Xena The Thanksgiving Day Princess

Welcome to this Thanksgiving Rotten Ink update something that I hope has become a Turkey Day tradition for you just like the old Mystery Science Theater 3000 Turkey Day Marathons use to be for me! And for this update I choose to cover something very special, as this is not only the Thanksgiving update but also is celebrating 10 Years that Rotten Ink has been up on the worldwide web. And normally Hercules would be the one to join us on Thanksgiving but as of last year we are taking a break from spending Turkey Day with him and this year will be our first without him and will instead be about a badass female warrior that is a Warrior Princess and I am of course talking about Xena and the comic series we will be looking at is the original series done by Topps Comics! So while that Turkey is still cooking in the oven and before your guests arrive or you leave to be a guest lets talk about Xena Warrior Princess on this Thanksgiving Day holiday.

Xena Warrior Princess was a spin-off show of the hugely popular syndicated show “Hercules Legendary Journeys” as Xena first appeared in the 1995 episode called “The Warrior Princess” and she became super popular with viewers as she was a badass female warrior who could handle herself against the likes of Hercules. So because of this on September 4, 1995 she got her own series thanks to Renaissance Pictures. The show in syndication was a major hit and was a ratings draw for all the stations who added it their line up. I for one would watch the show every Sunday Morning and would even set the VCR to tape the episodes I would miss due to family trips and such. The show would have Xena not only face her past of being a raider who killed but would also have her face fellow warriors, amazons as well as even monsters and Gods! And the big thing being is that Xena grew as a character throughout the series run and this added more appeal to the character as she would fall in love, show remorse for his actions and even would doubt herself at time. The show would last for six seasons and a total of 134 episodes and even when the show ended in 2001 it still was one of the most watched syndicated shows on television at the time. During its run it would win and be nominated for many awards including the Emmys and Saturns. It would build up a huge following in the LGBTQ Community, as Xena and her sidekick Gabrielle became role models for young ladies and spawned a lot of merchandise for fans to collect. Xena was a show that was for everyone and the character Xena is still popular even to this day as fans still would love to see her return to their TV screens. And for me it still ranks in my top 10 shows of all time as I was a big fan and still am to this day. The series has been released on home media via VHS and DVD and can be found on some streaming sites from time to time.

Xena was a feared female warrior who along with his army would loot, destroy and murder any villager in her path and she loved what she did. But her life changes when her own brother is killed in a raid by the Warlord Cortese and she sees the sorrow that her own actions has caused over the years and even her own Mother turns her back on her. Now on a mission for revenge and to right all her wrongs that she has done over the years, she also builds new friendships and trusts and becomes a symbol of change and empowerment from women. She is skilled with a sword as well as her chakram that she can throw super accrete. Xena also has a war cry that sends fear down the spines of her enemies and can stand her ground against any warlord as well as god like being. Xena was played by the lovely Lucy Lawless who was the crush for many nerdy kids of the time and in fact many still do have a crush on her, and I am not ashamed to say I still do as Lucy Laweless is an amazing actress who is beautiful on many levels. Lucy Lawless would go on to be is such shows and movies as The X-Files, The L Word, Spartacus, Ash vs. Evil Dead, Spider-Man, Boogeyman and Bitch Slap. She would even voice Wonder Woman in the 2008 animated film Justice League: The New Frontier. For those of use who grew up watching and for those of who discovered the show after its run we truly know how awesome, amazing, beautiful and ass kicking Xena and Lucy Lawless really is.

Gabrielle was a farm girl from the village of Potidaea and after being kidnapped by a warlord and then freed by Xena she decides that she wants to follow her savior and together the two have many great journies and adventures. Gabrielle is wise, sarcastic at times and becomes skilled with a staff as well as a sword later on and she becomes a warrior in her own right. Her sister is Lila who is her only sibling and they two do get along well. The character of Gabrielle was super popular with fans and growing up for me on TV you could not beat the duo of Xena and Gabriella as they just played so well off each other. Gabrielle was played by actress Rene O’Connor who was in such films as “Night Game (1989)”, “Stone Cold (1991)”, “The Adventures Of Huck Finn (1993)” and “Darkman II: The Return Of Durant (1995)” among others as well as was on TV Shows like “Tales From The Crypt”, “NYPD Blue” and “FBI: The Untold Stories”. Rene is a great actress and Gabrielle is an amazing character and for many Gabriella rivaled Xena at being their favorite character of the whole series, and lets be honest I think it was Rene who’s acting really made the character be so iconic.

The show had many amazing side character over the years that made up the Xena universe like the goofball wannabe hero Joxer played by Ted Raimi, Autolycus The King Of Thieves played by Bruce Campbell, Cyrene is the mother of Xena and she was played by Darien Takle, Hercules and Iolaus would show up from time to time and they were played of course by Kevin Sorbo and Michael Hurst. And on the villain side two of the biggest baddies in the series (and man she had many) was Aries The God Of War played by Kevin Smith and female warrior Callisto played by Hudson Leick. And this is just a small amount of the recurring characters that appeared on the show and made it so awesome. My favorite side character has to be Callisto as she was beautiful, crazy and dangerous and was a great villain for Xena and her episodes were always well done. But to be fair Ares is also a very entertaining villain and Kevin Smith was perfect in the role and it’s a shame he had to pass away at such a young age. Man writing this really does make me look back and see just how awesome all of the characters I have mentioned and more really did make this show special. Oh and I need not forget Caesar played by Karl Urban was also a great baddie who was a pain in Xena’s side. Who was your favorite side character in Xena?

Like I have said I was an every week watcher of Xena The Warrior Princess and hands down one of my favorite episodes was called “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” and was a Halloween episode that aired in October 1996. In this spooky episode Xena and Gabrielle go after Bacchus The God Of Wine who has a legion of female vampires, and during this adventure Gabriella is bitten and turned into one of his servants and its up to Xena to save her friend and kill Bacchus and allow all of those he has infected to return to being human. The episode also had appearances by Joxer and Orpheus and the episode played like a mix between a Horror Movie and a Rock Video that was airing on MTV at the time…and you can never go wrong with Gabrielle looking all gothed out…you just cant. The episode also had a very lesbian overtone and the demonic look of Bacchus was badass and it’s a shame that he was not used more often as a featured villain of the week for the Xena series. Long before the episodes made their way to home media this was one that I can remember taping off TV and watching a lot as the episode was just really cool and the plot felt like a good B-Movie vampire film. And the episode would also go on to be praised by not only fans but also critics who site this as one of the series best episodes. Those who have seen the episode know how awesome it is, and those of you who have not seen it track down the DVD set for Season 2 and give it a watch…also Toy Biz should have made an action figure of Bacchus and one of his female vampire minions…just saying.

Like all great shows Xena Warrior Princess has had her fair share of action figures and dolls with her first figure being in the Hercules Legendary Journeys line that was released by Toy Biz and she had two figures in the line with the difference being coloring on her armor. And at the time of these figures release I was collecting them all as Hercules was one of my favorite shows and it would be cool to have them set up in my room, and Xena at the time in my area was the hardest one to track down. And I have to also say the Xena from the Hercules toys looks nothing like Lucy Lawless and for the most part is a really cheesy figure. But when Xena got her own TV Show Toy Biz also gave her a toy line that featured not only Xena but also all the characters from the show and these figures and later dolls were way better done and captured likeness better than the Hercules line did. And of course I still have many of my Xena toys and if you are a fan of the show make sure to track some of these figures down as they are pretty cool and a part of the shows history.

