Donald Duck's Halloween Scream! Mini Comic #2

This mini comic from 2017 features a William Van Horn classic. Donald has decided to become a house painter. His first job is to spruce up a haunted house. Only Donald accepts the job without the knowledge about the home's spooky history. Nephews Huey, Dewey and Louie have heard that the place has a dubious history and they decide to play a little prank on their uncle. But as Donald chalks up the strange goings on in the house as age and disrepair, the nephews turn up the heat only to become victims of a real poltergeist!

I've read this tale somewhere before and it never fails to disappoint. I wouldn't be surprised to learn that this story eventually became a Disney animated short. So maybe that's where I remember this tale from. I've checked my entries on this blog and despite having owned this Halloween ComicFest freebie for a long time, I can't find when and how I've come across this story before. 

Carl Barks is definitely my favorite Duck creator. Don Rosa follows. I may have to give serious consideration for Van Horn being my pick for number 3. His art is clean. His word play is brilliant. And I love how his Donald is smarter like Don Rosa's version of the character. I'm just not sure if I like a mischievous Huey Dewey and Louie or not. I think I like it better when they're the experts on everything thanks to their massive time of knowledge, the Junior Woodchuck Guidebook. But the guys sure can pull off some great pranks on their Uncle Donald.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Popeye Halloween Mini-Comic: Popeye Vs. the Ghosk

This 2009 mini-comic might say Popeye on the cover. But the story that occurs in this book was originally published as part of E C. Segar's Thimble Theater before the spinach loving sailor eventually became the title character of the long-running comic strip.

This Halloween Comic Fest freebie not only provided a classic haunt for comic book collectors but it also advertised a 4-volume collected set of the earliest adventures of Olive Oyl, her brother Castor and hamburger loving pal Wimpy to appear in newsprint. It might surprise you but Popeye didn't appear in the strip in 1929, a nearly full decade after Thimble Theater debuted! Until then, pencil thin Olive Oyl was the main character. 

With that information established and Popeye taking the lead role, this story was first published in the 1930s. As this adventure occurs during Popeye's expedition to find his long lost father, a further Google search reveals that this episode first saw print around the late summer/early autumn of 1936. 

The search for Popeye's pop is just the framing device. Set on the fearless sailor's ship, the Elsie, Popeye reveals to a crew member that legend has it that his boat is haunted. At first, everyone, including Popeye, laugh this rumor off. However, as more and more sailors report at having seen a ghost aboard, including the helmsman who is constantly ordered by the spook to drift off course, Popeye and Olive Oyl seeks to get to the bottom of things. 

Naturally, this results in Popeye getting into fisticuffs with the 'ghosk'. But what I didn't expect was for the story to involve a floating head that hops around the boat and even talks! At first I thought that character might be Popeye's father. But the sailor man doesn't recognize the head. While there's no a cliffhanger at mini comic's end, the book closes without revealing who this dude was. And now I'm obsessed with finding out his identity!

I guess this Halloween time promo comic did it's job. It just took 16 years to attract me. I entered into my reading not really caring about reading more Popeye related work. But now I'm interested in reading more. Though conventional wisdom would argue that I start with volume 1, I don't think I can wait to get to volume 3 or 4 before finding out what happens next. I've read other series out of order. What's one more on my reading resume...

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Spookhouse 2018 Halloween ComicFest Mini Comic

I am super stoked that Eric Powell has returned to his hillbilly criminal macabre roots with more adventures of the Goon and Frankie. But it will be next year before I read those because I cannot stand a cliffhanger. Plus I'm still behind 2 volumes. (They've not been very easy to find.)

Until then, I have this mini comic Halloween ComicFest promo and trick-or-treat freebie from 2018 to tide me over.

I've read the first story before. It's pure Powell. A group of obnoxious teens who are haunted house aficionados, are invited by a spry little fella wearing a great skull mask and a tuxedo to visit a legendary site. It's the location of a series of gruesome killings and rumor has it that for one night only, it's open to the public as the best scary attraction in the entire tri-state area. This is something those spook snobs have got to see for themselves.

I love this story. It's got a great punchline ending that while I saw coming a mile away, there's a twist that catches you off guard. Meaning I zigged when Powell zagged and he got me good! I also love the art for this story. You can see how legends from EC Comics like Jack Davis and 'Ghastly' Graham Ingels inspired Powell to create this all-ages fright fest. The design of the little fella in the mask and tails was brilliant. If they ever make a tee-shirt of the cover image, I must have it! And the poses of the subjects and the angles selected for the action- such fluidity of movement.

The second story is only written by Eric Powell. So visually, it lacks that magical oomph. It's about a young boy who earns a F on his book report on a book on monsters written long ago by his late discredited grandfather. More funny than scary. But it's got a ghost, a troll and a school marm who's a worst villain than the two previous frights combined. 

