Category: DC Superhero

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The Sandman


By Joe Simon & Jack Kirby with Mike Royer & others (DC Comics)
ISBN: 978-1-4012-2299-4

Win’s Christmas Gift Recommendation: Perfect for the die-hard fanboy superhero purists and lovers of pure comic magic  9/10

In the early days of the American comicbook the fledgling industry was awash with chancers, double-dealers, slick operators and outright crooks. Many creative types fell foul of this publishing free-for-all but a rare few took to the cut and thrust and managed not only to survive but also to prosper.

Just as the Golden Age of comics was beginning two young men with big hopes met up and began a decades-long association that was always intensely creative, immensely productive and spectacularly in tune with popular tastes. Joe Simon was a sharp-minded, talented young man with five years experience in “real” publishing, working from the bottom up to art director on a succession of small paper such as the Rochester Journal American, Syracuse Herald and Syracuse Journal American before moving to New York City and a life of freelancing as an art/photo retoucher and illustrator. Recommended by his boss, Simon joined Lloyd Jacquet’s pioneering Funnies Inc., a comics production “shop” generating strips and characters for a number of publishing houses eager to cash in on the success of Action Comics and its stellar attraction Superman.

Within days Simon created The Fiery Mask for Martin Goodman of Timely Comics (now Marvel) and met young Jacob Kurtzberg, a cartoonist and animator just hitting his stride with the Blue Beetle for the Fox Feature Syndicate.

Together Simon and Kurtzberg (who went through a legion of pen-names before settling on Jack Kirby) enjoyed a stunning creative empathy and synergy which galvanized an already electric neo-industry with a vast catalogue of features and even sub-genres. They produced the influential Blue Bolt, Captain Marvel Adventures (#1) and, when Martin Goodman made Simon the editor of Timely, created a host of iconic characters such as Red Raven, the first Marvel Boy, The Vision, Young Allies and of course the million-selling mega-hit Captain America.

Famed for his larger than life characters and colossal cosmic imaginings, “King” Kirby was an astute, spiritual hard-working family man who lived though poverty, gangsterism, the Depression and World War II. He had seen Post-War optimism, Cold War paranoia, political cynicism and the birth and death of peace-seeking counter-cultures. He was open-minded, always saw the best in people and was utterly wedded to the making of comics stories on every imaginable subject.

When Goodman failed to make good on his financial obligations, Simon & Kirby jumped ship to National/DC, who welcomed them with open arms and a big chequebook. Initially an uncomfortable fit, bursting with ideas the company were not comfortable with, the pair were soon given two strips that were in the doldrums until they found their creative feet.

Once established and left to their own devices they created the “Kid Gang” genre with The Newsboy Legion (plus super-heroic mentor The Guardian) and the unique international army The Boy Commandos – who shared the spotlight with Batman in Detective Comics and whose own solo title was frequently the company’s third best seller.

Those moribund strips they were first let loose upon were a big game feature called Paul Kirk, Manhunter, which they overnight turned into a darkly manic, vengeful superhero strip, and one of comics’ first masked mystery-men – The Sandman.

This superb hardback collection reprints all the Simon and Kirby Sandman tales, including the covers they produced for the issues they didn’t craft, lost art pages, original art reproductions plus informative text articles from Kirby historian John Morrow and writer Mark Evanier and also includes Simon & Kirby’s reunion reinvention of Sandman from 1974 (which in turn spawned one of Kirby’s last, short-lived series for DC).

Created by Gardner Fox and originally illustrated by Bert Christman, the Sandman premiered in either Adventure Comics #40 July 1939 (two months after Batman debuted in Detective Comics #27) or two weeks earlier in New York World’s Fair Comics 1939, depending on whether some rather spotty distribution records can be believed.

Face utterly obscured by a gasmask; caped and business-suited millionaire adventurer Wesley Dodds wielded a sleeping-gas gun to battle a string of crooks and spies, accompanied by his paramour Dian Belmont, before gradually losing the readers’ interest and slipping from cover-spot to last feature in Adventure Comics, just as the cloaked pulp-hero avengers he emulated slipped from popularity in favour of more flamboyant fictional fare.

Possessing a certain indefinable style and charm but definitely no pizzazz, the feature was on the verge of being dropped when he abruptly switched to a skintight yellow and purple costume complete with billowing cape and gained a boy-sidekick, Sandy the Golden Boy (Adventure Comics #69, December 1941, by Mort Weisinger & Paul Norris), presumably to move closer to the overwhelmingly successful Batman model.

It didn’t help much.

So when Simon & Kirby came aboard with #72, the little banner above the logo on the Jack Burnley Starman cover gave no hint of the pulse-pounding change that had occurred. ‘Riddle of the Slave Market’ saw a sleek, dynamic pair of gleaming golden lions explode across eleven pages of graphic fury as the Sandman, sans that daft cape, crushed a white-collar criminal with a nasty line in illicit indentured servitude. Moreover the character had overnight acquired his unique gimmick: Sandman’s crusades against crime were presaged by the perpetrator suffering nightmares of imminent retribution…

This semi-supernatural element and fascination with the world of dreams (revisited by S&K a decade later in their short-lived experimental suspense series The Strange World of Your Dreams) added a conceptual punch to equal the kinetic fury of their art, and when #73 (with the S&K Manhunter now hogging the cover) the Sandman strip ‘Bells of Madness!’ ramped up the tension with another spectacular action epic as the Dream Warriors exposed a cunningly murder plot.

With Adventure #74 Sandman and Sandy took back the cover spot (only their third since #51) keeping it until the feature ended. Only once did Sandman not appear on the cover – #99: another S&K Manhunter classic. With #103 the magazine underwent a complete overhaul with new feature Superboy leading a cast of established regulars – Green Arrow, Aquaman, Shining Knight and Johnny Quick – parachuted in from other magazines.

The story in #74 was an eerie instant classic: ‘The Man Who Knew All the Answers’ was a small-town professor who artificially increased his intellect – but not his morality. When his perfectly planned crimes brought him into conflict with the Sandman it was clear that his brain enhancer did nothing for his common sense either.

‘The Villain From Valhalla!’ (Adventure Comics #75 June 1942) pitted the galvanic heroes against a hammer-wielding Norse god in a cataclysmic Battle Royale, which is followed here by an equally astounding clash with sinister floral villain Nightshade. ‘The Adventure of the Magic Forest’ comes from World’s Finest Comics #6 (Summer 1942), one of two S&K exploits in that legendary high-profile anthology.

Sandman was also a founding member of the Justice Society of America, appearing in many issues of All-Star Comics. A number of the pertinent chapters were also produced by Joe & Jack but are not included in this otherwise comprehensive compendium: completists will need to track down the superb All-Star Archives (volumes 4 and 5) for those dynamic classics.

