Dark Horse Presents (1986) #49

Geier’s art on the Homicide installment is pretty weak, but Arcudi actually comes up with an interesting case. It is, of course, unfortunate then Arcudi relies on the art for the final panel. I had to read the page three times, staring at it, before I noticed the big reveal. It’s also too bad about Arcudi’s lame dialogue.

Edginton writes a regular Downtown here. The holiday special was a lot better. It turns out the protagonist is a zombie private detective and he has all sorts of wacky adventures. The Pugh art is excellent at times, only good at others… but it can’t overcome the script. Too bad, I was looking forward to this one.

Harlequin, on the other hand, reveals itself to be completely excellent here. Csutoras makes excellent use of asides as he sets up this offbeat road trip. Gaudiano paces it well. It’s a very pleasant surprise.

Dark Horse Presents (1986) #48

Between Gaudiano and Pugh, this issue is just an art feast.

Csutoras’s writing on the Gaudiano story, Harlequin, is decent, concerning a European living in the States, his loony acquaintances and some intrigue. Gaudiano makes the protagonist’s monologues atmospheric and the regular action somewhat continental in feel. The narrative is intentionally confusing, which may get annoying. But for now, it’s a very solid entry.

Pugh and Edginton do Downtown, which is seemingly a British reprint. It’s hard to gauge as a series, since it’s not the first installment. It’s deals a little with the fourth wall and is very funny. They open with a Santa and his gangster reindeer and it just gets stranger from then on.

Arcudi’s Homicide is back, with Geier on art. It’s bad. Arcudi’s villain is an disfigured, abused child grown up since it makes for an easy bad guy.

Plus a nice Geary one pager.

Dark Horse Presents (1986) #47

If it weren’t for a one page Rich Rice cartoon of an apologetic Godzilla, this issue would be really scraping bottom.

Okay, not exactly true. Buniak’s got a beautifully illustrated jungle adventure featuring Tarzan and Kong stand ins. Lovely ink washes. The story’s not strong, but the art’s the point.

Otherwise, it’s a weak one. The art from the Trumans is pretty good. While the plot has a solid finish, their writing is disastrous. The first person narration is… Ugh.

Wolfer and Warner have some future story about an earth invaded by alien dinosaurs and the Japanese building humans battle armor. It’s lame and derivative, with some occasionally okay art. I don’t think Wolfer has a single original idea.

As for Mielcarek’s story, is Dark Horse publishing mediocre eighth grade illustrators? The writing’s moronic, but the art is simply hideous. Maybe the worst art I’ve ever seen in this series.

Highlander II: The Quickening (1991, Russell Mulcahy), the international version

When subjecting myself to Highlander II, I wanted to find the worst version possible. Over the years, the director and then the producers have returned to the film and tried to edit the footage into something more palatable. Of course, these attempts are not just hampered by the use of existing footage (it’s not like there’s some great version lost out there), but also by the fact the film’s one of the worst acted motion pictures in the medium (at least by professional actors).

So the version I watched has all the alien planet references, which contradict the first movie, among other assaults on the intellect. Given I don’t like the first one–it’s far better than this one though–I don’t really care about the continuity. I care more about things like Christopher Lambert essentially forcing himself on Virginia Madsen. One of his new magical powers is Love Potion #9… or she just got Stockholm Syndrome super fast.

Madsen might give the best performance. Either her or Sean Connery. Both are pretty bad by regular standards, but when they’re giving these performances amid Lambert, Michael Ironside (who might give a worse performance than Lambert, which is extraordinary) and John C. McGinley (did he ever work again after this one?)….

I spent about half the movie wondering what a well-budgeted, well-scripted Russell Mulcahy effort would be like–then remembered The Shadow (which is superb). Even though he’s shooting idiotic material and bad performances, Mulcahy’s talent is clearly visible.

Human Target Special (1991) #1

Beyond Who’s Who, I don’t think I’ve read much regular DC Human Target. This special only partially counts as it was a tie-in for the failed nineties television adaptation.

It’s decent, far better than I was expecting. The art from Burchett and Giordano is good and Verheiden’s writing is fine. There’s a lot of humor–Christopher Chance does his work because it’s fun–and Verheiden harps on endlessly with the anti-drug message, but it’s a rather violent book. It opens with someone shot in the head and Chance goes on to kill a bunch of bad guys.

