NO GARAGE SALES THIS WEEKEND

 I'M NOT HOLDING GARAGE SALES THIS WEEKEND. It's been too hot to work in the garage safely. Weather permitting, my next garage sales will be next weekend, June 28-29.

THINGS THAT MADE ME HAPPY IN MAY

 

 

May marked the kickoff of my 2024 Vast Accumulation of Stuff garage sales. The first sales were held on Friday and Saturday, May 17-18, and Friday and Saturday, May 24-25. Over the four days, I achieved just over 93% of my goal for the sales, falling short by just $126.

Back-to-back sales are always problematic, especially when one of them falls on a holiday weekend. I went with the dates available to me. I’ll likely do back-to-backs again this summer.

My next garage sales are Friday and Saturday, June 7-8, and Friday and Saturday, June 21-22. These sales take place at Casa Isabella, 840 Damon Drive in Medina, Ohio and run from 9 am to noon each day. I can sometimes accommodate late shoppers Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning/afternoon. To set an appointment, e-mail me and I’ll do my best to work with you.

As seems standard these days, May was filled with things that did not make me happy, things generated by the criminal/racist/traitor Donald Trump and his vile lackeys in the GOP. But good people are fighting back against these villains and that pleases me greatly.

Here are the other things that made me happy in May...

May 1: My new more colorful garage sale lawn signs have arrived. I think they look beautiful and inviting.

May 2: Super Detention (2016). Set in a high school for kids with super-powers, this is an entertaining “X-Men Meets Breakfast Club” effort in which the unruly students must save their classmates from a super-villain. Fun and unassuming.

May 3: Roaming by Jillian Tamaki and Mariko Tamaki. A beautifully  flowing graphic novel in which three young Canadian women vacation in NYC. With some personal drama along the way, this shows both the cool and the ugly in the city. Highly recommended. 5-3-24.

May 4: Free Comic Book Day at Sweets & Geeks in Medina. It’s a huge store filled with candy, odd soda pops, Funko figures, games a game room for onsite play. I had a blast talking with the friendly fans who came to the event.

                                                                             

May 5: Slay (2024). Currently available on Tubi, it’s drag queens and rednecks battling vampires in a backwater bar. Come for the pop culture references and stay for the heartwarming characters and the many surprises. Just a fun flick.

May 6: Bob Hearts Abishola. “Find Your Bench” was a perfect finale for one of my favorite TV comedy series ever. Every episode brought great performances of characters unlike any others on television. It was an epic and memorable run.

May 7: Funded by Kickstarter, The Dusk by Alex Segura, Elizabeth Little and David Hahn introduces a Batman-like hero who is neither brutal or mentally ill. The graphic novel is suitable for all ages. I hope there’s more to come.

                                                                                  

May 8: My Black Lightning Archives has a Champion Raglan T-Shirt, a cast & crew item from the second season. It’s a XL so I can wear it myself for a while before the Archives is (hopefully) donated to one of the historical Black colleges.

May 9: From 2016, Rough Raiders Volume 1 by Adam Glass and Patrick Olliffe is just plain fun. I may be late to the party, but I loved this team: Teddy Roosevelt, Houdini, Edison, Jack Johnson and Annie Oakley. There are two additional volumes.

                                                                                              

May 10: Won’t Back Down. Edited by Trina Robbins, this anthology in support of a woman’s right to choose is filled with poignant comics by over fifty creators. As Robbins well knew, it is a fight worth fighting as long as it takes.

May 11: Women Take the Conn. I enjoyed my friend Valentina Rossi’s essay on the insane artist Marta so much I bought the collection of Star Trek essays. Her insights into Marta made me want to write the character. Are you listening, IDW?

                                                                                 

May 12: Another very cool addition to my Black Lightning archives.A very rare varsity Black Lightning TV show cast and crew jacket. It even fits me! (Okay, it’s a tad tight.) I will continue to look for key items to add to the archives.

May 13: Groo: In The Wind by Sergio Aragones and Mark Evanier. It’s always a treat to sit down with a new Groo adventure. Hilarious and new reader friendly, this tale is laced with social commentary that makes its point without dominating the laughs.

                                                                              

May 14: My latest addition to the Black Lightning archives is this Garfield High School hat, a cast and crew item from season one of the series. That looks like a panther to me. So the school mascot was a black panther? That tracks.

May 15: B Movie Art: A Career in Black and White by Mike DiGrazia. A stunning collection of poster art from the man who created such iconic images as Sharknado, 6-Headed Shark Attack, Abraham Lincoln vs. Zombies and so many other cheesy delights.

May 16: Young Sheldon. Over three days, I watched the final nine episodes of the series. Great character moments. Scenes of joy and sorrow. Above all, a most satisfying finish to one of our favorite shows. Much like The Big Bang Theory that birthed it.

                                                                                     

May 17: Attack of the Meth Gator. From the Asylum and directed by  Christopher Douglas-Olen Ray, this fun film recalls the days when SyFy gave us wonderful mockbusters and other monster movies instead of its current tired old blockbusters.

