Author Archives: I.M. Baytor

COMICS CAN BE AWESOME (6 November 2023)

Posted on November 6, 2023 by I.M. Baytor

It may not be much of a consolation in the grand scheme of things, but here is your weekly reminder that, hey, at least comics can be awesome… The Ambassadors #1 Five Ghosts: The Haunting of Fabian Gray #2 Namwolf … Continue reading →

Posted in GLIMPSES INTO AWESOMENESS | Tagged Ambassadors, Brennan Wagner, Chris Mooneyham, Fabian Rangel Jr, Five Ghosts, Frank Quitely, Lauren Affe, Logan Faerber, Namwolf | Leave a comment

Catching up with crime comics – Ed Brubaker edition

Posted on November 2, 2023 by I.M. Baytor

Last time I did one of these ‘Catching up with crime comics’ posts was a year ago, back in November 2022, looking specifically at Texas-set yarns (in the meantime, I’ve finally read Ethan Hawke’s and Greg Ruth’s Meadowlark, a superb-looking … Continue reading →

Posted in HARDBOILED CRIME | Tagged Criminal, Ed Brubaker, Elizabeth Breitweiser, Ethan Hawke, Greg Ruth, Jacob Phillips, Kill or Be Killed, movies, noir, Quentin Tarantino, Sean Phillips | Leave a comment

COMICS CAN BE AWESOME (30 October 2023)

Posted on October 30, 2023 by I.M. Baytor

I tend to use Halloween as a pretext to write a bit about recent horror movies in Gotham Calling. One trend that has been quite prominent this year – in cinema as well as in literature – is the entanglement … Continue reading →

Posted in ART OF HORROR COMICS | Tagged 2000 AD, Álvaro Martínez Bueno, Andres Juarez, Artie Simek, Bernard Baily, Beyond the Grave, Carl Burgos, Clint Langley, covers, Crossed, Dan Green, Dave McKean, Dreaming, Ghostly Haunts, Ghosts, Godzilla, Herb Trimpe, horror, Horror in the Dark, Jack Davis, Jack Kirby, James Tynion IV, Jim Aparo, Joe Rosen, John Bolton, John Romita, Jordie Bellaire, Juan Jose Ryp, Lee Elias, Luis Dominguez, Megan Hutchison, Monsters on the Prowl, movies, Nice House on the Lake, Nick Cardy, Phantom Stranger, politics, Ramón K. Pérez, Richard Corben, science fiction, Sol Brodsky, Stan Goldberg, Stillwater, Strange Tales of the Unusual, Swamp Thing, Tales from the Crypt, Tatjana Wood, Tom Sutton, Tomb of Terror, Twisted Tales, Unexpected, Weird Tales of the Future, Witching Hour | Leave a comment

Gotham Calling’s 120 Cold War movies – part 4

Posted on October 26, 2023 by I.M. Baytor

It’s time for another installment of Gotham Calling’s journey through Cold War cinema! Mixing classics with lesser-known gems, the selection below oscillates between the Cold War’s domestic, geopolitical, and fully global stakes, as the conflict’s effects are shown threatening both … Continue reading →

Posted in COLD WAR CINEMA | Tagged Cold War, espionage, movies, politics, science fiction | Leave a comment

COMICS CAN BE AWESOME (23 October 2023)

Posted on October 23, 2023 by I.M. Baytor

The past weeks were spent watching war crimes and an unfolding humanitarian catastrophe, counting down to further escalation. I’ve been feeding the blog with posts I had written in advance, mostly as a way to take brief breaks away from … Continue reading →

Posted in AWESOME COVERS | Tagged covers, Darwyn Cooke | Leave a comment

A couple of very fun sci-fi books

Posted on October 18, 2023 by I.M. Baytor

The early Cold War era was a time not just of great sci-fi cinema, but also of awesome sci-fi literature… and, contrary to popular belief, it wasn’t all doom and gloom either. Here are a couple of books, by two … Continue reading →

Posted in FANTASTIC ADVENTURES | Tagged books without pictures, Cold War, espionage, Foundation, Isaac Asimov, politics, science fiction, Stanislaw Lem | Leave a comment

COMICS CAN BE AWESOME (16 October 2023)

Posted on October 16, 2023 by I.M. Baytor

Today’s reminder that comic books can be awesome is a tribute to Mike and Laura Allred, who have perfected a mix of pop art and superheroes in their Madman comics:

Posted in AWESOME COVERS | Tagged covers, Laura Allred, Madman, Mike Allred | Leave a comment

Gotham Calling’s 120 Cold War movies – part 3

Posted on October 12, 2023 by I.M. Baytor

Welcome back to Gotham Calling’s ongoing list of notable films that gave an audiovisual expression to the Cold War (previous installments here and here). This time around, many of my choices are less explicit, as by the mid-1950s sci-fi horror … Continue reading →

Posted in COLD WAR CINEMA | Tagged Cold War, horror, movies, noir, politics, science fiction | Leave a comment

COMICS CAN BE AWESOME (9 October 2023)

Posted on October 9, 2023 by I.M. Baytor

As the world spirals further into a hellhole of wars, refugees, and climate disasters, I take small pleasures where I can find them… This week’s reminder that comics can be awesome is yet another tribute to Jack Kirby, who spent … Continue reading →

Posted in GLIMPSES INTO THE PAST | Tagged Artie Simek, covers, Dick Ayers, George Klein, horror, Jack Kirby, Stan Goldberg, Stan Lee | Leave a comment

Anatomy of Batman #167

Posted on October 5, 2023 by I.M. Baytor

Batman comics have borrowed and blended different storytelling traditions from the get-go, but never was this more apparent than in the Silver Age, when writers constantly pillaged all sorts of books, films, and trends for inspiration (as opposed to more … Continue reading →

Posted in WEBS OF FICTION | Tagged Bill Finger, Cold War, espionage, James Bond, Sheldon Moldoff | Leave a comment