Scooby-Doo Team-Up #25

The Mystery Inc. gang arrive at a small town hippie community for their next case. The ghosts of the parents of the town founders have arrived and their trying to guilt these social misfits to give up their dreams of peace and unity and join the real world. Thanks to the addition of the emerald avengers, Green Lantern and Green Arrow, Scooby and friends solve this mystery pretty kick. Only when everyone in town suddenly begins fighting with each other, there's another mystery to be solved.

A beautiful tribute to Denny O'Neil and Neal Adams' 'Hard Travelling Heroes' storyline that not only saw Archer and Ringbearer joining forces in search for the soul of America, but introduced the era of relevant comics in the early 1970s. The Guardian Appa Ali Apsa, who traveled with Green Lantern and Green Lantern, doesn't appear in this story. But we do get a cameo from a fellow Justice Leaguer who partook in some legs of the two green hued heroes' cross country travels. 

Another masterful triumph by Sholly Fisch and Dario Brizuela with 2 mysteries in 1 book! As glad as I am that DC has kept things going with it's 3 limited Batman and Scooby-Doo! Mysteries series, I really want DC to get back to pairing those meddling kids with the full A-Z lineup of the DC Universe. I miss Scooby-Doo Team-Up and I think it's time to bring it back!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.

Rocket and Groot: The Hunt for Star-Lord (Family Comic Friday)

A couple of years ago, writer and director James Gunn was removed from completing his Guardians of the Galaxy movie trilogy because of some past inappropriate posts and Halloween costumes. True, he did return after the cast and crew supported him, underwent therapy and made some apologies. However, if things had gone differently, I think I would have been able to make a great argument for who could have at least replaced Gunn as script writer for Guardians Vol. 3!

Rocket and Groot: The Hunt for Star-Lord sees the rascally duo get an alert that their cocky leader has been kidnapped and held for ransom. As Rocket and Groot follow the leads for the whereabouts of the missing Peter Quill, they reunite with their other Guardian teammates who join the search. Along the way, some iconic Guardians baddies along with a surprise villain or two will learn that nothing comes between a Guardian of the Galaxy and their search for their best friend. Except maybe for a bounty offering the promise of some much needed credits.

This 2023 chapter graphic novel from Scholastic was written by veteran comic writer Amanda Deibert. The author captured the quirks and voices of every character in this book perfectly. This story really felt like a never before told segment of the Guardians of the Galaxy cinematic trilogy. If Marvel decides to make a 4th Guardians film, this is who should write the script! And with a follow up adventure seeing Rocket and Groot trapped in with a mysterious stranger in a spooky forest, due to come out in September, I've already got a book on my Halloween to-read list!

The book is illustrated by cartoonist Cam Kendall, who is more well known for his work on board games. I liked his art style. I was also fooled by it. Kendall's style looks a lot like the work Skottie Young did on his 2014-15 Rocket Raccoon miniseries. I liked that work and I loved this one. 

The Hunt for Star-Lord is a fun-filled romp similar in many ways to the mad cap antics of Looney Tunes, Tom and Jerry and Scooby-Doo. There's fighting and laser weapons a plenty. A few threatening use of sharp objects. And an appearance by a Marvel UK character that in its 90s era heyday was considered 10 times more violent than Wolverine or the Punisher. COMBINED! Here, the character (of whose identity I dare not spoil), is more buffoonish than deadly. But he's still a little intimidating in appearance.

I did fear that when the Guardians arrived on planet Earth in their search for Star-Lord, that things were going to get a little preachy. Groot sees a lumberjack making timber out of his brethren and rightfully becomes incensed. That was all fine. It was the addition of the eco-protesters in the scene that could have made the scene become fodder for a bad ABC Afterschool Special. But Amanda Deibert keeps things balanced with quirky humor while also presenting a positive message of not wasting our precious resources for no reason at all.

Recommended by Amazon for readers ages 6-8. However I think those up to age 12 could really get a kick out of this graphic novel. The author and illustrator did fantastic jobs! Oh boy! How I can't wait for October to get here!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales: Above the Trenches

The Eagles, Lions, Chickens, Beavers, Bunnies and Bears are back! Nathan Hale, both the cartoonist and American patriot return to Europe during the early days of the first World War to examine the war front not from the land or seas; but from the sky!

World War I saw its fair share of aces- pilots who scored a confirmed 5 kills or more! The famed Manfred von Richthofen, known amongst his fellow pilots on both sides of the war as the Red Baron, had a record 80 victories in the sky! The pilot in second place behind the Red Baron for confirmed kills had 75 and according to a chart in the back on this book over 60 pilots from France, Britain, Canada and Germany has at least 28 confirmed victories from the years of 1914-1919. The top ace for the United States was Eddie Rickenbacker with 26 aerial wins and he didn't even make the list!

Hale does his best to cover all sides of the battle in air. But in order to keep this historical graphic novel from covering too broad a picture of the war above the trenches, Hale tries to keep the focus on the volunteering American pilots who made up the French squadron called the LaFayette Escadrille, reverently named after another hero who has appeared in a previous volume of Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales. 

Next to the first World War I volume, Treaties, Trenches, Mud and Blood, Above the Trenches is the most violent and deadliest recollection of them all. Hale makes an effort to warn readers that alcohol flows freely and cigarettes fill the air with smoke like exhaust from a Fokker DR1. (That's a war plane- not a German cuss word.) Yet there's no trigger warnings about the numerous pilots and their sighters and gunmen who die in horrific ways. Maybe this is just proof that our society is desensitized to violence but whoa unto us if we see an early 1900s Frenchman sipping wine while taking a drag...

