Incognito: Bad Influences (2010) 1

Incognito: Bad Influences (2010) 1

Oct 2010

Chapter One

by Ed Brubaker, Sean Phillips, Val Staples

Zack Overkill, Overton, Zoe Zeppelin, Lazarus, Colonel Von Chance, Ignatius Beekman, Simon Slaughter, Mrs. Potter 

Level Nine, Black Death, Special Operations Service (SOS)

Zack Overkill, no longer in witness protection but an officer of the Special Operation Service (SOS), gets in trouble with Colonel Von Chance, his supervisor, after Ignatius Beekman attacks Zack while he is in his civilian identity. Beekman mistook Zack for Lazarus, an old school crime fighter from decades ago. Zack turns to Zoe Zeppelin for help in dealing with Von Chance but she refuses to get involved even though Von Chance reports to her and she and Zack have a sexual relationship.

Adam Ames (Part 1)

Adam Ames

by Elliott Caplin and Lou Fine

I recently discovered an archive of this comic strip online at ComicBookPlus. I decided to give it a try. Adam Ames was a daily strip (Mon-Sat). It ran for just over three years, from July 6, 1959 until July 28, 1962. I started by reading it for free on ComicBookPlus which has the strips through Feb 11, 1961 (about half of the total run of Adam Ames). After reading the first five weeks worth of strips I decided to order the collected edition from Lulu which includes the full run of Adam Ames.

Batman 234

Batman 234

Aug 1971

Half an Evil

by Denny O’Neil, Neal Adams

15 pages

Two-Face resurfaces after being off of Batman’s radar screen for more than a decade.

It isn’t clear at first who may be behind a string of crimes but Batman puts together the trail of information that the thieves leave in their wake. Even after he determines that it must be Two-Face, Batman still isn’t sure what his old friend Harvey Dent is up to until Two-Face makes his move. 

Tomb of Dracula (1972) 15

Tomb of Dracula (1972) 15

Dec 1973

Fear Is the Name of the Game!

by Marv Wolfman, Gene Colan, Tom Palmer, John Costanza, Roy Thomas

This issue began with the story depicted on the cover, of a hunter who shot a bat not realizing he had shot Dracula. He quickly discovered his mistake and that Dracula wasn’t the forgiving type. Dracula introduced and narrated this story and the three that follow.

The second story was about how Dracula helped a woman get even with her husband who shot her and left her for dead. The third story was about a man hundreds of years older than Dracula who struck a deal with the vampire. The fourth and final story was about how Dracula came to be in the tomb where Clifton Graves and Frank Drake found him in Tomb of Dracula 1 (Apr 1972).

Ms. Tree in Eclipse Magazine 6

Eclipse Magazine 6

Jul 1982

I, for an Eye

Chapter Six: Kiss Tomorrow Hello

by Max Allan Collins, Terry Beatty

16 pages

Ms. Tree wakes up and tries to fight back but the intruder, who is wearing a ski mask, punches her in the face, knocking her out. When she wakes up Chick is up. He tries going after the masked intruder but he’s too late to catch him. The intruder only took one thing, Mike’s little black book. 

The Spirit (2007) 12

The Spirit (2007) 12

Jan 2008

Sand

by Darwyn Cooke, J. Bone, Dave Stewart, Jared K. Fletcher

The Spirit learns that Sand Saref, his childhood friend and first love, is back in town and once again up to no good. She is working with Doctor Vitriol, a scientist. They have gotten their hands on a powerful chemical weapon. What they are planning to do with it is unclear but The Spirit knows that they must be stopped. He reflects on his past with Sand as he searches for them. 

New Teen Titans (1984) 14

New Teen Titans (1984) 14

Nov 1985

The Light Within… The Dark Without!

by Marv Wolfman, Eduardo Barreto, Romeo Tanghal, Bob Lappan, Adrienne Roy

23 pages

Arella’s search for Raven, her daughter, takes her to Alabama where she learns, from a farmer, that Raven was there but recently disappeared, after helping to heal several people. Starfire, Nightwing, and Jericho depart for Tamaran aboard the starship Xplo’rr. Azrael falls under the sway of Mother Mayhem and the other followers of the now deceased Brother Blood.

Changeling battles Steve Dayton (aka Mento), his adopted father, with help from Cyborg, Wonder Girl, and Kole. Dayton has gone insane and badly injured Questor, his butler. The fight ends with Mento escaping underground.

Tomb of Dracula (1972) 14

Tomb of Dracula (1972) 14

Nov 1973

Dracula Is Dead!

by Marv Wolfman, Gene Colan, Tom Palmer, John Costanza, Roy Thomas

The local villagers, who were summoned by Dracula before he was killed by Blade, break into the house. They take Dracula’s body by force, before Quincy Harker and the other vampire hunters can burn it. The body winds up with Josiah Dawn, a preacher of the Church of the Forever Resurrected, after the villagers finally wake up and abandon the body.

Doctor Sun’s followers take the body from the morgue to Professor Morgo. He examines it carefully and confirms that it was indeed a vampire, just as Doctor Sun requested.

Mars 12

Mars 12

Mar 1985

Circuit Death

by Mark Wheatley, Marc Hempel, Kathryn Mayer, Mike Gold

20 pages

Morgana discovers that she (among others) is a player in a bigger game, a battle between the two remaining sentient computers on Mars. 

Thoughts

This installment is very text heavy. 

Ms. Tree in Eclipse Magazine 5

Eclipse Magazine 5

Mar 1982

I, for an Eye

by Max Allan Collins, Terry Beatty

Chapter Five: The Last to Know

8 pages

Ms. Tree talks to Anne, Mike Tree, Jr.’s mother. Anne tells her about how she met Mike, how they got married, and then later divorced. Ms. Tree returns to the cemetery. Chick Steele finds her there, mulling things over while standing by Mike’s grave. 

The Spirit 503

The Spirit 503

Jan 15, 1950

Reprinted in The Spirit 52

Feb 1989

Bring in Sand Saref…

by Will Eisner

7 pages

This story feels a bit disjointed. It was a fun read the first time through but when I stopped and tried to summarize and analyze it the story seemed to kind of fall apart. What was it that Sand Saref was trying to do? At first she seemed to be looking to sell a chemical or biological weapon to the highest bidder.