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Post by codystarbuck on Dec 2, 2022 8:19:28 GMT -5
                               Comic Buyer's Guide had a contest to identify all of the stuff in a two-page spread, in Hulk: Future Imperfect. It showed Rick Jones' home and it was filled with momentoes, like costume and armor pieces and easter eggs. I think the original artwork, signed by Peter David & George Perez, was the prize, but don't quote me on that. Funeral For A Friend, in my opinion, was the only worthwhile segment of the whole Death & Rebirth of Superman. It seemed like the only segment where any real thought was given to story and characters. Death was a big slugfest, with little plot, except nothing was stopping Doomsday. Rebirth was a big, pointless tease, with only Superboy being interesting, to me, only to have Supes reappear, alive, with a mullet and a hokey explanation as to what happened to him. Also hated the black and silver costume. You don't tug on Superman's cape and you don't replace it or any other part of the costume (looking at you, Mr Lee!). Green Arrow: The Wonder Year was a fun "Year One" mini, though I kept expecting Winnie Cooper to turn up. Don't know if I said it before; but, Quantum Leap really captured the flavor of the tv series. Sadly, it kind of suffered the same fate. The tv series wanted to do an episode where Sam leaps into an infant and everything was from his POV; but, the special effects cost was going to be too high. There was talk of a QL movie and that idea was held for it, but they couldn't get a studio to greenlight the idea. Innovation was going to do it as a QL Special, then either lost the rights or that was when they declared bankruptcy. |
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Roquefort Raider
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Dec 2, 2022 9:06:33 GMT -5
Bought in December 1992:
Cerebus #164. The cover provides a rare view of the city of Iest.
Conan #265, and the conclusion of last month's story. Artwork by John Watkiss, replacing Mike Docherty for that arc.
Doom 2099 #2. Good enough for me to buy the next issue, but that's about all I recall. The 2099 world felt a bit superficial in its development, to be honest.
Hellblazer #62. A quieter issue, but still a good one. I think it's the one in which John causes an amateur sorcerer to piss himself just by faking mumbo jumbo curses.
Legion of super-heroes #40. No, it's not Wildfire on the cover, as the creators try to make us believe by asking "Guess who's back?" (but honestly, I thought it was Dr. Regulus!!!)
Sandman #46, naturally.
Savage Sword of Conan #206, in which Roy brings back some of the Jim Owsley-era continuity. And why not, considering it was pretty decent?
Spider-man 2099 #4. Loved the costume, but that would be my last or next-to-last issue.
Tarzan: the beckoning #2. A nice "modernized" Tarzan story in which the jungle lord is clearly more Christophe Lambert than the Sunday pages guy. I seem to recall some pages being printed out of order in that one.
Uncanny X-men #297, in which Art Thibert preserves the Jim Lee look and Prof. Xavier shares a nice moment with Jubilee.
Vertigo Preview #1. Vertigo was the place to be in those days, as a LOT of other material was utter crap.
X-Men #17. Not a good issue. Andy Kubert's super-hero art never appealed to me; I thought he was much better on things like Doc Savage or even Conan (his style looking a whole lot like that of his father's).
