Marvel Fanfare #22

When a prison loaded with Tony Stark’s newest selection of technology undergoes a riot, it’s up to Iron Man to make the transition back to peace! What makes this story so awesome is that Iron Man doesn’t face a prison full of his greatest foes- but the inmates are comprised of most of Spider-man’s arch-enemies.

The art is a rich palette of water colors and neon curves that look like they were created on a Mac. It’s a refreshing turn from simple pencil and ink drawings. AND if this book was CGI in some way, it’s a much better product than some of the other strictly computer drawn comics that were more well known, of its era.

Worth Consuming.

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Marvel Fanfare #60

   Here it is- the final issue of Marvel Fanfare Volume 1. Filled with 3 awesome tales, this issue starts out with a Black Panther tale that involves a strange store clerk and the mysterious apples he refuses to sell to anyone! Then Rogue and Mystique team up with Pyro to free a young mutant from genetic testing that would render his powers null.

   Finally, the series come full circle with a Daredevil tale that is actually a sequel to the Daredevil story found in the back pages of Fanfare #1. Using the same writer/ artist, this final story is a heartwarming Christmas-themed tale that reminds the reader that after 60 issues and 10-years of publication that something old is new again.
 
    A great ending to a really good series.

   Worth Consuming

   Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.

Marvel Fanfare #59

   

   Shanna’s multi-issue arc concludes with a thrilling conclusion that involves the She Devil being some sort of reincarnated Egyptian animal goddess. 

   Ok, the action is thrilling, but the story is just plain silly. It’s also a big 180-degree turn from the B-list Hollywood assassins plot of the past 3 issues. Turns out that this story’s writer had the first 3-chapters in the bag in 1977, but it was 10+ years later before he got the green light to finish it. What a difference a decade makes. 

   The second story is a very good romantic romp involving Patsy Hellcat Walker and her return to her hometown having gone from teen dream to superhero. It’s a great (and intentional) tribute to Marvel’s romance books of the 50s and 60s.

   Worth Consuming

   Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Marvel Fanfare #58

There’s plenty good and bad about this issue of Fanfare. In part 3 of the Shanna the She-Devil story, Shanna keeps failing at saving people from assassination. Yet, each victim mysteriously turns up alive with no signs of trauma. Even the blood has disappeared! It’s pretty captivating up till the writer decides to turn this chapter into his crusade against porn. I’m not arguing pro or con, it’s just all of a sudden the story shifts from these botched murders to having the villains mount a soap box in a thinly veiled attack on Larry Flynt.

The same goes for the backup feature. It starts off as a good story about a neighborhood’s prejudice against the interspecies marriage of Scarlet Witch and the Vision. Then it changes course into this weird zombie tale in which the center of the town’s evil is a church. Plus, the villain starting off as an alien and then becoming a malevolent spirit comes straight from left field.

Great starts to both tales, they both just have awful second acts.


Rating: 5 out of 10 stars.

Marvel Fanfare #57

 

Another great cover featuring Shanna the She-Devil. In part 2, Infantino’s no longer drawing the book. I guess after a 15-year hiatus, he had something else better to do. The art’s still very good as Shanna’s in a lot of hot water as only she can see what these 'Cat People' are really up to.

Then we’ve got a Monica Lambeau as Captain Marvel story that delves a little into her history as a policeman in the Big Easy. The story was gritty and the realism is a signature Marvel literary device. The art wasn’t as good in this tale. But it’s plotting and writing was far more superior to part two of Shanna’s adventures in LA.

Worth Consuming

Rating: 7 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.

Marvel Fanfare #55

 As a kid, I hated Power Pack. Now, as an adult, not much has changed. I always thought they had stupid names, stupid powers, and were extremely bratty. Some may say “But that’s how kids are.” Well, I didn’t go for it. Thankfully, the Pack gets some help from New Mutants guest stars Warlock and Magik. So, the first half of Fanfare isn’t a complete loss.

  Then in the second feature, Wolverine’s storyline about a wannabe Dr. Moreau is concluded. Some pretty great actions sequences and as always there is a poignant ending that preaches against hate, bigotry, etc. AND it’s not too overly preachy either.

  Not my ideal read. But it had some pretty good moments and the art in both features was quite good.

Rating: 6 out of 10 stars.

Marvel Fanfare #54

The Black Knight “trilogy” concludes with the former Avenger racing the clock in an attempt to broker peace between the crusading Christian and Muslim forces. However, our hero may find that the honor of a knight to a king is rarely reciprocated. (It also helps explain why Black Knight returns to the modern day after living out his dream to be a real medieval knight.)

Then in perhaps the most shocking twist, X-Man, Wolverine has been delegated to the second string slot. His story, involving a family kidnapped for the purpose of being turned into human/animal hybrids, isn’t the lead. In fact, even the front cover is devoted to the Black Knight at not Logan. I would’ve thought surely Marvel would’ve wanted to spotlight their star mutant.

Worth Consuming.

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Marvel Fanfare #53

Part 2 of the Black Knight’s multi-issue story has the Avenger uncovering a plot to kill Richard the Lion-Hearted. However, his protective ways have just made him the target of a very powerful Arab warlord.

Then there’s a fantastic Iron Man story with a brilliant twist. Told in the perspective of 2 alien bounty hunters, we see their attempts to capture ole Shellhead. The aliens speak “English” and it’s Tony Stark’s dialogue that is all in gibberish. I wonder if what he says was ever really translated. I’d love to know what he had to say. It’s a very funny story.

Worth Consuming.

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.

Marvel Fanfare #52

This issue kicks off a really awesome multi-part story about the Black Knight’s stint as a soldier during Richard the Lion-Hearted crusade in the middle ages. The story is chop full of adventure and the art and coloring are amazing.

