Back When We Liked Wolverine

Karen: When I attended the Phoenix Comic Con a couple of weeks ago, I went to a panel on Wolverine that featured writers Chris Claremont and Len Wein. I mentioned some of what happened at that panel in my Phoenix Con report, but at the very end of the panel, a young girl, maybe all of 11 or 12, came to the microphone to ask the final question. She began by thanking the two men for creating her favorite super-hero. Before she could go any further, Claremont then asked her a question: why was Wolverine her favorite? The girl hesitated for only a moment before answering that, besides looking cool, she liked the way he thought, the way he responded to things and dealt with the world. It made me laugh a bit. All of us older fans had spent the last hour bemoaning how Wolverine wasn't cool any more, how he'd been ruined by needless origin stories and relentless over-exposure. But to this kid, he was still a bad-ass, a symbol of individualism and rebellion.

Karen: After the con, I kept thinking about this. I tried to remember what it was like when I really did like Wolverine. It seems like it was so long ago. His over-exposure began way back in the 80s and has only snowballed since. Along with the runt appearing in practically every book Marvel put out, his powers also took a huge leap up; the guy who was knocked out by Moses Magnum was now surviving nuclear explosions, and being torn in half by the Hulk. To top it all off, every ounce of mystery was stripped from the character -every detail of his life was laid out, and it seemed like he knew every character in the Marvel U from his past life as a secret agent, or ninja, or whatever. It was all too much.

Karen: But there was a time that I liked Wolverine! I just had to dig deep. At the con, the panelists had been asked at what point did they realize Wolverine was something special, becoming a star. Two moments came to mind for me instantly. The first was from X-Men #98 (Apr 1976), when Banshee, Jean Grey, and Wolverine had been captured by Sentinels and taken to a space station. Wolverine breaks free, and for the first time, we see him without his costume -and he pops his claws. Banshee stammers, "Yer claws, laddie...Lord above, they're a part of you -we -I -didn't know!" Wolverine calmly responds, "Why should you, Irish? None of your business." I think I was as stunned as Banshee!  But I was also fascinated. I don't think it had even occurred to me that Wolverine's claws were anything but a part of his suit. At that point in time, it was pretty shocking, having a hero who had real claws -not little claws on the ends of his fingers but enormous metallic blades shooting out of his arms! Non-lethal attacks were still the rule of thumb, and we still had heroes like the Black Knight, Swordsman, and Valkyrie who always proclaimed they were using "the flat of (their) sword" on their opponents. But you never heard any such proclamation from Wolverine! And his lethal weapons were a part of him. I'm sure I couldn't verbalize why this was so amazing to me when I was 12 or so, but it was.

Karen: The second moment when I really gained an appreciation for Wolverine was in X-Men #133 (May 1980) -although the final panel of the previous issue, showing an angry Wolverine rising out of the sewer, vowing vengeance on the Hellfire Club, is the indelible image from that storyline. The X-Men had been captured by the Hellfire Club and Wolverine was assumed dead, wiped out early in the fight. But the foul-tempered Canadian wasn't that easy to get rid of. He returned and tore through a bunch of Hellfire goons like they were nothing. But it's his fire, his indomitable spirit, that really caught my attention. Wolverine refused to be beaten, and despite his limited powers -remember, he wasn't godlike back in 1980! - he was ready to take on the entire Hellfire Club. That attitude was very appealing.It's a quality I like in any number of characters (Ben Grimm has it too, although he's more never-say-die rather than blood-thirsty), but Wolverine, before he was invincible and unstoppable, played this part very well. He was the underdog rebel who didn't care about the odds.

Karen: Maybe that's the key, the reason why that 12 year old girl at the panel likes Wolverine, and the reason my 12 year old self liked him so many years ago. Maybe at his core, the character still represents defiance and individuality, despite all the twists and turns he has taken in 40 years. It's easy to criticize what's been done with him from a vantage point that spans his entire career, but when you break him down to his essence, perhaps he is still that scruffy outcast, the one who never quite fits in with everyone else, and seems just a little dangerous. What can't be denied is that Wolverine is a true original, a cool and intriguing character, and that's proven by his popularity and longevity. Even if those of us in the older  generation aren't always pleased with the changes that have been made...

