> While werewolves have their packs and vampires have their clans, zombies have their hordes. Just like zombie hordes clog up the streets of the post apocalypse, zombie comics do a pretty good job of overwhelming our comic shelves at Star Clipper. For every “Walking Dead” or “The Living and the Dead,” there is a host sub par zombie comics that would just as much to munch on your wallet than feast on your brain. Luckily, there are graphic novel series like “Daybreak” to keep zombie enthusiasts satisfied.
The third volume of cartoonist Brain Ralph’s “Daybreak” hit stores recently and it kept up the quality of storytelling seen in previous volumes. Originally a web comic that ran on the New Bodega Blog, “Daybreak” is a post apocalypse survival tale that literally puts you in the narrative. The story follows an unidentified first person narrator and the their one-armed protector. The panels are all composed from the narrator’s perspective, so the reader literally sees events unfold from their eyes. This storytelling method surely cultivates an immersive experience, but Ralph ability to capture the loneliness and desolation of life after such a catastrophe is what really makes the book so enthralling.
The bleakness of the story does not become overwhelming, however, due to Ralph’s cartooning style. Just like how Osamu Tezuka’s endearing character designs and humor keep the medical manga “Black Jack” from being too grotesque to read, Ralph’s own charm and playful touch always find a way to squeeze a hopeful note into his pages. As a result, I can truly describe “Daybreak” as a fun read even through its pages contain such a dark tale. This combination of optimism and despair makes it stand out from the other zombie comics in the horde.
> On a daily basis, I read the Post Dispatch for one of my doses of current affairs, and to see where the Cardinals or the Blues are in the standings. Part of my paper reading rituals is to save the comics pages for last. I can’t get my day started without a cup of coffee, reading Get Fuzzy, Sally Forth, or Mark Trail. The first comic I have to read though is Family Circus, just to get the painful part out of the way. My fiance and I can’t help but yell out “Ooooohhh, barf!!!” every time we read it. We just can’t help ourselves, we know it’s going to be an overdose of sugary badness that will make our brains queasy, but like a scab you can’t help but pick at, or a car crash you can’t help but slow down and look at,I read Family Circus everyday.
By now, we all know about the remixing of Garfield on the website Garfield minus Garfield. A new incarnation of this concept takes my least liked, but unintentionally funny comic strip family and combines quotes from German philosopher Frederich Nietzsche, which strangely, makes Family Circus more endearing to me. The great thing about Nietzsche Family Circus is how far on opposite ends of the spectrum something as sugary and blandly wholesome as Family Circus is, and as nihilistic and bleak as Frederich Nietzsche’s philosophy is. The website is designed to combine a random quote by Nietzsche with a random Family Circus strip resulting in a hilarious, yet sobering pairing.
I’m hoping that there will be a book in this sometime like Garfield Minus Garfield, if the publishers of Family Circus aren’t too enraged over this blaspheming of their creation. I suppose Ziggy had better watch out before someone creates Dystopian Ziggy and mashes Ziggy cartoons with quotes from the George Orwell novel 1984…hmmm….that gives me an idea…
> Earlier this week, I found out that IDW had posted a preview of cartoonist Darwyn Cooke’s adaptation of the first Parker novel, “The Hunter.” Since I last blogged about Cooke’s graphic novel project, I did some hunting of my own and picked up a copy of the reissue of “The Hunter” from University of Chicago Press. Surprisingly, “The Hunter” was even more heartless than I expected. For as ruthless as the Parker-inspired protagonists of “Point Blank” and “Payback” are, Parker himself possesses an amorality that is unmatched by his movie screen brethren. While they are motivated by revenge and principle, Parker is a man doesn’t always have a reason for his actions. He awareness of this hollowness leaves Parker not struggling with his conscience but grasping for purpose for his actions. The emotional distance that he possesses may make him a monstrous man, but it also makes him incredibly human.
Cooke’s preview pages, nineteen in all, do a great job of capturing this distance. From the cool quality of the spot color to Cooke’s choice of obscuring Parker’s face for most his introductory pages, the cartoonist utilizes a collection of techniques to capture the mood set by author Donald Westlake’s (credited under pen name Richard Stark) writing. Just like in Westlake’s narrative, Cooke leaves Parker fairly mysterious early on. Instead, he lets the reactions of the people Parker interacts with to form the readers’ impression of Parker.
