Heavy Metal had a Kickstarter campaign, their second in November 2025 following the first to re-start the magazine in late 2024. This campaign was for a Heavy Metal Library, with four books offered: Ranx, Druuna, Segments, and The Covers That Brought Us Here". The campaign itself was ridiculously successful, at least concerning the interest from thousands of backers and the $1MM+ in pledges it raised. The fulfillment was less so, so much less that it deserves a post all its own, someday.
I ordered the Ranx book, since I had desired it when it was first marketed several years ago by the previous regime, since Ranxerox by Stefano Tamburini and Tanino Liberatore was one of Heavy Metal Magazine's mainstay stories in the later 1980s. But thankfully I declined to order it then, since it failed to materialize and many were stiffed by those clowns.
But this time I did, and it took a while, til June 2026, but I did receive a nice book:
It's a big 9.5x12in book, hardcover with solid binding and nice glossy paper and a fancy ribbon bookmark. It's interesting that there is no barcode, no ISBN number, no typical title page with publisher etc. A book that won't be sold in stores it seems. This artwork is supposedly just the Kickstarter cover, and any future books sold will have the cover originally marketed for this book, of anguished Ranx. This is an intensely weird cover, with another type of extreme for Ranxerox. No idea why he has metal jaw fangs and is holding a blood-pissing bat. I bet that's quite a story we're missing.
But we get some great stories. The book is arranged in chapters. Chapter 1 is called "Origins" and is dated 1978-1980. This was not in Heavy Metal Magazine. It starts with a black and white segment introducing Ranx as a street hustling thug, with a take on his origins as a photocopier. There are three episodes to this chapter, notable in that the art is by Tamburini. A small sample:
Charming.
Next is Chapter 2, "Ranx in New York" (1980-1981), which is where Heavy Metal came in. Beginning in the July 1983 issue, "Ranxerox" ran in Heavy Metal Magazine through the December 1983 issue.
Of course I dug out my magazines to compare. While the larger book size allows the image size to match the sizing of the series on Heavy Metal's pages from back then (increasing to this size in this book was supposedly a KS stretch goal), the translations used are different. I enjoyed some comparing as I read along in the magazine while I read this new book.
Besides the translations and some variations in color tone, which I expect is as much due to the age of the mags as to differences in the recent print, there's not the censorship in the book as there was in the mags. But the same wacky depravity and breathtaking violence are forefront in the story, whether book or magazine. Often I enjoy the earlier magazines' translations more than the recent ones, I found them more descriptive.
Chapter 3 is "Happy Birthday, Lubna!" from 1982, which ran in Heavy Metal as "Ranxerox in New York" in January to May 1984, immediately following the previous series. More comparisons:
I quite enjoyed the joke in the February 1984 installment, where Ranx gets called a peasant, which at the time I figured was about Ranx being uncircumcised (amazing what they did with a Xerox machine), and the book translation calling him a hillbilly doesn't carry the same impact.
Interestingly, it appears the below full-page image was added as a new page to the story for this book:
It seems to be constructed from the detail on the preceding page, and it fits with this translation, but it's not in the story as printed in Heavy Metal Magazine in 1984.
Then Chapter 4 is called "Be Bop A Lubna" from 1983, which continued in Heavy Metal in the April 1984 issue, where Ranx has to stay home to record TV shows, while Lubna and her pals have a night out. And what a night out it was.
There's some serious depravity going on here, which is just what we came for, right? A two-headed mutant wielding a chainsaw, and he's a tragic figure?! Oh my stars...
Chapter 5 is called "I, Me, Mine Incorporated" from 1984-1985, and Chapter 6 is "Amen!" 1995-1996, These chapters ran in three parts in Heavy Metal Magazine from July 1997 through November 1997 as "Ranx 3: Amen" (over ten years later, in the Eastman era).
Poor Ranx.
Poor Ranx indeed, reduced to a radio once again.
Chapter 7 is called Aïe, Robot! from 1993, and it was not in Heavy Metal Magazine. Lubna reminisces.
That on the right is the last page, it's an ad from 1987.
Overall a nice book, lots of cool stuff and enough difference from the magazine entries to make it a nice addition.
Interestingly, HM advertised Ranxerox books in 1997, this is from the back cover of July 1997:
This ad was also inside the front cover of September 1997. I didn't really know these books existed but I see copies for sale on the internets.
I took a ridiculous amount of time to post this after a ridiculous wait to get the book, but it was still fun. Now I need to get a review for #326 going, before #327 appears, but that one is rumored to be delayed.
0
No comments:
Post a Comment