The Ren & Stimpy Show Holiday Special, 1994

    

Happy, Happy, Joy, Joy! That's what Christmas is all about to good little Stimpy J. Cat. And getting Toys! Well, at least that's what arguably lovable Ren Hoek thinks.
      This special from 1994 is a compilation of 2 holiday-themed comics from the Marvel series based on the classic kids cartoon plus some all new material. The first half of the special involves Mr. Yak flipping channels and being inundated with dozens of horrible Christmas specials. Then Ren must earn money in order to buy Stimpy a legendary Log (It's big, it's heavy, it's wood.) after he discovers that Stimpy used his life savings to buy his chihuahua friend a Christmas gift.
   Then it's back to some more of those weird holiday specials. I say they're weird because most of them involve characters dressed up as walruses. This is some sort of secret shame to dress as such and to my honest recollection, I have no memory of this running gag. But I can tell you it gets old real quick.
  Lastly, Ren seeks revenge on Ol St. Nick after Stimpy gets a ton of presents for being good and the puppy has wound up on the naughty list. Kris Kringle will learn his lesson though as Ren's found enough incriminating evidence to put him permanently back on the good list while being able to earn some dough blackmailing characters such as Powdered Toast Man.
    I rather liked this holiday special. I've read the second story involving Ren blackmailing Santa before. Thankfully, it was the only thing I had read before. Plus, there was more stuff in the issue I had read previously, like an 'Ask Dr. Stupid' segment and some fake commercials. I'm assuming that there is some unused material in the other issue from which in this book was culled. So, that issue is still on my wish list. Plus as I mentioned before, there is some all-new material in this book along with the reprints.
   I love Ren & Stimpy. It was a treat to watch growing up in the 90s with my kid sister and getting to revisit this world once again through this holiday special has me wanting to do two things really bad- 1) get all of the books in the Marvel regular series and 2) watch some Ren & Stimpy!
   It's a little gross, a little corny, and totally weird, but I love it and it's worth consuming.

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Legends of the DC Universe #25

   

  Part two of the Darkseid story concludes with the ruler of Apokolips slowly going insane as his neural link to the zombified dog soldier is making him sympathetic to the rebellion's cause. But the demigod must continue if he is to get to the bottom of the cause of this insurrection and to learn the ultimate fate of D-VO, the tagger whose the source behind this plague of hope.

    The conclusion was much better than the first chapter. Mostly, because it fits better with the Kirby formula behind the Fourth World saga. Also, this part delves more into the infantryman's origin and his time in Granny Goodness'es Orphanages. That part of Apokolips has always fascinated me as it plays a major role in the origin story of Mister Miracle. The place is designed to break a child in order for it to be built up in the image (and service) of Darkseid. Yet, the abandoned son of New Genesis found the courage and resolve to fight this brainwashing and went on to become a crime-fighting escape artist and valued member of the Justice League.
 
    This story went on to prove that he wasn't alone.
 
    I've not mentioned much about the art. Pencilled by Steve Pugh, this is another artist that I am not very familiar with. But his style is very similar to that of Paul Pope (Batman: 100.) There' a German Impressionist quality to it what with his character's swooping eyebrows and embellished walls and crooked staircases. This is very much the leftover sets from the Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. Not the most structurally sound architecture, but for a world as twisted as Apokolips, it works.

   Worth Consuming.
   
Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Legends of the DC Universe #24

I'm gonna let you in on a little secret- when I was younger and I'd buy a comic book grab bag, I would often get back issues of Kirby's Fourth World series. New Gods, Mister Miracle, The Forever People as well as Kamandi and the Demon. I didn't know what it was and I thought they were like baseball cards; you know commons. Man was I wrong. I would often give or throw them away.

 Now in my late 30s, I've grown to realize my mistake and to value their historical and culture significance. Also, I've been actively trying to recreate my creation through trades and back issue bonanzas I've even been enjoying some of the newer stuff like John Byrne's run in the mid-90s. So, when a Darkseid two-parter popped up in my rotation to read in Legends, I was excited to revisit that oft-overlooked realm of the DC Universe.

  In this issue, a member of Darkseid's 'Dog' army is dispatched to take out a tagger whose actions are causing dissention amongst the populace of Apokolips. When the battle moves to a temple devoted to Darkseid, an explosion occurs. The trooper is listed as a casualty and the rebel is thought dead as well.

  In order to get to the bottom of this rebellion the despot of Apokolips with the assistance of his minion Desaad has reanimated the soldier. Using the 'zombie's' testimony, Darkseid hopes to be able to quash the revolution because his previous method of mass disintegration of the surrounding populace has surprisingly not been working. Imagine that!
 
