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tomo

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Journal Entries posted by tomo

  1. tomo

    Superman #149 upgrade

    By tomo,

    So I'm back from vacation with a new post!  Actually, I got back from vacation a while ago, but work has been busy and it's been creeping into my off time.  It'll probably be that way for the remainder of the year, so no weekday posting with any sort of regularity until the new year.
    The busier work schedule did come with one silver lining, as it took me to a side of the state that I don't normally get to, and that means new and exciting comic book stores to check out!  And find one I did...
    Tardy's Collectors Corner in Grand Rapids, MI
    It's the type of store I love, as I was greeted by the sight of dozens of long boxes laid out down the center of the store.  It's the rare store these days that carry a wide range of back issues.  Tardy's had the pre-requisite dollar boxes, but also a nice supply of copper/modern, bronze, silver, and even a few short boxes of the nicer Silver and Golden Age stuff!  If you are ever in the area stop in and say hi, as Gavin was exceptionally nice and welcoming, and he was willing to do a little wheeling and dealing to get a deal made.
    So what did I get?
    I picked up a mid-grade Superman #155 for my pre-Adventure Comics #300 Legion collection.  I'm now just 3 books away from polishing that one off.  I also upgraded my beat-to-heck copy of New Gods #4, which means that my DC Kirby collection is now all mid-to-high grade.
    Most exciting of all, however, was the chance to upgrade one of my favorite Silver Age Superman stories...Superman #149

    The beater copy on the left I got for a five spot at my local LCS.  I paid a bit more ($75) for the upgrade, but you have to step up for the quality, eh?
    If you've never read this issue, it's a great "full length novel" that tells an imaginary tale of the Death of Superman.  It had to be imaginary, as who would ever think of killing Superman for real, right?  It's also a great cautionary Lex Luthor story, asking "can a leopard really change his spots?"
    In this day and age, I imagine this story would be a year-long sub-plot running through all of the Super books, but back in the day it was done in one.  Speaking of which, isn't Lex currently reformed and playing the role of hero? Hmmm...
    This book is also the last 10¢ issue, before they raised the price up 2¢ with issue #150.  Do you think was just random timing back in the day, that the price hike landed on an anniversary issue?  Where anniversary issues even a thing yet?
    Oh well, a mystery for another day perhaps.
    Enjoy your own upgrading!
  2. tomo

    Off on vacation

    By tomo,

    This will be the only post this week, as I am officially on vacation.  Woo hoo!

    My family and I will be joining up with my brother and his girlfriend to drive into the path of the solar eclipse this week.  We've been planning the trip for over a year, so fingers crossed that the weather holds.  
    Even scheduling this trip so far out, we still didn't manage to snag a camp site that lies in the path of the totality of the eclipse, but we'll be pretty darn close in Kentucky on the banks of the Mississippi river.  If you hear some of the news reports, it's going to be like Woodstock in some of these places with as many 100,000 people funneling into these small towns in rural America.  Hopefully the cloud cover stays away and we'll be able to see it.  If my rig to join my camera and telescope works as planned, I should have some pics when I get back.  See you then!

  3. tomo
    Continuing on for the theme of the week, let's set the time machine forward a few years to April of 1969 to see both the end of one era, and the dawn of another.

    The end of the Silver Age is a hard one to pin down, and there's a ton of debate to be had.  I, myself, like to keep things simple and generally assume that the end of the 12¢ books also ends the Silver Age, and this is the month that it happened.
    I sorted the books by release date, so you'll see that it starts with 10¢ books and ends with the 12¢ books.  Aside from Adventure Comics #381, which features the debut issue of the solo Supergirl stories, there is no real tonal shift per se.  It was more of a gradual shift as the civil rights movement started to shift the consciousness of the country forward.
    We do get a great month of Neal Adams covers though!  Superboy #157 features another in the all time favorite "people vs. Superman" theme.  Superman and Batman duel it out gladiator-style in World's Finest Comics #185.  While not one of his most iconic covers, he gets the honor of doing Supergirl's first issue from her headlining run in Adventure Comics.  He's also credited with inking the Curt Swan cover for Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen #120, but I'll be darned if I can see any of Curt left in the final project.
    Superman #217 is a giant-size issue, featuring a great load of reprints with the first appearances of Brainiac, Metallo, Lori Lemaris, the pre-Kara Supergirl, and of course...Mala!
    Four Neal Adams covers and a bunch of classic reprints?  I call that a win!
     
     
  4. tomo
    So why December of 1978?
    Well, there was a movie released that month called Superman The Movie, that's why!
    A favorite complaint these days is that neither Marvel or DC has appropriate books on the shelves to take advantage of the heat that is generated by comic book movies.  So how did DC do back in 1978 at the golden age of superhero movies?

