This began as the 1,000 COMICS CHALLENGE issued to Captain Blue Hen from some friendly comic shops in Texas and Ohio. Later, they were invited to keep going and participate in a 2,021 challenge - - same rules, the winner is the shop/group that reads and posts 2,021 comics first. Captain Blue Hen apparently took first place, although the results have yet to be officially announced. So, the quest begins anew: the new moniker is I LOVE COMICS 3000. Sometime after that it may be called COMICS 5K. I’ll happily contribute. This has been fun.
I’ve been numbering my entries, picking up where I left off with the 2,021 COMIC BOOK QUARANTINE ODYSSEY. I’m curious to see how long it takes me to read that many comics. I want the results to be realistic so I’m not going to binge read unless I happen to be in the mood. There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t end up reading some comics, so we’ll see how long it takes me.
#279 SCOUT #2 (Eclipse, 1985) Scout heads towards Houston to get the next of the four monsters, but not before hiding in the rocks so helicopter heat-seekers can’t detect him. Missy decides to ask who she’s hitched a ride with: “You blew that copter up - - with that big gun? That means the air force is after you! . . . But I thought you wuz a soldier or somethin’ . .” Scout: “Not a soldier. Never a soldier. I’m . . a warrior.” Grail’s front man calls in two army sergeants to assist, two who went to survival training school with Scout - - Rosanna Winter and Raymond Vaughn. The trail leads Scout to New Mexico where Senator Waltz (Buffalo Man) is raping the farmlands. Tim Truman seems prophetic when writing (way back then) about erosion, greenhouse effects and acid rain plus a giant agricultural conglomerate (Ascorp) foreclosing on the farmers and then re-hiring them as cheap labor. As Scout moves in, he advises Missy: “So if you run, take what food I have left. I wouldn’t eat any of that field corn - - it might give you the squirts. . . . And don’t drink any water from the irrigation ditches - - it’s 100% chemmed.” The battle with Buffalo Man contain some great action panels without text. In the FASHION IN ACTION backup feature, Roxanne (part Joker, part psycho)— who abducted Johnny Mars makes her identity known to F.I.A. Not interested in ransom, Roxanne apparently has a vendetta against F.I.A. and launches a dirigible attack on their Statue of Liberty HQ. Doctor Cruel has origins that date back to 1940’s pulp adventure magazines, hence the dirigible attack in the 21st century when more sleeker and faster aircraft are availalbe. Not sure I’m in yet on this John K Snyder III creation, but I’m intrigued. Some of the 1980’s indie books were quite good, and very different as they had to compete with Marvel and DC’s stuff of the time. FOUR STARS
#280, 281, 282, 283, 284, 285 THE LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN, VOLUME II (DC/America's Best Comics 2013) by Alan Moore and Kevin O'Neill. There are two things (among many) that stand out to me about this series: 1) How Alan Moore writes a pulp-era style adventure in the Victorian era, meshes a ton of fictional characters together, and makes it seem likely rather than improbable; and 2) Kevin O'Neil's highly stylized and intricate art fits the story mood like a glove and adds an incredible amount of seasoning to an already tasty offering. In Volume II, even more of H.G. Well's creations are thrown into the mix as well as Edgar Rice Burroughs.
The cast from Volume 1 is back: Alan Quartermain, Captain Nemo, Hawley Griffin aka The Invisible Man, Dr. Henry Jekyll/Mr. Edward Hyde, and Mina Murray. The story begins on Mars with Gullivar and John Carter in an incredibly detailed battle with an invading race, foreshadowing the concept that the invaders of The War Of The Worlds were not from Mars, but an alien race passing through and making a first stop at Mars. Campion Bond (ancestor to James) is back with MI6 and it's another Wells' character - - Dr. Moreau - - who comes up with the final solution. Along the way an original member betrays the group and is brought to justice by another member, and Quartermain and Murray have an affair. Great stuff. Worth several reads. The back of the book is 46 pages of text, with Alan Moore detailing the entire world around which these characters revolve. A masterpiece of graphic storytelling. FIVE STARS.