May 18: My first Vast Accumulation of Stuff garage sales of 2024 achieved 125% of my two-day goal. I’ve already started restocking for next week’s sales.

May 19: Cleveland Asian Festival. After Saturday’s garage sale, we attended this amazing street fair in Asian Town. So many terrific food trucks, sponsors and vendors along with beautiful costumes and  great entertainment. We’ll go back in 2025.  

                                                                                  

May 20: Atlas Artist Edition No. 1 featuring Joe Maneely. Edited by Dr. Michael J. Vassallo and published by Fantagraphics, this book is breathtaking in the beauty of the art and the obvious care that went into selecting its contents.

May 21: Shadow Doctor by Peter Calloway and Georges Jeanty. This is the true story of a Black physician caught between his calling and the mob in 1930s Chicago. It came out in 2021 and I want much more. Maybe even a movie.

May 22: CSI Vegas. Though it wasn’t planned as the series finale, I thought “Tunnel Vision” was an excellent and largely satisfying end to the series. Fine performances all around and fun forensic gobbledygook.

May 23: An NAACP Image Award nominee, Queenie: Godmother of Harlem: by Elizabeth Colomba and Aurelie Levy is the story of the legendary Stephanie Saint-Clair. A stylishly-told page turner, I recommend it to all who enjoy historical graphic novels.

May 24: My Black Lightning Archives. I added a second slightly different cast and crew jacket from the first season to my growing collection of memorabilia from the TV series. I hope to find more items in the future.

May 25: Radio Margaritaville. It’s Channel 24 on Sirius XM, owned by the Jimmy Buffet estate and has live broadcasts of Buffett's concerts as well as music by him and his fellows. It’s a favorite companion as I drive from here to there.

                                                                                        

May 26: Those of you who know the differences and recognize the distinctions. It’s not National Mattress Sale Weekend or Barbeque Weekend or even “Burger of the Summer” Weekend. It’s a somber time for honoring those who gave their all.

May 27: Fiesta Jalapeno. Once a week, I treat myself to a sit-down meal there, ordering the Speedy No. 3 lunch special. If any of my area friends want to join me, send me an e-mail. I’ll try my best to make it happen.

                                                                        

May 28: Elsbeth. The season finale, aptly named “A Fitting Finale,” boasted fine character moments, including a magnificent performance from André De Shields. Fashion, humor, and, of course, murder most foul. Looking forward to season two.

May 29: Rob Petersen. If you’ve purchased items from my eBay store and been impressed by the great packing and service, thank my pal.I find the goodies in my Vast Accumulation of Stuff. He’s the guy who handles everything else. A true friend.

May 30: Legend of the Hawkman by Ben Raab and Michael Lark. From 2000, this classy three-issue series isn’t 100% my take on Hawkman and Hawkwoman, but close enough for me to enjoy it immensely. Why won’t DC collect great Hawkman work like this?

May 31: Sugar. In this stylish series, Colin Farrell is incredible as a private detective looking for the missing granddaughter of a Hollywood icon. The mysterious John Sugar is a great character and the eight episodes deliver a most satisfying story.

And now...Tony’s Best of the Bloggy Thing Month. Three categories. Three winners.

BEST COMIC OF THE MONTH: Atlas Artist Edition No. 1 featuring Joe Maneely

BEST MOVIE/TV SHOW OF THE MONTH: Slay

BEST PERSON OF THE MONTH: Rob Petersen

I have a long list of things I want to cover in my upcoming bloggy things. I’ll do my best to get this feature on a more frequent and regular schedule. Thanks for reading.

© 2024 Tony Isabella

THINGS THAT MADE ME HAPPY IN APRIL

The world and my country are becoming more unhinged by the minute. While I fully intend to address that insanity in future editions of the bloggy, I can’t do so right now lest I curl into a fetal ball of despair and rage.

So I instead turn to that which gives me hope and joy in a world of madness. Every day, to combat the encroaching darkness, I shine a light on something good and positive.

Here are the things that made me happy in April...

April 1: Though his broken ankle kept my great friend Mark Evanier from WonderCon, I spent a few hours the night before the event with him and Brinke Stevens at his place. It was a fun evening and much arcane knowledge was shared.

April 2: Godzilla X Kong The New Empire. It’s a great movie, much better than Legendary’s previous film. Great monster action and the critters exhibit real personality. Equally terrific human stories, which I think made for great kaiju movies.

                                                                               

April 3: WonderCon 2024. From the moment we arrived at WonderCon, we were treated with much kindness and respect by the showrunners, the crew, the volunteers, the creators and the fans. It was one of my best conventions ever.

April 4: WonderCon 2024. Jhonny Javier and Reese Goldman came by my table. Jhonny had come from Argentina a week prior. I was delighted to welcome him and be part of his first US convention experience. So many great WonderCon memories.

