Dugout: The Zombie Steals Home (Family Comic Friday)

Gina and Stacy are twin sisters. They both love to play baseball. They're rivals in everything they do. Gina and Stacy might also be witches. Their grandma certainly is.

When sibling rivalry involves the sisters going through Meemaw's trove of enchanted ingredients and casting spells on each other, Gina and Stacy unearth a zombie in their hometown... literally.  

Dugout: The Zombie Steals Home was published in 2019 by Graphix. I thought with baseball being a summer pastime, that this book might be a fun late July read. And I was right! Written and illustrated by Scott Morse, this was one of the freshest, funniest, and freakiest books I have ever read. I did not want the adventures to end!

The dialogue is really what won me over. Stacy's baseball team, The Oakvale Rooks, was composed of 9 hilarious little leaguers. I felt like I was reading a book set in perhaps the funniest of all all-ages baseball universes: The Sandlot! The quick wit. The banter. The spoonerisms and malapropisms. It was brilliantly written.

The artwork took a little while to win me over. Once the characters went from static to frantic, the pace of the artwork zoomed into the stratosphere. Morse's work on this book reminded me a little of a cross between the master artists of EC Comics and the all-ages work of Eric Powell. 

As for age appropriateness. I would say readers 9 to 12 will really enjoy this book. There is some witchcraft, which I didn't expect as I neglected to read the back cover intro. (Yes- I only judged a book by it's cover and it's a good thing I did!) However, it was on the level of Bewitched instead of something like The Conjuring. The zombie main character does look a little bit like he came from a George Romero zombie flick and there is a poltergeist giving Gina fits throughout the second act of the book. So there is a bit of an element of fright.

I really felt like this was a flawless read. Perfect for the dog days of summer or for just when the major league regular season is dying down and the playoffs are starting to heat up. Really, the only issue I had with this book was the publication date!

I mentioned earlier that Dugout was published in 2019. That's 5 years for those of you keeping score. It also means, that this book, which was clearly intended to be the kickoff to a new series, didn't get the attention it so deserves! I really feel like if Netflix turned this book into a streaming movie (animated, of course), it would do so freakin' well. I consider this opener to be The Sandlot of this generation. It's that good.

A spooky, smart fun read with a lot of laughs, this is a book parents and guardians of young readers should jump on board with, as long as the subject matter is deemed appropriate in your household. Hopefully, if this book catches fire, it might encourage Graphix and Scott Morse to continue the misadventures of Gina, Stacy and the Rooks of Oakvale!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.

Champion Sports #1 (2024 Comic Book & Graphic Novel Reading Challenge)

One of the forgotten anthologies of DC Comics. Debuting in 1973, this series, devoted to the athletic feats of youngsters and young adults, lasted a whopping 3 issues. Joe Simon was the editor and head writer for Champion Sports. Each issue contained 3 stories each. That means there was a grand total of 9 stories in the short lived series. Jerry Grandenetti penciled every story with inks provided by Creig Flessel.

Issue #1 presents readers with a baseball story, a soapbox derby race and a battle between rival track stars.

'The Kid Who Beat The Oakland A's' is the story of David Wexler. He's not really that good of an athlete. But as an aspiring writer who wants to document the experience, he's got to make the team. David is about to be cut when he injures his shoulder which miraculously turns him into an ace pitcher. A couple of years later, Wexler joins an expansion team straight out of high school where his career puts him against the defending national champs, the Oakland A's!

Story #2 is called 'The Little Racer'. It's an unlikely story about a lad who dreams of winning his town's soapbox derby. From a poor family, the boy can't afford those fancy kits of aluminum and fiberglass bodies like the other kids can. Fatefully, while testing out his latest design, his cart is destroyed by a biker gang who feels sorry for their actions and winds up stealing parts for a replacement racer! 

The final story titled 'The First Hurdle', could be considered what Brian's Song would have been if Gale Sayers and Brian Piccolo allowed racial strife to come between the two of them. A young Irish track star is excited to meet his new roomie and teammate; one with the last name of Kelly. However the white student-athlete is incensed that Kelly is black! Thus begins a story about race and how bigotry can prevent a pair of supposed compatriots from gelling as a cohesive unit.

