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Post by Hoosier X on Aug 16, 2014 16:37:31 GMT -5
I went to the library and got a new batch of black-and-white reprints.
I got Showcase Presents: Justice League of America, Volume Two, reprinting JLA #17 to #36. This included the first two JLA/JSA team-ups, which I've read before, but the rest of it is new to me. I see a Queen Bee story, it may be the first Queen Bee story. (Yay!) But I read the first story in the volume last night and I'm a little concerned about just how bad this might be. Silver Age DC can get pretty bad, and some of this looks ... dire. I may comment on some of these, but I'll revive the JLA Appreciation Page for that.
And I got The Essential Captain America, Volume Three, reprinting Captain America #127 to #156. I haven't read very many of these. It looks like a lot of Gene Colan, John Romita and Sal Buscema art, so YAY! But there's also a stretch of Mike Friedrich as writer, so BOO! It ends with the Steve Englehart storyline about the Cold War commie-conking Captain America of the 1950s, so YAY! I read the first story yesterday. Wally Wood inks Gene Colan's pencils. WOW! Also, I flipped through it and there's M.O.D.O.K., the Red Skull, the Kingpin, Batroc, the Scorpion, Mr. Hyde and probably the Red Skull again at least twice. This should be fun.
And then there's The Essential Defender, Volume Two, with Defenders #15 to #30, several issues of Giant-Size Defenders and some Marvel Two-In-One. I read the first few stories, including Defenders #15 and #16, where the Defenders are contacted by Professor X and they go and fight Magneto and the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, in this case the Blob, Unus the Untouchable, Mastermind and Lorelei. I love the ending, where Alpha turns Magneto and the rest of the bad guys into babies! That is hysterical! I remember there was a flashback in X-Men (about #112, IIRC) about Magneto regaining adulthood, but I think it would have been cool if there was at least one story about the Nursery of Evil Mutants, but that's more of a 1960s DC thing. Too bad! I've read a handful of the stories in this volume, including both the Marvel Two-In-One issues and the Wrecking Crew issues of The Defenders. I'd forgotten how much I love the Hulk calling Dr. Strange "Magician." I think Val is "Sword-Girl" and Nighthawk is "Bird-Nose." |
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Post by Spike-X on Aug 17, 2014 1:08:59 GMT -5
I've been having a blast reading the Zot! Complete Black & White Collection. I still have all but one of the issues in a box somewhere, but it's been many years since I've read them, so I've forgotten most of it. McCloud's stories range from big goofy fun to deadly serious, and they still stand up really well today.
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Post by impulse on Aug 18, 2014 16:47:26 GMT -5
Sigh. I missed the good conversation on Fables while I was traveling last week. I don't really have much new to add, though. Up through the resolution of the adversary arc, it was absolutely brilliant, and then it just..lost something. I think Wilingham never established a new driving force to the narrative and it showed. It's still enjoyable compared to a lot of other stuff, but it is nowhere near as good as it once was. I was a little sad when I heard they were wrapping it up, but mostly nodded. It's time.
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Confessor
CCF Mod Squad
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Post by Confessor on Aug 19, 2014 7:06:20 GMT -5
I read Marvel Premiere #54 featuring "The Coming of Celeb Hammer" the other night. I assumed that this western comic was going to be Marvel's attempt at a Jonah Hex type character, especially since sometimes Hex artist and inker Tony DeZuniga provides the inks for this issue too. But the anti-violence, troubled man of lost-faith that is Celeb Hammer is a markedly different character from Jonah Hex and quite an interesting idea for a western comic.
Unfortunately Hammer's only Bronze Age appearance is a real mess. There are way to many flashbacks interrupting the flow of the story, some unexplained feats of strength that annoyingly leave the reader wondering whether Hammer does or doesn't have super-human abilities, and confused characterisation that has Hammer breaking his own "no guns" code of conduct within pages of first stating it, apparently without hesitation or remorse.
Yeah, a real mess of an issue, which is a shame because the Gene Day artwork is really quite nice. I definitely won't be keeping this one in my collection though.
