TIAHBlog at 16 Presents (Not 16 Candles, but) 16 Covers!

We've all had individual and specific life-changing days!  Days which, for better or bitter, we will always remember!  I, personally, have had many... on BOTH sides of the "Good vs. Bad" ledger! Far too many to bog (...or BLOG) you down with here, even if I *were* inclined to do so.  

But Thursday, August 14, 2008 was one I thought little or nothing about... until some time well after when, as we often do with such days, come to later realize their import.  

It was a day when Esther was away for work and I had nothing to do... yes, REALLY!  This guy who did not *create* the phrase (all together now) "HORRIFICALLY BUSY",  but has since assumed virtual ownership of it - especially when preceded by a parenthetical "(all together now)" - really had nothing to do!  

New DVD day was Tuesday.  New comic book day was Wednesday.  And I wouldn't have a "Thursday Night Film Group" until 2012... so what was I to do?  

Well, to quote the great Doctor Zachary Smith of LOST IN SPACE: 

"Boredom, like necessity, is very often the mother of invention!" 

There were a LOT of Blogs around back then, many of which I admired and visited regularly. (Today, alas, not so much!)  And, while I might not have *actually been* a "writer" at that point, at least I fancied myself as one - what with over 300 comic book Letters of Comment, and regular appearances in Fanzines and APAs since 1994 under the title "THE ISSUE AT HAND" (affectionally shortened to "TIAH")!  

Then, I was struck by one of those "Chocolate and Peanut Butter" moments and thought I like BLOGS, and I like writing TIAH... so why not combine them into TIAHBlog?  

The rest has been 16 years of history (with much FUN) and counting!  

A constant in my life ever since - and one which, I'll readily admit, I let lapse a bit more often than I'd care to - but, unlike all the other things I've written for, both amateur and professionally, this is the ONE THING that's MINE and no one can take it from me... Okay, okay... Maybe Google, but you know... 

So, HAPPY SWEET SIXTEEN to TIAHBlog!  

But, instead of the song-standard SIXTEEN CANDLES, we will celebrate with SIXTEEN COVERS!

One each day for the NEXT SIXTEEN DAYS!  Can I manage that?  Well, stop by each day for the next SIXTEEN and see if I can live up to that ambition!  

They will be SIXTEEN COVERS that I like for one reason or another - or maybe it's just the 16th issue of something!  The beauty of it is that even I won't know until I post it!   

But, to kick things off, we shall begin with one that was (and remains) a long-standing joke between David Gerstein and myself... FELIX THE CAT #2 (Dell Comics, Cover Date: April-May, 1948), which I jokingly dubbed "SIX-SCREAM CANDLES", despite the incontrovertible fact that there is only ONE CANDLE present!

You can read the HOW and WHY at THIS POST!  

And, as a bonus - not to be counted among our own "SWEET SIXTEEN COVERS" - is the cover of  POPULAR COMICS #139 (Dell Comics, Cover Date: September, 1947) and dubbed in the linked post as "VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF DECEASED"...

...A gag on a particular favorite classic TV show of mine...

So, one down and 15 more to go... Come back tomorrow to see where we go from here!  

Adventures in Comic-Boxing: Strange Bird Lore!

From the pages of HAWKMAN #1 (DC Comics, Cover Date: April-May, 1964)...

...with a cover by Murphy Anderson that I always loved, BTW, comes the "not-so-strange" (because it's in HAWKMAN) editorial feature "Strange Bird Lore"!

[Click to Enlarge]    

While each example of Strange Bird Lore is interesting to one degree or another, I call your attention to the final one featuring a CROW!  

"It is fancied that when a lone traveler spies a single CROW flying overhead, his journey will end in misfortune..."

Yes indeed! ...Especially if you're in a CONVERTABLE with the TOP DOWN! 

And, need I mention that the... um,  crow of convertible coverage  is not the only crow appearing in DC Comics of the time that has been known to cause... misfortune!

 Above: Foxie weighs the CROWS and cons! 

Life is Like a Hurricane... And Full of SURPRISES, Too!

I don't know if I'm the first to break this, but it'll be common knowledge soon enough...

But, to anyone who dared brave the expected torrent of (all together now) "Marvel Specificity" and picked up WHAT IF...? DONALD DUCK BECAME WOLVERINE (Marvel Comics, Released July 31, 2024)...

 ...And cracked the cover (NO, not THAT kind of CRACK!), they would see (GASP!)... THIS!  

