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[October 22, 1964] Introducing a "New Look" for Batman

October 22, 2019 Jason Sacks 1 Comment

[Don't miss your chance to get your copy of Rediscovery: Science Fiction by Women (1958-1963), some of the best science fiction of the Silver Age. If you like the Journey, you'll love this book (and you'll be helping us out, too!) ]

by Jason Sacks

I have some good news for those of you who haven’t been paying close attention to comic books: Batman comics are finally readable!

That’s a major change from the puerile adventures which editor Jack Schiff has been presenting in the pages of Batman and Detective Comics. For all too many years, Schiff and his team of seemingly subpar creators have delivered a never-ending stream of absurdly juvenile tales of the Caped Crusader and his steadfast sidekick. He gave us ridiculous and dumb tales in which Batman gallivanted in outer space, Robin was romantically pursued by the pre-teen Bat-Girl, and the absurdly awful Bat-Mite showed up at random times to add chaos to Batman's life. Even adventures which featured classic Batman villains (such as last fall’s Batman #159, “the Great Clayface-Joker Feud,”) fell far short of even the most basic standards of quality. Great they were not.

Though rather surreal, this page from "The Joker-Clayface feud" is ridiculously juvenile.

Those stories weren’t just bad. They were embarrassing to see on the newsstand next to better titles from National. Heck, most months even Archie’s idiotic Adventures of the Fly and The Jaguar were better than Schiff's schlock.

Apparently, National Comics agreed with my assessment. And though the ignominious run concluded with perhaps the worst Batman story of the 1960s so far (Detective Comics #326, “Captives of the Alien Zoo”), readers haunting newsstands in March 1964 discovered a brand new look for the Caped Crusader.

In fact, the cover of the very comic professed its newness.

The cover of Detective Comics #327 was a clear statement of freshness. In classy lettering focused behind beneath a slick new logo (logo and caption chosen deliberately, no doubt, to make a clear declaration that the past was prologue), the cover announced Introducing a “New Look” BATMAN and ROBIN in “Mystery of the Menacing Mask. Below those fateful words was a three-panel sequence which ends with Robin demanding, “Batman – your mask – quick! Take it off!” Below that triptych was yet another vignette professing to newness as readers are introduced to a new back-up strip starring popular Flash supporting character The Elongated Man.

Everything about this cover – from its logo to the new character introduced – screams that this is a new era in Batman comics.

In one bright, bold statement, readers were informed that Batman had left the alien zoo behind, hopefully forever.

And in fact, the connection to Flash was right on target: the new team included Flash editor Julius Schwartz, artist Carmine Infantino and (as revealed on the letters page) writer John Broome. It should be no surprise I love this new run since Flash is consistently my favorite title from National Comics. And though Broome and Infantino have only delivered three of the twelve "new look" stories thus far in both Detective and Batman, each subsequent issue has delivered a stepped-up level of thrills and excitement — as well as (as promised) a new look for Batman.

First and foremost, the artwork has improved. Infantino is perhaps the finest cartoonist working at National today, and every panel in his Batman and the new backup Elongated Man stories show why that is so. And though stories in Batman are still drawn under the "Bob Kane" pen-name, they seem to have taken a step up as the artists seem more inspired by their work.

Maybe the most obvious change illuminated by the artwork is with Batman's chest emblem. Where once the artists would lazily draw a bat on the hero's chest, now they draw it safely ensconced inside a yellow circle which seems to draw attention to the freshness of the new character.

Another major change is perhaps the most shocking. Just one month after the New Look debut, the April-released issue of Detective revealed the death of Batman and Robin's long-time butler Alfred! Yes, Alfred, the faithful friend and companion whose whole life seemed devoted to helping his Master Bruce and Master Dick, was brutally slain when saving the lives of our heroes at the hands of the Tri-State Gang. And what's more, there's no sign thus far that the faithful servant will return. He will remain an outsider to this major change.

Alfred is dead — and it seems he will stay dead.

Bruce Wayne created a charity called the Alfred Foundation to memorialize his friend; hopefully that Foundation will also act as a springboard for new storylines as this run proceeds. In place of Alfred, Bruce's Aunt Harriet has moved into stately Wayne Manor to take care of the boys. We will see if she starts to take on a Lois Lane approach to her charges and begins to suspect their second lives.

Maybe a fateful phone call will kick off that suspicion. The Gotham City Police installed a hotline at Wayne Manor, another change which will bring our hero closer to the action. If a hotline works for Presidents Johnson and Khrushchev, it should work for Commissioner Gordon and Batman.

As Batman becomes more connected to Gotham City, he also becomes more connected to his roots as a detective rather than space explorer or battler of corny villains. July's Detective featured a tale called "Mystery of the Mixed-Up Men," pairing Elongated Man with Batman and Robin for a delightful tale of changed faces, confused identity and strange jewel thieves. Similarly, September's Batman #167 is a tale seemingly inspired by James Bond involving Interpol agents, a world-spanning plot, and a core mystery which kept me guessing as to its resolution.

