Hey, Mom! The Explanation.

Here's the permanent dedicated link to my first Hey, Mom! post and the explanation of the feature it contains.

Tuesday, January 31, 2023

A Sense of Doubt blog post #2905 - This Day in T-Shirts - January 31, 2014 - SANDMAN, the comic


A Sense of Doubt blog post #2905 - This Day in T-Shirts - January 31, 2014 - SANDMAN, the comic

Today's t-shirt reprint.

Friday, January 31, 2014

T-shirts #316 - Sandman - the Logo

"I would not recommend Sandman to anyone." - Andrew Boehme, "nerd" at Fanfare.

I would not go this far to exclude Sandman from a comic book recommendation list. I am reprinting my comic book recommendation list for non-comic book readers here today, and you will see that Sandman gets an honorable mention.

Sandman has earned many accolades. It has made the New York Times bets seller list. It ranked on Entertainment Weekly's best reads list fro 1983-2008. Norman Mailer has praised it as a "comic for intellectuals" if that means anything.

My criticism stems from the way comic book readers have adopted Sandman as the "go to" comic book to recommend to non-comic book readers. Boy comic geeks were all excited when they discovered that girls would actually read comics like Sandman. Suddenly, Sandman became the entry comic into comic reading. And as I described when I made my list of

LIST OF COMIC BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS FOR NON-COMIC BOOK READERS

it's not the only comic book in the universe and certainly not the best choice to recommend to new readers wanting to try out comic books. My list may be a bit biased, and it is surely limited to comics books I have read, but Sandman is not the best entry into comic reading. Really, the best comic depends on the person. I would probably choose Sandman for some readers. Since Gaiman wrote in story arcs, each collected in a separate volume, with TEN volumes in 75 issues, my two favorite volumes are the ones I am seen holding in the picture on the right: the first story and the "short stories" known as Dream Country. Usually, I recommend Dream Country to new readers because most new readers are not ready for a sustained reading experience. People who want to try comic books out want something easy to digest, usually. One should not recommend the 300 issues of Cerebus to a new reader. Dream Country works great because it contains several short, easy to digest stories, some of the very best work in the series (art by Charles Vess), and a story featuring Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream.

In my discussions with Andrew at Fanfare that provoked his comment about Sandman, we both agreed that too much hype is a turn off. I love comics, and I love Neil Gaiman as a writer, and yet, I am wary to avoid overhyping Gaiman, Sandman, or any comics for fear of turning off a potential new fan. Sandman is good stuff, but let's not get carried away. People treat it like the holy find of the Nag Hammadi texts. Seriously?

What follows are some reprints and quotes (plus my weekly comics list). First, Comic Vine's Sandman description because it's just as good if not better than what I would write on my own. Then the reprints of my LIST OF COMIC BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS FOR NON-COMIC BOOK READERS  and my comments on the character of DEATH from an earlier T-shirt entry, and last a cover gallery. This is two days late, but it's up. Don't hassle me.

THE FOLLOWING COMES FROM COMIC VINE's SANDMAN page

The award-winning Sandman follows the return of Dream , the personification of hopes and dreams, to his domain after being trapped and held prisoner for 70 years and his quest to regain the powers he once possessed. It also follows his family, known as the Endless .
The concept of The Sandman emerged fromNeil Gaiman's idea to revive Jack Kirby's 1970's Sandman series after his Black Orchidmini series at DC. Editor Karen Bergersuggested he keep the Sandman name but create the rest of the series entirely from scratch. Using ideas he had of a character that lived in dreams, Gaiman created the character of Morpheus, a literal take on the folklore concept of the Sandman and a personification of dreaming itself. With this, Gaiman revived several dormant DC horror and mystery characters and populated his world of The Dreaming with them. The series soon evolved beyond its DC Universe horror origins and became one of the most critically acclaimed fantasy comic series of all time, regularly outselling its superhero counterparts toward its end and introducing comics to whole new audiences outside of the comics mainstream. The collected editions have been reprinted numerous times and remain best sellers for DC/Vertigo.

The series was originally a DC book, but was one of the original titles moved onto the new Vertigo label with issue #47. Gaiman ended the series at 75 issues, but the run also included The Sandman Special (1991).
Spin-Offs
The series proved so popular that numerous spin-off titles were written, both by Gaiman and those that emerged after Gaiman's initial series ended. They include:
In 2012, Gaiman announced he would return to pen a prequel series.

Trade Paperbacks/Hardcovers

All ten of the main Sandman trades are available (at least if you are willing to buy used) in hardcover and trade paperback format as well as multiple editions of both formats. The most recent edition features the Absolute Edition Re-Coloring.
Also of note, although it's not part of the main Sandman series, The Sandman: Endless Nights is often advertised as "Sandman Vol. 11".

