Detective Comics

Why “flagship”? Well, there’s the name thing — “DC” comes from, yes, “Detective Comics” — and the fact that it’s the oldest continuously published comic in the US, with a first-issue cover date of March, 1937, over a year before Action #1 (although, of course, the Caped Crusader himself didn’t show up until issue #27, dated March, 1939). Just looking through the covers is a capsule history of comics trends, from the pulp-influenced ’40s (seen here in the menacing Joker-with-guns pose from issue #69) through the toned-down Comics-Code-influenced silly-sf ’50s (check out the “captive planet” cover for issue #256, which looks like it wandered in from an issue of Strange Adventures) to the “New Look”/back-to-detective-basics ’60s, where the transition from the stupid-aliens cover in #326 to the Infantino mystery in #327 sums up the extreme change in style nicely. The ’70s might be the most fondly-remembered decade for many fans; it starts with the January, 1970 issue, the first Detective with a Denny O’Neil/Neal Adams interior story and winds through a few more years of occasional Adams work, the 100-Page Giants from issues #438-445 (many with the Archie Goodwin/Walt Simonson Manhunter serial, plus lots of Silver and Golden-Age reprints, and lead stories by Adams and, in the pictured #442, Alex Toth), and, from issues #471-476, the Steve Englehart/Marshall Rogers run that some of us would argue is the post-’40s Detective high point. Not only that, but issues #481-495 mark the transition from 1979 to 1980 with a 64-pg. $1 format that sees lead stories featuring Batman, plus Robin/Batgirl stories, plus other, rotating back-ups starring characters like Commissioner Gordon and Steve Ditko’s Odd Man.

None of these are sitting on the discount racks, of course, but many issues from the ’50s up are now restocked and available on the main floor, with the more key issues (like this, this, this and this) also on display. The bulk of the bargains start after issue #500, in the early ’80s, and for 99 cents each there’s a lot of cool Bat-reading; for one thing, at this point Gene Colan comes over from Marvel, fresh from his work on Tomb of Dracula, and settles in for a long Detective run — issues #510, 512, 517 (part of a great Batman-vs.-vampires crossover with Batman), 523, and most of #s 528-567 — although issues #547-552 have art by Pat Broderick instead, which is a considerable step below Gentleman Gene (to make up for it, #549-550 have an Alan Moore-scripted Green Arrow back-up story with art by Klaus Janson). Most of the non-Colan issues from #500-526 have art from Phoenix’s own Don Newton, so they’re worth checking out, too — especially #526, an anniversary issue (Batman’s 500th appearance in Detective, with a 56-page story by Newton). Writer Doug Moench starts on the title with the next issue, #527, and he and Colan provide a well-regarded couple of years on the book, involving the early Jason-Todd-as-Robin issues, love interests Nocturna and Catwoman (who practically becomes a co-star for awhile), a reinvigorated Catman as antagonist, Harvey Bullock as comic relief, and a tight continuity with the Batman comic, as stories frequently cross over, requiring readesr to follow both books. Moench’s last issue is #566, while Colan’s last issue, #567, boasts his art over a script by Harlan Ellison; after that, Mike Barr and Alan Davis are the regular team for a while, through #574, after which Todd McFarlane contributes three issues. Barr stays on through issue #581, and then there’s a fallow period, mostly with Alan Grant scripting and Norm Breyfogle drawing, enlivened by a three-parter in issues #598-600 by Batman movie scriptwriter Sam Hamm and art by Denys Cowan (although, truth be told, that story seemed considerably more worthwhile at the time then it does in retrospect).