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Post by Deleted on Dec 22, 2022 13:51:50 GMT -5
On sale 30 years ago today:  Punisher 2099 was probably my favourite 2099 title, although I can’t claim to have found every issue (so many titles, so little cash, an eternal problem). I liked the look, and although there were too many Punisher books in the 90s, I didn’t mind this one, given the 2099 setting. |
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Post by codystarbuck on Jan 1, 2023 18:00:26 GMT -5
                       James Bond was way late, with the previous issue coming out back in the Summer. I'm reading Sandman, in trades, because I kept finding issues in mid-storyline and couldn't find a jumping on point, until issue 50. I did get the Death mini, though. I am pretty much done with Valiant, except Archer & Armstrong and Eternal Warrior (and it never lived up to my expectations, nor was as fun as A&A), and X-O Manowar, for a bit longer. Hard CORPS didn't impress and I only got the first 1 or 2 issues. Propellerman was this weird, gonzo, pretty cool little series, from German writer/artist Matthias Schultheiss (Bell's Theorem, Trucker), which I really liked, as well as his art. It sort of looked superhero-ish and sort of Heavy Metal and was juts plain different. Didn't exactly raise his profile in the US; but, he was also not the most prolific artist, either. He was one of several Europeans artists invited to do work for an anthology, for Kodansha, for the Japanese market, which they suddenly axed, after he had produced about 400 pages of material. He pretty much stuck to teaching, until the 2000s, when some of the Kodansha stuff was released, in France. The Protectors cover was one of the dumber 90s gimmicks (still better than tyvek) and the hole went through some story art and dialogue, suggesting it wasn't planned, when the art was done. The series sounded so much cooler, in Comic Scene, than it ended up. of course, all of the promotional art came from Jerry Bingham and Clarke Hawbaker and not the internal artists. |
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Roquefort Raider
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Jan 2, 2023 15:09:19 GMT -5
Bought in January 1993 Cerebus #165, Cerebus #166. Dave Sim amusingly spoofs Neil Gaiman’s Sandman and Death, and we are moving closer to the confrontation between many of the series’ bigger names: Astoria, Suentus Po, Cirin and our favourite aardvark. Conan the barbarian #266. Love those Colin McNeil covers. Roy Thomas adapts a TOR novel by Leonard Carpenter (one of the best Conan pastiche writers, IMO). The gritty artwork by Docherty and Villagran remains very good, and the only problem I have with this story arc is that it introduces a continuity error so great that the only way to get past it is to admit “we goofed”. Death: the high cost of living #1. Not a whole lot happens in these Death limited series, but the Bachalo artwork is excellent. And Death remains a fan favourite! Doom 2099 #3. I remember liking it at the time, although it wasn’t a comic I’d go back to again and again. Hellblazer #63. It’s John’s 40th birthday, and it’s hilarious that at the time I thought (as HE did in this issue) that he was an old guy. Forty? The man is barely out of his diapers!!! The party is enlivened by guest appearances from people like Ellie, Swamp Thing and the Phantom Stranger, whose shoes get barfed on if I remember well. A very entertaining issue, and it is sad that it would be the last time John Constantine would have fun for a looooog while. Iron Man #290. Stark’s got a new armour… or does he? Plot twists that fairly scream THIS WILL BE UNDONE SOON have the man be paralyzed and only be able to move as a telepresence in an Iron Man robot. Thor #460. The start of a new era? All right, let me check this ouuuuandI’m outta here. I dislike mopey heroes. Sandman #47. Must-read comics. Don’t miss Confessor’s great review thread on Neil Gaiman’s masterpiece. Savage sword of Conan #207. A great Michael Kaluta cover (what a treat!) but the L. Sprague de Camp novel adapted here (and in the next three issues) is arguably one of the worst pieces of Conan fiction ever written. Even the art team of John Buscema and E.R. Cruz is underwhelming; It’s as if in trying not to overwhelm Buscema’s breakdowns with his own idiosyncratic style, Cruz kept his foot on the brakes. I much prefer Cruz’s solo work on the Kull back-up features. Silver Surfer/Warlock: Resurrection #1. I had been very disappointed by Warlock as a character since his return in The Infinity Gauntlet, and by the Silver Surfer after a dozen or so issues of his new series. Here, Jim Starlin might have rekindled my interest, in part by undoing a bone-headed move on Marvel’s part (that of killing off Shalla Bal). Alas,I wouldn’t finish the series. It felt very slight. Tarzan: the Beckoning #3. Good Tarzan pastiche. Tom Yeates is a good fit for the Lord of the Jungle. Uncanny X-Men #298, X-Men #18. Okay, it was only a couple of bucks, but I shouldn't have bothered. The only interest I had in those books was the attempt to shake up the Scott/Jean relationship by having *Scott* be the target of someone else’s romantic attentions. No, Grant Morrison didn’t come up with the concept. |
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Post by chaykinstevens on Jan 2, 2023 18:23:40 GMT -5
A1 #4
Action Comics #686
Batman:Legends of the Dark Knight #43
Black Condor #10
Death:The High Cost of Living #1
Eclipso #5
Enigma #1
Hacker Files #8
Hawkworld #32
Hulk:Future Imperfect #2
Incredible Hulk #403
James Bond 007:Serpent's Tooth #3
Justice League America #72
Justice League International Quarterly #10
Legion of Super-Heroes #41
Nomad #11
Propellerman #1
Quasar #44
Shade the Changing Man #33
Spectre #4
Superman #77
Thor #460
Wonder Woman #72
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Post by chaykinstevens on Jan 2, 2023 18:27:18 GMT -5
Uncanny X-men #297, in which Art Thibert preserves the Jim Lee look and Prof. Xavier shares a nice moment with Jubilee. That issue's artwork was by Brandon Peterson and Dan Panosian. |
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Jan 2, 2023 19:57:14 GMT -5
Uncanny X-men #297, in which Art Thibert preserves the Jim Lee look and Prof. Xavier shares a nice moment with Jubilee. That issue's artwork was by Brandon Peterson and Dan Panosian. Indeed. I stand corrected. Long time ago! |
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Post by commond on Jan 2, 2023 20:43:56 GMT -5
You may have been confused with the two issues of X-Men he did after Lee left.
