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Planet of the Apes Adventures – The Original Marvel Years


By Doug Moench, George Tuska, Alfredo Alcala, Mike Esposito, Tony Mortellaro, Dave Hunt, George Roussos & various (MARVEL)
ISBN: 978-1-3029-5073-6 (HB/Digital edition) 978-1-3029-5999-9 (TPB/Epic Collection)

This book includes Discriminatory Content produced in less enlightened times.

One of the most effective and long-lasting explorations of failed human ambition and resultant dystopia is not the last 50 years of global government, but rather a film franchise built on a seminal French science fiction novel.

Peirre’s Boulle’s satirical La Planète des singes (1963) was just another tale from a former secret agent/engineer who earned major accolades and rewards as an author. Your entire family has probably seen his other Oscar-winning blockbuster – David Lean’s The Bridge on the River Kwai – never realising it is an autobiographical saga originally called La Pont de la rivière Kwai.

Translated into English 1964, his other epic became Monkey Planet, and – after numerous major rewrites by screenwriters Rod Serling & Michael Wilson – was 1968’s movie sensation Planet of the Apes. The US production inspired four sequels and a TV series which lived on in reruns and reedited TV movies for decades after, plus an animated series, books, toys, games, a home projector pack, records and comics and other merchandise. In 2001 it was added to the US National Film Registry as the Library of Congress deemed it as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”… and that’s all before Tim Burton’s 2001 remake, the 2011 reboot and an ongoing, evolving franchise still growing to this day…

There have been numerous comics iterations and adaptations, beginning with two manga interpretations (1968 & 1971) intersecting a 1970 Gold Key movie adaptation and assorted later international versions. In 1974 – no doubt thanks to the impending TV show – a Marvel Magazine continuation combining serialised comics continuations, expanded comics adaptations of the five original films, features and articles began. Sporting an August 1974 cover-date and on sale from June 25th of that year, Planet of the Apes #1 blended photos and articles with Part 1 (of 6) of an adaptation of the 1968 blockbuster movie, plus all-new ape-ventures set in a time period when humans were still sapient talkers living in notional harmony with equally erudite orangutans, chimpanzees and gorillas. For more on that you could consult our review Planet of the Apes Archive volume 1: Terror on the Planet of The Apes or simply go buy that book too. It’s quite good…

Although the US magazine was resolutely aimed at a readership beyond a standard newsstand kids range, in Britain that material was solidly aimed at 10-13-year-olds. When Marvel US abruptly cancelled PotA in December 1976, the franchise lay fallow until Malibu Comics picked it up in 1990 (reprints, new stories and franchise mash-up Ape Nation). Other companies added new material over the years. However, at the height of the fuzzy fun and furore, Marvel reprinted in colour deftly re-edited and toned-down film adaptations from the magazine. The general release incarnation was a simpler affair, and somewhat sporadic in distribution.

Now that Marvel is again helming the simian franchise these tales are again offered to fans: available in hardback and trade paperback Epic Collection each with its digital versions, backstopping new stories in the niche universe. Scripted by Doug Moench (Batman, Moon Knight, Master of Kung Fu), and with comics veteran George Roussos “colorizing” the monochrome art of George Tuska, Mike Esposito, Tony Mortellaro & Dave Hunt, the first film filled #1-6 (October 1975-June 1976) of Adventures on the Planet of the Apes.

Wilson & Serling’s excoriatingly satirical screenplay was faithfully serialised as ‘Planet of the Apes’, ‘World of Captive Humans’, ‘Manhunt!’, ‘Trial’ and ‘Into the Forbidden Zone’ before at last revealing ‘The Secret’ of the anthropoid world to time-lost astronaut George Taylor. Due to calamity and enemy action Taylor is soon the sole survivor of an Earth space flight that lands him on a primitive devastated world. Here talking orangutans, chimpanzees and gorillas live in tense collaboration and humans are barely-sensate beasts of burden or preferred targets of bloodsports. The civilisation is superstitious, uncompromisingly theocratic but, as Taylor quickly deduces, clearly suppressing some awful secret about the human herds they hunt and enslave…

The rebellious talking human is somehow a clear threat to the power and dogma of the ruling simians, but thanks to the aid of well-meaning chimps scientists Zira, Lucius and Cornelius, Taylor and indigenous human companion Nova are able to escape the schemes of chief scientist Zaius who knows the awful truth Taylor and his allies are stumbling towards…

Although film fans waited two years for what happened next, the comics story seamlessly continues as Moench & Roussos join illustrator Alfredo Alcala (Swamp Thing, Batman, Man-Thing) for Beneath the Planet of the Apes. Paul Dehn & Mort Abrams’ bleak, chilling screenplay sequel becomes a dark, brooding and ultimately apocalyptic quest for answers when Taylor is captured by mutated humans who worship nuclear weapons even as Earth’s follow-up expedition smashes to destruction just like the first…

Eponymous opening ‘Beneath the Planet of the Apes’ sees sole survivor Brent similarly stranded in 3955 AD and equally unaware that his ship has brought him back to a much-altered birthworld. He soon meets Nova, who was ignored by whatever rules the “Forbidden Zone”. The fact that she’s wearing Taylor’s dog tags convinces Brent to accompany the mute, but he thinks twice when Nova leads him to Cornelius and Zira in Ape City. The metropolis is in turmoil with gorilla General Ursus increasingly usurping Dr. Zaius and demanding eradication of humans and conquest of the heretically sorcerous Forbidden Zone…

In this febrile atmosphere, Nova brings Brent to Taylor’s chimpanzee benefactors, before they are captured and ‘Enslaved!’ by gorillas preparing to invade the land of terror. On escaping, and barely ahead of an ape army, Brent and Nova return to the lost land where the shocked explorer delves deep into subterranean ruins and discovers the secret after recognising a place where he used to live so very long ago. Now it’s a tomb of terror and temple to ‘The Warhead Messiah’, ruled by cruel telepaths who are all that remain of sapient humanity. As ape forces advance, these ‘Children of the Bomb’ introduce Brent to their other captive, forcing the ancient astronauts to battle. As Ursus’ killers invade the nuclear cultists anticipate detonating the bomb to end all bombs and as violence and brutality explode everywhere, any chance to stop ‘The Hell of Holocaust’ dwindles and dies…

With the collection cover art by E.M. Gist and individual series covers by John Buscema, Joe Sinnott, Rich Buckler, Dan Adkins, Ron Wilson, Vince Colletta, Gil Kane, Frank Giacoia, Klaus Janson, Jim Starlin, Mike Nasser/Netzer, Esposito, Alcala, Paty Anderson, & Earl Norem, this is a straightforward slice of allegorical action hokum that reads remarkably well even after all these years. Moreover, as Marvel recently regained the franchise rights, this iteration neatly inspired its own sequel of sorts – for which see a forthcoming review….

In equal parts vivid nostalgia and crucial component of current comics expansion, this compelling treat is pure whacky fun no film fan or comics devotee should miss… and there’s more to come…
© 2023 20th Century Studios.

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Mighty Marvel Masterworks The Avengers volume 4: The Sign of the Serpent


By Stan Lee, Don Heck, Roy Thomas, Frank Giacoia, George Roussos & various (MARVEL)
ISBN: 978-1-3029-5430-7 (PB/Digital edition)

This book includes Discriminatory Content produced in less enlightened times.

These stories are timeless and have been gathered many times before but here we’re enjoying another example of The Mighty Marvel Masterworks line: designed with economy in mind and newcomers as target audience. These books are far cheaper, on lower quality paper and smaller – like a paperback novel. Your eyesight might be failing and your hands too big and shaky, but at 152 x 227mm, they’re perfect for kids. If you opt for digital editions, that’s no issue at all.

After a period of meteoric expansion, in 1963 the burgeoning Marvel Universe was finally ready to emulate the successful DC concept that had cemented the legitimacy of the Silver Age of American comics. The notion of putting a bunch of all-star eggs in one basket had made the Justice League of America a winner and subsequently inspired the moribund Atlas outfit – primarily Stan Lee, Jack Kirby & Steve Ditko – into conceiving “super-characters” of their own. The result – in 1961 – was The Fantastic Four…

After 18 months, the fledgling House of Ideas had generated a small successful stable of costumed leading men (but still only 2 sidekick women!), allowing Lee & Kirby to at last assemble a select handful of them into an all-star squad, moulded into a force for justice and soaring sales. Cover dated September 1963, and on sale from early July, The Avengers #1 launched as part of an expansion package which also included Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos and The X-Men. This edition collects The Avengers #31-40 (cover-dated August 1966 to May 1967): groundbreaking tales no newbie or potential lover of superhero stories can do without…

Here the team consists of Captain America, Hawkeye, mutant twins Quicksilver and The Scarlet Witch (who had replaced big guns Thor and Iron Man) and recently returned Giant-Man (AKA Goliath) and The Wasp, looking for a way to enable Henry Pym to regain his size-changing powers and his normal six-foot height. The revised team was already proving a firm fan-favourite. Spectacle had been nudged aside in favour of melodrama sub-plots, leavening the action through compelling soap-opera elements which kept readers riveted…

Of course, the founding stars regularly featured due to the rotating, open door policy which meant that most issues included somebody’s fave-rave. The increasingly bold and impressive stories and artwork were no hindrance either. Once Lee moved on, the team was left in the capable hands of Roy Thomas who grew into one of the industry’s most impressive writers, guiding the World’s Mightiest Heroes through a range of adventures ranging from sublimely poetic to staggeringly epic.

With this fourth collection the hero alliances rise to dominance truly began and resumes on a cliffhanger yarn that began when Goliath – tragically trapped at a freakish ten-foot height – sought a cure south of the border only to be embroiled in a futuristic civil war amongst a lost south American civilisation. Here the concluding chapter threatens global incineration in the ludicrously titled yet satisfyingly thrilling ‘Never Bug a Giant!’ as Wasp, Hawkeye and Cap track down their massive missing man and face escalating atomic armageddon…

The company’s crusading credentials are enhanced next as ‘The Sign of the Serpent!’ and sequel ‘To Smash a Serpent!’ (#32-33, with Heck providing raw, gritty inks over his own pencils) craft a brave, socially-aware epic. Here the heroes tackle a sinister band of organised racists in a thinly veiled allegory of the Civil Rights turmoil then gripping America. Marvel’s bold liberal stand even went so far as to introduce a new African-American character, Bill Foster, who would eventually become a superhero in his own right.

It’s back to crime-busting basics as Roy Thomas officially begins his long association with the team in #34’s ‘The Living Laser!’, although second part ‘The Light that Failed!’ again assumes political overtones as the light-bending supervillain allies himself with South American – and, by implication, Marxist – rebels for a rollercoaster ride of thrills and spills.

The team’s international credentials are further exploited when long-absent Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver return, heralding an alien invasion of the Balkans in ‘The Ultroids Attack!’ and ‘To Conquer a Colossus!’ (#36-37). Along for the ride and a crucial factor in repelling an extraterrestrial invasion is newly cured and reformed Natasha Romanoff: the sinister, merciless Black Widow…

Thomas clearly relished juggling a larger roster of characters as he promptly added Olympian godling Hercules to the mix, first as a duped and drugged pawn of the Enchantress in #38’s ‘In our Midst… An Immortal’ (inked by George Roussos) and then as a member from the following issue onwards, when The Mad Thinker attacks the assemblage during ‘The Torment… and the Triumph!’.

No prizes for guessing who was throwing the punches in ‘Suddenly… the Sub-Mariner!’ as the team battle the Lord of Atlantis for possession of a reality-warping Cosmic Cube; a riotous all-action romp to end a superb classic chronicle of furious Fights ‘n’ Tights fables.

Augmenting the narrative joys is the cover gallery by Heck, Jack Kirby, Frank Giacoia, Gil Kane and Roussos plus Heck’s unused cover for #37.

