Book Report: Spider-Man–Carnage In New York

While comics being turned into movies and TV shows are nothing new I wonder how many people realize that even prose has seen superheroes cross over from the panel to the text? Here at The Clutter Reports I’ve already reviewed The Death & Life Of Superman by comic writer and novelist Roger Stern. I have very few prose stories based on the DC and Marvel heroes but most of them are DC, mainly Superman and Batman. (I also reviewed a “Which Way” gamebook starring Superman.) I only have one Marvel novel, a co-authorship between a comic writer and a novelist.

In the 1990s Marvel published a series of novels starring their superheroes through Byron Press, one written by another crossmedia writer, Peter David, focused on a character he knew very well, the Incredible Hulk. David Michellie is mostly known for his run on Iron Man in the comics but did spend some time on The Amazing Spider-Man so he does know the character. (I do not know if there was a novel about Iron Man but if there is I hope he worked on it.) Aiding him was novelist Dean Wesley Smith. Together they penned a story about Carnage, an offshoot of Venom. Venom has a long backstory even before Marvel tried to fill out the symbiote race. Symbiotes are goo-like beings that bond with hosts, forming a sort of costume and granting the host special abilities while symbiote feeds on his I think adrenaline and sometimes uses the host to feed on other lifeforms. Carnage is a spawn of that symbiote that found a willing host in mass murderer Cletus Kasaday, forming a bond so perfect Carnage speaks in “I/me/my” rather than “we/our”. He is one of if not the most dangerous foe in Spider-Man’s rogues gallery, making him a good choice for this novel.

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Quick Project: Finding Lost Comics

I dodged a time bullet on this project. A whole section of my Marvel comics went missing when I got to that section to review for my other site (as well as seeing what I want to keep), and I got concerned. I was going to finally do the final reunification of my comic collection even though I don’t have the time to do it properly. I want to go through some comics during the reorganizing that I’m thinking I don’t want anymore.

Toy Report: Marvel Vs. Capcom Mega Man & War Machine

It’s been too long since I’ve written a proper review for this site. And since my more needed clutter-cleaning project isn’t going to make for a good article, let’s do that.

Marvel Versus Capcom is a great fighting game series, featuring characters of Marvel Comics and the Capcom video game characters either teaming up or fighting each other depending on the players. The plot of the first game (at least under the MvC name, as smaller clashes had occurred previously), Clash Of Super Heroes, is that Professor Xavier needs the help of heroes from both realities to stop his overpowered, evil alter-ego, Onslaught. In the comics, Onslaught nearly killed a group of heroes that were saved only because Reed and Sue Richards’ son, Franklin, was able to transport them to a pocket dimension he created. Very long story, folks.

I’m not very good at the game (surprising nobody) but I do have a favorite team, born not out of gameplay mechanics but personal character preference, the team of Capcom’s Mega Man and Marvel’s War Machine. So when I saw a two-pack toy, released by Toy Biz as part of a brief line, featuring both characters I had to get it. So how do these figures hold up?

Comic Report: Star Wars: A New Hope Adaptation

This week I had to see people about things and my dad is turning a room into an office and occasionally needed my help. So in order to have something this week I’m going back into the other site’s archives for a review.

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Considering I went a long time without a Scanning My Collection article I don’t mind that there have been three this month. They come out when I have something to review for it, while I’m trying to do the others at least once a month. And since this one is collected and I can only guess where the breaks should go I’m going to review the whole thing.

Said whole thing is the original adaptation of the first Star Wars movie, though at the time we thought it would be the only one. Marvel adapted the movie in the first issues of the Star Wars comic series, and the version I have is a collected trade by Dark Horse featuring the first three, half of the movie. I don’t know if any changes were done by Dark Horse and if they did (outside of brightening the color) that’s a shame. I have noticed that Chewbacca looks more on-model than he did in issue #23, which I reviewed earlier today. Threepio has stronger colors and I’m not sure if R2 looks different or not since I just flipped through it prior to this opening. I am curious about the changes between what we saw on screen and what was in the adaptation. Dark Horse would also do their own version for the Special Edition, although the other two comics were just the Marvel adaptation. I don’t get it, either.

Well, this party got out of control real quick.

Classic Star Wars: A New Hope #1

Dark Horse Comics (June, 1994)

reprinting Star Wars #s 1-3 (Marvel; July-September, 1977)

ADAPTATION: Roy Thomas

PENCILER: Howard Chaykin

INKER: Steve Leialoha

IDW RE-COLORIST: Pamela Rambo

IDW COVER ARTIST: Arthur Adams

IDW COVER COLORIST: Matthew Hollingsworth

LETTERER: Tom Orzechowski

ORIGINAL EDITORS: Roy Thomas & Archie Goodwin

IDW EDITORS: Bob Cooper & Edward Martin III

The fact that they redid Marie Severin, Steve Leialoha, and Carl Gafford’s colors instead of just brightening them up is already a bad sign, but I don’t have the originals to compare it to. Now I wish I did so I would know what other art changes were made.

