Short Lived Comic Series #25 - Soap Opera Love (Charlton Comics)

As a kid, I remember my Mom watching General Hospital every afternoon when I would come home from school.  I also remember during the summers, when my grandparents would babysit my brothers and I, my grandmother would watch As the World Turns.  When I started to get near my teen years, I got hooked on General Hospital (the whole Cassadine weather-machine / Ice Princess story had me hooked!) and All My Children (I fell in love with Jenny Gardner!).  I started watching Loving when it premiered (the idea of watching a soap opera from the first episode thrilled me!), but the show was not overly exciting, and I gave up shortly after it started.  Later, my Mom and I watched the soap Santa Barbara from beginning to end (and I was ever-so-fortunate to get the opportunity to meet the cast on a cruise down to the Bahamas a few years back - such a treat - just wish my Mom could have shared that adventure with me), and not long after that ended, I watched Passions from beginning to end (which show had some elements that reminded me of Dark Shadows, a show that I LOVE and have also seen from beginning to end, but that I do not label a soap opera, even though technically it was - for me, the show was a Gothic suspense drama).  So, it's easy to see that I do enjoy a good soap opera.

Thus, when I was at a comic convention some years back and stumbled across an old Charlton comic in a back issue $1 bin called Soap Opera Love, my interest was piqued.  I picked it up (issue 3, I believe), and started my hunt for the other issues.  A search online revealed that there were only three issues to this series, so I figured they would not be too hard to find.  Well, color me surprised!  It took my a lot longer to find those first two issues than I thought, particularly at a reasonable price I was willing to pay.  It's unbelievable what old romance comics are selling for these days.  But, find them I did, and I was recently able to sit down and read all three issues of Soap Opera Love.

Now, a little backstory is probably warranted.  This series was published in 1983 (with cover dates of February, March, and June, respectively), and was one of Charlton's last titles published before it suspended publication in 1984.  The same year this series was published was the year DC Comics bought the line of super hero characters from Charlton (including Blue Beetle, Captain Atom, Judo Master, Nightshade, the Question, Peacemaker, and others), so with their super hero line gone, I think Charlton lost some of its standing in the comic world.  Which is sad, because I have been learning in recent years, the company actually put out some pretty good comics - it's a shame that I didn't realize it back in the day (because I always viewed them as a second-rate company with inferior product - which, looking back, was silly of me, since I never picked up any of their comics back then, so how would I have known?).  

Soap Opera Love only lasted three issues, and the covers of all three issues promoted the love story of David and Eileen, which, as it turns out, was the only continuing story among the issues.  The other stories in each issue were single stories that appear to be reprints (based upon the story material, the clothes worn by the characters in them, and the vernacular used by the characters).  And it's funny, because when I saw the names "David" and "Eileen," my mind immediately went to Eileen Davidson, an actress who has starred on many soaps over the years, from Young and the Restless to Santa Barbara to Days of Our Lives, and others.  I have to wonder if the names of the characters happened to be a nod to this actress.  (Of course, they could not be for reasons mentioned later on in this post.)

In any event, the ongoing story of David and Eileen centers around the fact that David is Jewish and Eileen is Irish, and much like the tragic story of Romeo and Juliet, their families do not want the two of them together - they only want them to date someone of their own heritage.  Needless to say, David and Eileen fall in love and despite their families' outrage, they race off to get married and start their life together.  The stories vary in length - from 12 pages (issue 1) to 10 pages (issue 2) to 9 pages (issue 3) - and each issue builds upon the story from the previous one.  In the first issue, David and Eileen meet, fall in love, and run away to elope in order to avoid their parents' disapproval.  The second issue finds the couple facing the decision of what kind of marriage ceremony to attend - one in a synagogue or one in a church?  The third issue features the couple's first argument, as they try and decide where they should go on vacation - Eileen wants to appease David's parents, while he wants to appease her parents - and ultimately, David wises up and decides to take his bride on the honeymoon they never got - to Honolulu!  

The third issue ends with the text box of Eileen thinking ... "Our troubles are over ... after all, what can go wrong on a honeymoon in Honolulu?  To find out ... buy the next issue at your favorite store!"  But, as we now know, that "next issue" never came out, and readers never did find out whether anything went wrong in Honolulu or if David and Eileen finally got their happily ever after.  Of course, this being a "soap opera," there is no doubt that the couple would have faced trouble in paradise!

Now, I found it strange that these stories did not give credit to any of the creators, although the artists were identified in some of the panels as A. Martinez and J. Zuniga - which is a funny coincidence, as "A. Martinez" also happens to be the name of the actor who played Cruz Castillo on the NBC soap, Santa Barbara!  Funny coincidence.  So, I started digging around online, and I discovered that all of the stories in Soap Opera Love were reprints - they were stories that were pulled from other romance comics previously published by Charlton years prior.  While it was evidence that the single issue stories were reprints, other than the whole Jewish-Irish conflict between the families, I did not realize that the David and Eileen serial was also a reprint.  It seems these stories were originally published in a Charlton book called Just Married, and that the serial ran for nine issues (93-101) - meaning that readers actually DID find out what happened to the young couple when they went off to Honolulu (which means if I want to know, I need to go track down those issues!).  I also found that A. Martinez was a rather popular artist at Charlton, having provided art not just for the romance titles, but also some of the war titles as well.

 

***NOTE - yes, I did see the blurb under the indicia on the first page of each issue that read, "ALL EDITORIAL MATERIAL HEREIN CONTAINED WAS ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN, AND IS REPRINTED FROM, PUBLICATIONS COPYRIGHT 1970, 1973 BY CHARLTON PUBLICATIONS, INC."  However, I did not make the connection that "Editorial Material" meant all of the stories.  Guess I know better now!

