Summer Green #10 - Snowbirds!

The eighty-fifth issue of Green Lantern and Green Arrow kicks off the most famous two-part story the series would create and cemented the reputation of the series for all of comics history. The drug issues made an impact outside the ghetto of comics fans and made the series part of the larger pop culture of its day. The issue by the now-regular team of Denny O'Neil, Neal Adams and Dick Giordano is a beauty.

Green Arrow finds himself up against some very small-time drug dealers who try to shake him down and in the process he himself is shot by an arrow which penetrates his shoulder.

He recognizes the craftsmanship on the arrow as his own and suspects his ward Speedy is working undercover, though he doesn't say this at the time. He calls upon Green Lantern to help him and the duo begin to unravel a drug operation which goes from poor junkies to predatory dealers.

They though themselves are subdued and injected with drugs which have powerful effects on our heroes.
The gather themselves and head home only to find Speedy in the process of shooting up, a moment which famously startles Green Arrow.

This one is a biggie, the cover probably one of the ten most famous images in comics history having been swiped and homaged dozens of times over the decades. When comics discovered the drug problem it was met with a range of attitudes. Over at Marvel we get a more paternalistic attitude with comics produced by men who are somewhat isolated from the then current drug culture. This effort seems more interested in the junkie's perspective offering up a really sympathetic image.

But there's more to this story, as we'll see next time.

This is a verdant vintage Dojo post. 

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Summer Green#9 - Plastic Men!

The eighty-fourth issue of Green Lantern and Green Arrow is a curious story indeed. Produced by Denny O'Neil and Neal Adams, this issue is inked by up and comer Berni Wrightson. Wrightson had done one page in an earlier issue, but does the whole issue this time.

The story begins as Carol Ferris goes to a place called Piper's Dell which is run by a charismatic fellow named Wilbur Palm.

Later Lantern hears that the dam of Piper Dell is threatened and goes to solve the problem. Wilbur Palm appears to give his thanks but actually attaches an odd device called a "Kaluta" to his chest which spurts a strange perfume in his face. Lantern is invited into Piper Dell, a company town that manufactures and celebrates plastic. Lantern is later attacked by the zombie-like denizens of Piper Dell but manages to send his ring away to Green Arrow.

Arrow eventually discovers it and goes to the rescue. Meanwhile Lantern learns that Wilbur Palm is actually his old enemy Blackhand and the whole of Piper Dell is a malevolent experiment in citizen control by means of the chemicals and technology. Ferris was brought there only to lure in the Lantern. Lantern is able to escape and finds Carol and the pair try to leave Piper Dell and only the timely arrival of Green Arrow who shoots the power ring to Hal Jordan allows them to succeed. Quickly he subdues the denizens of Piper Dell and encases Blackhand in his own favorite substance--plastic.

This issue seemed to be mostly a tirade against plastic, and the kind of supposedly false society it supports. Given how plastics have developed since the early 70's the criticism seems moot, but never say never.

More to come.

This is a verdant vintage Dojo post. 

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Summer Green #8 - Nattering Nabobs!

The eighty-third issue of Green Lantern and Green Arrow is the only issue of the run I actually bought and read during the original run. I don't know what prompted me to pick up this issue by Denny O'Neil, Neal Adams and Dick Giordano, but I doubt it was the unmistakable mug of Spiro Agnew on the cover.

In this one Carol Ferris, longtime romantic interest of Hal Jordan falls victim to a weird little girl named Sybil and her evil mentor Grandy (the guy who looks like Spiro Agnew - shamed former Vice President for Richard Nixon back when one could shame a politician.). For the record, Sybil reminds one of Richard Nixon himself, an odd choice indeed. Sybil paralyzes Ferris for some momentary slight to Grandy.

The story picks up some weeks later as Dinah Drake is headed to a job at a private school. She is chaperoned by Green Lantern and Green Arrow and the trio immediately come under attack by a flock of birds. A portly postman gives the hint where the inspiration for this attack came from. At the school Lantern and Arrow are given short shrift while Canary remains behind.

Later Hal Jordan finds Ferris in her wheelchair and his old feelings surface. The new trio come under attack when their car falls apart sending them over a cliff and only Lantern's ring saves the day.

