Comic Coverage

Humble Beginnings

You know, as different and varied as our life experiences are, we all have one thing in common: profoundly embarrassing photos from our younger years! Whether it's the dorky hairstyles, goofy clothes, or some bizarre, faddish phase we went through, photographic proof of those awkward times haunts us all. In fact, even comic book characters have embarrassing aspects of their early years they'd just as soon forget...even a box-office bigshot like Iron-Man!

In between Tony Stark's original grey armor and his more familiar red and gold togs was a suit of golden armor.  Patterned after his bulky grey suit from his debut in Tales of Suspense #39 (1963), Version II (appearing in the very next issue) featured several upgrades... including a skirt-like apron! (click on the image for a larger view)

Why the apron?  It's not clear...though considering Tony's love for the ladies, perhaps the metallic skirt was designed to be extra protection for his..uh... "command center".  Whatever the reason, the apron made an already cumbersome costume design even more odd looking, not only for it's nebulous purpose, but also for it's decidedly non-metallic, almost cloth-like appearance.  Mercifully, the gold armor (and the apron) lasted only a few months, making way for the more streamlined look of Stark's red and gold armor.

Of course, Iron-Man isn't the only comic book character to harbor a secret shame from his earliest adventures...as you'll see in upcoming installments of Humble Beginnings!

Humble Beginnings: Batman! I Choose YOU!

Much like our own early years, comic book characters can have awkward or downright comical aspects of their past they'd just as soon forget...even heavy hitters like The Batman.

Like Iron-Man's unfortunate iron skirt from last week, the earliest Batman adventures also featured some highly questionable costuming.

As anyone with a pulse knows, the origin of Batman's costume comes from that fateful night in Bruce Wayne's study as he contemplated how to strike fear into criminal hearts... 

Yes...good choice, Bruce!  A bat IS a frightening, ultra-creepy creature...and the perfect motif for your war on crime.  Unfortunately, THIS was the sight that was supposed to send the bad guys running for the hills?...

(from Detective Comics #30, 1939)

Hmmm...let's see...what do those wacky ears remind me of?...

Ahh, that's it!  "Batman! I choose YOU!"

(not from Detective Comics #30, 1939)

Humble Beginnings: These Boots Are Made for Lacing

Much like our own embarrassing youths, superheroes can have odd or downright goofy aspects of their earliest adventures they'd just as soon forget. As the very first comic book superhero, that's especially true for Superman. With the exception of the Phantom (who'd been appearing in newspaper comic strips since 1936), there weren't any "costume standards" for Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster to follow as they created a look for Superman...so they turned to the past for inspiration. The result was a crazy-quilt of colorful wardrobe elements taken from circus acrobats, science fiction heroes, and ancient strongmen...most of which remains unchanged  seventy years later.  The only elements of the original costume that saw immediate change were its primitive triangular S-symbol (which continued to evolve through the 1940's) and....the boots!

Lasting only a few issues, the original boots resembled those used by performing strongmen (who were still quite popular during the 1930's).  I use the term "boots" lightly, since they appear to be more like sandals or slippers with crisscrossed lacing to secure them to Superman's lower leg.

Panels from Action Comics #1 (click on the panels for a larger view)

Some might argue that Superman's entire costume has always been a goofy anachronism ("He wears his underwear on the outside of his tights! Haw, Haw!"), but putting that aside, I think we can all agree that it a was a good thing to ditch the blue ballet slippers.

Humble Beginnings: The Omnipotent Breezy-G!

Arguably the first "cosmic" comic book storyline, Fantastic Four #48-50 (1966) featured the debut of not only the "Emo before Emo Was Cool" Silver Surfer, but his giant bucket-headed boss Galactus as well...which makes it no mystery why these issues have become known as "The Galactus Trilogy". Since I've got a thing for the omnipotent types, I've always been fond of the planet-devouring, morally ambiguous Big Guy...even though his earliest appearances featured some endearingly goofy "wardrobe malfunctions".

In literally his first appearance, the final panel of FF #48 revealed Galactus in all his cosmic glory...which was almost canceled out by the big, dopey letter "G" in the middle of his chest! That's right...a universe-spanning alien space god inexplicably sporting an Earth alphabet letter as if he was some kind of sweater-wearing frat boy (or superhero)...inside of a white circle, no less!

In later reprints, the G-circle (and bare arms and hands) of Galactus would be re-colored to match the surrounding armor...but even with the more subtle coloring, that G still cracks me up every time.

Okay, so now you know where the "G" in the "Breezy-G" title comes from...but what about "Breezy"? The answer comes a few years later in Fantastic Four #74-76 as Galactus returns minus the "G" and...to paraphrase the bearded sages of ZZ Top...