I don't know why I haven't just pulled the trigger and consumed all 10 issues from the 2 series. I've read at least 1 other issue and I thought it was great. And the fact that I read these stories previously and I had a big thrill reading it again; I think that speaks volumes to the skills and talents of Eric Powell. And I had so much fun!

I think next Halloween is going to be a Spookhouse Halloween... 

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Potlatch: Comics to Benefit the SPA

I bought this book years ago. Like way before the pandemic years ago. It has to have been sometime between 2015 and 2019 when my wife and I were visiting Asheville NC annually because I remember the store where I got this book. It was an independent art store that sold work by local artists. Obviously, somebody who worked on this project was from the mountains of North Carolina.

Potlatch, which derives it's name from a Native American feast where gifts and large amounts of food are shared amongst different tribes, is an anthology title. The term is also where we get the word 'potluck', which more accurately describes this book as you have no idea what you're gonna get. Past volumes have benefited comic book publishing charities such as the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund. Sales for this edition from 2004 provides proceeds to be Small Press Association.

As with just about any anthology, it's really hard to rate it on quality as the skill levels of the talent ranges from 'why isn't this guy working for Marvel?' to 'when did this guy realize that becoming a professional comic book artist just wasn't in the cards?' A lot of what I read was forgettable. There were a few photocopied mini comics included in my copy. The one about a pair of villains who go on a talk show to explain how hard it is to be the baddie was the most memorable thing in the book. There was also Drake Maxwell, Private Eye. It was about a gumshoe who had to solve an alien abduction. Only the item missing is the alien's spaceship that has been stolen during a recent jaunt to the third rock from the Sun! I also received a couple of stickers of Japanese looking creatures that I think might make a fun prize for a friend of mine, that looked really nice. 

If I paid more than $5 dollars, I was probably gypped. Though it was for charity. So maybe I can be okay with having paid $10. But that's about it. Despite owning it for nearly a decade, this one is going to the used book store, hopefully for some trade credit. My luck, they won't take it because of how independent and unknown it is. But if they'll just take it off my hands, I'd be willing to take as little as 25 cents in trade to get this stinker off my hands.

Not Worth Consuming!

Rating: 3 out of 10 stars.

DC Super-Heroes Post Cereal Superheroes Collection, Vol. 1: 1979 (2023 Comic Book & Graphic Novel Reading Challenge)

1979 was a banner year for DC Comics fans who liked Post Cereals. If you were a regular fan of Alpha-Bits, Fruity and Cocoa Pebbles, or several other sugary treats, you could have instantly won one of thousands of great prizes including superhero themed kites and flying discs, bicycles, or a trip to Hollywood California. But the thing every kid wanted in these boxes of cereal were the free mini-comics!

Post Cereals offered 4 different books. They starred Batman (with Robin, the Boy Wonder), Superman, Wonder Woman and a group adventure including Aquaman! Each book was 16 pages in length but they didn't look like comic books. Instead of looking like a tabloid, these books were oblong in shape. Measuring 4.5"x3.5", each page had only 2 panels going from left to right. They kinda resemble an old fashion map atlas. 

As with most promotional giveaways of the day and age, no artist or writer credits are given. But the covers all look like the work of the amazing Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez, who was DC's go-to promotional art guy during this time. It also could have been Dick Giordano who assisted with such projects when Garcia-Lopez was swamped, and had an art style that matched well with him. Giordano also inked a lot of Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez's promotional projects, so it could have been both!

As for the interior artwork, I just am not sure. The Superman story looks like it was taken from stills of the Super Friends cartoons that ran in various incarnations from 1973-85. Unfortunately, the story didn't match the quality of the artwork despite an assist from Lex Luthor as the issue's antagonist. 

The best story was a rodeo romp pitting the Dynamic Duo versus the Penguin of all people! With nothing remotely bird related, this caper was very un-Pengy-like and quite refreshing. The Wonder Woman story pitted the Princess of Themyscira against her arch-enemy, the Cheetah in a typical cat-burglary story. Story #4 had the DC Trinity teaming up. Aquaman is also in the story. But in typical time period fashion, Superman, Wonder Woman and Batman have to save the king of Atlantis from a space alien who wants to make the underwater hero an exhibit at his planet's zoo.

I recently got to read all 4 books without having to pay an average of $30 per mini-book. And how was that possible you might ask? It's all thanks to Trident Studios. DC Super-Heroes Post Cereal Superheroes Collection, Vol. 1: 1979 is the Etsy seller's latest unauthorized collection of mini-books. Taken from the books of the seller's personal collection, there are a few blemishes related to the original print. But the colors are vibrant and rich and the images are ultra-clean. Once again, this collection is 50% larger than the originals, for minimum print requirements. Yet, this is actually not a bad thing for those adult readers who might need readers...

