The Sword of Solomon Kane

'The Sword of Solomon Kane'
Marvel comics, 1985 - 1986

Starting with issue 1 in September, 1985, and going on to issue 6 in July, 1986, Marvel re-launched the ‘Solomon Kane’ franchise as limited-series, four-color comic book with Code approval. 

It’s not clear if ‘The Sword of Solomon Kane’ was a carefully considered, deliberate decision by  the management, or a last-minute effort to get some books printed before Marvel’s rights to the franchise lapsed.

The miniseries used both REH's original Kane stories, and material created for the miniseries by the Marvel editorial staff.

Issue 1 was ‘Red Shadows’, issue 2 an original werewolf tale titled ‘And Faith, Undying’, issue 3 ‘Blades of the Brotherhood', issue 4 ‘The Prophet’ (featuring artwork by Mike Mignola), issue 5 ‘Hills of the Dead, and issue 6 ‘Wings in the Night’.

For most of these issues Ralph Macchio provided the scripting, with Brett Blevins and Al Williamson providing the art.

Even given Marvel’s use of cheaper, plastic printing plates in their 80s comics, the artwork and color reproductions in these issues are quite crude. 

Indeed, it’s markedly inferior to the artwork in the black and white Curtis magazine incarnations of Solomon Kane in the 1970s (as a backup feature in ‘The Savage Sword of Conan’, etc.). 

Mignola’s penciling for issue 4 is probably the best this particular series offered, followed by Blevin’s work in issue 2.

Hardcore REH and Solomon Kane fans may want to pick up this miniseries if the opportunity presents itself. All six issues appear on online auction websites for affordable prices.

As well, all six issues were reprinted in 2009 in Dark Horse’s trade paperback compilation of the Marvel comic - book Kane adventures of the 70s and 80s, ‘The Chronicles of Solomon Kane’.

(Note, the b & w comics from the Curtis magazines are reprinted in another Dark Horse volume, ‘The Saga of Solomon Kane’.)

'A Christmas Romance' by Jean-Michel Nicollet

'A Christmas Romance' by Jean-Michel Nicollet
from Metal Hurlant No. 24, December, 1977

This is a special Christmas issue: Perversions du Pere Noel ('Perversions of Santa Claus (Father Christmas)'.

It's a French thing, I guess....

This issue features another fine contribution from Jean-Michel Nicollet, titled 'A Christmas Romance'. Only three pages in length, but warped genius in every panel.....

(My translation is paraphrased)

 December 1999, and this is the End....

 and a few days later....

"I'm hungry all the time"

".....not even a rat !"

"I'm hungry.....thirsty..."

"Say, you know what day it is ?
....by my watch, it's December 25! It's a funny name ?
....Hey, I'll give a gift for you, Tourme !"

He grabbed his telescopic machete that he always carried with him....

"It was good, my love ?"

"Mmmmmmm !" 

'Queen of the Bird People' by Caza
(la reine du peuple des oiseaux)

Book Review: Bloodworm

Book Review: 'Bloodworm' by John Halkin

3 / 5 Stars

‘Bloodworm’ (251 pp) was published by Guild Press in 1988. The covert artwork is uncredited.

Author John Halkin published several other ‘creature’ novels in the 80s, including ‘Slither’ (1980), ‘Slime’ (1984) and ‘Squelch’ (1985).

With the type of novel that ‘Bloodworm’ represents, Halkin knew he was not being asked to deliver a moody tome, preoccupied with psychological horror and existential malaise. Rather, his readers wanted gruesome monster action, without any ancillary crap. And that’s what 'Bloodworm' delivers.

Set in a rundown London neighborhood, in the cheerless days of early Spring, within the first few pages of the novel a wino (er, excuse me, Homeless Person) becomes fodder for vicious, flesh-eating beetles.

In short order the beetles get to work on other victims, and the body count rises.

Guy Archer, a former British Army officer, is one of the lucky few to survive an encounter with the beetles. As the infestation grows, Archer, and the public health workers and police officers who call on his expertise, make a disturbing discovery: in some instances, wormlike creatures the size of cobras are appearing alongside the beetles.

These worms fasten their sucker-like mouths on hapless victims and drain their blood. As they feed, the loathesome worms turn pink….then red….hence the term ‘bloodworms’.

