The Comics Rack

BATMAN DARK DETECTIVE #1 (of 6)

   Many years ago, in Detective Comics, an unknown artist by the name of Marshall Rogers teamed up with writer Steve Englehart and inker Terry Austin. Their short run on the adventures of Batman were, to put it mildly, fantastic, and were probably one of the best story arcs to ever feature Batman (remember the Joker Fish?).
   Sadly, lightning does not often strike twice, and the combination of this trio of creators just doesn't have it this time around. Englehart's script is ambitious, but the Joker seems way too nutsy and the interplay between Bruce Wayne and Silver St. Cloud reads stilted. Rogers is ably abetted by Austin, but the art just doesn't have the same energy it used to and lacks a great deal of detail (just compare the cover with the interior and you'll see what I mean). Issue 4 should be out as of this writing, but I don't think any of the problems are going to be solved by the end of this bi-weekly series.

HOUSE OF M #1 (of 8 + numerous crossovers)

   This one is advertised as Marvel's BIG EVENT that will change more lives than Dr. Phil and have repercussions throughout the entire Marvel Universe (*GASP*). Well, don't you think this would be a good spot to create a jumping on point for readers who may not have been following Marvel very closely?
   I'm sure most of you would say yes, but Marvel apparently thinks differently. In order to understand House of M, you really need a working knowledge of the current Marvel Universe in order to figure out what is going on; particularly in the final pages of the first issue. First, you need to know what has happened to the Avengers, especially the events of Avengers: Disassembled. Second, the enjoyment of the story would be deepened if you have followed the X-Men for a time, since a part of the first issue takes place in some city that has something to do with the X-Men, but I have no idea what. Third, you also have to know Spider-Man well enough to know characters by sight, in order to comprehend what happens at the end of this issue (me, I had to look at issue #2 at the comic store to find out what the end of #1 meant). Now, I realize there was a text piece on the first page that was supposed to bring everyone up to speed, but it didn't work for me and I'm betting it won't work for the vast majority of readers, either.
   On the plus side, the art by Olivier Coipel & Tim Townsend is good and they draw most of the heroes the way one would expect them to look. There are also some excellent bits of writing by Brian Michael Bendis, particularly in the sequence where all the heroes gather together and suggest the maybe one option to this latest bit of insanity by the Scarlet Witch is to "put her down." Other parts also read well, but to have to slog through 8 issues of a book where I don't know what is going on half the time, is more than I can take and I predict that this series is going to tank fairly severely for good ole Marvel.

THE AVENGERS: CELESTIAL MADONNA

   Back when I was reading just about any comic book that was printed, I was always amazed by Steve Englehart and I think I must have read nearly everything he wrote in the 70s. Outside of Dr. Strange, I think my favorite Englehart scripted series was The Avengers, particularly the great sequence he wrote concerning Mantis, Kang, the Human Torch and the origins of the Marvel universe. The story was one I read and reread a number of times and, at least to my much younger self, the revelations about how the Marvel universe fit together was simply astounding.
   Today, I am a bit older, but still found a great deal of enjoyement in a Marvel trade paperback, The Avengers: Celestial Madonna. The book reprints Avengers #129-135 and Giant-Size Avengers #2-4 in their correct story order, along with all the covers, and gives you a chance to read one of the best sequences that Englehart ever penned. The basic premise of the series is that Kang the Conqueror has come back in time to take for his own a woman who future records indicate will become the Celestial Madonna. The problem is that Kang's records aren't very complete and, although he knows that somebody in the time of the story will be the Madonna, he doesn't know who. From this premise, the story then takes off to include the Skrulls, the Kree, the original Human Torch's transformation into the Vision, sentient trees and even the Frankenstein Monster.
   After my previous experience with the Avengers/Defenders: War reprint book, I was a little bit leery of trying to re-capture the magic of comic book memories. I can say, however, that this book delivers the goods and the story still holds up after all these years, although I am not as astounded as when I was older. Englehart's story is told in a straightforward manner and he has a good handle on all the varied charaters he chose to use. The plot works, at least from my point of view, and I still marvel (no pun intended) on the Englehart was able to integrate all the different elements from past Marvel stories .
   The art is probably the biggest hurdle to overcome in this storyline and many of the art problems stemmed from Marvel's running of the story in two different comics. Issues #129-134 were by Sal Buscema with really excellent embellishing by Joe Staton, who had just come over to Marvel from Charlton. Dave Cockrum handled pencils and inks on the first Giant-Size issue, but couldn't keep up with the deadlines and by Giant-Size #2, was inked by Joe Giella (not a great combination). Issue #135 is done by George Tuska and Frank Chiarmonte (all of you who think Tuska should have been given good inkers by Marvel raise your hands) and the final chapter of the story from Giant-Size #4 is pencilled by Don Heck with ugly inking by John Tartaglione. In all honesty, the last two chapters of the story by Tuska and Heck are just downright awful, but I found that by the time I got to them, I was so caught up in the story that I really didn't care (okay, I did care, but I had to find out how the story would end).
   All in all, this is one of the better reprints to come out of Marvel in quite awhile and is well worth your time to both search it out and to read it.
   The Avengers: Celestial Madonna is a full color paperback, has an SRP of $19.95 and should definitely be up there on your overcrowded and sagging bookshelf.

