie Cabarga) and Joel Beck. The rest of the issue consists of amateurish work by unknown artists. The most interesting story in the issue is Joel Beck’s  “The Ecology Meeting,” whose characters are contemporary advertising mascots, but nothing in this issue is truly good.

DEADLINE USA #5 (Dark Horse, 1992) – [E] Chris Warner. This issue contains: A Wired World story by Philip Bond, with a time-travel plot. A Milk and Cheese two-pager by Evan Dorkin. A Hugo Tate story by Nick Abadzis, in which the protagonist is attacked by an alcoholic who’s angry because his girlfriend left him. A Johnny Nemo story by Milligan and Ewins, which I may have read before. Other contributors are D’Israeli, Shaky Kane, Dave Cooper and Phil Hester.

FANTASTIC FOUR #355 (Marvel, 1991) – “Rage,” [W] Danny Fingeroth, [A] Al Milgrom. The Wrecker is seeking revenge on Thunderball, who’s hiding out in a Yancy Street apartment. By coincidence, the Thing is having dinner with the poor family in the next apartment. The Thing beats Wrecker, but the young son of the family is killed in the fight. This story is emotionally manipulative, because the boy’s death isn’t justified by anything that happens in the story, nor does it teach any kind of lesson; it’s just an arbitrary occurrence. Also, this story feels anachronistic, because the Lower East Side is no longer a desperately poor area. Maybe in the past it was impressive that a kid from the Lower East Side could grow up to “be something,” but now it’s pretty normal. Also, this issue includes an annoying lettering correction, possibly mandated by the Comics Code, in which Thunderball claims that the Wrecker doesn’t really want to kill him. If that’s true, then the story becomes even more pointless than it already is.

INCREDIBLE HULK #98 (Marvel, 2006) – “Planet Hulk: Anarchy Part III,” [W] Greg Pak, [A] Aaron Lopresti. While preparing for his assault on the Red King, Hulk meets Caiera, who tells him her origin story. Hulk and Caiera fight, then team up against a worse menace. Caiera was perhaps the Hulk’s best love interest other than Jarella, and it’s a pity that they both got fridged. (I rate them both above Betty because Betty didn’t become an interesting character until Peter David’s run.)

300 #5 (Dark Horse, 1998) – “Victory,” [W/A] Frank Miller. The Spartans fight valiantly, but are betrayed by Ephialtes. This is kind of their own fault; maybe Ephialtes would have been loyal to them if they hadn’t bullied him. In the end, Leonidas and his army are all killed, but their example serves to inspire other white people to resist the godless hordes of Asia. I’m being facetious here, but that really is the point of 300. This series has some spectacular art, but its politics are so toxic, and its later influence has been so negative, that it can’t be considered a successful work. In medieval studies, a major contemporary topic of discussion is the opriation of medieval culture by the alt-right (see here for an article about Dorothy Kim’s work on this topic), and 300 is an example of a similar appropriation of classical culture.

DRAWN & QUARTERLY #8 (Drawn & Quarterly, 1992) – [E] Chris Oliveros. Going in order: In Kit Boss and Michael Dougan’s “Rooster Got Loose!” is an autobio story in which a child is attacked by a rooster, and then his family has the rooster for dinner. Sadly Michael Dougan just passed away. I think he’s unjustly obscure today because most of his work was published in magazine-format anthologies. Carol Tyler’s “Pie Kids” is a one-page color story about her summer job in 1977. Roberta Gregory’s “That Time of the Month” is a fantasy about an unwanted pregnancy. In “On My Day Off,” Joe Sacco has a day off in Berlin, but finds himself obsessing about World War II and the Bosnian War. When he sees some happy people, he thinks “I’d like to know where in the fuck they’ve been!” Dennis Eichhorn and Carol Swain’s “Speak Up!” is about Eichhorn’s visit to a mental hospital for a college class. Other contributors include Lee Binswanger, Santiago Cohen, Marti, Carel Moiseiwitsch, Fiona Smyth, and Maurice Vellekoop.

FIRE POWER #7 (Image, 2021) – untitled, [W] Robert Kirkman, [A] Chris Samnee. Owen and his family flee to Owen’s adoptive parents’ house, and there are various other subplots. I have nothing new to say about this comic; again, this issue is full of excellent visual storytelling, but its story is a blatant example of cultural appropriation. I’m surprised that there’s not more discussion of this comic’s appropriative nature. I suppose that even if this comic is by Kirkman, it’s low-profile enough that no one is talking about it much. And we no longer have much of a functioning comics press.

TONY STARK: IRON MAN #4 (Marvel, 2018) – “Self-Made Man Part 4: Love Bytes,” [W] Dan Slott, [A] Valerio Schiti. Baintronics’s Make-a-Match app is helping all of Stark Unlimited’s employees find new love interests. But it turns out that the love interests are all robots designed to infiltrate the company.  Tony has to team up with Wasp to save the company. In the process, Tony and Jan rekindle their own romance, and Tony’s mom and Andy Bhang become a potential couple. This issue extensively references Avengers #224, when Tony and Jan fell in love, but broke up when Tony told Jan his secret identity. When Jocasta views Tony’s memories of Jan, one of the memories is even labeled “Avengers files 224.”

Back to Heroes:

SOMETHING IS KILLING THE CHILDREN #32 (Boom!, 2023) – “Showdown at the Easy Creek Corral Part 2,” [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Werther Dell’Edera. Cecilia gives Erica a poison that can defeat Cutter, and even promises Erica a seat on the House of Slaughter’s council. In this scene Cecilia acts a bit more sympathetic than in earlier issues. She hates Cutter for killing Big Gary, who she and Erica both loved. However, Cecilia has a clear ulterior motive for helping Erica – she wants to position herself as a successor to the Old Dragon, and she also realizes that Cutter is a worse problem than Erica. After this encounter, Erica has a flashback to a past encounter with Big Gary.

GROO IN THE WILD #2 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Sergio Aragonés, [W] Mark Evanier. Groo goes looking for animals to eat, but discovers that they’re all going extinct because they’re being killed for ivory, or else their habitats are getting ruined. A particularly nice moment is the page on the left of the centerfold, where Groo describes an idyllic wilderness full of animals grazing, and the artwork depicts the place as Groo remembers it. And then in the next panel, we see what this place looks like now: it’s been overrun with houses, and the trees have been clear-cut. Meanwhile, King Putrio sends his army against Groo, but Groo kicks their asses, and the survivors all desert. Then King Putrio recruits another army through universal conscription. A funny exchange is “But I am a woman!” “Now you are a soldier man, woman!”

THE CULL #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kelly Thompson, [A] Mattia De Iulis. Five teenage friends go out at night to film a movie on a beach. All five characters are vividly characterized through the artists’ depictions of their houses and their rituals before going out. When they get to the beach, they have a vision of a mysterious world of floating rocks and giant multicolored flowers. And one of the girls insists on entering this world, because she thinks her missing brother must be there. This is an even more promising new series than Black Cloak. It has spectacular artwork and an intriguing story, and like Kelly Thompson’s best superhero comics, it has an ensemble cast of diverse and interesting characters. I’m excited to read more of this.

MECH CADETS #1 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Greg Pak, [A] Takeshi Miyazawa. A long-awaited sequel to Mech Cadet Yu, which was one of Greg Pak’s best works so far. In keeping with the change of title, this series no longer focuses primarily on Stanford Yu. Instead the focal character is Olivia, who is the nominal leader of the team, but is facing immense pressure from her asshole father. When the Mech Cadets make contact with a second alien species, their leaders order them to stay away from it, but the Mech Cadets decide to disobey orders and do the right thing. This is an exciting moment, which suggests that the kids are starting to realize that they have all the power.  

DAMN THEM ALL #7 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Charlie Adlard. Ellie visits Alfie’s grave and finds that his body has been stolen. In investigating, Ellie discovers that the angels have gotten involved in the ongoing situation with the demons. I always have trouble understanding what’s happening in this series, but it’s an excellent series anyway. The  term Shem HaMephorash means the Tetrgrammaton, the four-letter name of God which is too perfect to be spoken aloud.

MONEY SHOT COMES AGAIN #3 (Vault, 2023) – untitled, [W] Tim Seeley, [A] Gisèle Lagacé. The Money Shot team find themselves in a dead god’s corpse, which has been taken over by an evil billionaire woman. The god looks like Galactus, but the idea of a divine corpse is probably a reference to We Only Find Them When They’re Dead. After some exposition, the billionaire turns into a living cancer, and her android lover has to sacrifice itself to kill her. The Money Shot team teleports away and lands on a heap of cardboard boxes. All of this sort of made sense when I was reading it. As expected, this issue also includes some sex scenes.

KAYA #10 (Image, 2023) – “In the Poison Lands Chapter 4,” [W/A] Wes Craig. Kaya and Runt encounter another faction of monsters who are opposed to Duke Borgo, the one who currently has Jin. Meanwhile, Jin has some scary and beautifully drawn visions. The Jin scenes are especially striking because they’re colored in a limited black-and-yellow palette, while most of the rest of the series is vividly colored.

CON & ON #2 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Paul Cornell, [A] Marika Cresta. This issue takes place in 2001, the year before I attended my first Comic-Con. Eddie is now a successful comics writer, but his success has ruined his friendship with Deja. Eddie gets Deja invited to a portfolio review, but his editors aren’t interested in her work because she only draws funny animals. This scene demonstrates the exclusionary nature of the comics business, especially in 2001, when there were fewer ways for female, POC or LGBTQ+ artists to break into comics. I really like the flashback to Jack Kirby’s last appearance at Comic-Con. Kirby is only shown from behind, and he’s surrounded by Kirby crackle.

WORLD’S FINEST: TEEN TITANS #2 (DC, 2023) – “Inside Out,” [W] Mark Waid, [A] Emanuela Lupacchino. The Titans are looking for a runaway teenager named Dalisay. Garth, Roy and Donna follow her into a haunted house, where they each confront their fears of their own inadequacies. The other Titans investigate and learn that Dalisay is a telepath. Eventually Lilith resolves the situation. This is perhaps the best-written comic starring the original Teen Titans. Mark makes some surprising choices with regard to characterization, but these choices are reasonable. Also, Emanuela Lupacchino is a terrific artist. And I like the contrast between the opening scenes, which are colored (by Jordie Bellaire) in bright tones, and the dark, gloomy haunted house scene.  

I HATE FAIRYLAND #8 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Skottie Young, [A] Brett Bean. Having killed her older self, Gert sends a boy back to Earth, only to discover that she was supposed to go to Earth through that door, so now she’s stuck in Fairyland. To get back to Earth, Gert needs to piggyback off of another “guest.” The only one available is Duncan Dragon, who never managed to leave Fairyland after the previous series. Duncan now has actual dragon powers. When Gert finds him and informs him that he could have left Fairyland whenever he wanted, Duncan gets angry and breathes fire on Gert, apparently killing her.

SPIDER-MAN #11 (Marvel, 2023) – All of this month’s Marvel comics begin with a tribute to John Romita. “Marvel Tales,” [W] Dan Slott, [A] Luciano Vecchio. Spidey tries to force Spider-Boy (Bailey) to quit. In response, Bailey tells Peter a number of stories which are intended to prove Bailey’s worthiness to be Peter’s sidekick. Peter is finally persuaded by the final story, in which Bailey saves Aunt May. It’s also stated that Bailey is ten years old. I don’t think his age was mentioned before. Overall this is a very cute issue.

IN HELL WE FIGHT #3 (Image, 2023) – “Li’l Shop of Horrors,” [W] John Layman, [A] Jok. The characters all sleep and have revealing dreams. In the morning they visit an antique store owned by Woodrow P. Splinterflint, a cursed ventriloquist’s dummy. Woody offers them a map to an oracle that can lead them to heaven. Then the angel blows her cover, and Woody tries to kill them all, but the protagonists appease him with some of the angel’s feathers. Meanwhile, the two kids accidentally reveal the ice cream truck’s location to the Necrolord, who sends three “Fomorian War Giants” after the team. This is a very fun series, but I would appreciate a guide to the characters’ names and backstories. A few small Easter eggs: The rug in Woody’s shop seems to be the pelt of Battle Beast from He-Man. “Vohu-Frayan” is a real term from Zoroastrianism. There’s a message in cuneiform on the last page, but I can’t read cuneiform.

DWELLINGS #1 (Oni, 2023) – “They Know” and “Second Tongue,” [W/A] Jay Stephens. This is Jay Stephens’s return to comics after working in animation for over twenty years. In the first story, John Allan, formerly Jordan Perry, is living in witness protection after testifying against a criminal. When the criminal’s brother recognizes him, Jordan has to kill him. But some crows witness the murder, and Jordan is driven crazy by their cawing. Believing himself to be a crow, Jordan goes on a killing spree until he’s himself killed by a cop, who’s herself under suspicion for having killed someone else. The end of the story suggests that the cop is going to go insane in the same way Jordan did. In the backup story, Dawn, a graduate student in psychiatry, investigates a man named Brandon who appears to have foreign accent syndrome. It eventually becomes clear that Brandon doesn’t have FAS, but is possessed by the spirit of a dead murderer, and is trying to complete a long-ago ritual in which a baby was going to be sacrificed to a demon. In the end, Dawn learns that she herself is the baby who escaped being  sacrificed, and the demon’s followers complete the ritual by killing Dawn. When I bought this comic at Heroes, I was told that everyone on the Heroes staff loved it, and so do I. Dwellings looks like a humor comic, but in fact it’s a frightening and brilliantly plotted horror comic. Stephens’s whimsical art is a perfect contrast with his horror plots, and his art and storytelling are light years beyond where they were in the ‘90s. I’m sorry this is just a three-issue miniseries. This issue includes some beautifully designed fake ads, and one Easter egg I noticed is a book on demonic possession written by Hideshi Ito, a reference to Hideshi Hino and Junji Ito.

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES #142 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Sophie Campbell, [A] Gavin Smith. Alopex refuses to team up with the Turtles to look for Mushroom; she’s pissed at the Turtles for teaming up with Shredder. The Turtles get in a big fight, triggered by Donatello’s obsession with Armaggon. Donatello finally realizes he has more immediate problems than Armaggon, and he recruits Venus to help find Mushroom, who’s been captured by Dr. Jasper Barlow. After a horrible slump during Armageddon Game, this series is finally back to its former level of quality.

UNTOLD TALES OF I HATE FAIRYLAND #2 (Image, 2023) – “The Death and Rebirth of Cloudia,” [W/A] Morgan Beem. An account of how Cloudia turned evil. Beem’s artwork, particularly her renderings of faces, is more realistic than this series’s usual style. “The Hunchover,” [W/A] Dean Rankine. Gert wakes up with a giant hunchback, and tries to figure out how she got it. I find Dean Rankine’s artwork weird and disturbing, but this was the best story in the series yet. “Gameday,” [W/A] Dax Gordine. Gert plays cards with Duncan Dragon.

WEIRD WORK #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jordan Thomas, [A] Shaky Kane. The protagonists continue to investigate the murder, which is connected with a drug that causes its users’ heads to grow huge. This series has a typical police procedural plot, and it wouldn’t be interesting on its own without Shaky Kane’s art. However, Shaky Kane’s character designs are brilliant, and the psychedelic sequence at the end of the issue is a particular highlight. It reminds me of a similar sequence from Steranko’s Captain America #111.

STARSIGNS #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Megan Levens. The good guys are saved by a new sign, a Canadian woman named Cathy. They manage to temporarily escape from the bad signs, thanks in part to Cathy’s strategic deployment of her white privilege to get past a police roadblock. At the end of the issue we meet another new sign, Dan Kang. I notice a pattern in this series where the good guys are mostly people of color, and the bad guys are mostly white. Cathy and Dan are both’ exceptions to this, but Cathy is from Canada, and Dan has a Korean or Chinese name, so maybe he’s on the white people’s side because of the model minority myth.

SIRENS OF THE CITY #2 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joanne Starer, [A] Khary Randolph. Jerome meets the leader of the incubi, and he claims that Layla’s unborn child is going to kill her. Layla meets the leader of the sirens, who wants to weaponize Layla’s child against the incubi. This is another fascinating issue with excellent artwork. This issue is still mostly black and white, but the colors red and blue are associated with the incubi and sirens. Layla’s hair is kind of purple, perhaps because her baby is a hybrid. We’re also introduced to some sewer-dwelling fairies whose color is a sickly light green.

KNIGHT TERRORS: SHAZAM! #2 (DC, 2023) – “In Your Dreams,” [W] Mark Waid, [A] Roger Cruz. Mary escapes her nightmare and then helps her other family members escape their own respective nightmares. This is perhaps the best Knight Terrors crossover issue I’ve read, though that’s a low bar to clear. Knight Terrors is a stupid, pointless crossover, but Mark takes this lemon and makes lemonade with it, using the nightmares to deepen the reader’s understanding of Mary and her family.

2000 AD #2330 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: “Chimera,” [W] Ian Edginton, [A] Nicolo Assirelli. Two criminals steal an artifact from Justice Department storage, and it turns them into a monster. Dredd learns that the artifact was a transmitter, but he doesn’t know what it was transmitting, or to whom. I wonder if we’ll ever find out. Future Shocks: “Look at Your Hands,” [W] Elizabeth Sandifer, [A] Laura Helsby. I was shocked to see who wrote this story, because Elizabeth Sandifer was my colleague in grad school, though I haven’t seen her in years. This story is a very clever play on how AI art can be identified by its inability to draw hands. Durham Red: as above. The drug producer goes looking for Durham and Burt. This series’s artwork is much more interesting than its plot. Enemy Earth: as above. Jules’s dad introduces himself, and he says that the team needs to go to India. Rogue Trooper: as above. Rogue tells the men his story, then they escape a German bombing raid. This story is very poignant, but it’s annoying to me that Garth Ennis has so much talent, but that he chooses to waste it on things like Section Eight or Jimmy’s Bastards. It’s only when he writes war comics that he feels motivated to make his best effort.

2000 AD #2331 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: “Flusher,” [W] Ken Niemand, [A] Nick Dyer. This is the sequel to “Grinder” from #2287, in which a world-conquering alien was incarnated as a garbage can. Now Dredd has to defeat the alien again, in its new form as a port-a-potty. The next sequel is going to be more serious, because at the end of “Flusher” the alien possesses a robot judge. Durham Red: as above. The mission continues. This story is extremely slow-paced. Enemy Earth: as above. The team’s hideout is invaded by enemy plants, and Jules deliberately leaves Jessica behind. The Out: as above. Cyd goes on trial and calls Robert Lustre (i.e. David Bowie) as a witness. She asks him to use his “time-slicing” powers to reveal that the Zoto created the Tankinar. Rogue Trooper: as above. Rogue and the British commanding officer discuss the grim responsibility of commanding soldiers.

MISS TRUESDALE AND THE FALL OF HYPERBOREA #4 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mike Mignola, [A] Jesse Lonergan. This issue’s page layouts are a bit more exciting than last issue’s, and the draftsmanship is also quite good, particulary the depiction of the hydra that Miss Truesdale fights. However, I still can’t follow this miniseries’s plot. I just ordered Jesse Lonergan’s small-press comic Faster.

LONESOME HUNTERS: THE WOLF CHILD #2 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Tyler Crook. I’m glad there’s a sequel to Lonesome Hunters. I received issues 1 and 2 of this series in the reverse order, so #2 was rather confusing. Having now read #1, I understand what’s going on. While fleeing from a cult, Lupe and Howard encounter a wolf-masked boy and a dying wolf, who somehow seems to be the boy’s mother. Some local farmers are hunting the wolves, who they blame for recent killings of livestock. There’s also a scene I still don’t understand, in which a naked pointy-eared man talks to a deer.

SECOND COMING: TRINITY #5 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell, [A] Steve Pugh. Jesus gives an impassioned sermon, but it’s interrupted when his church’s toilet breaks. The city builds a fireproof house for Jordan, but it’s more a prison than a house, and Jordan does his best to destroy it anyway. Jesus suggests raising Jordan on a planet where he’ll have no powers. Sunstar is furious at this idea, but while he and Jesus are arguing, Jordan escapes. This is another excellent issue of what might be Mark Russell’s best series. I wonder if Mark Russell is Jewish, because he understands Jesus too well to be a Christian. That’s only sort of a joke: I feel like Russell has a deep, intuitive understanding of Jesus’ message, and this understanding is not blinded by his allegiance to any particular form of Christianity.

CARTOON DIALECTICS #4 (Uncivilized, 2023) – “The Coming of the Terraformer,” [W/A] Tom Kaczynski. I bought two of the earlier issues of this series, but I haven’t read them yet. I will remedy that omission as soon as I can. Cartoon Dialectics #4’s first story is a very deep exploration of the philosophy of comics form. It describes comics as “flat ontology,” a term from new materialist philosophy in which “all object[s], even those that are imagined, have the same degree of being-ness as any other object” (source). It also demonstrates this view of comics through its own artwork. Comics as flat ontology is a fascinating idea. This view of comics has affinities with the work of Kevin Huizenga, and Kaczynski namechecks Huizenga in the story. The other stories are about occultism and Sumerian flood myths. I’m not sure if all the ideas in this comic are meant seriously, but it’s a fascinating and important comic.

DAREDEVIL #14 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Red Fist Saga Conclusion,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Marco Checchetto. Elektra has become Daredevil again, and she and Matt’s other friends deal with the aftermath of Matt’s death, but they all keep seeing Matt’s ghost everywhere. Finally we meet Matt himself in his resurrected form. He’s become a priest, and he seems to have no memory of being Daredevil. Chip Zdarsky did a pretty good job writing Daredevil, but I’m glad that the overlong Red Fist Saga is finished. I’m much more excited about Saladin Ahmed’s upcoming run.

KNIGHT TERRORS: NIGHTWING #2 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Becky Cloonan & Michael W. Conrad, [A] Daniele Di Nicuolo. Another complete waste of an issue. Dick manages to escape from his nightmare, and at the end of the issue, the status quo hasn’t changed, and we haven’t learned anything we didn’t already know. The only thing I liked about this issue was the nightmare versions of the Arkham inmates; for instance, Killer Croc has an alligator handbag for a head, and the Penguin is an actual penguin. I don’t know why Tom Taylor couldn’t have written these two issues himself. Perhaps he was as disgusted with the idea of Knight Terrors as I am.

TALES OF THE TITANS #2 (DC, 2023) – Raven: “Mother Blood,” [W] Tini Howard, [A] Eleonora Carlini. While attending Pantha’s baby shower, Raven is reminded of her own troubled relations with her parents. Then she has an adventure with a young woman who’s been impregnated with Trigon’s grandson. At the end of the issue, she reconciles with her paternal half-brother Liam, aka Trilogy. This issue’s story is more interesting than I expected, but its version of Raven feels like a substantially different character from Marv and George’s version. Raven was perhaps the least sympathetic character among the classic New Teen Titans, but her shyness and reserve made her a useful foil to the rest of the team. The contemporary Raven is still shy and reserved, but not to nearly the same degree. One thing that annoyed me about this issue was Starfire’s brief appearances. Tini Howard depicts her with the same hairstyle and speech pattern as in the animated series. That portrayal of Starfire is not consistent with the previous issue of Tales of the Titans.  

WILD’S END #3 (Boom!, 2023) – “The Light,” [W] Dan Abnett, [A] I.N.J. Culbard. The survivors hide out in the lighthouse. They figure out that the Martians are controlling people using visual and auditory hypnosis, which explains why the journalist escaped their control, because she’s deaf in one ear. Using this knowledge, the survivors visit the giant lamppost that the Martians are building, then they get the idea of using explosives to blow the tower up. This series is exciting, though it’s still following the same formula as earlier Wild’s End comics.

CHILLING ADVENTURES PRESENTS… STRANGE SCIENCE #1 (Archie, 2023) – untitled, [W] Magdalene Visaggio, [A] Butch Mapa. Jinx and Danni (Archie’s first transgender character) have a time-travel adventure with Dilton Doiley. This is much better than other recent Archie comics; it has an interesting plot, in which Danni’s transgender identity is a relevant plot point. I’m still pissed at Archie for their near abandonment of the periodical comic book format, and  while I’m glad to see Mags writing comic books again, I wish she was working for a better company.

KNIGHT TERRORS: GREEN LANTERN #2 (DC, 2023) – “Doorways,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Eduardo Pansica. Another pointless issue that’s just a long fight scene. I’m not even sure whether I’ll still be reading Green Lantern after issue 3, and I resent that I felt obligated to buy  these two Knight Terrors issues, when I’m on the verge of dropping the series. The Sinestro backup story is even worse. Jeremy Adams seems like a poor fit for Green Lantern, because the primary reason I liked his Flash run was because of Wally’s interactions with his family, and Green Lantern doesn’t have that sort of family.

SWAN SONGS #2 (Image, 2023) – “The End of… a Marriage,” [W] W. Maxwell Prince, [A] Caspar Wijngaard. A married couple get divorced, and are sentenced to be locked in mortal combat for eternity. There are three different fight scenes – a medieval joust, a samurai duel, and a battle between superheroes – and each scene is drawn in an appropriate style. This issue is a beautiful artistic achievement, and the two main characters are fleshed out effectively. However, like most of Prince’s comics, this issue is rather bleak and depressing.

2000 AD #2332 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: “In the Event of My Untimely Demise Part 1,” [W] Mike Carroll, [A] Paul Marshall. When crimelord Lowell Deegan is murdered, he releases his kompromat on Mega-City One’s other crime families. One of these families has placed a mole within Dredd’s team. This story is kind of confusing. Durham Red: as above. After a fight scene, the drug producer, Kanka, captures Durham, and Burt is killed. Enemy Earth: as above. Zoe insists on rescuing Jessica, which is very frustrating since if not for Jessica, Zoe would still have both arms. Zoe should have let her die. Afterward, the team gets on a ship which is bound to Denmark. The Out: as above. Using Robert Lustre’s past-viewing technology, Cyd proves that the Zoto created the original proto-Tankinar. But the proto-Tankinar uses Lustre’s technology to travel into the future. Rogue Trooper: as above. The British soldiers talk with the German prisoner about the nature of war, and then all the characters are somehow transported into Rogue’s time period.

KNIGHT TERRORS: SUPERMAN #2 (DC, 2023) – “Maid of Mayhem,” [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Tom Reilly. Superman, Supergirl and the Aquaman family fight their way out of Insomnia’s nightmares. This is another not-great issue, though it would have been even worse if not for Tom Reilly’s excellent art. He deserves much more attention than he gets.

DARK SPACES: HOLLYWOOD SPECIAL #1 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [w] Jeremy Lambert, [A] Claire Roe. In the 1940s, a Hollywood star, Vivian Drake, visits a remote mining town during a publicity tour. Vivian discovers that all the town’s people are gathered at the mine, where the  miners have been trapped in a cave-in. While trying to help, Vivian sees her estranged daughter’s severed head, and it talks to her. I was skeptical about this comic, because although Dark Spaces: Wildfire was a masterpiece, Dark Spaces: Good Deeds was a waste of time. However, Dark Spaces: Hollywood Special is better than I expected. Claire Roe’s visual storytelling is very good, reminding me of Darwyn Cooke or Chris Samnee, and Jeremy Lambert’s story seems historically accurate. So far, none of the three Dark Spaces titles have had anything to do with each other.

KILLER QUEENS 2 #1 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] David M. Booher, [A] Bradley Clayton. A prince escapes from his palace, the two Killer Queens decide to find him, and we learn that one of the Killer Queens is the prince’s sister. I wasn’t all that fond of the first Killer Queens series, but I decided to read the sequel anyway, and so far, the second series is better than the first one. I especially like the scene with the Space Pride festival, and Bradley Clayton’s drawings of aliens are creative. He’s not the same artist who drew the first series. I still think Killer Queens is rather similar to Kim & Kim.

GROOT #4 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Dan Abnett, [A] Damian Couceiro. Groot, Captain Mar-Vell and Yondar defeat Agz, and Mar-Vell convinces Yon-Rogg to sweep the entire incident under the rug. This series was okay, but it was much more about Captain Mar-Vell than Groot. Dan Abnett was largely responsible for creating the modern version of Groot, but other writers, particularly Skottie Young and Jeff Loveness, have written better Groot solo stories than Abnett has.

SANTOS SISTERS #5 (American Nature, 2023) – “It’s Very DMT to Meet You!”, [W/A] Greg Petre and Fake Petre. The first story, in which one of the sisters has a drug-induced hallucination, is the most visually impressive thing in this series. The third story, about a monster made of animated Cinnabon rolls, is also entertaining. But I somehow got the impression that this series was a serious, major work, and it’s really not, it’s just an Archie parody. It’s an excellent Archie parody, but I had thought it had higher ambitions.

MARVEL’S VOICES: X-MEN #1 (Marvel, 2023) – [E] Lauren Amaro. In order: The Jean Grey/Emma Frost story has excellent art by Jorge Corona, but both protagonists are wildly out of character. The third story is by Al Ewing, but it’s about some Arakko characters I’m not familiar with. All the other stories in the issue are complete wastes of space. I’m not buying any more of these Marvel’s Voices comics. These comics are well-intentioned, but they suffer from a lack of quality control. Each issue only includes one or two good stories at most, and the rest of the stories are pointless filler.

BARNSTORMERS #2 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Scott Snyder, [A] Tula Lotay. Bix and Tillie continue their air shows, but they’re pursued by Tillie’s murderous, possessive fiancé,  Peyton, who uses his immense wealth to frame Bix and Tillie as murderers. Peyton eventually captures Tillie, but even then he’s not satisfied, and he insists on torturing her and her family. He is perhaps the most disgusting villain in any recent comic, and when Tillie finally kills him, it’s a happy ending, even if she and Bix both die next issue. There are some more steampunk scenes in this issue, but it seems like the steampunk elements only exist in Bix’s hallucinations. Overall, Barnstormers is an excellent series, and I like it much more than Clear. It has a compelling and historically plausible story, and Tula Lotay’s artwork is distinctive and lyrical. I just wish Barnstormers was published as six issues rather than three, because the double-length issues are cumbersome to read, and each issue splits neatly into two halves.

2000 AD #2333 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: as above. Dredd continues to investigate the gang war. “In the Event of My Untimely Demise” is too confusing for me, as was Proteus Vex, which was also written by Mike Carroll. Durham Red: as above. Durham is tortured by Kanka. Enemy Earth: as above. On the way to Denmark, the ship is caught by sea monsters. The Out: as above. Cyd defeats the invading Tankinar and is cleared of her crimes, and she has a final encounter with her daughter Joey. That’s the end of the series for now, though there’s no reason why there couldn’t be a Book Four. The Out has the most impressive art, by far, of any recent 2000 AD serial, although the artwork is so stunning that it slows down the pace of reading. Rogue Trooper: as above. The WWI soldiers encounter some Nort troops, and Rogue has to confine the soldiers in a sealed bubble for their own safety.

X-MEN RED #14 (Marvel, 2023) – “To War We March,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Yildiray Cinar. The issue begins with a subplot that I don’t understand, starring characters that I don’t recognize. Then Sunspot arrives on Arakko and reports on the terrible things that happened at the Hellfire Gala. Apparently most of the X-Men are dead, with no opportunity for resurrection. I have not been reading the main X-Men title, so I was surprised by this revelation. It sounds like a terrible plot twist. Afterward, there’s a civil war on Arakko. Al Ewing is an excellent writer, but the consistent problem with X-Men Red is its lack of a clear story arc. It just goes from one crossover tie-in to another, without developing any recurring plot of its own.

DANGER STREET #8 (DC, 2023) – “Warlord,” [W] Tom King, [A] Jorge Fornes. Lady Cop and Jack Ryder go on a sort-of date, but when Jack Ryder reveals himself as the Creeper, Lady Cop punches him out. There’s also a flashback to the shared origins of the Green Team and the Outsiders. Danger Street’s plot is rather aimless and rambling, but I don’t mind, because the point of the series is just to depict some funny encounters between some very strange characters.

THE VIGIL #4 (DC, 2023) – “The Check Hook,” [W] Ram V, [A] Devmalya Pramanik. This is the last issue I’ll be buying. The Vigil isn’t any different from any other secret-agent superhero comic, and it has a total lack of interesting characterization or plots. The only thing it does have going for it is its Indian setting, but this setting has no impact on anything; The Vigil could just as easily have been set in Gotham City as in Mumbai. I know that Ram V is capable of writing more interesting stories that make good use of their Indian settings (e.g. Grafity’s Wall or The Many Deaths of Laila Starr). Therefore, The Vigil is a surprising disappointment.

SUPERMAN ANNUAL 2023 (DC, 2023) – “The City of Secrets,” [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Mahmud Asrar et al. Finally a real DC comic that’s not Knight Terrors. Daily Planet editor-in-chief Lois Lane sends her staff to investigate several different leads, and each of these investigations is drawn by a separate artist. Perhaps the highlight of the issue is a cute scene with a Parasite “puppy”. Marilyn Moonlight also makes a brief appearance. The twist ending is that Lois discovers that Perry White has been burying stories that would have incriminated Lex Luthor.  

SPIRIT WORLD #4 (DC, 2023) – “Erosion,” [W] Alyssa Wong, [A] Haining. Unlike The Vigil, Spirit World has interesting characters, and it does interesting things with its cultural background. Therefore, I have more patience with Spirit World than with The Vigil, but on the other hand, Spirit World’s plot makes no sense to me at all. I have no idea what happened in this issue.

IMMORTAL X-MEN #14 (Marvel, 2023) – “Sympathy for the Scarlet Witch,” [W] Kieron Gillen, [A] Lucas Werneck. After the disaster at the Hellfire Gala, Professor X is sitting alone on an empty Krakoa, mourning the death of his dream. Sebastian Shaw and some other villains try to take over Krakoa, but Professor X rebuffs them. This whole sequence is extremely grim. At the end, Exodus and some other mutants find themselves in a vast desert, and Exodus volunteers to lead them to the promised land, like Moses. Exodus is perhaps the only true hero in this series, since nearly every other character has some kind of ulterior or hidden agenda. Exodus’s heroism is a surprise since he’s a medieval religious zealot.

WEREWOLF BY NIGHT #33 facsimile (Marvel, 1975/2023) – “Wolf-Beast vs. Moon Knight,” [W] Doug Moench, [A] Don Perlin. A reprint of Moon Knight’s second appearance. I already read the facsimile edition of the previous issue, but I don’t remember anything about it. Werewolf by Night #33 isn’t much better. It’s a boring story that depicts Haitian people in stereotypical ways, and it doesn’t arouse my interest in Moon Knight, a character I’ve never cared about. Don Perlin, who is now 91, is one of the few living artists who worked in comic books during the ‘50s.

SHOWCASE #87 (DC, 1969) – Firehair: “The Shaman!”, [W/A] Joe Kubert. I won this on eBay. It’s the last original Firehair story that I was missing. In this issue, Firehair is attacked by a puma and falls into the Grand Canyon, where some unidentified Indians subject him to a series of brutal trials. In the end, Firehair wakes up and discovers that he was in a coma all along and was being cared for by friendly Navajos. However, there’s a hint that the hallucinations were real. Kubert’s storytelling in this issue is spectacular, and his draftsmanship is equally striking because of its unusual grease-pencil technique. Firehair is one of Kubert’s masterpieces, and it deserves to be collected in a single volume.

BATTLE ACTION #1 (Rebellion, 2023) – This series is a revival of one of Britain’s most acclaimed comic books. Battle Action was also known as Battle, Battle Picture Weekly, and Battle Action Force, and its most famous strip was Charley’s War, perhaps the single greatest work of British comics. Johnny Red: “The Falcon,” [W] Garth Ennis, [A] Keith Burns. The original Johnny Red was Battle’s longest-running strip. In this story, some British and Soviet aviators defeat some German opponents with the aid of some friendly falcons. This story wasn’t as good as Ennis’s Rogue Trooper story in 2000 AD.  HMS Nightshade: untitled (should have been “Abide with Me”), [W] John Wagner, [A] Dan Cornwell. This strip was introduced in 1979 by the same writer. Each segment was narrated by a World War II-era British sailor to his grandson. The same framing device is used for this revival story, which is a sad story about the sinking of the eponymous ship.

2000 AD #2334 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: as above. The Judges get rid of one of the competing gangs, but that only increases the power of the remaining ones. Void Runners: untitled, [W] David Hine, [A] Boo Cook. A star-spanning federation is dependent on a substance called “Kali’s Dust” that allows its decision-makers, the “Ankorites,” to dream the future. The supply of dust is running out, and the protagonist – Captain Shikari, who herself uses dust illegally – is the only one who can find it. Shikari is an intriguing character, and Boo Cook’s painted art is excellent. Enemy Earth: as above. The characters survive the shipwreck and reach an oil derrick, but the workers at the derrick want to sacrifice them to Cthulhu. Durham Red: as above. Durham is tortured by Kanka. Rogue Trooper: as above. Rogue finds that his target, a Souther base, has already been bombed. The German soldier shows the British soldiers a picture of his newborn son, who’s dressed like a girl. One of the British soldiers, Sprog, is killed, and Bagman mistakenly thinks Rogue can save him by removing his bio-chip.

OUR FIGHTING FORCES #139 (DC, 1972) – “The Pirate,” [W] Robert Kanigher, [A] John Severin. In the wake of Captain Storm’s death, the Losers encounter some pirates. In #141 the pirates’ leader was revealed to be Captain Storm himself. Severin’s art in this story is not bad, but oddly, in most of the panels where Johnny Cloud appears, his face is redrawn by Kubert. On Facebook, Mark Evanier said that such retouching was common at DC at the time. A more famous example occurred in Kirby’s Jimmy Olsen, where all the Superman faces were redrawn by Murphy Anderson. There’s a backup story written and drawn by Bruce Jones, a typical “both sides” story in which an American and a German soldier realize their shared humanity, but only after they’ve mortally wounded each other. In the second backup story, by Sam Glanzman, a USS Stevens sailor has a nightmare where the ship sinks.

THE WALKING DEAD #144 (Image, 2015) – untitled, [W] Robert Kirkman, [A] Charlie Adlard. Rick visists the camp of the Whisperers, who have decided to give up on survival and embrace death, or something. Rick manages to escape with Carl and Lydia, the daughter of the Whisperers’ leader. On the way back to their camp, Rick and the kids discover the severed heads of a number of people who have gone missing lately. The last head they find belongs to Ezekiel. One of Kirkman’s strengths as a writer is his skill at shocking the reader, but sometimes his stories are so shocking and morbid and gruesome that they become offensive. That was certainly the case in Invincible #110, and perhaps here too.

MIND MGMT #21 (Dark Horse, 2014) – untitled, [W/A] Matt Kindt. I think I’ve read this story before, but I can’t remember how it fits into continuity. I think it’s about Harry and Meru chasing the Immortals. As I discuss in my book, it’s worth owning MIND MGMT in single-issue form even if one already has it in another form, because the periodical issues include features that aren’t in the collected editions. For instance, I believe that this issue’s back cover is meant to link up with the back covers of the other issues in its story arc. I still think MIND MGMT is Kindt’s best work to date.

NEW TITANS #87 (DC, 1992) – “Reflections,” [W] Louise Simonson, [A] Tom Grummett et al. This issue is an epilogue to Titans Hunt, a disastrous story that put a decisive end to the Titans’ classic period, if that period hadn’t already ended. (Personally I think the Titans jumped the shark with George Perez’s departure after the first storyline of the Baxter series.) Although Marv didn’t write this issue himself, it’s characteristic of his late Titans run, in that it’s rather pessimistic and depressing. In one of this issue’s subplots, Pantha deliberately allows Baby Wildebeest to run in front of a car. The baby survives, no thanks to Pantha, but you have to wonder why no one else was watching him. In another subplot, Dick visits Koriand’r for the first time in a while, and she’s thrilled to see him, but I think she’s actually Mirage posing as Kory. It’s also hinted that Donna is pregnant, though this is not revealed until the end of the next issue.  

SILVER SURFER #16 (Marvel, 1988) – “Malice: A ‘Four’ Thought,” [W] Steve Englehart, [A] Ron Lim. This is almost more of a Fantastic Four comic than a Silver Surfer comic. Reed and Norrin negotiate with the Elders of the Universe, while Sue, in her Malice form, tries to steal the Soul Gems. Reed touches one of the Soul Gems by accident and turns evil, and then he reveals that he’s actually the In-Betweener. The Soul Gems are another name for the Infinity Gems, but the Soul Gems in this story seem rather different from the Infinity Gems of later years. The name “Infinity Gems” and the current explanation of their powers were introduced by Jim Starlin in the 1990 Thanos Quest miniseries.

BATMAN ’66 #27 (DC, 2015) – “Bane Enters the Ring,” [W] Jeff Parker, [A] Scott Kowalchuk. Batman fights the Riddler and Bane, who, in this continuity, is a Mexican masked wrestler. This is a pretty funny issue, and Jeff Parker comes up with a plausible way to insert Bane, a 1990s villain, into Batman ’66 continuity. In Batman’s climactic fight with Bane, the two wrestlers on the undercard, Mil Mascaras (i.e. 1000 Masks) and El Santo, are both famous luchadores.

MARVEL UNIVERSE #5 (Marvel, 1998) – “Creature on the Prowl!”, [W] Roger Stern, [A] Bret Blevins. That title is a mashup of two old Marvel series, Creatures on the Loose and Monsters on the Prowl. In a story that seems to take place in the ‘50s, Dr. Druid, Ulysses Bloodstone and two other Monster Hunters battle a giant gorilla. There’s also a subplot starring Harvey Elder, the future Mole Man. This comic is interesting, but it’s also overly long, and it’s sometimes unclear who the characters are or why they’re important. Probably part of the fun of this series was guessing how its characters were connected to the modern Marvel Universe. For example, one of the Monster Hunters, Adam Clayton, was later revealed as Makkari from the Eternals.

2000 AD #550 (Fleetway, 1987) – Zenith: “Epilogue: Late Results,” [W] Grant Morrison, [A] Steve Yeowell. The late Siadwel Rhys is buried. Greta Haas is assassinated for somehow “mishandl[ing] the Masterman affair.” Bad Company II: untitled, [W] Peter Milligan, [A] Brett Ewins. The new Bad Company members argue with each other, and one of them challenges another one to play a Russian roulette game with 50% odds. Dredd: “Oz Part 6,” [W] John Wagner & Alan Grant, [A] Will Simpson. There’s a framing sequence about turtles, then Chopper continues his Supersurf race, while Dredd arrests a man who mouths off to him about Chopper. Nemesis: “The Two Torquemadas,” [W] Pat Mills, [A] John Hicklenton. Torquemada is given a tour of the Inquisition’s torture chambers. John Hicklenton may have had the creepiest art style of any 2000 AD artist. His last work, 100 Months, was about his own assisted suicide. Strontium Dog: “The Rammy Part 7,” [W] Alan Grant, [A] Carlos Ezquerra. Johnny and Middenface compete in a gladiatorial contest called the Grand Rammy, so now I finally know what this story’s title means.

NEW TEEN TITANS #26 (DC, 1986) – “Twister Shout Chapter 1,” [W] Marv Wolfman, [A] Eduardo Barreto & Kerry Gammill. Brother Blood kidnaps and brainwashes Nightwing and Raven. Also, Mento kidnaps Aqualad, and the Titans can’t decide which of these problems to solve first. Following Teen Titans Spotlight #1-2, Starfire returns to Earth, but is still angst-ridden because Dick dumped her after her arranged marriage. The Titans invade Zandia and battle Twister, a new villain with a grotesque face, and the new Brotherhood of Evil. This issue has most of the same characters as the classic Wolfman/Pérez Titans, but it feels much less hopeful and exciting. In the absence of Pérez’s art, Marv’s flaws as a writer are more obvious. His characters seem crippled by self-doubt and indecisiveness.

MARVEL TEAM-UP #99 (Marvel, 1980) – “And Machine Man Makes 3,” [W] Tom DeFalco, [A] Jerry Bingham. Spider-Man teams up with Machine Man against Sandman and Baron Brimstone, a villain from Machine Man’s own solo series. This is a very lackluster issue. Baron Brimstone first appeared in Machine Man #16, which came out just a couple months prior to MTU #99, and was also written by DeFalco. He’s only made three other subsequent appearances.

CAPTAIN MARVEL #9 (Marvel, 2000) – “Anything Can Happen Day,” [W] Peter David, [A] ChrisCross. This issue begins with a flashback to the conception of 14-year-old Kelly Kooliq, the living Nexus of Realities, who only appeared in issues #4-10 of this series. Then Genis, the Silver Surfer, Moondragon, Super-Skrull and some aliens fight over Kelly. There’s also a subplot about Marlo. Because of the prominent role of Rick and Marlo, PAD’s Captain Marvel often felt like a sequel to his Hulk run.

PENCIL HEAD #3 (Image, 2016) – untitled, [W/A] Ted McKeever. This issue consists entirely of metatextual commentary about the comics industry. It barely has any plot at all. The one interesting thing about this issue is one page where Alfie Wingood (Archie Goodwin) tells a story about Dil Krane (Gil Kane). This story is told in a caption box that takes up three-quarters of a page, since McKeever seems to have forgotten that comics have the ability to tell stories with pictures. Anyway, according to the story, Gil was blackballed from Marvel in the late ‘70s or early ‘80s because he’d been stealing original art. There is some corroborating evidence that this story is really true. And if it’s true, it lowers my opinion of Gil, unless he was stealing the art in order to give it back to its creators.

SHOWCASE #104 (DC, 1978) – “Graves with No Name,” [W] Robert Kanigher, [A] Ric Estrada, etc. A series of stories about the OSS, the World War II Office of Strategic Services. The only recurring character is Control, the OSS’s chief. All the stories are rather boring, though some of them have good art like Ric Estrada, who, like Frank Robbins, was a great storyteller but an awkward draftsman. The last story is about military dolphins, which really have existed, though not during WWII. The O.S.S. also made many appearances in G.I. Combat.

ELFQUEST #11 (Marvel, 1986) – “The Dreamberry Tales,” [W/A] Wendy Pini, [W] Richard Pini. Cutter and Skywise spend the entire issue negotiating and drinking with trolls, until they escape. Elfquest’s trolls are somewhat problematic characters, since they’re so much uglier than the elves, and they’re usually presented as objects of mockery. This issue may include the first mention of Two-Edge, the son of Winnowill and a troll.

HELLBLAZER #83 (DC, 1994) – “The End of Rake at the Gates of Hell,” [W] Garth Ennis, [A] Steve Dillon. The First of the Fallen has captured Constantine, and is intent on avenging himself for the humiliation he suffered at Constantine’s hands, back in “Dangerous Habits.” But Constantine is saved by Chantinelle, the mother of the angel-demon hybrid, who disguises herself as Astra, the child Constantine failed to save in Newcastle. Chantinelle also cures Constantine of his lung cancer, and Constantine says goodbye to Kit. That’s the end of Ennis’s run, which was the high point of both the Hellblazer series, and Ennis’s career. I like Ennis’s Hellblazer much better than Preacher, which is tainted by its reliance on toxic myths of Americanism.

SECRET SIX #10 (DC, 2016) – “Watch a Yellow Sun Fade,” [W] Gail Simone, [A] Dale Eaglesham. The Secret Six are trying to destroy two alabaster columns that are preventing the world from being invaded by Lovecraftian entities. Zatanna and Superman intervene to try to stop this from happening. I don’t entirely understand this story, but it has pretty good dialogue.

THIS DAMNED BAND #5 (DC, 2015) – untitled, [W] Paul Cornell. [A] Tony Parker. I bought this entire miniseries, but I only read the first three issues. And this past week I accidentally read #5 before #4. Therefore, #5 didn’t quite make sense. In this issue, the band goes to play a concert, which erupts in a riot, like the 1969 Altamont Speedway concert. Then the band’s lead guitarist prepares to sacrifice the entire audience to Satan. Besides the horror elements, this miniseries seems like an accurate depiction of rock music in the ‘70s. An error on the first page is that the first caption says “On the road to Darrell K. Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium […] October 1974,” but that stadium was not named after Darrell K. Royal until 1995. (Also, Darrell K. Royal was still alive in 1974, but the word “Memorial” in the stadium’s name does not refer to him.)

LAZARUS #20 (Image, 2015) – “Poison Part 4,” [W] Greg Rucka, [A] Michael Lark. Like most issues of Lazarus, this issue is a mix of political intrigue and combat, and nothing about it really stands out. Michael Lark’s artwork in this series feels too slick and too reliant on computer coloring, compared to earlier in his career. Because of its chilling depiction of the future, Lazarus is perhaps Greg Rucka’s most important and ambitious work. But for the same reason, it’s also very difficult to read. All the characters who have any power or agency are complete heartless monsters. All the good people in the series are either powerless, or (in Forever’s case) they’re too stupid to realize that the status quo is unjust. As a result, there’s no sense that the Family system can ever change. And I don’t enjoy reading dystopian stories that offer no potential for hope.

THIS DAMNED BAND #4 – as above. The band is trapped in a chateau in France, pursued by assassins in black suits. I’m not sure what’s going on here. Much of the issue is illustrated in a style based on that of Hergé, apparently because the characters in these scenes are high on LSD. However, Tony Parker’s draftsmanship is much looser than that of any real Clear Line artist (and incidentally, unlike the NBA player of the same name, he’s not French).

ELFQUEST: KINGS OF THE BROKEN WHEEL #4 (WaRP, 1990) – untitled, [W/A] Wendy Pini, [W] Richard Pini. This is a significant turning point in the series. The Palace of the High Ones is restored, and Cutter leads a group of elves to trace the source of the psychic cry that Suntop has heard. Also, Leetah enables Nightfall and Redlance to conceive a child (Tyleet) without being Recognized. A weird moment in this issue is when Rayek gets angry that one of the wolves has pooped on the floor of the Palace.

THE SPECTRE #10 (DC, 1993) – “Unforgivable Acts,” [W] John Ostrander, [A] Tom Mandrake. The Reaver’s latest victim, a priest, is found still alive. He’s seen the Reaver’s real face, but he dies before he can reveal who the Reaver is. The Spectre tries to break into heaven to speak with the priest’s ghost, but the archangel Michael beats him up and throws him out. Back on earth, the Spectre looks for the Reaver himself, but Asmodeus, who is possessing the Reaver, teleports the Spectre away to another plane of existence. Thus, the Reaver is left alone with Amy. This issue is very creepy. There’s a sense that Amy knows the Reaver is going to kill her, and is unable to prevent it.

JLA #113 (DC, 2005) – “Syndicate Rules Part 7: Worlds in the Balance,” [W] Kurt Busiek, [A] Ron Garney. I read the earlier parts of this story when they came out, but I stopped before this issue. This issue has a complicated and confusing plot involving the Qwardians, the Crime Syndicate of Earth-3, and the Construct. I didn’t quite understand it, and I don’t think Ron Garney’s artwork is appropriate to this sort of cosmic space saga.

MOTHER PANIC #4 (DC, 2017) – “Broken Things, Part I,” [W] Jody Houser, [A] Shawn Crystal. I’ve read most of this series by now, and I still have no idea what the point of it was. I think I was only buying it because DCBS gave me a discount for ordering all the Young Animal titles.

FANTASTIC FOUR #314 (Marvel, 1988) – “The Scenic Route!”, [W] Steve Englehart, [A] Keith Pollard. The FF (with Crystal and Sharon Ventura replacing Reed and Sue) explore underground for no real reason. They encounter the demon Belasco and the cat people from Englehart’s West Coast Avengers. They also discover that the Mole Man has been using teleportation portals, rather than vehicles, to travel below the surface. This is a pretty nitpicky retcon. There are cameo appearances by Dr. Strange and Master Pandemonium. Englehart was a pretty lousy Fantastic Four writer. His stories were needlessly confusing, and he ignored Reed and Sue in favor of Crystal and Sharon. The latter was a particularly awful character, and Tom DeFalco was the last writer who used her extensively.

JONAH HEX #21 (Marvel, 1979) – “The Buryin’!”, [W] Michael Fleisher, [A] Vicente Alcazar. This issue guest-stars Jonah’s father, a ruthless old scoundrel with no particular affection for his son. Both Jonah and his father are looking for a cache of $250,000 in double eagle coins. Both are also being pursued by criminals. After the coins change hands a few times, Jonah’s dad leaves them inside a coffin, planning to dig them up later. But he’s outsmarted himself, because the coffin is buried inside a sealed mine shaft, rendering the coins inaccessible. Jonah and his dad are both glad to part ways from each other.

INCREDIBLE HULK #196 (DC, 1976) – “The Abomination Proclamation!”, [W] Len Wein, [A] Sal Buscema. The Hulk teams up with the Abomination, who is depicted here as just an evil, slightly smarter Hulk. Peter David’s Abomination, as depicted in #384, was very different, an intelligent, cultured man who was cursed with ugliness. Hulk and Abomination take the Kennedy Space Center hostage, but a brave employee named Wilbur Manners resists them, and then Betty Ross appeals to the Hulk over video, causing him to turn against the Abomination. Finally, Hulk and Abomination climb aboard a space shuttle as it lifts off, and the shuttle blows up with the Abomination still in it, while the Hulk crashes back to Earth. This was a pretty average issue, though Wilbur’s defiance, at the risk of his own life, is a nice moment.

GRENDEL #7 (Comico, 1987) – “Devil’s Dance,” [W] Matt Wagner, [A] Arnold Pander & Jacob Pander. Christine Spar battles Tujiro the vampire kabuki actor, who is already responsible for Christine’s son’s death. This issue consists mostly of fight scenes, and it has some very ugly art. I still don’t understand the premise of Grendel.

BATMAN #79 (DC, 2019) – “City of Bane Part 5,” [W] Tom King, [A] Clay Mann. Most of this issue consists of Batman/Catwoman love scenes, though there’s a minimal plot about Batman and Catwoman’s search for the Magpie. This issue contains a large number of unnecessary splash pages. I have no idea why this story is called City of Bane, because Bane neither appears nor is mentioned in this issue, as far as I recall.

THE WALKING DEAD #115 (Image, 2013) – untitled, [W] Robert Kirkman, [A] Charlie Adlard. Rick wakes up in bed with Andrea, and they discuss whether the war is worth it. Rick prepares for his next assault on Negan, but Negan makes another speech about how big his dick is, and then he reveals that one of Rick’s former allies has switched sides.

NEW LOVE #1 (Fantagraphics, 1996) – “All with a Big Hello,” [W/A] Gilbert Hernandez. I believe this was Beto’s first new series after Love & Rockets vol. 1 ended. It preceded Luba and Luba’s Comics & Stories. The first story in this issue is similar to Beto’s recent work like Blubber or Psychodrama Illustrated. Then there’s a story about Venus and some other kids. It’s kind of shocking to realize that Beto has been doing stories about Venus, Fritz and Petra for more than 25 years. The most intriguing story is “Spirit of the Thing,” It’s not explicitly set in Palomar, but it has the same premise as the Palomar story “Another Mysterious Tree”: a talking tree that grants wishes to anyone who can stand the sight of its true form. In “Another Mysterious Tree,” the tree’s true form, only seen in shadow, looks like a gear, but in “Spirit of the Thing” it looks like nothing in particular. The plot of “Spirit of the Thing” is that a hunchbacked man uses the tree’s power to win the love of a woman fleeing from mobsters. But in the process, his mother kills herself while trying to destroy the tree. I wish I’d seen this story before I wrote my BA thesis, where I discussed Beto’s use of magic realism.

LETTER 44 #14 (Oni, 2015) – untitled, [W] Charles Soule, [A] Drew Moss. This story is a flashback about Colonel Overholt, the leader of the space mission, and his friend Willett. When recruited to lead the space mission, Overholt refuses, but he agrees to work on the project as a consultant, as long as Willett can work with him. However, Willett figures out for himself that he’s working on a ship headed for space, and that it only has enough fuel to go one way. To save Willett, Overholt has to agree to lead the space mission, on the condition that Willett can join him. It seems natural to speculate that Overholt and Willett are more than just friends, although there’s no explicit indication of this in the story.

DORK! #1 (Slave Labor, 1993) – “Hey! They’re the Murrr-derrr Fa-mi-leeee!!!”, [W/A] Evan Dorkin. This issue’s longest story is a seven-pager about the Murder Family, who were a recurring feature in Dork!, after having previously appeared in Epic Lite. There’s also a short Milk & Cheese story, and an adaptation of The Catcher in the Rye, with Fisher-Price figurines as characters. Most of the other features are two pages or less in length, and some pages are just collections of independent strips. Overall this is a very funny issue, though it contains an extremely high ratio of text to images.

COPS: THE JOB #1 (Marvel, 1992) – “First Day,” [W] Larry Hama & Joe Jusko, [A] Mike Harris. This is a very obscure series, but the Slings & Arrows Guide recommends it highly. It’s a semi-realistic account of a new cop’s first day on the job. I assume that some of the information in the comic is based on actual knowledge of police work. The annoying thing about this comic is the cops’ dismissive, mocking attitude toward ordinary citizens, though this, sadly, is also realistic. Early in the issue, the cops intervene in a domestic dispute, and one of them “solves” it by pretending to divorce the couple (as Judge Dredd does in 2000 AD #525). But the wife is clearly abusing the husband, and when the cops come back, they find that the husband has been murdered. Perhaps the cops should have taken their job more seriously. This comic is unrelated to either the documentary TV show Cops, or the animated cartoon of the same name. The latter was adapted into a comic book by DC.

EX MACHINA #31 (Vertigo, 2007) – “Ex Cathedra Chapter Two,” [W] Brian K. Vaughan, [A] Tony Harris. In a flashback, Mitchell tries to stop two college students from sacrificing a chicken in a voodoo ritual, but the students claim that Mitchell is violating their First Amendment rights. I happen to know that this claim is actually true, thanks to the case of  Church of the Lukumi Babalu Aye v. City of Hialeah. In a present-day sequence, Mitchell travels to Rome and meets the Vatican’s official astronomer, who thinks Mitchell is the Antichrist.

2000 AD #551 (Fleetway, 1987) – Bad Company: “The Bewilderness,” as above. De Racine decides not to play Russian roulette, and discovers that he would have lost. The Bad Company heads off to recruit another member. There’s also a discussion of the heart of the Krool. Strontium Dog: as above. The Grand Rammy continues, and Johnny tells Middenface to knock him out. Middenface claims that his middle name is “Laldy,” which means “thrashing” in Scots. Future Shocks: “T.R.A.I.N.”, [W] Alan Hebden, [A] Massimo Belardinelli. The human race is infested by shapeshifting aliens called Drondo. Up to that point, this story resembles Marvel’s Secret Invasion crossover. But in “T.R.A.I.N.”, the humans build androids whose job is to kill anyone who’s suspected of being a Drondo. As a result, the human race goes extinct. Dredd: as above except [A] Brendan McCarthy. Chopper doesn’t appear in this chapter, and is only mentioned in one caption. Instead, this chapter is about the Judda, a group of villains who look like Judges. Each of them is trying to assassinate one Judge in particular. I believe this issue was the Judda’s first appearance, though I can’t confirm this. Nemesis: as above. Nemesis travels back in time and watches his son Thoth play with his pet tyrannosaur.

ATOMIC CITY TALES #3 (Kitchen Sink, 1996) – untitled, [W/A] Jay Stephens. The superhero Big Bang and his family members (e.g. Big Bug and Bangmite) fight a horde of villains. This is a fun and whimsical comic with some very cute art, but it doesn’t display the same level of mastery as Dwellings #1 does.

MEDAL OF HONOR #1 (Dark Horse, 1994) – The best thing about this issue is the Walt Simonson cover. Both of its stories are historical accounts of Medal of Honor winners. “J.C. Julius Langbein: The Little Drummer Boy,” [W] Doug Murray, [A] Wayne VanSant. An underage drummer boy enlists in the Civil War and wins a medal for rescuing his wounded captain. “Richard Bong: Honor Bound” [W] Murray, [A] John Garcia. Richard “Dick” Bong (seriously, that was his name) enlists in the Air Force during World War II, hoping to break Eddie Rickenbacker’s record for aerial victories. He succeeds at this and becomes the American ace of aces, eventually scoring 40 victories. But on his last combat mission, he discovers that the Japanese don’t use parachutes, which they consider dishonorable, and that every time he “wins” a dogfight, he causes a man’s death. This story may actually be true, but if it is true, it suggests that Bong was willfully blind to the fact that he killed 40 different people. Overall this comic is basically a piece of pro-war propaganda. It’s a jingoistic, romantic account of warfare, and it makes only a token effort to depict the cruel realities of war.

FALLEN ANGEL #6 (DC, 2004) – “Little Better Than a Beast Conclusion: Pipe Dreams,” [W] Peter David, [A] David Lopez. I don’t understand this issue. All I remember about it is that it ends with a man’s disembodied head getting stuck on top of a pipe organ. Fallen Angel was a spiritual sequel to PAD’s Supergirl, and I didn’t understand that series either.

SUPERMAN #25 (DC, 1988) – “Head Trips!”, [W] Roger Stern, [A] Kerry Gammill. At the Lex Luthor’s behest, Milton Fine, aka Brainiac, causes Clark Kent to suffer a series of terrifying dreams. Fine is ultimately killed fighting Superman, but comes right back to life. Brainiac’s human identity as Milton Fine was a new idea introduced after Crisis. The pre-Crisis Brainiac was always either an alien or a robot (see this review for  an explanation of why he changed from one to the other). I may have said this somewhere before, but the post-Crisis Luthor, prior to his death and resurrection as his own son, was almost identical to the Kingpin. He was a criminal who delighted in cruelty and was totally above the law.  This version of Luthor is far less interesting than the pre-Crisis version, a mad scientist who was sometimes capable of genuine nobility.

Most recent Heroes trip:

MS. MARVEL: THE NEW MUTANT #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “New Normal,” [W] Iman Vellani & Sabir Pirzada, [A] Carlos Gomez & Adam Gorham. Kamala enrolls in a summer program at Empire State University, which is sponsored by Orchis. That’s unfortunate because Kamala has just discovered that she’s a mutant, and Orchis is trying to kill all the mutants. Also, Kamala keeps having nightmares about losing her identity. This is an excellent story that significantly advances Kamala’s character arc. The writers seem to know Kamala’s character by heart, and they make good use of her supporting cast, especially Bruno. A highlight is when Kamala is about to tell Bruno she’s a mutant, but then she smells some gyros, her favorite food, and says “But first…”, and the next page is eight panels of Bruno staring in total shock while Kamala eats her gyro.

SCRAPPER #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Cliff Blezinski & Alex de Campi, [A] Ryan Kelly. Tank and Scrapper go to see someone who can take off Scrapper’s collar. On the way there, they’re pursued by SMITE, and they escape with some help from the rats and pigeons. There’s a hilarious moment where the pigeons all use their, um, natural projectiles against the SMITE troops. We also learn that SMITE has been offering people a choice between indentured servitude, or imprisonment in “public debtor cages.” Finally the dogs makes it to the person who can remove the collar. In fact this is not a human person but a raccoon. This series is already fantastic, and we still haven’t even seen the cats yet.

BLACK HAMMER: THE END #1 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Malachi Ward. Colonel Weird and his allies recruit Golden Guinevere, the last survivor of an alternate fantasy-themed world. But who they really need is Lucy, the only remaining non-evil Black Hammer. Meanwhile, Lucy returns to Black Hammer Farm and is finally reunited with her family (and Inspector Insector). She promises Abraham Slam that she’s going to keep him safe, but it’s implied that she’s lying. It’s been over a year since the last Black Hammer comic, and I’m glad this series is finally getting a proper conclusion.

KAPTARA: UNIVERSAL TRUTHS #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Kagan McLeod. This series was last published in 2015, and I never expected to see it again. The creators make no attempt to recap what’s happened before; instead there’s a page at theend that says that if the reader is “confused by what you just read” and “thought that going in cold on a volume 2 was a bad idea,” then they should read the first trade paperback. In this issue the protagonists hide out at She-La’s parents’ house, but her parents’ “cat-tanks” are being stolen, and when the protagonists investigate, they get into a fight with “wolfbots.” I think the joke of this series is that it’s a queer parody of ‘80s toy-based cartoons like He-Man and Thundercats.

LOCAL MAN: GOLD #nn (Image, 2023) – “Gold,” [W/A] Tony Fleecs & Tim Seeley. This series’s cover design is based on that of Deathmate, the infamously late Image/Valiant crossover. Like Deathmate, Local Man: Gold is a crossover story, in which multiple Image heroes team up against heroes from public domain comics. The Image characters include Firebreather, Street Angel, and Boof, and there are also cameo appearances by characters from Chew, Copra, and many other comics. The public domain characters include the Black Terror and Fletcher Hanks’s Fantomah. The present Crossjack and his past self from the ‘90s are both recruited into the Image team, and half the fun of the story is seeing how they interact with each other. In order to advance the plot, the heroes have to find a certain woman and make her fall in love, which will cause continuity to reset. The brilliant twist, which took me a while to figure out, is that this woman is Joan from Love Everlasting. In the end the good guys win, of course, and Crossjack’s past self becomes a better person, thanks to his present self’s advice.

THE HUNGER AND THE DUSK #2 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] G. Willow Wilson, [A] Chris Wildgoose. In the first half of the issue, two orcs, Troth Icemane and Faran Stoneback, go on a “wedding hunt” to solemnize their marriage, which was entered into for political reasons. The connection with the main plot becomes clear when we learn that Troth’s first love is his cousin, Tara, who’s the main protagonist. Tara befriends some of her new allies, but then there’s a big fight with the Vangol, and the mercenary who’s supposed to protect Tara is killed.

IMMORTAL THOR #1 (DC, 2023) – “All Weather Turns to Storm,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Martin Coccolo. In the first half of the issue, Thor defeats the frost giant Skrymir, aka Utgard-Loki, and then travels to Midgard for some fighting and partying. These scenes are intended to reestablish Thor’s status quo and to define his character. Then we’re introduced to this story arc’s villain: Toranos, aka the real Utgard-Loki, who (as implied by the name Utgard, or “outyards”) comes from entirely beyond the Nine Realms. This is a good debut issue, though it will be difficult for Immortal Thor to reach the same plane of greatness as Immortal Hulk.

THE SCHLUB #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Ryan Stegman, [A] Kenny Porter. Roger Dalton, a fat, balding, socially awkward dentist, switches bodies with a superhero, Cirrus. Roger and Cirrus both have to adapt to their new bodies, while also dealing with a world-conquering villain, Wyrm. This comic has an interesting premise, and it’s funny, though in an unsubtle way. I do think it was a poor choice to make Roger Dalton a dentist. He’s supposed to be a “schlub,” yet he has a white-collar job that requires many years of postgraduate education and residency, and he probably makes a six-figure salary. We do learn that Roger’s practice is on the verge of bankruptcy because of competition from his brother and father, but even then, he’s still pretty fortunate. His “schlubbiness” would be more plausible if he just had a generic white-collar job.

MY LITTLE PONY: CLASSICS REIMAGINED: THE UNICORN OF ODD #1 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jeremy Whitley, [A] Jenna Ayoub. A retelling of The Wizard of Oz, with Applejack as Dorothy, Pinkie Pie as the Scarecrow, Celestia as Glinda, and Luna as the Wicked Witch of the East. The cover indicates that Rarity will be the Tin Man and Fluttershy will be the Cowardly Lion (a very natural pairing), and we haven’t yet seen Rainbow Dash or Twilight Sparkle. As in Little Fillies, most of the humor comes from metatext. At the beginning of the issue, Big Mac and Rarity and are cast as Uncle Henry and Auntie Em, but when Big Mac objects to being married to Rarity, Granny Smith is recast as Auntie Em, who is now Big Mac’s mother. The characters also point out that the Wicked Witch of the East can’t die in a pony comic, and there’s a further running joke about how IDW is only allowed to use the Wizard of Oz book, not the music. So Pinkie Pie has to hum “We’re Off to See the Unicorn” rather than sing it.

THE GIMMICK #6 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joanne Starer, [A] Gogou (whose first name no longer appears in the credits). After a lot of drama, Shane and Alicia figure out that the only way for Shane to escape punishment is to return to wrestling, but to allow his evil mother to manage his career. This ending is kind of confusing. I didn’t realize that Shane’s mother was that bad. And the closing line – that Shane was always going to win because he’s the white guy – is true, but it doesn’t seem relevant to the themes of the series. Still, The Gimmick was an excellent debut work.

MARVEL UNLEASHED #1 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kyle Starks, [A] Jesús Hervas. Lucky, aka Pizza Dog, is approached by a dog whose human master has vanished. Lucky discovers that the human is an AIM agent, and he teams up with Chewie and Redwing to follow the human’s trail. They eventually discover that the human has kidnapped Lockjaw on behalf of Blackheart the demon. To deal with Blackheart, the animals decide to recruit Frog Thor. This is probably the best comic starring the Pet Avengers. Jesús Hervas’s art  gives this series a grim, realistic tone, while the three previous Pet Avengers miniseries had much more cartoony art. However, this issue is also full of excellent humor. I love Redwing’s superior attitude, and D-Dog’s attempts to present himself as a superhero. And a particular highlight is when the dogs and Redwing are fighting the AIM agents, and Redwing wonders why Chewie isn’t helping, and then we see Chewie sleeping on a pile of debris.

BONE ORCHARD: TENEMENT #3 (Image, 2023) – “Floor 7,” [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Andrea Sorrentino. The people from the tenement all head down the staircase. After some infighting, they encounter a horde of masked naked people, and only six of them are able to make it down to the next staircase. The six are soon joined by Isaac, making seven, with seven floors left to go. Andrea Sorrentino doesn’t use any radical page layouts in this issue, but his compositions are still very effective. I especially like the two double-page spreads that are structured as series of interlocking circles.

ROGUE SUN #15 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Ryan Parrott, [A] Abel & Marco Renna. Dylan, Marcus and Owen proceed to the center of the Sun Stone, while Marcus and Owen each try to compete for Dylan’s allegiance. When they get to the center, they fight some other past Rogue Suns, who are in allegiance with Caleb. Owen knocks Dylan unconscious and demands to be let in on the same deal as Caleb has. Meanwhile, Caleb, in Dylan’s body, ambushes the keeper of the Crystal Menagerie and frees all the villains. This issue offers further evidence that all the Rogue Suns, except maybe Dylan, are horrible people. Marcus is an awful man and a neglectful father, but he’s still not as bad as Caleb or Owen.

THE REPRIEVE V1&2 (IDW, 1999/2018) – untitled, [W/A] Jean-Pierre Gibrat. This book is a collection of two albums published in 1997 and 1999 under the title Le sursis. In the first book, set in occupied France in 1943, Julien Sarlat escapes from a German prisoner of war train and returns to his home village. He then learns that the train was bombed, after another passenger stole his papers, so everyone thinks he’s dead. Julien spends the rest of the year hiding out in a garret, pining after his childhood sweetheart Cecile. In the second album, Julien finally reveals himself to Cecile, and they become lovers. Meanwhile, the town becomes a battlefield between the French puppet government and the resistance, and Julien is nearly killed by the local fascist, Cecile’s cousin Serge. Julien finally makes it onto a train headed to Paris, but this train is also bombed, and Julien dies, his “reprieve” having finally ended. This album has a clever, touching, well-researched story, as well as some of the best art I’ve ever seen. Gibrat’s panels are almost like Impressionist paintings, thanks to their skillful and subtle use of color. He shows the reader see not just what Cambeyrac looks like, but how it feels to be there. And his facial expressions are stunning, particularly in dramatic moments, like when Paul stares at Julien after being captured by the militia. I actually found myself wondering how this comic would be any different if it used photos instead of drawings, and I think the answer is that in photos, the colors and facial expressions would be less emotionally piercing. Patrick Gaumer’s verdict on Gibrat is accurate: “Coloriste hors pair, il s’impose également comme un grand scénariste” (“A peerless colorist, he also stands out as a great scriptwriter”). I already have IDW’s volume of The Flight of the Raven, the sequel to The Reprieve, and I hope to get to it soon. IDW also published Gibrat’s later series Matteo, but they only translated two out of the current six albums.

NEWBURN #10 (Image, 2023) – “He’s Got a History,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Jacob Phillips. After reading The Reprieve, I found it hard to adjust to Jacob Phillips’s much less detailed art, but Phillips is a good storyteller himself. This issue, Emily refuses to tell the reporter anything, and then she and Newburn go on a mission to determine whether the Triads are allied with the police. When Newburn makes his report to the other crime bosses, they openly threaten him, and he’s forced to protect himself by revealing that he has kompromat on all of them. On his way out of the meeting, Newburn collapses, and Emily offers to help him up.

LONESOME HUNTERS: THE WOLF CHILD #1 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Tyler Crook. Not sure why I got this after #2. Lupe and Howard get rid of their magpie prisoner, then Lupe meets a boy with a wolf mask. Howard talks on the phone to Tina, who we know to be an agent of the Order, the people who claim ownership of Howard’s sword. Howard tells Tina that he plans to return the sword to its original owner, and in response, Tina’s church sends some agents to get the sword back. Lupe meets the boy again, and he leads her to a giant dying wolf. A funny moment occurs when Howard and Lupe watch an anime show together, and Howard is mystified by it.

MAPLE TERRACE #2 (Uncivilized, 2023) – “Doomsday,” [W/A] Noah Van Sciver. Noah’s friends get angry at him for stealing Sean Martelli’s comics, and Noah is told that he has to give the comics back tomorrow or Sean will be angry, “and you won’t like him when he’s angry.” The problem gets worse when Noah’s brother destroys the comics. A consistent theme in this issue is the negative influence of Noah’s comics. When he fights his brother, he imagines himself as Superman from Superman #75, saying the line “Doomsday gets his.” (Noah rightly expects that readers his age will know this moment by heart.) Another theme is the Van Sciver family’s poverty. Noah’s house is a shambles, and his mother can barely afford $5 for Noah’s friend’s birthday present. It’s clear that the Van Scivers had more children than they could afford or take care of. This issue is also a brutal depiction of being a teenager in the ‘90s. It reminds me a bit of Joe Matt’s work, though without the sexual angle. My life was never as brutal as Noah’s was, but this issue still brings back some unpleasant memories. On the brighter side, this issue also does depict Noah receiving positive reinforcement from his art teacher.

ARCADE KINGS #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Dylan Burnett. Ken and Joe have a pointless fight, and we also learn that Ken and Joe were supposed to escape together, but Vic saw through their escape attempt and forced Joe to leave Ken behind. Afterward, Joe voluntarily returns to his father, and Vic drains Jonah’s power, becoming a demonic monster. This issue is frustrating because if either Ken or Joe had been willing to listen to the other, their fight could have been avoided, and they could have teamed up against Vic. But neither of them knows how to solve problems peacefully. However, Arcade Kings is an homage to fighting games, and that genre is all about resolving problems by fighting.

W0RLDTR33 #5 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Fernando Blanco. In 2049, the world has been taken over by the Undernet, and Ellison is the sole survivor. In 2024,  a wave of mass killings breaks out all over the world, and Gabriel can only stop the violence by shutting off the entire Internet. Sammi (the naked woman) stabs Gabriel, and he dies – and good riddance, because he was a real jerk. With his dying words, he advises the other protagonists on what to do next. Even though I somehow missed issue 4, I liked this issue much more than the first three. Now that the characters have mostly gotten together, the plot is more exciting and less confusing. The URL w0rldtr33.net, which appears on the last page, is a real website, and the password m1st3rw1nt3r really works.

Last comic for now:

SPIDER-MAN: INDIA #3 (Marvel, 2023) – “Seva Part III,” [W] Nikesh Shukla, [A] Tadam Gyadu. Pavitr gets a job working for Giricorps, where, much like Peter Parker at the Daily Planet, he’s employed making negative social media posts about Spider-Man. However, when ordered to post a photo that he knows to be false, Pavitr refuses and is dragged before Giri Sahib (JJJ and/or the Kingpin). Unlike The Vigil, Spider-Man: India feels different from a  typical Spider-Man comic with an American setting, and it has much more of a sense of local specificity.

Pre- and post-Heroes Con reviews

6-21-2023

DAWN OF DC: KNIGHT TERRORS FCBD SPECIAL EDITION 2023 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joshua Williamson et al., [A] Chris Bachalo et al. The first sequence in this preview comic has some excellent artwork by Chris Bachalo, but otherwis this is just a boring preview of a dumb crossover event. I’m pissed that Nightwing and Titans have to be interrupted for two issues because of some stupid crossover that I don’t care about.

FANTASTIC FOUR #55 (Marvel, 2002) – “An Evening Out!”, [W] Karl Kesel, [A] Stuart Immonen. After making a huge mess and pissing Sue off, Ben and Johnny have to escape the Baxter Building for the night. They find themselves battling a Skrull called the Grand Acquisitioner, who is in fact Yellowjacket, disguised as a Skrull in order to embarrass them and teach them a lesson. This is a really fun issue, but it does carry the unfortunate implication that Sue does all the housework and emotional labor, while her three teammates do nothing.

SUPERMAN #164 (DC, 2001) – “Tales from the Bizarro World,” [W] Jeph Loeb, [A] Ed McGuinness & Carlo Barberi. The main plot of this issue is about Jimmy Olsen and Bizarro, while the subplot is about Luthor running for president. Luthor has managed to get rid of any evidence of his criminal background, and Superman is unwilling to use his powers to intervene in the election; he says “you have to put some faith in the American people to do the right thing.” After 2016, we now know that this faith was misplaced. And we are now learning that even if we do know that a presidential candidate is a career criminal, some voters don’t care.

CAPTAIN AMERICA: WHITE #2 (Marvel, 2015) – “Lost Horizon,” [W] Jeph Loeb, [A] Tim Sale. This series began in 2008 with issue 0, but it took seven years for the next issue to come out. That’s embarrassing, though it’s a much shorter delay than the 30 years that passed between consecutive issues of Miracleman. Captain America: White’s title is also unfortunate, though it was meant as a callback to other color-coded series by the same creators, such as Spider-Man: Blue. Captain America: White #2 takes place in December 1941, with Cap and Bucky teaming up with Fury and the Howling Commandos. It’s a pretty standard story, where the main plot point is that Cap loses his shield in the ocean, and then Namor brings it back. The strength of this issue is Tim Sale’s incredible visual storytelling.

AVENGERS #54 (Marvel, 2022) – “Even Thunder Can Burn, Even Deathloks Can Die,” [W] Jason Aaron, [A] Juan Frigeri. I love the Avengers and I love Jason Aaron’s writing, but I don’t love Jason Aaron’s Avengers. It’s never felt like a real Avengers comic to me. This issue is part of a convoluted and incomprehensible story arc involving Deathlok(s) and Starbrand.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #557 (Marvel, 2008) – “Dead of Winter,” [W] Zeb Wells, [A] Chris Bachalo. Spider-Man battles a Mayan deity and a villain who’s trying to take advantage of the deity’s power. This issue has excellent art but just average writing. The only memorable scene is on the last page, where Peter gives his last twenty dollars to a beggar.  

2000 AD #2320 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: “Taking Doors,” [W] Ken Niemand, [A] Kieran McKeown. A one-shot about doors and the various ways that different judges react to barging through them. Quite well written. Joe Pineapples: “Tin Man Part 9,” [W] Pat Mills, [A] Clint Langley. In the flashback, Sue Bananas gets killed. In the present, Ro-Jaws eats the asteroid that he and Joe were sitting on. The Out: “Book 3 Part 9,” [W] Dan Abnett, [A] Mark Harrison. Cyd meets an old lover, and he takes her to a place called Baliquam.   The Order: “Heart of Darkness Part 4,” [W] Kek-W, [A] John M. Burns. Ben Franklin survives being attacked by shadows, and he and his friends plan a counteroffensive. Proteus Vex: “Crawlspace Part 9,” [W] Mike Carroll, [A] Jake Lynch. Midnight Indicating Shame plots a rebellion.

GIRL TAKING OVER: A LOIS LANE STORY FCBD SPECIAL EDITION 2023 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Sarah Kuhn, [A] Arielle Jovellanos. A young Lois Lane moves to National City for the summer to work with famous journalist Cat Grant. Just as Lois gets there, Cat is fired, and Lois finds herself working for Cat’s boss, a misogynistic asshole. In this continuity, Lois is Asian, and her struggles with racism are an important theme. This comic is appealingly written and drawn, but I think there are better YA graphic novels out there, particularly on the theme of Asian-American identity. Also, this story has no connection to the DC Universe except that it uses the names Lois Lane and Cat Grant. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, it’s just interesting.

ARCHIE HORROR PRESENTS: THE CURSED LIBRARY #0 FCBD (Archie, 2023) – “The Cursed Library,” [W] Magdalene Visaggio, [A] Craig Cermak, etc. A collection of pointless non-stories, reprinted from earlier Archie comics. The Cursed Library isn’t as bad as other recent Archie horror comics, but it still raises the question of why Archie bothers to publish monthly comic books, since their comic books are such low-effort slapdash productions.

BABY-SITTERS LITTLE SISTER FCBD (Scholastic, 2023) – “Karen’s Haircut,” [W/A] Katy Farina. An adaptation of the Baby-Sitters’ Club spinoff series for beginning readers. In this volume, Karen, Kristy’s little sister, gets an awful haircut and is so embarrassed she decides to change her name. This comic is well-executed, but it’s not at the same level of quality as Raina Telgemeier’s Baby-Sitters Club adaptations.

SUPERMAN #39 (DC, 2018) – “Goodnight Moon,” [W] Peter Tomasi & Patrick Gleason, [A] Barry Kitson. Superman visits a pediatric cancer ward and takes the kids on a tour of the JLA satellite. A funny moment is that he sends them on a scavenger hunt, where one of the items is a picture of Batman smiling. This comic is cute and heartwrenching – perhaps to the point where it feels emotionally manipulative. It could almost be called “The Kids Who Collect Superman,” except that in “The Kid Who Collects Spider-Man,” the power of the story comes from the fact that Tim’s cancer isn’t mentioned until the last panel. To their credit, Tomasi and Gleason don’t undercut the power of the story by having Superman cure the kids’ cancer. (Because if he could do that, why can’t he cure everyone else’s cancer too?)

AMAZING X-MEN #1 (Marvel, 2014) – “The Quest for Nightcrawler Part 1,” [W] Jason Aaron, [A] Ed McGuinness. In the first half of the issue, Nightcrawler begins to explain why he left heaven. In the second half, Firestar arrives at the Jean Grey School and is shocked at all the weird stuff going on, such as a Brood wearing glasses. The two plotlines converge when the X-Men decide to try to bring Nightcrawler back to life. At Heroes Con I briefly attended Chris Claremont and Alan Davis’s Excalibur panel (until I had to leave to deal with an emergency), and they mentioned how Kurt was much more the hero of Excalibur than Brian was. Incidentally, Alan also said that Brian’s physical appearance was based on the British comics character Garth.

BATMAN #2 (DC, 2016) – “I Am Gotham Part 2,” [W] Tom King, [A] David Finch. Batman trains two new superheroes named Gotham and Gotham Girl. Also, a man visits Commissioner Gordon and warns him about “monster men,” then commits suicide. Unsurprisingly, we learn that Hugo Strange is responsible for the monster men. This issue is lettered by John Workman, who I met briefly at Heroes Con.

KOTTO KOTORRA (Arcana Studio, 2023) – “The Legend of Sweetfoot” etc.., [W/A] Dave Alvarez, [W] Sean O’Reilly. This comic seems to be intended to promote knowledge of Puerto  Rican culture, but what it really is is an unoriginal Disney ripoff, with unfunny jokes and poorly reproduced art. It also makes no serious attempt to engage with or to teach about Puerto Rican identity, so it feels like a huge missed opportunity.

ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #560 (DC, 1998) – “The Super-Rivalry That Rocked Metropolis!”, [W] Karl Kesel & Jerry Ordway, [A] Tom Grummett. This is part of the Dominus Effect story, in which each Superman title became a deliberate throwback to a previous era of Superman. AOS #560 is a parody of old World’s Finest stories. Batman and Lois fall in love, and meanwhile, Superman’s head becomes swollen due to red kryptonite, and as Clark Kent, he tries to conceal his head under a ridiculous tall fur hat. Then things get even weirder: Batman reveals that he and Superman are brothers, and Jor-El and Lara turn up alive. This is a very fun issue.

SUPERBOY #73 (DC, 2000) – “Point of No Return!”, [W] Karl Kesel, [A] Adam DeKraker. Superboy fights the Point Men, a group of Project Cadmus mutants who are posing as superheroes. Also, Dubbilex is mind-controlled by a little green guy. This issue has a complicated plot, but it’s still fun. Karl Kesel is an underrated writer. Part of this issue is set in a town called Kurtzberg, an obvious reference to Kirby.

THE HELLBLAZER #14 (DC, 2017) – “The Inspiration Game Part 2: Poetic Justice,” [W] Tim Seeley, [A] Jesus Merino. Investigating a murder, Constantine visits a pub where he has a long history. By casting a spell that causes him to remember his own history, he remembers being involved in a bar fight and then a drunken hookup in this same pub. Then he revisits the events of the murder, and discovers that it happened because of the mead of Kvasir from Norse mythology. The theme of this issue is memories and how they’re linked to particular places. This isn’t a bad issue, but it’s weird reading a Hellblazer comic by an American writer.

SCOURGE OF THE GODS #1 (Marvel/Soleil, 2009) – “Morituri Te Salutant,” [W] Valerie Mangin, [A] Aleksa Gajic. This French comic is a science-fictional version of the story of Attila the Hun. In the far future, the star-spanning Roman Orbis is collapsing under the attacks of the Huns. The Huns’ king, Rua, is an ineffective drunk, and the priest Oktar is the power behind the throne. But Oktar’s son Attila, the real protagonist, wants to take over both the Hunnic and Roman empires for himself. A captured Roman girl named Flavia, who is claimed to be the incarnation of the Huns’ goddess Kerka, becomes a political pawn in this struggle. In its original French context, Scourge of the Gods (aka Le fléau des dieux) was probably just a standard commercial science fiction comic. But it shows a level of craftsmanship and complexity that’s rare in American comics. Marvel published three issues of this series, reprinting three of the six original albums. I bought the second and third issues at Heroes Con, but I haven’t gotten to them yet.

ACTION COMICS #422 (DC, 1973) – “The TV Show That Menaced Metropolis,” [W] Cary Bates, [A] Curt Swan. Young Woodrow Nescott has a disease where if his white blood cells are exposed to the air, they come to life and turn monstrous. Therefore, Woodrow has had to stay confined to his house, and his parents tell him that the outside world doesn’t exist and is just a TV show. By accident, Woodrow discovers that Superman, who he’s seen on TV, is real, and therefore he assumes his favorite TV show, Police Agent Y-6 (a blend of The Fugitive and Secret Agent X-9) is also real. When the guy who plays Agent Y-6 is fired from the show, Woodrow sneaks out of the house to warn him, and chaos ensues. This story is pretty funny, though it has an anticlimactic ending where Superman uses an alien serum to cure Woodrow. If he could have done that all along, why didn’t he do it sooner? I assume this story was inspired by the real-life bubble boy cases of David Vetter and Ted DeVita. These same cases also inspired a TV movie, a Seinfeld episode, and a Paul Simon song. This issue includes a Human Target backup story by Wein and Giordano. Much of this story is an origin recap.

INCREDIBLE HULK #601 (Marvel, 2009) – “Banner’s Back,” [W] Greg Pak, [A] Ariel Olivetti. On the subway, Bruce witnesses a man abusing his child, and threatens to take revenge if the man ever does it again. Instead of threatening, he should have reported the man to CPS, and also the IRS, since he knows the man is a tax cheat. After this encounter, Bruce meets some other superheroes, and then his sort-of son Skaar. There’s also a boring Savage She-Hulk backup story by Fred Van Lente and Michael Ryan. Ariel Olivetti’s art on the main story is too photorealistic for me. I wonder what his art looked like when he was working in Argentine comics.

2000 AD #1827 (Rebellion, 2013) – Dredd: “Suicide Watch Part 2,” [W] Gordon Rennie & Emma Beeby, [A] Paul Davidson. Dredd investigates a cult that’s enabling people to voluntarily retcon themselves out of existence, thanks to the power of a mysterious shadowy creature with a giant smile. Dandridge: “The Copper Conspiracy Part 4,” [W] Alec Worley, [A] Warren Pleece. This story is narrated by Dandridge’s robot valet Shelley, who is currently separated from his head. Dandridge resembles other dandyish 2000 AD protagonists, like Nikolai Dante and Bix Barton, but Dandridge, like Bertie Wooster, is very stupid. 3Rillers: “The Ghostship Mathematica Part 1,” [W] David Baillie, [A] Inaki Miranda. A human boy works as a slave in a bar for aliens. Some robots rescue him, and he joins them on their quest to rediscover the story’s eponymous spaceship. The ship contains the minds of the entire human race, as well as the only known way of returning to Earth. Stickleback: “Number of the Beast Part 4,” [W] Ian Edginton, [A] D’Israeli. We’re introduced to the villains, who are plotting to breed a race of regenerative lizards. There’s a mention of an American doctor who used a serum made from lizards to regrow his missing limb, though “it was not without certain… side effects.” This is obviously a reference to Marvel’s Curt Connors, the Lizard. Zombo: “Planet Zombo Part 3,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Henry Flint. This chapter includes some characters who are parodies of the Beatles, but otherwise I can’t summarize it. Much like Curse Words, Zombo is deliberately absurd and over-the-top.

NEVERWHERE #7 (Vertigo, 2006) – “Chapter Seven,” [W] Mike Carey, [A] Glenn Fabry. This is just a straightforward adaptation of the Neil Gaiman novel of the same name. It doesn’t seem like it’s adding much to the original book, though I don’t remember the book well – I have read it, but I’ve forgotten most of it. The art in this issue is excellent, but not excellent enough to justify collecting the rest of the series.

STAR WARS: RETURN OF THE JEDI #3 (Marvel, 1983) – untitled, [W] Archie Goodwin, [A] Al Williamson. For some reason this was published as a separate miniseries, rather than in the ongoing Star Wars title. Al Williamson’s artwork in this issue is excellent, but it’s not his best. His fine linework is overwhelmed by Carlos Garzon’s inking. The other problem with this issue is that I think ROTJ is a pretty dumb movie.  

TRUE BELIEVERS: WOLVERINE – SWORD QUEST #1 (Marvel, 1988/2018) – “Sword Quest,” [W] Chris Claremont, [A] John Buscema. Originally Wolverine #1. Logan fights some pirates and rescues some kidnapped women and a Yashida clan samurai. The Yashida clansman dies after telling Logan about a plot to steal the clan’s ancestral sword. Following the sword’s trail, Logan travels to Madripoor and encounters an old Claremont character, Lindsay McCabe. This issue is notable for its high level of violence. As a Claremont fan, I probably should be collecting the early issues of Wolverine. But I’m not all that interested in Wolverine as a solo character. I like him better as a teammate or a foil to other characters.

FCBD 2023: GENERAL (Dark Horse, 2023) – Umbrella Academy: “Safe,” [W/A] Gabriel Bá. This seems to be a prelude to an upcoming story featuring a Lovecraftian cosmic villain. The interesting thing about this story is the new character Abhijat, a Sikh man. This issue includes some depictions of Abhijat’s memories, and these scenes were created in collaboration with a sensitivity reader. There’s also a Witcher backup story about a young woman who was accidentally cursed by her overprotective mother.

THOR #619 (Marvel, 2011) – “The World Eaters, Chapter 5,” [W] Matt Fraction, [A] Pasqual Ferry. I don’t remember much about this issue’s plot, except that it’s about a war between the Asgardians and some aliens, who speak in black word balloons with white highlights. Pasqual Ferry’s art in this issue is phenomenal, thanks in part to Matt Hollingsworth’s coloring and John Workman’s lettering.

DETECTIVE COMICS #595 (DC, 1988) – “Our Man in Havana,” [W] Alan Grant & John Wagner, [A] Irv Novick. In an Invasion! crossover, Batman goes to Cuba and fights some Durlans and Thanagarians. In a flashback, we see that Batman tracked the aliens to Cuba when he discovered that they were smuggling contraband weapons into Gotham inside boxes of Cuban cigars. The problem with this scheme is that in 1988, the Cuban cigars were just as illegal as the weapons were. The editor must have noticed this, because in a word balloon that appears to have been added at the last minute, Batman says that “being aliens, they didn’t realize that Havans are illegal here” (and this may also be the actual explanation, since Wagner and Grant were “aliens” to America). This issue includes a Bonus Book insert by Jeff O’Hare and Roderick Delgado. It’s an awful story, and it presents Mr. Freeze as a cliched mad scientist. Paul Dini’s revived version of the character was far more interesting than that. O’Hare has no other credits in the GCD, and Delgado only ever published one other story that was longer than a single page.

TARZAN FAMILY #60 (DC, 1975) – “Forbidden Tomb,” [W] Robert Kanigher, [A] Rudy Florese. Korak rescues a prince who’s cursed with bad luck. Tarzan Family was a renumbering of Korak, Son of Tarzan, and Korak continued to be Tarzan Family’s flagship character until it was cancelled with #66. The other new story in this issue is “Amazon of Barsoom” by Kanigher and Noly Zamora. The issue also includes a reprinted Carson of Venus story from Korak #46, and some reprinted daily strips by Russ Manning and Hal Foster.

SUPERBOY #25 (DC, 1996) – “Whom the Gods Would Destroy!”, [W] Karl Kesel, [A] Tom Grummett et al. Kon and Knockout battle Knockout’s old teammates, the Female Furies. I This was the first issue of this series I ever read. I probably bought it not long after it came out. However, my existing copy has no cover, so I had to buy a new one. Reading this issue again, I found that I’d forgotten most of it, except for Knockout and Kon’s kiss near the end. On rereading this issue, I notice a couple things I must have missed the first time around: almost everything Knockout says is a sexual innuendo, and the unnamed character on page 22 is Himon.

DONALD DUCK ADVENTURES #26 (Gladstone, 1994) – “The Terror of the River,” [W/A] Carl Barks. A villain is using a robot sea serpent to terrorize ships sailing the Ohio River. There’s no particular reason he’s doing this; he just likes to scare people. After a lengthy series of encounters with the sea serpent, Donald and the nephews succeed in defeating the villain. This is an exciting adventure story with a vividly realized setting. I have some nostalgic associations with the Ohio River, since I lived near Cincinnati for a couple years. I’m surprised that this was one of Barks’s earliest long-form stories, given its level of craft. The backup story is an adaptation of the film Donald in Mathmagic Land. The original film is a classic, but Don Christensen and Tony Strobl’s adaptation is inferior to the source material.

INCREDIBLE HULK #709 (Marvel, 2017) – “Return to Planet Hulk Part 1,” [W] Greg Pak, [A] Greg Land. This issue comes after Totally Awesome Hulk #23, so at this point Amadeus Cho is still the primary Hulk. In this issue he travels to Sakaar, which has turned into a Mad Max-style wasteland since the last time we visited. Amadeus now has to fight to reclaim Sakaar from the warlord who’s currently tyrannizing over it. This story doesn’t feel very original.

2000 AD #1828 (Rebellion, 2013) – Dredd: as above. The cultists try to convince Dredd’s partner Hamida to have herself erased from existence. Dredd himself is caught by the “stygian devourer,” and the chapter ends with Hamida asking for Dredd and being told “Say again, Hamida. Who’s Dredd?” Dandridge: as above. Dandridge is captured by the villain, who has a stack of videotapes with labels like EXPLANATION OF EVIL PLAN and DIABOLICAL LAUGHTER, VOL. 8. Also the villain is referred to as “Master Beta” (say it out loud to see the joke). 3Rillers: as above. Some years after the first chapter, the kid and the robots discover the Ghostship Mathematica, but it’s destroyed by pirates before they can get to it. Stickleback: as above. The white-haired scientist tells Stickleback that the lizard drones are much smarter than they were designed to be. Then he turns into a lizard himself. D’Israeli’s grayscale art style in this story is very stunning at first, but it’s difficult to read. Zombo: as above. Zombo, or possibly his evil clone Obmoz, sings “Pure Imagination.” Also there’s an appearance by the character who speaks in Kirbyesque dialogue.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #264 (Marvel, 1985) – “Red 9 and Red Tape!”, [W] Craig Anderson, [A] Paty. Spider-Man meets an arrogant young superhero named Red 9. While trying to deal with Red 9’s harassment, he also has to save an old man from being thrown out of his nursing home after being falsely declared dead. This story is cute, but also silly and amateurish. Craig Anderson and Paty were both longtime Marvel staffers, but neither of them did much work as a writer or artist respectively. “Red 9 and Red Tape” feels like a fill-in or a try-out story, and I’d be curious to know how it came to be published. The theme of a living person being declared dead was used much more effectively by Will Eisner in Invisible People, and it also happens in the real world, as in the case of Lal Bihari.

FANTASTIC FOUR #210 (Marvel, 1979) – “In Search of Galactus,” [W] Marv Wolfman, [A] John Byrne. Suffering from rapid aging, the FF have to find Galactus in order to save the human race from the Sphinx. In order to get Galactus’s help, Reed has to free Galactus from his promise to leave Earth alone. Sue is in more danger from the rapid aging than Reed or Ben because of her family’s history of early death. This raises a couple questions: first, I’m not sure why Johnny isn’t also aging rapidly, and second, neither of Sue’s parents died of natural causes, and her father seemed like a pretty old man when he died. John Byrne’s artwork in this issue is good, especially his depictions of the aliens in Galactus’s zoo. However, his art is hampered by Joe Sinnott’s inking, and his solo FF run a couple years later was much better.

BATMAN #589 (DC, 2001) – “Close Before Striking Act 2,” [W] Brian K. Vaughan, [A] Scott McDaniel. In a flashback, we learn how Batman assumed the secret identity of Matches Malone, after the real Matches Malone apparently killed his brother and then committed suicide. In the present day, we learn what happened: Matches Malone’s brother accidentally killed a homeless man, then committed suicide out of guilt, and Matches faked his own death, passing off the homeless man’s corpse as his own. Then Matches dies for real. This issue is a nice callback to Matches’s debut in Batman #242. It establishes that in both pre- and post-Crisis continuity, Matches Malone really existed, and Batman assumed Matches’s identity after Matches’s (real or feigned) death.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #595 (Marvel, 2009) – “American Son Part 1,” [W] Joe Kelly, [A] Phil Jimenez. Unfortunately, this issue is mostly about Norman Osborn and how he tries to control the lives of his son and the Jameson family. I despise Norman Osborn, and I wish he had stayed dead. Also, because this issue is partly about Norman and Harry Osborn’s toxic father-son relationship, it reminds me of Joe Kelly’s current series Immortal Sergeant, which is about another such relationship. I flipped through Immortal Sergeant #5 at the store today, and I think it’s an awful comic. The protagonist is a loathsome man, and the creators allow him to say a bunch of racist shit and get away with it.

THE LONE RANGER’S FAMOUS HORSE HI-YO SILVER #36 (Gold Key, 1960) – “Pursuit in the Blizzard” etc., [W] Gaylord Du Bois, [A] Tom Gill. In four separate stories, Silver helps save two Apaches from freezing to death, herds some sheep, saves some cows from a tornado, and fights a wolf. These stories are beautifully drawn, but they have a severe complaint: the main character can’t talk, because he’s a horse, and so his emotions have to be conveyed through caption boxes. Perhaps that’s why this series was cancelled with this issue. I could make an argument for filing this comic under L, H or S, but I think I’m going to go with L, so I can put it with my other Lone Ranger comics.

MARVEL TEAM-UP #140 (Marvel, 1984) – “Where Were You When the Lights Went Out?”, [W] Bill Mantlo & Tom DeFalco, [A] Ron Frenz. This story is named after a 1968 movie, which was itself based on the 1965 Northeast blackout. This issue is perhaps more directly based on the 1977 New York blackout, which is alleged to have helped kick-start hip hop music, because it created an opportunity for people to steal DJ equipment they couldn’t afford to buy. This event is depicted in Ed Piskor’s Hip Hop Family Tree. Anyway, in this issue, a pawnbroker is shot dead while defending his store during a blackout. A teenage boy, Juan Santiago, is falsely accused of the murder, and Spider-Man and Black Widow have to clear his name. But before they can do so, Spider-Man is teleported to Battleworld for Secret Wars, and the story continues next issue with Daredevil replacing Spider-Man. This story’s racial politics are kind of ambivalent. On one hand, Spider-Man is obligated to defend the law by bringing the pawnbroker’s murderer to justice. On the other hand, the pawnbroker was a white man who exploited his black neighbors, so he’s not a very sympathetic victim. And Juan Santiago is an innocent person of color who gets framed for the death of a white man. On another topic, I met Tom DeFalco at Heroes Con, and he told me some fascinating information about Star Comics.

THE FLASH #304 (DC, 1981) – “One More Blip… and You’re Dead!”, [W] Cary Bates, [A] Carmine Infantino. Willard Wiggins, an evil toy company owner, is attacked by a computerized villain named Colonel Computron, and the Flash has to save Wiggins. It’s implied that Colonel Computron is really Wiggins’s employee Basil Nurblin, who’s responsible for the company’s success, but who receives no credit for it. In later stories, Nurblin was explicitly stated to be Colonel Computron. This story has not aged well; because of its depiction of obsolete computer technologies, it feels more dated than many Flash stories that were actually published before it. This issue also includes a Firestorm backup story.

SUPERMAN #219 (DC, 1969) – “Clark Kent, Hero… Superman, Public Enemy!”, [W] Cary Bates, [A] Curt Swan. This story’s gimmick, as its title indicates, is that Clark Kent and Superman’s reputations are reversed, with Clark becoming a hero while Superman becomes a figure of fun. As usual with Cary Bates, the explanation is extremely convoluted and bizarre; it has something to do with a planet of shapeshifting aliens that somehow find themselves transformed into duplicates of Clark Kent. In the backup story, by Leo Dorfman and Swan, Superman hunts down a Phantom Zone villain during a heat wave.

THE ATOM #33 (DC, 1967) – “Amazing Arsenal of the Atom-Assassin!”, [W] Gardner Fox, [A] Gil Kane. The main event in this story is that the Atom fights the Bug-Eyed Bandit. This issue includes some excellent fight scenes, but its story is hampered by a complicated, non-chronological plot structure, and also by an excess of text. A notable minor character in this issue is Sue Shan, a Korean war orphan.

WEIRD WESTERN TALES #52 (DC, 1979) – “The Plot to Kill President Lincoln,” [W] Gerry Conway, [A] Dick Ayers. During the Civil War, a Union spy invites Bat Lash and Scalphunter to visit Washington DC. When they arrive, Secretary of War Edwin Stanton tries to hire Bat Lash and Scalphunter to assassinate President Lincoln. Bat Lash, who will do anything for money, accepts the offer, but Scalphunter refuses and has to avoid being assassinated himself. This story is concluded next issue. I wonder if the Stanton in this issue is an impostor, because it seems doubtful that the real Edwin Stanton would have tried to kill Lincoln. When Lincoln really did get assassinated, Stanton was not fond of the new President, Andrew Johnson. I thought I remembered that Scalphunter was renamed because his original name is offensive, but I was confusing him with the Marvel character of the same name.

DAREDEVIL #127 (Marvel, 1975) – “You Killed That Man, Torpedo–And Now You’re Going to Pay!”, [W] Marv Wolfman, [A] Bob Brown. Matt gets in a pointless fight with Torpedo in a residential neighborhood, and as a result, he destroys a suburban black family’s house. The wife of the family rebukes Matt for his irresponsibility, leaving Matt ashamed of himself. This issue was rare for its time in depicting black people living a middle-class lifestyle. There’s also a subplot about Foggy Nelson’s political campaign, and there’s an embarrassing scene where Heather Glenn tries to seduce Matt, and Matt shoves her away.

BEETLE BAILEY #23 (Dell, 1959) – “Killer Meets His Match” etc., [W/A] unknown. This was a gift from Andy Kunka. The stories in this issue are just longer-form versions of Beetle Bailey comic strips, with the same style of artwork and humor. It’s odd that Beetle Bailey is a comic strip about the American military, yet it never makes any references to any of the actual wars that American soldiers are involved in, and Beetle Bailey never gets deployed. Perhaps that’s the reason for the strip’s success – it offers an idealized, sanitized version of military life, in which nothing traumatic can ever happen.

FABULOUS FURRY FREAK BROTHERS #11 (Rip Off, 1990) – “The Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers Break Up!”, [W/A] Gilbert Shelton w/ Paul Mavrides & Dave Sheridan. Unlike most of this series, this issue is in color. In the first issue, the FFFB decide to go their separate ways, but by a whim of fate, they all end up moving into the same apartment. In another story, Fat Freddy invents an imaginary drug called “squeak”. Then he gets himself appointed as a drug czar to fight the “threat” of squeak, while Franklin and Phineas sell some sugar pills which they claim to be squeak. The villain of this story is the FFFB’s archenemy Norbert the Nark. In the longest story, the Freak Brothers set up a bus line from San Francisco to New York. Freak Brothers comics are a bit awkward to read because of their extreme length and hyperdetailed art, but the Freak Brothers are perhaps the best characters in all of underground comics, and Shelton is a hilarious writer.

SUPERMAN #345 (DC, 1980) – “When Time Ran Backward!”, [W] Gerry Conway, [A] Curt Swan. Superman discovers that time is going in reverse. It turns out that this is because aliens are stealing Earth’s chronal energy. Superman manages to get time moving in the proper direction again. This is an unmemorable story, but at least it’s less complicated than if Cary Bates had written it.

DETECTIVE COMICS #589 (DC, 1988) – “Night People Part 3: The Burning Pit,” [W] Alan Grant & John Wagner, [A] Norm Breyfogle. Batman fights the Corrosive Man and Kadaver, who are also trying to kill each other. At this point Kadaver looks like a normal man wearing a devil disguise, but later in the issue the Corrosive Man puts his hand on Kadaver’s face. That explains Kadaver’s corpselike appearance when he reappears in issue 610. Much of this issue is narrated by a DJ, but at the end of the issue the DJ gets high on cocaine and is involved in a car crash. Ironically, the other person in the crash is Harlan Wolff, a cocaine dealer, who appeared in the first part of this story arc. This issue includes a Bonus Book segment by Lewis Klahr and Steve Piersall (co-writers) and Dean Haspiel. Like the Bonus Book in #595, this story is a boring and unoriginal depiction of a character – Poison Ivy in this case – who, a few years later, would be given a new and definitive portrayal by Paul Dini. Neither Klahr nor Piersall ever published any other comics, while Dean Haspiel went on to a successful comics career.

NOBLE CAUSES #32 (Image, 2008) – “Family Dynamics,” [W] Jay Faerber, [A] Yildiray Cinar. This issue was published after an eight-month hiatus. It claims to be the start of “a bold new direction,” but I don’t know what’s new about it. I like the premise of Noble Causes – a multigenerational family of superheroes – but I would only buy more issues of this series if they were very cheap.

MYSTIC #22 (CrossGen, 2002) – untitled, [W] Tony Bedard, [A] Fabrizio Fiorentino. As with Noble Causes, I only collect CrossGen comics if they’re very cheap. Mystic seems to be about a sorceress character who’s a bit like Zatanna, but I don’t remember anything about this particular issue’s plot.

TONY STARK: IRON MAN #10 (Marvel, 2019) – “Stark Realities Part 5: Parental Code,” [W] Dan Slott & Jim Zub, [A] Valerio Schiti. The Collector is rampaging through the eScape, and Arno Stark and Sunset Bain are using the Collector’s attack as an opportunity to spring their own plot against Tony. Meanwhile, Tony himself is trapped in a virtual reality created by Motherboard, an artificial intelligence which manifests as digital versions of Tony’s parents. This issue is a bit hard to follow, but it’s very entertaining.

TRINITY #29 (DC, 2009) – “It’s All in the Cards,” [W] Kurt Busiek, [A] Mark Bagley. In the first story, Clark, Diana and Bruce are trapped in a strange alien world and have lost their memories. Meanwhile Charity from Starman is trying to find them. I know it was revealed at some point that Charity and Mason O’Dare were married and expecting a child, but I don’t know if the child’s birth was ever mentioned. There’s also another segment, co-written by Fabian Nicieza and drawn by Tom Derenick, in which the JSI (Justice Society International, I assume) fights against an invasion by an army of villains. Like much of Kurt’s recent work, Trinity has a rather weird feeling to it.

THOR #616 (Marvel, 2010) – “The World Eaters Part 2,” [W] Matt Fraction, [A] Pasqual Ferry. Kelda is crippled by grief over Billl’s death. A scientist tries to tell Thor that something weird is going on with the World Tree, but Thor arrogantly refuses to listen, which seems out of character. The aliens from #619 begin their invasion. This comic looks like a classic Simonson Thor comic because of John Workman’s lettering. Offhand I can’t think of any other letterer who’s so strongly associated with a particular artist.

2000 AD #1829 (Rebellion, 2013) – Dredd: as above. Hamida discovers that no one remembers Dredd ever existed. She uses her own psychic powers to defeat the “jinn” and restore Dredd to existence, and people suddenly remember their loved ones who died in Day of Chaos. I haven’t read any of Day of Chaos, but I’d like to. It seems like the most consequential Dredd story since Apocalypse War. Dandridge: as above. Shelley kills the mad scientist, but this only makes matters worse. Zombo: as above. The Sc4rabs sing a parody version of Yellow Submarine. According to the Kirbyesque character, this somehow causes Earth to turn into the “Life-World.” Zombo comes back to life. 3rillers: as above. The protagonists defeat the pirates and finally reach Earth. I don’t remember if we’re told what happened to the computerized souls of the human race. Stickleback: as above. Stickleback is saved by his son’s guardian, and they go looking for the lizard army.

TEEN TITANS ACADEMY #3 (DC, 2021) – “Need for Speed 2: Extradition,” [W] Tim Sheridan, [A] Rafa Sandoval. Red X and his allies invade Titans Tower, looking for one of the students, a paraplegic indigenous Australian girl named Alinta. I want to like Teen Titans Academy, but it’s disappointing. None of the students get enough panel time, because there are too many students, and on top of that, about half of each issue is devoted to the adult Titans. And the students don’t seem very interesting either. I’m going to quit collecting this series.

FANTASTIC ADVENTURES #17 (I.W., 1964) – “Echoes of an A-Bomb!”, [W] Ruth Roche or Lee Stokes, [A] Matt Baker, etc. This entire issue is reprinted from Seven Seas Comics #6. Its first story is essentially a jungle girl story, except it’s set on a Pacific island. Matt Baker’s art is beautiful, especially his facial expressions. The GCD gives conflicting information about who wrote this story. In “Tugboat Tessie,” a buff red-haired woman defeats a gang of corrupt union thugs. Tessie is a figure of fun, but at least she’s not explicitly fat-shamed. The third story, “Old Ironsides,” is the same one that appears in another IW comic, Battle Stories #16, though the GCD doesn’t seem to realize this. “Marty and the Mermaid” is a dumb mermaid story drawn in a funny animal style. The last story is about a female pirate, Captain Cutlass.

TOMAHAWK #137 (DC, 1971) – “Night of the Knife!”, [W] Robert Kanigher, [A] Frank Thorne. A flashback story depicting how Tomahawk met his indigenous wife Moon Fawn. A notable aspect of this story is that Moon Fawn spends several pages topless. Thorne, of course, was best known for his cheesecake art, though he keeps this story Code-approved. There are also three reprinted backup stories, including two about Native Americans, and one about the invention of the song Yankee Doodle. I don’t think any of the Native American depictions in this issue are very accurate, but at least they’re not grossly offensive. I’ve been a bit disappointed with the Tomahawk comics I’ve read recently. It seems like the high point of this series was the Firehair backup series, and Firehair only appeared in three issues of Tomahawk. I already have one of them, #134, so I need to look for #132 and #136.

THE FORGED #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Greg Rucka & Eric Trautmann, [A] Mike Henderson. After a lot of fighting, the soldiers discover their target: a “Cassandra,” a prophetic woman in the service of the empress. The Cassandra reveals that the empire is being invaded by aliens. The Forged includes some striking action sequences, but each issue ends with an unnecessarily long infodump in text form. Mike Henderson was at Heroes Con, but I didn’t get a chance to speak to him.

CAPTAIN AMERICA #361 (Marvel, 1989) – “Bloodstone Part 5: Lair of the Living Mummy,” [W] Mark Gruenwald, [A] Kieron Dwyer. Cap and Diamondback are trapped in a ruined pyramid, and Diamondback is captured by the Living Mummy. Also, Cap is pursued by Baron Zemo and his minions, including Batroc. It’s been a long time since I’ve actively collected Gruenwald’s Captain America, and maybe I should start collecting it again. He was quite a good Cap writer, despite some embarrassing storylines like Capwolf and Iron Cap. A strange moment in this issue is when Diamondback is able to understand the mummy’s speech, because she’s learned “modern Egyptian” from her Serpent Society teammate Asp. That doesn’t make sense, because the modern language of Egypt is Arabic. The modern language descended from ancient Egyptian is Coptic, but Coptic became extinct as a primary language around the 17th century, and is now used only as a liturgical language. And even if Asp speaks Coptic as a liturgical language, why would she have taught it to Diamondback?

RUMBLE #5 (Image, 2018) – “Soul Without Pity Part V: War and Peace,” [W] John Arcudi, [A] David Rubín. In a flashback, Rathraq gets his dog brought back to life, then he goes into battle with his companion Borogald, but Borogald is killed. David Rubín’s artwork in this sequence is beautiful and epic. Then there’s a present-day sequence which I don’t understand. This scene makes reference to the skunk ape, a cryptid which has also appeared in The Goon.

ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #565 (DC, 1999) – “The World is My Backyard,” [W] Karl Kesel & Jerry Ordway, [A] Tom Grummett. Superman forces a Southeast Asian dictator to resign. This behavior is out of character, and the Justice League stages an intervention, fearing that Superman is being mind-controlled. There’s also an appearance by Outburst, whose secret identity is Mitch Anderson, the kid from Funeral for a Friend who blamed himself for Superman’s death. The theme of superheroes intervening in foreign politics has been addressed much more extensively in comics like Planetary and Squadron Supreme.

BATMAN #93 (DC, 2020) – “Their Dark Designs Part 8,” [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Guillem March. A villain called the Designer tells Batman his scheme to take over Gotham. Batman discovers that the Designer is actually dead and that the Joker is animating his corpse. Also, Harley Quinn fights Punchline. This issue is labeled as a prelude to Joker War, but luckily the Joker only makes a brief appearance in it. (Luckily because I hate the Joker.)

2000 AD #1830 (Rebellion, 2013) – This prog’s cover is designed to look like a much older issue of the series. it has an old logo, Ben Day dots, and a background colored like old paper. It’s signed M. Aitken, in reference to a character in the 3rillers story. Dredd: “The Forsaken Part 1: Kessler,” [W] Mike Carroll, [A] P.J. Holden. Dredd discovers a Judge cadet named Kessler who’s been missing since Day of Chaos. He begins to tell his story, and the Judges go looking for Kessler’s other missing comrades. 3rillers: “Gunheadz Part 1,” [W] T.C. Eglington, [A] Boo Cook. A young comics fan goes looking for Maurice Aitken, the mysterious artist of the classic comic strip Gunheadz. When he finds Maurice Aitken, he also finds an actual Gunhead, a mutated creature with a gun for a head. The present-day scenes are interspersed with scenes from the made-up Gunheadz strip. This story is an interesting piece of metatext. Dandridge: as above. In pursuit of the villain, Dandridge and Shelley hijack a bus. Stickleback: as above. Stickleback and his son’s guardian descend into the sewers, where they meet the Rat Queen and her Ratlings. Zombo: as above. The planet Earth becomes sentient and goes to war against the villain Hank Epislon. I’m completely unable to follow the plot of Planet Zombo, but it’s a very funny series.

JON SABLE, FREELANCE: ASHES OF EDEN #1 (IDW, 2009) – untitled, [W/A] Mike Grell. Jon Sable is hired to protect a priceless diamond, as well as a corporate mascot, Bashira, who is described as being like a flawed diamond herself. Bashira is based on the Afghan Girl from National Geographic, though Bashira is from Iraq, not Afghanistan. A poignant scene in this issue is when a drunk racist dude tries to bully Bashira into giving him an autograph, and Sable whacks the guy in the throat. I talked to Mike Grell briefly at Heroes Con, and photographed him drawing Mariah.

ALIENS: DEAD ORBIT #2 (Dark Horse, 2017) – untitled, [W/A] James Stokoe. A fairly typical story about aliens invading a space station. It’s notable only for James Stokoe’s hyperdetailed draftsmanship and beautiful page layouts. One of my favorite photos I took at Heroes Con was of a woman cosplaying as Ripley from the first movie, with a plush Jonesy on her shoulder.

TARZAN: LOVE, LIES, AND THE LOST CITY #2 (Malibu, 1992) – untitled, [W] Henning Kure, [A] Peter Snejbjerg & Teddy Kristiansen. Wayne Colt, a character in Tarzan the Invincible, asks Jane to rescue his missing granddaughter Zora, from the same novel. Tarzan and Jane both find themselves in the city of Opar, but Tarzan has lost his memory. This issue has excellent artwork and coloring, but its lettering is hard to read. These Malibu Tarzan comics may have been better than any subsequent Tarzan comics published in America.

2000 AD #1831 (Rebellion, 2013) – Dredd: as above. The judges reconstruct the circumstances in which Quillan, another of the cadets, was killed. Also there’s a plot point I don’t understand, about how none of the cadets know whether or not they’re clones. 3rillers: as above. Maurice Aitkin begins to explain the origins of the Gunheadz strip and the actual Gunheadz. Dandridge: as above. Dandridge and Shelley defeat a squad of copper robots, and the prime minister’s conspiracy is exposed. Stickleback: as above. The Rat Queen dies, and Stickleback is joined by the last of her daughters. Zombo: as above. Zombo and another character parachute onto the now-living Earth. I still can’t follow this story’s plot, but I’m not sure its plot can be followed.