When the TV Show was not on one thing fans could do is get the paperback novels based on Xena and her adventures to fill that void and these were good reads for fans. Many of the novels were written by such authors as Ru Emerson and Stella Howard and the novels most popular reads was the Quest Trilogy that was written by Emerson and consisted of “Go Quest Young Man”, “Questward Ho!” and “How The Quest Was Won”. And growing up I had these books and in fact I still have many of these books and while the lack the visional charm of the show Emerson and Howard did a great job of capturing the fun feel of it and really did deliver very entertaining reads. If you love the show make sure to tack down these novels and give them a read in your favorite spot.

Xena The Warrior Princess made her way to the world of video games and was in a total of three home console games and a few for the PC. In 1999 Titus Interactive released the fighting game “Xena Warrior Princess: The Talisman Of Fate” for the N64. It was met with mixed reviews as it was an odd fighter but did allow you to play as such characters as Callisto, Ares, Julius Caesar and Autolycus to name a few. Also in 1999 for the Sony Playstation and released by EA came a adventure game that had you play as Xena who is on a quest to rescue Gabrielle and must fight warriors and monsters along the way, and this was a game I have played and beat so many times as I just really enjoyed the quest hack slash style game play and plus it was cool to be able to play a video game based on one of my favorite TV Shows of all time. And yet Xena would also get a Game Boy Color game as well this time in 2001, as even the handheld market needed some Xena for gamers to play as. So while I am not a mega fan of the Game Boy Color or N64 versions, I am a fan of the PS1 version and say that if you have the old console at your house and want to play a Xena adventure give this one a try.

The score music used for Xena The Warrior Princess was done by Joseph LoDuca and is fantastic stuff as the opening theme always built the excitement for the episode and is something that we all remember to this day as it became one of the most iconic themes for a TV Show at the time. Let’s be honest, you have hummed the theme at least once as you have been reading this update. Many of you might not know that composer Joseph LoDuca is the musical mastermind behind scores for such movies as “The Evil Dead”, “Brotherhood Of The Wolf”, “Boogeyman”, “Curse Of Chucky” and “Bad Samaritan” and shows like “Hercules: The Legendary Journeys”, “Cleopatra 2525” and “Jack Of All Trades” to name a few. And if you like myself enjoy the music of Xena you can get many volumes of the scores on CD thanks to Varese Sarabande; the musical episode even found its way onto CD! So make sure if you are a music collector to track these down as copies can be found on EBay and Amazon.

As you know Xena was one of the biggest syndicated shows of all time and this is what lead to it having so much merchandise to be made about it and besides comics, novels, video games, toys and soundtracks, the show also got Home Media, Posters, Shirts, Costumes, Trading Cards, Cardboard Standees, Stickers, Drinking Glasses, Magazines, Clocks, Key Chains, Bags, Jewelry, Snow Globe and so much more official and unofficial stuff! And because I am a fan I do have much of this stuff as I have several shirts as well as some of the trading cards along with the other stuff I have mentioned I own. So if you like Xena and are a collector, the world is filled with lots of cool stuff for you to get for your collection.

As you can see, Xena was a major force for TV in the 1990’s and sparked a tidal wave of great merchandise as well as gave female viewers a cool character to look up to as she was strong and a badass and at the time this was a little more rare for TV to have such a character in “nerdy” shows like this at the time. She also is an icon in the LGBTQ community as they show was laced with a lesbian overtones and this again was not the norm for this time on broadcast TV. And I want to also note that for fans the novels, comics, video games and even toys helped add new adventures for Xena while they waited for new seasons to start and new episodes to air. I want to thank Half Price Books and Game Swap Kettering for having these issues in stock and making this update possible. I want to also remind you all that I grade these comics on a star scale of 1 to 4 and am looking for how well the comics stay to the source material, its entertainment value and i’s art and story. So with that while the turkey is still in the oven and those potatoes are not yet mashe, let’s go on an adventure with Topps Comics and Xena The Warrior Princess.

Xena Warrior Princess # 0  **1/2
Released in 1997    Cover Price $2.95   Topps Comics     # 0 of 2

Xena and Gabrielle are walking along a path and stumble on a tomb at the side of a mountain and just as they notice it the ground shakes and a horde of zombie warriors come from the ground and go on the attack! Xena fights hard but is unable to save Gabrielle who is pulled underground by the zombies. Xena rushes inside the temple hoping that she can find Gabrielle alive inside and meets Psoriasese, the undead caretaker of the temple who warns Xena of the Dragon God who dwells inside and who has already claimed the soul of Xena as he wants her to enter his temple, this does not scare Xena who enters to save her friend as she learns that if she stabs the Dragon’s heart she will not only kill the beast but also free all the souls he has trapped. Xena ends up fighting and killing the three monsters that guard the dragon’s gate and once inside the Dragon taunts Xena with Gabrielle who is now in the zombie trance and this causes the warrior princess to go on the attack! After dodging the dragons attack as well as trying to hit his heart she is lucky to shrug off his attempt to put her into the zombie trance and is able to throw her sword into his heart and kill him and this frees the souls of all those he damned! In the end Xena and Gabrielle come back together as people are back to normal all around them and continue their quest.

This is a pretty fun first comic for Xena The Warrior Princess and does a pretty good job of capturing the mood and feel of the TV Show is based on, but I will say some of the humor in the comic does fall flat at times as the jokes and one liners were cheesy. The plot is very simple and has Xena fighting zombies, monsters and a dragon in order to save her friend Gabrielle who was kidnapped by them, and like always Xena and her warrior skills save the day. Xena in this issue is skilled in her fighting and is confidante in her skills as she has no fear charging into a tomb filled with the dead and monsters in order to protect her friend, she truly is one of the best female warriors in all of fandom. Gabrielle in this issue is very bored and sadly does not get her chance to see much action as she is taken by zombies and turned into one of them before she knew what even happened, and she still is very much around for some comedy relief at the start of the issue. The issue’s bad guy is the Dragon God who is in this tomb to try and collect souls to please Hades and to get his way into being in the underworld. He has the power to use a death stare in order to turn people into his mindless zombie slaves and to send their souls to Hades! He is very mean and evil looking but is also very slow in his attacks and had one big weakness his heart that is the key to free all those he damned. The comics action is well done and I do like the fight she has with the three monsters as she makes quick work of them and makes them pay for the decades of killing of people they have done and sends them all to the underworld. The cover I have is eye catching and showcases Lucy Lawless as Xena and the interior art is really great and done by Aaron Lopresti who can truly draw dragons, zombies and monsters and his work on Xena is good and it looks like Lawless. Over all a good start to this series as its fast paced and has some great art and fun action.

Xena Warrior Princess # 1  ***
Released in 1997    Cover Price $2.95   Topps Comics     # 1 of 2

Salmoneus is in charge of the Spring Fair and a threat has been made toward the hero turned king Perseus’s life and that is why he has called in many of his friends to help protect the king’s life as well as keep the fair safe. On hand is Xena, Gabrielle and Joxer The Brave and for a brief time Hercules and Iolaus are around to stop a drunken giant. As the heroes all come together a strange old man in a cloak offers money to a charity if Xena and Hercules would fight each other to see who the better hero is, they refuse and Hercules leaves to visit his mother. Meanwhile Xena, Gabrielle, Iolaus and Joxer stick around to protect the King during the fair but things go wrong when the Gorgon Sisters show up as they are the sisters of Medusa and want revenge on Perseus for killing their loved one. The Gorgon Sisters can turn people to stone via their eyes as well as firing laser beams from them and they are able to turn Perseus, Iolaus, Salmoneus and Gabrielle into stone and worse a spear has went through Gabrielle right as she turned! Xena tricks the Gorgon Sisters into hitting each other with their stone eye beams, and this kills them both. As Xena and Joxer go to check on their friends cloaked man appears and shows that he is classic hero Gilgamesh and that Xena should join him on a quest to get a plant that gives eternal life as in 30 Days all those turned to stone will turn normal and this would be the death of Gabrielle!