BEST OF THE WEST #47-50

Best of the West #47-50
   As the only regularly published western comic currently on the market, Best of the West is unique. The fact that it is a reprint book that features classic western material from the 50s and 60s makes it even moreso. Here's a quick overview of a bunch of issues.
   #47-This issue celebrates western star Monte Hale and has a number of pictures, along with a short article, of the unveiling of Hale's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in November of 2004. Two Hale comic stories are in this issue: one by Ed Good and one uncredited. The Haunted Horseman by Ayers, Durango Kid by Guardineer (!) and Tim Holt by Bolle round out the issue. A good solid issue without any indication of original publication dates and, outside of the Monte Hale article, now editorial content, which is kind of a shame, as I find Frank Bolle's work fascinating in that it changes from story to story. I've often wondered if these different art styles are from different point of his career, or if he used different styles depending on how much time he had to draw a particular feature. Unfortunately, I won't find out in this issue.
   #48-The Durango Kid by Certa & Belfi, the Haunted Horseman by Dick Ayers, Dan'l Boone by Certa & Belfi, The Flying A's Range Rider by Sgroi (an artist I've never heard of), Tim Holt by Bolle, and a 3 pager by John Severin are all in this issue. Sort of a low key art issue with nothing much to recommend, except for the Severin work (although Ayers is always good). There are some welcomed original appearance credits this time around, although the story I was most interested in, the one by Severin, has none (bummer!). My guess would be that it might have been done for Carlton, since AC has branched out from doing just Magazine Enterprises material and has also been doing some material from Gold Key, as with the Range Rider story in this issue. Okay, but AC has done better.
   #49-Beautiful painted cover of Redmask (uncredited) opens the issue and is followed by Bolle's Redmask, Ayers' Haunted Horseman, Guardineer on The Durango Kid, Mort Lawrence on Nuggets Nugent and two uncredited stories: one featuring Annie Oakley and the other starring Wild Bill Elliott. Bolle and Ayers are at their usual in this issue, but the Guardineer looks quite rushed without the usual amount of detail one would associate with the artist. The Wild Bill Elliott story looks to have been done for Gold Key and shows touches of the thin line “house” style mixed with Jesse Marsh's use of blacks. The Annie Oakley is also interesting in that it looks like Severin had a hand in the inking, but the figures are definitely not his. A good issue and fun, although again, woefully short on editorial content.
   #50-A wonderful Ayers (?) cover graces this landmark issue and leads into a story of the Haunted Horseman vs. Frankenstein. From there, Tim Holt teams up with Frank Bolle, Ed Good illustrates an adventure of Monte Hale, Certa & Belfi mount up with The Durango Kid, Jingles and Wild Bill Hickok are presented by Nicholas and Trapani and Tony Sgroi returns with another tale of the Range Rider. The Durango Kid story is beautifully done in this issue and although Ed Good's work is a bit cluttered, it kind of grows on you after while. In addition, there are also reprint credits for nearly every story! The issue also has an editorial from Bill Black over the history of this incarnation of Best of the West and I was reminded by his words that the title has been around for 7 years. Quite an accomplishment and this is a better than average issue.