Karen: Let's open the floor now. What are your earliest memories about Wolverine, early impressions and overall thoughts on the character?

Discuss: Songs for the Apocalypse

Doug: Since most of us were in high school and/or college in the 1980s, I'm sure we can have discourse on favorite popular songs that spoke of the fear (real or imagined, spun from propaganda or personal agendas) that was precipitated from the presidency of Ronald Reagan. "Ronnie's got a new gun", indeed -- that "tired old man that we elected King", sang Don Henley. I got my BA at the same school Reagan got his -- I was front/center to his presidency. So here's to "The Wild, Wild West" by the Escape Club, "Two Tribes" by Frankie Goes to Hollywood, and "Land of Confusion" by Genesis. What are some memorable songs from that era? And hey -- we sure don't want to open up a political can o' worms, because that's not what we do here. But some of those sorts of tunes did make you want to tap your feet, huh?

Carmine Infantino's Batman - Detective Comics 363

Detective Comics #363 (May 1967)
"The True-False Face of Batman!"
Gardner Fox-Carmine Infantino/Sidney Green

Doug: Saturday, the 7th of June was a day of anticipation -- the fine folks at Amazon.com told me that was the day the postal service would deliver my pre-ordered copy of Tales of the Batman: Carmine Infantino. And what a beautiful book it is -- well worth the wait. I'm one among you who have maligned Carmine's Bronze Age work, particularly at Marvel on some Avengers one-shots and on the second half of the Nova run. However, I've always admired his Silver Age work and was looking forward to having a decent stock of Batman stories. At 520 pages and a 31% discount off the $50 MSRP, I say "mission accomplished"! And speaking of the huge page count, you'll notice that today's scans are blurred on the edges. Sorry -- huge book + pretty tight spine = below-standard scans!

Doug: In past Open Forums, we've asked our readers about their trading coups and dismal defeats. I've remarked in those discussions of my 1989 flea market acquisition of a longbox of Batman comics -- Batman, Detective Comics, Brave and the Bold. Lots of boss stuff -- 'tec #400, B&B #59 (the first Batman team-up), and a whole lot of other cool issues. It's all been sold by now, but it was neat to leaf through the Infantino book and see some "old friends" again. The story I'm reviewing today wasn't one of them, but I chose it anyway. I wanted a Batgirl story, but didn't want to go with her origin; one of the follow-ups, "Batgirl's Costume Cut-Ups" (Detective Comics #371 -- one that I did have at one time) has only the cover included in the Infantino collection, and I'd forgotten that Gil Kane did the interiors. So this issue is the one I chose for a closer look. Shall we?

Doug: Detective Comics #363 is the second appearance of Batgirl. From that bastion of historical knowledge and truthfulness, Wikipedia (hyperlinks preserved):

Her creation came about as a joint project between DC Comics editor Julius Schwartz and the producers of the 1960s Batman television series. In order to boost ratings for the third season of Batman, the producers requested a new female character be introduced into publication that could be adapted into the television series. At Schwartz's direction, Barbara Gordon debuted in Detective Comics #359 titled, "The Million Dollar Debut of Batgirl!" (1967) by writer Gardner Fox and artist Carmine Infantino. Depicted as the daughter of Gotham City police commissioner James Gordon, her civilian identity is given a doctorate in library science and she is employed as head of Gotham City Public Library, as well as later being elected to the United States Congress. As Batgirl, the character operates primarily in Gotham City, allying herself with Batman and the original Robin Dick Grayson, as well as other prominent heroes in the DC Universe.

In her origin appearance, Batgirl coyly responds to Batman's request for her identity, "...I'll exchange mine for yours!" So we continue her career four months after her debut. It's all-out action right from the start, as we are dropped into a burglary at the Amerindian Museum in Gotham City. Batgirl is roughing up a couple of toughs who were intent on stealing some gold artifacts. Batgirl thinks to herself that the clues she'd tracked added up -- she had guessed right on the location of this particular crime. It's a classic group of baddies, some with jackets and khakis, others with suits and hats -- Carmine gives us a mash-up of criminal get-ups from the '40s through the '60s! Batgirl isn't really tested, even when one of the hoods levels a gun on her. As two crooks argue whether or not to shoot her, with a gun firing into the floor in the scuffle, she reaches into her bag of goodies and pulls a "laser-strafer" -- apparently it's a pocket version of Cyclops's eyebeams. The bad guys are on their heels when one of them musters enough balance and energy to grab Batgirl from behind and places a tracer on top of her cowl. As he tightens his grip in an effort to make her tell how she knew about their potential heist, the Dynamic Duo arrive.