Adventure #76 again heavily emphasised the foreboding dream element in ‘Mr. Noah Raids the Town!’ as a soothsaying mastermind unleashed preposterously intelligent animals to steal and kill whilst #77’s ‘Dreams of Doom!’ found an innocent man plagued by nightmares and compelled to solicit the aid of the Master of Dreams… and only just in time!

A sinister Swami was exposed in ‘The Miracle Maker!’ whilst the final World’s Finest guest-shot (#7, Fall 1942) dipped heavily into exotic fantasy for ‘A Modern Arabian Nightmare!’ before Adventure #79 perfectly banged the patriotic drum in an eerie temporal-trap mystery ‘Footprints in the Sands of Time!’

It was back to thrill-a-minute manic crime mayhem in #80’s ‘The Man Who Couldn’t Sleep!’ but ‘A Drama in Dreams’ presented a baffling conundrum for Sandy alone to solve whilst the creators went for seasonal shocks in the madcap Yule yarn ‘Santa Fronts for the Mob.’

Issue #83 led with a blockbusting boxing romance as the heroes came to the aid of ‘The Lady and the Champ!’ and included a gloriously over-the-top Boy Commandos ad featuring Hitler, Mussolini and Tojo as only Jack and Joe could defame them. Next comes the gloriously Grand Guignol saga of the ‘Crime Carnival’ and a delightfully wry romp ‘The Unholy Dreams of Gentleman Jack’ before the creators once more returned to a favourite theme of childhood poverty in ‘The Boy Who Was Too Big for his Breeches.’

The war was progressing and soon both Joe and Jack would be full-time servicemen so perhaps the increasingly humanistic tales of the latter run were only to be expected. The shift in emphasis certainly didn’t affect the quality of such gems as ‘I Hated the Sandman!’ from #87 wherein narcoleptic Silas Pettigrew learned a salutary lesson or the heartwarming and exuberant childhood fantasy ‘The Cruise of the Crescent’ whilst #89’s kidnap drama ‘Prisoner of his Dreams’ and the boisterous ‘Sleepy Time Crimes!’ proved that whatever else happened action and excitement would always be the series’ watchwords.

In the months prior to their induction Simon & Kirby went into overdrive, building up a vast reserve of inventory stories for their assorted strip commitments, but even so relentless publishing deadlines soon ate them up. Adventure Comics #91 featured the last S&K yarn for a year and a half, long after Kirby had shipped out to fight in Europe and Simon had begun his service with the US Coast Guard.

‘Courage a La Carte’ has precious little – if indeed any – Kirby art in it, but is nonetheless a sterling saga of malice unmasked and justice triumphant, after which only the covers of Adventure #92-97 reprinted here kept the artist’s light burning in the heart of their fans.

They returned for issue #100 (October/November 1945) with tempestuous crime caper ‘Sweets for Swag!’ – the cover of #101and again inside #102 with the swansong drama ‘The Dream of Peter Green!’ as Sandman and Sandy exposed shoddy dealings in city contracting and gave ghetto kids decent playgrounds to grow fit and healthy in.

National Comics was no longer a welcoming place for the reunited duo and by 1947 they had formed their own studio and begun a long and productive relationship with Harvey Comics (Stuntman, Boy’s Ranch, Captain 3-D, Lancelot Strong, The Shield, The Fly, Three Rocketeers and others) and created an stunning variety of genre features for Crestwood/Pines (supplied by their Essankay/Mainline studio shop) which included Justice Traps the Guilty, Black Magic, Fighting American, Bullseye, Foxhole and Young Romance amongst many more (see the superb Best of Simon and Kirby for a salient selection of these classic creations).

As comics went through bad times the pair eventually went their separate ways but were reunited for one last hurrah in 1974 whilst both working once more for DC. As a result they re-imagined the Sandman as a fully fantastic scientific master of the metaphysical, policing the nightmares of humanity from a citadel deep in “The Dream-stream.”

‘The Sandman’ (scripted by Joe, drawn/edited by Jack and inked by Mike Royer) is pure escapist delight as young Jed Paulsen tapped into the oneiric horrors of villainous cybrid General Electric as he attempted to conquer the World of Our Dreams. When all hope seemed exhausted Jed was rescued and befriended by the omniscient Lord of Sleep and his ghastly assistants Brute and Glob…

This rambunctious romp is a great place to end our volume but since six further adventures of this Weaver of Dreams were completed (albeit with no Simon and varying degrees of Kirby) perhaps one day they too will make the jump to graphic novel immortality…

After years of neglect the glorious wealth of Jack Kirby material available these days is a true testament to his influence and legacy, so this magnificent collection of his collaborations with fellow industry pioneer Joe Simon is another gigantic box of delights that perfectly illustrates the depth, scope sheer thundering joy of the early days of comics: something no amount of corporate shoddy behaviour can ever diminish.

© 1942, 1943, 1944, 1945, 1946, 1974, 2009 DC Comics. All rights reserved.

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Showcase Presents Batman volume 4


By Frank Robbins, Irv Novick, Bob Brown, Joe Giella & various (DC Comics)
ISBN13: 978-1-84856-357-5

After three seasons (perhaps two and a half would be closer) the overwhelmingly successful Batman TV show ended in March, 1968. It had clocked up 120 episodes since the US premiere on January 12, 1966. As the series foundered and crashed the global fascination with “camp” superheroes – and no, the term had nothing to do with sexual proclivities no matter what you and Mel Brooks might think about Men in Tights – burst as quickly as it had boomed and the Caped Crusader was left with a hard core of dedicated fans and followers who now wanted their hero back.

For the editor who had tried to keep the most ludicrous excesses of the show out whilst still cashing in on his global popularity, the reasoning seemed simple: get him back to solving baffling mysteries and facing genuine perils as soon and as thrillingly as possible.

No problem.

This fourth impressively economical black and white compendium gathers Batman and Robin yarns from Batman #202-215 and the front halves of Detective Comics #376-390; the back-up slot being delightfully filled until #383 by the whimsically wonderful Elongated Man, whereafter he was unceremoniously dropped to make room for Batgirl’s own solo sallies.

The 27 stories here (some of the Batman issues were giant reprint editions so only their covers are reproduced within these pages) were written and illustrated by an evolving team of creators as editor Julie Schwartz lost some of his elite stable to age, attrition and corporate pressure, but the “new blood” was only fresh to the Gotham Guardian, not the industry and their sterling efforts deftly moulded the character into a hero capable of actually working within the new “big things” in comics: suspense, horror and the supernatural…

The book leads off with ‘Gateway to Death!’ (Batman #202, June 1968) by Gardner Fox, an un-attributed artist – possibly Dick Dillin or Mike Sekowsky – & Sid Greene, a spooky graveyard chiller which found the Dynamic Duo chasing a psychic plunderer towards their own prognosticated doom, after which Detective #376 (by the same creative team) asked ‘Hunted or …Haunted?’ as a time-traveller inadvertently put the fear of death and worse into the Caped Crusader.