#286, 287, 288, 289, 290, 291 THE LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN: BLACK DOSSIER (DC/America’s Best Comics) I guess this counts as six issues. It was only published as a graphic novel. Understandably so, I don’t think this would have worked at all in single monthly installments. It’s a continuous story that has been praised by many and abhorred in equal numbers. I have mixed feelings about it. I admire the creativity of Moore’s imagination and his ability to weave in scores of pop culture figures and mythos while avoiding copyright infringement by using vague names for characters. BLACK DOSSIER is my least favorite of the LOEG series and a book I do not consider essential to the full story, unless you want to learn how Moore ties everything together from the beginning of time to the present day.
Moore’s intention was to use this as a “sourcebook” for the series. The majority of BLACK DOSSIER consists of non-comic pieces. There are illustrated prose stories and all-text stories, maps, guidebooks, magazines, advertisements, letters, a lost Shakespeare play, and a 3-D section including glasses.
All of this is framed by the comic story, set in the 1950’s, in which Mina Harker and Allan Quatermain obtain the Black Dossier from MI6 and are pursued until their final escape to another universe. Both Harker and Quatermain look far younger and different from their appearance 80 years prior in Volume II. The prose pieces establish that they are immortal, and the story concludes as they meet the oldest immortal, Orlando, a gender-switcher who’s been on site to participate in nearly every historical event since the dawn of time.
I confess that I read only about half of the prose pieces and quickly skimmed over many of them. Trying to write in the style of the time they occur in, many of them are ponderous, containing either too many lengthy sentences in extremely long paragraphs, or flowery language. THREE STARS.
#292, 293, 294, 295, 296 YOU ARE OBSOLETE #1 - 5 (Aftershock) A potential elevator pitch for filmmakers considering YOU ARE OBSOLETE: Imagine Children Of The Corn updating Logan’s Run in The Village Of The Damned. None of those older movie references ring a bell? How about John Carpenter’s remake of Children Of The Damned updated for the iPhone generation? That’s what we have here. Chilling and deeply disturbing. The collected edition creeps into comic shops on June 17. Pre-order now from CBH in case Joe, Jason and Dave are scared. FOUR STARS.
#297, 298, 299, 300 BUZZKILL Trade Paperback (Image, 2017) Once you understand the premise behind the story, the story can only go forward in a few directions.
That made it a bit predictable to me. However, the story-telling and the art kept me engaged. Good dialogue. Internal conflicts. Smart of Donny Cates to tell this in the main character’s narration. Otherwise, it would not have made much impact. THREE & ONE-HALF STARS.
#301 LUDOCRATS #1 (Image, April 2020) This books is absolutely ludicrous! . . . . and that’s what makes it great. The title is a mash-up of two words - - - ludicrous and aristocrats. It’s about the absolutely wacky and absurd behavior of a ruling elite class in a fantasy world. I love the word play throughout, and the art is very detailed and Disney-like. Sign me up for the rest. FIVE STARS
#302 THE BOYS: DEAR BECKY #1 (Dynamite, June 2020 - - mature readers) Garth Ennis returns to one of his signature series with Russ Braun on art.
This is essentially a set-up issue, with just one ultra-violent flashback to remind us that we are, after all, reading The Boys. Braun makes all the scenes excel, even the dialogue-heavy ones, because of his incredible skill at depicting facial expressions and body language. It’s twelve years after the last battle/event in the main series, and Wee Hughie has returned to his Scotland home. He gets a frightening reminder of his past when he receives a package. It’s a diary written by Billy Butcher to Becky with a dreadful confession inside, one that makes Hughie get fetal with fear. FOUR STARS.
#303 FINGER GUNS #2 (Vault, April 2020) In the first issue two high schoolers discover they have unusual powers when they make the shape of a gun with their hand and point it just so. In Issue Two they explore further, trying to decide what works and what doesn’t, and develop a friendship over their commonalities. Abusive fathers. Absentee fathers. Outcast/outsiders at school. A shared love of music. Not sure where this is going, but I’m enjoying the angst and drama. FOUR STARS.
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