Doug: Once Batman and Robin arrive, Carmine uses the next several panels to choreograph a fight scene torn right off your television. Again, glancing through the Infantino hardcover it is so obvious how his "new look" Batman really came to life on the small screen. Some of the mannerisms of the Bat-stable of characters became the movements of Adam West, Burt Ward, et al. As the fight ends (and one of the burglars gets away), Batgirl asks her would-be partners how they knew to come to the museum. Batman says that when the gun had gone off the Batmobile's sensors picked up on it and directed them to the site. Batman returns a question to Batgirl -- how did she know the burglary would take place? Batgirl won't divulge her sources. I don't think at this point Batman was frustrated, but he does immediately come up with a ploy: he steps outside to call Commissioner Gordon on the Batphone housed in the Batmobile, and then returns to tell Batgirl that they are taking her to the Batcave!

Doug: On the ride to the backside of Wayne Manor, Gardner Fox gets us inside the head of Barbara Gordon so we can see just how she figured out the location of the museum heist. In her position as head librarian of the Gotham City Public Library, Barbara was privy to peculiar check-out patterns (talk about attention to detail!). A couple of days earlier she noticed that the same man had checked out a book that had to do with gold -- and there was a robbery of gold that night. A pattern formed, one that involved not only the man in front of her, but an accomplice as well, who would later check out the same books. Barbara knew something was up, so played a hunch and ended up at the Amerindian Museum and foiled the theft of some Inca gold. We get a virtual duplicate of a scene played out in Batgirl's first appearance -- that of how her normal clothes become her costume. It's a bit of a stretch, but I imagine it would have been fun for both boys and girls reading these comics 47 years ago.

Doug: At the Batcave, the Dynamic Trio emerge from the Batmobile. Before Batgirl's blindfold is removed, Batman begins to take off his mask. Robin is incredulous, as you might imagine -- he knows nothing of this plot. And how he contained himself when the cowl and the blindfold came off -- and Batgirl gazed on the face of... Bruce Wayne! But she immediately tells herself that he's lying. "Bruce" had some waxy residue on his face, and his hair looked freshly dyed. Nope -- this was some guy made up to look like Bruce Wayne in an attempt to throw her off. And no way she was going to trade her identity now! He asks, but she tells him it would be too easy for her to just tell. Nope -- he will need to use his detective skills to figure out who she really is. You can see Batman's explanation for this charade in a page sample towards the end of this review. Sketchy at best, at least to me. So it's back under the blindfold and back into the Batmobile. But once inside, Batman gives Robin the signal to be silent. Now the Boy Wonder is thoroughly baffled. But while they ride, the Dark Knight plucks the transmitter from Batgirl's cowl -- the one secretly planted (on the top of her head, no less) by one of the goons at the museum. Robin, an able detective in his own right, quickly deduces the who/what/where of the situation.

Doug: A short while later, the Caped Crusader and his youthful ward make their way through the woods to a cabin. Still not speaking aloud, we are let into Robin's thoughts: the heroes have come here to corral the bad guys, who will soon arrive, thinking that they will be corralling Batgirl. Ah, the trouble one little tracer can cause! Batman enters the cabin and seats himself low in a chair, facing the fireplace. Sure enough -- three thugs enter the building and attempt to sneak attack Batgirl. Only that ain't Batgirl in the chair, brochachos! In a fairly violent maneuver, Batman hurls his two attackers headlong into the brick fireplace. They'll get out of that with severe concussions, minimum. The third man was their ringleader, Paul Crowell, he of the checked out library books. Robin takes out Crowell moments before Crowell could get a shot off at Batman's back. With all three men down for the count, Batman moves to exit the building in order to raise Gordon on the Batphone. But little does he know that there are other men lurking just outside -- with machine guns trained on that door!

