Alien³ #1-3 (2025 Comic Book & Graphic Novel Reading Challenge)

1992's third installment in the Alien movie series could have been so much better than what audiences received. Cyberpunk author William Gibson was originally tasked with writing a script that included elements of the Cold War, government corruption and religious fervor. Rushed to complete before a potential Hollywood strike, producers were unimpressed with Gibson's original treatment. They called it 'uninteresting'. So Fox Studios issued a number of rewrites. A film that was supposed to quickly capitalize on the success of James Cameron's 1986 action heavy sequel, Aliens, languished in pre-production for several years, resulting in some of it's stars to become unavailable or in the case of actress Carrie Henn, who played 12 year old survivor Newt; age out of their roles.

Alien³ would eventually see Sigourney Weaver's character Ripley crash landing on a former prison work colony along with a facehugger that survived from the previous film. Ripley believes that Newt's body is being inhabited by a Xenomorph embryo. However, an autopsy proves otherwise. That's because the facehugger choose another host - Ellen Ripley!

This 3-issue adaptation produced by Dark Horse Comics was written by Steven Grant. Except for some awkward translations of curse words into more comics friendly words and phrases, any qualms with the plot or scripting shouldn't be directed at Grant. The writer was tasked with a script that seemed doomed from the start. The same cannot be said about the artwork.

Pencils and inks for this mini were by Christopher Taylor and Rick Magyar. Their adult Xenomorph warrior referred to as a 'Dragon' Alien, because its 4-legged frame with a long tail was the result of bonding with the penal colony's guard dog, is impressive. But one has to wonder if Taylor and Magyar had ever seen either of the previous Alien films because their facehugger looked like a miniature Xenomorph with hair instead of an albino scorpion. 

Ripley looks like, well anyone but actress Sigourney Weaver. But at least the artists seemed not to confuse her with another actor. The oplikeness of Bishop looks more like Paul Reiser's character of Carter Burke, right down to the curly pompadour hairstyle and long trench coat! As for likenesses of the inmates, that's kinda hard to assess. They're pretty much all clones of one another as a lice infestation on the planet results in all of the colonists shaving their heads.

Alien³ would go on to make an estimate of $160-180 million dollars thanks in part to its Memorial Day weekend opening. Only the third installment in the Lethal Weapon series would outpace the space horror. Despite making three times as much as it's budget, the film is considered the worst of the Ripley films and tied with the franchise crossover Alien V. Predator: Requiem as the most underperforming of the franchise.

This would not be Weaver's final appearance in the Alien series. In 1997, she would return, this time as a clone, in Alien: Resurrection. Time would also see William Gibson returning to the franchise as a comic book writer. In 2018, Dark Horse published a 5-issue adaptation of what Alien³ could have been with William Gibson's Alien 3. 

The covers for Alien³ #1-3 were all painted by Arthur Suydam.    

Completing this review completes Task #7 (A Movie Adaptation) of the 2025 Comic Book and Graphic Novel Reading Challenge.

The Punisher Back to School Special #1

My sixth year of teaching high school culinary starts tomorrow. I order to kick off the new school year, I held onto this book for a few months until just about the very last minute. Now I know what you are thinking, that I was a procrastinating student. But that couldn't be further from the truth. In high school and college (for both degrees), I hated to have assignments on my schedule and would work on them immediately; least I put it off and forget them until too late. 

When I read seasonal comics, I like to get as close to the holiday or event covered. Exceptions being Halloween-Christmas where I love spending each month reading holiday fare. I think in the 44 years that I have been reading and collecting comic books, I've probably only encountered 4 or 5 back to school specials. I found this one right before the previous school year ended at a local coffee shop that sells used comics and graphic novels. So I've been eagerly awaiting to read this book the entire summer.

