Quarter Bin #44: Brother's Blitz, Part 2

Disclaimer: Comics featured in this column do not necessarily come from a quarter bin.  The ones in the "Brother's Blitz" series, however, in all likelihood were got for a good price.  The following are the contents of several boxes given to me as presents more than a decade ago, which I did not read until recently.

Avengers West Coast #48 (Marvel)
From September 1989:
Anyone who thought Scarlet Witch's predicaments since House of M are unique for the character probably aren't aware of just how obsessively Marvel keeps track of its own comics and keeps using even the most ridiculous developments to inform new stories (thankfully, there are limits).  In this issue (from another time there were a bunch of Avengers teams running around), Wanda is being held captive and exploited by an evil organization.  From the mind of John Byrne.

Cable #33 (Marvel)
From July 1996:
Jeph Loeb seems to thrive better in shorter assignments than when he's called to work in a more ongoing capacity (he got around this in his seminal Superman/Batman by working on very specific arcs).  In the last Blitz, I dismissed Cable as just another symptom of the mediocre X-Men '90s, but it's worth noting that Loeb and James Robinson wrote those (and they were released in 1997).  I won't say they're good, but they do have the hallmark character work, even if it's mired in uninteresting material that someone at Marvel thought was awesome at the time (I appreciated DC at the time because it avoided what the rest of the industry was doing).  Are these comics worth a look?  Well, only just that.

Concrete: Think Like a Mountain #2 (Dark House)
From April 1996:
For some of you newer comics readers, Concrete was pretty big at the time, basically what Hellboy is today for Dark Horse.  He was a human trapped in an alien body, which as "Concrete" suggests basically turned him into the Fantastic Four's Thing.  Except Concrete was not the Thing.  He was a lot like a mountain, actually.  And creator Paul Chadwick was an unapologetic environmentalist (if you don't believe me, check out this issue for the bonus material alone), and that's what this comic is all about.  To Chadwick's credit, at least in this issue he allows Concrete to be fairly (typically) impassive.  I wonder why the character didn't resurface in the wake of Al Gore's Inconvenient Truth campaign (famously more passionate than his presidential one).  Now Chadwick seems content to leave Concrete as a curious artifact.

Damage Control #3 of 4 (Marvel)
From January 1990:
This seems to be Marvel's version of DC's (in)famous Bwa-ha-ha Justice League, a jokey look at the more routine (and less reverent) corners of the superhero life.  These guys try to clean up the damage left behind, hence the title.  She-Hulk dominates the issue, however, with not a little assist from her gimmick at the time, breaking the fourth wall.

Elven #4 (Malibu)
From May 1995:
Malibu may be obscurely known today for giving us the Men in Black concept that led to the movies, but at the time it made a game attempt to join the superhero big leagues with its Ultraverse line, which Marvel eventually absorbed and forgot about.  Less forgettable than the star of this book is guest-star I'm-Definitely-NOT-Captain-Marvel Prime.

Ex-Mutants #14 (Malibu)
From March 1993:
Speaking of the Ultraverse, this was another of its efforts.  It's forgotten now, but in the early '90s several companies attempt to make their own mutant franchises.  This one did not make its intentions subtle.  It was also not especially good.

Freex #4 (Malibu)
From October 1993:
Another offering from Ultraverse, this one was easily the bunch of the three.  But it had a terrible title.  Hence another reason why nobody remembers it.  From writer Gerard Jones, who was a notable Green Lantern creator.  Very reminiscent of DC's later Primal Force, part of the original Zero Month.

Give Me Liberty #1 (Dark Horse)
June 1990:
That there are people who argue Frank Miller hates women (mostly because in Sin City they're all strippers) is a little surprising, considering he's responsible for the creation of Martha Washington.  No, the first president's wife was not a time-hopping robot.  This Martha Washington lives in a future where everything bad about America has only gotten worse.  Miller (and artist Dave Gibbons, who must have felt a certain amount of deja vu, having worked on Watchmen a few years earlier) tracks Martha's life in this issue from 1995 to 2010, as she grows up in a district/asylum for the underprivileged and escapes it by enlisting in the military.  Forced into desperate acts that appall her, Martha is always sympathetic.  I always knew this one was in the collection, but never got around to reading it, which is just as well, because I think I appreciate it more now than I would have ten years ago.  The character last appeared in 2007, but already by then was a forgotten piece of Miller's legacy, which is a pity.

Guardians of the Galaxy #53 (Marvel)
From October 1994
Guardians of the Galaxy #56
From January 1995:
A Marvel book from the '90s that looks like an Image book from the '90s, especially that first issue.  I think these guys were Marvel's attempt at an answer for DC's Legion of Super-Heroes, a team set a thousand years in the future.

