Thanks to Charlie Horse 47 and Killdumpster for their sponsorship of this post, via the magic of Patreon.
***
In this very land, the Women's European Football Championship has just finished, with the host nation collecting the trophy for the first time ever. But, exactly fifty years ago, a very different sporting event got underway, with the launch of the Munich Olympics.
Up in the heavens, things of drama were afoot. For a start, one of the largest solar flares ever recorded knocked out cable lines in the United States.
But there was also a brilliant, daytime meteor, visible in western USA and Canada, thanks to an asteroid cheekily bouncing off the Earth's atmosphere.
And, speaking of things that had arrived from Heaven; back on Earth, it was time to make a song and dance about the Messiah, as Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber's Jesus Christ Superstar made its West End debut.
The Fantastic Four are still battling the Creature from the Black Lagoon's outer space lookalike who's now kidnapped Sue, in his desperate attempts to get medical treatment for his wife.
That bounder the Grim Reaper's busy sending temptation the Vision's way, thanks to his ownership of Wonder Man's body.
"You can't let him be killed by Hyde!" declares Sharon Carter.
Which poses the obvious question of just who does she want him to be killed by?
Barry Smith disappears for a couple of issues, as Gil Kane steps in to give us our monthly dose of sword and sandals.
It would appear that, in this issue, the Black Widow finally tells DD the mysterious secret of Project Four and of her history with Danny French.
It's one of my favourite Hulk tales, in which our hero finds himself reduced to the size of a doll and having to battle the hordes of Hydra.
Hooray! It's the return of the Super-Adaptoid - and of that kneeling woman who seems to have appeared on every cover Gil Kane has ever done.
Someone's ego's getting out of hand.
It's the Super-Adaptoid again - but he hasn't brought Gil Kane's Kneeling Woman with him.
Kraven makes a monkey out of the Gibbon by taking over his mind and making him fight the far more powerful Spider-Man.
Thus it is that 33 crime-fighters are squeezed into just 36 pages.
The Fantastic Four are still battling the Creature from the Black Lagoon's outer space lookalike who's now kidnapped Sue, in his desperate attempts to get medical treatment for his wife.
That bounder the Grim Reaper's busy sending temptation the Vision's way, thanks to his ownership of Wonder Man's body.
I'm not totally sure what else happens in this issue. Does the Space Phantom put in an appearance?
Whether he does or does not, I've a feeling the Sentinels are about to reappear from the heart of the sun, with a brand new plan for global domination.
"You can't let him be killed by Hyde!" declares Sharon Carter.
Which poses the obvious question of just who does she want him to be killed by?
I do believe the Scorpion's also in this story. Maybe he can oblige her and be the one to kill Cap.
Barry Smith disappears for a couple of issues, as Gil Kane steps in to give us our monthly dose of sword and sandals.
In it, Conan and Fafnir the Vanir are stranded on the ancient island of Bal-Sagoth, meaning the two enemies must now work together, in order to survive.
While that might sound like it should be good news, both Daredevil and the Widow start to suffer from intense attacks of panic.
I'll make the brave prediction that this can only mean the return of Mr Fear.
It's one of my favourite Hulk tales, in which our hero finds himself reduced to the size of a doll and having to battle the hordes of Hydra.
And it's all thanks to the Chameleon.
But never fear! It's Ant-Man to the rescue!
But never fear! It's Ant-Man to the rescue!
Hooray! It's the return of the Super-Adaptoid - and of that kneeling woman who seems to have appeared on every cover Gil Kane has ever done.
Someone's ego's getting out of hand.
Literally, as a chunk of the living planet turns up to cause nothing but chaos wherever it goes.
It's the Super-Adaptoid again - but he hasn't brought Gil Kane's Kneeling Woman with him.
It would seem the Mimic's also in this story, making me assume the two identically-powered characters are going to confront each other.
All we need now is for the Absorbing Man to show up and we've got a classic.
Kraven makes a monkey out of the Gibbon by taking over his mind and making him fight the far more powerful Spider-Man.
That's Marvel dealt with but, for comparison, what was DC giving us in its mags that bore the same cover date?
A random sampling of them may tell us.