    Not too shabby!
    All-New Collectors' Edition: Superman The Movie #C-62 was right there to take advantage of the hype, with an issue dedicated to the movie itself!
    The FFE's had ceased publication a few years prior, but they revived the title for one more issue with Famous First Edition Superman #C-61.  How they neglected to print this issue back in 1974-1975 when they printed copies for Batman #1 and Wonder Woman #1 remains a mystery, but the timing worked out for them in the end.
    As for the other books that month?  Pretty standard mid-to-late Bronze Age stuff.
    Thanks for reading, and have a great weekend!
  5. tomo
    Yesterday we took a look at the dawn of the Bronze Age with the Superbooks.  It would be about another year, however, for the Superbooks to start hitting their stride with some classic Bronze Age goodness.  For me, the quintessential Superman Bronze Age book is Superman #233, so let's see what else was on the newsstands that month as well.

    Aside from having the most iconic of Neal Adams' Superman covers, this issue starts a year-long story of a de-powered Superman by Denny O'Neil.  While this was supposed to reset the status quo, it was largely contained within the pages of Superman and lasted only as long as Denny O'Neil stuck around.  Those eleven issues are now affectionately known as the Sand-Superman Saga.  It has its rightful place in Superman history, but honestly...80% of the reason is that cover!
    Superman's Girl Friend Lois Lane #107 has another Rose & Thorn back-up, and nothing screams Bronze Age like street-level vigilantism.
    Superboy #171 has one of the better (and all too rare) Carmine Infantino Superman covers.  Great stuff!  I'm not much of an historian for Aquaman, but was Aquaboy ever really a thing?
    Jack Kirby was just getting started on his Fourth World epic, and we get Darkseid's second appearance here in Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen #135.
    ...and is that another cover in the "people vs. Superman" theme on Action Comics #396?  Suddenly he's the Rodney Dangerfield of super-heroes.
    Another decent month in the world of Superman!
     
  6. tomo
    So I was ruminating on the state of my Superman collection the other day, as I am getting close to checking off all of the 12¢ books from Superman and Action Comics.  That made me curious as to how far back I could get in my collection, and have the entire month of Superman books represented.  I figured it would be early in the 12¢ run somewhere, but to my surprise it was late in the 10¢ era instead.

    Step out of the time machine, and welcome to the world of November 1959!
    No key issues for this month, but the Superbabies are quite popular as we get both a Superboy and a Supergirl Superbaby story.  Since Supergirl only made her first appearance less than a year prior, I'm guessing that this is the first Supergirl Superbaby story?  See, there is a key here after all!
    Now I know what your thinking..."Hold up, how can there be a story of Supergirl when she was a baby as she came to Earth as a teenager?"  Blame it on the fountain of youth she inadvertently swims through while rescuing a drowning native in a far off exotic island.

    And that is why Silver Age stories never get boring.  There's always a fountain of youth around when you need one to spice up a story!
    While the cover for Superman's Girl Friend Lois Lane #14 teases a Batman appearance, it's not to be.  It's all a ruse by Supergirl meddling in her cousin's love life trying to make Superman jealous.

    This is Supergirl's first appearance in Lois' book and her third outside of Action Comics, after guest-starring in Jimmy Olsen's and Superman a few month's prior.
    The Superboy #78 is the real winner from this month however, as not only do you get a great Jor-El cover, but all three of the stories inside are gems.  Since the aforementioned debut of Supergirl had just happened and proved a hit, I guess Superboy wanted to get in on the action as the opening story has Clark changed to Claire Kent, Super-Sister!

    Hey kids, look!  It's Supergirl as a brunette!
    The second story gives us the origin of Clark's super-suit, while the last one gives us a view into the early life of Mr. Mxyzptlk and the origin of their longstanding feud.  Good stuff!

    All in all, a solid month, and it's especially great if you are a Supergirl fan.  I do wonder though, how this period played out if you were a Superman fan who was still of the age where girls had cooties.
  7. tomo
    Yesterday we looked at a rather curious cover appearance by a super-villain wannabe.  Let's keep the theme going and take a look at another, this time from Superman Annual #2 from 1960/1961.

    This collection of reprints celebrates some the greatest super-villains ever featured!  Naturally, we see Brainiac, Bizarro, and Titano.  All three of these villains had been in about a half-dozen stories each, up until this book came out.  They've also gone on to more than stake their claim as iconic Superman adversaries.  Titano less so, but this was DC in the 60's, so of course a gorilla gets top corner billing!
    More curious, however, is the inclusion of Metallo, The Invulnerable Enemy, and The Thing From 40,000 A.D.
    In retrospect, the inclusion of Metallo seems like a no-brainer, but at this point his first (and only) appearance was overshadowed by Supergirl's first, as they shared the same debut issue with Action Comics #252 from May 1959.

    That's my newest holy grail book that I bought off the boards earlier in the year.  But that's not really what we are here to talk about.  Back to the nobodies...
    Metallo would have no other appearances until his brother picked up the Metallo moniker in 1977 and proceeded to turn him into one of Superman's A-List villains.  Or at least a B+, if not an A.  In retrospect, they got lucky here with Metallo as he would go on to become a player.
    So what happened to The Invulnerable Enemy and The Thing From 40,000 A.D.?
    The Invulnerable Enemy had one, and only one, in-continuity appearance back in 1957 from Action Comics #226.  I don't have a copy of that issue yet, but it does sport a great looking cover if you get the chance to look it up.
    The Thing From 40,000 A.D. had one more shot at notoriety, but alas he never caught on.  His first appearance was from farther back in Superman #87 from 1954.  That story was reprinted in Superman #196 from May 1967, with a new cover by Curt Swan.