The single issue stories were rather hit or miss, and they were definitely a product of the time.  From the slang used by the characters, to the domination of men over women in each tale, it was evident the stories were not from the '80s.  "I Know The Man I Want to Love" in the first issue features a young woman who wants to marry someone rich and business-oriented; but when she falls for a man who seems to have nothing, she has to fight her feelings for him - only to finally give in and run into his arms, only to discover he was not the poor man she had thought he was!  "A Quiet Place to Cry" in the second issue finds a young woman running away after the mean she loves marries another woman.  In the big city, she is befriended by her neighbor, who goes out of his way to be kind to her.  He is an artist, reluctant to see himself as a successful one - but she convinces him to try, and she even manages to take his art to a whole new level, right along with their budding relationship!  "Another Point of View" in the final issue is probably one of the most degrading stories when it comes to the view people take of women.  A happily married woman is thrilled at how men look at her when she goes out, especially at the pool.  As she begins to gain weight, she finds her husband's attention diverting to another woman, whose own husband is no catch.  She eventually starts dieting and exercising, slims down, and regains her husband's attention and love, which is all she wants.  I found this story to be distasteful, insomuch as it promotes solely outward beauty as the only thing needed to keep a husband's attention - for me, if that's the only thing that keeps him at home, then you need to get rid of him and find someone who loves you for you, not your outward appearance!  "Till Death Do Us Part," the second story in the final issue, was a bit more unique.  It deals with a woman who becomes so overcome with fear that her husband may have a heart attack and die like his father that she tries to prevent him from doing anything that might exert his heart, to the point it is an obsession.  She must learn to overcome the fear and live life to its fullest without worrying every second about what could happen.  (Side note - there is a character in this story called Dr. Timmons - which is the last name of Keith Timmons, yet another character from the NBC soap Santa Barbara.  Interesting the connections to that one soap from just three issues of this comic!)

Ah, well.  Reprints or not, the saga of David and Eileen, while a bit contrived by today's standards, was actually beautifully drawn and well-written (for its time), and definitely fit the right kind of theme for a soap opera, and as such, was the perfect fit for a title called Soap Opera Love.  And with my appetite properly whetted by these first three parts, I am desperate to go out there and find those nine issues of Just Married so I can get their complete story!  Because, let's face it - what's worse than having a soap opera start a story, and then just leave you hanging right in the middle without ever resolving the tale!

RATING:  8 servings of potato pancakes with apple sauce out of 10 for taking a chance on a different soap opera format and serving up a couple who you can't help but fall in love with!

Curse of Salem - a Bishop / Special Crimes Unit Novel

Kay Hooper is definitely back in true form with the second book in the Salem trilogy (at least, I'm assuming this is a trilogy - I haven't seen any solicit or information about a third book in this series yet, but since all previous books in the Bishop / Special Crimes Unit series were trilogies, I have to believe this one will be as well!).  While that final book in the Bishop Files trilogy had left me wondering, with this book, I wonder no more.  Noah Bishop and his group of psychic federal agents in the Special Crimes Unit are back in action and most definitely back in their element as they return to Salem, North Carolina to face another deadly threat - this one even more evil and more vicious than the last.

Curse of Salem takes place just a couple of months after the events of Hidden Salem.  After the defeat of Duncan Cavendish, the townsfolk of Salem thought the nightmare was over.  But for a town filled with psychics, can the nightmare ever truly be over?  When Hollis and Diana have a shared vision in the grey world with a warning of something to come in Salem, Bishop can't ignore it.  And when Sheriff Finn Deverell calls Bishop to tell him that a head of one of the Five in Salem has come to him with a warning, it pretty much clenches the SCU's involvement.  Something bad - VERY bad - is coming to Salem, and for the first time, Bishop's team might actually have a chance to stop it before it begins.

If only it were that easy...

Hooper continues her return to the roots of her psychic crime unit series with a violent tale of a psychic killer that has a personal agenda.  And staying under the radar in Salem, a town made up of five psychic families, where most of the population have psychic abilities on some level, is no mean feat.  But Hooper introduces a new element into the mix - because there is a static that seems to have washed over the town, something that is preventing Bishop's team - as well as the families already in Salem - from utilizing their abilities to warn them of danger.  And when a vision reveals that the killer has not only killed one victim, but has another one that is being tortured, the SCU realizes they did not arrive as early as they had hoped.  But how did the killer take people without anyone noticing?  And how did a small town such as Salem not realize that one ... now TWO ... of their own were missing?

The suspense builds pretty quickly in this book, as the urgency to find the kidnapped victims grows with each turn of the page.  And the gruesome manner in which the killer tortures and kills one of his victims - and what the SCU team finds! - is so horrific, I think this is likely one of the absolute worst murders in the entire series.  And Hooper's ability to make that death have such a huge impact on the reader, not just in terms of its gruesome nature, but in the fact that the victim was innocent - was someone people in the town cared about - and was someone that did not want to die, but still had to suffer what this killer did - well, it goes to Hooper's talented writing skills.  To make the reader care about a character that we barely even know, and to feel the punch to the gut when Hollis, Diana, Reese, Quentin, Bishop, and Miranda, along with Finn and Nelle, find the body (or rather, what's left of it), it speaks volumes of Hooper's ability as a writer.

As with prior books in this series, some of the SCU members find they are developing (or coming into) new abilities. In this one, Hollis discovers she can do more than she ever thought, and the final showdown with the killer utilizes these new talents to lead to a very satisfying conclusion.  Of course, we know this is not the end, as there should be one more book in this trilogy (anxiously waiting on word about when the next book will be coming out!), and it makes me wonder just how much more violence and terror the poor town of Salem can suffer before it is completely destroyed?

 

And I will concede that I thought I had Diana's spirit guide all figured out - I thought for sure I knew who it was; but Hooper put in a final twist that was not what I was expecting.  Which is a good thing, as it keeps on my toes and keeps me from getting too comfortable in thinking I can figure these things out.

There is one scene in this book that truly made me smile, as it has such truth to it!  As Hollis is discussing the crows that are a mainstay of Salem, she wonders about their connection to the people and how they interact. "I wonder if they make exceptions for friends," she speculates (p. 123.)  "Cats don't.  Then again, I've never been entirely sure cats would be bothered enough to make that sort of distinction.  Dogs have master, cats have staff." (p. 124)  Have grown up with both cats and dogs, and having been a cat-lover all of my life, there is no truer statement than what Hollis says here - dogs serve people, but people serve cats!

RATING:  10 half-eaten jelly donuts out of 10 for keeping this series alive with a darker villain and some surprising twists in the world of psychic feds!

Whitman Mystery Stories - Quiz Kids and the Crazy Question Mystery

The more Whitman mysteries I read, the more I discover just how enjoyable these books are.  I can't believe I spent so many years thinking these books were of "inferior" quality to the Stratemeyer and other similar series books, simply because they were published by Whitman (a company I always thought published rushed, sub-par product simply to try and compete with the big boys).  While they may have only published a few ongoing series, and those in very short runs of five books or less usually, many of their one-off mysteries are actually just as good as, if not better than, some of the series books from Grosset & Dunlap, Cupples & Leon, A.L. Burt, and many other big name publishers of the time.  And because of how much I have enjoyed the Whitman books I've read to date, I have found myself on the hunt for more and more of these books!

