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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, February 28, 2008
Edited by legendary comics writer, editor, and historian Roy Thomas, The All-Star Companion Volume Three [TwoMorrows; $26.95] continues my once-mentor's love affair with the even more legendary Justice Society of America. In the book's 244 pages, he reveals more secrets of the Golden Age super-team; presents issue-by-issue coverage of the Justice League/Justice Society team-ups, the 1970s JSA revival, and The Young All-Stars, and flings open many windows to these comics via interviews with the writers and artists who created them and rare, sometimes never-before-seen images from the books. If you're half the JSA fan that Thomas is, you'll love this informative tome. As for yours truly, I can maybe lay claim to being a quarter of the JSA fan Roy is.
True confessions. Once I get past the JLA/JSA team-ups that were written by Gardner Fox, I think the pickings are pretty darned slim. I have a fondness for Denny O'Neil's writing and think Len Wein did an outstanding job on the first two of his three team-ups, but the rest are mediocre or worst. Only Len managed to pull off adding a third team to the already-overcrowded stories.
Additionally, Thomas and co-writer Gerry Conway came up with what may well be the biggest "Ick!" in the histories of either team by implanting the memories of the original Black Canary into those of her daughter. Which means the current Black Canary has memories of having sex with her father, cheating on her father with Starman, and giving birth to herself. "Gross!" doesn't even begin to cover that twisted concept.
Digression. I have long believed comic-book publishers, like our government, need to hire "Common Sense Czars" to stop them from doing monumentally stupid things. These "czars" would need a good supply of big sticks and the authority to use them with impunity on editors and writers who attempt to do monumentally stupid things. We must be able to beat editors and writers in their own offices, so that we won't have to lure them to our comics conventions and beat them there. End of digression.
The first third of this new volume has some very cool pieces on the Golden Age JSA tales, a possible inspiration for Seven Soldiers of Victory, adventurer Johnny Peril, and even All-Star Western, the comic book that took the place of the super-hero-oriented All Star Comics.
The coverage of the JLA/JSA team-ups and the 1970s revival of the Justice Society wasn't as enjoyable for me, though I did find the interviews of interest. By all rights, I shouldn't have been that interested in the issue-by-issue reports on The Young All-Stars, but, oddly enough, they intrigued me.
The Young All-Stars was published during two extremely chaotic years of life. My involvement with a Cleveland non-profit organization had contributed mightily to the closing of the comic-book store and newsstand I had owned for more than a decade and to a period of terrible uncertainty in my life. I was a new father, trying to balance that with making a living as a freelancer for the first time in as many years. I have those issues of The Young All-Stars, but I clearly did no more than skim them when I got them. The index by Thomas and Kurt Mitchell has me wanting to dig them out of storage - good trick that - and give them a much more thorough reading. I can't recall how well or poorly Thomas pulled off what were clearly his very ambitious plans for the title, but Companion has piqued my interest.
I don't ever need to read another JLA/JSA team-up. As with so many good ideas, DC has gone back to that well too many times and it's dried up. I wouldn't mind seeing an occasional member of one group paying a visit to the other, but full-blown team-ups hold no further interest for me. I suspect I'm in a very small minority on this issue, but there I am.
Despite my ambivalence towards so much of the material found in The All-Star Companion Volume Three, I think it's a fine book. As I said earlier, those who love this stuff will love this book. Those of us who kind of like this stuff will still find lots to entertain and enlighten them in its pages. On our usual scale, it earns an impressive four out of five Tonys.
******
I'm still feel the pain from yesterday's spill in my driveway, a situation not helped in the slightest by my spending a chunk of my morning shoveling out said driveway with Sainted Wife Barb and daughter Kelly so that Barb could get her car out of the garage and herself to work. So, alas, this is again a much shorter TOT than I'd hoped to present. I'll try to do better tomorrow.
Thanks for spending a part of your day with me. I'll be back tomorrow with more stuff.
Tony Isabella
<< 02/27/2008 | 02/28/2008 | 02/29/2008 >>
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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.
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