 Yes, it's a FANTAGRAPHICS AD for THEIR DISNEY HARDCOVER BOOKS!  

Don't know the details - and don't care! Let's just call it a welcome sight, and hope it's a sign of future synergy to come!   

...And hey, that is ONE AMAZING BOOK pictured in the ad above, and also below.  It's even got the fabled Marco Rota Donald Duck biographical story... which I've wanted to see in English since discovering it in 1984!  

Not only did I get to SEE it, but I also got to WRITE THE DIALOGUE for it!  

...Sometimes, dreams DO come true!  

We're still in the thick of taking comments for the previous post on Huckleberry Hound, so look for more on that subject later!  But, now I really had to have this "Fantagraphics Ad Thing", jump the line a tad! ...Your comments are welcome on BOTH posts! 

Huck probably wishes that someone "jumped the line" ahead of HIM, in THIS CASE!

Adventures in Comic-Boxing: "Punch" and... "Judy"?

Here's another interesting little "Charlton Oddity", from HANNA-BARBERA PARADE # 6 (Charlton Comics, Cover Date: April, 1972)...

Poor Huckleberry Hound (...apparently on a carnival date with a HUMAN female) is (pardon the expression) "roped" into one of those "boxing challenges" that occurred so often in the comedy/entertainment media of the early to mid 20th Century, and that hopefully no longer exist in real life!   (Click to Enlarge!) 

A well placed banana peel (see the third panel above) allows Huck to emerge victorious, but get a good look at the conquering hero's gal...

...And darned if it doesn't look like some 20th Century ancestor of JUDY JETSON!  

Golly, I wonder what happened to his old "Darling Clementine"?  

Oh, and before we go, also note the not-so-valiant-attempt at recreating the "GOLD KEY STYLE - THE END LOGO" in the lower right corner!  

On some level, I suppose even CHARLTON knew that Gold Key had produced the best Hanna-Barbera comic books!  

THE END!  

Limited Comics Review: Uncle Scrooge and the Infinity Dime.

It's here! It's out! It's the subject of our post!  It's UNCLE SCROOGE AND THE INFINITY DIME (Marvel Comics, Released June 19th, 2024)!

I dub this a "LIMITED Comics Review" for two reasons... ONE: Time and my usual state of being (...all together now) HORRIFICALLY BUSY, which is even more so than usual lately.  TWO: My status as a member of the Fantagraphics team that handles these very same characters finds me in the unlikely position of discussing the wares of a larger and... um, more influential "competitor"! 

So, I'll tread lightly, fairly, honestly... and with some (unusual for me) degree of brevity.  

First and foremost, I think that everyone would agree that it's great to see a new Uncle Scrooge story even partially produced in the USA!  I add "partially" because it seems to be a collaboration between Marvel and Disney Italy.  ...And, if (Disney owned) Marvel doesn't have the resources to do this, then who does?  

The story itself was good.  An epic, sweeping, universe-shaking tale that is common today.  Structurally reminiscent of "Scrooge's Last Adventure" - seen in the USA in IDW's UNCLE SCROOGE #13 (legacy #417) thru #16 (legacy #420).  If you liked that, you'll like this.  

And while I DID like both "Scrooge's Last Adventure"  and "The Infinity Dime",  I find myself sorta burned-out on epic, sweeping, universe-shaking tales from other publishers.  Early Scrooge adventures with a more tightly-focused and specific scope, such as Carl Barks' great "Back to the Klondike", "Tralla La", and somewhat later ones like "The Twenty-Four Carat Moon" and "The Flying Dutchman" were more than stirring enough to make them forever classics without the now-seemingly-requisite universe-shaking. 

That said, "The Infinity Dime",  works well on a number of levels, including at least one that "strictly Disney" fans may or may not get.  

Writer Jason Aaron is to be commented for his efforts. I personally felt better about this project upon learning that he was its writer - having enjoyed his work on the limited series BATMAN OFF-WORLD (DC Comics, 2024) a series whose most notable flaw is the extraordinary gap between issues!  

(DIGRESSION:  Issues 1-3 were cover-dated January, February, and March , 2024.  Issue 4 was cover-dated JUNE, 2024... and Issue 5 is still... still "Off-World", I guess!  I bought # 1-3 in one purchase, waited a very long time for #4 and expect to wait another good while for #5!  I read # 1-3 in one sitting, but will need to review the WHOLE THING before resuming!  END OF DIGRESSION)

Jason Aaron clearly loves the character of Scrooge McDuck, as is evidenced by his foreword - literally titled "Why I Love This Duck"...particularly as characterized by Don Rosa.  Thus, "his" Scrooge falls squarely into the "mythically invincible hero" mold of Rosa, more so than the "classically adventurous hero" of Carl Barks. Given this, Aaron, quite effectively, takes his tale to a level even Rosa might not have imagined.  

