Review- EXCALIBUR VISIONARIES: ALAN DAVIS VOL. 3

EXCALIBUR VISIONARIES: ALAN DAVIS VOL. 3 (Marvel, 2011; Softcover)

Collects Excalibur Nos. 59-67 (cover dates Late December, 1992- July, 1993)

Writers: Alan Davis( 61-67) and Scott Lobdell (59, 60)

Artists: Alan Davis (penciler, 61-67), Scott Kolins (59, 60), and Mark Farmer (inker, 61-67)

Is there anything that Alan Davis can not draw? Davis is such a great writer and a great artist, the man is simply amazing. This is the end of his run on the title, and he wraps things up neatly and with a huge bang.

Artwork by Scott Kolins, not Alan Davis.

Kudos to Marvel for including issue 59 and 60, which Davis had no hand in but were included to help bridge the story gap. Whenever DC does artist-centric collections like this they omit everything that the artist didn't touch. Key plot issues, covers, it doesn't matter to DC if the artist named in the title of the collection didn't have a hand in the creation of it. Using their backward logic, shouldn't they also black out the word balloons if the artist wasn't also the writer of the issues collected in their artist-centric collections?

The Cloud Nine arc has exquisite, fluid action sequences, and is chock full of Davis' trademark British humour. I especially enjoyed Wire, a clear cut parody of the horribly overrated Cable who was burning up the sales charts at the time. Issues 66 and 67 are a sequel of sorts to the Claremont/Byrne classic Days of Future Past called Days of Future Yet To Come. Alan Davis' Sentinels are a wonderful hybrid of Kirby, Adams, and Byrne. So good!

If you haven't figured it out yet, I loved this book. You might also not be aware of this, but I am a huge Alan Davis fan. The only thing that kept the book from getting a 5 were the two non-Davis issues. They were only very good and not great like the rest of the book.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4.75 out of 5.

The OCD zone- Nothing out of the ordinary to report here.

Linework restoration rating: 5 out of 5. If there's a dropout I didn't catch it.

Color restoration rating: 4.75 out of 5. While the original color palette is faithfully maintained, I noticed two horrid gradient blends that are not native to the original coloring process. Minus .25 points for that.

Paper rating: 5 out of 5. I love the coated dull matte finish stock used in this book.

Binding rating: 4 out of 5. Cardstock, glue. Glue, cardstock.

Cardstock cover coating rating: 5 out of 5. The usual thick laminated cardstock that Marvel uses on all of their TPBs.

Buy EXCALIBUR VISIONARIES: ALAN DAVIS VOL. 3 TPB at InStockTrades!

Review: X-Men- Inferno Crossovers

X-MEN: INFERNO CROSSOVERS (Marvel, 2010; Hardcover)

Collects Amazing Spider-Man Nos. 311-313, Avengers Nos. 298-300, Cloak & Dagger No. 4, Daredevil Nos. 262, 263, 265, Excalibur Nos. 6, 7, Fantastic Four Nos. 322-324, Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man Nos. 146-148, Power Pack No. 40, 42-44 and Web of Spider-Man Nos. 47, 48 (cover dates October, 1988- April, 1989)

Writers: Gerry Conway, Chris Claremont, Steve Englehart, Ann Nocenti, David Micheilinie and others

Artists: Todd McFarlane, Alan Davis, Keith Pollard, John Romita, Jr., John Buscema, Tom Palmer and others

One man's garbage is another man's treasure. This era of comic books is ripe with nostalgia for me, as I bought many of these issues off of the shelf the day that they were released. The Spider-Man issues hold a particular place in my heart. I haven't read The Spectacular Spider-Man or Web of Spider-Man issues since they were released, and I was surprised at how quickly they came back to me. There is a good 184 or so pages of Spider-Man in this 600 page book, which works for me.

