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Post by Rob Allen on Jan 26, 2016 12:49:44 GMT -5
By the way, folks who are into this stuff should check out this great blog by, I believe, Mart Nodell's granddaughter. Here is the link www.sequentialcrush.com/And I'll leave this here without comment: Click me!Also recommended: www.lastkisscomics.com/When Charlton went under, John Lustig bought the rights and the artwork from their series "First Kiss". Since then he's been taking panels out of context and putting new dialogue in them. I've been on his email list for years.
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Crimebuster
CCF Podcast Guru
Making comics!
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Post by Crimebuster on Jan 26, 2016 13:18:13 GMT -5
Falling in Love #136
September, 1972Story One: Ah, the 1970's! Relevancy comes to romance comics! And how well does that work out? Exactly as well as you would expect: Don't ever change, DC. Don't ever change. Oh, so what's the story about? Well, Inga is afraid that her boyfriend Dan is going to fall off one of the skyscrapers he's building. Dan laughs at her foolish paleface fears. Inga can't take it, though, and pesters him until he breaks up with her. But then, Dan's shaman buddy Arthur takes a long walk off a short I-beam and ends up in the emergency room. Dan realizes the error of his ways, gives up construction, and returns to Inga. And many papooses were conceived. THE END!! Story Two: Man, this story is fantastic. Carl is too broke to buy his girlfriend a real diamond wedding ring, so he buys her a fake and lies to her about it. He decides he'll just fake it, save up some money, buy her a real ring and secretly replace the fake one and she'll never know the difference. But he soon starts growing less and less fond of his wife, because she does horrible things like making him stew for dinner. After a hard day's work slaving away to buy her a damn ring, the least she could do is have a decent meal waiting for him at home! And Ruth keeps doing crap like this. Finally, Carl can't take it any more. He decides to buy her the damn ring just to ease his conscience, but then he's going to divorce her for sucking so much. So he gives her the ring, and the truth comes out: she's known all along it was fake, and the reason she hasn't been able to make ends meet around the house is because she's been spending all their food and clothes budget to buy herself a real ring. Because she knows what's really important in their relationship: that she have a banging ring! Somehow, this brings them closer together and they resolve to stop being so silly. I can't even. It's exactly like The Gift of the Magi, only completely backwards, because it's all about being selfish! So awesome. THE END!! Story Three: Oh god. Lana and Ricky are steadies. But when Lana mentions getting married, Ricky puts the brakes on but real fast. He just doesn't love her that much, you dig? Lana flips out and decides to win Ricky over by proving she's a real woman. So she changes her hairstyle. Ricky comes around and is like, wow, now I see that you are, in fact, a real, wonderful woman who I want to marry. THE END!! What the screw. Notes: So, here we are in 1972, and somehow there still aren't any story credits. GCD has some art credits, but still no idea who is writing these: Story One: Werner Roth and Vince Coletta Story Two: John Rosenberger and Vince Coletta Story Three: Werner Roth Cover: A great effort from the great Jay Scott Pike The advice column this time around at least has some decent advice. It warns girls about the ten types of boys to avoid, including male chauvinists and boys who won't take no for an answer. So we're already a step up on Carol Andrews. Carol actually shows up here as well, so we get two advice columns, but this time she doesn't destroy anyone, so for one month at least, it's safe. We're on our third logo here, and while I do like this one, I have to say the previous design from the late Silver Age is my favorite of the three logos. My Grade: B+. This is more like it!
