Friday, November 22, 2019

Comic Reviews: TMNT vs Dracula


Ooh, I like that thought.  I’d read that one.  (It’s probably already been done.)  This isn’t a competition though.  Instead, we’re reviewing two otherwise unrelated comics using cheesy blog title.


Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Road to 100


When I went to the counter at Zia Comics, I noticed they had a stack of giveaways there.  I picked this one up.  There were also some new comics without covers in the pile.  Surprisingly, they were selling some returnable comics at the shop, which means they could send back the covers of unsold comics and get credit.  Comics at comic shops are normally sold on a non-returnable basis; the shop has to keep whatever they don’t sell. 

I’ve never bought a Turtles comic.  A long time ago, I remember seeing some of the original black and white comics new at a comics store.  Too bad I wasn’t interested, those are worth some serious money now.  Apart from that, I only watched the cartoon in the 80’s.  I thought the figures looked cool, but I was too old for action figures.  This was before you could justify such purchases as collectible investments. 


I’d recently heard that the Turtles were originally a pitch to Marvel as a spinoff of Daredevil.  The transforming ooze was the radioactive material that blinded young Matt Murdock.  This also explains the ninja angle.  I’m not sure if this story has been officially confirmed though.


This was pretty well-produced for a giveaway.  Unfortunately, it was a bit incomprehensible for somebody who hasn’t been reading the IDW series.  I mean, I know some basics of the mythology, but I was lost past that.  What I saw looked interesting.  In another time and at a more reasonable price for new comics, I might want to try it out.


In the back, they advertised a couple of miniatures games.  Since they haven’t been released yet, I couldn’t get any information, but they look pretty cool.  Recently, after listening to an RPG podcast, I downloaded a copy of the old TMNT RPG from the 80’s.  Palladium had picked up the rights for a song, since the Turtles hadn’t hit it big at the time.  The game was oriented towards playing all sorts of mutated animals.  The rules for character creation were pretty well-done.  Unfortunately, the Palladium rules are a bit complicated for beginners, who were probably the main audience.  Palladium later set up an alternate setting for mutated animals outside of TMNT, so they could keep using the rules without the license. 


The Tomb of Dracula #10 facsimile     


I thought I said I wasn’t going to buy any more of these overpriced reprints?  I feel like a bit of sucker on that level.  But come on, it’s the first appearance of Blade!  How could I pass this up?  Am I a huge Blade fan?  Well, no, but I’ve watched the three Marvel movies on the Bounce network recently.  I’ve also seen him in a couple of classic Doctor Strange comics from the 80’s fighting Dracula. 


What an entrance!  This comic doesn’t explain anything about Blade.  There’s no origin story here.  He just shows up and kicks vampire ass.  That he wears oddly colored goggles at night and has the physical strength and agility to take on Dracula single-handedly, lets the reader know that there’s something up with him, no explanations were forthcoming this time. 


Yeah, this is about how I could see Dracula being introduced to a crowd.  There was an issue of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer comic book that had Harmony “coming out” as a vampire and becoming a reality show celebrity.  That story disturbed the hell out of me; it was entirely too plausible.  Dracula would be a hit on social media today. 


Soon enough, the façade comes down and Drac attempts to force a ship full of rich people to become his pawns.  The passengers fight back.  Who picked the Arab guy to whip out a cross?  No wonder Dracula was surprised.  Blade comes aboard to save the day, but the fight ends up being inconclusive.  

This was a lot of fun.  Whatever criticisms you might have on the depth of the characters or the story, you’d still enjoy it.  If it was 1973, I’d be seeking out the next issue.  Now, I’d have a track down some kind of reprint omnibus, which is probably out of print.  Shoot.  What a tease!



There was even a companion magazine, which I also would have picked up in 1973.  The Bullpen Bulletins section mentioned a zombie comic.  The early days of Marvel weren’t just superheroes.  They even did romance comics.   



I showed this comic to a friend at work.  He liked it too, but he really liked the old ads.  I liked this one for the Strategy & Tactics wargaming magazine.  Interesting they were doing a Vietnam scenario dated 1972.  The war was still going on. 



Of course, this ad is just timeless.

These two comics were essentially samplers, but pretty entertaining ones.

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