Tales of Supernatural Law [Paperback]

Batton Lash (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 30, 2005

Beware the creatures of the night -They have Lawyers! And these lawyers are Alanna Wolf and Jeff Byrd, Counselors of the Macabre. This collection is volume 1 in the Tales of Supernatural Law graphic novel series.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Alanna Wolff and Jeff Byrd are far from ordinary attorneys. In fact, these "counselors of the macabre" offer their legal services to a rogues' gallery of Hollywood monsters. In Lash's long-running horror/comedy series, even swamp creatures and zombies need lawyers. This collection of the first eight issues of the comic shines thanks to Lash's quirky art style , his knack for a good pun and the sitcom-like premise. Lash mixes genres capably, with few missteps and a pleasant, if not unsurprising, end result. The stories are peppered with silly character moments ("You serve zombies?" "We serve anybody."). Wolff and Byrd also manage to stand out amidst the mutants and monsters, with Byrd serving as a rather dopey foil to his sharp-witted partner. Supernatural Law serves as a refreshing respite from the pretentiousness that's found in mainstream comics these days. Like the best humor comics, Lash's collection proves to be more about fun—whether in the shape of a sultry supermodel or a ghoulish television host—than serious commentary. And that's far from criminal. (Dec.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Lash follows the previous Supernatural Law collections Sonovawitch! (2000), Vampire Brat (2001), and Mister Negativity (2003) not with new work but with some of the comic book's earliest stories. Don't complain. This is delicious stuff. Supernatural Law (ne Wolff & Byrd, Counselors of the Macabre) succeeded a strip regularly featured in the National Law Journal (indication that lawyers are people, too) when Lash decided to create stories as well as gags. Attorneys Alanna Wolff, she of the Hokusai-wave hair, and slightly portly Jeff Byrd represent monsters, specters, and other bumpers-in-the-night--and sometimes those afflicted by them. Such as washed-up creature-feature TV host the Biermeister, whose comeback is threatened by censorious "children's advocates." Such as star model Dawn DeVine, authentically spellbound to her wizard of an agent. Such as . . . but you get the picture. Wordplay that just won't stop, Lash's Archie-meets-the-Addams-Family drawing style, and a continuing cast of recurrent clients, fellow lawyers, and others ensure a steady stream of groans, shrieks, moans, and roars--of laughter. Ray Olson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Exhibit A Press; Second edition edition (September 30, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0963395491
• ISBN-13: 978-0963395498
• Product Dimensions: 10.4 x 7 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,733,930 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars LAWYERS HAVE NEVER BEEN THIS FUNNY, November 2, 2005

By 

Tim Janson (Michigan) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Tales of Supernatural Law (Paperback)

The husband and wife team of writer/artist Batton Lash and letterer/editor Jackie Estrada have been creating the hysterical adventures of supernatural attorneys Wolff & Byrd since 1979, first running The Brooklyn Paper and then in the National Law Journal. The pair established Exhibit A Press in 1994 where Wolf & Byrd have been appearing in their own bi-monthly comic ever since. Tales of Supernatural Law reprints the first 8 issues in the comic series that are sure to delight fans of classic horror and monsters.

In "Herbert has Risen from the Grave" the pair provide a twist on the famous horror story "The Monkey's Paw" by W.W. Jacobs as Wolff and Byrd find themselves having to aid a man beset by law suits from his reanimated dog Herbert. "Curse of the Were-house" the lawyers find themselves helping Byrd's old flame, Kim, who lives with her husband in a house by a former dabbler in the dark arts that built the home with wolfsbane...every full moon the house becomes haunted.

One of the funniest stories is "A Host of Horrors" about a bunch of down and out, and unemployed former horror film hosts who lost their jobs when righteous Dr. Forrest Bertrum led the government to crackdown on all things horror years early. A sardonic parody of the all too true crusade of Dr. Frederick Wertham's "Seduction of the Innocent" in the 1950's. This story, featuring classic EC Comics style lettering, finds the horror host, The Bier-Meister accused of stealing the body of Bertrum.

Fans of classic horror will love "It Stalks the Public Domain" as the proprietors of rival traveling horror/freak shows are each displaying the body of the supposed true Dracula. The story draws on House of Frankenstein using names such as Lampini, the character George Zucco played in that film, even recreating the scene where the stake is removed from Dracula's chest and he returns to life, clothes and all, and he is not happy about all of the pretenders! Just a hilarious story!

Cleverly written and with a cartoony, yet polished style of art, Tales of Supernatural is a blast to read, filled with monsters, innuendo and inside jokes. A true hit in the field of small press comics!

Reviewed by Tim Janson

4.0 out of 5 stars "Beware the Creatures of the Night: They've got lawyers", September 10, 2008

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Tales of Supernatural Law (Paperback)

"Featuring Wolf &Byrd, Counselors of the Macabre," The stunning amazonian Byrd and her round, wry, and nebbish partner Byrd are back, taking the legal cases that no-one else wants. Whether it's civil suits from the neighbors over an accidentally zombified pooch, zoning issues with a were-house, or civil rights for fungus people, readers can count on bad puns, loads of clever cultural references and fun poked at the expense of lawyers (always a popular gag) . The artwork has an indie comic vibe (without the ugliness that's usually associated with Crumb wannabes) and the author uses the black-and-white medium to good effect, creating a combination of Hitchcock + cartoon that perfectly captures the sensibility of the series. High school readers who enjoy horror with tongue-in-cheek humor will get a big kick of Lash's unlikely duo. Recommended, Kirsten Edwards, KCLS (Review originally published in the Sept 2008 issue of the WashRag)