Loved this book. Honestly, I didn't want it to end and I feel that considering how much time was spent on the formation of the LaFayette Escadrille compared to how quickly things wrapped up, this book should have been broken up into 2 parts. I guess technically, you could say this volume was part two. But really, we've yet to see America's official entrance into the Great War. Maybe the two Nathan Hale's have plans for a trilogy? I'd be okay with that.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Marshmallow Martians: Museum Sleepover (Family Comic Friday)

Enjoy a night of adventure as the Marshmallow Martians participate in a sleepover at the Museum of Natural History! The intergalactic buddies have entered a contest where they're supposed to find something unexpected. With none of the other contestants visiting the planet Earth for the competition, the fun loving aliens plan to visit a museum to find maybe a dinosaur or a unicorn in order to win the game! Hopefully, whatever they find will be gigantic because they've got a giant display box to fill!

'Museum Sleepover' is the third book in the Marshmallow Martians series. Created by the husband and wife team of Deanna Kent and Neil Hooson, this 2024 graphic novel from Random House Graphic is a book big on adventure and imagination. 

Reviews and press suggests that this series is ideal for kids ages 5-8. However, there are a lot of big words in this book. I'm thinking maybe those aged 9 and 10 years old might enjoy this book a little more than a younger reader. There's quite a few names of certain thunder lizards that are quite the mouthful. However, I also know of a little girl not older than 5 or 6 and she loves to tell you that her favorite dinosaur is the Pachycephalosaurus. So what do I know???

The book is colorfully illustrated in a manner that will capture the attention of emerging readers. If the young readers in your life fall in love with these silly space explorers in this book, the good news is there's 2 more volumes of adventures on earth out there to discover. Entertaining while being educational, there's also an art lesson in the back of the book which teaches readers how to draw G.L.O.W., the computer companion of the Marshmallow Martians

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Walt Disney's Donald Duck "The Black Pearls of Tabu Yama": The Complete Carl Barks Disney Library Vol. 19

Maybe it's just me getting older and my tastes have changed. Maybe now owning nearly 12,000 comics and graphic novels that I realize that I don't have to own every comic book ever made. Or maybe it's just because I really love Scrooge McDuck and his nephew Donald. All I know is when it comes to a book that just warms my soul, I'd much rather read the complete works of the legendary Carl Barks than just about anything new that comes out on comic book shop shelves.

In this delightful volume, readers start off on a Pacific island adventure set during Christmas time with Scrooge Donald and Huey Dewey and Louie looking for the famed black pearls of Tabu Yama. The heartwarming ending is extremely predictable and yet this has immediately become one of my all-time favorite holiday reads to star the Ducks of Disney.

Lucky duck cousin Gladstone appears in at least 3 stories in this book. First, he'll race Donald around the world in a rocket ship for a pair of dueling scientists. For the last 2 stories, Uncle Scrooge is added to the mix as both Gladstone and Donald attempt to convince the wealthy businessduck to buy their prospective investment properties. Then the trio compete against each other in a series of competitive burro events for the rights to a lucrative uranium mine  For a character absolutely despised by Barks, he sure uses Gladstone Gander an awful lot.

Readers are also introduced to a new rival of Donald Duck in the form of the literal swine, P.L. McBrine. First, McBrine unleashes a pickle shortage in Duckburg by releasing a parasite that feasts on cucumbers. Donald and his nephews head overseas to bring back a wasp that is known to feast on those invasive bugs. However, McBrine is on their trail in hopes of keeping the Ducks from succeeding so he can make a killing by selling pickled rutabagas!

McBrine returns, now using the name McSwine as a customer scheming to take milkman Donald's job by making false complaints to the manager of the Duckburg dairy. Yet in an unexpected twist, Donald kinda snaps and exacts revenge on McBrine by issuing him his just desserts. As satisfying as it is to see Donald get the best of one of his foes with relish, it's no wonder that Disney and Dell passed on this story and was shelved for nearly 2 decades before being published in the Netherlands circa 1974.

Almost 2 dozen tales of various lengths abound in this nearly 200 page collection, along with covers and commentary from noted Disney comic historians on each adventure. 

Such a delight. I don't care if these reproductions show biases and stereotypes. Well, I care, socially. It just doesn't bother me to see how far we've come from those days of yore. It's how we learn from the mistakes of history and with that, I can't wait to get my hands on more books in this oddly published series of Barks' complete Disney Duck works. 

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

School Judgment: Gakkyu Hotei, Vol. 3

I decided that even though I had a few misgivings, I would push on. I felt that the previous two volumes had some inappropriate panels involving 12-13 year old children. With that, I thought long and hard whether or not to read volume 3 in order to finish the series. Since I also review works to inform parents and guardians about the age appropriateness of comics and graphic novels, along with journaling about my reads, I decided that I needed to complete School Judgment in order to determine if things continue to skirt the edge of decency or not.

So does volume 3 over-sexualize middle school children, especially girls? Oh yeah, it does.

This final volume introduces readers to the third survivor of the classroom massacre, The Bloody Session, that inspired Abaku Inugami to become a lawyer. Named Yui Kijima, she's a ruthless attorney who has never lost a case. And she dresses as a dominatrix which reflects her vindictive and heartless nature. Kijima has arrived because sweet little Tento Nanahoshi is in serious trouble once again! School Madonna, Reiko Shiratori has been attacked, falling into a deep coma and Tento is the prime suspect!

It will be Yui vs Abaku for the fate of Tento Nanahoshi. Should Abaku lose this case, Tento will be sent to Onigashima Elementary, the harshest school penitentiary in all of Japan!

Then fans finally learn the identity of Red Orge, the savage killer of Abaku, Yui and ninja lawyer Kotaro Sarutobi's classmates. It's a resolution that will stun readers. But it will also answer some lingering questions for fans because the final two chapters were never published in print until now! So unless you subscribed to Weekly Shonen Jump's online app Shonen Jump+, first run readers of School Judgment were left in the dark as to the identity of Red Orge! 

