"The End" Week: Marvel Fanfare #60!

Hmm, I don't know if I'd ever known that this had been a bimonthly title, for a ten year run! But I would've been buying mostly from newsstands--well, grocery or convenience stores--so I never saw any of them new! From 1991, Marvel Fanfare #60, featuring "Big Applesauce!" Written and inked by Walt Simonson, pencils by Denys Cowan; "the Mission" Written by Ann Nocenti, pencils by Dave Ross, inks by Josef Rubinstein; and "the Monkey Never Dies" Story and art by Paul Smith.

There was also the final "Editori-Al" strip from editor Al Milgrom: the final here, anyway; I can't recall if he used that gimmick elsewhere? Or, I might be confusing it with the strips Archie Goodwin did for Dreadstar...Anyway, Al explains why the title was wrapping up: low sales, mostly; but it wasn't really needed anymore and he didn't have time to maintain it with his freelance work. Not a bad way to go out, though: Cowan and Simonson on a Black Panther vs. aliens story, then an inventory Rogue story that had been meant for Classic X-Men before they did away with the back-ups. It's an interesting one: the very young Rogue has realized, if she touches someone for just a second, she can steal just moments of memories. But, she's flighty and wild, which doesn't stop Mystique from trying to break her in with a mission for the Brotherhood. This feels like it should've been a bigger deal in continuity; but with the back-ups ending probably wasn't touched back on.

Lastly, Paul Smith returns to the book he first started in, with a sequel to the Daredevil story from Marvel Fanfare #1. It was Smith's first writing credit as well. Not too bad of an issue; but then again, nothing to make you clamor for them to keep it going, either. Read more!

There wasn't a garbage can to leave the costume in, but Horatio nails the Spider-Man walking away thing.

We haven't seen an issue of this one in a couple years, and although I'm pretty sure I had it I bought it with a bunch of other First comics from the quarter bin. From 1989, Nexus #52, "Take This Job and Shove It" Written by Mike Baron, pencils by Paul Smith, inks by John Nyberg.

Events in the crossover Crossroads, along with the loss of his friend Kreed, have finally pushed Horatio to the point of quitting his 'job' as Nexus. Deep in the caves of Ylum, he confronts his alien benefactor, the Merk, who remains immobile and silent as Horatio renounces the title, his powers, and his costume; no longer caring if the Merk tortured him to death with dreams of murderers. Convinced the Merk's silence wasn't consent, but another of his attempts at manipulation, Horatio leaves, facing a long hike through the caves. (He had left equipment, so he wouldn't have to go in his underwear!) He pauses when he finds a stone, covered in glyphs: earlier, Horatio had been digging up artifacts of Ylum's earlier civilization, only to later be told by the Merk that he had created them all, in a single night, possibly to give him something to do. But this stone, was apparently the work of a race of demons, now believed extinct. Maybe not completely extinct, as one introduces himself...

In Ylum's habitations, it's election season, with capitalist huckster Vooper against the incumbent Tyrone. Tyrone was a somewhat stern individual that took his duties exceedingly seriously, so he had hired young Casper Wineburger (from an earlier issue) as campaign manager. Vooper's partner, the sour Swerdlow, notes he was an experienced "rabble-rouser," and sets his security staff on him, with laughable deniability. Dave, long a voice of reason in Ylum, makes a courtesy call to Vooper and then Tyrone, to let them know Sundra, Horatio's girlfriend, was entering the race. Casper recognizes her as a legitimate contender, while Dave fears they might split the vote and leave the door open for Vooper, who could easily outspend them both.

Back in the caves, Horatio has a pleasant conversation with the demon, who explains he had evolved past his malicious nature: that was how he avoided the Merk's wrath, and why he didn't kill Horatio on sight. The demon also claims to have known Horatio's father, but admits meeting a demon might have severely disturbed him. Horatio seems to be malingering a bit, as he sits in a hot spring with the demon: he didn't want to get mired down in Ylum's politics, and wasn't sure what to do with himself going forward. The demon, Farouk, advises a task: when he returns, the first person he sees will provide an answer.

Swerdlow's security man lures Casper to a trap, where he's sucker-punched by some goons who plan to drop him in a crevice. He almost escapes, but catches a knife in the back, just as Horatio arrives. Reflexively, Horatio tries to burn the goons down with a fusion blast, then has to kill one with a shovel and the other with a kick into that crevice. The dying Casper asks Nexus to avenge him, assuming his killers were from his homeworld Flatlandia. Carrying Casper's body, Horatio then is greeted by Sundra, who after brief dismay over the body, has to tell him she's running for president. Which strikes Horatio as funny, she had originally come there as a spy.

The story closes with the reading of Kreed's will: among other things, there was proof of Swerdlow's treason, and he and his goon are arrested. (Horatio appears to hold the security man at 'gunpoint' merely by pointing at him, as he would've assumed Nexus still had powers!) Next up, debates! How often do you see those in comics...Also this issue: "Baron's (Nonlinear) Guide to the Nexus Universe." Man, I feel like this series could've gone so much further, if it hadn't been ankled when First went under. It would go on at Dark Horse, but I feel like a lot of momentum was lost.

