During the speculator boom in the 1990s comic book market, publishers enhanced comic covers to increase sales. These gimmicks included shiny foil, holograms and even pop-ups! But, one of the coolest enhancements was the glow in the dark cover. Let’s shed some light on the subject, shall we?
Publisher: Image Comics
Cover Date: November 1999
The fourth and final issue of the first Aria series “spawned” a glow in the dark variant featuring Neil Gaiman’s Angela.
After looking at hundreds of comic book covers, it becomes quickly apparent that not every cover is 100% original. Whether done intentionally or even underhandedly, there’s something about uncovering these “swipes” that adds a new element of fun to reading and collecting comics.
To celebrate Ultimate Spider-Man reaching triple digits, Mark Bagley swiped an old design from the first Spidey title to reach #100.
 Amazing Spider-Man #100 September 1971 John Romita Sr |
 Ultimate Spider-Man #100 November 2006 Mark Bagley |
On Ebay: Spider-Man | John Romita Sr | Mark Bagley
Because publishers want you to buy their product every month, comics are typically serial in nature. However, occasionally (and more often nowadays than ever before) publishers launch a comic title that is only meant to last for one issue. While ongoing series often have multiple chances to hook in new readers, the comics highlighted in this ongoing investigations only had One-Shot At Greatness!
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Cover Date: June 2008
Cover Price: $3.99
Writer: Matt Fraction
Artist: Patrick Zircher
During the era of the Third Ragnarok, an attack on Asgard by Frost Giants left an enormous hole in the gleaming city’s exterior wall. And, though the giants were fended off, the Asgardians could not leave such a breach in their defenses open for very long. Fortunately, a humble mason from Earth found his way across Bifrost the Rainbow Bridge and offered to rebuild the wall within a year. In return, he asked for the hand of Amora the Enchantress. The Asgardians laughed at him and made him a counteroffer: if he could finish in six months (an impossible task – they thought), he’d have Amora along with the sun and the moon. When the six months were up, the mason had laid all but a few bricks. And, when the Asgardians refused him his winnings, he revealed his true guise: that of a Frost Giant. A survivor of the previous battle who intended to take his revenge. Unfortunately for him, he was quickly defeated by Thor who then went out and slaughtered even more Frost Giants; later, he paraded their heads through the streets of Asgard.
Eight eras later, Loki tricked the Enchantress and gave her away to the Frost Giants in return for 100 days of food. Back in Asgard, without the Enchantress to pick he golden apples that provided their immortality, the Asgardians began to worry about their continued health. Threatening Loki’s very life, Odin commanded that he retrieve Amora from the giants. But, neither Loki nor Amora could engineer such a challenge and Thor had to come to their rescue. And, while both of these victories might be cause for celebration, Odin notes that his son’s arrogance continues to grow. Perhaps a lesson in humility will be in order?
Both of these tales can stand alone but it’s clear that they’re building to something grander. Thor’s attitude is certainly in need of adjustment but he keeps coming to the Asgardians’ rescue. That’s a hard balance to maintain. The artwork and flowery narration wonderfully combine together to create a true feeling of myth-making. This isn’t Thor, the super-hero. No. This takes place eons before the Thor we know today. But, despite that, it’s great to see an early tale of Thor – long before he learned humility. It’s Norse myth at its finest in terms of art, story and character. And, even better, there’s more to come! (the larger story is continued in Thor: Reign of Blood)
On Ebay: Thor | Matt Fraction | Pat Zircher
On AtomicAvenue: Thor
Action figures have long been a perfect compliment to comic books, since every kid (or kid at heart) has that natural desire to act out adventures with their favorite heroes off the drawn page. Every so often, a unique style of figure comes along that breaks the mold, so to speak. Each Saturday, Donny B will be showcasing various offerings from Art Asylum’s take on the ‘block figure’, with a weekly spotlight on Minimates.
Plain clothed characters are possibly the worst ideas for toys from a sales standpoint. In general, buyers are looking for colorful, flashy characters that catch your attention. Taking that into account, Art Asylum packaged one normal human with one ghost in each of their TRU 2-packs. It seems to have worked pretty well, considering they successfully sold through 4 waves and several boxed sets.
