---------------------------------------------------------------------- Ed Dukeshire and Mike Imboden Present: THE COMIC BOOK NET ELECTRONIC MAGAZINE ISSUE NUMBER 199 1/29/99 Edited by: David LeBlanc - ComicBkNet@aol.com FREE VIA EMAIL SINCE FEBRUARY 1995 ______________________________________________________________________ T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [1] On the Net ............................ David LeBlanc [2] Letters to the Editor ................. Your Page! [3] TRIVIA CONTEST ........................ Win *real* prizes! [4] Network Buzz .......................... News, gossip & rumors [5] Had Your Phil? ........................ Phil White [6] Random Thoughts In A Less Than Random World ........... Gary Sassaman [7] Pipeline Commentary & Review .......... Augie De Blieck Jr. [8] Venting My Spleen ..................... David Groenewegen [9] Some Pages, A Cover, and A Few Staples. Marlan Harris [10] And let me tell you why ............... David Coulter [11] My Too Sense .......................... Cory Kleinschmidt [12] M.O.E. Reviews ........................ Paul Dale Roberts [13] New Comic Book Releases List .......... Charles LePage [14] HYPE! Section ......................... Various [A] Submission, Subscriptions, Back Issues, Copyrights, BBS Info ______________________________________________________________________ World Wide Web Home Page-->> http://members.aol.com/ComicBkNet HTML WEB EDITION at -->> http://www.digitalwebbing.com/cbem featuring the exclusive comic strips: HEROES RERUN by Johnny Gonzales and ACTION COP by John E. Thompson ----------------------------------------------------------------------- o \o/ _ o _| \ / |_ o_ \o/ o /|\ | /\ _\o \o | o/ O/_ /\ | /|\ / \ / \ |\ /) | ( \ /o\ / ) | (\ / | / \ / \ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- The ComicBook Network was founded by Ed Dukeshire and Mike Imboden ----------------------------------------------------------------------- If you wish to receive each issue automatically through your Email account, please address a message to: ComicBkNet@aol.com with the word SUBSCRIBE in the SUBJECT to be placed on the FREE subscription list. To drop it use UNSUBSCRIBE as a SUBJECT. See section [A] for the address to mail material to be reviewed. ______________________________________________________________________ All text contained within is copyrighted to the originating author(s). Except where elsewhere noted, The Comic Book Net Electronic Magazine is Copyright 1999 by The ComicBook Network. You may freely distribute or retransmit this file intact without alteration for noncommercial purposes only. Except for personal archiving, permission must be obtained from the individual authors to reproduce, retransmit, or publish any part of this magazine. ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [1] On the Net David LeBlanc Right up front a big thank you to Ed Menje and Ken Gale for inviting me to be the guest on their last regular broadcast of `NUFF SAID last Sunday at Midnight. The show is going to be getting a new time slot and for now is going to be "guesting" on another show on WBAI, 99.5 FM on Tuesday February 2nd at 10:00PM. You New York folks be sure to tune in and let the station know you want `NUFF SAID back on a regular schedule as soon as possible. We need this kind of exposure of our hobby in every place we can get it. Your weary, bleary eyed editor has spent the good part of the week at night restoring programs after having to re-install Windows 95. The hard part was getting the `puter ready to run right again and the tedious re-install continues as we speak. Unfortunately I had no time to do my reviews and barely time to get this issue out before I collapse so forgive any errors due to haste. I did manage to stop by THAT'S ENTERTAINMENT for the weekly dose and found this stuff on the rack, submitted for your approval . . . CRYPTIC PRESS Quicken Forbidden TPB, 14.95 DARK HORSE Sergio Aragones Groo & Rufferto #2 (Of 4), 2.95 DC COMICS Doctor Midnite #1 (Of 3), 5.95 Dv8 Annual 99, 3.50 Essential Vertigo The Sandman #32, 4.50 Flash #146, 1.99 JLA #27, 1.99 League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen #1 2.95 <--- PICK OF THE WEEK Supergirl #30, 1.99 MARVEL COMICS Daredevil #5, 2.50 Earth X #0, 3.99 If you wander over to our LINKS page on the web site you will find a couple new additions. The DISABLED COMICS COLLECTORS' CLUB, RAY ZONE (the 3D comic guru), and MONSTER FIGHTERS all have links just added. EXTRA SPECIAL thanks to Mr. Henn who did a new twist on the cheezy prize thing by sending stuff to yours truly. In fact, the great stuff he sent me was not cheesey at all. I appreciate it. Next up - our 200TH Gala Issue! (what's a gala?) Would we REALLY dare to have variant content??????????????? David LeBlanc - ComicBkNet@aol.com Editor The Comic Book Net Electronic Magazine ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [2] Letters to the Editor If you want to comment on this or any previous issue, want to offer something for us to publish, or just want to shamelessly suck up to the editor to try and get your name in print send Email to: ComicBkNet@aol.com Note: Letters of comment may be used in future issues of CBEM unless you specifically request us NOT to use them. Your Email address and/or name will be withheld upon request. From: mjhawkins@earthlink.net (Matt Hawkins) Greetings, Today the third issue of Lady Pendragon ships (in the month solicited I might add). Previews also ships today with the advertisements and solicitation for my ongoing series Lady Pendragon Dragon Blade #1. The Wizard also ships today with an advertisment for the upcoming series. I have done everything I can, at the moment, to increase awareness of the project. What I'd like to know is what you think I might be overlooking in terms of promotion and what I can do to help you to help sell more copies of my book. If you sell more copies we both make more money, so in a way it's kind of a partnership. I'd also like to know your opinions of the series so far--in terms of sales and customer response. I am willing to do whatever I can to help you, but that only works if you let me know how I can do it. Thanks for your time and attention, Matt Hawkins Creator/Writer Lady Pendragon (310) 577-5034 +++++ Subject: 'Nuff Said! news Date: 1/25/99,9:49:40 PM From: nuffsaid@escape.com After three and a half years at midnight on Sundays, with ratings growing the whole time, 'Nuff Said! is no longer a regularly-scheduled show on WBAI-FM in New York City. 'Nuff Said! was New York City's comic book interview and talk show. However, we're not totally off the air, either. Ed Menje and I are featured producers on two segments of "City in Exile": Tuesday, Feb. 2 and Tuesday, Feb. 9 at 10 PM. Our guest on Feb. 2nd is Mark I. West, professor of children's literature at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and author of several books, including "Children, Culture and Controversy" and "Trust Your Children." We'll be talking with him about censorship, particularly during the McCarthyist '50s right after Frederic Wertham's book "Seduction of the Innocent" was published and during the Senate hearings on juvenile delinquency which only talked about comic books. However, we'll be presenting that in a historical context of a long line of censors, particularly of children's material, going all the way back to the dime novels of the 1860s and including radio, TV and arcade games. WBAI-FM, 99.5, is a 50,000 watt station broadcast from the Empire State Building. Our signal usually gets out to New Haven, CT; Westhampton, L.I.; the Poconos of Pennsylvania, Orange County, NY and Trenton & Princeton, NJ. The show covers the entire world of comics: golden age, silver age, contemporary, mainstream, independent, underground, foreign, strips and fandom. Hosted by Ken Gale (interviewer) and Ed Menje (Engineer and news reader). WBAI is a Pacifica Network station (if your local station carries any Pacifica programming, they might be able to get 'Nuff Said! as well). WBAI has moved from the Eighth Ave. studios. We're now at 120 Wall St., 10th flr, New York, NY 10005. --Ken Gale, co-host +++++ Subj: A Letter From Peregrine Entertainment From: dcdave@mci2000.com (David Napoliello) To: comicbknet@aol.com Dear Mr. LeBlanc: We would like to start by saying that we really appreciate the time you have taken to review our products, and are pleased that you seem to like reading them as much as we like producing them! We certainly don't want anything to detract from your enjoyment of Books of Lore or our other publications such as Forty Winks, Lynx, or Digital Dragon. That's why, when we learned of your pet peeve regarding comics numbered as Issue #0, we wanted to comment on the circumstances that drove us to that "silly numbering scheme." Books of Lore originally started as an anthology series which featured three self-contained stories per issue. We thought this was a good way to introduce the fantasy realm we had created. However, with the third issue, Books of Lore: Special Edition #3 (SE3), which was to be published in Summer 1998, we left the final story ("Soul of a Thief") open-ended to springboard into our first multi-part, bi-monthly mini-series, Books of Lore: The Kaynin Gambit (TKG) in November 1998. Unfortunately, SE3 fell victim to one of the myriad snafus that befall small publishers and was never released. By the time SE3 was canceled, we had already solicited the first issue (TKG1) and were obliged to release it on schedule. The only problem was that we had a story that was essential to the events occurring in the new series and no way to let our readers know about it. Thus, we decided to take "Soul of a Thief," combine it with another story tied to the plot of TKG, and create an issue to place between TKG1 and TKG2. The new issue was numbered "0" in the hopes that people would understand that the stories were "prequels" to the events in TKG1 (you know, like those new Star Wars movies -- we just didn't have the foresight to start our numbering with "Episode 4"). We hope we didn't make things hopelessly confusing and we promise that TKG2 will get everything back on track. And we promise we'll never do out-of-sequence numbering again! (We don't much like it either.) Sincerely, David Napoliello, Publisher Kevin Tucker, Editor Peregrine Entertainment +++++ Subj: Bargain Bins, Business, God, & Politics From: bookeryf@sprynet.com (Steve Bates) This is a response, of sorts, to the dialogue between Keith (address withheld), Chris Juricich, and Robert Scott, regarding back issue prices, bargain bins, and retailer responsibility. I prefer not to quote any of the participants, or respond to specific statements, for two reasons. The first is basic laziness on my part--all that cutting and pasting, editing, tagging--too much work, even if the computer does most of it. My main reason for not doing so is (as "Address Withheld" Keith points out) the argument of comments being taken out-of-context. As someone who has often argued about God & politics, I've learned how easy (and dangerous) it can be to use comments, quotes, phrases, or images, out-of-context. It usually comes back to bite you in the ass. That being said, let me summarize the "discussion" as I see it. Keith thinks retailers who raise back issue prices to cover costs of bagging and boarding (which I assume includes paying someone to do so) is "cheating" (my word, not his) the customer. Chris & Robert point out that this is standard practice, to absorb the cost of "processing" the material to be sold as a back issue. All parties involved agree that bargain bins are good things, but there seems to be disagreement on the path a comic takes to get from a New Release with a $1.99 cover price to a quarter box. Keith thinks these bargain bins are filled with mistakes the retailer over-ordered; Robert states his bargain bins are stocked from bulk purchases, collections dumped by his customers at salvage rates of a dime a book. This seems to be the crux of the argument; again, as I interpret the dialogue. As a retailer, I (obviously?) lean towards agreeing with Robert and Chris. By the time a New Release comic makes it to a Back Issue bin, it has been handled more times than Monica Lewinsky. It must be checked in, copies pulled for file customers, displayed, cycle sheeted (an inventory count done weekly to help retailers avoid over- and under-ordering mistakes), pulled, separated (we only send one or two copies of the average tutle to Back Issues), bagged, boarded, and tagged--at a quarter over cover price, in most cases. Just in employee costs, each issue represents a certain amount of "investment" on the shop's part. And, unlike some stores, we put an acid-free ("at time of manufacture") backing board in each bag. This ups the supply cost a few cents, at least (Keith's estimate was a nickel per back issue; it's probably, in our case, ten cents wholesale in supplies PER BACK ISSUE). So stocking Back Issue bins isn't a cheap proposition, and, truthfully, a questionable business practice. If shops displayed only the best-selling back issues (WITCHBLADE, BATTLE CHASERS, FATHOM, X-MEN, PREACHER, etc.), maintaining two to four boxes of backstock, they'd probably sell almost as much as we do, with over 100 boxes (not including 15-20 of Silver and Golden Age). So why carry so much? Why bother? One of my best customers, Steve Topper (a frequent CBEM contest winner), once told me that his first impression on entering a new comic shop is based on how much stock they display. If they have a small rack of New Releases, or only a few boxes of Back Issues, he rates that store low. But a well-stocked store, with a large and diverse selection, impresses him, EVEN IF THEY HAVE NOTHING ON HIS WANTLIST. In his view, this is a "real" comic shop that could conceivably stock items he needs, whereas a tiny comic book dealer will be unlikely to carry the books he's seeking. Yes, Steve's tastes, like my own, can be eclectic, but so many stores he encounters in his travels around the country only carry the best sellers (see partial list above) and ignore small press gems like STRANGEHAVEN and POE, or low-selling DCs like CHRONOS. Using Steve's criteria as a gauge of my own shop, we must be a virtual super-store! By stocking hundreds--no, thousands--of titles that only a few customers may ever buy, I'm using my retail space as a form of decoration. In the "theater of retail" appearances are important, and, unless I'm going to use that floor space for something that sells better, why not stock back issues. But those "decorations" littered around the "hot new trend" books are still SOMEWHAT responsible for carrying their weight, and so we mark up RAGMOP and WHITEOUT and THIEVES & KINGS