With all these changes, it should be no surprise my fellow fans are over the moon. I just received a fanzine by someone with the improbable name Biljo White called Batmania which enthusiastically endorses the new editorial direction Mr. Schwartz has introduced. Look below for the thrilling cover to his first issue.

Biljo White's Batmania celebrates the New Look Batman!

As well, according to the letters pages (another long-overdue change Schwartz introduced to these comics) fan response has been over the moon on these changes.

As for me, I am also ecstatic about these changes. Finally National has turned around their most moribund character and given him new life. It's as if the New York Mets somehow won the World Series by the end of the decade!

[Come join us at Portal 55, Galactic Journey's real-time lounge! Talk about your favorite SFF, chat with the Traveler and co., relax, sit a spell…]

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Comics

[August 9, 1964] Heroic Considerations (Fall 1964 Alter Ego, July 1964 Batmania)

August 9, 2019 Erica Frank Leave a comment

by Erica Frank

This month brings us two amazing fanzines: Alter Ego 7 discusses several superheroes and villains of the past, and a new fanzine, Batmania, has just begun. We also have a few notes about advances in metaphysical news.

Alter Ego 7

Alter Ego's had a rocky time; I covered issue 3 almost 3 years ago, which is a long stretch for what's supposedly a quarterly zine. The editor's note at the beginning notes that management has recently changed hands; Ron Foss is handing the reins to Roy Thomas, who believes he's more able to keep up with a quarterly schedule.

And That Was the End of Solomon Grundy? by Richard Kyle

Solomon Grundy is an undead villain named after a children's rhyme. His initial appearance and defeat by the Green Lantern was 20 years ago, in the October 1944 issue of All-American Comics, and he appeared a few more times in the 40s. He is appearing in the new Showcase #55, facing off against Doctor Fate and Hour-man. The article shows that Grundy is not just a mindless nearly-unkillable thug, and I look forward to seeing him battle other heroes in the future.

Alter & Captain Ego, written and illustrated by Biljo White

Captain Ego, a spaceman from planet Zircon, crash-lands on Earth. Alter Albright rescues him with the help of the Captain's alien technology. The teen can enhance Ego's abilities with a "telepathicontrol" helmet that uses a Z-Beam to tap into the boy's brain and connect to a particle that Ego also has… at this point my eyes glazed over. I understand that spacemen and rocket ships are supposed to be "science" but at some point, you might as well call it a "magic crown." The villain is a cliché of a man who looks exactly like Ming the Merciless from the classic Flash Gordon serials.

Side-by-side pictures of Ming the Merciless and Tigris — I don't know whether I'm impressed by his artistic skills or disappointed by his lack of imagination.

White's art is excellent; he could be drawing for any of the professional comics. However, his storytelling skills are mediocre. The plot is a semi-coherent mix of hackneyed storylines, and neither Ego nor Alter seems to have a personality beyond "be noble; fight evil." The core ideas are interesting (if you can swallow the "science") but the execution is weak.

A Hot Idea by Rick Strong, with art by White

This is a history of the Human Torch before the Fantastic Four: He began as a "synthetic man" in Marvel Comics #1, 1939. Originally, he could not control his flame powers; he had to be kept in an airtight glass cage for the safety of those around him. Once he learned some control, he dedicated himself to a life of heroism. I had not known the details of his pre-Fantastic Four history; he's been through some big changes!

One Man's Family: The Saga of the Mighty Marvels, by Roy Thomas, with art by White

This article is almost a quarter of the zine, obviously the spotlight feature. It covers the origin story of Billy Batson who becomes Captain Marvel when he calls out "Shazam!" and the origins of his friend Freddie Freeman (Captain Marvel Jr.) and his long-lost twin sister Mary Batson (Mary Marvel).

Fawcett Comics had found a successful superhero-generating origin in "someone says Shazam while wishing for super powers," so they kept using it. Three alternate versions of Billy Batson became the Squadron of Justice, or the "Lieutenants Marvel." Hoppy the Marvel Bunny was planned for the Funny Animals comic line. Uncle Marvel didn't actually have superpowers, but he believed he did, and the others humored him. Black Adam, the first of the wizard Shazam's protégés, was a hero who turned evil.

The Marvel family appeared in their own series and several other comics in the 40s. They had a few recurring villains, including the Sivana family of mad scientists and King Kull, a beastman who wanted to destroy all humans. The Marvels were also patriotic, fighting Nazis and later appearing in the Korean War. As Fawcett published more horror stories, the Marvels appeared there as well. Eventually, the stories and villains grew too hokey for even the tongue-in-cheek style of the "Big Red Cheese"—the nickname fans adopted from one of Dr. Sivana's insults—and readership dropped off.