What a fun comic as this brings in so many familiar faces from the classic Xena and Hercules TV Shows and brings them all together in order to protect Perseus who many know not only by the myth of his story but also the film Clash Of The Titans from the 1980’s. The story is that Perseus is now a King and his throwing a big fair for his people that the conman Salmoneus is in charge of, but a threat is looming so he calls on his hero friends to come act as guards and security only for them to have to face the evil sisters of Medusa who turn many into stone and during this fight Gabrielle is hit with a spear right as she is turned, after killing the sisters Xena now must find a way to save her friend in 30 Days as once she turns flesh again she will surely die. Xena in this issue shows that she has no fear as she rushes head on to fight The Gorgon Sisters and out smarts them in order to end their lives, as they are immortal but they could not survive their own attacks. Xena by he quick actions is able to save many lives! Poor Gabrielle tries to help during the mayhem but finds herself being hit in the gut with a spear and then turned to stone at the same time, she has thirty days to live as stone before returning back to flesh and bleeding to death. Joxer is a goofball and during the fight has his helmet fall and saves no lives nor does not battle the Sisters. The one odd thing is that Hercules is around for a few moments, but leaves before the attack to visit his mom…its like could he not wait one day to visit her and help his friends stay safe? Poor Iolaus and Salmoneus find themselves stone, but do try to help during this attack. I for one don’t trust Gilgamesh who uses Iolaus as a human shield, tries to hire Hercules and Xena to fight and then tries to say he has a way to save Gabrielle’s life as well as give him more life as he should have been dead long ago…don’t trust him as he comes off shady. The cover is very cool and eye catching and the interior art by Joyce Chin and is great stuff, I really like her style lots and she captures the looks of the actors who play the characters and adds he own touch and style to them. Over all this is a great start for this mini series and shows that Xena is not only great on TV but also in comics!

Xena Warrior Princess # 2  ***
Released in 1997    Cover Price $2.95    Topps Comics     # 2 of 2

Xena and Gilgamesh are on their quest to get the plant that grows every 500 years and gives a person immortality, but they are attacked by some Lion Men and they have to kill the flesh eating beasts and soon find that Joxer has been following them as he wants to help! Gilgamesh opens up to Xena and says that he once touched the flower and that is how he is still alive after all these centuries and that he does not want to die as he feels the effects fading and that watching his friend die before him is what has driven him to this quest as he thinks heroes should not have such fates. The three head to the river and meet the ferryman who uses a sea monster to get them across, once at the location Gilgamesh uses his club and knocks out both Xena and Joxer and then ties Xena up into the air and tells her that he must slit her throat in order for the planet to fully bloom, and she reminds him that he was one of the greatest heroes and that this is murder…he knows she is right and stops his attack. But before they can talk, more monsters appear and Xena and he team up to bring them down. Gilgamesh then says while his life will end he thinks the roots of the flower will heel the wounds of Gabrielle if they can make it back in time. Thirty days pass and those turned to stone turn back to flesh and at the last second Gilgamesh makes it to Gabrielle in time and saves her life! As Gilgamesh leaves to return to his homeland to die, Hercules makes it back from his mom’s home and asks Xena what he missed.

The final issue in this mini series has Xena on a quest for a plant that should be able to save the life of her best friend Gabrielle, but soon finds that she was tricked and a sacrificial lamb so that her blood can help the planet bloom, but her attacker and quest buddy Gilgamesh could not commit murder and they end up using the plants roots in order to at least save the life of Gabrielle as the root heals her wounds. I told you readers not to trust Gilgamesh and while in the end he turns into the hero is was, he had his own self in mind and was willing to kill a brave warrior in order for himself to live forever. Xena as always is brave and kills some monsters as well as goes into the unknown in order to save her friends life as well as help a legendary hero live forever. Gilgamesh is aging and dying and while he was a great warrior at one time its clear his fear of death as well as aging is breaking him down. Joxer is around but is pretty much just used as comedy for the issue. Hercules, Iolaus, Salmoneus and Perseus show up at then end of the issue and add their own charm, but are pretty much just background characters. Gabrielle turns flesh and is saved and still has her sense of humor as she talks about having a tummy ache. This comic mini series has lots going for it as I feel the story is fun and fitting for an episode of Xena, the art is really great and all artists do a great job of making the characters look like the actors and yet also add their own touches, it has lots of action, humor and monsters…plus you can not go wrong with having Hercules in a cameo role. Topps Comics really was a great indie comic company in the 90’s that delivered very entertaining reads and I think their Xena series is proof that they put care behind their releases. The cover is pretty great and showcases Xena being a badass and the interior art in this issue is done by Joyce Chin again and is great stuff, as she even adds a little sexy cheesecake feel to Xena throughout. To sum it up these comics lived up to what I remember and if you are a Xena Warrior Princess fan make sure to give this mini series a read. Checkout the artwork bellow to see the style used by Chin in the series.

Xena Warrior Princess was a fantastic TV Show that was a big part of my TV watching growing up and made for a great comic book series thanks to Topps Comics who I feel was gone way to soon as I think the amount of amazing comics they could have released over the years they have been gone could have been very epic. You can tell that the creative minds behind this mini series at least cared about delivering a entertaining comic and great read to the fans of the show and that’s what makes it standout from many of the others that have failed their readers and fans. And I think truly that the show should return for one more season and it’s a must that Lucy Lawless and Rene O’Connor step back into the roles of Xena and Gabrielle, but enough of that talk as I could chat about Xena for days! Thank you so much for spending a small part of your Thanksgiving with Rotten Ink and I hope looking back at Xena Warrior Princess made your Turkey Day a little better. Before we part ways let me tell you that our next update is our kickoff to Christmas Eve and will be about the first Superman movie in cinemas that had him meeting Mole Men, that’s right it’s a photo comic graphic novel based on the George Reeves as Superman film “Superman And The Mole Men” so that should be a fun flashback. So I hope you are enjoying your meal with your family, friends and pets and as always until next time read an indie comic or three, watch a Xena episode or two and as always support your local Horror Host. See you soon as Superman has some Mole Men to save!

Spider-Man Has The Power To Slay Dragon Man!

Who doesn’t like listening to music on vinyl? Growing up I have fond memories of listing to the likes of Weird Al Yankovic, Alice Cooper, Billy Idol, Motley Crue and the WWF Wrestling Album to name a very few. But I also have some good memories of listening to comic books on vinyl…I am sure you long time comic readers remember Power Records released by Peter Pan Records as kids of the 70’s and 80’s grew up with these. I for one checked them out all the time from the library in Waynesville and most of the time the vinyl was missing, but my brother and I did have some of our own that we got from garage sales. One of my favorites from this series is the one featuring Incredible Hulk called “At Bay” that had old jade jaw taking on Abomination and Rhino at the Hulk Buster Base, a very fun listen and a good adventure for one of my favorite superheroes. Plus thanks to Power Records, I first discovered Holo-Man, an original superhero that I have covered here on Rotten Ink before. For this update, we are going to have some fun and not only chat about Power Records but also just some fun stuff going on in my life as well as in comics! So grab your record player and crank it to 11 as it’s time to power out with Spider-Man!

