Review- ACG COLLECTED WORKS: FORBIDDEN WORLDS VOL. 1

ACG COLLECTED WORKS: FORBIDDEN WORLDS VOL. 1 (PS Artbooks, 2011; Hardcover)

Collects Adventures Into The Unknown Nos. 1-5 (cover dates July/August, 1951- March/April, 1952)

Writers: Charles Spain Verral, Alice Carter, Ken Bainbridge, and other unknown writers

Artists: Paul Reinman, Frank Frazetta, Al Williamson, Ken Bald (cover artist), Emil Gershwin, Mel Kiefer, Edvard Moritz, Lin Streeter, Charlie Sultan, King Ward, Morris Waldinger, George Klein, Bill Molno, Ogden Whitney, Wally Wood, Leo Morey, Paul Cooper, George Willheims, Al Camy, Lou Cameron, and Roy Krenkel

Lovable old school Horror/Science Fiction comics or cheesy, dated relics? Yes to both. I adore vintage faulty science fiction, especially what people thought about the moon in the days before we allegedly landed there. I love the far out opinions of space travel and journeys into other dimensions. Low tech folks have steampunk. I should start an anachronistic retro-futuristic, faux science movement that worships at the altar of old science fiction comics and films. What should I call it?

The quality of the stories varies greatly. Some have decent writing but bland art, others have hokey writing and superb art. None of these stories are on par with EC Comics of the day, but all are worth reading and owning. I love all Pre-Code Horror comics. The better issues are towards the end of the book, which gives me great hopes for Volume 2. 

These PS Artbooks are truly a godsend. While Dark Horse has launched their own line of Forbidden Worlds Archives, I was already committed with a subscription to PS, who announced their line first. The Dark Horse books are fully restored but have one less issue, while the PS ones are straight up high resolution scans and even include all of the original advertisements. Which one is the winner? Who can say? 

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4 out of 5.

The OCD zone- This book has that sweet, sweet Chinese printing press smell, the combination of ink derived from lead paint chips, asbestos tiles, mercury from recalled thermometers, and the blood, sweat, and tears of the children working the sweatshop printing press. Combine that with paper pulped from only virgin Amazon rainforest trees, and you have a winner.

Linework restoration rating: 4 out of 5. These are high resolution scans of original single issues, with minimal tinkering. There are some pages that are a tad murkier than others, but the average comic fan wouldn't notice or even care. I skew uber-anal retentive, so your mileage may vary.

Color restoration rating: 4 out of 5. As stated above, these are scans. The four color printing process that everyone is so romantic about quite frankly sucks. Line bleed, off register printing...all the hallmarks of the mid-20^th century printing presses. While I love old comic books and old things in general, I do not love inferior manufacturing processes. These books are the best of both worlds.

Paper rating: 5 out of 5. Wonderful, thick uncoated stock paper with zero sheen, can be read under any light without glare.

Binding rating: 5 out of 5. These books are beautifully produced, and the sewn binding is no exception. It lays flat from the first page to the last. If I weren't married, I would cuddle with this book at night.

Hardcover coating rating: 5 out of 5. The image is screen printed on the cover with no dustjacket required. The image has a slightly thicker coating than the non-image portion on the cover, but the rest of the book has a coating of sufficient thickness that it will prove durable with repeated handling. I love these PS Artbooks.

Follow my blog on Facebook.

Join my Facebook group, DC Collected Editions Fans Who Want Sewn Binding and Books That Lay Flat, a watchdog organization dedicated to top notch production values in DC's collected editions.

Review- CLASSIC G.I. JOE VOL. 12

CLASSIC G.I. JOE VOL. 12 (IDW, 2011; Softcover)

Collects G. I. Joe: A Real American Hero Nos. 111-123 (cover dates April, 1991- April, 1992)

Writers: Larry Hama and Herb Trimpe

Artists: John Statema, Rod Whigham, Herb Trimpe, and Andrew Wildman

I love what Larry Hama did on the title when I was growing up. It pains me to write this, but I have an obligation to be honest and to call them as I see them. This title has gone from lovable fun to loathable stupidity. Gone are nearly all of the semi-realistic military angles, in are high fantasy elements such as the G.I. Joe Ninja Force and Battle Force 2000. Not to be outdone, Cobra has Slice and Dice, a pair of evil ninjas. 

The worst artwork that the world has ever seen was done in 1990s comic books.

