Incidental Issues #1: Space Ghost edition!

When I was 10, and eBay was new, I bought 400 random comics for about $100. Since then, I’ve bought even more random comics at garage sales, etc. and I never read most of them. But now, I will read them all! Welcome to the premier post of Incidental Issues--Space Ghost Coast to Coast edition! 

Space Ghost Coast to Coast #9
Released: May 2000, by DC Comics
Original price: $1.99
IMHO: 5/5

Space Ghost has been one of my favorite shows since age 6; I remember buying these two comics at Walgreens, perhaps at the same time (but unlikely since they were released years apart). Issue #9 is REALLY good, revealing the first time Space Ghost met Zorak. The script was written by Andy Merrill (voice of Brak) and C. Martin Croker (Zorak's voice) drew pencils (with help from DC Kids veteran, Robert Pope). We fade in to see Space Ghost, Zorak, and Moltar looking at old photo slides (Space Ghost and Zorak went to the St. Louis Arch; Zorak carved his own face into Mount Rushmore). Then, Space Ghost remembers the first time he met his best pal/arch-nemesis, Zorak--plus his teen wards, Jan and Jace! Sometime in the 1950s, Space Ghost promised to babysit for his mentor, Space Hunter, who is going out for the night with his wife. Space Ghost and Blip Sr. (as it is revealed Blip from the cartoon was Blip Sr.'s son, whose father died after being hit by a train) must babysit the extra-young super-duo, Jan and Jace. Zorak takes revenge on Space Hunter for stealing his Ultimate Universal Power Orb and making it a decoration in the Space Hunter living room. Zorak and his army of Zoraks (once again, a nod to the old cartoon and more specifically a nod to how cheap Hanna-Barabara studios was in their recycling of character models) kidnap Space Hunter. So, Space Ghost must stop Zorak by punching him. It's pretty funny, there's some good jokes, and the drawings are nice. The story ends for an excellent Brak-up...the weird cat monster reprints a childhood comic, drawn in crayon, about going to the store on a horse to buy milk. The book's last page parodies the old ads that tricked kids into buying/selling plant seeds, but these Space Ghost seeds are evil and promise to grow into mind control flowers. Really weird idea...Overall, a very satisfying comic. 

Space Ghost Coast to Coast #13
Released: November 2002, by DC Comics
Original price: $2.25
IMHO: 4/5

In issue 13, Space Ghost finds a lucky penny in a pay phone. This leads to good luck for the superhero/talk-show host like, getting an extra wanton in his Chinese food, drinking the last soda, and surviving a shot to the face with a flame thrower. Eventually, Brak gets ahold of the penny and buys licorice with it and Zorak blows up Space Ghost’s spaceship (which doesn’t seem to bother him since he can teleport). Overall, the mediocre story allows room for silly visual gags, like this one

The main story is only 14 pages long, which gives room for a glorious 8 page Brak backup. Brak decides to start his own talk show with merely a microphone (so a podcast, basically), but everybody gets mad at him because he’s weird, kind of autistic, and always breaks things. Space Ghost schedules Anti-Matter Man, a reformed space criminal, to appear on the talk show. But, when Anti-Matter man comes to the studio, Zorak mocks him for no reason so he blasts him with anti-matter rays (fitting punishment). Really goofy stuff. Overall, this issue is not as good as #9, but there’s still some choice gags. Like revealing that Space Ghost irons his cape while still wearing it:

Overall, these are quality kids comics. I’m always on the lookout for more Space Ghost books (in fact, I’m bidding on some now with nickmartinlovescomics@ebay.com).