Work-shmork — let's wrestle!

Actually, I've got a pile of work on my desk that keeps glaring at me, so all I've got today is a picture post. Still, it's Santo pinning the Devil in a submission hold while a sexy vampire looks on, which may be the single greatest thing you see today!


Originally published as the cover to Alter Ego #43
Dave Stevens, artist

Review: Kull #1 might be the most metal thing I've ever read

OK, seriously? Kull #1 is just awesome.

AWESOME.

Alright, now that I've gotten that out of my system, grab a flagon of your favorite beverage, put on some mood music and prepare to hold the hell on because Kull does not screw around.

Mining the Robert E. Howard library one more time, Dark Horse has now completed its sword-and-sorcery, hard-men-in-hard-worlds hat trick by adding barbarian king Kull alongside its Conan and Solomon Kane titles. And I think I can say with nearly full confidence that this new series is already shaping up to be the best of the lot.

This isn't to take away from either title — both are excellent books, and I'm especially enjoying Solomon Kane. But Kull ... holy crap! Arvid Nelson's story starts off in the middle of the siege of the Iron Fortress — where some anti-Kull holdouts have dug in — and quickly spins off into treachery, full-on battle, a demon you have to see for yourself, hints of dark secrets, and then more treachery!

This book is packed fat with action, and it all serves to move the story forward. It's not an empty plot, either, and it looks as if there will be plenty of court intrigue to go with the swordplay.

The art by Will Conrad fits in with what's been done in Solomon Kane and Conan, and helps tie in the whole Howardverse idea Dark Horse seems to be putting together. More importantly, it's just gorgeous to look at, giving as much weight to the characterization and tone as the dialogue. If there was any doubt that Kull is a bad-ass, just take a look at some of Conrad's work, especially the fantastic splash pages which include an impressively majestic two-page spread. When I went back through the issue to count the number of splash pages, I was surprised there were only two — the art (notably assisted by José Villarrubia's colors) makes that much of an impact.

Thanks to that art, and the pitch-perfect scripting, Kull #1 has already put the series high on my must-have list.

Well, I did spend all afternoon making knuckle sandwiches ...

Attention fighters:

With the blessing of Bahlactus, the battle resumes in one week in a new ring — will you be there?

Sucka?

Review: El Diablo #3

DC has been giving new life to some of its older characters for a while now, and Western hero El Diablo is the latest to be resurrected from the four-color graveyard. These kinds of updates are notoriously hit-or-miss, but overall I've been digging the new series written by Jai Nitz (with pencils by Phil Hester and inks from Ande Parks), and this week's El Diablo #3 is no exception.

At the heart of the action is Chato, a recently cursed gang leader and the newest Diablo who is trying to get even with the former right-hand man who betrayed him. Aided by a ghostly Lazarus Lane (the original El Diablo), Chato essentially tramples and shoots his way through the L.A. underworld in search of revenge.

I think Chato has a lot of potential as a complex character, and in this issue Nitz has done a good job of laying out a lot of the groundwork for exploring that. It's worth remembering that Chato was a hardcore criminal before becoming El Diablo and he definitely is an anti-hero here, doing things mostly out of a need to satisfy his own desire for blood and killing anybody in his way. I'm curious to see what direction he's going to take after the new status quo established in this issue, especially in terms of what he plans to do with his power in the future.

As it stands, Chato is nearly a sociopath, killing without a second-thought, and that's featured pretty clearly in the opening pages of issue #3. That doesn't bother me, but I think Nitz has a choice to make here: Either Chato needs something to humanize him, or the creators should just go all the way with it and let El Diablo be an otherworldly spirit of vengeance.

Personally, I like that the creators are taking things in a thoroughly modern, non-stop and ruthless direction. And man, was there a lot of story for one issue! It almost bordered on crowded with everything that was going on, but the story moves along at a relentless clip and never feels bogged down or confused. Hester's artwork — angular and energetic — works well with the storyline and captures the intensity of the action. Add in the subplot, a nemesis and a newly introduced villain and I wonder: How the hell are they going to wrap it up in the three issues that are left?

And as I mentioned in a previous blog post, I like this New West thing going on in the DCU. Between El Diablo, Blue Beetle and Manhunter (still can't believe that was canceled), some new avenues for stories with a different spin have been opened up. I like the idea that El Diablo — a tortured, Latino, paraplegic hero from L.A. — could be a part of that.

Get to know 'The Phantom Stranger'

In other breaking news, Rob over at The Aquaman Shrine has revealed himself to be a tireless cyborg or something, because he recently launched a new blog called I Am The Phantom Stranger.

As you might've guessed, it's dedicated to one of the most well-known unknown guys in the DC Universe (I wonder if he ever hangs out with the Unknown Soldier?), and it's already shaping up to be a lot of fun. Go check it out, why don'cha?

There's a new sheriff in town ...

... and his name is President Barack Obama.