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Post by shaxper on Jan 3, 2023 2:25:09 GMT -5
Action Comics #686: While I read and adored much of the Ordway/Stern/Jurgens Superman run as it was coming out, I never got as far as Funeral for a Friend. However, I bought up all these issues a decade back with the plan to eventually review them all, and I'm getting closer all the time. I fully expect to get to the Death of Superman this year. Maybe I'll get as far as this book before the ball drops yet again. Archer & Armstrong #9: I never particularly cared for this title (though it gets a lot of love from Valiant fans). I own it because I own pretty much everything from the Valiant Heroes Universe 1, but I doubt I've even read it, and I wonder if I ever will. Batman #490: My Batman reviews are still about a year and a half away from this issue, so I've not read it yet. Bloodshot #3 Another Valiant hero I never cared for very much, and yet I own most of the issues anyway cuz it's Valiant. Detective Comics #656: Haven't read it yet. Doom 2099 #3: The only 2099 title I ever took an interest in. Eternal Warrior #9: Eh. I own it because it's Valiant. Such an easy universe to collect completely. Excalibur #53: After having read the first 20-something issues of this title and being bored, I plan to get rid of the entire run soon. In the meantime, I have this issue that I don't ever plan to read. H.A.R.D. Corps #5: It's Valiant. Harbinger #16: The series had long lost its way by this point, but adolescent me hadn't given up hope that things would turn around yet. Magnus Robot Fighter #23: One of the few Valiant titles that actually got BETTER over time, and especially after Jim Shooter left. I adore this era! Robin III:Cry of the Huntress #6: I am not looking forward to reading and reviewing this one. I sincerely hope it doesn't suck half as much as Robin I and Robin II did. Solar: Man of the Atom #20: Another Valiant title that got better over time. I really need to revisit these! Spectre #4: Haven't read this run yet. I've been meaning to get around to it for two decades now. Superman #77 and Superman: The Man of Steel #21: Have not read yet. Hopefully this year! Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #55: Holy heck what an underappreciated masterpiece the City At War storyline was! I wrote about it here. Uncanny X-Men #298: I bought it, I quickly read it, and then I bagged and boarded it. No real memory of this issue nor most of the issues from this stretch. Forgettable tripe for the most part. Wizard: The Guide to Comics #19: Reviewed it here, though I found the special edition Wizard: The 100 Most Collectible Comics (released next month, I believe) far more interesting and worthwhile! X-Factor #88: I only recently acquired the Peter David X-Factor run. I hated the first few issues as an adolescent and ditched it quickly. Now, having read his Incredible Hulk, I'm interested in going back. I've amassed the run; I just need to find time to read it. X-Force #20: Bought it, read it at the time, don't remember a damn thing about it anymore, and it's probably better that way. X-Men #18: Bought it, read it at the time, don't remember a damn thing about it anymore, and it's probably better that way. X-O Manowar #15: Of all the early Valiant runs, this one probably jumped the shark the most after Jim Shooter left. I own this, but I'll probably never read it again.
