Dark Horse Presents (1986) #153

Dhp153

I think some of these Presents licensed properties stories might be ideal examples of why properties should never be licensed across mediums. This issue’s Angel—and Golden and Sniegoski’s script isn’t even bad—is too short and too slight, even for the concept (one of the Angel cast makes a Blair Witch movie for demons). Horton and Lee’s art could be a lot better too.

The surprise of the issue is The Mask. Gilroy’s script is engaging and entertaining—even though the Mask (as illustrated by Marangon and Emberlin) is the laughing version, Gilroy’s approach is one of terror and foreboding. The two tones don’t match well, but it’s the best story the issue… and in the last few Presents issues, in fact.

Just when I think Armstrong’s art might be getting better on Doc Thunder, he loses his ability to draw the human body proportionately. Once again, it’s awful.

Dark Horse Presents (1986) #152

Dhp152

Von Shelly has another fumetti this issue. While I suppose it’s a bit of an achievement to mix all the photos together, it’s godawful. Von Shelly’s writing is real bad. It’s clear he thinks his work is maybe the greatest thing ever; only a similarly minded (i.e. illiterate) reader would enjoy it.

Full Throttle is a futuristic bike messenger story and it makes no sense. The confusing nature of it aside, writer Sivasubramanian has a couple good details (both in the first few pages, but both very creative). Jarvis’s artwork is excellent. He maintains a nice balance between detail and motion. Even if it’s incompressible, it’s entertaining.

And finally, another installment of Doc Thunder from Armstrong. This installment manages to be less ambitious but somehow stupider than the first one. Armstrong does detail on a gradient—sometimes his art has some detail; usually it’s rather unfinished. It’s a lousy comic.

Dark Horse Presents (1986) #151

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Mignola’s Hellboy is inexplicably pointless. Hellboy’s sort of the main character, but it’s really this secret group of people out to… kill him? Study him? Mignola never specifies and it makes the ending flop. The first part is decent—it is nice how Mignola works out a three-act structure even in eight pages or whatever—but it quickly descends into pointlessness.

Then there’s Armstrong and Doc Thunder. Now, Armstrong’s name seems a little familiar so I’m wondering if he’s become someone. Here, he’s doing a really bad Kirby homage. Armstrong can almost do the buildings and city skyline, but when it comes to characters his artwork is terrible. As for the writing… it fails to make an impression. Once it’s clear he’s going for Kirby-esque, the art’s failings command ones attention.

Finally, Von Sholly does a fumetti mixing King Kong and The Most Dangerous Game with Nazis. It’s fairly awful.