and REPLACEMENT GOD a quarter. That way, when they do sell, we regain that much more of our expenses. Keep in mind, we have a huge comic shop. Our shop is 7000+ square feet, with roughly half that devoted to retail and office space (the other half is basement storage, where we have stashed away another 100,000 comics). So we can afford the luxury of displaying "dead" titles a smaller store might not. Yet the sacrifice we make in floor space for our image is great. We've actually cut our display area back from our previous location, where we had as many as 120-140 boxes, some on the floor. We haven't started displaying boxes on the floor in our current setup, but our box count would double if we did. As we purge the basement of collections and overordered items, we will expand our Back Issue space as needed. Right now, sales are fairly solid, especially our (drumroll, please) bargain bins. Borrowing Marvel's "Buck Books" gimmick of a few years back, we began repricing existing Back Issues and processing collections specifically as "Buck Books." Right now, we display around 35 long comic boxes as "Buck Books" where each comic, regardless of condition, cover price, price guide value, or vintage, sells for $1.00. The success of this kind of marketing has been overwhelming. Books once ignored in quarter boxes at our sidewalk sales are selling for $1.00. Once-greats and never-rans are mixed in alphabetical order, and cancelled series predominate. In the case of ongoing series, we make what we hope are intelligent decisions on which issues from the series belong in the "Buck Books" and which should go out at guide price or basic markup. Take WONDER WOMAN, for instance. All the issues of the current (George Perez-revived) series from #1 through #84 are "Buck Books" and #85 on to present are normal Back Issues. Similarly, AVENGERS (1st series) from #131-402 are only $1.00 each; earlier issues are priced by guide. Our list of "Buck Books" is over 1750 titles, and includes ALL Malibu Ultraverse, Valiant (VH-1, VH-2, and Nintendo), Continuity, Marvel UK/New Universe/Heavy Hitters/2099, DC Impact, Tekno Comics, Defiant, and many others. What doesn't end up the "Buck Books?" Mistakes. Overorders. ". . . books that haven't exactly performed well . . ." (Yes, I broke my own rule--sue me). My position on discounting unsold New Releases is much the same as my position on discounting new New Releases--you're an idiot if you do it, and you might as well just stop retailing comics (or anything) right now. As for customers who expect last week's/month's comics at half (or more) off, you can shop elsewhere. It's not "day old bread" or yesterday's fish--it ain't gonna kill you because it's expired. Shops that routinely discount recent stock train their customers to NOT BUY new product. If the choice is $1.99 today, or half price in 30 days, most reasonable people (this does not include the completists, impulse and convenience shoppers, "junkies," or obsessive/compulsives) will wait, especially on borderline titles (CHRONOS, for instance, or HEROES FOR HIRE). Why pay full price when you know, or, at the very least, suspect, that that peripheral read will be discounted later? No, discounting (which, by the way, does NOT include sales or specials, promotions, giveaways, and rebate programs) is just business seppuku, in my opinion. I don't respect shops who do it, and I can't tolerate customers who expect it. I usually wait six months to a year before moving a comic from regular backstock to the sale bins, even if that means I sit on the product. Customer's memories are relatively short term, and, with Previews and the Internet revealing every new storyline months in advance, a six-month-old comic is practically prehistoric. So the sting of paying full price versus the "Buck Book" price is lessened, and the product is still fresh enough to be perceived as "current" (though it might be boxed side-by-side with books decades old). One notable exception was the VH-2 Valiants from Acclaim. One week after the company announced the effective demise of their comics devision, all those books went into the "Buck Books." Fool me once, shame on you . . . I think retailers who give away extra comics are doing a far better thing than those who sell them discounted, especially if the product is fresh (recent, new, timely). You're promoting the title, keeping the hobby alive, and making yourself look better to your customers. Suddenly, you're no longer a profiteer who can't order correctly, you're a philanthropic comic book advocate. And you can give away in volume, too. Donate books to libraries, churches, childrens' hospitals, veterans' centers, or the local charity of your choice. If you stamp your name or insert a flier (or coupon), you've just turned unsold stock into a tax deduction AND a three-dimensional advertising gimmick. Or you can just try and sell them at half off. Steve Bates, Manager, Bookery Fantasy bookeryf@sprynet.com www.bookeryfantasy.com +++++ Subj: Leonardo Manco From: jose.ant.silva@usa.net (Jose Silva) Hi CBEM readers, i'm wondering where this artist (Leonardo Manco) went. Anyone remembers his beautiful pencils on Night Breed and Hellstorm: Prince of Lies. I've been browsing my oldies and this name came up. I'd sure think quickly if i ever see comics by his pencils. So, if you know wether he's in the business and what comics he works one, do tell me. Thanks. Jose Silva +++++ Subject: Re:CBEM 196.3 From: Dave Bower Organization: Time Warp Comics & Games Hi David, My name is also David, and I own Time Warp Comics & Games in Cedar Grove, NJ. I have been reading your column in CBEM 196 and had some thoughts: You said: * 1. I'm looking forward to Alan Moore's League of Extraordinary * Gentlemen, and his line of America's Best Comics I was speaking with Jim Krueger (the Earth-X guy & former Marvel employee...) today, and he told me the orders for Alan's League are low. As a retailer, I can assure you that part of the reason is that retailer expectation is low due to Wildstorm's abysmal on time record, and have ordered conservatively. DC, as Solicitor, Publisher and Sales Support, will improve Wildstorm's perception and profile by improving on-time (hey look! WildCATS #1!) delivery. Alas, DC's efforts will not help League's initial orders... its just too early. If The League is as good as we expect it to be, PLEASE say so in your column! DC is very good with their overprint and reorders, so retailers should be able to stay in stock. you also said: * 10. I'm looking forward to Vext, from Vertigo. It sounds funny, * unusual, and very different. In fact, it sounds a lot like other books * I enjoyed form DC last year -- books like Young Heroes In Love, Chase, * and Major Bummer ... BUT .... we all know what happened to those books, Vext does indeed look good, but DC has not supported this project AT ALL. If you remember, Young Heroes in Love was promoted in a Direct Currents comic sized giveaway with an excellent Mike Kaluta cover that cost retailers 10 cents apiece. Copies of YHIL disappeared from the shelves along with Supergirl and Resurrection Man: both of which were reprinted. My memory may be flawed, but as I remember all projects in that giveaway sold very strong. You would think that DC would do this before each promotion cycle, but Patty Jeres of DC told me at a Diamond Distributors Retailer Workshop (Jan 98?) that DC did not have the promotional budget to do it again. My opinion is that if your books are selling out, how can you afford not to do it!? I don't have the time resources to do it, and I certainly couldn't do it for 10 cents. Vext would have done great (IMHO) if comic readers had the opportunity to sample it in an advertising vehicle like that Direct Currents giveaway. It then fall to folks like you and me to spread the love, and I'll never be as pretty as a Mike Kaluta illustration. And yeah... Chase kicked ass! and you said: * 5. I'm looking forward to Alex Ross's covers on Earth X ... BUT .... I * don't want anything to do with what's BETWEEN those covers. Well, you may want to append your opinion once you get a proper look at the book. Write off the fluffy marketing of the sketchbook and numbering from zero for what it is and really look at the book! Jim Krueger was generous enough to bring me the scripts through issue #3 and he also had photocopies of finished pages from #1. They look great! I was worried that Bill Reinhold's inks would be too chunky for John Paul Leon's already heavy pencils, but they look good. There is enough lead time in the project that allowed Alex Ross to reject the first set of coloring and work with the colorist to get the look he wanted. You can rule out the muddy coloring that has been plaguing most of Marvel's books. Key sequences were thumbnailed by Alex (you can tell) but John Paul Leon catches on and the book just *feels* like Alex Ross is there. I pointed out a spread I thought that Alex did but Jim said it was all John Paul Leon... and that Alex loved it. This project might propel John Paul Leon to superstar status. Alex Ross's greatest strength is that he has a deep understanding of silver age style storytelling and charm yet remains a thoroughly contemporary illustrator. His work is familiar and warm while avoiding the pitfalls of nostalgia and camp. You can now count John Paul Leon as such a talent! One more guy and we have a bona-fide movement on our hands. Thank you for your column. Best, David Bower, Owner, Time Warp Comics & Games Cedar Grove, NJ The OTHER David -- Coulter, that is -- here. All I can say in response is that you better believe I bought League of Extraordinary Gentleman yesterday: Alan Moore would have to work REALLY hard to write a bad comic (but he can do it -- Exhibit A: Violator). But based on David's note, I bought Earth X #0. I'll give ‘em two issues to knock my socks off. +++++ Subject: Green Lantern Theory Date: 1/29/99,2:02:26 AM From: Gummby3 To: ComicBknet Hal Jordan. Green Lantern. Hero. Wacko? Hal was always the image of the perfect hero. Next to Superman, there was never anyone more heroic or brave. Hal was completely dedicated to the cause of justice for everyone. What, then, happened to this great hero? My theory is that he suffers from a rare condition called "The Jan Brady Syndrome" or JBS. Just what is JBS? It's a condition that affects people in the center. Here are some examples to support my theory. 1) Jan is the middle child in a family between Marsha and Cindy. 1) Hal is the middle Green Lantern be Alan Scott and Kyle Rayner. 2) Jan had Alice, the maid. 2) Hal had Kilowog, the Green Lantern handyman. 3) Jan had a pet dog named Tiger. 3) Hal had G'Nort. 4) Jan ended up having her hair changed to black with a wig. 4) Hal just turned gray. 5) Jan had a pendant that she went crazy trying to find. 5) Hal went crazy trying to find everyone ELSE'S rings. 6) Jan attempted to recreate herself with an outside identity and failed miserably. 6) Hal tried to recreate an ENTIRE city outside and failed miserably. 7) Jan created her own imaginary boyfriend. 7) Hal created his own imaginary timeline. 8) Jan lived with a big family. 8) Hal killed most of his big family. 9) Due to bad vision, Jan couldn't see and was stopped by a picture frame. 9) Hal lost his heroic vision and was stopped by his friends. 10) "Marsha! Marsha! Marsha!" 10) "Guardians! Guardians! Guardians!" 11) Jan was driven by emotion to change her identity. 11) Hal was driven by emotion to change his identity. 12) Jan's weakness was her golden-haired sister's successes. 12) Hal's weakness was golden colors. In conclusion, the biggest example of JBS is with the late Jason Todd AKA the 2nd Robin. He let his efforts to become Batman's best partner drive him to feats of self injury that eventually led to him premature demise. Let's work together to help out future sufferers of JBS. If you happen to see a potential JBS victim, give him or her a thumbs up or a pat on the back for a job well done. Mike Gumm Vintage Stock Tulsa, Oklahoma ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [3] [TRIVIA CONTEST] **THE FIRST PLACE TO FIND THE EMAG EACH WEEK IS ON OUR HOME PAGE!** IF YOU ARE DESPERATE TO WIN THE TRIVIA, GO THERE FIRST ON FRIDAY NIGHT http://members.aol.com/ComicBkNet/emag.htm QUESTION OF THE WEEK (Prizes donated by THAT'S ENTERTAINMENT - Worcester, MA) (DC COMICS & DIAMOND COMIC DISTRIBUTORS, INC.) +Submit your own trivia and win the CHEEZY PRIZE(tm) if you can stump+ +the readers! You MUST submit the correct answer with your question.+ LAST ISSUE'S QUESTION OF THE WEEK: In SUPERMAN: THE MOVIE, what color underwear was Lois wearing? Nearly everyone knew that the lovely and gracious Lois Lane wore pink underwear (according to the guy with X-ray vision) in SUPERMAN THE MOVIE. The first one to reach contest central was none other than Rich Henn, creator of TIMESPELL, and frequent columnist. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++ THIS WEEK'S TRIVIA QUESTION: From Jesse Dubinsky: Name the 1985 suspense movie that Sergio (GROO) Aragones was in. IMPORTANT RULES NOTICE The first correct answer to reach the editor wins the CHEEZY PRIZE(tm). The editor will be the sole judge as to which guess arrived first! Messages with more than one guess will be disqualified. LIMIT: ONE PRIZE PER MONTH PER PERSON! ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [4] Network Buzz News, gossip and rumors from around the industry Marvel Enterprises Announces Sale of Fleer/Skybox International NEW YORK, Jan. