Star Slammers Day!

 

Walt Simonson was born on this date in 1946. Simonson first came to my attention on the utterly fantastic run of Manhunter stories with Archie Goodwin. He also stood out on the adaptation of Alien. His later stories for both Thor and the Fantastic Four proved that he was just as fine a writer as he was an artist. One of Simonson's earliest proofs of that talent was Star Slammers. 

It only took thirty years, but I finally got around to reading Walter Simonson's Star Slammers. This Marvel Graphic Novel made an impression, even if at the time it hit the stands, I was not in a mood to sample it. It's been out there ever since, a book I was sort of curious about, but never so much so, that it pushed its way to the top and a need to buy it. It's not the price which has never been all that much, but for some reason my interest and my finding it never coincided. But some years ago, when I found it lurking in a back issue box for a mere two bucks. That was too good a price to ignore. For the price of a Coke, I could finally read this story which I'd known about for decades.

It's pretty good. The Star Slammers are a hidden race of magnificent warriors who are threatened by a much more abundant race of humans who seek to wipe them out. They have made a name for themselves by hiring out their impressive warrior skills as mercenaries, acquiring over the years an arsenal against the inevitable day when their enemies would come seeking their destruction. This is the story of that ultimate battle and of three Slammers in particular who spearhead the defense of their people.

(Thesis Version Page)

It's strange story of warriors who don't fear death, but only defeat. And it is a secret weapon they all possess but cannot use which is the key to their victory if they can only unlock its secret. Walt Simonson's artwork is impressive, and while his page layouts are at times bizarre, I never found my eye lost on the page as I strolled through the tale. Turns out, this is a revision of material he'd produced and used as a thesis at the Rhode Island School of Design. It was this material, which Simonson used as a portfolio which impressed Carmine Infantino and go him a gig at DC and eventually Manhunter. 

In the 90's Simonson dusted off the concept and produced four issues for Malibu's Bravura brand. 

There was supposed to be a fifth issue, but that had to wait a couple of years until it was published as a special by Dark Horse. 

Dark Horse also published a Star Slammers story in Dark Horse Presents #114. 

All of this material as well as Simonson's original thesis version were collected by IDW in 2015 and go for wild prices now. 

It took me thirty years to read Star Slammers. If you can find it cheap, don't let it be that long for you.

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Tales Of Asgard!

(The dates for 1975 and 2025 are identical.)

One of the earliest Marvel Comics I ever bought was the bodacious Tales of Asgard special which landed on the stands in 1968 under a singularly compelling Jack Kirby cover. I was already a fan of reading collections of myths from Greece and Rome among others. But the Norse myths appealed to me especially. 

When I read Kirby's Tales of Asgard later, it was with a keen eye to the notion that these stories are a direct precursor to the Fourth World material he'd generate at DC after his famous migration in the early 70's. For there to be "New Gods" there must have been "Old Gods" and these are them.

Thor started as a somewhat peculiar superhero feature with secret identities, offbeat romances, super-villains, and all the trappings. But slowly it became something else as more and more aspects of Thor's Asgardian roots appeared in the story. It became less and less about his timid romance with Jane Foster and more and more about his relationship with Odin and the other denizens across the Brifrost.

Eventually the drive to give the series a mythic thrust gives us small vignettes which dramatized Norse myths. We get the origin of the universe, the world, the gods and man. We meet Odin, his allies, his enemies, and eventually his sons Thor and Loki. We see Thor as a boy and Loki too, as their eternal enmity begins to express itself. We meet Heimdall, the guardian of the Rainbow Bridge and others such as Balder the Brave. More myth is adapted as the series slowly begins to slow its pace and offer up extended stories.

A real shift came when Odin sends Thor on a quest to investigate the advent of Ragnarok and along with him are a crew which includes Hogun the Grim, Fandrall the Dashing, and Volstagg the Voluminous. These "Warriors Three" begin in the the Tales of Asgard feature and then become a reliable part of the main modern story up front in the comic.

