Trouble is My Business by Raymond Chandler

When I read Agatha Christie, I feel like I'm challenged to solve the mystery before her main characters do. When I read Doyle's Sherlock Holmes, I feel like I'm sitting in on a lecture about criminology; learning new and unusual facts. But when I read Raymond Chandler, I'm merely along for the ride. 

Chandler's Philip Marlowe stories are fast paced, wordy whodunits filled with slimy thugs, morally questionable cops and dangerous dames. Private Detective Marlowe doesn't always seek the justice. He's like a 1930s Robin Hood who tries to solve the crime while making sure that the player treated the least fairly is given a fighting chance to better themselves. Marlowe is the lone narrator of his adventures. I just wish I knew what the hell he was talking about sometimes.

Written in a different time where California was still more Wild West than the home of Tinsel Town, nobody can or should be trusted in a Raymond Chandler work. It could be argued that you shouldn't even trust Philip as he'll turn against a paying client if he determines that they're in the wrong; even if every rule in the law book is squarely on their side. But as Marlowe runs the reader through each story, both the private eye and the characters he encounters use verbiage that is so antiquated that the last time they were used in public was during the filming of a Philip Marlowe mystery!

Dictionaries and Google are definitely needed to understand what's being said. 

There are 4 short stories in this collection. Now before some of you Raymond Chandler experts out there berate me on what I just said. Yes, I know, Trouble is my Business contained 5 novellas when the collected edition was first published by Penguin in 1950. I have no idea why 'Guns at Cyrano's' is no longer included in this 1992 edition from Vintage Crime/Black Lizard. Here, you only get the title story along with 'Goldfish', 'Finger Man' and 'Red Wind'. 

'Trouble is my Business' sees Philip being hired out to by a wealthy widower to hopefully persuade a gold digger to unleash her grasp from the millionaire's adopted son. Marlowe then gets a lesson in ichthyology when he goes to the Great White North in search of some stolen pearls. Jewelry is once again the subject, this time as an object of blackmail, when Marlowe witnesses the murder of a man in a speakeasy in 'Red Wind'. Then in a story that has to have influenced Roman Polanski's Chinatown, Philip is given the choice to take the fall as the 'Finger Man' or let an innocent woman take the rap for the murder of a two-bit hustler in a mystery that revolves around a crooked politician who controls all of the gambling dens in Los Angeles.

All 4 stories were fun reads. 'Goldfish' was perhaps my favorite because of the fish out of water quality to it with Marlowe being in the Vancouver area instead of sunny California. I also really liked 'Red Wind'. While each story had a sultry femme fatale as a character, 'Red Wind' was the only story where I felt that Marlowe was going to get burned by getting too close to the flames of passion. Also, it's the only tale where Marlowe never enters his detective agency office. It's dive bar, apartment, out in the field; solving a case he never even agreed to a fee to in a single night.

Don't neglect to read the opening article written by Raymond Chandler himself. It's a well known essay in which the author admits his works are far from literature. But that doesn't in any way detract from the artistic quality of his writings. Ironically, among fans of mystery noir and the pursuit of the great American novel, the case files of Philip Marlowe, P.I. are among the pinnacles of mid-20th century lit. 

A must read for murder mystery enthusiasts. 

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

The Spirit Archives, Vol. 10

January through June, 1945. The second World War is drawing to a close. Will Eisner is still tinkering away as a warrant officer in Washington, using the medium of comics to teach preventative maintenance. In New York, Eisner's creation, the vigilante detective posing as a criminal warlord, the Spirit, is still being published by talents such as Jack Cole. And yet, Eisner's creation just isn't the same without him.

Under Will Eisner, the characters had emotion. The layouts were brilliant experiments in lettering and design. The plots were simultaneously action-packed and funny. The art evoked empathy, passion and horror. Above all, an air of whimsy filled the corner of every page until it oozed off the paper. 

Without Will Eisner, the Spirit has become a soulless crime book. Instead of being imitated by the rest of the industry, the series has become just another in an endless sea of crime comics that seek to push countless envelopes. 

