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Post by thwhtguardian on Dec 14, 2014 8:20:01 GMT -5
12 days of Classic Christmas #12
Batman 244
The Demon lives again!
Denny Oneil/ Neal Adams/ Dick Giordano
GCD has this story coming out on July of 1972. That would make me 11 years old when I saw this masterpiece of art and drama. I had been exposed to Neal Adams before this in his Avengers and Green Lantern runs but there was something special about this Ras/Batman Grudge match and his art was notched up to 11. There was an importance and destiny in this issue and each page was building to what might be Batman’s finest hour. Up until that point , Batman had been fighting silly characters and he needed his counterpart in ability and smarts. Ras provided that in spades. The final fight between them has a tragic , almost, Shakespearian feel to it as, after hours of dueling , Batman is bitten by a scorpion. Left for dead Talia gives Batman something ( perhaps a bit of the Lazarus solution) and he confronts Ras once more beating him with one punch. That panel where he yells out “Ras” has to be one of the most famous Batman Images of all. It was a magical time for Batman during the early 70’s. He was saved from the TV show camp silliness by issues like this. Masterful Storytelling  This look has never been duplicated . Such rage.   That bare chested sword fight is still one of the coolest things I've ever seen in a comic, and probably always will. |
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Post by Pól Rua on Dec 14, 2014 8:37:50 GMT -5
Do you have a year of publication for Super Adventure #61, pak? I'm tracking publishers, genres and dates for the stats in addition to title and issue number. Cei-U! I summon the dingo datum! 'Super Adventure Comics' #61 was published in August, 1974 www.ausreprints.com is an INVALUABLE tool in this sort of thing. Plus, it's a great walk through memory lane for me! www.ausreprints.com/content/main/?issue=591&ms=9410 |
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Post by Pharozonk on Dec 14, 2014 12:12:02 GMT -5
#12: The Flash #1 For much of the Silver Age, Wally West was as bland a character as you could find. Few writers gave him any kind of discernible personality and Marv Wolfman completely wrote him out of his New Teen Titans run because he didn't know what to do with him. However, after COIE and Barry Allen's passing, Mike Baron finally did what had once seemed impossible: he made Wally interesting. Turning him into a bit of jerk with a heart of gold, Baron's first issue kicked off a great character arc for Wally that William Messner-Loebs and Mark Waid developed over two decades making Wally worthy of the Flash mantle. Add in the fact that Baron's run had amazing Jackson Guice art and you have one of the most under appreciated runs in DC history.
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Post by JKCarrier on Dec 14, 2014 12:44:19 GMT -5
 Justice League of America #61 (1968) I don't recall where I picked up a beat-to-hell copy of this back issue, but it instantly became one of my favorite JLA stories, and remains so to this day. It's typical of Gardner Fox's scripts in that it's convoluted, contrived, and more than a little ridiculous, yet completely enthralling. Green Arrow announces to the rest of the team that he's quitting and going into hiding for reasons he can't reveal. The rest of the JLAers decide that they will all dress up as Green Arrow in order to draw out whatever menace is after him. This backfires spectacularly, as each disguised hero ends up getting defeated by one of their own villains (the Penguin, Luthor, Plant Master, Captain Boomerang, et. al.). And in a further twist, the villains somehow switch identities with the heroes, so the JLAers all end up in jail. Eventually the real Green Arrow manages to sort things out, and the story ends with a big sprawling hero-vs.-villain free-for-all. Great goofy fun from Fox and Sekowsky. |
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Post by JKCarrier on Dec 14, 2014 12:55:38 GMT -5
SUPER FRIENDS #3
"The Cosmic Hit Man"
On sale November 15, 1976 Written by E. Nelson Bridwell Penciled by Ramona Fradon Inked by Robert Smith Edited by Denny O'Neil Cover by Ramona Fradon There were a couple of issues of Super Friends that nearly made my list. When it comes to clever and engaging single issues, it's hard to top Bridwell and Fradon in their prime. |
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Post by Paradox on Dec 15, 2014 3:54:43 GMT -5
12. Limited Collectors' Edition C-25 (DC, 1974) As an adolescent, I had three different venues for comics in my neighborhood. My "primary" was Skedgel's IGA grocery store, that had a spinner rack with the most current stuff. The barber shop on the corner sold bootleg 3 packs. And then there was Brownie's Party Store. Now Brownie (owner and sole employee) was a classic character. Built like a dumpier version of the original version of the Thing, bald with a small white fringe in the back, and ever-present stogie in the corner of his mouth dripping ashes all over (once that thing went into his mouth, it never came out until it was almost burning his lip). Someone who actually said (many times), "You kids get outta here. This ain't no liberry!" Now Brownie didn't get many comics, but he got some. And they were usually something unusual. Like, for instance, he was the only one that got Silver Surfer #1, which I didn't buy because "Man, a whole quarter! It looks cool, but I think I'll get two other comics instead!" So one day I walk in and glance at the rack he kept comics on (a three-tiered shelf with porn on the top rack, "men's