tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6672923492889685727.post4275074175485877253..comments2024-03-27T05:54:38.797-07:00Comments on <i>bare</i>•bones e-zine: Batman in the 1980s Issue 39: March 1983John Scolerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14082147756474762000noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6672923492889685727.post-86282922825598212262021-10-27T13:25:21.752-07:002021-10-27T13:25:21.752-07:00Thanks, b.t. I remember buying Ragman when it came...Thanks, b.t. I remember buying Ragman when it came out in the '70s and liking it, but I don't recall the story at all. I was a DC guy rather than a Marvel guy as a teenager, probably because I was being contrary since everyone worshipped Marvel.Jack Seabrookhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02216640325305820140noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6672923492889685727.post-52990052482185704382021-10-25T17:34:15.549-07:002021-10-25T17:34:15.549-07:00I have very few DC or Marvels from this specific p...I have very few DC or Marvels from this specific period, as most of the books from the majors had lost their sparkle for me. I was mostly spending my comics money on interesting ‘alternative’ titles like TWISTED TALES, CEREBUS and LOVE AND ROCKETS, so I’m unfamiliar with most of this stretch of Batman books. I’ve always liked Don Newton’s art and I remember flipping thru the Batman books at the comics shops, disappointed that his distinctive style was being buried beneath a landslide of Alcala’s heavy-handed inks. I did buy an issue or two, but just couldn’t take it. And I actually LIKE Alcala’s stuff, generally. Have him ink over pencils by Jim Janes or Adrian Gonzalez and boy, their stuff never looked better. But in this case, I thought it was like putting a (very well-drawn) mustache on the Mona Lisa. A waste of both their talents. <br /><br />But somehow, this Newton/Giordano job slipped past me too. The examples you guys have posted here look GREAT. The “Owl Creek Bridge” surprise twist seems like a clever touch too. Maybe I’ll have to track this one down.<br /><br />Re: Ragman — Not one of the true high points of mid-70s Comics or anything, but it’s five issues of solidly entertaining “street level vigilante” superheroics from the Kanigher/Kubert team. Joe Kubert only did full pencil/ink art on the final issue, the first four being finished by “The Redondo Studio” (Nestor and his brothers plus folks like Vic Catan and Buddy Gernale) over Joe’s dynamic breakdowns, but it’s a surprisingly effective combo. All five issues look really nice. For the longest time, they were readily available in Dollar Bins everywhere (I think I assembled two complete sets over the years) but I don’t know how cheap they are these days. Worth checking out if you can find them at a reasonable price. Someone might even have posted them online somewhere, come to think of it…<br /><br /> b.t.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6672923492889685727.post-25399373751583202072021-10-25T12:30:36.584-07:002021-10-25T12:30:36.584-07:00Thanks, Andy! I agree with you about Giordano as a...Thanks, Andy! I agree with you about Giordano as an inker and about the slow build on Killer Croc.Jack Seabrookhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02216640325305820140noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6672923492889685727.post-30947051256469040982021-10-25T11:40:21.986-07:002021-10-25T11:40:21.986-07:00So it really was Squid season? Good. One of the la...So it really was Squid season? Good. One of the lamest Batman villains ever. (Okay, maybe not the lamest, but still a serious misfire.) But his death scene is a nice variation for once.<br /><br />Giordano is criminally underrated as an inker. Considering he did it as a sideline in this period, his work is better as most of the regular guys. As much as I hated his later column in the DC comics, he was one of the architects of the new DC.<br /><br />I had forgotten that Gerry created Killer Croc. Ad hoc I would have said it was Moench. Croc is one of the few - or maybe even the only? - villains with staying power created at the time in the Bat books. While I am very critical of Gerry's run, which I just think is terrible dull and uninspired, especially for what is supposed to be a flagship title, I like how Croc is introduced so slowly.andydeckerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01312309519462680892noreply@blogger.com