The Ninth Day of Classic Comics Christmas 2012

[JKCarrier]

4. Destroyer Duck
(7 issues, 1982-1984)

It started out as a fundraiser to help Steve Gerber win back the rights to Howard the Duck, but it turned out to be a terrific comic in its own right. After years of working on kids' cartoons, Gerber was back in his element, with his acid wit and knack for inspired lunacy in full force. And it's some of Jack Kirby's best late-period work -- the tale of a lone soldier waging war against a rapacious corporation clearly resonated with him. Politics, marketing, comics...they all get skewered by Gerber's savage pen. The book is full of great characters -- one of my favorites is "Medea", a parody of Elektra who wears hair curlers and a housecoat and wields electrified barbecue forks. Gerber may not have won his lawsuit, but he proved that he still had the goods.

[Slam_Bradley]

Scene of the Crime 1-4.





Ed Brubaker, Michael Lark and Sean Phillips team up to bring noir back to comics. At the time Scene of the Crime came out there hadn't been any real crime comics in the U.S. in quite some time. It had been seven years since Ms. Michael Tree had last been on the scene. Brubaker and company took all the tropes of the classic hard-boiled detective novel, updated them to the late 90s and set out a compelling and beautifully rendered noir that led to the absolutely brilliant work that Brubaker and Phillips have done on Criminal.

[hondobrode]

E.C. Classic Reprints # 1-12



The “other” EC , East Coast Comix, back from 1973-1976, reprinted some of the greatest works of the William Gaines’ EC comics. Exceptionally faithful to the originals, this series reprinted, in their entirety and in color, some of EC’s greatest issues from the 1950’s. These comics represent the greatest moments in “comics noir”, dark tales of fantasy and suspense which thrilled readers in the days before the Comics Code.
Titles include Crypt of Terror, Weird Science, Shock SuspenStories, Haunt of Fear, Weird Fantasy, Crime SuspenStories, Vault of Horror, Two-Fisted Tales, and Weird Science.



Stories written by Al Feldstein, William Gaines, Ron Barlow, Bruce Hershenson, Johnny Craig, Otto Binder, Jack Oleck, Jack Davis, Wally Wood, Jerry De Fuccio, Harvey Kurtzman, Gardner Fox, and Harry Harrison.



Covers and art by Jack Davis, George Evans, Joe Orlando, Graham Ingels, Wally Wood, Al Williamson, Jack Kamen, Reed Crandall, Johnny Craig, Jack Kamen, Bernie Krigstein, George Evans, Sidney Check, John Severin, Harvey Kurtzman, Harry Harrison, and Al Feldstein.
I discovered these thanks to Bud Plant’s legendary catalog and trusting the Bud Man. I ordered the complete set having vaguely heard of the legendary EC’s when I was in high school. We took a summer fishing vacation and took these, along with other comics and fanzines, and read the heck out of em. We were instantly hooked.

Even today, these stories still hold up IMO. I deeply love anything and all with E.C.

[hondobrode]

whoops

double post

[Cei-U!]

This would be the same GCD that regards Sgt. Fury & His Howling Commandos as 2 separate series (#s 1-120 & 121-167), right? For such purposes, I trust that site about as far as I can throw Kurt.

(Are they still pretending that Ghost & Ghosts were 2 different DC mystery series in the '70s?)

The GCD lists comics by the title appearing in the indicia* which is the legal registered title of that book. As a former data administrator, I recognize it is the least subjective method of tracking such a broad expanse of data even if you and I might not always like the end results.

Cei-U!
I summon the necessary evil!

* Or purports to. They're terribly inconsistant about it though. I suspect it depends on whoever started a particular index.

[dan bailey]

The GCD lists comics by the title appearing in the indicia* which is the legal registered title of that book. As a former data administrator, I recognize it is the least subjective method of tracking such a broad expanse of data even if you and I might not always like the end results.

Oh, I know. I'm just being my lovable self.

Speaking of which ...

I summon the necessary evil!

You rang?

[Rob Allen]

The GCD tries to be consistent; if you notice something that doesn't look right, report it to them. They may not see it your way, but they do debate these issues. I'm on their Google groups; I see the debates.

Today's entry is one that's been mentioned before:

Fat Freddy's Cat



The other poster who listed this series did it purely on its own merits, not as the only eligible version of the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers. I am unabashedly using this series to represent the Freak Brothers and the other work of Gilbert Shelton, in addition to its own considerable merits. Gilbert Shelton is possibly the funniest cartoonist of the late 20th century. Find his work, read it, and enjoy!

The other underground series that were on my early list included Zap, which isn't eligible for the same reason as the Freak Brothers (too many issues); horror series Slow Death, Skull, Fantagor and Death Rattle; stoner comedy Dr. Atomic; feminist pioneer Wimmen's Comix; smutfest Young Lust; and George Metzger's three-issue gem Moondog. But the nod had to go to Shelton.

[MDG]

E.C. Classic Reprints # 1-12
I discovered these thanks to Bud Plant’s legendary catalog and trusting the Bud Man. I ordered the complete set having vaguely heard of the legendary EC’s when I was in high school. We took a summer fishing vacation and took these, along with other comics and fanzines, and read the heck out of em. We were instantly hooked.

