EYES ON GIANT-SIZE TWO-FISTED MANLY TALES #1
The Giant-Size Two-Fisted Many Tales are courageous tales of men in action by the greatest action/adventure writers and artists in comics.
Giant-Size Two-Fisted Many Tales contain ten stories about leaders, defenders, and protectors, stories we don’t hear about often. Being a leader, defender, and protector is something to be proud of. A leader with principles and morals, a defender of the people and the land, and a protector of the most vulnerable, females, children, and the elderly.
THE BOOK AND CREATIVE TEAM
Giant-Size Two-Fisted Many Tales is a hardcover book with matte-coated cover card stock with spot varnish to make images pop. The book contains over 100 full-color pages of action and adventure with matte/satin finish interiors.
The book contains 10 stories by Chuck Dixon, Mike Baron, Beau Smith & Tim Rozon, Kevin Greviouix, Graham Nolan with artwork by Michael Golden, Butch Guice, David Williams, Andrew Paquette, Larry Stroman, Roberto Castro, Dan Lawlis, Kelsey Shannon and more. Main cover art by Michael Golden and variant cover art by Dan Lawlis with colors by Michael Watkins.
The crowdfunding project for Giant-Size Two-Fisted Many Tales was led by Graham Nolan. Graham Nolan is a veteran comic book writer, artist, and publisher and the recipient of the prestigious Inkpot Award for his contributions to the comic arts. He is the co-creator of the iconic Batman villain “Bane”, the creator of “Joe Frankenstein”, “Monster Island”, “The Chenoo”, “Sunshine State”, and “Alien Alamo”. Currently, he is working with his own publishing company Compass Comics Inc.
THE STORIES
Giant-Size Two-Fisted Many Tales contains ten stories about courageous men in action.
GURKHA ON A TRAIN
Gurkha on a Train is written by Mike Baron with art by Butch Guice, colors by Nanjan Jamberi, and letters by Carlos Mangual. It is the true story of a soldier returning home whose peaceful ride is interrupted by a gang of thugs.
VOLSUNG
Volsung is written by Chuck Dixon, art by Bart Sears, colors by Nanjan Jamberi with lettering by Carlos Mangual. Iceland was a hard land settled by hard men where even murder was forgiven if the proper price was paid in gold or goods. But a murder done without compensation must be paid for in blood! When men come seeking Einar, son to Hakon, he swears an oath to see them all in Hel before he parts with a single coin.
TRUE NORTH
True North is written by Beau Smith and Tim Rozon with art by Andrew Paquette and letters by Carlos Mangual. True North is a destination and definition of one man’s character and courage as he battles the elements, enraged wildlife, and communist land pirates in the 1955 Alaskan Territory.
I, LYCAN
I, LYCAN is written by Kevin Grevioux with art by Roberto Castro, colors by Nanjan Jamberi, and letters by Carlos Mangual. I, LYCAN is a horrifying tale where a werewolf/private detective keeps things in check as he takes on supernatural cases in a city where monsters dwell in secret.
CROSSING THE RUBICON
Crossing the Rubicon is written by Graham Nolan, art by Micheal Goldon, Colors by Micheal Watkins, and letters by Carlos Mangual. A trucker pulls into his favorite rest stop for a slice of pie and discovers it’s been taken over by a biker gang.
SCAB
Scab is written by Chuck Dixon with art by Larry Stroman, colors by Kelsey Shannon, and letters by Carlos Mangual. In the far future, a crew, mining deep into the heart of an asteroid uncovers a dormant alien life form that threatens to infect the entire colony. It’s left to wildcat gear jockey, Van Bodrie to stop the menace before it spreads.
NATE LEMON
Nate Lemon is written by Mike Baron with art by Dan Lawlis, and letters by Carlos Mangual. When sneering frat boys hassle the waitress at a tavern, the band swings into action.
HOPE IN HELL
Hope in Hell is written by Beau Smith and Tim Rozon with art by Andy Kuhn and letters by Carlos Mangual. Hope in Hell is the story of a town that had given up hope and then a stranger showed them how to stand up and fight. It’s a story of hope in a town gone to Hell.
BY THE SWORD
By the Sword is written by Kevin Grevioux with art by Frank Fosco, colors by Nikos Koutsis, and letters by Carlos Mangual. A man and his girl get abducted by a group of mercenaries in the jungle. All seems to be lost until his superpowers are activated.