There are 3 sets in the entire Post Collection. The cereal company ran a second run of mini-books in 1980. A little later on, Canadian Post cereals offered a set of minis that included the likes of Supergirl and The Flash. Interested fans can purchase all 3 sets combined on Etsy and individually on eBay. 

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 7 out of 10 stars.

Completing this review completes Task #37 (A Book You Didn't Know Existed) of the 2023 Comic Book and Graphic Novel Reading Challenge.

Marvel Comics Mini-Books Collectible Box-Set

This deluxe box set collects over-sized facsimiles of the 6 Marvel mini-books kids could get out of bubblegum machines way back in 1966. The original mini-books were barely the size of a postage stamp and yet they were each 48-pages in length!

The stars of the 6 minis were Sgt. Nick Fury, The Amazing Spider-Man, Captain America, Millie the Model, The Mighty Thor and The Incredible Hulk. (Note that the order in which I listed these characters is also the rating I give of the 6 books from best to worst). Licensed by anow defunct tiny novelty company based in Chicago, Il., not a lot is known about the production of these little reads. Mark Evanier (Garfield: TV or Not TV?) does a very good job of recording what he knows in the 7th book in this collection, Marvel Comic Mini-Books: A Mini-History. 

Evanier makes a very good point that many of the artists and writers who might have been behind this project have passed away. Evanier was able to determine that Marie Severin (Not Brand Ecch) was behind the Sgt. Nick Fury story. I also think the Thor and Hulk stories were drawn by her. Mark Evanier also reveals that Denny O'Neil was the writer of the Captain America book.

The main problem I had with Mark Evanier's book is something that probably wasn't even his fault. The history book contains reprints of the 6 books in their original size form. If you read that book first, it spoils the reading of the 6 books, which were what you paid hard earned money for. So if you ever get your hands on this beautiful set, read the supplemental book LAST!

This was a product of its time. Marvel was way behind DC in terms of marketing its big name faces. One might wonder why Millie the Model got included in this set. In 1966, Millie starred in no less than 3 monthly titles. Plus, having a book starring a female character was a smart way to ensure that it wasn't just the boys who spent their allowances on a chance to snag one of these treasures.

While the books themselves are looked at as collector items, not every book is a classic. The Hulk book doubles as a goofy joke book. Plus, the Mean Green Machine talks more like when he's the intellectual Grey Hulk than his regular speak in monosyllable when verde. The Thor book was pretty good. It just had some rather odd looking artwork, the ending was silly and the God of Thunder is really more of a minor character than the star. The Millie book started off with a rather clever story. But the second half devolves into an outdated list of beauty tip cliches.

I thought Nick Fury's story was fantastic. It was a clever mystery tale about the Howling Commandos attempting to rescue a missing general somewhere in Nazi occupied France. Captain America's story is a spy thriller comprised of some goofy named fiends. But full of action. The Spider-Man story was silly. But then 1960s Spidey was pretty silly himself. Plus that story guest-stars a certain caped character from the Distinguished Competition. 

I really didn't know the hardback versions of these books existed. I knew of the minis from '66. But I'm not willing to pay $30 for such a tiny book. (Heck, I'm not willing to pay $30 on a regular comic unless I determine it to be an amazing deal!) But I found the whole set at a book store used for only $15. That deal was a freakin' steal!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Marvel Mini Books: Sgt. Nick Fury (2023 Comic Book & Graphic Novel Reading Challenge)

Imagine it's the spring of 1966. You're with mom at the local grocery mart and you run across a spinner rack full of comic books. Mom's not willing to pay 12 cents for the latest adventures of the Fantastic Four or Iron Man, so you continue with the shopping trip. You're a bit miffed but you move on...

After mom checks out, you exit the store, coming across the vending machines. Glistening in chrome and cherry red paint, there's an assortment of gumballs, jawbreakers, and fake mood rings ranging in price from a nickel to a quarter. And there you see it! A mini-Marvel comic book starring your favorite characters for only 10 cents! Spider-Man! The Hulk! Thor! Captain America! Sgt. Nick Fury! Even Millie the Model! Marvel Comics is the hot thing right now and you've got to have it!

Feeling a little bad that she said no to that comic book you weren't allowed to purchase, mom digs into her purse and hands you a dime. You place the coin into the slot and eagerly twist the dial. As the trinkets rumble inside the machine, your mind races in speculation as to which book you will get. Then the tumbling stops and the tiny 'egg' rolls down into your hands. At this point, you'll take the Millie book. You just want the bragging rights to being the first kid on your block to have one of these Marvel minis. And then the prize falls into your hands and you discover that you got... a whistle!!!