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Marvel Enterprises, Inc. (NYSE: MVL) announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement for the sale of Fleer/Skybox International, its trading card business, for a purchase price of $26 million in cash to a newly formed private company founded by Alex Grass and his son Roger Grass. Alex Grass is the founder of Rite Aid Corporation and currently serves as a director of Rite Aid and Hasbro, Inc. Consummation of the sale is subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions, including obtaining the consents of certain of Fleer/Skybox's licensors, as well as Marvel's lenders. The transaction is not subject to financing and is currently expected to close in mid-February. Eric Ellenbogen, President and CEO of Marvel, commented, "As anticipated, the sale of these non-core assets is a big step toward focusing our business on media and toys. Anchored by one of the largest character-based entertainment libraries in the world, we are assembling a strong management team that will exploit Marvel's characters across the full range of distribution outlets." Marvel Enterprises, Inc. is one of the world's leading entertainment companies with operations in the licensing, comic book publishing and toy businesses. The company was formed on October 1, 1998 upon the emergence of Marvel Entertainment Group, Inc. from bankruptcy and its merger with Toy Biz, Inc. Through its ownership of over 3,500 proprietary characters, the company has published comic books for over 60 years in over 70 countries. Marvel licenses the right to use its characters in a wide range of consumer products such as video games, interactive software and apparel, as well as for television series and feature films. For additional company information visit the company's corporate web-site www.marvel.com. Except for historical information contained herein, the statements in this news release regarding the Company's plans are forward-looking statements that are dependent upon certain risks and uncertainties, including those relating to the ability to integrate Toy Biz's operations with those of Marvel, the inability to refinance certain indebtedness incurred in connection with the acquisition of Marvel, pressure by certain of the Company's major retail customers to significantly reduce their toy inventory levels, the levels of media exposure or the popularity of the Company's characters and trademarks, consumer acceptance of the Company's new product introductions, the Company's dependence on Chinese manufacturers, U.S. trade relations with China, changing consumer preferences, production delays or shortfalls and general economic conditions. Those and other risks and uncertainties are described in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K. SOURCE Marvel Enterprises, Inc. +++++ From: marktexeira@yahoo.com To: comicbknet@aol.com To the Editor: Following please find an attached press release concerning my decision to leave Black Panther and about my future projects. If you have a problem opening the file, please contact me and I will send it just as e-mail. Thank you for your time. Sincerely, Mark Texeira Press Release Mark Texeira Productions E-mail: marktexeira@yahoo.com "Mark Texeira Leaves Black Panther to Pursue Other Projects." January 26, 1999 - On January 17, 1999, Mark Texeira announced at the Big AppleCon that he is leaving Black Panther over "creative differences" and to pursue other projects. "I came aboard Black Panther for mainly two reasons, it was steady work in an unstable comic book market and it was a high-profile project. However, the situation has drastically changed in the last couple of months. Fortunately David Bogart of Harris Comics offered me work on Pantha, and unsure of the future of Marvel and the Marvel Knights books, I accepted. "Besides drawing Pantha, I have contacted and been contacted by a number of publishers about a different projects that I am currently in discussions about. I can proudly announce that I have formed a self-publishing venture with illustrator and painter Ray Lago called Archangel Comics. This is planned as a quarterly B&W book with Ray writing and drawing Artemis & HunnT and myself writing and drawing Mark Texeira's PscytheT . Artemis & Hunn is a `good-girl sci-fi adventure' in the tradition of The Rocketeer and Flash Gordon while Pscythe is about a fallen angel on Earth with biblical and apocalyptic overtones. I already have some 100 pages laid out, it's now a matter of getting it on paper. "Secondly, I have been also working on another creator-owned project tentatively-called The HubT with Chris Chiang, a creative and talented writer/artist. The Hub is about New York City set some 150 years into the future, and the Big Apple is really a `melting pot' with aliens, androids, robots, and time travelers. The whole thing is pretty cool because there really isn't any story that I can't tell - I could have cyborg cowboys in the Wild West or robot gladiators in ancient Rome. Chris and I came up with the basic premise, concepts, and characters, and he is now developing and writing a detailed bible for it. Once that is done, we're either going to shop it around to publishers or publish it ourselves. "With my creator-owned projects, I think the most important thing is prove to the fans that you're serious and not a haphazard or half-ass endeavor. With Archangel Comics, Ray and I will have several issues in the can before we even start soliciting for the book. But the first issue should come out some time next year. And with The Hub, we're going to have the plots to a year's worth of stories written in addition to having the detailed bible. "I plan on launching websites to support both my undertakings but in the mean time, anybody can contact at my e-mail address: MarkTexeira@yahoo.com." +++++ from COMICS 2 FILM Website: http://www.comics2film.com Billy Joe Van Helsing: Redneck Vampire Hunter ---------------------------------------------- Bill Kieffer dropped Comics 2 Film a line to tells us about a project he's working on. Kieffer is in talks with USA Network to create an adaptation of his comic Billy Joe Van Helsing: Redneck Vampire Hunter. They are looking into a deal to create a cartoon series that would air on the Sci-Fi Channel. Nothing is definite yet, but Kieffer promises to keep us updated as things develop. Comic Movie Websites -------------------- Heavy Metal magazine has opened it's official website supporting it's upcoming animated feature F.A.K.K.2.  The website can be found at http://www.fakk2.com/fakk2/fakk2opening.htm.  In addition to information about the movie, the site features numerous photographs of Julie Strain.   Strain, who will voice the title character, is shown in the F.A.K.K.2 costume that Eastman and Simon Bisley designed.  The site also many images of Simon Bisley artwork. Another website opening this week promotes the movie Asterix And Obelix Vs. Caesar.  The site officially opened on January 27.   It currently features a QuickTime version of the movie's trailer.  The Asterix movie website can be found at http://www.asterix.tm.fr/lefilm.   Thanks again to Antonello for pointing us to this site. The Detroit News Comic Book Continuum reports that Jim Krueger (Earth X) is writing a screenplay for a movie based on his outstanding creation: Foot Soldiers. Last summer the Continuum reported that Paramount is developing the film. The Comicon website reports an animated show is in the works based on Mike Baron and Steve Rude's Nexus. The Splash news page of that site indicates Columbia-TriStar's Children Television Programming Division picked up the option on the show. Rude is slated to serve as producer on the show. The article indicates that Baron may be involved with writing scripts. The article also mentions that a Moebius & Dan O'Bannon's story The Long Tomorrow has also been optioned by Columbia-TriStar. According to the article, the story originally appeared in the French magazine Metal Hurlant in 1976. It was later translated to English and re-presented in Heavy Metal. O'Bannon has written a pilot script and bible for what is intended to be a syndicated series. http://www.comicon.com/ +++++ FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE King Kelly Comics 1212 South Escondido Boulevard #5203 Escondido, California 92025 CONTACT: Wm. Kelly Mordaunt Owner, KKC PH: (760) 739-0446 kkc@thereplicators.com http://www.thereplicators.com/ COMIC COMPANY INNOVATES THROUGH ONLINE COMIC DRAWN ENTIRELY BY READERS Escondido, CA--26 January, 1999--King Kelly Comics (KKC), a comic book publisher, has entered the industry with a new twist to an old medium. Inviting experienced and inexperienced artists to submit artwork for KKC's new comic book series, The Replicators: The Civil War of Æonos, the company sets a course on unchartered ground. Two series are in the works. The first, called the Special Series, is drawn entirely by its readers as they surf KKC's Replicators web site and read the script of the current issue. All submitted artwork is displayed online with e-mail links and credit going to the contributing artists. Surfers may also submit voicework and sound effects. The second series, known as the Regular Series, is being created using a talented artistic team for hire. With the permission of the submitting artists, the very best artwork of the Special Series will also be included as filler pages to the Regular Series, which in turn is scheduled to be published and sold online at The Replicators web site. The deadline for publication of issue #1 of this series is summer of 1999. King Kelly Comics is a new comic book publisher less than one month old whose flagship magazine is The Replicators: The Civil War of Æonos. Please contact Wm. Kelly Mordaunt at the above e-mail address for additional information. +++++ From: me@evanier.com (Mark Evanier) Date: Wed, 27 Jan 1999 01:57:54 GMT On 27 Jan 1999 00:53:28 GMT, jimmykirk@aol.com (JimmyKirk) posted: >Mr. Evanier, although I am not a writer, I would like to congratulate you on >the SUPERB new DC book "Fanboy." I had a great time reading the book and >trying to catch all the "inside" jokes and the "drawn-out dramas." And that >artist wasn't drawing too bad, either! Let's hope the DC brass give you an >extension on the 6 parts. Looking forward to #2 -- #6. ME: Thanks. And since people keep asking me in e-mail who the upcoming characters and guest artists are, here's a quick list... FANBOY #2 - Green Lantern - Guest artists Gil Kane, Kevin Nowlan, Wendy Pini, Dave Gibbons, Will Blyberg. FANBOY #3 - Justice League - Guest artists Brent Anderson and Bill Sienkiewicz, cover by Kevin Maguire. FANBOY #4 - Sgt. Rock - Guest artists Russ Heath, Marie Severin, Jordi Bernet, cover by Joe Kubert. FANBOY #5 - Batman - Guest artists Dick Sprang, Jim Mooney, Joe Giella, Neal Adams, Frank Miller and Bruce Timm. FANBOY #6 - Wonder Woman - Guest artists not yet set but will include Dan DeCarlo, cover by Brian Bolland. ---------------------------------------------------------- Mark Evanier's new e-mail address is: me@evanier.com OFFICE: 363 S. Fairfax Ave., #303 - Los Angeles, CA 90036 ---------------------------------------------------------- +++++ From Newsarama; http://www.AnotherUniverse.com/newsarama WINNER OF THE 1997 REC.ARTS.COMICS.* "SQUIDDY" FOR BEST WEB SITE The XENA ongoing series from Dark Horse will be written by John Wagner and pencilled by Joyce Chin the artist who did the first two issues of the TOPPS series. The first two issues will be an epilogue for this year's TV series finale. Jay Ferber and Steve Scott head the team that will launch Marvel's NEW WARRIORS once again this summer. Says Faber, "I can tell you that the line-up will be a combination of 4 established Warriors - Nova, Namorita, Speedball, and Rage - and 5 other members made up of existing MU teens who've never been Warriors, and brand-new characters created especially for this book.The existing Warriors involved are. I'm a HUGE fan of the original NW series, so look for other former Warriors to pop up as the series progresses." It is also possible that the new team's first appearance will by in another book, hinting Generation X, as was the case with THUNDERBOLTS. More info on the genesis of the new series and samples of Scott's art can be found at Faerber's website at http://www.2kcomics.com/ Marvel is re-releasing the trade paperback THE `NAM this May. The trade covers the first 4 issues of the regular series. John Lucas has been named as the artist on the 48-page prestige format book DESPERADOES by Jeff Mariotte. John Ostrander's QALIBAN which had been under development with DC has been called off. PREVIEWS incorrectly lists the first issue of BLACK WIDOW #1 as $3.50. The correct price is the standard Marvel Knights limited series price of $2.99. There is a new BISHOP series in development at Marvel for a late summer launch. Mark Waid annouced his departure from CAPTAIN AMERICA: SENTINEL OF LIBERTY. ONI PRESS will be putting out a trade paperback collection of last summer's WHITEOUT series. Expect it in the summer of `99. +++++ From The Daily Buzz at http://www.mania.com/newsarama/index.html Green Lantern will appear in "In Brightest Day," the Saturday, Feb. 6 Superman episode of The New Batman/Superman Adventures on the Kids' WB! network. The episode, written by Hilary Bader, has Superman and the new Green Lantern teaming up to take on Sinestro. "He's Kyle Rayner by name and a little bit of looks, but he's got pieces of both legends," Bader said. "We used the really cool stuff about Hal Jordan." +++++ From Zentertainment; HTTP://WWW.ZENTERTAINMENT.COM To sign a friend up or begin receiving ZEN yourself, e-mail SeanJordan@aol.com and say SUBSCRIBE. KIDS WB! has ordered a second, 13-episode season of BATMAN BEYOND, for premiere next fall. The first new episode following the futuristic cartoon's one-hour pilot will air this Saturday morning. AKIRA comes off of moratorium this Tuesday when ORION Home Entertainment releases the anime classic in both Pan & Scan and Letterbox and Subtitled Pan & Scan VHS versions. Other Anime releases from ORION this week include 3x3 EYES: PERFECT COLLECTION (parts 1-6), GREY, BAREFOOT GEN, CRIMSON WOLF, ADIEU GALAXY EXPRESS 999, BABEL II: PERFECT COLLECTION, FIST OF THE NORTH STAR, LUPIN III: MYSTERY OF MAMO, and LUPIN III: GREATEST CAPERS. http://www.mgmhomevideo.com +++++ From Wizard World Emailer; to subscribe send Email to WizEmailer@aol.com with the subject: ADD ME WIZARD Fantagraphics Barry Windsor-Smith returns to comics with Adastra in Africa, an April-release 56-page graphic novel featuring Adastra, one of his characters from the previous BWS: Storyteller. The hardcover-only volume is $15 unsigned or $25 in a signed limited edition. For a preview, check out http://www.wizardworld.com/news/dailynews/news_01_21_99.html +++++ From the DCOnline newsletter; http://www.dccomics.com/newsletter.html To subscribe, or for questions or comments about the DC newsletter, please email DCWebSite@aol.com. NEWS BYTES THE BOOKS OF MAGIC HITS HIGH GEAR IN 1999 For five years, THE BOOKS OF MAGIC has been a mainstay of the VERTIGO line, weaving a tapestry of sorcery as seen through the eyes of young mage Timothy Hunter. Now, in 1999, THE BOOKS OF MAGIC explodes in a series of much-requested spinoffs and special projects, while the regular book provides a natural jumping-on point for new readers. The magic begins anew in April, with the release of THE BOOKS OF MAGIC ANNUAL #3. This volume tells the story of the Other, a twisted duplicate of Tim Hunter, in a self-contained special featuring a variety of linked stories. Peter Gross, writer/artist of BOOKS OF MAGIC and writer of most of the annual, says, "It's called 'A Thousand Deaths of Timothy Hunter,' and it tells the story of how an alternate Tim Hunter -- not the one we know -- became the murderer of a thousand worlds and a thousand other Tims." Stories in the Annual include a tale of the murderous Tim's past, depicted in a framing sequence by Gross and