The early 600s — and the early ’90s — are similarly flat; a John Ostrander three-parter with covers by legendary Batman artist (and Arizona resident) Dick Sprang in issues #622-624 is fun, and Marv Wolfman and Jim Aparo team up for a while in issues #625-628 (over Michael Golden covers). Then, Peter Milliogan comes on board, and the scripts get both stranger and more intriguing; he and Aparo are in #s 629-632, with Tom Mandrake art in #633, and then after some other creative teams Milligan and Aparo are back in issues #638-640 and #643; Aparo also draws #s 641-642 over Alan Grant scripts. After that, Chuck Dixon, who pretty much defines competent-but-generic, is scripter with a number of artists.

The next story of import occurs in #659, and it’s one getting a lot of interest this year: it’s part two of the “Knightfall” serial, which begins in Batman and crisscrosses through the Bat-titles for almost a year, leading to both the (temporary) end of Bruce Wayne as Batman, and the inspiration for this summer’s much-anticipated Batman movie. Jim Balent (of Catwoman and Tarot fame) does the art chores in #660, part four of the crossover, and Dixon continues as writer (with Kelley Jones supplying most of the covers) through the aptly-numbered issue #666, the last issue of Detective before “Knightfall” and and another character takes over the Batman cape….

…but that’s a good place to stop, since those are all the issues that are on the discount racks for now. That leaves 20 years of Detective to go, though, so buy them while you can, create some rack space, and come back in two weeks to see how the Dark Knight fared in the rest of the ’90s and the ’00s.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #6 Writers: Kevin Eastman and Tom Waltz Artist: Dan Duncan

So within this whole DC 52 reboot, there’s been another reboot over at IDW. The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles reboot has been nothing short of fantastic. When I was a kid, I didn’t really read the comics, but I had the toys (there’s still a party bus with rockin’ Ninja Turtles up in my attic!)  This Turtles comic is treating everything as if it’s brand new, and actually rebooting the entire saga. All the characters are coming along and it’s taking it’s time. It’s been wonderful work, and I can’t wait ’til they pull in Shredder. But that’s another thing! They’re taking their time to introduce everyone and not jumping the gun. So great!

The Bulletproof Coffin: Disinterred #1 Writer: David Hine Artist: Shaky Kane:

Raise your hand if you actually expected this to get another mini-series. Raise your hand if you actually read the first volume of this. OK. You’re lying if you raised your hands for both. This is quite possibly the oddest story that’s being published in all of comics, and in a world of Grant Morrison stories, that’s saying something. The story picks up slightly similar with the same retro characters, but turns this into more of a murder-mystery plot. As was the case with the first series, you find yourself thinking “hold on, What?” a lot throughout the series. We’ll see if this is as much of a parody as the first series was.

Justice League #5 Writer: Geoff Johns Artist: Jim Lee

The Savage Hawkman #5 Writer: James Bonny Artist: Philip Tan

Holy deadlines Batman! After being bumped a week, you can clearly see why there was a delay with this issue of Justice League. The story is still solid, but my God it looks like the inker threw up all over the page to cover for the fact that Lee wasn’t ready. Are you surprised? On the other hand, Hawkman hasn’t missed a deadline yet, but it’s starting to look really weird. I’ve never seen what rushed Tan art looks like, but here it is. I feel like the more rushed your art is, the more real it is. And in this case, I actually like this art better. The story is crap, but that’s not the point. I’m not dying when I look at Philip Tan art, so that’s progress!

The Ultimates #6 Writer: Jonathan Hickman Artists: Brandon Peterson and Esad Ribic

OK, you’ve re-suckered me in Ultimate line! Hickman is always going to go for a grander scale, and it works in most cases. But half of the battle is finding the right art style to accompany it. It’s a lot like Grant Morrison stuff, where it relies on the quality of the art, so ya don’t want Marc Silvestri drawing it (New X-Men burn). This book has been fairly solid and had a lot of action, but this issue has shown Hickman to slow it down and try to work out different pieces. I don’t mind that the Reed Richards of this world is all screwed up, it’s actually interesting, and I look forward to seeing what Hickman does with it.

