Comic Coverage

Simply the Best: Avengers #122

After running the Worst Cover Ever column for a few months, I thought I'd switch gears, take the higher road and introduce a Best Cover column I'm calling Simply the Best.  I'm not doing away with WCE, but the overwhelming number of truly great covers certainly deserves some attention, so consider the cosmic scales balanced!

After attending the Minnesota Fallcon on Saturday, and netting a heaping helping of beautiful Broze Age Marvels, I've decided to kick off Simply the Best with one of my all-time favorite Avengers covers from the swingin' 70's.

Waayyy back in the summer of 1974, when I was first bitten by the radioactive comics bug, I came across a friend's copy of Avengers #122...and I still recall how much it blew me away at the time.  Heck, it still blows me away whenever I look at my own copy.  Check it out:

Pencilled by the late, great Gil Kane and inked by art god John Romita Sr., this cover literally bursts with power and "go get 'em!" excitement, crowned by Thor's stirring "Avengers Assemble" call to arms.

Some elements that jump out:

• Thor's outstretched left hand was a dramatic flare common to many Marvel covers (most likely introduced by Jack "King" Kirby himself).

• John Romita's elegant inking significantly softened Gil Kane's tendency toward harsher "anatomy lesson" musculature, preserving Kane's dynamic sense of action while giving the characters an even greater sense of "reality".  It seems unlikely with such differing styles, but these two actually made a great team in many of their collaborations, especially their long run together on The Amazing Spider-Man a few years earlier.  Romita also had a way with rendering Iron Man's armor, being one of the few artists who could actually convey that it was shiny metal Tony Stark was wearing.  Decades before fancy computer coloring technology, it was up to the inker to convey convincing surface textures and the overall mood of the scene....something a master like Romita could always deliver.

• The background scene of interior panels was also a great touch.  The grey coloring offers a great contrast to the colorful Avengers, lending their burst through the page even more power and impact. As a kid, I enjoyed trying to match the interior panels with the panels reproduced on the cover.

• The Avengers logo itself is one of the best designed logos of any era, with it's large, attention-grabbing "A" nestled right next to the stoic Vision in the upper left hand corner.  It was a logo you could see a block away in a display of hundreds of comics.  In other words, the ideal logo.

• Finally, lines like "the final battle" and "it's a fight to the finish" were exactly what the artwork needed to send the book over the top into irresistable, undeniable "must read" territory.

Come on.  Admit it.  You want to know what happens in this story, don't you?  Of course you do.

Which is exactly what qualifies a comic book cover for Simply the Best status.

Simply the Best: Spectacular Spider-Man #2

I can't overstate how much I've always adored the artwork of John Romita Sr., especially his classic run on The Amazing Spider-Man with Stan Lee.  Yes, Steve Ditko was Spidey's co-creator, and his three years on the title will always be pure magic...but I personally think John Romita's run on the title represented the artistic high mark of Spider-Man that others have been trying to reach ever since.

Romita had a particular flair for illustrating dramatic, attention-grabbing covers...such as the cover to The Spectacular Spider-Man #2 (1968).

Technically, The Spectacular Spider-Man was a short-lived color magazine (in fact, this was the last issue), and not to be confused with the Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man title that would launch in 1976.

As for the cover itself, Romita's beautiful painted scene (typical of the "deluxe" status magazines enjoyed in that era) takes an already stunning illustration to a lush, almost cinematic level.

Always on the lookout for story material for their line of annuals, Marvel reprinted the 58 page interior story (minus a whopping 18 pages) in The Amazing Spider-Man Annual #9 (1973).  Romita even drew a new version of the magazine's cover, doing a good job of capturing at least a portion of the original's dramatic power (as well as adding a webline for Spidey's flailing left foot....absent from the magazine cover).

However, the magazine version remains one of comics' most enduring, mythic images....not only capturing but defining the connection between Spider-Man and the Green Goblin, his deadliest enemy.  Whether it's the passivity suggested by Spider-Man's stance (the Goblin was actually the father of his best friend, and naturally didn't want to hurt him), or the utter madness reflected in the Goblin's face, John Romita Sr. perfectly captured the central emotional conflict that defined so much of their long (and tragic) history together.

Simply the Best: The Spectre #8

"By the power of all that's holy, I COMMAND you to buy this comic!"

Really...could anyone back in 1969 resist the power of this cover and NOT buy the comic book?

Illustrated by another one of my favorite cover artists, Nick Cardy, The Spectre #8 remains one of the most powerful, arresting cover images in my collection.

It's a deceptively simple design.  With the majority of the Spectre vaguely defined by the power burst lines, the contrasting solidity of his hand creates a neat little three dimensional effect. Paired with his snarling grimace, you can't shake the feeling that you yourself are at the business end of the Ghostly Guardian's terrible wrath. 

Further amping up the power of the image is the very limited color palette of only a few blues and greens, used with great effect to emphasize the Spectre's wide-open eyes and gritted teeth. It was somewhat gutsy to use blue for the Spectre's face, since it was actually bone-white, but as I said, the splashes of white in his eyes, teeth and around his hand-blast are so effective, it was certainly a creative risk worth taking.

Hardly overwhelmed by the illustration, the black Spectre logo surrounded by a screaming yellow outline fairly blasts off the page, leaving no doubt who's jabbing a green finger in your face.

Now...if only DC would publish a poster of this image.

Simply the Best: The Flash #144

Despite the Fastest Man Alive tag at the top of each issue, the cover depictions of the Flash himself seldom gave that impression.  More often than not, Barry "Flash" Allen was illustrated with rather half-hearted speed effects, just enough to technically qualify for "super speed" status, but nothing to really make you sit up and say "WOW!  THAT'S fast!"  Many other covers featured Barry either standing around fretting about something or (since we are talking about Barry Allen here) dead as a doornail.

However, there were a handful of Flash covers that really showed him pouring on the super-speed, with one of my favorites being The Flash #144 (1964):

The stakes?  Couldn't be higher.  The Flash?  Giving it his all.  The story's title?  Er...well, let's just say there's room for improvement there and move on, shall we?

But, man alive, look at him go!  Points to illustrator Carmine Infantino (and inker Murphy Anderson) for pulling out all the stops on this one...not only for drawing the dynamic multiple images of the Flash and the accompanying five billion speed lines, but for the dramatic slow-motion explosion of the "nuclear bomb" itself.  You really do get a sense that Flash is holding back a mighty atomic explosion with his speed alone. 

Amping up the drama is the downtown setting, unusual for a Flash cover of this era. One of Carmine Infantino's more endearing quirks was drawing many of Flash's adventures taking place on (what appeared to be) vast, empty plains fenced in by looming, suburbanless cities (click on the thumbnail images for a larger view).  In fact, this is one of the primary reasons Flash #144 succeeds where an earlier attempt of the same basic concept failed three years earlier on the cover of Flash #122. The same desperate stakes, the same determined heroism from the Flash, another atomic-powered explosive device...but with that cityscape so far in the distance, the implied threat level just doesn't come across as effectively as it did with #144's cover. The downtown setting also gave the scene an almost claustrophobic vibe, as the buildings give the illusion of further constricting Flash's movement.  Lowering the camera angle to street level also helped to keep the focus on the Flash without any of the unnecessary visual information of #122's version.

Barry Allen....Fastest Man Alive?  On the cover of Flash #144, you bet he was.

Simply the Best: Superman #187

As a life-long fan and collector of Superman comics, I've seen my share of great (and not so great) covers featuring the Man of Steel.  As memorable as so many of them are, I don't think any of them can quite surpass a special cover that, in many ways, remains my favorite.

Why is that?  Well, quite simply, Superman #187 (1966) was the very first comic book I can remember reading.

My grandparents had a modest stack of comics for us grandkids to read when we visited.  Although most of them were Gold Key Disney and Looney Tunes comics, there was one comic book that wasn't at all like the others.  There was this "Superman" guy, hefting a huge golden key to unlock the ultimate secret clubhouse.  A "Fortress of Solitude"?  What's this?  A city in a bottle?  An Interplanetary Zoo?  An undersea Fortress in addition to the ice Fortress?  Even the phrase "80-page Giant" seemed cool beyond belief!

Obviously, I was in "Kid Heaven" with concepts like these...and can you think of any better crash-course introduction to superhero comic books? 

I can't tell you how many times I read and re-read this comic book when I visited my grandparents. A few years later, I started collecting comics and eventually bought my own copy of Superman #187.  Needless to say, it's still one of the highlights of my collection. Not only for its status as "my first comic book", but also for its association with my grandparents (now long gone).  In a way, it almost feels like a "souvenier" from a happy childhood.   

So, it might not win the "Most Awesomely Mind-Blowing Cover Design of All Time" award, but to me, it's Simply the Best.

Simply the Best: Batman #194

Every long-lived comic book hero occasionally needs a "tune-up", and Batman was no exception. Following bizarre and ill-advised attempts to adapt Batman to the wacky sci-fi environment of the late 50's and early 60's, DC Comics finally realized they'd run too far afield of the character's core concepts. Their response was assigning editor Julius Schwartz to helm the "New Look" Batman, who made his debut in Detective Comics #327 (1964).

Instead of the dated, cartoony look of the Bob Kane/Dick Sprang era, designer and illustrator Carmine Infantino introduced a clean, streamlined look much more suited to the times. The stories, while still a bit on the goofy side, brought Batman and Robin back to a more recognizable environment.

The souped-up interiors naturally inspired a number of exciting experimental covers, once again the responsibilty of Carmine Infantino (DC's premiere cover artist of the 1960's). One of my favorite Batman covers of this era is Batman #194 (1967), for obvious reasons:

On crowded newstands, the last thing a comic book publisher wanted to do was to alter a title's logo beyond recognition (as it is here), but my guess is that the popularity of the Batman TV series allowed for a bit more visual experimentation on DC's part. After all, with Batman so popular and so recognized by the general public, his image on the top of this cover design was as recognizeable (perhaps moreso) than the standard logo itself.

Sure, Hulk rip-off Blockbuster didn't enjoy the same sort of marquee villain status as the Joker or Two-Face, but with that vengeful Batman pose, crumbling stone logo and blazing red background, he didn't have to. This was simply a "Must Read Comic" to anyone who saw this cover...always the first and most important criteria for comics' greatest covers.

Simply the Best: HULK King-Size Special #1

In the arena of superhero comic books, Jack Kirby owned the 1960's.  Though certainly an important artist before and after that decade, Kirby's groundbreaking work during the 60's took comic book storytelling to a sprawling, bombastic new level.  Once Kirby kicked down the door, younger artists couldn't help but be inspired to experiment with their own brand of hyper-dynamic visuals.

One such artist was Jim Steranko, whose life prior to entering comics encompassed performance magic, rock music and ad agency work.  After a brief stay at Harvey Comics, Steranko received his first Marvel assignment from Stan Lee in 1966 inking (and later penciling) the Nick Fury, Agent of Shield feature.

In the years to come, Steranko took Kirby's spirit of innovation into stunning, surreal new directions through his use of graphic design, trendy "op art" and cutting edge cinematic techniques.  Marvel also commissioned Steranko to create a number of covers, many of them achieving "instant classic" status.  Chief among those covers, in my opinion, was the HULK King-Size Special #1 (1968).

This image perfectly captured the essence of the Hulk character, demonstrating his stubborn, savage defiance under the crushing "weight" of constant persecution.  The illustration's elemental mass, raw power and tenacity will never quite be surpassed.

After a relatively short stay in comics, Jim Steranko went on to continued success in the book publishing, magazine and film industries....yet his comic book work remains one of the artform's undisputed high points.

