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Post by cellardweller on Dec 9, 2016 21:16:57 GMT -5
Hiya CCF members.
Just something I want to see opinions on, because I've seen a few on either side of this discussion.
Regarding the comic book series The Super Friends, do you consider this part of the DC continuity, or is it stuffed away somewhere on "Earth X" or something like that?
I know many fans are 'purists' and want their characters created in the books. Wendy, Marvin, Zan & Jayna were created for TV, and then found their way into the comic universe.
I've always had the opinion that SF was part of the DC continuity, because of the conversations, references, and events that took place in the pages.
In issue #7, the twins arrive on Earth and are greeted by Wendy & Marvin. W & M mention they are the only ones around, that Robin is with the Teen Titans and the other heroes are with the JLA. This statement is followed by a citation of issue numbers, referring back to the stories in those specific titles.
In issue #14, Bruce Wayne is having dinner with Sandor Fane, Grant Arden, Ginger O'Shea, Jeanine Gayle, and Crystal Marr (later as the Elementals). Bruce excuses himself from dinner, and goes out on patrol. This leads to some light gossip at the table as to who Bruce may be seeing. One mentions that Bruce seemed to take it hard when Silver St. Cloud turned him down.
In an issue of Superman Family, a story takes place in the bottle city of Kandor, and throwback hero TNT is seen. TNT was put into the bottle city in Super Friends #12.
In DC Comics Presents #46, Superman teams up with the Global Guardians. He recognizes them as he worked with them in Super Friends 7-9 and 45 & 46.
In Brave & The Bold, they reference Sinestro not having his yellow power ring, which was destroyed in SF #46.
In JLA #155, Red Tornado references going fast enough to break the time barrier, which he had done once before. The bottom of the panel has the citation: "As told in Super Friends #8".
With all of these references and events, how could SF not be part of the pre-crisis continuity?
P.S. I'm strictly talking about the comic series, not the cartoon or any elements from the cartoon that did not appear in the comic.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 9, 2016 22:26:24 GMT -5
E Nelson Bridwell intended for the book to fit into the DCU. And he was a master at continuity. It was definitely written to fit into the Pre Crisis Earth One.
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Post by codystarbuck on Dec 10, 2016 2:10:55 GMT -5
I consider it Earth H-B. Bridwell wrote it to fit in; but, there are problems, like TNT and Dan the Dyna-Mite showing up. They were WW2 heroes, which means Earth-2, since Superman is the first hero of Earth-1. Since you have them together, it suggests an alternate world that has many elements of Earth-1, some of Earth-2, and some uniquely their own. Much like Earth-Haney.
I still think it's best to read those comics with Ted Knight's voice for the narration.
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Post by Cei-U! on Dec 10, 2016 8:41:56 GMT -5
I consider it Earth H-B. Bridwell wrote it to fit in; but, there are problems, like TNT and Dan the Dyna-Mite showing up. They were WW2 heroes, which means Earth-2, since Superman is the first hero of Earth-1. Since you have them together, it suggests an alternate world that has many elements of Earth-1, some of Earth-2, and some uniquely their own. Much like Earth-Haney. This is incorrect. Earth-Two does not automatically equal the Golden Age, as I've explained in my CCF Guide to Earth-Two threads (and in various articles in the All-Star Companion and Alter Ego). Superman was not the first hero of Earth-One, though he was its most famous. He was preceded by (among others) the Earth-One versions of Zatara, Manhunter, Robotman, The Guardian, The Vigilante, Air Wave... and TNT and Dyna-Mite. Yes, Roy Thomas intended to eventually establish in the pages of All-Star Squadron that all those heroes emigrated from Earth-Two but that would've created more problems than it solved. The E1 Guardian, for instance, was the cousin of the E1 Speedy, as the E1 Air Wave was Hal Jordan's cousin. And to answer the original question, yes, I consider Super Friends (the comic book) to be part of Earth-One continuity. Cei-U! I summon the Hall of Justice! |
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Post by cellardweller on Dec 10, 2016 10:16:01 GMT -5
Interesting posts on both (or various) sides! Keep them coming!
I think it's interesting that a number of Aquaman fans feel that SF ruined Aquaman by the way he was portrayed. I feel the same way about the Twins. There's almost no way people will take them seriously due to the cartoon, but in the comic they were more competent and useful.
If Beast Boy/Changling were not around, I could easily have seen Zan & Jayna in New Teen Titans.
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Post by cellardweller on Dec 10, 2016 10:16:50 GMT -5
I still think it's best to read those comics with Ted Knight's voice for the narration.  |
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Post by Chris on Dec 10, 2016 15:01:04 GMT -5
As noted above, Super Friends was written by E. Nelson Bridwell, and he was indeed the master of continuity. A case can be argued that he was even better at it than Roy Thomas.*
In an issue of Superman Family...
Superman Family was edited by ENB. No doubt he either had Gerry Conway add that bit, or wrote it in himself.
In DC Comics Presents #46...
Written by ENB.
In Brave & The Bold...
