Let's Read: Hero Illustrated #1 (July, 1993)

If you've been following me around here for a while, you've probably noticed a few, uh, quirks, about the things I enjoy: studying Japanese, reading horror novels, playing video games and, as you've already guessed from the thumbnail, not just reading comic books, but reading about comic books. But I've got this problem.

Hi, my name's Michael, and I'm...a 90's comic book geek.

(Pssst...this is where you all nod knowingly and reply, "Hi, Michael!")

I'm not terribly proud of this fact, but I'm not ashamed of it either. It's just a facet of who I am drawn from when I grew up, and had the largest amount of disposable income. The bulk of my collection, then, is made up of 90's funny books. It means I'll never be able to retire off of them, but then that was never the point. I never understood the idea of buying comics without reading them. That doesn't mean nothing in my collection has (potential) monetary value, it just means the value I place on it for personal or sentimental reasons generally exceeds whatever arbitrary number eBay assigns to it this week.

---

Which brings me to the topic of this post: Hero Illustrated. Surprising as it may seem to those newly acquainted with the hobby, we used to have publications--genuine ink-and-paper affairs--devoted to comics. In the 90's, the three biggest and most well-known were Wizard, Previews, and Hero Illustrated. Of those three, Previews is the only one still going (it's the comic shop analog to GameStop's Game Informer, in that it only exists because it's a house organ of Diamond, the distribution giant of the field), with both Wizard and Hero Illustrated biting the dust in the interim. But while Wizard was the big daddy of the bunch, and managed to survive into 2011 thanks to diversifying into aspects of geek culture beyond comics, Hero Illustrated remained focused almost exclusively on comics and their creators for the duration of its three-year run until the inward collapse of the industry in 1996 took them off the newsstands.

For this post, I'll be reading through the entirety of Hero Illustrated #1 and offering up my brief thoughts and opinions on each feature, article, and facet of the magazine. If you want to follow along, feel free to dig out your old copy or grab an issue online for about $2 US. Who knows, if this gets enough attention, I might do the same for a few more issues...

Enough rambling. Let's go back to where it all started!

---

My first thought upon flipping through the magazine back when I was a kid in July of '93 was how much it reminded me of another publication of the era: Electronic Gaming Monthly. Looking at it now, I'm surprised I never put two and two together: Hero Illustrated looked like EGM because Steve Harris served as publisher, and his Sendai Direct Distributions distributed it under the Warrior Publications imprint. As befitting its time of publication, you can see the cover has a violet foil stamp design for the background. It was the 90's--like flannel, foil everything was 'in'. The cover itself is a Bernard Chang illustration of Doctor Mirage (center), Carmen Ruiz (the lady in purple/black tiger stripes in the lower right), and Master Darque (heavily tattooed nude dude at the bottom) from Bob Layton and Chang's The Second Life of Doctor Mirage published by Valiant Comics. Props to them for spotlighting a non-Marvel, non-DC book on the cover of their first issue.

Also, speaking of first issues, this one should give the reader an idea of just how massive the comics market was in 1993. Look back at the first issues of other niche publications and you'll see they're not very large. The first issue of Dragon Magazine, for instance, ran 32 pages. EGM's first had a scant 68 pages. GamePro number one clocks in at 60 pages. But Hero Illustrated's premiere outing is a whopping 180 pages front to back. I'm a glutton for punishment.

Let's crack that cover!

---

"The Publisher Speaks": Publisher Steve Harris welcomes us to the first issue of the mag, gives the mission statement of bringing you the best coverage and most accurate pricing info you can find, and teases with give-aways in this issue for #1 issues of The Incredible Hulk, Amazing Spider-Man, and Daredevil, and closes with the traditional "we're only as good as you help make us" plea for feedback, letters, etc...

"WHAT IT IS!!!": John Danovich, the editor, takes his page to explain what a groovy time the 90's are for comics, with more people reading than ever before. The magazine's mission is to reinforce the fact comics are meant to be read and enjoyed...so pay no attention to the price guide in the back, I guess?