Synthetic Plastics Company was a plastic manufacturer that was founded by Daniel Kasen that opened in the 1920’s in New Jersey. Their main products were buttons and game pieces like poker chips, and they made a good living at making this stuff. But they would get into making vinyl records after World War II when Daniel’s brother entered the picture and they opened Peter Pan Records, that would spawn many other side labels like Power Records, Diplomat Records and Parade Records to name a few and would push for cheaper made vinyl records so the could sell them at cheap prices. These labels would mostly focus on children releases based on popular properties like Bugs Bunny, Sesame Street and Batman as well as Gospel, Comedy and budget releases and would crank out releases as they owned the press that made them. But while many listeners had these cheap made releases, they also knew that the sound quality was very poor and this was something that stuck with this company all during their time in business. Over the years and with many name changes, many of you might be shocked to know that Synthetic Plastics Company is still around and switched their home base from New Jersey to Florida and are now called Inspired Studios and are just shell of what they used to be, but it’s still very cool knowing they are still out there.

So with us talking about record companies and music, let’s take a look at the newest CD release of Dee Snider of the 80’s band Twisted Sister that was released in July 2018 and a release that I have wanted to check out for some time. Growing up, I was fan of Twisted Sister as well as Dee Snider’s other band Widowmaker, not to mention a big fan of his Horror Movie Strangeland and loved watching him out class the PMRC at the infamous 1985 Senate hearings. The release is called “For The Love Of Metal” and was released by Napalm Records and has 12 tracks. So let’s sit back, relax and get talking about this release shall we? When popping in this CD, the first thing I noticed is that Dee Snider has not missed a step when it comes to delivering amazing rock n roll vocals to heavy songs. And I must also say it blew me away just how heavy and rocking this release was. I also noticed that Dee also sounded a little bit like Alice Cooper in some of these songs and to be honest some of the songs even sound like they could have been song by him and released on “Brutal Planet”. I would say that my favorite track on this release would be “I Am The Hurricane” followed by “For The Love Of Metal” as both tracks I think really do capture the attitude and singing talent of Dee. Over all if you enjoyed Twisted Sister and like the singing style of Dee Snider this is a release that you should check out as one thing is for sure Dee Snider is a true icon of Rock N Roll!

What’s really crazy is to think that here in the Dayton area we have very little music shops left as places like Armadillo Records, Renaissance Music, CD Connection, Trader Vics, Gem City Records, Dingleberry’s and NRM Music are all shops of the past and all we have left is Omega Music, Toxic Beauty and Skeleton Dust and a few other mix media stores like Second Time Around, Game Swap Kettering and Buybacks to name a few who have solid and good music selections. I have so many great memories and moments at many of those long gone record shops and pretty much grew up visiting Renaissance Music and even to this day Geoff Burkman, who was the owner of the shop remains one of my close friends. Renaissance was a very cool place and one that I always felt at home at. The store had an amazing selection of music on vinyl, cassettes and CDs and was my go to store to get my 80’s hairbands. It was also the place I would get Horror Movies on VHS and later DVD as well as get posters, buttons, fanzines and Horror Indie Comics. It was a place over the years I would sit and chat with Geoff for hours about music, movies and comics. Even in school for one of my classes, I job shadowed Geoff for a class report and we watched Dawn of the Dead together that day on Laserdisc. I can still see and hear the old Renaissance Music TV commercials in my mind from time to time as they would have Geoff wearing a Godzilla mask and talking like Mr. T and calling himself Mr. G…classic. In fact many years later, Geoff would play Mr. G again in episodes of Baron Von Porkchop’s Terrifying Tales Of The Macabre. Geoff Burkman and Renaissance Music also appear in the Independent B Movie film Wolf Hunter directed by Matt Hoffman as well. NRM is another place I used to love to go as it was in the Town And Country Shopping Center that was near the High School in Kettering I went to for a short time, and I can remember cutting class and going their to pick up music to listen to on my Sony Walkman. And that’s just the two stores as I have great memories of all the stores I mentioned above and miss the atmosphere of a good classic music store and searching for the next album of a band I liked or even discovering new music. No matter how the world changes, you just cannot sell me on digital media and that goes for music, movies, comics, video games and books. For this blogger, physical will always be the way to go. Below are some of the closed music shops that brought lots of tunes to this metal heads ears when growing up.

So as you can see, in my opinion music and comic books go hand and hand as both have been a main source of entertainment for me growing up. And I am going to say this, I really wish an indie comic company would return and make classic style Rock N Roll Comics like Revolutionary Comics headed by Todd Loren did back in 1989-1994, and yeah, I know companies like Blue Water tried but failed and I am talking about comics done by fans of the bands doing unauthorized comic issues on bands like Cinderella, W.A.S.P., Danzig and Billy Idol to name a few. But let’s move past a dream I am sure will never be made true and let’s focus on Spider-Man and this adventure made just for Power Records. I want to remind you all that I grade this comic on a 1-4 star scale and am looking for how well the comic stays to the source material, its entertainment value and its art and story. So let’s see what Spidey has in store for us as he takes on a massive Dragon Man!

Spider-Man Power Record # 0  **
Released in 1974       Cover Price $1.49       Marvel/Power Records     # 1 of 1

A group of college students and their teacher are out looking at the stars. Two students sneak away to make out while stars fall from the sky that turn out to be Dragon Men lead by the massive Draco King Of The Dragon-Men, who have came to earth with the plan to take it over. At the Daily Bugle, J. Jonah Jameson is mad as the story of the Dragon-Men has broke and none of his reporters have covered it yet. He sends Peter Parker to get some photos of the aliens or lose his job! Peter Parker turns into Spider-Man when his Spidey Sense goes crazy when he passes sewer manholes, and this leads him to travel around the sewer system where he finds Draco and his Dragon-Men who have a giant laser gun they plan on using in New York that will leave all machines and humans paralyzed! Spider-Man is able to trick Draco and the Dragon-Men and use his webbing on the guns controls and floods the sewer, washing away them and their fancy massive gun. Spider-Man later is back on the streets of New York and finds in the newspaper that the bodies of the Dragon-Men had been found and are robots and not aliens at all. To clear his mind and gaze at the stars above, Spider-Man sits on top of the Empire State Building and is lost in thoughts when Draco appears and shares that he is no alien but is really a missing scientist who fused his own blood with that of a giant iguana and has transformed into a massive fire breathing dragon humanoid. As Draco attacks, Spider-Man uses his fast speed to dodge him and Draco falls 20 feet onto a roof below. As Spider-Man rushes down to check on his foe, he only finds a small iguana there that crawls away into a crack in the wall.

This Spider-Man adventure was an original story made just for Power Records, and while entertaining, you can tell it was rushed and was not a priority to Marvel who did not bring their A-Game. This comic’s plot has Spider-Man on the hunt for Dragon-Men who are said to be from space and are now in New York and have a sinister plan to take over thanks to their massive fire-breathing leader Draco. Spidey, being the hero he is, not only tracks them down but also exposes that the Dragon-Men are robots and not aliens, destroys their massive destructive weapon and as well figures out that Draco is a mutated missing scientist! Spider-Man in this issue is the friendly neighborhood web head we all love and is filled with one liners as well as the fighting skills to back up his mouth. I also have always liked that Spidey uses his mind to also figure out how to stop the baddies and not just his fists. Peter Parker even in this issue has some pressure as his boss J. Jonah Jameson threatens to fire him if he doesn’t get pictures of the Dragon Men for the paper, and he also has to blow off the attention of Mary Jane Watson in order to get said pictures and this upsets his red headed love interest. Draco is a massive fire breathing dragon man who has a massive ego and wants to rule the world as he feels his superior mind puts him above normal humans…even if he started out as one. The Dragon Men are just robots who do what their creator asks, and while threats, they are by no means as threatening as such super villains as Green Goblin, Rhino or Shocker. While I am thinking about it, this story almost feels like it could have been an issue in the “Spidey Super Stories” comic series as it’s fast paced and the villain is over the top in appearance. The cover is pretty great and eye catching as it also reminds me of a cheesy b-movie poster. The interior art is also good and is done by an unknown artist as no credits are given. Over all this is a fun read and is a must for fans of classic 70’s Spider-Man adventures, but keep in mind the story is not mind blowing and is just a middle of the road adventure that feels like a back up story. Check out the artwork below to see what you get in this book and record set.