Also appearing in print for the very first time is the 2-part prototype of Nobuaki Enoki's vision for School Judgment. Featuring very primitive art from Enoki, there's some elements of the Suzuki Murder and Dismemberment story but overall, it's a new case, with some new characters, between attorneys Pine Hanzuki and Abaku Inugami.

Here we are with a storyline that involves a history of a bunch of first graders being slaughtered, a youth bent on murderous revenge for their killing, and all kinds of fights, assaults and drug use and here I am freaking out over the sultry parts of this book. I don't know why. Maybe it crosses a line for me. As a high school teacher, I witness fights and assaults all day. There's been a couple of incidents of drug use, but it's mostly cigs and vaping that get my students into trouble. Thankfully, nobody has died. But we've had so many freakin' lock-downs that we've all become desensitized to them due to overuse. But when it comes to portraying youths as sexual creatures, as realistic as premarital sex and teen pregnancy is at my school, it's a huge line in the sand that I don't want to be anywhere near.

I know that there's a ton of Manga out there that are a lot more adult than this book. The same goes for American comics and graphic novels. But the fact that the sensuality and T&A that appears in this book involved elementary students was something that gave me a lot of pause. And to have adult men crafting these stories just doesn't seem appropriate to me. If it doesn't seem appropriate for your family, then consider this review my advisory. But will I demand it be censored or banned? As a supporter of the CBLDF, absolutely not. I just hope parents, guardians and adults who might not be in the know are made aware should they deem such work as School Judgment as not right for their families or themselves.

Worth Consuming based on the quality of the storytelling!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Li'l Kids #3 (2024 Comic Book & Graphic Novel Reading Challenge)

Li'l Kids was an anthology series from Marvel that ran for a dozen issues sporadically from 1970-1973. Like many of Marvel's horror anthology books from the same time period, Li'l Kids was made up primarily of reprinted material from Marvel's days as Atlas Comics. The focus was humor stories starring children.

According to Grand Comic Database, all of the stories in this issue were previously printed in the pages of Li'l Willie Comics #20 (July, 1949) and Little Lizzie #5 (April, 1950). While records of talents used during the Golden Age of comics were incomplete at best, GCD can confirm that Horace Elmo penciled and inked the opening Li'l Willie farce and that David Gantz worked double duty on both of the Little Lizzie yarns. 

Stories in this issue include:

• Li'l Willie and his best friend George scam a way to visit the circus without a ticket.
• Little Lizzie tries to cure her hiccups.
• A young girl helps two fighting tots both get to view a baseball game.
• Lizzie then has to do her chores before going out to play with her friends.

The only original material of this issue is the cover. If the characters look like they belong in Riverdale instead on the cover of a Marvel mag, that's because it was penciled by Archie Comics veteran Stan Goldberg. Signing his work as Stan G., Goldberg was assisted by John Verpoorten. The cowboy themed scene was lettered by Morrie Kuramoto.

Starting with issue #10, Li'l Kids began to include a brand-new feature; the cover-starring Calvin. An African-American boy of about 10, Calvin's off-beat adventures were written and illustrated by Kevin Banks. Calvin nor any of the reprinted moppets that graced the pages of Li'l Kids seem to have made further appearances in Marvel works after the series was cancelled with issue #12.

Completing this review completes Task #42 (A Comedy) of the 2024 Comic Book and Graphic Novel Reading Challenge.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 7 out of 10 stars.

A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles

I know. I read an honest-to-God novel and it wasn't based on a comic book or superhero or established TV show or film. I was inspired to find this book after seeing the trailer for the upcoming series Paramount+. But I don't have that streaming service. So I took a shot to see if my local library had the book on hand. I guess I hit the bullseye because I found it. Boy, was that one of the smartest moves I've ever made in my 40 plus long years of being an avid reader!

The story is about a Russian aristocrat at the dawn of the Russian revolution. It's 1922 and the Bolsheviks have taken power and are creating the foundations for establishment of the Soviet Union. Count Alexander Rostov has been summoned to a tribunal.  Declared an enemy of the state, normally Rostov would be taken to a firing squad and shot or shipped off to Siberia. However, because of a poem he wrote that inspired the spark of the October Revolution, he is sentenced to permanent house arrest at the Hotel Metropol for the rest of his life. 

Should he exit the doors of the Hotel, Count Rostov will be executed. Over the span of 4 decades, the confined gentleman will make do the best he can, living in exiled luxury as guests and staff of the Metropol come and go while the Soviet Union grows into a world power.

My first experience with writer Amor Towles, I was enthralled by this 2016 work. It was pure magic. After the first 100 pages, I was no longer a reader. I too was a resident of the Hotel Metropol. I could not stop reading this book. The desire to read another page turned into an extra 5, 10, 15 pages before I realized it was way past my bedtime and begrudgingly needed to call it a night.

I realize that Ewan McGregor is playing Count Rostov on the live action series. Yet no matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't picture anyone else in the role other than Kenneth Branagh. Turns out I wasn't alone in this as the Murder on the Orient Express director was on tap for the lead role for a very long time. As much as in my head, I kept hearing Branagh speaking in that French-Belgian accent as Hercule Poirot, I can't get past hearing McGregor as Obi-Wan Kenobi instead of a Russian polymath of refinement every time I watch the trailer for the forthcoming series.

I wish I could say that this book was perfect. It was pretty darn close. If not for having recently read the massive graphic novel Petrograd, I would have been a lot more lost understanding the early days of the Soviet Union. While written by an American, this book is very Russian. The more you know of the country's rich cultural history, the better you'll enjoy this book and I just don't know jack about Tolstoy, Chekov and their kin. Thankfully, there's so much heart and wonderment in this book, it makes up for those gaps in my knowledge. 