magazines" in the middle and comics in the bottom rack), and there, in the "men's magazine" section, too big to fit in the bottom, was the second biggest comic I'd ever seen in my life (the biggest being this huge Wham-O book that I only saw once at my grandma's and only found any information on in the last decade or so). A HUGE Batman book, with a great Neal Adams cover! I was WOWED! But it was a whole DOLLAR, and I didn't have that kind of scratch. I financed most of my comics with collecting pop and beer bottles at a nickle a pop. So I flipped through it and wanted it SOOOOOO badly. It wasn't long before Brownie was ordering me out. Several times over the next week or so, I'd wait until he was busy with a customer, and sneak in and read as much as I could before he kicked me out again. Eventually, he banned me from coming into the store unless I coughed up the buck to buy it. So I hunted and collected bottles and DIDN'T spend any of it on other comics until I had the buck to get it! It did not disappoint. Great classic stories (I always loved the reprints from before I was born...gave me a sense of history), a couple of more modern ones (including a great Adams-drawn "Ghost of the Killer Skies" and the Infantino-drawn Hangman issue) and lots of bonus stuff, including a lesson in how to draw Batman by Infantino and a cool diorama on the back cover that you could cut out, assemble and display (which, to make today's "collectors" cringe, of course I did  ). It was the prize of my collection for a while, then other tabloid-sized books started showing up. The Wonder Woman "First Issue" tabloid, and from Marvel Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four at first and then more and more. I loved reprints and I loved the tabloid-sized books. Hog heaven for me. Here's some more info on the book, for those wanting more.
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Confessor
CCF Mod Squad
Not Bucky O'Hare!
Posts: 10,197 
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Post by Confessor on Dec 15, 2014 11:42:48 GMT -5
Playing catch up here, after an insanely busy weekend of working. #12 - Captain America #272 (August 1982)  I bought this issue of Captain America as a 10-year-old in late 1982, while out shopping with my Gran one Saturday afternoon. She would usually treat me to a comic or two -- along with a can of pop, some crisps and sweets -- whenever we went out shopping together. So, there's obviously a big nostalgia factor at play in my picking this book. But that's only half the reason: I actually really, really rate the story in this issue. In fact, it features probably the single best Cap story I've ever read. J. M. DeMatteis' weaves a street-level tale that sees Cap facing off against Vermin (in his first ever appearance) on the rain drenched streets and in the flooded sewers of New York City. A parallel story featuring The Falcon tackling the problems of inner city gangs and drug addiction makes for an interesting juxtaposition. Overall, it's a grimy, gritty, rain soaked, filthy dirty story, full of moral ambiguities and complex character motivation. It's all rendered wonderfully by Mike Zeck, with the moody colouring of John Beatty also deserving special mention. I'm not the biggest Captain American fan, to be honest, and I can kinda take it or leave it when it comes to the character. I mean, he's alright, but he's nowhere near my favourite superhero. I guess the fact that I'm British somewhat precludes me from really "getting" Captain American, but then again, I'm not much of a Captain Britain fan either. Anyway, I digress. This is a really great, done-in-one, single issue story, that I love just as much as a 42-year-old as I did as a 10-year-old boy. I think I'd be a much bigger Cap fan if more Captain America comics were like this one. |
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Post by paulie on Dec 15, 2014 11:54:34 GMT -5
Playing catch-up too... A cool idea this year... Day 1 is... Brave and the Bold 162 May, 1980.It makes my list because it is the first DC comic that I remember owning. That really is the only reason it makes the list though I think that reason is a good one. I recently bought a NM replacement for my battered original and while the story isn't as good as I remember as a kid it was still quite entertaining. Jim Kelley did the script. The plot itself? Eh. Who cares? it has... Sgt. Rock. The Iron Major. Batman. Jim Aparo. There's not much more to say than that so I'll stick with pithy. And since I'm talking about Brave and the Bold I'm going to mention Bob Haney for no other reason than mentioning Bob Haney Attachments:
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Post by badwolf on Dec 15, 2014 12:02:28 GMT -5
Sorry I'm late, folks...I try to take the weekends off from the internets.  "Destiny is a Stacked Deck" Written by Gerry Conway Drawn by George Perez and John Beatty My first JLA reads came from this "satellite era" and I have a lot of favorites from it, but I think this is the issue that I returned to the most. As fantastic as it was, I found the concept fascinating. (For perspective, I was 11 when this came out.) Amos Fortune figures out a way to bring the Major Arcana of the Tarot to life and sends them against the Justice League, with great success. Superman is aged to fragility by the Hermit, Flash again faces the full impact of Iris Allen's death courtesy of the Magus, Zatanna is blinded by the Devil...and so on. By the climax of the issue these are all broken people, almost without hope. Thus they face Death. They have no choice but to fight...and in fighting, they overcome.  And that's what superhero comics are all about. The Arcana defeated, Fortune makes a desperate attempt to escape via the Tarot, but the luck of the draw is not with him. He screams and disappears. The JLA don't know what really happened, but in the final panel we see Fortune's image transposed onto the Tower card, where "Amos Fortune continues to scream, and will for all eternity!" Gave me chills. I still find the Tarot interesting culturally and aesthetically and I'm sure it has a lot to do with this comic. |