Absolute Editions

Annotated Editions

*Solicited for a December 25, 2013 release

Omnibuses

  • Vol. 1: #1-37 and The Sandman Special #1
  • Vol. 2: #38-75 and stories from Vertigo Jam #1 and Vertigo: Winter’s Edge #3***
***Solicited for a November 2013 release


LIST OF COMIC BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS FOR NON-COMIC BOOK READERS
  1. Optic Nerve - Adrian Tomine (all the collected editions)
  2. Marvels - Busiek/Ross (for those wishing an introduction to super-heroes)
  3. Bone - Jeff Smith
  4. Concrete - Paul Chadwick (all collected editions)
  5. THB - Paul Pope (all collected editions)
  6. Fables - Willingham/Buckingham/others
  7. Tale of One Bad Rat - Bryan Talbot
  8. Ed the Happy Clown and all the other books by Chester Brown
  9. Blankets - Craig Thompson
  10. Maus - Art Spiegelman
  11. Jar of Fools and Berlin - Jason Lutes
  12. Planetary - Warren Ellis/John Cassady
  13. V for Vendetta - Alan Moore/David Lloyd
  14. Cerebus - Dave Sim (first three volumes to start: Cerebus, High Society, Church and State)
  15. Y the Last Man - Brian K. Vaughan/Pia Guerra
Honorable mentions: Phonogram (Gillen/McKelvie), Watchmen - Alan Moore/Dave Gibbons, From Hell - Alan Moore/Eddie Campbell, Box Office Poison - Alex Robinson, Persepolis - Marjane Satrapi, Sandman - Neil Gaiman and various, Black Hole - Charles Burns. UPDATE 1311.30: I think Honorable mention should be given, also, to Alison Bechdel's Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic, which I would rank ahead of almost all the comics in the honorable mention list except The Watchmen and Black Hole.

Added 1401.11: Madman Comics and all various work by MIKE ALLRED, especially Red Rocket 7.

The list above has many obvious omissions, many of which I did not add to the honorable mention list either. It's my list. It's hardly THE DEFINITIVE list. And the recommendations would have to be tailored to each individual and what the individual wants from sampling the comic book world. If the person is interested in superheroes, I would start her with Marvels. But if the person specifically is interested in Batman, I might suggest Batman: Year One to start followed by Batman Earth One and then The Dark Knight Returns and Hush. If the person is a fan of horror, I might recommend The Walking Dead, which did not even make my list this time around. Fantasy lovers would hear me suggest Bone and Fables. Those with more science fiction interests should start with Planetary and Y The Last Man. Alt-kids and those with fine art and/or a European bent should sample THB, Optic Nerve, and the work of Chester Brown first. Some of these comics just would not work for some readers. I know my wife would love Bone andFables much more than Optic Nerve or Blankets.

I would welcome suggestions for comic books that should be on this list and are not.




From T-shirt #225: Death: You get what anyone gets, you get a lifetime.


Did I mention that the character on the t-shirt is called "Death"? Of course, I did.

See DEATH(DC Comics) at Wikipedia.

In this incarnation, Death is the creation of Neil Gaiman and Mike Dringenberg, though the entire visualization of Death came from Dringenberg, and no, despite popular urban legends, she is no way based on Gaiman's friend Tori Amos.

Death is one of the "Endless," the family of anthropomorphic beings who are the main cast of Gaiman's Sandman comic book, one of whom is the eponymous title character. The Endless, whose names all start with the letter D, are the most powerful beings in the universe, more powerful than gods. The Endless family consists of Destiny, Death, Dream, Destruction, Despair, Desire, and Delirium.

Though in Gaiman and Dringenberg's incarnation, Death originally appeared in The Sandman #8, the character achieved her most vivid and potentially best loved characterization with the art of Chris Bachalo in two limited series--Death: The High Cost of Living (1993) and Death: The Time of Your Life(1996)--one of which was published immediately after The Sandman ended its publication run. The Sandman had become wildly popular and had a huge cult following, fans rabid for more stories of the Endless gobbled up the book in droves. Death as has also appeared in other related books in the VERTIGO line from DC Comics, including Lucifer and The Books of Magic.

Here's a sampling of some fan ravings about one of the DEATH books: Pai Picks Blog.

The whole rabid fan reaction to The Sandman invokes my contrary and oppositional personality. When faced with too much pushing, too much popularity, something being "jammed down my throat" as Andrew at Fanfare said, I react by going the other way.

Let me start by saying that I like Neil Gaiman's work very much. I have actually corresponded with Neil, and I think he's a super guy and a very talented writer. So, let's just put that out there, shall we?

