Mikael Lyck from Chronicle Chamber reviews Fantomen 10-11/2023 and Fantomen 12/2023 featuring the following stories:
"Belle époque, del 3: Under gatorna i Paris" ("Beneath the Streets of Paris") by Pidde Andersson and Percy Ochoa
"Märkt för livet" ("Marked for Life") by Jimmy Wallin and Anna Weatherley
"Kalabaliken på Gravelines" ("To Wrack and Ruin at Gravelines") by Tony DePaul and Mike Manley
"Kedjans länkar" ("The Links in the Chain") by Andreas Eriksson and Ivan Rodriguez
Fantomen 10-11/2023 features a nice bright cover by Luca Erbetta, with a lot of text all over it so we know there will be a lot of content inside.
On the editorial page we read about how Andreas and also Jörgen Karlsson was interviewed about their Fantomen work, always great with publicity for our hero in my opinion.
The first and main Phantom story of the issue is the Frew produced "Belle époque, del 3: Under gatorna i Paris" ("Beneath the Streets of Paris") by Pidde Andersson and Percy Ochoa in vivid colors!
We then have the side comic "Karl Kämpe" by Jörgen Karlsson and Rully Akbar, quite short but was really good. Another side comic is the first half of "Undertaker" by Xavier Dorison and Ralph Meyer, a great inclusion in this comic.
The final story in the comic is a short story titled "Märkt för livet" ("Marked for Life") by Jimmy Wallin and Anna Weatherley - this was a great addition and Frew have been reprinting them regularly in their comics as well.
Including in the comic, we get the result of best story. We have reviewed the results already at this link, however the winner is the Frew story about the "Origin of The Vulture's".
Ending the issue with the daily story "Kalabaliken på Gravelines" ("To Wrack and Ruin at Gravelines") by Tony DePaul and Mike Manley. I have mixed feelings about this one, not a real fan of "dream stories" but after reading the editorial piece by Tony DePaul which includes his explanation about it being the what if end story if the strip was to end, I think it is really smart. Editorials from creators maybe should be included more often.
Now to review Fantomen 12/2023 which features a great noir style cover by artist Rafael Ruiz. It is great to see him back drawing the Phantom.
The editorial page talks about the origin about how Andreas wrote the main story originally for Frew. Again I like these behind the scenes from the publishers and creators.
"Kedjans länkar" ("The Links in the Chain") by Andreas Eriksson and Ivan Rodriguez, this is a stand alone continuation of "The Missing Link" by Lee Falk and Sy Barry.
"The Links in the Chain" was originally first published by Frew in issue #1932 (2022) and the "The Missing Link" was last publsihed in the 2021 Fantomen Christmas Album.
The last comic is the concluding part of "Undertaker" by Xavier Dorison and Ralph Meyer. A nice ending to the story.
In the preview for the next issue we see two Phantom stories including a new and a reprinted Team Fantomen story.
Until next time, Happy Phantoming!
All Fantomen reviews will be included in our monthly X-Band: The Phantom Podcasts. You can find out more at our website and or subscribe to our YouTube channel for more videos. Thanks also goes to Jörgen Karlsson for his help creating the Fantomen review intro which will now be featured for all reviews by Mikael Lyck.
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