April 5: WonderCon. I receive great joy from “The Ripple Effect,” people whose lives I affected. Pam Noles credits my Cosmic Comics store for her love of comics. Today, she’s a L.A. stage manager who works for Comicon. Wonderful to see you again, Pam.

April 6: WonderCon. Hosted by Victor Dandridge and sponsored by the  Comic Arts Conference, my spotlight panel was amazing and a big hit with those in attendance. I love getting opportunities to educate and entertain.

April 7: WonderCon 2024. Joshua Reed was the letterer of my Black Lightning: Cold Dead Hands series and did a wonderful job with my scripts. I got to meet him at the convention and sign his copy of
the trade. I hope I can work with him again.

April 8: WonderCon. Asked about Black Lightning, Cold Dead Hands, I was pleased to extol the editorial contributions of Jim Chadwick and Harvey Richards...and to hear other creators speak as highly of them. Wish we had done more together.

April 9: WonderCon 2024. I could post these happy things all month long and I wouldn’t begin to cover all the amazing folks I met and all the amazing times my family and I had. I’ll try to write a full convention report soon.

                                                                         

April 10: Post-WonderCon 2024. Our best and favorite meal of this trip was at 18 Folds, an Asian fusion restaurant in Anaheim. That meal was built around the incredible steamer party platter. It was $64 but enough deliciousness for the four of us.

April 11: Godzilla: Awakening by Max Borenstein and Greg Borenstein with art by Eric Battle, Yvel Guichet and Alan Quah. Reprinted in  Legends of the Monsterverse, it’s an exciting introduction to the Godzilla and Kong comics from Legendary.

April 12: Silver Age Classics: Konga Volume One. From PS Artbooks, this reprints issues #1-5 of the Charlton series adapted from the 1961 movie. Even the stories not drawn by Ditko are entertaining. More to come.

April 13: Caitlin Clark was hilarious and inspirational on Saturday Night Live. She held her own on Weekend Update while giving shout outs to other players and the women who paved the way for both her success and the success of women’s basketball.

                                                                                   

April 14: Gaytheist: Coming Out of My Orthodox Childhood by Lonnie Mann and Ryan Gatts is a compelling graphic novel about a young gay man (Mann) escaping from his birth religion. The more any religion controls its followers, the less I like it.

April 15: A Guest in the House by Emily Carroll. It’s a unsettling ghost story about a second wife who is surrounded by dark questions about her husband’s first wife. It’s downright chilling in places and would make a great scary movie. 

                                                                            

April 16: I Have No Shelf Control. This shirt speaks to me. It was a gift from a dear friend who knows me all too well.

April 17: Belle of the Ball by Mari Costa. A 2024 finalist for the Lambda Literary Award for LGBTQ+ Comics, this teen romantic comedy captivated me from the start. High school drama, new friends, old friends. Just a treasure.

April 18: Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. Finally watched it on Max. An excruciatingly bad performance by Yahya Abdul-Mateen II as Black Manta didn’t stop me from enjoying this film. So many great Arthur and Orm moments.

April 19: CSI Vegas. The “Atomic City” episode was the best of the season to date. Creepy murders. Moving scenes for the regular cast. John Ross Bowie as a quirky survivalist. A conclusion I didn’t see coming. Excellent television!

April 20: From Fantagraphics, The Atlas Comics Library No. 2: Venus Vol. 2 has arrived. Since I consider this title one of the most fun and fascinating of Atlas comics, I’m delighted to see the rest of it collected in such a great package.

April 21. The Legends of the Monsterverse boxed set from Legendary Comics. Having finished reading, I recommend it even more highly. Some of the stories are great, all are entertaining. And the bonus content is incredible!

April 22: The Daily Show. I was absolutely thrilled and surprised by the return of the wonderful Jessica Williams. The comedic timing between her and host Jon Stewart was flawless. I hope we see more of her on the show that invented news.

                                                                                   

April 23: My Black Lightning Glowing Logo Power Bank was a cast and crew gift from the TV series. When funds permit, I’ve been looking for such gifts on eBay. I want my BL Archives as cool as possible for whatever institution gets it after my death.

April 24: The newest Daily Show correspondents. Troy Iwata, Grace Kuhlenschmidt and Josh Johnson have been growing into their roles and doing a great job. Kuhlenschmidt is my favorite, but they are all terrific.

April 25: “What Remains of America,” a chilling story of a future by my old Marvel Bullpen buddy Scott Edelman, headlines Pulphouse Fiction Magazine #25. It’s a tale that holds great meaning for me as I see the insane world around me.

April 26: Not Dead Yet’s season finale was one of the show’s best episodes and laid fertile ground for a third season. Nell’s secret (she can talk to ghosts) is now known by a most unlikely character
and Lexi has bought the newspaper. More please.

April 27: Alma by John Holland and Hernan Gonzalez. The Chosen One is a 72-year-old grandmom with bad knees. That’s the irresistible premise of this series, coming soon to a Kickstarter near you. I’m going to support it and hope you will, too.

