In my memory, the second volume of the two-book X-MEN COMPANION series that was released by Fantagraphics, the publishers of the Comics Journal, took forever to arrive. But looking back, while the second book was late, it was only by a few months--time goes by slower when you're younger. Anyway, the big difference in what … Continue reading FSC: THE X-MEN COMPANION II
When it was first launched, there was a veneer of respectability about the MARVEL GRAPHIC NOVEL line. Based on the format of European albums, these books were a place where creators could tell stories that were a bit more sophisticated and adult-oriented than the typical Comics Code-approved fare that filled the pages of the monthly … Continue reading FSC: MARVEL GRAPHIC NOVEL #4
The well-remembered Project Pegasus Saga was continuing to run through the pages of MARVEL TWO-IN-ONE, breathing new life into a series that had been moribund for the better part of a year. Newly installed writers Mark Gruenwald and Ralph Macchio were determined to do something worthwhile with the title and to make it better than … Continue reading BHOC: MARVEL TWO-IN-ONE #55
I've mentioned before just how gung-ho I was about the initial offerings from Pacific Comics, one of the fist of the new independent publishers who cropped up in the nascent Direct Sales marketplace of comic book specialty shops once it had been shown that it was possible to turn a profit there. While my enthusiasm … Continue reading FSC: ROG 2000
Even at the time, we all knew in my circle of friends that the New Fantastic Four cartoon that was then airing on NBC on Saturday mornings wasn't very good. This despite the involvement of the comic's co-creator Jack Kirby as a designer and storyboard artist and dialogue written by Marvel figures such as Stan … Continue reading BHOC: FANTASTIC FOUR #209
The eight New Universe titles rolled out two-a-week across a month's worth of time, and I sampled all of them. The promotion around this initiative made it feel like a seminal event, and so I was determined not to miss the moment. Ultimately, I found myself disappointed with pretty much all of the launch titles, … Continue reading Brand Echh: STAR BRAND #1
By the time of UNCANNY X-MEN #124, I had been buying the book for about a year and a half, and I enjoyed it every month. It wasn't my favorite title, didn't differentiate itself from the rest of the pack in that manner at the time. But it was a book that could be relied … Continue reading BHOC: UNCANNY X-MEN #124
The latest issue of AVENGERS came out around this time, the second part of a three-part story that would redefine the background and history of the Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver. it was a series that I liked during this time, although it never quite rose to the status of my favorite book at any point; … Continue reading BHOC: AVENGERS #186
The Project: P.E.G.A.S.U.S. is rightly remembered as a high-water mark in the 100-issue run of MARVEL TWO-IN-ONE. And yet, it wasn't a perfect story. There was a choice or two made that is perhaps a bit regrettable. And for one of those story decisions, this issue tells the tale. That said, it was still the … Continue reading BHOC: MARVEL TWO-IN-ONE #54
This next issue of UNCANNY X-MEN was a bit of a favorite of mine, possibly down to the fact that the central villain of the piece, Arcade, was a bit closer in tone and spirit to the Flash's rogues gallery members than most Marvel villains. The series had been steadily rising in my estimation, and … Continue reading BHOC: UNCANNY X-MEN #123
The Tom Brevoort Experience 