Simply the Best: Wonder Woman #72

I became an instant fan of illustrator Brian Bolland when I saw the cover of (and immediately purchased) Tales of the Green Lantern Corps #1 back in 1981.  As I found out many years later, this was the British illustrator's first professional work for an American comic book company, having broken into comics drawing Nigerian hero Powerman and later the British cult-favorite Judge Dredd.

Bolland went on to illustrate many high profile projects for DC Comics, such as Camelot 3000 (comics' first "maxi-series") and Batman: The Killing Joke with Alan Moore.  As great as those stories were, Bolland has made an even greater contribution through his outstanding cover illustrations.  In fact, Bolland's gift for subtle facial expressions, imaginative layouts and clean linework makes him one of the premiere cover artists of his (or any) generation.

Nearly every cover he's created for DC's Animal Man, The Flash, Wonder Woman, and assorted others became a bonafide "Instant Classic".   Within that huge body of work, a few covers stand out as something extra special...such as Wonder Woman #72 (1993).

The Wonder Woman character has always walked a narrow line between enlightenment and exploitation, most often leaning toward the latter.  Countless covers portray the title character in silly or downright demeaning positions and situations, which is why this cover stands out as something different.  Bolland retains the beauty and, yes, sexiness of Wonder Woman, but at the same time imbues her with an undeniable power, grace, determination and dignity.

In other words, all of the best qualities of womanhood.

Update: To see more of Bolland's work, click here for a modest cover gallery.

Simply the Best: Superman #276

For most of the 1940's and early 50's (commonly dubbed comics' "Golden Age"), Superman and Captain Marvel were two of the most wildly popular superheroes of the era.  In fact, Fawcett Comics' Captain Marvel even surpassed Superman's sales at one point, which DC Comics countered with a copyright infringement suit, even though Cap was never actually that similar to Superman.  Nevertheless, Fawcett lost the lawsuit and ceased publication of Captain Marvel in 1953.

In a crazy twist of irony, DC Comics acquired the rights to publish Captain Marvel in 1972, and quickly followed up with a new SHAZAM! series.  Instead of integrating Cap into the modern style of comic book storytelling, DC decided to stick with the lighthearted, whimsical approach of the Golden Age stories.  In fact, they even hired Cap's original illustrator C. C. Beck to draw the stories.

Despite Superman's strangely-silent presense on the cover of SHAZAM #1 (click on the cover image for a larger view), the two (former) Golden Age rivals had never actually met each other in a comic book story. Their first true meeting would get a little bit closer with Superman #276 (1974), featuring the titanic clash of Superman and Captain Marvel stand-in Captain Thunder!

According to writer Elliot S. Maggin in a 2006 interview, the reason behind using Captain Thunder (despite having the rights to the real deal) was that DC felt the more whimsical Captain Marvel appearing in SHAZAM would be a poor thematic fit with the more "realistic" Superman, and that Cap's appearance in Superman (or vice versa) would be too jarring a transition for either character to make.  Whatever the case, we all knew this was Captain Marvel (more or less), and if anyone still had any misgivings about the substitution, this incredible "MUST BUY!" cover by the prolific Nick Cardy was more than enough to overcome them.

I've always been a sucker for "clash covers".  You know, the covers where superheroes (or groups of superheroes...or villains) are hurtling toward each other at top speed, frozen in time at that split second before impact.  Despite all the "growing" and "maturing" superhero comics have experienced over the past few decades, it's still hard to deny the power and appeal of a good clash cover.  Pumping up the tension is, of course, the terrified fleeing crowds below the clashing superheroes, who are seemingly oblivious to the death and destruction the collision of their invulnerable bodies will generate.

In other words, the ideal comic book cover for your inner 10 year-old.

By the way, to see more of Nick Cardy's outstanding DC covers, click here for an extensive (and nicely organzied) cover gallery!

Simply the Best: JLA/Avengers #3

As a young comics fan during the late 70's and early 80's, some of the biggest thrills of that time were "company crossovers", those rare occasions when rivals DC and Marvel Comics combined their forces (and top characters) into a single story.  Characters who had previously met each other only in our daydreams were not only officially meeting each other, but were teaming-up for an adventure as well (after the obligatory misunderstanding/fight, of course).

Immediately following the successful 1982 X-Men and Teen Titans crossover, the candidate for the next crossover was an absolute no-brainer:  a meeting of DC and Marvel's premiere super-teams...The Justice League and The Avengers.

Sure enough, work began on just such a project in 1983, with fan-favorite George Perez assigned to do the artwork!  Since Perez had enjoyed long stints on both JLA and Avengers, he was the perfect guy for the job. Sadly, the project fell apart when Marvel and DC got tangled up in editorial disputes, but not before Perez had already penciled nearly 21 pages of artwork. Ouch!

However, after two decades of wondering "what might have been", fans (like me) were rewarded for their patience when DC and Marvel reached an agreement in 2001:  JLA-Avengers was finally going to be a reality.

Naturally, an enthusiastic George Perez was tapped to do the artwork, along with writer and recent Avengers collaborator Kurt Busiek. Both men had (and still have) a knack for juggling huge numbers of characters, so they seemed to be the ideal team to pull of such a challenging project.

But we had no idea just how challenging Busiek and Perez were prepared to make it for themselves.

Not satisfied with simply staging a meeting between the then-current JLA and Avengers line-ups, the creators devised a story that would involve literally every member of the respective teams from every incarnation, iteration and time frame.

As you'd expect, the four-issue epic was worth the twenty-year wait. But as great as the story was, the most memorable part of JLA-Avengers remains the stunning artwork. Perez went far above and beyond the call of duty to deliver a career-defining "love letter" to both his fans and the legendary characters themselves.  No single piece of artwork demonstrates that love more than the cover of JLA-Avengers #3 (2003), as both the front and back covers feature the mind-blowing spectacle of every member (past and present) of the JLA and the Avengers (click on the image for a super-sized larger view):

JLA-Avengers #3 (2003), by George Perez

Besides his obvious illustration talent (and patience), Perez is also one of the premiere page designers of the comics field.  Not only can he draw any character under the sun (each with their own subtly unique facial structure), but he can also arrange them in dazzlingly complex formations, patterns and visual planes.  As a cartoonist with a similar affinity for detail-packed compositions, Perez always blows my mind with the sheer audacity and surprising clarity of his mega crowd scenes...which never fail to capture the power, energy and sprawling grandeur of superhero comics.

Simply the Best: Marvel Treasury Edition #1

Have you ever experienced a Perfect Storm comic book cover?

Okay...back up. Let's define our terms first. A "perfect storm" is a situation where, due to the confluence of different factors, what might have been a minor occurrence ends up being magnified to proportions that are out of control. In the case of a perfect storm comic book cover, the converging factors include (but aren't limited to):

1. A cover featuring a favorite character.

2. Drawn by a favorite artist.

3. "Stop you in your tracks" shelf presense (cover layout, logo, use of color, format, etc)

4. The age of the viewer (the younger and less jaded the better).

In my own experience, only a handful of covers qualify for that earth-shaking "perfect storm" status, and chief among those mindblowing covers has to be Marvel Treasury Edition #1 (1974), starring The Spectacular Spider-Man!

The Favorite Character factor? Listen, in 1974, Spider-Man was at the top of the heap. Granted, I was still fairly new to the bewildering world of comic book superheroes, but Spidey grabbed me right away....reinforced by the Spider-Man segments appearing on the PBS series "The Electric Company".

Favorite Artist? Come on...it's Jazzy John Romita, whose style has always blown my mind...even before I knew enough about cartooning myself to fully appreciate his skill. His dynamic choreography (or "posing"), perfect foreshadowing (trust me...it's hard!) and sublime inking give a real sense of volume, weight and "grounded mass" to his Spider-Man. This is very different from alot of the interpretations of Spider-Man I see from lesser artists, who tend to draw Spidey as either an emaciated waif or a manic contortionist. Under the watch of Romita, Spider-Man's presense had an elegance, and his movements a physical lyricism nobody's been able to match, much less surpass.

As for the Shelf Presense, the only thing more arresting than a bright red cover is when that bright red cover is also a whopping 10" x 14", towering over the nearby standard-size comics. Mix in the cool logo (with the snazzy Spidey-eyes nestled above it) and the Spidey-centric web-pattern, and you can't help but come to a full stop when this cover catches your eye....

...especially when you're eight years old! Yes, the final (and perhaps most important) factor is your age when viewing a potential Perfect Storm cover. Younger fans are obviously much more impressionable and receptive than their "Been There, Done That" older counterparts, and generally much more open a classic, front-and-center "money shot" of Spider-Man. As some have said, the true "Golden Age of Comics" isn't so much a fixed point in history as it is the age of the reader; the younger the fan, the more golden the experience. This period of time was absolutely my own personal "Golden Age of Comics", and seeing the cover of (and immediately buying) Marvel Treasury Edition#1 in the old Downtown Book in Duluth, Minnesota was certainly one of the highlights of that special time.

Simply The Best: A Society of Their Own (Starman #69)

The Justice Society of America has always been one of my favorite comic book teams, for a variety of reasons.  One...they were the first.  Two, I'm a nut for World War II superheroes (which extends to Marvel's WWII heroes).  Three, the multiple-earths angle they later became associated with (another favorite theme of mine).  Naturally, I've snatched up just about any appearance of the JSA I can get my hands on, whether it's the ongoing modern series, their many cameo appearances, or their Golden Age adventures from All Star Comics (reprinted in the DC Archives hardcover series).

However, not every Golden Age JSA story holds up well from a modern reader's perspective.  Sure, I always try to keep in mind the historical context, their intended audience and the vast gulf in production values between then and now...but even with those factors in mind, some of those old tales are simply off-the-scale goofy....such as the debut of the "All-Girlfriend JSA" back in All Star Comics #15 (1943).

With the male members mysteriously absent from a JSA meeting, Wonder Woman...for no discernable reason....decides to gather up all of their girlfriends for "the opportunity of a lifetime".

Once they arrive at the JSA headquarters, not only does Wonder Woman casually blow the secret identities of the male JSA'ers, but she also arranges for the girls to take on their boyfriends' costumed identities, including Clarice Winston (right panel, seated) impersonating The Spectre, the near-omnipotent ghost of her fiance'!

(click on the panels for a larger view)

To their credit, the girls end up saving the guys from Brainwave, a classic JSA villain making his debut in this very story.

Flash forward some fifty-seven years later to DC's superb Starman series, specifically issue #69.  As writer James Robinson periodically liked to do, the story delved back into the JSA's past...this time revisiting (you guessed it) the infamous Girlfriend Society story.  Robinson wisely spun the story in a way that made Wonder Woman's plan seem at least a bit more plausible (and sane)....but on the whole it was great to see such an endearingly loopy bit of history acknowledged as an "official" case of the JSA.

However, as fun as the story was, what knocked it out of the ballpark for me was the outstanding cover by Andrew Robinson.

Robinson (no relation to James, as far as I know) infused a glorious, nostalgic dignity into Wonder Woman and her ersatz Justice Society...amplified by the beautiful Maxfield Parrish-like lighting and cloudscapes.  Unlike the silly girls of the original Golden Age story, you really get a sense that the women shown here on the cover can and will defeat Brainwave and rescue their "he-damsels in distress".

In fact, that cover almost makes me forget
just how goofy that original tale really was.

Almost.

The Velveteen Comic Book

"Weeks passed, and the little Rabbit grew very old and shabby, but the Boy loved him just as much. He loved him so hard that he loved all his whiskers off, and the pink lining to his ears turned grey, and his brown spots faded. He even began to lose his shape, and he scarcely looked like a rabbit any more, except to the Boy. To him he was always beautiful, and that was all that the little Rabbit cared about. He didn't mind how he looked to other people, because the nursery magic had made him Real, and when you are Real shabbiness doesn't matter."