DCEASED #3 (DC, 2022) – “War of the Undead Gods,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Trevor Hairsine. The entire DC universe is besieged by a zombie plague, and there are separate scenes starring Adam Strange, Lobo, and Wonder Woman.  I’m willing to read anything Tom Taylor writes, but this issue was just okay. My copy has a variant cover that’s an homage to Jim Lee’s X-Men #1 cover.

DETECTIVE COMICS #999 (DC, 2019) – “The Price You Pay,” [W] Peter Tomasi, [A] Doug Mahnke. Batman has a bizarre confrontation with his own younger self. We then learn that this is a vision he’s having while immobilized in a tank, and he does this every year on his birthday – he tests himself by fighting another version of himself. Also, Bruce evaluates his performance based on the number of Gotham citizens murdered each year. This issue is worth owning just because of its issue number.

ACTION COMICS #530 (DC, 1982) – “Fantastic Deadly Voyage!”, [W] Marv Wolfman, [A] Curt Swan. Superman and a now-benevolent Brainiac are trapped inside a Planet-Eater device, which Brainiac created when he was evil. To save Earth from the Planet-Eater, Superman has to turn Brainiac evil again. In this issue Curt Swan tries to achieve a Kirbyesque effect, particularly on page 5, a splash page depicting the interior of the Planet-Eater. Swan does not quite succeed in imitating Kirby, and his art just looks garish. There’s also an Atom backup story by Rozakis and Saviuk. Alex Saviuk was at Heroes Con again, but I didn’t talk to him.

FABULOUS FURRY FREAK BROTHERS #7 (Rip Off, 1982) – “Burned Again” etc., [W/A] Gilbert Shelton w/ Paul Mavrides. Fat Freddy finds a canister of plutonium. When they realize what it is, the Freak Brothers decide to turn it over to the Department of the Interior, where their nemesis Norbert the Nark is currently employed. But instead they end up selling the plutonium to another hippie, while the government agents go after a canister of ice cream, mistaking it for the plutonium. Lots of hilarious mayhem ensues. The next long story is “Phineas Gets an Abortion,” which I already read in Rip Off Comix #8. Next, in “Come Down,” the Freak Brothers try to go an entire morning without smoking pot, and the next few pages are rendered in dull grayscale instead of the usual line art. Then the Freak Brothers grow tired of abstinence and get high, and the last two panels are in the normal style. This was the last Freak Brothers story to which Dave Sheridan contributed before his death. Other stories include a flashforward to the Freak Brothers in 2003, and “Knock ‘Em Dead,” about the brothers’ brief and disastrous musical career.

KULL THE CONQUEROR #8 (Marvel, 1973) – “Wolfshead,” [W] Len Wein, [A] Marie Severin. Kull and his men are shipwrecked in a city ruled by a slave trader named Vinsala. While there, Kull befriends a man named Demontur who’s secretly a werewolf. This story is a very liberal adaptation of REH’s 1926 story Wolfshead. Not only did that story not include Kull, but it was set in contemporary Africa, and its central characters were named Dom Vincent and De Montour. I don’t like Kull as much as Conan, because Kull seems to lack either a sense of humor or a sex drive.

PIRATE CORP$ #1 (Slave Labor, 1989) – “Poor… Tired… and Depressed on Planet Earth”, [W/A] Evan Dorkin. The Pirate Corp$ land on Earth, and then they attend Ron Chitin’s hockey game, where Vroom Socko is on the other team. At this point, Dorkin seemed to decide to change Pirate Corp$ from an outer space adventure series, to a slice-of-life comic that just happened to be set on a science-fictional Earth.

POWER MAN AND IRON FIST #102 (Marvel, 1984) – “The Scarlet Ruse,” [W] Kurt Busiek, [A]  Richard Howell. This issue starts out as a sort of parody of The Maltese Falcon. A mysterious woman leaves a sealed package with Luke and Danny, which proves to contain one of the Twin Idols of Zor. and then an even more mysterious man shows up at their office looking for the package. We then learn that the woman was the Scarlet Witch, and Luke and Danny have to team up with Wanda and Vision to protect the idols from the Cult of Zor. This is a fairly cute issue. It’s strange to think that Kurt has been working in comics for forty years.

Another trip to Heroes:

MIRACLEMAN: THE SILVER AGE #5 (Marvel, 2023) – “What Lies Beneath,” [W] Neil Gaiman, [A] Mark Buckingham. Dickie accidentally reveals his true identity to Meta-Maid, and they continue their quest for information about Dickie’s past. When they finally get to Dickie’s old orphanage, Dickie sees some ghosts and then collapses. The problem with this series is that it’s too short. The main story in this issue is just 16 pages, and the rest of the issue is an old Marvelman reprint. And after the next issue, who knows how long it’ll be before Miracleman: The Dark Age comes out, if it ever does. I also get the sense that Gaiman’s writing style has gotten looser and more decompressed since he last worked on Miracleman, and so there’s less narrative content in The Silver Age than in earlier Miracleman storylines. Nonetheless, any amount of new Miracleman material is cause for celebration. I strongly suspect that Meta-Maid is Miraclewoman, because she acts just like Miraclewoman.

SAGA #64 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Brian K. Vaughan, [A] Fiona Staples. Gale continues looking for Alana and Hazel. Petrichor is reunited with her mother. Hazel and Prince Robot go looking for “wormfood,” and they encounter a man claiming to be a plainclothes policeman, who tells them that wormfood is fake. But Squire Robot, who has suddenly regained the ability to talk, doesn’t believe him. Alana gets hired as a security guard, but she has to start in thirty minutes, and her kids aren’t back yet. Issue #65 came out this week, but for some reason Heroes didn’t get it.

TITANS #1 (DC, 2023) – “Out of the Shadows,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Nicola Scott. The Titans’ opening ceremony for the new Titans Tower is interrupted when they have to fight Titano the giant ape. Peacemaker tries to assert jurisdiction over Titano, and Dick rebuffs him. On returning to the tower, the Titans discover the dead body of Wally West. The original New Teen Titans is one of the absolute classics of the superhero genre, but most attempts to revive it have failed. In particular, Devin Grayson’s 1999 Titans series was so disappointing that it caused me to quit following the franchise. But if any writer can recapture Wolfman and Perez’s magic, it’s Tom Taylor, and I’m really excited about his Titans. A smart thing he does is to establish that these characters are adults, not teens anymore – besides the Dick/Peacemaker scene, he also reminds us that Wally doesn’t live in Titans Tower because he has his own family. He also makes Gar and Raven seem like a really cute couple. My complaints about this series are that first, Starfire doesn’t get enough dialogue. Second, after issue 2, this series is going on a two-month hiatus because of some stupid crossover event that I don’t care about. As a footnote, New Teen Titans (1984) #1 and Titans (2023) #1 both include a scene showing two unmarried characters in bed together. But in 1984, such a scene was highly controversial, while in 2023 it seems totally normal.

FLASH #799 (DC, 2023) – “Assault on Eternity,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Fernando Pasarin et al. Wally and the Terrifics confront Granny Goodness and her three mysterious kid sidekicks, and Wally succeeds in recovering his newborn son. We then discover that one of the three kids is Mr. Terrific’s unborn son, who was thought to have died with his mother. My guess is that the other two are Donna Troy’s son Robert and Aqualad’s son Ceridian. Both Donna and Garth are currently appearing in Titans, so it would be nice if I turned out to be right. This issue is a cute conclusion to the best run of Flash comics since Mark Waid’s original run. I have issue 800, but I haven’t gotten to it yet.

SHE-HULK #13 (Marvel, 2023) – “Girl Can’t Help It Part 3,” [W] Rainbow Rowell, [A] Andres Genolet. Jen has tea with Patsy, then she has another encounter with the mysterious blue-suited dude. Her romance with Jack continues to deteriorate, since they can’t touch each other. Jen convinces Mallory Book to let her take superhuman clients. Nothing in this issue was as funny as the “bulkhustler” line from last issue. It seems like She-Hulk might have been cancelled, and that’s a shame, because it’s more fun than any other current Marvel title. It’s the last survivor of the group of fun Marvel comics, like Squirrel Girl and Runaways and Ms. Marvel.

THE GREAT BRITISH BUMP-OFF #2 (Dark Horse, 2023) – “Death by Chocolate Cake,” [W] John Allison, [A] Max Sarin. Shauna continues investigating the murders, but finds that she herself is becoming a suspect. As a mystery comic, this series is perhaps less effective than Wicked Things, but on the other hand, GBBO is full of hilarious gags and dialogue, and Max Sarin is an excellent humor artist.

BLACK CLOAK #5 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kelly Thompson, [A] Meredith McClaren. Phaedra confronts her real dad and discovers his shrine to her memory. She also meets her previously unknown half-brother, and they seem to like each other. Then Phaedra and Pax infiltrate the elf palace during a party. After a confrontation with Phaedra’s other brother Hadrian, an awful jerk, Phaedra and Pax discover a lab where magical creatures are being bred. At Heroes Con, I met Meredith McClaren and told her that I’m really enjoying this series, although I had trouble following its plot at first. I would love to meet Kelly Thompson someday.

DARK RIDE #6 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Andrei Bressan. In a black-and-white flashback sequence, the twins and their mother enjoy an idyllic day in the park – until the twins’ mom starts coughing up blood, and their dad blames them for aggravating her illness. In the present day, Summer and Samhain escape from Alister the insane trash collector, but then they’re confronted by Halloween, who’s just as bad as her father. And then Arthur himself makes a rare public appearance. This comic’s plot has become very compelling. I really want to learn more about the mysterious history of Devil Land.

LITTLE MONSTERS #13 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Dustin Nguyen. In order to save Laura from the other kids, Romie has no choice but to turn her into a vampire. And so the status quo continues, with the surviving kids living stagnant, immortal lives, and occasionally recruiting a new member to their group. This is a satisfying conclusion to the latest of Jeff Lemire’s many important works.

SECOND COMING: TRINITY #2 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell, [A] Richard Pace. God gets sick of hanging out with the people in heaven, so he decides to visit Earth and hang out with Sunstar and Sheila. I really like Mark Russell’s take on God; Russell writes God as a cranky but well-intentioned old eccentric, rather than as an omnipotent figure of awe. Meanwhile, Jesus babysits Jordan and negligently allows the baby to fall out a window, though Jordan isn’t hurt. A funny plot point in this issue is that Sunstar “cuts” his hair by traveling back in time to when his hair looked good. And he uses the same time travel technique as in Christopher Reeve’s Superman movies – that is, he flies around an alien planet until its rotation reverses.

SPIRIT WORLD #1 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Alyssa Wong, [A] Haining. This is one of three new DC titles with Asian protagonists. I ordered all three. Spirit World is about Xanthe Zhou, a nonbinary “spirit envoy” who lives in Gotham’s Chinatown. I don’t remember much about this issue in particular, but Xanthe is an interesting protagonist, and Wong draws upon Chinese traditional ghost stories, just like Pornsak Pichetshote in Dead Boy Detectives. Also, Cassandra Cain guest-stars in this series, which is good since Batgirls has been cancelled.

BATGIRLS #18 (DC, 2023) – “From Hell’s Heart Part 2,” [W] Becky Cloonan & Michael Conrad, [A] Robbi Rodriguez. The Batgirls make a plan to catch the snipers. Grace O’Halloran leads a “We Are All Batgirls” campaign, intentionally making herself a target for the snipers. Batman makes a guest appearance. I met Becky Cloonan at Heroes Con and told her that I loved Batgirls, that my favorite artist on the series was Jorge Corona, and that I figured out that the cipher was a book cipher. I think she said that the cipher came from an actual book that she had. Michael Conrad was also right there at the same table, but I didn’t get to talk to him.

NOCTERRA #14 (Image, 2023) – “No Brakes Part 3: How,” [W] Scott Snyder, [A] Tony Daniel. In a heartbreaking flashback sequence, Emory finds his mother, and she claims that she didn’t abandon him on purpose, but rather he was kidnapped by her drug dealer. Emory promises to help his mother escape from poverty, but when he goes to look for her again, she’s vanished without a trace. In the present, Val and Em confront the people of Lux, including Gus’s avatar, but Lux claims they can’t help without making things worse. To complicate matters further, Blacktop Bill shows up alive yet again.

SANDMAN UNIVERSE: NIGHTMARE COUNTRY – THE GLASS HOUSE #2 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Patricio Delpeche. Max sleeps with Madison’s undead friend Kells, who was murdered in the previous series. Azazel tries to tempt the Corinthian into betraying Daniel. This issue is very creepy and disturbing, but its plot is hard to understand. It’s been too long since I read the previous volume, and I’ve forgotten who the new characters are.

HOUSE OF SLAUGHTER #15 (Boom!, 2023) – “The Butcher’s Return Part 5,” [W] Tate Brombal, [A] Antonio Fuso. Jace frees himself, fights off a horde of Boucher agents – killing a twelve-year-old girl in the process – and rescues Sunny. But Sunny chooses to stay with Jolie because she’s nicer to him. That’s how cults work, or at least this kind of cult. They act nice and friendly at first, before they show their other side. I’m not buying the next House of Slaughter arc because, for some reason, it’s written by Sam Johns again. Their first story arc was so bad that I never want to read another comic they write.

PHANTOM ROAD #3 (Image, 2023) – “Infomercials”, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Gabriel Hernandez Walta. A secret agent named Theresa investigates whatever is going on with Dom and Birdie. In a flashback, we see that Theresa herself has had uncanny experiences with Billy Bear truck stops. Then a masked man breaks into her hotel room. Dom and Birdie themselves don’t appear in this issue. I like this series, but I’m still mystified as to where it’s going.

MISS TRUESDALE AND THE FALL OF HYPERBOREA #1 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mike Mignola, [A] Jesse Lonergan. This issue begins with a scene in 1880s Paris, depicting two women involved in the occult movement. Then we flash back to a scene set in ancient Hyperborea, starring a female gladiator. Eventually these two story arcs converge. I don’t really care about this comic’s plot, because I’m buying it for Jesse Lonergan’s art. His page layouts here are more sedate than in Hedra or Planet Paradise, but he uses his characteristic trick of motion lines that merge with the panel borders. Jesse Lonergan was another person I didn’t get to speak to at Heroes Con.

JUNKYARD JOE #6 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Geoff Johns & Gary Frank. The villain reveals himself as a mad scientist who created Joe, and who now wants to take him back. The scientist holds Emily hostage, but Joe resists its programming and saves her. Then some Homeland Security agents arrive to reclaim Joe, but the town’s entire population resists them, and Joe is allowed to stay. Joe and Muddy become part of Emily’s family. The series ends with a brief cameo appearance by a time-traveling Geiger. Overall, I still think that Junkyard Joe is Geoff Johns’s most satisfying work. Most of his comics are Silver Age pastiches with extra unnecessary violence, but Junkyard Joe is a serious treatment of the legacy of war.  

MONARCH #4 (Image, 2023) – “When the Dark Heart Breaks,” [W] Rodney Barnes, [A] Alex Lins. One of the kids, Todd, goes nuts and tries to kill the others. Todd and his dad are interesting characters, but the trouble with Monarch is it wastes too much time on its plot, and so it doesn’t have enough space to explore its themes of race and family. This is the same problem I had with Know Your Station (which, by the way, I never got the last issue of) – it fails to smoothly integrate its plot with its thematic concerns. In the case of Know Your Station, the point of the story is to deliver a message about economic inequality. But most of each issue is taken up with a detective plot that tells us nothing about economic inequality. Monarch has the same problem: whatever its theme is supposed to be, that theme gets lost behind a pointless plot. Telling a compelling story that also conveys a political message is difficult, but it can be done better than Rodney Barnes does it in Monarch. I’m going to finish reading Monarch, but only because I already started it.

X-MEN RED #11 (Marvel, 2023) – “A Storm on the Horizon,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Stefano Caselli & Jacopo Camagni. Storm and Xavier have a tense confrontation, part of which is illustrated with images from old X-Men comics. Nova hangs out with Sunspot. Vulcan appears on the last page. I think I’m enjoying X-Men Red a bit more than Immortal X-Men, but neither of them is among my favorite current titles.

GREEN LANTERN #1 (DC, 2023) – “Back on Earth,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Xermanico. Hal returns to Earth and tries to get a job with Ferris Aircraft, because when he’s not Green Lantern, all he knows how to do is fly planes and seduce women. There’s also a backup story starring Guy and John Stewart, written by Philip Kennedy Johnson. I bought this comic because I love Jeremy Adams’s writing on Flash, but part of the appeal of that comic is its depiction of family life, and Hal is not a family man. Rather, Adams writes him as kind of a creep. I already bought issue 2, but if that issue isn’t significantly better, I might give up on this series.

FEARLESS DAWN: THE BOMB #1 (Asylum, 2023) – “Zombie Island Party!” etc., [W/A] Steve Mannion. The first story is a weird piece of metatext, and then the bulk of the issue is devoted to  a flashback explaining how Fearless Dawn got her costume. Like Flex Mentallo, Fearless Dawn gets her powers by answering a Charles Atlas ad. The issue ends with some short “Jungle Chick and the Dinosaurs” strips, drawn in a Crumb-influenced style. The entire issue is in black and white, and it reminds me of Corben’s cruder, less photorealistic works. I regret that I didn’t get to talk with Steve Mannion at Heroes Con. He was never at his table when I passed by, or if he was, I didn’t notice.

THE VIGIL #1 (DC, 2023) – “Jig in a Storm,” [W] Ram V, [A] Lalit Kumar Sharma. An Indian superhero team rescues some hostages from Indian Ocean pirates. Meanwhile, their former boss decides to retire, but is promptly murdered. This is the second of the three new Asian-inspired superhero titles, but so far it feels like just a standard superhero comic, and its setting could have been changed from India to America without affecting much else. However, I do look forward to seeing where Ram V goes with this premise.

FANTASTIC FOUR #700 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Enemy of the Good,” [W] Ryan North, [A] Iban Coello. The FF move into Aunt Petunia’s house, but then they realize that they’ve lost the ability to say words with certain letters. Eventually they’re reduced to just three letters – D, M and O – which spell DOOM, and then guess who shows up. There’s a funny scene where the FF keep singing the alphabet song to check how many letters they can remember. I think Ryan North succeeds in writing the FF’s dialogue without using any forbidden letters, though he continues to use all 26 letters in the captions. Anyway, then Doom goes back in time in order to save Valeria from losing a year of her life, but all his efforts are unsuccessful, and he ultimately has to give up and admit defeat. This is Ryan North’s first issue in which the kids appear (meaning Franklin, Valeria, Jo-Venn and N’Kalla). Even though they only make brief cameos, he writes them quite well. I’m not sure why he chose to write them out of the series. He wrote an excellent Power Pack miniseries, so he does have the ability to write convincing child characters.

ARCADE KINGS #1 (Image, 2023) – “Quarters Up!”, [W/A] Dylan Burnett. In a flashback, fighting champion Victor McMax retires unexpectedly. This character seems to be based on Guile from Street Fighter II, and his opponent in the opening sequence looks like Blanka. Many years later, a local video arcade has a new champion, a homeless boy named Joe who wears a dragonfruit mask. Joe befriends Rikio, the nephew of the arcade’s owner, and then has a fight with a girl and her giant robot. Finally we learn that the girl was trying to kidnap Joe on behalf of an old sick, Victor McMax. I had never heard of Dylan Burnett before, and I bought this comic solely on the strength of its premise and its beautiful cover art. I was not disappointed. Arcade Kings is a gorgeous piece of work, with vivid coloring and exciting action sequences, and its story is a passionate tribute to the video games I grew up with. It’s a bit odd how Arcade Kings is set in a world based on video games, and yet video games themselves still exist within this world.

CAPTAIN MARVEL #49 (Marvel, 2023) – “Revenge of the Brood Conclusion,” [W] Kelly Thompson, [A] Sergio Davila. Some X-Men arrive as backup, allowing Carol and her friends to defeat the Brood. Then Binary is buried. This whole storyline was rather boring, and it was an anticlimactic conclusion to Kelly’s run. A weird thing about this issue is that it guest-stars Revanche, or Kwannon, but she looks exactly like Psylocke did when I was growing up. I started reading X-Men long after Betsy became Asian, and so I always think of Betsy as Asian rather than white, even if I now know that her transformation into an Asian woman was a regrettable and offensive plot point.

SUPERMAN #4 (DC, 2023) – “Screams from the Past,” [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Jamal Campbell & Nick Dragotta. The villain this issue is the Silver Banshee. Also, Luthor keeps trying to manipulate Superman. This issue, like the first three, is unexciting, and it also doesn’t feel like a Superman comic. I already bought #5, but I think it’ll be my last issue. (Edited later: Never mind. See my more positive review of #5 below.)

EARTHDIVERS #7 (IDW, 2023) – “Ice Age Chapter 1: Tawny,” [W] Stephen Graham Jones, [A] Riccardo Burchielli. In a new story arc, an indigenous woman travels back in time to the prehistoric era, when European people visited America for the first time. Her goal is to kill all the white people, but she inadvertently finds herself stuck with an abandoned white child. I’ve been consistently dissatisfied with this series, but this issue is an improvement on the previous story arc. The present-day plotline still makes no sense, but it’s mostly irrelevant to this issue.

THE SEASONS HAVE TEETH #2 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Dan Watters, [A] Sebastian Cabrol. The protagonist, Andrew, tries to take a photo of Summer, which is so explosive that no one can get close to it. Andrew succeeds in getting a photo, but his fellow photojournalist, Aster Soni, is killed. A series of flashbacks depicts Andrew’s history of putting himself in risky situations for the sake of news photographs. The Seasons Have Teeth is my favorite Dan Watters comic so far. It has a fascinating idea, it’s an interesting allegory for climate change, and its plot is easy to follow. And in this issue, the intertwining of the present-day sequences and the flashbacks is done quite well.

DARK SPACES: GOOD DEEDS #1 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Che Grayson, [A] Kelsey Ramsay. A photojournalist travels to St. Augustine, Florida to do a puff piece, but while there, she encounters a murder conspiracy. There’s also a subplot about a single mother and daughter who have recently arrived in town. So far this comic doesn’t have much of a plot, but its setting is interesting, and I’m going to keep reading it for now. Because of the rather loose style of art, I thought at first that the journalist and the single mother were the same character.

DAREDEVIL #11 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Red Fist Saga Part 11,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Rafael De Latorre. Matt has been hiding out in Cole North’s place, but Cole shames him into doing something proactive about his problems. Matt visits the Stromwyns and forces them to release all their prisoners from the Fist’s island. He proves his commitment to them by cutting out his own eyes, which is no problem for him since he’s already blind. Then Matt decides he has to die. I’m getting kind of sick of this series, and I think Zdarsky has turned Matt into an unsympathetic character. For more on this point, see my review of #12 below.  

CHILLING ADVENTURES PRESENTS… JINX: A CURSED LIFE #1 (Archie, 2023) – untitled, [W] Magdalene Visaggio, [A] Craig Cermak. Jinx tries to deny rumors that she’s the child of Satan, but the rumors are true, and her father comes to claim her. She defeats him with the power of music. I bought this because Mags Visaggio wrote it, but it’s not her best work. Also, it ends just a couple pages after the staple. Again, I really wish Archie would put more effort into their periodical comic books.

ICE CREAM MAN #35 (Image, 2023) – “The Book of Necessary Monsters,” [W] W. Maxwell Prince, [A] Martín Morazzo. This issue’s cover is an homage to the cover of the Penguin edition of Borges’s Book of Imaginary Monsters. In this issue, a middle-aged man, a typical Ice Cream Man protagonist, is writing a catalogue of monsters, while ignoring his wife and son. The twist ending is that the wife and son are already dead or zombified or something. The story is partly told through the entries in the book that the man is writing. Ice Cream Man suffers from formulaic plots: almost every issue is about a white guy having a middle-age crisis. But part of what makes it interesting is W. Maxwell Prince’s wide range of unusual story structures and formats.

WONDER WOMAN #799 (DC, 2023) – “Whatever Happened to the Warrior of Truth? Part 1,” [W] Becky Cloonan & Michael Conrad, [A] Alitha Martinez et al. Etta, Siggy, Steve and Nubia each have dreams about Diana. The dreams are each illustrated by different artists, including Terry Dodson and Paulina Ganucheau. Terry Dodson’s sequence looks a lot like Adventureman. This comic’s title is an obvious reference to Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow, but this story is not at the same level of quality as that one. I think this series has run out of steam, and I’m not sorry it’s ending, although I’m also not excited about Tom King’s run.

THE GIMMICK #3 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joanne Starer, [A] Elena Gogou. Shane and Sam (the daughter of the man he killed) become lucha libre wrestlers. Shane fights another aspiring wrestler who’s jealous of the attention Shane is getting. Shane wins the fight, but the other wrestler pulls his mask off just as Shane is being photographed, and his location is revealed to the world. Shane’s mother and babymama also make a brief appearance. This is a fun series, and I’m looking forward to Joanna Starer’s next comic, Sirens of the City.

DAWN OF DC PRIMER #1 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Leandro Fernandez. In a short preview story, Amanda Waller creates a new Suicide Squad and orders them to assassinate all the superheroes. The rest of the issue consists of non-comics advertising material. This is a pointless comic, but at least it was free.

DANGER STREET #6 (DC, 2023) – “The Dingbats of Danger Street,” [W] Tom King, [A] Jorge Fornes. The best thing about this issue is its cover, which is formatted like a cereal box, showing Darkseid eating Danger Steet cereal “with Omega 3”. Kaare Andrews already did a cover like this, for Incredible Hulk vol. 2 #41, but it’s a funny idea and it was worth using again. This issue just provides some further development of all the intersecting plotlines. Lady Cop finally meets Warlord, Highfather and Darkseid are seen for possibly the first time in the series, and we finally meet the Outsiders.

CLARK & LEX AND FANN CLUB: BATMAN SQUAD FCBD SPECIAL EDITION 2023 (DC, 2023) – “Clark & Lex,” [W] Brendan Reichs, [A] Jerry Gaylord. A preview of an upcoming YA or MG graphic novel about Clark Kent and Lex Luthor’s teenage friendship. Lex is presented here as a more sympathetic character than usual, though he seems a little creepy. It’s notable that Clark presents as white, but Pa and Ma Kent are black. Clark & Lex looks like a reasonably interesting book, but I don’t plan on buying it. The other half of this issue is a preview of Jim Benton’s Fann Club: Batman Squad. This comic seems intended for very young kids, and it’s of no interest to me.

NO/ONE #3 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kyle Higgins & Brian Buccellato, [A] Geraldo Borges. Another issue full of political intrigue, with only a little bit of superhero action, and that’s fine with me. The most compelling scene in this issue is when a reporter, Julia, is accosted in a coffeeshop by a man who was involved in a shooting. Then when she walks back to her car alone, the man follows her and pulls a gun on her, and No/One has to intervene to save her. This seems like a realistic depiction of violence committed by an entitled white dude. The biggest problem with this comic is that it’s hard to follow the plot from one issue to the next. The chart of characters at the end of the issue is helpless, but even then it’s hard to keep them all straight.

USAGI YOJIMBO #8 (Dark Horse, 1996) – “A Promise in the Snow,” [W/A] Stan Sakai. I already read this issue long ago, because a friend sent me a photocopy of it, but it’s worth reading again. In this issue, Usagi is traveling alone in the snow when he encounters a merchant, Araki, who’s being assaulted by bandits. Usagi kills the bandits, but the merchant is seriously wounded. The merchant’s little daughter, Fumiye, appears out of nowhere and makes Usagi promise to save her father. After overcoming various perils thanks to Fumiye’s moral support, Usagi manages to get Araki to safety. But when Usagi gives Fumiye the credit for saving Araki, he learns to his shock that Fumiye died a week ago, and it was her ghost that helped him save her father! This is one of Stan’s cleverest and most powerful short stories. It demonstrates his ability to tell a simple but unforgettable story. The climactic scene is one of his most epic, memorable moments: Usagi is about to fall asleep and freeze to death, but Fumiye keeps him awake by shouting “You promised, Usagi-san! YOU PROMISED!” One curious thing I noticed on rereading this story is that at several points, Fumiye interacts with physical objects: for instance, she collects the bandits’ capes, and she grabs her father’s cart to stop it from falling off a cliff. If she’s a ghost, then logically she shouldn’t be able to touch anything. But the existence of ghosts is inherently illogical, so maybe this is an invalid critique.

RED ROOM: CRYPTO KILLAZ! #1 (Fantagraphics, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Ed Piskor. This issue focuses on Brianna, the daughter of Davis Fairfield, a Red Room killer who was himself killed in a previous miniseries. After her dad’s death, Brianna discovers his true identity, and what’s worse, her lawyer, Dominic, is himself a Red Room agent, and he’s only working with Brianna in order to get access to her late father’s bitcoin wallet. Brianna gets access to the wallet by accident, while Dominic’s masters subject him to well-deserved punishment. This is another gripping and frightening issue. Red Room is vulnerable to criticism on grounds of its extreme, exploitative violence, but this comic is not intended for mass audiences, and I think anyone who reads it is fully aware of what they’re getting into. I talked to Ed Piskor at Heroes Con, and he was kind enough to say that it doesn’t feel like a real Heroes Con unless he sees me.  

MOSELY #4 (Boom!, 2023) – “The Most High!”, [W] Rob Guillory, [A] Sam Lotfi. Marvin continues his fight with the AI gods, who are plotting to do away with humanity entirely, and he and his ex-wife and daughter team up for the final battle. The relationships between Mosely’s three central characters are interesting, but otherwise I don’t enjoy Mosely as much as Chew or Farmhand.

AVENGERS #1 (Marvel, 1963/2023) – “The Coming of the Avengers!”, [W] Stan Lee, [A] Jack Kirby. Loki tries to turn the Hulk into a public menace, so that Don Blake will have to transform into Thor in order to fight him, and then Loki can bait Thor into returning to Asgard where Loki can defeat him… yes, that’s a really stupid scheme. Anyway, Iron Man, Ant-Man and Wasp all chase after the Hulk as well, then they all team up together to fight Loki, and they decide to make their team-up permanent. The name “Avengers” is the Wasp’s idea. Avengers #1 is a pretty dumb example of the early Marvel Universe style, but the series would get more interesting with issue 4 and then issue 16.

HEXWARE #6 (Image, 2023) – “The Drowning Hymn Revisited,” [W] Tim Seeley, [A] Zulema Scotto Lavina. The villains are defeated, and Jesi/Which-Where, her dad, and Ren become a found family. This was a confusing and incomprehensible series with no clear central theme, and I’m glad it’s over.

KA-ZAR #14 (Marvel, 1976) – “Two Worlds in Frenzy!”, [W] Doug Moench, [A] Larry Hama. When Tongah goes temporarily insane for no reason, Ka-Zar has to travel to London to investigate the cause of the madness. Whlie in London, Ka-Zar is interviewed by lots of curious people, and he meets a potential love interest named Tandy Snow, a Lois Lane-esque reporter. Then he fights Klaw. Tandy Snow is an intriguing character, but she only appeared in this series, and in a flashback in X-Men #115. A funny moment in this issue is when a reporter asks Ka-Zar if he runs around the jungle naked, and he says “Yes, if it is warm enough – or necessary. However, I often wear a loincloth.”

BATMAN #559 (DC, 1998) – “Dead City,” [W] Doug Moench, [A] Bob Hall. This is a chapter of Aftershock, which was itself a part of the year-long No Man’s Land saga. Gotham has descended into complete anarchy, and Batman and the police have to prevent things from getting any worse. Much of this issue focuses on Harvey Bullock, Moench’s pet character, and a nurse named Brass, as they try to defend a hospital that’s under siege from criminals. Nurse Brass is an interesting potential romantic partner for Harvey, but this issue was her only appearance ever. I wonder why Moench never used her again.

IRONHAND OF ALMURIC #3 (Dark Horse, 1991) – “To the Lair of the Ancients,” [W] Roy Thomas, [A] Mark Winchell. An adaptation of a minor work of Robert E. Howard. Almuric is technically science fiction, but it’s a planetary romance in the vein of John Carter’s Barsoom stories, and so it only has cosmetic differences from REH’s usual sword-and-sorcery stories. The planetary romance genre is also called “sword and planet” because it’s just sword and sorcery in an extraterrestrial setting. A notable plot twist in Ironhand of Almuric #3 is that the hero meets a young bat-human hybrid who is actually his own son, conceived less than a year ago but born as a near-adult. Otherwise, this is a rather boring comic with mediocre art, and I’d hesitate to buy the other three issues. Roy Thomas was at Heroes Con for one day, but I never saw him.

AVENGERS #206 (Marvel, 1981) – “Fire in the Streets!”, [W] Bill Mantlo, [A] Gene Colan. This is one of the only Avengers issues between #100 and #300 that I haven’t read already, and the reason is because of who wrote it. In this issue the Avengers fight Pyron the Thermal Man, whose motivation is to get revenge on his former employers for setting him permanently on fire.

PURGE #0 (ANIA, 1993) – “Purification Agenda,” [W] Roosevelt Pitt Jr, [A] Bill Hobbs. An awful superhero story with trite, overwritten dialogue and sub-Liefeld art. It’s unusual only because its protagonist is black and it’s set in Greensboro, North Carolina. The backup story, about a supervillain named Pathos, is even worse; it has some of the worst lettering I’ve ever seen in a professionally published comic. These ANIA comics are of historical interest, because ANIA was an early attempt to publish comics from a black-centric perspective, and so it can be seen as a precursor to current Afrofuturist and Africanfuturist comics. However, all the ANIA comics I’ve read have been terrible. See here for more information on this publisher.

KARATE KID #13 (DC, 1978) – “Tomorrow’s Battle… Yesterday!”, [W] Bob Rozakis, [A] Juan Ortiz. Karate Kid and his fellow Legionnaires fight Major Disaster and the Lord of Time. An interesting wrinkle is that these Legionnaires are from a period where they haven’t met Karate Kid yet. Besides that, this issue is of no interest.

IMPOSSIBLE TEAM-UP #1 (Scout, 2023) – untitled, [W] Karl Kesel, [A] David Hahn. Impossible Jones teams up with a superhero named Captain Lightning, and there’s a guest appearance by Kesel’s other creator-owned characters, Section Zero. I don’t remember much about this comic, but it’s very fun, and I hope there will be more Impossible Jones comics soon. On the first page of this comic, a villain tries to steal the earliest-printed copy of Shakespeare’s First Folio, and we’re told that this particular copy is recognizable because the author’s name is spelled “Shakespear” on the cover. This is wrong for a couple reasons. First, books at the time did not have standardized covers, they were sold as unbound sheets, which would only be bound after purchase. Even when books did get bound, they didn’t have titles on the front cover. Second, spelling was not standardized in Shakespeare’s time. He himself used five different spellings of his surname, and none of those spellings was “Shakespeare.”

CLEAR #3 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Scott Snyder, [A] Francis Manapul. Sam discovers that the real world with no veils is even more awful than he thought. Then, during a confrontation with the villain, Sam finds that his wife is still alive, but she gets killed again. Sam uses a video recording of his dead son to inform the world of the truth about the veils. This was an interesting series, but its main problem was the excessive length of each issue. It should have been published as six issues rather than three.

THIS IS WHAT DEMOCRACY LOOKS LIKE #nn (Center for Cartoon Studies, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Dan Nott et al. A guide to American politics, in a similar format to Health & Wealth. As with Health & Wealth, the overarching message is that the current system is broken and unfair, and we need to work to change it. I was hesitant to read this comic because I’m frustrated and pessimistic about American politics. I got this comic on the day the North Carolina Supreme Court permitted gerrymandering, and I’m reviewing it on the day the federal Supreme Court legalized discriminating against gay people. I’ve had to limit my reading of political news in order to protect my own mental health. Still, this comic is important, and CCS deserves kudos for creating it and distributing it for free.

REID FLEMING, WORLD’S TOUGHEST MILKMAN #3 (Eclipse, 1990) – “Rogue to Riches Chapter 3,” [W/A] David Boswell. Having been fired from his job as a milkman, Reid Fleming starts a cable installation business, but his alcoholism and irritability lead to utter chaos. This is an extremely funny comic with gorgeous draftsmanship, and I need to colllect more of it.

ALIENS: DEAD ORBIT #3 (Dark Horse, 2017) – untitled, [W/A] James Stokoe. The humans put up an ineffective resistance against the aliens. In terms of plot, I can’t see any difference between this comic and any other Aliens comic or film. It just seems like a formulaic Aliens story. But James Stokoe’s draftsmanship is utterly gorgeous.

2000 AD #1832 (Rebellion, 2013) – Dredd: “The Forsaken Part 3: Tanuma,” [W] Mike Carroll, [A] P.J. Holden. The next missing cadet is Tanuma, who fled in terror after getting another cadet killed. She provides a lead to the remaining cadets. 3rillers: “Gunheadz Part 3,” [W] T.C. Eglington, [A] Boo Cook. The origin of the Gunheadz is fully revealed, and the surviving Gunhead kills his creator and then dies. This story is a clever tribute to earlier British comics. Sinister Dexter: “Witless Protection: Malone Again,” [W] Dan Abnett, [A] John Burns. Finnigan Sinister is living in witness protection, but he’s already been recognized by some old associates of his. In a funny moment, Sinister gets hired to do “wetwork,” but he interprets this as assassination, when it’s really just mopping. Stickleback: “Number of the Beast Part 9,” [W] Ian Edginton, [A] D’Israeli. Stickleback and his associates, including the last ratling, fight a horde of lizards, and they’re saved by a man named Bob who’s magically compelled to protect Stickleback. Zombo: “Planet Zombo Part 8,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Henry Flint. This chapter starts with a song parody, but I don’t recognize the song being parodied. Also there’s a lot more ridiculous mayhem.

HELLBLAZER #71 (Vertigo, 1993) – “Finest Hour,” [W] Garth Ennis, [A] Steve Dillon. In a drunken stupor, Constantine falls asleep next to the corpse of a World War II pilot, and he experiences a vision of the pilot’s last moments. In witnessing the pilot’s death, Constantine regains his own will to live, and he sobers up and tricks a rich Uncle Pennybags type into giving him money. This issue is sort of a prototype of Garth Ennis’s later war comics. I’ve only read a few of Ennis’s war comics, but in recent years they’ve been his only seriously intended works (as opposed to non-serious works like Jimmy’s Bastards or All-Star Section Eight).

DONALD DUCK #269 (Gladstone, 1989) – “Red Apple Sap,” [W/A] Carl Barks. Donald tries to grow some apples to win a prize at an agricultural fair. However, Gladstone has moved in next door to Donald, and despite Donald’s hard work and Gladstone’s laziness, Donald’s apple tree withers, while Gladstone’s tree grows. In the end, though, Gladstone can’t be bothered to pick his own apples, so he lets Donald have them for free. Donald wins a prize, while Gladstone gets a prize for laziness. Barks’s stories might seem pro-capitalist, but it’s notable how Gladstone is an exception to Barks’s Protestant capitalist ethic. Gladstone does no work, but gets rewarded anyway. Other stories in this issue are by William Van Horn and Daniel Branca.

JONAH HEX #75 (DC, 1983) – “The Bloody Saga of Railroad Bill! Part 2,” [W] Michael Fleisher, [A] Dick Ayers. Jonah Hex is pursuing a criminal named Bill Clinton (not that Bill Clinton), but an overzealous bounty hunter, Graphus, is chasing the same criminal, and is willing to kill Clinton’s innocent mother and sister as collateral damage. Clinton kills Graphus to save Hex, and then threatens Hex with a rifle. Hex kills Clinton, only to discover that the rifle wasn’t loaded, and Clinton baited Hex into shooting him. This issue isn’t bad, but its plot was confusing.

FANTASTIC FOUR #369 (Marvel, 1992) – “With Malice Toward All!”, [W] Tom DeFalco, [A] Paul Ryan. In an Infinity War crossover, Sue confronts her evil duplicate, who, unlike the other evil duplicates from this storyline, is already a preexisting character: it’s Malice, introduced in issue 280. This issue is partly redundant in that it duplicates scenes that are already depicted in the Infinity War miniseries. Infinity War was the first crossover comic I ever read, so I have nostalgic memories of it, but they’re mostly bad memories. Infinity War was a boring story that trivialized the Marvel Universe’s cosmic entities by turning them into just another normal group of characters. Infinity Crusade compounded that problem even further. On this issue’s letters page, a reader asks if Reed and Sue will ever have another child, and the response is “doubtful.” However, they did have another child nine years later.

KELLY GREEN VOL. 1 (Dargaud, 1982) – “The Go-Between,” [W] Leonard Starr, [A] Stan Drake. Kelly Green’s husband, policeman Dan Green, is murdered at the instigation of one of his colleagues. To investigate his murder, Kelly becomes a “go-between,” exchanging money and  contraband goods between criminals. Kelly Green was part of Dargaud’s short-lived attempt to break into the American market. It’s published in the French album format, and it includes an introduction by Michel Greg, who signs himself as “Mike” for perhaps the only time. Starr and Drake were both veteran artists of newspaper comic strips, but since Kelly Green was intended for adults, it gave Drake and Starr the opportunity to include things that their syndicates wouldn’t have permitted, including nudity, drugs, and gay people. The main gay character in this comic is a flaming stereotype, although at the time it was unusual to see a gay person in a comic in any capacity. As far as its quality, Kelly Green has beautiful draftsmanship and an interesting story. However, the creators both seem uncomfortable with the book-length format, and it somehow feels as though they’re still trying to write comic strips, which have a punchline at the end of every page. See here for an additional review. There were three additional volumes of Kelly Green, and I bought one of them at Heroes Con (in fact, I bought it directly from John Workman and his wife), but I haven’t read it yet.

ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #632 (DC, 2004) – “Time Elapsed,” [W] Greg Rucka, [A] Paul Pelletier. Lois is dying from a gunshot wound, and Superman spends the entire issue standing by her bedside in a state of complete shock. There are also a few subplots. Superman does not come off very well in this issue; he just stands at Lois’s bedside and refuses to either accept help, or do anything proactive. This is how a normal person might react when a loved one is dying, but Superman is not a normal person.

2000 AD #1833 (Rebellion, 2013) – Dredd: as above. The next missing cadet is Angela Sorvino. When found, she says that she and her squadmates hijacked a bus full of mutants, and one of the mutants, understandably terrified, hit Sorvino in the face with a pot of hot coffee. As a result Sorvino is now missing both her eyes. Afterward, the cadets abandoned the mutants to their fate. This whole story is a brutal depiction of the horror of Chaos Day. Cadet Anderson: “One in Ten Part 1,” [W] Alan Grant, [A] Carlos Ezquerra. Anderson arrests a criminal scientist who’s growing babies in a lab to use them for spare parts. Both of this story’s creators have died within the past five years. Sinister Dexter: as above. Sinister discovers that he and his old enemy Moses Tanenbaum are living in the same town, and Tanenbaum and his goons open fire on Sinister and his witness protection agent. John M. Burns’s art here is excellent as always, but I wonder why he draws Sinister with pale white skin. Stickleback: as above. Stickleback and Bob rest and compare notes. Zombo: as above. I can’t summarize this story, but it’s amazing. It has the same deliberately-ridiculous aesthetic as God Hates Astronauts, but it’s better written than God Hates Astronauts.

TARZAN #3 (Marvel, 1977) – “The Altar of the Flaming God!”, [W] Roy Thomas, [A] John Buscema. An adaptation of Tarzan and the Jewels of Opar, which was previously adapted in the Gold Key series. Thomas and Buscema’s Tarzan feels more savage and less civilized than either Russ Manning or Joe Kubert’s Tarzan. Perhaps Thomas was trying to distinguish Tarzan from Conan. On the subject of Tarzan, I just learned that Dark Horse published a collection, Tarzan: The Land That Time Forgot / The Pool of Time, which includes Russ Manning stories that never appeared in any American comic book. Also, there’s a Korak series by Evanier and Spiegle that was done for the European market, but its only English-language publication was in the British Tarzan Weekly, and it’s never been collected.

ANGEL LOVE #6 (DC, 1986) – “The Search for Mary Beth Part II,” [W/A] Barbara Slate. Angel’s ditzy roommate Wendy puts a personal ad in the newspaper and is deluged with responses. When she finally chooses to date one of them, he turns out to be a preteen boy. Meanwhile, Angel is desperate to find her sister Mary Beth, so she emulates Wendy’s tactics by taking out her own personal ad. The ad falsely claims that Angel and Mary Beth’s mother is dead and that Mary Beth needs to contact Angel to claim a million-dollar inheritance. Hundreds of people respond to the ad, none of whom are the real Mary Beth. I think this was the only Angel Love story that I hadn’t read. I need to return to the Angel Love section of my manuscript soon.

APOCALYPSE NERD #2 (Dark Horse, 2005) – untitled, [W/A] Peter Bagge. After an unspecified apocalypse, two men are living alone in the woods. They quickly grow sick of each other’s company, and also they shoot another survivor dead in front of his family, mistakenly thinking he’s going to shoot them. This comic is identical to Hate in its style of writing and art.

JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #66 (DC, 1968) – “Divided – They Fall!”, [W] Denny O’Neil, [A] Dick Dillin. A would-be dictator named Demmy Gog (demagogue) steals a device that lowers people’s morale, intending to use the device to conquer the world. By coincidence, the device was invented by a professor at Snapper Carr’s college, and Snapper gets the JLA involved. This issue seems intended to be funny – on the first page, we’re told that Demmy Gog is from “Rottberg, capital city of Offalia (land area, 5.67 square miles; population, 727)”. But Denny’s humor is only mildly funny.

HERO FOR HIRE #5 (Marvel, 1973) – “Don’t Mess with Black Mariah!”, [W] Steve Englehart, [A] George Tuska. A man is murdered in Cage’s theater, and to get justice, Cage has to battle the crimelord named Black Mariah, a grossly fat black woman. This issue is entertainingly written, but Black Mariah is an offensive stereotype. She hardly ever appeared again until she was reintroduced in David Walker and Sanford Greene’s Power Man and Iron Fist series. She was also a major villain in the Luke Cage TV series, but in that show she was turned into a very different character.

100 BULLETS #18 (Vertigo, 2001) – “Hang Up on the Hang Low Conclusion,” [W] Brian Azzarello, [A] Eduardo Risso. Yet another issue with boring, overly violent, borderline racist writing, but spectacular artwork. As I have often stated, I love Risso’s art, but I hate Azzarello’s writing, and it’s annoying that two creators of such unequal talents are now so closely linked.

EX MACHINA #13 (Vertigo, 2005) – “Fact v. Fiction Chapter 2,” [W] Brian K. Vaughan, [A] Tony Harris. This issue begins with a metatextual flashback in which Kremlin buys a comic book for the young Mitchell. In the present, Mitchell gets summoned for jury duty and is chosen for a jury, but while they’re in the jury room, another of the jurors takes a third juror hostage and demands that Mitchell cure his Gulf War syndrome. When I read this comic, I thought it was unlikely that the mayor of New York City would have to serve on a jury, but it actually has happened. Tony Harris was at Heroes Con, but I didn’t talk to him.

2000 AD #1834 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: as above. Sorvino explains that she murdered a fellow cadet, Echavez, because she was afraid Echavez would reveal the cadets’ complicity in the deaths of the mutant family. Then there’s a further plot point about the cadets not knowing whether they’re clones. I don’t undersatnd this clone business. Cadet Anderson: as above. The cadets do their own investigation of the case of the baby-cloning doctor. Sinister Dexter: as above. Sinister tries to rescue his witness protection agent from his old enemy Frontal Loeb. Stickleback: as above. Stickleback and his allies confront the people who are creating the lizards. Zombo: as above. “Planet Zombo” ends with another hilarious chapter that makes no logical sense.

STRANGE SPORTS STORIES #3 (DC, 1974) – “Gridiron Knightmare!”, [W] Frank Robbins, [A] Curt Swan. Merlin travels forward in time and helps out a football team by casting a spell that gives them invisible knight armor. This story’s premise is basically that the Knights of the Round Table go to the future and become a football team. The ‘90s TV cartoon King Arthur and the Knights of Justice had exactly the opposite premise. “Man Who Leaped Over the Earth!”, [W] Elliot S! Maggin, [A] Dick Giordano. In the future, a pole vaulter jumps so high that he travels back in time. He meets a young boy who grows up to become the founder of the Interplanetary Olympics Foundation. Overall this comic is kind of dumb, and it shows little actual knowledge of sports. American comics publishers have never really known how to do sports comics. DC should have tried to learn from contemporary British comics like Roy of the Rovers.

BIZARRE ADVENTURES #34 (Marvel, 1983) – “Son of Santa!”, [W] Mark Gruenwald, [A] Alan Kupperberg, etc. This was the last issue of Bizarre Adventures, formerly Marvel Preview, and it was the only issue published as a comic book rather than a magazine. The GCD says that this issue was a “test,” but I don’t know what it was a test of. This issue consists of five parody Christmas stories, most of them creator-owned. None of the stories are particularly funny or well-drawn. Perhaps the best is the last one, by Steve Skeates and Steve Smallwood, simply because it looks like an old Kurtzman comic. Steve Smallwood’s other GCD credits are mostly from Crazy or Mad.

JUSTICE LEAGUE: A MIDSUMMER’S NIGHTMARE #3 (DC, 1996) – “Daze & Knights,” [W] Mark Waid & Fabian Nicieza, [A] Jeff Johnson & Darick Robertson. This series was a prelude to Grant Morrison and Howard Porter’s JLA run. A villain named Knowman is turning Earth’s entire population into superheroes, and Earth’s seven greatest heroes have to team up to defeat them. This convinces them to join together and form a new Justice League. I was unimpressed by this comic, though I might have liked it better if I’d read the previous two issues.

SUPERBOY #26 (DC, 1996) – “Losin’ It! Part 2: Strange Bedfellows,” [W] Karl Kesel & Steve Mattsson, [A] Staz Johnson. Kon and Knockout fight a giant robot crab with Absorbing Man powers, and Roxy trains as a police cadet. Due to the lack of Tom Grummett or the Female Furies, this issue is less fun than #25. This storyline’s title is an obvious innuendo referring to virginity. Steve Mattsson seems to have been mostly a colorist. As a writer, he’s most notable for co-creating Superboy and the Ravens, again in collaboration with Karl Kesel.

THUNDERBOLTS #21 (Marvel, 1998) – “Decisions Part 2: Trust,” [W] Kurt Busiek, [A] Mark Bagley. Hawkeye joins the Thunderbolts as their new leader, telling them that he can get them all pardoned, although the reader is shown that he doesn’t have the authority to make  that  promise. However, Hawkeye’s condition is that Mach-1 has to turn himself into the authorities, since he’s the only Thunderbolt who’s guilty of murder. (The murder in question occurred in Deadly Foes of Spider-Man #3, and this is a good example of Kurt’s encyclopedic knowledge of Marvel continuity.) Also, there’s a flashback to Songbird’s origin. I’m hesitant to read Thunderbolts because of its sometimes annoying prose style and because of its excessive emphasis on inter-team politics. I think I’m particularly frustrated with Moonstone and her constant meddling. But Thunderbolts #21 is not bad. It has a fascinating plot, and it shows a good understanding of Hawkeye’s character.

DARK HORSE PRESENTS #10 (Dark Horse, 1987) – Concrete: “Straight in the Eye,” [W/A] Paul Chadwick. Concrete rescues Larry’s brother, who’s stranded in remote wilderness after crashing his biplane. This is a satisfying and beautifully drawn story. The other two stories in this issue, starring Masque and Sole Survivors, are of little interest. If not for Paul Chadwick, I’m not sure Dark Horse would still be around today, because Concrete was overwhelmingly better than anything else Dark Horse published in its first year or so. It was probably the licensed properties, like Star Wars and Aliens, that ensured Dark Horse’s success, but without Concrete, I wonder if they’d have survived long enough to get those licenses.

AVENGERS ACADEMY #19 (Marvel, 2011) – “Things Fall Apart,” [W] Christos Gage, [A] Tom Raney. In a Fear Itself crossover, the Avengers Academy kids are trapped in the Infinite Avengers Mansion, which is located in a microverse. The mansion is about to grow to normal size and destroy the city of Chicago, and to prevent this, one of the kids will have to sacrifice their life to activate the mansion’s self-destruct mechanism. On top of that, the kids have to fight the Asgardian-powered Absorbing Man and Titania. The adult Avengers arrive and save the day, but Veil is so traumatized that she quits the team. This may have been the last issue of Avengers Academy that I hadn’t read. I think Tom Raney was at Heroes Con, but I didn’t meet him.

DONALD DUCK ADVENTURES #17 (Gladstone, 1989) – “The Curse of the Lost Empress,” [W/A] Ben Verhagen. Donald acquires a cursed puppet that brings him bad luck. To break the curse, Donald has to bring the puppet to the Indian Ocean island of Suheli, where he can reunite it with a second puppet. This is an exciting story whose artwork and adventure plot are both very Barksian. In particular, the scene with the storm at sea reminds me of Barks’s “The Flying Dutchman.” I hadn’t heard of Ben Verhagen before, but Lambiek describes him as one of the most prominent Dutch Disney artists. This issue also includes a very early Barks story that has some offensive depictions of Native Americans.

POWER MAN #40 (Marvel, 1977) – “Rush Hour to Limbo!”, [W] Marv Wolfman, [A] Lee Elias. Luke fights two villains named Cheshire Cat and Big Brother. I don’t remember anything in particular about this issue. Because of the NHL player Patrik Elias, I somehow can’t help myself from pronouncing Elias as “el-ee-ash,” even when I know it’s supposed to be pronounced in the usual way.

ARCADE #7 (Print Mint, 1976) – [E] Art Spiegelman & Bill Griffith. This was the last issue of Arcade, but it was followed four years later by Raw, an even more important comic that included many of the same creators. Arcade #7 begins with Kim Deitch’s “Possessed,” a typically bizarre and sordid crime story. It was later reprinted in Beyond the Pale. “Possessed” is the longest story in the issue by far. There’s also a selection of pages from Crumb’s sketchbook, and a selection of old Tijuana Bibles. This issue also includes shorter features by Aline Kominsky (not yet Kominsky-Crumb), Justin Green, Robert Williams, Robert Armstrong, Michael McMillan, Bill Griffith, Michele Brand, Diane Noomin, Spain Rodriguez, and S. Clay Wilson.  

DENNIS THE MENACE GIANT #47 (Hallden/Fawcett, 1965) – “Dennis the Menace in California,” [W] Fred Toole, [A] Owen Fitzgerald? This issue is reprinted from #33 of the same series, but with nine pages removed. Dennis and his parents go to California, where they visit Yosemite National Park, gold rush country, the Calaveras County frog jump contest, San Francisco’s Chinatown, etc. In San Francisco they stay in a hotel that washes all their guests’ coins; this hotel really exists and still does this. Dennis the Menace in California is a funny and charming story, but it’s also interesting for its historical context. It gives the impression that in 1958, when these stories were first published, California was still a foreign country to most Americans. (And it still is today, at least in the eyes of Republicans who claim that California isn’t really America.) An especially notable moment is the three-page scene where the Mitchells visit to Chinatown. This scene is full of ethnic stereotypes, but at least it acknowledges the existence of Chinese-Americans, who were almost invisible in the media of the time.

NOWHERE #2 (Drawn & Quarterly, 1997) – “Summer of Love Part 2,” [W/A] Debbie Drechsler. Lily and Steve begin an awkward teenage romance, Lily goes to Steve’s band practice, and then the two of them walk through the woods to an unknown destination. Given Debbie Drechsler’s previous work, Daddy’s Girl, I was expecting this issue to end with some sort of horrific rape or sexual abuse. But nothing like that happens, at least not in this issue. Instead, this issue is just a slice-of-life story, a realistic depiction of teenage romance and sibling rivalry. I really like Drechsler’s coloring technique, which is just a step away from black-and-white, in that the only colors used are green and red. It’s unfortunate that Summer of Love was Drechsler’s last work in comics. I’m surprised to discover that Drechsler is 70 years old. She was already almost 40 when first published by D&Q. I assumed she was much younger.

WEIRD WAR TALES #110 (DC, 1982) – “A Mirror for Monsters!”, [W] Robert Kanigher, [A] Dan Spiegle. The Creature Commandos acquire a new female member who’s a medusa. This comic has good art, but its story is of no interest. A World War II comic starring a werewolf, a vampire and a Frankenstein monster ought to be more fun than this comic is. There are three backup stories, with art by Noly Zamora, Angel Trinidad, and an uncredited Tom Mandrake. One of these stories is written by David Allikas, a now-forgotten writer who mostly worked for Crazy and for DC’s anthology titles.

THE BEAUTIFUL DEATH #2 (Titan, 2017) – untitled, [W/A] Mathieu Bablet. Some sort of postapocalyptic story set in a mostly abandoned city. I probably ordered this from DCBS because it was translated from a French comic. Mathieu Bablet’s art and coloring are very distinctive, but unappealing to look at. He makes everything look sordid and dingy, and his people look like they’re made only of straight lines. I’d buy more of this comic, but it wouldn’t be high on my priority list.

SNARF #15 (Kitchen Sink, 1990) – [E] Denis Kitchen & Dave Schreiner. The highlight of this issue is “Chomdu” by the Franco-Egyptian cartoonist Édika. It’s about a man who visits the unemployment office and is unable to make the receptionist understand what his job is (dental surgeon). This story reminds me of Carmen Cru or certain Cerebus stories, in that it’s about people completely failing to understand each other. However, I do wonder why a dental surgeon would be unemployed. The other high point is a series of single-page autobio strips by Joe Matt, although these strips are very cumbersome to read: they each have 20-plus panels per page, with lots of tiny lettering. There are also a couple humorous farmer stories by George Jablonski, who draws in a pointillist style resembling that of Drew Friedman. Other contributors include Richard Sala, Steve Stiles, Bernie Mireault, and P.S. Mueller, whose art, in my opinion, is hideous.

BILL & TED’S EXCELLENT COMIC BOOK #4 (Marvel, 1992) – “Times^2 Station,” [W/A] Evan Dorkin. While Bill and Ted are riding a time-traveling rollercoaster, their wives are kidnapped, and they have to travel through a series of alternate dimensions in order to find them. One of the dimensions they visit is the “Gap of Pretentious Artists,” where they meet a parody version of Grant Morrison. We know this is Morrison because they themself confirmed it in an interview, calling Dorkin “the f***ing c*** who does Cheese and Chocolate, or whatever it’s called, in Deadline.” This entire exchange makes both Dorkin and Morrison look bad, although they’ve both matured a lot since 1992.  

THE SILENT INVASION #1 (Renegade, 1986) – “Atomic Spies!”, [W] Larry Hancock w/ John Ellis Sech, [A] Michael Cherkas. Another 1950s-era story about an alien invasion conspiracy. I don’t remember anything in particular about this issue’s plot. Cherkas’s artwork here is much looser than in the later miniseries Secret Messages.

CAMELOT 3000 #6 (DC, 1983) – “Royal Wedding Funeral,” [W] Miike W. Barr, [A] Brian Bolland. Arthur and Guinevere get married, but Guinevere is assassinated at the wedding, only to be revived thanks to Lancelot’s sacrifice. Tristan meets the reincarnated version of Isolde. Morgan le Fey continues to make mischief. This comic has some beautiful art, but I’ve stated my complaints about this comic before: Bolland couldn’t do his best work while maintaining a monthly schedule, and Barr only had a basic knowledge of Arthurian myth.

JLA #49 (DC, 2001) – “Unhappily Ever After,” [W] Mark Waid, [A] Bryan Hitch & Javier Saltares. The JLA fights the Queen of Fables and her army of fairytale creatures. The Flash defeats her by trapping her inside a boring book: the United States tax code. This comic has some brilliant artwork, but just an average story. The subject of fairytale characters in the modern world was depicted with much greater depth in Fables, which came out the following year.

HEAVY METAL V7 #3 (HM, 1983) – [E] Julie Simmons-Lynch. Notable stories in this issue include: Starstruck by Elaine Lee and Kaluta, which is redundant because of the definitive IDW edition of that series. Doomscult, a photocollage story by Corben. Spacehunter by Jerry Bingham, who was at Heroes Con, but I didn’t talk to him. The City That Didn’t Exist by Christin and Bilal. The Odyssey by Navarro and Sauri, specifically the Circe episode. “I Got Them Apartment Dweller’s Blues” by Caza. The Man from Harlem by Crepax. I really want to read more Crepax, but all the book-length editions of his work are extremely expensive. Other contributors to this issue include Steve Bissette, Jeff Jones, Howard Cruse, Drew Friedman, and Rick Veitch. On Facebook, I saw someone say that Heavy Metal had excellent art but awful writing. It’s true that the American-produced strips, besides those by Corben, often were quite badly written. Conversely, the French-translated strips were very well-written, but the translations did not do justice to them.

RED ONE #1 (Image, 2015) – “Welcome to America Part 1,” [W] Xavier Dorison, [A] Terry Dodson. I believe this was first published in France, under the title Red Skin, which must have been changed for the American market because it’s a racial slur. Red One is about a female Soviet secret agent who poses as an American superhero. This comic’s protatgonist looks a lot like the heroine of Adventureman. I think the best part about Red One’s story is the protagonist’s cultural shock on coming to America. This series and Animal Castle both have the same writer, Xavier Dorison, but I feel like I haven’t yet read enough French comics to tell the difference between one writer and another.  

ALIENS: DEAD ORBIT #4 (Dark Horse, 2017) – untitled, [W/A] James Stokoe. One of the survivors tries to save himself at the expense of all the others, but it doesn’t work. This series has beautiful art, and I particularly love how Stokoe draws the xenomorphs. However, due to its unoriginal story, it’s not among Stokoe’s best works.

NOWHERE #3 (Drawn & Quarterly, 1997) – “Summer of Love Part 3,” [W/A] Debbie Drechsler. Lily and Steve make out in the woods, then Lily sees her sister kissing another girl, which was not okay since this was 1967. And maybe it won’t be okay in 2027 either, given today’s Supreme Court decision, but I digress. The issue ends with Lily making out with another boy who seems like a real creep. On the letters page, there’s a debate about the effectiveness of the duotone coloring. Personally I like it a lot.

ADVENTURE COMICS #342 (DC, 1966) – “The Legionnaire Who Killed!”, [W] Edmond Hamilton, [A] Curt Swan. This story is a classic, and I’ve already read it in reprinted form. While visiting his parents, Star Boy is attacked by Kenz Nuhor, a jealous ex-lover of his girlfriend Dream Girl. Star Boy is forced to kill Nuhor in self-defense, and is expelled from the Legion for violating its rule against killing. This story is full of goofy moments, especially the game where the computer decides which Legionnaires would have the most fun kissing each other (which is probably the origin of Chameleon and Spark’s romance in postboot continuity). But the central drama is pretty gripping. It’s weird how Brainiac 5 is so vehement about convicting Star Boy, and LSH v3 #51, in which Brainy himself is tried for a similar crime, is probably an intentional throwback to this issue. I honestly think Star Boy deserved to be acquitted, even if he could hypothetically have saved himself some other way. The problem with this era of the Legion is that the characters were wooden. I had a conversation with Jim Shooter at Heroes Con, and one question I asked him was when he started to give the Legionnaires individual personalities. He said he started doing this from the very beginning, and he was inspired by Marvel’s style of characterization.

MERRY MEN #2 (Oni, 2016) – untitled, [W] Robert Rodi, [A] Jackie Lewis. A queer Robin Hood story in which Robin and King Richard I are lovers, and the Merry Men are fighting for both political and sexual freedom. This series was controversial at the time, but it successfully integrates the queer angle with the Robin Hood myth, and it’s not that obscene (though there is a joke about what Much the Miller’s Son’s name refers to). What should have been controversial about this series is its uncritical use of the Merrie England myth, which says that England was a paradise until it was ruined by the cruel Normans. There were supposed to be five issues of this miniseries, but I believe issues 4 and 5 were only published as part of the trade paperback. I think Jackie Lewis was at Heroes Con, but I didn’t realize until just now that she drew this series.

SUPERMAN #255 (DC, 1972) – “The Sun of Superman!”, [W] Cary Bates, [A] Curt Swan. Earth’s solar system is invaded by a second sun filled with star-dwelling aliens. Superman defeats the creature that’s been menacing the sun-dwellers, and creates a new home planet for the aliens, which he calls Krypton 2. The aliens predict that Krypton 2 is going to blow up, just like the original Krypton did, and in Superman #323, we learn that this has indeed happened. I don’t know if Krypton 2 was ever mentioned anywhere else. The backup story, by Friedrich and Giordano, is a Kryptonian version of Romeo and Juliet.

SHADE THE CHANGING MAN #42 (Vertigo, 1993) – “History Lesson Part 1: Pregnant for the First Time,” [W] Peter Milligan, [A] Steve Yeowell & Chris Bachalo. Kathy discovers she’s pregnant. She wants an abortion, but Slade tries to shame her into keeping the baby. Lenny argues that it should be Kathy’s choice, and the writer seems to agree with Lenny, because he lets her have the last word. Then a guest at the hotel causes time to go backward, and the 1979  version of John Constantine shows up, and he’s furious that Margaret Thatcher is about to be prime minister for five years (and in fact it was eleven years, followed by seven years of John Major). To understand what’s happpening, Slade and his friends have to go back in time even further, and they find themselves in the midst of a witch trial.

INCREDIBLE HULK #107 (Marvel, 2007) – “Warbound Part II,” [W] Greg Pak, [A] Gary Frank. The Hulk and the Warbound continue their mission of vengeance against Earth’s heroes. Hercules, Angel and Namora all agree to fight on Hulk’s side, though Namor refuses to help. The centerpiece of the issue is a slugfest between Hulk and Hercules, who subsequently replaced the Hulk as the series’ protagonist.

VELVET #8 (Image, 2014) – “The Secret Lives of Dead Men Part 3,” [W] Ed Brubaker, [A] Steve Epting. Velvet infiltrates her own former agency’s headquarters in an attempt to uncover a conspiracy against her. Velvet is probably a better Black Widow comic than any that Marvel has actually published, though Kelly Thompson’s recent Black Widow run comes close. Steve Epting is yet another person who was at Heroes Con but who I didn’t get to talk to.

HEAVY METAL VOL. 7 #6 (HM, 1983) – [E] Julie Simmons-Lynch. In this issue: The last chapter of The Town That Didn’t Exist. Ranxerox by Liberatore and Tamburini. This is a fascinating series, although it would be condemned today for its depictions of underage sex. Ranx and Lubna’s relationship also reminds me of that of Axel Pressbutton and Laser Eraser. I ordered the complete Ranx collection from Previews, but I haven’t gotten it yet. I think it’s called “Ranx” because the original name violated Xerox’s copyright. Tamburini is only known in America as the writer of Ranx, but he was also a notable avant-garde cartoonist in his own right. Also: Arno and Jodorowsky’s Alef-Thau, a fantsay series whose protagonist is an armless, legless boy. Arno’s artwork and coloring are gorgeous, and it’s a pity that only the first album of Alef Thau was ever translated in English, and even that album was never collected after being serialized in Heavy Metal. Arno is no relation to Peter Arno, and neither of them was really named Arno. Also in this issue are Navarro and Sauri’s Odyssey adaptation, in which Odysseus is imprisoned by Calypso and fathers two children with her, and Fernando Fernandez’s Zora. Homer doesn’t mention any of Odysseus’s children besides Telemachus, but other sources claim he had children with both Circe and Calypso. Other features in this issue include a list of music video awards, a portfolio of Rowena Morrill’s art, and a Francis Ford Coppola interview, conducted by future comics writer Robert Morales.

ELFQUEST #14 (Marvel, 1986) – “The Lodestone,” [W/A] Wendy Pini, [W] Richard Pini. Cutter and Skywise have befriended the humans Nonna and Adair, who are based on Wendy and Richard themselves. Nonna and Adair introduce the elves to their tribe, but the tribal chief’s rivals try to assassinate the elves. In the subplot, Leetah and the kids go looking for Cutter.

OLIVIER RAMEAU V3 (Le Lombard, 1972) – “Le Chateau des 4 Lunes,” [W] Michel Greg, [A] Dany. My copy says “Olivier Rameau 6” on the spine, but this is now considered volume 3. Olivier Rameau and his fiancee Colombe Tiredaille live in Rêverose, a magical, dreamlike realm where only people of a poetic and absurd spirit are welcome. A poet and an artist are invited to Rêverose, but two con men, La Candeur and Fourbignol, are mistaken for them and are admitted in their place. La Candeur and Fourbignol proceed to infect Rêverose with the evils of capitalism. Olivier and Colombe get rid of the con men, with the aid of a wizard who lives in a castle full of living furniture. This last part reminds me of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, but the similarity is probably a coincidence. I frankly loved this comic. It’s charming and playful but also exciting, and just a bit anti-capitalist. Dany makes the two protagonists look gorgeous, and it’s worth noting here that his first work translated into English is an erotic comic, Grin and Bare It! His artwork is also full of sight gags and chicken fat. I enjoyed this comic more than Philémon, which has a similar absurdist, dreamlike aesthetic. I want to read more French comics like this one.

MARVEL SPOTLIGHT #27 (Marvel, 1976) – “Death is the Symbionic Man!”, [W] Bill Mantlo, [A] Jim Mooney. Namor fights Simon Ryker and the artificial man Ryker has created. The Symbionic Man dies at the end. This is a boring comic and I can’t remember much of anything about it. A footnote mentions that Ryker previously appeared in Deathlok, but this was not him, but his counterpart from a different universe. The Symbionic Man only appeared in one other comic, Super-Villain Team-Up #4.

BROTHERS OF THE SPEAR #14 (Gold Key, 1975) – “Return to Thunder Mountain,” [W] Gaylord Du Bois, [A] Dan Spiegle. With Dan-El and Natongo accompanying her, Nandi travels back to her native kingdom to save it from an invasion. Nandi is the sole heir to the kingdom, even though she would rather stay in Aba-Zulu instead. In the end, Nandi’s kingdom is saved, and its original rulers are freed from suspended animation and reassume the throne, allowing Nandi to go back to Aba-Zulu. The idea that Nandi would prefer to “be just Queen Tavane’s little maid”, rather than rule as a queen in her own right, has some unfortunate implications.

On my next trip to Heroes, there was a relatively small stack of comics waiting for me. I’m trying to exercise more, so after having lunch, I walked all the way from Heroes to the 7th Street train station.  

NIGHTWING #104 (DC, 2023) – “Rise of the Underworld Finale,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Travis Moore. Neron has given Dick superpowers, which Dick has to use to protect Olivia from an army of demons and supervillains. When Neron offers to let Dick keep his powers in exchange for surrendering Olivia, Dick obviously refuses, and he defeats Neron by using the secret weapon that Nite-Mite gave him in #98. I had honestly forgotten about that. Olivia, aka Nightbuster, becomes an honorary Titan and is taken in by the Amazons. Raven takes Neron’s underworld away from him and gives it to Blaze (and this may be connected with events in Superman #5). Neron is a really loathsome villain. The sight of this all-powerful demon sending an entire army against a preteen girl is rather disgraceful. In the backup story, Dick and Jon uncover the real culprit, a disgruntled former circus employee.

VANISH #7 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Ryan Stegman, [A] Donny Cates. Elyn summons Dustin’s spirit to help Oliver, even though she’s resolved to leave him. Dustin summons a demon to save Oliver, but he has to resign himself to eternal damnation in order to win the demon’s aid. Even with this extra help, Oliver is still getting his ass kicked. An impressive moment in this issue is when Dustin is thinking that he doesn’t need to take the demon’s deal, because he’s already done enough, and then the caption box with Oliver’s thoughts is connected to the demon’s thought balloon, and the demon starts repeating what Oliver is saying. As in Sacrament, the demon corrupts Dustin by parroting his own thoughts back to him, saying things to him that are an exaggeration of what he might say to himself in his bad moods.

SUPERMASSIVE 2023 (Image, 2023) – [W] Kyle Higgins et al., [A] Daniele Di Nicuolo. Radiant Black, Rogue Sun and Dead Lucky team up to defend the Holy Grail from a villain. I didn’t like this Supermassive as much as the first one. The Rogue Sun in this issue is Caleb, who’s even more of an asshole than Dylan, and I hated Dead Lucky’s own comic, so I’m not happy to see her again.  Therefore, of the three protagonists, there’s only one that I actually like. I do hope there will be a Supermassive 2024.

LOCAL MAN #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Tim Seeley, [A] Tony Fleecs. While fleeing from the police chief, Crossjack discovers Camo Crusader’s secret lair, and then the Crusader himself appears. It quickly becomes clear that the Crusader is a religious fanatic and that he has some sort of plot to conquer the world, and Crossjack is forced to kill him in self-defense. Then some  kind of teleporting murderer arrives in town. In the backup story, it’s suggested that Crossjack slept with Camo Crusader’s wife at the latter’s behest, because the Crusader’s powers made him impotent.

KAYA #8 (Image, 2023) – “In the Poison Lands Chapter 2,” [W/A] Wes Craig. The monsters who kidnapped Jin negotiate with the robot who destroyed Jin and Kaya’s village. Jin befriends one of the monsters. While pursuing Jin, Kaya and her companions rappel down a cliff and are attacked by giant bats. One of the best things about this series is its creature designs.

W0RLDTR33 #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Fernando Blanco. A series of  vignettes, each focusing on different characters who are involved with the W0rldtr33 murders. This is a well-written issue, but nothing about it particularly stood out to me. I like how when a person is corrupted by the computer virus, their image becomes blurred, as if they were being  played on a VCR with poor tracking.

EDGE OF SPIDER-VERSE #2 (Marvel, 2023) – “Home is Where Your Heart is Cut Out by a Huntsman,” [W] David Hein, [A] Luciano Vecchio. A Spinstress story that’s inspired by a bunch of different Disney movies. This story’s version of Kraven the Hunter is based on Gaston from Beauty and the Beast, and having just read Plautus’s play Miles Gloriosus, I now understand where Gaston came from. I love Spinstress, and this is an incredibly fun story, even if some of the song lyrics don’t scan. The backup story is about Sky-Spider, who is sort of a dark-fantasy Spider-Man with echoes of Tarzan, but it’s hard to tell just what sort of effect this story is designed to evoke.

THE NEIGHBORS #3 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jude Ellison S. Doyle, [A] Letizia Cadonici. This issue is narrated from the perspective of the mother, Janet. Her older daughter, Casey, is acting increasingly weird, and her marriage to Oliver is under strain due to Oliver’s severe mental health issues. This issue is okay, but Oliver has dominated the previous two issues to such an extent that the rest of the family has been underexposed.

TERRORWAR #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Dave Acosta. The protagonists fight the other bounty hunters and lose, but some kind strangers give them some money to replace the bounty that was stolen from them. With that money, the protagonists go out to a nightclub, but the club is attacked by fire demons, and the protagonists and antagonists have to team up to fight them. One of the antagonists is killed, and then all the characters are arrested for unsanctioned use of their powers. This is kind of a boring issue, and so far there’s nothing particularly original about this series. I trust Saladin, but I hope he takes this series in a more interesting direction.

CAT FIGHT #1 (IDW, 2023) – “Among the Pigeons,” [W] Andrew Wheeler, [A] Ilias Kyriazis. Our protagonist, Felix, comes from a lineage of thieves. When another thief named Schrödinger tries to browbeat Felix into working for him, Felix refuses, and in revenge, Schrödinger murders Felix’s grandmother Kitty Midnight. I’m sad that this comic is about cat burglars and not actual cats, but it’s full of cat references, as well as a couple beautiful drawings of cats, and we’re clearly supposed to think of the characters as cats in human form.

CITY BOY #1 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Greg Pak, [A] Minkyu Jung. This is the third of the three new DC titles with Asian protagonists. Our protagonist, Cameron, is an orphaned youth with some sort of city-related superpowers. On arriving in a new city, he’s forcibly recruited in a gang run by a sleazy crimelord, Boss Chung. This comic is interesting both for its theme of urbanism, and for its references to Korean culture. A key word in this issue is hyung, which seems to mean older brother.

SILVER SURFER: GHOST LIGHT #4 (Marvel, 2023) – “Demolition Man,” [W] John Jennings, [A] Valentine De Landro. The two factions of the Stranger’s personalities continue their battle. This series’s cast of characters has grown too large, and I had trouble following this issue’s plot or remembering who was on which side. However, I love the scene where the old lady asks the  Surfer his name, and he says it’s the Silver Surfer, and she says “What’d your mama name you?” and he replies “Norrin… ma’am.” When this series was announced, I didn’t see how it was possible to write a Silver Surfer comic that was primarily about black people, but John Jennings has succeeded at this.

BULLS OF BEACON HILL #5 (Aftershock, 2023) – “You’ve Got Another Thing Coming,” [W] Steve Orlando, [A] Andy Macdonald. This comic’s title is a grammatical pet peeve of mine – it should be “another think coming”, because “another thing coming” makes no sense. Chris finally fights his dad, who, despite his aura of invincibility, was so unsure of his victory that he brought along some guys with guns. Chris wins the fight and then publicly identifies himself as Orin’s son. This issue was a fairly satisfying conclusion to the series, although when Chris defeats Orin by beating him up, this seems like an endorsement rather than a rejection of Orin’s toxic masculinity. Sadly, Bulls of Beacon Hill #5 might be the last Aftershock comic ever. It was their only new comic solicited in the May 2023 Previews, and in both the June and July 2023 Previews, they had no new comics solicited at all.

BLUE BOOK #4 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Michael Avon Oeming. Under hypnosis, Betty remembers what happened when the aliens abducted her. Then there’s a backup story about spontaneous human combustion, and it mentions the most famous literary example of this phenomenon – Krook in Dickens’s Bleak House. Blue Book still feels like a plot summary rather than an actual story, and overall it’s the worst James Tynion comic I’ve read. I would have dropped it by now if it were written by anyone else.

THE EXPANSE: DRAGON TOOTH #2 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Andy Diggle, [A] Rubine. War is brewing between Earth, Mars and the Belters. The political maneuvering in this comic feels intense and well-written, although I don’t quite understand what’s going on. I like how some of the dialogue in this series is written in an imaginary space patois. Perhaps the best thing about this series is the beautiful Christian Ward covers. Along with Simone Di Meo, he’s the best space opera artist in the industry.

HARROWER #4 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Justin Jordan, [A] Brahm Revel. The final girl is browbeaten into killing the old Harrower and becoming the new one, and the adults use her as a tool to enforce their control over the community. This ending reminds me of that of Where Monsters Lie. This comic is a good example of the slasher genre, but I’m not a big fan of that genre. I said hi to Justin Jordan at Heroes Con, but did not talk to him at length.

RADIANT PINK #5 (Image, 2023) – “A Tale of Most Woe,” [W] Meghan Camarena & Melissa Flores, [A] Emma Kubert. Eva discovers that Kelly was conspiring against her, so she maroons Kelly on a deserted planet. Then Eva gives up streaming to preserve her mental health. This issue is a reasonably good resolution to the series, but I wish the series had focused more on Eva’s character arc, rather than wasting so much space on irrelevant comedy (though I did like the giant cats). The Radiant Red miniseries was better because it was much more focused on the theme of the story that introduced Radiant Red; it felt more like a logical expansion of Radiant Red’s first appearance. In summary, Radiant Pink was the second worst Massiveverse title, after The Dead Lucky, with which it shared a writer, and I’ll be hesitant to read any more comics by Melissa Flores.

ORDINARY GODS #12 (Image, 2023) – “The Beginning,” [W] Kyle Higgins & Joe Clark, [A] Daniel HDR. The gods almost manage to destroy the God Machine, or whatever they were trying to do, but Brianna gets shot, and Christopher abandons his quest and leaves to take care of Brianna. This is an anticlimactic and unsatisfying conclusion. Also, this whole series was trying to do way too much. Because it was only twelve issues, none of the characters got sufficient development, and the epic, multiverse-spanning plot was compressed into far too small a space. Ordinary Gods had some good ideas, but ultimately failed to fulfill its potential.

EXORCISTS NEVER DIE #2 (Mad Cave, 2023) – untitled, [W] Steve Orlando, [A] Sebastian Piriz. The two exorcists defeat Lust, which attacks them by inflaming their sexual tensions. This comic has some nice body horror and sexual undertones (or overtones really), but so far this miniseries is just okay. I find Steve Orlando’s work to be a mixed bag.

SANTOS SISTERS #4 (Floating World, 2023) – “Dude! Where is My Car?”, [W/A] Greg and Fake.  (This Fake doesn’t seem to be the same as Edie Fake.) Another superhero comic with Archie-inspired art. Santos Sisters is funny and has high production values, but I’m not sure if I quite get the joke behind it, and it doesn’t seem like a major work of art.

SANDMAN UNIVERSE: DEAD BOY DETECTIVE #6 (Vertigo, 2023) – untitled, [W] Pornsak Pichetshote, [A] Jeff Stokely. The kids defeat the villains, and the series ends with a cameo appearance by Thessaly, who seems to be the unifying figure across all these Sandman Universe comics. I liked this series’s exploration of Thai mythology, but, like Good Asian, it was severely hampered by a confusing plot.

DEEP CUTS #2 (Image, 2023) – “Sorry, But I Can’t Take You,” [W] Kyle Higgins & Joe Clark, [A] Helena Masellis. This issue is not related to the previous issue except thematically, and I think there might be a cameo appearance by the protagonist of issue 1. Gail Geldstein, a young woman living in Chicago in 1928, wants to be a famous singer. But just as her career is taking off, it’s derailed by the Great Depression, and she ends up totally forgotten except for one song, which no one realizes she even wrote. This is a depressing and sadly realistic story. Gail is a parallel to all the creators who were forgotten and excluded by the comics industry. But I’m not sure what the overall point of Deep Cuts is.

POWER GIRL SPECIAL #1 (DC, 2023) – “Dark Knight of the Soul,” [W] Leah Williams, [A] Marguerite Sauvage. I bought this because it’s a rare full-length comic drawn by Marguerite Sauvage. Her art is beautiful, and I particularly liked her drawings of Streaky the super-cat. However, it was hard to concentrate on this comic’s art because its story is unreadable. It’s not interesting to begin with, and it makes no sense if the reader isn’t also reading Action Comics. For instance, Power Girl is now named Paige for some reason, and the reader is never told this, so it took me a while to figure out who “Paige” was. The fundamental problem with Power Girl is that she’s been retconned in so many different ways that she’s barely a character at all. She started out as a replacement for Supergirl, which made her redundant after the original Supergirl came back, and later writers have struggled to give her any consistent identity or reason to exist. The only creator who succeeded at doing this was Amanda Conner, and Leah Williams seems to have abandoned Conner’s take on the character.  

THE FORGED #3 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Greg Rucka & Eric Trautmann, [A] Mike Henderson. The fighting continues, and the Cassandra drives everyone crazy with her constant micromanaging and predictions. Then the team finds themselves in the empress’s palace. This series is an impressive piece of military SF, but I still have the same concerns about it that I expressed in previous reviews – namely, an awkward format and too many infodumps.

After finishing this week’s comics, I tried to read as many back issues as I could before Heroes Con:

DONALD DUCK #2/369 (IDW, 2015) – “Shellfish Motives Part 2,” [W/A] Romano Scarpa. Donald and the nephews investigate a mysterious conspiracy in which a master chef is kidnapped, and the kidnappers demand half a million servings of shrimp in lobster sauce as a ransom. This reminds me of Gottfredson’s Mickey Mouse story about a crime wave where the only items stolen were hair and red flannel underwear. Romano Scarpa is one of the best European Disney creators, and this story has some impressive depth. In a backup story by Al Taliaferro, Donald and the nephews suspect that their new neighbor is a spy, but he turns out to be their previous neighbor’s landlord in disguise. The landlord is named Mister Legree, though he doesn’t seem as bad as his namesake, Simon Legree from Uncle Tom’s Cabin.

DENNIS THE MENACE #33 (Hallden/Fawcett, 1959) – “Dennis’s New Kick… Get Rich Quick!” etc., [W] Fred Toole, [A] Al Wiseman. A series of short stories, including one where Dennis tries to become an inventor, and another where a tiger rug is mistaken for a real tiger. My copy is in such bad condition that I hesitate to take it out of its bag.

2000 AD #1835 (Rebellion, 2013) – Dredd: “The Forsaken Part 6: Falcon,” [W] Mike Carroll, [A] P.J. Holden. Dredd apprehends the last two missing cadets, and discovers that one of them is pregnant. The story ends with a group photo of all the cadets smiling. Cadet Anderson: “One in Ten Part 3,” [W] Alan Grant, [A] Carlos Ezquerra. Anderson investigates some more, then has a nightmare about terrified babies. Sinister Dexter: “Witness Protection: Malone Again, Part 4,” [W] Dan Abnett, [A] John Burns. Sinister manages to save his witness protection officer and escape. Stickleback: “Number of the Beast Part 12,” [W] Ian Edginton, [A] D’Israeli. Stickleback defeats the lizards, and we’re introduced to a new villain. This is the last chapter of Number of the Beast, and that’s a relief because I was getting sick of its art style. The black-and-white art with no outlines was very striking, but also very difficult to read.

KONG THE UNTAMED #5 (DC, 1976) – “Bones of the Martyr,” [W] Gerry Conway, [A] Dave Wenzel & Bill Draut. Kong meets a matriarchal tribe that hates men. The high priestess’s daughter Sharra is in love with a man named Rolen, but he’s sick of being ruled by women, and he tries to upset the tribe’s matriarchal religion. In a surprising twist, Sharra sides with her mother and knocks Rolen out with a rock, and he’s sacrificed by being burnt alive. This comic  is an interesting treatment of gender politics, but like other Marvel and DC comics of this time, it confuses feminism with bra-burning and misandry. Also, Rolen seems to be an advocate of patriarchy, rather than gender equality. This was the last issue of Kong the Untamed. It’s not a surprise that the series was cancelled, because its main draw was Alfredo Alcala’s art, and he left after issue 3.

LEGION LOST #7 (DC, 2000) – “Singularity,” [W] Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning, [A] Olivier Coipel. The Legion fight the Singularity, and at the end of the issue they encounter four of the Legionnaires who remained on Earth, but it’s obvious that they’re all fake. Abnett and Lanning’s  Legion run was very popular, but I had consistent problems with it. I thought it was too Marvelesque and it paid too much attention to some characters rather than others. However, it was a lot better than no Legion comic at all (or Bendis’s Legion, which is worse than nothing).  Shadow Lass is my second favorite Legionnaire after Phantom Girl, but the postboot Shadow Lass, who appears prominently in this issue, was the worst version of this character ever. She was prickly and rude for no reason. In this issue she acts even worse than usual, and I was a bit surprised to realize she was being mind-controlled, because her cruel behavior seemed consistent with this version of her character.

ACTION COMICS #522 (DC, 1981) – “The Time-Tornado of the Clockwork Man,” [W] Gerry Conway, [A] Curt Swan. A scientist builds a clockwork robot, inspired by Tik-Tok from the Oz books. In another Oz reference, this issue also depicts a tornado in Kansas. The robot causes the flow of time to break down, and Superman has to destroy it. There’s also a typically boring Atom backup story by Rozakis and Saviuk. In this story it’s mentioned that Detective Comics #463 to #468 each depicted a battle between the Calculator and a different superhero. I never noticed that.

SWORD OF AGES #4 (IDW, 2018) – “Gates of Chaos” etc., [W/A] Gabriel Rodriguez. An issue full of gorgeous artwork, which is unfortunately wasted on a generic high fantasy plot. There are too many characters and none of them are interesting, and it’s impossible to figure out what’s going on if the reader didn’t pay careful attention to issues 1 to 3. Gabriel Rodriguez is a phenomenal artist, but he’s worked on a lot of bad comics.

NOW #3 (Fantagraphics, 2018) – [E] Eric Reynolds. A highlight of this issue is a series of interrelated stories by Anne Simon. Her style is a bizarre mix of fairy tales and Greek myths and anthropomorphism. I’m not sure it’s to my taste, but it’s interesting. Anna Haifisch’s story about a flea market has some beautiful page layouts and coloring. Roberta Scomparsa’s ”The Jellyfish” is a queer-themed story set on a beach. Eleanor Davis’s “March of the Penguins” is about a man who cleans up after a crime scene. Marcello Quintanilha’s “Sweet Daddy” is about a dying old man remembering his life. Quintanilha’s draftsmanship and black-and-white technique are beautiful. I just bought his graphic novel Listen, Beautiful Marcia, which won the Fauve d’Or at Angouleme, but I haven’t read it yet. Other contributors include Al Columbia, Dash Shaw, Ben Passmore and Noah Van Sciver. At Heroes Con I had the great honor of moderating a panel on autobiographical comics where Noah was one of the panelists.

PROPELLER MAN #1 (Dark Horse, 1993) – untitled, [W/A] Matthias Schultheiss. A sort of superhero story set in a near-future world. This comic has a somewhat overly complicated plot, and it’s hard to tell just what its point is, or even which of the characters is the titular Propeller Man. The best thing about this comic is Schultheiss’s style of art and coloring. He uses very vivid neon colors, with lots of lens flares to indicate depth. Schultheiss is German, but he seems to be most famous in France, particularly because of his series Bell’s Theorem, which was translated into English by Catalan. I have one volume of Bell’s Theorem, but I read it while in high school or college, and I hardly remember anything about it.

WASTELAND #8 (DC, 1988) – “Heebie Jeebies,” [W] John Ostrander, [A] Tom Artis. A marriage falls apart because the wife suspects the husband is a child murderer. A strange and ambiguous story. “The Dead Detective,” [W] Ostrander, [A] William Messner-Loebs. A film noir parody in which a detective gets beaten up repeatedly for no reason. “The Eye, Like Some Strange Balloon…”, [W] Del Close & Ostrander, [A] Don Simpson. Del Close has to appear for a film shoot even though his cat has just scratched him across the eye. This is probably the best of the three stories. Overall this is a very unusual and intriguing comic. I have a few more issues of Wasteland, and I want to read them soon. Del Close was best known as an actor and a teacher of actors. I believe all his comics work was done in collaboration with Ostrander, who he met when they were both cast in a Chicago production of A Christmas Carol (source).   

JUST A PILGRIM: GARDEN OF EDEN #1 (Black Bull, 2002) – “Marianas,” [W] Garth Ennis, [A] Carlos Ezquerra. I’m sure it was a dream come true for Garth Ennis to work with Carlos Ezquerra, since Ezquerra must have been a major influence on Ennis. But the results of their collaboration are disappointing. The main character in Just a Pilgrim is very similar to the Saint of Killers from Preacher, and in this miniseries he gets involved in a plot whose similarity to the Garden of Eden story is excessively obvious. The miniseries is even called Garden of Eden, so the reader doesn’t even need to decipher the symbolism on their own.

AQUAMAN #40 (DC, 1996) – “Doctor in the House,” [W] Peter David, [A] Jim Calafiore & Vince Giarrano. Dr. Polaris visits Atlantis and messes with Aquaman, since he can control Aquaman’s metal hand. Also, a red-haired woman is pursuing Aquaman, claiming to be his queen, and we’re meant to think that she’s Mera, but the last page reveals her to be Maxima. It seems like PAD was getting kind of tired of Aquaman by this point. Of the two artists in this issue, Calafiore’s art is far more impressive than Giarrano’s. Jim Calafiore was at Heroes Con, and I think I spoke to him briefly.

THE SPECTRE #15 (DC, 1994) – “Old Blood,” [W] John Ostrander, [A] Tom Mandrake. A Palestinian activist Kemal Saad (presumably based on Yasser Arafat) arrives in Cairo for a peace summit with Israel. The Spectre wants revenge on Saad for his history of terrorist acts, and the Hayoth, the Israeli superheroes introduced in Suicide Squad, are forced to defend Saad, much against their will. And Eclipso is trying to meddle with this already explosive situation. This issue is a rather gloomy depiction of the Israel-Palestine conflict, but at least in 1994 it seemed like the conflict was potentially resolvable. Thirty years later, the conflict seems more intractable than ever. The Hayoth are really compelling characters, and in particular, their leader, Ramban, is one of the best Jewish superheroes created by a non-Jew.

2000 AD #1836 (Rebellion, 2013) – Dredd: “Skulls,” [W] Rob Williams, [A] Trevor Hairsine. Dredd fights some “Bug Boyz,” gangsters who murder Judges and wear their helmets. An SJS agent named Gerhard saves Dredd from the Bug Boyz, but despite saving him, Gerhard is determined to prove Dredd responsible for Day of Chaos. Cadet Anderson: as above. The cadet judges learn that they were all sharing the same nightmare, but they insist on continuing the investigation anyway. Defoe: “The Damned Part 1,” [W] Pat Mills, [A] Leigh Gallagher. Defoe has a flashback to the apparent deaths of his family. Sinister Dexter: as above except the story title is now “Witness Protection: In Plain Shite.” Sinister tries to get himself smuggled out of Generica so he can look for Dexter. Terror Tales: “The Death Magnetic,” [W] David Baillie, [A] Will Morris. A cursed cassette tape drives its listeners crazy.

DARK KNIGHTS OF STEEL #6 (DC, 2022) – “Drums of War,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Yasmine Putri. This series’ overarching theme is that it’s the DC universe turned into a medieval epic fantasy. The one really cute thing in this issue is that Harley Quinn is a court jester, but besides that, this issue made little impact on me, because I’m not sufficiently familiar with the series’s plot. I’m collecting this series anyway because it’s written by Tom Taylor.

TONY STARK: IRON MAN #12 (Marvel, 2019) – “Thou Covetous Wyrm,” [W] Gail Simone, [A] Paolo Villanelli. In a War of the Realms crossover, Malekith summons a dragon to attack Tony’s company. Tony fights it alongside a Hulk robot and a talking cat wearing a battlesuit. Gail was obviously having a lot of fun with this issue, though she was only a guest writer.  

TINTIN V10 (Casterman, 1942) – “The Shooting Star,” [W/A] Hergé. There’s a good case to be made that Tintin is the greatest comic in the world. That seems kind of strange, because it’s just an adventure comic with a somewhat vapid protagonist, and it also has an unfortunate history of colonialism and racism. Among the things that make it great are, first, the beautiful Clear Line art; second, the intricate complexity of the plots; and third, Hergé’s masterful visual storytelling and comic timing. In The Shooting Star, Tintin and Captain Haddock race to find a mysterious meteorite before some unscrupulous businessmen beat them to it. The opening pages of this album are full of events that make no sense at first, but once the chase sequence gets going, it becomes thrilling, with plot twists and reversals on almost every page. Hergé’s visual humor is also a highlight of the album – for example, when the ship departs, Captain Haddock is presented a bouquet by the Society of Sober Sailors, and then while he’s still holding the bouquet, a workman asks him where to put his crates of whisky. I love the scene in Tintin in Tibet where Tintin sees a rotten fruit that’s fallen from a tree, then looks up to see where it came from, and gets hit by the next fruit that falls. The Shooting Star is full of moments like that. I feel guilty that I still haven’t read all of Tintin. Besides this one, I have four or five more Tintin albums that I haven’t read, and I want to get to them soon. This album includes a brief cameo appearance by Quick and Flupke, the protagonists of another of Hergé’s series.

WHAT’S THE FURTHEST PLACE FROM HERE? #7 (Image, 2022) – untitled, [W] Matthew Rosenberg & Tyler Boss, [A] Josh Hixson. I bought this on a whim, and read it because of Charles Hatfield’s recommendation. In a flashback sequence, some children are taken from a wartorn city and are abandoned in an old movie theater. Their new life seems to be a paradise, but at night, their city becomes the scene of a conflict between masked men and characters. I don’t know what’s the larger context for any of this, but this issue’s plot and artwork are both very moody and frightening, and I’d like to read more of this series.

SNARF #11 (Kitchen Sink, 1989) – “Basement Man in Latex Love,” [W/A] Rand Holmes. A man buys a blow-up doll, but when he uses it for its intended purpose, he causes some ridiculous chaos. This is easily the highlight of the issue. The only other really worthwhile thing in the issue is a set of one-page strips by Joe Matt, although as in issue 15, these strips are very cumbersome to read due to their tiny lettering and their large number of panels. There’s also a one-pager by Howard Cruse. As for the rest of the issue, the stories by Mark Landman and P.S. Mueller are just ugly, and Dennis Worden’s story seems as if it’s promoting creationism. Perhaps Worden’s (fallacious) critique of evolution is meant to be ironic, but if so, I can’t tell.

RIP OFF COMIX #4 (Rip Off, 1978) – “The 4th Freak Brother,” [W/A] Gilbert Shelton & Paul Mavrides. The title character is a former cop named O’Mullet. This is extremely funny, like most Freak Brothers strips. In the other Shelton story in this issue, Wonder Wart-Hog becomes a professional football player, resulting in massive chaos and violence. This issue also includes the following: Some Griffith Observatory strips by Bill Griffith. One of these strips mentions New York’s air quality problem, which has been in the news again in recent weeks. A “Mom Squad” strip by R. Diggs, who was really named Harry Driggs. He has an appealing art style. A Dealer McDope story by Dave Sheridan. “Dorman’s Doggie” by Frank Stack, a humorous story about a dog. Frank Stack later published a comic book consisting entirely of strips about this character. I have this comic, but have not gotten around to it yet. At Heroes Con I saw a couple copies of Frank Stack’s Jesus Meets the Armed Services, but they were beyond my price range.

LASER ERASER AND PRESSBUTTON #6 (Eclipse, 1986) – “World Killer,” [W] Steve Moore, [A] Mike Collins. Axel and Mysta get involved in a space war, and Zirk makes a cameo appearance. This story includes a same-sex kiss, and Axel and Mysta’s client, Melanie, is explicitly stated to be gay. The other feature is a barbarian story by Steve Moore and Cam Kennedy. As I noted above, Axel Pressbutton is a bit like Ranxerox because he’s a cyborg with berserker rages and a female sidekick/sexual partner. I don’t know if either character was influenced by the other.

JUDGE DREDD: LEGENDS OF THE LAW #8 (DC, 1995) – “Fall from Grace,” [W] John Byrne, [A] Tommy Lee Edwards. I think I got this comic for free at last year’s Heroes Con. It was in a box of comics that were just being given away – they weren’t even considered to be worth 25 cents. This issue’s plot is that Dredd inexplicably starts brutalizing suspects and engaging in corruption, and in the next two issues, he goes on the lam and becomes a criminal. I get the impression that Byrne didn’t quite understand Dredd; he just writes this issue as a standard cop story, with none of the science-fictional or political aspects of the original Dredd comics.

SAVAGE DRAGON #23 (Image, 1995) – untitled, [W/A] Erik Larsen. Dragon has mysteriously vanished, and She-Dragon tries to take his place on the police force, but she and Rapture get into a catfight. It’s implied that Peter Klaptin sleeps with Rapture in exchange for her promise to not reveal that he’s Star. Dragon himself finally reappears at the end of the issue. Savage Dragon has the unusual property that the earliest issues are far easier to find than the later ones, because the earlier issues had far larger print runs. On mycomicshop, Savage Dragon (1993) #1 costs $2.50, while most of the issues from 150 onward are not available at all.  

CUD COMICS #4 (Dark Horse, 1996) – “Spring Fever” etc., [W/A] Terry LaBan. In the lead story, Eno suffers from spring fever and tries some ineffective remedies. The second story, “Ben Dordia’s Confession,” is an adaptation of a Talmudic legend about Rabbi Eliazer ben Dordia, of whom “it was said… that there was no whore in the world he could hear of and not visit.” Eventually he realizes that he needs repentance, and he can only gain it through his own efforts, and for this he earns eternal life. This story really is in the Talmud (Avodah Zarah 17a) and I’d never heard of it before. But the best of the three stories is “Bundle of Joy.” Plum realizes she’s pregnant, and tries to get an abortion, but changes her mind after seeing a state-mandated “Before You Murder Your Baby” video. Eno and Plum decide to raise the baby together, but it turns out the baby is the result of artificial insemination by aliens, and the aliens return and take it back. This story has a funny ending, but it’s also a serious take on the abortion issue, which is sadly in the news again.

STEEL, THE INDESTRUCTIBLE MAN #2 (DC, 1978) – “The Monster Who Mined Miracles,” [W] Gerry Conway, [A] Don Heck. A World War II-era superhero fights a Nazi supervillain. This series was cancelled after five issues due to the DC Implosion, and judging from this issue, its cancellation was no great loss.

MISTY #6 (Marvel, 1986) – “Too Many Brides,” [W/A] Trina Robbins. Misty and Darlene are appearing on a soap opera, and they get in a rivalry over which of their characters will marry the leading man. Misty and Darlene have a similar relationship to Millie the Model and Chili. In the backup story, Misty temporarily acquires superpowers. One of the costumes in this issue was designed by Joshua Quagmire, creator of Cutey Bunny, who recently passed away.

2000 AD #1837 (Rebellion, 2013) – Dredd: “Wastelands Part 1,” [W] John Wagner, [A] Dave Taylor. Some prospective tenants for a new apartment building are attacked by bandits. This is another story that deals with the fallout from Day of Chaos. Dave Taylor is an excellent draftsman. Defoe: as above. Defoe dreams about confronting the people who killed his family, then he and his companions proceed to fight some zombies. This story mentions cock ale, which was ale made with rooster meat. Cadet Anderson: as above. The cadets raid a restaurant that’s serving human meat. Sinister Dexter: as above. Sinister’s finds a crimelord who’s willing to transport him to Dexter’s location, but in exchange, Sinister has to kill all of the crimelord’s enemies. Future Shocks: “Time is the Only Enemy,” [W] David Baillie, [A] Graeme Neil Reid. In a metatextual story, a comics writer encounters some aliens who are using his own stories as a  blueprint for invading Earth. The aliens cause him to die from premature aging, so that he can’t come up with a way to beat them.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #693 (Marvel, 2012) – “Alpha Male,” [W] Dan Slott, [A] Humberto Ramos. Spider-Man becomes a mentor/babysitter to Alpha, a new teenage superhero. Spidey gets increasingly tired of Alpha’s “bad boy” personality and his need for constant supervision, and starts working on a way to remove Alpha’s powers. Alpha is a funny character because he’s so much like a young version of Peter himself, as well as other later teen white male superheroes characters like Nova and Darkhawk – and that’s exactly the problem, since Alpha’s personality type is no longer considered cute or funny. I bought either issue 692 or 694 at Heroes Con, and I want to read it ASAP.

JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #188 (DC, 1981) – “The Metamorph War,” [W] Gerry Conway, [A] Don Heck. A villain named Proteus (not to be confused with the more famous Marvel villain of that name) swaps the JLA’s minds with those of six ordinary people. Of course it doesn’t last. The story ends by suggesting a romance between Flash and Zatanna, who was a favorite character of Gerry’s, but this romance was short-lived because Barry was dating Fiona Webb in his own title. The backup story, drawn by Rich Buckler in a Neal-Adams-esque style, is a Hanukkah-themed story starring Hawkman and Hawkgirl. Gerry Conway is not Jewish, but has described himself as an honorary Jew by virtue of living in New York.

ROBIN HOOD #10 (IW, 1956/1963) – “The Magic Harp” etc., [W] unknown, [A] Frank Bolle. This issue has a beautiful John Severin cover, but that’s the only good thing about it. All the stories in this issue are reprinted from Robin Hood #53, published by Magazine Enterprises in 1956. They’re all straightforward Robin Hood pastiches (and one King Arthur pastiche), with boring art and unoriginal writing. In general, these IW comics tend to be quite bad.  

INCREDIBLE HULK #606 (Marvel, 2010) – “Father’s Day,” [W] Greg Pak & Paul Pelletier. Bruce and his son Skaar team up against Dr. Doom. Skaar is a mildly interesting character, a sort of blend of the Hulk and a young Conan, and maybe I should read more of his solo series. There’s also a dumb backup story in which the red and green She-Hulks fight each other. It’s written by Harrison Wilcox, who I’ve never heard of.

SEA HUNT #8 (Gold Key, 1961) – “Treasure from the Past,” [W] Eric Freiwald & Robert Schaefer, [A] Russ Manning. Mike Nelson recovers an underwater dinosaur fossil, despite interference from crooks. In the backup story, Mike fights some jewel thieves and recovers their stolen loot, which they threw into the ocean. There’s also a short non-Sea Hunt story with art by Warren Tufts, a rare example of a creator who moved from comic strips to comic books. Sea Hunt is an obscure title, but it contains some beautiful Manning artwork.

ACCIDENT MAN #3 (Dark Horse, 1993) – untitled, [W] Pat Mills & Tony Skinner, [A] Duke Mighten. A crime comic with good jokes, but a confusing plot and rather ugly artwork. I remember I enjoyed the first issue of this miniseries, but issue 3 left no impression on me. When I find issue 2, I should reread the series in order. This miniseries was a continuation of a British comic strip that appeared in Toxic, and there’s a collection published by Titan that includes both the British and American Accident Man stories.

SHE-HULK #22 (Marvel, 1990) – “Blondes & Bombshells!”, [W] Steve Gerber & Buzz Dixon, [A] Tom Artis. Some racist terrorists are trying to steal an atomic bomb. In order to recover it, She-Hulk has to travel back in time to the 1940s. There (then?) she encounters the Invaders and the original Blonde Phantom. This issue is full of Gerber’s usual wacky writing, but I don’t remember much about it specifically.

BOOKS OF MAGIC #35 (Vertigo, 1997) – “Rites of Passage Part 9: Appearances,” [W] John Ney Rieber, [A] Peter Snejbjerg. Molly travels with a fairy prince whose name I didn’t catch. I’ve collected a lot of Books of Magic, and it’s a pretty good series, but I’m not passionate about it. My main issues with it is that the plot makes little sense and never seems to go in any particular direction.

CREEPY #33 (Warren, 1970) – [E] Bill Parente. This is from Warren’s awful period, which lasted approximately from Archie Goodwin’s departure in 1967, to the arrival of the Spanish artists in 1971. During this period, Warren lost almost all the talents responsible for its original glory days. Most of the stories in this issue are barely stories at all, just vignettes that don’t go anywhere. The highlight of the issue is the beautifully drawn mummy story by Reed Crandall, but R. Michael Rosen’s writing doesn’t do justice to Crandall’s art. Perhaps the best-written story is the one by Tom Sutton, in which some children play a prank that results in another child being drowned. The only other good artist in this issue is Pat Boyette. The other contributors to the issue are all nonentities.  

TUROK, SON OF STONE #47 (Gold Key, 1965) – “Outcasts of the Flood,” [W] Paul Newman, [A] Giovanni Ticci. Turok and Andar decide to build a permanent shelter in a tree, but they’re troubled by dinosaurs, hostile natives, and flooding, until they decide to return to their former nomadic lifestyle. I wasn’t familiar with Giovanni Ticci before, but his artwork in this story is very impressive. He draws scary dinosaurs, exciting action scenes, and gloomy swamps. He’s best known as a longtime artist on the Italian comic Tex. In the backup story, by the same creators, Turok and Andar get trapped in the desert. There’s also a four-pager by Newman and Rex Maxon. Scott Edelman has posted a rare personal reflection by Paul S. Newman, although I think the date on this interview should be 1997, not 1977, based on Newman’s statement as to his age at the time.

TARZAN #165 (Gold Key, 1967) – “The Thundering Doom,” [W] Gaylord Du Bois, [A] Dan Spiegle. This story is adapted from the 1966 TV series, in which Tarzan’s supporting characters were Jai, an orphaned boy, and Rao Behta, a zookeeper. Jai seems like essentially the same character as Boy from earlier Tarzan adaptations. In this issue, Jai and a visiting senator’s daughter try to observe a tribal ritual which is strictly forbidden to outsiders. The tribespeople catch them and put them in a boat that’s heading over a waterfall, and Tarzan has to save them. Dan Spiegle was a less distinguished Tarzan artist than Jesse Marsh or Russ Manning, but he wasn’t bad.

DARK HORSE PRESENTS 100.3 (Dark Horse, 1995) – Concrete: “The Artistic Impulse,” [W/A] Paul Chadwick. Concrete meets the now-grown Andre, the birthday boy from the very first Concrete story in Dark Horse Presents #1. This is the story where Concrete is tricked into appearing at a birthday party, and in revenge, he lifts the family’s car onto the top of their garage. Then Concrete somehow agrees to draw a woman in the nude, except he can’t hold a pencil, so he has to hire a professional artist to do the drawing for him in secret. The artist is named Stephen Davies, and appears to be based on Dave Stevens. This is a fun story, though its plot requires Concrete to act really stupid. Then there’s a five-page American Splendor story by Pekar and Sacco, which is partly about gentrification, a term that was not yet a household word. There’s also a Savage Love story by Dan Savage and Jason Waskey, about the experience of being called a f*gg*t. The issue ends with a short piece by Megan Kelso, whose work I have never read, and I ought to remedy that omission. All five issues of Dark Horse Presents #100.3 were very impressive – I’m not even sure if this issue had the best lineup of talent among the five.

CAPTAIN AMERICA: WHITE #3 (Marvel, 2015) – “A Hole in the Head,” [W] Jeph Loeb, [A] Tim Sale. Cap, Bucky and their comrades fight some Nazis, then they make contact with a group of resistance fighters, two of whom resemble the Scarlet Witch and Batroc the Leaper. Then they discover that the Red Skull is in Paris, where they’re headed. The artwork in this issue is more interesting than the writing.

HARDWARE #35 (DC/Milestone, 1996) – “The Old Ways,” [W] John Rozum, [A] Eric Battle. For some reason Hardware is in Peru, and he travels with a native guide into the jungle, where he finds himself battling a native deity called the Huanta Aires. Huanta is a real Peruvian placename, but “Huanta Aires” sounds like a made-up name. There’s nothing else particualrly interesting about this issue, and Rozum missed an opportunity to tie this story in to the actual Sendero Luminoso rebellion in Peru. Rozum and Milestone founder Michael Davis recently got into a public feud due to Davis’s comments about a recent Milestone documentary.

DARK HORSE PRESENTS #54 (Dark Horse, 1991) – [E] Randy Stradley. This issue starts with a crime story by John Arcudi and Gray Morrow. The art and black-and-white technique are impressive, but the main character has a bizarre-looking face, though this seems to be deliberate. Then there’s a Next Men chapter, with better art than in most of Byrne’s post-1980s work. Next there are some one-pagers by Rick Geary, and finally a Sin City chapter by Frank Miller. I like Sin City’s dramatic page layouts and beautiful spotting of blacks, but I am not fond of its story.

KA-ZAR #8 (Marvel, 1997) – “Urban Jungle Part 1: Bright Lights, Big Jungle,” [W] Mark Waid, [A] Andy Kubert. Ka-Zar visits New York and confronts his brother the Plunderer, who is secretly conspiring with Thanos. The Plunderer activates a machine that turns New York into a prehistoric jungle. Also, Ka-Zar realizes that his current midlife crisis is happening because he doesn’t feel ready to be a father. The explicit theme of Mark Waid’s Ka-Zar was that Kevin Plunder was a big overgrown baby who had trouble adjusting to adult responsibility, and in this he probably resembled many of the series’ readers.

SANDMAN MYSTERY THEATRE #60 (Vertigo, 1998) – “The Cannon Final Act,” [W] Steven T. Seagle w/ Matt Wagner, [A] Michael Lark. Wesley defeats a Nazi conspiracy to steal American double eagle coins. I think this story is a reference to the 1933 double eagle coin, of which the entire run was supposed to be destroyed, but twenty of them were stolen and sold on the black market. Meanwhile, Dian deals with her guilt over her recent abortion. The problem with Sandman Mystery Theatre is that because I’ve been buying issues at random, I rarely get to read an entire four-issue storyline in order.

THE BOOKS OF MAGIC #52 (Vertigo, 1998) – “Homecoming,” [W] Peter Gross, [A] Temujin. Tim’s dad forces him to attend school again – and worse, he has to attend the same school as his stepbrother Cyril. Tim revisits his old neighborhood and gets in a fight with Molly’s male relatives. There’s also a subplot where a balding man with a monocle is searching for Tim. This issue is as confusing and difficult as most issues of Books of Magic.

THE SEVEN-PER-CENT SOLUTION #5 (IDW, 2015) – untitled, [W] David Tipton & Scott Tipton, [A] Ron Joseph. An adaptation of Nicholas Meyer’s novel in which Sherlock Holmes is cured of his cocaine addiction by Sigmund Freud, and then the two of them team up to prevent World War I from breaking out earlier than it did. I love Meyer’s original novel, but this adaptation doesn’t add anything new or original to its source material. Also, the climactic scene – in which Freud hypnotizes Holmes and learns that Holmes’s father murdered his mother – is covered in just a couple pages.

FANTASTIC FOUR #212 (Marvel, 1979) – “The Battle of the Titans!”, [W] Marv Wolfman, [A] John Byrne. Galactus battles the Sphinx, who, in a flashback sequence, is identified as one of Pharaoh’s wizards from the book of Exodus. Also, the FF continue their fight with Exodus. A flaw with Marv Wolfman’s Marvel superhero comics is his overreliance on his own characters, like Nova, the Sphinx, Veritas, and the Champions of Xandar. These characters have rarely been used by anyone else, though Fabian Nicieza brought some of them back in New Warriors.

BATMAN #48 (DC, 2016) – “Superheavy Part 8,” [W] Scott Snyder, [A] Greg Capullo. A villain named Mister Bloom tries to destroy Gotham with carnivorous plants. I assume this character is somehow connected to Poison Ivy and the Floronic Man, but I don’t know how. Batman doesn’t seem to appear in costume in this issue, but there’s a subplot where Bruce Wayne talks to a man on a park bench. According to this review, this character was actually be the Joker.

HAXTUR V1 (Trinca, 1970) – untitled, [W/A] Victor de la Fuente. A modern Latin American man, visually based on Che Guevara, is transported to a fantasy world where he has a series of sword-and-sorcery adventures. Haxtur is considered one of the classic Spanish comics, and even gave its name to a comics award. However, I was not all that impressed with this book, and I find it hard to see why it’s such a classic. De la Fuente’s draftsmanship is impressive, particularly his immersive backgrounds. But Haxtur’s stories just seem like generic sword-and-sorcery material. Each story is only about seven pages, with no continuity between them, so the stories don’t have time to develop much narrative complexity. Haxtur was reprinted in two volumes, and I also have the other one, but I haven’t read it yet.

THORGAL V7 (Donning Company, 1984/1986) – “Child of the Stars,” [W] Jean Van Hamme, [A] Grzegorz Rosinski. Thorgal is one of my favorite French comics, though I’ve only read a little bit of it in print – I first encountered it when I downloaded some of the albums and skimmed through them. Thorgal is a fantasy series set in a realistically depicted Viking society, but it also has significant SF elements. This is the seventh volume, but in the 1986 English translation, which is the one I have, it was numbered 1 because of chronological order. It consists of three flashbacks to the hero’s younger days. In the first story, some Vikings go to sea and discover a spacecraft with an abandoned baby in it. They name the child Thorgal Aegirsson, the latter name indicating that he’s the son of the god of the sea. In “The Metal That Did Not Exist,” an approximately six-year-old Thorgal has a whimiscal adventure where he has to help some dwarves defeat the serpent Nidhogg. The story ends with Thorgal learning of the birth of Aaricia, his future wife. In the third story, the ten-year-old Thorgal meets an old man who shows him a vision of events before his birth. Thorgal thus learns that he’s the last survivor of a group of spacefaring humans who left Earth in the distant past. The 1986 English version of Thorgal is hampered by poor translation and lettering, but Rosinski draws brilliant action sequences and settings, and Van Hamme’s storytelling and characterization are compelling. As a reader I get the sense that he truly cares about his characters. Thorgal is kind of like a European Prince Valiant because of its medieval fantasy themes and its emphasis on the main character’s family. I’d like to make a more serious effort to read this series, so while writing this review, I ordered the second Cinebook volume.

HEROES FOR HIRE #17 (Marvel, 1998) – “Power Play!”, [W] John Ostrander, [A] Marty Egeland. She-Hulk and Luke Cage save some hostages from a cult, then they go on a date, which is interrupted by the Absorbing Man and Titania. This comic is intended to be funny, but the jokes mostly don’t succeed. Also, Ostrander sets up Luke and Jen as a couple, but that never went anywhere. It’s weird to see Ostrander writing Marvel characters, since he’s so associated with DC Comics and with his own original characters.

BLOODSHOT: SALVATION #4 (Valiant, 2017) – untitled, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Mico Suayan. This comic is mostly about two boys who are abused by their father, until they finally get sick of it and murder him. Much later, the two brothers encounter each other as old men. The connection to Bloodshot is not clear. On Facebook, in response to the news of Valiant’s characters being licensed to another company, Richard Pace pointed out that Valiant’s characters weren’t much good to begin with (I assume it’s okay to cite him since it was a public post). TBH, he’s not wrong. With the exception of Faith, Quantum & Woody, Jeff Lemire’s Bloodshot, and BWS’s Archer & Armstrong, most Valiant comics are pretty bad.

STRANGE EMBRACE #7 (Image, 2007) – untitled, [W/A] David Hine. I read issue 6 in 2020, but somehow I never went on to finish the series, even though I already had issues 7 and 8 by then. I guess I was worried that issues 7 and 8 wouldn’t make sense after such a long gap. But I was mostly able to understand this issue. Sarah discovers Anthony’s mother in an insane asylum, and she reveals the horrifying measures she took to “cure” Anthony of masturbation. Besides  whipping him, she put him in a chastity belt which only she could remove, and she never did. Sarah then realizes that she’s pregnant by Anthony’s father Edward, and that Edward has syphillis. There’s also a backup story about tapeworms. Strange Embrace is one of the creepiest horror comics I know of.