Kelley Jones; a world where Tim has stopped time, by Gross and original BOOKS artist Gary Amaro; a visit to Faerie Prince Tim Hunter, by Gross and John Totleben; a wild superhero parody reminiscent of DOOM PATROL, by Mark Millar, Phil Jimenez, and Barbara Schulz; and a touching tale of the love between Tim and Molly O'Reilly, by original BOOKS writer John Ney Rieber, Gross, and Temujin -- all wrapped in a gorgeous cover by Charles Vess. In June, things shift into high gear with BOOKS OF MAGIC #63, the start of a new life for Tim Hunter as a wanderer through the realms, courtesy of regular writer/artist Peter Gross. "Tim has come out of a very dark time in his life, where he has lost everything," says Gross. "He is entering a brighter time now, with a new supporting cast that will help him to meet his destiny. Tim is going to start to grow up, and to take responsibility for who and what he is -- and he's going to have fun doing it." While Tim starts his new life in BOOKS OF MAGIC, the most-requested spinoff of all begins with THE BOOKS OF FAERIE: MOLLY'S STORY, continuing the adventures of Tim's popular ex-girlfriend. "King Auberon of Faerie is captured, and Molly must return to Faerie -- which isn't her favorite place -- to help him," says editor Stuart Moore. The four-issue miniseries is written by Molly's co-creator John Ney Rieber, with fabulous art by Hermann Mejia, cover artist of the two BOOKS OF FAERIE miniseries, and covers by Charles Vess. "It's prime Molly," Moore continues. "Fans have wanted John Rieber to return to this character, and he's crafted a terrific tale." Shortly thereafter, award-winning artist Charles Vess joins writer Peter Gross for THE BOOKS OF MAGIC: A DAY, A NIGHT, AND A DREAM, a prestige format one-shot. This volume, beautifully illustrated in a classical style, tells the tale of a disguised Tim Hunter's antics at the Inn Between Worlds, where he lives disguised as a young kitchen girl named Mary. The story runs the gamut from comedy to tragedy in a delightful romp of mistaken identity, misplaced love, lost dreams, and reunions with the Dead. "It's intended as an introduction to the series -- and to the fantasy worlds of VERTIGO -- ffor new readers, a bit of growing up for Tim Hunter and his longtime fans, and a showcase for Charles's lovely art," says Moore. Finally, the biggest news comes this fall with the launch of an all-new, ongoing BOOKS OF FAERIE monthly title by the creative team of Bronwyn Carlton and Linda Medley. "Bronwyn's BOOKS OF FAERIE miniseries have been very well received, and we wanted to continue in that vein, but tell more contemporary stories of Faerie," says Moore. "We also want the book to stand apart from THE BOOKS OF MAGIC, which is where Linda Medley comes in. She's developed a unique style and a strong following in her own, self-published book Castle Waiting, and we're delighted to have her on board." THE BOOKS OF FAERIE will feature a large cast of characters, but will focus on Molly (following her own miniseries), Sturm the Troll, and a mysterious creature called Gyvv. The initial storyline features a threat that goes back to the earliest days of Faerie, and leads up to a startling new life for Molly. "People will be surprised, but pleased, I think," says writer Bronwyn Carlton. "The first page of issue #1 will be a big shock to BOOKS OF MAGIC fans, and there will be lots more twists as we create a whole new world." Readers should watch for BOOKS OF MAGIC #62, on sale in May, which features the first BOOKS OF FAERIE outing by Carlton and Medley -- a seven-page story that tells the entire history of Faerie, and provides tantalizing hints of events to come. DANGER GIRL #5, BATTLE CHASERS #5 UPDATE Both DANGER GIRL #5 and BATTLE CHASERS #5 have been delayed and do not yet have a new in-store date. DC RECEIVES TWO INTERNATIONAL HORROR GUILD AWARD NOMINATIONS Two DC Comics/VERTIGO projects have been nominated in the Graphic Story/Stories category for this year's International Horror Guild Awards. PREACHER: ANCIENT HISTORY (written by Garth Ennis and illustrated by Richard Case) and TRANSMETROPOLITAN: BACK ON THE STREET (written by Warren Ellis and illustrated by Darick Robertson) will vie with three other projects for the award at a ceremony at the World Horror Convention, held from March 4th to 7th at the Marriott North Central in Atlanta, GA. The International Horror Guild (originally the International Horror Critics Guild) was created in 1995 by Nancy A. Collins (author of the DC/VERTIGO title DHAMPIRE: STILLBORN), as a way to recognize the achievements of those who create in the Horror/Dark Fantasy field. Nominations were derived from recommendations made by the public and the judges' knowledge of the field. Edward Bryant, Stefan Dziemianowicz, Hank Wagner, and Fiona Webster are judges for the awards. ANIMATION EPISODE SCHEDULE Warner Bros. Animation has supplied us with the following air schedule, which is subject to change. THE NEW BATMAN/SUPERMAN ADVENTURES airs weekdays and Saturdays on the WB Network. Times given are Eastern and Pacific time. 2/1/99 (4:00 pm) -- "Never Fear" (Batman) 2/1/99 (4:30 pm) -- "Solar Power" (Superman) 2/2/99 (4:00 pm) -- "Apokolips... Now! Part 1" (Superman) 2/2/99 (4:30 pm) -- "Apokolips... Now! Part 2" (Superman) 2/3/99 (4:00 pm) -- "The Ultimate Thrill" (Batman) 2/3/99 (4:30 pm) -- "Feeding Time" (Superman) 2/4/99 (4:00 pm) -- "Fun and Games" (Superman) 2/4/99 (4:30 pm) -- "Riddler's Reform" (Batman) 2/5/99 (4:00 pm) -- "Catwalk" (Batman) 2/5/99 (4:30 pm) -- "Ghost in the Machine" (Superman) 2/6/99 (8:00 am) -- "Old Wounds" (Batman) 2/6/99 (8:30 am) -- "In Brightest Day" (Superman -- NEW!) 2/6/99 (9:30 am) -- "Gotham Golem" (Batman Beyond) ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [5] HAD YOUR PHIL? PHIL WHITE ogre4@earthlink.net [Phil White has contributed articles and cartoons to Comic Buyer's Guide, Wizard and Cinefantastique. He has written comic books for Americomics (AC) and Mattel Toy Company and has self-published comic books featuring his own characters, including Ogre, Felony, and the acclaimed "I Hunt." He supports his comic book hobby, and his family, as director of marketing and sales with a medium sized software and remote data-entry company in Southern California.] Back when I was a kid, the only way to learn what new comics were going to be coming out was by reading the ads in comics. Sure, you could scan the spinner racks at the five-and-dime or check the lower shelves at the magazine and tobacco shop to see what was currently there, but to learn about comics in the future, house ads was the only source. Invariably these house ads displayed only the covers of comics, surrounded by short, powerful hyperbole. Bold and fancy letters proclaimed, "SUPERBOY'S GREATEST EXPLOIT!" or "BATMAN'S MOST THRILLING QUEST!" These were often ads for comics due out within a few weeks. There were plenty of other advertising pages to be sure, ads for muscle building programs, greeting card sales and a whole page of joke gifts one could order by mail. All of these took up precious space, limiting the number of house ads for comics themselves. So you were lucky to see two or three of these solicitations in a comic book. But those covers and ad copy were always enough to grab my attention. The best and most intriguing art was always on the covers. After all, covers are designed to sell the comic from the newsstand display. Don't get too upset when I tell you that, as a pre-schooler, I'd actually cut out the ad covers and save them rather than save the comic they appeared in. The comics advertised were usually associated with the book in which the ad appeared. If you picked up a CASPER comic, you'd find ads for SPOOKEY and WENDY. LITTLE LULU had ads for TUBBY. SUPERMAN comics had ads for what we now call the "Superman family" of titles. The same held true for BATMAN. Sometimes ads strayed beyond their family family, so it was not impossible to find an ad for a JERRY LEWIS comic in the FOX AND CROW. But that was because both were humor titles. By the way, every single one these cover ads had one thing common, no matter who publisher them. In a clever marketing ploy, each cover had three our four vertical lines drawn down the right side of the cover. This added a depth and made the comics look as thick as a paperback book, suggesting bigger value for your 12 cents. As the years progressed, both Marvel and DC used their letter pages to encourage readers to try other comics from their respective lines. It was maddening to read letters or responses commenting on an issue I had missed, and it increased my desire to find those back issues at used book stores. Stan Lee really pushed the vortex on editorial sales hype, but with so much fun and unbridled honesty that I never complained. He was unashamed to plug a comic and tell you he was doing so in order to sell more and make Marvel more money. To my recollection, Marvel was the first publisher to include an entire editorial page dedicated to sales hype. The Bullpen Bulletins included a checklist with teasers to make one want to know more about their titles. Even when they admitted on the checklist that they had no idea what the story content would be, it helped create a sense of spontaneity, originality and even more anticipation. Back then, the only way to learn what new comics were coming out was by reading these ads in comics or editorial plugs. Kids today have it easier. They still have house ads, checklists and editorial plugs, but they have so much more! You can get free copies of COMIC SHOP NEWS each week, purchase WIZARD magazine, or get PREVIEWS, Diamond's monthly catalog, to learn who is writing, drawing and publishing what comics scheduled for release from three to 12 months in advance. Product listings still show the cover art and, sometimes, include some sample interior art as well. Plus you get lengthy plot descriptions. You can also log on to the Internet for this same information from hundreds of sources, as readers of CBEM are well aware. Don't think for a minute that these publications are made available to you to assist you in your selection planning or to help you discern the best stories coming your way. All the articles, interviews and product listings are there to sell you products by building your anticipation and expectations. And there is nothing wrong with that, per se. However, there is often so much information these days that, rather than enticing me to buy, I'm persuaded to pass. Thanks to the above publications I know that Gotham is in ruins for the next 12 months, Catwoman is in New York, Robin is off to Flash territory and that there is a logical explanation why the JLA aren't helping out. So I see no need to buy any of these books. While the only Superman title I read right now is SUPERBOY, I know that Superman has abandoned his Clark Kent identity and is going overboard on the super heroics for some mysterious, soon to be revealed, reason. I am also aware that Magneto is back in the X-Men's lives, with yet another cunning plan that won't succeed, even though I no longer buy any X-titles. So, is there too much news? Perhaps it's just that there is a finite amount of news and hype, but too many outlets for that news which results in an overload of redundancy. I mean, do we really need to read from six or seven different sources that KINGDOM COME will resolve DC's (perceived) continuity problems? Along with the hype we also get news about the underbelly of the industry... a stream of mostly negative publicity. I became fed up with the X-MEN and UNCANNY X-MEN as much over the constant changes in creative teams and editorial bickering as with the constant, lackluster changes in story direction which was the result. We quickly learn what prima donna creators are currently hacked off at what prima donna editor, citing "editorial differences" for abandoning projects midstream. How does an announcement like this endear me to either party or add pleasure to reading the resultant series? But I digress. These days it feels like the amount of paper churned out to advertise, promote, and hype comics outweighs the total amount of paper used to print those comics. I'm afraid the hype machine is out of control. Publishers are so busy promoting the purchase and collecting aspects of new comics that readers are becoming desensitized and alienated. Would that comic book publishers put the time, money, and energy they currently expend on advertising and hype into producing comics that are a good, solid read. But, you try to tell kids that today and they just call you an old geezer. And they are absolutely right! ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [6] RANDOM THOUGHTS IN A LESS THAN RANDOM WORLD Gary Sassaman GSassaman@AOL.COM [Gary Sassaman is the Writer/Artist/Publisher of INNOCENT BYSTANDER, you know...the "nice little comic you can take home to mom."] I have a confession to make. I just went Marvel-less. No, not marvelous. Marvel-less. I just dropped most of the Marvel titles from my subscription list at my local comics shop. Well, it's not quite totally "less". But it's damn close. I dropped Fantastic Four, Thor, Iron Man, and both Spidey titles. I had dropped the X- Men titles when I moved to San Diego in December. I still buy Captain America, Avengers, Daredevil and I'm looking at Earth X, but that's doubtful. Issue 0 has the crummiest Alex Ross cover ever, and I just can't get into John Paul Leon's artwork. It looks like Sharpie tracings on thick vellum to me. I've complained a bit about Spidey in this column before. I think the major problem with the new titles is that Ralph Macchio is still the editor and Howard Mackie is still the writer. If it was time to relaunch, it was time to relaunch with a whole new creative staff. The Fantastic Four. Well, what can I say? It's unreadable. The art is awful. It's just painful for me to even look at anymore. Thor? Well, I like Jurgens. I like Romita Jr. I just don't like this incarnation of Thor. I don't like the endless "is Jake going to be able to go to the ball game with his step- daughter to be or is Thor going to be needed?" Resolve the damn secret identity thing and get Thor off into some mystical realm and make him a god again. Why do I still buy Cap? Well, I'm not sure of that one. It's probably more Kubert's art than Waid's script. I really feel that Waid and Garney shot their wad on their first run on Cap, which followed a run of books so horrible that anything would seem better. But then Liefeld reared his ugly head and when they were given the book back after that debacle, it didn't seem like their hearts were in it. Especially Garney. Avengers is one of the few books that barely manages to conjure up the feeling of the Marvel of old. I attribute that mainly to Perez's art. I'm afraid I don't like Busiek's writing when he strays out of the city limits of Astro City. Never got into Thunderbolts, and while his Iron Man was a major improvement over the Jim Lee version, it still hasn't grabbed me enough to plunk down $1.99 a month for it. So what's going on? Why am I slowly turning my back on this stuff? Is it because I've published my own stuff and have seen what the comics industry is really like? Could be. Is it because I've finally come to the realization that I'm tired of paying $1.99-5.95 for something I'm going to read once and then place on a shelf? Could be. Or is it simply I'm sick of Marvel and their corporate arrogance and their being a business news story and not a creative company? Could be. Could be something else, too... Someone once wrote, "we all love a girl and her name is nostalgia." (I think it was James Thurber for some strange reason, but I could be wrong.) Unfortunately, we're all nostalgic for different things, different eras. I laugh every time I'm in the car around noon, because all the radio stations out here do some variation on a kind of flashback hour. But they all play 80s stuff. Know what? The 80s weren't that great a decade for music. All those glam rock, techno-pop, disco-fried, big-haired, big- shoed, instant has-beens. And the only reason the 80s is THE nostalgia decade as far as radio is concerned is that their target demographic audience (18-24) grew up then. C'mon how many times can you hear "Come On Eileen" by Dexy's Midnight Runners? I've heard it more times since moving here than I did when it first came out. I'm nostalgic for MY childhood. The great toys and Marvel Comics I grew up on. The silent little thrill of looking at a Kirby Fantastic Four cover for the very first time, in some old, musty newsstand in my hometown. And running home and cracking it open, being the first to discover what Stan and Jack had in store for us this month. Claremont can't hold a candle to any of those issues. No one can. The deck is stacked against them. CBG did a Kirby death anniversary issue this past week, and in it, Mark Evanier wrote a column on how Jack has affected so many people in so many ways. And one of the things he noted was how one time, Jack was told about a great issue of the FF currently on the stands. It was long after Jack had given it up, and Kirby said something on the order of, "of course! Those are great characters. How can they not be great stories?" Which makes it all the more sad that for the first time since 1961, I'm not buying the Fantastic Four. Or Spider-Man. It's been ruined for me. We all love a girl and her name is nostalgia. Unfortunately, she's quite the little slut. ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [7] PIPELINE COMMENTARY AND REVIEW Augie De Blieck Jr. http://www.nic.com/~augie/pipeline augie@nic.com ARIA ...sounds like a Sarah MacLachlan tune, doesn't it? Avalon Studio's ARIA is exactly what a first issue of a comic book should not be. There is no story here, really. There's a lot of set-up and a lot of beginnings of threads, but no real solid story that would make me really want to buy the second issue. However, oddly enough, I still do want to stick around for the next issue of two. ARIA is a fairy tale set in modern times. Or, rather, it is a story set in the current day with characters from classic fairy tale lore, from the faeries themselves to the merpeople and on and on. Past that, I can't tell you what is going on for the life of me. This is unfortunate. Why? Well, the art is stunning. I'm talking Dale Keown stunning. Jay Anacleto is a real find for Avalon. Yes, it's excessive cheese-cake. Our female antagonist sleeps in her underwear for us. (Although she was kind enough to change per panties before doing so. Seriously -- check out the final page. Her dress and panties are shown hanging from a chair. And then in the next panel she's shown sleeping in bed in her underwear.) She strips out of her jeans and t-shirt and into just her panties for us. She wears a little sundress -- I suppose is what it is -- which her bosom bursts out of on the sidee. She wears no bra, but does have tattooes on her cleavage. And she arches her back, shakes her booty, and in general acts provocatively an awful lot. However, at the same time, she also can act casually. And Anacleto draws some amazingly expressive faces. I am curious as to what the process used to produce this comic is. Brian Haberlin uses the same technique here as he uses over Mark Texera's work on BLACK PANTHER at Marvel. It has a rich, painted-looking feel to it. But I also get the feeling that it might be reproduced directly from the pencils. I say this in part because of the rough nature of some of the lines, as well as some of the forgotten ones. (The table's stand on the far right of the double-page panel in the bar has some "x"s on it to indicate the inker should fill it in solid black, but didn't. Did the repro technique change during production, or did Anacleto miss it while inking?) There is also no inker mentioned, just Anacleto on "art." And the Avalon Comics website is a complete mess of Shockwave crap. Sorry, I don't go for that kind of flash in a web site. if you care to waste your time, go to http://www.avaloncomics.com THE ART OF STORYTELLING A couple books came out this week that, I think, illustrate different points in proper comic book storytelling. So rather than straight reviews, I'm going to tackle them as they show my points. Unfortunately, due to the nature of this review, I have to throw out the SPOILER WARNINGS. The rest of this column is just lousy with spoilers. Normally, this column strives to remain spoiler-free. Just not this week. The first point is shown in the inimitable style of Warren Ellis in TRANSMETROPOLITAN #19. I can't explain it fully, but I can tell a Warren Ellis script a mile away. Ellis, for all his cynicism and tawdriness, has one of the most cinematic points of view of any writer working in comics today. The entire first half of this issue is told with lots of large panels and very little in the way of dialogue or descriptive panels. (The rest of the issue isn't much of an exception, by the way. But I'm leading up to something here, so I'm narrowing my scope just a tad.) For many, this would be the cause of great controversy. Remember of that issue of BONE in which Jeff Smith so beautifully laid out a moody an eery march through the forest? It was breathtaking in the way it made you feel, but there were those who went straight to USENET to complain that it "read too quickly" and that for $2.95, they expected a lot more. To me, it was just a more cinematic way of telling a story and of making a point. So it goes here. The first half of this TRANSMET issue is devoted to pointing out Spider Jerusalem's new-found separation from the city that makes him who he is, particularly after the events of last issue. The first six pages are set in the poorest section of the city, home of "The New Scum." Much of it is just open panels of Spider walking through the city. You don't need explanatory captions when the pictures are so vivid and the signs in the background explain so much so easily. The misspelled signs alerting the casual consumer that the bottles of alcohol this particular vendor is hawking are "All special prise!" The downtrodden looks of the men carrying dog carcuses to market. The gatherings throngs of otherwise desperate people smiling and holding out their hands to the ever-so-popular Spider Jerusalem. >From there you enter the sterile-looking apartment building in which Spider now resides. The apartment itself speaks here to illustrate the points, but it is page ten which works best. At first glance, it's a waste of a page. Spider steps out onto his balcony overlooking the city. The following three panels fill up the rest of the page and show his building getting further and further away. It's only upon second inspection that the reader notices the true effect of the composition. It's something you felt when you 'read' it the first time, but didn't notice or couldn't put into words. The p.o.v. isn't just getting further away, but it's also getting higher up. The 'camera' is both pulling back and angling up. Spider's "above-it-all" apartment now truly fits the phrase. And it's not 5 pages later that Spider breaks down on the very same balcony, distraught over being so far away from "The City" and "The People" and "The Masses" and whatever else you care to read into it. In the backgrounds of the following pages, the skyline of the city looms constantly, reminding the reader of the setting for all the conversation being shown in the foreground. Meanwhile, over in SUPERMAN & BATMAN: GENERATIONS #3, John Byrne shows us the proper use of the splash page. It shouldn't be used just to fill up a page, or to make for a better piece of art on the resale market. It should be used to make an impact. It should be used for plotting purposes. It should be used to drive home a point in a way a smaller panel -- even a half-page panel -- could not. In the second half of this series so far, Byrne has give us a number of emotional pushes. It's been a veritable roller-coaster ride so far, as familiar faces reach new roles and relationships go topsy-turvy. The 1979 chapter ends with a parallel to both the Death of Robin sequence, as well as the Death of Supergirl in Crisis scene. Clark Kent's long-thought-dead son returns to kill his sister in a fit of jealous rage. Of course, his sister is Supergirl. And the page is quite possibly the climax of the story, if not the series. There's also a certain amount of poetic symmetry going on here. The other full-page panel (not counting the opening splash page) occurs roughly an equal number of pages from the beginning as this page occurs from the end. It shows Supergirl in full form. It also serves as her introduction in the story. So between the two splashes, you see Supergirl at the height of her superheroine career as well as the nadir at the tragic end of it. You see her happy with her peer who is to be her husband and at death with the peer who is the long-thought-lost man in her life, her brother. Heck, it's almost Shakespearian. Someone get me a Greek Chorus! GENERATIONS is the best work of Byrne's, bar the CAPTAIN AMERICA/BATMAN crossover one-shot which takes place in this same thread of Hypertime, since NEXT MEN. I can't wait for the conclusion and the TPB. (Tangent: Thanks to Hypertime, Peter David's final issue of THE INCREDIBLE HULK can now be considered canon. Yay!) (Second tangent: The Tangent Universe now also exists thanks to Hypertime.) (Third tangent: ...would be the next line to just glance off the parabola.) -Augie P.S. My apologies if this sounds too didactic. I just had to get it out of my system. Back to normal next week! =) -------------------------------------------------- Augie De Blieck Jr. * augie@nic.com Pipeline Commentary and Review: New Every Sunday: http://www.nic.com/~augie/pipeline ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [8] VENTING MY SPLEEN David Groenewegen david.groenewegen@lib.monash.edu.au [David Groenewegen is 30, a librarian and sadly addicted to comics. He has been reading them since before he could read, and plans to keep on doing so. His first trip out of the house with his infant son was to a comic shop. Can't start 'em too young. ] Martin Wagner, the creative force behind Hepcats recently announced that he was "canceling" the title, due to low orders for #13. He claimed that this was because "the independent arm of comics publishing is no longer supportable". I used to really like Hepcats, in fact I think I have every issue (all 12 of them) and even the Collegiate Hepcats TPB. But several years ago I decided that should another issue ever come out, I wasn't going to buy it. Because Martin Wagner's attitude really got up my nose. In an interview published in Comic Wire, Wagner points out that he wasn't making any money after nine years of struggling. Nine years he's been putting this title out and he's surprised that there is no enthusiasm for issue 13. Perhaps if he was putting out issue 50 and there was no interest it might be a surprise. But in all of his public pronouncements there seemed to be an attitude that Hepcats was so good, so worthy, that we should be grateful to be getting it at all. The letters pages often contained complaints from subscribers that the bimonthly schedule was not being kept, and these were answered by torrents of abuse and excuses about how hard it was to put the book together. I recall one instance where the subscription was thrown back in the letter writer's face. That Wagner chose to print these letters demonstrates a real contempt for legitimate complaints. Now I'm not suggesting for one second that being a self-publisher isn't tough, and that the pressures aren't enormous. Nor am I suggesting that the occasional lapse in punctuality is not forgivable. There are illnesses, family problems, cash flow difficulties. But the successful independent publishers (Cerebus, Bone) recognized a long time ago that comics can start as a hobby, but if you really want to get somewhere you need to treat it like a business. And that means treating your customers with the basic respect that a regular schedule and value for money implies. Even Image seem to be getting the hang of this (it is worth noting that the single most successful Image title, Spawn, is also the one closest to #100, despite the flood of #1's that came out at the same time), but Martin Wagner didn't seem to see this as relevant. When he moved to Antarctic Press in early 1996, there was supposed to be a breathing space where he could get up to date on the title while the early issues were reprinted. By the middle of last year there was supposed to be a steady stream of new issues, because he was being given two years to catch up. Now perhaps there are business problems that I don't know about (God knows Antarctic Press' website is no paragon of currency), but he has obviously solicited the issue a good six months after the originally stated date. Two years to catch up and he's already six months behind. Sorry, I don't care how good you think your book is, it's not that good. This attitude is far too common in comics today. You could get away with it (just) in the flourishing market of ten years ago, but now, with a diminishing audience, it's just foolishness. Wager claimed that "Certainly no incentive is being given artists to choose comics as a medium for personal expression." Yes Martin, there are no prizes distributed for being worthy. You want to be worthy, that's your call, but don't complain to me if your vision is unable to sustain the interest of the buying public. Yes, the distribution