Showcase Presents The Phantom Stranger: Volume 2

Although his costume looks like it was purchased at Men’s Wearhouse — minus the amulet, which was acquired at a Goodwill or a garage sale — The Phantom Stranger is one cool cat. He’s back in SHOWCASE PRESENTS THE PHANTOM STRANGER: VOLUME 2, another mammoth volume of stories from DC Comics’ heyday of the 1970s.

You get a Stranger-centric issue of JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA and THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD — and even the 150th issue of HOUSE OF SECRETS — but the main draw, of course, is his eponymous title. This collection picks up where VOLUME 1 left off and takes us right to the run’s bitter end with #41.

In these adventures, the enigmatic paranormal man of mysticism battles supernatural demons, a serpent-worshipping cult, devil dolls, an ill-meaning Pied Piper, a guy who hallucinates horrible creatures and even a line of robots disguised as humans. He even teams up with Deadman for a few issues, and both being do-gooders of another dimensional plane, I think they make a pretty good couple.

The tales are fun, if not always of sound mind and body, but VOLUME ONE was better overall. However, this follow-up has two secret weapons: One is the delightful, inspired and often unexpected art of the underrated Gerry Talaoc. The other is the backup feature — not Dr. Thirteen this time, but a little something called “The Spawn of Frankenstein.” Presented as a modern-day take on the legend, “Spawn” is serialized, and a welcome reminder of how much fun not only horror comics — but also the secondary features of such — could be. —Rod Lott

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About Rod Lott

Rod is the fearless editor-in-chief of BOOKGASM and a voice of reason in Oklahoma City.

{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }

Matt Price September 21, 2008 at 12:30 am: Haven’t gotten around to reading this volume yet, but based on his Unknown Solider work, I’d agree that Gerry Talaoc was underrated.

Steve: I tried reading 7th Sigma in early 2011, and could get past the first few chapters… completely...
Matthew: The original GTO was hilarious, but it ran too long and became repitive.
Slade Grayson: Finally! Leonard’s last few novels have disappointed me. Glad to see that he’s maybe...
Scott Pinzon: This is great fun. So, will you guarantee a review on Bookgasm if I write a novel titled Solar Plexus?
Fred Zackel: I picked this up at the library and started reading to see if I wanted to borrow it. Got about thirty...

Showcase Presents The Phantom Stranger: Volume 2

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