Deadpool Team-Up, Vol 1: Good Buddies

I got on the Deadpool Team-Up band wagon way too late. I'm taking about the 2009-11 series, by the way. I bought issue #884 which has the Merc With a Mouth teaming with Oatu the Watcher. A sucker for a team-up title, I was thrown off by the high numbering. It turns out that as a joke, Marvel decided to spoof the now meaningless legacy numbering by having each issue of this series go backwards from #899, after releasing a special 900th issue of Deadpool!

With Deadpool Team-Up getting cancelled with issue #883 and finding it a financial nightmare trying to collect the rest of the series, I quietly put the series on my wishlist and went on to collect other, more affordable titles. For nearly 15 years, I searched and searched for issues that wouldn't break my bank. Wanna guess how many issues I found? If you guessed zip, zilch, nada; give yourself a cookie. That was until this past week. I had a box full of stuff to take to a used bookstore for trade credit and got lucky finding not just this hardback edition, but the other 2 volumes that round out the run. Being premium editions, each book was still pricey. But at a little bit less than half of original cover price, AND considering how difficult it's been to get this series off my wishlist, I scooped up all 3 books and merrily went about my way. Besides, the trade credit covered the price, meaning that the cash in my pocket could be spent on other things!

With the numbering going backwards, I wouldn't have been surprised if you were supposed to read volume 3 first. But I can attest that is not the case here. In the opener, Wade Wilson finds himself stuck in the wandering labyrinth of legend with none other than Hercules! Deadpool then attempts to collect bounties for successful hits with a pair of lucha libre hitman siblings called the Zapata Brothers, legendary big rig trucker US Ace, and a pair of Ghost Riders. Wade then helps a woman locate the missing behemoth, IT!, the Living Colossus before accepting a hit to rub out the Punisher, who at this moment in time has been reanimated into a Frankenstein monster!

The Punisher issue has a ton of fantastic cameos. It's a real treat if you are a fan of Marvel's monsters, of which I definitely am. You could consider me gobsmacked when I learn that the old Jim Shooter lead series US1 is actually pronounced US Ace! There are no numbers to be said when speaking about the title! Plus, I didn't realize that the trucker had adventures in outer space. I'm going have to revisit that staple of dollar boxes nationwide...

Featuring a different talent team each issue, I really dug this series. A good rule of thumb about team-up books is that the more obscure the guest star, the better the story. And with IT!, the Living Colossus and the hermanos Zapata, I do not think you could get much more obscure. The only thing I wasn't such a fan of was the inclusion of the bonus material of an issue of Marvel Spotlight focusing on Deadpool. It's mostly a 30 page commercial for other Deadpool titles and if you've read 1 interview with a comic book creator, you really have read them all. I mostly read it for the pictures...

Come on volume 2!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandos #36

Eric Koenig begins his commando training as a member of the Howlers. While Stan Lee leaves the readers wondering if Eric has defected as a double agent for the Nazis, the Howlers seem to welcome the German with open arms. Captain Sawyer and Fury are ready to have Eric posing as a German officer in their upcoming mission with full confidence in Koenig's abilities.

The Howlers continue to worry over their recently fallen comrade. I won't reveal who the injured Howler is yet for spoilers sake. However, the early prognosis is not good. The commando took a massive beating in the last issue and opened up a slot for Koenig to join the squad.

The major excitement takes place aboard a speeding train along a snowy Alpine mountain range. If it brings back memories of that scene in Captain America: The First Avenger, you are not alone. I'm wondering if this issue was the inspiration for that very dramatic and important scene in the movie. 

As for the mission itself, it has the Howlers boarding the train which is secretly transporting a German officer to Italy to help Mussolini who's losing his battle with anti-fascist forces and the Allies. The train is disguised as being a hospital transport allowing the Nazis to pass through neutral Switzerland. Fury's men are supposed to  prevent this and hopefully capture the officer while posing as neutral safety inspectors.

It's here where the reader is supposed to be skeptical of where Eric Koenig's loyalties lie because the target is someone who Koenig has known for a very long time and loves like a brother. 

Not the best issue. It's really slow in getting started as the first 10 pages are more filler and mission prep. In other words, it's like a soap opera set during WW2 with the Howlers worrying about the injured commando, Eric reminiscing over his relationship with the mission's target and Nick Fury exposing his soft side for his Howlers. It's all done internally and really bogs the story way down.

Rating: 5 out of 10 stars.

America the Edible: A Hungry History, from Sea to Dining Sea by Adam Richman

Written in 2010, Adam Richman was riding high as the host of Man V. Food. The Travel Channel series saw Richman going to various cities, exploring the food culture. He'd close out each episode by going to an eatery that boasted a ridiculous food eating challenge. I remember on our first anniversary, I ate a 64 oz Sundae in less than 10 minutes. Unfortunately, you didn't get it free unless you finished it in 4 minutes or less. But hopefully, you get the picture of what Adam Richman was doing.