This book is like a dream come true for me. I've always wanted to get stuck in an airport or be snowed in at an all-inclusive ski resort or have to spend a season at a research base in Antarctica. A Gentleman in Moscow was a chance to live those bizarre fantasies vicariously through the writing of Amor Towles. Unlike most novels I read, this novel is something I see myself making another stay at Hotel Metropol!

Worth Consuming!

Ratiing: 9 out of 10 stars.

All-Negro Comics 75th Anniversary Edition Hard Cover

An important single issue, unknown and forgotten by many collectors, given new life in this 75th anniversary edition release.

In 1947, journalist Orrin Cromwell Evans had a dream to create a comic book devoted to blacks, written and illustrated by black talent. His dream became a reality with All-Negro Comics #1. While another title beat Wilson to newsstands with the distinction of being the first comic book aimed primarily for black readers, All-Negro Comics was comprised entirely of all-new material and solely by black artists. The forerunner, titled Negro Heroes was made up mostly of comic strips that formerly appeared in black newspapers. 

Orrin enlisted his brother George J. Evans, Jr. as well as John Terrell and an artist known only as 'Len' among others to craft an anthology series that offered an array of stories for all readers. The first issue introduced audiences to hard-boiled detective Ace Harlem who must solve the murder of a black restaurant owner, illustrated by Terrell. George Evans illustrates an adventure starring a black scientist known as the Lion Man uses science and legend to protect a cache of Uranium from thieves. Len satires black fashion trends in his 'Hep Chicks on Parade' comic strips. 

Humor also abounds with Sugarfoot, a sly youth who runs a foul of a farmer and his very attractive daughter and then there's hen-pecked L'il Eggie who can't win against his overbearing wife.

My least favorite segment was the fanciful Little Dew Dillies, a pair of pixies that explore their wetlands habitat. While the story was an example of how Orrin C. Evan attempted to make it where All-Negro Comics offered a little something for everyone, I wasn't alone in my dislike of the Dew Dillies. According to the commentaries that accompany this reissue, original readers and historians have felt that the inclusion of those magical sprites were really juvenile and out of place for such a sophisticated read.

My favorite story was the two-page prose mystery, 'Ezekiel's Manhunt'. Normally, I am not a fan of the composition tales that are included to suffice the U.S. Postal Service for choice shipping fees. However, the amount of care and craftsmanship is unsurpassed, especially compared to the fodder I've dug through in many a Dell Comics or Gold Key offering. Did Orrin C. Evans write this? If so, did he ever write more stories about Ezekiel and his townsfolk? I'd really want to read more!

It was Evan's intention for there to be an issue #2. However, that just wasn't in the cards. For one thing, All-Negro Comics had a cover price of 15 cents when all other titles were only a dime. Mind you, the debut issue was 48 pages. But for black families in the post World War era, that nickel was a lot of money. Evans also had trouble with infiltrating the segregated South with his book. Though the book did reach black audiences in the Midwest and even Canada, several thousand copies were returned unsold. 

All-Negro Comics was Evan's baby. However, the stress and effort of trying to make issue #1 a success along with the disappointing sales led Orrin C. Evans to never follow through with the promised sophomore issue.

In response to the legacy of All-Negro Comics, a number of modern day black artists and writers were assembled to produce a what-if retrospective of Orrin C. Evan's promised follow up. Sugarfoot gets under the skin of that hapless farmer once again and the Communist foe of Lion Man's goes round two for that uranium by kidnapping our hero's sidekick, Bubba. Ace Harlem takes another case, only it's left unsolved with a cliffhanger; albeit a rather ho-hum one at that. Eggie's wife browbeats him once more and those Little Dew Dillies return to help a young woman see her hidden talents, while those Hep Chicks arrive in the 21st century. But alas, Ezekiel and his friends are nowhere to be found in this long awaited sequel. 

Darn, Darn, Darn.

Like most, I only heard of All-Negro Comics #1 in the past couple of decades.  But when I did learn of it, I wanted to read it. And I've only seen maybe 2 of them in the wild. Both were slabbed and asking for insane prices. It was a stroke of sheer luck finding this anniversary edition at my local library on the new shelf. A Kickstarter type labor of love. Because it wasn't distributed by Diamond, I was never even aware of its existence.  A must for multiple segments of the comic book collecting community. Black readers, comic historians, both amateur and professional, and fans of Golden Age comics must read this special edition hardback. It's a recreated artifact of pop culture history that should not be overlooked!

Many Thanks to editor Chris Robinson for assembling his team of talent as well as digitally remastering this issue for the next 75 years of readers. And many, many thanks to the Kickstarter backer who made the '1 for You, 1 for Them' pledge that placed a copy of this book in my local library!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Bite Sized Archie: Going Viral

I was such a fan of the first volume that I eagerly anticipated a follow up. While that first year of Bite Sized Archie was a groundbreaking romp that paid tribute to over 75 years of Archie lore and the entire Archie Comics library, there was something not quite right with the second year of strips. It was almost like Ron Cacace and Vincent Lovallo tried to get too experimental with a concept that in of itself was an experiment. The genius of Bite Sized Archie is how an entire story is told in just 4 square panels. Here, the creators tried to do a drawn out story over several strips and the way they did it just didn't work.

First of all, the concept was too wacky. An anthropomorphic cheeseburger takes revenge on Jughead with the help of Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer and a leprechaun. Then the story is told sporadically instead of several weeks in a row. That's hard enough to keep up with but the creators end up jumping ahead into the storyline with events that happened off page, like Veronica and Reggie getting kidnapped by the reindeer. Add in Sabrina the Teenage Witch and a Kaiju version of Jughead fighting the Cheeseburger and wrap it all up with a stupid punchline for an ending and I was begging for this volume to be over!