Doug: Of course we all would have assumed that Batgirl would not stay out of this as Batman had requested. And it's a good thing she followed, as she is able to swing through the two gunmen and ruin their attempt at murder. Now with five bad guys out of commission, and the Commissioner alerted, the Batman heads back inside to do his own interrogation of Crowell. Paul Crowell has no shame -- he's gonna spill it all in hopes of getting off easy. I've included the last two full pages of this story and exhibited them below -- you can see for yourself Crowell's explanation. And as you read that material, be awed at Gardner Fox's script. Holy disquisition, Batman! Bendis would have used at least six issues to handle the two pages below! And this thought occurs to me -- no wonder it took 20 minutes to read a comic book up until the last decade. There is some tender loving care put into the plot of this story, from beginning to middle to the very wordy (yet well-crafted) ending.

Doug: As I've commented during reviews of many of our DC subjects, it was not often that the reader got a full 21-22 page tale of the book's main character. In this era Ralph Dibny was holding serve in the back of Detective Comics, so our story above was only a 15-pager. But man -- as I just said, the creative team crammed a ton of action (and explanation) into this yarn. I found it very satisfying, and I'll admit to being a sucker for Batgirl stories. This was an interesting Batman: confident, smart, no one's stooge, rough-and-tumble, yet reserved, caring, and not at all dark. There was only a little bit of camp here and there, so I wouldn't say this version of the character was derived from the television show. It's there -- shoot, look at the top two panels on the page just above at right. Tell me that's not straight off the telly! So this was a wonderful slice of that Bat-era, landing somewhere between the Rainbow Batman in the high Silver Age and the O'Neil/Adams redo in the Bronze Age. Oh -- and how about Barbara Gordon channeling Leia Organa?

How's That for Half a Decade?

Karen: Five years? Has it really been that long? Wow. I can remember very clearly when we started the BAB -everything else is a blur...But seriously, I know both Doug and I feel a sense of achievement making it this far, and most of that feeling comes from you guys, the BAB community, without whose interaction it just wouldn't be the same. I mean, without you guys, it'd just be me and Doug talking to each other, or ourselves, and while that could be fun for a little while, it's not five years worth of hoots and hollers, so hats off to you all, for making this the place that we hoped it would be when we started five years ago.

Doug: Funny story -- way back before we were on our first blog, when the discussion was taking place concerning what we wanted to do about expanding our thoughts on various Silver and Bronze Age comic books, Karen suggested we start a blog. Guess who was skeptical just about up to the date of that first publication? Yup -- me. I think I've warmed to the idea since! And as we've said many times, it's been a labor of love. I want to express again how great this venue has been for me in terms of really getting me back into comics reading. I had been going through the motions in the late 90s-early 00s, buying books that just stacked up, languishing atop the longboxes in my basement comic room. But since I've been a part of two blogging teams, my readership of books I loved (and some I never knew) has taken it's rightful place in my spare time. So I'm thankful to have this forum every day to come and meet some friends for some cordial conversations.

Doug: Looking back over the past year, there are some innovations and milestones worth mentioning. First off, forming a presence on Twitter has brought us new readers and commenters, as well as a wonderful opportunity. Through use of @bronzeagebabies, we have been fortunate to meet several other wonderful bloggers, and those new associations and friendships gained us a part of the second and third renditions of the Super Blog Team-Up. Speaking for Karen (if I may), we were so proud of our first post in this series, when we took a tour through the convoluted history of the Vision and the Original Human Torch. I will again laud Karen for her research in kicking off that post so that we could both then run with it. And it was our presence on Twitter that got us close enough to Kurt Busiek to be able to email him a couple of questions. Those of you who read the post enjoyed his lengthy explanation of his thought process in explaining some of the ways he "undid" the damage wrought by John Byrne in the pages of Avengers West Coast. As to our more recent offering in the SBTU on the Frightful Four, the deadline approached during a somewhat trying time for each of us. Again, if I can speak for Karen, I don't feel that either of us was satisfied with our output on that post. Perhaps it was due to the personal life factors, perhaps it was due to our chest-puffing over the Vision post... but I would never say that we put our best efforts into the FF post. I think I can say publicly, because I don't know why it wouldn't happen, that our pal Osvaldo Oyola will be bringing The Middle Spaces to the ranks of the SBTU on our next go-round in the early autumn.

