Favorite Covers - The Abominable Snowman!

A cold winter day is a the perfect time to reflect on one of the grand mysteries of the Earth, the Abominable Snowman or Yeti. One of a number of mysteriously mythic creatures said to roam the planet, the Yeti snags the imagination in all manner of ways. Here are some Abominable Snowman comic covers which demonstrate that point.

Above is an exquisite Ken Kelly painting for Creepy magazine. The Yeti pictured there conforms to most of the classic tales about the elusive mountain monster.

Nick Cardy shows an "Abominable Snowman" of a slightly different sort, but one no less dangerous for the Man of Steel.

Jim Aparo creates a typically dramatic confrontation here between the Snowman and the Batman.

Bob Oksner's hilarious Snowman seems quite antic and does for Jerry Lewis what many have imagined themselves doing over the decades.

Daffy seems typically unaware of his surroundings as he misinterprets a cautionary sign.

Scooby and Shaggy find monsters everywhere, so stumbling up against the Yeti was unavoidable.

Bigfoot is the North American cousin of the classic Yeti, and here Ernie Colon shows a clash between that beast and Super Richie.

The Black Panther under the hand of Jack Kirby had some pretty wild adventures for a short time, and the Yeti was just one more of those.

The clash between the Snowman and the the Incredible Hulk is an inevitable outcome. This abominable creature looks like it can hold its own against Jadejaws.

Steve Austin mixed it up with the Yeti, sort of, but as usual with him it turned to be at least a six-million dollar hoax.

Even the Big Boy himself finds the Snowman a nemesis, though I suspect all is well in the end.

Leave it to Scrooge McDuck to find a different kind of Yeti, one with more than a dash more style.

And here's an ABSM suggested by a follower of the blog. Thanks Gene. 

Another ABSM addition thanks to regular McScotty. Thanks for the addition. 

This classic Atlas monster by Jack Kirby cover shows off a giant "Abominable Snowman", who has an incredibly bizarre secret. To know more, see this and then this at Atomic Kommie Comics.
 
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The Road To OZ!

The Road to OZ by L. Frank Baum was published in 1909 and is the darkest of the OZ books to date. With great artwork b John R. Neil this is the fourth trip Dorothy makes to the fairy land of OZ and for her at least it's getting to be rather normal. She's so accustomed to odd happenings that she doesn't think twice about travelling alongside a stranger known only to her and us as "The Shaggy Man". Kudos to the charitable minded Miss Gale, but this is the epitome of "Stranger Danger". But perhaps things were that much different over a century ago when it came to children wandering the byways of the United States. It doesn't help that this "Shaggy Man" purports to have a "Love Magnet" which makes people like him. There are spoilers galore below. 

Accompanied by Toto, who it should be pointed out was cautious about this new character, Dorothy heads down the road and before you know it the party is of course lost, finding themselves in a strange territory where they must choose one of seven routes. That choice leads them to Button Bright, a naive young boy and later to Polychrome, the daughter of the Rainbow. This gang of five enters a hamlet run by foxes where Button Bright gets a new head, that of a fox. Later the Shaggy Man gets the head of a donkey when the group enters a town filled with those critters. 

Then they chance upon a chap called a "Musicker" who is a fellow who makes music all the time with his bodily functions. Sounds nastier than it is. After that they encounter a gang of weird cannibals who want to make soup of them and try to capture them by throwing their own heads at them. Our heroes escape narrowly. They come to a vast desert which separates OZ from the rest of the lands and soon enough have a ship to sail across it thanks to a magic chap named Johnny DooIt who builds at a furious pace. Across the desert they come to the Truth Pond and these magic waters return both Button Bright and the Shaggy Man to their original forms. 

Soon enough they find themselves firmly in OZ and begin to meet old friends and allies such as Tik-Tok, Billina, Nick Chopper, the Scarecrow and others. The gang go to the Emerald City where Ozma informs Dorothy she's been following their adventures and she like them to stay to celebrate her birthday. What follows is a long celebration with an array of characters from past OZ books as well as other books Baum had written such as The Adventures of Santa Claus and John Dough and the Cherub. It's assumed that Baum might've included these characters from less popular books of his to cross promote with the wildly popular OZ books. Eventually the Wizard comes up with durable bubbles which whisk everyone home save for Dorothy who goes once again via Ozma's magic belt. 

