Slay, Monstrobot of the Deep!!

New Contest: Two Words, Ten Letters, 2015

noreply@blogger.com (snell) — Sat, 18 May 2013 12:00:00 +0000

On Formspring, Tom Brevoort spilled a bean or two about Marvel's future plans:

If all goes as planned, our big storyline for 2015 will have a title that’s two words long, ten letters in total.

Well, then, game on. Two words. Ten letters. Go!

I, Marvelman

It might take that long to actually clear up the rights tangle.

But it's a great name for a series, right?

Of course, the question then becomes, how exactly does Marvelman fit into the Marvel Universe? Does Doctor Gargunza know Dr. Doom? Does Mike Moran work at the Daily Bugle? Or would this just turn into another Sentry-level clusterfrak?

Darth Vader

By 2015 Disney will have given the Star Wars comic(s) to Marvel. And why not be ambitious about it? An Exiles team leaps into the Star Wars universe, and inadvertently brings Vader back to 616. Ah, the ensuing havoc. Especially when it turns out that The Force is...

Hey, it makes more sense than having Norman Osborn run things during Dark Reign...

Malibu Wars

Marvel will finally resolve whatever the pesky contractual problems are, and revive the Malibu Universe, and integrate it into Marvel-616. Black September II, dawg!!

ROM Revived

Speaking of intractable rights problems...

Well, it's late, that's all I've got. Your turn now.

Big storyline. Two words. Ten letters. GO!!!

Friday Night Fights--Ten Rings To Rule Them All Style!!

noreply@blogger.com (snell) — Fri, 17 May 2013 16:01:00 +0000

Hey!! Iron Man and the Mandarin are in a movie right now!!

So I guess that makes this an apropos time to break this out for Friday Night Fights:

Awww, yeah!!

No preamble, no explanation--just fight, dawgz!!

And...he's out!!

Spacebooger is pretty sure Robert Downey Jr. smacked Ben Kingsley around like this backstage during the filming of Iron Man Three...

Ten rings don't rule them all in Iron Man #100 (1977), by Bill Mantlo, George Tuska, & Mike Esposito.

Now is the time for you to vote for my fight. Why? Because you don't want to know where the Mandarin kept his 11th ring....So vote!!

This Guy Should Be The Villain In Iron Man 4

noreply@blogger.com (snell) — Thu, 16 May 2013 12:30:00 +0000

Yeah, yeah, we've done all the evil industrialists, the Mandarin is done, we've done evil armors...

This could be a problem, you see, as Iron Man's rogues gallery isn't the deepest out there. So who's left to be the bad guy for Iron Man 4?

This guy:

THE SOULFATHER!!!!

Who is the Soulfather? Well, nameless minions and henchmen really, really admire him:

"Mind-Mote"?!?!

And clearly, Mikas has a high opinion of himself:

Oh, yeah...

The Soulfather was a minion of the mysterious Mister Kline (please don't ask), sent to ruin Iron Man's life.

He was (maybe) a Mexican orphan given powers through radioactive treatments, which resulted in his having powers over "earth," and some vague form of mind manipulation, and even evil demon/thingies to control...

Or, there were some hints that, like many of Mister Kline's other minions, Mikas was merely a robot who thought he was a real boy.

Still, there is one undeniable, incontrovertible fact about Mikas the Soulfather...

He's dead sexy!!

After debuting in Iron Man #42 (1971), Stark beat him and left him buried under rubble the very next issue, never to be seen again, ever.

Which means he's free and clear to be brought back for Iron Man 4, right?

BRING BACK THE SOULFATHER!!!

What Is Irony?

noreply@blogger.com (snell) — Thu, 16 May 2013 12:00:00 +0000

As a special treat for all of you studying for your English final exams, allow Gerry Conway to give you a quick and easy bon mot about irony to put on your paper to guarantee an A:

No, I don't know what it means (and neither did Conway, probably)...but I promise you that it will get you a better score than quoting Alanis Morrisette on your test.