Unceasingly enticing and always evergreen, these immortal epics are tales that defined the Marvel experience and a joy no fan should deny themselves or their kids.
© 2024 MARVEL.

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Walt Kelly’s Our Gang volume 1


By Walt Kelly (Fantagraphics Books)
ISBN 978-1560977537 (TPB)

This book includes Discriminatory Content produced in less enlightened times.

Today is the anniversary of controversial screen pioneer Hal Roach (January 14th 1892 – November 2nd 1992), a movie man responsible for some of the best comics and newspaper strips ever made. Here’s one of the very best solely in need of rediscovery and new archival editions…

The movie shorts franchise Our Gang (latterly the Li’l Rascals) were one of the most popular in American Film history. Beginning in 1922 they featured the fun and folksy humour of a bunch of “typical kids”. Atypically though, there was always full racial equality and mingling – and the little girls were still always smarter than the boys. Romping together, they all enjoyed idealised adventures in a time both safer and more simple.

The rotating cast of characters and slapstick shenanigans were the brainchild of film genius Hal Roach who directed and worked with Harold Lloyd, Charley Chase and Laurel & Hardy amongst so many others. These brief cinematic paeans to a mythic childhood entered the “household name” category of popular Americana in amazingly swift order. As times and tastes changed Roach was forced to sell up to the celluloid butcher’s shop of MGM in 1938, and the features suffered the same interference and loss of control that marred the later careers of Stan and Ollie, the Marx Brothers and Buster Keaton.

In 1942 Dell released an Our Gang comic book written and drawn by Walt Kelly who, consummate craftsman that he was, deftly restored the wit, verve and charm of the glory days via a progression of short comic stories elevating lower class American childhood to the mythic peaks of Dorothy in Oz, Huckleberry Finn or Laura Ingalls of Little House… fame.

Over the course of the first eight issues so lovingly reproduced in this glorious collection, Kelly moved beyond the films – good or otherwise – to sculpt an idyllic storyscape of games and dares; excursions; pee-wee adventures; get-rich-quick schemes; battles with rival gangs and especially plucky victories over adults, mean, condescending, criminal or psychotic.

Granted great leeway, Kelly eventually settled on his own cast, but aficionados and purists can still thrill here to the classic cast of Mickey, Buckwheat, Happy/Spanky, Janet and Froggy.

Thankfully, after far too long a delay, today’s comics are once again offering material of this genre to contemporary audiences. Even so, many modern readers may be unable to appreciate the skill, narrative charm and lost innocence of this style of children’s tale. If so I genuinely pity them, because this is work with heart and soul, drawn by one of the greatest exponents of graphic narrative America has ever produced. I hope their loss is not yours.
© 2006 Fantagraphics Books. All rights reserved.

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Daredevil Epic Collection volume 7: The Concrete Jungle (1976-1978)


By Marv Wolfman, Jim Shooter, Roger McKenzie, Tony Isabella, Bill Mantlo, Chris Claremont, Gerry Conway, Gil Kane, Don McGregor, Bob Brown, Carmine Infantino, John Buscema, Frank Robbins, John Byrne, Sal Buscema, George Tuska, Lee Elias, Gene Colan, Tom Sutton, Jim Mooney, Klaus Janson, Vince Colletta, Don Perlin, Keith Pollard, Frank Chiaramonte, Al Milgrom, Dan Green, Tony DeZuñiga, Steve Leialoha, Josef Rubinstein, Bob Wiacek & various (MARVEL)
ISBN: 978-1-3029-1634-3 (HB/Digital edition)

This book includes Discriminatory Content produced in less enlightened times.

Matt Murdock is a blind lawyer whose remaining senses hyper-compensate, making him an astonishing acrobat, formidable fighter and living lie-detector. A second-string hero for much of his early career, Daredevil was nonetheless a striking and popular one, due mostly to the captivatingly humanistic art of Gene Colan. DD fought gangsters, super-villains and even the occasional monster or alien invasion, quipping and wisecracking his way through life and life-threatening combat, utterly unlike the grim, moody, quasi-religious metaphor he became.

After a disastrous on-again, off-again relationship with his secretary Karen Page, Murdock took up with Russian émigré Natasha Romanoff, infamous and notorious ex-spy Black Widow. She was framed for murder and prosecuted by Matt’s best friend and law partner Foggy Nelson before the blind lawman cleared her. Leaving New York with her for the West Coast, Matt joined a prestigious San Francisco law firm but adventure, disaster and intrigue sought out the Sightless Sentinel and ultimately drew him back to the festering Big Apple…

Spanning May 1976 to May 1977, this Epic Collection re-presents Daredevil #133-154, Annual #4, a crossover from Ghost Rider #19-20, plus spin-offs from Marvel Premiere #39-40 & 43, spanning cover-dates May 1976 and September 1978.

Writer/editor Marv Wolfman always designed long term plans for his characters which oddly start buried in the publicity stunt yarn opening this collection. Daredevil #133 begins laying groundwork for an unfolding epic about fake news and disinformation in public office (and remember this is set just after Watergate and decades before Trumpism) before digressing to a fanciful fluff piece co-starring real-world stage trickster and headline-seeker Uri Geller. Concocted by Wolfman, Bob Brown & Jim Mooney, ‘Introducing: Mind-Wave and his Fearsome Think Tank!’ is a happily forgettable tale about a maniac in a supertank attacking Manhattan. Thankfully, Mind-Wave‘s arch enemy (Geller, claiming to have psychic powers granted him by aliens) is there to aid the Scarlet Swashbuckler…

More sinister secrets of the perception-shaping masterplan of The Jester are revealed in #134’s ‘There’s Trouble In New York City…’ as disgruntled former football star/insurance salesman Brock Jones returns. Previously, he had stumbled into a plot to control Earth and taken possession of a rocket-powered super-suit coveted by enemy agents. DD had almost been killed by the suit’s original owner, leading to the usual superhero misunderstanding and a savage clash. Now, as TV news shows Daredevil killing cops and with the shapeshifting Chameleon robbing at will, Brock again dons the suit to help the common man as The Torpedo, innocently adding to the chaos and confusion before the Chameleon is caught…

Jester’s grand scheme is revealed in ‘What Is Happening?’ The Manic Mountebank has exploited a computer pioneer to create a wave of stories making the public mistrust the authorities by manipulating the media. (I’m not commenting, I’m not commenting…)

Seeing newspaper reports, photos and even news tapes of John and Robert Kennedy alive, superheroes killing cops and “proof” that the Viet Nam war never happened, but secret conflicts in Chile and Saudi Arabia did, much of the public readily accepts the villain was framed, resulting in Daredevil being arrested and subsequently handed over to an army of thugs and gangsters.

John Buscema assumed pencilling with #136, as the Jester’s endgame is exposed. When President Gerald Ford announces that New York City’ s police and all its superheroes have gone insane, citizens are urged to take up arms and defend themselves at all costs. The entire scheme has been devised to leave the city open to plunder by the Jester’s hastily-assembled army of thugs. Unable to keep away, DD strikes back but is captured and subjected to ‘A Hanging for a Hero!’

As a lynch mob of panicked citizens and enraged criminals almost execute the Man Without Fear, he flamboyantly escapes but is forced back into action for concluding episode ‘The Murder Maze Strikes Twice!’ as “President Ford’s” broadcasts demand citizens “take back Wall Street” from the gangsters that now control it. Deducing Jester’s location, DD storms in, dismantles all the villain’s traps and minions, restoring order and justice, only to discover personal crises boiling over…

Throughout the media reality war, Daredevil had been seeking to prove the innocence of Heather Glenn‘s father. Matt Murdock’s current girlfriend knows her dad isn’t a ruthless, murdering slumlord but that someone must have framed him. All evidence says otherwise. Now, as Matt and Foggy return to that case, word comes (for readers, as two excerpted pages from Ghost Rider #19 – August 1976 by Tony Isabella, Frank Robbins & Vince Colletta) depicting former girlfriend turned soap star Karen Page being kidnapped by friend and ally Stuntman…

It leads directly into Daredevil #138 where Wolfman, John Byrne & Mooney ask ‘Where is Karen Page?’ as the Man Without Fear drops everything for his one true love: heading for Los Angeles where Page is a Hollywood star with a complex convoluted life. However her relationship with hell-tainted Johnny Blaze is not why she was targeted, but rather from her father’s inventions and career as super-maniac Death’s Head – and the impostor now using the name to further his own insane plans. The saga concludes in Ghost Rider #20 (Wolfman, Byrne & Don Perlin) as ‘Two Against Death!’ reveals who is actually pulling all the strings with Satan-spawn and Scarlet Swashbuckler pairing to save page. Meanwhile in Manhattan, Foggy continues investigating Glenn Industries… and is shot.

The plot threads expands in Daredevil Annual #4’s ‘The Name of the Game is Death!’ Plotted by Wolfman, scripted by Chris Claremont, drawn by George Tuska and inked by Frank Chiaramonte, it sees The Black Panther aiding an industrialist whose son is abducted. Thanks to friendship with King T’Challa and judicious use of Vibranium, Robert Mallory has built the world’s first Tidal Power Station. Someone thinks holding his son will win them the plans but hasn’t counted on T’Challa paying his friend a visit at this inopportune moment…

Daredevil, meanwhile, fights for his life, having stumbled into a furiously rampaging Sub-Mariner. Prince Namor has returned to the vile surface world because of a man named Mallory and a power station that while providing cheap clean energy for mankind will overheat the seas and divert the tides…

Concluding chapter ‘And Who Shall Save the Panther?’ begins with the Great Cat prowling Manhattan, having tracked the crime to ambitious mobster Ruffio Costa. Sadly, he’s unable to defeat the thugs alone and eventually DD steps in to deliver a ransom, accidentally bringing Sub-Mariner along for the ride. When the superbeings converge and clash, Costa is caught in the carnage and a lab explosion transforms him into something far worse than gradual climate crisis and the factions must all temporarily unite to defeat the threat of Mind-Master.

The editorial story behind Wolfman, Sal Buscema & Mooney’s ‘A Night in the Life’ (DD #139) is a true insight to comics at their best, but for readers it’s simply a chance to enjoy enhanced drama, suspense and action as the search for a missing haemophiliac boy overlaps a police manhunt for a mad bomber demanding the return of his drug-addicted wife. Wolfman was unsurpassed at interleaving soap opera melodrama with costumed cavorting, and the fraught tone carried over into #140 as Bill Mantlo, Sal B & Klaus Janson detailed ‘Death Times Two!’ when a runaway bus dumped Daredevil into a hunt for accidentally united old enemies The Gladiator and The Beetle who then aimed a runaway train at Grand Central Station and attempted to settle old scores with the hero amidst the dead and dying…

An even bigger change in tone began in #141. ‘Target: Death!’ was plotted by Wolfman, and scripted by Jim Shooter, with pencils divided between Gil Kane and Bob Brown, and Jim Mooney inking. It is very much a forerunner of what Roger McKenzie and Frank Miller would conceive of in months to come, opening with another murder attempt on Foggy and fresh insights into the abduction of his fiancée Debbie Harris. More secrets of Glenn Industries are teased out, a killer dies and DD’s ultimate arch-nemesis returns for another killing spree before abruptly changing his mind and tying defeated Daredevil to a giant arrow and firing him at the New Jersey Palisades…

Pulling out all the stops for his final forays, Wolfman – with Brown & Mooney – resurrected more classic villains for #142. Escaping one doom, DD meets new hero Nova, even as Mr. Hyde and The Cobra reunite, targeting the Scarlet Swashbuckler as he passes the rooftop rainforest garden of a young millionaire living in a personal paradise: ‘The Concrete Jungle’

The clash concludes with ‘“Hyde and Go Seek”. Sayeth the Cobra!’ (Wolfman, Brown & Keith Pollard) wherein the villains leave our hero to the carnivores populating the skyscraper Eden while they plunder the penthouse below. The goal is not wealth but ancient books and formulas to enhances their powers, but as ever, they grievously underestimate the boldness and ingenuity of the Man Without Fear…

Times were changing for the Scarlet Swashbuckler, and stories by incoming scripters including Jim Shooter and Roger McKenzie contributed to a gradual darkening of the atmosphere. In DD #144 Shooter, penciller Lee Elias & inker Dan Green amp up the edginess and intensify foreboding shadows by proving ‘Man-Bull Means Mayhem’ as the petty thug-turned-mutated-menace Bill Taurens again clashes with the Crimson Crusader. The battle begins when he breaks jail to join DD’s oldest archenemy The Owl and it emerges the avian ganglord is critically enfeebled, under attack by rivals and needs the Man-Bull to kidnap the one scientist who can fix him. Sadly, the boffin might also be able to cure Taurens, and the brute’s selfish betrayal leads to disaster when Daredevil intervenes again…

The Owl’s fate is sealed in ‘Danger Rides the Bitter Wind!’ (by Shooter from a Gerry Conway plot, illustrated by George Tuska & Jim Mooney) as the desperate human raptor goes after Dr. Petrovic personally, raiding a hospital and triggering his own doom in a rooftop clash with Daredevil. Shooter then amps up tension as #146 welcomes Gil Kane as penciller for Mooney and maniac marksman Bullseye returning to force a showdown ‘Duel!’ with the hero, achieved by taking an entire TV studio hostage before being soundly defeated yet again…

Throughout The Jester’s media reality war, DD had dated flighty socialite Heather Glenn. When, as both masked hero and lawyer he discovered her father was a corrupt slumlord and white collar criminal, the hero began looking for proof to exonerate his potential father-in-law. Instead he found further damning proof everywhere he looked. Matt’s girlfriend knows her dad isn’t a ruthless, murdering monster and that someone must have framed him. All evidence says otherwise…

Now another long running plot thread – with Foggy’s kidnapped girlfriend now held for months – converges as DD confronts Maxwell Glenn and the true culprit reveals himself to readers if not the hero. As Glenn confesses to everything and is arrested, the hero hits his ‘Breaking Point!’ (Shooter, Kane & Janson) after dramatically liberating the broken captive but failing to catch the true villain – mindbending archfoe Killgrave, the Purple Man…

With Kane co-plotting, and Glenn believing himself guilty, #148’s ‘Manhunt!’ sees the increasingly overwhelmed adventurer lash out at the entire underworld in search of the malign mauve manipulator, only to stumble into a wholly separate evil plot instigated by the another enemy – the diabolical Death-Stalker. Murdock’s relationship with Foggy also takes a hit as the usually genial partner deals with a PTSD ravaged Debbie and can’t understand why his best friend is defending self-confessed perpetrator Glenn…

Carmine Infantino joins Shooter & Janson for DD #149 as ‘Catspaw!’ sees Heather dump Matt and super-thug The Smasher target Daredevil in a blistering battle bout that is mere prelude to #150’s ‘Catastrophe!’, finding the valiant crusader stretched beyond his capacity in the courtroom and on the streets, just as charming, debonair mercenary Paladin premieres in a clash of vigilante jurisdictions. The debuting mercenary hero for hire is also hunting the Purple Man and has advantages DD can’t match, and no scruples at all…

Kane returns as plotter and penciller as Shooter gives way to McKenzie, who joins the creative crew to script ‘Crisis!’ with another tragic death blighting Murdock’s soul. As a result, Heather accidentally uncovers Matt’s heroic secret and DD simply quits. However, the horrors of the world and his own overzealous Catholic conscience soon force him back to work again…

Paladin and Infantino return for ‘Prisoner!’ (DD #152) joining McKenzie & Janson in reintroducing Death-Stalker just as our masked hero makes an intervention to reunite Foggy with traumatised fiancé Debbie. Although the ploy is successful, another clash with the mercenary leaves DD beaten and open to a surprise attack by The Cobra & Mr Hyde in #153. Crafted by McKenzie, Gene Colan & Tony DeZuñiga, ‘Betrayal!’ debuts aging Daily Bugle reporter Ben Urich – who will play a huge part in Daredevil’s future – with the weary hero ambushed, defeated and dragged to the ‘Arena!’ (Steve Leialoha inks) wherein Killgrave seeks ultimate victory by mind-piloting a squad of DD’s foes, including The Gladiator, Jester, Cobra & Hyde, to slaughter the swashbuckler in front of a captive audience. It proves to be the fiend’s final mistake once Paladin shows up and shifts the balance of power…

To Be Continued…

At this period the series was generating plenty of noteworthy characters, and included here are some solo spin-off stories that resulted. First is a two-issue try-out tale starring hero/ villain The Torpedo. He first (accidentally) battled DD in Daredevil #126-127. After the brief reprise recounted above he was given his shot at fame in Marvel Premiere #39 & 40 (December 1977 – January 1978) before ultimately dying in Rom: Spaceknight and being replaced by a teenaged girl.

‘Ride a Wild Rocket!’ and ‘…Battle With the Big Man!’ was a rushed-looking collaboration of Wolfman, Mantlo, Brown, Al Milgrom, Josef Rubinstein, Bob Wiacek & Alan Weiss showing Brock Jones pursuing the Rocketeer gang who originally owned his turbo-suit, but all his efforts to reclaim the acclaim of his quarterbacking days seem pointless. Harassed at home and bored at work, his American Dream is dying. After almost triggering a nuclear meltdown he was considered a menace, even though he saved the state from atomic catastrophe, and now a critical change comes after the hidden mastermind behind all his woes and superhero aspirations decides enough is enough…

As seen in Captain America, Machine Man, and The Incredible Hulk, long-time villain Senator Eugene “Kligger” Stivak is a high-ranking official of criminal capitalists The Corporation who decides he will deal with Brock personally, but the villain has seriously underestimated the over-the-hill hero’s stubbornness and desperation to regain his self-esteem…

Also included here is a Paladin pilot from Marvel Premiere #43; cover-dated August 1978 and devised by Don McGregor & Tom Sutton as a super hero/bodyguard/private eye mash-up, with Paladin Paul Denning learning ‘In Manhattan, They Play for Keeps’. Here the suave merc faces a new iteration of Mr Fear calling himself Phantasm. Mutated in a radiation accident, the maniac soon graduates from abusive boyfriend to enemy of capitalism, fixated on old girlfriend Marsha Connors until she hires Paladin to save her…

Supplementing the resurgent rise in comics form is a cover gallery by Ed Hannigan, Rich Buckler, John Buscema, Al Milgrom, Dave Cockrum, Kane, Tom Palmer, Joe Sinnott, Ron Wilson, Frank Giacoia, Janson, Terry Austin, Colan, Steve Leialoha, Infantino & Frank Springer. The extras sections include Wolfman’s editorial from #133 detailing circumstances of Geller/Marvel’s publicity stunt, pages The Mighty Marvel Bicentennial Calendar 1976 from Marvel Comics Memory Album 1977 (by Sal Buscema and Gil Kane), house ads and original art pages by John Buscema, Mooney, Byrne, Brown, Kane & Janson.

As the 1970s closed, these gritty tales laid the foundation for groundbreaking mature dramas to come, promising the true potential of Daredevil was finally in reach. Their narrative energy and exuberant excitement are dashing delights no action fan will care to miss.

… And the next volume heads full on into darker shadows, the grimmest of territory and the breaking of many boundaries…
© 2024 MARVEL.

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Roy Crane’s Captain Easy, Soldier of Fortune: The Complete Sunday Newspaper Strips volume 3 1938-1940


By Roy Crane with Leslie Turner (Fantagraphics Books)
ISBN: 978-1-60699-529-7 (HB)

This book includes Discriminatory Content produced in less enlightened times.

The comics industry evolved from newspaper strips and these circulation-boosting pictorial features were, until relatively recently, utterly ubiquitous, hugely popular with the public and regarded as invaluable by publishers who used them as an irresistible sales weapon to guarantee consumer loyalty, increase sales and ensure profits. Many a scribbler became a millionaire thanks to their ability to draw pictures and spin a yarn.

It’s virtually impossible for us to today to understand the overwhelming power of the comic strip in America (and the wider world) from the Great Depression to the end of World War II. With no television, broadcast radio far from universal and movie shows at best a weekly treat for most folk, household entertainment was mostly derived from the comic sections of daily and especially Sunday Newspapers. The Funnies were the most common recreation for millions who were well served by a fantastic variety and incredible quality. From the very start humour was paramount… that’s why we call them “funnies” or “comics”, after all. From these gag and stunt beginnings, blending silent movie slapstick, outrageous antics, fabulous fantasy and vaudeville shows, came a thoroughly unique entertainment hybrid: Royston Campbell Crane’s Wash Tubbs.

Debuting on April 21st 1924 Washington Tubbs II was a comedic gag-a-day strip not entirely dissimilar from confirmed family favourite Harold Teen (by Crane’s friend and contemporary Carl Ed). Tubbs was a diminutive, ambitious young shop clerk when the strip began, but gradually he moved into mock-heroics, then through harm-free action into full-blown, light-hearted rip-roaring adventures with the introduction of pioneering he-man, moody swashbuckling prototype Captain Easy in the landmark episode for 6th May, 1929.

As the tales became increasingly more exotic and thrill-drenched, the globe-trotting little dynamo clearly needed a sidekick who could believably handle the combat side of things, and thus in the middle of a European war Tubbs liberated a mysterious fellow American from a jail cell and history was made. Before long the mismatched pair were inseparable comrades; travelling the world, hunting treasure, fighting thugs and rescuing a bevy of startlingly comely maidens in distress…

The 2-fisted, bluff, completely capable and utterly dependable, down-on-his-luck Southern Gentleman was something not seen before in comics: a raw, square-jawed hunk played straight rather than the buffoon or music hall foil of such classic serials as Hairsbreadth Harry or Desperate Desmond. Crucially, Crane’s seductively simple blend of cartoon exuberance and compelling page-design was a far more accessible and powerful medium for action story-telling than the static illustrative style favoured by artists like Hal Foster (just starting to make waves on the new Tarzan Sunday page).

While we’re thinking of Edgar Rice Burroughs, it’s difficult to re-read the phrase “Southern Gentleman” these days without pausing to consider how much of that term originally denoted chivalric do-gooder, rather than Defender of Slavery, to most readers. Frankly, I’m not sure Crane gave a moment’s thought to political or social implications, although his heroes never made any distinction between races and treated all characters equally, even back then. Their only motivations were getting rich honestly and helping folks in trouble. These stories come from a long time ago, so just read along with a sense of historical perspective, please…

Tubbs and Easy were easily as exotic and thrilling as the Ape Man but rattled along like tempestuous Sailor Man Popeye, full of vim, vigour and vinegar, as attested to by a close look at the early work of the would-be cartoonists who followed the strip with avid intensity: Floyd Gottfredson, Milton Caniff, Jack Kirby, Will Eisner and especially young Joe Shuster…

After a couple of abortive attempts starring his little-guy hero, Crane bowed to the inevitable and created a full colour Sunday page dedicated to his increasingly popular hero-for-hire. Captain Easy debuted on 30th July 1933, in madcap, two-fisted exploits (originally) set before his first fateful meeting with Tubbs.

The third terrific tome of a stupendous 4-volume set covers May 22nd 1938 to December 15th 1940 and opens with a Foreword by Rick Norwood contrasting storylines in Daily and Sunday iterations whilst re-presenting a number of Crane’s illustrated articles on life in Mexico, after which R.C. Harvey’s Introduction provides some historical context and speculates on a potential real-life inspiration for the enigmatic Captain. There’s also a long-overdue appreciation of the artist’s friend, silent partner and eventual successor in ‘Easy Does it… And So does Leslie Turner’. Initially hired to provide Crane time and breathing room from the punishing seven day a week deadlines, from 1937 Turner increasingly took responsibility for the Sunday strip after the Newspaper Enterprise Association syndicate ordered Crane to drop his cherished full-page experimental designs.

