Limited Collectors' Edition #C-61 ([March] 1979)

Taken from the book's entry at the Grand Comics Database:

DC, 1972 Series Volume: 7
Price: 2.00 USD
Pages: 84
Indicia frequency: Quarterly
On-sale date: 1978-12-14
Indicia / Colophon Publisher: DC Comics, Inc.
Brand: DC [bullet]
Editing: E. Nelson Bridwell

Color: Color
Dimensions: Tabloid
Paper Stock: Glossy Cover; Newsprint Interior
Binding: Saddle-stitched
Publishing Format: Was Ongoing Series

[no title indexed]

cover / 1 page
Pencils: Michael Nasser
Inks: Terry Austin
Colors: ?
Letters: Michael Nasser
Genre: science fiction; superhero
Characters: Martian Manhunter; Superman; Batman; Hawkman

(Table of Contents)

foreword, introduction, preface, afterword / 1 page
Script: Bob Greenberger
Letters: Typeset
Indexer Notes: On inside front cover. Uses art from cover as background.
Reprints: Super Powers (DC, 1985 series) #1 (September 1985)

...And So My World Ends!

Justice League of America / comic story / 22 pages
Script: Denny O'Neil
Pencils: Dick Dillin
Inks: Sid Greene
Characters: Justice League of America [JLA; Atom [Ray Palmer]; Batman [Bruce Wayne]; Flash [Barry Allen]; Green Arrow [Oliver Queen]; Green Lantern [Hal Jordan]; Hawkman [Katar Hol; Carter Hall]; Martian Manhunter [J'onn J'onzz] (leaves); Superman [Clark Kent; Kal-El]]; Diana Prince [Wonder Woman]; I Ching; Commander Blanx (villain)
Reprints: Justice League of America (DC, 1961 series) #71 (May 1969)
Indexer Notes: Credits for script, pencils and inks confirmed from Julius Schwartz's editorial records, provided by DC Comics (May 2007).

JLA Trivia Quiz

Justice League of America / activity / 0.33 page
Script: E. Nelson Bridwell
Pencils: various
Inks: various
Job Number: N-1121
Genre: superhero
Characters: Metamorpho; Creeper; Batman [Earth-2]; Robin [Earth-2]; Superman [Earth-1]; Black Canary; Aquaman; Wonder Woman [Earth-1]; Elongated Man; Green Arrow [Earth-1]; Green Lantern [Hal Jordan]; Red Tornado; The Flash [Barry Allen]  
Reprints: Justice League of America (DC, 1961 series) #114 (November-December 1974)
Indexer Notes: Art reprinted from various sources. Script credit confirmed from letter column in issue #116.

[Answers]

activity / 0.33 page
Indexer Notes: Answers to the puzzles and quizzes in this issue.

...And So My World Begins!

Superman; Martian Manhunter / comic story / 22 pages
Script: Denny O'Neil
Pencils: Dick Dillin
Inks: Joe Giella
Characters: J'onn J'onzz The Martian Manhunter; Superman; Bel Juz
Reprints: World's Finest Comics (DC, 1941 series) #212 (June 1972)
Indexer Notes: Credits for script, pencils and inks confirmed from Julius Schwartz's editorial records, provided by DC Comics (May 2007).

Mission Catch a Killer

Manhunter from Mars / comic story / 6 pages
Script: Denny O'Neil
Pencils: Michael Netzer [as Mike Nasser]
Inks: Terry Austin
Colors: Carl Gafford
Characters: J'onn J'onzz Manhunter from Mars; R'es Eda; Flash [Barry Allen] (Cameo); Green Lantern [Hal Jordan] (Cameo); N'or Cott; Superman [Clark Kent] (Cameo)
Reprints: Adventure Comics (DC, 1938 series) #449 (January-February 1977)

Return to Destiny

Manhunter from Mars / comic story / 5 pages
Script: Denny O'Neil
Pencils: Michael Netzer [as Mike Nasser]
Inks: Terry Austin
Colors: Michael Netzer [as Mike Nasser]
Characters: J'onn J'onzz, Manhunter from Mars; Supergirl [Linda Dangers; Kara Zor-El]; N'or Cott; R'es Eda (flashback)
Reprints: Adventure Comics (DC, 1938 series) #450 (March-April 1977)
Indexer Notes: Original story page 2 was removed for this edition and text from page 3 edited for omission.

The Suspects

Manhunter from Mars / comic story / 6 pages
Script: Denny O'Neil
Pencils: Michael Netzer [as Mike Nasser]
Inks: Terry Austin
Colors: Liz Berube
Characters: J'onn J'onzz, Manhunter from Mars; N'or Cott; Hawkman [Carter Hall]; Hawkgirl [Shiera Hall]; R'es Eda (flashback); Superman Robot
Reprints: Adventure Comics (DC, 1938 series) #451 (May-June 1977)

Today Mars, Tomorrow... The Universe

Superman; Batman; Martian Manhunter / comic story / 18 pages
Script: Bob Haney
Pencils: Curt Swan
Inks: Murphy Anderson
Colors: Jerry Serpe
Letters: Debra Schulman
Characters: J'onn J'onzz the Martian Manhunter; Hawkman; Superman; Batman; Hawkgirl; N'or Cott; R'es Eda; Supergirl (flashback)
Reprints: World's Finest Comics (DC, 1941 series) #245 (June-July 1977)
Keywords: Baltaz; Crystal Mountain; Mars II
Indexer Notes: Original story pages 5-6 were removed for this edition and text from page 4 edited for omission.

[no title indexed]

Martian Manhunter / illustration / 1 page
Pencils: Michael Netzer [as Mike Nasser]
Inks: Michael Netzer [as Mike Nasser]

[no title indexed]

Martian Manhunter / illustration / 1 page
Pencils: Michael Netzer
Inks: Josef Rubinstein
Indexer Notes: Bronze/copper ink.

2011 "Have Peace Eduardo Barreto" art by Michael Netzer

Click to Enlarge


Read Netzer's accompanying farewell text here.

2010 Martian Manhunter Commission by Michael Netzer & Joe Rubinstein

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Last year, I ran this commission's pencils by Michael Netzer credited as though they had already been inked by famed embellisher Joe Rubinstein. I recognized the error some time back, but while doing some organizing on the blog, I finally decided to get this corrected. It's always neat to see two artist's interpretations of the same piece.