Longtime fans will be happy with the reintroduction of Zartan, Tomax, Xamot, and Billy (Cobra Commander's son). Undoubtedly inspired by the the events of Operation: Desert Storm in January, 1991, the Joes become involved in conflicts in the Middle East in fictitious countries such as Quagmahr, Benzheen, and Abysmia. I got a kick out of those names. 

Storm Shadow gets a Wolverine claw for his right hand during the all-out ninja stupidity. Snake Eyes and Cobra Commander get new costumes without any fanfare or acknowledgment. It's like Hasbro sent them the new action figure designs and then they were integrated. The clearest sign of this title “jumping the shark” is the introduction of the Eco-Warriors, which are the dumbest elements introduced into the G.I. Joe universe thus far. 

New costumes for Snake Eyes and Cobra Commander are unveiled here with no mention of how or why.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 2 out of 5.

The OCD zone- In true IDW fashion, this collection is lacking. The G.I. Joe Dossiers from Issue 111, 113-118, 120-123 (2 pages each), are omitted. You would think that they would've included those in the back of the book as DVD style extras, but no. IDW has repeatedly dropped the ball with this line of trade paperbacks, from omitting issues that crossed over with G.I. Joe Special Missions to the poor restoration in many of these volumes. 

Tight gutters abound. There is plenty of excess white border space on the pages. All they would have had to do is some slight cropping and move the image out 1/8 of an inch.

Linework restoration rating: 3.5 out of 5. The restoration is really hit or miss. It's decent and readable but doesn't make me feel all warm and fuzzy like I do when I read a Marvel Masterwork. I like to have that definitive, high-def BluRay expereince.

Color restoration rating: 2 out of 5. Ugly gradient shading, done by letting the computer fill in the shapes rather than doing them by hand on the computer. Cheesy airbrushed gradient effects make my blood boil. The original issues did not have that, so I perceive it to be an abomination.

Paper rating: 4 out of 5. Super heavy duty coated stock paper. This book weighs a ton for a softcover, clocking in at a chunky 280 or so pages. It's a high gloss stock which makes the colors look garish.

Binding rating: 4 out of 5. Glue in a cardstock cover. It doesn't creak when you fan through it and should hold up over time.

Cardstock cover coating rating: 4 out of 5. The laminated cardstock cover seems durable with repeated handling, and should fare well over a lifetime on your bookshelf.

Follow my blog on Facebook.

Join my Facebook group, DC Collected Editions Fans Who Want Sewn Binding and Books That Lay Flat, a watchdog organization dedicated to top notch production values in DC's collected editions.

Review- The Smashing Pumpkins @ The Palace of Auburn Hills in Auburn Hills, MI on October 23, 2012

The Smashing Pumpkins w/Morning Parade @ The Palace of Auburn Hills in Auburn Hills, MI on October 23, 2012 (Detroit 10/23/12)

It's been just over a year since The Smashing Pumpkins v2.1 last played Detroit. The Palace is a basketball arena located 20 plus miles outside of the city proper in Auburn Hills. I love the building but hate the location and the $15 that they charge you to park there. I pulled into the parking lot around 7ish, and was able to score a sweet parking spot. I was disappointed at the turnout, with my best guesstimate being around 5,000 people in attendance. The upper bowl was curtained off and roughly half of the concession stands were shuttered. 

I snatched a pic of my ticket before they forced an upgrade on me

I was surprised to have my $75 lower bowl seat upgraded not once, but twice, ultimately winding up in the second row of lower bowl in the first section next to the stage. I was on Nicole's side, so stage right I'm guessing. I had the honor of ending up next to a middle aged drunken Gen X asshole who was there with his younger brother. He insisted in trying to bait Billy throughout the show, yelling BIIIIIIiiiiIIIIIIlllLLLLLLLyyyYYYYyyyyYYYYyyy over and over. And over. And over. The glares of everyone in the audience around him was lost upon him. I could hear him talk over the music on occasion, and he was telling his brother how he was trying to “recreate The Breslin Center show by having Billy throw a beer at him again”. Breslin Center? Was this guy trying to recreate his 1994 experience at being an asshole or something? He kept yelling for “BIIIIiiiiIILLLLLlllYYYyyyyYYY PLAY YOUR CLASSICS”. 