   When I first read this, I wasn't completely sold on it. But as I'm reviewing this issue, it's actually gaining more of my favor. It's still not the best Fourth World tale I've ever read, but it cliffhangs to a degree that I feel positive of it's potential.

    Worth Consuming.

    Rating: 7 out of 10 stars.

The Values of Reading Scripts (Lessons for an Aspiring Comic Book Writer by an Aspiring Comic Book Writer)

 If you're looking to get into the comic book industry like I am, then one section of comic trades that I suggest you never skip is the original scripts. Recently a few trades I read included those in their directors cut sections. Both 'Batman, Volume 4: Zero Year- Secret City' and 'Marvel Universe Vs. The Punisher' include the script to the first issue in the back of said volumes. Along with aspiring comic writers, I would urge anyone whose looking to become a script writer or playwright to use those two books as resources)

   Normally, I would skip these. But now as I'm submitting proposals and trying to develop story ideas, those inclusions have been great training tools for me. There are books about writing comics and I own a couple. But as I'm trying to develop my own writing style, I've decided to forgo reading them right now. I'm very cautious that I write with my own words and not start copying some author's techniques.

    However, as I write up scripts and proposals, I've been a little hesitant to put too much information in them. Well, I'm here to tell you that's a mistake. (If you're writing a proposal, yes do keep it to less than 3 pages, but do not be afraid to describe your characters, sets, or story ideas. How else are you going to get your green light if you can't sell the story to your publisher or producer?) As a scriptwriter, you're crafting a story without a strict narrative form. So, the director, artist, or set designer reading your script is going to need to know how to frame and design your ideas.  So, be as descriptive as possible but don't go off the rails and describe everything.

    If a coffee mug is important to your story, I've learned from these scripts that you should that. But you don't have to say that the coffee mug is navy blue, has chips on it, and is filled with Diet Pepsi. That is unless it's important that the reader know that  your character is a fan of the Duke Blue Devils, extremely clumsy, or on a diet. It's important to keep the information in your scripts relevant.

 Another thing I've learned is that while the writer has a vision for their story, it's not always going to translate from script to art. Both scripts have had things that were omitted. Maybe the editor didn't like it, maybe the artist had a different vision, or maybe after completion, the writer contacted the artist with a different slant. So, be flexible but don't compromise the soul of your script either.

   Though I've only read 2 scripts, that doesn't mean that they're aren't more out there. Why, I've probably overlooked scripts included in the back of a trade before and just never realized it. I'm a little embarrassed by that fact as well as a bit upset at myself for skipping out on countless training exercises. They say the worst thing for an aspiring writer to do is to put off writing if they don't have the next great novel in them yet. Even if you don't have a proposal accepted yet, you can do like I do and polish your craft by writing reviews, articles, or just silly short stories. You never know when inspiration might hit.

   The same goes for scripts. If you're looking to write them one day but don't know what you want to create just yet, then do the next best thing: read scripts. Study them, break them apart, explore the option of 'what if they did this?" Even if you don't have the spark in you, you can get warmed up reading scripts such as these because where there's heat- eventually will come fire.

Astro City: Victory

 

Astro City has always been one of those comics that was both a social commentary and parody of comic books and superheroes. But it's never been this obvious. The main three characters in this story are Samaritan, The Confessor, and Winged Victory. But in reality, these characters are Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman.
 
   So, I got excited about an all-new Astro City story and I was really reading Trinity (the name for DC's short-lived Superman-Batman-Wonder Woman team-up from 2008-2009.) Astro City is now published by Vertigo, an imprint of DC Comics. Thus, DC is technically the owner of Astro City right now. With 52 potential incarnations of the DC Trinity, do readers really need a 53rd
 
    I've known for a while that Samaritan is an analog of the Man of Steel. But he's not the star of the comic- the city is! Yet in this storyline, that changes very much.
 
    In Victory- the mysterious Winged Victory is under attack by a smear campaign when a group of super villains and students of Victory's women self-sufficiency centers accuse the Champion of the Council of Nike of setting up battles to make her look better in the front of the media's cameras. Naturally, Winged Victory wants to be an independent woman and solve this crisis on her own. But this controversy is proving to be a conspiracy and it may be too much for just one person to solve when the government agency EAGLE comes to shut down her operation and take her in for questioning.
 
    Enter the Confessor and Samaritan.
 
    I really love Kurt Busiek's Astro City. But this storyline is not classic Astro City and that's very disappointing. The story was pretty good. But, it's just too cliched and too similar to other comic book tales I've read in the past.
 
