No blog today!...except this bit here, I guess.

Took the afternoon off to finish reading Norman Spinrad's A World Between. Found a coverless copy at a yard sale, and quite enjoyed it. Published in 1979, but Spinrad seems to foresee the ubiquitous Internet media, and the progressively shrill and loud and hateful nature of political campaigning. Not a bad read, so if you see a copy, grab it.

I was also on a Stephen King kick lately, so I finished Duma Key. I don't know if I've mentioned it before, but I've been a fan of King's since Pet Sematary. While some of his work stands out more clearly than others, I think the only major book of his I haven't read is Hearts in Atlantis.

Anyway, might try and hit up the used bookstores today, and I did want to get to the comic book shop to get the last issue of Xombi, since I suspect the shop could get swamped next week with Justice League #1. Ugh, I don't think Xombi sold a tenth of what Justice League will, but I guarantee you it's a better book. And you know it. Find a copy if you can and salve your conscience.
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If I had been more on the ball, I probably would've bought this issue new: the Brave and the Bold #26, featuring the Spectre and Xombi. I knew B&B had done a few issues of Milestone/DC team-ups, which I'd usually be interested in, except they seemed...perfunctory. Like DC was just throwing them out there so they could say, hey, Milestone, we tried. But, this issue does feature some nice Scott Hampton art, and is written by Xombi's regular writer and co-creator, John Rozum.

This was the Crispus Allen Spectre, and I haven't read a lot of stories with him; but as is typical for the character, he has a lot of weird restrictions and rules. After killing serial killer Ray Walker, typically the Spectre's job is done. Only this time, Walker's ghost continues, killing vampires and other ghosts. The Spectre goes to a higher authority, not necessarily God or the Presence or Rama Kushna or anything though. Like his immediate supervisor, or Assistant God or something. Anyway, the Spectre is more or less told Walker is out of his jurisdiction now.

Meanwhile, David Kim, the unkillable Xombi, is having trouble sleeping. I do believe this is the first time we see his fiance Dalila, who has been mentioned the whole run of his book, but never seen. Maybe? Maybe we briefly see her the last issue, but I'm not sure about that. One issue mentions that David was having a hard time telling her about the reams of weird crap that had happened to him, since he knew she did not take surprises well. Why? Dalila's last boyfriend was only dating her because they were the same size...that story does not end well. Interestingly, and I could be wrong on this too, but I get the feeling all of Xombi's stories to date take place in a relatively short period, perhaps only a month or so.

David's associate, Julian Parker--think a slightly friendlier yet sketchier John Constantine--gets him on the case, as they check out a vampire corpse. Rozum points out vampires don't get a lot of calcium in their diet, and thus have brittle bones; and the vampires also openly envy Xombi for being invulnerable, immortal, and without vampire frailities. David tells them it's not that great.

After a seance, Walker eats another ghost, but is stymied by David: he can't kill him, but the Xombi can't stop a ghost either. Later, Parker summons the Spectre, and they try to get him to finish the job he started. He wants to, even if he acts put out at being summoned like he was a genie. David goes alone to stop Walker from killing the girl that the Spectre saved, and stalls him until the Spectre kills Walker. I kind of like the last page, where David and Crispus have a little talk about who they are and where they're going.


Not as good as a regular issue of Xombi, but not bad at all.
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Twenty zombie books on the market...but the best of them is back!

From Xombi #17, "Hidden Cities, Chapter 1: Prophecies" Written by John Rozum, art by J.J. Birch. We've run this page before here, and it's from the old series, but Xombi is back! Returning writer and creator John Rozum and new artist Fraser Irving bring back the unkillable David Kim and throw him back in the weird end; and it's a damn good issue.

I do wish DC Comics would give this book a bit more of a push; maybe by getting reprints of the old series out there. I also really, really encourage you to give Xombi a try, if for nothing else, I'm tired of books I like getting cancelled. My pull list reads like a graveyard...

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In comics, "security guard" has a life expectancy like "Bambi's mom."

Probably a little worse than that...I've known a few at my work, who thankfully have been more safe.

Anyway, this page from Xombi #1 isn't just from one of my favorite, long-cancelled books; and it underlines the utterly disposable nature of security guards in comics, but the Rustling Husks and their screaming guns are barely the start of the weirdness in this one. It still kills me that DC hasn't been able to do anything with Milestone, although I know Xombi made an appearance in DC's Brave and the Bold team-up book.