–an excerpt from The Velveteen Rabbit, by Margery Williams (1922)

As comic book collectors, we've been conditioned to seek out the perfect, the flawless, the Near Mint (since, as we're told, "Mint" is simply an impossible ideal). 

However, when it comes to condition grading, I guess I've always been a bit more tolerant toward comics from "the bad side of town".  The way I see it, a well-worn comic book shows how much it's been enjoyed and treasured over the years. Yeah, they're shunned by the hardcore collectors who encase flawless comics in plastic slabs and brag up their "unread" status (how nuts is that?), but to me?  Roughed-up comics have character, a sense of history, and signs that human hands actually touched it (gasp).  In other words (using Velveteen Rabbit vernacular), they seem real.

I've got plenty of well-worn comics in my collection, but I think the one that comes closest to the "Velveteen Comic" ideal is my spectacularly dilapidated copy of Amazing Spider-Man #145 (1975).  It was my first Spider-Man comic book, joining the scant five or six other comics in my tiny (but growing) collection.  Here it is in all its Poor-minus glory:

It was read dozens of times, the cover traced a couple dozen more, the Marvel Value Stamp on the inside cut out, incompetently re-stapled, with my name crudely scrawled with orange marker on the splash page.

Is this book likely to spark a heated bidding war on eBay?  Nope.

Will it be displayed on a dealer's wall at the San Diego Con, right next to slabbed copies of priceless key issues?  Never.

Will it remain a fondly-regarded part of my collection?  Of course!

Simply The Best: Goin' to the Chapel...

Who can get married while celebrating his 40th anniversary at the same time? 

Why, Superman, of course!

Celebrating the fourth decade since the Man of Steel first hoisted that green sedan over his head, Action Comics #484 (1978) featured the long-awaited wedding of Superman and Lois Lane!

Making the issue even more special was this gorgeous cover by Jose Garcia Lopez, conveying all the joyous spectacle you'd expect from these star-crossed lovers finally tying the knot.

Or did they? 

Sharp-eyed readers quickly realized something was up.  The Daily Star building in the background and Superman's obscured chest symbol provided clues that all was not what it appeared to be. 

You see, this was indeed a wedding between Superman and Lois Lane....of Earth-2!  For years, the earliest adventures of Superman had cleverly been exported to an alternate Earth, where differing details of his Kryptonian heritage, his workplace (The Daily Star instead of the familiar Daily Planet) and even a slightly different "S" symbol were still the norm.

So, yeah...on one hand it was a bit of a cop-out to marry the Earth-2 version of the couple, but on the other hand it made perfect sense.  When you think about it, these were the characters who appeared in the first issue of Action Comics in 1938, so it seemed natural that they would receive the reward denied the "real" Superman and Lois from the ongoing series (at least until 1995).

But back to that dynamite cover.  As someone who's always been a sucker for sentiment and tradition, this cover hits all of my buttons.  The classic design of the wedding dress, the "Just Married" banner, and the obvious joy of the bride and groom (without a molecule of cynicism or irony) all seem like something imported from another age.

You know, while I'm at it, I might as well make this an unofficial clip for The Highlight Reel, my ongoing effort to chronicle my favorite comic book moments.  There's so much to love about the story inside.  Writer Cary Bates turned in a tight and (at times) unexpectedly moving script, perfectly complemented by the artwork of Curt Swan (who else?) and inker Joe Giella.  However, the part of the story that makes the Reel is actually the final two panels of the story.

Earlier in the tale, Lois Lane had fallen in love with and married Clark Kent who, at the time, had forgotten his life as Superman due to a magic spell courtesy of The Wizard. After Clark eventually regained his memory (and superpowers) and took care of the Wizard, there was only one thing left to do.

Taking his bride to his Secret Citidel (an art-deco precursor of the Fortress of Solitude) Superman and Lois privately reaffirm their vows in a touching Kryptonian ritual (click on the panels for a larger view).  In all the years I've read and enjoyed Superman stories, there aren't many moments with more grace and understated beauty than this one.  All of it done in the shadow of Kal-L's Kryptonian parents, who looked like the reigning gods of some lost 1930's sci-fi pantheon.

Pure class.

Simply the Best: "Beware Our Power, Green Lanterns' Light!"

Before the paradigm shift brought on by computer-generated imagery (CGI), science fiction TV shows and movies had a tough time creating truly alien-looking aliens.  Due to obvious budget and technology limitations, most of the "aliens" would be 95% human looking with a few odd facial features here and there. Where were the really bizarre, utterly alien beings that our imaginations conjured up as we read science fiction novels or doodled in our school notebooks?

Fortunately, a few comic books featured aliens that lived up to the high standards of our imaginations...none moreso than DC's sprawling Green Lantern Corps.  Formed by the Guardians of the Universe, the Corps was a galactic "police force" spanning the entire universe, with each member assigned to one of 3600 sectors.

Beyond the impressive number, what really made the Corps special was the mind-blowing diversity of its membership which, more than anything, conveyed the staggering size of the universe they patrolled. Sure, there were plenty of humanoid aliens with the minor cosmetic alterations I was griping about earlier, but so many more deeply weird life forms...each wearing a modified Green Lantern ring and uniform to fit their peculiar physiology.

A gaseous cloud, a grasshopper, a giant manta ray, a snake, even a sentient planet...you name it, it was probably wearing a ring and a Green Lantern logo.

Occasionally there were issues that featured the combined power of the entire Green Lantern Corps, all of which were immediately snatched up into my comic book collection. One of my favorite All-Corps team-up covers is Green Lantern #127 (1980), illustrated by the amazing Brian Bolland and chronicling their clash with the Weaponers of Qward.

Banished from DC Comics continuity for a number of years, the Green Lantern Corps has recently returned and is stronger than ever.  In fact, their ranks have swelled from 3600 members to 7200 (since two Green Lanterns are now assigned to each sector), so I look forward to many more years of enjoying green-garbed crowd scenes like the one above.   

Simply the Best: More Fun=Divine Retribution?

Beginning in 1936, More Fun Comics was the first publication of the company that would one day be known as DC Comics.  It was also the first comic book to publish original material rather than simply reprinting newspaper strips, featuring a variety of genres such as funny animals, westerns, espionage, and supernatural adventure all under one roof.

By 1939, the covers of the series shifted from cartoony, lighthearted scenes to more realistic depictions of danger and suspense...making the "More Fun" title seem increasingly irrelevant and ironic, reaching borderline absurd levels of irony with the introduction of The Spectre on the cover of issue #52 (1940). 

Created by Superman writer Jerry Siegel and artist Bernard Baily, the Spectre was the spirit of murdered cop Jim Corrigan, given nearly limitless power by The Voice (which everyone understood to be God) and sent back to Earth to eradicate evil. 

In other words, a scenario that wasn't exactly bursting with fun...much less "More Fun".

Despite the disconnect with the title, the Spectre's uniquely eerie and surreal adventures earned him a year's worth of covers, eventually ceding his marquee status to a new supernatural character named Dr. Fate.  Though most of the Spectre's fourteen cover appearances were pretty unremarkable, one of them (quite literally) towers over the rest.  More Fun Comics #54 (April, 1940) featured the terrifying tableau of a gigantic Spectre striding through a battlefield, making easy work of the enemy's toy-like soldiers and airplanes. 

The Ghostly Guardian's piercing stare seems to suggest a barely-restrained wrath and power...perhaps tapping into the resistance of 1940 America to project its power into Hitler's Europe (this cover being published before the U.S. officially entered World War II)...or (in hindsight) symbolizing the atomic might unleashed upon Japan five years later.

Or maybe the giant battlefield Spectre represents a deeper, darker wish that our wars could be instantly ended by a wrathful, god-like figure who would pluck our weapons and death machines from our hands like a parent punishing a disobedient, destructive child.

Whatever the image means to any given person, I think most can agree that it's one of the most powerful, arresting images to ever grace a comic book cover.  So powerful in fact, that I believe Alan Moore echoed the scene in his masterwork Watchmen(1986)...swapping the supernatural Spectre for a similarly omnipotent (though science-based) Doctor Manhattan.  The scene was also updated for the cover of The Spectre #19 (1994), a testament to the enduring and "looming" presence of the Spectre.

Simply the Best: The Neal Adams Wrap-Arounds

It was cool enough that DC's early 70's line of 100-Page Super Spectaculars not only featured new stories, but scads of reprints from the mysterious and (at that time) largely unseen "Golden Age of Comics".

It was cool enough that the 100-Page Spectaculars had no interior ads to gobble up the page count.

It was cool enough that the Super Spectaculars were pretty much the biggest, fattest comics a kid could buy for 50¢.

Though never really a sales success for DC Comics, their 100 Page Super Spectaculars were the coolest thing a young comic book fan could hope for.  What could possibly make them any cooler?

A Neal Adams Wrap-Around cover, that's what!

Indisputably the hottest comic book artist of that generation, anything Adams touched always seemed that much cooler, and his covers for a trio of Super Spectaculars were certainly no exception. As if the fact that Neal Adams drew them wasn't enough, these particular covers were:

1.  "Wrap-Around" covers, which (as the name implies) feature one continuous image encompassing both the front and back covers.

2.  Perfect examples of "crowd scene covers", one of my favorite sub-categories of comic book covers. I've always loved covers packed with characters, whether embroiled in action or in a classic "yearbook" shot of gathered heroes. Pouring over the small details while trying to identify everyone was a true joy for me as a kid (and, yes, as an adult).

The first of the "Adams 100-Page Trilogy" was titled World's Greatest Superheroes (click on the cover images for a larger look-see).

Published in late 1971, the cover featured the line-ups of both the Justice League of America (front cover) and the legendary Justice Society of America (back cover), including the Golden Age (or "Earth-2") versions of Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman.  By the way, did you catch the little switcheroo with the two Wonder Women?  See, at the time, the Earth-1 Wonder Woman had forsaken her costume and powers for the life of an Emma Peel-like adventurer, so the more classic-looking Wonder Woman of Earth-2 was moved to the cover, while the white-garbed Diana Prince was moved to the back cover with the JSA. Sneaky, huh?

The next Adams wrap-around cover was for Batman #238 (1972), which featured a disparate gathering of Batman, Robin, the Doom Patrol, Aquaman, Sargon the Sorcerer, Plastic Man and, as if that somehow wasn't enough, the entire Legion of Superheroes (including the loopy Legion of Super-Pets)!

The final (and my personal favorite) of the three covers is the spectacular Superman #252 (1972), featuring "The World's Greatest Flying Heroes" soaring through a bright yellow sky.

As an avowed Golden Age groupie, I loved the inclusion of so many first generation superheroes, such as Kid Eternity (upper left), the Ray, the Spectre, the Shining Knight (on the winged horse), the original Green Lantern, and many others.  Another great touch I appreciated was the Golden Age Hawkman (flying next to Superman) wearing his original helmet with the full hawk's beak.  Normally, the full-beak hawk helmet looked silly to the extreme...but here, after Adams got done with it, strangely cool looking!

"But Wait! There's MORE!"

Yup.  That's not quite the end of what made the 100 Page Super Spectaculars so gosh-darned Super Spectacular.  In addition to the widescreen majesty of the Neal Adams wrap-around covers, each issue also included a handy visual key and character bios on an inside cover, so young fans could confirm the identities of the heroes they recognized and learn about the ones they didn't!
Imagine that...making things easier for a new reader!  Looks like the modern comics biz could learn a thing or two from those primitive Old-Schoolers!