I, Vampire #5 Writer: Joshua Hale Fialkov Artist: Andrea Sorrentino

I’m still not exactly sure how this all fits into continuity, but hey! here’s Batman! He shows up this issue and joins the now 4-person team out to stop the vampires from taking over the world. Why didn’t they bring in Superman to just vaporize everyone except the one that the main character loves? Or why not call the Justice League? Or hey! It’s vampires, so Justice League Dark? Yeah, I’m nerd-ranting, but there’s practical solutions here to a problem that I’m not quite figuring out. I like looking at it though, so I’ll keep reading.

Secret Avengers 21.1 Writer: Rick Remender Artist: Patrick Zircher

So Brubaker put together the basic ideas of what they were fighting against, Nick Spencer tried to kill it in three issues, and Warren Ellis took it to absolute bat-$#!} crazy. Now Remender takes this .1 issue to rearrange the team and dial it back to what Brubaker was trying to do. And it’s interesting. If you like generic, normal spy stuff, this is the kind of story that will work for you. It hits all the points it needs to, and sets everything in motion for future issues. I’m intrigued to see how this all goes, so Remender has effectively done his job. Don’t expect it to be a continuation of Ellis’ style, but it’s going to be its own thing.

Aquaman #5 Writer: Geoff Johns Artist: Ivan Reis

Justice League Dark #5 Writer: Peter Milligan Artist: Mikel Janin

Flash #5 Writer/Artist: Francis Manapul and Brian Buccellato

So the new 52 is at a strange transition point, stories are coming to an end, books are being cancelled, and everyone is trying to keep up their momentum. These are three books that are hitting their marks. Aquaman is a one-shot with him facing the long joke of being stuck in the desert. Johns has been playing this completely straight, and it leads into whatever the next story is. Flash and JLDark both bring their first stories to an end. Flash planted some seeds for later stories, but hit main points and wrapped everything up. Dark ends its story but sets everything in motion for all the future issues. They are all very good stories and different attempts, so it’s worth checking out.

And that’s it! Have a good week, and I’ll be back in two!

“The” Dan Jacka

Impressively, I actually knew this one (although I had to do some Googling — and some reading in the Overstreet Price Guide, and online at the Grand Comics Database — to flesh out the details, so maybe it’s not that impressive). The book Ed’s thinking of is a Marvel (well, Epic) graphic novel from 1988, called Iron Man: Crash; it was created by Mike Saenz, and billed as “the first computer generated graphic novel.” It’s set about 30 years in the future, where Tony Stark is still around, long retired from heroing but keeping himself artificially young, and caught up in some industrial-espionage/spy/technowar thing. You can tell that Seanz had been reading a lot of cyberpunk stuff, and the influence of Batman: The Dark Knight Returns (which had been published just two years before) is obvious — there’s even one of those patented Miller TV panel-grid info-dump sequences. The art is… primitive, in the same way that early CGI in movies was: pretty good on the special effects, but stiff and unconvincing with the humans, especially the faces. Still, considering that this came out a year before Tim Berners-Lee put the World Wide Web together for the first time, it’s an interesting achievement; if you were 15 years old when it came out, and into computers and comics, you’d have loved it, especially the seven pages in the appendix about how the book was created.

By the way, although Crash is billed as the first computer graphic novel, it’s not the first computer-generated comic. That honor belongs to Saenz too, though: in 1985, he created Shatter, a regular four-color comic book, for First Comics; it was a similar future-type Blade Runneresque story that had a one-shot debut, and then a 14-issue regular-series run (although Saenz left after the first two issues), and is certainly the reason he was able to pitch the Iron Man book to Marvel. As an even earlier attempt, it’s even more primitive in its art, but again it’s remarkable that he created it at all; Shatter and Iron Man: Crash, with their exaggerated pixels and awkward expressions and occasionally-cool colors and designs, will always have a small but significant niche in comics history.