MARVEL TWO-IN-ONE #59 (Marvel, 1980) – “Trial and Error!”, [W] Marv Wolfman & Ralph Macchio, [A] Chic Stone. Ben Grimm and Johnny Storm encounter a man named Norm who’s about to get married, but the wedding day is his 30th birthday, and he has four goals he wants to accomplish before that date. Unfortunately, the first three goals are to become a firefighter, a cowboy, and a detective, and Ben and Johnny have to stop him from getting himself killed while doing any of those things. Norm’s fiancee, Deena, somehow stands by him through all of this, even while Norm risks his own life and breaks the law. Luckily, the fourth item on Norm’s list is to become a husband, and Deena is still willing to marry him despite all his antics. So the story ends “happily,” but not really, because Norm’s actions prove that he’s far too immature to get married, and Deena should have dumped him and looked for a more responsible man to marry.

JOHN CARTER, WARLORD OF MARS #16 (Marvel, 1978) – “John Carter is Dead!”, [W] Chris Claremont, [A] Ernie Colón. John Carter is murdered by a female assassin, and in a fun sequence, Dejah Thoris and the assassin fight each other. Claremont turned Dejah Thoris into more of an action girl than she was in the original books. Of course John comes back to life because he wasn’t really dead, but by then, Dejah Thoris has gone off in pursuit of the assassins’ guild, and John has to rescue her. Marvel’s John Carter series had some good creators associated with it, but I’m not a huge Barsoom fan. I find the John Carter stories to be repetitive, and I can’t get into the characters or the setting. Though somehow I don’t have the same problem with Tarzan.

NEW MUTANTS #65 (Marvel, 1988) – “Demons!”, [W] Louise Simonson, [A] Bret Blevins. The X-Men have just been (seemingly) killed during Fall of the Mutants. Illyana somehow thinks Forge is solely to blame for this, and she decides to kill him. The other New Mutants are unable to talk Illyana out of her unthinking rage, and she leads them into a pointless fight with Freedom Force. Weezie’s writing is notable for her characters’ extreme and sometimes excessive emotions, which are appropriate since her protagonists are often children or young teenagers. A notable moment in this issue is when Kitty and Illyana commisserate over the X-Men’s deaths, and Kitty says that they were fighting a war, and that people die in war. This might have been the only story that depicted Kitty’s immediate reaction to the X-Men’s “deaths”. A weird historical anomaly is that we never got to see Kitty and Kurt’s reaction when they learned that the X-Men were still alive, and Kitty and Kurt’s reunion with the X-Men was mostly depicted off-panel.

GREEN LANTERN #46 (DC, 1993) – “Death City,” [W] Gerard Jones, [A] M.D. Bright. Due to Gerard Jones’s conviction for child pornography, all of his work is now tainted. It’s impossible to read any of his comics without a feeling of disgust. I only read this one because I was trying t get through some unread comics I’ve had for a while. Even taking Jones’s crimes out of the equation, Green Lantern #46 isn’t a very good comic. It’s full of ‘90s ultraviolence, and it subjects Hal to the horrible trauma of having his city destroyed, simply to make Mongul seem more legitimate as the villain of Reign of the Supermen. I read this comic when it came out, and I do still remember the line “You shattered my arm… you shattered my knee… but my will is something you’ll never touch.” But besides that, this comic is perhaps best left forgotten. The next issue after #47 was a standard Green Lantern-Green Arrow teamup, and it depicted Hal reacting with equanimity to the destruction of Coast City. But then issue #48 was the start of the Emerald Twilight arc, in which Hal went completely insane and massacred the Green Lantern Corps, and it took another decade to repair the damage that this story did to Hal’s character. According to Brian Cronin, Emerald Twilight was not part of DC’s original plans. It was cobbled together hastily, with disastrous results.

ELFQUEST #12 (Marvel, 1986) – “Hands of the Symbol Maker,” [W/A] Wendy Pini, [W] Richard Pini. While Cutter and Skywise are traveling, Cutter gets sick from an infected squirrel bite, and Nonna and Adair find him and nurse him back to health. But Skywise mistakenly thinks the humans have kidnapped Cutter, and when he finds the humans, he attacks them. Leetah and the kids only make a brief appearance.

JLA #31 (DC, 1999) – “Crisis Times Five Part 4: Gods and Monsters,” [W] Grant Morrison, [A] Howard Porter. Some of the Justice Leaguers battle Triumph, while others travel to the Fifth Dimension to resolve a battle between two genies, Yz and Lkz. (Their names are backwards spellings of “say you” and “so cool,” Johnny and Jakeem Thunder’s magic words.) During all of this, Wildcat is killed, but he comes back to life because he has nine lives. This story achieves the difficult task of creating a single consistent explanation for DC’s mass of fifth-dimensional imp and genie characters – the Thunderbolt, Mxyzptlk, Quisp, etc.

STRANGE EMBRACE #8 (Image, 2007) – as above. Unable to obtain an abortion, and afraid that her child will be a monster, Sarah commits suicide. Many years later, Alex learns Anthony’s story and decides to get revenge on him. Anthony’s house burns down, killing a couple of people, but Anthony escapes. Alex plans to frame Anthony for murdering Sarah and the people who were killed in the fire. To help with this plan, Alex also murders Sukumar, the narratee, in order to use him as another of Anthony’s alleged victims. Anthony then commits suicide himself, and the story ends by showing Anthony and Sukumar’s ghosts appearing to each other. This is a surprising and grim conclusion, but I’m confused about just who Alex is. Could he somehow be Sarah and Edward’s aborted child? Why does he hate Anthony so much? Perhaps I would understand if I reread the entire series.

SPACE GHOST #1 (Comico, 1987) – “The Sinister Spectre,” [W] Mark Evanier, [A] Steve Rude. A team of villains try to defeat Space Ghost by creating an evil duplicate of him. This is perhaps the only good comic starring Space Ghost as its sole protagonist. Space Ghost has been around since 1966, was created by a legendary comic book artist, and seems perfect for comic books, but he’s had very few comic books of his own – just three one-shots, published in three decades by different publishers, plus a 2004 miniseries. His other comic book appearances have been in anthology or crossover titles. Of the very few solo Space Ghost comics, this 1987 one-shot is the only one with a top-tier creative team. Steve Rude draws this comic in a sedate style, with none of his usual creative page layouts or camera angles. Also, he draws the characters to look like cartoon drawings, while the backgrounds look more like matte paintings. All of this is deliberate: the point of this comic is that it looks and feels like an expanded version of a ‘60s TV cartoon. Also, there are no solid outlines around the panel borders, and the effect of this is to make the frames look like television screens, and also to create a resemblance to ‘60s Gold Key comics, which also had borderless panels. Mark Evanier’s script is exciting and clever, but again, it feels like a longer-form version of a TV cartoon. Overall this comic has lower ambitions than some of its creators’ other work, but that’s fine. It’s an attempt to translate the aesthetic of ‘60s kids’ cartoons into comics, and I think it succeeds at that.  

THE SPIRIT #40 (Kitchen Sink, 1949/1988) – [W/A] Will Eisner. “Thorne Strand and… the Spirit” is another of Eisner’s femme fatale stories. The title character is similar to Sand Saref or P’Gell, although in the commentary Eisner explains how they’re all different. “A Slow Ship to Shanghai” is inspired by the contmporary song “On a Slow Boat to China.” I’ve heard that phrase before but I didn’t know it came from a song. This might be Eisner’s ultimate femme fatale story, because it includes a female-crewed pirate ship, a trope which is now standard (see for example Raven from Princeless, or the Flying She-Devils from Atomic Robo). “The Big Sneeze Caper” is a film noir parody starring Ebony. This story is uncomfortable to read because Ebony is an offensive stereotype, regardless of Eisner’s efforts to defend or apologize for him. In the last story, “Visitor,” the Spirit meets a woman who claimed to be from Mars. I know I’ve read this story before, probably in Eisner’s book Comics and Sequential Art. It made an impression on me because of the line about how Martians are “flesh and blood automatons.” Another effective moment in this story is the silent sequence where Mr. Nimbus, the other Martian agent, opens a window and flies away on his jetpack. The Spirit is clearly one of the great monuments of American comics. I feel reluctant to read these Kitchen Sink Spirit comics just because of the extreme complexity and narrative compression of the stories. Because Eisner had only eight pages to work with, he had to convey the maximum of narrative impression in the minimum of space, and each panel had to do multiple things at once. Reading the Spirit is an intellectual exercise.

SHOCKROCKETS #4 (Image, 2000) – “Rocket Science,” [W] Kurt Busiek, [A] Stuart Immonen. Shockrockets is kind of a science-fictional version of Arrowsmith, another series that Kurt created around the same time. The Shockrockets are pilots who have a mental link to their planes, and they protect the earth from both an alien invasion and human collaborators. I’ve now read most or all of Shockrockets, which only lasted six issues, but I’ve never gotten into it. Neither the protagonist nor the premise appealed to me. But Stuart Immonen draws some beautiful machinery.

NEW MUTANTS #77 (Marvel, 1989) – “Strange!”, [W] Louise Simonson, [A] Rich Buckler & Roy Richardson. In the aftermath of Inferno, Illyana has been de-aged back to a child, and the New Mutants drop her off with her parents. On the way back, Dani collapses, and since her problem is magical, the New Mutants consult Dr. Strange for advice. At this point in continuity, Strange is pretending to be dead for some reason. But he still has to intervene when Dani’s powers drive her insane and turn her into a public menace. In this issue the New Mutants suddenly have four new members, Rictor, Boom-Boom, Rusty and Skids, all of whom were introduced in X-Factor. The only one of these characters I ever much liked was Rictor, and I find Boom-Boom very annoying.

DETECTIVE COMICS #1023 (DC, 2020) – “Prelude to Joker War: Joker Hears a Who?”, [W] Peter Tomasi, [A] Brad Walker. The Joker enlists Lincoln March, from the Court of Owls, in his service, and Batman goes looking for Two-Face. This issue was a very quick and unmemorable read. Also, I’ve previously explained at length why I hate reading about the Joker.

MICKEY AND DONALD #8 (Gladstone, 1988) – “The Blot’s Double Mystery,” [W] Guido Martina, [A] Romano Scarpa. Mickey and Eega Beeva (pwhose pspeech pattern pis preally pannoying) defeat the Phantom Blot. This story, published in 1955, was the Phantom Blot’s first appearance since the Gottfredson story that introduced him. “The Blot’s Double Mystery” ends with the Blot being unmasked, which makes him seem less threatening. Besides that, this is an exciting adventure story. This issue also includes a Barks ten-pager where Donald and his nephews try to fool each other with magic tricks. The covers for this series always showed Mickey and Donald together, but that was a bit of false advertising; each issue usually included at least one Mickey story and one Donald story, but no stories where they both appeared.

AMERICAN VAMPIRE #2 (Vertigo, 2010) – “Morning Star,” [W] Scott Snyder, [A] Rafael Albuquerque. In Los Angeles in 1925, a young woman is turned into a vampire. The backup story, written by Stephen King, explains how the protagonist, Skinner Sweet, came back to life after being trapped in a coffin that sunk in a reservoir. I’ve read a fair amount of American Vampire, but I still can’t tell how it’s different from any other generic vampire story. However, Rafael Albuquerque’s art is really good, and Scott Snyder’s depiction of 1920s America seems historically accurate.

CONAN: SCARLET SWORD #2 (Marvel, 1999) – “Curse in Crimson,” [W] Roy Thomas, [A] Stefano Raffaele. Conan fights a warrior named Kaanga who’s been possessed by a cursed sword, causing him (Kaanga) to transform into a duplicate of the ancient warrior Thun’da. Conan defeats Kaanga but is then possessed by Thun’da himself. Thun’da and Kaanga are both named after Golden Age Tarzanesque comics. Scarlet Sword is one of several Conan miniseries that Marvel published between 1997 and 2000, just before they lost the Conan license. After Conan the Barbarian was cancelled, Marvel replaced it with two short-lived ongoing titles, then with a series of three-issue miniseries. There were eight of these miniseries in all, and they’re all rather tough to find.

ANIMAL MAN #30 (DC, 1990) – “A Nice Day for a Weird Wedding,” [W] Peter Milligan, [A] Chas Truog. This is part four of a six-parter, known as “The Coma Kid” after its first part. Buddy imagines he’s marrying a chimpanzee, then he gets chased by a sabretooth tiger, then his estranged wife throws him out of the house, and then, while protecting the president from an assassination attempt, he gets stabbed to death by broken glass. At least some of these events only happen in Buddy’s mind, thanks to the influence of a psychic child named Lucinda. I believe it was later revealed that Buddy was in a coma for the entire storyline. The last issue of “The Coma Kid” was the first Animal Man comic I ever read. It was a good introduction to Peter Milligan’s writing, and it was also the first place where I heard of Schrodinger’s cat.

MARVEL TEAM-UP ANNUAL #2 (Marvel, 1979) – “Murder in Cathedral Canyon!”, [W] Chris Claremont, [A] Sal Buscema & Alan Kupperberg. Peter has a new girlfriend named Cissy Ironwood, probably named after cat yronwode. The Soviet Super Soldiers kidnap Cissy because her father is a physicist who’s developing a new type of anti-matter bomb. Spider-Man and the Hulk rescue Cissy and her father, but her father is murdered in cold blood by a Soviet agent, who fears that his invention will lead to nuclear escalation. The story ends with the Soviet agent saying that nuclear tensions will continue until people decide to say “no more bombs” and live in peace, and “I don’t think we have that kind of courage.” This story is an example of a common superhero comics trope: a scientist creates a new and dangerous invention, then has to burn his notes and/or kill himself in order to prevent the invention from being misused. I don’t think this has ever happened in real life, because science doesn’t work like that. Scientific progress is usually the product of teams of collaborators, not of isolated geniuses, and scientific discoveries are often made by multiple people or groups at the same time.

TUROK, SON OF STONE #41 (Gold Key, 1964) – “The Phantom Honker,” [W] Paul S. Newman, [A] Giovanni Ticci. A tribe is forced to make sacrifices to a glowing tyrannosaur. Turok and Andar prove that the dinosaur is a hoax created by a failed candidate for the tribe’s leadership. This is basically a Scooby-Doo story, though Scooby-Doo wasn’t created until 1969. In the backup story, Turok and Andar get caught in a feud between two tribes. As in #47, Ticci’s artwork is amazing. This issue also includes a four-pager with art by Rex Maxon.

DIRTY PLOTTE #10 (Drawn & Quarterly, 1996) – “Do You Trust Me?” etc., [W/A] Julie Doucet. This issue begins with accounts of two of Julie’s dreams. In the first one, Julie attends a Nick Cave concert, and Nick Cave chooses a life partner for her, who turns out to be a fat, balding, ugly dude. In the second one, Julie becomes a cowboy. The second half of the issue is the first half of “My New York Diary,” in which Julie moves from Montreal to New York to live with a man she’s barely met. This decision had disastrous results, as we’ll find out later. A key feature of Julie Doucet’s work is its extremely cluttered, hyperactive quality. Her comics feel like the product of a mind that’s moving at a breakneck pace and that can’t concentrate on one thing at a time. That makes them both fascinating and difficult to read.

CLEAN ROOM #8 (Vertigo, 2016) – “A Critical Event,” [W] Gail Simone, [A] Jon Davis-Hunt. While giving a public lecture, the cult leader Astrid Mueller is shot. This is great news, because Astrid is a horrible person. Unfortunately she survives, and the other protagonist, Chloe Pierce, is called in to try to save her. This gives Chloe an opportunity to bring a demon named Spark inside Astrid’s compound. I don’t always understand Clean Room’s plot, but it’s a very creepy horror comic with strong characterization, and it’s probably my favorite of Gail’s creator-owned works.

THE ABYSS #2 (Dark Horse, 1989) – untitled, [W] Randy Stradley, [A] Michael Wm. Kaluta. An adaptation of a movie in which a submarine crew discovers an underwater alien ship. The trope of submarines encountering underwater aliens has been used in other media, like Michael Crichton’s Sphere or Aquaman: Andromeda, but The Abyss may have been the first example of it. Kaluta’s adaptation of The Abyss is perhaps not his best work. Most of the issue is set inside a submarine, and Kaluta has nothing to draw except for people talking or fighting, so he doesn’t get to exercise his skill at drawing fantasy or science-fictional settings. He does include some impressive drawings of machinery and aliens, but because this comic is an adaptation, he has to borrow other people’s machine and creature designs, rather than creating his own. However, full-length comics by Kaluta are quite rare, so this comic is worth owning.

MOTHER PANIC: GOTHAM AD #4 (DC, 2018) – “Different Bat Channel Part 4,” [W] Jody Houser, [A] Ibrahim Moustafa. This issue’s pllot involves a little kid dressed up as the Joker. I don’t know what Mother Panic is about, I don’t understand why DC published it at all, and I’m ashamed that I bought it.

STAR-SPANGLED WAR STORIES #199 (DC, 1976) – “The Crime of Sgt. Schepke,” [W] David Michelinie, [A] Gerry Talaoc. The Unknown Soldier disguises himself as a Nazi officer, but becomes the target of Mlle. Marie, who mistakes him for an actual Nazi. The main story is intercut with a silent sequence in which a different Nazi soldier, Sgt. Schepke, commits suicide, which is inconvenient because Schepke was the only person who could prove the Unknown Soldier’s true loyalties. The backup story, by Michelinie, Steve Skeates and Tenny Henson, is about robot tanks manned by human minds. It has a predictable twist ending. The main character is named David Mitchell, after Michelinie himself. Steve Skeates unfortunately just passed away. I used to see his Facebook posts often, but I hadn’t heard from him in a long time.

MEASLES #8 (Fantagraphics, 2001) – [E] Gilbert Hernandez. This issue starts with “Los Supersonicos” by Jaime Hernandez, which I would have called a Latin American version of The Incredibles, except it predates The Incredibles by three years. Then there’s a silly story by Steven Weissman, whose work I’ve never liked. The high point of the issue is a Coton and Piston story by Joost Swarte, retitled Hector and Dexter. It has a frivolous plot about selling newspapers, but Swarte’s art and lettering are absolutely flawless. I regret that I didn’t buy Is  That All There Is?, the Fantagraphics collection of Swarte’s work, when it came out, because at the moment, the lowest price for it on eBay is $55. The issue ends with a Venus story that includes cameo appearances by a bunch of Fantagraphics writers and editors.

TRANSFORMERS #11 (Marvel, 1985) – “Brainstorm!,” [W] Bob Budiansky, [A] Herb Trimpe. This is the worst Transformers comic I’ve ever read. It has a boring, generic story, and while Herb Trimpe was a great artist, he wasn’t much good at drawing giant robots. But worst of all, this issue is mostly about Spike Witwicky, a character I’ve always hated, even when I was a little kid. Spike was transparently intended as a surrogate for the reader – as a way for readers to imagine themselves hanging out with the Autobots. And that seems like an insult to the reader’s intelligence; it’s as if they thought that kids wouldn’t be interested in a story about giant transforming robots, unless the robots had a kid sidekick. As a kid, I also found it strange that Spike had different names across different Transformers media; he was alternately called Butch, Buddy and Buster, but all these names clearly referred to the same character. Of course there were complicated behind-the-scenes reasons for Spike’s different names, and in some versions of the franchise, they tried to explain Spike’s inconsistent naming by claiming that Spike, Buster and Butch were three different people.  

LONE RANGER #71 (Dell, 1954) – “The Lone Ranger and the Peace Powwow” etc., [W] Paul S. Newman, [A] Tom Gill. This issue’s first story is ruined by its offensive portrayal of Native Americans. It draws a distinction between “good” and “bad” Indians, in which the latter are Indians who fight for their people’s survival, rather than peacefully accepting the destruction of their culture. Also, I don’t know if Tom Gill’s depiction of Plains Apache people is accurate, but I doubt it. As usual the highlight of this issue is the Young Hawk backup story, in which Young Hawk and Little Buck rescue a Shoshone girl and incur the jealousy of the tribe’s leading warrior. This story is notable for the lack of romantic sparks between the heroes and the girl. Gaylord DuBois’s Young Hawk and Korak stories, or at least the ones I’ve read, were completely devoid of romance, whereas in Brothers of the Spear, the protagonists were already married.

Heroes Con this year was from June 16 to 18. Heroes Con has become one of the highlights of my year, and this was another great one. A high point of the con for me was the two panels I moderated on Saturday – one on autobio comics, with Noah Van Sciver, Zoe Thorogood, Kayla E, and Sarah Myer, and another on kids’ comics, with Shadia Amin, Mike Kunkel, Asiah Fulmore, Cara McGee and Mike Maihack. Of course I bought a lot of comics. One of the dealers told me that Heroes Con has the most comics on sale of any convention in America, and I believe him. Some of the comics I bought:

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #91 (Marvel, 1970) – “To Smash the Spider!”, [W] Stan Lee, [A] Gil Kane. Captain Stacy is laid to rest, and Gwen, distraught over her father’s death, decides to work for Sam Bullitt’s law-and-order mayoral campaign. Of course Bullitt is both unscrupulous and a fascist, and he uses Gwen as part of his bid to take control of the city. This is a classic issue with beautiful art and lots of great characterization. John Romita, who inked this issue, just passed away, and with him we lost one of the few remaining links to Marvel’s Silver Age. At Heroes Con there was an impromptu panel in his honor, although I was not able to attend.

USAGI YOJIMBO #11 (Fantagraphics, 1988) – “The Tea Cup,” [W/A] Stan Sakai. This issue is Stan’s tribute to Groo. It begins with a poem, in which every line rhymes with Groo except the last line, which ends “his name was Usagi.” There are references to mulch, “slow of mind,” “did I err” and “Gen does what Gen does best.” On the last page, there’s a moral, and Sergio, Mark, Tom and Stan himself all make cameo appearances. The running joke is that Gen keeps behaving like Groo, although Groo himself even appears in one panel as a silhouette. The plot is that Usagi helps Gen deliver a valuable tea cup, but while they’re doing that, they get stuck with two helpless orphans. There’s also a backup story by Sergio, a wordless piece in which a samurai carries messages back and forth through a battlefield, only to discover that the messages were moves in a tic-tac-toe game.  

BATMAN/SUPERMAN #22 (DC, 2021) – “Little Boxes,” [W] Gene Luen Yang, [A] Paul Pelletier. I spent the whole weekend looking for this, and finally found it. I was interested in it because it has a brilliant metatextual gimmick. Calendar Man loves calendars because they “organize time into little numbered boxes.” So Mr. Mxyzptlk visits the Calendar Man in prison and shows him that the entire universe is organized in this exact way, because Calendar Man exists within a comic book. And Mxy gives Calendar Man the ability to perceive and interact with neighboring panels. Calendar Man uses this ability to discover Batman’s identity and defeat both him and Superman. Mxy then gives Calendar a bonus gift: a pen, which can rewrite the structure of reality. But Calendar Man accidentally cuts his own arm off with the pen, and Mxy decides the situation has gone far enough, and restores the status quo. This issue has a similar premise to Pascal Jousselin’s Mister Invincible – a character who can interact with neighboring panels – and Jousselin even mentioned this resemblance in a public Facebook post. However, Yang’s story is not just a ripoff (intentional or not) of Jousselin’s, because Yang comes up with a clever and logical justification for why this particular villain should gain this power. And even if the metatextual trick in “Little Boxes” isn’t original, it’s a brilliant trick, and it’s worth reusing.

TITS & CLITS #1 (Nanny Goat, 1972) – “The Menses is the Massage” etc., [W/A] Joyce Farmer & Lyn Chevli. The number on this issue’s cover looks like a sideways 2, but I think it’s actually a lowercase alpha. This is confirmed by a number of Greek references in the comic. Tits & Clits was one of the two major feminist underground comics series, along with Wimmen’s Comix. As its title indicates, Tits & Clits seems to have had a stronger focus on sex than Wimmen’s Comix. The only contributors to this first issue are the two founders, Joyce Farmer – then using her married name Joyce Sutton – and Lyn Chevli. The latter’s stories are very amateurish-looking, and is only of interest for its feminist themes. But Farmer’s stories are both beautifully drawn and fascinating. The main ones are about Mary Multipary, whose surname means a woman who has given birth multiple times, as she struggles with finding the right period products, and then imagines penises growing out of her urine. These are disturbing but compelling stories that had little in common with male-authored underground comics. Farmer’s major work is her graphic novel Special Exits, published almost 40 years after Tits & Clits #1. I haven’t read that book, but I’d like to.

SCOOBY-DOO #6 (Marvel, 1978) – “Fester and the Jester,” [W] Mark Evanier, [A] Dan Spiegle.  Fester Finch, an old silent movie actor, has opened a theater that only shows silent films. He’s harassed by a ghost, which of course is a phony. The ghost’s motivation is to steal Fester’s old movie collection because of the silver in the film stock. It actually is possible to recover silver from old film stock. Sadly, a story like this one was plausible in 1978, but not anymore, as all the former silent film actors have died. The backup story is about a man who fakes a gold rush in order to sell land at exorbitant prices. It’s a shame that there isn’t a complete collection of Evanier’s Scooby-Doo.

SILVER SURFER #8 (DC, 1969) – “Now Strikes the Ghost!”, [W] Stan Lee, [A] John Buscema. Mephisto enlists the Flying Dutchman to battle the Surfer. This is the only issue of Silver Surfer volume 1 in my collection. Stan Lee’s story in this issue is just average, and it gives more space to Mephisto and the Flying Dutchman than the Surfer. But Buscema’s artwork is incredible. The peak of his career was in the early ‘70s, when he was allowed to draw like himself, rather than like Kirby. Silver Surfer #4, in particular, is probably his masterpiece. As a kid I never quite got why Buscema was such a revered artist, and in a way I still don’t, but his Silver Surfer run is an excellent display of his artistic greatness. I just read Goethe’s Faust, and Marvel’s Mephisto has little in common with either Marlowe’s or Goethe’s version.    

2000 AD #524 (IPC, 1987) – One of my better finds at Heroes Con was about twenty 2000 ADs, from the #500s and #600s, for about a dollar each. Anderson: “Hour of the Wolf,” [W] John Wagner & Alan Grant, [A] Barry Kitson. Two Sov agents try to carry out a psychic attack on the sleeping Anderson, but they’re distracted by some hoodlums. Future Shocks: “His Name Was Janus,” [W] John Soanes, [A] Dave D’Antiquis. Two parallel stories about a human and a werewolf. Rogue Trooper: “Hit One,” [W] Simon Geller, [A] Steve Dillon. Rogue thinks he’s killed General Yuan-Toh, but the general turns up alive. Dredd: “Pit Rat Part 2,” [W] John Wagner & Alan Grant, [A] Brett Ewins. Dredd fights some giant rats in the sewers. He brings some of the rats back to the surface, and Justice Department discovers that they can be made into hamburgers. Nemesis: “Torquemada the God,” [W] Pat Mills, [A] Kevin O’Neill. Torquemada remembers some of his past lives, in which he was Hitler, Colonel Chivington,  Mathew Hopkins, and the original Spanish Torquemada. Strontium Dog: “Bitch Part 20,” [W] Alan Grant, [A] Carlos Ezquerra. Johnny Alpha, Durham Red, and Ronald Reagan are stalked by assassins. Durham Red imagines sucking Reagan’s blood.

ACTION COMICS #378 (DC, 1969) – Superman: “The Devil’s Partner!”, [W] Jim Shooter, [A] Curt Swan. Superman fights the devil, who turns out to be his Kryptonian godfather Rol-Nac. The story ends by saying that we’ll be seeing more of Rol-Nac soon, but this story was his only appearance. Legion of Super-Heroes: “The Forbidden Fruit!”, [W] Jim Shooter, [A] Win Mortimer. A criminal gets Brin Londo (Timber Wolf) addicted to drugs so that he can force Brin  to commit crimes on his behalf. Brin’s girlfriend, Light Lass, breaks Brin’s addiction by forcing him to choose between the drugs and her life. This is one of the only Shooter Legion stories I hadn’t read, and it’s a good one. It has the sort of strong characterization and heightened emotions that Shooter was so good at. As mentioned in a previous review, I got to talk to Shooter at Heroes Con. Of the many people who were inducted into the Eisner Awards Hall of Fame this year, there are only two I disagree with, and one of them is Win Mortimer. I’ll mention the other one later. Win Mortimer he had a very long career, but he was a boring artist, and inducting him lowers the standards of the Hall of Fame. If they’re going to induct him, they should also induct Bob Brown, Irv Novick, Dick Dillin, Al Milgrom, and countless others.

FLASH #775 (DC, 2021) – “Beacon of Fate,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Fernando Pasarin. Wally discovers a mysterious pokearm – or “glaive” – embedded in the ground of Keystone City. No one can remove the glaive from the ground, not even Superman, and it causes everyone in town to get angry for no reason. Finally an old villain, Starbreaker, appears and lifts the glaive, only to be possessed by Eclipso. The issue ends with Dr. Fate enlisting Wally’s help to resolve this mess. This issue didn’t have enough of Linda or the kids, but it was fun. I only need eight more issues to have Jeremy Adams’s complete Flash run.

KORAK, SON OF TARZAN #1 (Gold Key, 1964) – “Korak, Son of Tarzan,” [W] Gaylord Du Bois, [A] Russ Manning. Korak and his ape sidekick Pahkut save a European child from being kidnapped by native Africans. In the backup story, Korak saves some African natives from being enslaved by a European mine operator. Both these stories are unfortunately racist, though in opposite directions: the first story depicts Africans as savages, while the second story depicts them as victims in need of a white savior. However, Manning’s art is spectacular. He was a terrific action artist, and he also drew impressive jungle settings. I’m guessing that Korak #1 is the hardest issue of the series to find, so now that I have it, I can try to collect the whole series.

CORN FED COMICS #1 (Honeywell & Todd, 1972) – “Madam Fatal Pursues the Cryonic Kidnappers,” [W/A] Kim Deitch. I’ve been looking for this one for a while. I believe it’s Deitch’s  first solo comic book, although he maintains the pretense that he’s just the artist, and that the writer is the fictitious Fowlton Means. Corn Fed Comics #1 is thematically similar to all of Deitch’s work, although his mature style of draftsmanship isn’t developed yet, and his recurring characters like Al Ledicker and Waldo do not appear. They’re very bleak and disturbing stories set in a much earlier America, and they have disturbing fantasy and horror elements. One of them even appears to depict sex with a child, though the child turns out to be a little person. Deitch’s world looks whimsical, but this conceals its grim, sordid nature. I’m still looking for Corn Fed Comics #2, and I think I’m also missing some Zero Zero issues that Deitch contributed to.

CAPTAIN AMERICA #134 (Marvel, 1971) – “They Call Him – Stone-Face!”, [W] Stan Lee, [A] Gene Colan. Sam Wilson’s nephew Jody Casper becomes a numbers runner for a Harlem gangster named Stone-Face. Cap and the Falcon have to save Jody and defeat the crimelord. This issue has excellent artwork and a socially progressive message, though its depiction of black people might be considered patronizing. Jody Casper only made a few more appearances after this issue. He is not to be confused with the Falcon’s other, much better-known nephew, Jim Wilson. According to Wikipedia, Jim being Sam Wilson’s nephew was a retcon introduced in 1979, almost a decade after Jim’s first appearance.

SHOWCASE #58 (DC, 1965) – Enemy Ace: “The Hunters and the Hunted!”, [W/A] Joe Kubert. Enemy Ace fights a series of aerial battles, while philosophizing about war and its effects on men. This is sort of a basic Enemy Ace story, with no particular plot twists, but it helps the reader understand Hans von Hammer’s character. Enemy Ace is perhaps the best American war comic other than Frontline Combat, Two-Fisted Tales or Blazing Combat, and it may also be Kubert’s masterwork. His aerial combat scenes are particularly beautiful.

WATCHMEN #5 (DC, 1986) – “Fearful Symmetry,” [W] Alan Moore, [A] Dave Gibbons. I’m trying to collect this series in its original form, even though I’ve already read it more than once. It may be the most rereadable of all comics, and the original issues offer a somewhat different experience than the trade paperback. Watchmen #5 is perhaps the most carefully constructed comic book ever published. The well-known gimmick of the issue is that the first half of the issue is a mirror reflection of the second. Pages 14 and 15 include the series’s only panel that spans more than one page, and the pages on either side of this panel are mirrors of each other, both visually and thematically. For instance, pages 10 and 19 both depict Dan and Laurie talking, and they both have identical panel grids, with a large panel in the middle showing both characters reflected in a mirror. The mirror gimmick is easier to appreciate when you’re reading the original comic book, because you can actually look at each pair of mirrored pages at the same time, and you can feel their relationship to each other. It is disappointing, though, that pages 14 and 15 are the two pages before the centerfold, so the point of reflection is not at the exact center of the comic. Major plot points in this issue include Moloch’s death, Rorschach’s capture, and Ozymandias’s fake assassination attempt on himself. Perhaps my favorite moment in this issue is when the one cop gets an anonymous tip and says “Raw shark? Why should I want to know where to find…”, and then in the next panel he just says “raw shark,” and the other cop stares wide-eyed at the reader. As my dad pointed out to me once, “raw shark” is also what the protagonist eats in the inset Tales of the Black Freighter story. Which, again, is an example of the meticulous craftsmanship of this comic, and the interconnectedness of everything in it.

THE CAT #2 (Marvel, 1973) – “The Owl and the Pussycat!!”, [W] Linda Fite, [A] Marie Severin. Now here’s something much less cerebral. Greer Grant Nelson, now known as the Cat, fights the Owl, while her mentor Dr. Tumolo languishes in hospital. This issue is mostly interesting as an early Tigra appearance, and it’s not particularly well-written or well-drawn. The Cat was part of a group of three Marvel titles launched in late 1972, along with Shanna the She-Devil and Night Nurse. All three titles had female protagonists and female writers, probably in order to cash in on second-wave feminism. However, none of the series’ writers – Linda Fite, Carol Seuling and Jean Thomas – had much previous comics writing experience, before or since (and all were married to prominent men in the industry,  though Linda Fite didn’t marry Herb Trimpe until after The Cat began). The Cat only lasted four issues. Greer Nelson later became a more prominent character under the name Tigra, but she’s still never had a successful solo title, and that’s too bad because as a cat person, I really like her.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #674 (Marvel, 2012) – “Great Heights Part 1: Trust Issues”, [W] Dan Slott, [A] Giuseppe Camuncoli. In the aftermath of Spider-Island, Spidey investigates a wave of murders in which people are being dropped from the sky. At the end of the issue, we learn that the murderers are working for the Vulture. The last page shows the Vulture feeding raw pork to his pet vulture, perhaps in homage to the Spirit villain Mr. Carrion. There’s also a subplot about Mary Jane. A cute moment in this issue is when Peter runs into his ex-girlfriend Carlie Cooper at the Coffee Bean, and they discover they’re both investigating the same case.

SUPERMAN’S GIRL FRIEND LOIS LANE #42 (DC, 1963) – “The Girl Who Destroyed Atlantis!”, [W] Leo Dorfman, [A] Kurt Schaffenberger. Lois travels back in time to Atlantis, where she falls in love with a man who resembles Luthor, while a man who resembles Clark Kent becomes her enemy. This is a pretty stupid story. Leo Dorfman was a prolific writer, but he’s a very obscure figure. “The Monkey’s Paw!”, [W] Jerry Siegel, [A] Schaffenberger. This story is similar to the famous prose story of the same name by W.W. Jacobs, though with less gruesome results. “The Romance of Superbaby and Baby Lois!”, [W] Dorfman, [A] Schaffenberger. Lois goes temporarily insane and blackmails Superman into marrying her. Superman tricks Lois (or rather, she tricks herself) into spraying herself with a spray that causes reverse aging. When Lois figures out what’s happened, she uses the same spray on Superman. So Superman and Lois both get steadily younger, until by the time of the wedding, they’ve become babies, and they’re not capable of saying “I do.” (Also they’re below the age of consent, but no one mentions that.) This story has been reprinted in two different anthologies, Superman in the Sixties and Lois Lane: A Celebration of 75 Years. This is probably because it’s such a ridiculous story; it’s the ultimate example of the bizarreness of Silver Age Lois Lane comics.

2000 AD #525 (IPC, 1987) – Anderson: as above. After a car chase, the two Sov agents are killed, but Anderson continues to dream about a wolf, suggesting that the threat isn’t over. Tales from Mega-City One: “Marriage Guidance,” [W] John Wagner & Alan Grant, [A] Will Simpson. Dredd catches a married couple fighting for the sixth time this year. He forcibly divorces them, then flips a coin to decide which of them has to move out. This is just a one-pager, but it’s funny. Rogue Trooper: “Hit One,” [W] Simon Geller, [A] Steve Dillon. Rogue tries to kill Yuan-Toh (again), but is caught and has to escape. Dredd: “The Raggedy Man,” [W] John Wagner & Alan Grant, [A] John Ridgway. Some Helltrekkers find Judge Dredd’s unconscious body in the Cursed Earth. The title character, a homicidally insane drifter, decides to murder the Helltrekkers. This story is narrated in fairy-tale prose, as if it’s intended for children, and that makes it all the scarier. Mean Team: “They’re Back!”, [W] Alan Hebden, [A] Massimo Belardinelli. A revival of a series whose previous appearance was in prog 447. The original Mean Team saga was a sports story, similar to Harlem Heroes, but the revival version is a fantasy story. Its villains are two conjoined twins named Bloo and Baloo, whose lines of dialogue always rhyme with their names. Mean Team has a fairly incoherent plot, and its artwork exhibits both Belardinelli’s best and worst qualities – his gorgeous backgrounds and monsters, and his unrealistic-looking people. Strontium Dog: as above. Reagan dreams about riding a giant missile to Moscow, then wakes to find Durham Red about to bite him. Then Reagan and the SDs are attacked by their enemies. This issue’s back cover includes the first installment of “DR & Quinch’s Agony Page,” by Jamie Delano and Alan Davis, in which DR and Quinch respond to readers’ requests for advice. They were the final stories with these characters, except for one story in 2018. These pages are hilarious, though not as much so as the original Alan Moore stories. I talked to Alan Davis a couple times at Heroes Con, and I told him that I’d read some of Harry Twenty on the High Rock.

TWO-FISTED TALES #2 (EC, 1951/1993) – “War Story!”, [W] Harvey Kurtzman, [A] John Severin. In WWII, a soldier tries to murder a Japanese POW, but murders his own brother instead. This is a powerful twist, but the story suffers from too much irrelevant material. “Jivaro Death!”, [W/A] Kurtzman. Two men are captured by Jivaro Indians, one of them is tortured to death, and the other tricks them into giving him a quick death. Wikipedia says that the word jíbaro is considered offensive when referring to Amazonian people, although it’s been reappropriated as a positive term by Puerto Ricans. “Flight Danger!”, [W/A] Johnny Craig. In World War II, an American spy rescues a German scientist’s daughter from Berlin, but can’t save her father. Even though the scientist dies, this story is far more upbeat than most EC comics. “Brutal Capt. Bull!”, [W] Harvey Kurtzman, [A] Wally Wood. An upper-class British man is impressed into service by a cruel captain. After his term of service is over, he beats the crap out of the captain. Overall this issue wasn’t as good as later issues of Two-Fisted Tales.

MARVEL FEATURE #4 (Marvel, 1972) – “The Incredible Shrinking Doom!”, [W] Mike Friedrich, [A] Herb Trimpe. Some crooks kidnap Billy Connors and hold him for ransom, and Ant-Man has to team up with Spider-Man to rescue the boy. They succeed at this, but Hank is trapped at tiny size. Mike Friedrich was not Marvel’s best writer, but his Ant-Man run was entertaining, and Herb Trimpe’s art on this issue is excellent. Throughout this issue, Billy is called by two different names, Bobby and Timmy, both of which are wrong.

FOUR COLOR #423 (Dell, 1952) – “Rhubarb, Owner of the Brooklyn Ball Club,” [W] unknown, [A] Don Gunn. I had to buy this comic because it’s weird and because I’m a cat person. In an adaptation of a 1951 film based on a 1946 novel, T.J. Banner, a billionaire baseball team owner, adopts a stray cat. He dies a few years later, and in his will, the cat inherits the baseball team, with employee Eric Yeager as its legal guardian. Eric has to save the cat from being kidnapped by gangsters, while also romancing a woman who’s allergic to cats. This comic has hideous artwork and lettering, but it’s a fun curiosity. After reading this comic, I kind of want to read the novel it’s based on, but the novel is out of print. The reason the Brooklyn team appears in the comic is probably because at the time, the Brooklyn Dodgers were notorious for repeatedly winning the pennant but losing the World Series; they finally won it in 1955. (Compare the two versions of the film Angels in the Outfield, in which a terrible baseball team wins the pennant thanks to divine intervention. The 1951 version of the film was about the Pittsburgh Pirates, and the 1994 version was about the California Angels.)

AWESOME HOLIDAY SPECIAL #1 (Image, 1997) – “Fighting American,” [W/A] Rob Liefeld, [W] Jeph Loeb. I had never heard of this comic before, but when I saw it, I suspected it might include an Alan Moore story, and I was right. The Alan Moore story is an eight-pager that’s meant as an introduction to his short-lived Youngblood run. It’s only of minor interest, but it does have its moments; for example, the narrator thinks that Sylvia Plath is the lead singer of Garbage (he’s thinking of Shirley Manson). The other stories in the issue are terrible, and the Liefeld story includes a character who’s a blatant ripoff of the Hulk.  

DAMAGE CONTROL #1 (Marvel, 1989) – “No Vault Insurance!”, [W] Dwayne McDuffie, [A] Ernie Colón. I read the first Damage Control miniseries a long time ago, probably when I was in high school, but I never read the other two. Now I don’t understand why not, because Damage Control is one of the funniest Marvel comics ever. It’s about the engineering firm that has to clean up after New York’s constant disasters caused by superhero fights. In this issue, Damage Control’s chief of operations leaves to take a government job, and the company is sold to a new owner who’s a complete asshole. Meanwhile, some other Damage Control employees are trapped in the Vault along with the entire Wrecking Crew. What makes this comic funny, besides the witty dialogue, is that it’s about real people who operate by real-world logic, but they’re living in a world where Thor can singlehandedly lift the Brooklyn Bridge.

THOR #180 (Marvel, 1970) – “When Gods Go Mad!”, [W] Stan Lee, [A] Neal Adams. Loki has switched bodies with Thor, and he capitalizes on this situation by making Thor-in-Loki’s body look bad. Odin sentences “Loki” to Mephisto’s realm, while he takes “Thor” into his good graces. Sif and the Warriors Three figure out the situation and head to the underworld to rescue the real Thor. This is a generic Thor story, but Neal Adams’s artwork is spectacular. I didn’t realize how much his art resembles that of Colan and John Buscema.

THE HAWK AND THE DOVE #4 (DC,  1969) – “The Sell-Out!”, [W] Steve Skeates, [A] Gil Kane. Hawk and Dove’s father’s friend, Frank Heinsite, is running a fascistic law-and-order political campaign, while also stealing valuable paintings and replacing them with forgeries. When the forger, an artist named Warren Savin – which was Skeates’s own pseudonym – discovers what’s going on, Heinsite has him killed. Hawk and Dove unmask the plot and defeat Heinsite. This issue has excellent art and great characterization. Its main focus is on the antagonism between Hawk and Dove, which was the central theme of the series. Frank Heinsite is a very similar character to Sam Bullitt in Amazing Spider-Man #91, and that’s no coincidence, because they were both based on real-life law-and-order politicians like Spiro T. Agnew.

FLASH #776 (DC, 2022) – “Belief,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Fernando Pasarin. This is another metatextual story. Dr. Fate and the Flash are trying to get to Gemworld to investigate the glaive mystery, and Dr. Fate asks the reader to help them. The reader is asked to tilt the pages to change the direction of gravity, and to blow on the pages to snuff out torches. At the end, the  reader has to reread the entire issue to see the order in which certain symbols appeared, and then touch the symbols in the correct order. There’s no mechanism to require the reader to do this, so the reader is free to just ignore the puzzle and continue to the last page, but that would be cheating. This was a really fun issue, though its metatextual tricks are not as brilliant as those of Batman/Superman #22.

SUBVERT COMICS #1 (Rip Off, 1970) – “Trashman Meets the Fighting She Devils,” [W/A] Spain Rodriguez. Trashman meets some female pirates, with the expected sexy and violent results. as Trashman is an obvious male power fantasy, an example of the sort of thing that Tits & Clits was a reaction against. But Trashman also had a political and socialist angle that’s missing from most  underground comics. Trashman is described as an agent of the Sixth International (in real life there were only four), and his opponents are jackbooted fascists. Spain’s art in this issue is excellent; it looks crude at first glance, but in fact it’s meticulously structured and detailed. However, he doesn’t use the radical, Steranko-esque page layouts and camera angles that I associate with him.

THE MUPPET SHOW #0 (Boom!, 2009) – “Pigs in Space: The Movie,” [W] Roger Langridge, [A] Shelli Paroline. An extended version of the Star Trek parody that was a recurring feature in both The Muppet Show and its comics adaptation. This issue is full of funny jokes, though it doesn’t have any backstage scenes – the Muppets spend the entire issue in-character as Link Hogthrob and his crew. It’s also unfortunate that Langridge didn’t draw this issue himself.  

2000 AD #526 (IPC, 1987) – Anderson: as above. A telepath named Glenny Mexworth discovers that the two Sov agents have died. A judge gives a pill to Orlok in his cell. Tales from Mega-City One: “Quarantine,” [W] John Wagner & Alan Grant, [A] Colin MacNeil. Some space-dwellers travel to Mega-City One for three days, only to learn that they have to spend a week in quarantine. Another funny one-pager. Rogue Trooper: as above. Rogue keeps looking for Yuan-Toh, and gets knocked unconscious by a janitor. Dredd: as above. Dredd finally defeats and kills the Raggedy Man, and they all lived happily ever after, except that the Raggedy Man and the Helltrekkers are mostly dead, and Dredd is rarely happy at all. This story was really impressive. Mean Team: as above. Again, great art (except the people) but a nonsense plot. Strontium Dog: as above. Johnny and Durham Red skirmish with Doc Death.

DETECTIVE COMICS #468 (DC, 1977) – “Battle of the Thinking Machines,” [W] Bob Rozakis, [A] Marshall Rogers. Batman teams up with the Justice League against the Calculator. This issue’s story is boring, but Marshall Rogers’s art and Terry Austin’s inking are spectacular. Marshall Rogers was the hottest artist in the industry at this time. In this story’s first page we learn that Gotham City was bought from Algonquin Indians for $24 worth of trinkets. This is a reference to the legend that Peter Minuit purchased Manhattan Island for the same amount. However, that legend is not entirely accurate.

STARLIGHT #3 (Image, 2014) – untitled, [W] Mark Millar, [A] Goran Parlov. The hero of this comic is essentially an elderly Flash Gordon, who discovers that after he defeated Ming, the situation on Mongo only got worse. Of course none of those names are used. The appeal of this comic for me is Goran Parlov’s art. His style is highly derivative of Moebius, but it’s beautiful anywya. His coloring and panel compositions (i.e. the arrangement of characters within panels) are beautiful, and his action sequences are exciting. I still don’t like Millar’s writing, and I’m displeased to see that he’s an RFK Jr supporter, which is the same as being a Trump supporter.

THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD #39 (DC, 1962) – “Prisoners of the Dinosaur Zoo!”, [W] Robert Kanigher, [A] Ross Andru. This is both the oldest Brave and the Bold in my collection, and the only comic I own that stars the original Suicide Squad. In this issue’s first story, the Squad are trapped in a spaceship full of dinosaurs, and in the second story, they fight a criminal who can encase people in gold. Both stories are rather mediocre, and this version of the Suicide Squad never appeared again until Ostrander’s 1987 revival series, which had nothing in common with the 1960s version except for the two characters Rick Flag and Karin Grace.

INTIMATE LOVE #26 (Standard, 1954) – “Lonesome for Kisses,” [W] Kim Aamodt, [A] Alex Toth. I bought this just because it was cheap, and was happy to discover that it contains a classic Alex Toth story. In “Lonesome for Kisses,” photographer Jimmy Farr accidentally takes a picture of an unknown beautiful woman, and he gets so obsessed with trying to find her that he neglects his fiancée Marilyn. When he does find the woman, she turns out to have an awful personality, and Jimmy returns to Marilyn, who, because this is a ’50s romance comic, is willing to take him back. Toth’s draftsmanship and page layouts are beautiful. This story was reprinted in the 2011 Fantagraphics collection Setting the Standard. This issue also includes two one-pagers by Toth. The two other long stories are drawn by Art Saaf and John Celardo. The Saaf story includes a rather dramatic moment: the protagonist is babysitting an infant, but her bad-boy crush convinces her to leave the house, and while she’s gone, the house catches fire with the baby asleep inside! Luckily, the protagonist’s true love arrives in time to save the baby.

THE WALKING DEAD #100 (Image, 2012) – untitled, [W] Robert Kirkman, [A] Charlie Adlard. I bought a bunch of Walking Dead back issues at Heroes Con. The Walking Dead is an appealing  comic to collect because there are a lot of them, they’re quite cheap – or at least the later issues are – and I can read them very fast. This issue introduces Negan, the series’ most prominent villain. After tying up Rick and his allies, Negan makes a smug, self-congratulatory speech, and then murders Glenn in cold blood. I see why Negan became popular, because he’s such an swaggering, aggressively masculine type, but his smugness drives me nuts. He knows he’s an awful, murdering monster, and he’s utterly unrepentant about it. Which I guess makes him appealing to some readers, but it just makes me furious.  

A DECADE OF DARK HORSE #3 (Dark Horse, 1999) – Nexus: “All and Sundra,” [W] Mike Baron, [A] Steve Rude. This obscure comic includes one of the only Baron/Rude Nexus stories that I hadn’t read already. It begins with Sundra telling Nexus about an idyllilc childhood memory, in which her parents took her to an amusement park. All the rides at the park are based on other Dark Horse comics. Thanks to Ursula Imada’s meddling, Nexus learns that Sundra’s parents were actually criminals, but he still loves her. It’s nice to revisit Nexus again, although my former love for Nexus has been tarnished by my disgust with Mike Baron’s politics. The other features in this issue are Aliens, The Mask, and Johji Manabe’s Outlanders.

INCREDIBLE HULK #174 (Marvel, 1974) – “Doomsday – Down Under!”, [W] Roy Thomas & Gerry Conway, [A] Herb Trimpe. The nuclear-powered Cobalt Man tries to destroy the city of Sydney, while Bruce Banner has an uncomfortable encounter with Betty, who is now married to Glenn Talbot. This story has some effective drama and emotion, but Trimpe’s artwork is not as beautiful as earlier in his run. Given that this story is set in Sydney, it’s odd that the Sydney Opera House only appears in one panel. Until I saw that panel, I actually wondered if the opera house hadn’t been built yet when this comic was published, but it opened in late 1973.

FABULOUS FURRY FREAK BROTHERS #12 (Rip Off, 1992) – “Red Hot Squat” etc., [W/A] Gilbert Shelton & Paul Mavrides. This issue mostly consists of short stories in the classic Freak Brothers vein. There’s one story where the Freak Brothers tell some young punks about how they used to hide their stash from cops, and the punks trick the brothers and steal their stash. This story acknowledges that the Freak Brothers are now a relic of an earlier cultural era, even if they haven’t aged at all. One of the longer stories is “The Treasure of the Frigo Helado,” in which Fat Freddy goes insane from eating frozen amanita mushrooms. In the last story, “Phineas’s Big Show,” Phineas tries to become a gallery artist. At least some of this story is drawn by Gerhard Seyfried, a German alternative cartoonist, and it seems to be his only work available in English, other than a couple short pieces in Anarchy Comics.

TALES FROM THE CRYPT #4 (Russ Cochran, 1950/1993) – [W] Al Feldstein. “The Thing from the Sea!”, [A] Feldstein. A ship passenger discovers that there seems to be a ghost in his stateroom. When the captain offers to help him figure out what’s going on, we discover that the ghost is that of a man who the captain killed by pushing him out the stateroom’s window. “Fatal Caper!”, [A] Jack Kamen. Some bored rich kids decide to pull a prank on their friend Jim by  summoning a fake demon. To make their prank more realistic, they steal a coffin and put Jim in it. However, the prank goes wrong, and not only does the coffin get buried by accident, but they can’t get it exhumed, because the coffin previously contained a corpse that died from leprosy. “Rx… Death!”, [A] Graham Ingels. A man accidentally takes a drug that causes him to be digested alive. I don’t know if this is Ingels’s best story, but I would rank him as one of the two greatest American horror comics artists, along with Wrightson, though this list only has him at #9. “Impending Doom!”, [A] Johnny Craig. Ted Warren discovers a stonecutter, Alex Kordova, carving a tombstone with Ted’s own name and date of birth on it. The tombstone also has Ted’s date of death, which happens to be the current date. Ted decides to stay for dinner with Alex, and ends up making out with Alex’s wife, and Alex murders Ted. How Alex knew of Ted’s impending death is left as a mystery.

THE NEW AVENGERS #1 (Marvel, 2015) – “In at the Deep End,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Gerardo Sandoval. A new Avengers team visits Paris, where the population is being turned into crystals. At the end of the issue we learn that the Maker, an evil extradimensional version of Reed Richards, is responsible for this. New Avengers #1 has somewhat unappealing art, but it’s an entertaining read, especially since Squirrel Girl and Tippy Toe are on the team, and Al Ewing has lots of fun writing them. I remember someone saying that in his Avengers run, Al Ewing had to use a rather stupid lineup of characters, and he decided to just have fun with these characters rather than trying to take them seriously. Some of the characters from Ewing’s New Avengers run reappeared in his later run on USAvengers.

THE ULTIMATES #1 (Marvel, 2002) – untitled, [W] Mark Millar, [A] Bryan Hitch. This was a  historically important series because it was the high point of the “widescreen” style of comics (which is really just a term for the work of two specific artists, Hitch and John Cassaday), and it also had an influence on the MCU. However, though I didn’t buy the series when it was coming out, I had a very negative impression of it, and now that I’ve read a couple issues of it, I’ve confirmed that impression. The Ultimates #1 is mostly a flashback to Captain America’s final World War II mission. This issue doesn’t contain anything as offensive as, for example, the line “You think this A stands for France?”, but it has the same grim-and-gritty, male-chauvinist, “realistic” tone of all Millar’s work. Issue 9, reviewed below, is even worse.

THE PHANTOM #23 (King, 1967) – “Delilah,” [W] Dick Wood, [A] Bill Lignante. A female criminal poses as a kidnapped Peace Corps worker, kidnaps Guran, and tries to use him to steal the Phantom’s treasure. This isn’t a terrible story, but the American-produced Phantom stories I’ve read are generally worse than the Swedish-produced ones. The Team Fantomen stories have more narrative complexity, thanks to their slightly greater length, and they have more varied settings and premises. This issue also has a backup story by Gary Poole and Bill Ziegler, in which Mandrake the Magician saves a man from jumping off a bridge.

NIGHT BUSINESS #3 (Traditional Comics, 2010) – “Bloody Nights Part 3,” [W/A] Benjamin Marra. An ultraviolent crime/superhero story set in an unspecified city in 1983. I couldn’t follow this issue’s plot, because it consisted of multiple sequences with no clear connection to each other. However, Marra’s artwork is amazing. His style of draftsmanship is very distinctive and unusual: his characters are shaded so that they look three-dimensional, yet they also look very unnatural and awkward. The artist he reminds me of most is Spain, though I also associate him with Chuck Forsman (who I spoke with briefly at Heroes Con). Besides this issue, his only works I’ve read are All-Time Comics and Terror Assaulter: OMWOT, and I think I like Night Business better than OMWOT, which is a somewhat problematic work.

THE FLASH #777 (DC, 2022) – “Vengeance is Mine!”, [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Fernando Pasarin. In the Gemworld, Wally teams up with Justice League Dark against Eclipso. To defeat Eclipso, Wally needs to spring Dark Opal, the Gemworld’s greatest villain, from his prison. This Flash  storyline is one of the few times Amethyst and her supporting cast have appeared in any other DC comic. Back home, Jai is jealous of Irey both because she has powers and he doesn’t, and because of her friendship with Maxine Baker. Maxine convinces Irey to sneak out of the house at night, and the last page reveals that they’re about to be kidnapped by some huge guy (later identified as Mammoth). Jai and Irey are two of the most realistic child superheroes since Power Pack.

2000 AD #527 (IPC, 1987) – Rogue Trooper: as above. While Rogue is being tortured, Gunner, Helm and Bagman discover an alien conspiracy. A recurring theme in this storyline is Rogue’s tensions with his three comrades. Anderson: as above. Orlok takes the pill and dies. Glenny Mexworth mind-controls the Judges who are transporting Orlok’s body. Anderson realizes that Orlok is the woolf she’s been dreaming about. Dredd: “Simp,” [W] John Wagner & Alan Grant, [A] Cliff Robinson. Nobby Klunk shows up to his wedding dressed in a ridiculous outfit, with roller skates, a canoe around his waist, a flowerpot on his head, etc. His bride-to-be, Clovis, rejects him, but after some mayhem, she takes him back. Nobby and Clovis next appeared in prog 574. Mean Team: as above. Bad Jack Keller and Emerald Eyes encounter Bloo-Baloo, whose dialogue is really annoying. Strontium Dog: as above. Johnny and Durham defeat Doc Death’s goons, and Durham prepares to drink Doc Death’s blood.

SPIDER-MAN’S TANGLED WEB #11 (Marvel, 2002) – “Open All Night,” [W/A] Darwyn Cooke. On Valentine’s Day, Peter Parker has made two dates with two different Daily Bugle coworkers, Jillian Blythe and Kay Cohn. But he can’t keep either date, because as Spider-Man, he’s just fought the Vulture, and he’s lying unconscious in the alley between the Bugle and the Coffee Bean. This story is a masterpiece. In just a single issue, Darwyn Cooke creates multiple new characters and gives each of them a fully rendered personality, and he orchestrates a complex drama with multiple overlapping plots, each of which leads to a satisfactory resolution. The story’s plot is extremely dense, yet Cooke somehow ensures that the reader always understands exactly what’s going on. There’s one piece of comic business that’s especially impressive, where a disgruntled Bugle employee, now working at the Coffee Bean, sneaks some laxative into JJJ’s drink. Cooke’s artwork is obviously incredible, especially his visual characterization of Jillian and Kay. (These characters are very similar to Mary Jane and Gwen respectively, but Cooke had to make them different characters, because the plot requires them to work at the Daily Bugle.) This story is full of Eisneresque touches: the title of the story is spelled out by buildings and a billboard, and the plot mostly focuses on the civilian characters, with Spider-Man spending most of the issue off-panel. And this story’s plotting and characterization show that Cooke was a worthy heir to Eisner. See here for Brian Cronin’s take on this issue.

SHOWCASE ’94 #11 (DC, 1994) – “Man-Bat,” [W] Chuck Dixon, [A] Flint Henry. This issue’s lead story is well-executed, but rather grim and bleak. One reason I like Man-Bat is because of his family relationships, and this story ends by suggesting that Kirk and Francine can never get back together. Then there’s a rather pointless story starring the Black Condor, a character DC has never managed to make interesting. But the reason I bought this issue is because it ends with a rare example of a Starfire solo story written by her creator Marv Wolfman. In this issue, Kory discovers a recently widowed man holding his children hostage, and she needs to use both her compassion and her rage to resolve the situation. This is a cute story that shows Marv’s command of Kory’s character.

C.O.W.L. #1 (Image, 2014) – “Principles of Power Chapter 1: Motivation,” [W] Kyle Higgins & Alec Siegel, [A] Rod Reis. I wanted to read this because it’s referenced in Radiant Black. C.O.W.L. is a superhero story set in Chicago in 1962, focusing on a superteam called the Chicago Organized Workers’ League. C.O.W.L. is valuable for its deep knowledge of Chicago and its history. However, its plot is hard to follow. The creators seem to have forgotten that the reader doesn’t know anything yet about the comic’s premise or backstory. It took me a while even to figure out what the Chicago Organized Workers’ League was. Also, Rod Reis’s art doesn’t appeal to me; it looks like a poor imitation of Sienkiewicz.

FANTASTIC FOUR #111 (Marvel, 1971) – “The Thing – Amok!”, [W] Stan Lee, [A] John Buscema. Reed has succeeded in allowing Ben to change between his Thing and human forms at will, but the side effect is that Ben has turned evil. Johnny goes after Ben, and their resulting fight causes massive property damage, resulting in anti-FF protests. The Baxter Building’s landlord even tries to evict the FF, and Reed scares him away. This issue includes some stunning art, though not quite as stunning as in Silver Surfer #8. Sue spends most of the issue with Agatha and Franklin. It was kind of awkward how Reed and Sue basically abandoned their child for the first couple years of his life, leaving him to be raised by Agatha.

WONDER WOMAN #205 (DC, 1973) – “Target Wonder Woman!”, [W] Robert Kanigher, [A] Don Heck. After her brief feminist, no-costume period, Wonder Woman was given back to the same writer who ruined her. Kanigher didn’t much like Wonder Woman, and when he was her primary writer, he turned her into a embarrassing, silly character. Diana does get to do some fighting in this story, but there’s a dumb subplot about her obsession with Morgan Tracy, a character seemingly created as a replacement for Steve Trevor. The backup story, by the same team, is much more interesting because it’s the second appearance of Nubia. It has a bare-bones plot in which Nubia fights a native warrior, but the very idea of depicting a black woman as Wonder Woman was groundbreaking at the time.

DETECTIVE COMICS #392 (DC, 1969) – “I Died… a Thousand Deaths!”, [W] Frank Robbins, [A] Bob Brown. A criminal named Angles seems to have killed Batman, but his boss, Scap Scarpel, is haunted by what seems to be Batman’s ghost. In the end, we learn that Batman was of course not dead, and was posing as Angles in order to capture Scap. This story emphasizes the terror that Batman causes in criminals. A nice moment is when “Angles” and Scap eat at a restaurant, and the check comes back marked with a Bat-signal and the words “paid in full.” There’s also a Batgirl backup story, by Frank Robbins and Gil Kane, in which Jason Bard makes his first appearance. The Batgirl stories from this period were occasionally sexist, but they were cute and entertaining.

DAREDEVIL #32 (Marvel, 1967) – “…To Fight the Impossible Fight!”, [W] Stan Lee, [A] Gene Colan. The Cobra and Mr. Hyde have given Daredevil a potion that was supposed to make him blind, but since he was already blind, the potion instead deadens his extra senses. Daredevil turns the tables on the villains by shutting off the power to their hideout, so they’re as blind as him. Then there’s an exciting and well-choreographed sequence where Daredevil tries to avoid the Cobra and Hyde’s attacks while searching for the antidote to Hyde’s potion. A running joke throughout the story is that everyone refuses to believe Daredevil is blind. Gene Colan’s art in this issue is excellent, but John Tartaglione’s inking makes Colan’s linework appear too crisp and not painterly enough.

ANIMAL MAN #18 (DC, 2013) – “Rotworld: The Red Kingdom Epilogue,” [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Steve Pugh. Buddy and Maxine think they’ve defeated the Rot, but just as they’re celebrating, the Rot’s avatar, young William Arcane, regains consciousness and murders Cliff. Jeff Lemire’s Animal Man had some great artwork and characterization, and for a while it was the best of the New 52 launch titles. However, it was also way too grim and depressing, and Cliff’s death was the low point of that tendency. I’ve lost track of Animal Man continuity, but I’m pretty sure Cliff is still dead. He’s not mentioned at all in Jeremy Adams’s Flash run, where Maxine is a recurring character.

CEREBUS JAM #1 (Aardvark-Vanaheim, 1985) – “The Defense of Fort Columbia” etc., [W/A] Dave Sim. A series of short stories in which Sim collaborates with various other artists. In the first story, Cerebus’s two companions argue about which of two paths is better. The two companions are based on Scott and Bo Hampton, who drew part of the story. “The First Invention of Armor” is a flashback story about how plate armor is invented. The guest artist is Murphy Anderson. Terry Austin is the collaborator on “Squinteye the Sailor,” in which a young Cerebus meets Popeye and Bluto. The highlight is “Cerebus vs. the Spirit,” a collaboration between Sim and Will Eisner. The two protagonists fight each other and wreck Dolan’s office, but then a man wearing the Octopus’s gloves intervenes to stop the fight, and in the last two panels, we see that this man is Eisner himself. All these stories are good examples of Sim’s classic style from before he went insane. Cerebus Jam was supposed to be a recurring series, but no other issues were published.

TOO MUCH COFFEE MAN #1 (Adhesive, 1993) – “TMCM vs. TMCM” etc., [W/A] Shannon Wheeler. In the first story, a coffee-addicted superhero deals with a copyright infringement claim. The other long story is partly about Shannon Wheeler’s attempts to sell his minicomics, and partly about the deterioration of a relationship. I don’t know if the man in this story is meant to be Wheeler or not. There are also several one-pagers. In one of them, TMCM is asked whether he’d rather work retail or have a nail driven into his hand, and he asks “What kind of nail?” I posted this panel on Facebook and it got a lot of likes. I always assumed Too Much Coffee Man was a dumb gimmick comic, and that was why I never read it, but this issue is surprisingly strong. It’s just as much an autobio comic than a superhero parody, and even the superhero parody parts are quite funny. I plan on looking for the rest of this series.

THUNDERBOLTS #147 (Marvel, 2010) – “Scared Straight with Avengers Academy,” [W] Jeff Parker, [A] Kev Walker. While the Avengers Academy kids are visiting the Raft, the power to the prison goes out, and the Thunderbolts have to prevent a breakout. It so happens that one of the prisoners who breaks out is the Purple Man, and Luke Cage gets the chance to beat the crap out of him. Also, Troll saves Songbird’s life. This issue’s cover suggests that it contains a guest appearance by Avengers Academy, but that’s false advertising: the Academy members only appear in a couple panels, and their part of the story is instead told in issues 3 and 4 of their own title. Still, this issue is quite fun.

2000 AD #528 (Rebellion, 1987) – Anderson: as above. Glenny brings the allegedly dead Orlok back to life, and Anderson realizes Orlok is at the center of the conspiracy. Due to a printing error, pages 2 and 3 of this chapter are printed in reverse order. Rogue Trooper: as above. Rogue kills General Yuan-Toh again, or at least he thinks he does. Dredd: “Reasons to Be Fearful,” [W] John Wagner & Alan Grant, [A] Robin Smith. Guz Hardy, a talk show host who engages in public criticism of the Justice Department, begins to suffer from terrifying hallucinations. He consults a psychiatrist, who tells him that the hallucinations are caused by his unreasonable fear of the  Judges. Hardy goes on TV and publicly recants his criticism of the Judges, and his hallucinations stop. Both the hallucinations and the psychiatrist were part of a setup by the Judges, intended to produce exactly this outcome. This story emphasizes the Judges’ anti-democratic, fascistic nature, a theme which is taken up a few issues later in the story about the pro-democracy protest. Mean Team: as above. Another chapter with great art and a dumb story. This chapter introduces a new character who’s a centaur, except instead of being half man and half horse,  he has a horse’s entire body with a human’s upper body attached to it. This is unintentionally disturbing. Strontium Dog: as above. Durham Red saves Doc Death from being eaten by a giant snake, but only so she can drink his blood herself.

MIGHTY SAMSON #15 (Gold Key, 1968) – “The Plot of Gold,” [W] Otto Binder, [A] Jack Sparling. Samson’s archenemy Terra is setting herself up as a queen by giving people currency with her face on it, in exchange for their promise of allegiance to her. It’s not entirely clear to me that she’s doing anything wrong. Samson defeats Terra’s plot, but decides that her introduction of currency was a good idea, so he starts producing his own currency. Again, it’s not clear that this is a positive development.

CAT CLAW #1 (Eternity, 1981/1990) – “The Night of the Cat,” [W/A] Bane Kerac. I must have seen this comic many times before, but I assumed it was some dumb bad girl comic. It’s actually a translation of a successful Serbian/Yugoslav comic, about a superheroine with cat powers. Cat Claw has some excellent draftsmanship and storytelling, and the protagonist is a compelling character. Kerac’s black-and-white art reminds me a bit of the art in Australian Phantom comics, though Wikipedia cites Romita as an influence on Kerac. I will definitely read more issues of this series if I find them.

SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN #12 (Marvel, 2013) – “No Escape Part 2: Lockdown,” [W] Dan Slott & Christos Gage, [A] Giuseppe Camuncoli. Peter/Doc Ock, Jonah and some other characters are trapped in the Raft with Alistair Smythe, who hates Peter even more than JJJ does. Also in the Raft are Smythe’s upgraded versions of the Scorpion, the Vulture and Boomerang. Spidey has to decide between fighting the villains and keeping the civilians safe. This is an entertaining issue, but it consists almost entirely of action sequences.  

Next trip to Heroes, after three weeks away:

NIGHTWING #105 (DC, 2023) – “You Are Nightwing,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Bruno Redondo. This is one of my most anticipated comic books of 2023. It’s another gimmick issue, like #87. The gimmick this time is that the entire issue is depicted through Nightwing’s eyes, so we see everything as Dick sees it, and we never see his face unless it’s reflected in a mirror. This visual strategy was famously used in the film Lady in the Lake, and it’s been used before in comics (including in a story in this year’s Marvel Voices: Spider-Verse #1), but I don’t know of any other comic that’s used first-person perspective as extensively as this one. Taylor and Redondo execute this gimmick with great skill, and they also use this story to provide insight into Nightwing’s character, including his love of Babs and his expert knowledge of Bludhaven’s train system. The plot is that one of the two members of Double Dare is being held captive by an evil pharma bro. Overall this is a fascinating comic that deserves an Eisner nomination for Best Single Issue. My only complaint about it is that the ending is a little anticlimactic.

ONCE UPON A TIME AT THE END OF THE WORLD #6 (Boom!, 2023) – “A Beautiful Fucking World,” [W] Jason Aaron, [A] Leila Del Duca. Having grown a bit older, Maceo and Mezzy succumb to their mutual passion, and they spend most of the issue having lots and lots of sex. They also meet a few other survivors, one of whom becomes their lover as well. Finally they get to the Oasis, which they rename Golgonooza after a city in Blake’s poetry. This is a very sweet love story, although we already know that Maceo and Mezzy aren’t going to get a happily-ever-after ending.

FENCE: REDEMPTION #1 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] C.S. Pacat, [A] Johanna the Mad. Fence was cancelled as a comic book and was changed to a trade-paperback-only series, but now for some reason Boom has decided to publish it as a comic book instead. I’m glad they did this, because I find it much more convenient to read comic books than trade paperbacks. I have both of the original Fence trade paperbacks, but I’ve only read the first one. That means I’m behind on the story, but I don’t feel I’ve missed anything, because Fence’s plot never advances very much. However, Fence is still a very entertaining story with excellent queer representation, and as a bonus, this issue provides some valuable factual information about fencing, a sport that I’ve always found unwatchable because of its extremely fast pace and complex strategy.

IN HELL WE FIGHT #1 (Image, 2023) – “We All Scream”, [W] John Layman, [A] Jok. In a flashback, Xander Waterford, who hates frogs, is killed by a frog demon and goes to hell. In hell, he joins a group of two other condemned people and one annoying little demon. I asume their ultimate goal is to escape from hell, but during a heist attempt, they accidentally kidnap an angel. John Layman is a very funny writer, and this is a promising debut issue. Jok’s art is reminiscent of Rob Guillory’s, though without all the gags and hidden messages. John Layman has publicly called out Aftershock for screwing him over, and if his accusations are true, then Aftershock deserves to go out of business. I hope Image is treating him better.

TITANS #2 (Image, 2023) – “Out of the Shadows,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Nicola Scott. In a flashback, the original Teen Titans are about to capture Brother Blood and his church, but they discover that the Justice League have already beaten them to it. This scene is an anachronism because Brother Blood wasn’t created until after the original Teen Titans broke up, but whatever. In the pressnt, Brother Blood reinvents his cult and makes it more respectable, and he signs up Tempest as a spokesman. Meanwhile, the Titans figure out that Wally West is currently alive, but the corpse belongs to his future self, who traveled back in time to warn the Titans about whatever it was that killed him. I wish this issue had more space devoted to characterization, but I do like Donna and Kory’s conversation about Donna’s leadership role. These characters are two of my favorites, and I love to see them interacting. Besides Nightwing, Titans is the one DC title I’m most excited about, and I’m angry that I have to wait three months for the next issue.

MONEY SHOT COMES AGAIN #2 (Vault, 2023) – untitled, [W] Tim Seeley, [A] Gisele Lagacé. The Money Shot team have sex with the robot versions of Sailor Moon, Captain America, Iron Man, and (awkwardly) Mickey Mouse, and meanwhile, the main villain conspires with Cheryl Blossom. This is another fun and sexy issue. I didn’t realize until now that Tim Seeley was writing this series alone, without Sarah Beattie.

THE GREAT BRITISH BUMP-OFF #3 (Dark Horse, 2023) – “Bloodshed Berry Cheesecake,” [W] John Allison, [A] Max Sarin. Shauna’s fellow contestants accuse her of being the murderer, but she exonerates himself by saving Titus, who’s been poisoned with the same poison as in the previous murders. Also, Shauna bakes a cake based on the film Under the Skin. I enjoyed the novel that this film was based on, but I didn’t realize there was a film. In general this is a funny issue, but there’s nothing about it that especially stands out.

KAYA #9 (Image, 2023) – “In the Poison Lands Chapter 3,” [W/A] Wes Craig. Kaya prays for assistance, and the prayer is answered when one of Jin’s kidnappers, the toothless bald reptile guy, offers to help her find Jin. The monsters and the robot disagree over what to do with Jin. Seth and Muska fight some robots, then split up. This issue has some beautiful art, but it advances the plot only a little.

I HATE THIS PLACE #9 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kyle Starks, [A] Artyom Topilin. Gabby and Trudy find the doomsday device and try to keep it away from Trudy’s dad. But despite  assistance from some infants’ ghosts, they are unable to escape, and Trudy’s dad finds them and demands the device, intending to use it to end the world. He also makes Trudy throw her glasses away so she can’t follow him. Things are looking grim. I really hope Trudy’s dad dies in a painful and humiliating way. Kyle Starks was at Heroes Con as usual, but I didn’t get a chance to talk to him.

BONE ORCHARD: TENEMENT #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Andrea Sorrentino. This story focuses on seven different characters living in the same apartment. We’re introduced to each of them individually, but as the story goes on, we begin to see connections between them. One of them, an old man, apparently dies after giving to another of them, a young boy, a key that unlocks the building’s dark secret. The only obvious connection to the previous Bone Orchard series is that the boy is reading a book by Trish Reed, the co-protagonist of that series. In its emphasis on different people living in the same apartment, this comic reminds me of Sandman: A Doll’s House, or possibly Georges Perec’s novel Life: A User’s Manual, although I haven’t read that book.

NOCTERRA #15 (Image, 2023) – “No Brakes Part 4: Why?”, [W] Scott Snyder, [A] Tony Daniel. Emory comes up with a complicated plan to defeat Nox and Blacktop Bill and restore light to the world. It seems to work, but then Bill captures Emory. There’s also a flashback sequence, but it only occupies a few pages. I wonder if this series’ next issue will be its last.

SECOND COMING: TRINITY #3 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell, [A] Richard Pace. In a flashback, the young Jesus abuses his powers by killing another child, then bringing him back to life. When Jesus’s neighbors grow terrified of him, he removes their mouths and turns them into sheep. Finally he realizes that he wants to make people love him and not fear him. This portrayal of Jesus is quite different from traditional accounts of Jesus’s childhood, which tend to show him as having been perfect from the start. Meanwhile, Sunstar has to save a fellow superhero from a supervillain, and he stops the villain from escaping by throwing the baby at him. It’s fine because the baby is invulnerable – as a further demonstration of this, he spends much of the issue playing with a sparking toaster.

ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN: JON KENT #4 (DC, 2023) – “Countdown to Injustice Chapter 4: Heightened Doubt,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Darick Robertson. Jon meets the underground resistance to the Justice League, which includes Batman, Luthor, Catwoman and Harley Quinn. Harley provides some comic relief, which is helpful since this series is rather grim. Jon is still not sure whether to trust the Justice League, so he consults the one person he knows he can trust: Jay Nakamura. But after Jay confirms Jon’s suspicions about the League, he’s attacked by Damien, who is fanatically devoted to Superman. This is my least favorite of Tom Taylor’s three current DC titles, but it’s still excellent.

BLACK PANTHER #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “Reign at Dusk Part 1,” [W] Eve Ewing, [A] Chris Allen. T’Challa has been exiled from Wakanda, but he remains in the country illegally. At the moment he’s hiding out in the city of Birnin T’Chaka. Here T’Challa meets a philanthropic lawyer, N’yobi Umaru, and discovers the existence of some sort of criminal underground, but it’s clear that T’Challa doesn’t quite understand what’s going on in Birnin T’Chaka, and neither does the reader. Deathlok makes an appearance at the very end. This issue explores a part of Wakanda and a social class of Wakandans that have been absent from previous Black Panther series, and it sets up a compelling story. I didn’t like either of the previous two Black Panther runs, by Ta-Nehisi Coates and Geoffrey Thorne, but this series has the potential to be much better than either of them. Chris Allen does some nice Afrofuturist art, and Eve Ewing’s writing displays her knowledge of African culture – for example, there’s a quotation from the Ugandan poet Okot p’Bitek.

WILD’S END #1 (Boom!, 2023) – “Expected Later,” [W] Dan Abnett, [A] I.N.J. Culbard. Like Fence, Wild’s End was most recently published as an original trade paperback, but now it’s back in single-issue form. This new miniseries introduces a new group of characters, the crew of a fishing boat from the village of Gullstone Harbour. While out at sea, they discover they’re not getting any communications from the shore, and they return home to find the village empty. I was kind of disappointed that this issue didn’t include any of the characters from previous story arcs, but the new characters are interesting. An especially compelling character is the fisherwoman who expects to inherit the boat, only to discover that she’s going to be passed over for the owner’s incompetent grandson.

BATGIRLS #19 (DC, 2023) – “From Hell’s Heart Finale,” [W] Becky Cloonan & Michael Conrad, [A] Robbi Rodriguez. The Batgirls defeat the snipers, who turn out to be Gunhawk and Gunbunny, except Gunbunny is really Assisi from the Saints. The injured cameraman makes a full recovery, and the series ends happily. I’m going to miss Batgirls, and I’m sad it was cancelled, but sadly, cancellation is the inevitable fate of most corporate-owned comics.

SPIDER-MAN #9 (Marvel, 2023) – “Maxed Out Part 2: Spider-Sensitivity Training,” [W] Dan Slott, [A] Mark Bagley. Norman Osborn offers to cure Peter’s heightened spider-sense, but Peter refuses his help because he has to attend a family dinner, and then he has to run out on dinner because his spider-sense is driving him nuts. Then Peter finds himself fighting Electro and his henchmen, even though he can barely concentrate. Spider-Boy only appears in a few pages. A be humorous moment is when Peter wonders why his spider-sense is warning him that Electro’s henchmen are in danger, and then he realizes it’s because the henchmen are in danger from him.

STARSIGNS #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Megan Levens. Rana runs from Tatiana and meets another starsign, Clarence, who has shapeshifting powers. We also meet another Starsign, an undocumented immigrant child from Guatemala, whose powers manifest while he’s being interrogated by ICE. As noted in my review of #1, this comic is a lot like The Wicked + The Divine, but what makes it different is that most of the protagonists are marginalized people. The sequence with the Guatemalan family reminds me of the Image comic Home.

FANTASTIC FOUR #8 (Marvel, 2023) – “If Memory Serves…!”, [W] Ryan North, [A] Ivan Fiorelli. Sue and Alicia explore their new town and explore a woman named Cathy. A few hours later they discover that Cathy has vanished, and no one else remembers she existed. And on returning home, they find that the same thing has happened to Reed and Ben. Johnny thinks that the other two members of the FF are Alicia and “Flame-O,” Johnny’s flame duplicate. The solution to this mystery is that a monster named Xargorr is abducting the missing people and making them serve him. Xargorr looks like a classic Kirby or Ditko monster, but this is his first appearance. Ryan North’s FF is probably my favorite current Marvel title, other than She-Hulk, which seems headed for cancellation. It offers a completely different type of storytelling from any previous FF run, and that’s a good thing. North’s stories feel more like sitcoms or little mysteries than epic adventures. I also like this issue’s emphasis on Sue and Alicia’s friendship. These characters have been appearing together for sixty years, yet they’ve never interacted all that much. Another cool thing in this issue is its explanation of mathematical objects called scutoids. The information about scutoids in this issue is accurate, as is all the scientific information in Ryan North’s comics.

COPRA #45 (Copra, 2023) – “Mistake Theatre,” [W/A] Michel Fiffe. Copra continues its battle with Count Compota (Count Vertigo) and his hired guns, who include Roger X (Green Arrow), Skullpusher (Nightmaster?), Detention (Hawkgirl) and Mallo Grim (Firestorm?). This issue’s main action sequence is full of great art, but the graphic highlight of the issue is the psychic conversation between the Shade and Clea characters. This sequence is illustrated with a series of amorphous mental images that are close to abstract art. I talked to Michel Fiffe a couple times at Heroes Con.

PHANTOM ROAD #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Gabriel Hernandez Walta. While the driver, Dom, stops to rest, the passenger, Birdie, tries to smash the mysterious object in the trailer, but she only succeeds in summoning a horde of zombies. Meanwhile, Agent Weaver is interrogated by a ski-masked man, then she frees herself and discovers a file of information on something called Project Jackknife. We also learn a bit more about Dom and Birdie’s pasts, but it’s clear that they’re each concealing something.

AGAR V1 (Dargaud, 1974) – “Les Jouets Maléfiques,” [W] Claude Moliterni, [A] Robert Gigi. I hadn’t heard of this when I ordered it, but another book by the same creative team, “Orion le laveur de planètes,” was included on JM Lofficer’s list of his top 100 European comics. I no longer have access to that list, but I’ve reconstructed most of it from memory. In Agar, a planet is invaded by evil alien toys, and only one young prince manages to escape. He reaches another planet that’s been invaded by the same aliens, and there he encounters a girl his age. The two of them team up against the evil toymaker who created the toys. Agar is not at the same level as the other French comics I’ve read lately. It does have a compelling dreamlike atmosphere, as well as some great coloring, but Gigi’s draftsmanship is rather minimal, and in general this comic feels generic and forgettable. There are two other volumes of Agar, but I’m in no hurry to read them.

VOID RIVALS #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Robert Kirkman, [A] Lorenzo De Felici. This is one of the hottest comics of the year because it includes an unannounced Transformers appearance, and it’s therefore the first comic in Image’s new Hasbro multiverse. The specific character who appears is the Autobot Jetfire. However, Jetfire’s appearance is incidental to the plot. The main plot is about two aliens belonging to warring tribes, who land on the same planet and discover that they look nearly alike. I’m undecided on whether I want to continue reading this series. I didn’t order issue 1, but I bought it off the shelf because I was curious if the hype was justified.

ARCADE KINGS #2 (Image, 2023) – “Beef Brawl Blues!”, [W/A] Dylan Burnett. Joe visits an arcade in a run-down neighborhood, and he gets in a fight with a purple-haired girl who really hates Vic McMax. Then Joe is attacked by another of Vic’s agents, Minerva. Joe and the purple girl defeat Minerva, but she gives Joe a clue to his brother’s location. This is a really fun series with great art and coloring.

THE FLASH #800 (DC, 2023) – “Don’t Come to Central City,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Fernando Pasarin, etc. In their last Flash story, Adams and Pasarin depict a conversation between various villains about why they don’t commit crimes in Central City. This story is disappointing: it tells us why Wally is a great superhero, rather than showing us, and it doesn’t include Wally’s supporting cast. Jeremy Adams’s Flash was by far the best Flash comic since Mark Waid’s first run, but it deserved a better ending. The highlight of the issue is the Impulse story by Mark Waid and Todd Nauck. It takes place between Impulse #6 and #7, and it’s a cute tribute to a comic I loved as a kid. Too bad Humberto Ramos couldn’t have drawn it. The next two stories, written by Joshua Williamson and Geoff Johns, are forgettable. The last story, by Si Spurrier, is offensively bad. Wally and Linda go out for their first date since Wade’s birth, and Wally promises not to use his powers. But every time Linda looks away for even a moment, Wally runs off to deal with an emergency. This story is an insult to Wally’s character. Spurrier tells us that Wally lies to his wife and breaks his promises to her, and that Wally is such a workaholic that he can’t give his wife his undivided attention for one lousy evening. The low point of this story is when Linda cries a tear of happiness, and Wally thinks “That’ll take at least half a second to wipe” and runs off. When did Wally become such a heartless asshole? Also, as Ray Goldfield pointed out on my Facebook wall, Spurrier portrays Linda as a stereotypical nagging wife. Spurrier’s story erases all the character development Wally and Linda received in Jeremy Adams’s run. It’s also heavily focused on horror, which is the thing Spurrier is best at, but it’s not what the Flash is supposed to be about. This story has killed my interest in Spurrier’s upcoming Flash run. I might buy it off the shelf, but I’m not going to order it.

POISON IVY #13 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] G. Willow Wilson, [A] Marcio Takara et al. Poison Ivy has just returned to Gotham. In three separate sequences drawn by different artists, she meets up with Catwoman, Batman and Killer Croc. In the last sequence, she promises Croc that she’ll help him stop a luxury building project, but when she gets to the construction site, she discovers a corpse with a flower on its face. I guess we’re supposed to assume the Floronic Man is the killer? This is a pretty uneventful issue.

I HATE FAIRYLAND #6 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Skottie Young, [A] Brett Bean. Back in Fairyland, Gert meets her old guide Larry and his new child companion, Tommy. On learning that Tommy is a were-poodle, Gert kills him (off-panel). The ruling council of Fairyland decide to prevent any further such antics by having Gert assassinated, but she kills all the assassins who are sent against her. In desperation, King Cloudius decides that to get rid of Gert, he’s going to hire the only person as awful as her: Gert herself, in a number of alternate versions. On the first day of Heroes Con I wore a Spider-Man/Venom T-shirt with artwork by Skottie. I got some compliments on the shirt, and I saw other people wearing the same shirt. I eventually talked to Skottie and told him that the shirt was a hit.

ROGUE SUN #13 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Ryan Parrott, [A] Abel & Marco Renna. Caleb, in Dylan’s body, deals with the aftermath of Reggie’s death. Dylan tries to get a villain, Demonika, to help him regain control of his own body from Caleb, but it doesn’t work. When Dylan promises to torture Caleb until he gets his body back, Caleb banishes Dylan to the afterlife, where he meets his own father. All three Rogue Suns – Caleb, Marcus and Dylan – are awful people in different ways, but at least Dylan is trying to be better.

GROOT #2 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Dan Abnett, [A] Damian Couceiro. Captain So-Lar is killed by the Spoilers, and Private Mar-Vell has to promote himself to the brevet rank of captain, so he’s Captain Mar-Vell now. Also he teams up with a woman from Yondu’s race. This issue is okay, but it’s more a Captain Marvel story than a Groot story.

HAIRBALL #3 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Matt Kindt, [A] Tyler Jenkins. Anna burns down her aunt’s barn to try to kill the Cat, but that doesn’t work. Then she tries to kill the cat using magic, but even that fails. Finally, Anna realizes that Bestie was trying to help her rather than torture her, and she decides to find Bestie again using the cat’s microchip. Hairball is my favorite of Matt Kindt’s recent projects, though its use of photostatted panels is unfortunate. I don’t think I got to talk to Matt Kindt at Heroes Con. Sheesh, next year I need to do a better job of making sure I at least say hi to people.

THE VIGIL #2 (DC, 2023) – “Weather Warning,” [W] Ram V, [A] Lalit Kumar Sharma. Another generic story about secret-agent superheroes, with an unmemorable plot. Again, the fact that this story is set in India has no real impact on the plot or characters, although I do like how the narrator mentions “Raag Malhar” without explaining what it is. So far, this is the worst of the three current Asian-themed DC titles.  

THE FLASH #781 (DC, 2022) – “All Pedal, No Brakes,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Fernando Pasarin. While Ace is in class at Titans Academy, Wally signs him out because of an emergency, but the “emergency” is that Wally’s favorite ice cream shop in Argentina is closing. Ace is lonesome for Barry, who’s vanished for some reason, and Wally comforts Ace by telling him about his own relationship with Barry. Then Wally and Ace have some more adventures, and the issue ends  as they’re about to fight Girder. Ace was originally supposed to be the New 52 version of Wally, so when the original Wally came back, Ace became redundant. However, Jeremy Adams made him an interesting character in his own right. The ice cream shop sequence seems like it must be an in-joke from one of the creators, but neither Adams nor Pasarin is from Argentina.

NINJAK #2 (Valiant, 2021) – “Daylight Part 2,” [W] Jeff Parker, [A] Javier Pulido. Ninjak and his friend Gale fight three supervillains. This issue’s plot isn’t particularly memorable, but its artwork is beautiful. Javier Pulido’s linework is so sparse that his pages look like they’re from a coloring book, but his page layouts are dynamic and groundbreaking. This Ninjak miniseries was the final good comic published by the current incarnation of Valiant. It’s a pity that Valiant  ruined Javier Pulido’s last issue by getting someone else to redraw it. Also, this issue includes eight pages of unnecessary bonus material that are inserted between the two halves of a two-page splash, interrupting a number of panels.

THE WALKING DEAD #109 (Image, 2013) – untitled, [W] Robert Kirkman, [A] Charlie Adlard. Glenn’s pregnant girlfriend Maggie mourns at his grave. Rick tries to get the other people in Ezekiel’s community to join him in an attack on Negan, but then Maggie realizes that Rick has already been betrayed by one of Negan’s spies. This issue is mostly about the internal politics of Rick and Ezekiel’s groups, and Negan doesn’t appear in it.

HELL TO PAY #5 (Image, 2023) – “The Shrouded College Book 1,” [W] Charles Soule, [A] Will Sliney. Somehow I missed issue 4. At this point Sebastian is still in captivity, and the Shrouded College refuses to give Maia any further help in saving him. Maia frees Alexander the Great and gets his reluctant assistance. In a flashback, we see how the Qurrakh were used to help De Beers  control the diamond market. I’ve often heard that diamonds are inherently worthless, and what this means is that the available supply of diamonds is far greater than the demand, so the price of diamonds is kept high by limiting production. However, I also learned in school that De Beers had a monopoly on diamonds, and this stopped being true around 2000.

SUPERMAN #5 (DC, 2023) – “The Power of Love,” [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Jamal Campbell. Superman battles Silver Banshee, only to discover that Jimmy has fallen in love with her. Also, Luthor is murdered in prison, and we encounter two other villains who I assume are Blaze and Lord Satanis. I was on the verge of dropping this series, but after this issue I’ve decided to continue reading it. Jimmy and Silver Banshee’s romance is cute, and this issue, unlike the first four, is actually fun. However, this series’s art is still too dark, and there are still too many scenes set at night. Superman is supposed to operate in daylight.

DAREDEVIL #12 (DC, 2023) – “The Red Fist Saga Part 12,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Marco Checchetto. Matt decides he can only destroy the Beast by committing suicide and going to hell.  Elektra tries to stop him, but fails. Matt dies and goes to hell, where his guide is his father, Jack Murdock. Over the course of this volume Matt has become a steadily less sympathetic character, and by now he’s more of a villain than a hero. I’m glad Chip’s run is ending, because it’s hard to see where he could go from here.

SHAZAM! #2 (DC, 2023) – “Meet the Captain! Chapter 2,” [W] Mark Waid, [A] Dan Mora. The Psycho-Pirate appears in town and tries to steal the Mona Lisa. Billy captures the Psycho-Pirate, but in the process he causes massive property damage and destroys some valuable paintings. Also, he discovers that the Psycho-Pirate was not to blame for his erratic behavior, as he had assumed. I’ve lost some confidence in Mark Waid’s writing, but Shazam! is perfectly suited to his talents. I especially love this issue’s opening scene, where a monocled, top-hatted dinosaur knocks on Billy’s door and gives him a stack of paperwork to fill out. Such a deadpan depiction of an absurd situation is very much in the vein of the classic Captain Marvel stories.

TRAVELING TO MARS #6 (Ablaze, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell, [A] Roberto Dakar Meli. In a flashback, Roy meets his future wife when they’re both working at a pet store, and she quits rather than murder some unwanted rabbits. In the present, Roy defeats the other pursuing spaceships in an outer space battle. This is not as exciting as it sounds, as all Roy needs to do to win is change the other spaceships’ trajectories, since they have only the bare minimum amount of fuel. I like Traveling to Mars, but it seems like it could have been completed in half the number of issues. Also, I hate the ten-page previews at the end of each issue. They’re just a pointless waste of space.

GREEN LANTERN #2 (DC, 2023) – “Nice Guys Finish First,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Xermanico. Hal fights the Demolition Team, hangs out with Kilowog, and meddles with Carol’s current relationship. Adams’s version of Hal is a rather unappealing character. He doesn’t know how to do anything except fly planes, and his behavior toward Carol constitutes sexual harassment and stalking. The John Stewart backup stories are potentially more interesting, but they’re not written by Adams. I’m close to dropping this series.

EDGE OF SPIDER-VERSE #3 (Marvel, 2023) – Spider-Boy: “Nobody Knows Who You Are,” [W] Dan Slott, [A] Humberto Ramos. In his first solo story, Spider-Boy reveals his real face and his real name, Barry Briggs. He also visits the FEAST center and befriends a girl named Christina, who has incurred the enmity of Mr. Negative and his ninjas. This is a cute story. Spider-Smasher: “Hermanita,” [W] David Betancourt, [A] Julian Shaw. Spider-Smasher is the older version of Billie, from Saladin Ahmed’s last Miles Morales storyline. In this issue she teams up with Cardiac and a new character named Gata Negra. This story heavily emphasizes Billie’s Dominican ancestry. David Betancourt is himself of Puerto Rican descent.

ANIMAL CASTLE VOL. 2 #2 (Ablaze, 2023) – untitled, [W] Xavier Dorison, [A] Felix Delep. The animals are now using daisies as a symbol for their nonviolent protest, but Silvio starts imprisoning any animal who wears a daisy. In response, the animals start training in the same tactics used by the American civil rights movement. The subplot in this issue is that Miss Bengalore is gradually becoming alienated from her children, now that Caesar is babysitting them full-time. Animal Castle might be the single best comic currently being published in the American comic book format, but I’m always reluctant to read it because it’s such a brutal depiction of tyranny. Ironically, while I’m not well informed about the current French protests, it seems like the protesters are complaining about the same type of police brutality that Silvio’s dogs represent.

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES #140 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Sophie Campbell, [A] Gavin Smith. After Armageddon Game, Mutant Town is no longer walled off from the rest of New York, and the Turtles are unsure if they have a purpose anymore. Also, a serial killer has been going around murdering mutants. When Raphael (it’s no surprise that it’s him) storms off after an argument with his brothers, he finds the corpse of the serial killer’s latest victim and is mistaken for the killer. This is a strong issue that’s mostly focused on characterization. Now that Armageddon Game is over, I hope we will get more issues like this, and fewer issues that are wasted on irrelevant crossover plots.

SPIDER-MAN: INDIA #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “Seva Part 1,” [W] Nikesh Shukla, [A] Abhishek Malsuni. Pavitr Prabhakar is subjected to an experiment by Dr. Kumar, the Indian version of the Lizard. The other plot is that Giri Sahib, who appears to be based on the Kingpin, is trying to demolish Pavitr’s neighborhood. This feels like a much more Indian-focused comic than Vigil – not in the sense that it’s pandering to Indian readers or promoting stereotypes of India, but in the sense that its story and characterization wouldn’t be the same without its Indian setting. A high point of this issue is the panel where Peter, Miles and Pavitr are eating dosas. Dosas are perhaps my favorite Indian food, although I’ve stopped eating them lately because I’m trying to cut back on carbs. Seva is the Hindu and Sikh value of altruistic service without a reward.

MISS TRUESDALE AND THE FALL OF HYPERBOREA #2 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mike Mignola, [A] Jesse Lonergan. I can’t follow this comic’s plot; I feel like you have to have read all the Hellboyverse comics to understand any of them. Also, this comic feels like a generic Hellboy story, and it doesn’t allow Jesse Lonergan to truly showcase his talents. I’m only going to finish reading it because I love Jesse Lonergan’s work.

OLD DOG #5 (Image, 2023) – “Leviathan,” [W/A] Declan Shalvey. Old Dog discovers that his daughter, Rottweiler, has been trained as a replacement for him. Meanwhile, Rottweiler fights some sort of giant amorphous monster. The depictions of the monster are beautifully gruesome. This entire issue seems to be composed of two-page compositions, where each panel tier goes across both the left- and the right-hand page. Sometimes this is hard to detect, and I found myself reading some pages in the wrong order. It looks like I never got Old Dog #4.

SPIRIT WORLD #2 (DC, 2023) – “Remembrance,” [W] Alyssa Wong, [A] Haining. Xanthe is reunited with their estranged family, but their relatives insist on deadnaming them. Xanthe’s mother tries to use a binding talisman on them, but it doesn’t work because it has their old name on it. This sequence seems very authentic, though I can’t tell if it is or not. Also, Cassandra Cain visits a spirit neighborhood that looks a bit like the bathhouse in Spirited Away. I really like the characters in this series, but its plot is hard to remember.

FIRE POWER #3 (Image, 2020) – untitled, [W] Robert Kirkman, [A] Chris Samnee. This series is a guilty pleasure for me. It has excellent action sequences and reasonably good characterization, but as I complain every time I review it, it’s also culturally appropriative. In this issue, the protagonist works at a furniture store and tells a client a made-up story about how vases can be identified. Also he trains his kids in kung fu. One unusual thing about this series, like Jeremy Adams’s Flash, is that the protagonist is already married with a family.

THOR #189 (Marvel, 1971) – “The Icy Touch of Death!”, [W] Stan Lee, [A] John Buscema. Hela has condemned Thor to die, and in order to save himself, Thor has to remain in his Donald Blake form. Odin sends Volstagg to Earth – perhaps the only time anyone has ever needed Volstagg for anything – in order to tell Thor what’s going on. But Hela manifests on Earth, wearing a very stylish coat and fur hat, and puts some innocent people in danger, forcing Thor to resume his Asgardian form. This story feels generic and repetitive, like much of Stan’s Thor run, but Buscema’s art is quite good.

DAMAGE CONTROL #3 (Marvel, 1990) – “If You Picket, It’ll Never Heal!”, [W] Dwayne McDuffie, [A] Ernie Colón. Damage Control’s staff are on strike, probably due to the corporate takeover in issue 1. The protagonists have to cross the picket line because they’re management, and their awful new boss orders them to use scab workers to move Avengers Mansion to a new location. In a separate plot, She-Hulk has to repair the damaged Daily Bugle building despite harassment from some robots or battlesuits. The robots turn out to have been created by a disgruntled Damage Control employee. This was during the period when She-Hulk knew she was in a comic book, so her scenes are full of fourth-wall-breaking moments, and there’s an awesome joke that involves a lot of setup, about how when you break the fourth wall, the whole structure collapses.

BLOOD TREE #5 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Peter Tomasi, [A] Maxim Simic. The killer visits a prison and murders a number of visitors by poisoning the water cooler. Then he forces other murderers’ relatives to jump off the Empire State Building’s observation deck. Then he proceeds to the hotel where all the other potential victims are being held. Gee, what could possibly go wrong with putting all the possible murder victims in the same place? Blood Tree is an excellent piece of psychological horror, but Maxim Simic’s artwork is unexciting.

SANDMAN UNIVERSE: NIGHTMARE COUNTRY – THE GLASS HOUSE #3 (Vertigo, 2023) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Lisandro Estherren. Lucien gives the Corinthian the book that Max hasn’t yet written. Max meets the Corinthian and Madison, who’s still a cat. Azazel tries to tempt the Corinthian into betraying Morpheus. Max goes to work carrying Madison in a backpack, but he’s kidnapped and held in a room along with Jamie Tyler, who’s actually Thessaly. This series is less appealing than Tynion’s other current works because of its overly complicated plot.

BLACK’S MYTH: THE KEY TO HIS HEART #1 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Eric Palicki, [A] Wendell Cavalcanti. The subtitle does not appear in the indicia. Strummer’s new relationship is getting serious. A woman hires Strummer to find her missing daughter Claire, who ran away with her loser boyfriend so she could lose her V-card. Strummer finds Claire and shows her the power of her virginity by demonstrating that Claire can see unicorns. In order to avoid connotations of slut-shaming or purity culture, the writer has Strummer say that virginity is a mental state rather than a physical condition. Strummer also discovers that Claire is a half-demon, and hires Claire as her new intern. The issue ends with Strummer getting a letter from Rainsford Black, the villain of the previous series. I liked the first volume of Black’s Myth, and this sequel seems like a strong follow-up.

WONDER WOMAN #800 (DC, 2023) – “Whatever Happened to the Warrior of Truth? Part 2,” [W] Becky Cloonan & Michael W. Conrad, [A] various. Several different characters dream about Diana, including Yara Flor, Donna Troy, Cassie Sandsmark, Artemis, Batman, and Superman. (Let me point out here that Diana and Donna’s relationship has always been awkward, because Donna and Diana were originally supposed to be the same character at different ages, and there was never really a period of time when Wonder Girl was Wonder Woman’s sidekick. But this is a complicated topic.) This story has some excellent guest artwork, especially in the sequence by Jen Bartel. However, this story barely has a plot at all, and the fact that it’s named after “Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?” is an insult to Moore and Swan’s story. The backup feature in Wonder Woman #800 is the first appearance of Trinity, Wonder Woman’s daughter, who will appear in Tom King’s upcoming run. I’ve been steadily losing interest in Tom King’s work, and his story in this issue doesn’t do anything to convince me to read his Wonder Woman.

BATMAN #136 (DC, 2023) – “Dusk to Dawn,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Belén Ortega. Having returned from the other dimension, Batman checks out what’s been going on with his enemies, particularly the Penguin Twins. He also has an uncomfortable meeting with Catwoman. At 5 AM, Batman goes to Wayne Manor to investigate an alarm, only to discover that the Robins and Batgirls are throwing him a surprise party. This is an adorable moment, perhaps the high point of Zdarsky’s run so far. There’s also a Zur-En-Arrh backup story with art by Jorge Corona, who’s gotten really good.  

NEW MUTANTS: LETHAL LEGION #4 (Marvel, 2023) – “When I Was a Lad,” [W] Charlie Jane Anders, [A Enid Balám. I received both #3 and #4 of this series at the same time, and I read them in the wrong order. That’s why #4 was rather confusing. As of the end of #3, the New Mutants are being chased by Count Nefaria and Moonstone, and Shela and Morgan are having a fallout. This issue includes some funny moments, such as Moonstone singing “When I Was a Lad” from HMS Pinafore. For overall thoughts on this series, see my review of #3 below.

CAPTAIN MARVEL #50 (Marvel, 2023) – “Marvelous,” [W] Kelly Thompson, [A] Javier Pina & David Lopez. Carol deals with her grief for Binary by battling some aliens, and then there’s a huge party at her house. Kamala Khan attends the party, even though she’s supposed to be dead. At the end of the issue, Dr. Strange takes Carol to the Bar with No Doors so she can visit Scarlet Witch. This scene is a callback to the earlier trial storyline. I think Kelly Thompson has written more Carol Danvers stories than any other writer, and her run was generally successful, but it had both an unpromising start and an anticlimactic finish. I didn’t care enough about Binary to feel any grief for her, and she was also very similar to Singularity. In addition, I’m disappointed that we didn’t get to see the Snats and Snatmen one last time.

LOVE EVERLASTING #8 (Image, 2023) – “Too Hip for Love,” [W] Tom King, [A] Elsa Charretier. Joan gets out of the insane asylum and returns to her normal, boring life, in which it’s always 1963. She considers suicide, but decides against it. Nothing much happens in this issue, but that’s kind of the point.

YOUNG ROMANCE #167 (Dc, 1970) – “A Million Laughs in Every Kiss,” [W] Jack Miller, [A] Tony DeZuñiga. Nan agrees to marry Tom on one condition: that he stop playing cruel pranks on her. Tom breaks this boundary, but he finally tells Nan why he’s compelled to play pranks, and she forgives him. Tony DeZuniga’s art on this story is dynamic and modern-looking, and certainly much better than the rest of the art in this issue. However, DeZuniga is the second of the two 2023 Hall of Fame inductees who I disagree with. Number one, he was notorious for exploiting his fellow Filipino artists, and number two, Alfredo Alcala and Nestor Redondo ought to go into the Hall of Fame first (Alex Niño is already in). This issue’s other stories are generic, although one of them is part of an ongoing story arc, something which is rare in romance comics. What really infuriated me about this issue is the advice column, in which “B. Roscoe” complains that a classmate is sexually harassing her. “Laura Penn” (actually Carol Fein) says that she sounds conceited, and that she should go out with him once and give him a chance. It’s appalling that in 1970, when second-wave feminism was already a thing, girls were still being given such awful advice. And fifty years later, girls are still being taught that they shouldn’t complain about sexual harassment, or even that they should be flattered by it.

THE WALKING DEAD #112 (Image, 2013) – untitled, [W] Robert Kirkman, [A] Charlie Adlard.  Negan murders a man named Spencer, in violation of his agreement with Rick. When Rick complains about this, Negan makes another smug, unrepentant speech. Rick arranges an assassination attempt on Negan, only to discover that Negan has anticipated this and has planned around it. As stated in my review of #100, Negan is such an infuriating, horrible man that it’s kind of unfun to read about him. It’s also disappointing that he’s still alive at the end of both the comic book and the TV show.

2000 AD #529 (IPC, 1987) – Anderson: “Hour of the Wolf,” [W] John Wagner & Alan Grant, [A] Barry Kitson. Glenny and Orlok escape from Justice Department. Anderson wakes up and tries to locate Orlok, but Glenny is blocking her telepathy. Rogue Trooper: “Hit One,” [W] Simon Geller, [A] Steve Dillon. Rogue discovers that the most recent Yuan-Toh he killed was yet another double. Dredd: “Fairlyhyperman!”, [W] Wagner & Grant, [A] Mike Collins. Fairlyhyperman, a Superman parody, arrives in Mega-City One and tries to take over for Dredd as the local superhero. Dredd is not happy with this idea. This is a very funny story. Mean Team: untitled, [W] Alan Hebden, [A] Massimo Belardinelli. Jack is told that he and Emerald Eyes are not human. Strontium Dog: “Bitch Part 25,” [W] Alan Grant, [A] Carlos Ezquerra. Johnny Alpha drugs Durham Red so she can’t steal his half of the bounty, then returns Reagan to 1987. Reagan promptly falls asleep. This whole storyline was very funny. It’s an even better Reagan parody than Captain America #344.

IRON MAN #1 facsimile (Marvel, 1968/2023) – “Alone Against A.I.M.!”, [W] Archie Goodwin, [A] Gene Colan. Iron Man fights AIM and their leader Mordius, not to be confused with Morbius. Mordius dies at the end of the story, and has never appeared again. This story is mostly action scenes, though there is a brief subplot with Jasper Sitwell and Whitney Frost. The backup story is a retelling of Iron Man’s origin. Overall this is an adequate first issue, but it’s rather generic.

DEAD SEAS 6 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Cavan Scott, [A] Nick Brokenshire. The bad ghost reveals itself as Isa’s mother. The ghosts of the dead crew members intervene to save Isa and the other good guys, but the brown-haired bearded guy is killed. Afterward, Isa visits the guy’s daughter, and his ghost  manifests to say goodbye to her. This issue’s ending is too upbeat and happy for such a grim horror comic. Also, Dead Seas had way too many characters, and as this review demonstrates, I couldn’t remember any of their names. I only know the name Isa because I mentioned it in my review of #5.

FLASH #789 (DC, 2023) – “Ordered Mind,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Fernando Pasarin. Wally and his family are reunited with their old friend Piper Hartley. Wally, Piper and the family investigate why the mayor has been working with the Rogues. After some fighting, Wally figures out that the mayor is possessed by a Lord of Order, and convinces the Lord of Order to back off. This is another very cute story. Jeremy Adams got to write the Flash for thirty issues, which is a long run these days, but he should have been allowed to keep going as long as he wanted.

IMMORTAL X-MEN #12 (Marvel, 2023) – “Steel Yourself,” [W] Kieron Gillen, [A] Lucas Werneck. This issue’s POV character is Colossus. Peter is somehow enslaved by a telepathic “writer,” who is in turn enslaved by Peter’s brother Mikhail. The writer forces Peter to collaborate in Sebastian Shaw’s plot, which involves voting Selene onto the Quiet Council. Also, Mystique is somehow manipulated into murdering Destiny, though Irene comes right back to life. This issue is depressing to read because it depicts the complete breakdown of trust between the Quiet Council members. Also, Peter can’t do anything to reveal his mind control to anyone else, even his “big sister” Storm.

THE X-CELLENT #3 (Marvel, 2023) – “Unsocial Media Part 3,” [W] Peter Milligan, [A] Mike Allred. The X-Cellent’s reputation continues to deteriorate. Toodle Pip and Mirror Girl conspire with Dox to assassinate Zeitgeist, but he seduces Mirror Girl and murders Toodle Pip. This issue is okay, but I’ve always found it hard to care about the characters in Milligan’s X-Force/X-Statix/X-Cellent. They tend to be unsympathetic, and they also keep getting killed left and right.

THE X-CELLENT #4 – as above. As he nears the magic number of one billion followers, Zeitgeist starts to turn into a god. He also murders Dox, now that he no longer needs him. I really want to see Zeitgeist die. He’s a complete monster.

XIMO #1 (Oni, 2023) – “Hue,” [W] Melissa Flores, [A] Daniel Irizarri, etc. A blind man gets experimental ocular implants, but they cause him to see monsters that no one else can see. I haven’t heard of this artist, but his art and coloring on this story are very good. “Rabbit Trap,” [W] Jordan Thomas, [A] Shaky Kane. A xenophobic man thinks his neighbors are Communists, but discovers that they’re actually aliens. “She Took the Air,” [W/A] Phil Hester. This story compresses so much information into such a short space that it’s impossible to understand. “The Chip,” [W] Chris Condon, [A] Nick Cagnetti. A professional video gamer is implanted with a virtual reality chip. It causes him to murder several people, and finally he fatally injures himself while trying to take the chip out. None of these stories really stood out in terms of its writing, but all the artwork was quite good. I got to meet Nick Cagnetti at Heroes Con.

NEW MUTANTS: LETHAL LEGION #3 – as above. The mutants infiltrate Count Nefaria’s compound for some reason, and they get away with a McGuffin device called the Weird Engine. But then the Lethal Legion arrive, accompanied by their new member Moonstone, and demand it back. It’s weird how some of the original Thunderbolts are still known by their Thunderbolt codenames – for example, Songbird is always called that and not Screaming Mimi – but Moonstone is always referred to by her original name and not as Meteorite. The humorous moments in this series are very funny, but Anders seems to have difficulty deciding on the proper balance between humor and more serious themes, such as Shela and Morgan’s relationship. Anders’s transitions between funny and serious scenes are sometimes rather abrupt.

X-MEN RED #12 (Marvel, 2023) – “Genesis is Here,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Jacopo Camagni. This issue is full of a lot of confusing nonsense about Arakko and Okkara and Genesis. It has no connection to the rest of the series, except that Storm and Nova appear briefly in it. This lack of a clear theme or story arc is a recurring problem with this series.

GODFELL #4 (Vault, 2023) – unttiled, [W] Christopher Sebela, [A] Ben Hennessy. Zanzi and Neth are captured by nonhuman creatures called the Legato, but they manage to escape. Neth reveals that she has her own history of trauma: her village’s entire population had to hide underground to escape from the war, and the war went on so long that they were reduced to cannibalism. Godfell is an anti-war story, though it’s also several other things.

JUNK RABBIT #3 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Jimmie Robinson. A flashback sequence reveals how the world got into this awful state. The corporate troops invade the protagonists’ village and threaten to kill everyone unless they get information about Junk Rabbit. The girl, Ashleen, claims she knows the Junk Rabbit’s secret, to the surprise of the two boys who each suspect the other of being Junk Rabbit. The art in this series looks kind of outdated, as if it were produced with 2000s technology.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #685 (Marvel, 2012) – “Ends of the Earth Part 4: Global Menace,” [W] Dan Slott, [A] Humberto Ramos. A dying Dr. Octopus is holding the world for ransom, and the world is mostly prepared to pay his ransom, but Spider-Man doesn’t trust him. Spidey teams up with Silver Sable and Black Widow to defeat Doc Ock’s plans, even though he feels ambivalent about going against the will of the entire world. Spidey calls upon various international heroes for assistance, but at the end, Doc Ock seemingly executes his threat to destroy the world. This is not Dan Slott’s best issue, though it does help lead into Superior Spider-Man, which was the best Spider-Man story in recent memory.

THE ULTIMATES #9 (Marvel, 2003) – untitled, [W] Mark Millar, [A] Bryan Hitch. Janet van Dyne is lying in a hospital bed after being brutally beaten by Hank Pym. Captain America tracks down Hank, who shows no regret over his actions. The other Avengers prepare for battle with the Chitauri. The trouble with this series, and with Millar’s work in general, is that the supposed heroes are awful people. Millar takes each character’s worst aspect – Tony’s alcoholism, Cap’s nationalist chauvinism, Hank’s spousal abuse – and turns it into the character’s entire personality. It’s deliberately impossible to sympathize with his protagonists, and I wonder if this is because of Millar’s own cynical outlook on life. One thing that does surprise me is the number of elements from this series that made it into the MCU, including the black Nick Fury, the Chitauri, and Hawkeye’s wife and three children. It’s typical of Millar’s writing that Hawkeye’s children only appeared on-panel in two issues, and in the second of those issues, they were all murdered. I kind of want to collect the rest of this series, just so I can hate-read it.

CAPTAIN MARVEL #6 (Marvel, 1968) – “In the Path of Solam!”, [W] Arnold Drake, [A] Don Heck. Mar-Vell imagines he’s fighting an undersea monster, and then he fights an actual monster called Solam. Carol Danvers appears in this issue, but has no well-defined personality yet. The early issues of Captain Marvel were hampered by a revolving door of creators and by the lack of a consistent premise. It’s surprising that the series lasted until #17, in which Roy Thomas created the definitive version of the character by making him share a body with Rick Jones.   

THE GOON #31 (Dark Horse, 2008) – untitled, [W/A] Eric Powell. I bought a bunch of these at Heroes Con, but this is the only one I’ve read so far. It’s hard to understand because it appears to be the conclusion of an extended story arc. But Eric Powell’s artwork is beautiful. The Goon is constantly oscillating between humor and horror, and this issue is more horrific than humorous.

ADVENTURE COMICS #393 (DC, 1970) – “The Unwanted Supergirl!”, [W] Robert Kanigher, [A] Win Mortimer. A “crime computer” predicts a number of crimes that are about to occur. Supergirl fails to prevent either of the first two crimes, and thus becomes a public pariah. In the ending, we learn that the computer was a hoax created by Mxyzptlk, and that the two crimes never happened. That’s a relief, because both crimes were utterly ridiculous. The first crime was the assassination of a princess, and Supergirl could have stopped it if the princess’s parents hadn’t inexplicably prevented her. And the second “crime” was that an actress won an Oscar, but while she was still on stage, the award was revoked when her past criminal record was discovered. Overall this story is a typical example of Kanigher’s lack of respect for his readers’ intelligence. In the backup story, Supergirl’s roommate seems to have discovered Linda’s secret  identity. This story also has a pretty stupid plot, but it’s marginally less stupid, and the art is by Kurt Schaffenberger, who would have been a better choice for the Hall of Fame than Win Mortimer.

THE WALKING DEAD #116 (Image, 2013) – “All Out War” part ???, [W] Robert Kirkman, [A] Charlie Adlard. Rick and Negan’s factions engage in open battle. Rick’s side wins, but it’s only the first battle in a bigger conflict. This issue is mostly just a long action scene.

2000 AD #530 (IPC, 1987) – My copy has a serious printing error where some pages are printed so light that they’re illegible. Anderson: as above. The Judges hunt down Glenny Mexworth, but Orlok has already escaped. Future Shocks: “Fair’s Fare,” [W] Jamie Delano, [A] Massimo Belardinelli. A barfly tells stories about the Drex, a lizard bounty hunter with a bowler hat, goes around capturing debtors and sucking them into a vacuum cleaner. At the end of the story, the  Drex shows up to collect on the barfly’s debt to the bar. Because of the aforementioned printing error, half of this story’s second page was illegible. Dredd: as above. Fairlyhyperman saves lots of lives, but commits lots of crimes in the process. Dredd defeats him by shooting him with Kapokite, made of debris from Fairlyhyperman’s home planet. Dredd explains that Justice Department had half a ton of Kapokite in its vaults, precisely for this scenario. Fairlyhyperman protests that this seems unlikely, and Dredd replies “You’re pretty unlikely yourself.” This was a hilarious story. Mean Team: as above. Another well-drawn but nonsensical story. Rogue Trooper: as above. Rogue recruits some allies to help him defeat Yuan-Toh for the third time.

THE DEEP #5 (Boom!, 2017) – untitled, [W] Tom Taylor, [A] James Brouwer. I thought this was an adaptation of a TV show, but it’s the other way around. The comic was created before the TV show, but was previously published only in Australia. The Deep is a somewhat generic undersea adventure story, but it’s notable because its protagonists are a biracial family of four, and all four characters are depicted lovingly. James Brouwer’s renderings of the characters are excellent, but his artwork relies too much on CGI.