Meanwhile Canary becomes suspicious of the all-too quiet children and offends Grandy who sicks his mentally-slaved minions to attack her. Sybil subdues the Canary who is thrown into a room with wasps. Lantern and Arrow arrive to save the day but fall victim to Sybil themselves before Arrow manages to send off an arrow which distracts her. Quickly they save Canary as Sybil revolts against the pernicious demands of the evil Grandy. In a desperate act of defiance she brings the school down on their heads while everyone else escapes.

Green Lantern then finds his feelings for Carol remain and the story ends a bit openly as the pair walk away into the rain.

This story has always been a most memorable one for me, it's so completely weird. I can only assume that the use of Agnew and Nixon suggests some broader implications for the metaphor of mind control in the story, but I don't really parse exactly the point being made. Their use might simply be playfulness on the part of O'Neil and/or Adams.

More to come.

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Summer Green #7 - Harpies!

The eighty-second issue of Green Lantern and Green Arrow features the most important but unlisted member of the team Black Canary. By the team of Denny O'Neil, Neal Adams and Dick Giordano, this one is an odd one indeed.

Ollie attempts to woo Dinah Drake with flowers when suddenly there appear a pair of malicious harpies who disappear as soon as they appear. Arrow calls in Green Lantern who promptly encounters them himself along with their apparent mistress, a red-skinned menace who calls herself the "Witch Queen". But Lantern detects a familiar threat.

Later Arrow and Canary encounter some very buff Amazons who are much impressed by Canary's fighting skills and then tell of their home dimension was the scene of a battle between a troll-like Wizard and the Witch Queen which banished them. The amazons are out to make all men pay for the Wizard's crimes.

It turns out the Witch Queen is actually the sister of Sinestro and this is a plot to lure Green Lantern into a trap. While Green Arrow and Canary fight with the Amazons to free him, the Lantern is trapped in a distant dimension fighting Medusa. It all comes to a hasty conclusion.

This wasn't the best story of the series, but did have some terrific moments. The relevance seemed to take a back seat to the fantasy, though women's issues are of the moment through out.

It's worth noting that Berni Wrightson inked a single page of this story, a harbinger of things to come.

More to come.

This is a verdant vintage Dojo post. 

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Summer Green #6 - Make Room!

The eighty-first issue of Green Lantern and Green Arrow picks up right after the last. In this one Denny O'Neil, Neal Adams and Dick Giordano have fashioned a cautionary fable of another world in which there just too many people.

Old Timer, the Guardian who traveled with our heroes and who was brought before his fellow immortals for judgment faces his sentence, to be made mortal and to live out his now numbered days on Maltus, the planet from which the Guardians sprang.

But Maltus has changed. Fearful of a faltering of children, a woman named Mother Juna instigated a program of cloning which has resulted in a planet overrun with people of all sorts. To stem this tide of humanity the heroes along Black Canary seek her out and put an end to her programs. The Old Timer chooses to remain on Maltus and help his people rediscover their way.

This is wild one, full of some creative derring-do. We see Green Lantern limited by his classic weakness of yellow and his diminished ring (thanks to the Guardians) struggle to fend off cloned super-warriors. Green Arrow and Black Canary have to use their skills and wits to survive not only the warriors but also the crowds which teem about the planet and rise all too quickly in rage and panic.

At the time this was written it was generally assumed that the world's population would soon overwhelm its resources. But revolutionary changes in farming have forestalled that fear. Recently I heard that these advances are once again reaching their limits and we are faced with a world which might produce more people than it can fend for. So this fable is once again, as it was before timely.

The name of the planet "Maltus" is choice as the "Malthusian Theory" posits that the world will end up just as described in this tale of a far distant planet.  I was struck too by the absolute lack of foresight demonstrated by the Guardians who have failed to look after their home world. It is suggested their immortality makes them negligent since they have forgotten urgency. An interesting notion and it is  reinforced by Old Timer who says that he does not fear death, but has now a sense of purpose he formerly lacked.

Nice stuff.

More to come.

This is a verdant vintage Dojo post. 

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The Scarecrow Of OZ!

The Scarecrow of OZ is reputed to be Frank Baum's favorite of his numerous yarns about this strange territory. Perhaps this story's strange origins have something to do with that feeling on his part. The book was published in 1915, but before that there had been a movie. 