I feel like I've experienced the opening story of this issue before. Having a kid become a major league fastball throwing pitcher thanks to an arm injury is the exact plot of 1993's Rookie of the Year. I wonder if screenwriter Sam Harper used this obscure comic as inspiration!

The soapbox derby car tale would have been funny if it was written to be a farce. Instead, Simon has the story play out as a drama with a predictable ending. Though would early 1970s race officials really postpone a heat to let one of the drivers run home to change clothes? 

'The First Hurdle' was another story full of missed opportunities. It ends with Kelly having to fill in for his racist teammate in the climatic relay event, after an injury. Later Kelly confronts his fellow athlete but the ending is left kinda bitter and tragic, without any hopes of change or reconciliation. Considering how optimistic the first two sports stories end, the realistic yet depressing end of the final account, leaves the reader unfulfilled.

Champion Sports #1 ends with a lengthy one-page article on the early development of baseball. Written by Allan Asherman, it's a pretty informative piece that actually questions the validity of the myth that Abner Doubleday invented baseball! Quite a bit of the piece includes baseball's popularity that occurred during the Civil War, making this issue a must for Civil War buffs who also collect comic books!

Cover art for this issue by Grandenetti and Flessel.

Completing this review completes Task #37 (A Sports Story) of the 2024 Comic Book and Graphic Novel Reading Challenge.

Rating: 6 out of 10 stars.

The Best Political Cartoons of the Year 2005 (2022 Comic Book and Graphic Novel Reading Challenge)

The political cartoon. It's an institution as American as mom, apple pie, and baseball. For the year that was 2004, it was a banner year to be an editorial artist.

2004 was a presidential election year. The candidates the American people had to choose from were the incumbent, George W. Bush vs. Massachusetts Senator John Kerry. The roller coaster economy, traditional home values and the war on terror were deciding factors in an election that was too close to call until election day.

Iraq was a frequent topic for political cartoonists. Saddam Hussein's war trail occurred in 2004. With his capture, the debate raged as to not only should America continue to have a presence in the Middle Eastern nation, but also as to why we were there in the first place. A scandal involving the treatment of prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison by US soldiers took over the editorial page for a while. And the commencement of the 2004 Olympics in Athens had everyone on the edge of their seats. Not because of gold medal fervor; but to see if the global event was going to be the next target of terrorists. 

There was more to 2004 than the election, Irag and the war on terror. The Boston Red Sox broke the Curse of the Bambino and finally won the World Series for the first time since 1918. DIY guru Martha Stewart went to prison for insider stock trading. A series of hurricanes targeted Florida. And several big time celebs passed away including Superman's Marlon Brando and his on-screen son, the man of steel himself, Christopher Reeve. There's also a special section at editorial cartoons from around the world, with the focus being how other countries view American policy.

This book is titled as The Best Political Cartoons of 2005. But all of the material within the covers are from 2004. Editor Daryl Cagle did it this way because both the Pulitzer Prize in Editorial Cartooning and several other similar awards are now presented for the year prior but in the when it wasp physically awarded. So Herblock winner Matt Davies, whose winning portfolio is presented in this volume, won the 2005 award for his work done in 2004.

I didn't choose this compendium of cartoons to be political. I choose this collection as I am down to just 2 tasks on my 2022 reading challenge and it's been darn near impossible to find a comic book or graphic novel with an index inside it. This book was placed in the used graphic novel section of my favorite LCS. And this book promises an index, of which there is! So, I am counting it. 

An interesting look by at 2004. I recall a lot of the events that happened in this year. I just can't believe it's been 16 years since it all happened!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 7 out of 10 stars.

Completing this review completes Task #30 (With an Index) of the 2022 Comic Book and Graphic Novel Reading Challenge.

All-Pro Sports Comics #1 (2022 Comic Book & Graphic Novel Challenge)

Even though I was born and raised in Raleigh, North Carolina, I paid very early attention to the career of one Vincent Edward Jackson.  