Yes, I can be critical of him as I was after finishing his new book The Ocean at the End of the Lane, which I reviewed in T-shirt #138.

I also addressed my feelings about The Sandman, somewhat, in T-shirt #160, which contains my list of comic book recommendations for non-comic book people.

It's not that I think The Sandman is a bad comic book. Not at all. It's a very good comic book, and one I enjoyed immensely.

BUT PLEASE, comic book fans need to stop making it the single go-to comic book recommended to non-comic book fans (often women). Even when it was first published in the 1990s, it was not the ONLY comic book that people (often women) who do not usually read comic books would read and like.

And today, with the large selection of both super-hero books and non-super-hero books to choose from, there is no reason to make The Sandman the single most recommended comic book. With our current wealth of comic books to choose from, as I hope I made clear in T-shirt #160, the recommendation should be tailored to the individual. Not everyone is going to LOVEThe Sandman. Some readers may prefer Fables and others may prefer The Walking Dead.

With all of that said, I must say that I count Chris Bachalo among my current favorite artists and I may love the Death: The High Cost of Living (1993) and Death: The Time of Your Life (1996) books more than the regular Sandman comics.

There's always a weekly comics list, and it always happens on Friday. Though now that Ultimate is over, I could pick up comics on Wednesdays, though I probably won't.

It is sort of fitting that I featured Death today (and not just because of Halloween) and discussed The Sandman because a new Sandman comic book was released this week, a prelude to the seminal comic book series. I have two other Sandman shirts, so I will delegate future comments to those blog posts.


WEEKLY COMICS LIST

It is sad to see Superman fall so low in the weekly lists. Miracleman is reprints, which I am interested in re-experiencing, but not high on my list.


I had to buy the World's Finest annual because of the cover (seen right).

Aquaman continues to top my list both because I love Aquaman and because the comic is damn good. The Bendis/Bagley Cataclysm issues rank highly, even if I have not read the Ultimates or X-Men issues (and I have not). With Remender writing and McNiven on art, Uncanny Avengers is going to rank highly when it comes out.

Most interesting in this week's list is the books that I usually rank lower simply to be able to take my time with reading, like Fables, Saga, and Uber all rank very high and higher than some standard superhero books that I usually read before those issues.

I have an insanely huge and ever growing pile of comic books I want to review, but I am supposed to be in hiatus and building content for future posts, which is not wholly successful yet. I still have one outstanding post (T-shirt #304), which is still unfinished. SIGH.


COMICS FOR 1401.31

Aquaman #27
Cataclysm: The Ultimates Last Stand #004
Inhumanity #002
Uncanny Avengers #016
Guardians of the Galaxy #011.NOW (The Trial of Jean Grey #1)
The Superior Spider-Man #026
Clone #14
Fables #137
Saga #18
Uber #9
Thor: God of Thunder #018
Flash #27
Thunderbolts #021
Teen Titans #27
Earth 2 - Annual #2
World's Finest - Power Girl and Huntress Annual - (First Contact Prelude) #1
Catwoman #27

BACKLOG

Superman #27
Miracleman #2


HIATUS TEXT: I am taking a short hiatus. A "hiatus" for the 365 T-shirts Blog does not mean that there will not be shirts or that I will skip posting on any forthcoming day. There will be shirts. But the shirts will not be exciting or the featured shirts will not require me to write a small novel to properly generate the content I feel is sufficient. I created a category for my hiatus so as to group together those "easy" shirts that I consider to be "hiatus shirts." The goal of the hiatus is to fill in many blog days with easy shirts in order to complete longer love letters to beloved popular culture icons on more special shirts and to write more complex entries AHEAD OF TIME. The daily grind is becoming too much and causing me to fall behind and to be forced to post incomplete entries. I am hoping that a series of hiatus shirts will allow me to catch up, get ahead, and stay ahead. Ideally, I would like to be writing the bulk of each entry three days ahead while always working on at least one other. I have a lot of great shirts to share before the end of my blog year (after all I was just given SIXTEEN shirts for my birthday). Stay tuned. I promise to post the more interesting and longer T-shirt entries as I finish them. Thanks for reading. BTW, this is the standard HIATUS TEXT that I will include in every "hiatus shirt" entry.

Important note: The URL for just this page is goofed. I accidentally typed "216." Once the URLs are set, they can't be changed (at least not that I could figure out).

COVER GALLERY

Dave McKean did all the covers for the run of Sandman. These are among my favorites, though it was a tough call at times, and I did not want to post too many.