Hawkman #7 (DC)
From March 1994:
Featuring Mongrel, another character created during the 1993 Bloodlines Annuals event, and a version of Hawkman that was very Native American (it's curious, because Zero Hour was supposed to have made Hawkman less schizophrenic).  Actually pretty interesting, though I thought the Bloodlines characters on the whole were a lot more interesting than their legacy suggests.  If you want some 2012 context, I think what happened was that fans at the time thought they were just an attempt to cash in on the Image phenomenon.  No, fans, that's the horrible art in Guardians of the Galaxy #53.  Bloodlines was awesome, and I will not rest until I resurrect what it achieved.

Heroes #3 (Milestone)
From July 1996:
No, not a comic based on a TV show that debuted a decade later (seek Isaac Mendez elsewhere).  Rather, this was Milestone's attempt to be a little more mainstream.  On all accounts, Milestone was already mainstream.  Icon was a Superman figure.  Hardware was an Iron Man figure.  Static was a Spider-Man figure.  The Blood Syndicate was an Image figure (see!).  But they were all black.  Heroes, then, was an attempt to try and make Milestone more relatable.  The body builder-esque female Donner was white (or certainly looks it).  Reads almost like a Kurt Busiek comic today.

The Inhumans Special  #1 (Marvel)
From April 1990:
I've never been able to care for the Inhumans, basically a version of Jack Kirby's New Gods as if they were mutants and thus perpetual outcasts (or, the popular reception of the New Gods!).  This did not change my opinion.  Possibly doesn't help that the cover touts their first encounter with the Fantastic Four.  Which really doesn't amount to anything special.

My Name Is Chaos #3 of 4 (DC)
From 1992:
From writer Tom Veitch, this was one of the big discoveries from this batch, part of a prestige format mini-series that today reads like a version of Ridley Scott's Prometheus that doesn't become a horror story midway through.  Ideally this would be another comic that would not have been forgotten.  Though popular reception of Martian tales does seem to be a dicey affair, so I guess I shouldn't be so surprised.  I will probably attempt to read the rest of this one.

The Omega Men #21 (DC)
From December 1984
The Omega Men #27
From June 1985:
Pretty much rubbish, but the second issue does reference Peter Pan, so I may have to have another look at some point.

One Mile Up #1 of 5 (Eclipse)
From December 1991:
Terrible cover, but what's inside is pretty awesome, like an updated version of Tom Corbett, Space Cadet (more on that later!), so that was a nice surprise.

The Origin of the Defiant Universe (Defiant)
From February 1994:
Jim Shooter kicked around for quite a while, trying to jumpstart new or existing characters outside of the Big Two (he's probably still at it), and this was one of those efforts, an ambitious prose introduction that's like Jack Kirby's New Gods (there they are again!).  In all likelihood, the resulting comics were not worth this effort, but at least this was interesting!

Shakespeare's Othello (Tome Press)
From 1993:
Actually a very interesting adaptation, from David J. Verruni.  Previously I was most familiar with the play thanks to Kenneth Branagh and Laurence Fishburne.  Though somehow I had more sympathy for Othello when he was Morpheus...

Outbreed 999 #1 (Black Out)
From May 1994
Outbreed 999 #2
From July 1994:
I kind of feel bad for small press creators when they don't seem to realize that something about their effort is obviously small press.  The art, in this instance.  And maybe the lack of subtlety.

Overland Magazine #1 (Eclipse)
From April 1987:
An anthology of small press black-and-white comics!

Oz: Romance in Rags #2 (Caliber)
From 1996
Oz: Romance in Rags #3
From 1996
Oz #11
From 1995
Oz #12
From 1995:
In a lot of ways, Eric Shanower and Skottie Young have completely spoiled me.  Their Oz adaptations from Marvel have come to represent L. Frank Baum's original intentions (and not just because they adapt Baum's original books directly).  So it's both a good and bad thing to read these Oz comics now.  Shanower and Young have helped me catch up on some Oz lore that would not be apparent from the Judy Garland movie or the first book, so it's better that I read these comics now than when I originally got them, because the appropriate context would not be there for me to even begin to appreciate the work.  Young especially has come to represent my ideal Baum artist.  These comics do not feature Skottie Young.  But they're not as bad as they would have seemed without the context.  It is still unfortunate that anyone might have had to accept this as Oz material.  It's not bad, it's just not what it could be.  And it takes Oz in a direction that doesn't jive with Baum's original spirit.  Except if you know how he kind of it himself.  Emphasis on kind of.