The Pull List (11-04-08): Robert E. Howard keeps taking my money

I am mightily distracted today, so this week's pull list is going to be short and sweet. "Yeah, yeah," you say. "So what's new?"

Er ... look, comics!


Kull #1: The folks at Dark Horse seem determined to sack and pillage my wallet by reviving almost everything Robert E. Howard ever wrote. It's a strategy I can't find fault with, honestly, and I salute their shrewdness. I'm looking forward to reading a comic based on the exile from Atlantis and self-made king, and it doesn't hurt that it's written by Arvid Nelson — the person behind Rex Mundi. It's even got artwork that seems to fit with what I can't help but think of as Dark Horse's "Conan-style." I haven't decided whether that feeling of sameness (even though this, Conan and Solomon Kane are all done by different artists) bugs me or not, but I guess it helps pull all the Howard-based books together visually. Either way, the preview hooked me, and the title character isn't even featured; that's a good sign, so check it out for yourself and see what you think.


Also getting ...

Army @ Love: The Art of War #4

El Diablo #3


Maybe ...

Adam: Legend of the Blue Marvel #1: This could be interesting, or it could be more of what we first got with the Sentry. And nobody wants that.

Adventure Comics Special Featuring Guardian #1: I'm going to get suckered into all of these "New Krypton" books, aren't I? Dammit.

Sgt. Rock: The Lost Battalion #1 (of 6): I'm a sucker for the sarge, and this one manages to be based on actual events and features both Johnny Cloud and the Haunted Tank. And there's no denying writer and artist Billy Tucci is a talented creator — I just don't know if I can wrap my mind around a good-lookin' Sgt. Rock. I'm sure I'll get over it, though — Joe Kubert can't draw the character all the time, right?


Trading up ...
(Titles I either am, or will be, picking up in trade)

Booster Gold Vol. 2: Blue and Gold (hardcover): Worth getting if you're a hardcore Booster or Ted Kord/Blue Beetle fan, especially since this has been good ol' fashioned superhero fun — but don't feel bad if you want to wait for the softcover.


Recommended ...

E.C. Segar's Popeye Vol. 3: Let's You and Him Fight (hardcover): This is the third in a series of six, and I dream of having the complete set on my bookshelf someday. Beautifully designed over-sized books give you page after page of daily and Sunday Popeye newspaper strips from when it was still Thimble Theater, and it's great stuff. If you think you know Popeye from the cartoons, you deserve to get these books; if you consider yourself a fan of the brawling sailor-man, you need to get these books. As a bonus, this volume also has two weeks worth of extra-large strips from Popeye and Wimpy's 1933 trip to the Chicago World's Fair. Funny, odd and somehow timeless, these collections are a rediscovery of an iconic character. To get a better look at the book itself, check out the preview video.

Cover up: Prez #1

Just 'cause, y'know, there's something going on tomorrow that you might want to be involved in.

Besides, I'm not sure there's anything in an issue of Prez — which chronicles the administration of the DCU's 18-year-old U.S. president — that's any crazier than what we've seen in the last two years of campaigning. (Or the last eight years with our very own Boss Smiley, for that matter.) Hell, take a look at this cover for Prez #1 by Jerry Grandenetti! Just glancing at it I see a Native American dude, a hippy troubadour, a monkey and ... who's driving, a Visigoth?! I'd swear one of the candidates had the same lineup of speakers during the primaries.

Anyway, if you're unhappy with the way your government has been handling things, head to your polling place on Tuesday and clobber them where it hurts most — in the ballot box! Do it for Prez Rickard!

13 for Halloween: Giving Mnemovore a piece of your mind

Mnemovore deserves a lot more credit than it gets.

The 2005, six-issue limited series has a well-paced script loaded with dread, combining seamlessly with art that skates between cartoony and otherworldly — yet is always dark, moody and menacing. Together the creative team tell a story I never get tired of reading (and which I credit for kick-starting the current wave in mainstream horror comics).

Especially effective is the use of design as a storytelling technique. Fading type, word balloons and eventually whole pages reinforce a sense of mental haziness and a gradual wearing away of what we perceive as real. The loss that the characters are experiencing is brought out to readers, making them an active part of the story. It's clever, and provides both a nice "a-ha!" moment and a disorienting sense of displacement, a brief literary vertigo. You actually find yourself asking, "Wait — what's going on?" ... just like the characters. It's something that could easily come off as gimmicky, but works like a charm in Mnemovore.

Mnemovore is the story of Kaley Markowic, a competitive snowboarder who has lost chunks of her memory following an accident on the slopes. Back at home, Kaley is starting the frustrating process of putting her life back together with the help of friends and family who are essentially strangers to her now. Worse, she starts suffering blackouts and wakes up to find oily black creatures that are all tentacles, eyes and teeth reaching into her head. And then they start attaching themselves to the people around her.

