Badger #5

   I'm so happy to have the Badger back in print again!

   No one does this kind of over-the-top action mixed with crazed plot twists like writer Mike Baron!

   How crazed? Well, you've got Ham the Weather Wizard (a reborn druid) being opposed by Vladimir Putin (yes, that Putin - who's also a wizard) and being attacked by horrible demons and a Yeti - and his hopes for survival lay in the fighting fury known as the Badger (who changes personalities at the drop of a hat).

   All this while the struggle to find a new Wizard of the North continues - and the applicants for the job makes for a fun "who's who" for comics and fantasy fans.

   It's a fast, funny wrap-up to the story, illustrated wonderfully by living legend Val Mayerick, who masters monsters, martial arts mayhem and beautiful women with equal ease.

   There's no other comic like it - violent, completely unpredictable - and loads of fun!

Grade: A

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The Badger #4

   Just as "Only Nixon could go to China," only the Badger could go to Russia - and fight Vladimir Putin.

   As anyone who's been following world politics should know, Putin is the President of Russia. As Badger readers now know, Putin is also the Wizard of the East.

   So when the Badger's boss, Ham (the Wizard of the West), sends the Badger to deliver a demon's tongue to Putin, you know it's just a matter of time before the two square off in a slobber-knocking, teeth-spitting fight to the finish.

   Written by Mike Baron, the script is a maniacal blast, with a confrontation no other comic would tackle, and a free-flowing, stream-of-consciousness hoot of a story.

   The art is by the legendary Val Mayerick, an artist who does amazing, realistic fight sequences (and really gets to cut loose here), and he's also great at capturing the image of Putin.

   It's all in good fun (though Putin might not agree) - an over the top action extravaganza.

   Highly recommended!

Grade: A

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The Badger #3

   It is a happy year indeed that brings us the return of The Badger to comics stores everywhere!

   The great conceit of the series is simple enough: you'd have to be crazy to be a superhero! And that's what you get with this hero - a guy who suffers from multiple personalities, including one as a martial arts hero who has a Badger for a spirit totem.

   But there's much more than that to writer Mike Baron's construct - the Badger serves as a bodyguard to an ancient druid (and weather wizard) named Ham, who has built a home in America, a supporting cast and a menagerie in the back yard.

   Ham's a terrific character - a bit mad himself, he's (almost) always in control and leads the cast into the strangest situations.

   This issue, for example, includes an appearance by Russian leader Vladimir Putin, who is himself a powerful wizard. (Who but Baron would dare to use a modern-day world leader as a pitiless enemy?)

   With amazing art in this issue by comics legend Val Mayerick, this is an series that demands to be followed!

   Lots of crazy, demon-fighting fun!

   Check it out, Larry!

Grade: A

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Badger #1

   The Badger operates on a deceptively simple concept: for someone to be a superhero in the real world, they'd have to be crazy.

   And boy howdy, is the Badger ever crazy.

   And dangerous.

   Luckily, he's on our side. (I think.)

   In the original version by writer Mike Baron, we met the Badger at the same time his employer (a wizard who will step into the spotlight soon), but his origin was a bit of a mystery.

   He was obviously a former soldier who had lost his marbles - but finally, more than 30 years after his first appearance, we learn the full story behind his transformation in the fighting-mad, animal-loving, bad-guy-hating, zen warrior known as the former Norbert Sykes.

   There's a little bit of chrono-jiggering going on here, as Norbert was originally a Vietnam war vet - but now he's fighting in the Middle East.

   The series no longer operates under the original restrictions, so we get more graphic violence (though nothing too outrageous), and some adult language sprinkled in.

   The art is by Jim Fern, and it's quite good, managing to alternate between crisp and clean and brutal and raw, depending on the demands of the story.

   It's great to see this series making a return (though the publication date hasn't been announced yet, the new mini-series should start showing up before the end of the year).

   It's intense, creative and unpredictable as always - in other words, a heck of an entertaining comic!

   Recommended for all you Larrys out there! (Yes, you!)

Grade: A

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The Classics - The Badger #1

From the long-lost days of 1983, we present a classic comic that features the kind of wild, creative force of nature that we rarely see in comics these days.

The Badger starts out with a basic concept: that you'd have to be crazy to dress up in a costume and go out to fight crime. So it stars Norbert Sykes, a Vietnam veteran who had lost touch with reality, but vows to fight crime as The Badger.

Most comics would run with that concept, but writer Mike Baron had several additional twists to add. While in a mental institution, the Badger encounters a 1500 year-old weather wizard named Ham, who had been captured and imprisoned by his enemies (who, to be fair, had good reason to hate him) and transported to - of all places - Wisconsin.

Ham decides to team up with the Badger, and they (sometimes intentionally, sometimes accidentally) cut a swath across the criminal element of Madison.

The story was just crazy enough to work, and future stories would run the gamut from tidy little Zen-like fables to carnivals of violence. It was a wildly clever, brutal and thoroughly entertaining comic.

The art was by Jeffrey Butler, and while the early issues showed a few rough edges, there was no denying his talent for creating distinctive characters, realistic-looking fight sequences and dynamic layouts.

While not a book for children, the Badger was a sharp mix of street-level heroics and mystical adventures, and was a comic that made the wait for the next issue unbearable.

It's amazing to me that this comic and its older "brother," Nexus, aren't being published right now. Surely there's a company out there with the sense to bring some new life to these classic characters (preferably with the original creators on board, of course).

Come on!

Grade: A

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