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Post by Deleted on Jan 26, 2016 14:26:59 GMT -5
Falling in Love #136
September, 1972Story One: Ah, the 1970's! Relevancy comes to romance comics! And how well does that work out? Exactly as well as you would expect: Don't ever change, DC. Don't ever change. Oh, so what's the story about? Well, Inga is afraid that her boyfriend Dan is going to fall off one of the skyscrapers he's building. Dan laughs at her foolish paleface fears. Inga can't take it, though, and pesters him until he breaks up with her. But then, Dan's shaman buddy Arthur takes a long walk off a short I-beam and ends up in the emergency room. Dan realizes the error of his ways, gives up construction, and returns to Inga. And many papooses were conceived. THE END!! Story Two: Man, this story is fantastic. Carl is too broke to buy his girlfriend a real diamond wedding ring, so he buys her a fake and lies to her about it. He decides he'll just fake it, save up some money, buy her a real ring and secretly replace the fake one and she'll never know the difference. But he soon starts growing less and less fond of his wife, because she does horrible things like making him stew for dinner. After a hard day's work slaving away to buy her a damn ring, the least she could do is have a decent meal waiting for him at home! And Ruth keeps doing crap like this. Finally, Carl can't take it any more. He decides to buy her the damn ring just to ease his conscience, but then he's going to divorce her for sucking so much. So he gives her the ring, and the truth comes out: she's known all along it was fake, and the reason she hasn't been able to make ends meet around the house is because she's been spending all their food and clothes budget to buy herself a real ring. Because she knows what's really important in their relationship: that she have a banging ring! Somehow, this brings them closer together and they resolve to stop being so silly. I can't even. It's exactly like The Gift of the Magi, only completely backwards, because it's all about being selfish! So awesome. THE END!! Story Three: Oh god. Lana and Ricky are steadies. But when Lana mentions getting married, Ricky puts the brakes on but real fast. He just doesn't love her that much, you dig? Lana flips out and decides to win Ricky over by proving she's a real woman. So she changes her hairstyle. Ricky comes around and is like, wow, now I see that you are, in fact, a real, wonderful woman who I want to marry. THE END!! What the screw. Notes: So, here we are in 1972, and somehow there still aren't any story credits. GCD has some art credits, but still no idea who is writing these: Story One: Werner Roth and Vince Coletta Story Two: John Rosenberger and Vince Coletta Story Three: Werner Roth Cover: A great effort from the great Jay Scott Pike The advice column this time around at least has some decent advice. It warns girls about the ten types of boys to avoid, including male chauvinists and boys who won't take no for an answer. So we're already a step up on Carol Andrews. Carol actually shows up here as well, so we get two advice columns, but this time she doesn't destroy anyone, so for one month at least, it's safe. We're on our third logo here, and while I do like this one, I have to say the previous design from the late Silver Age is my favorite of the three logos. My Grade: B+. This is more like it! If it wasn't for this review thread, I'd NEVER EVER know of the glory that is romance comics. And I'd never want to read them so badly. This thread has been soooo entertaining. Please never stop reading them and then posting about them. These reviews make me laugh so much! I love how hilariously shallow and self-absorbed the stories seem to be. This is great!
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Post by Deleted on Jan 26, 2016 15:37:10 GMT -5
HA! Ruth and Carl sound more like the vapid couples of today! I guess some things never change!
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Post by DE Sinclair on Jan 26, 2016 17:03:50 GMT -5
For some odd reason, every romance comic that I've ever browsed (and there haven't been many) seemed to feature a guy named Trevor and a girl named Becky. Is that more or less accurate or am I a victim of circumstance? I want to do one of those romance comic satires like the one posted above. I have a great idea for a story, I think. The story is about a girl named Darlene who's terribly self-conscious about her chronic lisp and doesn't find love until she meets a handsome young man named Ronny. Ronny just so happens to have an equally debilitating chronic stuttering problem. All the while, the two are being stalked by a disturbed girl in a black dress and veil, named Nancy, who thinks Ronny is a reincarnation of her lover from a former life. I haven't work it all out, but I'm getting there. Ronny goes on to harness his stuttering, makes a movie with a monkey, and marries the disturbed girl Nancy who uses astrology to plot his course to take over the world. After moving into the White House, she uses him as a figure head while she makes plans to nuke Russia. Meanwhile Darlene continues to lisp and wonders how she got left out of the story. The End.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 26, 2016 18:09:46 GMT -5
Seriously, though, guys, does anyone know what book this is from? I need it.
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Post by Nowhere Man on Jan 26, 2016 19:44:59 GMT -5
Seriously, though, guys, does anyone know what book this is from? I need it. I think I need that too. At the very least I'm considering getting the Kirby collection of romance comics since I'm a huge Kirby fan. That panel could be read as if she's actually happy things turned out the way they did. "What a fool I was! I wanted love, a real marriage! F!@# that sh!@! Washing hot dead guys is where it's at!"
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Post by Deleted on Jan 26, 2016 19:46:53 GMT -5
Seriously, though, guys, does anyone know what book this is from? I need it. I think I need that too. At the very least I'm considering getting the Kirby collection of romance comics since I'm a huge Kirby fan. That panel could be read as if she's actually happy things turned out the way they did. "What a fool I was! I wanted love, a real marriage! F!@# that sh!@! Washing hot dead guys is where it's at!" Yesssss. I need this panel on thank you cards.
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Crimebuster
CCF Podcast Guru
Making comics!