There are essentially 2 sections of this book. About the first 9 or 10 stories are trash. The artwork is flat but acceptable. The plots are complicated to the point of being unintelligible. The dialogue is like someone took a bunch of Sam Spade and James Cagney scripts and threw them in a blender: cliche without substance.

Then some miraculous changes around that 11th or 12th story. The art begins to pop. The colors are brighter. The story lines are now creative and the dialogue is much more polished. It lacks the charm Will Eisner brought to the characters. None of the writers that contributed to the Spirit at this time seem to be able to get Commissioner Dolan's relationship with the hero right. But it's better than the drivel that filled the first 80 pages of this book. 

I want to own the whole 26-volume Spirit archive. (There's actually 27 books in the set. But I think I own all the material that fills that final book and might not need to possess it.) Anyways, I buy (and read) these out of order. I purchase that which is affordable, not chronological order, based on many of these being out of print. Knowing now that Eisner is absent from the books containing the war years, If I am faced with two volumes of about the same price range that is favorable to my wallet and one is set during World War II and the other is not, I'll take the latter... for now.

A fair read. I wish I knew who wrote those later stories in this volume so I could give proper kudos. The difference between the halves of this volume really are as different as night and day.

Rating: 6 out of 10 stars.

Torsobear, Vol. 3: Back on the Blocks

I waited a year to read Volume 2 of Torsobear because the story I had begun was such a gut punch of a story. Innocent and sweet looking toys doing very nasty things. It was definitely something that I needed to recover from in order to continue.

While Volume 2 was nowhere near as good as the opening salvo, it continued to be a story that made the reader feel uneasy. Only this time I wasn't going to wait another year to finish the storyline.

Ruxby is back on the force. Only now he's doing crowd control with SWAT as Toyburg has descended into chaos. In the fallout of the Torsobear/Copycat killings, Mayor Huntington has turned the city into a police state, arresting innocent people while the real Copycat Killer pulls the strings literally from behind the curtains. 

There's also unrest in the lands across the Lemonade Sea. Only now this struggle is over class warfare as wealthy toys get richer while the poorer, less advanced playthings get poorer. 

I really didn't like this final volume. Sure, the Copycat Killer storyline gets really confusing and meta. Yet if the various writers and artists behind this project would have just stuck with that plot, things would have been okay. Instead, a lot of space in this book was wasted on what felt like a play date version of Les Mis. If the creators had wanted to do a follow-up volume of the class warfare struggles that occurred at the same time as the events in Toyburg, I would have been good with that. See, Volume 3 also finally reveals what happened in the Saturday Morning War which essentially led to the formation of this vast play-land. Spending time on the secondary plotline took time away from the origin story that was needed because if you look in the background, the Copycat Killer was there involved in the war. His motivations are overlooked because the creative team decided to throw 'a batteries not included' version of The Communist Manifesto into the mix.

Torsobear was a large project that came about thanks to crowdfunding and a lot of word of mouth. It's been about 5 years since this third and final volume was published. Those behind this project are probably done with Toyburg. I, the reader am not. There was so many questions left unanswered. While I in no way want to undo the happy ending, I want more answers. What was Copycat Killer doing in the Saturday Morning War? How did the Mayor come to power? What role did Hazbrow play in the war? And who killed Strax Power?

Maybe a companion piece could be forthcoming. I could see a story where as the citizens of Toyburg re-build, they uncover clues that reveal the answers to my questions and more in flashback. It could work. 

Thankfully, if a Volume 4 ever comes to fruition, it will probably be a couple of years before it comes out. GOOD! Parts of this story freaked me the Hell out. When Copycat paints a demonic set of teeth over the crescent moon, it reminded me of the frightening moon that hangs over Christmasland in Joe Hill's NOS4A2 and the graphic novel companion piece, Wraith. 

The artwork was superior once again. So many freaking awesome Easter eggs! Some great parts that were crowded out by a tangent that was unnecessary. I'm just so disappointed in how an idea with great promise fizzled at the end.

