Auro, Lord of Jupiter in "The Eye of Cykka" (Fiction House;1943)

Hey, “John Carter” may be undeservedly struggling at the box office (unfortunate too, since it’s a great movie); so here is a sympathetic and similar post in honor of the ERB hero’s debut on the big screen – courtesy of the Catacombs. Auro, Lord of Jupiter returns in a story from Planet Comics #24 (May 1943); originally published by Fiction House. Since there was no official title for this golden age classic, I've christened it "The Eye of Cykka". The Grand Comics Database attributes the artwork on this tale to Rafael Astarita; plus Dan Zolnerowich is the cover artist. 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 belongs to the original publisher and/or the creators and is reproduced here solely for entertainment purposes. Enjoy!

At the Movies: John Carter

It saddens me to mention that “John Carter” will likely go down as one of the biggest box office flops of the year, the $250-million-plus "John Carter" debuted with a disappointing $30.6 million this weekend. It’s funny that last weekend's No. 1 film, "Dr. Seuss' The Lorax," claimed the top box office spot again. That animated tale collected an additional $39.1 million and has now grossed a robust $122 million in just 10 days of release. [Current domestic total: $122 million. Current international total: $1.8 million.] By contrast, “John Carter” earned a $30.6 million domestically and an additional $70.6 million overseas in 55 foreign markets in its opening weekend; so only Hollywood-style math can determine that a new release is already a “failure” with such a small overall margin difference. Of the two films based on popular literary icons, “Carter” is the most clearly faithful of the pair, with “Lorax” diverging most from the simple story it adapts, with tons of padding to flesh it out for the big screen. Go figure?

Fanboys supposedly failed to gravitate towards Walt Disney Studios' "John Carter," a fantasy epic that has been plagued by bad buzz for months. Based on a century-old character created by author Edgar Rice Burroughs, "John Carter," is about a Civil War veteran who is transported to Mars. Whether "John Carter" was meant to appeal to young males or not, it appears that an older crowd of “fanboys” actually turned up to see the movie this weekend, as 59% of the audience was over age 25 and those who saw the film - a 64% male contingent - assigned it an overall positive rating. The film was doomed to fight an uphill battle after most recognized genre properties strip-mined the original ERB source material over the last seventy years. Many critics and the general audience were highly likely to assume that they had seen this all before. That simply proves the efficacy of stealing/borrowing/mimicking the best. Bias of select critics is also on display, when director Andrew Stanton is justifiably praised for his previous Pixar efforts “Finding Nemo” and “Wall*E”, but not so much here. Look, his fine storytelling strengths are definitely on full view in “John Carter”, it is a clearly delineated action epic with spot on dialogue delivered by a topnotch cast, backed by outstanding production values, awesome special effects, a strong music score, and again an exceptionally well chosen cast. “John Carter” may ultimately receive less real dollars than some shit on a shingle pabulum like "Journey 2: The Mysterious Island", but in hindsight “Carter” will most likely be viewed as nothing less than a triumph. I didn’t just like “John Carter”, I loved it. Its eventual Blu-Ray release is pre-sold to me, even if the larger audience weaned on dozens of ongoing reality TV clones, and moronic cable fare didn’t respect it enough to view this terrific genre flick over their soporific “happy meal” staples.

In simpler terms, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND “John Carter”, and hope that some of you will give it a chance. I give much respect to director/writer Andrew Stanton, Mark Andrew & Michael Chabon for an excellent screenplay adaptation, the amazing cast of Taylor Kitsch, Lynn Collins (totally love her as Dejah Thoris), Mark Strong, Ciarán Hinds, Dominic West, Willem Dafoe, Thomas Haden Church, Samantha Morton, James Purefoy, Bryan Cranston, Polly Walker and Daryl Sabara; and all the Disney team for realizing this long hoped for movie-going experience. Ignore the critics folks, decide for yourself, and go see this great movie!

In Memorium: Jean Giraud

French comics artist Jean Giraud who gained worldwide fame not only under his own name but also under the pseudonym Moebius, passed away this morning at the age of seventy-three in Paris. Following his long-running and acclaimed work on the western Blueberry, in 1975 Métal Hurlant (a magazine which he co-created) introduced the famous serial The Airtight Garage and his groundbreaking Arzach. Other notable works include The Incal, The Long Tomorrow, Silver Surfer: Parable, and Little Nemo. Giraud also brought his revolutionary design sensibilities to films such as Alien, Tron, Masters of the Universe, Heavy Metal, Willow, The Abyss, The Fifth Element, and aspects of his work served as major inspiration to other genre films like Blade Runner and Star Wars. The Catacombs extends its sincerest condolences to his family, friends and fans.