Prince (Piranha)
From 1991:
The best thing about this comic (from a DC imprint) is that it was created by Dwayne McDuffie and Denys Cowan, who would later make their reputations on Milestone (McDuffie passed away last year).  The rest of it is a daydream of the pop musician's ego.  So yes, it features "When Doves Cry" Prince.  It's not terrible, but it is ludicrous.

Pummeller $2099 #1 (Parody Press)
From 1993:
A parody of Punisher 2099 (in case that wasn't obvious).  Not bad, may also even be funny!

Purge #1 of 4 (Ania)
From August 1993:
A completely low-rent answer to Milestone (gosh, tons of references to Milestone in this Blitz!), with poor production values.  This is the kind of description that gets me in trouble.  It's not that bad.  But it's not Milestone, either.

Q-Unit #1 (Harris)
From December 1993:
Harris Comics was known for Vampirella.  Let's just leave it at that.

Quagmire USA #1 (Antarctic Press)
From March 1994:
A spinoff from Ninja High School, which Antarctic had recently reacquired, and probably only decipherable by those fans.

The Queen of the Damned #9 of 12 (Innovation)
From September 1993
The Queen of the Damned #11 of 12
From December 1993:
Anne Rice was pretty huge at the time, thanks to Interview with the Vampire.  Queen of the Damned became a movie, too, a decade later.  For some reason Lestat in this comic seems to be based on Christopher Lambert (very noticeable on the cover of #9), erstwhile Highlander.  Pretty fascinating stuff, though.

Quest for Dreams Lost (Literacy Volunteers of Chicago)
From 1987:
Anthology meant to promote adult literacy.  Ironically, it could have used more thorough editing.  One segment features the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles!  Also features the first professional work of the late Mike Parobeck!

Robin Annual #3 (DC)
From 1994:
The theme of DC's 1994 Annuals was Elseworlds, a concept that replaced the multiverse during that decade, and gave fans a ton of alternate versions of their favorite characters.  This one, from Chuck Dixon, places the Batman mythos in feudal Japan, to remarkable effect.  Batman is Robin's sensei, and protector of a besieged lord.  And it only becomes more complicated.  Batman dies early in the story, leaving Robin to figure out how to avenge him (or not, which is his mentor's dying wish).  Eventually, Robin runs into Catwoman.  A lot of it plays like a version of Robin's experiences following "Knightfall," but infinitely more awesome.  The thing about these one-shot comics, annuals or not, especially if they're set in an alternate reality, is that fans are not likely to remember them.  I could read a whole series based on Ninja Robin, but this is certainly enough of a taste to know how well it works.  It's not surprising that Dixon would write a lot more martial arts comics following this effort.

Rogues Gallery (DC)
From 1996:
Basically an excuse for a pinup gallery of DC's villains, with Underworld Unleashed as the inspiration.  Said title was a crossover event from Mark Waid and Howard Porter, whose main benefit was to help differentiate Captain Marvel from Superman.  Come to think of it, that was the point of Kingdom Come, too.  Why hasn't Waid written more Captain Marvel?

Rust #5 (Now)
From 1989:
Ed Brubaker, thank this comic for having something to be ten times better than.

The Saga of Original Man #1 (Omega 7)
From 192:
Remember what I was saying about Milestone (!) and Purge earlier?  Original Man is exactly what Purge wasn't.  It's bad comics.  Pretty much hilariously bad.  I think I went to middle school with kids who did better work than this.

The Saga of the Sub-Mariner #3 of 12 (Marvel)
From January 1989:
Let me set some context here: Namor, the Sub-Mariner, is literally one of Marvel's original creations.  It's baffling that in seven decades no one has ever figured out what to do with him.  Aquaman has a better track record.  Aquaman!!!

Savage Dragon #2 (Image)
From July 1993
Savage Dragon #23
From October 1995:
Erik Larsen's Savage Dragon is basically an ongoing parody of traditional superhero comics.  The second issue of the series apparently featured the Ninja Turtles (two appearances in this Blitz?!?), while the 23rd features girls with boobs, at least one of them in a costume that could not logically contain them, and certainly not in battle!  And Savage Dragon is one of two Image series that is still in regular publication from the earliest days.  Is it really any wonder that the company basically abandoned the superhero format years ago, with few exceptions?

Secret Weapons #13 (Valiant)
From October 1994:
I'm not really sure what this was supposed to be about.  And I have two copies of this issue.

Shadowman #22 (Valiant)
From February 1994
Shadowman #23
From March 1994:
Valiant was one of the companies that tried to support the superhero line that invariably includes Solar, X-O, Turok, Magnus...Shadowman does not belong in this company.  I'm not sure what's going on here, either.