     Thankfully, this volume isn't just about the 'Big Three." Included in this book is the Astro City Visitor's Guide. From 2004, this book is quintessential Astro City because it is about the main character of this series- the bustling city itself. There's some great back story here along with a really neat short story about a girl who takes a superhero tour of the city and ends up becoming a part of the action. There are also about two dozen character sheets about the generations of superheroes to operate in the fair city. Some of these, especially the First Family, are a parody (or knock-offs) of established Marvel and DC properties. Again, they aren't the focus of the book, so it's forgivable.
 
    I got this book from (everyone all at once-) my local library. I'm actually glad I didn't buy this book. In fact if I came across these books as individual issues, the only thing I'd consider buying would be the visitors guide. I look forward to my return visit to Astro City. I just hope that forthcoming trips don't follow the same formula as this venture did.

   Rating: 5 out of 10 stars.

Legends of the DC Universe #23

A great cover by the Rude Dude, Steve Rude.

Part two opens with Superman and Dabney being rescued by a tribe of werewolves. Together, They all now set out in search of the leader of the tribe of vampires in hopes of saving the earth and for the man of steel and captive to return home ( hopefully back normal size.)

   But it is discovered that the ruler of Transilvane, the micro planet threatening to destroy all of the earth's plastics is the dread lord of vampires.

    I still think this plot is ludicrous and fit for B-movie fodder. True, the late night horror pics on TV are what Dabney used to educate the citizens of Transilvane. Maybe that explains the stupid plot to bring the earth to it's knees. Or maybe the whole thing is a ruse in order to trap the creator of Transilvane and force him to make the vampire lord the strongest force on his planet? I'll leave that to you dear reader.

   However, I must say that the dialogue in this chapter is an improvement. The chemistry between Superman and Dabney is very similar to that of DeNiro and Grodin in the classic 80s hit, Midnight Run. Superman, in DeNiro's role of beleaguered bounty hunter, just seems to me, is looking for the first chance he can get to deck Dabney without violating his strict moral code. Dabney, on the other hand, is like Charles Grodin's con man character, eager to assist the Man of Tomorrow. But given the chance to run or defeat Superman, he's going to take it without any crisis of conscience. (This is making me want to see Midnight Run again really bad.)

  It's not the best issue starring Superman that I've ever read, but it's enough of an improvement for me to deem it Worth Consuming.

Rating: 7 out of 10 stars.

Walt Disney's Christmas Parade, 1988 (Family Comic Friday)

    I promised to try and review some newer titles in time for Christmas. But I just couldn't pass this up. In the past year, I've found several Disney holiday comics for $3 or less at stores such as Dollar General and the Dollar Store. Not to mention that there's dozens of Disney holiday comics to be found at your local comic shop. If you live in the Durham area, I recommend searching the Disney section at Books Do Furnish a Room. They also carry the current selection of Archie Christmas-themed comics, of which I will be reviewing next week.

 For a very long time, Gemstone published the Disney titles. That's now changed over to Marvel, now that Disney is their parent company. However, they don't seem to release very much in comics form nowadays.

    Gemstone losing the licensing rights is one reason you can find Disney comics for cheap. Another is that many of the Christmas-themed books were comprised of reprints. With no artists or writers to pay, the cost of books was lower. Also, first run stuff is more sought after than reprinted material. But that doesn't mean that these books are not worth owning or reading. Let's look at the book I read.

    In this treasury from 1988, Donald and his nephews deal with some new residents living in his Christmas Tree, later Huey, Dewey, and Louie must figure out what Donald wants for Christmas if their going to receive the only item on their wish list. Then Minnie tries to spread some holiday cheer to the animals of the forest while Mickey and Goofy deliver a ceramic Santa to a mysterious client. Then Jiminy Cricket helps Thumper outfox a wolf, so they can make it to Christmas Dinner with the Seven Dwarfs and Uncle Scrooge tries to recall one good deed he did in the previous year in hopes Santa will visit him. Along with a few one-page gags starring the nephews and Goofy, there are two tales starring characters I've never heard of before.

     One is a fellow named Bucky Bug. He and a friend build a house out of discarded candy while annoyingly talking in verse. Then we meet the Three Little Kittens who've taken up residence with a young girl, but can't seem to keep out of trouble. Neither of these tales is Christmas or other holiday related. Yet, with 9 out the 11 or so stories being holiday themed I will excuse this oversight (and frequent pet peeve of mine.) Plus, with material dated from 1950-1988, only the Bucky Bug story feels dated. The rest were fresh and relevant to me as I am sure they were when first published.

    I think I paid $4 or less for this book online and as I mentioned before there are Disney comic treasuries galore to be found at discount stores and comic shops nationwide. You just gotta search. You and your kids will be glad you did.

  Worth Consuming

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.