Daredevil

DD continues to be a bright spot among the Marvel books — literally, since its pages are splashed with lots of reds, blues and other primary colors. That gives it a unique look (even when a different artist is drawing it, as here, although Kano turns out to be a good match for the previous pencillers), and suits its sunny, optimistic stories. This issue, the second part of a crossover with Amazing Spider-Man, features Spidey, DD and the Black Cat battling bad guys (and sometimes each other), and ends with an intriguing new relationship; let’s just say that if Felicia is an analogue to DC’s Catwoman, and Matt has some traits in common with Batman, then it was probably inevitable….

Fables #113 — Writer: Bill Willingham;  Art: Rick Leonardi and Ron Randall; P. Craig Russell; Zander Cannon and Jim Fern;  Ramon Bachs and Ron Randall; Adam Hughes

This is one of those take-a-break issues that Willingham throws in every so often: a bunch of small stories of times past, self-contained but crisscrossing into the regular continuity in a couple of ways, and giving a number of different artists a chance to participate. Russell and Hughes are the standouts, but everyone seems to be having a good time; the fairy-tale fantasy milieu gives artists a chance to stretch their abilities, and their enthusiasm shines through. “Turtles all the way down,” indeed.

Legion of Super-Heroes #5 — Writer: Paul Levitz;  Pencils: Walt Simonson;  Inks: Dan Green and Sean Parsons

Another comic worth noting for its art: Walt Simonson might not be the first guy who comes to mind as an LSH chronicler, but his penciling is always a treat. This, like Fables, is something of a change-of-pace story, as Levitz tracks 24 hours with the team, and shows most of its members just living their lives instead of battling any cosmic-level bad guys; new readers will be equally confused and intrigued by all the characters and relationships on display, but longtime fans should like it a lot.

Wonder Woman #5 — Writer: Brian Azzarello;  Art: Tony Akins

I’ve never warmed that much to Azzarello; I didn’t like his Superman arc, and only got maybe a third of the way into 100 Bullets before losing interest (I knew it was good, and that I ought to be reading it, but just didn’t like it that much). Thus, I keep almost-dropping this book; however, the creators keep pulling me back: I like the way the gods are written as bickering soap-opera characters, and I especially liked the book’s last few pages — Akins really shows his stuff in two big splashes involving Lord Poseidon (heh: “splashes”? “Poseidon”? Is this thing on…?), and the clever way Diana’s able to hold her own with her divine antagonists. Sign me up for a few more….

Superior #7 (of 7) — Writer: Mark Millar;  Art: Leinil Yu

The conclusion of Millar’s latest foray into super-hero marketing: there’s a big, satisfying battle, and Yu does a good job with all the big scenes and elaborate set pieces he’s called on to draw. It’s a cinematic comic in both the best and worst senses: like, say, Independence Day, it has multiple plot holes that you could throw a giant transformed alien through (the “soul” thing makes no sense at all), but the story just rockets ahead so quickly, and with so many satisfying small scenes and twists, that the readers finish the book happily; it’s loud, goofy fun, and any criticism, however legitimate, seems besides the point.

Catwoman #5 — Writer: Judd Winick;  Art: Guillem March

This book started with controversy (Bat-sex will do that), but it was obviously deliberate: it generated press, and guaranteed that the comic wouldn’t be seen as boring. Meanwhile, Winick has established his heroine as feisty, smart and a survivor, and each issue has enough cool little moments and cliffhangers to keep those initial readers coming back for more; stir in March’s inviting art, and ability to make Selina look alternatively imposing, sexy and vulnerable, as the story requires, and it’s clear that this book is a survivor, just like its title character.