DETECTIVE COMICS #648 (DC, 1992) – “Let the Puzzlement Fit the Crime,” [W] Chuck Dixon, [A] Tom Lyle. This issue is Spoiler’s first appearance in costume, though she appeared in the previous issue in her secret identity. This issue also depicts Spoiler’s first meeting with Tim Drake, the character she’s always been associated with. There’s an additional subplot about Gotham’s upcoming mayoral election. Spoiler was one of Chuck Dixon’s two major contributions to the Batman mythos, along with Bane, and I like Spoiler a lot better than Bane.

INTERTWINED: THE LAST JEWISH DAUGHTER OF KAIFENG (FairSquare, 2023) – untitled, [W] Fabrice Sapolsky, [A] Fei Chen & Ho Seng Hui. This is a sequel to some other comic I didn’t read. I bought it because of its unique theme. Its protagonist, Leah Ai Tian, has to return from New York to her hometown of Kaifeng, in order to deal with threats to her elderly mother. This comic includes some exciting martial arts scenes, but what’s really compelling about it is its depiction of the Kaifeng Jews. I barely knew anything about this particular Jewish community, so this comic is enlightening. Kaifeng Jews are an example of the internal diversity of Judaism. There used to be Jewish communities all over the Old World, but after the Holocaust and World War II, most of these communities migrated to Israel. The Kaifeng Jews are somewhat unique because they lived in isolation from other Jews for so long that they completely assimilated. I’d like to see more stories with this sort of diverse Jewish representation. I think Fabrice Sapolsky was at Heroes Con, but I didn’t see him.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #694 (Marvel, 2012) – “Alpha Part 3: Final Grade,” [W] Dan Slott, [A] Humberto Ramos. Alpha continues to get drunk on his own fame. He intervenes in a fight between the Avengers and Terminus (the bargain-basement version of Galactus) and only succeeds in making things worse. During this fight, there’s a hilarious moment where Spidey is trying to save Aunt May’s plane from crashing, and May calls Peter to leave him a message in case she dies, and Spider-Man’s phone automatically picks up. After all this, Peter has had enough of Alpha, and he tricks Alpha and removes most of his powers. Overall, “Alpha” was an excellent and very funny storyline. This issue’s cover is an homage to the 1976 Superman vs. Spider-Man special, and that reference is appropriate, given Alpha’s powers.

MARVEL’S VOICES: PRIDE #1 (Marvel, 2023) – [E] Angélique Roché. This comic has good intentions, but it’s tediously long, and none of its stories are genuinely exciting. At least one of them barely even qualifies as a story, and some of the others are built around new characters who are unlikely to ever appear again. I keep buying these Marvel Voices comics out of a sense of social obligation, but they’ve been consistently unimpressive. I think it’s time I quit buying them, as I keep threatening to do.

INCREDIBLE HULK #135 (Marvel, 1971) – “Descent into the Time-Storm!”, [W] Roy Thomas, [A] Herb Trimpe. Kang decides to defeat the Avengers by preventing Bruce Banner from ever being born, since the Avengers were formed to defeat the Hulk. As instruments in this plot, Kang recruits the Hulk himself as well as the Phantom Eagle, a character who only appeared once before. This issue’s plot is rather silly, but Herb Trimpe’s artwork is some of his best. His page layouts are dynamic and unconventional, and he draws beautiful machinery of both the futuristic and World War I varieties. I have the Marvel Super-Heroes reprint of this issue, but it’s been a long time since I read it.

LORDS OF MISRULE #1 (Dark Horse, 1997) – “The Callow Heart,” [W] John Tomlinson et al., [A] Peter Snejbjerg. This miniseries is continued from a one-shot published by Tundra UK. I have that comic, but I don’t think I’ve read it. Lords of Misrule focuses on three friends living in an English village. One of them, Jack Goodfellow, visits a man in prison who tells him an urban legend about a murderous hitchhiker. Later, another of the three, Jo Hanlon, is murdered by the same method described in the legend. This is a frightening horror comic with excellent black-and-white art, strong characterization, and an immersive setting. Jo’s death is particularly shocking because by the time she dies, the creators have already gone to some length to develop her character. I need to read the rest of this miniseries.

HOUSE OF PENANCE #3 (Dark Horse, 2016) – untitled, [W] Peter J. Tomasi, [A] Ian Bertram. A horror story about the building of the Winchester Mystery House in San Jose, California. It took me a while to understand what this comic was about, and I still can’t quite follow its plot, but Ian Bertram’s art is gorgeous. His linework is beautifully detailed, and his page designs are innovative. He’s a major talent. I just wonder what’s happened to him. Precious Metal, his sequel to Little Bird, was supposed to come out in 2021, but I haven’t heard anything about it lately.

STARGIRL: THE LOST CHILDREN #2 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Geoff Johns, [A] Todd Nauck. I considered buying this when it came out, but I’m hesitant to buy any new DC comics from Geoff Johns. It’s just as well that I didn’t pay cover price for this comic, but it’s interesting. The premise is that Stargirl and Emiko Queen, the second Red Arrow, are trying to track down some vanished Golden Age sidekicks. Stargirl is based on Geoff Johns’s late sister, and she seems to be his favorite character. Therefore, his stories about her have a passion that’s missing from much of his other work, which is often wantonly cruel. Todd Nauck’s art in this issue is extremely detailed, and he’s an ideal artist for this series because of his run on Young Justice.

TARZAN #205 (Gold Key, 1971) – “Warriors’ Bounty,” [W] Gaylord Du Bois, [A] Paul Norris. A tribal queen promises her hand in marriage to whoever can kill a man-eating lion. A young warrior kills the lion, only to discover that a different warrior has already brought the queen the corpse of an identical lion. It turns out the queen and the second warrior were conspiring with each other. They both die of the plague, and the first warrior falls in love with the queen’s sister, a healer. This was the second to last issue before DC took over the Tarzan license. Paul Norris’s art in this story is fairly generic. I believe I attended at least one convention where he was a guest, but I never got to meet him.

ARCHIE AND ME #37 (Archie, 1970) – “Togethermess,” [W/A] Joe Edwards. Archie and Veronica go on vacation to the Tokyo world’s fair, where they unexpectedly run into Mr. Weatherbee. This issue is only of interest because of its depiction of Tokyo. I was afraid this issue would be full of Japanese stereotypes, but it mostly focuses on the installations at the fair, and there are few references to Japanese people or culture.

2000 AD #531 (IPC, 1987) – Anderson: as above. Orlok escapes Mega-City One aboard a spaceship called the Spirit of Eisner (a pun that’s so obvious I almost didn’t get it). Glenny Mexworth’s execution is ordered, and I don’t think she ever appeared again. Mean Team: as above. Jack Keller and Emerald Eyes’s contrived and convoluted origin is explained. By this point Mean Team had completely drifted away from its roots as a sports story. Dredd: “Revolution! Part 1,” [W] John Wagner & Alan Grant, [A] John Higgins. This story is a sequel to the classic “Letter from a Democrat” (#460), which I’ve never actually read. That story depicted the death of pro-democracy protester Hester Hyman. This issue, Hester’s widower, Gort, becomes the figurehead of a new pro-democracy movement with millions of supporters. Justice Department resolves to crush the movement, and they decide to start by discrediting its  leaders. Rogue Trooper: as above. Rogue finally kills Yuan-Toh for real, then proceeds to his next target. Future Shocks: “Some One is Watching Me,” [W] Alan McKenzie, [A] Liam Sharp. Philo Fachs’s life is ruined by a prankster. He decides to electrocute himself, but the electric current passes through his body and into the prankster’s devices, killing the prankster. This was Liam Sharp’s first work for 2000 AD. He signs it Liam McCormack-Sharp. McCormack seems to be his wife’s name.

SAVAGE DRAGON/TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES #1 (Mirage, 1993) – “Enter the Savage Dragon!”, [W/A] Michael Dooney, [W] Erik Larsen. Like every Savage Dragon story not written by Erik, this issue is disappointing. Michael Dooney had a lot of experience writing the Turtles, but he shows little understanding of the Savage Dragon. Also, it’s impossible to tell the Turtles apart because they all wear headbands of the same color.

HIT-GIRL #5 (Image, 2018) – “Canada Part 1,” [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Eduardo Risso. This is a unique collaboration between two world-class creators, though it’s not a top-tier work of eitehr of them. In this issue Hit-Girl goes to Toronto to look for a certain criminal. She discovers that he’s gone to Kashechewan, which is so far north that its only land access is by a seasonal ice road. Once she finally gets there, she gets caught in a bear trap. The thing I find strange about Canada is its sheer amount of empty space: it’s a huge country, but most of the population lives south of the US border, and most of the rest of Canada is an inaccessible wilderness with little or no population. I’ve been to Toronto, and it’s strange to think that in the same province as this major modern city, there are enormous barren tracts where no one lives.

CRIME SUSPENSTORIES #2 (EC, 1950/1993) – “Dead Ringer,” [W/A] Johnny Craig. Unusually for EC, this issue’s first page is a splash page. It’s very striking, in that the top half of the page is empty, while the bottom page shows a tiny man begging three tiny criminals to spare his life. The plot is that a thief discovers he looks exactly like an amnesiac millionaire, so he kills the millionaire and takes his place. But he himself is then murdered by the millionaire’s enemies, who refuse to believe he’s not the man they want. “A Moment of Madness,” [W] Al Feldstein, [A] Graham Ingels. A brain surgeon suffers sudden attacks of homicidal insanity. In the last of these attacks, he nearly kills his wife, and when he recovers his sanity, he has to perform surgery on her. He manages to stay sane long enough to save her, and then he commits suicide so he can’t try to kill her again. “The Corpse in the Crematorium,” [W/A] Craig. Al Gregory suffers from catalepsy, which causes him to appear dead. One day while his girlfriend Jane is out of town, he forgets his wallet at home and then has a cataleptic attack. He can’t be identified and is believed dead, so he’s taken to the morgue. When Jane comes back to town, she barely manages to find Al before he’s cremated alive. This story’s happy ending is a rarity in EC comics. “Contract for Death,” [W] Feldstein?, [A] Jack Kamen. Vincent Fenton is about to commit suicide by jumping off a bridge. Dr. Cordoz offers him $5000 if he’ll delay his suicide for a month and then let Dr. Cordoz have his corpse for his brain experiments. During that month, Vincent decides he wants to live, but Dr. Cordoz still needs a corpse, so Vincent goes and kills the first man he sees. His victim turns out to be Dr. Cordoz himself. While Vincent is fleeing from the police, he falls off the same bridge he originally planned to jump off, and his death is presumed to be suicide. This is the sort of perfectly choreographed twist ending that helped make EC famous.

SUB-MARINER #40 (Marvel, 1971) – “…Under the Name of Ritual…”, [W] Gerry Conway, [A] Stan Lee. Namor and Spider-Man visit the city of the Black Sea People, and Namor has to fight their champion, Turalla, on behalf of their princess, Tuvia. This issue is kind of boring, and neither Turalla nor Tuvia have ever appeared again. Also, Spider-Man plays no necessary role in this issue’s plot. However, Colan’s art is quite good, and Conway includes some effective characterization. At this point in continuity, Namor is mourning the death of his fiancee Dorma, while Peter is similarly grieved over Captain Stacy’s death, and they both seem to find comfort in their friendship.  

METAL MEN #29 (DC, 1968) – “The Robot Eater from Metalas 5!”, [W] John Braillard, [A] Ross Andru. I’ve never heard of this writer before, and he has only one other credit in the GCD. In this issue the Metal Men fight a giant metal-eating robot with the help of another similar robot. This issue’s plot is overly complicated and confusing, but Andru’s artwork is subtly effective. Metal Men was one of the few DC titles of its time that included any significant characterization, although most of the characters had just one notable personality trait at most – for example, Tin’s shyness, or Platinum’s obsession with Doc Magnus.

SHOCK SUSPENSTORIES #5 (EC, 1952/1993) – “Well-Traveled!”, [W] Al Feldstein, [A] Jack Kamen. Horace Wheems has a beautiful model train set in his basement, but no trains. Every time he saves enough money to buy one, his wife takes the money to go traveling. Finally he’s had enough of this, and he buys some model trains, then murders his wife, dismembers her, and puts her body parts inside the trains. This gruesome ending is reminiscent of the notorious story “Foul Play.” “Hate!”, [W] Al Feldstein, [A] Wally Wood. A Jewish couple, the Golds, move nto John Smith’s neighborhood. Smith and his anti-Semitic friends commit a series of hate crimes against the Golds, and finally they set the Golds’ house on fire, killing them both. By coincidence, whle John is discussing the crime with one of his friends, his mother shows up and reveals that John is in fact the adopted child of Jewish parents. John’s former “friends” now hate him, and they treat him the same way John himself treated the Golds. My sense is that this sort of extreme anti-Semitic violence was rare in postwar America, and I wonder if the Jews in this story are meant to represent black people. Qiana Whitted discusses this story in her book on EC, which I own but have not read. “What Fur?”, [W] Feldstein, [A] Joe Orlando. A spaceship captain’s wife loves to wear expensive furs, which she buys from a spacefaring furrier. Despite his distaste for the fur industry, the captain agrees to take the furrier to an alien planet. Ironically, this planet is inhabited by aliens who wear human skins. This story has some of the best art I’ve seen from Orlando. “Cold Cuts!”, [W] Feldstein, [A] Jack Davis. Vic Benson has just murdered his wife. Inconveniently, a realtor is about to come to his house to show it to some prospective buyers, so Vic has no choice but to chop up his wife’s corpse and hide it in the meat locker. By happenstance, Vic has to leave town before he can dispose of the corpse. When he gets back, the realtor invites him to dinner… but the butcher was closed, and the realtor had a key to Vic’s house, so he decided to serve the meat that was in Vic’s freezer! Another brilliant twist ending.

DOCTOR WHO: THE THIRD DOCTOR #2 (Titan, 2014) – “The Heralds of Destruction Part 3,” [W] Paul Cornell, [A] Christopher Jones. The Third Doctor, Jo Grant, and Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart confront the Master and a villain who’s disguised as the Second Doctor. I find the idea of Doctor Who fascinating, but I’m much more willing to read Doctor Who comics than to watch the actual TV show. Perhaps I’ll watch the show when the new season begins.

KONA, MONARCH OF MONSTER ISLE #14 (Dell, 1965) – “Polar Peril,” [W] Paul S. Newman, [A] Sam Glanzman, My copy of this issue is missing its centerfold, so I’ll have to find a replacement copy. This issue is clearly not written by Lionel Ziprin or whoever the mystery writer was; it has a much more sedate writing style and a more generic plot. Kona is still obsessed with survival, but not to the same extent. The one notable thing about of this issue is that Newman allows the two kid characters to play an active role in the plot, while in the mystery writer’s run, they were usually just hostages who Kona had to protect.

WARLOCK #6 (Marvel, 1973) – “The Brute!”, [W] Mike Friedrich, [A] Bob Brown. On Counter-Earth, Warlock teams up with a good version of Dr. Doom against the Brute, an evil version of Reed Richards. The first eight issues of Warlock were very strange. They had three different writers, and they depicted the character quite differently from his later appearances. After Warlock was cancelled with #8, Jim Starlin created the definitive version of the character in Strange Tales #178-181, and Warlock was then revived for six more issues.

DOCTOR STRANGE: THE OATH #1 (Marvel, 2006) – untitled, [W] Brian K. Vaughan, [A] Marcos Martín. While Iron Fist and Araña are waiting in Night Nurse’s office, Wong comes in dragging Dr. Strange’s nearly dead body. Strange manifests in his astral form and reveals how he got hurt. In the flashback, Strange discovers that Wong has an incurable brain tumor. Strange travels to another dimension to find an elixir that can cure Wong. To get the elixir he had to defeat a giant cat demon that looks like Lying Cat, and then he discovers that the elixir can cure any kind of cancer. BKV’s writing here is exciting, and he emphasizes the often-forgotten fact that Strange used to be a medical doctor himself. Marcos Martín’s page layouts and panel compositions are spectacular, although his draftsmanship is not his best. I need to find the rest of this series.

2000 AD #532 (IPC, 1987) – Ro-Jaws’ Robo-Tales: “The Killer in the Cab,” [W] Alan Moore, [A] John Richardson. A space trucker is stranded on a desolate planet when his computer malfunctions. He manages to fix the computer with help from a fellow trucker. The twist is that the other trucker is a robot. This story isn’t Alan’s best. I’m not sure if this John Richardson is the same man as the American artist John Adkins Richardson. Tales from Mega-City One: “Taxi Driver Part 1,” [W] Alan Grant, [A] Paul Hardy. A traveler is stranded in the Cursed Earth. He’s picked up by the Cursed Earth’s only taxi driver, who happens to have a suitcase full of mob money in his cab. The taxi driver mentions how it’s extremely difficult to get a taxi license in Mega-City One, and it seems like Justice Department doesn’t want people to work. Dredd: as above. The Judges discredit the democracy movement’s leaders by accusing them of trivial or made-up crimes. They can’t find any dirt on Gort Hyman, so instead, Dredd threatens to forcibly induct his two sons into the Judges’ Academy. Faced with this threat, Gort denounces the movement, but the planned 16-million-person march goes forward anyway. Future Shocks: “The Junkyard Shift,” [W] Murdoch McKenzie, [A] Simon Harrison. A pointless story featuring some well-drawn robots. Strontium Dog: “The Royal Affair Part 1,” [W] Grant, [A] Carlos Ezquerra. England’s king, Clarkie II, visits the Milton Keynes mutant ghetto and proposes marriage to a mutant girl, but Clarkie’s own assistant tries to murder the girl. As an overarching point, when I look at “Taxi Driver” and “Revolution” together, I notice that Mega-City One is a failed state. It suffers from extreme poverty and unemployment and a high crime rate, and the Judges’ repressive policies never seem to solve anything. All the Judges ever manage to do is prevent things from deteriorating more quickly. Why don’t they ever try anything different? Either because they’re afraid it’ll be worse than the status quo, or because all they care about is maintaining their own power.

CHARLTON BULLSEYE #6 (Charlton, 1982) – “The Sound of Thunder,” [W] Marty Greim, [A] Mike Machlan. Young comics fan Bobby Caswell is transformed into a superpowered rabbit. Thunderbunny previously appeared in fanzines, but this was his first appearance in a professionally published comic. This story is cute, though unlike later Thunderbunny comics, it has few in-jokes about comics fandom. The next story is a three-pager by Alan Hanley, who was unfortunately killed in a car accident while the issue was win press. He had a frenetic style that was influenced by both Barks and underground comics. He was a talented fan artist, and it’s a shame that he died just as he was making it into the pros. The issue ends with a Mike Mauser story which is unfortunately neither written by Nick Cuti nor drawn by Joe Staton.

BATMAN: THE DETECTIVE #2 (DC, 2021) – untitled, [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Andy Kubert. Batman visits London, where he meets Knight and Squire. Batman also fights some criminals who are murdering people whose lives he previously saved. One of the criminals’ victims is Batman’s old mentor Henri Ducard. This is a very entertaining story, and I’m sorry I didn’t buy this miniseries when it came out. A funny moment is when Squire gives Batman a lollipop, and later we see him sucking on it.

VENOM #8 (Marvel, 2022) – “Time and the Conqueror,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Bryan Hitch. To my surprise, this is not really a Spider-Man story; rather, it’s a cosmic story in the same vein as Ewing’s S.W.O.R.D. or Guardians of the Galaxy. In this issue Venom encounters Kang, and then at the end of the issue we meet a villain who I don’t recognize. I like Al Ewing’s writing, but this issue is just average.

Finally we come to the end of this enormous stack:

ACTION COMICS #690 (DC, 1993) – “Lies & Revelations,” [W] Roger Stern, [A] Jackson Guice. Maggie Sawyer breaks up a fight between two different Superman-worshipping cults. The Cyborg Superman and Mongul hold Superboy captive, and they use his recorded image to lead the JLA on a wild goose chase. The wounded Eradicator is healed by the robots in Superman’s fortress, but the real Superman, who has returned to life, is traveling back to Metropolis inside a Kryptonian battlesuit. I must have read this comic when it came out, but I don’t remember it well.  

Tentative 2023 Eisner Awards votes

Best Short Story

• “Finding Batman” by Kevin Conroy and J. Bone in DC Pride 2022 (DC)

An unimpressive list of nominees. All but one of the nominees are from Marvel or DC; surely there must have been some good short stories in anthologies from independent publishers? The only one I think I read is “You Got It”, but I have no memory of it. I read “Finding Batman” when it went viral on social media, and it’s the clear winner.

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Best Single Issue/One-Shot

• A Vicious Circle Book 1, by Mattson Tomlin and Lee Bermejo (BOOM! Studios)

An even worse list. I read only two of these, and I hated Batman: One Bad Day – The Riddler, so that leaves A Vicious Circle.

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Best Continuing Series

• Nightwing, by Tom Taylor and Bruno Redondo (DC)

All of these are worthy nominees, though I quit reading Killadelphia because it was disappointing. Nightwing is my favorite current comic besides Saga.

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Best Limited Series

• Miracleman by Gaiman & Buckingham: The Silver Age, by Neil Gaiman and Mark Buckingham (Marvel)

A hard choice between Miracleman and Animal Castle. I’m going with Miracleman because I’ve been waiting for it for most of the time I’ve been reading comics.

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Best New Series

• Public Domain, by Chip Zdarsky (Image)

I’ve read three of these and this is my favorite, though I think it should have been nominated as a miniseries. If there is going to be a second story arc of Public Domain, I haven’t heard about it. I can think of lots of series that I’d have nominated instead, such as I Hate This Place, Dark Ride, Kaya, or Damn Them All.

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Best Publication for Early Readers (up to age 8)

• Beneath The Trees: A Fine Summer, by Dav (Magnetic Press)

I haven’t heard of any of these. I’m inclined to vote for this book in order to recognize Magnetic Press’s efforts to translate European comics.

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Best Publication for Kids (ages 9-12)

• Swim Team, by Johnnie Christmas (HarperAlley)

An extremely strong category. The only one I’ve read is Swim Team. I have Leviathan and Little Monarchs, but have not gotten to them yet.

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Best Publication for Teens (ages 13-17)

• Wash Day Diaries, by Jamila Rowser and Robyn Smith (Chronicle Books)

Another very strong category, though I’ve only read two of them. I bought Clementine but haven’t read it. I loved Do a Powerbomb, but Wash Day Diaries is the more important work, though it seemed like an adult work to me.

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Best Humor Publication

• I Hate This Place, by Kyle Starks and Artyom Topilin (Image Skybound)

But Sarah Andersen and Tom Gauld would also be very deserving winners. I was not impressed with Killer Queens.

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Best Anthology

• The Nib Magazine, edited by Matt Bors (Nib)

Not familiar with any of the others, though Sensory looks interesting.

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Best Reality-Based Work

• Flung Out of Space, by Grace Ellis and Hannah Templer (Abrams ComicArts)

These all look excellent, though I haven’t read any of them. I’m inclined to vote for Flung Out of Space because of my passion for Grace Ellis’s work on Lumberjanes. However, But I Live is probably a more deserving work.

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Best Graphic Memoir

• Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands, by Kate Beaton (Drawn & Quarterly)

Clearly this was the book of the year, though Thorogood’s book was also highly acclaimed, and I look forward to reading it soon.

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Best Graphic Album—New

• Ultrasound, by Conor Stechschulte (Fantagraphics)

I haven’t read any of them, and this is the only one I’m even interested in reading. I guess this category is exclusively for fictional graphic novels, or else Ducks should have been nominated.  

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Best Graphic Album—Reprint

• Days of Sand, by Aimée de Jongh, translation by Christopher Bradley (SelfMadeHero)

I haven’t read this, but I really want to.

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Best Adaptation from Another Medium

• Rain by Joe Hill, adapted by David M. Booher and Zoe Thorogood (Syzygy/Image)

This was the only one I read. It was reasonably good.

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Best U.S. Edition of International Material

• Blacksad: They All Fall Down Part 1, by Juan Díaz Canales and Juanjo Guarnido, translation by Diana Schutz and Brandon Kander (Dark Horse)

I’m not familiar with any of these. I suspect there may have been better choices that weren’t on the ballot. Europe Comics must have translated a lot of important works in 2022.  

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Best U.S. Edition of International Material—Asia

• Shuna’s Journey, by Hayao Miyazaki; translation by Alex Dudok de Wit (First Second/Macmillan)

I haven’t read any of these either. Shuna’s Journey sems like the obvious choice, though Talk to My Back also seems deserving.

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Best Archival Collection/Project—Strips (at least 20 years old)

• Bungleton Green and the Mystic Commandos, by Jay Jackson (New York Review Comics)

On the grounds that all the other works on the ballot have already been published at least in part.

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Best Archival Collection/Project—Comic Books (at least 20 Years Old)

• The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror Ominous Omnibus 1 (Abrams ComicArts)

This series was nominated for a number of Eisner Awards, but the back issues are impossible to find. (Edited because I forgot to finish this sentence)

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Best Writer

• James Tynion IV, House of Slaughter, Something Is Killing the Children, Wynd (BOOM! Studios); The Nice House on the Lake, The Sandman Universe: Nightmare Country (DC), The Closet, The Department of Truth (Image)

I would have voted for Tom Taylor this year, but James Tynion is still highly deserving.

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Best Writer/Artist

• Kate Beaton, Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands (Drawn & Quarterly)

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Best Penciller/Inker or Penciller/Inker Team

• Bruno Redondo, Nightwing (DC)

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Best Painter/Multimedia Artist (interior art)

• Felix Delep, Animal Castle (Ablaze)

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Best Cover Artist (for multiple covers)

• Bruno Redondo, Nightwing (DC)

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Best Coloring

• Jean-Francois Beaulieu, I Hate Fairyland 2022, Twig (Image)

Jordie Bellaire would be the obvious choice, but I really liked Twig.

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Best Lettering

• Stan Sakai, Usagi Yojimbo (IDW)

They ought to rename this the Todd Klein Award.

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Best Comics-Related Periodical/Journalism

• Comic Book Creator, edited by Jon B. Cooke (TwoMorrows)

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Best Comics-Related Book

• The Charlton Companion, by Jon B. Cooke (TwoMorrows)

I haven’t read this yet, but I greatly enjoyed the Comic Book Artist issues that it’s based on.

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Best Academic/Scholarly Work

• How Comics Travel: Publication, Translation, Radical Literacies, by Katherine Kelp-Stebbins (Ohio State University Press)

I’m ashamed to admit I haven’t read any of these either.

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Best Publication Design

No vote yet because I haven’t looked at any of the nominees.

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Best Webcomic

• Lore Olympus, by Rachel Smythe (WEBTOON), https://www.webtoons.com/en/romance/lore-olympus/list?title_no=1320&page=5

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Best Digital Comic

• All Princesses Die Before Dawn, by Quentin Zuttion, translation by M. B. Valente (Europe Comics)

Yet again I haven’t read any of the nominees, but this seems like an important work.

April 2023 reviews

2000 AD #1820 (Rebellion, 2013) – Dredd: “Wolves Part 1,” [W] Mike Carroll, [A] Andrew Currie. Some Sovs are living in Mega-City One as part of an exchange program, but in the wake of Chaos War, they’re all facing racism and violence. This story focuses on one particular Sov emigrant, Dmitri Bystrov, and his family. From the reference to Dmitry and his wife having come to Mega-City One on the same ship, I suspect the Sovs are an allegory for British Caribbean people, who are associated with the ship Windrush. Savage: “Rise Like Lions Part 9,” [W] Pat Mills, [A] Patrick Goddard. As the battle continues, Savage begins to realize he’s been betrayed by his own ally, the oil magnate Quartz. Ampny Crucis: “The Entropy Tango Part 9,” [W] Ian Edginton, [A] Simon Davis. Crucis fights some weird fish-faced people. Simon Davis’s painted art is beautiful. The van on the first page is labeled N. MARSH, perhaps in reference to Ngaio Marsh. Red Seas: “Fire Across the Deep Part 9,” [W] Ian Edginton, [A] Steve Yeowell. Another big fight scene. Strontium Dog: “The Life and Death of Johnny Alpha Chapter 3, Part 9,” [W] John Wagner, [A] Carlos Ezquerra. Johnny leaves the besieged Milton Keynes ghetto to negotiate with the government, but it’s actually a trick to infect them with a toxic parasite. An army of other SD agents arrives to break the siege.

BATMAN ’66 #20 (DC, 2015) – “A Stand-Up Guy,” [W] Rob Williams, [A] Rubén Procopio. The Joker reinvents himself as a superhero, only he’s actually in league with all the “villains” he defeats. Batman and Robin become social pariahs, but they reinvent themselves as phony supervillains, the Pillager and Larceny Lad, so they can expose the Joker’s plot. This is a funny and well-plotted issue, and I like this comedic version of the Joker better than the modern homicidal-maniac version.

SECRET SIX #1 (DC, 2015) – “One Less Mouth to Feed,” [W] Gail Simone, [A] Ken Lashley. Catman is kidnapped from a bar and wakes up in a locked room with five other people, including Black Alice and a new Ventriloquist. A voice tells them that they have to find out the “secret” or they’ll all be killed. This is a fairly interesting setup.  

CATALYST COMIX #5 (Dark Horse, 2013) – “The Truth About Mr. Seaver!” etc., [W] Joe Casey, [A] Paul Maybury, etc. I had thought this was an original series, but it’s actually a revival of the Comics’ Greatest World shared universe from the ‘90s. I never had much interest in Comics’ Greatest World, and I don’t remember anything about the plot or characters of Catalyst Comix #5. The only interesting thing about this issue is Ulises Farinas’s art on the first backup story.

VILLAINS UNITED #4 (DC, 2005) – “”A Weapon to Unify,” [W] Gail Simone, [A] Dale Eaglesham. The villains attack Queen Bee’s installation in the Amazon jungle, and they free her power source, which turns out to be Firestorm. Afterward, Cheshire sleeps with Catman, and informs him that she’s trying to get pregnant by him. I’ve already read the two subsequent issues.

LOVE & ROMANCE #24 (Charlton, 1975) – “A Perfect Catch,” [W] Joe Gill?, [A] Demetrio Sanchez Gomez. The writing in this issue is pure crap, and the artwork in two of the three stories is mediocre. The reason I bought this issue is for the first story, which is drawn by Demetrio Sanchez Gomez, a very gifted and underrated artist. His story is just six pages, but his linework is beautiful, he shows a great sense of fashion design, and the negative space in his panels is often filled with abstract psychedelic designs. These designs have no relevance to the story, but they sure look nice. I’d like to read more of his work, but in order to locate it, I would have to hunt through lots of old bad Charlton romance comics, and I’m not sure that’s worth the trouble.

DAREDEVIL #152 (Marvel, 1978) – “Prisoner!”, [W] Roger McKenzie, [A] Carmine Infantino. Maxwell Glenn is laid to rest. Foggy Nelson descends into alcoholism and depression after his wife Debbie leaves him. Daredevil “solves” Foggy’s problem by kidnapping Debbie and forcing her to meet with Foggy. That actually works, because this is a ‘70s comic. Matt fights Paladin and somehow manages to lose, then goes looking for the missing Heather Glenn.

HEPCATS #5 (Double Diamond, 1990) – “Snowblind,” [W/A] Martin Wagner. In the present-day timeframe, Erica recovers from a possible suicide attempt, and her boyfriend Arnie talks to her doctor. In a flashback, a man attempts to kidnap Erica, who he calls Kathryn, from a shopping mall. Hepcats was massively hyped when it was coming out, but there wasn’t much to justify the hype. Compared to similar titles like Cerebus or Omaha the Cat Dancer, Hepcats has very little substance to its story. I think the main reason anyone paid attention to it was because of Martin Wagner’s aggressive self-promotion and his primadonna behavior.

INCREDIBLE HULK #262 (Mavel, 1981) – “People Who Live in Glass Houses Shouldn’t Hurt Hulks!”, [W] Bill Mantlo, [A] Sal Buscema. The Hulk encounters a woman named Glazier who can turn people to glass. She tries to use her powers on the Hulk, but instead she accidentally uses them on her pet wolf, and then on herself. In a backup story, the Hulk meets a little boy who thinks he’s an alien and his parents aren’t his real parents. It turns out the boy really is an alien, but that hardly justifies his parents’ abusive behavior. At the beginning of the story, they chase the boy down and shove some pills in his mouth. The creators were obviously trying to fool the reader into thinking that the parents, not the boy, were the villains, and they did too good a job of this.

SIN CITY: HELL AND BACK #2 (Dark Horse, 1999) – untitled, [W/A] Frank Miller. A man named Wallace and a woman named Esther are kidnapped by corrupt police. While Wallace languishes in jail, an unnamed villain tells Esther that he’s going to remake her completely. I’m not a big fan of Sin City. It’s so relentlessly grim and bleak that it seems like a parody of itself. This final Sin City miniseries was perhaps Frank Miller’s last serious work.

Next Heroes trip:

NIGHTWING #102 (DC, 2023) – “Rise of the Underworld Part 2,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Travis Moore. Credits and title come from here, since they’re missing from the comic itself. The art looks like Bruno Redondo to me. Dick escapes the morgue, and with his fellow Titans, he defeats the shapeshifter who kidnapped Olivia. Dick and the Titans decide to travel to the underworld and steal Olivia’s contract. As I have said before, the fight scenes are usually the most boring part of any superhero comic, but Tom Taylor has the rare talent of writing fight scenes that are fun to read and that contribute to character development. I just wish he’d give Starfire some more dialogue. In the backup story, by C.S. Pacat and Eduardo Pansica, Dick and Jon try to solve an attempted murder at a circus.

VANISH #5 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Ryan Stegman, [A] Donny Cates. Oliver finds himself in a mental hospital, where the doctors try to convince him that his magical adventures are a delusion. Elyn begs Oliver to stay in the mental hospital, but he refuses, and forces himself to wake up. Whether this was the correct choice is unclear. Oliver finally makes it back to his house, only to find it in ruins.

GROO: GODS AGAINST GROO #4 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Sergio Aragonés, [W] Mark Evanier. The Groo-worshippers finally figure out that Groo isn’t worthy of their devotion, so the god version of Groo fades away. Ahax, the Sage and Taranto head for home aboard a ship loaded with jewels, and when Groo finds his way aboard the ship, they succeed in convincing him to get off of it. However, Groo has already convinced a bunch of people to stow away aboard the ship with jewels and pottery and statues, so the ship is above its weight limit, and thus, Groo manages to sink the ship without even being on it. At the end of the series the status quo is restored. I was worried that the quality of Groo had gone down, but Gods Against Groo is as good as any other Groo comic. It’s amazing that an 85-year-old man can produce such high-quality art and writing. What’s even more amazing is that the next Groo miniseries has already been solicited.

UNDISCOVERED COUNTRY #24 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Scott Snyder & Charles Soule, [A] Giuseppe Camuncoli & Leonardo Marcello Grassi. We learn that all the different future scenes were alternative possible futures, though it’s possible we knew that already. Lots of other weird stuff happens, and at the end, the protagonists proceed to the next zone. The big reveal at the end is that Chang seems to be a traitor, because he’s in communication with a giant Chinese fleet that’s waiting off the Pacific coast.

SHE-HULK #11 (Marvel, 2023) – “Girl Can’t Help It”, [W] Rainbow Rowell, [A] Andrés Genolet. Jen and Ben Grimm fight each other as part of their superhero fight club. Jen and Jack have a rather tense conversation. Then Jen and Sue Storm fight a mysterious villain who turns out to be just as strong as Jen. This issue is fun, but the only truly new thing in it is the mystery villain.

I HATE FAIRYLAND V2 #5 (Image, 2023) – “This World,” [W] Skottie Young, [A] Brett Bean. This is perhaps the only comic I’ve read that comes with its own song, which is accessed by a QR code at the beginning of the issue. The song is meant to accompany the first part of the issue, which has no dialogue. In this sequence, Gert completes a series of fetch quests and eventually makes it out of hell into Fairyland. When she arrives there, she discovers that her client, Wiggins, has already gotten his son back. Now that Wiggins no longer needs Gert, he’s abandoned her in Fairyland with no way back to Earth, so Gert is stuck in Fairyland for the second time.

KAYA #6 (Image, 2023) – “Kaya and the Magic Arm,” [W/A] Wes Craig. This is a one-shot story that won’t be collected in trade paperback form. It’s a flashback story that explains the origin of Kaya’s prosthetic arm. In the flashback, Kaya is raised by an abusive mother who was determined to turn her daughter into the “Golden One.” Kaya’s mother forces her to endure a ritual in which she’s offered to a giant snake, but the snake bites Kaya, and her arm has to be amputated to stop the poison from spreading. Kaya’s uncle Kova, who actually cares about her, appeals to the “Black Wizards” to help Kaya. Kova obtains the magic arm, which stops the poison, and raises Kaya for the rest of her childhood. There’s also a backup story by an artist named Al Gofa whose style resembles that of Andrew MacLean.

NOCTERRA #12 (Image, 2023) – “No Brakes Part 1: If,” [W] Scott Snyder, [A] Tony Daniel. This story arc is narrated by Emory, and this chapter’s title is the first of his five steps in problem-solving: if, then, how, why, because. Emory and his allies encounter Val, who survived being turned into a shade. Then they travel to Eos, but just before reaching it, they’re stopped by Blacktop Bill. There’s also a series of flashbacks, in which we learn that when Emory was four years old, his parents abandoned him in the middle of a highway.

MOON GIRL AND DEVIL DINOSAUR #4 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jordan Ifueko, [A] Alba Glez. Lunella invents a device that can break Olivia’s mind control, and she obtains the ingredients for it with some help from the other Sad Saks. There are some cute scenes revolving around Will’s grandfather and Devinder’s big sister. The kids manage to de-brainwash their fourth member, Tasha, but the only way to rescue Olivia’s other victims is to destroy her hair tie, and their only opportunity to do that will be on the same night Lunella is scheduled to switch minds with Devil. A poignant moment in this issue is when Lunella’s mother says “I wish we lived in a world where a little black girl can roar and stomp around like a T. Rex in public, but some people out there will hurt you long before it occurs to them to help you.”

BEHOLD, BEHEMOTH #4 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Tate Brombal, [A] Nick Robles. We begin with a flashback to Wren’s idyllic early childhood, and then her abuse at her foster home. In the present-day time frame, Kavita tells Grey that Wren’s monster murdered Grey’s brother. In the future timeframe, Grey gets angry at Wren and yells at her, causing her to go off by herself. This series’ depiction of child abuse and its long-term effects is very strong, but I don’t understand the behemoth-shepherd-scourge business.

FLASH #795 (DC, 2023) – “The One-Minute War Part 6: Give Me Liberty,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Roger Cruz et al. The Flash family decide to defeat the villains by shoving them backward in time, which works because of some mumbo jumbo that I couldn’t follow. Jai and Irey think this will also cause Wally to come back to life, and Linda and Barry don’t have the heart to tell them that it won’t work that way. However, on the last couple pages we see that Wally is still alive; he wakes up on a “Planet Flash” populated by various obscure superheroes. According to CBR, the inhabitants of Planet Flash were the same people Wally believed he’d killed in Heroes in Crisis. I didn’t know that, because I gave up on Heroes in Crisis after three issues.  

DAMN THEM ALL #6 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Charlie Adlard. Alfie’s ghost tells Ellie that he was dying anyway, so he performed a ritual in which he sacrificed himself to free all the demons in hell. This sequence seems inspired by the greatest Hellblazer storyline, “Dangerous Habits.” Ellie defeats Frankie by tricking him into summoning Andras, who promptly kills him. But that’s not the end of Ellie’s problems, and to complicate things even futher, the issue ends with some angels contacting Ellie to offer her a deal.

THE WASP #3 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Al Ewing, [A] Kasia Nie. The Creature from Kosmos traps Jan and Nadia in visions of the lives they’d have lived if Hank Pym had never existed. (I don’t know how Nadia could have existed without Hank, but that point is glossed over.) The Creature’s goal is to confront them with their fears that they would have been nothing without Hank, but they prove too strong for the Creature’s manipulation, so it decides to combine their visions into a single scenario where Nadia tries to assassinate Jan.

THE NEIGHBORS #1 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jude Ellison S. Doyle, [A] Letizia Cadonici. Janet and Oliver, a transgender man, have just moved into a new house with their two daughters, a teenager and a toddler. The horror premise is that there’s something creepy about the neighbors, especially the old hag next door. But what’s really interesting about The Neighbors is its depiction of its protagonists and their tense relationships. Casey resents Oliver because Janet left her previous wife for him, and Oliver is paralyzed by his fear that the neighbors will realize he’s trans. I’m not sure how the parents are related to the children – neither child’s biological father is mentioned, and it’s not clear which partner gave birth to the baby – but I suppose that information isn’t relevant to the story.  

MONICA RAMBEAU: PHOTON #4 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Eve Ewing, [A] Luca Maresca. Monica escapes from Moonstone’s insane asylum, but discovers that reality is still inconsistent. In order to save the universe, she has to figure out what she desires, so she seeks out someone who knows all about desire: Starfox. This character was rendered almost unusable when Dan Slott, in She-Hulk, established that he was a serial sexual predator, so it’s surprising to see him again here.

LITTLE MONSTERS #11 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Dustin Nguyen. There’s no real plot development in this issue; it’s just about the vampires dealing with the discovery that the adult vampires are gone. I don’t remember much about this issue.

BATGIRLS #16 (DC, 2023) – “Everyone’s Mad Here!”, [W] Becky Cloonan & Michael W. Conrad, [A] Neil Googe. The Batgirls track down the Mad Hatter, who’s responsible for most of the events of the past few issues. He turns Steph into a “Girl-Bat,” but she gets better. The closing scene, with Steph flying around and then dreaming about flying, is cute, but otherwise I’ve mostly forgotten this issue.

NO/ONE #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kyle Higgins & Brian Buccellato, [A] Geraldo Borges. My copy of this issue has a giant hole in the middle. This is not intentional, and Heroes kindly offered to replace my copy, but on my two subsequent trips to the store I forgot to bring it back. No/One has a rather complicated plot, and before reading issue 2, I had to remind myself what the premise was and who the characters were. No/One’s protagonist is Ben Kern, a Pittsburgh police officer, whose son, Aaron, has been accused of a series of murders. But the murders are continuing even after Aaron is in custody, and Ben decides to solve them himself. A mysterious masked vigilante named No/One is also involved somehow, and there’s a subplot about a reporter named Julia. No/One #1 is a pretty good debut issue, with exciting artwork and a strong sense of local specificity.

BLACK CLOAK #3 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kelly Thompson, [A] Meredith McClaren. Phaedra and Pax find Freyal’s last recording, which suggests that he killed himself. We get a brief look at Pax’s wife and child. Phaedra and Pax decide to ask the mermaids for clues. This comic’s plot is finally starting to make sense to me. It’s less accessible than Kelly Thompson’s other work because I’m not already familiar with its universe.

ALL AGAINST ALL #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Alex Paknadel, [A] Caspar Wijngaard. V’lmann succeeds in getting her dad out of the crocodile’s body, but Cov’n implants himself in the body of a giant crocodile, and he’s about to kill Helpless. This comic has gorgeous art, and it’s also effective as science fiction; it examines how the aliens’ psychology and culture are affected by being able to switch bodies whenever they want.

HOUSE OF SLAUGHTER #13 (Boom!, 2023) – “The Butcher’s Return Part 3,” [W] Tate Brombal, [A] Antonio Fuso. Jolie manipulates Sunny into joining the Butcher Shop or Maison du Boucher or whatever it is now. To Sunny, it seems like a much gentler place than it really is. Jace wanders around New Orleans and remembers his past history with Jolie. Sunny wakes up at night to find a monster attacking him. This issue is an evocative depiction of New Orleans. I’ve only been there once, but this issue reminds me of when I was there.

GRIM #9 (Boom!, 2023) – “Sympathy for the Guardian,” [W] Stephanie Phillips, [A] Flaviano.  The protagonists find the gateway to hell, but it’s guarded by a demon who looks like Siegfried and Roy, complete with tiger. Marcel has a memory of when he killed his lover to put him out of his misery, and then he’s pulled into hell. Grim’s story is all right, but I think my favorite thing about it is its art, and in particular its color scheme. Rico Renzi is one of the premier colorists in comic books. I’m surprised he’s never gotten an Eisner nomination.  

BLUE BOOK #2 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Michael Avon Oeming. Betty and Barney get back home safely, but are still troubled by their alien encounter. This issue was a bit more substantial than the last issue, but this series still feels like a summary of a story, rather than an actual story, and neither Betty nor Barney has much of a personality. The backup story, by Oeming alone, is a retelling of the English legend of the Green Children of Woolpit.

SUPERMAN #2 (DC, 2023) – “The Night of the Parasite,” [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Jamal Campbell. Superman continues his fight with the Parasite, who’s been split up into an army of microscopic Parasites. There’s also a cameo appearance by Marilyn Moonlight, who reminds me of the characters in Adventureman. This series is readable, but so far it’s not particularly great, and its coloring is way too dark. I wish it would focus more on the Superman family, but those characters are mostly appearing in Action Comics, and that series’s creative team  doesn’t appeal to me.

CAPTAIN MARVEL #47 (Marvel, 2023) – “Revenge of the Brood Part 5,” [W] Kelly Thompson, [A] Sergio Dávila. In order to free Binary from the Brood’s machine, Carol has to let herself be trapped by the machine instead. Also, Rogue and Hazmat have a cute conversation. We now know that Kelly Thompson’s run is ending with issue 50, and this storyline is not an ideal conclusion to her run, because it’s kind of boring. I really hope we at least get to see Alriac and the Snats again.

SECRET INVASION #5 (Marvel, 2023) – “Everywhere We Need to Be,” [W] Ryan North, [A] Francesco Mobili. The Skrulls seem to have won, but Maria Hill (or her Skrull stand-in) plays her trump card: she didn’t actually kill the Skrull agents last issue, but instead enlisted them. Maria’s escape from the Helicarrier was faked, and while the Skrulls were monologuing, Maria was arresting all their agents. Then an army of superheroes arrives to defeat the remaining Skrulls. Squirrel Girl makes a cameo appearance here, but with no dialogue. This issue is a very satisfying conclusion, and this whole series demonstrates Ryan North’s extremely clever plotting. The series ends by suggesting a possible sequel, perhaps in the form of a Skrull Kill Krew revival. BTW, I should try to collect the original Skrull Kill Krew miniseries, because its creators included Grant Morrison and Steve Yeowell.

WONDER WOMAN #797 (DC, 2023) – “The Reckoning Part 1,” [W] Becky Cloonan, [A] Michael W. Conrad, [A] Amancay Nahuelpan. This issue is mostly a tie-in with Lazarus Planet, which is not a very exciting crossover event, even though G. Willow Wilson is writing part of  it. The only really entertaining part of this issue is the brief appearance by Ratatosk. Cloonan and Conrad’s Wonder Woman is running out of steam, and I’m not sorry that it’s about to end. This issue also includes a Mary Marvel backup story by Caitlin Yarsky, which is a sequel to New Champion of Shazam.

AVENGERS: WAR ACROSS TIME #3 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Paul Levitz, [A] Alan Davis. The Avengers battle Sindri and the Lava Men. This is a very simple and elemental Avengers story, with nothing innovative in terms of plot and characterization. It’s mostly worth reading for Alan Davis’s art.

WHITE SAVIOR #3 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Eric Nguyen, [W] Scott Burman. Having killed Nathan Garin by accident, Todd has to pretend to be him. Todd battles the opposing champion, who turns out to be his friend Neal from the first issue. My problem with White Savior is that it’s severely overwritten. The jokes are funny, but they’re belabored so much that they stop being funny, and there’s so much text that the storytelling lacks any rhythm. Luckily there’s just one more issue.

BRZRKR #12 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Keanu Reeves & Matt Kindt, [A] Ron Garney. After the fight scene concludes, Unute loses his powers, and Diana reveals she’s pregnant. She gives birth to two children, who grow to become preteens in a couple pages. The government tries to recapture Unute again, and he gets killed. The kids leave to explore the world. BRZRKR was a very epic series, but it always kind of felt like a pilot for a film or a TV show, and I might not have finished reading it if I hadn’t already started it. I think I might skip the upcoming one-shot, which Kindt is not involved with.

FLASH #770 (DC,  2021) – “Blink of an Eye Chapter 3,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Jack Herbert et al. On this trip to Heroes, they had some $2 boxes, and I bought a few comics from these boxes. They brought the same boxes to the latest Charlotte Comic Con (see below) and between those events, I think I got all the issues of Jeremy Adams’s Flash that they had. The plot of Blink of an Eye is that Wally’s mind is bouncing between the bodies of various speedsters from different historical eras. In this issue, Wally, in the body of a young Jay Garrick, teams up with the Golden Age Ray, Happy Terrill, to recover the Spear of Destiny from Hitler. Wally/Jay and Happy have some funny moments together, but the other Flash family members only make brief appearances, and so this issue isn’t as fun as this Flash run usually is.

MONARCH #2 (Image, 2023) – “Stranger from Above Part 2: Home Sweet Home,” [W] Rodney Barnes, [A] Alex Lins. The protagonist discovers he’s an alien sleeper agent who was sent to be raised on Earth. Monarch has an interesting premise and appears to be a realistic depiction of black life, and this issue includes some impressive page layouts. However, I get the sense that Monarch, like Killadelphia, is not quite living up to its potential.

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES #138 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Sophie Campbell, [A] Fero Pe. More fight scenes and plot developments that make no sense unless you’re also reading the Armageddon Game miniseries. Also, Seri’s plotline is resolved, but it’s still not clear why she was introduced into the series in the first place. I should have dropped this series several months ago, but it’s too late now, and thankfully Armageddon Game is almost over. The only thing I liked about this issue is that it spotlights the three little weasels, who are among the many great characters who have vanished from the series during the current crossover.

EARTHDIVERS #6 (IDW, 2023) – “Where the Future Comes to Die,” [W] Stephen Graham Jones, [A] Davide Gianfelice. The guy in 1492 finally kills Columbus just before he steps ashore, but gets killed himself, and history is ultimately unchanged. Meanwhile, the future plotline is resolved, but in an incomprehensible way. Kill Columbus had the potential to be fascinating, but I don’t think SGJ understands how to write comics yet. This series’ next storyline is set in 1776, and I think I might as well continue reading it, just to see if it’s any better than the first storyline.

THE FLASH #771 (DC, 2021) – as above except there are ten different credited artists. Wally travels through a long series of time periods until he finally enters the body of his son Jai, twenty years in the future. The future Irey seems like a wonderful young woman, and she’s married, but we aren’t told who her husband is, while Jai is in a relationship with a female time traveler. I think Jai’s girlfriend may be Gold Beetle from the One-Minute War Special, which I did not read. Anyway, Wally and Irey’s conversation is a very cute moment.

HARROWER #2 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Justin Jordan, [A] Brahm Revel. The party starts, and of course the Harrower shows up and starts killing people. This is effectively a comic book version of a slasher movie, a genre that doesn’t interest me very much. I like this issue, but I still haven’t truly connected with Justin Jordan’s comics.

FAMILY TIME #4 (Ablaze, 2023) – untitled, [W] Lily Windom & Robert Windom, [A] Asiah Fulmore. The family escapes the past and returns to their own time, where they find that some of the people from the past are still alive. This felt like a conventional YA or middle-grade comic, with little about it that was innovative. The linework in my copy is often very blurry. I don’t know if that’s an intentional effect or a misprint.

IMMORTAL SERGEANT #3 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joe Kelly, [A] J.M. Ken Niimura. Sergeant Jim drives drunk, insults his son Michael in public, and says racist things. Michael, despite being a married man and a father, is too much of a spineless wimp to prevent his father’s reckless behavior or resist his cruel bullying. Finally, Jim orders Michael to drop everything and drive to Georgia with him in pursuit of an alleged criminal. At that point, I was like, if Michael says yes to this, I’m dropping this series. And Michael did say yes, so this is my last issue. Just to explain why, the problem with Immortal Sergeant is that Jim is an utterly loathsome character, an abusive, bigoted drunk, and yet we’re supposed to admire him, as if he were some sort of loveable old man. And Michael isn’t much better. He’s so terrified of his father that he’s willing to abandon his family at the drop of the hat, just because his father asks him to. I hope the plot trajectory of this series is that Michael will finally grow a spine and tell his dad to fuck off. But I’m sick of waiting for that to happen.  

THE FLASH #774 (DC, 2021) – “Dream Big,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Christian Duce. Wally takes Irey to her first father-daughter dance. On the way there, they encounter a mad scientist who can turn dreams into reality, so the father-daughter dance turns into a father-daughter adventure. This is now my favorite issue of Jeremy Adams’s Flash. Irey is written in a realistic and age-appropriate way, and her interactions with Wally are just adorable. I especially like when Wally tries to get Irey to stay out of the fight because she’s not a superhero, and Irey repeats back to him his own advice that “being a hero isn’t about powers,” and Wally says “Grah! Remind me not to be such a good dad.” Also, Irey looks super cute in her formal dress. This issue reminds me of Savage Dragon #105, my favorite issue of that series, which is also about a father-daughter relationship.

TONY STARK: IRON MAN #9 (Marvel, 2019) – “Stark Realities Part 4: With a Heart of Steel,” [W] Dan Slott & Jim Zub, [A] Valerio Schiti & Paolo Rivera. The Controller tries to take over the world, and Tony is unable to stop him, because he’s stuck in a virtual reality in which the Silver Age never ended. Finally Tony’s mother, or some entity claiming to be her, enters Tony’s vision and tells him that he’s just a simulation of the original Tony Stark. I like this Iron Man run, though this issue is mostly a Silver Age homage and does not include most of Tony’s supporting cast.

THE X-CELLENT #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “Unsocial Media Part 1,” [W] Peter Milligan, [A] Mike Allred. A straightforward continuation of the previous miniseries. This issue is narrated by the villain who’s a giant eye. This issue is entertaining enough, but it feels like a reiteration of an old formula, though I suppose the same could be said of Groo.

AVENGERS #9 facsimile (Marvel, 1964/2023) – “The Coming of the… Wonder Man!”, [W] Stan Lee, [A] Don Heck. A reprint of the first appearance of Wonder Man. I don’t recall having read this story before, but I knew its basic outline. The Masters of Evil give Simon Williams superpowers so he can defeat the Avengers for them, but the superpowers are fatal to him, and just before he’s about to die, Simon switches sides and sacrifices himself to defeat the Avengers. Though it’s actually more poignant than that, because Baron Zemo has the antidote to Simon’s terminal condition, and Simon decides he’d rather die than allow Zemo to continue holding his life hostage. Simon didn’t come back to life permanently until about twelve years later.

DANGER STREET #4 (DC, 2023) – “Lady Cop,” [W] Tom King, [A] Jorge Fornés. Like the previous issues, this issue is a series of vignettes that are barely connected to each other. The most notable plot point is that Manhunter kills one of the Green Team. I have reason to hope this series will be better than some of Tom King’s other recent works, because it’s not trying anything ambitious; it’s just supposed to be weird and funny, and so far, it is.

IMAGE! 30TH ANNIVERSARY ANTHOLOGY #11 (Image, 2023) – [E] Eric Stephenson? The highlight of this issue is Emi Lenox’s Ghost Makers, a Western story in which the heroine rides a giant (Siamese?) cat. I want to see more of this series, if only because of the cat. There’s also a Major Bummer story by Arcudi and Mahnke. It’s not identified as Major Bummer, but that’s clearly what it is. I was surprised by this, because I assumed DC owned the rights to that series, but perhaps they only own the name and not the characters. And then there’s another preview of Layman and Jok’s In Hell We Fight, which looks like a very fun series. The marquee story in this issue is a new chapter of Pretty Deadly, but I’ve always hated Pretty Deadly.

THE FLASH #779 (DC, 2022) – “Vengeance is Mine! Part 3,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Fernando Pasarin & Matt Ryan. Wally, the kids, and Maxine Baker team up to defeat Eclipso in Starbreaker’s body. Back home, Linda discovers she’s gained superspeed powers. Irey and Maxine’s friendship is a really cute and clever idea. It’s rare for superheroes’ children to be friends with each other, simply because there aren’t a lot of superheroes who have young children. Franklin Richards and Power Pack are almost the only other example of such a friendship.

SPY SUPERB #3 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Matt Kindt. This issue is basically the same type of story that Kindt has been telling in earlier works like MIND MGMT and Super Spy. The thing that makes Spy Superb interesting is the protagonist, who manages to succeed despite beign totally naïve and incompetent. In this issue Spy Superb survives his latest adventure and decides to continue being a spy, so there’s room for a possible squel.

U.S.AVENGERS #8 (Marvel, 2017) – “I Was Once Where You Are Now,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Paco Medina. In a flashback, a young Toni Ho learns of the death of her father, Ho Yinsen, and blames Tony Stark for it. In the present, Toni escapes from a Hydra prison cell, and some of the other USAvengers team up with some European superheroes, including Faiza Hussain from Captain Britain and MI:13. This whole series was extremely fun.

DARK KNIGHTS OF STEEL: TALES OF THE THREE KINGDOMS #1 (DC, 2022) – untitled, [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Caspar Wijngaard. In the lead story, a young Superman and Batman solve the mystery of Elizabeth Arkham’s orphanage, where she’s been turning orphaned children into monsters. Besides being cute, this story includes a very scary-looking Man-Bat. Caspar Wijngaard is extremely good at drawing monsters, though his monsters look similar to those of Michael Dialynas. There are two other backup stories, one of which is written by C.S. Pacat. I should have started reading Dark Knights of Steel when it came out, but I will try to collect the back issues instead.

IMMORAL X-MEN #2 (Marvel, 2023) – “Four-Letter Words,” [W] Kieron Gillen, [A] Andrea Di Vito. Just another far-future story that makes little sense and has no emotional impact, since none of the characters will last more than one issue, and anyway they’re all just clones of other preexisting characters. Indeed, there are so many different characters in Sins of Sinister that it’s impossible to remember which of them are clones, or which of them are on the same side, or anything else about them. I’ll be glad when Sins of Sinister is over.

HEXWARE #4 (Image, 2023) – “The Servant’s Game,” [W] Tim Seeley, [A] Zulema Scotto Lavina. The kid saves Jesi’s dad from some demons. Jesi/Whichwhere gets trapped by the demons and finds herself in a snowy forest, where she’s back in Jesi’s body, while Whichwhere is an android again. This series is so overcomplicated that I feel reluctant to read issue 5, even though I already have it.

STORM AND THE BROTHERHOOD OF MUTANTS #2 (Marvel, 2023) – “No Hope,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Andrea Di Vito. The funny thing about this issue is that it starts with a Star-Wars-style opening crawl, which even begins with “It is a time of civil war.” And this whole issue is an homage to the original Star Wars film. I guess that makes this issue marginally more interesting than most of the Sins of Sinister tie-ins.

INFERNO GIRL RED #3 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mat Groom, [A] Erica D’Urso. Erica transforms into her Super Saiyan form and defeats the villain, but Ana is teleported away to parts unknown. The issue ends with a black-and-white story which was created for the series’ Kickstarter campaign. Inferno Girl Red was an excellent miniseries, with strong artwork and an effective depiction of a mother-daughter relationship, and I hope there’ll be a sequel.

WOMEN OF MARVEL #1 (Marvel, 2023) – [E] Sarah Brunstad. All this issue’s stories are connected by a framing sequence in which She-Hulk defends the other protagonists in court. It’s not clear why all the protagonists are being tried together, since their alleged crimes have nothing to do with each other. And the three inset stories are just average. The one where Silk and Black Cat sing karaoke is probably the best. The second story references the 2021 America Chavez miniseries, which I prefer to pretend was never published.

FLASH #780 (DC, 2022) – “The War for Earth-3,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Will Conrad. Wally and the kids return from their Gemworld adventure, but Linda declines to tell Wally about her new powers. In the second half of the issue, Wally fights Mirror Master and the Earth-3 Johnny Quick. This part of the issue is a crossover tie-in, and it’s a waste of space.  

ART BRUT #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] W. Maxwell Prince, [A] Martín Morazzo. I couldn’t quite follow this issue’s plot, but the issue is full of beautiful homages to famous paintings. A funny line is “Run, get to the Hopper,” a reference to the line “get to the chopper” from Predator. I still think Art Brut relies too much on the famous paintings everyone has heard of. If there is a second story arc, I hope it will display a deeper and broader knowledge of art.

ENFANTS, C’EST L’HYDRAGON QUI PASSE (Casterman, 1984) – [W/A] Jean-Claude Forest. I bought this at the Fantagraphics store at the same time I bought Les Innommables volume 1. In this standalone graphic novel, ten-year-old Jules and his father run away from Jules’s abusive mother and find employment aboard a riverboat, which Jules names the Hydragon after a creature he sees in a dream. They get involved in a complicated Communist spy plot which is never resolved, but the real focus is on Jules’s emotions and his growing maturity. The climax of the book occurs when Jules successfully pilots the boat under a bridge, even though the river is so swollen that there’s barely enough clearance. The whole book is very poetic and wistful, thanks in large part to Forest’s beautiful prose, although his large blocks of text make the book difficult to read. Forest is only remembered in the Anglophone world as the creator of Barbarella, but he was far more than that. As Patrick Gaumer writes in the Dictionnaire mondial de la BD, “”Imaginative scripter, dialogue writer without equal, innovative and original artist, Jean-Claude Forest is an authentic poet.” I agree with Gaumer much more than with the late Maurice Horn, who described Forest as “the classic example of a great talent gone to waste due to a lack of direction and purpose.”

On April 2nd, I went to the latest Charlotte Comic Con, where I bought the following comics:

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #176 (Marvel, 1978) – “He Who Laughs Last…!”, [W] Len Wein, [A] Ross Andru. Spidey harasses JJJ, Aunt May has a heart attack while protesting against ageism, and then Spidey fights the Green Goblin, who I believe is Bart Hamilton and not Harry Osborn. Len Wein and Ross Andru are perhaps this series’ most underrated creative team. Wein’s dialogue was witty, and Andru’s art was exciting. Their run represents the end of the series’ original classic period.  

TEEN TITANS #25 (DC, 1970) –  “The Titans Kill a Saint?”, [W] Robert Kanigher, [A] Nick Cardy. Lilith. In her first appearance, Lilith warns the Titans that they’re going to cause someone’s death. The Titans attend a peace rally which turns into a riot, and someone pulls out a gun. While the Titans are all trying to grab the gun, it goes off, and the keynote speaker, Nobel Prize winner Arthur Svenson, is fatally shot. I assume Svenson is based on Albert Schweitzer. The Titans are so guilty about his death that they decide to give up being superheroes, and Robin leaves the team to go to college. (This issue came out around the same time as Batman #217, which also depicted Robin making the same decision.) Conveniently, Mr. Jupiter, who also makes his first appearance here, appoints himself as the Titans’ new mentor. Teen Titans #25 is a very overwrought and hysterical story, but Nick Cardy’s artwork powerfully conveys the Titans’ tortured emotions, and his action scenes are beautiful.

UNCLE SCROOGE #19 (Dell, 1957) – “The Mines of King Solomon,” [W/A] Carl Barks. Scrooge goes on a worldwide tour to inspect his various properties. He brings his nephews along, and Huey, Dewey and Louie cause all sorts of mishaps by practicing animals’ calls. While in Arabia, Scrooge discovers a clue to the location of King Solomon’s mines, but a group of Bedouin bandits are pursuing the ducks, and the nephews have to use their skill at animal calls to save the day. Besides its insensitive depictions of the Bedouins, “The Mines of King Solomon” is a classic Barksian adventure story. This issue also includes a Gyro Gearloose backup story.

HOT WHEELS #4 (DC, 1970) – “Eye of the Storm,” [W] Len Wein, [A] Alex Toth. Team member Hank Jeffries is injured in a dune buggy crash. With him absent, his teammates Jack and Tank have to take his place and deliver some life-saving medication to an old man. By coincidence, the old man is Tank’s estranged grandfather. This is a well-written and touching story, but of course its main draw is Toth’s spectacular visual storytelling. In the two action sequences, Toth makes heavy use of vertical panels that span the width of the page, and in the second of these sequences, which takes place at night in a storm, Toth shows his amazing skill at spotting blacks. The backup story, drawn by Ric Estrada, is a rather sexist spotlight on the Hot Wheels team’s only female member.

SCOOBY-DOO MYSTERY COMICS #30 (Gold Key, 1975) – “The Treasure of Sierra Fantasma” and “Happy Haunting Grounds,” [W] Mark Evanier, [A] Dan Spiegle. My copy of this issue is missing its back cover, but I decided to buy it anyway, since these Gold Key Scoobys are so hard to find. In the first story, a town is haunted by the ghost of the bandit Enrique Ladrón. The twist is that the culprit is Enrique Ladrón himself, who’s still alive at the age of 105. Ladrón means thief, and I wonder if Evanier learned this word from Sergio. The backup story is based on the old cliché where a villainous oilman tries to cheat some Indians out of their land, because there’s oil under it (and sadly, this is a cliché because it happened all the time in real life).

FOUR COLOR #1309 (Dell, 1962) – 87th Precinct: “Blind Man’s Bluff…”, [W] Lionel Ziprin?, [A] Bernie Krigstein. This is one of the strangest comics in my collection. It starts off as a typical mystery story. Four people are murdered after having their portraits painted by the same painter, so Teddy Carella, the deaf wife of detective Steve Carella, decides to pose for the painter to see what’s going on. But then things take a bizarre turn. The painter reveals that he’s blind, but he can still paint because he developed extra-sensory perception after a blow to the head. Then just as he’s about to kill Teddy, she uses telepathy to summon Steve to save her. According to the text feature on the backup cover, the writer seems to have believed that telepathy and ESP were both possible. It’s clear that this story was written by the same writer as Kona and Voyage to the Deep #1, and I’m starting to believe that this writer really was the beatnik Kabbalist Lionel Ziprin. “Blind Man’s Bluff…” is a typical example of this writer’s work because of its bizarre plot twists and its credulous acceptance of pseudoscience. The other notable thing about this issue is that it was Bernie Krigstein’s last comics work. It also may be his longest story, and it’s the only comic in my collection that contains an original Krigstein story. He said in a 1963 interview with John Benson that he hated the script, so he illustrated it in an intentionally bizarre way. Regrettably I can’t find this interview online. “Blind Man’s Bluff”’s artwork, like its plot, starts out very sober but gets weirder and weirder as it goes on. There’s one panel early in the story where Krigstein uses the multiple-image technique he developed in “Master Race.” Krigstein may be the preeminent example in comics history of a great artist whose talents were never allowed to develop. If he had had the opportunity to do more stories like “Master Race,” the entire history of American comics might have been different. But instead he spent his later years as a teacher at the High School of Art and Design, refusing to discuss his comics career.

LOCKE & KEY #6 (IDW, 2008) – “Welcome to Lovecraft Chapter 6,” [W] Joe Hill, [A] Gabriel Rodriguez. One of my best finds at the convention was a bunch of Locke & Keys for a dollar each. This series has become tough to find because of the popularity of the TV show. I’ve read this story before in trade paperback form, but I don’t remember it well. In this issue, Sam Lesser holds the entire family hostage. He apparently kills Tyler, but he does it while Tyler is lying in the ghost door, so Tyler comes back to life and saves the day. Meanwhile, Bode lets Dodge out of her captivity in the well, and Dodge uses the gender-changer key to turn into a boy named Zack. Sam Lesser is just a terrifying villain, a heartless murderer with no concern for anything but himself, though Dodge is even worse. The last panel of the issue is a depiction of all the various keys. One reason why Locke & Key was so successful was because of Gabriel Rodriguez’s stellar design work. He designed the keys so that not only are they attractive, but also their appearance indicatese what they do.

KORAK, SON OF TARZAN #11 (Gold Key, 1965) – “Invasion from Pal-Ul-Don,” [W] Gaylord Du Bois, [A] Russ Manning. On a visit to Pal-Ul-Don, the “lost world” introduced in Tarzan the Terrible, Korak fights some dinosaurs and some men dressed as crocodiles. Russ Manning was not a particularly good dinosaur artist – he was better at drawing robots – but his action sequences in this issue are beautiful. In the backup story, also by Manning, Korak and Jad-Bal-La meet Queen La of Opar. There’s also a four-page Jon of the Kalahari story with art by Jesse Marsh.

DAREDEVIL #72 (Marvel, 1971) – “Lo! The Lord of the Leopards!”, [W] Gerry Conway, [A] Gene Colan. Matt fights Tagak the Leopard Lord, a villain who’s in fact a hero from an alternate dimension. Tagak’s only other appearances were in Defenders #62-64, though I wonder if that story explained why he was on Earth rather than in his home dimension. As stated by marvunapp.com, the theme of this issue is that it’s wrong to judge others by their looks. This is also demonstrated when a hippie offers to help Matt, and Matt thinks, “Some people would have called him a bum – a worthless freeloader… and yet – that bum offered help to a blind man…!”

TOMAHAWK #119 (DC, 1968) – “Bait for a Buzzard!”, [W] Robert Kanigher, [A] Frank Thorne. This issue has a classic Neal Adams cover, showing Tomahawk tied to stakes under the desert sun. But the story that corresponds to this cover is kind of dumb; it’s just a Revolutionary War version of Sgt. Rock and Easy Company. There’s a backup story, by Ed Herron and Fred Ray, which is also set in the Revolutionary War era. I thought this story was a reprint, but the GCD indicates that it’s a new story. Ed “France” Herron died in 1966, but it’s probable that he did write this story, and that it was published posthumously.

KONA, MONARCH OF MONSTER ISLE #9 (Dell, 1964) – “The Giants of the Desert,” [W] Lionel Ziprin?, [A] Sam Glanzman. Kona and his human companions find themselves in the desert, where they fight giant crabs, a phoenix, and various other creatures. This issue is actually less weird than Four Color #1309, but it still seems to be written by the mystery writer who may or may not be Lionel Ziprin. The GCD attributes the early issues of Kona to Don Segall, but Martin O’Hearn, who may be responsible for that attribution, says that he no longer agrees with it. The problem with attributing Kona to Don Segall is that Segall is known to have written various other comics, including Showcase #73, and I assume his other work doesn’t show the same bizarre tendencies as Kona.

WONDER WOMAN #212 (DC, 1974) – “The Man Who Mastered Women!”, [W] Len Wein, [A] Curt Swan. Diana loses her memory and decides to quit the Justice League, but they beg her to stay. Diana agrees as long as the Justice League monitors her next twelve adventures. In the first of these “twelve labors,” Diana saves the “Pamanasian” prime minister Indira Gamal (Indira Gandhi + Gamal Abdel Nasser) from the Cavalier. “The Twelve Labors of Wonder Woman” was an insulting and sexist story that erased most of the progress Diana had made during the no-costume years. Martin Pasko, who wrote the later part of the story, at least tried to mitigate the damage that the story was doing to Diana’s character.

THE PHANTOM #20 (King, 1967) – “The Adventures of the Girl Phantom,” [W] Dick Wood, [A] Bill Lignante. While the 17th Phantom is ill, his sister, Julie, dresses up as him. Julie looks really cute in the Phantom costume, and Bill Lignante’s artwork is striking. Julie Walker was created by Lee Falk in 1952, though some sources wrongly give 1969 as the date, and she’s been extensively used by other creators. This issue also includes another Phantom story by Jerry Siegel and Lignante, and a Flash Gordon story drawn by Gil Kane.

TEEN TITANS ACADEMY #1 (DC, 2021) – “Admissions,” [W] Tim Sheridan, [A] Rafa Sandoval. We’re introduced to the new freshman class of Teen Titans Academy. These characters seem interesting enough, but there are a ton of them, and only a few of them get any kind of a spotlight. The issue also devotes a lot of space to the adult Titans. Of course I always love seeing Nightwing interact with Starfire, but this is supposed to be Teen Titans Academy, not New Teen Titans. Overall, this issue is fun, but not as fun as Strange Academy.

THE WALKING DEAD #106 (Image, 2013) – untitled, [W] Robert Kirkman, [A] Charlie Adlard. Negan kidnaps Carl, Rick tries to find him, and if anything else happens in this issue, I didn’t notice. One reason I like to collect this series is that each issue is a very fast read.

GOTHAM CENTRAL #7 (DC, 2003) – “Half a Life Part 2,” [W] Greg Rucka, [A] Michael Lark. This was the only issue I was missing prior to #28. It’s also one of the best issues of the entire series. At this point, Renee Montoya has just been forcibly outed as a lesbian, and all her coworkers are uneasy around her. The revelation that Renee was gay was more controversial back then (it seems strange to say “back then,” when I can clearly remember buying this series as it was coming out) than it would be now, but this issue’s treatment of intersectionality is still revolutionary even now. Maggie Sawyer tells Renee “I’ve been where you are.” Renee takes exception to that, listing all the ways her Dominican ethnicity makes it more difficult for her to be openly gay than for Maggie, a white woman. Later, Renee’s brother shames her because her elderly parents are suffering for her “choice.” These scenes show how Renee’s Dominican and queer identities are working at cross purposes, making her a minority  of a minority in two different senses, and that’s part of what intersectionality means. Michael Lark’s artwork in this issue is impeccable. I liked his art better in this series than in Lazarus.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #160 (Marvel, 1976) – “My Killer, the Car!”, [W] Len Wein, [A] Ross Andru. Spidey’s own Spider-Mobile tries to kill him. It turns out that this is due to a plot by the Tinkerer, who appears here for the first time since issue 2. In that issue it was established that the Tinkerer was an alien, but here the Tinkerer says that his alien nature was just “a ruse,” without explaining further. See here and here for the later history of this retcon. The Spider-Mobile was a terrible idea, but at least this issue includes some well-drawn action sequences, as well as a funny moment when Spidey walks up the walls and ceiling of his apartment. The advertising executives Carter and Lombardo, who appear briefly at the end of this issue, are based on Stan Lee and Roy Thomas.

FLASH #783 (DC, 2022) – “The Search for Barry Allen Part 1,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Amancay Nahuelpan. Mr. Terrific opens a portal into the Speed Force to look for the missing Barry Allen, but Irey and Jay jump into the portal, and Wally and the other speedsters have to chase after them. Then there’s a sequence where Barry is living an idyllic life with Iris and their twin children (Don and Dawn), but somehow Wally and Ace get stuck in the bodies of Barry and his version of Wally.

LOCKE & KEY: HEAD GAMES #2 (IDW, 2009) – untitled, [W] Joe Hill, [A] Gabriel Rodriguez. This issue’s opening scene is funny: Bode searches the house for something that the head key can open, and then on the splash page, we see that he has a lock in the base of his skull. The issue ends with Bode using the key to unlock his own head. In the rest of the issue, Duncan decides to leave town, Tyler gets recruited for the hockey team, and one of the teachers commits suicide, though I think he was actually murdered by Dodge.

BATMAN #290 (DC, 1977) – “Skull Dugger’s Killjoy Capers!”, [W] David V. Reed, [A] Mike Grell. Batman fights a murderer who causes skulls to appear on his victims’ foreheads. To defeat him, Batman has to free Dr. Tzin-Tzin from prison. This issue is rather stupid, and Grell’s art is not his best.

LOCKE & KEY: CROWN OF SHADOWS #2 (IDW, 2009) – “Chapter 2: In the Cave,” [W] Joe Hill, [A] Gabriel Rodriguez. Scot Kavanaugh tells Kinsey that her dad’s name is written on a wall in the Drowning Cave. With two other kids, Jamal and Jackie, they visit the cave to see the inscription, but the caves are flooded with water. Kinsey recklessly goes underwater to read the inscription, and then the stairs to the cave collapse, putting Kinsey and Jamal at risk of drowning. Just as they’re about to die, they find a way out of the water. As the issue ends, we see that Luke ‘Dodge’ Caravaggio’s name is written below Rendel Locke’s name, and below that is a dead body, I don’t know whose. The near-drowning scene is one of Locke & Key’s scarier moments, especially the part where Kinsey and Jamal are about to resign themselves to death.

BATMAN #242 (DC, 1972) – “Bruce Wayne – Rest in Peace!”, [W] Denny O’Neil, [A] Irv Novick. In preparation for his final battle with Ra’s al Ghul, Batman fakes Bruce Wayne’s death. Then he recruits some allies, including Lo Ling, Harris Blaine, and Matches Malone. Bruce accidentally causes Matches Malone’s death, but then pretends to be him. Matches Malone would later become Batman’s standard disguise. This story is an integral part of the first Ra’s al Ghul saga, though it’s not drawn by Neal Adams. The Robin backup story, by Mike Friedrich and Rich Buckler, guest-stars Lilith and her cousin Terri. The latter character was Dick’s girlfriend for a short time, but she never appeared again after this issue. There’s also a story reprinted from Batman #7.

MURDER FALCON #8 (Image, 2019) – untitled, [W/A] Daniel Warren Johnson. A heavy metal band uses music to defeat some giant monsters. There are some powerful moments in this issue, including the scene where the band sets up their instruments on the deck of an aircraft carrier, with a wall of amplifiers behind them. However, based on this issue, I don’t like Murder Falcon as much as Extremity or Do a Powerbomb, though issue 8 is not the best place to start.

THE FLASH #785 (DC, 2022) – as above. In an alternate dimension, Jai and Irey meet a young boy who tells them that Barry Allen is ruling his city as an evil overlord. But when they meet Barry, they learn that this is false, and the “boy” is a backward-aging villain, Knives Maroney. Max and Jesse meet another alternate version of Barry, and Wally and Linda meet the “real” Barry, who heads off to save the Justice League. That plot thread is continued in Dark Crisis.

PREZ #1 (DC, 1973) – “Oh Say Does That Star-Spangled Banner Yet Wave?”, [W] Joe Simon, [A] Jerry Grandenetti. Thanks to a string of nonsensical plot twists, a teenager becomes a candidate for President. This comic was published just two years after the ratification of the 26th Amendment, which allows 18-year-olds to vote, and it can be read as a sort of fantasy of how politics might be affected by teenagers’ involvement. (At the time, there were fears that teenagers would outvote adults. It’s too bad that didn’t happen.) However, it’s also full of other random nonsense, including one sequence that’s a blatant example of the “vanishing Indian” stereotype. Perhaps the best part of this issue is the “Boss of Slum City” sequence, which contains depictions of urban squalor that are reminiscent of Kirby’s “Street Code.” Mark Russell’s revival version of Prez, published forty years later, was much better than the original, though both versions were left incomplete.

ADVENTURE COMICS #311 (DC, 1963) – “The War Between the Substitute Heroes and the Legionnaires!”, [W] Edmond Hamilton, [A] John Forte. I’ve read almost all the good Legion comics, and even most of the bad ones, so now I’m kind of scraping the barrel. In this issue, the Legionnaires harass the Subs and try to force them to disband. This sort of asshole behavior was normal for Silver Age superheroes, so I was actually kind of surprised by the realization that the “Legionnaires” were actually alien impostors who had kidnapped the real Legion. The only notable piece of characterization in this story is Night Girl’s unrequited love for Cosmic Boy. This issue also includes a terrible Superbaby backup story.

FLAMING CARROT COMICS #25 (Dark Horse, 1991) – “Dark City…”, [W/A] Bob Burden. This issue is a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles crossover. Raphael leaves his brothers and encounters a strange alien plot. Having been deprived of his memory, he meets the Flaming Carrot, who convinces him to dress up as a superhero called the Dark Avenger. The Flaming Carrot’s stories all seem rather similar to me, so the crossover with the Turtles is a nice way of changing up the usual formula.

FANTASTIC FOUR #149 (Marvel, 1974) – “To Love, Honor, and Destroy!”, [W] Gerry Conway, [A] Rich Buckler. The FF fight Namor, and Sue, who was estranged from Reed at the time, realizes that he really loves her. On the last page, Namor reveals that his attack on New York was just a plot to get Reed and Sue back together. I haven’t read all of the issues leading up to this one, and I’m not sure whether Reed or Sue was more at fault in their marital dispute (see here for some differing opinions). However, their sudden reconciliation is very unsatisfying because they still haven’t resolved any of the issues that led them to separate in the first place. Later writers have had to work very hard to convince readers that Reed is still worthy of Sue’s love.

MIGHTY SAMSON #19 (Gold Key, 1969) – “Day of the Deluge,” [W] Otto Binder, [A] Jack Sparling. Samson has to save his friends from the flooded ruins of New York. The flooded cityscape in this city is a striking setting, reminding me of the first Valerian album, and Jack Sparling’s artwork is not bad. I somehow thought that Dan Spiegle drew this series, but I guess not. I’m interested in collecting more of this series, simply because it’s an old and reasonably good comic that I haven’t already collected in its entirety.

 UNKNOWN WORLDS #55 (ACG, 1967) – “The Ghost Gets Even!”, [W] Richard Hughes, [A] Pete Costanza, etc. This issue’s main story includes a funny moment where some mobsters break into a screenwriter’s house and tell him “You writers got plenty of dough and you probably got some of it stashed away in the house here.” This may have been an intentional joke – I’m sure Richard Hughes was aware of how little money writers actually make. The backup story is about a cowardly boy who saves the world from an alien invasion, despite himself. There’s a scene in this story where a giant little girl dresses up the protagonist as a doll. This is probably inspired by Gulliver’s Travels.

DETECTIVE COMICS #384 (DC, 1969) – “Whatever Will Happen to Heiress Heloise?”, [W] Gardner Fox, [A] Bob Brown. A crook pretends to be a missing heiress who disappeared at age six, but her plans are foiled when the real heiress shows up. This story is a gender-swapped version of either the Tichborne Case or the story of Martin Guerre. There’s a Batgirl backup story by Mike Friedrich and Gil Kane. This story has some beautiful action sequences, and it’s not as sexist as I feared.

LOCKE & KEY: CROWN OF SHADOWS #6 (IDW, 2010) – “Beyond Repair,” [W] Joe Hill, [A] Gabriel Rodriguez. Nina and Bode find the Mending Key, which unlocks a cabinet that can repair broken items placed in it. Nina has the bright idea of putting her husband’s ashes inside the cabinet. This does not work, but awkwardly enough, Tyler shows up just then, and Nina almost commits accidental incest. Nina has a mental breakdown and breaks Rendell’s urn… and the Omega Key is in it.

MARVEL MILESTONES: BEAST & KITTY PRYDE (Marvel, 1972/1982/2006) – “The Beast!”, [W] Gerry Conway, [A] Tom Sutton. This comic includes a reprint of Amazing Adventures #11, which I had never actually read, although I have the three subsequent issues. “The Beast!” is the story in which Hank McCoy gets mutated into his furry form. It’s essentially a werewolf story – it gives the impression that Hank is now a monster, terrifying both to others and to himself. Tom Sutton was an appropriate choice of artist for this story, given its emphasis on horror. It was only later on that Hank’s blue furry appearance was reimagined as cute instead of scary. The other half of this issue is a reprint of X-Men #153, “Kitty’s Fairy Tale.” I know this story very well, but it was nice to revisit it, since I haven’t reread it in a long time.

SPACE FAMILY ROBINSON LOST IN SPACE #30 (Gold Key, 1968) – “Attack of the Planet Creatures,” [W] Gaylord Du Bois, [A] Dan Spiegle. The family saves the crew of a spaceship that’s been disabled by sentient carnivorous plants. This comic’s plot is occasionally confusing, and its characterization is wooden, but it’s a fun comic anyway. Like Mighty Samson, Space Family Robinson was a long-running Gold Key comic that was not spectacular, but was consistently readable.

THE WALKING DEAD #114 (Image, 2013) – untitled, [W] Robert Kirkman, [A] Charlie Adlard. Negan wrongly thinks he’s killed Andrea. Rick has a standoff with Negan, and Rick is forced to back down, but then both Rick and Negan prepare for war, and Carl tells Rick to make sure he kills Negan. It seems like Negan is kind of like the Joker, in that he keeps coming back because the hero keeps refusing to deal with him permanently.

BATMAN: ONE BAD DAY – RA’S AL GHUL #1 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Ivan Reis. Ra’s al Ghul decides to kill the thirty oligarchs who are causing the worst damage to the  environment. Batman tries to stop him, but ultimately fails and gets killed himself, though he’s revived in a Lazarus Pit. Batman and Ra’s have a final confrontation, obviously based on the desert fight scene in Batman #244. This is a compelling story because Ra’s is actually on the right side – the people he’s killing actually do deserve to die, and the world would be much better off without them. It’s only Ra’s’s methods and not his goals that are immoral, because Ra’s kills a lot of innocent people in the process of assassinating his targets. To me, some of the most compelling villains are the ones who could just as easily have been heroes instead – and the reverse is also true; often the most compelling heroes are the ones who constantly strive to avoid becoming villains.

THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD #65 (DC, 1966) – “Alias Negative Man!”, [W] Bob Haney, [A] Dick Giordano. The Brotherhood of Evil captures Negative Man inside a lead coffin. With him out of the way, Garguax executes his plot to turn the human race evil by means of subliminal messaging. The Chief recruits the Flash to masquerade as Negative Man and foil the plot. This is essentially a Doom Patrol story, and the Flash, despite having top billing on the cover, doesn’t show up until page 13. Nonetheless, this issue is a fun piece of Silver Age wackiness.

BILLIONAIRE ISLAND: CULT OF DOGS #5 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell, [A] Steve Pugh. The old billionaire’s handler manages to get the code to Business Dog’s money, and he proceeds to eliminate anyone else who knows the code. There are a couple tangents, including a historical excursus about the positive economic effects of the Black Death, and a parable about opportunity – the baby birds that survive are the ones that hatch first, because they can kick the other eggs out of the nest.

THE FORGED #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Greg Rucka, [A] Eric Trautmann & Mike Henderson. The Forged is about a team of cloned space soldiers who fight in the service of a villainous expansionist empress. Military science fiction is not a genre I associate with Greg Rucka, but this series feels like a natural expansion of his interests, because his stories have often focused on female soldiers and secret agents (Tara Chace, Kate Kane, Forever Carlyle, etc.) The thing I don’t like about The Forged is its large format. Comics in this format are inconvenient to store, and while the artwork in The Forged is good, I still wish it was the size of a normal comic book.

SWAMP THING: GREEN HELL #3 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Doug Mahnke. There’s nothing very surprising about this issue, but it offers a satisfying conclusion to the New 52 Swamp Thing and Animal Man, and it’s also quite well-drawn. I just wish this series hadn’t been so badly delayed.

SECRET HEARTS #136 (DC, 1969) – “Let’s Pretend Kisses!”, [W] unknown, [A] Ric Estrada, etc. This issue’s first story has a generic plot, but at least it has some cute and modern-looking art. The next story is a reprint from Secret Hearts #37, published in 1957, and it has a clichéd plot in which the protagonist goes to Hollywood to seek fame, but returns home to her original boyfriend. The last story is “Reach for Happiness!” part 27 by Jack Miller and Jay Scott Pike. This story has a soap-opera plot, and its title may be a reference to the soap opera Search for Tomorrow. The lack of recurring characters or plots was a major flaw of the entire romance comics genre, and “Reach for Happiness” was at least an attempt to address that problem.

BATMAN #408 (DC, 1987) – “Did Robin Die Tonight?”, [W] Max Allan Collins, [A] Chris Warner. This is the first appearance of the post-Crisis Jason Todd, who was an insufferable little jerk, unlike the pre-Crisis Jason Todd, who was very similar to Dick Grayson. This issue includes the famous scene where Jason tries to steal the Batmobile’s tires. There’s also a plot about a school for troubled teens that turns out to be a front for criminal activity. This plot  seems somehow typical of Max Collins. This issue includes a flashback to Batman’s parents’ deaths, and this flashback ends with a swipe of the cover of Batman #404, so just one issue after Year One ended, it had already become part of Batman’s iconography. This issue’s letter column includes an extremely negative response to Batman #404: https://www.instagram.com/p/CquNlHyt4ef/

CASES FROM THE FILES OF SAM PEZZO, P.I. (Catalan, 1983?/1987) – “The Jockey Rides” and “Shit City 1 and 2,” [W/A] Vittorio Giardino. A series of three interconnected stories focusing on a hard-boiled detective in Bologna (according to the Spanish Wikipedia). The stories focus on horse racing and a Chinese crime syndicate. Sam Pezzo seems to be inspired by Alack Sinner, but unlike Muñoz, Giardino draws in a Clear Line style, though with extensive spotting of blacks. I get the sense that Sam Pezzo is not as important as Giardino’s other major works, Max Fridman and Jonas Fink (aka A Jew in Communist Prague), but it’s interesting. Catalan only released this one volume of Sam Pezzo. There are a bunch more Sam Pezzo stories that haven’t been translated – the Catalan volume corresponds to only the last of the four volumes of the French edition.

LOCKE & KEY: KEYS TO THE KINGDOM #2 (IDW, 2010) – “White,” [W] Joe Hill, [A] Gabriel Rodriguez. Kinsey discovers that Erin Voss, whose name is written on the wall in the Drowning Cave, is still alive but is confined in a mental hospital. Kinsey decides to visit Erin, but she’s terrified of white people, thanks to Dodge’s attempt to kill her. But Bode discovers a mirror that can change a person’s race, so Kinsey and Bode turn themselves black and visit Erin in the asylum. Unfortunately, Dodge is also on Erin’s trail, and he kills her, as well as several other people, just after Kinsey uses the Head Key on her. All Kinsey manages to learn from Erin is that Dodge is a person’s name. Kinsey is blamed for Dodge’s murders, since she was a black person at the time. This issue skirts some very dangerous territory in terms of racial representation, but it manages to be sensitive rather than offensive. Kinsey puts on blackface, but by doing so, she learns about all the casual racism that she’s usually able to ignore. And Hill gives the reader the sense that Kinsey and Bode’s use of blackface is an unacceptable thing to do.

AIRBOY #7 (Eclipse, 1986) – “Party Time,” [W] Chuck Dixon, [A] Stan Woch. Airboy discoevrs that his company is bankrolling all sorts of dictators and criminals. He tries to get the company out of this type of business, but his own board members kidnap him. Meanwhile, Valkyrie encounters an old wartime acquaintance, Victor Heller. This issue includes a letter by David Malcolm Porta, in which he seems to argue that America should support dictators as long as they’re not Communist dictators. David Porta was also notorious for his homophobic letters to various comic books. He seems to have passed away in 2021.

FLASH #786 (DC, 2022) – “High Speed Alert,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Amancay Nahuelpan. This issue is a Dark Crisis crossover, so I don’t understand its plot, nor do I want to. But this issue is fun anyway because Wally, Linda, Irey and Jay all get to go on an adventure together – Linda has powers at this point, and in this issue she appears in a costume for the first time. Also, there are guest appearances by Animal Girl and Klarion.

FELIX THE CAT #6 (Harvey, 1991) – various stories, [W/A] Otto Messmer & Joe Oriolo. This entire issue is reprinted from #65 of the original Harvey series. It consists mostly of an interconnected story in which Felix travels under the sea to find a pearl necklace for Miss Kitty. This issue’s plot and some of its gags are recycled from the 1928 theatrical cartoon Comicalamities, which I know well because I wrote about it in my dissertation. For instance, in both the cartoon and the comic, Felix finds the pearl necklace by visiting some literal “oyster beds,” getting an oyster to laugh, and then removing its teeth, which are pearls. However, this issue does not use the cartoon’s ending, in which Miss Kitty is ungrateful for Felix’s gift, and Felix tears her from the paper she’s drawn on and rips her up.

FIRST ISSUE SPECIAL #13 (DC, 1976) – Orion of the New Gods: “Lest Night Fall – Forever!”, [W] Denny O’Neil, [A] Mike Vosburg. This issue includes all the same characters from Kirby’s New Gods, but none of that series’ spirit. Denny O’Neil was completely unsuited to writing a cosmic adventure story, and he seems to just be imitating Kirby’s style of writing, rather than fully buying into it. One example of O’Neil’s misunderstanding of Kirby is that he incorrectly depicts Metron as an ally of New Genesis. Metron doesn’t care whether New Genesis or Apokolips wins, because he only cares about knowledge.

THOR #263 (Marvel, 1977) – “Holocaust and Homecoming!”, [W] Len Wein, [A] Walt Simonson. Thor, Sif and the Warriors Three find that some aliens have killed Odin and turned his Odinforce into a living entity. Unsurprisingly, Thor and friends defeat the villains, Odin comes back to life, and the Asgardians return home, only to find that Loki has usurped Odin’s throne in his absence. Simonson’s first Thor run was far worse than his second run, but at least you can tell that he drew this issue; his incarnate Odin-Force looks quite similar to his version of Surtur.

STAR TREK #7 (DC, 1990) – “Not… Sweeney!”, [W] Peter David, [A] James Fry. Kirk is pursued by an assassin named Sweeney, who is so feared that whenever anyone mentions his name, someone else says “Not… Sweeney!” When the Enterprise is sent to rescue some colonists from a disintegrating planet, they refuse his help: with so many people trying to hunt Kirk down, the colonists feel safer on the planet than on the Enterprise. R.J. Blaise reprimands Kirk for his sexist attitudes, and Kirk realizes she has a point. Sweeney appears for the first time on the last page, and seems to be just a normal guy. Peter David’s run on this series was clearly the best Star Trek comic ever. I just read somewhere that his characters M’yra and Ensign Fouton were reskinned versions of two characters from the animated series.

LASSIE #9 (Dell, 1952) – “Lassie Horns In” etc., [W/A] unknown (the GCD credits other Lassie issues fom this period to Morris Gollub and John Lehti). Lassie’s current owners, Gerry and Rocky, are attending college, but Rocky’s classmate Cliff tries various tricks to get her to spend time with him, including draining the gas from Rocky’s car. Lassie foils all of Cliff’s plots. This issue is a college humor comic, whereas most other Lassie comics are outdoor adventure stories. I say “humor” even though this comic isn’t very funny by modern standards. Cliff’s behavior toward Rocky qualifies as not only sexual harassment, but also stalking and even kidnapping. If one of my students behaved in this way, I’d want them to be thrown out of college and locked up. But because this is 1952, Rocky has to tolerate Cliff’s appalling behavior, rather than telling him to fuck off (or calling the police).

BATMAN/SUPERMAN: WORLD’S FINEST #9 (DC, 2023) – “Strange Visitor Chapter 3: Fears of a Clown,” [W] Mark Waid, [A] Dan Mora. In a flashback story, Batman and Superman team up with the original Teen Titans and a new character named Boy Thunder. At the end of the issue, Boy Thunder is apparently killed by the Joker. It’s later revealed that he grew up to become Magog, a character created by Mark Waid many years ago. Perhaps I should have been collecting this series from the start, but I’ve had a lack of confidence in Mark’s writing lately (however, see my review of Shazam! #1 below). Batman/Superman #9 is a reasonably good issue, but I think Dan Mora’s art is more exciting than Mark’s writing.

LOVE & ROCKETS #44 (Fantagraphics, 1994) – “It’s Not That Big a Deal,” [W/A] Jaime Hernandez, and “A Trick of the Unconscious,” [W/A] Jaime Hernandez. In the Jaime story, Maggie and Esther go out for a night on the town in Chester Square, and it turns disastrous. In the Gilbert story, Doralis’s hastily arranged marriage collapses, Casimira runs away from home, and lots of other things happen. I must have read both these stories before, but they’re from near the end of the Locas and Palomar collections respectively, so I don’t remember them well. I had forgotten Doralis was ever married at all, since her marriage is only depicted in this one story. I only have four issues of Love & Rockets vol. 1, though I’d like to have the entire series eventually.

THE BLACK LAMB #2 (DC, 1996) –“Full Moon Fever,” [W/A] Tim Truman. In a futuristic city, a villain named Lykaon is kidnapping babies, and this leads to a war between the city’s werewolves and vampires. This series is very similar to Grimjack – the city looks kind of like Cynosure, and the protagonist looks a lot like John Gaunt.

LOCKE & KEY: CLOCKWORKS #1 (IDW, 2011) – “The Locksmith’s Son,” [W] Joe Hill, [A] Gabriel Rodriguez. This is essentially the origin story of the whole series. In 1775, Lovecraft, Massachusetts is a battleground of the American Revolution, and the current Locke children’s parents have just been hanged by the British. Benjamin and Miranda Locke flee to the Drowning Cave, where their fellow revolutionaires are hiding out. They discover that the Black Door has been opened, and the Lovecraftian monstrosities behind it are driving people into a homicidal frenzy. All efforts to close the door again have failed. But when the demons from behind the door try to cross over into the real world, they turn into lumps of metal. Benjamin happens to be a locksmith, so he uses this metal – the “stailinn geal” that also appears in the Hill House comics – to make a more secure lock. And now we know what the Omega Key is for. At the end of the issue, we see Kinsey and Tyler observing all this from the future.

THOR #417 (Marvel, 1990) – “Only Death Can Save Thee!”, [W] Tom DeFalco, [A] Ron Frenz. This is one of the first comic books I ever read. I checked it out from the library, so I never owned it, and I haven’t reread it in many years. I still do remember the title, because as a little kid, I found it frightening. I also remember some things from the Tales of Asgard backup story – specifically, the Celtic god Dagda, and the line “Enow, vizier! I say thee, enow!”, which was the first time I ever saw the word “enow.” I know now that Thor #417 is just a generic comic, an unoriginal ripoff of Kirby’s Thor, but when I was seven or eight, it was a window into an unknown world.

ACTION COMICS #876 (DC, 2009) – “The Sleepers,” [W] Greg Rucka, [A] Eddy Barrows. Nightwing (the Kandorian version) and Flamebird battle Ursa. This issue is from the World Without Superman story arc, so Superman himself doesn’t appear. This story is just a series of excessively violent fight scenes. The backup story, a preview of Amanda Conner’s Power Girl, is far better.

DOCTOR WHO: THE ELEVENTH DOCTOR #1 (Titan, 2014) – “After Life,” [W] Al Ewing & Rob Williams, [A] Simon Fraser. After her mother’s death, Londoner Alice Obiefune loses her job and her department and falls into depression. These events are depicted in a sequence colored  only in gray. Some color returns to Alice’s life, and to the panels, when she encounters the Eleventh Doctor chasing a multicolored alien dog. Alice helps the Doctor return the pet to its owner, then decides to become his new companion. This is a funny and tender story. I want to get into Doctor Who, but my short attention span makes it hard for me to watch TV shows other than sports, so these comics are a good alternative.

WONDER WOMAN #78 (DC, 1993) – “The Fast Contact,” [W] William Messner-Loebs, [A] Lee Moder (who unfortunately died earlier this year). Diana is pursued by a speedster assassin named Mayfly, in reference to how her own superspeed abilities are killing her. Diana has to team up with the Flash to catch Mayfly, even though she hardly seems like a serious threat to either of them. William Messner-Loebs was not really suited to writing superhero comics, and his Flash and Wonder Woman feel more like domestic dramas. However, this does give them an odd charm.

STAR TREK #52 (Gold Key, 1978) – “And a Child Shall Lead Them!”, [W] George Kashdan, [A] Al McWilliams. A criminal gang is exploiting some primitive people by getting them addicted to drugs. The Enterprise crew tries to capture the criminals, but the crooks have an unexpected ally, a young boy with psychic powers. Kirk, Spock and McCoy have to convince the boy, Klwama, to get rid of the criminals. This comic has some reasonably good art, but is otherwise of little interest. Its title is almost the same as the title of a TOS episode, “And the Children Shall Lead.”

THUNDERBOLTS #162 (Marvel, 2011) – untitled, [W] Jeff Parker, [A] Valentine De Landro. In a Fear Itself crossover, the Thunderbolts have to defend Chicago from an invasion by Asgardian monsters. This issue consists entirely of action sequences, but it’s full of good dialogue and characterization, and it includes an appearance by a literal giant-size Man-Thing.

Next trip to Heroes:

SAGA #63 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Brian K. Vaughan, [A] Fiona Staples. Hazel and Prince Robot meet with Vitch, the woman who says she can resurrect Marko. While trying to steal some ingredients for the woman, the kids are attacked by a feral one-eyed Lying Cat, and Prince Robot has to kill it. Meanwhile, Hazel works at an Amazon fulfillment center, where she has to pee in a grate on a floor, and she’s supervised by floating wraiths in bright yellow costumes. This is probably just a slight exaggeration of what it’s like to work at an Amazon warehouse.

SOMETHING IS KILLING THE CHILDREN #30 (Boom!, 2023) – “The Girl and the Hurricane Part 5,” [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Werther Dell’Edera. When she realizes Gabi stole her doll, Cutter breaks her cover and goes crazy. Erica comes up with a plan to deal with Cutter and the monster she summoned. Erica also tells Gabi and Riqui about the House of Slaughter, and explicitly states something which I’ve long since realized: “They care more about keeping the secret than they care about people.” The issue ends as two teenagers are about to be eaten by the Duplicitype that’s imitating Erica.

STILLWATER #18 (Image, 2023) – “The Unknown of It All,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Ramón K. Pérez. The final battle ends with Ted and Kreegs killing each other (I think). The new elected mayor of Coldwater and Stillwater decides to give everyone a choice of whether to stay there or leave. But Daniel and some other characters still want to lift Clara’s curse, so they decide to alter the map by erasing the border of Stillwater. Instead of breaking Stillwater’s curse, however, this only extends the curse to the entire world. That leaves the door open for a sequel. Stillwater was a very fun series, but I often had trouble following its plot or telling the characters apart.

STRANGE ACADEMY FINALS #5 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Skottie Young, [A] Humberto Ramos. At the commencement ceremony, we finally learn Doyle’s origin – he’s not Dormammu’s biological son, but rather, when he was a baby, his mother used Dormammu’s  magic to heal his brain cancer. Dormammu himself attends commencement, and so does Emily, with an army of Mindless Ones and monsters. The students and faculty have to team up to save the school from both Emily and Dormammu. The issue ends with Emily’s family arriving, though we learn next issue that it’s not really them.

ONCE UPON A TIME AT THE END OF THE WORLD #5 (Boom!, 2023) – “The Apocalympics,” [W] Jason Aaron, [A] Alexandre Tefenkgi. Maceo participates in the Apocalympics, but fails to score any points, whether in distance spitting, “man-roaring” or golf. And the last competition, which will decide everything, is a battle to the death. Maceo wins by carving a mountain into the shape of Mezzy’s face, since the carving will continue to exist long after his own death. Mezzy reveals that she burned the Wasteland Rangers’ manual, then disbands the Rangers. Maceo and Mezzy kiss for the first time. In the flashforward sequence, an elderly Maceo and Mezzy meet again. This issue demonstrates Jason Aaron’s ability to blend humor with deep emotion and drama.

SPIDER-MAN #7 (Marvel, 2023) – “End of the Spider-Verse Part 7: Spider-Genesis,” [W] Dan Slott, [A] Mark Bagley. All the Spiders confront Shathra, and Bagley is forced to draw a ridiculous number of different Spider-people. Shathra is defeated, and Jess, Peter and Ben are restored to existence. But a new character, Spider-Boy, also appears, and he claims he’s been Peter Parker’s partner for a long time, even though none of the other characters can remember him. This issue a target of speculation because of the Spider-Boy appearance.

SAVAGE DRAGON #265 (Image, 2023) – “Samurai Strikes!”, [W/A] Erik Larsen. Malcolm’s missing son Jackson is recovered. Paul and Alex adopt Dart’s son, Billy, only for Billy to be tragically murdered by Samurai, the last active Vicious Circle member. The two-page splash with Billy having his head sliced in half is a shocking moment, but not necessarily in a good way. It’s an example of why this series is not appealing to new readers. Also, Malcolm considers moving back to the States since he’s no longer needed in Canada.

LOCAL MAN #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Tony Fleecs, [W] Tim Seeley. Crossjack tries to solve Hodag’s murder, even though a drone is monitoring him to make sure he’s not being a superhero. It also becomes clear that Crossjack was fired from his superhero team because he was sleeping with the team leader’s wife. Local Man is Tim Seeley’s best current series besides Money Shot. It may be Image’s best attempt to grapple with its own legacy.

ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN: JON KENT #2 (DC, 2023) – “Countdown to Injustice Chapter 2: Out of the Volcano,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Clayton Henry. Jon and the female Red Tornado follow Ultraman to another alternate universe. Ultraman murders Red Tornado and is about to kill Jon too, but the universe’s resident Superman intervenes and kills Ultraman. We then realize that this is the Superman from Injustice. I never read Injustice or played the video game, but I know that it begins with the Joker murdering the pregnant Lois Lane, hence why the Injustice Superman is so shocked to see Jon.

THE FLASH #796 (DC, 2023) – “The One-Minute War Finale: One More Minute,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Roger Cruz et al. Wally returns from Planet Flash with an army of other superheroes, allowing the Flash Family to defeat the aliens and change the timestream so that the aliens never invaded Earth at all. Iris accepts Barry’s marriage proposal. Wally and Linda throw a party in their backyard, and Max and Impulse run off together. I just noticed that the boy dressed in blue is named Wade, and having read #798, I now know that that’s the name of Wally and Linda’s third child. So I guess now we know who the mysterious boy is, but how did he get kidnapped by the aliens? CBR says that this isn’t the first hint that Wade is Wally and Linda’s son.

IT’S JEFF! #1 (Marvel, 2023) – various stories, [W] Kelly Thompson, [A] Gurihiru. A series of pantomime gag strips starring Jeff the land shark. All these stories were originally published online. Jeff is a hilarious character, and Thompson and Gurihiru take full advantage of his comic potential. Gurihiru’s drawings are super-cute and full of chicken fat, and they tell the story with complete clarity, despite the lack of text. I enjoyed this more than DC’s Silent Tales, to be reviewed below.

I HATE THIS PLACE #7 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kyle Starks, [A] Artyom Topilin. Joe holds Gabby and Trudy hostage, but they manage to escape and kill Joe’s henchmen, who deserved to die almost as much as Joe himself does. The Horned Man appears, and to escape it, Joe and Gabby both jump through a dimensional portal. Meanwhile, Trudy thinks the ghosts are about to kill her, but one of the ghosts is that of Dante.

SECOND COMING: TRINITY #1 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell, [A] Richard Pace & Leonard Kirk. In a flashback, Sunstar and Cranius, the villain from the previous miniseries, attend their high school reunion. Cranius almost gets a former classmate to date him, but then she realizes he used to be the class pariah. In the present, Sunstar acts as a character witness at Cranius’s trial, and Cranius is freed on the condition that he be launched into space aboard a probe. Jesus and Sunstar’s infant son, Jordan, only appear briefly.

WHERE MONSTERS LIE #3 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kyle Starks, [A] Piotr Kowalski. This issue consists entirely of scenes of hilarious and gory violence. Perhaps Kyle Starks’s most notable talent is his ability to blend humor and horror. There are no notable plot twists in this issue; those all come at the end of issue 4.

DAREDEVIL #9 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Red Fist Saga Part 9,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Manuel Garcia. Matt’s allies start to abandon him, and then his headquarters is invaded by both the Hand and the Avengers. Matt suffers a crisis of faith, deciding that God is dead. This volume of Daredevil hasn’t been much fun, and I’m not sorry that Chip is leaving this series, because he seems to have gotten tired of it.

POISON IVY #11 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] G. Willow Wilson, [A] Marcio Takara. The rogue lamia causes everyone at the retreat to go crazy. The good (?) news is it also allows Poison Ivy to control the minds of all the other attendees, so she enlists them to help blockade an oil refinery. Janet reminds Ivy that she’s not supposed to act like this anymore, and then Ivy gives the organizer of the retreat a stern lecture. When Ivy tries to get rid of the lamia, it comes to life and attacks her.

BLOOD TREE #3 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Peter J. Tomasi, [A] Maxim Simic. Dario and Maria encounter the wingman killer, but he gets away. Dario realizes where he’s seen the angel painting before: on the ceiling of an old movie theater. This clue allows Dario to identify the killer, Owen Fitcher, and to get into his apartment. For more on this series, see my review of issue 4 below.

HAIRBALL #1 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Matt Kindt, [A] Tyler Jenkins. A little girl, Anna, is adopted by a foster family. On the same day, the family also adopts a stray black cat named Bestie. The cat seems to be some sort of demonic hellspawn: when it bites Anna, worms come out of the bite marks, and it vomits up toxic sludge. Thanks in part to the cat, Anna’s foster parents are on the verge of divorce. Hairball is creepy, but it’s also funny because the cat’s behavior is only a slight exaggeration of how cats really do act.

MOSELY #3 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Rob Guillory, [A] Sam Lotfi. Mosely’s actions last issue cause the city to descend into anarchy. Mosely leaves his ex-wife’s compound and goes looking for his daughter. On the way to her, he gets attacked by a monstrous robot. The robot, in the form in which it appears on the cover, looks a lot like Majora’s mask from the Zelda game of the same name. I noticed that because I’ve been looking at lots of preview images from Tears of the Kingdom.

2000 AD #2306 (Rebellion, 2022) – A Regened issue. Cadet Dredd: “Undertow,” [W] Paul Starkey, [A] S. Califano & G. Welsh. Dredd is getting poor grades in his classes because of his unoriginality and excessive adherence to rules. When Dredd and Rico get captured by Black Atlantic pirates, Dredd uses his armor-piercing rounds to shoot holes in the pirates’ ship, so that the pirates will have to surrender to save their own lives. This shows that Dredd has learned his lesson about being more creative. Bladers: untitled, [W] James Peaty, [A] Leigh Gallagher. A sports story starring a roller derby team. Ulysses Sweet: “Psychobaby,” [W] Guy Adams, [A] Paul Marshall. A series of gags about an ultraviolent baby. This seems like a science-fictional version of the classic strip Sweeny Toddler. Future Shocks: “The Planet Breakers,” [W] Karl Stock, [A] Karl Richardson. An outer-space miner visits a planet that turns out to be alive and predatory. Then she realizes that “Earth is the predator planet.” Chopper: “All for One,” [W] David Barnett, [A] Gary Walsh. A young Chopper escapes from the police, then decides to rescue his friend Clayts from the cubes. Clayts’s capture was depicted in an earlier Regened issue. I feel like the all-ages issues of 2000 AD are suffering from mission creep, because some of their stories are barely any different from regular 2000 AD stories, except for having brighter colors. In particular, the Future Shocks story in this issue could have appeared in any other prog.

GODFELL #2 (Vault, 2023) – untitled, [W] Christopher Sebela, [A] Ben Hennessy. While traveling through God’s corpse, Zanzi and Neth meet a villainous tyrant named Avernus, who happens to have a map of the corpse tattooed on his chest. They escape him, but he pursues them, riding a giant multiheaded worm thing. Zanzi defeats Avernus and cuts off the map from his chest. Then Zanzi and Neth arrive at God’s pelvis, which is full of people having sex.

2000 AD #2307 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: “Buratino Must Die 04,” [W] Rob Williams, [A] Henry Flint. Anderson battles a creature called the Proletariat that’s made of the collective minds of the people killed when East-Meg Two was nuked. Enemy Earth: “Book One Part 6,” [W] Cavan Scott, [A] Luke Horsman. While stopping for food, the protagonists are captured by some other survivors. Zoe finds a box of breakfast cereal that’s illustrated with a picture of Joko Jargo. Hope: “In the Shadows Part 2, Reel 5,” [W] Guy Adams, [A] Jimmy Broxton. This story is totally incomprehensible, which is a shame because Jimmy Broxton’s art is excellent. Chimpsky’s Law: “A Terrifically Exciting Adventure Part 6,” [W] Ken Niemand, [A] P.J. Holden. While fleeing from the two awful kids, Chimpsky teams up with a Hitler lookalike, Mr. Grofaz, who’s immune to the twins’ mind control because he has a plate in his skull. Hershey: “The Cold in the Bones Book 1 Part 6,” [W] Rob Williams, [A] Simon Fraser. This chapter is just an extended chase sequence.

RADIANT PINK #4 (Image, 2023) – “Space!”, [W] Meghan Camarena & Melissa Flores, [A] Emma Kubert. Kelly and Eva are captured by alien cats, and while escaping, they realize they’re in love. I love the idea of a planet of giant alien cats, but this miniseries is a poorly plotted, themeless mess, and it feels like a waste of its protagonist’s potential. Also, Andy Price, in My Little Pony Movie Prequel #1, created a much funnier depiction of a city populated by cats.

JUNK RABBIT #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Jimmie Robinson. The world of this series is similar to that of WALL-E, except that there are still people living amongst the giant mounds of trash. But it’s only the poor people who live there, while the rich live inside a climate-controlled dome. The junk-dwellers are at the mercy of the dome-dwellers, and their only protection is a mysterious vigilante who looks like a rabbit. This is a pretty good debut issue. Jimmie Robinson has had a long career but has never gotten very much recognition.

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: THE ARMAGEDDON GAME – ALLIANCE #4 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Sophie Campbell. Venus De Milo teams up with the shark mutant Bludgeon. I don’t understand what’s going on in this issue, but Sophie Campbell’s artwork is even better than her writing, and this issue is one of the few good comics that have come out of Armageddon Game. Incidentally, the recent news about IDW is shocking, but it’s also not surprising that IDW has been having problems. IDW was heavily dependent on their Hasbro licenses, and now that they’ve lost those licenses, they’re publishing far fewer comics overall. They’ve also had trouble developing new IP. Black Crown was an exciting imprint, but it ended far too soon. And their recent wave of creator-owned comics have all concluded, and there haven’t been any new launches to replace them. IDW also lost the Library of American Comics and its associated Eurocomics imprint. In short, part of their problem seems to be a lack of creativity or originality.  

AVENGERS: WAR ACROSS TIME #4 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Paul Levitz, [A] Alan Davis. The Avengers fight Sindri and the Lava Men. This is just a generic Silver Age Avengers comic, and Alan Davis’s artwork is the only reason it’s worth buying.

BATMAN #134 (DC, 2023) – “The Bat-Man of Gotham Part 4,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Mike Hawthorne. Batman encounters the alternate version of the Joker, whose name here is Halladay, as well as the alternate Ghost-Maker. This storyline is much less compelling than “Failsafe.” The regular Gotham City is already dark enough. I don’t enjoy reading about an alternate Gotham that’s even worse. I also don’t like Mike Hawthorne’s photorealistic style of art. Again, the Tim Drake backup story is better than the main story.  

2000 AD #2308 (Rebellion, 2022) – Dredd: as above. Buratino is confronted by his fellow Sov agents. Dredd encounters the Sentientoid. I don’t get what’s going on here. Chimpsky’s Law: as above. After some action scenes, Chimpsky reveals that Thruppence, the little girl, is not a real person but a figment of Timmy’s imagination. Hope: as above. More unintelligible nonsense. The previous story arc of Hope was not hard to follow, and it’s too bad that the sequel is such a mess. Enemy Earth: as above. Zoe has a nightmare, which is depicted in a beautiful splash page, and then wakes up to discover that her arm has been amputated. Hershey: as above. Dirty Frank is revealed to be using drugs, there’s some more action, and then Hershey and Frank fall into a cavern of alien spiders, which are being used to produce the drugs.

LAZARUS PLANET: REVENGE OF THE GODS #1 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] G. Willow Wilson, [A] Cian Tormey. Lazarus Planet is not a very exciting crossover, but I ordered this miniseries because it’s written by G. Willow Wilson. Her dialogue is good enough that I enjoyed this comic despite my lack of interest in its plot. There’s also a Nubia backup story by Becky Cloonan, Michael W. Conrad and Alitha Martinez.

BULLS OF BEACON HILL #3 (Aftershock, 2023) – “Dissident Aggressor,” [W] Steve Orlando, [A] Andy Macdonald. Chris stumbles into the apartment of his campaign manager, Sean, and tells her what’s been going on. Chris goes to confront his mother – who’s just as guilty as his father, since she enabled Orin’s abuse – and she summons a couple of Orin’s thugs. In the latest Previews, Aftershock didn’t solicit any new comic books at all. I hope they can recover from bankruptcy, but I don’t know how they can do that if they’re not bringing in any revenue.  

DEAD SEAS #4 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Cavan Scott, [A] Nick Brokenshire. There’s lots more havoc and violence as the ship begins to sink. I didn’t notice any major new plot twists in this issue. Dead Seas’s pirate subplot is perhaps unnecessary; the ghosts and the high-seas setting were already scary enough, without adding the pirates on top of that. Nick Brokenshire draws some terrifying ghosts.

HEART EYES #5 (Vault, 2023) – untitled, [W] Dennis Hopeless, [A] Victor Ibáñez. It’s getting late, so I’ll just quote my own Facebook comment: “What on earth was the point of this stupid comic? Lupe literally destroyed the entire world, either on purpose or by negligence, and she gets a happy ending? I liked Dennis Hopeless’s Spider-Woman, but I’ll be very hesitant to buy anything else by him.” I will add that Victor Ibáñez’s drawings of monsters are beautiful, but I wish they had been accompanied by better writing.

MY BAD VOL. 2 #5 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell & Bryce Ingman, [A] Peter Krause. Earth is invaded by alien lizards. Emperor King and Lamplighter each build a rocket to use in an attack on the alien mothership, but each of them sabotages the other’s rocket. Earth is only saved by a deus-ex-machina intervention by “intergalactic marshals.” This comic was a lot of fun, precisely because it didn’t try to be much more than a silly parody.

2000 AD #2309 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: as above. Dredd and Buratino manage to defeat the villains. Dredd discovers that Izaaks, the Sovs’ second-in-command during the Apocalypse War, was somehow responsible, and is now terminally ill. Izaaks tells Dredd that Kazan made him play Russian roulette every day, and Dredd asks Izaaks why he didn’t just shoot Kazan. I don’t quite understand this story arc. Enemy Earth: as above. Zoe and Julius discover that their new “friends” are cannibals. Chimpsky’s Law: as above. Timmy is so shocked by the discovery that his sister isn’t real, that Grofaz is able to shoot him with a tranquilizer. To his shame, Chimpsky has no option but to keep Timmy locked up. Chimpsky realizes that some unknown adversary is responsible for the events of both this story arc and the last one. I hope Chimpsky will return soon. Hershey: as above. Hershey learns that some Judges were responsible for the alien spiders. Then the spiders escape, prepared to infect the worl.