"Letters to the Editor": Hopefully the letter column gets a better title. As it is, two readers write in to praise the preview and ask some questions. A third guy wins the 'Psycho Letter of the Month' with his suggestion that collectors slab key issues of their collection in Lucite to preserve their condition. The editor scoffs at the idea, but CGC's founding five and a half years later gives Bret Sondowski of Detroit the last laugh.

"MarvelVision": A two-page look at five upcoming Marvel books. Ghost Rider #41 and Spirits of Vengeance #14 both boast neon ink covers. Wonder Man #25's cover is multi-embossed! Quasar #50 has a Holo-Grafx foil cover! The seeds of the industry's downfall are already planted.

"Hero News": Batman's getting replaced by either Bane or Azrael. Daredevil's getting four new costumes. Todd McFarlane is everywhere. Marvel's packing game cards into select issues of their comics.X-MEN 2099 will be late. A woman got up and danced on the bar during Capital Sales Conference. One of these things is not like the others...

"Hero Reviews": Every month, the magazine wants to give attention to some lesser-known titles. This month, it's Malibu's Prime #1 and Hardcase #1; Now's Mr. T & the T-Force #1, Dark Horse's X #1, Dark Horse Comics #9, and The New Two-Fisted Tales #1; Image's The Unbelievable N-Man Ashcan, Bloodstrike #1, 1963 #2, and Pitt #1; Vertigo's The Sandman #50 and *The Geek #1; and DC's Lobo Annual #1. All get 'Good', 'Bad', and 'Ugly' ratings, with Rob Liefeld's Bloodstrike getting a big thumbs down, while Sandman and 1963 get (well-deserved) major props.

"Up And Coming": They aren't out yet, but they're coming soon to a comic shop near you! Far too many to list here, but the Batman/Grendel crossover as written and drawn by Matt Wagner pulling top-billing isn't surprising. Also an explanation of why Whilce Portacio's long-awaited Wetworks hasn't arrived yet.

"The Insider": Just as EGM had the pseudonymous Quartermann providing their industry gossip page, Hero Illustrated has 'Mystery Fan Boy' doing the same job here. Given the similar styles and that Harris was the man behind the Quartermann moniker, I've no problem guessing he's doing it here too.

"McFarlane Speaks Out": Whether you see him as an insufferable douche or the best in the biz, this interview with Image co-owner and Spawn creator Todd McFarlane is an enjoyable read. According to McFarlane, he was the richest guy in the comic world when he jumped ship to found Image, so it wasn't all about the money. Humblebrag, humblebrag.

"Brave New Worlds": Comic companies are pulling out all the stops to create new universes and new beings who inhabit them. Malibu's "Ultraverse" and Dark Horse's "Comics' Greatest World" are ready with Big Bangs of their own. Also teased is the Deathmate universe crossover, which winds up shipping so late and out of order it sets up the first major domino in the chain leading to the burst of the speculator bubble.

"Ashcan Comics": A short history of the ashcan issues, what they were, what they are now, and why you might be interested in collecting them. Now this is great stuff from contributor Gary Colabuono: historical pieces remain relevant no matter how old the magazine is, and this is a prime history lesson right here. Worth the price of the magazine alone.

"Is The Pen Worth More Than the Comic?": John Danovich asked a number of creators their thoughts on autographed books, the effect of a signature on the value of an issue, and if it makes a difference when fans ask for something personalized instead of just a quickly-scribbled name. This and the ashcan feature are both good reads, but seem strangely at odds with the mag's stated reason for existing in that they glamorize the collecting more than the reading. Still, you gotta please both sides of the readership.

"The Doctor Is In": Basically the cover story, as Frank Kurtz interviews Bob Layton about the creation, death, and resurrection of Doctor Mirage in a world where people are supposed to stay dead when killed. Knowing nothing of The Second Life of Doctor Mirage, this was an awesome piece, and I'm probably going to track down a few issues to see if it was as great as Kurtz says it was.

