Now That's An Identity Crisis

Star Trek 21-23
IDW Publishing
Mike Johnson, writer
Erfan Fajar, artist

These three issues represent what is best about this ongoing comic series set in the rebooted Trek movie universe -- it's acknowledgement of what has gone before in the previous incarnation of the series without slavishly adhering to every single detail of that canon. What we get here is a rehash of the events of the original series episode "Amok Time," and yet, this is a brand new, fresh story that takes the ideas introduced in that episode and creates a brand new tapestry from them.

The story arc presented here is called "After Darkness" and is meant to follow immediately after the events of the latest Trek film, "Star Trek Into Darkness." But the arc picks up threads from both films to create a story that affects the Enterprise crew right now and also introduces a longer-term subplot that will affect the entire universe in the future.

The bulk of the issues deal with the Enterprise being sidetracked to the New Vulcan colony when Spock begins feeling the effects of Pon Farr, a Vulcan mating ritual that affects males every seven years beginning in puberty. Spock naturally assumed his human half dulled the effects of Pon Farr in his own system as he has never before dealt with the madness that accompanies the symptoms.

Instead of getting better, however, Spock seems to grow worse, losing more and more of his emotional control upon arriving at the New Vulcan colony. The crew learns that since the colony was founded, several Vulcans have fallen to the uncontrollable effects of Pon Farr and have wandered off into the wilderness of their new planet. Once gone, they are referred to as "sasaud," Vulcan for vanished. Naturally, the Enterprise crew refuses to abandon Cmdr. Spock and manages to find a solution to the new Pon Farr problem, and writer Mike Johnson does a wonderful job of making both the problem and the eventual solution seem scientifically plausible.

As for the longer term subplot introduced here for future development, after the events of "Into Darkness," Captain Kirk has been declared a public enemy of the Klingon race for his unprovoked invasion of their space. While the Klingons prepare for war with the Federation, the remnants of the mysterious Section 31 division of Starfleet from the film conspire with the Romulan Empire to hold off the Klingons. Of course, both the Section 31 members and the Romulans are already plotting to betray this fledgling alliance for their own goals.

This is a very good story that also sets in motion some future developments. In fact, my only complaint is the return of something I didn't understand the first time it surfaced in this series: the apparent common knowledge of the existence of "old Spock" in this new rebooted reality. Again, my understanding from the first film is that three people know of the existence of "old Spock": Jim Kirk, whose life "old Spock" saves; Montgomery Scott, who meets "old Spock" when he and Kirk come to the lithium cracking station Scott is stationed at; and current Spock at the end of that first film. Every time "old Spock" meets one of these three people, he cautions them about not revealing who he really is. Yet, here, for a second time in this comic series, the existence of "old Spock" is discussed generally among the crew of the Enterprise as if it is common knowledge. But then, I guess I have to let go of my belief that this is an error; "old Spock" also made a cameo appearance in "Into Darkness" and in that scene, Kirk contacts him and speaks to him openly on the bridge of the Enterprise where anyone on the bridge can overhear. I guess that must mean that the existence of "old Spock" in this universe and the fact that to him, all of this has happened before, must be common knowledge, at the very least, to those aboard the Enterprise.

How Could I Have Doubted Rick?

The Walking Dead Vol. 18: What Comes After
Image Comics
Robert Kirkman, writer
Charlie Adlard and Cliff Rathburn, artists

Things looked very bleak for our band of survivors after they ran afoul of a street gang named the Saviors in the last collected volume of The Walking Dead. Some truly brutal things had happened courtesy of the Saviors' leader, Negan, and Rick truly seemed defeated. He agreed to turn over half of everything his group had to the Saviors in exchange for their "protection," thus falling in line as several other nearby communities of survivors had previously done.

It truly seemed like Rick had no other choice, that Negan had the upper hand. Even a number of Rick's own followers believed the former lawman was broken. Which is exactly what Rick needed to ensure that Negan and the Saviors would also fall for the ruse. Rick's real intent, this volume reveals, was to bide time and learn all he could about the Saviors, where their base was, how many men and weapons they truly had at their disposal. Once that was made clear, it all made perfect sense, so that I felt bad for believing less of Rick.

And this volume does reveal a lot of details about how the Saviors live and how Negan maintains control of his crew. The man is easily as insane as the Governor, although Negan's insanity manifests itself in vastly different ways. Unfortunately, things do not proceed exactly as Rick hoped when he started his plan to buy time and gain information. Rick does indeed gain some information and some much-needed allies, but as often happens in real life and with this ragtag band of survivors of the zombie apocalypse, some unforeseen curves are thrown into the mix. Just one of those curves is when 12-year-old Carl, disgusted by his father's apparent capitulation to the Saviors, decides to take on Negan's crew single-handed.