O’Neil & Netzer Announced for RETRO-ACTIVE 1970s Martian Manhunter!

From the DC Universe: The Source blog...

RETROACTIVE: MARTIAN MANHUNTER – THE ‘70s #1 Writer and Artist Announced
By David Hyde

Last week, we announced RETROACTIVE. Today, we’ll take a trip back to the 70’s and tell you a little more about each title.

This past weekend at London's Kapow! Comic Con, DC Comics VP of Sales Bob Wayne announced the latest creative team for the RETRO-ACTIVE event, legendary writer Dennis O’Neil and veteran artist Michael Netzer on The 70s MARTIAN MANHUNTER. Published throughout July and August 2011, these are exactly the kinds of one-shots people often associate with summer. RETRO-ACTIVE reunites classic writers and artists with classic characters Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, The Flash, Justice League of America, and of course the Manhunter from Mars, returning to the interpretations they are best known for. Each of these series will have 3 one-shots that pay homage respectively to the ‘70s, ‘80s, and ‘90s.

Dennis O’Neil was also on the panel, and joked, "I don't really remember writing all those J'onn J'onzz stories, so for me, it'll be like my first time!" He continued, "You have to understand that back then, the Martian Manhunter wasn't as significant a character as he is today. When I took over JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA, Gardner Fox had already written him out of the book. My editor was Julie Schwartz, and he asked me to give the character a better send-off, since his feature had been dropped from whatever series it ran in, and readers were writing in to Julie to find out what had become of him. I thought stories set on Mars after we knew there was nothing there were silly, so I burned everybody out and sent J'onzz packing to find whoever was left. I figured that would be the end of it, but Julie had me do another one a few years later, and then I got roped in again a few years after that!"

O’Neil was complimentary of the writers who followed him. "I think the stuff they did later on was great! I didn't know what to do with the guy, and at the time, nobody else did, either. It was hard to treat him seriously. I think it was Steve Englehart who first grounded John Jones in the 1950s, in all that McCarthy paranoia, and other writers really ran with that. They brought a detective novel sensibility to the superhero, and made it work. I'd like to try that with this special, but instead of doing the same thing people have seen before, I think I've come up with a nice little twist to it. I want to take John Jones and write a script where he's a 1970s style detective. Something like Serpico or the French Connection, where you keep the grit and suspense without the trench coats and fedoras."

Joining O'Neil will be one of the great Martian Manhunter artists of the era, Michael Netzer. The artist previously wrote of his credentials on the Manhunter from Mars serial in ADVENTURE COMICS, "Over the years, and especially on comics related web sites and forums, there has been a notable fondness expressed for this series, which included that memorable logo I designed, and was later used repeatedly in various Martian Manhunter appearances. It was often said that it was this depiction of J'Onn J'Onzz which revived him in the DC Universe, and brought back his pronounced brow that became, and remains, his visual trademark to date. Almost whenever the Martian Manhunter is cited by comics fans and aficionados, that series is remembered by J'Onn J'Onzz' lovers from all eras, and spanning the spectrum of comics fandom."

All the 70’s titles will hit stands in late July. Each title in the series will feature 26 new story pages with 20 pages of classic stories, running at $4.99 a piece. Keep checking back to THE SOURCE as we reveal full creative teams, artwork, and more details about RETRO-ACTIVE in the coming weeks and months.

DC RETROACTIVE: MARTIAN MANHUNTER – THE ‘70s #1
Artist Michael Netzer and writer Dennis O’Neil return to the character of J'onn J'onzz in the heart of the ‘70s, a decade that transitioned him from a campy Sleuth from Outer Space into today’s Manhunter from Mars.
ONE-SHOT • On sale JULY 27 • 56 pg, FC, $4.99 US • RATED T

Please note that this art is style guide art and is not artwork from the actual issue.



Remember folks, April holidays can last longer than you might think...

The Michael Netzer/Nasser Index

Mike Nasser was the single most influential Martian Manhunter artist of the 1970s, and one of the most important in the character's history. Nasser brought back J'onn J'onzz's original alien look, designed the "Manhunter from Mars" logo, and helped popularize the obscure hero through a late decade serial in Adventure Comics. The rechristened Michael Netzer has also been a friend and benefactor to this Martian Manhunter blog, gifting it with free artwork (including our distinctive banner.) In his honor, we present a comprehensive link list of the blog's output related to his work, accompanied by art remastered by Tom Hartley.

Biography

• Creators of Mars: Michael Nasser/Netzer

Original Art Showcase

• 1976 Mike Nasser/Terry Austin World's Finest Pin-Up
• 1977 J'onn J'onzz Disapproving Convention Sketch
• 1979 J'onn J'onzz Convention Sketch
• 1980 Whizzard Fanzine Cover Art by Michael Nasser and Terry Austin
• 2004 Hawkgirl, J'Onn J'Onzz & Hawkman Convention Sketch
• 2007 "The Idol-Head Of Diabolu, A Blog For J'Onn J'Onzz" Banner
• 2008 "Take Me... But Don't Kill J'Onn" (Art for and discussion related to Michael Netzer's internet crusade to save Martian Manhunter from murder in Final Crisis.
• 2008 Martian Manhunter and the Atom (Ryan Choi) Art
• 2008 Martian Manhunter and the Atom (Ray Palmer) Art
• 2008 Aquaman & Martian Manhunter Preliminary Sketch
• 2008 Martian Manhunter, Aquaman & Atom Art
• 2009 "J'onn J'onzz R.I.P." Pin-Up
• 2009 "December of Despero" Pin-Up
• 2010 Martian Manhunter Commission by Michael Netzer & Joe Rubinstein
• 2010 FBCC Sketches | Martian Manhunter

Comics Coverage

• Martian Manhunter in the 1970's (Our index featuring a Nasser illustration)
• Adventure Comics #449: "Mission: Catch A Killer"
• Adventure Comics #450: "Return To Destiny"
• Adventure Comics #451: "The Suspects"
• World's Finest Comics #245: "Today Mars, Tomorrow... The Universe"

Martian Manhunter related Co-Creations

• N'or Cott
• R’es Eda
• Scepter of State

Fan Fiction

2010 The Martian Manhunter Archives Volume 6 Fan Mock-Ups by Tom Hartley

• "Cover" by Nasser (isolation of image from Adventure Comics #451's splash page)
• "Create-Your-Own Back Cover" (Discusses absence of actual Nasser/Netzer comic book covers)
• "Introduction" (Hartley considers Nasser's contributions)
• "Table of Contents" (I offer my own views)

"What Would Michael Netzer Do?"
(How things might have played out if Netzer's campaign to save J'Onn had ended with his drawing scripts for then-current DC writers.)