Moon Knight — Writer: Brian Michael Bendis;  Art: Alex Maleev

Ultimate Spider-Man #6 — Writer: Brian Michael Bendis;  Art: Chris Samnee

Avengers #21 — Writer: Brian Michael Bendis;  Pencils: Renato Guedes;  Inks: Jose Magalhaes

Three by Bendis: Moon Knight is one big battle scene, and ends with a major, and tragic, plot development; Maleev’s shadowy, nuanced art, and the title character’s Greek chorus of superhero voices in his head, make it worth looking at. Ultimate Spider-Man also benefits from its visuals — Samnee’s one of the best young artists out there right now; his drawing, although it doesn’t look anything like John Byrne’s, is somehow still good at echoing both Byrne’s clear storytelling and sense of fun, which makes Miguel’s adventures appealing. The story itself is still in young-hero-learns-the-ropes mode, and reminiscent of Bendis’s earlier work on the title (there’s a scene with the cops that we’ve seen at least a couple of times before); that’s the same trouble with Avengers, wherein all the Norman Osborn/evil Avengers stuff seems like a rerun (plus, there’s a truth-in-advertising issue: the cover showcases Storm, who only shows up in the story for two pages, unconscious). Still, it’s another chapter in the ongoing adventures of Marvel’s biggest stars, and even with its faults it’s readable and engaging enough to keep its audience satisfied.

Amazing Spider-Man #678 — Writer: Dan Slott;  Pencils: Humberto Ramos;  Inks: Victor Olazaba

Invincible Iron Man #512 — Writer: Matt Fraction;  Art: Salvador Larroca

Uncanny X-Men #5 — Writer: Kieron Gillen;  Pencils: Greg Land;  Inks: Jay Leisten

Three titles linked because they’re all readable and engaging, too, but there’s not that much else to say about them. ASM starts a two-parter wherein Peter sees a destroyed New York City 24 hours into the future, and knows that something he either did or didn’t do led to it… but what? The suspense, and the Ramos art, carry it along nicely. Iron Man continues the machinations of the Mandarin (who’s proving, to the chagrin of people like Obadiah Stane and the Living Laser, that he’s not an ally who plays nicely with the other super-villains); Fraction and Larocca have been at this long enough for readers to trust them, and trust that the story will eventually resolve itself satisfactorily. So too for UXM, wherein Gillen and Land build off of events in Uncanny X-Factor, and throw the team into a Savage Land-like hostile environment and then let the sparks fly.

Dr. Strange

Dr. Stephen Strange is the “other” Marvel mainstay created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko (after Spider-Man, of course), and first appears as the back-up story in Strange Tales #110, in 1963. He has a typical Stan Lee fairy-tale, there’s-a-lesson-here origin: he’s a world-renowned surgeon, arrogant and uncaring, but then gets in a drunken car wreck that damages his hands, and makes it impossible for him to do surgery any more. Bitter and depressed, he schleps around the globe, eventually ending up at one of those hidden-temple Shangri-La Far East outposts, where he encounters the Ancient One, a magician/guru, and his disciple, Baron Mordo. Strange accidentally discovers that Mordo is really a villain, who’s learning the Ancient One’s arts for evil, and, revealing his buried heroism, risks his life to warn everyone about it and stop Mordo’s plans; Mordo ends up banished, and Strange becomes the Ancient One’s new disciple. All of this is rendered with imagination and grace by Ditko, whose ability to draw weird other dimensions, and make mystical powers like “bolts of bedevilment” seem both realistic and trippy/cool, turns the origin, and the tales that follow it, into ’60s hippy classics. Ditko leaves the book in 1966, with issue #146, but Strange soldiers on — drawn by, among others, Bill Everett, Marie Severin, Dan Adkins and Jim Steranko — and eventually takes over the comic, as Strange Tales becomes Dr. Strange with issue #169, in 1968. In issue #172, he receives his second great artist, Gene Colan, who draws him through the end of the book’s run, with issue #183, in 1969.

