Showing posts with label larry hama. Show all posts
Showing posts with label larry hama. Show all posts

Thursday, July 4, 2024

NML Crossing, Episode 084 - Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #121 (1999)


NML Crossing, Episode Eighty-Four

Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #121 (September, 1999)
“Power Play”
Writer - Larry Hama
Pencils - Rick Burchett
Inks - James Hodgkins
Colors - Felix Gerrano
Letters - Bill Oakley
Edits - Illidge, O’Neil
Cover Price: $1.99

In what is quite possibly the worst chapter of No Man's Land to date, we get a generic... and odd-banter-filled... battle between Batman and Mister Freeze, in which - get this - our titular hero blows up the Gotham City Power Plant! It's an odd and awful little ditty... join me, won't you?

The Bada-Bin!

NML Crossing on Youtube

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Saturday, April 10, 2021

From Claremont to Claremont, Episode 2f - Wolverine (vol.2) #48 (1991)

From Claremont to Claremont: An X-Men Podcast
Episode 2F

Wolverine (vol.2) #48 (November, 1991)
"The Shiva Scenario, Part 1: Dreams of Gore, Phase 1"
Writer - Larry Hama
Pencils - Marc Silvestri
Inks - Dan Green
Colors - Steve Buccellato
Letters - Pat Brosseau
Edits - Gaffney, Harras, DeFalco
Cover Price: $1.75


Y'all remember Weapon X, right?  What if I were to tell you that there was a sequel... that managed to be ten times as confusing... and had about one-tenth the impact?  You'd be jazzed, right?  Well, today you can hear my good pal Joe (@IowasJoe) and I talk all about the first chapter of it!

Joe is also kind enough to sit in the hot-seat for the POD-FILE segment!  It's a great time as always - hope to see you there! 
--
@acecomics / @cosmictmill / weirdcomicshistory@gmail.com
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Saturday, February 6, 2021

From Claremont to Claremont, Episode 1f - Wolverine #47 (1991)

From Claremont to Claremont: An X-Men Podcast
Episode 1F

Wolverine (vol.2) #47 (October, 1991)
"Dog Day"
Script - Larry Hama
Pencils - Gerald DeCaire
Inks - Don Hudson
Letters - Pat Brosseau
Colors - Glynis Oliver
Editor - Bob Harras
Chief - Tom DeFalco
Cover Price: $1.75

His story MUST be told.

Friends, today Joe Crawford (@IowasJoe) and I will share with you: the Life and Times of Tracykins.  It's a story of gettin' stupid, size-shifting pistols, and rabid dogs - you WON'T wanna miss it.  It'll change yer life... we promise.

Oh, Wolverine's here too... so, there's that!

--

@acecomics / @cosmictmill / weirdcomicshistory@gmail.com

chrisandreggie.podbean.com

chrisisoninfiniteearths.com

http://www.dcnoisepodcast.com/

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Saturday, December 5, 2020

From Claremont to Claremont, Episode 3c - Wolverine (vol.2) #49 (1991)

From Claremont to Claremont: An X-Men Podcast
Episode 3C

Wolverine (vol.2) #49 (December, 1991)
"Shiva Scenario, Part 2: Dreams of Gore, Phase 2"
Writer - Larry Hama
Pencils - Marc Silvestri
Inks - Dan Green & Hillary Barta
Colors - Steve Buccellato
Letters - Pat Brosseau
Edits - Bob Harras & Suzanne Gaffney
Cover Price: $1.75

Welcome back to From Claremont to Claremont: An X-Men Podcast, Episode 3!

Today, I am joined by Joe Crawford (@IowasJoe) to discuss the second chapter of - well, a storyline that really made me think the Shivas were going to be a hyooge deal going forward - Dreams of Gore aka. The Shiva Scenario!

Wolverine is still looking for clues to his origin... if only he could travel through time, and know that some questions probably don't need answering...