Batman #203 was an 80-Page Giant with a cover by Neal Adams, whilst an old foe returned in ‘The Riddler’s Prison-Puzzle Problem!’ (Detective #377, Fox, Frank Springer & Greene) before Frank Robbins (creator of newspaper strip Johnny Hazard) joined the writing team for ‘Operation: Blindfold!’ illustrated by Irv Novick & Joe Giella, a two-part criminal conspiracy saga wherein a legion of thugs and sightless beggars almost took over Gotham.

With veteran penciller Bob Brown on Detective and Novick on Batman the artistic quality was high and consistent but unfortunately the strictly chronological reprinting works against the reader as the concluding episode is postponed and derailed here by Detective #378, the first half of a generation gap murder-mystery ‘Batman! Drop Dead… Twice!’ (Robbins, Brown & Giella) which itself climaxed after ‘Blind as a… Bat?’ from Batman #204 with a rollicking rollercoaster ride of spills and chills in ‘Two Killings For the Price of One!’ in Detective #379.

Issue #380 follows, introducing a new love-interest in Ginny Jenkins, the ‘Marital-Bliss Miss!’ (Robbins, Brown & Giella) who only pretended to be the new Mrs. Bruce Wayne for the very best of motives – saving his life – whilst in Batman #206 Novick & Giella illustrated a canny thriller ‘Batman Walks the Last Mile!’ pitting the Caped Crusader against a conman who claimed to be the brains behind the Dynamic Duo’s success.

In an era where teen angst and the counter-culture played an increasingly strident part Robin’s role as spokesperson for a generation was becoming increasingly important, with disputes and splits from his senior partner constantly recurring. Detective #381 featured one of the best as Batman literally dumped the Boy Wonder in ‘One Drown… One More to Go!’ – another clever crime conundrum from Robbins, Brown & Giella.

Batman #207 carried a classy countdown to catastrophe drama as all Gotham hunted for ‘the atomic nightmare’ of ‘The Doomsday Ball!’ whilst ‘Tec #382 continued the theme of youth in revolt with ‘Riddle of the Robbin’ Robin!’ but the disagreements were never serious or genuine, although that would soon change. Batman #208 was another reprint Giant: this time focusing on the women in his life. However even though Schwartz varied the usual format by having Gil Kane draw interlocking framing sequences, turning the issue into one big single story, all that has all been left out here so you just get the rather nifty Nicky Cardy cover.

Detective #383 was a straightforward thriller set in Gotham’s Chinatown: ‘The Fortune-Cookie Caper!’ but outlandish mind-bending mystery was the order of the day in ‘Jungle Jeopardy!’ in Batman #209 and ‘Tec #384 asked ‘Whatever Will Happen to Heiress Heloise?’ a crafty last tale of cross and double-cross from Gardner Fox, illustrated as ever by Brown & Giella.

Catwoman returned mob-handed – or is that mob-pawed? – in Batman #210 with eight other cat chicks in tow so the Caped Crimebuster was hard-pressed to solve ‘The Case of the Purr-Loined Pearl!’ whilst Bob Kanigher wrote one of the best tales of his long and illustrious career for Detective #385 as a nameless nonentity became the most important man Batman never met in the deeply moving ‘Die Small… Die Big!’

Issue #386 found Bruce Wayne a ‘Stand-In for Murder’ (Robbins, Brown & Giella) whilst the heroes had secret identity woes in ‘Batman’s Big Blow-Off!’ (#211, (Robbins, Novick & Giella) and Young Turk Mike Friedrich returned to script a reworking of Batman’s very first appearance for the 30th Anniversary issue of Detective Comics. ‘The Cry of Night is… Sudden Death!’ was a contemporary reworking of issue #27’s ‘The Case of the Chemical Syndicate’ which launched the Dark Knight on the road to immortality (and to see the original check out Batman Chronicles Volume 1, or any of the many “Best of” collections that feature this landmark tale) but once more the relationship between Batman and Boy Wonder came under probing scrutiny.

‘Baffling Deaths of the Crime-Czar!’ (Batman #212, Robbins, Novick & Giella) pitted a trio of exuberant hit-men against the heroes, before John Broome made a final scripting contribution that moved the Joker away from Clown crimes and back towards the insane killer we all cherish in ‘Tec #388’s ‘Public Luna-tic Number One!‘  – a classy sci-fi thriller that totally reinvented the Laughing Loon, in no small part thanks to the artistic efforts of Brown & Giella.

Batman #213 was another reprint Giant, celebrating other landmarks of the 30th Anniversary and featured a new retelling of ‘The Origin of Robin’ courtesy of E. Nelson Bridwell, Ross Andru & Mike Esposito, which is included here after the spiffy cover from Bill Draut & Vince Colletta.

The road to a scary hero continued with Detective #389 and the Robbins-scripted ‘Batman’s Evil Eye’ wherein the Scarecrow infected Gotham’s Guardian with the power to terrify at a glance – obviously somebody saw the long-term story potential in that stunt…

There was still potential to be daft too, though as seen in ‘Batman’s Marriage Trap!’ (#214, Robbins, Novick & Giella) wherein a wicked Femme Fatale set the unhappy spinsters of America on the trail of Gotham’s Most Eligible Bat-chelor (see what I did there? Wishing I hadn’t…?) Not even a guest-shot by positive role-model Batgirl can redeem this peculiar throwback – although the art just might…

The last Detective tale is from #390 and pits the Dynamic Duo against lacklustre costumed assassin The Masquerader in ‘If the Coffin Fits… Wear It!’ before the end of an era is presaged in Batman #215 and ‘Call Me Master!’ by Robbins, Novick and the soon to become legendary Dick Giordano. Although a clever tale of mind-control skullduggery, this tale trialed the loss of Wayne Manor and an all-out split between Dark Knight and Boy Wonder: events that would come to pass within mere months, ushering in a bold new direction for the Bat-Universe

This volume brings three decades of Batman to a solid conclusion. Soon safe boy-scout Caped Crusader would become a terrifying creature of passion, intellect and shadowy suspense.

Stay tuned: This book is wonderfully good but the very best is still to come…

© 1968, 1969, 2009 DC Comics. All rights reserved.

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JLA Volume 6: World War III


By Grant Morrison, J.M. DeMatteis, Howard Porter, Mark Pajarillo & various (DC Comics)
ISBN: 978-1-84023-184-7

With this sixth collection of breathtaking adventures starring the World’s Greatest Superheroes, the progression of gargantuan epics and mind-boggling conceptual endeavours culminated in the cosmic spectacle re-originators Grant Morrison and Howard Porter had been patiently working towards for three years: a “Big Finish” saga that proved well worth the wait.