COUNTDOWN TO END OF THE BLOG YEAR - 49 shirts remaining

- chris tower - first published - 1401.31 - 20:34
final publication - 1402.02 - 9:47

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- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 2301.31 - 10:10

- Days ago = 2769 days ago

- New note - On 1807.06, I ceased daily transmission of my Hey Mom feature after three years of daily conversations. I plan to continue Hey Mom posts at least twice per week but will continue to post the days since ("Days Ago") count on my blog each day. The blog entry numbering in the title has changed to reflect total Sense of Doubt posts since I began the blog on 0705.04, which include Hey Mom posts, Daily Bowie posts, and Sense of Doubt posts. Hey Mom posts will still be numbered sequentially. New Hey Mom posts will use the same format as all the other Hey Mom posts; all other posts will feature this format seen here.


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Monday, January 30, 2023

A Sense of Doubt blog post #2904 - Sod Reprint of #1438 - And Hiding Away - The Sky is Dark With Mystery from January 28 2019

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/0209/moonbees_croman_big.jpg

A Sense of Doubt blog post #2904 - Sod Reprint of #1438 - And Hiding Away - The Sky is Dark With Mystery from January 28 2019

I have been playing this mix this week as it always seems to come to my mind that these late January days are the days for "hiding away."

Here's today's reprint, a music one, from almost this day in 2019.

Thanks for tuning in.

Originally: Monday, January 28, 2019


https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/0209/moonbees_croman_big.jpg
A Sense of Doubt blog post #1438 - And Hiding Away - The Sky is Dark With Mystery

Hi there, It's me again. I have been away for a bit. I am typing these words on Friday February First and sending them back in time to Monday January 28th.

This mix has been in the works for a long time, but I have not published it yet. And I am not overly motivated to always embed each video. So, instead, I have the first video of the 25-song mix below and then at the end of the post, I have the entire mix in both a link and the video pod player from You Tube.

This is also a link (the same one as later):

And Hiding Away - The Sky is Dark With Mystery - Musical Monday Mix for 1901.28

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/8f/65/b8/8f65b864fc0cbec2578ca7dd636493a1.jpg

This mix is about that need to hide away.

I am feeling that very strongly this week.

As social as I can be, I am not always comfortable with it, and I need that recluse time, that alone time, for self-care, for sanity, and for peace and blessedness.

If I don't get that time, I go a bit crazy.

And so when "the sky is dark mystery," it's time for hiding away.

Do you feel that, too?

Am I alone?

Do you need what I need?

And so, when I think of this need to be a recluse, a hermit, a shut-in, alone, to have quiet time, to meditate, to read, to think, to shut out the clutter and noise of the world, I think of this song -- "And Hiding Away" -- by Innocence Mission, my favourite song by one of my favourite bands.

And so, when I listen to these songs and as I built this mix, I thought about how in my core and as a child, I am and I was an introvert.

Here's some things I have written about Introversion thus far.

Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #1058 - Listen to the power of QUIET people

Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #323 - More on introverts

Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #161 - Introversion - Reprinted T-shirt nonesuchery pt.3

Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #1136 - Introversion collected and t-shirt reprint - Throwback Thursday for 1812.06

It should be noted that the PJ Harvey song "We Float" comes from my wife, who has been a wellspring of great music for ten years now, who inspires me, and who keeps my passions at a simmer if not a full boil. Just so you know. I don't want to take credit for the discovery of Harvey's song.






"And Hiding Away"
---------------
I prize the cloudy, tearing sky
for the thoughts that flap and fly.
For staying in and reading by.
For sitting under.
I read a book of Madeline
and her friends in two straight lines,
in Paris, in a house with vines
over its old face.
Far, far is Paris...
and the sky is dark with mystery.
Try, catch the thoughts that flap and fly
in the cloudy, tearing sky,
that touch and stir and won't be tied-
and try to speak them.
I think of my old Flower Sky.
Of us, when we thought we were spies.
Of bobbing eggs in Easter dyes.
Of walks in London.
Try, try to hold my love for you,
it knows no measure.
This is a day for hearing bagpipes
somewhere playing.
This is a day for hearing sarabands
and hiding away.
Sky, I hold my tears if you do.
Starling thoughts, go over me


---------------------------------------

I love these lyrics.
I highlighted some of my favourite lines.

Enjoy the music.

