My Favorite Martian 2012 FCBD

For a TV show that hasn’t aired a new episode in 40 years nor been in reruns since the late 80s, I’m not sure why reprints of My Favorite Martian were chosen as a Free Comic Book Day 2012 selection- even if Hyperion Press is releasing the comics in a hardbound form. (Ok- to be honest, I’m not sure why My Favorite Martian needed to be reprinted period.)

The stories were bad- like B-movie Mystery Science Theater 3000 bad. But sometimes the art was spot on of a young Bill Bixby and Ray Walston. It’s classic Gold Key movie/tv tie-in in that it's a guilty pleasure to pick out continuity errors and make fun of the horrible plots..It was a pleasant surprise. That doesn't mean I’m gonna run out to my local comic shop and buy the collected edition either.

But, if you are a fan of the series or you love old 60s sitcoms, this series could be right up your alley.

Worth Consuming.

Marvel Fanfare #32

Part 2 of the Captain America/ Yellow Claw story finishes with an explosive finale. When it’s up to a guy named Leapfrog to save you, you’d better have some good contingency plans. Just wait till you see the calvary assembled to come to Capt’s rescue.

The backup feature is a little preachy when Vision of the Avengers decides to avenge a homeless woman murdered in cold blood. It’s a rather touching tale, but it’s also a story with a moral and a view on how to help America’s homeless problem.

Both feature really good storytelling and art.

Worth Consuming.

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars

Marvel Fanfare #31

Captain America is teamed with a bizarre “superhero” named Leapfrog in an attempt to stop a visiting guru from being assassinated by Yellow Claw. It’s a really weird story. Leapfrog’s like a poor man’s Ambush Bug. Completely bizarre, minus the trans-dimensional power. The better parts of the tale involve Capt. by himself. The pairing of him with Leapfrog is like a bad buddy cop movie.

There is also two other tales involving Doctor Strange and Daredevil. They’re good, just not really memorable.

Worth Consuming, but just barely.

Rating: 7 out of 10 stars.

Marvel Fanfare #30

 

Fanfare #30 is devoted to a Moon Knight story that feels like a Swamp Thing crossover. When Marc Spector tries to flee the effects of a Full Moon eclipse, he goes on a vacation. Only, mother nature, literally, is also feeling the effects of the eclipse and is going loco.

This just seems like a plot Alan Moore would’ve done during his Swamp Thing run. It’s a really good story, the supporting characters are interesting, and the art is very well done. I just keep expecting Swamp Thing to pop out at any moment.

Worth Consuming.

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Marvel Fanfare #29

Another in Fanfare’s “Experimental” comics series. In the John Byrne Hulk tale, the Green Machine is summoned to a medicine and somehow lured into a trap with a siamese twins-type pair of villains. The catch is that each page is a single panel and so narration, dialogue, and art must operate extra hard to tell a cohesive story with so little room to work.

Then, we’ve got a Captain America tale that squeezes in as many panels as possible. Why, there’s panels inside of panels. It makes for a massively fast-paced read. However, with all that space being used hyper-efficiently, the writer spends very little time making the supporting characters very interesting.

A novel concept that is enjoyable, though not without faults. That’s why these stories are experiments and not masterpieces.

Worth Consuming.

Rating: 7 out of 10 stars.

Marvel Fanfare #28

I’ve never really been a fan of Alpha Flight. I know Wolverine was once a member and it takes place in Canada. But, aside from those pluses, I’ve just never really liked this distant cousin of the X-Men.

This Fanfare is devoted to an Alpha Flight story that was meant to become a Marvel Graphic Novel but never saw the green light. It focuses on the checkered past of Northstar. However, it’s about his role as a member of a Canadian terrorist cell and not his controversial lifestyle choice- which I think would've made a much more compelling story.

The art is classic Marvel Graphic Novel quality. Lots of watercolors and straight pen-lines. The cast of extras is spanding and it’s a little hard keeping them straight when their names are A, B, C and 1, 2, 3.

Not the worst thing I ever read. But, just not my thing.

Rating: 6 out of 10 stars.

Marvel Fanfare #27

 

This issue of Fanfare features two story’s created by artist’s whose works could be considered ‘experimental’ and more suitable for graphic novels. The first story ‘Cars’ involves Matt Murdock’s law firm buying an automobile only to have it stolen the very same day. The motif of the car is ever spanning and is used symbolically and obtrusively, leaving the reader thinking about cars more than the story’s hero, Daredevil.

Then in what is probably my all-time favorite Spider-man story, Peter Parker is home alone and bored to tears. As he spends a restless night making doodles with his web-shooters, scaring old ladies, and playing phone tag, I just fell in love with the story with each panel.

This is perhaps my all-time favorite issue as well. I was left wanting so much more. It’s timeless and was just a damn fine read.

Worth Consuming.

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars