Fan Expo 2010 - Hellblazer # 250

Writers: Brian Azzarello, Jamie Delano, Dave Gibbons, China Mieville, Peter Milligan
Artists: Rafael Grampa, David Lloyd, Sean Phillips, Giuseppe Gamuncoli, Stefano Landini, Edie Campbell
Publisher: Vertigo
Published: February 2009

This should be my final entry on the Fan Expo...I think so at any rate...

Before the discussion with Darwyn Cooke, another popular crime writer hosted a talk: Brian Azzarello. I enjoyed the discussion. I've only read a few works of his, namely, The Joker, Broken City, a few other stand alone stories, and this issue. Overall I wouldn't call myself a dedicated fan...it's nothing personal...his writing overall just doesn't connect with me...however his work ethic is admirable and he comes across as a nice and opinionated guy.

From what I gathered in the discussion, he's a hard working chap who enjoys writing down-and-dirty crime stories. Some things of note during his talk were his dislike of continuity comics, his dislike of the Joker becoming a popular anti-hero, and his approach to making sure his stories have an invisible plot. In regards to his Joker statement, I'm glad I went to the discussion, considering after I first read his and Bermjo's take on the Joker I was left confused, dissatisfied, and unable to appreciate it.

Which was a subtle goal of theirs.


Azzarello and Bermjo don't like that the Joker is becoming so popular and well-liked that he's almost becoming an anti-hero. The Joker is not being recognized as the psychopath, schitzo killer that he is and thus as a character he's losing credibility. Knowing this was their intention, I now realize that my initial distaste after reading The Joker was not because of a poorly conceived book, but because unconsciously I wanted to root for the Joker, when in actuality, the Joker is the last person you want to root for.

Anyway, enough on Brian and Bermjo...I'm sure they're doing alright for attention!

I picked up Hellblazer #250 because of R. Grampa. He's the shit. His art is graphically insane! Over the next year or so I can guarantee that in the world of comics, it's going to be Grampa, Grampa, Grampa!

In Grampa and Azzarellos tale, John Constantine has been hired to remove a decades old curse. All he needs are some dedicated fans and a goat. Let the magic begin!

The rest of the comic has a variety of solid tales that are pretty awesome - but don't take my word for it! Go get it because once Grampa really hits it, his back log is going to be super hot shit!



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Scalped #12

Martial Arts, Authorized Training Manual: Michaelangelo and the Art of the Nunchaku

Writer: Peter Brody

Artist: Jason Rogers

Publisher: Solson Publications

Published: 1986

This gem is an authorized training manual on the art of the nunchaku, with illustrations of Michaelangelo providing the lessons. Need I say more?

Yes.

This manual is a great resource for kids to learn how to wield a dangerous weapon. I love it. When I was a kid, nunchucks were the holy grail of weapons. However, I missed the boat on this issue back in '86, and had to rely on Bruce Lee movies as my learning guide. I think I've done well over the years with my nunchucku skills. 100 bludgeoned can't be wrong, right?

One thing, I love about this issue is the illustrations are full bodied, composed of clean lines. So, if your kids are too young to take up the art of pummelling sticks, the comic makes for a handy colouring book.

I have a huge love of colouring books. Here's a link to some of my work on colouring books.

Also here are some odd ads in a training manual: Texas Chainsaw Samurai, and Sultry Teenage Super Foxes. Only in comics...

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles # 42: Juliet's Revenge

Writer: Rick McCollum
Artist: Bill Anderson
Publisher: Mirage
Published: December 1991

What do Mr. Howard, Bruce Lee, Mae West, Leonardo, Edgar Allan Poe, and the ninja turtles have in common?

This comic!

That's right, all these fantastic figures make a guest appearance in this issue, making this a star studded comic not seen since the Avengers assembled to battle some powerful earth shattering thing-a-majigy.

If you want to know more, T.S. I'm tired.

How come Donnie gets all the babes?

