Mood:
caffeinatedTopic: Comic Books - New
TODAY'S FEATURE - Blog #3225: With today's post I'm going to take a sample issue of a comic book series and after checking out the history of this series, attempt to extrapolate what has been going! Which may be a little hard to do in just one blog post, as Al Wiesner has been at this since 1985! However, my first brush with 'Shaloman' was at this recent 2010 SDCC. Here's what I make of the series as far as prelim research goes: Definitely 'Shaloman' is a Jewish Super-hero! And as with a much earlier created superhero, (that of 'Superman'}, he has many nicknames associated with him. Some are "The Man of Stone," "Defender of the Downtrodden," and the "Kosher Crusader,"! Okay...that's a different name! From what I can discern, Al created Shaloman because he felt that there were very few Jewish super-heroes that were positive role models in comics. Although many (most?) of the earliest comics creators were Jewish, the characters that were created were considered not to be Jewish by the readership. Superman from DC Comics is a prime example in point. Again, I was not knowledgeable about this superhero before meeting Al & Rita at their table. So when I was given issue #8 of a series to read and possibly review, you must understand that I came in on a series that had been around for a while. So here's 'My Take' just on this one issue: Front Cover - States it's Shaloman AND the Y-Guys. Okay, looks like I'm in time for a possible team-up issue? Inside Front Cover - Is a 'House Ad' for the issues that were available during the printing of this comic book, which by the way was copyrighted in 1996. So I don't know if this is a reprint, 2nd Edition, etc. Splash Page - I notice right away that the comic book is published with black and white interior pages, although the cover was in color. The splash page set up the stage for the story, and invites me to turn the page... Interior Pages - I continue reading the storyline, and end up at the Inside Back Cover - which turns out to be page 33 of the story. Back Cover - Another 'House Ad', but this one tells you where back issues of Shaloman could be purchased at in person, from Portland, Oregon to Cherry Hill, NJ. Which I pointed out to my wife, Tina, who comes from Cherry Hill. Okay...Now that the issue is covered by details, what did I think of this storyline, character, and supporting characters? I enjoyed the usage of Jewish backgrounds interspersed throughout the story. It would appear that 'Shaloman' is normally in a state of being an inanimate rock (?) before the words 'Oy vey!' are said somewhere in the world. Those words then transform the rock into the muscular superhero known as 'Shaloman'. Okay...That's fine...However he does seem to have similar problems that Superman did over the early years. Possibly too powerful as a superhero. But I would have to read more back issues to fully understand this. There is another similarity, that of the metal 'Shin-ite' that was used in the early pages of this comic book to disable Shaloman... This is where the Y-Guys come into being. And an adventure awaits both the team and the reader as the story progresses. I found the storyline and artwork to be reminiscient of the 'Golden Age of Comics'. Not saying this in a derogatory way, but the art / story / dialogue is kind of 'retro' in its presentation. Because it really captures the essence of an earlier time. Possibly the same reason why I like 'Silver Comics' so much, because those comics are drawn 1960's Silver Age Style. I for one enjoyed that for this one issue. The house style fit fine with the storyline, and I for one was pleased to have read it. It is one of the few comics that I've read lately that is for a general audience and a wider age group target market. There is a need for comics like this. I for one am pleased to have received it, and found it blog-worthy. My comic book grade for this publication is a VERY FINE / NEAR MINT (VF/NM) 9.0 on a 10.0 grading scale. To see more of this comic book series, you would have to either stop in at one of the stores listed on the back of the comic book, or check out Al Wiesner's Mark I Comics via mail order, as there is no web site. The address is: Mark I Comics, PO Box 5097, Philadelphia, Pa 19111.
--------------------------- Thanks again, Al & Rita, for sharing your time with me and my son at the recent San Diego Comic Con International! PLUS: My thanks again to all of YOU reading this blog and our archived blog posts, now over 3,220 total posts in number! I do appreciate your continued reading and support of this Blog! ~ Michael D Hamersky @ ComicBookCollectorsBlog.com
http://www.comicbookscircus.com/
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