His Majesty, the Scarecrow of OZ was a 1914 movie and the second from The OZ Film Manufacturing Company after The Patchwork Girl of OZ. This was a company begun by Baum with other investors specifically to take his OZ creation to the relatively new medium of motion pictures. This second movie was well liked by the critics but didn't do much business. Later it was released again under the title The New Wizard of OZ and did better. The film exists today only in fragmented form, but it does exist. 

Silent movies are an acquired taste for certain. I am not able at this distance of over a century to know if the film is technically fine, but it is compelling to watch if only as a relic of a time lost. 

The book is likewise requires a bit of literary archelogy to understand. It seemed after the massive success of The Wizard of OZ that Frank Baum spent much of the rest of his life trying to divert from the world he'd or at least find a way harvest its popularity on stage and in film. He also wanted to write non-OZ books and to that end he created Trot and Cap'n Bill who had together had adventures under the sea with mermaids as well as in the far distant upper atmosphere on a floating island. These books didn't do as well, so he did the inevitable and inducted Trot and Cap'n Bill into the land of OZ. The Scarecrow of OZ is also it seems using parts of an unpublished Trot and Cap'n Bill adventure blended with the movie story. Baum had a lot of energy put into making this ninth installment of his legendary series. 

The story begins when Trot and Cap'n Bill find themselves lost in a cave and after much wandering about run across a strange bird creature called an Ork with which they strike up a partnership. The escape the tunnels but find themselves stranded on some islands, one of which is Mo, the domain of the Bumpy Man. The then discover their old ally Button-Bright is also on Mo. This trio eventually get to the land of OZ by using strange fruit to make some birds big enough to haul them the land of the Quadlings where they are soon enough battling a tyrant named King Krewel. Eventually the titular Scarecrow gets involved. There is an atypical love story which hits a ditch when the Princess Gloria's heart is frozen by the witch one-eyed witch Blinkie. Cap'n Bill gets turned into a grasshopper at one one point, but as you might suspect gets better. Our whole mob (Trot, Cap'n Bill, Button-Bright and the Scarecrow) are whisked away to OZ in the final pages. 

The next installment is called Rinkitink in OZ and it too has a strange origin. 

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The Adventures Of Trot And Cap'n Bill!

L. Frank Baum was tired of OZ and so he tried his hand at creating new and varied fantasy landscapes to entertain the vast audience which checked in for the OZ. He mostly failed at this endeavor. He'd written a few tales titled The Enchanted Island of Yew and Queen Zixi od Ix among others when he tried to break away from OZ the first time. 

The second time in 1911 he went under the sea with two new protagonists, the first of which was titled The Sea Faires. We meet Trot whose real name is Mayre Griffith and her unofficial uncle Cap'n Bill Weedles. They are a pair, her representing the hope of youth and him showcasing the relative cynicism of age.  Trot's father is captain of the same ship that Cap'n Bill once helmed and during his long absences Bill helped her mother look after Trot. One day they muse about mermaids and before you know heads appear from the sea and real mermaids prove the myth. Quicker than that both Trot and Bill agree to go under the sea with the mermaids to explore and the story kicks off. The duo is given a tour of the undersea world until they fall into the clutches of the villainous Zog the Magician, a rather horrid creature not unmindful of Lovecraft. 

This is a little bit darker than any of the OZ books I've read so far. There is even a bit of actual potential terror in the story. The whimsy though is still abundant throughout the majority of the yarn. 

In 1912's Sky Island Trot and Cap'n Bill are back. But this time, due to a hope to juice the sales, they meet up OZ characters Button Bright and Polychrome, thus making these books an OZ spin-off series. It begins when Trot meets a strange boy with a magic flying umbrella that has transported him across the country. (Mary Poppins was published two decades later. Just saying.) That boy is Button Bright and soon enough Trot and Cap'n Bill are trying to figure out how the three of them can use the umbrella to go aloft. They touch down on a floating island called appropriately enough "Sky Island" and are made prisoners by the crazed and cruel king of a strange race of rubber-necked, blue-skinned people who likes to "Patch" people or to be specific, slice them in half and combine them with other people who have likewise been sliced. Later they escape and get to the other side of the island after crossing a foggy boundary full of giant frogs and discover a race of roly-poly, pink-skinned folks who are only a little bit more pleasant. And to top it all off a war breaks out between these two types of folks. 

