Odds & Ends!

Still recuperating from three days of convention fun. It's amazing how much decompression is required after these things. Not that I'm complaining, just using it as a convenient excuse for running behind this week. Tee-hee!!

Instead of another classic jungle adventure (which I failed to prep in time), I'm gonna clear out a couple of items from the Catacombs archives.

First up is a nifty periodic table of superpowers - courtesy of Comics Alliance. This is pretty cool and it makes a handy-dandy reference for role-playing games or for just creating your own super-characters. Enjoy!

Next up is an unused cover by Dave Cockrum which was originally intended for The Man Called Nova #7 (Mar. 1977). The editor had Jack "King" Kirby redraw this image for the published version for some odd reason, because the differences between them are almost indistinguishable. I added the logo for kicks.

Finally, here is a neat shot of DC Directs Power Girl action figure from the Infinite Crisis assortment. I never purchased this one and would love to have it. If anybody can point me towards an affordable PG figure, I would certainly appreciate it.

Tomorrow, I will post the missing story from today, along with this weeks sexy "Gal" Friday selection. See you then!

In September: 4-1 = "Three!"

Beginning with Fantastic Four #583 in September, artist Steve Epting and writer Jonathan Hickman kick off a six-issue storyline called "Three," where the "War of Four Cities" will build up to an epic ending where one member of the Fantastic Four will have breathed their last per Marvel Comics (& Newsarama who broke the news).

Epting produced four teaser images showing different groupings of the three potential survivors. Which member is actually doomed to fall on the pungee stick is a closely guarded secret. Whichever member of this seminal superhero family ultimately takes one for the team, at the very least, the story will be exciting. I can't remember the last time the FF looked so freaking awesome.

That alone will prompt me to check out this issue, and admittedly I hope that it's all revealed to be a temporary fever dream.

Say it ain't so, Stan (er, Joe)!

Wild Boy in "The Witch Doctor" (Ziff-Davis;1951)

Heroes Con's aftermath has left me a bit winded, and then on Monday, my official John Byrne commission finally came in the mail. I'm also still sorting through the silver & bronze age comics that I picked up at the show, while marveling at the stack of original art pages and sketches and commissions that I purchased in Charlotte .... and I've not even detailed the neat toys, graphic novels and other mementos that I carted home, too.

Whew!

I must admit that even now I am in the planning stages for August's Dragon Con in Atlanta, GA; where in addition to all that I mentioned above, there will also be tons of genre actors, sci-fi/fantasy/& horror authors, bands and performance artists and bodacious young ladies cavorting around in next-to-nothing cos-play outfits.

Like I said, "whew"!

Here is the classic golden age story that was meant for Tuesday, Wild Boy of the Congo stars in an entertaining, exciting and well-drawn feature titled "The Witch Doctor" from Wild Boy #12 [2] published by Ziff-Davis in Apr. 1951. The Grand Comic Database doesn't identify the creators, but as a consolation prize, I'm including the inside front cover which features some interesting jungle factoids (circa the era in which the info was printed). The Catacombs is grateful to Don "Zu-Gogo" Falkos for providing the scans for this story. Note: the copyright for this issue, its contents and artwork belong to the original publisher and/or creators and is reproduced here solely for entertainment purposes.

Enjoy!

Next Man Returns!!

I've still got more to say about the past weekends huge and phenomenal Heroes Convention in Charlotte, NC, but for today let me post this item that was sent to me by Ric and John. Thanks guys!

Next Man was originally created by writer Roger McKenzie and artist Vince Argondezzi for Comico back in 1985, the series which lasted for only five issues told the story of David Boyd, an American soldier who was critically wounded during the Vietnam War and frozen until medical science would be sufficiently advanced enough to heal his injuries. Seventeen years later an unscrupulous doctor used David as a guinea pig in a classified government genetic experiment dubbed Project Stepping Stone, which was intended to create an army of "Next Men" David Boyd was revived possessing superpowers and thrust into a world he didn't recognize, by a man he didn't trust, so he escaped from the project to wander the United States while he figured out a way to stymie the goals of Project Stepping Stone.

Please follow the link (below) to read about recent efforts to relaunch this character: http://www.prlog.org/10706881-veteran-super-heroes-find-new-life.html

Heroes Convention 2010 (Art Auction+)!!

At this years Heroes Convention, over three hundred guests awaited eager fans in the Queen City of the Carolina's Charlotte Convention Center. With so many pros on hand, it was challenging to decide where to focus your attention or where to begin.

Several top industry professionals made their first appearance in Charlotte (or at least this was the case as far as I can remember). Being a silver age & bronze age kinda guy, Brian Bolland, Jim Starlin, Gary Kwapisz, Pat Broderick, Gary Friedrich, Roy Thomas, Herb Trimpe, Joe Jusko, June Brigman, Rod Whigham and Bernie Wrightson all appealed to me; and that was just the starters. Frank Cho, Rob Liefeld, Mark Brooks, Adam Hughes, Kevin Maguire, Mark Bagley, Billy Tucci, Joe Linsner, J. Scott Campbell, Mike Mignola, Guy Davis, and many, many more creative talents were also there to sign piles of comics or books or to knock off a few sketches for desperate fans.