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Aug 19, 2014 23:13:14 GMT -5
More Fun Comics #74  I bought this a few years back for only $20, believe it or not. The cover was partially torn off and taped on to a copy that had clearly once been coverless. It's the kind of copy only someone who buys comics to read them could enjoy, and I consider myself very lucky for having picked up this historic issue, not just because I have a thing for the early More Fun Comics issues, but also because this one features the second appearances of Green Arrow and Aquaman, as well as the first appearance of Percival Popp. Spectre: Introducing Percival Popp, the Super Cop Script: Jerry Siegel ? (GCD's best guess. Cei-u! believes it was Gardner Fox) Pencils: Bernard Baily Inks: Bernard Baily Colors: ? Letters: ? Not as bad a story as I expected. The creative team is still utilizing the Spectre in incredibly creative ways and not allowing the new comic relief to dominate. Instead, Percival Popp creates an interesting counterbalance to an otherwise ghastly hero and premise. I'd always expected to find this first appearance a lot more distasteful. Important note: The narration refers to The Spectre as "The Dark Knight" at one point. Apparently, Batman hadn't yet cornered the market on that title. Green Arrow: Silent City Script: Mort Weisinger Pencils: George Papp Inks: George Papp Colors: ? Letters: ? I'd always heard that the early Green Arrow was just a rip-off of Batman, but it couldn't be more evident here. He and Speedy are almost interchangeable with Batman and Robin. The big difference being that the Green Arrow feature is positively obsessed with projectiles, even having Arrow launch himself from a canon at one point (stealing Bulletman's gig, eh?). Also, Green Arrow's answer to the newly debuted Batmobile is his "Arrowplane" car, which moves at super speeds and can launch Green Arrow into the air via a spring-loaded platform within. Aquaman: Black Jack Script: Mort Weisinger Pencils: Paul Norris Inks: Paul Norris Colors: ? Letters: ? This is a pretty terrible story. For one thing, Aquaman's only powers appear to be super strength and (questionably) impressive knowledge of the ocean (which he uses at one point to realize that he can cut the ropes binding him with coral. Really??) Far more impressive, actually, is Blackjack, the arch nemesis introduced in this issue, who dresses like an olden days pirate and preys on the war machine at work in the World War. When asked if Aquaman will join Blackjack, our hero responds that the oceans should be free, as if that's a logical answer to all that Blackjack has just explained. Sure enough, Blackjack escapes and swears revenge, but whereas we all know who Aquaman is seventy three years later (and I have no idea why this is true), Blackjack has been lost to funny pages history. Johnny Quick: Dr. Clever Script: Mort Weisinger Pencils: Jerry Robinson Inks: Mort Meskin Colors: ? Letters: ? A superhero literally powered by the magic of math? Hard to imagine why this one wasn't a keeper. Oh, and his only power appears to be super speed. That's going to be pretty superfluous when DC acquires All-American and, with it, The Flash. Dr. Fate: Mr. Who Lives Again Script: Gardner F. Fox Pencils: Howard Sherman Inks: Howard Sherman Colors: ? Letters: Howard Sherman Whereas most of the features in this issue look pretty much the same, Sherman's work on Dr. Fate is positively eye-catching. Fate's cape always billows dramatically, the inking is deep and expressive -- it's just beautiful to look at. Fate himself is a pretty shameless rip-off on Superman here, and he wisecracks with exactly the same personality as every other hero in this book, but the mystic angle surfaces in minor ways and makes the feature somewhat refreshing. Fate can see things through crystal balls, fly (Superman could do this, but most other heroes couldn't), and use a mysterical ring as an early warning system, akin to Peter Parker's Spider Sense. For the Golden Age, it's pretty impressive stuff. But maybe best of all is an ad for Baby Ruth, advertising that it's "rich in Dextrose food-energy sugar" and even having a doctor (Allan Roy Dafur, MD) certify this. |
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Aug 20, 2014 0:53:23 GMT -5
More Fun Comics #74. Johnny Quick: Dr. Clever Script: Mort Weisinger Pencils: Jerry Robinson Inks: Mort Meskin Colors: ? Letters: ? A superhero literally powered by the magic of math? Hard to imagine why this one wasn't a keeper. Oh, and his only power appears to be super speed. Because DC doesn't already have a character who does that. Actually they kind of didn't. All-American Publications had the better known speedster, The Flash. But at the time National Periodicals and All-American had not merged into one company. |
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Aug 20, 2014 4:54:17 GMT -5
More Fun Comics #74. Johnny Quick: Dr. Clever Script: Mort Weisinger Pencils: Jerry Robinson Inks: Mort Meskin Colors: ? Letters: ? A superhero literally powered by the magic of math? Hard to imagine why this one wasn't a keeper. Oh, and his only power appears to be super speed. Because DC doesn't already have a character who does that. Actually they kind of didn't. All-American Publications had the better known speedster, The Flash. But at the time National Periodicals and All-American had not merged into one company. I'd forgotten this, especially since William Moulton Marston is listed as a staff member for DC right on the first page of the book. Thanks for clarifying. |