And what's her deal?

Marvel Zombies vs. Army of Darkness # 2 of 5

Writer: John Layman
Artist/Colorist: Fabiano Neves/June Chung
Cover: Arthur Suydam
Publisher: Marvel/Dynamite Entertainment
Published: June 2007

90 seconds starting now!

Ash is in the Marvel Universe where zombies have taken over. He meets Spider-Man and the Punisher. The Punisher punishes people. Ash then saves Dazzler, and is impressed by her. They decide to go to visit Dr. Strange to get the Necronomicon to stop the zombies. the zombies are winning, and Ash is running out of one liners...or is he?

Oh and Howard the duck makes a very special guest appearance. A pretty good comic considering it's just capitalizing on the zombie madness. Time!






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Uncanny X-Men #268

Usagi Yojimbo Color Special # 3

Writer/Artist: Stan Sakai
Colorist: Tom Luth
Publisher: Fantagraphics
Published: September 1992

This issue has Usagi being deceived by a sly fox and Tomoe forced to hand out some samurai justice. The second tale has Usagi in space, kicking ass.

I used to have a Usagi toy as a kid and it rocked I would load up weapons on him and he made the ninja turtles jealous, as only a hare can do to a turtle. Too bad for him there are four of them to the one of him.

Hey I'm kinda liking these 90 second reviews. Gets shit done!

Spider-Man Fairy Tales # 1

Writers: C.B. Cebulski, David Sexton
Artist: Ricardo Tercio
Publisher: Marvel
Published: May 2007

Holy hell did I ever some nightmares about spiders the other night. Fuck I hate spiders...creepiest little things ever...anyway, speaking of spiders, here's another of Spidey's fairy tale issues. This one is pretty cool. It's *ahem* a spin on Red Riding Hood starring Mary Jane. The issue sticks pretty true to the original tale, less the eating of grandma or Mary Jane by the wolf...well, I guess it doesn't stick that close after all..but like the tale's evolution over the years, this one just evolved to fit - THE APPROVED COMIC CODE!!!

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles # 31

Writer: Michael Zulli & Stephen Murphy
Artist: Michael Zulli
Publisher: Mirage Studios
Published: July 1990

When I first read this back in '90 I had just watched the live action Ninja Turtles film. The film was as about grown up as a movie about mutant turtles meant for kid audiences could be. However, after reading Zulli's interpretation of the TMNT, I didn't realize how grown up and different Ninja Turtles could really be.

Zulli did the story and art, with Murphy providing the script. The turtles are not just pizza loving dudes, but bestial beings who serve their master, 'the rat,' with undying loyalty. Shredder is the Samurai overlord who leads the attack bothy psychically and physically on the beasts "who have no souls."

Zulli's art is dark, spiritual, and noble. He renders the turtles and Splinter as elemental forces of nature, and Shredder is 'man' with all his resources and cold reasoning. This issue forever elevated the turtles in my mind and exposed me to the infinite possibility of what imagination and vision can create. Bravo!

Patsy Walker Hellcat # 1 of 5

Writer: Kathryn Immonen
Artist: David Lafuente
Publisher: Marvel
Published: September 2008

It's not common that I come across a writer that I like and also just happens to be female. It's not that I don't like female writers, but it's that there seems to be so few female writers, especially in the superhero genre. Its a shame that there are so few female comic writers...but thankfully Kathryn has entered the scene. She has a unique voice that she is a able to channel into Patsy Walker the HELLCAT!

Patsy Walker is a runway model by profession and a superhero by choice. The new mini series has Patsy charged by Tony Stark to be the superhero representative for Alaska. Once in Alaska, she immediately chances into mystical adventure.

Ok, so now you know what's happening, but what makes this story tick is Patsy's snappy script and heartfelt superficiality. She kinda reminds me of Alicia Silverstone from Clueless, but with kick ass super-strength. Also, the artwork by Lafuente is awesome, but don't take my word for it...

