I really enjoyed the delightful Cat & Mouse series, originally published by Silverline Comics and picked up by Aircel Comics soon thereafter. It was a bit of the Silver Age of comics. Roland (Arrow, Battletech) Mann quickly became a favorite writer of mine, along with the great art of Mitch (Green Lanter, Shi) Byrd. What first caught my eye was the fabulous Paul (Master of Kung Fu, Star Wars) Gulacy cover. The black & white series ran for 18 terrific issues.
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| Promo for the only Silverline Comics issue! |
Cat & Mouse #1
Silverline Comics only issue.
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| One of my favorite Paul Gulacy covers! |
Cat & Mouse #1
"A Game of Cat & Mouse"
Demon (Keith Greyson) gets mixed up with Cat (Jerry O'Neil) & Mouse (Mandy Paige),
thieves working for the Yakuza. Yakuza and Mafia are vieing for control
of New Orleans. The Mafia frames Cat & Mouse for the murder of a
cop. Learning the Yakuza knew about this and did not warn them, Cat
& Mouse 'quit' the Yakuza and go independent. Jerry also quits the
police force.
This story also serves as an origin for Demon.
Cat & Mouse #2
"Homecoming"
When the police fail to capture Cat & Mouse, the Yakuza call in Tooth & Nail.
Begins Steve Butler covers.
Cat & Mouse #3
"The Lady Wore Black"
Kunoichi, who trained Cat & Mouse, comes
by to warn them about Tooth & Nail being called in. Demon tries to
fight her. The individuals who will be trained to become Skull &
Crossbones are introduced.
Demon vs Kunoichi, Part 1.
Cat & Mouse #4
"Some Tails are Going to Roll"
Demon vs Kunoichi, Part 2.
Last Steve Butler cover.
Cat & Mouse #5
"Working 11 to 7 Really Makes Life a Drag"
Tooth & Nail work their way down a list, eliminating cops working for the Mafia.
Begins Mitch Byrd covers, for the rest of the series.
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| Another great cover from Mitch Byrd! |
Cat & Mouse #6
"What Is and Never Should Be"
Claude tries to talk Jerry into rejoining the police force.
Cat & Mouse #7
"Don't Lose Your Head"
Cat & Mouse search for evidence to clear themselves. Claude decides he wants out of the Mafia, and is killed.
Cat & Mouse #8
"Fight from the Inside"
Jerry decides to rejoin the police force. Demon begins investigating killings in his name.
Cat & Mouse #9
"Sight for Sore Eyes"
Cat confronts Rossman and reveals his identity to him. The newly trained team of Skull & Crossbones are given their names.
Cat & Mouse #10
"Take Hold of the Flame"
Cat prevents Tooth & Nail from eliminating Rossman, for now.
"Unofficial Observer"
Good and bad cops on a stakeout.
Cat & Mouse #11
"Into the Fire" Jerry is still trying to clear his name.
Rossman receives another visit from Tooth & Nail. Mandy and Keith
take in Mardi Gra.
Cat & Mouse #12
"Dead on Time"
Cat takes on Tooth & Nail to save Rossman's baby.
Death of Nail.
Cat & Mouse #13
"Good Times, Bad Time"
Jerry is in critical care in the hospital.
Keith tries to get Mandy's mind off of Jerry's condition. They take in a
live rock band performance.
Only issue not done by Mitch Byrd.
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| One of my favorite exotic covers in the series! |
Cat & Mouse #14
"Bullets to Spare"
Cat
attempts to steal the money needed for Jerry's medical bills. Champion
wanders the streets of Chicago. Rossman asks Cat for the bullets she
holds as evidence. He plans to testify against the Mob.
Cat & Mouse #15
"Keep Yourself Alive"
Rossman turns state's evidence against the
mob. The relationship heats up between Mandy and Keith. Champion is
hired to go to New Orleans.
Cat & Mouse with Demon illustration.
Sneaking in a fantastic Steve Butler cover!
Cat & Mouse #16
"Without Warning"Jerry's kidney's are failing, so Mandy asks
for Kunoichi's aid in obtaining a replacement. Tooth is hired to kill a
yakuza leader in exchange for a return engagement with Cat. Rossman is
shot, and believed killed, but he is quietly taken away to South Dakota.
Cat & Mouse #17
"Ridin' the Storm Out"
Kunoichi protects Kimimada from Tooth. Tooth
dies. Mr Ruggier brings in Champion from Chicago for an unstated
purpose. Kunoichi teams up with Mandy to protect Jerry, but Skull &
Crossbones get to him first. Demon seeks information about the cult of
Abaddon.
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| Terrific simple, athletic Mitch Byrd cover! |
Cat & Mouse #18
"This is the End"
Mandy and Kunoichi agree to kill Kimimada to
get Jerry back. Jerry gets his kidney transplant. Mandy chooses to go
back and investigate the hospital she got the kidney from. Demon and
Champion (out of costume) meet.
Adventure comics published further Demon's adventures in Demon's Tails #1. Written by Roland (Ex-Mutants, Eliminator) Mann with art by Paul (Guardians of the Galaxy) Pelletier. Missed this one, on my radar now. Love to read Ronald Mann again!
Two collections of Cat & Mouse were published. They reprinted the first eight issues of the Aircel Comics series. I believe I came across one of these books for my collection, but still missing one. Hmm.
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| Cat & Mouse Collection 2! |
This was a great series, fun, exciting, dynamic writing and fantastic art. I would highly recommend it, you'll probably find them in bargain bins. Good Times!
Live Large My Friends!
Thank You!
Never heard of this at all... Probably came out when I was out of comics. That cover to the Silverline issue is not very good: (1) gratuitous butt shot, (2) awkward angle chosen, (3) as Stan Lee demonstrated in How to Draw Comics, you should make it clear who the characters are unless there is some mystery guest star, but even then the hero(es) should be seen in such a way that you can tell who it is, (4) just poor composition all around with body parts meeting edges of background buildings and making it unclear if Cat is jumping or flying, etc.
ReplyDeleteCurious to read some of these if I ever see them on the cheap.
WOW! Imagine my surprise when searching the internet for a b&w image of DT#2 and I stumble across your blog. Very nice things you say about the series and the writing. Thank you very much.
ReplyDeleteFWIW, I've collected DT into a collection and I'm working on a reboot of C&M. Needless to say, this blog encourages me to work HARDER!
This has made my day--NAY, my WEEK--NEIN, my MONTH!
Thank you for taking the time to say so.
-Roland
Thank you for your generous comments! You made my month as well. Cat and Mouse was a breath of fresh air from the mainstream comics I read. I really look forward to new adventures!
DeleteSO...I forgot to come back here for the kickstarter for #1...but the kickstarter for Cat & Mouse #2, VOLUME 2 has just started. LOVE to have you peek at it--support it if you feel inclined. Happy to talk with you about it, too. :)
ReplyDeletehttps://tinyurl.com/y3c6sdcr