Author Archives: I.M. Baytor

A year of sci-fi movies and shows

Posted on December 12, 2017 by I.M. Baytor

The Last Jedi hits the screens this week and we’ll see what comes out of it. So far, Rian Johnson is OK in my book. He did Brick, so I know he’s into film noir. He did The Brothers Bloom, … Continue reading →

Posted in FANTASTIC ADVENTURES | Tagged Al Williamson, Archie Goodwin, Carlos Garzon, horror, Jean-Claude Mézières, movies, Pierre Christin, politics, science fiction, space opera | Leave a comment

12 chopsocky Batman covers

Posted on December 7, 2017 by I.M. Baytor

The chopsocky boom of the 1970s gave us lots of memorable action movies and TV shows bursting with thrillingly choreographed martial arts, over-the-top sound effects, outrageous villains, and plenty of terrible dubbing. Cult classics like Fist of Fury and Drunken … Continue reading →

Posted in COVERS OF BATMAN COMICS | Tagged covers, martial arts | Leave a comment

Batman’s and Commissioner Gordon’s morbid bromance

Posted on November 30, 2017 by I.M. Baytor

Batman #240 Batman #418 The Brave and the Bold #98 Legends of the Dark Knight #71 Shadow of the Bat #11 NEXT: Everybody was kung fu fighting.

Posted in GOTHAM INTERLUDES | Tagged Commissioner Gordon, GCPD, James Gordon | Leave a comment

Imaginary Batman crossovers with Joe Casey comics – part 2

Posted on November 23, 2017 by I.M. Baytor

If you read the last post, you know what’s going on. Here are another five possible crossovers between Batman comics and some oddball series written by Joe Casey: GODLAND “Face the facts, true disbeliever… The human mind isn’t big enough … Continue reading →

Posted in WEBS OF FICTION | Tagged Bill Crabtree., Brad Simpson, Garth Ennis, Giuseppe Camuncoli, Godland, Intimates, Jack Kirby, Jim Lee, Jim Mahfood, Jim Starlin, Joe Casey, Justin Stewart, Miami Vice, Nick Filardi, Paul Maybury, Piotr Kowalski, Randy Mayor, Rian Hughes, Richard Starkings, Rob Steen, Rus Wooton, Sandra Hope, science fiction, Sex, Sonia Harris, Steven Chunn, sword & sorcery, Tom Scioli, Valhalla Mad | Leave a comment

Imaginary Batman crossovers with Joe Casey comics – part 1

Posted on November 16, 2017 by I.M. Baytor

In recent years, the Dark Knight has found himself in a number of surprising team-ups, crossing over with all sorts of odd properties, from Elmer Fudd to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Since nothing appears to be out of bounds … Continue reading →

Posted in WEBS OF FICTION | Tagged Ashley Wood, Automatic Kafka, Butcher Baker, Charlie Adlard, Chris Burnham, ChrisCross, Codeflesh, David Messina, Eduardo Pansica, Final Crisis Aftermath: Dance, Grant Morrison, J.G. Jones, Joe Casey, Jorge Lucas, Mike Huddleston, Rus Wooton, Snakebite, The Bounce | Leave a comment

The tragic fate of Sarah Essen

Posted on November 7, 2017 by I.M. Baytor

Batman #406 When people talk about the tendency for bestowing gruesome violence against prominent female characters in comic books – the ‘women-in-refrigerator’ trope – Sarah Essen is always one of the first names to come to my mind. She was … Continue reading →

Posted in GOTHAM CITIZENS | Tagged Alan Grant, Chuck Dixon, David Mazzucchelli, Denny O'Neil, Devin K. Grayson, Doug Moench, Flint Henry, Frank Miller, GCPD, Greg Rucka, Norm Breyfogle, Sarah Essen Gordon | 1 Comment

3 Scarecrow-induced hallucinations

Posted on October 30, 2017 by I.M. Baytor

One of the reasons the core of Batman’s rogues gallery has proven so lasting is the fact that many of his foes are super-functional storytelling devices. The Joker is a clown, so he always looks scary. The Riddler has a … Continue reading →

Posted in ART OF BATMAN COMICS | Tagged Albert de Guzman, Bjarne Hansen, Brandon Kruse, David V. Reed, David Vern, Duncan Fegredo, horror, Jerry Serpe, Linda Medley, Milt Snapinn, Peter Milligan, Rick Burchett, Sal Amendola, Scarecrow, Tim Harkins, Ty Templeton | 2 Comments

Gothic Batman stories from the ‘90s

Posted on October 23, 2017 by I.M. Baytor

Goth subculture had quite a devoted fan base in the 1990s. You couldn’t miss the hordes of stylish, pretentious teens with black clothes and eyeliner back then. Tim Burton and Marilyn Manson were all the rage for a while. Bands … Continue reading →

Posted in BATMAN COMICS FOR BEGINNERS | Tagged Adam Kubert, Alan Grant, Alisa Kwitney, Andy Kubert, Archie Goodwin, Cam Kennedy, Chris Bachalo, Doug Moench, Garth Ennis, Greg Wright, horror, Jamie Delano, Jeph Loeb, Jim Aparo, John Beatty, John Wagner, Kelley Jones, Mark Chiarello, Michael Zulli, Mike Mignola, Peter Milligan, Scott Hampton, Tim Sale, Todd Klein, Ty Templeton | Leave a comment

20 spectacular Spectre covers

Posted on October 16, 2017 by I.M. Baytor

Apart from having a particularly gruesome origin story, larger-than-life powers, a sadistic sense of poetic justice, and at least a couple of awesome comic runs on his portfolio, a key aspect that stands out about the Spectre is his visually … Continue reading →

Posted in ART OF HORROR COMICS | Tagged covers, horror, Spectre | Leave a comment

Anatomy of Shadow of the Bat #45

Posted on September 28, 2017 by I.M. Baytor

Last week I went on and on about the compelling and cathartic lack of subtlety in the Batman comics of Alan Grant, so I figured it would be fair to spotlight one of the few issues that fall outside that … Continue reading →

Posted in POLITICS OF BATMAN COMICS | Tagged Alan Grant, Brian Stelfreeze, Gerry Fernandez, Michal Dutkiewicz, Pamela Rambo, politics, western | Leave a comment