Weekly Weird Trigger Warnings 1

Here's a rundown of what I'm reading, reviewing, or watching in the land of comics, hopefully on a semi-weekly basis:

Comics Video Watchlist:

Dan Elsen, well-known from ComicKkrakk live chats, has started his own channel. Weird does not do justice to the comic he spotlights in this video-

Donald Rex is someone I've admired for years. He's currently putting a lot of effort into preserving the work of the foreign artists that contributed to Charlton from the late 60s to the mid 70s-

I bought the cheaper ebook version of this one

Comix Reading List:

It seems I've been reading all Fantagraphics Books recently-

21st Century Spain Rodriguez is as good as any.

Did not remember the bits of horror inserted amongst the irony and humor.

I'm not a big Tardi fan, but I love these noir adaptations.

You can't beat Bill Everett horror stories!

To paraphrase Kris Kristofferson: if you don't like Reed Crandall, you can kiss our ass.

Reviews:

I was honored to contribute to Broken Frontier's Thought Bubble 2025 coverage-

Dead on Arrival by Mexican artist Samanta Batllori

Under Pressure by Polish creator Robert Sienicki

Through the Looking Glass by UK creator KitsuneArt

Angry Duck by Norwegian creator KA Sandholm

The Hanging by Irish/Canadian creator Aaron Losty (w/Becca Carey)

Beyond the Black Void by Jason Measures and a host of UK creators

The Gloriously Untrue Adventures of Sapphira #1 by UK novelist Sapphira Olson

Down North Where No One Goes by Spanish artist Ramon Perales Cano

So many great interviews and reviews centered around Thought Bubble 2025 can be found here.

Image: Domino Books

 

My feature on Ines Estrada and her Gatoshop online store is included with an amazing array of interviews, reviews, and articles. Donald Rex is interviewed herein. My personal highlight would be more Brad Curry writings on Gilbert Hernandez. Order from Colin Blanchette here

I also (with equal amounts reservations and enthusiasm) contributed seven entries to the "100 Best Superhero Comics of All-time" coming up in DIE WITH YOUR MASK ON #3. Pre-order (also from Colin Blanchette) here

In the works Five Highlights of The Comics Journal 51 and 52...

Five Highlights From The Comics Journal #50

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Front cover: Dennis Fujitake

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TCJ Archive

Back cover: Wendy Pini

THE COMICS JOURNAL 50 (October 1979) Twenty-fifth Gary Groth-edited issue!

Executive Editor: Gary Groth

Editor/Circulation Director: Kim Thompson

Consulting Editor: J. Michael Catron

Assistant Editor: Robert H. Boron

Correspondent (UK): John Dakin

Correspondent (Undergrounds): Bruce Sweeney

1. NEWSWATCH: Undergrounds

Bruce Sweeney and company dug up some new releases that are hard to find today! All hail the Poopsheet Foundation! Rick Bradford's database is essential in researching these mini-comics from the dark ages of the 70s.

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Last Gasp

Internet Archive

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Heritage Auctions

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Poopsheet Foundation

Internet Archive

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mycomicshop.com

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Head Comic Wiki

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Worthpoint

Poopsheet Foundation

2. NEXT ISSUE: Wildman & Rubberoy by Richard "Grass" Green

3.  BLOOD & THUNDER: R.C. Harvey responds to the Greg Potter Will Eisner article from The Comics Journal 47.

The Met Report, 2013

 "The art of the comics is not so much in their stories and themes as it is in the storytelling. It's how the stories are told - with pictures as well as words - that reveals the craft and the art of the medium. If your reviewers adjust their sights to their perspective, they might enjoy more what they're doing. They might even find some minor masterpieces on the newsstand. And then when a Dickens or Tolstoy finally emerges on the pages of the comics, your reviewers will be in a good position to properly appreciate his entire accomplishment - not only the affecting themes of a powerful story but the art (both verbal and visual) involved in telling that story."

 4. COMICS REVIEWS: The Crusaders 1-9 by Cat Yronwode

This whole series is still available in print and digital format from Chick Publications, which is still pumping out content to save all our lost souls (as a Catholic, pretty sure I'm only a few steps up from Satan in their eyes) despite Jack T. Chick passing in 2016. The artist on most of these has since been revealed as the talented, unsung African-American cartoonist Fred Carter.

