Unkie Dev's Amazing Stuff

We are a week into the fall and it is time to harvest the bumper crop of humor available this week from America's greatest medium: COMIC BOOKS! What did you think I was going to say, shadow puppets?

Howard the Duck #1 - Ty Templeton (W) and Juan Bobillo (A), Marvel. Howard the Duck fans vary by generations. Above 35 you'll find fans who loved his groundbreaking Marvel comic in which Howard was THE anthropomorphic voice of counter culture. Above 25's might remember the fun yet flawed "Howard the Duck" movie which George Lucas produced and shuffled under the rug. Younger readers might only know Howard from rumors, guest appearances and hearsay. The Duck's publishing adventures are another matter, an incredible story of creator's rights... that we won't be telling here. Go read it on Wikipedia, ya' illiterate ape-spawn!

Ty Templeton has the weighty task of trying to pump new life into Marvel's maligned mallard. Previews of the book look GREAT, with Howard's biting sarcasm and down-trodden nature apparent. Juan Bobillo's art is well paired to Templeton's pen. Whatever their generation, fans have been wanting more Howard. The wait is over! Forbidden Planet also has the Essential Howard the Duck still in stock.

EMPOWERED Volume 2 - Adam Warren (W/A), Dark Horse. A case for Empowered: Gentlemen, this tome of American-manga is infused, nay, fortified with ribald titillation and illustrations of the soft, feminine form in flagrante. Light-hearted stories of a yielding super heroine ingénue forms the soil to which humorous cheesecake trees may flourish. Our damsel's distress is nothing compared to the distress of her costume as she occupies herself wistfully covering her "shame" and cooing up to lady ninjas. A perfect tome for today's bachelor or sailor.

A case against Empowered: Ladies, this book is near SMUT, dirty humor and bondage art sure to corrupt the young. Dark Horse publishes this filth as a mature title but it is as immature as a babe-at-breast. The story centers on a (what else) blonde bimbo who's costume falls off as she battles crime. She lives and congregates with thugs and demons. Can we let this pernicious, though funny and well-illustrated, garbage pollute the minds of our husbands, boyfriends or children?! Irredeemably puerile.

Unkiedev's Verdict: Strewth! 'Tis a good'un. Ask the Forbidden Planet staff if they have any Volume 1 left, maybe hidden in their sock drawer.

Owly: The Way Home... - Andy Runton, Top Shelf Productions. I haven't read Owly, but I hear good things... I bring it up because of the contrast of Owly and Empowered. Empowered is a flat out geek fueled jiggle-fest for immature male teens to thirty year olds... i.e. the bulk of the comic buying populous. Owly is an adorable all ages story aimed towards kids with no dialogue, about an owl and his pal Wormy the worm learning life lessons in a forest. These two books could not be more different.

The demand for Owly material is constantly growing as more tykes discover its gentle simplicity. Now think about the contrast of the two titles. Think of the variety of materials you can get at a comic book shop like Forbidden Planet.

The variety of today's comic book market is only supported by a wealth of interested readers. The readers of tomorrow are the kids of today. Maybe you have a little brother or sister, a niece or a nephew or kids of your own. As an aspiring comic book creator myself, as a fan of comic book diversity and just as a piece of advice: start the younger people in your life reading comics... by that, I mean cute books about cartoon owls like Owly and NOT EMPOWERED. Oh no, no, no, no, no. I REPEAT: DO NOT GIVE CHILDREN EMPOWERED.

Wow. Also this week: Action Comics #856 has Superman fighting Bizarro from "The Goon's" Eric Powell, and Dark Horse has Tony Millionaire's Sock Monkey The Inches Incident trade-paperback collecting the recent Sock Monkey Mini! A good week for funny, really.
Your homework till next time: Go carve a pumpkin into the great American novel. Till then Unkiedev's sez: Off with you, go play in traffic!

By Guest Contributor: Unkie Dev