This book, collecting issues #34-41of the monthly comic-book, also includes contributions from writer J.M. DeMatteis and art by Mark Pajarillo, John Dell, Drew Geraci & Walden Wong as an ancient extra-universal terror-weapon finally began to eat its way through reality.

Beginning with the thematic prelude ‘The Ant and the Avalanche’ (Morrison, Porter & John Dell) the JLA faced increased super-villain violence, natural disasters and general madness and New God Orion determines that a threat from the time of the Primal Gods is loose and closing on Earth. With the entire planet in turmoil, Lex Luthor and his malevolent allies prepared to destroy all heroes once and for all…

‘The Guilty’ by J.M. DeMatteis, Mark Pajarillo & Walden Wong took a timely sidestep to focus on debased angel Zauriel and the Hal Jordan-bonded Spectre and the past mortal sins of the assembled Leaguers. Cleansed and refreshed the team then embarked on the six-part epic ‘World War Three’ (Morrison, Porter and Dell), starting by learning the origins of Mageddon, a semi-sentient doomsday weapon that fostered hatred and violence. And now it approached Earth…

Responding to its presence the erstwhile hero Aztek (see JLA Presents Aztek, the Ultimate Man) came out of retirement as Luthor’s team ambushed the JLA in their lunar citadel with devastating success… Meanwhile on Earth, the inexorably approaching God-Weapon was driving the populace, human and not, into mania and blood-frenzy whilst the hard-pressed superhero community found that even they were not immune from Mageddon’s influence…

When even Heaven refused to act in Earth’s defence all hope seemed lost until the long-lost Flash returned with assistance from the end of time and space and Zauriel won help from an unexpected source, but even this was not enough until a hero made the ultimate sacrifice and humanity took its fate into its own disparate hands for a spectacular and cathartic cosmic climax that will delight fans of every persuasion and preference.

Compelling, challenging and genuinely uplifting this tale is a high-mark in modern superhero comics and one no fan can afford to miss. Morrison & Porter’s JLA was never afraid of looking back fondly or laughing at itself: an all-out effort to be Thrilling, Smart and Fun. For a brief moment in the team’s long and chequered career they were truly the “World’s Greatest Superheroes.” This is the kind of joyous frolic that nobody should ever outgrow and these are graphic novels to be read and re-read forever…

© 1999, 2000 DC Comics.  All rights reserved.

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Justice Society Volume 1


By Gerry Conway, Paul Levitz, Wally Wood, Joe Staton & various (DC Comics)
ISBN: 978-1-4012-0970-4

In the turbulent 1970s many old publishing ideas were finally laid to rest. The belief that characters could be “over-exposed” was one of the most long-lasting, garnered from years of experience in an industry that lived or died on that fractional portion of pennies derived each month from the pocket money and allowances of children which wasn’t spent on candy, toys or movies.

By the end of the 1960s comicbook costs and prices were inexorably rising and a proportion of titles – especially the newly revived horror stories – were consciously being produced for older readerships. Nearly a decade of organised fan publications and letter writing crusades had finally convinced publishing bean-counters what editors already knew: grown-ups avidly read comics too; they would happily spend more than kids and they wanted more, more, more of what they loved.

Explicitly: If one appearance per month was popular, extras, specials and second series would be more so. By the time Marvel Wunderkind Gerry Conway was ready to leave Marvel, DC was willing to expand its variegated line-up with some oft-requested fan-favourite characters. Paramount among these was the Justice Society of America, the first comicbook super-team and a perennial gem whose annual guest-appearances in the Justice League of America had become an inescapable and beloved summer tradition.

Thus in 1976 along with Blackhawk, Plastic Man, Secret Society of Super-Villains, Freedom Fighters, Kobra, Blitzkrieg and many others Conway signalled his DC tenure by reviving All Star Comics with number #58 (the original title had transformed overnight into All Star Western with that number running for a further decade as the home of such cowboy crusaders as Strong Bow, the Trigger Twins, Johnny Thunder and Super-Chief.

Set on the parallel world of Earth-2 and in keeping with the editorial sense of keeping the series relevant to young readers too, Conway reintroduced the veteran team and leavened it with a smattering of teen heroes, combined into a contentious, generation-gap fuelled “Super Squad”.

The youngsters included Robin (already a JSA member since the mid 1960s – see Showcase Presents the Justice League of America volume 3), Sylvester Pemberton, The Star-Spangled Kid (in actuality a teen superhero from the 1940s who had spent decades lost in time) and a busty young nymphet who quickly became the feisty favourite of a generation of growing boys: Kara Zor-L AKA Power Girl.

This first of twin volumes gathers all the 1970s tales into a fine showcase of different, ever-changing times and includes All-Star Comics 58-67 plus the seminal DC Special #29 which, after almost four decades, finally gave the JSA an origin…

After a three-page recap by Paul Levitz, Joe Staton & Bob Layton, outlining the history and mechanics of the alternate Earths, the first tale found newly-adopted Star-Spangled Kid chafing at his time-lost plight and revelling in his new powers (he had been given a cosmic power device by retired veteran Starman) in Seattle when a crisis propelled him and elder heroes Flash, Dr. Mid-Nite, Wildcat, Hawkman, Green Lantern and Dr. Fate into a three-pronged calamity devastating that city, Cape Town and Peking (which you youngsters now know as Beijing) with man-made natural disasters.

The veterans split up but were overwhelmed, giving the new kids a chance to shine in ‘All Star Super-Squad’. With the abrasive, impatient Power Girl in the vanguard the entire team is soon on the trail of old foe Degaton and his mind-bending ally in the concluding ‘Brainwave Blows Up!’ by Conway, Ric Estrada and Wally Wood.

Kieth Giffen replaced Estrada in issue #60 for the introduction of psychotic super-arsonist ‘Vulcan: Son of Fire!’ as age divide began to chafe and Power Girl began to tick off and re-educate the stuffy, paternalistic JSA elders. In ‘Hellfire and Holocaust’ the flaming fury mortally wounded Dr. Fate before his own defeat, and a new mystic menace was uncovered.

Conway’s last issue as scripter was #62’s ‘When Fall the Mighty’ as antediluvian sorcerer Zanadu attacked, whilst the criminal Injustice Gang opened their latest attack using mind-control to turn friend against friend…

The cast expanded with the return of Hourman and Power Girl’s Kryptonian mentor, but even they were insufficient to prevent ‘The Death of Doctor Fate’ (written by Paul Levitz and fully illustrated by the inimitable Wally Wood). Attacked on all sides, the team splintered: Wildcat, Hawkman and the Kryptonians tackling the assembled super-villains, Flash and Green Lantern searching Egypt for a cure to Fate’s condition and Hourman, Mid-Nite and Star-Spangled Kid desperately attempting to keep their fallen comrade alive.