channels are not what they were, but the opportunities are still out there (and in any case Hepcats started where the direct Market and the Distribution competition was huge). Grow up, comics, doesn't owe you a living. Despite what you might think of his work, Todd McFarlane reputedly just spent $3 million on a baseball. He may not have made all of that out of comics, but it is the base of his fortune. How much incentive do you need? According to Comic Wire Martin Wagner hopes to move into film direction. I wish him all the luck in the world, but I'm not holding my breath waiting for that film to come out. David Groenewegen davidhar@lib.monash.edu.au ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [9] SOME PAGES, A COVER, AND A FEW STAPLES Marlan Harris mar93@aol.com [Marlan Harris lives and works in Burbank, CA.] DR. FATE, vols. 1 & 2 (DC) DC sure had a lot of money to throw around in the late ‘80’s. And a desire to spin off every possible character from their then-very popular JUSTICE LEAGUE (later JUSTICE LEAGUE, then still later JUSTICE LEAGUE AMERICA). Not that most of the spin-offs were really very good. J.M DeMatteis wrote both the DR> FATE mini-series and the ongoing series it lead into, introducing a Dr. Fate that was actually two people and also the Lord of Order Nabu entering Kent Nelson's dead body, and so on, which didn't amount to much by the end of the series and the beginning of the much-more interesting FATE series a few years later. DeMatteis's writing sure talks a lot but it's not saying anything. He tries to pull off the same wackiness mixed with seriousness that made his JUSTICE LEAGUE a great comic (for a while, at least) but it just doesn't work in DR. FATE. DeMatteis is a master of dialogue but his plots are filled with puny challenges for the heroes and resolutions that make little or no sense. DR. FATE is filled with all the purple prose psychobabble and comic-book mysticism that only works in SANDMAN, and even then just so. The art is give-or-take. Keith Giffen, who drew the limited series, should not be allowed to do mainstream superhero comics with popular characters. He sure likes drawing bad shadows and apparently he hates drawing faces below the eyebrow line. Shawn McManus, in the regular series, develops into an excellent artist before our eyes issue after issue but his art is way too good for the comics. #12, a fill-in issue drawn by Val Semeiks and Mark Buckingham, is much better suited for the series. That issue also features the absolute worst-ever portrayal of Darkseid ever in a comic and also one of the worst lines I've read in a while, in any medium-"If I leave you-I leave the best part of myself!" (you really don't need any context for that one). It also goes to show what kind of comic market was around 10 years ago, when DR. FATE could continue for over 24 issues, and today, when a great comic like CHASE gets canceled after 9 issues. DAREDEVIL #s 376-379 "Flying Blind". Why do people keep giving Scott Lobdell money to write comics? And why would anyone let him write Daredevil? At least he didn't try to crib from Miller like he cribbed from Claremont on X-MEN. Here he's trying to write like Chuck Dixon and even though he's almost got Dixon's pacing down, what could be a quick read becomes a quick, insubstantial, hallow read. This isn't even Daredevil in the comic. The red Daredevil costume is seen twice, since Matt Murdock has some kind of brainwashing done to him by a SHIELD agent and he regains his sight, loses his memories and personality (or at least Lobdell writes him with barely any personality), and has one hell of a pointless adventure. At least this wasn't the last issue before Smith and Quesada's reboot. At least Marvel picked a decent team for that official last issue. Cully Hamner draws the first and last parts with his usual extraordinary technique, and Tom Morgan, whose his art is much better here than it usually is, is such an abrupt change of style from Hamner's that it makes the story that much more inconsistent when the parts are read together. Lobdell is also writing the new WILDC.A.T.S. Like anyone is buying the comic for anything other than art by Travis Charest. With so many good, if not great, writers looking for work in comics, why does anyone want Lobdell? The guy must work for pennies and/or write whole scripts in a day (and, of course, they read like it). IRONMAN, vol. 2 #14 Kurt Busiek can usually do no wrong, but with Roger Stern coming on with this issue as co-plotter and scripter, IRONMAN is now the strongest it's been since the reboot. Stern is better than Busiek with dialogue, moving the story along more quickly and smoothly than before without losing any crucial tension or explanation. Stern also writes the Fantastic Four, this issue's guest stars, better then they've been written in ten years. Busiek's style as such is much more suited to AVENGERS, where he could perhaps be its best-ever writer. Sean Chen is also improving almost exponentially with every issue—if only he could do every issue and not have a fill-in penciller every other month. E-BAY COMIC AUCTION I raved about the Mile High Comics online auction a few months ago, and in addition now the E-Bay auction is one to check out. Sure, they auction off all kinds of stuff, but their selection of comics is extraordinary-even better than Mile High's if you want to compare. Of course, it depends on the number of people that have comics to sell and want to put them up for auction on the site, but apparently that's a great number of people. Lots of comic, crazy prices: http://www.ebay.com. Go to "collectibles" then "comics" then go wild. mar93@aol.com Http://members.aol.com/mar93/BoneMachine.html ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [10] And let me tell you why .... David Coulter david102@netscape.net [David - who declared himself "Official Columnist Of the New Millennium, " and then thought better of it (deciding instead on "America's Weirdly Cool Columnist") -- lives with his family in Kansas City and pays the bills as Marketing Director for a computer consulting group. He likes Superman better than Batman, baseball better than football, and Mac better than Windows.] My favorite new book last year wasn't a comic, it was a magazine about comics. Comic Book Artist, to be exact. They've got three issues under their belt so far, and I don't see any signs that they'll be slowing down. I mean, they've managed to squeeze two really interesting issues out of Marvel in the mid-seventies -- an era that always struck my as being devoid of the life and artistry that characterized the Marvel of the 60’s. Well, you can learn a lot. And I did. Granted, most of what has made the last three issues great is heavy involvement by notable comic book artists -- not surprisingly I guess, since that's the name of the mag -- like Neal Adams, Barry Windsor-Smith, and Gil Kane. And of course, there's Roy Thomas, whose venerable Alter Ego make a comeback as a flip-book on the backside of CBA. A few highlights? Well, how about an unpublished Hawkman sketch by Joe Kubert? A copy of Stan Lee's original synopsis for Fantastic Four #1? An interview with the late Joe Orlando about his time as an editor at DC Comics? Interviews with Steve Engleheart, Dave Cockrum, Jim Starlin, Stan Lee, Roy Thomas, Neal Adams, and Dick Giordano? One of my personal favorites has been Michael T. Gilbert's extended look into Gardner Fox's perennial papers -- currently archived at Oregon University (I think). Fox, one of the lesser known architects of DC's Gold AND Silver Ages, saved a wealth of stuff that's of historic value to comics -- and a lot of stuff that's not -- but is just plain interesting. Like letters from young fans like Jerry Bails, or DC's writer guidelines from the 40's. Gilbert's favorite, and I have to agree, is #7 "No one should be roasted alive." Although I really like the one that admonishes "Don't call anyone a `jerk,' or as one writer slipped past us, Icky.' The punch line of the whole thing, though, is editor (and cartoonist) Sheldon Mayer's handwritten note at the bottom: "Now go write a good story -- I dare you!" I mean, this is good stuff. For example, did you know that the ILL New, All Different" X-Men were originally conceived as a "Mutant version of the Blackhawks?” Yup. The original idea was to create a group patterned on the Blackhawks, with each member coming from a different country where Marvel -- at that time -- sold its books. Ironically, as someone later noted, most of the members came from countries where Marvel had no presence (Russia, Germany, Japan, and whatever African nation Storm came from). Storm was also -- as originally designed designed by Dave Cockrum -- a woman who turned into a cat: An idea that was nixed after several cat-themed heroines hit the scene (Tigra, etc.) I know, it doesn't greatly contribute to a deeper understanding of the X-Men, or -- quite frankly -- make me more interested in doing anything than ignoring them, but it's a neat little tidbit nonetheless. Thank god the book is quarterly (barely) -- there's a lot to read. I had just finished #2 when #3 hit the stands, and if #4 arrives on time, I'll only be half way through #3. If your shop doesn't carry Comic Book Artist -- and my new one doesn't (believe me, I'm busting heads), check out the CBA web page for subscription and back issue info: http://twomorrows.com/comicbookartist/index.html Comments? Criticisms? Flames? E-mail them to david102@netscape.net or DneColt@aol.com. ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [11] My Too Sense Cory Kleinschmidt corypk@zdnetmail.com [Cory Kleinschmidt is a hopeless comic book fanatic and Web developer who lives in St. Louis, Missouri.] I've done a lot of provocative thought lately on Why Normal People Don't Take Comics Seriously (fanfare!) and have come up with the following list of superhero silliness in the post-MARVELS era. Why the post-Marvels era? MARVELS brought a much-needed sense of realism to comics that the medium had been lacking for some time and set the bar for credibility a bit higher than it used to be. Kurt Busiek's and Alex Ross's vision was so revolutionary that it called into question many of the standard superhero tripe we've been dealing with for years. Tired comic book cliches are bogging us down, and I am, therefore, calling for the demise of the following cliches: STUPID CLICHE #1: RIDICULOUS POWERS Two of the most recently introduced X-Men known as Marrow and Maggott are examples of the most flagrant abuse of the mutant convention ever. Marrow, with the painful-sounding ability to grow razor-sharp, bone-like projections out of her body, has perhaps one of the most absurd super powers ever. Maggott can summon two big-ass slugs to use as offensive weapons. Ohhhhkay. Here's the deal: Mutations, scientists believe, are nature's way to expand the gene pool by throwing in oddball traits that the parents of an organism didn't have. The overwhelming majority of mutations prove fatal to the organism; those that are beneficial, say monkeys who could walk on their hind legs, lead to vast advances in evolution. The idea that a person could gain the ability to project eye, hand, or ass-beams is laughable at best. Were they to be born with those traits, they would surely die. Their eyes would burn out, their hands would become match sticks, and their arses would turn to marshmallow. Yeah, yeah, you say, but their bodies would be *immune* to the effects of their powers. Please! That's merely a shining example of comics' overused "explaining away" phenomenon. Let's look at other X-powers. *Storm. What possible paranormal ability could give one the power to control weather? None. *Wolverine. Aside from the improbable adamantium skeleton (yeah, right), Wolvie has one of the more believable powers: a healing factor and hypersenses. I'd buy it that someone's immune system and senses could be augmented. *Colossus. Skin that can turn to steel and back. Tee hee... *Phoenix. Telepathy? Yes. Telekinesis? Sure. Solar-system shattering energy powers? Nah. *Rogue. The ability to steal other people's powers. How? How? I ask.... Couldn't happen. *Cyclops. See "ass-beam comments" above. Other noteworthy superheroes and their powers: Giant-Man (Avengers). I know the lame-o Marvel techno-geeks will say, "How does his power work? Well, it's very elementary, you see. When he grows, he pulls in body mass from an extra-dimensional source. And when he shrinks, the body mass goes back. See?" Uh, right. In other words, it's another poor excuse to come up with a power that is completely impossible. Why does it always seem that Marvel's characters have the most out-there, no basis in science powers? STUPID CLICHE #2: ALIEN INVASIONS When Kurt Busiek trotted out this tired cliche in Astro City sometime back, I had to yawn. These are acutely difficult to pull off believably anymore because they've been done to death. STUPID CLICHE #3: IMPOSSIBLE SUPERHERO COSTUMES Artistic license be damned! Spider-Man's mask cannot alter its appearance. If you've got a mask made of cloth, it is against the laws of physics to have a mask whose eye holes squint, smile, or open wide with amazement. Cloth is not synchronized with human facial expressions. Batman's ears, by the same token--even though I loved the styles and shadows of Kelley Jones--do not have the ability to grow. Creative leeway like this only serves to reinforce the perception that comics are cartoons, which is not the truth. But when some average Joe on the street looks at Batman with 2-feet-long ears, he sees a cartoon. And cartoons are taken less seriously than comics. Spawn's cape is another pitiful example. I know it looks cool when Todd McFarlane draws a swirling, 100-foot-long train on Spawnie. But, if you really think about it, it's just plain goofy. Iron Man's mask is another zinger. It is made of metal, and is unable to reflect what it is Mr. Stark is feeling. Whether he's about to be throttled by Thanos or he's gloating after whooping up on the Mandarin, his mask, surprisingly, will always look the same. And while we're talking about ol' Ironsides, let's address the tendency of artists to draw armor as if it were just human skin with a coat of gold Krylon paint. Armor is metal. Metal does not look like muscle and change shape when someone who wears armor is exerting him/her/itself. This bugs the hell out of me. It's just silly, silly, silly. STUPID CLICHE #4: WORLD-THREATENING EVENTS Every month it's the same: Once again, the X-Men have averted tragedy and saved the universe! Whew... You know, after you've read these kinds of stories a few times, same as alien invasions, they lose all impact. STUPID CLICHE #5: "WE'RE GOING TO SHAKE THINGS UP" Ch-ch-ch-changes. Turn and face the