Synopsis
Hal Weber, one-time crusading journalist, is summoned to Copper City by his old flame Rust after the death of her husband, mining magnate and political heavyweight Arthur "Buck" Masson. As editor of The Express, a newspaper with an anti-Masson stance secretly owned by Rust, Hal is drawn back to her even as he falls for her stepdaughter Audrey. The situation in Copper City soon literally becomes explosive, with Hal having to choose between Rust and Audrey, the bottle and his conscience, safety and the truth.
Notes
This digest-format early graphic novel is packaged like a paperback book rather than a comic book. There are no advertisements; the back cover describes the characters in the book; the inside covers are blank; the first interior page is a title page and the second a copyright statement page as in a typical book.
Historian Martin O'Hearn calls it the the "First (or Second) Modern Graphic Novel", but it depends on the definitions of "modern" and "graphic novel" one is using. (It is unknown whether this or Mansion of Evil (Gold Medal Books, 1950 Series) was released first)
Historian Hal Johnson calls it the "First American Graphic Novel", and his reasoning (and the earlier candidates he rejected) can be seen here: https://haljohnsonbooks.substack.com/p/what-is-the-first-american-graphic
Reprinted in
- It Rhymes with Lust #[nn]
- The Comics Journal #277— landscape format
- The Noir of Matt Baker #1
- Gwandanaland Comics #1388
Credits
- Script
- Arnold Drake, Leslie Waller
- Pencils
- Matt Baker
- Inks
- Ray Osrin
Ratings
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