by Bill Kelly (writer) and Nestor De Leon (art)
Eerie No. 107 (December 1979)
A neat little 'monsters on the loose' tale from the skilled Filipino artist Nestor De Leon. Unfortunately, this comic was De Leon's only work for a US publisher.
Thursday, December 22, 2016
The Prophesy from Eerie No. 107
The Prophesy
by Bill Kelly (writer) and Nestor De Leon (art)
Eerie No. 107 (December 1979)
by Bill Kelly (writer) and Nestor De Leon (art)
Eerie No. 107 (December 1979)
Tuesday, December 20, 2016
Favorite 70s pop wines
Favorite 70s Pop Wines
Anyone who Imbibed during the 70s is going to remember these cheap wines. Although these were the preferred choice of winos everywhere, you didn't have to be a wino to appreciate them.
Boone's Farm and Mogen-David (aka 'Mad Dog') 20/20 were my faves. I still have memories of the horrible hangovers I got from drinking too much of them......I
Anyone who Imbibed during the 70s is going to remember these cheap wines. Although these were the preferred choice of winos everywhere, you didn't have to be a wino to appreciate them.
Boone's Farm and Mogen-David (aka 'Mad Dog') 20/20 were my faves. I still have memories of the horrible hangovers I got from drinking too much of them......I
Sunday, December 18, 2016
Book Review: Jirel of Joiry
Book Review: 'Jirel of Joiry' by C. L. Moore
2 / 5 Stars
'Jirel of Joiry' (212 pp) was published by Ace Books in November 1982. The cover artist is Stephen Hickman.
This paperback compiles five Jirel stories that first were published in 1934 - 1939 in Weird Tales.
Joirel of Joiry was arguably the forerunner for the female sword and sorcery heroine genre, although none of these stories introduce anything like the 'chick in chain mail bikini' imagery that defines the modern version of the genre.
The stories are set in Medieval France, where Jirel is a kind of secular Joan of Arc, albeit a Joan of Arc with an aggressive streak; Jirel has no hesitation about hacking away at those petty princelings and warlords infesting her country.
In these stories, author Moore focuses less on furious action, and more on elaborate phantasmagorical and supernatural encounters. The lead character often finds herself traversing other dimensions, where she has life-or-death contests with various malevolent sorcerers and mages. While not disclosing any spoilers, I will reveal that some of these locales and adversaries are of a Lovecraftian flavor.
Moore's prose style is very pulp-centered; although her prose can be quite atmospheric, many passages overdose on adjectives and adverbs, and can be tedious to read.
Summing up, while the Jirel stories have their historical value in terms of the Pulp canon, I doubt that modern readers will find these stories to be as entertaining as those of Robert E. Howard.
'Jirel of Joiry' (212 pp) was published by Ace Books in November 1982. The cover artist is Stephen Hickman.
This paperback compiles five Jirel stories that first were published in 1934 - 1939 in Weird Tales.
Joirel of Joiry was arguably the forerunner for the female sword and sorcery heroine genre, although none of these stories introduce anything like the 'chick in chain mail bikini' imagery that defines the modern version of the genre.
The stories are set in Medieval France, where Jirel is a kind of secular Joan of Arc, albeit a Joan of Arc with an aggressive streak; Jirel has no hesitation about hacking away at those petty princelings and warlords infesting her country.
In these stories, author Moore focuses less on furious action, and more on elaborate phantasmagorical and supernatural encounters. The lead character often finds herself traversing other dimensions, where she has life-or-death contests with various malevolent sorcerers and mages. While not disclosing any spoilers, I will reveal that some of these locales and adversaries are of a Lovecraftian flavor.
Moore's prose style is very pulp-centered; although her prose can be quite atmospheric, many passages overdose on adjectives and adverbs, and can be tedious to read.
Summing up, while the Jirel stories have their historical value in terms of the Pulp canon, I doubt that modern readers will find these stories to be as entertaining as those of Robert E. Howard.