Many of the guests produces artwork - live - onstage to contribute to the annual charity art auction, which is used to benefit select outlets and to underwrite the next years show. Emceed by the lovely Alison Sohn and actor Scott Adsit (30 Rock), the evening saw paintings by Mark Brooks (The Black Cat) and Adam Hughes (Zatanna) tied for the top spot fetching "$8,000" apiece, and this one event manages to bring together fans, retailers, guests and industry folks who all hobnob on Saturday evening to the accompaniment of large quantities of alcohol. A quartet of luscious ladies all dressed as DC Comics heroine, Zatanna carried each piece of artwork around the room for bidders to eyeball up close and personal. I was mostly staring at everything else, and you know what I mean (nudge, nudge - wink, wink). At least that's what I can remember!

More details to follow, because I've gotta go sleep off the rest of this hangover. Sheesh!

Heroes Convention 2010!!!

Yesterdays opening of the 28th annual Heroes Convention got under way with heavy floor traffic and tons of fun. It seems like the early crowd has grown quite a bit over the last handful of years, with a larger pool of early arrivals jockeying for line space to take advantage of that extra half-hour entry for pre-paid tickets, but the more the merrier - right?

One thing that has really "floored" me and that I've just gotta mention, is how many females are in attendance this year. I mean - damn! Women, girls and pretty young lasses (and "NO", I don't at all mean jail bait) in abundance. I hope the few attending publishers are paying attention, and that the rest of the industry is reading this missive, because if little old Charlotte is pulling in the females at this rate - this may be the "emerging" demographic to serve beyond 2010.

Of course the "Indie Island" area of the Heroes Convention, which focuses on small press stuff and alternative publishers, may have something to do with this terrific trend in Charlotte; but don't ask me - come see for yourselves.

Artwork has really been my bane this year! I pre-ordered several commissions and then also picked up a handful of pages from Randy Martin (of Mighty Nib Comic Art) , who brought some stuff from Atlanta that I had specifically requested. Thanks Randy! Pay-palling for certain pieces ahead of the show was a fantastic way not to have to wait in lines that can really stretch out there for select guests. Plus, the pieces themselves were ready to be picked up as soon as the doors opened.

I scored excellent commissions from Francesco Francavilla, Rebekah Isaacs, Colleen Coover, Mike Norton, Stephanie Gladden, Steve Leiber and Roger Langridge this year. I narrowly missed out one from Joe Jusko, but he's had a lot on his plate lately, so I'm gonna keep my fingers crossed that Joe will remember me soon.

More tomorrow!

"Gal" Friday! ???? (Tiazinha .... Revealed!)

I've basically just left for the Heroes Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina, so forgive me if I've chosen a random image from the Catacombs archives.

I'll see you folks soon!

Nyoka and "The Answer to the Death Rug's Secret" (Fawcett;1945)

Finally!!

Nyoka's visit to the Catacombs comes to a close with the conclusion of "The Death Rug" serial. Given it's rather unwieldy name, let's just forgive writer Rod Reed and artist Jack Sparling and get on with this last spiffy chapter from Master Comics #58 (Feb.1945). Bud Thompson's Capt. Marvel Jr. cover is also included today!

The Catacombs is grateful to Don "Zu-Gogo" Falkos for providing the scans for this story. Note: the copyright for this issue, its contents and artwork belong to the original publisher and/or creators and is reproduced here solely for entertainment purposes.

I'll be back with a quickie "Gal" Friday post before jetting off to Charlotte tomorrow and look for some photos of this years Heroes Convention, and perhaps a few interesting interviews in the Catacombs shortly.

Have a great weekend and "enjoy"!

Two Men and an Idiot!!

By now you've all seen the all-too conveniently released images of what Captain America: The First Avenger and The Mighty Thor are going to look like on the big screen. Since it's convention week for yours truly, I'll briefly sum up my thoughts on these costumes.

Captain America: I really like this one and can appreciate how they blended the classic costume with the current "Ultimate Universe" interpretation. Hey, nothing wrong with serving all constituents, if you pull it off as well as they've done with Cap. I do wish that they had opted to include the helmet wings, at least stylistically painted onto the helmet, but I didn't think that would actually happen. This one gets an A+!

Thor: I can live with this one. Again, it skews at least partially towards the classic costume, while also blending elements of the current Marvel Universe version. I would have appreciated that silver armor being incorporated onto his leggings, which would have really made this costume look like the current Thunder Gods wardrobe, but oh well. This one gets a B+!

Donald Glover's Twitter campaign to get himself cast as Peter Parker/Spider-Man in the upcoming reboot: I can appreciate an actors efforts at self-promotion, but then I can also sum up politically correct attempts to "cast against type" in one simple word - BULLSHIT!! This guy may have his fans, and even be funny on Community, but I've already decided that he might be an idiot. Now, if only there was a nice word for the pathetic lemmings who are lining up in support of this ridiculous effort on Twitter? This one gets an F!!!