The Book and Record Sets should make a comeback in the world of comics as they were a fun way to bring in younger readers as well as add a new level of fun for older readers. In our modern world with digital, CD and Vinyl all still being around for us to listen to audio on, I am going to guess it’s only a matter of time before a company does it again…heck, maybe Sparkle Comics will bring this trend back! Now it’s time for us to leave New York and let Spider-Man do what he does best and that’s stop crimes. For our next update we will be heading to the world of snack food to take a look at Jell-O Man! So until next time, read a comic or three, listen to a CD or two and as always support your local Horror Host! So let’s get ready to meet next time and talk about a mascot for snack food.

 

Porky Pig The Swine Of The Hour..The Pig With The Power!

Welcome to Rotten Ink once again as we take a look at another icon of the cartoon world, Porky Pig. When I was a youngster, the stations had battles to get young viewers to watch their shows over the others.  They packed in lots of great programs to get the ratings; from cartoons to horror hosts, they did whatever they could to get those eyes glued to the TV and pump our young minds full of commercials for toys, snack food and video games that you had to have to be cool like all your friends. I miss those days, and it’s sad that Saturday Morning Cartoons are a thing of the past and most parent groups and hipsters with a twitter account have blocked so many fast food mascots from being used to promote products all cause they are making kids fat…not the bad parenting of buying said food all week for kids. But while some things are gone with no signs of returning, some things remain timeless, and that’s how I feel about Looney Tunes which is why to break up all the negative news in the world, let’s travel down memory lane and hang out with that hip pig Porky! So grab your acme chair and sip on some Hi-C, it’s time to have some silly fun!

Porky Pig is the longest active Looney Tune character in use and predates Bugs Bunny by 3 years! So we should talk about who this strange cartoon pig is who made many Saturday mornings fun for kids who enjoyed his silly stuttering antics. Porky Pig is a walking and talking pig who wears mostly red bowties, a blue jacket and sometimes white gloves who also has a stutter when he talks. He has a laid back attitude for the most part and is the butt of many jokes from friends like Daffy Duck who loved to drive him crazy. Porky is a hard worker who has worked for many different places in many different trades including a baseball announcer! Porky is also an uncle as well as a ladies man as he has a girlfriend named Petunia Pig who he loves. Warner Brothers in the early days really pushed Porky Pig as one of the premiere Looney Tunes characters, but by the time my generation came around, the focus was on Bugs Bunny and Road Runner. But even with that said, his impact was still around as he was a favorite of many of my friends at school and the old ads in comic books showcasing him made it apparent to many young minds just how important Porky was to the cartoon series and beyond. TV Guide had a countdown of 50 top Cartoon Characters, and he ranked in at 47.  While a little low, it still showed that he had some popularity lefty in his chubby body. I should also say WB must have had some love for him as he became the poster boy for the end of the cartoons as he would bust his way out of a drum and stutter “That’s All Folks,” creating a phrase that is used by many still to this day. Porky was never my favorite of the Looney Tune characters but I still owned many of his VHS tapes as well as always enjoyed his toons on TV playing mostly on WGN, but this update is for all you Porky fans out in the world of the web as you help keep this character alive in pop culture.

Friz Freleng is the man who created Porky Pig in 1935 for the cartoon “I Haven’t Got A Hat,” and while Porky was only a minor character, his popularity grew fast. For those wondering, his name was inspired by nicknames of two schoolmate brothers that Friz grew up with. By the time that Tex Avery was hired in 1936, he featured an adult Porky Pig in his toon “Gold Diggers Of ‘49”  While in a minor role, Porky got many of the laughs, and they knew they had a new star on their hands. Voice actor Joe Dougherty was chosen first to voice Porky as he had a real life stutter, but when his recording sessions took too long, the studio brought in Mel Blanc to be the new voice of their star pig. Blanc started his voice in 1937 with the cartoon “Porky’s Duck Hunt” and continued to voice Porky until his death in 1989 then Bob Bergen took over the duties. During the early years, the character of Porky would change from young to old and his attitude and such would change depending on the director of the cartoon.  This helped and hurt Porky at the same time as it was hard for people to latch onto him when he kept changing, but this did not slowdown P. Pig as he starred in many cartoons. But his time at the top was short lived, and he quickly became a sidekick character alongside the likes of Daffy Duck and Sylvester Cat, pushing this one time kingpin Piggy out of the spotlight and into the supporting cast. Porky Pig would however be pushed again towards kids as in 1964 he was the star of “The Porky Pig Show” that ran until 1967, and in 1971 he had another show called “Porky Pig And Friends” that was geared towards kids to attach themselves to the character and a way to repackage the old cartoons of the past. Unlike Bugs Bunny, who is WB’s top character, Porky would end up as a character in some Hollywood movies like “Who Framed Roger Rabbit” and “Space Jam” to name a few. While Porky might have taken a backseat and was the butt of many jokes for the likes of Daffy, his straight man approach is what makes many of the cartoons he’s in enjoyable. Thanks WB, Friz Freleng, Mel Blanc and all the other creative people who made Porky Pig a household name and a character we all know and love!

Like all good cartoon iconic characters over the years, Porky has got many amazing pieces of merchandise made in his image, and if you’re a child of the 60’s all the way through the 90’s, it’s very possible you or a family member had something that featured Porky Pig like: Halloween costumes, drinking glasses, dolls, action figures, t-shirts, posters, buttons, scissors, jewelry, video games, VHS tapes, cards, cars and so much more! Porky was everywhere and was sure to please the fans of his antics. Growing up, my favorite Porky Pig things I owned were the Pepsi drinking glass that I would drink Kool-Aid and chocolate milk from, the VHS tapes I bought form a Dollar Tree that I would watch lots and the Arby’s figure that I had gotten from my cousin Nathan. If you had a favorite Porky Pig merchandise item, please share in the comments below.

James Rolfe who plays The Angry Video Game Nerd during the month of October does Horror Movie reviews once a day and calls it Monster Madness.  They are one of the things that I look forward to every Halloween, and in 2009 he covered the 1932 film Freaks and made a very solid point when he showed a stuttering character who sounded just like Porky Pig and wondered if this was the inspiration.  Looking at it, I think he might just be right as Porky didn’t come around until 1935, a total of three years after Freaks played the cinema. Was the stuttering sideshow worker the blue print used to make Porky Pig? Is it just an odd coincidence that the two sounded the same? What ever the case is James Rolfe brought this very interesting comparison to the light for me as a good topic to chat with friends about who know and respect both the film and the Porky. If I had to guess whether the stuttering character from Freaks was the inspiration for Porky Pig, I would have to say yeah, probably, slightly as the patterns of how each talks and change the word they are having issues with is just too close to say it was not. Make sure to give Monster Madness’ episode of Freaks a watch and see what you think of the connection when it’s done.

