I've been thinking about this for a while now, pointed in this direction by having watched TOKUSATSU GAGAGA, where they make this sentiment overt: what is the purpose of super hero stories? On the surface, it would seem to be obvious. Like any other story, the primary purpose is to entertain. But with super hero … Continue reading The Purpose of Super Heroes
This is another book that I think was purchased by my grandmother, in this instance for my younger brother Ken. I can see her feeling as though if she was buying a comic book for me, she would have to bring one for him as well. At this moment, SHAZAM was an occasional read for … Continue reading BHOC: SHAZAM #33
EPISODE 38 "What's stronger than the main engine? Maybe...the Wave-Motion Gun...?" - Royster Things were looking pretty poor for the Star Force at the close of yesterday's episode. Today, though, the immediate danger is dealt with rather quickly, but this installment is one that stuck in the minds of STAR BLAZERS fans as an iconic … Continue reading In Our Next STAR BLAZERS Adventure – Episode 38
This one's one of the more memorable early Marvel comic books that I bought and read. So much so that it's another book where for some reason my younger brother Ken later bought his own copy. As I've mentioned here before, the Marvel of 1977 was having a tough time making its deadlines, leading to … Continue reading BHOC: INVADERS #24
I continued, as opportunity and funds allowed, to explore the Marvel characters whose exploits I had enjoyed in the SON OF ORIGINS OF MARVEL COMICS volume I had read at my local library. The next of these that I picked up was DAREDEVIL, here celebrating his landmark 150th issue. This was a pretty decent place … Continue reading BHOC: DAREDEVIL #150
Okay, this is going to be another somewhat-strange piece, but I can't help it if I'm fascinated by odd and inconsequential bits of comic book trivia and speculation. And this one cuts to the center of the often-disconnect that existed between Jack Kirby, who was largely plotting and drawing the early Marvel stories, and Stan … Continue reading Lee & Kirby: THE INCREDIBLE HULK: He can fly!
EPISODE 37 "Desslok, for a man like you there can be no such thing as defeat. You're different. You know what you want and you're willing to fight for it. I understand you. We are alike." - Prince Zordar The next episode of STAR BLAZERS finally brought the Star Force and Desslok back into direct … Continue reading In Our Next STAR BLAZERS Adventure – Episode 37
This issue of BLACK LIGHTNING was bought for me by my grandparents. It was a tough title to find in my area--during this time period, most of the new DC launches were difficult to locate in my area (I never, ever saw a copy of SHADE, THE CHANGING MAN, for example.) But as i related … Continue reading BHOC: BLACK LIGHTNING #6
I was regularly haunting the section of the Sachem Public Library that contained books on or about comics, not just for that elusive copy of ORIGINS OF MARVEL COMICS (which I never did find there) but also for anything else of interest. I took out and read a bunch of books from that section, many … Continue reading BHOC: ALL IN COLOR FOR A DIME
The fourth and final chapter of this seemingly-epic storyline turned up next. I remember being quite into it--even though, looking back at it after all of these years, it's a bit of an ill-plotted mess. I liked the fact that, on this cover, the vignettes of Hal and Ollie were ready to throw down just … Continue reading BHOC: GREEN LANTERN #99
The Tom Brevoort Experience 