Panel from Captain Marvel #17, in which Dr Sivana calls Captan Marvel a "big red cheese cake." — Was this a common insult in the 40s?

Sadly, Captain Marvel and his family have been out of print for over ten years. National Comics accused them of copyright infringement, claiming that Captain Marvel was too similar to Superman. The lawyers argued for years, and in 1953, Fawcett ceased publishing. The Marvels may never appear again. Children of the future may never know the joy of shouting "Shazam!" in the hope that a lightning bolt will grant them magical powers.

The Gilded Age of Comics, by Shel Silverfish

Three-page humorous illustrated history of the comics industry, complete with political cartoon. Charming and informative.

Cartoon of Barry Goldwater in a superhero outfit, with a woman telling him that they're not taking new superheroes until after November 4th. — It's an eagle! It's a rocket! It's… *Super Goldwater!*

The Tragic Monster, written and illustrated by E. Nelson Bridwell

This article draws on religious history and mythology to discuss various monsters who were the "superheroes" of their eras. It mentions Enkidu from the Epic of Gilgamesh, Pan, Hephaestus, and Polyphemus from Greek mythology, and Frankenstein's monster and Quasimodo. It mentions The Thing from the Fantastic Four but no other current comic-book superheroes. Still, it's a nice look into the concept that a hero doesn't need to be handsome, healthy, and friendly to do good.

Readers Write, by Otto (Eando) Binder, plus other letters

Normally, the Journey doesn't review or even mention letters columns, but this one includes a four-page letter from Otto Binder, the creator of the Marvel Family characters and author of many of their stories. He insists none of his characters or stories were "lifted" from Superman, and that quite the reverse occurred: several elements of CM stories appeared in later Superman comics. He's not making any accusations, just pointing out that, in an industry with very similar types of characters and stories, sometimes they'll accidentally match.

Batmania 1

This new fanzine, devoted entirely to the interests of Batman fans, is edited (and mostly written) by Biljo White, the main artist for Alter Ego. It is almost certainly not timed to release alongside Andy Warhol's new Batman/Dracula last month. (I only managed to watch part of it, but that was enough to realize that if there was a plot, I couldn't find it. This film is too avant garde for me. The music was nice, though.)

Editor's Notes

Batmania began because Biljo, a firefighter, drew some superheroes for the paperboy visiting the station, and the young boy didn't know who Batman was. He identified more well-known characters like Superman, the Lone Ranger, Tarzan, and Dick Tracy, but not the long out-of-print Captain Marvel, and not Biljo's favorite, Batman. Batmania, with its name used by permission of National Comics, is the result of that encounter.

The New Look, Biljo White and the Batmanians

The artists and the art style in Detective Comics have recently changed. The new artists are Carmine Infantino on pencils and Joe Giaella on ink, with John Broome as the author. Bob Kane and Bill Finger are not entirely gone, but are no longer doing the main stories. The Batmania article gives several fans' opinions of the new art, mostly arguing for or against Kane's pencil work compared to Infantino's. They mostly agree that the stories have improved.

Scene from Detective Comics 327 — How many escapes does a penthouse apartment normally have?

Profiles on Collectors: John Wright

This South African author of The Komix fanzine is long-time comic collector who loves Daredevil, Captain America, and The Black Hood. His story "The Black Panther" won Alter Ego's "Alley Award" for best fanzine fiction last year. He recently published his first mystery novel, Suddenly You're Dead, under the pseudonym Wade Wright. I like the spotlight-on-fans feature; it helps make a scattered community feel more connected.

Comic Oddities

Discrepancies and did-you-know details about comics: Alfred Pennyworth used to be portly; Whiz Comics never had a Vol. 1 No. 1. Some details are just random facts, but some are useful. Knowing that Robin makes an appearance in Lois Lane #6 can help a Batmanian track down all the issues about their favorite characters.

Pro Spot: Model T to T-Bird, by Russ Manning

This article is about a comic artist's career, which would be easier to follow if it MENTIONED HIS NAME. It's hard to read a long article that keeps referring to its topic indirectly. ("For those fans who haven't already guessed… a very dissolute-looking character is inscribing this artist's name on a tombstone in panel 1, page 9, of Johnny Mack Brown #3 (Jan-Mar 1951).") I had to track that down: the artist is Jesse Marsh. The comics are all westerns, a genre that does not interest me. It does discuss in great detail the changes in his art style and assignments.

The New-New Look, by Bill Ryan

A brief consideration of other art styles that mightv'e been chosen for the new Batman comics.

Three pictures of Batman in very different art styles — "He's best at crime fightin' 'cause he eats his vit'mins…"

Who Are the Batmanians?

The Batmanians are a fan club of people who want "a greater, more popular Batman." Joining is as simple as sending a letter explaining why you're interested; Batmania zines are free for Batman fans who pay for postage. It's 10 cents for a folded issue or 20 cents in a large envelope.