So now that we have refreshed ourselves on all things Porky Pig, we should pour ourselves a big bowl of cereal like Golden Crisp or Lucky Charms and get ready for the reviews of Porky done by Whitman and Gold Key! This time around, I dug deep into the box of comics I bought from Jason Young and his mother and pulled out every issue of Porky Pig.  While most are done by Whitman, I did find a few Gold Key and decided to just go ahead and review them all as the Whitman issues are just reprints of the Gold Key ones. So I must send a big thank you to Jason and his mom for selling me these comics as I have had a blast digging through them and picking out cool Loony Tune issues to review here at Rotten Ink. I should also remind all you readers that I grade these issues on a star scale of 1 to 4 and am looking for how well the comic stays to the source material, its entertainment value and its art and story. So let’s stuff our faces and pig out with the one and only pig of the hour, the swine with the belly laugh power, Porky Pig!

Porky Pig # 68   **1/2
Released in 1976    Cover Price .25    Whitman    # 68 of 110

“Misadventures In Tacoland” In this adventure, Porky Pig and his nephew Cicero Pig are taking a trip to Tacoland and take Tweety Bird along with them after he is chased by Sylvester Cat. Tacoland is a place filled with temples, jungles, small towns and tons of Tweety Birds as it’s the homeland for the species. Sylvester Cat sneaks into the luggage and upon arrival finds out that the locals hate cats, and they run him off. Porky goes to the temple with Tweety and Cicero, and Sylvester follows.  The groups stop a couple of illegal treasure hunters, and in the end Sylvester gets a treat of all he can eat tacos! “Disguise The Limit” Porky and Petunia Pig are on a date to a costume ball for charity at the mansion of Mrs. Giltstone when Juciy James steals all the money as well as everyone’s wealth.  Porky goes after him and by luck stops the criminal and returns the money. “Star Performer” Cicero is practicing tight rope walking and Porky thinks it’s too dangerous and urges his nephew to get a small part time job.  Cicero gets one at the circus, and Porky thinks his nephew is the new tight rope walker and risks his own life to try and stop him but soon finds out his nephew is only selling ice cream!

This is the first issue of Porky Pig I have read in over 30 years, and I found it to be a good refreshing classic kids comic that was packed with lots of familiar Loony Tune faces and really showcased Porky Pig as a character as I got to see lots of his sides from protective uncle all the way to worry wart. The first thing I must point out is that Porky’s stutter is gone as this comic has him talking normal without a stammer. This was kind of odd as the whole appeal of Porky Pig for many kids was his stutter that was used for comedic moments. It’s odd, even without the stutter as I read this comic in my head ,I could hear his voice and the dialogue was complete with the stutter. I also found myself very much attached to Porky and liked seeing what he would do in each of these adventures. Cicero Pig, while a youngster, is not annoying and adds some level of youth to the comic as Porky is a adult who is not prone to some of the excitement his nephew leads him into. Petunia Pig is a caring woman who is in charge of a charity in this issue and is clearly very proud of her boyfriend. The issue’s bad guys are two treasure hunters and a robber who dresses like a crook from the old west, and while all are up to bad things, none of them are super threatening. It was really cool to see Tweety and Sylvester make a cameo appearance in the opening story and even cooler that they stop a major crime alongside Porky and Cicero. The comic had a fantastic rotten ink smell and took me back to the good old days of working at Mavericks and pricing old comics from the back room. The cover, like all Whitman/Gold Key Looney Tune tie in comics, is misleading as Bugs Bunny does not show up in the issue but Porky and Petunia Pig do indeed eat ice cream in the final story. The comic’s art is well done but sadly no credits are given to who the artist is! If I had to pick a favorite story from the issue, I would have to say Misadventures In Tacoland as it was a cool adventure that took Porky into a jungle and had him along with friends be the heroes. Plus I wish Tacoland was real….man, now I want tacos….sigh, I guess Taco Bell for lunch. Over all while they changed Porky in a major way by dropping the stutter, I still really enjoyed this comic and found it to be a solid kids comic that I am sure the Young brothers enjoyed just as much as I did.

Porky Pig # 69   **1/2
Released in 1976    Cover Price .25    Whitman    # 69 of 110

“The Return Of Awful Alfie” Porky Pig and Bugs Bunny are in the town of Awful Mountain when one time train robber Awful Alfie returns and threatens the whole town that if they don’t leavem he will squash them with a giant bolder he will roll down his mountain home. The Sheriff quits and appoints Porky as the new one, and he and Bugs try to talk to Alfie but soon find out why they call him awful! Porky and Bugs use an old train as bait to capture Alfie who in turns uses sneezing powder that causes them all to have a sneezing fit that echoes and causes the bolder to roll down the train tracks toward the town and toward Porky, Bugs and Alfie on the train! Porky uses his head and saves the day as Alfie also turns over a new leaf and is elected the town’s first mayor. “Snow Job” It’s summer time and hot outside, and Porky buys a snow machine from Daffy Duck.  Porky decides to use it and charge kids .50 to cool off in a winter wonderland he created with the machine. Daffy Duck gets mad that Porky will not cut him into the deal and ruins the business with heaters sending all the kids home. But in the end, when one door closes, the pair team up and make snow cones and make extra money. “The Poultry Pig” Once more, Porky and Petunia are dressed up after a costume ball.  Porky is dressed as a chicken and this makes Henry Hawk the Chicken Hawk think Porky is a big old chicken that is ready to be eaten! Henery chases Porky all over town, and it takes Porky showing him his license before the chicken hawk finally stops trying to make P. Pig his meal.

This another fun issue that has Porky Pig in all types of silly adventures! Porky once more has no stutter and is showcased as a pretty stand up guy who doesn’t back down from danger when it comes to a gun shooting midget mountain man but runs in fear from a tiny chicken hawk! The best adventure in this issue has to be the opener, Return of Awful Alfie, as I love the fact Porky becomes the sheriff of a small mountain town and with the help of Bugs Bunny they return law and order to the community. Petunia Pig makes returns and for the most part is just a background player in a story that has her once more returning from a costume ball…man, does all she do is party? The comeos from other Looney Tunes characters in this issue include Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and Henery Hawk. The main bad guys in the issue are Awful Alfie, a small outlaw with a bad attitude who ends up turning good at the end and Henery Hawk, who is just confused and hungry. The artwork just as the last issue is well done and credit-less, and the cover on this one, while on track with showing Bug Bunny, is way off as the pair do not treat sick trees. I know this is odd, but I am really finding myself enjoying these Porky Pig comics and after reading these issues I find myself looking forward to seeing what adventures await this chubby cartoon pig! So to sum it up, this issue is a fun read and is one I would recommend for the young and young at heart to check out if they are a fan of Looney Tunes.

Porky Pig # 70   **1/2
Released in 1976    Cover Price .30    Whitman    # 70 of 110

“The Farm That Wasn’t” Elmer Fudd has just bought a ten acre farm and takes Porky Pig and Bugs Bunny to take a look at it.  The downside is that while he bought it for a cheap price, he did so sight unseen. When they get to the farm, they find out that it’s a fraud and nothing more than a dollhouse made to look bigger! While Fudd has a breakdown, Porky and Bugs find the crooks and bust them and get Fudd’s money back. “The Nightwatcher” Porky Pig is working as a late night security guard at a toy factory.  Tweety Bird is running from Sylvester and they set off the alarm! While Porky breaks up the two, a real robber comes in and tries to steal the new toy line and Porky, Tweety and Sylvester team up to save the day. “The Indian Givers” Two Native Americans, Standing Bull and Big Skunk, have come to town with a deed that entitles them to the whole town, and they kick Porky and everyone off their land. The two Indians turn out to be crooks who are fakes and are there to rob and loot, but Porky talks to real Indian Chief Little Owl and he learns of the swindle and along with the real Native Americans bust the robbers and take the town back.

