Legal Action Comics Volume One [Paperback]

Dirty" Danny - editor Hellman (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: the Dirty Danny Legal Defense Fund (2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0970936303
• ISBN-13: 978-0970936301
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,142,512 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Should be Better, November 5, 2001

By 

Jonathan Schaper (Melbourne, Australia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Legal Action Comics Volume One (Paperback)

This book was put together in order to fund the defence of cartoonist Danny Hellman whose freedom of speech is being attacked by the subject of a harmless satirical e-mail (cartoonist Ted Rall) via a $1.5 million libel suit. Hellman created his satirical e-mail as a response to Ted Rall's accusations, published in the Villiage Voice, that Art Spiegleman is some sort of dictator who controls the cartooning industry in New York (apparently Rall reserves greater freedom of speech for himself).

Considering that the contributers include Doug Allen, Gary Leib, Sam Henderson, Johnny Ryan, Michael Kupperman (AKA P. Revess) etc. (see above for some more impressive names), this anthology should be a lot better than it actually is. Unfortunately, much of the book is taken up by reprints from publications that are likely already owned by anyone interested in this book. The Allen and Leib work is mostly reprinted from Idiotland, the Doucet is from Idiotland and Dirty Plotte, most of the Millionaire is from Dirty Stories Vol. II, etc. Also, most of these reprints are not even the various artists' stronger works. As for the new stuff, when it isn't taking (often funny) stabs at Ted Rall, it tends to be lightweight and silly. For example, James Kolchalka has a series of useless one page stories about a frog getting an erection while looking at various inanimate objects (like a phone), and many others are dumb stories about "Dirty" Danny Hellman playing (neither real nor realistic) pranks. Thus most of the strips by, e.g., Sam Henderson (normally a hillarious cartoonist) are just plain stupid.

There is enough standout material (e.g. Michael Kupperman's strips (although for some reaons they print one of his really short strips twice) and Johnny Ryan's) and it is for a good enough cause that it is definitely still worth getting, but most fans of its fantastic lineup will be disappointed. Ultimately, this book reminds me of one of the Small Press Expo's annual anthologies: thick and worthwhile, but still very hit and miss.

0 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars pretty dumb humor, August 15, 2008

By 

timothy hohn (minneapolis) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Legal Action Comics Volume One (Paperback)

Unless you find reading a book full of dumb masturbation and boner comics entertaining, I would skip this one. There are many better comic books out there which pertain to more intelligent topics. I would normally sell a book which I don't want, this one I choose to burn, as I don't want anyone else wasting their time and money on it.