This was a strange book. It began with an edge but soon enough tumbled into the same pattern as the previous OZ book, becoming a mere travelogue. Baum introduces characters at a very rapid pace and tight situations get resolved in most cases before anything resembling tension can develop. There's not much plot save that Dorothy gets lost, finds a bunch of new creatures as friends and meets old friends then goes home. Hopefully Baum changes it up some as the series continues. 

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Astro City MetroBook Four!

Astro City MetroBook 4 begins with a few specials as the series was transitioning once again from one publisher to another. We see the last few Wildstorm branded issues before beginning the long run of Vertigo issue. By this point Astro City has become one of the most well-crafted and sensitive comic series in the history of the medium. These issues don't let the reader down. 

This is a story of Astro City's mightiest hero Samaritan, but seen through the jaundiced eyes of his arch-enemy the Infidel. The Infidel is an immortal and began life as a young boy sold into slavery who turned the tables on his captors because the underrated his intelligence. He has gone on to be a major villain with little regard for the human society that treated him so harshly centuries ago. Now we see that he's a relentless foe pitted against a hero of incredible power. The contest has refreshed him, and he knows that in time, which he has a boundless amount of, he will be the victor. He imagines he's the Eagle who chips away at the mountain, but is he wrong. 

Beautie is a fascinating heroine, and yes, she does look like a Barbie doll. Seen in action over the years we finally get a story which explores her enigmatic history. The thing is while we get to see her earliest days and how she came to be a reliable member of Honor Guard, we don't immediately discover her origins because she doesn't know them herself. This quest for identity drives this strange woman, who fights and protects as world in which she doesn't fit. 

These two special editions tell the story of Astra, the lovely and powerful girl who is a member of the Furst Family, the Astro City version of Marvel's Fab 4. In this issue, she's graduated, but being a celebrity of the highest order her every move is surveilled by a version of the paparazzi. We learn all sorts of secrets about adventures the FF have been in as one strange creature after another arrives to wish Astra the best after school. Like all young folks she is trying to decide what to do with her future and we discover that and so much more. I really liked how Ross imitated the style of magazines of the day. 

Astro City regular series begins again under a new brand with brand new numbering. Astro City began under the Image banner, then shifted slightly to wear the Wildstorm badge. When that was sold to DC it was a smooth enough shift, but now Astro City becomes part of the Vertigo offerings. At this point the series has been around for seventeen years, a good healthy run for any comic let alone an indy. And what's amazing is the quality has not dropped in the least. 

The first issue opens with a bang (almost literally) when a bizarre portal appears over Astro City and a giant shiny armored giant appears proclaiming to be a representative of a distant and powerful clan. He seeks someone to function as an intermediary and introduce him to the world he's visiting. Busiek reaches back to one of Astro City's earliest stories about a single father who brought his two daughters to Astro City and liked it. Now they have grown and he's looking for his next chapter. We also meet the strange purple fellow who calls himself "The Broken Man" who operates as a narrator for the story who has a secret of his own. 

The next two issues answer the question of how a group like Honor Guard can stay on top of the many problems a world like ours can present. We are introduced through the eyes of one young female recruit the operation which fields the emergency calls from around the globe and decides which threats meet the standard Honor Guard can respond to. When this young woman makes a very slight error in judgment it results in catastrophic mayhem, and she feels that she must do something personally to make up for her mistake. 

Issue four introduces "The Sideliners", an association of people with powers and abilities but without the ambition to becomes superheroes. But while they only seek to use their abilities to make their lives and the lives of folks around them better, some of a more villainous nature seek to use these people for their own nefarious ends. But as it turns out when a baddie dubbed "Majordomo" tries to bend these folks to his will it turns out badly. 

This is a strange one which takes us back to the 1930's when Astro City was still called Romeyn Falls. We meet a group of "Untouchables" types named the "Blasphemy Boys" who battle bizarre threats with great danger to themselves, then we slip into a meeting of the cult of Lord Saampa and his slavish followers, but then abruptly we encounter a heroine dubbed Dame Progress who is contending with a rogue called Mister Cakewalk and who is not at all what he seems. Our purple-skinned narrator returns but this time seems greatly concerned that we are learning more than we should. 

In a follow-up to the first story in this new series we ae updated on the doings of ambassador from the depths of space when we follow along with a man who represents the longshoreman of Astro City visits and strikes a bargain. This chap has some criminal ties and hopes to use this access to his best effect and gets his wish when a case with several strange containers is smuggled into the city. One of those containers is breached and creates a powerful supervillain. The question of how much power any one man should have, is broached, and also what constitutes happiness. 

