If you are seeking gifts for the comic book lovers in your life, the Gemstone staff would like to offer some interesting suggestions of trades and graphic novels that they might enjoy.
The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror Ominous Omnibus Vol. 1
Abrams ComicArts; $39.99
Even after 34 “Treehouse of Horror Halloween” episodes of The Simpsons TV show, there were still enough story ideas left over to fill 23 editions of the Treehouse of Horror annual comic book from 1995-2017. This Ominous Omnibus offers a 400-plus-page sampling of the short stories from those 23 comic books, curated into six genres: Invasions From Beyond, Technology Run Amok, Trick or Terror, Chilling Killer Thrills, From the Shadows, and Parallel Parables. Bringing these stories of monsters, UFOs, ghosts, murderers, and zombies to life is an all-star roster of comic book and pop culture talent: EC Comics masters John Severin, Al Williamson, and Angelo Torres; current comic creators Sergio Aragonés, Stan Sakai, Eric Powell, Kelley Jones, Dan Brereton, Gail Simone, Geoff Darrow, Jill Thompson, and Batton Lash; and celebrities such as Mark Hamill, Pat Boone, Patton Oswalt, Alice Cooper, and Lemmy Kilmister from the band Motörhead. The hardcover edition is nestled in a decorative slipcase with a die-cut window. There’s also a Volume 2, because “when does horror not have a sequel?”
All Star Comics: Only Legends Live Forever
DC; $49.99
The Justice Society of America began their adventures in All Star Comics in the 1940s, “retired” in the early 1950s, reunited for yearly adventures with the Justice League starting in 1963, and finally got their own title back in 1976. All Star Comics #58 resumed the numbering from the previous series that had stopped in 1951, and it continued to #74, then jumped to Adventure Comics for six issues. All of these stories (plus a battle with Hitler in DC Special #29) are collected in this 448-page hardcover.
These stories took place when the Justice Society resided on Earth-2, separate from the Justice League’s regular Earth-1 continuity. From the start, we get the introduction of Power Girl, the return of classic villains Brainwave, Vandal Savage and the Injustice Society, the debut of Huntress, and some of the later artwork of Wally Wood. Paul Levitz penned most of the stories, with Joe Staton, Ric Estrada and Keith Giffen handling the art. The highlight is the story from Adventure Comics #461-462 where Earth-2 Batman is killed in action. It’s not a surprise, as Batman appears in a coffin on this edition’s cover.
For the readers in the 1970s, the Justice Society was that team appearing in reprints in the back of the DC 100-pagers or having an annual crossover with the Justice League. They were your grandfather’s hero team, and the new All Star title gave readers a chance to embrace the Earth-2 heroes with new adventures.
Cereal: Sweet Darkness
AHOY Comics; $17.99
This series seemed like a dare cast at writer Mark Russell: create gothic horror tales loosely based on the monsters and mascots of our favorite breakfast cereals - Count Chocula, Franken Berry, Boo Berry, the Lucky Charms leprechaun, the Quaker Oats mascot, Frute Brute, and a digging frog.
He poured milk on it and it stayed crunchy.
Russell and artist Peter Snejbjerg start their tales in the town of Choclavania, where the Marquis de Cocoa is host to the villagers elaborate breakfast feasts, now made difficult for him since he has become a vampire. A plot to acquire the crown of the Leprechaun King drives most of the story as General Post tries to consolidate his power across all the lands. The Marquis, his wife, a pink reanimated corpse, and the ghost of Beau Berrie take the spotlight, but the background is full of clever signage, familiar Kellogg’s characters and other clever “Easter eggs,” although they should be called “prizes within.”
The series originally appeared as part of AHOY Comics’ Edgar Allan Poe anthologies. This edition collects its four stories and adds three new stories to complete the series, plus the original pitch for the series and thumbnail sketches for the first 14 pages. Shannon Wheeler provides the introduction.
I Am Batman (Stories Change the World)
Dial Books For Young Readers; $16.99
Every young kid knows about Batman, but when we’re adult Batfans, we want these kids exposed to the rich history of the character without exceeding their limited attention span. I Am Batman writer Brad Meltzer and artist Chris Eliopoulos are the team behind the Ordinary People Change the World books, with children’s storybook biographies of notable historical figures like Abraham Lincoln, Rosa Parks, Amelia Earhart, Martin Luther King Jr., and how they inspire others. Their next series covers fictional characters and they’ve started with a story book about Batman.
His rise from being an ordinary boy to becoming a legend hits all the familiar notes. Losing his parents, training with the various masters of combat, detective work, gadgets, theatrics, and donning the costume to start his crusade against crime. The art is charmingly cartoony, and through it all, Bruce Wayne and his costumed persona are drawn at the height of a child, the better for the young readers to identify. We glimpse scenes drawn from the early comics, the TV series, the animated series, and the movies.
Kudos are given to the creators behind the legend, and for a change, Bill Finger’s contributions are given greater weight than those of Bob Kane. There’s also a gallery of important Bat-stories that the young readers can borrow from mom or dad’s comic collection.
Terry Moore After Dark
Abstract Studio, Inc.; $29.99
Writer/artist Terry Moore is best known for his series Strangers in Paradise and its two protagonists Katchoo and Francine (who graced one of the covers of The Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide #43). Moore has shown his talent for sequential storytelling art, he knows there’s money to be made with his pin-up style pages. A recent Kickstarter campaign produced a 120-page collection of his B&W pencil sketch and fully inked pin-up pages, and this publication is the retail version of that project. While Moore’s comic work is usually PG-13, the women portrayed exhibit a little more skin, always tastefully. Characters from some of Moore’s other series (Rachel Rising, Five Years, and Parker Girls) appear as well, exotically or scantily dressed. For the Alphonse Mucha fans, Moore has included a few homages to that distinctive style (Moore loves background circles). There’s also some commentary mixed with the images and the preliminary sketch work in developing the front cover variants for the Kickstarter editions. If you’re a budding artist learning to draw women, there’s plenty to study and emulate in this book. It’s a testament to Moore’s long career that his skills are as strong as ever.
-Mark Huesman
Mark Huesman is the Editor – Print of Gemstone Publishing, responsible for the design and layout of The Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide and Gemstone’s line of reference guides and price guides.