Don't know which issue that was or who wrote it, but I don't think ENB ever had anything to do with that book. But it might be during the time Paul Levitz was editor on the book - he was kinda big on continuity.
In JLA #155...
Written by Conway again, edited by Julius Schwartz... who had an assistant named ENB who helped him keep track of continuity.
Bridwell was almost an entire continuity unto himself.
I always liked the idea that all these stories like Super Friends kind of happened "off to the side." If you were reading the main books like Action Comics and Superman, you usually didn't need to know about the other books like Superman Family and Super Friends. But if you also read those books, you got some extra fun out of them.
* And like Thomas, had a tendency to go overboard with it.
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zilch
Full Member
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Post by zilch on Dec 11, 2016 21:47:06 GMT -5
Yes and No. 'Lemme 'splain....
IMHO, events paralleling those events took place on Earth-One, but not with Wendy, Marvin, or the Wonder Twins. The term "Super-Friends", i believe, are never used outside of that title and the four (with their animal sidekicks) also never appear outside of that title. I like to think that it occurs on Earth-B (as a collective groan arises from the crowd), replacing our Justice League of America with an older set of heroes that are parents to the Super-Sons.
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Post by mikelmidnight on Dec 12, 2016 12:43:06 GMT -5
I've always assumed that the Super Friends title takes place on Earth-12 (home of the Inferior Five), although some of the stories depicted there also occured on Earth-1, in untold tales of the Justice League.
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Post by Hoosier X on Dec 12, 2016 13:53:08 GMT -5
I'm expecting The Brave and the Bold #117 in the mail any day now. And I started wondering how many different DC continuities are represented in this single comic. Here's the cover: A Batman and Sgt. Rock team-up! Well, that puts it in the Haneyverse. (Or one of the Haneyverses. I'm sure there's more than one.) And a Viking Prince story! Is that Earth-1 or Earth-2? About a thousand years before the appearance of Superman. I'm going to say Earth-1, but I'm keeping an open mind on all of my guesses. A 1952 Green Arrow story! That's an easy one. I think. Earth-2. I think. Secret Six #1! Also an easy one. I think. Earth-1. And a 1960s Blackhawk story. The Blackhawks had moved to DC a few years earlier, so I think this can pretty safely be called an Earth-1 story. I think. So I come up with three different continuities from this issue. But I've only read one 1960s Secret Six story and one or two Viking Prince stories. And I'm not sure I've ever read a 1960s Blackhawk story. Nope, I've never read a Sgt. Rock/Batman team-up. (I'm looking forward to it!) I'm a little more familiar with 1950s Green Arrow - but not much. So if anybody wants to disagree, I'd be ecstatic to hear the reasons. Maybe there's some events or dialogue somewhere that indicates that (for example) the 1960s Blackhawks were in their own little universe. All comments welcome! |
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Post by Prince Hal on Dec 12, 2016 14:00:53 GMT -5
I'm expecting The Brave and the Bold #117 in the mail any day now. And I started wondering how many different DC continuities are represented in this single comic. Here's the cover: A Batman and Sgt. Rock team-up! Well, that puts it in the Haneyverse. (Or one of the Haneyverses. I'm sure there's more than one.) And a Viking Prince story! Is that Earth-1 or Earth-2? About a thousand years before the appearance of Superman. I'm going to say Earth-1, but I'm keeping an open mind on all of my guesses. A 1952 Green Arrow story! That's an easy one. I think. Earth-2. I think. Secret Six #1! Also an easy one. I think. Earth-1. And a 1960s Blackhawk story. The Blackhawks had moved to DC a few years earlier, so I think this can pretty safely be called an Earth-1 story. I think. So I come up with three different continuities from this issue. But I've only read one 1960s Secret Six story and one or two Viking Prince stories. And I'm not sure I've ever read a 1960s Blackhawk story. Nope, I've never read a Sgt. Rock/Batman team-up. (I'm looking forward to it!) I'm a little more familiar with 1950s Green Arrow - but not much. So if anybody wants to disagree, I'd be ecstatic to hear the reasons. Maybe there's some events or dialogue somewhere that indicates that (for example) the 1960s Blackhawks were in their own little universe. All comments welcome! VP teamed with Rock in the mid-60s in OAAW. Guessing that it is Earth-1. BUT... the first Rock-Batman team-up was supposedly meant to be on Earth-2 (no yellow bat emblem, Bruce quite young in 1944 or whenever it was set, etc.), so there may be an Earth-2 Rock as well. Blackhawks of the 60s were the eventual "Junk-Heap Heroes" and the JLA popped in to that famous issue to be snarky to the 'Hawks, so that's Earth-1. |
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Post by mikelmidnight on Dec 13, 2016 12:37:25 GMT -5
There appear to be Blackhawks on Earth-1, Earth-2, and Earth-X (the last of which were killed).
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Post by tingramretro on Dec 13, 2016 15:58:17 GMT -5
There appear to be Blackhawks on Earth-1, Earth-2, and Earth-X (the last of which were killed). The Earth-X Blackhawks were revealed to have migrated there from Earth Two in All-Star Squadron #50. |
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