Not Worth Consuming!

Rating: 3 out of 10 stars.

Torsobear Vol. 2: All Stitched Up

Though Volume 1 of Torsobear is just as gritty, shocking and violent, that magic was just absent from this follow-up.

The town of Toyburg is still reeling from the Torsobear murders. Detective Ruxby Bear has just nabbed a copycat killer. Only the facts and the evidence just doesn't add up. Unfortunately, he'll not be able to continue he's investigation, as Dectective Ruxby has been arrested for a crime he did not commit.

Now incarcerated in the roughest prison in the land, Ruxby is behind bars with many of the felons and cons that he put there. Constantly having to watch his back, Ruxby tries to solve both his framing and the copycat killings from his jail cell. But when the copycat killer sneaks into his cell, Ruxby now has to face the fact that the mastermind behind all of this is in the penitentiary with him.

Meanwhile on the outside, Ruxby's old partner, Officer Hazbrow, is now the chief of police. He too wants to help his old friend exonerate himself. However, the mayor of Toyburg has forbidden the TBPD continue with the investigation, declaring the Torsobear murders and copycat killings closed. But when the son of an old police mentor of Hazbrow comes asking for help finding his old man, Hazbrow begins an undercover sting that could send not just Toyburg but the entire region of play-lands into civil war.

I love the varying artwork. It's great seeing bad boy versions of your favorite toys. Every page is a feast for the eyes. If you love Easter eggs, be sure to bring your basket with you when reading this book.

Volume 2 is also told in anthology form. The backstories of several of the inmates and prison guards is more interesting than Ruxby's time in jail. To be honest, the hero doesn't belong in prison. He needs to be on the mean streets of Toyburg solving crimes. Hazbrow's story is interesting but that's because the law man is in his element. This volume sets up the Volume 3 finale. Unlike with the first volume, I won't be waiting a year and a half for that book. I just hope the ending returns to that level of wonder that Volume 2 was missing.

Rating: 6 out of 10 stars.

The Spirit #13

Okay. So this is a holiday book. It's only that the holiday covered in this book doesn't match the one on the cover. There are 3 stories in this issue with only the first issue being set during a holiday. And that holiday in question? Is it Christmas? Nope. It doesn't even take place in December. It's Halloween!

On that Halloween night, a gang of goons have just robbed a jewelry store dressed as The Spirit. Things are going good until they reach the tiger lion exhibit at the city zoo and the jewels have somehow wound up right next to a giant Bengal beauty.

Tale #2 has the Spirit helping out an elderly woman who is being targeted by literal grave robbers on the hunt for her uncle's missing inheritance. 

This issue wraps up with a story told entirely in symbols. There's a literary term for this; but I can't remember what that was. And I refuse to quantify it as emojis.

All 3 stories were good. I don't think I've ever read a bad story about The Spirit. There have been some that I had to read a couple times over as capers involving cons and double-crosses. That last story using symbols required a re-read but mostly because there are so many subtle elements that get lost when there are no words to be seen. 

Still, as much as I liked this issue, I feel gypped. That cover is a beauty done in conjunction with J. Bone (Archie Meets Batman '66) and the late Darwyn Cooke (The Twilight Children). And it's Christmasy, through and through. I would have been okay if only 1 of the 3 stories were Christmas themed or if the cover was Halloween themed. But I am unhappy with looking forward all year to this Christmas comic and discovering I should have read this in October. So I am gonna grade hard!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 7 out of 10 stars. 

Torsobear, Vol. 1: Yarns From Toyburg

Imagine a gritty crime noir, similar to Chinatown. Only it stars a variety of stuffed animals and toys. 

Someone is dismembering the teddy bears of Toyburg. A team of a rookie cop and a harden veteran are on the case. Together, the duo will come across perverts, dope fiends and a dame to die for. But the players are all stars from your favorite toy store. And that touch of innocence makes the events that take place just a bit more uneasy.

