The third week’s the charm for this year’s procession of Free Comic Book Day offerings as we approach the middle of the road with nine more titles covering the gamut from Scholastic’s graphix isolated imprint to Marvel’s preschool offering of Spidey & His Amazing Friends. I’m more in a relaxed mode this week, taking a four day breather from the Hollywood walk-out strike of which I’m being held partially responsible for maintenance at the Studio City CBS Radford Studios of which I hear is being in the process of being overhauled as a main outlet for a majority of Marvel’s future television projects. So far, the crew I have allied myself with has managed to shut down production on Marvel’s Wonder Man a whopping eight times even as early as 3 o’clock in the morning. The lesson learned this past month? Don’t fucking cross picket lines: even if they’re shows that are serving your best interest. Things need to be put on pause so that everyone who are involved in the creation of these shows are paid fairly and equally to the merits of their abilities.
Okay, enough sermonizing. On to my ponderous palaverous pontifications of these next nine books.
PUBLISHER: graphix (An imprint of SCHOLASTIC BOOKS)
TITLE: BABY-SITTERS LITTLE SISTER
STORY: “Karen’s Haircut”
WRITER: Ann M. Martin (based on her novel)
ARTIST: Katy Farina
Just a note before we begin: Scholastic’s graphic novels are available everywhere and not just at your local comic book shop as the ending of this excerpt indicates. I saw a whole display endcap of them at my local Barnes & Noble featuring a whole slew of these titles including this very one. With that being said, I can relate in some aspects of what the main protagonist goes through when you’re attempting to change the look of your appearance. I’ve had in a few occasions in life where in trying to tweak your appearance will sometimes backfire on you. Case in point: back in the early 1990s, I attempted to dye my long hair black, with a white streak running down one side. At night, people thought I was a giant skunk approaching them and therefore as a result, I was barred from entering many bars and nightclubs in the San Diego area. The Karen in this story just happens to wake up one day, looks in the mirror and thinks there’s room for improvement staring back at her in her own reflection. So she peruses through fashion magazines photos, cuts out a picture and takes it to her local beautican and winds up getthing the complete opposite result. The repercussions of her rash decision, is bullying from her fellow classmates, getting laughed at, and even ends up being disinvited to a friend’s wedding. She then tries to reinvent herself by changing her name to Tiffanie and from there, you’ll have to buy the graphic novel to find out. But, again I can relate. I was so enarmored by The Planet of The Apes tv show back when I was a kid, that I wanted to legally change my name to Caesar Coatney. That really didn’t sit well with my mom
PUBLISHER: graphix (An imprint of SCHOLASTIC BOOKS)
TITLE: DOG MAN AND THE LEAGUE OF MISFITS
WRITER & ARTIST: Dav Pilkey
Dav Pilkey is a cottage industry all in himself. This guy is so prolific in everything he touches in the world of children’s books, whereas his output shows no sign of slowing down. He has three concurrent graphic book series that keeps pooping out product like there’s no tomorrow, much like his flagship series Captain Underpants currently lives up to his excretory reputation joined along with Cat Kid and this preview of a forthcoming Dog Man title, “Twenty Thousand Fleas Under The Sea”. I used to think Pilkey was a detriment to schoolkid society with his constant poop humor, but kids seem to flock to him and his ‘pile’ of books as he were the Ron L Hubbard of the pubescent jetset. Pilkey does take the opportunity to expand beyond his horizons in utilizing computer graphics to ease through his story telling abilities and he invites others to join in the creative fun by signing up online to enlist into his comic club to create your own adventures. Kids: The lesson I learned from reading this:, sometimes toilets can become evil, but they can definitely be turned around used as a force for good.