Nyoka in "The Cave of the Pharoah" (Fawcett;1945)

It's been a busy week!!

I've been gearing up for tomorrows Heroes Convention in Charlotte, NC and can't wait to hit the road early in the a.m. for some real fun. Between preparing & packing my own stuff, and getting my girls ready for their respective trips outta town & outta country, plus insuring that my loyal pug is cared for, I just didn't have the time to hit the post button for Tuesday's Nyoka the Jungle Girl chapter, "Nyoka in The Cave of the Pharoah!" (but since it was ready to go - here it is now).

Master Comics #57 (Jan.1945), by writer Rod Reed, artist Jack Sparling, cover artist Bud Thompson and the other fine folks at the late, lamented Fawcett Comics.

The Catacombs is grateful to Don "Zu-Gogo" Falkos for providing the scans for this story. Note: the copyright for this issue, its contents and artwork belong to the original publisher and/or creators and is reproduced here solely for entertainment purposes. [PS: Hang in there Don, that disk really is on the way!]

Enjoy!

Memorial Day & Beyond!!

Memorial Day 2010 is fading fast, so let the Catacombs take a brief pause to remember the fallen. I've chosen this nice image of The Haunted Tank crew to represent our honored war dead.

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The weather is atrocious and is apparently gonna be stubborn and remain that way most of the week. Hopefully, the sky will clear for the kick off of the three day Heroes Convention in Charlotte at the end of the week. I do know that come hell or high water, I will be there. The photo (left) is my tongue-in-cheek nod to how I feel at the moment. It's always a bit tense trying to prepare to go out of town to a convention, worrying if you're forgetting something to be signed or making a list (and checking it twice) of neat stuff to look for at the show.

This year I have prepaid for most of the sketches that I'm planning on picking up from the artists who will be in attendance. Don't ask me how much "scratch" I've already shelled out, just take another glimpse at that photo (above; left). Yeah! That sorta says it all.

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My oldest daughter is due to fly to London in a couple of weeks for a summer internship, before finishing off her last year in college. My youngest daughter is preparing to head for Charleston, SC, even as I flee town, this week too. She's going to watch a young man she's a bit sweet on, graduate from Marine Boot Camp and then she'll chill out with her friends at the beach for a week. At least my son isn't hitting me up for a wad of dough. He has two jobs to keep himself floating in high cotton, now if only they'll take good care of my pug, Bandit, while I'm hobnobbing with the 300 comic book industry guests - and the even larger horde of mega-nerds - who will probably be trying to snake me on some high grade bronze age gems in the Queen City of the Carolina's. Don't press me boys!!

As an advance notice to the lovely lasses who also happen to show up in force for Heroes Con, this year I am more or less single, for the first time in twenty-two years; so fair warning. I won't be turning down any indecent proposals, like I've tended to do in the past. This year, all bets are off (and hopefully a few wardrobes as well).

Yippee ki-ay!

Heroes Convention: Charlotte, NC - June 4-6, 2010 ("That's one week from now!")

By this time next weekend, I will be hip deep into the Heroes Convention in Charlotte, NC, now in its 29th year. Sponsored by Heroes Aren't Hard To Find owner, Shelton Drum and his army of loyal volunteers - rather press-ganged employees. The Heroes Convention has earned much respect from within the comics industry for being family-friendly and also for reaching out to every demographic you could possibly name. The popular "Indie Island" area which focuses on small press creators and publishers has grown so huge that "continent" might be a more appropriate term these days.

The massive Heroes Con guest list is comprised of hundreds of top industry writers, artists, editors,, publishers and other folks who return year after year for some good old Southern charm. The show pulls in hundreds of guests each year and there are always some interesting surprises even after twenty-nine previous events. Just take a look at this list of names: Brian Bolland, Frank Cho, Guy Davis, Rob Liefeld, Mike Mignola, Dustin Nguyen, Tim Sale, Ben Templesmith, Bill Willingham, Skottie Young, Steve Niles, Steve Epting, Humberto Ramos, J. Scott Campbell, Jim Cheung, Joe Linsner, Roy Thomas, Joe Jusko, Pat Broderick, Mark Waid, Bernie Wrightson and Jim Starlin. If those standouts aren't enough for you, rest assured they represent just the tip of the iceberg, as there will be over two hundred more working professionals to visit with at this years Heroes Convention. Be sure to also check the separate "Indie Island" guest list after following the link (above).

It never ceases to amaze me how many comic book industry folks regularly line up to attend this event and for the fans it is truly like a comic book smorgasbord. There is literally something for EVERYBODY to enjoy. No matter whether you like golden age, silver, bronze or later. small press, underground, esoteric, all-ages. You name it, and you will find it in Charlotte.

Come and join us next week (Friday through Sunday), June 4-6, 2010 in Charlotte, North Carolina for one of the best comic book conventions in the world. You will be very glad that you did!

This year there will be at least a dozen incentive exclusives for fans in attendance. From a dozen special "Heroes Con" editions of popular comics to be signed by guests or for those lucky fans who purchased advance tickets, a limited edition Hellboy print (pictured; above) which will be signed & numbered by Mike Mignola.