There’s also a Doctor Strange story that’s not bad either. Though I am not sure why he went as Stephen Sanders for a time, I liked this tale of his attempt to free a fellow sorcerer from the snare of black magic. It’s pretty powerful stuff with a shocking ending.

Worth Consuming.

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars

Marvel Fanfare #51

Though it doesn’t go right out and say it, this Fanfare is devoted to a never before used “What If…” With the Watcher as host, we see what might’ve happened if the Silver Surfer stopped a Kree invasion during his exile on Earth.

Silver Surfer’s not exactly one of my favorite superheroes, so I don’t understand much of what’s going on or what should have happened. The art was very good. There’s some great cameos and fantastic action sequences. I am also very happy with the ending.

A must for Surfer fans or like myself, a true devotee to the What If… franchise.

Worth Consuming.

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Marvel Fanfare # 50

For the Double-sized 50th issue of Fanfare, Al Milgrom selected a story starring original X-Men Angel, Iceman, and Beast. A woman who may have fathered a child with Angel seeks the help of the master of macabre fun houses, Arcade, when she believes that Warren Worthington has funded an anti-mutant extermination team called X-Factor.

Here’s where I got confused. I thought X-Factor was a mutant team filled with the former X-Men, being good guys. I had to explore the Marvel Wiki in order to get my facts straight. With a really twisty and turny plot that has a really good Agatha Christie level solution, it was a pretty good story.

Worth Consuming.

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars

Marvel Fanfare #49

This issue is a Western themed Fanfare. First Nick Fury and Dum Dum Dugan must travel back to the Old West in order to search for a missing Doctor Strange. They later discover that their very presence may have altered the time-line unless they can prevent an Indian tribe from raising an army of the dead against the white man.

  This is more of a SHIELD tale than a Doc Strange adventure. Sure, there is a taste of the super-natural in this story. But, Fury and Dugan are the real stars of this issue and there’s lots of shoot ’em up action.

 Then there’s a Two-Gun Kid tale. It starts off really good, but, the Kid’s got a secret identity more flimsy than a sheet of wet paper. How come nobody sees through it and put 2 & 2 together when Lawyer Matt disappears and the Two-Gun Kid arrives riding Matt’s horse!?!

One great tale, one adventure with more holes that Swiss cheese.

Worth Consuming.

Rating: 7 out of 10 stars.

MARVEL FANFARE #48

3 stories- all devoted to She-Hulk. Well, that was the original plan. It seems that John Bryne backed out of penning what was to be the 3rd tale of this all Jennifer “She-Hulk” Waters tribute. So, in order to keep with a theme, editor Al Milgrom commissioned a tale starring fellow Avenger the Vision. (The theme is now supposed to be green super-heroes as the Vision is partially green, but it’s a stretch.)

The She-Hulk tales and subsequent pin-ups are visually stunning and very good stories.

The Vision’s involves a man suffering PTSD and Vision’s attempts to cure him. Let’s just say without revealing spoilers that if Vision tried what he does on a real human, that person would be dead. Good Grief- next time, let’s just kill the guys entire family why don’t we. Really, what were the writer and editor thinking?

2/3 of the issue is great. The last third is a stinker.

Worth Consuming/ Worth Consuming/ Not Worth Consuming.

  Rating: 7 out of 10 stars.

Marvel Fanfare #47

The Hulk returns from a sojourn in space and hits the Big Apple with a worse than usual rampage. Nick Fury and SHIELD are called in to save the day, but when Fury is left incapacitated, it’s left to the inept helicarrier Quartermaster to become the new head of SHIELD.

Added to the mix is Spidey, who discovers that an alien parasite has attached to Hulk and is responsible for the madness. Fantastic scenes of carnage and heroics abound for 32 pages.

What made this issue an even bigger thrill is that this story was recently the subject of an Ultimate Spider-man episode. It’s one of my favorite episodes of the series and it was neat to read that tale’s inspiration.

Worth Consuming.

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.

Marvel Fanfare #46

This Fanfare is devoted entirely to Marvel’s first family: the Fantastic Four with two epic tales. First, the Mad Thinker comes to the FF trapped in the body of the Awesome Android with the promise to go straight if Reed Richards will free him. The story was pretty good until the end which got very trippy, very fast. The conclusion was abruptly sloppy for such a climatic lead-up. It left me disappointed.

Then we get a flashback tale of Ben Grimm’s life leading up to becoming the Thing. It’s pretty standard origin stuff, with the shocking twist being the woman the Thing left behind. Lots of pathos with dramatic art to boot.

Worth Consuming.

Rating: 7 out of 10 stars.

Marvel Fanfare #44

Set in the aftermath of the Armor Wars, Tony Stark and Rhodey attend a technical symposium hosted by Doctor Doom! In Latveria!! It’s there that a computer virus designed to infiltrate Iron Man’s armor corrodes and infects Doctor Doom instead. It’s up to Stark, Rhodey, and a new team of international Iron Men to stop the tiny nuclear reaction in Doom’s armor from destroying half of Europe.

The issue is filled with Great CGI-quality art and fantastic scripting by Ken Stacy. And there’s a very fitting cameo that literally pops up to save the day!

Worth Consuming.

Marvel Fanfare #45

I actually do not own this issue of Fanfare, nor do I really intend to. It’s an “All Pin-up” issue meaning 32 pages of art and no dialogue. I am sure the artwork is amazing. I enjoy it when a portfolio or two gets tossed into an issue of Fanfare. But, when I want to read a comic book, I actually want to have something to read. I’m one of those people who feel that if I buy a comic and there’s only art and no pictures, then I didn’t get my money’s worth. Something to consider if you’re interested in possibly owning the book one day.