Also: The FCTC, Episode 3 "hook" continues, as Joe shares with us the "Soundtrack of his Life".  It's a great time as always - we hope you join us!

--

@acecomics / @cosmictmill / weirdcomicshistory@gmail.com

chrisandreggie.podbean.com

chrisisoninfiniteearths.com

facebook.com/groups/90sxmen

Wednesday, July 8, 2020

Wolverine (vol.2) #47 (1991)


Wolverine (vol.2) #47 (October, 1991)
"Dog Day"
Script - Larry Hama
Pencils - Gerald DeCaire
Inks - Don Hudson
Letters - Pat Brosseau
Colors - Glynis Oliver
Editor - Bob Harras
Chief - Tom DeFalco
Cover Price: $1.75

Just like with yesterday's issue of Alpha Flight, this issue of Wolverine hit the stands during the big 1991 X-Book Shakeup month.  Also, just like yesterday's AF... this issue doesn't feel one bit like a "kickoff" into a brave, new era.  In fact, this one's more or less an after-school special filler issue!

Let's meet Tracy-kins!

--



We open with Logan being hassled by a Police Officer about leaving his motorcycle chained to a light pole outside of the World Trade Center for a number of weeks.  She claims that she'd looked into having it towed and impounded, however, his plates were flagged with all sorts of Federal Allowances... the sorta stuff the geeks over at S.H.I.E.L.D. get.  She decides not to write him a ticket, and just lets him off with a warning.  Not sure why this scene was even included, or if it led to anything, but we'll allow it.



Over in Westchester County... ho-boy.  A mother returns home from the market, only to find her delinquent son "Tracy-kins" inside rifling through her belongings looking for something to sell for his next fix.  Mom tells him he's no longer welcome there, and that the stress from his antics killed his father.  This dialogue is... unique.  And, uh, bad.



Tracy-kins doesn't heed his mother's demands, which leads to rushing into her bedroom to fetch a pistol with like a two-foot long barrel on it!  I mean, this thing is almost comically over-sized.  Tracy-kins ain't scared, and almost dares her to pull the trigger (knowing full well she won't).



He nyoinks the piece outta Mom's hands (by it's gigantic barrel), and proceeds to tell her that he's in the real world now... got a job and everything.  And that job is... wait for it... "Getting Stupid"!  While he's monologuing, he's beating the absolute hell out of her.  Perhaps even beating her to death!



Back to Logan... who is just about to take the Salem Center exit on whatever expressway one can get to Salem Center from.  He hears a shot being fired, and decides to find out what all the hub-bub's about.  Turns out there's a pair of officers faced off with a rabid dog.  One of the officers, a woman, unloads her entire gun into the poor mad mutt.



Wolvie points out that this was, perhaps a bit excessive... which leads to a flashback of when he and Silver Fox had a dog that went rabid... which we'll get to in just a bit.  First, lets check in on Tracy-kins... who is very reminiscent of that kid Mitch from the Death of Superman... only, ya know, a sociopath.  He's bumming around a convenience store, and just making a real nuisance of himself.  He just reaches into the cash register and robs the place.  Alrighty then...



The shop owner finally charges over to give 'im the boot... and winds up getting shot.  The pistol, if it's the same one, has a much shorter barrel in this scene.  Perhaps it was less excited here?  I dunno.  Whatever the case, Tracy-kins has become a killing machine.  Waitasec, that barrel just got long again!



Over to Wolverine's dog story... ya see, he had a dog... and it went rabid.  Silver Fox handed him a rifle and told him to shoot the poor thing.  Great story, huh?



Back to Tracy, who is driving erratically and under the influence of alcohol and God only knows what else.  He t-bones a car at an intersection, and celebrates just how "stupid" he's getting.



Then, a pair of kids and their (probably un-rabid) dog prepare to cross the street.  Well, not on Tracy's watch they ain't.  He puts pedal to metal and drives right for 'em!