Strange is relegated to guest-star status for a while after that, but returns to his own stories in 1972, in the try-out title Marvel Premiere. His first appearance there, in issue #3, is written by Lee and drawn by Barry Windsor-Smith, and is a small masterpiece of mood and cool art (Strange, with his mystical and fantasy elements, has always attracted good artists). Lee only writes the first issue, and Smith only stays around for the next one, #4; there’s some flailing around after that, but in issue #9 the team of Steve Englehart and Frank Brunner takes over, and quickly makes the book a cult favorite, by doing things like killing the Ancient One, and having Dr. Strange travel to the beginning of the universe and meet God; after Marvel Premier #14, in fact, the book proves popular enough to get its own title again, and Dr. Strange #1 appears in June, 1974, still by Englehart and Brunner. That artist leaves after issue #5, but his replacement is Gene Colan, and he and Englehart, during the next year, deliver one of the best sustained Marvel runs of the ’70s: Dr. Strange #s 6-18, among other things, destroy the world and remake it, have Dr. Strange fight Dracula (in a two-parter that crosses over with Colan’s second title, Tomb of Dracula), and send Dr. Strange to Hell. Only a few of these issues are on the discount racks, but they’re surprisingly cheap, and available in the regular back-issue boxes for $5 or less each; if you’ve never read them, you’re missing some wonderful, influential work.

Unfortunately, just when the book is at its peak Englehart gets into a dispute with Marvel’s new editor-in-chief, Gerry Conway, and leaves the company; that leaves the book to try to pick up the pieces, and it goes into musical-creator mode for awhile. Part of the problem is that not all writers are compatible with the Doctor — Marv Wolfman and Chris Clarement, among others, try and mostly fail — but there are some interesting moments: Jim Starlin writing issues #24-26; Roger Stern and Tom Sutton on #s 27-30; Claremont and Colan on #s 38-45 (Claremont doesn’t add much, but the Colan art is worth a look). The next really decent run, though, starts with issue #47, as Roger Stern (who does prove to be a great Doc writer) teams with Colan for that issue, and then with Marshall Rogers from #48-53,  Michael Golden in #55, and Paul Smith in #56. Stern stays on with some lesser artists (although there’s another battle with Dracula in #s 60-62 that banishes all vampires from the Marvel Universe for awhile that’s pretty good), but then Smith returns in issue #65, and he and Stern have a nice little set of stories through issue #73. Both leave at that point, though, and the book only lasts a few more months, ending with issue #81 in February, 1987.

Strange’s third volume begins about a year and a half later, in November, 1988, and is titled Doctor Strange, Sorcerer Supreme; the initial writer is Peter Gillis (who’d been the scripter for the last few issues of the previous series), with art chores by Richard Case (who’d eventually go on to DC Vertigo titles like Doom Patrol); that team only stays for the first four issues, though, and then is replaced by Roy Thomas (with, as co-writer, his wife Dann) and Jackson Guice, an association that proves fruitful enough to last for two years, through issue #24 (although there are a few fill-in artists: Richard Valentino in #17, and Gene Colan in #19). The most notorious issue of this run comes, not from any plot or character development, but from a cover: on issue #15, Guice swiped an image from one of Christian singer Amy Grant’s albums, and Grant, upset at both the theft and the fact that it was used on a “demonic” character’s cover, sued Marvel, who eventually settled out of court. The Thomases stay on after that, but with a series of undistinguished artists (Geof Isherwood being the most long-lived); even the plots become less memorable, because this is a period – the early ’90s — when Marvel is heavily into cosmic crossovers — Infinity Gauntlet, etc. — and Dr. Strange keeps tying into them, sacrificing any individual story for the larger mega-event. Thomas leaves with issue #47, and when scripter Len Kaminski replaces him the descent into mediocrity is complete. There are a couple of glimmers — in issue #60, a big crossover with the other Marvel occult titles like Morbius and Spirits of Vengeance (they’re all part of the group of books that Marvel marketed as the “Midnight Sons”) takes place, and Dr. Strange gets broken into three different beings; this story, by David Quinn and Melvin Rubi (at first), starts promisingly but then lasts through what seems forever, and sends Strange through so many makeovers and changes that the reader gets exhausted trying to keep it all straight. Points of note are issues #70-73, with art by Peter Gross; #75, by Mark Buckingham; #76, introducing a long-haired version of Strange by Gross that looks eerily like the older Tim from his Books of Magic series at DC Vertigo; #s 78 and 79, by Marie Severin; #80, featuring another new look for the character, this one written by Warren Ellis and drawn by Buckingham; #82, half by Buckingham and half by Gary Frank; and #s 84-90, drawn by Buckingham and with a story by J.M. DeMatteis — and that ends the series, in January 1996, and is the last time that Dr. Strange has had his own ongoing title.