Thursday, December 15, 2016
Hawkmoon: The Jewel in the Skull issue 1
Hawkmoon: The Jewel in the Skull
First Comics, 1986
Issue 1 (May 1986)
art: Rafael Kayanan and Alfredo Alcala, story: Gerry Conway
In 1986 indie comics publisher First Comics, located in Chicago, obtained the rights to the Michael Moorcock property 'Hawkmoon'.
(My review of the Hawkmoon series is available here).
First Comics devoted four issues to 'The Jewel in the Skull', the inaugural volume in the Hawkmoon series, issuing them bimonthly over the span of May - November 1986.
While Gerry Conway's scripting of the four issues is not particularly effective - chunks of the book's plot are jettisoned, in favor of belaboring tangential plot points - the bimonthly schedule meant that the Filipino artists assigned to the comics could produce some outstanding artwork.
The lead artist was Rafael Kayanan, and Hawkmoon was one of his first major assignments for an American publisher. Kayanan has since gone on to become very successful as an artist for major publishers like DC and Marvel.
Inking Kayanan's art was none other than the great Alfedo Alcala.
The one major drawback to this series is the color printing. While it appears that First Comics did not use the Flexographic process, there is no denying that the color separations in 'The Jewel in the Skull' are less than optimal, with too many pages having a murky appearance that I can only partially rectify in my scans.
If ever an 80s comics series deserved to be reissued in a graphic novel compilation, one taking advantage of modern methods for re-doing color separations, it's these Hawkmoon comics. Until then, I'm going to post scans of each of the four issues in 'The Jewel in the Skull'.
First Comics, 1986
Issue 1 (May 1986)
art: Rafael Kayanan and Alfredo Alcala, story: Gerry Conway
In 1986 indie comics publisher First Comics, located in Chicago, obtained the rights to the Michael Moorcock property 'Hawkmoon'.
(My review of the Hawkmoon series is available here).
First Comics devoted four issues to 'The Jewel in the Skull', the inaugural volume in the Hawkmoon series, issuing them bimonthly over the span of May - November 1986.
While Gerry Conway's scripting of the four issues is not particularly effective - chunks of the book's plot are jettisoned, in favor of belaboring tangential plot points - the bimonthly schedule meant that the Filipino artists assigned to the comics could produce some outstanding artwork.
The lead artist was Rafael Kayanan, and Hawkmoon was one of his first major assignments for an American publisher. Kayanan has since gone on to become very successful as an artist for major publishers like DC and Marvel.
Inking Kayanan's art was none other than the great Alfedo Alcala.
The one major drawback to this series is the color printing. While it appears that First Comics did not use the Flexographic process, there is no denying that the color separations in 'The Jewel in the Skull' are less than optimal, with too many pages having a murky appearance that I can only partially rectify in my scans.
If ever an 80s comics series deserved to be reissued in a graphic novel compilation, one taking advantage of modern methods for re-doing color separations, it's these Hawkmoon comics. Until then, I'm going to post scans of each of the four issues in 'The Jewel in the Skull'.
Monday, December 12, 2016
Rebel graphic novel remastered
'Rebel' by Pepe Moreno
Remastered edition
Digital Fusion, August 2009
The 'Making of Rebel' section also provides a sketch gallery, a gallery of characters, stats and renderings of the various cars and trucks appearing in the comic, and an overview of Moreno's work in comics and video games from the late 70s to the late 2000s.
Remastered edition
Digital Fusion, August 2009
If you were a reader of Heavy Metal magazine in the 1980s then you no doubt are familiar with the work published in that magazine by the Spanish artist Pepe Moreno (b.1959).
Rebel and Generation Zero were among the memorable comics by Moreno that were serialized in that magazine in the mid 80s.
Rebel was compiled into a graphic novel in 1986 by Catalan Communications.
