Pure Excitement Comics is maintained by Bill Nolan.

Vol. 1 No. 42
February 2002

In This Issue:

Contents Page

The Lynx

Doctor Frost

The Puppeteer

Other issues!


Next Month:

I really have no idea yet...


Bill Nolan's
Other Pages:

CD-ROMs!
CD-ROMs featuring more great reprints! Buy them, please! (They're cheap!)

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Related Links:

Greats of the Golden Age
Another great on-line Golden Age reprint magazine!

Golden Years
A great site also featuring great on-line Golden Age reprint magazines!

The New Golden Agers
The new Delphi Forum for discussing Pure Excitement Comics and other related topics.

Mort Meskin
An interesting site focusing on the great Golden Age artist.

goldcomics.com
A fantastic site featuring MLJ reprints.

Heroic Comics
Another great source for Golden Age reprints! Includes stories from nine of the first 12 issues of that great title.

AC Comics
Publisher of Golden Age Men of Mystery and more. Now with a great on-line store!

Golden Agers
A great affiliate Yahoo Club where Golden Age fans can get together on-line.

Big Shot
A great site focusing on that particular Golden Age title.

The Spirit
A great site dedicated to what was probably the best comic feature of the Golden Age!

Other Golden Age Reprints
James Ludwig's great Golden Age reprint site!

The Golden Age Heroes Directory
A great page developing profiles on all Golden Age heroes!

A Guide To Marvel's Golden Age Characters
A rundown of some of the great characters I cannot feature here.

The Good Guys and Gals of the Golden Age Art Gallery
A great "who's who" of Golden Age heroes.

MicroComics
Offering affordable Golden Age comics on microfiche.

Comcs on CD-ROM
Offering Golden Age covers and stories on affordable CD-ROMS. Highly recommended!

Mikel Midnight Golden Age Directory
A great on-line resource for Golden Age fans. Great links.

Captain Comics
Home of the weekly comic book columnist for the Scripps Howard News Service

Welcome to the Letters Page, everybody! Here are a couple of great long letters I received during the last month:

Bill: I enjoyed PEC #41. This isn't the first Blue Bolt story I have seen, but this is the first time I've read an adventure in which he wears his costume; Blue Bolt isn't a bad character at all, and I wouldn't mind seeing another appearance from him somewhere down the line. I'm also curious to know if this was the lead story from the issue, or if Blue Bolt appeared in more than one story; six pages isn't much for a lead character, but the story still had a lot of action, a nice setup, decent villains, and a bit of detective work, so it isn't like it was a lesser story.
Jackie Law and his Boy Rangers is a new kid group for me, and they were a cut above some of the other kid gangs I've seen. Gorilla reminded me a bit of Pee Wee from the Little Wise Guys and he was the most distinct member of the gang, including Jackie Law. It was also something of a shock to see Corny bite one of the Nazis, as biting doesn't turn up to often; I doubt Dr. Wertham would have approved, but under the circumstances I thought Corny's action was justified. Kid Gangs aren't one of my favorites, but I wouldn't mind seeing this one again.
Mystico appears to be one of the magicians who have no limits to their powers and can do anything the story calls for, so there was no sense of suspense whatsoever. The artwork on this feature was good, but I can't say I relish the prospect of Mystico returning soon. Then again, if you happen to have a story in which Mystico faces someone more in his league, perhaps I could muster up a bit more enthusiasm for the character.
I like the fact that you've been using characters in the past few issues that you haven't featured before, and I've particularly enjoyed seeing Blue Bolt, the Twister, the Boy King, and Sub-Zero in recent issues. I would welcome a return appearance by any of those four characters, although I would understand if the "to be continued" nature of the Boy King stories kept him out of Pure Excitement for quite some time.

Take care,
Jon

Jon, glad you've been enjoying the "new" character focus of the last few issues! As to your Blue Bolt question, the character was usually the lead story in Blue Bolt Comics, but I think it was a situation like "Flash Comics" where the Flash was just one hero among many in the book, despite his "title character" standing. I'll see what I can do about getting some of your favorites back into these pages after I finish the run of "new" characters.

Bill, Pure Excitement Comics never disappoints. Issue 41 was fun but thought-provoking, mainly because of the strangely topical "suicide bomber" plot in the Blue Bolt story. The Japanese Kamikaze pilots of World War II are well known, of course, but I don't believe I have ever heard of Nazis on suicide sabotage missions. The writer of this story must have gotten inspiration from somewhere, however, so maybe such things went on. Chilling.
On a less somber note, having spent over 5 years (off and on) in England with the Air Force, I'm always interested in seeing how comic book writers and artists treat that "green and pleasant land" in their stories, especially when they put mountain ranges in the backround. The artist of the first Tex Thompson (later Mr. America) story in Action #1 did the same thing. I don't claim to be an expert on British geography, but in my experience ranges that look like the Rockies are not common in most parts of the island. Then again, maybe I didn't get around enough while I was there.
This subject reminds me of London, the British costumed hero (drawn and perhaps created by Jerry Robinson) who appeared in early issues of Lev Gleason's Daredevil Comics. In one story that I read many years ago, London (in his civilian identity) stops into a drug store to make a phone call. Now maybe in a metropolis like London in 1940 there was indeed at least one American-style drug store like the Rexalls of yore replete with a soda fountain, magazine racks, and a big wooden phone booth. But I kind of doubt it. Whatever the case, in Great Britain our hero would not have been going into a drug store---he would have been popping into "the Chemist's" (that's what the sign over the door would have said: "Chemist." The sight of such signs once prompted one of my buddys, newly arrived in England, to remark "I've noticed that they are really into chemistry in this country!") And once inside the Chemist's, London (the character, not the city) would have found medicines and medical supplies but probably no lunch counter, comic book rack, or phone booth (with or without Clark Kent inside it).
Getting back to the Blue Bolt, as famous as he is to Golden Age buffs, I'm not sure I have actually read a complete BB story before. Thanks for remedying that omission, Bill. I liked Blue Bolt's electric gaze. I also liked Jackie Law and his Boy Rangers. That splash panel with the Nazi cobras was awesome, and I enjoyed reading about a kid gang whose members actually acted like kids! The story was routine but there was something very likeable about those characters. As for Mystico, well, to me these invincible magic types can be a bit dull when they're only fighting ordinary crooks and not supernatural enemies. Nevertheless, I haven't read a Golden Age story yet that was a complete waste. I got a big kick out of the pterodactyl.
Thanks again for all your hard work on PEC, Bill. I really appreciate it.

Mark

Well, Mark, thanks for reading and once again taking the time to write in! I'm glad all the characters last issue had something to offer you. And speaking of London, I do own one London appearance and hope to reprint it here someday. I'm not sure how it will reproduce, but I'll give it a try!

That's it for the letters page this month. Be sure to check back next month for three more great reprints!

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