Shortly afterwards, my mailman delivered my other subscription title, FLASH, which was also sporting a Neal Adams cover this month. It’s a pretty intense cover for this series not in keeping with the tone of the strip (or even this particular issue.) But it is extremely eye-catching and intriguing, which is the whole point. I’m … Continue reading BHOC: FLASH #246
In 1976, there wasn’t a more popular or elusive artist in all of comics than Neal Adams. I was only nine years old at the time, but even then I was aware of who he was, information gleaned from assorted letters page praise from awestruck fans. But by this point, it was a rare thing … Continue reading BHOC: JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #138
Suburban Long Island, where I grew up as a kid, was an extremely whitebread area. There was only one African-American kid in my class during my grade-school years–his name was Alonzo Cook, which I remember solely because of his uniqueness. Consequently, I had (and perhaps still have) a cartoonish understanding of Black culture, formed primarily … Continue reading BHOC: SUPERBOY AND THE LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #222
My subscription copy of FLASH arrived next. It wasn’t an especially memorable issue. The thing I can recall the most is that somewhere–maybe the previous issue’s letters page–I had read the title of the story, “Who Put The Zing In The Flash” and intuited that perhaps we’d be getting a story that delved into mysteries and … Continue reading BHOC: FLASH #245
Outside of a few sure-bet favorites, I was I think pretty typical in my comic book purchasing habits: I would pick up whatever looked good among what was available on whatever outing made it possible for me to purchase a comic book. At this point, I knew that what I wanted was super heroes (and … Continue reading BHOC: SUPERBOY AND THE LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #220
SUPER-TEAM FAMILY was becoming a regular purchase, a cool grab-bag of classic reprints every issue with no particular rhyme or reason save for a loose adherence to the concept of team-ups. I say loose because a World’s Finest story with Superman, Batman and Robin wasn’t difficult to come by, nor was a Marvel Family tale … Continue reading BHOC: SUPER-TEAM FAMILY #6
The mailman brought along the next issue of THE FLASH to my door, always a welcome occurrence. This one had an Ernie Chua/Chan cover that was actually pretty good. I’m guessing that Carmine Infantino did the sketch for this one, as it seems like his sort of layout. The story this issue was fine but … Continue reading BHOC: FLASH #242
Centennial issues in comics books have for many decades been accorded a special status, an acknowledgment of longevity, a celebration of success. By 1976, it wasn’t enough any longer to simply publish a centennial issue, that issue had to in some way be special, and reflect the fact that this was a significant moment. SUPERMAN … Continue reading BHOC: SUPERMAN #300
I don’t think I’ve ever seen a copy of this particular issue of SUPERMAN FAMILY whose cover wasn’t miscut. I wonder if this wasn’t the result of the switch-over from a squarebound binding to traditional end-staples–if the cover has perhaps been set up for the former, and so without that additional bit of space, shifted the trim on the … Continue reading BHOC: SUPERMAN FAMILY #177
Another eh cover by Ernie Chua/Chan graced the latest issue of THE FLASH to arrive in my mailbox. As was usual for the DC covers of this era, the premise of the image was good, but the actual drawing was a bit lumpy and misshapen, and the reproduction was blotchy. It would be a few years … Continue reading BHOC: FLASH #241
The Tom Brevoort Experience 