The Justice League hit their 100th issue and do so by cramming in as many heroes as is super-humanly possible.
Thus it is that 33 crime-fighters are squeezed into just 36 pages.
And for good reason. After all, a new menace looms, as the JLA and JSA conduct their annual celebration of something or other.
But it's no ordinary menace. It did, after all, almost destroy the Seven Soldiers of Victory.
I've never read this story but the Grand Comics Database informs me Batman tracks Ra's Al Ghul to Switzerland, only to find out he's dead, which sounds a bit anti-climactic.
As if that wasn't enough to keep any man happy, we also receive a two-page look at the history of reincarnation.
Granted, it's not that new, being made up entirely of reprints.
In the second, the Clock King traps the Green Arrow and Speedy, and it's all going great for him until the archers escape his trap...
In the third, the Puppet-Master invents a Hypno-Ray and commits crimes by using others as puppets. And that's all going great too until he attempts to capture the Green Lantern.
The moral of these tales is, clearly, that to gain criminal success, one should avoid capturing super-heroes.
It's a memorable cover from Joe Kubert.
It's the fight we've all been waiting for, as the depowered Wonder Woman has to tangle with Catwoman. And who could resist buying any book that bore that Dick Giordano cover?
That last tale is from 1960. I just hope Marvel has good lawyers.
But there's no sign of him inside, as we're fed such masterpieces as Robots, Pawns, Goliath of the Western Front! and Robot Fightin' Men, thanks to the pencils of Alex Toth, Ross Andru and Frank Thorne.
I do recall this adventure takes place in the Himalayas and involves some sort of emerald jewel inset in a giant statue of Buddha. For some reason, both Diana and Selina have to get their hands on it - even if it means the death of one of them.
DD # 90
ReplyDeleteThis review is reverse-engineered.
It's derived from MWOM # 270-271.
I don't possess the original DD # 90. Sitting comfortably? Right then, we'll begin.
The story opener's a truly spectacular, double-page splash! It's action & drama, right from the start!
The Black Widow suffers an inexplicable panic attack, whilst swinging from rooftop to rooftop (with Daredevil) – and, missing her grasp, she's plunging down a concrete canyon!
Daredevil thinks: “Something about her heart-beat---rushing, panicky! She's terrified!”
Because of Daredevil's enhanced hearing, he can actually hear people's heart-beats, and judge their state of mind ( Dingoes also do this – but, I digress...)
To the Black Widow, Daredevil's radar-sense, and super-hearing, might still be unknown quantities, at this point, as Natasha explains to Daredevil her emotional reaction: “Matt, I'm frightened—I--I can't explain---but I'm terribly—horribly afraid!” If Natasha knew Daredevil's powers, she'd know Matt routinely reads emotional reactions from heart-beats.
Maybe it just slipped her mind.
Last month, “exposition light” was how I characterized Gerry Conway's writing. But Devil's Advocate needs playing now. Isn't extra exposition needed because Daredevil's blind? (To explain how DD knows things – via his radar-sense, usually – that sighted people take for granted?) And, if the writer's explaining this, all the time, maybe Daredevil stories aren't so exposition light, after all!
Gene Colan's art is top notch! Like last month, Colan's flagpole “vibrates”, as Daredevil rebounds off it, adding dynamism to the scene, as DD grabs for the Black Widow, before it's too late!
Colan adds further dynamism, with the rapidity of Daredevil's billy-club movement, using a “split-scene” effect, as Matt's hand's depicted twice, conveying the speed of events.
In the Colan & Palmer run, San Francisco's Daredevil's adopted city. So, sweeping Golden Gate bridge perspectives are frequently shoe-horned in ( as well as Colan's “vibrating” flagpoles!) Readers might have forgotten we're in San Francisco – so let's keep reminding them! And to make readers doubly sure San Francisco's the setting, China town abounds, too!
For Gerry Conway, the Golden Gate bridge as a backdrop (albeit way in the distance), with a superhero's girlfriend falling to her doom, obviously has a context, in comics history. Famously, the George Washington bridge provided a backdrop for Conway's death of Gwen Stacey story, when Daredevil's fellow roof-top swinger, Spidey, failed to save his girlfriend from a similar fatal fall.