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From Cat Yronwode's review: "As noted above, every story has an obligatory airplane scene. In addition, each one has, at the climax of the story, right where the fight would be in a standard comic, one or more obligatory conversion scenes. 'Conversion' is a technical term for a person deciding that his life has been a failure and deciding to enlist in the forces of God. This is accomplished by a process known as 'accepting the Lord Jesus into your heart' and results in tearful joyousness and relief. Most people resist conversion out of a desire for self-determinism. It is the secondary mission of the Crusaders to convert anybody they can. Thus, in the middle of their cat-and-mouse game with the KGB in Bucharest, they score a real coup by converting a Russian spy. In #9, 'Angel of the Night,' they convert two hippies who have narrowly escaped being killed by psychopathic killers. One of the most interesting conversion scenes takes place in 'The Broken Cross,' when a cannibalistic teenager named Jody is converted and subsequently kidnapped by the Satanic town sheriff and his leader, a Christian preacher. The men are actually double agents working for satan, but Jim [a Crusader] overpowers them by calling the Lord's name and causing them to vomit."

5. DOC'S BOOKSHELF: The Gods From Outer Space by Dwight R. Decker

Dwight Decker uncovers a real outlier in these early days of European comics translations, a German comic put out by Dell Publishing. A bonus is the subject being a fictionalized graphic novel based on Erich von Daniken's equally fictitious ancient astronauts theories!

English-language, GCD

German-language: GCD

 "Now, however, some years after the crest of the Von Daniken wave, a West German publisher, Bastei-Verlag,  has released the first issue of what promises to be a series of comics based on the 'Gods' theme [there turned out to be eight albums in the series from 1978-83]. That this is the authorized version there can be no doubt: an inset photo of Erich von Daniken himself appears on the cover next to the words, 'based on the work of Erich von Daniken,' the copyright is held by Econ-Verlag (Von Daniken's regular publisher), and the translator of the English-language version is Michael Heron (who has translated all of Von Daniken's books to date).

"The Gods From Outer Space certainly looks impressive. The size is standard European soft-cover album format (the English edition is about 8 1/4" x 11 1/4"; the German edition was slightly larger) with 48 interior pages. The art is generally good, if a little stiff, and the printing and colour work are excellent. Not a bad buy for $1.95 these days. "

Five Highlights From The Comics Journal #49

 

Cover: Dennis Fujitake

Back cover: Bob Aull

THE COMICS JOURNAL 49 (September 1979)

Executive Editor: Gary Groth

Editor/Circulation Director: Kim Thompson

Consulting Editor: J. Michael Catron

Assistant Editor: Bob Soron

Correspondent [UK]: John Dakin

Correspondent [Comix]: Bruce Sweeney

Mascots: Leif Allmendiger; Eric Bethke-Coehn; Sheila Mooney; Heidi Pygman; Janet Toombs; Jan Trendowski; and, "Little" Gretchen Meyer

Janet Toombs, a few years later Source

Distributors: Seagate Distributors (Brooklyn, NY); Bud Plant (Grass Valley, CA); Big Rapids Distributors (Detroit, MI); New Media (Rockville, MD); Well News Service (Columbus, OH).

1. NEWSWATCH: Undergrounds

These are the comix listed as new, coming soon, or in the works as some of them didn't turn up until 1981. Links to a number of items still available from Last Gasp, Rip Off Press, or Denis Kitchen.

Last Gasp

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Last Gasp

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Rip Off Press

Last Gasp

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Last Gasp

Last Gasp

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Last Gasp

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Last Gasp

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Last Gasp

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Last Gasp

Heritage Auctions

Denis Kitchen

Denis Kitchen

2. NEWSWATCH: Whitman Comics (Dynabrite albums were, I believe, forerunners of the explosion of Baxter paper reprints from Marvel and DC in the 80s. Great idea from Whitman (king of the comics three-pack), just the wrong time.)

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3. COMICS REVIEWS: Marvel Premiere 50  "Alice Cooper: From the Inside"

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"The most immediately intriguing aspect of the book is the way it's artists, Tom Sutton and Terry Austin, strive to recall the heyday of comic book impropriety. The cover is a straight-on parody of the EC horror books, down to the oozing title lettering and insert head shots. As far as I know, this is the first time this kind of loving swipe has appeared on a company comics cover - it's almost standard operating procedure for undergrounds and fanzines - and it works in that it connotes just enough Cooper outrageousness without appearing too threatening. (There’s the Comics Code seal in the corner, after all.) Inside, the art harkens back to EC, as well.

  "Here, however, it's the EC of Kurtzman, Elder, and 'humor in a jugular vein'."

4. INTERVIEW: Julie Simmons and John Workman interviewed by Gary Groth.

Illustration: Eddie Eddings

Gary Groth vs. Nicole Claveloux:

5. Umm...yeah, so this is a highlight solely for Carol Kalish (co-) writing for TCJ. Eleven and a half pages on Chris Claremont and John Byrne's run on The Uncanny X-Men!

What's really historically interesting is this ad from Ed Shukin then Vice-president of Circulation for Marvel. I'm pretty sure this is the job Carol Kalish had at Marvel several years later following Mike Friedrich...

Brigid Alverson 2023 profile of Carol Kalish.