When he first began the Sunday page in 1933, Crane’s creativity went into overdrive: an entire page and sharp vibrant colours to play with had clearly stirred his imagination. The results were wild visual concoctions which achieved a timeless immediacy and made each instalment a unified piece of sequential art. The effect of the pages can be seen in so many comic and strips since – even in the works of such near-contemporaries as Hergé and giants-in-waiting like Charles Schulz. The pages were a clearly as much of a joy to create as to read but the commercial argument ran that the company couldn’t sell a feature which client periodicals were unable to cut-up and reformat to suit their own needs. In 1943 the former assistant inherited the black-&-white Daily feature after Crane quit NEA to produce his creator-owned Buz Sawyer strip for William Randolph Hearst’s King Features syndicate.

Once Crane was gone, Turner took Wash & Easy into ever more comedic regions, crafting the strip until his retirement in 1969 after which other writers and artists carried the Captain until the feature was ended in 1988. But that’s largely immaterial as here the superb high-adventuring is seen in its absolute prime…

As seen in Roy Crane’s Captain Easy, Soldier of Fortune: The Complete Sunday Newspaper Strips volume 2, after a spectacular string of solo adventures the solitary soldier of fortune at last met Tubbs whilst jugged in a jail cell in a Ruritanian European kingdom. He had been framed in an espionage plot. Risking life and diminutive limb to save his pal, Wash also rescued sultry spitfire Ruby Dallas who promptly entangled them in her own unfortunate tale of woe. Witness to a murder in America, she had been on the run ever since because the killer was a prominent millionaire with too much to lose. Once the trio escaped murderous cutthroats, slavers and assassins, they soon settled his hash…

The story picks up here with the lads again looking for jobs and passage home. Opportunity knocks in the form of an animal collector in need of a crew, but when his tiger gets loose on the boat everybody jumps overboard. Washing up on the isolated island of Koolyhow where an American entomologist and his female assistant are hunting the legendary doodle-bug, the boys sign on as helpers. They are soon embroiled in burgeoning madness gripping local governor Sergeant Major Gaspe Shalayli, and further complicating matters is a lost temple full of ancient treasures and a cute furry creature called a Swink. The gluttonous little anteater takes a shine to Wash and has a capacity for finding trouble or creating chaos exponentially greater than his new owner’s…

With bugs and Swink – christened “Bennie” – the triumphant Americans reach Singapore only to be targeted by grifters Sadie and Dipper, who believe their latest marks have the temple jewels (actually confiscated by the local government). Tricking their way onto the flying boat carrying Wash and Easy home, the crooks cause a crash leaving Sadie and our heroes stranded on a desolate island inhabited by the extremely civilised descendants of piratical bandits. The place is a utopian paradise with only one rule: nobody ever leaves…

Of course Easy, Wash & Bennie do, in a stolen sail boat which promptly starts sinking, leaving the voyagers in dire straits. They’re almost saved by a passing vessel but the pirates aboard The Typhoon gleefully ignore their plight and sail on…

Frantically bailing, they reach land just as Cap’n Robbins sinks and plunders a trading ship. Once again in hot water, Wash & Easy rescue Mona Milson – stranded survivor of a previous shipwrecking – and return her to her grateful father on yet another Pacific paradise, only to find the furious Robbins waiting for them. He’s just agreed to transport the old gent, his family and, most importantly, his life savings to Honolulu…

Unable to dissuade old man Milson, the boys book passage with him and Mona and, after days of outrageous hijinks as the voracious and disaster-prone Bennie makes life hell for the pirates, expose and capture the villains. With reward money in their pockets Wash & Easy (and the Swink) finally get back to America and begin a search for gainful employment which highlights a return to gag-filled short stories. The ever-ravenous Swink is a popular sensation, prompting his owners to buy a travelling medicine show truck. Whilst touring the country they discover the elixir they’re peddling has genuine restorative powers whilst encountering a succession of conmen, women, thieves, scheming women, bandits and determinedly marriage-minded women – some of whom even steal the fabulous, potentially invaluable Bennie. A martyr to crazy, hungry critters, Wash improbably inherits a hippo named Kittie.

It’s just one disaster after another…

Feeling they’ve outlived their welcome Wash & Easy go adventuring again, accidentally ending up in Peru, where dauntless Mary Lancaster is searching for her lost father. She enlists their help to enter the forbidden Lost Canyon region where they discover not only the missing archaeologist but a lost race of Indians who still practise human sacrifice. The humans only escape by trading their lives for Bennie, but as they make their forlorn way back to civilisation, the indomitable Swink catches up to them, having proved too smart for the Andeans. Packing the Lancasters off home, but too short of funds to accompany them, our heroes are soon clapped in jail for vagrancy, where they meet magician, ventriloquist and escapologist “the Great Plunkett”: an inveterate prankster who joins them as stowaways on a steamer back to the USA. Once there, Plunkett’s gift for opening safes makes him a target for opportunistic mobsters – until his new friends step in…

Big changes were underway at this time and Turner was increasingly yielding the focus on his titular stars to explore an array of new and returning supporting characters – presumably to allow Crane more leeway, if not exclusivity – on Tubbs and Easy. However with January 21st 1940’s episode, the boys were back, as Easy became a freelance spy-hunter/crimebuster in a nation progressively, inevitably marching towards war. The tone was still light and humorous, but the writing was on the wall…

After stopping spies, Easy tracked down escaped convict Killer Beck, exposed the murder of a Chinese servant and captured America’s Most Wanted female-impersonating conman. That led to his being hired to safeguard a new aviation weapon from a veritable army of foreign agents and the diabolical Mata Hari Z-1. Defeating her led to Easy and Wash being marooned in a vast jungle of cactus in the Western American desert where they stumbled onto a gang of ruthless counterfeiters before tackling train-stealing gunrunners in Mexico.

More short yarns bracket a concerted re-lightening of mood as the lads are hired by arrogant, flighty heiress and aspiring film star Honey Darling who uses them to stage dangerous, headline-grabbing stunts, before they’re hired to recover a yacht and rescue the passengers after the Captain loses control of it in a rigged card game. The mission goes slightly awry and leaves the boys, heiress Ginger Nelson, her chaperone aunt and some of the more nefarious crewmen shipwrecked. Amongst the saved luggage is the 12th biggest diamond in the world.

… And then the murders start happening…

Nevertheless Easy & Tubbs again save the day, but on returning stateside, the surly Soldier of Fortune is made the basis of a bet between two wealthy men. One wagers that any man can be made afraid, but the other believes Easy disproves the notion. Of course, neither has asked him to participate, and after the hero is tricked into a haunted house the trouble really begins as the mountaintop dwelling is invaded by bandits wanting their perfect hideout back…

After discovering the only thing that frightens Easy, this compelling cartoon carnival ends with the heartwarming tale of newsboy Buddie Burns who turns his passion for detecting into a successful anti-crime campaign – with a little help from a certain South’un Gen’leman…

Also included here are examples of original artwork and this colossal luxury hardback compilation (pages 380 x 270mm) even offers an extra colour tear-sheet plus a full hand-coloured page by Crane, used by print processors as a guide to produce finished instalments.

This volume also heralds the irrepressible humour which Turner would increasing bring into the feature and the stories – although still action adventures – abound with breezy, light-hearted banter, outrageous situations, hilarious slapstick and outright farce: a sure-fire formula modern cinema directors plunder to this day.

Captain Easy was the grandfather of Indiana Jones, Flynn (the Librarian) Carsen and Jack (Romancing the Stone) Cotton, clearly setting the benchmark for all of them. Happily, Crane’s rip-snorting, pulse-pounding, exotically racy adventure trailblazer fell into hands every bit as talented and the huge pages in this stupendous chronicle, crackling with fun and excitement, provide the perfect stage from which to absorb and enjoy the classic tale-telling of another sublime master raconteur.

This is storytelling of impeccable quality: unforgettable, spectacular and utterly irresistible. These tales rank alongside the best of Hergé, Tezuka, Toth and Kirby and unarguably fed the imaginations of them all as they still should for today’s comics creators. Now that you have the chance to experience the strips that inspired the giants of our art form, how can you possibly resist?
Captain Easy strips © 2012 United Feature Syndicate, Inc. This edition © 2012 Fantagraphics Books, all other material © the respective copyright holders. All rights reserved.

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Osama Tezuka’s Original Astro Boy volume 9


By Osamu Tezuka, translated by Frederik L. Schodt (Dark Horse Manga)
ISBN: 978-1-56971-792-9 (tank?bon PB/Digital edition)

This book includes Discriminatory Content produced in less enlightened times.

From beginning his professional career in the late 1940s until his death in 1989, Osamu Tezuka generated an incomprehensible volume of quality work which transformed the world of manga and how it was perceived in his own country and, ultimately, across the globe. Devoted to Walt Disney’s creations, he performed similar sterling service with Japan’s fledgling animation industry. The earliest stories were intended for children but right from the start Tezuka’s expansive fairy tale stylisations harboured more mature themes and held hidden pleasures for older readers and the legion of fans growing up with his masterworks…

The “God of Comics” was born in Osaka Prefecture on November 3rd 1928, and suffered from a severe illness as a child. The doctor who cured him inspired the lad to study medicine, and although Osamu began drawing professionally whilst at university in 1946, he persevered with college and qualified as a medical practitioner too. Then, as he faced a career crossroads, his mother advised him to do the thing which made him happiest. He never practiced as a healer but the world was gifted with such masterpieces as Kimba the White Lion, Buddha, Black Jack and so many other graphic narratives. Working ceaselessly over decades, Tezuka and his creations inevitably matured, but he was always able to speak to the hearts and minds of young and old equally. His creations ranged from the childishly charming to the distinctly disturbing such as The Book of Human Insects.

Tezuka died on February 9th 1989, having produced more than 150,000 pages of timeless comics; created the Japanese anime industry and popularised a uniquely Japanese graphic narrative style which became a fixture of global culture.

These monochrome digest volumes (173 x 113 mm in the physical world and any size you like if you read them digitally) present – in non-linear order – revised exploits of his signature character, with the emphasis firmly on fantastic fun and family entertainment…

Tetsuwan Atomu (literally “Mighty Atom” but known universally as Astro Boy due to its dissemination around the world as an animated TV cartoon and one of post-war Japan’s better exports) offers spectacular, riotous, rollicking sci fi action-adventure starring a young boy who also happens to be one of the mightiest robots on Earth.

The series began in 1952 in Shōnen Kobunsha and ran until March 12th 1968 – although in later years Tezuka returned to add to the canon often, both in comics but in also in other media such as the newspaper strips. Over that period, Astro Boy spawned the aforementioned global TV cartoon boom, starred in comic book specials and featured in games, toys, movies, collectibles and the undying devotion of generations of ardent fans.

Tezuka frequently drew himself into his tales as chorus and commentator, and in later revisions and introductions often cited how stifling he found the restrictions of Shōnen comics; specifically, having to periodically pause a plot to placate the demands of his audience by providing a blockbusting fight every episode. That’s his prerogative: most of us avid aficionados have no complaints…

Tezuka and his production team were never as wedded to close continuity as any fan. They constantly modified stories and artwork in later collections, so if you’re a purist you are just plain out of luck. Such tweaking is the reason this series of collections seem to skip up and down the publishing chronology. The intent is to entertain at all times so stories aren’t treated as gospel and order is not immutable or inviolate.

It’s just comics, guys, and in case you came in late, here’s a little background to set you up.