Before the authorities can quite grasp the nature of the menace, the beetles and their bloodworm allies begin an inexorable spread throughout the city…..and London comes to know the meaning of true horror…

'Bloodworm' is a well-written book; Halkin adopts the spare, uncontrived prose style of James Herbert. The dialogue is believable, and authentic to the novel's London locale. Extended internal monologues, angst-filled musings on the Horror Of It All, and multi-page flashbacks don’t make an appearance. Instead, we get a fast-moving narrative devoid of filler.

The rationale underpinning the appearance of the ravenous insect life is more than a little contrived, but Halkin understands that, like the Sci-Fi channel’s ‘monster movie of the week’, entertainment is key with something like 'Bloodworm'.

In my opinion, this makes 'Bloodworm' markedly superior to such dire 80s horror clunkers as Ramsey Campbell’s ‘The Parasite’, or Peter Straub’s ‘Koko’.

If you’re a fan of the schlock ‘creature’ novels released in the 1980s by Shawn Hutson (‘Slugs’), Guy Smith (‘Killer Crabs’), and of course Herbert’s novels, than 'Bloodworm' is just right for you.

'Heavy Metal' magazine December 1978

December, 1978, and on the FM radio stations, Al Stewart's 'Time Passages' is getting heavy airplay.

The latest issue of Heavy Metal magazine is on the stands at Gordon's Cigar store. In this, the era before video games and computers and cable TV with more than 15 channels, Heavy Metal is a welcome piece of escapism from the early darkness and cold weather that accompanies December's advent in the Rust Belt.

The front cover is 'The Second Experiment' by Peter A. Jones, and the back cover, 'In Dolly's Dreams', is by William M. Kaluta.

Looking through its pages, I see new installments of Bilal's 'Exterminator 17', Morrrow's 'Orion', Corben's 'New Tales of the Arabian Nights', more of Moebius's 'Airtight Garage', and McKie's 'So Beautiful and So Dangerous'. All vintage HM goodness.

However, the outstanding comic in the December issue is Paul Kirchner's 'Tarot'.

Featuring Kirchner's meticulously detailed artwork, an offbeat plot, a surprise ending,  and employing just 6 dialogue balloons, even the heaviest of stoners among the HM readership could groove on this gem.......

The Wild Wild West: The Series

'The Wild Wild West: The Series' by Susan E. Kesler

Back before the term ‘steampunk’ existed, there was The Wild Wild West, created by CBS associate producer Michael Garrison to take advantage of the spy craze sweeping American pop culture during the mid-60s. Characterized as ‘James Bond on a Horse’, the pilot episode aired on September 17, 1965, and became a hit.

I remember watching episodes of The Wild Wild West when it was first broadcast, and later again in the mid 1970s, when the show was widely syndicated. While some episodes were rather pedestrian Western tales, and others adopted a tongue-in-cheek, satirical tenor, there were rare episodes with an genuinely offbeat, imaginative focus that showcased proto-steampunk, and sometimes horror or supernatural themes, too.

‘The Wild Wild West: The Series’ (250 pp) first was published by the Arnett Press in 1988. A 30th Anniversary Edition (below) was reissued in 2018 by self-publisher CreateSpace, with corrections and revisions, a better print quality, additional content, and more color reproductions. 

‘WWW:TS’ is a labor of love on the part of the author, fangirl Susan Kesler, who spent two years assembling the book, interviewing former cast and crew members, and gathering memorabilia.

Filled with (mostly b & w) stills, the book features season-by-season synopses of all episodes, with some synopses accompanied by ancillary text boxes that touch upon interesting backstories to a particular episode.

Other of the book’s chapters deal with the intrigues and politics of producing the show, and offer interesting anecdotes; for example, although the show continued to enjoy strong ratings as its third, and final, season ended, the network’s concern over the show’s violent content probably factored into its decision to cancel the series.

Other chapters touch on the personalities of Robert Conrad (Jim West) and Ross Martin (Artemus Gordon). As I expected, the 5’ 2” Conrad suffered from a Napoleon Complex that saw him and his stunt crew regularly risking serious injury in pursuit of macho undertakings, including after-hours brawls in a local watering hole. 

Ross Martin, for his part, envied Conrad's position in the leading man role, and regularly complained that in terms of the show’s scripts, the 'Artie' character just wasn’t getting the action with the chicks that he should’ve been getting ! 

Author Kesler recounts the circumstances behind Martin’s near-fatal heart attack in August, 1968, which kept him off the WWW set for nearly four months. According to an interview in later years with his wife, Olavee, Martin drank 25 – 30 cups of black coffee per day, and smoked 3 -4 packs of cigarettes per day, while adhering to a diet comprised almost exclusively of red meat -! This was not all that unusual an actor's diet in the Mad Men era.