"Gal" Friday! Yvonne Strahovski

Exercising blogger privilege this week by featuring a repeat "gal" Friday selection. Yvonne Strahovski starred as government agent Sarah Walker on "Chuck" for five seasons on the NBC television network; plus she reprises her popular voice role as Miranda Lawson in the EA Games/Bioware video game, Mass Effect 3 (which went on sale this very week). Following the series finale of "Chuck" on January 27, 2012, the fetching Aussie posed for a major campaign ad for SoBe Lifewater drinking products. It is from this excellent photo session that I've culled two nice pics as part of this months nearly-nude series. It's a bit of a misnomer too, as Yvonne is actually fully nude here, wearing only body paint. The painting of bodies is really beginning to win me over, but I will have to insist on manning the air gun for the next session, particularly if Ms. Strahovski can be coaxed back. I just can't get enough of this stuning "gal"; oh, and Google an image search for even more of these revealing photos (plus there's even a video feature of the shoot available on the SoBe website).

Samar in "The Stone of Death" (Quality;1941)

Samar stars in a golden age adventure called "The Stone of Death" from Feature Comics #46 (Jul.1941); originally published by Quality Comics and with art by Al Bryant. 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 belongs to the original publisher and/or creators and is reproduced here solely for entertainment purposes. Enjoy!

Tangi in "The Evil Heart" (Star Publ.;1952)

This rebranded story called “The Evil Heart” is from Terrors of the Jungle #20 (Dec.1952); from Star Publications, but it was originally presented in Jungle Jo #2 (Fox; July 1950); simply as "The Temple of the Moon God" starring the lesser known jungle girl, Tangi (both titles are prominent on the splash page). Unfortunately, there are no credits listed for creators for either issue in the GCD. 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 belongs to the original publisher and/or creators and is reproduced here solely for entertainment purposes. Enjoy!

Mass Effect 3: "Take Earth Back!"

The battle to end all battles has begun!

"Go weapons-hot in a fully immersive sci-fi epic that reacts to every decision you make.

Not everyone will survive. An ancient alien race, known only as “Reapers”, has launched an all-out invasion leaving nothing but a trail of destruction in their wake. Earth has been taken, the galaxy is on the verge of total annihilation, and you are the only one who can stop them. The price of failure is extinction. You are Commander Shepard, a character that you can forge in your own image. You determine how events will play out, which planets to explore, and whom to form alliances with as you rally a force to eliminate the Reaper threat once and for all. How you wage this war is completely up to you: go into combat with guns blazing or use cover to plan a more tactical assault. Utilize your squad to full effect or take a lone wolf approach. Rain death from a distance or go toe–to-toe with enemies using devastating melee attacks. Mass Effect 3 will react to each decision you make as you play through a truly unique experience of your own creation.

A rich, branching storyline: Experience a sci-fi epic with multiple endings determined by your choices and actions throughout the game. Massive in scope: Battle on many worlds across the galaxy as you unite the ultimate force to take back the Earth before it’s too late. Large-scale and intelligent enemies: Battle enormous enemies and take on a smarter type of foe that will consistently challenge your best combat tactics and put you on the edge of your seat. Unlock a customizable arsenal: Tailor each weapon with devastating upgrades including scopes, grips, barrels and dozens of other unique attachments. Each weapon boasts its own powerful impact and visual flair. Unleash death from afar or go toe-to-toe: Customize your soldier and squad to engage the enemy on your terms. A huge variety of weapons, abilities and equipment allow you to combat the enemy in your preferred style of play."

I would probably tell you how I felt about this game on a more personal level, but I'm the victim of truly Amazonian indifference. I pre-ordered my Mass Effect 3 [N7] Collectors Edition for Xbox 360 from Amazon back in August of 2011, but despite the credit card charge from this past Sunday evening,  my copy has not even shipped yet. Supposedly, supply and demand issues are at fault. Irritation does not even begin to describe my thoughts on this gaffe. Usually game companies cut-off sales for special editions at least a month or more before the scheduled release date, but Bioware/EA Games continued to solicit sales for all formats across a variety of venues right up until the very end; SO, I get to wait until hell freezes over to actually get into the battle against the dreaded Reapers. This is the third and final act in the best-selling ME franchise, and if you haven't played any Mass Effect game before, there are built-in ways for the new game to get you up to speed for what is bound to be an intense RPG experience. Hey, if you have grown somewhat tired of the endless spin going on in the world of comic books, this is a nice way to enjoy epic storytelling with heroic characters on a galactic scale, plus based on your in-game decisions, you will even decide how the action plays out. Irritation notwithstanding, recommended!