    I love the Superman vs. Superman covers, and while this one is fun, it doesn't hold a candle to the original cover by Wayne Boring.  It's on my short list of books that I'm focusing on currently, so hopefully I'll find the right copy to add to my collection soon.
    And that was the last we saw of The Thing From 40,000 A.D. for another two decades until he was featured in DC Comics Presents #89 from January 1986.

    He even gets a cover appearance, beating up the Omega Men!  Alas, he gets caught in a disintegrator beam before the issue's end, and winds up as some sort of repentant, sentient thought cloud...never to be seen again.
    In retrospect, I guess you can never discount anyone.  While TTF40000AD (that acronym really didn't save me much time, did it?  Especially since I've now typed more letters in this parenthesis than I would've if I just typed out his full name to begin with.) would never capitalize on his second chance like Metallo, maybe there's hope for The Invulnerable Enemy yet....it's only been 60 years, there's still time...
  8. tomo
    Yesterday I was a little surprised that I was able to go all the way back to November of 1959, with having a complete set of all the Superbooks on sale for a particular month.  I thought for sure that my oldest set would've been in the early 12¢ era.  I ended up being wrong twice, as not only could I go farther back than I thought, but the next instance of this happening is way into the second half of the Silver Age.  It takes another 7 ½ years for my collection to once again have all of the Superbooks for any particular month.
    I give to you, the Superman newsstand of June 1967...

    There's two things to notice here.  First, we have three different cover dates for the books that were on sale during June of 1967.  The monthly books are all cover dated August, while the 80 Pg. Giants are dated September and October.  I don't claim to have a PhD in cover dates, but I do know enough that the month on the cover is supposed to be the month that the books were to be removed from the newsstand, and not the actual month that they were released.  Why they decided to give Lois' 80-pager an extra month over Jimmy's is curious.  I'm guessing it's because the Lois book was released during the last week of June.
    For future newsstand months, I should probably put them in order of release date, rather than my typical fashion of ordering them by the age of the title (e.g. Action always goes first, then Adventure, World's Finest, Superboy, etc...)
    The other thing that sharp-eyed readers may notice is that there is a book missing...Superman #199.  This book is the first Superman/Flash race, and a true key for any Superman or Flash collector.  So why is it missing?  Here's why...

    About 8 years ago or so, I finished up the small run of the Silver Age Superman/Flash races, which includes the following...
    Superman #199 Flash #175 World's Finest #198-199 When I laid them all out in order, it was a perfect example of the linear storytelling we all enjoy so much.  The first book has the two heroes right at the start of the match, then Superman pulls ahead, then Flash pulls ahead, then to the last book where it is neck and neck over the finish line.  I loved the way they looked so much, that  I hired my sister to mat and frame them for me!  She ended up doing it for free as a birthday present, and they've been hanging up in my office ever since.
  9. tomo
    I seem to have stumbled upon a theme week routine here, so let's keep it up looking at some more Kirby Fourth World in detail.  Before the holiday, we had the 1st cameo appearance of Darkseid in SPJO#134, so let's see what else he was up to leading up to his first full appearance.

    Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen #135 from January 1971
    I can definitely appreciate what Kirby was going for, with the slow reveal of Darkseid to build up tension, but it sure makes for some lackluster first appearance issues (plural intentional).  Once again, we get a glimpse of Darkseid through a communication monitor.  At least we get two panels this issue, with a nice menacing close up on his eyes...bonus!

    This issue was part of the 3 issue lot that I scored at auction, and is in probably the worst shape of the three.  Waiting for the right upgrade to drop into my lap.  Fantastic Neal Adams cover on this one, as I always love the covers with multiple versions of Superman on them.
    His 3rd appearance is his first full appearance, and that happens in Forever People #1 from March 1971.

    This is one of those tough issues to get from this run with a bone-white background.  As you can see, my copy has some discoloration along the top, and most noticeably on the back cover.  Still, not a bad purchase for $20 back in 2014.
    As for Darkseid, Kirby teases us again with another communication terminal pic...

    ...before going full monty later on in the issue.

    And that's about as good as it gets.  For such an important character in the overall DC universe, he sure does limp into continuity one weak panel after another.  He doesn't even get a good cover appearance during the entirety of the original Fourth World run of titles.  His head appears on New Gods #2, and his silhouette appears on the final issue of Mister Miracle, and that's about it...unless I'm missing one?
  10. tomo
    I picked up a couple of early 12¢ Action Comics off of eBay recently to help fill out the run.