Oh, you don't know Vincent Edward Jackson? Well, do you know Bo- Jackson, that is!

Jackson played a trio of sports for Auburn University including baseball and football. Bo's impressive scoring of 17 touchdowns and almost 1,800 yards during his senior year earned the Tiger the Heisman Trophy and Walter Camp Award in 1985. While Bo's future looked paved in goal with teams such as the New York Yankees and Tampa Bay Buccaneers putting early bids on the multi-sport star. Ultimately, Bo went on to play with the Kansas City Royals and Los Angeles Raiders while securing several lucrative endorsement deals including Nike and a live-action cartoon series with NBC. 

But early on as a child, Bo Jackson almost ended up behind bars. The 8th of 10 children, Jackson's family were literally dirt poor in rural Alabama. They lived in a 3 room shack that did not have indoor plumbing. Often targeted for his stutter, Jackson developed a violent temper. The angeralso earned him a nickname- 'Bo-hog', later shortened to just BO.

A violent incident of animal cruelty put Bo at an impasse- clean up his act or got to juvenile detention. For the sake of his mother, Bo chose to put his aggression into school sports. Bo become a 3-sport star and was heavily recruited by many SEC schools. Jackson selected Auburn due to it's proximity to his family and the rest was history.

Some of that history includes Bo running a touchdown for a then record of 92 and 93 yards, breaking baseball bats over his knee when he struck out, hitting a home run in 4 consecutive at bats, and becoming the first player in MLB all-star history to hit a homer and to steal a base in a game. He was the MVP for that 1989 game. 

The Bo Jackson train came to a screeching halt in a January 1991 NFL play-off game against the Cincinnati Bengals. A rough tackle resulted in Bo dislocating his hip. Somehow upon being taken off the field, the hip popped back into place and the damage was done. Blood vessels damaged, Jackson was soon diagnosed with avascular necrosis which killed all of the cartilage within Bo's hip socket. 

Bo would never play football again. After taking 1992 off to get a total hip replacement, Bo returned to baseball with the Chicago White Sox and the California Angels. While Bo did have some impressive numbers, chronic pain kept him from ever playing more than half a season's worth of game. By 1994, Bo Jackson hung up his cleats for good. 

This issue of All-Pro Sports Comics was published in 1991 just as Bo's career ending injury had experts wondering 'what if?' Published by Burke Publishing, this issue was to usher forth a vast line of comics based on current and all-time great superstars of all areas of sports. Ultimately, only 5 issues were published. Joe Montana, Wayne Gretzky, Larry Bird and Evander Hollyfield were featured in these unauthorized biographies. Sadly, Burke Publishing folded sometime in 1992 before the release of the much promised issue to feature 'Steffi Graf Graf and the Babes of Tennis!' All-Star Sports Comics would be Burke's only comic book publication.

There is supposed to be a variant cover to this issue. Bo in his Royals uniform is the lesser known version. Despite the rarity of the KC Royals cover, I haven't seen a very big difference in the prices of the 2 comics. Though, I've run across the Raiders issue on several occasions in bargain bins throughout the North Carolina comic convention circuit. 

Bo Jackson will never be a part of Canton or Cooperstown. His career was too short and he never played for a championship team. But those short several years that Bo did play were exciting. If anything, Bo will forever be enshrined in my personal hall of fame. He was an amazing specimen who unfortunately became a victim of a career ending injury.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars. 

Completing this review completes Task #37 (About Sports) of the 2022 Comic Book and Graphic Novel Reading Challenge.

Blue Devil #26

What do you do if you get cut from your baseball team? If you're a disgruntled member of Metropolis' all-star squad, you find a robotics genius, suit up to look like a big green gargoyle, and seek revenge on your old teammates. 

Unfortunately, you're screwed if you decide to pick the day Blue Devil Dan Cassidy chooses to watch the national past time.