                                                                                     

April 28: My Black Lightning archives grows with the cool addition of this rare cast and crew Holloway black nylon jacket from the TV series. It’s a medium, so I won’t be wearing it, but it’s still a nice artifact from a great run.

                                                                               

April 29: Yet another addition to my Black Lightning archives. It’s a Black Lightning Season 1 cast/crew trucker cap. I can actually wear this one because it’s large enough to fit my head, even when people tell me I’m a legend.

April 30: I have Vast Accumulation of Stuff garage sale fever. My garage is full of boxes I’ll be going through to fill my inaugural sale with cool items. Opening weekend is May 17-18 and that’s just the start of an amazing summer.

And now...Tony’s Best of the Bloggy Thing Month. Three categories. Three winners.

BEST COMIC OF THE MONTH: Gaytheist: Coming Out of My Orthodox Childhood by Lonnie Mann and Ryan Gatts

BEST MOVIE/TV SHOW OF THE MONTH: Godzilla X Kong The New Empire

BEST PERSON OF THE MONTH: Mark Evanier

The start of my Vast Accumulation of Stuff garage sales is Friday and Saturday, May 17 and 18, 840 Damon Drive in Medina, Ohio. The sales run from 9 am to noon each day. However, if there’s customers still shopping at noon, I won’t push them out the door.

If these hours don’t work for people, I am amenable to opening the garage doors most Friday and Saturday afternoons and evenings, and all day Sunday. Just contact me and we’ll set up a time that works for both of us.

That’s all for today. I’ll be back soon with more stuff.

© 2024 Tony Isabella

WHERE I'LL BE ON FREE COMIC BOOK DAY 2024

 

 

FREE COMIC BOOK DAY is a high holy holiday for comics fans and the comic-book industry in general. It celebrates readers, retailers, characters and creators. It’s like Christmas if the jolly fat man bringing presents was a delivery driver instead of Santa Claus and if the presents were promotional comic books and if the eager kids waiting eagerly for their gifts were mostly men in their forties or fifties. Okay, maybe that’s not an exact analogy, but the youngster in me still tries to stay up all night waiting for those deliveries to arrive. God bless us all everyone!

Every year, I like to participate in the FCBD activities by being a guest at a comics store or some other related venue. This year, on Saturday, May 4, from 11 am to 2 pm, I’ll be signing comics and posing for photos at the wondrous Sweets and Geeks, 342 East Smith Road in my own Medina, Ohio.

Sweets and Geeks is one of my favorite places in Medina. They have an amazing selection of obscure candy and soda pops from all over the world. They have thousands of Funko figures, role-playing and other games, comic books...as well as merchandise from the worlds of super-heroes, pop culture, and Star Wars. It’s like visiting the North Pole in my hometown.

This year, Free Comic Book Day overlaps with Star Wars Day. I can feel the Force is with me. Even though the store owners said no to my Slave Leia cosplay. Baby Yoda, it is.

Sweets and Geeks will give you up to five free comic books on FCBD.They will be having a 15% off sale on comic books and other things.They will have exclusive Funko products. Visitors can go into their spacious game room to try out some board hames.

When you feel a mite peckish, you can enjoy terrific stuff from the E.O.D. food truck that will be in the Sweets and Geeks parking lot from 11 am to 4 pm. This is a veteran owned and operated trailer honoring those who served by serving delicious yummies!

I’m looking forward to signing things for the fans, answering their questions about my work and comic books in general and handing out fliers for my upcoming Vast Accumulation of Stuff garage sales. I will be kicking those off on Friday, May 17 and Saturday, May 18, from nine to noon at 840 Damon Drive, Medina, Ohio. I’ll announce more dates in the near future.

Don’t be alarmed if you see Mommy kissing the comics delivery guy. It’s just your dad dressed up for the holiday!

I’ll be back soon with more stuff!

© 2024 Tony Isabella

BATMAN THE SILVER AGE OMNIBUS: PART FIVE

I’ve been writing about the stories reprinted in Batman: The Silver Age Omnibus Volume One. It’s a massive tome that collects Batman #101-116 and Detective Comics #233-257, spanning mid-1956 through mid-1958. In an effort to cover more of these vintage comic books  faster, I’ll be going lighter on the story summaries. We start with one of the most iconic Batman tales of them all.

Detective Comics #241 [March 1957] features “The Rainbow Batman” by the legendary Edmond Hamilton with art by Sheldon Moldoff and Stan Kaye. Moldoff drew the cover as well.

Criminals steal valuable camera equipment, but Dick Grayson can’t change to Robin. He must save a little girl about to be hit by a car. In doing so, he injures his arm.

Batman knows the stolen cameras must play a part in some upcoming crime, but the crooks aren’t in his photo files. However, Robin can identify them if he sees them. The duo go on patrol hoping to spot the criminals before they can commit their big crime.