Metaphysical Miscellany

Superheroes aren't the only people interested in strange mental abilities and saving the planet from evil. However, the psychiatric and spiritual fields are working with smaller, less flashy evils: they fight imbalances of the mind and heart.

Psychedelic Review: Vol 1, No. 3, 1964

Unsurprisingly, Dr. Timothy Leary's journal about the effects of psychoactive drugs also hasn't kept to a strict quarterly schedule. It's keeping up with the calendar better than Alter Ego, but we can assume that Dr. Leary has better funding than the average comic-book fan. I reviewed the first issue, Summer of 1963, last October. The newest issue is a tribute to Aldous Huxley, who died last year on the same day as President Kennedy and C. S. Lewis. Huxley was a philosopher and prolific author who created the disturbing Brave New World.

Nature Retreat Therapy

The Esalen Institute in Big Sur, a foundation for expanded consciousness, has welcomed Fritz Perls, a noted German psychologist. Perls will be teaching his "gestalt therapy" methodology. People will be attending the Institute for its innovative approaches to the mental sciences and not just the famous hot springs.

Esalen Lodge in Big Sur — Esalen Institute

The Scholarly Druids

A short followup note about the Druids of Carleton College: the college has removed the chapel attendance requirement, but the Reformed Druids of North America continue to hold services. Two young men have recently been ordained into the Third Order; this allows them to lead services and initiate new members.

Druids meet on a hillside — A lovely way to hold religious services.

It seems that "weird news" is happening more often and in more places. There's a growing movement to explore not just outer space and the hidden areas of our world, but also our own connections to the world and to each other. Heinlein may have tapped into that in Stranger in a Strange Land; the realms of science and spirit are not as separate as we used to think. I love the evolving fusion of mental and physical sciences.

…I'll still be reading Batman and fanzines about him, though.

[Come celebrate with us at Portal 55, Galactic Journey's real-time lounge! Talk about your favorite SFF, chat with the Traveler and co., relax, sit a spell…]

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Comics

[March 7, 1964] Look both ways (Marvel and National Comics round-up)

March 7, 2019 Gideon Marcus 2 Comments

[While you're reading this article, why not tune in to KGJ, Radio Galactic Journey, playing all the current hits: pop, rock, soul, folk, jazz, country — it's the tops, pops…]

by Gideon Marcus

Overcoming prejudice

Once, I was a snob.

For the most part, I was raised on a steady diet of L. Frank Baum, Edgar Rice Burroughs, and H.P. Lovecraft. I devoured the complete canons of each. I also enjoyed the superhero comics of the war years — who doesn't like watching Captain America slug Nazis? But after the war, I was getting tired of the pulps, and comics were getting tired. I wanted something new.

Then, 'round 1950, I discovered science fiction digests — grown-up mags like Galaxy and Fantasy and Science Fiction — and my snobbish attitude was firmly established. It didn't help that comics had entered a real slump by the 1950s, with National Comics (DC to the hep kids) in a rut and Atlas running Westerns and half-bit anthologies. With the demise of the American News Company, Atlas went the way of the dodo, along with most of the inferior digests. Survival of the fittest, right?

So I certainly didn't expect that I would find myself getting into those very same comics I'd once turned my nose at. I first took notice when Marvel Comics arose from the ashes of Atlas Comics and started publication of The Fantastic Four. Not only did this mag showcase the talents of Jack Kirby, the fellow who invented Captain America, but it featured a more realistic team dynamic than I'd ever seen before. Why, these folks hardly even liked each other sometimes. I appreciated the dilemma of The Thing, a hideous rock monster who nevertheless wasn't keen on returning to his human form, lest he give up his evil-clobbering powers.

Then came The Amazing Spiderman and The X-Men, and I was hooked. I sang Marvel's virtues and scoffed at the kiddie fare that DC was peddling. Around that time, I picked up an adversary, a Mr. Jason Sacks who delighted in telling me how wrong-headed my tastes were.

Late last year, Jason and I decided, unlike Tareyton smokers, that we'd rather switch than fight. You see, Jason had discovered the charm of the new line-up of Marvel superheroes, and I was taken with D.C.'s new X-men-like group, the Doom Patrol. Instead of picking a side, why not enjoy the virtues of both?

State of the Union

Here in March 1964 (May on the comics I buy at the news stand), Marvel's line-up has fully flowered. The newest member of the superhero pantheon is Matt Murdock, a blind attorney whose other senses have compensated to such a degree (sounds inspired by Galouye's Dark Universe doesn't it?) that he is able to fight crime as The Daredevil! The debut issue of this hero, written by Stan Lee and drawn by Bill Everett, was a hoot, and I look forward to the next.