Unfortunately, since Verheiden is mimicking the TV show and assuming the reader has some familiarity with the cast of characters, there’s not much for the supporting cast to do but tell jokes.

If the comic’s any indication, the show might have been decent, Rick Springfield or not.

The comic does go on too long though.

Palookaville (1991) #2

Seth’s second issue isn’t as clearly intended to be autobiographical as the first. The protagonist this issue is Greg. Interestingly, he and the other “cool” male character–there’s a few uncool male characters–both have long, girly hair. The character’s so asexual in his narration, it’s sort of impossible to gauge the gender until someone refers to him by name.

So I’m not sure if Seth’s trying to make his readers pay attention and not take things for granted–like I assumed in the first issue–or if he just thinks cool guys look like girls.

It’s a little hard, also, to tell when Seth’s being lazy with the art. He doesn’t cheap on the panel count–he has at least nine a page–but occasionally one will seem a little unfinished.

The story is gradual again, Greg works at a restaurant, Seth introduces the coworkers and situations.

It’s nice.

Palookaville (1991) #1

For the first issue, Seth does something kind of strange–where most series use the first issue to invite the reader, Seth uses it to distance him or her. Unless the reader was an eighties art school hipster, there’s going to be an immediate disconnect as Seth, the protagonist, isn’t the standard lead.

The story, introduced by Seth (the creator) and then epilogued by him too, is about Seth (the character) getting beat up for being gay. Except he’s not gay. In fact, he’s only in the situation because his girlfriend abandoned him for the night.

Clearly, Seth (the character) needed to be more comfortable staying in.

The issue follows the night, so casually there’s no foreshadowing to the violence, and some of the day after.

It’s particularly interesting because even though Seth (the creator) tells the reader about the storytelling process–it’s clear he’s telling the story for himself.

Robocop (1990) #22

Furman can’t wrap up the comic in an issue, which is what Marvel’s Robocop has left so he’s undoubtedly going to leave some things hanging. Or he’s going to force it all into one issue, which is going to be a disaster.

The series is wrapping up to be incredibly silly. When Marvel got rid of Grant, who brought the series into a more realized future, and brought in Furman to eighty-six those futuristic elements… well, I don’t know what artistic possibilities Robocop had, but it at least read well.

Furman more fully utilizes the licensed property elements (more characters from the movies), but not to any successful end. He’s running the series off a cliff out of sheer incompetence (though I think some of these decisions must be editorial, they’re too stupid not to be).

Again, some lovely Sullivan art and some fine human potential. Furman wastes both.

Robocop (1990) #21

So when the series started Robocop 2 hadn’t been released and the Old Man was still a good guy. Now he’s a bad guy. But still not as bad as he was in Robocop 2. This issue ends with him manipulating Robocop into assassinating a foreign dictator.

Meanwhile, Robocop’s cracking heads (but not enough to really find his wife and kid) and the cops are under assault and Robocop’s abandoned them in general and Lewis in particular. I don’t see Lewis’s crush working out for her here.

Sullivan’s back, inking himself and Robocop looks great. Sullivan spends a lot of time on him, making him look good. He doesn’t spend anywhere near as much time on the regular people, which is a problem.

Furman packs the issue with newscasts and details about the foreign dictator and it’s a bunch of fluff. He’s pretending to have layered this story but didn’t.

Robocop (1990) #20

Who is Andrew Wildman and why has he ruined my Robocop? Regardless of Sullivan relatively slipping, this guy is a joke. His faces are pure amateur. I suppose his figures are a little better.

This issue is a waste of time, but kind of shouldn’t be. It’s a continuation of the previous one–Robocop’s wife and child have been kidnapped, Lewis wants to tell him “how she feels”–but there’s nothing but recaps of those items. It’s all a bridge, but it’s a bridge with its own events going on.

There’s some group of rich guys plotting murders or something. It’s not really important. What’s important is Robocop turning off the robot parts and trying it human.

Under a better writer, it’d be a fantastic issue, because the things Furman’s talking about are interesting, the things he’s investigating.

He’s just not a writer who can make it work in Robocop.