Spoof #2

Parody has been a regular staple of Marvel Comics. These funny books usually haven't been met with much success. However titles like Not Brand Ecch and What The?! are considered cult classic fan favorites. This title is not one of them.

Spoof ran sporadically over the course of 1970-1973, producing

a grand total of 5 issues! The biggest draw for those few who still

remember this series were the covers. Featuring art by the great

EC Comics legend John Severin, these covers had amazing

caricatures of 1970s icons such as Blacula, Marcus Welby and

Richard Nixon.

Ironically, this issue, which I happen to purchase over Father's

Day weekend, was the only one that featured a single property

- a parody of the groundbreaking sitcom All in the Family. That

show starred Carrol O'Connor as the bigoted Archie Bunker.

Bunker would often tell people that he was through with them

with the send-off 'see you in the funny papers.' In this spoof, he

learns that life in the tumultuous 1970s might actually be better

than living in those Sunday Comics.

In this issue we've also got a glorious spoof on the anthology

horror film The Vault of Horror and the EC Comics that inspired

the movie. This one featured a story by future New Teen Titans

scribe Marv Wolfman and artwork by another EC alum, Marie

Severin (John's sister).

Lastly we've got a Tarzan spoof in which after years of living as

a domesticated lord, the King of the Jungle returns to deepest

darkest Africa. Only Tarzan finds that the continent has

modernized in his absence. This was the most political of the 3

stories. It was also my least favorite.

With artwork by both of the Severins, I feel that Spoof was

Marvel’s attempt to rival Cracked Magazine. But I know that isn’t

the case as both artists were frequent contributors to both

Marvel and Cracked at this time. Maybe this was just another of

Stan Lee’s flights of fancy that didn’t take off with the average

Marvel reader of the 1970s.

One thing is for sure, this book is about as borderline adult as you

can get in a Comics Code book. Look at Charlie Brown and

Nancy posed like Fritz the Cat and his girl on the top left corner.

Plus, there’s plenty of double entendres and blatant take about

sex, drugs and gettin’ naked.

Above all, this book was a flop because it couldn’t be produced

in a timely and consistent manner.

An interesting look at one of Marvel’s earliest duds. Not terrible

stuff. But definitely not ‘The Galactus Saga’ either. The art is

quite stunning however. I gotta say, I love those Severins!

Rating: 6 out of 10 stars.

Warlock Holmes: A Study in Brimstone by G.S. Denning

   Holy Crap- I read an actual novel!!!

   I know it's very rare when I do this. Madman With a Book is primarily devoted to comic books and graphic novels. But every once in a while a novel peaks my interest. Warlock Holmes : A Study In Brimstone is one such book.

    Imagine if Sherlock Holmes was not really a great detective. Instead of a man of science, Holmes is a student of the Dark Arts. But he's not even a really good one of those either. Yet in order to keep his secret safe, Warlock Holmes helps the police of Scotland Yard solve a number of crimes under the guise of using science.

     Warlock's true detective genius is actually Watson! A brilliant doctor, Watson secretly solves the crimes, with a little hocus pocus from Holmes. Together, the pair become fast friends and the toast of the London. The pair eventually ally themselves with other supernatural crime fighters; such as the vampire detective Lestrade. It's their mission to end the reign of the master criminal James Moriarty, whose spirit currently resides in one Warlock Holmes of 221B Baker Street!

     A Study in Brimstone is a laugh-out-loud parody of everything Sherlock Holmes. Sprinkled with a little bit of Terry Pratchett and Douglas Adams, along with Doyle, the short stories will change how you see Holmes and Watson. Containing spoofs of A Study in Scarlet, the Adventure of the Yellow Face, and others, this book is the first in a series. 

   Even though it's a tad unpolished and gets a little too silly at times, I could not put down this 2016 work by G.S. Denning. In fact, I enjoyed Warlock Holmes so much that I raced back to the library and got the second book. I'm only about 30 pages in right now but it's just as funny as this opening volume! 

      Worth Consuming!

      Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.