They fail and Zanadu attacked again, almost adding Fate’s defenders to his tally until the sorcerer’s very presence called him back from beyond the grave…

With the crisis averted Superman prepared to leave but was quickly embroiled in a manic time-travel assassination plot (Levitz & Wood) that dragged the team and guest-star Shining Knight from an embattled Camelot in ‘Yesterday Begins Today!’ to the far-flung future and ‘The Master Plan of Vandal Savage’ a breathtaking spectacle of drama and excitement that signalled Wood’s departure from the series.

Joe Staton & Bob Layton had the unenviable task of filling his artistic shoes, beginning with #66 as ‘Injustice Strikes Twice!’ with the reunited team, sans Superman, falling prey to an ambush from their arch-enemies, whilst the emotion-warping Psycho-Pirate began to twist Green Lantern into a maniac menace determined to crush Corporate America leading to the return of Earth-2’s Bruce Wayne, who had eschewed his masked persona to become Gotham’s Police Commissioner.

The Injustice Society had monstrous allies and in ‘Attack of the Underlord!’ a subterranean race nearly ended the tea forever. Meanwhile Wayne laid plans to close down the JSA before their increasingly destructive exploits demolished his beloved city…

The modern adventures pause here and this first colourful chronicle closes with the aforementioned classified case from DC Special #29 (September 1977). ‘The Untold Origin of the Justice Society’ by Levitz, Staton & Layton, reveals how in 1940 Adolf Hitler acquired the mystical Spear of Destiny and summoned mythical Teutonic Valkyries to aid in the imminent invasion of Britain.

Alerted to the threat, American President Roosevelt, hampered by his country’s neutrality, asks a select band of masked mystery-men to lend their aid privately. In a cataclysmic escalation the struggle ranged from the heart of Europe, throughout the British Isles and even to the Oval office of the White House before ten bold costumed heroes finally – if only temporarily – stopped the Nazis evil plans…

These classic tales from a simpler time are a glorious example of traditional superhero storytelling at its finest: engaging, exciting and perfectly illustrated. No Fights ‘n’ Tights fan can afford to miss these marvellous sagas.

© 1976, 1977, 2006 DC Comics. All rights reserved.

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Batman: Private Casebook


By Paul Dini, Peter Milligan, Dustin Nguyen & Derek Fridolfs (DC Comics)
ISBN: 978-1-84856-213-4

Award-winning animator and director Paul Dini once more proves that he’s the best Batman writer of the 21st century in another collection of his pure, modernistically refined and retro scripts, gathered from Detective Comics # 840-645 and DC Infinite Halloween Special #1. A consummate storyteller, Dini is also quite obviously a lover of the character in all aspects over nigh-on eight decades of stalking the scum of the Earth.

This volume, superbly illustrated by Dustin Nguyen & Derek Fridolfs, begins with an astounding resumption of the Caped Crusader’s mission after the cataclysmic events of Batman: The Resurrection of Ra’s Al Ghul. As the Dark Knight hunts a new foe he seizes the chance to finally end the threat of the Demon’s Head forever, in the uncompromising chiller ‘The Resurrection of Ra’s Al Ghul: Epilogue.’

‘The Wonderland Gang!’ sees a collection of Batman’s oldest foes unite as the most obvious team ever when Mad Hatter, Tweedledum & Tweedledee combine forces with the Lion, the Unicorn, the Walrus and the Carpenter to wreak excessive havoc for untold profit in the wealthy palaces of Gotham. Naturally, all is not as it seems…

Peter Milligan wrote ‘The Suit of Sorrows’ as the haunted armour Batman wore in the aforementioned Resurrection of Ra’s Al Ghul begins to exert a malicious influence over his actions. The struggle against the suit and the cult that crafted is a powerful parable of willpower over desire and acts as a prelude to the return of Azrael to the DC Universe – but not in this book…

Dini and some of his favourite heroes and villains return for ‘Opening Night’ as the Penguin, new Ventriloquist and malignant dummy Scarface cross swords with the Gotham Guardian and Zatanna; a complex and beguiling tale that ends in blood-soaked ‘Curtains’ for more than one player in the drama.

Catwoman and reformed consulting detective Edward Nigma go looking for answers as a mutilating murderer haunts the city’s mean streets and not even Batman’s newest weapon “the Heirs of Lupin” (an online community of DC sleuths including Detective Chimp and Oracle) can divine the true secret of ‘The Riddle Unanswered’.

This stellar confabulation ends with a vignette starring Zatanna in solo inaction taken from DC Infinite Halloween Special. ‘Kcirt Ro Taert’ is a spookily shocking shaggy dog story that ends this classy compendium on an unbeatable high note.

Howsoever short-term sales-stunts bend and twist the Batman mythos, the core elements of the character remain unimpeachable and Paul Dini always find a way to satisfactorily blend the contemporary with the classical. His tales of a renewed, determined and darkly benevolent crime-fighter look well set to finally overturn the Grim Sociopath image that has dogged Batman for too long…

These fresh, thrilling and compelling adventures will astonish long-time fans and casual browsers equally. This is the still best Batman in years. By the way if you’re thinking of settling for the softcover edition of this fine collection, be advised that the hardcover has secondary, different front and back covers under the regular and spectacular dust jacket reproduced above. I know how funny we Bat-fans can get if we think we’ve missed something…

© 2007, 2008 DC Comics. All Rights Reserved.

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Blue Beetle: Boundaries


By Matthew Sturges, Rafael Albuquerque & Andre Coelho (DC Comics)
ISBN: 978-1-4012-2162-1

At the height of DC’s Infinite Crisis teenager Jaime Reyes found a strange blue bug-shaped jewel. That night it attached itself to his spine transforming him into a bizarre beetle-like warrior. He was promptly swept up in the chaos, aiding Batman and other heroes in a space battle. He was gone for a year…

Inexplicably returned home, Jaime revealed his secret to his family and tried to do some good in his hometown of El Paso but had to rapidly adjust to some big changes. His best bud Paco had joined a gang of super-powered freaks, the local crime mastermind was the foster-mom of his other best bud Brenda and a really scary military dude named Peacemaker started hanging around claiming the thing in Jaime’s back was malfunctioning alien tech, not life-affirming Egyptian magic…

This final volume (collecting issues #29-34 of the fun-filled monthly comic) opens this closing epic with ‘Boundaries part 1: Crossing the Line’ as rightwing hero Peacemaker starts to regret assisting vigilante citizens groups in policing the border against illegal immigrants whilst the Beetle encounters a rather peculiar feral metahuman. Soon he’s dragged into a crazy tussle between villains battling over the rights to a code-name…

Meanwhile, a band of Mexican illegals captured by Peacemaker suddenly become a far bigger problem by using a drug they were smuggling for a criminal mastermind on themselves. Now super-powered and on the run it’s only a matter of time before they hit El Paso and the Beetle gets involved…