Quiz Kids and the Crazy Question Mystery sounds like an off-beat title, but the book is apparently based on a show of the same name ("Quiz Kids") that began as a radio show in 1940 and eventually graduated to television in 1949.  Since this book was published in 1946, it stands to reason that it is based on the radio version.  And just like the radio/televised version, the show in the book features five children, all age 15 and under (since once they reached the age of 16, they were no longer eligible), who showed exceptional intelligence.  The book uses Joe Kelly as the host for the show, who was the actual host on the radio show.  All other characters in the book are fictional.

 

The book is written by Carl W. Smith, of whom I know absolutely nothing about.  A search online shows that he wrote a couple of other Whitman titles, Red Ryder and the Secret of the Lucky Mine and The Lone Wolf and the Hidden Empire.   There are a number of internal illustrations by Isobel Read, which are actually nicely rendered.  I can't find much about Ms. Read at all, but it appears this book may be the only book she illustrated for Whitman's mystery books.  Regardless, the team does put together a rather good mystery!

The main three characters are Gene Markham, Frank Bennet, and Alice Lanier, who are described in the book as "the older Quiz Kids" - Gene is shown in the first internal illustration as being 15 (meaning he would soon reach the age limit), while Frank and Alice are described as not having far to go (even though that first illustration shows Alice is only 12 years of age; Frank's age is never established).  The other two Quiz Kids, Billy Read and Frances Lipton, are named, but they do not actually have any part of the story.  Now, I realize back in the day, the mystery stories for children featured protagonists who often had unlimited freedom to come and go as they please, but I do have to question the fact that in this story, Alice is only 12 years old, yet she travels with Gene and Frank around Chicago with unlimited freedom and absolutely no supervision whatsoever, well into the late hours of the night.  That does come across as just a tad too unrealistic to ground the story in any realm of believability.

But, suspending all disbelief, the story was actually a really well-plotted mystery.  The chain of events begins with a stranger call that interrupts the Quiz Kids show and poses an unusual question to those listening to the show:  "When is too late if forever is late?"  The kids and the producers of the show are unaware of the interruption, as it is an off-site transmitter where the signal is interrupted and the question asked.  As everyone scrambles to figure out what happened, Gene and Frank walk Alice home - only, along the way, they come across a scene at a downtown building where a big robbery took place.  The next morning, they learn that a large diamond - the Raj Kashgar diamond - was stolen just after it was cut by a diamond cutter brought in from another country for that purpose!  And, coincidentally enough, the robbery took place just moments after the strange ghost-voice cut in to the Quiz Kids show with the crazy question.  Before you know it, Gene, Frank, and Alice (an homage, perhaps, to Joe, Frank, and Nancy before those three ever teamed-up!) are investigating the ghostly voice and the stolen diamond right alongside newspaper reporter Alan "Jiggs" Butler.  They even get deputized as junior detectives to be able to shadow the real police detective, Sergeant Jack Callahan, as well as conduct questioning and investigations on their own.

The story progresses nicely as the three junior detectives discuss what they know and try to put the pieces together to determine (a) whether the ghostly interruption of their show is truly connected to the stolen diamond, (b) who made the ghost-call, and (c) who stole the diamond.  They actually follow pretty methodical means to following-up on clues they uncover, utilizing the library, as well as their own exceptional knowledge of architecture, castles, and other matters, along with their skills of observation.  I will say, one of the best parts of this book is when the three kids make their way to the outskirts of town and sneak into the Grimm Castle, an abandoned castle that was built by one Arnold Grimm, a Canadian gold-miner, to mirror a castle from Scotland.  The castle has secret tunnels, hidden hallways, bats, ghosts, and pretty much everything you would expect from a Gothic-esque place said to be haunted.  There are a number of chapters devoted to the kids' adventure in the castle, and it does read like a spooky, Gothic novel with the dark tunnels, the unexplained sounds, the unexpected appearances of the bat and the "ghost," and the unknown captive being held against his will.  But it is through the experiences at the castle that the kids are able to put together the final clues they need to unravel this strange mystery and reveal the crooks and the whole elaborate scheme to steal the diamond worth nearly $1 million!  (NOTE - the endpages for this book provide a map of the castle, showing the various rooms and secret tunnels and hidden passages for the first level - and it spoils a portion of the book by referencing the room "where the old man was.")

There are some interesting historical tidbits in this book.  Alice comments about the fact that it is illegal to own gold (p. 18), which would have been true in 1946 when this book was published.  From 1933 through 1974, it was illegal for an individual person to own gold, pursuant to Executive Order 6102 issued by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, which made gold ownership illegal, punishable by up to ten years in prison and a fine of twice the amount of what the gold was worth.  I honestly was not aware of this until I researched the matter after reading Alice's remark in this book!

Additionally, while I was aware there were various kinds of diamonds out there, I did not realize that diamonds came in so many different colors, and that the value of the diamond depended not only on it size and perfection, but also on its color.  Frank explains to his friends the differences in colors and prices (p. 23).  Diamonds can come in pink, red, purple, blue, orange, green, yellow, black, brown, chameleon, and argyle!  The rarity apparently depends on the color, as black, brown and yellow diamonds are seen much more frequently than green or blue diamonds.  And since the diamond in this book is described as an Oriental green diamond, then the worth (nearly $1 million in 1946!) could very well be accurate.

Now, for one tidbit I found to be a bit off - on page 102, Frank says that someone must own the castle, despite its abandoned status, and speculates it is likely to be the heirs of the original builder, Arnold Grimm, or his wife.  But this contradicts what the kids read just 20 pages earlier in the book (p. 83), where the book on local architecture they find in the library states:

...The Grimm Castle stood vacant for several years, and was then purchased by an eccentric attorney for a price that was probably less than the ornate main gate had cost Arnold Grimm.  The castle was drafty and difficult to heat, and a succession of three or four owners did not retain it long...

Having just read about the ownership of the castle earlier that day (in their time), it doesn't make sense that Frank would guess that the castle must be owned by heirs of the original owner.  Or, perhaps, Frank has such an IQ that his head is full of more information than he can possibly retain, so he simply forgot what he read about the ownership of the castle!