Oh, and there's this...

Gerry, Gerry, Gerry...

Weird stuff from Iron Man #42 (1971)

Snappy Answers To Silly Critiques (Spoilers For Iron Man Three)

noreply@blogger.com (snell) — Wed, 15 May 2013 12:00:00 +0000

THIS POST CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR IRON MAN THREE--BEWARE.

I thought Iron Man Three was rather good. Still, any movie has it's flaws, and is subject to legitimate critiques.

These critiques, however, are not legitimate.

I. WHY DIDN'T S.H.I.E.L.D. OR THE OTHER AVENGERS COME TO HELP OUT? HUH?!?

Yes, I am certain that every time Iron Man has faced off against the Mandarin, all of his allies showed up to help...

Err...OK, I'm sure that whenever Tony faced off against AIM and assorted other super-villains, S.H.I.E.L.D. was right there to help--they'd never let Tony go solo...

Ummm...All right, if ever a colossal menace threatened our entire federal government, there's no way that the Avengers would let Iron Man face it all on his lonesome...

Well...you have to acknowledge, if Tony Stark were believed to be dead, well, every super-hero and secret government agency would be there to pick up the slack...

Look, the problem with this critique is that it also applies to virtually every issue of every hero's solo title EVER. OMG, the Red Skull has the Cosmic Cube--how come Captain America has to deal with that alone? Brainiac about to destroy Earth? Where the hell is the Justice League? This is one of those things we accept with a wink and a nod in our comics. It's Comics Trope 101, right after "glasses or a domino mask won't hide your identity!" But because it's in a movie now, some people think it's somehow different. It's not. In the Marvel Movie Universe, not everyone is going to show up in every movie. Deal with it.

Plus, the movie explains it fairly well. Rhodey tells Stark that the government doesn't want any super-heroes involved in this. See how easy that was? The other guys listened, or were busy. And when Stark did get involved only he had all the data and the smarts to figure out where to go. For all we know, Hawkeye and Black Widow were looking for him or the baddies--but they had no clue where to start. Easy peasy.

II. OMG TONY STARK HARDLY SPENT ANY TIME IN HIS ARMOR!! I THOUGHT THIS WAS IRON MAN 3, NOT TONY STARK I!!

Fair enough, because really, who would ever want to see Tony Stark playing secret agent?

Urrr...no one would ever desire to see Stark out of the armor...that's the only reason to see the mvoie or read the comic--to see him as Iron Man!!

Maybe the blunt summary at the end ("the armor was becoming a cocoon") was too subtle. But the whole theme of the freaking movie was Tony finding himself and becoming less reliant on the armor. So, no, we didn't need more "Tony as Iron Man" scenes.

As for me, I enjoyed seeing CSI Tony, Secret Agent Tony, Mechanic Tony, etc...

III. TONY WAS REALLY STUPID FOR GIVING OUT HIS ADDRESS ON LIVE TV

Yes, because no one in the world knew where Tony Stark lived. It's not like he took reporters back to his crib for intimate encounters; he never threw huge birthday parties with hundreds of guests there whilst doing Iron Man tricks. Nope, his home was a classified secret.

Yes, publicly challenging the Mandarin like that was reckless and stupid, as he acknowledged. He was distraught over Happy, and his other troubles had him way off his A game. But giving out his address had nothing whatsoever to do with his being attacked (unless we assume that our villains can't use Google, or even a phone book). And, in Tony's defense, the helicopter attack on his home was absolutely nothing like the Mandarin's M.O. He was expecting a suicide bomber, not air-to-ground missiles.

IV. STARK TOLD RHODEY THE ARMORS WOULD ONLY WORK FOR TONY--BUT PEPPER USED IT!! WTF?!?

Yes, but all of the armors at Rhodey's portion of the battle were older armors. The one Pepper used each time was the Mark 42, which was an unfinished prototype, so presumably it hadn't been finally "set" to the "only-Stark" setting yet. It probably would have worked for Rhodey, too, but it didn't show up until after he left. Or, alternately, Tony did specifically design it to work for Pepper, to better protect her...he just didn't want to hurt Rhodey's feelings by telling him that.