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Post by badwolf on Dec 15, 2014 12:16:45 GMT -5
This is a really great, done-in-one, single issue story, that I love just as much as a 42-year-old as I did as a 10-year-old boy. I think I'd be a much bigger Cap fan if more Captain America comics were like this one. The deMatteis/Zeck run was really great. I picked it up during the Red Skull/Ameridroid multipart story. Like you I was never much of a Cap fan but those were still some great books. |
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Dec 15, 2014 12:16:59 GMT -5
And...as usual...I'm playing catch-up. I'm not online much during the weekends. Thor 244 (Marvel Feb. '76)  This one was a little bit of a surprise. And it's all about context. I know I still own this comic, but I haven't read it in over 25 years. I bought this one when I'd only been buying my own comics for a few months. Up to this time my buying had centered around Batman (and to a lesser extent Spider-Man). But my cousins came to visit my Grandparents from Minnesota and I got to see my cousin Eric who was a year older than me. We saw each other about once every two years or so. I remember we were in the "way-back" of my Grandpa's hatch-back car driving somewhere. And I'd brought along some comics. He started talking about all these different heroes he liked that I had never heard of. The two that I remembered him talking about the most were Thor and The Hulk. When I got home I went to one of the spinner racks and bought this issue. Honestly...I remember hating it. It was the middle of a storyline...I had no idea what was going on. I just didn't get it. But I remember why I bought it. And I remember how exciting it was to have someone to talk about comics with. And it was the first time I branched out. So there you go. Thor 244. |
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Post by badwolf on Dec 15, 2014 12:32:07 GMT -5
...And in a further twist, the villains somehow switch identities with the heroes, so the JLAers all end up in jail. Eventually the real Green Arrow manages to sort things out, and the story ends with a big sprawling hero-vs.-villain free-for-all. Great goofy fun from Fox and Sekowsky. That's interesting, because years later there was a story where the Secret Society of Super-Villains actually switched bodies with most of the JLA, and Green Arrow is the first one to twig that something's off. |
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Post by hondobrode on Dec 15, 2014 18:49:33 GMT -5
Playing catch-up too... A cool idea this year... Day 1 is... Brave and the Bold 162 May, 1980.It makes my list because it is the first DC comic that I remember owning. That really is the only reason it makes the list though I think that reason is a good one. I recently bought a NM replacement for my battered original and while the story isn't as good as I remember as a kid it was still quite entertaining. Jim Kelley did the script. The plot itself? Eh. Who cares? it has... Sgt. Rock. The Iron Major. Batman. Jim Aparo. There's not much more to say than that so I'll stick with pithy. And since I'm talking about Brave and the Bold I'm going to mention Bob Haney for no other reason than mentioning Bob Haney Just ordered this and 3 other B&B issues and some other stuff last week. |
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Post by benday-dot on Dec 15, 2014 20:43:56 GMT -5
So there you go. Thor 244. That's a bit of a special issue for myself as well. It holds a place as one of original 3 Thor comics I ever purchased (the other two were a Kirby book from the Galactus origin, Thor # 168, and the other was #183) before embarking on a crazy course to buy lot of Thor comics. Like yourself, I had no idea what was really happening because I was missing the issues before and after, but something about it came across as cool to me. |
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Post by Reptisaurus! on Dec 15, 2014 22:12:59 GMT -5
Fawcett's Funny Animals # 48 - April, 1948.
Am I the only one here who's read the cover off a Golden Age comic? My dad gave this to me when I was a young'n, and it was one of my very favorites. Wilie Walapus! Fuzzy Bear! Willie the Worm? And Hoppy the Marvel Bunny(!!!) learns a lessson about gossip when "Mr. (and Mrs.) Rumor Comes to Town!" Also: Mister Rumor looks remarkably like Satan, which was quite impressive to 8 year old me. And the funny-animal-filled cover has a bicycle built for eight!
I can't find this book now - coverless, don'tchaknow - but I've reread it a couple times throughout the years and Chad Grothkopf's cartooning really holds up - competitive with the top-of-the-line cartoonists from any era. And this issue started my collection of Fawcett comics --- all of them missing at least one cover, I ain't made of money.
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). It was the prize of my collection for a while, then other tabloid-sized books started showing up. The Wonder Woman "First Issue" tabloid, and from Marvel Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four at first and then more and more. I loved reprints and I loved the tabloid-sized books. Hog heaven for me.