Following is a track list and the link and video pod.

https://pxhere.com/en/photo/737753
And Hiding Away - The Sky is Dark With Mystery - Musical Monday Mix for 1901.28

https://pxhere.com/en/photo/737753
1. The Innocence Mission - And Hiding Away

2. The Innocence Mission - Umbrella

3. PJ Harvey - We Float

4. The Innocence Mission - Black Sheep Wall

5. Imogen Heap - Hide And Seek

6. The Innocence Mission - Song About Traveling

7. Beth Orton - She Cries Your Name

8. The Innocence Mission - I Never Knew You From The Sun

9. Sia - Distractions

10. The Innocence Mission - Clear to you

11. The Innocence Mission - Evensong

12. Aleah - Vapour

13. the innocence mission - My Sisters Return from Ireland




14. The Innocence Mission - I Remember Me - US TV debut - LETTERMAN
15. Cocteau Twins - A Kissed Out Red Floatboat - Best Version
16. the innocence mission - Shadow Of The Pines
17. The Innocence Mission - god is love
18. Frou Frou - Breathe In
19. The Innocence Mission - Now In This Hush
20. Mogwai - Ether
21. The Innocence Mission - Sorry And Glad Together
22. Cocteau Twins - Three Swept
23. the innocence mission - She May Turn Around
24. The Sundays - Here's Where The Story Ends
25. The Innocence Mission - Wonder Of Birds

https://pxhere.com/en/photo/1427093

https://m.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2014/11/12/dark-skies-shutterstock_86844088-WEBONLY-550x330.jpg

And Hiding Away - The Sky is Dark With Mystery - Musical Monday Mix for 1901.28

Here's the video pod player for the entire mix:





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- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 1901.28 - 10:10
- Days ago = 1304 days ago
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- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 2301.30 - 10:10

- Days ago = 2768 days ago

- New note - On 1807.06, I ceased daily transmission of my Hey Mom feature after three years of daily conversations. I plan to continue Hey Mom posts at least twice per week but will continue to post the days since ("Days Ago") count on my blog each day. The blog entry numbering in the title has changed to reflect total Sense of Doubt posts since I began the blog on 0705.04, which include Hey Mom posts, Daily Bowie posts, and Sense of Doubt posts. Hey Mom posts will still be numbered sequentially. New Hey Mom posts will use the same format as all the other Hey Mom posts; all other posts will feature this format seen here.
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Sunday, January 29, 2023

A Sense of Doubt blog post #2903 - This Day in T-Shirts - January 29, 2014 - TC Blue Earth and On Writing



A Sense of Doubt blog post #2903 - This Day in T-Shirts - January 29, 2014 - TC Blue Earth and On Writing

Here's today's t-shirt reprint.

Wednesday, January 29, 2014

T-shirt #214 - Traverse City - Blue Earth

I have written about Traverse City before, though I have not made a Traverse City category. There's a "Places" category but none of the Traverse City posts were in it when I started this entry. It's an oversight I fixed. I thought I had written about Traverse City more, but I only have two entries, seen below.

T-shirt #85 - Up North

T-shirt #171 - The Neahtawanta Inn - Goodbye Bob Russell

I have at least three more Traverse City shirts, so I m not going to deliver more content on the most glorious city on the planet in this entry. Stay Tuned.

I will share one thing. For me, Traverse City evokes many wonderful memories. Much of the best times of me childhood were spent there both living for three years and visiting for summer vacations. I resumed the vacation ritual in my adult years and made Traverse City a place I retreated each summer for up to two weeks to write. Now, these memories are inextricably linked. Traverse City is a place of childhood nostalgia and happy memories of family and love. But it is also a place of retreat, renewal, and writing. I spent weeks and weeks there over a 15 year period, mostly alone, reflecting, exploring self, and working on various novel projects.



Right now, as I have mentioned before, I am reading both Stephen King's On Writing (the delightful audio version that he narrates) and Robert McKee's Story (which I wish was on audio...okay, I just checked, and it's an abridged edition, so I wish it was available as an unabridged audio), and I have been thinking a great deal about a novel I was writing in large part during my Traverse City retreats from about 2001 through 2009. I had abandoned the project because it had grown too complex and was turning into a different book than the one I had wanted to write. I am going to return to it and simplify it. King's thoughts on story especially are driving my determination to tackle this project again. I just have to find the time, now, to dump what's in my head into a file, re-read what I had done before, and start banging out a new draft of this book, which just happens to be set in the region up north, near Traverse City. Also, and this is probably more interesting to me than to you, I decided to set the book in 1985, which has helped me to do away with complications caused by modern technology. This and a couple of other projects are the work (both writing work and blog work) that I am planning to shift to when my blog year sends on March 22nd (less than two months from now).

I have many bits and insights on writing to share from what I am reading and thinking, but in the interest of keeping this short (and since it's late), I will save those for now and present them another time.

WHY T-SHIRTS EXPLANATORY BLURB
I am doing a series of snippets that will add up to a larger whole answering the "Why T-shirts?" or "What's with all the T-shirts?" question. I have also decided to include the previous items in an ever growing list, hence the "previous items" section next.

