Monday, December 30, 2013

A Little Off The Top

I hope everyone had a wonderful 2013, and I hope your 2014 is as weird and wonderful as my experiences in making Brain Teaser Comics were in 2013! 

It was a wonderful year for me as I moved the comic to www.brainteasercomics.com, moved to a regular release schedule and even started a podcast!

Have a Happy New Year!

Monday, October 21, 2013

Blowing Up The Down Staircase

This strip was inspired by @kakapotrainer who has occasional issues with her public transportation. 

You should follow her on twitter if you like Claremont era X-Men, Legion of Superheroes, or Magical Girl anime. She also writes the Detritus of the Mind blog for more on those topics, plus Fraggles, lists, and other TV commentary.

Monday, October 14, 2013

May I Have This Dance?

A Comic That Never Existed!

Weird Clergy Stories, published by AMEN Comics, was a counter-programming attempt by concerned parents groups, citizens committees and churches in the wake of the United States Senate Subcommittee on Juvenile Delinquency brought on by anti-comics crusader Fredric Wertham. 

The book ran from 1960 to 1965, for 58 issues, and contained allegedly true and humorous stories by real clergy.

Monday, October 7, 2013

Get Crackin'

A Comic That Never Existed!

An educational comic about workplace ergonomics, distributed to Chiropractic offices throughout the Midwest in 2012.

Dr. Kenyon prevents an alien invasion by Gredlak the Conqueror's fleet by fixing Gredlak's back pain. Dr. Kenyon teaches Gredlak how to improve the poor ergonomic design of the bridge of his Dreadnought Attack Vessel, avoid repetitive stress injuries, and the general benefits of Chiropractics.

Monday, September 30, 2013

Anarchy in the UPC


A Comic That Never Existed!

New Violence Comics #1 is a mysterious piece of comics history. Several hundred issues were 'droplifted' into comic stores, Tower Records, Borders, Barnes & Nobles, Waldenbooks, B. Dalton and other retailers across the country in 2001. 

Droplifting is a process of a leaving a piece of merchandise in a retail store by an artist for the purpose of getting it into the hands of consumers when those outlets would not normally carry such an item. New Violence was interesting in that it was found nationwide in 43 of the 48 contiguous states. 

The story contained within is the extremely violent tale of Steeltoe, a street level revolutionary with a vague, ill-defined political philosophy that seems to be advanced by kicking in the heads of all opposition.

The writer and artist of New Violence Comics have never been identified.

Monday, September 16, 2013

Head Case


A Comic That Never Existed!

In 1994 the long running Metal Head Magazine adopted a format and title change (the numbering remained). Heavy Metal was in a steep decline following its heyday in the mid 1980s and the publishers were hoping to cash in on the most recent comics boom. 

Articles and reviews were trimmed in favor of adding Heavy Metal themed comic features. The July 1998 issue included:

'Lil Lars: The Last Headbanger on Earth - Lars would try to save heavy metal from Rapper Mutants, Roving Bands of Biker Evangelists, Electronica Robots and Country Music Good 'Ol Boys in a post-apocalyptic wasteland.

The Screaming Metal Babies - The story of 5 kids who were all conceived at the same Judas Priest concert in 1981, and grow up to become teen-aged, Metal-Themed superheroes.

Lilith Swordbringer - a fantasy/sword and sorcery series with plenty of T & A, graphic violence, and heavy metal themes.

These comics provided the bulk of the content, but written articles and review remained an integral part of this odd hybrid, that survives to this day.

Friday, August 16, 2013

Rayguns for Reagans


A Comic That Never Existed!

Rex Rage and the Screamin' Squadron was a controversial campaign comic released by the Reagan Campaign for the 1980 presidential election in July of that year, but cover dated for January.

In the comic, Rex Rage and the Screamin' Squadron were frozen in suspended animation at the end of World War II to be thawed out if the enemies of freedom ever rose up again. 

When the comic opens, the Year is 2079 and Komrade Karter has taken over Planet America with his mindless, godless Bolshebots, he's destroyed the economy, and enslaved all the women. 

The last freedom fighter on earth, young Billy Blaster, finds the Squadron and thaws them out, only to be immediately disintegrated by one of the bots. Rex Rage vows revenge and the Squadron embark on the task of freeing Planet America from the clutches of the Commies.

The Squadron is composed of Commander Rex Rage, Saturn 'The Missile' Jones: demolitions expert, and Chad 'Chatterbox' Hernandez: communications expert and comic relief.

This 80 page giant contained 8 stories, opening with:

It's Morning on Planet America - The Team's Origin and awakening in 2079

Followed by:

The Rushin' Russian - the tale of a Russkie Cyborg in a race against the Squadron to a hidden cache of fighter aircraft.

The Missile's Defense - Saturn Jones, alone, must fend off wave after wave of Bolshebots and protect new recruits to the Squadron's cause.

Better Dead than A Robot Red - Robot duplicates infiltrate the Freedom Fighters new HQ!

Komrade Karter's Kold War Kerfuffle - Komrade Karter acquires a Time Machine!

Chatterbox and The Lady in Red - Chad falls for a former agent of the Commies. Has she really seen the bright light of Freedom?

The Rage of Freedom - The Penultimate tale, Rex is captured, but escapes with knowledge of the Commies plans to finish off the Forces of Freedom...FOREVER!

Nuke 'Em Til They Glow and Shoot 'Em In The Dark!- The controversial final story in the book. Rex Rage, The Squadron and the New Freedom Fighters commandeer strategic bombers and carpet bomb all of Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union with 1000s of nuclear bombs, reducing large swathes of the planet to rubble. Planet America is re-established and the former Eastern Bloc is literally turned into the parking lot of a giant shopping mall filled with happy Planet Americans engaging in commerce. The Carter Campaign used the book to criticize what they considered Reagan's reckless foreign policy.

Currently very hard to find in ANY condition.

Monday, July 15, 2013

The Apes of Wrath


A Comic That Never Existed! 

From September 1986, Surprising Animals Comics was launched as an effort to cash in on He-Man, Transformers and the numerous other adventure cartoons that were big at the time. 

The comic was intended to support the launch of a Surprising Animals toy line which was almost immediately recalled due to toxic plastics, choking and eye injury hazards from the numerous, ill advised accessories and a series of unexplained fires. 

The accompanying animated series enjoyed rapid cancellation (only 12 episodes) due to the infomercial-like quality of the writing, the poor animation and almost incompetent voice acting.

Friday, June 21, 2013

Nice Threads

A Comic That Never Existed! 

1998 gave us the 7th and final issue of Knotilus, the String Being, with Knotilus seemingly defeated by the unspeakable Thread Bear! 

The Knit Wits; Dr. Loom, Hooks and Needles, returned in this issue as escapees from prison after their initial defeat in Issue #1. The series was cancelled and this two parter was never completed. Sadly the 90s had a lot of promising, but incomplete comic book tales like this.

Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Thursday, March 7, 2013