    Action Comics #290 from July 1962 and Action Comics #306 from November 1963.
    I realized long ago that trying to fill out a run of both Action Comics and Superman was going to be a herculean task at best.  With that in mind, I settled on a minimum grade for the 12¢ books to be at least a nice presenting F/VF.  I'll obviously make exceptions, however, if I come across some beaters at a price I can't resist.
    I love that cover for #306, as it tells a hell of a story with just one image.  It's got it all...Clark Kent in peril, kryptonite, a 3rd world generalissimo, a cigarette smoking mastermind, the secret identity in jeopardy, etc...  If I can't have world-shaking super-villain fist fights, than these are the type of stories that I really enjoy from the Silver and Bronze Ages.
    Anyways, on to the anagram fun!     
         Clark Kent = Tank Clerk
    Let's see...Clark is essentially the clerk that handles the routine duties for the tank that is Superman.  I'll buy that.  Fun fact (and  a peek behind the curtain): I use the internet to figure out my anagrams, and so far "Clark Kent" are the letters that have generated the least amount of anagrams, with only 3 total.  That man's in a class by himself!
         Lois Lane = Los Alien
    My spanish is rusty, but that means the alien, right?
         Action Comics = Iconic Mascot
    That makes a lot sense, seeing as how this title birthed the original superhero!
     
     
  11. tomo
    It's looking like a low content week for the journal, as I have a busy work week ahead of me, so I'll probably be spending it posting some pics of my newest acquisitions.
    First up, I got this beauty off of eBay for a great price...

    Adventure Comics #267 from December 1959, featuring the second appearance of The Legion of Super-Heroes.  This particular issue only cost me $42 bucks, and it's a killer looking copy, although I'm sure some would balk at the ½" tear that goes through the entire book on the right edge.  I'll still keep my eye out for an upgrade, but I am more than content with this issue for right now, as it gets me one step closer to completing those early Legion appearances.  I'm now only missing 4 of their first 20 appearances, although that last one is going to be painful to the old wallet.
    It's a shame though, that they didn't keep the original costumes, as the originals are so much better.

    And a big shout-out to @Marwood & I for unknowingly setting the theme for low content mode week!  I so enjoyed his anagramming of Legion members from my Nemesis Kid post last week, that I just have to try it for myself this week.
    Here goes...
         Cosmic Boy anagrams to boy comics
    That's not to shabby, if a little lazy.
         Lightning Lad anagrams to dangling hilt
    That must be where he keeps his lighting rod.
         Saturn Girl anagrams to raring slut
    Yikes, how dare the internet anagram maker impugn our beloved Legionnaire like that.  For shame!
  12. tomo

    Behold..Nemesis Kid!

    By tomo,

    While I was thumbing through the collection, looking for more odd cover appearances by D-List characters, it turns out there was another one in the wall display that I highlighted a few days ago that started me down this path.

    In Adventure Comics #346 from July 1966, we are introduced to four new recruits for Legion membership.  But alas, one of them is a traitor!
    Who could it be?
    Karate Kid?  Princess Projectra?  Ferro Lad?  Or err...ummm...Nemesis Kid?!

    Spoilers from here on out for anyone who hasn't read this yet, but the only worse name that Nemesis Kid could have chosen would've been Traitor Lad.  This issue ends in a cliffhanger, with all of the super-obvious clues pointing at Karate Kid as the Legion traitor.
    Now I don't have the next issue yet, so I don't know for sure, but I'm going out on a limb here to say that Nemesis Kid is the actual traitor.  I mean, it's right there in his name!
  13. tomo
    Almost everything I've highlighted in my journal to date has been silver and bronze age books.  Granted, that's where my collecting focus is these days, but I do have my fair share of copper and modern books...especially when it comes to Superman.  My collection of the main Superman titles is 100% complete from this week, all the way back to 1966.  With that said, let's round out this week's theme with a book from 1997!

    Action Comics #730 from February 1997 features an appearance from The Superman Revenge Squad.  This team has never really been a formal group with membership cards like the Justice League, but more of a loose collection of whatever villains have been populating the Superbooks at any particular time.
    For this incarnation, we have Maxima, and...umm...hmmm...
    Let's put my old-man memory to the test and see what else I can remember, considering I haven't read this book since its initial release.
    I know I recognize the skeleton guy as he showed up semi-regularly during the late 90's/early 2000's, but I'll be damned if I can remember his name.  Bones, maybe?  I know it was a short, one word name.
    And since this is the 90's, of course there is a rock guy with a cyber hand.  He must be Cyberpunch?  Cyberfist?  Rockrobot?
    I'm sure the guy with a gun for a hand is Blood-something-or-other.
    The blond with the green nail polish.  The Emerald Empress, maybe?
    So how did I do, let's crack this issue open to find out.  Thankfully, they provide a recap page for me relatively early.

    Unfortunately, I failed rather badly, as Maxima was the only one I was able to remember.  Barrage is the gun guy, who of course has been turned into a rabbit by page four.  Riot was the skeleton guy.  I was close with bones, right?  No?  All right, moving on.  The rock guy (now made of steel) is Anomaly.  Lastly, there is Misa, who is some sort of magic based character, as it was her who transformed Barrage into Bucky O'Hare.
    Misa and Anomaly never made it out of the 90's, while Barrage and Riot would show up sporadically until the New52.  So while this particular incarnation of the Superman Revenge Squad never lived up to its potential, the name still lives on as the current story arc in Action Comics just wrapped up a Superman Revenge Squad story featuring Zod and Cyborg Superman, among others.
    So what was the first appearance of the Superman Revenge Squad?  It was actually the Superboy Revenge Squad debuting in Superboy #94 from January 1962.

