Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2.fluke 9/24/84; site vax4.fluke.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxr!mhuxt!houxm!vax135!cornell!uw-beaver!fluke!moriarty From: moriarty@fluke.UUCP (The Napoleon of Crime) Newsgroups: net.comics Subject: Old! Unimproved! MORIARTY REVIEWS (3 of 5) Message-ID: <2555@vax4.fluke.UUCP> Date: Tue, 20-Aug-85 03:05:57 EDT Article-I.D.: vax4.2555 Posted: Tue Aug 20 03:05:57 1985 Date-Received: Sat, 24-Aug-85 00:38:05 EDT Distribution: net Organization: The Institute for Criminal Masterminds Lines: 87 REVIEWED: ALBEDO NATHANIEL DUSK II JON SABLE BLUE DEVIL ------------------------------------------------ "There *are* standards. If you can't see one, you *make* one and stick to it come Hell or high water -- until you see a BETTER one." -John Gaunt "Well, if you can't believe what you read in a comic book, what *can* you believe?!" -Bullwinkle J. Moose **************************************************************************** |==>A< One of the best of the year. Example: ZOT #8 | |==>B< A very good issue, one of the best of the month (usually 6/month) | |==>C< A well done, entertaining issue. Satisfying. Example: Jon Sable | |==>D< Boring, but with a few good points. Example: SQUADRON SUPREME | |==>F< Boring AND stupid or childish. Example: Secret Wars. | |==>Z< Actually offensive. Example: Several of Haney's UNKNOWN SOLDIERs | **************************************************************************** ALBEDO #4 [Usagi, Yojimbo C; Erma Felina, D-]: The former is fun, the latter is getting too technical for a comics story this short. But on to more important things: at the end of the Yojimbo story, there is a HUMAN in the works! Hey, I thought this was an Anthromorphics comic! What gives, eh? Sorry, I'm just being picky 'cause I met the creator of Erma Felina and the publisher of Albedo and didn't like him (and have had my opinions re-enforced when he calls Ellison's _The_Glass_Teat_ one of the finest things around (now, Moriarty, don't get into that argument again....) NATHANIEL DUSK II #1,2 [B]: Gosh, quite a few extremely good comics this month. This is a fine, well-crafted non-Spillaine (that's a compilment) detective story, just on the writing itself -- certainly the finest thing McGregor has done in five years, and the first bright spot in a long line of flops he's produced. A few rough spots where his old style breaks through in the first issue, but it has completely disappeared by the second. But the writing, no matter how good it is, is secondary to the artwork, though the two are certainly not seperate. I don't think I can elaborate on what Jerry or Don Thompson have said, but the colors are very good, the panels (especially the faces) complement the script extremely well. This would be a good detective story without Gene Colan's drawings, but with them, it becomes something more. Again, I haven't looked at much of Colan's art in the last few years -- haven't read much Batman. But after his DD and Tomb of Dracula years, I had felt the last few had been rather lax (including the Ragamuffins stuff with McGregor for Eclipse). But here, the quality paper and coloring gives him the forum he has deserved. JON SABLE #30 [D+]: Rather boring, but I'm not sure why. I suspect my tolerance for spoofs of _The_Maltese_Falcon_ has been reached... BLUE DEVIL #18 [D]: Whoof! A really bad Blue Devil, but I'll assume someone came in and said "You must have BD team up with The Omega Men!" and walked out... all in the name of Crisis. The Omega Men have almost always been turkeys, and it doesn't seem too different now. BLUE DEVIL ANNUAL #1 [C+]: Now THIS is more LIKE it! They got Paris Cullins back on pencils, and got every truly weird character DC has had for the last few years and threw them together and what a mess! What a glorious, filthy mess! Plus, the debated origin of Black Orchid (brother, do I remember those old stories). The Phantom Stranger looses his temper ("HEY! Cut it out, you two...! The Phantom Stranger is talking!"), and actually resorts to (dare we say it?) fisticuffs! Egads! What will these boys think up next?! "If this is foreplay, I'm a dead man!" Moriarty, aka Jeff Meyer ARPA: fluke!moriarty@uw-beaver.ARPA UUCP: {uw-beaver, sun, allegra, sb1, lbl-csam}!fluke!moriarty <*> DISCLAIMER: Do what you want to me, but leave my employers alone! <*>