• ... with Frank Miller?
• ... with Judd Winick?

Miscellanea

• Michael Netzer Makes My Day (Noting the artist's series of comments on posts for my fledgling blog.)
• The Naked Artist: Comic Book Legends (2007) (Referencing Nasser & Manhunter's mentions in the Bryan Talbot gossip/anecdote book.)
• A Banner Day! (A discussion of the banner Netzer created for this blog.)
• The Atomic Bomb (A consideration of the pin-ups Netzer created for several blogs during is campaign, especially Atom: The Tiny Titan's.
• Super Powers/Super Friends (A consideration of the pin-ups Netzer created for several blogs during is campaign, especially The Aquaman Shrine's.
• The Slings & Arrows Comic Guide on Martian Manhunter (2003) (Excerpts from critical reviews of Nasser's Manhunter from Mars)
• The Brow & Michael Netzer: A Question from Tom Hartley (The story behind the 1970s revitalization)

1977 J'onn J'onzz Disapproving Convention Sketch by Michael Nasser

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Ah, come on, J'onn. I know I'm a little late posting tonight. I took a four hour nap, and will likely pull an all-nighter prepping for two tests tomorrow and a third on Friday. Give me a break!

Hey J'onn, this was your big year, huh? 1977! Your Adventure Comics serial! So J'onn, were you looking at a lot of Gil Kane that year? Um, J'onn-- are those the twin moons of Mars II in the background, or was that Vonn? C'mon J'onn, get happy! You were so ornery back then...

As always, be sure to visit The Michael Netzer Online Portal, from which this image was blessedly originated.

2010 FBCC Sketches | Martian Manhunter by Michael Netzer

The latest J'onn J'onzz pin-up from Michael Netzer's Online Portal blog!

Can You Feel The Love Tonight?

I'm a big fan of Anj's Supergirl Comic Box Commentary, and the feeling is mutual, which is why he nominated me for a Kreativ Blogger Award. This is one of those sort of pat-on-the-back/chain letter sort of thing I've grumbled about in the past on other blogs, but when combined with Anj's kind words, how could I resist?

One thing that I appreciate about the blogosphere is that fans passionate about their favorite characters have a venue to ...well ... be passionate. One of my absolute favorite sites is the Idol Head, a tremendous site for anything about the Martian Manhunter by Frank Diabolu. Informative about all the eras of J'onn J'onzz as well as looking ahead, this blog is everything that I strive to be about Supergirl. It is organized and spiffy in ways that make me jealous.

The first rule of K-Klub, is to promote it with its jpeg. The second rule is to link to the person who nominated you. The third is to thank them, being Anj, who I thank. The fourth rule is to nominate seven other bloggers for the award, with links. The sixth is to send me $10 American, $135 Mexican. The seventh is to punch Anj in the ear as hard as you can leave those blogs a comment to let them know you care. I don't always color with the lines, though. I'm going to avoid the obvious choices, since I pretty consistently link to brethren blogs like Firestorm Fan, Being Carter Hall, Comics Make Me Happy!, and The Aquaman Shrine anyway. Since I assume there's no tag backs, I have to bypass Anj and nominate...

Marvel Genesis
At which Don Alsafi offers a chronological review of each comic of the "Marvel Age," which for our purposes begins with Fantastic Four #1. I love that this guy is trying to take the historical perspective here, commenting on the slow, organic progression of Marvel Comics from the primordial goop of Marty Goodman's shell game publishing empire.

Every Day Is Like Wednesday
J. Caleb Mozzocco is my favorite comic book reviewer, plus he offers strong industry commentary and the occasional cute comic strip.

Slay, Monstrobot of the Deep!!
I only rediscovered this blog recently, but I consistently enjoy Snell's humorous assault on the rampant stupidity of modern Big Two comics.

Armagideon Time
I enjoy Andrew Weiss' writing on most subjects (aside from '80s console games,) but I especially enjoy his weekly "Nobody's Favorite" underwhelming super-hero spotlight.

Rob Kelly Illustration
Rob's got so blamed many blogs, its easy for some to get lost in the shuffle. This is the home of all his commercial and personal art projects, and they're too fine to pass up.

The Factual Opinion
I miss their political coverage, but they still have the snarkiest comic book, TV, and movie reviews around. I very sharp blog.

Sanctum Sanctorum Comix
It's a Dr. Strange blog. If that alone isn't enough to pique your interest, you need to read more Dr. Strange comics. Except that JMS crap. Or anything by Bendis. You should know this already.

In further mutual appreciation society news, Michael Netzer took a break from drawing really boss material for Dynamite's Green Hornet comics to throw a little love at Martian Manhunter’s Favorite Blog...

I know that all this isn’t enough to make Idol-Heal a favorite Martian Manhunter blog. It only adds a touch of appreciation to all of the other marvelous content there. Frank-Lee Delano doesn’t miss a beat and is dedicated to this site as if it was was a primary bread and butter enterprise. So do visit and have an updated look of what’s new with the resurrected Martian Manhunter. The darkest days appear to be behind the DC Universe of late, and old favorites are shining in brightest day again, as is the Idol-Head of Diabolu. Seems like a good sign for aficionados of illuminated environs.

Netzer also offers up another neat vintage convenition sketch from a unique perspective, which I'll totally have to steal once its been up long enough I won't step on anyone's traffic!

Creators of Mars: Michael Nasser/Netzer

Detroit, MI native Mike Nasser, following years of medical treatment for the polio which had partially paralyzed parts of his left leg, moved to his parents' native Lebanon as a child. At about age eight, he fell in love with comic art via uncolored Arabic translations of DC books. Returning to the Motor City in the late '60s, Nasser took art classes, made Lt. Col in the ROTC, and worked his way into local fandom. A couple of great unsung African-American artists, Arvell Jones and Keith Pollard, took Nasser in when he moved to New York in 1975. Breaking into the industry through cover illustrations for Marvel foreign reprints, Nasser wanted a chance at interior sequential art, and got it through DC editor Gerry Conway. This eventually led to his working on a three part Manhunter from Mars serial with Denny O'Neil and Terry Austin.

