Crimebuster

The Kickstarter has ended and I'm just waiting for the copies of The Crimebusters #1 to arrive from the printers! If anyone missed the Kickstarter and wants a copy or copies, let me know and we'll figure something out when they arrive! In the meantime, I'm keeping busy by working on #2! The second issue is called "The Secret of the Ghost Bride." It features Chuck and Trixie investigating a haunted house. With a twist: there might be some time travel involved, thanks to the surprise return of a Golden Age character. It also is going to feature a backup solo story starring Trixie's roommate Vera Veritas. Vera's a science major, and an amateur astrologer, so in the fall of 1956 she's gearing up for the International Geophysical Year, which is set to start in the summer of 1957, officially kicking off the space race! And as a sci-fi geek like us, she's dreaming of the stars... ...as shown in the Kickstarter Exclusive Legacy Number Variant Cover for the second issue (#121), which is an homage to one of my favorite comic book covers, Planet Comics #71!

Once I have the comics in hand, I'll be setting up some kind of online store to sell copies! I'm not quite sure yet exactly how it will work, but I can drop you a PM once the books are in hand and I can sell you a copy (or copies) directly. Or I can do a thread in the Modern sales section. The only version I won't have available is the Kickstarter Exclusive Legacy Variant Cover - which is the homage to Flash #92 - since that version was for Kickstarter only. But I will have a few copies of that left, so if you had your heart set on it, when I do the Kickstarter for #2 (hopefully in January) I'll be offering a very limited reward with the Kickstarter Exclusive Legacy Variants for both #1+2 in a package deal. For the other versions, it's $8 (plus $5 shipping to the US) for the regular cover, or $13 each (+$5 shipping) for the three variants - the Boy Comics variant, the Trixie's Mysteries variant, and the blank sketch variant. Or $50 (plus shipping) for a sketch cover with an actual sketch on it! I should have the books in hand by the end of the month (I think!) so I can PM you when they arrive. Thanks for the interest!

I picked up a copy of "The Story Behind Your Liberty!" today at my LCS. Seemed thematically appropriate for the 4th of July. I've done some googling but I'm having a little trouble trying to figure out value; there's only one for sale on ebay, and one completed listing, and the price range seems random with just those two bits of data. Anyone able to point me in the right direction? Thanks.

The Kickstarter campaign for the first issue of The Crimebusters is complete, and was a rousing success. Thanks so much to everyone who supported it! I'm really looking forward to sending out the comic and hearing what you all think. And I'm hard at work already on issue #2, so I'll certainly be sharing plenty more as we go. Thanks!

Hey there! We're inside the last 48 hours, so I have composed another update (well, a couple really since last time I posted here). I also just wanted to remind everyone that may be interested that this Kickstarter is going to end shortly, so if you do think this is a comic you'd be interested in, now is the time! Most of the variant covers will be printed in very small numbers, and the Kickstarter Exclusive Variant Cover in particular (which is an homage to Flash Comics #92) is going to be in short supply, since I won't be selling it outside of Kickstarter. Here's one final share of the link to the campaign if you're interested in backing it. And one more look at the variant covers: Thanks everyone!

Just wanted to post one final reminder, if anybody is interested in getting a copy of the Boy Comics #120 variant from my Kickstarter, the campaign ends in less than 48 hours, so now's the time! And if not, no worries. I am not printing a lot of these, though, so once they're gone it will be gone. Here's another look at it — as you can see, I decided to do an homage to Captain America Comics #3: Thanks for the support, everyone! https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/thecrimebusters/the-crimebusters-a-mystery-adventure-into-the-supernatural?ref=3mskzg