You might expect Rosa's "Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck" to permeate Aaron's epic, and indeed it does - spreading itself thickly throughout "Infinity Dime's" 30 pages... but there is another influence decidedly at work here (as hinted at above), Marvel's six-issue limited series of 1991, "The Infinity Gauntlet" , with an alternate universe's version of Scrooge taking on the role of "Infinity Gauntlet's" villain Thanos and substituting  alternate universe versions of "The Number One Dime" for the "infinity gems" of the original.  

I'm not a fan of post Silver Age Marvel Comics, and have never read "The Infinity Gauntlet" , but the obvious title homage was enough to tip off even me.  

One unexpected - and impressively clever - additional influence, a reference to Carl Barks' "Christmas on Bear Mountain", occurs on page one and sets the events of Aaron's story in motion.  

The art, by a number of different Italian artists, is sometimes over-rendered and hyper-colored, but good overall. 

Brimming with enough oversized or full-page panels, and Jack Kirby-esque, cinematic two page spreads to satisfy even Marvel movie fans!  

Why, there's even a nice little nod to RICK AND MORTY's Council of Ricks...

...With this story's offhanded mention of a Council of Gyros!

Right now you're probably asking yourself "WHERE'S DONALD?"  Well, you won't find the answer to that question until PAGE 24, but it'll be worth it!  NO SPOLIERS HERE!  

To sum up, "Uncle Scrooge and the Infinity Dime" is just enough on the "comfortable side of things" to satisfy a Barks traditionalist like me, while decidedly falling on the (all together now) "epic, sweeping, universe-shaking side of things".  

That means it should appeal to a wide swath of comics consumers, whose individual mileage will vary per their personal preferences. 

...And a big salute to writer Jason Aaron (we Disney comics writers and scripters must stick together) for walking such a fine line so successfully.  

I doubt I'll be able to say the same for Marvel's next foray into the world created, or otherwise enhanced, by Carl Barks, July's "What If...?  Donald Duck Became Wolverine", not written by Jason Aaron. 

...YES, REALLY! 

And here's the classic cover it's based on...

It will be followed up by September's "What If...?  Donald Duck Became Thor"... 

...Neither of which appeal to me!  Heck, I don't even like Donald as "Duck Avenger"! 

These are just too far removed from "my everyman-duck" Donald...

...But, again, your "traditionalist" or "non-traditionalist" mileage will vary.   I'll be passing on those, but do act according to your personal taste, and not some fogey blogger. 

I opted for the Alex Ross cover, not only because Alex Ross is such an amazing artist... 

...But because it's also (...all together now) more traditional!  

SO traditional, in fact, that Scrooge even appears to be diving into his MONEY CRIB, the 1951 precursor to his iconic MONEY BIN!  

But there are 13 (...count 'em 13!) variant covers, catering to all tastes!  While you're wondering why they didn't squeeze out just one more so as to avoid the potential bad luck in publishing 13 variants, you can see them all HERE at the GCD index that I'm presently preparing - and that should be completed soon. 

There are a host of additional features for your $7.99, including "Uncle Scrooge Cover Faves!" a gallery of Carl Barks Dell UNCLE SCROOGE covers and the wrap-around cover illustration by William Van Horn for UNCLE SCROOGE #250 - with no mention of Mr. Barks and Mr. Van Horn over its three pages. 

To tie in with events setting  "The Infinity Dime" into motion, there is also a reprint of Carl Barks' ultra classic "Christmas on Bear Mountain", which marked the first appearance of Uncle Scrooge - apparently using Fantagraphics' clean version of the original Dell/Western Publishing color, seen in The Complete Carl Barks Library Volume 5. 

A two-page preview of "What If...?  Donald Duck Became Wolverine", and other extras. 

I said I'd be brief... guess that didn't work out!  But, MY verdict on this much-awaited event is in.  Now, how about YOURS?  

Comments have been slower than usual lately... but I'm expecting you all to LIGHT IT UP for this one!  Have at it!  

When THIS Scrooge "lights it up"... he LIGHTS IT UP!