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Reviews from the 86th Floor: Barry Reese reviews The Phantom: KGB Noir – The Hammer

THE PHANTOM: KGB NOIR – THE HAMMER
Written by Mike Bullock
Art by Fernando Peniche
ISBN 978-1933076805

This black-and-white trade collects the six issue limited series and also includes artist sketches and liner notes from the author. As Mike Bullock mentions in his notes, this series was changed midstream in length and I think that contributes to the breakneck pace that this has — it starts with action and never lets up. While this gives it all a movie serial kind of feel, it does make it kind of hard to get into the heads of the villains: they feel very shallow and more character types than people. But the artwork is fetching and the story has a lot of exciting action sequences so it all adds up to a great summer action flick kind of ambiance. It’s fun to see the Phantom in a different setting, too, though I do kind of miss Diana and the kids — but with the pacing of this story, there’s no room for them. One thing that struck me was that there’s no explanation of who or what the Phantom is — it didn’t deter me, since I love the Phantom and realize that most people who would buy this probably do, too. But I do believe in Jim Shooter’s axiom that every issue is somebody’s first and that you should always manage to explain a character’s motivations, etc. in some manner — but, again, with the pacing here, there was little to no time for reflection. Is this the best Phantom story I’ve seen from Mike Bullock? No. But it’s still a great, fun read and comes highly recommended to diehard Phantom fans. If you’re new to the character, I wouldn’t start here since there’s little in the way of “classic” lore but if you’re familiar with the hero and want something a bit different, this could fit the bill.

MOONSTONE MONDAY-LATEST GREEN HORNET DETAILS ANNOUNCED!

Win Scott Eckert announces contents for THE GREEN HORNET CASEFILES

I’m pleased to announce the final contents Moonstone Books‘ second Green Hornet anthology,The Green Hornet Casefiles.
  • Edited by Joe Gentile and Win Scott Eckert
  • Cover Art (Limited Edition Hardcover): Rubén Procopio
  • Cover Art (Trade Edition Softcover): Michael Wm. Kaluta
  • 336pgs, b/w, Squarebound, 6”x9”
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    Gh_casefiles_kaluta_sm

Contents:

  • “The Outlaw Hero” – Introduction by Ron Fortier
  • “Sting of the Yellowjacket” by Howard Hopkins
  • “Lair of the Living Dead” by Joe McKinney
  • “Through a Green Haze” by Dan Wickline
  • “The Black Widow” by John Everson
  • “A Thing of Beauty” by Bobby Nash
  • “The Insincerest Form of Flattery” by Paul D. Storrie
  • “Bad Medicine” by Vito Delsante and Win Scott Eckert
  • “The Gray Line Between” by F.J. DeSanto, Michael Uslan and Joe Gentile
  • “Up in Smoke” by Deborah Chester
  • “The Worst Angels of Our Nature” by Paul Kupperberg
  • “Now That Would Be Telling” by Bradley H. Sinor
  • “Summer of Death” by Barry Reese
  • “The Wet and the Wicked” by David Boop
  • “The Carlossi Caper” by Arthur A. Lyon
  • “Soldanus, the Sultan of Crime” by Gary Phillips
  • “The Dangerous Game” by Eric Fein
  • “Beauty Is As Beauty Dies” by James Mullaney
  • “Auld Acquaintance” by Matthew Baugh
  • “Memories of My Grandfather, Raymond J. Meurer” – Afterword by Lisa Meurer Long
  • Bonus Story In Limited Edition: “If These Walls Could Buzz” by Tim Lasiuta and Rafael Nieves

Pre-order:

PULP ARK NOTE-RON FORTIER, BOBBY NASH, BARRY REESE, AND JOE GENTILE, CEO OF MOONSTONE WILL ALL BE IN ATTENDANCE AT THE FIRST ANNUAL PULP ARK CONVENTION/CONFERENCE MAY 13-15TH IN BATESVILLE, AR!

ALL PULP WISHES ALL A HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY!

Even Pulpsters have Moms!!! And some Moms are even Pulpsters!  So, take today, be with your mother, clean her guns, fight her bad guys, and remember, she’s the reason you’re on this great adventure of life.

And Stay tuned as PULP ARK WEEK ON ALL PULP BEGINS TOMORROW!!!

Happy Mother’s Day!

We’re off taking care of our own moms today, so I’m going to just link to Ty Templeton’s list of the Top 7 Bad Mothers in Comics. Although how he missed Rorschach’s mom, I’ll never know.

Of course, we all know the worst mom in comics is the one that threw your comics away– or even worse, claimed that you read them too much, and so tore up your copy of [[[Batman]]] #251, “The Joker’s Five-Way Revenge” by Denny O’Neil and Neal Adams, in front of you to prove a point; an event that scarred and twisted you to this very day, and then she wonders why you want to put her into a home…

…perhaps I’ve said too much here.

Love you, mom!

Review: “Thor”

For a Marvel movie geek, three things were inevitable about Thor: 1) The Stan Lee cameo scene, 2) the post-end credits scene, and 3) nitpicking. Nitpicking is going to happen with any comic book related movie, and I’ve grudgingly accepted it as a necessary evil that certain sacrifices would need to be made in any translation of a story from one medium to another. Thus, certain things will have to be overlooked IF the end result is successful.

