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Post by codystarbuck on Sept 1, 2020 16:15:59 GMT -5
Scout #6 Santana's arms must be tired, from holding those weapons up; both are in the 10 pound range. Creative Team: Tim Truman-story & art, Tim Harkins-letters, Sam Parsons-colors, cat yronwode-editor. FIA-John K Snyder III-story & art, Chris Fauver-co-writer, cat-editor. Penumbra is a repeat of Mark Evanier's column about the Russian River flooding, which wiped out Eclipse's warehouse, as well as cat & Dean's home. Also on the stands: 3-D Alien Encounters #1 (Close Encounters of the Headache-inducing kind!), Adolescent Radioactive Black Belt Hamsters #2,Alien Encounters #6, Laser Eraser & Pressbutton #6, Masked Man #9, Miracleman #8, New DNAgents #8, Official Crisis on Infinite Earths Index #1, Official Justice League of America Index #1 & 2, Seduction of the Innocent #6. ARBBH was a parody of the TMNT knock-offs, but the joke was too meta. The characters were named for action heroes (Clint Eastwood, Chuck Norris, Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan). Eclipse was going whole hog on their DC indexes. It was a strange time. Miracleman #8 was a reprint of an old Marvelman story from the pre-Warrior years, with a fake Marvel-style bridging piece that cat interrupts, sating she hated when Marvel did that, because someone missed a deadline (which is what happened here). Also features the debut of their super-team New Wave. which will lead into the 1st issue of their series, and tied into the new preview, which is related to this thread. Synopsis: Scout-"House Burning Down." Scout is wounded and holed up, resting. Unfortunately, his blood gives him away...  Missy and Doody are with the New Disciples, who have stored up on food and gas and are headed North. Missy is invited along and they will care for Doody, who will survive but is in a bad way. Laura Carver is in withdrawal, as her methodone is gone. She begs Rosanna to save her from Loper & Grail. Rosa goes to the restroom to splash water on her face and runs right into Santana. He warns her to leave before they make her like themselves. he claims he has "arrow power" and it is healing him. He slips away and Rosa lets him. Jerry Grail begins his address to the nation.  Scout interrupts this broadcast for a special bulletin....a 12 gauge bulletin. He drops in and Grail retreats his chair mechanism behind safety doors. Scout faces Loper. He calls him the Antelope Monster, but gets a surprise...  Loper isn't the Antelope Monster...the braodcasting equipment is the monster...  Scout battles it, as Perseus defeated Medusa, reflecting its own image at it. Meanwhile, Pres. Grail gives Ray Vaughn new orders. He goes to Laura Carver's quarters and tells Rosa to stand aside. Rosa tells him to stand down, then shoots him dead. Scout finds Jerry Grail...  and sees him for what he truly is, as he recounts his deeds to the Slayer of Enemies...  Grail draws a gun but Santana's crossbow is faster and a bolt impales him in the throat. He moves on and encounters Rosa and Laura Carver. She tells him the way out and stands guard over Carver. She says to go, before she has to hunt him and then tells him to take care. Scout departs. Bill Loper contacts his allies and tells them they will have to start again; but, with a more manageable person.  Scout, Missy and the New Disciples say their goodbyes. Missy is the band's new lead singer, while Scout has provisions and heads off into the desert. Truman ends by dedicating Book 1 to John Ostrander. FIA-Syd is taking Kelly and the ladies of FIA to scope out Dr Cruel's operation, to turn the guest of the wedding between model Zana Draco and snuff film star Romeo Bravo into gorillas.  At Dr Cruel's fortress, Frances battles Roxanne. It is a savage fight...  Inspector Crough arrives at the wedding and checks in with Alexander Maxim. Johnny Mars comes out and people clamor to touch him. Roxanne heckles Frances, who is wounded. Frances gives the response from the opposition...  Roxanne is defeated by words and offers the women dueling pistols. The FIA are under Johnny Mars' dressing room, getting ready for the fight to come. The letters page has Tim Truman's thoughts on the Challenger Disaster. I was in college and had come home from class, for lunch. My roommate had the tv on and told me what had happend, as I stared, dumbfounded, at the images of the rocket explosion. Tim speaks eloquently about why the astronauts were heroes, and not because NASA or the media said so...  This past year, my uncle, an aeronautical engineer, passed away. He worked, for a time, at Rockwell and worked on the shuttle's fuel tank design and spoke of other designs that were rejected for the faulty O-rings, which were the source of the explosion that killed the astronauts. If only... There is a letter from a comics professional (name withheld) offering his services, if Eclipse wants to do a Destroyer Duck fundraiser for John K Snyder, if he wants to bring legal action against Marvel, after seeing the press release for the mini Dakota North, which emphasizes action and high fashion. Tim says JKS III thought it was funny and, as long as they don't step on his trademark for Fashion In Action, he was fine. Truman also noted the release was probably written by the editor and not the creators. Beau Smith sends praise. He was doing a sort of proto-pod cast, then, a radio show, called Comicast. Thoughts: Again Truman does a fantastic job of crafting a memorable climax to the 4 Monsters, Book 1 of Scout. he threw us a curve, as the Antelope Monster was not Bill Loper, as Santana thought. It was the computer-controlled broadcasting that fed propaganda to the people, warping their perceptions of the corruption of this government. Our celebrity president is revealed as a drug snorting mass of psychoses and ego and Scout ends his life quickly. So, now, the next chapter begins, as we see how Rosa tries to protect Laura carver, who will become president. Can she get her clean again? Can Carver reverse the corruption? Who are Bill Loper's allies? We are still left to make our own conclusions about whether the monsters are real or a product of Santana's minds, as Rosa tells him she saw what Scout wanted her to see. Truman addresses this in the letters page, in response to a fan, pointing out that religious visions are usually offered without proof and sound extraordinary to those who do not share the belief in them. One man's prophet is another man's loon. In the scene where Scout confront's Grail, we see wrestling posters in the background. This being the mid 1980s and it being set in Houston, Truman provides us with By Gawd Rasslin' heroes, as all of the images are from World Class Championship Wrestling, the promotion out of Dallas, TX, run by Fritz Von Erich (Jack Adkisson). The promotion was built around his sons, David, Kevin, Kerry, Mike and Chris Von Erich. The father had been a German heel, until turning babyface, when he bought into the Texas office, reminding people he had been a football star at Southern Methodist Univ. He presented his sons as Christian athletes and heroes. David was the oldest and tallest, the best talker of the bunch and the best head for the business. He was being groomed to get at least a potential short run with the NWA World title. Kevin was the wild acrobat, who wrestled barefoot and had a tendency to beat up his opponents for real, as he wasn't particularly smooth, in the ring. Kerry was the Adonis, with a chiseled physique, rock star looks that drew tons of female fans who screamed and grabbed at him when he made his entrance, to Rush's "Tom Sawyer." David died in Japan, and drugs were flushed. The word from Fritz was an intestinal rupture, while rumors of a drug overdose abounded. Kerry would be badly injured in a motorcycle accident and was out for a year and returned with what was said to be a leg brace, under his boot. In actuality, he rushed his return and damaged micro surgery to repair his foot and it had to be amputated. he was, in fact, wearing a prosthetic limb under his boot, which he hid even from "the boys," showering with his boot on. He developed an addiction to pain pills and was busted for falsifying prescriptions, put on probation, then busted again. He took his own life, rather than face (unlikely) jail time. Mike was smaller and skinnier and brought in after David's death, despite never really wanting to be in the business. He was not great in the ring, though he was booked to win. He injured a shoulder in a match and had surgery, then developed toxic shock syndrome, with a near fatal fever. He appeared to ave suffered brain damage from it and took his own life with an overdose of medication. Chris was the youngest and entered wrestling much later. His growth had been affected by his asthma and he was much smaller and slighter than his brothers. He took steroids for his asthma, then to try to bulk up. He idolized Kerry, and was depressed after Mike's suicide. When it was clear he would never be a star, he took his own life. At the time that Truman drew this, only David had passed away, but, the use of the Von Erichs and Gentleman Chris Adams (an English wrestler who worked in Dallas and was killed in self defense, while he was strung out on GBH and alcohol) really adds an eerie subtext to the images of Grail sitting there, with lines of powder, about to face his doom. Truman seems almost prophetic in this series. FIA is gearing to a conclusion, which will come next issue, as it gets 12 pages for the finale. Frances actually defeats Roxanne not through physical strength, but through psychology, destroying her confidence, as the shrine to Frances revealed Roxanne's deep insecurity, the basis for her psychoses, The question is, what is Dr Cruel's agenda? Well, aside from turning people into gorillas..... Tim Truman was about to become very busy, as 4 Winds was going to be putting out a new book, along with the monthly Scout. We will cover that book, when it debuts.
