final ’90s countdown

Back to the Final ’90s Countdown, with the next in line of the one-vote receivers:

Optic Nerve (Drawn & Quarterly, 1995-2015)

Now here’s a comic where I read every gosh-darn issue, unlike some of thge other entries in this particular series of posts. Adrian Tomine’s Optic Nerve had its origins in a series of self-published mini-comics in the first half of the 1990s. …Which, okay, I lied, I hadn’t read the mini-comics, but can easily at any time, which I’ll get into in a sec.

Optic Nerve, at least the Drawn & Quarterly run, always sort of struck me as a quieter, more melancholy Dan Clowes, with stories that are only sporadically autobiographical, and often very slice-of-life tales. Very emotional at times, often sad, always affecting.

There are a number of reprints for these comics, including (as I noted) the original minis, which can be read in a book titled 32 Stories. There is also a boxed set of replicas of the seven individual minis called the 32 Stories Optic Nerve Box Set.

Of the Drawn & Quarterly series, there are four collections: Sleepwalk and Other Stories, Shortcomings, Summer Blonde, and Killing and Dying. Of interest is an additional book called Q & A, in which Tomine answers questions about his work and career. These are of..sporadic availability from the main distributors for most comic shops, but those stores that have set up accounts with more general distributors may have better luck.

Honestly, I was surprised to discover Optic Nerve came to an end as long ago as 2015, but Tomine’s done more than just that series. There was his humorous collection Scenes from an Impending Marriage, Scrapbook: Uncollected Work 1990-2004, New York Drawings, and most recently, The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Cartoonist, where he relates tales of his life in the cartooning business.

Really one of the top boks of the “autobio” genre from the period, of which there were many, even if that element was only occasionally present. Well worth tracking down and visiting if you haven’t before…and worth revisiting if it’s been a while.

Still at the one-vote level of the Final ’90s Countdown…remember what I’ve said before, that there’s no shame in getting just a single vote, it’s just an indication of the wide range of titles still being published during what was generally considered a downturn in the industry.

The Nocturnals (Malibu/Bravura, 1995)

Here’s another title that I shockingly didn’t not read, coming out as it did when the comics market was in serious flux and so was my disposable income. Now, the person who voted for this title actually voted for Nocturnals: Black Planet, which was the 1998 trade paperback edition published by Oni Press and was kinda its own thing which I’ll discuss in a moment.

But this is the series that introduced the Nocturnals to the world, so it’s as good a place as any to start. Written and drawn — or, rather, painted — by Dan Brereton, the comic follows the pulp action adventures of Doc Horror and his team of weirdly-powered misfits as they defend their city from supernatural events. Well, that actually sounds pretty fun to me, and as someone who’s all-in on Hellboy and his parade of spin-offs, I feel like I missed a bet by not buying this series myself. Plus, the painted artwork is quite striking and not quite like anything else on the stands.

Luckily the Nocturnals comics, of which there were a handful in the late ’90s/early ’00s, including a serial in Dark Horse Presents, have been reprinted. That aforementioned Black Planet TPB includes this entire first series, as well as a sketchbook section by Brereton, and pin-ups by Gene Colan, Mike Allred, Bruce Timm, and others.

There are two Nocturnals omnibuses from Dark Horse Comics in 2021 which appear to collect all the previously published material. And good news, everyone, they are still available for reorder from Penguin Random House. Also, there is a rerelease of the Nocturnals graphic novel, “The Sinister Path,” as a mini-series that’s starting next month (the first appearance of this story in periodical form)! Oh, the timeliness of this post.

Continuing along at the one-vote level of the Final ’90s Countdown:

Meat Cake (Fantagraphics, 1993-2008)

The greatest indie comic that may or may not have been named after a George Carlin gag (“could be meat…could be cake…meat cake!”) was created by the inventive and creative Dame Darcy.

The comic initially was released as a one-shot from Caliber Press in 1992, When Fantagraphics picked up the series in 2003, that Caliber issue was reprinted as part of the new series as an issue #0.

Dame Darcy’s art style is a little tricky to describe…you can get a taste of it on the cover I reproduced above. It’s very…well, “ethereal” isn’t quite the right description, and I’ve seen people call it “Victorian,” which doesn’t really land the plane for me either. I want to say “what if later Gene Colan had tighter pencils,” but that’ll probably get the villagers with rakes and torches swarming outside my castle. Regardless of how you’d describe it, “unique” feels like the best descriptor, even though I’m about to say she reminds me just a little of being in the same general area as, for example, Gary Panter or Mark Marek, perhaps on the more representational side of things.

