The Spirit Archives Volume Twenty-Seven!

Following on after DC's long run of The Spirit archive editions, Dark Horse Books in conjunction with longtime Kitchen Sink owner Denis Kitchen put out a twenty-seventh volume in the style of the DC books which gathered together the nine issues of The Spirit - The New Adventures. After many years of trying to talk Eisner into allowing other creators to play with The Spirit's universe, he at last convinced him of the idea in 1998. Some of the best comic men of the time took a dip in those Central City waters. 

The debut issue of The Spirit - The New Adventures features three tales by the super-star team of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons, who also produced the cover. "The Most Important Meal" features Dr. Cobra who tells his origin story. "Force of Arms" offers up a possible clue to the identity of The Octopus. And the final story "Gossip and Gertrude Granch" tells us what really happened to Dr. Cobra's muscle-bound assistant. These stories all are connected in strange ways with that subtle Moore magic. 

The second issue offers up a cover by Will Eisner Mark Shultz. Under it is "The Return of Mink Stole" by Neil Gaiman and artist Eddie Campbell and combines a Spirit story with one torn from the realm of Quentin Tarrantino which propels a timid writer into a shady story of theft and more. "Sunday in the Part with St. George" by Jim Vance and artist Dan Burr has The Spirit race to the aid of a woman dangling from a flagpole where he meets an old enemy. "The Sphinx the Jinx in the Game of Life" by John Wagner and artist Carlos Ezquerra features a hapless chap just released from jail but doomed by fate to return. 

The third issue features a striking cover by Brian Bolland. The first story "Last Night I Dreamed of Dr. Cobra" by writer Alan Moore and artist Daniel Torres is a strange affair set in a distant future in which Central City is the site of an archeological endeavor and in which strange discoveries are made. "Ellen's Stalker" by Mark Kneece and artist Bo Hampton features Ellen Dolan when she is at first saved then pursued by a man who imitates the look of The Spirit. 

The fourth issue sports another new cover by Will Eisner, this time with the assistance of William Stout. "The Samovar of Shooshnipoor" was written by Kurt Busiek and drawn by his partner on Astro City Brent Anderson. It features Sand Saref in a tale in which she tries yet again to manipulate The Spirit in a bid to gain riches. This issue also has a pin-up by Moebius of The Spirit looking a lot like Humphrey Bogart. "The Weapon by Michael Allred, Matt Brundage and Michael Avon Oeming has The Spirit fighting Nazis and their robot allies on the docks of Central City. "Dr. Broca Von Bitelman" by Mark Schultz and artist David Lloyd features Satin and a mad doctor and his deadly "Super-Beetles". 

The fifth issue features a cover by Paul Chadwick and John Nyberg and is a key scene from the issue-length story titled "Cursed Beauty" by the same team. This one deals with a gorgeous woman who leaves the scene of a murder naked save for a barely concealing overcoat. There are lots of twists and turns in this story which also showcases Ebony White in a key role. 

The sixth issue features a gritty cover by Tim Bradstreet. The first story titled "Swami Vashtibubu" was written by John Ostrander and drawn by Tom Mandrake, and has The Spirit go around in drag to knab a gang of fraudsters led by a murderous couple. "Baby Eichbergh" by Scott Hampton on both script (with assistance by Mark Kneece) and art tells of a terrible kidnapping which features a strange quartet of good Samaritans. 

The seventh issue features a cover by Peter Poplaski. Under it is a story titled "Golf Anyone?" in which Commissioner Dolan cajoles The Spirit onto the links for a game to relax him, but of course that only ends in the duo finding more crimes to solve. A long-missing cast member shows up unexpectedly. "The Pacifist" was written by Eddie Campbell and Marcus Moore and drawn by Campbell and Pete Mullins and tells the tale of a bullet with ambitions beyond that for which it created. "The Ghost of Tiger Traps" written by Jay Stephens and drawn by Paul Pope features a trio of boys including Sammy and P.S. Smith as they try to get to the bottom of a notorious gangster who seems to rise from his grave. 

In the final issue we get a cover by Mark Nelson. The story "Sweetheart" was written by Joe R. Lansdale and drawn by John Lucas. This issue-long adventure features a naked woman who refuses to stay dead and in the morgue despite repeated attempts. It's a ghoulish ending to a strange series which seemed to want to update The Spirit for a modern audience. 

In a later edition of this same volume put out by Dark Horse a story originally intended for the series by Gary Chaloner was added. In the meantime, Chaloner had adapted it in his John Law edition reversing the order of things with the epic Sand Saref tale from so long ago.  

