REVIEW: Thunderbolt #57

Artist/Writer: P.A.M.
Review: Madman

Yet another random haul from another dirt mall my wife and I recently visited. I was so excited to find this comic in the dollar bin but not because I’m a die-hard Thunderbolt fan. In fact I’d never heard of this particular superhero until now, but because the cover is oh so rad with its glorious oriental-style dragon intertwined around our mysterious masked marvel, Peter Cannon aka Thunderbolt…fantastic. Peter totally looks like a Hanna-Barbera rip-off, you know, how HB’s characters all looked relatively the same…? Well, P.A.M. has captured that very same boring-ass generic feel here with both his artwork and plot.

As soon as I cracked the cover of this bad boy I was confused almost instantly…
Who the hell or what is P.A.M?
...and who actually published this comic? Google provided little to no information on Modern Comics and from what I can tell they just mostly reprinted various titles in the 70s. The comic was originally published in 1967 as Thunderbolt #57 and this here reprint is from 1978. Now for P.A.M…    

REVIEW: The Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #15

By: Steve Englehart, Jim Starlin, Al Milgrom, Len Wein, Larry Hama, Dick Giordano & Paul Gulacy
Review: Will Dubbeld

Ah, the 1970s kung fu craze...
I'm not sure why the world turned its eye to chopsockey in the '70s, but I'm glad it did.
From grindhouse theaters to Carl Douglas' anthemic fight song, we all were kung fu fighting.
...I mean, not me. I hadn't been born yet, but I'd've stepped right in line.

Marvel has been opportunistic since the days of Cap socking Hitler in the jaw, and it comes as no surprise they capitalized when martial arts came a-knockin'. Iron Fist, Sons of the Tiger, Daughters of the Dragon, and (my favorite) Shang-Chi all kicked down the door, brandishing tropes and cliches and battling their way through a myriad number of comics and magazines.

DHoKF was chief among these titles and was a portmanteau of traditional comics and archetypal karate magazines.  Featuring serialized adventures of Marvel's martial arts-based characters as well as articles about relevant films and books, Deadly Hands provided crossover appeal between two groups of fandom. It's a brilliant angle, and I'm hesitant to name a contemporary publication duplicating that feat.          

REVIEW: Splitting Image #1

Story, art, and lettering: Don Simpson
Colors: Brian Murray
Review: Art Bee

A few weeks ago I ordered a back issue I was missing (Reborn #4) from eBay. The seller sent me an interesting pull as a freebie, Splitting Image #1. Once before, I covered the founding of Image Comics in a review but this comic book details it in a cute parody. Don Simpson, who is known for doing comic parodies created this one-shot to help tell the story of the split.

The comic introduces all of the seven parody characters of the Image Comics founders:

   1. Lotus Jee (Jim Lee)
   2. Godd McFarthing (Todd McFarlane)
   3. Brat Lifeguard (Rob Liefeld)
   4.  -Name Withheld- (Eric Larsen)
   5. Val J. Tazmania (Jim Valentino)
   6 Sly Virility (Marc Silvestri)
   7. Wilt What’ziz’name (Whilce Portacio)

The likeness of each individual is very good, even Name Withheld, whose head is just a crystal ball. Seriously, Google Eric Larsen! At the start of the book, the “Marginal Seven” meet for an unfriendly game of Monopoly and to talk about their work. The griefs offered are some of the same issues that drove these men from Marvel Comics; just amplified for humor. After the first few pages the parody begins to smooth out.    

REVIEW: Kong the Untamed #3

Plot: Jack Oleck
Script: Gerry Conway
Art: Alfredo Alcala
Review: Madman

My wife and I were exploring some flea markets this weekend, and I rescued this little gem. I initially snatched it from a box of Bloodstrike and Youngblood comics where it had no business being because of the kick-ass cover. It had cavemen, T-Rex, and spears for starters, and then I noticed Gerry Conway credited for the script. I became extremely intrigued, because perhaps it would actually be a good read as well. Mr. Conway, if you didn’t know, is the co-creator of one Frank Castle, a.k.a. the Punisher, and on a more personal note Conway was the guy who offed Gwen Stacy during his tenure on The Amazing Spider-Man. That reason alone probably paved his way into the comicdom hall of fame…
He wrote JLA for many, many years too, but I don’t really know anything about his run on it as I don’t read JLA books unless at gun point. Another interesting fact about Mr. Conway’s catalog is he actually wrote the first intercompany crossover pitting Krypton’s prodigal son, Superman, vs. the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. Admittedly I’ve never read it, and to be honest I never knew that little tidbit until I asked Mr. Wiki for more information on Conway…the more you know.
I guess my life has new purpose now as it can’t be complete until I own said crossover...
Truth.          

REVIEW: Centipede

Review: Will Dubbeld

A preview is a cruel mistress. I was perfectly content buying Marvel Previews for quite some time, preordering my X-Men and Spider-Man book without a second glance at any other publisher. I'd devoured books from all manner of Press in the past but the cruel '90s had ruined comics for me with Clone Sagas and Knightfalls and all manner of Unity.

Comics and I broke up.

For over a decade (or thereabouts) I sought only the comfort of back-issues and the periodic X-Men book from the local drugstore.
Because yes, Hook's Drugstore still had a comics section in with the magazines.

I eventually was drawn back. A buddy of mine wanted a shotgun rider to the comic shop, I lingered over an X-Men comic, and there I was: like a junkie sticking a spike in his arm after a successful stint in rehab.
But select Marvel comics only! I swore off indies and DC for awhile, but then I remembered I really like Batman.
So select Marvel titles and Batman.
But only those comics!
Then Steve, my friendly LCS employee, says, "Hey, if you buy Previews you get Marvel Previews free and you can browse all these other books I've been recommending!"