Then we are treated to a quartet of issues focusing on Winged Victory and a scheme to undermine the public trust in her mission to help women around the world. She is assisted in fighting back by her boyfriend Samaritan and the new Confessor. It's Astro City's version of DC's "Trinity". Winged Victory has been a part of the Astro City story from the beginning, but this story really makes her and those who assist her front and center. Busiek and Anderson really knock it out of the park with a story which puts each of the three forward, with narration from all three during the mini saga. Alex Ross is in top form as well with some of his best covers for the series. 

We jump ahead to issue seventeen and welcome a guest artist in Jesus Merino. The Honor Guard learn the secret of the special treat that arrives every year in their headquarters. They also learn the secret of Krigari Ironheart, a relentless and murderous conqueror from a universe hidden in the very molecules around us. The Honor Guard had bettle Krigari many times, but now they learn how that came to be and who was to blame. 

Merino returns on art duty in issue twenty-two as we follow a hero once known as Starfighter. We learn his secrets, meet his family, and learn a few of his regrets. He's a man who is now a novelist but was once a very successfull superhero who has fought for justice for many years and finds that as he ages the call might not be as frequent. But getting used to that has its issues as well. 

Brent Anderson returns in issues twenty-three and twenty-four as we mee the rambunctious Sticks, a talking gorilla who is equally adept saving lives, fighting crime, and playing the drums. It's the latter he really wants to do, but finding a way to do it and still keep his human friends safe is a challenge indeed. And wait until you meet Tuxedo Gorilla! 

The fifth MetroBook is upcoming, but since I have to wait for them to actually publish it, I'll get to it when I can. It's been a blast and Astro City is a place all should visit. 

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Ms. Tree - Heroine Withdrawal!

Titan's Hard Case Crime brand strikes again with the fifth Ms.Tree collection gathering together stories from the series by Max Allan Collins and Terry Beatty. The first story in this collection titled Heroine Withdrawal picks up right after the violent events of the final page of the last volume. 

As the three issue saga titled "Mureta Means Death" gets underway, Ms.Tree has killed the pedophile and serial murderer who had kidnapped her son. The police are again put out that she's taken the law into her own hands. An old ally named Dan Green returns to the fold, having recovered as best he can from injuries suffered from a bombing by the Muerta crime family. Sporting a glass eye and a hook, Green seeks his own vengeance on the patriarch of the Muerta clan and for a time is locked up for his murder. Later secrets are revealed and needless to say this installment ends with an unexpected death. 

After the events of the last bloody finale, we get a two-issue story titled "Right to Die" in which Ms.Tree is drawn into the always ferocious abortion debate. She is ordered by the court to leave her detective work to her employees and give up her gun. An old ally of her husband shows up and wants to blow up a clinic. When the clinic is blown up, there is still a mystery to be solved. No matter how you feel about this topic this is a pretty good mystery story. 

Because she was swept up in the violence of the abortion clinic, she violated the court's order and is sent to jail. The two-issue story titled "Prisoner Cell Block Hell" has our heroine forced to deal with all sorts of threats coming at her from both inside and outside the jail. As usual she finds a bit if corruption which kicks off the usual mayhem. 

Her lawyer arranges for her to not got to trial but she must submit to psychiatric observation and so she is admitted to a clinic for extended treatment. The story titled "Heroine Withdrawal" lends its name to the collection itself and proves pivotal. While under treatment she discovers that perhaps she must change. At the same time a political murder comes to her attention, and she puts her staff on that project. 

The collection closes with the three-issue story titled "The Other Cheek" in which a reformed and medicated Ms.Tree seeks to change her approach to life despite the dangers that lurk around every corner. Collins chooses to tell this story from several points of view, giving insights into the other characters in this saga. Not least of which is her son, who ends up staying with his grandmother again with tragic consequences. As is obvious from the last cover, she gets over her pacifism. 

The volume closes with a Mike Mist prose story about a suicide that wasn't. 

The death count in these stories is stunning. Perhaps it's because I'm reading them all together and not monthly, but I frankly don't think it's possible to get a true count of bodies in these stories. It feels different given the relative realism that Collins tries to bring to the series, unlike a book like say the Punisher which is more hyperbolic. Another issue is the price of this collection, which has gone up considerably since the beginning of the series. There's one more volume I think, so I'll stick it out for now. 

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