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| By Stefan Blitz |
I managed to sneak a few hours of reading in at the library at FOG! HQ, and I was not disappointed in the least. Like good ol’ Henry Bemis pictured above, there’s nothing more satisfying than to be surrounded by stacks of books.
Check out which titles I read most recently and be sure to support your local bookstore!
Felix The Cat Paintings by Don Oriolo
Edited by Craig Yoe
Published by IDW Publishing
Like the beautiful Uncle Scrooge masterpieces by the legendary Carl Barks, Don Oriolo’s Felix The Cat paintings are both deceptively simple and at the same time breathtaking. It might be easy to dismiss the fine work within this latest opus by Yoe! Books as just paintings of a cartoon character, but the strength of Oriolo’s work is the verisimilitude of Felix’s world. To modern audiences, Felix The Cat might be little more than a visual icon, but in the paintings within, he’s a versatile muse. The book also features essays by such luminaries as Jerry Beck, Mark Evanier, David Gerstein, and Paul Castiglia and an introduction by Craig Yoe. Highly recommended.
Wanna Cook?: The Complete Unofficial Companion to Breaking Bad
By Ensley F. Guffey & K. Dale Koontz
Published by ECW Press
Thankfully I watched the entire series in a two week binge before I got my hands on this excellent compendium of all things Walter White, because there’s no question I’d have skipped around for spoilers, trivia and observations. Wanna Cook? is an excellent epilogue to the series and does a fantastic job as a companion and it’s insights are really well executed; so much so in fact that it’s made me want to dive in again and rewatch the entire series.
Wanna Cook? succeeds in no small part by being not only an excellent guide to fans of the show, but also a well-researched, authoritative and most importantly, entertaining re-examination of one of the best shows in the history of television.
Popeye: The Classic Newspaper Comics by Bobby London Volume 1: 1986-1989
Edited by The Library of American Comics
Published by IDW Publishing
I asked Bobby London a few years ago if there might be a chance that IDW would reprint his magical run on Popeye and he told me it was extremely unlikely.
London had been fired from the strip in 1992 for a storyline that was interpreted as an allegory for abortion.
Fortunately, Mr. London was wrong and IDW has released the first half of his run on the strip in their usual handsome hardcover collection.
What London did with the strip, was deceptively simple, but really shook up the status quo.
He brought Popeye into the modern age and he restored his rich Thimble Theater supporting cast, many of which hadn’t been seen in decades since creator E.C. Segar and Bud Sagendorf worked on the strip. London’s Popeye provides plenty of social commentary including many observations on modern pop culture. His art is also top notch and although the characters are instantly recognizable, there’s more of a kinetic energy than in previous interpretations. London’s Popeye is a treat and this collection is a must have.
The Simon and Kirby Library: Horror!
By Joe Simon and Jack Kirby
Published by Titan Books
Titan continues the thematic releases in their The Simon and Kirby Library line with the latest volume, Horror! As always, with an almost jarring (but appealing) bright color palate, the book reprints over fifty short stories by the legendary duo that originally appeared in Black Magic and Strange World of Your Dreams during the Fifties before Kirby headed to Marvel to redefine the superhero genre.
Many of the stories really are suspenseful and jarring, once again showing off the brilliance of the duo by the timelessness of their work. Wherein lies the rub. To call the majority of the stories within “horror” is a little misleading; “Thriller!” might have been a more appropriate title. Nevertheless, Horror! is a wonderful collection of fantastic pre-code comics in a beautiful hardcover presentation.
The Art of the Disney Golden Books
By Charles Solomon
Published by Disney Editions Deluxe
It’s hard not to get more than a little nostalgiac reading this gorgeous book. Golden Books have been such a obligatory part of growing up, that many of the images within stirred up some fond memories of my childhood.
Part of the magic of the Disney titles released through Golden Books are that the stories never tried to replicate the style of the films, allowing the characters to be reinterpreted in far different looks, and in many ways, far more engaging. Simplified shapes, bold colors and engaging graphics the images within, like all good art, invokes an emotional response. Included is a large selection of rare art, sketches, preliminary illustrations and photographs.
This book is magical and features art from dozens of Disney and Pixar titles, all of them gateways to other worlds and imagination.