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Post by codystarbuck on Sept 5, 2020 22:23:29 GMT -5
Scout #7 Note Scout's clothing....it's a uniform. This is the back history of Emanuel Santana, White mountain Apache, Army deserter, and slayer of the 4 Monsters. Creative Team: Tim Truman-story, Tom Yeates-art, Tim Harkins-letetrs, Sam Parsons-colors ("painting" in the credits), cat yronwode-editor. Tom Yeates, a friend and colleague from the Kubert School, is guest artist on this one, as Truman takes time off to be with his new daughter, Emily. FIA: John K Snyder III-story & art, Chris Fauver-co-writer, cat-editor Also out from Eclipse: 3-d Laser Eraser & Pressbutton #1, ARBH 3-D #1, Champions #1, Miracleman #9, Mr Monster #6, New DNAgents #9, Official JLA Index #3 & 4, Tales of Terror #6, World of Wood #1 & 2. Eclipse went in deeply for 3-D comics, working with Ray Zone. Champions was a comic book series, based on the role playing game, from Hero Games, which came out in 1981. The series included character sheets which could be used with the game. After Eclipse published this, Hero Games started their own comic line, which became Hero Comics, whose works continued the Champions chaarcters, especially the female chaarcter Flare, in her skimpy glory. Also published by them was Captain Thunder & Blue Bolt, by Roy and Dann Thomas & ER Cruz, about a superhero and his son, hunted by the government. Roy did some fine work on that series, though it was seen by fewer people than his mainstream work. Miracleman was the infamous "birth issue," as Miracleman's daughter, Winter is born, in graphic detail, from Rick Veitch (later topped by his fecal overload in Maximortal). Funny enough, they got more criticism for that than they attempted rape of Johnny Bates (which causes him to release the trapped Kid Miracleman) and the horrific images after KM was released and ran wild in London. Violence is okay; but childbirth is something that shouldn't bee seen. cat was on her high horse for some time, after that. World of Wood features reprints of Wally Wood stories from other publishers. The Penumbra is written by cat, who relates their experiences in the flood. I mistakenly said she, Dean and their son were evacuated. cat had a child, but the Sean that was mentioned, that I misinterpreted as a child, was an assistant editor (Sean Deming) at Eclipse. Sort of a metaphorical child, I suppose. They lost their home and many possessions, Sean lost most of his possessions. The company's offices were fine; but, therir warehouse and back issue stock was gone. It was a financial hit from which they never recovered. Synopsis: Our story is told via Rosa's journal, "In the Camp of the Barbarians," which has been referenced on the splash page of each of the first 6 issues. Laura Carver is now President of the United States and a pawn of Bill Loper, now the Vice President. However, she is changing. She has been flushing half of the drugs, slowly weaning herself off them. Her mind is sharper. Rosa writes they are trapped by the lies of Jerry grail and now they have to try to make them reality. She also remarks that Laura is far more clever than Loper thinks and she sees it more every day.  Rosa reflects back on the past. She tells us how the West fell. The Soviets made a pact with the governments in South America, effectively cutting it off from north America. Then, a Marxist group staged a coup in Mexico, toppling the government. Fighting spilled across the border, into San Diego. Earth Quakes devastated the area. Hollywood moved east, to Arizona. Mansions became the home to Mexican refugees. Rosa's mother married an Anglo. He died when the docks were destroyed in a quake. he mother died two years later. She fell in with the gangs, as the police left with the whites. The gangs took care of her and she rose to high rank by the time she was 15. Then came the government and Bill Loper. Televangelists became politicians and gained favor in the halls of power. A new program was pushed through: The Schoolboys Program. Rosa and other gang members, plus other troublemakers and dissidents were rounded up and "drafted," (shanghaied) and taken to Carlisle, PA, top Camp Falwell. There, they were turned into soldiers; stormtroopers for this America.  At the camp, Rosa trains to be a soldier, but hates it. She is forced to speak English, do the endless drills, PT (physical training) weapons training and various other duties. She meets Ray Vaughn, a redneck from Louisiana, who was part of a group of levee pirates, who preyed on Vietnamese communities and smuggled goods from Mexico. He was quick with a joke and took well to training, but never lost who he was. Good for a joke and a smoke. She also meets Emanuel Santana, a quiet loner, who watches her...  The rest think he is a "dumb injun". He is from the White Mountain Apache Reservation, where he lived in a two-story ranch house, with his parents. His father was college-educated and part of the American Indian Movement, with Russell Means and Dennis Banks. He was part of a group from AIM who went to Nicaragua to help the indigenous people there. He became a tribal leader and a rancher, as the White Mountain Reservation flourished, developing schools and hospitals, while continuing tribal customs and traditions.  Uranium would upset their world, as Federal agents and corporate thugs began to cause problems, to take the land. Scout's father was beaten to death by BIA police officers and corporate muscle, for launching an investigation into the forcible removal of a family, by a mining company. Emanuel was taken from his mother and shipped off to Carlisle. He excelled at training, but wouldn't conform. Rosa returned his attention and they were lovers, though she had others. Scout, Santana's tribal name, would not be part of the team. The Army tried to break him with punishment details; but it didn't work. He then started to have nightmares, about his mother. They were denied contact with families; but he knew something was wrong and cried out in the night, when she died. he knew, somehow. His visions grew worse. He wasn't allowed to attend the funeral. he dreamed of her, which was considered bad luck. he made offerings of sacred corn and pollen, in the dreams, but they were rejected. He dreamed of the monsters. They made love one last time, but Scout was changed. Rosa saw a monster, a vision of Scout as a were-tiger. The next night, se was on guard duty when Scout hopped the fence and she confronted him. He said goodbye to Rosa and disarmed Ray Vaughn, when he turned up. He walked away and Rosa drew a bead on him, but could not bring herself to fire on him...  Scout had left a false trail, so no one knew he had gotten past Rosa's post. She and Ray were shipped off to combat, in Latin America and in the US, with food riots, then counter-terrorism duties and the New America program, which brought her to Houston and Laura Carver, as well as a reunion with Scout. Now she contemplates the future. The epilogue features some thugs attacking a blind man, who swiftly fights them off with his walking stick and begins preaching to the stunned people of the area. They flock to hear this man who so easily took down the predators who had stalked them.  FIA-Frances and Roxanne face off in a duel. Frances shoots straight and Roxanne dies. At eh wedding of Romeo Bravo, the guests are horrified as a change comes over the bride. Alexander Maxim deploys his men.  Kelly and the FIA ladies, along with Syd, pop up from the maintenance tunnel, inside a garage or work area, and find themselves surrounded. They open fire with concussion grenades and Kelly goes after Johnny Mars. Maxim directs his men to stop her, while he fires his UNCLE Special...  Mars gets hit in the crossfire, revealing him to be a robot. He aims to kill Kelly. Dr Cruel tells Frances she is free to go and she can take Johnny with him. he is now implicated in the plot to turn people into gorillas, as Dr Cruel remarks that people will believe it, even if Johnny is innocent, which is just reward for his treachery. Frances asks how Roxanne could miss, as she fired first and Dr cruel responds...  Dr cruel dismisses her and says he wishes to remain a myth. Frances says she will return and he replies that everyone says that to him. The Gargoyle Gang say things are looking like normal, as Dr Cruel lifts up Roxanne's dead body and carries her away, as they are no longer part of her insane obsession. Ursula spots a broken power cable and calls to Kelly, who has been rescued by Syd (still a gorilla) who has attacked the Johnny Robot. Kelly and Ursula position the cable and make contact with the robot, short circuiting it. Alexander Maxim is about to shoot Kelly in the back, for embarrassing him, but Syd crushes his hand and punches him in the face. The ladies look at at an audience full of fashionable gorillas...  Frances and the ladies are reunited and things move on. Frances contemplates the violence in her life and the death of Roxanne. Ursula provides council...  ...with Frances' own words. Paper doll is Ursula, in this installment...  