It is in this tale of Ragnarok that these warriors find their own end and the hints of a new world to come. It is in the pages of these short back up yarns that the seeds of the Fourth World are planted.  We even meet one of Kirby's first passes as a Hive community, an idea he develops in the Fourth World with Forager and his ilk. Later we'll meet the Lightning Lady and her minions in the pages of Captain Victory.

Following the discovery the end of the world and the hint of a new, the heroes go on other quests. They seek out Harokin, a brave warrior who ends up being embraced by the goddess of the death Hela. They find and confront the dragon Fafnir who offers up a terrible tempation.

They even end up visiting a distant territory which evokes the magic and wonder of The Arabian Knights. All along the way the stories grow more and more baroque with Kirby's art getting increasingly abstract as he develops into his mature stage. Vince Colletta supplies the inks to nearly all of these tales save for a few in the early days inked by Don Heck and  George Bell and a later tale inked by Bill Everett of all people.

The Tales of Asgard feature ends and is replaced by The Inhumans (and odd place for them, but the one comic which seemed to be largely controlled by Kirby). It offered up a delightful brew of heady adventures and it offered up a glimpse of what was to come.

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The Spirit Archives Volume Seventeen!

Things get really bizarre in The Spirit Archives Volume Seventeen. We are still in 1948, and Eisner's storytelling remains potent, as he continues to cast about for content. He will forage far and wide, using the powerful blend of action, mystery and humor which has made this series so famous. If anything, the noir world of Central City gets downright supernatural at times with strange and deadly women and inexplicable fables. 

Cromlech was a Nature Boy July 4, 1948

When Cromlech leaves his isolated wood and journeys to the big city aboard the ferry he is startled by the world he finds. He is found by Ebony White and when he's hungry he eats nuts and roots. But finding grub also means he finds some buried booty. When one of the thugs who buried comes for it, things get violent quickly. The intervention of The Spirit helps to bring some justice to the exceedingly strange situation. 

The Springtime of Dolan July 11, 1948

Ward Healy plots to have Commissioner Dolan fall in love and marry and retire, so as to leave his position open for a crime boss named Stuffer Ballot, who wants the gig. But that crime boss is impatient and takes steps to kidnap Dolan's love the Widder Walker, a woman who Ellen isn't that crazy about. But Healy fears he'll lose his power by so open a crime and takes moves to intervene, making himself out to be a hero. The Spirit stands by. 

Barkarolle July 18, 1948

When Roger the dog runs away, he gets caught up in a gang of dogs trained to steal for the benefit of a former vaudeville turned criminal named Sven Galli, a Fido Fagin of sorts. But Ebony with the help of The Spirit manages to round up most of the canine criminal outfit and saves poor Roger who comes under threat from his cruel gangster master. 

The Thing July 25, 1948

Eisner brings the literature to his weekly section, by adapting Ambrose Bierce's "The Thing", a seminal horror story. It's pointless of me to suggest that while this is an entertaining diversion, this adaptation falls flat simply because much of the power of Bierce's original is in the build-up, which is lost in this shortened presentation. It's still a pretty strange brew though about an invisible enemy. Jerry Grandenetti is credited with the pencils on pages dedicated to the Bierce story itself. 

The Eisner Travel Agency August 1, 1948

Caramba is the "Crime Capital of the World", and The Spirit goes there to capture a thug named Gass Tocsin who kidnapped Ebony. Both Mr. Carrion and The Octopus make appearances when The Spirit busts in on the assembled criminals. It takes all his might and wit to escape with his quarry intact. A tour of Caramba helps him out immensely. 

A Day at the Beach August 8, 1948

This is a weird one. The Spirit and the gang take a day off from crime-fighting to enjoy a day at the beach. But when the always silent P.S. Smith falls through a hole in the sand The Spirit is forced to rescue him from a bizarre undersea realm ruled by a Neptune who resembles Commissioner Dolan. The Spirit fights an actual octopus before rescuing P.S. from the clutches of two mermaids. 

Junior President Election August 15, 1948

Things go sideways in the election for "Junior President", a figure who will speak up for the rights of kids everywhere in the country. The All-Year Vacation Party nominates P.S. Smith who is promptly kidnapped by gangsters who want to rig the election in favor of the "No-Homework Party" so as to win bets on the affair. But honesty and good sportsmanship wins the day. 