A little update here. In the week since we passed $1000, we've pretty much hit a full stop. I think the amount has only gone up by $26 in the last week, with just two new backers. But I had heard that's how these things go, so while it's a bit disappointing, it's not surprising. I am still occasionally getting new "followers' - these are people who have asked Kickstarter to remind them about the project when there are two days left - so it's possible some of those people will back at the end. And the end is getting close! Just over five days left at this point. I'm still hopeful that we will at least meet the next stretch goal - we're just $58 short of adding a Squeeks solo 4-page backup story to the comic, which I am really excited about, so fingers are crossed. And if you are interested in getting the Boy Comics Variant Cover, now's your chance! There may not be many or any copies left after the campaign ends, so if this is something you're interested in, I would recommend ordering one before the camapign ends. This is even more true for the Kickstarter Exclusive legacy Number Variant, which is an homage to Flash Comics #92 - this cover is only available through Kickstarter. Anyway! no pressure, I just know some people have expressed interest in these, so I wanted to give a reminder that time and supply are both limited. I've written a little bit about all this stuff in my latest project update, and also added some new Add-On rewards. thanks for all the support! I'm really looking forward to this campaign being over so I can order the comics, then send you the comics, so I can hear what people actually thin about the story! It's nice that it exists, but it's pointless if nobody ever reads it! So I am really looking forward to sending these out.

I've been so focused on getting the Kickstarter up and running for the first issue of my Boy Comics revival The Crimebusters that I haven't had any time to actually begin working on the second issue. This weekend, though, I was finally able to start working on it! Here's an early look at the first draft linework for the regular cover for the second issue. I'm hoping to do the Legacy Number Variant cover soon as well, which will have the #121 on it instead of #2 - and which will be an homage to one of my favorite comic covers of all time, Planet Comics #71. But for now, here's a look at the regular cover!

I completely agree. What a massive disappointment this film was. It should have been outstanding, and instead it was legitimately bad.

I know I'm in the distinct minority, but I've never been a big fan of Iron Jaw. Some of the early stories with him are good, and certainly shocking, and he had a great visual design. In general, though, I think the series got better after they killed him off in #15. And it distinctly got worse after they brought him back in #60. It got very tedious watching Chuck chase Iron Jaw around every single issue, and then once they turned Iron Jaw into a comedic character paired with Sniffer, the series really hit bottom. A lot of those Iron Jaw - Sniffer stories from around #83-up are almost unreadable.

Thanks very much!

I've posted this a couple other places here (Golden Age Forums and my Journal) so sorry for the cross-posting, but I know people tend to stay in their lane, so I just wanted to share this one final appropriate place. My first comic book, The Crimebusters #1, is now live on Kickstarter! It's a continuation of the Golden Age adventures of Chuck Chandler, aka Crimebuster, picking up where his continuity left off when Boy Comics was cancelled in 1956. I've introduced a new partner for him, whom he meets in this issue, and it picks up in the fall of 1956. I have done four covers, two of which continue the original numbering from Boy Comics. Here's a look at the covers; as you can see, the three variant covers are homages (to Flash Comics #92, Detective Comics #395, and Captain America Comics #3): Here's the link to Kickstarter if you're curious. There's also a six page preview on the Kickstarter page so you can get an idea of the flavor. Thanks for reading! And I swear I won't post this anywhere else on these forums after this.

So, I'm excited to announce that this project is now live on Kickstarter! It's been over 10 years since I first conceived of the idea of reviving Chuck Chandler and Boy Comics, so it's been a long time coming. But after a ton of hard work, it's finally here! As I've mentioned before, I have decided to publish this under the title The Crimebusters, and I eventually decided that some versions of the issue would carry a new #1 for new readers. But others versions still have the #120 legacy numbering, and I made sure to have a Boy Comics variant sporting the classic Boy Comics logo and Chuck in full Golden Age action. After all, that was the whole point when I started! Here's a look at all four covers: For the Kickstarer campaign, I really wanted to come up with some fun rewards. Probably my favorite reward — and the one I think you guys will appreciate more than anybody else — is the Crimebusters Fan Club Membership Kit. I've tried really hard with this to capture the feel of those old school fan clubs that were all the rage in the 40's and 50's, and have modeled many of the items after classic fan club stuff. In each membership kit you get the following: • a welcome letter from Chuck and Trixie • an official certificate of membership signed by both Chuck and Trixie • an 8x10 print of Chuck and Trixie suitable for hanging in your treehouse • a Junior Crimebuster badge • a replica of Trixie's school newspaper press pass • a pair of Crimebusters stickers to decorate your casefiles • and The Crimebusters Secret Decoder Book! The certificate of membership is an homage to the original Supermen of America membership certificate that DC gave to members back in 1939: And you Golden Age fans will probably also recognize the inscriptions on the pin-up — they are taken from the back cover pin-up from Batman #1: The Junior Crimebuster Badge, of course, is an homage to all those little metal badges that they used to give out. I couldn't find a vendor that did that sort of die-cast work, so mine is just a regular button, but I hope it captures the idea — I put the star behind Chuck to sort of emulate the sheriff badge idea. And Trixie's Press Pass sort of takes the place of a membership card. Probably the best part, though, is the decoder book. I didn't know how to make a decoder ring, otherwise I would have. But the decoder book isn't just an homage to that idea. In every issue, there will be messages encoded in one of several weird languages; if you are in the Fan Club and have a Decoder Book, you'll be able to decipher these to get bonus clues, or teases about upcoming stories or characters. I am also going to be including coded messages to Fan Club members in newsletter emails. I'm really happy with this, it's a lot of fun, and I hope someone else appreciate this as well! Anyway, thanks for reading and supporting this project through the years! Here's the link again if anybody is interested: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/thecrimebusters/the-crimebusters-a-mystery-adventure-into-the-supernatural?ref=3mskzg

