Review- CLOAK AND DAGGER: CRIME AND PUNISHMENT

CLOAK AND DAGGER: CRIME AND PUNISHMENT (Marvel, 2012; Hardcover)

Collects Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man #64, 69, 70, 81, 82, 94-96, Marvel Team-Up Annual #6, and Marvel Fanfare #19 (cover dates March, 1982- March, 1985)

Writers: Bill Mantlo, Al Milgrom (#94-96)

Artists: Pencilers- Ed Hannigan, Al Milgrom, Ron Frenz, Tony Salmons, Rick Leonardi, and Kerry Gammill

Inkers- Jim Mooney, Al Milgrom, Kevin Dzuban, Terry Austin, Tony Salmons, and George Freeman

Progress and diversity are two things on the tips of the tongues of comic fans everywhere these days. Judging by the hype in the comic press, this is something new and now. Sorry kids, but writers like Bill Mantlo and others were blazing the trail decades earlier. Unlike nowadays, there were no plugs from CNN or USA Today whenever something new or daring was attempted...something like, say, an interracial superhero couple. Bold ideas were presented to the story more organically and thus enjoyed greater acceptance than many of the so-called progressive or diverse ideas forced down the throats of comic fans today.

Cloak and Dagger were teenage runaways who were kidnapped and experimented on with synthetic drugs by the mob, who were trying to make new addictive drugs. Due to some anomaly in their body chemistry they were the only ones to survive...and somehow get super powers in the process. They take up a crusade against drug dealers everywhere. This was all very 1980s, Nancy Reagan “Just say no” for the comic book set.

Spider-Man is in every issue except for one, so this is kind of like a Spider-Man hardcover as well. Dagger's light steals Silvermane's life in #70, a plotline revisited and resolved in issues 94-96. Those three issues are all special to me, as I bought #94-96 off of the stands and read them countless times during the summer of 1984. The Punisher losing his sh*t in issues 81 and 82 is highly enjoyable as well. 

This is as close to Cloak And Dagger Masterworks as we will ever get. Combine this with the other Premiere Classic hardcover which collects their original mini-series and you have their early run collected. It would be nice to see these two make the silver screen if only to get more 1980s material collected.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4.25 out of 5.

The OCD zone- The late, lamented Marvel Premiere Classic line was a sort of junior Masterworks line, where material was presented in a high quality format but at a much lower MSRP than the Marvel Masterworks. The line reached well over 100 volumes but petered out because Marvel flooded the market with them.

Linework and Color restoration: The linework is tight and clean. Not Masterworks level but I am fine with it. The coloring is pretty faithful to the original issues.

Paper stock: Thick coated stock with a slight sheen.

Binding: Smyth sewn binding, lays mostly flat.

Hardback cover notes: The dustjacket has that stupid dull matte finish which scuffs if you breathe on it hard enough. The images have spot varnish and the lettering has a foil stamp. These comments apply to the bookstore market design only. The Direct Market variant dustjacket is different. The cover of the hardback has that grainy faux leather casewrap with white die stamping.

Review- THING: THE SERPENT CROWN AFFAIR

THING: THE SERPENT CROWN AFFAIR (Marvel, 2012; Hardcover)

Collects Marvel Two-In-One #64-67 and Marvel Team-Up Annual #5 (cover dates June, 1980- Annual 1982)

Writers: Mark Gruenwald, Ralph Macchio, and Steven Grant

Artists: Pencilers- George Perez, Jerry Bingham, Ron Wilson, and Mark Gruenwald; Inkers- Gene Day and Jim Mooney

So good! Mark Gruenwald and Ralph Macchio's run on Marvel Two-In-One is such an underrated classic. They really understand characterization, and by that I mean they dive into what makes The Thing tick. Many fans confuse characterization as endless pages of breakfast table conversation that do nothing but pad out a page count. It's not. Issues 64-67 are fantastic, and I hope that we get the entire series collected in Marvel Masterworks hardcovers. So far there is only one volume available.