At the suggestion of Greg Theakston, Nasser looked at the earliest John Jones stories, and restored J'onzz's large alien brow, not seen since the 1950s. Nasser also brought back the white circular belt buckle (divided into eight sections) that had been a constant on the Manhunter's costume for many years, before being abandoned in the 1960s. Both elements remained in use for decades thereafter. Nasser designed a new, dynamic Manhunter from Mars logo which appeared with the character until the mid '80s, when it was decided to enforce the "Martian Manhunter" trademark instead. Nasser came up with the visuals for several locations and technologies from "Mars II," as well as the villains N'or Cott and R’es Eda. Nasser colored his own artwork, and visually set the tone for the sullen, grim depiction of the Manhunter that has been the norm ever since. This established a connection between Nasser and J'Onzz that remains to this day, marking a rather short term project as one of the creator's most memorable, and among his personal favorites.

Manhunter from Mars and other 1977 projects served as a plateau for the early portion of Nasser's career. As the artist embraced and fervently endorsed what some might consider radical religious and social views, he was increasingly shunned by a comics industry notoriously intolerant of that type of expression. Money troubles and conflicts with authorities over his perceived erratic behavior saw Nasser shuffled about the country, to various publishers, and so forth. The 1980s saw Nasser abandon the industry, the United States, and his very name. Settling in Israel, the rechristened Michael Netzer found a wife, and made a home for his five children.

Comics remained in Netzer's blood, leading to his creation of the Israeli super-hero Uri-On in 1987, and his return to the American comics scene in the early '90s. As the decade progressed, Netzer again drifted away from the industry mainstream. Netzer instead channeled his energies toward his visual media production company and developing his use of computer aided illustration & graphic design. In recent years, Netzer has returned to participation in comics via a web presence that extends to internet sites, commission work, and social networking organizations. He remains a friend to J'Onn J'Onzz, and to fan blogs like The Idol-Head of Diabolu, for which he designed its trademark banner. Visit The Michael Netzer Online Portal for more.

2004 Hawkgirl, J'Onn J'Onzz & Hawkman Convention Sketch by Michael Netzer

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Another swell piece owned by Will K, who says of it:

2004 - What a thrill to see Mike again after more than 10 years !!!

Mike signed a bunch of pages that I acquired in the meantime.

And I managed to get this sketch. Could not come up with the characters. Mike suggested DC's Trinity of Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman. I decided to go with a different trinity that goes back to the backup feature he drew in Adventure Comics 449 - 451. Mike seemed to have a hard time with Hawkgirl's hair as he inked it trying to get some kind of "bird" look. She turned out great.

1980 Whizzard Fanzine Cover Art by Michael Nasser and Terry Austin

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You know what's really hard to find? Any creators talking at length about the Martian Manhunter, especially prior to the 1990s. So here's a 1980 fanzine interview with an artist probably best known for his Manhunter from Mars work and providing an original J'onn J'onzz cover. I should be in heaven, right? Instead, our hero barely rated a mention.

Well, it's an interview, and biographical information on early Manhunter creators is pretty sparse. It's true I hit paydirt there, especially considering I've long intended to produce a series of bio pages, and this made Nasser/Netzer an easy first entry. Still, that was pretty well wrapped in the opening paragraphs of the interviewer's foreword.

So instead, we'll get lots of behind the scenes material on the industry? Not really, as actual production was more grazed upon than deeply discussed. Anecdotes about other creators? Hardly-- names are dropped, but nothing is elaborated upon.

Okay, well, that was a pretty exciting time in Nasser/Netzer's life, full of spiritual, emotional, political and even material upheaval? Well, yes, that's the gist of the interview. However, the events are mentioned obliquely, divorced of context and clear motivation. The artist mentions actions taken related to his religious and political convictions, but doesn't really elaborate much on exactly what they were. There are disagreements with other parties detailed, but none of the discourse that led to these conflicts. The best way I could think of to describe this interview is to take the Johnny Cash song "Folsom Prison Blues," and remove most of the internal/confessional monologue.

I hear the train a comin'
I'm stuck in Folsom Prison,
I shot a man in Reno,
Well, if they freed me from this prison,
I bet I'd move out over a little,

See, you can follow things in general, but the lack of specifics is deeply frustrating. That's my take anyway. Feel free to read for yourself at Michael Netzer's blog. If you continue through the site, you'll find relief from these questions, as Netzer has since expanded greatly upon his philosophies...

1979 J'onn J'onzz Convention Sketch by Michael Nasser

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Last month, we started a run of Michael Netzer-related material I figured we could mingle with other ongoing topics (DC Challenge participant blog linklists, Coneheadhunter stuff, etc.) and stretch out over a couple of weeks. Well, I got distracted (a comic convention and the imminent resurrection of the character Netzer started an internet campaign to "save" figuring heavily,) and now wish to continue that line of thought. Besides, look at the Manhunter from Mars up there, crying out for justice on this matter!

Per owner Will K:

The Martian Manhunter. Looks to be drawn with a ballpoint pen.

One of only a few convention sketches I've gotten on the secondary market.

I could totally see being apprehensive about buying somebody's unverified "sketch," but looking at the detail here, who would put forth that kind of effort and sign another artist's name? I especially dig the planetoids in the background, evoking the Bronze Age Mars II and its moon (possibly where Mongul fought the Alien Ace & Superman?)

2010 The Martian Manhunter Archives Volume 6 Table of Contents by Tom Hartley

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I would have been all over the previous volumes of The Martian Manhunter Archives for the recolored, remastered artwork on glossy stock. However, I have access to all those old stories, and if you just want to read them, one of the two inexpensive Showcase Presents volumes should scratch the itch. What makes the late addition of a sixth fantasy volume extra special is that the stories proposed to be contained within, as a whole, will likely never be reprinted. To sway talent away from Marvel in the '70s & '80s, DC offered contracts with generous royalties to creators that DC's current management feels eat too much into the profitability of today's collected editions. That's why you will never see the once announced Showcase Presents Who's Who in the DC Universe, and editions like Showcase Presents Suicide Squad only make it to press after contracts are renegotiated to claw back some of those royalties. That translates into no Showcase Presents Martian Manhunter Volume 3, ever, and dim prospects for a color trade paperback this random.

