BHOC: WORLD’S FINEST COMICS #245

I picked up this issue of WORLD’S FINEST COMICS, despite its dollar price tag, because its lead story was going to wrap up the ongoing Martian Manhunter storyline that I had been following in recent issues of ADVENTURE COMICS, and that I liked quite a bit. So this was my first encounter with the phenomenon … Continue reading BHOC: WORLD’S FINEST COMICS #245

BHOC: SUPERMAN #312

I bought this issue of SUPERMAN while visiting my grandmother’s house–the first comic book I ever knowingly laid down 35 cents for (or, more correctly, that somebody, likely my grandmother, laid down 35 cents for in my stead.) But how could i not? This was not only the second part in what would be a … Continue reading BHOC: SUPERMAN #312

BHOC: ACTION COMICS #469

Now that is a cover. You really have to wonder what the folks in charge of some of the comic books of this era were thinking when they commissioned such a piece. It’s certainly attention-getting, but only because it’s so downright weird. I picked up this issue of ACTION COMICS having already purchased and read … Continue reading BHOC: ACTION COMICS #469

BHOC: DC SUPER-STARS #12

I didn’t get it when I was a kid, but then I was only nine years old when I first bought this issue of DC SUPER-STARS. But it contains perhaps the most wrong-headed and casually offensive Superman story of the Bronze Age. Somebody–a lot of somebodies–were asleep at the switch when they approved this one. … Continue reading BHOC: DC SUPER-STARS #12

BHOC: SUPERMAN #306

I bought this issue of SUPERMAN right about the time that fourth grade began. I’d had a rocky few years in school up to this point, with a too-quick temper and a greater-than-average sensitivity. Looking back, while it was appropriate to have been in that grade from an age standpoint (and my Dad hoped that … Continue reading BHOC: SUPERMAN #306

BHOC: LIMITED COLLECTORS’ EDITION #C-49

I didn’t purchase this Treasury Edition at one of my regular comic book haunts, but rather at a department store, likely the now-long-gone Two Guys store my family regularly frequented. And almost certainly, I got it because it was about the only comic book they had in the place, as I wasn’t a huge fan … Continue reading BHOC: LIMITED COLLECTORS’ EDITION #C-49

BHOC: LIMITED COLLECTORS’ EDITION #C-48

It was my neighbor Johnny Rantinella who got it, and boy did I want it. So much so, and so obviously, that I was in a terrible bargaining position. I don’t remember at this late date what I traded him for it, but it was considerable. But I had to do it. Because those were … Continue reading BHOC: LIMITED COLLECTORS’ EDITION #C-48

BHOC: WONDER WOMAN #224

Another book whose origins I’m a bit foggy on, which makes me think that it was probably purchased for my brother Ken and eventually wound up with me. A solid enough cover by Ernie Chua on this issue of WONDER WOMAN, a Julie Schwartz-edited title that I only followed intermittently. It’s become pretty typical among … Continue reading BHOC: WONDER WOMAN #224

BHOC: SUPERMAN #300

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

BHOC: SUPERMAN FAMILY #177

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