We get another bonus edition of comic book ads this month! For the third installment this month I’m going with a favorite comic of mine, Hawk & Dove. The last edition featured Hawkworld, I’m thinking I have a weird obsession with hawks.
Hawk & Dove was created by Steve Ditko, who created a couple other superheroes you might know, Spider-Man and Dr. Strange.
Hawk & Dove
The first appearance of Hawk & Dove was in 1968 and they were brothers. They’d fly around the DC Universe for the next twenty years before getting a new series. In 1988 Hawk and Dove Volume 2 hit the market as a five issue mini-series.
The mini-series, drawn by up-and-coming artist Rob Liefeld, re-introduced Hank Hall, the original Hawk and a new partner. Much to the chagrin of the crew over at Wizards Podcast, the Hawk and Dove mini-series was the breakout role for Rob Liefeld, thrusting him to greatness.
In the new version of Hawk & Dove, Dove was no longer Hank’s brother, or a man. It was Dawn Granger. Hawk and Dove make more sense as a male/female team. The yin and yang of a Hawk and Dove seem to play better with a male and female.
After the mini-series, Hawk and Dove received their own monthly title starting in June 1989. The monthly title ran for 28 issues ending in October 1991.
Hawk and Dove issue 25 was the beginning of the end for the comic. Not because it was unpopular, no it came down to bad writing on the summer crossover event Armageddon 2001. You can read my rant about the bad decisions made by the writers on the Armageddon 2001 post.
Issue 25 begins Hawks slide into madness, an upcoming murdering spree and the end of the comic. Hawk and Dove could have continued for years, but alas, it wasn’t meant to be. Issue 25 featured a star studded cast of artists. You can see the list at the end of the post.
What ads are in Hawk and Dove? I’m sure they’re great, let’s find out.
Beetlejuice
It’s showtime!
Beetlejuice the movie is a great movie. I saw it the week it came out with my mom. We had moved halfway across the country and I knew no one. We’d go to a movie together once a month for some bonding time and so I didn’t have to go to the movies alone. In March 1988 the movie of choice was Beetlejuice.
I’m not sure my mom liked the movie as much as I did. I enjoyed the craziness of Beetlejuice and the general weirdness that is Tim Burton. I don’t recall what else was playing in the theater at the time, but it must have been slim pickings if my mom agreed to see Beetlejuice.
Beetlejuice was a huge success which opened paths to other media including the 1989 Beetlejuice Animated Series (which is also great) several video games and even a Broadway musical!
The video game in this ad is for the Nintendo. Unfortunately for the game it was no where near as great as the movie or animated series. By the way, when did we get so fancy that cartoons became animated series?
Even this ad is better than the game. A nice shot of Beetlejuice sitting on the house, it’s really just the movie poster with a description of the game next to it.
The screen shots look good and the description sounds like a fun game. But overall the game didn’t make a big impact like the movie. It was a ho-hum addition to the Beetlejuice franchise.
Fun Fact: The 1988 movie Beetlejuice is directed by Tim Burton, stars Michael Keaton with music by Danny Elfman. The trio would work together again in 1989 for the blockbuster movie Batman!
You can play Beetlejuice for NES at RetroGames.com
Cracker Jack
I love Cracker Jacks!
What’s not to love, Sailor Jack and his dog Bingo, Caramel-coated popcorn and peanuts and a free prize. Cracker Jack’s were an integral part of summer growing up. Watching Harry Carey sing ‘Take Me Out To The Ball Game’ during the 7th inning stretch, you know the words “…buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jack’s,” was a staple of summertime.
This snack is part of America, it’s in baseball’s anthem! Tearing open the top of the box and rummaging through the popcorn trying to find the prize. Which was usually a mini-pinball game or a sticker or a little figurine.
This ad features Topps miniature baseball cards in a Cracker Jack box. This isn’t the first time Cracker Jack put baseball cards in a box. The tradition dates back to 1914 when they included Cracker Jack baseball cards in the box with players from the Major Leagues.
Cracker Jack’s and baseball go hand in hand. In the 1980’s Cracker Jack sponsored the ‘Old-Timers Game’ every July. The game featured retired players enjoying the game of baseball. In the 1982 inaugural game 75-year-old Hall of Fame shortstop Luke Appling hit a home run off 61-year-old Hall of Fame pitcher Warren Spahn. Good times.
