Don't tell me there's no lucha libre influence going on here!

IT ALL happens in Batman #669. Anyone care to enlighten me about this dude?

REVIEW: Headlocked: Work Of Art #1

MIKE HARTMANN is a college student who wants to be an actor when he unexpectedly gets hooked on the world of pro wrestling.

Unlike his fellow students, teachers, friends and disapproving mother, Mike sees rasslin’ as another way to express himself as an artist, especially after he attends a WFW supercard with the main event of Madman Mohammed Farouk vs world champ “Golden” Brian Boulder. The drama, spectacle, athletic action and compelling storyline affects him like smack to a junkie.

He studies the pseudo-sport closely and eventually determines he wants to train to be a wrestler.

With little understanding of what to do but obsessed with pursuing his unlikely dream, Mike the “mark” follows a WSW wrestler called Killer Creegan after a show. After an initial awkward introduction, Creegan warms to Mike and decides to smarten him to the business. Mike takes the advice on board – particularly the need to bulk up and train.

The first issue ends with Mike boarding a bus to Philadelphia to attend a wrestling school.

I’d have to say this is an intriguing debut issue. The 48-page comic is entertainingly written by Michael Kingston – a guy who clearly knows what he’s talking about when it comes to the wrestling biz – and nicely drawn by Randy Valiente.
Headlocked features strong characters and, best of all, a non-condescending and realistic view of the world of rasslin’.

Wrestling fans really need to check this one out.

Headlocked: Work Of Art #1 is published by Visionary Comics (www.visionarycomics.com) and Markosia Enterprises (www.markosia.org.uk) and goes on sale October 19.

I saw this on eBay recently…

MARVEL published a four-issue miniseries (Dec. 1992-Mar. 1993) starring the far-less-entertaining Death’s Head II (as opposed to the far-more-funny-and-entertaining Death’s Head I).
It was titled Battle Tide and also starred some Rob Liefeld rip-off called Killpower and Wolverine (who was starring in just about every comic back in the early 90s).
Battle Tide looks like the typical ultra-violent, overblown, badly drawn, all-action, no-plot comic that companies such as Marvel and Image were putting out during this intellectually and artistically barren period.
Thanks a lot, Liefeld & co., you untalented fucks.
Anyhoo, the only reason why I’m listing these shitty comics here is due to the coverline: “TAG TEAM WRESTLING - INTERGALACTIC STYLE!”
Now, I’m not sure whether there’s any ACTUAL wrestling in Battle Tide.
And I don’t plan to waste my life trying to find out.
But for the sake of completeness, I’m listing the damn thing.

Panto's Santo

I NOTICED this piece of custom art for sale at www.garypanter.com.

Nice one, Gazza.

OBIT: Alberto Hinojosa

Wrestling Observer Newsletter ran this recent sad note:

“Alberto Hinojosa, who drew all the comics in Super Luchas magazine, passed away on September 13.”

The guy was only 39. Celebrate Alberto's greatness by heading to http://www.albertohinojosa.com/ today.

Brody biography manga

THIS would've been published in the 1980s. Great art, even though I can't understand the story to save my life.
I found these samples on Emerson Murray's excellent web site at www.BruiserBrody.com.

Read the review of Emerson's excellent book on the big man at http://docriot.blogspot.com/2007/06/book-review-bruiser-brody.html.

Bif! Bam! Bodog!

Bif Naked

Dave Meltzer in the Wrestling Observer (Sept. 5, 2007) wrote:

“This stuff is almost too funny. Bodog will be putting out a comic book/novel next year. It’s based around a babyface group called the Ayre Force (you know, Calvin Ayre), who are a group of secret agents who come from the world of poker, MMA and music to join together and fight crime. Kind of like Santo, Blue Demon and Mil Mascaras but without the masks. Remember when WWE wrestlers were special US undercover agents?*

"The head of the Ayre Force will be the globetrotting playboy mastermind Calvin Ayre. The first book will be Calvin and his friends saving bears who are being tortured in China. Characters in the Ayre Force working under Calvin include musical artist Bif Naked (get it, working under Calvin). Also are some proker pros as well as fighters Yves Edwards, Tara LaRosa and Trevor Prangley."

* I do – Big Apple Takedown is one of the most hilariously bad novels I’ve ever read – Dann