Doug: As to the milestones, you may recall that we recently published our 1500th post; today's offering is #1544 for those scoring at home. Also for you numbers geeks, either today or tomorrow someone will make the 23,000th comment on the BAB. I guess that more than anything brings a sense of satisfaction to us that we've done what we set out to do -- seriously... 23K comments? Please hear my applause directed at you, the reader. You've done what we wanted you to do when we started five years ago -- to partner with us in a venture that would electronically create the feeling we may have gotten in years gone by, standing at the spinner rack or newsstand the day new comics came out. One more number: tomorrow I'll review Detective Comics #363 from the recently-released Tales of the Batman: Carmine Infantino hardcover. It will be the 489th review by the Bronze Age Babies.

Karen: Now I know some of you might have wondered what's been going on here lately, as I've been less active in these parts. It was even brought to my attention that a few thought there might have been problems brewing here between Doug and I . Nothing could be further from the truth! As we're moving forward I feel like I owe you all an explanation. Back in September, my Dad was diagnosed with stage 3 lung cancer. As you can imagine, this was devastating news. Over the last nine months my life was pretty much consumed with this situation. Then last month, Dad passed away after fighting so hard. Throughout it all, Doug has been just outstanding in his support for me. I could not have asked for a better blog-partner, or friend. It took an enormous load off of my mind knowing that I did not have to worry about the blog during this time. I'm very thankful to him for everything he's done, and continues to do, here. However, going forward, I have started to think about my priorities, and I realize I do want to spend some more time with my husband and loved ones, and I need to achieve some goals I've had for myself for some time. This being said, something has to give, and for now, that means fewer partner reviews on the blog. They just take an  incredible amount of time for me. But that doesn't mean we won't still do some! Things are just changing a bit, and I hope you understand why.

Doug: I've of course been very supportive of Karen, and she of me. Not wanting to wreck a good thing, I nonetheless questioned the direction of the BAB with her fading into a less-regular role. I told her (in one of our editorial meetings -- do you know how hard it is to buy/bring the donuts to a meeting when the person you are meeting with is over 1500 miles away?) that I thought we had two "spirits" of the BAB: our partner reviews, and the great community of readers who rally around this space daily. I even offered an opinion that we close this down and immediately re-open on another blog where we'd operate a bit more as individuals -- I was thinking of our readers and your expectations of us and of this blog. I think in the end her advice is very sound -- we need to keep the BAB going, as our readers have adapted to every new idea we've thrown your way through the years (even the clunkers here and there). So when you come by tomorrow, we'll both be here -- as David Byrne said, "Same as it ever was, same as it ever was, same as it ever was". But a seven days a week schedule? That's probably not to be seen for awhile, unless one of us throws something together quickly on a weekend.

Doug: And speaking of the beginning of the 6th year (sheesh!), here's what you can expect -- my solo reviews of the first four issues of Frank Miller's turn on Daredevil, as well as a George Perez Wonder Woman, and then in August to celebrate the release of the Guardians of the Galaxy film, we're going to get back into that partner review saddle and bring the BAB treatment to the first four Guardians (the real Guardians, no less) issues of Marvel Presents. And, Karen did note to me Saturday that it is a shame that our Giant-Size July feature will go on hiatus this year, so for old time's sake we're going to squeeze in a partner review of Fantastic Four Annual #5. So, the more things change, the more they stay the same, huh? Oh, and to Edo Bosnar? You know how you're always singing the praises of DC's Blue Ribbon Digest? I have a new discussion-based category coming your way this week, with that title. Just wait -- it'll be fun!

Discuss: Hawkman (and Hawkgirl)

Doug: It's all things Thanagarian today, kids -- iterations, creators, and how about those medieval weapons?

Take a Stand - First and Second Movie Installments

Doug: We're back with another request for you to "take a stand" -- to declare which of the following pair of films, as a pair, was your favorite. Today we're looking at three movie series that were blockbusters in the Bronze Age. Each of these movies spawned several sequels, but I think among those of us assembled today we'd agree that the first two films in each series were the best. Now, hopefully for today's discussion you can reflect on your first viewing of the two films. Of course, in today's age of video rentals, digital viewing, etc. it's quite possible that someone may not have seen these movies in any sort of close temporal proximity to each other. Be that as it may, here's your charge: of the three film "franchises" below, which had your favorite first two installments? And you have to take them as a couplet -- no "well, I liked the first one here but that second film over there was way better!" Nope... take a stand!