On the other hand, many of these stories will find their way into Showcase Presents Justice League of America and Showcase Presents DC Comics Presents volumes, if they haven't already, and you may find yourself pleased that their impact is diluted by other company. You see, the theoretical Volume 6 contains stories with swell artwork that were significant to the development of the modern Martian Manhunter, but that doesn't make them particularly well written or enjoyable.

1969's Justice League of America #71 featured some of Dick Dillin's best art under epic embellisher Sid Greene, but Denny O'Neil's "...And So My World Ends!" took the scorched Mars route with regard to the Manhunter's people and continuity. All parties but Greene returned three years later for World's Finest Comics #212, in which a weak and gullible J'onn J'onzz was sidelined by Superman from the story of his people's survival, "...And So My World Begins!" It took another three years for the same writer/penciller team to check back with J'Onn, in a throwaway JLofA story in which the Manhunter barely contributes after the set-up. It only took two years for O'Neil to revisit the Manhunter from Mars, and this time J'onzz was unquestionably the star, but of an especially terrible back-up strip. While O'Neil portrayed Manhunter once again as gullible and incompetent (with the added insult of making him irrationally violent,) it took an exceptional artist to save the day.

Mike Nasser designed a new "Manhunter from Mars" logo to go with his debut on the strip in Adventure Comics #449's "Mission: Catch A Killer". Nasser chose to render the character in a manner similar to his earliest appearances, including the very prominent beetle-brow that became his trademark. While the look was twenty years retro, the artist's style was dynamic, complex and decidedly modern. Supergirl may have guest-starred in the following issue's "Return To Destiny", and Hawkman in "The Suspects",  but it was really the draw of Nasser's pages that reignited interest in the largely forgotten Martian Manhunter. Superman and Batman headlined the story's resolution, "Today Mars, Tomorrow... The Universe". Never averse to shooting progress in the foot, this final tale took place in a separate DC title, with an entirely different creative team of old pros. Although writer Bob Haney did his best with the stinker he'd inherited, and Curt Swan's staid art was bolstered by Murphy Anderson's lush inks, the conclusion felt like a throwback after Nasser's intricately delineated offerings. Absent Nasser, further solo development died with cutbacks to DC's line. However, Steve Englehart did join frequent O'Neil collaborator Dick Dillin the same month as the "mini-series" concluded for the greatest Martian Manhunter story to hardly feature J'onn J'onzz, Justice League of America #144's "The Origin of the Justice League-- Minus One!".

These archives are Tom's show, but we've had some discussions in the past about which books should make the cut in his collections. Unsurprisingly, I fought a losing battle in favor of reprinting Arnold Hugo's first appearance in a previous volume, and I really should have argued to get Mr. V's Justice League of America guest appearance in another. However, our debates have never been so contentious as the 1980s reprints in this volume.

After yet another three years and into a new decade, the Manhunter from Mars reappeared in a couple of issues of Justice League of America, in what amounted to a glorified cameo. At least this was an early head-to-head with Despero, and Jim Starlin's rendering of the despot on a cover provides the illustration on this page. Starlin also used the Manhunter  in the first part of a three chapter epic, "The Key That Unlocked Chaos!", in DC Comics Presents #27. These tales served to remind readers that J'onn J'onzz was still around, and Gerry Conway even played with him in a League anniversary issue not collected here, but the real meat was to be found in the trilogy that closes this edition. The Martian Manhunter returned to Earth and relevance with a vengeance in 1984, in Justice League of America #228's "War-- of the World?" The surviving Martians had decided to invade Earth, and the Manhunter was forced to choose sides. Although marred by inconsistent art, the final two chapters revisited old foes, introduced new ones, and led to the restoration of J'Onzz's League membership. The Martian Manhunter would serve in defense of the Earth for the next twenty-four years, appear in two titular mini-series, a special, and three years of a solo series. The groundwork for all of that began here, in this collection of disparate tales from the Bronze Age.

For individual page listings from this Table of Contents, download the PDF here.

The Brow & Michael Netzer: A Question from Tom Hartley

One of these days, I need to get off my duff and start chasing creators down for interviews. Rob Kelly has been doing interviews for years at The Aquaman Shrine, but that's a much more popular blog about a far more culturally significant character. Still, I get reasonable traffic here, and who ever asks anybody anything about the J'Onn J'Onzz? That's got to have some novelty value.

In yesterday's 2010 The Martian Manhunter Archives Volume 6 Introduction, author Tom Hartley relayed information I'd never heard about how the artist of the 1977 Manhunter from Mars serial in Adventure Comics, Mike Nasser, had come to the decision to restore the character to the look of his earliest appearances. How had Tom come by this knowledge? He'd simply asked Nasser, or rather Michael Netzer, as he is known today...

"You're arguably the second-most influential Martian Manhunter artist after co-creator Joe Certa, since you restored J'Onn's heavy-browed alien look, which was previously seen only in his earliest stories, before Certa gave the character a more human-looking appearance. I was wondering how you discovered MM's original appearance. Had you already read some of those early stories, either in their original appearances in 1950s issues of Detective Comics or in reprints, or did your editor show you one of those stories for reference? I realize all of this was 30 years ago, so I'll certainly understand if you don't remember."

Michel Netzer graciously responded:

Hello Tom,

I wasn't given any direction from Paul Levitz or anyone else at DC about JJ's brow. The series had a special air about it from the beginning. I'd known Martian Manhunter from the 60's with the Justice League but hadn't seen much of earlier appearances. On the other hand, I knew the story was to include Supergirl, Superman and the Thangarian couple. With Terry Austin scheduled to ink it, I considered an approach in the penciling more suitable for his style. So, all in all, it felt there was room to play with this series and I was asking around to get as much info as possible on JJ. As I remember, it was Greg Theakston who brought me some reference from the early days and said it would be nice to see the Martian Manhunter revert to looking a little more like an alien by returning his big brow. In the spirit of the times, which included reverting the campiness of the 60's DC comics, I took that on as an identifying visual for the character. Paul and Denny were more than happy to see it, but it didn't come from either of them.