Posts: 3,919
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Post by Crimebuster on Jan 26, 2016 20:28:12 GMT -5
If it wasn't for this review thread, I'd NEVER EVER know of the glory that is romance comics. And I'd never want to read them so badly. This thread has been soooo entertaining. Please never stop reading them and then posting about them. These reviews make me laugh so much! I love how hilariously shallow and self-absorbed the stories seem to be. This is great! Glad you're enjoying them! Honestly, fun as some of these are, we haven't even hit the cream of the crop yet. That's why I haven't graded anything above a B+, because I know for a fact there are even crazier comics out there. Young Love #126 is one of the most perfect comics ever made, so I might have to revisit it at some point; I think I reviewed it on the old site, so I don't have the review any more. And then there's this. But I warn you: do not click on this spoiler unless you're ready to immediately head to ebay, because once you see it, you're going to feel compelled to buy it:
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Post by Deleted on Jan 26, 2016 20:55:58 GMT -5
If it wasn't for this review thread, I'd NEVER EVER know of the glory that is romance comics. And I'd never want to read them so badly. This thread has been soooo entertaining. Please never stop reading them and then posting about them. These reviews make me laugh so much! I love how hilariously shallow and self-absorbed the stories seem to be. This is great! Glad you're enjoying them! Honestly, fun as some of these are, we haven't even hit the cream of the crop yet. That's why I haven't graded anything above a B+, because I know for a fact there are even crazier comics out there. Young Love #126 is one of the most perfect comics ever made, so I might have to revisit it at some point; I think I reviewed it on the old site, so I don't have the review any more. And then there's this. But I warn you: do not click on this spoiler unless you're ready to immediately head to ebay, because once you see it, you're going to feel compelled to buy it: Eeeek! I need that. Is it in any collections books? I think, like Robert (Trebor), I am going to get this: Here is the link www.amazon.com/Young-Romance-Simon-Kirbys-Comics/dp/1606995022/ref=pd_sim_14_1?ie=UTF8&dpID=619j280HmCL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR123%2C160_&refRID=1YVE5V7KAAKJ3MZGMBT8 . I cannot locate which stories they put into that, though.
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Crimebuster
CCF Podcast Guru
Making comics!
Posts: 3,919
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Post by Crimebuster on Jan 26, 2016 21:20:08 GMT -5
Eeeek! I need that. Is it in any collections books? I don't believe so.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 26, 2016 21:36:27 GMT -5
Eeeek! I need that. Is it in any collections books? I don't believe so. I found one copy of it on ebay, and it was going for over $30. So, I might have to see if I can find it digitally. But I ordered the Simon and Kirby vol.1 book, because, Crimebuster, you have me needing to read these stories. I think these are golden age/silver age stories, though, and I am not sure if they will be quite as funny as the bronze age ones you have been reviewing. How does that era of romance stories hold up in the funny dept. compared to the bronze age stories?
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Crimebuster
CCF Podcast Guru
Making comics!
Posts: 3,919
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Post by Crimebuster on Jan 26, 2016 22:01:33 GMT -5
In my experience, the Bronze Age stories actually have more of a plot. I have read some Silver Age issues where the "stories" have almost no plot at all, and it's just, like, a girl looking at a dude and thinking about him. That happens a lot, actually. Then they somehow make out in the last panel. Some of those are hilarious, though; I've got one somewhere where the girl starts basically hallucinating that inanimate objects are her wannabe lover, and she talks to them and stuff. It's nuts.
It also depends on the publisher, I think. DC had certain formulas, but Charlton was more likely to just go off the rails in whatever direction they felt like.
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Post by Reptisaurus! on Jan 26, 2016 22:38:29 GMT -5
I've only really read Charlton Romance comics. Steve Ditko romance stories are.... something. I'm not sure if they're good or bad, but they're something.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 27, 2016 7:32:08 GMT -5
In my experience, the Bronze Age stories actually have more of a plot. I have read some Silver Age issues where the "stories" have almost no plot at all, and it's just, like, a girl looking at a dude and thinking about him. That happens a lot, actually. Then they somehow make out in the last panel. Some of those are hilarious, though; I've got one somewhere where the girl starts basically hallucinating that inanimate objects are her wannabe lover, and she talks to them and stuff. It's nuts. It also depends on the publisher, I think. DC had certain formulas, but Charlton was more likely to just go off the rails in whatever direction they felt like. HA!!! I'm assuming these romance comics were geared towards women? If so, it makes sense. I can only imagine how current romance comics read. Yikes! What I am going to find most interesting, probably, is to see how people viewed females, and their thoughts, back then, in another form of entertainment. Because no matter how absurd and fictional these stories are, it's quite telling at times just how much possibility and actuality are tossed into the stories.
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