Panel Discussion: Looking for Adventure at DC...

 

Redartz:  It occurred to me recently that most of our comics discussions have focused on Marvel. With some reason, actually- I was always a Marvel Zuvembie first and foremost, so I write what I know. That said, there has been a great deal of DC in my collecting and reading as well. Going waaaaaaaay back to the beginnings, Superman was my first superhero title. Which I enjoyed, but the first DC book that really drew my interest was Adventure Comics. And it remained a favorite even into my college years. 

Adventure 369, an early favorite

 

 

 What was it about "Adventure" that grabbed me?  At first it was Superboy and the Legion of Superheroes. At the time, about 1967, Jim Shooter was writing it and Curt Swan was drawing it. Swan's art was familiar, as I'd seen it on the Man of  Steel. And Shooter was learning the ropes of scripting, developing talents I'd come to appreciate years later in the Avengers. Which of course I didn't know at the time, it just seemed that the stories with these super powered teens were more...convincing, more real, more dramatic. Compared, that is, to what was offered in "Superman" and "Action Comics". Superboy was familiar, but it took awhile to get used to so many other characters. Mon-El, Shadow Lass, Braniac 5; they even had cool names. Perhaps it was the combination of these factors that made "Adventure" an early read for me.  And I'll always be grateful to 'Adventure" for introducing me to the Legion, a group which would become one of my top picks, under Paul Levitz and Keith Giffen.

 

 

 

 

 

A few years later, upon returning to comics in a serious way, "Adventure" again piqued the interest. Michael Fleisher and Jim Aparo's Spectre tales were solid reading, and obviously the art was fine. I also got a kick out of "Black Orchid" (created by Sheldon Mayer, when he wasn't giving voice and life to
Sugar and Spike). Not being a fan of Aquaman, his takeover of hte book didn't excite me. Still later Superboy took over as the lead feature, which kind of had a Silver Age feel despite being published deep in the Bronze. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

But my favorite incarnation of "Adventure Comics" appeared in the later 70's, when Superboy moved into his own book: "New Adventures of Superboy".  Meanwhile, the original "Adventure" became a Dollar comic; no ads and a great lineup of features. Deadman, the JLA, Wonder Woman, Flash; a pretty  good deal for your dollar. Personally, I most relished Deadman by Len Wein and Jim Aparo, and the Justice Society by Paul Levitz and Joe Staton ( one highlight of that feature was the impressive death of Earth 2 Batman). . Sadly the book soon shrank back to 'normal' size, but it still featured a nifty cast: the new Starman , by Paul Levitz and Steve Ditko (!), and the wonderful Plastic Man by Martin Pasko and Joe Staton. Great book, one of the best of the era and often overlooked. 

Eventually I dropped "Adventure Comics" when it converted to an all-reprint digest format. But the title (and it's distinctive, original curvy logo) always stayed close to my heart.  Next up: a selection of Bronze Age Adventure Comics covers, showing the range of headliners it carried. Any fellow 'Adventurers' out there?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Two Questions: Who's on Your Mount Rushmore?



Martinex1: Today we have two questions based on a poll I posted recently on twitter.  Here is the poll and the results.

Because twitter had limitations regarding the number of choices and options, let me pose the question to you a little differently:


QUESTION 1: Who is on your comic book artist Mount Rushmore?  Name four artists that you think should be on the monument.  It is open to any artists from any genre of comics.  Tell us why you chose your selections.   Here are some options (this list is definitely not all inclusive):


Jack Kirby, Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez, John Byrne, Wally Wood, John Buscema, Frank Miller, Steve Ditko, John Romita Sr., Joe Kubert, Neal Adams, Will Eisner, Jim Steranko, Gil Kane, George Perez, Gene Colan, Jim Starlin, Bill Sienkiewicz, Marie Severin, Mort Drucker, Joe Shuster, Carmine Infantino, Todd McFarlane, Bill Everett, Sal Buscema, Paul Smith, Don Heck, George Tuska, Michael Golden, Carl Barks, Mike Ploog, Jim Aparo, Amanda Connor, Bill Finger, Frank Frazetta, Moebius, Fiona Staples, Walt Simonson, Bob Bolling, Stan Goldberg, Harry Lucey, Ramona Fradon, Bob Montana, Dan DeCarlo, Frank Robbins, Nick Cardy, Bernie Wrightson, etc.

QUESTION 2: Who is on your comic book writer Mount Rushmore?  Name four writers that you would honor in this way.  Again, it can be a writer from any genre of comic book, and again tell us why you made the choice you did.  Consider anybody that has written comics including but not limited to:

Stan Lee, Bob Haney, Chris Claremont, Al Feldstein, Grant Morrison, Jim Shooter, Edmond Hamilton, Art Spiegelman, Doug Moench, Roger Stern, Mark Waid, Otto Binder, Jack Kirby, Bill Mantlo, Roy Thomas, Frank Miller, John Byrne, Ann Nocenti, Bill Mantlo, Alan Moore, Gardner Fox, Joe Gill, J,M, DeMatteis, Gail Simone, Gaiman, Peter David, Denny O'Neil, Jim Starlin, Mark Gruenwald, Kurt Busiek, Kelly Sue DeConnick, Jeph Loeb, Don McGregor, Marv Wolfman, Len Wein, etc.