As a caveat to this story, I commented on a fake Kirby cover by Frank Delano during the campaign to save JJ a few years ago. The comment was a satire meant to be a play on the fictional portrayal of JJ by writer Judd Winick. I cited Kirby the fake Kirby cover as the inspiration to my big browed JJ, but it was really a spoof. Still, as I started looking around at the original post at Idol-Head to refresh my memory and include it in this answer to you, I realized for the first time that it was a fake cover and that Kirby only produced that drawing of Martian Manhunter much later on. I had no idea it was a fake at the time I wrote it. Funny how the wheel spins round. So, I've just edited that piece and added a couple of words in brackets that indicate this. Here's a link to that article:


Hope that helps.

Michael

It does indeed. Thanks to Michel Netzer for the comments and consent to publish same, and to Tom Hartley for soliciting and sharing them with us all. In gratitude, do be sure to visit the Michael Netzer Online Portal.

2010 The Martian Manhunter Archives Volume 6 Introduction by Tom Hartley

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This another great intro from Tom, who even schooled me (I never knew about how Michael Netzer was formally introduced to J'onn J'onzz.) Check out the convincing counterfeit page by downloading it in PDF format...

Sailors fighting in the dance hall
Oh man! Look at those cavemen go
It’s the freakiest show
Take a look at the Lawman
Beating up the wrong guy
Oh man! Wonder if he’ll ever know
He’s in the best selling show
Is there life on Mars?
—— David Jones (alias David Bowie)

In the summer of ‘65, around the same time that another Jones, almost as strange as the one who wrote those lyrics, was saving the world from Iwangis, the Creature King, or maybe the mirror Martian Manhunter, or the giant genie of Gensu, a camera attached to the unmanned Mariner 4 spacecraft took some photographs of the surface of the red planet, delivering the sad news to us Earthlings that no, there was no life on Mars. No green men, either even littler than David or as big and burly as our pal J’Onn, walked on that arid, crater-pocked surface. No water flowed through those famous Martian canals Giovanni Schiaparelli had seen in his telescope back in 1877. Later astronomers with better telescopes had already proven, decades before Mariner, that the canals were an optical illusion. (Mariner didn’t take any pictures of the Cydonian region. It would be another eleven years before Viking I captured images of what appeared to be a giant carving of a human face, and another three decades after Viking that higher resolution photos taken by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter would reveal that the face on Mars was as illusory as the canals.) Maybe the Martians were shy, and didn’t want their civilization to be photographed. We all know that invisibility is one of J’Onn J’Onzz’s Martian powers. Maybe they lived underground, because maybe that’s where the water really was. (Speculation continues to this day about the existence of Martian underground water deposits.) But in the 1960s everyone knew that soon any questions about life on Mars still left unanswered by Mariner’s dreary photolog would be settled once and for all. John F. Kennedy had vowed that before the decade was over, men would set foot on the Moon. Surely this would be followed in another few years, before the end of the ‘70s, by a manned mission to Mars, and if there were any Martians to be found, our astronauts would find them.

In the summer of ’68 there were plenty of other things to think about besides space exploration. Thus far there had been six Apollo missions. Apollo 6, an unmanned test flight of the Saturn V launch vehicle, was launched on April 4th, the same day Martin Luther King was assassinated. Two months later Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy was shot. And two months after that was the 1968 Democratic National Convention. The division between those who wanted an immediate end to the war in Viet Nam and those who still thought victory was possible didn’t kill the Democratic Party, but it wrecked their convention. An overreaction from the police didn’t help either. For four days in August the news footage from Chicago was almost as violent as the daily televised images from Viet Nam, leaving many to wonder if a dispute over a civil war in Asia might lead to second American civil war. Besides the folks at NASA, who else could spare a thought for life on other worlds?

Comic book writers, that’s who. Given the six month lead-time for comic book production, the script for this volume’s first reprinted story from JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #71, with its May, 1969 cover date, but its actual on-sale date of February, 1969, would likely have been written in August, 1968. So while most Americans were wondering what to do about Viet Nam and race relations, Denny O’Neil had to figure out what to do with the Martian Manhunter.

J’Onn J’Onzz had been one of the founding members of the JLA, appearing in the team’s debut stories in THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD #28-30 and in every issue of the League’s own book up to #24. But he’s in only 10 of the next 24 issues, and in 6 of the next 13 after that (not counting his appearances in three giant-size reprint issues). Finally, more than a year would separate his appearance in issue #61 (March, 1968) from his next appearance in #71 (May, 1969). Whatever popularity J’Onn had enjoyed had been declining for years, since the early ‘60s during his last years as a DETECTIVE COMICS back-up feature, when the book’s sales were declining, not necessarily through any fault of J’Onn’s, but mainly because readers were tiring of editor Jack Schiff’s silly treatment of the lead feature, Batman. J’Onn was booted from DETECTIVE COMICS when a new editor, Julius Schwartz, took over. His new home, HOUSE OF MYSTERY, was an even worse seller than the Schiff era DETECTIVE COMICS. His appearance in JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #61 occured the same month as his last story in HOUSE OF MYSTERY, in issue #173 (March-April, 1968). He wasn’t given a new home after HOUSE OF MYSTERY, and for years afterward had to settle for guest appearances with his fellow Justice Leaguers. This volume of THE MARTIAN MANHUNTER ARCHIVES covers that decade-and-a-half long period from 1968-1984, when not just J’Onn, but all of his fellow Martians, were looking for a new home.

Those familiar with the conventions of super-hero comics know that when a member of a super-hero team returns after a long absence, it is only so that he can say goodbye. So for experienced comic book readers, I’m not spoiling anything when I say that in issue #71 the Martian Manhunter resigns from the Justice League of America. He has a good reason, of course. The consequences of a civil war has rendered Mars uninhabitable; J’Onn and his fellow Martians must find a new homeworld. This takes care of the problem facing anyone who could spare a thought for DC’s fictional Martians during those turbulent times. The Apollo program was racing toward its goal of putting a man on the Moon, and would succeed in the summer of 1969, barely meeting JFK’s deadline. When astronauts would surely visit Mars a few years later, they were not likely to find any Martians. Maybe there never were any Martians, or maybe they had to leave because their entire world was engulfed by blue flame. The Martians would eventually find a new world, many light years away and likely beyond the reach of Earth’s astronauts for many centuries to come.

