Dark Horse Presents Annual (1998) 1997

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For a Presents annual (or oversized special), this one has a lot of solid work.

Pearson’s Body Bags is a fun diversion. The art’s great and the story moves. It gets a little visually confusing, but it’s good.

And Verheiden (with Marrinan) finally produces a decent installment of The American. It’s a thoughtful story, very well written.

Arcudi and Musgrove’s The Oven Traveler is dumb. It’s a one page story dragged to four.

Aliens (from Smith and Morrow) is atrocious. It’s Aliens meets Westworld. If it weren’t terrible, it’d be an interesting genre mix—plus, Morrow can’t draw the aliens. They look awkward and goofy, not at all frightening.

Jillette and French’s Rheumy Peepers and Chunky Highlights is overwritten but mildly diverting….

Stephens and Allred’s The Stiff is decent, if too silly.

Then there’s a decent Pope finish. It’s a talking heads story, which seems like a waste of Pope.

Dark Horse Presents Annual 1997 (February 1998)

For a Presents annual (or oversized special), this one has a lot of solid work.

Pearson’s Body Bags is a fun diversion. The art’s great and the story moves. It gets a little visually confusing, but it’s good.

And Verheiden (with Marrinan) finally produces a decent installment of The American. It’s a thoughtful story, very well written.

Arcudi and Musgrove’s The Oven Traveler is dumb. It’s a one page story dragged to four.

Jillette and French’s Rheumy Peepers and Chunky Highlights is overwritten but mildly diverting….

Stephens and Allred’s The Stiff is decent, if too silly.

Then there’s a decent Pope finish. It’s a talking heads story, which seems like a waste of Pope.

CREDITS

Body Bags; story and art by Jason Pearson. The American, The Big Deal; story by Mark Verheiden; art by Chris Marrinan; lettering by Sean Konot. The Oven Traveler; story by John Arcudi; art by Scott Musgrove. Aliens, Tourist Season; story by Beau Smith; art by Gray Morrow; lettering by John Costanza; edited by Bob Schreck. The Adventures of Rheumy Peepers and Chunky Highlights; story by Penn Jillette; art by Renée French. The Stiff, Disappearing Act; story, inks and lettering by Jay Stephens; pencils by Mike Allred. Four Cats; story and art by Paul Pope. Edited by Jamie S Rich.

Dark Horse Presents (1986) #112

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One Trick Rip-Off finishes here, the first story in the issue too. It’s pretty clear Pope was thinking, especially here—it has a multi-page wordless sequence for dramatic effect—of a single sitting read, not a one-year one. Some very nice art; some weak sentiment. The finish might read better as a single piece.

Actually, it’s an issue of finale installments—French has Ninth Gland’s strange close next and it’s… creepy and disturbing but not at all horrifying. In fact, if one were to synopsize the series, it would sound strange but not scary.

And then there’s Egg. Lovece writes this installment from the perspective of the egg creature. It’s an alien of some sort. I think Lovece is trying to do something about the cycle of abuse (inferring the kid beat the ugly alien for misbehaving with a crowbar). Well-intentioned or not, the writing’s idiotic.

Dark Horse Presents (1986) #111

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I was expecting The Ninth Gland to be creepier this issue, but I guess French has to save something for the finish. While it’s disturbing, it’s just disturbing imagery. The story itself is rather tame—though I imagine the payoff next issue will be something awful.

Speaking of awful… Egg, Lovece and Schenck after-school special about a father beating his son and the son bringing home a giant monster. This issue is from the father’s perspective and Lovece writes him even worse than he wrote the son. It’s interesting how, in both installments, the whole world is actually out to get the father and son.

Pope’s penultimate One Trick Rip-Off is gorgeous—lots of great panels this time, fantastic movement between them. It’s an action story; a great looking action story.

Too Much Coffee Man is incredibly bland this issue. Wheeler’s observations are straight out of “Dear Abby.”

