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Reviews and commentary by Tony Isabella
"America's Most Beloved Comic-Book Writer & Columnist"
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TONY'S ONLINE TIPS
for Thursday, May 12, 2005
COMICS BUYER'S GUIDE #1606 [July, 2005; $5.99] showed up in my mailbox earlier this week, so it should be arriving at comic-book stores, bookstores, and newsstands soon. The cover feature, as you can see, is STAR WARS EPISODE III: REVENGE OF THE SITH. There are several Star Wars articles inside the issue and that's a good thing because - let's face it - the mainstream media will probably ignore this movie. After all, it's the sixth in a series whose chapters were released out of order. Just look how the world ignored FRIDAY THE 13TH VI: JASON LIVES and those movies did come out in the right sequence. If CBG didn't cover SITH, who would?
I kid my CBG pals because I love them.
I've only had a chance to flip through the issue at this time, but it seems to have plenty of items of interest for comics fans as well. In "The United States of Comics," Ray Sidman writes about 11 must-see places for traveling comic-book fans. John Jackson Miller offers suggestions on controlling your collection. Heidi MacDonald pinch-hits on Fred Patten's manga column while Fred recovers from a stroke. Heal quickly, my friend.
Michelle Nolan reminisces on the brief career of 1950s heroine Tomboy and Craig "Mr. Silver Age" Shutt holds forth on the Spider-Man/Human Torch rivalry/friendship. Also: comics legend Joe Kubert picks his ten favorite comic-book covers.
My main contribution to this issue is my "Tony's Tips" column in which I review:
A BIT OF MADNESS by Emmanuel Civiello;
BETTY AND VERONICA SPECTACULAR #69;
RAIDER: A COLD DAY IN HEAVEN by Thom Zahler;
SAMURAI: HEAVEN AND EARTH by Ron Marz and Luke Ross;
WRONG ABOUT JAPAN: A FATHER'S JOURNEY WITH HIS SON by Peter Carey; and,
ZOUNDS! A BROWSER'S DICTIONARY OF INTERJECTIONS by Mark Dunn with illustrations by Sergio Aragones.
In addition, my "Tony's Back Page" feature, which appears at the end of CBG's monthly guide to comics prices and sales, offers a humorous look - second in a series - at my early missteps on the road to comics not-quite-stardom. I channel my pain to amuse you. I am your dancing monkey.
Buying CBG helps keep me in bananas, so I urge you to buy or subscribe to the magazine forthwith.
Let's see what else I have for you today.
******
COMICS IN THE COMICS
My COMICS IN THE COMICS file is filled to bursting with self-referential newspaper comic strips, as well as those which mention cartoon or comics characters. For today, we have a trio of MOTHER GOOSE AND GRIMM strips by award-winning editorial cartoonist MIKE PETERS. The first ran on April 24:
This one is from May 4:
And this one is from May 10:
I have many more of these, so COMICS IN THE COMICS will likely be a daily feature for the immediate future.
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ON THE ROAD AGAIN
World Famous Comics web-wizard JUSTIN will be appearing at the Motor City Comic Con this weekend. The show takes place May 13-15, at the Novi Convention Center in Novi, Michigan.
Justin and I will do our best to keep TOT coming your way over the weekend. I'm trying to work ahead on columns and, if I should come up short, Justin is hoping to have enough Internet access to post any columns I might send to him while he's at the convention. God and the computer willing, we'll continue to bring you a new TOT each and every day.
If you're planning to attend the show, please stop by Justin's table and show him a little love. The guy works hard for all of us and we don't thank him nearly often enough. For more information on the event, visit the MOTOR CITY COMIC CON website at:
www.motorcityconventions.com
******
POPE TALK
The Roman Catholic Church has a new pope and, as should come as no great surprise to regular readers, I don't think much of the guy. But, as much as I dislike the man's bigotry towards gays and helpful attitude towards pedophile priests, his youthful membership in the Hitler Youth is a non-issue for me. Saving me the trouble of writing about this, my friend and terrific comics artist LEONARD KIRK summed up his - and my - feelings on a private mailing list to which we both belong. With his permission, here's what Kirk had to say on the subject:
Okay, I am starting to get a little sick of this crap. I am, by no means, a supporter of the Catholic church. In fact, I'm an agnostic and pretty much despise religion in all its forms. And I sure as hell am not a fan of this new pope. However, this constant bashing of the guy because of his childhood is ridiculous.
He was born in Germany and was a child during the rise of Nazi Germany. Was every German child of that period a Nazi?