    And who made up the initial line-up for the Superboy Revenge Squad?  It was a bunch of aliens from the planet Wexr II, of course.  You remember them, don't you?

    And how about the first appearance of the Superman Revenge Squad?  Why it was in none other than the already highlighted Action Comics #286 that started off this whole theme week, so it all comes full circle!


    Thanks for reading, and have a great weekend!
     
  14. tomo
    Low content mode week continues, as we delve deeper into the latest purchases for my collection, through the skewed lens of anagrams.
    This next book I picked up off of eBay after a fellow boardie tipped me off that this is, in fact, the first use of the Supergirl masthead.

    From what I could turn up, it does appear that The Brave And The Bold #63 from January 1965 is in fact the first usage.  It predates Action Comics #334 from March 1966 by over a year, which I would have guessed previously was the first.

    All in all, a nice little bit of trivia that I was previously unaware of.
    Now, on to the anagrams...
         Supergirl = pig rulers
         Kara Zor-El = kale razor
         Linda Lee Danvers = lavender denials or vanilla needs red
    There's nothing there that gives us any secret insight into Supergirl, so let's try Wonder Woman...
         Wonder Woman = onward women
    That's better, a nice feminine mantra hidden in plain sight!
    Lastly, how about Multi-Face...
         Multi-Face = a cute MILF
    I'm not so sure about that, but who am I to cast aspersions.  I journal, you decide....

  15. tomo
    And finally, we have what has to be the greatest of all Superman gorilla covers...or at least the zaniest!

    Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen #98
    I mean, c'mon...what's not to love about this one...
    Jimmy as Tarzan, getting married to a female King Kong in a bridal veil, with the ceremony being performed by Superman, who just happens to be the local witch doctor.  Since he's a witch doctor, he has brought with him his boiling cauldron.  It's good to know they went for at least one aspect of realism with this cover!
    Whatever drugs they were smoking back in 1966, I hope that a) they didn't screw up the writer and artist for life, or b) they helped you make heads or tails of this cover!
    This particular issue I got in a bulk lot of Jimmy Olsen titles from one of the LCS' auctions.  I think I ended up paying under $2 when everything was said and done.  Always on the prowl for an upgrade of this one.
    Have a great weekend everyone.  Don't do anything rash that you'll regret like our impetuous friend Jimmy!
  16. tomo
    Lastly for this week of low content anagram fun, let's see what we can do with this latest round of purchases from the wilds of eBay.

    A nice little run of high-grade Weird Western Tales featuring Jonah Hex!  Such good stuff.  I especially like this cover Weird Western Tales #25 from December 1974.

    Jonah Hex riding out on horseback from a pit of quicksand!  How badass is that?!
    Anyways, anagrams...
         Jonah Hex = ?
    I got nothing here.  Hex is an enigma even in the world of anagrams.
         Weird Western Tales = Tawdriest Newsreel
    Newsreels wouldn't be a thing for another 50 years in Hex's world, but I can only imagine that if they were around in the wild west, they would've been quite tawdry!
    Have a great weekend everyone, thanks for reading!
  17. tomo
    Yesterday I mentioned that I'll pick up lower grade 12¢ books to help fill out the run if the price is right, well on these the price was right!


    The focus of my collection is completing Action Comics and Superman, but I've slowly been filling out the secondary and tertiary titles as the opportunities present themselves.  After enjoying the heck out of @Silver's Superboy Complete thread over in the Silver Age Forum, I decided to bump the Superboy collecting up a notch as there are some great books in there.
    Thanks to @SOLAR BOY for another killer sales thread that had some of those Superboy books I enjoyed seeing over in @Silver's thread.  And thanks for the freebie too!
    With this haul, and yesterday's, that brings me pretty darn close to filling out all of the Action Comics and Superman 12¢ books, as I need only 12 more Actions and 16 more Supermans.  Hopefully by the end of the year I can finish off that mini-goal and be able to fully concentrate on the 10¢ books.
    And what do the anagrams have to say?
         Superboy = Buy Ropes
         Superman = Man Purse
    Not to much secret insight there.  Let's try the creators on these issues.
         Leo Dorfman = Elf Doorman
         Edmond Hamilton = Damned Monolith
         Al Plastino = Nasal Pilot
         Curt Swan = ...
    Tread lightly on that last one, as there are some decidedly NSFW anagrams there.
  18. tomo

    Disregard...Bizarro!

    By tomo,

    Continuing along with our week-long theme of odd character inclusions, we come to 80 Pg. Giant #6 from January 1965.