PUBLISHER: IDW PUBLISHING
TITLE: STAR TREK FREE COMIC BOOK DAY MAY 2023
STORY 1: “Prelude To Star Trek: Day of Blood
WRITERS: Jackson Lanzing, Collin Kelly & Christopher Cantwell
ARTIST: Mike Feehan
COLORS: Lee Loughridge
LETTERS: Clayton Cowles
STORY 2: “Lower Decks #1 Excerpt”
WRITER: Ryan North
ARTIST & COLORS: Chris Fenoglio
LETTERS: Johanna Nattalie
Three top writers currently or formerly with Marvel are collaborating on the big new Star Trek crossover event warping across all of IDW’s Star Trek releated titles.Lanzing and Kelly are currently scripting the new Guardians of The Galaxy series (while they’re finishing up the current incarnation of Steve Rogers Captain America: Sentinel of Liberty series) while Cantwell, creator of the television show, Halt and Catch Fire laid to rest his Iron Man run late last year. In this ten-page heart stopping Prelude story, all three writers, along with artist Mike Feehan are about to unlease another Klingon/Romulan/Starfleet summer bloodbath to span the galaxies of both the flagship titles Star Trek and Star Trek: Defiant and various one-shots thrown in between. I don’t know if all four creators are involved in all of the suggested titles, but they make a compelling argument that I should throw my lot in following along. I did happen to like the IDW treatment of Star Trek’s final voyages of the original five year mission, so I might give this a go since I do like all three writers. Star Trek is enjoying a renewed renaissance in streaming rewards. I happen to roku all five shows available on the Paramount+ app with Discovery, Picard, and Strange New Worlds (new season, June 15th) along with animated companion series Prodigy and Lower Decks, and a lot of it is great, so IDW Publishing is lucky to have the rights to this franchise, otherwise they’d be in the lower decks in the comics industry themselves because their current originals are not really keeping their heads above water (they did have a modicum of success with Wynonna Earp and Locke & Key). The 2nd story is an excerpt from the first issue of Lower Decks and captures the humorous essence of the show just perfectly.
PUBLISHER: IDW PUBLISHING
TITLE: TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES FREE COMIC BOOK DAY MAY 2023
STORY 1: “TMNT: Saturday Morning Adventures”
WRITER: Erik Burnham
ARTIST: Tim Lattie
COLORS: Sarah Meyer
LETTERS: Shawn Lee
STORY 2: “Rise of The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
WRITER: Matthew K, Manning
ARTIST: Chad Thomas
COLORS: Heather Breckel
LETTERS: Shawn Lee
Let’s get one thing straight: Pizza is not healthy for you every single day. I’m currently living the nightmare of that declaration right now. When you’re working on a strike line, that’s the majority you get to see donated to you five days a week: nothing but pizza and donuts. I’m tired of even looking at a fresh new box of donuts or the pungent smell of a freshly delivered pizza that’s only going to get cold on you twenty or so minutes later. With that being said, I am not the biggest TMNT fan when it comes to multimedia presentations. Sure. I consider the original Eastman and Laird comics to be bonafide masterpieces (last year’s FCBD was a much better offering), but soon it all got waterdowned for younger fans in the form of animated series or puppeteered films. There’s so many iterations of the exact same premise, that it’s hard to keep track of. Take for example, the 2nd story, Rise of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, it’s obviously based on a brand new animated series airing on Nickelodeon that I wasn’t even aware of. There’s really nothing new to add to the mythos, other than they eat pizza and fight the big bad baddie, Shredder on nearly EVERY EPISODE. Last year’s TMNT FBCD edition was more inventive, where IDW did a new hardcore futuristic story and utilizing the same type of layouts to look like the very first issue self-published by Eastman & Laird, plus released later on last year, there was the afterword mini-series, The Last Ronin that focused on the only surviving member of the TMNT clan that takes revenge for the slaughter of his fellow brothers and their mentor, Master Splinter. This stuff contained here just regurgitates the same old procrastating shitty premise that turns me off to them in the first place, but rest assured the kids will love it.