Dark Horse Presents (1986) #110

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The issue opens with Egg, which is a well-intentioned look at child abuse. The narrator’s father is beating him and the school officials aren’t doing anything to help, even though some are well-intentioned. Lovece’s writing is better in dialogue. Dealing with the narrator’s Stockholm Syndrome, he fails. Also, introducing a giant creature into the situation seems a little cheap. Schenck’s art is fine.

Pope’s One Trick is an action installment. He seems to be ramping up for the conclusion. The art’s great but it’s gone on too long, especially if Pope’s going to load up the ending with action versus story.

The Ninth Gland is getting even freakier—one of the girls is now hallucinating some very disturbing things. Let’s not forget these two girls are hanging around in a hospital basement with the janitor either….

Then Wheeler’s got a page of Coffee Man, who I didn’t miss.

Dark Horse Presents 112 (August 1996)

CREDITS

The One Trick Rip-Off, Part Twelve; story and art by Paul Pope; lettering by Michael Neno. The Ninth Gland, Part Seven; story and art by Renée French. Egg, Part Three; story by Frank Lovece; art by Christopher Schenck; lettering by Sean Konot. Edited by Bob Schreck and Jamie S. Rich.

Dark Horse Presents 111 (July 1996)

Pope’s penultimate One Trick Rip-Off is gorgeous—lots of great panels this time, fantastic movement between them. It’s an action story; a great looking action story.

Too Much Coffee Man is incredibly bland this issue. Wheeler’s observations are straight out of “Dear Abby.”

CREDITS

The Ninth Gland, Part Six; story and art by Renée French. Egg, Part Two; story by Frank Lovece; art by Christopher Schenck; lettering by Sean Konot. The One Trick Rip-Off, Part Eleven; story and art by Paul Pope; lettering by Michael Neno. Too Much Coffee Man; story and art by Shannon Wheeler. Edited by Bob Schreck and Jamie S. Rich.

Dark Horse Presents 110 (June 1996)

Then Wheeler’s got a page of Coffee Man, who I didn’t miss.

CREDITS

Egg, Part One; story by Frank Lovece; art by Christopher Schenck; lettering by Sean Konot. The One Trick Rip-Off, Part Ten; story and art by Paul Pope; lettering by Michael Neno. The Ninth Gland, Part Five; story and art by Renée French. Too Much Coffee Man; story and art by Shannon Wheeler. Edited by Bob Schreck and Jamie S. Rich.

Dark Horse Presents (1986) #109

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I can’t believe I’m about to make this statement—I liked Milgrom’s story the best. It’s some charming little thing about a guy treating his roaches as pets (after all other attempts at pet owning in New York fail). Milgrom’s style is more comic strip than I’ve seen and it works. Even if the protagonist does look like Peter Parker with a receding hairline.

Pope’s One Trick opens the issue and I remembered all the characters in this installment. One of them was mentioned briefly in the first installment. One Trick doesn’t seem to be meant for a lengthy, interrupted read. Pope’s pacing suggests it should be read in a sitting (I know Dark Horse traded it eventually).

Devil Chef ends this issue… it’s a slightly less annoying read knowing Pollock won’t be back with it next time.

And French’s Ninth Gland? Still no real story, just incredibly, uncomfortably weird.

Dark Horse Presents (1986) #108

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Ninth Gland is fairly gross this issue, though French still hasn’t done anything to tell the reader what the story’s about. There’s something growing in the alien horse and the two girls who brought it to the hospital maintenance man will be affected somehow. It’s creepy.

Pollock’s Devil Chef installment is somewhat less annoying than usual for most of the pages, then it has a moronic ending. The concept—the FDA approving food with a parasite in it to force consumers to eat only that foodstuff—is interesting, actually. Too bad Pollock’s writing is awful.

Then Pope’s got problems with One Trick. It’s impossible to keep his characters straight here (I swear he’s changed one character’s hair color from blond to brown). Also, it feels a little padded. Nice last page though.

DeMos and Gillis have an anti-suicide story. Gillis’s art is fine. DeMos wrote two lines of dialogue.