Erik Larsen (1) (1962–)

I like the Amazing Spider-Man issues, but the other Spider-Man titles don't have the same quality of artwork, and Gerry Conway's scripts for those books seem a little too 1970s to belong in comics from this period.

This book raises three questions:

1. How did the idea get started that anyone can write? But only plumbers can lay pipe (true) and only artists can draw? These artists can mostly draw (a craft of its own, don't get me wrong). But none of them can write.

2. How is it that there are so many cool, funny web comics with simple, appealing art, and so many trad-comic artists that are completely uncool and unfunny? Where do they go to the parties that make them think we're all a b-boyin urban show more breakbeatz party like it's 1999? Not in New York, and not in a small town neither.

3. NO SRSLY - how are they so out of touch? Fucking ninjas, fucking zombies, fucking aliens, fucking stealing scenes from Fight Club and not in a riffing way but in a you sincerely don't think that anyone will know you stole this scene which is great because it's SO KEWL way. Fuck them for making me use the word "kewl," even in mockery. Fuck how like five of these stories star Mexican fucking wrestlers. At least there's no pirates. At first you're like "The good art and bad writing balance each other out!" By the end you're like "The good art makes it more offensive, because they think their art gives them the right to inflict their writing on you." This isn't really a question. show less

I love crossover stories, and while this one was great, I feel it could have been better. For one, it was a bit short for my liking. The amount of time it took our heroes to get together felt very truncated. It would have been nice if there was even another page or two before Hellboy and the Savage Dragon actually met up. Maybe if Dragon had looked around the train yard a while before Hellboy and the mummy crashed in on him or something. Also, the Hitler's brain angle was a bit weak. I mean, show more interesting that Hitler's brain was so altered in trying to save it that he didn't even remember who he was and became a typical criminal, thug, supervillain, ape with a human brain, but just felt a bit off (possibly because of the Kriegaffes in the Hellboy comics which are exactly the same as Brainiape).

Still, a fun read. Just be sure you update yourself on the Savage Dragon chronology so you know who all the players are. show less

I love villain teams, and I like most of these villains, but Erik Larsen's art was at its most outrageous at this point in time, and the story is a little padded.