    At first glance, it looks like I might have overthought this, as this whole cover is filled with nobodies.  But then if you look over up in the upper right, you'll see the decidely a-list villain, Bizarro!  In the end it makes sense, as of course Bizarro would be featured in a collection of nobodies.  As Bizarro would so horribly state it...
    "Me am nobody."
    Which means he's popular?  I think?  Damn, Bizarro makes my head hurt sometimes.
    A quick look at the other "stars" of this issue reveals that they mostly debuted in the late 50's or very early 60's, and had just the one appearance.  That period is where my collection is what we'll affectionately call "spotty," as I don't have too many of these reprints in their original publication.  It's funny, as in every case I have the issue after their appearance.  The only exception is Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen #47 from September 1960.

    And this isn't even the first appearance of Jimmy Olsen's Private Monster, but his second (and last) appearance.  I haven't read this one yet, but it's got a great robot cover.  Perhaps I've tripped upon my next wall display theme!
    Anyways, back to Bizarro.  This issue reprints the first appearance of Bizarro #1, Action Comics #254 from July 1959.

    This issue is the first appearance of Bizarro #1, and the second appearance of the Bizarro concept overall, after it's debut in Superboy #68 from October 1958.

    While the Superboy issue has its place of honor in the Superman world firmly established, I do think that AC254 is a bit under-appreciated as this is the first appearance of the Bizarro that would go on to flesh out the whole Bizarro concept as we know it today.  My copy I picked up at one of my LCS' earlier auctions.  DC was dead with his customer base back then, so I regularly got deals.  This sharp looking copy I got for $80, which I think is a steal considering it's importance to the whole Superman mythology.
    My copy of SB68 is one I picked up off of eBay about 3 years ago.  It's low grade, but I like to think that since it's Bizarro's first appearance, then it's high-grade?  I think that's how it works?
    "Me hate my high-grade book"
    ...and that is enough Bizarro speak for the day.
    You're welcome.
  19. tomo
    Now it's time for my favorite part of the haul from my epic estate sale find.
    As I had mentioned earlier, when I was in the basement level rummaging around I had managed to snag a longbox to start storing all of my finds in.  I was working my way up the stairs to the third level, it was tricky to say the least as the stairs were very narrow, and a nice gentlemen noticed me struggling and backed up so I could keep going.  I thanked him, and as he noticed what I was carrying said, "I don't think anyone's really noticed it yet, but there are a bunch of comics in a plastic bin mixed in with all of the camera stuff over there."  After another round of thank you's, I made my way over to the aforementioned blue bin and found these...

    A complete run of Adventure Comics #381-424 featuring Supergirl's first solo title run!  They were all in order, so as I started to thumb through them all realizing that they were all there, I could barely contain my excitement!  There are no real key issues here other than 381, and maybe 397, but this isn't a cheap run to put together by any stretch.  All of these are mid to high-grade, and for the most part well presenting.  This was right at the tail end of my search through the building after a solid two hours, so to find this box untouched at this point was quite a stroke of luck.  Here's a few close-ups of some of the individual issues.


    This run also has some killer covers, especially later on in the run.

    Not all of 'em feature an unconscious Supergirl...I promise!
    And for the cherry on top?  The box also had the complete run of the Black Orchid issues and the Spectre issues too!


    That's epic-ness defined right there!
  20. tomo
    Continuing our look at the non-Superman titles that I still actively collect, we have the newest title that I've decided to fill out a run on...and that is Jonah Hex!
    As far back as I can remember I've always been a fan of westerns, much to the chagrin of my wife and son who sigh and roll their eyes when I come across one while flipping through the t.v. listings.  Although I do the same to my wife when Grease is on, so I suppose it's all good.
    Anyways, with as much as I like a good western movie, I never did really give the western comic book genre much of a shot.  I remember sampling the Joe Lansdale/Tim Truman/Vertigo mini-series from the mid-90's, and they were all right.  It wasn't until the Palmiotti/Gray run from 2006 that I really started to appreciate the beauty of the done-in-one, grizzled, morality plays set in the old west.  There is also something about this genre that brings out the best in artists, similar to the beauty that cinematographers are able to capture in their movies.  I also enjoyed the heck out of the New52 run, even when they went modern day and had Booster Gold along for the ride.  It was a nice nod the Hex series from the mid-80's.  I've since eBayed off those runs, and put the funds into putting together a collection of vintage Hex.

    All-Star Western #11 from May 1972, featuring the 2nd appearance of Jonah Hex, is my newest acquisition that I picked up earlier in the month.  Thanks to Hero Time Comics in Southgate, MI for this book.  It's rare when you have a comic book store that has a good selection of back issues for sale at a decent price point, so I usually try to stop by when I'm visiting customers on his end of town.

    Hex's third appearance in Weird Western Tales #12 from July 1972 I picked up on the boards a couple of months ago.  Thanks to @SOLAR BOY for the killer sales threads from earlier in the year, as he also helped me fill out my Doom Patrol run as well.
    I was also able to pick up a lot of the first 8 issues of his solo title from the boards as well, but it's been a while and I can't remember who I picked them up from.

    Jonah Hex #1 from April 1977.  I could look at Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez drawn Jonah Hex all day.  Such good stuff!

    Classic Bernie Wrightson cover of Jonah Hex #9 from February 1978.  Unfortunately, after this issue, I have a big old hole in the run up leading up to issue #72.  I picked up a great high-grade run of the last 20 issues of this title from an auction at my LCS, and I ended up paying about fifty cents a copy for those.  Such good stuff for an insanely low price!

