CAMELOT 3000 (DC, 1988)
Collects Camelot 3000 Nos. 1-12 (cover dates December, 1982- April, 1985)
DC re-released this series in hardcover a year or two ago. My friend bought it and loved it, and tried to convince me to pick it up. I can barely keep up with my own titles, let alone all of the other titles past and present, so I passed. Fast forward to the Motor City Comic Con last May. I was scouring the half-off trades boxes and came across this gently worn first printing of the trade paperback. I flipped through it, noticing that Brian Bolland did the artwork. I enjoy his covers on Jack of Fables and other titles, even if I don't enjoy those titles or read them. (I did try Fables out, but thought that it was just OK.) Since the book's 1988 MSRP was $12.95, I got it for $6.50. This title was pretty far ahead of its time on all counts and holds up pretty well here in late 2010.
Also worth noting is that this is a softcover with glued binding. I toss and turn at night when books have glued binding, worrying that their signatures are separating as I sleep. This fear comes from the crappy glue that Marvel used in their trades circa 2000-2001, which became brittle and the books would fall apart. I still buy many softcovers and almost never have a problem, but that fear still lays in the back of my mind. This book is 22 years old and the binding doesn't even creak. It gives me hope that my books won't disintegrate and crumble into dust in the future.
COLD BLOODED CHILLERS (Heske, 2008)
Collects Cold Blooded Chillers Nos. 1-3 (cover dates 2008(?)...hard to get information on these indie comics)
This is a self-published Horror anthology series. While decent, it is rough around the edges. The artwork is mostly passable and the writing is ok. There are some solid B-level stories here that could work on a TV show like Tales From The Darkside, etc. The main problem is that the stories are written and drawn in a decompressed matter. When you have less than an issue to get your point across you need to make every single panel count. EC Comics were famous for their dense storytelling. In 7 or 8 pages you got a story that could easily fill out a 30 minute show. Heske needs to learn to do more with less, but is otherwise a solid writer. Good ideas, not always good execution. This trade is worth a peek if you can find it.
Collects Cold Blooded Chillers Nos. 1-3 (cover dates 2008(?)...hard to get information on these indie comics)
This is a self-published Horror anthology series. While decent, it is rough around the edges. The artwork is mostly passable and the writing is ok. There are some solid B-level stories here that could work on a TV show like Tales From The Darkside, etc. The main problem is that the stories are written and drawn in a decompressed matter. When you have less than an issue to get your point across you need to make every single panel count. EC Comics were famous for their dense storytelling. In 7 or 8 pages you got a story that could easily fill out a 30 minute show. Heske needs to learn to do more with less, but is otherwise a solid writer. Good ideas, not always good execution. This trade is worth a peek if you can find it.
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