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Post by coke & comics on Dec 21, 2019 19:43:42 GMT -5
4. G.I. Joe and the Transformers (Marvel, 1986-87): Among my earliest comics. My copies have been read to death. |
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Post by codystarbuck on Dec 21, 2019 19:54:41 GMT -5
4. Batman/Hellboy/Starman #1-21999 Hellboy & Jack Knight  So, in the mid-to late 90s, the two best comics in the industry, arguably, were James Robinson's Starman and Mike Mignola's Hellboy. Robinson mixed all kinds of elements, from mysteries and crime novels, to horror & supernatural, sci-fi superhero tradition, collecting, geek culture, pirate comics...you name it. Hellboy took Jack Kirby monster characters and tossed them in a bowl with Lovecraft and all kinds of folklore, with the moodiest art on the stands. Well, this being the 90s, crossovers are abundant, because corporate stupidity hadn't gotten out of hand. So, the fanboys got a treat, with a mini-series teaming up Jack Knight and Hellboy, written by James Robinson and drawn by Mike Mignola. The first issue features Batman chasing after the Joker, and loses him. Meanwhile, Bruce Wayne is hosting a symposium on alternate energy and the keynote speaker is Ted Knight, who, on the impetus from son Jack, is working to find practical uses for the cosmic energy that fueled his cosmic rod. So, Bruce welcomes Ted and fills him full of praise and they go to the conference. Then, a bunch of neo-Nazi skinheads, complete with a retro robot, who nab Ted and disappear with him. Batman goes hunting and ends up meeting up with Hellboy, who is hunting the Nazis. They team up to track them down, locating them but failing to stop them from transferring Ted to a plane headed to the Amazon jungle. At the end of that first issue, Jack shows up, while Batman has to bow out to locate the Joker, who is on a spree. Issue two finds Batman securing a plane from Wayne Industries to fly Jack and Hellboy after the villains. They take the cosmic rod to the ground, run into more Nazis and kick hintern and take namen. They learn that the Master (b@3er) Race want Ted's knowledge of the stars and cosmic energy to direct energy from a specific star to draw forth some squidgy Lovecraftian ick-monster. So, Jack and Hellboy hop in smash up the place, bust Nazi schadels and Hellboy rescues Ted, while Jack blasts the squid thing, with a bit of mystical help from Hellboy, when it gets dicey. This thing is all kinds of great and Robinson does an excellent job of capturing Hellboy's sarcastic vocal style, while Mignola makes everything like like pulpy/Kirby goodness. Nobody does oozing monsters, retro-technology, and Neo-Nazi weirdos better than Mignola....  . Batman was mostly thrown in there to make it more commercial, thought it really wasn't necessary. Hellboy and Jack make the thing work; but, why not hedge your bets. Besides, batman and Bruce Wayne make for nice connections to get Hellboy and Jack together; and, it allows Bruce to pay tribute to the heroes that preceded him, like the JSA. This was another that kind of fell under a lot of radars; but, is worth reading for so many reasons; not the least of which is because it is F-n awesome!
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Post by thwhtguardian on Dec 21, 2019 20:17:58 GMT -5
I'm a little late to the party but my choice of the day is... The Meeting of Magic and Might  Superman/ Shazam: First Thunder #1-4 DC, 2005 This is far from the first time Earth's Mightiest Mortal met that Strange Visitor From Another Planet, but under Winick's pen it's by far my favorite. It really does give you everything you could want out of this clash of the titans, there's action, there are weird monsters and giant robots and more than enough room over the course of the four issue run for everybody to get enough screen time so they feel intergral to the story rather than just so much window dressing as is usual in these kinds of tales. What really makes it sing though is just how human both heroes come across, from the mountain top meeting where Billy breaks down after the death of his friend and reveals himself to Superman, to Superman's confrontation with the Wizard Shazam over putting a child at risk you just can't help but feel that these are real people wearing these tights and not just over sized card board cut outs punching things. The best part though? The end:   The wonder in Billy's eyes just says it all for me, and the quiet moment with Clark to cap it off is just great. ![]() |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Dec 21, 2019 20:21:06 GMT -5
4. Batman/Zatanna, "Trusts"/"Depths", Detective Comics #833-834 (DC, 2007)Sometimes the entries on my list surprise even me. So top hat, tails, fishnets and just a dash of 'friendship is magic' earns this story my rebmun ruof tols. This is from one of my favorite runs on 'Tec, I can't believe I didn't think of this one! |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Dec 21, 2019 20:24:56 GMT -5
4. Batman/Hellboy/Starman #1-21999 Hellboy & Jack Knight Batman was mostly thrown in there to make it more commercial, thought it really wasn't necessary. Hellboy and Jack make the thing work; but, why not hedge your bets. Besides, batman and Bruce Wayne make for nice connections to get Hellboy and Jack together; and, it allows Bruce to pay tribute to the heroes that preceded him, like the JSA. This was another that kind of fell under a lot of radars; but, is worth reading for so many reasons; not the least of which is because it is F-n awesome! I think this may shock everyone...but this one didn't make my list. Not even my top twenty. It's not a bad book in my mind, and Mignola's art is as great as always...but it just fell so short of what I was expecting and I can't forgive it even twenty years later. It's Batman and Hellboy on the cover, two of my all time favorites...but they don't really do anything together! How do you waste that? |
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Post by Cei-U! on Dec 21, 2019 21:17:46 GMT -5
4. Batman/Hellboy/Starman #1-2 I've been debating whether to track this down to add to my Starman collection. You've convinced me.