I got this book as part of a grab bag from Source Point Press. Holy cow- is this an interesting, but odd book. There's basically 2 parts to this volume. The first part is the hunt for the teddy bear killer. The second is a mish-mash of short stories, sketches and other bits and pieces that you might find in an artist's sketchbook. 

So what I am thinking about this section is that it's the origins of Torsobear. Unfortunately, this is a pretty incoherent collection of work. I'm not sure what is canon and what is just the riffs of an artist practicing on some rough drafts. Regardless, I'm intrigued by this bizarro world and I want to know how the story plays out.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Vinegar Teeth #4

• Just who is behind all of the residents of the city becoming zombified?
• Why does Detective Buckle act all weird at the beginning of each issue?
• What kind of blues music goes best with depression?

All of your questions are answered in the final issue of this Dark Horse miniseries. Plus Vinegar Teeth's origin is finally revealed!

A very fulfilling but bitter sweet ending to this Troy Nixey/Damon Gentry!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Animal Noir

Life in the African Serengeti is currently civil between predator and prey. But when giraffe detective Manny Diamond is hired to recover a stolen video, the PI will learn just how close the land is to falling back into chaos. The case will take Diamond to the seedy snuff theatres; a taboo dungeon where carnivores act out their savage natures to films of antelope mutilation. Then there's his distraught wife who turns to a doomsday cult for solace after the loss of her child. And just what is the mystery behind the illegal ELF matches just beyond the mountains to the north?

Animal Noir is a gruff and gritty take on classic film noir and the comic book genre of funny animals. These great beasts of the plain, drawn by Izar Lunacek, might look adorable. But inside each character lies a fierce killer waiting for the chance to pounce.

This collection of the four issue miniseries by Njec Juren are what I imagine the works of Dashiell Hammett would be like if the famed mystery writer was an orangutan. It also could be compared to how the Disney film Zootopia would have turned out if directed by Roman Polanski. The world of Animal Noir is dark and dangerous. What I don't think this IDW miniseries is is finished.

Animal Noir is only four issues long- just over 100 pages collected. There's just so much going on in this story that I really didn't feel satisfied when the book ended. I was both exhilarated and disappointed by the ending. I was even more put off to learn that there wasn't a second volume in the works. Animal Noir is just like the 1970s noir classic Chinatown as there's an ending. But it's far from happy or satisfying.

Considering how awful Chinatown’s sequel The Two Jakes was, I might have to be content with what I read. To demand more adventures of detective Diamond might ruin this amazing story. I just feel like there's more to this. To paraphrase the final scene of Chinatown: Maybe its best to forget about it. After all, it's the Serengeti...

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Review originally published October 17, 2017 on outrightgeekery.com.

Batman in Noir Alley #1

Batman in Noir Alley #1
Writers: Stuart Moore, Ed Brubaker
Artists: Valentine De Landro, Sean Phillips
Published by DC Comics and Turner Classic Movies

Of all the free Batman comics scheduled for release over the past several days, Noir Alley was the only one that was comprised of new material. This DC Comics promo comic was released in collaboration with Turner Classic Movie's Noir Alley, a weekly showcase of film noir.

There's two stories in this freebie.

The first story, Batman in Noir Alley, has Bruce Wayne in Hollywood, attending a special showing of a film based on a priceless relic called the Moroccan Raptor. The statue just happens to be on loan from the Gotham City Museum for the event as well. When the projectionist is murderer and the Moroccan Raptor disappears, Batman is on the scene. However, to bring the murderer to justice in a strange town, Batman will need some assistance. Help comes when the Dark Knight's investigation pairs him with the 'Czar of Noir' Eddie Muller, who is also on the case. But can this new player be trusted or will he succumb to the femme fatale behind the crimes?

I really liked this story by writer Stuart Moore (Wolverine Noir.) Though set in the modern era, it's got a very LA 1930s noir feel to it. A lot of this is thanks in very large part to artist Valentine De Landro (Bitch Planet). I think had Darwyn Cooke not passed away last year, he would have been the artist behind this story. But De Landro's style is so similar to the late artist that I think we've discovered the next Darwyn Cooke!