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Post by Cei-U! on Aug 20, 2014 7:40:48 GMT -5
Two quick notes here: Spectre: Introducing Percival Popp, the Super Cop Script: Jerry Siegel ? As I discovered while researching my Alter Ego article, the Percival Popp era of the Spectre series was mostly scripted by Gardner Fox, not Siegel. whereas Batman is still driving around a red sedan at this point, Green Arrow has a custom built "Arrowplane" car which moves at super speeds and can launch Green Arrow into the air via a spring-loaded platform within. Nope. The classic Batmobile debuted in Batman #5 (Spring 1941), four months before the debut of Green Arrow in More Fun #73 (November 1941). Cei-U! I summon the Golden Age lore! |
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Aug 20, 2014 8:10:09 GMT -5
Two quick notes here: Spectre: Introducing Percival Popp, the Super Cop Script: Jerry Siegel ? As I discovered while researching my Alter Ego article, the Percival Popp era of the Spectre series was mostly scripted by Gardner Fox, not Siegel. Siegel was the GCD's best guess for this issue. I've noted your dissenting opinion in the review. Apparently, even researching before I post isn't enough sometimes. I misread an article on the history of the Batmobile. Thanks for the clarification. |
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Daryl
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Not NOT Brand Echh
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Post by Daryl on Aug 20, 2014 8:22:42 GMT -5
And then there's The Essential Defender, Volume Two, with Defenders #15 to #30, several issues of Giant-Size Defenders and some Marvel Two-In-One. I read the first few stories, including Defenders #15 and #16, where the Defenders are contacted by Professor X and they go and fight Magneto and the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, in this case the Blob, Unus the Untouchable, Mastermind and Lorelei. I love the ending, where Alpha turns Magneto and the rest of the bad guys into babies! That is hysterical! I remember there was a flashback in X-Men (about #112, IIRC) about Magneto regaining adulthood, but I think it would have been cool if there was at least one story about the Nursery of Evil Mutants, but that's more of a 1960s DC thing. Too bad! I've read a handful of the stories in this volume, including both the Marvel Two-In-One issues and the Wrecking Crew issues of The Defenders. I'd forgotten how much I love the Hulk calling Dr. Strange "Magician." I think Val is "Sword-Girl" and Nighthawk is "Bird-Nose." I'm in the middle of my modest collection of Defenders issues right now, including several from that era. I love this team. Gerber knocks it out. I just finished my handful of issues up to #50. The whole Scorpio/Zodiac storyline is amazing. |
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Post by paulie on Aug 20, 2014 10:17:52 GMT -5
I went to the library and got a new batch of black-and-white reprints.
I got Showcase Presents: Justice League of America, Volume Two, reprinting JLA #17 to #36. This included the first two JLA/JSA team-ups, which I've read before, but the rest of it is new to me. I see a Queen Bee story, it may be the first Queen Bee story. (Yay!) But I read the first story in the volume last night and I'm a little concerned about just how bad this might be. Silver Age DC can get pretty bad, and some of this looks ... dire. I may comment on some of these, but I'll revive the JLA Appreciation Page for that.
And I got The Essential Captain America, Volume Three, reprinting Captain America #127 to #156. I haven't read very many of these. It looks like a lot of Gene Colan, John Romita and Sal Buscema art, so YAY! But there's also a stretch of Mike Friedrich as writer, so BOO! It ends with the Steve Englehart storyline about the Cold War commie-conking Captain America of the 1950s, so YAY! I read the first story yesterday. Wally Wood inks Gene Colan's pencils. WOW! Also, I flipped through it and there's M.O.D.O.K., the Red Skull, the Kingpin, Batroc, the Scorpion, Mr. Hyde and probably the Red Skull again at least twice. This should be fun.
And then there's The Essential Defender, Volume Two, with Defenders #15 to #30, several issues of Giant-Size Defenders and some Marvel Two-In-One. I read the first few stories, including Defenders #15 and #16, where the Defenders are contacted by Professor X and they go and fight Magneto and the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, in this case the Blob, Unus the Untouchable, Mastermind and Lorelei. I love the ending, where Alpha turns Magneto and the rest of the bad guys into babies! That is hysterical! I remember there was a flashback in X-Men (about #112, IIRC) about Magneto regaining adulthood, but I think it would have been cool if there was at least one story about the Nursery of Evil Mutants, but that's more of a 1960s DC thing. Too bad! I've read a handful of the stories in this volume, including both the Marvel Two-In-One issues and the Wrecking Crew issues of The Defenders. I'd forgotten how much I love the Hulk calling Dr. Strange "Magician." I think Val is "Sword-Girl" and Nighthawk is "Bird-Nose." Wally Wood inking Colan was stunning. Fantastic stuff.
