BHOC: ACTION COMICS #499

Brevoort History of Comics

ACTION COMICS was pretty much the first title that I read with any regularity; it and THE FLASH. And that was due to the fact that, as opposed to SUPERMAN or JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA or most of the DC line, ACTION was published monthly. That meant that there were new issues arriving more regularly than other titles. As Superman had been my gateway into reading comics, ACTION COMICS was comfortable, a known quantity. By 1979, that formula, being overseen by editor Julie Schwartz, was beginning to feel a bit stale to me. But I kept on going with the series anyway. It was reliable, even if it never quite reached the heights of my favorite books of the time.

This was another story that featured Superman’s interstellar hero-friend Vartox, a take-off on Sean Connery in the film Zardoz. Since his earliest appearances, he’d evolved into a recurring presence in the Superman stories, a kind of elder statesman hero from the far-off planet of Valeron who had been in the hero game longer than the Man of steel and who could function as a bit of a mentor to him (though Superman, being the lead character, was always the one to help out Vartox with his difficulties in the end.) He’d also developed a bit of a loose relationship with Superman’s childhood sweetheart Lana Lang, which gave him a reason to come back into the Man of Steel’s orbit from time to time.

This was the second part of a two-part story. In the opener, Vartox had come to Earth after his own world of Valeron had been destroyed before his eyes. A sympathetic Superman had helped Vartox to establish a civilian identity on Earth, that of Vernon O’Valeron, newly-hired security officer for the GBS Building. In this role, he’d caught the eye of Lana Lang, who began to pursue him. But Vartox has come to the belief that he was somehow responsible for the demise of Valeron, and he’s now convinced that Earth will be next. As this story opens, he seeks out Superman to tell him about what he’s discovered, but they’re both interrupted in the Store Room where Clark changes clothes by one of the secretaries. and then before the two heroes can download further, Lana shows up to pull Vartox away. So while this is a planet-threatening matter, it’s going to have to wait.

While Vartox is revealing his true identity to Lana and giving her and the audience a helpful recap of the events of the first chapter, Clark Kent’s attention is caught by a news bulletin coming over the teletype indicating that the entire population of the town of Corlyville, Wisconsin is convinced that the Earth is about to come to an end. He becomes Superman and checks this out, finding the story to be accurate (and justifying this issue’s cover.) Mobbed by citizens begging him to take them to some other planet, Superman is forced to return to Metropolis, where he discovers that bulletins are coming in from other parts of the country as well, where people all across the world are experiencing the same phenomenon. At this point, Vartox is finally able to catch up with his super-friend. He tells Superman that he believes that he is responsible for the mass hysteria–that his powers are innately psionic, and he fears that his own dread is being subconsciously broadcast all across the planet.

Superman and Vartox head to the Fortress of Solitude to examine Vartox’s hypothesis. He believes that he must have picked up some alien substance in space that combines violently with oxygen, eventually causing a chain reaction that wiped out Valeron. It’s only the lower oxygen levels in Earth’s atmosphere that has saved Earth so far–but by Vartox’s calculations, in ten hours the chain reaction will hit. However, when both Superman and Vartox use their individual microscopic vision to examine the oxygen in the air around them, there is no sign of any impending catastrophe. Superman tells Vartox that he’s suffering from a paranoid delusion due to having watched his entire planet be destroyed, at which point Vartox attacks his friend, intent on forcing him to heed his dire warning.

There’s a brief battle between the two heroes, but Vartox with his greater experience is able to overcome his friend Superman. When the Man of Tomorrow revives, he’s presented by a ridiculous pantomime: Vartox is suited up in the manner of Superman’s father Jor-El and parrots Jor-El’s warnings about Krypton’s impending destruction before a Science Council made up of mannequins. This makes it seem as though Vartox has truly gone around the bend–but it also brings back enough trauma for Superman to fly ff the handle, He smashes the makeshift Council, and breaks through the outer wall of the Fortress in doing so. Vartox follows, hoping that he hasn’t completely caused his friend to snap. But outside of the Fortress, an examination of the atmosphere confirms Vartox’s story–there is a chain reaction building up that will destroy the Earth. So why was it not apparent inside the Fortress?

The answer turns out to be that Vartox carried the remedy for the catastrophe. This turns out to be fragments of Valeron, which have been transformed by the destruction of the planet into a counteractive X-Element. Superman and Vartox are able to journey out into space and gather up the remains of Valeron. They then pulverize the fragments, scattering them into Earth’s atmosphere in order to neutralize the chain reaction and save the planet. (I’ll admit, my memory of this story before reading this second part again was that Vartox’s vision of Valeron being destroyed was an illusion caused by something he’d encountered in space, and that his planet was actually safe and well the whole time. But I must be conflating it with some other story.) At the issue’s end, Vartox makes the decision to say goodbye to Earth and to Lana and seek out some other planet who might benefit from having a hero such as himself in residence. Which feels inauthentic, especially after how much work the guy had put into establishing an Earth identity and hooking up with Lana. But I guess Vartox is just a love-’em-and-leave-’em kind of a fella.

This issue of ACTION COMICS didn’t carry the regular weekly Daily Planet promotional page. In its place was a feature detailing the answers to the assorted trivia questions put forward by Bob Rozakis, the Answer Man, as part of the second Superman the Movie contest as well as what back issues they were pulled from. I don’t know that I liked this as much as a Daily Planet page, but if there had to be a substitution, this was a relatively good one in my eyes.

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22 thoughts on “BHOC: ACTION COMICS #499”

  1. In SUPERMAN #306, Bizarro comes to Earth after thinking he’s seen Bizarro World destroyed, but it turns out to be “an illusion caused by something he’d encountered in space, and that his planet was actually safe and well the whole time.”