Overall, this was a truly great read, and I'm disappointed they never published any more adventures of these three Quiz Kids.  They make a great team, with some natural banter among them and a great supporting cast (even if we do never meet their parents!).  That would probably have to be my one major complaint about the Whitman mystery books - they create some great characters and offer some wonderful mysteries, but we never get to see the characters again after their one (or in rare occasions, two) appearance.

RATING:  10 small pieces of Dorchester sandstone out of 10 for a fantastic mystery with enjoyable characters and plenty of great Gothic suspense thrown in for good measure!

Ghost Hunters Adventure Club and The Express Train to Nowhere (Book 2)

When I first read Ghost Hunters Adventure Club and the Secret of the Grande Chateau, I had a small hope in the back of my mind that this would make a fun series; but, being a parody as it is, I didn't really expect to ever see any more GHAC books by Dr. Cecil H.H. Mills.  I figured that the one fun romp of adventure with J.J. and Valentine Watts (are they really brothers?) and their mystery-solving partner, Trudi de la Rosa was going to be it.  So, color me surprised when I was scrolling through Amazon and came across this second book starring the Ghost Hunters Adventure Club!  It was quite literally a dream come true!  With another beautifully painted '50s-style cover by Paul Mann, this time showcasing J.J., Valentine, and Trudi staring right at the reader, this was an instant buy for me - as well as an instant read!  Usually I try to read the books in the order I buy them, but for this one, I just couldn't wait.

Ghost Hunters Adventure Club and the Express Train to Nowhere follows the format of the first book, in that Dr. Cecil H.H. Mills introduces the story and the characters (much as Alfred Hitchcock did back in the early Three Investigators books).  Of course, Mills reminds readers that he is only in this for the money, and that the success of the first book prompted this second book for young adults, a genre he clearly does not like (particularly since he considers J.J., Valentine, and Trudi to be complete and utter idiots - but wait!  Isn't he writing them?  So, if he's calling them idiots, then why doesn't he simply write them a different way?  Or is it, perhaps, that they are not really idiots, and he's just trying to cover up the fact that he has created some wonderfully lovable characters that readers enjoy?  Or, just maybe, it's a simply attempt at humor, poking fun at his own breaking of the fourth wall in this book....)  In any event, he finally shuts up and allows this second adventure to begin!

The story picks up not long after the events in the first book.  Trudi is an official members of the Ghost Hunters Adventure Club, and J.J. has set up the Club's First Inaugural Leadership Summit!  As luck would have it, he managed to snag three tickets on the Harborville Express, headed to New Troutstead.  He has plenty of projects, assignments, and team-building exercised planned for the three of them, to better their skills as detectives and as a team.  But, as with any good mystery, fate has other plans.  Soon enough, Siobhan Sweeney, the boy's sworn nemesis, shows up at the door of their train cabin, throwing Valentine completely off-balance.  Then they discover she is working as security for a museum curator who is transporting a priceless ruby jewels to another museum.  Only to find out the jewels are on loan from a small country of which no one has ever heard.  Which turns out to to in very bad relations with a neighboring country who claims the jewels are rightfully theirs.  And thrown into the mix is the local baseball team enjoying a ride on the train, as well as a group of train nerds enthralled with the Harborville Express!  And when the necklace disappears during a short trip through a dark tunnel, the Ghost Hunters Adventure Club is on the - - well, they would be, if Inspector Sandor Horvath didn't happen to also be on the train and take over the investigation.

It's definitely another kooky mystery, which, quite frankly, might even stymie the most die-hard Christie or Doyle fans!  J.J., Valentine, and Trudi are positive Siobhan stole the jewels with the help of her quiet but loyal partner, Luther.  But the Inspector is haphazardly making his way through the suspects (he might as well be named Inspector Clouseau - and if you don't know who that is, then go google it - I'm not telling you!), and the Ghost Hunters Adventure Club happen to be in his sights.  The next thing you know, the train ends up broken down in the middle of Nowhere - and no, I did not capitalize that word by mistake - that's the name of the abandoned town where the train happens to get stuck (hence, the name of the book!).  And it's there that all the craziness really begins, as we soon learn that half the people on the train are not who we thought they were, and our intrepid sleuths finds themselves in one danger after another - from collapsing buildings, to booby-trapped caves, to train-roof chases, to burning train cars - you name it, these kids face it!

I think this book features more self-awareness than the first one, particularly since "Dr. Cecil H.H. Mills" happens to be writing this very book on the same train that the Ghost Hunters Adventure Club are on!  Trudi confronts the author with questions, while Valentine does not have time to deal with him when he happens upon his creator.  And Mill's decision to kill off one of the major characters in the book takes a surprising twist at the end (and even leads you to wonder how in the world the book was able to come to such a satisfying conclusion after the death occurs!).  I just hope that Mills' statement in the epilogue that this is the very last Ghost Hunters Adventure Club book is a misdirection, as I want - no, I DEMAND - to see these characters return and solve more mysteries, catch more criminals, and have many more adventures for me to follow.  J.J., Valentine, and Trudi are just way too much fun to be put away and fade into obscurity.

So, I will keep my eye on Amazon and keep my fingers, toes, and eyes crossed that book 3 will eventually appear...

RATING:  9 existential fights at The Whistle Stop out of 10 for offering up a parody series like no other, that combines Nancy Drew, the Hardy Boys, and the Three Investigators with the humor of John Byrne's She-Hulk and Marvel's Deadpool films!

Ms. Tree - The Cold Dish (The Third Ms. Tree Graphic Novel)

It felt SO good to sit down and read this third collection of Ms. Tree stories from Titan Comics.  For those who haven't read my prior posts (about Ms. Tree collected editions Volumes 1 and 2), I have been a fan of this series since way back in the early 1980s when I walked into my local comic store in Louisville, Kentucky (The Great Escape, a fantastic store which, by the way, is still there on Bardstown Road!) and saw that cover to Ms. Tree's Thrilling Detective Adventures no. 1, with the title character standing with her back against a wall, wearing that iconic blue trench coat shooting at an unseen assailant.  Being a fan of crime/mystery novels and being a fan of female-led comics, this was a no brainer.  I picked up that first issue, despite its $1.00 cover price (DC and Marvel comics, which had pretty much been my only source of comics up until that point, were still only 60 cents per issue back then), and I was quickly hooked.  The story by Max Allan Collins quickly drew me in ... the character, particularly Ms. Michael Tree herself, were not your standard superhero fare that I was used to at that point ... and the art by Terry Beatty - well, all I can is WOW!  This book literally had it all!  (NOTE - I had not realized at the time that Ms. Tree had starred in a six-part serialized story in Eclipse Comics, a magazine size anthology comic published by Eclipse - it wasn't until years later that I was able to finally track those issues down and read that "origin" story.)