Judging from the preview pages, Darwyn Cooke seems to have an incredibly strong grasp of “The Hunter.” I can’t wait for the graphic novel. Publisher of the adaptation, IDW, perfectly timed the first look to prey on the excitement it generated, as it is up for order in the latest Previews.
> Our 1000th blog post will be coming up shortly…in another 6-7 weeks, that is. It’s hard to believe we’re approaching that number of blogs posted, and it has been fun to watch our readership grow steadily over the years.
To commemorate the 1000th blog post, we need a little help. I’ve been racking my brain for a good 1000th post post and I want it to be something interesting and special but I’m coming up blank.
What would you like to see us talk about for 1000th blog? Post your suggestions here or e-mail info AT starclipper DOT com!
>As I stated in my last blog, I didn’t start collecting comics until I was 12. In the years leading up to that during the 1980’s when there was an abundance of totally awesome toy/ cartoon franchises that would go on to be comic book series, the seeds were planted for comic book fanaticism. I’ve discussed how He-Man and the Masters of the Universe was my first foray into this world, but by far the most memorable for me had to be those robots in disguise, the Transformers.
To a young boy growing up in the 80’s, theres nothing cooler than robots, and if a robot could turn into a big-rig, jet plane, tape recorder, or a really fast car, well, that was the coolest thing in the world. The first robot in disguise I remember owning was brave Autobot leader Optimus Prime which quickly became a prized possession along with Megatron. The unfortunate thing about my Transformers, and most of my really cool toys was that every summer when I would go to Houston to stay with my Grandma, back in Louisiana, my mom had sold most of my toys in a yard sale to make room for the new round I’d bring back with me.
The Transformers cartoon totally rocked and captivated my attention probably more than any cartoon series at the time (except maybe GI Joe) I begged my mom to take me to see the movie, which despite a very 80’s soundtrack, to this day is still pretty well awesome. The tone of the cartoon series changed after the release of the movie as more of the story was set on Cybertron, and things became a little more bleak in the story telling. I’m pretty sure that this was around the time I started drawing as well, and what was I doing in school when I should have been doing classwork? I was trying to perfect drawing Optimus Prime and various Autobots and Decepticons from the cartoon.
From time to time, I would come across the comic series released by Marvel, which much like the GI Joe comic book, was a slight bit grittier than it’s cartoon counterpart. The comic series would delve more into Cybertronian history as well as robot spirituality with a character named Primus who was something of a deity to the Autobots. After a decline in popularity in the 90’s, the Transformers would make a comeback in the current decade with new toy lines, new cartoons, new comic series, and a blockbuster live action/CGI film with a sequel due for release this summer, showing that these robots in disguise have a real staying power.
> The X-Men may have been the first superhero series that I followed, but they were not the first comic series I bought regularly. That honor belonged to the 80s marketing juggernaut, “G.I. Joe.” I honestly can’t remember if it was the toys or the cartoon that hooked me first, but I do know that the ongoing animated adventures of my favorite new toy line cemented my love for the characters. When I saw that there was a comic, I had to get that, too.
I quickly realized that the stories that ran through the comic book version of “G.I. Joe” were quite different than those of the cartoon. The episodes of “G.I. Joe” hitting the airwaves grew more and more ridiculous as comedic characters like Bazooka, Quick Kick, and Shipwreck joined the team. The comic, by comparison, dealt in a more serious tone. Instead of a Cobra Commander filled with the comedic incompetence like that on TV, the comic book featured a USA grown terrorist with plans for world domination that was no pushover. The G.I. Joes battles were dangerous and the series melodrama was only as high as its stakes.
The storyline that I remember the most vividly saw a squad of Joes getting captured while on a clandestine op in a faux-Eastern Block country. Outback, the only operative to escape capture, received a cold reception form his fellow soldier who feel like he abandoned his brothers-in-arms. The ninjas associated with the Joe Team (including series headliner Snake Eyes), slip behind enemy lines to break into a prison camp and save their fellow G.I. Joes. That storyline, and many of the others, is pretty heavy for a kids’ comic and was miles away from the sitcom the cartoon had become.