Simply the Best: Old School Covers 101

It seems most of my favorite comic book covers were published during the so-called "Old School" era, back before today's creative giants ushered in the glorious "New School" era of enlightened sophistication.

(sarcasm mode...disengage!)

Naturally, I haven't lost a wink of sleep over my oddball status as an "Old School Fan". Oh sure, there's a ton of stuff to love about today's style of comics (why do you think I keep reading them?)...but my heart will always belong to the comics of the 70's and 80's. One of my favorite "relics" of the Old School style is the cover of Fantastic Four #147 (1974), featuring the F.F.'s showdown with a fighting mad Namor, The Sub-Mariner.

From top to bottom, there's a ridiculous number of things I love about this classic Old School cover. I'll list ten of 'em...

Simply the Best: Tomb of Dracula #61

 I've been a bit of a latecomer to the Tomb of Dracula series of the 1970's.  I remember seeing it around, but for whatever reason I'd never bought any new issues from the squeaky comic racks (strange, considering how much of a monster fan I was).

That all changed a few years back when I attended the local FallCon and came across a stash of incredibly cheap Tomb of Dracula issues.  Whether it was because it was Halloween season, or just feeling like I needed to finally see what I was missing out on, I ended up bringing home a couple dozen issues.

Well, the stories were not only as good as I'd always heard they were, but actually better than what I was expecting.  Writer Marv Wolfman was much more subtle and restrained than I'd ever remembered him on superhero comics, and the incredibly moody (often spooky) artwork of Gene Colan remains the absolute best of his distinguished career.  Of course, the inking of Tom Palmer had alot to do with that, grounding and substantiating Colan's often whispy, ethereal pencils...yet never altering them beyond recognition.

In the years since then, I've been buying reasonably priced issues of Tomb wherever I find them.  Yeah, I know there's a bunch of cheaper black and white reprints of the series available, but the back issues are still cheap enough (at least for now) that I prefer having the actual comics.

Within that growing collection of Dracula comics, one
of my favorite covers is Tomb of Dracula #61 (1977):

Here's why:

1.  The most obvious reason would be the incredibly disturbing subject matter. In fact, I'm surprised the Comics Code Authority (the stamp in the upper right corner) let this one slide by.  Despite dozens of compelling, frightening covers before this one, the sight of a ghostly dead baby sends this one to an entirely different level of horror.

2.  A more subtle, yet equally powerful aspect of the cover is the wonderful design and implied motion of the scene.  The eye easily moves in a circular motion from the Tomb of Dracula logo, to the bat, to the bat's transformation into Dracula, to baby Janus, to Domini, then up to the curved cloud bank...which brings the eye back to the logo.  The curved motion of the clouds behind Domini also seem to give her arms a feeling of upward motion, as well as suggesting (quite literally) the dark powers behind her bid to resurrect the child.  The section where the bat is morphing into Dracula's still-incomplete form is also full of implied motion...to the point where it almost seems as if I'm watching it happen in a live-action movie.  A perfect example of Colan's mastery of shadowy, amorphous forms.

3.  Besides an uncharacteristic blast of bright colors (not typical for a Dracula cover), the bright magenta dawn sky also serves to crank the drama up even higher (if that's possible), by making Dracula's desperate plea even more frantic, since he's risking instant destruction from the sun's first rays (which you can see farther back on the horizon line).

4.  As if all of that wasn't enough, throw in Domini's weirdly transfixed face and Dracula's shocking request, and you've got a cover few could resist buying (despite the horrifying presence of a dead baby).

So...what are some of your favorite spooky covers? Let me know!

Simply the Best: Anniversary Covers

Prior to the 1960's, so-called "anniversary issues" typically weren't acknowledged on a comic book's cover or, if they were, the publishers were fairly low key about it.  A good example of the more subdued anniversary cover would be something like Superman #100 (1955).

However, when Marvel Comics entered the picture (a publisher few would describe as "low key" or "subdued"), anniversary issues went from non-events or austere cover galleries to bombastic, star-studded celebrations.  In fact, when it came to high wattage covers for anniversary issues, Marvel easily outpaced DC Comics, who could never really muster the same kind of energy for their milestone issue covers.

My favorite Marvel anniversary covers were the ones featuring the title character (of course) along with a blizzard of supervillains and (occasionally) supporting cast members.  Yeah, the stories inside were often a let-down (as the promised horde of supervillains often turned out to be only robots or mind game hallucinations), but the dynamite covers were usually enough to overcome the disappointment.

Here's three of the very best (click for a larger view):

This "Everthing but the Kitchen Sink" style of anniversary cover gradually fell out of favor, especially after the modern trend of celebrating "anniversaries" every twenty-five issues made the whole practice a little less special.  Ah, but for a time, those 100th or 200th issues were something so special, they demanded to be bought!

Simply the Best: Modern Masters and Mythic Power

During the early decades of the 20th century, giants walked the earth. 

No, not giants in the physical sense but rather giants of illustration who applied their mastery of painting and composition to the burgeoning worlds of advertising and publishing.  Instead of being confined to stuffy art galleries and high society functions, the artwork of these modern masters became widely known to and appreciated by the masses, primarily through popular magazines, illustrated fiction, and high profile advertising campaigns (click on the paintings to the left for a larger view).

In particular, artists like J.C. Leyendecker, Howard Pyle, Maxfield Parrish, and N.C. Wyeth brought a mythic power and rugged heroism to their paintings that resonated with American audiences.  Somewhere in between the age of these Master Illustrators and what we know to be the modern comics era came the Golden Age of Comics, whose artists grew up with a steady diet of Parrish dreamscapes, Pyle's flinty pirates, or Leyendecker's Greek gods sporting Arrow dress shirts.

It's exactly this influence that I see at work here on the breathtaking cover of Whiz Comics #22 (1941).  Though he was primarily known for a more whimsical or cartoony approach to drawing Captain Marvel, artist C.C. Beck obviously had no trouble taking things in a more "illustrative" direction from time to time.   

Beyond the simple "iconic" appeal of the scene, it also seems to capture the essence of Captain Marvel's world:  Majestic power (the lightning bolt), a dash of danger (the billowing smoke clouds), coupled with a mythic scope (the mountainous vista), all of it reinforced by the strength and simple decency of the two central characters.

In addition to those basic elements (and the vivid color palette) are the more subtle touches I enjoy, such as young Billy's confident, relaxed body language or Cap's convincing body mass (you get the feeling nothing could possibly budge that guy), which is only amplified by his exaggerated height.

Although I don't belong to the "Billy and Cap are two separate beings" camp*, I can't let that nonsense get in the way of enjoying one of the greatest covers of the Golden Age or, for that matter, any age of comics.

* I've always preferred the interpretation that Captain Marvel is, literally, a magically grown-up version of Billy Batson.  Although there are plenty of examples to suggest otherwise, I stubbornly insist that the powerful wish-fullfilling element of a boy instantly transforming into a super-powered man is one of the major "pillars" (if not THE major pillar) of the character's appeal. Merely switching places with him doesn't seem to have the same mythic punch...know what I mean?

Simply the Best: Let's Go to the Split Screen

Why do I love thee, Invincible Iron-Man #144 (1981)? 
Let me count the ways (from top to bottom)...

1. The upper-left corner shot of Iron-Man. Remarkably effective back in the "squeaky wire rack" days of marketing comic books (when other comics could block out most of the cover).

2. The classic Iron-Man 3D-relief logo, complete with rivets.

3. Iron-Man's eye-catching, iconic superhero pose.  Nobody in real life ever stands with their legs spread far apart with arms bent at 90º angles and clenched fists....but that's why I love old-school comics so much.  When superheroes felt strong emotions, they didn't sit around talking about it...their body language said it all!

4. The strong mirror-image symmetry of the pose earns extra Feng Shui points.

5.  The twin appeal of something new and something old, an ingenious approach when appealing to comic book fanboys.  We love the shiny new stuff (literally, in this case) as much as we love nostalgia, so this split-screen cover was a double-scoop delight.

6.  Although Tony Stark's new "deep space armor" was a major selling point, it was the sight of his original gray armor that closed the deal.  For whatever reason, I'm just crazy about that clunky old suit and every time it would show up on an issue's cover, I'd buy it.  Whether it was an origin flashback (which was the case here) or Tony Stark's "armor of last resort", I didn't care...if the original model makes the cover, I'm buying it.  Simple as that.

7.  The near-hysterical cover copy.  Even though this was the early 80's, the melodramatic style of Stan Lee's 1960's Marvel Comics was still firmly in place, with plenty of exclamation marks to go around.  From a design standpoint, I like how the crashing space station nicely leads the eye from the dramatic blurb in the upper left section down to the dramatic blurb in the lower right.

8.  As much as I love origin stories (see yesterday's blog entry), the prospect of learning "never before revealed" origin details involuntarily sends me reaching for my wallet.

9.  Outer space, machine guns, explosions and a helicopter.  Like flame to a moth for a teenage boy (when I bought it straight off the aforementioned squeaky rack).

10.  The Bob Layton artwork, so much a part of the classic (and unsurpassed) late 70's, early 80's years of Iron-Man.

Simply the Best: Clash of the Titans!

Remember the old philosophical paradox that asks "What happens when an irresistible force meets an immovable object?"  Well, this is just a guess, but my answer to the question would be Comic Book Clash Covers!

"What's a Comic Book Clash Cover?", you ask?  Let's break it down:

1.  Clash Covers always feature two opposing teams barreling toward each other at top speed.

2.  The best Clash Covers usually freeze-frame the action a split second before the earth-shaking impact.

3.  More often than not, the design of the cover is highly symmetrical, as combatants rushing in from stage left have a corresponding combatant speeding toward them from stage right.

4.  The first and most common type of Clash Cover is the age-old conflict of superheroes vs. supervillains with its primal good vs. evil appeal (click on each cover for a better look):

5.  A second and surprisingly common type of Clash Cover features two teams of good guys ready to smash each other to a pulp, which amps up the already crazy levels of drama by prompting the viewer to wonder "Why the heck are the good guys fighting each other?"

6.  The third variety of Clash Cover also happens to be my favorite.  In this case, the warring sides are different versions of the same team of superheroes, such as when the current lineup of a super-team battles its original lineup.  In addition to the basic drama of opposing sides about to collide, beyond the added drama of good guys battling each other, this third category knocks the drama quotient out of the park with its undercurrents of "old vs. new" generational competition and intramural resentment.

7.  A tiny percentage of Clash Covers defy all classification, as demonstrated by the cover of Justice League #132 (1976).

Thankfully, clashes between superheroes and weapon-toting zoo animals are incredibly rare (I believe this is the only one), making the vast majority of Clash Covers a slam-dunk addition to Simply the Best!

Simply the Best: The Race of the Century

Remember that question?  If you do, you'll also recall that it wasn't a question about which superhero could beat a particular supervillain, but rather which superhero could beat another superhero!  With the passion of election year politics, we'd make the case for our champion and why he'd mop the floor with the other guy's champion....all the while completely missing (or flat-out ignoring) the point that good guys aren't supposed to be fighting each other in the first place.

Although comic book publishers usually stayed above the fray, every once in awhile they'd throw us the "hero vs. hero" red meat we all craved....like here on the rip-roaring cover of Superman #199 (1967).

Cover penciled by Carmine Infantino and inked by Murphy Anderson

As it turned out, the actual race was quite a disappointment (to say the least). Instead of the grudge match suggested by the cover scene, the race was actually a chummy charity event. Worse yet, it ended in a lousy tie....completely dodging the question asked on the cover.  Needless to say, it was an early lesson for us junior consumers in sky-high hype vs. the reality (and inevitable let-downs) of the actual product.