However, in 2009, a 'remastered' version of Rebel was published as a trade paperback by Digital Fusion, an imprint of the US comic book publisher IDW. (Digital Fusion appears to have been designed to reissue Moreno's complete line of graphic novels, but unfortunately, it seems like Rebel was the only one of these it ever published).
The remastered version of Rebel uses digitally colored scans, made by Moreno from his original artwork.
Along with the comic, the remastered edition features a section titled 'The Making of Rebel: New York 1982'. This section provides some additional insights into the various artistic and cultural inspirations that Moreno used to create Rebel.
Of particular interest to me are the black-and-white photographs Moreno took of a snowbound Williamsburg (Brooklyn) neighborhood. The vistas of abandoned buildings and junked cars on the streets of the city gave the streets the post-apocalyptic look that was readily adaptable to the ravaged New York City of 2002 depicted in the Rebel comic.
Seeing Moreno's photos brings back fond (?) memories of just how bad it was in the Big Apple in the era of Escape from New York, The Warriors, Fort Apache: The Bronx, and Wolfen.
Summing up, if you're a fan of those old issues of Heavy Metal and Pepe Moreno's contributions, then this remastered version of Rebel is well worthy getting.
Despite being 30 years old, the comic still stands as a great example of action-driven postapocalyptic adventure, and is markedly superior to contemporary efforts to promote the genre (see my review of the forlorn comic book sequel to Escape from New York here).
New and used copies of the Rebel remastered graphic novel can be obtained for very reasonable prices from your usual online vendors.
Friday, December 9, 2016
Book Review: The Forest of Peldain
Book Review: 'The Forest of Peldain' by Barrington J. Bayley
3 / 5 Stars
‘The Forest of Peldain’ (223 pp) is DAW Book No. 640, published in August, 1985, with cover artwork by Ken W. Kelly.
On the water word of Thelessa, mankind is restricted to living on the Hundred Isles. Although there are rebellious islands whose tribes must periodically be subdued, overall, life under the Monarchy of King Krassos is pleasant, resembling the uncomplicated civilization of Earth’s Polynesian peoples.
But King Krassos of Arelia yearns for some signal achievement to define his reign. When a man named Askon Octrago visits the throne room, claiming to be a prince from the island of Peldain, King Krassos takes notice. For Peldain is the largest of the isles on Thelessa………but also the deadliest. Just meters past its shoreline is an immense forest made up of carnivorous plants…..plants such as the Trip-root…...the Stranglevine…..the Fallpit……the Mangrab Tree…..and the Dartthorn……
Octrago claims that he has traversed the dangers of the Forest of Peldain and survived…….and he wants King Krassos to furnish an expeditionary force, with which Octrago will return to Peldain, reclaim the throne, and pledge fealty to Krassos.
The thought of having the largest island on Thelessa under his realm is too attractive for Krassos to resist. He orders a force of several thousand men to be assembled and transported to Peldain. Leading the force is Lord Vorduthe, the most capable officer in Arelia.
In due course, the Arelian fleet disembarks on the shore of Peldain and its soldiers, wielding shield and sword, make preparations to venture into the Forest. Lord Vorduthe, aware of the stories of the hazardous plants, has prepared by incorporating flamethrower carts into his invasion force.
But Vorduthe has misgivings over the truth of Askon Octgrago’s story…..and as the Arelian force begins its foray, Vorduthe and his men will discover that the Forest of Peldain contains horrors far worse than those described by Octrago…….
I’ve read a number of sf novels by Barrington Bayley, and this one, like those others, has a clean, flowing narrative style. Its first half is really more of a horror novel than sf. The latter half of the narrative does realign itself into sf themes………..I won’t disclose any spoilers, but this section of the novel does seem a bit contrived.
But overall, ‘The Forest of Peldain’ is a very readable novel from a writer who often is absent from lists of the better sf authors of the 70s and 80s, but nonetheless probably deserves to be present and accounted for.