The Serpent Crown is one of the '70s continuity-porn things with a twisty-twervy history. It takes several of those story recap pages in MTIO Annual #5 just to bring a new reader up to speed. I can imagine little Aloysius in Boise, ID buying this off of a spinner rack thinking that it is clear as mud. If you drop that aspect and just read it as a crown that possesses the wearer and tries to bring about the return of the serpent god Set then you will enjoy this more. Once you factor in alternate Earths and countless Serpent Crowns like you see in MTIO Annual #5 things get ridiculous pretty quick. This issue cost the book a full point.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4 out of 5.

Buy THING: THE SERPENT CROWN AFFAIR HC at InStockTrades!

Also available in Direct Market Variant flavor!

The OCD zone- The late, lamented Marvel Premiere Classic line was a sort of junior Masterworks line, where material was presented in a high quality format but at a much lower MSRP than the Marvel Masterworks. The line reached well over 100 books but petered out because Marvel flooded the market with them.

DVD-style Extras included in this book: Front and back dustjacket covers minus trade dress, which are fully rendered versions of #66 and Annual #5. (2 pages)

Linework and Color: The linework is tight and clean. Not Masterworks level but I am fine with it. The coloring is faithful to the original issues.

Paper stock: Thick coated stock with a slight sheen.

Binding: Smyth sewn binding, six stitches per signature; lays completely flat. Yes, lays, not lies. My Facebook watchdog group, Collected Editions Consumer Resource Center, was originally called DC Collected Editions Fans Who Want Sewn Binding And Books That Lay Flat. Along the way some smarmy idiot challenged my use lay saying it should be lie, all the while not being aware of the whole direct object thing. You know, you lie on a couch but you lay a book on a table. So to that grammatically challenged know-it-nothing, know that I am still laughing at you.

Cover notes: Dustjacket with spot varnishing. The hardback itself has faux leather casewrap with orange die stamping.

Review- SPIDER-MAN: THE DEATH OF JEAN DEWOLFF

SPIDER-MAN: THE DEATH OF JEAN DEWOLFF (Marvel, 2011; Hardcover)

Collects Peter Parker, The Spider-Man #107-110, 134-136 (cover dates October, 1985- March, 1988)

Writer: Peter David

Artists: Pencilers- Rich Buckler (#107-110) and Sal Buscema (#134-136) with Inking by various artists

The year was 1985. The summer was hot as Hell, and since my family was poor we did not have air conditioning. It was in this hot, humid setting that I read issue 107, and that feeling of oppression still resonates every single time that I read this issue. I bought it off the spinner rack at the 7-11 by my house an as 11-going-on 12 year old kid. I pulled out my original comics to compare to the remastered versions found in this hardcover, and was surprised to see that my 108 and 109 were Direct Market versions. The first Direct Market comic book shop within walking distance of my house opened up that summer, and so I must have bought those two issues there before returning to 7-11 for 110. It was during the spring of 1986 that I started buying comic books exclusively at comic shops, since they came out three whole weeks ahead of newsstands like 7-11.

My original issues from 1985.

 Peter David was a newcomer to the comics scene, a fact that I was unaware of at the time. He had scripted a handful of self contained, mostly unremarkable issues in both this title and Amazing Spider-Man, but it was with The Death of Jean DeWolff that he hit the big leagues, at least in my opinion. It was dark, way darker than any Spider-Man comic book had been. Certainly darker than any I had ever read at that point, and I loved it. Comics getting edgier and darker were fresh and new in the '80s. Now they are stale and old. I can see a modern comics fan picking this up now and shrugging their shoulders in indifference since comic book deaths are a dime a dozen.

Rich Buckler's artwork is gritty and hard edged. It has held up very well nearly 30 years later. Sal Buscema's artwork was wretched on the sequel, though. I liked Sal's '70s output as a kid, but even as a 14 year old reading #134-136 off of the stands I could tell that this was phoned in, workman like art. Sal Buscema is a good storyteller with good layouts and panel composition. He understands the medium and how to make it work. He just didn't put any effort into these issues. He has done good work after these issues, further cementing my opinion.

One of the few spots where the recoloring doesn't work well.