LAZARUS PLANET: REVENGE OF THE GODS #2 – as above except [A] Cian Tormey & Emanuela Lupacchino. This issue spotlights Billy Batson and Yara Flor, and Diana doesn’t appear at all. Again, I like the dialogue in this comic, but I don’t care about the plot. The backup story is the same as last issue.

SANDMAN UNIVERSE: DEAD BOY DETECTIVES #4 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Pornsak Pichetshote, [A] Javier Rodriguez. This issue begins with a depressing monologue about how Thailand has its problems, but at least it tries, while America has stopped trying. It’s hard to argue with that. Then there are more plot developments that are hard to understand. Pornsak Pichetshote’s major flaw as a writer is that his plots are confusing. He introduces so many characters and plot twists that I can’t keep track of them all. Javier Rodriguez’s artwork in this issue includes some nice touches. I particularly like the scene where the detectives are decomposed into cubes and then reassembled. However, this issue also includes some boring dialogue scenes, and these scenes are not a good use of Rodriguez’s talents.

LOVE EVERLASTING #6 (Image, 2023) – “Too Hip for Love,” [W] Tom King, [A] Elsa Charretier. Joan finally agrees to marry Don. After the wedding, Joan runs away, hoping the cowboy will show up and kill her. The cowboy does appear, but lets her live, and Joan is trapped in the marriage that her mother forced her into. I’m enjoying this series more than most of Tom King’s other recent titles. There’s no possible logical explanation for how Joan keeps dying and coming back to life in different settings, but I don’t think this needs to be explained.

IMMORAL X-MEN #3 (Marvel, 2023) – “Our Nine-Hundred-Years-and-Counting Mission,” [W] Kieron Gillen, [A] Alessandro Vitti. This issue focuses on Sinister and Rasputin IV, who is supposed to be a significant character, but it’s hard to tell. As I’ve stated above, in this storyline it’s impossible to remember who’s a clone and who’s original, or who’s in which faction, or who or what actually matters. Frankly, this crossover was a terrible idea and I wish I hadn’t read any of it.

SABRETOOTH AND THE EXILES #5 (Marvel, 2023) – “Family Reunion,” [W] Victor LaValle, [A] Leonard Kirk. Sabretooth fights his son Graydon Creed, and the other Exiles fight some mutant babies. The name Herbert West appears in this issue, in reference to a Lovecraft story. This issue includes an interesting essay about North Carolina Maroons, but it has only a tangential relevance to the plot. That’s the whole problem with this series – it wastes so much space on pointless plot points and action scenes, that it has no space remaining to explore the themes and implications of its plot. By contrast, in Eve or Destroyer, there’s a much tighter integration of plot and theme.

LOCKE & KEY: OMEGA #1 (IDW, 2012) – “Our Regrets,” [W] Joe Hill, [A] Gabriel Rodriguez. Dodge has now possessed Bode. He has the Omega Key, and he uses the size-changing key to acquire the Crown of Shadows. In doing so, he knocks over the town’s lighthouse and killing the family that lives there. Scot makes a video for graduation, asking his classmates their biggest regrets, and he elicits some poignant confessions from Tyler and Kinsey. Bode, in Dodge’s body, finally reaches the Black Door, and we finally see the full list of names on the cave inscription. I kind of wish I’d been reading this series as it came out, because Omega seems like a really powerful finale to the main storyline.

ADVENTURE COMICS #400 (DC, 1970) – “Return of the Black Flame,” [W/A] Mike Sekowsky. Supergirl fights a dumb villain named the Black Flame, who is aided by three Phantom Zone prisoners. Sekowsky doesn’t seem to have understood what the Phantom Zone was, because he describes it as “where the criminals of many galaxy’s [sic] are kept,” and the Black Flame’s three allies are not Kryptonian. In every other story where the Phantom Zone appears, it’s depicted as a prison for Kryptoniancriminals only. This comic is one of DC’s most underwhelming anniversary issues. It’s just a generic story that could have appeared in any other issue, and the only indication that it’s a milestone issue is the “35TH ANNIVERSARY – 400TH ISSUE” banner on the cover. Superman #200 and World’s Finest #200 were also rather unimpressive. Later in the decade, DC started doing more to celebrate issue numbers that were multiples of 100.

AREA 88 #1 (Eclipse, 1987) – “The Blue Skies of Betrayal,” [W/A] Kaoru Shintani. I would  normally never buy manga published in single-issue form, but Area 88 is an exception because it was never printed in English in book form. It was also one of the first manga translated into English – in fact, this issue’s inside cover describes it as “the first wholesale attempt to bring the unique and novel world of Japanese comics to English readers in a popular and familiar format.” Area 88 is also a notable work in its own right – it may be the best-known manga about aviation. It focuses on a mercenary pilot, Shin Kazama, who’s fighting in an interminable North African war, and has to balance the danger of each mission with the financial reward it offers. Shintani’s writing is compelling, and his art is effective, though it’s in an older style. There were 42 issues of Area 88, representing only 25% of the original series. I wouldn’t pay very much for the other issues of Area 88, but I would buy them if they were cheap.

MS. TREE #13 (Aardvark-Vanaheim, 1984) – “Deadline Chapter 7: Sex and the Singles Slasher,” [W] Max Allan Collins, [A] Terry Beatty. Ms. Tree investigates a series of murders, and discovers that most of the victims were participants in a gang rape that occurred at a high school party, and the other victims were killed to disguise the pattern. Ms. Tree’s prime suspect is the victim of this rape, Betty Lou, but she discovers that Betty Lou is a trailer-dwelling, chain-smoking mother of eight children by four different men, and that she seems to have good memories of the rape. (However, it’s still clear that Betty Lou is a tragic character, even if she doesn’t connect her current problems with the rape.) The real killer is Jennifer, the journalist who was working with Ms. Tree on the case. Though she was not the victim of the gang rape, she witnessed it and was traumatized for life. After confessing, Jennifer commits suicide.

2000 AD #2310 (IDW, 2022) – Dredd: “The Rematch 01,” [W] Ken Niemand, [A] Steven Austin. Benny has just finished a seventeen-year prison sentence, having been arrested for participating in a fight against the champion of a rival block. Now that he’s out, some local crooks are trying to force him and his former opponent (as yet unnamed) into a rematch. Terror Tales: “The Vision Thing,” [W] John Tomlinson, [A] Nick Dyer. A man is driven insane by a psychedelic “vision engine.” Enemy Earth: as above. The kids try to escape the cannibals, but are pursued by a giant wolf. Hope: as above. This still makes no sense. Fiends of the Western Front: “Wilde West” prologue, [W] Ian Edginton, [A] Warren Pleece. While in Omaha, Nebraska for a lecture tour, Oscar Wilde meets Constanta, the vampire from Fiends of the Eastern Front. This is just a one-shot prologue; the rest of the story is coming later. Oscar Wilde’s lecture tour of the American West is also referenced in Jonah Hex: Riders of the Worm and Such.

LOCKE & KEY: OMEGA #4 (IDW, 2013) – “Human Sacrifices,” as above. Tyler and Duncan are held captive by shadows. While the seniors are partying in the Drowning Cave, Dodge, in Bode’s body, tries to trick them into following him to the Black Door – I assume he needs to sacrifice them so he can open it. But Dodge breaks his cover, and he’s forced to summon more shadows to attack the seniors. Meanwhile, Duncan, Tyler and the police all try to come to the rescue, but Tyler is accidentally shot. I think I already have #5 of this series, but I really need to find #6.

KID ETERNITY #1 (DC, 1991) – untitled, [W] Grant Morrison, [A] Duncan Fegredo. A grim-and-gritty revival of an old Fawcett character who has the power to summon dead people. This issue is very confusingly written. It assumes the reader already knows Kid Eternity’s origin and powers, and even then it’s hard to follow. Still, I’d like to read the other two issues of this miniseries. Duncan Fegredo’s painted art here is beautiful, but it looks more like Sienkiewicz than Fegredo.

KORAK, SON OF TARZAN #21 (Gold Key, 1968) – “The Alien Jungle,” [W] Gaylord Du Bois, [A] Russ Manning. Korak and his ape companion are captured by nonhumanoid aliens and taken to another planet, where the aliens have enslaved some humans (or aliens identical to humans) and are using giant ants to keep the humans captive. Korak and the ape defeat both the aliens and the ants. This issue is much more appropriate to Manning’s talents than #11 was. As in Captain Johner and the Aliens, Manning draws the aliens to look like robots, and they have his trademark slick, clean appearance. Also, the alien girl who Korak encounters is very cute, and the giant ants look more realistic than the dinosaurs in #11. This was Manning’s last issue of Korak. He drew the first eleven issues and was then replaced by Warren Tufts, but for some reason he later returned to Korak for just this one issue.

STEED AND MRS. PEEL #1 (Boom!, 1990/2012) – “Crown & Anchor,” [W] Grant Morrison, [A] Ian Gibson. This is a reprint of a 1990 Eclipse comic. It’s based on the TV show Avengers, but for obvious reasons, neither Eclipse nor Boom! could use that title. I have no familiarity with this franchise, but this issue seems like an entertaining and well-written espionage story, and I’d like to collect the rest of the series.

FLAMING CARROT COMICS #26 (Dark Horse, 1991) – “The Fearless Umpire Killers,” [W/A] Bob Burden. The Mysterymen fight some zombies. The Flaming Carrot and Raphael discover a plot by some evil umpires to steal the Empire State Building. This scheme was thought up by the disembodied head of Frankenstein’s monster. So overall this is a typical Flaming Carrot comic.

SPIDER-MAN: BLUE #2 (Marvel, 2002) – “Let’s Fall in Love,” [W] Jeph Loeb, [A] Tim Sale. A beautifully drawn and entertaining Spider-Man story. It must be set during Amazing Spider-Man #42, since it ends with the “face it, tiger, you just hit the jackpot” line. Tim Sale’s draftsmanship was excellent, and he was a master of panel composition. Like Steranko, he always chose unconventional and surprising “camera” angles. The funniest moment in this issue is this exchange:

JJJ: Listen, kid. I used to have an aunt who worried about money all the time, too.

PETER: Really? What happened to her?

JJJ (slamming his office door): She died!

ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #647 (DC, 2006) – “Rack & Ruin Part II,” [W] Greg Rucka, Nunzio DeFilippis & Christina Weir, [A] Renato Guedes. Emil Hamilton, now the supervillain Ruin, goes crazy and tries to kill Lana Lang and Pete Ross and their baby. This story is exciting, but Emil’s transformation into a villain is a waste of a good character. Lana and Pete’s son, Clark Peter Ross, seems to have never appeared again after this issue.  

FLASH 2021 ANNUAL (DC, 2021) – “Blink of an Eye Finale,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Fernando Pasarin & Brandon Peterson. In his final trip through time, Wally finds himself re-experiencing the events of Heroes in Crisis. Wally teams up with Roy Harper against Savitar, and Roy has to sacrifice himself to save the day. The issue ends with Wally reunited with his family. As explained here, the purpose of this annual was to retcon the events of Heroes in Crisis. In that series, it was established that Wally had caused the deaths of ten other superheroes. This was an extremely unpopular piece of continuity, and in Flash Annual 2021, it was instead shown that Wally was not to blame for those deaths. Also, as noted above, Flash #795 reveals that the ten victims are still alive. Most of this went over my head. I did notice that the opening page of this annual was in the same format as Heroes in Crisis, but I didn’t recognize that this issue was a retcon of that series. Again, this is because I stopped reading Heroes in Crisis after issue 3. It was a terrible series, perhaps the low point of Tom King’s career, and that’s saying a lot.

U.S.AVENGERS #9 (Marvel, 2017) – “Let’s Pretend We Won a War,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Paco Medina et al. While Toni and Sunspot are escaping from prison, the other USAvengers lead a resistance effort against Hydra’s invasion of Europe. The highlight of this issue is Squirrel Girl reciting a squirrel version of the St. Crispin’s Day speech from Henry V. The issue ends with Cannonball finding himself in the outer space version of Riverdale. I think I’m only missing one more issue of USAvengers.

RUBRIQUE À BRAC VOL. 4 (Dargaud, 1973) – various stories, [W/A] Marcel Gotlib. Of the French-language comics I’ve read lately, this may have been the most difficult. It’s rather long, and it’s full of obscure references, difficult vocabulary, and giant blocks of text. But it’s worth reading anyway. Gotlib was the master of a particular tradition of French humor comics which is associated with the magazines he founded, L’Écho des savanes and Fluide Glacial. This sort of humor is very brutal and uncompromising, and is directed at adults – Wikipedia says that Gotlib was a key figure in the development of BD for adult readers. Gotlib and his contemporaries were obviously influenced by Mad, as were the American underground artists. Rubrique a Brac volume 4 is a collection of short humor strips published originally in Pilote. These strips have a wide variety of subject matter, but they include a lot of parodies of contemporary culture, as well as metatextual stories starring Gotlib himself. Gotlib depicts himself in deliberately exaggerated form, as a he-man type wearing a laurel wreath. HIs fellow Pilote artists Fred and Gébé make cameo appearances in the first story. (Actually the character is named after Gébé but is visually based on Goscinny.) A recurring feature in many of the stories is a ladybug who offers ironic commentary. One of the stories is explicitly political; its point is that everyone talks about children starving in Africa, but no one does anything to help them. Another story takes a surprisingly personal angle; it depicts Gotlib’s obsession with the gaze of his three-year-old daughter. I also found myself frequently remembering the last story, in which two adult men play a children’s game called the jeu de la barbichette (game of the goatee), but the game quickly turns into an ultra-violent duel. The funny part here is that the two men treat this ridiculous game with the utmost seriousness. Gotlib’s art style is also interesting; he has a unique and fully developed style of linework which is different from either the Clear Line or École de Marcinelle traditions.  

2000 AD #2311 (Rebellion, 2022) – Dredd: as above. Benny and Augusto prepare for their rematch. Benny wants to fight, but Augusto is doing it only because some crooks have kidnapped his nephew. In the end, Benny and Augusto are both killed, along with the nephew’s kidnapper, but the nephew survives. This story is a powerful depiction of the hopelessness of life in Mega-City One. Terror Tales: “In the Wood,” [W] John Tomlinson, [A] Lee Milmore. Kian Edler is driven crazy and then killed by a haunted forest. There is a nice parallelism between the first and last pages, which depict Kian’s crib and his coffin. Enemy Earth: as above. The kids and their robot nanny escape, but one of the cannibals survives and pursues them. Hope: as above. More excellent artwork wasted on an unfathomable story.    

2000 AD #2312 (Rebellion, 2023) – This issue is a “100-Page Mega-Special.” Dredd: “The Last Temptation of Joe,” [W] Ken Niemand, [A] Lee Carter. Mega-City One is holding the devil in Iso-Block 666. The devil escapes and tries to tempt Dredd into taking over his job. Dredd refuses, and Satan is re-imprisoned in deep space. This story is explicitly stated to be an imaginary story that never happened, but aren’t they all? Rogue Trooper: “Brothers,” [W] Kek-W, [A] Warwick Fraser-Coombe. Rogue and his three sidekicks get in an argument, but then the  sidekicks are kidnapped by an evil AI, and Rogue has to save them. Bonjo from Beyond the Stars: “Solids in the Bile Tube,” [W] Gath Ennis, [A] Kevin O’Neill. A metatextual story in which Tharg has to team up with some other old characters to protect 2000 AD from a monster. This story is a tribute to Kevin O’Neill, and it’s preceded by a series of essays about him, written by various other 2000 AD creators. The Out: “Book 3 Part 1,” [W] Dan Abnett, [A] Mark Harrison. Just an introductory chapter that explains Cyd Finlea’s current status quo. Mark Harrison is probably the most progressive artist currently working for 2000 AD. Joe Pineapples: “Tin Man,” [W] Pat Mills, [A] Simon Bisley. Joe Pineapples and Ro-Jaws have been trapped on an asteroid for billions of years, but now an assassin is hunting them. Hope: as above. See previous reviews of this series. Ace Trucking Co: “Untrenched,” [W] Karl Stock, [A] Nick Dyer. Ace and his crew discover the cryogenically frozen body of Alec Trench, a character who appeared in a number of old Tharg stories. Alec finally dies for good. Alec Trench was also Alan Grant’s pseudonym, and Alan Grant appears in this story’s last panel. It’s weird to read an Ace Trucking Co. story that’s not drawn by Belardinelli. This story is followed by a series of tributes to Grant. Dredd: “Troublemaker,” [W] Gordon Rennie, [A] Robin Smith. Dredd meets his co-creator Alan Grant face to face. This is a sweet and touching story, an affectionate memorial to one of 2000 AD’s essential figures. It also includes a cameo appearance by Batman. Proteus Vex: “Crawlspace Part 1,” [W] Mike Carroll, [A] Jake Lynch. I don’t understand this story very well, but at least it makes more sense than Hope.

HOLY CROSS #3 (Fantagraphics, 1995) – untitled, [W] Malachy Coney, [A] P.J. Holden. A slice-of-life story about a young boy growing up in Belfast during the Troubles. The story is not really about the Troubles, although we do see some soldiers patrolling the streets. Rather, the focus is on the boy’s brutally abusive father. Holden’s art and lettering are kind of sloppy, but Holy Cross #3 offers a vivid firsthand depiction of life in Belfast. Ireland has never had much of a commercial comics industry, so works like Holy Cross and Scarenthood are valuable. There are two other issues of Holy Cross, plus a graphic novel. Malachy Coney worked briefly for Top Cow in the late ‘90s, but he hasn’t published very much since then.

RAGMOP #4 (Planet Lucy, 1995) – “A Brief History of Crime Part 4,” [W/A] Rob Walton. A series of vignettes about space dinosaurs, government plotting, and other stuff. I don’t know how all these plot threads fit together. Walton’s linework is appealing, but I preferred Andrew Pepoy’s artwork on the backup story. This issue did not impress me greatly, but Ragmop is included in Paul Gravett’s 1001 Comics book, so I’d like to read more of it.

FLASH 2022 ANNUAL (DC, 2022) – “Best-Laid Plans,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Serg Acuña. Wally finally finds time to read Linda’s novel. Most of this issue consists of a retelling of Linda’s novel, which is a fictionalized version of her real life. It’s very cute, although it reads more like fanfiction, and I don’t think it would work well as an actual novel. At the end, Linda realizes she might be pregnant again.  

ACTION COMICS #732 (DC, 1997) – “The Saving Skull,” [W] David Michelinie, [A] Tom Grummett. The Atomic Skull kidnaps Lois, who he mistakes for his lover Zelda. Superman has difficulty fighting him because his powers have gone out of control. This issue was a lead-in to the “electric Superman” story arc. I used to have a far bigger collection of Superman than Batman, but this situation may have reversed itself, now that I’ve been actively collecting Batman comics for a long time. So I’m trying to read more Superman comics now.

LUCIFER #3 (Trident, 1990) – “The Apocalyptic Monster Show,” [W] Eddie Campbell, [A] Paul Grist. An ordinary man gains the powers of Satan and uses them to cause havoc. He appears on a TV show, where he summons a number of other ancient deities. This Lucifer series is far less well known than the Vertigo comic of the same name, but it deserves to be remembered. It’s a funny piece of satire, in the same vein as some of the more lighthearted Bacchus stories.

100 BULLETS: BROTHER LONO #1 (DC, 2013) – “¡El Hombre Respira!”, [W] Brian Azzarello, [A] Eduardo Risso. A horribly violent crime story set in Mexico. This comic has some powerful moments, but it sometimes goes beyond the boundaries of the crime genre and crosses over into horror. In the opening scene, some criminals force another criminal to confess by threatening to kill his infant son, and then the criminal is murdered anyway, and the last panel of the issue shows his flayed skull. This isn’t crime, it’s torture porn. A further problem with this comic, and 100 Bullets in general, is that it’s racist. 100 Bullets only ever seems to depict black people and Latine people as criminals, and it gives the impression that Mexico and urban America are cesspools of crime. Perhaps the series also includes more positive depictions of POC, but I’m not sure it’s worth looking for them. Risso, of course, is a world-class artist, but he’s worked with far better writers than Azzarello. It’s too bad that he’s best known for 100 Bullets, rather than for his work with Ricardo Barreiro and Carlos Trillo.

BLUE RIBBON COMICS #2 (Archie, 1983) – “Mr. Justice,” [W] Robin Snyder & Bill DuBay, [W] Trevor Von Eeden & Alex Niño. A revival of an old character from the 1940s version of Blue Ribbon Comics. This story is almost unreadable because of confusing page layouts, although its linework is beautiful. I get the sense that von Eeden did the breakdowns and Nino did the pencils, although the GCD only credits Niño with the inks. The storytelling does get much clearer after about the halfway mark.

AQUABLUE VOL. 1 (Dark Horse, 1988) – untitled, [W] Thierry Cailleteau, [A] Olivier Vatine. As an infant, a boy escapes the wreck of his parents’ spaceship and is raised to about age eight by a robot nanny. At that point he lands on the planet of Aquablue, inhabited by pale-skinned amphibian people. They rename him Tumu-Nao, the son of their whale god. As a young man, Tumu-Nao falls in love with the chief’s daughter, Mi-Nuée. Just after Tumu-Nao gets permission to marry her, Aquablue is invaded by his human relatives, who are trying to exploit the planet’s natural resources. Tumu-Nao and the natives fight off the invasion, and in the process, Tumu-Nao discovers he’s the heir to a vast fortune. Thus, in the next volume he has to leave his girlfriend and travel to Earth to pursue his legal claims. Aquablue is an exciting adventure story with excellent linework and cute characters. Its plot has some obvious similarities to Avatar, so much so that Aquablue’s publishers sued Fox and James Cameron but lost. However, the theme of humans stealing resources fom innocent aliens is also present in many earlier works, including Joan Slonczewski’s A Door into Ocean, Ursula K. Le Guin’s The Word for World is Forest, H. Beam Piper’s Little Fuzzy, etc. Also, Tumu-Nao’s character arc – shipwrecked, raised by nonhumans, and then identified as the heir to a fortune – is the same as that of Tarzan.

BAREFOOTZ: THE COMIX BOOK STORIES #1 (Renegade, 1986) – “The Boss Bug” etc., [W/A] Howard Cruse. A series of slice-of-life stories about talking cockroaches, pantyhose, plumbing, and other topics. All these stories are reprinted from Comix Book, so it’s possible that this comic is redundant. Barefootz includes no explicit references to gay themes, although in the strip on the back cover, Barefootz seems to be uninterested in Dolly’s sexual advances. Also, the characters are drawn in a cartoony style. For these reasons Barefootz could be considered a minor work in Cruse’s oeuvre, but it still includes some funny jokes and some gorgeous draftsmanship, especially the half-page splash on page 3 of the last story.

DEE VEE #6 (Dee Vee, 1998) – [E] Daren White? An Australian independent comics anthology. Its highlight is a chapter of Eddie Campbell’s Alec: How to Be an Artist. There are also two interrelated one-page strips by Bruce Mutard, both about an encounter between a slacker and a cranky old man. I have a graphic novel by Mutard, but I haven’t read it yet. The other big name in this issue is James Kochalka. Some of the other stories in the issue are amateurish.

ACTION COMICS #327 (DC, 1965) – “The Three Generations of Superman!”, [W] Edmond Hamilton, [A] Curt Swan. In an imaginary story, an elderly story Superman teams up with his adult son and his young grandson to stop an alien invasion. In a departure from the norm, Superman’s grandson speaks normal English rather than Superbaby talk. I could swear I’ve read another Silver Age story where there are three generations of superheroes, but they all turn out to be impostors created by Mr. Mxyzptlk or something. If this story does exist, I can’t identify it. In the backup story, by Dorfman and Mooney, Supergirl is accused of murder and sent to Dimension Z to face trial. This story is continued next issue.

DNAGENTS #19 (Eclipse, 1985) – “Twice is Not Enough!”, [W] Mark Evanier, [A] Richard Howell. Surge tries to revive his dead girlfriend Angela Krell by giving her an energy transfusion from a vampire. It doesn’t work, of course, and the vampire escapes. Surge is by far my least favorite DNAgent; he’s a hotheaded, thoughtless, humorless little jerk. Also, Richard Howell’s artwork is not exciting. However, DNAgents was a really fun series, with funny dialogue and great characterization, and it should be more widely read.

JOURNEY #27 (Fantagraphics, 1986) – “Death Watch,” [W/A] William Messner-Loebs.
Wolverine MacAlistaire attends to the dying Mandrell Ross – I forget why he’s dying – and manages to save his life. MacAlistaire repudiates his wife, coincidentally (?) named Mrs. Tree, on the grounds that not only is she cheating on him, but also he’s already married to a number of Indian women. MacAlistaire decides to go west and live with some Indians. Mandrell is shocked, telling him, “You’ve been beaten, chased by wild beasts, shot with arrows, nearly frozen, starved and burned… assailed by insane men of every stripe… dammit, MacAlistaire… you’ll live longer in civilization!” MacAlistaire replies “Jest seems longer.” In the epilogue, sixty years later, an elderly Mandrell realizes that this was a joke. This was the last issue of the original Journey. It was supposed to be followed by a succession of miniseries, but the first of those miniseries ended after two issues. Journey is a brilliant work of historical fiction, and it’s a shame that it was never completed. I just read John Tanner’s autobiography The Falcon, which is set in roughly the same area and historical period.

SMITH BROWN JONES: ALIEN ACCOUNTANT VOL. 2 #3 (SG, 1998) – untitled, [W/A] Jon “Bean” Hastings. This series is about an alien visitor to Earth who disguises himself by admitting to be an alien, on the assumption that no one will believe him. I was not overly impressed by this issue. It has too much text, and its artwork is kind of unappealing. I would only buy the other issues of this series if they were cheap.

THE RED STAR #1 (Image, 2000) – untitled, [W/A] Christian Gossett et al. A war story set in a futuristic, fictionalized version of the USSR. When it came out, The Red Star was groundbreaking because of its use of digital art. From a contemporary perspective, it looks garish and outdated, and also its story is difficult to follow. I’m hesitant to read any more of this series.

JONAH HEX #39 (DC, 1980) – “The Vow of a Samurai!”, [W] Michael Fleisher, [A] Tony DeZuñiga. An anonymous samurai visits America to search for his daughter Heejong, who was kidnapped by a bandit while visiting America. The samurai finds the daughter and the bandit, only to discover that they’ve fallen in love and had a child. The samurai commits seppuku, and Hex kills the bandit while he’s trying to flee with Heejong and their child. This is probably the worst Jonah Hex comic I’ve read. First, it’s based on shallow knowledge of Japanese culture. Heejong is a Korean name, not a Japanese name. When the samurai fights some Indians, he shouts at them in complete gibberish, such as “Azumata minimoto hazarawah!” (And the Indians reply with equally meaningless phrases, like “Wahoneh sahapehti! Hahonash!”) There were several Japanese people working in the DC offices, and Fleisher could have asked them for some plausible-sounding Japanese war cries, instead of just making stuff up. Second, the ending of this story is infuriating. Heejong may be suffering from Stockholm syndrome, and her husband does try to hold her hostage so he can escape. But Heejong says she’s fallen in love with him, and we have no evidence that this isn’t true. Instead of letting her escape with her child’s father, Jonah kills the bandit and leaves her all alone in a foreign country. And she can’t go back to Japan either, now that she’s been disgraced. But Jonah seems to have no sympathy for her at all.

2000 AD #1821 (Rebellion, 2013) – Dredd: “Wolves Part 2,” [W] Mike Carroll, [A] Andrew Currie. While Mega-City One suffers from famine, its Sov inhabitants are rounded up and put in camps. The Sovs offer to provide Mega-City One with food aid in exchange for the forcible repatriation of all their citizens. I’m usually lukewarm about Mike Carroll’s work, but I like this story. I especially like the scene where the villain and his thugs cut in line for food, even though the people already in line have been waiting an hour, and there’s not enough to go around. Savage: “Rise Like Lions Part 10,” [W] Pat Mills, [A] Patrick Goddard. While the battle is stalled, the Volgs start taking revenge on the poor slum-dwellers who are supporting the rebels. Ampney Crucis: “The Entropy Tango Part 10,” [W] Ian Edginton, [A] Simon Davis. Ampney is confronted by his own father. Red Seas: “Fire Across the Deep Part 10,” [W] Ian Edginton, [A] Steve Yeowell. Another big fight scene. Strontium Dog: “The Life and Death of Johnny Alpha Chapter 3: Mutant Spring,” [W] John Wagner, [A] Carlos Ezquerra. The SD Agents help Johnny win the battle of Milton Keynes, and that’s the end of this story arc.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #12 (Marvel, 2016) – “Power Play Part 1: The Stark Contrast,” [W] Dan Slott, [A] Giuseppe Camuncoli. Mary Jane comes to Peter’s charity gala with Tony Stark at her date. Also present is Augustus Roman, aka the Regent. The event is attacked by the Ghost, and while trying to fight him, Spider-Man and Iron Man get in each other’s way and bicker childishly. This is a fun issue, but I don’t like how Dan Slott writes the Ghost. The Ghost doesn’t have the same aura of mystery in this issue as in Parker’s Thunderbolts or Micheline’s Iron Man.

AXEL PRESSBUTTON #5 (Eclipse, 1985) – “One of Those Days in Downtown Delta Five,” [W] Steve Moore, [A] Alan Davis. A drunk Pressbutton is abducted by giant ants. Pressbutton is saved by two other mercenaries, Boots and Glove, and it turns out that the ants mistook Pressbutton for Boots, who is also a cyborg with a weapon for a hand. This is a fun story with  beautiful art. Alan Davis will be at Heroes Con, and I hope I get a chance to talk to him. There’s also a short story by Hunt Emerson, which is basically a Future Shocks story except that it was published in Warrior instead of 2000 AD, and in addition there’s another Laser Eraser and Pressbutton story with art by J. David Jackson.

Somewhere around here I went to ICAF in Vancouver. It was a great conference.

DOPIN’ DAN #1 (Last Gasp, 1972/1979) – “A Day with the Lifers” etc., [W/A] Ted Richards. This issue’s indicia says “Revised Edition,” and it may have different contents from the original 1972 edition. I decided to read it because Ted Richards unfortunately just died. Dopin’ Dan is essentially a hippie version of Beetle Bailey, with lots of drug references. There are a couple jokes in this issue in which methadone is compared to 3.2 beer. I had to ask my Facebook friends to explain these jokes. Ted Richards was a talented and funny cartoonist, and like his fellow Air Pirates, he was heavily influenced by pre-WWII cartoonists like Herriman and Segar. Sadly Dopin’ Dan has never been collected as far as I know.

COLONIA #6 (Colonia, 2001) – “And Not a Drop to Drink”, [W/A] Jeff Nicholson. A ship comes ashore in America, where its crew finds Ponce de Leon’s Fountain of Youth and some people who have been kept alive by it for hundreds of years. As explained in the letter column, Colonia takes place in an alternate world where the New World was uninhabited when Europeans reached it. I think this idea is extremely problematic. It’s an erasure of indigenous people, and it’s reminiscent of the rejected claim that the country of Australia was terra nullius (land belonging to no one) before European colonization. Also, by getting rid of native Americans, Nicholson foreclosed a lot of narrative possibilities. Besides that, this comic’s art and dialogue are just average.

SECRET MESSAGES #4 (NBM, 2002) – “The Silent Invasion Abductions 4,” [W/A] Michael Cherkas, [W] Larry Hancock. While investigating a string of murders, a detective discovers a secret underground facility, where he sees a man being dragged by thugs while shouting about aliens. When the detective tries to return to the facility later, he finds that its former location is now an empty pit. I like this series, and I want to collect more of it. The Silent Invasion is part of a genre of UFO conspiracy comics that also includes Saucer Country/State and Department of Truth.

NOW: THE NEW COMICS ANTHOLOGY #5 (Fantagraphics, 2018) – [E] Eric Reynolds. This issue is very long, but it can be read quickly because it includes a lot of abstract comics with minimal dialogue. “Selection Process,” by Spanish artist Ana Galvañ, has some beautiful design work but not much of a plot. Eroyn Franklin’s “The Cabin” may be the highlight of the issue. It seems to be about a woman talking to her house, and its coloring and linework are excellent. Eroyn Franklin was the former director of the Short Run festival, but she hasn’t yet published a book with a major publisher. Walt Holcombe’s “The Asshole with the Hat” is a funny history of hats. Walker Tate’s “Nail Clippers” is drawn in a style that reminds me of Ruppert and Mulot. Other artists in this isue include Theo Ellsworth, Keren Katz, Roman Muradov and Jesse Reklaw.

SLOW NEWS DAY #6 (SLG, 2002) – untitled, [W/A] Andi Watson. In the conclusion of a six-part miniseries, two journalists begin a new relationship after their existing relationships end. I would probably have liked this comic more if I’d read the previous five issues. However, I am not a big fan of Andi Watson. His artwork is too cutesy and minimalistic for its own good. Also, in this issue the style of the lettering doesn’t match the style of the artwork.

2000 AD #1822 (Rebellion, 2013) – Dredd: “Wolves Part 3,” [W] Mike Carroll, [A] Andrew Currie. The deportation order leads to a riot. In the melee, one of the focal characters, Yuri, is shot dead, and Dredd kills the villain, Luka, who’s been exploiting his fellow immigrants. This story feels like an allegory for Japanese internment. If it had been published a couple years later, it could have been read as a critique of Brexit. Ampney Crucis: as above. Crucis’s encounter with his dad is depicted in a flashback. Red Seas: as above. More fighting. I still don’t know who’s fighting or why. Future Shocks: “Intestinauts Are Go!”, [W] Arthur Wyatt, [A] Pye Parr. The adventures of a team of tiny robots designed to kill intestinal bacteria. This premise is hilarious, although this story would have been better in color. The Intestinauts were funny enough that they’ve reappeared multiple times, and I’ve already read their most recent appearance, in Progs #2275-2278. Savage: as above. There’s more fighting, and Savage decides it’s time to deal with the sniper.

EDGE #1 (Malibu, 1994) – “The New Prometheus,” [W] Steven Grant, [A] Gil Kane. This is some kind of a superhero story, but it’s ruined by completely incoherent storytelling. The story is told out of chronological order, but there’s no indication of which scenes are flashbacks and which scenes are taking place in the present, and as a result, I was mystified as to what was going on. Nor did I have a clear sense of how the characters were connected to each other. At least this comic has some good art.

NEGATIVE EXPOSURE #2 (Humanoids, 19992/2001) – “For Your Amusement Park,” [W] Thierry  Smolderen, [A] Enrico Marini. I only know Smolderen as a comics theorist, the author of a brilliant essay on the origin of word balloons. (I have his book The Origins of Comics, which expands on this project, but I haven’t read it yet.) However, he’s also a successful comics writer. Negative Exposure seems to be a translation of his early 1990s series Les dossiers d’Olivier Varèse. This issue has an extremely fast-paced, frenetic plot, in which the  protagonist is dragged around all over the world with little opportunity to catch a breath. Marini’s artwork is heavily influenced by manga, and in particular by Katsuhiro Otomo. Humanoids published four total issues of Negative Exposure in comic book format, and I’d like to get the other three. Both Marini and Smolderen have had several other works translated into English, including their better-known collaboration, Gipsy.

NERVOUS REX #1 (Blackthorne, 1985) – untitled, [W/A] William Van Horn. Two stories about a tyrannosaur and his henpecking wife. These stories are funny and inoffensive, much like old funny animal comics. The backup story, “King Billy,” is about a short king who hides in a box. This story shows a heavy Herriman influence, and its opening line – “Our little drama opens on a scene rife with rage and rant” – is a near quotation from Herriman’s Krazy Kat strip from Christmas 1918.

DETECTIVE COMICS #558 (DC, 1985) – “Strange Loves,” [W] Doug Moench, [A] Gene Colan. This is part of the ongoing Night-Slayer/Nocturna plot, and is also a Crisis tie-in, since it shows the sky turning red. Moench was obsessed with Night-Slayer and Nocturna, but no other writer seems to have bothered with them. There’s also a Green Arrow backup story by Dean Traven and Trevor von Eeden. I’m guessing Dean R. Traven is a pseudonym, because first, he has no other GCD credits, and second, he shares his name with B. Traven, a pseudonymous writer whose real identity is still unknown. (Edit: Travis Hedge Coke suggests that he might be von Eeden himself, which makes sense given the similarity of their names.) This story has two characters named Beckett and Ionesco, after two absurdist playwrights.

THE SECRET HISTORY #11 (Archaia, 2010) – “Nadja,” [W] Jean-Pierre Pécau, [A] Igor Kordey. The Secret History is a combination of history, fantasy and various other genres. Its central conceit is that the events of human history have been shaped by four, later five, immortal “Archons.” Each of its albums is set in a different time period. This chapter takes place in World War II, and its focal event is the assassination of Reinhard Heydrich. The Secret History has a very complex and intricate plot, but this issue made a fair amount of sense even without any other context. Archaia has translated at least the first 20 of this series’s 37 albums. Igor Kordey has an undeservedly negative reputation in America, because he had the bad luck to succeed Frank Quitely on New X-Men, and, at least according to this post, he had to draw that series on a very tight schedule. However, Kordey has produced a large number of successful works for the European market.

On my next trip to Heroes, I had a huge stack waiting for me, since I’d been away for three weeks.

NIGHTWING #103 (DC, 2023) – “Rise of the Underworld Part 3,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Travis Moore. The Titans travel to hell to retrieve Olivia’s contract. Back on Earth, Donna, Babs and Kory take Olivia to Themyscira to teach her self-defense, but then Dr. Polaris and some other villains show up to try to kidnap Olivia again. This is a fun storyline, but I’m more excited about the upcoming issue that will be told entirely from Dick’s point of view. In the backup story, Dick figures out that the boy acrobat cut his mother’s parachute, mistaking it for his own, because he wanted to get out of the circus life. However, there are more mysteries still to be resolved.

EIGHT BILLION GENIES #8 (Image, 2023) – “The Last Eight Centuries,” [W] Charles Soule, [A] Ryan Browne. The last surviving genie from the previous cycle tells his origin story, and in an unsurprising twist, we learn that he’s now the bartender from the start of the series. The last two surviving people with wishes are Daisy and Ting-Shu. Ultimately, Ting-Shu wishes she didn’t have a wish, and Daisy wishes “that everyone would love the way they want to be loved.” Which I’m not sure is a good idea. Still, Eight Billion Genies was probably the best miniseries of the past year, and it should be nominated for an Eisner.

MONEY SHOT COMES AGAIN #1 (Vault, 2023) – untitled, [W] Tim Seeley, [A] Gisèle Lagacé. The Money Shot team suffers a publicity disaster after an unfortunate bestiality incident. Then the alien jellyfish creatures manifest on Earth, and they inform the Money Shot team about a human billionaire who’s corrupted an alien planet by teaching its people to practice capitalism. In order to get back on the Covalence’s good side, the Money Shot team have to travel to this planet and get rid of the billionaire. On the way to the planet, the protagonists are attacked by a team of robots based on various copyrighted characters. Also, an old underground comics character, Cherry Poptart, makes a cameo appearance at the end. I’m thrilled to see Money Shot again – it’s one of the most fun comics in recent memory. Also, “Money Shot Comes Again” is a hilarious title.

STRANGE ACADEMY: FINALS #6 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Skottie Young, [A] Humberto Ramos. With the help of Hoggoth, Doyle finally defeats Emily, but Iric is killed in the battle. That’s the end of the series, which is unfortunate because Strange Academy was my favorite remaining Marvel comic. A few years ago, Marvel was publising a bunch of fun comics – Ms. Marvel, Squirrel Girl, Strange Academy, Patsy Walker, etc. – but now all those series are gone. However, a new series called Strange Academy: Miles Morales has been announced for August. I’m also disappointed that Emily didn’t get a redemption arc. Her initial downfall happened because she was trying too hard to be nice, and until she killed Iric, she hadn’t done anything that was impossible to come back from.  

KROMA #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Lorenzo De Felici. Kroma leads the lizards on a successful siege of the city. The old high priest reveals that he’s Kroma’s father, and she either kills him or he kills himself, I couldn’t tell. Kroma spares the other kids and teaches them how to communicate with the lizards. Kroma’s actions in this issue are harsh, but also entirely justified, since the city was a totally corrupt society. In summary, Kroma is one of the most intelligent uses of color I’ve ever seen in comics, and it deserves an Eisner nomination for Best Coloring, if for nothing else.

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES/USAGI YOJIMBO: WHEREWHEN #1 (IDW, 2023) – “Wherewhen Part 1,” [W/A] Stan Sakai. This story is set just before the Senso miniseries, which I guess implies that Senso is the definitive conclusion to the franchise. In the first half of the issue, Usagi is traveling with Lord Noriyuki’s army to the final battle with Lord Hikiji, when some peasants ask for his help killing an evil kappa. In the second half, the Turtles get transported to the past while chasing the evil Dr. Wherewhen. The first people they encounter are Jotaro and Yukichi, who mistake the Turtles for the kappa they’re hunting. The Usagi part of this issue is much more interesting than the Turtles part, though that’s to be expected, given that Stan only ever writes the Turtles in crossover stories. A sad subtext of this series is that we already know that Usagi is going to die right after it ends.

RADIANT BLACK #23 (Image, 2023) – “More Giant Robots,” [W] Kyle Higgins, [A] Eduardo Ferigato. Nathan, as Radiant Black, has a meeting with his business partners, during which he makes sure Marshall shows up, so his partners don’t know his secret identity. This is a common Silver Age plot device – a superhero protecting his secret identity by pretending to appear in the same place as his alter ego – but the twist here is that Marshall and Nathan are both Radiant Black. Anyway, then the alien robots show up, and Marshall and Nathan have to travel back to Existence to seek help.

FLASH #797 (DC, 2023) – “Misadventures in Babysitting,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Serg Acuña & Tom Derenick. Ace has to babysit Irey, Jai and Maxine. As soon as his head is turned, the kids get kidnapped by Knives Maroney (from #785) and his fellow villains, including “Reverse-Grodd”. The kids are saved by younger versions of Jon and Damian, from their Super Sons period. Meanwhile Ace goes looking for the kids, but gets himself captured, and they have to save him. This is an extremely fun issue. It also sets up the darker plot twist that occurs next issue, because Granny Goodness appears at the end.

DARK RIDE #5 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Andrei Bressan. The first half of the issue is a flashback to Arthur Dante’s creation of Devil Land and Samhain and Halloween’s birth. While Samhain is showing Summer around the park, they discover a hidden passage which leads to the lair of a mad scientist. This issue felt like an overly quick read.

SHE-HULK #12 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Rainbow Rowell, [A] Andres Genolet. Jen meets some clients, including a man who used to work with Thunderbolt Ross, and is now being sued for creating his own “Bulkhustler” armor (“for when you have an extreme amount of bulk to be hustled”). Then Jen has a rematch with the mystery man from last issue. “The First Rule of Book Club is…”, [W] Rowell, [A] Joe Quinones. A special story to commemorate the 175th legacy issue. Jen hosts a book club at the apartment she’s borrowing from Janet, but no one has read the book – except Captain America, who arrives after the party is over. Also, Sue has to bring Franklin and Valeria because they’re grounded, Volcana comes and the other guests think she’s a villain, and and Jen and Janet have a heart-to-heart talk about how Jen doesn’t like to be dependent on her friend. Janet ends up giving Jen the apartment for free, though that seems like it just makes the problem worse. This story is really fun, and it reminds me of the old stories about the superhero poker nights.

MOON GIRL AND DEVIL DINOSAUR #5 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jordan Ifueko, [A] Alba Glez. The kids manage to get an invite to the gala (presumably based on the Met Gala). After some complicated shenanigans, they manage to defuse Olivia’s mind control technology and save the day, and Olivia is hauled back to the Kree Empire. When Lunella’s parents get angry at her for endangering herself, Lunella points out that they’re giving her mixed messages: “You tell me it’s dangerous, but you always say there’s nothing wrong with me. So which is it? Should I hide? Or should I hold my head up?” Lunella’s parents choose the second option. This miniseries is easily the best Lunella Lafayette story yet. It’s far better written than the ongoing series, yet it still seems appropriate for children. I hope Jordan Ifueko writes more Marvel comics.

THE GREAT BRITISH BUMP-OFF #1 (Dark Horse, 2023) – “Blood Red Velvet Cake,” [W] John Allison, [A] Max Sarin. As the hilarious title indicates, this series is a murder mystery that takes place during a British cooking show. It’s in the same vein as Giant Days, but that’s not a bad thing. The Great British Bump-Off is full of Allison’s brilliant dialogue and characterization and Sarin’s appealing art, and it has a fun sequence where one of the co-hosts pretends her cat is talking to her and saying “Le Corbusier’s utopias inevitably became dystopian.” I’m glad the direct-market comics industry still has space for an unconventional series like this one.

VANISH #6 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Donny Cates, [A] Netho Diaz. Oliver finally gets back to Elyn, but she’s horrified at the mess he’s made of his life, and she tells him that she’s been keeping him safe instead of vice versa. She asks him to go back to the mental hospital, but he refuses. We then learn that Elyn is pregnant, and that she’s leaving Oliver in order to protect their child. After he leaves home, Oliver is confronted by another superhero/Death Eater. The reader is inclined to sympathize with Oliver simply because he’s the protagonist, but Elyn is clearly justified in leaving him, and I almost wonder if she ought to be the protagonist instead.

W0RLDTR33 #1 (Image, 2023) – “PH34R,” [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Fernando Blanco. Decades ago, some techbros created a monstrous digital entity. They managed to contain it, but now it’s come back, and it’s possessed a teenage boy and caused him to murder dozens of people. The focal characters are Ellison, the murderous boy’s brother, and Gabriel, the wealthiest of W0rldtr33’s creators. Unlike Blue Book, W0rldtr33 feels like a genuine James Tynion comic, and it demonstrates his skill with the horror genre. As for the art, I like the blurring effect that Blanco uses to represent the digital entity’s influence.

BEHOLD, BEHEMOTH #5 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Tate Brombal, [A] Nick Robles. In the present, Kavita kidnaps Wren, claiming she’s safer with her. In the future, Kavita tries to destroy the behemoth, but fails, and Grey has to save both her and Wren. I’m not entirely sure what happened in this issue, but it has some beautiful art, and Kavita being the villain is an unexpected but logical twist.

LOCAL MAN #3 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Tony Fleecs, [W] Tim Seeley. Crossjack (real name Jack Xavier) visits a former villainess, the Fright, who he suspects of Hodag’s murder. She’s not the killer, but she then gets murdered by the real killer. Crossjack saves a priest from being hit by the car, but declines to tell the priest about a previous adventure in which he met God. Jack tries to kiss the police chief’s wife, but she’s not interested. In the backup story, drawn by Seeley in a ‘90s style, we see the beginning of Crossjack’s affair with Camo Crusader’s wife.

BATGIRLS #17 (DC, 2023) – “From Hell’s Heart Part 1,” [W] Becky Cloonan & Michael W. Conrad, [A] Robbi Rodriguez. The Batgirls go to a block party, but it’s interrupted by a sniper who shoots Grace O’Halloran’s cameraman. Grace tries to buy a gun from some crooks to protect herself, but the Batgirls interrupt her meetup with the crooks, and then the sniper starts shooting people again. I didn’t enjoy this issue as much as the last few. Robbi Rodriguez’s art here is not as good as Jorge Corona’s art in the first story arc.

THE NEIGHBORS #2 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jude Ellison S. Doyle, [A] Letizia Cadonici. The neighbors continue to act creepy. Possibly at their behest, Casey, the teenage stepdaughter, destroys Oliver’s stash of testosterone. The Neighbors is a fairly standard small-town horror story, but its transgender theme makes it unique. Doyle’s characterization is really good.

WASP #4 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Al Ewing, [A] Kasia Nie w/ Carola Borelli. Janet, Nadia and Jarvis manage to break out of their visions and defeat both the alien and the android. At the end of the issue, Whirlwind is murdered in prison. This was a really fun miniseries.

KAYA #7 (Image, 2023) – “In the Poison Lands Chapter 1,” [W/A] Wes Craig. The issue begins with a flashback in which a woman sacrifices herself to save Kaya and Jin from an armored dude. In search of the kidnapped Jin, Kaya, Seth and Muska (formerly Zothan) travel through a dungeon and narrowly escape from a giant squid monster. They reach the Poison Lands, where Jin has been taken. Jin is brought before the armored dude from the flashback. This issue is full of beautiful artwork and dynamic page layouts.

BLACK CLOAK #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kelly Thompson, [A] Meredith McClaren. Phaedra and Pax interview the mermaids, and after a bizarre conversation, they learn who dumped the body. However, they don’t have any admissible evidence that this person (not yet identified) was the murderer. There’s a flashback to the eve of Phaedra’s wedding, when Phaedra discovered that her actual father was not an elf, causing her to abandon the elves’ court. The issue ends with Phaedra confronting her real dad, who seems to be some kind of dragon-human hybrid. I finally think I understand Black Cloak’s plot.

HOUSE OF SLAUGHTER #14 (Boom!, 2023) – “The Butcher’s Return Part 4,” [W] Tate Brombal, [A] Antonio Fuso. Jace meets Jolie at a bar, and there’s a flashback to how they saved each other’s lives in the past. I don’t understand the chronology here. I’m not sure just when any of these events happened. We then learn that Jolie has betrayed Jace, and that all the people in the bar are Order of St. George agents. While Jace is trying to escape, Sunny is being forcibly inducted into the Order. This issue finally gives me a name for what the Order of St. George is: it’s a cult. It claims to have pure and altruistic motives, but really it’s just a means for its leaders to assert power over their subordinates. It isolates its members from the outside world, and persecutes them if they leave. If that’s not a cult, I don’t know what is. There’s also no apparent reason why its activities have to be secret – if everyone knew about the monsters, wouldn’t it be possible to deal with them more effectively? And so its emphasis on secrecy just seems like a means of enforcing its isolation from the world.

TERRORWAR #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Dave Acosta. In a dystopian future world, Muhammad and his teammates are paid to fight against manifestations of people’s fears. But when they go on their latest mission, they encounter a rival team of terror-fighters who want to take the bounty from them. This series’s premise is only mildly exciting, but I like Terrorwar’s characterization, and it also has an anti-capitalist subtext. The skeleton soldier at the end of the issue looks a lot like Rogue Trooper.

MONICA RAMBEAU: PHOTON #5 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Eve Ewing, [A] Luca Maresca. To stop reality from degrading, Monica has to find out what she wants. What she wants is to “know with utter certainty that I am fine. I am okay. I don’t have to prove a thing… I am enough. All by my damn self.” This is a satisfying conclusion, but this issue was a really quick read – although I didn’t mind that when I read this comic, because I had very limited time that day.

ROGUE SUN #12 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Ryan Parrott, [A] Abel. Dylan fights Hellbent and his father. Dylan’s classmate Reggie tries to stop Hellbent and gets killed. I’m not sure if Reggie is the same kid who Dylan’s been bullying for the entire series. Caleb takes over Dylan’s body, defeats Hellbent, and kills Hellbent’s dad. But afterward, Caleb refuses to return the Sun Stone to Dylan, claiming he can be a better Rogue Sun than Dylan can. That’s a clever plot twist that makes me excited for the third story arc.

ALL AGAINST ALL #5 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Alex Paknadel, [A] Caspar Wijngaard. After a big fight, Helpless and V’lmann manage to defeat Cov’n in his gorilla body. But then Helpless tries to kill V’lmann too, and B’tay has to take over the gorilla body and kill his “son” to save his daughter. So I guess humanity is extinct now? This ending is kind of an anticlimax, but overall I really liked this series.

LITTLE MONSTERS #12 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Dustin Nguyen. We start with a flashback to when Finnick, the adult human, was a child. The human girl, Laura, frees the surviving twin vampire, and a confrontation ensues between the two vampire factions. Then Finnick finds the vampires and throws a Molotov cocktail at them. Next issue is the last one.

FANTASTIC FOUR #6 (Marvel, 2023) – “A Shot in the Dark,” [W] Ryan North, [A] Ivan Fiorelli. The Negative Zone bacteria are spreading out of control. Surprisingly, it’s Johnny who comes up with the solution: to turn off the sunlight in the entire area where the bacteria have spread, so that they’ll starve to death from inability to photosynthesize. This solution requires Sue to stay awake for days on end, so she can use her powers to block the sun. Somehow it works, and the bacteria are killed off. But since Sue has now demonstrated that she could kill the entire human race if she felt like it, Maria Hill arrives to arrest her. This issue is a good example of a technique Ryan North often uses: he creates a seemingly insoluble problem, and then he proposes a brilliant and unintuitive solution that the reader would never have thought of. A funny moment in this issue is when Johnny is reading Jane Eyre to Sue to keep her awake, and he’s surprised to discover that Jane Eyre is actually good, but he thinks it should be called “The Mystery of the Murdery Attic.”

BLUE BOOK #3 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Michael Avon Oeming. Betty and Barney can’t overcome the trauma they’ve suffered from their alien encounter. A psychiatrist hypnotizes Barney and gets him to explain some of what happened. This series still reads like an extended plot summary, and Betty and Barney still have no observable character traits besides being scared. I expect better from James Tynion. This issue’s backup story is about Tarrare, an 18th-century Frenchman who had an insatiable appetite and was accused of eating a baby.

CAPTAIN MARVEL #48 (Marvel, 2023) – “Revenge of the Brood Part 6,” [W] Kelly Thompson, [A] Sergio Dávila. The fight with the Brood continues, and Binary is seemingly killed. This issue includes some effective artwork, but Revenge of the Brood is a pretty boring story arc.

PHANTOM ROAD #2 (Image, 2023) – “Through the Salt,” [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Gabriel Hernandez Walta. Dom and Birdie discover they can still see the outside world, but only if they look at it through a window from indoors. A creepy dude tells them that they have to go to a place called Golgotha. Then they get chased by zombies again. This issue has more depth than issue 1 did.

SUPERMAN #3 (DC, 2023) – “A Leap of Faith,” [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Jamal Campbell. Superman fights Livewire and an army of Parasites, and then he gives Luthor a signal watch. This is just an average Superman comic, and it’s not exciting me. I think I’m going to drop this series unless it improves significantly. Also, the first half of this issue is colored in extremely dark tones, and this was annoying because I was trying to read it by the light of a bedside lamp.

NOCTERRA #13 (Image, 2023) – “No Brakes Part 2: Then,” [W] Scott Snyder, [A] Tony Daniel. In a flashback, Emory visits his biological parents, but when he walks into their house, someone pistolwhips him and knocks him unconscious. In the present, Bill explains how he’s still alive, then the heroes make it inside Eos, where they meet some luminous people. This series is heading for an exciting conclusion.

TRAVELING TO MARS #5 (Ablaze, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell, [A] Roberto Dakar Meli. Roy remembers how he met his wife, then tells the story of a legendary fish named Leroy Brown (the baddest fish in the whole damn pond?). Then Roy learns that there are other spaceships chasing him. The trouble with this series is that each issue includes just 20 pages of story, and the remaining space is filled with previews of other much less interesting comics.

NO/ONE #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kyle Higgins & Brian Buccellato, [A] Geraldo Borges. Ben’s police chief tries to get him to drop the case. The local college football coach is murdered. Ben has a tense confrontation with his son. A United States Senator offers Ben the job of police chief, but in response, Ben resigns from the police force. When I read this issue, I had trouble remembering what this series was about, but other than that I enjoyed this issue. The major action sequence in this issue, where the police are chasing No/One across rooftops, is very well-drawn.

GRIM #10 (Boom!, 2023) – “Life,” [W] Stephanie Phillips, [A] Flaviano. Jess’s mother meets the incarnation of life. Jess and her companions find their way back to the afterlife, but then their own friend Annabel betrays them. I still like Grim’s artwork better than its writing, but at least it has a fairly intriguing story.

LOVE & ROCKETS #13 (Fantagraphics, 2023) – “I Guess…”, [W/A] Jaime Hernandez, etc. While Ray is out of town with his students, Maggie hangs out with Tonta and some other women. Ray’s license plate says LUFFY, which may be a rare example of Jaime referencing a comic that’s more recent than his own work. Jaime’s other contribution to this issue is a burlesque fantasy story that has no apparent connection to Maggie’s world. Beto’s stories in this issue are all focused on Fritz, as usual.

2000 AD #2317 (Rebellion, 2023) – I still haven’t received the prog pack containing issues #2313-2316. Dredd: “The Hagger They Fall,” [W] Rob Williams & Arthur Wyatt, [A] Paul Marshall. Dredd travels to an alien planet to track down a criminal, whose identity is not revealed yet. The fun part in this chapter is that Dredd’s informant is an anthropomorphic cat who keeps saying “furball.” The Out: “Book 3 Part 6,” [W] Dan Abnett, [A] Mark Harrison. Cyd travels to the planet of Zotol to try to recover her forgotten past. Mark Harrison’s artwork here is so beautiful that it’s often hard to read. Joe Pineapples: “Tin Man 6,” [W] Pat Mills, [A] Clint Langley. Joe remembers his romance with another robot named Sue, who teamed up with him to kill his ABC Warrior teammate Blackblood. The Order: “Heart of Darkness,” [W] Kek-W, [A] John M. Burns. Anna Kohl escapes from a squid creature made of shadow matter. John M. Burns is 85, just a bit younger than Sergio, and it’s amazing that he can still produce such detailed artwork and lush coloring. His artwork is a throwback to an earlier era of British comics, in a good way. Proteus Vex: “Crawlspace,” [W] Mike Carroll, [A] Jake Lynch. I still don’t understand this story, especially not now that I’ve missed the previous four chapters.

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES #139 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Sophie Campbell, [A] Fero Pé. Shredder gives the Turtles a lesson in some kind of mystical/scientific technique, and then the Rat King attacks them. I like the central sequence in this issue, where each of the Turtles gets a page devoted to him or her. Besides that, this issue is another boring Armageddon Game tie-in.

HARROWER #3 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Justin Jordan, [A] Brahm Revel. While fleeing from the killer, the heroes descend into the tunnels below their town. Then the main character, who is now the final girl, somehow finds herself at a party with all the town’s adults in attendance. This series is fairly fun, but it’s not the best current horror comic.

WONDER WOMAN #798 (DC, 2023) – “The Reckoning Part II,” [W] Becky Cloonan & Michael W. Conrad, [A] Amancay Nahuelpan. Diana fights Ares and Hera but loses, and Mary Marvel has to transfer her powers to Diana in order to save her. In the backup story, by Josie Campbell and Caitlin Yarsky, Mary is depressed over losing her powers. Diana gives her a pep talk, and also gifts her some magical items that restore her super-strength and flight.

SANDMAN UNIVERSE: NIGHTMARE COUNTRY – THE GLASS HOUSE #1 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Lisandro Estherren. Can’t they give this series a simpler title? Ken, a minor character from A Doll’s House, is now a high-powered executive, and he rewards his top subordinates by inviting them to some creepy satanic nightclub. A new character, Max, gets invited to Ken’s club, and then Ken introduces Max to a strange man named Morrie. I didn’t realize this until I read this webpage, but Morrie is the angel Moroni, who was introduced at the end of the last volume. Also, the Corinthian hangs out with Madison, who’s now a cat, and at the end of the issue, we learn that Ken’s nightclub is run by Azazel.

SPACE JOB #3 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] David A. Goodman, [A] Álvaro Sarraseca. Lieutenant Masht is appointed the new first officer, and Travis accepts a job offer that will get him off the ship. The funniest part of this comic is the alien crewman’s dispassionate musings about how his people could exploit the flaws of the human race.

SILVER SURFER: GHOST LIGHT #3 (Marvel, 2023) – “Too Much Information,” [W] John Jennings, [A] Valentine De Landro. Al Harper’s house is attacked both by agents of AIM and by the Stranger’s creatures. Then the Surfer and Al are contacted by the “Inner Faction,” a coalition of the sane ones among the Stranger’s many alternate personalities. This plot point reminds me of Ann Leckie’s Imperial Radch trilogy, where (spoiler) the plot is driven by a factional division among Anaander Mianaai’s component selves.

X-MEN #1 (Marvel, 1963/2023) – “X-Men,” [W] Stan Lee, [A] Jack Kirby. In their first appearance, the four original male X-Men meet their new teammate, Jean Grey, and then they have their first battle with Magneto. Lee and Kirby’s X-Men was one of their worst collaborations, partly due to its sexist treatment of Jean Grey. Throughout this issue her teammates are constantly leering at her. (However, X-Men was not the only classic Marvel title that had a sexism problem; see the infamous “Lincoln’s mother” speech from Fantastic Four #11.) What’s impressive about this issue is that it already presents the basic concepts of the X-Men in a fully realized way. It sets the template for many subsequent X-Men stories, in that it begins with a training sequence, and then the X-Men go off and fight Magneto. A surprising aspect of this issue is that Hank McCoy speaks in normal dialogue, rather than in his usual exaggerated and elevated style.

LAZARUS PLANET: REVENGE OF THE GODS #3 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] G. Willow Wilson, [A] Emanuela Lupacchino & Cian Tormey. Yara and Billy are freed from their prison cell on Olympus, and they meet Hippolyta, who’s now a goddess. The heroes team up with an army of gods, then they acquire an unexpected ally, Ares. Then there’s another chapter of the Nubia backup story. The interesting thing about this otherwise generic crossover event is how it connects the Wonder Woman and Shazam mythos.

EXORCISTS NEVER DIE #1 (Mad Cave, 2023) – untitled, [W] Steve Orlando, [A] Sebastián Píriz. Two exorcists, Ellen and Syd, have to fight the living incarnation of Sloth (the sin, not the animal). They defeat Sloth by summoning angels, but they still have to fight the other six deadly sins, starting with Lust. This series’s premise is interesting enough.

MARVEL VOICES: SPIDER-VERSE #1 (Marvel, 2023) – [E] Devin Lewis. The best story in this issue is the first one. As a gift, Miles buys his mother a doll that she always loved, but the doll is damaged before Miles can get it to her. The other highlight is Jason Loo’s “Workin’ It Out,” a sitcom parody in which Peter and Tony Stark are roommates. Jeremy Holt and Eric Koda’s Silk story has the same gimmick as the upcoming Nightwing #105 – every panel is shown from Silk’s POV – but I expect that Bruno Redondo will execute this gimmick better. In general, these Marvel Voices anthologies have included some good stories, but also a lot of mediocre ones. I probably ought to quit buying them automatically.

2000 AD #2318 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: as above. Dredd’s target is revealed to be Keeper Hag, a villain introduced a couple years ago, but based on the much older villain Trapper Hag. Joe Pineapples: as above. Joe confronts Blackblood, and his girlfriend Sue Bananas suggests the possibility of having a child. The Out: as above. Cyd continues to search for her records, but gets arrested, and then she’s attacked by armored pandas. The Order: as above. The Order’s ship is attacked by a shadow kraken. Proteus Vex: as above. Again I’m not able to summarize this story.

DC SILENT TALES #1 (DC, 2023) – six stories, [W/A] Gustavo Duarte. A collection of six silent stories starring various DC characters. Gustavo Duarte’s draftsmanship is very good, but his silent storytelling is confusing at times, and his humor is only mildly funny. The best of the stories is the one about Zatanna, but as noted above, I didn’t like this issue nearly as much as It’s Jeff.

ORDINARY GODS #11 (Image, 2023) – “The End,” [W] Kyle Higgins & Joe Clark, [A] Daniel HDR. Christopher convinces one of the evil gods to let him out of prison so he can activate the God Machine, and the series proceeds to its conclusion. Ordinary Gods is perhaps too ambitious for its own good. Because it’s only a 12-issue series, it has to resolve its universe-spanning plot line very quickly, leaving little room for characterization. I would have liked to see more of Christopher’s feelings about his little sister, who’s now his enemy.

DAREDEVIL #10 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Red Fist Saga Part 10,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Marco Checchetto. While the Avengers are arresting Elektra, Matt tries to find the Book of the Fist, which will somehow stop everything from going to hell. Goldie gives Matt the book, and Matt escapes, I think. These past two issues have been relentlessly bleak and depressing, and it’s hard to sympathize with Matt, who seems to have turned into an obsessed fanatic. I’m on the verge of dropping this series, but it’s ending in August, so I might as well see it through.

THE SEASONS HAVE TEETH #1 (Boom!, 2023) – “Spring,” [W] Dan Watters, [A] Sebastián Cabrol. I was very hesitant to read this series because I’ve disliked some of Dan Watters’s other comics. I was pleasantly surprised to find that I enjoyed this debut issue. The conceit of this series is that the four seasons are literal incarnate beings, and they travel around causing havoc. Spring, who appears in this issue, looks kind of like an even bigger version of the forest deity from Princess Mononoke, and now I want to read the rest of the series so that I can see the other three seasons.

STONEHEART #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Emma Kubert. Shayde meets her boss’s younger friend Eldon Redwood, and they have some tame adventures. I’m giving up on this series. Emma Kubert’s linework and lettering are so rudimentary that they seem sub-professional, and Stoneheart’s plot is aimless and boring. Inkblot had the same problems, but I was willing to tolerate them in that case because the cat was so cute, and Stoneheart doesn’t have any equally redeeming aspects.

STORM AND THE BROTHERHOOD OF MUTANTS #3 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Song of the End,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Alessandro Vitti. Storm and Jon Ironfire battle Emma Frost in the form of Mistress Mold. This is another waste of an issue. It compresses so many epic moments into such a small space that none of them have any impact. Perhaps Jon Ironfire is a potentially interesting character, but Sins of Sinister is so excessively fast-paced that it has no space for character development.

THE GIMMICK #2 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joanne Starer, [A] Elena Gogou. Shane’s girlfriend Bonnie visits his mother, who is shocked to discover she has a grandson. I realize now that Shane and Alicia were never married, and he may not know about his child. The baby seems to have inherited his father’s strength, since he’s able to lift a couch by himself. Meanwhile, in Mexico, Shane meets the daughter of the guy he killed, she shoots a man by accident, and they have to run away together. The issue ends with Shane and the daughter lying on the ground together – the same position in which Shane and Alicia were depicted at the start of the issue.

THE EXPANSE: DRAGON TOOTH #1 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Andy Diggle, [A] Rubine. Between the events of the sixth and seventh Expanse books, Earth is facing a famine, and violence is brewing between the various inhabited worlds. I haven’t seen the Expanse TV show, but I have read three of the books, so I decided I might as well read the comic. I don’t have a very clear memory of the books’ continuity or characters, but this comic does feel like an effective remediation of the books, and I think I will continue reading it.

IMAGE! 30TH ANNIVERSARY ANTHOLOGY #12 (DC, 2023) – [E] Eric Stephenson? This issue contains the final chapters of the ongoing stories, including The Blizzard, which was surprisingly good, and Red Stitches, which was a big disappointment because it never made any sense. Also in this issue are a new Science Dog story by Kirkman and Walker; a new Old Guard story by Rucka and Leandro Fernández, which shows how the team got together; and a tribute to the late Vincent Kukua. The unpleasant surprise in this issue is a story by J*s*n L*t**r. Why does Image think it’s okay to work with him again? Has he done anything to make amends for his history of predatory behavior, or to improve as a person? Or is Image trying to sweep his actions under the rug? If I’d known he had a story in this issue, I would have boycotted it.

DEAD SEAS #5 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Cavan Scott, [A] Nick Brokenshire. Some more awful stuff happens, and we realize that the leader of the ghosts is the dead wife of the company founder. This issue includes some powerful storytelling, but there are too many irrelevant characters in this series. The company owner’s daughter, Isa, is the closest thing to a protagonist, but she gets so little panel time that I had trouble figuring out her name.   

BILLIONAIRE ISLAND: CULT OF DOGS #6 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell, [A] Steve Pugh. The old billionaire’s handler gets shot, which he richly deserves, and the billionaire decides to spend all his money on building a giant statue of Business Dog. I guess that’s not the worst possible conclusion, because it does mean he’s putting his money back into circulation. A great line of dialogue in this issue is “I want to live in a world where we don’t need to trick a billionaire into doing the right thing.” Mark Russell’s ability to come up with lines like this is one of his greatest assets.

SANDMAN UNIVERSE: DEAD BOY DETECTIVES #5 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Pornsak Pichetshote, [A] Jeff Stokely. The kids go to Thai Town, where they finally meet someone who appears to be the culprit. This series is a fascinating exploration of Thai-American culture, as well as a very gory piece of horror, but as previously mentioned, it’s hampered by a confusing plot.

THE X-CELLENT #2 (Marvel, 2023) – “Unsocial Media Part 2,” [W] Peter Milligan, [A] Mike Allred. In the previous issue, Myles was reported to have died, but this issue we learn that it was a hoax. Zeitgeist creates a new teammate named Dox (for “doxxing”), who spies on X-Statix, allowing Zeitgeist to tell the media that Myles is alive, and that Edie’s daughter and Tike’s son have broken up but are pretending to still be together. However, Zeitgeist has already killed Dox’s creator, Max, and in revenge, Max blackmails Toodle Pip and Mirror Girl and orders them to kill Zeitgeist. They ought to be trying to do that even without the blackmail, because Zeitgeist is awful.

WHITE SAVIOR #4 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Eric Nguyen, [W] Scott Burman. The three future people save the day by applying skills they’ve learned from movies. They return to the present, where their story is depicted in a movie with a whitewashed cast. Then some people from the future travel back in time to the present, looking for Todd Parker so he can save their world. But when they learn that he’s not white, they decide not to bother with him. This scene is a hook for a possible sequel, but if there is a sequel, I’m not sure I want to read it. White Savior is funny, but it’s also severely overwritten and unsubtle.

NEW MUTANTS LETHAL LEGION #2 (Marvel, 2023) – “Terrible Decisions,” [W] Charlie Jane Anders, [A] Enid Balám. Some of the New Mutants meet some survivors of the Mutant Massacre, while the other team members try out for Count Nefaria’s Lethal Legion. The problem with this issue is its lack of thematic unity. Half the issue is a lighthearted parody, while the other half is a serious exploration of one of the most traumatic moments in Marvel’s history, and Anders makes no attempt to resolve the tension between these two halves of the issue. It’s not clear what her New Mutants run is supposed to be about. A fun thing in this issue is Count Nefaria’s dinosaur topiary.

DEEP CUTS #1 (Image, 2023) – “High Fidelity,” [W] Kyle Higgins & Joe Clark, [A] Danilo Beyruth. In New Orleans in 1917, young Charles Stewart wants to be a professional jazz clarinetist, but his grandmother disapproves of jazz music. On top of that, his professional mentor is a sleazy creep who sleeps with married women. Charles manages to overcome all of this and get his career started. This comic feels like a realistic depiction of the origins of jazz music. According to his Twitter profile, Joe Clark is a musician himself, so I assume this comic is drawing on his expertise.

HEXWARE #5 (Image, 2023) – “The Wolf’s Lament,” [W] Tim Seeley, [A] Zulema Scotto Lavina. Ron teams up with Jesminder’s dad, and they get attacked by some nationalist terrorists who swear by “the great Donald”. There’s also a plotline about Jesminder and Which-Where, but I don’t remember anything about it. This series is so confusing that I’m considering dropping it.

NIGHTCRAWLERS #3 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Sacred Heart,” [W] Si Spurrier, [A] Lorenzo Tammetta & Phillip Sevy. Mother Righteous executes her final scheme, and almost manages to kill Moira in a way that will allow her to dominate the ensuing new timeline. But before she can do that, Mother Righteous is killed by a Banshee clone and a Nightcrawler clone. This issue is a bit easier to understand than some of the other Sins of Sinister chapters.

SINS OF SINISTER: DOMINION #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “∞ Deadly Sins,” [W] Kieron Gillen, [A] Paco Medina & Lucas Werneck. The timeline finally gets reset, but Sinister and Mother Righteous both have access to the knowledge of what happened in the future. Also, Rasputin IV comes back in time to the present. Mother Righteous claims that Xavier, Hope, Emma and Exodus may still be contaminated with Sinister’s DNA, so they all have to be thrown in the Pit. My final verdict on Sins of Sinister is that it was a confusing, pointless mess, and that if I had known what it would be like in advance, I wouldn’t have read any of it.

CLEAR #2 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Scott Snyder, [A] Francis Manapul.  The issue starts with a flashback to the death of Sam and Kendra’s child in a car accident. While continuing his investigation, Sam fights a man who looks just like him. Then he finds a clue which causes him to go and jump off a bridge. This issue had more effective pacing than issue 1, and Manapul’s artwork is very good.

MONARCH #3 (Image, 2023) – “God Bless the Child,” [W] Rodney Barnes, [A] Alex Lins. Travon’s alien creators try to either kill or abduct him. I really like how Alex Lins draws Travon, but Monarch’s plot is boring and directionless, and I’m going to continue reading it only because there aren’t many issues left.  

BULLS OF BEACON HILL #4 (Aftershock, 2023) – “Before the Dawn,” [W] Steve Orlando, [A] Andy Macdonald. Chris convinces his mother to call off her minions, but they work for her husband, not her, and Chris has to fight them off himself. Chris’s mom reveals that she refuses to leave Orin because he’s paying for her elderly father’s care, and “How am I supposed to choose? My son or my father?” I’m sorry, but fuck that. She was obligated to choose her son, who wouldn’t exist if not for her, and not her father, who’s already lived his life. She’s just as bad as Orin, because she’s enabled Orin’s abuse. What she says next makes it both better and worse: “When I had to [choose], you… you’re so much like him.” This is a consistent theme of the series – that Chris is just as violent as his father. The issue ends with Orin confronting Chris personally.

DANGER STREET #5 (DC, 2023) – “Manhunter,” [W] Tom King, [A] Jorge Fornés. Orion fights Starman, the Creeper confronts Batman, and Manhunter continues trying to assassinate the Green Team. By this point in the series, the separate plotlines are starting to come together. Dr. Fate still hasn’t played any role in this series other than narrating it.

LAZARUS PLANET: REVENGE OF THE GODS #4 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] G. Willow Wilson, [A] Cian Tormey. Diana finally beats Hera by drawing on the power of her friends. The climactic page in this story is a reference to the old convention of listing Shazam’s six gods and their associated powers. However, it would have been better if Wilson had used six words whose acronym was WONDER. In the first backup story, by Cloonan, Conrad and Martinez, the Amazons’ powers are restored. In the second backup story, by Josie Campbell and Caitlin Yarsky, Hippolyta restores Mary’s powers and gives her a new list of six patron goddesses. Here, as earlier in Mary’s history, the Z in Mary’s SHAZAM acronym stands for Zephyrus, even though the mythological Zephyrus was male.

2000 AD #2319 (Rebellion, 2023) – Dredd: as above. Dredd summons some other judges to apprehend Keeper Hag and some other crooks. We learn that this whole mission was organized in order to capture Keeper Hag along with a number of other criminals, so as to justify the cost of sending Judges into space. The Out: as above. Cyd escapes from both the Zotols and the pandas, then meets someone named Cheerio. Joe Pineapples: as above. Joe rejects the idea of having a child with Sue, but when Joe is about to shoot Blackblood, Sue holds a gun to Joe’s own head. The Order: as above. The heroes continue to struggle with the shadow kraken, while a tiny Paul Bunyan clone (I think) tries to defeat the infection in Ben Franklin’s intestines. Proteus Vex: as above. Again, I don’t know what’s going on here.

I went back to Heroes just one week later, for their FCBD event. Besides the FCBD comics, I also got this week’s comics, and I bought about 60 back issues for a dollar each.

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES/USAGI YOJIMBO: WHEREWHEN #2 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Stan Sakai. After Usagi’s allies discover that the Turtles are mutated humans and not kappa, the Turtles are introduced to Lord Noriyuki, but he can’t spare the manpower to help them find Dr. Wherewhen. However, Noriyuki’s problems and the Turtles’ problems are related, because Dr. Wherewhen arrived in the past many years before the Turtles did, and has already built a power base. At the end of the issue, the heroes are attacked by the Mogura (mole) ninja. Notable moments in this issue: One of the Turtles guesses that Jotaro is Usagi’s son, and Jotaro is quick to deny it. The Turtles are served okonomiyaki, which Usagi describes as Japanese pizza. This is an anachronism, since okonomiyaki is a 20th-century invention. Yukichi says that the reason all the people look like different animals is because of the influence of local kami. This is a rare instance in which the characters in Usagi acknowledge that they look like animals. It’s usually possible to believe that they look like animals only to  the reader and not to each other.

FISHFLIES #1 FCBD EDITION (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Jeff Lemire. Some kids want to visit the convenience store, but the parking lot is full of dead bugs. When one of the kids is  brave enough to go inside, he discovers that the store is being robbed. This is an interesting start to a series that seems to blend two streams of Lemire’s work – his horror comics and his realistic stories about Canada. However, this issue is very short. The forthcoming full version of this issue will be much longer.

THE FLASH #798 (DC, 2023) – “Time Heist,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Fernando Pasarin et al. Linda gives birth to a son, Wade – where have we heard that name before? But the baby is immediately kidnapped by Granny Goodness, disguised as a nurse. Hourman and Gold Beetle volunteer to help Wally get him back. This is Gold Beetle’s first meeting with Wally from her perspective, but not from his. I hope Wade is going to be okay; since we’ve already seen his older self, it at least seems like he’s not going to die.

STARSIGNS #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Saladin Ahmed, [A] Megan Levens. The six Zodiac signs mysteriously disappear from the sky. Then an Arab-American woman, Rana Fawaaz, discovers that she has the power to stop time, because she’s the incarnation of Taurus, which implies that there are other people who are the incarnations of the other eleven signs. This series’s plot feels like a mashup of Sex Criminals (the power to stop time) and The Wicked + The Divine (twelve ordinary people becoming incarnations of deities). Megan Levens’s style of art and coloring in this issue even resembles that of Jamie McKelvie. The main unique thing about Starsigns, so far, is Rana’s Arab-American ethnicity. I like the scene where she talks to her father.

MAPLE TERRACE #1 (Uncivilized, 2023) – “Maple Terrace” etc., [W/A] Noah Van Sciver. A pair of autobiographical stories from the artist’s childhood. In the first one, the eight-year-old Noah is plagued by cockroaches at night. In the second, Noah accidentally damages his older brother’s copy of Spawn #5, but then replaces it with a second copy, which he stole from his friends after they were arrested for starting a fire. Noah’s best work has a unique outlook which is hard to define, but it’s sort of a mix of sarcasm with sincere pathos. We laugh at the young Noah, but we also feel sorry for him. On the inside front cover, he writes, “Whenever I draw stories based on my childhood it fills my family with dread.” It should, because this issue reveals that his parents were abusive and neglectful, and that they deserved to have their kids taken away by CPS. Noah makes it seem funny that his childhood home was full of cockroaches, but it’s only funny in hindsight.

RADIANT BLACK #24 (Image, 2023) – “Return to Existence,” [W] Kyle Higgins, [A] Marcelo Costa. Nathan and Marshall travel through Existence until they finally restore their robot (the Colossal) to life. The Colossal tells them that their powers are glitching out because thy’re not meant to be shared, so only one of them can be Radiant Black. This issue contains some of Marcelo Costa’s most spectacular art. There’s one two-page spread that reminds me of the Möbius strip page from Promethea. While reading this issue, I finally figured out how to read the language of Existence, but I can’t be bothered to reread the rest of the series and decipher all the text in this language.

EDGE OF SPIDER-VERSE #1 (Marvel, 2023) – Spider-Rex: “Enter: Kravertooth the Hunter!!!”, [W] Karla Pacheco, [A] Pere Pérez. A T. Rex version of Spider-Man battles a sabertooth tiger version of Kraven. This story has the same gimmick as Jurassic League, but I enjoyed it much more. This gimmick is funny enough for a short story, but not for a six-issue miniseries. Also, this story’s creators seem to be having more fun with the concept than Daniel Warren Johnson and Juan Gedeon did. “Enter: Kravertooth the Hunter” even includes a dinosaur version of the Spider-Man theme song. The backup story is “Curse of the Spider-Killer” by Zander Cannon and Guillermo Sanna, whose style here is based on that of Francesco Francavilla.

I HATE THIS PLACE #8 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kyle Starks, [A] Artyom Topilin. Having arrived in the future, Gabby is captured by some soldiers, but an elderly version of Trudy rescues her. Trudy tells Gabby what not to do when she returns to the present, then after Gabby goes back to the present, Trudy sacrifices her life to blow up the soldiers’ complex. We also see how the future version of Gabby died, though Trudy doesn’t tell the younger Gert this information. Back in the present, Gabby and Trudy find some kind of device under their floor.

ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN: JON KENT #3 (DC, 2023) – “The Regime’s Paradise,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Clayton Henry. Jon explores the world of Injustice, which seems to be a utopia. But when Jon saves a baby from falling out a window, its mother is terrified of him. Based on this, Jon realizes that this world only seems like a utopia, because Superman has scared its people into total submissiveness.

SPIDER-MAN #8 (Marvel, 2023) – “Maxed Out Chapter 1: Clear and Present Dangers,” [W] Dan Slott, [A] Mark Bagley. Peter saves some people from a fire, but fails to save one man who he didn’ t know about. Fires in apartment buildings are an extremely common occurrence in superhero comics, because they provide a convenient way for the hero to do something heroic. Anyway, Peter then tries to amplify his spider-sense so that he can sense danger to other people as well as himself, but it works too well, and he finds himself sensing everyone in New York at once. Spider-Boy also appears in this issue, but it’s little more than a cameo appearance.

ANIMAL CASTLE VOL. 2 #1 (Ablaze, 2023) – “The Night of the Righteous,” [W] Xavier Dorison, [A] Félix Delep. The animals have just killed the head dog, but this has done more harm than good, because it’s destroyed any chance of solidarity between the dogs and the other animals. Miss B, Caesar and Azelar decide to have the animals elect their own leader, and they offer the dogs a vote as well. However, Silvio is still in charge, and he suggests that the dogs ought to get rid of Miss B. Animal Castle probably reads better in the original French and atalbum size, but it’s an incredible piece of work. This issue is a very realistic portrayal of the difficulties of creating a democracy.

WHERE MONSTERS LIE #4 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kyle Starks, [A] Piotr Kowalski. Most of the villains get killed, but Connor is placed on administrative leave because of all the deaths and property damage he caused. On returning home, Connor is assaulted and tied up by his wife’s parents, who are none other than the two surviving villains. Also, Connor’s wife is pregnant, so his in-laws offer him a choice between being killed, or coming with them and his wife and unborn child. Coming with them where? Why, to Wilmhurst 2, where Lucas is already being held captive. This is a humorously ironic ending, but it also leaves an obvious hook for a sequel, and I hope there will be a sequel.

SHAZAM! #1 (DC, 2023) – “Meet the Captain!”, [W] Mark Waid, [A] Dan Mora. The Captain has tea with some talking dinosaurs, then saves some people from an earthquake, but when they’re thanking him, he insults and curses them on national TV. This is a fun debut issue that evokes the goofiness of Otto Binder and C.C. Beck’s classic stories, and Dan Mora’s artwork is excellent as ever. A serious problem with Shazam/The Captain/Captain Marvel is his lack of a name. DC can’t use the name Captain Marvel on covers, so they have to either call him Shazam, which causes confusion with the wizard Shazam, or come up with a new name entirely. And if they’re going to do the latter, then “The Captain” is a stupid choice.

POISON IVY #12 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] G. Willow Wilson, [A] Marcio Takara. Ivy manages to cure herself of the mutated lamia, and she offers the same treatment to the other women from the retreat. But one of the women refuses the cure, and Ivy is unwilling to force her to take it. I think this was absolutely the wrong decision, because antivaxxers are selfish people who care more about their own safety than their duty to others. Anyway, after that, Ivy and Janet return to Gotham, where Ivy reunites with Harley.

LOVE EVERLASTING #7 (Image, 2023) – “Too Hip for Love,” [W] Tom King, [A] Elsa Charretier. Joan and Don are now married with two sons. Joan is supposed to be living an idyllic life, but she’s not content. Also, she notices that it was 1963 when she was married, and now it’s still 1963, even though her first child is old enough to go to school. Finally, Joan gets angry enough that her husband and parents have her institutionalized. Throughout this issue Joan is shown reading the stories of her own past incarnations. As a nitpicky point, in this issue Don listens to a basketball game on the radio, and two of the players are named Turner and Nelson. I assume this is an NBA game, and there was a Nelson in the NBA in 1963 – Don Nelson – but there was no player named Turner in that year.

AVENGERS: WAR ACROSS TIME #5 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Paul Levitz, [A] Alan Davis. The best part of this issue is the ending sequence, where the Avengers get a glimpse of their onw future incarnations. Besides that, this is another issue with beautiful art but a boring plot.

BATMAN #135/900 (DC, 2023) – “The Bat-Man of Gotham: Conclusion,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Mike Hawthorne et al. Batman pursues Halladay/Joker across a number of parallel realities, and in each of them, Halladay either creates a Joker where there wasn’t one already, or he makes the existing Joker worse. This story is frustrating to me because I’ve grown to utterly loathe the Joker. I’ve probably explained this before, but the problem is that because of the demands of serial narrative, Batman can never kill the Joker. However, the in-universe justification for Batman not killing the Joker is that it’s against his moral code. This means that every Joker story is essentially the same story: the Joker kills some people, Batman captures him but can’t kill him, and then the Joker escapes to kill even more people. The redeeming feature of this issue is the closing montage sequence, where the artist – either Jorge Jimenez or Mikel Janin – imitates the styles of many past Batman artists. I didn’t like “The Bat-Man of Gotham” nearly as much as “Failsafe,” and I think the strength of the latter story was Jorge Jimenez’s art, rather than Zdarsky’s writing.

FCBD 2000 AD PRESENTS THE BEST COMIC EVER (Rebellion, 2023) – Harlem Heroes: untitled, [W] Ramzee, [A] Korinna Mei Veropoulou. A generic story about a kids’ sports team. Pandora Perfect: “She’s Practically Poison in Every Way!”, [W] Roger Langridge, [A] Brett Parson. This is  a hilarious Mary Poppins parody. Pandora needs to steal a “universal key” from a security corporation’s CEO, so she can unlock her shackles. Pandora kidnaps the CEO’s children’s nanny (named Miss Travers, after P.L. Travers) and gets hired as her replacement. Then she collaborates with the CEO’s children to steal the key. I hope to see Brett Parson at Heroes Con. Full Tilt Boogie: untitled, [W] Alex de Campi, [A] Eduardo Ocaña. This appears to be a preview of an upcoming graphic novel. It has some well-drawn and evocative art, but it doesn’t make sense on its own.

FCBD 2023 MEXIKID SAMPLER (Dial, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Pedro Martín. A preview of an autobiographical novel about the author’s trip to Mexico with his parents and seven siblings. I like the idea behind this comic; it feels like an authentic #OwnVoices story about Mexican-Americans. However, this preview issue contains way too much text, and it often feels as if the author is telling instead of showing.

PUNCH UP! FCBD 2023 (Oni, 2023) – “Punch Up!”, [W/A] Zachary Sterling. A boy travels to a fighting tournament in order to convince one of the fighters to accept him as a student. Because of its art style and subject matter, this comic reminds me a lot of the French comic Lastman; however, it’s more correct to say that Punch Up! and Lastman are both based on Dragon Ball and other similar comics. This issue also includes a preview of Lights, the third volume in Brenna Thummler’s trilogy that began with Sheets.

GROOT #1 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Dan Abnett, [A] Damian Couceiro. A young Private Mar-Vell, not yet a captain, encounters a young Groot and his friends Tweeg and Gleef. Mar-Vell obtains permission to take them back to Planet X, but on arriving there, he finds that the planet has been invaded. This is a fun comic, though there have been better Groot comics. As a nitpick, the rank of Private is exclusively used in the army, and it doesn’t seem like Private Marvel is part of an army.

BLOOD TREE #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Peter Tomasi, [A] Maxim Simic. While investigating Fincher’s apartment, Dario discovers a file with his own name on it. The file indicates that Dario is adopted, and his biological parents were serial killers. Therefore, Dario himself and his wife and children are at risk. The mayor suggests that the killer’s potential victims should all be rounded up and put in a secure location, but Dario objects, on the grounds that this would just give the killer a single target. (It would be better to put all the future victims in different secure locations.) Dario meets with his biological mother, who’s about to be executed, and Fincher attends the execution in disguise. This issue is very exciting, but Maxim Simic’s artwork is a detriment. His characters’ faces look completely lifeless.

GODFELL #3 (Vault, 2023) – untitled, [W] Christopher Sebela, [A] Ben Hennessy. God’s pelvis seems like an idyllic paradise, except that the local boss, Marwaye, is trying to breed demigods by impregnating people with God’s sperm (if I understood correctly). Zanzi saves Neth from being killed by Marwaye, then they continue on their path through God’s body, but Avernus is still following them. A funny line in this issue is “Everything is possible in God,” since “in God” is meant literally. Zanzi is basically a female Conan, except she’s even more brutal and humorless than Conan.

HAIRBALL #2 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Matt Kindt, [A] Tyler Jenkins. The cat causes Anna’s dad to have a stroke, and then it starts an electrical fire and burns Anna’s house down. Anna’s parents survive, but she has to go live with her aunt. Anna now realizes that her cat is a horrible demon who’s trying to kill her (as is true of most cats), and she tries to drown the cat, but it doesn’t work. I like this series a lot, but my problem with it is the numerous pages where Anna is talking to her therapist. These pages all consist of four photostatted versions of the same panel. Such a use of photostats is lazy, and also it’s bad storytelling.

IMMORTAL X-MEN #11 (Marvel, 2023) – “A Hard Reign,” [W] Kieron Gillen, [A] Lucas Werneck. Now that Sins of Sinister is finally over, Storm has to deal with his aftereffects. She  allows Sinister’s four victims to remain on the Quiet Council, but without a vote. Since her responsibilities are now split between Earth and Arakko, she appoints Colossus to vote for her by proxy. This issue is mostly just dialogue, but at least it makes sense and it includes some good characterization, and to that extent, it’s a massive improvement over Sins of Sinister.

JUNK RABBIT #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Jimmie Robinson. Junk Rabbit kills a bunch of cops, and the dome-dwellers decide to use a giant military robot to deal with the rabbit. We still don’t know who the rabbit is, but this issue presents two characters who are plausible suspects. My favorite thing about this issue is the billboards that say things like YOU ARE UGLY! BUY NEW STUFF.

THE MUPPET SHOW #9 (Boom!, 2010) – “That’s a Wrap,” [W/A] Roger Langridge. Statler and Waldorf both fall in love with the show’s latest guest, an 120-year-old Egyptian hypnotist. This storyline is interspersed with a number of short gag scenes, depicting the Muppet Show’s various acts. Like all of Langridge’s Muppet comics, this issue is brilliant.

SAVAGE DRAGON #147 (Image, 2009) – “Virus,” [W/A] Erik Larsen. Malcolm and Angel have been kidnapped by the Vicious Circle. Dragon thinks he’s found them, but the “kids” are in fact boobytrapped dummies that explode in Dragon’s face. While he’s recovering in hospital, he’s attacked by an energy vampire that absorbs people’s lifeforce. But when the creature tries to absorb Dragon, it instead turns into an exact double of Dragon, and Dragon’s consciousness is transferred into it, while his original body disintegrates. That’s pretty weird.

AVENGERS #13 (Marvel, 2019) – “The Girl Who Punched the Dragon,” [W] Jason Aaron, [A] Andrea Sorrentino. This issue is the origin story of the prehistoric Iron Fist. It doesn’t feel like an Avengers story at all – rather, it feels like an issue of Immortal Iron Fist. I want to like Jason Aaron’s Avengers, but so far it hasn’t impressed me. Andrea Sorrentino’s artwork in this issue is not at the same level as his art in Gideon Falls or Bone Orchard.

FCBD 2023: SPIDER-MAN/VENOM #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “Hunting Bait,” [W] Zeb Wells, [A] Patrick Gleason. Spidey fights a giant gorilla. “January, 1940,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Cafu. The Williams brothers (ancestors of Simon and Eric?) accidentally create a Golden Age version of Carnage. Neither of these stories impressed me much. This issue also includes a preview of Hickman and Hitch’s Ultimate Invasion.

TITEUF VOL. 5 (Glénat, 1996) – “Titeuf et le derrière des choses,” [W/A] Zep. Titeuf is the most popular French comic of the past few decades. It’s about the misadventures of a mischievous eight- to ten-year-old boy. This album consist of one-page gag strips, but there’s some continuity between them – in particular, there’s a running joke where Titeuf has an admirer who’s far too young for him. Part of Titeuf’s appeal comes from Zep’s brilliant humor artwork, but it’s also notable for its constant references to sex. I would almost describe Titeuf as a French Calvin & Hobbes, but with sex instead of imagination. The jokes often depend on Titeuf’s humorous misunderstandings of how sex works. For example, there’s one strip where Titeuf’s friend Vomito’s big sister, Lucie, has acne. Vomito says that this is because she’s going through puberty and her breasts are growing, but Titeuf misinterprets this to mean that Lucie is growing breasts on her face. Due to its sexual aspects, Titeuf would probably not be successful in America, where we think that children are innocent little angels who would be hopelessly corrupted if they even suspected that sex exists. The series did get translated into English in 2005, when it was serialized in the Beano, but it was never collected in book form. The lack of an official translation is unfortunate because Titeuf’s jokes sometimes depend on idiomatic expressions or nonstandard spellings – for example, he often pronounces “pas” as “pô,” and he has a friend who pronounces S as F. Despite that, this comic was far easier to read than Rubrique à Brac.

February and March 2023 reviews

3-9-2023

ZOOT! #2 (Fantagraphics, 1993) – various stories, [W/A] Roger Langridge, [W] Andrew Langridge. A collection of short humor strips. They’re quite funny, but I don’t remember much about any of them in particular. One notable story is about a man who’s obsessed with a writer named Derek Seals. There’s a cameo appearance by the man from issue 1 whose car was destroyed because of bureaucracy.

PIRATE CORP$ #5 (Slave Labor, 1992) – “The Young and the Aimless,” [W/A] Evan Dorkin. Halby whines about his ex-girlfriend Elsie, then he, Tigger, and Renensco go downtown, and Halby gets arrested for stealing hot dogs and punching a cop. At this point, Dorkin had moved away from the generic space opera of the Eternity issues of Pirate Corp$, and he was developing more of an original style. This issue includes a Milk & Cheese backup story.

MS. TREE #29 (Renegade, 1985) – “The Other Cheek,” [W] Max Allan Collins, [A] Terry Beatty. After being released from a mental hospital, Ms. Tree swears off violence and goes on psychiatric medication. But this doesn’t last long. In the second story, which is narrated by Mike Jr, Ms. Tree, her son, and her partners are targeted by assassins. Mike Jr. is forced to shoot the assassins dead, and Ms. Tree claims responsibility for the shooting so that Mike won’t be implicated. In this issue Ms. Tree tries to act kind and gentle, and it really doesn’t suit her. I prefer her as a mean, violent badass.

WORLD’S WORST COMICS AWARDS #1 (Kitchen Sink, 1990) – “World’s Worst Comics Awards,” [W] James Schumeister, [A] Rich Larson. A phony awards show dedicated to satirizing the worst comics of past and present. This issue includes some hilarious stuff, like a sidebar called “When Did Superboy Lose His Virginity?” (the answer is DC Super Stars #12) and a list of Steve Ditko names. https://www.instagram.com/p/CoJQxldslO_/ I don’t know who James Schumeister is, but he’s a funny writer. My only problem with this issue is that I don’t share the creators’ disdain for Roy Thomas’s dialogue. 

HECTIC PLANET #6 (Slave Labor, 1993) – “24 Hours a Day,” [W/A] Evan Dorkin. This was the first issue originally published under the title Hectic Planet instead of Pirate Corp$. It was also the final issue. The only subsequent Hectic Planet story was the three-parter from Dark Horse Presents #118-120, later reprinted as The Bummer Trilogy. In Hectic Planet #6, Haley and Renensco languish in jail for a day, then eventually they get released and have a fight. This is a funny issue. The best part might be the scene where two of the jail inmates are arguing very loudly about the purpose of art. However, Hectic Planet has too many characters, and when Evan lost interest in telling space opera stories, Hectic Planet’s science-fictional setting became irrelevant to its plot. It’s probably just as well that he abandoned Hectic Planet and moved on to other series. 

GRIFFITH OBSERVATORY #1 (Rip Off, 1979) – “…Under Observation,” [W/A] Bill Griffith. A collection of one-page strips that are satires of various contemporary phenomena. The strips are linked by a framing sequence in which Griffy and Mr. The Toad are spying on people through a telescope. Griffith’s work tends to be quite absurdist and lacking in narrative content. But it’s interesting anyway, partly because of the contrast between his sober, detailed style and his absurdist characters and settings.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #7 (Marvel, 2016) – “The Dark Kingdom Part 2: Opposing Forces,” [W] Dan Slott, [A] Matteo Buffagni. Mr. Negative enslaves Cloak and Dagger and uses them as pawns against Parker industries. He also reverses their colors, turning Cloak white and Dagger black. That seems like an obvious idea, and I’m surprised it hadn’t happened before. Also, Liz Allan and Norman Osborn encounter Regent, the villain from Renew Your Vows.

SUPERMAN #331 (DC, 1979) – “Lockup at 20,000 Feet!”, [W] Martin Pasko, [A] Curt Swan. In order to impress his old flame Lana Lang, a man named Carl Draper builds an inescapable prison for supervillains. But Lana still isn’t impressed, and Draper goes crazy and becomes a supervillain himself, under the name of the Master Jailer. We’re meant to think that the Master Jailer is Draper’s assistant, but that’s an obvious red herring. This story is interesting in that it revolves around Lana Lang’s relationships with Lois, Superman and Draper. However, Pasko writes Lois and Lana in a somewhat sexist way; when they have a conversation early in the issue, they just act catty to each other.

HATE #29 (Fantagraphics, 1998) – “The Single Life,” [W/A] Peter Bagge. Buddy goes on a series of disastrous dates, and ends up sleeping with an intense, intimidating woman named  Nicole. Buddy also runs into his old girlfriend Lisa, who will eventually become his wife, but she plays a minor role in this issue. I keep forgetting how laugh-out-loud funny Hate is, and it’s nice to be reminded.

MARVEL ADVENTURES: FANTASTIC FOUR #40 (Marvel, 2008) – There are two stories in this issue, one about Reed and Sue, and another about Ben and Johnny. “A Mind is a Terrible Thing to Waste,” [W] Chris Eliopoulos, [A] Scott Koblish. The Mad Thinker steals Reed Richards’s brain patterns, so the Thinker becomes even more intelligent, while Reed becomes stupid. Of course Reed saves the day anyway. “The Image is the Thing,” [W] Joe Caramagna, [A] Matteo Lolli. A little kid plays with Reed’s lab equipment and causes a disaster, which the Thing has to clean up. This is much better than the first story.

ACTION GIRL COMICS #5 (Slave Labor, 1995) – “Godzilla,” [W/A] Patty Leidy, etc. A number of short and frankly amateurish stories, mostly by creators I’ve never heard of. Rebecca Dart’s “The Woman Who Was a Bird” is interesting because it draws upon Bahamian folklore, but her art is rather poor, and she leaves half of each panel blank. The only artist in this issue whose art looks fully professional is Jen Sorensen, and her story is just a two-pager. However, Action Girl Comics does deserve credit for trying to create a space for female comics readers, at a time when the direct market was even more hostile to girls and women than it is now.

AMERICAN VAMPIRE: SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST #5 (Vertigo, 2011) – “Survival of the Fittest Conclusion,” [W] Scott Snyder, [A] Sean Murphy. I don’t understand this issue’s plot at all. Sean Murphy’s artwork is pretty good, but his architecture, machinery, and page layouts are less impressive than in The Wake.

INCREDIBLE HULK #198 (Marvel, 1976) – “The Shangri-La Syndrome!”, [W] Len Wein, [A] Sal Buscema. The Collector abducts the Hulk and the Man-Thing and locks them up in his zoo. Bruce discovers that one of his fellow captives is a young woman who’s forced to tell the Collector an endless series of stories. This character is obviously Shahrazad from the Arabian Nights, though her name isn’t mentioned. I wonder if Saladin Ahmed read this issue before he wrote his own version of the Arabian Nights in Exiles #9-10. Anyway, the Hulk leads the Collector’s captives in a revolt, and they escape the Collector’s ship, only to die of old age as soon as they’re free from the Collector’s life-sustaining technology. But they don’t mind, since they’d rather die free than live in captivity.

Y: THE LAST MAN #35 (Vertigo, 2005) – “Girl on Girl Conclusion,” [W] Brian K. Vaughan, [A] Goran Sudzuka. Yorick and his companions are involved in a sea battle between a submarine and a yacht. The captain of the yacht, Kilina, apparently sacrifices herself, though the body is not found. I don’t remember anything about this issue, but looking through it again, I notice where Kilina tells Yorick “It figures. An entire planet of women, and the one guy gets to be the  lead.” That’s the fundamental problem with this series.

KAMANDI #18 (DC, 1974) – “The Eater!!”, [W/A] Jack Kirby. Kamandi teams up with some “gopher people,” actually subterranean humans, and they steal supplies from gorillas and then battle a giant worm, the “eater” of the title. Kamandi solves both problems, the worm and the gorillas, by getting the worm to attack the gorillas. This issue includes some impressive action sequences. 

PIRATE CORP$ #2 (Slave Labor, 1989) – “Truth and Goal!”, [W/A] Evan Dorkin. Halby and his friends go to a horribly violent hockey game, in which one of the Pirate Corp$ members, Ron Chitin, is playing as a goalie. After the game is over, Vroom Socko, a character who later got his own one-shot, tries to murder Ron. This is a fun issue full of entertaining mayhem. As noted above, one problem with Pirate Corp$ is that there are too many characters and most of them are irrelevant. I feel like most of the characters could have been dispensed with, except for Halby and Renensco.

KEN PARKER SPECIALE #2 (Bonelli, 1996) – “Ai tempi del Pony Express,” [W] Giancarlo Berardi, [A] Ivo Milazzo. A few years ago I bought a collection of Italian comics, but I only read a couple of them, because I don’t know Italian. Thanks to Google Translate I’m now able to read these comics much more easily, though this is the only other one I’ve read so far. At the moment I’m more interested in reading Franco-Belgian comics. Ken Parker is a Western series. This issue is a flashback to the protagonist’s youth in a remote Western town. After he nearly gets caught sleeping with a married woman, he has to escape town by enlisting in the Pony Express. He then gets caught up in a plot to murder a prospector and steal his claim. Ivo Milazzo is one of the most respected artists of Italian comics, and his black-and-white artwork in this issue is amazing, reminding me of Pratt or Toth. His action sequences are particular highlights, such as the scene early in the issue where Ken is trying to break a high-spirited horse.

DEN #8 (Fantagor, 1989) – “Shuffled Seeds Scattered,” [W/A] Richard Corben. Kil, who may or may not be Kath, competes in an obstacle race against a giant blue guy. More than half the issue is devoted to backup stories. In “The Cure,” written and drawn by Bruce Jones, a werewolf tries to kill a woman, but she turns into a tentacled sea monster and turns the tables on him. I previously read this story in The Razor’s Edge #1, which I reviewed last year (though when I wrote that review, I mistakenly thought I had read “The Cure” before). In “Such Pretty Little Toes,” two boys are captured by a hermit who cuts off people’s body parts, but then the hermit gets killed by a monster whose toe he had cut off. This is sort of a twist on the old Tailypo folktale. Finally, “Damsel in Dragon Dress” is a parodic fantasy story, reprinted from Grim Wit #2.

JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #215 (DC, 1983) – “Into the Microcosmos Part 3: The Bigger They Are…”, [W] Gerry Conway, [A] Don Heck. In a microscopic world, the Atom is enslaved by the local tyrant, and the JLA have to team up with an army of warrior women to defeat the tyrant. This is part three of a four-parter. This story is more interesting than it looks, and it’s a rare example of a DC story set in a microverse. Marvel’s microverses are much more fully developed, and they include recurring characters like Psycho-Man and Jarella.

CEREBUS #125 (Aardvark-Vanaheim, 1989) – “Jaka’s Story 12,” [W/A] Dave Sim. Oscar and Withers get in an argument, and then Lord Julius shows up, wearing a dress, and he and Oscar have a funny conversation. I think this character was a like-a-look rather than the real Lord Julius, but still, this is one of Lord Julius’s last substantial appearances in the series. His gradual disappearance was one of the signs that Cerebus was going downhill.

CATWOMAN #16 (DC, 2003) – “Relentless Part 5,” [W] Ed Brubaker, [A] Cameron Stewart. Long ago, Selina Kyle abandoned her friend Sylvie when a heist went bad. Now Sylvie and Black Mask have teamed up and kidnapped Holly and Maggie. In the end, Holly is forced to kill Sylvie, and Maggie becomes catatonic, if she wasn’t already. Then Seilna kisses Slam Bradley. Sylvie is a compelling villain, because you can understand why she despises Selina for abandoning her, and yet her subsequent actions show that she’s a horrible sociopath.

GRENDEL #1 (Comico, 1986) – “Devil in Response,” [W] Matt Wagner, [A] Arnold Pander & Jacob Pander. This is the first issue of the ongoing Grendel series, but it was preceded by an earlier three-issue miniseries (or short-lived ongoing series), as well as a backup feature in Mage. This issue stars Christine Spar, the biographer of the first Grendel, Hunter Rose. After her young son is kidnapped by a vampire kabuki dancer, she becomes the second Grendel in order to rescue him – which, tragically, she would fail to do. I’m not sure if Matt Wagner actually knew anything about kabuki, and the Pander brothers’ art is kind of boring. Christine Spar looks like the woman on the cover of Duran Duran’s Rio album, but the Pander brothers are less talented than Patrick Nagel. Still, Grendel is an interesting concept, and I’m curious to read more Grendel comics. My copy of this issue is signed by Matt Wagner, though I don’t think I’ve ever met him.

GENTLE BEN #4 (Dell, 1968) – “The Derelict” etc., [W] D.J. Arneson, [A] Carl Pfeufer. In the main story, Mark and his pet bear Ben get trapped on a derelict houseboat. In the second story, Mark is falsely accused of stealing money, and in the third story, he and Ben teach a young poacher to change his ways. These Gentle Ben comics are not terrible, but they’re mostly worth owning because of the silliness of their premise. They’re a lot like Dell’s Lassie comics, but with a bear instead of a dog.

2000 AD #1823 (Rebellion, 2013) – Dredd: “Black Kisses,” [W] T.C. Eglington, [A] Karl Richardson. Dredd and a new recruit, Vinson, try to find the origin of a sexually transmitted disease that leaves its victims covered with kiss marks. In the last panel, Dredd relieves Vinson of his badge because Vinson has a kiss mark on his own chin, indicating that he was sleeping with one of the suspects. Savage: “Rise Like Lions Part 12,” [W] Pat Mills, [A] Patrick Goddard. In the last chapter of Book 8, Bill Savage and his allies fight a Volgan army. Throughout this story, Patrick Goddard’s black-and-white art is very realistic and gritty. Past Imperfect: “Rocket de la Revolución,” [W] Montynero, [A] Simon Fraser. Alejandro is a native of Cuba, which seems to be a communist utopia. Alejandro discovers that Cuba was nuked in the Cuban Missile Crisis, and since then, the entire country has been stuck in a time loop. He decides to forget this knowledge. Red Seas:”Fire Across the Deep Part 12,” [W] Ian Edginton, [A] Steve Yeowell. A giant two-headed dog fights a giant demon. Not sure what’s supposed to be happening here.

FIRE POWER #18 (Image, 2021) – untitled, [W] Robert Kirkman, [A] Chris Samnee. After a lot of fight scenes, the white-bearded villain reappears on top of a giant dragon. The dragon is kind of reminiscent of some of the creatures in Jonna and the Unpossible Monsters. The only reason I read Fire Power is because of Chris Samnee’s art. I don’t understand Fire Power’s plot, and to the extent that I do understand it, I don’t care, because it’s just a rehash of old kung fu cliches. It’s also annoying how Kirkman seems to have done no research at all into Chinese culture.

SECRET MESSAGES #3 (NBM, 2001) – “The Silent Invasion: Abductions 3,” [W] Larry Hancock, [A] Michael Cherkas. This comic is part of the Silent Invasion saga, and is reprinted from an earlier comic book, Silent Invasion: Abductions, which ended after one issue. In 1965, detective Phil Housley (perhaps named after a Hockey Hall of Famer) investigates some reports of alien abductions. I’m not in love with Michael Cherkas’s art or lettering, but he and Hancock succeed in evoking the atmosphere of ‘60s America. I should read more Silent Invasion.

SKYWARD #10 (Image, 2019) – “Here There Be Dragonflies Part 5,” [W] Joe Henderson, [A] Lee Garbett. Willa breaks Roger Barrow out of Lucas’s base, then sends Edison off on a dragonfly, while she prepares to head to Kansas City on foot. At the end of the issue, we see a mysterious person observing Willa. We later learn that this is Willa’s mother. I only need issues 1, 2, 13 and 14 to finish my run of Skyward.

On February 4, I went to Charlotte Mini-Con at the Grady Cole Center. This was kind of a disappointing convention. First, I was in an awful mood that morning, and second, I don’t like the Grady Cole Center. It’s a tiny and unappealing venue, and it doesn’t allow you to leave and come back. It has significantly less floor space than the hotel ballroom where they hold the Charlotte Comic Con. The 2021 Mini-Con was at the convention center downtown, and I like that venue much better, but I assume it’s also much more expensive.

Some of the comics I bought:

CAPTAIN AMERICA #159 (DC, 1973) – “Turning Point!”, [W] Steve Englehart, [A] Sal Buscema. This was one of the only Englehart Cap issues I was missing. This issue, Cap is jailed on suspicion of being a crimelord called the Cowled Commander, then after he escapes, he and the Falcon fight the actual Cowled Commander and his minions. The Commander proves to be Brian Muldoon, the same police chief who arrested Cap. There’s some good dialogue in this issue, but it’s not one of the highlights of Englehart’s run.

THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD #81 (DC, 1969) – “But Bork Can Hurt You!”, [W] Bob Haney, [A] Neal Adams. This issue’s odd title makes sense if you look at the cover, where it’s prefaced by “You can’t hurt Bork.” In this issue Batman and the Flash team up against an invulnerable villain named Bork. A notable plot point is that before coming to Gotham, Bork was the leader of a mercenary army in an unspecified “new African nation.” In 1969, most countries in Africa were newly independent. Neal Adams’s artwork in this issue has some old-fashioned touches, but still looks so modern and dynamic that it wouldn’t be out of place in a contemporary comic. Bork later became one of the stars of Kurt Busiek’s Power Company, and was perhaps my favorite character in that series.

STRANGE TALES #145 (Marvel, 1966) – Fury: “Lo! The Eggs Shall Hatch!”, [W] Stan Lee, [A] Jack Kirby & Don Heck. Fury and Sitwell battle the Druid, later known as Dredmund (the) Druid. This story is okay, but the pre-Steranko SHIELD stories were never all that great. Dr. Strange: “To Catch a Magician!”, [W] Denny O’Neil, [A] Steve Ditko. Mister Rasputin, a descendant of Grigory Rasputin, tries to incapacitate Dr. Strange and steal his magic. This story is rather formulaic, and Mister Rasputin hardly ever appeared again, but of course Ditko’s artwork is spectacular.

BIJOU FUNNIES #4 (Kitchen Sink, 1970) – [E] Jay Lynch? Bijou has a notably smaller format than other underground comics. It seems like it was largely a vehicle for Jay Lynch and Skip Williamson, with contributions by a rotating roster of other cartoonists, though Crumb also contributed to every issue. Stories in this issue include Nard ‘n’ Pat by Jay Lynch, Pro Junior by Crumb, Snappy Sammy Smoot by Skip Williamson, and stories by Kim Deitch, Jay Kinney and Justin Green. I think the Pro Junior story is the most memorable, but it’s also an example of Crumb’s typical fetishistic tendencies.

SAVAGE LOVE #1 (Bear Bones, 1994) – “My First Time,” [W] Dan Savage, [A] Ellen Forney, etc. A collection of stories adapted from Dan Savage’s Savage Love sex advice column. The longest story, drawn by Ellen Forney, is an account of a young man’s first gay sex experiences. The other stories are drawn by Mark Lang, Jay Stephens and James Sturm. I’ve loved Savage Love ever since I read it in Minneapolis’s City Pages, and adapting it into a comic was a brilliant idea. Too bad the comic only lasted two issues.

THE FLASH #778 (DC, 2022) – “Vengeance is Mine! Part 2,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Fernando Pasarin & Matt Ryan. While sneaking out at night, Irey and Maxine Baker get kidnappped by Mammoth and Shimmer. Then Jai gets captured too when he tries to rescue them. I like the idea of Irey and Maxine being friends; it’s rare for superheroes to have children who know each other. In fact, that’s the main thing I like about Jeremy Adams’s Flash: its emphasis on the Flashes’ family relationships. There’s also a second plotline where Wally teams up with Amethyst and the Justice League Dark against Dark Opal. It is pretty cool to see Amethyst and Dark Opal in a non-Amethyst title, but otherwise this plotline is the less interesting of the two.

TOTAL WAR #1 (Gold Key, 1965) – “Target: America,” [W] Leo Dorfman, [A] Wally Wood. Every country in the world is simultaneously invaded by mysterious terrorists, and the three members of MARS Patrol – Joe Striker, Russ Stacey and Ken Hiro – lead America’s resistance effort. Wally Wood’s art in this issue is incredible. He draws some beautiful machinery and combat scenes and costumes. Total War is lacking in characterization, but its plot is a compelling vision of a post-WWII nightmare scenario. Total War is also notable for having a multiracial cast of characters. There’s a scene in this issue where Joe Striker, a black man, commands a squad of white soldiers. Such a scene would have been radical in 1965. Total War’s title changed to M.A.R.S. Patrol with issue 3. That was also the last issue drawn by Woody, and without him, the quality of the series went way down.

MARVEL TEAM-UP #5 (Marvel, 1972) – “A Passion of the Mind!”, [W] Gerry Conway, [A] Gil Kane. In their first meeting ever (or at least it says so in the issue itself), Spider-Man and the Vision team up against the Puppet Master and an alien robot. This is a formulaic team-up story, but it includes some well-drawn action scenes.

G.I. JOE #111 (Marvel, 1991) – “Probe and Feint!”, [W] Larry Hama, [A] John Statema. This issue has nostalgia value for me because the issue after it, #112, is one of the first comic books I can remember owning. “Probe and Feint!” is part of the Benzheen story arc, a barely fictionaliezd version of the first Gulf War, which was going on at the same time. This issue is a collection of action sequences and political squabbling between the G.I. Joes and the Emir of Benzheen. It also deals with the aftermath of issue 109, when seven Joes were killed (there were probably more named characters killed in that one issue than in the 108 previous issues). Reading this comic feels nostalgic for me, but also a bit embarrassing. Some of the dialogue has aged poorly, and John Statema’s artwork is rather ugly.

THE MUPPETS #3 (Marvel, 2012) – “The Four Seasons: Fall,” [W/A] Roger Langridge. The Muppets’ doorman, Pops, has reached mandatory retirement age. The other Muppets concoct a cockamamie plot to steal and replace his birth certificate, so he can keep his job. The problem is solved when Pops discovers that he’s five years younger than he had thought (and there’s a complicated reason why, but I don’t want to explain it). As usual this issue also includes a number of short gag sequences. Given Langridge’s skill at both short gag strips and longer narratives, the Muppets, with its variety show format, is ideally suited to him. I just learned that Dr. Teeth is based on Dr. John. I should have realized that myself.

NO BUSINESS LIKE SHOW BUSINESS #1 (3-D Zone, 1988) – “No Business Like Show Business,” [W/A] Kim Deitch. While digging through Jason Hamlin’s boxes, I was surprised to discover a Kim Deitch comic I had never heard of. This comic was published by Ray Zone, the king of 3-D comics, but is not in 3D. Its unusual gimmick is that each page is a splash page with a decorated border. This issue’s story is narrated by Toby, a pig who’s used in an act in Dr. Ledicker’s act; he’s made to dive off a tower into a bucket of water. Eventually Toby figures out that he’s too big to do the dive anymore, and that he’s going to be butchered, so he decides to go out in a blaze of glory. This story is part of the ongoing Waldo saga, though Waldo only makes a cameo appearance in it. It was reprinted in Fantagraphics’s 2006 Shadowland volume.

THE FLASH #782 (DC, 2022) – “Plans,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Fernando Pasarin. Wally and the new Kid Flash, Wallace “Ace” West, capture Girder and take him to Iron Heights prison. They also realize that the prison warden is corrupt. I think this is the same warden who deputizes the Rogues Gallery in issue 788. Meanwhile, Linda discovers that she has super-speed powers. Ace West was introduced as the New 52 version of Wally West, but when the original Wally West was reintroduced, Ace was retconned into being a different character.

FOUR COLOR #588 (Dell, 1954) – “King Richard and the Crusaders,” [W] unknown, [A] Matt Baker. This is probably the only comic in my collection that includes non-reprinted artwork by Matt Baker. King Richard and the Crusaders is adapted from a movie of the same name, which is itself adapted from Walter Scott’s novel The Talisman. That novel, set during the Third Crusade, is largely responsible for the modern view of Saladin as a noble hero who had the bad luck of being on the “wrong” side. I also wonder if Saladin is the inspiration for other pagan heroes like Malory’s Sir Palomides. The comic’s plot focuses on the rivalry between two of Richard the Lionheart’s subordinates, the noble Sir Kenneth and the evil Sir Giles, as well as the love triangle between Sir Kenneth, his love interest Edith, and Saladin. Matt Baker is most famous as a romance and good girl artist, and his depictions of Edith are particularly breathtaking. He also draws some exciting fight scenes and jousts.

