Obsessively putting our comics in chronological order since 1985.
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Howard the Duck #12-14
Issue(s): Howard the Duck #12, Howard the Duck #13, Howard the Duck #14
Cover Date: May-Jul 77
Title: "Mind-mush!" / "Rock, roll over, and writhe!" / "A duck possessed!"
Credits:
Steve Gerber - Writer
Gene Colan - Penciler
Stephen Leialoha / Klaus Janson - Inker
Review/plot:
Having been arrested last issue, Howard and Winda are sent to a mental institution. The Kidney Lady is able to convince the judge that she's sane and was an innocent bystander in the fracas that got them arrested.
Howard is legitimately having mental problems, hearing voices in his head.
Winda's parents believed that she was possessed by a devil. There's a power struggle going on at the hospital, between a Nazi-ish female nurse and a male psychologist who seems genuine. He happens to know Daimon Hellstorm so he calls him to investigate Winda's possession claims.
He says she has supernatural abilities but isn't possessed by a demon. Her powers manifest when she summons the band Kiss from a parallel dimenson in a gratuitous scene.
Then Howard winds up with Hellstorm's powers and Hellstorm has to hunt him down and stop him.
The director of the hospital ("Doctor Reich") turns out to be Adolf Hitler although i don't think he's the same one that got turned into the Hate Monger. (Update: See Luis' comment below. I think that's a bit of a retcon. I don't think Gerber was concerned with anything more than creating some absurdist metaphors.)
He makes an alliance with the Reverend Moon analogue from issues #5-7.
Definitely didn't enjoy these issues.
Quality Rating: C-
Historical Significance Rating: 1
Chronological Placement Considerations: N/A
References:
- Reverend Joon Moon Yuc was supposedly killed in Howard the Duck #5
Crossover: N/A
Continuity Insert? N
My Reprint: Essential Howard the Duck vol. 1
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Comments
Doctor Reich is supposed not to be Hitler, but an admirator and impersonator.
http://www.marvunapp.com/Appendix/drreich.htm
The title to #13 refers to the KISS album "Rock and Roll Over".
I'll probably regret asking this, but do you have any plans to include the Kiss comics in your project? I know Dr. Doom makes an appearance there, so it may be considered canon for your purposes. Or not.
It's listed on the What's Missing page so i consider it canon and i'd like to get to it eventually. But it's not going to be a priority for a while.
Trippy stuff. I think Gerber was by far the most original writer from the 70s.
I remember as a youth seeing that image of Howard with the cape, trident and pentagram, the "Drake of Satan"! It's like Donald Duck showing up in a Kenneth Anger film. At the same time this came out, I was a huge KISS fan, unaware of the shameless self-promotion tactics of Gene and Paul (much more for Gene, of course).