He criticized the crowd for “not being into it” or moshing enough during Bullet With Butterfly Wings. I wanted to spit on him for the longest time, but after a while I started feeling sorry for him. What a loser. The defining moment of his youth was purportedly pissing Billy Corgan off in 1994, and here he was 18 years later and still hasn't gotten the point. I can only imagine him being bitter, not really into music per se' but somehow found out about this show. This guy was every bit the cliché' that the Boston fans that I mocked in 1994 were. Stuck entirely in their youth, trying desperately to recapture it in drunken stupors, and blaming everyone else for their problems. Sad.

It was at this point that I realized what an impossible, uphill battle the band faces. I was always about the next album, the next B-side, the next show, looking ahead for the band. The rest of the old school fans seem to have become the classic Rock cliches that they mocked in the '90s. There's got to be irony in there somewhere, but I have been over irony for some time. Maybe irony jumped the shark or whatever the kids call it now. 

Roughly 20 minutes before the Pumpkins came on.

It filled in more when they came on, but come on, Detroit.

The lights went down and the globe/orb thing was revealed. The crowd was quiet, and I had a feeling of uneasiness. Oh geez, first attendance was sparse, now the crowd would be unreceptive. Billy played some odd sounding thing on the keyboard and then it was off to the races. Quasar and Panopticon saw the band in full Rock mode, while The Celestials and Violet Rays were slower and moodier. I kept looking around trying to gauge the audience's response to the new stuff. It seemed pretty uniform, regardless of which song off of Oceania was played. 

The globe was a giant projection screen, with the images dancing around the entire sphere. It was trippy, and the recurring themes were flowers and flying turtles, constellations and the moon. Trippy stuff. I loved it all. My Love Is Winter was next.

There were three keyboards at the front of the stage, and Billy, bassist/vocalist Nicole Fiorentino and guitarist Jeff Schroeder all took turns playing various parts. One Diamond, One Heart and Pinwheels are two songs which showed why this was necessary. 

Oceania and Pale Horse are the highlights of the new album for me, but The Chimera was the star of the new album live. It really shines in a live setting, and I hope that it sticks around in the set in the future. Glissandra and Inkless were also great live. Wildflower was awesome live. The band was jamming a bit, and things started getting darker sounding. Their cover of David Bowie's Space Oddity was incredible. X.Y.U. …wow, I haven't seen them do that one live since 1997. Disarm was done in “band” mode, similar to the live arrangement on the Rock Invasion Tour ('93-94). 

 

Tonite Reprise was the rarity of the night. It was originally included on the triple-vinyl Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness and then the Tonight, Tonight single. It led straight into a great rendition of Tonight, Tonight, a favorite of mine. The setlist leaned heavily on Mellon Collie, perhaps because that was the frame of mind Billy was in after prepping the 5 disc beast of a box set coming this December. Bullet With Butterfly Wings actually had a mosh pit. 

 

A Song For A Son was a welcome return to the set. Teargarden By Kaleidyscope doesn't get enough love. I wish that Spangled was in the set, too. Zero and Cherub Rock rounded out the set.

The encore was incredible. Jeff played the intro to Black Diamond with the violet lights that Paul Stanley uses. Billy sang the first verse, and I was shocked to see Mike Byrne take the lead vocals a la Peter Criss. He did a fine, fine job, and Billy and Jeff strangled the shit out of their guitars during the solos. If you were kid in Detroit in the '70s then Kiss is in your blood. Ava Adore was done in chugging mode, rocking similar to Here Is No Why. Muzzle was a pleasant surprise for the encore. Thank you, Smashing Pumpkins.

I hope that the disappointing turnout doesn't dissuade them from coming back to Detroit. Maybe the Fox Theatre would be a better choice, although I doubt that stage would fit in there. 

Follow my blog on Facebook.

Review- NEXT MEN VOL 3: AFTERMATH

NEXT MEN VOL 3: AFTERMATH (IDW, 2012; Hardcover)

Collects Next Men: Aftermath Nos. 40-44 (cover dates February-June, 2012)

Writer and Artist: John Byrne

Here we are, the end of the road for the Next Men. The ending was either brilliant or cliched, depending on your viewpoint. In one reality, I love it. In another, I dislike it a lot. Yet my mind seems to inhabit both planes of reality and both timestreams, and I am becoming unable to discern which one is which. I share the memories and experiences of both lives, and my frequent timestream slips are becoming disorienting. 

Perhaps one day I will sit down with all 3 Premiere Edition Hardcovers, the 2112 Original Graphic Novel (collected in the Compleat Next Men phone books and the Classic trade paperbacks but not the hardcovers- what the f*ck, IDW!), and all 3 hardcovers from the current series and try to map all of these events out. I am thoroughly disoriented after reading this book.

