CLASSIC COMIC OF THE WEEK: Jonny Quest #13
Jonny Quest #13 was originally released on June 19, 1987.
By d. emerson eddy — As spooky season continues, I wanted to go back further to some of the comics that spooked me or creeped me out when I was a kid too, buried in stacks of genre books and comics. As an '80s kid, I was also enraptured by the bevy of half-hour toy commercials and by extension the Hanna-Barbera cartoons on Sunday mornings, including The New Adventures of Jonny Quest. It led me to occasionally picking up the Jonny Quest comic, including Jonny Quest #13 from William Messner-Loebs, Carmine Infantino, Adam Kubert, and Bob Pinaha.
I used to spend a fair amount of time in the summers at my grandparents' cottage on Lake Erie. While days were spent in the water, resting in the shade of a tree, or wandering around eating french fries from The Arbor in Port Dover, nights were spent mostly playing cards or reading. Especially if a storm managed to knock out television reception through the aerial. Jonny Quest #13 was perfect for those dark nights. The story of “Things That Go Bump in the Night” is a mix of classic Jonny Quest adventure and romantic ghost story, with Jonny and his father's ward—whose name is now often considered a racial slur, so I won't repeat it—investigating a mystery involving an old haunted mansion, a tragic love story, and pirate ghosts.
Messner-Loebs nicely throws in some nods to pulp horror authors and their influences in characters and a ship named for HP Lovecraft, Clark Ashton Smith, and Lord Dunsany as this tale weaves through discovering whether something supernatural is occurring or if the horror is just happening in young Jonny's head. For what could be considered a kids' comic, there are some genuine horror moments, with a monster attacking Jonny in a nightmare and a false Dr. Quest revealing a horrific face in a scene that reminded me of another of that year's horror yarns, the movie The Gate.
The artwork was provided by the legendary Carmine Infantino and a young Adam Kubert. Infantino's art here showed that he still had it, after a long career through DC and Marvel, drawing back on some of his days on Creepy and Eerie, to blend horror into a more animated style influenced by the Jonny Quest cartoons. Beautifully colored by Kubert, giving the ghosts a nice unearthly glow. It's still kind of weird to think of Kubert's early outings doing isolated color work (or lettering when he started on Sgt. Rock) before he broke out doing full line art of his own, but he shows himself a consummate comics artist, excelling at all aspects of putting together a comic. Pinaha provides some solid lettering throughout, providing some cursive script as well for a bit of variety.
Overall, Jonny Quest #13 by Messner-Loebs, Infantino, Kubert, and Pinaha is an enjoyable ghost story utilizing key elements of the cartoon's characters and story elements. It was a favorite when I was a kid and I find it largely holds up even now. The artwork from Infantino and Kubert alone is worth a look.
Classic Comic of the Week - Jonny Quest #13
Jonny Quest #13
Writer: William Messner-Loebs
Artist: Carmine Infantino
Colorist: Adam Kubert
Letterer: Bob Pinaha
Publisher: Comico
Release Date: June 19, 1987
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d. emerson eddy is a student and writer of things. He fell in love with comics during Moore, Bissette, & Totleben's run on Swamp Thing and it has been a torrid affair ever since. His madness typically manifests itself on Twitter @93418.