One More Time For Old Time's Sake

Boneyard: The Biggening
Antarctic Press
Richard Moore, writer and artist
********** Mature Content Warning ************

My prayers have been answered! Boneyard is back!!

Unfortunately, it's only a one-shot so far, but one can hope for more, right?

Boneyard was the creation of Richard Moore and ran for 29 quarterly issues from NBM Publishing from 2001-2009. Moore is perhaps best known for his adult pin-ups and comics such as Far West and Fire & Brimstone. There is a lot of innuendo in Boneyard, but none of the more risque bits found in Moore's other works. And most of what I have seen from Moore to date always mixes humor with the horror.

In the Boneyard series, we are introduced to Michael Paris, Paris to his friends, a regular guy who has just learned his eccentric grandfather has passed away and bequeathed him a plot of land. Paris drives to the town of Raven's Hollow expecting to sign some papers selling the land and pick up a check he desperately needs. Once he arrives in Raven's Hollow, however, Paris finds the town very odd; everyone seems to know who he is and treats him almost like royalty. The strange behavior makes Paris uneasy, and he decides to inspect the property before signing it away. What he finds is the town cemetery, the Boneyard, of which he is now the sole owner; but the Boneyard is full of more than just remains. It is also home to a collection of "monsters" the townspeople are anxious to get rid of.

Abbey, an attractive 2,000-year-old vampire and obvious spokesperson for the Boneyard's inhabitants, encourages Paris to get to know them before signing any papers, and despite his fear at meeting a "living" vampire, Paris is intrigued. Abbey shows him around, and Paris meets a number of the other Boneyard crew: Nessie, a flirtatious (and willing to back those flirtations up) Creature from the Black Lagoon type; her husband, Brutus, a mute and not terribly bright Frankenstein's monster type; Sid, a living skeleton; Ralph, a werewolf; Edgar, a wise-cracking raven; Glump, a lesser demon banished to earth for a bit of kindness; and Leon and Boris, the stone gargoyles posted on either side of the front gate of the Boneyard; among others. Paris, and the readers, quickly learn that the townsfolk have nothing to fear from the motley Boneyard crew, all of whom just want to peacefully co-exist. At that point, it becomes obvious that a single entity is behind the attempts to close down the Boneyard and has been stirring up the city to achieve that end. Once that threat is exposed and eliminated, however, other beings -- both supernatural and governmental -- show up to bedevil Paris, Abbey and the rest.

And it all added up to a wonderful, funny, entertaining black-and-white series that ended much too soon. If I recall correctly, I read at the time that Moore had experienced a couple personal tragedies including a house fire. He found himself needing some quick cash and his more adult projects had always sold better than the lesser-known Boneyard. So he put the series on indefinite hiatus to concentrate on some of those more lucrative projects.

This Boneyard one-shot was announced this past summer as the first of a series of one-shots, now being published by Antarctic Press, and it is every bit as good as the original and a happy reunion with old friends. In this story, Paris and Abbey are in the relationship that was beginning in the main series, but Paris is feeling a bit inadequate when compared with some of Abbey's past lovers. Again, she's been around for 2,000 years, so she's had a few beaus in her time, and many of them are warlocks, demons, wizards, elf princes or other beings of power and wealth. Paris seeks advice from Glump -- never a good idea -- and Abbey must help him deal with the disastrous results of Glump's "help." Along the way, readers get brief glimpses of several other familiar characters, and a June interview with Moore by Comic Book Resources indicated that future one-shots were planned to catch fans up with all of the Boneyard denizens.

Alas, it now seems that those future one-shots may never materialize. I've noticed that I have yet to see another Boneyard book advance solicited. Same goes for Moore's new Antarctic Press anthology, Macabre. Between reading Boneyard: The Biggening and getting this post posted, I came across the sad, sad news that Moore has announced he is leaving the comics field for other pursuits. In his own words, "I’m no longer in the comics business. Twenty years of putting everything I had into the worst-paying job I’ve ever had was enough. Sincerity and hard work mean nothing when you can’t get publishers to give a damn. I hope people enjoyed my modest contribution to the field."

Moore plans to do some work in the realm of children's books, an interest he says he's had for a long time. I wish him well with whatever he pursues, and I will very much miss his Boneyard cast unless or until they return in some fashion in the future.

