Random Happenstance

Shortly after blogging the Marvel Frontier title Children of the Voyager, I had to go back through the dollar bins at my local Comic Book Shop, to find Marvel Frontier Comics Unlimited #1, and I got some other Frontier books as well. Not you, Mortigan Goth. From 1993, Dances With Demons #1, "Chapter One: Ghost Dancer" Written by Simon Jowett, art by Charlie Adlard. (Rod Ramos may have done some inks?) With a foil-embossed cover, because this was 90's Marvel, yeah.

James Owl has a nightmare, of a mysterious figure that he calls "Grandfather," being murdered in the subways in New York City. The weird part for him, is that he didn't have a grandfather: his mom's dad had died when he was ten, and his dad's dad had abandoned his family long before James was born, he'd never met him. It's kind of casting a pall over his summer break in Beverly Hills; while the Manitou starts killing his way across the country, heading for James. (Also, like Children of the Frontier, set the Wayback Machine for the 90's, as James has a Pearl Jam poster!)

Later that night, with his folks at an industry party, James doesn't get the chance to ask about his grandpa; when a colossal eagle smashes through his window, then changes into a naked girl! (There's more nudity in the Frontier books than usual for Marvel!) The girl introduces herself as Lori, formerly his grandfather's guardian, now his. She is being pursued by a "clown," what would usually be a harmless spirit, but had been corrupted. And while it confronts James and Lori, another mysterious figure tracks Manitou westward...

I don't think this had quite as good of a hook as Children of the Voyager, but then again it might be if you're more familiar with Native American mythology and legends. This was a pretty early credit for Adlard, who is probably best known for drawing almost all of the Walking Dead.