A few streets later, Tracy pulls up to a red light.  Next to him is Wolverine on his motorbike.  Tracy starts to sweat and reaches over for his pistol.  The light turns green, and Logan pulls out first.  Noticing the fact that the front end of the Tracy-mobile is in a bad way (and has a child's bike embedded in the front of it), he pulls in front of the turd.  Tracy's all "screw this" and plows right into our hero!  Hits him so hard in fact, that his jacket explodes into pieces!



Tracy then pops it into reverse to run our man over again.  Only one problem with that... well, two problems I suppose... 1) Adamantium skeleton and claws, and 2) mutant healing factor.  Logan informs the boy of all of this as Tracy empties his excitable pistol in his direction.



Wolverine pops his claws... as Tracy clicks away with his empty gun.  He thinks back to the rabid dog, and feels pangs of deja vu looking at this loony kid.  He retracts his claws... just as that same police woman arrives on the scene to fill Tracy-kins full'a holes!  When this gal commits to pulling the trigger, she doesn't screw around!  Logan informs her that the kid's gun was empty... to which she asks "How the Hell would I know that?"  That's actually a very good point.



We wrap up with Logan finishing his "rabid dog" story for the 
Officer.  Turns out, he couldn't go through with it.  Silver Fox had to put the poor pup down herself.  Oh!  And it also turns out that this Officer the mother of those two kids who Tracy nearly ran down a few blocks over.  The tots survived unharmed... so, there's something to be happy about!



--

Welp, that sure was an issue of Wolverine, wunnit?

Felt a lot like an inventory/found crumpled in the back of a drawer sort of story... and, honestly, with every copy of this Marvel sold, they were stealing money.  Imagine paying 50-cents more for this than any of the "core-four" X-Men books of the day?  Ridiculous.

During the first episode of From Claremont to Claremont, where we spoke about this issue we posited that this story way likely slid into place in order to ensure that the three-part Shiva Scenario storyline that followed would conclude with the landmark (and die-cut) 50th issue of the title.  Which, is probably what happened... and, in hindsight, I should probably be happy about that.  Nowadays, Marvel would just decompress into more issues... leaving us with an unbalanced and more dully-paced story.

So, whatta we got here?  Well, it's a cautionary tale about putting down rabid animals, right?  Well, sorta.  If it were written with a little bit more subtlety (or any at all), it might've "landed" a bit better.  Instead, we just get to see that how, when the going gets rough, and the tough decisions need to be made... Wolverine fails to act, and has to rely on the nearest armed woman to actually do what needs done?

I think this was supposed to be poignant... like, Wolverine... for all his violent history, is really a big softy... or, maybe he's an eternal optimist who always feels like there's a "better way" than hitting the "nuclear option"?  I dunno.  Whatever it is, it didn't really land for me.

Let's talk art.  It wasn't great... further lending to the idea that this was a quickie-filler.  Even if we were just to focus on Tracykins' engorgable pistol... I mean, this just ain't great.  I suppose it's passable, but... again... as this was a "boutique-priced" Marvel Comic... you expect more.

Tracykins as a character... okay, I really enjoyed bearing witness to his ridiculousness.  What a goofball... and, so close in design and attitude to Mitch from Death of Superman... heck, maybe Tracykins was the Mitch-prototype!  We can only hope.

Is this issue worth your time.  Ehh... maybe?  It's bad... but, it does have some "so bad it's good" qualities.  I can't say I didn't have a good time revisiting this one... though, the fact that I probably paid (at most) fifty-cents for it likely softened the blow.

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Letters Page:


Saturday, May 9, 2020

Mort the Dead Teenager #1 (1993)


Mort the Dead Teenager #1 (December, 1993)
"2 Young 2 Die 4-Ever!" ~or~ "Death on the Babylon Express"
Writer - Larry Hama
Art/Letters/Colors - Gary Hallgren
Edits - Bobbie Chase & Rob Tokar
Chief - Tom DeFalco
Cover Price: $1.75

It's Saturday morning... so, let's keep things light... by, uh... talking about a dead kid?

