80-Page Thursdays: Ghosts #1!

80-Page Thursdays is still going to be a feature around here, just whenever the hell I get around to it or find another 80-pager. Like today's issue! From 2012 and Vertigo, Ghosts #1, featuring stories and art from Geoff Johns, Paul Pope, Gilbert Hernandez, John McCrea, and more.

Before stepping down as Vertigo's executive editor, Karen Berger asked Joe Kubert for a story for this anthology. Before he died, he had written and drawn "The Boy and the Old Man," which is presented here as the original pencils. It's pretty easily the best of the lot; although as someone who enjoys a bowl of chili every meal or so, I did like Neil Kleid and John McCrea's "A Bowl of Red."

Even though they were created by Neil Gaiman, the Dead Boy Detectives don't do much for me; and their eight pages was to be continued in some other anthology. Both Al Ewing and Rufus DayGlo's "The Night After I Took the Data Entry Job I Was Visited by My Own Ghost" and Cecil Castellucci and Amy Reeder's "Wallflower" aren't bad, examining the path not taken. The rest of the issue, particularly Paul Pope's "Treasure Lost" and Gilbert Hernandez's "The Dark Lady" didn't wow me.

This was another ninety-nine cent pickup, so for the price, not bad at all. Per the Beat's sale charts, Ghosts sold 16,574 copies; better than previous anthologies like Strange Adventures, Unexpected, or Mystery in Space. I should keep an eye out for those last two.