In a world where robots are ubiquitous and have won (limited) human rights, brilliant Dr. Tenma lost his son Tobio in a traffic accident. Grief-stricken, the tormented genius used his position as head of Japan’s Ministry of Science to build a replacement. The android his team created was one of the most groundbreaking constructs in history, and for a while Tenma was content. However, as his mind re-stabilised, Tenma realised the unchanging humanoid was not Tobio and, with cruel clarity, summarily rejected the replacement. Ultimately, the savant removed the insult to his real boy by selling the robot to a shady dealer…

One day, independent researcher Professor Ochanomizu was in the audience at a robot circus and realised diminutive performer “Astro” was unlike the other acts – or indeed, any artificial being he had ever encountered. Convincing the circus owners to part with the little robot, the Prof closely studied the unique creation and realised just what a miracle had come into his hands…

Part of Ochanomizu’s socialization process for Astro included placing him in a family environment and having him attend school just like a real boy. As well as providing friends and admirers the familiar environment turned up another foil and occasional assistant in the bellicose and highly skilled form of Elementary School teacher Higeoyaji (AKA Mr. Mustachio)…

The wiry wonder’s astonishing exploits resume after the now traditional ‘A Note to Readers’ – explaining in prose why one thing that hasn’t been altered is the depictions of various racial types in the stories. The author was also keen on combining all aspects of his creation into one overarching continuity delivered as a cartoon prelude, so these ruminations promptly give way to an epic action adventure doused with humour and social satire as our plucky android Pinocchio stumbles into a vast global conspiracy and becomes an unwitting pawn and courier of a robot doomsday device in ‘The Secret of the Egyptian Conspirators’ (originally seen between April and August 1969 in Shōnen Magazine). With an abundance of contemporary spy fiction tropes and themes in play Astro is trapped in a deadly war when the nation of Egypt falls under the spell of a robotic Cleopatra and her creator and sets about restoring their ancient empire. Bizarrely, behind the scheme is fiendish inventor Baribari – an old acquaintance and enemy of someone extremely close to Astro Boy, but that unknown connection does not impede the cosmic kid’s attempts to redeem Cleopatra whilst battling a battalion of giant robot beast and monuments, as well as the rival’s vile opportunistic human forces, leading to more tragedy and loss for the lonely manmade boy…

Follow-up fable ‘The Invisible Giant’  ran in Shōnen Magazine from May to July 1961, and by Tezuka’s own admission was heavily inspired by George Langelaan’s short story The Fly as first published in Playboy (June 1957) before becoming a sci fi classic and motion picture franchise from 1958 onwards. Here however the teleportation device maguffin results from an intense rivalry between scientists: venerable, irascible Dr. Woods and glory-seeking upstart B.S. Hanabusa. When the latter’s creation malfunctions, failing to rematerialize assorted animals and manifesting a ghastly ethereal poltergeist, Astro and his human pal Shibukagi are caught up in the duel of wills, embroiled with hitman Killer 0000 and targeted by corrupt 3D TV exec Nada and his murderous thugs.

However, when Astro uncovers the true story of the amalgamated horror stalking the city and what Woods and Nada are planning, he finds the path to justice a lot clearer than anticipated… especially with Mr. Mustachio lending his martial art muscle to the gang war erupting in the streets. Even when Nada kidnaps Ochanomizu, the robot boy and his eerie ally have a plan to save the day and produce a notional win for the good guys…

After that frenetic globe girdling and otherworldly outing, moodier adventure ‘Cobalt’ (Shōnen Magazine, June-September 1954) reintroduces a duplicate Astro Boy, built in the midst of an atomic crisis after the original robot hero of Japan goes missing on a mission. Forced to speed up his creation of Astro Boy’s successor, Professor Ochanomizu cuts some corners, but with a nuclear deadline fast approaching, realises that all Cobalt needs to do is find Astro and let the real hero save everyone…

With incredible and deadly locales, fantastic beasts and an unsuspected villain behind the crisis, that proves to be easier said than done, but in the bitter end the substitute proves he’s more than the sum of his parts…

To Be Continued…

Breathtaking pace, outrageous invention, slapstick comedy, heart-wrenching sentiment and frenetic action are hallmarks of these captivating comics constructions: perfect examples of Tezuka’s uncanny storytelling gifts, which still deliver a potent punch and instil wide-eyed wonder on a variety of intellectual levels. The melange of marvels is further enhanced here by an older, more sophisticated tone and the introduction of political and social commentary, proving Astro Boy to be a genuine delight for all ages.
Tetsuwan Atom by Osama Tezuka © 2002 by Tezuka Productions. All rights reserved. Astro Boy is a registered trademark of Tezuka Productions Co., Ltd., Tokyo Japan. Unedited translation © 2002 Frederik L. Schodt.
This book is printed in the traditional western ‘read-from-front-to-back’ format.

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The Defenders Epic Collection volume 1: The Day of the Defenders (1969-1973)


By Roy Thomas, Steve Englehart, Len Wein, Gene Colan, Marie Severin, Herb Trimpe, Ross Andru, Sal Buscema, Bob Brown, Don Heck, Tom Palmer, Johnny Craig, Bill Everett, Frank McLaughlin, Jim Mooney, Frank Bolle, Frank Giacoia, John Verpoorten, Mike Esposito & various (Marvel)
ISBN: 978-1-3029-3356-2 (TPB/Digital edition)

This book includes Discriminatory Content produced in less enlightened times.

For kids – of any and all ages – there is a simple response to and primal fascination with brute strength and feeling dangerous, which surely goes some way towards explaining the perennial interest in angry tough guys who break stuff… as best exemplified by Prince Namor, the Sub-Mariner and the Incredible Hulk. When you add the mystery and magic of Doctor Strange, the recipe for thrills, spills and chills becomes simply irresistible…

Last of the big star conglomerate super-groups, The Defenders would eventually number amongst its membership almost every hero – and a few villains – in the Marvel Universe. No real surprise there then, as initially they were composed of the company’s bad-boy antiheroes: misunderstood, outcast and often actually dangerous to know.

For Marvel, the outsider super-group must have seemed a conceptual inevitability – once they’d finally published it. Back then, apart from Spider-Man and Daredevil, all their superstars regularly teamed up in various mob-handed assemblages and, in the wake of the Defenders’ success, even more super-teams comprising pre-existing characters were rapidly mustered. These included the Champions, Invaders, New Warriors  and so forth – but none of them had any Truly Very Big Guns…

They never won the fame or acceptance of other teams, but that simply seemed to leave creators open to taking more chances and playing the occasional narrative wild card. The genesis of the team derived from their status as publicly distrusted villains, threats or menaces, but before all that later inventive approbation. The scintillating collection compiles early days as first seen in whole or in part in Dr. Strange #183, Sub-Mariner #22, 33 & 35, Incredible Hulk #126, Marvel Feature #1-3, Defenders #1-11, and Avengers #115-118 covering November 1969 to December 1973, re-presenting a wealth of extended and linked sagas that would reshape comics.

The first tale in this volume comes from Dr. Strange #183 in ‘They Walk by Night!’ where Roy Thomas, Gene Colan & Tom Palmer introduced a deadly threat to humanity. Elder demon race The Undying Ones were returning, hungry to reconquer the Earth they once ruled, but as the sorcerer’s series unexpectedly ended with that issue, the story went nowhere until the Sub-Mariner #22 (February 1970) and ‘The Monarch and the Mystic!’ brought the Prince of Atlantis into the mix. Here Thomas, Marie Severin & Johnny Craig told a sterling tale of sacrifice in which the Master of the Mystic Arts seemingly dies holding the gates of Hell shut with the Undying Ones sealed behind them.

The extended saga concluded on an upbeat note in The Incredible Hulk #126 (April 1970) as Thomas & Herb Trimpe revealed in ‘…Where Stalks the Night-Crawler!’ how a New England cult dispatches helpless Bruce Banner to the nether realms in an attempt to undo Strange’s sacrifice. Luckily, cultist Barbara Norris has last-minute second thoughts and her own dire sacrifice frees the mystic, and seemingly ends the threat of the Undying Ones forever. At the end of the issue Strange retired. Although forsaking magic, he was soon back as the fates and changing reading tastes called him to duty as magic and the supernatural themes rose in popularity. As Namor became an early advocate of the ecology movement, in issues #34-35 of his own title (February & March 1971) the next step in the antihero  revolution came when he recruited Hulk and Silver Surfer for  a critical cause.

Antihero super-nonteam The Defenders officially begins with Sub-Mariner #34-35 (cover-dated February & March 1971). As previously cited, the Prince of Atlantis was an ardent activist and advocate of the ecology movement, and here takes radical steps to save Earth in ‘Titans Three!’ by fractiously recruiting other outcasts to help him destroy a US Nuclear Weather-Control station. In concluding chapter ‘Confrontation!’ (Thomas, Sal Buscema & Jim Mooney) the always-misunderstood outcasts unite to battle a despotic dictator’s legions, the US Army, UN defence forces and Avengers to prevent the malfunctioning station vaporising half the planet…

With that debacle smoothed over life resumed its usual frenetic pace for the Hulk and Namor until giant sized try-out comic Marvel Feature #1. Cover-dated December 1971, it presented ‘The Day of the Defenders!’ as a mysteriously re-empowered Stephen Strange summons the Avenging Son and the Jade Juggernaut to help him stop the deathbed doom of crazed super-mind Yandroth. Determined to not go gently into the dark, the Scientist Supreme had built an “Omegatron” programmed to obliterate the Earth as soon as Yandroth’s heart stopped beating. With magic ineffective, only the brute strength of the misunderstood misanthropes could possibly stop it…

Naturally the fiend hadn’t told the whole truth, but the day was saved – actually only postponed – in a canny classic from Thomas, Ross Andru & Bill Everett. The issue also shares how Strange regained his mojo in ‘The Return’ by Thomas, Don Heck & Frank Giacoia: a heady 10-page thriller proving that not all good things come in large packages.

Clearly destined for great things, the astounding antiheroes reassembled in Marvel Feature #2 (March 1972) with Sal Buscema replacing Everett as inker for late Halloween treat ‘Nightmare on Bald Mountain!’ By capturing archfoe Dr. Strange, extradimensional dark lord Dormammu sought to invade Earth’s realm through a portal in Vermont, only to be savagely beaten back by the mage’s surly sometime comrades, before reuniting in #3 (June 1972, by Thomas, Andru & Everett ) to face a revive old Lee/Kirby “furry underpants” monster in ‘A Titan Walks Among Us!’

Until thrashed by the Defenders, Xemnu the Titan was an alien super-telepath seeking to repopulate his desolate homeworld by stealing America’s children. Of course, older fans recognised him as the cover-hogging star of Journey into Mystery #62 (November 1960) where he acted as a road-test for a later Marvel star in a short tale entitled ‘I Was a Slave of the Living Hulk!’…

An undoubted hit, The Defenders exploded swiftly into their own title (cover-dated August 1972), to begin a bold, offbeat run of reluctant adventures scripted by superteam wunderkind Steve Englehart. As a group of eclectic associates occasionally called together to save the world (albeit on a miraculously monotonous monthly basis) they were billed as a “non-team” – whatever that is – but it didn’t affect the quality of their super-heroic shenanigans. With Sal B as regular penciller, an epic adventure ensued with ‘I Slay by the Stars!’ (Giacoia inks) as sorcerer Necrodamus seeks to sacrifice Namor and free those pesky Undying Ones: a mission that promptly leads to conflict with an old ally in ‘The Secret of the Silver Surfer!’ (inked by John Verpoorten) before concluding in the Mooney-inked ‘Four Against the Gods!’ Here the Defenders take their war to the dimensional dungeon of the Undying Ones and rescued the long-imprisoned and now utterly insane Barbara Norris.

Clearly a fan of large casts and extended epics, Englehart added a fighting femme fatale to the mix with ‘The New Defender!’ (inked by new regular Frank McLaughlin) as Asgardian exiles Enchantress and Executioner embroil the antiheroes in their long-running and lethal love-spat. The fallout includes bringing The Black Knight briefly into the group and turning Barbara into the latest incarnation of Feminist Fury (these were far less enlightened days) The Valkyrie.