At the same time, Mike is having a nervous breakdown. After winning an award for advertising and marketing, he gives the weirdest speech ever and rails on about media saturation and information overload. Thought, he says, is overpopulated — and overpopulation is a precondition of plague. Mike is an alcoholic, though, and everyone assumes he's just drunk and politely usher him off stage.

Soon the stories of these two characters merge and are tied together by something they have in common; brain damage. With gaps in their memories and misfiring synapses, the mnemovores don't have much to hold onto. Mike quickly becomes a puppet who longs to forget, but Kaley is able to fight it off and sets out to rescue her grandma, ironically enough one of the only people who still remembers her thanks to Alzheimer's. It's not long, though, before Kaley finds herself armed only with ...

AN AX IN THE BASEMENT!

Panels from Mnemovore #5, #6
Hans Rodionoff and Ray Fawkes, writers; Mike Huddleston, artist

Click here to see more 13 for Halloween!

And with that, the ghosts and monsters are wrapped up until next year. Oh, and I almost forgot! HAPPY HALLOWE

Friday Night Fights: Wildcat, Bahlactus and the final bell!

It's a bittersweet day in the squared circle, fight-fans; with this final round in the Ladies Night match, our intergalactic master of funk and fisticuffs will be ringing the bell for the last time. With this, Bahlactus will fight no more. Or at least, he won't oversee the battles himself anymore — can you ever truly keep a brawler out of the ring?

Keeping all this in mind, I wanted to do something to give props to the big man, something to let him know I appreciate all his hard work and mad rhymin' skillz on Friday Night Fights. Thanks to Bahlactus, I've come across a lot of blogs I might not have seen otherwise, and I like to think I've even made some new friends. That's a hell of a thing.

So I decided to do some kind of shout-out to his own original FNF post, the very first punch thrown in the name of four-color mayhem. But ... his first fighter was WILDCAT. A dude! Ladies Night calls for women warriors only — no men allowed (unless they were on the business end of a lady's tooth-loosening scorn).

Luckily there's a way around that, right, Yolanda?

Thanks, B — this one's for you: Ding! Ding!! Ding!!!


Panels and panel detail from Infinity Inc. Special #1
Roy Thomas and Dann Thomas, writers; Vince Argondezzi, artist

Following a link? Read more Great Caesar's Post here!

Hey, you got your Muerto in my Baldo!

I meant to mention this a couple of days ago, but when I was reading through my local paper's funny pages, guess who made an appearance in Baldo? None other than El Muerto!

It's a neat little bit of crossover between two Latino characters, and hopefully the exposure will help El Muerto creator Javier Hernandez get some new readers.

OK, some background on who I'm talking about: Baldo is a daily newspaper comic strip following the everyday trials of a teenage Mexican-American kid named Baldo (spoiler alert!) and his close-knit family. Baldo is a typical teen, and really, really wants to own a custom lowrider someday (which, seriously, reminds me a lot of the neighborhood I grew up in). Just for the record, I have never in my life heard of anyone actually named Baldo. I did, however, know a Smiley.

El Muerto used to be a guy named Diego who was on his way to a Dia de los Muertos festival when he was snatched by Aztec gods, who promptly sacrificed him. Now those gods of death and destiny use him as their agent on Earth in the form of — this is awesome — an Aztec zombie! Also, he dresses as a mariachi. (And as an aside, Dia de los Muertos is not the same as Halloween. Thank you.)

El Muerto's sudden appearance in Baldo's barrio starts here, and you can find out more about the characters and their creators at their respective Web sites. Orale — que mas quieres?!

13 for Halloween: When the abyss stares back

It's probably not much of a shock to find out I'm a fan of H.P. Lovecraft and the Cthulhu Mythos he inspired.

Not only did Lovecraft's work set the groundwork for modern horror, it also touches on perhaps the most terrifying idea of all: The universe doesn't care. What's worse, something you've always suspected about the cold, vast and incomprehensible emptiness is true — when the universe does notice you, it's out to get you (oh, and there's nothing you can do about it).

Another thing I like about Lovecraft's writing (as well as a lot of the stuff written by those following in his trudging footsteps) is the whole idea of the unseen. It's not uncommon for the horror that falls on the protagonists to be kind of ... peripheral. A lot of times, the heroes (or more often, the victims) never see the actual monster itself. Awful, terrible things are happening to people, and it's not even the worst of it because what's coming out of the darkness has only brushed past them like a tunnel breeze pushed ahead by the oncoming freight train.

Cthulhu Tales, which started out as an anthology series and recently went monthly, gets it. A mix of funny, scary, modern and period stories, the series usually has at least one story told in the heebie-jeebie inducing Lovecraft tradition. A good example was published in the very first issue of Cthulhu Tales (available in its entirety online!) and is still the first story I think of when talking about the series. So hold on to your program and pray for intermission; the curtain is rising on ...

THE KING IN YELLOW!

Panels from Cthulhu Tales #1
John Rogers, writer; Andy Kuhn, artist

Click here to see more 13 for Halloween!