Meat Cake has had a few reprtin collections, the most comprensive likely being the Meat Cake Bible, released by Fantagraphics in 2016, reprinting the entire series plus extra material intended for an unpublished issue.

In addition to Meat Cake, she’s produced work for several other publishers, including collaborations with Alan Moore.

Dame Darcy in more recent years has involved herself in other artistic endeavors, including film, TV, book illustration, fashion, teaching, and music. (A long time ago at the previous place of employment, we received a comp copy of a Death by Doll CD, Dame Darcy’s band, which I still own and occasionally listen to even now.)

Meat Cake is a very distinctive and personal artistic expression, and one well worth seeking out, especially for those who want an excellent example of just what great weirdness comics can achieve.

Continuing on with the one-vote receivers from our poll:

The Mask (Dark Horse Comics, 1991)

Well, here’s one where I kinda goofed up. I’d forgotten that this version of The Mask actually had its start as a feature in the Mayhem series in 1989, those stories later being reprinted in an issue #0 as part of thge first Mask mini-series from 1991. Which means this character began prior to 1990 and should have been disqualified.

But I didn’t catch it when it was nominated, and it’s not like I’m going to be thrown into an oubliette if I talk about it anyway, so…let’s talk about it anyway. (And I’m still going to do a special sidebar on Eightball, another series associated heavily with the ’90s but began in the ’80s, which seems only fair.)

Anyway, the idea for the Mask was initially conceived of by Dark Horse publisher Mike Richardson, eventually beginning life as “The Masque” in the company’s anthology series Dark Horse Presents in the late ’80s, handled by other creators.

Eventually, “The Masque” strip was canned, and the concept was retooled into the version that we all recognize today, even if all you ever saw was the movie. (More on that in a bit.) Debuting in Mayhem in 1989, then moving into his own four-issue mini-series by John Arcudi and Doug Mahnke in 1991, The Mask tells the story of Stanley Ipkiss, an unassuming, put-upon fella who finds an ancient magical mask that, when donned, converts him into a wild, crazy, physics-defying and massively violent creature known in-universe as “Big Head.” As the mini-series, and adventures, continue, the mask passes from person to person with equally destructive results.

The initial storyline runs through three minis, including The Mask Returns and The Mask Strikes Back. After this, The Mask franchise expands into new stories and crossovers (like cross-company events such as Joker/Mask, Lobo/Mask, and Mask/Marshal Law), as well as child-friendly comics and graphic novels (such as those by Rick Geary).

Of course, probably the most famous iteration of the Mask is the 1994 movie starring Jim Carrey, which amps up the Looney Tunes-esque comedy aspects and reduces the level of dark humor and violence from the comics. It was quite successful, and, actually, a pretty good movie and a solid adaptation of the premise, if not the tone, of the original comics. (I sort of dread the eventual film reboot that ramps up the darkness again, but…could be good, you never know.)

The movie did result in a universally panned sequel (Son of the Mask in 2005, and an animated series (that itself had a comic book spinoff.)

As it stands now, the Mask comics franchise is largely dormant, no reprint books appearing to be available at the moment. The last comic book series with the character was I Pledge Allegiance to the Mask, a four-issue mini-series released in 2019. There were two Omnibus volumes which appear to cover just about everything outside the intercompany crossovers and maybe the children’s comics. I’m not sure if the movie adaptation is included.

This is an enjoyable series, particularly the initial thee minis (and the related mini Walter, a mute giant nemesis of the Mask who seems to be one of the few (only?) being impervious to Big Head’s shenanigans). Later comics are a little more of a mixed bag, but there is still fun to be had here and there. Of particuliar note is Virtual Surreality, a 1997 release featuring contributions by multiple creators, including Sergio Aragones, Mike Mignola, and Ivan Reis.

The Final ’90s Countdown continues, as we are still working our way alphabetically through the single-vote receivers in our poll! Again, no shame in getting only a single vote…there was a lot of good stuff coming out in the ’90s!

Louis Riel (Drawn & Quarterly, 1999-2003)

This ten-issue series was the one of Chester Brown’s earliest post-Yummy Fur longform projects, preceded by aborted Underwater in the mid/late-ish 1990s. (Surprisingly, Underwater lasted 11 issues, but its central conceit of babies gradually learning to understand the language spoken around them, resulting in most of the text being gibberish, was I think more than the readership was willing to do along with.)