PREVIOUS ITEMS
#1: T-SHIRTS ARE COOL
#2: I BE BRANDED - CHOOSING TO ADVERTISE
#3: It's my tattoo
#4 PRIDE AND STATUS - "It's my thing."
#5 -  "LET ME GEEK FLAG FLY!!"
#6 - UNIFORM SHIRTS ARE COOL

TODAY'S ITEM - WHY T-SHIRTS #7. PROOF THAT I DID IT - SHIRTS FOR EVENTS



Today's featured shirt on Traverse City makes the point as well as a shirt featuring a concert or a play. I have featured all of these types of shirts in abundance: shirts featuring places; concerts T-shirts; other types of shows, like theatrical plays; and even shirts from businesses or special events all qualify under this motivation for why I am so inclined to wear T-shirts. Colleges factor here also. I have several shirts from my undergraduate alma mater, and I have not even featured them all yet, I also have several shirts from my graduate alma mater, and I have featured none of those.

Obviously, this reason connects strongly with the pride idea. If I feel pride and feel I have achieved a certain dubious status with a shirt featuring the logo of a superhero team, then surely a shirt with the name of my college, a place I labored for years to earn a degree, carries with it great pride and powerful status. It's funny. I was very out spoken in my criticisms of Kalamazoo College while a student there, but after I graduated, the love and affection I have for the place drove all those criticisms away. I wear the shirts now with unabashed pride.

Also, I have been accused of being a hipster. I don't think I qualify. But one of my failings is pride for the many concerts I have seen and how I am likely to tell stories in a tale swap of "one-upsmanship" that drives my wife crazy. But again, like with the schools, I am proud of the concerts I have seen and feel that there's some status conveyed here. Sadly, I purged many of my most vintage concert shirts in the packing up and clearing out of my parents home just before I decided to start work on this blog. What was I thinking? Clearly, I had dismissed the idea of doing a blog like this, and I was quite convinced that there was no way I could maintain a daily pace, especially with my tendency to be long-winded. How wrong I was.


And so, I add another post to The Blog Journey category, which is about writing, which is the topic I started with before today's Why T-shirts blurb. I needed proof. I needed confirmation that I had the chops to write EVERY DAY, even on Christmas and my birthday and the Fourth of July. Though there have been some skip days, though I have fallen behind quite often (this entry being a case in point as I originally published it last night, Wednesday, and I am finishing it this morning, Thursday), and though I still have one unfinished entry that's going on day eleven of not being done (I am working on it, if you keep checking it -- T-shirt #304 -- you can watch it grow, I am doing it. One day at a time. One word at a time. I am building a huge body of work that lays bare my own journey of self discovery as a geek, as a reader, as a writer, as a husband, as a father, as a man.

And I am not done yet. Stay tuned.

HIATUS TEXT: I am taking a short hiatus. A "hiatus" for the 365 T-shirts Blog does not mean that there will not be shirts or that I will skip posting on any forthcoming day. There will be shirts. But the shirts will not be exciting or the featured shirts will not require me to write a small novel to properly generate the content I feel is sufficient. I created a category for my hiatus so as to group together those "easy" shirts that I consider to be "hiatus shirts." The goal of the hiatus is to fill in many blog days with easy shirts in order to complete longer love letters to beloved popular culture icons on more special shirts and to write more complex entries AHEAD OF TIME. The daily grind is becoming too much and causing me to fall behind and to be forced to post incomplete entries. I am hoping that a series of hiatus shirts will allow me to catch up, get ahead, and stay ahead. Ideally, I would like to be writing the bulk of each entry three days ahead while always working on at least one other. I have a lot of great shirts to share before the end of my blog year (after all I was just given SIXTEEN shirts for my birthday). Stay tuned. I promise to post the more interesting and longer T-shirt entries as I finish them. Thanks for reading. BTW, this is the standard HIATUS TEXT that I will include in every "hiatus shirt" entry.

COUNTDOWN TO END OF THE BLOG YEAR - 51 shirts remaining

- chris tower -  first published - 1401.29 - 19:11
final publication - 1401.30 - 8:05

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- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 2301.29 - 10:10

- Days ago = 2767 days ago

- New note - On 1807.06, I ceased daily transmission of my Hey Mom feature after three years of daily conversations. I plan to continue Hey Mom posts at least twice per week but will continue to post the days since ("Days Ago") count on my blog each day. The blog entry numbering in the title has changed to reflect total Sense of Doubt posts since I began the blog on 0705.04, which include Hey Mom posts, Daily Bowie posts, and Sense of Doubt posts. Hey Mom posts will still be numbered sequentially. New Hey Mom posts will use the same format as all the other Hey Mom posts; all other posts will feature this format seen here.
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Saturday, January 28, 2023

A Sense of Doubt blog post #2902 - Reprint - Hey Mom #571 - New Comic Cover Gallery 2017 pt.1



A Sense of Doubt blog post #2902 - Reprint - Hey Mom #571 - New Comic Cover Gallery 2017 pt.1

Here's today's reprint.