However, despite the disappointing story, the cover remains one of my favorites for a variety of reasons:

1.  When I look at the facial expressions of Superman and the Flash, I don't see two guys running a genial charity event.  I see guys who are determined to win the title of Fastest Man Alive!

2.  The cheering "factions" of DC heroes. Though never as contentious or dysfunctional as Marvel's brood of squabbling heroes, DC began introducing a bit more conflict between their famously chummy champions of justice....as you can see from the spirited cheering sections on either side of the starting line.  Note how Batman is vigorously rooting against his long time World's Finest co-star!

3.  I've always been a sucker for covers with a black background. Black, more than any other color, demands your attention on the shelf and, in this case, helps the brightly colored costumes of Superman and Flash pop right off the page.

4.  The distorted or "forced" perspective angles of the scene, giving an almost explosive visual power to the unleashed speedsters.

5.  The "To: Mark, Carmine Infantino" signature.  Oh, wait...that's just on my copy.

Simply the Best: Daredevil #53

I love "origin issues".  You know, the comic book equivalent of those flashback TV show episodes when a character says "Why, I remember it as if it were yesterday..." (as the screen blurs out or goes wavy).  Essentially intended to bring new readers up to speed on who the character is and how he (or she) started out, origin stories were often presented within an imaginative framing device, such as providing a subtle clue to a present day mystery or as an occasion to re-affirm the hero's purpose and mission.

Daredevil #53 (1969) was one such origin story, as Matt Murdock took a look back at the tragedies and triumphs that lead to his life as Daredevil.  Creatively symbolizing Murdock's deliberation is this wonderful cover by Gene Colon, a master of evocative, moody illustration:

The looming Daredevil holding a weighing scale brings to mind the famous image of Lady Justice, the mythic personification of our Western legal system.  The comparison is especially apt considering Matt Murdock is not only a lawyer by trade, but is also blind (as a result of the accident that hyper-enhanced his remaining senses).

As I alluded to in a previous Simply the Best post, I'm a sucker for covers showing the original version of a superhero's costume....even Daredevil's!  For as much scorn as the costume (perhaps deservedly) gets, I guess I can cut a blind guy a little slack for using so much yellow (and hey, it was gone by issue number seven anyway). So, I enjoy seeing the original fighting togs on that mini-Daredevil, straddling his measuring pan like a fighter straining at the ropes of a boxing ring (which was probably intentional considering his father was a boxer).

The bad guys?  Two 1960's thugs straight from Central Casting, one obviously hired muscle (t-shirt and blue jeans) while the other is higher up the food chain (indicated by the suit and tie), and probably the man known as "The Fixer" (a crooked boxing promoter responsible for putting a hit out on Murdock's father).

The cover loses some points with the poorly placed masthead logo, which would have looked better centered in the space between the corner box and the opposite corner.  With it touching the corner box, it creates a tangent and visual tension point that easily could have been avoided.

Despite that unfortunate design decision, I'm sure you'll agree that the rest of the cover is so powerful and attention-grabbing, it easily qualifies for Simply the Best status!

Simply the Best: Superhero + Monster = Perfection

Back in the early 70's, in addition to my new obsession with superhero comics, I was a fan of classic movie monsters as well. One problem, though...unlike easily-obtainable comic books, I'd never seen any of those classic monster movies.  You see, this was back before the era of VCR machines and video rental shops, so there was hardly any way for a kid of modest means (i.e. "no cable TV") to see famous monsters like Frankenstein, King Kong, the Wolfman, or Dracula. 

However, there were a couple of monster "proxies" I could fall back on...such as movie monster paperbacks (loaded with cool photos and facts) and the great monster titles of Marvel Comics. Reading The Monster of Frankenstein, the Tomb of Dracula, and Werewolf By Night gave me at least a taste of what the elusive movie versions might have been like.

As entertaining (and genuinely creepy) as the monster comics could be, imagine my surprise when the Marvel monsters intersected with their superhero universe in Giant-Size Spider-Man and Dracula #1 (1974).  Of course, Spidey and Dracula appearing together in one story wasn't exactly a hard sell...but after seeing this amazing cover by John Romita Sr., that kingly sum of 50¢ was as good as spent.

Although it's been almost thirty-four years since I first grabbed it off the stands, this cover remains one of my absolute favorites for a variety of reasons:

1. Its stars.  I'm still a nut for superheroes and movie monsters, and seeing Spider-Man and Dracula share a cover never really loses its jolt.

2.  The perfection of John Romita's Spider-Man....from that splayed out "Twister Board" pose to the solid physique (none of the too-skinny Spidey we see so much today), I can never get enough of the Jazzy One's wall-crawler.  Oh, and the mask "eye" shapes as well. Nobody's were quite as distinctive as Romita's.

3.  That fantastic color palette. The deep purple and black background help the foreground colors pop off the page, lending a 3D-feel to the Spider-Man and Dracula figures. In fact, the colors of the central figures are so strong, that the rather cluttered use of text boxes and the top-heavy logo section don't take anything away from them. That's quite a feat of design.

4.  Spider-Man's web (besides directing the eye to Spider-Man) is an almost ironic element here, as the spider's traditional role of predator ("Come into my parlor said the spider to the fly") is ceded to the looming Lord of the Vampires.

5.  While clearly not the shadowy, amorphous figure seen in Tomb of Dracula, Romita's somewhat slicker interpretation of the Count nonetheless preserves the essential look and feel of Gene Colan's definitive version.

6.  In graphic design, the "Rule of Three" involves the arrangement of visual elements into eye-pleasing, triangular formations.  This fiddling with "visual architecture" is tricky and takes years of practice to pull off in a subtle yet dynamic way.  Of course, leave it up to a master like Romita to incorporate not one but two triangular formations, which keep the viewer's eye moving and dancing over the cover...yet never "allowing" the eye to entirely leave the central focus of the triangle interiors.

7.  As if Spidey and Dracula weren't enough, the Human Torch pops up in the lower left corner...and to any kid, throwing in a guy who could start himself on fire and fly was always a plus.

8.  Although I mentioned thinking there were too many text boxes on the cover, I have to admit I'm a sucker for that old school Marvel cover hype. Probably penned by Stan Lee protege' Roy Thomas, the wonderful tradition of breathless hyperbole continued with phrases like "First Issue Phantasmagoria" and "The Fightin', Flamin' Human Torch".  To a "Bronze Age Boy" like me, it's "comfort food" in written form.

Simply the Best: Invincible

  Yeah, I've gone on about anniversary issue covers before, but those were the kind with every square inch of real estate bursting with supervillains and supporting cast members.  An equally appealing (and much less crowded) brand of anniversary cover is the Iconic Solo Pose cover, where the star of the title appears in his or her full heroic glory.  After all, accomplishing one hundred consecutive issues is no place for a whining or defeated superhero (we get plenty of that in between anniversary issues), so this is the ideal setting to show them in tip-top form.

A favorite of this Iconic Solo Pose variety is Iron-Man #100 (1977):

Stuff to like:

1.  Prior to this, I don't think any 100th issue cover had been quite this literal.  The giant stone "100" works great as its own (rather obvious) statement, but it also works well as a symbolically primitive counterweight to the high-tech vibe of Iron-Man's armor.

2. Iron-Man covers tend to focus on the armor's more dazzling flight and repulsor ray capabilities, but this cover is a rare display of the raw, brute strength the armor affords Tony Stark. 

3. Although one of my pet peeves is "painted on" superhero costumes (with every possible muscle showing), I'm willing to give the great Jim Starlin a pass with this cover.  Sure, it's unlikely that an iron torso piece would conform to every contour of Stark's musculature (and weren't those chest nodules located higher than nipple-level?), but come on...extravagantly-muscled torsos have always been Starlin's calling card.  To deny The Starlin his torso shot just wouldn't be right.

4. The steely (no pun intended) determination of those eyes is impossible to overlook.  In fact, despite the rather shrimpy size of the head, it's the stare that gives the entire cover an edgy emotional spark.  Quite a trick for a guy wearing an expressionless metal helmet.

5.  Borrowing a trick from the great Jack Kirby, the black-dotted "Kirby Krackle" effect framing the scene makes an already powerful cover literally burst with added energy.

6. Now, if only the word "Invincible" was properly centered above the ever-cool Iron-Man logo (love those rivets)...and if today's comics could also be 30¢...then all would truly be right with the world.

Simply the Best: Around the Round Table

Normally, a cover's artistic merit alone earns it a place in my Simply the Best gallery, but sometimes even a sub-par cover design can make the cut on sheer historical importance alone. One of these major milestones was All Star Comics #3 (1940), which featured the first official meeting of the Justice Society of America. 

Prior to this issue, All Star #1 and #2 featured stories of the individual heroes, but no sign of them interacting with or even being aware of each other. This changed in the third issue, as all of these individual superheroes met as The Justice Society of America for fellowship and to recount their recent adventures. Later issues would feature them heading out on missions and solving crimes as a team, but for now, the fact that they were all in the same room together was the big news. In other words, what we had here was the world's first comic book superteam.

In fact, the Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide has long considered the JSA as "a breakthrough concept, second in importance only to the creation of the superhero".  Adding to the JSA's stature is the mystery of what could have inspired such a gathering.  Some believe it could have been an entirely original idea by writer Gardner Fox, while others point to the old myths as possible inspirations..such as the Ancient Greek myth of Jason and the Argonauts, a team of famous adventurers (most notably Heracles), each with their own special power or skill to contribute to the quest for the Golden Fleece.

Based on the distinctive circular table pictured on All Star #3, others believe the legend of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table is the most likely precedent for the JSA:

Another possible influence (also featuring a round table) was a 1938 cover of The Shadow magazine, which pictured the mysterious pulp hero and his gang of loyal operatives gathered 'round a meeting table.

However, despite all of these plausible influences, the Justice Society of America seemed like something new. Instead of warriors, knights, or operatives following a single leader, the members of the JSA were considered equals with no single superhero as the group's primary leader or raison d'être. Considering "America" was part of the team's name, I guess their more democratic approach shouldn't come as much of a surprise, but at the same time, the importance of this new group dynamic should be recognized as something special...and the template for all the super teams that followed.

Is it a simple (bordering on crude) cover design? It certainly is, but despite the stiff, endearingly mundane staging, there's an undeniable and surreal power to the scene that's hard to describe. Is it the somewhat eerie appearance of fully-masked (thereby emotionless) characters like the Atom (far left), Sandman (next to the Atom), and Dr. Fate (with the gold helmet) at odds with their grinning teammates? Could it be the presense of the Spectre (wearing the green hood), a nearly-omnipotent living corpse sitting there as casually as a customer at Denny's? Or is it just the moon-bat crazy spectacle of all those colorful, whimsical and occasionally spooky costumes in a single setting?

Well, whatever it is, it's working for me. Oh, and to get past some of the Golden Age drawing limitations of the original, how about a recreation of the All Star Comics #3 cover by Jerry Ordway, which appeared in All-Star Squadron Annual #2 (1982):

Now, I'm not sure getting rid of the original's Big Box O' Words was a completely good thing (did we really need to see the Atom's bare legs?), but its absense does cut down on the visual clutter and crowding. The best part of it? The surreal vibe of the original scene is still very much intact.

How about you? Are there certain covers that remain your favorites despite crude or "past its prime" artwork? If so, what are they?

Simply the Best: Kryptonite Nevermore!