That’s not to say that the character hasn’t been around, of course. There’ve been the occasional mini-series (J. Michael Straczynski and Brandon Peterson did the six-issue origin reboot Strange in 2004, while Mark Waid and Emma Rios contributed the four-issue Strange in 2010), and the Doctor has been a member of the Avengers (well, the New Avengers) during most of Brian Michael Bendis’s tenure on that book, as well as appearing in the current revival of The Defenders. Will audiences ever warm to him again? Sure: if comics history has proven anything, it’s that, with the right writer and the right artist, any character can rise from the comics graveyard. Given his past, the Master of the Mystic Arts is a better candidate than most.

Sgt. Fury #51 from 1968

Evil Nazis! Now that I have your attention, this is another “Nazis try to kill all the leaders of the Allied forces” that you get from a comic in the 60s… Hey wait-a-minute… didn’t the war end like 20 years before this comic came out? Whatever, anyway! One of the Commandos (the movie star) gets captured by a Nazi (with a conscience) who is trying to save his family by doing Hitler’s bidding. It’s a pretty standard war tale, and exactly what you’d expect. Then it ends with a double suicide. That’s the kinda stuff that even I’m not smart enough to make a joke about. More info can be found HERE

Sgt. Fury came back as Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. which then led to Secret Warriors. I’m not even sure where he stands anymore because Secret Warriors came to an end. I think it’s safe to assume he’ll pop up in any of the Avengers titles sometime soon.

Monsters on the Prowl #9 from 1971

While this comic book is from 1971, it appears to be reprints of 1950′s material, so let’s see what the 50′s has to offer! Mainly it has “Gorgilla! The monster of Midnight Mountain!” After attacking some stupid travelers, that monster then fights a dinosaur. That’s it. That’s all there is to that first story. The second story involves a dumb American who won’t let anyone in the desert tell him what to do.  He gets trapped in a Pyramid (obviously). The third story is about a cloud monster catching a spaceman. I think you might be noticing the pattern here. The real draw is the piece of Ditko art, but without proper credits, I’m not sure which story it is. More info can be found HERE

I cannot think of a story that has monsters like this in it anymore. If you’re looking for vampires and Man-Thing and stuff like that, go with “Legion of Monsters,” but otherwise, you’re out of luck. Big monster creatures just ain’t what they used to be.

Metamorpho #5 from 1966

Oh man, Metamorpho is seriously so weird! It starts with Metamorpho eating a timebomb planted on a train. Do I need to repeat myself? Well, Professor Stagg, who of course hates Metamorpho because he’s in love with Stagg’s daughter, creates a new Metamorpho, and no one can tell the difference! What a horrible coincidence! Obviously, this other Metamorpho has evil intentions. Stagg was planning to work with him to build a new type of building, but this guy wants to destroy all other buildings. Can he possibly be stopped? Well, the obvious answer is yes, and he does, but c’mon. This thing is just the right amount of bizarre to be awesome. More info can be found HERE

Metamorpho hasn’t made his debut in the new DC 52… yet. His last appearance was in the Outsiders, but I’m sure we’ll see him either in Justice League Dark, DC Universe Presents or some random cameo. Just wait and see.

And that’s it! I have football to watch, so there I go!

“The” Dan Jacka