Sidebar: I'm impressed that both comics houses are exploring the idea of handicapped heroes: Daredevil is blind, Professor X and The Chief (leaders of the X-Men and the Doom Patrol) both use wheelchairs, Thor's human form requires a cane, The Thing, Doom Patrol's Automaton and Negative Man and X-Men's Angel all have obvious physical peculiarities that make them stand out. This makes for more mature storylines, and those of us with some kind of disability find a measure of comfort in having these folks with whom to identify.

Spiderman, a Stan Lee/Steve Ditko effort, continues to entertain. This month's issue, #8, features the return of Dr. Octopus and spotlights the problem of recidivism amongst supervillains.

Both Fantastic Four (Lee/Kirby) and Spiderman demonstrate Marvel's increasing reliance on multi-book story arcs. It's funny to think that two stories per issue used to be the norm — now it might take several issues to wrap up a plotline. Speaking of Fantastic Four, in issue #24, the Thing goes toe to toe with the Hulk in a match-up every bit as exciting as the recent Heavyweight Championship between Cassius Clay and Sonny Liston.

Avengers (Lee/Kirby) is a bi-monthly, like X-Men; in the last issue (#4), Captain America was thawed from the ice in which he's been frozen since World War 2. I can't tell you how excited I am to have Cap back, and I urge you to check it out.

As for the "anthologies," these are increasingly becoming character books, and I have to wonder if they will just get renamed for the hero that stars in them. For instance, Strange Tales has become the home of the mysterious Dr. Strange, although this issue also features a popular rivalry/team-up: the flaming Torch and the frozen Turd…er… Ice Man!

Journey into Mystery #103 is Thor's mag.

Tales of Suspense #52 stars Iron Man fighting the Black Widow, and an immortal alien called The Watcher.

I'm always happy to see the Wasp, and she got an outing with her beaux, Giant Man, in Tales to Astonish #54.

And then there is the host of girls comics featuring the latest in fashion:

Let's not forget the western titles, which I don't bother with, but which still linger on.

For the WW2 buffs who don't get enough from DC's Sgt. Rock, this month's Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos is a riveting courtmartial drama.

Finally, I want to give recognition to the fellows who most often go unsung, the Letterers: Sol Rosen and Art Simek. Without them, comics would be just a bunch of pictures.

Oh, and what do we have here? Mr. Sacks is invoking the Fairness Doctrine and wants to tell us all about the state of National Comics. Well, why not?

Better Read than Dead

by Jason Sacks

The big comic news for me in ‘64 is that the Doom Patrol have finally emerged into their own title. Moving out from an anthology slot in My Greatest Adventure, these oddball adventurers continue to delight. Thankfully National has identified the artist on this sterling series as Bruno Premiani, and the Italian master delivers fascinating tales of “The world’s strangest heroes.” For a change such a blurb is accurate, as the weird Negative Man, charmingly acerbic Robotman and enchanting Elasti-Girl continue working for the mysterious chief. It’s similar to Marvel’s much duller X-Men — though the similarities are apparently an accident of timing, if you believe the fanzines — but more insightful and stranger.

Recently, Hawkman debuted his own solo comic after a series of showcase appearances in Mystery In Space. National editor Julius Schwartz’s latest resurrection of a long-forgotten Golden Age character, the new Hawkman is an alien from the delightfully named Thanagar, working on Earth as a museum manager and in the stars as a great space policeman. The art, most likely by Murphy Anderson, is all National Comics smoothness and ease, making the winged wonder’s adventures a thorough delight.

With Hawkman moving out from Mystery in Space, that anthology series is now devoted to full-length tales featuring the hero of Rann, Adam Strange. With sleek, moderne art by Carmine Infantino, well known for his fabulous Flash, this thrilling series mixes astounding adventure with a smart space romance for a surprisingly heady mix that even adults can enjoy.

It’s not all greatness for National in ‘64, though. Editor Mort Weisinger continues his stultifyingly stale children’s stories in the Superman titles, while Metal Men is seldom as clever as it wants to be and Wonder Woman is so dull even my kid sister won’t pick it up. Worst of all are Batman and Detective Comics. A recent issue of Detective, issue #326, shows the nadir of this abysmal series with the pathetically stupid “Captives of the Alien Zoo,” a story so dumb and so contrived that it should result in the immediate firing of everyone responsible for its creation. Compared to that, even Archie Comics’ idiotic Adventures of The Fly seems like the work of a genius.

Overall DC is following some of the same trends Marvel has embraced recently. For one thing, a reader has to wonder if anthology series are on their way out. My Greatest Adventure disappeared while others, like Mystery in Space and House of Secrets (with the intriguing Eclipso), are going full action hero. In other ways National blazes their own trail. That company continues to have a wider diversity of titles than Marvel – hardly a surprise with the larger set of titles they deliver each month. Humor and romance still have their place with the likes of Jerry Lewis, Bob Hope, Girls’ Love Stories and Secret Hearts. As usual with National all their titles demonstrate that traditional sheen of professionalism Marvel often lacks. Will kids go for smoothness over unpredictability in ‘64? Only time will tell.