MEN OF MYSTERY #50-52

   The other AC title to hit the BIG FIVE OH, although a bit earlier than Best of the West, is Men of Mystery. Through a title change and about 8 years, this title, more than any other, is one that I actively seek out. As with last month, here's a quick overview of some selected issues.
   #50-This issue opens with Spy Smasher by Alex Blum, and is followed by Catman by John Dixon, Bulletman by Charles Tomsey, Black X by Will Eisner and The Avenger by Bob Powell. If you haven't been buying this title, here is a wonderful spot to jump on board. The Spy Smasher story is first rate, as are the Avenger and Catman stories. John Dixon has long been a favorite artist of mine and it is nice to see his work in print, although you should be warned that this is part 1 of a story that AC serializes over the next 2 issues. The real gem of the issue is Black X, a series Eisner did for Quality before The Spirit. Great art, great story and one can only hope that someone will come up with a complete collection of the Black X stories in a larger format; they deserve to be read and treasured, especially in a larger size than printed here. Good background material by Bill Black about the stories helps to make this a truly excellent issue.
   #51-A double dose of John Spranger, another gifted Quality artist, opens this issue as he illustrates both Doll Man and Manhunter. A Lou Fine Black Condor story is also here, along with Bill Ward's Torchy, T-Man by H.G. Hargis and another segment of the Catman story begun in issue #50. Except for the T-Man story, another excellent issue, particularly because of the addition of Lou Fine's work. Unfortunately, very sparse credits this time around and no background information on the artists. Still, another top-notch issue.
   #52-Matt Baker on Mysta of the Moon, Bob Fujatani on Catman, uncredited stories of Spy Smasher (looks a lot like the style of C.C. Beck) and Kid Eternity, and the end of the Catman serial by John Dixon are all under a cover by Charles Quinlan featuring Catman (Black hyphenates the name, but it is not in any of the stories). If that weren't enough, there is also a story featuring The Eye, which is drawn in a style very reminiscent of Alex Toth...except it may have been done before Toth began to use this distinctive style. The artist is Bill Bennilus and Black credits the character to Fiction House in the 50s, however that's all the information I've been able to find. I've never heard of Bennilus before, but would like to see more of his stuff. Credits on most stories, and a short piece by Black, make this another excellent issue. Hopefully, more Kid Eternity may be on the burner for later issues!

MARVEL 1602

   Even after Willie's glowing review of 1602, I approached Marvel 1602 (note the new title) with a bit of trepidation. As a long time comic reader, I have read, and skipped, way too many "what if?" stories, since many of them are either built on a flimsy premise, or are only a re-creation of the present in either the past or future.
   With that being said, I am happy to relate that Marvel 1602 is one of the best of the re-workings of the Marvel universe that I have seen in a long time. Rather than simply put the Marvel characters 400 years in the past, Gaimen took the time to craft a world that never existed, mixing equal parts of American history, with English politics and the mission of the Inquistion. Into this world, he then placed a number of Marvel characters that are familiar enough to be recognizable, but different enough to be of interest. And, to top it all off, he also took the time to write a story that has a beginning, middle and end.
   I could go on at length about this collection, planting SPOILER WARNINGS in big capital letters, and discuss the strengths (many) and weaknesses (very, very few) of this book , but I think that part of the fun of reading is discovering the good bits for oneself. Some may find parts of the story disturbing, while others may find too many dangling threads at the end of the tale, but I think that Gaiman found an excellent balance here between the original and the derivative. That he was ably assisted by Andy Kubert and Richard Isanove, who provide a wonderfully gauzy quality to the artwork, also helps a great deal. Suffice to say, this is definitely a book that belongs on your bookshelf and problably deserves to be there more than some of the other books that I've recommended to you in the past.
   My copy of Marvel 1602 is a trade paperback with an SRP of $19.99. There is also a hardcover out there that can be found if you hunt for it.

