Danger Street Signs - Lady Cop!

In anticipation of a review of Danger Street by Tom King, Jorge Fornes and assorted cover artists I am representing my thirteen reviews of DC's 1970's Showcase-style comic 1st Issue Special. The books by King and company make use of ALL of the sundry heroes and heroines who appeared in these pages. So, let's continue. 

I have enormous respect for the work of Robert Kanigher who likely wrote more comic book war stories than anyone ever, a difficult and perhaps sometimes grim task. But his story for Lady Cop in 1st Issue #4 is misfire. Despite some dandy pencils by John Rosenberger and adequate inks by Vince Colletta, this story never rises above the trite. The "Lady Cop" in question is Liza Warner who becomes a dedicated cop after suffering through seeing her two roommates murdered and finding herself unable to help. She knows a few key details about the murderer and I guess if this had become a series we'd have learned more ourselves about the identity of the killer. 

But in this debut we get to see Liza graduate and spend two days on her rather hectic beat. In the course of her short tenure she saves a young girl from sexual assault from two ruffians, lifts the spirits of a kid by buying ice cream, stops a robber who cuts her shoulder and then gives mouth-to-mouth to the victim saving his life, continues her shift despite the knife wound, bicker with her boyfriend about her dangerous job, give advice to the young girl she'd saved earlier about STD's and reconciles her with her dad, and battles a chain-wielding thug then saves his life when they fall into the river. It's a hefty schedule and you can figure why she didn't have time to hunt down the murderer. Alas to my knowledge she never does. 

This comic actually reads like a quasi-romance story which just happens to feature a woman who became a cop. Given the sexism of the 70's, especially in areas like policework it's actually a fairly forward looking feature, but it hasn't aged well at all over the decades. Liza never returns to comics apparently until early this century when she became police chief in Ivy Town in some Atom comics. She apparently also appeared in some episodes of Arrow.

In the next issue the "King" returns and so does a fellow called Manhunter. 

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Danger Street Signs - Metamorpho!

In anticipation of a review of Danger Street by Tom King, Jorge Fornes and assorted cover artists I am representing my thirteen reviews of DC's 1970's Showcase-style comic 1st Issue Special. The books by King and company make use of ALL of the sundry heroes and heroines who appeared in these pages. So, let's continue. 

Not did 1st Issue Special introduce characters such as Atlas and The Green Team in issues one and two, but in the third issue we get a superhero revival with the reappearance of Metamorpho the Element Man in a solo comic book outing. The story is written by Bob Haney and drawn by Ramona Fradon, the talents who created Metamorpho to begin with. In this tale the status quo which was so wildly transformed in the last few issues of Metamorpho's 1960's comic book are pretty much forgotten and the status quo which existed before Fradon left is largely re-established. Haney does offer up an introduction which does a bang-up job of introducing the character and offering a summary of his earlier adventures. 

In this story the Element Man is battling against a ghost who haunts Washington DC and is taking some pains to monkey with monuments and public buildings like the Capitol. Turns out the ghost is a forsaken inventor who tried to help President Madison before Washington was burned down by the British and who has appeared to each wartime President since. (The Korean and Vietnam conflicts are left out of this storyline. I guess in 1975 no one wanted to touch such hot topics.) Of course to save the day Metamorpho must battle not only the ghost but his boss Simon Stagg who has designs on the U.S. gold reserves for himself. 

It's a tale told at breakneck speed like the vintage Element Man stories. Alas as far as I can tell it did little to revive the character who in the Bronze Age was mostly limited to guest-star shots in The Brave and the Bold and Justice League of America, and  back-up series in World's Finest and Action Comics. Eventually he was tapped to join Batman's Outsiders outfit and that helped to give Metamorpho a regular home for a time.

More next time when a lady becomes a cop. 

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The Incredible Hulk Day!

Jim Steranko was born on this date in 1938. Steranko is one of a kind in the comics world. He was a magician and the inspiration for Jack Kirby's Mister Miracle. He became an ace artist for Marvel on Nick Fury and other titles for a brief but impressive period, and later a creator of a fabulous covers for a myriad of paperbacks starring The Shadow and others. He wrote his own History of Comics. 

This Bronze Age British Mighty World of Marvel cover featuring the Hulk seems at first glance to be adapted from the iconic Jim Steranko-Marie Severin cover for King-Size Hulk Special #1 from 1968.

It's not.

The Brit cover seems rather to have been adapted from the original Steranko artwork for the King-Size Special cover, the artwork not retouched by Marie Severin. Check out that face.

Steranko's original has lots of potency, but frankly I think that Marie Severin's alterations to the Hulk's head add some drama. The Steranko face is too beastly, and it lacks the human component to give the image the necessary connection for the audience. Steranko's Hulk is well and truly a monster. Great piece of dynamic action though. 