‘Exposed Wires’ sees Jaime strike up an uneasy alliance with local crime lord La Dama (and Brenda’s parental guardian) as the anonymous smuggling mastermind moves to recover his power-drug and the fugitives begin to suffer some very dangerous side-effects. ‘Primum Non Nocere’ ( I don’t need to tell you that means “First Do No Harm”, do I?) sees superhero medic Doctor Mid-Nite step in to treat the migrant Metas as racial tensions soar and Hispanic Blue Beetle is suckered into becoming a deputy of the US Border Patrol against his own sentiments and best judgement…

The hidden mastermind is revealed in ‘Backstory’ as events kick into explosive high gear and Jaime’s family come to the rescue, fighting a valiant holding action until the Teen Titans and Peacemaker join the fray in ‘Polarity’ and everything is neatly wrapped up – including the truly captivating human sidebar plot-threads that have made this series so very special – in the perfectly wonderful conclusion ‘Monopoly’.

Sassy, savvy, thrilling, brilliantly inventive and unrelentingly fun, Blue Beetle ends a too-brief run on a classy high note that will satisfy and delight. There are precious few comic-books that combine action and adventure with cleverness and wit, but author Matthew Sturges and artists Rafael Albuquerque & Andre Coelho make this look easy and although long-gone as a monthly series the latest incarnation of the Blue Beetle still survives in trade paperback collections where you can – and should – experience the buzz yourself.

The most recent incarnation of the venerable Blue Beetle pluckily battles on as a back-up feature in Booster Gold and as a member of the perennial Teen Titans, so at least with these fine graphic novels around there’s still a chance for this wonderfully exuberant hero to find the audience he deserves: hopefully to rise like the immortal scarab it references…

Moreover with a TV series apparently completed and only awaiting scheduling, a new comicbook series can’t be too far away, so what better time can there be to finally tune in and catch up with all of these addictive super-teen triumphs?

© 2008, 2009 DC Comics. All rights reserved.

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Birds of Prey


By Chuck Dixon, Jordan Gorfinkel, Gary Frank & various (DC Comics)
ISBN: 978-1-84023-574-8

Birds of Prey recounts the missions and lives of a rotating team of female crime-fighters led by Barbara Gordon, the computer genius known as Oracle. Daughter of the Police Commissioner of Gotham City, her own career as Batgirl was ended when the Joker blew out her spine in a terrifying kidnap attempt. Trapped in a wheelchair she hungered for justice and sought new ways to make a difference in a very bad world…

Reinventing herself as a covert information gatherer for the Batman’s clique of avengers and defenders, she gradually became an invaluable resource for the entire superhero community, but in the first of these collected tales Babs undertakes a new project that will allow her to become an even more effective crusader against injustice…

This volume contains the one-shots, specials and miniseries that successfully introduced a spellbinding blend of sassy bad-girl attitude and spectacular all-out action which finally convinced timid editorial powers-that-be of the commercial viability of a team composed of nothing but female superheroes.

Who could possibly have guessed that some readers would like effective, positive, clever women kicking evil butt, and that boys would follow the adventures of violent, sexy, usually underdressed chicks hitting bad-guys – and occasionally each other …?

The issues gathered here, Black Canary/Oracle: Birds of Prey #1, Birds of Prey: Revolution, the pertinent section of Showcase ’96 #3 and Birds of Prey: Manhunt #1-4 form a breathtaking riot of dynamic, glossy crime-busting heavily highlighting the kind of wickedness costumes crusaders usually ignore, white collar and black-hearted…

The first tale ‘One Man’s Hell’, written by Chuck Dixon and illustrated by Gary Frank & John Dell, is set at a time when veteran martial arts crime-crusher Black Canary was slowly going to hell after the death of her long-time lover Green Arrow (of course he got better a few years later – see Green Arrow: Quiver for details).

Broke, uncontrolled and hell-bent on self-destruction, the increasingly violent and adrenaline-addicted heroine was contacted by a mysterious unseen presence and dispatched to an third world country to investigate a series of “terrorist attacks” that always seemed to profit one unimpeachably benevolent philanthropist…

With nothing left to lose Canary undertook the tragically brutal mission and gained an impossibly valuable prize… purpose.

Peppered with an intriguing array of guest-stars and villains this socially-conscious high-octane thriller established the Canary as one of the most competent and engaging combatants of the DCU and a roving agent of conscience and retribution more than capable of tackling the villainous scum who were clever enough to stay below the regular superhero radar: a reputation enhanced in the sequel ‘Revolution’.

Dixon, Stefano Raffaele & Bob McLeod crafted a superbly compelling tale wherein she and her silent partner (at this time Oracle was no more than a rumour to everybody but Batman and the Canary, who got “intel” and advice from an anonymous voice that came by phone, text or the radio-jewellery of her new costume) tracked a human trafficking ring to the rogue state of Santa Prisca and stumbled into a dirty campaign by American interests to topple the standing dictator.

When the venerable Showcase title was revived in the 1990s it was as a monthly anthology that highlighted old unemployed characters and events already originated rather than new wholly new concepts, swiftly becoming a place to test the popularity of the company’s bit players with a huge range of heroes and team-ups passing through its eclectic pages. This made it a perfect place to trot out the new team for a broader audience who might have ignored the one-shots.

Showcase ’96 #3 cover-starred Black Canary and Lois Lane, featuring a frantic collusion between the reporter, the street fighter and the still “silent partner” Oracle in a tale scripted by series editor Jordan B. Gorfinkel, laid out by Jennifer Graves and finished by Stan Woch. ‘Birds of a Feather’ found Superman’s then Girlfriend and the Birds taking out a metahuman gangmaster who had enslaved migrant workers to work in Metropolis’ secret sweat shop. Punchy and potent it led to the four-issue miniseries which ends this volume whilst introducing a new wrinkle in the format… teaming Oracle and Canary with an ever-changing cast of DC’s Fighting Females.

