DC's Dollar Comics program didn't wind up being the industry game-changer that new publisher Jenette Kahn had hoped it would, but it was a format that the company pursued for several years and resulted in some decently-crafted anthologies. Case in point is SUPERMAN FAMILY, which was never a great comic book but which was a … Continue reading BHOC: SUPERMAN FAMILY #195
As we mentioned yesterday, this issue of JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA was the first in the title's long history not to be edited and overseen by Julie Schwartz. Julie had innovated the series in 1960 and had stayed with it for 19 years. But for the first time, somebody else was at the wheel. That … Continue reading BHOC: JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #166
This issue of THE FLASH is where new editor Ross Andru's vision for the title really crystalized. In essence, this took the form of bring on board a new regular penciler. Longtime FLASH artist Irv Novick had departed one issue after outgoing editor Julie Schwartz, and while Ross had stopgapped for two months, here he … Continue reading BHOC: THE FLASH #273
Pretty much everyone knows the story by now. Having conceived of their adventure strip about an indestructible, super-strong crusader for justice in the early 1930s, creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster (and sometimes other, different artists) spent the next five or six years trying to find a buyer for what they felt confident was a … Continue reading The Second Superman Story
The question came up again this week, prompting a bunch of discussion (often blaming one person in specific for perceived slights): why did the announced and eagerly-anticipated 1983 crossover book starring the Avengers and the Justice League of America never see print and remain uncompleted? There are a bunch of fan rumor and innuendo and … Continue reading Why Did The 1983 JLA/AVENGERS Crossover Not Happen?
MAGAZINELAND, USA was a giveaway comic book designed for the celebration on June 18, 1977, which had been proclaimed World Color Press Day. World Color were the printers for virtually all of the comic books that were then available on the nation's newsstands, including the output of DC, Marvel, Archie, Harvey and others. Accordingly, those … Continue reading Lost Crossovers: MAGAZINELAND, USA #1
So continuing our look at the second storys featuring noteworthy characters who would last the test of time, here is the second outing from the Winged Wonder, Hawkman. In the early days of FLASH COMICS, it was clear that the staff weren't quite sure which feature was going to click with readers, and so they … Continue reading The Second Hawkman Story
Wildcat was one of the great second banana super heroes of the Golden Age of Comics--one who has become ostensibly more popular in more recent years than he was when his series was running in the back pages of SENSATION COMICS. Wildcat was champion prize-fighter Ted Grant who was inspired by the example of Green … Continue reading The Last Wildcat Story
As much as you might have thought that it would, the public debut of SUPERMAN THE MOVIE didn't really do much of anything to change the contents or direction of the SUPERMAN comics. Oh, sure, Clark Kent was brought back into the Daily Planet as a reporter (in addition to his job as a WGBS … Continue reading BHOC: SUPERMAN #334
Continuing our look at the obscure 1966 strip Blooperman, which incorporated a number of parody ideas from comics fandom, many of which had been originated by Marvel writer/editor Roy Thomas years earlier. Once again here, the character's designed Jon D'Agostino draws the small vignette of Blooperman on this cover for GO-GO #5. Writer Gary Friedrich … Continue reading Brand Echh: The Fannish Adventures of Blooperman, Part Three
The Tom Brevoort Experience 