The Fall of the House of Usher August 22, 1948

It's another classic literary adaptation when Eisner gives his readers his own take on Edgar Allan Poe's classic "The Fall of the House of Usher". I found this one a bit more successful, at least in the broad strokes of keeping to the mood of the original yarn. Perhaps it helps that Eisner gave this one a bit more room to develop, though it's still a close fit. 

The Prisoner of Donjon August 29, 1948

When the "Old Donjon" jail is torn down, the workers find a forgotten prisoner still inside. He's become totally institutionalized and demands that he remain in jail. Since records have been lost in a fire his identity remains unknown, that is until the legal team of Redtape and Snarl, which conspired to put the old man named Simon Smudge in jail in the first place seek to do it again. 

The Story of Gerhard Shnobble September 5, 1948

In one of the most famous Spirit stories of all we meet the innocent and hapless Gerhard Shnobble, a man who can fly. He was forbidden to use his gift as a boy and lived his life without that joy for over thirty-five years. But circumstances put him squarely in the middle of a bank robbery. When he finally remembers his singular talent, he finds that The Spirit is on hand as well. 

Cache McStash September 12, 1948

When a hoodlum famous for hiding loot dies, a strange cryptogram appears in the newspapers which creates a "gold rush" of sorts in P.S. 182 and in particular the classroom of Mr. Crabnich who is himself trying to unravel the mathematical puzzle. When Ebony and his pal figure it out, it's only the beginning of the mayhem which follows in this wild adventure which requires The Spirit to step in at the end. 

Lorelei Rox September 19, 1948

The Spirit suffers in this bizarre tale of robbery and murder on the highways. A hijacker named Blacky Marquett brings home his wartime bride named Lorelei and finds that her strange songs lure truckers away from their appointed rounds. In an attempt to unravel this crime spree, The Spirit signs up as a trucker, but he too falls under Lorelei's strange power, and he barely escapes with his life when that power seeks to destroy everything around it. 

Ace McCase September 26, 1948 

When the cottage occupied by Ace McCase goes up for rent, it's a popular location in a country hungry for housing. But Commissioner Dolan and The Spirit seek control of the property because they suspect clues to crimes linger there. Dolan falls under the spell of a woman named Lizzie Pinch and The Spirit becomes frustrated when he becomes convinced that she's a criminal, also looking for loot. 

Tooty Compote October 3, 1948

When black-nosed chap named Tooty Compote discovers he can kill with a simple command, he becomes valuable to the local mob who are in dire need of torpedoes since The Spirit rounded up all three of their previous ones. The lovely "Slip" Claws is the lawyer for the mob and Tooty hopes to win her over with his plans to rule the world. 

Gold October 10, 1948

It's Shangri-La in the Old West when a 130-year-old outlaw named Sam Chapparell turns up in the tiny town of Lope. The Spirit is contacted in Central City when Sam escapes custody after killing the local law. Our hero puts on Western duds and rides a horse into the mountains to find a gang of outlaws who have hidden away from the law for over a century. After a brutal struggle the gang leave the mountains to uncertain fates. 

Nazel B Twitch October 17, 1948

Nazel B Twitch loves his car, a 1929 Flash sedan named "Florence" more than anything. So, when he loses his job and his wife sells his car, he leaves his wife and attempts to buy it back. But unable to come up with the cash he ends up getting mixed up with some bank robbers looking for a getaway vehicle. When he finally tumbles to the scheme, he helps The Spirit bring in the two hoodlums. As for his wife, well I'll let you read it and find out. 

Pancho De Bool October 24, 1948

When a talking bull named Pancho tries to talk his way out of slaughterhouse we are treated to a wild tale of a man named Pepin de La Mancha who dreamed of being a matador and fighting Pancho to the cheers of the crowd. But hard times leads Pepin to crime and betrayal and death. The Spirit seeks Pepin's killers and to do that travels to Mexico. In the end, Eisner leaves it to the reader to decide if this is a real Spirit adventure or just a bunch of bull. 

