A Moment of Comics

With such a year of entropy, it's hard looking back and seeing how right the doomsayers were. From Savage Dragon #218 by Erik Larson along with his long standing letterer, Chris Eliopoulos.

A Moment of Comics

It was funnier thirty six years ago to think that an evil president could survive in a robot body after his body dies. Ask me if it's still funny in November. From the Give Me Liberty trade paperback by writer Frank Miller and artist Dave Gibbons. Originally published in Give Me Liberty #4 from the limited series.

A Moment of Comics

I have to admit I've been enjoying the crossover specials between Marvel and DC Comics. It's nice seeing comics created by writers and artists who aren't "company men" obsessed with brand loyalty or having one character one-up the other. How can that exist anymore in this age? Anyway, here's a page from the story "Our Kryptonite," written by Brad Meltzer and drawn by Pepe Larraz. 

A Moment of Comics

A group of white people with Superman powers trying to preserve their alleged genetic purity by plotting to destroy the planetary equivalent of the United Nations? How did comics suddenly get woke over thirty years ago? From Legionnaires #27, written by Tom Peyer and Tom McCraw (who also did coloring on the issue),  penciled by Mike McCraw and inked by W.C. Carani.
 

A Moment of Comics

Maybe if told people that superheroes were being caged alongside immigrants and other brown people, we could end ICE tomorrow and turn this country around. A slightly out of context page from Spawn #10, written by Dave Sim with artwork by Todd McFarlane. 

A Moment of Comics

Last year in 2025's Marvel United: A Pride Special, there was a tribute to Arnie Roth, a gay supporting character of Captain America created by writer J.M. DeMatteis and artist Mike Zeck during their run on the title in the eighties. The page is from "My Buddy" in Marvel United, written by Anthony Oliveira with artowrk by Pablo Collar and Michael Wiggam.

A Moment of Comics

The infamous killing of the gay Marvel Comics character Freedom Ring. A reminder that comics still have a long way to go towards representation. From Marvel Team #24 (third volume), written by Robert Kirkman with art by Andy Kuhn.

A Moment of Comics

Actually grabbed a physical copy of DC Pride 2022 over the weekend. Grabbed it for the Kevin Conroy story, but I enjoyed the Connor Hawke Green arrow tale "Think of Me." Making Connor Hawke asexual actually fits with his backstory and previously published stories so well. Words and pictures by Ro Stein and Ted Brandt. 

A Moment of Comics

My girlfriend and I have been watching a lot of cult shows over the past few weeks. Wanted to mark that time with this page from the Plastic Man mini-series from the 80's (one of my favorite versions of this character) depicting a cult during a time when the concept of a cult was considered good joke material. Meet the cult of Ramalama (Ding Dong!) in Plastic Man #3 by Phil Foglio, Hilary Barta, John Nyberg and Doug Rice. 

A Moment of Comics

Saw a loved one at a hospital where they're undergoing physical therapy. Overall, the place is good, but when someone's too slow (in my mind) to help a loved one to the bathroom, I think of this underrated Swamp Thing story from ,Stephen R. Bissette. A reminder that horror has many hats. From Swamp Thing #59 by Bissette with art by Rick Veitch and Alfredo Acala. 

An Awesome Moment of Comics

Check out Hans Rickheit on YouTube with his new characters Prong and Preen. 

A Moment of Comics

Thinking of someone I know who was always a bit of a chameleon like the character in Daniel Clowes' short story "Gynecology." A shell of a human being assuming identities and discarding them when it suits him, leaving a trail of hurt people in his wake. Last I checked, he attempted being an AI guru, shedding the family man role he assumed for two decades. What role is he wandering to now? Enjoy the final page to the short story below from Eightball #17, later collected in the collection Caricature. 

A Moment of Comics

My mood now that I'm a little bit older? A bit more like the character in Jay Lynch's cover for Art Spiegelman and Bill Griffith's Arcade #6.

A Moment of Comics

I've been thinking about my mood as I'm about to get older, and this page with Suicida's rant from the first Marshal Law series collected under the title Marshal Law: Fear and Loathing. From the Epic Comics published Marshal Law #1, written Pat Mills with art by the late Kevin O'Neill.

A Moment of Comics

Decided to end National Poetry Month with an example of visual poetry from Charles Schultz's "Peanuts." One of my favorite strips. 

 

A Moment of Comics

I miss being able to just sit down and read poetry. In this week's entry, non-breakout character Feron enjoys (off-page) a lesser=known poem by William Butler Yeats in the Alan Davis helmed Excalibur #48. Written and penciled by Davis with inks by Mark Farmer.

 

A Moment of Comics

If you're going to use rhyming verse in your comics, at least be consistent. The verse in The Evil of Oz goes from not rhyming to not rhyming then abandons it altogether. That frustrates me. An example of when it rhymes from The Evil of Oz. Written by Ryan Fuller with artwork by Sanjana Baijnath. 

A Moment of Comics

I read Sir Gawain and the Green Knight before college for personal enjoyment. It helped me appreciate what writer Walt Simonson was doing with Thor and his final fight with Jormungand the World Serpent, his writing style emulating an epic poem. From Thor #380, words and breakdown by living legend Simonson with finishes by the recently departed Sal Buscema.

 

A Moment of Comics

It feels like cheating since I posted The Maxx last week, but for National Poetry Month I wanted to include this page from The Maxx #5 where Maxx is forced into speaking in rhyme as he dreams of meeting the Crappon in a Hat, an in-universe cartoon character. The Crappon dream sequence was drawn by Crappon's creator, Sam Kieth's cousin and infamous "Cow and Chicken" animator David Feiss. Tip of the hat to William Messner-Loebs for the poetry stuff.

A Bonus Moment of Comics

Steve Ditko did the licensed property comic Chuck Norris and the Karate Kommandos in 1987. He went on to do his own creation Speedball. Both these titles were done for Marvel. Did Ditko have a long term plan to do a Chuck Norris crossover with his own hero early on only for the Norris comic to only last four issues? Regardless of what happened, Chuck Norris was replaced by famous martial artist and actor and totally original Marvel character Chick Harris. A page from Speedball #3, drawn and plotted by Ditko with scripting by Jo Duffy.