PUBLISHER: IMAGE COMICS
TITLE: FISHFLIES #1 FREE COMIC BOOK DAY 2023
STORY: “Fishflies”
WRITER & ARTIST: Jeff Lemire
LETTERS & DESIGN: Greg Lockward
Remember how I was saying that Free Comic Book Day is a lot like the TV Industry’s Upfront presentation of how industry exes go over pilots and pilots and eventually take them out to New York to introduce them to the public as what to expect to see this upcoming fall. Well, if I were one of those exes – this would immediately be greenlit for a series. Lemire has been having good luck seeing his creations hit the streaming tube. One of his creations, “SweetTooth” once published by DC/Vertigo has been renewed for a third and final season on Netflix (it was always in the cards to make it a 24 episode epic mega-series, I already have the titles of all the final eight episodes listed in my work database). I think Lemire is trying his utmost damnest best to retell Stephen King’s Stand By Me, only with giant cockroaches and gun toting robbers added in for good measure. but just open these pages and you can see for yourself how this even beats Lemire last year’s Free Comic Book Day effort, Tenement. Originally, portions of Fishflies have been previously serialized on his Substack account, Tales From the Farm as a 500 page plus project updated with 5 pages on whatever frequency he posts things on his pay for play website. Personally, I don’t know how much has already been posted, but Image is promising it to release it all as 6 giant-sized issues launching in July. I definitely want in on this.
PUBLISHER: IMAGE COMICS
TITLE: THE SACRIFICERS #1 FREE COMIC BOOK EDITION 2023
STORY:”The Sacrificers”
WRITER: Rick Remender
ARTIST: Max Fjumara
COLORS: Dave McCraig
LETTERS: Rus Wooton
I can’t aptly describe what this is, but whatever it is, it’s fucking brilliant. Usually my last act on a late Saturday or early Sunday morning is to read portions of the latest Heavy Metal (R.I.P.) or The Warren homages of both Shudder and Vampiress Camillia black and white mags – so it had that exact feel of a Heavy Metal feature. I sometimes kick myself for not reading a lot of Image’s vast output, but I try to make up for it by at least buying the $1 reprint issues of their number ones. None really resonate with me other than being cheap reads, but some retailers will suggest titles to me that I end up sticking along with and following on a regular basis such as Vanish, Radiant Black, and No/One, whereas my roommate was convinced by a retailer’s recommendation that Department of Truth might be a book up his alley since he is a conspiracy theory nut and he followed that title to the bitter end, but I may reup my game, drop some unnecessary DC or Marvel comic and give this and Lemire’s new book listed above a try. Since I can’t pinpoint an exact synoposis of what I read, Image describes the book as thus: tomorrow is a harmonious paradise thanks to five families who make everything perfect…for the price of one child per household. Now, as that bill comes due, a son expected to give everything for a family that never loved him and an affluent daughter determined to destroy utopia who must now unite to end one generation’s unnaturally protracted reign. I think fans of hardcore animated sci-fi like 9 or maybe going back as far as Ralph Bakshi’s Wizards might find a kinship in the tone of Max Fjumara’s designs and Dave McCraig’s color palette. The lettering by Rus Weston, especially on the word balloons uttered by the big bad fire breathing daddy, Rokos. I can actually hear the crackling of whispers of flame. The first issue is set fired to be released on August 2nd.
PUBLISHER: KODANSHA
TITLE: SHAMAN KING FLOWERS/WELCOME TO DEMON SCHOOL
STORY 1: “Shaman King Flowers: Chapter 1: Flower Bud”
WRITER & ARTIST: Hiroyuki Takei
STORY 2: “Welcome to Demon School! Iruma Kun Chapter 1: Iruma at Demon School”
WRITER & ARTIST: Osami Nishi
TRANSLATION(for both stories): Jacqueline Fung
PROOFREADING(for both stories); Micah Q. Allen
There’s always one or two caveats when one decides to tackle a pile of FCBD editions. One: each comic must be read and evaluated equally and two: even if they’re manga. When it comes to the manga titles, I have to admit I have fellow neighbors in cubicles who understand the characters and adventures better than I do. I’m merely one dabbles when they get adapted into animated or live action shows I watch on Netflix or Hulu. Like I’m a big fan of Junji Ito Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre, Alice in Borderland or Attack on Titan. So in no way am I expert, so I usually search for answers from co-workers. So my co-worker Alfie, hasn’t had time to read it yet to fully explain what that concepts is of both these features – and if you check back a little later, I’ll edit what she has to say. BUT ALLOW ME to say something that made me feel a little conformable while perusing though the Demon School feature – there’s an old man who acts in all kinds of weird and perverse manners when a kid who’s basically not his flesh and blood is begged to become his grandson. I don’t know who many of you follow Family Guy, but there’s a similar elderly character by the name of Herbert who lusts to do nothing but naughty things to young Chris Griffith.
