boyajian@akov68.DEC (Jerry Boyajian) (06/29/84)
> From: Mike Ciaraldi <ciaraldi> > I kept hearing that this issue was going to have a big revelation from > Mary Jane Watson.... > > What I didn't expect was her admitting she had known Peter's secret > identity "for years". This is despite reading a sequence the other > day in the Spider-Man newspaper strip where she told Peter she > thought he was Spidey (it turned out to be a joke). I've never considered the Spider-Man newspaper strip (which, admittedly, I have not read in a long time; but then, I haven't read the comic on a regular basis for a while, either) to be part of the comic book continuity. It seemed back when I *was* reading it that it often contradicted the comic book. An example I can think of offhand was that the strip continued to have Mary Jane as Spidey's regular girlfriend after she stopped being so in the book. It's always been my opinion that the newspaper strip is like the cartoon show, and doesn't necessar- ily reflect "reality". I have similar feelings about most "off-the-beaten-path" publications, such as the Marvel/DC collaborations, premiums/giveaways/educa- tional comics (such as the TEEN TITANS drug comics). > My brother, Tyrone Templeton, is now drawing his own magazine called > "Stig's Inferno", published by Vortex Comics out of Toronto. I'm > pretty impressed with the magazine, but I wanted to know if any netters > see these magazines, and hear what comments you have on them. I'll > forward what mail I get to Ty and Vortex. If you want to review to the > net, that's fine too. > > Ty has also published a few stories in Vortex issues, which comments > are welcome on. I'm interested in finding out what kind of exposure > his mag is getting. > > Brad Templeton So, Ty Templeton is your brother, eh? Far out. I've got a few issues of VORTEX (I admit that I ignored it until I saw an issue with a Jamie Hernandez cover, which inspired me to give it a try), but I don't recall anything specific from it, especially any Ty Templeton work. I'll take a look at them again, and see if I have anything to say. Actually, if I remember correctly, I reviewed an issue sometime back in net.comics; I'll check my back file of net.comics postings and see if I can dig it up; if I do, I'll send it on to you. As far as STIG'S INFERNO goes, I haven't seen an issue for sale yet, but I can say that I like the ads I've been seeing ("Who says Hell and Damnation can't be fun?" Poor soul in chains:"Well, I'm not having a good time!"). I'm looking forward to reading it when it appears. > Has anyone had experience with ordering comics from Moonshadow? > > Miriam No, I haven't had any dealings with Moonshadow, or any subscription service by mail. There are quite a few outlets that have mail order services, though (you can usually find ads for them in "fan" publications like AMAZING HEROES or THE COMICS JOURNAL, if not the comics themselves. I haven't seen anything in the fan press complaining about any of these services, so you probably can't go too far wrong trying Moonshadow. My advice is to try them on a probationary basis and see how they work out. Oddly enough, I may start using a mail order sub service myself. I saw an ad in a recent COMICS BUYER'S GUIDE for a major outlet in England. The ad was for American back issues (at lower prices than most American dealers --- due, they claim, to the fluctuating exchange rate), but I wrote to them to inquire about whether I could start a sub with them for British comics not available in the US. They say they take Mastercard and Visa, so payment is simplified. When I get an answer from them, I'll probably post their terms to the net in case any- one is interested. > It would be nice to see more discussion/coverage of underground comix and > newspaper comic strips in this forum; I am (or was) a collector of > undergrounds, though I have bought few in recent years. Also, I read > newspapers only sporadically,... > > Will I've gotten the impression that there are few fans of undergrounds here, though there might be some newspaper strip fans. I don't read newspapers at all, so I very rarely see any strips (even though I like some of them, like BLOOM COUNTY or WIZARD OF ID; it's just more effort than I care to put in to follow them on a regular basis). I do, however, buy COMICS REVIEW, which reprints blocks of continuity of various newspaper strips. The contents vary from issue to issue, though, because of the vagaries of comic strip syndication deals. The latest, #4, has a couple of months worth of STAR WARS, GARFIELD, and STEVE CANYON (it's amazing that Caniff is *still* doing that strip!), among others. As for undergrounds, I rarely buy them. I find them extremely juvenile, for the most part. Most of them seem to feel that by not being under the comics code, they have an obligation to put in as much sex and violence as possible. I also find that most underground art is really crude. It's interesting that the number of undergrounds seems to have dwindled, presumably due to the rise of the Independents challenging the monopoly of the Marvel/DC monolith. The only under- ground that I buy regularly is RIP OFF COMICS (I love Gilbert Shelton's work!), along with their Freak Brothers colections. I was buying and enjoying THE CAR- TOON HISTORY OF THE UNIVERSE, but there hasn't been a new issue in a long time. I also will tend to buy any underground with work by, among others, Rich Corben, Foolbert Sturgeon, Larry Todd, or George Metzger (his MOONDOG is great stuff!). I also get FIRST KINGDOM on a regular basis, though it's not clear that that is really an underground. If you want to see discussions of undergrounds or newspaper strips, how about starting them, and see where it goes? --- jayembee (Jerry Boyajian, DEC Maynard, MA) UUCP: {decvax|ihnp4|allegra|ucbvax|...}!decwrl!dec-rhea!dec-akov68!boyajian ARPA: boyajian%akov68.DEC@DECWRL.ARPA