On each patrol, Batman wears a different color costume. Red, blue, green, gold, a white one with a target on its chest and the multi-hued title costume. Can you guess why Batman is wearing all these costumes? I bet you can.

                                                                                    

                                                                 

The Moldoff cover for Batman #107 [April 1957] features “The Grown-Up Boy Wonder.” But the first story in the issue is “The Boy Who Adopted Batman” by an unknown writer with art by Moldoff and inker Charles Paris. It’s a heart-warming story about a lonely boy whose father died. His mom works a lot and is tired when she gets home, so the kid starts talking to a Batman statue in the park. Batman and Robin hear him and build a Bat-bicycle for him. One good turn deserves and the brave youngster helps the heroes track down a gang of token counterfeiters. The kid’s cleverness leads to a deserved happy ending for him and his mom. I really wish I knew the identity of this story’s writer. It’s a good one.

The second story is “Robin Falls in Love” by Batman co-creator Bill Finger with Moldoff and Paris on the art. Robin falls hard for 14-year-old ice skater Vera Lovely. Her agent prefers she publicity-dates an actor and tries to break them up. Meanwhile, a criminal is posing as a news photographer to steal a pair of skates auctioned off for charity. Just another day in Gotham.

“The Grown-Up Boy Wonder” is by Finger, Moldoff and Kaye. Batman and Robin are examining a lead-lined box Superman brought back from space. When the box is opened, it releases a mysterious gas which ages the Boy Wonder into manhood. Against Batman’s wishes, Robin appropriates Bruce Wayne’s masquerade costume and takes on the new identity of Owlman. But the former kid isn’t used to fighting as a bigger stronger adult and that causes problems as the heroes take on the Daredevils, a team of acrobatic jewel thieves.

                                                                                

Detective Comics #242 [April 1957] cover-features “The Underworld Bat-Cave” by an unknown writer. I seem to recall Leigh Brackett did some writing for DC Comics. Could she be the mysterious wordsmith? The cover was drawn by Moldoff with the interior story bu Moldoff and Paris.

A treasure hunt stunt is part of a plan to discover the location of the Bat-Cave and Batman’s secret identity. The criminals expose a flaw in the Cave’s security protocols, but Batman, Robin and Alfred foil them with an elaborate plan of their own.  

                                                                              

Batman gets large in Detective Comics #243 [May 1957]. “Batman the Giant is by Hamilton, Dick Sprang and Paris. The cover is drawn by Moldoff. A scientist creates two remarkable inventions:

“My maximizer enlarges any object by drawing cosmic electricity to expand its atoms! My minimizer diminishes by the reverse process.”

After seeing a diamond expanded to the size of a basketball, crook Jay Vanney tries to steal the inventions. Batman is struck by the enlarging way and grows to thirty feet. Vanney only gets away with the minimizer. Batman is banned from Gotham, but he has the machine  Vanney wants. Their showdown takes an unexpected turn.

                                                                               

The first two of the three stories in Batman #108 [June 1957] are by an unknown writer or writers. The cover is by Moldoff and Paris.

“The Big Batman Quiz” plays off live quiz and other TV shows. Bats and Robin are on the set of “The Big Quiz” to confirm answers about their crime-fighting careers. The contestant, a Batman expert, is two answers away from winning $125,000. In 2024, the amount would be $1,364,528.47. Following the quiz show, the next live program would be “Interview with Crime” featuring the convict Garth.

The Batman expert is asked to reveal Batman’s secret identity and, seen only by Batman, he answers correctly. But then the contestant is poisoned in the question booth and the paper with the identity goes missing. An escaped Garth appears to be the killer, but there are some nice twists in this eight-page tale.

The six-page “Prisoners of the Bat-Cave” is also drawn by Moldoff and Paris. This short-but-frantic tale finds our heroes trying to prove a man is innocent mere hours before the man is set to die in the electric chair. Making their job all the more difficult is that a mechanical failure and a fire bomb have them trapped in the Bat-Cave with no means of communicating information to the authorities. I think this unknown writer is the same as the unknown writers in some of the other scripts we’ve discussed. There is a cleverness to his or her work.

“The Career of Batman Jones” is by Finger, Moldoff and Paris. When the title character’s parents take their newborn child home from the hospital, they are rescued from a failed brakes situation by Batman. In gratitude, they name the kid “Batman.” As the lad grows up, he becomes obsessed with being a detective like Batman. Despite his age, he’s good. But how can our heroes keep the youngster safe from the dangers that come with his obsession?

                                                                                       

Detective Comics #244 [June 1957] featured “The 100 Batarangs of Batman” by Finger, Moldoff and Paris with Moldoff going solo on the cover. Jack Nicholson’s Joker in Batman (1988) was on point when he remarked Batman had the best toys. That was one of the many things my younger self found so fascinating about the Batman comic books of my youth. Though many of the batarangs in this story were wildly aerodynamically unsound, I still got a kick out of them.