VELVET #7 (Image, 2014) – “The Secret Lives of Dead Men Part 2,” [W] Ed Brubaker, [A] Steve Epting. Two other agents, Colt and Roberts, try to track Velvet down. In the end they realize she’s already in London. Velvet herself appears in this issue only in flashbacks. I think I’d enjoy this series more if I had the time to read the whole thing in order.

WEIRD MYSTERY TALES #14 (DC, 1974) – I’ve heard that this series was better than most of DC’s other horror and mystery titles, but I haven’t read much of it. “Blind Child’s Bluff!”, [W] Steve Skeates, [A] Ruben Yandoc. In a typical EC plotline, a blind orphaned girl’s stepmother conspires with her new lover to murder the girl and steal her inheritance. But the girl’s ghost saves her and murders the stepmother and the lover. Ruben Yandoc, aka Rubeny, was an excellent draftsman, though his facial expressions, at least in this story, are a bit ugly. “The Price,” [W] E. Nelson Bridwell, [A] Alfredo Alcala. An adaptation of John Russell’s 1916 short story “The Price of the Head.” A poor, alcoholic white sailor, Pellett, is nursed back to health by a native Solomon Islander, Karaki. The twist ending is that Karaki saved Pellett’s life in order to cut his head off and smoke it, since Pellett has red hair, and a red-haired smoked head is particularly prestigious. It’s too bad that this story takes such a racist turn, because Alcala’s art is incredible. His linework was unbelievably beautiful, and his talents were wasted as an inker. “Flight into Fright,” [W] George Kashdan, [A] Ernie Chan. Some stupid young people go on a trip to Transylvania and are turned into Dracula’s slaves. As far as I know, I am not related to George Kashdan.

I ordered the following comic from eBay:

COOCHY COOTY MEN’S COMICS #1 (Industrial Realities, 1970) – various stories, [W/A] Robert Williams. This is the only comic book consisting entirely of Robert Williams art. (Other cartoonists who only released one solo comic book include Frank Frazetta, Dori Seda, Alison Bechdel, Victor Moscoso, and possibly Sharon Rudahl.) Williams was by far the best draftsman among the underground artists. His art is so painstakingly detailed and perfectly executed that it’s no surprise he left comics for studio art. He has a particular skill for drawing reflective surfaces, and his linework and even his lettering are gorgeous to look at. Because of the super-high quality of his art, this comic is a time-consuming read, but it’s worth it. The longest story in this issue is “The Gorilla Women of the Third Reich,” in which Williams’s recurring character, Coochy Cooty, is captured by Nazi Amazons. The rest of the issue consists of short sequences, most of which have very little narrative content.

THE FOX AND THE CROW #99 (DC, 1966) – “Gnome, Sweet Gnome!”, [W] Arnold Drake, [A] Win Mortimer. This story introduces Shaughnessy the leprechaun and Schnitzel the gnome. Also there’s an appearance by Napoleon’s ghost. In my copy, a couple of panels have been cut out for some reason – they don’t seem like very interesting panels. The rest of the issue consists of typically formulaic Fox and Crow stories. I don’t quite get why The Fox and the Crow lasted so much longer than the other funny animal comics, when it wasn’t any better. However, it is a shame that neitiher The Fox and the Crow nor Stanley and His Monster has been properly collected.

JOURNEY #5 (Aardvark-Vanaheim, 1983) – “Fitzhugh Lives in the Woods,” [W/A] William Messner-Loebs. Wolverine MacAlistaire meets some British loyalists, and then they encounter Fitzhugh, a super-violent feral child. In the backup story, MacAlistaire gets caught in a dust storm and finds himself hanging upside down from a tree.

TOR #4 (DC, 1975) – untitled [“Black Valley”] and “Killer-Man,” [W/A] Joe Kubert. Both these stories are reprinted from the 1954 St. John’s Tor series. Thus, Kubert’s art looks somewhat cruder and less confident than in the DC comics he was drawing at the same time. In the first story, Tor saves a little girl from being sacrificed to spirits, but discovers that these “spirits” are just women, because in this place the men and women live separately and hate each other. Tor rescues the girl from a sabretooth tiger, and the women, impressed with his courage, decide to live with the men again. In the backup story, Tor defeats a crippled man who’s been dropping rocks on people.

BATMAN #97 (DC, 2020) – “The Joker War Part 3,” [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Jorge Jimenez. A pretty typical Joker story, except that it also guest-stars Punchline and Clownhunter. At the end, Batman has a vision of Alfred’s ghost. I have often stated my distaste for the Joker, and I don’t like Tynion’s Batman as much as his Detective Comics, since his Detective Comics was more of a team comic than a Batman solo title.

ACTION COMICS #783 (DC, 2001) – “The Choice,” [W] Joe Kelly, [A] Brandon Badeaux. In the midst of a global crisis, Batman seeks out four villains – Stone Emperor, Scorch, Ocean Master and Major Disaster – and tries to convince them to use their powers to help. Three of them refuse to help, but Major Disaster agrees. I didn’t under stand what the global crisis was, until I realized that this comic was published just after 9/11. In that context, this comic is fairly poignant.

DOOMSDAY #1 (Charlton, 1975) – “Doomsday Minus Two,” [W] Joe Gill, [A] John Byrne. Three astronauts, a man and two women, are in space when the entire world is obliterated in a nuclear war. On returning to Earth, they acquire a fourth teammate, an unfrozen caveman named Kuno. Doomsday +1 is a generic post-apocalypse story, with wooden characterization. There’s a love triangle between the three astronauts, but otherwise they’re all interchangeable, and Kuno is the only distinctive character. However, Doomsday +1 is worth reading anyway because it’s one of John Byrne’s major early works.

CAPTAIN AMERICA #612 (Marvel, 2011) – “The Trial of Captain America Part 2,” [W] Ed Brubaker, [A] Butch Guice. Bucky Barnes turns himself in for the crimes he committed while under Soviet mind control. While in jail awaiting trial, he meets his lawyer Bernie Rosenthal, an old character from the ‘80s. Meanwhile, the Falcon goes looking for Dr. Faustus, and there’s also a subplot about Master Man. I’ve always assumed Dr. Faustus was based on Sigmund Freud, but  I don’t know if that’s really the case.

TEEN TITANS ACADEMY #4 (DC, 2021) – “X Marks the Spot!”, [W] Tim Sheridan, [A] Steve Lieber. Three members of Teen Titans Academy – Chupacabra, Bratgirl and Megabat – try to figure out the identity of their mysterious teammate Red X. This is a funny and cute teen superhero comic. It reminds me of Avengers Academy or Strange Academy. I want to collect the rest of this series.

CATWOMAN #10 (DC, 2002) – “Joy Ride,” [W] Ed Brubaker, [A] Brad Rader. Selina Kyle’s old friend Rebecca Robinson is about to be executed for murder, though all she did was steal a car that, unknown to her, had a dead body in the trunk. Selina breaks Rebecca out of prison and sets her up with a new false identity, and in flashbacks, we see the history of Selina and Rebecca’s relationship, and the reason why Selina feels indebted to her. This is a well-done single-issue story. Brad Rader was a good artist, though he was overshadowed by the other artists on this Catwoman run, Darwyn Cooke and Cameron Stewart.

THUNDERBOLTS #139 (Marvel, 2010) – untitled, [W] Jeff Parker, [A] Miguel Sepulveda. The Thunderbolts battle the Agents of Atlas. The Thunderbolts team in this issue includes almost none of the characters from later in Parker’s run, other than Ghost. The rest of the team consists of nobodies like Mr. X and Headman. Therefore, in this issue the Thunderbolts are less interesting than the Agents of Atlas, who are much better developed characters.

WEIRDO #12 (1993) – [E] R. Crumb. This issue is billed as a “Special Loser Issue” focusing on Rory Hayes and Ken Weiner. I had never heard of Ken Weiner before, but it seems that he’s also known as Ken Avidor and he’s a friend of Peter Bagge, and this issue includes a funny story where Weiner and Bagge argue about art. As for Rory Hayes, Weirdo #12 contains a tribute to him by Bill Griffith, followed by an original nine-page story by him. Hayes died ten years before this issue was published, so I wonder why it took so long for this story to see the light. Rory Hayes is one of the strangest artists in the history of comics. His work is profoundly disturbing, and I can’t say I like it. Like Jim Woodring, he drew cute things, but in a sinister way. Besides the Hayes- and Weiner-related material, this issue also includes Crumb’s “Mode O’Day and Her Pals,” a rather sexist story about a stuck-up woman.

SUPERMAN/BATMAN #24 (DC, 2006) – “With a Vengeance! Chapter 5: The Price of Our Sins,” [W] Jeph Loeb, [A] Ed McGuinness. I bought this because of the cover, which depicts gender-swapped versions of Superman, Batman and Supergirl. This is a fun and attractively drawn issue, though the gender-swapped superheroes play a minor role in it. Also, this issue includes a male Big Barda and a female Mr. Miracle. That’s kind of pointless, since Mr. Miracle and Barda are already an inversion of standard gender stereotypes. A funny detail in this issue is that Batwoman’s giant penny has a picture of a woman, rather than Queen Victoria. This gender-reversed Earth is known as Earth-11, and it appeared in a few other stories.

DAREDEVIL #129 (Marvel, 1976) – “Man-Bull in a China Town!”, [W] Marv Wolfman, [A] Bob Brown. Daredevil tries to defend Man-Bull from murder charges, but Man-Bull is convicted anyway. He escapes, and then a villain named Matador sends him to Chinatown to steal a bull statue. It’s a coincidence that this bull statue looks like the famous Wall Street bronze bull, which was not installed until 1989. There’s also a subplot where John and Robert Kennedy are discovered alive. I have no idea what was the explanation for this. 

REAL GIRL #2 (Fantagraphics, 1991) – [E] Angela Bocage. This is billed as “The Sex Comik for all genders and orientations.” For me the highlight of this issue is “Heat Loss” by Reed Waller and Kate Worley. As far as I know, this is their only work that’s about humans rather than anthropomorphic animals. It’s a cute and tender story about two lovers who remember the sexy times they had on a camping trip in the Boundary Waters (so this story, like Omaha, appears to be set in Minnesota). Other contributors to this issue include Mario Hernandez, Trina Robbins, and Phoebe Gloeckner, and my copy is signed by the latter. There were nine issues of Real Girl, but it seems like a very hard series to find, and maybe it deserves an omnibus edition like the ones for Wimmen’s Comix and Tits & Clits.

SIN CITY: A DAME TO KILL FOR #5 (Dark Horse, 1994) – untitled, [W/A] Frank Miller. Having just been shot multiple times, Dwight convalesces in a brothel, while some cops try to track him down because of his murder of Damien Lord. I don’t understand this issue’s plot, and I also think this issue is an example of Miller’s typical sexism. All the female characters in this issue are sex workers, and Miller always seems to depict sex workers as incarnations of the “hooker with a heart of gold” stereotype – rather than actual people with their own histories and personalities, as in Omaha or Melody. (I should note that TVTropes says that Miller’s sex workers are not an example of this stereotype.) 

WALT DISNEY’S COMICS AND STORIES #264 (Dell, 1962) – “Master Wrecker,” [W/A] Carl Barks. Donald discovers he has a talent for knocking buildings down with a wrecking ball, and is publicly celebrated for it. But when Donald is hired to knock down an old shack at 168 Plush Avenue, he instead knocks down the Top Brass Club at 768 Plush Avenue. It turns out a gnat landed on the sheet of paper with the address and caused Donald to misread a 1 as a 7. And that explains why Donald’s mastery of demolition is never mentioned again. The only other good story in this issue is a Mickey Mouse adventure story by Fallberg and Murry, in which Mickey and Goofy go looking for El Dorado, and two crooks stow away on their plane.

FIRE POWER #21 (Image, 2022) – untitled, [W] Robert Kirkman, [A] Chris Samnee. Another issue with good fight scenes and draftsmanship, but trite plotting and characterization. For Kirkman, the Chinese references in this series are just names that don’t mean anything in particluar. He has no knowledge of the actual history or cultural associations of Chinese dragons, for example, and he must have chosen the name “Chen Zul” just because it sounded good. Compare Monkey Prince, for example, which is based on insider knowledge of Chinese culture.

BATMAN #98 (DC, 2020) – “Joker War Part 4,” [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Jorge Jimenez. This is better than #97, because it begins with a touching scene in which Bruce has a hallucinatory conversation with Alfred, and Alfred restores Bruce’s motivation. Alfred’s importance in Bruce and Dick’s lives has become even more evident since his death.

Next Heroes trip:

MIRACLEMAN: THE SILVER AGE #4 (Marvel, 2023) – “An Alien Walks Among Us,” [W] Neil Gaiman, [A] Mark Buckingham. A boy attends a service of Miracleman worshippers, which is interrupted by Phon Mooda the Warpsmith. Then Phon Mooda visits the Black Warpsmiths and reports on her uneasiness with Miracleman’s utopia. I know we’ve seen the Black Warpsmiths before, but I forget where. The centerpiece of the issue is Dicky Dauntless’s interview with Mister Master, who is obviously based on Alan Moore, even more so than last issue. He tells Dicky how he got everything he wanted, and was then “left with one simple question: Now what?” and so he retired to his hermitage. Sadly the main story ends there, and the rest of the issue is a reprint of Young Nastyman’s first appearance from 1954. I’m sad that there are only a couple more issues of this series, because it’s just so thrilling to finally read more of a story that’s been on hiatus for thirty years. I imagine that I would feel the same way if The Winds of Winter came out, although I have very low expectations for that book.

SAGA #61 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Brian K. Vaughan, [A] Fiona Staples. Gwendolyn has a dream where Marco proposes to her, then wakes up in bed with The Will. Sophie asks Gwen if she’s happy, and Gwen says nothing. The next panel is a close-up of Lying Cat, suggesting that Gwen refused to answer because if she had said yes, Lying Cat would have contradicted her. Alana and the kids go begging for money, and a woman named Vitch tells Alana that she can bring Marco back to life. Also, Petrichor makes a cameo appearance.

MANIFEST DESTINY #48 (Image, 2022) – untitled, [W] Chris Dingess, [A] Matthew Roberts. While the other characters are arguing about whether to sacrifice the baby, Collins solves the problem by committing suicide on the altar, since he’s a warchild too. The demon eats Maldonado’s spirit and vanishes. Back at home, Clark goes back on his offer to free York, and Lewis commits suicide. Sadly, both of these things may have happened in real life, though some people believe that York was freed and went to live with the Crow Indians, or that Lewis died by murder and not suicide. Many years later, Jensen’s spirit appears to the architect Eero Saarinen – just as Maldonado’s spirit appeared earlier – and convinces Saarinen to build the Gateway Arch. This issue is a powerful ending to the series. It refuses to offer any easy solutions, and leaves the reader with a sense that American history is irredeemably tainted. And I guess by saying that, I’m violating Florida’s anti-woke law.

SAVAGE DRAGON #263 (Image, 2023) – “The Murderous Menace of Mako!”, [W/A] Erik Larsen. At Horridus’s funeral, Jeremiah Youngblood, who looks a lot like Cable, invites Malcolm to form a new superhero team in California. Then, while Malcolm and his family are hanging out on the beach, they’re attacked by Mako. Malcolm’s son Jackson goes missing and is replaced by another boy who looks like him, but is not him. This is the first new issue of Savage Dragon in quite a while. At this point Savage Dragon’s audience must consist mostly of Erik himself and longtime readers like me, but I guess there are enough such fans that the series is still profitable.

RADIANT BLACK #21 (Image, 2023) – “Blackmail,” [W] Kyle Higgins, [A] Marcelo Costa & Eduardo Ferigato. Marshall and Nathan agree to work for the government – oddly enough, the government agency involved is the U.S. Postal Service. Then they apprehend Shift and deliver him into government custody. Shift seems to be the breakout character in this franchise —  he’s appeared in quite a number of other Massiveverse titles.

ONCE UPON A TIME AT THE END OF THE WORLD #3 (Boom!, 2023) – “The Ways of the Strayed,” [W] Jason Aaron, [A] Alexandre Tefenkgi. This issue is mostly setup. Mezzy and Maceo continue to teach each other, then Maceo sneaks off alone at night, and is promptly captured by the survivalist cultists that Mezzy escaped from. We will see much more of these characters next issue.

BEHOLD, BEHEMOTH #3 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Tate Brombal, [A] Nick Robles. In the present-day time frame, Kavita tells Greyson about the origin of the Behemoth, which is always tethered to a shepherd (Greyson) and a scourge (Wren). This infodump sequence includes some beautiful splash pages. In the future time frame, the Behemoth continues to cause havoc. This issue is less exciting than the first two.

LITTLE MONSTERS #10 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Dustin Nguyen. In a flashback, we learn the following: Romie can’t speak because their throat was cut. Or else  because of the associated trauma. The humans were all killed in a nuclear war. The adult vampires have all died, because vampires age very slowly, but they do age – unless they never drink human blood. And the elder vampires tried to ensure that the vampire kids would never drink blood, and would thus remain immortal. But now some of the kids have drunk blood, so their immortality is lost, as indicated in the last panel where Romie draws an infinity symbol and then tears it in half.

THE FLASH #792 (DC, 2023) – “The One-Minute War Part 3: Impulse Buy,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Roger Cruz. While Barry mourns Iris’s death, Bart and Ace go on a reconaissance mission into the villains’ lair, and they rescue a young boy whose name isn’t revealed yet. Bart and Ace’s interactions are very entertaining. It’s been a long time since I’ve read a good Bart Allen story, but Adams seems to have gotten Bart’s personality right.

MOON GIRL AND DEVIL DINOSAUR #3 (Marvel, 2023) – “Sign Up,” [W] Jordan Ifueko, [A] Alba Glez. After rescuing Devil, Lunella tries to figure out how Olivia’s mind control technology works. Eventually Lunella discovers that Olivia is collecting people’s DNA through a technology app. Olivia mind-controls Tasha, the girl with hair powers, and forces her to straighten her hair. This has been an excellent miniseries.

HELL TO PAY #3 (Image, 2023) – “The Shrouded College Part 1,” [W] Charles Soule, [A] Will Sliney. This issue’s first page shows how the Qurrakh led to the Industrial Revolution. Then Sebastian and Maia go hunting for the man who’s making counterfeit Qurrakh, with assistance from two other agents of the Shrouded College. They manage to destroy some of the Qurrakh, but Sebastian is captured. Issue 4 isn’t coming out until April.

BLOOD TREE #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Peter Tomasi, [A] Maxim Šimić. I read issue 2 just before writing this review, and prior to reading issue 2, I had to reread issue 1, because I forgot what it was about. However, now that I’ve refreshed my memory, I can say that I liked this issue. Detective Dario Azzaro and his partner Maria Diaz investigate a series of murders in which the victims have angel wings attached to their bodies. I associate Peter Tomasi with the Super Sons, and Blood Tree is much darker than Tomasi’s superhero work. However, there are some cute scenes where Dario interacts with his wife, children and parents, and these scenes keep the comic from becoming too grim.

MONKEY PRINCE #11 (DC, 2023) – “The Monkey King and I Part 3,” [W] Gene Luen Yang, [A] Bernard Chang, Marcus finally meets his “father,” Sun Wukong the Monkey King – their actual relationship is made clear in the next issue. The Monkey King gives Marcus a vision of his birth, and teaches him to master the hair-into-clones power. I really like the depiction of Sun Wukong in this issue. Compared to Yang’s previous version of this character in American Born Chinese, this Sun Wukong is much more formidable and scary, and less of a figure of fun.

ROGUE SUN #10 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Ryan Parrott, [A] Marco Renna. Dylan meets the ghost of Caleb Hawthorne, aka Knight Sun, the first holder of the Sun Stone. After some more high school drama, Dylan learns that a demon called Mourningstar is searching for a magical quill. Dylan and Caleb have to travel to an extradimensional “Aviary” to obtain the quill. Also there’s a subplot about the villain from last issue, the one who blames Dylan for his father’s injuries. This was a reasonably good issue, but I had to reread it to remind myself what happened in it.

WHERE MONSTERS LIE #1 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kyle Starks, [A] Piotr Kowalski.  This series is set in the gated community of Wilmhurst, home to eight murderous supervillains. A boy named Linus is captured by one of the villains but manages to escape, and he tells his story to Special Agent Connor Hayes, whose mission is to capture the villains. This is an interesting setup, and it reminds me of a previous Starks series, Assassin Nation, because of its gory but humorous premise. This series may have been inspired by Sandman #14, the issue with the serial killer convention, given that one of the villains quotes the line from that issue about not shitting where you eat.

SPACE JOB #1 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] David A. Goodman, [A] Álvaro Sarraseca. Danny Sheridan arrives on the spaceship S.S. George W. Bush as its new first officer, only to learn that the ship is a poorly run shitshow. And when he sits down in the first officer’s chair, he’s struck dead at once. Things only get worse from there. This comic is a very funny parody of Star Trek. It goes in a different direction from Outer Darkness, which was also a Star Trek parody. In Outer Darkness, the trouble was that the universe was brutal and terrifying. In Space Job, the universe itself seems to be fine, and the trouble is that the captain and the ship’s crew are completely incompetent.

MY LITTLE PONY: CLASSICS REMASTERED – LITTLE FILLIES #4 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Megan Brown, [A] Jenna Ayoub. This issue wraps up all the dangling plot threads, but stops before Meg, Jo or Amy get married. Instead the emphasis of the plot is on Jo’s career as an author. As Discord admits, “we’ve completely lost the thread of the narrative at this point. I hope none of our readers expected things to adhere too closely to the original work.” This was perhaps the most metatextual of all the My Little Pony comics. It’s full of fourth-wall-breaking moments, and its humor requires the reader to be familiar with both MLP and Little Women. I’m going to mention this miniseries in my revised version of my book chapter on My Little Pony comics. 

FAMILY TIME #3 (Ablaze, 2023) – untitled, [W] Lily Windom & Robert Windom, [A] Asiah Fulmore. I didn’t bother to buy issue 2, but I had already ordered issue 3, and it was in my file at Heroes, so I decided I might as well buy it. Family Time is not unreadable, but it’s nothing special either. I wish Ablaze would stick to translating European comics, instead of publishing original material.

DAMN THEM ALL #4 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Charlie Adlard. I was nearly asleep when I read this, and I don’t remember much about it. Ellie and her allies confront the villain Theo Bolster, and Ellie exorcises the demon Andromalus by telling it to fuck off. This somehow results in Bolster’s defeat, but nothing is really resolved. The most obvious gimmick of Damn Them All is that it’s an unannounced sequel to Hellblazer, but another cool thing about it is its use of medieval and Renaissance demonology. I’m glad it’s been promoted to an ongoing series.

DAREDEVIL #8 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Red Fist Saga Part 8,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Marco Checchetto. Daredevil fights the Punisher and his pet dragon, Cole rescues Bullet’s son Lance, and the other superheroes decide that “Daredevil needs to be stopped.” This is another underwhelming chapter of the Red Fist Saga. I’m still willing to read this series, but it’s not as good as the previous volume of Daredevil.

JUNKYARD JOE #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Geoff Johns, [A] Gary Frank. Muddy talks with Emily, then introduces Joe to the local VA director. Then the other robot dudes arrive at Muddy’s house looking for Junkyard Joe, and that’s pretty ominous, because earlier in the issue, we’ve been shown that these guys are willing to commit murder to find Joe. I think Junkyard Joe might actually be Geoff Johns’s finest achievement, though that’s not saying much, because I actively hate much of his earlier works. If it’s not his best work, then at least it’s his first comic that feels like a serious artistic effort, rather than a grim-and-gritty rehash of Silver Age comics. I wonder how Johns and Frank got permission to reproduce the Peanuts comic on the first page.

RADIANT PINK #2 (Image, 2023) – “Eva and Kelly’s Complicated Adventure,” [W] Meghan Camarena & Melissa Flores, [A] Emma Kubert. Eva and Kelly visit some alternate dimensions, and in one of them, they climb aboard a cat spaceship. Radiant Pink isn’t the worst Massiveverse title – that would be Dead Lucky – but it’s not quite fulfilling its potential. Also, the artwork in this issue is very crude, and on the two pages right after Kelly and Eva leave the slime planet, the art doesn’t even look professional. A nicer way to say this is that Emma Kubert’s sketchy, crude style is acceptable when she’s writing her own material, but this style does not fit the slick aesthetic of the Massiveverse.

MONARCH #1 (Image, 2023) – “Stranger from Above Part 1: The Truth Within,” [W] Rodney Barnes, [A] Alex Lins. I don’t like Rodney Barnes’s series Killadelphia, but I saw a good review of Monarch #1, so I bought it on impulse. Monarch begins by depicting some kids in Compton on a normal school day, but then the sky turns pink, and their neighborhood is attacked by alien robots that kill all the adults. So this is a postapocalyptic story from an urban black perspective – although I guess that’s not a new idea, since that description could also apply to Parable of the Sower. Still, Monarch seems interesting enough, and I’m going to continue reading it for now.

POISON IVY #9 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] G. Willow Wilson, [A] Marcio Takara. Harley visits Seattle, and she and Ivy spend an idyllic few days together before Harley returns to Gotham. This is a cute issue. Wilson’s version of Harley is much more understated and calm than some other writers’ versions, but I like the page where Harley is looking for her cell phone, and she pulls a rubber duck and a gavel out of her purse. I don’t know Seattle well enough to identify all the locations in this issue, but I do recognize the Pike Place Market. I’ve been to Seattle three times in the past decade, and I’ve been to the Pike Place Market and the Fantagraphics store on each of those visits.

BATMAN #132 (DC, 2023) – “The Bat-Man of Gotham Part 2,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Mike Hawthorne. Bruce encounters the alternate-universe versions of Catwoman, Joker, and Punchline. After his battle with Punchline and Selina does not go well, he decides it’s time to become Batman again. Mike Hawthorne’s art is a drop in quality from Jorge Jimenez’s art in the previous storyline. I think the main problem is the coloring, which adds a lot of shades and textures that aren’t in the pencils or inking. Somehow I don’t like this effect. In the backup story, Mr. Terrific and Tim Drake use an alternate-dimensional toy created by Toyman to try to locate Bruce.

ALL AGAINST ALL #3 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Alex Paknadel, [A] Caspar Wijngaard. We begin with a flashback to V’lmann’s birth. The disembodied B’tay possesses a wolf and a crocodile, and begins to forget his own identity. We now realize that the aliens in this series are just heads with tentacles, and they need to attach themselves to an external body in order to do anything. V’lmann travels to Earth (?) to look for her dad. B’tay and Cov’n prepare to dissect Helpless, but he manages to escape because the gravity in the ship (?) is weaker than he’s used to. At this point I can finally tell the characters apart, and I think this series’s plot and artwork are both fascinating. Because of its painted quality, Caspar Winjgaard’s artwork in All Against All is more exciting than his art in Thunderbolt or Angelic.

DEAD SEAS #2 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Cavan Scott, [A] Nick Brokenshire. The ship’s crew uses one of the convicts as bait to recapture the runaway ghost. The ship’s doctor lets some pirates on the ship in order to secretly sell them some of the barrels the ship is carrying. I assume the barrels are full of the ectoplasm that the ship is extracting from the ghosts. When the shipowner’s daughter stumbles across the pirates, shots are fired, causing a barrel to explode and blow a hole in the ship. I forgot this issue’s plot by the time I read issue 2, but despite that, Dead Seas is a clever and grim piece of horror. It makes effective use of its setting aboard a ship, and Nick Brokenshire draws some very creepy ghosts.

HEXWARE #2 (Image, 2023) – “The King’s Dinner,” [W] Tim Seeley, [A] Zulema Scotto Lavina. Jesi/Which-Where acquires a sidekick, an urchin named Ron or Basement Boy. Then she has to save him from a hairy demon. Lots of other stuff happens that I don’t remember. Much like West of Sundown, Hexware suffers from excessive complexity. Its plot has too many themes, and it lacks a clear central premise. But at least Hexware has a clear protagonist, Which-Where, while West of Sundown’s main problem is its overly large ensemble cast. I like Zulema Scotto Lavina’s art. She kind of reminds me of Todd Nauck or Humberto Ramos.

HUMAN TARGET #11 (DC, 2023) – “Kill Kill Kill Kill,” [W] Tom King, [A] Greg Smallwood. Chance and Ice spend Chance’s last day together, and I think Chance realizes that Ice was responsible for the poison. This seems like a logical solution, but this series has been going on so long that I’ve stopped caring whodunit. I’ve also lost confidence in Tom King, and I don’t think I’m going to bother reading his Wonder Woman run. If not for Greg Smallwood’s art, I might have given up on Human Target.

SECRET INVASION #4 (Marvel, 2023) – “We Got Her,” [W] Ryan North, [A] Francesco Mobili. Maria murders all of Tony’s Skrull agents, then interrogates another captured Skrull. When Iron Man comes looking for Maria, she deploys the War Machine armor against him. The Skrull, Dani, captures Maria and takes her to her own Skrull faction. I really hope Maria somehow faked murdering the Skrulls, because it seems like an inexcusable act.

SINS OF SINISTER #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “Everything is Sinister,” [W] Kieron Gillen, [A] Lucas Werneck et al. In a series of flashforwards, Sinister takes over the Quiet Council and goes on to dominate the entire universe. Things go well for Sinister at first, but after ten years, he decides he’s not happy with how things are going, and he decides to kill a Moira clone and reset the timeline. But he discovers that someone’s stolen his lab, with the Moira clones still in it. I suppose this issue is an example of Dr. Manhattan’s maxim that “nothing ever ends,” because it shows that even after Sinister conquers the world, he still has to live in the world he conquered, and he’s not happy with it. Other than that, though, I’m not impressed with this issue. It’s obvious that the events of Sins of Sinister #1 are going to be erased from continuity by the time the crossover ends, and therefore none of these events have any impact.

SANDMAN UNIVERSE: DEAD BOY DETECTIVES #2 (DC, 2023) – “Who Says?” etc., [W] Pornsak Pichetshote, [A] Jeff Stokely. The kids hunt through Dom and Tanya’s stuff, trying to  solve the mystery and possibly bring Dom back. Also, Charles and Tanya develop a crush on each other. This series includes some effective characterization, but what’s most interesting about it is its depiction of Thai culture and mythology. Thai food is very well known in America, but most Americans know nothing about Thai people other than their food. For more on that point, see this article.

TRAVELING TO MARS #3 (Ablaze, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell, [A] Roberto “Dakar” Meli. Roy spends most of the issue ruminating, but on the last page, there’s finally a significant plot development: Roy gets a message from his ex-wife. I guessed that the message was going to be that Roy had a child he didn’t know about, but my guess was wrong. Just before that, there’s a scene where Roy and the two robots watch a movie, and I wonder if this is an homage to Mystery Science Theater 3000.

SILVER SURFER: GHOST LIGHT #1 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] John Jennings, [A] Valentine De Landro. I know John Jennings casually, but I’ve read few if any of his comics. Instead of the Surfer himself, Ghost Light #1 focuses on young Toni Brooks and her family. They’ve just moved to a small town to live in a house inherited from Toni’s uncle Al, who died under unexplained circumstances. When Toni and her brother Josh go poking around in Al’s shack, they somehow awaken a mysterious green glowing man, and they also do something that summons the Silver Surfer, who describes Al as a “hero and trusted friend.” Ghost Light #1 is a touching and nuanced depiction of black family relationships. The center of its story is not the Surfer plot, but Toni’s difficult adjustment to her new living situation. And I’m curious to learn just how Al and the Surfer knew each other. 

STORM AND THE BROTHERHOOD OF MUTANTS #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “Storm’s Seven,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Paco Medina. This series is the Sins of Sinister version of X-Men Red. In this issue, Storm, Wiz-Kid, Cable and some other characters go looking for Sinister’s lab, and at the end, Destiny is contacted by an old man with a spade symbol on his forehead. I’m probably supposed to recognize the old man, but I don’t. This issue is just average.

KNOW YOUR STATION #3 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Sarah Gailey, [A] Liana Kangas. Elise and another character continue to investigate the murders. Know Your Station is not nearly as spectacular as Eat the Rich. First, I’ve never liked Liana Kangas’s art style. Second, Know Your Station has the same satirical edge and dark humor as Eat the Rich, but it lacks the latter series’s sense of imminent danger. The murders in Know Your Station just feel gory, rather than genuinely frightening. And Know Your Station’s villains are mostly off-panel, so I don’t hate them as much as I hated the rich people in Eat the Rich. A cute thing in this issue is the stack of pro-capitalist books by authors like “Elon Walton III.”

AVENGERS: WAR ACROSS TIME #2 (Marvel, 2023) – “War Across Time Chapter Two,” [W] Paul Levitz, [A] Alan Davis. The Avengers invade the Baxter Building and battle Sindri, the dwarf who forged Thor’s hammer. Also, Patsy Walker makes a cameo appearance, though I thought she was Jean Grey at first. War Across Time is a well-executed pastiche of Silver Age Marvel, but it doesn’t do anything very original. However, it’s still worth reading because it’s a unique collaboration between two legends of superhero comics. 

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES #136 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Sophie Campbell, [A] Fero Pe. Another issue full of pointless fight scenes and plot developments that I don’t care about. I’m tempted to just drop this series until The Armageddon Game is over, but I want to support IDW, and they’re not publishing much else besides TMNT.

BULLS OF BEACON HILL #1 (Aftershock, 2023) – “Devil’s Child,” [W] Steve Orlando, [A] Andy Macdonald. Christopher Boldt, a successful surgeon, is about to run for Boston’s city council.  But it’s an open secret that Christopher is really the son of Orin Paige, Boston’s worst crimelord. And Orin does not want Christopher on the city council, first because Christopher might expose Orin’s crimes, and second because Orin despises Christopher for being gay. The issue ends with Christopher and his boyfriend being attacked by a corrupt cop in Orin’s service. Bulls of Beacon Hill has a fascinating premise, and there’s some moral ambiguity in Christopher’s position, since he partly owes his success to his horrible father. Bulls of Beacon Hill is the only Aftershock comic I’m reading at the moment. I hope Aftershock can recover from its financial problems.

STATIC: SHADOWS OF DAKOTA #1 (DC, 2023) – “Heroes and Myths,” [W/A] Nikolas Draper-Ivey, [W] Vita Ayala. There’s nothing here of any interest at all. This is just a generic superhero comic, with no significant characterization and no surprising plot twists. I love the original Static series because of its endearing and realistically depicted characters, so this issue is a big disappointment. I won’t be buying issue 2.

MINOR THREATS #4 (Dark Horse, 2023) – “The Straight Line,” [W] Patton Oswalt & Jordan Blum, [A] Scott Hepburn. The villains finally confront Stickman, and the lovable old guy is revealed as the traitor among them. Frankie kills Stickman with a hammer, then she also has to kill Insomniac (i.e. Batman) in self-defense. Brain Tease claims sole responsibility for the killings, and Frankie regains custody of her daughter and becomes the city’s new crimelord or superheroine or both. I thought the first three issues of Minor Threats were kind of boring, but now I think I wasn’t giving enough credit, because issue 4 is a very satisfying conclusion. Also, I was so disappointed by Static: Shadows of Dakota #1 that in comparison, Minor Threats #1 felt like a masterpiece.

MY BAD VOL. 2 #3 (Ahoy, 2023) – “The Inescapable Grasp of Justice,” [W] Mark Russell, [A] Peter Krause. The pizza murderer is finally captured, and so the series’ main plot is over already, even though there are several issues to go. The writers even point this out in the inside front cover of issue 4. Also there are a couple backup stories written by Bryce Ingram. I didn’t much like My Bad volume 1, but I think now I’m starting to get the joke. Basically the joke is just that all the characters are stupid.

LEGION OF X #10 (Marvel, 2023) – “Among Us Stalk the Sentinels,” [W] Si Spurrier, [A] Netho Diaz. Kurt fights Margali, and she extracts the “Hopesword” from his body, and various other things happen. I can never figure out just what’s going on in this series, and this issue is no exception to that. I’m also disappointed that Amanda Sefton does not appear in this series. Nightcrawler has something in common with Jerome K. Jerome Bloche, whose comic I will be reviewing later: they both have a girlfriend who’s a flight attendant.

PINK LEMONADE #5 (Oni, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Nick Cagnetti. In the afterlife, Pink speaks to O.J. Bot and discovers that he was created by an uncredited black cartoonist, not by Zavi Xarad. Then O.J. Bot sacrifices its life to resurrect Pink. Nick Cagnetti’s normal art style is already fascinating, but in this issue he draws in a variety of other styles: he imitates Tezuka, ‘80s video games, claymation, and early Disney. He’s an impressive artist who deserves more recognition.

INFERNO GIRL RED #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mat Groom, [A] Erica D’Urso. Many years ago, reporter Ana Costa recounted the adventures of the superheroine Inferno Girl Red. Now, Ana’s daughter Cássia is accepted to a prestigious high school in the fictional Apex City. Then the entire school gets transported to an alternate dimension, and Cássia has to save the day by becoming the new Inferno Girl Red. Cássia is a very cute, wholesome protagonist, and her relationship with her mother is adorable. Also, Inferno Girl Red’s debut scene is exciting.

DOCTOR STRANGE: FALL SUNRISE #3 (Marvel, 2023) – “Within the Body My Body is Not,” [W/A] Tradd Moore. This issue’s plot makes no logical sense, and I’m not sure if it’s supposed to. On the other hand, this issue, like the previous two issues, contains the most detailed and visually stunning artwork in any recent Marvel comic. Tradd Moore has somehow developed into a major talent. I just read a review that says that when you read Druillet, you’re really reading an art book, and the story is secondary and often incomprehensible. The same can be said of Fall Sunrise.

HARROWER #1 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Justin Jordan, [A] Brahm Revel. I like Justin Jordan personally, but I’ve had trouble connecting with his comics. Harrower is about a small town with a history of serial killers, a history which is now repeating itself. My favorite thing about this issue is the realistic and witty dialogue. I plan to continue reading this series.

SPY SUPERB #2 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Matt Kindt. Having accidentally killed a squad of assassins, Jay tries to behave like he thinks a spy should behave. Then he encounters an actual spy, and they both get targeted by an asssasin. This series is a funny re-envisioning of Matt Kindt’s more typical spy stories.

AVENGERS #8 FACSIMILE (Marvel, 1964/2023) – “Kang, the Conqueror!”, [W] Stan Lee, [A] Jack Kirby. A reprint of Kang’s first appearance. At this point there wasn’t a whole lot to distinguish Kang from any other Lee and Kirby villain, and the one thing that surprised me about this issue is that Kang is explicitly stated to be the same man as Rama-Tut.

SABRETOOTH AND THE EXILES #3 (Marvel, 2023) – “Station Three,” [W] Victor LaValle, [A] Leonard Kirk. Sabretooth’s team frees the mutants held captive at Station Three, and a disaster is narrowly averted when Orphan Maker’s armor begins to leak. This is perhaps the only comic in which Nanny and Orphan Maker are interesting characters, rather than a pair of running jokes. Otherwise, Sabretooth and the Exiles is far below the level of Victor LaValle’s other work, and I’m losing my motivation to read it.

Another comic ordered from eBay:

WIMMEN’S COMIX #10 (Last Gasp, 1985) – [E] Joyce Farmer. This is labeled as the “Politically Correct International Fetish Issue.” In Virginia L. Small’s “The Feeling is Mutual: Wild Kingdom,” some anthropomorphic lions capture and tag a human male and kidnap his child. This story is a funny satire on hunting. It’s Virginia Small’s only credit in the GCD. Sharon Rudahl’s “Zog Nit Keyn Mol” juxtaposes an old Yiddish song, written by a captive in the Warsaw Ghetto, with a depiction of a modern Jewish woman and her Holocaust survivor grandmother. This story is a touching reflection on the continuity of Jewish history. Joyce Farmer’s “Fetus Fetish Funnies” is probably the high point of the issue. It’s a nearly wordless story in which almost every panel is set in a different year. It depicts the history of a family across 120 years and seven generations. In most of the generations the women are subjected to sexual abuse and unwanted pregnancy. The story begins with a quotation by an opponent of abortion, and ends with the caption “etc.,” suggesting that the struggle for reproductive freedom is ongoing. Cecilia Capuana’s “Modemorphose” is reprinted from the French comic Ah! Nana, and its art style resembles that of Nicole Claveloux. Other artists in this issue include Carel Moiseiwitsch, Mary Fleener, Diane Noomin, Roberta Gregory, Dori Seda, Lee Binswanger, and Krystine Kryttre.

CAPTAIN AMERICA #6 (Marvel, 2012) – “Powerless Part 1,” [W] Ed Brubaker, [A] Alan Davis. Cap has a dream where he loses his powers and gets beaten up by Batroc the Leaper. Hawkeye tries to distract Cap from his dreams by going on a mission with him, but on the mission, Cap encounters the Madbomb from Kirby’s ‘70s Cap run, and it causes him to lose his powers for real. This comic’s story is reasonably good, but I’m willing to read anything with Alan Davis art.

DETECTIVE COMICS #1004 (DC, 2023) – “Medieval: Secrets & Lies,” [W] Peter J. Tomasi, [A] Brad Walker. This comic is the origin story of Astrid Arkham, aka the Arkham Knight. Her Astrid’s parents both worked at Arkham, and she was born during a riot at the asylum, with the Joker and Harley Quinn as midwives. At the moment of Astrid’s birth, her mother, Ingrid, was killed by a stray batarang. Astrid was effectively raised by Arkham’s supervillains, and grew up blaming Batman for her mother’s death. I’m sure it wasn’t Batman who killed Ingrid, but I don’t know if they ever revealed who really did it. My problem with Astrid is that she was born when Bruce Wayne was already Batman, and she seems to be around twenty years old now, and it’s hard to accept that Batman’s career has lasted that long. Astrid seems to have been created as a replacement for the titular villain of the Arkham Knight video game. I never played that game, though I loved the Arkham Asylum and Arkham City games.

SPIROU: LE JOURNAL D’UN INGÉNU (Dupuis, 2008) – [W/A] Emile Bravo. In France, Spirou is comparable in popularity to Tintin or Asterix, though he’s almost unknown in America. This album was part of the series “Le Spirou de…”, consisting of one-off Spirou albums by various notable creators. Most Spirou stories, or at least the ones I’ve read, are lighthearted adventure stories with no reference to real-world politics. Thus, the gimmick of Le journal d’un ingénu is that it situates Spirou within the historical circumstances in which he was created. Much of its poignancy comes from the contrast between the lighthearted, naïve protagonist (the English translation of the title is “Journal of a Naïve Young Man”) and the horrible historical traumas in which he embroils himself. Spirou first appeared in 1938, and Le journal d’un ingénu takes place one year later, when Europe is in imminent danger of war. Spirou finds himself thrown into the midst of the brewing crisis when he develops a crush on a young girl, who turns out to be a Jewish spy working for the Comintern. Also, his hotel turns out to be the site for peace negotiations between Germany and Poland. In the climax, Spirou nearly prevents World War II by coming up with a peaceful revolution to the Danzig Crisis, but his pet squirrel Spip intentionally ruins everything by chewing through the hotel’s phone lines. Also, Spirou meets his future partner Fantasio, who serves as comic relief. Overall, this is an extremely well-executed, funny and poignant comic, and it deservedly earned lots of acclaim in Europe and was a contender for the Fauve d’Or. I suspect that this story would have been even more meaningful if I was more familiar with the classic Spirou series.

PHILEMON: CAST AWAY ON THE LETTER A (Toon Books, 1968/2014) – [W/A] Fred. Farm boy Philémon and his donkey fall down an old well and find themselves in an absurdist world, located on the letter “A” in the Atlantic Ocean. Philémon is one of the absolute classics of French comics, probably because of its whimsical, surrealistic story and art. As a scholar of materiality, I love the idea that the letters “Atlantic” on the map of the Atlantic Ocean could actually have a physical existence. However, this first Philémon album suffers from being extremely short – only about 30 pages. That’s not enough space for any substantial plot or worldbuilding. The French edition of this album is a bit longer because it includes some additional short stories, but Toon Books decided not to include this material, perhaps to avoid confusing their readers. I also have the second Philemon album that Toon Books released, but I haven’t read it yet. There are 16 albums in total.

Another comic I ordered on eBay:

HUP #3 (Last Gasp, 1989) – “The Story o’ My Life!” etc., [W/A] Robert Crumb. A woman with a big butt pushes Crumb around in a stroller, and then Crumb gets out of the stroller and has sex with the woman. This is a typical example of Crumb’s gruesome, disturbing, fetishistic tendencies. When I read a story like this, it makes me understand why younger generations of cartoonists have disavowed him. Crumb’s adaptation of Sartre’s “Nausea” is much much better. It uses creepy artwork and lettering, together with shakily drawn diagonal panel borders, to convey a sense of the protagonist’s growing anxiety. “Point the Finger” includes some panels that went viral several decades later, because it’s Crumb’s satire on a young Donald Trump. The story has one ending where Trump humiliates Crumb, and a second, more optimistic ending where Crumb has Trump arrested, then sleeps with his two female companions. Crumb is forced to admit that the first, pessimistic ending was more realistic. The issue ends with a Mr. Natural story which is another exercise in sexism and fetishism.

CEREBUS #135 (Aardvark-Vanaheim, 1990) – “Jaka’s Story 22,” [W/A] Dave Sim. Mrs. Thatcher bullies Jaka into accepting responsibility for Pud’s death. It seems that in issue 130, Pud was murdered by Cirinists because he hired Jaka as a dancer. This issue is very emotionally intense, but it also suffes from too much decompression. If Sim had left out all the illustrated-text flashbacks, he could have finished Jaka’s Story in far fewer chapters. 

Starting again on March 21 after returning from ICFA:

2000 AD #1824 (IDW, 2013) – Dredd: “Cypher Part 1,” [W] Mike Carroll, [A] Inaki Miranda. Dredd prevents an assassination attempt on a visiting Sov dignitary, and chases down the assassin. Dandridge: “The Copper Conspiracy Part 1,” [W] Alec Worley, [A] Warren Pleece. A story about a ghost who looks kind of like Nikolai Dante, but has mind contorl powers. 3rillers: “Survival Geeks Part 1,” [W] Gordon Rennie & Emma Beeby, [A] Neil Googe. A young woman wakes up in bed with a nerd, and on trying to leave the house, she discovers she’s been transported to another dimension. Then she gets abducted by an armored demon riding a dragon. This is very funny, and I like Neil Googe’s art style. Stickleback: “Number of the Beast Part 1,” [W] Ian Edginton, [A] D’Israeli. In a steampunk world, Stickleback, so called because of all the things sticking out of his back, is resurrected. D’Israeli draws this story in a black-and-white painted style that looks completely unlike any of his other work. I especially like how he avoids the use of solid outlines, and instead uses differences in color to separate one thing from another. This effect reminds me of Alberto Breccia’s late work.

DAREDEVIL #142 (Marvel, 1976) – “The Concrete Jungle!”, [W] Marv Wolfman, [A] Bob Brown. Bullseye shoots Daredevil from a crossbow into the river, but Nova saves Matt from drowning. By no coincidence, Wolfman was writing Nova at the time. Then Matt fights Cobra and Mr. Hyde, who are trying to steal Bill Rotsler’s collection of rare books. The most noteworthy thing about this issue is its guest appearance by Bill Rotsler and his writing partner Sharman DiVono. Rotsler was an SF writer and a Hugo-winning fan artist, as well as the fan GoH at the 1973 Worldcon.

KONG THE UNTAMED #3 (DC, 1975) – “The Caves of Doom,” [W] Jack Oleck & Gerry Conway, [A] Alfredo Alcala. Kong and his older friend Gurat have a return encounter with the people who killed Kong’s mother Gurat. Kong the Untamed is a fairly generic caveman story, but it has some excellent art, and it would be worth reprinting.

SWORD OF SORCERY #3 (DC, 1973) – “Betrayal!”, [W] Denny O’Neil, [A] Howard Chaykin w/ Ronn Sutton. Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser’s ship is sunk by pirates, who are intent on capturing a princess. With a wizard’s assistance Fafhrd and the Mouser recapture the princess and kill the pirate captain, only to discover that the princess and the captain were lovers. This is an enjoyable sword and sorcery story. Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser have been adapted into comics a couple times, but they haven’t had as much longevity in comics form as Conan or Elric.

WILDC.A.T.S #29 (Image, 1996) – “Fire from Heaven Chapter 7,” [W] Alan Moore, [A] Travis Charest & Ryan Benjamin. This issue is tied to a stupid crossover, in which WildC.A.T.s was the only good comic involved. Therefore, the plot of WildC.A.T.s #29 makes no sense, but its dialogue is brilliant. One of the two artists in this issue is much better than the other, and I assume the better artist is Travis Charest.

CAPTAIN MARVEL #22 (Marvel, 2004) – “Second Coming,” [W] Peter David, [A] Aaron Lopresti. In the future, Genis discovers that he’s remembered as a villain. In the past, Moondragon fights the Magus. This issue’s plot is way too complicated, and Peter David himself realizes this: in the summary at the beginning of the issue, PAD includes a paragraph that’s written in the style of a soap opera recap, and that references events and characters who aren’t mentioned anywhere else.

KOSHCHEI THE DEATHLESS #1 (Dark Horse, 2017) – untitled, [W] Mike Mignola, [A] Ben Stenbeck. The origin story of the Hellboy villain Koshchei. This story is creepy and whimsical, and Stenbeck does a good job of imitating Mignola’s style. But otherwise this is no different from any other Hellboyverse comic, and I’m not even sure why I have this issue.

EX MACHINA #26 (Vertigo, 2007) – “Power Down Chapter 1,” [W] Brian K. Vaughan, [A] Tony Harris. We start with a flashback to September 11, and then Mitchell proposes rebuilding the towers exactly as they were. A mysterious man in a diving suit causes New York’s power to go out, and Mitchell realizes he’s lost his own powers too. Like Y: The Last Man, Ex Machina feels somewhat dated now, but it’s impressive how Vaughan has continually evolved as a writer and has managed to stay at the top of the industry.

HOUSE OF SECRETS #6 (Vertigo, 1997) – “Meeting,” [W] Steven T. Seagle, [A] Duncan Fegredo. A man named Tony goes to an AA meeting, but then runs away in embarrassment, and his wife Angela finds him at the House of Secrets. Tony tells Angela about being tried by the Court of Secrets, but he neglects to tell her that he began drinking because of childhood sexual abuse by a priest. The story ends on an ambiguous note. This issue is an effective depiction of alcoholism and sexual trauma, but its fantastic elements are kind of tacked-on.

BLACKHAWK #248 (DC, 1976) – “Vengeance is Mine! … Sayeth the Cyborg,” [W] David A. Kraft, [A] James Sherman. This issue includes some effective artwork, especially the splash panel that shows a giant missile taking off. However, DAK’s story is pointless. This Blackhawk run was a revival after the series was cancelled in 1968, but the revival only lasted seven issues before being cancelled again. Blackhawk was revived again by Evanier and Spiegle in 1982, and lasted much longer.

FANTASTIC FOUR #367 (Marvel, 1992) – “By Reed… Betrayed!”, [W] Tom DeFalco, [A] Paul Ryan. In an Infinity War crossover, the Thing fights his own Magus-created duplicate. This is a pretty dumb comic, and it’s full of guest appearances by characters in hideous ‘90s costumes. But at least DeFalco and Ryan’s FF felt like the FF, unlike Englehart’s run, which I will be discussing later.

INCORRUPTIBLE #20 (Boom!, 2011) – untitled, [W] Mark Waid, [A] Marcio Takara. Max Damage is held captive by villains, but his partner Jailbait saves him. However, she also learns about a horrible crime he committed in the past. I feel lukewarm about this series. It’s okay, but it’s not truly compelling. Marcio Takara’s artwork has improved tremendously since 2011.

KINGSWAY WEST #1 (Dark Horse, 2016) – untitled, [W] Greg Pak, [A] Mirko Colak. A fantasy Western story set in a world where California is ruled by Chinese people. A Chinese lawman, Kingsway Law, marries a Mexican woman and tries to retire, but some of his old associates come looking for him and kidnap his wife. Kingsway West has a fascinating premise which is based on the shared history of Chinese- and Mexican-Americans. Unfortunately it was cancelled after just four issues. A cool thing I noticed in this issue is that on page one, Washington state is labeled “Murrieta Territory,” perhaps after Joaquin Murrieta, an outlaw who may have been the inspiration for Zorro.

JOURNEY #9 (Aardvark-Vanaheim, 1984) – “Near Spring” etc., [W/A] William Messner-Loebs. MacAlistaire and Crawfish Martin go hunting, they get attacked by a bison, and then Crawfish falls under the ice. Part of this sequence is narrated by their dog. Meanwhile there’s a subplot set in Fort Miami. I don’t know how historically accurate Journey is, but it’s a very believable  depiction of frontier life in the early 19th century, and it’s also extremely funny.

2000 AD #1825 (Rebellion, 2013) – Dredd: as above. Dredd chases down the Sov assassin, who proves to be a cyborg. The Judges discover that the cyborg was hired by the Sov envoy  who seemed to be his target, and his real target was Judge Hershey. Dandridge: as above. Dandridge is kidnapped by some planes shaped like fat people. In exchange for being rescued, he has to track down a certain dagger. 3rillers: as above. The girl, Sam, discovers that her kidnapping was part of some other geek’s fantasy scenario. Her hook-up, Simon, arrives to rescue her. Again this story is very funny. Stickleback: as above. Stickleback is hired to prevent a revolt by “sorries,” or saurian hominids, who have become an oppressed race of  slaves. Then he goes to see his son. The artwork in this story is so fascinating that I don’t care much about the plot. Zombo: “Planet Zombo Part 1,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Henry Flint. Zombo is resurrected in order to defeat an insane president. I don’t know the context behind this story, but it seems extremely fun. The president speaks in unintelligible Kirby dialogue such as “In strange eras – against ‘killer-dillers’ beyond the limits of imagination – the ‘war-cries’ of previous eras no longer hold their function!” I wonder how many readers understood what this dialogue was making fun of.

MOTHER PANIC #7 (DC, 2017) – “Victim Complex Part 1,” [W] Jody Houser, [A] John Paul Leon. I still have no idea what this series is about, and its plot and characters are of no interest at all. I wish I’d given up buying this series after the first couple issues.

ACTION COMICS #503 (DC, 1980) – “A Save in Time!”, [W] Cary Bates, [A] Curt Swan. Superman encounters an alien creature called Null-O that looks like a vacuum cleaner, and there’s also a subplot about Lana Lang and a psychic named Kolzer. I forgot about this story as soon as I finished reading it.

SHE-WOLF #3 (Image, 2016) – “Ancient Incantations”, [W/A] Rich Tommaso. Most of this issue is the origin story of a werewolf. This part of the issue is drawn in a different style from the framing sequence. This issue has some excellent artwork and publication design, but I couldn’t follow its plot.

EX MACHINA #28 (DC, 2007) – “Power Down Part 3,” as above. In a flashback, Mitchell and Kremlin do a training exercise. In the present, a bald, bearded terrrorist kidnaps Kremlin and Mitchell’s mother and invites Mitchell to a rendezvous. It’s an obvious trap, and Mitchell’s powers aren’t working, so he comes with a gun instead. I believe that I have the next issue, but have not read it yet.

ERMA JAGUAR V1 (Catalan, 1988/1990) – untitled, [W/A] Alex Varenne. A very strange and disturbing work. The title character, a tall, short-haired blonde, picks up a naïve young woman named Charlotte and her boyfriend Arthur. Erma and Arthur go off together, and Erma comes back alone. We’re not told what happened to Arthur. Then Erma and Charlotte have a series of erotic and violent adventures, ending with a party in an old mansion. When Erma wakes up, it seems as if the whole thing was a dream, and Charlotte reappears as Erma’s maid. Varenne draws some very sexy women, and his spotting of blacks is beautiful. But this album has an eerie, threatening mood, and the sex scenes it depicts are unsavory and sordid. It makes for a strange but memorable reading experience. Catalan also translated the second album of Erma Jaguar, as well as a collection of Varenne’s short stories. Erma Jaguar volume 3 has not been translated, and neither has Varenne’s other major work, Ardeur.

CAPTAIN VICTORY AND THE GALACTIC RANGERS #12 (Pacific, 1983) – “Origin ‘2’”, [W/A] Jack Kirby. The art in this issue is very striking, but Kirby’s pencils are poorly served by Mike Thibodeaux’s crude inking. As usual with Kirby’s Pacific comics, this issue’s story doesn’t make much sense. Also, Captain Victory’s vehicle is a ripoff of Orion’s Astro-Harness. This issue includes a backup story written by Bruce Jones, with excellent artwork by Kent Williams, in a style that resembles that of Jeffrey Catherine Jones.

THE BATMAN ADVENTURES #34 (DC, 1995) – “In Memoriam,” [W] Kelley Puckett, [A] Mike Parobeck. Hugo Strange suffers from disabling migraines while trying  to build a machine that can remove and store memories. Meanwhile, Batman and Catwoman go through some  relationship problems. In the climax, Catwoman destroys Strange’s memory machine, and we learn that Strange was trying to remove his own memory of witnessing this son’s murder. This explains both why Strange is having migraines, and why he keeps talking to a person named David who we can’t see. This issue is confusing, demanding some effort from the reader, and I had to read a summary of it in order to remind myself of its plot. But this is also a very poignant story. It continues into issues 35 and 36, which were the last two issues of this series.

WONDER WART-HOG AND THE BATTLE OF THE TITANS #1 (Rip Off, 1985) – “The Battle of the Titans!!!”, [W/A] Gilbert Shelton with Tony Bell and Joe E. Brown. This is reprinted from five issues of Rip Off Comix, which explains why it’s so long. In this story, Wonder Wart-Hog encounters three other versions of himself: the caveman Piltdown Pig, the evil Paranoid Punkpig, and the Hog from the Future. And of course lots of wacky stuff happens. This comic is funny, but its length is rather tedious, and I don’t like Wonder Wart-Hog as much as the Freak Brothers.

2000 AD #1826 (Rebellion, 2013) – Dredd: “Suicide Watch,” [W] Gordon Rennie & Emma Beeby, [A] Paul Davidson. Mega-City One is troubled by a suicide cult. I don’t remember anything about this story. Dandridge: as above. Dandridge goes looking for the dagger and finds the severed head of his friend Shelley. 3rillers: as above. Sam escapes from the dark lord and the dragon, but is still stuck with the three geeks in their dimension-traveling house. They find themselves in a world ruled by cannibalistic amazons. Survival Geeks was well-liked enough that it graduated from 3Rillers to become an ongoing feature. It last appeared in 2020. Stickleback: as above. Stickleback tries and fails to get custody of his son. More stunning artwork. Zombos: as above. The Sc4rabs, i.e. the Beatles, return, and Zombo wakes up.  

BIJOU FUNNIES #6 (Kitchen Sink, 1971) – [E] Jay Lynch? This was in the same order as Hup #3. My copy is in such awful condition that when I read it, my biggest concern was making sure it didn’t fall apart. As a result, none of the stories in it stand out in my memory. Creators in this issue include Lynch, Skip Williamson, Crumb, and Justin Green.

IT’S SCIENCE WITH DR. RADIUM #1 (Slave Labor, 1986) – “The King of the Kings,” [W/A] Scott Saavedra. Dr. Radium and his assistant Roy travel back in time to the 20th century to look for some Elvis-impersonating aliens. They and the aliens both go to San Francisco instead of Memphis, and to make matters worse, there’s an Elvis convention in town. This comic was funny, but only to a moderate degree.

DARK HORSE PRESENTS #103 (Dark Horse, 1995) – [E] Bob Schreck. I probably bought this issue because of the One-Trick Rip-Off chapter by Paul Pope, but it’s not understandable on its own, though it has some good draftsmanship. There’s also a pinup by Kirby, inked by Mike Royer. None of the other strips in this issue are of any interest.

RAGMAN: CRY OF THE DEAD #6 (DC, 1994) – “Cheval Blanc!!”, [W] Elaine Lee, [A] Gabriel Morrissette. The other day I saw a student reading an issue of this miniseries at the university cafeteria. I wonder why he was reading that comic in particular. Anyway, this issue is the conclusion of a story that tries to connect Ragman to voodoo mythology. It doesn’t make sense out of context. Ragman is a fascinating character, but besides his original creators, Kanigher and Kubert, no one else has been able to take advantage of his potential. Speaking of voodoo mythology, I saw Nalo Hopkinson at ICAF, and I finally got a chance to tell her how much I enjoyed House of Whispers.  

GHOST SHIP #1 (Alternative, 1996) – untitled, [W/A] Jon Lewis. There are two stories in this issue, one about pirates, and another about a frog talking to a strange creature consisting mostly of a head. This comic could have been interesting, but it’s ruined by incompetent visual storytelling. It’s frequently impossible to determine the correct order in which to read the panels, and I don’t think that’s deliberate. Also, the second and longer story has no plot to speak of.

Next Heroes trip:

NIGHTWING #101 (DC, 2023) – “Rise of the Underworld,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Travis Moore. Neron goes looking for the soul of Olivia Desmond, Blockbuster’s daughter, who was introduced in issue 98. Luckily, Olivia is under the protection of Dick and the Titans. In a related development, the body of the king of Vlatava is found in the ruins of Titans Tower. When Dick goes to see the body, a Vlatavan investigator knocks him unconscious and shapeshifts into a duplicate of him. There’s also a backup story written by C.S. Pacat from Fence. I am eagerly looking forward to Tom Taylor’s Titans series. Kory appears on just a few pages of this issue, but those pages are enough to show that Taylor understands her personality, unlike so many other writers.

SAGA #62 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Brian K. Vaughan, [A] Fiona Staples. The best evidence for how much I enjoy Nightwing is that I’m willing to read it before Saga. The only other comic that took precedence over Saga was Lumberjanes. This issue, Alana rejects Vitch’s offer to revive Marko, because she doesn’t believe it’s possible. Then Alana discovers that D. Oswald Heist’s writing is no longer compatible with contemporary values, since Heist uses the R-word. Finally, Gale horrifically murders Ginny and her family. This last scene is a shocking, brutal moment that establishes Gale as perhaps the most disgusting character in the series. I can’t wait for him to die, and I hope his death will be very painful.

EIGHT BILLION GENIES #7 (Boom!, 2023) – “The First Eight Decades,” [W] Charles Soule, [A] Ryan Browne. Too much stuff happens to summarize it all. Most of the issue takes place in year 21, when the Idea Man launches his final assault, and then finally gets his comeuppance. Ting-Shu and Robbie finally meet. Then the series skips ahead in time to year 80, when most of the main characters have died of old age, so I’m not sure what next issue will be about. Eight Billion Genies is perhaps Charles Soule’s finest work.

SOMETHING IS KILLING THE CHILDREN #29 (Boom!, 2023) – “The Girl and the Hurricane Part 4,” [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Werther Dell’Edera. Erica escapes from the police station and finally finds a way to start turning the situation in her favor. Most of the issue is set at the House of Slaughter, where the Old Dragon basically tells Cecilia to let Erica kill Cutter, and then kill Erica herself. Cecilia sets off to do that. This conversation shows, again, that both the Old Dragon and Cecilia are complete sociopaths who care about nothing but increasing their own power.

ONCE UPON A TIME AT THE END OF THE WORLD #4 (Boom!, 2023) – “The Wild, the Woke, and the Wasteland Rangers,” [W] Jason Aaron, [A] Alexandre Tefenkgi. This issue focuses on the Wasteland Rangers, the brutal Boy-Scouts-based cult in which Mezzy was raised. We start with a flashback in which Mezzy’s best friend and love interest, Jennie, is driven to suicide by the Rangers’ abuse. There’s also a funny and creepy page where we see all the Wasteland Rangers’ merit badges, in things like snitching, manhunting, and not masturbating. The Wasteland Rangers are kind of like the Lumberjanes, except with exactly opposite values. In the present, the Rangers torture Maceo and force him to compete in the “Apocalympics,” while Mezzy continues to look for him.

SHE-HULK #10 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Rainbow Rowell, [A] Takeshi Miyazawa. Jack has to leave Earth because his containment suit was destroyed. In his absence, Jen throws herself into her work and is comforted by Patsy. Then Jack returns, but in fully powered form. This series sometimes seems to be more about Jack of Hearts than Jen, but this issue, for example, is not really about him, it’s more about how Jen copes with his disappearance and sudden return. Romantic relationships are a major theme of Rowell’s work, as seen in her novel Landline, and Jack’s inclusion in the series allows Rowell to explore that theme.

UNDISCOVERED COUNTRY #23 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Scott Snyder & Charles Soule, [A] Giuseppe Camuncoli & Leonardo Marcello Grassi. Again this issue is hard to summarize because it has such a dense plot. Some of the heroes finally reach the leader of the History Zone, a head in a jar on top of a robot dog’s body. I don’t know if this character has a name. The other heroes are finally about to learn the biggest secret in America’s history, but they’re interrupted before they can learn it. I hope next issue will provide some clarity as to just what’s going on here.

STRANGE ACADEMY: FINALS #4 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Skottie Young, [A] Humberto Ramos. The kids have their final exam, which requires them to survive in Limbo for an hour. Then they have to protect New Orleans from a hurricane. Emily finally loses all her allies from the school, but she finds a new ally in Dormammu, and she leads his army in an invasion of New Orleans. It’s odd how Emily has taken such a complete face-heel turn – her descent into villainy happened in the first place because she did something nice, but now she’s become thoroughly evil.

GROO: GODS AGAINST GROO #3 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Sergio Aragonés, [W] Mark Evanier. The armies of Tlaxpan and Mexahuapan go to war, while back in the other continent, Kayli is thrown into her dad’s prison cell. My favorite moment in this issue is when Groo is listing his favorite foods, including “putrid pelts in dung water” (a callback to Groo Meets Tarzan) and “one piece of asparagus.”

FANTASTIC FOUR #4 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Baxter Initiative,” [W] Ryan North, [A] Iban Coello. A flashback story that finally reveals why everyone hates the FF now. Due to a Negative Zone invasion, Reed was forced to send the Baxter Building a year into the future, along with all the people in and around it. That seemed like a good solution to Reed, but it meant that all those people were forced to be absent from the world for a full year, missing a year of their loved ones’ lives. After all the recent anti-superhero hysteria (see Devil’s Reign), that was the last straw, and the FF were exiled from New York. Back in the present, the FF are finally reunited. In the flashback sequence, Franklin and Val seem to be children of about the same age, even though they should be adults now. Marvel has again given up on trying to determine how old Franklin and Val are.

THE WASP #2 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Al Ewing, [A] Kasia Nie. Jan and Nadia go looking for the alien creature that killed Jan’s dad, and they fight an army of androids wearing Jan’s old costumes. Again, the main appeal of this issue is its detailed depiction of Jan and Nadia.

LOCAL MAN #1 (Image, 2023) – “Heartland,” [W/A] Tim Seeley & Tony Fleecs. Crossjack, a failed superhero, is forced to return home to live with his parents. And he has to walk ten miles to get to their house, because the only Uber driver in town refuses to pick him up. When he goes out to a bar, he gets assaulted by an old supervillain, and then when he defends himself, his former superhero teammates serve an injunction against him for violating the terms of his contract termination. And then someone murders the supervillain. Local Man is a fascinating exploration of the legacy of ‘90s Image comics, and it also draws upon Tim Seeley’s central theme of rural Midwestern life. This issue includes a flipbook backup story drawn in a parody of the ‘90s Image house style.

HOUSE OF SLAUGHTER #12 (Boom!, 2023) – “The Butcher’s Return Part 2,” [W] Tate Brombal, [A] Antonio Fuso. While Jace is trying to save the other kids, one of them, a boy named Sunny, is kidnapped by House of Slaughter agents. They use him as bait to attract some monsters and kill them. Then they take Sunny, now thoroughly traumatized, to the Butcher Shop, i.e. the former House of Boucher. The focus of this issue is on Jace’s desire to protect the kids, and his inability to save Sunny. Protecting children is also the theme of Tate Brombal’s other current series, Behold Behemoth.

BLACK CLOAK #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kelly Thompson, [A] Meredith McClaren. Phaedra continues to investigate Freyal’s murder, she meets with a human who’s next in line for the throne after Freyal’s death, and then she decides to somehow see what Freyal can tell her himself. This series has some cute and intriguing writing and art, but its plot and setting are very complicated, and I’m sometimes confused as to what’s going on.

BLUE BOOK #1 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Michael Avon Oeming. In 1961, an African-American husband and wife, Barney and Betty Hill, drive home from Montreal to New Hampshire. On the way they’re chased by an alien spaceship. There’s also a backup story with art by Klaus Janson (pencils as well as inks). Sadly this is the worst James Tynion comic I’ve read lately. Nothing really happens in the main story. Barney is a civil rights worker, so he could be an interesting character, but in this issue he doesn’t do or say anything of interest. I hope issue 2 will be an improvement.

SUPERMAN #1 (DC, 2023) – “Voices in Your Head,” [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Jamal Campbell. Superman captures Live Wire, Lois Lane takes Perry White’s old job, and Lex Luthor gives Superman his entire company. Superman is forced to accept this unwanted gift because if he doesn’t, the company will be dissolved and all its employees will be put out of work. If I were Clark, I wouldn’t believe that without talking to a corporate lawyer. I have trouble accepting that such a legal arrangement could actually work. In general this seems like a good start to the new era of Superman, but Superman, Son of Kal-El will be much missed.

RESIDENT ALIEN: THE BOOK OF LOVE #4 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Peter Hogan, [A] Steve Parkhouse. The two main plots, about the mobster and the burglary, are finally resolved. Then Asta discovers that she’s pregnant, even though she believed that she and Harry were unable to interbreed. This ending makes me excited for the next miniseries, The Book of Life, which has not been announced yet.

KAYA #5 (Image, 2023) – “Kaya and the Lizard-Riders Chapter 5,” [W/A] Wes Craig. We learn that when lizard people shed their skin, they’re considered different people. The fish people try to force Seth to marry their princess and give up his adventuring life. When Jin reveals that he already knew about Seth’s arranged marriage, Jin and Kaya get in a fight, and Jin runs away. While Seth and Kaya are looking for him, they’re captured by some monsters, and the issue ends with a two-page splash depicting the hideous “poison lands”. The best thing about Kaya is Wes Craig’s fascinating and unique art style, but the series is also worth reading because of its complex depiction of the three main characters’ relationships.

DAMN THEM ALL #5 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Charlie Adlard. A continuation of the same story as last issue. Ellie finds the man who killed Frankie’s wife, but his demon protects him from being harmed by magic, so she kills him by throwng a hammer in his face. Ellie summons Alfie’s spirit and asks him who killed him, and he claims to have killed himself. Damn Them All is brilliant, but also often quite hard to follow. I keep forgetting who all the villains and supporting characters are.

BATGIRLS #15 (DC, 2023) – “Dead Wrong,” [W] Becky Cloonan & Michael W. Conrad, [A] Neil Googe. (The same Neil Googe who drew Survival Geeks and ‘Splorers in 2000 AD.) Cassie finds Steph and her father Cluemaster, but Cluemaster shoots Steph dead. Luckily Cassie stole some Lazarus serum last issue, and she uses it to revive Steph. I was pretty sure Steph wasn’t going to stay dead.

JUNKYARD JOE #5 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Geoff Johns, [A] Gary Frank. Muddy and Joe return home to find that the villains are holding the kids hostage. Joe manages to escape with the kids, but Muddy is hit on the head. Joe and the kids escape into the snowy wood, with the killers following. At the end of the issue, we’re told that the Junkyard Joe project had to be shut down because the robot killed everybody it met – although if Joe really is planning to kill everyone he meets, he’s not in any hurry to do it. I still think Junkyard Joe might be Geoff Johns’s best work ever.

PETER PARKER & MILES MORALES: SPIDER-MEN DOUBLE TROUBLE #4 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mariko Tamaki & Vita Ayala, [A] GuriHiru. Peter and Miles capture Thanos in the pocket-universe can, then they shoot the can into space, where it’s picked up by the Collector.  This is another very fun issue. Notable moments include: After the cleaning crew has finally cleaned up the mess from the villain convention, Thanos, Peter and Miles run through the building and make an even worse mess, and one of the cleaners says “This is my villain origin story!” The AIM agent who was Thanos’s handler is thrilled to receive a signed photograph from him. Items in the Collector’s collection include Jeff the land shark, Alligator Loki, and a pair of boxer shorts.

SPIDER-MAN #5 (Marvel, 2023) – “It’s a Spectacular Life,” [W] Dan Slott, [A] Mark Bagley. In a flashback sequence, we see how history has been revised so that Peter never becomes Spider-Man, and instead Cindy Moon is bitten by the radioactive spider. Peter is shot by the burgler and is left disabled, but both May and Ben survive. Peter then becomes Spider-Man/Silk’s assistant and pursues a career with Oscorp. At the end of the issue, Peter gets a message saying “help.” This issue is a digression from the main storyline, but it’s an effective use of the “It’s a Wonderful Life” story structure. As an example of Dan Slott’s mastery of continuity, this issue includes a cameo appearance by Jason Ionello from Untold Tales of Spider-Man.

MONICA RAMBEAU: PHOTON #3 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Eve L. Ewing, [A] Ivan Fiorelli & Luca Maresca. Monica discovers that her world isn’t internally consistent: she’s been told that her mother is dead, yet when she calls her childhood home, her mother answers the phone. Monica discovers that the shifts in reality are being caused by the Stone of Hala. Then she traces the stone to its origin with a race of alien relic-keepers, and she saves the aliens from extinction. Back on Earth, Monica is told that she herself has broken the universe. The scene with the aliens is fairly touching.

SHIRTLESS BEAR-FIGHTER 2 #7 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jody LeHeup, [A] Nil Vendrell. Shirtless and Silva finally defeat Ursa Major, and Shirtless’s mother returns to his life. This is a  predictable but satisfying conclusion. Shirtless Bear-Fighter is kind of a one-joke comic, and it’s impressive that the creators have managed to keep it interesting for this long. I wonder if they have enough ideas for a third miniseries.

ACTION JOURNALISM #5 (Oni, 2023) – “We Are the Champions,” [W] Erik Skillman, [A] Miklós Felvidéki. We learn that the Volunteer is an intelligent meme, a superhero that anyone can become if they believe in him. The villain, an evil general, intended to use the Volunteer to create superhuman armies, but the original Volunteer escaped their control. Kate gives an inspiring speech (ending in “They are the eggmen, but we are the walrus”) that causes the entire city’s population to turn into Volunteers. As a result, the city is saved and the villain is defeated, but now everyone in town is a superhero. So maybe this comic is an unannounced prequel to Top 10. This was a really fun miniseries, and I hope I’m not the only person who was reading it.

IMMORTAL SERGEANT #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joe Kelly, [A] J.M. Ken Niimura. We are introduced to Sergeant Jim’s son Michael and his daughter-in-law Val. Michael and Val go to visit Jim, and Jim subjects Michael to severe verbal abuse in front of Michael’s wife and children. A nice moment in this issue is the two-page splash where Jim completely dwarfs Michael. However, it quickly becomes clear that Jim was and still is an abusive father, and that Michael, despite being an adult and a father himself, is terrified of him. And Val hates her father-in-law, and with good reason. I don’t understand why they’re willing to expose not only themselves, but also their children, to this awful old ogre. Also, as Brett Schenker pointed out on Facebook, it’s not clear what the point of this comic is. I’m willing to keep reading it, but only because it’s the follow-up to the classic I Kill Giants.

WONDER WOMAN #796 (DC, 2023) – “Before the Storm Finale,” [W] Michael W. Conrad & Becky Cloonan, [A] Amancay Nahuelpan. Diana and her allies fight Eros, and Hera is revealed to be collaborating with the wizard Shazam. This issue is just okay. We’ve now learned that Conrad and Cloonan are going to be replaced on this series by Tom King. Conrad and Cloonan have been doing a great job, but perhaps this series could use a new writer. However, I’ve had enough of Tom King (see my review of Human Target #12 below), and I’m going to drop Wonder Woman when he takes it over.

EVE: CHILDREN OF THE MOON #5 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Victor LaValle, [A] Jo Mi-Gyeong. The two Eves save the day by proving that they have people depending on them, just like Selene and Endymion do. The story ends peacefully, and the second Eve goes off to have adventures with Akai, while the first Eve decides to see how the rest of the world is getting along. So maybe there’s a third miniseries coming. At ICFA I was on a panel with Constance Bailey from Georgia State, who has taught Destroyer before, and I was able to inform her that Destroyer and Eve are set in the same universe.

I HATE FAIRYLAND V2 #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Skottie Young, [A] Brett Bean. Gert decides to take a bath, but she mistakenly goes to the Lake of Sacrifice instead of the Lake of Eternal Life, and she gets eaten by a giant fish. While inside the fish, Gert has a vision of sleeping with a handsome man, but then her sidekicks rescue her, and we discover that Gert created the “man” herself out of rotten flesh. The fish dies from being infected with Gert’s filth, and Gert continues on her quest, but the Blue Fairy comes along and brings Gert’s “lover” to life. Brett Bean is an effective artist for this series because he shares Skottie Young’s skill at gross-out humor.

GODFELL #1 (Vault, 2023) – untitled, [W] Christopher Sebela, [A] Ben Hennessy. Some time ago, God died, and his body fell onto the land of Kerethim. As a result Kerethim was plunged into a massive war. Now the war is over, and the protagonist, a soldier named Zanzi, is ready to return home to her family. Her commander announces that the war isn’t really over, and there’s one more campaign left. Zanzi decides to desert from her army and go home anyway. On the way she acquires an unwanted companion, a young woman named Neth, and the issue ends as they start their journey through the giant corpse of God. Godfell has some interesting worldbuilding, and it tells a compelling story about what happens to soldiers when the war ends. I’m not in love with Ben Hennessy’s art, though. The idea of a giant divine corpse reminds me of We Only Find Them When They’re Dead, of course, but also James Morrow’s novel Towing Jehovah.

MOSELY #2 (Boom!, 2023) – “Belly of the Beast,” [W] Rob Guillory, [A] Sam Lotfi. Mosely “liberates” some people from their enslavement to virtual reality, but the people are thoroughly ungrateful, since virtual reality is much better than their actual lives. Then Mosely goes to see his estranged wife, who lives in a survivalist compound. There’s a backup story which is both written and drawn by Guillory. Mosely is an interesting character, but Mosely (the series) still isn’t as compelling as Chew or Farmhand.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #129 facsimile (Marvel, 1974/2023) – “The Punisher Strikes Twice!”, [W] Gerry Conway, [A] Ross Andru. I’m not sure whether or not I’ve read this story before. This, of course, is the Punisher’s first appearance. From the start, he’s depicted as an ambiguous and troubling character, a villain with heroic motives. Perhaps this is why Gerry Conway hates the appropriation of the Punisher’s symbol by the far right, or by cops or soldiers. Conway never meant for the Punisher to be an admirable figure. This issue includes some excellent action sequences, as well as some nice characterization. At this point Peter was still recovering from Gwen’s death, and a poignant moment is when he puts on a false smile before entering the Daily Bugle offices. This facsimile edition is recolored in a very garish style that makes it look quite different from original comics of this era.

THE DEAD LUCKY #6 (Image, 2023) – “There’s No Shame in Surrender,” [W] Melissa Flores, [A] French Carlomagno. This issue is mostly a giant fight scene. At the end, Bibi agrees to work for Morrow in exchange for full amnesty for the Salvation Gang. She’s willing to accept this awful deal so she can defeat Morrow from the inside. I certainly hope this is the last issue of Dead Lucky, but if there’s a second story arc, I’m not going to bother reading it. There are worse things than not having a complete Massiveverse collection.

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES #137 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Sophie Campbell, [A] Fero Pe. Yet another tedious Armageddon Game crossover. I’m tempted to just drop this series for now, and to start reading it again when Armageddon Game ends. The things I liked about this series – its strong characterization and its diverse ensemble cast – have completely fallen by the wayside.

GRIM #8 (Boom!, 2023) – “Into the Void,” [W] Stephanie Phillips, [A] Flaviano. Jess’s mom escapes from prison. Her old boss, Adria, claims that it’s Jess’s fault that no one is dying, and she sends the other Grim Reapers to hunt down Jess. Then Jess meets three women who look like the three fates, and one of them says “You can’t kill what is not living,” which is very close to Judge Death’s catchphrase “You cannot kill what does not live!” I had been feeling lukewarm about Grim, but I really like its style of art and coloring, and Jess is an enjoyable protagonist.

ICE CREAM MAN #34 (Image, 2023) – “Two Tramps,” [W] W. Maxwell Prince, [A] Martín Morazzo. This issue’s title may be a reference to Robert Frost’s poem “Two Tramps in Mud Time,” which I find problematic because of its elitist, classist depiction of the two migrant workers. Anyway, this issue is about two hobos riding the rails. One of them is killed by a creature from an urban legend, but the other one captures some sunlight in a bottle, and the story ends on a happier note than most issues of Ice Cream Man. This is a well-constructed short story. According to an article I found, traditional hobos have become uncommon because of better railroad security, and because traditional train cars have been replaced by sealed shipping containers.

SPECS #4 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] David M. Booher, [A] Chris Shehan. Ted is cleared of the murder charges, but he and his family are forced to move away. Kenny confesses his love to Ted, who does not share Kenny’s feelings, but they remain friends. In a flashforward sequence, Kenny speaks at Ted’s funeral, and we learn that Ted became a well-respected sports coach before dying of a stroke. The series ends with some far-future kids finding the spectacles. Specs was pretty good, and it proves that David M. Booher can write other things besides Canto. However, I hope there won’t be a sequel miniseries about the next people who find the glasses, because that would be too similar to Silver Coin.  

RADIANT PINK #3 (Image, 2023) – “The World’s Worst Love Story,” [W] Meghan Camarena & Melissa Flores, [A] Emma Kubert. Eva and Kelly travel through some more alternate universes, and they meet the giant four-eyed cat again. This issue has some cute artwork, but it completely loses track of Eva’s character arc. The original Radiant Pink story was compelling because it illustrated the toxic nature of the streamer lifestyle. I want to read more about how Eva balances her superhero career with her job, not about Eva’s journeys through weird alien worlds. Also, I still think Emma Kubert’s art is inappropriate for the Massiveverse.

IMMORAL X-MEN #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Bond Age,” [W] Kieron Gillen, [A] Lan Medina. Mr. Sinister fights Emma Frost and continues to search for his missing lab. This whole crossover feels like a waste of time, because we can already see how the status quo is going to be restored at the end. Also, I’m getting bored with Mr. Sinister and his cartoonish villainy.

ART BRUT #3 (Image, 2016/2023) – untitled, [W] W. Maxwell Prince, [A] Martín Morazzo. Our hero travels inside Edvard Munch’s The Scream, and there’s a backup story about American Gothic. It’s a little annoying that this series only involves the most famous, cliched paintings, but otherwise Art Brut is another effective work by Prince and Morazzo.

SUPERMAN: SPACE AGE #3 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell, [A] Mike Allred. Pa Kent dies of old age. Batman is forced to sacrifice his life to defeat the Joker, and as a result, Luthor  takes control of Wayne Enterprises. But Luthor’s victory is worthless because the entire universe is about to be destroyed in Crisis on Infinite Earths. Superman is unable to save the universe, but he resurrects the human race on another planet. This ending is an anticlimax, and it’s also too close to what happens in FF: Life Story, where Reed spends the whole series trying to prevent the end of the world. The only difference this time is that Superman fails where Reed succeeded. Besides the ineffective ending, Superman: Space Age was an excellent miniseries overall.

DANGER STREET #3 (DC, 2023) – “Metamorpho,” [W] Tom King, [A] Jorge Fornes. All the separate plotlines continue, but nothing truly significant happens. I can’t tell where Danger Street’s plot is going, but maybe that’s okay. Regardless of where it’s going, Danger Street gives Tom King an opportunity to write about a large cast of weird characters, and maybe that’s enough. I especially like the contrast between Danger Street’s mundane setting and its strange protagonists. The series has the same aesthetic as the scene in Ambush Bug where Darkseid is eating at McDonald’s.

IMAGE! 30TH ANNIVERSARY ANTHOLOGY #10 (Image, 2023) – [E] Eric Stephenson? “Lucky Coin” by John Layman and Jok is a preview of both a new upcoming series, In Hell We Fight, and the third story arc of Silver Coin. There’s also a preview of the next Bitter Root story arc, though this preview is more a series of pinups than an actual story. Simon Roy’s “The Ansible” includes perhaps his best art yet. I thought at first that it was drawn by Chris Schweizer, and that counts as praise. The other stories in this issue are the same as usual. Fletcher and Henderson’s “Red Stitches” has been a huge disappointment. I don’t understand it at all, and I don’t have the patience to read all ten chapters in order, so as to see what I’ve been missing.

HEXWARE #3 (Image, 2023) – “The Drowning Hymn,” [W] Tim Seeley, [A] Zulema Scotto Lavina. Which-Where fights a green-skinned horned man wearing a tiger-skin cloak. Hexware has some interesting themes, but it’s still too complicated and I can’t make sense of it.

EARTHDIVERS #5 (IDW, 2023) – “Can You See the Indian?”, [W] Stephen Graham Jones, [A] Davide Gianfelice. Another confusing issue. The guy in the past starts killing people and tearing up the ships’ sails, but he hasn’t gotten to Columbus yet. And who knows what’s going on with the people in the future. Rather than writing this series by himself, Stephen Graham Jones should have co-written it with someone who had more comics experience.

BULLS OF BEACON HILL #2 (Aftershock, 2023) – “Beyond the Realms of Death,” [W] Steve Orlando, [A] Andy Macdonald. In a flashback to Christopher’s childhood, Orin catches Christopher “playing doctor” with a male friend, and Orin is furious. In the present, Orin’s goons try to convince Chris to quit the race, but Chris beats them up brutally. Chris’s boyfriend, Bill, is understandably terrified by this and decides to leave Chris. This is another strong issue.

INFERNO GIRL RED #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mat Groom, [A] Erica D’Urso. Cássia battles a series of villains and monsters, with her mother coaching her. In the climax, another villain kidnaps Ana. This is another entertaining issue, though it’s still too long; this miniseries should have been split up into four issues instead of three. As before, the best part of this series is Cássia’s relationship with Ana. Cássia loves her mother, but sometimes chafes at Ana’s smothering presence.

DEAD SEAS #3 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Cavan Scott, [A] Nick Brokenshire. Things go from bad to worse, as the ghosts get free, the ship catches  fire, and then the power goes out, causing the ship to turn straight into a giant wave. Dead Seas continues to be a very scary piece of horror, though this issue just continues the existing plot without adding anything new.

MY BAD VOL. 2 #4 (Ahoy, 2023) – “Home Sweet Home,” [W] Mark Russell, [A] Peter Krause. As noted in my review of #3, this issue begins by acknowledging that the pizza killer plot is already over, “so there’s really nothing you need to know.” The “heroes” spend this issue preparing for an imminent alien invasion. It just occurred to me that Mark Russell may be the new Steve Gerber. Russell certainly has Gerber’s talent for blending poignancy and profundity with random weirdness.

[LES INNOMABLES V1]: AVENTURE EN JAUNE (Glénat, 1986) – [W] Yann Le Pennetier, [A] Didier Conrad. I bought this at the Fantagraphics store in about 2013. This series has a complicated textual history. The title on my copy is just Aventure en Jaune, but it became the first album of the series Les Innommables. Then there was a new edition of the series where Aventure en Jaune instead became the second album. And there’s also a zeroth album, which was never published on its own. On top of that, the sixth album, Alix-Noni-Tengu, exists in two versions, one with a happy ending and another with an unhappy ending, which is canonical. Anyway, Les Innomables is set in Hong Kong in 1949. Its protagonists are three American deserters, Mac, Tim and Tony. When they save a Chinese sex worker named Alix from being drowned, the three deserters get involved in a complex plot involving a villain named Colonel Lychee, and Mac’s girlfriend, Roseau Fleuri, is murdered as a result. Meanwhile, the entire city of Hong Kong is preparing for a Red Chinese invasion, which in real life never happened. Les Innommables is a fascinating but difficult work, not only because I’m reading it in French, but also because of its multi-layered and complex plot. Also, this album is full of stereotypical depictions of black and Chinese people. Despite all that, this is a really interesting work, and I would really like to read the rest of the series. Of course there are lots of other French comics I also want to read…

NOW #12 (Fantagraphics, 2023) – [E] Eric Reynolds. This is quite long, but its length is deceptive because many of the stories in it are abstract, and so they can be read very quickly. The highlight of this issue for me is one of the more representational stories, Noah Van Sciver’s “Mellow Mutt,” about when he was a child and was misinformed about what Jurassic Park was. I also liked Tim Lane’s “Li’l Stevie,” which seems to be part of his ongoing Steve McQueen saga, and is drawn in the style of antique comic strips. Kayla E.’s “Precious Rubbish” is a combination of old comics pages, from Harvey comics or Matt Baker’s Canteen Kate, with preexisting texts from the Bible or elsewhere. Kayla E. was at Heroes Con last year, and I looked through some of the stuff she had at her table. Her style is really interesting, but she has yet to publish a major work. The book version of Precious Rubbish is supposedly forthcoming from Fantagraphics next year. One of the other artists in this issue, François Vigneault, is also the letterer for Pink Lemonade.

FIRST ISSUE SPECIAL #2 (DC, 1975) – “The Green Team,” [W] Joe Simon, [A] Jerry Grandenetti. The Green Team are three extremely rich young boys who have decided to spend their money on worthy causes. A fourth boy, Abdul Smith (who is black, unlike the first three), wants to join the Green Team, but he can’t because he doesn’t have enough money. But he deposits $5.00 in the bank and is mistakenly credited with $500,000. Before the bank discovers the error, he invests the $500,000 to invest in stocks and earns $1.5 million dollars, so he’s allowed to join the team. This issue includes some interesting splash pages by Grandenetti, who was a devoted disciple of Eisner, but it’s one of the dumbest DC comics of the ‘70s. It has a boring premise which is executed in a ridiculous, implausible way. DC somehow decided that these characters were worthy of an ongoing series, but that series was cancelled before it was published. Two issues were completed and were only ever published as part of Cancelled Comic Cavalcade – and by the way, that’s a comic that deserves a reprint. The Green Team’s next appearance wasn’t until the 2013 series The Movement.

BILLIONAIRE ISLAND: CULT OF DOGS #3 (Ahoy, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell, [A] Steve Pugh. In the opening sequence, an old couple’s house is repossessed, and the couple put all their stuff in their car and drive away… straight into the ocean. Then the guy on the island finally manages to escape with Business Dog, but his plane is shut down. We also meet some people who are living in an abandoned mall. I still don’t think this series’s premise makes sense. If only one person had any money, and everyone else was broke, then surely all the other people would invent some alternative currency that they could use to buy stuff.

SABRETOOTH AND THE EXILES #4 (Marvel, 2023) – “Station Four,” [W] Victor LaValle, [A] Leonard Kirk. Sabretooth and his team head toward the station where all the kidnapped mutant babies are kept, but on the way there, Sabretooth is captured by his son Graydon Creed. This series has been a big disappointment. It has some interesting themes, but LaValle has no chance to explore those themes because he’s too busy with getting all the plot points out of the way.

SWAMP THING: GREEN HELL #2 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Doug Mahnke.  It’s been more than a year since issue 1, and I’ve completely forgotten what that issue was about. Luckily issue 2 makes sense on its own. Swampy tries to protect the man and the little girl from the forces of the Green, but he’s fighting an uphill battle, because he’s lost his power to generate new bodies. And then the forces of the Black and the Red also get involved. To save the day, Constantine and Deadman have to go looking for Animal Woman, i.e. Maxine Baker.

PINK LEMONADE #6 (Oni, 2023) – untitled, [W] Nick Cagnetti. Pink Lemonade hosts a free concert and movie premiere, in direct competition with Zavi Xarad’s “official” movie premiere. To Zavi’s embarrassment, his own star, Starla Swanson, admits that she’s not the real Pink Lemonade. Then Pink tells everyone about how Zavi screwed over Smithee McClarence. The series ends happily. This was a very fun comic, and I hope it got the attention it deserved. Oni’s comic books tend to get insufficient publicity.

NIGHTCRAWLERS #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “Voices of Fire,” [W] Si Spurrier, [A] Paco Medina. Kurt now leads a team consisting of other superheroes with Nightcrawler genes. Their goal is to collect mystical artifacts in order to acquire enough power to break into Sinister’s lab. Again, it’s hard to care about any of these Sins of Sinister chapters, because I already know that nothing that happens in these stories is going to remain in continuity.

MY LITTLE PONY: FRIENDSHIP IS MAGIC 10TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION #1 (IDW, 2023) – “Written by Spike,” [W] Jeremy Whitley, [A] Andy Price. Most of this issue is a reprint of MLP: FIM #1. I bought this issue – at a rather exorbitant price – because it also contains a new story available nowhere else, and this story is directly relevant to my research. In “Written by Spike,” Spike is established as being the in-universe writer of the My Little Pony comics, and a fanboy asks him why the My Little Pony comics are incompatible with the show’s continuity. He gives several examples of this, including the inconsistent depiction of King Sombra. In response, Spike points out that he was writig the comics as the show was still going on, and someone else says that the comics are “party canon” rather than actual canon. I will have more to say about this topic elsewhere.

WHIZ COMICS #2 facsimile (DC, 1940/2023) – “Captain Marvel,” [W] Bill Parker, [A] C.C. Beck. Captain Marvel’s origin is a classic scene which is repeated almost verbatim in every later retelling of it. All the classic elements are there from the start, like the Seven Deadly Enemies of Man, or the giant block hanging over Shazam’s head. In the second half of the story, Captain Marvel defeats Sivana for the first time. This issue also includes such other features as Ibis the Invincible, Spy Smasher and Golden Arrow. The latter character is a sort of hybrid of Green Arrow and Li’l Abner. There’s also a story about an adventurer named Dan Dare, not to be confused with the much more famous British character created a decade later.

Y: THE LAST MAN #36 (DC, 2005) – “Boy Loses Girl,” [W] Brian K. Vaughan, [A] Pia Guerra. This issue focuses on Yorick’s lost girlfriend Beth. It consists of a series of sequences from Beth’s perspective, narrated out of chronological order. At the end, Beth wakes up somewhere in the Australian desert and says “Yorick.” A rather offensive moment in this issue is where Beth is talking to some Aboriginal Australians, and one of them says “ ‘Magic’ is just nonsense we made up to keep the children occupied and the whites scared… the dreamtime is over.” Another Aboriginal woman does disagree with her. But Vaughan lets the first woman have the last word, and that creates the impression that he’s casually dismissing Aboriginal people’s spirituality.

FRENCH ICE #3 (Renegade, 1987) – “The Club” etc., [W/A] Jean-Marc Lelong. A series of stories about Carmen Cru, a hideous old battleaxe who maintains her independence despite her extreme age, and who has no patience for all the people who try to “help” her. Carmen Cru is a very distinctive character, and Lelong’s draftsmanship is beautiful. However, Carmen Cru’s stories employ a very French style of humor, and they also probably lose a lot in translation. As a major contributor to Fluide Glacial, Lelong represents a tradition of French comics which is completely unknown to American readers. All of this means that Carmen Cru was a strange choice of a comic to translate into English. As proof of that, I’ve probably owned French Ice #3 for at least a decade, and I didn’t get around to reading it until just now.

CONGO BILL #1 (Vertigo, 1999) – “The Message,” [W] Scott Cunningham, [A] Danijel Zezelj. I probably bought this because Danijel Zezelj is a well-known European artist. However, Congo Bill #1 is blatantly racist, or at least that was my impression on first reading. It’s set in the Congo during the Second Congo War, and it reproduces all the stock African stereotypes. It depicts Congolese people as ignorant savages who believe in fetishism and who enjoy monkey meat, especially the penis. The protagonist, a black American, observes the ugliness of Kinshasa and says “This is hell. Can’t blame Satan, though. Blame the locals – black faces from sea to shinin’ sea. This is their land, and they still can’t control it.” It’s a character saying this, not the author, but there are no authentic Congolese voices in the issue that could contradict him. (BTW, I assume Scott Cunningham is neither black nor Congolese, though I can’t find much information about him.) When dealing with a character like Congo Bill who has deeply racist and colonialist origins, it’s important to be sensitive. It is possible for a white creator to write an anti-racist story about a character who originated as a racist stereotype. As proof of this, see Animal Man #13, where Grant Morrison turns B’Wana Beast into an anti-apartheid freedom fighter. But Cunningham and Zezelj seem to have instead chosen to just lean into the racist stereotypes behind Congo Bill.

THE FLASH #765 (DC, 2020) – “Finish Line,” [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Howard Porter. In the last issue of Joshua Williamson’s run, Barry has his final confrontation with Reverse Flash, and then he attends a barbecue with the rest of the Flash family. Wally is absent because he’s missing, and Barry promises to find him. Until just recently, I hadn’t read the Flash since Mark Waid’s last run, and one reason is because I just don’t care about Barry. I grew up reading Mark Waid’s original Flash run, and to me Wally has always been the Flash, while Barry seems like a boring and generic character.

DOCTOR STRANGE: FALL SUNRISE #4 (Marvel, 2023) – “A Faith for All and None,” [W/A] Tradd Moore. Again this issue’s story makes no sense at all, but its artwork is stunning. Tradd Moore’s draftsmanship and page layouts are maybe a little less radical than in earlier issues, but Fall Sunrise is still the best-drawn Marvel comic in the last few years. Tradd Moore was just added to the Heroes Con guest list, and I look forward to telling him how beautiful Fall Sunrise was.

MARVEL VOICES: WAKANDA FOREVER #1 (Marvel, 2023) – [E] Will Moss. This issue’s first story is a boring waste of space. The second story is a bit better, in that it situates Wakanda in the context of the Italian conquest of Ethiopia. It’s one of the few occasions where Wakanda assists other African nations, although the assistance is unofficial. Then there are a couple more boring stories, one of which is based on a folktale about Anansi. “The Last Black Panther” is the best story in the issue by far, since it’s by Juni Ba. In the paper I just gave at ICFA, I cited Juni Ba’s work as a standout example of Africanfuturism in comics. Most Black Panther comics are Afrofuturist, which is not the same thing.

FRENCH ICE #6 (Renegade, 1987) – as above. More stories in the same style and format as those in issue 3. In this issue’s last story, Carmen Cru looks at her photo album, and we see that she’s always been hideous. This is the last issue of French Ice in my collection, but somehow the series made it to issue 13.

ANNA & FROGA/PIPPI LONGSTOCKING COLOR SPECIAL #1 (Drawn & Quarterly, 2013) – multiple stories, [W/A] Anouk Ricard and Ingrid Vang Nyman. Half of this FCBD comic consists of Anna & Froga stories by Anouk Ricard. These stories are drawn in a style resembling children’s drawings, and they seem aimed at small children. The other half of the issue consists of Ingrid Vang Nyman’s Pippi Longstocking comics from the ‘50s. Her writing seems to be in a similar vein to Astrid Lindgren’s original works, but her dialogue is unfunny, and her art style is bizarre and, in my opinion, rather ugly.

THE LEGEND OF LUTHER STRODE #4 (Image, 2013) – untitled, [W] Justin Jordan, [A] Tradd Moore. Another issue full of frenetic violence and gore. Tradd Moore’s art here is not bad, but it’s not spectacular either. He’s grown tremendously as an artist over the past decade.

DIAL H #10 (DC, 2013) – “On the Side of the Angels,” [W] China Miéville, [A] Alberto Ponticelli. Another issue with some mildly interesting character concepts, but no clear plot or theme. The only notable plot twist is that one of the dials is meant to be used to dial SIDE, for sidekick, instead of HERO. I previously said that Stephen Graham Jones would have been better off working with a more experienced comics writer, and that’s also true of Miéville.

2000 AD #1814 (Rebellion, 2013) – After reading #1826, I realized I had skipped a bunch of earlier issues, so I went back and started reading those issues. I do have prog 1827, and I’ll get to it later. Dredd: “Heller’s Last Stand Part 2,” [W] Robbie Morrison, [A] Peter Doherty. This is th one about the corrupt judge. In this one, Dredd deliberately gives Heller an opportunity to shoot him, and reveals that he knows Heller is corrupt. Red Seas: “Fire Across the Deep Part 3,” [W] Ian Edginton, [A] Steve Yeowell. The heroes encounter some of the biblical giants in the earth. Savage: “Rise Like Lions  Part 3,” [W] Pat Mills, [A] Patrick Goddard. This issue begins with a spectacular two-page splash depicting an army of Hammersteins. Then Savage  decides to lead the resistance against the Volgans, and the chapter ends with him saying the title of this story arc. Ampney Crucis: “The Entropy Tango Part 3,” [W] Edginton, [A] Simon Davis. Ampney meets the Martian investigator, and also a giant creature with an axolotl’s head. The title “The Entropy Tango” comes from a 1987 Jerry Cornelius novel by Michael Moorcock, which suggests that Ampney is an example of the Cornelius archetype. Strontium Dog: “The Life and Death of Johnny Alpha Chapter 3: Mutant Spring,” [W] John Wagner, [A] Carlos Ezquerra. Johnny gets Sir Pelham Grenville to admit on national TV that he’s been  sterilizing people on purpose. Ezquerra’s art in this story is not his best, and it’s made worse by inappropriate coloring.

LASER ERASER & PRESSBUTTON #2 (Eclipse, 1985) – “Sins of the Flesh,” [W] Steve Moore, [A] David Lloyd. Axel and Mysta investigate a compound made of synthetic flesh, where eyes and nipples are constantly appearing on the walls. Also they encounter Zirk, who reproduces into eight copies of itself. The backup story is “Twilight World” by Steve Moore and Jim Baikie. It’s a shame that there isn’t a complete reprint of all the Pressbutton stories, both British and American.  

Y: THE LAST MAN #37 (Vertigo, 2005) – “Paper Dolls Chapter 1,” [W] Brian K. Vaughan, [A] Pia Guerra. A reporter investigates rumors that there’s still a man alive somewhere. Yorick and Agent 355 are now aboard a submarine, but they disembark in Sydney to look for Beth. Yorick disguises himself by wearing a burqa that covers his face. That makes no logical sense, because in my understanding the burqa is only supposed to be worn in front of men, and the premise of this series is that Yorick is the only man left. I remember that other characters in this series were previously shown wearing the burqa, and I wonder if BKV ever explained this. Anyway, Yorick discovers a message left for Beth by someone named Margo, but then the aforementioned journalist unmasks him and photographs him naked.

BATMAN #33 (DC, 2014) – “Zero Year: Savage City,” [W] Scott Snyder, [A] Greg Capullo. Batman fights the Riddler, though, appropriately, it’s less a fight than a riddle contest. Then Batman is forced to electrocute himself to defeat the Riddler’s plot and stop Gotham from being nuked. Alfred arrives in time to rescue Bruce, and later Bruce imagines himself marrying Julie Madison, but instead decides to devote himself to being Batman full-time. This was a happier, more positive story than I expect from Snyder.

FUTURE FIGHT FIRSTS: LUNA SNOW #1 (Marvel, 2019) – untitled, [W] Alyssa Wong, [A] Gang Hyuk Lim. Luna Snow is a superstar K-pop singer, but she also has superpowers, and she has to use them to defeat a villain that invades her concert. This is just an okay story, though it does suggest the writer has some knowledge of the K-pop industry. This issue includes a Future Avengers backup story with art by Alé Garza and Cory Hamscher. Until now I didn’t realize that Luna Snow debuted in a mobile game and only later appeared in comics.

GREEN ARROW #38 (DC, 1990) – “The Black Arrow Saga Part 4: Hunters and Killers,” [W] Mike Grell, [A] Mark Jones. Ollie, Eddie Fyers and Shado team up, and they confront the people who  framed Ollie for trying to blow up the Panama Canal. The villains try to justify the frame-up by saying that the government needed an excuse to increase troop levels in Panama, even though Bush’s invasion of Panama was unpopular. I remember when America invaded Panama, though I was only seven years old at the time, and I didn’t really understand what was going on. At the end of the issue, Ollie declines to kill the main villain in cold blood, but Eddie does it instead. Grell has confirmed that Eddie Fyers’s appearance was modeled on Archie Goodwin.

MOEBIUS’ AIRTIGHT GARAGE: THE ELSEWHERE PRINCE #1 (Epic, 1990) – “The Jouk,” [W] Moebius & R.J.M. Lofficer. This series was published in both English and French at nearly the same time. In this issue, a party of soldiers passes through a village, and one of the villagers, a young artist, follows the soldiers and tags along with them. Then all the soldiers are killed in a fight with an insect (the “jouk” of the title), except the youngest one. Eric Shanower has a rather different style from Moebius, but his art is very detailed and Clear-Line-esque, so it makes sense for him to illustrate an Airtight Garage spinoff. However, the idea of an Airtight Garage spinoff is kind of silly, since the original Airtight Garage has no real plot or worldbuilding to speak of.

THE OTHER SIDE #1 (Vertigo, 2006) – “If You’re Lucky, You’ll Only Get Killed,” [W] Jason Aaron, [A] Cameron Stewart. In his first major work, Jason Aaron tells two parallel stories about an American and a Vietnamese soldier. Since this is a Vertigo story, there are also some horror themes. Jason Aaron deserves credit for trying to tell this story from the Vietnamese perspective, unlike so many Americans who write about the Vietnam War. (Viet Thanh Nguyen has complained about the American media’s tendency to focus only on the American perspective on the Vietnam War.) However, Vo Binh Dai, the Vietnamese protagonist, feels like a trite character. I don’t think Jason Aaron had enough cultural knowledge or experience to write in the voice of a Vietnamese man.

FIGHTIN’ ARMY #91 (Charlton, 1970) – “Too Little Time,” [W] Willi Franz, [A] Sam Glanzman. Willy Schultz and an Italian partisan, Elena, hide out in a farmhouse, only to discover that the farmers hate the partisans as much as they hate the Nazis. Willy manages to save himself and Elena despite being betrayed by the farmer and his wife, and he restrains himself from killing the two of them. This story is a gripping and realistic depiction of the hardship and moral ambiguity of war. “The Lonely War of Willy Schultz”  was one of the few great comics Charlton published, and Dark Horse is to be praised for bringing it back into print. The other stories in this issue are of no importance, though one of them is drawn by Pat Boyette under the pseudonym Sam Swell.

JEROME K. JEROME BLOCHE VOL. 1: THE SHADOW KILLER (IDW, 1985/2017) – [W] Pierre Makyo & Serge Le Tendre, [A] Alain Dodier. Jerome K. Jerome Bloche (named after the English author Jerome K. Jerome) is a naive aspiring detective whose hobby is listening to recordings of police sirens. And somehow he (like Nightcrawler) has a beautiful girlfriend who works as a flight attendant. This issue he investigates a series of mysterious killings. Dodier’s artwork in this album is moody and super-realistic, but what really stands out to me about this book is its protagonist. Jerome is so adorably naïve that it’s no wonder Babette loves him. IDW also published the second volume in this series, and there are at least 26 more albums that are only available in French.

LITTLE ARCHIE #150 (Archie, 1980) – “The Sail Car,” [W/A] Dexter Taylor, etc. The Dexter Taylor stories in this issue are boring as usual, but the first one is interesting in that it mentions the 1979 oil crisis. The reason I bought this issue is the new Bob Bolling story “Winning Ways.” In this story Veronica follows Archie all over town, and he ignores her and tries to drive her away – until she saves him from a gang of bullies. This story is another example of Bolling’s mastery of short-form storytelling. I continue to think it’s a travesty that no one has published a complete collection of Bolling’s Little Archie stories. They could even do it in a few thematic volumes – one volume for outdoor stories, another one for school stories, and a third for stories starring the Mad Dr. Doom and Chester.

BATMAN #107 (DC, 2021) – “The Cowardly Lot Part 2,” [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Jorge Jimenez. Another chapter of the Ghost-Maker/Clownhunter saga. This issue has good artwork and a large ensemble cast, but there’s not much to distinguish one issue of this storyline from another. This issue also includes a Ghost-Maker backup story with art by Ricardo Lopez Ortiz.

CHEVAL NOIR #13 (Dark Horse, 1990) – [E] Terry Nantier, Randy Lofficer & Jean-Marc Lofficer? This issue includes chapters of some excellent European comics, including Andreas’s Rork, Schuiten and Peeters’s The Tower, Rosinski and Van Hamme’s The Great Power of the Chninkel, Cosey’s Voyage to Italy, and Tardi’s Roach Killer. There’s also a short story, “Adrift,” by Richard Forgues, who I haven’t heard of. He draws in a style resembling that of Pratt or Comès. He seems to have mostly worked for American comics, and it’s possible that “Adrift” is an original story and not a reprint. The problem with Cheval Noir #13 is that it’s entirely in black and white. For most of the stories this isn’t a problem, but The Great Power of the Chninkel, in particular, is nearly unreadable without color. And that’s a shame because Cheval Noir was the only place where this series was ever published in English. Cheval Noir seems to have focused on the type of stories that appeared in Casterman’s À Suivre magazine, although I don’t know if there was any direct connection between the two magazines.

2000 AD #1813 (Rebellion, 2013) – Another issue I skipped by mistake. Dredd: “Heller’s Last Stand Part 1,” [W] Robbie Morrison, [A] Peter Doherty. Here we see why Heller is trying to kill Dredd: because he’s fallen in love with a sex worker, and some sex workers have kidnapped her and threatened to kill her unless Heller kills Dredd. Savage: as above. The British establishment decides to launch an offensive against the Volgans. Savage promises not to get involved personally, because his life is too valuable, but in #1814 we see that this promise was a lie. Ampney Crucis: as above. Crucis finds a woolly mammoth in the barn, then he’s summoned to meet with the Martian ambassador, which he mishears as the Mauritanian ambassador. Red Seas: as above. No idea what this story is about. Strontium Dog: as above. Johnny escapes from some pursuing government troops, taking Pelham Grenville with him.

SWAMP THING #149 (DC, 1994) – “The Root of All Evil,” [W] Mark Millar, [A] Phil Hester. All I can remember about this issue is that Sargon the Sorcerer appears in it, or maybe it’s not Sargon himself but someone else inhabiting his body. Also, there’s an old man who looks like Odin. Not a particularly notable issue.  

IN HIS STEPS (Fleming H. Revell, 1977) – “In His Steps,” [W/A] Al Hartley. An adaptation of In His Steps, the novel that popularized the slogan “What Would Jesus Do?” The original novel is from 1896, but Hartley’s adaptation is set in contemporary America. This issue’s plot and characterization are very basic. It’s mostly about how the WWJD slogan inspires people to clean up their lives, and also to close down strip clubs and dive bars, though in my opinion those things are perfectly fine. In His Steps is not a great comic, but at least it’s not blatantly offensive, as was the last Spire Christian Comic I read, The Hiding Place.  

ADVENTURE COMICS #431 (DC, 1974) – “The Wrath of… the Spectre,” [W] Michael Fleisher, [A] Jim Aparo. I already had this issue, but my copy was missing some story pages. Fleisher and Aparo’s first Spectre story is the beginning of an absolutely classic one, although I think their best story may be the one where the guy gets turned to wood and sawed into pieces. The backup story, “Is a Snerl Human?” by Sheldon Mayer and Alex Toth, is also a classic. Snerls are pink furry aliens who have been enslaved by humans. After they free themselves from slavery, we learn that the answer to the title question is, sadly, yes – because the Snerls proceed to enslave the humans just as brutally as they themselves were enslaved.

FEARLESS DEFENDERS #6 (Marvel, 2013) – untitled, [W] Cullen Bunn, [A] Will Sliney. Some superheroines get possessed by evil Valkyries and fight some other superheroines. The word “shieldmaidens” is used far too many times. I like the idea behind this series, but I haven’t read any Cullen Bunn comics that I really liked.

HOUSE OF YANG #6 (Charlton, 1976) – “The Shogun of Karu Island,” [W] Joe Gill, [A] Warren Sattler. One of Yang’s ancestors travels to a fictitious Japanese island and is held as a slave, and I don’t remember what else happens. This comic’s writing and art are boring, and it shows no knowledge of either Chinese or Japanese culture. I don’t think this story could have been set in any period of Japanese history, because it includes samurai, but also modern ships and clothing. House of Yang was most notable for including the work of Sanho Kim, the first artist to draw in an East Asian style for American comic books. He didn’t draw this issue, but he’s discussed on the letters page. The editor acknowledges that Kim had insider knowledge of the stories he was drawing, but also kind of implies that Kim had access to some sort of mystical Asian essence: “When he draws China, he captures the spirit of the land and its people.”

BLACK WIDOW #2 (Marvel, 2014) – untitled, [W] Nathan Edmondson, [A] Phil Noto. This issue has some striking painted art, but a trite story. Of the four Black Widow ongoing series since 2014, this was probably the worst, though I haven’t read the 2010 volume. Nathan Edmondson is a notorious predator, and his career seems to have ended as a result; he has no GCD credits after 2016.

FABULOUS FURRY FREAK BROTHERS #5 (Rip Off, 1988) – “Grass Roots” et al., [W/A] Gilbert Shelton. This issue begins with a Fat Freddy’s Cat story, and then there are some Freak Brothers one-pagers. Throughout the issue, Fat Freddy’s Cat strips appear at the bottom of each page (though confusingly, this sort of feature is called a “topper” strip). The bulk of the issue consists of a long story, “Grass Roots.” Due to some bizarre circumstances, the Freak Brothers’ house burns down, but they’re left with two pounds of pure cocaine. They sell most of the cocaine and use it to buy some land and move to the country. The land they’ve bought looks beautiful at first, but that’s because they’re high on cocaine when they first see it. When they come down, they realize it’s a desolate wilderness. Then they discover some gold, triggering a massive gold rush. Soon the Freak Brothers realize there was no gold at all, and then their parcel of land is wiped out by a flash flood. This issue is a classic piece of countercultural humor, but it’s a very lengthy read, and the Fat Freddy’s Cat strips are printed  so small that they’re hard to read.

HATE #1 (Fantagraphics, 1990) – “My Pad and Welcome to It,” [W] Buddy Bradley. Buddy introduces the reader to his new apartment and his roommates, and he explains what happened to him after the end of Neat Stuff. I’ve read this story before, but that was a long time ago. There’s also a backup story where Gary Groth and Kim Thompson (RIP) help Bagge develop ideas for his new comic.

LASER ERASER & PRESSBUTTON #4 (Eclipse, 1986) – “Death,” [W] Steve Moore, [A] Mike Collins. Pressbutton and Mysta go on a mission against some raiders who are terrorizing a frontier planet. This story is somewhat poignant, because Pressbutton and Mysta’s clients are a group of pitiful old women, but otherwise it’s forgettable. This issue has another Twilight World backup story.

2000 AD #1815 (Rebellion, 2013) – Dredd: as above. Heller shows Dredd’s badge to the gangster as “proof” that he killed Dredd, but the gangster doesn’t believe him, and he and Heller shoot each other. Then Heller’s lover reveals that she was working with the gangster, and Dredd, who is obviously not dead, has to shoot her. Heller asks Dredd to remove his painfully tight boots, then dies. Savage: as above. The fight against the Volgans continues, but Heller is unknowingly caught in a sniper’s crosshairs. Ampney Crucis: as above. Crucis saves the Martian ambassador from being assassinated by a “Babbagist.” Red Seas: as above. More stuff I don’t understand. Strontium Dog: as above. Johnny shoots Pelham Grenville dead, and the humans and mutants prepare for war.

B.P.R.D.: HELL ON EARTH #112 (Dark Horse, 2013) – “Lake of Fire Part 3,” [W] Mike Mignola & John Arcudi, [A] Tyler Crook. I’ve given up on collecting this series because I can’t tell one issue from another. I don’t remember anything about this issue, even after looking through it.

THE BEEF #4 (Image, 2018) – “Cowboys & Indians,” [W] Richard Starkings & Tyler Shainline, [A] Shaky Kane. The issue begins with an account of the horrors of factory farming. Then the Beef fights a villain in a top hat, and Mahatma Gandhi appears at the end of the issue. The Beef’s story is not particularly compelling, but it’s worth reading anyway because of Shaky Kane’s striking artwork and design.

MOTHER PANIC: GOTHAM A.D. #3 (DC, 2018) – “Different Bat Channel Part 3,” [W] Jody Houser, [A] Ibrahim Moustafa. Another series where there’s nothing to distinguish one issue from another. I can’t remember anything specific about this issue. It has a Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn backup story, drawn by Paulina Ganucheau, but this story is just a three-pager and it has no real plot.

THE BEEF #5 (Image, 2018) – “Peace Meal,” as above. Gandhi gives us some more information on factory farming. Then the Beef’s enemies slice him up and turn him into hamburgers, but his meat contaminates the food supply, causing other people to turn into human beef cattle. The most interesting thing about this issue is the text feature at the end that explains how the cover image was created.

SECRET SIX #9 (DC, 2016) – “The White Gate, the Black Sun,” [W] Gail Simone, [A] Tom Derenick. This issue begins with Aquaman fighting Catman at the bottom of the ocean. I guess the overarching plot is that the Secret Six are looking for a series of alabaster columns, and the next column is in a remote New England town. When the Secret Six go there, they find that the column is guarded by M’Nagalah from Swamp Thing v1 #8. M’Nagalah’s appearance is a clever throwback to a classic story.

THE LEGACY OF LUTHER STRODE #4 (Image, 2016) – untitled, [W] Justin Jordan, [A] Tradd Moore. Luther and Petra investigate a ruin in the desert, and they learn the history of Petra, an immortal woman. This issue has far less blood and guts than a typical Luther Strode comic, and it also has some effective draftsmanship and coloring, though Moore’s art is still not nearly as good here as in Fall Sunrise.