A great story with a fun mystery twist and lots of action!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

DC Super-Stars Giant (Presents... Strange Sports) #10

As a kid, a favorite of mine was this DC Blue Ribbon Digest filled with strange stories set in the world of sports. I've forgotten the number of but the contents have never left me. In it, a boxer was forced to spar with cement gloves, a hockey match set by a waterfall became a death match, and a basketball team faced off against a group of athletes without faces.

But the story that interested me the most in that book was the cover story of this very issue. A baseball game between heroes and villains! Batman, Joker, Lex Luthor, Green Arrow, Amazo- all of your favorite heroes were there.

The game started as the result of a domestic dispute between Sportsmaster and his wife Huntress (not the superhero who later becomes a Bird of Prey, but the leopard-print wearing villainess.) Anyways, Huntress wants to go straight but her hubby won't have it. So the pair recruit teams of heroes and baddies to play a round of baseball to decide her fate.

This was a very odd story. There's been tales of good guys and their arch- enemies using athletics to decide the outcome of some skirmish, such as the Green Lantern reprint in the back of this issue. But usually one side or the other is reluctant to play or they cheat like crazy.

Here everybody is willing to participate in America's past time and the baddies seem to really be enjoying themselves. It's rather odd that nobody, even the Man of Steel, uses their powers or bag of tricks until  the last inning. In the ninth, it's no holds barred! What's even odder is in the last inning, it's the heroes who win by cheating- not the bad guys!

This story is a classic example of the sort of stories editor Julius Schwartz was noted for. Unusual, off-the-wall but thrilling and fun as well as original! Above all, the story had to be original with Julie! I love it.

There's also a story that I've read somewhere before but have forgotten when and where I've done so. It's a Gil Kane story in which a human track and field coach meets a bunch of alien athletes. Unfamiliar with the gravity on earth, the aliens need the coach's help if they are to win their upcoming track meet. Another odd story but quite enjoyable and ORIGINAL!

That must mean it's another Schwartz helmed masterpiece.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

1977: A Madman Turns 40: 2017- Day 94

    I've been eagerly awaiting the day to do this post. 40 years ago today, the Toronto Blue Jays played their very first major league baseball game. The event took place in Toronto, where the Jays defeated the Chicago White Sox 9-5. 

A snowy opening day.

    This game is most notable as is was actually delayed by the weather; not for rain but for snow! Played in outdoorsy Exhibition Stadium, it was because of white that the score was so high. It's really hard to see a tiny white baseball in the snow properly. Eventually, snow wouldn't be a problem as the stadium would be replaced with the Rogers Centre, AKA Skydome: a stadium with retractable roof, build-in hotel, and impressive shopping accommodations. 

    The Blue Jays have a special place in my heart. When I first started collecting baseball cards to be like the other fellas, I didn't know which team to choose. So, I decided that I would buy a pack of cards and the first team I got would be my favorite team. (Just please, don't be the New York Yankees!) 

    Well, my first card was a 1988 Topps card of George Bell of the Toronto Blue Jays(#718, All-Star Game Card.)

 I didn't know where Toronto was, so I decided to give it one more try. Card #2 was of Jimmy Key, a pitcher with the Toronto Blue Jays. Figuring life was trying to tell my something, I became a Blue Jays fan.

    Being the fan of an obscure team isn't easy as a kid. But it paid off as in 1992 and 93, the Blue Jays won the World Series. ('91-'93 was a pretty good year for me as my favorite teams the Duke Blue Devils, Toronto Blue Jays, and Pittsburgh Penguins all won back-to-back championships in those years!!!) Feeling vindicated, I wore my World Series Championship shirts with pride and maybe the scorn of my fellow classmates.

Blue Jays Anniversary Patches over the years.

   Over the years, I would fall out of touch with the Blue Jays. I still like them and I was rooting for them when they were in the Playoffs last year. As an adult, I'm Pittsburgh Trinity all the way- Pirates, Steelers, Pens. However, I married into a Yankees family and have to put up with that fandom begrudgingly. (Go METS!!!) But, you never forget your first love and I will always have a fondness for the boys in blue- Go Blue Jays!

   Until Tomorrow...