Now, I never refer to myself as anything other than a "fakeass" comics historian... but, I gotta say, it's not often I happen across something in the bins that causes me to do a double-take... especially when it's something from my comics collecting "wheelhouse".

A few months back I was flipping through the cheapo's at a Half-Price Books, when I came across... this.  Mort the Dead Teenager?  Is this real?  Oh yes, it's all too real.  I swore I'd heard the name before... though, I probably just dismissed it as some sort of an online forum gag... sort of like Street Poet Ray (which also actually exists... and is something I've spoken a great deal about elsewhere!) I grabbed it simply for the novelty of owning something called "Mort the Dead Teenager", and without ever thinking I'd be discussing it here.  Welp, Marvel May delivers again!

Let's do it.

--


We open with one'a those old-fashioned Silver-Agey spoilery splash pages... and it's sort of in the modern-day meme format of "record-scratch: yes, that's me... you're probably wondering how I got into this mess".  Mort is being thrown from the wreckage of a crash with a train.  The embodiment of (teen) Death is driving the choo-choo.  So, how did he get into this mess?  Well, it all started ten minutes ago at the nearby Konvenience Korner.  Mort Graves (oy), pulls up in his father's nearly-nearly restored Studebaker to show off, and hopefully impress a girl named Kimberley.  His loser friends saunter up to admire the ride, but are interrupted by a big bully named... Maureen, who pulls up on her hog.


As Mort's friends drool over Maureen, Kimberley finally arrives in the back of a convertible full'a cool girls.  Mort begins to sweat, and decides it's now time to make his move.  And so, he absolutely douses himself with like a half gallon of aftershave.


Just then, Todd from Beavis and Butthead swings into to the lot, and more or less scoops up dear sweet Kimberley.  Mort, as you might imagine, ain't happy... and so, he challenges Todd to a race... a "contest of speed", even!


Mort watches in utter disappointment as Kimberley makes a meal outta Todd's lower lip... and, I'll admit, this is wildly unpleasant to observe.


Before we know it, the flag's dropped... and we're off to the races.  Todd zips through a railroad crossing... and, well... Mort's not quite so lucky.  He'd have jammed on the brakes... if only he remembered that the brakes were one of the things his father hadn't yet restored.  Whoops.


Next thing we know, Mort's in Hell... well, the Netherworld, but it looks pretty Hellish.  Anyhoo, Mort doesn't know what just happened, and so, Teen-Death has been tasked with filling him in.


He also introduces our boy to "real" Death... who, despite this story actually happening on Marvel Earth-616... isn't that gal that Thanos is obsessed with.  Instead, it's just some generic skeleton... who, in the name of "progress" has upgraded his reaping methodology by using a big ol' thresher rather than the ol' sickle.


Mort then asks if he's going to the "Bad Place" or the "Good Place".  Hmm... I didn't know people actually referred to Heaven and Hell like that.  Teen Death informs our lad that "The Good Place" is closed for repairs... and so, he has no other choice but to suspend Mort in Limbo.  So, he'll either be reincarnated as a roach, or be sent back home... to haunt!  He hopes for the latter...


... and, the latter is what he gets!  With a "Pop", Mort Graves arrives on the stoop of his Mistake Beach, Long Island, New York home.  He wanders inside, and... his family home is quite the sight.  I try not to judge, and my idea of "home decor" is a wall of longboxes... but, this place is pretty gross.  He peeps himself out in a (beer-branded) mirror... and notices he's looking pretty pale.  Upon spying a line around his neck he investigates... only to find that his head is no longer permanently attached to his body!  His Sister, Cyndi enters the scene... and, get this: she can see him.  Also, get this: she doesn't really care!