ReplyDeleteDaredevil is physically closer to Natasha, however – so he succeeds where Spidey failed – and grabs the Black Widow's hand, at the last moment!
Colan depicts this mid-air drama, with a screaming Black Widow, frozen in a tableau, elegantly posed, like a movie still from 'Trapeze'. In reality, in a panic attack, even an aerialist's body dynamics would be “all over the place”. Nevertheless, an elegant pose – even whilst screaming – has better optics, for comic book art – unrealistic though it is!
After grabbing the Black Widow, Daredevil billy-club lines an upturned pagoda corner (okay, Colan, China town means it's San Francisco – enough already!), and swings himself & Natasha down to a rooftop. Matt tells Natasha to wrap her arms around his waist. Colan sensibly draws Natasha's arms around Daredevil's chest, instead!
Natasha recaps last month's issue, telling Matt how Danny French & the Electro battle were on her mind, when suddenly...
Daredevil replies: “Okay. Kid. Maybe we'd better head home.”
Peter Parker acquired this nasty habit, too – calling Deb Whitman “kid”, years later. By modern standards it's inappropriate, to say the least.
Nevertheless, don't underestimate Conway. Next issue, Natasha severely tongue-lashes Matt over calling her “kid” ( Deb Whitman never did that!) This comic isn't completely for dinosaurs!
Anyway, Daredevil returns Natasha to her mansion, on the north shore. How does the Black Widow afford a mansion, as a card-carrying ex-commie? These non-capitalists are so decadent!
At the mansion, Ivan does his 'over protective uncle' routine, as usual – in respect of Matt endangering Natasha – yawn.
Natasha recaps her first mission (with Danny French), for the reader's benefit, hinting at the mysterious 'Project Four'. Natasha's recap showcases Colan's excellence at drawing car chases. (Jasper Sitwell's car chases have nothing on this one - except Jasper's car can fly, I suppose!)
But, wasn't the Black Widow's origin something different, in that Gulacy 'Lethal Ladies' story, in 'Savage Action' ? I forget...
Last month's slightly helpless Black Widow seemed inconsistent with the Steve Gerber era ruthless Black Widow, whose willingness to kill created a moral rift with ethical lawyer, Matt. Now, this month, Gerry Conway highlights he's quite aware Natasha isn't behaving normally.
ReplyDeleteMatt says: “Tasha, what's wrong? You're not acting like yourself---not at all.”, as the doorbell rings, interrupting Natasha's story. Likewise, Natasha's “uncharacteristic scream” is referred to, on the splash page. “Uncharacteristic” being the operative word.
Well, Conway having Daredevil 'hang a lamp' on it, shows he's fully aware Natasha's behaviour's out of character – it isn't a mistake in characterization.
The doorbell ringing is Matt's old law school mucker, Larry Cranston, and his senior partner, Jason Sloan. Now, Matt Murdock always looks 32ish, whereas here (and as Mr. Fear) Larry Cranston looks middle-aged – maybe 45-50.
Maybe Cranston attended law school as a mature student! Middle-aged men look more villainous to kids. Plus, Cranston being Matt's old mucker adds drama, when Mr.Fear takes a nose-dive, next issue – oops, spoiler alert!
Jason Sloan makes his dominance over Cranston clear, humiliating Larry in front of Matt. In contrast, to Sloan, Matt's the 'golden boy', whom he'd recruit to their law firm in a heart-beat. Next issue, that dynamic between Sloan & Cranston's important for Cranston's motivation in becoming Mr. Fear.
Natasha & Matt both sense Sloan's an evil manipulator, like the Owl or Killgrave ( this shared intuition's a deliberate & shameless red herring, as Cranston's the shell-game pea to keep your eye on, not Sloan!) Sloan leaves open an invitation to dinner, sometime.
Next morning, Daredevil's destination's the Daily Chronicle, where Matt has a friend on the press. Crimefighters like Batman, Daredevil & Moon Knight often have a friend on the press, and a friend in the police. Suddenly, Daredevil suffers a panic attack, just like the Black Widow's, but he's on his own with this!
