Tag Archives: politics

Spotlight on The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen – part 1

Posted on December 23, 2019 by I.M. Baytor

If Master Race and other stories was Gotham Calling’s 2018 book of the year, this time around that questionable honor goes to The Tempest, the collection that marks the ending – twenty years after the first issue came out – … Continue reading →

Posted in WEBS OF FICTION | Tagged Alan Moore, Ben Dimagmaliw, Bill Oakley, Cold War, Ian Edginton, Kevin O'Neill, League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, politics, science fiction, Todd Klein | Leave a comment

Spotlight on Fury: My War Gone By

Posted on November 26, 2019 by I.M. Baytor

2012’s limited series Fury: My War Gone By is the kind of idiosyncratic, fascinating beast you get in the field of comics, bizarrely merging auteurism-ran-loose with a popular corporate franchise in the form of provocative historical fiction. It’s not just … Continue reading →

Posted in SPYCRAFT & WARFARE | Tagged Cold War, Dave Johnson, espionage, Garth Ennis, Goran Parlov, Kathryn Immonen, Lee Loughridge, Nick Fury, politics, Punisher, Rich Ellis | Leave a comment

Chuck Dixon’s mordant Batman

Posted on November 18, 2019 by I.M. Baytor

Last week I mentioned that Chuck Dixon is an old-school pro whose work in Batman comics (especially during his most prolific period, in the 1990s), rather than blow up the status quo, was all about gripping narratives that stayed true … Continue reading →

Posted in WRITERS OF BATMAN COMICS | Tagged Chuck Dixon, Cold War, movies, politics | Leave a comment

Brilliant horror short stories

Posted on October 30, 2019 by I.M. Baytor

In theory, horror shouldn’t be an easy fit for stories of ten pages or less. For a narrative to be truly scary or disturbing, the stakes should be painstakingly set up, the atmosphere should breathe, the fearful anticipation should be … Continue reading →

Posted in FANTASTIC ADVENTURES | Tagged 2000 AD, Al Feldstein, Alec Worley, Bernie Krigstein, Bernie Wrightson, Bill Gaines, Bruce Jones, Carl Wessler, Charlotte Jetter, Cold War, Ellie De Ville, Gerry Conway, Harry Harrison, horror, Jim Aparo, Jim Wroten, Joe Orlando, John Albano, Marie Severin, noir, politics, Reed Crandall, Richard Corben, science fiction, Steve Ditko, Steve Gerber, Tom Foster, Vicente Alcazar, Wally Wood, Young Montano | 2 Comments

On Todd Phillips’ Joker

Posted on October 11, 2019 by I.M. Baytor

It turns out the most satisfying way to appreciate Todd Phillips’ Joker was to almost forget that it was a Joker movie. Taken as a DCU entry, the project didn’t particularly appeal to me: a Joker origin story (when the … Continue reading →

Posted in WEBS OF FICTION | Tagged Alan Moore, Bill Finger, Bob Kane, horror, Jerry Robinson, Joker, movies, politics, Quino | Leave a comment

Spotlight on Fury: Peacemaker

Posted on July 30, 2019 by I.M. Baytor

We kicked off this year’s Spy Fiction Month with a comic set in World War II and we’ll finish with one as well. Like I mentioned last week, in 2001 Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson reinvented Marvel’s war-hero-turned-super-spy Nick Fury … Continue reading →

Posted in SPYCRAFT & WARFARE | Tagged Darick Robertson, espionage, Garth Ennis, Jimmy Palmiotti, Nick Fury, politics, Raúl Treviño, Rodney Ramos, World War II | Leave a comment

Spotlight on Fury MAX

Posted on July 24, 2019 by I.M. Baytor

Way before Samuel L. Jackson embodied the role, Colonel Nick Fury was already a household name for Marvel fans, having starred in a string of seminal psychedelic spy comics by Jack Kirby and Jim Steranko back in the 1960s… Strange … Continue reading →

Posted in SPYCRAFT & WARFARE | Tagged Axel Alonso, Bill Jemas, Cold War, D.G. Chichester, Darick Robertson, espionage, Garth Ennis, Jimmy Palmiotti, Joe Quesada, Nick Fury, politics | Leave a comment

A couple of excellent spy novels

Posted on July 17, 2019 by I.M. Baytor

Shifting gears for a bit, today let’s talk about a couple of cool books without drawings that came out almost a decade ago… OUR KIND OF TRAITOR (John le Carré, 2010) “At seven o’clock of a Caribbean morning, on the … Continue reading →

Posted in SPYCRAFT & WARFARE | Tagged books without pictures, espionage, Greg Rucka, John le Carré, politics, Queen & Country | Leave a comment

Spotlight on The Unknown Soldier, 1975-1976

Posted on July 10, 2019 by I.M. Baytor

In the early 1970s, the Unknown Soldier feature of Star Spangled War Stories told exciting spy adventures set in World War II, starring a disfigured operative turned master-of-disguise who undertook secret missions under direct orders from Washington. As I explained … Continue reading →

Posted in SPYCRAFT & WARFARE | Tagged Cold War, David Michelinie, espionage, Gerry Conway, Gerry Talaoc, Joe Orlando, politics, Unknown Soldier, World War II | Leave a comment

Spotlight on The Unknown Soldier, 1970-1974

Posted on July 5, 2019 by I.M. Baytor

There is a whole branch of spy fiction focusing on World War II going back to the time of the conflict itself. In cinema, the British kicked things off with thrillers such as Night Train to Munich and Contraband. Hollywood … Continue reading →

Posted in SPYCRAFT & WARFARE | Tagged Archie Goodwin, Bob Haney, espionage, Frank Robins, Jack Sparling, Joe Kubert, movies, politics, Robert Kanigher, Unknown Soldier, World War II | Leave a comment