There's 4 stores in this special and it's about as typical Punisher as you could expect for 1992 when this book originally debuted in stores. Lots of violence and death. Probably the max possibly allowed in order to receive a Comics Code approval stamp. It's gratuitous to the point that you really have to wonder who thought this book was a good idea to market as a back to school special?!

The first story isn't violent. Whenever the Punisher isn't punishing bad guys, he's doing his other favorite activity: mourning the death of his murdered wife and children while longing to join them in the afterlife. 

Story number #2 is Frank Castle's take on the Treat Williams gang violence in schools action classic, The Substitute. After seeing too many young people obtaining hand guns and running amok on the streets, the Punisher decides to pose as a gym teacher in order to find out where these kids are getting their weapons from. In typical fashion, the vigilante makes enemies, a couple of innocent youths get stuck in the crossfire, a red herring keeps popping up. But in the end, you can be certain that this public school will no longer have a gun problem.

Story #3 shows the effects on violence with children. A young boy who idolizes the Punisher gets to witness his hero in the flesh. But will seeing Frank Castle in action change the boy's interests or will the cycle of violence continue on it's merry, bloody way?

Lastly was a story about 2 boys who decide to skip school to pursue a life of crime. Only on their first day of work, the lads run across the Punisher who offers them a choice: continue on the road to ruin or get their butts back to school!

I was rather surprised by the second story. It, along with the first tale was written by Chuck Dixon. In the second adventure, the Punisher states that he hates guns; that he is for gun control. That just seems like the antithesis of the Punisher. Plus, if there was gun control, he'd never be able to amass the arsenal of assault weapons and bazookas and grenades that he uses throughout this book. Okay- if there was gun control, his family probably wouldn't have been moved down by mobsters. But I digress. Like I said earlier, who thought this was a good idea to make a Punisher back to school special? There's a freaking gun fight in the lunchroom. Sure, this book was published about 7 years before Columbine. In 1992, the thought of a widespread massacre involving guns and children was the stuff of Hollywood fantasy. Parents and schools were more in fear of kids being given LSD laced Garfield tattoos than in a school shooting in those days. But my God! It's not got me ready for another year of teaching in public education. However, I will say that I did learn that piles of library books can make an adequate substitute for a bullet proof vest in a pinch. 

The hero worship story by Tom Brevoort was an interesting commentary on violence in society. It was thought provoking without being preachy, which I liked. But it had a bit of an ambiguous ending, which I loathe.

The final story was actually pretty funny. I feel like Barry Dutter wrote the script to be so over-the-top that it read as a parody on the ABC after school specials. If that had been the main story instead of Frank Castle's substitute teaching assignment, I think this would have made for a much better read and been a little more appropriate. Let's face it: the Punisher isn't a character for kids. This book never should have been given the CCA stamp. It should have been listed for mature audiences. But what's even more insane is that Marvel released 2 more Back to School Specials in the following 2 years!!!

Lastly, for a time period fondly remembered by fans of dynamic new artists such as Jim Lee, Rob Liefeld and Eric Powell, the art in this book was really bad and yet 100% 1990s. Men with disproportionate musculature. Gritty, grimy scenery. Unrealistic action poses. Terrible inking that prevents any of the artwork from leaping off the page. This was definitely an eye-opening read that I'm not sure could be even considered by a major comic book publisher and I doubt it will ever be reprinted any time soon.

Rating: 5 out of 10 stars.

Ripley's Believe It or Not!: Great and Strange Works of Man

I think my love of the great and strange came to me honestly. My mother and her father were big fans of Ripley's Believe It or Not. I remember my grandfather had an entire series of the Ripley's paperbacks that reprinted decades of odd and macabre strips to the general populace. Then there was the TV series on ABC hosted by the great Jack Palance. It was a documentary series that often scared the pants off me... in a good way.

The comic strip has been running strong for over 105 years. It's been nearly 65 years since creator Robert Ripley died and newspapers worldwide are still running accounts of unusual people, freaky coincidences and brain teasers that defy explanation. And let's not forget those Ripley's museums and aquariums. Those can be some fun places to spend a day exploring the world of the unknown.