In all honesty, there is nothing of any lasting significance that happens in any of the issues collected in this book, which is fine by me. You get competently done stories by many veteran creators, none of which rank among any of said creators' finest work. They are all entertaining and worth a read, however. I am happy to have this deluxe, oversized hardcover in my collection.

The OCD zone- The production values (color and linework) are excellent, although there is a dropped word balloon on Page 294, Panel 6. If it were in, say, Daredevil, I probably wouldn't care, but it was in an issue of Amazing Spider-Man. This is likely due to a pasted over word balloon that fell off of the source material used for this book. The paper and sewn binding are top notch as usual for Marvel. 

Junk Food For Thought

IRON MAN: IRON MONGER (Marvel, 2010)

Collects Iron Man Nos. 193-200 (cover dates April- November, 1985)

Denny O'Neil is an exceptionally good comic book writer. This stuff holds up very well a quarter century after it's original publication. The only issue in this book that I bought off of the stands was #197 because it was a Secret Wars II tie-in. I really feel like I missed the boat not buying this title on a regular basis back in the day, but I can make up for it by reading these issues today.

It was a treat to see a D-lister like Doctor Demonicus (from the Shogun Warriors series from the '70s) and his giant, "mutated" green lizard (read: Godzilla, mutated just enough to avoid getting sued). All in all, this was a great read with decent artwork by various artists in a nice hardcover package complete with sewn binding.

AREA 10 (Vertigo/ DC, 2010) 

This is a graphic novel in the TRUE sense of the word, meaning that it is a comic book originally published in book format, hence the term graphic novel. People often mistakenly refer to trade paperbacks as 'graphic novels'. Watchmen and Walking Dead are great graphic novels. No, they are trade paperbacks. They compile comic books that were originally published in a single magazine format, and then reprinted/ compiled into a book format. There is a big difference, and it drives me nuts when people throw the term graphic novel around like that.

The format of this book is odd but neat. It's a hardcover smaller than a standard comic book but larger than a digest, in black and white on heavy pulp paper, 176 pages of story. Something like this could well be the comic book format of the future if all monthly comics were to stop being published.

The story by Christos N. Gage is very good, and while it is labeled as a Crime comic, it is in truth a hybrid between that genre and Horror. An edge of your seat page turner, there is only one scene towards the end that made them lose me. *S-P-O-I-L-E-R A-L-E-R-T* There is no way that the guy would take a drill to his head in order to fight the killer. No way. The rest of this book was pretty believable, but that part lost me. *END SPOILER* Recommended reading for fans of the genres listed above, this will also be available in softcover next year for the more budget conscious reader.

Swamp Thing Nos. 91-96 (DC, cover dates January- June, 1990)

The very first Direct Market retailer, or "real" comic book store that I ever went to was the Book Bin in Lincoln Park, MI. They were getting out of the comic business after 30 or so years, and were blowing out their stock for next to nothing. Even though the store had been picked over with a fine tooth comb, there were still plenty of cheap reads to be had. A quick history lesson for the 'civilians' out there. The Direct Market more or less got it's start because retailers wanted to be able to get pristine copies from the distributor to sell as back issues later on. They ordered many extra copies for this very reason. The Book Bin was in on this game for many, many years. The first time that I went in there was 1983, and there were already rows of back issues. I also recall playing the Tron video game there circa 1983 to the tune of Hungry Like the Wolf on the radio in the store. Why I remember that, I couldn't tell you. In any case, I got all of these issues for $1.00. The line of trades that DC was putting out ended with issue 81, and I was curious how things had turned out. These are decent, but the quality definitely ebbs in the writing department. Alfredo P. Alcala inks the title, and the artwork is still decent, but the story just seems to meander along. Still, this was a dollar well spent.