I added two new Captain America covers (new to me) for a new topper image and the other just because I liked it when it came up in the search.

This is what I posted on this date in 2017, while still in Michigan, though I would move later that year.






Originally - Saturday, January 28, 2017


http://pencilink.blogspot.com/2010/06/captain-america-106-jack-kirby-art.html
Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #571 - New Comic Cover Gallery 2017 pt.1


Hey Mom,

I have more of your favorite thing today: COMIC BOOKS.

After days of depression mixed with disgust (too depressed for anger but I definitely could feel it that way if I let myself) over the actions of this "president" (whom I am going to continue to regard with the alleged status quotes provide), I just want to escape into a world that is not complicated by banning muslims, taking away women's choices about their bodies, or trying to ignore and censor science, and comic books has often provided that world.

I split up my comics galleries  into three posts, so as to keep this one from being too huge to digest.

All content is re-posted if not with permission at least with credit to a really great blog to follow if you're a comic fan: http://pencilink.blogspot.com/

PENCIL INK (by someone named Ted "Teddy" Ignacio) bills itself as a blog to rate and review vintage comic books featuring the best artists of the 1940s through the 1990s. His list is rather short, but it includes Neal Adams, Jack Kirby, Alex Toth, John Byrne, Don Newton, Jim Starlin, Frank Brunner, Mike Ploog, Marshall Rodgers, Bernie Wrightson, and a few others. I believe I have all the artists featured on this blog entry in that list.

I have added links to all the PENCIL INK pages and copied some of the text for review. All credit to Teddy Ignacio. Follow him on Twitter @Pencilinkblog.

It's a great site, but I must confess that I do not look at it everyday.

This Captain America issue caught my eye as it was one of the earliest Cap issues I ever owned, though not my first.

I wrote of my adoration of Captain America and my first ever Captain America comic here:

http://365-tshirts.blogspot.com/2013/07/t-shirt-106-captain-america.html

I love this Kirby Cap cover for issue 106. It's so dynamic. It embodies the very best of why I love Kirby, but so do some of the Mister Miracle covers in this gallery. The escape artist thing connects well with my love for Houdini.

There's good stuff with John Byrne and The Champions, which is popular again due to a reboot.

There's one of my favorite DEADMAN images of all time. I wrote of DEADMAN here:

http://365-tshirts.blogspot.com/2013/05/t-shirt-43-deadman.html

For today, enjoy this cover gallery, Mom. Can you see me showing you each issue, one at a time, as I would when a young boy?

Captain America #106 - Jack Kirby art & cover



http://pencilink.blogspot.com/2010/06/captain-america-106-jack-kirby-art.html
Captain America v1 #106, 1968 - Jack Kirby continues his exceptional streak on this series. This frenetic cover, however, has always baffled me due to its poor foreshortening of limbs. A replicate Steve Rogers threatens the real Cap, though it's not especially obvious until you read the story. The antagonist's arms and legs seem stunted, almost dwarf-like in nature. Inside, Kirby delivers over twenty pages of superbly drawn and composed pages. Two splashes help in the pacing, including one of the hero in dramatic mid-leap. This is number 7 of 34 Captain America issues with Kirby art and/or covers. See today's posts or more Kirby or Captain America issues. See also this blog's Kirby checklist.
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Kirby cover pencils (Frank Giacoia inks) = ***
"Cap Goes Wild" Kirby story pencils (Frank Giacoia inks) 25 pages = **** 



https://pencilink.blogspot.com/2016/12/adventure-comics-495-alex-toth-art-neal.html

http://pencilink.blogspot.com/2008/07/adventures-on-planet-of-apes-1-jim.html

https://pencilink.blogspot.com/2010/04/captain-america-103-jack-kirby-art.html

http://pencilink.blogspot.com/2010/06/captain-america-105-jack-kirby-art-cover.html

https://pencilink.blogspot.com/2010/08/captain-america-109-jack-kirby-art.html

http://pencilink.blogspot.com/2009/08/champions-12-john-byrne-art.html

http://pencilink.blogspot.com/2009/08/champions-13-john-byrne-art.html

http://pencilink.blogspot.com/2009/09/champions-14-john-byrne-art.html

https://pencilink.blogspot.com/2010/03/marvel-treasury-edition-4-conan-barry.html

http://pencilink.blogspot.com/2010/10/deadly-hands-of-kung-fu-26-marshall.html

Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #26 - Marshall Rogers art (1st pro work)