    I love the tag line at the top of the cover..."You liked heroes as a kid? Great! Now maybe it's time you grew up!"
    Yeah, grow up a drink a couple bottles of whiskey, you no-good freeloading kids!

    ...and since you're all grown up now, you should enjoy this cover of this nice lady getting dressed for work.

    A fitting final cover for the Jonah Hex series.
    Since this is in theory a Superman-centric journal, how about this cover of Jonah Hex #91 from June 1985...

    ...which is a classic homage to Superman #243 from October 1971.

  21. tomo

    Behold...Electro!?

    By tomo,

    When it comes to comic book storage, I don't really have a man-cave full of items on display.  I did build custom shelves fit to hold long-boxes that currently take up one wall in my office.

    I work out of my home, so my office is shared between my work and my hobby.  It's not the greatest of solutions, but I'll do the whole comic book room when I retire and move out to the country!
    In the meantime, however, I did pick up a couple of picture frame shelves from Ikea that I use to display about a dozen books at one time.  I like to pick a theme and swap out the books on display every couple of weeks or so.  This is this week's selection...

    The picture is not the greatest, as this room doesn't get a whole lot of natural light, but you get the idea.  I decided to go with a Superman on trial theme, after realizing how many of those covers there were after looking for books for a previous journal entry.
    My son doesn't really have the comic book collecting passion just yet, but he does enjoy trying to guess the theme every time I change it up.  This theme was relatively easy, but he did notice something that I didn't (aside from the shame of only having a reprint of Adventure Comics #247 so far).
    Who the heck is Electro, the glowing frog skeleton?

    He must be pretty important, right?  He is, after all, a member of the Jury of Super-Enemies.  It turns out I haven't read this story yet from Action Comics #286 from March 1962.  I did, however, remember this guy from an earlier cover...

    This story from Action Comics #271 from December 1960 I do remember quite well, as it features a great Lex Luthor scheme.  Spoilers for anyone hoping to read this themselves one day, but there is no light ray creature from Dimension X.  In reality, it's one of Luthor's goons projecting an image of a man made from neon-tubes! It was all a ploy to get Superman trapped inside the fake "spaceship."  Thinking he was getting transported to Dimension X, he was instead trapped on Earth inside a lead sphere while Luthor attempted to swindle the world's governments out of their stockpile of nuclear weapons.
    Superman eventually breaks free of his lead cage and reveals Luthor's scheme to the world.  So all this time, there never was a dimension X, nor were there any light ray creatures.  If that's the case, how did a figment of Luthor's imagination end up on the Jury of Super-Enemies?
    It turns out that the cover for #286 was part of dream sequence caused by Red Kryptonite induced nightmares!  Makes sense.  Electro never speaks, nor is he ever addressed by name in the issue.  He does get to put a Superman doll in a bowl labeled "DOOM" (why not?) and he leads a shackled Supergirl to the arena where she will fight Superman.  If it wasn't for the cover of this issue, we would never be able to associate the name Electro to this type of rampant villainy!
    It does beg the question, where were all the other actual super-enemies when they commissioned this cover?  It did get me to reread a classic Superman story from earlier in the run, so mission accomplished...I guess.
  22. tomo
    Let's round out this week with one last interactive cover of sorts.

    Action Comics #388 from May 1970
    So what is wrong with this cover?  Let's count 'em up...
    Krytpo as Streaky One Way road sign pointing up Cosmic Boy's gloves Cosmic Boy's legs are white Saturn Girl's logo Superman wearing glasses Superman has long hair (damn hippy!) Superman has short cape Superman's chest emblem backwards Flash marking on Superman's left arm Bizarro's chest emblem backwards Bizarro throwing confetti Jimmy "Mr. Action" Olsen sleeping while his signal watch is going off Perry White in a bow-tie Perry White smoking a pipe Brainiac in Mr. Mxyzptlk's costume Brainiac holding up a sign supporting Superman Brainiac has a DC logo on his chest The Batmobile is red Supergirl throwing spaghetti Supergirl wearing a kryptonite bracelet Supergirl missing her cape Supergirl has an "S" logo on her back, with inverted colors Argo City no longer around in this continuity ...and perhaps the most unbelievable thing of all...Lois Lane as Superman's bride?  Right, like that will ever happen!
  23. tomo

    The DCCP big dog

    By tomo,

    Continuing our look at the DCCP title, without a doubt DC Comics Presents #26 is the big dog of this run, featuring the first appearance of The Teen Titans.