Jaws and Jaws 2

 

 Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back

 

Superman: The Movie and Superman II

I Really Wish I Had ----- More in the Bronze Age

Doug: If you're in your mid- to late 40s, you may associate today's title with that often bawdy game show hosted by Gene Rayburn -- Match Game! Laughed myself silly, even as a kid. Once we got the Game Show Network several years ago, my wife and I laughed again at repeats of this program. But today we might keep it a bit tamer than some Charles Nelson Reilly answer, and focus more on the following --

An example: "I really wish I had appreciated Gil Kane's work more in the Bronze Age."
Another: "I really wish I had read Swamp Thing more in the Bronze Age."

Get the idea? I guess in some way today is about regrets. But don't feel badly about that... if nothing else, someone will probably be along to either confirm your statement or encourage you to make it right after all these years. As Karen has said, we are living in the Golden Age of comic book reprints.

I wish I'd read more Steve Gerber-penned books in the Bronze Age!

A Day at Phoenix Comic Con

Karen: Hey kids! Well it's summer in Phoenix and that means the thermometer is rising above 100 degrees every day now, but that didn't stop us from having a great big ole comic con this last weekend. The Phoenix Comic Con has really become quite a show -almost too much of a show! We went on Saturday and the crowds were unbelievable (I had heard that 55,000 attendees were expected for the four day show!), but we still had an enjoyable time.

I went to three panels that took up most of my day. Just navigating from the dealers room downstairs to the meeting rooms upstairs was a challenge. But each panel I went to was fun in its own way.

First up in the ballroom was a reunion of the cast of the 1966 Batman TV show. Adam West, Burt Ward, and Julie Newmar appeared together and were clearly having a lot of fun. Because the traffic around the convention center was so thick, they were delayed more than half an hour, so their time was limited. Both West and Newmar, while entertaining, seemed to be off in the upper atmosphere, while poor Burt Ward had to ground the panel. But one thing was obvious -they all really loved working on the Batman TV show. My picture is poor because I had to take it from the monitor -I couldn't get close to the stage. The auditorium was filled to the gills to see these childhood idols!

Later I attended the "Wolverine -the Most Dangerous Mutant" panel with Chris Claremont and Len Wein. Boy, was this an interesting panel! It's hard to distill it down into a few sentences. These writers had some great stories and insights to share, about Wolverine and the other X-Men. Claremont felt the Wolverine "Origin" story was unnecessary, saying the character should always remain a mystery. He doesn't need to be explained -it's enough that he is who he is. He spoke about the scene in X-Men #99, where Wolverine's claws are revealed to be part of his body and not part of his gloves. "You never told us," Jean says. "You didn't ask," Wolverine responds. That, Claremont said, was the essence of the character. He doesn't volunteer anything. The reader should get some tantalizing glimpses but no more. He also felt that Wolverine should always have to struggle to restrain his feral side. When asked what was the point when Wolverine became a star, both Wein and Claremont said it was when John Byrne came on board the title, since he favored the character above all others on the team. Wein said he'd intended Colossus to be the star of the team! That didn't quite work out. It was a lively discussion and well worth listening to.

Later I saw author Kevin Hearne, whose Iron Druid Chronicles is a delightfully entertaining urban fantasy series. He and authors Brian McClellan and Zachary Jernigan discussed the dos and don'ts of  fantasy world building. The con had a number of panels focusing on writers which I would have liked to have attended if I'd had more time.

Rounding out my day, I got to briefly meet legendary comics artist Mike Grell, and purchase a signed print from him. Although he was selling many different works, I had to go for a Legion of Super-Heroes one (he had three). The one I chose features star-crossed lovers Wildfire and Dawnstar. I thanked Mr.Grell and told him that when I first began buying Legion, it was during his time on the book, and he's still my favorite Legion artist. He said his Legion fans are always the most loyal. He said DC will be bringing the title back. We discussed how mishandled the book had been, and he said he felt it was really a gateway book for readers. I agreed, saying it was my first DC comic, and it was the combination of teen-age super-heroes and outer space that drew me in. He waved his hand and said, "There you go." He was really friendly and a pleasure to speak with.