Chicago, Illinois' Creative House Promotions, INC. was behind the sale of these mini comics. The 6 books were less than the size of the average postage stamp and had 48 pages of story and art. There's a great debate over whether these books are in fact the World's Smallest Comic Books since the format of the stories are more like picture books than works of sequential art. 

Fans can also argue that the Marvel Mini Books were the first comics to have variant covers. Each mini came in 6 differing covers- orange, green, red, yellow, blue & lime- but the interiors were always the same. There are some error covers floating around with patterns of dots and strange lines on the front. However, they don't seem to be any more or less valuable than the solid color covers. 

The Marvel Mini Books were held together along the left side spine with a rubber glue similar to what holds together memo pads. The tiny size of the books made it impossible to read these rather thick books without damaging the spine and causing pages to fall out. Thus, a Marvel Mini Book in flawless condition is considered a grail find while the discovery of such a book held together by clear scotch tape would be gladly accepted by many a collector.

Just who wrote and illustrated these books is a bit of a mini mystery. Marie Severin (Not Brand Echh) was known to have illustrated a couple of these including the Sgt. Nick Fury book which was regularly drawn by Marie's big brother, John Severin. Writer Mark Evanier in the book Marvel Comic Mini-Books: A Mini-History got a confession out of Denny O'Neil (Batman) as being the writer of the Captain America tale. But as for the other 5 books, former Marvel EIC Roy Thomas confides that neither Stan Lee nor himself wrote any of the minis. 

Though C.H.P. would advertise all 6 Marvel titles as being available for only a dime, kids had to sift through other assorted junk like rings, plastic toy animals and even other mini books. In 1965, C.H.P. produced a line of 6 mini books devoted to jokes. Monster Laffs, Silly Willies and Wise Qwaks were just a few of the joke books that became filler in the Marvel Minis vending machines. A 'Stan's Soapbox' issued in all of the April, 1966 Marvel titles proclaimed that an astounding 10 million mini books were produced. C.H.P. apparently had a lot left over because by 1967, Marvel's fan club, The Merry Marvel Marching Society, started giving the minis away as part of their membership kits. Later, some discount stores started selling cake decorations with both the Marvel minis and the joke books affixed with glue.

The Sgt. Nick Fury book is essentially 2 stories in one. The first half of the book titled 'The Mirror Image' was about Nick's role with the Allied Forces during World War II. The second half of this book has Fury's Howling Commandos going behind enemy lines to rescue a general being held as a prisoner of war. 

For a veteran collector to enjoy these books, a magnifying glass is needed. The print is small and smudgy. C.H.P.'s quality was questionable and yet this is what you'd expect for only 10 cents. As for why Millie the Model was a part of this series, one has to remember that in 1966, Marvel was producing no less than 3 books starring Millie. Plus, to include the chance to win a Millie mini was a smart way to attract girl customers to spending their money on these books. 

A rare book that one should expect to pay a lot of money for if you weren't lucky enough to get out of the vending machine way back in 1966. As for the whistle you won, the only value it has is sentimental. 

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.

Completing this review completes Task #2 (Comic from the Silver Age (1956-1970)) of the 2023 Comic Book and Graphic Novel Reading Challenge.

Secret Origins: Collecting All Eight Mini-Comics Included With Leaf Candies

Trident Studios triumphs again. After presenting fans with a pair of beautiful collections of the Super Powers mini comics that came with waves I and II of Kenner's awesome action figures, there are more minis for fans! This set contains the 8 mini comics that were packaged with Leaf Tart n' Tangy Comicbook Candy!

There were 8 mini comics in the Leaf candy line that was released in 1980. Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Green Lantern, The Flash and Hawkman's secret origins were examined. Book #8 reports on the creation of the world's greatest super hero team, the Justice League of America! 

The quality of these reprints are absolutely stunning. Vibrantly colored and as crystal clear as possible, based on the fact that the originals used for this book are over 40 years old! Once again, due to publishing and binding requirements, the reprints are 20% bigger than the original minis. Generally, when you increase the size of an image, it gets all smudgy and pixelated. The necessary enlargements have no evidence of poor quality here!

The only real crime of this volume is something that is more Leaf or DC's fault. In fact, I don't think you can blame any of my single grip on Trident Studios. The sole qualm I have is that whomever were the geniuses behind the writing and artwork of these mini comics appear to be lost in time. 

While Trident Studios does provide credit to the creators of all 8 stars of this book, along with notes to their first appearances, that's all the reader gets. When it came to this type of promotional work, DC and other comic book publishers didn't give writer and artist credits. From what I see, I think Neal Adams, Dick Giordano, Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez and Gil Kane were probably some of the artists of these books. But I'm not 100% sure and I am glad that Trident Studios didn't try to make any sort of assumptions either.

Just as I thought that was it from Trident Studios, I received another surprise. Trident has a 3-volume set that collects all of the DC mini comics released by Post cereals from the late 70s. Will I be getting my hands on those? You betcha! Stay tuned!