Thankfully, Cacace and Lovallo continue to add their director's cut commentary to their strips. Without it, I would've been lost, thinking that some pages of that continuous story were missing. I appreciate the creators wanting to try something new by having a lengthy story. However, I think they were too indulgent with their efforts. 

As Bite Sized Archie continues on over at Archiecomics.com, there's a good chance for a third volume. I just hope Cacace and Lovallo learn from their sophomore year mistakes and can recapture some of that magic from the inaugural year.

Rating: 6 out of 10 years.

Bobby Benson's B-Bar-B Riders #5 (2024 Comic Book & Graphic Novel Reading Challenge)

12 year old Bobby Benson debuted on the radio airwaves in 1932. After the death of his parents, Bobby inherited the B-Bar-B Ranch, becoming the boss to a rag tag bunch of cow hands. In between dramatic stories of cattle rustlers, thieving bandits and angry Native American Indians, the tension was eased with campfire sing-alongs and tall tales told by the ranch's handyman, Windy. 

Though the stories were set in Texas and the fact that Bobby and his crew faced more than their fair share of desperadoes, there was a modern element to the adventures. In this issue, ranchers chase after a band of aspiring train robbers by commandeering a tour bus to catch the criminals. Then foreman Tex Mason in disguise as the vigilante, the Lemonade Kid, goes after a gang of bank robbers that use a helicopter to make their getaways.  Both stories are rather creative mixing Old Western action with mid-twentieth century technology. Though can anyone explain how those helicoptering baddies managed to get a hideout atop an inaccessible mesa?

Later, Windy regales some of the B-Bar-B's juvenile visitors to a story of the time the ranch was invaded by giant ants. Then there's a prose tale about a Texas Ranger outfoxing a wanted killer before Bobby Benson is kidnapped by horse rustlers in the closing story.

The 20 issue series produced by Magazine Enterprises under its Parkway Publishing Company banner. was the first all-new comic appearance by Bobby Benson. In the 1930s, ME released a pair of comics that collected stories from the short-lived newspaper strips based on the adventures at the B-Bar-B Ranch. Both books were radio giveaways issued by cereal producer, the Hecker-H-O Company, who sponsored the radio show for a time.

The first Bobby Benson program ran from 1932-1936 on CBS. A revival on the Mutual Broadcasting System debuted in 1949. A year later, Bobby made the jump to television in a  live action series. In response to the show, ME published a comic book series. Bobby Benson actually makes a reference to filming the TV show in the last story of this issue. The comic outlived the television show by about a year before being cancelled in 1953. Bobby Benson and His B-Bar-B Riders aired its last radio program in 1955. A number of child actors played the role of Bobby over the show's cumulative 10 year run including future Dead End Kid, Billy Halop. Other stars of note to work regularly on the radio series included Don Knotts, Tex Ritter and Billy's sister Florence Halop who was most well known for her brief role as Flo the Baliff on NBC's Night Court.

Bob Powell is credited with having penciled the cover and at least one of the 4 stories in this issue. Raymond C. Krank edited and is believed to have written the prose 2-pager, 'Job For A Ranger.'

Completing this review completes Task #1 (Comic from the Golden Age (1938-1955)) of the 2024 Comic Book and Graphic Novel Reading Challenge.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Super Magic Boy: I Am a Dinosaur (Family Comic Friday)

From the creator of Red Panda and Moon Bear comes this fun new series about a young boy with magic powers and an amazing imagination!

Hugo is the Super Magic Boy. He can smash furniture. He can climb the highest mountains. And he can change into a dinosaur. 

In this opening volume, Hugo meets a dinosaur and decides to see what life is like as a thunder lizard by changing into one. 

As a dinosaur, Hugo finds buried treasure that is guarded by the Skeleton King. That's the moment where this series hits its sweet spot. The dinosaur, Hugo meets, aptly named Dino, is a fun character. But he's a bit too rambunctious, getting Hugo into trouble by destroying the boy's home. Skeleton King kinda balances Hugo out as in the second story, he and Hugo go on an adventure to find a new batch of cursed treasure to guard. Dinosaur is like the Cat in the Hat, lacking control of himself. Skeleton King is more like Oliver Hardy to Hugo's Stan Laurel. (If you younger folks don't know who those guys are, check out Youtube for some of their hilarious antics!)

That second story in my opinion was comedy gold as Hugo and the Skeleton King when on a search for some golden treasure. The opening story, 'I am a Dinosaur' had the same energy. Possibly too much, if you ask me. In the scene where Hugo and the Dinosaur are digging, they first come upon a water main, proclaiming the broken pipe to be a 'magic water stick.' Okay, I got a laugh at that. But as they kept digging, Dinosaur found some underground electrical lines that Hugo touches and was shocked by. I felt that the scene went a bit too far because damaged power lines are not something to play with. So hopefully, parents and guardians will be made aware of this scene and discuss electrical safety as kids like to dig in the dirt and potentially could strike an underground line.

This book also has some Magic Bonus Material which is something I love in all ages comics and graphic novels as these activities continue the fun once the story is finished but also further imagination and learning through play. Here, Jarod Rosello teaches young readers how to draw Hugo and Dino along with a creative page showing kids how to become a dinosaur like Hugo does in the book. Paper, pencil and crayons are needed for the art work. A sense of wonder is required for turning into a dinosaur.

If you have a 9-12 year old that likes the Red Panda and Moon Bear books and they have a younger sibling, then the first book in the Super Magic Boy series is sure to become a source of entertainment that they book can enjoy and bond to. Like the Red Panda and Moon Bear series, this book is available in both an English language edition and a volume en Espanol. 

