Tabloia

    (Salt Peter, 2005)
™ and ©

It’s obvious Tabloia’s creators (“True Tales for the Sophisticated Pseudo-Intellectual”) had fun creating this anthology comic book by way of supermarket tabloid. The fun is infectious, although, sadly, none of this issue’s four tales manages to sustain the humor beyond its first few pages.

They get props for the attempts. The Lump starts with an amusing nod to the preface of Universal’s 1931 Frankenstein. “Dick Hammer, Conservative Republican Private Investigator” is not nearly as one-sided as its title suggests, poking fun at the left as well as the right. “Doctor DeBunko” is a droll send-up of naysayers of the supernatural.

My favorite tale is “Spluhh! The Thing Who Burst from an Exploding Volcano!” which draws inspiration from the monsters Jack Kirby used to draw for Tales to Astonish and other pre-Marvel universe titles. They even got Dick Ayers to ink this one.

Add a trio of splendid pin-ups by Mike Allred, Tom Yeats, and Gene Colan to the mix and you have a pleasant comic book which delivers a few laughs and shows promise.

— Tony Isabella
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  • 572
    #572
    Cover: $3.95
    W: Chris Wisnia  ·  A: Various
    Actually issue #1
    1 copy for $2.98
  • 573
    #573
    Oct 2004
    Cover: $3.95
    W: Chris Wisnia
    Issue #2
    1 copy for $6.99
  • 574
    #574
    Jan 2005
    Cover: $3.95
    W: Chris Wisnia
    2 copies from $7.99
  • 575
    #575
    Apr 2005
    Cover: $3.95
    W: Chris Wisnia
    2 copies from $4.00
  • 576
    #576
    Jul 2005
    Cover: $5.95
    W: Chris Wisnia  ·  A: Dick Ayers
    Extra-Special 48-Page Giant; B&W
    2 copies from $5.95
  • 580
    #580
    Dec 2006
    Cover: $2.50
    W: Chris Wisnia  ·  A: John Severin, Dick Ayers, Sam Glanzman, Russ Heath
    Collecting stories from Tabloia #214 & #232; B&W
    1 copy for $9.99
  • 581
    #581
    Jan 2007
    Cover: $2.50
    W: Chris Wisnia  ·  A: Chris Wisnia, Dave Gibbons, Albert B. Feldstein, Peter Baffe, J.H. Williams III
    Collecting stories from Tablioa #172 & #181; B&W
    1 copy for $4.98
  • 582
    #582
    Aug 2007
    Cover: $11.95
    W: Chris Wisnia  ·  A: Chris Wisnia, Dave Gibbons, Albert B. Feldstein, Peter Baffe, J.H. Williams III, Shag, Mike Allred
    Collects Doris Danger Greatest All Out Army Battles #1, Doris Danger in Outher Space #1
    1 copy for $9.50