One of the first things you learn as you move up the ladder from "comic book reader" to "comic book collector" is that comics history is broken down into distinct categories, or "ages".  The Golden Age began in 1938 with Action Comics #1 (you may have heard of it) and extended well into the 1950's. The Silver Age began in 1956 with DC's Showcase #4 (featuring a reimagined Flash character) and reinforced by Marvels's Fantastic Four #1 (1961).  The Bronze Age began in...well...that one's a little tougher to establish.  Generally understood to run from the early 1970's through the mid-80's, the Bronze Age doesn't have a specific "Genesis Moment" to announce its coming, though there were definite characters and trends collectors point to as indicators.

However, when it comes to Superman, the beginning of his Bronze Age phase was as obvious as an exploding atom bomb with the cover of Superman #233 (1971):

Okay, it's not like I have to convince you that this is a great cover (it should be obvious to anyone with a pulse)...but indulge me in a few observations:

1.  Arguably the first "rock star" comic book creator, Neal Adams had already illustrated dozens (if not hundreds) of DC covers by this time (including Superman covers), but this one seems to stand out from all the rest. In fact, it might even be the most powerful and memorable cover of his entire career. Adams' deceptively simple image of Superman is actually employing some very complex proportion and perspective tricks very few artists can pull off.  For example, Superman's left foot and leg are much bigger than they should "actually" be, but the distortion gives the illustion of a lower camera angle, making Superman seem larger and even more imposing.

Plus, can't you just hear those chains exploding into shrapnel?

2. Speaking of chains, not to take anything away from Adams, but you can never go wrong with Superman busting out of chains. The iconic image has a pedigree going all the way back to Superman's earliest promo art, such as the seal for the "Supermen of America" fan club. Adams seems to acknowledge the roots of the image by giving Superman's face the somwhat squintier eyes and cheek line/dimple of Joe Shuster's Golden Age Superman. This nod to Superman's (then) 30+ years of history might have been reassuring in the midst of so much change and "social relevance" entering that era's comics.

 

3.  Note the clever (borderline sneaky) use of the big number "1" in the upper-right corner. Although this was technically issue #233, it's clear that DC Comics wanted to give the impression this was a new beginning (which it was), and nothing says "new" like a #1 issue (well, unless you count the prominent "NEW" along the top edge).  Sure, the "Number 1" was referring to it's status as the Best-Selling Comics Magazine, but the size of the number makes the context almost irrelevant. It might as well have said "Number 1 Character Wearing a Red Cape".  What matters is that attention-grabbing "Number 1", which reinforced that this was a title with something new and exciting going on.

4. Other touches confirm the undeniable influence of crosstown rival Marvel Comics. Known for their flashy, hyper-dramatic covers, Marvel had spent most of the 1960's eating into DC's once-dominant market share...to the point where DC had no choice but to ape their style. Those explosive "burst" lines, the upper-left corner art of Superman, and the pseudo-literate "Kryptonite Nevermore!" blurb had Stan Lee's fingerprints all over them.  Add to that the conspicuous absense of the round "National-DC Comics" corner logo, and it becomes clear that DC Comics was trying hard to...well...not look like DC Comics!

5. Far too often, the inside story doesn't live up to the promise of a great cover...but that's not the case here....which makes the cover all the more special. Making a big splash as the successor to Mort Weisinger, editor Julius Schwartz introduced some major changes to the Superman titles. The artwork of Curt Swan (the only holdover from the Weisinger era) seemed much more dynamic...even cinematic, made even moreso by the addition of inker Murphy Anderson. Clark Kent was now a TV anchorman instead of a newspaper reporter...and Kryptonite, as the cover stated, was indeed NO MORE (following the explosion of an experimental Kryptonite-powered engine). Ending with the creation of an interesting new foe (the eerie "Sand Superman"), the story really did close the deal on the cover's claim that "Amazing New Adventures" were on the way.

Simply the Best: A Sentimental Favorite

As I've mentioned before, I've spent much of the past twenty-five years tracking down the last fifty years' worth of Superman comics...to the point where I have every issue from #100 (1955) to the present. However, as fun as it was to complete that lengthy run, the pride and joy of my collection remains my battered copy of Superman #15, cover dated March-April of 1942.

How did I get it? Well, one day back in the early 80's, my local comic book shop was having a 50% off sale, with an extra 10% off for regulars...so I nabbed their $50 copy of Superman #15 for a mere $20, and I've treasured it ever since. Why? Well, it's certainly not the condition (which isn't very good) ....nor the drawing (which is pretty crude). No, I think the real appeal for me is simply its age and the feeling that I'm holding history in my hands whenever I look it over. Technically, the same could be said of any comic book (even the comics I bought last week) but there's something about comics from that far back that seem like artifacts from an ancient age or even another world.

That said, there's another reason I like this cover so much.

I hadn't made the connection until just a few years ago, but one day it hit me that the cover seemed to be based on The Mad Scientist, the first of the legendary Superman cartoons produced by the Fleischer Studios. Released into theatres right about the time this issue was being put together (Fall of 1941), it's not a tall-building leap to imagine that someone at DC Comics would want to plug the cartoon on one of their Superman covers. Here, let's look at a few parallel shots from The Mad Scientist and compare them to the above cover scene.

Mountain-top observatory shooting a deadly energy ray? Check.

Bridge melted by said energy ray? Check.

Superman punching the energy ray as he tries to get to the observatory? Check.

So, what do you think....could the cover of Superman #15
be the very first "movie tie-in" in comics history?

Simply the Best: The Killing Joke

 No, I haven't seen The Dark Knight yet (I plan to see it later today), but if the wall-to-wall hype and early word of mouth is to be believed, it looks like one hell of a ride. With so much focus on Heath Ledger's Joker, I can't help but think about one of my favorite images of arguably the greatest comic book villain of all time. In the spring of 1988, superstars Alan Moore and Brian Bolland collaborated on Batman: The Killing Joke...which sounded good on paper, but fell short for me (especially the wrong-headed ending with Bats and the Joker yucking it up like old drinking buddies).

However, it's Bolland's spectacularly creepy cover that continues to stick with me and, frankly, haunt me all these years later.

Although there are dozens of unique interpretations of the Joker over his nearly 70 year history, Bolland's remains my favorite.  Sure, other artists can do the big rictus grin of jagged teeth and the foppish gangster/pimp clothing....but Bolland goes farther by perfectly (and consistently) capturing the viciousness and almost elemental evil within his facade of whimsy.  Even small details like the black pool of the Joker's left eye (with its tiny speck of light) and the snarling folds and wrinkles of his face make him seem less a "Clown Prince of Crime" and more a sadistic, leering demon.

Amping up the creepy factor is the camera, which on its own isn't particularly creepy, but after reading the story, I realized it was a reference to a scene in which he snaps pictures of Barbara (Batgirl) Gordon after brutalizing and crippling her. Although stories before this one had taken the Joker into darker regions, The Killing Joke seemed to be the moment the straightjacket came off for a much darker, over-the-top Joker from that point onward.

Simply the Best: The Thrilling Days of Yesteryear

Despite enjoying the occasional western, I'm not what you'd call a big fan of the genre. Ah, but when superhero elements are added to the western formula, that's a different story. One of the first western/superhero hybrids was, of course, Zorro (created in 1919), followed several years later by perhaps the greatest of the Old West's masked champions: The Lone Ranger.

Created by producer George W. Trendle and writer Fran Striker, the Lone Ranger made his radio debut in January of 1933 on WXYZ in Detroit, Michigan and quickly grew into a national sensation. Like many characters of the public's imagination, the Lone Ranger brand eventually branched out into toys, a newspaper comic strip, movie serials, a television series, and, of course, comic books.

Beginning in 1948, Dell Comics published The Lone Ranger for the next fourteen years, at one point spinning off solo titles for Tonto and even the Ranger's horse Silver! The stories themselves were essentially the same kinds of adventures and simple morality tales from the radio and TV series, but the real appeal of the series for a collector like me are the dynamite painted covers by guys like Hank Hartman, Sam Savitt, and Earnest Nordli. As you can see from the samples below, whether dark & moody or iconic & action-packed, the illustrated Lone Ranger covers are undeniable (albeit overlooked) masterpieces (click on the images for a larger view).

Strangely, the illustrated covers switched over to photo covers of Clayton Moore as the Ranger in late 1957, despite the final episode of the series airing about the same time. Of course, the TV show lived on in rerun glory for several more years...but still...what an odd time to dump the illustrated covers.

Of all the illustrated covers in my collection, a clear favorite remains the cover of The Lone Ranger #76 (1954)...

Why is this one a favorite of mine? A few reasons:

1. Before breaking the cover down into its individual elements, the primary appeal of this cover for me is the Civil War setting and the passions it still evokes. In this case, it's the politically-charged image of the Lone Ranger clearly fighting alongside Union soldiers against (presumably) Confederate forces. Without wading into the age-old historical debates and semantic game playing, let's just say I think the Ranger chose the morally correct side.

2. Old Glory. Can't go wrong with a flag cover.

3. Despite the chaos all around him, I love the Ranger's steely-eyed look of concentration just before he squeezes off a round at Gen. Robert E. Lee himself for all I know. This is one time when you really have to click on the thumbnail image to see a blow-up of the detail.  It's just an amazing piece of illustration by Hank Hartman (an educated guess, since the cover isn't officially credited or signed).

4. Not one, but two six-shooters a-blazing at the Ranger's Rebel targets! Tarnation!

5. One of the sharpest, most attention-getting logos to ever grace a comic book cover. Even if the cover image wasn't visible on a newsstand, the logo's stark yellow lettering against that iconic black mask was all you needed to grab a kid's attention (and hard-earned dime). Speaking of the lettering, where can I get my hands on that fantastic retro font?  I want it!

6.  One of those nifty little Rule of Three triangular formations I like so much.

7. Finally, is it just me, or is that soldier in the foreground a dead-ringer for legendary actor Lloyd Bridges? Although it would be several years before he'd star in the popular Sea Hunt TV series, Bridges was still a well-known and recognized actor when this cover was created (such as his role in 1952's High Noon). The soldier has Bridges' nose, mouth, chin, and distinctive squint...so maybe I'm on to something.

Well, whether it's Bridges or not, it's an amazing cover...and one of the high points of my Lone Ranger collection.

Simply the Best: World's Finest #1

Beginning in the summer of 1941, Superman and Batman shared DC's World's Finest Comics title for the next four and a half decades. Starting out as separate features, DC's elder statesmen later teamed up to share adventures for the remainder of the title's run, remaining the best of friends throughout. 

At some point in the mid-80's, the skies began to darken. Perhaps in anticipation of their adversarial relationship in Frank Miller's influential The Dark Knight Returns (published only a few months later), the final issue of World's Finest Comics (1986) depicts the split of the Superman-Batman partnership. Their backgrounds, personalities, and modes of operation were suddenly judged to be too radically different to mesh well together, which was the same conclusion reached by the two heroes themselves...leading to a mutual parting of the ways.

Later than same year, John Byrne's reboot of the Superman titles would reinforce the alienation of the former World's Finest duo by establishing that Superman and Batman had never gotten along, beginning with their first official meeting in this restructured continuity (issue #3 of Byrne's Man of Steel mini-series). As you might have guessed, those of us who were fans of the old Superman-Batman alliance were pretty disappointed, as DC continued to hammer home the point that these guys were never going to be friends.

However, a break in the clouds came in 1990 with the publication of a three issue mini-series sporting a very familiar title: World's Finest. Written by acclaimed artist Dave Gibbons (of Watchmen fame) and beautifully illustrated by Steve Rude (one of the most under-rated artists in all of comics), the story featured a wonderful co-mingling of the Superman and Batman families of characters not seen since before the 1986 "break-up". True, there was still a chill between the stars, but by the end of the story, there was a definite hope that things could change.