"Spotlight on: Savage Erik Larsen": Frank Kurtz has all the fun, interviewing Savage Dragon creator Erik Larsen who's a lot more down-to-earth than McFarlane ever was.

"The Hero Interview: The Uncanny X-Men": Oh God. A fictional interview of Marvel's mutants. Teenage me found this hilarious. Forty-year old me can only cringe at jokes about Psylocke's costume riding up her bum and Beast's angsty, loner nature. Pass!

"From Pencils to Inks: Mark A. Nelson": Preview of a coming regular feature by artist Mark Nelson, featuring shots of artwork he's done for Dark Horse, Vertigo, and other studios.

"The Rayzor's Edge": The pseudonymous 'Rayzor' drops leading-edge reports on geek-related cinema, replete with extra helpings of bad puns, awful analogies, and slipped release dates (a US Godzilla in 1994, anybody?). Also a list of the top five underrated films of all time (Buckaroo Banzai with Peter "Robocop" Weller is #4 if you care), and a look at what's coming from your favorite films including remastered and director's cut versions of Star Wars, The Abyss, Aliens, and Terminator 2.

"Quartermann's Power Play": Of course Hero Illustrated couldn't fail to tie-in with their sister publication. While the crossover demographic between gamers and comic enthusiasts is sizable, nobody bought Hero Illustrated for their film and video game coverage. While Sampson Night's interview with Bubsy creator and Total Carnage head Joel Seider is neat, isn't this why you guys have a magazine devoted to gaming already?

"Heroic Trading Cards": A quick look and small price guide for Marvel trading cards produced by Skybox and Toy Biz.

"Go Figure!": A report on the new action figures coming out this year, including figs from Star Trek: The Next Generation, Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers, Aliens, and Last Action Hero. At least some of these are kinda comic-related.

"Hot Hero Top 10": The ten best books, characters, or things coming your way in the near future. Of course they picked the Image/Valiant crossover Deathmate Prologue as #1. Face-palms incoming, y'all.

"Reader Top 10": Readers love X-Men, Spawn, Spider-Man, Batman, Wolverine, etc... Tell us something we don't already know. Oh, wait, Sandman is #3? OK, color me impressed.

"Reader Roundtable": Readers provide their answers to the questions concerning comics sealed in polybags (to open or not to open) and what one thing they would change in comics if they could. Attitudes on both span the spectrum. It's just like the internet, where everyone has an opinion, and that opinion is wrong.

"Industry Roundtable: Much more stable than the other entry, this one tasks a comic shop owner with answering an important question--in this case, how to acquire new customers and retain the ones we already have? Good question. Pat Brower of Graham Cracker Comics has a few ideas about taking advantage of opportunities in the market.

"Focus On Image": The only story bigger than Image Comics in the 90's was the Death of Superman, so here's a few more pages on Image comics, a look at what inflated prices you can expect to pay for some newer Image books on the collectors market, and the top 10 Image heroes/villains.

"Hero Price Guide": Forty pages of titles, ratings, and dollar amounts for both major and not-so-major books. Red entries are for books that are special for some reason (first appearance, character death, etc...). Clearly out of date, so don't use these to price your collection. Also remember, we believe comics are for reading, not collecting, but in case you want to collect for investment, here you go. --Eyeroll--

"Coming To Your Town": A list of upcoming conventions across the US slated for June, 1993. But...this is the July, 1993 issue...? I am confused. :)

"The Final Word": It just wouldn't be the premiere issue of a comics magazine without a guest editorial from The Man himself. Stan Lee looks back on the business, how much it's changed in the last three decades, and wonders where it all might be going. Spoiler alert: bankruptcy, Stan. It's heading towards bankruptcy.

---

So there you have it: Hero Illustrated #1 in all its glory(?). If you enjoyed this trip down memory lane, hit that Upvote button as hard as Doomsday nailed The Man of Steel. If you want to see more, leave a comment letting me know. And if you have loyal minions who like comics, folks like @retro-room and @cryplectibles, resteem away. Let's spread the word and have some fun with 90's history! Thanks for your support. :)