THE SUPERMAN CHRONICLES VOL. 8 (DC, 2010)

Collects Superman Nos. 14, 15 and material from Action Comics Nos. 44-47 (cover dates January- April, 1942)

Golden Age Superman rocks! I don't like to throw the word 'great' around often, or use it lightly, because when something is GREAT that to me means that it is something superior, the best, etc. The Superman and Action Comics issues collected in this book are, in fact, GREAT. Great writing by Jerry Siegel, great artwork by Leo Nowak, Paul Cassidy and John Sikela, great villains in Krazinski (a composer who lulls audiences asleep with his music while his gang robs them), The Lightning Master, The Domino, Lex Luthor...everything is just great.

I hate to sound like I am gushing, but really, this stuff just hits all of the sweet spots for this era. The stories still hold up in a very charming, dated way. I truly appreciate the Chronicles line of trades because I have never read this stuff before, and I cannot afford yet another line of $50 hardcovers.

Many of the things that made Superman seem so sucky to me when I was 10-11 years old are becoming more and more apparent. His super hearing, telescopic vision, x-ray vision, invulnerability, super-duper speed, etc., are all becoming more pronounced during this era than they were in the earlier issues. I loved these stories in spite of this corniness. I also loved the way that he keeps gaining more and more powers, such as the ability to modify his voice to sound like other people. He catches bullets in nearly every story, ditto his nonsensical smashing through walls. I'm not kidding, there could be a window five feet away and this lunkhead will choose to smash through the wall, damaging property.

In Concerts of Doom (from Superman No. 14), Krazinski loses Superman in a car chase. Being the heroic guy that he is, Superman breaks into the Auto License Bureau, where he illegally obtains Krazinski's address from his license plate number. Hilarious. In  The Invention Thief  (same issue), a young inventor is swindled out of his creation by a savvy businessman. This honest entrepreneur is portrayed to be the villain here, when it was in truth the fault of the inventor for not securing the proper patents or hiring a lawyer himself. Superman, ever the bully, refuses to put out a fire that was raging in the businessman's mansion until he signs over the rights to the invention back to that dimwit creator. The knucklehead probably traded his invention for a sack of magic beans after this story...who knows? In Saboteurs of Napkan (from Superman No. 15), Superman single-handedly defeats the Napkanese (read: Japanese) plot to overthrow the United States. Superman in Oxnalia, also from the same issue, finds Superman fighting the Oxnalians (read: Germans) who are under the command of Razkal (Hitler). Superman utters famous phrases like 'Up...Up...and Away", as well as lesser known ones like 'Papa Spank'.

All in all, an entertaining and sometimes hilarious read that you can't go wrong with, clocking in at 168 pages for a list price of 15 bucks.

EXCALIBUR VISIONARIES: WARREN ELLIS VOL. 1 (Marvel, 2010)

Collects Excalibur Nos. 83-90 and material from X-Men Prime (cover dates November, 1994- October, 1995)

Warren Ellis' writing is solid and holds up for the most part, while the artwork ranges from passable to laughably bad. The '90s had some of the ugliest artwork, ever. The then-revolutionary Malibu digital color enhancements look dated, but that is forgivable. I just appreciate modern coloring techniques even more now, and it's truly amazing to think how far technology has come in such a short period of time. This is a nice collection and a good read.

EXCALIBUR VISIONARIES: WARREN ELLIS VOL. 2 (Marvel, 2010)

Collects Excalibur Nos. 91-95, Starjammers Nos. 1-4 and X-Man No. 12 (cover dates October, 1995- March, 1996)

Wow, what a decline in quality from Volume 1! Things go south fast in all areas, writing, artwork...even the lettering and colors, for crying out loud. X-Man is THE worst concept ever introduced in the world of comics, and the other retardedly named characters, like Threnody, are equally dumb. Needless to say that I will not be picking up Vol. 3.

BLACK TERROR VOL. 2 (Dynamite, 2010)

Collects Black Terror Nos. 5-9 (cover dates November, 2009- March, 2010)

I was ready to chuck this whole line for a minute there. I was blue about the ever expanding hardcover and trade paperback lines from the various publishers, blue about my limited funds for all of these books, blue about the sheer glut of comic books out there. I almost allowed this to kill this line for me. I sat down and read this, with my mind already made up that I was done with it, and you know what? This was a fine read. I suppose that I will be sticking with the Project Superpowers line for a while longer. They only put out trades a few times a year, so I'll try and figure out some other corner to cut.

