It Rhymes With Lust - a PS Artbooks Picture Novel

I truly do enjoy supporting the independent comic book companies, and quite frankly, they put out some of the best comic material on the market these days.  DC and Marvel have become so boring, rehashing the same stories and same material over and over by different writers and artists.  But the indy publishers put out a lot of fresh stories and unique characters - and in some cases, they re-release some vintage comics that truly deserve recognition.  This small graphic novel I stumbled across in Previews, and since I have come to appreciate a lot of the older works and pulp styles, I picked it up.

It Rhymes With Lust is written by Drake Waller with art by Matt Baker and Ray Osrin.  Baker is probably best known for his work on the golden age stories of Phantom Lady, but he also did work on Canteen Kate and other books back in the day.  (And the writer, "Drake Waller," was actually a pseudonym for Arnold Drake and Leslie Waller, who wrote the story together.)  It Rhymes With Lust was originally published by St. John Publications as one of its "picture novels," which was an early form of graphic novels, featuring comic stories published in a format that was more the size of an old Reader's Digest or TV Guide.  PS Artbooks republished this comic in its original format, and even reprinted the original front and back covers inside!

The story centers around Hal Weber, a newspaper man who arrives in Copper City just in time to witness the funeral procession of Buck Masson - and to catch a glimpse of his old flame, Rust Masson, the widow of the deceased man.  (And, as you can see, the title of the book comes from the sultry woman's first name - which, it should be pointed out, is also a play on words, since this vixen is a villain of the worst kind, whose actions could very well bring about the destruction of Copper City!)  It turns out, though, that Buck is not a very strong-willed man - before long, he's chasing after both Rust and her step-daughter, Audrey Masson.  He longs to help Audrey put an end to her step-mother's plans to completely take ontrol of Copper City, but he can't help himself every time he comes in contact with Rust, and he finds himself helping her with her plans to take out all of her competition!  Hence, it is his "lust" for these women that could prove his downfall.

The story is an interesting twist, as it is usually the male lead that is the hero of the story, with all confidence and strength to stop the crime and protect the innocents; yet, in this tale, Drake and Waller provide readers with a weak-willed man who allows his carnal desires dictate his actions.  It is the strong-willed and determined step-daughter who stands firm in the story and who is the catalyst that finally gets Hal to do the right thing for the city and its citizens.  For a story that is over 70 years old (it was originally published back in 1950), it still holds up well, particularly in today's world where people are clamoring for more strong female leads!

And Matt Baker's art - WOW! Literally, there's no other word I can think of that can truly describe the beauty and artistic talent on display in this picture novel.  Baker's art is tremendous - from the superb, life-like expressions of his characters to his "faded" backgrounds to keep focus on the action going on in the forefront of the panels, Baker provides a beautiful, cinematic feel to the story.  Every panel flows to easily into the next, and the reader can literally SEE the action as it happens - whether it's Rust slapping her daughter in the backseat of the limousine to the climactic scene at the mine. There is intensity in the emotions, in the action, in the story itself that keeps the reader hypnotically drawn into the tale, page after page, and leaving you (ME!) heaving a huge sigh of relief when you reach that final page.

 

Reading this picture novel makes me wish more of the pulp stories from back in the day had been published in this format, rather than just as prose novels!  

RATING:  9 copies of the Copper City Express out of 10 for re-presenting a unique and visually exquisite pulp tale for today's readers to enjoy!