This 1992 paperback was released as part of a series of anthologies honoring the 100th anniversary of the birth of franchise founder, Ripley. However, Mr. Ripley was actually born in 1890! Though, I guess such oversights are allowed. Thanks to Ripley's 1929 strip that confirmed at the time that America had no official National Anthem, a campaign championed by John Philip Sousa helped correct that oversight through a 1931 act of Congress finally making the Star-Spangled Banner our nation's official song thanks to President Hoover's signature. But that all sounds so much like Robert Ripley. To him, the journey to knowledge was more important that the facts, as bizarre as they might be. 

This TOR paperback focuses on the varying creations of man. From colossal statues made of solid pieces of marble to microscopic works that fit on a grain of rice, there's virtually no limit as to the imagination of the human race. 'Great and Strange Works of Man' wasn't my favorite collection of strips. It wasn't because a bunch of these cartoons came about after Ripley died. Instead, I was sickened by how much wasted wealth and resources went into making these monuments of pride and gluttony. 

For example, towards the end of the book, there's mention of a 300lb solid gold bath tub in the shape of a phoenix which wealthy bathers can use in a hotel in Japan. Based on the price of gold today (June 30, 2024), that bath tub is worth over $8.3 million dollars. Could you imagine how much that precious metal could be used to help Japan's homeless population instead of being used so the ultra-wealthy was stew in their own bubbly filth? Maybe 15 or 20 years ago, such facts about opulence might enthrall me. Instead, as a public school teacher married to a social worker, I see how much so many struggle with so little in today's world and it's off-putting.

Does this book swear me off seeking out other Ripley's material? Not in the least. There were 5 other books in the centennial series of paperbacks. I think I'd be more open to reading about prehistoric creatures, odd places or those strange coincidences than giving this book on excess a permanent home in my comic book and graphic novel collection.

Rating: 6 out of 10 stars.

Dark Horse Presents #1 Commemorative Edition (2024 Comic Book & Graphic Novel Reading Challenge)

Having been formed only a couple of months prior, the editors at Dark Horse Comics made the brilliant decision to highlight all of their properties in a bi-monthly anthology. Due to the popularity of the creations, Dark Horse Presents soon became a monthly series in less than a year and ran for 157 issues before being discontinued in September, 2000.

There are 4 different stories and properties introduced to readers in the premiere issue. Although the cover features Chris Warner's futuristic Black Cross about an United States of America divided by a Civil War between various factions, the star of this issue is Paul Chadwick's massive hero with an even more gigantic heart, Concrete.

Kidnapped by aliens, Ron Lithgow's brain is transferred into an huge artificial body made of a substance similar to concrete. Issue #1 of Dark Horse Presents is the first appearance of Concrete. In this story, Concrete has already been established in his new form as well as the newest darling of the Hollywood media. Concrete's origin won't even be explored for another year! Here, fresh off an appearance on the Johnny Carson show, Concrete is fooled by a soccer mom to provide entertainment for her little boy's 8th birthday party.

Readers then meet the smarmy Mr. Garrett in a story called 'Mindwalk'. Garrett has the ability to enter people's dreams and in his introductory story, forced to probe the secrets of a Jewish doctor who knows more than his fair share of dangerous experiments on germ warfare conducted by the Nazis. This story was written by Randy Strandley. Art by Randy Emberlin

Paul Chadwick returns to finish the issue with a story called 'Brighter' about a young woman who has the ability to make her dreams a reality. With a little bit of artistic flare, the woman hopes to make a go in Hollywood. If this feels a little bit like Marvel's Dazzler, you might not be far off. Chadwick wrote several late issues of the mutant's first series run.