He's got legs, an' he knows how to use 'em!

Note to Galactus: When issuing a fist-shaking Mighty Oath, it's probably best not to aim the camera straight at your baby-smooth bare legs and cosmic kilt. It kinda undermines the Cosmic Authority thing, you know?

Humble Beginnings: Spider-Man...a.k.a. "Mr. Peepers"

One of my favorite Humble Beginning moments appeared in the very first Spider-Man story from Amazing Fantasy #15 (1962). For the most part, the costume created by young Peter Parker looked exactly as it does today some 46 years later...but toward the end of the 11-page story, a peculiar new detail appears in this panel:

Those beady little eyes peeping through the mask's white "eye" shapes made their first and last appearance here in this panel...which I can back up with the same panel from the page's original art (which was recently donated to the Library of Congress):

Why the eyes? My guess is that artist Steve Ditko added them to amp up Peter Parker's shock at recognizing the burglar who killed his Uncle Ben. I have to admit, though...as jarring as the dot-eyes look, when subsequent reprints removed them, the scene lost much of the emotional impact those odd little dots imparted.

Humble Beginnings: Half-Mask Fever

As a relatively new comics fan back in the mid-70's, I remember how thrilled I was to come across a library book that gave a basic overview of comic book history. Though I no longer recall which book it was (possibly the Steranko History of Comic Books), I still vividly remember getting my first glimpse of all the "major milestone" covers. Seeing the debuts of Superman (Action Comics #1) and Batman (Detective Comics #27) was quite a revelation, but the biggest surprise might have been the cover of Captain America Comics #1 (1941), depicting a costume and shield that didn't quite match up with the Cap I had recently become familiar with.

Note the odd "half-mask" that just kind of rests on the top of Cap's head, along with his decidedly non-circular shield. Even as a kid, the bare neck made little sense, especially since his shoulders and upper torso were protected with some sort of scaled material (which I later found out to be "duralumin chain-mail"). And what about that triangular shield?  How did Cap throw it?

Well, apparently Joe Simon and Jack Kirby (Cap's creators) had similar misgivings, since Cap's more complete mask and circular shield showed up in the very next issue. Although no explanation was given for the change (which was typical of that era), one was finally offered forty years later in Captain America #255 (1981). In arguably the best retelling of Cap's origin, collaborators Roger Stern and John Byrne added some interesting new details...one of which made it clear why the half-mask was never going to cut it functionally as well as aesthetically (click on the panels for a larger view):

Shortly after his costume's much-needed revisions, Cap also received his circular shield upgrade...from President Roosevelt himself! 

See, this is what I enjoy so much about creative comic book storytelling... taking long-forgotten details (such as Cap's unfortunate half-mask and triangular shield) and finding interesting ways to weave them into the official history of the character. Of course, not all wonky costume elements deserve an official explanation (some are better left forgotten), but in certain cases, it can really add some richness to a character's history.

Humble Beginnings: Where'd You Park Your Broomstick?

Most Spider-Man fans will agree that the Green Goblin is one of the Wall-Crawler's greatest foes (if not THE greatest). Beyond the psychodrama of their long conflict, a big part of the Goblin's appeal is his sheer visual impact. Frightening elements like his rictus-grin and bulging yellow eyes are balanced out by goofier touches like the curly-toed boots and pointy ears...but the most arresting element of the Goblin's get-up is, of course, that wonderful bat glider. Both functional and frightening, Norman Osborn's high tech invention would belch out billowing clouds of smoke while dipping and diving like a real bat (not to mention eventually becoming the instrument of Osborn's death). 

However, the Green Goblin's first appearance way back in Amazing Spider-Man #14 (1964) hardly conveyed the complex master villain he would eventually become. As I touched upon earlier this year, the Green Goblin was initially a bizarre, somewhat whimsical figure who convinced Spider-Man to star in a phony Hollywood movie. Amplifying the loopiness of the Goblin's debut was his first flying device...no, not the bat glider, but his original flying broomstick! Looking a bit like a vacuum cleaner, the Goblin would ride perched upon the mechanical broomstick while (miraculously) not tipping to the left or right while flying. 

Like all of my Humble Beginnings subjects, a much-needed upgrade soon came along, in this case the aforementioned bat glider (in the Goblin's next appearance three issues later). But he'll always have that peculiar, impossibly stable flying broomstick to live down.

Humble Beginnings: A Deeper Shade of Gray

So...Bruce Banner.  Transforms into an impossibly muscled-up green guy named the Hulk when he's enraged, right? Well, if we're talking about his debut in The Incredible Hulk #1 (1962)....no.