Thoughts: This was the world building issue. Truman fills in the personal histories of Scout and Rosanna Winer, while also filling in details of this world. The US is devastated economically and environmentally. Natural disasters have combined with man-made stupidity to destroy the fertility of the land. With manufacturing sent overseas, it all falls apart. South America falls under socialist leadership and rejects America, building a pact with the Soviet Union. it continues across the Isthmus to Central America and Mexico, the nightmare of the Reagan 80s, given form. The Right was often railing about communist rebels and governments in latin America, which more often meant anyone who didn't roll over for US business interests. The Government continued decades of backing right wing dictatorships, training their troops and police in interrogation techniques and counter-guerrilla tactics. The US Army's School of the Americas trained more torturers of dissidents than any other organization in the world and was the sight of protests from human rights groups. Truman does what good speculative fiction does and takes the present, extrapolating it to a deeper extreme. America is now impotent and afraid, turning upon itself, but still packing a lot of destructive force. Meanwhile, Truman juxtaposes the lives of Rosa and Scout. Both are products of this horrid system of child soldiers, indoctrinated young and trained to be killing machines, following orders blindly, as with similar groups in history. The Hitler Youth were indoctrinated in party rhetoric and trained to be good soldiers of the Wehrmacht and Waffen SS. Japanese children were militarized before puberty, with war games part of their schooling. In the Congo, the youth were trained by the Simba rebels to chew on a narcotic root, led to believe they were invincible and sent into firefights, without fear of dying, inflicting heavu casualties on the gendarmes and European mercenaries. In modern Africa, child soldiers in places like Sierra Leone and Nigeria are turned into killers, kidnapped from their homes, abused and deadened until they kill without remorse. The UN tries to rehabilitate these scarred children. Rosa is a child of the streets and found something she lacked in the discipline. Scout came from affluence and education, despite the stereotypes people have of Native American reservations. Truman uses the real American Indian Movement, which carried out civil disobedience activities in the late 60s and 70s, led by people like Dennis Banks and Russell Means (who played Chingachook, in Last of the Mohicans). They fought to force the Federal government into honoring treaties with the Native tribes, to bring pride in their culture back to their people and bring equality to the indigenous people and society as a whole. In its early stages, they followed the model of student and other political activists, occupying buildings and monuments, to bring in the media to air grievances. Truman takes that real activisim and advances it in postive directions, with Scout's farther being instrumental in that and his people flourishing, while American society crumbles. Truman turns society upside down for his dystopia. Then, he uses it as a metaphor to highlight how the tribes have been treated, as treaties are ignored and violated as resources are found on Native land, reservation or not. There is a lot of history going on here, of which the majority of the audience was ignorant. Truman picked Carlisle, PA as the sight of Camp Falwell, for a reason. It was the sight of the Carlisle Indian Industrial School, the first of a series of indigenous boarding schools, where children were taken from their families and homes and put through these schools, to assimilate them into White Society. They were denied the right to speak their language and maintain their customs, beaten for uttering the own tongue. The War Department used this system to make hostages of the children to force tribal elders to appease designs on their land. One of the most noted alumni of the school was the athlete Jim Thorpe, who won Olympic Gold medals in the decathlon and pentathlon, in the 1912 games and played college and professional football and baseball. By the end, we understand the relationship between Scout and Rosa; but can also see that they are no longer lovers. Rosa has feelings for Scout, but doesn't necessarily share his visions. She is still a soldier and a product of conditioning and a military viewpoint. Scout is ruled by his visions and his role in fighting the monsters that were preying upon the land. he has slain them; but, he now faces the price of the power he was given to accomplish the job. The question is, how high will it be? Can he be a symbol for the freedom of the populace from the parasite elite who run the country? And who are Bill Loper's backers? Who is this blind preacher, in the desert, who seems as capable as Scout, and has attracted listeners to his sermons? Lots of interesting things to come. Tom Yeates does an amazing job. His art has always been beautiful, betraying his influences, with Alex Raymond being an obvious one; but you can also see Hal Foster and Russ manning in there, plus others of that illustrative style. There too, is the influence of Kubert, which was very strong over that early generation of students, as he provided more of the instruction, in those days and brought in friends as instructors over the years, like Irwin Hassen and Tex Blaisdel. You could spot the Kubert grads, in the 80s, as much from their art styles, as their professionalism (probably the best instruction of the school, which is why their students have had so much success, in comics, apart from talent). They are a big part of why I applied to the school, when I was leaving the military. I was accepted; but couldn't swing the tuition, without going into deep debt and decided to follow pragmatic concerns over dreams. Shoulda, Woulda, Coulda...Didn't. c'est la vie! That was then. FIA ends its story with a headlong crash into action, even if Fashion took a back seat. Dr Cruel continues to intrigue, as his motives are still not clear, other than a bit of payback for Johnny Mars for forgetting who built his career. It is still a mystery why he helped Roxanne and attacked Frances and FIA, unless it was to put an end to Roxanne's obsession with Frances. Kill or cure, perhaps? Regardless, it is a bit obtuse, completely gonzo, and still a lot of fun. The compressed story means a lot of nuance is lost; but, I think that is part of the charm. It's like a wacky impressionist action/adventure. You get to fill in the gaps. Hardly a commercial approach; but an interesting one, artistically. Scout moves into Book 2: Mount Fire. Look for a lot to happen, with some new characters entering a couple of old ones departing, and some old friends changing.
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Post by codystarbuck on Sept 7, 2020 15:22:49 GMT -5
Scout #8 Another painted cover by Truman. Creative Team: Tim Truman-story & art (after changing diapers), Tim Harkins-letters, Sam Parsons-colors, cat yronwode-editor FIA-John K Snyder III-story & art, Chris Fauver-co-writer, cat-editor Also out from Eclipse: Alien Encounters #7, ARBH 3-D #2, Kitz N Katz #3, New Wave #1 & 2, Johnny Hazard #7 & 8, Salome #1, Champions #2, Crossfire & Rainbow #1, New DNAgents #10, Night Music #6, Whodunnit? #1, World of Wood #3 & 4 Kitz N Katz I don't recall, at all. Johnny Hazard reprints the adventure strip, by Frank Robbins. I didn't recall this and checked the covers; it looks like these might have been Ken Pierce reprints, which would make sense, as they helped distribute those (Pierce also reprinted at least one Phantom serial, Modesty Blaise, Lady Luck, Axa, and a few other strips, in black & white). Cross fire & Rainbow is a mini starring Rainbow, of the DNAgents, and the bounty hunter/adventurer Crossfire, who was introduced in the pages of DNAgents. Maybe when I get through the 4 Winds stuff, I will look at Mark Evanier and Will Meugniot (and Dan Spiegle)'s DNAgents and related books. They were pretty good, and it gives me an excuse to look at the crossover with New Teen Titans (in drag). Night Music was P Craig Russell's opera comics, which are gorgeous. New Wave was Eclipse's company-owned super team, which debuted in a preview, in Miracleman #8 It was okay, with some interesting ideas;, but not the greatest book in the world. It couldn't compare to Miracleman; but, what could? Liberty Project, from Kurt Busiek and James Fry, was a more interesting premise for a superhero book and more engaging stories. Unfortunately for it, it started just after DC had launched John Ostrander's Suicide Squad; and, DC and Marvel were squeezing the indies, on the stands. Whodunnit? was a supposed mystery that would lead you to a $1,000 cash prize. Never heard if it was ever claimed. Wouldn't bet on it. cat's Penumbra is about the Chernobyl Disaster. Man that scared the s@#$ out of me. I was in college, in NROTC, and we were watching it closely, to see if it would get worse and what actions it might lead to from the Soviet government and military. As it was, the expenditure on containing and cleaning up the disaster, coupled with the quagmire of Afghanistan, and an arms race with the US pretty much led to the collapse of the Soviet system. At the time, though, we didn't know had bad things were internally, as it turned out the CIA had been overstating Soviet military expenditures and force capabilities. Everyone was a bit on edge that the Soviets might use it as an excuse to strike westward to gain territory further away from the disaster and to gain resources for their people. Chernobyl was in the Ukraine, which was the Soviets main farming region. That was part of the reason the Germans invaded the Ukraine, was to gain the farmlands to feed the German people, as the sought to expand their population. Synopsis: "Hellhound on My Trail"-Scout is hiding in the desert, with the gahn, as Truman tells us of Apache spiritual beliefs...  