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Danger Street Signs - The Green Team!

In anticipation of a review of Danger Street by Tom King, Jorge Fornes and assorted cover artists I am representing my thirteen reviews of DC's 1970's Showcase-style comic 1st Issue Special. The books by King and company make use of ALL of the sundry heroes and heroines who appeared in these pages. So, let's continue. 

The Green Team by Joe Simon and artist Jerry Grandenetti is a offbeat offering in the second issue of 1st Issue Special. In this issue we meet the four young fellows who are members of this elite outfit, which is comprised exclusively of millionaires with a yen for adventure. 

The story is told in a somewhat fragmented form as we first meet Commodore Murphy a young shipping magnate who is the leader, J.P. Houston an oil tycoon who adopts a cowboy affect, Cecil Sunbeam a hot Hollywood movie director and Abdul Smith, a black shoeshine boy who is able to convert a banking error in his favor in a brand new fortune. These four adopt a uniform and stuff their pockets with cool cash and set out to have fun in the world. Their mission in this issue is to see that "The Great American Pleasure Machine" is built despite the rumblings of a corrupt labor leader named David D. Merritt. The complex whisks one away and they utterly transfixed with entertainment for days and days and days. Other forms of entertainment, including comic book heroes, feel threatened. (Sounds like the internet to me.) 

It's difficult to know what Simon is saying in this story which has a finale that appears to contradict the set-up, but this is the only published issue. As always Grandenetti's artwork is stunning and fluid and dynamic. 

The tyros of course remind any veteran comic book fan of Richie Rich, another youth who grew up rich and who filled his eternal days with adventures. These are four teenage millionaires who wear trippy jumpsuits filled with cash and fly the globe looking for thrills which will apparently momentarily dissolve the ennui which dominates their existences. These jet-setting one-percenters are every boy's dream and their superpower is cold hard cash. 

In the face of the many hard-scrabble kid gangs Joe Simon concocted with his once-upon-a-time partner Jack Kirby, these millionaire mopes are hard to love. Lacking the brashness which attaches to upstarts like the Newsboy Legion's Gabby or the Boy Commandos' Brooklyn, this team is a gaggle of over-soaked haves who evoke no sympathy and precious little empathy. (In fact it was from some pressure from DC that both Simon and Kirby created new boy teams, Simon with this Green Team and Kirby with his Dingbats of Danger Street which will show up later in the 1st Issue Special run. More on this when I cover that team next week.) 

Two more issues of The Green Team were "published" only in the technical sense in Cancelled Comic Cavalacade #1. DC revived The Green Team some years back during the "New 52" era and though in fairness I've never read an issue, they appear even less likeable than their Bronze Age inspirations. It's not fair of course to hate the Green Teamers for their money, that would be just plain jealousy. But it's hard to root for these overdogs, and that's just the way it is. I have a general rule to never feel sorry for millionaires. They of course have many if not most of the problems the vast majority of mankind faces, but then they have at least a million dollars to help them cope with it, so there.

After two brand new projects from two of the comic book world's most celebrated creators the next issue of 1st Issue Special will revive a fan-favorite superhero -- Metamorpho the Element Man. More on that later. 

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Danger Street Signs - Atlas!

In anticipation of a review of Danger Street by Tom King, Jorge Fornes and assorted cover artists I am representing my thirteen reviews of DC's 1970's Showcase-style comic 1st Issue Special. The books by King and company make use of ALL of the sundry heroes and heroines who appeared in these pages. So, let's begin the debut of Atlas. 

At the end of his run at DC back in the 70's, Jack Kirby was attempting to fulfill the terms of his contract and get out from under what had become a rather disappointing time in his career. He'd come to DC with such promise and vigor and had his dreams of a multiple formats and sweeping epics killed by short-sighted editorial controls. So it's very surprising that something as vigorous as Atlas really came from his hand at this time. Atlas appeared exactly one time, in this debut issue of First Issue Special and then was heard from no more...for a very long time. 

Frankly I've always wondered if John Mileus and the folks who made Conan the Barbarian movie with Arnold Schwarzenegger had seen this comic as Atlas and his epic world always put me in mind of that classic flick, which came several years later. You have a young man with enormous powers who sees his family and entire tribe killed or stolen in front of his young eyes by a villain with a dominant snake motif. The boy grows up to be a dynamo in and out of the gladiatorial arena and eventually confronts the villain who destroyed his family and his home. That's all the story we have from Kirby, but it sure sounds familiar doesn't it.