PUBLISHER: COMIC HOUSE
TITLE: CRIMEBUSTER: COMIC HOUSE FREE COMIC BOOK DAY 2023
STORY 1: “Crimebuster: Chapter One: The Jaws of Destruction”
WRITER: Keith Wts Morris & Adrien Benson (story), Sam McDonald (script)
ARTIST: Giulia Gualazzi
COLORS: Mariano Lucas Morales
STORY 2: “The Crimebuster” (Reprinted fron Boy Comics 3, April 1942)
STORY & ART: Charles Biro
Blasting in from the north is Comic House, home to all things related to Captain Canuck and I guess some other superheroic things that happen to take place in Canada, but here’s a twist, it’s connected to a classic golden ago hero that I actually had to research to check to see if he was real, and sure enough it’s connected to the original 1942 version of Crimebuster who first appeared in Boy Comics #3, April 1942 published by Lev Gleason Publication and as according to comic book price guide website comicbookrealm.com, it worth a hefty $5,900.00 in mint condition. So what does this have to do with the kid pictured on the cover reading a copy of the book on top of the bus? Well, Chuck, as he is named has somehow been imbued with the same powers as the original Crimebuster back in the 1940’s through contact with a alien drone and this enhances his search for his mother, who’s been been since working on a assignment for her employer, Lexington Labs. He recruits a band of superheroes by their codenames, Giant-Boy, Gee-Gee, and Swoop to break into that lab to find a viable clue leading to her mother’s whereabout and that trail leds to New York. which where this rather pedestrain affair leaves off. It’s a rather steady paced ok read. Got some enjoyment from reading the action sequences, but there’s nothing really groundbreaking to make me clamor for more. I’m just glad Comics House (formerly) known as Chapter House) made it through a FCBD edition without one mention of Captain Canuck. Oh wait, a minute, who’s that on the last page? Oh, darn. Plus – relive a old 1942 story pitting the original Crimebuster against his classic fascist foe, Iron Jaw from a story that’s just as old as my mom.
PUBLISHER: MARVEL WORLDWIDE, INC.
TITLE: FREE COMIC BOOK DAY 2023: SPIDEY & FRIENDS NO. 1
STORY 1: “Super Hero Team Up!”
STORY 2 : “At The Movies!”
STORY 3: “Send In The Clones!”
WRITER: Steve Behling
ARTISTS: Antonello Dalena & Giovanni Rigano (layouts), Christina Giorgilli & Christina Stella (inks)
COLORS: Dario Calabria
SPIDER-MAN created by STAN LEE & STEVE DITKO
Every generation deserves a ‘Spidey‘ or a Spider-Man as a mentor or as a teaching aide. When I was ten, I had Spider-Man sometimes guest starring on The Electric Company – a tv show dedicated to improving reader comprehension. My half-sister growing up only read Spider-Man if he was featured in Spidey Super Stories, Marvel’s first attempt to lure in younger readers with simpler and easier to read stories and now, today, for the modern day younger webspinning rapscallions, we have Spidey & His Amazing Friends airing on Disney Junior (and sometimes streaming later on Disney+) in adventures depicting Spidey as a sort of ten year old who recklessly runs around with his friends Gwen (Ghost Spider) and Miles (Spin) making the world safe from super power hoodlums such as Doc Ock, Green Goblin, and Rhino. Usually in this cutesy animated perfect world, the bad guys are just giant a-holes who play nasty pranks and run off with your lunch money, only to caught, webbed up and scolded with a web-fingered wag. No cops are ever around to arrest them. Sometimes, they do get help from other super powered members of the Marvel family including, Iron Man, Ant-Man, Black Panther, Ms. Marvel, and Hulk if the situation happens to get out of hand, like in the one story included here, “Super Hero Team-Up” where the latter three show up to lend an enlarged hand to assist against Doc Ock’s plans to turn a playground into a impromptu water park. For those who picked up this easy to digest edition for their kids, I get a feeling, it’s the puzzle and games spun out as intermissions between stories that will keep them more occupied rather than the stories themselves.
And here is where we put in on pause. Next week, the next three Marvel books – Ten Speed Press
PPGuru 