An Earthquake is coming

I DON'T know where this pic is from...I found it on the Death Valley Driver messageboard.

Cool, isn't it?

(But why are Bananas In Pyjamas in the crowd?)

The things I do to be a completist...

I'D seen this mag advertised in the back of pro wrestling mags for years, but I finally picked it up via Lone Star. ThunderGirls #1 (P&I Press, 1997) is the sorta comic that makes you wonder about the mindset of the people involved in its production.

Pro rassler/fetish rassler/model/whatever Lady Victoria stars in the main strip, a B&W effort titled "Ring Of The Vampires" (writer: Adams/artist: Scott Dervish). It's kidnapped wrestler vs sexy female vampire queen in the lamest battle one can imagine.

The back-up strip is "Front Row Rumble" (writer: Adams/artist: JG...what's with this people being too ashamed to put their real names to this stuff?) where two sexy fans clash at ringside and brawl into the ring, much to the consternation of the real wrestlers. It's mildly amusing.

There are also a couple of text stories and a fumetti ("Queen Of The Ring"), which could've come straight from a 1970s Apter mag.

The end result of reading ThunderGirls #1 is a feeling of uncomfortable weirdness.

I can imagine the men who put this mag together furiously beating off at the drawing board (or computer), then paying some unemployed female body builder to beat them up in their living room afterwards.

Strongman (SLG Publishing, 2009) came out with little fanfare, but is a surprisingly entertaining read that deserved more attention.

Luchador/nocturnal crime-fighter/movie star Tigre (basically, Santo in a different mask) was a Mexican wrestling god during the late 60s and early 70s until a shocking tragedy ended it all.

Twenty-five years later, Tigre's a washed-up jobber, wrestling for booze money while living rough in New York. But his life gets turned upside-down when a beautiful woman comes to him for help and he's forced to confront the nightmare that destroyed his life in 1973.

This digest-sized graphic novel was a fun read. Writer Charles Soule packs in a ton of stuff: wrestling, illegal organ transplants, cannibalism and betrayal. Allen Gladfelter's art is delightfully competent, clean and no-nonsense.

I really dug Strongman - I hope we see more of him in the future.

World Wrestling...Entertainment Weekly

ONE of my fave indy cartoonists Kagan McLeod - he of Infinite Kungfu notoriety - is regularly getting illos published in EW mag these days. Good for you, Kagan.

In the March 14, 2008 ish, he illustrated a piece titled "The Pop Culture Throw-Down!" - featuring pro'n'con arguments on several pop culture issues including 'The X-Files' is better than 'Lost' & Bob Dylan sings better than Kelly Clarkson. Kagan decided to use a pro-wrestling motif for his illos. Above is his take on Dylan vs Clarkson. Brilliant stuff!

Obscure wrestling reference #1025

THIS time it's in Incorruptible Vol. 1 (Boom!, 2010) by Mark Waid and Jean Diaz - and originally published in Incorruptible #3.

In case you can't read the scan, Max Damage's sidekick Jailbait says, "You taught me how to tear a guy's sack off! You let me fight the Hentai Brothers in a cage match because you said it was hot! And I won! And it was HOT!"

Hehe...

Incorruptible has been pretty damn intriguing so far. I'll have to pick up Vol. 2 next week.

Tiger, Tiger, burning bright

OF ALL the wrestlers to get their own comics in Japan, the most surprising in my mind would be Tiger Mask IV. Sure, he's the fourth guy to wear the famous Tiger Mask get-up, but he was only working for minor promotion Michinoku Pro. He's no Bruiser Brody or Antonio Inoki, right?

Still, thanks to my good friend Mister J, that's what I acquired a few years back: the first manga collection of the adventures of Tiger Mask IV (c.1996). The book also guest stars Michinoku founder The Great Sasuke.

Nice manga art...didn't understand a word of it...didn't fully understand what the hell was going on. Yep, it's a typical Jap wrestling comic. :)

But...y'know...Tiger Mask IV? Jeeeeez, who's next? Tarzan Goto? Kendo Ka Shin? Yikes.

Fiasco Bombasco

I PICKED up this 24-hour comic a few years back at a zine fair somewhere. Been meaning to add it to the blog for ages and just never got round to it till now.

Anyway, it's a sci-fi/luchador-themed B&W effort by Ive Sorocuk. The interior art is nothing to write home about (which you'd expect considering it was written and drawn in 24 hours), but the colour cover artwork is exquisite.

And it features a luchador cat called Wrestle Cat......aaaaaaaawwwwwww!

A coupla recent wrestling references...

...which I found while reading random comics in the past two days. First up, it's Thunderbolts #139 (February 2010). This was during Marvel's "Dark Reign" period. Norman Osborn introduces a new member of the covert assassin squad known as Thunderbolts. His name is The Grizzly and his file states he's a former wrestler. So...there you go.

Next, there's Whatever Happened To Baron Von Shock #2 (Image, 2010), a decidedly ordinary yarn written by Rob Zombie. In the above panel, the washed-up dude formerly known as TV horror host Baron Von Shock talks to his sleazy manager who, strangely enough, uses some wrestling terminology. Hmmm...maybe Mr Zombie was channelling his equally mediocre wrestling-themed comic The Nail from a few years back.