Comic book deaths are now a cliched sales gimmick, but they still carried some weight in the mid-80s. This was hard hitting and coarse to me as a kid. My fun, lighthearted Spider-Man was nowhere to be found in 107-110. Bear in mind that this predates Watchmen and The Dark Knight Returns. There was a groundswell of darker comics at this time, only nobody seems to ever mention this arc when they have that conversation.

Original comic book of same page for comparison. 

 The addition of the sequel from #134-136 was the impetus for me to upgrade from the Spider-Man: Wizard Masterpiece Edition hardcover which featured the main arc. That book was an upgrade from the original Spider-Man: The Death Of Jean DeWolff trade paperback. While these three issues are vastly inferior to the original arc they are a nice sort of bonus feature. The steep decline in nearly all current Marvel titles circa 1988-89 are what caused me to eventually drop all comics as 1989 gave way to 1990. If I were buying only new comic books today, the situation would be identical. Luckily for Marvel they are cranking out plenty of books of vintage material to drain my wallet month in and month out.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4 out of 5.

Buy SPIDER-MAN: THE DEATH OF JEAN DEWOLFF HC at InStockTrades!

Also available in softcover!

The OCD zone-The late, lamented Marvel Premiere Classic Hardcovers were a sort of junior Masterworks line. While they weren't quite the “Blu-Ray” version of these issues like you would see in a Marvel Masterwork, they are still have decent production values at a reasonable price.

DVD-style Extras included in this book: Back cover of the dustjacket minus trade dress (itself a fully rendered version of the cover of #109). (1 page)

Linework and Color restoration rating: 4.5 out of 5. The original color palette is maintained for the most part with only a very minor deviation here or there. All in all it could be marginally better but most sane folks would never notice.

Paper rating: 5 out of 5. Sweet smelling toxic ink Chinese printed on (possibly made with) virgin Amazon rainforest tree-sourced coated stock paper with a slight sheen.

Binding rating: 5 out of 5. Smyth sewn binding, 6 stitches per signature. The book lays mostly flat.  

Review- THE THING: LIBERTY LEGION

THE THING: LIBERTY LEGION (Marvel, 2011; Hardcover)

Collects Invaders Nos. 5, 6 Marvel Premiere Nos. 29, 30, Fantastic Four Annual No. 11, Marvel Two-In-One Annual No. 1, and Marvel Two-In-One No. 20 (cover dates March- October, 1976)

Writer: Roy Thomas

Artists: Pencilers- John Buscema, Don Heck, Sal Buscema, Frank Robbins, Rich Buckler, and Dick Ayers; Inkers- Vince Colletta, Sam Grainger, Jim Mooney, George Roussos, and John Tartaglione

The year was 1976, and America's Bicentennial was all the rage. While I was a mere 3 years old at the time, the reverberations of this celebration were felt for years, with all of the leftover Spirit of '76 flags, welcome doormats, coffee mugs, and other paraphernalia. With the apparent success of The Invaders, Roy Thomas was all set to push his Golden Age fetish with yet another team of superheroes set during the 1940s, this batch from the Timely Comics era of Marvel.

Using a somewhat ingenious scenario to unite these seven misfits, Roy Thomas brought in characters which the average comic fan of the day would have no idea who they were. The only reason that I knew who any of them were is because I own all of the Golden Age Marvel Masterworks, and even those don't contain all of the stories referred to here. The Red Skull manages to hypnotize The Invaders (Captain America, The Human Torch, The Sub-Mariner, and the Torch's kid sidekick, Toro) except for Bucky Barnes. Barnes then does a ham-fisted invasion of a radio station to call other heroes for help. Scenarios like this are corny and overwritten, but Thomas does them to move things along while demonstrating the heroes' powers with their misunderstanding fights/ hey, let's team up outcomes. Answering Bucky's call are the Whizzer, Jack Frost, the Blue Diamond, Red Raven, Miss America, The Patriot, and The Thin Man. They are dubbed the Liberty Legion and of course free The Invaders.