Sporting grey skin instead of the familiar green, and not much bigger than a pro wrestler, the Hulk's first appearance also featured a decidedly different trigger for Bruce Banner's transformation. Instead of intense stress or rage, creators Stan Lee and Jack Kirby took another page from the horror movie playbook and used dusk and dawn to bring about the metamorphosis.

As it turned out, the Hulk's grey skin color was problematic for both colorist Stan Goldberg and the printer, so by issue #2 his trademark green skin was here to stay. It also didn't take long for the sun-based transformations to give way to the rage and stress-fueled hulk-outs. 

In the years following the gray-to-green switch, reprints of issue #1 re-colored the Hulk's skin green...seemingly erasing the original gray model from comic book history.  That is, until creator John Byrne reaffirmed in issue #318 (1986) that the Hulk was indeed gray at the very beginning, which lead to an extended run of issues by Peter David that featured a cunning Gray-skinned Goliath calling himself "Joe Fixit". Proof positive that even somewhat out-of-focus "humble beginnings" can be used to create clever new directions for familiar characters.

Humble Beginnings: Happy EEEWWW Year!

So far, my Humble Beginnings posts have dealt with the visual quirks of various characters as they were just starting out. However, some of the weirdest moments from that awkward formative phase weren't visual but emotional. You see, long before characters became the familiar personalities we know today, their creators experimented with different approaches before the proper tone was struck. In the case of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, that experimentation took a decidedly unsettling turn in an early issue of The X-Men.

First, it should be established that all of the mutant super-team's members were clearly identified as teen-agers...all of whom were trained by Professor Charles Xavier at his School for Gifted Youngsters. Some forty-five years later, the image of Xavier is that of a fatherly mentor figure...but in this panel from X-Men #3 (1964), Professor X was more of a Professor Letch!

Uh, Chuck?  Perhaps the reason you have "no right" to tell Jean Gray of your love for her has nothing to do with your leadership status or your wheelchair....but maybe the fact that she's a teenager and you're an old dude!  Eeeewwwwwww!

Now, as far as I know, this twisted emotional angle was never brought up again (X-Men experts can correct me if I'm wrong), but I'm shocked it ever made it into print in the first place. As much as standards have evolved over the past half-century, I still don't think this sort of thing went over particularly well with a 1964 audience.

Humble Beginnings: The Fire Inside

"I think of fire in connection with emotions, because when you become 'stirred up', when your emotions control your actions, it affects not only yourself, but the people around you."

–Dr. A.R. Laurer, from the Coronet educational film Controlling Your Emotions (1950)

Part of the groundbreaking nature of Marvel Comics in the early 1960's was writer/editor Stan Lee's decision to depict superheroes in a much more realistic way than what had come before. Unlike the idealistic paragons of other publishers, Marvel characters would be quick to anger, easily frustrated, prone to sulking and sarcasm, distrustful, self-conscious, and pessimistic.  

In other words, they mirrored the very kids and young adults who read their adventures!

In fact, from the very beginning in Fantastic Four #1 (1961), teenagers would find the perfect symbol of their volatile emotions and fiery passions in Johnny Storm, a.k.a. the Human Torch. However, unlike the controlled "glowing ember" look that's defined the Torch for most of his history, the first two issues of The Fantastic Four depicted Johnny as only a featureless and vaguely humanoid flame-shape...an obvious analogy of the roiling, chaotic emotionalism of the teenage years. Driving that point home is the dialogue in the second panel below, taken from Fantastic Four's origin story.

Ideally, through experience and maturity, teenagers eventually learn to harness and control their emotions...once again symbolized by the Torch a few issues later.  The cover of Fantastic Four #3 marked the debut of Johnny's aforementioned "glowing ember" look, obviously the result of harnessing and controlling his power. Ultimately, it's a great little "parable" for the maturing process, as wild "fiery" youths focus and gradually improve themselves in their journey toward adulthood.

Of course, anyone who's followed my blog for awhile should know that whenever there's a mention of the Human Torch, his "polar opposite" Iceman can't be far behind...and this is no exception.

Much like the indistinct early look of the Torch, teen mutant Bobby Drake looked like a lumpy, featureless snowman on the cover of X-Men #1 (1963).

Although it took Bobby a bit longer than Johnny to fine-focus his emotions...er, powers, by X-Men #9 (1965) he'd assumed his familiar crystalline form. Ah...but much like a real kid learning self-control from a parent or mentor, note how his older teammate (and parent-figure) Cyclops taught him to exert more control over his icy powers.

Self-control analogies aside, I think that final line of Bobby's wonderfully sums up the tempestuous teenage spirit of the Marvel Comics glory years.