Vicarious View (Science Fiction)

by Brian Barr

Publisher: Brian Barr Books (June 26, 2018)

Softcover, 42 pages

“Please don’t pull back on our deal, Tanaka, Nishiyoka thought, hoping his plea would leak through those metal receptors that extended from the hardware lodged into Tanaka’s brain, the small computer that allowed Nishiyoka to experience life through his host. I waited months just for the program to pick a viable candidate. What a life you lead. The exhilarating work of acting. The money. The women. Even my own life, born into wealth, was never like yours. I never lived the kind of life worth living. The days before and after my cancer were pathetic and miserable. You give me hope. You allow me to live again. You give me the space to be free and live as a true person… not just some log in a hospital bed.”

A short story of the highest caliber, set in the most underused (in my humble opinion) categories of science fiction, cyberpunk. A subgenre of science fiction not done well enough and one that seems to be neglected as of late.

In this story, we have a man, Nishiyoka, withering of cancer, but rather than waste what little life he had has his mind linked to a successful actor and lives as much as he can in the other man’s mind. But the actor has problems of his own, in both his love and professional lives. Soon those problems come to take their toll and Tanaka is accidentally swept up in it.

Author Brian Barr

The story asks the simple question (with no answer given, like all great literature) about the quality of life. -Nishiyoka, along with his wife who is simply a brain in a jar, have been robbed of all the pleasures of life. But is their vicarious existence actual living? Is it a life worth having. From a modern day perspective, it is similar to a person who spends nearly all their time playing video games or watch movies. Is that the life you want? Living through others achievements.

For more readings, try books by Rex Hurst. 

All Waldo Comics (Humor) (Graphic Novel)

by Kim Deitch 

Publisher: Fantagraphics Books (March 1, 1992)

Softcover, 64 Pages

Waldo is an unspade cartoon black cat who is always depicted with his penis in the appropriate spot. If you find that image distasteful, don't bother with the rest of this article.

The author, Kim Deitch (a man, for those who are interested) has been around the underground comix scene since there was some scene, but never really rose above his indie roots until after the millennium with his book The Boulevard of Broken Dreams.

Waldo is a reprehensible, mean-spirited alcoholic, with a number one branded on his stomach. He is the result of genetic engineering...kind of. In each of the stories presented here he screws, drinks, shoots heroin, and murders people without hesitation or remorse. Very entertaining.

There are a few autobiographical pieces included in the volume. One if them defends Waldo’s appearance. Apparently many people over the decades have accused him of ripping off Felix the Cat. Deitch defends his creation, by pointing out in the 30s every animation unit had a black cat character and all of them looked similar. Felix the Cat, Krazy Kat, Julius the Cat from Disney, all looked very similar. And he has a point. Waldo is a unique character and acts like none of the others. 

For more readings, try books by Rex Hurst. 

1 Month 2 Live (Superhero) (Graphic Novel)

by Rick Remender, John Ostrander, Stuart Moore, Rob Williams, Andrea Mutti, & Koi Turnbull

Publisher: Marvel (January 12, 2011) 

Hardcover, 128 pages

A bittersweet story from the Marvel universe about a man who tries to stop a mugging, is forced to eat toxic medical waste, and gains superpowers - don't think about it too much, just let it go. Written by a host of classic authors, each issue grabs the reader, offers a different villain, and does not hold back. Something that sadly missing in the modern Marvel lineup.

As it turns out, his new powers exacerbates an undiagnosed cancer lying in his stomach, causing it to grow at an incredible rate. Mr. Fantastic gives him only a month to live. In that time, this once depressed man in a boring life suddenly gets kicked into the land of superheroes. With his new powers to affect matter he defeats gangsters with Spiderman, saves the Galaxy against Ego, the Living Planet, and travels into the depths of the Savage Land with Ka-Zar.  All the while the cancer chews him up more with every power expenditure.

The action is counterpointed by a man coming to grips that his life us going to end. He has to weight that against taking care of his orphaned niece who's own Father died of cancer. It's an over the top story with a heart and tragic ending, but still one that inspires hope. Perhaps written in the best tradition of the old school comics. It makes a point but isn't preachy.  

For more readings, try books by Rex Hurst. 

Moving Fortress (Fantasy) (Graphic Novel)

by Richardo Barreiro & Enrique Alcatena

Publisher: 4 Winds Publishing (November, 1988)

Softcover, 48 pages

This story first appeared in Skorpio, a South American magazine which published illustrated stories similar to Heavy Metal. It was first published in the 1980s by 4 Winds Publishing, an independent company dedicated to bringing foreign material to the United States. Unfortunately, it went bankrupt after two years and only producing a handful of books. Luckily, this was one of the books produced.

The entire story is in the tradition of The Trojan War, or the birth of King Arthur if you prefer. Two mighty armies go to war over a purloined wife (or so it seems at first) in an exaggerated series of epic battles. And our protagonist, Bask De Avregaut, is caught up in the middle of the conflict.

The titular “moving fortress” is a massive portable war machine, power on what seems to be nuclear waste, or fantasy equivalent of it. Our hero first becomes a captured slave, grinding away filling the engines with its toxic gunk. He eventually, after a few well-placed murders, works his way up the military hierarchy, until the final big battle.

While the story is almost predictable, the real reason to read this volume is the incredible and visionary art by Alcatena. It is clear he was allowed to take liberties with a lot of the material. Each panel is crafted with panache and verve, filled with fascinating detail and oddities. Nearly anyone of them could stand alone as an individual work of art. Taken together it is a breathtaking display of skill in the medium.

For more readings, try books by Rex Hurst. 