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Superman's Girlfriend, Lois Lane #130 (2024 Comic Book & Graphic Novel Reading Challenge)

Thanks to an encounter with a psychic, reporter Lois Lane is subconsciously informed of Superman's secret identity. Unaware to this event, Lois has a series of nightmares in which she murders her co-worker and best friend Clark Kent. In the dream, as Kent falls, his superhero costume is revealed to which the shock of murdering the Man of Steel awakens Lois in a cold sweat. As Lois tries to make sense of this reoccurring dream, she is constantly attacked by a pair of crooks. Narrowly, the journalist escapes doom. Yet as Lois composes herself, the bystanders claim that no such attacks occurred. Could the nightmares and now supposed phantom attacks be a sign that Lois Lane is losing her mind?

The feature story in Superman's Girlfriend, Lois Lane #130 was penned by Cary Bates. 'The Mental Murder' is a mystery that keeps the reader guessing most of the time. However, if you've figured out the real identity of Lois' psychiatrist, you'll realize that Superman will do anything to protect his own self interests if it means keeping the world from knowing that Clark Kent is the Last Son of Krypton. 

Cover and interior art was by John Rosenberger with inks by Vince Colletta 

The backup story stars the somnambulist superhero Thorn. The second character to bear the name, Thorn's secret identity was Rhosyn 'Rose' Lynee Forrest. Created by Robert Kanigher and Ross Andru, the character debuted in issue #105 of Lois Lane. In her origin story, Rose becomes distraught at the death of her father, police officer Phil Forrest at the hands of a gang known as The 100. The desire for revenge triggers something in Rose's psyche to the point that whenever she went to sleep, she would switch personalities. Instead of sweet, innocent Rose, Rhosyn would transform into the vicious, athletic street vigilante Thorn. 

'Nightmare Alley!' sees Rose changing both personas, clothes and hair color into Thorn as she finally uncovers the identity of 1 of the 3 men who murdered her father. Unfortunately, the quest for vengeance will continue for the young lady when the thug is killed by an unknown assailant before revealing the identities of his co-conspirators. 

Artist Don Heck provides pen and ink to Kanigher's script.

Completing this review completes Task #14 (Main Character is a Woman) of the 2024 Comic Book and Graphic Novel Reading Challenge.

Rating: 4 out of 10 stars.

Even More Fund Comics

If you ever wanted a primer to Indy comics, creators and artists for the early 2000s, this is it! Dozens upon dozens of comic book talent came together to make this 2004 anthology benefiting the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund. Batton Lash's lawyers of Supernatural Law, The Cryptozoo Crew from Jerry Carr and Allan Gross, Mark McKenna's Banana Tail are just a few of the properties I've read and reviewed before. It was a lot of fun to get an all-new revisit to these characters that might not have gotten their due respect. 

There's also a slew of well known artists who contributed to the sketch book section of this book. Steve Rude, George Perez and Al Milgrom, along with Jim Lee, who drew to the Spider-Man/Green Goblin cover all make small donations of their time and God given gifts in this book. I'm thinking heavy hitters Marvel and DC weren't willing to let their superstars provide more than a single work of art least it interferes with their bottom line. But at least they were allowed to support the CBLDF!

There's at least one other volume out there similar to this. More Fund Comics, also by Sky Dog, benefits my favorite comic book charity. I'd assume with the title that there'd be a 'Fund Comics' out there too. Only, I can't find evidence of it. I'd like to read MFC. But if it's like this book, I'd probably sell it for something I really want. Thus, the first primer is something I will keep an eye out for but I'm not going to add it to my wish list.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 7 out of 10 stars

School Judgment: Gakkyu Hotei, Vol. 2

The reason I do a comic book and graphic novel reading challenge every year is in order to expand my reading horizons. I can get stuck in a rut and miss out on some reading diverse good stuff. Considering that I am not a fan of Manga and I wanted to read the second volume of a series I discovered in the middle of my challenge is a testament that the experiment works.

The second volume of School Judgment was much more traditional in the Manga style. The expressions were exaggerated to the point that the characters look different. Too different! Scenes like the arbitration sessions are framed like the opening of a round of Street Fighter or Mortal Combat. But perhaps the most Japanese aspect of this book which was ramped up was the level of over-sexualization of the female characters. And this aspect is the most troubling.

School Judgment takes place at an elementary school. The oldest students are 12 and 13. In the last volume, there were 2 panels that had two separate female students taking a bath. However, there's no nudity. There isn't any nudity here in the second volume either. However, we get extreme close-ups of the assets of several budding school girls. It's even more extreme in the 2-part story that takes place at the grade school swimming pool. To the point that several of the male students make comments about how much 'bigger' their female classmates got over the school year. 

The thing is, this actually could have been worse. At the end of each chapter, series creator Nabuaki Enoki provides a little bit of 'director's cut' feedback about the creative process of making School Judgment. Over the course of 3 segments, readers are shown how much more 'larger' the debut of the girl's swimsuits could have been. It is just me or does showing middle school students as flowering goddesses not bother anyone?

I know that there's more R-rated Manga stuff out there. School Judgment probably wouldn't even be considered PG-13. It would more than likely be PG-rated. And yes, I know that these are illustrations and not real life. Yet, this level of acceptance really bothers me. If anything, it will make me a little more cautious over the type of Manga I read in future challenges.

There's only 1 volume left. I'm rather torn as to if I should read it or not? I really want to know how things wrap up. Who is the perpetrator behind the massacre that led Abaku Inugami to become a lawyer? Will Inugami get his revenge? Will prosecutor Pine Hanzuki finally earn a win against Abaku? There's a lot of questions out there that I am dying to know. Yet as a teacher, I really don't want to be associated with something that promotes the objectification of children either.

The storyline is fantastic. Some of the art is questionable. But not for artistic merits. I'm struggling with if it's considered child pornography or not.

I've got a lot to think about...

Rating: 6 out of 10 stars.