strange. How many times have you heard the generic X-writer promise, "We're really going to shake things up"? Do not believe. These are hollow promises. And it's such a shame. Once there was a time when you heard changes were on the way, there were changes on the way. Now, though, after umpteen promises of change, skeptics just don't buy into it anymore. "shaking things up" is usually a sign that the writer has run out of ideas and is implementing a vapid story line "event" that will cover up the lack of creativity. What they should do is say, "OK, there won't be any changes that will sprout from this pointless event, but there will be great characterization and storytelling." Because that's what "events" should really be. We know that no real changes will be made and that things will go back to normal eventually. And you thought Superman would always be dead? Shame on you! I still remember a few years back the promise that X-Men #247 would see the death of an X-Man! Who would it be, we all hypothesized. Then we heard it would be Rogue! We were shocked! But she didn't die. Oh, no, she just walked into a mirror and came out of it in Australia. Oh, and she somehow emerged as a teenager. STUPID CLICHE #6: "IN THIS ISSUE: A HERO DIES!" I'm not dead, yet. Once again, Marvel has been the worst about bloodying up their characters only to conjure them up again when a hack writer gets a hair up his arse. The following is a partial list of characters who have died, only to come back again: Phoenix, Elektra, Doc Octopus, Vulture, Thunderbolt Ross, Adam Warlock, Thanos, Iron Fist, Kraven, Superman, Tony Stark, Wonder Man, Swordsman, The Vision (so what if he's an android?), and Guardian Can ROM: Space Knight be far behind? When DC, the always classier of the Big Two, kills someone they usually stay dead. With Marvel, you know that if someone dies, it's all just a conspiracy to make a big event when they come back to life. This practice has of course gone on for a long time and will go on for a long time. I still object vehemently to bringing back dead characters, unless there is a very good reason to do so and therefore am calling for a worldwide ban. Although, I have to admit that Busiek's resurrection of Wonder Man was highly entertaining--mostly because the character has such fun with the fact that he's been dead and resurrected not once, but twice! Thank God they let Captain Marvel RIP! STUPID CLICHE #7: CROSS-OVERS Events are not stories. Cross-overs are not stories. When you assemble more than 10 or so characters within a few panels, you cannot effectively tell a story, continued or not, within 22 pages. At one time cross-overs were something to behold. Marvel's CONTEST OF CHAMPIONS was cool because it really put all these characters together for the first time. It was engaging for the reader to see how their favorite heroes interacted with others. And DC's CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS was the ultimate in cross-over storytelling because it bucked the tradition. Its story not only meant something (until Hypertime came along), but the characterization was impeccable. You really feel sorry for the Superman of Earth-whatever when his world was eradicated. So what's the problem? Because NOTHING EVER HAPPENS IN CROSS-OVERS. It boils down to the simple fact that if nothing happens, if characters don't grow or change in some way (and getting a new costume, or a new character joining a team does NOT count as real growth), then the readers lose because all character-driven stories will see main characters develop in some way. I'm sure there are quite a few other, more nonsensical comic book cliches that I'm missing. In fact, I'm preparing a whole column on other factors that cause the public to dismiss comics as a viable literary and art form. But that's for next time. ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [12] Multiverse Observer and Explorer Reviews Paul Dale Roberts silhouet9@aol.com [Paul promotes amateur and professional comic book artwork, scripts, storylines, and unpublished comic books with a newsletter called the Peoples' Comic Book Newsletter. Its website is at Jazma Comic Book Newsletter Productions at http://www.twmgrafix.com/jazma He is also a prominent letter hack, as anyone who reads comic letter pages would know. He is in production of his own self-published comic book called The Legendary Dark Silhouette and has copyrighted over 600 characters for his Jazma Universe.] M.O.E. Sidenote: This is a fast sum up of comic books on the racks at Broadway Comics & Cards: Stray Cats #1 by Slave Labor Graphics, Bulletproof Monk #1 by Flypaper Press, Broken Halo by Darrell C.L. Donald, Maison Ikkoku by Viz Comics, Virtex #2 by Oktomica and the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers #12 by Rip Off Press! Information about these comics, you can email Wilson Lew the owner of Broadway Comics & Cards at: wilsonlew@sprintmail.com Multiverse Observer and Explorer signing off. Name: Channel Zero Publisher: Image Written and Drawn by: Brian Wood Price: $2.95 Comments: Call it the Big Brother effect, or call it the New World Order. Whatever you want to call it, it is intense! Channel Zero is a reality I never want to experience, but what if our future could turn out this way? We seem to be headed in that direction. Our own government loves control and what if their hunger for power, becomes overwhelming? Could it turn into the reality that is portrayed in Channel Zero? Is this truly our future? Is Brian Wood a futurist or perhaps a visionary and is showing us a possible reality? As Nostradamus showed us a possible future through his writings, is Brian Wood also showing us a possible future? Should we pay close attention and examine what is being written here? Is this a warning of some sort? One who writes science fiction is one who is writing science fact. What we imagine can be true. (Example: read the book Titan and compare it to the real sinking of the Titanic). I think everyone reading Channel Zero should pay close attention. Right now, we have bar codes on everything and anything and what's to say that the government doesn't start placing permanent bar codes on infant humans for life? All money transactions are not done with credit cards or paper money anymore, but are done through bar codes that are permanently tattooed on your body. When this happens you'll look in the mirror and say, the New World Order is here or should I say the realism of Channel Zero is here..."my god, why didn't I listen?" Now, let me shake it out a bit and talk about Channel Zero the story. How horrifying to think that the government would take away the 'freedom of the press'. To control our lives through the media. To brainwash us and make us lose our desire for individuality. The government has become a monster and can a strong leader like Maven and her resistance group be able to crush this beast? The Maven in appearance is intimidating and she shows strong leadership qualities, but can she truly hold out? The numbers seem so overwhelming. I shudder at the thought of the "Clean Act" and how the right to bear arms was rescinded. Sure, right now many people carry weapons and we have killings everywhere, but how can we defend ourselves, if we have no guns and only the evil empire known as our government has weapons? Brian has laid out an intriguing story that has me completely at the edge of my seat. I never know what to expect when reading Channel Zero. I am glad there is still hope and that is the wild frontier known as the Internet. But, I wonder if the government would be able to control that? Could the government's cybercops track down the rebellious cybernauts and disable them? Maven says the internet is safe, but how long? Now to other things, before I close out. Enjoy the way the acronyms are laid out for the reader and Brian's descriptions leave images in my mind...such as "place reeked like mildew mixed with beer sweat". That definitely left an image and a nasty smell! Channel Zero is one of the most petrifying and shocking stories out on the racks today and I hope there will be a glimmer of hope for mankind! Only Brian Wood knows for sure...damn! Yes, this baby is highly recommended! Superb storytelling! Name: Age of Bronze - The Story of the Trojan War #2 Publisher: Image Written and Drawn by: Eric Shanower Price: $2.95 Comments: This is what Eric says: "In the late Bronze Age - about the thirteenth century BCE - on Mount Ida in Anatolia, the young cowherd Paris lives with his parents. Four servants of the King from the city of Troy take Paris' champion bull for a prize in the upcoming festival games. Paris protests, but to no avail. He decides to to to Troy and enter the games to win back his bull despite his parent's misgivings. They know something about Paris' past that they have kept hidden from their son......" This is what MOE says: Age of Bronze #2 had plenty of surprises! I was going to cook a fancy dinner this night, but too excited about this issue, so Charlie Tuna told me to make some quick tuna sandwiches and kick back with this issue and enjoy! The story starts off innocent enough with Paris excited about the games. Can you imagine? No tv, no movie theatres and the biggest excitement for this race of people in the city of Troy, is to watch the chariot races with their own local heroes like Deiphobus, or watching boxing matches. I can hear them chanting in the crowd...let the games begin! As I go to my own hometown arena, called Arco Arena, there is nothing more exciting, than having the enthusiasm of the audience around me and trying to spot out the local or national celebrities sitting on the front rows. In this, time hasn't changed, for in the city of Troy, the local celebrities are pointed out, all the way to the main celebrities and that being King Priam and his queen. When Paris interrupted the boxing match, I thought this was dumb on his part and to be disciplined for his outrageous behavior served him right, I thought. Then to see the outcome change as Paris defeats the King's sons and becomes a champion of the game. This was a major surprise and caught me off guard. Paris really excelled in the sports that he was familiar with and then later to learn that he was the King's son was a shocker! Priam's sons jaws dropped, when hearing this news! A new Prince of Troy and the prophesies of Kassandra are told to the people. Paris must die, so the future of Troy is kept alive. This story just gets better and better! Wow! Two things made me real sad. That being Agelaus losing his adopted son Paris to King Priam. I also felt sorry for Paris' magnificent bull, that had to get slaughtered, what a waste. Then I thought it might be sad that Paris had to lose his love, but he seems like he doesn't care and is ready for a worthy woman, a woman that is the most beautiful...is Paris this heartless? I really don't know what to expect next from this exciting comic book and all I can do is anxiously await the next installment! Name: Ghost #5 Publisher: Dark Horse Comics Written by: Chris Warner Drawn by: Christian Zanier/pencils Steve Moncuse/inks Price: $2.95 Comments: Elisa is going through so much right now and I'm surprised she can hold it together. With misleading memories of her origins, her mind is confused and in a state of chaos. I wonder if she'll be able to get through this mess? The key is Jessica. Ghost must control that 'key' to get to the truth. The suspense was heavy in Ghost #5, as Elisa is confined to jade quarters that she can't ghost through, then watching her daring escape underground and being able to control her fear and then that mystery man. A man who loves Ghost...so he says. Is this mystery man another ploy in Elisa's misleading memories? If I had a choice of a liaison to the spirit world and that being Beetlejuice or Concordia Leveche, I will take Concordia hands down. Another fascinating character in the world of Ghost. Excuse the Beetlejuice mention, but couldn't think of any other liaison to the spirit world. The Agency has a hidden agenda and I wasn't surprised that they didn't care that Ghost took out the mob bosses, this is all part of the plan. But, what the plan is, will most likely be the ultimate shocker. I love the callousness that Ghost shows, when she handed Peter the gun to take his own life for his guilt and deception. Ghost knows how to handle these cretins. This is one of the things that makes Ghost such a unique character, is her Clint Eastwood Hang Em' High persona. She doesn't take any crap! Big twist and turn to the story as Ghost confronts the devil at Sangre de Cristo Mountains! Get on board the Dark Horse train, because Ghost is going to Hell! You won't want to miss out on this one! Super Fast MOE Sidenote: Out on the A1 Comics racks are: Volcanic Revolver #1 by Oni Press, Nobody #3 by Oni Press, The Curse of Brambly Hedge by Castle Waiting, Bulletproof Monk and Gifts of the Night by Vertigo. Interested in renting out a bizarre science fiction movie? Try out "The Cube", now out on video. If you can figure this movie out, email me your theory at Silhouet9@aol.com Multiverse Observer and Explorer signing off.... ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [13] New Comic Book Releases List [NCRL] by Charles LePage ncrl@mediaone.net +++WINNER OF THE 1996 REC.ARTS.COMICS.