Hey guys, my Boy Comics revival (under the name The Crimebusters) is now live on Kickstarter. I don't want to spam the boards too much, so I'll be posting most of the nitty gritty details in the Boy Comics thread momentarily, but if you're interested, here's the link! https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/thecrimebusters/the-crimebusters-a-mystery-adventure-into-the-supernatural?ref=3mskzg Thanks!

Aaaaah! I'm super excited to announce that my comic The Crimebusters is now live on Kickstarter! Finally! Thanks to everyone for all the support throughout this process. As you guys know, bringing Chuck Chandler back to life has been a goal of mine for over a decade now, so this is really exciting for me, and I can't wait to share this comic with you. If anybody has any questions aout the project, or about the Kickstarter campaign, let me know! https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/thecrimebusters/the-crimebusters-a-mystery-adventure-into-the-supernatural?ref=3mskzgThanks!!

Um, is this really the time?

Just a few days left until this thing launches on Kickstarter on June 11. In my latest project blog, I discuss the printing process, getting my Kickstarter campaign ready to launch, and the big news of the day: the first copy has arrived!! It's real! https://crimebustercomics.com/2019/06/08/the-final-countdown/

It wasn't good, and it's exactly as bad as people are making it out to be. Edit: Well, mostly. I'll say this: right now the movie has a 22% on Rotten Tomatoes, compared to a 57% on Rotten Tomatoes for Last Stand. On Metacritic (which is a much better review aggregator), the scores are closer, but still 43 for Dark Phoenix and 58 for Last Stand. Last Stand is bad. Dark Phoenix movie is... equally bad in different ways. But it's not so much worse than Last Stand like these scores would suggest. I'd theorize that expectations for superhero movies have gotten much higher since 2006, so this movie looks worse in comparison to its peers than Last Stand did at the time. Then, we didn't know things could get so much better. Now we do.

Here's the final variant cover for the first issue. Of course, the whole point of this originally was to make new issues of Boy Comics, so there has to be a cover with the Boy Comics logo and numbering. And there is! Here's a look at all four covers for this first issue. sorry for the slight blurriness, the site here automatically squeezes the image to a certain size like it or not: Less than a week until the Kickstarter on June 11! It's been a ton of work, so I'm glad it's nearly here!

Here's the next of the variant covers for the first issue of my new comic, The Crimebusters, launching on Kickstarter June 11. Since I am planning to do a Boy Comics variant cover every issue starring Crimebuster, I thought it would only be fair to also do a variant cover every issue featuring his new partner, Trixie Trouble. So I'm going to do a variant every issue re-imagining the story as a classic young adult mystery novel. Here's the first of the Trixie Trouble Mysteries variant covers! And a look at all the covers I've revealed so far:

The Kickstarter will launch two weeks from tomorrow! Over the next week or so, I'll be revealing the three variant covers. Here's the first one! This is the Kickstarter Exclusive Legacy Number Variant - this will be available at the same price as the regular cover, but will only be available as a Kickstarter reward; I won't be selling any copies outside of Kickstarter. So if you like this one, get it while it's hot! Of course, this is an homage to Flash Comics #92 by Carmine Infantino, which itself is an homage to Detective Comics #38 by Kane and Robinson. Since I'm introducing Trixie Trouble in this issue as Chuck's new partner, I thought a cover with the classic DC "smash through a paper circle" motif would be perfect. And Black Canary's solo series cover from Flash Comics #92 seemed like the obvious pick. I did borrow the text from Detective Comics #38, though. Two covers down and two to go!