But Louis Riel is what we’re talking about here, Brown’s biographical examination of this figure from Canadian historty, and his conflicts with the Canadian government as well as his own apparently mental issues. It is meticulously and thoroughly researched, with each issue containing copious notes in the back pages, and the story itself is drawn out with Brown’s deceptively simple and almost plain style. It makes for compelling reading, even if you’re, like, an American who thought “ah, what does this bunch of Canadian shenanigans have to do with me?” You’ll find yourself bingeing this book in short order once you start.

As I said, this was originally a ten-issue series of comics, printed in a slightly-smaller, almost digest-sized format and released over a four-year period. Its ultimate form is the collected edition, natch, available in both trade paperback and hardcover forms. But I like my set of the digest-sized comics…I love small press mini-comics, and, well, given the sales on this as individual issues was supposed not all that great, I. guess this counts as “small press.” Regardless of how you read it, it’s highly recommended.

Hi pals…the medical visits have slowed down briefly, but I still have that impending surgery which is happening sooner rather than later. Things may be sporadic still for a little while yet, but I’ll still bring that all important non-AI-generated Content™ when I can.

So let’s get back to our Final ’90s Countdown, where we look at the titles you voted as your favorites!

Hilly Rose (Astro Comics, 1995-7)

Here’s yet another comic from this period that’s on this ongoing list of books that I didn’t read, despite remembering its existence quite well. Hilly Rose by B.C. Boyer published a scant nine issues over a three year period, with a series of very nice sci-fi pulpy covers.

Aside from seeing the covers, I don’t know much about the actual contents, I’m afraid. The one trade paperback released for the series in 1996, reprinting the first five issues, is titled Hilly Rose Space Reporter so that should give you some idea. As a last resort I’ve dipped into my copy of The Slings and Arrows Comic Guide, Second Edition (2003) — last resort only because the print is far smaller than I’m comfortably able to read — for a bit more of a description:

“It’s science-fiction adventure with a strong humourous element used to undercut an otherwise hard-boiled tale.”

The description goes on to say that Hilly got her reporting job thanks to her influential father, but surprisingly gets offered an even more prestigious position, so there are mysteries and shenanigans involved, I’m sure.

I remember Boyer having done his Will Eisner’s The Spirit-esque The Masked Man in the earlier ’80s, to some critical acclaim. I don’t recall much critical response to Hilly Rose at the time (the Slings and Arrows book thought it was okay, if unfocused), but I know at least the cartooning is top notch. And hey, someone voted for it as their favorite ’90s series here, so I’m sure it’s a great series!

Okay, I couldn’t just leave it at that, so using the ‘zine search engine, and found this quote from Indy Magazine #14, describing the book as

“…a really fun science fiction comic with cute writing and beautiful art.”

And from Wizard #47:

“Throw together Terry and the Pirates and Bone, add a dash of drama and satire, and you’ll have something that comes pretty close to B.C. Boyer’s new self-published comic.”

So there you go. Seems like a fun comic worth seeking out to me!

An additional note: as I was searching up info on Hilly Rose, I found this Wikipedia entry on a radio talk show personality with the same name. I’m going to guess this person was not unknown to Boyer.

“Harlequin” in Dark Horse Presents #48-#51 (Dark Horse Comics 1991)

Okay, this is stretching the boundaries of what I’m doing with this little survey here. While my intention was to cover only actual comic book series, I guess there was nothing in the rules that says a dog can’t play basketball story that ran as part of an anthology can’t be nominated as a favorite ’90s comic.

This story, by Stephan Csutoras and Stefano Gaudiano, wasn’t one I was familiar with, even though I’ve had these issues at some point, since I read Frank Miller’s Sin City entries around this period. So, with the assistance of a certain little stuffed bull, I was able to track down this story and give it a read so that I can at least discuss it somewhat.

Ultimately, it’s a gritty rejiggering of the commedia dell’arte subgenre of the Harlequinade, in which our main character, the Harlequin his own self, is in search of the body of his deceased lover Columbine. It reminded me somewhat of James O’Barr’s The Crow, peeled down to its thematic basis. Scratchy, moody artwork, shifting perspectives and perceived realities, with one interesting fourth wall-breaking moment where the characters take a peek at the story’s script. It’s a moody piece overall, told in a somewhat obfuscatory manner but not in a bad way, and I can see why this would be compelling to the right reader. It wasn’t entirely for me, but I get its appeal.