If memory serves, there isn't a single bad story in that Defenders volume.
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Post by paulie on Aug 20, 2014 10:18:32 GMT -5
And then there's The Essential Defender, Volume Two, with Defenders #15 to #30, several issues of Giant-Size Defenders and some Marvel Two-In-One. I read the first few stories, including Defenders #15 and #16, where the Defenders are contacted by Professor X and they go and fight Magneto and the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, in this case the Blob, Unus the Untouchable, Mastermind and Lorelei. I love the ending, where Alpha turns Magneto and the rest of the bad guys into babies! That is hysterical! I remember there was a flashback in X-Men (about #112, IIRC) about Magneto regaining adulthood, but I think it would have been cool if there was at least one story about the Nursery of Evil Mutants, but that's more of a 1960s DC thing. Too bad! I've read a handful of the stories in this volume, including both the Marvel Two-In-One issues and the Wrecking Crew issues of The Defenders. I'd forgotten how much I love the Hulk calling Dr. Strange "Magician." I think Val is "Sword-Girl" and Nighthawk is "Bird-Nose." I'm in the middle of my modest collection of Defenders issues right now, including several from that era. I love this team. Gerber knocks it out. I just finished my handful of issues up to #50. The whole Scorpio/Zodiac storyline is amazing. Yes. Defenders 1-50 and the Giant-Size issues are pretty damn good. |
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Post by Hoosier X on Aug 20, 2014 12:28:11 GMT -5
More Fun Comics #74 Some Golden Age comics are truly golden. While others are pretty dire.
I have some of the Millennium editions of More Fun (#73 with the first Green Arrow and Aquaman, and the one (#100? I think) with the first Superboy). The Percival Popp story in the later issue is pretty bad. It's kind of annoying to read the earliest Spectre stories and then to see how bad the Spectre got before he was canceled relatively early in the Golden Age. Same with Dr. Fate. It's easy to see why they were dumped from the JSA so early on, their Silver and Bronze Age popularity notwithstanding.
I like the first Aquaman story (which I first read in the 1970s when I got hold of an issue of the first Secret Origins series), but I haven't read many other Aquaman stories from that early. I always find it kind of amazing that Aquaman lasted as long as he did without a supporting cast, without any connection to Atlantis. I guess he had an octopus that he talked to. How far back does that go?
Early Johnny Quick looks pretty bad, judging from the very few times I've seen it reprinted, but Johnny Quick lasted WAY into the 1950s, almost all the way to the first Silver Age Flash, and I've seen later Johnny Quick stories (from the 1950s) with much better art and more intriguing stories. Fun fact: Johnny Quick's series went on for years after the demise of the Golden Age Flash!
Golden Age (and early Silver Age) Green Arrow seems like a mixed bag. I've read some good ones and I've read some bad ones. Have you ever seen the one with the bad guy who makes ropes his crime theme? It's hysterical! I think it might be an intentional parody of the themed villains in the Batman comics. And those Kirby Green Arrow stories are pretty awesome, but I don't think they are technically Golden Age.
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Aug 20, 2014 12:36:27 GMT -5
Johnny Quick lasted WAY into the 1950s, almost all the way to the first Silver Age Flash, and I've seen later Johnny Quick stories (from the 1950s) with much better art and more intriguing stories. Fun fact: Johnny Quick's series went on for years after the demise of the Golden Age Flash! Wow. I did not know this. |
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Post by Cei-U! on Aug 20, 2014 12:37:50 GMT -5
I like the first Aquaman story (which I first read in the 1970s when I got hold of an issue of the first Secret Origins series), but I haven't read many other Aquaman stories from that early. I always find it kind of amazing that Aquaman lasted as long as he did without a supporting cast, without any connection to Atlantis. I guess he had an octopus that he talked to. How far back does that go? Topo doesn't appear until Adventure Comics #229 (October '56). Early Johnny Quick looks pretty bad, judging from the very few times I've seen it reprinted, but Johnny Quick lasted WAY into the 1950s, almost all the way to the first Silver Age Flash, and I've seen later Johnny Quick stories (from the 1950s) with much better art and more intriguing stories. Fun fact: Johnny Quick's series went on for years after the demise of the Golden Age Flash! Ah, but most of the '40s JQ stories are drawn by Mort Meskin, sometimes inked by Joe Kubert, which makes them favorites no matter how bad the stories are. Cei-U! I summon the factoids! |
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