Dark Horse Presents (1986) comic books 1996

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Cover by Casey Jones and Bruce Patterson. The oldest and freshest anthology series in the comics business serves up another heaping helping of sophistication and diversity. The tales range from the supernatural to the absurd to existential to nitty-gritty crime fiction. The creators have prior credits that span the range of modern comics as well, from Ghost to Harlan Ellison's Dream Corridor to Star Wars: Dark Lords of the Sith. Paul Pope, alternative comics genius, continues "The One Trick Rip-Off," a stylish, comics noir strip set in a near-future Los Angeles and focusing on a small group of thieves called the One Tricks. In "Cal Hairball," Steve Niles concludes his 4-part serial about Cal MacDonald, a paranormal investigator whose search for a murderer leads him into out onto a busy highway for a climactic confrontation with a werewolf. Scott Musgrove and Darick Chamberlin's "The Pink Tornado" is the world's first stillborn superhero. In this last of 3 parts, he goes up against his arch-nemesis, Dr. Canada, the Provincial Man, a man with eerily detachable body parts. "That's Mr. Painter to You" concludes Stan Shaw's existential tale of a disaffected artiste named Alan Bland -- a coffee addict and tuba aficionado -- who becomes obsessed with an old painting found in his parents' home. Dark Horse Presents is the bastion of postmodern comics, 105 issues strong. Find out why readers around the world keep coming back for more, month after month. Kitsch, comedy, and noir. If you want any more than that, you're just getting greedy. B&W. Cover price $2.95.

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Cover by Bill Wray. A rock-hard projectile of indeterminate origin is forcing its way out of his buttocks! It's Big Blown Baby's first solid poo, and there's no way he's going to drop that golden brick without thousands of witnesses present to sanctify the proceedings! Join Ren and Stimpy animator Bill Wray and scatological scat-man Robert Loren Fleming for the bare-assed adventures of Big Blown Baby, in a tale heralding his four-issue miniseries! And speaking of big, we've got the King of Monsters in an enormous bind -- it's the funniest Godzilla story you will ever read, courtesy of alternative comics legends Ed Brubaker (Prez) and Dave Cooper (Pressed Tongue). And then, after your sides are all sore from laughing, we hit you with a spot of serious entertainment, Paul Pope's latest chapter of "The One Trick Rip- Off," a crime-noir comic about a bunch of young toughs getting out-toughed by a dame. Three great tastes that go great together -- that's DHP #106! B&W. Cover price $2.95.

Cover by Mike Mignola. Mike Mignola's Hellboy brought major attention to DHP twenty issues ago; now his latest creation is sure to do the same! Mignola and Sam and Max creator Steve Purcell have come together to introduce a waiting world to "Rusty Razorclam, President of Neptune!" The horrorist and humorist reminisce about Rusty's days as a space cadet at the Academy, a time when one of his genetic experiments got way out of hand. And this terrific lead-in starts off a killer line-up, including two new serials: Jack Pollock's "Devil Chef" and Renée French's "The Ninth Gland." But the fun doesn't end there! Rick Geary was doing "alternative" work before the word was coined -- so his "Fashions in Humiliation and Debasement" is right at home with this creative crowd! And last, but certainly not least, Paul Pope delivers another chapter in his gritty 12-part tale of urban sleeze and thievery, "The One Trick Rip-Off." Cover by Mike Mignola. B&W. Cover price $2.95.

Cover by Renee French. Comics' longest-running anthology series serves up another feast of diverse delights, starting with a chunk of "The Ninth Gland" by Renée French, the creator of Fantagraphics's Grit Bath. It's the weird but strangely sweet story about a janitor named Huey Kittentank and two young girls who perform surgery to save the life of an unnamable foundling creature from the girls' back yard. More strange critters inhabit Jack Pollock's latest Devil Chef culinary caper, as the Chef's protégé-gone-wrong carries out unholy gustatory experiments using -- tapeworms! Paul Pope's "The One-Trick Rip Off" continues its gritty excursion into a noir Los Angeles, replete with crime, thievery, and thuggery. Finally, newcomers Scott Gillis and Jeff DeMos offer the black humor of "The Perfect Tree," the story of a suicide attempt that doesn't go quite according to plan. Renée French and Laura Allred (Madman Comics) have created an eerily evocative cover, portraying Huey Kittentank from "The Ninth Gland." DHP #108 is your one-stop shop for all flavors from the sweet to the weird. B&W. Cover price $2.95.

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Cover by Paul Pope. New York is a young man's best friend -- if that young man has a steady job that pays big bucks. But to comic-book artist Al Milgrom, fresh off the bus from the Midwest, The Big Apple is the worst kind of enemy. He has no job and no friends. But what he does have is his "New York Pets"! Join Al Milgrom -- one of the shapers of the Silver Age of comics -- in this behind-the-scenes look at the creation of a cartoonist. Plus the twists and dips keep on coming in Paul Pope's "One Trick Rip-Off"; Renée French continues to surprise us in "The Ninth Gland"; and the culinary wonders of the underworld are revealed in Jack Pollock's "Devil Chef"! B&W. Cover price $2.95.