James Robinson got hold of the Atlas idea many years later and made the mighty figure an opponent for Superman of all people. I have to confess being tempted by these comics at the time, but my dread of modern comics in general forestalled me, and I'm glad now that I waited to pick up the trade collection of that four-issue storyline.  I have to say it's a lackluster outing. Atlas is stolen from his own mystical land and transported to the modern DCU to become a magical force against the Man of Steel. Who does this and why is obscure in this four-issue run that focuses on the battle between Atlas and Kal-El and as it turns out Krypto the Superdog too. It must've been murder to wait for these issues to dribble out as this is what amounts one long battle sequence stretched over four installments, which in real comics time was nearly a quarter of a year. I read the whole thing in about fifteen minutes total. This is why I've given up on modern comics many years ago. 

But it was nice to at least see Kirby's Atlas up and kicking, even if they've taken the somber giant and transformed him into a somewhat befuddled and bitter monster of a man. I'd only recommend these issues to Kirby purists, who like me want every gram of the King's work they can afford. Otherwise, it's a curiosity you likely can let go of.

 Above is a wonderful bit of Kirby art featuring Atlas. Below is the house ad made from it.

And here is the TJKC cover from it.

But while Atlas fell into minor oblivion, 1st Issue Special lingered on a bit longer in 1975 and 1976. 

More coming on the second issue featuring The Green Team next time. 

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Mr. A Day!

Steve Ditko was born on this date in 1927. Ditko was one of the great original artists in the history of comics, a man dedicated to his philosophy and worldview. He created some of the most iconic images in the history of the form in the pages of The Amazing Spider-Man and Strange Tales starring Dr. Strange. He created The Creeper for DC. He was long associated with Charlton Comics, a place where he was left alone to create his comic pages as he chose. He created many characters, but none speak more directly to his belief than the enigmatic Mr. A. 

One would be hard-pressed to find a more obnoxious hero than Steve Ditko's Mr. A. Created at just about the same time as Charlton's The Question, most folks see Mr. A as Ditko's Comics Code-approved Question unleashed into the wild of Indy publishing where he can really cut loose and express his opinions about justice and merit and who should live and who should die. Let me just say, that if you're a criminal and you're hanging by your fingertips over a deadly precipice don't think the "heroic" Mr. A is going to give you a hand. That's not his style. If your misdeeds brought you to this dangerous point, then you will just have to solve it on your own...or die. 

How do I know this? Well that's exactly the dilemma Mr. A was confronted with in his debut adventure in the pages of Wally Wood's Witzend first issue. A juvenile delinquent named "Angel" is tearing it up with all sorts of ill-mannered and criminal behavior resulting ultimately in kidnapping and attempted murder. Mr. A stops that but when Angel needs a hand to save his life after their fight, Mr. A specifically says he would not be doing that. Through his inaction he allows the criminal to fall to his death. Is that justice? Is that heroism? It's sure cold blooded, that's for certain and sounds more like warfare. 

You see the thing is that in Mr. A's universe that is no gray...literally and figuratively. In these stark black and white comic book yarns we are presented with crimes and actions which some, in a charitable nature, might deem mistakes rather than crimes. They might consider the perpetrators to be confused by upbringing or environment which send mixed messages about what is right and what is wrong and the limits of civilized behavior in regard to these concepts. Mr. A is not having any of that. There is "Good" represented by the white half of his business card and there is "Evil" represented by the black portion. There's gray, no blending or smudging, there are only absolutes determined by rigorous adherence to reason. Emotions and the charity they elicit are for weaklings and milksops. 

At first glance this hard-edged support of the good and condemnation of the evil seems worthy and even heroic. But for all the conversation, the question never even much asked in Mr. A's adventures is what is "Good" and what is "Evil". It's sort of assumed we all know that. A lot of it has to do with property rights as far as I can tell, with the stuff owned by those who produce being held sacrosanct and protected from the evil moochers and  takers. Little suggestion of a deeper understanding of why those have what they have and those who haven't don't. Like the mythological "American Dream" it's suggested that work will inevitably lead to good outcomes and doing otherwise is just inviting disaster. Suggestion that society might stack the deck is not really confronted or is just dismissed. Like the amateur social engineers who have taken a tiny bit if Any Rand's philosophy to justify unlimited avarice, in Mr. A the distinctions are just assumed to be obvious, detectible with only a little bit of "common sense" as is all too often evoked. 

Mr. A lives in an Old Testament universe in which an eye for an eye is the bedrock premise of justice. I suspect that Mr. A would find Jesus Christ's attitudes about poverty and charity and mercy just mewling nonsense having little to do with the rockem' sockem' real world we all live in. Mr. A never smiles, in fact he's incapable of smiling as his face is literally a solid mask evoking classical caucasian handsomeness. He looks through the eyeholes of his perfect mug onto a landscape less perfected and in sore need of transformation. He's all too ready to pitch in. 