By the way, was Lincoln assassinated in this plane of reality of not?

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4 out of 5.

The OCD zone- This book has the same dimensions as an Avatar Press hardcover.

Paper rating: 5 out of 5. Nice, thick coated stock. This has a smooth feeling, unlike many Korean and Chinese coated paper stocks.

Binding rating: 5 out of 5. This book has sewn binding which, while glued square to the spine, still lays reasonably flat while reading due to the fact that this is a thinner book.

Hardcover coating rating: 4 out of 5. I am not a fan of the screen printed covers where the coating is only applied to certain images. I prefer the Avatar Press method, where they use a super thick waxy coating on the entire hardback. I am beginning to like books with printed covers over those with dustjackets.

Review- BOB POWELL'S TERROR

BOB POWELL'S TERROR (Yoe Books/ IDW, 2011; Hardcover)

Collects selections from Black Cat Nos. 34-36, 51, Chamber of Chills Nos. 6, 7, 19, This Magazine Is Haunted Nos. 4, 12, Tomb of Terror Nos. 3, 5, Witches Tales Nos. 4, 6, 10, 23, Worlds Beyond No. 1, and Worlds of Fear No. 2 (cover dates July, 1951- August, 1954)

Writers: Unknown

Artist: Bob Powell

Praise be Craig Yoe for his Chilling Archives of Horror Comics line of hardcovers. While the line seems to have slowed down as of late, we did get three high quality, value priced offerings from his Yoe Books imprint published by IDW. One could argue that this book is a largely redundant release, since the bulk of these stories have been, or soon will be, collected by PS Artbooks in their various archive lines (Black Cat, Chamber of Chills, Tomb of Terror, and Witches Tales) as well as other numerous pre-code '50s Horror compilations. 

That argument would be missing the entire point of this collection, however, since this focuses solely on the work of Bob Powell. Further making this an essential addition to any self respecting Golden Age or Horror comic book fan is that several of these stories were shot off of the original art, scans of which were generously donated by collectors. Yoe often solicits help from fandom, asking for scans so that he can procure the best quality source material. He puts so much time into these collections that he probably makes .25 an hour. His selfless sacrifice is fandom's gain, as this book is more affordable than the assorted Archives of this material.

An example of the original art used in this book. Mind you, these are ENTIRE STORIES shot from the original art. Incredible.

The introductions are a detailed analysis of Powell's career, and offer snapshots and scans of correspondence. Powell, like so many other Golden Age greats, bailed from the comic book industry after Frederic Wertham's witch-hunt linking comic books to juvenile delinquency chopped off artistic expression at the knees. Titles, genres, indeed, entire companies folded because of Wertham and the Senate subcommittee hearings. 

There are some terrific reads in this book. I enjoyed all of them, but will list my favorites:

So What's Next, from Witches Tales No. 23, is the story of serial killer and an office secretary working the night shift. Disturbing and plausible, its ending can be easily predicted by today's more sophisticated audience. Still, I go for execution as well as originality. I know what the outcome of sex will always be, yet I enjoy that, too.

Green Horror, from Witches Tales No. 6, has been collected elsewhere but remains enjoyable and effective. Powell's monstrosities are always a joy to behold. 

And finally, my personal favorite in this book is Happy Anniversary from Chamber of Chills No. 19. In it, we get a heartwarming anniversary dinner filled with reminisces of the beginning of their relationship. Needless to say, it's whacked and I loved the ending a lot and lot. My 3 year old daughter always says that: I liked it a lot and lot.

If you want to dip your toe in Golden Age, pre-code 1950s Horror comics, then this is as good a place as any to start. Even if you obsessively gobble up every piece of pre-code Horror brick-a-brac like I do, this book is well worth the price of admission just to get the scans of the original art and the introductions.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4.5 out of 5.

The OCD zone- I will try this in a blow by blow style. Let me know if you prefer this to my typical stream of consciousness nit-picking. The dimensions of this book are similar to the Creepy, Eerie, and EC Archives, albeit slightly wider.

Linework restoration rating: 4 out of 5. These are direct scans of the issues with minimal tinkering.

Color restoration rating: 4 out of 5. Like I stated above, these are scans, which means that you get all of the imperfections of the four color printing process. Dots, line bleed, off-register printing, etc. Take it for what it is. It is scanned extremely well, which is why it gets such a high rating.