[And that's our comics round-up for San Diego Comic Fest! If I met any of you folk this weekend, please drop me a line. I'd love to hear from you.]

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Comics

[September 11, 1963] Has Marvel Comics become Mighty?

September 11, 2018 Jason Sacks 2 Comments

[While you're reading this article, why not tune in to KGJ, Radio Galactic Journey, playing all the current hits: pop, rock, soul, folk, jazz, country — it's the tops, pops…]

by Jason Sacks

Fellow travelers, I have a confession to make.

No, I’m not moving to Russia to work for Khrushchev, I’ll never give up my anger about the Dodgers moving to Los Angeles and I will always hate the music of that ugly-voiced Bob Dillon. But I’ve changed in other ways. See, I’ve had a change of heart with my comics book collecting ways.

Though it pains me to admit it after my previous posts to this fanzine, I’ve grown to enjoy the latest offerings from Marvel Comics. 1963 has been a very good year for Stan Lee’s small publishing line. That growth makes me wonder if Marvel just might emerge as one of the premier publishers of the 1960s.

I know that comment may come as a shock, after I’ve relentlessly mocked and ridiculed that quirky, homegrown comics company in previous articles on Galactic Journey. Those feelings were honest. My complaints were sincere. But time has a way of changing things.

They say some cigarette smokers would rather fight than switch, but sometimes life throws you surprises.

Why am I changing my mind about a topic about which I seethed just a few months ago? It’s simple. These comic books are good. Amazingly, in the span of the last few months, Stan Lee and company have produced comics that are almost as compelling as some of my favorite television shows. (Heck, some of these comics are better than Bonanza or good ol’ Dr. Kildare.)

Last week’s edition of Fantastic Four, issue #21, shows the growth that creators Lee and artist Jack Kirby have brought to this title of late. Featured villain Hate-Monger is one of the spookiest villains to appear in comics since Captain America’s vicious enemy the Red Skull.

When I first saw the cover of this issue, with a giant image of the Hate-Monger zapping the Fantastic Four with his ray-gun, it really took me aback. With his ersatz purple Ku Klux Klan hood, the Monger immediately catches the eye and brings a suitable level of terror to the proceedings.

Flipping to the first page of the story, its splash delivers a tableau of dramatic intensity. The Hate-Monger, clad in chain mail and boots with his eerie hood, is situated against a background of fire and barbed wire. His body, shown in an aggressive stance, is surrounded by cameo faces of the Fantastic Four, all looking furious and spoiling for a fight. This bold image sets the tone for one of the most memorable tales of the year.

As the story begins, the Fantastic Four are hanging out in their skyscraper tower, each occupying themselves with their hobbies. One member works on an invention, another throws darts at a picture of Spider-Man, a third tries on wigs. But their daily reliquaries are interrupted by anger from the brutish Thing. “I’m so cotton pickin’ mad, I’ve gotta do something,” he rants. “That crumb who calls himself the Hate-Monger has been causin’ trouble wherever he goes because he’s too smart to break any laws.” Mr. Fantastic replies, “He’s the worst kind of menace! He preaches class hatred, race hatred, religious hatred!”

In that moment our heroes show what is at stake in this story and show that the stakes are higher than mere super-hero battles. This is a story that could have been ripped from the headlines, as the John Birchers do their best to try to stop Democratic efforts to improve America’s immigration and race relations. (I just hope President Kennedy can succeed in improving those aspects of our country, even if it takes his entire second term to do so.)

As the story proceeds, our heroes wander through New York, following the noise to hear the Hate Monger preach his hate. “We must drive all the foreigners back from where they came from! We must show no mercy to people we hate!” The Invisible Girl comments, “Reed, it’s unbelievable! He seems to have the crowd in a trance! They — they’re actually agreeing with his un-American sentiments!” Thank goodness our heroes are exemplars of our post-War consensus on race and immigration. They represent sanity and our great respect of diversity. In that way they show themselves to be real heroes.

That is, until the Monger zaps our heroes with his all-powerful H-ray.

Very quickly the Fantastic Four begin fighting each other, and rapidly the team parts ways with each other due to their anger at each other. Thankfully Reed Richards’s old war buddy Nick Fury, now working for the CIA, shows up and sends the team to help stop a revolution in the South American country of San Gusto.

What ensues reads like a comic version of Castro’s revolution, though with the Fantastic Four on one side of the battle instead of President Batista’s troops. Nick Fury, yelling about how the CIA won’t interfere in other nations’ affairs is able to help Richards escape the power of the H-ray, and soon the rest of the team is healed of its pernicious effects. As they finally defeat the Hate-Monger, our heroes unmask the arch villain. A last page climax reveals the Monger has the face of… Adolf Hitler.