This book felt a little lighter in tone than its predecessor as Baum was clearly trying to evoke the OZ atmosphere in a new realm.  That said, there are a number of rather stark situations in this yarn such as the torturous "Patching" and the war itself.  But like its mate, a decent read. 

Why did I take time to look at these two non-OZ books. Check in tomorrow to find out. 

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Summer Green #5 - Guilt Trip!

The eightieth issue of the Green Lantern and Green Arrow saga finds our trio of adventurers at a crossroads. One new thing is the arrival of Dick Giordano as the inker. After one issue where Adams inked himself, two assisted by Frank Giacoia and one by Dan Adkins, the classic creative team is now complete.

After five months of cross-country travel (across the continent twice according Green Arrow) they find themselves suddenly in a car accident which causes their pickup to sail off a bridge. Green Lantern acts quickly to save his friends.

Taken aboard a ship which is hauling toxic chemicals a fire causes an explosion which injures Green Lantern. Faced with the choice to save GL or the others on the boat the Guardian (known in this story as "Old Timer") chooses to save Hal Jordan, his friend. But that proves to be a decision contrary to the norms of the Guardians so they send him along with a recovered GL and GA to a distant planet where justice is meted out.

The trio find instead a madman in control, and he is interested in vengeance and not justice. The trio are imprisoned alongside the real judges, but soon enough they free themselves. But as it turns out the judgment is far from decided.

This is a surprising story in that it takes the trio off world. Green Lantern's adventures had traditionally space-based, but since the arrival of the O'Neil and Adams team the realism has been paramount. Taking a jaunt into space was a real shift in tone, but as it turns out a positive one.

Clearly O'Neil doesn't want the stories to get too stagnant and finding yet one more human injustice in the hidden American landscape can certainly wait until later.
 

More to come.

This is a verdant vintage Dojo post. 

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Summer Green #4 - Redskin Brothers!

The seventy-ninth issue of the Green Lantern and Green Arrow comic by Denny O'Neil and Neal Adams, this time with Dan Adkins on the inks, finds our team at crossroads.

Confronted with the stark reality of an Indian reservation and the profound poverty which dominates the place, Green Lantern seeks to find a legal solution to the problem and so heads off to find a man who might have in his possession a deed which will spare the Reservation from loggers who are ready to begin taking down the virgin forests.

Green Lantern finds he must battle a raging fire to save the man and fails in his mission. Meanwhile Green Arrow assumes the role of a ghostly Indian brave and tries to scare the loggers into submitting. Both missions fail and the two end up in fisticuffs as their two methods come into futile focus. As it turned out the authorities brought the villains to justice without the help of our heroes.

By the way Black Canary is still around too in this one, spending her time in helping the Native Americans with various medical issues and whatnot.

It was nice to see Green Lantern stand up a bit for himself. Green Arrow's personality is powerful and had dominated the series since its revision, and GL had mostly just tagged along after having his own view of the world cracked. But now we see he might be getting a greater resolve which is what a journey of discovery is all about.

More to come.

This is a verdant vintage Dojo post. 

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Summer Green #3 - Family Affair!

The third Green Lantern and Green Arrow adventure by Denny O'Neil and Neal Adams with inks by Frank Giacoia  adds a new and significant piece to the storytelling. With the addition of Black Canary, the cross-country adventures have assembled their cast.

Created in the Golden Age by Robert Kanigher and Carmine Infantino, the Black Canary was very much the street-level crimefighter who had a long career in her own back up features and as a part of the Justice Society of America.

Sher was revived as were most all the Justice Society members in the pages of the Justice League of America. Eventually though after the death of her husband Larry Lance, she needs a new start and with the help of Superman transfers over to Earth-1 and becomes a part of the League itself.

She even ends up with a spiffy new super-power, her canary cry which has some devastating effects.

After her debut as a League member though, she feels the need to discover her new land and that is where we find her as the story begins.

Some motorcycle hoods called the Diablos spy the lovely Canary and crave her bike. Despite her best efforts to pummel the ruffians she is nonetheless knocked unconscious, and they make off with her wheels. Later Green Arrow and Green Lantern run across the Diablos and recognize the bike.

