Nifty Presents - Anti-War Comics!

The Unknown Anti-War Comics is a tome I wanted the moment I saw it. The books that come Craig Yoe's operation can vary in quality, but this looked to be one that offered a wide range of material. I was a bit disappointed in that we have basically two types of stories here -- classic war yarns and vintage sci-fi stories. I don't object either and I don't object to seeing them together I just expected a bit more variation.

That said, what do get are two issues of a weird little book called Never Again, which is spot on with the theme of the collection. The comic just had two issues, with work by Ross Andru among others -- the offbeat thing is the two issues are numbered one and eight. These are Charlton comics, so numbering is always eccentric to say the least.

The majority of the collection is old-fashioned sci-fi tales and pretty good ones too, the kind with lots of ready space travel and twisty endings. It's neat to see a collection with so much of Bill Molno's work in it, as he's often seen as a hack and most of the time gets no mention when his stuff is reprinted. Other Charlton mainstays like "Nicholas Alascia" (two guys -- Charles Nicholas and Vince Alascia), Sal Trapani, and Dick Giordano are represented.

The collection closes with what might be Charlton's most famous single story -- "Children of Doom" by Denny O'Neil and Pat Boyette. It's a weird and wack view of a war-torn future, one  in which mankind is not necessarily the winner. This is a fun collection, but maybe a western or a romance thrown in to make the collection feel a bit more well-rounded.

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