Anyway, Ms. Tree: The Cold Dish collects that initial six-part story (reprinted here in its original black-and-white format), as well as the first two stories told in Eclipse's ongoing series, which came out in issues one through eight, and a special Ms. Tree/Mike Mist cross-over story from issue nine (which happened to be the last issue published by Eclipse Comics before the series switched publishers).  For those who don't know, Mike Mist was a Collin/Beatty creation that was a one-page strip in each issue of Ms. Tree with a murder for Mist to solve (and the reader had the opportunity to figure it out before turning the comic upside down to read the solution at the bottom of the last panel of each story).  Those first issues also featured a back-up story of a character called "The Scythe," as well as centerfold pin-up pages drawn by Frank Miller (one of which, in issue four, happened to be my very own favorite female sleuth, Nancy Drew!).  And I'm probably one of the very people in the world who actually liked that Ms. Tree's Thrilling Detective Adventures title to the comic - I know that Collins hated the name - but by issue four, the title became simply Ms. Tree, which lasted until the end of the series, and on into the DC Comics series (which issues were reprinted in the first two volumes of the Titan collection).  

All that aside, re-reading these stories brought back so many good memories for me.  Memories of rushing to The Great Escape each week, hoping the next issue came out.  The excitement I felt when I saw a new issue on the shelf.  The anxiety I felt when I finished reading that issue and knew I would have to wait a whole 'nother month before the next issue came out (and, well, let's face it - with independent comics back then, a "monthly" schedule was not always monthly!).  And the absolute thrill I felt when one story finished and a new one began!

"I, for an Eye" tells the story of how Ms. Michael Friday met detective Michael Tree, became his secretary, then his partner, and then his wife.  And how, on their honeymoon, Mr. Michael Tree was murdered.  And how Ms. Michael Tree (simply Ms. Tree now, an obvious play on the word "mystery") took over her husband's detective agency and set about hunting down her husband's killer.  There is a clear difference in the art style here than in the ongoing monthly title that came out after - not sure if it's black-and-white versus color, or if it's because Beatty was getting his feet wet with the characters in the Eclipse magazine serial, or some other reason.  Ms. Tree still basically looks the same, but a number of the other characters resemble Dick Tracy-style characters.  It's also in this six-parter that readers meet Anne Tree, Mike's first wife, as well as Mike, Jr. (his son by his first wife); we are introduced to Dan Green and Roger Freemont, the licensed investigators in the detective agency; we meet Effie, the secretary who fills Ms. Tree's position; and we get the notion that there are mob dealings at work behind the scenes...

"Death Do Us Part" is the seven-part story that appeared in the first three issues of Ms. Tree's Thrilling Detective Adventures (yes, I'm going to say that as many times as I can, since this is the only chance I'll get!).  Mike Tree is dead, his killer has been caught, and Ms. Tree is now having to deal with the aftermath.  Coping with the loss of a loved one is never easy, particularly when it's your husband and you lose him in such a brutal way on your wedding night.  So, Ms. Tree is seeing a psychiatrist, who recommends a vacation to get away from it all.  The only problem is, the vacation setting resembles an on-going dream she has been having - and when a young couple are gunned down on Ms. Tree's first night at the mountain getaway, it seems she is back in the thick of things.  It's in this story we meet Sgt. Rafe Valer, a trusted friend of Ms. Tree's deceased husband; we also learn more about Dominic Muerta, the mob boss who may have had a connection to her husband's death.  The art here is definitely more refined, as Beatty is beginning to get into the groove with all of the characters, but I'll be honest - one of the best things I love about these early issues is the lettering.  The lettering is exact, almost typewriter-like, and reading it makes me feel like I'm reading a novel, only with the pictures attached.  I loved this back when I first picked up the comic, and I still love it today.  I think it gave Ms. Tree something distinct that other comics did not have, and I was sad to see the book go with more traditional lettering with issue five. 

 

"The Cold Dish" is a ten-part story that ran from issue four through issue eight of Ms. Tree (yes, the "Thrilling Detective Adventures got dropped after issue three), and was by far probably the biggest story of Ms. Tree's long list of adventures, as it had so many life-altering events that occurred within it.  Anne Tree was killed - Mike Jr. went to live with Ms. Tree - Mr. Bryan Hand, a specially trained tutor enters the picture to teach and protect Mike Jr. - Ms. Tree confronts Dominic Muerta for the first time, igniting the feud that fuels many a story in this series - the offices of Ms. Tree's detective agency are blown to bits - Dan Green suffers some life-changing injuries - I mean, the list goes on and on.  The story picks up literally right after the end of "Death Do Us Part," as the police chief is none-too-pleased that Ms. Tree is walking away scott-free after having killed several people ("They killed each other" is her story).  And as always, there is no rest for the weary, because before you know it, Anne Tree asks Ms. Tree to take Mike Jr. if something should happen to her - which it quickly does. This starts a feud with Anne's parents, who believe Mike Jr. should be with them.  Meanwhile, Ms. Tree believes someone wanted Anne dead, and she soon discovers why - Anne had information on corruption with the police force, connections to the Muerta mob family, that she was going to turn over to the state attorney.  The violence is definitely upped in this story, which is the longest Ms. Tree story at this point.  The art remains consistently beautiful, and other than the change in lettering style, I am still in awe of this book!

"Murder at Mohawk" is a self-contained, one-issue story where Ms. Tree teams up with Mike Mist to solve a murder that has ties to an old bank robbery from some years back.  Mist is there to act as bodyguard to a writer researching the story.  Ms. Tree is there to get some peace and rest after the events of the past few months.  But when a supposed suicide turns out to be murder, the two detectives team-up to figure out just who killed the man and how that connects to the famous crime that occurred at the hotel some thirty years prior.  It is a true Agatha Christie-style mystery, with all of the suspects front and center, each with their own story to tell and each with a reason to kill the man.  This story was fun, because it was the first time (at least, in this comic) that we see Mike Mist spending more than just a few panels and one page to solve a murder!  Sadly, this was also the last issue published by Eclipse Comics, as well as the last full-color issue of Ms. Tree until the comic was picked up by DC Comics some years later.

