Tag Archives: politics

COMICS CAN BE AWESOME (26 October 2020)

Posted on October 26, 2020 by I.M. Baytor

After a summer of protests and with the electoral chaos looming in the horizon, it’s hard not to see in each new pop cultural release a contribution to the conversation about the current political moment. With its flashes of police … Continue reading →

Posted in ART OF HORROR COMICS | Tagged Action, Adventures into Terror, Adventures into Weird Worlds, Alex Toth, Astonishing, Bernard Baily, Bill Everett, Carl Burgos, Charles Nicholas, Charlotte Jetter, covers, David Lloyd, Francesco Francavilla, Gaspar Saladino, George Roussos, Ghostly Tales, Ghosts, Gus Ricca, Hellblazer, horror, House of Secrets, Joe Maneely, Journey into Mystery, L.B. Cole, Lee Elias, Lost Worlds, Martin Nodell, Marvel Tales, Mike Gold, Mike Kaluta, Mike Peppe, Mister Mystery, movies, Mystery Tales, Mystic, Nick Cardy, Out of the Shadows, Out of This World, politics, Punch Comics, Russ Heath, Sanho Kim, Stan Goldberg, Suspense Comics, The Spirit, Vince Alascia, Witches Tales | Leave a comment

Alternative futures – part 2

Posted on October 15, 2020 by I.M. Baytor

After a week binging the growing subgenre of paranoia-inducing documentaries about paranoia-inducing social media (The Social Dilemma, Agents of Chaos, The Great Hack), a lot of science fiction has come to feel positively *quaint* in comparison with the current times… … Continue reading →

Posted in FANTASTIC ADVENTURES | Tagged Alem Curin, Alex de Campi, Alice Duke, Bill Sienkiewicz, Brian K. Vaughan, Butch Guice, Chuck Dixon, Colleen Doran, Dan McDaid, Diego Rodriguez, espionage, Felipe Sobreiro, Igor Kordey, Jesse Hamm, Jorge Zaffino, Julie Michel, Mack Chater, Marcos Martin, Milton, Muntsa Vicent, politics, R.M. Guéra, Richard Pace, science fiction, Smoke, The Private Eye, Winterworld | Leave a comment

Alternative futures – part 1

Posted on October 8, 2020 by I.M. Baytor

As I’ve pointed out before, this year has brought to life elements from various works of science fiction. However, the appeal of sci-fi is not always realistic accuracy… there is also plenty of fun to be had with counter-intuitive imagination. … Continue reading →

Posted in FANTASTIC ADVENTURES | Tagged 2001 A Space Odyssey, 2020 Visions, Arthur C. Clarke, Elmer, Frank Quitely, Gerry Alanguilan, Jack Kirby, James Romberger, James Sinclair, Jamie Delano, Mike Royer, politics, science fiction, Steve Pugh, Warren Pleece | Leave a comment

On John le Carré’s non-Circus novels

Posted on September 24, 2020 by I.M. Baytor

Earlier this year, I discussed John le Carré’s Circus novels as the perfect counterpoint to the James Bond branch of spy fiction. Yet there is much more to le Carré’s writing, which has taken this genre into all sorts of … Continue reading →

Posted in SPYCRAFT & WARFARE | Tagged books without pictures, Cold War, espionage, John le Carré, Mark Askwith, Matt Taylor, politics, R.G. Taylor | Leave a comment

10 noir short stories

Posted on September 10, 2020 by I.M. Baytor

Given the ongoing heated discussion over police reform and how to rethink public safety, I guess this is an appropriate occasion to highlight one of my favorite genres: crime fiction. As far as comic books go, although there were precedents, … Continue reading →

Posted in HARDBOILED CRIME | Tagged Abe Kanegson, Al Feldstein, Alan Moore, Bernie Krigstein, Bill Gaines, Carl Wessler, Cold War, Crime SuspenStories, David Baron, Frank Miller, George Evans, Greyshirt, Jack Kamen, Jack Oleck, Jamison, Jim Wroten, Johnny Craig, Johnny Dynamite, Jules Feiffer, Marie Severin, movies, noir, Pete Morisi, politics, Reed Crandall, Rick Veitch, Shock SuspenStories, Sin City, The Spirit, Todd Klein, Tomorrow Stories, Will Eisner | Leave a comment

