Tag Archives: politics

Spotlight on Fury MAX

Posted on July 24, 2019 by I.M. Baytor

Way before Samuel L. Jackson embodied the role, Colonel Nick Fury was already a household name for Marvel fans, having starred in a string of seminal psychedelic spy comics by Jack Kirby and Jim Steranko back in the 1960s… Strange … Continue reading →

Posted in SPYCRAFT & WARFARE | Tagged Axel Alonso, Bill Jemas, Cold War, D.G. Chichester, Darick Robertson, espionage, Garth Ennis, Jimmy Palmiotti, Joe Quesada, Nick Fury, politics | Leave a comment

A couple of excellent spy novels

Posted on July 17, 2019 by I.M. Baytor

Shifting gears for a bit, today let’s talk about a couple of cool books without drawings that came out almost a decade ago… OUR KIND OF TRAITOR (John le Carré, 2010) “At seven o’clock of a Caribbean morning, on the … Continue reading →

Posted in SPYCRAFT & WARFARE | Tagged books without pictures, espionage, Greg Rucka, John le Carré, politics, Queen & Country | Leave a comment

Spotlight on The Unknown Soldier, 1975-1976

Posted on July 10, 2019 by I.M. Baytor

In the early 1970s, the Unknown Soldier feature of Star Spangled War Stories told exciting spy adventures set in World War II, starring a disfigured operative turned master-of-disguise who undertook secret missions under direct orders from Washington. As I explained … Continue reading →

Posted in SPYCRAFT & WARFARE | Tagged Cold War, David Michelinie, espionage, Gerry Conway, Gerry Talaoc, Joe Orlando, politics, Unknown Soldier, World War II | Leave a comment

Spotlight on The Unknown Soldier, 1970-1974

Posted on July 5, 2019 by I.M. Baytor

There is a whole branch of spy fiction focusing on World War II going back to the time of the conflict itself. In cinema, the British kicked things off with thrillers such as Night Train to Munich and Contraband. Hollywood … Continue reading →

Posted in SPYCRAFT & WARFARE | Tagged Archie Goodwin, Bob Haney, espionage, Frank Robins, Jack Sparling, Joe Kubert, movies, politics, Robert Kanigher, Unknown Soldier, World War II | Leave a comment

Batman comics on drugs – part 2

Posted on June 18, 2019 by I.M. Baytor

If you read the last post, you know I’ve been looking at Batman comics about drugs. Today I want to briefly discuss two stories from the early 1990s that approached this topic in extreme ways. In his many adventures, the … Continue reading →

Posted in POLITICS OF BATMAN COMICS | Tagged Adrienne Roy, Alan Grant, Batman's personality, Denny O'Neil, drugs, Ernie Chua, Gerry Conway, Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez, Norm Breyfogle, politics, Russel Braun, Steve Oliff, Todd Klein, Trevor von Eeden | Leave a comment

Batman comics on drugs – part 1

Posted on June 11, 2019 by I.M. Baytor

Drugs have traditionally played a substantial role in Batman comics (hell, in the whole medium). The Dark Knight has put away his share of drug dealers – from run-of-the-mill villains (your prototypical crime fiction trope) to the kind of outlandish … Continue reading →

Posted in POLITICS OF BATMAN COMICS | Tagged Adrienne Roy, Alan Grant, Batman's personality, Bob Smith, Dave Taylor, Doug Moench, drugs, Gene Colan, Pamela Rambo, politics, Ricardo Villagran, Robin, Stan Woch | Leave a comment

Two-fisted cyberpunk comics

Posted on April 25, 2019 by I.M. Baytor

Every once in a while, the zeitgeist hits the world of cinema with just the right creative force for it to spit out a bunch of simultaneous gems with a similar mood. For example, 1981 was clearly one of the … Continue reading →

Posted in FANTASTIC ADVENTURES | Tagged B. Clay Moore, Bloodshot, Christos Gage, Cory Smith, Daniel Kibblesmith, Duane Swierczynski, Emanuela Lupacchino, Fred van Lente, Guillermo Ortego, Jeff Lemire, Joe Harris, Johnnie Christmas, Joseph Cooper, Joshua Dysart, Magnus Robot Fighter, Matt Hollingsworth, movies, politics, Rick Remender, Roberto Castro, Rus Wooton, science fiction, Sean Murphy, Tokyo Ghost, Trevor Hairsine, Will Rosado | Leave a comment

John Ostrander’s expanded Batman

Posted on April 11, 2019 by I.M. Baytor

John Ostrander has written more cool comics than most of his peers. Some of them feature Batman and other Gotham citizens, although those projects don’t always play to his strengths, since they tend to be short fill-ins or mini-series. Ostrander … Continue reading →

Posted in WRITERS OF BATMAN COMICS | Tagged Charles Paris, Denny O'Neil, Flint Henry, Gotham City, Jenette Kahn, John Ostrander, Kim Yale, Mary Mitchell, Paul Levitz, politics, Tom Mandrake, Vince Giarrano | Leave a comment

Brilliant sci-fi short stories

Posted on February 21, 2019 by I.M. Baytor

As much as I enjoy sci-fi epics, I’m also a huge sucker for a tauter brand of science fiction. Short stories are an ideal form for this genre: since sci-fi often revolves more around ideas than characters, it can be … Continue reading →

Posted in FANTASTIC ADVENTURES | Tagged 2000 AD, Al Feldstein, Al Williamson, Alan Moore, Bernie Wrightson, Bill Gaines, Carmine Infantino, Cold War, Colleen Doran, David Lloyd, Del Close, Frank Frazetta, Gardner Fox, Gaspar Saladino, Gerry Conway, Horacio Lalia, Jack Kamen, Jerry Serpe, Jim Wroten, Joe Orlando, John Aldrich, John Ostrander, John Smith, Marie Severin, Nicola Cuti, politics, Rick Veitch, Roy Krenkel, science fiction, Steve Craddock, Tom Yeates, Warren Ellis | 3 Comments