Some non-long underwear books

eltingvilleBefore Evan Dorkin started writing Space Ghost Coast 2 Coast, Shin Chan and Yo Gabba Gabba! There was Milk & Cheese, Dork! and these losers…The Eltingville Club which ridiculed the dark side of fandom when it wasn’t publicly acceptable, nor profitable. You know, the late Eighties and throughout the Nineties. Some of you may recognize the name from the failed [adult swim] pilot over a decade ago. Maybe it was too soon since Robot Chicken contains similar digs yet thrives. (For the record, I love Robot Chicken.)

The story begins with the club’s de facto president Bill landing the coveted job at the local comic-book store. Despite the quartet being friends, Bill’s gig leads to jealousy, name-calling, a brawl, disaster and eventually the club being disbanded by the parents. Dorkin’s two-part arc promises to be the characters’ finale unlike the numerous Motley Crue and Who farewell tours. No idea what lies next in the second issue beyond them reuniting a decade later at San Diego Comic Con.

I’ve always enjoyed Eltingville since it pokes fun at the stuff I’m into. It also serves as a mirror to hold oneself up to. If I’m not as awful as these guys, I’m doing alright. Dorkin even stated in an interview, he’s not mocking fandom, he’s ripping a new one into the fanatics who make it unenjoyable for everyone. Back when I was living in Illinois, there was a guy that was the embodiment of the same problem so Dorkin hit close to home. Those are the books and comics I feel are the best, the titles which resonate to your own personal memories.

When Dark Horse publishes the Eltingville compilation this Fall, I will be buying it immediately and having it around to loan. If you can’t wait like me, give this book a try. Non-fans (or as my friend Steve Bryant called them, “straights,”) will laugh as well.

BlackScience1

Things have certainly changed over the last few years at Image Comics. They’re no longer the creator-owned publisher of superheroes that are knockoffs of existing Marvel and DC characters. Nor are they exclusively the company relying solely on The Walking Dead. Image has become the company pushing the envelope on story telling harder than Dark Horse does in my opinion.

Black Science is my first example. The story focuses on Grant McKay, an unorthodox scientist developing the means to cross dimensions through his invention called the Pillar. His motivations are also shaky; this creation will save mankind by leading us to alternate realities where we can just steal the inhabitants’ technical advances so we won’t have to create them at great expense.

The inaugural “flight” with McKay and his Dimensionauts goes awry because someone sabotaged the Pillar, flinging them to an alien earth. Now they’re trying to return home but the contraption keeps taking them somewhere else at random. Adding to the stress, McKay foolishly chose to take his two children along thinking there was no risk. No, he figured it was a good opportunity for them to get to know his mistress better.

Currently, Black Science is on a brief hiatus after issue number six. There’s a trade paperback for 1-6 and the story will pick up later in the Summer.

sexcriminalsSex Criminals is a bit trickier. It isn’t for kids yet it isn’t pornography, even the milder R-rated kind shown on Cinemax. It’s what I prefer to call an adult story like some R-rated movies which earned the rating for the subject matter, not for showing pointless nudity; case-in-point Caddyshack. There’s a point to why the main characters have sex.

The focus is on Suzie and Jon who occasionally break the fourth wall with the audience reminiscing about the events. Both protagonists have an odd gift, when they have sex and climax, time stops. How long varies but they each discovered this power during their adolescence. Suzie calls this limbo state The Quiet, Jon has a more vulgar term.

They both meet at a party and through their mutual love of Nabokov, one thing leads to another that night and they discover both have the same ability. So Suzie and Jon decide to use their time-stopping powers to rob banks. Their motives aren’t necessarily selfish. The corporation they’re sticking it to wants to close the library Suzie works for unless its debt is paid in full. The lender hasn’t been very reasonable neither, fueling their rage further. Jon is a low-level employee at said bank and he hates his boss (you have to read how he expresses this). Getting him to join Suzie’s scheme didn’t take much effort.

Success is short-lived when the duo quickly discover there are others capable of traveling through The Quiet and they seem to be the Sex Cops.

Criminals is a humorous and frank comic book. There are parodies/pun names in the backgrounds or details if you look. The sex element isn’t pornographic, it’s a plot device and anyone looking for smut would be disappointed especially when it can be found on the Internet for free.

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