All in all, a fun but very busy day. I think next year I'll have to plan to attend two days! This show is really taking off. A far cry from when it was held in a small hotel. I heard a number of people say this was their alternative to going to the San Diego Con. It's not at that level yet -still no big corporate presence -and maybe that's a good thing! Although the show was jam-packed with folks, it was still possible to get in and see most everything. That's a plus in my book. And each year, they seem to be drawing a better level of guests. So I'm looking forward to 2015 and what the show may bring.

Uncharted Waters -- Aquaman on the BAB? Adventure Comics 435 and 436

Adventure Comics #435 (September/October 1974)(cover by Jim Aparo)

"As the Undersea City Sleeps"

Steve Skeates-Mike Grell

Adventure Comics #436 (November/December 1974)(cover by Jim Aparo)

"The King is Dead; Long Live the King!"

Steve Skeates-Mike Grell 

Doug: Talk about a superhero who is more often than not the butt of the joke around here (and elsewhere!). Aquaman... is he anyone's favorite character? I know he has his apologists; neither Karen or I would be among them. But is it the character we malign, or what has/has not been done with him? Several months ago I decided to take the plunge (heh heh) and purchase the trade paperback The Death of a Prince. The book reprints Aquaman's Bronze Age tales from Adventure Comics and then in his own self-titled magazine. The issues included begin in Sept./Oct. 1974 (today's review) and conclude in Aug./Sept. 1978, and maybe those statistics tell a large part of the story -- over a four year period the character never saw the spinner racks on a monthly basis. In all, there are 27 stories, yet only a handful are full-length (18+ pages); most run the length of your typical split-book allotment, which is around 10 pages. So due to that fact, I selected the first two stories in the tpb to tell you about today. By no means do I endorse these tales as the best in the book, nor would I say they are the worst. They're simply the first two, I like Mike Grell's art, and so that's why we're going with them. Seems fair. One more thought -- those Jim Aparo Spectre covers are sweet, aren't they? Makes me wish I had those stories in reprints, too. Shall we head under the sea?

Doug: Aquaman is swimming toward the domed city of Atlantis after some time away dealing with Justice League of America affairs. He remarks how good it feels to be back in the depths, when suddenly he begins to feel lightheaded -- something isn't right here. He spies some "farmers" asleep on the ocean bed, and then immediately spies the Manta Ship and his old nemesis, Black Manta! Manta and his goons are... rustling squid. SCREEEECH!! That was the sound of my ride coming to a sudden halt. Say what?? Farmers? Rustling squid? Hokey smokes -- now I know why I've never read Aquaman comics! And we're three panels into this.

Doug: The preceding paragraph break was to allow me to regain my composure. OK, so Black Manta takes advantage of Aquaman's stupor and bests him in hand to hand combat. As Aquaman kneels to clear his head, the Manta releases an inky substance akin to that emanated from the very squid he had just pilfered. In his present condition Aquaman is no threat, and Black Manta gets away. Back in the palace, Aquaman ponders his next step. Of high import is determining exactly what sort of chemical or compound Black Manta had used to cause the Atlanteans to become drowsy. Aquaman consults Dr. Vulko to see if he's been able to isolate the threat. No dice. Outside a few days later, we see a shrimp farm (man...) suddenly attacked by several projectiles, each releasing a chemical into the water (I'll tell you this -- I was pleased that the term "gas" was never used in this underwater story). As had been the case earlier, the farmers fall to the ground, unconscious, and Black Manta and his men emerge on the scene to steal the shrimp harvest. He's going to be rich from all this heisting! By the way, do any of you marine biologists out there in BAB-reader land know if squid and shrimp can survive in depths to the ocean floor?

Was Rob Liefeld in charge of backgrounds on this page?

