Marvel Boy: The Uranian #1

Uranus: the mysterious 7th planet in the solar system, also universally acknowledged as the planet with the funniest name EVER. I mean, we all know nothing good ever comes from Uranus. Uranus is dark and scary. Oh, and gassy. Uranus is definitely gassy. Aliens from Uranus? I certainly can't imagine anything worse. So, I think we can all agree that it would be best if we just avoid the topic of Uranus entirely. Unfortunately for the hero known as Marvel Boy (AKA The Uranian), it is impossible to discuss his origins without occasionally mentioning Uranus. Let's just hope we can all be mature enough to get through this.

Marvel Boy: The Uranian #1 is actually a pretty excellent spin-off from the amazing, and under-rated, Agents of Atlas. Written by Jeff Parker, with art by Felix Ruiz, this series takes a look at how the Golden Age hero Marvel Boy first came to our world. Bob Grayson was a human boy whose super-genius father, desperate to escape Earth after witnessing the atrocities of Nazi Germany, built a rocket that allowed them to escape to the 7th planet. The Uranians there were humans colonists who, for thousands of years, had taken a different path. They developed a very different society, and amazing technology that allowed them to achieve miraculous feats.

Bob has returned to Earth to know more about his people, and to try to set an example of a better way for them to live. He wants to be a hero, but finds out that humans aren't quite ready to accept his help. Going around telling people that he's from Uranus certainly doesn't help. Luckily, Bob Grayson meets a comic book creator looking for a new hero, a man who can give Bob some help in becoming the hero he wants to be. First order of business? A catchy name that people can remember! In short order The Uranian becomes Marvel Boy, and a hero is born!

Of course, things are more complicated than they seem. The Uranian Council may have goals in mind beyond simply helping the human race. His isolated upbringing on Uranus has made Bob awfully naive and open to manipulation from those who would use him for their own purposes...

The first issue of this series is loaded with extra value, too! Not only do you get the all-new story of Marvel Boy's first adventures on Earth, you also get two nifty Golden Age reprints of Marvel Boy stories from the early 1950s with art from Russ Heath and Bill Everett. So, no more juvenile Uranus jokes from me. Just head over to Four Color Fantasies and try out our guaranteed Book of the Week-Marvel Boy: The Uranian #1. It's a great book, and you'll develop a new respect for the oft-maligned 7th planet!

Good story, hilarious art: House of Mystery #21

I don't know if you are in the market for real estate in this tough economy, but today I am hoping to interest you in a house. Not just any house mind you, this House is special. Not a House of Cards. Not even a House of Pancakes. I'm talking about a House.....of MYSTERY. (Insert appropriately spooky musical sting here. I mean, if you want to.)

Vertigo's House of Mystery #21, by Sturges, Rossi, and Aragones, is both the starting point for a new story arc and a self-contained, done-in-one story. How is such a thing possible? Well, it's like this: the House of Mystery is one of those legendary places that can be accesed from many places and times. Currently, it is located in the equally magical Stormfort Goblin Market. Of course, for some people, once you actually get to the House of Mystery, leaving becomes much more difficult than arriving.

One thing that isn't difficult, however; is paying your tab. All you have to do to keep the drinks coming is to tell stories. The folks at the House are pretty starved for entertainment. If you can keep the stories flowing, you can drink all day. What a deal! I'd like to see you pull up to the drive-thru at Sonic and offer to pay for your lunch with the story about how you fell off the roof that one time. It may be a great story, but it's not gonna buy you a sammitch. Only at the House of Mystery!

So, this issue not only introduces readers to the regular residents of the House, and all their troubles, it also gives you the terrifying tale of a new patron. Wilfred Brimley lookalike, and old-timey cowboy, Blind Buck pays for his 100% beaver eyeball free sarsparilla with the story of how he and his outlaw partner Dandy Dirk Prescott faced off against a true "abomination." Featuring a creature that is best decribed as "Satan's pet grizzly sicking up a jellyfish," and hilarious art from the always amazing Sergio Aragones, this story is worth the price of admission all on its own. But, rest assured, the rest of the book is actually pretty darn good too.

So, if you're lucky enough to find the fabled entrance to Four Color Fantasies (of Mystery?), you should definitely belly-up to the bar and ask for a copy of House of Mystery #21. (We're not really in the real estate business. Sorry if the intro was misleading.) Not only is it a great comic, largely eyeball-free, but it is also guaranteed all week! Unfortunately, you have to buy it with real money, not a story. Though, if you have a great story, like the time you journeyed to the underworld and fought Cerberus for a jelly doughnut, you're welcome to share!