Thus endeth the rant.

Bold Fashion Choices--Hot Stuff!!

noreply@blogger.com (snell) — Tue, 14 May 2013 12:30:00 +0000

So, Hot Stuff's Aunt Mushy (????) buys him a darling suit:

Well, the little devil hates it, so he "accidentally" ruins it in a fight with sharks (!!).

Not to worry, though...Aunt Mushy has back-up!

Surprisingly enough, that suit experiences a tragic demise while Hot Stuff is "attacked" by ogres. Completely unprovoked. Really.

Still, you can't keep a good aunt down!

SPOILER ALERT: He just "walks around" through a pit of hot lava...

Confession time!

I gotta say...I'm 100% with Hot Stuff here...

But...

D'oh!!

I shan't ask why, if Hot Stuff can walk and talk and fly and fight monsters, he would need a diaper...

From Hot Stuff #1 (1991)

*#%#!!

noreply@blogger.com (snell) — Tue, 14 May 2013 12:00:00 +0000

So, baby devil Hot Stuff is just wandering along one day...

Well, it's nice to see that burglers dress the same no matter the cartoon universe...

A tape recorder? What, was he one of the Watergate burglers?!?

Yowza!!

Grife!! And this is in a Code-approved children's book!!!

From Hot Stuff #1 (1991)

Manic Monday--JLQ

noreply@blogger.com (snell) — Mon, 13 May 2013 12:00:00 +0000

OK, I have some questions about the much delayed Justice League Of America #3 from last week.

Let's set the scene.

Since Stargirl is apparently super-popular (perfect tell, don't show, guys!), Amanda Waller has her cranking out pro-JLA PSAs:

Meanwhile, as part of a plan to infiltrate the Secret Society Of Super-Villains, Catwoman (whom the public is unaware is a member of the Justice League) is going to let herself be caught stealing some jewels...

...and let herself be publicly chased down by the JLA...

...and imprisoned...

...In Arkham?!?...

...and then escape.

So...I've got some questions.

A) They lock up jewel thieves in Arkham Asylum? Really? It must be getting pretty crowded in there if they're throwing non-violent, non-insane petty crooks in there...Does Geoff Johns understand what Arkham is...?

(I would ask about admitting Selina in full costume, but, you know...Arkham.)

B) After PSA's promoting the team as"protecting the world as no other team can," their first public mission is...chasing a cat burglar? And then heavily publicizing that the freakin' Justice League Of America is out "in full force"...to capture a non-super-powered thief? What's next, sending the team out to stop muggers? Mixed PR messages, is all I'm saying. Then again, DC is the expert in mixed PR messages...

C) Steve Trevor is all chuffed when Green Arrow shows up to interfere with their little pantomime. Although, if he didn't want interference, then perhaps staging a very public crime and chase of Batman's "friend with benefits" across the rooftops of Gotham might not have been the best strategy. Even if Batman were otherwise occupied, there are plenty of other vigilantes there who might have turned up to "help"...

D) This issue shipped 5 weeks after its initial solicitation date, which is pretty damn late for being only issue #3. Since this book is the one of the lynchpins of the Trinity War event, what are the odds they can get the book back on schedule to sync up with JL and JLD? How long until Finch is benched, or given substantial "help"?

Then again, this is DC, who published the Epilogue to the First Lantern story before the final chapter of that same story, so maybe they just don't care about releasing their crossover stories in order...

How To Break DC's Terrible Public Relations Slump!!

noreply@blogger.com (snell) — Sun, 12 May 2013 11:54:00 +0000

Look, you know that things have not been going terribly well for DC when this kind of website starts popping up:

Yeah, that's not a good thing.

But, as always, Slay Monstrobot is here to help out!!

