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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