This 12-pager is a favorite of mine. Crooks steal films of Batman using various batarangs so they can create their own and use them against our hero. We get to see how Batman learned about batarangs from Austrian Lee Collins. We get flashbacks of Batman and Robin using the Magnetic Batarang, the Seeing-Eye Batarang and more. We are teased with a mystery batarang and see Batman use it as he goes up against the villains’ Bomb-Batarangs. I was so thrilled I never  noticed the cover wrongly included a Bomb-Batarang among those in the Bat-Cave.

That’s it for this part of my Silver Age Batman musings. I’ll have more for you in the near future.

© 2024 Tony Isabella

THINGS THAT MADE ME HAPPY IN MARCH

 

 

One of the truly frustrating things about my life in recent months is that I haven’t posted anywhere near as many bloggy things as I’d like. There are a lot of reasons for this, but it still frustrates me. I’m hoping to get back on track soon.

March 1: The dedicated and determined doctors, psychiatrists and therapists working to provide quality gender-affirming care despite the monstrous cruelty, hatred and misinformation directed at their patients by Republicans and “Christians.”

March 2: The Food That Built America on the History Channel fills two needs for me: fun food and fascinating trivia about food. This new season kicked off with episodes on Italian-American cuisine and ice cream. Feed my brain!

March 3: Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown’s reelection ads are all about the great things he’s accomplished. His vile opponents’ ads are all baseless attacks, disinformation, empty promises and sucking up to the worst elements in the GOP. Easy choice for me.

                                                                             

March 4: I’ve the strangest feeling I’ve been turned into a Funko! Courtesy of my fan and friend Mike Maloy, there is now a miniature Tony Isabella adorning my office. The series will continue with the Rainbow Tony, the Zebra Tony and more!

March 5: Barb, Kelly and our neighbor Shari were making cookies. Shari made one just for me. I’m thinking I should add communion to our First Church of Godzilla services. After I post this, there’ll be a little Godzilla in me.

March 6: Painkiller Jane: Beautiful Killers by Jimmy Palmiotti and Juan Santacruz. Two issues. Solid story and writing. Beautiful art. Beautiful violence. Satisfying ending. I wish more comic books were this good.

                                                                               

March 7: The Complete Funky Winkerbean Volume 13 2008-2010 by Tom Batiuk includes some of the material I wrote for him. Our writing styles were somewhat different, so I’m curious to see if the fans can figure who did what.

March 8: Ghosts: “Halloween 3: The Guest Who Wouldn't Leave” was an exceptional episode. Funny script. Hilarious acting. An intriguing possible addition to the cast. A surprising final scene that did not see coming. I love this show.

March 9: Saturday Night Live. Scarlett Johansson’s brilliant parody  of crazed Sen. Katie Britt’s GOP State of the Union response made me laugh out loud. Plus: Josh “Thanos” Brolin was a terrific host. One of the best episodes this season.

                                                                            

March 10: Godzilla Minus One won the Oscar for Best Visual Effects. It’s a historic moment for the franchise made sweeter by the team carrying Godzilla figures to the stage. But I still think the Big G deserved a best actor nomination as well.

March 11: The 96th Academy Awards. For the first time in decades, I watched them from start to finish. Host Jimmy Kimmel did a great job, there were many memorable moments and they actually ended on time. Well done all around.

March 12: Batman: Harley and Ivy by Paul Dini, Bruce Timm, Shane Glines and more is a fun collection of stories culled from various comics. The stories are self-contained and can be enjoyed without knowing what the heck is going on in the DCU.

March 13: Monstrous: A Transracial Adoption Story by Sarah Myer is a brilliant tale of the creator growing up as a South Korean child adopted by American parents and using her art to fight back against racism and homophobia. Highly recommended.

March 14: Marvel-Verse: Monica Rambeau Photon collects key stories featuring the character. Marketed as suitable for readers 10-14 and approximately 6" by 9" format, it’s a great way to catch up on some classic comics. I’m going to pay more attention to these books in the future.

March 15: Godzilla The Official Coloring Book (Titan Books) would make a wonderful gift for any budding artist with a passion for The Big G. Artists include Arthur Adams and Matt Frank. For this, you will need Crayola’s biggest box.

March 16: Published in 2021, Box of Bones: Book One by Ayize Jama-Everett and John Jennings tells stories of an African artifact and the Hell it visits on oppressor and oppressed alike. Honestly scare stuff and well worth reading.

March 17: So Help Me Todd: “Dial Margaret for Murder” was a zany murder mystery that delighted me from start to finish. Especially Jacqueline and Joyce Robbins as the Lee sisters. I want to see more of them, maybe even in their own series.

                                                                            

                                                                      

March 18: Godzilla Zipper Mouth plush. I have a new office buddy. He seems nice.

March 19: Wheel of Fortune. It’s Marvel Super Heroes week and the prizes include a Disney/Marvel cruise and Marvel swag. Appearing on the show so far: Spider-Man, Captain America and the Black Panther.I’m loving this!