And there's nothing--nothing--that can change a company's fortunes more quickly than a good slogan!!

Yes, DC actually ran this contest back in 1956. In fact, amongst the issues it appeared in was Showcase #4, so the slogan contest literally coincided with the dawn of the Silver Age!!

DC later printed the names of winners--all 5,000 of them!! Although nobody seems too sure what the winning slogan actually was, or if it was ever actually used. See here and here for excellent discussions.

Anyway, in 2013 something like this could revive DC's flagging PR status. Let's have a contest today!!

Look, you only have to mutilate 5 separate comics for each single entry!! But that's OK, you'll be able to replace any cut up nu52 comics from the Quarter Bin in a couple of months!

This might be a good way to boost readership, too. As I watch my nu52 pull list shrink and shrink, the prospect of prizes might encourage me to spend more dough, right? Right?

Legibility? Really? Kids today are doomed, because they're not even teaching penmanship any more...

"DC Comics are Decent Comics"?? Aim high, DC, aim high!!

Well, let's open the floodgates, people!! Submit your 15 word (or less) slogans for today's DC!! We'll be sure to pass them on to Johns, Lee and DiDio!!

And remember, legibility counts!

My copy of this contest appeared in Jackie Gleason And The Honeymooners #2 (1956). Because yes, I was spending Sunday morning reading Jackie Gleason comic books...

Superman? Horsefeathers--Here's Who REALLY Should Have Fought Ali!!

noreply@blogger.com (snell) — Sat, 11 May 2013 12:00:00 +0000

You all recall, of course, one of the most important comics ever published:

But if you've actually read it, as opposed to just admiring it from afar, you know that Superman was a terrible choice to fight Muhammad Ali. Boxing under a red sun, Kal-El got his ass kicked pretty damn hard. It was not even close to a contest.

So whom should have been matched up against Ali?

Glad you asked. Let's turn for guidance to the letter column of World's Finest #185 (1969):

Yeah, DC, what do you say to that?!?

See? Robin (Dick Grayson, fools, not one of the later copycats) had "enough power to kayo a heavyweight." And Batman taught him the science of boxing!!

It seems crystal clear, then, that Superman, who turned into a chump without his powers, had no business being in the ring with Muhammad Ali. No, it's clear and obvious that the one, true, original Robin should have been the one to step into the ring with Ali, and knock him--

Oh.

Never mind.

Well, what about the man who taught Robin how to box? Surely Batman could hold his own against anyone in the ring, even Ali!! We all know that Batman is unbeatable, and--

Oh.

Never mind again.

Hmm, well, given that Ted Grant was on Earth-2 in those days, I guess we can only conclude...

...that no one was going to beat Ali. That's why he was The Greatest!

Friday Night Fights--KRAKOOOOM Style!!

noreply@blogger.com (snell) — Fri, 10 May 2013 16:01:00 +0000

It's time for a new bout on Friday Night Fights, so...let's get cosmic, shall we?

The jerkwad Morg (not Eymorg) has resumed his post as Galactus' herald. This doesn't please the Silver Surfer very much, because A) Morg (not Eymorg) is a jerkwad; B) Morg (not Eymorg) killed Norrin's girlfrien; and C) the jerkwad is about to kill Firelord and Gabriel.

The solution? Kick Morg's (not Eymorg's) ass, cosmically!

KRAKOOOOM indeed!!

Spacebooger just hopes there was no one living on the planet that just got KRAKOOOOMed!!

Cosmic catastrophe brought to you by Ron Marz, Scot Eaton, and Tom Christopher & Jim Sanders (inkers) in Silver Surfer Annual #7 (1994)

Now is the time for you to go and vote for my fight. Why? KRAKOOOOM. 'Nuff said. Now go vote!!

More Quality Solson Comics

noreply@blogger.com (snell) — Thu, 09 May 2013 12:30:00 +0000

Earler today we examined Sultry Teenage Super-Foxes from briefly-existing 80s publisher Solson.