I enjoyed both the cartoon and the comic for their very different tones when I was a kid, but now I think the comic is remember more fondly. This, though, doesn’t have a lot to do with the actual content but with it being the origin of my fondness for comics. If it hadn’t been for the battles between G.I. Joe and Cobra that I picked up at supermarket newsstands and bookstore spinner racks, I doubt I would have been into comics at all.
You can scope out the entire history of G.I. Joe comics at this comic book archive.
The final installment of the Death Note movie trilogy, L Change the World, will be playing two nights only in the St. Louis area Wednesday April 29th and Thursday April 30th. There will be one screening each night at AMC Chesterfield 14, St. Louis Mills 18, and AMC Esquire 7 at 7:30pm. The Wednesday showing will be in subtitles, and the Thursday screening will beoverdubbed. Exclusive interviews with director Hideo Nakata and actor Kenichi Matsuyama (L), as well as behind-the-scenes footage of the making of the film, will be added to each nights screenings.
Though the film is inspired by the popular manga, the third act is an entirely original story following L’s last 23 days alive after he sacrifices himself to the death note to defeat Light Yagami. In his final days, L takes on a bio-terrorist group hellbent on destroying humanity. As he fights against the clock to find an antidote for a deadly terrorist virus, he also most save the lives and care for two young children. I would bet these characters will in up being Near and Mello.
As of writing this blog, I’ve only seen the first film which I really enjoyed. However, since this movie plot is so vastly different from the book, which is arguably my favorite manga ever, I’ve got my doubts about L Change the World. I still plan on giving it a chance, so maybe I will see you there this Wednesday.
For all the screenings throughout the country check out the L Change the World site.
>As Jon, Nick, and I would tell you, the 80’s were a great time to be a kid. The coolest toy/cartoon/comic franchises came from this era like Transformers, GI Joe, He-Man, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Ghost Busters to name a few. It wasn’t until I was about 12 that I became a comic book fanatic, but the seeds were planted by the toys and cartoons of the era.
When I was about 4, the first of these franchises that I really got into was He-Man and the Masters of the Universe. The cool thing about the action figures was the mini comic that would be included in the packaging that provided not just a background story on the characters, but ideas of adventures to put these characters through in your bedroom and back yard. I cannot quite remember the actions I put He-Man and friends through, how dirty, muddy, wet, or broken some of them managed to get in their adventures.
Then of course there was the cartoon from Filmation. Originally conceived as a half hour advertisement for the action figures, which was the order of the day for almost all of my generations favorite toy franchises, the series took on a life of its own combining the sword and sorcery genre with a generous dash of science fiction. The one thing I could never figure out when I was young was how these people on Eternia were running around like they lived in the bronze age, yet had flying vehicles that shot frickin’ laser beams! Out of He-Man would come She-Ra as Mattel attempted to reach out to girls as well as boys complete with toy line and cartoon which became just as memorable for the girls of my generation.
In the world of comics, Marvel began publishing a He-Man and the Masters of the Universe comic book under their Star Comics imprint in 1986 and featured the villain Hordak, who was arguably more evil than Skelator. The series would only last 13 issues, and by the time of the big screen release of the Masters of the Universe movie starring Dolf Lundgrin, the franchise had begun to see a decline in popularity as a group of mutated turtles began dominating the day. In one last hurrah, there was an attempt in 1990 to relaunch a new cartoon series and toy line, revamping the characters which would fall flat very quickly.
In recent years, comic creators who grew up in the 1980’s made an attempt to revive their favorite characters in comic books, most of which were short lived, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe being one of these franchises. It seems as though GI Joe and Transformers were the only franchises that managed to have any staying power, but that’s a story for another time.
Everyone has their own unique story about how they got into comic books. Mine is undeniably linked to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. I am very much a product of my generation, and the Ninja Turtles were at the height of their popularity in 1989 when I was 6 years old. “The Heroes-in-a-Half-Shell” were my first conscious obsession, and I watched all the original cartoons, collected all the toys, and rocked strictly Turtle-wear until I was about nine. It just so happens that a Ninja Turtle comic was the first comic book I ever bought as well. Purchased from the magazine rack at Schnucks, “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures” #5, published by Archie comics, was my first comic book. I still have it sitting in a short box in my old closet at my mom’s apartment, plus the rest of the first 25 issues.