Defenders #5 began a long-running plot thread with major repercussions for the Marvel Universe. The denouement left Black Knight an ensorcelled, immobile stone statue, and, as Strange and Co. searched for a cure, the long defused Omegatron suddenly resumed its countdown to global annihilation in ‘World Without End?’, after which the increasingly isolationist Silver Surfer momentarily “joins” in #6 to share ‘The Dreams of Death!’ as lightweight magic menace Cyrus Black attacks, and is rapidly repulsed.

After a spiffy team pin-up by Sal Buscema, Defenders #7 jumps right in as Len Wein co-scripts with Englehart and Frank Bolle inks Sal Buscema in ‘War Below the Waves!’ Here tempestuous ex-Avenger Hawkeye briefly climbs aboard the non-team bandwagon to help defeat undersea tyrant Attuma and soviet renegade The Red Ghost: a bombastic battle to usurp Sub-Mariner of his titles and kingdom concluding a month later in ‘…If Atlantis Should Fall!’, with Englehart providing all the words and McLaughlin inking. Since Defenders #4 the forward-thinking scripter had been putting players in place for a hugely ambitious crossover experiment: one that turned the industry on its head. Next here comes a prologue taken from the end of Avengers #115 which finally set the ball rolling.

Drawn by Bob Brown & Mike Esposito, ‘Alliance Most Foul!’ sees interdimensional despot the Dread Dormammu and Asgardian god of Evil Loki unite in search of an ultimate weapon to give them final victory against their foes. They resolve to trick the Defenders into securing its six component parts by “revealing” that the reconstructed Evil Eye can restore the petrified Black Knight. That plan is initiated at the end of Defenders #8: a brief opening chapter in ‘The Avengers/Defenders Clash’ entitled ‘Deception!’ wherein a message from the Black Knight’s spirit is intercepted by the twin entities of evil, leading directly to ‘Betrayal!’ in Avengers #116 (Englehart, Brown & Esposito) with the World’s Mightiest Heroes hunting for their missing comrade and “discovering” old enemies Hulk and Sub-Mariner may have turned him to stone.

This and third chapter ‘Silver Surfer Vs. the Vision and the Scarlet Witch’ see the rival teams split up: one to gather the scattered sections of the Eye and the other to stop them at all costs. Defenders #9 (Sal B & McLaughlin art) begins with tense recap ‘Divide …and Conquer’ before ‘The Invincible Iron Man Vs. Hawkeye the Archer’ and ‘Dr. Strange Vs. the Black Panther and Mantis’ sheds more suspicion and doubt on the vile villains’ subtle master-plan. Avengers #117 ‘Holocaust’, ‘Swordsman Vs. the Valkyrie’ and crucial turning point ‘Captain America Vs. Sub-Mariner’ (Brown & Esposito) lead to the penultimate clash in Defenders #10 (Sal B & Bolle) in ‘Breakthrough! The Incredible Hulk Vs. Thor’ before an inevitable joining together of the warring camps in ‘United We Stand!’ Tragically it is too late as Dormammu seizes the reconstructed Evil Eye and uses its power to merge his monstrous realm with Earth.

Avengers #118 delivers the cathartic climactic conclusion in ‘To the Death’ (Brown, Esposito & Giacoia) wherein all the Marvel Universe’s heroes resist the demonic invasion as Avengers and Defenders plunge deep into the Dark Dimension itself to end forever the threat of the evil gods…

With the overwhelming cosmic crisis concluded, the victorious Defenders attempt to use the Eye to cure their calcified comrade, only to discover his spirit has found a new home in the 12th century. In #11’s Bolle inked ‘A Dark and Stormy Knight’ the band battle black magic during the Crusades, fail to retrieve the Knight and acrimoniously go their separate ways – as did overworked departing scripter Englehart…

With issue #12 Len Wein would assume the writer’s role, starting a run of slightly more traditional costumed capers…

With covers by Colan, Everett, Severin, Frank Giacoia, John Buscema, John Romita, Sal Buscema, Gil Kane, Ralph Reese, Jim Starlin, Verpoorten, Esposito, Bolle & Ron Wilson this titanic tome also offers contemporary house ads, a revelatory Afterword by Steve Englehart segues into a brief bonus feature including unpublished cover art, the Marvel Bullpen Bulletins page announcing the launch of The Defenders, original art pages, and previous collection covers by Carlos Pacheco, John Romita and Richard Isanove.

For the longest time, The Defenders was the best and weirdest superhero comic book in the business, and if you love Fights ‘n’ Tights frolics but crave something just a little different, these yarns are for you… and the best is still to come.
© 2022 MARVEL.

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T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents Classics volume 5


By Wally Wood, Steve Skeates, Jerry Siegel, Ralph Reese, Dan Adkins, Mike Sekowsky, George Tuska, Frank Giacoia, John Giunta, Ogden Whitney, Chic Stone & various (IDW)
ISBN: ?978-1-63140-182-4 (HB) eISBN: 978-1-62302-754-4

This book includes Discriminatory Content produced in less enlightened times.

The meteoric lifespan and output of Tower Comics is one of the key creative moments in American comic book history. The brief, bombastic saga of The Higher United Nations Defense Enforcement Reserves was a benchmark of quality and sheer fun for fans of both the then-still-reawakening superhero genre and that era’s spy-chic obsession. In the early 1960s, the Bond movie franchise was going from strength to strength, with blazing action and heady glamour totally transforming the formerly low-key and seedy espionage genre. The buzz was infectious: soon a Man like Flint and Matt Helm were carving out their own piece of the action as television shanghaied the entire bandwagon with the irresistible Man from U.N.C.L.E. (premiering in September 1964), bringing the whole shtick into living rooms across the planet.

Veteran Archie Comics editor Harry Shorten was commissioned to create a line of characters for a new distribution-chain funded publishing outfit – Tower Comics. He brought in creative maverick Wally Wood, who called on some of the biggest names in the industry to produce material in the broad range of genres the company demanded; as well as T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents and its spin-offs Undersea Agent, Dynamo and NoMan, there was a magnificent anthology war-comic Fight the Enemy and wholesome youth-comedy Tippy Teen.

Samm Schwartz & Dan DeCarlo handled the funny stuff – which outlasted everything else – whilst Wood, Larry Ivie, Len Brown, Bill Pearson, Steve Skeates, Dan Adkins, Russ Jones, Gil Kane, Ditko and Ralph Reese contributed scripts for themselves and the industry’s other top talents to illustrate on the adventure series. With a ravenous appetite for super-spies and costumed heroes growing in comic-book popularity and amongst the general public, the idea of blending the two concepts seemed inescapable…

T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents #1 appeared with no fanfare or pre-publicity on newsstands in August 1965 (with a cover off-sale date of November, so many, many, many happy returns team!). Better yet, all Tower titles were in the beloved-but-rarely-seen 80-page Giant format, offering a huge amount of material in every issue. All that being said these tales would not be so revered if they hadn’t been so superbly crafted. As well as Wood, the art accompanying the compelling, subtly more mature stories was by some of the greatest talents in comics: Reed Crandall, Gil Kane, George Tuska, Mike Sekowsky, Dick Ayers, Joe Orlando, Frank Giacoia, John Giunta, Ogden Whitney, Steve Ditko and more, as well as budding stars like Ralph Reese, Steve Skeates and Dan Adkins…

For those who came in late: When philanthropic benevolent supergenius Professor Emil Jennings perished in an assault by forces of the mysterious Warlord, late-arriving UN troops salvaged some of his greatest inventions. These included a belt that increased the density of the wearer’s body until it became as hard as steel; a cloak of invisibility and a brain-amplifier helmet. These uncopiable prototypes were divided between several agents: the basis of a unit of super-operatives to counter the increasingly bold attacks of multiple global terror threats such as the aforementioned Warlord. First chosen was affable, honest, but far from brilliant file clerk Len Brown. To the astonishment of everyone who knew him, he was assigned the belt and codename Dynamo.

T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agent NoMan was previously decrepit Dr. Anthony Dunn who chose to have his mind transferred into an android body and then gifted with the invisibility cape. If his artificial body was destroyed, Dunn’s consciousness could transfer to another android body. As long as he had a spare ready, he could never die. The helmet went to John Janus: a seemingly perfect UN employee and mental and physical marvel. He easily passed all the tests necessary to wear the Jennings helmet. Sadly, he was also a double agent: the Warlord’s mole poised to betray T.H.U.N.D.E.R. at the earliest opportunity. All plans went awry once he donned the helmet and became Menthor as the device awakened his mind’s full potential, granting him telepathy, telekinesis and mind-reading powers, but also drove all evil from his mind. Such was the redemptive effect that Janus actually gave his life to save his comrades: an event which astounded readers at the time…

Guy Gilbert was leader of crack Mission: Impossible style T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Squad and asked to beta-test an experimental super-speed suit. As Gung-ho Lightning he proudly did so, even if every use of the hyper-acceleration gimmick shortened his life-span. As the concept grew and the niche universe expanded other augmented agent appeared – such as human fighter jet Raven and subsea spin-off U.N.D.E.R.S.E.A. Agent (AKA Davy Jones of the United Nations Department of Experiment and Research Systems Established at Atlantis…

This penultimate collection re-presents the compelling contents of T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents#12-14 and Dynamo #4 (cover dated April to June 1967) – with the incomparably cool concept and characters going from strength to strength as a spirit of eccentric experimentation and raucous low comedy increasingly manifested in the wake of the defeat of the Warlord (part of a subterranean race intent on world conquest) and rise of independent supervillains, sinister crime cabals S.P.I.D.E.R. and O.G.R.E. or political foes like China’s Red Star…

As always the action opens with a Dynamo solo tale as ‘Strength is Not Enough’ by an unknown scripter, Steve Ditko, Dan Adkins & Wally Wood sees S.P.I.D.E.R. unleash a petty thug transformed into human weapon able to outpower the hero. Sadly, Rocky Stone loved to fight but had a conscience, and when he learned from Dynmao that his rebuild left him with only days to live he sought to make amends on his own terms. Fighting fire with fire was a persistent theme then, as Lightning battled a super-fast ‘Speed Demon’ unleashed by S.P.I.D.E.R.’s Nazi-trained mad scientist Herr Doktor in a rapidly unfolding romp by Steve Skeates, Mike Sekowsky & Frank Giacoia while android avenger NoMan faces ‘The Rock’ (John Giunta & Giacoia): a seemingly unkillable madman with the ability to vitrify his victims and petrify buildings…

Lightning quits using the speed augmenter and returns to the T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agent squad in a tense thriller by Skeates, Mike Sekowsky & Giacoia, but the act is merely a ploy to locate ‘The Road to Spider HQ’ after which flying agent in Craig Lawson suits up in his heavily armed augmented flight-costume to crush another neo-Nazi revival in Manny Stallman’s politically-charged battle bonanza ‘The Raven Battles the Storm Troopers of Xochimilco’ …

Behind a Wally Wood cover for Dynamo #4, ‘The Maze’ (Wood & Dan Adkins) sees the strongman undergo terrifying psychologically reinforcement prior to being beamed to another world to face aliens that have previously probed Earth after which Ralph Reese, Joe Orlando, Adkins & Wood reveal the teething of a voice-controlled Thunderbelt in ‘The Secret Word is…’, before Reese & Chic Stone depict the awful monkeyshines of ‘Dynamo’s Day Off’ and the seductive power of returned foe The Iron Maiden who uses her wiles and stuff to turn the super-agent into ‘The Weakest Man in the World’…

The fun expands and concludes with a tale of T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agent Weed (a character Wally Wood regarded as his “spirit animal”) as ‘Once Upon a Time’ (Wood & Ditko) sees the seedy spook reinterpret state secrets and the final battle with the Iron Maiden as an expurgated fairy tale for the kids he’s babysitting…

The big spy bubble was bursting by this point and the spin-off titles had all folded by the time T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents #13 was released. The anthological line up continued as always however, and opens here with Adkins & Wood’s ‘ “A” Bullet for Dynamo’ as a handheld atom bomb launcher is stolen by a S.P.I.D.E.R. infiltrator and only Len Brown has any chance of averting ultimate armageddon…

Jerry Siegel & Ogden Whitney then had NoMan seemingly ‘Escape From Destiny’ when a bizarre accident implants his consciousness in a human body. Sadly, conscience and sense of duty ruin his dreams of real life before Steve Skeates and Stone unite to pit Lightning against evil duplicates in ‘The Quick and the Changing’ and the entire T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents cadre unites against a villain using ‘The Black Helmet’ once used by Menthor in a titanic tussle by Reese, Wood & George Tuska. The issue ends with an unused U.N.D.E.R.S.E.A. Agent short by Skeates & Paul Reinman. Evil android duplicates also infest this fishy tale as Davy Jones and assistant Skooby inadvertently invade ‘The Second Atlantis’ and foils a dastardly plot to replace all their friends and allies…

Sporting a Gil Kane Raven cover, T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents #14 opens with Ditko & Wood & Adkin’s ‘Dynamo vs Andor! Return Engagement’: another spectacular bravura battle between the agent and a misunderstood modern Prometheus.