Solson published some *ahem* quality books, although none made it past 3 issues. Like this, for example, as they kept abreast of the "cartoon animal martial arts" craze:

Or this classic piece of subtle political wit:

And what about this little gem?

But wait...you'll want to be sitting down for this one...

Now, as near as I can tell, Buckwheat Comics was never actually published, whether because of a sudden burst of common sense, or because Solson went under first. The putative writer, James C. Hallett, did script, draw and ink this Solson gem:

All right, that's far enough down this particular rabbit hole...

Tales From The Quarter Bin--Yes, This Really Existed

noreply@blogger.com (snell) — Thu, 09 May 2013 12:00:00 +0000

The Quarter Bin is a glorious thing, providing many an entertainment for dirt cheap. But she can also be a harsh mistress, "rewarding" you with the most painful comics ever made. This is one of those.

1987 was a heady time, as the success of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles led to a boom of "indy" publishing, as anyone with a pencil and a Xerox threw themselves headlong into making comic books. You didn't even need Kickstarter!!

And while there were some fine comics made, Sturgeon's Law still applied, and there were mountains of crap. And most craptacular were the attempts to recapture the glory of TMNT. All you had to do was title your book Adjective Adjective Adjective Animal, and you were set to flood your crap into comic stores. Oh, there were Cold-Blooded Chameleon Commandos, Adolescent Radioactive Black-Belt Hamsters, Pre-Teen Dirty Gene Kangaroos...yes, those are all real.

But perhaps the grandest of them all?

Yes, Sultry Teenage Super-Foxes.

Yes, that really existed.

Created by Rich Buckler (!) and Chris Wojkiewicz, scripted by David George, penciled by Wojkiewicz, this little turd bomb was published by here today, gone tomorrow Solson. And boy, does it suck!

Let's begin our story...

Yup, 4 sultry foxes, home from boarding school, get to spend summer vacation...at an air force base. Yay!!

Well, actually, yes, because as the caption makes clear, the ladies have one thing on their mind: virile men!

Let's switch to the villain of our tale...

See, she's called Madame Rotunda because she's kind of rotund...get it?!? Anyway, she attempts to use dark magic to contact her dead child, and gets possessed by an evil demon:

"Pounds and years melt away"--man, if people knew demonic possession could make you so hot, everyone would try it!!

Meanwhile, it turns out that Jasmine's father is a scientist at the base, experimenting on using "eldritch energies" to transmute matter. Except the damned government is about to cut off funding!! So obviously...

Yeah!! We're doing it for science, right?

Sigh...no, we're doing it because it's a great way to get boys...

No, it doesn't kill them, it transforms them!!

See, a machine that can turn dog feces into gold (literally) somehow transformed the young ladies into "Earth's avatars," with, surprise, power over earth, air, fire and water:

Well, at least we got some super-heroes out of the deal, right? With great power comes great responsibility, and all that?

Yes, we received awesome powers...so let's go impress the boys!!

Sadly, the book only lasted two issues...but I'm certain that Fox is probably looking into the movie rights...

So remember the dangers of surfing the Quarter Bin--someday you're going to get stuck with crap like Sultry Teenage Super-Foxes. Beware!!

Frank Robbins' Batman--Straight. Up. Bad-Ass.

noreply@blogger.com (snell) — Wed, 08 May 2013 13:00:00 +0000

We've had the Frank Robbins discussion before, and I'm certain we'll have the Frank Robbins discussion again.

But let's be very clear--his Batman was hardcore.

Batman has managed to worm his way into the lair of Conway Treach, a scum who is killing off wealthy Gotham gamblers, yet making their deaths appear to be irrefutable suicides...

Damn, that page is soooooo good...

Anyway, it turns out that Batman had deduced that Treach's gun was rigged, with a "trick cylinder-latch" that blocked the firing pin when Treach used it, so he was never in danger. So neither one of them was really in danger of buying the farm during Russian roulette.