The remaining stories in this volume deal with the problems J’Onn and his fellow Martians face on their new home, Mars II. One in particular is of special interest, not for the story itself, which is easily the silliest in this collection (sorry, Denny), but for the influence its artist would have on future depictions of the Martian Manhunter. Readers of the previous five volumes have seen how J’Onn’s look changed during his early years, from the heavy-browed alien in his first appearance in DETECTIVE COMICS #225 (November, 1955), to the pug-nosed, square-headed bruiser in the late ‘50s and early ‘60s, and to the handsome bald fellow from the mid-60s through the mid-70s. It’s this green Mr. Clean whom we see in this volume’s first three stories. But in the fourth story the brow is back. For this we can thank artist Michael Netzer (named Mike Nasser back when he drew the story), who restored the Martian Manhunter to his original appearance in ADVENTURE COMICS #449 (January-February, 1977). When Netzer was given the assignment, he became curious about the character’s early history. It was artist, publisher and comics historian Greg Theakston who showed Netzer some of the early DETECTIVE COMICS stories. Netzer liked the alien look artist and co-creator Joe Certa had originally given J’Onn, so that’s how Netzer chose to draw him, and how every other artist has drawn him since.

In addition to getting back his brow, J’Onn would also return to Earth and rejoin the Justice League, as you’ll see in this volume’s final 3-part epic, from JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #228-230 (July – September, 1984). The League has gone through several incarnations in the decades since, and J’Onn has played an important role in every one of them, and has even had some solo adventures from time to time. So even though, decades after Neil Armstrong set foot on the Moon, we’re still waiting for that manned mission to Mars, at least we can always enjoy the adventures of our favorite fictional Martian.

—— Wade Greenberg

Novelist WADE GREENBERG has never beaten up the wrong guy and always knows he’s in the freakiest, best selling show.

2010 Martian Manhunter Archives Vol. 6 Create-Your-Own Back Cover by Tom Hartley

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On the heels of Michael Netzer's glowing blog review of his front cover mock-up, Tom Hartley has created a brand new Martian Manhunter Archives Vol.6 back cover web page, where you get to decide which four covers in the collection will grace the imaginary back cover! Tom explains:

This uses some complicated javascript that may not work with all browsers... Attached is a screenshot of the back cover page that you can post to your blog... I'd like to know which covers everybody picked. Please post your choices to this comments thread.

Sadly, Michael Netzer didn't provide covers for any of his Adventure Comics issues, although his mentor Neal Adams provided a nifty cover to that story's final chapter in World's Finest Comics #245. The best and most influential story of the bunch was Justice League of America #144, but Commander Blanx is the star of that Dick Dillin cover.

In my own four, I went with a different Dillin, Justice League of America #71, one of the single most important Martian Manhunter comics ever published. It explored J'Onn J'Onzz's life on Mars, why he stayed on Earth, the introduction of arch-nemesis Commander Blanx, the destruction of Mars, Manhunter's departure from our world and his team, and the launch of the Bronze Age Mars II stories. Next was Nick Cardy's World's Finest Comics #212, possibly my all-time favorite cover starring the Alien Atlas. I mean, he makes Superman bleed-- and gloats about it! Squeal, Man of Steel, squeal! Out of the two covers by a fellow amongst my lifetime best loved comics creators, Jim Starlin, I favored his introduction of Mongul and another Superman fight in DC Comics Presents #27 to his more passive role against Despero in JLofA #178. The JLofA #115 cover is plain weak (Ernie Chan?) so my last choice was between two great Chuck Patton/Dick Giordano pieces. Manhunter whacking Aquaman upon his return to Earth in JLofA #228 was cool, but I went with Justice League of America #230, because I've loved that dynamic image of a battle with The Marshal since before I really even knew who the Martian Manhunter was.

So, which did you choose?

2010 The Martian Manhunter Archives Volume 6 Fan Mock-Up Cover by Tom Hartley

MARTIAN MANHUNTER ARCHIVES VOL. 6

Written by Denny O'Neil, Bob Haney, Steve Englehart, Gerry Conway, Len Wein and Jim Starlin; Art by Dick Dillin, Michael Netzer, Curt Swan, Jim Starlin, George Tuska, Alan Kupperberg and others; Cover by Michael Netzer and Terry Austin
Back by popular demand, MARTIAN MANHUNTER ARCHIVES VOL. 6 continues the exciting evolution of J'onn J'onzz as he leads the last survivors of Mars to a new home world. Utilizing powerfully graphic storytelling, these tales from the Bronze Age combine gripping adventures with thrilling team-ups. This intense hardcover includes the horrifying destruction of the planet Mars, the debut of Manhunter's nemesis Commander Blanx, entanglements with the femme fatale Bel Juz, the ominous return of Despero, the introduction of Mongul, a murder mystery with guest stars galore, and the thrilling arrival of the Alien Atlas to Earth, just ahead of a Martian invasion. Appearances by Superman, Batman, Hawkman, the Justice League of America, and many more! Reprints JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #71, 144, 177, 178 and 228-230; WORLD's FINEST COMICS #212 and 245; ADVENTURE COMICS #449-451; and DC COMICS PRESENTS #27

• Archive Editions
• 288pg.
• Color
• Hardcover
• $49.95 US
• ISBN 156389730

It's been nearly six months since Tom Hartley began sending me scans of his copies of the Manhunter from Mars Archive Editions from an alternate dimension where the character rates a series of lovingly remastered hardcover reprints. Not content with giving the correct DC Comics cover font and layout a twirl, Tom filled in all the bonus content upon each edition's hypothetical pages. While the plan was originally to stop with the Silver Age material also covered in the el cheapo black & white Showcase Presents trade paperbacks, we couldn't let these novel 1970s tales go unrepresented. Tom even decided to go the extra mile by taking high resolution color scans from the original comics, "bleaching" them, and recoloring from scratch. Here's Tom on that process:

I have to carefully remove the coloring without removing any of the line art, then recolor it, so that it's nice and sharp looking, just like the colored black & white Showcase scans from the other mock-ups. The bigger the image, the easier it will be for me to play with it... All those skinny little lines... damn you, Terry Austin...

I'm not doing bios for this volume, not with nearly three dozen writers, pencillers, inkers and cover artists.

For my part, I figured now would be a good time to return to the first volume and edit-in the bogus "solicitation copy" I tacked onto Tom's covers for the rest of the volumes. This edition's text was lifted from LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES ARCHIVES VOL. 11, plus an Earth symbol for the ISBN to go with the Mars one from last time.