Comic fans, myself included, bemoan the crossover. Such blatant cash grabs...such gimmicky marketing...if only comics could go back to the good ol' days! You mean like the good ol's days of early 1976, when rascally Roy Thomas made you buy Invaders #5, Marvel Premiere #29, Invaders #6, and then Marvel Premiere #30 in order to get the complete story? Or howsabout how, in an apparent act of desperation to get his beloved Golden Age heroes into their very own ongoing series, they became the focal point of a crossover which began in Fantastic Four Annual #11, continued in Marvel Two-In-One Annual #1, and finally ended in Marvel Two-In-One #20. Yes, Marvel has been suckering us all into buying comics that we didn't really want to buy for longer than any of us want to admit.

Occasionally clunky dialogue and some overwriting aside, these are all fun reads. The artwork is solid. Just look at that list of artists above, it's a veritable who's who of Bronze Age journeymen. In the second crossover (or “arc” as the kids call them) the Liberty Legion take a backseat to The Thing and the rest of the Fantastic Four. Indeed, the team are not the main focus for the majority of the book. Marvel Two-In-One Annual #1 features a young Johnny Romita in the New York of 1942, one of a billion Roy Thomas winks and nods (or “Easter eggs” as the hipsters say) peppered throughout these comic books. Roy Thomas was one of the original generation of comic book fans who came to write comics. His reverence for the medium is apparent. What many folks thought of as disposable entertainment Thomas saw as an important artform.

Praise be to Marvel for releasing such a left field, odd duck collection. No one would have ever asked them to make it, but I was only too happy to buy it. I am not sure what that says about me, but I am certain that someday the pharmaceutical industry will make a pill to cure me of it. Until then, MAKE MINE MARVEL!*

*Sentiment does not apply to most modern Marvel Comics.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 3.75 out of 5.

The OCD zone- The late, lamented Marvel Premiere Classic Hardcovers were a sort of junior Masterworks line. While they weren't quite the “Blu-Ray” version of these issues like you would see in a Marvel Masterwork, they are still excellent.

DVD-style Extras included in this book: Give Me Liberty- Or Give Me Legion text pages by Roy Thomas from Marvel Premiere #29 and 30 (2 pages).

Linework and Color restoration rating: 3 out of 5. This rating is based on an average. Some of these issues are a muddy, pixelated mess (Invaders #6) while others are perfectly fine, serviceable restorations (Marvel Two-In-One #20). The original color palette is maintained for the most part with only a minor deviation here or there.

Paper rating: 5 out of 5. Sweet smelling toxic ink Chinese made virgin Amazon rainforest tree-sourced coated stock paper with a slight sheen.

Binding rating: 5 out of 5. Smyth sewn binding, 6 stitches per signature. The book lays 90-95% flat. The book block doesn't have much room to flex to lay perfectly because the squared casing.

Buy THE THING: LIBERTY LEGION HC at InStockTrades!

Review- AVENGERS/ X-MEN: BLOODTIES

AVENGERS/ X-MEN: BLOODTIES (Marvel, 2011; Hardcover)

Note: Actually released in 2012

Collects Avengers Nos. 368, 369, Avengers West Coast No. 101, Black Knight: Exodus, Uncanny X-Men No. 307, and X-Men No. 26 (cover dates November, 1993- December, 1996)

Writers: Bob Harras, Fabian Nicieza, Roy Thomas, Scott Lobodell, and Ben Raab

Artists: Pencilers- Steve Epting, Andy Kubert, Dave Ross, John Romita, Jr., jan Duursema, and Jim Cheung; Inkers- Tom Palmer, Matt Ryan, Tim Dzon, Dan Green, and Andy Lanning.

The 1990s were the gold rush for comics, with everyone hopping on board the bandwagon. Speculators were the norm, buying multiple copies of everything. Pretty much any comic book could sell well in the '90s. Print runs were enormous, and as such, these comics are essentially worthless and can be found in every bargain box across the country. My son has a few of these issues from dollar box diving and I read them to him. He wanted to read parts I, III, and IV of this crossover. Luckily for him I had this book rotting away in my backlog. To my 7 year old, these are “old comics”. I fear that he may grow up believing that this material is somehow classic.