As for this book and the Secret Powers collections, fans can find them on Etsy. Just be sure to look for the creator under 1 single word, without spaces: TridentStudios.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Super Powers Mini-Comic Collection, Volume 2

This fan made edition from Trident Studios contains all of the mini comics issued with the 11 figures released by Kenner in the Super Powers Collection, Wave II. This book is very heavy on characters from Jack Kirby's Fourth World along with several superheroes who made their toy debut in 1984-85. On the side of the angels, Firestorm, Dr. Fate, Red Tornado and the Martian Manhunter were released for the first time ever along with Green Arrow (who debuted in the 70s thanks to Mego). The New God Darkseid lead an army of villains that included the demented Desaad, bumbling brute Kalibak, the energy-draining Mantis, the immortal Steppenwolf and army fodder Parademon. 

Series Two of the Super Powers Collection is a fan favorite mostly because of its connection to comic book legend, Jack Kirby. It's a thing of legend that one of the few times Jack Kirby was properly compensated for previously licensed work was for the re-designs he made on Mantis, Steppenwolf and Parademon. Kirby also reworked the design of Darkseid's estranged son, Orion, released in 1986's Series Three to much controversy. But that's a story for another day...

Of course to a 7-8 year old Madman, all of the villains of Super Powers were considered all-new characters. I knew who all the heroes were thanks to my dad's comic book collection. But I had yet to be properly introduced to Kirby's Fourth World. Thankfully, each action figure came with a mini comic to help explain a little bit of the motivation of Darkseid, which when you think about it is fairly simple- total world domination.

The Anti-Life equation, Highfather and New Genesis, and the whole truce in which Scott Free and Orion were switched at birth aren't covered at all in the minis. In fact, Darkseid is kinda a weenie in this series of 16-pagers as his Omega Beams don't incinerate anyone. They just send you to limbo. 

You won't see the Series One villains in any of these books either. The minions of Apokolips act alone. But I think if Darkseid had recruited at least Lex Luthor, Brainiac and the Joker into his plans, the lord of Apokolips could've at least conquered the entire Eastern seaboard.

One of my all-time favorite characters is Firestorm. So getting to revisit his adventures in mini-comic form was pretty cool. The inclusion of Red Tornado, GA and J'onn J'onzz to the line-up were no-brainers as they had all been members of the Justice League at some point. But Dr. Fate doesn't really make any sense being here. Fate has always been a member of the Justice Society and stuck on the parallel Earth designated #2. Did the JSA lend Fate in some sort of cross-dimensional trade in order for the Justice League to have a magical warrior to fight against Darkseid's forces? 

Series Two was the last series of the Super Powers Collection to be issued with mini comics. Was the omission a way to cut costs? The inclusion of Cyclotron and Golden Pharoah, two all-new for the toy line heroic characters were definitely produced to avoid licensing fees to creators. So it's possible. But with the inclusion of Orion and Mister Miracle in wave 3, a chance to better introduce the Fourth World characters to children through mini comics was sorely overlooked. I think had mini comics been released with the third wave, a fourth and fifth wave of characters, which were in the planning stages, would have become a reality.

Since Kenner is defunct and DC doesn't seem to have any plans to release the mini comics officially in some collected form, I'm glad I found this offering by Trident Comics. Over at Etsy, they've got a couple other editions of mini comics that were released with popular toy lines of the past. As long as there doesn't appear to be any direct conflict with copyright, I'll be adding one or two of those other books to my collection sometime soon.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Super Powers Mini-Comic Collection, Volume 1 (Family Comic Friday)

I'm not one for buying bootleg material. If there's a legitimate version of something, I will buy that version and not the knock-off. If I have to wait to buy it used or at a steep discount to save money, I'll do it. But if the original owners go out of business or just never cash in on the copyright (I'm looking at you George Lucas with the Star Wars Holiday Special), then if something is fan made, then I have no ethical qualms buying it. That's the case with the book I am reviewing today... 

One of my most beloved memories of my mom is her taking me to K-Mart just to find the new Super Powers action figures. The store only had Robin and Aquaman. But oh what a start! To my absolute delight, both figures came with a 16-page mini comic! A toy AND something to read??? Yes on both!

Years have passed and the quest of finding the 12 minis that came with the original line and the 11 of Series II has been on my to-do list for decades. I've never come across any in person unless I plopped out $50 to $100 on one of the figures mint on card. While online shopping, I've seen the minis for sale just by themselves. But it's not worth a $20-35 dollar per mini comic price tag. Needless to say, DC has never stopped to take the time and collect these in some sort of collection.