He follows with a punch line...  The area was a hiding place for the Apache and Scout speaks of feeling the ghosts, while he healed up. Gahn says there are all kinds of spirits there.  We cut to Houston, as Pres Carver meets with Bill Loper, Rosa Winter at her side. He introduces her to a special envoy from Israel, Avner Glanzman...  Glanzman extends Israel's offer of assistance in technical skills and other "resources." Bill Loper rejects it outright, to Carver's surprise and Glanzman's expectations. He tells Carver the offer remains open, and leaves. Meanwhile, the blind preacher and his small band wander the desert and encounter others.  Scout and the gahn continue hunting and run into something...  The Clown and Godeh, the spirits that Apache parents used to frighten their children into behaving. Scout is actually terrified, as he has come to see these legends as being real. Scout pulls out his weapons and fires, and he keeps firing, long after the bullets are spent. They appear to be dead; but something else waits...  Scout looks at the monster and sees it transformed, into himself. The gahn tells Scout it was his job to teach him about the monsters and get him to this place. The 4 Monsters were easy; this monster will be harder. It is the monster within Santana. It is time for the gahn to leave.  Scout finds the rabbit that gahn indicated and kills it and cooks it. As he sits by his fire, the preacher walks in and greets him. He shares his food and tells him where to find water and the preacher thanks him and calls him Santana. Scout aims his weapon, figuring the preacher has seen wanted posters. The preacher lowers his hood, revealing a surprise...  The preacher is Doody, who has left Guitar Man and Missy and wanders, spreading the Gospel, mixed in with the Lord of the Rings, and Scout's monsters. Doody leaves to get back to his people and Scout follows and sees a mass of people spread out, following Doody, in the desert. FIA-The group recovers, after their battle and their HQ is rebuilt, with a new Tokyo office underway. We learn what the girls are doing...  Frances is away on sabbatical, trying to make sense of things. She spends time with an artist, who uses an air cannon to spread pain on canvas. Some mischievous kids remove the blocks from the wheels of his pick-up truck, which carries the air cannon. They fire it and the truck is propelled down the beach. he chases after it while Frances muses. She recalls making snow angels as a child, as she lays on the sand of the beach. The artist returns and says he is heading back, offering a lift; but Frances chooses to walk and think. She plans on rejoining the team and hunting down Dr Cruel.  She realizes that Roxanne brought her to Dr Cruel, who was bit a legend, talked of in pulp magazines. She makes peace with what happens and goes for a swim.  The letters page still has debate about the presence of FIA, though some get it. It's brighter look and style contrast the darkness of Scout, yet they have similar themes. You can bring the horse to water; but, you can't make him drink. At the end, Tim provides a discography of the issue titles, all taken from blues and rock songs. lots of Howlin' Wolf and some Jimi Hendrix, as well as this issues title, from Robert Johnson (as in The Crossroads). He also announces that FIA will appear in their own Summer Special, while the next two issues of Scout will have a lower price tag, as an experiment in format and to help new readers jump on board. Issue #9 will feature the preview of Airboy, with a focus on The Heap and the various supporting characters of the old Hillman Air Fighters comics. Issue #10 will have a Scout portfolio, featuring many of Truman's friends and fellow Kubert alumni. Issue #11 will feature a new back up, Monday the Eliminator, with art from Flint Henry, who also followed Truman on Grimjack. Monday was an interesting idea, though I didn't think his story ended particularly well. It was different, though you will probably see the influences pretty quickly. Thoughts: A transitional story, as we close the book on the Four Monsters and prepare for Mt Fire, Scout is on his own, as the gahn's work is done. We are teased with the running sub-plots of Book 2, with the battle of wills between Laura Carver and Bill Loper and the growing mass of Doody's followers. something has changed in Doody and even Scout senses it. His message is a weird mix of evangelical Christianity (especially Revelations) and Tolkien, which drew its inspiration from myths of several cultures, as it isn't hard to see the parallels between Mordor and Hell, and Sauron and Satan. Truman parallel's Doody with the prophets of the old testament, as well as Jesus and the Disciples of the New Testament. People flock to Doody and his word and he has grown in power. The question is, is he messiah or Anti-Christ? Is he prophet or madman? Is this all a delusion, after his intense torture, mixing his past with Rev Deluxe and his love of Tolkien, plus Scout's crusade? The line between deliverer and destroyer is a thin one and many have died for beliefs that seem unfathomable, to others. Truman also continues to mix in real Apache spiritual beliefs, using them to give texture to Scout. He faces Godeh and the Clown, his greatest fears, yet sees that they are nothing, compared to the monster that lives within himself. All beings are capable of good or evil, creation or destruction and the struggle of man is to encourage the one and rein in the other. It is a foundation of most spiritual beliefs, whether it is Heaven and Hell, yin and yang, good or evil. One cannot exist without the other, but the true path is to find the balance between them and maintain the balance. More world building, as we learn of things beyond the borders of the troubled US. Israel is a world power and it is later to be revealed that their influence extends beyond their traditional borders and the Occupied Territories. In this world, it extends from the Middle East, into North and East Africa and Western Europe. It is probably a bit much; but, it does reflect a certain reality. Israel has/had cozied up to governments around the world, with technical assistance and training. They worked with Amin, in Uganda, building the Entebbe Airport terminal, which is how they had such detailed plans of it to rehearse their assault on the building, during their rescue mission, in 1976. They have trained armies and police forces around the world. Problem is, they have also trained some nasty groups, as detailed in Victor Ostrovsky' book about the MOSSAD and its operations. At one point, the MOSSAD were training a group from the Sri Lankan government and from the Tamil Tigers, scheduling them at opposite ends of the training base so they never encountered one another. The MOSSAD have spent as much time spying on friendly nations as unfriendly, and conducting industrial espionage. Of course, so have Western and Eastern intelligence agencies. That was at the heart of Israel's effort to block publication of the book, back in the late 80s/early 90s. So, again; Truman takes real world things and extrapolates them into the future. Avner Glanzman will be an interesting character, as we will see what a "special ambassador" means (I have probably already given it away, if you are still awake, at this point). He is named in honor of Sam Glanzman, who was another influence and friend of Truman, whose work would also appear under the 4 Winds banner. Next issue; BEAU LA DUKE, REAL MAN!!!! Grab a bloody steak, slam back some hootch and scratch yourself because the testosterone will be flowing. Might want to have some air freshener ready for the smell.
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Post by Calidore on Sept 7, 2020 16:16:14 GMT -5
Enjoying these, thanks!
Whodunnit was the real deal. Mark Evanier wrote them, and I think Dan Spiegle drew them. Each was a self-contained mystery; the solution and prize winner were revealed in the next issue. Only three issues were produced, I think because Evanier said creating the mysteries was too time-consuming. The solution to the third issue appeared in a subsequent issue of Crossfire.
Personally, I liked Crossfire a lot more than DNAgents. I think I still have the full run in storage (along with Whodunnit).
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Post by codystarbuck on Sept 7, 2020 16:22:44 GMT -5
Enjoying these, thanks! Whodunnit was the real deal. Mark Evanier wrote them, and I think Dan Spiegle drew them. Each was a self-contained mystery; the solution and prize winner were revealed in the next issue. Only three issues were produced, I think because Evanier said creating the mysteries was too time-consuming. The solution to the third issue appeared in a subsequent issue of Crossfire. Personally, I liked Crossfire a lot more than DNAgents. I think I still have the full run in storage (along with Whodunnit). Crossfire offered more story possibilities than DNAgents, as it had to follow superhero conventions. crossfire was more of a mix of that, classic detective stories, and Hollywood history. Much richer tapestry. Plus, Spiegle is just a terrific storyteller. |
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Post by berkley on Sept 7, 2020 16:54:07 GMT -5
I like Thomas Yeates's artwork but looking at his bibliography it seems he never had any long runs on a title apart from Saga of the Swamp Thing, unless I'm missing something. And even that was only around 12 issues.