So, the structure of the story. The Black Widow & Daredevil both suffer panic attacks (caused by Mr. Fear, we'll later discover). If Gerry Conway had Daredevil's panic attack first, rather than Natasha's, would possibilities of a different kind result? With story structure, examining alternative arrangements is interesting. Sometimes.
The differences between Daredevil & Spidey are highlighted by this mid-air panic attack. If Daredevil loses grip of his line, in mid-air, he can't jump onto a skycraper, and stick to it. Nor does Daredevil have super strength, providing other options.
ReplyDeleteDaredevil sees a skyscraper window, and crashes through it – Venetian blind and all! There, a panic stricken Daredevil's found by a bucket & brush carrying cleaning lady, who calls the cops. Luckily, Lieutenant Paul Carson – Daredevil's friend on the Force – arrives, offering a cup of coffee, to steady DD's nerves. Coffee wouldn't steady frayed nerves – it's a stimulant!
Despite Paul's coffee & sympathy, he wants to arrest Matt for the smashed window! So, Daredevil punches Paul in the jaw, and makes good his escape! Paul Carson's a bit of a Daredevil fanboy - to him, it's worth a sore jaw to see old DD back on his feet! Later, Paul briefly became, for Natasha, a 'nice guys finish last' character – during the Steve Gerber run. At least Paul Carson isn't a cop like Dai Thomas. Dai gave Captain Britain & Blade much rougher rides!
I'm unclear where DD # 90 ends, in the page count, as I'm working from 2 MWOMs, with probably half a comic per issue. Anyway, I'm finishing now.
The artwork in DD # 90 was excellent, blending with the text to create mood & atmosphere. Specifically, an initial Conway caption reminds the reader it's a balmy evening – emphasis on evening! - as justification for Colan to employ shadows, for mood & atmosphere, as he so loves to do!
Next month – in DD #91 – if anything, the art's as good or even better – & that's saying something! (How did Colan go from sublime art like this, to the rubbish he produced in the “Rolling Stone magazine” issue?) However – storywise – pacing must also be considered, and whether the story's ending concludes too suddenly – too quickly – a commonplace error, for young writers. Also, how did Mr.Fear use his fear gas on Matt & Natasha, mid-air between skycrapers, when he was nowhere in sight? Consider that, next issue! Is the original Mr.Fear the first villain whose costume & weapons were stolen, and recycled by somebody else? ( The Prowler had this happen, too, much later!) And how's Mr.Fear the only person to realize Matt Murdock & Natasha moving to San Francisco at the same time as Daredevil & the Black Widow, isn't a coincidence? Answer – he isn't!
A final thought, could the 'From Russia with Love' character, Tatiana Romanova, have been the inspiration for Natasha Romanoff ? The names are similar sounding. And could the anonymous assassin who saves Bond's life at the gypsy camp (actually, “Nash” ), be the inspiration for the anonymous ninja assassin who saves Iron Fist's life in the Meachum building? Probably not!
Phillip
The Super Adaptoid's eyes resemble Dame Edna's spectacles. Has he absorbed her rapier-like wit, too?
ReplyDeletePhillip
If you're looking for parallels between From Russia With Love and the early Iron Man strips, Colin, I'd be looking at those attaché cases and wondering which one came first.
ReplyDeleteAnd I don't know how many people still head into the office with an attaché case these days but that's one accessory whose demise it's sad to see.
I had most of the marbles. Oddly, I found the Iron Man want to be the most compelling for the month as I recall 50 years on, lol. The weird thing is the next issue the storyline totally changes. I recall reading somewhere that Stanley told the writer/editor he didn’t like where the storyline was going and fo just simply abandon it in midstream. It took me about 40 years before I learned that but at least it made sense. Charlie.
ReplyDeleteSweet Lord PHILLIP!!! Charlie saw Dame Edna in London in 1987 lol.
ReplyDeleteDangermash - Also Kleb's toe-knives & Tarantula's toe-knives. Come to think of it, Slaymaster was inspired by Kleb's footwear, too!
ReplyDeletePhillip
Charlie - In 1987, did Edna call anyone 'Possum'?