Thunder Cats # 0

Writers/Artists: Ford Lytle Gilmore & J. Scott Campbell
Publisher: Wildstorm
Published: October 2002

"Thunder. Thunder. Thunder! Thunder Cats - HOOOOOOO!!!"

Shit Yeah that takes me back.

Thunder Cats was my Saturday morning cartoon when I was a kid. Just hearing the opening theme caused hairs to rise, blood to boil, and me to jump up and exclaim "HOOOOOOOOOO!" much to the annoyance of my mom. These days I find it difficult to try and get as excited about the cartoon considering it has been about 20 years, however, when I heard they were starting up a comic series...well that's a whole new ball of yarn!

Issue # 0 is a prelude to the main story. It reintroduces the main characters and different battles they've fought. It's like a clip show in comic form. Story wise, not too much more to tell than that. The art is fantastic. Campbell definitely has upped the ante on the old designs. The characters are sleek, sharp, deadly, and fierce. These ain't no kitties anymore. These are THUNDER CATS!

Man I'm a dork.DIE MUMM-RA DIE!

Check this cool trailer for THUNDER CATS HOOOOOO!

Bodycount #3 of 4

Writer: Kevin Eastman
Artist: Simon Bisley
Publisher: Image Comics
Published: May 1996

I love the TMNT. Always have. Always will. So the day I read Bodycount by Bisley and Eastman, I must admit, I was a tad bit disappointed. The series is pretty much a blood splatter, balls-to-the-wall orgy of violence and chaos. There is a slight plot of crazy killer bad guys chasing Casey Jones and Raphael over something or other, but the main thing I got out of this series was "let's see how many things/people we can kill and make explode." Raphael is a nutcase, and Casey is a lesser degree of nutcase. Storywise I found it lacking, but then again, I'm picky with my TMNT stories. However, if you like things exploding, tough guy machoisms, big breasted ladies, pimps, drugs, guns - lots of guns, blood, and Raphael wearing blue jeans - then this is the series for you.

Raphael in blue jeans somehow works. Go green.

Mad House # 96

Writers: Marvin Channing, Bruce Jones, John Jacobson
Artists: Sal Amendola, Jesse Santos, Bruce Jones
Publisher: Red Circle Productions
Published: November 1974

Back to business eh? Hell Yeah! Speaking of Hell, I picked up this gem of an issue. Mad House # 96 (number of a beast, but not the beast) has a few tales of high interest. Never Bother A Dead Man concerns a local funeral parlor and it's keeper being attacked by a local gang. Little does the gang leader realize, but he's picked the wrong house of dead people to terrorize. Sounds cool right? Well it is cool, sort of. The gang leader is literally scared to death when he is grabbed by a dead guy still undergoing rigamortis.

Demon Kiss is the best of the bunch, which has a young wannabe actress selling her soul to the devil for a major studio part. The only catch is, if she doesn't kiss someone within a year's time she will lose her soul. What fascinates me with these types of tales is that the characters bargaining with the devil always want superfluous shit. Yeah yeah, I know that's the moral of these stories: your soul is always the most valuable thing you have, but I would like to see someday somebody selling their soul for something great, like world peace, or even a better soul. You know what I mean, one of those souls that is so great it makes other people feel worse just to be around them...fuck I hate those type people.

The third tale is about a young witch foiling her coven's plan to summon a demon when she orders them at gun point to resurrect her dead husband. Upon his resurrection, she instantly offers to make him a meal. I just hope she plans on making him a meal of evil and barley, as her husband is not who she thinks he is - he's a fucking demon - GET OUT OF THE HOUSE!!!

Finally the last tale has a dog cursed by a gypsy woman killing its owners by pushing them down stairs. Bit of a let down considering the the caliber of the other tales, but it did satisfy my appetite for dogs murdering people in a no-nonsense manner. This dog must be Cujo's older, more responsible brother, the one that calls home every week to check up on the family gossip and bills.