March 20: A Man & His Cat by Umi Sakura remains one of my favorite manga series. Volume 8 caught me by surprise as it introduced the adult children of Fuyuki Kanda. His daughter loves insects and his son hates cats. Highly recommended.

March 21: X-Men ‘97. I watched the first two episodes with my son Ed and we were both impressed. Terrific writing. Solid story flow. Surprises. Even LeBron James was excited to see it. If you’ve got the GOAT vote, you’re good. Highly recommended.

March 22: Don’t Call It Mystery Vol. 1-2 by Yumi Tamura features a fairly unemotional college student whose observation and deduction skills are uncanny. Action takes a back seat to sometimes tedious dialogue, but the protagonist is fascinating.

March 23: Anyone Comics in Brooklyn is my new comics store. Their packaging and service is first-rate and, occasionally, artist and employee Chad Hellman adds his own touch to outgoing packages. May the blessings of Lord and Savior be on him.

March 24: The Legends of the Monsterverse boxed set. It’s gorgeous. This omnibus contains  every comic Legendary Comics has published on the Monsterverse and an exclusive new story only found in this hardcover treasure! All praise the great scaly one!

                                                                              

March 25: Superman: The Silver Age Omnibus Vol. 1. From the 1950s and 1960s, this collects stories from Action Comics #241-265 and Superman #122-137. I enjoy all kinds of comics, but these blasts from my past hold a special place in my heart.

March 26: IDW’s Godzilla Library Collection Vol. 1. A lovely book containing Godzilla: Gangsters and Goliaths, Godzilla Legends and Godzilla: The Half-Century War. The individual issues will show up in my garage sales in the fullness of time.

March 27: Delta Airways did a fine job on our trip to Anaheim via Detroit. Special kudos to the young lady who wheeled me across the mammoth Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport to our connecting flight. I wouldn’t have made it without her.

March 28: Castañeda's Mexican Food. Our first meal on this trip was at this amazing 24-hour restaurant at 432 S Indian Canyon Drive in Palm Springs. Freshly-cooked and delicious food. One of the best meals of our WonderCon journey.   

March 29: Greatest Hits by Harlan Ellison. Edited by J. Michael Straczynski and with a foreword by Neil Gaiman, this book collects 19 stories by one of my favorite authors (and friends). Ellison was and remains an inspiration to writers everywhere.

March 30: Joshua Tree National Park. On our way to WonderCon, the Isabella family visited this eerily beautiful park filled with the trees of its name and breathtaking rock formations. It would make the perfect setting for a monster movie.

March 31: Jennifer Blood: Battle Diary by Fred Van Lente and Robert Carey. A solid start to a new thriller wherein the daughter of the original JB goes after white supremacist. The first issue is very new-reader friendly.

And now...Tony’s Best of the Bloggy Thing Month. Three categories. Three winners.

BEST COMIC OF THE MONTH: A Man & His Cat Vol. 8 by Umi Sakura

BEST MOVIE OR TV OF THE MONTH: Godzilla Minus One

BEST PERSON OF THE MONTH: Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown

Thanks for stopping by. I’ll be back as soon as possible with more cool stuff for you. Hugs.

© 2024 Tony Isabella

BATMAN THE SILVER AGE CLASSICS: PART FOUR

 

If you’ve been following this blog for a while, you might recall I have been frequently pilloried as some one who hates Batman or who is jealous of the character’s success or any number of other crimes against the Darknight Detective. All of the above by low lives who fancy themselves comics journalists incapable of informed nuance in reporting the “news.”

Batman was my favorite comic-book character as a kid and remained so until I met Spider-Man and, later, created Black Lightning. What I hate is that DC Comics has turned the Caped Crusader into the Psycho Putz. While there have been definite moments of lightness since a Batman writer stumbled his way into a psychology book, the current Batman is more often framed by cruelty and unresolved trauma than heroism. He is manipulative and untrustworthy. Contrast this with “my” Batman who, after seeing justice done to the murdered of his parents, chose to continue being Batman to protect others from that kind of loss.  

I’m not so much jealous of Batman’s success as I am saddened that other terrific DC characters are ignored as DC pumps out almost as many Batman titles as Richie Rich had back in his glory years. It will take someone better at comics history and math to determine if Bats has surpassed Richie’s numbers.

The one thing the “journalists” sometime get right is that I hate Black Lightning being subservient to Batman. My Jefferson Pierce’s priorities are his family, his students and his community. He does not leave them all behind to be Batman’s sidekick.

Meanwhile...

I’ve been slowly working my way through Batman: The Silver Age Omnibus. This first volume collects Batman #101-116 and Detective Comics #233-257, spanning mid-1956 through mid-1958. Let’s get back into it.

SPOILERS AHEAD!
SPOILERS AHEAD!
SPOILERS AHEAD!
SPOILERS AHEAD!
SPOILERS AHEAD!
SPOILERS AHEAD!

