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$1.50

Sheesh! I had no idea this fanzine has been published in one form or another since 1983. That’s gotta’ be some kind of record or something, doesn’t it? Anyway, this one is loosely themed around being the annual Halloween issue and it’s just as strong, if not stronger, than any of the others I’ve had the pleasure of sampling. Bryan Stroud contributes an article about masks that focuses on the Charlton era Blue Beetle. There are some very salient points made during this story about mask wearing cultists. I enjoyed the analysis of how a mask gives psychological power to the hero, and in turn has power over those he seeks to vanquish. There’s also an interesting point about Superman being considered “the first superhero” and wearing no mask, yet that trend surprisingly didn’t stick. Nick Caputo turns in a nice piece of what is almost investigative journalism and provides some evidence to clear up the controversy surrounding Ditko’s falling out with Stan Lee and subsequent departure from Marvel. He seems to have found a nice set of circumstantial timeline evidence that suggests the identity of the Green Goblin was not in fact the cause, despite persisting fanciful rumors in fandom. I also enjoyed the bit about Green Goblin being Spider-Man’s “Joker,” which is something I hadn’t considered previously. Jason Sacks tries to identify the weirdest Ditko story ever and makes a nice go at it with Tomb of Dracula Magazine #2. “The Dimensional Man” is a little ditty about “ritual rape by a Cthulu-like creature” from Ditko and Marv Wolfman. I like the description of the art washes, the notion of evil vs. evil, and the significance of the character named “Angela.” Ceylon Anderson provides an analytical review of “The Door To Yesterday” from Haunted #2, diving into the storytelling mechanics of a story written by Joe Gill that makes absolutely no sense, to the point that missing pages are suspected. As usual, this issue of Ditkomania is packed with diverse content; there’s a story by Rob Imes and Martin Hirchak, reviews, and letters galore. The project remains a clear labor of love and is probably the best pure fanzine around. Grade A.