3 / 5 Stars
‘The Forest of Peldain’ (223 pp) is DAW Book No. 640, published in August, 1985, with cover artwork by Ken W. Kelly.
On the water word of Thelessa, mankind is restricted to living on the Hundred Isles. Although there are rebellious islands whose tribes must periodically be subdued, overall, life under the Monarchy of King Krassos is pleasant, resembling the uncomplicated civilization of Earth’s Polynesian peoples.
But King Krassos of Arelia yearns for some signal achievement to define his reign. When a man named Askon Octrago visits the throne room, claiming to be a prince from the island of Peldain, King Krassos takes notice. For Peldain is the largest of the isles on Thelessa………but also the deadliest. Just meters past its shoreline is an immense forest made up of carnivorous plants…..plants such as the Trip-root…...the Stranglevine…..the Fallpit……the Mangrab Tree…..and the Dartthorn……
Octrago claims that he has traversed the dangers of the Forest of Peldain and survived…….and he wants King Krassos to furnish an expeditionary force, with which Octrago will return to Peldain, reclaim the throne, and pledge fealty to Krassos.
The thought of having the largest island on Thelessa under his realm is too attractive for Krassos to resist. He orders a force of several thousand men to be assembled and transported to Peldain. Leading the force is Lord Vorduthe, the most capable officer in Arelia.
In due course, the Arelian fleet disembarks on the shore of Peldain and its soldiers, wielding shield and sword, make preparations to venture into the Forest. Lord Vorduthe, aware of the stories of the hazardous plants, has prepared by incorporating flamethrower carts into his invasion force.
But Vorduthe has misgivings over the truth of Askon Octgrago’s story…..and as the Arelian force begins its foray, Vorduthe and his men will discover that the Forest of Peldain contains horrors far worse than those described by Octrago…….
I’ve read a number of sf novels by Barrington Bayley, and this one, like those others, has a clean, flowing narrative style. Its first half is really more of a horror novel than sf. The latter half of the narrative does realign itself into sf themes………..I won’t disclose any spoilers, but this section of the novel does seem a bit contrived.
But overall, ‘The Forest of Peldain’ is a very readable novel from a writer who often is absent from lists of the better sf authors of the 70s and 80s, but nonetheless probably deserves to be present and accounted for.
Wednesday, December 7, 2016
Sci-fi books from the UK
Sci-fi Books from the UK
With the growth of 'e commerce', it's now a lot more feasible to purchase paperbacks from bookstores in the United Kingdom. They will accept online purchases made with a US credit card.
I got this set of eight from awesomebooks.com.
This vendor / bookstore collective has a large inventory of old Sphere and Panther sci-fi paperback books from the 70s. They charge a flat shipping fee of £ 2.99, which is about $3.79. Including the shipping charge, my eight books averaged $3.75 each, which is quite competitive with US online vendors.
The time between ordering and arrival for this particular shipment was 17 days.
Some of these books, like the Philip K. Dick title, are hard to find in the inventories of US sellers, so investigating UK merchants can be worthwhile. It's also well worth looking at these UK sellers for books in genres other than sci-fi, horror, or fantasy.
With the growth of 'e commerce', it's now a lot more feasible to purchase paperbacks from bookstores in the United Kingdom. They will accept online purchases made with a US credit card.
I got this set of eight from awesomebooks.com.
This vendor / bookstore collective has a large inventory of old Sphere and Panther sci-fi paperback books from the 70s. They charge a flat shipping fee of £ 2.99, which is about $3.79. Including the shipping charge, my eight books averaged $3.75 each, which is quite competitive with US online vendors.
The time between ordering and arrival for this particular shipment was 17 days.
Some of these books, like the Philip K. Dick title, are hard to find in the inventories of US sellers, so investigating UK merchants can be worthwhile. It's also well worth looking at these UK sellers for books in genres other than sci-fi, horror, or fantasy.
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