Funny you should ask... As some of you know, for the past several years I've been planning to do a revival of Boy Comics. The title and the character of Crimebuster are in the public domain, so it's just a matter of having the drive to do it. Well, I've done it! On June 11, I'll be launching a Kickstarter to publish the first issue of my revived Crimebuster series. It basically picks up where the original series left off. In Boy Comics #119, Chuck Chandler was at the start of the second semester of his sophomore year at Curtiss Tech. In the first issue of my series, he'll be starting his junior year in the fall of 1956. I've kept the setting, the time period, all the supporting characters, etc. It's a complete, standalone 30-page story, but there are nods to prior continuity; you do't need to have read any of the original stuff for this issue to make sense, but I do have some old school editor's notes to point you in the direction of old stories if you become curious. For today's new readers, I'm launching and publishing under the series title The Crimebusters with a new #1. But this and every future issue will also have a Boy Comics variant cover continuing the original numbering — making new issues of Boy Comics was the whole point, after all! I expect only a few of us hardcore weirdos will care about it, but I'll be honest — when I was doing the cover for the Boy Comics version, I kind of got misty eyed. Just seeing that logo come back to life is something I've been dreaming about for ten years. Here's a look at my cover for Boy Comics #120! Obviously, it's an homage to Captain America Comics #3: In keeping with the late-era feel of the book, I've embraced the teen detective / boys adventure spirit. It's more like Scooby Doo than Crime Does Not Pay, with the twist that unlike Scooby Doo, maybe the ghosts and monsters are sometimes real. There's still some of that Biro grittiness, though; this first issue is a murder mystery, not a devious real estate agent. The stakes and the boy count are a bit higher here than your typical Scooby Doo episode. I've also introduced a new human partner for Chuck, Trixie Trouble, who is an homage to teen detective characters like Nancy Drew and Veronica Mars. Don't worry, though, I have plans for Squeeks, he hasn't been forgotten. And I also am trying to keep the classic Golden Age Biro feel, with stuff like the symbolic splash and a Biro-esque opening speech to set the stage. Anyway. When June 11 comes and I launch my Kickstarter, I'll post about it again, but I don't want to spam the boards. If you're interested, you can read more about it on my website. And hey, if there's a Golden Age book you want to see live again, maybe you too can bring it back yourself!

Big news!! The first issue is off to the printers for proofing! I'm totally stoked! I've also been wrestling for awhile with the numbering for this first issue. I really, really want to keep the legacy numbering from Boy Comics, but at the same time, I know there are some (weird) readers who may not even give the series a try if it's got a #120 on the cover. So... I've decided to just print copies with both numbers and let people choose whichever number they want. To be honest, I'm not sure anyone will choose the #120 cover, but I want it on my own copies! I'm still thinking of this as #120, but I'm making a small concession to the masses I by going with standard numbering as well. They can pick the #1 version while I read the #120 version. I'm actually going to have a total of four covers. The regular cover will be #1, but there will also be a (Kickstarter exclusive) legacy number variant for the same price with a #120 on the cover. Additionally, Trixie and Chuck will each have their own variant covers; Trixie's will be a #1, while Chuck's will be #120 with the Boy Comics logo. So people can pick whichever cover or number they like best. I'll be unveiling the three variant covers over the next three weeks! But as a tease, the Legacy Number Variant with the #120 on the cover is going to be an homage to a classic Infantino cover. You can read all about my thoughts on numbering in my latest project update: crimebustercomics.com/2019/05/23/the-numbering-question/

Completely anecdotal, but I've had a couple different people this week on Facebook mention that they are just now going to see Endgame in the theaters this week for the first time.

Very nice haul! I particularly like the Heart Throbs #89 and #92. I have a #89 on the way to me right now as part of an ebay lot, but #92 is a favorite cover that I have yet to track down.