Todd Klein's Blog, page 379

And Then I Read: THE ARKADIANS

© Lloyd Alexander estate, illustration © Steve Johnson & Lou Fancher.

Lloyd Alexander had a long and prolific career as a writer of fantasy novels for children that could also be enjoyed by adults. He made his name with the Prydain Chronicles published from 1964-68, the first books of his I read, which were based largely on Welsh mythology. Alexander's many other fantasy books and series explored other areas of history, myth and legend, and this one is based on Greek tales. While none of the m...

And Then I Read: BAYSHORE SUMMER

© Pete Dune, images © Linda Dunne.

New Jersey, my home state, occupies an unusual place in our collective knowledge. Many people who haven't seen much of it, or perhaps any of it, feel they know New Jersey from films or TV shows or perhaps a trip along the New Jersey Turnpike between Philadelphia and New York City. Those are aspects of the state, but as you might guess, there are vast areas of it that are quite different. It's a state full of diversity physically and socially, from the hilly, ...

And Then I Read: BLACKEST NIGHT 8

Image © DC Comics, Inc.

The main question for this final issue of what seems like a story that's been going on for years is: does the payoff satisfy? I've had my doubts that it possibly could, but I'm here to say I was wrong. Geoff Johns made it work for me, and the main payoff, which I won't reveal in case you haven't read the book yet, is very cool. Yes, the series was bloated with repetitious storylines, excessive gore and melodrama, and was much too long, but if you lasted through it (and ...

And Then I Read: GREEN LANTERN 52

Image © DC Comics, Inc.

Finally we're getting somewhere. Sorry, but that's what it feels like in this penultimate Blackest Night issue. Sinestro has taken on the aspect of The Entity, the secret core of life in the universe, as Geoff Johns tells it, making him in effect the first White Lantern. Now we get to the real battle between light and dark, and Nekron strikes a killing blow, nearly cutting Sinestro in half! Meanwhile, a planet full of Black Lantern rings is hovering over Earth trying...

And Then I Read: GREEN LANTERN CORPS 46

Image © DC Comics, Inc.

Remember when this title focused on a handful of Corps members, their trials, heartbreaks, and triumphs? There's not much of that here, at the end of the Blackest Night event, except in a twisted way. Guy Gardner, now that he's back to the Green instead of the Red Lantern Corps, gets the Black Lantern guilt trip laid on him in the persona of Ice, his former girlfriend. While it has its moments, we've seen it before. Elsewhere, the rainbow coalition is still battling a h...

The First Smashed Logo?

© Marvel Characters, Inc.

It seems appropriate that The Hulk would be the first to smash a cover logo, but is this great 1968 example by Jim Steranko the first time it was done? A question for you logo fans out there — let me know if you can think of an earlier example. Thanks!

Rare Ditko stories?

Image © Steve Ditko.

The question mark is because I'm not sure how rare these stories are. They appeared in the first five issues of a magazine called QUESTAR that began publication in 1978. Here's the cover of the first issue:

Image © William G. Wilson.

While subtitled  "The NEW magazine of Science Fiction and Fantasy," as you can see the focus from the beginning was SF films, with this great Ken Barr "Star Wars" painting on the cover. Inside, in addition to articles about that film there are c...

Delaware Daytrip

Saturday Ellen and I decided to go to Delaware for the day via the Cape May  – Lewes, DE ferry. We don't do this very often, in fact we haven't ferried the Delaware Bay in a few years, first because it's expensive ($90 round trip), second because it takes a while: an hour and a half travel time each way. As the crow flies it's about 17 miles, but the ferry doesn't go very fast. It's a fun way to travel, though, and added a lot to our day out. Here we're in line waiting to board the ferry...

And Then I Read: BLACKEST NIGHT 7

Image © DC Comics, Inc.

Just when I thought every possible twist had been wrung out of the origins of life in the (DC) Universe, Geoff Johns adds a new one in this issue. How it fits in with the "hand of God" idea at the heart of the original CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS, I don't know, but it makes for an interesting transition toward the resolution that will (sort of) tie things up in this series. It's a very Earth-centric idea, which makes it a little harder to swallow, but on the other hand...

My First Cover Logo

Art © Todd Klein.

This morning I was going through some old stuff, pulling out things to sell on eBay, and I came across this 1976 fantasy fanzine, NIGHTSHADE 3, with my logo and art on the cover. Since it predates my earliest work at DC Comics by over a year, I believe it qualifies as my first cover logo. Okay, it's for a zine with a circulation of probably less than a thousand copies, but I'd say it qualifies. And I still like it, which is why I'm showing it here. While it only appeared on t...