The Shadow #8 (DC)
From March 1988
The Shadow #9
From April 1988
The Shadow #10
From May 1988:
I'm now at something at a loss to reconcile something.  If you will remember (or have a look through my Challengers of the Unknown label), I became a little obsessed with Jeph Loeb and Tim Sales Challengers of the Unknown Must Die!, a precursor to The Long Halloween and other famed and popular collaborations.  Must Die, however, was not popular.  The world wasn't yet ready for Sale's art, for one thing.  Except these issues of The Shadow suggest precedent.  From Andy Helfer (better known as an editor) and Kyle Baker's debut on the title, these issues are so similar to Loeb and Sale's work with the Challengers that I can't help but assume a few things: that, for one, Loeb was inspired by this work when he was making the decision to enter the comics field; that perhaps I read or at least looked at these comics when I first received the Blitz; and that subconsciously my interest in Must Die was derived from them.  One way or another, memorable stuff.

Silver Sable and the Wild Pack #7 (Marvel)
From December 1992
Silver Sable and the Wild Pack #8
From January 1993
Silver Sable and the Wild Pack #9
From February 1993:
Marvel's bad girl comics!

Space: Above and Beyond #3 of 3 (Topps)
From March 1996:
Based on the short-lived TV series, think of it as Star Wars by way of BattleStar Galactica by way of Top Gun by way of Wing Commander...Features art from Yanick Paquette.

Space Cadet: The Original Tom Corbett #1 of 10 (Eternity)
From September 1990
Space Cadet: The Original Tom Corbett #2
From September 1990
Space Cadet: The Original Tom Corbett #3
From October 1990
Space Cadet: The Original Tim Corbett #4
From November 1990
Space Cadet: The Original Tom Corbett #5
From December 1990:
Reprints of classic daily comic strips from September 1951 to July 1952 (and that's half the series, on both accounts) featuring that guy you may recognize from the poster on Leonard and Sheldon's wall in The Big Bang Theory.  This is surprisingly interesting stuff, vintage sci-fi that with the right treatment could totally be revived today (if you doubt me, remember One Mile Up).

Superman Adventures #2 (DC)
From December 1996:
Featuring Scott McCloud (Understanding Comics), based on the second Bruce Timm/Paul Dini animated series.

Tempus Fugitive #1 of 4 (DC)
From 1990:
Not as compelling as My Name Is Chaos, but another prestige format limited series that nonetheless interesting.

They Were 11 #3 of 4 (Viz)
From 1995
They Were 11 #4
From 1995:
A manga that I found to be enjoyable, perhaps because it features some interesting character work.

The Mighty Thor Annual #15
From 1990
The Mighty Thor Annual #17
From 1992:
My attitude toward Thor, at least in these stories, is very similar to the Inhumans.  Remember what that was?

Triumph #1 of 4 (DC)
From June 1995:
Marvel's Sentry was Marvel's version of Triumph, an attempt to retroactively add an iconic superhero to the history books.  Neither of them is around today.

Turok Dinosaur Hunter #43 (Valiant)
From May 1996
Turok Dinosaur Hunter #44
From May 1996:
Although this is some fairly generic Native American storytelling, it's still heads and shoulders above most of the other stuff in the Blitz, so it counts as a win.  It's surprising that no company has been able to keep Turok and the several others like him in publication, or that any major company hasn't snapped them up, or whatever it would take to bring them some stability.

Venom: Nights of Vengeance #3 of 4 (Marvel)
From October 1994
Venom: Lethal Protector #4 of 6
From May 1993:
The other curious development of '90s Spider-Man besides the Clone Saga was the attempt to make Venom as pretty much originally envisioned a star.  I know everyone was wild about him...But really?

Warchild #4 (Maximum Press)
From August 1995:
Maximim was one of several versions of Rob Liefield's own publishing line after Image no longer wanted him (the best attempt was literally Awesome).  That's the only thing notable about this comic.

The Web #2 (Impact)
From October 1991:
Archie's Red Circle superheroes are in the same boat as Turok & pals: no one can figure out how to keep them in publication, and many have tried.  Impact was DC's first attempt (the recent Web series from Marc Guggenheim and Roger Robinson was worth the effort, but I was one of its few fans).  It obviously didn't work.

What If? #40 (Marvel)
From August 1992:
What If? is basically Marvel's long-running version of Elseworlds, only far less awesome, often very pedestrian look at what would have happened if something from a particular story had turned out differently. In this instance, what if Storm hadn't joined the X-Men?  As this story posits, nothing about her life would have changed except joining the X-Men.  How fascinating!