CROSSED VOL. 1 (Avatar, 2010)

Collects Crossed Nos. 0-9 (September, 2008- February, 2010)

Wow, this was truly stunning. I don't mean stunning in the adjective sense of the word, but stunning in the verb sense of the word. If this book doesn't offend, shock, or repulse you on a consistent basis, then you are a very, very sick person. Crossed crosses every single line of decency with the exception of child pornography, but there is a sequel currently being published, so give them time. Garth Ennis' writing is whacked, but it's really the beautiful artwork by Jacen Burrows that takes the cake. It's so clean and polished that it invites you to stare and linger even when you don't want to. If this ever gets made into a movie, it'll be NC-17 at least. I am disappointed in myself for enjoying a depraved work as this so much. It haunts you, even weeks after reading it. I want to read it again and again. If Saw seems too 'Disney' for your tastes, then give Crossed a try...you will be sorry!

SANDMAN MYSTERY THEATRE VOL. 8: THE BLACKHAWK AND THE RETURN OF THE SCARLET GHOST (Vertigo/ DC, 2010)

Collects Sandman Mystery Theatre Nos. 45-52 (cover dates December, 1996- July, 1997)
I am happy to see this line of trades continue. 2, maybe 3 more, and we'll have the entire series compiled in trade paperback format. Good reads one and all.

IRON MAN: ARMOR WARS II (Marvel, 2010)

Collects Iron Man Nos. 258-266 (cover dates July, 1990- March, 1991)

Really well done comic books by John Byrne (writer) and John Romita, Jr. (penciler). These issues still hold up 20 years after they were originally published. I think that when the Essential Iron Man line of black and white phone books hits the late 1970s then I will start picking them up. Everything that I have read from 1979-on (via trade paperback) has been extremely enjoyable.

Valley of the Junk Food For Thought

No longer am I just a nut who rants and raves about comic books in his blog. Now I am a nut who rants and raves about his blog and has been published. That's right, I am this month's fan reviewer in Comics Buyer's Guide #1668, available at comic book specialty shops and finer newsstands everywhere on June 16. They altered one of my sentences in my review for Vincent Price Presents #17, and now it makes no sense, and spell-checked 'cartoony' for cartooned in my review for Creepy #3. Regardless, it was an absolute thrill to see print. Now, back to our regularly unscheduled program...

IRREDEEMABLE VOL. 1 (Boom, 2009)

Collects Irredeemable Nos. 1-4 (cover dates April- July, 2009)

This was an X-Mas present, and while it was entertaining and intriguing, I am going to say 'no' to the rest of this series for the time being. I only have so much discretionary income for these things, and enough is enough. Sorry Mark Waid and Boom Studios, nothing personal, I just can't keep up with everything going on in this hobby anymore.




EXCALIBUR VISIONARIES: ALAN DAVIS VOL. 2 (Marvel, 2010)

Collects Excalibur (Vol. 1) Nos. 51-58 and Excalibur: XX Crossing (cover dates June- Early December, 1992)

The issues where Alan Davis actually draws the title are great. The ones where he doesn't...not so great. There are a couple of issues which were plotted by Alan Davis, but scripted by Scott Lobdell, a third rate writer who overwrites everything. When Davis is in the driver's seat, though, this is a good time. I love his action sequences, as their is a fluidity to them that is just amazing. You can almost 'see' the movement in your mind. I can't wait for Volume 3.




ESSENTIAL MOON KNIGHT VOL. 3 (Marvel, 2009)

Collects Marvel Fanfare Nos. 30, 38, Moon Knight (Vol. 1) Nos. 31-38, Moon Knight: Fist of Khonshu Nos. 1-6, and material from Marvel Fanfare No. 39, Marvel Super Heroes Spring Special No. 1 and Solo Avengers No. 3 (cover dates May, 1983- May, 1990)

Quality stuff by various writers and artists. Moon Knight was 'adult', 'dark' and 'gritty' even before Watchmen and other comic books made it fashionable.