Fantastic Four #21 is a dervish of a tale, a wild mix of politics, heroic action and surprising twists. This story feels both young and traditional with its focus on good and evil juxtaposed against real world concerns. It’s hard to imagine National Comics producing a comic that even mentions any level politics, let alone one that shocks readers with a cameo from Adolf Hitler or revolutions in banana republics. This issue also demonstrates another charming feature of Marvel at late: inter-character continuity. Lee and Kirby throw readers treats by including moments featuring characters like Nick Fury (whose World War II series premiered just last month) and Spider-Man. It’s almost like all these Marvel characters live in one universe!

Though not every issue of FF is so overtly political, most recent issues have been as kinetic and action-packed, and have featured equally adroit character moments. I’ve been bowled over by how thrilling these reads have been.

I’ve also come to enjoy Amazing Spider-Man, a series I once loathed. Before I was frustrated with the angsty life of problematic Peter Parker, but now I’m beginning to gain a love for this humble hero. In issue 7 of the series, former villain The Vulture returns from an earlier appearance and escapes from jail, seeking revenge against Spider-Man.

In a delightful demonstration of the small man become large, bespectacled Peter Parker finds he must sacrifice his social status at his high school in order to fight the Vulture. He also must take photographs of the battle between Spider-Man and the Vulture for a New York newspaper so he can help his elderly aunt pay her mortgage. This element gives the fight higher stakes than another hohum battle between the Flash and Captain Cold. Peter even breaks his arm during the battle with the Vulture, forcing him to lie to everyone in his life about the injury and his secret identity.

I’ve read heroic fiction for most of my life and can’t remember any hero going through such a level of personal pain in order to triumph in battle. This is a brave step out of the norm. It took some time for that angst to move from goofy pastiche to true drama, but creators Lee and Steve Ditko are continuing that journey. Ditko’s brusque art can’t compare with the slick work of Infantino or Kane on DC’s headliners, but it seems fitting for the grittiness of the story.

Thus far we’ve looked at two Marvel books released the week of September 10th that offered intriguing combinations of rough grittiness and seat-of-the-pants storytelling. But the highlight for me from last week comes in the pages of Tales of Suspense #48.

Previously, the millionaire Tony Stark dressed himself in a bulky golden suit that ill-suited our super-heroic Rockefeller. That monochrome monstrosity seemed a magnet for any villain who could melt, smash or mangle metal — or who was blinded by the sheer hideousness of a hero who dresses like a banana.

In contrast, Lee and Ditko debut dynamic new duds for Iron Man in this story. His new red-and-gold armor is a surprising and delightful treat. I love the new modern design, with its complementary colors, its open eye-slits and its nicely placed rivets. The suit looks like millionaire Tony Stark commissioned it from Pierre Cardin. If Steve Ditko of Spider-Man fame designed this suit, he’s delivered another winner.

Sadly, the story in which the suit is introduced is nowhere near the level of last week’s Spider-Man or Fantastic Four. it’s a paint-by-numbers yarn involving an evil puppet master with odd hoodoo powers. In fact, aside from the change in clothing, this issue could pass for one of the better National Comics edited by Julius Schwartz, whose work I praised in previous columns. That’s a high level of quality, one I wish the other National editors could keep up, but isn’t as good as the core Marvel books I’ve grown to love.

Marvel’s mighty releases make for a spectacularly good week for new comics, made all the more so when one considers what my former favorites at National delivered the same week. In comparison, “The Human Starfish” in Blackhawk #190 and “The Terrible Tree-Man” in Tomahawk #89 are embarrassingly juvenile.

National has delivered some wonderful comics in the last few weeks, with the pairing of Hawkman and Adam Strange in separate anthology stories in Mystery in Space #87 providing a tremendous frisson. However, it seems increasingly obvious that, with few exceptions, National’s comics are intended for children as opposed to the more adult-oriented feel of Marvel’s new heroic line. This growth in presentation has resulted in a growth in my appreciation for them, and shows that maybe, just maybe, The Traveler was right about his opinion on these comics (which I shoulda known since I value his opinions on sci-fi so much).

So yes, I’ve changed a bit as I’ve read more Marvel Comics over the last few months. The more I read comics like Fantastic Four, the more I appreciate them. With the super-hero line expanding in recent months with The Avengers, The X-Men, Dr. Strange, and the Master of Black Magic, maybe we will move into a Marvel Age of comics over the next few years after all!

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Comics

[Aug. 6, 1963] X marks the comic (X-Men, Avengers, Sgt. Fury, and more from Marvel)

August 6, 2018 Gideon Marcus 9 Comments

by Gideon Marcus

The 30s and 40s are remembered as a kind of comics Golden Age. They featured the birth of so many familiar faces including National Comics' iconic line-up: Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman. We also saw the creation of big names like Captain America, the Human Torch, and the Sub-Mariner, the last two of which have been recently resurrected.

