The Puma Blues: The Complete Saga

Absolutely outstanding art by Zulli (The Facts in the Case of the Departure of Miss Finch) is just enough to outweigh the jabs at Reagan-era America in a reprint collection that’s very much the product of its era (the mid-to-late ’80s). Mixing televangelism, fears of nuclear obliteration, terrorism, corporate control, environmentalism, and even aliens, Murphy (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) and Zulli veer through a fever dream with recurring characters and themes. The visuals are eye-popping, whether it’s museum-quality depictions of animals (owls, pumas, and flying manta rays) or sequences such as a chase scene with a skeleton that’s driven entirely by the art. Zulli is up to the many narrative shifts, though the story is marred by casual misogyny (women are always sexual objects), dense, distracting text, and dated worries over the ozone layer. It’s a gorgeous work but probably of limited appeal to modern readers. (Nov.)