Raymond Chandler: The Library of America Edition
Edited by Frank MacShane
Published by Library of America
Do we really need to discuss how amazing this collection is?
It’s a two volume box set featuring one of the masters of pulp crime fiction. Included are thirteen short stories, several essays, selected letters, the screenplay to Double Indemnity and seven novels; The Big Sleep, Farewell, My Lovely, The High Window, The Lady in the Lake, The Little Sister, The Long Goodbye and Playback.
Like all Library of America volumes, the box set is handsomely produced, but the big draw obviously are the contents within; the complete works of a great writer, as well as the complete stories of one of the genre’s most iconic characters, Philip Marlowe.
For writers, for readers, for tough guys and dangerous women, The Raymond Chandler: The Library of America Edition belongs in your library to be savored and celebrated.
Batman: The Silver Age Newspaper Comics Volume 1 (1966-1967)
By Whitney Ellsworth, Sheldon Moldoff, Joe Giella & Carmine Infantino
Edited by Dean Mullaney
Published by IDW Publishing
Holy cash cow tie in!
With the success of the live action television series, DC wasted no time bringing the Dynamic Duo back to newspapers in a new strip heavily influenced by the tone of television series (and Infantino’s “new look” that had predated it in the comics).
The first half of these strips included recognizable rogues such as The Joker, Catwoman, The Riddler, The Penguin (who also had co-starred together in the 1966 Batman feature film) and Poison Ivy and had a campier tone, celebrity “guest stars” and the ubiquitous arsenal of Bat-gadgets.
Then, there’s a shift with an extended 8 month storyline featuring Batgirl (who had yet to debut on television) who finds herself close to discovering The Caped Crusader’s identity after his confrontation with new villain Blue Max leaves him close to death.
The strip does a great job utilizing other new ideas including new rogues such as Jolly Roger and Little Napoleon and also featured Bruce Wayne’s faithful butler, Alfred, who was appearing on television but had been previously killed. If you’re a Batfan, you’ve hit the jackpot with this collection (best read while indulging on milk and cookies).
The Red Panda: Mask of the Red Panda
By Gregg Taylor and Dean Kotz
Published by IDW Publishing
Unfamiliar with Taylor’s Red Panda media empire (novels, radio shows, etc.), I assumed this was another throwback series that was little more than a derivative attempt at doing The Spirit.
And, for the most part it is. Set in Depression-era Toronto, the Red Panda captures all of the best things about the pulp hero genre (including gangsters, super villains, racketeers), but the execution is entertaining, but far from engaging. More often than not, it feels like I’ve read it before. In theory it should be great, but it just doesn’t work for me.
I want to like Kotz’s art, which unfortunately is inconsistent. It feels like he keeps adjusting his style and again, it doesn’t really work.
The coloring includes some bold and interesting choices, which is definitely one of the better things about the book even though it’s a bit garish and unconventional for the time period.
Red Panda is often too familiar, and doesn’t have the emotional connection needed to elevate it beyond a curiosity.
Popeye Classics Volume 3
by Bud Sagendorf. Edited by Craig Yoe
Published by IDW Publishing
This is the latest collection of the Popeye Classics comic book series which is reprinting Bud Sagendorf’s run in comics.
Got that?
This beautiful book (again, kudos to Yoe! Studios) includes the contents from issues #10-14 including one pagers, photos, pin ups and more. Includes the stories Big Gold Rush, Ghost Mine, Horse Race, Western Railroading, The Big Bite, Adrift, Shipwreck, The Double Mooch, The Map, Drip! Drip!, Witch Whistle, Easy to Find, Golf! The Guest, Apple Snack, Pirate!, Ouch! and Rockabye Berries!.
IDW has committed themselves to ensuring that Popeye lives on for old fans and new audiences alike in both high quality reprints as well as fantastic new stories. This collection is no exception and is geared toward comic readers of all ages. Highly recommended.
The Art and Flair of Mary Blair: An Appreciation (Updated Edition)
by John Canemaker
Published by Disney Editions Deluxe
My only complaint with John Canemaker’s updated edition of The Art and Flair of Mary Blair is that it should have been four times longer.