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Post by codystarbuck on Sept 7, 2020 18:06:35 GMT -5
I like Thomas Yeates's artwork but looking at his bibliography it seems he never had any long runs on a title apart from Saga of the Swamp Thing, unless I'm missing something. And even that was only around 12 issues. Well, his style took time; but, he has worked on quite a few newspaper strips, which was probably (though not always, as Mike Grell can attest) more lucrative. He's also done other illustration, as I have an omnibus edition of the first 3 or 4 John Carter novels, with Yeates illustrations. He's done Prince Valiant (following Gary Gianni) and Zorro, for newspapers. |
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Post by codystarbuck on Sept 9, 2020 19:11:09 GMT -5
Scout #9 Here's the full, wrap-around cover...  That's Beau La Duke, holding the SPAS 12 shotgun. Chuvalo is the canine, in the background. Creative Team: Tim Truman-story & art, Tim Harkins-letters, Sam Parsons-colors, cat yronwode-editor. Stephen Scott Beau Smith-inspiration, cheerleading and truckloads of testosterone. Also out from Eclipse: ARBBH #3, Airboy #1 & 2, Champions #3, Crossfire & Rainbow #2, ESPers #1, Miracleman #10, New DNAgents #11, New Wave #2 & 3, Official Crisis on Infinite Earths Crossover Index #1, Spiral Path #1 & 2, Tales of Terror #7, Tor 3-D #1. We'll get to Airboy, in a minute. Both Airboy and New Wave were published bi-weekly, with about half to 2/3 the content of a standard comic. This was an experiment to see if buyers would go for the new series with a lower price point. This meant fewer pages;, but, the bi-weekly frequency actually gave them more story, in one month. They kept it up, for a bit. Eclipse also used this with some of their manga series. ESPers was by James Hudnall, with V for Vendetta's David Lloyd doing the art. It was a mix of espionage and mental powers. Spiral Path reprinted material from Warrior Magazine, following the path of Miracleman and Laser Eraser and Pressbutton. DC got V for Vendetta and the Bojeffries Saga turned up in a few places. In the Penumbra, cat muses about the freedom of the arts and makes herself sound quite noble. Some folks who worked with her tell of a different side, who could be petty and vindictive; but, hey, we are all human. Also, Eclipse wasn't above crass commercialization, like their DC indexes, or some of their trading card sets. Synopsis: Scout is in southern Colorado, tracking some pistol shots he heard. He spots the source, two poachers who have shot a cow and are butchering it. He slides in, shuts off a radio and tells the men to move back, as there is plenty of meat for everyone...  The two bikers/poachers recognize Scout and figure they would collect the reward. They thought wrong. Scout's Coly Python dispatches one and a machete takes care of the other. He turns to the cow to take some meat. That's when he hears the sound of a shotgun shell being chambered and freezes...  Both men fire...  The other bikers observe from a distance. They hold back, as the leader recognizes Scout. Meanwhile, in Houston, Bill Loper and Laura Carver debate the focus of government. Loper favors continuing the New America platform, with a military buildup to spur industrial production. Laura favors focusing on feeding the populace and decaying infrastructure. She tells Loper do do as he will, since he does, anyway...  Carver dispatches Rosa to dig into Loper's files to determine what he is up to. They both admit the sham of Laura being drug dependent is no longer effective, after Loper remarks about how healthy she looks. They run into Ambassador Glanzman, who has been lobbying senators with Israel's proposals. Laura reiterates that they will be in contact. Beau La Duke takes Scout to see his town, New Dunbar. The town is self sufficient, but cut off from news, as Scout details the death of Jerry Grail. La Duke owns the town, which runs on solar power, while his monster truck runs on methane, which is plentiful, thanks to his herd of cattle. The bikers are led by Billy Zeitgeist, but they usually trade or La Duke lets them kill a few, in exchange for mechanical services. The minefields keep them from rustling. Beau takes Scout to his home, a fortified bunker...  Meanwhile, Doody and his followers are in Utah, as he mixes 2nd Corinthians and Lord of the Rings...  Bill Loper has agent provocateurs in the group, preparing for "Operation Mount Fire." Beau and Scout get acquainted over steak (blood rare, of course) and Lucille, the computer system, alerts him to intruders. It is a Huey helicopter, with National Guard Defense Reserve (the Salvation Army) troops on board. They give Beau a message that the state of Colorado would like to meet with the town council for discussions. Beau doesn't like the smell of things. Beau and the leader of the council meet Col. Pate, at the arranged time and are told that they are confiscating his cattle, under some unconstitutional law and then present Beau a surprise...  The fuel dump explodes, allowing Beau to slip away in the confusion. Scout provides covering fire as they run to the truck. he has also sabotaged the Salvation Army's armor and vehicles. As they speed away, Col Pate recognizes Scout and smiles. he has more to bring against Beau. In Houston, Rosa breaks into Loper's office and finds a file on Mount Fire, and is then surprised by Ambassador Glanzman. he is actually MOSSAD, Israeli intelligence. Beau leads Scout to a rendezvous, as he has a deal to offer Billy Zeitgeist and her biker gang. On the letters page, the real Beau La Duke, Beau Smith, sends in praise for issue 5. Tim also receives a letter from a German student, living in England. He was a bit dismissive of Scout, at first, until issue #3. He finishes with a summary page of the previous issue, for new readers, to help catch them up...  Thoughts: Beau La Duke, by far, is the best supporting character in the series. He's a mix of John Wayne, Beau Smith, Clint Eastwood, and every "real man" western He-ro to ever grace the silver screen or the pages of Zane Grey or Louis L'Amour. At the same time, he's also a bit of a satire of said "real men." Beau Smith would get to take this further, in future issues, with the one page "Beau La Duke's Tips for Real Men." These were hilarious collections of silliness, beer, whiskey, straight razors, rare steaks and sledgehammer after shave. Just like Beau. Stephen Scott Beau Smith was a noted fan, letter writer, and hosted a proto-pod-cast radio show, Comicast, which covered the comic scene, with a favorable look at the independents. This helped bring him into Tim Truman and 4 Winds circles and he would end up as the marketing guy for Eclipse, as well as a budding writer, collaborating with Chuck Dixon on The Black Terror and writing his own Parts Unknown.  After Eclipse, he ended up working for Todd McFarlane and was instrumental in his offer for Eclipse's assets, in bankruptcy court. There were several offers for individual properties, the sum total of which was higher than McFarlane's; however, the bankruptcy judge didn't want to mess with the complexity of piecemealing the components and took the single offer. Bankruptcy court's job is to do the best it can to provide restitution to the bankrupt party's creditors and taking the lower offer meant less administrative headaches; but, hardly served the best interests of the creditors. McFarlane's main goal was to gain control of Miracleman; but that didn't work out; because, a, the contracts pretty much returned copyright to the creators, and b, Dez Skinn never had copyright in the first place, as Marvelman was not in the public domain. Mick Anglo maintained copyright, which he sold to Marvel, who helped kill it, in Warrior magazine, in the first place. Marvel reprinted the material (well, except the Silver Age beginning) and said they would continue; but, here we are with no new Miracleman. Marvel also declined to use the name Marvelman, the original, in favor of the better known name (it also meant they didn't have to create new art for logos on the covers). McFarlane did use the Heap, but that was about it. I believe he turned over the Black Terror to Smith, though don't quote me on that. The character itself was and is in the public domain, which means it is fair game, though Eclipse did have a trademark on the title Black Terror, leading other to use the name Terror, or some variation. Based on Dynamite's use of it, I assume that has lapsed or been sold. So, anyway, Beau La Duke shows that there are other factions in the western US who are opposed to the New America plan. As we will see, he is not alone. Meanwhile, Rosa knows what is going on with Mount Fire, but we are still in the dark, though we see that Loper as agents within Doody's flock. This is actually a regular operation for counter-intelligence groups, slipping in agents to watch so-called subversive groups. The FBI infiltrated the Klan, but also labor unions and political protest groups, while MI-5 did the same, in the UK. There is a certain tendency to infiltrate left wing groups more than right wing, though that depends, somewhat, on the administration in charge. Hoover's FBI was far more concerned with communists and Martin Luther King than they were the Klan and the John Birch Society, though the Justice Department did find creative ways to go after these groups, eventually. In Scout's world, the Salvation Army is an actual paramilitary force, thanks to the influence of Loper and other Religious Right figures, as they mixed politics with evangelism, taking the real world to a greater extreme. This has parallels to the SA and SS, under the Nazi Party, as their main functions were quasi-military, until Hitler made his deal with the Wehrmacht, leading to the Night of the Long Knives and the murder of Ernst Rohm. After that, the SS, who were Hitler's bodyguard, gained full control over police and counter-intelligence, as well as a private army, the Waffen SS. Draw your own conclusions about modern militia groups. Truman is really working the subplots well, in Book 2. Book 1 was a more straightforward story, though it almost seems like the disposition of the 4 Monsters was a bit too quick. Really, that was just an introduction to this dystopia and the people who ran it and a way for Scout to make a spectacular entrance. Now, we explore how messed up things really are and how Scout continues to be the X Factor in Loper's plans. Book 3 will then look at to whom Bill Loper answers. On the letters page, Truman answered a letter, which talked about his Uzi being out of proportion and says he tries to do his homework, because Kubert and Kurtzman did; plus, it adds reality. However, he isn't above exaggeration, for dramatic effect. he then said the writer missed the fact that a previous cover featured an Uzi with no ejection port. The spent rounds are gonna jam up inside! Beau's SPAS 12...  ...was an assault shotgun, designed for police and military use. It featured both semi-auto and pump action feed, as well as a folding stock version. It's high tech and exotic appearance made it a favorite for armorers in Hollywood and it turned up in a ton of tv shows (especially stuff like Miami Vice and The Equalizer) and movies. It was also a favorite among gun nuts and the magazines, though it fell under military assault weapon classifications, in many states, over time. It was also partially used to make the prop weapons for the Colonial Marines, in Aliens. The weapon was made using an M1 Thompson submachone gun, with a shroud added, then a cut-down Remington 870 pump action shotgun. The Remington was fixed inside the SPAS-12 heat shield and used the SPAS pump action handle, after it was cut down in size. This kind of thing went back to Star Wars, where they used Mauser pistols, Sterling submachine guns, and MG-42 machine guns to create the blaster props. The rest of the issue was the Airboy preview, which follows below...