This book isn't tied into his Travel Channel travels. However, Richman does go on to review the culture and history of almost a dozen cities in the United States. Being July and the sesquicentennial, this seemed like an appropriate read. Cleveland, Ohio, Austin, Texas, and Savannah Georgia are some of the foodie destinations Richman explores. Only St. Louis, Missouri and Brooklyn were the places that the author chronicles that I have been to. So I learned a lot. Plus I made notes of places to check out the next time I travel to the Show Me State to visit my wife's family. 

Before Man V. Food, Adam Richman was a struggling actor either trying to survive in Hollywood or travelling the nation as part of a theater troupe. In those cities, he made notes of the eateries he had listed as well as the various tours of food markets and manufacturing. As an actor, its a common practice to give recommendations to other thespians when they are in a city for their next acting gig. Plus, being on the road can feel like a blur, so Richman would journal of the places he visited, and take pictures, in order to keep memories both good and bad. When it came to the bad, there was usually a woman involved.

I like Adam Richman now. He's really insightful and funny on shoes like The Foods That Built America and Hazardous History with Henry Winkler. But during his stint on MVF, I could take him or leave him. I liked his tour guide persona at the beginning of the show. His Jewish Michael Jordan persona when he would partake in during the food competition parts of the show, not so much... This book reflects Richman as a struggling, young actor. He was also kind of a slut. 

In every city, he's got a girl that he's either in a doomed relationship with or he's hooking up with or failing misery despite giving it everything he's got. There's a fair amount of sex. Thankfully, it's not raunchy, locker room accounts of his conquests. And I will admit, he's got charisma. But it's really annoying. 

I also don't understand the whole sexy food culture. Being in the culinary industry for nigh 21 years, I have never understood it. I'm more of an addict than a lover. But Richman gets down right orgasmic with the food. I do commend that when he finds a meal that was lackluster, he doesn't hold back. I critique the food I eat too. But having taught culinary high schoolers and college students, I'm a bit more forgiving when it comes to poor service and mistakes as long as you don't try to kill me by not properly addressing my food allergy when I ask if celery seeds are in the cole slaw 

Like I said earlier, I learned a lot about each city. Though the 3rd through about the 6th page of every chapter read like a student's report on major city. The climate. The natural resources. The breakdown of the ethnic population. I felt like I was grading my Culinary II students annual projects on Popular American Soups. It's not Richman's fault. He does a good job. It's just those sections felt very familiar to me...

This book is 16 years old. Richman, I see, has been happily married for about 3 years now. While hosting MVF, he gained nearly a 100 pounds. Famously, he quit the show to take better care of himself. He has probably matured lots as he got older. It was just a shock to see how candid he gets about food, travel, acting, his love life... It's like seeing your high school math teacher in public somewhere. It's awkward. And it's not something I can add to my office bookshelf for my students to borrow. 

I'll probably keep it until Christmas. That's when we're supposed to go to St. Louis. It'll be interesting to see if some of the places he ate at 20 years ago are still there. And you better believe, I'll be getting some Imo's pizza when I am there. It's amazing stuff with a unique, creamy cheese calld Provel and something of which both Richman and myself can agree.

Rating: 6 out of 10 stars.

Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandos #35

After having Happy Sam Sawyer recount how Nick Fury and Dum Dum Dugan formed the Howlers, the attack on Pearl Harbor sees the death of a friend that was closer than a brother to Nick. In my review of the issue before, I stated that I hoped for the next issue (this issue) to provide the origins of how Izzy Cohen, Gab Jones and the rest joined the team. But I guess seeing several random Joes get draft notices from their local postman isn't very exciting storytelling. Surely one of them signed up voluntarily. Could there be an interesting story about that? 

Instead of going backwards, Stan Lee and Dick Ayers both move forward with the current events of 1942-43. With exception of Fury, the rest of the squad were captured by Nazi forces during a pre-D-Day invasion mission that took place in Greece. Transferred to Berlin, the Howlers undergo torture and questioning by the Gestapo. 

In order to rescue his men, Nick has to team up with his arch rival, Sgt. Bull McGiveney. Normally the Howlers are busting heads with Bull's bunch of soldiers in a macabre sort of friendly rivalry. If you can call fists, chains and 2x4s friendly rivalry.

When the action is over, a Howler will be seriously injured, a Nazi will defect and McGiveney and his men will earn a little bit of the respect of the Howling Commandos.