About 2 months ago, while on Facebook, the metaverse itself made a suggestion of joining a group of like-minded Super Powers fans. A fan of the art of Jose Luis-Garcia Lopez and Dick Giordano, who did much of the packaging and figure design, I've enjoyed joining this digital time capsule of Kenner/DC. Recently, one intrepid member asked if the minis had ever been collected to which someone responded that they thought there was something 'fan made'. 

Well, the prospect of such a volume peaked my interest and I went to etsy and later eBay to which I found this book. Published by Trident Studios, this pocket-sized collection is a beaut! All of the books come from the publisher's personal collection of minis collected when they were a child. They did an amazing job keeping the books in great shape. Only 1 page looked smudgy. (Doing some quick math. 12 books times 16 pages... roughly 192 pages. I'll take it!)

The likes of Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman take on the dastardly quartet of Lex Luthor, Brainiac, The Penguin and The Joker in a dozen stories. Just who were the authors and illustrators of these minis have become the subject of much debate as DC and Kenner didn't give any sort of credit to the art team behind these comics. The stories are a little clunky as it's hard to tell a full-fledged story on a sheet of paper roughly 2.8" x 4.25". But the art is of that unparalleled 80s era DC style! 

As I mentioned, the mini comics really were minis. However, these books are slightly larger (about 20%) than the original. Thus is due minimum requirements of the printing and binding. Whether this determination was made by Trident Studios or publishing contractor is unclear. I was afraid that the books were going to be massively large thus hurting the visual quality of the originals. But the slight increase does nothing to hurt the eye appeal!

It's always great when the older generation gets chance to share their toys with the next. It's even better when you get to share your books! Up till now it has been darn near impossible and totally expensive to share the Super Powers mini comics from the 80s with the children of the 2000s. But now grandparents, guardians and parents have a chance with this vibrant collection from Trident Studios!

A second volume featuring the Wave II collection of mini comics is also available. Check etsy and eBay for your copies!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Spookhouse (2019 Halloween ComicFest Mini Comic)

I love this all-ages series from The Goon's Eric Powell! He takes those oddball twist endings from those classic 1950s horror titles and crafts some amazingly spooky tales! 

I grew up on titles like Tales from the Crypt and The Vault of Horror (in reprint, obviously.) I loved those weird endings that gave villains their due while also not being afraid to off an innocent or two. The artwork was all over the place in terms of style. It's quality was never an issue. There was a wealth of variety. You had folks like Johnny Craig who crafted very stylish noir pieces and Wally Wood with his deep palette of textures and shading. 

A person favorite was the art of Jack Davis. The MAD Magazine legend drew highly embellished art that favored a caricaturist. Eric Powell has a very similar style in his works and I truly love it!

Unfortunately, the only artwork from Eric Powell is the cover. But that's actually okay. Powell writes all the stories within, with his patented tongue-in-cheek manner. Plus artists William Stout and Gideon Kendall (Dino Pets) do fantastic job to the point I thought it really was Eric Powell behind the pencil!

Featuring awesome parodies of Stephen King's It, Spider-Man and the classic 80s horror film, The Lost Boys, this was a near perfect warm-up for Halloween thrills and chills!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Underdog #1 (2019 Halloween ComicFest Mini Comic)

American Mythology has been introducing younger readers to a series of classic characters for the past 3-4 years. For the 2019 Halloween ComicFest, they present Underdog! 

A stretchy villain named Rubber Duck has just escaped prison! During his breakout, Rubber Duck winds up in a puddle of mysterious goo. In true comic book fashion, these chemicals have given the baddie a super power. 

Now, not only is Rubber Duck super flexible, but he's darn near invincible too! All of the city's banks are under siege! What is Capital City to do? 

Have no fear- Underdog is here!

This was an enjoyable read. My only complaint is that this story, plus the Colonel Bragg short and a couple of other Underdog extras were NOT Halloween themed.

I love American Mythology. I think that they are a great publisher who does release Halloween themed (regular sized) comics. But when it comes to their HCF offerings, none of them are holiday related. 

If I could get my wish, I would ask the publisher to start giving me advanced previews for my Family Comic Friday reviews. But if I could have a second wish it would be for the mini comics to be Halloween themed.

A fun read. It just doesn't quite get you into the Halloween mood. But I greatly appreciate the effort!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Archie's Madhouse Magic (2019 Halloween ComicFest Mini Comic)

Every year, local comics shops do an event call Halloween ComicFest. Nationwide, stores give away free comics while enticing fans with big sales and other cool stuff. I've been going to these events for about a decade now. So I think I am a bit of an expert on what books have been offered over the years. Thus, I can say without a doubt, the annual Archie is the one I looked forward to the most!

In this year's freebie, the star of the book is Sabrina, the Teenage Witch. With her hit Netflix series, The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, the blonde sorceress is the darling of the Archie Comics conglomerate. 

