That's a great cover by Joe Jusko, but it almost feels like a mistake - I think every issue of Warlord of Mars I've seen so far has featured a nearly-naked image of Dejah Thoris. But I digress. This issue continues the leisurely adaptation of Edgar Rice Burrough's A Princess of Mars, though I'm not sure of the legalities involved, since Marvel just announced it would be adapting that novel in the near future. Is the story in Public Domain?
Sorry, still digressing. This issue depicts John Carter's discovery of an Atmosphere Factory and its strange operator. He journeys to a nearby town, joins the air force, fights giant green Martians, and so on.
As written by Arvid Nelson, this isn't a bad series at all - it's just doling out the story very slowly.
The art by Lui Antonio is quite good, with strong action sequences and great facial expressions - though (as much as I hate to complain about such things), the females are all of the impossibly-proportioned-comic-book-female mold. A little variety would be nice.
As a long-time fan of Burroughs, I'm happy to see this work back in print - although I'll have to see if I can find out the answer to which one (if either one) is approved by ERB's estate. I prefer to throw my business to the company that plays fair.
Grade: B
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5 comments:
Yup, definitely in the public domain, says Wikipedia. It was written in 1917. But I also digress.
Len, thanks! So now I wonder if Marvel is licensing their adaptation from ERB's estate - or is it connected to the upcoming film version? Or are they just taking their own shot at it? (So many questions!)
The first 3 novels are public domain. They can be reprinted and adapted. They can't, however, tell new stories with the characters unless they license them.
Bobby
Thanks, Bobby! This is the great thing about the Internet - someone out there has the answer you're looking for!
My pleasure. A friend of mine runs a small press publishing company and he reissued the 3 John Carter novels. He's the one explained how he was able to do that.
Bobby
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