    As it turns out, I don't think I've ever read it.  Call me a blasphemer, but I don't think I've read any of the Wolfman/Perez run.  It's not that I have anything against it, as I'm a big fan of George Perez in general (by way of The Avengers).  It's one of those runs that will one day fall into my lap, or not.  It's just that up until this point, it still hasn't.
    In the meantime, give me five minutes, as I'm going to read this...live!
    Things I learned...
    Who knew Beast Boy Changeling was a playa!  Is this the first use of the Changeling name?  I'm a fan of Beast Boy from the Doom Patrol books and don't recall him using that moniker there, or did this change happen in the interim between series? Cyborg is kind of a jerk This was definitely written in 1980, as the references to Jimmy Carter and The Empire Strikes Back reveal. I needed more than five minutes, as this is written in a classic Bronze/Copper style.  Definitely not decompressed. Perez is a beast of an artist.  Granted, I already knew this, but it bears repeating again. Most important, I also never realized that this was an original story and had always assumed that it was just a preview of story and art from the first issue, pre-printed here.  I guess that makes more sense now why this issue is so sought after for Teen Titans fans.  And for first appearance fans in general, as this issue also covers Cyborg, Starfire, and Raven.  It's kind of a shame actually, as this preview robs that classic George Perez cover for issue #1 from being associated with the first appearances of some iconic characters.  
    I guess iconic is a relative term, but I have a ten year old son, which means that I have probably seen every episode of Teen Titans Go! a dozen times each.  I couldn't help myself when reading the book from mimicking the voices from the show, lol.  It's the one "kids" show that I enjoy watching, as the writing is whip-smart and genuinely funny.  I do find it strange that my son knows who Raven, Starfire and Beast Boy are, and that knowledge didn't stem from me!  I'm sure there are a legion of ten year old's out there just like him.  If that isn't iconic, I don't what is!
    Earlier in the year, I was trying to explain to my son that when I was in school the entire school had to share one computer.  The computer had its own room, and if you were well-behaved you could sign up for free time on the computer to play Oregon Trail.  I don't think I've ever seen someone so confused as I tried to explain to him how "fun" playing Oregon Trail was.  Anyways, two weeks later he comes running into my office to let me know that Teen Titans Go! was doing a whole episode satirizing the Oregon Trail!  It's such a good episode, and did a much better job of explaining it than I did.  "You have died of dysentery" has been a favorite call back line for us ever since!
    Anyways, back to Superman...this issue's main story is plotted and drawn by Jim Starlin, but it's not really good Starlin.  Best to move on, before something drastic happens...

     
  24. tomo
    While not necessarily Superman titles, I do consider the Fourth World books Superman-adjacent, since they did kick off in Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen.  So today, let's take a look at the series that laid down a lot of the mythology to come.

    New Gods #1 from March 1971.
    I think out of all the Fourth World titles, this cover is not only a classic, but probably one of my personal favorites as well.  I love the oversized logo, the black and white background, and the oversaturated colors on Orion really pop.  This was one of the last books that I needed to complete the run, and almost didn't get it.  I was going to be out of town and unavailable during the auction at my LCS for this one, so I put in an absentee bid of $30 since the picture wasn't the greatest.  Low and behold, the other on-line bidder stopped at just under $30, so it was waiting for me when I got back into town.  Aside from the small mis-wrap, the books a stunner and I couldn't be happier.  It was one situation where a low-res picture worked in my favor.
    The other (relatively new) big dog from this series is the 1st appearance of Steppenwolf, in New Gods #7 from March 1972.

    I picked this one up well before the movie hype, so it only cost me $10.  I still can't believe how cheap the DC Kirby stuff was going for, not even 5 years ago.  This cover is not one of the stronger of the run, as the coloring on this one just seems to mute all of the detail.  At least Steppenwolf made the cover for his 1st appearance!
    Finally, we have what is my other favorite cover from this series...

    New Gods #11 from November 1972.
    It's a great action packed cover, and in my opinion, the only thing keeping it from legendary status is that the Black Racer is in the background.  Imagine this cover with an imposing figure of Darkseid in his place, watching his two sons go at it.  I realize that the Black Racer was there to amp up the stakes, but c'mon...the Black Racer?  He's one of the few lost opportunities with the Fourth World, as far as I'm concerned.
     
  25. tomo
    Yesterday we had a lot of fun with the board game cover of AC#360, so let's see what other "interactive" covers we have.

    Here's Action Comics #344 from December 1966.
    This cover boasts a mystery to solve, with all of the "Bat-Clues" right there on the cover.  Superman is having nightmares, and it's up to us to figure out the cause!
    Let's give it a good look...there's a crystal man on the cover, doing his best Santa Claus impersonation while a multitude of Supermen are frozen in an infinite array of ice blocks.  Going solely by the cover, I'm guessing that an alien subconsciousness has possessed Superman and is attempting to create an army of Supermen to take over the world by manifesting through Superman's dreaming state?  Maybe?
    So how correct was I?  Let's give it a read and find out...
    Well, don't I feel stupid now.  In reality...and spoilers from here on out for anyone who wants to read the book first...
    Looking back at the cover in hindsight, it's all so obvious now!
    Anyways, this issue was another eBay purchase that was one of my earliest mid-60's books.  It's got a great Curt Swan infinity cover, with just a hint of that DC purple background! The inside story is drawn by Wayne Boring, who will always be one of my favorite Superman artists.  This was during his last regular run on the Superman books, before he was shuffled off.  He really gets to let loose here, as there are three dreams sequences that he's allowed to interpret in his signature style.  Good stuff!