Randomly picking out comics from the eight inch high pile of comics I pull out two issues of the same title. It's the comic hit of the 1980's that introduced the comic world to The Wanderer. That's right this month I will be reading two issues of Groo. I have a friend that I met through writing for the Collector Times, Jess Willey, who every time we would chat on Facebook he would mention that I should read Groo. I guess that stuck with me because when I went to a sidewalk sale on Black Friday weekend last year, and saw copies of Groo in the quarter boxes I bought up as many as I could find; which was a large chunk.
Fast Fact: While I was doing some research for the comic and reading Mark Evaners Blog before I even read a single issue, I learned that the letterer on the title was the great Stan Sakai before he started doing his own comic 'Usagi Yojimbo'.
Before I get started with the reviews, I just want to say that most of the time I try a new or old series I like to start with the first issue. Again with online research I can get the first issues for about under $20 before shipping, but I did not know that then and when you are buying comics for a quarter apiece beggars can't be choosers. Also looking at prices of the last twenty or so issues they shoot up in price.
Fast Fact: When Groo was cancelled it had its last issue one month after the last issue of GI Joe in 1995.
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Sergio Aragonés Groo the Wanderer 4
Published by Marvel Comic's Epic Comics imprint June of 1985
Writer: Mark Evanier Pencils/Art: Sergio Aragonés
Cover Price: 75 cents Purchase Price: 25 cents
The cover has who I can only guess is the titular character doing a Jean-Claude Van Damme style split between a airship of some sort with women looking over the side and on the cliff side there are some sort of warriors with blades ready that are either going after Groo or trying to make their way onto the airship. The art is very simple on the cover, but seems to convey what is going on well. In the comic world these days more detailed drawings on comic book covers are getting to be a thing and it is hard to remember that more detail is not always better to get the point across. The corner box is my favorite part of the whole thing though, because when in a time where corner boxes were the same month-to-month Aragonés decided to put a new drawing in it. In this case Groo standing on the head of a dragon, sword drawn and looking ahead at what might be going on.
The Issue:
The story in the issue is simple enough. Groo happens upon an army of men in an airship taking a town's women for their own. The town being one of farmers does not know how to fight or get anything done without their women. Groo decides he's going to raise an army of his own with these farmers and take on the airship of warriors that have taken their women. As they all set out to chase the balloon they find another town whose women have been taken by the men in the balloon. Groo trains them and they join the army to fight for their women. They catch up with the balloon and Groo somehow makes it onto the balloon and to the warriors' fortress. After what could only be described as scenes out of a comedy action movie Groo rescues the women and they make it back to the gathered army and the men have their wives and daughters back. There's a rub at the end that is only hinted at in a line of dialog in the issue that reflects on what happens on the last page.
The Art:
Sergio Aragonés certainly owns his art style. Much like the cover everything is very simple and has just enough detail to let you know what is going on and who is who in the book. The men in the balloon that take the women look very different than the farmers and other men who have been conscripted to join Groo's army. It is nice to see some variation in the characters in a comic rather than everyone looking the same except with minor differences.
The Writing:
Mark Evanier writes a very funny story that would be good for kids today as well as from about thirty years ago. That is a good thing because he makes his living writing pretty much anything and making it funny while telling a story. There is a running joke about mulch throughout the first few pages that I am glad is not dragged out. That is the problem with some writers these days, they don't know when to end a joke and move on.
Overall:
Groo is one of those titles that I'm glad I found on the recommendation of a friend. Sometimes in a world of serious and dark stories you need something blithe and light-hearted to make you feel a little better. I don't know if Marvel printed any trades of Groo that you can find for a reasonable price, but if you see issues of it in a fifty cent or dollar box at a local convention then grab a few issues. They are well worth the money.
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Sergio Aragonés Groo the Wanderer 33
Published by Marvel Comic's imprint Epic Comics November of 1987
Writer: Mark Evanier Pencils/Art: Sergio Aragonés
Cover Price: $1.00 Purchase Price: 25 cents
The comic once again has the titular character on it only this time he is underwater and a ship is sinking in the background. Like the previous one, the drawing is simple yet detailed enough to let you know where they are and what is going on. Groo seems shocked that he is underwater with two fish looking at him. I can't imagine how much time Aragonés put into drawing the cover.
The Issue:
The issue starts with pirates raiding a village and taking everything that was of value. When they take off with their plunder, Groo all of a sudden appears and he has a dog with him. It seems that in the 29 issues that passed, somewhere along the line he picked up a dog. At least I hope it is a dog. Groo gets on a boat and takes off for the pirate's island. They fight and Groo bests the leader in combat which makes him the new leader. A king sends his army out to help the people of the village and the villagers tell them that the pirates took their things and the army heads towards the island. The army makes it to the island and burns down the pirate town while they are allegedly away looting somewhere else. The pirates take over the army's ship while they are burning the town and Groo goes to look for his dog. Groo finds his dog and then goes to fight the king's army. Groo gets the army to run one way and then up to the hills when they see their ship has been taken over. The pirates then set sail to finish what they started. The king sends a second legion of soldiers to retake the town. Meanwhile Groo has to decide what to do, and being somewhat simple minded that decision is hard to make so he just attacks.
The Art:
Again Aragonés art style is on full display here. Everyone looks different and the pirates look like pirates and not just the Johnny Depp pirate from Pirates of the Caribbean either. The king's army looks a lot like the Spanish Conquistadors that came to the Americas looking for gold and other things back a few centuries ago. It is a nice callback to Sergio's heritage.
The Writing:
What I like about the writing in this issue and the one I reviewed up top is that they seem to be easily converted to a cartoon without trouble. I guess that is what all those years of writing for Garfield/Garfield and Friends taught Evanier. Where did the dog come from? Maybe that will be covered in an earlier issue I will read. I like the insights into what the dog is thinking although there is one line I find kind of disturbing even though I'm pretty sure it was meant to be funny. The running gag about Groo in this issue is that every time he gets on a boat it somehow sinks. It is mentioned at least a couple times a page early on in the story and is not run into the ground.
Overall:
Another fine issue; it is fun and it shows that unlike issue number four the stories are not all self contained. I can't wait to see if I pull another couple of issues for April as well.
Thank you for stopping by and clicking on the link. Come back next month and see what I have to say about two more random issues of comic books from The Stack.
