Now, this was a noteworthy issue of SUPERMAN for a number of reasons. In addition to being the first time that the Man of Steel's two most persistent enemies, Lex Luthor and Brainiac, met and teamed up, it also introduced an entirely new backstory for Brainiac--up to this point, he's simply been an alien space … Continue reading WC: SUPERMAN #167
It's time once again for another dive into MIGHTY COMICS, Archie's attempt to reverse-engineer the appeal of the Marvel books of the era without understanding them a whit. As before, we're going to be focusing on my favorite of the Mighty creations, the Web. The Web wasn't cast as a Spider-Man knock-off as you might … Continue reading Brand Echh: Mighty Comics #45
JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #17 was another issue of the title that I got in that box of Silver Age comics that I purchased for fifty dollars back in 1988. By this time, the formula of the series had largely crystalized, and it was as reliable a product as must anything else being released by … Continue reading WC: JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #17
By 1966, there was no way for industry leader DC/National Comics to be unaware of the growing appeal of upstart publisher Marvel--especially given that both companies' output was distributed by an outfit owned by National's owners. Marvel's growth was often scoffed at and decried as a passing fad, but as the firm started making inroads … Continue reading The First Hulk Parody
Now this was a thoroughly excellent issue of SUPERMAN, one I acquired as a part of my much-discussed windfall comic book purchase of 1988, wherein I scored about 150 Silver Age vintage comic books for the sum of only $50.00. The SUPERMAN titles during this period were always wildly imaginative, even as they tended to … Continue reading WC: SUPERMAN #159
THE ATOM is one of those Silver Age series that never entirely made a huge impact on be back when I was a young collector. But looking back on these issues today, I can appreciate the skill with which these stories were created. In that early 1960s period, DC's staff was still very concerned about … Continue reading WC: THE ATOM #11
This was another reprint of a classic Charlton comic book from the 1960s that was reissued under the Modern Comics imprint and sold in plastic 3-Bags through low-end discount department stores such as the Two Guys my family frequented. And it made an impact on me, not for the lead story especially, which I found … Continue reading BHOC: THUNDERBOLT #57
Her is another book that I got from my childhood friend Donald Sims during one of our frequent comic book swaps. As soon as I laid eyes on it, I wanted it. The cover knocked me for a loop. I had seen the cover to X-MEN #1 in SON OF ORIGINS OF MARVEL COMICS as … Continue reading BHOC: X-MEN #104
We've talked about Quicksilver in the past, and how this perennial back-page filler for Quality Comics' NATIONAL COMICS was brought back decades later by writer Mark Waid in the pages of FLASH and transformed into a virtually new character, Max Mercury. Quicksilver had never been a headliner, but he was a reliable supporting player, and … Continue reading The Last Quicksilver Story
This was another book that I bought at Bush's Hobbies, the hole-in-the-wall collectibles store that had a good stock of vintage comic book back issues, and which was not all that far from my home. I picked up this issue because I was interested in reading the Origin of the Justice League, one of the … Continue reading BHOC: JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #97