This is the follow up to the X-Tinction Agenda Fatal Attractions (thanks rifft!) crossover, another hardcover which is rotting away in my backlog. Genosha's dirty little secret is revealed, and the tensions between humans and mutates is so thick that it is about to explode. Fabian Cortez kidnaps Crystal and Quicksilver's baby, and Exodus steals the baby from him. Another latter-day Metal-named group of villains, The Unforgiven, make a brief appearance. I'm surprised that there wasn't a villain named Overkill or Obituary. Lots of scratchy artwork and horrid over writing later and both Avengers and X-Men fight side by side to restore freedom to the mutates. Some bad costume redesigns and many pouches later and victory goes to the heroes.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 3 out of 5.

The OCD zone- The late, great, lamented Marvel Premiere Classic line was a sort of junior Masterworks line, where modern material was presented in a high quality format but at a much lower MSRP than the Marvel Masterworks. The line reached well over 100 books but petered out for reasons too varied for me to even begin to guess.

DVD-style Extras included in this book: Fully rendered back dustjacket cover art (1 page).

Maximum Anniversary X-Perience (insert included in most Marvel Comics with a May, 1993 cover date) (14 pages).

Uncanny X-Men #307 Gold variant cover (1 page).

The Hunt For Magneto trading cards, shown 9 per page with the backs being shown on the opposite page (4 pages).

Avengers/ X-Men: Bloodties 1995 trade paperback cover by Klaus Janson (1 page).

Avengers/ X-Men: Bloodties 1995 trade paperback introduction by Ralph Macchio (1 page).

X-Men Anniversary Magazine (1993) cover by Brandon Peterson & Dan Panosian (1 page).

Avengers Anniversary Magazine (1993) cover by Steve Epting & Dan Panosian (1 page).

Marvel Age #122 cover by Joe Quesada, P. Craig Russell, & Joe Caponacco (1 page).

Marvel Age #122 cover by Kirk Jarvinen, Brad Vancata, & Michael Kraiger (1 page).

Marvel Age #122 inside back cover by Darren Auck & George Perez (1 page).

Marvel Age #129 cover by Adam Hughes (1 page).

Marvel Age #129 X-Men Anniversary insert poster by Liam Sharp, Mark Farmer, & Renee Witterstaetter (1 page).

Marvel Age #130 Avengers Anniversary insert poster by Liam Sharp, Mark Farmer, & Renee Witterstaetter (1 page).

Ramification “Bloodties”: The Avengers/ X-Men Crossover article from Marvel Age #129 (3 pages).

Linework and Color restoration rating: 5 out of 5. Things are about as good as they can get. This is '90s material, so it will never look good no matter which restoration techniques are used.

Paper rating: 5 out of 5. Beautiful, thick coated stock with a slight sheen. Compare this paper grade to what Marvel is using nowadays and you will see why folks are up in arms.

The paper used in this book has that sweet smell that only virgin Amazon rainforest trees can provide. The ink adds a delectable scent to it, a concoction of broken asbestos tiles, lead paint chips, mercury from recalled thermometers, and the secret ingredient: the blood, sweat, and tears of the Chinese children working the sweat shop printing presses. Sure, China has no regard for the environment and their people are forced to live in a smog filled environment under an oppressive Communist regime, but who cares about any of that so long as we get nice books at a price that we are willing to pay. What price a soul?

Note: New readers seem to be confused by my writing. No, I do not know for certain that the paper is sourced from virgin Amazon rainforest trees. Then again, I do not know for certain that they are not. Second, I am fairly sarcastic and this is tongue in cheek. If you take half of the stuff that I say seriously then you are missing the point. This is all shits and giggles as far as I am concerned. Relax, folks.

Binding rating: 5 out of 5. Smyth sewn binding, six stitches per signature, with the book block having room to flex in the casing. What that means in English is that the book lays flat.

Buy AVENGERS/ X-MEN: BLOODTIES HC at InStockTrades!