For this week’s Minimate Spotlight, I decided to feature three of the ghosts that played minor roles in the two films – the Titanic Captain, the Central Park Jogger, and the Zombie Taxicab Driver:
Behind the Image:
I’ve gone with overly photoshopped projects for several of my recent Ghostbusters articles, so for this one, I wanted to do traditional photography. As is my usual approach, I found corresponding images to use as backdrops and took a photo of each Minimate standing in front of their respective images.
On Ebay: Ghostbusters
On AtomicAvenue: Ghostbusters
With years spent reading single issues here and there, juggling storylines of dozens of titles, I decided it was time to find a better way to read comics. So, it was off to the back issue bins armed with the longest want list you’ve ever seen! Putting together series after series and reading them in their complete goodness, I was reborn as the Retro-Reader!
Publisher: Epic Comics
Number of Issues: 6
First Issue: October 1988 ($1.95)
Last Issue: September 1989 ($1.95)
Writer: Tom Veitch
Artist: Cam Kennedy
Life hasn’t treated Lazarus Jones well. He lost a lot in Vietnam including both legs and the rest of his platoon. The years since have been filled with drugs, alcohol, war flashbacks and his only shining light – the ever-loving, Chris. But, when a car accident puts him in a coma, Laz discovers an all-new direction for his life. While his body lays immobile in our world, his spirit is transported to a star system called Abraxas where he’s united with Steven J. Huff, Munoz Slaw and Captain Archibald Engle – his entire squad – now entangled in an all new war: the war between Light and Dark.
As part of the Light Brigade, Laz and his pals are embroiled in just one of the many battles in the Light and Darkness War. However, their fight against Lord Na of the Darkness remains an important one. Utilizing the technology of Nicholas Tesla (Nikola Tesla’s nephew), Na has discovered a way to gain access to Earth – a notable concern since passage to Earth has long since been lost. Earth weapons will play a significant role in this war fought with wood and stone weapons devised by Leonardo Da Vinci. Perhaps even enough to swing the entire war in favor of Darkness.
Fearing an imbalance in weaponry, the Forces of Light seek the aid of Nikola Tesla (the legendary inventor from the 19th & 20th centuries) to equalize the playing field. But, just when the Forces of Light need all the help they can get, Lazarus awakens from his coma – returning to Earth and leaving the war far behind. Was it all just a big dream? And, if it’s not – how can he rejoin his friends and win the war?
The Bad: It seems Cam Kennedy tried out some experimental art styles with cover #3 & 6 that just don’t match up to the quality of the other four covers.
The Good: Tom Veitch has found a way to acknowledge the true warrior spirit of the average Vietnam Vet by placing him in a war where the forces of good and evil are more clearly defined.
The Verdict: The Light and Darkness War starts off with a great concept. It pitches the spirits of Earth’s warriors into an afterlife filled with an ageless battle between two extremes: good and evil. There is no question which side is the right side to root for and it’s in this backdrop that Veitch attempts to redeem the Vietnam Veteran (who were initially scorned for their involvement in a war many Americans felt we should never have engaged in). But, that’s where an important difference should be noted – and Veitch certainly wants you to be aware that even if you don’t support the war, you can still support the troops. By taking the Vietnam Veterans of this story and pitting them against the Forces of Darkness, Veitch gives the Vets an opportunity to show their true spirit and moral character – without the question of “Is there just cause for this war?” hanging over their heads.
Cam Kennedy’s art breathes life into this strange world filled with the spirits of Earth warriors and Leonardo Da Vinci’s flying stone ships (as well as other interesting inventions). Incorporating legendary inventors like Da Vinci and Tesla was a neat idea (one that Hickman has recently used in his ongoing S.H.I.E.L.D. series), as was the travel between Earth and Abraxas. And, even though Laz’s eventual return to Earth was expected, it played out nicely. His despair over losing his friends again and returning to the life he had loathed so much was quite palpable. By the end of the series, he seems to have everything all figured out – and you just can’t help but feel happy for the guy.
On Ebay: Tom Veitch | Cam Kennedy
On AtomicAvenue: Light & Darkness War
You may not be surprised to learn that most people in the comic business grew up reading comic books. However, you might be interested in knowing what they were reading. Here’s a look at “Famous Fanmail”!