I ordered the first one through Warren's Captain Company, then signed on for a 12-issue subscription. Never knew if it would be four weeks or four months between issues.

[dan bailey]

Never knew if it would be four weeks or four months between issues.

A publication model adopted a couple of decades later by the rest of the comics industry, of course.

[METAROG]

E.C. Classic Reprints # 1-12


The “other” EC , East Coast Comix, back from 1973-1976, reprinted some of the greatest works of the William Gaines’ EC comics. Exceptionally faithful to the originals, this series reprinted, in their entirety and in color, some of EC’s greatest issues from the 1950’s. These comics represent the greatest moments in “comics noir”, dark tales of fantasy and suspense which thrilled readers in the days before the Comics Code.
Titles include Crypt of Terror, Weird Science, Shock SuspenStories, Haunt of Fear, Weird Fantasy, Crime SuspenStories, Vault of Horror, Two-Fisted Tales, and Weird Science.


Stories written by Al Feldstein, William Gaines, Ron Barlow, Bruce Hershenson, Johnny Craig, Otto Binder, Jack Oleck, Jack Davis, Wally Wood, Jerry De Fuccio, Harvey Kurtzman, Gardner Fox, and Harry Harrison.


Covers and art by Jack Davis, George Evans, Joe Orlando, Graham Ingels, Wally Wood, Al Williamson, Jack Kamen, Reed Crandall, Johnny Craig, Jack Kamen, Bernie Krigstein, George Evans, Sidney Check, John Severin, Harvey Kurtzman, Harry Harrison, and Al Feldstein.
I discovered these thanks to Bud Plant’s legendary catalog and trusting the Bud Man. I ordered the complete set having vaguely heard of the legendary EC’s when I was in high school. We took a summer fishing vacation and took these, along with other comics and fanzines, and read the heck out of em. We were instantly hooked.

Even today, these stories still hold up IMO. I deeply love anything and all with E.C.

This was my Day 12 (1st chronological) pick and I wholeheartedly agree with your summation. It is almost like having a 2nd print EC 20 some years later as they look that similar. This is one of my most treasured sets and a hidden gem to be sure.

[foxley]

OK, this is one that hasn't yet shown up that actually surprises me.

#4. Squadron Supreme 1-12, by Mark Greunwald, Paul Ryan, & Bob Hall





This 1985 miniseries explored the moral questions of superheroes attempting to create a Utopia, and others trying to stop them. Though lacking some of the poetry and visual iconography of Watchmen, Squadron Supreme's characters are generally far more likeable, and the moral questions more prevalent and varied. Reading Squadron Supreme forces one to ask questions of oneself, often uncomfortable ones without clear answers. It stays with you after you've closed the cover. Though not for young children (there's lots of death and disfigurement, as well as more than a little bed-hopping), it can be read by a teenager at one level and an adult at a different level, and it stands up well to multiple re-readings.

Highest possible recommendation.

This was the second last title to be culled from my list. Like you, I'd been expecting it to show up earlier.

[foxley]

4. Green Arrow: The Longbow Hunters #1 - 3 (DC, 1987)



Mike Grell's brilliant reinvention of Green Arrow, which is in its own way just as significant and Denny O'Neil and Neal Adams remaking of him as social crusader. Grell's 'urban hunter' take on the Emerald Bowman would set the direction and tone of the character for the next 20 years or so.

This is the book that turned me into a GA fan.

[foxley]

Double post.

[MWGallaher]

#4. Shadow War of Hawkman by Tony Isabella, Rich Howell, and Alfredo Alcala, 1985

You guys can have your Hawkworld--it was fine in its own special way--but give me the Shadow War!

As far as I'm concerned, this is the way to revive a moribund, once somewhat popular character. Tony Isabella didn't throw out anything important, and he kept everything that was fun about Katar and Shayara Hol, and he added a few cool little twists that made the reader feel like he was getting something far more than a retread of an old character.

In "Shadow War" (which was originally promoted as "Secret War"--Jim Shooter copped the title before DC could get this one out, but I like "Shadow War" better anyway), Isabella came up with a nifty premise that could fuel an ongoing Hawkman series, and one that would have forced the focus to remain on the lead character to the exclusion of the ubiquitous guest stars that plagued every other attempt to start a new title back then: Hawkman and Hawkgirl were fighting an invasion from their own homeworld, and they didn't dare bring any other superheroes into the battle because their fellow Thanagarians had the Absorbascon, allowing them to intercept all human knowledge. I loved that touch, because I wanted to see the Hawks take on a really stiff challenge, and it was one that had personal significance. Tony sold me on the Hawks like noone had ever managed, and Howell channelled Murphy Anderson, my personal favorite Hawkman artist, and did some great visual effects with the Thanagarians' shadow materializations. Alcala, as usual, gave the pencils a drippy, heavy gloss that went nicely with the sci-fi invasion theme that permeated the book.

Look for the debut of superhero Icarus in issue 2 in a startling sequence that may not seem as powerful given the similar things that other writers have done since, but was extremely powerful back then.

[Red Oak Kid]

#4. Space: 1999 Magazine 1-8 Charlton

I was never a fan of the tv show, but I love these magazines with fantastic art by Gray Morrow.