2010 Martian Manhunter Commission Pencils by Michael Netzer

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I'm juggling a lot of Michael Netzer-related material right now, so I might as well declare this a partial-themed fortnight of his work. For example, I stumbled upon this art while putting together Tuesday's post. Here's the artist:

I’ve started working again with Joe Rubinstein producing commissioned art for collectors. Drawing on a computer for more than a decade, it’s interesting to return to conventional media. Collectors want original art and that means setting up some type of a workspace to do it in. The following roughs are a preview, drawn on computer, that I’ll transfer to finished pencil on paper for Joe to ink. More to come.

The finished pencils were offered up on Netzer's site on February 24th with these words:

J’onn J’onzz the Manhunter from Mars is a character I’m identified with from a short 3-issue miniseries in Adventure comics, 1976-77.  Two years ago, fandom rallied around a campaign to persuade DC Comics not to kill him in Final Crisis. The best place to read about my involvement with the character is at Frank Lee Delano’s Idol-Head of Diabolu blog.

Pretty spiffy, and interesting to see an old school artist tackle the blocky, brawny Martian Manhunter that developed in the 1990s, first popularized by Bart Sears. To inquire about commissions, go here.

2009 "J'onn J'onzz R.I.P." Pin-Up by Michael Netzer

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Rob Kelly has referred to Paul Kupperberg as the "patron saint" of his Aquaman Shrine. I'm much too territorial about this blog to ever accept anyone in that role here, but if I had to choose the closest approximation, it would be Bronze Age Manhunter from Mars artist Michael Netzer. The former Mike Nasser designed the 1970s logo for J'Onn J'Onzz, our own Idol-Head of Diabolu font, and the beloved default banner image that will return when I lay off the theme months. Netzer has also provided gobs of free digital art to myself and other bloggers, and has expressed a rare passion for the Martian Manhunter character, for which I am eternally grateful. I last corresponded with Mr. Netzer on New Year's Eve, when I substituted my long delayed "Manhunter from Mars Annual #2" (you'll love it when it finally appears) for his innovative "December of Despero" Pin-Up. We hadn't spoken in a while, so I thought I'd share a bit.

I was away for nearly 8 months last year and came back home last January. I immersed myself In Facebook and using their tools created Facebook Comic Con (a video on my site explains it). I'm still doing sketches there sometimes but here's one (by request) that you might have missed...

The link led to the awesome image above, and boy howdy, is it a doozy. Netzer continued:

Worked at a major newspaper designing the weekend magazine but that ended after 6 months. Took all my time and energy. So for the last few months I've been thinking of going out on another trek across the country, but family needs forbid it right now, so I finally started the big GN project I've been planning for the last few years. WAVE. We'll see If I can sustain it.

Strange as it is, those 3 JJ episodes in Adventure have established an inexplicable recognition of my work with the character. It apparently has more to do with J'onn and his precarious presence (or lack of it, depending on time-frame) from the DCU. My career was so short that it's actually nice to have such a short run make me associated with anything.

The high resolution "original" was requested by "big JJ fan Edward Kaye," who posted it on his blog Hypergeek on February 10, 2009, where he wrote:

As part of his Facebook Comic Con idea, Michael Netzer has offered the first 1000 people that signed up, the opportunity to get a free sketch by him. I was the sixth person to make a request, and here is what I wrote, “Hi Michael, this is a wonderful idea. I would love a free sketch, please! How about a sketch of J’onn J’onzz, I really liked his old look, before DC made his head a weird shape, then of course killed him off :( R.I.P.”

I picked J’onn J’onzz,the Manhunter from Mars because Michael is famed as being the man who gave J’onn his classic heavy brow look, and logo, which was reused repeatedly through the years, until DC tried a terrible revamp of the character in 2007. Michael was also heading a campaign to stop DC from killing J’onn, and wrote an open plea to DC to stop them from killing him.

Anyway, Michael took my request, and drew this absolutely stunning image... This was greater than I even hoped for, and I will be printing this out, framing it, and hanging it on my wall. I have always loved J’onn J’onzz, and I think that DC just screwed him in recent years, with bad revamps, and terrible storylines. I would love to see him come back in a good Vertigo series, where he could be rebuilt from the ground up. In fact, I would love to write that. Ahhh, if only…

Now if only whoever is writing that revamp does as good a job with the prose as Netzer did with the art...

2009 Michael Netzer "December of Despero" Pin-Up

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I must confess my disappointment in "December of Despero." After years of too little attention being paid to one of the few truly great and broadly recognized Martian Manhunter villains, the plan was to have his every appearance through 1990 written up for this blog. He was going to finally get his Vile Menagerie listing, an index of his own, and more. Instead, the holiday crunch, side projects, and my own inertia led to a spate of pin-ups, custom toys, and outright filler. As I've said before, this is hardly the last December Despero will claim as his own, and he'll be making waves well before then. Still, I wanted his first to be something special.

Thankfully, this final week has given the month some validation. Although I never get much in the way of comments for them, I'm happy to have gotten around to more fake Manhunter from Mars comic synopses, all offering stories from a parallel universe pitting our hero against the three-eyed despot. I've never featured so many in such a short span, as Manhunter from Mars Annual #2 will close out our week. It was planned for tonight, but a last minute submission I feel really puts the first "December of Despero" over the wall of winners had to take precedence.

Mike Nasser is probably the second most important artist to draw J'onn J'onzz after his co-creator, Joe Certa. It was Nasser who restored the beetle-brow from the character's earliest appearances, revived his belt symbol,  designed his 1970s logo and offered a dynamic new art style that exposed the character's potential for greatness to then-modern readers. Sadly, Nasser's run was much too brief, and saw him illustrate only a couple of new villains, N'or Cott and R’es Eda. In recent years though Nasser, now known as Michael Netzer, has done real solid by Martian Manhunter fandom. He drew the beloved Idol-Head of Diabolu banner in 2007, then followed that up with a campaign to save Martian Manhunter from Final Crisis with his Take Me... but don't kill J'Onn campaign in 2008. This was supported by pin-ups pairing Manhunter with the Atom (Ryan Choi), Aquaman and the Atom (Ray Palmer).

Netzer's kept a lower profile in 2009, presumably to afford him the opportunity to work on his upcoming 150 page original graphic novel, Wave. Still, he found time to contribute the above pin-up of Despero, which I hope you enjoy as much as I do. A Happy New Year's Eve to all you Idol-Heads out there, and especially to Mr. Netzer, whose New Online Portal demands your attention.