Doug: As Black Manta gloats, one of the farmers begins to rise. Manta looks at him incredulously, , when suddenly the man's cloak comes off to reveal Aquaman underneath! The Sea King outfitted himself with an air tank, and as he could get his oxygen from either air or water, he could make himself immune to whatever pollutant Manta had introduced to the waters around Atlantis. Since this is a superhero mag, our two antagonists mix it up a bit, with Arthur Curry getting the better of his big-domed opponent. In fact, Aquaman threatens to break Black Manta's arm if he doesn't call off his goons. Inside the Manta Ship, though, the thugs are just waiting for an opportunity to fire a blast ray. Because that's what thugs do. However, those of us who know Aquaman best from the Super Friends shows know that mental telepathy with sea creatures is his dominant power. And that's indeed what he uses, calling several whales to him to buffet the Manta Ship.

Doug: While everyone's occupied with the whales, Aquaman batters Black Manta senseless. He thinks to himself that this is about the 47th time he's knocked out his foe. Aquaman surfaces, where the Manta Ship has gone in hopes of getting away from the whales. He hurls Manta toward the ship and tells them to get lost. Say what? Don't they have some sort of dungeon in Atlantis, or some underwater version of Arkham Asylum? As the Lord of Atlantis returns to his kingdom, he thinks that sooner or later all this messing with Black Manta is going to come to a head. Duh... did you get a look at the title of this trade paperback, bro?

 

Doug: The second story flat-out wastes a page at the beginning, with a three-panel look at the climax! Inside, we begin in the royal chambers of Aquaman's palace. One of the ages-old tropes in DC comics is the stand-in robot, and here we get the underwater version. One of Atlantis's scientists has basically invented the DC version of the life-model decoy, prospectively to be used at state functions when Aquaman is away. Aqualad (yes! -- loved the Teen Titans!) is present, but takes leave right away. He's miffed that Aquaman seems to be shirking certain state duties in exchange for convenience. Aqualad just thinks that a king's place is doing a king's business. But as he swims away, he encounters a large underwater fish/lizard -- the Bugala. Having fought the beast in the past, and knowing that he cannot defeat it alone, Aqualad quickly returns to Atlantis.

Doug: In the palace, Aquaman has picked up the presence of the Bugala on his video monitors. Understanding the danger, he readies to head out to engage it. But Mera cautions him that his meeting with the Canadian ambassador is about to commence. Aquaman shrugs it off and tells the science staff that now would be a great time to test their robot. Outside the dome of the city, Aquaman swims toward the Bugala. He pulls up short, and attempts to influence the creature telepathically. However, he decides that the beast must have developed immunity to his commands. Trying a more direct approach, the Sea King is instead battered down onto a coral reef, and slumps to the ocean floor. Reeling, he attempts to clear his mind and to quickly deduce the goings-on. As he locates the Bugala, it is only a short way from the dome.

Doug: Aquaman swims as fast as he can to catch the leviathan, but then zooms past it and into a hatch in the dome. He swims headlong into the meeting he was supposedly attending, alarming the Canadian dignitary. Then Aquaman busts the head clean off the robot and clutches a small remote control-looking doohickey, that had been in the neck of the robot. Aquaman crushes it in his hands; outside, we see the Bugala collapse. Turns out that big beastie had itself been a robot, but was being controlled from inside the city! And the scientist who created the Aquaman robot? He's making tracks, but Aquaman overtakes him. Question of the day is -- who put him up to it? And out on a bluff, waiting for the dome to fall? Black Manta and a larger-than-normal army of goons.

Doug: I really can't say that I enjoyed these stories. The Mike Grell art was nice -- jibed nicely with what he was doing in Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes around this time. But Steve Skeates's scripts were pretty pedestrian. That's part of the problem with any done-in-one and I think handcuffs an author; but a seven-page done-in-one is a whole 'nother animal. Another issue that strikes me is the difficulty in drawing underwater stories. In most of the panels in the first tale above, there is very little to show the reader that the setting is beneath the waves. Additionally, I think almost all artists have deficiencies in differentiating swimming poses from flying poses. With Grell's Legion work as my only basis for this statement, I can declare that throughout the 15+ pages I read there were many times I felt like I'd seen a particular action pose but in an airborne situation. I'm not knocking Grell's figurework, which again I generally enjoy. But it would have been nice if more often we could have seen some sort of swirling effect, certainly some bubbles, to show us that we were not in a surface setting and that motion was perhaps slowed by the resistance of the water. But all that being said, I am intrigued enough to continue reading the Death of a Prince trade; I'm looking forward to the advent of the Jim Aparo stories, as Aquaman is one of his hallmark characters.