SPACE GHOST VOL. 2 #3
DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT
STORY: David Pepose
ART: Jonathan Lau
COLORS: Andrew Dalhouse
LETTERS: Taylor Esposito
EDITOR: Joseph Rybandt
COVER: Francesco Mattina
VARIANT COVER ARTISTS: Jae Lee with June Chung; Bjorn Barends; Michael Cho; Francesco Mattina; Jae Lee
32pp, Color, $4.99 U.S. (September 2025)
Rated “Teen”
“No One Escapes... Tarko the Terrible!”
Space Ghost is a superhero character created by the American animation studio and production company, Hanna-Barbera Productions. The character first appeared in the Saturday morning cartoon series, “Space Ghost,” which was originally broadcast on CBS from September 1966 to September 1967 for 20 episodes. Space Ghost shared his television series with a second feature, entitled “Dino Boy in the Lost Valley.” Space Ghost was designed by cartoonist and comic book artist, Alex Toth (1928-2006), who created the character with Hanna-Barbera's founders, William Hanna (1910-2001) and Joseph Barbera (1911-2006).
In his original incarnation, Space Ghost was a superhero whose base of operations was a small world known as “Ghost Planet.” He fought super-villains in outer space with his teen sidekicks, Jan and Jace, and their monkey, Blip. His main weapons were power bands he wore around his wrists and lower arms; the bands fired off multiple energy beam-based attacks, including heat, cold, and force, to name a few. Space Ghost could also fly, survive in space, and turn invisible (his “Inviso Power”). He also had a space ship known as “the Phantom Cruiser.”
Space Ghost sporadically appeared in various comic book publications over a fifty year period. Dynamite Entertainment has just launched a new Space Ghost comic book as part of its licensing agreement with Warner Bros. Entitled Space Ghost Volume 2, it is written by David Pepose; drawn by Jonathan Lau; colored by Andrew Dalhouse; and lettered by Taylor Esposito.
Space Ghost Volume 2 #3 (“No One Escapes... Tarko the Terrible!”) opens 10,000 years ago and tells the tale of the Viking barbarian, Tarko the Terrible, and his seemingly icy end on a blood-soaked battlefield. Now, he is a frozen bauble belonging to the latest bad guy to be conquered by the Space Ghost and his assistants, Jan and Jace.
When the twin's estranged grandfather, Dr. Henry Contra, defrosts Tarko, disasters strikes! Once thawed, Tarko discovers a whole new world ripe for conquest. Can Space Ghost and his young charges stop this time-lost warrior from wreaking havoc upon the future? Or will our heroes find themselves among the newest victims of Tarko's savage blade?
THE LOWDOWN: Since July 2021, Dynamite Entertainment's marketing department has been providing me with PDF review copies of some of their titles. Space Ghost #3, Volume 2 is one that I have recently received, but it is not the first Space Ghost comic book that I have read.
Once again, I am really late with a review a review of Space Ghost Volume 2, so I'll keep it short. Writer David Pepose and artist Jonathan Lau continue the excellence they established in Space Ghost Vol. 1. They have mastered the standalone story in the first volume, and they are continuing that mastery with the new series, issue #3 exemplifies.
Pepose offers an axe-swinging sword and sorcery tale that blends the savagery of a Conan comic book with the a touch of Thor-Viking hell-raising. It all feels like a natural fit for Space Ghost, and the result is a rousing standalone tale. Lau's storytelling seemingly refuses to be confined to the page, all the better to depict the ferocity of Tarko's violence. Lau brings what I call a “rousing tale” and makes seem to jump off the page.
Andrew Dalhouse's colors set this tale of Tarko the Terrible on fire with explosive brilliance that dazzles with each fight. Taylor Esposito is still delivering classic comics font, perhaps making an argument that he is the definitive Space Ghost comic book letterer.
I highly recommend Space Ghost Volume 2, dear readers. Whether we are on time or late, we should keep reading it.
I READS YOU RECOMMENDS: Fans of Dynamite Entertainment's Warner Bros. comic book series will want to read Space Ghost Volume 2.
A
Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"
There is a Kindle edition of SPACE GHOST VOL. 2 #3 available at Amazon.
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