ReplyDeletePhillip
PHILLIP I really do not recall the particulars of the show. My brother got the ticket and I was there to visit him as he was going to law school in London and I was living in Germany at the time. Somehow, he scored Dame Edna tickets at the last minute and then we went. I don’t recall much of the show other than the dame roasting the woman in the first row who was probably in her 60s in a bery outdated outfit from the late 60s or early 70s, lol
DeleteJLA 100? Puh-leeze!!!
ReplyDeleteWe’re still about a year away from the time when I started buying and collecting comics on a regular basis, so I didn’t have any of these when I was a kid, and none of ‘em were in that pile of comics I got from a neighborhood kid who didn’t want em anymore. I’ve since acquired most of them over the ensuing decades, and think the DD is my favorite but that could just be a reaction to Phillip’s enthrallingly enthusiastic play-by-play ;)
ReplyDeleteSteve, don’t worry about the anti-climactic nature of Ras Al Ghul’s death. It doesn’t last very long.
Charlie, I’d never heard that tidbit about Stan Lee ordering an abrupt change-up in Iron Man’s storyline. You’ve got me curious now to check out those two issues, just to see how obvious it is.
b.t.
BT - truly for around 40-45 years it stuck in my head how the story ended. I would have to go back and reread them myself. My general recollection was that the super adapt toyed was free, Iron Man was in a bad way, and I think I assumed that there would be a round two or continuation but it just seemed to simply move on.
DeleteYeah, why isn't JLA #100 here? With the Justice Society and the Seven Soldiers of Victory! Its the greatest gathering of superstars ever recorded!
ReplyDeleteWell, according to the cover. Which is a bit of an exaggeration - personally I preferred the JLA/JSA crossover with the Freedom Fighters - but its still pretty great. You've got to love a comic that starts with a super-team having a birthday cake to mark their hundredth meeting (especially when its cut by the Black Canary and Zatanna).
Still, at least you've included Wonder Woman #201, Steve.
Whats not to like about white jumpsuit era Diana fighting with Catwoman in comic book Tibet, drawn by Dick Giordano? Especially as after they've teamed up, recovered the Fist of Flame and you think its all over, things go strange and suddenly they find themselves in another world... facing Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser!
If thats not an ending to get you psyched for the next issue I don't know what is.
-sean
b.t. - Thanks!
ReplyDeleteSean - considering the bond between Fafhrd & the Grey Mouser is that both their women were murdered, maybe Diana & Catwoman...a couple of potential replacements?!
Did you watch any of that show about Irish archaeology & origins, on BBC4?
It was about Adolf Mahr (later a Nazi) & Estyn Evans, and their competing theories about Irish origins. Mahr thought the Irish had pan European, Celtic origins, whilst Evans thought the Irish came over from Scotland.
At the end of the show, a geneticist said that modern Irish origins started in the Bronze age, and have no genetic connection to their neolithic ancestors. The Bronze age Irish people's genetic origins hail from the steppes of Russia! Or so the show claimed.
Phillip
JLA #100 has now been added to the post.
ReplyDeletePhillip, thanks for the epic Daredevil summary.
And thanks to all of you for your comments.
Awesome Steve.
ReplyDeleteYou responded on JLA #100 quicker than a tory leadership candidate rowing back on a policy position! Let it not be said you don't understand the will of the people.
-sean
ReplyDeleteWELL!
This is an unexpected turn of events…
Charlie — I’m gonna have to take your word for that Iron Man storyline being so rudely interrupted by Stan’s editorial edict. You could make up your own storyline from whole cloth and I’d have no way of disputing your account! I THOUGHT I had those two issues in my collection, but apparently I don’t. Also, i don’t have a copy of ESSENTIAL IRON MAN #4 (where those issues were reprinted), which again, I THOUGHT I did … but nope. Apparently both issues are reprinted in the latest IRON MAN EPIC COLLECTION TPB, which came out just a few months ago, and which, honestly, I wasn’t entirely sure I wanted. But now that I’ve discovered this gaping hole in my Bronze Age Marvel collection, i may have to order the dang thing after all….
b.t.
Conan and Fafnir find themselves stranded on an ancient island... and the first person they meet is a comely wench wearing a metal bra and not much else. Only in the Hyborian age.