The Turtles were very influential on my childhood. I took both Karate and Tai Kwan Do to master their Ninja craft. I also saw their live rock concert in 1990 at the Fox, which I suppose I could say was my first concert. Though, I do prefer to say that the Foo Fighters were actually my first. Regardless, the Turtles did rock on the “Coming Out of Their Shells” tour. To this day, I will even argue that the first Ninja Turtle live action movie is one of the best, if not the best, comic adaptations of all time. So, I admit, I’m still a fan.
Star Clipper just got 25th Anniversary Edition of the Ninja Turtle action figures series one, and when I took them out of the box I lit up like I was 6 years old all over again. In a lot of ways, I’d forgotten how absolutely awesome the Turtles were. Krang alone is one of the greatest villains of all time. How could I ever forget this abomination? Krang is an evil talking brain from Dimension X, who sits in the stomach of a pinhead mechanical body and lives in a battle fortress called the Technodrome. This was a kid’s cartoon people! Plus, you got Bebop and Rocksteady who were two mutated street punks, the fly mad scientist Baxter Stockman, and the timeless Master Shredder, named after a cheese grater. What more could a young boy want?
I had a large majority of the first three series of action figures, which can be viewed here in a year by year summary. In retrospect, my favorite aspect of the Turtle toys has to be the Turtle sewer play set, which was made specifically to slime your own toys. Like so many toys from the 80’s, oozing green goo all over your figures was essential, as was making a mess. Of course, the ooze was sold separately. What a parent’s nightmare.
On Free Comic Book Day, May 2 2009, you can get a reprint of the first Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle issue ever by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. I actually never read this series when I was a kid, but discovered it when I was a teenage, learning that it was basically a Frank Miller tribute. The original series is substantially more violent and dark than the kid-friendly cartoon, but well worth having for any comic or nostalgia fan. Make sure to grab a copy for yourself this FCBD.
Jon can talk about Jim Lee’s glory days on the X-Men all he wants, but I got hooked on Marvel’s merry mutants with the reprint of the classic Dark Phoenix saga. My first issue of “Classic X-Men” was #31, reprinting “Uncanny X-Men” #125, was bought at Star Clipper’s old North and South location. Inside its ominous cover, the X-Men were building towards one of their greatest storylines of all time. Characters like X-men leader Professor X were just realizing how dangerous Jean Grey’s mutant powers had become as the Phoenix. Meanwhile, Jean struggled with mind-bending experiences created by the illusions of Mastermind. If that wasn’t enough to blow my adolescent mind, an appearance by the Beast hinted at all the years of X-history I had been missing out on.
The next year’s worth of issues provided an epic blowout for the ages. While I struggled with the ramifications of Phoenix’s descent into madness, I also worked to understand how all of the X-Men’s history fit together. Where did my copy of “Amazing Adventures” #10 fit in with my “Classic X-Men” run? Just how much time had pasted between the run of John Romita Jr.-era X-Men that resided in milk crates kept by my art teacher and appearance of Moria MacTaggerts’s Muir Island X-Men in “Uncanny X-Men” #254? Trying to sort out the history of the X-Men was one of my favorite things about them. That I could read about the first class of X-Men as teenagers and then see then as a faux-family in “X-Factor” was both awesome and endearing. Such an extensive history made them more like actual people than the other fictional characters I had encountered.
While many of Marvel and DC’s characters had histories that were just as extensive, few were as readily available as the X-Men in the late 80s and early 90s. With a wide array of reprints and comic shops back issue bins, I could collect parts of the X-Men’s past while checking up on the present in the often bi-weekly series! My need to constantly keep up with the X-Men’s ever evolving history died with the revolving door of creative teams in the mid-to-late 1990s but I still occasionally lose myself in the odd tale of the X-Men.
One of my favorite bookstores in St. Louis. Star Clipper offers not only the best selection of comic books and graphic novels in the city, but also a cornucopia of art, design and pop-culture related books and magazines. 