It's funny how time changes your perspective on things. I recalled buying Moon Knight "for a while" in the '80s, but in actuality I bought Moon Knight: Fist of Khonshu Nos. 1-3 off of the spinner racks at 7-11 circa 1985. 3 whole issues. The thing is, back then I read each comic book that I bought around a dozen times, so each issue that I bought seemed more important than now, when I read something once and hope that one day I will read it again. I am likely among the last of the Amish children, as I grew up in a household with no cable TV, the Internet was something out of science fiction, and interacting with other comic book fans meant talking to my two other friends who bought comic books... positively Little House on the Prairie to the kids out there today.




GOLDEN AGE SHEENA: THE BEST OF THE QUEEN OF THE JUNGLE VOL. 2 (Devil’s Due, 2009)

Collects material from Jumbo Comics Nos. 31, 51, 81, 84, 87, 92, 99, 107, 131 (cover dates September, 1941- January, 1950)

I got this in a $5 trades box, which is sort of like the quarter box equivalent for all of you floppy buyers out there. I was blown away by the quality of the artists of the Eisner/ Iger Studios. I was also blown away by the sexual overtones and graphic violence for the era, chuckling as I read this because this was marketed to children. Too funny. I would love to see some company sell this stuff to a child today. This is also as politically incorrect as every other Golden Age comic book. They feature another Jumbo back-up feature, Sky Doll by Matt Baker (credited as Bill Gibson) as a bonus, and I would love to read more of that stuff too. I am going to hunt down Vol. 1 of GA Sheena.

The restoration of the material in this book is interesting. High resolution scans with slight color correction to take the yellowing out of the pulp paper and printed on slick paper. For some reason, these contrasting presentations work very well together. I like seeing the dots, the line bleed, the imperfections of the aged paper itself. I love fully restored and remastered collections of vintage material, and I love this warts-and-all approach as well.





X-MEN LEGACY: EMPLATE (Marvel, 2010)

Collects X-Men Legacy Nos. 228-230 and X-Men Legacy Annual No. 1 (cover dates November, 2009- February, 2010)

This was middle-of-the-road X-Men. Nothing groundbreaking or terribly interesting happening here. Gambit still sucks and needs to be killed off, though.




THE ASTOUNDING WOLF-MAN VOL. 3 (Image, 2009)

Collects The Astounding Wolf-Man Nos. 13-18 (cover dates February- August, 2009)

*SIGH* Only one more trade left, and then this series is done. Bummer. I actually enjoy reading this title, and look forward to seeing things unfold.

This trade was delayed some 5-6 months from it's original solicitation date because Image did a last minute switch from printing it in Canada to China. Like many Chinese made trades, this has a wonderfully intoxicating fragrance. I imagine 8-9 year old children working in sweat shops, pouring broken asbestos tiles, lead paint chips, and mercury from recalled thermometers into a vat and mixing it with a big stick to make the ink that they use to print this book on paper made from virgin rain forest trees. Also, the book has sewn binding. Having a softcover with sewn binding is not an every day occurrence, but I would gladly welcome it. We need to keep those poor little Chinese children employed, you know.



THE EC ARCHIVES FRONTLINE COMBAT VOL. 1 (Gemstone, 2008)

Collects Frontline Combat Nos. 1-6 (cover dates July/August, 1951- May/June, 1952)

This was finally released in September of 2009, after 11 months of delays from its original solicitation date. Then there were the delays due to my backlog, and here we are some 10 months since it came out, and I have completed reading it. The reason that this book was delayed so long was because of Gemstone's financial troubles which have ultimately resulted in them losing the EC license. I guess that the book was ready to be released on time, but since the printer bills were not paid they kept this book hostage in a warehouse somewhere. I am really bummed out, because I want the entire 'New Trend' in hardcover format. There will be a total of 66, and so far 13 have been released with no word on when we will see the rest.