WE ALL WISH FOR DEADLY FORCE #1 (Retrofit/Big Planet, 2016) – various stories, [W/A] Leela Corman. A collection of previously published stories. Some of these stories are about Corman’s reactions to her baby daughter’s tragic death. This same story is told from her husband Tom Hart’s perspective in his book Rosalie Lightning. Other stories are about Corman’s memories of her Jewish heritage, her passion for Eurovision, and modern life in Egypt. One of the Egypt stories presents Egypt’s current president, Sisi, as a refreshing antidote to Mubarak and Morsi. This story seems unfortunate now that Sisi has established himself as an even worse dictator than Morsi. Combined, these stories demonstrate great power and stylistic versatility. I really should read Corman’s graphic novel Unterzakhn.

GERONIMO STILTON AND THE SMURFS FCBD 2011 (Papercutz, 2011) – “Dinosaurs in Action,” [W] Andrea Denegri, [A] Giuseppe Facciotto? (There are multiple people credited with the art, and I’m not sure which one is the penciler.) A trite, insipid story about anthropomorphic cats and mice, drawn in a similar style to an Italian Disney comic. This issue also includes a Smurfs backup story by Peyo.

VILLAINS UNITED #5 (DC, 2005) – “Victims of Aggression,” [W] Gail Simone, [A] Dale Eaglesham. The new Secret Six fight a number of other villains, and Cheshire claims to be pregnant by Catman. Then she reveals that she’s betrayed the Secret Six to the Society, and that was why she wanted Catman to impregnate her – because the Society was holding her child hostage, and she wanted a replacement child. One fun part of this issue is identifying all the minor villains in the splash page at the end.

DC COMICS PRESENTS #22 (DC, 1980) – “Plight of the Human Comet,” [W] Mike W. Barr, [A] Dick Dillin. Superman and Captain Comet fight a comet-powered villain named Starstriker. Captain Comet is a boring and generic character, and Barr does nothing to make him interesting. His main claim to fame is that he was one of the few superheroes created between the end of the Golden Age and the beginning of the Silver Age, and that explains his appearance in the last issue of James Robinson and Paul Smith’s The Golden Age.

BIJOU FUNNIES #5 (Kitchen Sink, 1970) – [E] Jay Lynch? As with issue 6, my copy of this issue is difficult to read, because its cover is about to split in half. Most of the stories in this issue are by either Jay Lynch or Skip Williamson. The exceptions are a hard-boiled detective story by Jim Osborne, and a Little Lulu parody by Justin Green.

DETECTIVE COMICS #1040 (DC, 2021) – “The Weekender,” [W] Mariko Tamaki, [A] Dan Mora. Bruce Wayne finds himself in jail. His drunk cellmate tells a story of an encounter with Batman and the Joker, and at the end of this story, the cellmate claims to know that Bruce is really Batman. Meanwhile, the Penguin and some other villains form a group called the Jury that’s supposed to kill Batman. Until I checked, I thought the Jury was the name of the guy on the last page. In the backup story, written by Dan Watters, Batman visits Kirk Langstrom’s grave. I like Kirk Langstrom, and it’s sad how according to this story, he hit rock bottom and then died.

DOCTOR WHO: THE ELEVENTH DOCTOR YEAR TWO #6 (Titan, 2016) – “The One Part 1,” [W] Rob Williams, [A] Simon Fraser. I don’t understand most of this issue, but at the end of it, the Doctor and his companions go to Shada. This planet is the namesake of a TV episode that was meant to have aired in 1980, but wasn’t completed until 2017. One of the companions in this issue is Abslom Daak, the Dalek Killer, a character who was created by Steve Moore and Steve Dillon, and who made a cameo appearance in an Axel Pressbutton story.

2000 AD #1816 (Rebellion, 2013) – Dredd: “Sealed,” [W] Mike Carroll, [A] John M. Burns. While chasing some looters, Dredd discovers a young boy whose parents were obsessive neat freaks. As a result, they raised their son in a bubble, with no exposure to the outside world. Savage: as above. The sniper misses and hits the guy next to Savage. Then Savage’s allies sing a Russian folk song – since the Volgans are obviously supposed to be Russians – but Savage rebukes them, saying, “They’re not humans. They’re Volgs.” This line makes Savage even more unsympathetic than he already was. Ampney Crucis: as above. Ampney helps chase down the Babbagist assassin. Red Seas: as above. Another extended fight scene. Strontium Dog: as above. Due to Johnny’s revelations about the sterility poison, riots erupt all over the country.

ARCHIE #252 (Archie, 1976) – “Retirement Blues,” [W] Frank Doyle, [A] Harry Lucey, etc. Archie tries to do his father’s chores for him, with disastrous results. This is a rare example of a classic-period Archie story where Archie is depicted as a clumsy klutz, as he was in his earliest appearances. There are several other stories, none of them especially notable.

HEPCATS #4 (Double Diamond, 1990) – “Into the Pavilions,” [W/A] Martin Wagner. The other characters visit Erica in the hospital, and then there’s a flashback scene where they go shopping at the mall. As I’ve probably said before, Martin Wagner was as toxic and egotistical as his inspiration, Dave Sim, but he lacked Sim’s work ethic.

On my next Heroes trip, there were only 30 comics in my file, which, for me, is a very small number.

ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN: JON KENT #1 (DC, 2023) – “Countdown to Injustice Chapter 1: Into the Multiverse,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Clayton Henry. While trying to prevent some satellites from falling on Earth, Jon meets an extradimensional Superman named Val-Zod. We then learn that Ultraman is killing every version of Kal-El he can find. This issue is okay, but I liked Superman, Son of Kal-El better, and I’m disappointed that this series is just a miniseries and not an ongoing.

RADIANT BLACK #22 (Image, 2023) – “L.A.”, [W] Kyle Higgins, [A] Eduardo Ferigato & Zé Carlos. Nathan visits Los Angeles to meet with some producers about a new TV project. Nathan discovers that in order to proceed with the project, he’ll have to work with his old friend Brayden Fox. This is a problem because by this point in the story, we’ve learned that Brayden is a talentless hack who’s built his entire career on stealing Nathan’s ideas. Nathan decides to go back home, but at the airport, he meets a producer who really does want to work with him, and he decides “Fuck, I need to move back to L.A.” This issue is a powerful demonstration of the dishonest, backstabbing culture of Hollywood. I wonder if it’s based on personal experience. In particular, Brayden is perhaps the most loathsome character in the whole series, other than Radiant Red’s boyfriend. Brayden made me think, “What’s even the point of having superpowers if you can’t use them to kill somebody every so often?”

I HATE THIS PLACE #6 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kyle Starks, [A] Artyom Topilin. Trudy and Gabby hire two new farmhands, just in time to deal with an attack by an army of spiders. (One of the farmhands uses “say less” to mean “I agree,” which I don’t understand.) That evening, the farm is invaded by an even worse menace: Trudy’s father, Joe. In a flashback, we see that Trudy’s father is a murderous cult leader and that Trudy barely managed to escape from him alive. As with Gale in Saga, I am eagerly looking forward to Joe’s death. At the end of the issue, the cabin is attacked by an army of zombies, led by the main villain from the previous storyline. I do have to wonder why Trudy never made an anonymous police report against her father. After all, she did witness him murdering two people.

PHANTOM ROAD #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Gabriel Hernandez Walta. A truck driver and his passenger are attacked by an army of zombies. I like the idea of a comic focusing on truck drivers, because I know very little about this lifestyle. But there’s not enough narrative content in this issue to determine what this series is going to be about.

SAVAGE DRAGON #264 (Image, 2023) – “The Book of Paul!”, [W/A] Erik Larsen. This is Paul Dragon’s origin story. It’s based on Larsen’s memories of the unpublished comics he created as a child. Some of Paul’s origin is familiar from the reprints of Graphic Fantasy #1 and #2. “The Book of Paul!” doesn’t quite work as a story because it’s written like a plot summary, and I still think Paul is a less interesting character than Malcolm.

SPIDER-MAN #6 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Once and Future Queen,” [W] Dan Slott, [A] Mark Bagley. I believe Slott and Bagley are the most prolific Spider-Man writer and artist ever, if you don’t count the daily strip, and even if you do. In this issue we’re back to the main plot of End of the Spider-Verse. After a lot of fighting, Silk slashes Morlun with the magic dagger, and that somehow causes all of reality to reset. A funny moment in this issue is when Silk disguises herself as Spinstress and tries to sing a song. I also like how Peter Palmer, Spiderman is colored with Ben Day dots.

THE FLASH #793 (DC, 2023) – “The One-Minute War Part 4: Thunder in Your Heart,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Roger Cruz. Irey and Jesse Quick strike up an adorable friendship. In this continuity Jesse is still married to Rick Tyler, but there’s no evidence that they have a child.  Wally appears to sacrifice his life so that the other Flashes can get inside the villains’ base. We now know that Jeremy Adams will be replaced by Simon Spurrier after issue 800. I’m very disappointed that Adams’s Flash run is ending just as I’m getting into it. I love Si Spurrier’s writing, but I don’t think he’s an appropriate writer for the Flash, and I’m not sure if I want to continue reading the series after he takes over. At least Adams will be writing Green Lantern instead.

WHERE MONSTERS LIE #2 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kyle Starks, [A] Piotr Kowalski. In a flashback, we see how Connor Hayes, the super-cop, was orphaned by the eight villains. Now his purpose in life is to hunt down those same villains. In the present, Connor leads an army of police into Wilmhurst, but all the cops get killed instantly. Maybe he should have brought the army instead, or at least some better-armed cops.

MONKEY PRINCE #12 (DC, 2023) – “The Monkey King and I Part 4,” [W] Gene Luen Yang, [A] Bernard Chang. Marcus masters the hair-into-clones discipline, but forgets which of him is real and which are the clones. To regain his sense of identity and also save the day, Marcus has to realize that he himself is not the actual son of the Monkey Prince, but a clone created from the Monkey Prince’s hair. Then Marcus returns to his existing lifestyle of moving around with his parents, and the series is over. I really liked Monkey Prince, and I’m sorry it didn’t last longer. Marcus’s character arc is still incomplete, in that he surely realizes his parents are criminals, but he’s still dependent on them.

FANTASTIC FOUR #5 (Marvel, 2023) – “Up to Scratch,” [W] Ryan North, [A] Ivan Fiorelli. During a battle with Nicholas Scratch and Salem’s Seven, the FF get rotated through the fourth dimension. This means that their bodies are the wrong handedness relative to the rest of the world, so they can’t eat any food. To save themselves, they have to travel to the Dark Dimension and rotate themselves back. But on the last page, we see that some of the bacteria from the Dark Dimension has made it back to earth, and this has apocalyptic implications. This is a clever story. The idea of reversing a person’s chirality was previously used in Roger Zelazny’s novel Doorways in the Sand, and, even before that, in James Blish’s Star Trek novel Spock Must Die!

THE FLASH #794 (DC, 2023) – “The One-Minute War Part 5: Thunder in Her Heart,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Roger Cruz. With the other Flashes absent, Irey has to singlehandedly defend her brother Jai and some other superheroes. I think the reason they can’t defend themselves is because the events of this series are happening at superspeed, so from the speedsters’ perspective, all the characters who aren’t speedsters are moving at a glacial pace. That would explain the title of this story arc. Irey saves the day, but learns that her father has been killed. It seems unlikely to me that Wally really is dead.

FEARLESS DAWN #4 (Asylum, 2010) – untitled, [W/A] Steve Mannion. Fearless Dawn battles a zombie army. Also, a girl is shot in the head, but survives because she had no brain to begin with, and goes on to marry Brad Pitt. This comic has a silly plot, but is worth reading anyway because of Steve Mannion’s gorgeous art. He deserves to be working for a better publisher than Asylum.

ROGUE SUN #11 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Ryan Parrott, [A] Abel. Dylan misses his prom because he’s busy gaining information in the Aviary. The Aviary scenes are all presented in landscape format, which makes them tedious to read. Caleb tells Dylan a story about how Caleb, like Dylan, yearned for but never received his father’s approval. Then the villain Hellbent – who is also seeking his father’s approval – invades the prom at Dylan’s school.

BLOOD TREE #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Peter J. Tomasi, [A] Maxim Šimić. Dario investigates another murder, and figures out that all the people with wings are the innocent family members of criminals. So by giving them wings, the killer is symbolically sending them to heaven. The next day, Dario interrupts his priest at church in order to ask him about a clue. Then he walks out of a family barbecue while following up on that clue. The main point of interest in this issue is the conflict between Dario’s family obligations and his rather gruesome job.

BATMAN #133 (DC, 2023) – “The Bat-Man of Gotham Part 3,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Mike Hawthorne. Bruce fights a series of awful villains, and also meets this universe’s version of Alfred. This storyline is much less exciting than the last one, both because of the lack of Jorge Jimenez art, and because the alternate Gotham is so unrelentingly bleak and grim. The backup story, where Tim Drake battles the Toyman, is perhaps more entertaining than the lead story.

POISON IVY #10 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] G. Willow Wilson, [A] Marcio Takara. Ivy and Janet visit a retreat led by a health guru, Gwendolyn Caltrope. Ivy soon realizes that the guests at the retreat are being given poisonous hallucinogenic mushrooms, and that the mushrooms have already escaped into the wild. Having worked at Whole Foods for a summer in high school, I am rather skeptical of things like juice cleanses and outdoor yoga and raw foodism, and this issue is an effective satire on that sort of lifestyle.

WHITE SAVIOR #2 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Eric Nguyen, [W] Scott Burman. The main plot point in this issue is that Nathan Garin reveals himself to be an impersonator, not the real Nathan Garin, and then he gets killed. But the humor in this issue is more important than the plot. And I’m not sure how I feel about White Savior’s style of humor. It’s often way too obvious and unsubtle, like on the page where the creators talk to each other about not wanting to ruin the artwork with unnecessary narration. I still think I like this series, but I’m not 100 percent sure.

ORDINARY GODS #10 (Image, 2023) – “What It Takes,” [W] Kyle Higgins & Joe Clark, [A] Daniel HDR. I finally know what HDR stands for – it’s in his Lambiek Comiclopedia entry. Half of this issue is a flashback scene in which a murdered black woman’s ghost speaks to a young priest, telling him to be a hero for justice rather than peace. The priest’s name is Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili, and the reader is expected to know that he grew up to become Joseph Stalin. Back in the present, the good gods prepare to unlock the God Machine, but they’re prevented by the evil gods.

SPACE JOB #2 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] David A. Goodman, [A] Álvaro Sarraseca. The captain, whose name I forget, tries to get a new first officer, but his preferred candidate (whose name I can’t figure out) refuses because the ship’s first officers keep dying. Meanwhile, Rick McIntyre’s marriage is falling apart because he’s not Rick, but an alien duplicate. Space Job and White Savior seem like very similar series – they both debuted the same month, from the same publisher, and they’re both four-issue miniseries with two-word titles – but I like Space Job better.

STONEHEART #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Emma Kubert. The issue begins with a black-and-white flashback sequence. In the rest of the issue, which is in color, a young woman named Shayde Whisper travels to a new town to work as a blacksmith’s apprentice, but she encounters a werewolf and an evil sorcerer. This comic is reasonably cute and entertaining, but I have problems with Emma Kubert’s art. Her art style is so sketchy that it seems unfinished. Perhaps she ought to work with an inker.

HUMAN TARGET #12 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Tom King, [A] Greg Smallwood. For this series’s entire run I’ve been wondering how Chance was going to save himself, and the answer is he doesn’t. He dies from the poison, Fire and Ice escape accountability for murdering him, and then Ice kills Luthor, successfully this time. At least I think that’s what happens, but the ending is ambiguous enough that I might be wrong. In any case, this is a stupid and anticlimactic ending that makes the entire series feel pointless, and for Tom King, that’s par for the course. Tom King has written some excellent comics – specifically, Vision and Mister Miracle – but he seems completely incapable of ending a story in a satisfying way. In future will be very hesitant to read his work.

THE GIMMICK #1 (Ahoy, 2023) – “The Gimmick,” [W] Joanne Starer, [A] Elena Gogou. This series is nominally about professional wrestling, but it has nothing in common with Do a Powerbomb. Our protagonist, Shane, murders an opponent in the ring, apparently because he developed superstrength without being aware of it. The opponent deserved to die for being a racist, but Shane is forced to flee into Mexico. Shane’s wife and baby go looking for him, and so does the daughter of his victim, who was Hispanic but pretended to be a Nazi. This is another solid debut issue from Ahoy.

SILVER SURFER: GHOST LIGHT #2 (Marvel, 2023) – “Darkness,” [W] John Jennings, [A] Valentine Di Landro. The Surfer tells us that Al Harper sacrificed his life to save Earth from the Stranger, as depicted in Silver Surfer vol. 1 #5. I haven’t read that story, but I assume Jennings’s recap is accurate. Al’s mother nearly dies of shock when she sees her son alive again, but recovers. Al gives himself a new superhero costume, just in time to fight some alien leeches, but the leeches have already infected Al’s young niece and nephew. This is another strong issue, and it provides a logical explanation for Al’s connection to the Surfer.

I read most of the following comics while on the plane ride back from ICFA:

TRAVELING TO MARS #4 (Ablaze, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell, [A] Roberto “Dakar” Meli. Roy’s ex-wife’s announcement is that she’s not his ex-wife, but an impostor representing the Trubond Paste and Seal Company, and Roy’s ex-wife will be killed unless he claims Mars in the name of her sponsors. Roy defuses the ship’s self-destruct device so that his employers can’t kill him, and then he learns that the woman was lying about having kidnapped his ex-wife, so we’re back to the status quo. Also there’s a mention of Olber’s paradox.

BATMAN: ONE BAD DAY – CATWOMAN #1 (DC, 2023) – “No Small Scores,” [W] G. Willow Wilson, [A] Jamie McKelvie. When Catwoman was a child, her mother was forced to sell a valuable brooch at an exorbitantly low price, because she was told it was a forgery. In the present, Catwoman discovers the same brooch being exhibited at a museum as if it were authentic, so of course she decides to steal it. We gradually discover that the brooch was indeed a forgery, but it was created by a new villain called the Forger. Wilson and McKelvie are an all-star team, and this comic lives up to its creators. The Forger is an intriguing new villain, and the creators have an excellent understanding of Catwoman. McKelvie makes her look and act like a cat in human form. Also, whenever we see Catwoman’s apartment in this issue, it’s full of cats, as it should be.

CLEAR #1 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Scott Snyder, [A] Francis Manapul. A science fiction series set in a dystopian future where everyone uses “veils” to make the world look prettier than it is. Veils are a sort of variation on wearable technology, as depicted in Vernor Vinge’s novel Rainbows End. The first half of the issue, up to the point where the protagonist discovers his dead wife’s final message, is very tightly plotted and exciting (although the lunatic asylum joke is stupid). However, the issue continues for a long time after that, to the  point where it becomes tedious. I think this comic should maybe have been split into two separate issues. A cool trick in the artwork is that Manapul sometimes draws part of a panel as if it were being viewed through a veil, so that the entire panel depicts a single scene, but in more than one style.

SANDMAN UNIVERSE: DEAD BOY DETECTIVES #3 (DC, 2023) – “Little Golden Boys” etc., [W] Pornsak Pichetshote, [A] Jeff Stokely. This issue’s first chapter’s title refers to an amulet made of a mummified fetus. I wonder if this is related to the Cambodian kun krak talisman that appears in Warren Ellis’s Fell. This issue, the kids continue their investigation, lots of scary stuff happens as usual, and we learn that Melvin was murdered by other children in a hate crime. There’s also a flashback about a boy named Pim, but I can’t figure out who Pim is or why he’s relevant to the story. As demonstrated in The Good Asian, Pornsak Pichetshote’s major flaw is his unclear plotting.

NEW MUTANTS: LETHAL LEGION #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “Vampire Heist,” [W] Charlie Jane Anders, [A] Enid Balám. Despite the new title, this is a straightforward continuation of the previous New Mutants story arc. Some of the characterization in this issue is really good, especially Shela’s line “You can’t erase the bad things that happened. All you can do is make them part of a bigger story.” On the other hand, Anders’s Wolfsbane doesn’t feel like Wolfsbane to me, and she doesn’t speak in her traditional Scottish accent. Like Sabretooth and the Exiles, New Mutants feels disconnected from X-Men continuity, though that may not be a bad thing, since I’m not enjoying the current X-men storyline.

KNOW YOUR STATION #4 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Sarah Gailey, [A] Liana Kangas. Elise takes another dose of drugs and then meets up with her coworkers, but none of these coworkers have had any development at all, and I can’t remember their names. Then there are some more murders. Know Your Station has too many unnecessary characters, and it also has overcomplicated plot. As a result, the basic point of this comic gets lost in the shuffle. What this series should be about is how rich people have ruined Earth and then abandoned it, accompanied by a few poor people who are no better than slaves. But Gailey fails to put enough emphasis on her critique of economic inequality, and instead, Know Your Station is mostly an uninteresting murder mystery. My favorite thing in this issue is the sequence that  visually depicts the effects of Blue.

NIGHTCRAWLERS #2 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Apostate,” [W] Si Spurrier, [A] Andrea Di Vito. The original Nightcrawler, now horribly mutated, is rediscovered, and the Nightcrawlers figure out that Mother Righteous has been manipulating them. Maybe it’s time I stopped reading Si Spurrier’s Nightcrawler stories, because they have some good aspects, but they’re also very confusing and unfocused.

GIRL #1 (Vertigo, 1996) – “My Life as a Social Engineer” etc., [W] Peter Milligan, [A] Duncan Fegredo. Girl is set in the fictional English town of Bollockstown. The protagonist, fifteen-year-old Simone Cundy, lives in a slum with her violent, barely literate family. When Simone’s parents find her suicide note, they barely care. (Simone doesn’t commit suicide, though.) Simone’s dad kills the family dog and throws it out the window, and while burying the dog, Simone saves a girl from being raped. Then she discovers that the other girl is her exact duplicate, only with blonde hair. It’s not clear yet where Girl’s plot is going, but it’s a hilarious satire of lower-class English life. Milligan makes it clear that Simone’s family’s awful predicament is partly their own fault, but it’s also partly the fault of the government for not caring about the poor – at one point in the issue, we see that Bollockstown’s sewer system has been privatized.

JUPITER’S LEGACY 2 #5 (Image, 2017) – untitled, [W] Mark Millar, [A] Frank Quitely. I don’t know what this issue is about, but it’s more enjoyable than a typical Millar comic, mostly because of Quitely’s beautiful art. This issue ends on a positive note, with the superhero community restored to power and respectability. However, the next miniseries after this one is called Jupiter’s Requiem, suggesting that things are about to take a darker turn.

CAMELOT 3000 #5 (DC, 1983) – “The Tale of Morgan Le Fay!”, [W] Mike W. Barr, [A] Brian Bolland. Sir Kay subjects Sir Tristram to transphobic bullying. Morgan Le Fay explains her origin. Guinevere and Lancelot start their old affair again, so Arthur decides to coerce Guinevere into marrying her, in order to be able to punish her for adultery. Brian Bolland was clearly not capable of maintaining a monthly schedule, and Camelot 3000 was not up to his usual level of draftsmanship, but his compositions are excellent. I usually dislike Barr’s writing, but this issue was not bad. However, Barr still had only a surface-level understanding of Arthurian mythology. I’ve already cited Once and Future as a far more insightful take on Arthurian myth, but I also just read Nicola Griffith’s novel Spear, which is another very clever and original reimagining of those same myths. At ICFA I got the chance to talk to Nicola Griffith about that book.

JEREMIAH: BIRDS OF PREY #1 (Malibu, 1979/1991) – untitled, [W/A] Hermann. It turns out this comic is redundant because I already have the 1982 Fantagraphics edition of this album, and that Fantagraphics book is in color. Also, Dark Horse published an omnibus edition of the first three Jeremiah albums, and it included all of the Jeremiah albums that Malibu published. Maybe I should order that omnibus volume… oh, but it goes for $300 on eBay. It would probably be cheaper to get the original French editions. Anyway, Jeremiah is a post-apocalyptic Western story in which a young man tries to hunt down the wealthy raiders who have destroyed his village. Jeremiah has an interesting setup, and Hermann’s draftsmanship is beautiful and hyperdetailed, but it suffers from being reproduced in black and white.

BIRDS OF PREY #49 (DC, 2003) – “The Chaotic Code Part 3: Family Matters,” [W] Terry Moore, [A] Amanda Conner. I have no idea what this issue’s plot is about, and I don’t care, because the plot is just an excuse for Amanda Conner to draw sexy women. She does that quite well in this issue, but her draftsmanship is less refined and intricate than in her recent work.

AZTEC ACE #14 (Eclipse, 1985) – “The Cleopatra Exchange,” [W] Doug Moench, [A] Mike Harris et al. Aztec Ace is perhaps the most confusing comic book of the 1980s, but this issue is a fairly straightforward story, in which Caza and his sidekicks try to make sure that Mark Antony and Cleopatra’s deaths occur as recorded in history. Dan Day is less well-known than his brother Gene, but his pencils and Nestor Redondo’s inks were essential to Aztec Ace’s visual aesthetic, and without them, this issue barely looks like Aztec Ace.

1602: WITCH HUNTER ANGELA #1 (Marvel, 2015) – “In Which Something Wicked This Way Comes,” [W] Marguerite Bennett w/ Kieron Gillen, [A] Stephanie Hans w/ Marguerite Sauvage.  In one sequence, Angela assassinates King James I. In another sequence, Angela and Serah hunt down Bucky Barnes, and they also encounter the Enchantress. Marvel 1602 was a good idea, but Gaiman’s original miniseries wasn’t even that great, and none of the spinoffs by other writers have been much good at all. 1602: Witch Hunter Angela #1 does have some excellent artwork.

FANTASTIC FOUR #309 (Marvel, 1987) – “Danger on the Air!”, [W] Steve Englehart, [A] John Buscema. Steve Englehart was one of the worst FF writers ever, if not the very worst. His FF was confusing and incoherent, and it barely felt like the FF. It was hampered by dumb villains like Fasaud, and by an overemphasis on peripheral characters like Crystal and Sharon Ventura, rather than Reed and Sue. This issue, Ben and Sharon travel to a fictional Arab country to investigate Fasaud’s threat, and Shary is offended by having to cover her face and legs. (I believe that in at least some Arab countries, female tourists are not required to cover up.) Meanwhile, Alicia plans an intimate dinner with Johnny, but due to his complete lack of emotional intelligence, Johnny invites his old girlfriend Crystal to join them. And they start making passive-aggressive comments to each other, to the point where Johnny gets uncomfortable. This scene is excruciating to read, and it decreases the reader’s respect for all three of the characters involved.

THE ATOM #25 (DC, 1966) – “The Man in the Ion Mask!” and “The Spy Who Went Out for the Gold!”, [W] Gardner Fox, [A] Gil Kane. The first story is about an ionic-powered criminal, and the second story is about a Communist country’s plot to destroy the West by paying its national debt in irradiated gold. I usually think of Gardner Fox as a straitlaced, serious writer, so I was surprised at the amount of humor in these stories. The captions in this issue are full of jokes and asides directed at the reader. For example, when Ray thinks about what to do if he’s there when the ion-masked man attempts another robbery, the caption says “Is Ray kidding? If that doesn’t happen – poof! There goes our story!” These jokes make this issue much more fun than a typical Fox comic. As expectd, The Atom #25 also includes some excellent art.

THUNDERBOLTS #27 (Marvel, 1999) – “Flight Plans,” [W] Kurt Busiek, [A] Mark Bagley. The Thunderbolts fight Angel (wearing the Angel costume, but with blue skin), and meanwhile, San Francisco is terrorized by flying looters. We discover at the end of the issue that the people are flying because of Graviton. The thing that annoys me about Thunderbolts is its constant emphasis on the team’s internal politics. This emphasis exists mostly because of Moonstone, one of the most manipulative and power-hungry characters in any Marvel comic. But I can’t deny that Busiek’s characterization of Moonstone is very effective.

SUPERMAN FAMILY #216 (DC, 1982) – “Victory is Only 5,000 Centuries Away!”, [W] Martin Pasko, [A] Win Mortimer, etc. In the first story, Supergirl changes places with her far-future counterpart, whose costume looks really cool. The Mr. and Mrs. Superman story, written by E. Nelson Bridwell, is insultingly silly, and the Superbaby story by Rozakis and Calnan isn’t much better. The Lois Lane story, by Tamsyn O’Flynn and Bob Oksner, is interesting because of its depiction of a newspaper office. Superman comics of this era are a nostalgic reminder of a time when the newspaper industry was thriving, unlike now, when it’s on its last legs. Tamsyn O’Flynn was a noted letterhack, but she only worked as a comics writer for two or three years. The Jimmy Olsen story revolves around an unpopular comic strip called Zonker’s World. I assumed that this was a mean-spirited reference to Doonesbury, but the story’s writer, Paul Kupperberg, stated on Facebook that he just made up the name Zonker. The creator of Zonker’s World appears in the story, and he doesn’t look like Garry Trudeau.

VILLAINS UNITED #6 (DC, 2005) – “At the End of All Things,” [W] Gail Simone, [A] Dale Eaglesham. The Secret Six have their final confrontation with the Society. Luthor is revealed as Mockingbird, and we learn that he chose each of the Secret Six’s members because each of  them could defend him from a particular villain or category of villains. Parademon sacrifices his life to save the rest of the team, and in the epilogue, Catman and Deadshot decide to get the band back together. This miniseries led into an ongoing Secret Six title.  

2000 AD #1817 (Rebellion, 2013) – Dredd: “Closet,” [W/A] Rob Williams, [A] Mike Dowling. “Closet” focuses on Taylor Cook, a young gay man. His father rejects him for being gay, and then dies in the Day of Chaos. Significantly, the direct cause of Taylor’s death is Judge Fear: ”Fear took away his life.” Taylor later starts attending a gay club where people dress up as Judges and pretend to arrest each other. Inevitably, the actual Judge Dredd raids the club and arrests all the customers for impersonating Judges, but Taylor doesn’t mind: “I can do five years… then I’m out.” When it came out, this story caused a media furor because people thought that Dredd himself was going to be outed as gay. Althoguh that doesn’t happen, “Closet” is perhaps the first story that acknowledges that Dredd is a queer sex symbol, and it does so in a sensitive and powerful way. It’s the best Dredd story I’ve read lately. Savage: as #1816 above. The fight on the bridge continues, and the Volgans shoot a dying British soldier in cold blood. Ampney Crucis: as above. Ampney meets with the Prime Minister and is then taken to Bletchley Park, where he’s shown two computers named Gog and Magog. Red Seas: as above. Another pointless fight scene. Strontium Dog: as above. The mutant rebellion explodes into open warfare.

MICHEL VAILLANT VOL. 31 (Dargaud, 1977) – “Les jeunes loups,” [W/A] Jean Graton. I bought this at Dreamhaven some years ago. It’s an installment of a long-running series about a Formula 1 driver. I haven’t read any of the previous volumes, but that’s not really a problem, because this issue focuses mostly on a group of new characters. The “young wolves” of the title are the drivers in Formula 2 and 3 and Formula Europe, who are aiming at a place in Formula 1 for the next season. The story focuses on two of these characters in particular. Serge Mauduit is a brilliant driver, but he’s hampered by his fragile ego and his love of the night life. Eventually, he shows up for a race while drunk and is prevented from starting, after which he repents and reforms his ways. The other focal character, Alfredo Fabri, is financed by an uncle who appears to be a mafioso. Terrified of his uncle’s wrath if he loses, Fabri wins his last race by committing a rule violation. He’s disqualified, but in an ironic twist, his uncle is proud of him, and he uses his massive wealth to get Fabri a place in Formula 1 anyway! The nominal main characters, Michel Vaillant and his British teammate/rival Steve Warson, play a subordinate role. Overall this is a really fun read. Graton draws some thrilling auto racing sequences (and he somehow got permission to use the names and logos of actual F1 sponsors), but he’s also very good at characterization, and this album is less about the actual races than about the personalities of the drivers.

GIRL #2 (Vertigo, 1996) – as above. Simone dresses up as her blonde duplicate and gets a boy to take her virginity. With her father in a coma (having fallen on to a spiked railing at the end of issue 1), Simone has to deliver her unmarried sister’s baby, fathered by the sister’s abusive boyfriend. Simone promptly drops the baby on its head and thinks she’s killed it, but the “good” news is that the baby was already dead from being strangled in the womb. Finally, Simone is arrested for the murder of the man who tried to rape her duplicate in issue 1. I think the joke of this series is that it’s an extreme but plausible exaggeration of the squalor of British lower-class life. I forgot to mention that Duncan Fegredo is an excellent artist.

THUNDERDOGS #1 (Rip Off, 1981) – untitled, [W/A] Hunt Emerson. I was hesitant to read this because of its great length and Hunt Emerson’s heavily detailed style. This comic is a somewhat difficult read, but it’s worth it. It starts out as a satire on American militarism, but it gets much weirder than that. The prtoagonist, Major Mongrel, gets flattened into two dimensions, while his soldiers remain three-dimensional. So there are some pages where Major Mongrel is on the “surface” of the page, while his soldiers are standing on top of him. I don’t recall ever seeing this effect before. There’s also a sequence where another character leads Major Mongrel into the wooden framework behind the pages. I find it hard to get into Hunt Emerson, both because of his style and because his work has been published in so many different and obscure venues. But now I want to read more of his stuff.

INCREDIBLE HULK #94 (Marvel, 2006) – “Planet Hulk: Exile Part III,” [W] Greg Pak, [A] Carlo Pagulayan et al. The Hulk and his friends fight in some arena battles, and the Hulk saves the arena from being bombed into oblivion by the Red King. At the end of the issue, the Hulk and his companions decide to become Warbound, that is, they become sworn brothers in combat.

OUR ARMY AT WAR #288 (DC, 1976) – “Defend – or Destroy!”, [W] Bob Kanigher, [A] John Lehti. Easy Company encounters a British soldier who is the last survivor of his unit, and has gone insane. He sacrifices his life to help Easy Company defend a bridge. The backup story, drawn by Golden Age veteran Norman Maurer, is about Medal of Honor winner Edouard Izac. Izac’s story is fascinating: his ship was sunk by a German U-Boat, and was taken prisoner aboard the boat. Unknown to the boat’s crew, Izac understood German, so he was able to learn lots of information about German naval operations. He decided to escape back to Allied territory so he could pass on this information to his superiors, and after several failed attempts, he finally made it to Switzerland. He later served six terms in Congress, and when he died at age 98, he was the last living Medal of Honor recipient from World War I. To return to the comic, I’m not familiar with either of the artist in this issue, but they’re both quite good.

2000 AD #1819 (Rebellion, 2013) – I already read issue 1818 when I first bought this lot of 2000 ADs. Dredd: “Save Him,” [W] Rob Williams, [A] James Harren. Dredd narrowly avoids being assassinated by a telepathic veteran of the Day of Chaos. James Harren gets a chance to show off his talent for drawing monsters. Savage: as above. The battle continues, but the cavalry – the Hammersteins – fail to arrive, because their path leads them through some valuable real estate, which their programming prevents them from destroying. Ampney Crucis: as above. Crucis tracks down the Babbagist assassin’s address, and then there’s a scene set in Limehouse that I don’t understand. Red Seas: as above. Another chapter that makes no sense. Strontium Dog: as above. Johnny sends out the women and children from the besieged city of Milton Keynes, and admits to having killed Pelham Grenville. The government claims that Grenville was coerced into admitting to the sterilization plot. The siege continues.

KUNCKLES THE MALEVOLENT NUN #2 (Fantagraphics, 1991) – untitled, [W/A] Roger Langridge & Cornelius Stone. A bizarre story that’s set in hell and involves Satan, Jesus Christ, and a nun who’s almost as ugly as Carmen Cru. I’m not sure just what’s happening in this comic, but it’s wacky and it’s got great art. Cornelius Stone is a well-known New Zealand cartoonist, but I’m not sure just what he’s published.

GATECRASHER #3 (Black Bull, 2000) – “Power to the Puppet,” [W] Mark Waid & Jimmy Palmiotti, [A] Amanda Conner. This comic is actually older than Birds of Prey #3, but its artwork is far superior. Conner draws with much more detail. This issue is mostly about the protagonist’s rivalry with his teammate Trystan, who blames Alec for the loss of his girlfriend Teah in an alternate dimension. Black Bull was the comics imprint of Wizard Entertainment, and I believe this issue’s story includes a photo of Gareb Shamus.

STRAY BULLETS: KILLERS #1 (Image, 2014) – “No Take-Backs,” [W/A] David Lapham. Young Eli Goldburg likes to hide out in the car when his dad goes to the strip club. One day, Eli’s dad is about to get a lapdance when he realizes that the stripper is Eli’s babysitter, Caroline. Mr. Goldburg flees in terror, and it’s implied that he then murders Caroline, though this is hard to determine because of Lapham’s elliptical style of storytelling. Eli tells this to Spanish Scott, the bouncer at the club. Then Eli tries to take back what he said (hence the title), but it’s too late, and Spanish Scott murders Eli’s father in revenge. This issue also shows how Eli is viciously bullied by his “friends,” and how he’s parentified into caring for his baby sister. This issue is a good example of Lapham’s storytelling virtuosity. See here for a more detailed analysis.

DARK HORSE PRESENTS #75 (DC, 1993) – “Sovay,” [W] Charles de Lint, [A] Charles Vess. I may have bought this issue because of the first story, but I’ve already read it in an issue of The Book of Ballads and Sagas. It’s an adaptation of a ballad about a woman who dresses up as a highwayman to test her lover’s faithfulness. The other notable story in the issue is a chapter of Moebius and Jodorowsky’s Madwoman of the Sacred Heart. It’s an interesting story, but I’d prefer to read it in its complete form, and in color. The third story is “The Chairman” by  Charles Moore and Andrew Robinson.

YOKO TSUNO VOL. 3 (Comcat, 1973/1989) – “Vulcan’s Forge,” [W/A] Roger Leloup. This was published as “The Adventures of Yoko, Vic and Paul, volume 1.” Comcat made the odd choice not to translate the first two albums, even though Vulcan’s Forge references events in those books. Also, Vic and Paul don’t deserve to be included in the series’ title: in this album they’re just Yoko’s sidekicks, and they were sidelined even further as the series went on. The plot of this album is that Yoko teams up with an old ally, a blue-skinned Vinean alien named Kani, to prevent the Earth from being blown up from within. The first notable thing about this album is that Yoko is an awesome protagonist. She’s brave to the point of foolhardiness, and she’s willing to fight and to do physical stunts, but she’s also a caring friend. Second, Leloup’s artwork is beautiful, particularly his drawings of underground caverns and machinery. He was an assistant to Hergé, and you can see how he inherited Hergé’s skill at detailed renderings of backgrounds. This album is also an effective piece of science fiction. I can’t tell if all the geological information in this book is accurate, but it seems accurate to me. Finally, this book’s ending is a surprise. At the end, the villain is hanging from a piece of debris over a lava pit, and one of the other Vineans decides to drop him in the lava and kill him, rather than try to save him. That wouldn’t have happened in a Code-approved comic.

THE FLASH #79 (DC, 2019) – “Death and the Speed Force,” [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Rafa Sandoval. Part of a storyline in which the Speed Force is challenged by three other forces. This premise is not exciting to me, because I think the Speed Force is a silly and poorly defined idea to begin with. The only thing I liked in this issue is the scene where Golden Glider is teaching some kids to ice skate.

EL DIABLO #2 (DC, 2001) – untitled, [W] Brian Azzarello, [A] Danijel Zezelj. I must have bought this comic because of the art, but perhaps I’ve been unfair to Brian Azzarello, because his writing in this issue is actually good. El Diablo #2 is a compelling piece of Western horror, and Zezelj’s dark, moody art complements the grimness of the writing.

First review post of 2023

REVIEWS OF EVERY COMIC I READ IN 2023

This is the eleventh calendar year of this project.

I read some of the following comic books after midnight on New Year’s Eve, 2022, so I’m counting them for 2023.

BIRTHRIGHT #33 (Image, 2018) – untitled, [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Andrei Bressan. Brennan tells Kallista about how he felt abandoned after his brother disappeared. He uses his feelings of rage to power his magic. Mikey finds Brennan, and they fight. In the flashback, the younger Mikey, Rya and Zoshana arrive at a lost city.

AZTEK, THE ULTIMATE MAN #10 (DC, 1997) – “A League of Their Own,” [W] Grant Morrison & Mark Millar, [A] N. Steven Harris. While preparing for his JLA audition, Aztek has to save the JLA from Amazo. Aztek had some potential, but it never developed much of a distinctive identity or premise. N. Steven Harris’s artwork in this issue seems heavily influenced by Walt Simonson.

BIRDS OF PREY #48 (DC, 2002) – “The Chaotic Code Part 2: Crash & Burn,” [W] Terry Moore, [A] Amanda Conner. I can’t remember anything about this issue’s plot, except that it was silly and unoriginal, and Amanda Conner’s artwork is not her best. By this time she was already very good at drawing sexy women, but her visual storytelling and her use of Easter eggs were less impressive than in her later work.

VANGUARD ILLUSTRATED #7 (Pacific, 1984) – “The Ballad of Hardcase Bradley,” [W] Stephen Perry, [A] George Evans. An Old West werewolf story written in verse. George Evans is the only major EC artist who’s not in the Eisner Hall of Fame, and I’m not sure why not. Western stories were not his best genre, though. Next is “Goldyn” by Walter Stuart, a stupid story about time travel and barbarians. Walter Stuart also published another Goldyn one-shot with Blackthorne, but that seems to have been the entire extent of his comics career. The third story is the first appearance of Michael T. Gilbert’s Mr. Monster. This chapter was meant to be the first part of a three-parter, but Pacific went out of business after this issue, so all three parts were published together in Eclipse’s Mr. Monster #1. The fourth story, “The Singular Case of the Missed Universes” by Bill DuBay and Vince Argondezzi, is most notable for being full of Mexican stereotypes.

BLACK BEETLE #3 (Dark Horse, 2013) – “No Way Out,” [W/A] Francesco Francavilla. This series contains some of Francavilla’s best artwork. His draftsmanship, page layouts and coloring are beautiful, creating a powerful sense of mood. But as for its story, Black Beetle is just a ripoff of Batman or the Spirit, with nothing original about it.

EXTREMITY #8 (Image, 2017) – untitled, [W/A] Daniel Warren Johnson. Rollo and Thea leave Mother Dierdre’s enclave to look for a component to repair Shiloh’s damaged battery, but they get attacked by a giant insect. The insect is a stunning piece of design, as is the two-headed griffin that Rollo and Thea ride. Meanwhile, the Paznina prepare for their assault on Mother Diedre’s home. There are four more issues of this series, and I really want to read them.

FIRST YEAR HEALTHY (Drawn & Quarterly, 2014) – “First Year Healthy,” [W/A] Michael DeForge. This is a hardcover book, but it’s only 32 pages, so it feels more like a comic book than a graphic novel. It tells the story of a man who is released from the hospital and moves in with a coworker and the coworker’s infant son. Each page is just a single panel with a caption. First Year Healthy is full of DeForge’s usual absurdism and body horror. But although it’s gruesome and disturbing, it also feels lyrical, and the narrator’s affection for his coworker’s son is touching.

300 #4 (Dark Horse, 1998) – “Combat,” [W/A] Frank Miller. The Spartans fight the Persians, then they pause to negotiate with Xerxes, then they fight some more. This issue has some striking page compositions, but the crippling problem with 300 is its combination of racism and sexism. In 300, moral virtue is linked to masculinity and whiteness. The Spartans are the good guys because they’re the whitest and manliest. Xerxes, meanwhile, is presented as dark-skinned and effeminate, with thick red lips and piercings all over his face. 300 was published before 9/11, but it fuels the sort of racist Orientalism that became widespread after 9/11. Also, the series presents the Spartans as the freest of all men, ignoring the fact that the majority of the Spartan population were not Spartiates but helots, who were treated so horribly that they were in a constant state of revolt. Kieron Gillen and Ryan Kelly’s Three was intended as an explicit response to 300’s politically motivated abuses of history.

JONAH HEX #15 (DC, 1978) – “Sawdust and Slow Death,” [W] David Michelinie, [A] Vicente Alcazar. Jonah joins a circus freakshow, but when he discovers that the circus’s ringmaster is a crime boss, the ringmaster frames him for the murder of the beautiful Sally Colter, the knife thrower’s assistant. Jonah defeats the ringmaster by feeding him to the circus’s lions. It’s strange reading a classic Jonah Hex story that’s not written by Michael Fleisher. “Sawdust and Slow Death” is kind of trite, and it lacks the sarcasm and raucousness of the best Jonah Hex stories.

SCATTERBRAIN #4 (Dark Horse, 198) – [E] Scott Allie & Phil Amara. A collection of humor stories. Aragonés and Evanier’s “Bugged!”, an astronaut gets sick of his wife’s habit of collecting bugs. He murders her, then heads off on a space mission, only to discover that the spacecraft is conducting experiments on bugs. The other stories are by Jay Stephens, Evan Dorkin, Dave Cooper, Daniel Torres, Scott Morse, and Craig Thompson. There’s a lot of beautiful art in these stories, but only the Aragonés story has any narrative depth.

TWO-FISTED TALES #34 (East Coast Comix, 1953/1974) – This was the ninth in a series of EC Comics reprints published in the 1970s. I believe these were the first EC reprints in comic book form, before Russ Cochran undertook the task of reprinting the entire EC corpus. This is the same issue that Russ Cochran reprinted as Two-Fisted Tales #17. “Betsy,” [W/A] Jack Davis. In the Old West, a criminal steals an old man’s horse. The old man goes to his cabin to tell “Miss Betsy” about the theft. The old man returns to town and shoots the criminal dead with his rifle, and the twist ending is that “Betsy” is the rifle’s name. “Trial by Arms!”, [W/A] Wally Wood. One knight accuses another knight of murder and kills him in a trial by combat. The original “murder” victim then turns up alive, and the accuser murders him for real. This story includes an impressive silent combat sequence. East Coast Comix did a brilliant job of recoloring both these stories. “En Crapaudine!”, [W] Jerry De Fuccio, [A] John Severin. During a war against desert natives, a French soldier deserts his post and is punished by being made to lie “en crapaudine” – that is, face-up in the sun with his limbs bound under him. After he dies, we learn that when he allegedly deserted, he in fact went and killed the rebels’ leader. There is some evidence that the French Foreign Legion really did use the crapaudine as a punishment. “Guynemer!”, [W] Harvey Kurtzman, [A] George Evans. An account of the career and death of Georges Guynemer, France’s greatest World War I flying ace. Aviation stories like this are why George Evans should be in the Hall of Fame.

THE DESERT PEACH #3 (Thoughts & Images, 1989) – untitled, [W/A] Donna Barr. Rommel needs to locate some Allied submarines offshore, and Pfirsich (not Pfirsch, I’ve been spelling it wrong) comes up with the idea of looking for the submarines while surfing. This silly idea becomes viable when Pfirsich’s men capture a Hawaiian soldier. The soldier doesn’t know much more about surfing than the Germans do, but the Rommel brothers try surfing anyway. This leads to a lot of hilarious chaos and casual nudity. Desert Peach is a brilliant humor comic. The only reason I haven’t read more of it is because the issues are rather long, and the lettering can be difficult to parse.

STARSTRUCK #3 (IDW, 2009) – “Mirage à Troi” etc., [W] Elaine Lee, [A] Michael Wm. Kaluta. The sexy androids turn their attention to Ronnie Lee; Mary Medea’s baby sister is born; and the Galactic Girl Guides build their robot. The difficulty with reading Starstruck is that there’s a ton of unnecessary worldbuilding, and it’s not clear how the various parts of Starstruck’s universe are connected to each other.

2000 AD #422 (Rebellion, 1985) – Anderson: “Four Dark Judges,” [W] John Wagner & Alan Grant, [A] Brett Ewins. Anderson’s battle with the Dark Judges continues. After this there’s a pinup depicting a statue of Glyph, the character from Halo Jones who no one can remember. Slaine: “The Time Killer,” [W] Pat Mills, [A] David Pugh. Slaine and Murdach continue their battle against the Cythrons and Orgots. Dredd: “Casey’s Day Out,” [W] Wagner & Grant, [A] Ron Smith. Casey Steech completes a twenty-year prison sentence, but his old enemy Champagne Charlie tries to assassinate him. The Judges can’t protect Casey, so he deliberately punches Dredd in the face so that he’ll be sent back to prison. This is sadly not a farfetched story at all. I think I’ve read that it’s common for ex-convicts to intentionally reoffend and get returned to prison, because they can’t cope with life on the outside. Rogue Trooper: “Antigen of Horst,” [W] Gerry Finley-Day, [A] José Ortiz. While Rogue is asleep, Gunnar, Helm and Bagman hold off an invading army without his help. Strontium Dog: “Big Bust of 49,” [W] Alan Grant, [A] Carlos Ezquerra. Johnny and Wulf pursue Xen, a mind-controlling alien who can leap from one human host to another.  

THUNDERBOLTS #168 (Marvel, 2012) – “The World at the Jilted Cage…”, [W] Jeff Parker, [A] Matthew Southworth. Luke Cage tries to round up a number of escaped villains. The most memorable scene in this issue is the one with Ghost, who, as usual, is the most intriguing character in this Thunderbolts run. Meanwhile, Mach V accuses the Thunderbolts of not caring about rehabilitating criminals, since they recruited people like Mr. Hyde and Crossbones. There’s also a clever moment where a representative of Lloyd’s of London gives the Thunderbolts a message that was deposited by their time-traveling teammates in 1888. I suppose if you wanted to deliver a message to a distant point in the future, Lloyd’s would be the safest place to drop it off.

SERGIO ARAGONÉS FUNNIES #6 (Bongo, 2011) – “The Kachina Prophecy” etc., [W/A] Sergio Aragonés. (Sergio wrote this series himself without Evanier’s assistance.) A newspaperman flees Chicago for New Mexico to avoid the mob. While in New Mexico, he photographs a secret kachina ceremony, and is then murdered by the kachinas themselves. I believe it is true that certain Pueblo Indian ceremonies are kept secret from outsiders. There’s also an autobio story, “My Friend Julio,” where a young Sergio and his friend are playing on a train car, and it starts to move and doesn’t stop until they’re in the middle of nowhere. The place where the train stops, Amecameca, is still a pretty small town today, though it’s not far from Mexico City.

BATMAN AND ROBIN #36 (DC, 2015) – “Robin Rises: Chaos,” [W] Peter Tomasi, [A] Patrick Gleason. On Apokolips, the Robins fight the armies of Darkseid, and Darkseid himself makes an appearance on the last page. This issue isn’t very interesting outside the context of the Robin Rises crossover, though Patrick Gleason’s artwork is excellent. I’m glad that Peter Tomasi is finally doing some creator-owned work for Image. He has done one previous creator-owned title, House of Penance, but I’ve never heard of that comic until just now.

JOE THE BARBARIAN #7 (Dark Horse, 2010) – “Labyrinth of the Lost,” [W] Grant Morrison, [A] Sean Murphy. The Playtown army fights the forces of King Death, and Joe finally reaches the Fountain of Life, i.e. the refrigerator, and collects his soda. But before he drinks it, he goes down to the basement, where the Iron Knight is buried. I assume the Iron Knight is Joe’s father, but besides that, I’m not sure why he has to go to the basement. I haven’t located my copy of issue 8 yet.

DIAL H #7 (DC, 2013) – “Strategies of Multitude,” [W] China Miéville, [A] David Lapham. Dial H was one of the only New 52 titles that attempted to do anything new or original, but it was disappointing anyway. China Miéville had some great ideas for superheroes – for example, this issue introduces the Planktonian, the Tiny Many Champion. But Dial H’s plot is incoherent, and I can’t even tell who its protagonist is. Miéville also did not know how to structure a monthly comic book. The more recent Dial H for Hero series was far more successful.

BOX OFFICE POISON #2 (Antarctic, 1996) – “Horrible as Are the Dead,” [W/A] Alex Robinson. We meet Irving Flavor, the Golden Age cartoonist who Ed is assisting, and Irving tells Ed some depressing things about the comics business. Back in 1996, lots of cartoonists of Irving Flavor’s generation were still alive and working. Now almost all those people have passed away, and the Irving Flavor scenes are even more nostalgic than when originally published. There are some funny metatextual moments in this issue. Ed tells Irving that the best-selling black-and-white comic, Bile (i.e. Hate), sells 30,000 copies, when Irving thinks that a low sales number is 100,000 or 150,000 copies. Stephen does a crossroad where one of the clues is a 15-letter word for “cinematic bomb element”; the answer is not stated, but must be BOX OFFICE POISON. I much prefer the black-and-white version of Box Office Poison to the color version, because the coloring obscures some essential details. In particular, Robinson often embeds hidden messages in the titles of books on bookshelves, and these messages are hard to see in color. This issue’s backup material includes some one-page science fiction strips drawn by Robinson.

UNCANNY X-MEN ANNUAL #13 (Marvel, 1989) – “Double Cross,” [W] Terry Austin, [A] Mike Vosburg. “Double Cross,” an Atlantis Attacks crossover, is the only story published during Claremont’s original run that Claremont did not write. However, it feels like a Claremont story, because it begins with a scene where Dazzler catches Diamondback trying to seduce Wolverine, and when Dazzler gets angry over this, Diamondback responds by implying that Dazzler has been sleeping with Longshot. There’s nothing else of interest in this story. The backup story, “Jubilation Day,” actually is written by Claremont, under the name Sally Pashkow. This name is an inside joke whose meaning is unknown (source). “Jubilation Day” shows Jubilee exploring the X-Men’s outback base. I’ve always thought Jubilee was kind of annoying, but she’s grown on me over time. There’s also a second backup story that narrates part of the history of the Serpent Crown.

BIRTHRIGHT #34 (Image, 2018) – as above. In the present, Mikey and Brennan continue their fight, but Mikey refuses to fight back. In the past, Mikey, Rya and Zoshana continue their magical training, and Zoshana is trapped in a monstrous form. Maybe that explains why Mikey didn’t marry her.

ACTION COMICS #468 (DC, 1977) – “Terra at Nine O’Clock!”, [W] Cary Bates, [A] Curt Swan. Terra-Man starts his own television show and forces Superman to appear on it. This story is continued in the next issue. The Superman stories of the ‘70s offer some interesting depictions of the television industry of the time, though I can’t tell whether these depictions are accurate. “My Son, the Orphan!”, [W] Martin Pasko, [A] Swan. Just as Morgan Edge is scheduled to receive an award, his estranged mother tracks him down and convinces him to reveal that his real name is Morris Edelstein. Based on this name, as well as Morgan’s mother’s stereotypical Jewish-mother behavior, it’s obvious that Morgan changed his name because he was ashamed of his Jewish heritage. This is perhaps the only story ever in which Morgan Edge is depicted as a sympathetic character. This story also reveals that Morgan won the ownership of Galaxy Communications in a poker game.

OUR FIGHTING FORCES #148 (DC, 1974) – “The Last Charge!”, [W] Robert Kanigher, [A] John Severin. While the Losers are fighting in the North African desert, Johnny Cloud falls in love with a native woman. She’s mortally wounded in a battle, and she’s married to Johnny just before she dies. This story is touching, I guess, but also rather trite and implausible – for instance, the native people don’t seem to mind that Johnny isn’t a Muslim. John Severin’s art here is quite good, though his draftsmanship is not his best. Sam Glanzman’s backup story, “Toro,” is about an effeminate young sailor who kills himself because he can’t stand violence. Toro is heavily implied to be gay, though of course the Code would not allow Glanzman to state this explicitly, and this means he’s one of the earliest depictions of a queer character in Code-approved comics. See here for a bit more on this story.

2000 AD #425 (IPC, 1985) – Strontium Dog: “The Slavers of Drule Part 1,” [W] Alan Grant, [A] Carlos Ezquerra. Some humans set up a colony on a utopian planet, but are promptly abducted by slavers. One of the colonists, Mrs. Keeble, survives and decides to hire Johnny Alpha to rescue her abducted children. Slaine: as above. Slaine and Murdach finally make it back to the Cythrons’ planet, where they team up with a woman warrior named Tlachtga. Dredd: “Midnight Surfer,” [W] John Wagner & Alan Grant, [A] Cam Kennedy. Chopper prepares for Supersurf 7, which will be held in Mega-City One, while Dredd prepares to arrest the illegal surfers. Chopper is one of Dredd’s best antagonists, though I can’t call him a villain. Rogue Trooper: as above. Rogue tries to rescue the scientist Dr. Moho, who’s been working on the antigen, from a Nort base, but Dr. Moho is in fact a willing collaborator with the Norts, not a prisoner. Anderson: as above except [A] Cliff Robinson. The Dark Judges continue their assault on the city. Anderson finally gets the Justice Department to allow her to lead the resistance to the Dark Judges. I probably said this before, but Cliff Robinson is the one artist who can most easily be mistaken for Brian Bolland.

FLAMING CARROT COMICS #9 (Renegade, 1985) – “Play Ball,” [W/A] Bob Burden. This issue is signed by Bob Burden, but the signature is dated 1986, so it must have been obtained by a previous owner. I have met Bob Burden, though. This issue is mostly full of typical absurdism, but there is one poignant scene where the Carrot visits his former girlfriend and his illegitimate son. The trouble with this series is that if you’ve read one issue, you’ve read them all.

2000 AD #427 (IPC, 1985) – Anderson: as above. Anderson forcibly returns the Dark Judges to their own dimension, and her fellow Judges discover that when she returned to Deadworld, she was acting under the Dark Judges’ psychic influence. Thus, Anderson’s reputation and career are saved. Slaine: as above except [A] Glenn Fabry. Slaine fights a giant Orgot in the arena, and prepares to use his warp-spasm to defeat it. Slaine’s warp spasm and gae bolga are both borrowed from Cu Chulainn, a character who Slaine greatly resembles. Glenn Fabry is a vastly better artist than David Pugh. Dredd: as above. The Supersurf 7 race begins. Strontium Dog: as above. Slaine and Wulf discover a farm where the enslaved humans are kept. One-shot: “Judge Grexnix,” [W] Oleh Stepaniuk, [A] Anthony Jozwiak. A 2000 AD reader, Carl Coogan, thinks he could be a better judge than Dredd. Tharg sends Carl to Mega-City One in order to prove him wrong.

AZTEK: THE ULTIMATE MAN #7 (DC, 1997) – “Hey Diddle Diddle the Japed and the Japer,” [W] Grant Morrison & Mark Millar, [A] N. Steven Harris. Aztek and Batman team up against the Joker and some other minor villains. This issue is exciting and has some well-crafted dialogue, but again, there’s little to distinguish Aztek from any other superhero comic.

BATMAN #34 (DC, 2014) – “The Meek,” [W] Gerry Duggan w/ Scott Snyder, [A] Matteo Scalera. Batman goes looking for a serial killer who’s been targeting Leslie Thompkins’s patients. The killer’s motivation seems to be that he doesn’t think poor people should be treated with dignity. This story is unnecessarily grim and depressing.

BOX OFFICE POISON COLOR CLASSICS #3 (IDW, 2017) – untitled, [W/A] Alex Robinson. This issue actually takes place before Box Office Poison #2, reviewed above. This is because the original Antarctic series of Box Office Poison was preceded by some minicomics, which Antarctic later collected as a zero issue. BOP Color Classics #3 reprints the last bit of the minicomics, the first bit of the Antarctic series, and also some new pages. Anyway, in this issue Sherman and Penny meet for the first time at a party, and then again at the bookstore where Sherman works. Sherman’s bookstore job is another aspect of this series that feels obsolete now. Also, Ed meets with an editor at a major comics publisher. The editor claims to love Ed’s work and promises him a contract, only to cruelly reject that promise because he didn’t have the authority to offer it. That explains why Ed instead ends up working as Irving Flavor’s assistant. As noted earlier, these comics were not meant to be published in color, and the recoloring causes some essential details to be lost.

UNSUPERVISED EXISTENCE #5 (Fantagraphics, 1991) – “Bob Takes a Trip Part III: The Business,” [W/A] Terry LaBan. An American, Bob, runs out of money while traveling in Europe. A street vendor advises him to go to Istanbul, buy some cheap jewelry, and resell it in Paris. Bob does as she says, and to the reader’s surprise, he actually makes some money doing this, but then Bob meets the same street vendor again and sleeps with her, and she runs off with all his money and merchandise. Bob swallows his pride and calls his parents to beg for money to pay for his trip home. But while waiting to go home, he starts dancing his sorrows away, and some bystanders give him so much money that he decides to go to Nepal instead. This is a really entertaining story, mostly due to Bob’s stupidity. At one point, Bob gets lost in Istanbul, and some local people invite him into their home, excited to meet an American – but then Bob flees in terror, thinking they’re going to rob, murder or rape him. Terry LaBan is an extremely underrated cartoonist.

I was in Minneapolis from January 4 to 7. While there, I bought some comics at Half Price Books and DreamHaven, including:

THE WOODS #4 (Boom!, 2014) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Michael Dialynas. My database indicated that I had this issue already, but I couldn’t find it anywhere. It wasn’t in my drawerboxes, where I put comics after I read and review them. So it could only have been in my boxes of unread comics, but I couldn’t find it there, and if I ever did have it, I think I would have read it. Therefore, I assumed my database was wrong, and when I saw another copy of it for $2, I was happy to buy it. This issue, the kids finally confront the fascist gym teacher, and he murders the principal before fleeing. I forget if he ever appears again. Meanwhile, a second group of kids investigates the pyramid, and a third group encounters a party of human warriors. As soon as I can, I need to reread issues 5 through 10, so I can continue my read-through of this series.

CEREBUS #55 (Aardvark-Vanaheim, 1983) – “Origin of the Wolveroach Part 2: The Why & the Are,” [W/A] Dave Sim. This was the only issue I was missing between #36 and #112. Because it’s a Wolverine parody, it’s unusually expensive, and I thought $5 was a fair price for it. In this issue Cerebus talks with Michelle and the Wolveroach while continuing to write his memoirs. Throughout this issue the Roach constantly smokes, and a hilarious moment occurs when Cerebus asks the Roach what he’s smoking, and the answer is “A small bundle of toothpicks.” In this era, Cerebus was hilarious and brilliantly plotted. When you read these old Cerebus issues, you understand why people stayed with Dave Sim for so long, even after he had abandoned everything that made Cerebus worth reading.

GAY COMIX #3 (Kitchen Sink, 1982) – [E] Howard Cruse. At just $1, this (as well as #5, reviewed below) was an incredible find, although it’s in very low grade. I never see Gay Comix at conventions, and on eBay it tends to be absurdly expensive. Gay Comix #3 includes stories by Howard Cruse, Roberta Gregory, Lee Marrs, and the Dutch artist Theo van den Boogard, as well as some lesser talents. Howard Cruse’s work is at a totally different level than anything else in Gay Comix, at least in terms of draftsmanship. His linework and lettering and pontillist shading are just exquisite. Of the stories by lesser-known artists, by far the most interesting is “I’m Me!” by David Kottler, an account of his transition from AFAB to male. This is the earliest known transgender autobiographical comic, and one of the earliest comics of any kind by a transgender creator. Its art is a bit amateurish, but it’s extremely honest and brave, especially for the time. Sadly we don’t know anything about David Kottler. According to this story, he also did some comics for Gold Key, but they must have appeared under a different name, if they were signed at all.

I went back to Heroes on January 8:

MIRACLEMAN: THE SILVER AGE #3 (Marvel, 2022) – “Trapped… in a World He Never Made!”, [W] Neil Gaiman, [A] Mark Buckingham. This comic’s existence itself is a miracle. The last new issue of Miracleman was published in 1993, when I was just getting into comics. Even if I’d been aware of Miracleman’s existence at the time, I’d have been too young to read it. For imuch of the next few decades, Miracleman seemed permanently unpublishable because of copyright disputes, and even after its ownership was cleared up, no new Miracleman material appeared for many years. The 29-year gap between Miracleman #24 and Miracleman: The Silver Age #3 must be the longest such gap in the history of comic books. I should note that some of the pages in Miracleman: The Silver Age have been published before, in George Khoury’s Kimota! The Miracleman Companion. I recognized the line “by now he’ll have screwed Kay and Qys-only-knows what he’ll have turned into.” As for my reaction to this  comic, I was mostly just in a state of awe at the fact of having a new Miracleman story to read.   

I don’t think it quite lived up to the hype, but nothing could have. The main event this issue is that Dicky Dauntless has a vision of Johnny Bates, then meets a retired superhero, Mister Master. Given this character’s long dark hair and beard and his retired lifestyle, it’s hard not to  identify him with Alan Moore, though that may not have been the creator’s original intent – in 1991, Alan Moore was still active in comics. I’m thrilled at the opportunity to finish reading one of the great unfinished comics, and I can’t wait for the next issue.

WE ONLY FIND THEM WHEN THEY’RE DEAD #15 (Boom!, 2022) – “In Your Image,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Simone Di Meo. In a flashback, we see how the gods were first harvested for resources. In the present, Thierry reaches the gods’ realm and learns that the gods are just the dead bodies of the people who have reached that place, projected back in time. Thierry chooses to instead become a living god, and the series ends. This was an excellent series, but its major flaw was that its timeline was hard to follow. The dates at the beginning of each  sequence are useless if the reader can’t remember whether these dates are earlier or later than the series’ primary time frame.

THE NICE HOUSE ON THE LAKE #12 (DC, 2022) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Alvaro Martinez Bueno. Interspersed with this issue’s main story are messages between Walter and some people who apparently declined their invitations to the house. Or maybe they accepted, and the house in this series isn’t the only one, I’m not sure. The housemates decide to execute Walter and live out their lives in the house. In a final dialogue between Walter and Norah, we learn that Walter is still alive, and that his plan was to get the housemates to think they’d killed him on their own initiative, without realizing he had manipulated them into doing so. This is a rather contrived and depressing ending, though it’s redeemed somewhat by the caption “End of Cycle One” at the end. So there will hopefully be a future Nice House on the Lake miniseries, and maybe the survivors will find a way out of Walter’s prison.

ONCE UPON A TIME AT THE END OF THE WORLD #2 (Boom!, 2022) – “Love in the Wasteland Chapter 2: The Proverbs of Survival,” [W] Jason Aaron, [A] Alexandre Tefenkgi. Mezzy and Maceo travel together, and there’s a funny montage of all Mezzy’s survival skills, while Maceo appears to know nothing useful. But then the two of them get buried by a sandstorm, and Maceo builds a working generator from scratch. This experience teaches Mezzy that she doesn’t always have to follow the survival skills she learned from the Wasteland Rangers. But meanwhile those same Rangers are following the two of them. Mezzy and Maceo are brilliant foils for each other.  

STRANGE ACADEMY: FINALS #3 (Marvel, 2022) – untitled, [W] Skottie Young, [A] Humberto Ramos. The kids hold a school festival to raise money to repair the damage they’ve already done. Inevitably the festival causes even more damage, because while trying to make fried calamari, the kids summon Shuma-Gorath. There are some hilarious moments in this sequence, but the main plot point is that Emily tries to recruit Calvin back to her side by returning his jacket to him, and Calvin refuses it. Then Emily and her two remaining allies go to visit Dormammu.

SHE-HULK #9 (Marvel, 2022) – untitled, [W] Rainbow Rowell, [A] Takeshi Miyazawa. Jen and Jack fight April and Mark, and Jack seemingly dies from using his powers without a containment suit. Also there’s a scene where Jen breaks the fourth wall, in the vein of John Byrne’s version of the character. Rowell’s She-Hulk comics tend to feel quicker and more insubstantial than her Runaways comics, perhaps because She-Hulk has fewer characters, or because Miyazawa’s art style is less detailed than Andres Genolet’s.

DAMN THEM ALL #3 (Boom!, 2022) – untitled, [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Charlie Adlard. Ellie and her allies continue investigating Alfie’s murder. Meanwhile, an African immigrant, Abshir, uses a demon’s power to become Mayor of London, but what he doesn’t realize is that several other people are using their own demons to gain similar positions of power. What I remember most from this issue is how no one knows what the word “xenopilus” means. Damn Them All’s mythology seems to be based on actual medieval and Renaissance demonology.

BOOK OF SLAUGHTER #1 (Boom!, 2022) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Werther Dell’Edera. In the aftermath of Aaron Slaughter’s death, which occurred in SIKTC #10, Maxine Slaughter decides to retrain from a White Mask to a Black Mask. Maxine’s story acts as a frame for an illustrated text sequence that serves encyclopedic description of the Order of St. George. Nothing in this encyclopedia really explains why the Order is so obsessed with its own secrecy, to the point where it cares more about keeping itself secret than about its actual mission. Also, it’s interesting that the Order has six Houses in western Europe, but only one each in sub-Saharan Africa and China.

SPIDER-MAN #4 (Marvel, 2023) – “End of the Spider-Verse Part 4: The Unraveling,” [W] Dan Slott, [A] Mark Bagley. This is my favorite issue yet, because it’s full of brilliant and funny variations on Spider-Man. The Spiders in this issue include a living Spider-Mobile (from the same issue that introduced Songstress), a video game character, a giant monster, and Spiders-Man, who’s a colony of spiders in a costume. But the best of all is Peter Palmer, the Amazing Spiderman with no hyphen, which is what Peter Parker, the Amazing Spider-Man, was erroneously called in Amazing Spider-Man #1. This issue’s main plot point is that with Peter Parker erased from existence, Peter Palmer takes his place as the Chosen One. This is the sort of clever idea that Slott is so good at.

2000 AD #2293 (Rebellion, 2022) – Dredd: “Special Relationship 05,” [W] Rob Williams, [A] Patrick Goddard. Mega-City One and Brit-Cit’s standoff over the Atlantis colony continues. Dredd reveals that he booby-trapped the base on his way in, and threatens to blow it up unless the Brit Judges evacuate. Brink: “Mercury Retrograde Part 22,” [W] Dan Abnett, [A] INJ Culbard. A worker, Evan, takes Nolan Maslow into the station’s ducts. At last this overlong story is drawing to a conclusion. Skip Tracer: “Valhalla Part 7”, [W] James Peaty, [A] Dylan Marshall. While investigating the Valhalla base, Nolan Blake seems to blow himself up. Confusingly, the protagonists of Brink and Skip Tracer are both named Nolan. Dexter: “Malice in Plunderland Part 5,” [W] Dan Abnett, [A] Tazio Bettin. While Dexter is trying to escape from the new crimelords with his life, he gets a call on the phone from his own crimelord. Also, Dexter keeps having arguments with his own thought balloons. This is not a piece of Deadpool-esque fourth-wall-breaking, but has an in-story explanation which will be revealed soon. Jaegir: “Ferox Three,” [W] Gordon Rennie, [A] Simon Coleby. I can’t make head or tail of this story. All I know is that it’s set in Rogue Trooper’s universe.

NIGHTWING #82 (DC, 2021) – “Leaping Into the Light Part 2,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Bruno Redondo, Rick Leonardi & Neil Edwards. I bought this and #83 on eBay. I now need only one issue to complete this run. Most of this issue is a flashback sequence, drawn by guest artists, which explains Meili Lin and Melinda Zucco’s history. Meili was Tony Zucco’s kept woman, but escaped and joined Haly’s Circus. There she had a brief relationship with John Grayson, resulting in Melinda. This was before Dick’s parents were a couple, so Dick’s dad wasn’t a cheater. But while Meili was pregnant, Tony Zucco kidnapped her again, and she escaped just in time for Tony to kill the Graysons. This is a touching story, and it underscores what a horrible monster Tony Zucco is.

FANTASTIC FOUR #3 (Marvel, 2023) – “A Shoptastic Day,” [W] Ryan North, [A] Iban Coello. Johnny Storm disguises himself with dyed hair and a mustache and gets a retail job. His boss, Merrill, is a tyrant who pays starvation wages and endangers his employees’ health, and they can’t do anything about him or they’ll be fired. And Merrill figures out who Johnny is, but isn’t  afraid of him, because he knows Johnny isn’t willing to kill him. Johnny manages to defeat Merrill with the help of his fellow employees. This is another very clever story, and it shows a good understanding of Johnny’s personality. A major flaw of Dan Slott’s FF run was his very unsympathetic depiction of Johnny.

MOSELY #1 (Boom!, 2023) – “Phisher of Men,” [W] Rob Guillory, [A] Sami Lotfi. This is Rob Guillory’s first work as a writer but not an artist. Mosely is set in a world where robots have taken all the good jobs, and most people spend all their time immersed in virtual reality. Our aging protagonist, Marvin Mosley, perceives this world as dystopian, though his adult daughter Ruby is fine with it. On the way home from visiting Ruby, Mosley is mugged by a toddler and his robot drones, and suffers a heart attack. Then he has a vision where he’s told “Free my people!” and he’s given a giant hammer and a suit of armor. This series looks interesting, but it’s not as immediately captivating as Chew or Farmhand. BTW, I hope we get the last Farmhand story arc soon.

BATMAN #131 (DC, 2023) – “The Bat-Man of Gotham Part 1,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Mike Hawthorne. After his battle with Failsafe, Batman finds himself in an alternative reality where there’s no Batman, and Gotham is even bleaker and more horrible than usual. Mike Hawthorne is a capable artist, but without Jorge Jimenez, this series is much less exciting. In the backup story, Tim Drake tries to defend Gotham in Batman’s absence, while insisting, against all evidence, that Batman is still alive.

POISON IVY #8 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] G. Willow Wilson, [A] Atagun Ilhan. Ivy is slowly turning into a plant, and she has to convince Crawley’s employee, Janet, to disobey Crawley and save her. I really like the scene where Crawley accuses Janet of having no loyalty, and in return, Janet accuses her of being “super feminist until it’s time to give employees maternity leave.” Crawley is an example of the toxic “lean in” mentality, which “encourages women to promote themselves individually as “marketable consumer object[s]” for professional advancement, while discouraging solidarity and downplaying the damaging effects of systemic gender bias felt collectively by women in the workplace” (Wikipedia). The problem with this issue is that Atagun Ilhan is very good at drawing plants, which must be why he was hired, but very bad at drawing female faces.

SHANG-CHI AND THE TEN RINGS #6 (Marvel, 2023) – “Game of Rings Finale,” [W] Gene Luen Yang, [A] Marcus To. Shen Kuei is possessed by the Wyrm of Desolation, and Red Cannon is forced to shoot him. Then Red Cannon reveals herself as Shi Hua, the character who replaced Fah Lo Suee. Shang chooses to save Shen Kuei’s life rather than steal his rings, and this proves his worthiness as the new keeper of the rings. Unfortunately this is the next-to-last issue.

STILLWATER #17 (Image, 2023) – “Hearts and Minds,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Ramón K. Pérez. The protagonists prepare for their final confrontation with Galen. Daniel tries to stop the fight between Galen’s troops and the people of Stillwater and Coldwater, but he’s torn apart by both sides. I had trouble following this issue because I’ve forgotten who some of the characters are, or which side they’re on. There’s just one issue left.

2000 AD #2294 (Rebellion, 2022) – Dredd: as above. There’s a flashback to an encounter between a Sov agent and someone else, I don’t know who. Then the standoff ends with Brit-Cit ending its alliance with Mega-City One and entering into negotiations with the Sovs. Dredd says “It was only Brit-Cit.” On the next page is an obituary for Alan Grant. Brink: as above. Nolan starts having hallucinations, Evan tells Nolan his plan to use Nolan as a scapegoat, and Nolan says “Vovek sent me.” Who’s Vovek? Skip Tracer: as above. Nolan’s comrade Nerin wakes up in the afterlife. Nolan prepares for a suicide mission.  Dexter: as above. Dexter and his team escape from Plunderland, but I think Sinister is following them. Jaegir: as above. I still have no idea what’s going on here.

CAPTAIN MARVEL #45 (Marvel, 2023) – “Revenge of the Brood Part 3,” [W] Kelly Thompson, [A] Sergio Dávila. Carol and the X-Men fight their way out of the Brood’s captivity. A rather quick and forgettable issue.

FEARLESS DAWN #3 (Asylum, 2010) – “The Case of the Monster Frog!”, [W/A] Steve Mannion. This is a very expensive signed edition, and I think I paid too much for it, but it was almost worth it because of Steve Mannion’s brilliant artwork. He’s like a cross between Dave Stevens and Kevin Nowlan. I do think that the giant frog which is the villain in this issue is kind of unimpressive, and the other Fearless Dawn comics I’ve read were even better drawn than this one.

NIGHTWING #83 (DC, 2021) – “Leaping Into the Light Part 4,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Bruno Redondo. Dick escapes from Blockbuster in a brilliant action sequence. One of the great things about Bruno Redondo’s art is that his action sequences are a key selling point of each issue, whereas in so many other superhero comics, the action scenes are mere filler. Then Dick talks to Superman, who mentions Jon for the first time in this run, and then Dick announces the creation of the Alfred Pennyworth Foundation. This issue’s cover shows Dick rapidly changing from his costume to a suit, and belatedly realizing his mask is still on. This cover is a sort of prototype of issue 87.

FOUR COLOR #1024 (Dell, 1959) – “Darby O’Gill and the Little People,” [W] unknown, [A] Alex Toth. I ordered this on eBay after learning that it was drawn by Toth. It’s an adaptation of a film which was itself adapted from a book of Irish folkloric short stories. The plot is that Darby O’Gill, an old estate caretaker, captures a leprechaun who can grant three wishes – just as Darby is being forced to retire from his position, and his daughter is being pursued by an immoral young man. Darby makes clever use of the leprechaun’s powers to save the day. This story is charming and clever, but what makes this comic memorable is Toth’s art. Unlike in his disappointing story from Four Color #1041, his art here is highly detailed while still being elegantly simple. He creates what seems like a historically accurate depiction of rural Ireland, with realistic-looking settings and clothing, and he clearly reveals his characters’ personalities through their facial expressions. Toth’s Zorro is justly famous, but it’s too bad that most of his other work for Dell has fallen into obscurity.

THE ROADIE #4 (Dark Horse, 2022) – untitled, [W] Tim Seeley, [A] Fran Galán. Joe discovers he’s not Shelby’s father, but he saves both her and himself by helping her mother overthrow Satan. This series would actually have benefitted from at least one more issue. The most compelling thing about it is Joe and Shelby’s relationship, but with all the plot points that Seeley had to get through, he had limited space in which to develop this relationship.

CAPTAIN AMERICA: SYMBOL OF TRUTH #8 (Marvel, 2022) – “Pax Mohannda Part 2,” [W] Tochi Onyebuchi, [A] R.B. Silva. The Mohannda civil war continues, and Dr. Nightshade returns. This is another boring and insubstantial issue, and it contributed to my loss of patience with this series.

X-MEN RED #10 (Marvel, 2023) – “The New Age,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Stefano Caselli & Jacopo Camagni. Storm succeeds in defeating Vulcan, but Agent Brand escapes. At the end of the issue, we meet a clone of Mr. Sinister who has a spade symbol on his forehead instead of a diamond.  This issue is okay but not amazing.

PETER PARKER & MILES MORALES: SPIDER-MEN DOUBLE TROUBLE #2 (Marvel, 2022) – untitled, [W] Mariko Tamaki & Vita Ayala, [A] GuriHiru. Mysterio takes the transporting can to a supervillain convention held in the Javits center. Then he opens the can, and Miles comes out and has to flee from a horde of supervillains. Besides being hilarious, this issue is impressive for the sheer number of different villains (or people cosplaying as villains) who appear in it. There’s even one person who cosplays as Ego the Living Planet.

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES #134 (IDW, 2022) – untitled, [W] Sophie Campbell, [A] Fero Pe. For some reason I got #134 after #135, and I didn’t get #136 at all. I don’t think I’ll even bother to look for a copy of #136, because this series has gone badly off track. There is some good characterization in this issue, but its plot is impossible to follow if the reader isn’t also reading the Armageddon Game miniseries.

2000 AD #2295 (Rebellion, 2022) – Dredd: “Naked Lunch,” [W] Ken Niemand, [A] Dan Cornwell. Another story about Moe Hallam, the security guard who perceives everyone as naked. She was introduced in prog 2217. This issue she helps Dredd prevent a suicide bombing at a ”sausagefest,” i.e. a literal convention of sausage enthusiasts, so of course this story is full of innuendos. This story shows why Ken Niemand is the best current 2000 AD writer. Skip Tracer: as above. Nolan encounters his old enemy Djinndorah, the King of Hell. Brink: as above. Nolan has a horrific vision, then gets murdered, and the story ends with a news broadcast. I don’t understand the appeal of this story. To me it was just a boring talkfest that was about four times as long as it had to be, and I never quite understood its plot. Jaegir: as above. I remain unable to understand this story.

GAY COMIX #5 (Kitchen Sink, 1984) – [E] Robert Triptow. Notable stories include: A Leonard and Larry story by Tim Barela, in which the protagonists come out to their parents. Tim Barela is almost as wordy as Don McGregor, but his art is excellent. Roberta Gregory’s “Just Because,” in which two lesbians get a lesson from a black woman in how to deal with prejudice. This story would not be considered politically correct today. One of the protagonists tells the other that things could be worse, because she could be a blind black lesbian blind terminally ill single mother who lost her child, and then they encounter a woman who meets that exact description. Gregory’s intentions were good, though. Howard Cruse’s “Cabbage Patch Clone,” a reference to the contemporary Cabbage Patch Kids fad. Also lots of interesting material by other artists, though nothing as significant as “I’m Me!” from #3.

MY LITTLE PONY #8 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Shauna Grant, [A] Andy Price. This is the best issue yet, but only because of the art. The story is pointless and it could have been done better with the characters from the previous generation. All of Andy’s previous pony stories have included a cameo appearance by an Observer from Fringe, but if there was one in this issue, I couldn’t find it. This will be my last issue of this MLP series, unless something changes.

JUGHEAD #211 (Archie, 1972) – “I Gotta Be Me!”, [W] Dick Malmgren, [A] Samm Schwartz, etc. This was included for free with Four Color #1024. In this issue’s lead story, Jughead has a dream where he steals Archie, Reggie and Moose’s girlfriends (Veronica is defined here as Reggie’s girlfriend). In the second story, Jughead is revealed to have an amazing memory. In the last story, Jughead makes his dog sleep outside in the cold, but then regrets it. These stories are the definition of average comics, as Bart Beaty has argued, but they’re not bad.

GOTHAM CITY: YEAR ONE #4 (DC, 2023) – untitled, [W] Tom King, [A] Phil Hester. Slam Bradley gets beaten senseless by the police, then gets in a fight with Richard Wayne. At this point Slam has been beaten up so many times that he ought to be dead already. It’s very frustrating to see him keep suffering all this undeserved corporal punishment. After that, Slam sleeps with Constance Wayne, which suggests the predictable and boring twist that Slam is Bruce’s grandfather. Not that this matters, since we didn’t know anything about Bruce’s grandparents to begin with. Then Slam goes and beats up the corrupt police commissioner, in a scene that’s a blatant ripoff of Gordon’s attack on Flass in Batman: Year One. And this scene also includes a swipe of the trashcan page from Spider-Man #50. During this sequence, Tom King references a lot of old Batman creators, but misspells the names Goodwin, Roussos and Staton. This series is neither original or fun, and I’m not going to read the remaining issues. As another review states: “From Slam’s Korean War backstory to the rehash of Jim Gordon beating Flass in Slam’s beating of the commissioner, it feels like there’s no real verve or zip to the story.”

SECRET INVASION #3 (Marvel, 2023) – “Now I Know You’re Human,” [W] Ryan North, [A] Francesco Mobili. Maria discovers that Tony has been employing a number of Skrulls, and that they’ve been using subcutaneous human blood packs to pass blood tests. Maria comes up with the gross but effective idea of taking a blood sample from Tony’s tongue instead. This proves that he’s human. Then Maria shoots all of Tony’s Skrull employees. This miniseries is another example of Ryan North’s very clever plotting.

ACTION JOURNALISM #4 (Oni, 2023) – “The Superhero Beat?!”, [W] Eric Skillman, [A] Miklós Felvidéki. Much to her annoyance, Kate Kelly gets put on the “superhero beat” and has to report on the activities of the local superhero, the Volunteer. Her assistant, Grant Russell, is a dorky reporter with glasses, so we’re obviously supposed to assume that he’s the Volunteer. But the twist ending is that Kate herself is the Volunteer – or rather, anyone can become the Volunteer if they act heroically. This story will be completed next issue. The backup story is drawn by Dave Baker, who I haven’t heard of.

ASTRONAUT DOWN #5 (Aftershock, 2023) – “The Message,” [W] James Patrick, [A] Rubine. Douglas sacrifices his life to save his home reality, and nine months later, Maddie gives birth to his posthumous child. This was an interesting series, but I think I preferred Campisi and Kaiju Score because of their funny premises.

BLINK #5 (Oni, 2022) – untitled, [W] Christopher Sebela, [A] Hayden Sherman. Wren talks with the ruler of Blink, then he shoots himself, and lots of other weird stuff happens. Finally Wren escapes from Blink, but is left even more traumatized than before. This ending doesn’t feel like a conclusion. Hayden Sherman’s page layouts in this issue are amazing.

2000 AD #2296 (Rebellion, 2022) – This is another Regened issue. Cadet Dredd: “Two Tribes,” [W] James Peaty, [A] Luke Horsman. Dredd helps rescue some slaves from mutant slavers, and is forced to acknowledge the unfairness of Mega-City One’s treatment of mutants. Renk: untitled, [W] Paul Starkey, [A] Anna Readman. In an epic fantasy city, Renk, a one-armed dwarf detective, investigates the kidnapping of a king and queen. His client, the princess, proves to be the real culprit. This story includes a disturbing scene with a husband-and-wife pair whose bodies are conjoined. Otherwise it’s pretty standard. Future Shocks: “Leveling Up,” [W] David Barnett, [A] Steve Roberts. A super-rich man gives all his money away, causing money to become worthless, which leads to social collapse. The twist is that he did all this in order to sell Earth to aliens. I think if everyone on Earth really did get a billion dollars, then in the long term, the effect would be the same as if no one received anything. Money only has value if some people have it and others don’t. Department K: “Crisis on Infinite Estabons,” [W] Rory McConville, [A] Nick Dyer. Department K is invaded by alternate versions of the robot judge Estabon. This is rather funny. ‘Splorers: “The Big Splash,” [W] Gordon Rennie & Emma Beeby, [A] Neil Googe. The same plot as Fantastic Voyage, except the body into which the protagonists travel is that of their alien pet. Overall this issue was unimpressive compared to earlier Regened issues.

EARTHDIVERS #4 (IDW, 2023) – “Ladies Man,” [W] Stephen Graham Jones, [A] Davide Gianfelice. The 1492 plotline continues, but by the end of the issue the ships haven’t reached America. The future plotilne also continues, but it still makes no sense. As stated in my review of #3, I think this series would have been better off without the future plotline. I can’t understand it at all, and it’s a distraction from the series’ focus on the colonial encounter.

SACRAMENT #5 (AWA, 2022) – untitled, [W] Peter Milligan, [A] Marcelo Frusin. Vass and Rais finally manage to exorcise the demon, and they continue their career despite Vass’s loss of faith. This series is an effective depiction of religious faith. What makes the demon in this series so demonic is that he tells Vass the worst possible things about himself. He accuses Vass of having selfish motives for everything he does, and of acting in ways that contradict his own values. Everything the demon says is true, yet unfair, in the sense that no one – not even a priest – can be expected to have pure motives or to behave in a consistent way. The interesting thing is that this is also how depression works. When you’re depressed, you listen to the internal voice that tells you what an awful person you are.

MY BAD VOLUME 2 #2 (Ahoy, 2022) – “The Pizza Man Cometh,” [W] Mark Russell, [A] Peter Krause. The pizza murders continue, and in the backup features, the former Emperor King goes on a disastrous date. I like this series better than the previous volume, partly because the pizza murder storyline is more compelling than whatever was happening in volume 1. However, I do think My Bad would be better if it had just one full-length story per issue.

2000 AD #2297 (Rebellion, 2022) – Dredd: “Sentientoid’s Big Idea,” [W] Rob Williams, [A] Jake Lynch. A Sov war robot arrives in Mega-City One and starts assassinating people. Sentientoid is an interesting character, but I’d forgotten all about him by the time I read the subsequent story he appears in. Tharg’s 3rillers: “The Crawly Man Part 1,” [W] David Barnett, [A] Lee Milmore. Near the remote Welsh town of Cudd, a creepy man abducts a little girl, Cris. Rather than go to the police, the people of Cudd ask the wizard Herne and his talking dog to rescue the girl. Meanwhile, Caris summons some kind of monster. Skip Tracer: as above. Eden teleports to Valhalla to try to save her father. Dexter: “Bulletopia Chapter 11: The End of the Pier Show Part 1,” [W] Dan Abnett, [A] Steve Yeowell. Dexter and his allies visit a seaside resort village to obtain transport to their next destination, but some assassins are looking for them. Steve Yeowell’s art is somewhat lacking in detail, but he’s an eminent 2000 AD veteran, and it’s nice to see his art again. Jaegir: as above. More incomprehensible nonsense.

SPY SUPERB #1 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Matt Kindt. Spy Superb is known worldwide as the ultimate spy. The trouble is he doesn’t really exist – he’s a myth created by his country’s intelligence service, and his alleged actions are performed by a succession of anonymous people. The latest Spy Superb is a stupid-looking man named Jay Bartholomew, who has no idea he’s supposed to be a super-spy. In a funny sequence, some assassins are sent to kill him, but he kills them all by accident. Spy Superb is off to a good start, but it feels quite similar to Kindt’s earlier series, like Superspy and MIND MGMT and Fear Case.

2000 AD #2298 (Rebellion, 2022) – Dredd: as above. To help against Sentientoid, Dredd consults a character named Buratino, who I don’t remember seeing before. 3rillers: as above. Caris directs a monster, the Crawly Man, to attack her kidnappers, but it also attacks Herne and his dog Shuck. We also learn that the people of Cudd want Caris back so that they can sacrifice her. Skip Tracer: as above. Nolan saves Eden, but then has to sacrifice his own life to complete his mission. Dexter: as above. Dexter learns that the voice speaking in his thought ballons is an artificial intelligence, Lilith, the rival of the rogue AI who’s the villain of this whole storyline. Then the two assassins arrive. I like how this chapter provides an in-story explanation for what seemed like fourth-wall breaking. Jaegir: as above. See earlier reviews.

NEW MUTANTS #33 (Marvel, 2022) – “Let It Burn,” [W] Charlie Jane Anders, [A] Alberto Alburquerque. After some action scenes, Morgan falls off the roof as predicted, but Shela swaps positions with him, and they’re both saved. Shela’s power is clever, though its effects can be confusing. Then we learn that the entire mission was a setup created by Emma Frost and Destiny, which explains why the adult X-Men never tried to rescue the kids. This is the last issue under the present numbering, but Anders’s New Mutants run will continue as a miniseries.  

WEST OF SUNDOWN #7 (Vault, 2022) – untitled, [W] Tim Seeley & Aaron Campbell, [A] Jim Terry. I can’t summarize this issue because it has a ton of different plotlines, and I’m not sure how they’re all connected. It does seem like the primary villain of this storyline is Dr. Moreau. The best part of this issue is the argument between Dooley and Constance. I wish this series would focus more on them and less on its increasingly bloated supporting cast.

A CALCULATED MAN #4 (Aftershock, 2023) – “The Numbers Boy,” [W] Paul Tobin, [A] Alberto Jimenez Alburquerque. It really is spelled Alburquerque with an extra R, unlike the city in New Mexico. Jack finishes wiping out the enemy crime family, but then we discover that Jack was actually behind both crime families from the start, as part of a plan he created when he was seven years old. This is frankly hard to believe, and it gives me the sense that Jack is an unrealistic wish fulfillment fantasy (though the above could also be said of most superheroes). A Calculated Man was a disappointing series because it was marketed as being about math, but it really wasn’t.

PINK LEMONADE #4 (Oni, 2022) – untitled, [W/A] Nick Cagnetti. All the characters visit an abandoned film set, where Zavi Xarad reveals that he’s created a robot version of Pink Lemonade. Chaos results, and the factory blows up with Pink still in it. This series is exciting and beautifully drawn, though it still feels like a gender-swapped version of Madman.

IMPOSSIBLE JONES: NAUGHTY OR NICE #1 (Scout, 2022) – “All I Want for Christmas…”, [W] Karl Kesel, [A] David Hahn. My copy of this issue has a printing error in which pages 3 and 4 of the main story are transposed with pages 5 and 6 of the backup story. Until I figured this out, I was extremely confused as to what was going on. Anyway, in this issue, Impossible Jones battles a holiday-themed villain, Holly Daze, while also trying to steal the same thing Holly Daze is attempting to steal – a set of rare Jingle Belle puppets. The reference to Jingle Belle in this issue is appropriate because she’s a rather similar character to Impossible Jones. This was a fun issue, and I hope we see more of this character.

SANDMAN UNIVERSE: DEAD BOY DETECTIVES #1 (DC, 2022) – “Swords of Arkhane,” [W] Pornsak Pichetshote, [A] Jeff Stokely. The two dead detectives, Rowland and Paine, are hired by a young boy to investigate a neighbor who was abducted by ghosts. In their investigation, thy meet a Thai “ghost doctor” who tells them about the different varieties of Thai ghosts. Also, there’s a subplot about Thessaly. This issue is entertaining and creepy, but I especially like its invocation of Thai culture. The key point the Ghost Doctor mentions is that in Western culture there’s just one kind of ghosts, but in Thai culture there are lots of different kinds, all horrible in different ways. This series is a good example of a horror comic that draws upon non-European cultural influences.  

DOCTOR STRANGE: FALL SUNRISE #2 (Marvel, 2022) – “To Those Who Would Destroy Me,” [W/A] Tradd Moore. I bought this off the shelf because the artwork is utterly stunning. I only know Tradd Moore from Luther Strode, where his art is notable mostly for its high degree of gore. But here it’s as if he’s become a new artist. His renderings are hyper-detailed and super-weird and they make fantastic use of color. This comic is a good example of what I mean by “visual imagination” – that is, the ability to conceive of things the reader hasn’t thought of before. The only other Dr. Strange comic that has this level of visual creativity and daring is P. Craig Russell’s What Is It That Disturbs You, Stephen?, and Fall Sunrise is a worthy successor to that comic. Fall Sunrise’s plot is hard to follow, and may not even make rational sense, but Moore’s writing creates a powerful sense of weirdness.

SHANG-CHI: MASTER OF THE TEN RINGS #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “Fathers and Sons,” [W] Gene Luen Yang, [A] Michael YG. Shang-Chi and his allies travel back in time to the past, where they meet a kind, noble version of Zheng Zu. Then Shang-Chi and his new girlfriend decide to pursue their relationship further. Sadly this is Gene Luen Yang’s last issue. I was really enjoying this series, and it’s clear that Yang had plans for future stories. Master of the Ten Rings #1 seems like it was condensed from what was intended to be a longer storyline, as the scenes in the past feel rushed, and there’s never any explanation of why Zheng Zu changed from a good man to a villain. I’m glad that DC, unlike Marvel, is willing to support Yang’s current work, as Monkey Prince is playing a major role in DC’s latest crossover.

IMAGE! 30TH ANNIVERSARY ANTHOLOGY #9 (Image, 2022) – [W/A] various. The major attraction of this issue is Brubaker and Phillips’s new Criminal story “Teeg’s Christmas Carol.” On Christmas morning, Teeg wakes up in an unfamiliar woman’s bed. Feeling guilty for being a cheating deadbeat dad, Teeg steals the woman’s kids’ Christmas presents and gives them to his own young sons. But the presents turn out to contain dolls, because the women’s children are girls, and Teeg’s attempt to become a good father is an utter failure. This is a well-crafted story that reminds us what an awful man Teeg is. This issue also includes the conclusion to “Closer,” in which the protagonist sends her creepy stalker ex to hell. The other stories in this issue are mostly the same as usual. Since this issue includes a story set in the Frontiersman-Antioch universe, I will mention here that Antioch #3 and #4 were cancelled. I’m not sorry about this at all, since I was not enjoying Antioch.

2000 AD #2299 (Rebellion, 2022) – Dredd: as above. Sentientoid tries to join the mob, but he has to kill the assembled mob bosses instead. Buratino turns Sentientoid off and takes it into custody. 3rillers: as above. The two kidnappers claim that they were trying to save Caris from being sacrificed, though this claim is rather dubious, given their abusive treatment of her. The Crawly Man kills the kidnappers, and then Herne sends it through a portal back to Cudd, so that the two problems can take care of each other. I liked this story. Dexter: as above. Lilith saves Dexter and crew from the assassins, who are just extensions of the evil AI, by blocking the assassins’ senses. Dexter’s group escapes to Mangapore to continue their battle with the rogue AI. Skip Tracer: as above. Nolan dies, and the rest of Eden’s life is summarized very quickly. Eden dies of old age and wakes up in the previously seen afterlife, where both her parents are together. This is a cute ending, but it seems to preclude the possibility of a sequel, and that’s unfortunate because I liked Skip Tracer. Jaegir: as above. More stuff happens that I don’t understand, and that’s finally the end of this pointless story.

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: THE ARMAGEDDON GAME – THE ALLIANCE #3 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Juni Ba. A solo story starring the dog mutant Alopex. I don’t understand how this story fits into continuity, but Juni Ba’s art is extremely effective, and he emphasizes Alopex’s dog-like way of thinking. I ordered Juni Ba’s graphic novel Djeliya, and I plan on reading it soon, since I’m giving a paper on Africanfuturist comics at ICFA.

BLACK BEETLE #4 (Dark Horse, 2013) – “No Way Out,” [W/A] Francesco Francavilla. Another issue with beautiful art and coloring, but a trite and pointless story. It is pretty cool how the villain’s costume is a giant maze. A second Black Beetle miniseries was announced for 2013, but has never appeared, though Francavilla sometimes claims to still be working on it. I frankly think his time would be better spent drawing other comics.

GINSENG ROOTS #3 (Uncivilized, 2020) – “The 3 Sovereigns,” [W/A] Craig Thompson. This issue starts with a description of Shennong, the Chinese agricultural deity, and his connection to ginseng. Then Craig describes his visit to a ginseng festival in Wausau. Thompson’s previous book Habibi, which I have not read, was accused of Orientalism, but in Ginseng Roots it seems like he’s making a good-faith attempt to understand Chinese texts and perspectives. I also like his account of the insularity of rural Wisconsin. I haven’t read Thompson’s latest two books, Habibi and Space Dumplins, but I can easily believe that Ginseng Roots is his best work since Carnet de Voyage.

THE BLACK DRAGON #3 (Marvel, 1985) – untitled, [W] Chris Claremont, [A] John Bolton. I bought this back when I lived in Atlanta, but I never read it because the previous two issues were kind of tedious. The Black Dragon is a fantasy story set in medieval England. Its plot is too complicated to easily follow – a list of characters would have been useful – and its major appeal is John Bolton’s gorgeous art. In typical Claremontian fashion, this issue is full of nude scenes, and Bolton is very good at drawing female bodies. Two of the characters in this issue are named Jamie and Brian. Those names are also used in Claremont’s Captain Britain and Excalibur.

CATWOMAN #25 (DC, 2004) – “Fire with Fire,” [W] Ed Brubaker, [A] Paul Gulacy. Selina fights a lot of other villains and criminals for control of the East End of Gotham. This issue consists mostly of action sequences, but Paul Gulacy is very good at action sequences – they’re the thing he’s best at, now that he’s stopped doing Steranko-esque page layouts.

NEW GODS #8 (DC, 1972) – “The Death Wish of Terrible Turpin!”, [W/A] Jack Kirby. This is obviously an absolute classic. I’ve read it before, but only in black and white. This issue introduces Dan Turpin, the ultimate tough cop, who insists on trying to arrest Kalibak despite being totally outmatched by him. Also, I think this issue reveals Orion’s real face for the first time. This issue’s action sequences are utterly stunning. It occurs to me that I sometimes think of Kirby’s art as looking like that of Steve Rude and Tom Grummett, when it’s actually the other way around: Kirby is the inspiration for those artists, as well as every other artist of superhero comics. This issue includes a short Fastbak story and a Golden Age Manhunter reprint.

WEIRD WORLDS #3 (DC, 1973) – “Into the Valley of Death,” [W] Marv Wolfman, [A] Murphy Anderson. An adaptation of part of The Gods of Mars. Murphy Anderson’s artwork here is very competent, but a bit boring. For some reason DC’s adaptations of John Carter were much shorter-lived than Marvel’s John Carter title. This issue also includes a Pellucidar story by Len Wein and Alan Weiss, whose art is a bit more exciting than Anderson’s.

VANGUARD ILLUSTRATED #5 (Pacific, 1984) – “Quark,” [W] Mike Baron, [A] Rick Burchett. A rather boring superhero story, starring a character who never appeared again. The backup feature is “A Friend in Need” by Ron Harris, about an astronaut stranded in space. This one is also rather unimpressive. Then there’s a two-pager by Rick Geary, and finally there’s a story by Tim Burgard about an alien spaceship that crashes in the Amazon. I thought Tim Burgard was an underground artist, but I was confusing him with Tim Boxell. Probably the best thing about Vanguard Illustrated #5 is the beautiful cover by Michael Kaluta.

DIAL H #8 (DC, 2013) – “Dozens,” [W] China Miéville, [A] Alberto Ponticelli. Another issue with a confusing plot and no clear protagonist. This time around there are also no interesting new superhero concepts. This issue promises to reveal the “secret history of telephones,” but it never really delivers on that.  

MASTER OF KUNG FU #119 (DC, 1982) – “Brynocki’s Marauders,” [W] Doug Moench, [A] Marc Silvestri. Shang-Chi, Leiko, Reston and Dark Angel battle Brynocki and his robot minions. After reading Gene Luen Yang’s Shang-Chi, it’s hard to return to the original MOKF series, which was revolutionary for its time, but also deeply immersed in Orientalist cliches. Marc Silvestri’s storytelling in this issue is not good. He uses lots of unnecessary inset panels that should have been regular panels, and on one page he has to use arrows to indicate the order of the panels. That device is not necessary if a page is laid out properly.

MARVEL MILESTONES: BLADE, MAN-THING AND SATANA #nn (Marvel, 1973/2005) – [W/A] various. This issue reprints Tomb of Dracula #10, which I already have in facsimile form, and Fear #16, which I have in its original form. Why they chose Fear #16 is unclear, since it’s neither Man-Thing’s first appearance, nor Gerber’s best Man-Thing story. The only  thing in this issue that’s new to me is the Satana story from Vampire Tales #2. The recoloring of the Dracula story is really ugly.

CHASE #5 (DC, 1998) – “Better Days,” [W] D. Curtis Johnson, [A] Bob Hall. A flashback story in which Chase teams up with Klarion. The main reason I’m interested in Chase is because of J.H. Williams III’s art, but in this issue he only did a four-page framing sequence, and those pages are all drawn in a very conventional style.

THE BLACK DRAGON #4 (Marvel, 1985) – as above. Even though I read this issue shortly after reading issue 3, I still found it impossible to follow. It’s hard to see how the two issues are connected. This issue introduces Robin Hood into the series, as if there weren’t enough characters already. As with #3, the main appeal of this comic is Bolton’s beautiful art.

SANDMAN MYSTERY THEATRE #17 (DC, 1994) – “The Scorpion Act 1,” [W] Matt Wagner & Steven T. Seagle, [A] Guy Davis. Wesley Dodds investigates the murder of a German businessman. At the end of the issue, while the businessman’s partner is beating his servant, he’s interrupted by a masked man carrying a whip. Sandman Mystery Theatre was one of the finest DC comics of its time, and I wish I had time to read the entire run in order. This issue’s murder victim is introduced as Karl Dechert, but later he’s referred to as Harry.

SOLO #8 (DC, 2006) – various stories, [W/A] Teddy Kristiansen, [W] various. This issue begins with a real gem: “On the Stairs,” written by Gaiman, in which Deadman conducts a recently deceased soul to the afterlife. This story is reminiscent of “The Sound of Her Wings,” and it includes an allusion to Death. The other stories in this issue include some beautiful painted art, but are not nearly as well-written. The last three are written by Kristiansen himself, and are mostly pointless.

THE LEGEND OF LUTHER STRODE #5 (Image, 2013) – untitled, [W] Justin Jordan, [A] Tradd Moore. Mostly a series of gruesome action sequences whose context I don’t understand. I want to like Justin Jordan’s work more than I actually do. As stated above, Tradd Moore’s art in this issue is completely different from his recent work in Doctor Strange: Fall Sunrise.

THE SMURFS FCBD (Papercutz, 2013) – “The Ogre and the Smurfs,” [W/A] Peyo, etc. Gargamel tries to get an ogre to destroy the Smurfs, but his plan backfires. This story is a fun example of the Marcinelle school of French comics, though it seems to have been recolored or redrawn or both. The other features in this issue include Annoying Orange, which is aptly titled, and Ariol, by Emmanuel Guibert and Marc Boutavant. The latter story is kind of cute. I have Papercutz volumes of both Smurfs and Ariol – in fact, I probably got both those books at the same convention – and I should get around to reading them at some point.

2000 AD #2300 (Rebellion, 2022) – Dredd: “Judgment Days,” [W] Ken Niemand, [A] Henry Flint, etc. In an alternate-reality version of “Judgment Day,” the Judges decide to defeat Sabbat by dropping dimension bombs on him. This works, but causes an even worse problem: the entire multiverse gets infected with zombies. The remaining vignettes in the issue depict the zombies’ battles with various other 2000 AD characters, including Rogue Trooper, Robo-Hunter, Mean Arena, and Sinister and Dexter. I don’t have the energy to list the creative teams for all these vignettes. This issue is kind of silly, but it’s fun, and it’s full of nostalgic references to old 2000 AD stories.

GO WEST (Le Lombard, 1979) – ten stories, [W] Greg, [A] Dérib. I’m going to count this as both a book and a comic book, because it’s published in the French album format, but it’s twice as long as a standard album, at 112 pages. It’s a collection of a serial which appeared in Tintin magazine in 1971 and 1972. Go West is about two unemployed New Yorkers who decide to travel to California. On the way they pick up many other companions and have adventures with outlaws, Indians, more outlaws, etc. In the concluding story, they negotiate a peaceful resolution to the 1867 Medicine Lodge council, which really did happen. Go West seems to be less well-known than other works by its creators, but it’s impressive anyway. It’s exciting and funny, and the many different characters are given distinctive personalities and appearances. The traveling party includes three children who not only act as comic relief, but often play a major role in the plot. Go West is a story about settler colonialism, but the creators do their best to depict Indians in a sympathetic light. There is one Indian character who speaks in Tonto talk, and one black character who’s drawn in a stereotypical style. But there’s also a story where the protagonists are pursued by Osage Indians, and at the end they admit that the Osage people were just defending their territory. Finishing this comic was quite tough, due to its unusual length and its use of dialects and nonstandard French phrases. Indeed, I bought this book back when I lived in Gainesville, but never felt up to reading it – until I discovered the Google Translate app.  

REVIVAL #5 (Image, 2012) – untitled, [W] Tim Seeley, [A] Mike Norton. Em and May Tao have to escape from an insane kidnapper. Dana only makes a brief appearance. I think this was the last issue of Revival that I hadn’t read.

MS. TREE #11 (Aardvark-Vanaheim, 1984) – “Deadline Chapter 3: Dancing in the Dark,” [W] Max Allan Collins, [A] Terry Beatty. Ms. Tree investigates the murder of journalist Sid Hargis. She discovers that Hargis and a number of other recent murder victims all went to the same high school, and that Dominic Muerta is involved somehow. This was just an average Ms. Tree story. In the letter column, a reader complains that the guns in the series aren’t depicted correctly. In response, Collins says that he once asked Donald Westlake why Parker’s hair color was inconsistent from one book to another, and Westlake replied “shut up or I’ll throw you down the stairs.”

2000 AD #2301 (Rebellion, 2022) – Dredd: “Half Smart,” [W] Arthur Wyatt, [A] Dave Taylor. Two “very smart persons” meet for a public debate, but the audience mistakenly thinks it’s going to be a prizefight, and a riot breaks out. This story is silly, but has some nice art and coloring. Chimpsky’s Law: “A Terrifically Disturbing Adventure,” [W] Ken Niemand, [A] P.J. Holden. Noam Chimpsky is my favorite character in recent progs. He only appears briefly in this chapter, which is devoted to introducing Timmy and Thruppence, a pair of terrifying murderous children with mind-control powers and no sense of morality. Enemy Earth: “Book One,” [W] Cavan Scott, [A] Luke Horsman. Young Zoe Lincoln is one of the few human survivors in a world where all the plants and animals have turned into man-eaters. In this chapter she discovers another survivor, an even younger orphaned boy named Julius. Future Shocks: “Echo,” [W] Honor Vincent, [A] Liana Kangas. An unsuspecting man is turned into a human host for a pop idol who’s really an artificial intelligence. Hershey: “The Cold in the Bones Book One,” [W] Rob Williams, [A] Simon Fraser. Former Chief Judge and her sidekick Dirty Frank travel to Antarctica for reasons I don’t understand. Simon Fraser’s art here resembles that of his near namesake Frazer Irving.

LUBA #6 (Fantagraphics, 2002) – “Meeting Cute, Fucking Cuter” etc., [W/A] Gilbert Hernandez. Fritz falls in love with an awkward guy named Hector, who encountered two of Luba’s younger kids in an earlier issue. Fritz instead sets Hector up with Petra. This comic is called Luba, but it’s really more about Fritz and Petra. In this issue Hector refers to Petra as “Tondelayo,” a name I recognize from the Al Williamson story in Creepy #83. The original source for this name is the 1942 film White Cargo.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #31 (Marvel, 2017) – “Secret Empire Part 3: End of an Empire,” [W] Dan Slott, [A] Stuart Immonen. In order to defeat Dr. Octopus’s attempt to take over Parker Industries, Peter has to destroy all of Parker’s intellectual property. This issue is exciting, but its conclusion is very disappointing and anticlimactic. One of Peter’s coworkers even says that she was close to discovering a “perfect green energy source,” and she had to sacrifice all her research. Couldn’t Peter have found a way to defeat Doc Ock without destroying everything he was trying to protect from Doc Ock?

SUPERMAN #51 (DC, 1991) – “Mister Z!”, [W/A] Jerry Ordway. Superman encounters a villain named Mr. Z who has the power to steal people’s souls and imprison them in a gemstone. Superman defeats him by destroying his gem, but a fragment of the gem survives. Also, Perry White resigns as the editor of the Daily Planet. Ordway’s art in this issue is very good.

SUPERBOY #51 (DC, 1998) – “The Last Boy on Earth Part 2: The Test!”, [W] Karl Kesel, [A] Tom Grummett. My copy of this issue is signed by both Kesel and Grummett, though I can’t remember if I got them to sign it, or if the signatures were there when I bought it. In this issue, an amnesiac Superboy finds himself in Kamandi’s world, where he’s forced to take a series of tests, and then he recovers his costume. This Superboy run is probably DC’s best attempt at reviving Kirby’s less-prominent ‘70s characters. As an Easter egg, in the warehouse where Superboy’s costume is kept, there’s also a lifebuoy from the SS Minnow, the ship from Gilligan’s Travels.

WONDER WOMAN #260 (DC, 1979) – “A Warrior in Chains!”, [W] Gerry Conway, [A] José Delbo. Wonder Woman’s bracelets are stolen, causing her to go berserk, and she gets arrested. This is all part of a plot by Mars, the god of war, and his servant Hercules. Eventually Diana manages to overcome the madness and remain sane with her bracelets removed. I guess it was well-established at the time that “if [the bracelets were] ever broken or removed, the Amazon would go into an uncontrollable destructive frenzy, as Dr. Marston’s allegory for the unfettered destruction by the human ego” (Wikipedia). Also, Diana used to lose her powers if a man chained her bracelets together. Both these curses have rather disturbing implications, and were retconned away after Crisis. This issue’s art is very mediocre, but that’s probably thanks to the inker-who-must-not-be-named.

RICHIE RICH AND CASPER #18 (Harvey, 1977) – “Forty Thieves,” uncredited. Richie Rich, Casper and Wendy encounter Ali Baba and the forty thieves, who have been scared out of Casper’s storybook by the Ghostly Trio. I’m losing my interest in these old Harvey comics because of their stupid and illogical plots. Ali Baba is not included in the earliest versions of the Arabian Nights. The earliest source for his story is Antoine Galland’s 18th-century French version.

AVENGERS VS. ATLAS #3 (Marvel, 2010) – “Earth’s Mightiest Super Heroes Part 3,” [W] Jeff Parker, [A] Gabriel Hardman. The members of Atlas travel back in time and help the original Avengers fight the Hulk. Venus defeats the Hulk by singing him a lullaby, but this also causes Thor to start making out with Namora. There’s a funny backup story where Venus answers mail from various other Marvel characters.

2000 AD #2302 (Rebellion, 2022) – Dredd: “The Pitch,” [W] Rob Williams & Arthur Wyatt, [A] Boo Cook. Accounts Judge Maitland suggests that Justice Department should spend money on education and social services, rather than on locking people up. Surprisingly, Dredd endorses this idea, and Maitland is allowed to implement her plan in a single district for one year. This story is very unusual in that it suggests the possibility of a brighter future for Mega-City One. Boo Cook’s painted art is quite good. Chimpsky’s Law: as above. Timmy and Thruppence compel two unrelated adults to become their new parents. Then they decide they want Chimpsky to become their new pet. The panel where Chimsky is falling between buildings is a possible homage to the famous opening scene of The Incal. Hope: “In the Shadows Reel Two,” [W] Guy Adams, [A] Jimmy Broxton. A creepy woman visits a diner and orders Salisbury steak. What is going on here is not yet clear. Enemy Earth: as above. Julius’s bunker is invaded by evil insects. BTW, this story is a continuation of a one-shot story from #2256, a Regened issue. I can’t think of another example of a Regened story being continued in the regular progs. Hershey: as above. There’s a flashback to Hershey’s past history, and then a present-day scene in which nothing much happens.  

CEREBUS #139 (Aardvark-Vanaheim, 1990) – “Melmoth Zero,” [W/A] Dave Sim. Normalroach sits outside Dino’s café, makes ugly faces, and tries and fails to order a glass of tonic water, and that’s literally the entire issue. Melmoth is the point where Cerebus really lost its way. Earlier Cerebus storylines had very fast-paced and dense plots, but starting with Melmoth, or possibly with Jaka’s Story, it became common for multiple issues to go by without anything happening at all. Perhaps the best proof that Cerebus used to be really good is that people were willing to continue reading it even long after it jumped the shark, in the vain hope that it would get good again. This issue’s backup feature is a segment of a 24-hour comic by Steve Bissette.

MEGATON MAN #10 (Kitchen Sink, 1986) – “Overkill!”, [W/A] Don Simpson. Megaton Man swallows the Cosmic Cueball (i.e. the Cosmic Cube) and then fights an equally powerful villain. This story is rather pointless and unfunny, and none of its pages has more than three panels. There’s also a Border Worlds backup story, which is almost more of an illustrated prose text than a comic; it consists of four double-page splashes with captions. I’m not sure if I’m going to order Don Simpson’s new version of the 1963 Annual. His work doesn’t appeal to me all that much, and it’s misleading to describe this comic as the 1963 Annual, given that it wiill be totally different from the original plans for that comic. I don’t think the original 1963 Annual can ever be published, although at one time I would have said the same thing about Miracleman #25. I just realized that the president in Megaton Man is based on Orson Welles.

LUBA’S COMICS AND STORIES #7 (Fantagraphics, 2006) – “Fritz After Dark,” [W/A] Gilbert Hernandez. An account of Fritz’s relationships with Mark Herrera, the balding motivational speaker, and various other men. This issue is even more focused on Fritz than Luba #6 was. I think Fritz is a far less interesting protagonist than Luba, and I don’t understand Beto’s fascination with her.

TARZAN: A TALE OF MUGAMBI #1 (Dark Horse, 1995) – untitled, [W] Darko Macan, [A] igor Kordey. This issue begins with a prologue claiming that the black warrior Mugambi is Tarzan’s best friend and foil. This is hard to accept, given that Mugambi only seems to have appeared in one original Tarzan novel, The Beasts of Tarzan. In this issue, an itinerant storyteller visits an African tribe and tells them a mythological story about Tarzan and Mugambi. During the story, a little boy wanders off on his own and is nearly killed by a panther, but Mugambi appears and saves him. We then learn that the old storyteller is Mugambi’s father, the little boy is his illegitimate son, and both are also named Mugambi. Disturbingly, no one in the story seems to care that Mugambi (the second) is a deadbeat dad. Igor Kordey’s art and coloring in this issue are fairly effective. Whenever I see his art, I involuntarily remember how people hated his art on Morrison’s X-Men.

BIG ASS COMICS #2 (Rip Off, 1971) – “Eggs Ackley in Eggs Escapes” etc., [W/A] Robert Crumb. As the title indicates, most of the stories in this issue are blatant gratifications of Crumb’s leg and ass fetish. There’s also a one-pager, “A Word to You Feminist Women,” in which Crumb argues that people who criticize his work’s sexual politics are just trying to  censor him. The further we get from the underground comics era, the more Crumb’s reputation will suffer. He’s a brilliant draftsman, but his work is undeniably sexist and racist. The major virtue of his work is his willingness to reveal his darkest fantasies and compulsions, but I’m not sure if that’s a worthwhile thing to do. And anyway, in most of the stories in this issue, Crumb seems to be just indulging his fantasies, without acknowledging their darker or more disturbing qualities.

SKYWARD #6 (Image, 2018) – “Here There Be Dragonflies Part 1,” [W] Joe Henderson, [A] Lee Garbett. Willa and Edison board a train heading to Kansas City, but Barrow knows Willa is on a train, so he has all the trains stopped. Willa and Edison escape from the train into the forest, but this is an awful idea because the forest is full of man-eating giant dragonflies. There’s an actual in-story excuse for why the dragonflies were selected as the primary monsters in this storyline, but I assume the real reason is because they look cool.

JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #205 (DC, 1982) – “The Final Hand!”, [W] Gerry Conway, [A] Don Heck. With most of the Justice League rendered comatose by Hector Hammond, the few remaining Leaguers have to fight the Royal Flush Gang. Meanwhile, Martin Stein defeats Hammond in a mental battle. This issue is very average.

IRON MAN #107 (Marvel, 1978) – “And, in the End…”, [W] Bill Mantlo, [A] Keith Pollard. In the conclusion to a six-part story, Tony defeats Midas, but his old mentor Abe Klein is killed, and his girlfriend Marianne Rodgers goes insane. Klein had betrayed Tony to Midas because Midas  claimed to know the whereabouts of Klein’s wife and daughter, who vanished in the Holocaust, but in this issue Midas reveals that Klein’s family are dead. Midas has a very annoying habit of calling everyone “sir.” This issue is better than I expect from Bill Mantlo, but I still have not overcome my distaste for his work.

On my next trip to Heroes, I had lunch at the newly opened Menya Noodle Counter, which is now the best ramen restaurant in Charlotte.

NIGHTWING #100 (DC, 2023) – “Power Vacuum Part 4: The Leap,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Bruno Redondo et al. Blockbuster releases all the inmates from Bludhaven’s private prison. In a powerful sequence, Dick jumps off a building, and the next five or six pages are all drawn by different past Nightwing artists, so Dick is symbolically “leaping” from childhood to adulthood. I just wish George Pérez could have drawn one of these pages. With the assistance of the Titans, Dick defeats the escaped prisoners, and then Superman and Wonder Woman offer him the position of leader of the JLA. Which would make sense, because Dick is one of the two superheroes who are most noted for their leadership ability, along with Captain America. Dick and Bruce visit Alfred’s grave, and Dick tells Bruce “I love you, Dad.” I don’t remember Dick ever calling Bruce “dad” before. Then Dick turns down the position of JLA leader, and instead rebuilds the private prison as a new Titans Tower. This scene sets up Taylor’s upcoming Titans series. I would normally be skeptical of any attempt to revive the classic Wolfman/Pérez Titans, since other writers, particularly Devin Grayson, have tried to do this and failed. But if anyone can do it and succeed, it’s Tom Taylor.

SOMETHING IS KILLING THE CHILDREN #28 (Boom!, 2023) – “The Girl and the Hurricane Part 3,” [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Werther Dell’Edera. Cutter murders a bunch of police officers, beats up the sheriff, and then announces her plan to frame Erica not only for the policemen’s murders, but also for the continuing deaths of children. Because Cutter is going to let the Duplicitype go free, and she knows that Erica is going to remain in town to capture it, since Erica, unlike anyone else in the Order, actually cares about saving children. Cutter’s actions in this issue are utterly contemptible. She kills multiple people for no other reason than to make Erica look bad and to satisfy her own passion for violence. With every issue of this series, it becomes more and more clear that the Order is far worse than the monsters it’s supposed to hunt. It has abandoned its original mission and now only cares about maintaining its own secrecy. To quote something I said on Facebook, a constant theme in James Tynion’s work is how organizations forget their original purpose and become devoted entirely to their own survival. We can also see this in Wynd, the faerie general Eks is willing to sacrifice his own men in order to have an excuse for war, and in Department of Truth, the title organization is willing to sink to any depths to protect itself, to the point that it’s not even clear that they’re any better than their opponents. However, in the latest issue of the latter title, the department finally realizes it’s time to make itself public, because its secrecy is doing more harm than good.

GROO: GODS AGAINST GROO #2 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Sergio Aragonés, [W] Mark Evanier. The human and the divine Groo both cause a lot of havoc. The Sage arrives in the new continent with Queen Isaisa’s army, and makes an alliance with some local people in order to invade Mexahuapan, which I believe is the kingdom of the Groo-worshippers. Queen Isaisa condemns the Minstrel to execution. The names of the two kingdoms, Mexahuapan and Tlaxpan, are meant to sound like Nahuatl, and at one point in this issue, a woman is shown  making tortillas on a metate.

BLACK CLOAK #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Kelly Thompson, [A] Meredith McClaren. Black Cloak is set in the city of Kiros, which is inhabited by elves, mermaids, and various other creatures. Our protagonist, Phaedra Essex, is a former elf princess who is now as a “Black Cloak,” or detective. In this storyline she has to investigate the murder of her former fiancé, Freyal. This issue ends on a cliffhanger when Phaedra is stabbed. I love Kelly Thompson’s work-for-hire comics, and I’m very glad that she’s now doing a creator-owned comic. So far Black Cloak has an interesting premise, good dialogue, and a strong ensemble cast. Meredith McClaren’s art in this issue is better than anything I’ve seen from her before.

KNOW YOUR STATION #2 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Sarah Gailey, [A] Liana Kangas. Elise conceals the murder of the cop from last issue, she experiences withdrawal symptoms, and then she discovers another murder. I had trouble understanding this issue. It doesn’t seem to follow logically from last issue, and it doesn’t reference the theme of inequality.

I HATE FAIRYLAND VOL. 2 #3 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Skottie Young, [A] Brett Bean. Between issues, Gert and the rat have managed to escape from hell. Now they plan to use a “Skipping Bird” to skip all the boring parts of the adventure – this is a really funny idea – but the bird dies before it can get them anywhere. Then Gert accidentally creates a giant army of clones of herself, and has to kill all of them. This issue doesn’t advance the plot very much, but it’s very funny.  

LITTLE MONSTERS #9 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Dustin Nguyen. In a flashback, one of the kids, whose name I forget, is fatally wounded by skinheads before one of the vampires saves him. Then there’s a scene with the surviving twin and his human captor, then the good kids help the human kid escape the city, and finally the non-monstrous kids confront Romie and ask him to tell them the truth. Which should be hard since Romie can’t talk.

DARK RIDE #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Andrei Bressan. Summer and Samhain investigate the Devil’s Due ride and discover Owen’s corpse. A blogger, Theo, is given backstage access to the park, but the mascots force him to put on a mask which is alive and full of teeth, and it eats his head. Then we see that Halloween is responsible for Theo’s murder.

IMMORTAL SERGEANT #1 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Joe Kelly, [A] Ken Niimura. An old police sergeant prepares for retirement. This comic is the much-delayed follow-up to the classic I Kill Giants, but it’s in a very different vein. So far it’s more satirical than serious. Due to Niimura’s manga-influenced style, this issue is a very quick read. However, I have faith in these creators, and I look forward to seeing where this series is going.

MOON GIRL AND DEVIL DINOSAUR #2 (Marvel, 2023) – “Sign Up,” [W] Jordan Ifueko, [A] Alba Glez. Olivia uses her shampoo to kidnap and mind-control people, and when Lunella tries to use Devil Dinosaur as a distraction to escape from the school, Devil is captured and carted away. This is another good issue. I especially like how one of Olivia’s friends has the power to control her hair, but her mother forces her to use hair relaxer so she’ll be “more presentable.” I just ordered Jordan Ifueko’s novel Raybearer.

BONE ORCHARD: TEN THOUSAND BLACK FEATHERS #5 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Andrea Sorrentino. Trish finds herself in the fantasy setting from the first couple issues. She defeats an antler-headed monster and rescues Jack from a cage. I’m not quite sure what happened here. I assume there will be a sequel to this miniseries, but it hasn’t been announced yet. I haven’t read the Passageway graphic novel.  

SHIRTLESS BEAR-FIGHTER 2 #6 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Jody Leheup, [A] Nil Vendrell. The humans lead a revolution against the bears, which is useless until an army of alternate-reality Shirtless Bear-Fighters appears. (Also an army of salmon, but all they can do is slap people and drown.) One of the alternate Shirtlesses has his torso where his genitals should be, and… we can assume vice versa, since the upper half of his body is blurred out. The cavalry has arrived too late, and Ursa Major turns himself into a god. One more issue left.

EVE: CHILDREN OF THE MOON #4 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Victor LaValle, [A] Jo Mi-Gyeong. We start with a sequence where Akai meditates on the destruction of the oceans. Then Eve A convinces Selene to heal Eve B’s injuries, but afterward, one of Selene’s kids stabs Eve A in the back. Akai has to use nanotech to save her. A confusing aspect of this series is that the two protagonists are identical and have the same name, so it’s hard to distinguish between them.

WASP #1 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Al Ewing, [A] Kasia Nie. This series’s covers are designed to resemble those of the recent Ant-Man miniseries. However, Wasp has a different narrative structure from Ant-Man. There are only two Wasps (not counting Hank Pym) and so this issue focuses on one of them, whereas the previous miniseries featured a different Ant-Man in each issue. In this issue, Jan and Nadia hang out and fight Jan’s obsessed stalker, Whirlwind, and then we learn that Nadia’s maternal grandfather, Janos Trovaya, is possessed by the same alien creature that killed Jan’s father. This monster appears to be the same one from Tales to Astonish #44, and it’s made a surprising number of appearances since then. I really like how Al Ewing writes both Nadia and Jan, though Kasia Nie is a less exciting artist than Tom Reilly.

BATGIRLS #14 (DC, 2023) – “The Rest is Silence,” [W] Becky Cloonan & Michael W. Conrad, [A] Jonathan Case. In a silent issue, Cass invades GCPD headquarters, pursues a criminal, and discovers Steph’s letter to be opened in the event of her death. On the last page, Cass finds Steph’s apparently dead body. I really hope Steph isn’t dead – she’s already been fridged once. Jonathan Case’s draftsmanship and page layouts in this issue are stunning, but I had some difficultyGiga  following his panel-to-panel continuity.

GIGA #5 (Vault, 2023) – untitled, [W] Alex Paknadel, [A] John Lê. This comic is shockingly late – it’s been more than two years since issue 1, and more than six months since issue 4. Vault has had chronic problems with lateness, but Giga’s lateness is egregious even for them. Because it’s been so long since Giga #4, I’ve forgotten all but the basic outline of the series’ plot, and I don’t understand the way it’s resolved in this issue. This issue does include what feels like an explanation of the Autobot-Decepticon conflict. I was excited about Giga when it was announced, and I still think it was a good idea, but I would have enjoyed it more if it had come out on time.  

MY LITTLE PONY: CLASSICS REIMAGINED #3 (IDW, 2023) – “Little Fillies,” [W] Megan Brown, [A] Jenna Ayoub. This issue covers Beth’s “death” and the start of Jo’s writing career. I’ve been wondering how the series was going to deal with Beth, since characters don’t die in pony comics. What happens instead is that Fluttershy suffers severe exhaustion while rescuing animals from a flood, and is written out of the story, but Discord acknowledges that the reader knows what’s supposed to happen to Beth. Really the best part of this series is the metatextual jokes. On the first page, Twilight Sparkle complains that one of her newspaper’s reporters missed a deadline, and Rarity replies, “It’s not as if we’re putting together twenty-page issues for release on a monthly schedule.” Also, instead of seliing her hair, Jo sells the color out of her hair.

NEW CHAMPION OF SHAZAM #4 (DC, 2023) – “The Last Battle of Mary!”, [W] Josie Campbell, [A] Evan “Doc” Shaner. In a twist that I predicted correctly, the evil professor is revealed as Georgia Sivana. Mary defeats her and becomes the new Shazam, which means she can’t say her own name. The issue ends with a tie-in to Lazarus Planet: We Once Were Gods. This miniseries had excellent art, as I expect from Doc Shaner, and I also grew to appreciate Josie Campbell’s writing.

DARK WEB: MS. MARVEL #2 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Sabir Pirzada, [A] Francesco Mortarino. Kamala battles the Inventor and a group of other talking birds based on famous scientists. Meanwhile, the people inside the mosque manage to calm them (i.e. the mosque) down, after they reveals that they’re sick of their congregants’ constant arguments. One of these arguments concerns the date of Eid. From Googling, I learned that the date of Eid is a subject of great controversy, since it depends on the date when the new moon is sighted, and this happens on different dates in different communities. Kamala’s potential love interest, Arjun, does not appear. This was an excellent two-parter that was very much in the spirit of G. Willow Wilson’s original run. I hope we’ll see Kamala again soon.

MONICA RAMBEAU: PHOTON #2 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Eve Ewing, [A] Ivan Fiorelli & Luca Maresca. The Beyonder sends Monica back in time to an alternate-reality version of the era when she was the Avengers’ leader. She discovers that in this reality, her parents are dead, and she’s married to Brother Voodoo. Also, her fellow Avengers constantly question her leadership ability. This may be a reference to how in real life, Mark Gruenwald allegedly wanted Captain America to be the leader instead, at least according to a Facebook comment. This issue’s cover is a swipe of Avengers #279, the issue where Monica was elected leader.

WHITE SAVIOR #1 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Eric Nguyen, [W] Scott Burman. I  bought this off the shelf because Henry Jenkins recommended it on Facebook. In this issue, Todd Parker, an Asian-American with an assimilated name, is transported into the past, where he encounters Nathan Garin, an obnoxious white samurai. This issue is a funny parody of white savior narratives like The Last Samurai. I might as well continue reading this series.

THE FLASH #788 (DC, 2022) – “Rogues to Redemption,” [W] Jeremy Adams, [A] Fernando Pasarin. Wally and Linda discover that they’re having another child, and then Wally fights the Rogues Gallery, who have been deputized into the Central City police. Just as Wally is getting his ass kicked, the Pied Piper arrives to save him. I never considered reading this series before, but I bought it because I heard someone recommend it, and also because Wally West is “my” Flash. I don’t have any kind of nostalgia for Barry, and it was nice to see Wally and Linda again – and also their kids, though Jai and Iris only make a brief appearance this issue. I’m going to keep reading this series.

RESIDENT ALIEN: THE BOOK OF LOVE #3 (Dark Horse, 2023) – untitled, [W] Peter Hogan, [A] Steve Parkhouse. Harry’s neighbor Don is in debt to the mob. The local police chief is owed a favor by a mob boss, and he considers calling in the favor to help Don. Meanwhile, two women break into a third woman’s office, I’m not sure why, and a struggle results in which one of the burglars is shot. I previously said that this comic was a slice-of-life story, but that is not true of this issue, since some exciting stuff happens in it.

PETER PARKER & MILES MORALES: SPIDER-MEN DOUBLE TROUBLE #3 (Marvel, 2023) – untitled, [W] Mariko Tamaki & Vita Ayala, [A] GuriHiru. Miles escapes from the villains, but Peter is captured by Mysterio’s junior protégé. Also, the keynote speaker arrives at the villain convention, and it’s Thanos. That’s not a surprise, since he was shown as the keynote speaker in issue 2. This is another very fun issue. The Family-Circus-esque two-page splash, where Miles is dodging all the villains, is a brilliant idea, but it’s very hard to read in the correct order.

CAPTAIN AMERICA: SYMBOL OF TRUTH #9 (Marvel, 2023) – “Pax Mohannda Part 4,” [W] Tochi Onyebuchi, [A] R.B. Silva. This issue has no interesting plot developments, no significant characterization, and no political content. I wanted to like this series, but it’s going nowhere, and this will be my last issue.

CRASHING #5 (IDW, 2023) – untitled, [W] Matthew Klein, [A] Morgan Beem. I somehow missed issue 4, but it appears that in that issue, Rose dug herself into a deeper hole: she operated on a child while high on drugs, causing his death. In this isuse Rose at least manages to save her husband, but she lets the villain, Gordian, go free, even though she has a perfect opportunity to shoot him. It’s pretty bizarre that Rose is too high-minded to kill someone who deserves it. Like, what good does it do her to try to act morally, when her character is already tarnished beyond repair? As long as she’s already committed so many unforgivable sins, what further harm can it do her to commit another sin which would have had a positive outcome? Anyway, afterward, Rose’s husband divorces her and she loses her medical license, so she starts a new job running secret clinics for superpowered people. The trouble with Crashing is that Rose is one of the most unsympathetic protagonists I’ve ever seen. She killed her future husband’s sister while driving under the influence, then married him under false pretenses, and she went on to do all sorts of other horrible stuff. It’s kind of hard to read a story where the protagonist is a complete monster, unless it’s a redemption narrative. And Crashing is not that, because it takes until the end of the series for Rose to even start redeeming herself, and her crimes may well be unredeemable.  

MONKEY PRINCE #10 (2023) – “The Monkey King and I Part 2,” [W] Gene Luen Yang, [A] Bernard Chang. Marcus and Supergirl battle the Ultra-Humanite, and then a person who’s been turned into a gorgon by “lazarus rain.” To win these fights, Marcus has to master his power to turn his hair into clones. At the end of the issue, Marcus meets a number of other superheroes. As mentioned above, I’m glad DC is making Monkey Prince a flagship character, because I really like him. However, it takes Marcus quite a long time to realize his grandfather is the Ultra-Humanite, and he still doesn’t seem to acknowledge that his parents are professional criminals. I’m not sure if he’s ignoring their crimes because of filial piety, or if he’s just oblivious.

HOUSE OF SLAUGHTER #11 (Boom!, 2023) – “The Butcher’s Return Part One,” [W] Tate Brombal, [A] Antonio Fuso. Jace spends most of this issue taking care of the children at his camp for monster victims. But the Order of St. George can’t stand the thought that anyone actually cares about protecting children from monsters, so at the end of the issue, an army of White Masks descends on the camp. I’m glad that this series is readable again, after a run of five awful issues.

DAREDEVIL #7 (Marvel, 2023) – “The Red Fist Saga Part 7,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Rafael De Latorre & Marco Checchetto. Matt and his villain allies save some people from being unjustly evicted, and there’s some further development on the Hand/Fist plotline. The best moment in this issue is when Stilt-Man gets a chance to be a hero for once, by using his height to catch a falling child. The eviction sequence takes place in Charlotte, but the city depicted looks nothing like Charlotte at all. (When I bought this comic, the clerk at Heroes called my attention to this scene.)

KAYA #4 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Wes Craig. Jin has a divine visitation, Seth reveals to Kaya that he’s betrothed to someone else, and the party have to talk their way into a walled city of fish people. This issue has some gorgeous art. I especially love the panel where a shining hand, wreathed in a snake, comes from above the panel border to touch Jin’s hand. However, I have trouble believing that Kaya and Seth are a couple, since she’s human and he’s a lizard.

WONDER WOMAN #795 (DC, 2023) – “Before the Storm Part 2,” [W] Michael W. Conrad & Becky Cloonan, [A] Amancay Nahuelpan. Diana and Wonder Girl battle Eros and Hyperion, both of whom seem to be working for Hera. At the end of the issue, Diana is assaulted by a horde of admirers. This was a lackluster issue, and I’m annoyed that the boring Young Diana backup stories are still continuing. I still love Paulina Ganucheau’s art, but I wish these stories were written by a better writer.

ALL AGAINST ALL #2 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W] Alex Paknadel, [A] Caspar Wijngaard. The human survivor, who the aliens have nicknamed Helpless, continues his singlehanded battle against them. The problem with this issue is that it focuses heavily on the aliens’ internal politics, and this part of the issue makes little sense, because I can’t tell the aliens apart. However, Caspar Wijngaard’s art is still excellent. Some of the aliens seem to be named after famous writers like Borges and Pynchon.

ZOOT! VOL. 2 #1 (Hotel Fred, 2017) – various stories, [W/A] Roger Langridge. I ordered this and the following three issues from Langridge’s website. Each issue of this new Zoot! series consists of various stories, of which some are autobiographical, and others are about recurring characters such as Fred the Clown, the Fez, and Art d’Ecco. This issue’s high points are the two autobiographical stories. In the first, Roger meditates on the Brexit vote, and in the second, he and his family visit his native New Zealand for the first time in years. I especially like the moments when Roger’s older child acts like a typical thirteen-year-old. Another highlight is “Venus in Fur,” about a man who tries to capture a yeti. When he opens up a book called HOW TO TRACK AND CAPTURE A YETI, it’s blank except for a note that says “If you work out how to track and capture a yeti, please write it down on the blank pages provided.” Roger Langridge is one of the world’s best cartoonists, and this series includes some of his best work. It’s a pity that it’s not easier to find. I never heard of it until I saw a Facebook post that mentioned one of his other recent self-published comics. In this issue’s editorial section, Langridge states he can’t get any work in commercial comics anymore. Given his level of talent, that is very very sad. However, by the time of issue 4, his career had picked up again slightly.  

OLD DOG #3 (Image, 2023) – “Back Into the Cold,” [W/A] Declan Shalvey. Jack and Retriever visit Russia, where Jack meets an elderly lover of his, Flower. Jack’s purpose is to find out whether Flower is going to be targeted by his enemies, but Flower solves that problem for him by committing suicide. These last couple issues have not fulfilled the promise of issue 1.

SPECS #3 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] David M. Booher, [A] Chris Shehan. Kenny visits the address where the spectacles were shipped from. There he has a vision in which the spectacles’ previous owner tells him that after he finishes making his wishes, the glasses will kill him. Kenny returns to his hometown, where Ted is being interrogated by a racist cop. Kenny breaks Ted out of jail, but a mob chases after them. They decide to burn the spectacles. Specs is an entertaining series that has much more real-world relevance than Booher’s previous work.

ART BRUT #2 (Image, 2023) – “Key of Dreams Chapter 2”, [W] W. Maxwell Prince, [A] Martín Morazzo. Detective Margot Breslin investigates a case in which some student artists killed themselves by cutting their own tongues out, in a literal realization of a saying by Matisse. Meanwhile, Art Brut and his companions travel through the interior of the Mona Lisa. This issue includes some gorgeous art and coloring, especially in the opening dream sequence where Margot imagines paint coming out of her shower nozzle. However, this issue’s plot is rather mystifying.

NAMOR: CONQUERED SHORES #4 (Marvel, 2023) – “Soul of the Machine,” [W] Christopher Cantwell, [A] Pasqual Ferry. Namor battles the original robot Human Torch, but there’s no particular reason why the reader should care who wins. This series is so boring and pointless that I’m not going to bother finishing it, even though there’s just one issue left.

THE DEAD LUCKY #5 (Image, 2023) – “A Shift in Power,” [W] Melissa Flores, [A] French Carlomagno. Bibi teams up with the Salvation Gang and Shift – who has become the Massiveverse’s flagship villain – and they prepare for a final confrontation with Morrow. This is still the worst Massiveverse title. Each issue of The Dead Lucky includes a phone number and URL for the Veterans Crisis Line, but that gives the false impression that The Dead Lucky is primarily about veterans and PTSD. In fact, Bibi’s veteran experiences are usually not this series’ main focus. It’s more about gentrification in San Francisco, which is a much less exciting topic.  

GRIM #7 (Boom!, 2023) – untitled, [W] Stephanie Williams, [A] Flaviano. In a hospital, all the dying patients suddenly come back to life. Then Jess has a talk with a priest, and a voice tells her that to save life, she has to save death. This issue is much grimmer and more gruesome than the rest of the series, and its only apparent connection to issue 6 is the red marks on everyone’s foreheads.

IMMORTAL X-MEN #10 (Marvel, 2023) – “Hated and Feared,” [W] Kieron Gillen, [A] Lucas Werneck. This issue’s POV character is Professor X. In Xavier’s monologue, he confronts his fundamental creepiness. He admits that he makes people suspicious, and that people are right to be afraid of mutants – especially himself personally, since he’s put a psychic block on all of humanity to prevent nuclear war. The greatest virtue of Kieron Gillen’s X-Men is how it delves very deeply into each of its characters. As for the plot, the Quiet Council seems to defeat Mr. Sinister, but on the last page, Professor X takes off the Cerebro helmet, and we see that he has a diamond on his forehead. This is a shocking revelation, and it makes me excited about Sins of Sinister.

AVENGERS: WAR ACROSS TIME #1 (Marvel, 2023) – “War Across Time!”, [W] Paul Levitz, [A] Alan Davis. Sometime between Avengers #4 and #16, the original Avengers fight a robot Hulk created by Kang. Paul Levitz’s late-career work has mostly not been at the same level as his ‘70s and ‘80s comics, but it’s still exciting to see him writing the Marvel characters for the first time. However, the real attraction of this series is the art by Alan Davis, who is probably the most distinguished active artist of superhero comics. His art here is up to its usual level, but seems cruder and less slick than usual. It occurs to me that this may be because he inked himself, rather than being inked by Mark Farmer. What I think of as Davis’s distinctive style of draftsmanship is really Farmer’s style.

ZOOT! VOL. 2 #2 (Hotel Fred, 2018) – as above. This issue introduces a new recurring character: William McGonagall, the world’s worst poet. Also there’s an autobio story in which Langridge attends an anti-Brexit march, and some wordless Fred the Clown stories. In addition to his other virtues, Langridge is an excellent wordless storyteller.

KROMA #3 (Image, 2023) – untitled, [W/A] Lorenzo De Felici. I had to order this on eBay because Heroes didn’t have it, thanks to a computer error. This issue, Kroma escapes from the crazy old bird-man, then goes looking for her alleged father, the King of Colors. The King lives on top of a crystal mountain, so Kroma climbs the mountain, and while she does, we start seeing evidence that the crocodile creatures are intelligent. When Kroma finally meets the biggest of the crocodiles, she has a cut on her forehead, so her face has the same blue-red-green color sequence as the crocodiles’ eyes. Thus, the crocodiles perceive her as one of them, and she’s able to communicate with them using the old man’s colored pouches. This is another fascinating issue. I especially like the two parallel splash pages where the crocodile and Kroma look at each other.

HUMAN TARGET #10 (DC, 2023) – “Then Kill,” [W] Tom King, [A] Greg Smallwood. This issue reintroduces G’nort, perhaps the most pathetic Green Lantern. Chance gets G’nort to take him to Oa so he can find out where Guy Garnder is. Back on Earth, Chance fights Guy, and there are some panels that seem to be homages to the famous “one punch” scene. TBH, I think that  scene has become a cliché, and because it’s so well remembered, it’s caused people to forget that Giffen and DeMatteis’s JLA often had a very serious tone. I’ve gotten kind of sick of this series, and I’m glad it’s almost over.

DOCTOR STRANGE: FALL SUNRISE #1 (Marvel, 2022) – “Fall Sunrise,” [W/A] Tradd Moore. More absolutely stunning artwork, with brilliant detail, bizarre costumes, vivid coloring, and complicated page layouts. Besides Defenders Beyond, this is the most beautiful Marvel series in recent memory. Like issue 2, this issue has a complicated and difficult plot, and it’s hard to see how it connects to issue 1. But the plot is of secondary importance when the art is this incredible.

DANGER STREET #2 (DC, 2023) – “The Green Team,” [W] Tom King, [A] Jorge Fornes. I really like the idea of doing a single comic with all the First Issue Special characters. However, now that the novelty of that idea has worn off, I realize that the problem with Danger Street is that thirteen protagonists is perhaps too many. Danger Street #2 has a ton of different plotlines, and it’s not clear how or if they all relate to each other. And all these plotlines seem to be equally important, which means that this issue is lacking a central focus.

HIGHBALL #5 (Ahoy, 2023) – “Revolutions Per Second Part 2,” [W] Stuart Moore, [A] Fred Harper. Highball’s teammates rescue him from the Mentoks’ torture, and then the Mentoks go after the guy from last issue’s cover. Assuming this is the last issue, it doesn’t offer much of a resolution, and I didn’t like Highball as much as Captain Ginger or Bronze Age Boogie.

LEGION OF X #9 (Marvel, 2023) – “A Voice in the Wilderness,” [W] Si Spurrier, [A] Netho Diaz. Kurt confronts Margali, who’s working with Orchis, and meanwhile Professor X visits Legion inside the latter’s mind. I want to like this series, and it has its good moments. But it also has an excessively large cast and a lack of plot direction or theme. It’s not clear whether Nightcrawler or Legion is its real protagonist, and I’m also not sure how their stories are supposed to fit together.

ZOOT! VOL. 2 #3 (Hotel Fred, 2019) – as above. This issue has a framing sequence in which Roger thinks of various story ideas while lying awake at night. The first of these is a haunted house story starring Art D’Ecco and the Gump. In the next story, William McGonagall is defrauded by a person claiming to be Dion Boucicault, the celebrity actor and theatre producer. Langridge presents McGonagall as an idiot who’s blind to his own lack of talent, as well as a neglectful husband and father. However, Langridge also seems to admire McGonagall’s perseverance in the face of failure and mockery.

AVENGERS: EVERYDAY HEROES #1 (Marvel, 2022) – untitled, [W] Paul Allor, [A] Paco Diaz. I got this for free at Walgreens when I went there for a vaccination. It’s a free public service comic – the first such comic I’ve seen in a long time – and it was sponsored by Pfizer in support of COVID vaccination. For a free promotional comic, it’s not bad. At first it doesn’t seem to be about vaccination at all. Instead, most of the issue is a conversation between patients at a vaccine clinic, on the subject of the Avengers’ constant battles with Ultron. The patients talk about how Ultron constantly adapts himself to become more dangerous, and how the Avengers have to adapt their own strategies to keep defeating him. The reader is expected to realize that this is a clever metaphor, where Ultron and the Avengers stand for diseases and vaccines. According to Brian Cronin, Paul Allor received a lot of criticism from anti-vaxxers for writing this issue, even though if Allor hadn’t written it, someone else would have.

VIOLATOR #2 (Image, 1994) – “The World,” [W] Alan Moore, [A] Bart Sears. The Violator tries to escape from his four brothers, as well as another character who’s a parody of the Punisher and/or Nuke from Daredevil: Born Again. This miniseries is one of the less distinguished of Alan’s ‘90s comics for Image, but it’s necessary for an Alan Moore completist like me. This issue’s editorial page mentions a forthcoming Angela miniseries written by Neil Gaiman. This miniseries actually was published, and somehow I don’t recall ever seeing or hearing of it.

2000 AD #2303 (Rebellion, 2022) – Dredd: “Buratino Must Die 01,” [W] Rob Williams, [A] Henry Flint. In a flashback, Dredd has to decide what to do with two captured Sov agents, Buratino and Izaaks. Henry Flint’s rendition of Judge Anderson is gorgeous. There’s one particular page that’s built around a giant close-up of her face. Chimpsky’s Law: as #2302 above. Timmy and Thruppence try to mind-control Noam, but it doesn’t work because he’s not human. Then Noam beats up a criminal who’s a Wally Squad judge in disguise, and Timmy and Thruppence force the criminal to shoot himself. Hope: as above. A coven of witches purchases the former Trinity site in New Mexico, and President Truman comes to visit. One of the characters in this chapter is Norma Desmond, the villain from Sunset Blvd. Enemy Earth: as above. Zoe refuses to help Julius and runs away, but then she changes her mind and comes back for him. Hershey: as above. The judges in Antarctica City are looking for drug dealers. Hershey introduces herself to them, calling herself Julia Wagner.

THE MARQUIS OF ANAON T.1 (Dargaud, 2002/Cinebook, 2015) – The Isle of Brac, [W] Fabien Vehlmann, [A] Mathieu Bonhomme. I’ve been meaning to read this for a while, but I finally got around to it. It was so good that I finished it in one sitting, even though I was exhausted at the time. In the 1720s, our protagonist, Jean-Baptiste Poulain, travels to a remote island in Brittany in order to tutor the local baron’s son. But when he arrives, the son is found dead, and he can’t get transportation off the island. Poulain discovers that the baron is responsible for the murder, and that he’s been kidnapping local children and subjecting them to cruel and fatal medical experiments. In the climax, the baron chases a wounded Poulain into the water, only to be sucked into a pool of quicksand that appeared out of nowhere. The people of the island give Poulain the name “Marquis of Anaon,” the last word being Breton for lost souls. This story has no actual supernatural content, yet it has a constant mood of mysticism and magic. Mathieu Bonhomme’s art is not flashy, but it’s very atmospheric and moody, and his visual storytelling is excellent. I already have the second volume of this series, but I want to read some other BD albums first.

THE PHANTOM #1505 (Frew, 2008) – “The Great Deception Part 2,” [W] Claes Reimerthi, [A] Cesar Spadari. In the 16th century, the first Phantom’s son is falsely accused of a conspiracy, thanks to the machinations of the Singh Brotherhood, and the Phantom has to save him. This is a typically exciting Phantom story, but the confusing part is that it includes two characters who look very similar and who both use the title Don. One of them is much fatter than the other, but I still wasn’t sure at first if they were the same person or not. In the editorial column, Jim Shepherd discusses how this story may contradict Lee Falk’s version of the early Phantoms’ history.

ZOOT! VOL. 2 #4 (Hotel Fred, 2020) – as above. This issue begins with a silent story about a ventriloquist and his animate dummy. In the other long story, McGonagall receives five pounds – a large amount at the time – from the real Dion Boucicault, as an apology for the deception that was practiced upon McGonagall in Boucicault’s name. Like the asshole he is, McGonagall uses the money to travel to London, giving his wife only one shilling for his children’s upkeep. What happens to him in London is not shown. Langridge has continued doing a regular webcomic on his blog, but there hasn’t been another Zoot! comic since 2020.

2000 AD #2304 (Rebellion, 2022) – Dredd: as above. Dredd confronts Buratino and his talking horse, and discovers that Buratino has the deactivated Sentientoid in his possession. There’s a gratuitous but cute scene with Anderson, and then a mysterious hooded man enters Mega-City One. Chimpsky’s Law: as above. Timmy and Thruppence frame some random guy for the murder of the undercover Judge, and then they get another person to throw Chimpsky off a building. Enemy Earth: as above. Julius’s robot, Nanni, is about to be destroyed by carnivorous plants, but Zoe uses an armored vehicle to rescue Nanni. Hope: as above. The witches assassinate President Truman. I have no idea what’s going on in this series, and it has nothing to do with the previous Hope story arc. Hershey: as above. Hershey and Dirty Frank continue looking for the drugs. This story has some nice painted art, but it’s boring, and it requires knowledge of Hershey’s prior history.

THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS: ZERO’S JOURNEY #0 (Tokyopop, 2018) – untitled, [W] D.J. Milky, [A] Kei Ishiyama. A manga sequel to The Nightmare Before Christmas. This comic is stupid, and I just read it because it was short.

KOBRA #2 (DC, 1976) – “Code Name: Gemini!”, [W] Martin Pasko, [A] Chic Stone. Kobra battles another villain named Solaris, and we learn that Kobra and his twin Jason Burr can feel each other’s sensations. That must make it awkward when Jason has sex with his girlfriend. Kobra was a pointless and stupid concept, and this issue is a chore to read. Pasko said that he “wrote all of Kobra with my tongue firmly planted in my cheek—it was a preposterous exercise dumped in my lap” (Wikipedia). According to that same Wikipedia page, Kobra #1 was fully written and drawn by Kirby, but before it was published, it was extensively rewritten and redrawn. It would be nice if Kirby’s original version of that issue could be published. Some of the original pages from that issue were reprinted in Jack Kirby Collector #22, but I don’t know if the rest of the pages have survived.

BIRTHRIGHT #35 (Image, 2019) – untitled, [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Andrei Bressan. Mikey uses his magical talents to defeat Brennan and Kallista, because as much as he hates magic, Mikey is still willing to use it to save his brother. In the flashback, Zoshanna turns herself into an even worse monster. I can’t remember if she ever appeared again, or if so, what happened to her.

HARLEY QUINN #27 (DC, 2016) – “Tool Boxed In,” [W] Amanda Conner & Jimmy Palmiotti, [A] John Timms. Harley battles Red Tool, an obvious stand-in for Deadpool. There are some funny jokes in this issue, but Harley and Deadpool are the two most annoyingly overexposed characters at their respective companies, and they’re even more annoying together than alone.

THE FLY #1 (Archie, 1983) – “The Return of the Sinister Spider!”, [W] Jack C. Harris, [A] James Sherman. I didn’t even realize who drew this story until now – I thought it was Rich Buckler, because his name appears second in the credits. Now that I realize it’s Sherman, I actually appreciate the art more. When I thought it was Buckler, I assumed that every panel in the issue was swiped from some other artist. However, I still think this story is rather boring. The first backup story reintroduces the Shield, another old Archie hero. Rich Buckler both wrote and drew this story, and his art is blatantly ripped off from Kirby. The second backup story, starring Mr. Justice, is by Chris Adames and Trevor von Eeden, and it has some extremely awkward page layouts.

CHEVAL NOIR #42 (Dark Horse, 1993) – “Suburban Nightmares: Secrets,” [W/A] Michael Cherkas, [W] Larry Hancock, etc. The highlight of this issue is Cherkas’s disturbing story set in ‘50s America. I’ve never read much of this creator’s work, but maybe it’s worth seeking out more of it. This issue also includes a boring manga chapter by Masashi Tanaka, and “Soup Line” by Antonio Cossu and Michel Jasmin, in which some poor people are served soup which is heavily implied to be made with human meat. By this point in its run, Cheval Noir had mostly abandoned its original mandate to publish high-quality French comics.  

SGT. ROCK #312 (DC, 1978) – “No Name Hill!”, [W] Robert Kanigher, [A] Frank Redondo. Rock and Easy Company are ordered to defend a hill. When they arrive there, they find no hill at all, but then they create a hill of enemy corpses. In the backup story, a pious soldier saves his unit from some Japanese soldiers. This story is uncredited, but I correctly identified its artist as Tom Yeates, and I’m very proud that I got this right.

WORLD’S FINEST COMICS #280 (DC, 1982) – “General Scar’s Army of Crime!”, [W] Cary Burkett, [A] Rich Buckler. Superman and Batman fight General Scar and his team of military-themed villains (Major Disaster, Captain Sulfur, etc.). This story is just average. The highlight of the issue is Joey Cavalieri and Trevor Von Eeden’s Green Arrow story, in which Ollie saves a woman from a cult. The cult appears to be based on the Moonies, since it holds mass weddings  between strangers. Von Eeden’s draftsmanship is much better here than in some of his other comics, and his unusual page layouts are exciting rather than confusing. Next there’s a terrible Hawkman story by Rozakis and Saviuk, and a Captain Marvel story by E. Nelson Bridwell and Don Newton, which retells Kid Eternity’s origin.

2000 AD #2305 (Rebellion, 2022) – Dredd: as above. A young Judge, Huang, is hailed as the greatest Psi-Judge since Anderson, but she’s assassinated by a Sov agent, Vasilisa. Chimpsky’s Law: as above. Chimpsky saves himself from a fatal fall, but then he’s chased by a mob of Timmy and Thruppence’s mind-controlled slaves. Hope: as above. This chapter reintroduces Hope himself, or at least I think it does, but I have no idea what he’s doing. Enemy Earth: as above. Zoe and Julius travel to the Scottish Highlands in pursuit of a signal from government forces. Hershey: as above. Hershy and Dirty Frank use a tracking device to follow a drug dealer. This is the last issue in the most recent Prog Pack that I received.

SECRET SIX #28 (DC, 2011) – “The Reptile Brain Part 4: The Skull Just Beneath the Flesh,” [W] Gail Simone, [A] Jim Calafiore. Two different Secret Six teams battle each other in hell, and then they team up to fight ̨Machiste from Warlord, who is possessed by Deimos from the same series. At the end of the issue, Amanda Waller manipulates the team in her characteristic fashion. Then Giganta assassinates Dwarfstar, who murdered Giganta’s boyfriend, Ryan Choi,  during the Brightest Day crossover. This issue has some good scenes, but it’s hard to understand.

SANDMAN MYSTERY THEATRE #26 (DC, 1995) – “Night of the Butcher Act 2,” [W] Matt Wagner & Steven T. Seagle, [A] Guy Davis. Wesley meets Dian Belmont after a long separation, but she doesn’t want to see him. Wesley and the police separately investigate some murders where the criminal appears to have escaped through the sewers. Throughout the issue, Wesley meditates about two of his father’s servants who seemed to have a perfect marriage. A funny moment in this issue is when a sewer worker tells a cop that it’s impractical to travel through the sewers because of the fumes, and the cop replies “Yeah, those fumes’ll kill you” while lighting a cigar.

THE LEGEND OF LUTHER STRODE #3 (Image, 2013) – untitled, [W] Justin Jordan, [A] Tradd Moore. Another issue full of ultraviolent, gruesome mayhem. Again, I want to like this series, but it’s too gory for my tastes.

ANNIHILATION #4 (Legendary, 2014) – “None More Dark,” [W] Grant Morrison, [A] Frazer Irving. This issue includes some excellent painted art, but like many of Morrison’s recent comics, it makes absolutely no sense at all. The only way I’d be able to understand this series is if I read the whole thing in order, and even then I doubt I’d be able to follow it. Its plot seems to revolve around two supernatural entities called Nomax and Vada.

JLA/HITMAN #2 (DC, 2007) – “On the Darkside Part 2,” [W] Garth Ennis, [A] John McCrea. When the Justice League are depowered by Bloodlines parasites, Hitman is the only one who can save them, since he’s not a superhero, and therefore he’s able to kill enemies. I hate Hitman’s own series, so I was prepared to hate this issue too. But its ending, in which Superman reflects on the now-deceased Hitman’s memory, is surprisingly poignant. Garth Ennis is capable of being a good writer when he’s not wasting his talents on vulgar low comedy.

A VOICE IN THE DARK #1 (Image, 2013) – “Blood Makes Noise Part 1,” [W/A] Larime Taylor. This creator is mostly famous because he’s disabled and he draws by holding a pen in his mouth. However, that’s not the only notable thing about A Voice in the Dark – it also has an intriguing plot. The protagonist, new college student Zoey Aarons, is a murderer, having killed a high school classmate who was bullying her best friend. Now Zoey has constant intrusive fantasies of murdering other people. This issue is an effective piece of psychological horror, and I’d like to read more of this series.

JUNKWAFFEL #4 (Print Mint, 1972) – various stories, [W/A] Vaughn Bodē. This issue is a miscellany consisting of many different features, including a Cobalt-60 story and a series of diagrams of “Tongball” vehicles. None of the stories in this issue are effective uses of the comics medium. They’re either static diagrams, or they consist of illustrations interspersed with excessively long blocks of text. Vaughn Bodē was a brilliant draftsman, but I get the sense that he wasn’t much good at panel-to-panel continuity.  

VANGUARD ILLUSTRATED #6 (Pacific, 1984) – [E] David Scroggy. The best thing in this issue is a four-pager by Joey Cavalieri and George Pérez, a wordless story about teenage graffiti artists. “Struggle’s End” by Rex Lindsey is a boring science fiction story with an art style that’s derivative of Ditko. Peter Milligan and George Freeman’s “The God Run” has some interesting art, but its story feels like an inferior prototype for Milligan’s Sacrament. Bill DuBay and Vince Argondezzi’s “Hump Hammersmith, Buttkicker-at-Large” is as silly as its title suggests.

Final review post of 2022

1-16-2023

Time to write the last set of reviews for 2022, even though it’s already 2023:

RADIANT PINK #1 (Image, 2022) – “Meet Cute/Horrible,” [W] Meghan Camarena & Melissa Flores, [A] Emma Kubert. Radiant Pink, or Eva, was previously seen in issue 12, where she was was killing herself because of her unsustainable livestreaming job. In this issue, we see that Eva’s friend Maddie is helping Eva maintain her secret identity, and also making sure Eva sleeps and eats. But Maddie is actually collaborating with a villain, and at the end of the issue she conspires to trap them both on an alien planet. Eva is a compelling character because her passion for her job is the reason why she’s so good at it – and yet this very passion causes her to neglect her own health.

FIRE POWER #4 (Image, 2020) – untitled, [W] Robert Kirkman, [A] Chris Samnee. The protagonist and his wife go on a date, and we learn that she’s still jealous of his relationship with his childhood love interest, but then the restaurant gets invaded by villains. The interesting part of this issue is the main characters’ family dynamics. This comic feels like a realistic portrait of a strained marriage. However, the main plot of Fire Power is still a stupid piece of cultural appropriation, and this comic still wouldn’t be worth reading if not for Chris Samnee’s art.

DETECTIVE COMICS #978 (DC, 2018) – “Batmen Eternal Part 3,” [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Javier Fernandez. The Batman family fights a group of villains called the Colony, who are somehow associated with Jacob Kane, and Kate Kane takes sides with her father, even though he’s still an awful man. Other than that I’m not sure what this comic is about.

POISON IVY #7 (DC, 2022) – untitled, [W] G. Willow Wilson, [A] Atagun Ilhan. Ivy goes to work for a fracking company in Montana, run by a certain Beatrice Crawley. She discovers that Crawley is using Jason Woodrue’s formulas to create some awful monsters. Crawley is an interesting villain because of her moral ambiguity. She’s obviously evil, yet she makes a convincing case that she had to do it in order to succeed as a female CEO in a sexist world. She’s a good demonstration of how the Lean In mentality is actually anti-feminist. The guest artist, Atagun Ilhan, is a significant step down from Marcio Takara. Ilhan is good at drawing plants and monsters, which must be why he got this job, but he’s not good at drawing realistic female faces.

GOLDEN RAGE #5 (Image, 2022) – “Funeral,” [W] Chrissy Williams, [A] Lauren Knight. Rosie and the protagonist (whose name I can’t remember) leave the island in the boat, but then they decide to turn around and build a better society on the island. This miniseries was a big disappointment. The writer was more interested in making old-lady jokes than in exploring the implications of her premise. Golden Rage could have been another Bitch Planet, but it wasn’t.

GOTHAM CITY YEAR ONE #3 (DC, 2022) – untitled, [W] Tom King, [A] Phil Hester. After some investigation, Slam finds baby Helen’s dead body. This issue is less objectionable than the rest of the series. A poignant scene occurs when Slam hears a baby crying and thinks he’s found Helen’s kidnapper, only to discover that the “kidnapper” is an innocent man, and the cries are coming from the man’s own child. Since the man is black, this scene shows that Slam is guilty of the same prejudices as all the other white people in the series. However, this issue was not enough to keep me from giving up on this series. See my review of #4 below.

SECRET INVASION #1 (Marvel, 2022) – “Full of Surprises,” [W] Ryan North, [A] Francesco Mobili. Working freelance for Maria Hill, Nick Fury investigates a report of a dead man who was allegedly a Skrull. Fury discovers that the man’s wife and children were all Skrulls. Then we learn that the “Fury” who’s telling this story to Maria Hill is himself a Skrull, part of a much larger Skrull conspiracy. This issue is probably an improvement on the original Secret Invasion, because Ryan North really digs deep into what might happen if anyone could potentially be a Skrull. The scene at the beginning with the dead man is powerful: his wife is happy that her husband’s dead, because she’s convinced himself that her husband’s body is that of a Skrull, and therefore her real husband must still be alive somewhere. (Of course we don’t know yet that the woman is a Skrull herself.)

FAMILY TIME #1 (Ablaze, 2022) – untitled, [W] Lily Windom & Robert Windom, [A] Asiah Fulmore. An American family visits rural Ireland, where they get sent back in time to the remote past. This comic is reasonably well done, but when I saw issue 2 on the shelf, I had to think seriously about whether to buy it or not. And I decided that if I was that unsure, I had better not buy it. The first issue just didn’t do enough to arouse my interest.

CAPTAIN AMERICA #25 (Marvel, 2007) – “The Death of the Dream Part 1,” [W] Ed Brubaker, [A] Steve Epting. This is the one where Sharon Carter is manipulated into assassinating Cap. At the time this issue came out, I had stopped reading this series, and I thought Cap’s death was a stupid publicity stunt. At the tail end of the Bush years, it also felt like a sign that America was finished. In hindsight, both Captain America and the nation of America had far worse times ahead. Like all of Brubaker and Epting’s Cap run, this issue is very well-crafted, but the entire issue is just setup for the climactic moment of Cap’s death.

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES #134 (IDW, 2022) – untitled, [W] Sophie Campbell, [A] Fero Pe. There’s some good characterization in this issue, but the overall plot is hard to understand since I’m not reading the Armageddon Game crossover series. This series has been in a slump for quite a while.

BATMAN: DARK VICTORY #10 (DC, 2000) – untitled, [W] Jeph Loeb, [A] Tim Sale. Bruce and some Gotham police fight Two-Face and Mr. Freeze in the sewers, and Dick Grayson, not yet Robin, goes on an investigation. Tim Sale’s lettering and colors create a very striking, moody effect, and even a month after reading this comic, I still remember the panel where Gordon discovers the hanged corpse of one of his fellow cops. I need to collect more of Loeb and Sale’s collaborations.

THE VARIANTS #5 (Marvel, 2022) – untitled, [W] Gail Simone, [A] Phil Noto. Jessica finally defeats all the evil duplicates. This was a pretty fun series. It was a touching exploration of Jessica’s character and relationships, and I like all the alternate Jessicas, especially the Vision Jessica who engages her “regret subroutine.”

ALL AGAINST ALL #1 (Image, 2022) – untitled, [W] Alex Paknadel, [A] Caspar Wijngaard. This is based on the Predator franchise, which I’m not familiar with. It seems to be about some alien hunters who travel to a postapocalyptic Earth and encounter a primitive human, who proves to be a much more formidable opponent than they expected. What’s really impressive about this comic is Caspar Wijngaard’s art. I think I’ve only encountered him before on Peter Cannon, Thunderbolt, but his art here is even better. He draws some weird-looking aliens and savage animals, and his coloring and linework are striking. I didn’t have this on my pull list, but I’ve added it.

THE ROADIE #3 (Dark Horse, 2022) – untitled, [W] Tim Seeley, [A] Fran Galán. The father and daughter do some bonding. We learn about Joe’s penny, which serves as the locus of his power – I had forgotten all about this by the time I read issue 4. And then of course the demons show up and start hunting Joe and Shelby again.

KAYA #3 (Image, 2022) – untitled, [W/A] Wes Craig. The protagonists spend the issue hunting a horrible two-headed monster. This issue has some beautiful artwork, especially the splash page where we first see the Magron. However, so far Kaya’s writing is less successful than its art.

SPIDER-MAN #3 (Marvel, 2022) – “End of the Spider-Verse Part 3: Spinning Out of Control,” [W] Dan Slott, [A] Mark Bagley. After a long series of action sequences, most of the Spider-Men (and others) get corrupted, and Spider-Gwen stabs Peter with a magical dagger, causing him to vanish from existence. Again the most fun part of this issue is Spinstress, who continues to sing even after she turns evil.

STILLWATER #16 (Image, 2022) – “For Eternity,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Ramón K. Pérez. This issue finally gives us Stillwater’s origin story. In 1842, a woman named Clara has triplet sons, but she loses one of them at birth, and another in the Civil War. To protect her surviving son, she performs a ritual that makes everyone in Stillwater immune to death. But it backfires horribly, and Clara buries herself in the ground, which causes the immortality curse to end. She wakes up again in 1985 and creates the Stillwater we know today. Some of this didn’t make sense to me until after I read issue 17. This issue confused me because  it shows a Civil War battle taking place in Stillwater, and I somehow thought Stillwater was in Maine, where there weren’t any Civil War battles. I thought I remembered a scene where some people in Bangor or Lewiston were talking about Stillwater. Maybe I was thinking of a similar scene in Stephen King’s Needful Things.

HEXWARE #1 (Image, 2022) – “The Puppet Tree,” [W] Tim Seeley, [A] Zulema Scotto Lavina. Hexware is set in a dystopian future world where the richer you are, the further you live from the ground. The android protagonist, Which-Where, is the servant to a rich family, and when the family’s daughter, Jesminder, is murdered, Which-Where summons some kind of demon to get revenge. This comic is an interesting blend of cyberpunk and dark fantasy, but I don’t think that’s an original idea; it was done before in Shadowrun. Also, I had trouble figuring out just what was going on in this issue.

THE BLUE FLAME #10 (Vault, 2022) – “How Do You Plea?”, [W] Christopher Cantwell, [A] Adam Gorham. Sam calls himself up to testify, and a verdict is finally reached. We don’t get any clear answers as to what the verdict was, or whether the trial was real to begin with, but the series ends with Sam’s baby niece finally being born. Christopher Cantwell is an inconsistent writer, but Blue Flame was his best work since She Could Fly.

DAREDEVIL #6 (Marvel, 2022) – “The Red Fist Saga Part 6,” [W] Chip Zdarsky, [A] Rafael De Latorre. Daredevil tries to integrate his prisoners into the Fist, with assistance from Doc Samson. There’s a somewhat touching scene where Daredevil talks to Bullet, although I  don’t know this character’s history. Meanwhile, Elektra tries to assassinate the President. I don’t like this volume of Daredevil as much as the previous volume. Its plot isn’t quite as exciting. Why should I care about the conflict between the Hand and the Fist?

300 #2 (Dark Horse, 1998) – “Fury,” [W/A] Frank Miller. At the last convention I bought all the issues of this series except for #1. 300 is unquestionably a beautiful comic, full of striking visual compositions. However, it’s also a morally repugnant work, and it represents the point where Frank Miller went completely off the deep end. I will have more to say later about 300’s sexism and homophobia, but in this issue, it’s also notable how Miller distorts the historical record. In this issue Leonidas has to apply to the ephors, a group of deformed old men, for permission to lead his army against the Spartans. After asking their oracle for a prophecy, the ephors refuse this permission because the Carneia festival is still going on, and so Leonidas has to go to Thermopylae with just his personal guard of 300 Spartans, not his entire army. Then we learn that the ephors made this decision after receiving a bribe from the Persians. There is no historical evidence that the ephors were bribed in this way. All Herodotus says is that “the Carneia was in their way, but once they had completed the festival, they intended to leave a garrison at Sparta and march out in full force with all speed.” So the purpose of the scene with the ephors is just to show how Leonidas is noble and courageous, unlike the dishonest, ugly old ephors. And their ugliness is significant because in this series’ ideology, manliness is the greatest virtue, and ugly men are less manly.

EARTHDIVERS #3 (IDW, 2022) – “Kill Columbus Part 3: Yellow Woman,” [W] Stephen Graham Jones, [A] Davide Gianfelice. This issue takes place almost entirely in the future timeframe, rather than in 1492. That’s a problem because we still don’t understand just what the hell is going on in this future timeline. Who are the future characters, and what are they trying to do? Why is their world post-apocalyptic? How does their time machine work? None of this has been explained to my satisfaction. While I was reading issue 4, it occurred to me that Earthdivers would have been much better if the future timeline was entirely omitted, and if the entire story took place in 1492. This is the same problem I have with the Assassin’s  Creed series, where the Desmond sequences are just a distraction from the real game.

BATGIRLS 2022 ANNUAL (DC, 2022) – “Vice Versa Part 1 of 2,” [W] Becky Cloonan & Michael W. Conrad, [A] Robbi Rodriguez. Steph and Cass get their bodies switched, in Freaky Friday fashion. This is inconvenient because Steph, in Cass’s body, is then kidnapped by Cass’s mother Lady Shiva, while Cass, in Steph’s body, is kidnapped by Steph’s father, Cluemaster.  This story is continued in the next regular issue of Batgirls, and there’s no backup story, which makes me wonder why this was an annual and not a normal issue. It’s nice to see Robbi Rodriguez’s art again.

SO BUTTONS #12 (self-published, 2022) – various stories, [W/A] Jonathan Bayliss. I ordered this directly from Bayliss because Paul Gravett promoted it on his Facebook page, and I was impressed by its roster of artists, including Jesse Lonergan, Carol Tyler and Noah Van Sciver. This comic is a collection of short anecdotes from Jonathan Bayliss’s life, each drawn by a different artist. The exception is that the Carol Tyler story is an unpublished one-pager which is not about Bayliss. The stories in this issue are funny and charming, in kind of the same vein as True Story, Swear to God, and I like the diversity of artistic styles. I’d be willing to read more of this comic, and I’m glad to see that self-published comic books are not a completely dead format yet.

X-MEN RED #9 (Marvel, 2022) – “Return of the King,” [W] Al Ewing, [A] Stefano Caselli. The resurrected Vulcan invades an intergalactic peace summit and beats everyone up, until Storm arrives to confront him. Al Ewing’s Guardians of the Galaxy, S.W.O.R.D. and X-Men Red are all really a single long series, with Storm as its dominant character.

IMMORTAL X-MEN #9 (Marvel, 2022) – “The X Lives of Moira VI,” [W] Kieron Gillen, [A] Lucas Werneck. Mr. Sinister has created a clone of Moira, with Moira’s power to reset the timeline. He uses it to make repeated attempts to assassinate the Quiet Council, but keeps failing to assassinate Hope, who is his primary target. Finally he does manage to kill Hope, but Kitty Pryde has figured out what’s going on, and she leads the rest of the council against him. This issue’s POV character is Kitty, but the story isn’t really about her; she just acts as the narrator. I’d have liked to see more of Kieron’s take on Kitty.

ABSOLUTION #5 (AWA, 2022) – untitled, [W] Peter Milligan, [A] Mike Deodato Jr. Nina overcomes the child killer and tortures him to death,  to the great delight of her audience, but she still hasn’t quite reached absolution. She finds another criminal to assassinate, only to discover that he wants her to kill him. She decides to wash her hands of the whole situation, and allows her timer to expire, accepting her own death. This ending is disappointing because it does nothing to change the dystopian Absolution system. In this series Milligan seems to be critiquing how the media appeals to people’s lowest desires, but he offers no solutions to that problem.

ORCS: THE CURSE #4 (Boom!, 2022) – untitled, [W/A] Christine Larsen. The orcs and their allies finally team up and defeat the wizard and his curse. This is an entertaining conclusion to the miniseries, though it doesn’t leave much room for another sequel.

NOCTERRA: VAL SPECIAL #1 (Image, 2022) – “The First Ferryman,” [W] Scott Snyder & Tony Daniel, [A] Francis Manapul. In a flashback, Val and her mentor Raleigh Royce visit a place called Denton which turns out to be full of cannibals. Val escapes, but Raleigh is killed. In the present, Val finds Diggs, who betrayed her and Raleigh to the people of Denton, and takes him hostage. (This summary is courtesy of this review.) This is an okay issue, but it doesn’t advance the series’ plot.

NIGHT OF THE GHOUL #3 (Dark Horse, 2022) – untitled, [W] Scott Snyder, [A] Francesco Francavilla. The twist ending is that the people running the asylum are actually the good guys, and it’s the old film director who’s trying to resurrect the Ghoul. Orson survives and defeats the old man, only to be captured by the ghoul cult, and in typical horror fashion, the series ends with the suggestion that the ghoul has only been defeated temporarily. This was a very gruesome and creepy piece of horror, but Francesco Francavilla’s art was more conventional and less exciting than earlier in his career.

THE DEAD LUCKY #4 (Image, 2022) – “They Sit Like Scars,” [W] Melissa Flores, [A] French Carlomagno. After a bunch of random stuff happens, Bibi decides to ally herself with the Salvation Gang, since she and the gang have a common enemy in the Morrow corporation. The Dead Lucky is my least favorite Massiveverse title because of its lack of an overarching theme, or rather because it has too many themes at once, and they don’t fit well with each other.

NEW MUTANTS #32 (Marvel, 2022) – “Swap Out,” [W] Charlie Jane Anders, [A] Alberto Albuquerque. In order to escape from the U-Men, Escapade has to stretch her powers beyond safe limits. Then she finds herself on the rooftop where she foresaw herself killing Morgan. This series is passionately written, but I’m not in love with it. I think the best part about it is the Young Shela & Morgan segments, which are drawn by Ro Stein and Ted Brandt. BTW, it seems like Ro Stein and Ted Brandt are almost a single creator, since they only ever work with each other.

MY BAD VOL 2 #1 (Ahoy, 2022) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell, [A] Peter Krause. A year after the previous miniseries ended, a murderer disguised as a pizza delivery man is going around killing people whose names resemble those of superheroes (e.g. “Mort Spidderman”). I was disappointed with the first volume of My Bad, so I was surprised at how much I liked this sequel. The pizza murders provide an intriguing plot hook that turns this series into more than just a collection of silly superhero parodies. Also, the pizza murderer seems like an homage to Steve Gerber’s Elf with a Gun. They both have the same modus operandi of knocking on people’s doors and then shooting them dead.

SECRET INVASION #2 (Marvel, 2022) – “All I Need to Do is Kill It,” [W] Ryan North, [A] Francesco Mobili. Maria Hill develops a blood test that can distinguish between Skrulls and humans. She makes all the Avengers take the blood test, and Black Widow fails it and is revealed as a Skrull. But then we discover that Tony Stark is also a Skrull, and that he somehow outsmarted the blood test (in issue 3 we find out how). The blood test scene reminds me of Mira Grant’s Newsflesh novels, where constant blood testing is accepted as a fact of life.

HEART EYES #4 (Vault, 2022) – untitled, [W] Dennis Hopeless, [A] Víctor Ibáñez. The other protagonist saves Lupe, only to realize that she’s really the monsters’ queen, not their victim. I think this series is mostly interesting for Víctor Ibáñez’s depictions of monsters. Its plot and characterization aren’t all that great, especially now that we know its protagonist is a murderer.

CAPTAIN MARVEL #4 (Marvel, 1968) – “The Alien and the Amphibian!”, [W] Roy Thomas, [A] Gene Colan. I bought this at the December Charlotte Comic Con, only to discover that my copy was missing several pages. I ordered another copy on eBay to replace it. The centerpiece of this issue is Mar-Vell’s fight with Namor. I forget what the pretext for the fight is, and at this early point, there wasn’t much to distinguish Mar-Vell from any other Marvel hero. Gene Colan’s fight scenes in this issue are not bad, but his draftsmanship is ruined by the inker who must not be named.  

REVIVAL #1 (Image, 2012) – untitled, [W] Tim Seeley, [A] Mike Norton. I already had this issue, but only as an Image Firsts reprint. In fact, my current copy of this issue is also a reprint, but at least it doesn’t have the Image Firsts trade dress, and that’s good enough for me. See here for my previous review of Revival #1, to which I have nothing to add.

AGE OF BRONZE #1 (Image, 1998) – untitled, [W/A] Eric Shanower. Young Paris is a poor herdsman, content to raise his famous white bull and make love to his girlfriend Oenone. But then the bull is confiscated by servants of Priam, king of Troy, to be offered as a prize in some upcoming games, and Paris decides to go to Troy and win the games, so he can get the bull back. This is an inconvenience to Paris’s parents, since Paris’s real father is Priam himself, and if Paris goes to Troy, he’ll never come back. I’ve read this story before in trade paperback form. On rereading it, I notice how Shanower decided to begin his epic story in a very humble, low-key way – the first three panels of the issue show Paris being awakened from a nap when his cow licks him. This is kind of like how LOTR begins with some quiet scenes in the Shire.

DARK HORSE PRESENTS #62 (Dark Horse, 1992) – “Sin City Episode 13,” [W/A] Frank Miller. Unlike any other issue of DHP that I’ve read, this issue consists of just one story: the last chapter of the first Sin City storyline. In this issue, Marv teams up with Wendy, the sister of his dead lover Goldie, and they finally take their revenge on Goldie’s killer, Kevin. Then Marv confronts Cardinal Roark, who was an accomplice to Kevin’s crimes. But after Marv kills Roark, he’s coerced into confessing to all of Kevin’s murders, under the threat that his own mother will be murdered if he doesn’t. The story ends with Marv’s execution. Sin City was probably Miller’s last great work, but it’s so grim as to be emotionally manipulative. Miller expects us to believe that Sin City is completely corrupt, to the point that everyone is too terrified to try to challenge its corrupt power structures. This was also how Miller depicted Gotham City in Batman: Year One, or New York in Daredevil: Born Again. But each of those stories ended on a hopeful note, because there were people who were willing to fight to change things. In Sin City, the heroes aren’t much better than the villains – in “Episode 13,” Marv takes a sadistic joy in torturing Kevin and Roark to death. And all Marv achieves in the end is revenge, not justice or change. I don’t enjoy reading stories that are this dark and hopeless.

HOUSE OF X #3 (Marvel, 2019) – “Once More Unto the Breach,” [W] Jonathan Hickman, [A] Pepe Larraz. Emma springs Sabretooth from prison, the X-Men attack the Orchis base, and we get an explanation of Orchis’s endgame and the hierarchy of different types of Sentinels. Jonathan Hickman seems to have a passion for organizing and classifying and numbering things. This issue also includes a key to the Krakoan script.

BATMAN #104 (DC, 2021) – “Ghost Stories Part 3,” [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Ryan Benjamin et al. A flashback explains the origin of Ghost-Maker, who is the same character as Anton from Batman: The Knight. This was revealed in Batman: The Knight #9, but I didn’t notice. In the present, Clownhunter has kidnapped Batman and Harley Quinn, and Poison Ivy and Spoiler search for them.

TRANSMETROPOLITAN #4 (DC, 1997) – “On the Stump,” [W] Warren Ellis, [A] Darick Robertson. Spider hires Channon Yarrow, a former stripper, as his new assistant, and they try to get an interview with the corrupt President, who Spider calls the Beast. Spider finally  confronts the Beast in the bathroom, and in a famous scene, he shoots the Beast with a “bowel disruptor.” This results in the line “Help! The President’s shat himself!” Transmetropolitan is a very funny and clever comic, but Warren Ellis’s entire body of work has been tainted by the #MeToo allegations against him. His work has a cynical, grim sensibility, a sort of “fuck your feelings” attitude, and his protagonists tend to be anoral jerks. And now we know that Ellis exhibits this same amoral, uncaring attitude in his dealings with other people.

FOUR COLOR #1245 (Dell, 1962) – Sherlock Holmes: “The Derelict Ship” and “The Cunning Assassin,” [W] Paul S. Newman, [A] Bob Fujitani. This series is billed as “The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes,” but both stories are in the same style as Arthur Conan Doyle’s original prose stories. In the first story, a ship owner hires Holmes to investigate the disappearance of his cargo. The predictable twist is that the ship owner stole the cargo himself, and hired Holmes to try to cover it up. In the backup story, Holmes saves a visiting Indian prince from being assassinated by anarchists. This story is less satisfying than the first one because it’s not a mystery. Bob Fujitani is a forgotten artist, but he was a very skilled draftsman.

MIRACLEMAN #18 (Eclipse, 1990) – “Skin Deep,” [W] Neil Gaiman, [A] Mark Buckingham. A lonely man has an affair with Miraclewoman, and she helps reawaken his interest in the world. In the backup story, we see how Kid Miracleman has become a fashion icon for rebellious youth. I’ve read both these stories before, and neither of them is among my favorite stories from this run. This issue’s letter column includes some fascinating responses to Miracleman #16.

SKYWARD #5 (Image, 2018) – “My Low-G Life Part 5,” [W] Joe Henderson, [A Lee Garbett. Willa saves her dad (Nathan) from the giant floating thunderstorm, but thanks to Roger Barrow’s meddling, Willa’s dad has to sacrifice himself in order to get her back to the ground. This scene would have had a greater impact if I didn’t already know that Nathan was going to survive.

BIRTHRIGHT #31 (Image, 2018) – untitled, [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Andrei Bressan.  In a flashback story told by Kallista to Brennan, we see how Lore tried to teach Mastema to be a wizard, but Mastema killed all her teachers. Also, Mastema was given Kallista as a pet. This issue is full of brutal moments.

RUMBLE #3 (Image, 2018) – “Soul Without Pity Part III: Minds in Ferment,” [W] John Arcudi, [A] David Rubín. I don’t quite understand this issue’s plot, but the most memorable scene is when a man in a red hat hijacks a town meeting in order to campaign against monsters. David Rubín’s art is the main selling point of this issue. He successfully combines monstrosity and cuteness (one of the main characters in this issue is a little orange-and-white-striped tentacled blob).

GHOST RIDER #7 (Marvel, 1974) – “…And Lose HIs Own Soul!”, [W] Tony Isabella, [A] Jim Mooney. Johnny Blaze battles the Zodiac member Aquarius, who’s bargained with the devil to obtain the powers of all twelve Zodiac members for a year. Over the course of the fight, Aquarius uses all twelve Zodiac members’ powers. The devil decides that this counts as a year, and drags Aquarius to hell. I reread the issue carefully, and I think the number of powers he’s shown using is less than twelve. I’ve never collected Ghost Rider actively because I don’t think it was ever all that good, although it had a long run. My copy of this issue is in extremely low grade.

EUGENIC #2 (Boom!, 2017) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Eryk Donovan. In a dystopian future, hideous-looking “Numans” are now the dominant species, and regular humans are confined to a ghetto. The humans’ only hope for social advancement is to take a test which, if they pass, will entitle them to have their genes used by the Numans. The protagonist, Bekk, discovers that even the test is fake, and the humans who pass it are put into test tubes. Bekk broadcasts this information and foments a rebellion against the Numans, but is killed before she can see if it succeeds. This is a very grim, bleak story, and the Numans look terrifying. Eugenic was part of a trilogy of three series, with Memetic and Cognetic, but I don’t know if the three series’ plots are connected.

THE WAKE #6 (Vertigo, 2014) – “The Wake Part Two,” [W] Scott Snyder, [A] Sean Murphy. Many years after the first story arc, most of America is now flooded, and a cruel dictatorship rules what little of it remains. Our protagonist, Leeward, discovers a radio signal coming from underwater, but while she’s listening to it, she’s arrested by government troops. As they’re dragging her off, the voice on the radio says that she’s Lee Archer, the protagonist of the first volume, and that she’s still alive and knows how to save the world. This series has an interesting plot (though its ending is anticlimactic, see below), but the best thing about it is Sean Murphy’s striking renderings of technology and cityscapes. He makes the reader feel immersed in a different world. I particularly like his panel compositions and camera angles, which make the page seem vaster than it really is.

STARSLAYER #7 (First, 1983) – “A Case of Do or Die!’, [W] Mike Grell, [A] Lenin Delsol. This was the first issue published by First rather than Pacific. After a flashback, Torin Mac Quillon and Tamara go on a new adventure. Starslayer was more important for its backup features (Groo, Rocketeer and Grimjack) than for its main stories, and the quality of the main stories went way down when Lenin Delsol replaced Grell as the artist.

AZTEK, THE ULTIMATE MAN #2 (DC, 1996) – “Too Many Crooks,” [W] Grant Morrison & Mark Millar, [A] N. Steven Harris. Aztek and Kyle Rayner team up against Major Force, who murdered Kyle’s first girlfriend. I guess Aztek didn’t really have any high concept or premise; perhaps it was just supposed to be a reaction against the hyperviolent superhero comics of the time. The best part of this issue is Aztek’s application for federal registration as a superhero, which takes up the last two pages and is full of funny jokes, like “Have you been bitten by anything radioactive? (yes/no)”

JULIUS CORENTIN ACQUEFACQUES T.5 (Delcourt, 2004) – La 2,333^e Dimension, [W/A] Marc-Antoine Mathieu. This series is probably the most advanced example of metatext in the comics medium. Each volume is a very deep exploration of the formal properties of comics. In this volume, the eponymous protagonist discovers that the system of linear perspective has stopped working, and his world is stuck between two and three dimensions. To fix the problem, he has to travel into the third dimension. When he reaches the third dimension, the reader has to put on a pair of 3D glasses, which are included, to continue reading. This comic predates The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: The Black Dossier, which also included 3D glasses as a similar narrative gimmick. Also, Jules discovers that his world is just one of many worlds, and the other “worlds” include an earlier album of his own series, as well as Trondheim’s La Mouche and Schuiten and Peeters’s Fever in Urbicand. The latter book was a major influence on Mathieu because of its focus on metatext and architecture. Julius Corentin is a very, very important work, and any scholarly account of the use of metatext in comics would be incomplete without it. If I’d had easier access to these books when I was writing my own first book, I might have written about them. The trouble is that none of these books have been translated into English, and some of them have unusual features, like pop-up pages, that would make them expensive to publish in physical form.  

THE WAKE #7 (Vertigo, 2014) – “The Wake Part Three,” as above (though that title is misleading since issue 5 wasn’t part one). Leeward and her mentor Pub are now galley slaves aboard an ocean liner. A villain, Marlow, promises to kill not only the two of them, but also everyone else who might know about Leeward’s signal. After this sequence, I was furious at Marlow, and I was very disappointed that he’s still alive after issue 10. Before Marlow can kill Leeward, a giant Mer capsizes Leeward’s ship and eats her, and inside its mouth, she meets some human pirates. Again, this issue is full of spectacular renderings of landscapes, vehicles and creatures.  

THE SANDMAN #13 (DC, 1989) – “Men of Good Fortune,” [W] Neil Gaiman, [A] Michael Zulli. This is the issue that introduces Hob Gadling. I think it was the first issue that was set in the past, unless “Tales in the Sand” counts. I know this story very well, but it was still worth revisiting. On rereading, I notice that when Gadling went into the printing trade, his partner was William Caxton, the first English printer. It’s also interesting to notice how the inn’s architecture and décor change with each century, even though it remains in the same place, and how Morpheus and Hob dress in period-appropriate clothes. The most powerful moment of the issue is in 1689, when Hob is at his lowest ebb, and Morpheus asks him whether he still wants to live, and he pauses for two panels before saying “Are you crazy? Death is a mug’s game. I got so much to live for.”

MEGATON MAN #7 (Kitchen Sink, 1985) – “No Bad Guy Shall Escape My Patrol!”, [W/A] Don Simpson. This issue is mostly a series of parodies of various other comics – Elfquest, Green Lantern and Green Arrow (including a reference to the “black skins” page), and the Spirit, specifically P’Gell. Stella Starlight and the other Ann Arbor characters don’t appear in this issue, and as a result it’s not very interesting. Megaton Man, like certain issues of Cerebus, is not going to age well, because its jokes are only funny to readers who are familiar with all the things it’s parodying. This issue also includes a Border Worlds story which is composed mostly of talking heads. I just saw that Fantagraphics was going to publish a print version of the never-published 1963 Annual. That’s exciting, though I can’t imagine how they got permission to do it.

THE SPIRIT #42 (Kitchen Sink, 1949/1988) – four stories, [W/A] Will Eisner. “The Vernal Equinox” is a cute and cleverly plotted story where some criminals try to recover some loot from under a dam. “Foul Play” is an acknowledged classic, in which a man falsely believes he’s going to be accused of murder. There’s one brilliant sequence in which the man decides he’s worrying about nothing, and then the phone rings. The sound effect RING takes up most of the middle tier of the page, and it causes the man’s entire body to tense up in shock. “A Pot of Gold” is about a female leprechaun and a group of three villains, including Mr. Carrion. “Introducing Lovely Looie” is a parody of the wrestler Gorgeous George, who was a pivotal figure in the history of both television and professional wrestling, although he’s barely remembered today.

HOUSE OF MYSTERY #294 (DC, 1981) – “The Darkness!”, [W] Gerry Conway, [A] Carmine Infantino. A rich man is afraid of the darkness because of a voodoo curse. His assistant murders him, only to be claimed by the curse himself. Very boring art. “Old Haunts,” [W] Bruce Jones, [A] Tom Yeates. Jud Hershel, the sole inhabitant of a creepy old house, meets a young woman named Gretchen who claims she’s a ghost. Gretchen says that she committed suicide when she found her husband cheating. The twist ending is that, first, it was Gretchen who was cheating, and second, she’s still alive, and Jud is a ghost. This is a far better story than I expected from this era of House of Mystery. “Congratulations, Mr. Bates – It’s a Warlock!”, [W] Paul Kupperberg, [A] George Tuska. A new father tries to get a court order to prevent his newborn son from being raised as a warlock. However, the baby is already intent on becoming a warlock, and he turns his father into a teddy bear.

JONAH HEX: RIDERS OF THE WORM AND SUCH #3 (Vertigo, 1995) – “Big Worm,” [W] Joe R. Lansdale, [A] Tim Truman. We finally find out why the ranch is named after Oscar Wilde: because the owner met Oscar Wilde on his lecture tour of America. Oscar Wilde really did visit Texas on a lecture tour, although I can’t find any proof that he gave a lecture in Austin, as stated in this issue. Also, the origin of the worm creatures is explained.

MS. TREE #22 (Renegade, 1985) – “Right to Die Chapter One: Death Factory,” [W] Max Allan Collins, [A] Terry Beatty. Ms. Tree is facing murder charges and her license is suspended, but of course she gets involved in a case anyway, when an old associate of her husband’s asks for her help in blowing up an abortion clinic. Obviously Ms. Tree refuses to do this, and when she investigates the would-be arsonist’s house, he knocks her unconscious. Sadly this story is just as relevant now as 28 years ago.

UMBRELLA ACADEMY: HOTEL OBLIVION #5 (Dark Horse, 2019) – “Free,” [W] Gerard Way, [A] Gabriel Bá. I still don’t understand this series. I can at least recognize some of the characters now, but this issue has way too many characters, and I have no idea who they are or how they’re connected. The most enjoyable thing about this issue is Gabriel Bá’s artwork, which is reminiscent of Mignola’s but also quite different, especially in terms of coloring.

GROO #9 (Image, 1995) – “Arfetto,” [W/A] Sergio Aragonés, [W] Mark Evanier. Groo and Rufferto encounter Rufferto’s long-lost brother Arfetto. The two dogs look completely  identical, so as one would expect, the two of them get mistaken for each other. Groo takes Arfetto on his adventures, while Rufferto is imprisoned for offenses that were in fact committed by Arfetto. After the mix-up is resolved, there’s a hint that we’re going to see Arfetto again, but I don’t think he ever appeared again. No one in the story seems to notice that Rufferto has a jeweled collar and Arfetto doesn’t.  

THE WAKE #8 (Vertigo, 2014) – as above. The pirates prove to be friendly, and Leeward tells them about Lee’s message. But the government troops – “the Arm” – have implanted a tracking device in Lee, and they lead an assault on the pirates. Not much to say about this issue.

THE WAKE #9 (Vertigo, 2014) – as above. Long after issue 8, Leeward and the pirates get to the source of the signal. In a flashback sequence, Leeward alludes to a lot of other adventures that happened between issues 8 and 9, none of which are narrated in detail. This sequence suggests that Snyder had more stories he wanted to tell in this milieu, but that he only had ten issues to work with. By comparison, in his current series Nocterra and Undiscovered Country, Snyder is free to make his story as long as he wants. Anyway, the Arm troops arrive just as Leeward is decoding the signal, and the issue ends as Leeward encounters Lee’s ghost.

THE WAKE #10 (Vertigo, 2014) – as above. Lee reveals to Leeward that the mers are the original inhabitants of Earth, and that humans are a shapeshifting invasive species. Marlow kills the evil President, though he unfortunately survives himself, and the series ends happily. This ending is kind of a disappointing anticlimax. In the final reveal, so much information is dumped at once that it’s hard to understand it all. Overall, I think the best thing about The Wake is Sean Murphy’s spectacular artwork. As a story, it’s not awful, but it doesn’t have the same impact as Snyder’s later work.

SUPERMAN: THE MAN OF STEEL #24 (1993) – “Impact!”, [W] Louise Simonson, [A] Jon Bogdanove. I only have a few issues of Man of Steel, while I have lots of ‘90s issues of Superman, Adventures of Superman and Action Comics. Man of Steel felt like the least important Superman title. I read this issue when it came out, though I never owned it, and I remember it quite well, especially the sequence where Graham grows absurdly fat and yells “hammer slammer!” That sequence has always creeped me out.

EXTREMITY #6 (Image, 2017) – untitled, [W/A] Daniel Warren Johnson. In a battle between the Paznina and the Roto, Thea chooses to save Rollo rather than pursuing the enemy. When Thea tells Jerome that she won’t kill her own brother, Jerome slaps her, further proving that his singleminded desire for revenge has turned him into a heartless monster. Jerome is an example of what Yeats meant when he said “Too long a sacrifice / can make a stone of the heart.” After this scene, Hobbie sacrifices himself so Thea and Rollo can escape, but their vehicle is shot down.

SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN #24 (Marvel, 2014) – “Darkest Hours Part 3: Dark Embrace” (title only appears in the trade paperback reprint), [W] Dan Slott & Christos Gage, [A] Humberto Ramos. Doc Ock/Spidey merges with the Venom symbiote and becomes the Superior Venom, though he still calls himself “I”, not “we”. Peter/Otto, Anna Maria and Aunt May have some relationship drama, and there are some other scenes with the various Goblin characters. This is just an average issue with no truly memorable moments.

JONAH HEX: RIDERS OF THE WORM AND SUCH #4 (Vertigo, 1995) – “Autumns of Our Discontent,” [W] Joe R. Lansdale, [A] Tim Truman. Jonah sleeps with Hildy, the Autumn brothers visit Big Worm, the good guys sing a song about hunting worms – regrettably we don’t know the tune to the song – and then the Autumn brothers invade the farm. This series is much more humor-oriented than any other Jonah Hex comic I’ve read, and its humor is often very sexual and scatological.

300 #3 (Dark Horse, 1998) – “Glory,” [W/A] Frank Miller. The Spartans prepare for battle, and Leonidas rejects the assistance of Ephialtes, a gruesome deformed misfit. As noted in my review of #2, in this series, a character’s physical fitness is directly proportional to his manhood. As we know, Leonidas’s rejection of Ephialtes will come back to bite him in the ass, as Ephialtes will betray the Spartans to the Persians. When a Persian ambassdaor says that the Persians’ arrows will blot out the sun, a Spartan replies “Then we’ll fight in the shade.” Unlike some things in 300, this line is historically accurate; it’s quoted by both Herodotus and Plutarch. This series’ letter columns are rather depressing, because the letters are uniformly positive, and they ignore the series’ toxic politics.

SGT. ROCK #396 (DC, 1985) – “A Piece of Rag… a Hank of Hair!” and “The Pied Piper of Peril!”, [W] Robert Kanigher, [A] Russ Heath. Two reprinted stories, from Our Army at War #208 and #215, both focusing on children. In the first story, Easy Company encounters an abandoned child, and they almost get killed when some Nazis take the girl hostage. In the second story, a Nazi officer manipulates some children into trying to assassinate Rock and his men, by threatening to kill the children’s fathers if they disobey him. This is a far better story, since the Nazi is a plausible and frightening villain. Russ Heath’s artwork in both stories is brilliant. It occurs to me that all of Sgt. Rock’s stories must have taken place in a very limited span of time, since the European Theater of World War II was only active from 1944 to 1945.

THE EXTREMIST #4 (DC, 1993) – “January, Nineteen Ninety-Four,” [W] Peter Milligan, [A] Ted McKeever.  Jack and Judy’s neighbor Tony listens to their audio tapes and becomes obsessed with the Extremist and the Order, to such an extent that his wife leaves him. At last Tony finds Judy, and she kills him, apparently at his own desire, and disappears with Patrick. Along with Enigma, The Extremist was one of Milligan’s best works of the ‘90s. It’s a disturbing examination of the connection between sex and violence.

Next trip to Heroes:

NIGHTWING #99 (DC, 2022) – “Power Vacuum Part 3,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Bruno Redondo & Gerardo Borges. Having gotten out of prison, Tony Zucco visits “the Hold,” a mysterious underground bank, to retrieve a jewel called the Eye of Kahndaq. Dick follows Tony, defeats his minions Double Dare, and brings him to justice. Dick also learns that he himself has some property in the Hold’s keeping. Also, Heartless launches his plot to take over Gotham. The climactic two-page spread, where Dick is pursuing Double Dare through the Hold, is impressive, but it’s hard to read it in the correct order.

SOMETHING IS KILLING THE CHILDREN #27 (Boom!, 2022) – “The Girl and the Hurricane Part 2,” [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Werther Dell’Edera. This is not so much a new storyline as a continuation of the previous one. We see some of the history of Randi’s family, and Cutter captures the Duplicitype and intentionally feeds a little boy to it, in order to turn it into a  duplicate of Erica. After reading issue #28, I realize the true horror of what Cutter does here.   She’s an agent of the Order of St. George, whose whole reason for existing is to protect children from being killed by monsters. Yet in this issue Cutter murders a child by feeding it to the Duplicitype, just for the sake of making Erica look bad.

GROO: GODS AGAINST GROO #1 (Dark Horse, 2022) – untitled, [W/A] Sergio Aragonés, [W] Mark Evanier. At the end of Play of the Gods, the people of the new continent began to worship Groo as a god, causing a divine version of Groo to manifest in heaven. Now the divine Groo is driving the other gods crazy. Meanwhile the human Groo is lost at sea, but he manages to make it back to the new continent, just as Queen Isaisa is sending an invasion fleet there. Also there are subplots involving Taranto, the Sage, and the Minstrel and Kayli. Sergio is now 85, yet his artwork is as detailed and hilarious as ever, and he continues to challenge himself creatively.   

WYND: THE THRONE IN THE SKY #5 (Boom!, 2022) – untitled, [W] James Tynion IV, [A] Michael Dialynas. The good humans reach Strawberry’s lair, but are too late to save Wynd from being abducted by the vampire lady. When Oakley tries to defend Wynd, the vampire woman cuts his hand off. Wynd’s parents appear briefly on the last page. This miniseries ends on a very grim note – and by the way, James Tynion’s stories tend to be very grim in general, though The Backstagers is a notable exception. It’s going to be tough waiting for the next miniseries. During his fight with the vampire woman, Wynd asks “I don’t understand why you won’t just leave us alone! We’re only kids! We just want to live!” This is the basic question of this series. All the kids want is to be left alone to grow up in peace, yet all three factions – the humans, vampires and faeries – are constantly pursuing Wynd in order to take advantage of him for their own purposes. It’s infuriating. And I have the same question about certain factions within real-world America – like, it’s okay if people want to be homophobic or transphobic in private, but do they have to impose their bigotry on the rest of us? Why won’t they just leave us alone?

KROMA #2 (Image, 2022) – untitled, [W/A] Lorenzo De Felici. Zet really is dead, but Kroma manages to escape from the city. In the woods, she encounters an old man dressed like a bird, and he tells her how he’s able to manipulate the color-sensing demons by changing the color of their necks. But when Kroma goes to sleep in the old man’s house, she wakes up to find him about to cut her eyes out with a knife. I don’t know if I’ve ever read a comic that uses color as intelligently as Kroma does. In this series, color is not just a decorative element, but the very basis of the narrative. Unfortunately Heroes did not have Kroma #3 available due to a computer error, and I’ve had to order it on eBay.

RADIANT BLACK #20 (Image, 2022) – “A Giant Goddamn Robot,” [W] Kyle Higgins, [A] Marcelo Costa. Radiants Black and Pink fight a giant robot, and Pink breaks Red out of prison so she can help. I’m glad Satomi’s story arc is continuing, even though her miniseries is over. Besides that, this was one of the less notable issues of the series.

VANISH #4 (Image, 2022) – untitled, [W] Donny Cates, [A] Ryan Stegman. While Oliver is fighting another of the superheroes/Death Eaters, Halcyon battles Deacon Dust and murders him in gruesome fashion. Then, in a very creepy moment, he appears outside Oliver’s window while Oliver’s wife is at home.  

BONE ORCHARD: TEN THOUSAND BLACK FEATHERS #4 (Image, 2022) – utitled, [W] Jeff Lemire, [A] Andrea Sorrentino. The police blame Trish for killing both Jackie and Casey Dubois (the murder suspect from last issue),  but while Trish is in custody, a crow monster invades the police station and kills everyone but her. Trish goes back to Jackie’s basement, the only place she feels safe, and she’s transported into some kind of postapocalyptic wasteland. There’s some more graffiti which appears to be a list of deities, including the Badb, an Irish crow goddess.  

HELL TO PAY #2 (Image, 2022) – untitled, [W] Charles Soule, [A] Will Sliney. The issue starts with a flashback to 17th-century Amsterdam, where the modern system of finance got started. Sebastian and Maia are unable to get out of their debt to the Shrouded College, so they have to keep looking for coins. Their next stop is a private prison in Mexico, whose owner has been selling convicts’ souls to the devil. Then we learn that their ally, the Penitent, is really Alexander the Great. This series has some very complex and ambitious worldbuilding, but it avoids straying too far from Sebastian and Maia’s storyline.

JONNA AND THE UNPOSSIBLE MONSTERS #12 (Oni, 2022) – untitled, [W/A] Chris Samnee, [W] Laura Samnee. Jonna battles the biggest monster and saves her father and sister, but in an epilogue sequence, we see that Jonna herself has been turned into a statue. But then the statue’s stone covering falls off, and Jonna returns to her family. This series was endearing and beautifully drawn, though its narrative was a little too decompressed.

RESIDENT ALIEN: THE BOOK OF LOVE #2 (Dark Horse, 2022) – untitled, [W] Peter Hogan, [A] Steve Parkhouse. Harry and his girlfriend decide to move in together, and there are a lot of other subplots. Because Harry’s alien nature is not relevant to its plot, The Book of Love is less of a science fiction story than a slice-of-life story. It’s just a warm, tender depiction of some normal people and their developing relationships.

SUPERMAN, SON OF KAL-EL #18 (DC, 2022) – “Kal-El Returns Chapter 6: Security,” [W] Tom Taylor, [A] Cian Tormey & Ruairí Coleman. The JLA rebuild Ma and Pa Kent’s house. Jon battles a new villain named Red Sin, who somehow manages to turn off Jon’s powers, but Jon survives thanks to a failsafe device that Brainiac 5 built for him. By the way, Tom Taylor would be an absolutely perfect Legion writer, if DC would just give up on their failed experiment of having Bendis write the Legion. Jay Nakamura is curiously absent from this issue, but I don’t think it’s because something happened to him; rather, this issue focuses mostly on Jon’s relationship with his father. I’m really going to miss this series, although the upcoming Jon Kent miniseries will be some consolation.  

MONICA RAMBEAU: PHOTON #1 (Marvel, 2022) – untitled, [W] Eve Ewing, [A] Luca Maresca w/ Ivan Fiorelli. Monica Rambeau teams up with Spider-Man and Dr. Strange to fight a new villain called Hinge. Yelena Rosario, from Ewing’s Marvel Team-Up run, prophesies that Monica will destroy the universe. Monica and her father commisserate about Monica’s ne’er-do-well cousin. I’m glad to see Eve Ewing writing for Marvel again. This series doesn’t make as much of an immediate impression as her Ironheart run did, but it includes some strong characterization. As I read this issue, it occurred to me that Monica Rambeau may have been the first African-American superhero who did not come from the ghetto or from a broken home. In her first appearance, Monica had a comfortable job as a harbor patrol captain, and she had two parents who were still alive and married. At a time when most black superheroes came from a background of poverty and oppression, as is still often the case today, Monica helped to expand the range of options available for depicting black people in comics.

BATGIRLS #13 (DC, 2022) – “Vice Versa Part 2,” [W] Becky Cloonan & Michael W. Conrad, [A] Jonathan Case. Cass and Steph are still stuck in each others’ bodies. Zatanna makes a guest appearance and helps figure out that a villain named Madame Zodiac is responsible for the body swap, and Madame Zodiac returns Cass and Steph to their own bodies. Cass and her mother part from each other peacefully, but Steph is still in her father’s clutches. Madame Zodiac is not a new character, but I can’t remember her at all.

SHIRTLESS BEAR-FIGHTER 2 #5 (Image, 2022) – untitled, [W] Jody Leheup, [A] Nil Vendrell. The bears have now enslaved humankind. Shirtless’s mother has an unsatisfying encounter with his father Ursa Major. Some of the other characters travel to the netherworld to look for Shirtless’s soul, but after a funny scene with the Self-Care Bears – a parody of the Care Bears – they fail to accomplish anything. This issue is full of funny bear jokes.

COPRA #44 (self-published, 2022) – “Reckoning Device,” [W/A] Michel Fiffe. The Copra team goes hunting for Compota, the Count Vertigo character. There’s also a backup story that’s a sweet tribute to Michel Fiffe’s dog, who recently passed away. Copra is extremely expensive at $10 an issue, but I’m willing to keep buying it because of its super-high level of artwork and publication design, and because of my sentimental affection for the periodical comic book format.  

ROGUE SUN #9 (Image, 2022) – untitled, [W] Ryan Parrott, [A] Marco Renna. At the beginning of this issue, Dylan can’t find his sun stone anywhere, and it turns up between the cushions of the couch where he sits while playing video games. This is an extremely typical teenage boy moment, although we later learn that his brother and sister stole the sun stone and lied about finding it in the couch. Dylan asks his love interest to prom, but learns that she has a new boyfriend. Then Dylan fights the villain from last issue, the petty criminal’s son, and suffers a humiliating defeat that leaves him badly wounded. Finally, Dylan’s brother and sister use the sun stone to summon their father’s ghost, but the ghost that appears is a different man entirely.

I HATE FAIRYLAND VOL. 2 #2 (Image, 2022) – untitled, [W] Skottie Young, [A] Brett Bean. The “villionaire,” Wiggins, sends Gert and a talking rat companion to Fairyland, but they find  themselves in hell instead, and it takes them many years to escape. Brett Bean’s artwork here is very similar to Skottie Young’s art in the original series.

EVE: CHILDREN OF THE MOON #3 (Boom!, 2022) – untitled, [W] Victor LaValle, [A] Jo Mi-Gyeong. The two Eves flee from Selene and Endymion, and they manage to convince Selene to switch sides. Then, in a shocking twist, Akai from Victor LaValle’s Destroyer shows up. I think this is the first indication that Eve and Destroyer take place in the same universe.  A  number of academics have either taught or written about Destroyer, and I hope these people will realize that it’s connected to Eve.

MY LITTLE PONY: CLASSICS REIMAGINED #2 (IDW, 2022) – untitled, [W] Megan Brown, [A] Jenna Ayoub. The adaptation of Little Women continues. Rarity/Amy burns Rainbow Dash/Jo’s manuscript, then nearly drowns in a frozen pond. This series is notable for its large number of metatextual references. On the very first page, Discord points to where Applejack is obviously hiding, and says that he sees a poorly concealed plot device. By the way, I just saw the MLP tenth anniversary special at the store, and I didn’t buy it, since it has no new content except for a four-page story. However, I admit that I read the new story, and it’s a very funny postscript to the past ten years of the series. I especially like the explicit acknowledgement that some of the continuity of the comics was contradicted by later events in the TV show.

DARK WEB: MS. MARVEL #1 (Marvel, 2022) – untitled, [W] Sabir Pirzada, [A] Francesco Mortarino. Kamala gets an internship at Oscorp, where she encounters a new potential love interest, Arjun, and an old villain, the Inventor. This issue is far better than Jody Houser’s Moon Knight specials, because it focuses on Kamala’s supporting cast and her ethnic and religious identity, all of which was entirely absent from Jody Houser’s stories. I have no idea what the Dark Web crossover is about, but this issue made sense anyway.

TRAVELING TO MARS #2 (Ablaze, 2022) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell, [A] Roberto “Dakar” Meli. This issue begins with a retelling of an Irish myth, in which several princes are competing for a kingship, and they decide that the first of them to touch the soil of Ireland will be the king. One of the princes wins the race by cutting off his own hand and throwing it from his ship to the shore. In Russell’s retelling, the successful prince is named Erimhon, but according to Wikipedia, there are other versions where the hand-thrower is Niall of the Nine Hostages, or an anonymous O’Neill chieftain. Anyway, other than that, this is a wasted issue in which noting interesting happens.

SPECS #2 (Boom!, 2022) – untitled, [W] David M. Booher, [A] Chris Shehan. Ted wishes that Skunk hadn’t disappeared, and for a while everyone forgets about him. But then the wish seems to wear off, and everyone remembers Skunk existed. Just after throwing a no-hitter, Ted is arrested for Skunk’s murder. Even though he really is sort of responsible, it’s obvious that he’s being targeted because he’s the only black kid in town.  

TRVE KVLT #5 (IDW, 2022) – “Unauthorized Discounts,” [W] Scott Bryan Wilson, [A] Liana Kangas. The good guys manage to escape from Satan, but Satan is now free to walk the Earth. This comic was stupid, and I wish I’d given up on it after issue 2. The only joke in the series was that Marty and Alison took their fast food jobs much too seriously, and the whole series was devoted to repeating that joke. A comic can survive for quite a long time with just a single joke (examples include Krazy Kat, Spy vs. Spy, and Groo), but only if the joke is funny to begin with.

DARK RIDE #3 (Image, 2022) – untitled, [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Andrei Bressan. Samhain visits his daughter, who is in the hospital after slicing her own wrists. Samhain and Halloween meet with their father. Summer, the sister of Owen from issue #1, sneaks into the park to look for clues to her brother’s disappearance. It seems now that Owen was a decoy protagonist, and this series is really about the Dante family. All the main characters in this series, besides Arthur, are named for seasons or holidays – Summer’s full name is Summer Seasons.

DEAD SEAS #1 (Image, 2022) – untitled, [W] Cavan Scott, [A] Nick Brokenshire. Dead Seas’s world is similar to contemporary America, except that ghosts exist. Our protagonists are prison laborers working on a ship that processes ghosts into ectoplasm, which has medical uses. The processing has to be done at sea, since ghosts can’t cross moving water. But when the prisoners try to collect ectoplasm from the captured ghosts, they (the prisoners) go insane. Therefore, the remaining prisoners decide to take over the ship. This series has a pretty interesting premise, and Nick Brokenshire’s art is quite good. I’ve seen his work before on the first volume of Amelia Cole, but he’s gotten better since then.

JUNKYARD JOE #3 (Image, 2022) – untitled, [W] Geoff Johns, [A] Gary Frank. Junkyard Joe settles into Muddy Davis’s house, but appears to be suffering from PTSD. Meanwhile, the Munn kids are subjected to racism and bullying at school, especially the middle daughter, Emily, who has artistic inclinations. The scene with Emily’s first day at school is brutal to read, and it makes me furious at Sam Munn for moving his children to a shithole rural town with no other people of color. I have serious problems with most of Geoff Johns’s work, and I think he’s had an awful influence on DC Comics. However, Junkyard Joe shows that he can be a very strong writer when he wants to be. The three central characters – Muddy, Joe, and Emily – are all very powerfully depicted. In terms of the art, I much preferred the style Gary Frank used on Incredible Hulk to the style he uses now. His art on the Hulk was elegantly simple, but later he started drawing with much more detailed linework. He’s been using that style at least since his 2003 Supreme Power run, and I don’t like it nearly as much.

WONDER WOMAN #794 (DC, 2022) – “Before the Storm Part 1,” [W] Michael W. Conrad & Becky Cloonan, [A] Emanuela Lupacchino. Diana and Siggy investigate the milk conspiracy and discover that the god Eros is involved in it somehow. Also, Yara Flor appears at the end. There’s also a Young Diana backup story, which I hope will be the last such story for a while. I love Paulina Ganucheau’s art, but I wish she were working with a better writer than Jordie Bellaire. Oddly, this issue is printed on newsprint, which I thought was more expensive than glossy paper.

DANGER STREET #1 (DC, 2022) – “Atlas the Great,” [W] Tom King, [A] Jorge Fornés. This series is a tribute to the 1975-1976 series First Issue Special, which consisted of thirteen one-shot stories, each starring a new character or a new take on an old character. Over the course of Danger Street #1, all thirteen protagonists from First Issue Special either appear on-panel or are mentioned. I still have deep doubts about Tom King’s work, but this issue is actually fun. The stars of First Issue Special included some familiar characters like Metamorpho and Dr. Fate and the New Gods, but also some ridiculous characters like the Green Team and the Dingbats of Danger Street. Tom King has set himself the task of combining all these characters into a single coherent story, and it’ll be interesting to see how and if he can do it. BTW, one of the First Issue Special characters is Mikaal Tomas, who played a significant role in James Robinson’s Starman, but I expect that Tom King will be ignoring anything that happened to him after his debut.

HIGHBALL #4 (IDW, 2022) – “Revelations Per Second Part One,” [W] Stuart Moore, [A] Fred Harper. Highball, his friend Chuck, and a new character named Rekkt lead a conspiracy against the Mentoks. I barely remember anything about this issue, and it seemed unusually short.

NAMOR: CONQUERED SHORES #3 (Marvel, 2022) – “Monsters of the Past,” [W] Christopher Cantwell, [A] Pasqual Ferry. Namor discovers a colony of humans who are able to reproduce. This is a grim and boring series, and Pasqual Ferry’s art is good, but not good enough to independently justify reading this comic. I should have dropped this series after the first or second issue, and I’m going to rectify that error now.

SABRETOOTH AND THE EXILES #2 (Marvel, 2022) – “Chimera Protocols,” [W] Victor LaValle, [A] Leonard Kirk. Sabretooth and his team investigate the Orchis base. I feel obligated to read this comic, but I’m not enjoying it. Its plot feels directionless, and its characters are not grabbing me, although I suppose Nanny and Orphan Maker are kind of an interesting duo.

BILLIONAIRE ISLAND: CULT OF DOGS #2 (Ahoy, 2022) – untitled, [W] Mark Russell, [A] Steve Pugh. Two different teams of mercenaries go hunting for Business Dog, but they only succeed in killing each other, as well as the dog’s butler. Also, Mark Russell tells a story about how Peter the Great showed his dinner guests a dissected corpse. I can’t find any source for this story, although it does appear that Peter the Great was interested in anatomy.

ART BRUT #1 (Image, 2016/2022) – “The Winking Woman,” [W] W. Maxwell Prince, [A] Martín Morazzo. This series is a revised version of these creators’ first series, The Electric Sublime, published by IDW in 2016. I have one issue of Electric Sublime, but I haven’t read it yet. It will be interesting to compare it to Art Brut. In this first issue, the Mona Lisa inexplicably closes her left eye, and a mental patient, Arthur Brut, is summoned to investigate. Art Brut reminds me a lot of Art Ops, but so far it’s much, much better than Art Ops. Maxwell Prince seems to have more than a casual knowledge of art and the art-historical profession. And the “sublime” in the series’ original title is accurate, because Art Brut demonstrates how art can inspire terror.

BRZRKR #11 (Boom!, 2022) – untitled, [W] Keanu Reeves & Matt Kindt, [A] Ron Garney. Unute fights some kind of a giant bird entity, and then he loses his immortality. This series is thoroughly average, and I kind of regret that I started reading it to begin with.

THE DEADLIEST BOUQUET #5 (Image, 2022) – untitled, [W] Erica Schultz, [A] Carola Borelli. In a flashback we learn that it was Rose who murdered Jasmine, having mistaken her own mother for an intruder. Rose didn’t tell the police because Jasmine’s house was full of incriminating evidence. Violet throws a knife at Rose and cuts her throat. She claims this was an accident, but it’s not entirely clear. Violet is imprisoned for Rose’s murder, and the only sister left alive and out of prison is Poppy. Given that this series is set in 1998, it would make logical sense to do a sequel with Poppy’s children. I do think Deadliest Bouquet could have explored the characters’ traumatic histories in greater depth.

GRIM #6 (Boom!, 2022) – “Devils & Dust,” [W] Stephanie Phillips, [A] Flaviano. Jess attends a music festival in Vegas, where a strange red symbol begins to appear on people’s heads. I don’t understand this issue, and I’m not sure how it’s connected to the previous storyline. I do like Grim’s artwork and coloring.

LOVE EVERLASTING #5 (Image, 2022) – “Trapped by Love,” [W] Tom King, [A] Elsa Charretier. Joan talks with Penny Page, who gives dating advice. In their conversation, which takes place alternately in the 1970s and the Victorian era, we discover that Joan’s mother is responsible for all the weird stuff that’s been happening. It seems that Joan’s mother is trying to force her to accept a conventional version of romantic love. So at least we finally have a partial answer to what’s been going on in this series, although I’m not sure if it’s a very interesting answer.

LEGION OF X #8 (Marvel, 2022) – “Family Ties,” [W] Simon Spurrier, [A] Metho Diaz. Kurt and Jackie Chopra, the new Black Knight, battle a hyper-mutated Archangel. At the end of the issue, we learn that Kurt and Warren’s mutations were both caused by Kurt’s stepmother, Margali Szardos. I hope this means Margali’s daughter Amanda Sefton is also going to appear in this series, because I like Amanda, and she never gets enough exposure. It’s nice to see Jackie Chopra again. Her reappearance shows that Spurrier has created his own small corner of the Marvel Universe.

ICE CREAM MAN #33 (Image, 2022) – “The Kind of Story I Want to Write,” [W] W. Maxwell Prince, [A] Martín Morazzo. This issue tells two parallel stories, the kind of story that the author (not necessarily Prince himself) wants to write, and the kind that he does write. The former story is happy and cheerful and is colored in bright tones, while the latter story is grim and horrific and is colored in shades of grey. The former story ends with the protagonist, Brad, helping to lift a car off an injured man, while the latter ends with Brad being crushed to death under the same car. Like many previous issues of Ice Cream Man, this issue is a creative narrative experiment.

GINSENG ROOTS #11 (Uncivilized, 2022) – “Red Thread,” [W/A] Craig Thompson. Craig and his brother visit China, where they tour some ginseng farms. This issue is full of gorgeous art,  although the linework feels a bit less gorgeous and evocative than in Thompson’s earliest work. As a travel diary, this issue is fascinating. Thompson shows some detailed knowledge of Chinese culture, and he visits places in China that most tourists wouldn’t get to see. Because of its focus on travel, this issue reminds me of Carnet de Voyage, which may be my favorite work by Thompson.

A VICIOUS CIRCLE BOOK 1 (Boom!, 2022) – untitled, [W] Mattson Tomlin, [A] Lee Bermejo. In the civil-rights-era South, a black man, Shawn Thacker, is keeping another man locked up in his basement for some reason. The prisoner gets free and murders Shawn’s wife and son. Then Shawn finds himself in a dystopian future, and we learn what’s going on: Shawn was sent into the past to destroy a doomsday device, while his enemy was sent to the same past time period to activate the same machine. The issue ends with Shawn in the prehistoric era. Lee Bermejo’s artwork in this issue is extremely skillful. He draws this issue in two very different styles: the past sequence is black-and-white and is drawn in photorealistic painted art, while the future sequence is in color and is drawn in a cel-shaded style. In a two-page splash at the end where the hero and villain are chasing each other through different time frames, Bermejo uses eight other different styles in as many panels. I do think that Bermejo’s art is a bit too photorealistic, and in particular, his characters’ veins are too prominent. Also, A Vicious Circle’s plot is too similar to that of the Terminator franchise.

OUR ARMY AT WAR #293 (DC, 1976) – “It Figures!”, [W] Bob Kanigher, [A] Frank Redondo. Rock goes on a spy mission with some British commissioned officers. The officers all think they’re too good to work with a mere sergeant, but Rock saves them all because of his superior practical expertise. This story is kind of dumb, although it’s clever how Rock avoids the Nazis’ traps. The backup story, “Between the Pages” by Sam Glanzman, is far better than the main story. “Between the Pages” is just a collection of a sailor’s drawings, with no real plot, but it has a lyrical and wistful feeling to it.

REVOLVER #3 (Renegade, 1986) – “The Expert,” [W/A] Steve Ditko. This story is poorly written and confusing, in that it’s hard to even figure out which names correspond to which characters. It’s also printed sideways, which is annoying. But Ditko’s art is very striking, with lots of weird abstract design elements. This story was originally published in a different form in Questar, a science fiction magazine that included some occasional comics content. The backup story, “The Icarus Assignment” by Rich Margopoulos and Tom Mandrake, reads like a piece of student work.

JONAH HEX: RIDERS OF THE WORM AND SUCH #5 (Vertigo, 1995) – “Cataclysm in Worm Town,” [W] Joe R. Lansdale, [A] Tim Truman. The heroes travel to the worms’ underground lair, where they finally defeat both the worms and the Autumn brothers. Truman’s art in this issue is vivid and gruesome, and Lansdale’s writing is both exciting and very funny. Overall this was a strange but brilliant series. Maybe I should read some of Lansdale’s prose fiction.

JOE THE BARBARIAN #5 (Vertigo, 2010) – “From Never to Always,” [W] Grant Morrison, [A] Sean Murphy. I finally understand what this comic is about: Joe is diabetic and is in a hypoglycemic coma, and he needs to get to the fridge downstairs to get some soda, so he can raise his blood sugar. All the supernatural events in the comic are hallucinations caused by Joe’s coma. It would be nice if any of this had been mentioned anywhere in any of the later issues. I guess the plot was explained in issue 1, but I read issue 1 so long ago that I can’t remember it. In this issue Joe continues his quest and fights a monstrous dog. Sean Murphy’s artwork in Joe the Barbarian is okay, but not nearly as good ash is art in The Wake.

TONY STARK: IRON MAN #6 (Marvel, 2018) – “Stark Realities Part One: The Rollout,” [W] Dan Slott & Jeremy Whitley, [A] Valerio Schiti. The new Stark corporation has created an addicting VR technology called the eScape, but it’s suffering from some kind of sabotage, and at the end of the issue we learn that the Controller is responsible. This is an exciting issue with an interesting supporting cast, and I like Valerio Schiti’s renderings of the eScape, especially the kid-focused Retro Arcadia.

SPIROU & FANTASIO T.5 (Cinebook, 1954/2013) – The Marsupilami Thieves, [W/A] André Franquin. I was going to read Emile Bravo’s Spirou: Le Journal d’un ingénu, but I decided I wanted to read another regular Spirou album first. I’ve only read one previous Spirou album, Z is for Zorglub, which at the time was the only one available in English. In Europe, Spirou is comparable in population to Tintin or Asterix. But in America, if anyone’s heard of Spirou, it’s only because his supporting character, Marsupilami, was spun off into a 1993 TV cartoon. The Marsupilami Thieves is the second album in which Marsupilami appears. It begins with a sequence in which Spirou and Fantasio try and fail to stop the Marsupilami stolen from the zoo. The theft sequence is the highlight of the album because of its brilliant choreography and comic timing. Afterward, Spirou and Fantasio have to chase the stolen Marsupilami all over Europe. Along with Hergé, Franquin is one of the two master artists of Franco-Belgian comics, and the two artists represent two opposing styles – respectively, the “clear line” and the “school of Marcinelle.” According to Wikipedia, the Marcinelle style is characterized by caricatural art, big noses, and round word balloons. As part of my effort to learn more about Franco-Belgian comics, I need to read more work by Franquin and his contemporaries and protégés.

TONY STARK: IRON MAN #11 (Marvel, 2019) – “Stark Realities Part Six: End of Service,” [W] Dan Slott & Jim Zub, [A] Valerio Schiti. The Controller acquires superhuman powers thanks to his subversion of the eScape. Tony defeats him, but learns that he’s not the real Tony Stark but a copy. The issue ends with conversations between three couples: Tony’s mom and Andy Bhang, Machine Man and Jocasta, and Tony and Janet Van Dyne. Also, there’s a talking cat. I am not a huge Iron Man fan, for reasons discussed in other reviews, but I want to read more of Dan Slott’s Iron Man.

GROO #10 (Image, 1995) – “The Sinkers,” [W/A] Sergio Aragonés, [W] Mark Evanier. A port town is blockaded by pirates, but a man named Hundes (Spanish for “you sink”) boards the pirate ship and sinks it for a fee, despite Groo’s attempts to interfere. Then the same ship reappears, intact, at the next port town, and Hundes sinks it again. Of course, Hundes is in league with the pirates, and they’re using hydraulic pumps to refloat the ship every time it sinks. But then Groo boards the ship and sinks it for real, in such a way that the pumps won’t prevent it. This issue is a funny variation on the trope where Groo sinks every ship he boards. Groo is such a proficient ship-sinker that even when he boards a ship that’s supposed to sink,  he can sink it even more.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN: RENEW YOUR VOWS #5 (Marvel, 2015) – “I’ll Always Be There for You,” [W] Dan Slott, [A] Adam Kubert. Peter, MJ and Annie team up to defeat Regent and save the world, and Peter manages to beat Regent without killing him. This is one of the better Secret Wars crossover titles. It feels like an actual addition to Spider-Man’s mythos, not just an interruption to normal continuity.

BIRTHRIGHT #32 (Image, 2018) – untitled, [W] Joshua Williamson, [A] Andrei Bressan. In the present, some shamans amputate Rya’s injured wings. I forget if she ever got her wings back. In a flashback, the young Mikey and Rya are traveling with Rook and a princess, Zoshana, who is Mikey’s intended bride. Rook is kidnapped by “hex hellions”, leaving the kids alone. Back in the present, Brendan’s face turns into a glowing mask. I don’t remember what happens to Zoshana, but I assume she must have died, because I don’t recall her appearing in the present-day sequences.

DOCTOR STRANGE AND THE SORCERERS SUPREME #8 (Marvel, 2017) – untitled, [W] Robbie Thompson, [A] Javier Rodriguez. Doc and his allies battle a very disturbing-looking monster whose entire body is made of hands. The monster’s origin is revealed in a beautiful two-page splash which is colored entirely in purple, white and blue. I don’t know how to describe the artistic technique that Rodriguez uses here, but it’s striking. The heroes seemingly defeat the monster by crumpling it up into a ball, but then it abducts them into its own world. This series is not badly written, but I’m interested in it because of Rodriguez’s art.

WELCOME BACK #3 (Boom!, 2015) – untitled, [W] Christopher Sebela, [A] Claire Roe. I didn’t quite understand this issue’s plot. I do like this series, though. Welcome Back has a similar premise to Ordinary Gods, but I think Welcome Back executes its premise more effectively.

AVENGERS #312 (Marvel, 1989) – “Has the Whole World Gone Mad?”, [W] John Byrne, [A] Paul Ryan. In an Acts of Vengeance crossover, the Avengers battle Freedom Force, a.k.a. the second Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. This issue is most notable for including what may be the first meeting between Magneto and the Red Skull. Since Magneto is a Holocaust survivor and the Red Skull is a Nazi, they almost fight each other before being separated. In Captain America #367, a later chapter of Acts of Vengeance, Magneto got his revenge on the Red Skull by throwing him in an inescapable prison – though of course the Skull did escape. According to this page, “Mark Gruenwald was upset about how other writers in the “Acts of Vengeance” events had written these two as working together with no hint of their core ideological conflict, and wrote this issue [i.e. Captain America #367] to correct this oversight.”  

ADVENTURE COMICS #458 (DC, 1978) – “The Superboy Who Wasn’t,” [W] David Michelinie, [A] Joe Staton. A demagogue named Lester Wallace leads a campaign of bigotry against Superboy, on the grounds that Superboy is an alien. I’m guessing that Lester Wallace is named after the segregationists Lester Maddox and George Wallace. After discovering that he was being manipulated by Phantom Zone villains, Wallace projects himself into the Phantom Zone. This is better than a typical Silver/Bronze Age Superboy story because it has an actual political message. There’s also an Eclipso backup story by Len Wein and Joe Orlando. In the first panel of this story, the name “Eclipso” is spelled out by fallen rubble, possibly as an homage to Will Eisner’s Spirit title pages. This was the last issue of Adventure Comics before it converted to the Dollar Comics format.

GRAYSON #15 (DC, 2016) – “Robin War Part 2: The Originals,” [W] Tom King & Tim Seeley, [A] Mikel Janín. Dick trains an army of new Robins, but then gets them arrested on purpose, under the reasoning that they’ll be safer in jail than out. This plot twist is really stupid, because this sort of deliberate betrayal is unworthy of the Dick Grayson I know. This issue’s artwork is notable because of the huge number of different faces and costumes that Mikel Janín has to draw. This Grayson series was well liked at the time, but it wasn’t nearly as good as the current Nightwing series.

EXTREMITY #7 (Image, 2017) – untitled, [W/A] Daniel Warren Johnson. Stranded in the wilderness after last issue, Thea and Rollo are taken to a refugee colony run by Mother Dierdre, who presided over Thea’s initiation ceremony in issue 3 (if I recall correctly). But the Paznina have been following Thea and Rollo, and they prepare for their assault. Meanwhile, Jerome gives Thea up for dead.

STARSTRUCK #2 (IDW, 2009) – “Change is in the Heir,” [W] Elaine Lee, [A] Michael Wm. Kaluta. Kalif Bajar is attacked by an army of lovestruck androids, and Mary Medea goes off on a mission, just as her baby sister is about to be born. At this point it’s already been foreshadowed that Mary is going to die. In the backup story, the Galactic Girl Guides build a robot. I think I finally understand Starstruck’s plot, at least sort of. I wonder if Kaluta’s art style on this series was influenced by that of Moebius.

JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #154 (DC, 1978) – “I’ll Kill You in My Dreams!”, [W] Gerry Conway, [A] Dick Dillin. The JLAers attend the opening of a new Gotham City hotel, but when they go to bed in the hotel, they all have nightmares in which their powers go wrong. The next day, all the nightmares come true. This is because Dr. Destiny is using his materioptikon to cause the JLAers’ dreams to become real – not that this is a surprise, because it’s spoiled on the cover. BTW, that cover is by Kaluta, though I wouldn’t have known it without the signature. ThAlso, the way that Dr. Destiny uses the materioptikon in this issue helps explain the later retcon where the materioptikon was really the Sandman’s ruby. In this issue the creators are careful to show that Iris and Barry are sharing a room, but that Ray and Jean, as well as Ollie and Dinah, are sleeping separately. Six years later, when Dick and Kory were shown sharing a bed in New Teen Titans vol. 2 #1, it caused major controversy.

THE MIGHTY MAGNOR #5 (Malibu, 1993) – untitled, [W/A] Sergio Aragonés, [W] Mark Evanier. Magnor encounters an alien woman who mistakes him for a real superhero. Also there are a lot of funny gags and Easter eggs, including a Groo statue. Magnor is probably a better superhero parody than Megaton Man.

JOE THE BARBARIAN #6 (Vertigo, 2010) – “Our Lady in Mourning,” [W] Grant Morrison, [A] Sean Murphy. Joe continues his quest, despite the Queen of Playtown’s efforts to convince him to stop. The army of Playtown is composed of Joe’s action figures, who include Batman, Luthor, Mr. Freeze, Catwoman, and recolored versions of several characters DC doesn’t own, such as He-Man, Storm Shadow and Optimus Prime. This issue kind of reminds me of my childhood delight in playing with action figures.

That was the last comic I read in 2022. I read a few comics after midnight on December 31, but I’m going to include them on my list for 2023. My final total for the year was 2246 comic books, my second highest total ever. My record was 2262 in 2019.