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Post by codystarbuck on Sept 9, 2020 19:55:14 GMT -5
Airboy PreviewThe preview follows on from the New Wave Preview, seen in New DNAgents #9 and Miracleman #8, in which the New Wave team lands a shuttle in a swamp area and encounters a powerful being which they defeat, thanks to the aid of the swamp creature, The Heap. The story picks up here. Creative Team: Chuck Dixon-story & co-plot, Tim Truman-pencils & co-plot/editor, Tom Yeates-inks, Tim Harkins-letters, Ron Courtney-colors. Special thanks to Don and Maggie Thompson for research, about The Heap. Synopsis: The New Wave depart the swamp, leaving the Heap alone with its thoughts. He recalls once being German pilot Baron von Emmelman, who was shot down and crash landed in a swamp, in Poland.  He didn't die and was reborn as the creature, The Heap. It then recalls another war and other pilots, fighting alongside them against an evil...  Hitler wasn't the only evil though, as there was the grim collector of dead aviators, Misery...  He recalls the face of a woman, and the sorrow of the young man. He wonders if they won the war, if they still live. We cut to California, where an older man holds the tunic of Airboy and softly weeps.  The Heap feels the pull of the emotions from the man, and begins a trek. He is needed. To be continued in Airboy #1 Thoughts: First off, the art from Truman and Yeates is both gorgeous and creepy. We see death and decay, with flies and maggots, mixed with life and beauty. Airboy tread in adventure, at Hillman, while also having a foot in horror, with both the heap stories and in Airboy, with the villain, Misery. Misery flies in his Airtomb, a giant, decaying airplane, filled with damned souls of departed aviators. He was a pretty creepy and memorable dude. Chuck Dixon got to strut his stuff on Airboy, after previous work on Evangeline. Dixon knows how to write pulp and was perfectly in sync with Truman. The two men shared differing political outlooks, which helped even out the political elements present in Airboy, as the storylines dealt with things like US backing of dictators, while also dealing with the Soviets in Afghanistan and proxy wars elsewhere. Airboy got attacked by both critics on the Right and Left, which usually means you are doing something right. Airboy and the associated characters were published by Hillman, who specialized in aviation comics, horror, jungle stories, crime and even romance. What it did not do was superheroes. Their aviation stories mixed the pulps with the adventure strips of the newspapers. Airboy debuted in Air Fighters #2 and became the star, then got his own title. He was yet another creation from Charles Biro, along with co-writer Dave Wood and artist Al Carny. Fred Kida would be the artist most associated with the feature. The comic mixed Terry and The Pirates, with a bit of Tom swift, and some G-8. Fighting against and then alongside Airboy was Valkyrie, a German aviatrix, who fell in love with young Davey Nelson. Her squadron, the Air Maidens, eventually defect with her. The Heap featured in monster stories and the origin is as shown here. Von Emmelman was inspired by the real Baron Von Immelman, who developed the Immelman turn, which is an aerial dogfighting move to alter position. Essentially, the plane executes a loop; but, then rolls 180 degrees, changing its angle of attack. We get glimpses of some of the other features in Air Fighters comics, including Sky Wolf, The Flying Dutchman, Iron Ace and Black Angel. Sky Wolf was, more or less, a copy of Blackhawk, with a hero who wears a wolf pelt for a hat. He and his buddies fly special tri-planes, which could split apart to attack individually. The Flying Dutchman is a Dutch aviator who fanatically attacks the Germans who occupy his country. Iron Ace is an Englishman, descended from knights of old, who wears a suit of armor. Black Angel was an Englishwoman who flies in disguise, though she wears no mask. Not seen is the Bald Eagle, a Native American pilot, also featured in Air Fighters, who will turn up in the Sky Wolf back-up stories. The Hillman characters had lapsed into the public domain, making them fair game, though Eclipse trademarked the names for comic titles. The 4 Winds team would have a whole line of Air Fighters comics going, with mini-series and one-shots complimenting the regular Airboy book, as well as some special crossovers, including one with Mr Monster and another with Clint, of the Adolescent Radioactive Black Belt Hamsters. He would also run into the Prowler, and be a central part of the crossover mini, Total Eclipse, featuring characters from several Eclipse titles. This was a great little intro and it makes you want to pick up Airboy #1. It was different from what was on the stands, at the time and would prove different from the Hillma originals, while still honoring their past. Not an easy trick to pull of. We will cover those books in between issues of Scout. Next, Airboy #1.
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Post by codystarbuck on Sept 10, 2020 22:15:59 GMT -5
Airboy #1 Cover by Stan Woch &Tim Truman-Davy Nelson must be hella strong to one hand that M-60' they weigh nearly 24 pounds, unloaded. Usually, the M-60 was carried by the biggest guy in the platoon. Should have given him a dog, named Goliath. "Duh, I don't know, Davy...."  Creative Team: Chuck Dixon-co-plot & scripter, Tim Truman-co-plot,pencils & editor, Tom Yeates-inks, Tim Harkins-letters, Ron Courtney-colors Synopsis: At an old monastery in the Nappa Valley, California, David Nelson talks to some hidden figure, who says Nelson is his and that he will make an arms shipment to some generalissimo *Francisco Franco? He's still dead, right?)...  Outside, young Davy Nelson spars with trainer and tutor Hirota, practicing bojitsu (staff fighting) when they are interrupted by armed men, in a van (Hannibal & BA?) and someone in a Hughes Aircraft OH-6a helicopter (Howling Mad Murdoch?). The elder David grabs an Ingram M-10 and locks and loads. Faster than you can say, "I pity tha fool...", Hirota pushes Davy inside the house and takes out the driver of the van with a bo staff through the windshield (neat trick to penetrate safety glass, without a pointed end). The van crashes and Hirota makes like Lee Van Cleef and whoops the remaining goons with his bo staff. He says something about David's past catching up to him. Young Davy runs through the house, wondering about the helo and runs into it's occupants, two guys with AK-47s. His father pulls him out of the line of fire in time and returns fire with a pair of Ingrams. They go to find Hirrota and run into the helo, circling around. it has an M-60 in a door gunner position and opens fire on Hirota. David Nelson fires his weapons and hits the gunner, then ignites the helos fuel tank. Just like every episode of Airwolf, the Hughes helo blows up, real good. David nelson collapses and Davy finds the wounds. he mutters something about "Sorry...Valkyrie..." and dies.  Davy calls Hirota and tells him. Hirota takes Davy deep inside the old monastery and shows him his father's fortune, vast treasure left to him by the monks who founded the monastery and raised young David Nelson Sr. He further shows him his legacy, as he hands Davy the tunic of Airboy...  Hirota doesn't believe that the killers knew about David's past as Airboy, but others, who were behind them, did. They will search for them.  There follows a history of Hillman and Airboy, by Lou Mougin...   Thoughts: Killer first issue, literally. Airboy is dead, long live Airboy! David Nelson Sr, the original Airboy, who flew Birdie, the fantastic plane against the Axis powers, later founding Nelson Aviation, has been killed by gun-wielding goons. One thing to note, if you pay attention: the killers are not white Anglos; most looked Native American or Latino.We will learn more, next issue. Dixon and Truman just drop us in the middle of things and explain very little, other than David Nelson was Airboy, he fought in WW2 and shot down Hirota, Hirota serves him loyally, and someone murdered him, with an armed attack on his home, with air support. That's a big deal. Also, some mysterious person was extorting Nelson to send arms to some Latin generalissimo. Ton of action, plenty of mystery. Airboy was just the ticket, if you were looking for adventure, with less spandex. Airboy was never really a superhero feature; he was part of a long line of pulp adventurers, from the pulp magazines and novels, to newspaper strips, to comic books. Dixon and Truman know how to present this stuff; and, as we will see, do it with gonzo gusto (wait 'til we meet the Rats!) Eclipse offered this at a $.50 price point, when their regular books were $1.25 and 1.50. We got 15 pages of story, plus a two page history of the character (part one). Not a lot of bang for your buck; but, issue 2 would come 2 weeks later, with more story. When combined, you got 30+ pages for one dollar, which was a pretty good deal, from an indie, with only house ads at the end of the book. Next time, issue 2 continues the mystery and we meet Sky Wolf, my favorite character. And now, just 'cause....