A really exciting issue that opens up some interesting possibilities with a German defector on the Howlers. For one, can Eric Koenig be trusted? And while I hate to see the injured Howler go, I appreciate the level of realism that the creative team put in this series. Sure, there's a level of comic book grandiosity to the villains. But with at least 2 former Howlers dead, countless injuries, and now another facing a medical discharge, Lee and Ayers really don't hold back on the fortunes of war.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Batman '66, Volume 5

You look at the cover and you're probably saying 'Batman '66 never fought against Solomon Grundy or Clayface!' However, you have to remember that this DC comics webseries turned comic book is supposed to be an imagining of what could have been if ABC never destroyed the sets and NBC picked up Batman for a fourth season!

Plus, you would be wrong in your assumptions about Grundy and perhaps Clayface. If you are like me and you remember the awesomely terrible Legends of the Superheroes and the even worse sequel, the Adam West Batman along with the Burt Ward Robin went up against Solomon Grundy, played by character actor Mickey Morton. Plus, it's a fan theory that the one-shot villain False Face, played by heavy Malachi Thorne, was in fact Basil Karloff, the first Clayface! Well, thanks to Jeff Parker, that theory became reality with a story that sees False Face falling into a polluted swamp and becoming the Matt Hagen version of Clayface!

This volume is sadly the last volume collection of Batman '66 stories. Thus, I think with cancellation on the horizon, the creative team got a chance to give their wildest wishes a chance to get the Batman '66 treatment. Harley Quinn, Poison Ivy and Bane all make debuts. I loved every page, though there was just a little too much of Marsha, Queen of Diamonds. She's in 2 issues!!! I'd rather give Shame or the Minstrel another chance to shine.

There's a great story where Barbara Gordon takes a temp job at an ad agency that gets held hostage by the Big Four: Catwoman, Joker, Riddler and the Penguin. They want the ad execs to create a campaign, changing their reputation as villains. Unable to change into Batgirl, Barbara has to use her wits and the baddies' hubris to play the antagonists against each other. It's a brilliant story that doesn't see any capes!

Unfortunately, we never get a Batman '66/Superman '52 team-up. Though we come really close in the last issue! The Allred Family wrap up the series with a brilliant tale that reveals true story behind the battle Batman and Robin undertake in the animated sequence performed every episode, during the show's theme song. Towards the very end, we get an amazing cameo of George Reeves' Clark Kent, as well as several other appearances by characters who might have existed in the '66 universe. 

This volume wraps up my having read everything tied into the classic 60s TV version of the Caped Crusader.  I still have a Wonder Woman '77 team up with the Bionic Woman and some of the other more recent releases to go. But hopefully we'll get some more adventures of the Gothamites of 1966. I can understand DC wanting a cooling off period to not over-saturate the brand. But the number of devotees to that show are dwindling. We're not getting any younger. Here's to hoping we don't have to wait until 2066 for further adventures...

Worth Consuming!

Rating 9 out of 10 stars.

The Tall Stranger by Louis L'amour

Yes, I read Westerns. Mostly in comic book form. But I have been known to enjoy them in paperback format. Louis L'Amour is my favorite. Probably because of my grandfather who probably owned a copy of every work the American author ever wrote.

It's been a very long time since I read one of L'Amour's works. At least 25 years, I'd say. The Iron Marshall, the first work of his I read is still my favorite. With me being on Summer break and a desiring some literary comfort foods, I ordered this book with the intention of reading it while at the beach. However, the novel I started right before I went on vacation took me a bit longer to read than I expected. So The Tall Stranger would have to wait a bit.

The book is about a drifter named Rock Bannon. A wagon train heading to the Oregon trail found Rock dying from a gunshot wound. Nursed back to health, he's caught the eye of the girl who cared for him. But for the other single fellas hoping to make their play with the girl, they despise Rock as an interloper.

During a rest stop right before the beginning of the Oregon split, a smooth talking gentleman named Mort Harper persuades the train to veer South through Utah territory with promises of the lushest valley ever seen this far West. Rock knows that this land has already been claimed by a cattle rancher named Hardy Bishop. But no matter what Rock says, the men of the wagon train will not listen to him. 

Bannon also knows that their presence in Bishop's Canyon could start a land war. Deep down, Rock suspects that Mort is going to make a play for the valley as the legality of land ownership rights at this point in American history is more about who's settled on the land than who in fact owns the title deed.

Rock is torn. Should he help the wagon train settlers and hopefully win the heart of the girl once and for all? Or does Bannon respect the bond of blood, because Hardy Bishop is in reality Rock's father?