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Now for some happier news: TJ Burns of Kentucky, also known as American Hawkman, won the free comics I promised for helping me to understand Arion's characterization from Kurt Busiek's run on Superman a few years ago. See, folks, it sometimes pays to post a comment!

Anyway, I hadn't specified what was to be given away, so TJ chose to receive the four-issue 1985 Red Tornado series from DC Comics. Those books are on the way to him right now! Hopefully he enjoys them when he's not writing his own fan fiction for Faux DC. Thanks again for the assistance, TJ!

Hard To Keep Up With But Worth The Effort

The Perhapanauts: Danger Down Under 1-5
Image Comics
Todd Dezago, writer
Craig Rousseau, Lauren Monardo Gramprey, Matt Wieringo, Eric Henson, Matthew Dow Smith and Christian D. Leaf, artists

This is a quirky little book that comes out in limited series form every once in a while and then disappears for a bit. There have been three multi-issue minis, all later collected in trades, and several stand-alone issues and one-shots before this series. The first two minis and trades -- First Blood and Second Chances -- were under the Dark Horse imprint before Todd Dezago and Craig Rousseau moved their creation to Image Comics.

I think a series of limited series is preferable to an ongoing monthly in some cases, especially when the character is not as well-known or established or the creators need more time between story arcs. Tell the story you have in mind and then stop until you have another idea or more books in the can. It doesn't work quite so smoothly for this series, however, because the title is told as if it was an ongoing. Take the end of this five-issue mini, for example. As the title implies, much of the action in these issues takes place in Australia. Technically, at the end of issue five, none of the characters is still in Australia, and I very much doubt that they will be returning there any time soon. However, the situation that took them to Australia is not yet resolved. In fact, a pretty major plot thread left dangling by the third mini, Triangle, is not advanced in this fourth mini until the very last page, and it is really more of a teaser of things to come than a resolution. So the story is very much an ongoing.

To further confuse things a little bit, if you are buying Perhapanauts in singles, each issue contains two or three stories -- the main, and one or two backups, often by other artists to give main artist and co-creator Rousseau a break, I assume. Sometimes those backup stories serve to expand on some detail in the main story, but other times they might be a completely separate tale with no relation whatsoever to the main. That can get even more confusing if you're reading the series in trade and have to figure out why these side-trip stories are placed in between chapters of the main story.

Once you get used to those idiosyncrasies of Dezago's writing, however, this is a very fun read filled with colorful characters. There are five main characters when the Perhapanauts series starts out, all agents of a secret organization named BEDLAM, the Bureau of Extra-Dimensional Liabilities and Management. Arisa is the leader of Blue Team and a psychic. There's also Molly, a teenage ghost; Choopie, a video-game playing, blood-sucking chupacabra; Big, a genetically enhanced sasquatch; and MG, the enigma of the group about whom little is known. There is also a Red Team led by an ex-Marine named Peter Hammerskold. Other members of Red Team include the Merrow, a sea sprite, and Karl, a mothman able to instill fear. There are also multiple BEDLAM bases around the world, so other agents may show up from time to time, many of them human, but certainly not all of them.

So what exactly does BEDLAM do? They track down things that have accidentally or by design arrived in our world from other planes of existence, be they alternate universes, parallel dimensions or simple tears in the fabric of reality. So the reader never quite knows what Dezago and Rousseau are going to throw at the Perhapanauts. So far they've crossed paths with cryptids you might have heard of such as gremlins, the Jersey Devil and even Karl's people, the mothmen. But there have also been a number of other scary things like a chimaera, an aswang, a tatzel wurm, the Dover Demon and a growtch.

If you are interested in the bizarre and enjoy some humor mixed liberally with your drama, this is a book you should check out.

More Creepy Goodness

Rachel Rising 17
Abstract Studios
Terry Moore, writer and artist

It's been a while since I talked about this book, but I'm still enjoying Moore's trip through the dark history of this little town and the impact that history has on its current residents.

The title character is not the only one to have risen from the dead at this point. Rachel's friend, Jet, is also now walking around and talking with people despite having a broken neck and no pulse or much of a sense of touch anymore. We also know a little of the town's history and why these strange events are happening, although I don't want to reveal too much for anyone wanting to try the series for themselves.