Continuing on with the single-voters in the Final ’90s Countdown poll….

Finder (Lightspeed Press, 1996-2005)

Now I remember Finder as being a popular book with the indie comics cognoscenti (comicsnocenti?). It had relatively strong sales for us at the previous place of employment, and its many wonderful and strange covers always caught my eye and stood out on the rack.

And of course, it’s yet another title I haven’t read, either through lack of time, or lack of money in that “Working for The Man” stage of my life, before I became The Man and opened my own shop. And of course now I definitely don’t have the time. Or money.

But anyway, I’ve seen creator Carla Speed McNeil’s work often enough to know I enjoy their artstyle…a clean, confident cartooning line that’s immensely appealing and again, like other books before and after on this Final ’90s Countdown list, make me feel like a real dummy for not reading their primary work of Finder before.

The book itself, from what I’ve gathered from researching AKA Googling, takes place in a future Earth where technologically-advanced domed population centers are surrounded by aboriginal tribes trying to survive in a desolated world. The initial focus is on an aboriginal detective named Jaeger, who recurs throughout the series and its many storylines as either a main or supporting character. (If you want to Read More About It by someone who’s actually read the comic, this seems like a good essay on the topic.)

The series was self-published by McNeil for 38 issues, before they moved to a webcomic format in 2005. Unfortunately, the webcomic, and even the Lightspeed Press page, appear to be gone (or taken over by squatters). If the webcomics are availahle somewhere I’m not seeing, please let me know. There was also a serialized story in Dark Horse Presents.

It appears all the Finder stories, including the webcomics and the DHP story, have been reprinted in paperback form, either in 11 single volumes, each containing one multi-issue story. The first two volumes are in fact parts one and two of a single story, which have also been reprinted together in a smaller book with some expanded material.

Speaking of Dark Horse, they’re the company that’s maining the print form of Finder, which as of their most recent printings, collection the series as follows: the first 8 paperbacks are reprinted in The Finder Library volumes 1 and 2. The remaining three stories are each reprinted in their own individual volume. Availability to comic shops appears spotty at the moment, with only one book offered in any of my distributors’ listings. I do know these are highly regarded works, so with any luck they’ll be around again in short order.

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An HTML error in my previous post make a point I was making unclear in the last paragraph. The line was supposed to be “…is a virtue for the Metamorpho comic.” The title was dropped out. Sorry about that.

Continuing alphabetically through the single-vote receivers from the Final ’90s Countdown poll…and as a reminder, there ain’t no shame in a single vote here, just a reaffirming of the wide range of good material available during that decade!

Box Office Poison (Antarctic Press, 1996-2000)

Look, so when I was processing the image file for this entry, I kept naming it “Box Office Potion,” and frankly, all I can say is that I’ve watched this video too many times.

This title, by Alex Robinson, is another that I certainly recall selling during this period of my comics retailing career, but alas it is also another one I haven’t read. I do remember it had a small but faithful following at the shop, some minor back issue movement, but not an outstanding seller or anything. It was a black and white (mostly) indie title, and that it held a readership through the tough post-crash times of the comics market is testament to its quality. It was also nominated for several comics awards, such as the Harveys and the Eisners, in the early 2000s. A French translation did win an award at the Angoulême International Comics Festival in 2005, information I’m totally cribbing from the Wikipedia entry. Oh, and looking in a Diamond Comics stock listing, apparently it was voted by Wizard as the best indie graphic novel…of all time. So put that in your pipe and smoke it!

It’s a genre that we don’t see a lot of nowadays, slice-of-life real world “adventures” of a group of friends making their way through life in New York City. One character is a cartoonist of a popular comic book character, and his storyline apparently involves trying to get proper recompense for his work, so, you know, so plus ça change an’ all that. What’s nice is that this is a fairly short-run book, telling a complete story, with clever bookending covers on its first and last issues.

In addition to the 21-issue run of the main series, there were a couple of one-shots, including one in color. In 2017 IDW reprinted five issues in color in what appeared to be an attempt to reissue the entire series, but ended early. As for collections, the best and most recent were from Top Shelf: Box Office Poison Complete New Edition (as it’s called in Diamond’s database) appears to have the main series, and the More Box Office Poison Stories volume, putting lie to the title of the previous book, which includes all the other stuff not in that book, like some short stories and the one-shots and such.

So anyway, finding yet more comics I need to acquire and read that I’d missed the first time around, like this series, is a huge side effect of doing this survey. Maybe there’s a potion for that.