Deadly Hands of Kung Fu v1 #26, 1976 - A pleasant surprise awaits those who open this kung-fu themed magazine. Marshall Rogers does his first work for Marvel with an inside front cover illustration of Bruce Lee. Graphically rendered, the kung fu legend's muscles are taut and well defined. His hands extend toward the reader in an interesting maze of black and white shapes. This duel portrait is capably designed, and prefaces Rogers' excellent work to come in this series. Other artists in this issue include Jim Sherman, Tony DeZuniga and the Tribe. This is number 1 of 3 Deadly Hands of Kung Fu issues with Rogers art and/or covers. See today's posts or more Rogers or Deadly Hands of Kung Fu issues. See also more firsts, this blog's Rogers checklist or Top 10 Rogers comics.


http://pencilink.blogspot.com/2016/12/deadman-1-neal-adams-cover-reprints.html

http://pencilink.blogspot.com/2017/01/batman-370-don-newton-art-pea.html

https://pencilink.blogspot.com/2017/01/limited-collectors-edition-c-51-batman.html

http://pencilink.blogspot.com/2009/06/champions-11-john-byrne-art.html

Champions #11 - John Byrne art

 The Champions v1 #11, 1977 - John Byrne takes over this series just prior to his run on the X-men. This would be his first team book for Marvel, giving the title a fresh contemporary look from the previous issues. Black Goliath joins the team after the cancellation of his own short-lived series, while Hawkeye and the Two Gun Kid make a guest appearance. Even with this multitude of characters, Byrne does a competent job at keeping the scenes organized with minimal confusion. His well-paced layouts also receive an impressive final polish by inker Bob Layton. Other artists in this issue include Gil Kane (cover). This is number 1 of 6 Champions issues with Byrne art and/or covers. See today's posts or more Byrne or Champions issues. See also this blog's Byrne checklist.
- - - - - - - - - -

http://pencilink.blogspot.com/2009/09/champions-17-john-byrne-art.html

http://pencilink.blogspot.com/2009/09/champions-15-john-byrne-art.html


http://pencilink.blogspot.com/2010/10/mister-miracle-4-jack-kirby-art-cover.html


Mister Miracle #4 - Jack Kirby art, cover & reprint

Mister Miracle v1 #4, 1971 - Big Barda, the woman warrior of Apokolips, makes her first appearance in this issue. She would become a significant supporting character on the series and a key ally of Mister Miracle. The frenetic, action-packing scenes are made more so with Jack Kirby's roomy panels. Most pages are quartered into four sections, each painstakingly designed, especially pages 1-3. High points include the relatively quiet opening splash of Barda in full military regalia and a demonstration of her brute strength on page six, panel five. Kirby allows too many text elements to muddy up the cover, but note how the stone arch in the background conveniently follows the curve of the masthead. Golden age Simon & Kirby reprints also begin with this issue (in this case Detective Comics #82). This is number 4 of 18 Mr. Miracle issues with Kirby art and/or covers. See today's posts or more Kirby or Mister Miracle issues. See also this blog's Kirby checklist.


http://pencilink.blogspot.com/2010/11/mister-miracle-5-jack-kirby-art-cover.html

http://pencilink.blogspot.com/2008/06/teen-titans-20-neal-adams-art.html

http://pencilink.blogspot.com/2011/03/tomb-of-dracula-4-non-attributed-neal.html

Tomb of Dracula #4 - non-attributed Neal Adams cover

Tomb of Dracula v1 #4, 1972 - Not widely known, this early Tomb of Dracula cover was heavily reworked from a Neal Adams illustration. The two villagers are all that remain from the original, their stances and facial expressions consistent with the artist's style. The encroaching vampires and background were added by John Romita, presumably to satisfy the publisher's request (I have yet to see a scan of the original). Other artists in this issue include Gene Colan and Tom Palmer. This is number 2 of 3 Tomb of Dracula issues with Adams art and/or covers. See today's posts or more Adams or Tomb of Dracula issues. See also this blog's Adams checklist or Top 10 Adams comics.


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Reflect and connect.
Have someone give you a kiss, and tell you that I love you.
I miss you so very much, Mom.
Talk to you tomorrow, Mom.
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- Days ago = 573 days ago
- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 1701.28 - 10:10
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- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 2301.28 - 10:10

- Days ago = 2766 days ago

- New note - On 1807.06, I ceased daily transmission of my Hey Mom feature after three years of daily conversations. I plan to continue Hey Mom posts at least twice per week but will continue to post the days since ("Days Ago") count on my blog each day. The blog entry numbering in the title has changed to reflect total Sense of Doubt posts since I began the blog on 0705.04, which include Hey Mom posts, Daily Bowie posts, and Sense of Doubt posts. Hey Mom posts will still be numbered sequentially. New Hey Mom posts will use the same format as all the other Hey Mom posts; all other posts will feature this format seen here.




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