In the opening tale, Sabrina doesn't want to go to her family's annual Halloween coven. Instead, being a typical teenager, Sabrina wants to party with all of her friends. With this being her final answer, Sabrina has unlocked a family curse and turned herself into an ugly troll! Seeing as this looks like an awesome costume, maybe the occutlist can play this to her favor and end up winning the costume contest!

In the second feature, a haunt is terrorizing Riverdale. As a result, ladies are dropping their purses only for them to go missing! The whole matter has got Betty and Veronica spooked. It's up to Archie and Jughead to get to the bottom of this ghost story!

This was a great read! It did not disappoint. I only wish Archie Comics would tell you what year the stories were reprinted from.  The Archie story has Betty and Veronica looking like they are from the 1950s but their outfits scream the 70s! I'm really intrigued by this. If any of you readers know the answer, please drop me a line!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Archie's Mad House Mayhem (2018 Halloween ComicFest)

Over the years of the Halloween ComicFest, the Archie Comics offerings have been a consistent contributor! This year's selection was no different! Well, almost...

First up is an adventure with Betty and Archie. They're biking when Betty's beloved cat jumps out of Betty's basket and runs into a supposed haunted house. Can the teens find the kitty or will Betty and Archie find something a little more sinister?

Then the Archie Gang run a community center Halloween party. Archie thinks he's going to be the main attraction, Frankenstein. But Reggie wheels and deals a way to be Frankie instead. Now Archie is put in a frumpy pumpkin party and now the clown of the party. Will Reg get away with his usual slimy tricks or will things turn out okay for the world's oldest red head?

Both stories were good fun. The haunted house story was actually a tiny bit spooky and gave me chills. The Frankenstein yarn was quite funny. But one thing was missing and to me, it was a big piece of the puzzle- Dan Parent!

Dan Parent is a master at Archie Comics stories. I don't know what it is but Parent plus Riverdale is magic. In terms of the stories themselves, they were really good. But with the artwork, there was something not so clean about it. It was kinda scratchy looking. Almost like it was photocopied but I couldn't find evidence of it. It's just not the clean work that I expect from Archie Comics. 

Though it wasn't 100% perfect, I was barely disappointed by this mini-comic special. If I had to choose, I'd still pick this one above all the other selections. When it comes to free comics at Halloween, Archie is still my pick!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Grumpy Cat (and Pokey!) Halloween Comic Fest 2016

This 2016 Halloween Comic Fest mini comic was a delight and a half! Pokey wants his brother Grump Cat to go trick-or-treating with him. Of course, GC isn't having any of it. Thinking he can have a peaceful Halloween night, Grumpy challenges his brother to spend the night in a haunted house. Everything seems alright at first until Pokey hears a ghost. Grumpy naturally thinks Pokey is just freakin' out being in the haunted house and with a All Hallow's Eve at home in his sights, Grumpy eggs his sibling on. That is, until Grumpy ends up face-to-face with a ghost cat!

Of the mini comic freebies from last year, this one was my favorite. Grumpy Cat is in many ways like Garfield- only funnier. Way more funnier. Pokey is such a great character and has such great chemistry with Grumpy. Plus Pokey is tons more likable than Garfield's 'nemesis' Nermal, who can be quite arrogant and annoying.

There was a small 2-3 page story about Grumpy and Pokey going to Comic-Con in the back. It had some great art renderings of a bunch of cosplayers. But I didn't really understand the punchline to that episode.

Overall, this was a dynamite Halloween read from the gang at Dynamite. I loved the killer cover of Grumpy Cat as Jason from Friday the 13th! (Yes- pun intended!)

You might have trouble finding a copy of this mini-comic. But just about any comic book shop in America sells the further monthly adventures of Grumpy Cat! Check them out!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

John Carpenter's Tales for a Halloween Night Vol. 2 (Halloween Comic Fest 2016)

This Halloween Comic Fest freebie is an selection from the second volume of John Carpenter's Tales for a Halloween Night. There's currently three volumes in this series that pits some of horror comics, film, and novels best and brightest together in an anthology series that rivals those old horror anthologies of the pre-code era. 

The story in this mini-comic 'The Traveler's Tale' was written by Carpenter himself. It has a treasure hunter stealing a beautiful box from a bazaar only to inherit the curse inside: a torso-less head with a personality and a set of coordinates that promise some special riches when found.

It wasn't the best story. I did like the twist ending. But the flow of the story was off to me. I'm sorry but it you title something as 'tales' then what you read- even if it's a mini comic- should have more than one story. 

 Let it be said, I would be more than willing to read the complete 200 page volume that this story was a sample of. I just wasn't happy with what I was offered. Yes, I'm saying it- I kinda felt gypped with this book even though I got it for free.

Rating: 6 out of 10 stars.

