Hello And Goodbye!

Stumbled across this vintage piece of promotional artwork by the late great Joe Kubert and was struck by several different aspects of it. First and foremost, the always impressive work of Kubert even in a bit of a throwaway piece such as this, still resonating with some mood. The figures of Superman and Spider-Man dominate, the pair just coming off a highly touted team-up. Batman clearly seen but Captain America oddly concealed. The Flash is front and center but Thor is barely in the picture. Most surprising is the absence of the Hulk, though admittedly he was still a year away from becoming an icon. Weirdly Howard the Duck, a sensation of the moment gets the Kubert treatment, but to be honest doesn't quite look himself, with a decidedly what-am-I-doing-here look on his beak-fronted face. I like that Tarzan and Hawkman are present, and you know it's for no other reason than Kubert likes the characters, two with which he is mostly closely associated aside from the war books. Archie and Jughead are present and accounted for, but what Jughead is doing holding Cap's shield is a story begging to be told. Finally we have Casper, who frankly looks odd, not himself at all and the one true failure on Kubert's part in this wonderful time capsule. But the assembled cast do look genial, waving in a smiling friendly way, at this remote juncture a fond farewell to a time when comics were naively fun.

Here are couple of more promotional pieces by Kubert and his studio. The first featuring Marvel's heroes. 

And the second showcasing the DC cast of characters.

Though some top Marvel characters do make an appearance.

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