After a good bit of fisticuffs, they defeat the Diablos and later learn that the local Indian reservation has a menace. Specifically, his name is Joshua, and he has potent hypnotic powers and a "family" who are compelled to do his murderous bidding. Canary has fallen under his spell, and it is only her budding love for Green Arrow which is strong enough to ultimately defeat that influence.

The echoes in this story of the Manson Family are strong and so is the condemnation of the kind of charismatic leadership, which was so attractive at the time, and sadly remains so today.

More to come.

This is a verdant vintage Dojo post. 

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Summer Green #2 - Desolation!

Green Lantern and Green Arrow begin their odyssey across America in the remote town of Desolation. The trio (the heroes plus the slumming Guardian of the Universe) enter the isolated mining town and immediately come under attack by locals who fear they are more muscle for the local boss Slapper Soames who has already imported former Nazis to work for him and to oppress the population. But the emerald heroes disabuse of that misunderstanding and join forces to stand up to the repressive Soames and his black-shirted thugs

The story by Denny O'Neil, Neal Adams, and inker Frank Giacoia is set in no particular place, though it feels like Appalachia where the mountains created pockets of isolation in which this kind of tinpot dictatorship is imaginable. Slapper Soames is something of a cliche and his Nazi minions are almost laughable vile and stupid in that they constantly refer to him as "Furher" which he rejects, but the point is sledge-hammered home when it happens for the fourth or fifth time.

Rejected Alternate Cover

Despite the histrionics in this story company towns are all too real a phenomenon, and I personally see them returning in full force in modern days as corporations are empowered and individual citizens are increasingly limited by financial opportunities. Wal-Mart and others of its ilk create economic deserts and in some ways resembles the vintage company town, though not necessarily with the geographical isolation. As the canyon between the rich and poor widens in this country the commonplace depredations will inevitably increase until a new balance is struck.

While the messages in these stories can be overtly hyperbolic at times, sadly they have a lasting universality which still makes them resonate even in the modern day. 

More to come.

This is a verdant vintage Dojo post. 

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Summer Green #1 - No Evil Shall Escape!

The saga of Green Lantern and Green Arrow officially begins with the eighty-fifth issue of Green Lantern's comic. This epic beginning was scripted by Denny O'Neil and drawn by Neal Adams and Frank Giacoia. 

(Last Broome and Kane Issue)

The series had been long the domain of writer John Broome and artist Gil Kane who under the editorial direction of Julie Schwartz had made the Green Lantern a mainstay of science fiction super heroics. But with the departure of that team when Broome retired, and Kane headed off to try his hand at some independent ventures, a new direction was sought. So, O'Neil and superstar artist Adams came aboard and things really changed dramatically.

The Green Lantern character was one of DC's oldest, created by Martin Nodell in the Golden Age as a magically powered blonde hero and reliable member of the Justice Society of America. He starred in his own title until like nearly all the other super types of the time he disappeared.

Years later when super heroics again seemed a profitable approach the Green Lantern concept was taken out and dusted off and given a distinctly science fiction environment with a reasonably vibrant cast. Again, the Lantern became a mainstay of the Justice League of America and a vital and reliable part of the DC universe of the Silver Age.

Then came O'Neil and Adams.

The story begins when Hal Jordan, a loyal and dutiful servant in the Green Lantern corps comes across what he perceives to be an assault and intervenes sending the perpetrators via power ring to the cops. But he soon learns, thanks to the timely arrival of Green Arrow that the situation might be a bit more complex. The man GL had saved was a notorious slumlord who is working to drive out his tenants to make way for a lucrative development.

The black and white, good and bad universe that Hal Jordan had operated in comes unstuck as he suddenly finds that the choices he has to make are complicated and affect a wide range of people. He pleads his case to his masters, the Guardians of Oa, but they are unsympathetic and order him to attend to his outer space duties. Ultimately, he defies them and in partnership with Green Arrow is able to foil the schemes of the miscreant landlord. 

Later GL and GA discuss the situation and what they might do to bring greater justice to the world they seek to improve. Take a look below.

Along with a tag along Guardian the duo head out on a cross-country odyssey which will find them discovering much about the American landscape, its people and ultimately themselves.

Unused Draft Cover

Groovy ain't it.

Much more to come.

This is a verdant vintage Dojo post. 

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