There are lots of very good stories in this volume and I recommend it. But if you're looking for the same jolt you got from those classic Eisner tales, beware as the creators here go off the reservation as they should have done when given the okay. Eisner only limited them in two ways -- The Spirit could not be married nor could he be killed. As we've learned killing The Spirit is virtually impossible. It's been fantastic this past year reading these classic tales. I'll have wee bit more to say on this year-long odyssey later. 

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The Phantom - The Complete DC Comics Volume One!

The tale of The Phantom in comic books is a tattered one indeed. The Phantom was created by Lee Falk for the comic strip pages in 1936 and is the first of the costumed heroes which would fill the imaginations of youngsters and others in the decades to come. The comic strip is immensely popular and still appears today with new stories. The Phantom has proven to be wildly popular around the globe and many countries produce comics starring "The Ghost Who Walks". But for some strange reason the Phantom has never had great success in comics in the U.S. There were reprints of the strips for decades until Gold Key initiated a series of fresh stories in the early 60's. This was taken over by King Features briefly before Charlton Comics got hold of the hero and produced some very interesting comics with the character in the 70's. Then it went silent for many years. And then DC showed up at the door. 

Hermes Press has reprinted the DC Comics Phantoms in three volumes. The first begins with the original 1987 four-part limited series by writer Peter David and veteran artist Joe Orlando and Dennis Janke. We are treated to parallel stories about Phantoms of different eras. Despite the fact that he carries two automatic pistols, the Phantom has always been a relatively bloodless adventure series. That changes here. When a Jungle Patrol officer is murdered the Phantom is off to the streets of the modern city to find the culprits. It is a powerful businessman named Chessman, who it turns out is a friend of the Phantom's girlfriend Diana Palmer. He's also the descendant of a family of pirates who fought against the thirteenth Phantom centuries before. We follow that long ago saga as related in the Phantom's Chronicles at the same time as we follow the modern Phantom on his quest for justice. 

I am of two minds on its success at what it sets out to do. David seems to have wanted to make the Phantom a bit less of a cypher when it comes to his emotions and that seems a good idea, but in practice I'm not sure I like seeing his cool exterior cracked by rage. Joe Orlando's art is lively and Dennis Janke's inks it well and in keeping with the styles of the time. But it seems off to me somehow, and that could my problem. I've always thought that the franchise didn't mine its rich history enough and that we needed to see the adventures of long-ago Phantoms, and this certainly delivers on that score. But the thirteenth Phantom actually comes across early on as a bit too weak for my tastes.

Above are the action-filled covers for the limited series by Joe Orlando and inker Dave Gibbons. 

The volume then shifts its focus to the next series with new creators Mark Verheiden and Luke McDonnell. Verheiden was a writer who a time was fresh from the Indy market where he raised eyebrows with The American series. He brings that same toughness to this new project. Luke McDonnell was an artist I knew well from his tenure on Iron Man. McDonnell had a style which wasn't that fan-friendly, but not unlike Herb Trimpe found a way to warm you to his work. 

We get the first two issues which together tell the story titled merely "Guns". A ruthless run runner kills three members of the Jungle Patrol, and the Phantom has him in his sights from that point on. The spar with each gaining an advantage in the struggle, but we all know the inevitable outcome. It's a nice yarn told with vigor and power.

Overall, a nice beginning. The second volume by Verheiden and McDonnell will be reviewed next time. 

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Orion by Simonson Book One!

New Gods was originally supposed to be titled "Orion of the New Gods". A bit unwieldy but accurate. Finally, after several revivals we get Orion. This revival is by Walter Simonson following on closely behind what John Byrne had done in Jack Kirby's Fourth World. Simonson famously revived The Mighty Thor over at Marvel some years before this series and now after rekindling interest in the "Old Gods" he takes on the "New Gods". The auteur style which Kirby originally brought to the franchise he created, Simonson both writes and draws the comic. The use of sundry talents to enhance the story with vivid back up tales falls right into line with what Kirby originally wanted for the Fourth World. 

This saga opens in Main Line, Nebraska where it seems the populace are under the deadly control of some bizarre force. Orion has just learned from his mother Tigra that Darkseid is not his father, something that had defined his existence to that point. He heads off to find his nemesis in Nebraska where the U.S. military has become engaged. 

We are introduced to the Newsboy Legion and Jimmy Olsen as they rebuild the "Whiz Wagon" and they head off to cover the tragedy in Nebraska. Tigra is attacked by Suicide Jockeys from Apokolips and mortally wounded. She uses a Boom Tube to head to Orion and arrives just as the same Tube whisks the Newsboys away to New Genesis. 

Tigra dies in Orion's arms and his rage swells to immense proportions. The battle in Main Line grows ever more desperate as we learn that Darkseid and Desaad are the evil behind the control of the town. They have used the Anti-Life Equation to enslave the town and use it as a testing site. Frank Miller draws a short tale which shows the birth of Orion. 