Still, Frank Robbins' Batman? Straight baller, is all I'm saying.

Detective Comics #426 (1972) was written, drawn and inked by Frank Robbins.

How Bruce Wayne Can Afford All Those Wonderful Toys

noreply@blogger.com (snell) — Wed, 08 May 2013 12:30:00 +0000

In pursuit of a man who is apparently killing wealthy compulsive gamblers, Bruce Wayne boards an off-shore gambling yacht in a new disguise--John T. Hazard! (Of course, Frank Robbins wrote and drew the Johnny Hazard comic strip for over 3 decades...a guy's allowed to hat tip himself!!)

But he's not just there to play--~~Batman~~ John T. Hazard is there to win!!

Now, I know what you're saying--there's no system that can beat roulette.

But before you call BS on this, perhaps you should read the caption more closely:

You see, back pre-1980s, there were an awful lot of bad roulette wheels out there--wear and other biases making making the outcome far less random. And many folks, with the aid of some pretty cool early computers, took advantage to make some huge bucks.This caused casinos to change the design of their wheels, to test and upgrade them regularly, and to try and ban electronic devices from roulette tables.

But of course, Bruce Wayne needs no such devices, for Batman is smarter than a 1970s computer!!

And that answers where he gets those marvelous toys. Batman needs a new Batmobile? Just break out the John T. Hazard tux, and watch out, Atlantic City!! [And no, there's no indication in the story that he ever gave back the "hundreds of thousands" he won that night...that probably went to pay for a new Bat-Copter...]

From Detective Comics #426 (1972)

So, What, Is Alfred Chopped Liver?

noreply@blogger.com (snell) — Wed, 08 May 2013 12:00:00 +0000

When you're going to commit suicide, you should make sure to leave as complete a note as possible...

I'll bet Alfred will be pretty chuffed that he was left off. Commissioner Gordon might me upset, as well.

I know, I know, thiat was a DC cover of the 1970s, so it was clearly a lie, right?

WRONG!

OK, OK, I know, you're saying that's just one of them there symbolic splash pages, right?

WRONG!

I guess you'll just have to tune in later today to find out...

The cover to Detective Comics #426 (1972) was by Mike Kaluta. The interior is by Frank Robbins.

Greatest Covers You've Never Seen--Bernard Baily Ups The Ante!!

noreply@blogger.com (snell) — Tue, 07 May 2013 12:30:00 +0000

After Basil Wolverton crushed the souls of an entire generation with his covers for the first few issues of Weird Tales Of The Future, Bernard Baily came on board and said, "You call that nightmare fuel? Now this, this is nightmare fuel!!"

Sleep well, children!

Weird Tales Of The Future #6-8 (1953)

The Greaest Covers You've Never Seen--Basil Wolverton Wants To Give You Nightmares!!

noreply@blogger.com (snell) — Tue, 07 May 2013 12:00:00 +0000

If you want to understand why the baby boomers grew up so freaky, check out these covers from Weird Tales Of The Future #2-5 (1952-1953):

Basil Wolverton scared the crap out of an entire generation. No wonder they turned to drugs & peace & love...

Manic Monday--Then How Could He Ride The Board?

noreply@blogger.com (snell) — Mon, 06 May 2013 12:00:00 +0000

In the blessed 1990s...

...even the Silver Surfer was losing his feet...

Pin-up by Jim Lee, from Silver Surfer Annual #5 (1992)

Why Mixed Marriages Don't Work

noreply@blogger.com (snell) — Sun, 05 May 2013 12:28:00 +0000

Bill and Scotty and on a freight run to Mercury when their ship breaks down...

Venus?

Nope, not foreshadowing at all...

But it turns out that Bill has an ulterior motive for visiting Venus...he's a horndog!

Well, there is much feasting, much rejoicing, and Bill gets to marry the beauteous Yye. Soon, it was time to take his lovely wife back to Earth...