Porky Pig as a nighttime security guard for a toy factory is one of the coolest ideas and should have been used in many other issues as it was clearly the best story of this issue. Something about a gun carrying none-pant-wearing talking pig guarding top secret toys is the stuff fun kid comics and cartoons are made of! Porky Pig, in the issue, is a savior or the town, stops Elmer Fudd from being ripped off and protects toys.  In other words, he is a pig of all trades. I should also note that in a modern kids comic, no well-loved cartoon character would have a gun, so it shows how much comics have changed and how parent groups and social media warriors have impacted the way comics are made. Petunia and Cicero have a cameo in the final story and are not given much to do. The cameos in this issue are Bugs Bunny, Elmer Fudd, Tweety Bird and Sylvester, and all are used really well and help add to Porky’s adventures. The way the comic portrays Native Americans is a little suspect as its shows that “palefaces” traded useless beads for land and that they would not want the land back as they like living on the reservations. The art work is great, and I really like the way the artist draws Porky. The cover is once more misleading as Porky and Bugs don’t play golf in any of the stories. Over all this is another great comic and had a slight rotten ink smell, and was well worth the read.

Porky Pig # 71  **1/2
Released in 1976    Cover Price .30    Gold Key    # 71 of 110

“Operation Deep Freeze” Porky Pig and Bugs Bunny are in a sub on a quest for Hamm University to track down the 200 year pirate ship that belonged Redbeard in the arctic. When they get to the arctic, they not only find the ship but also a hot springs that houses the Great Great Grandson of Redbeard along with other descendents.  But when an earthquake sparks an avalanche, Porky and Bugs must use the sub to free the pirate ship as well as all the pirates from a snowy grave. “Monkey Business” Porky must babysit the son (Mildew) of his boss and brings Cicero along with him.  The kid is a brat and a tattletale and keeps threatening to get Porky fired! But when a batch of monkeys escape into the woods, they all use teamwork to capture them and return them back to Monkey Island, and Mildew learns a lesson in friendship. “The Stand-In” Petunia Pig is a stunt woman for Pam Pig on a popular police TV Show and while she’s giving Porky and Cicero a tour of the set and sample of her stunt work, Cicero by accident knocks out a thief who is trying to steal Pam’s jewelry and once more a crime is stopped and pig justice prevails.

Okay, we are four issues into the Porky comics I own and they all have some sort of thieves in them, which makes me wonder why Porky, Cicero and Petunia have to stop so many crimes! I mean is their town that overrun with scumbags who want to steal from others to buy their addiction of choice? Porky, as always,is on track of being one stand up kind of Pig who wants to make sure he does all the right things to help out those who need it. Cicero not only helps show a rich spoiled brat the meaning of friendship and teamwork, he also showcases that he doesn’t listen to grownups and still ends up stopping a robber in the process. Petunia gets a job of being a stunt pig for a famous actress and shows she does not fear danger and is very proud of working for a paycheck. The only cameo in this issue comes from Bugs Bunny who once more is helping HAMM University alongside Porky Pig. I would say my favorite story in this issue is the opening Operation Deep Freeze as it was cool to see Porky and Bugs in a sub saving the lives of pirates who could have died under a pile of snow. While this issue is a good one, it did slip slightly from the past three issues as this one seemed more like the comic series b-game and not the a-game of the others. The art is fantastic as the cover once more lies as no baseball is played. It’s a standard fun issue –  not much more to say so let’s move onto the next.

Porky Pig # 79   **1/2
Released in 1978    Cover Price .35    Gold Key    # 79 of 110

“The Hypnotic Eye” Porky and Cicero are on vacation when a crooked hypnotist named Knich tries to con Porky out of money with the help of a circus performer and his business partner. In the end Porky under a trance along with Cicero perform in the circus and help the police capture Knich and his friends. “Every Drip Counts” For a school project Cicero learns about saving water so he and Porky go around the house and do what they can to save water from leaky sinks, but things get out of hand when Cicero starts saving even shower water and dishwater to use in Porky’s tiny garden that is quickly growing as he planets more and more to keep up with the water. In the end, Porky comes up with a better way to use the saved water and that’s to open up a dog washing business. “Escape From Time” Porky and Petunia are traveling looking for antiques and stop by an old man’s house.  They touch an antique locket that transports them back in time where they come face to face with some evil pirates and must out step them in order to return home.  After reopening the locket they return home and are done antiquing for awhile.

This issue is pretty good but is slightly less enjoyable than all the others that have come before it.  While it’s not bad, it just seems like it’s missing something that made the others feel more fun. While I liked both Escape From Time and The Hypnotic Eye and found each to have a classic Looney Tune cartoon feel to them, Every Drop Counts comes off as a PSA for saving water that has some gross moments that include washing dogs with water that was used in Porky’s shower as well as his dishes. In this issue, Porky shows that he cares about the environment as well will do what he can to make Petunia safe and happy. Petunia in this issue is now into collecting old antiques, and Cicero loves to save water and relax on vacations. The bad guys of this issue include pirates and Knich, a hypnotist who loves to steal money,  While cool, none are that threatening towards Porky enough to make you worried about his health. The cover is as misleading as ever as this issue has no Bugs Bunny and no ice skating.  The inside art is as good as all the others. Over all, it’s a good issue that did its job of entertaining a 36 year old comic book reader.

Porky Pig # 84   **1/2
Released in 1978    Cover Price .35    Gold Key    # 84 of 110

“ Sir Coss And The Dragon” Porky and Cicero are camping in the woods near an old castle when they witness a knight on a horse disappear before their eyes! That night they share legends of Sir Coss, the brave knight.  In the morning they head to the castle ruins and soon find themselves in a time warp and are stuck in the time of Sir Coss and his feud with a dragon. Soon Porky and Cicero trick Coss and the Dragon into being friends and find a way back to the time warp and return home knowing they changed history. “Computer Date” Porky is mad at Petunia and decides to break up with her and take his chance of finding a new girlfriend via a computer dating service and meets Patty Pig, a rough and tough woman who scares Porky so much he runs back to Petunia and patches things up. “Shaker Breaker” It’s Porky’s birthday dinner, and by accident he breaks Petunia’s prized salt and pepper shaker and must rush to the late night department store to replace them. Along the way he runs into Bugs Bunny who goes along to help find the replacement shakers, but what they find is a store jewel thief who has hidden his loot inside the shakers Porky has just bought! With the help of a shotgun carrying Elmer Fudd, they bust the crook, and Porky makes it back in time for a nice dinner with his lady.

This issue was lots of fun, and each story had a charm that made me feel as if I was watching Saturday Morning Cartoons! Porky sadly does come off as a jerk in the story called Computer Date as he throws away his relationship with Petunia over her being afraid of a bug on the wall that causes Porky to drop his pie and spill his milk.  He is so cold when he breaks up with her and wastes no time in trying to find a new girl to wine and dine. Of course once he finds out that Petunia is a perfect woman for him, he comes crawling back with some cheap flowers. The one thing that’s cool with these comics is while the characters stay the same, they also evolve and change after almost every adventure. The Looney Tune guests in this issue are Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd both, who help once more bust a crook, and once more showcases that Porky’s town is filled with crooks who are fiending for some drugs and will steal what they can. I should also mention Patty Pig, the butch woman Porky took on a date.  She was scary as she beat up a biker gang on her own and seemed like she could have been a man in drag! My favorite story has to be Sir Coss and The Dragon as I love the atmosphere of Porky and Cicero camping and being put back in time via a time warp. And I know this is weird, but I also for some reason kept thinking about Porky Pig and Cicero being attacked by The Blind Dead near the old castle.  Now that’s a comic I would love to read! I should also say I was happy to see them use Cicero and Petunia well in this issue as they seemed very important to each story they were in. The art is great.  The cover is once more misleading, but this is another great issue in this run of Porky Pig comics I have thanks to the Youngs.