Cartoons of the Roaring Twenties: Vol. 2: 1923 - 1925 (Humor)

Edited by R. C. Harvey 

Publisher: Fantagraphics (1992)

 

Softcover, 56 pages

The Roaring Twenties was the decade which truly gave definition to the twentieth century. It’s style, it’s rapaciousness, it’s blatant sexuality, and the explosion of mass media mediums of film, wire news services, and radio tossed away the last remnants of Victorian era ideas. In fact, one could claim that Americana as a whole had finally gripped the entire nation, rather than certain parts of it.  

And one of the most important aspects of any paper or magazine (which were in their heyday in the 20s) was their illustrations. A newspaper could not survive without a good comic section. The quality of the illustrations in a magazine was a direct reflection of the worthiness of the rest of its content. Crossword puzzles, comic pages, and movies were all the rage. 

Collected here is a great selection of cartoons from the luminaries of the day. Near forgotten names like John Held Jr. who’s drawings were said to have created the flapper identity. As humorist Corey Ford wrote “Each new Held drawing was poured over like a Paris fashion plate. Girls cropped their hair and rouged their cheeks and shortened their skirts to be in style, galoshes and racoon coats were indispensable to every male undergraduate wardrobe.” Held claimed he was simply copying the styles around him, but many others in turn copied the copied fashions of his illustrations.  

Also, in this second volume of work was that of Percy L. Crosby who created a decades favorite character named Skippy, a lovable tyke who gets into all sorts of mischief. While that sounds familiar in many comic strips, Skippy was the original. Alas, the only last vestige of this franchise is the peanut butter named after the character.

The two above are far from the only luminaries in this collection. Here we will also see the evolution of the comic scene, specifically the single panel gag. In the beginning hte gag was written and placed along with a seemingly random image. Often the gag and image could bear no real resemblance to each other, but as the years pass we see the merging of both art and text. This volume is essential for those who are interested in the evolution of the medium.

For more readings, try books by Rex Hurst. 

For more readings, try books by Rex Hurst. 

Canardo Private Eye: Blue Angel (Graphic Novel)

by Sokal 

Publisher: NBM Publishing Co. (June 1, 1991)

Softcover, 46 pages

Another bleak anthropomorphic world from our European cousins. The Inspector Canardo series has spawned over twenty two volumes over the years in Belgium, but only two were published in English. This is the second one (I seem to only be reviewing second volumes lately). Both are listed on Amazon- for those who are interested.

Drawn in a somewhat classic funny animal style, with a dark pallet underlying the entire scene, the main character Canardo (named after the French word “canard”, meaning “duck”) stumbles drunkenly through his life. And considering his world is filled with broken down buildings, grimy landscapes, iron-grey seas, and ruined old forts, who the blame the duck for not wanting to stay sober.

The story is a topsy-turvy one that seems as if it’s rambling in the middle, but eventually all plot points tie in together. Canardo can barely be called a protagonist in this story as he does little but observe the violent and bizarre events, in between bouts of drinking. It is an almost evil tale, with almost no redeeming characters. The action revolves around a gentle bear, easily picked on, who turns into a raging psychopath whenever he hears a particular song. It is a wonderfully sleazy tale with a very violent ending.

Just for information, the creator of this series, Benoît Sokal, was also the director for one of my favorite video games back in the day, Siberia. It’s a point-and-click narrative puzzle game in the style of Broken Sword about a woman’s journey to a mythical island. It’s beautifully rendered, or it was for 2005. It might be a bit dated now, but I enjoyed the game and its sequel immensely. Here is the wikipedia link for the game. It is available on Steam.

For more readings, try books by Rex Hurst. 

For more readings, try books by Rex Hurst. 

Groo Vs. Conan (Fantasy) (Graphic Novel)

by Sergio Aragones, Mark Evanier, & Thomas Yeats

Publisher: Dark Horse Books (April 14, 2015)

Softcover, 104 pages

Groo versus Conan an impossibility that had to happen. From the pencils of Sergio Aragones of Mad Magazine fame.  Here we have the two unconquerable barbarians of comics fame. Well sort of famous. This book ranks up there with other great vs comics such as: Archie vs. Predator, RoboCop vs Terminator, Stormwatch vs. Aliens, and Sherlock Holmes vs. Dracula (called Scarlet in Gaslight).  

I'm sure Conan the Barbarian needs no introduction here. The creation of Robert E. Howard in the 1920s and first published in pulp magazines like Weird Tales, Conan has been a part if the American zeitgeist ever since conquering many mediums. From print, then to the comics (Marvel brought him back in the 70s to great success), then to films with Arnold Swartzenegger, cartoons, games, and so on. 

Groo on the other hand never made it past the comic page. He began as a backup feature in one of my favorite old comics Destroyer Duck. Then moved onto his own title first published by Pacific Comics before that company went under, then went to Epic (a Marvel imprint), then Image, and most recently Dark Horse- who put out this volume.  

Groo is an idiot who never stops causing trouble, is ridiculously violent, kills hundreds of people, and never quite understands what's going on. He’s less a protagonist than a force of nature personified. And as he was created to be a parody of comic barbarians like Conan. Naturally the two had to meet. 

The story is framed in an odd manner as it all exists in the drug addled head of Sergio Aragones after he is beaten up a drugged in the hospital. As such there is a strong Don Quixote aspect to the story. As parts of Groo’s saga mirror me check of what the artist is experiencing.  

As you might expect a tale such as this is surreal beyond the norm. The parts of Conan are drawn by Yeats in an entirely different style. It creates an Alice in Wonderland mixture of delusion and seriousness. 

The books is a fun ride, riddled with self effacing comments on the comic and industry as a whole. A homeless bum mentions that his company published Groo before going under. Aragones loses his portfolio and his partner states that it would take him a whole hour to redraw all the pages. Plus everyone confuses him with the Hispanic who created Spy Vs Spy. 

For more readings, try books by Rex Hurst.