Cei-U! I summon my want list!
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Post by Prince Hal on Dec 21, 2019 21:19:34 GMT -5
5. The Brave and the Bold 85 (May 1969, DC Comics)
“The Senator’s Been Shot”
Bob Haney and Neal Adams This one was a world-rocker for me. Quick background. For lots of sensible reasons, I loved Green Arrow from the first time I ever saw him, which may have been when I flipped through the pages of World’s Finest 134, the first comic I can recall trying to buy off the stand by myself. That I was denied the chance to buy the book perhaps added to my fascination. A couple of years older and more knowledgeable, I lucked out because GA was finishing up his back-up strip in WF, and was occasionally featured in JLA, though usually in cameos at the beginnings or ends of stories. He was almost never on the cover. I was a sucker for his adventures, which as a nine- or ten-year-old, I found completely underivative of Batman’s, because I was too dumb to know what derivative meant. Anyway, he was so much like Robin Hood, one of my all-time favorites, which meant that I loved the whole idea of a bow and arrow to begin with that I took a shine to GA and was crushed when he disappeared from WF. I wrote a letter to JLA asking them to put out a comic (like one of Marvel’s) that would feature GA and the Martian Manhunter (another of my pals from the Island of Misfit Superheroes) in separate and shared adventures, convinced that these two B-listers could be big fan favorites if they were only given the proper shot. My letter wasn’t published, MM soon was evicted from the JLA, but Green Arrow was starting to show up a bit more often. Then this bombshell hit, and I was thrilled. A redesign that didn’t simply make the old costume and powers go away, as had happened to Hawkeye, another bowslinging favorite of mine, when he suddenly became Goliath. Great cover, the classic logos at a dramatic angle, GA looking right at the readers with his Robin Hood goatee sporting the arm-guards/gauntlets any serious archer would and essentially overturning years of second-bananahood with one aggressive pose. And whenever he announced that he’d lost his fortune and was more interested in social justice than old-fashioned super-heroing, this burgeoning radical was in for the long haul! Batman wasn’t running the show the way he usually did in b and B. GA had opinions, he had talent, and he had guts, too. Batman new he was not going to do all the heavy lifting this time, because GA wouldn’t let him. The Adams art was thrilling, turning the issue into a mini-movie with his unique angles and photo-realistic art. (He was Alex Ross before there was an Alex Ross, with a lot more dynamism.) GA was finally doing what an Ace Archer and a Battling Bowman should do, sans boxing glove arrows and the like.  Unfortunately, GA became more of a pain in the @$$ when Denny O’Neil laid on “characterization” like he was slopping on cement in GL/ GA and JLA.
But, for one brief shining moment in the summer of 1969, (to paraphrase Ridley) Green Arrow became the greatest super-hero anyone had ever seen. For me, anyway.
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Post by codystarbuck on Dec 21, 2019 21:35:18 GMT -5
4. Batman/Hellboy/Starman #1-21999 Hellboy & Jack Knight Batman was mostly thrown in there to make it more commercial, thought it really wasn't necessary. Hellboy and Jack make the thing work; but, why not hedge your bets. Besides, batman and Bruce Wayne make for nice connections to get Hellboy and Jack together; and, it allows Bruce to pay tribute to the heroes that preceded him, like the JSA. This was another that kind of fell under a lot of radars; but, is worth reading for so many reasons; not the least of which is because it is F-n awesome! I think this may shock everyone...but this one didn't make my list. Not even my top twenty. It's not a bad book in my mind, and Mignola's art is as great as always...but it just fell so short of what I was expecting and I can't forgive it even twenty years later. It's Batman and Hellboy on the cover, two of my all time favorites...but they don't really do anything together! How do you waste that? I kind of get the feeling that Batman was foisted upon this by editorial, rather than being an organic portion of the story. To me, the second half is the strongest, as Jack and Hellboy go after the Nazis. Hellboy better fits the world of Starman, as envisioned by Robinson. Batman & the Joker are there to let Mignola draw Batman, and a pretty scary Joker, with tome new twists on an old MO. Batman mostly serves to get Ted night in a position to be kidnapped by Nazis and get Hellboy and Jack together. I don't think he was that integral to the plot, which is why I suspect he was inserted by powers from above, rather than Mignola and Robinson. It isn't my favorite crossover; but, given one of my favorite Jack Knight team-ups was already used (Sandman and Dian Belmont) I wanted to highlight this one. To me, issue 2 more than makes up for whatever disappointment there is in issue one. Even then, issue one has some cool stuff with Batman and Hellboy, not tomention Batman chasing after the Joker and the use of Commissioner Gordon, as asort of introduction between characters. |
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Post by codystarbuck on Dec 21, 2019 21:38:12 GMT -5
4. Batman/Hellboy/Starman #1-2 I've been debating whether to track this down to add to my Starman collection. You've convinced me.