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Cover by August Hall. Joshua's dad loves him -- Josh knows that 'cause his dad beats him. That's how dads show affection. And that's how Joshua will show his new friend that he loves him, when his friend finally hatches from his "Egg." Frank Lovece and Christopher Schenck spin a web of an abusive father and a mysterious egg in this new, four-part serial. Also, Paul Pope, Renée French, and Shannon Wheeler provide new installments of "The One Trick Rip-Off," "The Ninth Gland," and "Too Much Coffee Man," all under a haunting painting by August Hall, whose work has graced Vertigo's The Books of Magic. B&W. Cover price $2.95.

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Cover by Eric White. Oddball artist Eric White contributes a painted cover featuring the twisted characters from Renée French's "The Ninth Gland," which continues its descent into the bizarre caverns of the human mind. The peril escalates as Paul Pope does that Paul-Pope thing in the new chapter of "The One Trick Rip-Off." In part two of Frank Lovece and Christopher Schenck's "Egg," we get a glimpse into Charlie's life and the source of the anger he takes out on his son Joshua. When Charlie comes home to release that anger yet again, he is shocked to stumble upon the newly hatched inhabitant of Joshua's egg. And, finally, Shannon Wheeler's Too Much Coffee Man grinds life's problems into a tasty, though highly strung, treat. B&W. Cover price $2.95.

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Cover by Paul Pope. All good things must come to an end. In this issue of DHP, three serials reach their finalès. In "Egg," by Frank Lovece and Christopher Schenck, Charlie's egg hatches, and what's inside is more than he or his father bargained for. Renée French comes to the bottom of her spiral into the bizarre and exposes the gooey center of "The Ninth Gland." Finally, the fate of Tubby and Vim is revealed in the final chapter of Paul Pope's "The One Trick Rip-Off." Pope provides a wraparound cover, sending everything off with a bang. B&W. Cover price $2.95.

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Cover by Steve Leialoha. An assassin took his family, fire took his home, and a bullet took his life. He's not like other dogs -- he's Trypto, the Acid Dog, and he's only one of three new features launching in this issue of DHP! Bill Mumy, Miguel Ferrer, and Steve Leialoha bring the toughest canine in comics to the pages of DHP, where he resides side by side with "My Vagabond Days," Steve Seagle and Stefano Gaudiano's serious tale of growing up in the midst of the Vietnam War. And leading off our 113th issue is Ed Brubaker's highly acclaimed "Lowlife." A mainstay of self-publishing for years, "Lowlife" makes its Dark Horse debut with "The Wreck," an examination of bad relationships, karmic coincidence, and the little details that allow life to make sense. B&W. Cover price $2.95.

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Cover by Frank Miller and Walter Simonson. Frank Miller and Walter Simonson are just two reasons to get into the all-new DHP! Walter Simonson brings us an all-new story starring the galaxy-spanning Star Slammers. Space is a dangerous and mysterious place, but with the Star Slammers around, there's always a little bit of hope and a whole lot of adventure! Meanwhile, on the other side of the galaxy, Lance Blastoff is jet-packing his way across the cosmos, courtesy of Frank Miller! It's an all-new, politically incorrect, sci-fi adventure -- fun for the whole family! Bill Mumy, Miguel Ferrer, and Steve Leialoha will have you begging for treats with the latest installment of "Trypto the Acid Dog"! Our canine hero finds himself down in the fighting ring with an angry pit bull. Can he fight his way out before his family moves to a new city and leaves him behind? Finally, in the second of Ed Brubaker's "Lowlife" stories, a relationship falls apart, a man goes crazy with a gun, and the sun turns black. B&W. Cover price $2.95.

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Cover by Frank Miller and Roger Langridge. DHP continues to mix it up this month, and it's all decked out in its new flip-book format! Frank Miller provides a cover featuring the return of John Arcudi's misfit detective The Creep! Arcudi is joined by Firearm artist Brian O'Connell for a story that proves that pain, unlike beauty, is not just skin deep. Also, Roger Langridge and Gordon Rennie bring us a hilarious send-up of classic silver-age superhero comics in "Dr. Spin," and Bill Mumy, Miguel Ferrer, and Steve Leialoha present the third chapter of "Trypto the Acid Dog," in which the caped canine escapes the gladiator pit, only to find his family has moved to another town. Finally, the conclusion of Ed Brubaker's "Lowlife" trilogy cuts another insightful slice off the mass psychosis of modern society. B&W. Cover price $2.95.

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Cover by Scott Musgrove. DHP continues in its mission of bringing in the greatest talent and the most original stories! Hilarious tales let the hot air out of the superhero genre! In Gordon Rennie and Roger Langridge's "Dr. Spin," the intrepid Master of the Improbable is called out of his retirement to battle the chaos that is destroying comic-book continuity everywhere! Bill Mumy, Miguel Ferrer, and Steve Leialoha give us "Trypto the Acid Dog." Trypto is "Lost in Space," and has a close encounter with some curious aliens. Unfortunately for them, Trypto isn't like other dogs! Of course, neither is "Fat Dog Mendoza," Scott Musgrove's superhero supreme. Fat Dog and The Whoosh are trying to get away for the weekend, but they discover that wherever you go, there'll always be sheep. This issue features an all-new Fat Dog cover by Mr. Musgrove himself! B&W. Cover price $2.95.