You Choose the Story When You're the Unbeatable Squirrel Girl (2016 Halloween Comic Fest)

It's another Halloween Comic Fest offering that has absolutely nothing to do with Halloween. But I knew this going into both obtaining and reading this book. Why I wanted to read this book was because I loved the concept behind this story. It's a Choose Your Own Adventure comic book. 

For those of you not in the know, in the 80s, there were dozens upon dozens of series of books where a reader got to choose their fate through a number of choices placed strategically throughout the book. I absolutely loved those books. But I've never seen it in comic book form- until now!

The mighty Galactus has deemed the Unbeatable Squirrel Girl to be the champion of Earth. In order to prove her worth, the World Eater has put her through a series of bizarre challenges, like fighting a mass of living algae.  

This issue isn't exactly the best 'find your fate' type of story I've ever read in terms of the number of options. But the overall story was extremely funny and I did like the chance to be in charge of the storyline for a change. Plus, reading all of the unselected options were quite entertaining. I just don't think this type of story quite works in a comic book format. 

Regardless of how well this book translate, this was a pretty successful offering from Marvel.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Archie's Mad House (2016 Halloween Comic Fest Mini-Comic)

Recently, Archie created an imprint comprised of more adult horror titles such as Afterlife with Archie. The imprint was called Archie's Mad House. This book is NOT a sample of those titles. 

Long before it grew up, Archie's Mad House was a monthly comic in the 60s that generally revolved around a central theme. Holidays such as Christmas and Halloween and Valentines were biggies. However, towards the end of the series, the Archie gang didn't even appear in the book. It was a title in which just about anything could happen. 

This 2016 mini-comic features two Archie stories set during Halloween. There's 2 stories and as well as 2 one-page gags. The best story has Reggie pissing off Jughead royally to the point that Reg thinks he's going get it when Halloween comes around. In typical Jughead fashion, the ambivalent teen is more devious than people suspect and does nothing allowing Reggie to slowly go crazy waiting for his just desserts. 

 At only 16 pages, there's a ton of fun packed into this book. It's one reason why I consistently grab the Archie mini-comics during each Halloween Comics Fest. I know that I'll get the most bang for my buck. Of course, I know that this is a free comic but sometimes, those freebie's just aren't worth grabbing. Not here- Archie's Mad House is definitely Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Grimmiss Island (2016 Halloween Comic Fest Mini-Comic)

On a tiny island, a pair of witch doctors craft a Grimmiss in order to appease the angry volcano goddess. This sort of tiki golem has a mind of it's own. Probably because the witch doctor's used a little too much jalapeno...

Big fun from Franco and Art Baltazar (Tiny Titans) that I really enjoyed. There's nothing remotely Halloween about this book really. At least it was free! But I liked what I read and I wanna read more. 

Now on my wish list.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Skylanders (Family Comic Friday 2015 Halloween ComicFest Edition)

   My last pick for Halloween ComicFest 2015 is Skylanders. This free mini comic is based on the video game of the same name. Skylanders came out in 2011 and was huge around its first holiday season on store shelves. The game has interactive action figures so that players can have fun even with the power is out. I remember when the first Skylanders game (Spyro's Adventure) came out as people were scooping these toys up by the dozens and selling them on eBay for crazy prices. While I am not sure how popular this game series is now, Skylanders is the grandfather of interactive Near Field Communication (NFC) games, greatly inspiring Disney's Infinity line. 

    There are 3 stories in this comic. The first has an evil chile pepper named Chef Pepper Jack (LOVE THE NAME!!!),  terrorizing a village of teddy bears. He's challenged by a forgotten Skylander element called Knight Light and it's a battle between good and evil that was visually thrilling and not very hard to follow for someone not familiar with the franchise.

    In the second adventure, a five-legged frog named Doctor Krankcase looks to interrupt the Annual Mabu Meander. It's a sort of junior marathon that the villain has found a loophole allowing him to participate and probably win by cheating. That is unless the hero centaur Knight Mare has anything to say about it. Again, another fun tale that isn't hard for the uninitiated to enjoy.

   Lastly, two foes find themselves drugged and placed in a deadly trap. The only way out is for these two enemies to join forces if they want to live to fight another day. I really enjoy those type of stories that force mortal enemies to team-up. Usually, these adventures end with a double cross, so it's refreshing to see real teamwork for once.

    That story ends with a cliffhanger. Normally, those type of adventures is a pet peeve of mine. But in this case, the story ends in such a way that if you don't go on to purchase the companion piece to this caper that you don't miss anything. But with 3 great stories, I have a feeling that this freebie will encourage some young readers to want to know what happens next.

    Skylanders isn't my cup of tea. I don't see myself rushing out to buy a starter kit for the video game tomorrow. But if I had the chance to read another free comic at next year's Halloween ComicFest, I wouldn't turn it down. 

   Worth Consuming

    Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.