We learn that the rest of Mort's family are at the boy's "No Frills Funeral"... and she's headed out to make time with some dude to help grope... er, "cope" with her grief.


She boots Mort outta the house, and he winds up face down in the mud.  From the Earth, he hears a voice... it's Teen-Death.  Mort gets dragged underground, and gets a bit of the skinny n the "Haunting Business".  Seems if he holds his (non-existent?) breath, he can turn invisible.  Well, that's a pain in the ass, innit?


From here, we arrive at Mort's funeral... and, it's a sorry little affair.  The poor teen is being buried in a cardboard casket... and, making matters worse, it's raining.  Mort notices that neither of his loser friends bothered to show up to pay their final respects.


Here we meet the rest of Mort's family... and, they're kind of the worst.  None of them seem all that bothered by the death of Mort... and, seem to be thanking their lucky stars that it was Mort who bit it, and not the daughter, Cyndi.  Mort's sopping wet cardboard casket is "lowered" into the ground with a "splat".


Just then... Kimberley shows up, tossing a single rose into the plot... and revealing that she loves Mort, and wishes she could've felt his warmth.


She doesn't get to finish this thought, however, as Maureen the Motor-bully zips in to toss a six-pack into the plot, before tearfully riding away.


Back home, Mort decides to "haunt" his family... basically by letting them know he's still sorta-kinda there.  Get this... the Graves family... don't really care!  They're more worried about whether or not they're going to have to feed and clean up after Mort.  Dude would'a probably been better off had be been brought back as a roach.


Mort also learns here that he'd signed all of his Earthly possessions over to his shyster brother, Kyle... as collateral for some butt-rock concert tickets.  Well, since Mort's dead, it stands to reason he won't be able to pay down his debt... and so, everything he owned now belongs to Kyle.  On the plus side, this jogs Mort's memory a bit, and he realizes the butt-rock concert is tonight... which is why neither of his loser friends bothered to show up at his funeral.


And so, he head to the butt-rock show... where Mort's loser friends are leaving the venue, headed to the parking lot to meet with two "outrageous babes" they'd talked into making time with them.  I tell ya what, this panel might be a bit too big, because... it's like I'm there with them, and it stinks in here.


Mort follows his friends to their car... and overhears them chatting about their dead pal.  They're... duh... happy he's gone, and even happier that they got his tickets to the butt-rock show.  The two "outrageous babes" show up... and, woof.


One'a them mentions that it feels like she's sitting on a bowling ball... but, it's actually Mort's head.


The "babes" run away, leaving Mort with his cold-shower needing (well, any sort of shower would probably benefit these two) loser friends.


--

So... this sure was something, wasn't it?

I'm... actually not all that sure how I feel about it.  I didn't love it... but, it also wasn't bad or anything.  It was just kind of "there".  Felt sort of in the vein of, I dunno... Ren and Stimpy?  The art kinda felt like it was trying to walk the line of cartoon and... ugly cartoon?  Like that "90's ugly", ya know?  Really not a style I'm overly fond of... but, it fits the tone of the story well enough.

The story... it's, alright, I guess.  It reminds me a bit of Haunting: Starring Polterguy for the Sega Genesis.  Which also struck me as "90's ugly" back in the long ago... and also starred a dead kid with 'tude.


As for the characters.  Well, you ever walk passed someone in the aisle of a store (pre-pandemic) and instinctively hold your breath so you don't unwittingly inhale any of their funk?  Is it just me who does that?!  Either way, that's every character in this book.  Everybody here is gross... and you wouldn't want 'em near ya.  Even just flipping through the thing, I've got the stink of casino carpet stuck in my nose.

Overall... I don't know where this is headed, and... ya know what?  I'm okay with that.  I'm not going to break my back tracking down the latter 3/4ths of this mini-series, and wouldn't tell you to either.  It's neat as a novelty... but, that's about it.

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