The collection is rounded off with two short prose stories:  "Red Light," which originally appeared in The Files of Ms. Tree, Volume One, and "The Little Woman," which originally appeared in The Files of Ms. Tree, Volume Two.  These volumes were printed back in the '80s by Aardvark-Vanheim Press and Renegade Press, respectively, and collected the same stories reprinted in this Titan collection, only they were reprinted in black-and-white in those collections.  

This volume of stories is probably my favorite of all of them, simply because it was my first introduction to Ms. Tree back in the 1980s, and it began my love of independent comics in general (it is because of this comic that I tried DNAgents, Somerset Holmes, Elementals, Jon Sable, Freelance, and so many more indy comics back in the day!).  But more than that, the story and the art worked so seamlessly together that I felt like I was not only reading, but I was "seeing" a crime detective novel come to life right in front of me.  I still keep hoping and praying that one of these days Collins and Beatty will team up for more Ms. Tree thrilling detective adventures, because Ms. Tree deserves more stories!

RATING:  10 sand-plugged gun barrels out of 10 for creating the perfect female detective and telling some of the absolute best stories out there in any market!

Cold-Blooded Myrtle - a Myrtle Hardcastle Mystery #3

Christmas is almost arrived at Swinburne in this third Myrtle Hardcastle mystery.  After solving the murder of her neighbor and the murder at a seaside resort, one would think that twelve-year old Myrtle Hardcastle deserves a break - but as we all know, mystery never takes a vacation, especially for young sleuths like Myrtle!  Author Elizabeth C. Bunce returns with probably her best murder mystery yet!  And while it took me a bit to get into this book (I guess it's been too long since I read the second mystery, so other than her governess, Miss Judson, I had a difficult time re-acquainting myself with the rest of Myrtle's supporting cast - I suppose that's a price one pays for reading as many different on-going series as I do!), once I got a few chapters in, I was thoroughly hooked!

Cold-Blooded Myrtle is set right at Christmas time, as the villagers in Swinburne are gearing up for a snowy, freezing holiday.  There's quite a bit going on - the unveiling of Leighton Mercantile's window display for the season ... the opening of the new display at the local museum, showcasing items (coincidentally enough) donated by Professor Leighton ... and the ever-difficult hunt for the perfect Christmas gift for one's family and friends.  Myrtle is worried because Christmas is nearly there, and she has yet to find that hard-to-find gift for her governess.  But she needn't have worried - soon enough, another mystery falls right in their laps, and they are too busy trying to catch a killer to worry about the perfect gift!

Bunce crafts a wonderfully hard-to-figure-out mystery that stumps not only Myrtle and Miss Judson, but the reader as well.  Usually I am pretty good at figuring these things out fairly early on, but Bunce had be guessing on this one until very nearly the end!  It all starts when Leighton Mercantile pulls back its curtains on the amazing window display that Professor Leighton crafts each year - a perfect replica of the village, down to the citizens in the street.  Only this year, the display has an added surprise - a tiny replica of a well, painted black, with a twig of olives placed next to it.  But that's not the only surprise - because once inside the store, Myrtle and Miss Judson, alongside Mrs. Leighton, discover the dead body of Professor Leighton, resting in a chair, a cup of tea by his side and a note in his hand.  For all intent and purposes, it seems Professor Leighton had a stroke, which is what the arriving doctor immediately assumes.  But Myrtle has questions, especially after she finds a photograph of Professor Leighton lying near the scene - an old photo that shows Professor Leighton with some of his students, one of whom happens to be Myrtle's very own mother!

Myrtle's father, of course, is none too happy to find his daughter at the scene of yet another dead body, but since this appears natural, he is not too worried.  Until the attending physician reveals Professor Leighton to have been poisoned - and that he had traces of chloroform around his mouth, which meant someone had murdered the kindly old man.  But why?  Who could possibly have a grudge against a former college professor and owner of the local mercantile?  Well, when Myrtle describes the display in Leighton's window to her father, she discovers the mystery hits a lot closer to home than she could have ever realized - because when she describes the display, her father's first question is, "What color was the well?"  When she tells him it was painted black, he surprises her with an unexpected response.  "Olive, black well ... Olive Blackwell?  What would he put that on display?" (p. 23).  And so begins Myrtle's search for a solution to not only the current mystery, but also the mystery of whatever really happened to one of her mother's college friends - one Olive Blackwell.  The story goes that she fell from the top of the campanile (old bell tower), but her body was never discovered, and no one quite knows what happened.  But as Myrtle soon discovers, someone might know - several someones, in fact, all of whom live in Swinburne and all of whom are familiar to Myrtle.  Myrtle's mother, who died of cancer.  Professor Leighton, who is now dead.  The newly elected Mayor of Swinburne, the father of Myrtle's nemesis, LaRue Spence-Hastings.  Dr. Munjal, the father of Myrtle's friend, Caroline.  and Nora Carmichael, an archaeologist, and her brother David.  But it seems David is also dead, having died while mountain climbing some time ago.  So that only leaves three.  Three people who seem awfully desperate to keep a secret from years ago.  Is one of them the killer?

Oh, and let's not forget Imogen Shelley, the nosy reporter for the loan newspaper who seems to be right in the middle of things, sensationalizing everything she writes about the case.  It turns out, however, that she has a connection with one Mr. Blakeney, a solicitor-in-training who Myrtle previously met in her prior adventures.  And it also turns out that Ms. Shelley has had an unhealthy obsession with the Olive Blackwell case for some time - but is it one that would drive her to murder?

Myrtle and Miss Judson (and, oh yes, Peony, too) have a very difficult time sifting through the clues and the suspects to figure out whodunnit - and when a second body turns up, they realize the clock is ticking, because the window display was changed just before the second murder.  So, when the display is changed again, it's only a matter of time before the third murder occurs!  Bunce writes plenty of suspense, danger, and surprises in this one, and I willingly admit I could not for the life of me figure this one out until almost the end - and when the revelation comes, it suddenly all makes perfect sense.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again - I would SO recommend this series to anyone who enjoys a great murder mystery.  Bunce writes a wonderful mystery, full of fantastic characters, and provides a more than satisfying read in each and every book.  Definitely looking forward to the next one!