Batman #105 (February 1957) has a cover drawn by Sheldon Moldoff and three stories by three different writers, all drawn by the team of Moldoff (pencils) and Charles Paris (inker). In Bill Finger’s “The Challenge of Batwoman,” a bored Kathy Kane wears her retired Batwoman outfit to a costume party. She stumbles into a caper by a gang of art thieves and their masked leader, a caper being foiled by Batman and Robin. Batman sprains his ankle, the crime boss gets amnesia, Batwoman thinks he’s Batman and decides she and Robin must train “Batman” so he can continue to function as a crime-fighter until his memory returns. The real Batman and Robin play along with this because they don’t want Batwoman to know about his injury for fear she would learn he’s Bruce Wayne. The criminal’s memory does return and he sets a trap for Batwoman and Robin. The real Bats disguising his injury and saves them. The 10-page story includes an end scene where Kathy berates Bruce for spraining his ankle while out “dancing.”

Ed Herron’s “The Second Boy Wonder” is one of those “teach someone a lesson” tales so prevalent in both Batman and Superman comics of the era. A “new” Boy Wonder takes Robin’s place, “fooling” Batman.When the duo returns to the Batcave, the kid reveals he is not the real Robin but someone who took an injured Robin’s place when the real Robin showed up at his door. He threatens to expose Batman’s secret identity if he’s not allowed to work with him. Of course, the new kid is the old kid. Robin is trying to prove he’s as much a master of disguise as Batman. Of course, from the moment the new Robin reveals his identity, both Batman and butler Alfred knew who it was. “Robin” walked through the Batcave in the dark to turn on the lights. Holy rookie mistake!

Arnold Drake’s “The Mysterious Bat-Missile” is the issue’s finale. In the Batcave, our heroes watch as the title vehicle comes through the floor of their secret lair. Operated by their thoughts, their new ride can pass through anything. Whoever sent it to them knows their identities. They put aside their concern to use the vehicle to track down a criminal on the run. The criminal lays low because of the Bat-Missile, but makes a break for it when he learns Batman is again using the much-slower Batmobile. Surprise. The heroes have disguised the Missile as their traditional vehicle. Next surprise? The Bat-Missile was sent to them for this one case by the Batman of the Future. He wanted to thank them for inspiring his career. They don’t get to keep it because this trip to their time was strictly a one-shot.

                                                                                   

Sheldon Moldoff and Charles Paris pencilled and inked the cover of Detective Comics #240 [February 1947], The author of “The Outlaw Batman” is unknown. The story itself is penciled by Dick Sprang with inks by Paris.

In a complicated scheme, Batman is framed for a series of crimes by a detailed-oriented adversary. There are a great many twists in the 12-page story. Fortunately, the authorities never really believed Batman was guilty and rigged the trial to allow the Caped Crusader to draw out the real villain. The tale plays fair with the readers by showing us the key clue that allows Batman to figure out who had been framing him. I wish I knew who wrote this one, which I’d never read before, because it’s a good one.

                                                                             

Batman #106 [March 1957] has a cover by Sheldon Moldoff. That’s not unusual for the era, but what is unusual is that no writer has been identified for any of the three tales in the issue. I wonder if any or all of them were written by the same mysterious unknown author who penned “The Outlaw Batman” in Detective Comics #240.

Drawn by Dick Sprang and Stan Kaye, “Batman’s Secret Helper” has a clever concept. An escaped convict has vowed vengeance on the man who helped Batman and Robin capture him, but not even our heroes know the identity of their helper. Bats launches a TV show to honor those who have helped them, figuring it will draw the convict out into the open. Which is does. The twist? It was the convict’s own brother who saved the Dynamic Duo because he wanted to prevent the convict from murdering them. The convict sees the error of his ways and is now determined to finish his sentence and rejoin society as a law-abiding citizen.  

“Storm Over Gotham City” is another cool story. Gotham City is in the path of a hurricane. A mobster and his men are planning to loot the city dressed as disaster-fighters. Trying to stop them, Batman and Robin are distracted by hurricane-related emergencies. Our guys catch the crooks by using the hurricane against them. In this time of extreme climate disasters, this tale could be modernized into an exciting cautionary thriller. It was pencilled by Sprang with inks by Paris.

“The Puppet Batman” is the cover and final story in the issue. An outside force is controlling Batman into doing dangerous stunts and reveal his true identity. The connection between the two is shaky, as is the “mind-ray” the criminal is using. Each attempt involves a different criminal - an ex-lion tamer, an ex-artist and others - projecting their skills onto Batman. The ex-artist attempts to get Batman to paint a portrait of his real face, but Robin destroys the canvas in the nick of time. An art expert identifies the artist’s style, which allows Batman to catch the criminals and recover their ill-gotten loot. The mind-ray is destroyed. This story is the weak link of the issue, but had the kind of “oh, gosh” cover scene that
comics publishers presumed their readers loved. The tale was drawn by Moldoff and Paris.

Watch for more Silver Age Batman in future blogs.

© 2024 Tony Isabella