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I was feeling a little down on comics the other day, but I managed to get to my local Comic Book Shop for their back issue Mondays sale, and recharged the batteries with a solid pile of stuff. Including one that brings us so close to the finish line! From 1989, Iron Man Annual #10, featuring "Two If By Sea" Written by David Michelinie, pencils by Paul Smith, inks by Mike Gustovich.

This was the second chapter of Atlantis Attacks, and the revived Lord Ghaur is already starting to build his alliance, with Attuma, Llyra, and Krang. But someone else is under the sea today: the invincible Iron Man, tailing a pair of Mafia Maggia mini-subs off the California coast. The subs are tailing a larger ship, which is itself stopped by Namor, the Sub-Mariner! It's innocent enough: Namor was looking for the creepy alien spawn of his wife Marrina, and was just going to ask if the crew had seen any. Instead they panic, since they were secretly Hydra! Routed, the Hydra goons elect to blow themselves up, leaving Iron Man to wonder what they were up to and why the Maggia was after them.

Iron Man and Namor team-up and work the case, which leads them to the Panama Canal, where Hydra is planning a big drug giveaway, in the hopes of taking over in the ensuing chaos. Speaking of ensuing chaos, the Atlantean army is also there, using the canal to prepare a sneak attack! While Iron Man scuffles with the Atlanteans, Namor has to split off to stop Hydra's drug ship, and that captain also opts to blow himself up--and Namor with him! This barely gets a page, so I don't know if this was mandated somewhere and had to be squeezed in, or if they just ran out of space, or what. Even with that, this isn't a great showing for Hydra: they're completely disposable villains, who act like even they think they're completely disposable.

I also don't think Smith and Gustovich were a good match, but the art was stronger for some of the next feature, the pin-up story "Can You Top This?" (Written by David Wohl, with art by Jackson Guice, Gene Colan, John Byrne, Keith Pollard, and Bob Layton.

There's also the inexplicably titled "There Are No Wire Hangers Underwater!" (Written by Fabian Nicieza, pencils by Don Perlin, inks by Don Ald.) Returning to Atlantis after the reports of Namor's death, Andromeda confronts her father, Attuma. Then a few pin-ups, and the second chapter of "The Saga of the Serpent Crown," in which we discover that in the Marvel Universe, the battle between Set and Demogorge was what killed the dinosaurs! (Written by Peter Sanderson, pencils by Mark Bagley, inks by Keith Williams.) I don't think that comes up very often; I'd love it if it took like five different things to kill the dinosaurs there: a comet, giant god battle, the Celestials, multiple alien invasions...
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A year or two back, I lucked into a hardcover copy of Leave it to Chance, Book One: Shaman's Rain at a yard sale. I had the individual issues for #1-5, but it was a nice package, and I was glad to have it. However, what I didn't realize, was that the series had gone on from issue #5! I think I was moving at the time, and missed the rest of the run, until last week when I got 6-7 and 9-12 out of the quarter bin!

If you missed this one as well: Chance Falconer is the daughter of paranormal investigator Lucas Falconer, and wants to follow in her father's footsteps as defender of the city of Devil's Echo. Unfortunately, Lucas turns her down flat, insisting the job will pass to the next Falconer male, probably his grandson. At first, the decision seems purely chauvinistic, but in later issues Lucas would seem merely overprotective. Lucas' has already lost his wife, and his face to his work; and won't risk his daughter as well. (Actually, I always wondered about that, since his face didn't look that bad; although he could've used his magic to cover that.)

Of course, Chance doesn't take that lying down, and decides to try and prove herself a true Falconer. And in a city full of demons, Troggs, ghost pirates, and giant toads; she has plenty of opportunity. Written by James Robinson with art by Paul Smith, Leave it to Chance was a fun, engaging book; all ages without writing down to kids.

In the above scan, a murdered hockey player returns from the grave for the last game of the Stanley Cup--yeah, his murder can wait--and you know Chance and her pet dragon St. George are going to get in on that. A great book, and now I'm going to have to find the two issues I'm still missing...(EDIT: found one, that I actually already had, this afternoon!)

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Barely getting in today:

It's that time of year again, where winter's all but over, and spring's not quite here; daylight savings time doesn't seem to be doing a damn thing, and it's gray all the time. My lungs feel like they're trying to clear out an entire winter's worth of flem in the morning, but I'm usually fine by the afternoon. In fact, it was nice enough for the boys and I to play outside today, something I wouldn't have bet on when I got up.

I may have over-extended myself this week: even though I wasn't feeling great, I was going to try to get three weeks worth of homemade comics done over the weekend. As it stands, I only got the pictures done for two, which admittedly is the hard part. The third one was a bit more ambitious and is going to take a little more doing, it was--or will be--a DC Comics extravaganza with a cast of, well, whoever I've got lying around, I suppose.

My Wife worked this annual big garage sale thing, and while the toys were a bit lacking, and she damn near got another dog while she was there; I did come away with a hardcover copy of Leave It to Chance Book One, by James Robinson and Paul Smith. I have the individual issues, but this was too nice to pass up. Feel a little greedy though, like I should donate it to a library or something. Except I like it too much...

With a little luck, we should have a marginally more substantial post tomorrow, but for today, just take me at my word that Leave It to Chance was a great book that deserved (deserves) a bigger audience. Buy it if you see it, dollar or no. Read more!