White Princess of the Jungle in "The Headhunters of Bullah" (Avon;1952)

“The Headhunters of Bullah” from White Princess of the Jungle #4 (Aug.1952); originally published by Avon, stars Taanda the White Princess of the Jungle. The artist[s] on this particular story is not credited in the GCD, but as a guess only, I’m going with Gene Fawcette & Vince Alascia who had recently taken over this feature from Everett Raymond Kinstler. 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 belongs to the original publisher and/or the creators and is reproduced here solely for entertainment purposes. Enjoy!

In Memorium: Sheldon Moldoff & Ralph McQuarrie

"Shelly" Moldoff

This weekend brought sad news of the passing of twin titans of the genre realm. Golden age artist Sheldon "Shelly" Moldoff  passed away at the age of ninety-two on February 29, 2012. He was best known for his early work on the DC Comics characters Hawkman and as one of Bob Kane's primary "ghost artists" (uncredited collaborators) on the Batman. As such he co-created the super-villains Poison Ivy, Mr. Freeze, an early version of Clayface, and Bat-Mite, as well as the original versions of Bat-Girl, Batwoman and Ace the Bat Hound . Moldoff was also the sole creator of Jon Valor the Black Pirate (Jon Valor).

 After Moldoff was let go by DC in 1967, he turned to the world of animation, doing storyboards for TV series such as Courageous Cat and Minute Mouse, and he wrote and drew promotional comic books given away through prominent restaurant and fast-food chains, as well as the Atlanta Braves baseball team. I’m grateful that I had a chance to meet him once some years ago. The Catacombs extends its sincerest condolences to his family, friends and fans.

Ralph McQuarrie

Virtually every Star Wars fan knows the name of Ralph McQuarrie, who was the conceptual artist and illustrator who designed the original Star Wars trilogy, the original Battlestar: Galactica TV series, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial and Cocoon, for which he won an Academy Award. Other genre films which bear his artistic touch include Raiders of the Lost Ark, Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home,*batteries not included and Jurassic Park. McQuarrie passed away at the age of eighty-two on March 3, 2012, in his California home, from complications of Parkinson’s disease. The Catacombs extends its sincerest condolences to his family, friends and fans.

"Gal" Friday! Lynn Collins

Next week Disney's theatrical adaptation of Edgar Rice Burroughs pulp hero, John Carter opens worldwide. Fans of ERB are probably more familiar with his classic lord of the jungle icon, Tarzan of the Apes. Hopefully the good word of mouth building for "John Carter" will translate into big box office dollars. I know that I'm looking forward to seeing the film at long last. John Carter is a personal favorite of mine!

Lynn Collins who hails from Texas, will be the embodiment of Carter's Barsoomian love interest,"Dejah Thoris" in the new film. I think that as much as the trailers and sneak peeks have won me over, it is the brief snippets of her portrayal that grabbed me the most. I found this incredible image (left; click to see larger version) of her to kick off my month of nearly nude "gal" Friday posts, and as much as it reveals; it also conceals (and that's just good photography). Have a peek, see the film, and hurry back next week for another barely there hottie representing the world of video games.

Zegra, Jungle Empress in "Games of Havoc" (Fox;1948)

Something a bit different today. Here is a nice black and white golden age reprint called "Games of Havoc" from Good Girl Comics #17 (Fall 1994); published by AC Comics; however the original full-color Zegra, Jungle Empress adventure was titled "Games of Death", which was first published in Feature Stories Magazine #3 (Aug.1950); by the Fox imprint, Hero Books, Inc. Jack Kamen is the artist, no matter which version is to your liking (and if you want to see this fine tale in color), click on this link to our friend, Pappy's post of the Feature Stories version.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 belongs to the original publisher and/or creators and is reproduced here solely for entertainment purposes. Enjoy!

In Memorium: Davy Jones

The Monkees #4 (Sept.1967; Dell)

Tenuous comic book connection notwithstanding, I had to post this. What a bummer! Singer Davy Jones of The Monkees has died of a heart attack at age sixty-six at his home in Florida. Jones was most famous for his role in the pop group The Monkees, which was put together in 1965 for the TV show of the same name. Their many hit songs included "Daydream Believer," "Last Train to Clarksville," "I'm a Believer," and "Pleasant Valley Sunday" and they also charted with the theme song from the show. The Monkees sold more than 50 million records and yes, they even had their own comic book series from Dell which ran for seventeen issues between March 1967 - October 1969. The Catacombs extends its sincerest condolences to his family, friends and worldwide fans.