‘Manhunt’ saw Dixon again script a breakneck, raucous thriller which began ‘Where Revenge Delights’ (illustrated by Matt Haley & Wade Von Grawbadger) as the Birds’ pursuit of a philandering embezzler and scam-artist lead them into heated conflict with The Huntress – a mob-busting vigilante who even Batman thinks plays too rough. She also wanted the revoltingly skeevy Archer Braun (whom she knows and loathes as Tynan Sinclair) but her motives seem a good deal more personal…

The two active agents cautiously agree to cooperate but the mix gets even headier when Selina Kyle invites herself to the lynching party in ‘Girl Crazy’ (with additional inking from John Lowe). Canary consents over the strident objections of the never-more helpless and frustrated Oracle. Braun, it seems, is into bigger crimes than anyone suspected and has made the terminal error of bilking the notorious Catwoman…

Fed up with Babs shouting in her ear Canary goes off-line, subsequently getting captured by Braun, ‘The Man That Got Away’ (inked by Cam Smith) and clearly a major threat. He might even be a covert metahuman…

Shanghaied to a criminal enclave in Kazakhstan for the stunning conclusion ‘Ladies Choice’ (art by Sal Buscema, Haley & Von Grawbadger) Canary is more-or-less rescued by the unlikely and unhappy pairing of Catwoman and Huntress, but none of them is ready or able to handle Braun’s last surprise – Lady Shiva Woosan, the world’s greatest martial arts assassin…

This rollercoaster ride of thrills, spills and beautifully edgy, sardonic attitude finally won the Birds their own regular series which quickly became one of DC’s best and most consistently engaging superhero adventure series. This opening salvo is both groundbreaking and fantastically fun, and will delight any comics Fights ‘n’ Tights follower as well as anyone woman who’s ever had a man in her life…
© 1996, 1997, 2002 DC Comics. All Rights Reserved.

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Flash: Terminal Velocity


By Mark Waid, Mike Wieringo & various (DC Comics)
ISBN: 978-1-56389-249-3

When Barry Allen, the Silver Age Flash whose creation ushered in a new and seemingly unstoppable era of costumed crusaders, died during Crisis on Infinite Earths in 1985, he was succeeded by his sidekick Kid Flash. A young man who initially struggled to fill the boots of his predecessor, both in sheer physical capability and, more tellingly, in confidence, Wally West felt a fraud, but like a true hero he persevered and eventually overcame.

After years in the role, West had adapted and made a convincing argument for being an even greater hero as he triumphed over his mentor’s uncanny foes and a whole new Rogues’ Gallery of his own. In Terminal Velocity (reprinting issues #0 and #95-100 of the monthly Flash comicbook) scripter Mark Waid and an impressive band of illustrators went into creative overdrive following the company wide reboot and strategic reworking of the entire continuity dubbed Zero Hour.

The event was marked by an “issue zero” for every title then being published, wherein the new official origin for each character was established as well as setting up new storylines and it is with Wally West’s new beginning that this pulse-pounding superhero saga opens. ‘Flashing Back’ by Waid, Mike Wieringo & Jose Marzan Jr. found the Scarlet Speedster a helpless stream of Speed Force energy bouncing through his own history until he returned to his correct place in time, just in time for the six-part epic Terminal Velocity which began with ‘Mach One: The Dead Yet Live’ (pencilled by Salvador Larrocca).

There are many super-speedsters in the DCU and many of them congregate in the twinned metropolis of Keystone and Central Cities. Here Wally’s true love, journalist Linda Park, his Aunt Iris and fellow fast fighters Jay Garrick and Impulse anxiously awaited his return, but when he appeared they couldn’t help but notice a subtle, disturbing change in the once easy-going young man. This Wally was driven, determined and possessed strange new abilities and handicaps. Moreover he took to training the attention-deficit plagued kid Impulse with frantic determination…

Since the ophidian terrorist Kobra had taken to constantly harassing the cities he got plenty of practice and it’s wasn’t long before the problem was revealed. In ‘Mach Two: All the Wrong Moves’ Linda discovered Wally’s secret – his brush with the time stream had changed his body and if he ran too fast his body would revert to energy. It was only a matter of time before he slipped, turned to lightning and would be sucked into the Speed Force forever…

But that wasn’t all: something even more terrifying was troubling the Flash – something he refused to share with anybody…

As Wally’s condition deteriorated and Kobra’s predations increased, Impulse’s training went badly and Flash had to call in specialised help from Jay Garrick, fellow WWII hero Johnny Quick and Zen Master of Speed Max Mercury, oldest speedster on Earth. ‘Mach Three: The Other Side of Light’ revealed Mercury’s origins and hinted of the horrors facing Wally. Meanwhile Linda and Iris used old fashioned detective work to track down Kobra, and as Johnny’s daughter Jesse Quick joined the squad the snake lord’s ultimate plans manifested and it became increasingly clear that Impulse was far from ready to inherit Flash’s mantle should the necessity arise…

In ‘Mach Four: Hit and Run’ Jesse took over as the next Flash as Kobra seized control of the Twin Cities and the reason for Flash’s desperate actions was finally revealed, whilst in ‘Redline: Ultimate Rush’ (with additional pencils from Carlos Pacheco) Wally and Jesse found themselves hopelessly overmatched until Impulse came to their rescue. The saga concluded with an explosive sprint finish in ‘Overdrive: The Quick and the Dead’ (a marathon-length episode with art from Larrocca, Sergio Borjas, Pacheco, Oscar Jimenez & Marzan) wherein the Speed Team settled Kobra’s scaly hash whilst a coterie of superhero guest-stars pitched in to help save the world.

Best of all, Wally even sorted out the horror he glimpsed whilst falling through time and got to live happily after – for the present…

Gripping, immensely exciting and cathartically joyous, this beautifully realised and illustrated tale catapulted the Flash to the top of every fan’s must-read list and presaged a period of incredible creativity for this venerable character. Terminal Velocity embodies the very best of modern superhero storytelling (even if it is fifteen years old) and is a book any fan reader can – and should – enjoy…

© 1994, 1995 DC Comics. All Rights Reserved

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Green Arrow/Black Canary: The Wedding album


By Judd Winick, Cliff Chiang, Amanda Conner & André Coehlo (DC Comics)
ISBN: 978-1-4012-1841-6

Green Arrow is Oliver Queen, a cross between Batman and Robin Hood and one of DC’s Golden All-Stars. He’s been a fixture of the company’s landscape – often for no discernable reason – more or less continually since his debut in More Fun Comics # 73 in 1941. During those heady days origins weren’t as important as image and storytelling so creators Mort Weisinger and George Papp never bothered, leaving later workmen France Herron, Jack Kirby and his wife Roz to fill in the blanks with ‘The Green Arrow’s First Case’ at the start of the Silver Age superhero revival (Adventure Comics #256, January 1959).

As a fixture of the DC Universe since the early 1940s GA was one of the few costumed heroes to survive the end of the Golden Age, consistently adventuring in the back of other heroes’ comic books, joining the Justice League during the Silver Age return of costumed crusaders and eventually evolving into a spokes-hero of the anti-establishment during the 1960’s period of “Relevant” comics, courtesy of Denny O’Neil and Neal Adams.

Under Mike Grell’s 1980/1990s stewardship he became a gritty and popular A-Lister; an urban hunter who dealt harshly with corporate thugs, government spooks and serial killers rather than costumed goof-balls.

And then he was killed and his son took over the role.