Cheers all!

c

  

Follow the Leader: Episode 79: Are you Furious or Strange?!?

Martinex1: On Tuesdays we open the door to our commentators to contribute a topic for us to discuss.  Questions can center on anything even remotely related to the Bronze Age - comic books, movies, food, novels, characters, television, and music.  Anybody can get us started.  Everybody can join in.

Note that we offer this feature each and every Tuesday, and the opportunity to get us going starts at 5:00 AM Eastern / 6:00 AM Central / 7:00 AM Mountain and 8:00 AM Pacific time.  (That is 12:00 PM in London and 1:00 PM in Paris).

Cheers!

This and That: All about Pin-Up Pages...

Redartz:  Hello culture fans!  Today we have a treat for you. Nothing but eye candy, comic style. Yes, we're talking about pin-up pages. Just a little extra goodie added into a comic, not part of a story but always a welcome addition. There have been dramatic, artistically breathtaking pinups. 'Cheesecake' and 'beefcake' type pinups. Humorous pinups. Educational/historic pinups. Tribute pinups. Indeed there are feature  pages galore. Often found in Annuals and anniversary issues, frequently seen in romance and teen comics. And certainly a common inclusion in good old superhero comics. So Marti and I will offer up a smorgasbord of one-page (and sometimes two-page) wonders. By the way, the Batman /Robin two-pager below is a seldom-seen gem; by Carmine Infantino and Murphy Anderson- from Batman 181, the intro of Poison Ivy. Often removed, which is why finding that key book complete can be challenging...

Martinex1:  I have to start by saying that I love pin-ups.   My start with comics included pass-me-down books from the Silver and early Bronze Age, and those comics seemed to be laden with extras including pin-ups, diagrams, and team poses.   But when we first traded messages about discussing this topic, my mind immediately went to the Fantastic Four.  That book seemed to always have some pin-up and Jack Kirby seemed to relish in the creation of those.

Redartz:  Great call on the FF. That book really did feature some amazing pinup shots. Kirby was a master at these, just as he mastered so much more. 

Martinex1: I always enjoyed when when the team "autographed" the art as if they were directing a message right to the reader.   During John Byrne's tenure on the book he reinvigorated the concept and created some of his own; he even included the "signatures" on his team pin-up.

Redartz:  Quite right, Marti. Byrne was just as adept at these pinups as the King was. I love how much personality he gives the team members. 
 Of course, Marvel's other early giant, the web-slinger, was no slouch in the pinup department either. Here's my favorite pinup from the Amazing Steve Ditko. Steve did so many pinups, in regular issues and annuals, it's hard to pick just one, but this is just plain fantastic.

Martinex1:  I was just looking at that page the other day.   Not only does it make Spidey wonderfully mysterious, it acted as almost a checklist of all the villains he faced up until that point. I wonder if Ditko inked that himself.

Redartz: And, how can we not give Mr. Romita Sr. a nod?   By the way, the center page below is from Amazing Spider-Man 600, just to show that the pinup is not completely dead! The page on the right, below, is a wonderful bit of fun from "Unknown Tales of Spider-Man" Annual 2, by Archie artist Dan DeCarlo.  I just love that...

Martinex1: I would have liked to see DeCarlo draw a Marvel hero comic; that would have been fun.  In the early heyday, Marvel stretched the Pin-Up Pages to include some oddball characters, lesser known entities, and even villains.  Thor, and all of the characters therein, was second on my mind when thinking about this topic; that book had some great pin-ups.  In some cases I learned about the characters as there was added script to explain their history.  It was a bit of a precursor to the handbooks of the 1980s.

Martinex1: I also recall pin-ups with cutout outfits and fashions.  My sisters used to play with those paper dolls and their clothes.  Betty, Veronica, Katy Keene, Chili, and even Sugar and Spike had those pages.  I am sure that type of theme is lost to the ages.   

Redartz:  Glad you noted these, and especially my good friends Sugar and Spike! Of course, many of the pinups found in Archie comics were sort of one-panel jokes, such as this beaut :

Martinex1:  Although not nearly as frequent, there were some pin-ups that crept later into the Bronze Age that I really enjoyed.  I remember being intrigued by these Micronauts and ROM pages.

Redartz:  Those are sharp, indeed. Some of the coolest artwork in comics can be found in pinups, such as these from Barry Windsor-Smith, Bernie Wrightson, Curt Swan...

 Adam Kubert, Will Eisner, and Brian Bolland:

And of course Dell/Gold Key often had pinups in their television-based comics, sometimes using photographs...

And finally, let me add a big favorite from Legion of Superheroes 300, an incredible two-page spread from Kieth Giffen and Larry Mahlstedt. If you look closely you might find a couple guest stars.

Martinex1:  Well Red, this was a fun journey and it had me looking at some art that I hadn't perused in decades (and some I had never seen).   It really goes back to a nostalgic time, and it was interesting to see how much extra effort the creators and publishers put into their work back in the day.  Maybe pin-ups were just page filler, but I always liked how they were presented and what they added to the comic book experience. Thanks for inviting me to opine on the topic.

Redartz:  Thank you, Marti, for joining me in saluting these great extras found only in the world of comics (you don't get pinup shots in movies, or a special insert paragraph in a novel). Just one more reason to love the medium of comic books!