RATING:  10 engraved miner's helmets out of 10 for murder, mayhem, and mystery at Christmas time that is well worth reading!

Penny Parker Mystery Stories No. 4 - Behind the Green Door

As we continue reading through the Penny Parker books, I can see why people enjoy this series so much.  While the third book was not necessarily the best, it still offered up a pretty good mystery, and the character of Penny Parker is one you can't help but love.  She's plucky, she's determined, she's sarcastic, she's nosy, she's unwilling to back down, and she's always ready to jump in and help someone in need.  She is everything you want out of a girl sleuth and then some.  And author Mildred Wirt had the freedom with Penny that she never had with Nancy Drew when she was writing for the Syndicate, as, after the first three books, Harriet Stratemeyer Adams began to tighten the reigns on the character.  So, it has been fun reading the Penny Parker books, comparing them not only with the Nancy Drew books, but with other books of the time, and looking into some of the historical references scattered throughout the series.  And while the title to this fourth book may conjure up a rather elicit adult film by the same name (we'll take a look at that coincidence later), the story is definitely one of Wirt's better ones so far.

Behind the Green Door opens with Penny preparing to take a trip up to Pine Top, where she will enjoy a holiday vacation of skiing.  It is funny that in Mystery of the Brass-Bound Trunk, published the same year as this book, Nancy is preparing to take a trip as well (only she's going on a cruise, not a ski trip)!  Penny is practicing her skills inside the house (and that must be a pretty large house for Penny to slide across the floor on an "open christiana" or a "telemark").  There is some definite humor in this opening chapter when Penny informs the Parkers' housekeeper that she has bought a new pair of skis, a couple of poles, three different kinds of wax, and a pair of red mittens, to which the housekeeper dryly replies, "Why didn't you order the store sent out and be done with it?" (p. 3).  It's this kind of quick wit that gives Penny Parker a sense of realism, as remarks like this are exactly the kind of things I would say!

Needless to say, the vacation doesn't start off as planned, as Mr. Parker is unable to join his daughter, due to the fact his newspaper is being sued for libel - to the tune of $50,000 (which, in today's dollars, would be nearly $1 million in today's dollars!).  It seems a local football player told the paper that Harvey Maxwell (who own a large chain of hotels) paid him to throw a game - but after the story was published, he recanted his story, and now Maxwell is suing for libel (pp. 6-7).  Penny is disappointed, but she still makes the trip by plane to Pine Top, located near the Canadian border - and what an interesting flight it is!  First, Penny is confronted with Francine Sellberg of the Riverview Record, a newspaper rival of her father, who Penny is confident is going to Pine Top to cover a story.  Second, Penny has the good fortune of sitting just behind two men on the plane who apparently have some very untoward plans regarding Mrs. Downey's hotel - the very same hotel where Penny will be staying!  And third, while we are never given a definitely location for Penny's home town of Riverview, it's location becomes even more mystifying when you consider this plane flight from Riverview to Pine Top takes over 24 hours to complete (including a short layover and a flight through the night, during which Penny curls up in "her clean, comfortable bed" [p. 31] on the plane, and even changes into fresh clothes in the morning when she wakes up [p. 32]).  

The mystery begins soon after Penny arrives at Downey Lodge and discovers that business has been decreasing since the opening of the Fergus Hotel not far from there - a hotel financed by none other than Harvey Maxwell!  It seems Fergus has been luring guests away from Downey Lodge and has made repeated attempts to buy Mrs. Downey's property.  Up until now, Mrs. Downey has been reluctant to sell, but with business dwindling, she may have no choice.  Penny pays a visit to Fergus Hotel, to check out the competition in hopes of helping Mrs. Downey, and it is there she hears about the "Green Room," which is Room 22 and for which one must have a special card to be admitted.  Her curiosity piqued, Penny sets about finding out what's in that room.  But if you think that's the only mystery Penny has to face in this book, think again!  She also happens upon a young girl being held captive by her grandfather in her own home there on the mountainside, and Penny decides to help the young girl.  There is also the unexplained mystery of why Fergus Hotel continues to get daily newspapers, when Downey Lodge is lucky to receive one a week.  And how does the actress, Maxine Miller, fit into all of this?

Poor Penny definitely faces her fair share of trouble in this book.  She nearly wipes out into some barbed wire that surrounds the Jasko property (where the young girl is held prisoner), and she gets badly injured when she has to jump out of a runaway bobsled to act as its brake and keep it from sliding off the track (yeah, it sounds outrageous, but it really happens in the story!).  With her right arm swollen, her skin severely scraped and bruised from her hip to her ankle, and her neck injured to the point where she can't turn it (p. 130), one would think Penny would be out of the game for a while.  But her determination has her up and about just two days later - although the timeline here is a bit loose, since Ms. Miller tells Penny she heard about her bobsled incident "yesterday" (p. 140), despite two days having passed (sleeping until dinner on p. 131, then awakening the next morning on p. 139).  Penny keeps up her detective work, and ultimately has to save Mr. Jasko, who is kidnapped (p. 180) and finds the real reason Fergus and Maxwell want to buy up all the property on Pine Top Mountain (p. 195), putting a stop to their nefarious plans, saving the day for Sara Jasko and her grandfather, and getting the scoop for her father's newspaper - all in a day's work for an ace amateur sleuth like Penny Parker!

And just in case you wondering about more Nancy Drew similarities - well, Penny does happen across a hidden staircase that leads to the basement and a narrow tunnel (p. 183); and one has to wonder if the plot for this book, involving skiing and smuggled furs, was an inspiration of sorts for the Mystery at the Ski Jump, published in 1952, some twelve years later.

Now, in case you are wondering about that "adult film" reference - yes, there really was an adult film released in 1972 by the same name, Behind the Green Door, starring Marilyn Chambers.  While the movie featured a posh hotel that had a secret room that only people "in the know" could enter, and yes, it featured a green door, behind which was a secret to be discovered - those are the only similarities to the book.  What is rather interesting, though, is the film is said to be based on a short story titled "The Abduction of Gloria," which is believed to have been written around 1940 - the very same year this book was published!  Now, if that isn't an odd coincidence!  However, doing some research, it seems the "green door" has a historical reference dating back to the prohibition era, when a secret entrance toa  private club (speakeasy) was often painted green, so that clients "in the know" would know where to go to find alcohol.  There is also a short story by O. Henry from the 1906 book, The Four Million, titled "The Green Door," in which a man is handed a card with the words The Green Room on them, leaving the man to wonder what mystery lies behind the green door.  So, while there is a very slight coincidence between the film and this book, it is highly unlikely there is any real connection - other than the use of the name.