Cei-U! I summon my want list!
Everything with Jack Knight, written by James Robinson, is worth tracking down, even things like Starman Secret Files. Robinson never wasted a story. He was soo good when he was firing on all cylinders. Then, Archie died and he seemed lost, coupled with personal issues (fame, money, relationships, possible substances). Robinson hasn't really regained that spark, for me; but, during this time, he was white heat. |
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Post by Icctrombone on Dec 21, 2019 21:42:03 GMT -5
4. Crossover-Ironman/SubmarinerIssue- Tales of Suspense 79, 80Tales to Astonish 82Writer Stan LeeArtist- Gene Colan/Jack KirbyInker- Jack Abel/ Dick AyersPublisher- MarvelYear- 1966 I Think I first read this in the Origins of marvel Superheroes TPB from the 70’s. It was a treat to see Gene Colan draw both Ironman and Namor, since he was the regular penciler for both series. The story- Ironman is attacked by Warlord Krang and after pushing back the threat, is confronted by Namor. Namor was trailing Krang and felt shellhead cheated him from revenge, so he took it out on the golden Avenger. This story crossed over from Ironman’s book to Submariners book and amounted to being a slugfest with top grade artwork by Colan and Kirby, who took over for a sick Colan on the final chapter. I always felt Submariner worked and works best as a badguy. Yeah, it’s a Marvel Trademark flimsy plot for a fight but it’s a visual treat. 
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Post by Deleted on Dec 21, 2019 23:54:08 GMT -5
4. Batman/Hellboy/Starman #1-2 I've been debating whether to track this down to add to my Starman collection. You've convinced me. Cei-U! I summon my want list!
I've been trying to find an affordable copy of #2 since 2012 now, with no luck. When I see it, they want like $10 for it. I've had #1 for a long time, and see it all the time, I just can't seem to get any luck with #2 around here. -M |
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Post by foxley on Dec 22, 2019 0:21:13 GMT -5
I've been debating whether to track this down to add to my Starman collection. You've convinced me. Cei-U! I summon my want list!
I've been trying to find an affordable copy of #2 since 2012 now, with no luck. When I see it, they want like $10 for it. I've had #1 for a long time, and see it all the time, I just can't seem to get any luck with #2 around here. -M Because I had Starman on my standing order, my FLCS automatically put this aside for me (with the understanding I could just put it back on the rack if I didn't). I'm so glad they did. |
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Post by Deleted on Dec 22, 2019 0:43:11 GMT -5
I've been trying to find an affordable copy of #2 since 2012 now, with no luck. When I see it, they want like $10 for it. I've had #1 for a long time, and see it all the time, I just can't seem to get any luck with #2 around here. -M Because I had Starman on my standing order, my FLCS automatically put this aside for me (with the understanding I could just put it back on the rack if I didn't). I'm so glad they did. I had it when it came out, but it was part of the stuff I purged when I downsized for a cross-country move in 2003 (which I have mentioned before). In 2012 I decide dI wanted to get it back and have had zero luck in doing so. -M |
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Post by berkley on Dec 22, 2019 1:08:10 GMT -5
4. Moon Knight & Werewolf by NightDoug Moench & Don Perlin Werewolf by Night #32, 33 (Marvel, 1976)  (write-up and my last 3 picks may be delayed for a few days as I'm travelling tomorrow and will have only tablet access for next week)
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Post by EdoBosnar on Dec 22, 2019 3:44:57 GMT -5
4. Crossover-Ironman/SubmarinerIssue- Tales of Suspense 79, 80(...) I Think I first read this in the Origins of marvel Superheroes TPB from the 70’s. It was a treat to see Gene Colan draw both Ironman and Namor, since he was the regular penciler for both series. Nope, it was reprinted in Marvel's Greatest Superhero Battles, the very awesomest of the Fireside reprint books. |
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