The Tall Stranger was written in 1957. L'amour's first novel, Hondo, was written 4 years earlier. So this is early in the author's career. There are still some rough spots in L'Amour's writings that will be polished up by the time he writes The Iron Marshall in 1979. Take the names for example Rock Bannon? Mort? Clearly, the author was basing some of dashing matinee idol Rock Hudson in the moniker and description of the protagonist. But never in the history of the world had a bad guy ever gone by the name Mort? (Although, morte is French for death and dying and everywhere Mort goes, the Geim Reaper surely follows. So maybe his name is a pun.)

Another issue is that Louis L'Amour rambles. Despite a page count of only 150 pages, this book could have been 15-20 pages less if the author wouldn't wander off topic to present to the reader interesting facts and mysteries about the old West which have nothing to do with the plot. When if comes to painting a picture of the scenery or interior of one of the settler's cabins, there's no equal to the author, even at this early stage of his career. But  writer for the Western edition of Ripley's Believe It or Not, L'Armour is not

Lastly, I'm left to ponder the subject of this book's title. The Tall Stranger; who is it that the author is referring to? At first, you'd think it's Rock, having been involuntarily integrated into the wagon train by being saved from the nearly fatal gunshot wound? Or is it the Snidely Whiplash of the story, Mort, who joins the caravan after he makes his pitch for heading further south? I guess it's left up to the reader to decide? Personally, I think it refers to Mort, the fork-tongued con man who's planning on literally enslaving the settlers so that he can become the next cattle baron of Bishop's canyon. 

I enjoyed the book. It was a short read that I wouldn't exactly call a quick read. But it's close. Flawed? Yes. But it's still quintessential Louis L'Amour. I might go for another of his works. Just not right at the moment as I have several mysteries and a food journal on my to-read pile at the moment.

Worth Consuming!

Rating; 7 out of 10 stars.

X-Men #1 (2026 Comic Book & Graphic Novel Reading Challenge)

1991's X-Men #1 by Chris Claremont and Jim Lee holds the Guinness World Record for the best selling single issue of all-time. The total number of copies sold is around the 8 million mark. However, I don't think it's a fair attribute. 8 million people didn't buy this book. There were 4 different variant covers that revealed a massive battle scene between the X-Men and Magneto. Add the fervor of speculators who gobbled up first issues by the long box full, and in reality, X-Men #1 was probably only purchased by 2-3 million individuals. 

The new series was a restructuring of the X-Men franchise. Seeing that there were just too many mutants to keep track of,  first, Marvel killed off a few fan favorite characters with a massacre in Genosha. Then they split the roster in half and blue some of the all-time greats together in a sister series. Then, Magneto, who had become an ally of the Xavier's School for Gifted Children, renounced his membership and fled to the ruins of his asteroid compound to create a refuge for mutants. In return, Charles Xavier returned to lead the X-Men after years away. 

Cyclops, Wolverine, Jean Grey, Beast, Storm, Gambit, and Rogue. Plus support from the mechanic genius Forge. If this sounds like the lineup for Fox's classic X-Men: The Animated Series, you're almost right. Only Jubilee is missing. But over time, she'll be recruited by Cyclops to join what will soon be dubbed 'the blue team.'

As Claremont was winding down his lengthy run as the X-Men's scribe, co-plotter and artist Jim Lee's star was rising. In just a couple of issues, Lee would also become the new writer of the series. But his tenure would be short. Feeling undervalued by Marvel, Lee and about a half dozen other writers and artists from the bullpen broke free from the publisher and founded Image Comics. 

A rotating lineup of talent would write on the new X-Men title, including Scott Lobdell, Fabian Nicieza, and Grant Morrison. After a brief 2-issue fill-in by Art Thibert, before eventually setting on Andy Kubert as the regular penciler from issue #14-59. As for the series itself, beginning with the Morrison run, issue #114, it was retitled New X-Men. Issue #157 lost the 'New' moniker before another change at issue #208. Becoming X-Men: Legacy, the title went back to just X-Men in 2012 for the milestone 300th issue. Never cancelled due to dwindling sales, X-Men #300 concluded many storylines and paved the way to seasonal relaunches in hopes of streamlined numbering of titles.

 However, if you have ever read any of my reviews of the more recent Deadpool series with a nearly annual reset back to issue #1, you'll know that I hate this new way Marvel numbers it's books. It's a leading reason that I have stayed away from most Marvel series of the past decade. But I don't seem to be the only one who hates this new method of doing business. However, despite how much we hate it, it doesn't seem like Marvel will be ceasing this way of conducting business any time soon.

Completing this review completes Task #36 ( Work by Jim Lee, Fiona Staples or Alex Ross) of the 2026 Comic Book and Graphic Novel Reading Challenge.

And with this review, my 2026 Reading Challenge is COMPLETE!

Rating: 6 out of 10 stars.