Mini-Comic Report: Marvel/Drakes series 2

I’m not happy that my first Clutter Report in some time is a crosspost from the other site, never mind one I only posted this week. However, I want to get back to writing for this site and this will hopefully be the first step on that front.

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Many moons ago we looked at the first collaboration between Marvel Comics and Drake’s snack cakes, a four-issue miniseries in which Spider-Man, Wolverine, the Hulk, and Silver Surfer were slowly drawn into battle with Doctor Doom to rescue Jubilee from his energy experiments. Apparently the promotion was good enough to create a second one in 1994, this time five issues long and drawing in the other X-Men.

Eric Fein returns as the writer of these issues with rotating art teams. Letterer Janice Chiang and editor Glenn Herdling, as well as the Editor-In-Chief at Marvel at the time, Tom DeFalco, are the only other consistent names. So until the Comicstorian (if you don’t know who that is, I think I know what the next “Internet Spotlight” is going to be on) finally goes over these, it’s up to me to complete the review of this event. Good thing we loved our Coffee Cakes and Devil Dogs at the future BW HQ at the time. Never really got into Yodels.

Comic Trade Report: Contest Of Champions: Marvel’s Finest Edition

Over the past few weeks over at my other site I’ve been looking at a comic miniseries from Marvel called Marvel Super Heroes Contest Of Champions. Once I was finished with the individual comics that made up the trade I had planned to review the collection itself here. I hadn’t planned on doing the mini-comic review I did last week so that’s why you’re getting two comic reviews in a row. I’ll link to the individual reviews at the end of the article.

Contest Of Champions

Marvel Comics (August, 1999)

INTRODUCTION: Tom DeFalco

COVER ART: Pepe Moreno

REPRINT EDITOR: Polly Watson

EDITOR IN CHIEF: Bob Harass

DESIGN: JG & Comicraft’s Eric Eng Wong

dedicated to the memory of Mark Gruenwald

“Mini” Comic Report: Marvel/Drakes series 1

Let’s  talk about Drake’s snack cakes because they’re good and they’re back. I’m so happy having my Coffee Cakes again. I thought they were gone for good when Hostess (who bout Drake’s before they shut down) came back and Drake’s didn’t. As much as love my Twinkees I do like a good Devil Dog now and then. Well, they’re back and I’m happy. To celebrate, we will take a look at the first set of Drake’s comics with Marvel Super Heroes!

Two series were produced and packed inside boxes of Drake’s different snack cakes: Ring Dings, Devil Dogs, Yodels, and Coffee Cakes. We mostly bought Coffee Cakes and Devil Dogs at the future clutter zone at the time and I don’t remember which was the “chase comic”. I may have a few multiples if I didn’t throw them out. However, I picked up all four of the first series and all five of the second one. Each had their own running story but the stories could also stand on their own, which is how I like it. Still, the running plot was enough to want to get all of the set, and thus Drake’s made much money and you gained a greater mass. Everyone wins but your body! But was it worth it?

Shared credits: Eric Fein (writer) George Roussos (colorist) Rick Parker (letterer), Glenn Herdling (editor) and Tom DeFalco (editor in chief)

The third comic has no credits but since these were the names on the other three it’s safe to assume they worked on that one, too. Let’s breeze through this because they’re really rather short.

Longbox Report: The Transformers #16

I have a convention to prepare for, so let’s make this quick. You’ve seen my Bumblebee shelf and I’ve reviewed some of my newest acquisitions. If you’re at all curious as to why I like the little guy so much, here’s a review of the comic that got me into him, straight from my other site.

I’d make a joke about this pose, but I’m too biased towards this comic.

The Transformers #16

Marvel Comics (May, 1986)

also republished by IDW in Transformers: Generations #4 (June, 2006)

“Plight of the Bumblebee”

WRITER: Len Kaminski

PENCILER: Graham Nolan

INKER: Tom Morgan

LETTERER: Bill Oakley

COLORIST: Nelson Yomtov

EDITOR: Mike Carlin

COVER ART: Herbe Timpe (credited in the IDW version which doesn’t use that cover)

SELECTED IDW COVER (see end of article): Nick Roche

SPLASH PAGE: Eliot Brown

Comic Report: Spider-Man & Batman

The DC action figure review isn’t quite ready yet. In its place I’ll put one of the comic reviews up. I’ve been wanting to start going through the comic collection, the only collection more out of control than my Transformers. I haven’t been able to do that either, so to have something here I bring you another “Scanning My Collection” posting featuring my favorite crossover story. And it’s pretty fitting for Halloween, now that I think of it.

I promise to have the right review up next week.