In 1997 Frito-Lay/PepsiCo bought Cracker Jack and have been ruining it every since. Today they snack is sold in plastic bag, not the iconic cardboard box. And the prizes have been replaced with QR Codes for who-knows-what. Ugh.
Fun Fact: In 2013 the New York Yankees stopped selling Cracker Jack’s at home games in favor of the inferior Crunch ‘n Munch. There was such backlash from the public the Yankees brought Cracker Jack back to the stadium. Yet another reason to hate the NY Yankees!
Score Football Cards
This ad is ugly. You can see the quality (or lack of quality) in the paper used for this comic. The Cracker Jack ad is bleeding through.
While I collect all brands of cards I have my favorites. Topps, the gold standard in Baseball (or any sport) cards, held the top spot for years. Then in 1990 I bought my first pack of Upper Deck cards and Topps slide into the second spot.
Below the second spot I didn’t have a preference. Score, Fleer Donruss, Pinnacle, they all held the spot below Topps and Upper Deck.
16th Annual Chicago Comicon
I’d never go to Chicago for a Comicon. I don’t even go to Chicago to visit my sister! Unlike Sinatra, It’s not my kind of town.
The featured guests include Chris Claremont who created Excalibur and New Mutants and worked on Uncanny X-Men and Wolverine. Claremont also created over three dozen X-Men characters! Including Rogue, Psylocke, Mystique, Sabertooth, Emma Frost and Kitty Pride to name a few.
Jim Steranko is best known for his work on Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. at Marvel Comics. He also created conceptual art for Raiders of the Lost Ark and Bram Stoker’s Dracula.
The ad at the bottom is for Twin City Books out of Burnsville, Minnesota. I traveled to Minnesota often in 1991, rarely to the Twin Cities though, it was usually to one of the 10,000 Lakes to catch a nice muskie.
There was a decent comic book store in my hometown at the time, I didn’t need to use a mail order system. Anything I wanted they had or could order.
Great Eastern Convention
Another convention ad. While it’s the Great Eastern Convetion, they are highlighting their West Coast appearance. All the other dates are on the East Coast.
Maybe I’ll go check one out, although the closest one is in Chicago and we already established I don’t (willing) go to Chicago. I have some fun, crazy unbelievable stories from Chicago. Those are best told on the After-After-hours podcast.
Back to the ad… I’ve been to most of the cities on the list (I’ve never been to New Jersey) but never when a convention was happening. The last official Great Eastern Convention took place in 1995. The 1996 event was canceled and replaced by the Big Apple Comic Con.
Write Right Now!
I love these pages with multiple mini-ads on them. This one is mostly for back issues of comics but there’s some nice ones sprinkled in.
Muscles? In 7 days! Check
Free Things for Kids. Check
Superheo Cartoons by Hanna-Barbera and Filmation. Check
I’d be up for the VHS of Laff-A-Lympics or Hong Kong Phooey.
Batman Full Circle
Now this is a good ad!
Batman Full Circle is the sequel to Batman Year Two. It is a one shot book featuring the return of the Reaper! Batman Year Two was a 4-part story spanning Detective Comics #575 – #578.
I own Batman Full Circle and remember enjoying the story, but for the life of me I can’t think of the details. Something about the Reaper coming back but it’s not really the reaper and Batman is caught and something, something, Batman wins!
Guess I need to dig it out and re-read the story. Either way I still love the ad and I’d buy the book from the ad alone.
Star Trek
We saw a basic Start Trek ad in the Hawkworld #12 edition. This one features two versions of the USS Enterprise, two Captains and two number ones…that sounds weird.
My opinion remains the same as in Hawkworld #12. However, I do like this ad better then the other one.
WCW Wrestling Nintendo Game
We saw this ad in Hawkworld #12 too. But this is a much better version. In Hawk & Dove the WCW game is featured on the back cover. In all its glossy colored goodness.
It’s a fun game. You should go play it now.
Star Studded Artist
That ends our bonus edition of Check Out Those Ads!, I think the Batman Full Circle wins best ad, but man, that Cracker Jack ad sure does bring back some great memories. Which one is your favorite? Let us know in the comments below.
Until next time, keep your comics bagged and boarded…unless you want to thumb through them to check out the great ads!
Check out the previous installments of
Check Out Those Ads!
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