ESSENTIAL DR. STRANGE VOL. 1

   One of the great controversies of the Silver Age of comics is exactly who did what at Marvel Comics. The company line is that Stan Lee was the creator and author for all the early adventures and that he was "assisted" by the artists who worked with him. Yet, there are reams of contradictory evidence to the contrary. Many of the original pencil pages by Kirby reprinted in The Jack Kirby Collector show that Kirby was laying out a story, which Lee was embellishing along the way. Both Spider-Man and Fantastic Four change abruptly with the departure of Ditko and Kirby, as if Lee did not quite have an idea of what to do with the characters. In fact, Lee has stated that the Marvel method involved the artist fleshing out, and even changing the plot of a story before it was given to the writer to dialogue. Heck, he's even has admitted that Kirby created the Silver Surfer. And then there is the strange (no pun intended) case of Stephen Strange, MD...
   The Essential Doctor Strange Vol. 1 reprints the Doctor Strange stories from Strange Tales #110, 111 & 114-168, giving one the chance to read the entirety of the early Dr. Strange stories from the period when Strange Tales was split between the good doctor and Nick Fury. As a whole, the stories are quite a mixed bag, but in reading them in this format, it is easy to see how much Ditko had to do with the quality of the strip, with, and without, Lee.
   The first appearance of Dr. Strange credits Lee with the story and Ditko with the art. After a number of self-contained stories, the strip follows the lead of other Marvel characters and features longer, continued storylines, but these stories are plotted a lot tighter than the normal Marvel feature. Each of the chapters in the story arcs are "mini-stories" in their own right. In other words, unlike Iron Man (a Lee written title), where the story is advanced in chapters with each chapter leading up to the whole, each Dr. Strange chapter is a story unto itself with a beginning, middle and end. Although these individual chapters do lead to a conclusion, this type of storytelling was not necessarily the norm for Marvel at the time (Kirby and Steranko being the exceptions) and it is the pacing of these stories that I believe best represents Ditko's input on the strip. Also, as if to confirm this theory, Ditko is given a plotting credit beginning with issue #135 during the search for Eternity sequence: a storyline that features Ditko's best work on the strip.
   Further evidence of Ditko's input on the strip can be seen from #135 through #146, his final issue. During these issues, he is paired with not only Lee, but also with Roy Thomas and Denny O'Neil. One would assume that the non-Lee stories would be different in their pacing, but this is not the case. The only difference in these stories is in the amount of text per page, since both Thomas and O'Neil act as though they were being paid by the word. The tight pacing and structure of the stories continues regardless of the writer.
   It's not until the final stories in the book however, #147-168, that Ditko's contributions to the strip really become evident. Issues #147-152 are drawn by Bill Everett with words (or plot) by Lee, O'Neil and Thomas. Everett attempts to mimic Ditko and does quite well in this regard by capturing the feel of the Ditko Dr. Strange universe, while adding his own artistic flourishes. The pacing of the stories, however, begins to flag during this period and the structure that Ditko had used begins to disappear, to replaced by the same structure that filled most of the other Marvel titles of the time (and I find this rather surprising, since Everett was also able to write as well as draw). Marie Severin comes on board with issue #153 and stays until #160 (inked for four stories by Herb Trimpe in his first Marvel work), but whatever magic (pun intended) the series had is gone by this time and Severin's art seems overly busy. The stories themselves of this period are even more forgettable and ramble on with ever increasing amounts of text on the pages, regardless of whether they are written by Lee, Thomas, or Raymond Marias.
   The last 8 issues are written by Marais and Jim Lawrence with art by Dan Adkins (with one fill in by George Tuska) and, by this point, the entire structure of the series has gone out the window. This last arc has no mood, it wanders on at great length and, whereas Dr. Strange is Master of the Mystic Arts, here he is involved with robots, dinosaurs, giant slugs and an adventure on another planet. The art by Adkins is good (just after his stint of T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents), but owes more to Steranko than Ditko. In fact, I've often wondered if you couldn't just slap a patch on one of Strange's eyes and pretend this last arc was about Nick Fury, 'cause it sure doesn't seem to be about Dr. Strange.
   As I mentioned at the beginning of this review, the stories in this book are quite a mixed bag. The latter half of the book, from #153-168, is very trite and, to be quite honest, very forgettable. Everett's work is worth seeing, just because Everett was a good artist, but, it is the Ditko work, which was not only drawn but (I believe) partially written by him, that makes this volume worth picking up. Ditko's work on Dr. Strange was some of the best of his career (even better in some ways than his Spider-Man work) and is not harmed at all by being reproduced here in B & W. For this reason alone, this Essential volume is definitely worth a squint.
   The Essential Doctor Strange Vol. 1 has an SRP of $15.95 and will have to do until Marvel comes to its corporate senses and does a full color Masterworks of the complete Ditko Dr. Strange!