Like all EC Comics, these are among the finest comic books ever produced. EC mopped up the competition with their superior writing and artwork. In a few short years after these issues were published a jerkoff by the name of Fredric Wertham would help spearhead this company's demise.




FANTASTIC FOUR: IN SEARCH OF GALACTUS (Marvel, 2010; Hardcover)

Collects Fantastic Four Nos. 204-214 (cover dates March, 1979- January, 1980)

Wow, this is like a junior Marvel Masterworks, clocking in at around 204 pages with nice paper and sewn binding. This is a pretty entertaining read from my "golden age" of comics, with writing by Marv Wolfman and art by Michigan's own Keith Pollard, Sal Buscema, and a heaping helping of John Byrne goodness. I got issues 210 and 214 from those old three-packs that Marvel used to sell via Whitman's non-newsstand distribution. Back then comics were .40, and the bags were labeled 3 for $1.09. They would have one or two A-list titles, and the third was always some turkey like Thor or Ghost Rider, whathaveyou. My brother had issue 208, which he gave to me along with the rest of his collection in the '80s. I still have that copy of issue 210, and man is it beat up. I was like 5 or 6 back then, so what do you expect? In any case, fun reads and a fun trip down memory lane.




NEW AVENGERS VOL. 12: POWERLOSS (Marvel, 2010; Hardcover)

Collects New Avengers Nos. 55-60 (cover dates September, 2009- February, 2010)

Regular readers of my blog know of my general disdain for all things written by Brian Michael Bendis, but I've got to tell you, this arc... this arc was not bad. I found myself actually enjoying it. These issues are crammed with far more dialogue than past issues, and while I don't particularly enjoy all of his 'witty' wise-ass banter, some if it works here. Some of it also simply his stylistic cue, so like certain things that, say, Chris Claremont does that drives me nuts and I overlook, I am also trying to do with Bendis. Again, I am not 'down' with the B, but this didn't suck, either.



THE MIGHTY AVENGERS: THE UNSPOKEN (Marvel, 2010; Hardcover)

Collects Mighty Avengers Nos. 27-31 (cover dates September, 2009- January, 2010)

Waitaminute, did my bus stop on the Bizarro planet? Bendis' Avengers were a better read than Dan Slott's?? Say what? I am serious, you guys. This time out, things were just decent in Slott's book, although artist Sean Chen (Issues 30 and 31) is pretty darn amazing with them pencils.

Beneath the Junk Food For Thought

Slayer/ World Painted Blood

This is the best sounding Slayer album, period. The production is crisp and punchy without being overly compressed. The guitars are razor sharp, the drums sound natural. These are some of the best songs that Slayer has done since Seasons In the Abyss. 2006's Christ Illusion was OK, but ten minutes after you popped it out you couldn't remember a single song. Not so here. The running time is around 40 minutes, and I am liking the fact that bands are making shorter albums. It seems like bands were making 80 minute albums when CDs came out because they could, without ever thinking if they should. Slayer still rules after all these years. 8.5/ 10

THE X-MEN OMNIBUS VOL. 1 (Marvel, 2009; Hardcover)

Collects The X-Men Nos. 1-31 (cover dates September, 1963- April, 1967; Hardcover)

This was the red-headed step-child of Marvel circa 1963. Stan Lee and Jack Kirby seemed to toss this batch of also-rans off with only the occasional flair of brilliance that they are usually associated with. They did give us Magneto and the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, the Juggernaut, and the Sentinels here, though. It was not until Roy Thomas came aboard that the X-Men really seemed like teenagers, and had problems like typical teenagers (i.e. crushes, unrequited love, feelings of alienation, etc.). This is when the title started picking up steam. 
Werner Roth's artwork was serviceable for the era but unremarkable by today's standards. I had the first three Masterworks but sold them off to get the Omnibus. I usually avoid the double-dip, but the lackluster restoration and unfaithful coloring in those old Masterworks prompted me to buy this. I am glad that I did, because this has nicer paper, sewn binding, is over-sized, and features the letters pages. I hope that they collect the next three Masterworks in Omnibus format, because Vol. 6's brilliant Roy Thomas/ Neal Adams collaboration is marred by the glued mousetrap binding found in that book.