Additional chapters / sections feature an overview of Ross Martin’s various disguises; ‘blooper’ photographs of the cast and crew; an account of a typical day on the set of WWW; memorabilia and collectibles; and capsule summaries of the two ‘revival’ episodes aired in 1979 and 1980.

The book closes with a poem written by Ross Martin.

WWW:TS is aimed at the hardcore fan, but others with a nostalgic bent, and those interested in 60s pop culture, may want to leaf through it as well.

Book Review: Hackers

Book Review: 'Hackers' by Jack Dann and Gardner Dozois

4 / 5 Stars

‘Hackers’ (Ace, 239 pp., October 1996, cover by Sharmen Liao) was one of a large number of anthologies (‘Mermaids !’, ‘Demons !’, ‘Dogtales !’) edited by Dann and Dozois and released in the 1990s.

The entries in ‘Hackers’ all first saw print in various magazines (Omni, Wired, Playboy, Isaac Asimov’s Science Fiction Magazine) during the interval 1982 – 1994.

The collection leads off with Gibson’s ‘Burning Chrome’ from 1982, still – along with 'Johnny Mnemonic' – the touchstone cyberpunk tale. Tom Maddox contributes ‘Spirit of the Night’ (1987), about a team of hackers who get involved in what, at first glance, seems like corporate intrigue. 

‘Blood Sisters’ (1991) by Greg Egan, deals with siblings confronting a near-future wracked by the unregulated consequences of genetic engineering and widespread genetic disease; centered less on sf elements and more on emotional travails, it’s one of the less impressive stories in the collection.

Pat Cadigan’s ‘Rock On’ (1984) is a brief tale about a rock-and-roller seeking freedom from corporate and contractual obligations; it suffers from an overloaded prose style and a too-hard effort to be too-hip. Robert Silverberg’s ‘The Pardoners Tale’ (1987) is surprisingly good, coming from an 'Old Hand' sf author. ‘Pardoner’s Tale’ deals with a near-future Earth under alien rule, and a canny hacker who delicately takes advantage of the situation.

Alexander Jablokov’s ‘Living Will’ (1991) describes the efforts of an elderly man to achieve immortality via creating a personalized AI; there is a focus on the pathos attendant to aging. The premise doesn’t really mesh well with the hacker concept, and this is another of the anthology’s clunkers.

‘Dogfight’ (1985), by Swanwick and Gibson, is a classic early cyberpunk tale about an amoral street hustler who gets caught up in a high-stakes tournament involving a holographic video game about WWI fighter planes. It’s a great story, and a worthy entrant in this anthology.

‘Our Neural Chernobyl’ (1988), by Bruce Sterling, mixes terse, clipped exposition and dark humor in a winning format. It’s the utter antithesis of a New Wave sf story, and a ready example of the cyberpunk approach to plotting and prose.

Candas Jane Dorsey’s '(Learning About) Machine Sex’ (1988) is a mediocre entry. The plot centers on a burnt-out female hacker who must overcome male chauvinism and corporate greed on the way to self-acceptance. Its inclusion seems like a contrived effort to remind the sf readership that womyn have a place in the hacker culture, too. 

‘Conversations with Michael’ (1994), by Daniel Marcus, also features a female hacker as a protagonist , albeit one tormented by grief and seeking solace by the use of VR. This, too, is an underwhelming entry, as its focus on a humanistic element to hacking failed to move me.

Paul J. McAuley’s ‘Gene Wars’ (1991) is similar to Sterling’s ‘Our Neural Chernobyl’ in structure and tone. It’s a brilliant little tale about the genie of genetic engineering escaping the bottle. Neal Stephenson’s ‘Spew’ (1994) takes an ironic look at hackers in a near-future age of widespread Net Surveillance; its prose style is a little too overdone, to set it among the classic short stories of the cyberpunk genre.

The anthology closes with Greg Bear’s ‘Tangents’ (1986) which won both Hugo and Nebula Awards, and thus cemented Cyberpunk as the new genre of sf of the 1980s. Featuring a young, but naïve, genius for its hacker, and increasingly far-out developments triggered by explorations into VR, ‘Tangents’ remains a great cyberpunk story, and a fitting close to the anthology.

In sum, ‘Hackers’, along with Bruce Sterling’s ‘Mirrorshades’ anthology, represents one of the best collections of first-generation cyberpunk short fiction. All fans of the genre, and 80s sf, will want to have it on their bookshelf .