While the Newsboys discover the wonders of New Genesis, Orion plumbs the depths of the threat in Nebraska. He finds that Darkseid has cloned a giant from the cells of Billion Dollar Bates, a tyrannical billionaire who used the Anti-Life Equation to make himself rich and run a satanic cult. He faced the  Forever People but was killed and taken by Darkseid.  Dave Gibbons draws a tale in which Lightray tries to find enlightenment on Apokolips.

In an artistic tour de force Simonson brings the reader the long-awaited "final" clash between Orion and Darkseid on Apokolips. The fight is told sans dialogue and lasts the entire issue, one brutal blow following another. Simonson's ability to capture the kinetic force of a fight is in ideal form for his epic struggle. 

After Orion has defeated Darkseid he takes command of Apokolips and meets Darkseid's handmaiden Mortalla, who tells him a tell of woe about being taken from Earth and tortured by Desaad. She seems also to have the power to make things sleep by touching them. The New Genesis folks return home as do the Newsboy Legion where they try to sell video of the battle to raise money to save Suicide Slum from a predatory businessman. In the back-up tale drawn by Erik Larsen we find Desaad and Kalibak plotting to take over. 

Kalibak confronts Orion and is ultimately defeated. But Orion learns that Kalibak had a power belt from the Old Gods which increased his strength. After the battle he orders that the belt be destroyed. In the back-up tale drawn by Howie Chaykin we see that Mortalla interferes with that order and we discover her touch can also bring death. 

Next Orion finds himself battling the schemes of Desaad when he's up against the giant clones of Billion Dollar Bates, the human with the Anti-Life Equation. These enormous clones should have no consciousness but it turns out there's a surprise. We learn the origins of the firepits of Apokolips as well. In the back-up story drawn by Rob Leifeld, Big Bear and Mark Moonrider take on the deadly Mantis. 

Orion confronts Mantis who is continuing with his scheme to bring firepits to New Genesis. Big Bear and Moonrider foil that plot but it takes Orion to put down Mantis himself. Later Lightray journeys to Apokolips and finds a subtly different Orion and grows suspcious of Mortalla. 

Orion falls into a trap set by Desaad when he travels into the depths of Apokolips and confronts the monstrous Sirius. But it seems that Sirius is a more complex creature than he might at first appear. Lightray becomes aware that dangerous rumors are being spread on New Genesis. In the back-up story drawn by Art Adams we learn more about the back story of Sirius and how a young Scott Free impacted the monstrous creature for the better. 

The story shifts back to Main Line, Nebraska where Desaad chooses to make his last stand against Orion. He tries to bring the humans of the community back online to use the Anti-Life Equation to defeat his implacable enemy but it goes poorly. By the story's end Orion is a changed god. Lightray uncovers who is spreading the dangerous gossip on New Genesis but pays the price for his curiosity. 

There a goodly number of short tales gathered from various sources used to fill out this collection. The first from the first issue of Showcase 94 focuses on Metron and his ongoing research of the Source. In a dandy story written by Walt Simonson and deftly drawn by Jose Luis Garcia Lopez Orion pays the price for showing mercy and Metron nearly gets his answers. 

Next up is a light-hearted Christmas tale from one of those DCU Holiday Bash specials which has Highfather and Orion posing as good old Saint Nick and his helper. It's the usual charming Christmas yarn by Walt Simonson meant to lift spirits and warm hearts and it's elevated by the art of Sal Buscema. 

Then we get a trio of stories drawn by Simonson about the assassin Kanto, but those also appeared in the Tales of the New Gods collection which I looked at yesterday. 

In a story drawn by Jon Bogdanave for Secret Origins of Super-Villains we see into the past to learn something of how Granny Goodness got her start in the forces of Darkseid. It's surprisingly engaging story with a few surprises. 

In Legends of the DC Universe, Darkseid wants to stop the Hunger Dogs from celebrating but cannot find the means to do so. We learn that the reason for the celebration and the reason it's so hard to stop both have rather miraculous sources, if you follow my drift. 

The origin of Desaad is reprised in a two-page story from an issue of Countdown that frankly adds little to our understanding. 

The volume closes out with a cover gallery of Walt Simonson artwork for New Gods, Mister Miracle and  Jack Kirby's Fourth World, the series by John Byrne which preceded Orion. Simonson was tapped from the beginning to be the cover artist for that latter series, and he created some memorable images. 

The collection closes out with some pencil art by Simonson. If you're a fan of Walt Simonson (and I am) then this tome is an absolute feast. And the best news is there is a second volume. More on that next week. 

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