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Post by codystarbuck on Sept 11, 2020 23:07:09 GMT -5
Airboy #2 Sky Wolf! Makes The Punisher look like a @#$%&*()! Truman cover. Creative Team: Chuck Dixon-scripter & co-plot, Tim Truman-layouts & co-plot/editor, Tom Yeates-illustrations, Tim Harkins-letters, Ron Courtney-colors, cat yronwode-generalissimo Synopsis: near an island in the Florida Keys, a floatplane meets up with a boat, as drugs are exchanged for cash, and the head of a dead dealer who doublecrossed the pilot. They get a bit of a surprise, as they make their swap...  The island belongs to Sky Wolf, as does the AH-64 Apache gunship, and Sky Wolf gives them a warning with a Hellfire missile. Usually does the trick! He returns to his private airfield and finds Hirota and Airboy waiting for him. It takes him a minute to realize it can't be the original and is, in fact, young Davy Nelson, not his father. They catch him up and he mentions Birdie and Hirota tells him that she is why they are there. Sky Wolf starts "er-ing and um-ing". Birdie isn't exactly in great shape. The three men work together to get her back into shape...  Davy mentions his father's dying words, about Valkyrie. Sky Wolf tells him that they need to talk. He tells Davy about Valkyrie, the female German ace who was Airboy's foe and ally, and true love. Meanwhile, Sky Wolf has feelers out about who attacked the monastery and everything points to South America. 2 weeks later, in Bogantilla, in South America, an airfield gets a little visit...  They spot the Hughes helo and Davy hits it with rocket fire, while Sky Wolf protects his wing. Davy lands Birdie and looks for the head man. The men are rebel soldiers, fighting Gen. Ortista. They ordered the hit on the man who had been supplying weapons to the general, to use against their people. Davy doesn't believe it, but he quickly sees the truth of it and it fits in with the way his father had isolated himself. The guerrilla chief provides documents to prove his statements. Davy is resigned to the truth. Meanwhile, in Gamada Cruzm capital of Bogantilla, the generalissimo screams at a subordinate, because his weapons shipment has not arrived...  Nice picture of Ronnie there; bet Noriega had something similar. Oritista goes to consult his advisor, Misery...  ...who just happens to have possession of Valkyrie, and has been forcing David Nelson to do his bidding to keep her safe! Lou Mougin finishes his history of Airboy...  Thoughts: Did I mention Sky Wolf is my favorite character? Subsequent issues will illustrate why; but, suffice to say, he is a mix of old fashioned pulp adventurer/aviation hero, modern mercenary, and all around John Wayne s#@$-kicker. However, as we come to know him, he's not very good with personal relationships and a bit of a screw-up. Still, the Apache gunship is pretty damn sweet and it fits him to a T. In fact, it suggests a bit of music... We see Dixon and Truman commenting on the times, as this was deep in the middle of the Reagan Administrations proxy war with the Soviets and Cuba, in Nicaragua, with the US-backed Contras (former Samosa National Guard officers and soldiers, who brutalized the populace, under Samosa) against the Soviet and Cuban-backed Marxist Sandanistas, under Daniel Ortega. The Sandanistas were socialists who led the fight against Anastasio Samoza, whose family had been put in power in Nicaragua. US public opinion turned against the government, when an ABC journalist was shot dead, on camera, by a National Guard soldier. The Carter Administration cut off support and the Sandanistas overthrew Samoza, in 1979. Initially, they worked as part of a Junta of National Reconstruction, but the centrists resigned amid conflict and the Sandanistas took full control. On the positive side, they advanced universal literacy and healthcare reforms, and promoted gender equality. On the negative side, they continued the oppression of the indigenous people and carried out mass executions, funneling recruits to the Contras. The US was also backing governments in El Salvador (whose death squads were murdering innocent protesters, union leaders, and even clergy) and Honduras (who carried out campaigns of terror against union activists and lbireal reformers), and both the CIA and US military provided advisors and even combat troops, at various times. In Panama, Manuel Noriega was in the employ of the CIA, until he proved an embarrassment to the Bush Administration, while also threatening the Canal. Airboy features these events and moves it to a fictional country, where the indigenous population is being brutalized (an old story throughout the Americas, North and South)and Misery is using his hold over David Nelson to fuel the fighting. Misery was Hillman and Airboy's greatest villain, a horrific figure who collects the souls of dead aviators, in his Airtomb. He lives up to his name, as he spreads nothing but misery to the world. He will factor in the story at various points; but, right now, he is responsible for the corruption and death of the original Airboy and he holds Valkyrie as a prisoner. This will be the main thrust of our initial storyline, before we move on. Dixon & Truman continue to introduce us to the Hillman characters, with Sky Wolf and Misery appearing this issue, after Airboy and Hirota debuted in the last. Next issue has Davy meeting The Heap. We will also run into the Iron Ace, in the near future, and The Flying Dutchman will also turn up. When the Sky Wolf back-up stories begin (set in the post-WW2 era) we will meet some of the other Air Fighters. Truman and Yeates continue to make a fantastic team, with excellent storytelling, detailed visuals, and creepy horror added for good measure. The visuals capture that same flair for the horrfic that Bisette and Totleben had with Swamp Thing, while also delivering the military adventure of Heath and Kubert, with some Alex Raymond and Milton Caniff thrown in, for good measure. Oh, a quick guide for the military-deprived.... Hughes OH-6A Cayuse...  The OH-^A and Cayuse designation came from the US Army. the Hughes helicopter was used for observation and light attack. The round canopy gave excellent field of vision and it was fast and highly maneuverable. In Vietnam, they operated in a scout role, often with gunship squadrons, hunting for the enemy and directing the gunship attacks. They would also attampt to draw fire from the VC and NVA, then hit them with their 20mm mini-gun, rockets, and their M-60 doorgun. The helicopters were also popular with law enforcement, for traffic control and patrols and they were also used as camera platforms for aerial footage, in Hollywood. Just about every week, in Airwolf, Hawk and Dominic ran up against someone with a Hughes helo gunship, which usually ended up hit by a missile and smashed into a mountainside.  The AH-64 Apache Gunship (and the view you don't want to see, if you are an enemy)/. The lead attack helicopter of the US Army, replacing the Vietnam Era Cobra gunship. It carries a 30 mm chain gun, Hellfire anti-tank missiles, rockets, Stinger missiles and electronic counter measures. The pilot has an electronic heads-up display and night vision for flying in darkness and the guns can follow the gunners movements. It was designed to take out Soviet armor and is fast and agile, to boot. At this point in time, it was new and state of the art. Now, it is old and outdated, but its replacement has been plagued by developmental issues. It's a fitting aircraft for Sky Wolf and his has his wolf symbol painted on it. Ingram M-10 Submachine Gun...  Pictured here with a noise suppressor. The barrel was threaded to allow regular use of a noise suppressor and was developed during Vietnam as a lightweight weapon for special forces and others. It's compact size makes it easy to hide and the noise suppressor reduces the sound of firing, though auto fire still makes a lot of "pops." It was a favorite f bodyguards and terrorists, as well as drug dealers. There is even a special briefcase modification, with a weapon mounted inside an typical attache case, with a trigger in the briefcase handle which activates a solenoid mechanism, which fires the weapon through a port in the briefcase side. It was used by bodyguards, often in government service. It was routinely seen in action tv series and movies, throughout the 80s. AK-47  The Kalashnikov; the key Soviet infantry weapon, in the post-war era. The Soviets exported thousands of them to revolutionary groups around the world, as well as friendly governments, making them one of the most prolific firearms in the world. It was cheap to produce, able to withstand heavy abuse and poor care, and deliver a high rate of fire, with great reliability. You could beat this thing all over the place and still kill with it. It was copied by several governments, including Israel, who developed the Galil assault rifle from its design. By this point, the Soviets were fielding the updated AKM and would soon introduce the AK-74. AKs were everywhere in news footage, tv and movies and it is one of the most recognizable weapons to civilians. Birdie  Birdie is an ornithopter, an aircraft that uses wing motion for flight. It was designed and built by Brother Francis Martier, the monk who raised David Nelson, after his father was killed. He and Davy built Birdie, but it was sabotaged and Martier was killed. Davy rebuilds the plane and uses it to gain revenge, then fight the Nazis. In the original stories, Birdie was as fast as any plane and could hover and make a vertical landing and take off. She was armed with .50 cal machine guns, but Truman updates her with rocket pods, missiles and 20 mm miniguns, while also making her a jet aircraft. Appearing at the end of the book is an add for a reprint of some of the Valkyrie stories from Airboy and Airfighters, with art by Fred Kida. These were excellent stories and helped give some background to the series. Eclipse would also reprint the earliest issues of Airfighters, showcasing the characters they revived. Unfortunately, that also meant showcasing racial stereotypes and offensive imagery, but in black & white. Next, back to Scout, then the next two bi-weekly issues of Airboy. We will also look at the Fashion in Action Summer Special, when we get to that point. Same with other 4 Winds books, once the Proweler debuts and the various minis, one-shots and specials.