Long ago the Warlords stole a human baby and spent decades turning the waif into a biological superman devoid of sentiment or compassion. Sadly, they lost all control of the living weapon once he met fellow mortals. Since their defeat, the pitiful misfit’s attempts to rejoin mankind are constantly thwarted and derailed. Here, his latest sanctuary – a hippy commune – is taken over by S.P.I.D.E.R. until he single-handedly repels them and in retaliation they orchestrate a clash with their other nemesis Len Brown…

Lightning’s campaign against disguise master Mock-Man intensifies in return match ‘To Fight is to Die’ by Skeates & Stone and ends with the hero the loser, after which S.P.I.D.E.R. also score a win by reprogramming NoMan and making him an operative ‘On the Other Side’ (Skeates & Giunta) before Kane writes and illustrates ‘Darkly Sees the Prophet’ wherein Raven confronts a rabble rousing, clairvoyant demagogue who is far more than he seems before the entire gang reassembles to save New York and the UN building from terrifying weapons platform ‘The Fist of Zeus’ (anonymous & George Tuska).

With stories all shaded in favour of fast pace, knowing wit, sparse dialogue, explosive action and breathtaking visuals, T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents was decades ahead of its time and informed everything in Fights ‘n’ Tights comics that came after it. These are truly timeless comic classics which improve with every reading, so do yourself a favour and add these landmark super-sagas to your collection.
T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents Classics volume 5 © 2015 Radiant Assets, LLC. All rights reserved.

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Robin Archive Edition volume 1 & 2



By Bob Kane, Bill Finger, Win Mortimer, Jim Mooney, Curt Swan, Jack Burnley, Sheldon Moldoff, Charles Paris, John Fischetti, John Giunta, Fred Ray, Don Cameron, David Vern Reed, Jack Schiff & various (DC Comics)

ISBN: 978-1-4012-0415-0 (HB/vol 1) 978-1-4012-2625-1 (HB/vol 2)

These books include Discriminatory Content produced in less enlightened times.

Robin the Boy Wonder debuted in Detective Comics #38, cover-dated April 1940 and on sale from March 6th of that momentous year. He was created by Bob Kane, Bill Finger & Jerry Robinson, introducing a juvenile circus acrobat whose parents were murdered by a mob boss. The story of how Batman took the orphaned Dick Grayson under his scalloped wing and trained him to fight crime has been told, retold and revised many times over the decades (some of which we’ll revisit over the next 12 months) and still regularly undergoes tweaking to this day.

In chronological DC comics continuity Grayson fought beside Batman until 1970 when, as an indicator of those turbulent times, he flew the nest, becoming a Teen Wonder college student and ultimately leader of a team of fellow sidekicks and young justice seekers: the Teen Titans. He graduated to his own featured solo spot in the back of Detective Comics from the end of the 1960s, where he alternated and shared space with Batgirl, holding a similar spot throughout the 1970s in Batman, before winning a starring feature in the anthological Batman Family and Giant Detective Comics Dollar Comics. During the 1980s he led a New Teen Titans team, initially in his original costumed identity, but eventually reinvented himself as Nightwing, whilst (re)establishing a turbulent working relationship with his mentor Batman.

Robin’s groundbreaking creation as a junior hero for young readers to identify with inspired an incomprehensible number of costumed kid crusaders, and Grayson continues in similar innovative vein for the older, more worldly-wise readership of America’s increasingly rebellious contemporary youth cultures. However, his star potential was first realised much earlier in his halcyon career…

From 1947 to 1952 (and issues #65-130), Robin the Boy Wonder carried his own solo series – and regular cover spot – in Star Spangled Comics at a moment when the first superhero boom was fading and being replaced by traditional genres like crime, westerns, war and boys’ adventure stories. His exploits blended in-continuity action capers with more general youth-oriented fare, reducing adults Batman, Alfred and Commissioner Gordon to minor roles or indeed rendering them entirely absent, allowing the kid crusader to display not just his physical skills but also his brains, ingenuity and guts.

Long out of print and crying out for modern reissue in some form as well as completion of the full run, these stellar Archive compilations re-present the first 21 tales from Star Spangled #65-85 (covering February 1947 to October 1948) in volume 1 before adding the exploits from ASC #86-105 (November 1948-June 1950) as a second tome.

Compelling but uncomplicated, these yarns recapture the bold, verve and universal appeal of one of fantasy literature’s greatest youth icons, opening with volume 1’s fascinating Roy Thomas penned Foreword, discussing the origins and merits of boy heroes and history of the venerable anthology title before offering some insightful guesses as to the identity of the generally un-named writers of the Robin strip. Although almost universally unrecorded, most historians consider Batman co-creator Bill Finger to be author of most if not all of the stories and I’m going to happily concur here with that assessment until informed otherwise…

Star Spangled Comics #65 starts the ball rolling with ‘The Teen-Age Terrors’ illustrated by Win Mortimer (with the inking here misattributed to Charles Paris) in which the Caped Crusaders’ faithful butler happens across an unknown trophy and is regaled with Dick’s tale of that time when he infiltrated a Reform School to discover who inside was releasing the incarcerated kids to commit crimes on the outside…

That tale segues seamlessly into ‘The No-Face Crimes’ wherein the Boy Wonder acts as stand-in to a timid young movie star targeted by a ruthless killer, and #67 reveals ‘The Case of the Boy Wonders’ as our hero becomes part of a trio of boy geniuses kidnapped for the craziest of reasons. In #68 an outrageously flamboyant killing results in the pre-teen titan shipping out on a schooner as a cabin boy, spending ‘Four Days Before the Mast’ to catch a murderer, after which modern terror takes hold when Robin is the only one capable of tracking down ‘The Stolen Atom Bomb’ in a bombastically explosive contemporary spy thriller. Star Spangled Comics #70 then introduced an archvillain all his own for the junior crime crusher, as ‘Clocks of Doom’ premiered an anonymous criminal time-&-motion expert forced into the limelight once his face was caught on film. The Clock’s desperate attempts to sabotage the movie Robin is consulting on inevitably leads to hard time in this delightful romp (this one might possibly scripted by Don Cameron)…

Chronal explorer Professor Carter Nichols succumbs to persistent pressure and sends Dick Grayson back to the dawn of history in #71’s ‘Perils of the Stone Age’ – a deliciously anachronistic cavemen & dinosaurs epic with Robin kickstarting freedom and democracy, after which the Boy Wonder crashes the Batplane on a desert island, encountering a boatload of escaped Nazi submariners in ‘Robin Crusoe’ – a full-on thriller illustrated by Curt Swan & John Fischetti. In SSC #73 the so-very-tractable Professor Nichols dispatches Dick to revolutionary France where Robin battled Count Cagliostro, ‘The Black Magician’ in a stirring saga drawn by Jack Burnley & Jim Mooney, after which the Timepiece Terror busts out of jail set on revenge in ‘The Clock Strikes’ as illustrated in full by Mooney – who would soon become the series’ sole artist. Before that Bob Kane & Charles Paris step in to deliver a tense courtroom drama in #75 as ‘Dick Grayson for the Defense’ finds the millionaire’s ward fighting for the rights of a schoolboy unjustly accused of theft. Then cunning career criminal The Fence comes a cropper when trying to steal 25 free bikes given as prizes to Gotham’s city’s best students in ‘A Bicycle Built for Loot’ (Finger & Mooney).

Prodigy and richest kid on Earth, Bert Beem is sheer hell to buy gifts for, but since the lad dreams of being a detective, the offer of a large charitable donation secures the Boy Wonder’s cooperation in a little harmless role play. Sadly, when real bandits replace actors and Santa, ‘The Boy Who Wanted Robin for Christmas’ enjoys the impromptu adventure of a lifetime…

Another rich kid is equally inspired in #78, becoming the Boy Wonder of India, but soon needs the original’s aid when a Thuggee murder-cult decides to destroy ‘Rajah Robin’, after which ‘Zero Hour’ (illustrated by Mooney & John Giunta) sees The Clock strike again with a spate of regularly-scheduled time crimes before Star Spangled #80 reveals Dick Grayson as ‘The Boy Disc Jockey’, only to discover the station is broadcasting coded instructions to commit robberies in its cryptically cunning commercials. Robin is temporarily blinded in #81 whilst investigating the bizarre theft of guide dogs, but quickly adapts to his own canine companion and solves the mystery of ‘The Seeing-Eye Dog Crimes’, but has a far tougher time as a camp counsellor for ghetto kids after meeting ‘The Boy Who Hated Robin’. It takes grit, determination and a couple of escaped convicts before the kids learn to adapt and accept…

A radio contest leads to danger and death before one smart lad earns the prize for discovering who ‘Who is Mr. Mystery?’ (#83), after which Robin investigates the causes of juvenile delinquency by going undercover as new recruit to ‘The Third Street Gang’, before the outing ends on a spectacular high as the Boy Wonder sacrifices himself to save Batman and ends up marooned in the Arctic. Even whilst the distraught Caped Crusader is searching for his partner’s body, Robin must respond to the Call of the Wild, joining Innuits and capturing a fugitive from American justice in #85’s ‘Peril at the Pole’…

The second hardback Archive Edition re-presents more tales from Star Spangled recapturing the dash, verve and universal appeal of one of fantasy literature’s greatest youth icons – albeit with a greater role for Batman – and opens with a Foreword by Bill Schelly adding layers of historical perspective and canny insight to the capers to come.

Every beautiful cover is included – although most of the later ones feature colonial-era frontier sensation Tomahawk – lovingly rendered by Mooney, Mortimer, Paris, Bob Kane and Fred Ray. Although unverified, writers Bill Finger, Don Cameron, David Vern Reed and Jack Schiff are considered by most comics historians to be the authors of these stories. Easier to ascertain is Mooney as penciller of almost all and inker of the majority, with other pencil and penmen credited as relevant.

Action-packed, relatively carefree high jinks recommence with Star Spangled Comics #86 and ‘The Barton Brothers!’ (inked by Mortimer, who remained until #90) as the Boy Wonder seeks lone vengeance, hunting a trio of killers whose crime spree includes gunning down Batman, after which racketeer Benny Broot discovers he’s related to aristocracy and patterns all his subsequent vicious predations on medieval themes as ‘The Sinister Baron!’…

In defiance of his mentor Robin goes AWOL to exonerate the father of a schoolmate in ‘The Man Batman Refused to Help!’, although his good intentions clearing an obviously framed felon almost upset a cunning plan to catch the real culprit, after which SSC #89 has ingenious hoods get hold of ‘The Batman’s Utility Belt!’ and sell customised knock-offs until the Dynamic Duo crush their racket. Then the murder of a geologist sends the partners in peril out west in #90 to solve ‘The Mystery of Rancho Fear!’, acting undercover as itinerant cowboys to deal with a gang of extremely contemporary claim-jumpers.

