Written by Drew Edwards
Edited by Russell Hillman
Published by Sugar Skull Media

PREVIOUSLY: Halloween Man #10

Here we have another whopper of an issue, 146 pages of story and art, for just $1.99. First up is the 6-page story CAT FIGHT, drawn by Luchito Inzunza. In this story Lucy, while testing one of her personal spaceships, crash-lands in the middle of some strange woods, and has to try to walk back to civilization. She finds herself running afoul of Vickie-Lynn “The Cougar Queen, Kidnapper, and Enslaver of Men”, who has her own cabin in the woods where she lives with a bunch of muscular men as her personal slaves. Assuming that Lucy was tracking her, Vickie-Lynn goes on the attack. With her fangs, claws, and other cat-like features, she proves to be a formidable opponent for Lucy, who soon discovers that she’s not the only danger hidden in this woods. A great little story to open this issue, and I’m really liking the way Inzunza draws Lucy, exemplifying her sex appeal without being exploitative about it. And as an extra bonus, this story includes a “cover” by former regular artist Sergio Calvet.

GOOD MORNING SOLAR CITY
Drawn by Paul Delacroix
This 12-page story features a new supervillain duo, Tombstone Arizona and Dixie Witch, both who appear to have various magic powers. They simply ride into Solar City one fine day, park in the middle of the street, and begin randomly murdering everyone they see. Morlack calls Solomon and Lucy to action, and they fly to the scene (in their flying coffin) to confront the duo. It’s a quick, but brutal, fight, which ends on an ominous note. Once again Serious Calvet provides a cover for the story, while Delacroix, does a fine job on the internal artwork.

And then we get THE PHANTOM HOOD ARCHIVES a collection of stories, taken from the days when this title was a webcomic featuring this character called The Phantom Hood. He’s a masked man, with a cloak, who has various scientific and magical weaponry at his disposal. He also appears to have a personal score to settle with Solomon, although Solomon doesn’t know who he is. Oh, and he also has a demon in a Confederate uniform as his henchman.

First is a 32-page story, broken into chapters (Villain, Icons, and Hero), in which The Phantom Hood frames Solomon for the murder of one of the members of the Sentinels of Justice (Solar City’s local superhero team). This leads the other superheroes to attack Solomon and take him prisoner in their headquarters until they find a way to “kill” him for good. Naturally, Lucy can’t let them get away with this, so along with Man-Goat and Nickodemis, rushes to save Solomon and clear his name. The story harkens back to traditional superhero battles, and with plenty of action but also so great character moments, as it explores not only the love Lucy has for Solomon, but also the devotion Solomon inspires in his friends. And the Sentinels are interesting characters themselves (one of the members is a man dressed like Uncle Sam called “American Psycho”), I would like to see them in their own title someday. Overall, a really good story. And did I mention that the artwork is by the one and only NICOLA SCOTT? Needless to say, it’s awesome.

Next up is the 25-page story HOUSE OF WOLVES, with art by Tim Doe (and a “cover” by Scott DM Simmons) puts Nicodemis in the starring role. Beginning with a flashback to when he was a young boy and he and his parents first moved to Solar City. Nicodemis narrates the main story, where he accompanies Solomon and Lucy to the local Mad Scientist Science School to investigate some mysterious disappearance and suddenly find themselves face to face with a pack of werewolves. As Solomon and Lucy do the heavy lifting, Nicodemis finds himself hiding out with one of the teachers from the school, who happens to be a reformed female supervillain. And then when Phantom Hood arrives on the scene, Nicodemis has to make a choice of whether to keep running or stand and face his fears. Another great story.

TOMB OF CAPTAIN EVIL
This 45-page story is drawn by Sergio Calvet. It opens with the funeral of Captain Evil, a “Sky-Pirate”, and apparently one of the earliest supervillains. His tomb is said to contain all the riches and weapons Captain Evil left behind, but there was a hex placed on the tomb (by Reverend Robo-Satan, who officiated the funeral), which warns most tomb-raiders off. But Solomon, Lucy, and Man-Goat aren’t scared. So they find the tomb, but it turns out that Phantom Hood is also there waiting for them. We finally get the Phantom Hood/Solomon showdown that we’ve been waiting for, but it ends with many mysteries remaining.

That concludes the Phantom Hood archives. Next up is TALES FROM SOLAR CITY: BAIL MONEY, a 9-page story written by Julian Dossett and drawn by Beau Chappell. This tells the story of a young bail bondsman, sent to track down a suspected murderer, only to find out that there’s a lot more to this crime than he was aware of. Told in black and white this story doesn’t have anything to do with Solomon, but has a nice “noir” feel to it, making it an interesting addition to this issue.

ARM WRESTLING NIGHT AT MERCY’S
This 6-page story, drawn by Sergio Calvet, takes place at MERCY, the bondage/fetish club run by Lucy’s old friend Claudette, last seenin the HALLOWEEN MAN VS. THE INVISIBLE MAN special issue. Claudette once again calls on Lucy for help, when her club is overrun by some of the alien viking dwarfs whom we last saw way back in Halloween Man #1 I won’t spoil how Lucy defeats them, although I guess it’s pretty easy to guess based on the title.

Once again Drew Edwards gives you plenty for your money. This is another satisfying issue filled with well-written and well-drawn stories, which continues to make Halloween Man one of the most entertaining titles on the market. Grade A

HALLOWEEN MAN #11