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Post by Deleted on Jul 26, 2016 11:46:42 GMT -5
There were 12 stories scattered from World's Finest Comics #215 to #263. (1973-1980)
9 were by Bob Haney & Dick Dillin. One by Haney & Curt Swan. One by Haney & Ernie Chan. One by Denny O'Neil & Rich Buckler.
Only 3 stories mentioned the rest of the DCU. One co-starred Robin. Another had Flash & Green Arrow. And a third featured Luthor.
They were...unique.
From #198-214 World's Finest was a Superman team up book written by a variety of creators. With #215 Boltinoff became the editor & returned the book to Superman/Batman team ups. Bob Haney became the regular writer.
Here is a preview of Haney's dialog:
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Jul 26, 2016 12:22:50 GMT -5
I've never actually read these. Did they have any relation to the Batman II and Robin II imaginary stories that ran in Batman back in the late '50s?  |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 26, 2016 12:26:40 GMT -5
I've never actually read these. Did they have any relation to the Batman II and Robin II imaginary stories that ran in Batman back in the late '50s? Not at all. Haney rarely paid attention to past stories. |
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Jul 26, 2016 12:37:45 GMT -5
Wait... Batman is Santa Claus?
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Post by Deleted on Jul 26, 2016 13:22:28 GMT -5
 Saga of the Super-Sons. The first page shows the sons of Superman & Batman in coffins as Superman, Batman & their veiled wives mourn over them. Then we flashback to Clark Jr talking to his Dad on a payphone when a biker gang breaks into the community center where Jr is making the call. A sample of Haney's dialog: " Talking to your chick? Naw a straight clown like you breaks out just thinking of dolls. Sorry this rap is over!". Jr starts fighting the gang & suddenly Superman appears. Jr runs away. Then Alfred is waking Bruce Jr in the panel I showed in an earlier post. Bruce lectures Jr about wasting his time when the TV news shows him Jr dressed as Batman fighting a criminal. Bruce becomes upset & Jr leaps off the roof & gets away. Then Clark Jr & Bruce Jr meet to complain about their fathers who are listening in thru a bug Alfred planted on Bruce Jr! The dads decide to test their sons to see if they are worthy & thru incredibly bad comic book science Superman creates a duplicate Sparta City. He then "tricks" the sons to arrive in the duplicate city. Over the next few days the sons wade thru the rampant crime in fake Sparta City until they are killed by the head criminal Krugge. The Dads go to check on their sons & find them dead! Batman blames Superman for creating the fake city & their deaths. Then Krugge is haunted by the sons ghosts. They reveal they never died. Clark Jr used his Kryptonian half to fake being in suspended animation & Bruce Jr used a drug that caused the same effect. Krugge runs away & accidently kills himself. Then the boys & their dads meet up & the sons are mad at their dads because none of it was real. However the dads reveal the real Krugge died of a heart attack at the same time. The sons leave their dads behind to "find some laughs". |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 26, 2016 13:31:20 GMT -5
Where do you start with how bad this story was? Both the dads & the sons are unlikeable. The contrived test that is created is just cringe worthy. The explanations gave me a headache. I would have been 10 years old when I first read this. I guess I liked it then because I kept buying World's Finest. Wow...
At least Dick Dillin's art was good. |
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Jul 26, 2016 13:43:51 GMT -5
Where do you start with how bad this story was? Both the dads & the sons are unlikeable. The contrived test that is created is just cringe worthy. The explanations gave me a headache. I would have been 10 years old when I first read this. I guess I liked it then because I kept buying World's Finest. Wow...
At least Dick Dillin's art was good. I'll get into the story when I get home from work and have the story handy. But while i like Dillin a lot, the inking on that story was pretty bad. Bruce Jr.'s torso in that panel you posted earlier is crazy misshapen. I don't recall the name of the inker...someone I don't remember seeing before, but I really didn't think he helped Dillin at all in this story. |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 26, 2016 13:46:10 GMT -5
Where do you start with how bad this story was? Both the dads & the sons are unlikeable. The contrived test that is created is just cringe worthy. The explanations gave me a headache. I would have been 10 years old when I first read this. I guess I liked it then because I kept buying World's Finest. Wow...