DC COMICS CLASSICS LIBRARY: ROOTS OF THE SWAMP THING (DC, 2009; Hardcover)

Collects Swamp Thing (Vol. 1) Nos. 1-13 and a story from House of Secrets No. 92 (cover dates July, 1971- December, 1974)

I first encountered the first 10 issues of this series in a digest called Secret of the Swamp Thing a few years ago in the Graphic Novel section at John King Books North in Ferndale, MI. At the time, someone was dumping off mass quantities of trades, and I was scooping them up super cheap and loving it. I was absolutely blown away by Bernie Wrightson's artwork, and have always been a fan of Len Wein's melodramatic writing. When DC solicited this hardcover collection of this, I had to jump at it. The book itself is a disappointment. Fans accustomed to high quality DC Archives and Marvel Masterworks will be sorely disappointed by the tight gutters*, glued binding, and inferior paper. The paper is OK, and worlds better than the garbage that they used in Jack Kirby's The Demon, but is still not up to snuff. 

*Gutters are the white borders on the inside of the book which fall into, well, the gutter of the book. A few minutes of re-sizing the pages so that the white borders were visible would have been nice, DC. Instead, you have the image on both sides of the page sinking down into the gutter, requiring you to almost pry the book apart to see the full artwork. I have provided pictures of my book below, so you be the judge. To me, it is unacceptable; to a casual buyer, maybe it is. Sewn binding would have greatly reduced this problem, especially towards the very front and very back of the book. I also included a picture of the glue clump that protrudes from the bottom of the ornamental cloth on the bottom of the book. 

All in all this is top shelf material in an inferior format. This would have made a great DC Archive. Using better materials and the higher than average Archive page count, they could have charged $65-70 and I would have been happy. Instead, we got this. Oh well, it's great material that you owe it to yourself to read in spite of this particular format's shortcomings.

SECRET WARS II OMNIBUS (Marvel, 2009; Hardcover)

Collects Alpha Flight (Vol. 1) No. 28, Amazing Spider-Man Nos. 268, 273, 274, Avengers Nos. 260, 261, 265, 266, Captain America No. 306, Cloak and Dagger (Vol. 2) No. 4, Daredevil No. 223, Dazzler No. 40, Defenders No. 152, Doctor Strange No. 74, Fantastic Four Nos. 282, 285, 288, 316-319, Incredible Hulk No. 312, Iron Man (Vol. 1) No. 197, New Mutants (Vol. 1) Nos. 30, 36, 37, Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man No. 111, Power Man and Iron Fist No. 121, Power Pack No. 18, Quasar No. 8, Secret Wars II Nos. 1-9, The Thing No. 30, Thor No. 363, Uncanny X-Men Nos. 196, 202, 203 and Web of Spider-Man No. 6 (cover dates July, 1985- March, 1990)

I have many fond memories of this series and the crossover issues contained herein. This was the first big Marvel crossover in terms of there being a million different issues that tied into a bigger series. I fell hook, line and sinker for the first few months, buying crap like Doctor Strange and the New Mutants that I didn't care one whit for at the time. As the months progressed, that stopped though. I was exposed to some really good reads too, like Daredevil #223, Incredible Hulk #312, and Captain America #308, all of which I read multiple times that summer. 

The core mini-series was okay, nostalgia aside. Jim Shooter's writing has many dated slang and pop culture references which are forgivable, and is mostly solid. He makes some corny jokes but also doles out some thought-provoking plots. I dug on Al Milgrom's art circa 1984 on Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man, but once you remove those rose-colored glasses you realize that he sucks. Sorry, Al, but you do. 