The Halloween Spirit of 1948 - Ellen Meets Hazel October 31, 1948

Hazel MacBeth returns and she's looking to appear in the school Halloween play. But when she is insulted that director Ellen Dolan will not let her do her own flying, she leaves in a huff and ends up partnering with The Octopus to steal a valuable book which is being loaned to the school for the holiday season. She uses her magic to pull off the crime, but as usual with The Octopus, a deal is rarely a deal, especially when he learns Hazel is attracted to him. 

Plaster of Paris November 7, 1948

The Spirit encounters one of the deadliest dames in his career when he comes up against the dagger of Plaster of Paris. We get this story in flashback, and we see how The Spirit has become the prisoner of Plaster who is using Inspector Gillotine of the French Surete on behalf of the criminal Don Macabre. But as is often the case with these molls, when they encounter The Spirit, they undergo a change. 

The Chapparell Lode November 14, 1948

This story hearkens back to the earlier tale in which a villain's Shangri-La was discovered in the Western mountains and lots of gold with it. The hood Quirte and his gang seek the location of Boot Camp, the remote abandoned town for its wealth while The Spirit and Commissioner Dolan want to use the location for a sanitarium where its strange healthy atmosphere can help others. It's a battle to the end for control. 

Quirte November 21, 1948

This story picks up from the previous one as we follow the villain Quirte into the remote mountains. He's managed to get some gold from Boot Camp where The Spirit is helping Dolan heal after being shot. But now Quirte finds that he lacks provisions to get himself out of the mountains. His greed causes him to abuse the potential help of an Indian named "Little Fox Hermit", who in fact puts a curse on Quirte. 

The Amulet of Osiris November 28, 1948

While The Spirit and Commissioner Dolan are out of Central City, it seems to two hoods named Prexy and Fleeble that now is a good time to commit a high-profile theft. Prexy schemes to steal the Amulet of Osiris from the Central City Museum. He cons Officer Klink into helping him shift a phony stone for the real one. When Klink learns that he's been hoodwinked it's a race to stop the two baddies from escaping by plane. 

The Coin December 5, 1948

In this story Eisner imitates the radio show format of phoning its listeners and giving them prizes for answering questions. So, as we follow this noir adventure in which The Octopus pretends to be The Spirit in order to obtain a valuable coin, the story is interrupted by the call to "Stop the Plot!" It's a rugged battle between our hero and his most dangerous enemy.  

Two Lives December 12, 1948

Two identical men, a gangster named Carboy T. Gretch and a put-upon husband named Cranfranz Qwale bemoan their existences. Then both escape via the sewers and then meet. They decide to exchange identities in hopes that they can become free of those things which oppress them. One of them gets his wish. Officer Klink is featured as The Spirit himself only appears in one panel. 

The Christmas Spirit of 1948 - Basher Bains December 19, 1948

Basher Bains feels his luck when Santa Claus shows up in his cell and offers him any present. He wants his freedom so that he can kill The Spirit and escape Central City. Giving Basher his Santa outfit, the old Elf awaits him in his cell while Basher escapes. But his encounter with three carolers, all youngsters and one of them blind alters Basher's plans as the Christmas Spirit wins the day yet again. 

Will Eisner's Almanack of the Year December 26, 1948

This strange entry in the series actually reviews the significant stories of the past year month by month. We once again get to encounter deadly dames such Powder Pouf, Kretchma, Lorelei Rox, and Plaster of Paris. We are reminded of the gold in the villain's Shangri-La and Quirte's desperate efforts to claim it. We remember the election for Junior President and the wedding of Bleak and Sparrow. We reflect on the strange cases of Mrs. Parafin, Cromlech the Nature Boy, and the struggle with Merry Andrew. The Spirit remembers the dangers when he went into the underworld during the great snowstorm of the year. And villains such as The Octopus are recalled. 

And that's 1948 in Central City and parts nearby. As I said, it was a weird series of events with oddball characters. The Spirit himself often took a backseat in order for the varied cast to catch the limelight. All-in-all a fun year. 

See you in a fortnight when The Spirit enters 1949. The decade is almost over, but the adventures haven't. 

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