In 1992, Dark Horse produced a pair of commemorative editions of the debut of Dark Horse Presents. One with a green border. Another with silver. This should read as a 5th anniversary issue except that this special edition 2nd printing debuted in stores in 1992. This release could also be considered a facsimile edition as all of the original ads and previews for forthcoming (low number) issues of DHP are still contained inside. The only change is found on the back page column titled 'Winner's Circle.' In 1986, editors used it as a vehicle to introduce readers to the talent behind the stories. For the re-release, readers are instead given an update on what has happened to the writers and artists since their works debuted in issue #1.

Completing this review completes Task #16 (Comic/Graphic Novel Published by Dark Horse) of the 2024 Comic Book and Graphic Novel Reading Challenge.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Quantum Leap #3

Thanks to printing delays beyond the publisher's control, fans of the original Quantum Leap TV series got a Christmas comic book. Well, they got half of one. 

Sam leaps into the body of a department store Santa during Christmas of 1963. The nation is reeling from the assassination of JFK and the families of this small town USA in which Sam Beckett has arrived at, could use a little holiday magic in their lives. According to Ziggy, the Project Quantum Leap super computer which calculates the probabilities of why Dr. Beckett has leapt where he did, believes that Sam must restore the relationship between a workaholic father and his teenaged daughter who lost her faith in Christmas after the tragic death of her mother. However, Sam's mission has gotten a little bit tougher as the dad has just been arrested for embezzling from the department store. 

The second story isn't set during the holidays. It's the early 1970s at MIT, Sam's old Alma Mater. He leapt into the body of the boyfriend of the scientist whose doctoral thesis will inspire Sam to create Project Quantum Leap. Unfortunately, Sam's recent actions have led to the couple breaking up. Al, the holographic observer for the project, informs Sam that he must thread lightly at his next steps. For if Sam can't get the two lovebirds to reunite, their rift threatens to create a paradox in which the research that inspired Quantum Leap never takes place; leaving Sam trapped in the past forever!

Not 100% Christmas. But there was a huge amount of holiday cheer in that first story to make up for that. Plus an amazing painted cover of poor Santa Sam having to deal with some unhappy tykes waiting to visit him. Also, the whole idea that the man whom Sam leaps into might actually be Santa was so adorable. The story ends before we find out for sure if he really is St. Nick. However, it's probably best that that plot point is left ambiguous lest the magical element of this story be ruined.

For a Quantum Leap fan wanting a holiday comic book, this 1992 offering shouldn't disappoint. I just wish that the second story was also set at Christmas. The creators should have kept the story as it was. Just set it during the month of December in order to make this a complete Christmas comic. Well, it's too late to change anything now.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

The 25 Baubles of Pop Culture! Advent 2022, Day 2

In order to not be biased in the pop culture ventures I celebrate for this advent, I used a pop culture random generator. For days 2-20, with exception of Day 18, fate decided my Advent focuses for me. That's why today's franchise is Buffy the Vampire Slayer because if it wasn't for randomness, I wouldn't be dipping my toe into this pool.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer originally was a comedy horror film. The creation of Joss Whedon, the 1992 film starring Kristy Swanson (The Chase) and Luke Perry (Beverly Hills 90210) was a modest hit. However, it wasn't until Whedon rebooted the series as a gritty TV series starring Sarah Michelle Gellar (Cruel Intentions) that Buffy became a cultural phenomenon. 

I had seen the film. But I never watched the TV show. What little bit I know comes from Free Comic Book Day releases a couple of Halloween themed Buffy comic books and clips of the show highlighted on E!'s The Soup. 

When it comes to holiday ornaments starring Buffy and her gang of friends known as 'The Scoobies' you'll have to go the homemade route. Both Amazon and Etsy have a few things related to the horror franchise. My favorite offerings is a picture image of actress Gellar with the holiday pun 'I Sleigh', a glass ball that declares that '2021 Sucks', and a sparkly bauble devoted to Buffy's high school, Sunnyvale High.