Marvel’s version of Thor in its many incarnations has tread a delicate balance of Norse mythology and something flashy thanks to Jack Kirby’s glorious art. In Kenneth Branagh’s movie adaptation of Thor, there are elements of the Prodigal Son, Arthurian mythology, and of course, grounding in Marvel history.

For his arrogance and defiance of his father Odin (Sir Anthony Hopkins), King of otherworldly Asgard, Thor (Chris Hemsworth) is stripped of his considerable power and warhammer Mjolnir and banished to Earth. Making matters worse, his brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston) is beginning to discover things about himself, and let’s say he starts some trouble, now that Odin is in a coma. While on earth, Thor is tricked into believing that his father is dead (and three guesses as to who tricked him).

There was the requisite love interest in Dr. Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), a scientist investigating atmospheric anomalies. As with recent Marvel movies, the shadowy government agency SHIELD was behind the scenes, and this being a Summer movie, there was the requisite amount of wholesale property damage.

While formulaic, Thor is refreshingly entertaining. Comic book movies rely heavily upon reverence for and adherence to the source material. The result must look and more importantly feel like the comic books. Kenneth Branagh’s Thor succeeds and entertains although the progression from arrogant bastard to superhero wasn’t deep enough, and I could have done without Darcy Lewis (Kat Dennings), Dr. Jane Foster’s ultra-annoying assistant.

If you still have no idea what the movie’s about, here’s a brief featurette:

Chris Hemsworth and Kenneth Branagh Face The Challenge Of “Thor”!

The 20011 Summer Movie barrage is now officially underway and first up to bat – one of the most beloved Marvel Comic legends, Thor. It was no easy task translating decades of comics into a visual project and we talk to the cast and director about how each one of them faced that challenge. Natalie Portman, Kenneth Branagh and Chris Hemsworth all join us for our exclusive coverage right here.

Ok – you saw THOR?  Did it hit the mark? Drop us a comment below!

Read “Hammer Of The Gods: Back From The Dead”!

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With all the interest in Norse sagas because of that movie opening today, we would be remiss if we didn’t remind you about you Hammer Of The Gods, the series from Michael Avon Oeming (Powers) and Mark Wheatley (EZ Street)!

This is the saga of Modi, a young Viking who was given amazing powers from the Norse Gods, literally carrying the power of Mjollnir, the hammer of Thorr… and a destiny to shake the world.


In the original 2004 graphic novel (which was recently reprinted by ComicMix and IDW, and is available for sale now) Modi came to terms with his strengths and weaknesses, fell in love with the Valkyrie, Skogul, and became a hero. As the new series starts, Odin, the king of the Gods, decides to peek in on the world of men. He travels to China, and soon Modi and his men must follow.

In addition to Oeming and Wheatley, there are contributions from John Staton, Neil Vokes, Guy Davis, Matt Plog, Tim Wallace, Brian Quinn, Scott Morse, Ethan Beavers, David Beck and others.

Read the series online now— or buy Hammer Of The Gods Volume 1: Mortal Enemy from your local comic book store or from Amazon!

HANCOCK TIPS HIS HAT AND HEARS THE VOICE OF ODIN!

TIPPIN’ HANCOCK’S HAT-Reviews of All Things Pulp by Tommy Hancock

DILLON AND THE VOICE OF ODIN
By Derrick Ferguson
178 Pages
Published by Pulpwork Press

I read a lot, always have.  I read a lot of Pulp, Pulp of all varieties and all stripes and eat it up like a jungle explorer lost in a desert who finished off his last camel three weeks ago.  Most of what I read I like, a fair piece of it I thoroughly enjoy, but very rarely do I find something that I absolutely cannot put down, that sends me into withdrawals when I step away from it, that just completely changes my view on what good stories can be  I’ve reviewed a couple of those types of tales here, but its rare.

Well, here’s another one

Derrick Ferguson’s DILLON AND THE VOICE OF ODIN is one of the best pieces of New Pulp literature I have ever read.   The lead character is draped in all the trappings and traits of classic Pulp icons while having enough of his own wrinkles and scars to make him a thoroughly modern protagonist.   The pacing is relentless, starting off with a seemingly day in the life of scene for Dillon which blossoms into the lead-in to a world spanning, body count multiplying, gadget filling adventure that doesn’t allow a reader, even a seasoned one like me the chance to catch his breath.

The plot is that Dillon, an adventurer who is both sought after positively by those in need of his services and wanted by almost every agency in the world with a badge and letters in its name, does a friend a favor and retrieves a ring.  This ring is the key to an invention that could save or destroy the world.  Odin, the holder of said invention, as well as multiple other interested parties come after Dillon for the ring and madness and murderous mayhem ensues from there.

The best parts of this book concern Ferguson’s characters and his turn of phrase.  He creates such a wide panorama of characters, people who in no way should exist in what we think of the real world, yet he makes them believable, flawed, and likable, even the evil ones.   That combined with his ability to wrap words around a single concept and turn into an explosion of description, narration, and thought provoking exposition, not only once or twice but on almost every page, makes DILLON AND THE VOICE OF ODIN  a pure New Pulp delight to read!

FIVE OUT FIVE TIPS OF HANCOCK’S HAT-The finest kind.

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