The Deadly Streets

 I belong to a Facebook group dedicated to Harlan Ellison. A regular thing there is to put up covers of Ellison books which group members have acquired. This morning I saw a version of The Deadly Streets which I really, REALly wanted:

Then I clicked on the image and found The Rest of the Story:

So THAT'S not happening. 

Meanwhile,  here are some other The Deadly Streets covers:

I think that's it. I used to have the Pyramid Books version...as well as the entire series of Pyramid Ellisons...but alas, most of them are gone now, sold for a pittance back in The Lean Years. 😫

The Holy Family

When Joe was younger, he was talking about the Holy Family and he began to name them: "There's Jesus Christ, Mary Christ, and Joseph Christ." Which is pretty logical, isn't it? Ever since then I've had this picture in my mind:

Warlord Alert!

I don't usually read World's Finest...but I had to pick up issue #51 today...

because those aren't just any old dinosaurs you see on that cover, those are Skartaris dinosaurs.  And if we're talking  Skartaris, we're talking The Warlord. 

This issue was just the introduction--getting Superman, Batman, and Robin into the Inner World, setting up the main conflict (war with the reptile people, who are running amok for no discernible reason), and introducing the bevy of beauties who hang out with Travis Morgan.

Hard to tell if this ride is going to be worth the cost, but as a moderately obsessed fan of The Warlord, I think I'm up for the 2 or 3 more issues that I anticipate landing. 

And hey...there's a reference to Edgar Rice Burroughs, too. Woot, woot!

Absolute Roy Harper

I picked up Absolute Green Arrow this morning. $4.99. 30 pages. No ads. Waitaminute. No ads? And did you say THIRty pages?

Interesting story. Pretty weird, but I'm ok with that. Green Arrow as homicidal maniac? I think I'm okay with that, too. Black Canary as former MMA star & current bodyguard for awful people. Yeah. I'll be back for issue 2.

And best of all...

THAT's what I'm talking about.

The Last of the Black Widowers

This morning, (May 20th, 2026) I finished reading Puzzles of the Black Widowers (the 5th collection) and immediately started The Return of the Black Widowers, the 6th and final collection. (And once again I am grateful for the Internet Archive, which provided me access to this book for free. I looked at used copies online and they ranged from the eyebrow raising $35 range to the oh my god $100 and more.)

I immediately saw some great bonuses in this collection. The introduction was written by Harlan Ellison, who has been with me since my teenage years. And the volume was edited by the most wonderful Charles Ardai, the Main Man at Hard Case Crime and the writer of some excellent novels, such as Little Girl Lost, Songs of Innocence, and Fifty-To-One, the first two of which were written under the pen name Richard Aleas. (Highly recommended!)

Also, there was a Black Widowers story written by Mr. Ardai. What a bonus. 

And speaking of Charles Ardai, in his introduction to this collection, Harlan Ellison refers to him as "the traitorous and untrustworthy Ardai...." He also calls him "heartless" and swears to get revenge on him...and refers to him as "the Beast" and "poltroon." Yowza. You've got to be SOMEbody for Harlan Ellison to lay into you like that...even if HE was just playing (which I assume is the case here).

This collection is an oddity in the series in that it only has six "new" Black Widowers stories by Asimov, and then eleven of the "best" stories from the previous five collections. My memory is bad enough that I think I should be able to re-read all of those stories with enthusiasm.

So let's go.