One of the 'DVD-style' bonuses in the back of the book are Sal Buscema's unused pencils for Issue 1. It doesn't say why he bailed, but he never did the series, and that is unfortunate. Sal Buscema has a workman-like chug, but delivers solid storytelling and decent action sequences. I have to wonder 'what if'. The Fantastic Four issues (316-319) with Steve Englehart (writer) and Keith Pollard and Joe Sinnott (artists) are great, in spite of the fact that Ms. Marvel is, for some reason, a female Thing here. The Quasar issue sucks, and I consider it nothing more than a bonus, as it really doesn't tie in with what is going on in the rest of the book. 

I am thrilled to death to see something that I loved as a child preserved in a deluxe, high-quality format like this. Nice paper, sewn binding, the only problem is the typos in the table of contents. Why would they list the wrong issues in the wrong spots? That's silly, especially when the indicia has the correct issues listed. A minor quibble, especially in light of the fact that this is a monster 1,188 book.

ESSENTIAL LUKE CAGE, POWER MAN VOL. 1 (Marvel, 2005)

Collects Luke Cage, Hero For Hire Nos. 1-16 and Luke Cage, Power Man Nos. 17-27 (cover dates June, 1972- October, 1975)

I haven't had this much fun reading '70s jive-fool smack talkin', bravado-tinged dialogue in ages. This title changed hands between all of the usual '70s workhorses, so for economy of space I'll let you surf the Internet if you're really dying to know who wrote or drew the issue (or you could click on the cover image, as most of the notables are listed there). I had never read this title but was always interested, and when I saw it in the $5 box at the Motor City Con in May I jumped at it. I would re-buy this material in color and in hardcover in a heartbeat.

SANDMAN MYSTERY THEATRE VOL. 2: THE FACE AND THE BRUTE (DC, 2004)

Collects Sandman Mystery Theatre Nos. 5-12 (cover dates August, 1993- March, 1994)

Another satisfying installment in this series. I really enjoy the tone and pacing of this book.

SANDMAN MYSTERY THEATRE VOL. 3: THE VAMP (DC, 2005)

Collects Sandman Mystery Theatre Nos. 13-16 (cover dates April- July, 1994)

Further proof that the best comics of the '90s didn't come from Marvel.

SANDMAN MYSTERY THEATRE VOL. 4: THE SCORPION (DC, 2006)

Collects Sandman Mystery Theatre Nos. 17-20 (cover dates August- November, 1994)

I don't like the paper that they use in these trades. Other than that, this is really good stuff. I really have a thing for the 1930s, even though any time that I get romantic about it I have to stop immediately. Being an Atheist, they would have likely lynched me. Also, it seems like the 'good old days', but the reality of it is that unless you were a white male, it obviously wasn't. Women and minorities were second class citizens, unable to secure jobs with equal pay, etc. So I have mixed emotions about it. I guess I just made too many trips to Greenfield Village as a child.

SANDMAN MYSTERY THEATRE VOL. 5: DR. DEATH AND THE NIGHT OF THE BUTCHER (DC, 2007)

Collects Sandman Mystery Theatre Nos. 21-28 (cover dates December, 1994- July, 1995)

This is such a great series that focuses on the ugly side of the 'good old days'. I really want to get the Golden Age Sandman DC Archives. I am bummed that I have to stop my marathon, as I haven't picked up Vols. 6 and 7 yet.

EXCALIBUR VISIONARIES: ALAN DAVIS VOL. 1 (Marvel, 2009)

Collects Excalibur (Vol. 1) Nos. 42-50 (cover dates October, 1991- May, 1992)

Exceptionally good stuff by Alan Davis (duh). This is one of those runs that I have never read until now that makes me wonder how much more great stuff I missed during my sabbatical from comic books in the 1990s.