Which brings me to my cover image for this installment of Simply the Best. While all three covers are "keepers", it's the cover for issue #1 that never fails to quicken my pulse. Here, check it out (minus the logo and other distracting elements):

(click on the image for a larger view)

A clever study in contrasts between the two heroes (light-dark, eagle-gargoyle, doves-bats), this breathtaking piece also evokes the Golden Age versions of the two characters. For Superman, the powerful stance and backlighting echo the classic Fleischer cartoons, while the horn-like "ears" and slitted-eyes of Batman's mask recall the eerie look of his earliest adventures.

DC also had the foresight to print a poster of this image when the mini-series was published, so I was lucky enough to nab a few of them (one of which still proudly hangs in my home studio all these years later).

As for the friendship between Superman and Batman, not much has changed in the years since. Sure, there's been some thawing of the chill, their monthly team-ups have resumed (in the Superman/Batman title), and they currently co-star with Wonder Woman in DC's Trinity series, but they've still got a long ways to go before they're as friendly as they were back in the good old days.

Simply the Best: The Lycanthropic Leg-Lock

One sure sign of a "Simply the Best" cover is one that could literally stop me in my tracks. Even though it was waaayyy back in summer of 1975, I still vividly recall the cover of Marvel Team-Up #37 standing out like a neon sign. 

As both a Spider-Man fan and a fan of "all-things-monster", a clash between the Wall-Crawler and the Man-Wolf was a no-brainer for my 25¢ investment.

Who's this Man-Wolf guy? Well, I'll tell you: While exploring the moon's surface, astronaut John Jameson (son of The Daily Bugle's irascible publisher) found an other-dimensional ruby named the Godstone, which myteriously attached itself to his body. When Jameson returned to Earth, the light of the full moon would activate the Godstone and turn him into a savage, white-furred werewolf. I just love Man-Wolf's snarling face here on the cover, and how his funky yellow radiation suit (to supposedly minimize moon rays) and superheroic-proportions gave the character a real space-age flair...which put some thematic distance between him and the standard werewolf mileau (fog-shrouded Carpathian villages, gypsies, etc.). Although not much effort was put into explaining his presence in the story, what nine year-old boy would even care?  Simply said to be a prisoner of the evil Baron Ludwig Von Shtupf (no relation to Lili Von Shtupp of Blazing Saddles), the Man-Wolf was unleashed on Spidey and his guest star from the previous issue.  Which leads me to....

This blurb!  For any kid still on the fence after seeing the spectacle of a Spidey in Man-Wolf's lycanthropic leg-lock (as unlikely as that would be), this blurb was surely enough to shake the quarter from his grasp.  Besides "Action Aplenty", the Frankenstein Monster was in there, too!  Translation: Kid Nirvanna!

Making that great day even better, the previous issue was actually still on sale nearby, making my trip to Duluth's Downtown Book an epic, unforgettable experience. Spider-Man meeting both a werewolf and the Frankenstein Monster? It was almost too much for my young mind to take in. Needless to say, these covers, and the stories inside, remain sentimental favorites of mine all these years later.

Simply the Best: Welcome to the VAULT OF EVIL!

As an eight year-old comic book rookie, I wasn't familiar with either horror comics or the eerie vignettes of shows like The Twilight Zone (having only three TV stations in my hometown). Of course, that didn't stop me from jumping in with both feet and buying The Vault of Evil #13 from Falk's Pharmacy in the summer of 1974. Sure, compared to all of the other Simply the Best covers I've featured, this one may not be an artistic classic for the ages...but it's certainly a sentimental favorite of mine as I recall that vaguely "naughty" feeling of buying something with the Devil so prominently featured. And, yes, this is a scan of my well-worn personal copy (click to enlarge): 

So, since the cover was the primary reason I bought it, what was awaiting me inside? As it turned out, quite a nice variety of weirdness...and my first real experience with the concept of irony-laden "twist" endings.

A summary:

Tale #1: "The Heat's On", a dark tale of cruelty, spousal abuse, marital infidelity, a scheming she-devil, and going straight to Hell! Perfect for an eight year-old! Note the mysterious, looming presence of Satan in the final panel.

Tale #2: "The Telepathic Typewriter", a weird morality tale of a writer who discovered a truth-telling typewriter, but is later overcome with greed.

Tale #3: "The Madman", featuring a nurse who was actually a murderous spy for a race of four-armed subterranean invaders. A very odd and unsettling story at the time.

Tale #4: "Contents: One Human!", a quirky sci-fi story in which people are shrunk to a height of six inches and mailed in packages to save on travel expenses...a program secretly operated by a Martian!

As the years went on, the sci-fi/horror anthology format became a familiar and favorite experience, whether from old time radio, TV, or comic books. But, for me, that great tradition started with Vault of Evil #13 and its collection of surreal, supernatural tales.

 

Simply the Best: Imaginary Imaginary Stories

"This is an imaginary story...aren't they all?"

So ended Alan Moore's opening paragraph of "Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?" (Superman #423, 1986), his bittersweet farewell to the so-called "Silver Age Superman". Spanning the late 1950's through the mid-1980's, this era marked a dramatic expansion of the Superman mythos in both imaginative new concepts and an ever-growing cast of characters. Among those innovations was what became known as "The Imaginary Story", or a story where divergent and dramatic events could occur without affecting the established continuity. 

Of course, as Mr. Moore's wry observation reminds us, all superhero comics are imaginary...but it was an old comic book ad that made the distinction that even fictional tales had rules the imagination could ignore as freely as it ignored reality itself. As a young lad reading my grandparents' copy of Sugar and Spike #54, I came across a house ad for Superman 80 Pg. Giant #1 (1964), which introduced the fascinating concept of pretend imaginary stories (click on the ad for a larger view). Sure, I'd imagined alternate endings to favorite fairy tales and bedtime stories like any kid before and since, but this was the first time I can recall seeing someone actually following through on those idle thoughts and stretching the imaginative boundaries of a fictional character. And not just any fictional character...it was the "life" of Superman himself they were messing with!

It was exactly this mindblowing audacity that earned the cover instant entry into the ranks of Simply the Best...even before I actually owned the issue many years later! Yeah, I'm a sucker for any cover with a black background...and that simple four-panel grid design has a certain appeal, but it's those alternate reality scenes that first grabbed hold of my imagination and never let go...

Top Left panel: Could there be anything more jarring (yet strangely intriguing) to a young boy than the concept of an evil Superman (complete with the standard burglar mask and huge bag of cash)?

Top Right panel: Whaat? A helpless Superman who could do nothing to save the world?  Say it ain't so!

Bottom Left panel: A masterful play on the common kid fear of someone else assuming your role in your family...worse yet by a girl!

Bottom Right panel: Finally, the spectre of age and death applied to the seemingly immortal Superman, making seemingly immortal kids contemplate...mortality? Even if it wasn't quite that deep, it was still amusing seeing Superman as an oldster!

As it turns out, I've remained a fan of alternate reality stories, including DC's Elseworlds and Marvel's "What If?" takes on the concept. However, as entertaining as they can be, none of them have ever quite surpassed the impact of that wondrous, vaguely subversive cover so long ago.

Simply the Best: Bring on the Bad Guys!

In the age before elaborately painted comic book covers (and interiors, for that matter), seeing "realistically" rendered versions of your favorite comic book characters was an incredibly rare treat. In fact, due to the no-frills budgets of the average comic book, the only place you were likely to see the magic of multiple light sources was on the covers of more expensive magazines and paperback books.

Some of the most fondly remembered of these painted covers were Marvel's series of origin reprints, published by Fireside Books (click on the covers for a larger view). Origins of Marvel Comics (1974) featured the first stories of Marvel's biggest stars paired with one of their modern adventures, along with Stan Lee's reflections. It's sequel, Son of Origins (1975) stuck to the same format as it explored the beginnings of Marvel's second-tier heroes, while The Superhero Women (1977) focused on...well, you can probably figure it out. 

However, as great as these covers are (all illustrated by jazzy John Romita Sr), my absolute favorite remains the third volume of the origin series: 

BRING ON THE BAD GUYS (1976)

It's title obviously the inspiration for my looks at lousy comic book supervillains, this cover celebrated all that was good about being bad in the Marvel Universe. Looking like the poster of a movie I'd likely never see (at least until relatively recently), Bring On The Bad Guys reminded me why I loved these villains (and their heroic opponents) so much. Yeah, the "by Stan Lee" tag is poorly placed, but that minor nitpick is more Fireside's doing than Romita's...and easily overlooked when surrounded by such slick, cinematic artwork.

Of course, something this good doesn't always jump right out of the pencil and onto the page. Click on the image to the left to check out Romita's initial sketch for the cover. Still cool, of course, but obviously a bit too "Doom-centered" to show off the other evildoers effectively. For more interesting "behind the scenes" stuff from Romita's spectacular career, be sure to add John Romita, And All That Jazz! to your Christmas list. I can't recommend it high enough.

Simply the Best: Here Comes the Judge!

Some of the best comic book covers are the ones that can define a character in a single image. That's absolutely the case with Judge Dredd #1. 

Hugely popular in Great Britain since the late 70's, I'd actually never heard of the character until I spotted the first issue of Eagle Comics' U.S. reprint series back in 1983. However, this fantastic cover illustration told me all I needed to know about Mega-City One's top cop...or at least enough to hook me in.

Another big selling point for me was the fact that Brian Bolland was the illustrator. First catching my attention two years earlier, then blowing my mind with his Camelot 3000 artwork, I instantly recognized his clean, expressive style on this blazing red cover. Like nothing I'd ever seen before, that image of a baroquely-costumed Dredd and his unconscious monster-punk perp perfectly captured the vibe of the uber-macho action and sociopolitical satire that defined the British cult superstar. In fact, the cover almost seemed like a grim public service announcement you might see displayed in Mega-City One, the futuristic city where Dredd and his fellow officers are (quite literally) one-man judges, juries, and executioners.

As I recall, this was also the first time I'd ventured beyond the comfortable confines of DC and Marvel Comics and tried one of the so-called "Independent" publishers that were popping up all over the place in the early 80's. So that, combined with the book's quality (and quirkiness), made the Judge Dredd #1 experience a memorable milestone in my long comic-collecting journey. 

I stuck with the title for a year or two, always savoring the covers and interior art of Brian Bolland...who quickly became (and remains to this day) one of my favorite comic book illustrators.

However, despite being the guy to visually "introduce" America to Judge Dredd, Bolland hadn't worked on the title nearly as much as other artists, so once the Bolland reprints dried up, so did my interest in the title. The looser, grittier work of guys like Mike McMahon and Cam Kennedy...while popular in Britain, just didn't have the polish and style I saw in the "Definitive Dredd" of Brian Bolland.

Simply the Best: Whip It! Whip It Good!

I've noticed that some of the covers I've chosen for Simply the Best status tend to represent common themes I'm fond of, such as clash covers or imaginary tales. This month's selection of Iron-Man #62 (1973) could also be considered a representative of a favorite cover theme...namely the conditional cliffhanger!

"Conditional cliffhanger?", you ask?  Here's what I mean: Much like the classic movie serial cliffhangers that visually showed the hero in impossible-to-escape danger, the conditional cliffhanger of comic books is unique in its use of character dialogue to spike the drama level.

Frozen at the moment of maximum peril, the hero (as Iron-Man demonstrates) is shown literally thinking or talking through the seemingly impossible dilemma he or she faces. Much like the role suspenseful music plays in enhancing a movie cliffhanger, these dire "If-Then" statements dramatically amplify the sense of danger and desperation already suggested by the visuals...to the point where a kid had no choice but to reach for two dimes and buy the dang thing!