Taking a break (August 2020)

Posted on August 6, 2020 by I.M. Baytor

The usual summer break… Regular posts will only return in September, but, since we are still living in unusual times, I’ll try to keep the weekly COMICS CAN BE AWESOME section going throughout August. After all, pulp fiction – from … Continue reading →

Posted in GOTHAM INTERLUDES | Tagged Alan Grant, Bill Oakley, Frank Miller, Jack Kirby, Joe Staton, Liam Sharp, politics, Sherilyn van Valkenburgh | Leave a comment

Expanding The War of the Worlds – part 2

Posted on July 23, 2020 by I.M. Baytor

If you read last week’s post, you know I’ve been discussing comics that expanded H.G. Wells’ classic novel The War of the Worlds. Today I want to start with The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Alan Moore’s and Kevin O’Neill’s fun … Continue reading →

Posted in WEBS OF FICTION | Tagged 2000 AD, Alan Moore, Cold War, D'Israeli, Emma Beeby, H.G. Wells, horror, I.N.J. Culbard, Ian Edginton, Kevin O'Neill, League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, politics, Scarlet Traces, science fiction, War of the Worlds | 2 Comments

Expanding The War of the Worlds – part 1

Posted on July 16, 2020 by I.M. Baytor

A couple of months ago, I recommended (re)visiting H.G. Well’s The War of the Worlds. This classic sci-fi horror novel became a massive influence on pop culture as the urtext for books, films, television shows, theatre plays, and video games about … Continue reading →

Posted in WEBS OF FICTION | Tagged Alan Davis, Amazing Adventures, Bill Mantlo, Cold War, Don McGregor, Fred van Lente, Gerry Conway, Greg Wright, H.G. Wells, horror, Howard Chaykin, James Robinson, Jimmy Palmiotti, Justin Gray, Killraven, Manuel Garcia, Mark Farmer, Neal Adams, P. Craig Russell, Paul Cornell, politics, Roy Thomas, science fiction, War of the Worlds | Leave a comment

1990s’ Batman comics reading guide – part 4

Posted on July 9, 2020 by I.M. Baytor

Batman #530 (Yep, I’m still posting about superheroes, even though the latest proto-apocalyptic events seem to have finally pushed the genre out of public consciousness, perhaps suitably.) After the success of 1993-1994’s Knightfall, the different Batman books kept a closely … Continue reading →

Posted in BATMAN COMICS FOR BEGINNERS | Tagged Alan Grant, Arcie Goodwin, Barry Kitson, Brian Stelfreeze, Chuck Dixon, Cindy Goff, Darren Vincenzo, Dave Taylor, David Roach, Deborah Pomerantz, Denny O'Neil, Doug Moench, Flint Henry, Frank Miller, GCPD, Gene Ha, Gotham City, Graham Nolan, Greg Land, Greg Wright, horror, Howard Porter, J.M. DeMatteis, Jennifer Graves, Jim Aparo, Jim Balent, John Ostrander, Jordan B. Gorfinkel, Kelley Jones, Keri Kowalski, Mark Waid, Mary Mitchell, Matt Wagner, Mike Chiarello, Mike Mignola, Mike Wieringo, Paul Gulacy, Peter Krause, politics, reading order, Scott McDaniel, Scott Peterson, Todd McFarlane, Underworld Unleashed, Yancey Labat | 2 Comments

10 brilliant issues of Astro City – part 2

Posted on July 2, 2020 by I.M. Baytor

If you read the last post, you know what’s going on. Here are another five brilliant issues of Astro City: ‘Where the Action Is’ (Astro City (v2) #21) Another blatantly ‘meta’ issue, albeit with a more satirical bent. ‘Where … Continue reading →

Posted in SUPER POWERS | Tagged Astro City, Brent Anderson, Cold War, Dan Slott, Graham Nolan, Kurt Busiek, politics, Tom Peyer | Leave a comment