Daredevil #31 (2024 Comic Book & Graphic Novel Reading Challenge)

When law partner Foggy Nelson and secretary Karen Page begin to suspect that attorney Matt Murdock might be the super-powered vigilante, Daredevil, Murdock invents the character of Mike Murdock. Matt's 'twin' brother, Mike is the antithesis of the real deal. He's brash, loud, charming and a bit of a jokester. Everything Matt Murdock has longed to be but keeps bottled up inside is allowed to flow out in the guise of brother Mike. 

In the previous issue, Mr. Hyde and Cobra have re-teamed. Instead of battling Thor, both go up against the Man Without Fear. Hyde concocts a formula that is intended to render Daredevil blind. Unknown to the villains, since Daredevil is already sightless, the chemical strips Matt Murdock of his radar-like abilities. 

Starting from where things left off, Mr. Hyde and his partner in crime are about to strike when the New York Police Department charges into the warehouse doubling as a criminal lair giving Daredevil a chance to escape. However, without his billy-club/white cane hybrid walking device, Daredevil is unable to make his way home. His stumbling attracts the attention of the populace, leading Daredevil to pose as Mike Murdock in order to convince friends Foggy and Karen that any reports of a possibly blind Daredevil is not linked to actual blind person Matt Murdock!

After convincing what has got to be two thirds of the most gullible law firm in all of New York, Daredevil must then fool Mr. Hyde and Cobra into believing that their compound didn't work and that the hero still has sight. With help from Foggy, Daredevil travels a tightrope strung between two buildings rather poorly. Yet the villains interpret the protagonist's clumsiness as showing-off and they retreat from their latest caper. Daredevil thinks he's bought some time and has Nelson escort him home. The chapter ends with Foggy being kidnapped by an unseen force and Cobra now pretending to be Daredevil's assistant. 

Speaking of gullibility, can Matt Murdock, who has been blind since childhood, really be fooled by the voice of Cobra as to being best friend, Foggy Nelson? It remains to be seen and in reality, it's pretty doubtful that he can be tricked. However, it's implied from the cliffhanger that everything is a-okay with Daredevil and fans should be terrified at the prospect of the Man Without Fear helplessly being at the clutches of his foes.

Fans of the Silver Age Daredevil, such as humorist Fred Hembeck, have pointed to issue #8, the first appearance of Stilt-Man, as the most absurd moment in the character's early history. This issue written by Stan Lee could easily be a contender for that distinction. The prospective cliffhanger is laughable. Did Stan the Man really think fans wouldn't expect Daredevil to know when he's being hoodwinked? A more plausible pause that would elicit an elevated heart rate would have a snipe aiming at the now super-powerless Daredevil. Just because Daredevil lost his radar ability, the change should not have diminished the enhanced hearing and other senses Matt Murdock has picked up since losing his sight. 

The artwork by Gene Colan saves this ludicrous issue from being a total lemon. John Tartaglione adds a smoothness to the dynamic artwork with his inks in panels that scream mid-1960s stylish Manhattan. Lettering by Artie Simek. Cover art by Colan with John Romita Sr. and Frank Giacoia.

Completing this review completes Task #17 (A Daredevil Story) of the 2024 Comic Book and Graphic Novel Reading Challenge.

Rating: 6 out of 10 stars.

In Utero (2024 Comic Book & Graphic Novel Reading Challenge)

Australian creator Chris Gooch crafts a Kaiju themed graphic novel that is both terrifying and heartwarming.

This 2024 work from Top Shelf Productions begins with an explosion that level of destruction rivals that of an atomic bomb. 20 square miles is wiped out in the blink of an eye. At the time of the disaster, it was believed that a gas leak was behind the carnage.

Jump ahead 12 years. The Australian community has rebuilt over ground zero to some effect. However, the damage from the explosion still lingers over the city. A large shopping mall had to be condemned due to structural and foundational damage. However in an attempt to make a little money, the owner has been secretly renting out a wing of the complex to his son who's turned the spot into a discount daycare facility.

12 year old Hailey has been spending her school holiday at the day camp. As one of the older children, she's given responsibilities to wander the grounds looking for escapees from the center. In her rounds she encounters a mysterious older teen who seems to know all about the history of the mall. Hailey also encounters a pair of boys who've found a bunch of mysterious gooey eggs that react to human speech. These eggs also seem to be merging together into one giant mass...

In Utero was a surprising read. The main villain in this monstrosity that looks like a combined nightmare dreamed up by Lovecraft and Stephen King. Think Re-Animator meets The Langoliers. The government agents that seek to quarantine the mall act like any sort of biological researcher you'd see in a zombie film. Only, thanks to the experience we've all had with the pandemic, their presence makes the story a little bit more realistic and a whole lot terrifying. Add in the mystery of the explosion from a dozen years past and it also feels like 9/11 all over again.

Yet despite the fear factor of this graphic novel, there's an element of joy in the relationship between Hailey and the mysterious teen named Jen. It's completely unexpected considering the level of carnage being raged by the monster that is reforming in the confines of the abandoned mall. Yet, this type of camaraderie is what made this a quick read that I could not put down!

A read that feels like it could or SHOULD be set in the universe of J.J. Abrams' Cloverfield franchise. The year 2024 is only a couple of months old. Yet, this very well could be one of the top graphic novels of the year! It's that good!

Completing this review completes Task #24 (A New Release at Your Local Library) of the 2024 Comic Book and Graphic Novel Reading Challenge.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.

Nightwing, Vol. 7: On The Razor's Edge

In Bludhaven, the head of its criminal element is the massively strong super villain Blockbuster. Thanks to some surgical enhancements, Blockbuster is a lot smarter than from his first appearances that pitted him against Batman. He's still as unstable as ever and even more ruthless and cruel. He's also at his wit's end. Since his arrival in town, Nightwing has taken an impressive bite out of Blockbuster's empire. To stop this, Blockbuster is testing out some new talent to pit against Nightwing: the assassin Shrike, who has some history with the hero from his days as the Boy Wonder. 