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Post by codystarbuck on Feb 1, 2023 22:37:31 GMT -5
                     Airman was a tie-in to The Protectors and a waste of my money. Dinosaurs For Hire was on a lark and it was fun enough that I bought the next few. Valiant is waning; but, Archer & Armstorn, Eternal Warrior and X-O were still good enough to continue. Not for too much longer, though. I dropped Archer when Barry Windsor-Smith left and the rest fell soon after. I missed out on the Return of Barry Allen, until the end, but swept up the back issues (and Born to Run). I became a regular with it. Green Arrow continued as long as Mike Grell was involved, which would be for a few more issues. Wonder Years was nearing the end of his First Year adventures. Grendel War Child was rounding the turn to the home stretch and Nexus wrapped up another mini. Justice Machine was left unfinished, for some time, but few cared. Without Mike Gustovich and Tony Isabella, it wasn't really worth reading. Legionnaires was the new book, with Chris Sprouse, with the clones, which was more interesting than the regular series. I tried it for a short time. Sandman Mystery Theater begins its run. I didn't stay with it as long as I should have; but, I got digital of the whole series, later. Loved the pulp stylings and Wagner knew what he was doing. Guy Davis took some adjusting, until I really got into it and got used to his style and what he could do with it. That got me to go back and find Baker Street. |
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Feb 2, 2023 11:40:56 GMT -5
I February 1993, I went down to the Local Comics Shop and bought...
Cerebus #167. I don't think we mention the covers of Cerebus often enough. They were a thing of beauty. Dave Sim takes us closer to what we expect will be the second ascension, as our major characters get ready to rumble. Everything was a little slow, to be sure, but I know how long it takes to draw such elaborate backgrounds. Nevertheless, Cerebus felt like a thinking person's comic-book; any resolution was well worth waiting for.
Conan the barbarian #267. The covers would be drawn by Colin McNeil for the remainder of the book's run, much to my delight; I really enjoyed his two-parter in SSoC. Here we continue the adaptation of a pastiche novel by Leonard Carpenter, and it's like we were back in 70s again, during this comic's golden age.
Death: the high cost of living #2. Gaiman + Bachalo, so I'm there.
Doom 2099 #4. Face to face with the dude who re-scarred Doom's face. Say, fellow, can you spell "upstart"?
Hellblazer #64. The Archangel Gabriel could have said, at the end of this book, "I'm screwed". In all senses of the word. Garth Ennis has a clear anti-authoritarian worldview, and will make fun of presidents, kings and heavenly beings whenever he likes, much to our enjoyment!
Hellstorm #1. (No typo). The return of Daimon Hellstrom... in the worst possible way. I hate this kind reset in which a character is revealed to have been a Skrull or a demonic imposter or whatever, leaving room for a new version of themselves. I didn't get issue #2, but apparently down the line it was revealed that Daimon wasn't even the son of Satan after all. For crying out loud! What a waste of a concept!!
Legion of super-heroes #42. I loved the 5YL concept at the beginning; seeing our heroes as older adults, dealing with parenthood, receding hairlines and a lost legacy was pretty novel and intriguing. But after a few years we're mostly dealing with depression, doubt, physical and emotional disabilities and probably aching joints. It's all very depressing and not nearly half as fun as it used to be. The Stuart Immonen art is however pretty darn good.
Legionnaires #1, with great art by Chris Sprouse and a general attitude of "we drove the other Legion title into a pit of depression, so this one will be the fun one". I regretted that a new book featuring the cloned Legionnaires meant they'd no longer be part of the regular series; it was intriguing to see how people would interact with their younger selves and/or their younger (and undeceased) loved ones. Wasted opportunity.
Plus, you can't get over the trauma of seeing the Earth blow up, even if everyone basically acts as if it had been just another Tuesday.
Sandman #48. Of course I'll be there!!!
Sandman Mystery Theater #1. While perhaps betting on the name "Sandman" to attract new readers, this new comic features the original character and is nothing like the adventures of Morpheus. I probably would have kept reading it, what with its great Guy Davis art and interesting premise... but next month would see me move to Germany and not read new comics for years. To this day I regret not having been a regular SMT reader, as it's said to be an excellent series.