From Xombi #1, "Silent Cathedrals, part one" Written by John Rozum, art by J.J. Birch.
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"Taskpool, part two."

Deadpool is like Poochie this week, in the sense that whenever he's not around, everyone should be asking, "Where's Deadpool?"

Pool's healing factor varies, depending on the writer. At the start of his first regular series, Joe Kelly ramped it down to the point that Wade had trouble regrowing a finger (that Taskmaster had chopped off, actually!) and then he lost the ability to regrow appendages at all. In Christopher Priest's run, Deadpool was reduced to snot, basically, and had to wear a containment suit to maintain himself...for like one issue. That was never brought up again, and may well be written off to Loki jerking Wade's chain. Under Gail Simone, the healing factor was pretty strong, until the Black Swan messed with it. In Cable/Deadpool, towards the end of the book, with writer Fabian Nicieza, Wolverine decapitated Deadpool--Bob helps put his head back.

In the current series, I think Deadpool has, possibly more than once, been wrecked up to the point where he needs to go lie down for a while; which strikes me as a callback to old detective stories or Conan: if the writer needs to change the scene, the main character gets hit on the head with a blackjack. Or, in Deadpool's case, shot the hell up.

The point is, Pool's healing factor can be however strong the writer wants, and they can justify in story, or not. And not unlike Roger Rabbit, if it's funny, Deadpool can walk off grievous injuries that would crush him in a serious situation. Kelly turned the healing factor down by irradiating Pool (gamma, I believe) but Priest had a great scene with Pool lowering his head into a nuclear reactor in an attempt to burn Tom Cruise's face off his head. (Goddamn, I love comics.)

Personally, I treat Deadpool's healing factor as ludicrously strong, able to regrow limbs or reattach skulls; but only if Pool's had a good breakfast. Most important meal of the day, people. Shouldn't have go back over this. (Stolen from Xombi, still one of the comics I miss most.)


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Twenty zombie books on the shelves now, and this should be the best of them.


From Xombi #17, "Hidden Cities, Chapter 1: Prophecies" Written by John Rozum, art by J.J. Birch.

Even though it made some interesting forays into the Milestone universe, even when it was coming out a lot of people thought Xombi should have been a Vertigo comic. Mmmmaybe. Starting January 1994, it lasted 22 issues in a comics market that was starting to compress. Would it have done better at Vertigo? No one can say. The book was already bucking art trends (Birch draws a ton of weird stuff, but in a non-showy, anti-Image manner) and was a Mature Readers book in a line that hadn't had that before.

The title character, David Kim, never refers to himself as a 'Xombi' or a superhero. He was a research scientist in the then-nouveau field of nanotechnology: tiny, building machines, that could change a substance at the atomic level. Nearly killed during a bizarre theft of his research, he has his assistant inject him with the nanites to repair him, which they do, with unfortunate consequences. From there, the nanites don't leave his body, making him impossible to kill.

A friend of mine thought that was a terrible power, and he has a point: David wasn't more resistant to injury or invulnerable. He didn't even get claws or unbreakable bones out of the deal. It's a power that seems difficult to make dramatic or flashy for the covers: in his #0 issue, David gets chopped into hamburger, recovers. Even with a Walt Simonson cover, you couldn't put that on there.

For the rest of the series, David struggles with the consequences of his powers, and to escape from or control his emersion into the unseen world of magic and weirdness. An ongoing subplot that sadly never got to come to the forefront was David's fiance, who had been working in Europe up until the last issue, as David tried to find a way to explain what had happened to him. As his friend and mentor Rabbi Sinnowitz tells him, "There is no right way to explain it. Some ways are more wrong than others."

Sadly, even with accolades from Harlan Ellison and Alan Moore, and promo opportunities like 99-cent issues, Xombi faded just before the rest of Milestone. Then, the internet wasn't the clog-of-blogs that it is today; and I can't help wondering if it might have had a better chance if fans had been able to promote it online more. Check out the quarter bins: there may not be a ton of these issues, but they're a worthwhile read if you see them. For more Milestone info and highlights, check out Munson's Milestone Monday's. Or your local library, if they have a good selection of defunct 90's universes... Read more!