Finally, my good friend, Geoffrey Lapin, recalls that somewhere in his research, he discovered that Mildred Wirt's original manuscript for Behind the Green Door was to be published as a sequel to one of her other books, Connie Carl at Rainbow Ranch; however, that did not happen, so Wirt revised the manuscript for her fourth Penny Parker book.  Unfortunately, there is no documented evidence to support this, so for now, it is yet another mystery in children's series books that will likely never be solved...

Before signing off, there is one scene from the book that I have to mention.  Penny is always one to speak her mind, but when she finally confronts Mr. Jasko, not only about his refusal to renew Mrs. Downey's lease to use the slopes for which he owns the land, but also about holding his granddaughter captive in her own home, she really lets him have it.  I found myself cheering for calling him out on his selfish actions (something Nancy Drew would never be allowed to do!).  "You don't care how much trouble you cause other folks.  Because of your own son's death you have taken an unnatural attitude toward skiing.  You hate everything remotely connected with the sport. But it isn't fair.  Your granddaughter has a right to a certain amount of freedom" (p. 158).  Good for Penny!  Would it be that all of us would stand up against injustice and unfairness like this!

RATING:  10 girls stimulating as a mountain avalanche out of 10 for a mystery jam-packed with characters, adventure, secrets, hidden passages, locked rooms, and criminal mischief!

Sisterhood of Sleuths - an Homage to the Classic Nancy Drew Mystery Stories

This book was a spur-of-the moment purchase that turned out to be a truly unexpected joy to read.  I saw this book on "new releases" shelf at my local Barnes & Noble and nearly passed it up.  But the title snagged my attention, so I looked inside to see what it was about.  While the tagline did not really do it for me, the first line of the description sold me right away:  "So when a box full of vintage Nancy Drew books gets left at her mom's thrift store, Maizy is surprised to find an old photo of her grandmother and two other women tucked beneath the collection."  I didn't have to read any further to know I was buying the book.  Any mystery that deals with Nancy Drew books as a part of the mystery is sure to be a fun read!  And author Jennifer Chambliss Bertman did not disappoint in the least.

Sisterhood of Sleuths is not just a mystery - it is also a coming-of-age story about a young girl who hasn't yet let go of the loves of her childhood, while her best friend seems to be growing up.  Maisy and her best friend Izzy are supposed to be filming a genre movie for their sixth grade class; but Maisy is quickly discovering that Izzy - or "Isabelle" as she now wants to be called - no longer has an interest in the film Maisy has written.  Isabelle has developed a sudden interest in boys, and make-up, and other things that still seem foreign to Maisy.  But that box of Nancy Drew books dropped off at her mom's thrift store proves to be a catalyst that changes Maisy's life in so many ways.

First, and foremost, is that old photograph of Maisy's grandmother with two other women.  Why does Maisy's grandmother claim that it is not her, when Maisy can clearly see that it is?  And why does her grandmother remain adamant that she did not donate the books, when Maisy's mother is certain it was her? And if she did not leave them, then who did?  Maisy wants to investigate, but Isabelle has other things in mind - like Link and Ben, two boys from their class.  And when Isabelle brings the boys, along with Link's twin sister, Cam, into the fold for their school project, Maisy finds the movie she had written is no longer hers at all!  By happenstance (and how often does that happen in a Nancy Drew book!), their teacher is not overly thrilled with Maisy's former friend, Nell, working alone on a project, so Maisy finds herself moved into a new team with Nell and Cam - and their project evolves from a fashion show featuring designs by Nell to a documentary about Nancy Drew - starting with who left those books at the thrift store!

Bertman crafts a wonderfully fun mystery that thoroughly integrates the love of Nancy Drew, the mystery of Nancy Drew, and the mysteries behind the writers of Nancy Drew.  She perfectly captures the feeling a young person of today might have when first introduced to Nancy Drew books - somewhat uncertain, but curious enough to give them a try.  And when Maisy, Cam, and Nell (a la Nancy [the sleuth], George [the tomboy], Bess [the fashion-conscious one]) learn that Carolyn Keene never really existed, but was just a pseudonym, it opens up a whole new mystery for them to solve, and further expands the perimeters of their documentary.  It is fun to follow their growing excitement as they not only read the books but research the truth behind the Stratemeyer Syndicate and the various writers who wrote Nancy Drew over the years - in particular, Mildred Wirt Benson, the very first author.  And Bertman manages to insert some great surprises into the story that will make any Nancy Drew fan giggle with excitement when they read it!  And in the tradition of those original Nancy Drew books, this book even offers the reader some great illustrations to compliment the story, drawn by Vesper Stamper.

 

The book offers up plenty of historical information about Nancy Drew, including her creation, her authors, her publishers, her scandals, and so much more.  It is easy to see that Bertman did her research for this, and I love how she manages to seamlessly slide all of that information into the story so naturally, where it does not feel like just textbook information, but rather, like clues that the girls are finding as they look for the solution to the bigger mystery.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, so much, in fact, that I finished it in less than a day - I just couldn't put it down!  The whole generational love of Nancy Drew, and the shared experiences of finding the books and unlocking the mysteries behind the series is such a great reflection on the number of real-life fans who found their love of Nancy Drew from their mothers, sisters, aunts, grandmothers, and other relatives, and have gone on to share it with their children.  By the time I finished the book, I realized just how appropriate the title to the book is - because whether it is within the story or in the real world, there truly is a Sisterhood of Sleuths out there who have a shared love of Nancy Drew, a fictional character that has endured nearly 100 years, and has inspired more people than we could possibly count.  Fleur Bradley says it write in her quote on the back of the book - "The perfect book for mystery fans of all ages - a classic that explores the Nancy Drew icon in a contemporary light."   I don't think there is any other perfect way to describe this book than that.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!!

RATING: 10 blue cloches out of 10 for an absolutely wonderful homage to Nancy Drew and her plethora of fans, with a door that hopefully opens to countless new fans to seek out the timeless teenage detective!