Savage Sword of Conan #208. As stated earlier, the adaptation of L. Sprague de Camp's "Conan and the Spider God " was not a success. The original novel is dreadfully bad, and the Buscema/Cruz artwork didn't do much for me. And it was so long, too!
Silver Surfer/Warlock: Resurrection #2. Yeah, I bought issue #2... and I shouldn't have.
Spawn #8. Bought that because of Alan Moore... and how am I not surprised that the man crafted an important part of the title's mythology right then and there? Much respect to McFarlane, who after being told that his scripts weren't really good, went and got big names to write a few issues instead of stomping his foot and claiming he was the next Chaucer. Liefeld would do the same years later.
Uncanny X-Men #299. No idea what ahppens in there. I was buying out of habit and misguided fidelity.
X-Men #19. Same thing.
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Post by berkley on Feb 2, 2023 17:10:19 GMT -5
February 1993:
Eightball #10
Love and Rockets #40
These were unquestionably my favourite two comics series at the time and throughout most of the 1990s, if I include the various solo series the Hernandezes did individually after the forst volume of L&R ended with #50.
Looking up the contents of these 2 particular issues, I think Eightball #10 probably wasn't one of the better issues of that series, though I recall liking " A Message to the People of the Future" and the ongoing "Velvet Glove" was always interesting, though I'm not sure it ever really came together as a coherent piece (in contrast to the later Ghost World, for example, though they're so different it probably isn't fair to compare them).
Love and Rockets #40 contained the conclusion of Poison River, according to comics.org . I'd say this was probably my favourite single long L&R story of the ones I was able to read in installments as they came out, and possibly my favourite, period. One of the highlights of my comics reading experiences, I couldn't wait for the next installment to come out and was sorry when it ended.
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Feb 3, 2023 7:09:29 GMT -5
February 1993: Eightball #10 Love and Rockets #40 These were unquestionably my favourite two comics series at the time and throughout most of the 1990s, if I include the various solo series the Hernandezes did individually after the forst volume of L&R ended with #50. Looking up the contents of these 2 particular issues, I think Eightball #10 probably wasn't one of the better issues of that series, though I recall liking " A Message to the People of the Future" and the ongoing "Velvet Glove" was always interesting, though I'm not sure it ever really came together as a coherent piece (in contrast to the later Ghost World, for example, though they're so different it probably isn't fair to compare them). Love and Rockets #40 contained the conclusion of Poison River, according to comics.org . I'd say this was probably my favourite single long L&R story of the ones I was able to read in installments as they came out, and possibly my favourite, period. One of the highlights of my comics reading experiences, I couldn't wait for the next installment to come out and was sorry when it ended. I wish I'd been smarter and had started reading L&R earlier. At the same time, I must admit that discovering Locas and Palomar in collected form was an amazing experience. Binge reading the best of the best is an experience not to be missed! |
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Post by berkley on Feb 3, 2023 12:25:32 GMT -5
February 1993: Eightball #10 Love and Rockets #40 These were unquestionably my favourite two comics series at the time and throughout most of the 1990s, if I include the various solo series the Hernandezes did individually after the forst volume of L&R ended with #50. Looking up the contents of these 2 particular issues, I think Eightball #10 probably wasn't one of the better issues of that series, though I recall liking " A Message to the People of the Future" and the ongoing "Velvet Glove" was always interesting, though I'm not sure it ever really came together as a coherent piece (in contrast to the later Ghost World, for example, though they're so different it probably isn't fair to compare them). Love and Rockets #40 contained the conclusion of Poison River, according to comics.org . I'd say this was probably my favourite single long L&R story of the ones I was able to read in installments as they came out, and possibly my favourite, period. One of the highlights of my comics reading experiences, I couldn't wait for the next installment to come out and was sorry when it ended. I wish I'd been smarter and had started reading L&R earlier. At the same time, I must admit that discovering Locas and Palomar in collected form was an amazing experience. Binge reading the best of the best is an experience not to be missed!
I still regret not becoming a regular until around #27, after reading a couple of the early Gilbert collections, Duck Feet and The Reticent Heart. But like you, I had a great time catching up on the earlier issues by reading the whole series up to then in the collections.
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