And then the original was brought back…

Black Canary was one of the first of the relatively few female furies in the DC universe, following Wonder Woman, Liberty Belle and Red Tornado (who actually masqueraded as a man) and predating Merry the Gimmick Girl. She was created by Bob Kanigher and Carmine Infantino, debuting in Flash Comics #86, August 1947. She disappeared with most of the other super-doers at the end of the Golden Age, only to be revived with the Justice Society of America in 1963.

Originally an Earth-2 crimefighter transplanted to our world, she has been ruthlessly retconned over and again, and (currently) Dinah Laurel Lance is the daughter of an earlier, war-time heroine. However you feel about the character two consistent facts have remained since her reintroduction and assimilation in Justice League of America #73-75 (see Showcase Presents Justice League of America volume 4): she has vied with Wonder Woman herself for the title of premiere heroine and she has been in a stormy romantic relationship with Green Arrow.

The affair which began during of the Summer of Love finally reached a dramatic culmination a few years ago when the couple at last named the day, and this fearsomely dramatic and cripplingly funny tome gathers those unforgettable moments in a celebratory chronicle that will warm the hearts and chill the souls of sentimental thrill seekers everywhere.

Reprinting Green Arrow and Black Canary Wedding Special and issues #1-5 of the monthly Green Arrow and Black Canary comicbook, the saga begins with a hilariously immature retelling of the path to wedlock from scripter Judd Winick and Amanda Conner: spats, tender moments, hen-nights, stag-parties and a tremendous battle as a huge guard of dishonour comprising most of the villains in the DCU attack the assembled heroes when they’re “off-guard”.

Naturally the bad-guys are defeated, the ceremony concludes and the newlyweds head off to enjoy their wedding night.

And then in circumstances I’m not going to spoil for you Green Arrow dies again…

Obviously it doesn’t end there. For the start of their new series and the story-arc ‘Dead Again’, by Winick and Cliff Chiang, Ollie Queen is only seen in flashbacks as the Black Widow Canary goes on a brutal crime-crushing rampage. ‘Here Comes the Bride’ finds her slowly going off the rails and only Ollie’s son Conner Hawke seems able to get through to her where friends like Green Lantern, Superman, Oracle and even Ollie’s old sidekicks Speedy and Red Arrow tell her to move on.

As usual it takes the ultra-rational Batman to divine what really happened on the wedding night…

In ‘The Naked and the Not-Quite-So-Dead’ Dinah and Mia Dearden – the new Speedy -infiltrate the island home of the miscreants who have abducted and imprisoned Green Arrow (notice how vague I’m being; all for your benefit?) where Ollie is already proving to be more trouble than he can possibly be worth. Conner is also on hand and whilst attempting to spring his wayward dad also falls captive to overwhelming forces…

‘Hit and Run, Run, Run!’ ramps up the tension as the heroes all escape but not before one of their number is gravely wounded by a new mystery assailant, and in ‘Dead Again: Please Play Where Daddy Can See You’ it’s Ollie’s turn to fall apart as his wounded young protégé fights for life.

The book concludes in the heart-warming ‘Child Support’ with another series of poignant flashbacks describing Green Arrow’s history and his extended family of sidekicks before Dinah leads Ollie back from the brink of utter despair…

Green Arrow and Black Canary are characters that epitomise the modern adventure hero’s best qualities, even if in many ways they are also the most traditional of “Old School” champions. This is a cracking example of Fights ‘n’ Tights done right and is well worth an investment of your money and time.

© 2007, 2008 DC Comics. All Rights Reserved.

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Teen Titans: Titans of Tomorrow


By Sean McKeever, Geoff Johns, George Pérez & others (DC Comics)
ISBN: 978-1-84576-899-7

This slim volume of frantic Fights ‘n’ Tights teen angst follows on from an earlier saga when the constantly changing team of junior heroes arrived a decade into their own future and were aghast to find that their adult selves had conquered America in the name of peace and security. Forearmed with the knowledge of this dystopian tomorrow the kids came back to now (see Teen Titans: The Future is Now) and resolved to counter those events…

Superhero lives are fairly chaotic and in the interim a number of Crises occurred which seemed to guarantee that Tomorrow would never come true. This volume, collecting issues #50-54, opens with a memorial for Superboy and Kid Flash (both recently deceased) as Robin, Wonder Girl, Ravager, Kid Devil, Miss Martian and Supergirl share their grief and memories with previous members.

‘Passage’ (team written by Sean McKeever, Geoff Johns, Marv Wolfman & Todd Dezago and illustrated by Randy Green, Mike McKone, George Pérez, Todd Nauck, Andy Lanning, Sandra Hope, Marlo Alquiza & Larry Stucker) finds the survivors reminiscing in ‘Friday Night Lights’ and ‘Dear Barry…’ whilst including a neat, entertaining digression that provides the other side of a team-up with the new Blue Beetle against Biker-Berserker Lobo (the main part of that saga is collected in the superb Blue Beetle: Reach For the Stars).

Meanwhile a mysterious gang are systematically defeating the Justice League and replacing them…

The four-part epic ‘The Titans of Tomorrow… Today!’ begins with ‘Futures of the Past’ (McKeever, Alé Garza, Derek Fridolfs, Rob Hunter & Marlo Alquiza) as the future Titans – including versions of the dead Superboy and Kid Flash – arrive in contemporary times to ensure their own existence by forcing their younger selves to comply with their draconian counterparts continually re-editing memories.

Simple, no? Perhaps not, as wild card Blue Beetle has inexplicably re-entered the mix…

Selecting a key moment when the alien invader Starro nearly conquered Earth, the future Titans substitute themselves for the JLA and attempt to seduce, demoralise and even thrash their teen incarnations into becoming the fascist monsters they are, but youth is always rebellious and plans go very wrong indeed in ‘Beat Yourself Up’ (art by Jamal Igle, Alquiza, Jesse Delperdang & Hunter) as Robin finds a uniquely dramatic way to stymie his tomorrow tormentor and Blue Beetle leads a counterattack…

The temporally fluid situation shifts again as the future Luthor materializes with a battalion of tomorrow’s corrupted superheroes in ‘Combine and Conquer’ (illustrated by Eddy Barrows & Rob Hunter) to finish the battle and save his own timeline, but his Titan’s Army has overlooked the mind-controlling power of Starro who (which?) simply takes them all over.

The action spectacularly concludes in ‘Fight the Future’ (Barrows, Joe Prado, Greg Tocchini, Hunter, Julio Ferreira & Oclair Albert) as allegiances shift and the future dies forever in an explosive battle and simple resignation…

Fast, furious, this extremely twisty-turny, time-travel extravaganza is better than most of its ilk, and on the whole this is a genuinely fun-filled action romp; but once again I can only remark that for the less well-informed reader or DC newcomer, the bits without hitting and explosions might be very confusing. As always, the choice is yours. The future is not immutable…

© 2007, 2008 DC Comics. All rights reserved.