brad@looking.UUCP (Brad Templeton) (08/13/85)
I think whether you enjoy Kelvin Mace depends on your style of humour. The humour in this book is the humour of the absurd, the same sort of thing you find in places like Monty Python. There's lots of Monty Python that's far more violent, and people laugh at it. The Black Knight from Holy Grail, "Salad Days", and almost all of "The Meaning of Life" are examples of this. If you haven't already guessed, Monty Python is the favourite comedy group of both myself and Ty. (Yes, the author of the comic under discussion is my brother.) However, Kelvin Mace doesn't quite live up, and to be honest I think it has a way to go. He's not drawing this and I think you lose something when a magazine is not the work of one man. He was also running himself pretty ragged at the time this was done, as he was doing 4 mags at once (Everything on STIG'S INFERNO, Writing on Kelvin Mace and Mister X, plus editing the Vortex flagship comic). I think he should cut down. You might enjoy Stig #5. While he was drawing it, I gave him my Illuminatus! books and so he's put in a few references. Due to political problems, Stig #5 will be a while reaching the stands. 'nuff said, to copy a phrase. I will pass your review on to Kelvin Mace. He may pay you a visit to tell you how much he appreciates it. 8-) -- Brad Templeton, Looking Glass Software Ltd. - Waterloo, Ontario 519/884-7473
harry@ucbarpa (08/13/85)
From: harry@ucbarpa (Harry I. Rubin)
Well, for my first review piece in this group I get to pan a
bad comic: Kelvin Mace #1, from Vortex Comics. Don't buy this
book, there are better uses for your $1.75; you could throw
the money into the street, for example, that would be a much better
use. This comic is nothing but gratuitous violence, just for the sake
of gratuitous violence. Now, as a comics fan, I am no prude about
violence; I enjoy a bit of violence in my comics. But this thing
is nothing but violence. No it is not relevant to the story, such as
it is, rather the story is just a sequence of incredibly violent scenes
with no point, except to show how violent, how tough, Kelvin Mace is
("wow, what a man, I want to be just like him" [heavy saracasm]).
*** SPOILER PARAGRAPH ***
For example, while cruising through interplanetary
space, Mace is set upon by a gang of ``space-bikers, the scourge of
interplanetary traffic.'' One dents his car (yes, car) so he sticks his
hand through the window (yes through it, no, he doesn't open it) and shoots
them all. He then sticks his sidekick's lower body through the hole
to plug the air leak. Terrific [heavy sarcasm].
*** END OF SPOILER ***
A caricature or satire can make us look at ourselves (or our literature,
in this case other comics) and make us see and laugh at our foibles.
This is not a caricature. A caricature must balance between exaggerating
enough to make a point and exaggerating to such distortion that people
cannot see themselves (or the object of satire). Kelvin Mace is light years
beyond distortion. I cannot see this as a satire on violent people,
violence in society, or even violence in comics. It is just reveling
in violence. ``Isn't it fun to watch this guy be so incredibly tough?''
I must admit that there are a few good laughs in Kelvin Mace #1. Not enough,
but a few. Certainly not enough to be worth putting up with the rest of
the book.
Ok, end of flame. To coin a phrase, 'nuff said. Responses, comments,
and futher discusssion should be posted to the newsgroup, not mailed
to me.
Cheers, Harry