Todd Klein's Blog, page 362

Klein Prints for Christmas?

Or the holiday of your preference…just a reminder that these SIGNED prints are available on this site, links abound but the main one is HERE. Prints usually ship the business day after I receive the order, by First Class mail, so expect to receive them in 2 to 4 days in the U.S., a week or more overseas (occasionally over a month, unfortunately).  I had hoped to have a new print ready by now, but as often happens, busy work schedules conspire against me. I may at least be able to announce it before Christmas, but I'm not even sure about that yet. In any case, I and my print partners appreciate your consideration.

And Then I Read: DAYTRIPPER 8 – 10

© Gabriel Bá & Fábio Moon.

This series has been keeping me guessing as to where it might be going, and the final three issues continue to go places I didn't expect. The previous issues have explored different paths in the life of one Brás de Oliva Domingos, a writer, husband, father, son, friend. Each issue caught a day in his life from different years, a wide range of them. While many of the same people appeared in each, the situations were often different due to alternate choices made by Bras, or events that happened to him.

In issue 8 we see the extended family of Brás at what would have been age 53, but he's not there — he has died six years earlier. It's a sentimental story, as everyone has fond memories of him, but an unusual one. Issue 9 suggests that all these stories are the dreams of Brás, and he revisits some of the events in earlier issues, as the story flows with him from one age to another, not in age order, in a very dreamlike fashion.

Finally, in issue 10, the series concludes with an elderly Brás reaching the end of a long and fulfilling life, with time to reflect on where he's been and a chance to decide his own fate: further medical work to prolong his life, or an acceptance of a relatively quicker end. Moon and Bá have crafted a series that allows readers to explore one man's life, but more than that, to reflect on their own, and all in a very entertaining package. I think I'm going to remember Brás and his family for a long time, and continue to think about him and the choices he made. Highly recommended.

And Then I Read: WARLORD 16

© DC Comics, Inc.

So it ends, this relaunch of THE WARLORD, only able to hang on for 16 issues this time. Despite some excellent work by Mike Grell as writer and sometimes artist, the magic seems to be gone, which is too bad, I enjoyed this run. The final issue is a bit of a rush toward closure, tying up as many plotlines as possible, while still leaving some room for a return perhaps, at least of Travis Morgan's son, Morgan having already been given a fine sendoff by Grell in an earlier issue. Despite all the bases that need to be touched, there's  some nice character moments here, and enough explosions to call it an action finale.

I really don't see anything wrong with Grell's art, but perhaps younger readers didn't warm to it, or prefer superheroes. To me it's a great combination of grace and power, bringing the kind of style to swords and sorcery that's hard to find elsewhere today.

Well done, Mike. As with previous issues, recommended.

Rereading: STARSTRUCK 11-13

© Elaine Lee and Michael Wm. Kaluta.

It's been great seeing STARSTRUCK in this new version with wonderful colors by Lee Moyer. I haven't really read it closely, just sort of grazed through it, enjoying the art and my old lettering, much of which I'd forgotten, especially the Galactic Girl Guides shorts. The new covers by Michael are just as good as the much older art, and the entire project brings a warm glow. These latter issues have some adult plot twists, but also emphasize the fun with lots of Girl Guides material in their own shorts as well as the main story. The world of STARSTRUCK is complex, but at its heart it's a thumping good space opera with a healthy dose of humor.

Here's one of those Girl Guides pages from the final issue. When the property was with Tundra Publishing, there was a Girl Guides spinoff comic planned, with art by Linda Medley. I lettered several complete issues. Sure would be nice to see that again. At the time there were legal issues with the name being too close to the actual Girl Guides of the United Kingdom, so they may never see the light of day. I remember them being quite good.

There'll be a collection of this new version along soon, I'm sure. I think it's great stuff, but I'm biased, since I worked on them. I suggest you give the series a try if you haven't already, though.

And Then I Read: BATMAN ODYSSEY 3 & 4

© DC Comics, Inc.

This series continues to both impress and confuse me in equal measures. The story is at times wildly melodramatic and over the top, at others effectively moving and wise. The over-the-top tends to drown out the wise moments, which are thrown in like punctuation in a speech with long sentences. The opening dialogue in issue 3 between Bruce Wayne and Alfred is written quite well, with nice and surprising changes in direction that make sense as a whole, though I think it's fair to say Bruce has never been so open and emotional elsewhere. The long sequence pitting Batman against highly armed thieves that follows has as much gunfire, action and blood as a video game and requires some serious suspension of disbelief that any man, no matter how armored, could get through it. Old foes/friends show up: Talia al Ghul, The Riddler (sort of) and Man-Bat, while Robin and Commissioner Gordon have roles to play. Behind all the emotional scenery-chewing is a mysterious enemy that everyone but Batman seems to know something about, somehow pulling strings in this whole storyline. It's hard to thing about that amid all the violence and screaming, though.

Then there's the art. If anything, it's even better in these issues, perhaps as Neal hits his stride and gets back into the flow of continuity art. More variety, better "acting", even if much of it is overacting. Amazingly dynamic anatomy, deep perspective, wonderful storytelling. In fact, I'm enjoying the art so much I really don't care if the story ultimately makes any sense or not. Bring it on, Neal… I'll be reading! Recommended.

