Welp, I got this issue # 297 in the beginning of February, and it's ridiculous that I'm just getting to this review now. But many things are ridiculous in these ludicrous times, so I won't feel too bad about it. I still try to be grateful for what I have, knowing I have plenty, and less to worry about than many.
Including being grateful for having Heavy Metal Magazine, that the paper mag is still being published, that I have means to get them. It's a small pleasure to have, and I'm doing ok with the actual state of the mag. It's a long time since the late 70s, and the current incarnation is only related to the transformative early years by the name and the logo and the tenuous thread of continuity of publication. And I'm often not impressed by the content or the editorial machinations. But there's plenty to like, and I won't burden this review with my whining, I'll save that for another post someday.
So this is labeled the Winter Special. I got the cover A at the bookstore (remember going to bookstores?), with "Once Upon a Quiet Kingdom" by Brandi Milne. Snowman constables playing in a candy and ice cream wonderland may not look like an HM cover, but it works for me, in an unnerving way, especially when I see the Gallery the artist has in this issue.
The contents page is just the list of stories and creators, with little snaps from the stories as the art. The list of big shots continues to credit Peter Kleinman for the logo, and shows no changes but the absence of Ron English, last issue's Guest Editor. This issue is 144 pages long, and the cover price is still $9.99.
"A Knight So True" by Cullen Bunn, Baldemar Rivas, Micah Myers - 7 - A Space Knight fights a Space Dragon in Space. But it's not just as hokey as that sounds, the art is good and the Space Fight scenes are fantastic, in a literal as well as an early-Heavy Metal Magazine-type way. And the Knight wakes up in Paradise, so his Fight didn't have a Happy Ending, which is another thing that could have been in the early years of the Mag.
"Sol Invictus" by Abraham Martinez, R.G. Llarena, Marco Perugini, Addison Duke. Jame - 5 - Roman Legionaries ending a battle with "filthy barbarians" encounter a particularly strong combatant. The art is alright and has its moments, the story has some good questions, and I noticed the seasonal solstice reference, but it suffered with the jump from the pregnant captive about to be fed to the barbarian diety "Skoll", to the birth of Sol Invictus. It made a bit more sense once I looked it up, but it didn't do much for how I felt about it.
"Black Metal Messiah" by Justin Jordan, Chris Anderson, Adam Wollet - 5 - Puritan ubermensch battles witchcraft, fighting fire with fire so to speak. The art and story each show some quality of work, but I had a hard time going with how it went together.
"A Midnight Clear" by Ron Marz, Bart Sears, Andrew Dalhouse, Micah Myers - 6 - Extremely buff Santa is ambushed by trolls, who give him a gift in thanks for a long-ago kindness. I like the art. The sincerity of sentiment comes through even though I have to assume some background story. Maybe it's a series that I just don't know about, there's lots of those.
Gallery with Andrew Shaffer - 7 - Andrew Shaffer delivers a rollicking interview with Hannah Means-Shannon, to accompany a good number of images about his holiday greeting cards of vintage images captioned ironically. Some of it's too hip for an old fuddy-duddy like me, but it's good time holiday fun for when you're despairing for humanity.
"Chris Never - The Ghost of Christmas Never" by Jeffery Burandt, Jason Goungor, Omar Estévez, Micah Myers - 7 - Subtitled as "Sinder Klaus is Coming to Infinity Town, with Hannah Means-Shannon credited for editing. This is presented as a comic style team of personalities/skill sets including representations of the ghosts of Christmas past, present, future, and never, plus the adorable angel-baby/weapons maker. The team is sent to disrupt the bad guy killing Santa and destroying Christmas. Serviceable art and snappy writing make this an engaging read, but not being a big comics fan it doesn't flip my switch the way I really like.
"The Spirit of Giving" by Tim Seeley, Pato Delpeche, Martín Túnica, Rodrigo Cardama - 5 - Compulsory gifting in the after-times authoritarian wasteland. I found the story and art each to be both blunt and opaque. And too on-the-nose for the time I am writing this.
"Black Smoke" by Hector Lima, Dalton Cara, Felipe Sobreiro, Charo Solis - 6 - A candidate for the new pope has a final interview (spoiler yeah) with a very old counselor, before being announced to the world, and it's actually the Christ revealed as the son of an alien species, imprisoned for two thousand years. When the new pope promises to free Him, his fate is sealed. An interesting premise that tickles my amusing-conspiracy-theory bone.
Gallery with Brandi Milne - 7 - More creepy cuteness from the celebrated creator of the cover A for this issue. Hannah Means-Shannon's interview brings out Ms Milne's engagement with her art, of which is shown many fine examples.
"Bethlehem" by Andy Eschenbach, Gavin Smith, Chas! Pangborn - 5 - A (non-human) father lectures his son on the significance of the most sacred day in their solar cycle. Obvious seasonal holiday references, but the thought behind the story did not penetrate my aging brain.
"Blizzard" by John Crowther, Oscar Pinto, Hector Negrete - 6 - Nice art technique and Wisconsin references (Milwaukee, "Uff-dah") and an Algonquin mythical monster (Wendigo) slightly elevate an otherwise obtuse story of a mass murderer in a Blizzard.
"Urban Developments" by Adam P. Knave, D.J. Kirkbride, Nick Brokenshire, Frank Cvetkovic - 7.5 - Holiday times with the family you love, when the crumbling world is a demon's plaything. I liked the art, and the story put together some unlikely action with some holiday tropes, and I succeeded in getting some real emotion out of it.
"Murky World" by Richard Corben - 8 - It may not have any seasonal holiday references, but every issue of HM with Corben in it is a holiday issue if you ask me. It's a gift to get this fun to read adventure of poor Tugat, falling from one peril to the next, ignored by former allies, offended by sorcerers, now with more dangling nads! Best wishes for better times ahead to him, and to you!
Christmas Card Gallery by various artists - 6 - Santa and Krampus and Angels - oh my! A handful of HM-ish Xmas card spoofs, I liked the hot-rod Krampus, and the Cthulhu the Snowman, which made me think of Calvin and Hobbes comics.
Overall an ok issue, and it's silly of me to reviewing this Winter Special as summer approaches, but it's not the first time I've dragged on my reviews, and it won't be the last. I've got #298 waiting as #299 approaches release.