Paper rating: 5 out of 5. Uncoated paper stock with zero sheen, can be read easily in all forms of light with no glare. It looks creamy, like mint condition pulp stock. I like the creamy color of pristine pulp stock, hate the yellowed, powdery feeling of moldering paper stock that has not been in plastic bags. This is a super thick, heavy stock that should age extremely well.

Binding rating: 4 out of 5. This has sewn binding, but the casing is glued square to the spine. It doesn't lay completely flat, always a pet peeve of mine. It lays reasonably flat a little ways in, and it is only 148 pages, so it's not a big deal.

Cover coating rating: 3 out of 5. This book has no dustjacket. Instead, it has a screen printed image on the cover, which has a coating of decent thickness. The rest of the cover (the non-image portions) are easily scuffed, even when handled gingerly. I can't imagine how beat up this would get with repeated handling or on a comic shop's bookshelf. IDW can do better than this, but they choose not to. Sad.

Follow my blog on Facebook.

Join my Facebook group, DC Collected Editions Fans Who Want Sewn Binding and Books That Lay Flat, a watchdog organization dedicated to top notch production values in DC's collected editions.

Review- CLASSIC G.I. JOE VOL. 11

CLASSIC G.I. JOE VOL. 11 (IDW, 2011; Softcover)

Collects G. I. Joe: A Real American Hero Nos. 101-110 (cover dates June, 1990- March, 1991)

Writer: Larry Hama

Artists: Mark D. Bright, Ron Garney, Lee Weeks, and others

G.I. Joe isn't very realistic at this point in the title, with the far flung fantasy elements (science fiction, ninjas) getting as much attention as the military elements of the series. I was admittedly a sucker for this back when I played with the toys and read the comic books. I was no longer buying comic books when these issues were originally published, so these were all new to me. There is a sense of fun amidst all of these goings on. There is also a sense of reality, as seven Joes meet their maker in issues 109-110. And no, I'm not referring to Hasbro. 

Larry Hama's writing is a precursor to modern comic book storytelling. Unlike his contemporaries, Hama did not use third party narrative captions to set scenes. He would list a location or a time and then cut to the dialogue. This is pretty much standard operating procedure at Marvel over the last decade, but Hama might very well be the first to have done it. I'm not a comics historian so I can't say for certain. The artwork is done by a rotating crew, and is solid throughout the book. Clear, concise, competently done artwork. Mark D. Bright does the bulk of the book (101-106 and 108), and I enjoyed his run on Iron Man. 

This was a fun escapist read. I'll admit that G.I. Joe is pure nostalgia for me, as I played with the toys, watched the cartoon series, and read the comic books in the '80s. I left Star Wars for G.I. Joe in 1983, which seemed like a big deal at the time but now seems funny to me. Star Wars is so much cooler than G.I. Joe, but it had run it's course by late 1983. 

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4 out of 5.

The OCD zone- There is a marked improvement in the overall restoration in this book over previous volumes. While there are a few IDW-created typos found in the word balloons, greater care seems to have been taken this time around than with the previous volumes. There doesn't seem to be much in the way of pixelated lines. The strangest thing is the uneven lines on the top of the panels on some of the pages. My best guess is that these were scanned from floppies that were stored in extremely humid conditions and had the rippled warping that accompanies said humidity. 

Notice the "warped" appearance at the top of the panel. I'm not speaking about the curve from end to end (which is due to the book flexing), I am talking about the actual warping of the line. Very strange.

The computer recoloring seems to be handled better throughout the book, although the crappy airbrushed-looking gradients still mar the overall reading experience for me. Issue 110 has the worst linework and color restoration in the book. Your mileage, as always, may vary.

The paper is super thick, super shiny coated stock and is as smooth as a baby's bottom. It has sweet smelling toxic Korean ink, likely printed on virgin Amazon rainforest paper. There is significant glare if you read this under incandescent or fluorescent light, but there is almost no glare if you read it by natural light or sunlight, as long as it is not directly under the sun. Who cares, you ask? You do, if you're reading about this stuff in a section called The OCD zone!

Linework restoration rating: 3.75 out of 5.

Color restoration rating: 3.75 out of 5.

Paper rating: 4 out of 5.

Binding rating: 4 out of 5.

Cardstock cover coating rating: 4 out of 5.

Follow my blog on Facebook.

Join my Facebook group, DC Collected Editions Fans Who Want Sewn Binding and Books That Lay Flat, a watchdog organization dedicated to top notch production values in DC's collected editions.