That is not a good sign...

Still not good...

Not a great honeymoon...but what are you going to do?

Obviously Bill didn't put a whole lot of forethought into the whole "marry an alien being and haul her to completely different environment" idea. Still, what's the worst that can happen?

Uh-oh...

SCIENCE!!

Anyhoo, Bill the jerk decides that being married to an ugly hag is too terrible to contemplate, so he tries to kill Yye (apparently, there are no divorce or annulment laws in 3052). But Scotty kills Bill instead and throws his body into space (apparently, there are no pesky murder laws in 3052). And he ends up marrying Yye, and returns her to Venus, where...

The moral of the story: If women really are from Venus, leave them on Venus!! Or, What happens on Venus, stays on Venus. Or, You can take the Venus out of the gal, but you can't take the gal out of Venus. Or...

From Weird Tales Of Space #4 (1952)

Pong, Archie Style!!

noreply@blogger.com (snell) — Sat, 04 May 2013 12:00:00 +0000

The early days of video games, with an Archie twist!!

Yes, apparently Dilton designed video games with a screwdriver. Who knew?

From Archie #269 (1978)

From The Horse's Mouth

noreply@blogger.com (snell) — Fri, 03 May 2013 12:00:00 +0000

Advice that Batman writers should heed, especially in a one-shot not-necessarily-in-continuity story:

It doesn't always have to be the Joker, guys.

Paul Tobin is wise beyond his years in Legends Of The Dark Knight #8

What, You Were Expecting Lawyers, Guns And Money?

noreply@blogger.com (snell) — Thu, 02 May 2013 11:44:00 +0000

From this week's Winter Soldier #18, the odd form of discipline at a Russian school for assassins:

See, that's why the Russkies lost the Cold War--Wham! wasn't torture, it was pure joy!! And no, your mileage may not vary on this issue.

Later on, as a character recounts her life story, including the story of a mentor who betrayed her:

Yes, Jason Latour named a character Van Owen entirely so he could straight up drop a Warren Zevon reference. That's hardcore, bro.

These little tidbits are my way of noting that I think Latour and Nic Klein's stellar work on the book is, perhaps, getting a little lost in the "oh, Brubaker left, so I dropped it" or "Oh, everyone says the book will be cancelled" miasma. Well, I'm here to say get this book anyway, because these guys are taking the ball to the hoop every issue.

Oh, and speaking of the Zevon song...

It's interesting that CBS can play a song with the phrase "son of a bitch" without bleeping, but a T+ comic book featuring children killing each other, blood, impalement, and gosh knows what else has to "bleep" the phrase. Discuss.

"The Weirdest Battle Ever"--Ghosts Against Skeletons!!

noreply@blogger.com (snell) — Wed, 01 May 2013 12:00:00 +0000

It's been awhile since we've checked in with our favorite insane person from the Golden Age, the Sorceress Of Zoom!!

It turns out that she's gotten involved in a little fracas with King Druid, "Ruler Of The Seas," because she keeps rescuing sailors from drowning by turning them into rocks (don't ask).

So it's time for the battle of the century:

You know, Axe Cop looks perfectly lucid and straightforward compared to Sorceress Of Zoom stories...

After a 10-page nutsoid battle--which consists of King Druid casting an insane spell, and the Sorceress casting an even more insane spell to counter--she gets the upper hand, and...

Well, OK then.

From Weird Comics #10 (1941)

10 Years Ago Today In 2000 AD--A Night At The Opera!!

noreply@blogger.com (snell) — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 12:30:00 +0000

10 years ago today in 2000 AD...

Megacity-One is hosting a very special event:

And there's even a special guest:

And the star:

Well, the show goes on...

But during the intermission:

At the finale, Dredd's fellow judges have called him...a terrorist group has been captured, and they have planted a bomb in the opera house!!

Where in the opera house?!?

Phew!!

That's a long way to go for a lame punchline...

From 2000 AD #1338 April 30, 2003