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Post by earl on Sept 11, 2020 23:26:18 GMT -5
I loved Scout. It was one of my favorites as a teenager and at one point, I had everything Tim Truman had put out. Met him at a couple of cons back in the 80s, he always seemed like a good dude. Need to get around to reading it all again, still kinda hope he did the series about Scout's sons (still 'could' happen I suppose, might be cool if he did the series with his son).
Greg Rucka and Michael Lark's "Lazarus" almost seems like sister-comic in some ways to Scout, both being American dystopian tales.
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Post by codystarbuck on Sept 12, 2020 19:03:05 GMT -5
I loved Scout. It was one of my favorites as a teenager and at one point, I had everything Tim Truman had put out. Met him at a couple of cons back in the 80s, he always seemed like a good dude. Need to get around to reading it all again, still kinda hope he did the series about Scout's sons (still 'could' happen I suppose, might be cool if he did the series with his son). Greg Rucka and Michael Lark's "Lazarus" almost seems like sister-comic in some ways to Scout, both being American dystopian tales. Did a Kickstarter for it and has released some art; not sure if the book has come out yet, or not. |
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Post by earl on Sept 12, 2020 20:03:10 GMT -5
I guess I might have heard about that and filed it away in my head. I remember seeing he did a historical frontier graphic novel with his son, but never got around to checking it out.
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Post by codystarbuck on Sept 14, 2020 23:07:54 GMT -5
Scout #10 Creative Team: Tim Truman-story & art, Tim Harkins-letters, Sam Parsons-colors, cat yronwode-editor Also out for Eclipse: Airboy #3 & 4, Alien Encounters #8, Crossfire & Rainbow #3, FIA Summer Special #1, Giant Size Mini-Comics #1, Mr Monster's Super Duper Special #2, Naiver Inter-Dimensional Commando Koalas #1, New DNAgents #12, New Wave #4 & 5, Tor 3-D #2. NIDCK was a tie in to ARBBH, which makes no sense, when I read that. It's post Turtles, so you see a lot of this crap. This is the summer of 1986, which was a big year in comics. DC was publishing man of Steel, with John Byrne's revamp of Superman (issues #3 & 4 were out this month) and the Legends crossover; and Marvel was celebrating its 25th Anniversary (under the Marvel name, with that universe, as they dated back to 1939, under the Timely name, and the Atlas Comics, in the 1950s). Comico was publishing Elementals and Jonny Quest (which was excellent) and the Robotech comic adaptations. They were doing alright; but, they tried to distribute on newsstands and lost their short, as they tried to promote Justice Machine there, with the JM/Elementals mini-series, leading into the revamped Justice Machine, which Mike Gustovich had brought in. Dark Horse had launched the previous month, with DHP. First Comics was still going strong and Renegade had several interesting books out. Amazing Heroes had its 100th issue and Fantagraphics had Anything Goes and Neat Stuff on stands. 1986 was a great year to be a comic fan. In the Penumbra, cat is singing the praises of the Hotel Will Rogers, in Claremore, OK, Home of the Radium Water Mineral Baths, which Will Rogers said would "cure you of everything but being a Democrat!" Synopsis: Beau & Scout are meeting with Billy Zeitgeist and her biker gang. He offers them 15 cows and a breeding bull to aid them in holding off the Salvation Army until the mayor of New Dunbar returns with the answer to their appeal to the governor. One of the gang makes a counter offer...  Beau responds with a 12 gauge counter-offer. Billy remarks that Scout is a wanted man and Beau says to take it up with him, later, as he needs Scout. Billy agrees on one condition...  So, is Billy related to Lt Steven Hauk? Maybe the bikers have trouble sleeping... Meanwhile, Rosa Winter and Avner Glanzman secretly meet with Laura Carve and fill her in on VP Loper's plan to use Doody and his followers to show how vulnerable the nation is, to push the New America agenda...  Meanwhile, we see Doody take in what Loper's agents ahve told him, that Mt Fire has everything they need to feed and shelter the 5,000 who follow him. Apparently Doody has forgotten the segments about Wormtongue, in The Two Towers. Back at the ranch....  The SA use radio transmitters to trigger the mines and clear the path for them to move in. Beau and his group prepare to meet them. Billy asks Beau how he'd like to go out. "With a full bar tab!" Words to live by, kids. The SA run into a surprise, as not all of the mines were radio detonated. They peppered some pressure sensitive ones out there, as Scout suggested. Scout starts picking off targets with his M-14 rifle. The SA send in Apache gunships and Scout says he is outta there, and heads off. He says he has seen this before and they can't win. Billy tells him she will be seeing him again. The gunships hit them hard and they retreat into Beau's Country Bunker, while Scout slides out of the field. Laura Carver, Rosa and Glanzman continue their discussion. Rosa's Rangers are too identifiable and public exposure is liable to backfire, as Loper could implicate Carver as being involved and probably produce enough doctored evidence to make it work. Glanzman says he can't act directly, only advise. Carver tells Rosa they know who they need and Rosa responds they don't even know if he is alive. Carver sends her to find him and bring him in, if he is alive. The man in question is actually out ambushing SA thugs. Pate continues the asaault and the Apaches target the cattle pens and Beau finally gives up. He goes out to meet with Pate, who gloats, until he is interrupted...  Scout has samples which show that teh real reason that Pate is after Beau's land is not the cattle, but mineral deposits; either coal or uranium. Scout says the emergency mandate was just an excuse and tells him it's much harder to take land from white men. Scout offers a solution, but tells Beau that they will come back and he should cut his losses. Pate smirks; but, Beau wipes it off his face...  Beau and his people pack up and then blow up the bunker and Lucille (the computer). Billy tells Scout to watch his back and they ride out. meanwhile, Doody and his followers arrive at Mt Fire...  There follows a portfolio from Steve Bisette, Jan Duursema & Tom Mandrake, Ron Randall, John Totleben, Rick Veitch, Tom Yeates and JK Snyder III. 7 of the 8 were Kubert School alumni, hence the title XQB Portfolio (ex-Kubie...Ex-Kubert). Tim provides the intros and the stories of friends..   These were THE NAMES of the up and coming artists in comics, in 1986, apart from Joe's two sons, Adam & Andy (their niece Katie, Joe's granddaughter, is an editor in comics, having worked for DC and Marvel, for the third generation of Kuberts in the industry). Here are a couple of pieces from the portfolio...     Letters page includes one from a fan who is a Native American and praises Truman's portrayal of Scout, as a native, something he almost never sees in any media. The Monday The Eliminator back-up strip begins next issue. Thoughts: Kind of a dull issue..... NOT!!!! You will not hear me disparage this series; so this might get a bit boring. Truman is steaming along and the subplots are building to a collision. Scout's little interlude with beau is done; so, now, he will cross paths again with Rosa, then Doody. We now have a hint at Loper's plan, to manipulate Doody into going to a military base and create an incident that will allow Loper to push the New America agenda, to build industry through a military buildup. Thing is, when you build up a force like that, you start itching to show them off and suddenly diplomatic solutions take a back seat to military solutions. Sound familiar? It happened in the 1980s, the 1990s, and has been going on since the 2000s. Really, it's been going on since 1945 as we lost the isolationist voice and turned into the world's "policeman, " ending up in military conflicts in every decade since. No wonder Ike warned about the power of the Military-Industrial (Congressional, according to his original draft of the speech) Complex. Truman has a real handle on these characters and we see them grow and get deeper. Scout had his vision quest and now is just dealing with the fallout; but, he is needed to stop Loper, by stopping Doody. Rosa has become the Right Hand of the President of the United States. Laura Carver has gone from junkie prop to real leader. Avner Glanzman continues to be a mysterious glance at the wrld outside the fractured US and Loper continues to be the real evil at the heart of things. Beau is still awesome and gets better with every line of dialogue. The art continues to be a parade of excellent, as Truman mixes his bleak, yet evocative landscapes, with his very human, if somewhat bat@#$% insane characters. He's not above warping things just a little, for visual effect, as we can see in the rather long and narrow head of Annie, the greedy & psycho member of Billy's gang. To me, Book 2 was even stronger, from a narrative and character standpoint, than Book 1. Truman had really found his groove with this project, though I believe he had his destinations in mind, fairly early on. he certainly had things mapped out by the time he was doing Scout: War Shaman. Next, the Fashion in Action Summer Special.
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