With Mooney now handling all art chores, #91 sees the Boy Wonder instigating a perplexing puzzle to stump his senior partner in ‘A Birthday for Batman!’ It would have been a perfect gift if not for genuine gangsters who stumble upon the anniversary antics. The crimebusting kid played only a minor role in #92’s ‘Movie Hero No. 1’ wherein Batman surreptitiously replaces and redeems an action film actor who is a secret coward, but resumes star status for ‘The Riddle of the Sphinx!’ when a mute, masked mastermind seemingly murders the Dark Knight and supplants Gotham’s criminal top dog Red Mask.

Entertainment motifs abounded in those days and Star Spangled Comics #94 heralds ‘The End of Batman’ as the Dynamic Duo stumble on a film company crafting movie masterpieces tailored to the unique tastes and needs of America’s underworld, after which greed and terror grip Gotham’s streets when a crook employs an ancient artefact to apparently transform objects – and even the Boy Wonder – to coldly glittering gold in #95’s ‘The Man with the Midas Touch!’

Indication of changing times and tastes came with September 1949 Star Spangled Comics as Fred Ray’s Tomahawk took over the cover-spot with #96. Inside, Robin’s solo saga ‘The Boy Who Could Invent Miracles!’ – pencilled by Sheldon Moldoff with Mooney inks – saw the kid crusader working alone whilst Batman recovers from gunshot wounds, encountering a well-meaning bright spark whose brilliantly conceived conceptions revolutionise the world… prior to almost exposing the masked avenger’s secret identity. With Mooney back on full art, The Clock returns yet again in #97 in ‘The Man Who Stole Time!’: determined to publicly humiliate and crush his juvenile nemesis through a series of suitably-themed crimes

… but with the same degree of success as always. Next, Dick Grayson’s classmate briefly becomes ‘Robin’s Rival!’ after devising a method of travelling on phone lines as Wireboy.

Sadly, his ingenuity is far in excess of his fighting ability or common sense and he’s wisely convinced to retire, after which gambling gangster Sam Ferris breaks jail, turning his obsession with turning circles into a campaign of ‘Crime on Wheels!’ until Robin sets him straight again in advance of SSC #100’s powerfully moving tale of the Boy Wonder giving shelter to ‘The Killer-Dog of Gotham City!’ and proving valiant Duke can shake off his criminal master’s training to become a boon to society. In #101, High School elections are being elaborately suborned by ‘The Campaign Crooks!’ employing a bizarre scheme to make an illicit buck from students, whilst ‘The Boy with Criminal Ears!’ develops super-hearing: making his life hell and ultimately bringing him to the attention of sadistic thugs with an eye to the main chance…

Star Spangled Comics #103 introduces ‘Roberta the Girl Wonder!’ as class polymath Mary Wills follows her heart and tries to catch the ideal boyfriend by becoming Robin’s crimefighting rival, before #104’s ‘Born to Skate’ shows classmate Tommy Wells’ freewheeling passion leading Robin to a gang using a roller-skate factory to mask crimes as varied as smuggling, kidnapping and murder. Then the wholesome adventures end with a rewarding tale blending modelmaking and malfeasance, as guilt-wracked Robin comes to the aid of a police pilot who has been crippled  and worse whilst assisting on a case. As part of his rehabilitation, the Junior Manhunter devises high-tech models for Bill Cooper’s aviation club, but when ‘The Disappearing Batplanes!’ are purloined by cunning air pirates, the scene is set for a terrifying aerial showdown…

Beautifully illustrated, wittily scripted and captivatingly addictive, these rousingly traditional superhero escapades are a perfect antidote to teen angst and the strident, overblown, self-absorbed whining of so many contemporary comic book kids. Fast, furious and ferociously fun, these superb Fights ‘n’ Tights classics are something no Bat-fan, Robin-rooter or fun-fan will want to miss.
© 1947, 1948, 2005 DC Comics. All Rights Reserved. © 1948, 1949, 1950, 2010 DC Comics. All Rights Reserved.

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Ducoboo volume 5: Lovable Dunce


By Godi & Zidrou, coloured by Véronique Grobet, translated by Mark Bence (Cinebook)
ISBN: 978-1-84918-311-6 (Album PB/Digital edition)

This book includes Discriminatory Content included for comedic effect.

If you’re currently experiencing offspring overload, fear not! The Back to School countdown has begun!

School stories and strips about juvenile fools, devils and rebels are a lynchpin of western entertainment and an even larger staple of Japanese comics – where the scenario has spawned its own numerous wild and vibrant subgenres. However, would Dennis the Menace (ours and theirs), Komi Can’t Communicate, Winker Watson, Don’t Toy with Me, Miss Nagatoro, Power Pack, Cédric or any of the rest be improved or just different if they were created by battle-scarred, shell-shocked former teachers rather than ex-kids or current parents?

It’s no surprise the form is evergreen: schooling (and tragically, sometimes, sufficient lack of it) takes up a huge amount of children’s attention no matter how impoverished or privileged they are, and their fictions will naturally address their issues and interests. It’s fascinating to see just how much school stories revolve around humour, but always with huge helpings of drama, terror, romance and an occasional dash of action…

One of the most popular European strips employing those eternal yet basic themes and methodology began in the last fraction of the 20th century, courtesy of scripter Zidrou (Benoît Drousie) and illustrator Godi. Drousie is Belgian, born in 1962 and for six years a school teacher prior to changing careers in 1990 to write comics like those he probably used to confiscate in class. Other mainstream successes in a range of genres include Blossoms in Autumn, Petit Dagobert, Scott Zombi, La Ribambelle, Le Montreur d’histoires, African Trilogy, Shi, Léonardo, a superb revival of Ric Hochet and many more. His most celebrated and beloved stories are the Les Beaux Étés sequence (only available digitally in English as Glorious Summers) and 2010’s sublime Lydie, both illustrated by Jordi Lafebre.

Zidrou began his comics career with what he knew best: stories about and for kids, including Crannibales, Tamara, Margot et Oscar and, most significantly, a feature about a (and please forgive the charged term) school blockhead: L’Elève Ducobu…

Godi is a Belgian National Treasure, born Bernard Godisiabois in Etterbeek in December 1951. After studying Plastic Arts at the Institut Saint-Luc in Brussels he became assistant to comics legend Eddy Paape in 1970, working on the strip Tommy Banco for Le Journal de Tintin whilst freelancing as an illustrator for numerous comics and magazines. He became a Tintin regular three years later, primarily limning C. Blareau’s Comte Lombardi, but also working on Vicq’s gag strip Red Rétro, with whom he also produced Cap’tain Anblus McManus and Le Triangle des Bermudes for Le Journal de Spirou in the early 1980s. Godi soloed on Diogène Terrier (1981-1983) for Casterman prior to moving into advertising cartoons and television. He cocreated animated TV series Ovide with Nic Broca, only returning to comics in 1991 to collaborating with newcomer Zidrou on L’Elève Ducobu. The strip began in Tremplin magazine (September 1992) before transferring to Le Journal de Mickey, with collected albums starting in 1997: 28 so far in a raft of languages. When not immortalising modern school days for future generations, Godi diversified, co-creating (in 1995 with Zidrou) comedy feature Suivez le Guide and game page Démon du Jeu with scripter Janssens. That series spawned a live action movie franchise and a dozen pocket books, plus all customary attendant merchandise paraphernalia.

English-speakers’ introduction to the series (5 volumes only thus far) came courtesy of Cinebook with 2006’s initial release King of the Dunces – in actuality the 5th European collection L’élève Ducobu – Le roi des cancres. The indefatigable, unbeatable format comprises short – most often single page – gag strips like you’d see in The Beano, involving a revolving cast; well-established albeit also fairly one-dimensional and easy to get a handle on. Our star is a well-meaning, good natured but terminally lazy young oaf who doesn’t get on with school. He’s sharp, inventive, imaginative, inquisitive, personable and not at all academical. Today he’d be SEN, banished as someone else’s problem, relegated to a “spectrum” or casually damned by diagnoses such as ADHD, but back then, and at heart, he’s just not interested: a kid who can always find better – or certainly more interesting – things to do…

Dad is a civil servant and Mum left home when Ducoboo was an infant. It’s no big deal: Leonie Gratin – the girly brainbox from whom he constantly and fanatically copies answers to interminable written tests – only has a mum. Ducoboo and his class colleagues attend Saint Potache School and are mostly taught and tested by ferocious, impatient, mushroom-mad Mr Latouche. The petulant pedagogue is something of humourless martinet, and thanks to him, Ducoboo has spent so much time in the corner with a dunce cap on his head that he’s struck up a friendship with the biology skeleton. He (She? They!) answer to Skelly – always ready with a crack-brained theory, wrong answer or best of all, a suggestion for fun and frolics…

Released in 2001, Europe’s sixth collected album Un amour de potache became another eclectic collation of classic clowning about that begins with another new term. Mr. Latouche is hard in, training for the trials to come whilst Ducoboo does his utmost to keep fresh young innocents away from the sinister scholastic hellhole. Here, many strips address burgeoning personal technologies as the wayward lad tests aids like earbuds and smartpens but finds nothing cleverer than his teacher or Leonie…

An extended riff on the kinds of comics and magazines – and free gift premiums – kids consume leads to the cheater retrenching and re-exploring tried-&-tested ways of sneaking answers, before Leonie stumbles into new avenues to exploit and educational toys to distract the big oaf with.

Thanks to Skelly, at least anatomy class is a breeze, but when Ducoboo looks for specialist cadavers for use in his other lessons, Latouche loses his cool – and his esteemed position. Inevitably, the pressure proves too great. Sadly, when teacher has a breakdown, the school replaces him with surly cleaning lady Mrs. Mop, who employs extraordinary methods our bad boy cannot overcome…

With swipes at modern methodology and mercantile means – such as teaching-by-photocopy and growing class sizes – a long section on Christmas holidays, festivities and just rewards leads to a new year and more of the same, as times tables, history and poetry increasingly impinge on Ducoboo’s dreary supposedly free days. Nevertheless, he still finds time to defend Leonie from a bully before life goes topsy-turvy with the arrival of a pretty new girl. She’s also called Leonie Gratin, lives in the same house as his educational fount of knowledge wellspring and has just had – reluctantly – her first maternally funded and fuelled makeover…

When that chaos and confusion concludes, mysteriously returned original Leonie agrees to visit a museum with her engaging oaf and again discovers that there are depths he hasn’t plumbed yet: gifts that come in handy when term end approaches and Latouche plans to upgrade the testing/exams and parental reports side of his job.

As summer comes at last the kids enjoy markedly different vacations and activities, but Ducoboo’s take a wild turn as his desperate dad hires a private tutor and accidentally becomes a sort of teacher’s pet himself. It’s clearly a common condition as, far, far away, Leonie succumbs to a holiday urge and finally tries to honestly communicate what she really feels about her truly aggravating classmate…

Despite the accidental and innocent tones of stalking and potential future abuse, these yarns are wry, witty and whimsical: deftly recycling adored perennial childhood themes. Ducuboo is an up-tempo, upbeat addition to a genre every parent or pupil can appreciate and enjoy. If your kids aren’t back from – or to – school quite yet, why not try keeping them occupied with Lovable Dunce, and again give thanks that there are kids far more demanding than even yours…
© Les Editions du Lombard (Dargaud- Lombard s.a.) 2001 by Godi & Zidrou. English translation © 2016 Cinebook Ltd.