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  2. Well there was that Manhunters plot to discredit the Green Lantern Corps by framing Green Lantern ( Hal Jordan –in the WB’s Justice League cartoon — John Stewart ) for the destruction of an inhabited planet Pinola [ Justice League of America#140-141 ( March- April 1977 ) ] through the use of illusions.

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  3. I was 7 when this story was published. Several decades before Um ever knew Vartox was based on a Sean Connery character. I didn’t really like the story. Rehashing what had happened to Superman and Krypton, this time to Valeron.

    I also wasn’t crazy about Lana Lang, as I’d already been conditioned to associate Lois and Superman together. I remember disliking Vartox’s design.

    I don’t remember how many years were between this story and the season of “Super Friends” that included bare legged heroes like Samurai, Black Vulcan, & Apache Chief. I wasn’t into the bare legged look for them. Or for Vartox.

    I don’t remember when I started watching pro-wrestling on UHF channels. But Vartox’s design wasn’t too far off..Not a highlight of “Action Comics” for me.

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    1. Poor Lana. Subjected to decades of writers who let her languish as Clark’s sorta high school girlfriend, forever cursed to see him as the one that got away. Of course if she were normal and had moved on with her life, we’d never get to see her. Win some – lose some.

      I can tell you that Samurai, Black Vulcan & Apache Chief first appeared in the 1977 season of Super Friends. Why do I remember that and not what my wife wanted me to pick up at the store? That’s the real mystery. đŸ™‚

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      2. Lana seemed to attract several other interested suitors. One was the Master Jailor. He had quite the grudge against her and Superman, going back to his jilted high school years. A pretty intense 2-parter, and although I thought Curt Swan’s work was often passive and understated, he could obviously tell a story well, and convey the character acting.

        And that 1st part of that story had some explosive panels. One specifically, after Master Jailer burst into Lana’s swanky Metropolis apartment, intent on abducting her, Superman crashes in and plows into Master Jailer’s mid-section, driving him away from Lana. It was a full side figure shot of Supes flying left to right. And he looked like he meant business.

        I forget how it was explained how Superman was able to intervene so quickly. Maybe Clark had escorted Lana home, and Master Jailer overpowered him and sent him over the railing outside, presumably to his death, allowing him to return immediately in his super suit.

        Then at the end of the 2nd issue, when Supes safely returns Lana to her apartment, I think she makes a pass at him. And Supes declines. Even going so far as to offer a general critique of her behavior towards Clark, Lois, and others. If I recall correctly, he reaffirms his friendship with her, but chastises her for the way she selfishly (mis)treats her friends. As he flies away, we see Lana pressed against her balcony’s sliding glass doors, falling into sorrow, and lowering her head.

        Been a few decades since I’ve seen that issue, but that’s what I remember.

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  5. Lana should have told Vartox to go to hell. She’s supposed to wait while he finds a planet that needs a champion and what…. wait until he fixes everything and maybe comes back to Earth?

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  6. I had dropped ACTION by this point, but I should’ve stuck it out a little longer…this looks like a storyline I would’ve enjoyed. I did pick up #500, but I didn’t come back on board regularly until the Marv Wolfman / Gil Kane era.

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  7. Ahh, Vartox. He could be a great part of Superman’s extended repertory cast if he’d just develop a better fashion sense. Which he eventually did, but not until multiple continuity resets…

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    1. I wasn’t yet reading ACTION at this point — I started with issue 507, I think, though I did buy ACTION 500. But once I started, I backfilled all the cheap Cary Bates issues I could find (and eventually got all the post-Weisinger Super-books).

      This issue was very much the sort of thing I enjoyed about the Schwartz run. It was, as Tom calls it, comfort reading. Pleasant superhero adventure that didn’t rock the boat, that was comfortably dependable. I don’t think it’s what DC should have been doing with Superman at this point, but as long as they were doing it, I enjoyed it.

      It was usually better inked than this, though. Swan was not an easy penciler to find primo inkers for, but his storytelling was so solid that, like George Tuska, he could survive bad inkers better than, say, Gene Colan or the Carmine Infantino of this era. And his usual inker during this time, Frank Chiaramonte, was reasonably competent. But he must have been busy inking next month’s monster-sized issue, so they needed a sub for this one…

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    2. There might be a male member of the Legion I’m forgetting who wears thigh high boots, but I think Vartox might be the only hero rocking high boots, bare legs, with an open untucked vest plus (yellow!) a speedo. It sure is a look.

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      3. If you mean Element Lad, is it thigh high boots or part of his costume? Maybe had they done a similar look for Vartox he might look better.

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  8. Element lad might have been who I was thinking of…and you’re right…they might just be a color change and not thigh boots. Not a great costume but way better than Vartox. Cosmic boy on the other hand gives him a run for his money.

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      1. Oh yeah… the strategic loin cloth. I give Grell credit for dressing the boys like the girls anyway in terms of skin…. works better in the far flung future and sword and fantasy. Vartox would have fit in well with either probably.

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  9. One of the first four comic books I ever read. I was 15 at the time, and the story seemed contrived and a bit juvenile. I liked the art (and have since learned what a legend Curt Swan is, and how hated Vinnie Colletta is), though I did find it stiff, compared the the Marvel books I picked up that fateful July. I am today years old learning that Vartox was based on Connery in Zardoz. How have I never made that connection?! I just remember thinking at the time how silly it was that Vartox, because he was from the Sombrero Galaxy, looked somewhat Latino, with that huge mustache! His outfit read as a sort of “space Zorro” to me too for some reason.

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