Not that there isn’t sufficient material here.
There’s enough text to be informative and enough illustrations to satisfy anyone interested in Mary Blair to purchase it.
But you really can’t ever have enough Mary Blair.
One of Disney’s most acclaimed visual stylists, Blair’s work was instrumental every aspect of the studio including animation, print, theme parks, architectural decor, and advertising. And although the book covers additional work outside of Disney, the contents only are a small representation of Blair’s amazing career. Hopefully, someone at some point a more exhaustive compendium of her work will be published, but until then, The Art and Flair of Mary Blair is an essential book for cinegeeks, artists and Disney fans.
Jacky’s Diary
by Jacky Mendelsohn. Edited by Craig Yoe. Produced by Clizia Gussoni
Published by IDW Publishing
I consider myself a pretty informed guy when it comes to pop culture and yet, I had never heard of Jacky’s Diary.
Sure, it had been published before I was born, but is that just a rationalization. With the publication of this volume, I am truly amazed by how far ahead of his time Mendelsohn was.
Drawn in the style of a child, this strip chronicled the everyday “nothingness” of growing up (reminiscent of Seinfeld in many ways), with a sharp sense of observation and a playful tone that definitely set it apart from any other strip at the time. Yoe! Books once again delivers with one of the best designed books in recent memory. Strips are reproduced with sharp clarity and bright colors. Mendelsohn went on to work in animation and television to great success, but Jacky’s Diary is proof that if the strip continued he might have been one of the medium’s most iconic cartoonists.
Joe Dante
Edited by Nil Baskar & Gabe Klinger
Published by Austrian Film Museum
As one of the prestigious “graduates” of the Roger Corman school of filmmaking, Joe Dante is one of cinema’s most underappreciated filmmakers (who’s career includes Gremlins, Innerspace, The Howling and The ‘Burbs.)
The book includes essays on many of the filmmaker’s films by a number of writers including Michael Almereyda, Jim Hoberman, Christoph Huber, Gabe Klinger, Violeta Kovacsics, Bill Krohn, Dušan Rebolj, John Sayles, and Mark Cotta Vaz. Also included are designs, notes, photographs and a career encompassing interview with Dante.
Superman: The Golden Age Sundays: 1943-1946
By Whitney Ellsworth and Jack Schiff
Edited by Dean Mullaney. Introduction by Mark Waid
Published by IDW Publishing
It’s hard not to look at this gorgeous volume and feel a little sad at the the state of comic’s most iconic character. In the last several years, Superman has evolved into not much more than an intellectual property.
Which is what makes this book all the more special. Inside the oversized volume are three years of Sunday strips. With much of the art by my favorite Superman artist, Wayne Boring, the majority of the stories within are World War II related; propaganda driven. But the post war stuff includes an expanded origin story which is worth the price alone.
For me, the draw is Boring. His take on Superman features the Man of Steel as a barrel chested, no nonsense, strong jawed powerhouse. The action scenes are dynamic and the colors pop off the page. And the writing, which unlike much of the comic book Golden Age material is engaging and entertaining. If you’re a Superman fan who’s looking for something new, this is a must have.
Edison Rex Volume 2: Heir Apparent
by Chris Roberson and Dennis Culver
Published by IDW Publishing
Chris Roberson and Dennis Culver once again prove how talented and sneaky they are. What appears at first glance as a playful take on familiar comic book archetypes, is instead a fresh, exciting and self aware look at both the medium, iconography and the superhero genre.
As the world’s greatest villain turned hero, Edison Rex contends with both sides of good versus evil as well as the public’s perception. Like Volume 1, Heir Apparent is a book that needs to be embraced by comic fans, especially those who might be a bit disillusioned by the current state of the Big Two.
Roberson’s dense scripts and Culver’s clean art make Edison Rex easily one of the best comics being published today.
Adventure Time: A Totally Math Poster Collection
Published by Harry N. Abrams
This oversize book features 20 removable and framable prints featuring images from the Adventure Time universe with contributions from such artists as Olly Moss, Tony Millionaire, Mahendra Singh, Andrew Groves, and Kassandra Heller among others.
Some truly eye catching contributions make this beautiful book a must have (as well as must frame and must hang).
