The Phantom (2003 Series) #19

September 29, 2007

The Phantom #19 (Moonstone Publishing)
By Mike Bullock, Silvestre Szilagyi & Marat Mychaels

The “Invisible Children” arc comes to a powerful conclusion this issue. The Phantom has been captured by the army of Him, the warlord that has taken over a small African country and is taking its children to torture, brainwash and destroy them. But the Phantom has many more tricks than his captors, and the jungle itself is rising up against this atrocity. Bullock has done something pretty rare — he’s taken a real-world, real-life political situation and told a story that’s not preachy or tiresome, but instead effective and heartbreaking. Perhaps it’s just because this is a more black-and-white situation than most political issues — who could possibly argue in favor of what’s really happening to the children of Uganda? But whatever the reason, this is a fantastic issue, and one of the most pertinent, most incredible Phantom comics I’ve ever read.
Rating: 9/10

The Phantom (2003) #17

July 13, 2007

The Phantom #17 (Moonstone Publishing)
By Mike Bullock & Silvestre Szilagyi

In the nation of Uganda, a brutal dictator is kidnapping children, torturing them, and brainwashing them to an indoctrination that makes them worship HIM as a god. And that isn’t just the story of this comic, folks, that’s the truth. I’m not usually a fan of real-world politics leaking into comic books, but this is the sort of story where it works. For one thing, Uganda is part of the Phantom’s usual African stomping grounds, so it makes perfect sense for him to address the issue of these “Invisible Children.” For another, this is a more clear-cut sort of issue than the divisive politics that usually make it into politics — the Middle East can be debated to death, but there can be little doubt most thinking people would condemn these actions. And third, this is a comic that puts its money where its mouth is. For every purchase of one of the “B” covers of this and the next two issues, Moonstone will make a donation to an organization dedicated to ending this travesty. Add on the fact that it’s your usual great story by Mike Bullock, and there’s more reason than ever to check out The Phantom this month.

Rating: 8/10

The Phantom (2003 Series) #16

May 4, 2007

The Phantom #16 (Moonstone)
By Mike Bullock, Silvestre Szilagyi, Bret Blevins

Mike Bullock takes his first journey into the jungle since taking over this title full-time. The Phantom encounters a woman who works for an animal conservation organization, a woman who has come under fire by a group of trappers who feel she’s encroaching on their business. What they don’t know, though, is that for the past 150 years, her family has been marked by the rarely-used Goodmark of the Phantom’s left ring, the stamp that indicates they are under the protection of the Ghost Who Walks. As I’ve come to expect from Bullock, the book gives us a lot of strong action and stronger characterization. Angela Carlyle is a bit of a sterotype as a character — the activist who rebels against her family — but she works nonetheless. Silvestre Szilagyi‘s artwork is just great — clean and effective. Moonstone is really treating this classic character right.

Rating: 8/10

Moonstone’s Holiday Super Spectacular #1

December 1, 2007

Moonstone’s Holiday Super Spectacular #1 (Moonstone Comics)
By Mike Bullock, Silvestre Szilagyi, Dave Ulanski, Kirk Jarvinen, Martin Powell, Tom Floyd, Joe Gentile, Zeu, Mac Rauch, Ken Wolak, Michael Stribling

‘Tis the season for Christmas specials! I love how so many publishers put out “grab bag” issues with various characters this time of year, and Moonstone is no exception. This special contains five tales of their top heroes, and all of them are pretty good. The Phantom stars in “Silent Knight,” in which he acts as a special escort through dangerous territroy for a convoy carrying the most precious cargo at all. Kolchak, the night stalker, winds up having to solve an elf-murder case (with some truly hysterical in-jokes for anyone familiar with the original Kolchak). The Spider faces Mr. Snow on a violent Christmas night. Sherlock Holmes has to find a missing man, and Buckaroo Banzai spends his Christmas fighting off nothing less than an alien invasion! The Spider story was the only one that didn’t quite work for me, although that may be because I’m less familiar with him than the rest of the characters. The Phantom story, but regular series writer Mike Bullock, is the standout, and the other three are a lot of fun too. This is about as eclectic a mix of charcters as one could ask for this season, with a bizarre mix of superheroes, mystery, science fiction, horror and comedy that somehow makes a perfect blend. This is the kind of Christmas special I like.

Rating: 8/10