In fact, my only complaint with this title is that each issue feels very short at just 18 pages of actual story, and many leave me feeling like there wasn't much story progression, although that is often deceptive. I might have enjoyed this story more in trade format for a more satisfying chunk at a time, much like I did when I read Moore's Strangers In Paradise series. But I started picking this one up in single issues like I did with his previous series, Echo, and hate to switch now.

Bottom line, this is a chilling story involving witchcraft, possession, demons and re-animated corpses that is visually stunning to look at and a well-written narrative to boot. You can't go too far wrong with those ingredients.

Wickedly Funny

Macabre 1
Antarctic Press
Richard Moore, writer and artist
********** Mature Content Warning ************

This is a collection of nightmarish tales that often employ humor in their twist-endings, as anyone familiar with Richard Moore's previous work might expect. Moore is likely best known for his Far West and Boneyard series from NBM Publishing, and for his (often adult) pin-ups and illustrations. I decided to give this quarterly book a try based on his name and my appreciation for his Boneyard work alone, and I was not disappointed.

Macabre starts out with a brief introduction from the book's hostess, Charli, who quickly dispenses with any thoughts the reader might have that she is a Crypt Keeper or Elvira, Mistress of the Dark, clone. What follows is a series of three short stories (two five-pagers and a three-pager), a few one-page Charli gags and introductions, and a number of pin-ups of some classic Moore sexy, scary ladies. The stories feature a werewolf (always a plus in my book), an ogre with amorous intentions and a crew of misguided zombies, but no major gore or anything hard-core in this inaugural issue. I found all three stories engaging and humorous and only wish there had been a bit more content for the higher cover price independent publishers' books carry ($3.50 in this case).

Moore's art is on the cartoony side rather than hyper-realistic. A more loose, cartoony style isn't always the most popular way to go in the minds of some comics fans, but for the types of stories Moore tells -- almost always with an element of humor -- the style works perfectly.

One other note of interest that caused me a tiny bit of confusion: In that zombie story, the second and third pages were printed in reverse order, at least in my copy. That took a few minutes to figure out, but once I did, I think this one was my favorite of Charli's three tales.

I look forward to this book continuing for a good, long time and wish Moore much success at his new publishing home.

On A Bit Of An Unintended Roll

Superman 654-667 and Annual 13
DC Comics
Kurt Busiek, writer
Carlos Pacheco, Jesus Merino, Peter Vale, Mike Manley, Bret Blevins, Rick Leonardi and Eduardo Barreto, artists

Been examining a number of older books of late. That, of course, is due to me trying to winnow down my collection by a considerable amount for space reasons. But also, both posts this week seem to be about books I found a little disappointing. Not because they are bad, exactly, but more because they didn't quite live up to the hopes I had for them when they came out.

Kurt Busiek's run on Superman between 2006 and 2007 definitely fits into this category. There were a few one-off issues in the run that involved a fun little diversion with the Prankster (Superman No. 660), a guest appearance by Wonder Woman and a villainess named Khyrana (Superman No. 661) and a spooky little tale for issue No. 666, but otherwise, the majority of the books in this run centered on two running plots.

The first involves an old friend of Clark Kent's seeking the reporter out as a means of contacting Superman. An alien life form is found in an abandoned Soviet research facility, and Superman's help is needed to contain the being known only as Subjekt 17. This is the plot I had the highest hopes for as numerous parallels are drawn between this creature's life and Superman's. Both came to Earth as infants and grew to adulthood here. But whereas Superman was discovered by Jonathan and Martha Kent, raised as their own child and nurtured into being a great hero and inspiration to many, Subjekt 17 knew a life of only pain and cruel experimentation. Even Subjekt 17 sees how easily things could have been different for each of them as he learns more and more about humanity after his escape. But that only fuels his hatred of humanity, and sense of betrayal when Superman opposes him. I was really looking forward to how Superman would resolve this conflict with Subjekt 17 in a way that stayed true to the best elements of his character.

Unfortunately, that resolution was never allowed to occur. Interspersed with the issues that dealt with Subjekt 17 was the other major plot, during the course of which, Subjekt 17 is magically sent away in one issue and as far as I know, never was seen again. Busiek left the book shortly after these issues, and I don't believe either he or any other writer has ever picked up the plot threads started with Subjekt 17.