* "SQUIDDY" FOR BEST WEB SITE+++ http://www.jacksonville.net/~ncrl New Comic Book Releases List for Wednesday, 2/03/1999, compiled by Charles LePage with information from Suncoast Comics. This is the *preliminary* list and is not complete. The completed list is posted weekly, usually Monday evening, at rec.arts.comics.info, http://www.jacksonville.net/~ncrl, and Compuserve's Comics Publishers Forum. "TPB" = "trade paperback". "GN" = "graphic novel". "AA" = "available again". "SC" = "softcover". "HC" = "hardcover". "S/N" = "signed/numbered". "AR" = "ask retailer about price". PUBLISHER TITLE, ISSUE NUMBER, PRICE IN U.S. DOLLARS NCRL for February 3, 1999 ANTARCTIC PRESS Stargods Visions, 2.95 ARCHIE COMICS PUBLICATIONS Archie #482, 1.79 Betty & Veronica Double Digest #79, 2.99 Veronica #86, 1.79 CLAYPOOL COMICS Deadbeats #33, 2.5 Elvira #69, 2.5 CPM MANGA Lodoss War Grey Witch #3, 2.95 DARK HORSE Oh My Goddess The Devil In Miss Urd #4 (Of 6), 2.95 Territory #2 (Of 4), 2.95 Tongue Lash Ii #1 (Of 2), 2.95 DC COMICS Batman Legends Of The Dark Knight #116, 1.99 Batman The Gotham Adventures #11, 1.99 Birds Of Prey #4, 1.99 Conjurors #1 (Of 3), 2.95 Impulse Bart Saves The Universe, 5.95 Invisibles Counting To None TPB, 19.95 Legion Of Super Heroes #113, 2.5 Martian Manhunter #5, 1.99 Planetary #1, 2.5 Preacher #48, 2.5 Starman #52, 2.5 Superman #143, 1.99 Superman Adventures #30, 1.99 Titans Secret Files #1, 4.95 Trenchcoat Brigade #2, 2.5 Vext #2, 2.5 Young Justice #7, 2.5 FANTAGRAPHICS BOOKS Penny Century #4, 2.95 FIREMAN PRESS Gear #3 (Of 6), 2.95 ICONTEXTURE Glowball Players #1, 2.75 IMAGE COMICS Ascension #11, 2.5 Curse Of The Spawn #28, 1.95 Fathom Coll Ed #1, 5.95 Kiss Psycho Circus #16, 2.25 Savage Dragon #57, 2.5 Spirit Of The Tao #7, 2.5 Carvers #2 (Of 3), 2.95 Deception #1 (Of 3), 2.95 Kabuki Reflections #2, 4.95 Jackie Chans Spartan X #5 (Of 6), 2.95 Michael Goldens Jurassic Park Portfolio #1 (Of 2), 24.95 Little Red Hot Chane Of Fools #1 (Of 3), 2.95 Zorro Lady Wears Red TPB, 12.95 KITCHEN SINK PRESS Mona #1, 4.95 magazines Comic Shop News #607, AR MARVEL COMICS Cable #66, 1.99 Captain America Sentinel Of Liberty #8, 1.99 Fantastic Four #16, 1.99 Marvel Collectible Classics Amazing Spider-Man #1, 7.5 Spider-Man Chapter 1 #6 (Of 13), 2.5 Thor #10, 1.99 Uncanny X-Men #367, 1.99 X-Force #88, 1.99 X-Men Unlimited #22, 2.99 ONI PRESS INC. Nobody #4 (Of 4), 2.95 PENNY FARTHING PRESS Captain Gravity #3, 2.75 PEREGRINE ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT Digital Dragon #1, 2.95 PREVIEWS PUBLICATIONS Previews Vol IX #2, 2.95 THORBY ENTERPRISES Skulker #2, 2.95 VIZ COMMUNICATIONS Neon Genesis Evangelion Book Three #6 (Of 6), 3.25 NCRL for the foreseeable future... TITLE OLD DATE NEW DATE DC COMICS Crimson #8 01/13/99 02/10/99 New Teen Titans Archives Vol 1 01/27/99 02/10/99 Sandman: The Doll'S House HC New Ptg 01/20/99 02/10/99 Green Lantern: The New Corps #1 01/20/99 02/17/99 Gen13 #38 02/17/99 02/24/99 Kurt Busiek'S Astro City Vol. 2 #16 01/20/99 02/24/99 Flintstones & Jetsons #20 02/03/99 03/03/99 Gen13: Wired 02/03/99 03/03/99 Crimson #9 02/10/99 03/10/99 Divine Right #9 01/27/99 03/10/99 Golden Age Flash Medium Statue 02/24 03/17 Green Lantern: The New Corps #2 02/17/99 03/17/99 Flintstones & Jetsons #21 03/03/99 04/07/99 Crimson #10 03/10/99 04/14/99 Battle Chasers #5 09/30/98 TBA Danger Girl #5 02/24/99 TBA Wildcats Poster 02/03/99 TBA Crisis On Infinite Earths HC w/slipcase 12/02 TBA MARVEL Marvel Remix Fantastic Four Fireworks #3 01/27/99 02/03/99 Spider-Girl: Beginnings TPB 01/27/99 02/03/99 X-Force #88 01/27/99 02/03/99 X-Men Unlimited #22 01/27/99 02/03/99 Avengers #14 01/27/99 02/10/99 Battlebooks: Colossus 12/02/98 02/10/99* Battlebooks: Gambit 12/02/98 02/10/99* Battlebooks: Rogue 12/02/98 02/10/99* Battlebooks: Storm 12/02/98 02/10/99* Daredevil #6 02/03/99 02/10/99 Slingers #4 01/27/99 02/10/99 Thor Coll Ed #1 02/03/99 02/10/99 Avengers Forever #5 02/10/99 02/24/99 Thunderbolts #25 02/17/99 02/24/99 Spider-Man Manga #28 01/13/99 TBA Spider-Man Manga #29 01/27/99 TBA X-Men Manga #23 01/06/99 TBA X-Men Manga #24 01/20/99 TBA X-Men Manga #25 02/03/99 TBA ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [14] HYPE! Section Various Subject: Avatar May 1999 releases From: avatar@net66.com (Avatar Press, Inc.) Avatar Press 9 Triumph Drive Urbana, IL 61802 ph 217-384-2211 fax 217-384-2216 PRODUCTS SHIPPING: May 1999 If you have any problems or questions on any of the information, please contact William Christensen, Editor in Chief, Avatar Press. Our big push for this month is Quantum Mechanics. This exciting new science fiction book will ship to stores right as the new Star Wars film comes out and interest in Sci-fi is at an all-time high. The Munhgo figure is also solicited this month, however it will not be shipping until Sept for holiday 1999 sales. The Quantum Mechanics figures will be a continuing line with releases clear through 1999. Graphics are available for all items, just let us know what you need! QUANTUM MECHANICS #1 Retail Price: $3.50 US Cover: Jacen Burrows Writer: Barry Gregory Artist: Jacen Burrows Readership: All Ages Format: B&W, 32 pages, monthly, (1 of 2) PRODUCT DESCRIPTION: Arissa Boddu thought that the Church of the Acarine and its ambitions were light years away from having anything at all to do with her. She also thought that the Warrior Mechanics were nothing more than a legend, a fairy tale told to give hope to the poor souls on the hundred worlds ruled by the iron hand of the Proctors and the Church's theocratic empire. She thought she knew who she was. She thought she knew her father. And she thought she knew the enormous, hulking, basilisk she affectionately referred to as "Uncle Munhgo". But one day she found out that everything she thought she knew was wrong. Quantum Mechanics is an all new, action-packed, star- spanning, science fiction epic that is sure to delight fans of Stars Wars and Babylon 5! QUANTUM MECHANICS #1 Wraparound cover Retail Price: $3.95 US Cover: Karl Waller Writer: Barry Gregory Artist: Jacen Burrows Readership: All Ages Format: B&W, 32 pages, monthly, (1 of 2) PRODUCT DESCRIPTION: A variant wraparound cover featuring the stunning art of Quantum Mechanics character designer Karl Waller! FAUST / 777: THE WRATH #4 Retail Price: $3.50 US Cover: Tim Vigil Writer: David Quinn Artist: Tim Vigil Readership: Mature Readers Format: B&W, 32 pages, monthly, (4 of 4) PRODUCT DESCRIPTION: The devastating finale to the Darkness in Collision! Faustian anti-hero Joanna Tan pushes the crisis and bloody conclusion of this collision between Faust and The Wrath. Claire, Sex-Magick Violence Extremist, Kia, Angel of Destruction, the transgressive, manipulating devil named M and his razor-fingered, unholy son, John Jaspers all must choose their destiny. How will they spend eternity in a cosmology that has been damned? Want the clues to where the Godfathers of Outlaw Comics will be blazing in the next millennium? Then you must read this conclusion! The deep darkness and hyper-intense action of comics' original rebels, David Quinn and Tim Vigil, will never be the same again. FAUST / 777: THE WRATH #4 Nude cover Retail Price: $6.00 US Cover: Tim Vigil Writer: David Quinn Artist: Tim Vigil Readership: Mature Readers Format: B&W, 32 pages, monthly (3 of 4) NIRA X: HISTORY #2 Retail Price: $3.50 US Cover: Bill Maus Writer/Artist: Bill Maus Readership: Mature Readers Format: B&W, 32 pages, monthly, (2 of 2) PRODUCT DESCRIPTION: Nira X is back and this time ... she's history! Nira continues to explore her own past while trying to find a way to stop Paradoxx but now must deal with two kinds of Cyberangels, as well as a second Nira X! Bill Maus continues to garner a legion of devoted fans thanks to his American manga style and the uber-popular Cyberangles. This series continues to redefine the Cyberangels and sets the stage for Nira X in the new Millenium! NIRA X: HISTORY #2 Nude cover Retail Price: $6.00 US Cover: Bill Maus Writer/Artist: Bill Maus Readership: Mature Readers Format: B&W, 32 pages, monthly, (2 of 2) THE GOON #2 Retail Price: $3.00 US Cover: Eric Powell Writer / Artist: Eric Powell Readership: All ages Format: B&W, 32 pages, bi-monthly series PRODUCT DESCRIPTION: The Goon is back and this time Fishy Pete has his number! When word gets out of an infringement on crime boss Labrazio's territory, The Goon and his sidekick Frankie are sent to the docks to investigate ... and to bust heads if in fact someone is trying to muscle in on Labrazio's action. Of course, that goes without saying, The Goon and Frankie don't go nowhere without having to bust some heads. For fans of black humor with a healthy dose of gratuitous violence thrown in, it doesn't get any better than the Goon! THRESHOLD #16 - SCYTHE cover Retail Price: $4.95 US Cover: Tim Vigil (fully painted) Writers: Sniegoski, Gregory Artists: Jacen Burrows, Pat Quinn, Rick Lyon Readership: Mature Readers Format: B&W, 48 pages, monthly series PRODUCT DESCRIPTION: Tim Vigil and Jason Jewett unleash a killer, fully-painted two-part cover (the Scythe and Mealstrom nude covers) for this month's Maelstrom/Scythe story. Scythe is the newly crowned Queen of the Underworld and Maelstrom stands by her as her consort. Winning the war against Hades was hard enough, but they will discover it was nothing compared to ruling the land of the dead! Stellar interior art by Rick Lyon. Also this month, Avatars comes to a triumphant conclusion! Will Atlas, Pandora and their team of gods and heroes succeeded in their quest to thwart the return of Zeus or be trapped forever in the bowels of the Underworld? Art by Pat Quinn. And from Tom Sniegoski (writer of Marvel Knights Punisher) and hot new superstar penciler Jace Burrows comes part one of The Cimmerian, a mean streets avenging angel out to set the world right again after a demonic invasion! THRESHOLD #16 -AVATARS cover Retail Price: $4.95 US Cover: Sean Shaw Writers: Sniegoski, Gregory Artists: Jacen Burrows, Pat Quinn, Rick Lyon Readership: Mature Readers Format: B&W, 48 pages, monthly series THRESHOLD #16 - CIMMERIAN cover Retail Price: $4.95 US Cover: Jacen Burrows Writers: Sniegoski, Gregory Artists: Jacen Burrows, Pat Quinn, Rick Lyon Readership: Mature Readers Format: B&W, 48 pages, monthly series THRESHOLD #16 - MAELSTROM Nude cover Retail Price: $6.00 US Cover: Tim Vigil (fully painted) Writers: Quinn, Gregory, Christensen, Seifert Artists: Caesar, Pat Quinn, Jacen Burrows Readership: Mature Readers Format: B&W, 48 pages, monthly series WIDOW X #1 Retail Price: $3.95 US Cover: Mike Wolfer Writer/Artist: Mike Wolfer Readership: Adults Only Format: B&W, 40 pages, monthly series PRODUCT DESCRIPTION: Widow is back and now she's monthly! Meet Emma, a freak of nature with the body of a goddess! As the fans have demanded, Mike Wolfer finally cuts loose and pulls out all the stops in his erotic horror tale. This serves as a perfect starting point for new readers as the original back story is re-told with tons of all new, and all naughty, material! Emma's foe Rissk is also exposed in the beginning of continuing story revealing her nasty origin. Find out why Widow has been winning over fans for seven years now! WIDOW X #1 Nude Wraparound cover Retail Price: $6.00 US Cover: Mike Wolfer Writer/Artist: Mike Wolfer Readership: Adults Only Format: B&W, 40 pages, monthly series WIDOW X #1 XXX Adult cover Retail Price: $6.00 US Cover: Mike Wolfer Writer/Artist: Mike Wolfer Readership: Adults Only Format: B&W, 40 pages, monthly series Quantum Mechanics Series 1: MUNHGO collectible figure MSRP: $15.95 Format: One 8" full-color, highly articulated collectable figure in a full color box PRODUCT DESCRIPTION: Hobby Exclusive! Munhgo the basilisk, the former Warrior Mechanic and fearless protector of Arissa Boddu comes to life in this enormous, highly articulated, unbelievably cool collectible figure! Standing a meanicing 8 inches tall and featuring 11 points of articulation, a swival neck joint, and all the amazing detail and accessories you've come to expect from Rendition figures, Munhgo is the first in a line of all new figures based on Avatar Press's science fiction epic, Quantum Mechanics! ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [A] E-Mag Info: Submissions, Subscriptions, Back Issues, Copyrights and the Comic Book Network BBS system. SUBMISSIONS ----------- To submit an article, review, column, etc. to our e-mag, simply E-mail it to the editor at: ComicBkNet@aol.com Reviews of mainstream books are welcome and will get included when submitted, they are not excluded off hand. We encourage reviews of indies and self published material as we feel that material deserves more exposure to the general public. If you write intelligent, coherent, and timely reviews of anything it will almost always be printed so give us a shot. Commentary on the state of the industry, and personal observations and reflections related to comics are *most* likely to be included in our publication. PLEASE, no material on Gaming, role playing, collectible card games or other hobbies or collectibles other than comic books. SEND US YOUR WORK ----------------- We also accept product for review purposes. Advanced copies of comic books will not be returned but anything sent to us *will* be reviewed in the ComicBook Net Emag. Send all material to: David L. LeBlanc 84 Heather Circle Jefferson, MA 01522-1419 Material is generally reviewed in the order received and be advised that we work a few weeks in advance so your review may not be in the magazine immediately. Advanced copies are therefore encouraged so the review will occur prior to your product hitting the stores. SUBSCRIPTIONS ------------- If you wish to receive each issue automatically through your Email account, please address a message to ComicBkNet@aol.com to be placed on the FREE subscription list. Please put the word SUBSCRIBE in the SUBJECT. To temporarily or permanently suspend delivery of the Emag, send a similar message with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the SUBJECT. There is also an easy to use form on the web page for the same purpose. THE Comic Book Net WEB PAGE http://members.aol.com/ComicBkNet ---------------- If you have access to the World Wide Web, please stop by and visit our web page! On our web page, you can find the latest issue of our E-Mag, as well as all back issues and an annotated index. You'll also find important information on how to join the conversation in the Comic Book Network, and other neat features like links to the HTML version of the current issue of this magazine at DIGITAL WEBBING, [http://www.digitalwebbing.com/cbem], details of upcoming conventions around the country, some of the comic companies and creators' web pages and many other Comic Book related links! You can also find some back issues at America Online, by going to Keyword: COMICS, then choose the menu item _Comic Book Forum_ and then going to the _Comics Library_ from there. These are non-zipped text files. COPYRIGHTS ---------- The Comic Book Net E-Mag is published by The ComicBook Network. This is a compilation of articles and columns which were originally posted in other forums or web pages or written specifically for this electronic magazine. Most articles are independent of any connection with The ComicBook Network and are used with permission. All text contained within is copyrighted to the originating author(s). Opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of the Editor, the Network Administration Team or the members and users of The ComicBook Network. Except where elsewhere noted, The Comic Book Net Electronic Magazine (CBEM) is Copyright 1999 by The ComicBook Network. You may freely distribute or duplicate this file intact without alteration for noncommercial purposes only. Please do not distribute except as the complete file as originally transmitted by The ComicBook Network. Information about the Comic Book Network of computer bulletin board systems and how to join can be found on our internet homepage at: http://members.aol.com/ComicBkNet ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- - End of another Issue .. GIVE A KID A COMICC TODAY! When sign makers go on strike is anything written on their signs?