I also have seen evidence of a set of mini-bust ornaments that feature 11 characters from the TV show, including the vampires Spike and Angel. Created by Moore Creations, these are some professional grade looking pieces. But I don't think that they are officially licensed nor were they originally intended to be hung on a tree. I've seen these mini busts sold as both something you place on your display shelf and your tree. The only difference is that the ornaments have a screw with a ribbon protruding from the top of each busts' noggin. 

Classic Toys from a Madman's Youth: Advent 2019 Day 5

We travel to the 1990s for today's Advent. I had a lot of great memories with this toy. Though, I am not really sure if you can call it a toy or not. After I give you a brief history of today's featured item, I'll let you decide.

Christmas of 1992 was taken by storm by the hit movie, Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. In the film, Macaulay Culkin's character of Kevin gets separated from his parents AGAIN! This time it's at the airport and the youth winds up in New York all by himself. Thanks to his ingenuity with a portal tape recorder, Kevin is able to stay at the ultra luxurious Plaza Hotel. It's that tape player in which I am focusing on for today.

There were several models of Talkboy. But if you wanted to be like Kevin, the device you wanted was called a Deluxe Talkboy. Designed by Tiger Electronics, the device could record voices at 3 speeds: regular, fast and slow just like in the movie!

I remember getting one of these from my mom that year. I do not remember asking for it for Christmas, however. But it was a fun surprise to get on Christmas morning. It came with headphones and I played the heck out of it with some new cassettes I got from my grandparents later in the day.

My enjoyment didn't stop there. I took it to school the following week and man did I and my friends have a ball with this thing during study hall. We made skits and funny news reports and so forth. But since we had a teacher nearby, we didn't get to cross the line with it. Still it was a lot of fun! But don't take my word for it!

As my Advent present for you, here's the original 1992 commercial which highlights all the great aspects of the Talkboy Deluxe.

Enjoy...

A Classic TV Christmas- Advent 2017 Day 22

Today is another one of my very favorite Christmas episodes. I love it so much that I must watch it every year or it's just not Christmas without watching it. It's a favorite to not just me  but my sister. A family tradition from November 13, 1992.I'm not going to spend time explaining it. I am just gonna sit back and let this classic speak for itself...

 Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you Batman: The Animated Series' Christmas With the Joker...

Enjoy and until next time- Merry Christmas!

Strange Sports Stories #2 (of 3)

Welcome back to the Museum of Sports History, Trivia, and Oddity with your host Hall O.Fame! First, thrill to the most bizarre team to ever take to the court as a high school basketball prodigy must win the most important win of his life when he is paired with the likes of Albert Einstein, Martin Luther King Jr, and John Wayne, and Honest Abe against the galaxy's best!

 Then a young man with Olympic aspirations becomes the greatest athlete ever when he finds a magic medal. Lastly, with two outs and the championship on the line, a fledgling baseball team resorts to slapstick as their last hope for victory!     

The second of three issues of Adventure Comics' Strange Sports Stories was, well, strange. The opening story seemed to me like something I had read before in the pages of the Tick. In the first couple of issues of The Tick: Karma Tornado, the Tick has been whisked away to an intergalactic Goodwill Games in which he is the captain of a team of athletes comprised of Cleopatra, Booker T. Washington, and a T-Rex! That Karma Tornado story was published almost a year after this issue and I would hate for that awesome tale to have been a rip-off of the Strange Sports Stories opener here...
   

 The other two adventures in this comic were okay. They weren't quite as good as the opening yarn, nor were they of the caliber of the stories that comprised issue #1. But I still enjoyed reading them!

   Along with a couple of pages filled with strange but true stories from the wide world of earth sports, I enjoyed this book, though maybe not as much as the previous issue.