Obviously, having chosen this particular cover, Iron-Man #62 (by cover artist supreme Gil Kane) is one of my favorite examples of the conditional cliffhanger.

One of my favorite aspects of the old Iron-Man comics is when the artists (in this case Gil Kane) would occasionally bend the rules of logic to show a hint of emotion on Shellhead's otherwise expressionless helmet. In this case, it's an expression of pure sad-faced agony as Iron-Man struggled to support the giant generator. Unlikely? Of course!..but who cares? Factor in the back-breaking contortion of Iron-Man's body, the sharp angle of the massive machinery, his about-to-buckle right leg, along with Whiplash slashing his armor to ribbons, and that adds up to sheer, unmitigated misery!

Speaking of Whiplash (The guy whose name sounds like the sound his weapon makes. Try it! I dare you!), his body language, cape, "head tassel", and (of course) his whip really convey a sense of fluid, whip-cracking motion. 

Also, points for the "tin-headed has-been" crack.

Now, back to that conditional cliffhanger! Note the progression of importance in Iron-Man's string of thought balloons. First, and naturally least important to the hero, is his own safety. Next, Iron-Man's thoughts move to protecting the life of the woman on the floor, Pepper Potts. However,as if pandering to the pre-teen boys reading the cover, the final and most horrifying possibility wasn't the death of himself or his lady love...but of Whiplash winning! "Yeah, Pepper and I will be crushed to a pulp, but man....Whiplash can't WIN!" All kidding aside, I have to say, the picture painted here is one of pure heroic determination in the face of impossible odds...something that many of today's comic fans and creators seem to dismiss as quaint or "unrealistic" (whatever that means).

My favorite part of the cover? That would be that little price square up in the corner.  Man...20¢ per comic book. Five for a buck! Yeah, I know...inflation makes it seem like more of a deal than it actually was at the time...but as we break the $4.00 barrier for a single comic book here in 2009, that's one heck of a wicked whip-crack to the wallet!  WWWWHHPPSSHHHH!

Simply the Best: How the Other Half Lives

Most fanboys will agree that Batman's greatest arch-enemy is The Joker, and, depending on what day of the week it is, I'll usually agree. However, a really close second place (appropriately enough) has always been Two-Face.

Formerly a District Attorney and pal of Batman, Harvey Dent lost his sanity and turned to crime when one side of his face was hideously disfigured. Like his bizarrely mismatched new outfit, Dent's psyche was also split down the middle, requiring the flip of a coin to determine his good or bad actions. This constant theme of duality, beyond his chilling look and M.O., is the primary reason I enjoy Two-Face so much. He seems to embody the warring sides of human nature itself, as good and bad behavior coexist yet battle for control with the capriciousness of a coin flip.

However, much farther below the lofty metaphysical conflict of good vs. evil is another battle humanity wages on a daily basis: order vs. chaos (a.k.a. "neat vs. sloppy")...which Two-Face once again embodies here on the very clever cover of Batman #313 (1979).

Published toward the tail end of a more innocent era (before Batman comics became a steady slog of psycho-operatic angst), this Garcia Lopez illustration is a ton of fun. Channeling his inner-Felix and Oscar, Harvey Dent's "Odd Couple" decor is a joy for the eye to roam. A bright yellow couch, tidy office, clean carpeting, and tea set (!) contrasted with a filthy brown couch, broken furniture, stained carpeting, a bottle of booze, and cigarettes...with Two-Face perfectly centered between the two extremes.

As for Batman himself, it's nice (though a bit jarring) to see his costume's old blue and gray color scheme, isn't it? You'll also note that he's nicely highlighted by the room's converging perspective lines...not to mention that bit of mild symbolism as he reaches out to grab Harvey's scarred side (while staying withdrawn from his unscarred side).

"Crowning" the cover design is the classic 1970's Batman logo. With its bold block lettering and 40's-style Batman face, its symmetry fits especially well with a reflective (or warped reflective) cover like this one.

Now...if only the cover scene didn't remind me so much of that apartment I shared with three guys during college (two of us were neat, and two of us were slobs).

Simply the Best: INCREDIBLE!

In this age of timely and plentiful trade paperback reprints, the sheer amount of comic book history available to the average fan is staggering. So much so, that many don't realize (or tend to forget) how rare they used to be. Sure, Marvel and DC featured reprints of older material in their annuals and giant-size formats, but their rather low profile and random selection never gave them the attention (or context) they deserved.

That all started to change in the mid-1970's when Fireside Books (a Simon and Schuster imprint) published a series of high-quality volumes reprinting Marvel Comics origin stories (which I covered here a few months back). As I noted before, as great as the inside stories were, it was the stunning painted covers that made these reprints really feel like something special and worth celebrating.

During this same period, the Marvel/Fireside alliance branched out from origin stories and began reprinting other famous or "key" stories that us whippersnappers may have missed out on the first time around. As a major HULK fan at the time, I still remember how thrilled I was to see a collection of Hulk stories solicited in a Marvel comics house ad. Ahh...but that particular ad (as I recall) featured a standard inked & colored version of Bruce Banner transforming into the Hulk...so imagine the breathtaking moment I opened my mail package and found THIS mind-blowing painting staring back at me!...

 

Seeing that cover for the first time was truly one of the most thrilling moments in all my years of collecting comics. Although I'd now quibble over that bland, distracting "National TV Star" blurb, the sheer three-dimensional power of Bob Larkin's painting makes it easy to ignore.

I went on to purchase many more Marvel reprint books, like these Bob Larkin beauties:

(click on the covers for a larger view)

Regretfully, I sold most of them off during my feverish eBay phase several years back, but just seeing the cover images again brings back a boatload of fond memories...chief among them the thrill of discovering classic comic book stories, made even sweeter with covers that seemed like movie posters!

Simply the Best: A Cover Worth the Trouble

Have you ever seen a  comic book cover that was so compelling, you'd risk an authority figure's wrath just to touch it?

Well, that's exactly what happened to me way back in elementary school. You see, during that bygone era, kids actually bought and read comics on a regular basis...and my 5th grade pals and I were no exception. In fact, we were so enthusiastic about comics, we spent several of our valuable recess sessions looking at comics instead of terrifying girls...and occasionally buying, selling, or trading them (the comics, not the girls).

However, one afternoon during class, a pal sitting across from me took out a stack of comics and slyly held them up for me to peek at. One by one he displayed them, until he came to Marvel Team-Up #53 (1977)...the comic book I instantly knew I HAD TO OWN!!!

Overcome by the sheer awesomeness of both the rampaging Hulk and Spider-Man (two huge favorites of mine at the time), I involuntarily reached across the isle to examine the issue... despite our teacher Mr. Kadlicek trying to lead the class. As you might have guessed, Mr. K turned around and utterly busted us in mid hand-off...so close, yet so far away from getting my hands on this mindblowing cover!

As it turned out, Mr. K. confiscated my pal's comics until the end of the school day, but then told us he'd allow us to trade comics at the end of the day each Friday....with the understanding that we wouldn't mess with 'em during class. A very reasonable policy, I must say...and a kindness I fondly remember all these years later.

Oh...and I did eventually make a trade for that copy of Marvel Team-Up #53 on...you guessed it...FRIDAY!

So...are there any comics YOU risked life, 

limb, or a good conduct grade to own?

Simply the Best: "CHAAARRRRGE!"

Few events in all of storytelling are more thrilling than the charge of a thundering cavalry, bursting through for a last-minute save. The spectacle of a massive force united in a single purpose is as uplifting to the heart as it is overwhelming to the senses.

My enjoyment of the "cavalry charge" extends into the realm of superhero comics as well...which, as you can see from this magnificent 1998 Justice Society of America litho by Alex Ross, can be every bit as impressive as the soldiers-on-horseback variety.

Naturally, any comic book cover featuring this "charging into battle" theme will grab my attention and (most likely) end up as part of my collection. A fan of the equally-frenetic clash cover, I guess I'm just a sucker for giant crowd scenes of superheroes careening into conflict.  Here are some great examples of what I'm talking about (a few of which you may recognize from previous Simply the Best posts):

As great as the above covers are, a "charge cover" that narrowly edges them out belongs to All-Star Squadron #31 (1984), illustrated by the great Jerry Ordway...

So much to like here:

1. That brilliant red to orange background.

2. Uncle Sam!

3. The dynamic (yet vaguely symmetrical) angles on which the horde of heroes are charging, all radiating out from the central point of Liberty Belle.

4. The inclusion of the Golden Age (or "Earth-2") versions of Superman, Batman, Robin, and Green Arrow, along with several more obscure heroes, including characters from the defunct Quality Comics line (which DC purchased the rights to in 1956). Fans of Superman will note the similarity of his pose to those drawn by o-creator Joe Shuster.

5. That 75¢ cover price. Sure, 75¢ wasn't the small change it is today...but still, just seeing a two-digit price for a comic book always warms the heart.

Simply the Best: Startling Secrets and Ruling the World!

I'm the last guy you'll see casually throwing around the phrase "old school covers". The vaguely derogatory term seems to imply that some kind of profound historical shift occurred in the way comic book covers should be perceived and discussed.  It's as if to say comic book covers of decades past could still be considered "good"....but good with an asterisk.  "Good" in a condescending, less sophisticated kind of way that doesn't quite measure up to today's Olympian "new school" standards. 

That said, I do recognize that comics of twenty-plus years ago had a flair and a style all their own. Best of all, covers of that era (roughly the 1960's through the late 80's) grabbed your interest by telling a story! An extremely brief and melodramatic story, but a story nonetheless. Contrast this style with today's obsession with "stock pose" covers that don't tell you much about the story inside or do much to hook your interest.  Sure, the art is usually top-notch...but like a movie poster or the cover of a novel, not much more than a one-note image.  Nice to look at, sure...but can they compel someone to buy them with the force of, say, Fantastic Four #199 (1978)?

(click on the cover for a larger view)

This one's got it all:

Character-defining word balloons: The best word balloons of this era would give you a quick-yet-defining snapshot of the speaker. In this case, we know in an instant that Dr. Doom (A) desperately wanted to rule the world (B) was willing to kill his son to get there and (C) was therefore a really bad guy!

Dramatic "acting": Like a professional actor, a comic book illustrator should be able to capture and convey intense emotions, especially when you're trying to grab a potential buyer's attention with a cover design. In this case, the snarling determination of Victor Von Doom II is the emotional core around which the entire cover revolves. Do yourself a favor and click on the image for a super-sized look at Doom Jr.'s face. Those sunken eyes and gritted teeth always rivet my attention. Add to that my enthusiasm for characters with amalgamated powers (like Doom Jr.'s F.F. abilities), and that 35¢ was as good as spent back in 1978.

I miss the days of covers trumpeting "startling secrets" in a deliberately melodramatic, non-ironic way. And villains who wanted to rule the world. And questions that didn't always end with question marks.

Layouts that amplify the cover's narrative: In this issue's story, Victor Von Doom II was actually a specially engineered clone of Dr. Doom who ultimately turns against his creator to defend the Fantastic Four. This change of heart is wonderfully foreshadowed on the cover by Doom Jr.'s very protective presence, made even more dramatic by his dynamic, twisting stance and the camera angle.

Also, note how the angled energy blasts from Dr. Doom's hands lead the eye directly to the word balloon exchange and, more important, the helpless members of the Fantastic Four Doom Jr. is obviously defending.

Joe: As great as Keith Pollard's layout was, I give most of the credit for this cover's success to Joe Sinnott, whose sublime inking evokes this era of crisp, clear storytelling more than any other visual cue.