ReplyDeleteI have to say that Gil Kane (and Ralph Reese) did a fantastic job on Conan #17, better - trigger warning: controversial opinion ahead - than Barry Smith had been doing previously.
Obviously something was going on with young Barry in the few months he was away from the title, because compared to that Elric crossover his work took a massive leap forward by 'Hawks of the Sea' in #19.
-sean
Phillip, I did not see that programme.
ReplyDeleteThere was some BBC doc a while back arguing that the Irish weren't actually part of any Celtic migration at all, but an earlier people that had adopted aspects of that culture while it dominated the continent.
My understanding is that the Irish arrived with Slaine, from the Land of the Young (after the original inhabitants, the Tuatha De Danaan, had moved on to the Otherworld).
-sean
WAITAMINNIT!
ReplyDeleteThough the character was named ‘Athelstane’ in Howard’s original short story, calling him ‘Fafnir’ in the adaptation was Roy Thomas’ in-joke-y hat-tip to Fritz Leiber’s Fafhrd. So, that means both the actual Fafhrd and his Mouser-less homage/counterpart made their comics debuts in the VERY SAME MONTH. Now, I’m not saying the Illuminati was behind it, or Freemasons or Ancient Astronauts or Nostradamus, but doesn’t that coincidence seem VERY unlikely….?
No? Okay, fine. It’s just a meaningless, weird little factoid, then.
Hey! (One Stan Lee-approved abrupt transition comin’ at ya) — that U.S. drone strike that took out the Al Quaeda guy yesterday, that’s some super-sci-fi / comic book style ordnance right there. They’re calling it a ‘robot ninja missile’. Instead of using explosives, it’s a rocket-propelled airborne battering ram that extrudes six razor-sharp blades on impact, chopping its target to bits. Supposedly, it’s so precise that it can wipe out someone in the passenger seat of a car and not harm the driver. Rumors are that they’ve been successfully deployed over the past few years, taking out several High Value Targets. It’s actually kinda terrifying.
b.t.
Don't worry b.t. - the Al Quaeda guy wasn't a US citizen so it was ok to execute him without a trial.
ReplyDeleteI wonder how long it'll be til those drones are controlled by an AI that can make decisions, like Skynet...
-sean
Sean, I’m already halfway convinced that Skynet is behind all the nutty divisive hate-mongering and misinformation shit in the world, designed to bring about the fall of Human Civilization without the need for building expensive Terminators and Bolo tanks. My bigger fear is that its diabolical master plan may be working.
ReplyDeleteb.t.
It does feel like we live in some sort of science-fiction dystopia b.t., but I suspect the world might always have been like that but as you get older it gets harder to be optimistic about changing it.
ReplyDeleteBut at least we have Steve Does Comics!
-sean
Yes, thank Heaven for Steve Does Comics :)
ReplyDeleteAnd a world with Live-Action Namor wearing shiny emerald baggies in it can’t be all bad.
b.t.
The Conan story was originally one of REH's non-Conan stories, The Gods Of Bal-Sagoth.
ReplyDeletePhillip, MWOM #270-271 must be from autumn 1977, my first term in secondary school.
Phillip- holy mackerel! I never put 2 and 2 together regarding Rosa Kleb and Tarantula! As many times as I've seen FRWL, it's odd I never noticed that. Now I'll never not think of it whenever I revisit those old Gerry Conway ASM's. Perhaps Marvel missed an opportunity by not borrowing from OddJob's 'hat trick ' in Goldfinger...
ReplyDeleteAs for the comics, I'm with b.t. That is, this era preceded my superhero comic purchases. I did enjoy that Conan issue, later on, as a back issue.
I first saw the Thomas/Kane/Reese ‘Bal-Sagoth’ story as a reprint in SAVAGE SWORD (in b/w, with some uneven inkwash tones). IIRC, it was a last-minute fill-in because Neal Adams missed his deadline for delivering ‘Shadows in Zamboula’. Anyhow, I was especially impressed by Ralph Reese’s inks — thought they made for an unusually stylish combo over Kane’s pencils. Dan Adkins’ inks on Part Two were good too, but we’d seen that combo many times before and after.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Sean’s comment earlier about Barry Smith’s art improving by leaps and bounds when he returned to the book after Kane’s two issues. I have a deep fondness for his earlier Conans (I especially dig issues 3, 6 and 9), but he sure seemed like he was determinedly swinging for the fences on his second run.
b.t.