Joining the Hitler Youth was not an option. It was mandatory! It was illegal to refuse!
We're not talking about the Boy Scouts here, people!
As a teen, he fled the Hitler Youth and Germany. Desertion of the Hitler Youth was a crime often punishable by death! His father was a staunch opponent to the Nazi party, which I'm sure didn't make his life or the lives of his family any easier.
If you want to criticize "Benny" for anything, then criticize him for what he is today. Call him on his positions, his words, his demeanor, all things that can make a pope great OR terrible. This "Panzer Pope" bull is unfair. It's also self-defeating. It does nothing other than to raise the pope to the status of "victim" in the eyes of his supporters and does not address his decisions and positions held during his reign as pope which, need I remind you, hasn't even been a month. It also makes those people spouting this crap look like whiny, uninformed crybabies who are pouting because "their" pope didn't win.
Sorry if I went a bit off the handle but I despise this kind of knee-jerk reaction garbage. It solves nothing.
Thanks, Leonard. For the record, I didn't have a favorite in this Pope-off, what with Dennis Kucinich being busy in Congress and all and the shocking lack of women candidates.
******
ROGERS GUIDE TO THE DC UNIVERSE
When talking fan labors of love, you would be hard-pressed to find a better example than THE BRENT CLARK ROGERS GUIDE TO THE DC UNIVERSE [$40]. This is the sixth edition of the book - I have one or two of the previous editions - and it will have over 700 pages of information on people, teams, groups, planets, extraterrestrial races, and families who make up the DCU. Here's what Rogers told me in a recent e-mail:
The sixth edition of my book is in the hands of the printer. I'll be set up in Artist Alley this weekend at the Motor City Comic Con in Novi. I'll have a limited amount of books there and will be offering a show discount Saturday and Sunday. I hope you can help me spread the work that we're back!
This newest edition of my book is still self-published and we have a goal of reaching every comic shop nationwide by the end of the year through the help of our website. I invite you to take a peek at:
bcrguidetothedcuniverse.com
Thanks for all your help.
You're welcome, Brent. I wish my schedule allowed me to visit the Motor City show for even a day, but, alas, my family and work commitments make that impossible. I hope your weekend is both fun and successful.
******
TONY POLLS
New TONY POLLS questions were posted two days ago, but this is the first chance I've had to tell you exactly what they were in the column. All of the questions were designed to look at FREE COMIC BOOK DAY from the fan's viewpoint...
This year's FREE COMIC BOOK DAY was on Saturday, May 7. Did you go to a comic-book store that day?
How would you rate the activities and turnout at the comic-book store or stores you visited?
Which of [several choices] best describes the visitors you saw at the comic-book store or stores you visited?
How many free comics did you get on FCBD?
Did you read the free comics you got on FCBD?
After reading the free comics, will you buy any of the titles or works by the creators in the future?
The questions will remain active until sometime after midnight on Monday, May 16, then new questions will be posted sometime after that on Tuesday, May 17. To vote on the current questions, go to our TONY POLLS page at:
www.worldfamouscomics.com/tony/poll
Thanks for spending a part of your day with me. I'll be back tomorrow with more stuff.
Tony Isabella
<< 05/11/2005 | 05/12/2005 | 05/13/2005 >>
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THE "TONY" SCALE
ZERO: Burn your money before buying any comic receiving this rating. It doesn't *necessarily* mean there's absolutely nothing of value here - though it *could* - but whatever value it might possess shrinks into insignificance before its overall awfulness.
ONE: Buy something else. Maybe I found something which wasn't completely dreadful in the item, but not enough for me to recommend it when there are better comics available. I only want what's best for you, my children.
TWO: Basic judgment call. I found some value, but not enough to recommend it. My review should give you enough info to decide if you want to take a chance on it. Are you feeling lucky today, punk? Well, are you?
THREE: This denotes something I find perfectly respectable. There are better books out there, but I wouldn't regret buying this item. Based on my review, you should be able to determine if it's of interest to you. Let the Force guide you.
FOUR: I recommend anything earning this rating. Unless you don't like the genre, subject matter, or past work of the creators, I believe you'll enjoy this item. Isn't it uncanny how I can look right into your soul that way?
FIVE: Anything getting this rating is among the best comicdom has to offer. You should buy/read this, even if the genre/subject matter doesn't appeal to you. It's for your own good. Me, I live for comics and books this good...but not in a pathetic "Comic-Book Guy" sort of way.
Please send material you would like me to review to:
Tony's Online Tips
840 Damon Drive
Medina, OH 44256
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