Meanwhile, Dick Grayson has finally made it to the ranks of the Bludhaven Police Department. It's long been Grayson's goal to clean up the BPD which rivals Gotham's police department as the most corrupt law agency in the country. Now if the rookie cop could only get an 'in' with the dirty cops on the force. Grayson thinks he might have that opportunity when his new partner, Officer Any Rohrbach, invites him to meet a special group of people. Only, this group of cops is unlike anything Dick Grayson was expecting. They're honest!

In the middle of all this is some pent up sexual tension. First, Nightwing encounters Catwoman in town to commit a heist against a very powerful crime lord. If there was ever a way that Dick Grayson could ever irrevocably betray Bruce Wayne, it would be hooking up with Selena Kyle. This story very well could be the flame that leads to a powerful explosive of passions. 

Then Oracle, with assistance of Black Canary, comes to Nightwing's rescue after escaping the clutches of Shrike. Babs Gordon and Dick Grayson have always been made for each other. This story proves just that. When will DC finally give the readers what they want and have Dick and Barbara get married?!

Chuck Dixon's writing on Nightwing is phenomenal as ever. I wish I could say the same about the art of Greg Land. Some pages, he's fantastic. In others, I feel like I'm watching scenes from the X-Man Beast's family reunion. It's so inconsistent! Especially in the action-packed scenes.

Another gem I inherited from my late, great best friend.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

The Death of Archie: A Life Celebrated

The Death of Archie was the explosive comic event of 2014. Just like with the death of Batman's sidekick Robin in 1988, when the news broke of the looming demise of the World's Oldest Teen, fans lost their minds. Only, unlike where an actually Robin died, just not fan favorite original Dick Grayson, the death of Archie wasn't canon. Yes- the Archie Andrews generations grew up reading since his debut in 1941 died from a gunshot wound. But the murder takes place in the distance future of about 15-20 years from now. 

Volume 2 of Life With Archie, known by its storyline 'The Married Life' showed two possible futures for Archie Andrews. Debuting in 2010, fans got a glimpse of what life after high school would be like if he finally answered the eternal question 'Betty or Veronica?' Fans got to see what married life would be like not just with socialite heiress Veronica but the consummate girl next door Betty.

At one point towards the end of the storyline, the marriages kinda fused together in which you never saw the face of Archie's singular one true love. Thus when Archie is ultimately killed, he confesses as his last words '... I've Always Loved You...' to his bride without truly revealing just whom it is the redhead is confessing his devotion towards.

Reading the story wasn't really something I felt like I had to read. A chance find at Ollie's for only $2.99 was enough to entice me to give it a go. The story is actually quite good. However, it's not Archie's death that made this a story to remember. Instead, it was both how the reader never really knows who Archie's soul mate was as well as the last issue in which Archie's friends and family join together a year after his death to reflect on how their lives were impacted by Archie.

There are about 15 pages of extra material. Don't pass those up! There's an article on the character's impact on both comics and pop culture, a look at all the great variant covers along with artist inside info and a look behind the scenes at the original artwork and the changes recommended to it by the editors. Be sure to also catch the foreword by the EIC Victor Gorelick which explains why Archie Comics decided to kill off their signature character- even if it was a 'What If' type situation.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales: Blades of Freedom (Family Comic Friday)

Nathan Hale makes a long awaited return to my reading list. Both the author and the 18th century historical figure! There's been 3 new releases since I last read and reviewed a volume of Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales. Despite frequent checks, my local library never seemed to have them. Hopefully it was because kids kept checking them out as the reason for the lack of availability and not because my library is slowly trying to phase these graphic novels out of circulation.

Blades of Freedom is perhaps the most complex complex volume in series since the World War I chronicle titled Treaties, Trenches, Mud and Blood. It's not because of triggering subject matter of slavery. Instead, the story of how America came to make the Louisiana Purchase from France was not a simple pathway of going from point A to Point B. Instead, we have to go way, way back to before the time of the American Revolution when both French and Spanish explorers claimed the region of the Midwest for their prospective nations. Then the region changes hands a few times.

Soon the story tightens up to focus on France's colonization of Saint Domingue as well as the rebellions in France. On the French colony, the black slaves forced to produce the valuable commodities of sugar and coffee are beginning to shake off the yolk of oppression. In France, a young soldier by the name of Napoleon is rising through the ranks of the French army thanks to how he's been handling the peasant uprisings. Add in the role of the mosquito in the spread of yellow fever, wars with England and Spain, the fusion of African gods with Catholicism into a religion called 'Voodue' and the creation of poisons from native plants in the Caribbean, all resulting in the largest and most deadly slave revolt to result in freedom and you have a myriad of reasons both for why France had to sell the Louisiana territory to the United States and how the nation of Haiti came to be.

There's a lot more to it, of course. But unlike Major Impossible which tells of John Wesley Powell's expedition of the Colorado River or the siege of the Alamo in Alamo All-Stars, this story isn't so linear or cut and dry. This is definitely an aspect of the Louisiana Purchase that they don't teach in high school. This book sure had a slow start that I wasn't sure where it was, what with the introduction of the talking mosquito. But that second half went by super fast and was mega exciting!

I have a feeling this isn't the last time we'll see the likes of Ol' Bonaparte. I wouldn't have a problem with that. Not at all.

Glad to be back in touch with such a fantastic series! It continues to tell the darker sides of world history. But with depictions of war, the wasting effects of yellow fever and lots of man's inhumanity against man, this is an intense read not for all ages. Amazon recommends it for ages 9-12. I'd up it to ages 12-15.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.