Review- SPIDER-MAN: NOTHING CAN STOP THE JUGGERNAUT

SPIDER-MAN: NOTHING CAN STOP THE JUGGERNAUT (Marvel, 2012; Hardcover)

Collects Amazing Spider-Man Nos. 224-230 (cover dates January- July, 1982)

Writer: Roger Stern and Jan Strnad (#228)

Artists: Pencilers- John Romita, Jr. (224-227, 229, 230) and Rick Leonardi (#228)

Inkers- Pablos Marcos (224), Bob Wiaceck (225), Jim Mooney (226, 227, 229, 230), and Dave Simons (228)

This run of Spider-Man is art of the highest order. Roger Stern's era on the title is burned into my brain, so much so that I need not even read these issues. I can recite them nearly word for word. While I didn't buy these particular issues off of the stands at the time, they were all inexpensive back issues circa 1983-1985. Then I re-bought them when I got into collected editions a decade ago in the black and white Spider-Man: Murder By Spider trade paperback...then again in The Sensational Spider-Man: Nothing Can Stop The Juggernaut trade paperback- if you could call it that, at a mere 2 issues...again when issues 229 and 230 were reprinted in the Spider-Man Wizard Masterpiece Edition hardcover...and again in Essential Spider-Man Vol. 11...and, finally, again with this book. Not one to pass on an upgrade opportunity, I will be purchasing this material again for the endgame format, the Spider-Man By Roger Stern Omnibus, coming in early 2014. Why don't I simply set up pre-tax payroll deductions for Roger Stern and John Romita, Jr. while I'm at it? Cripes!

Tales of excessive upgrading aside, these are some of the best Spider-Man stories ever. Issue 224 shows the Vulture “reborn” as a serious contender, while 225 has a highly amusing Foolkiller story. I agree with the Foolkiller quite often, as I don't suffer fools lightly. Those without poetry in their souls are indeed the greatest fools of them all! Issues 226 and 227 features the return of the Black Cat. I found #227 in a quarter box in 1983. Issue 228 was something of a fill-in issue not by the regular creative team, a sort of catch your breath because Stern/Romita, Jr. were getting ready to kick into high gear with Issues 229 and 230.

Issues 229 and 230 are, quite frankly, among the greatest Spider-Man stories ever told. Every ingredient that has made this character great is on display here. Spider-Man is hopelessly outclassed by the Juggernaut, and everything that he tries to stop him fails. When Madame Web tries to enlist the help of The Avengers and the Fantastic Four and finds them both unavailable, Spider-Man nearly gives up. It is this strength of perseverance in the face of unbeatable odds that speaks to so many people. Roger Stern gets it. There is a reason why so many fans point to the early 1980s as one of the best periods for this title.

John Romita, Jr. comes into his own during this period. He has the genetic gift of being John Romita, Sr.'s son, and is thus the heir to the throne of this title. I've always felt that Spider-Man was his birthright, and I wish that he were still drawing it. There is great artwork throughout the book, especially the Jim Mooney inked issues. He has the pedigree and helps bring an old school feel to it. 

If you have never read this era of Spider-Man then you need to rectify this immediately. You'll be glad that you did.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 5 out of 5.

The OCD zone- The late, lamented Marvel Premiere Classic line was sort of a junior Masterworks line. Classic material presented in hardcover with nice paper and sewn binding at a much lower MSRP.

Why wasn't the cover of the Spider-Man: Murder By Spider trade paperback included in this book? Jeph York must have been dozing off while researching this one...

DVD-style Extras included in this book: The Sensational Spider-Man: Nothing Can Stop The Juggernaut trade paperback cover.

The covers to issues 226 and 230 done with modern computer coloring as seen on the book market version of the dustjacket (seen above).

Linework and Color restoration rating: 4.75 out of 5. The restoration is excellent throughout the book, although several pages are printed crooked in issue 230. I do not believe that this is a printer error, as it is the same as some of the earlier Essentials. 

Paper rating: 5 out of 5. Heavyweight thick coated stock paper with a slight sheen. It also has that sweet smelling toxic Chinese ink.

Binding rating: 5 out of 5. Sewn binding. The book lays completely flat because the book block is not glued square to the casing/spine, allowing for a good deal of flex even if you don't see much hollowing.

While this book is currently out of print, you can buy the same issues in ESSENTIAL SPIDER-MAN VOL. 10 TP at InStockTrades!