Mr. A is actually hard-hitting investigative reporter Rex Graine, but unlike his Charlton counterpart Vic Sage, there's no suggestive of fancy gimmicks to change identities. Graine goes to his closet and puts on the stark white gear that announces Mr. A is back in town. His face actually a helmet of sorts to hide his human identity during these times when mere humanity will not do the job. He doesn't have superpowers, merely a dominating will and a creator who sees to it that his unblinking philosophy will win the day each and every time. There's no gray in Mr. A's universe and there's no doubt nor growth. He is not a human, he is a concept given human form. Reading Mr. A's adventures becomes increasingly difficult over the years as the prose dominates the story, slowing any hint of suspense or narrative momentum. It's rather like forcing everyone t read all the plaques as they journey through the museum. It's enlightening perhaps, but it takes a long time and can wear you out. 

Look for much more Ditko at the Dojo in 2026. 

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The Man Without Fear!

(The dates for 1975 and 2025 are identical.)

 

Daredevil was the comic without fear. Marvel was on a dandy run, creating new heroes every month and growing in response to fan demand. Stan Lee had found a formula for success which leaned heavily on artists Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko for the hits which changed the face of comics and made the Silver Age profoundly different and profoundly modern. 

Taking the approach which had worked on Fantastic Four and Spider-Man, Lee turned to Bill Everett, the Golden Age creator of the Sub-Mariner. That lasted exactly one issue. Everett was a master in his time but his Daredevil look positively antique, well-crafted but of a different era.

Lee turned to EC veteran Joe Orlando to take up the slack and inked by Vince Colletta the comics looked more like what Marvel was doing elsewhere. 

Despite battling the borrowed Spidey villain Electro and running up against new foes like The Owl and The Purple Man, Daredevil seemed to be a comic which was sputtering. 

Even the soon-to-be-obligatory crossover with Spider-Man himself under the penciling hand of Steve Ditko himself only showed what might be missing from the Daredevil comic itself. The stories were good, but felt like stories which might've been produced a decade before. 

And then Joe Orlando's old partner Wally Wood took the helm of the book and brought a true-blue big name feel to a book which in truth had been put together by many qualified veterans. Wood brought something which had been missing despite all the good intentions -- excitement. Admittedly the Matador was an opponent inspired by Daredevil's little horns, but he did look good. Mr. Fear and his partners the Ox and the Eel were a blend of old and new but looked fresh nonetheless. 

But most importantly Wally Wood identified the problem with Daredevil pretty quickly -- the costume. The yellow and black and red fighting togs which DD had put together were right out of the Golden Age of comics, something you'd see someone on the Justice Society of America wear maybe. Quickly  Wood added a bit of dash with another "D" to the chest symbol. Now Daredevil was "DD" formally for all the world to see. But Wally Wood wasn't done yet. More later today when a second helping of DD is served. 

As important as fine talents the likes of Gene Colan and Frank Miller have been to the development of the Daredevil comic book, it's easily arguable to me that the single most important artist in the history of the was Wally Wood. What Wood did was simply transform Daredevil from a musty looking superhero who might've dropped in out of the Golden Age into a sleek modern hero literally suited for the Silver Age. He did it with a single color -- red.

From his inception the design of Daredevil had played off his name by adorning his cowl with little horns. What Wally Wood did was to take that notion and give the character named "Devil" a deep rich color which evoked his name in all its glory. Soon after taking the helm Wood started diddling with the look and along with Stan Lee even made sure the hero got some high profile exposure in the Fantastic Four of all places and by fighting one of the greatest of all Marvel battles ever against the indomitable Prince Namor, the Sub-Mariner. "The Man Without Fear" earned his nickname when he put it all on the line against the Sea King and there was no going back.

Despite small-ball but visually spectacular villains like the Stilt-Man, the comic was secure because watching DD in battle was exciting in itself.

Not all the stories made sense, but getting there was nearly all the fun. Daredevil was establishing himself as a hero who took on all comers and looked good doing it.

Wally Wood's tenure was brief though and ended when Bob Powell was brought aboard to finish Wood's layouts in the terrific two-parter featuring the debut of the villains who would be called the Ani-Men. These guys are all Wood, who wrote the first half of the two-part adventure. With that Wood left the book and a fellow named John Romita took the helm, no slouch himself.

Wally Wood stepped aboard the Daredevil comic book one more time, inking Frank Miller in a story from his epic run. It was a hearty reminder of the early days when Wally Wood had saved the comic from the dustbin of history.

It was then that Daredevil was established as the comic without fear.

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