The one thing about this story that was odd to me was the use of Eddie Muller. Muller is the host of Noir Alley, the TCM series in which this book is a tie-in. Moore doesn't go right out and have Muller do a commercial for the show. Having Muller play a role in this story was a little hokey to me. It also detracts from the quality of the tale, but not that much thankfully.

A Detective on the Run

Then in the back-up feature, the action is set in 1949. The story is called Gotham Noir, a 2001 Elseworlds tale by Gotham Central's Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips. Here Jim Gordon is a disgraced police detective who must talk his way out of being apprehended by the Batman. Gordon's story will involve Selina Kyle, dirty two-bit thugs, and a tainted angel whose returned to Gotham in hopes of redeeming her soiled reputation.

My opinion towards this book is mixed. The story itself fits in the genre feel established in the first story. But you only get the first 12-pages of this mystery. Normally, this would upset me to no end because finding out a book is a cliffhanger and not having the rest of the story is a pet peeve of mine. But there's an ad in the back of the book that says the rest of the story is available on readdcentertainment.com, DC Comics' digital publication platform. But once you go to the site, you have to shell out $4.99 in order to get the rest of the story. I kinda feel like this is a bit underhanded. If you're going to advertise this in a promo comic, then the book offered needs to be free.

I had been waiting for Noir Alley to become available at my LCS ever since I saw an advertisement for this about 2 months ago. It was worth the wait but I'm not about to go digital to find out what happens at the end of Gotham Noir. I'll just wait until I come across it for a good deal in paper form.

Batman in Noir Alley is available for free in comic book shops nationwide now.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Batman/Elmer Fudd Special #1

The Wait is Over…

The book that I’ve been finally waiting for hit shelves Wednesday: the Batman/Elmer Fudd Special. I’ve been counting down the days until it’s release ever since I found out about the announcement for it sometime in May. So was the DC Comics/Looney Tunes crossover as good as my expectations?

My opinion of the book can be summed up in one word: Epic! However, only saying “epic” makes for a very small review.

That being said, let’s dig in a little deeper, shall we?  

Bat Season

The special starts off with Elmer going into a Gotham City saloon called Porky’s. His task is to kill a the man who murdered his wife- one Bugs ‘the Bunny.’ On exchange for his life, Bugs names the man who hired him to put out the hit, Bruce Wayne! After Fudd makes a play at Wayne, Batman goes on the prowl and Elmer the hunter becomes the hunted. However, it’s soon apparent that both Fudd and Wayne were set up. Thus Elmer and the Dark Knight join forces to uncover just who killed Silver St. Cloud. 

 Yes Bugs and Porky, along with Tweety, Sylvester, and the rest of the Looney Tunes gang are here! It makes perfect sense too! Batman has had one of the most colorful rogue’s galleries on all of comicdom. Therefore by converting all the Looney Tunes gang into thugs with features like those of animals visually works, all thanks to the deft pencils of Lee Weeks. For example, Bugs is a hit-man with buck teeth and an affinity for pickled carrots whereas Porky is a stuttering barkeep with a pudgy nose.

  Writer Tom King saved the best for last with this special. He really knew how to blend the two universes into one that actually could work in the monthly adventures of the Caped Crusader.

I’ve been reading the other DC/Warner Bros crossovers and I must say that this was the best of the bunch. Each special also has a backup story told in the Looney Tunes manner. For the most part, I really haven’t enjoy them. This one, also by Tom King with art by Byron Vaughns, was exceptional. It followed the classic rabbit season/duck season routine with Batman standing in for Daffy Duck. I laughed aloud several times.

A Sleeper Hit?

There’s been some hype about this book. I confess, It’s mostly all due to me. However, the Batman. Elmer Fudd Special is now currently sold out at my local comics shop. Plus, I’ve checked and learned that another area store has run out of copies as well. I point this out as the other crossovers haven’t been selling very well according to the owners I talked with. So if you decide to jump in on this title, it might be too late.

Or as Porky always says…

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.

Review originally published June 29, 2017 on outrightgeekery.com.