BT - I wouldn’t bet the farm on those Iron Man issues from 50 years ago. My recollection is they were rather hodgepodge. I mean only a few issues earlier Iron Man was under duress from getting hit in the head by a student throwing a brick, lol.
ReplyDeleteMarvel's Skynet was 'Cerberus' the world-controlling computer system, in Iron Man # 5 ( when Iron Man met that girl from the future!)
ReplyDeleteColin - Yes, the two MWOMs are the weeks ending Nov 30th & Dec 7th, respectively (although those dates are never totally accurate). Your first term at secondary was my first term at juniors!
As a kid, my dad got me 'The Gods of Bal-Sagoth' at a bookshop in Rabat, Malta. I've still got the book somewhere!
Redartz - Yes, and in the scene in which it seems Kleb's going to die - for botching the job - but the SPECTRE thug kills the chess master with a Peter Lorre voice, instead, that is also done with a toe/boot knife. So maybe those weapons are SPECTRE standard issue!
I've a vague memory of someone else with a steel-rimmed hat, apart from Oddjob.
Phillip
ODD JOB - wasnt that character played by “Don Rickles” in that most incredible (!) movie “Kelly’s Heroes?”
DeleteJLA 100 - Man ih man, Charlie has a huge nostalgia boner after seeing that cover!!! Thanks STEVE!!!
ReplyDeleteI mean the whole panoply of DC, National, and Leading comics is on that cover!!!
This may have been the first time since the 1940s the SEVEN SOLDIERS made an appearance outside the 100-pager reprints? And the JSA heroes really weren’t getting much print time either besides the annual JLA-JSA story.
These 3 JLA issues… YOWZA!!!
WANTED -like SECRET ORIGINS - was really a great way to spend 2 bits and get some golden age love… 3-4 stories. Man i wore those books out!
ReplyDeleteCompletely agree about that JLA/JSA/Seven Soldiers x-over Charlie, even though I didn't quite get the whole alternative universe thing when I was 7 - at the time it seemed a bit odd to have white jumpsuit Wonder Woman and red, white and blue Amazonian Wonder Woman in the same story.
ReplyDeleteAnd I didn't get to read the last part ):
Not til much, much later, although at least by then I was more on top of the multiverse thing.
Mind you, I still don't get quite what the difference was between Earth-1 and Earth-2; obviously there was a different set of super-heroes, but there never seemed to be any indication of the Jonbar hinge that made Earth-2 distinctive (unlike, say, with Earth-X, which was clearly the changed outcome of WW2).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonbar_hinge
Er, not that it matters much now, post-Crisis...
Anyway, I think the Seven Soldiers only other post-'golden age' appearance was the short Adventure Comics run in mid-70s. Thats a real curio, because it was serialised from an old 40s script found in the DC offices, but drawn in (then) more modern styles by - variously - Dick Dillin, Howard Chaykin, Lee Elias and others.
-sean
Phillip, iirc the Daredevil 'Rolling Stone' story - assuming you mean #100 - wasn't inked by Tom Palmer, which probably explains why Gene Colan's artwork doesn't look as good as did in #s 90 and 91.
ReplyDelete-sean
Sean - Yes. When I'm heaping praise on the art in those DD stories, maybe it's Palmer whom I should be giving his fair share to, as well as Colan!
ReplyDeletePhillip
Oops, correction Charlie - I looked it up, and apparently the Seven Soldiers of Victory turn up in an issue of Infinity Inc.
ReplyDeleteI should have guessed Roy Thomas would revisit them. That was inevitable.
-sean
INFINITY INC? Wasnt that a pulp-motivated comic set in the 1930s? I think the coolest thing about its 4 (?) issues was a Kubert cover of a guy parachuting???
ReplyDeleteI reckon you're thinking of Justice Inc there Charlie. Infinity Inc was a sort of second generation JSA spin from the mid 80s.
ReplyDelete(Yeah, I know - I've wasted my life...)
-sean
*JSA spin off
ReplyDelete