At least Dick Dillin's art was good. I'll get into the story when I get home from work and have the story handy. But while i like Dillin a lot, the inking on that story was pretty bad. Bruce Jr.'s torso in that panel you posted earlier is crazy misshapen. I don't recall the name of the inker...someone I don't remember seeing before, but I really didn't think he helped Dillin at all in this story. Inker was Henry Scarpelli. |
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Post by MDG on Jul 26, 2016 14:44:56 GMT -5
I'll get into the story when I get home from work and have the story handy. But while i like Dillin a lot, the inking on that story was pretty bad. Bruce Jr.'s torso in that panel you posted earlier is crazy misshapen. I don't recall the name of the inker...someone I don't remember seeing before, but I really didn't think he helped Dillin at all in this story. Inker was Henry Scarpelli. Which is odd, since I think I've only seen Scarpelli do humor/teen art--never associated him with superhero/dramatic books. I'm guessing they needed this one inked in a hurry and Scarpelli was available. |
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Jul 26, 2016 15:40:21 GMT -5
Inker was Henry Scarpelli. Which is odd, since I think I've only seen Scarpelli do humor/teen art--never associated him with superhero/dramatic books. I'm guessing they needed this one inked in a hurry and Scarpelli was available. That's what I'm thinking too. The name honestly didn't mean a thing to me, so I Googled him after MD62 reminded me of the name. Maybe it's just a matter of him not being used to inking superhero books...or maybe his style didn't mesh well with Dillin. Either way it didn't work for me and I'm a long-time Dillin fan. |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 28, 2016 20:04:44 GMT -5
 Little Town with a Big Secret. The Super Sons ride into a town called Barstow. Barstow is a weird town. A child is told to behave or the Iceman will get him. A milk truck is filled with liquid nitrogen. A waitress starts crying about her dead boyfriend. Clark & Bruce get attacked while in the diner. Later a mile outside of town they change into Superman Jr & Batman Jr & go back into town. Superman goes to see where the milk truck went & Batman discovers no one has died in the last 4 years. They change back & get arrested. They are put in jail. They break out & Superman Jr discovers an underground missile silo where Barstow's missing people are in cryogenic capsules. When the Iceman attempts to freeze the waitress Supes Jr steps in. In one panel his powers as half Kryptonian are revealed. He can't fly. He can leap 100 miles. He is vulnerable to atomic weapons. He can only survive 3 days without air. He is frozen by the Iceman. Meanwhile Batman Jr finds out that an alien family had landed there & were living there until their ship can "autorepair itself by 1994". Because of the town's fear of them a struggle breaks out & the aliens are killed. One of the town people decides to freeze people until 1994 so he can take all of the spaceship's treasure for himself when it completes "autorepairs". However he has miscalculated & the spaceship has completed repairs & launches. Then Clark & Bruce thaw out everyone & the town returns to normal. They move on to their next adventure. |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 28, 2016 20:17:32 GMT -5
This story was a little better. I think because the dads did not appear so we avoid the inane arguments that plagued the first story. I was also surprised that Haney established some of Superman Jr's powers. Of course the whole premise behind the story was so contrived it felt silly but honestly Haney was not the only writer guilty of this back then. If I gave the first story a failing grade then I would give this one a C-.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 28, 2016 21:49:25 GMT -5
This is totally new to me and I seen a couple of stories and I never knew how these stories pans out. I would love these stories back then and I shoot myself in the foot for not reading them. This is kind of like a world that never existed and it's took me by surprise.
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Jul 28, 2016 23:02:49 GMT -5
Finally a smidgen of time to look at World's Finest 215 in some greater depth. Was supposed to have a trial yesterday. And next week is County Fair. Anyone who has had kids in 4-H knows what that means.
This came out three years before I bought my first comic. So I got this some time later as a back issue.
MD already did a synopsis...so I'll hit the highlights and lowlights...as I see them.
The fight between Clark Jr. and the motorcycle gang is, perforce pretty one-sided. The gang's language is pure Haney. Love the leader being "Big Alice." Ummmm...the place Junior is working is only blocks away from where Supes lives. He's as fast as the Flash. But the fight is over and the bikers gone before he can get there. Oooookay!
Batman, the world's greatest detective, couldn't tell that it was his son playing Batman and messing things up on TV...nor did he notice a rope line playing out from his apartment terrace. Some detective.
As MD points out, the "plan" to test the Super Sons is the most ludicrous type of pseudo comic book science I've ever seen. Really...this makes Silver Age Marvel science look Einsteinian. And it's absolutely unnecessary. Can't Supes just keep an eye on them and get them out of trouble? This is Bronze-Age God Superman.
The real problem here is that really none of the characters are likeable in any way. The boys are petulant and whiny. The fathers are simply awful. The mothers, if anything are worse...complete harpies. The plot is nonsensical...and not in a good way.
This is really a very dire story. Even Dillin's art, which I normally love, isn't well-served by Scarapelli's inks.
Back with the next issue when I have some time.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 29, 2016 7:14:07 GMT -5
^^^^Totally agree!
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