Neil Gaiman‘s importance to the comics community is hard to overstate. He had a significant (yet unfinished) storyline that closed out Eclipse Comics’ Miracleman series. He created Angela and other characters for Todd McFarlane’s Spawn series. And, of course, there’s his well-regarded Sandman series, which has sold out multiple printings! He got a letter published in issue Captain Confederacy #4 (cover date: 1986), which you can read below.
On Ebay: Captain Confederacy | Neil Gaiman
Some of the best parts of movies like Old School and Zombieland are their unexpected celebrity cameos. The same thing happens in comics, every once in a while. Here’s a look at another Celebrity Cameo!
Marvel’s Double Dragon limited series was based on the super-cool video game franchise and stars the brothers Jimmy and Billy Lee, experienced martial artists. This comic series introduced their father, Stan. You heard me right. Stan … Lee. So, interestingly enough, the father of the Double Dragon brothers is Stan Lee … and get this, he knows KUNG FU, too! Not sure if this is part of the video game canon – but it’s a fun bit of trivia.
On Ebay: Stan Lee | Double Dragon
After looking at hundreds of comic book covers, it becomes quickly apparent that not every cover is 100% original. Whether done intentionally or even underhandedly, there’s something about uncovering these “swipes” that adds a new element of fun to reading and collecting comics.
Here’s an interesting “swipe”. Al Rio used a similar concept for both of these covers although there are enough differences between the two that I can’t call it a direct swipe. Perhaps he just likes the effect these positions create.
 Grimm Fairy Tales #1 June 2005 Al Rio |
 the Living Corpse #3 April 2008 Al Rio |
On Ebay: Grimm Fairy Tales | Living Corpse | Al Rio
On AtomicAvenue: Grimm Fairy Tales
Because publishers want you to buy their product every month, comics are typically serial in nature. However, occasionally (and more often nowadays than ever before) publishers launch a comic title that is only meant to last for one issue. While ongoing series often have multiple chances to hook in new readers, the comics highlighted in this ongoing investigations only had One-Shot At Greatness!
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Cover Date: July 2000
Cover Price: $2.25
Writer: Paul Grist
Artist: Kyle Hotz
In 2000, Marvel published a series of one-shots that revealed what Marvel Comics would be like in the Marvel Universe.
Loud-mouthed editor/publisher T.T. Thomas is out to destroy Spider-Man’s image. He blames him for the death of his son, Jay T. Thomas and uses his paper to lambast the wallcrawler with every opportunity that presents itself. So, when Thomas is attacked by Professor Squid (who’s upset at Thomas’ editorials that claimed his work was unscientific), it’s somewhat of a surprise to see Spider-Man come to Thomas’ rescue. It makes us wonder what the motivation is for this silent, monstrous looking hero. Perhaps he’s just following well-developed morals … or perhaps there’s a connection between the two that has yet to be discovered…
Kyle Hotz‘s character designs for Spider-Man are incredible. The creepy looking smile hiding behind his mask on the last page hints that our hero may be more sinister than we’d like to think. The main battle between spider and squid isn’t all that impressive or page-turning but it’s the back-story, the main character’s mysterious origin and the under-handed subplots that make me want to know more about this developing storyline. Not to mention that art … that spooky, great-looking art!
On Ebay: Marvels Comics | Spider-Man | Paul Grist | Kyle Hotz
On AtomicAvenue: Marvels Comics
Action figures have long been a perfect compliment to comic books, since every kid (or kid at heart) has that natural desire to act out adventures with their favorite heroes off the drawn page. Every so often, a unique style of figure comes along that breaks the mold, so to speak. Each Saturday, Donny B will be showcasing various offerings from Art Asylum’s take on the ‘block figure’, with a weekly spotlight on Minimates.
Art Asylum’s Ghostbusters line doesn’t just focus on the heavy hitters – Along with the popular characters, we have also been given supporting players, and even alternate versions of some of those people.
We’ve already seen the first release of Louis Tully (packed inside the Terror Dog), and this week we’re featuring his suited-up appearance from the end of the second film.
Along for the ride is Janine Melnitz, in her colorful attire from the same movie 🙂
Behind the Image:
I wasn’t sure what kind of background to use for this image. I tried finding a screen capture that would work with these characters, but that attempt failed. So I eventually settled for a NYC backdrop, since I was unable to think of anything else that might compliment Louis and Janine.
On Ebay: Ghostbusters
On AtomicAvenue: Ghostbusters
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