Porky Pig # 86   **1/2
Released in 1979    Cover Price .35    Whitman    # 86 of 110

“The Queens Quaker” Porky, Cicero and Daffy Duck head to Ducktoria, a place where ducks are treated like royalty, and the Queen’s duck has been kidnapped and held for ransom! But the royal duck lands in good hands as she escapes her captures, and Porky and friends out smart the kidnappers and return her to the Queen and help aid in the capture of the crooks. “Troll Mountain” Porky and Bugs Bunny are on a trip and stop to visit Porky’s Uncle Hamfat, who owns a gold mine whose workers have quit because of trolls that live in the tunnels. Bugs and Porky decide to enter the tunnel and mine for gold and come face to face with the trolls lead by King Trog who tells them they eat the gold nuggets.  But soon the Trolls find a new food source as Bugs introduces them to carrots, and the Trolls start to work for Hamfat as he gives them carrots for the gold they bring up for him. “The Vase Chase” Porky and Daffy Duck buy a vase from a auction and soon find that two crooks want the vase as well as it holds a combination to a rich man’s safe! Porky and Daffy think fast and set the pair up and save the riches of a millionaire!

This is another fun Porky Pig comic adventure that proves that Whitman/Gold Key knew how to make entertaining kid comics that showcased popular characters from cartoons of the time. The best story out of the three hands down has to be Troll Mountain as I like that Porky and Bugs are deep into a gold mine and become prisoners and put on trail by trolls.  This is the stuff of cheesy b-movie horror films! Porky’s uncle Hamfat is a man who owns a gold mine who is behind on bills but will not go into his own mountain to get gold and instead cons his nephew and his friend into going in for him, what a lazy butt. Porky once more is a crime stopper and loyal to his family and comes off a good guy like always. Daffy Duck and Bugs Bunny are the cameos in this issue and both add to the adventures they appear in. The bad guys in this issue are crooks, ducknappers and King Trog and his troll subjects, and out of them all the main threat was King Trog cause if he didn’t like carrots, I am sure he would have killed them for stealing his gold food nuggets. The art is fantastic, the cover is a lie and as always it’s a fun solid kid comic.

Porky Pig # 94   **1/2
Released in 1980    Cover Price .40    Whitman    # 94 of 110

“Klondike Porky” has Porky Pig and Bugs Bunny visiting Alaska.  They buy a map to a gold mine and a work moose from a man named Sourdough Sandy, but they soon find out that the mine is bare and that he has sold this same combo to another person! Porky, Bugs and the other Man in turn trick Sandy into buying back the mine with a fake bag of gold that turns out to be carrots! “Unwelcome Guest” Caesar is another of Porky’s nephews who comes over to spend time with him and Cicero, but Caesar is a prankster and pulls many pranks and tricks on Cicero that causes him to be in trouble. When Porky’s TV is stolen and Caesar was the only witness.  He is not trusted and has to trick his uncle into following him, and they bust a ring of crooks. The final story in this issue is “Finders Reapers” has Porky Pig being too poor to take Petunia out on dates and this is taking a strain on their relationship.  After finding a missing dog and getting reward money, Porky starts trying to find missing animals for extra cash but his good deeds leads him into the arms of jewel thieves and with the help of his dog friends he busts them and once more saves the day and is able to take Petunia out on a date.

Yet another solid issue and once more shows that the town Porky lives in is filled with crooks and people who will steal whatever they can! I mean really how bad is the drug issue in this town? Porky in the issue is a miner, an uncle and a finder of lost animals, and as always does each of these with piggy style. The dark side of this issue, besides the growing crook population in town, is the fact Petunia is down right rude to Porky as she wants to be taken out and wants no dates at home no more. I would guess Porky could not charm her with Netflix and Chill as she clearly more an IMAX and Climax kind of woman! Besides Petunia, regular nephew Cicero makes an appearance as does another nephew named Caesar who is kind of a prankster and while all in good fun, is the kind of kid in school who would do something bad and blame it on a fellow classmate. Bugs Bunny stops by and adds to Porky’s Alaskan adventure, helping lock another fun good old cheap kids comic. The cover is a lie, and Porky never paints a picture and there are no mice, but the inside artwork is great and once more done by unknown as they are not credited. This marks the end of the issues I got from the Young’s but I have one more issue up my sleeve!

Porky Pig # 96   **1/2
Released in 1980    Cover Price .40    Whitman    # 96 of 110

“Forest Adventure” Porky Pig and Bugs Bunny are on a nature walk in the woods when they go off the trail and become lost.  They find a tiny village of elves who are being tormented by goblins, and Porky and Bugs act as the tiny town’s aid. The second story is “The Cookie Caper” and has Porky buying stock in a cookie dough company, and he is worried about his stock dropping.  Daffy and Cicero pull a prank on Porky with a fake headline about a Cookie Batter Beast, and this prank leads to Porky falling into some batter and making people think he is indeed this made up monster! In the end, with the help of Petunia and Cicero, he is able to pull a prank over on Daffy. “The Smashing Success” Porky quits his job as a janitor all because of a self-help book and goes to a jewelry company to apply and gets the job of Vice President and also gets to back a suitcase full of rare jewels.  But he soon finds out his boss is really a crook who has tied up all the real workers, and once more Porky stops the crook and gets a job as the janitor of the jewelry company.

I first must note that this issue was not part of The Young Family comic buy and was one I picked up at Game Swap in Kettering. Secondly I want to say this issue had a very strong rotten ink and cellar smell to it. But onto this final issue for me to look at, I must say that just like the others it was three short fun adventures of Porky Pig who throughout the issue was a janitor, savior of tiny elves and a stock investor and shows that Porky can and will be whatever he wants! The issue was packed with guest stars as Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck both made appearances and series regulars Petunia and Cicero also were shown and added to the stories they were in. My favorite story in this issue was a tough one to pick as all three were lots of fun, but if I had to pick one I would say The Cookie Caper as it was fun to see Porky scaring people covered in cookie batter and for Daffy to be a butt and pull a mean prank on one of his “friends”. The artwork in this issue is great and keeps the same mark of quality that ran through out these issues I read. The cover as always is misleading and Porky and Cicero never paint a fence in the whole issue. I want to also point out that once again the town Porky lives in is over run by crime as this time around he runs into a jewelry thief that he must stop. This is a very solid series that brought lots of joy to this comic reader and took me back to a time when Saturday Morning Cartoons, Commander USA and weekend adventures were the most important things to look forward to every week. Below is the piece of artwork that I think sums up this fun time we just had with Porky Pig as he hopes he doesn’t shoot himself in the foot with his own gun….Porky Pig and a gun something kids comics of today would never showcase in a issue.

That was lots of fun, and I am really glad I bought that long box of comics from Mom Young as many of the issues have and will be great updates for Rotten Ink, and it gave me a chance to talk a little about Porky Pig and his impact on cartoons and culture. For our next update, we are leaving the safe silly side of Porky and heading to Raccoon City for a zombie outbreak! That’s right, I will be taking a look at Resident Evil not only in the video games but also the Marvel Comics promo Iissue so make sure to come back and join me on that one! Until then, read a comic or three, support your local horror host and stay young at heart, my friends.