That other major plot involves the idea that superheroes, and Superman and other alien heroes in particular, are doing mankind no favors each time they stop some planet-wide crisis. The Atlantean magician Arion travels forward in time from the 14th century to warn Superman to stop fighting because each time he stops some global threat, it only delays the inevitable, and the threat will be that much stronger when it ultimately returns. Basically, Arion is arguing that a large portion of humanity must die off in some cataclysm periodically for the human race to survive and grow. But by stopping said cataclysm, Superman is only stalling. At some point, the threat will grow so big that Superman will ultimately fail, and when that happens, the cataclysm will be so big that the human race will be wiped out entirely. Basically, Arion is urging Superman to let thousands die in order to save the entire human race.

So Arion comes forward in time and gives Superman and some of his friends a vision of the very bleak future Arion foresees. Using this, Arion tries to guilt Superman into giving up and letting a lot of people die, by Arion's own hands, if necessary. If you don't already know, Arion was the star of his own comic title in the 1980s. He was a powerful magician from ancient Atlantis (before the sinking) and his adventures were of the sword and sorcery variety. I'll be honest, my exposure to Arion stories is very, very limited, but I don't see him being the hero of his own book and having the type of characterization we see in this story. The glimpse of the bleak future he provides is interesting, as is the moral dilemma he presents Superman with, but this entire plot was off for me because I didn't buy the characterization of the main antagonist. It didn't help that the Subjekt 17 plot I was more interested in got derailed by the Arion plot.

Feel free to leave a comment defending this storyline if it was one of your favorites. Who knows, if someone can help me like this version of Arion more, or let me know if the Subjekt 17 plot was ever resolved somewhere I missed, there might be some free comics from the stuff I'm selling in it for you. Thanks for stopping by and happy collecting!

Very Pretty, But Not As Much Substance As I'd Like

Batman and the Monster Men 1-6/Batman and the Mad Monk 1-6
DC Comics
Matt Wagner, writer and artist

These two limited series came out in 2006-07 and are essentially re-tellings of Golden Age Batman stories. The first re-presents Batman's first encounter with Prof. Hugo Strange and his monstrous mutations from Batman No. 1; the second pits Batman against a vampire cult from the pages of Detective Comics No. 31. Both series were originally printed under the heading Dark Moon Rising and were intended to fall between the events of Frank Miller's and David Mazzucchelli's Batman: Year One -- Batman's origin -- and Ed Brubaker's and Doug Mahnke's Batman: The Man Who Laughs -- the first confrontation between Batman and the Joker.

Although the character of Catwoman makes a cameo appearance in the pages of Batman: Year One, the bulk of the action in that origin story centers around organized crime in Gotham City and the corruption in the GC Police Department. There are no other costumed criminals for Batman to battle in that origin story, much like most of the villains in the earliest Batman appearances in Detective Comics were mobsters and street thugs. Therefore, one of the motivations behind Wagner's retelling of these two classic tales was to bridge the gap in Batman's focus from tackling organized crime to facing more colorful costumed rogues.

Wagner's two stories do an effective job on that score, showing both Batman and police Lt. Jim Gordon questioning whether or not the Batman's activities are creating an escalating level of craziness from the villains he faces. Also done to very nice effect is the inclusion of Sal Maroni as one of the up-and-coming underworld figures and Gotham District Attorney Harvey Dent. Many early Batman stories include the crusading district attorney who would later become the villain Two-Face when acid is thrown in his face by Sal "Boss" Maroni. These two characters' appearances in these series help flesh out some of their earlier Gotham activities.

I think where the pieces go wrong is by including and adapting another piece of early Batman history. In his earliest appearances, Batman's alter ego, Bruce Wayne, is involved with an actress named Julie Madison. In Wagner's version, Julie Madison is a law student from another wealthy Gotham family. Her inclusion is a nice portal, along with Alfred Pennyworth, into the psyche of Bruce Wayne in these stories. But ultimately, her journey in the story is a sad one as she can't continue to be a part of Batman's world.

Even worse, Wagner also includes Julie's father, Norman Madison, in the story. Julie's mother died when Julie was young, and her father's business affairs have fallen on hard times. To ease the strain, Norman Madison has borrowed money from Sal Maroni. This puts him in the middle of the Batman's investigations into Maroni's racketeering. When things come to a head between the mobsters, Prof. Strange's monster men and Batman, Norman Madison is caught in the middle. Madison survives the melee, but he is a broken man after being confronted with his own guilt and the appearance of the Batman. In the Mad Monk series, Madison's descent into full-on paranoia contributes to the vampire cult gaining a hold on Julie Madison, a plot device that seems rather contrived and unnecessary to the overall story.

Really, these aren't bad stories; they're worth a read if you've never before given them a try. They just don't represent the best in either Batman stories out there or what Wagner has produced in his comics career.