And Then I Read: DODGEM LOGIC 1 & 2

First thing you should know about these is they are clearly marked FOR ADULTS ONLY, with good reason. DODGEM LOGIC is a slick-looking magazine masterminded and edited by Alan Moore, with some articles and art by him, but lots of contributions from friends and colleagues. In spirit it's very much like the underground newspapers of the 1960s, such as the "East Village Other" that I used to pick up in New York City occasionally in my youth, with a wide variety of subjects and styles, but all with a distinctly counter-culture or aiming-to-shock flavor. The focus is also on Northampton, England, where Alan lives, and features arts and culture news for that area. I have to say I enjoyed Alan's lead essay in each issue the most, and probably his self-written and drawn underground comic (whose title I don't want to even type here) the least, though it's no more outrageous than some of R. Crumb's work. Issue 2 has a CD inserted containing a sampling of local Northampton music in a wide variety of styles, from folk and country to hip hop and hard rock. It's a good listen, and I might run it a few more times.

Here's the opening page of Alan's essay on "Anarchy" from issue 2, in issue 1 it was on the history of Underground Comics. Also contributing are Melinda Gebbie and Kevin O'Neill (with some oddly pornographic art), writer Steve Aylett, and Steve Moore. The other names aren't familiar to me. There are comic strips of varying quality, essays on gardening, cooking and sewing, photo essays, including one on three strippers like the one featured on the cover above. Wide variety, and most pieces are a page or two, so if you don't like one, the next might work for you.

I don't know quite what to think of this as a magazine…is it an anachronism, a predictive hybrid, or just an oddity? In an age when many aren't reading magazines of any kind, it's certainly a gamble, but apparently is doing fairly well, as I just read that profits from it have funded an admirable holiday food gift program in Northampton, so that's certainly a good thing. I guess I'd say I'd recommend it to Alan Moore completists, and folks who remember the 60s counter-culture fondly and would like to see what it might look like in today's clothes, so to speak.

Colors/Textures of Fall, NW Jersey

Bittersweet

Old Barns

Pole and Vine

Red Cedar Berries

Slate

Weed Seeds

Thanksgiving and "Annimals"

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving meal yesterday as we counted our things to be thankful for, which are many. In addition to the usual dishes, Ann made delicious Sweet Potato Biscuits and Cornbread, both recipes are from the cookbook the the City Tavern in Philadelphia, a historic site and restaurant situated near sights like the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall.

Today we went over to a gallery in nearby Newton, NJ where Ann has some of her watercolors and mixed media works on display. One that caught my eye is her sample piece, "Annimals." Ann has been making these name paintings for many years, which are usually commissioned as gifts for new babies or young children, to decorate their rooms. The idea is that each letter of the name has an animal (or other living thing, sometimes a toy) representing it; Alligator for A as an example. It's a clever and attractive idea.

Here's one she's just finished for the name Patrick, and a better picture as this one is not framed and under glass yet. We've commissioned some for members of my family, and the the recipients are always delighted. If you're interested in finding out more about getting an "Annimals" original watercolor for someone in your family, EMAIL me and I'll put you in touch with Ann.

Holiday Cooking

We're making things to bring to Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow at Ellen's sister Ann's house. Ann and David will make the Turkey, Dressing and Mashed Potatoes among other things. We're bringing Pumpkin Pie, always a favorite, made from the Libby recipe on the pumpkin filling can, but substituting Half-and-Half for the Evaporated Milk.

We'll also bring Stuffed Mushrooms so Ellen has a veggie option, since she doesn't eat meat. We all have at least one. Then there's the Sweet Potatoes, our Fresh Cranberry Relish, and some green beans. Recipes (previously posted) in the links. Looking forward to the meal!

Incoming: SUPERMAN VS. MUHAMMAD ALI

© DC Comics, Inc.

Just arrived here, the "Deluxe Edition" of this great comic first published in 1978. Not only do I love the art by Neal Adams and the story by Denny O'Neill and Adams, this comic holds a lot of memories for me. Doing production work on it was one of my first big jobs when I started working on staff at DC in 1977. I was already an O'Neill/Adams fan because of their GREEN LANTERN/GREEN ARROW run, and the art for this was huge, intended for tabloid size publication, and much larger than the other comics art I was working with then. The inking by Dick Giordano (with backgrounds by Terry Austin) was also wonderful to see.

Imagine my shock when production manager Jack Adler told me the art was the wrong proportions, and I had to cut off about a half inch from the sides of each page! I did it, reluctantly, it was the only choice for printing prep then. The physical pages had to be sent to the separation house in Connecticut to be photographed for coloring, and they had to be the right proportions, there were no computer scans to resize. I think there were a few pages where art had to be extended about a half-inch on the sides, too, so somewhere in there are some art extensions by me, but I have no idea where.

Later, when I had a large handful of thin art strips, I took them to Jack, asking what I should do with them. He took them, and the next time Neal came into the Production room, Jack gleefully waved them in Neal's face. "See? I TOLD you they were the wrong proportions! Why don't you listen to me?" Or something like that was what he said. I don't remember Neal's reaction exactly, I'm sure he wasn't pleased, but later pages came in at the right proportions.

This version is much smaller than the original tabloid printing, but the reproduction is also much better, so you won't miss anything. (And I think there's a tabloid-size version available, too.) It's been recolored to match current standards, and that works fine, though there's the usual tendency to overuse airbrushed highlights on the faces, particularly noticeable on Ali's face. The design work is better than on other recent DC reprint hardcovers I've reviewed recently, though I don't see the point of adding an aged paper look to much of it, including the cover. To me, that simply says, "Oh, look at the funny old comics, aren't they cute?" This book can stand proudly next to any comic published today, it's top notch work by everyone involved, and a fine tribute to Ali and what he stands for. No need to give it the "cute" treatment.