BUCK THORNTON ALWAYS GETS HIS MAN
Buck Thornton always gets his man is written by Graham Nolan with art by Kelsey Shannon and letters by Carlos Mangual. Bounty hunter, Buck Thornton is dispatched to a mining planet to bring back thief, and pain in the ass, Tector Harrigan, but the Kryll (the creatures from Alien Alamo!) have other ideas.
FIRST IMPRESSIONS
The stories show the true nature of males when they are thrown into situations that made them act as leaders, protectors, and defenders.
IMPORTANCE OF MANLY TALES
Gurkha on a train shows the courage of a man standing up to protect the weak, the women, children, and the elderly. In one panel we one person asking god to make them go. Shortly after that a skilled young man, Corporal Bishnu, sprung into action but unfortunately was injured. In the end, he was lucky to be reactivated for a promotion, given two medals, and a silver-plated Kukri. In today’s world, his reputation would probably be destroyed on social media and he would probably be in jail. Regarding being injured and whether he would change what he did, he said he would do it again in a heartbeat.
“I am a soldier and get paid to protect citizens of this country. I could not sit back and watch as passengers were looted. I pulled out my Kukri and attacked the criminals.” – Corporal Bishnu (Gurkha on a Train).
In urgent situations, men need the assistance of women. In Volsung, the matriarch goes to extremes to help her son in a life-or-death situation. Most of the stories show how men with good morals and principles face difficult situations by choosing to stand up and fight. It’s the complete opposite of watching and filming someone weaker being attacked. Unfortunately, this is happening a lot in the age of social media where even men chose to just watch instead of intervening. It is sad to say but cowardice has been ingrained in many societies through pop culture and social media.
These tales are essential to show the role of a male being a leader, a protector, and a defender. Each tale has a message of standing up against a tyrant, protecting the most vulnerable, defending your home, do what is right which means men need to have a set of principles and morals that influence the decisions they make. Any society needs its protectors and defenders, those with the physical force to stop the enemy’s attack, the males. And any society needs its females, the strategists & caretakers, those with the brains to look for vulnerabilities, plan ahead, and continue the family legacy.
MALES AND FEMALES
The biological physical and psychological differences between males and females are fact. Females can be smarter than men but physically weaker which is why they have separate spaces when they are the most vulnerable. Imagine one unarmed female entering a closed room where he encounters three unknown men. Now let’s imagine a man entering a closed room with three unarmed women.
In both situations imagine the person entering is unarmed but is hostile. Who is the most vulnerable? The female is the most vulnerable in both situations. It seems like people don’t want to think about these scenarios but it’s necessary to discuss these things. Problems are not just going away because you ignore them, they become bigger and unmanageable.
THE CROWDFUNDING
When I decided to back the crowdfunding campaign, I chose two tiers, the tier with just the main cover book and the tier with a comic book pack containing old comic books signed by Graham Nolan. My orders came along with the stretch goals of the campaign and a thank you letter which is very much appreciated. Most of the comics in the comic book pack were Batman comics. These would be the first original DC Comics I now own.
The creator reports the status of the project on a weekly basis. For this project, I was well-informed about the status of the project on a regular basis which elevates my trust in the project and my confidence that the products will arrive. The expected waiting time to receive the book was as expected. The tracking number was timely delivered, and I had no issues receiving the books.
This would be the second crowdfunding experience with this creator. The first one “Alien Alamo” was a satisfactory experience. This time the customer service is just as great.
FINAL THOUGHTS
The ten Giant-Sized Two-Fisted Many tales are each told in a unique way, each with distinctive art making it more interesting to dive into each story. Choosing to lead with morality and accountability, and having the courage to protect and defend something with your life are choices to admire. Also having the courage to speak up against what is morally wrong is something to admire and encouraged.
As important as these manly tales are to remind us about male courage, having a strong spirit, leadership, sacrifice, and fighting skills, so are female tales about motherhood, having a caretaking nature, strategizing, planning, budgeting, and influencing. Male and Female tales are very much needed these days when the importance of both genders is undervalued.
Generally, most males can easily speak up, but some females have trouble doing so and when they do, they are belittled by other females and discouraged by males. What is the point in speaking up then if no one will support you? This is something that males and females need to learn especially when we are on the same side of the issues we are fighting for. We will not win if we don’t work together.
The crowdfunding campaign is closed but the book is now available at the Compass Comics website. Check it out!
Interested in more titles? Check more GRAPHIC NOVELS from the “EYES ON” series wherein I documented my experience with crowdfunding entertainment and shared my notes on the products I received.
My notes are all set. Let me know what you think.
See you on the next page!