   Worth Consuming

   Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Toxic Crusaders #4 (Family Comic Friday)

 

 Toxic Crusaders, based on the cartoon of the same name, is proof that producers in the nineties did not know how to make age appropriate children's cartoons and programming. Toxic Crusaders is based on the Toxic Avenger films made by Troma, which is known for producing low budget gory and gross sex romps. Naturally, this is the perfect film series to adapt into programming for a kid. Sadly, the comic book isn't  much more suitable either.          
 
   As with the Toxic Avenger movies, the cartoon series revolves around  Melvin, a young janitor, who fell into some radioactive waste. Our hero emerges from the goo to become the Toxic Avenger who along with several other mutants form the Toxic Crusaders who battle the evil alien, Dr Killemall, whose mission is to turn the city of Tromaville into a desolate wasteland.    

     Shows aimed at boys in particular during the late eighties and early nineties were full of potty humor and gross jokes. The TV show (and subsequent comic) Toxic Crusaders was no different. In fact, this issue was entitled the 'Special All-Toilet Issue.' It comprises of three stories devoted to clogged toilets, large piles of feces, and lots of plungers.

   Though I remember this show being on TV as a kid I do not remember watching Toxic Crusaders. Like other preteens my age, I would watch horror movies like those made by Troma. In fact,  I do recall watching Toxic Avenger on cable but I wasn't a huge fan. But man was it gory and full of nudity.

    I also remember that this show was banned in Delaware and Maine because of the source material of which this cartoon was based. I do not recall Toxic Crusaders being banned in my area but with North Carolina being so conservative I would not doubt that at least a station or two followed suit like the channels up North did.
                                                                                   
   The thing that made Toxic Crusaders so controversial in the nineties wasn't necessarily the gross humor but the fact that the series was based on an r-rated movie known for nudity, rape, and madcap sex. A little T & A is even shown in this book when Toxie's magic mop emerges from a toilet in a residential bathroom. During this scene, you see that woman is taking a shower without a shower curtain. In that scene, you can actually see the woman's naked butt. Lucky for the girl (and the Comics Code) she managed to cover her breasts.

Toxic Crusaders, like its film predecessor, has become a cult classic. This series which ran for about 13 episodes and 8 issues and is considered a collector's item for fans of The Toxic Avenger films. It is also a difficult comic to find. When I found this at a comic book store in Burlington North Carolina last week it was the first time I had ever seen this series which was published in 1992.

The comic book (and cartoon) wouldn't be so bad if its target audience wasn't children under the age of 13. This series would be very popular if it was aired at a later time like the Adult Swim shows are on Cartoon Network. Personally, I found the jokes a little tasteless, a little Juvenile, and a little gross. But the story structure as well as the art wasn't so bad. I happen to have bought two issues of this series and look forward to reading the other issue sometime soon.

 However, the reason I still own this issue is based on its controversial nature. As you may know, I am a huge supporter of the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund. Since the TV series was banned in some parts of the country, I consider this a banned comic of sorts. Thus, feel that this book has an important place in comic book history. Would I let my children read this book? Not until they were older, but I do not feel that this book warrants a witch hunt either.

  Instead, Toxic Crusaders should join the ranks of Rambo, Robocop, James Bond, Conan, and Starship Troopers as adult films repackaged to kids as a cartoon program in the Bad Idea Hall of Fame.

   Rating: 6 out of 10 stars.

Marvel Fanfare #56

This issue marks the beginning of a 4 issue-spanning story involving Shanna the She-Devil. Though it has a similar premise of a young woman who becomes the female version of Tarzan, Shanna is not to be confused with Sheena, Queen of the Jungle. Though I swear the two could be sisters and nobody would blink an eye.

With art from the great Carmine Infantino, Shanna has arrived in LA to undergo therapy to control her wild jungle nature. But a trio of cat-people have a plan to turn Shanna and some of Tinsel Town’s B-listers into trained assassins.

 

The art is very good. But the story, originally drawn in the late 70s, this story never saw the light of day until now (circa 1992.) It’s the cover of this book that’s very visually stunning and an all-time fav.

Worth Consuming.

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.