In fact, if the prior age be gilded, then our current era of comics resurgence must be some kind of Silver Age. Just look at performance of the successor to Atlas Comics, that titan of the industry that had died back in 1957. Leaping from obscurity just a few short years ago, Marvel Comics has doubled down on its suite of superheroes, launching three new comic books in just the last few months.

The most exciting of them is The X-Men, featuring a team of teenage mutants under the tutelage of Professor Charles Xavier, at once the most powerful telepath in the world, and also the first handicapped superhero (that I know of).

Let's meet the cast, shall we? We've got Slim Summers ("Cyclops"), who projects ruby blasts from his eyes; Bobby Drake ("Ice Man"), the kid of the group, who creates ice at will; Hank McCoy ("Beast"), possessed of tremendous agility and oversized hands and feet; Warren Worthington III ("Angel"), a winged member of the upper crust (financially and evolutionarily); and Jean Grey ("Marvel Girl"), a telekinetic. Why Bobby is a Man and the older Jean is a Girl, I haven't quite figured out.

Of course, they immediately develop a nemesis, the bombastic Magneto, master of magnetism.

The X-Men is a development of two Marvel themes: you've got the quirky, imperfect teenager motif that has proven so successful with Spiderman, and the fun team dynamic of The Fantastic Four. I have to say, this new comic has really bowled me over, and I'm looking forward to more of the same.

Speaking of teams, Marvel has lumped together several of its heavy hitters into a single superhero mag, The Avengers. Another four guys and a gal combo, it features Thor, Iron Man, the Hulk, Ant-Man, and Wasp. It's an unlikely group — without a father figure like Professor X or the family dynamic of the Fantastic Four, I have to wonder how stable this phenomenon will be.

The third new mag features another team of heroes, neither mutated or otherwise superpowered. But there's nothing mundane about Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandoes, Marvel's answer to the TV show, Combat!.

As with the television production, Fury depicts a squad fighting on the Western Front on the eve of and after D-Day. Sgt. Nick Fury is a bit more one-note than the nuanced Sgt. Saunders on TV, but this is a comic book, after all…

Here's the gang, and here's what they do:

In other Marvel news, it looks like Spiderman has got a new enemy, The Sandman:

And it's not all expansion for Marvel. Its venerable line of girls' comics lost a member a few months ago. Love Romances ended with its 106th issue.

On the other hand, the two Milly the Model mags continue, as well as Kathy, and the two Patsy books (Patsy and Patsy and Hedy)

I wonder if the superhero mags will ever take a clue from the girl mags and start soliciting for fashion designs. Hulk could use a new pair of pants, after all.

Thanks to this deluge of new comics, my subscription list now includes a half dozen titles. So for the foreseeable future (or, at least until Jason Sacks convinces me that I'm all wet), you can be sure that I'll "Make Mine Marvel!"

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Comics

[March 4, 1963] Smart and Scientific (March 1963 National Comics Roundup)

March 4, 2018 Jason Sacks 2 Comments

[While you're reading this article, why not tune in to KGJ, Radio Galactic Journey, playing all the current hits: pop, rock, soul, folk, jazz, country — it's the tops, pops…]

by Jason Sacks

I like and admire the work of our dear friend, the Traveler. His insights into science fiction are outstanding (he’s turned me on to some of my favorite writers, including the delightful Keith Laumer) and his passions are infectious.

But last month, dear Mr. Marcus published an article so dunderheaded, so wrong in its conclusions, that it read like an essay by Dobie Gillis rather than from a mature and well-read adult. I’m astounded Mr. Marcus actually professed that the output of mediocre Marvel Comics was “compelling”, “on the crest of a wave”, and reaching a “fever pitch.”

Yes, these comics induce a fever, but to me it’s a fever much like the onset of polio.

With rare exceptions, I’ve always found Marvel Comics to be poorly drawn and poorly plotted, lacking the discipline of good science fiction and frequently breaking the most important rule of good science fiction; namely, getting the science right. Marvel insults their readers’ intelligence continually, especially in their origin stories. Having origin stories based on such amorphous, deus ex machina ideas as cosmic rays, gamma bombs, and the pièce de résistance, a radioactive spider, Marvel (particularly head writer Stan Lee) present a world in which science is treated as a trump card overriding all rationality. Beyond that, the art in Marvel Comics is clumsy and amateurish compared to the work appearing in both DC and Archie Adventure titles. That awkwardness is no surprise because Jack Kirby illustrates many of those titles. Kirby’s rough and tumble style may have worked in the 1940s and ‘50s, but he’s clearly behind the times in the ‘60s. He’s lucky to have found work at one of the worst publishing houses in America. It’s hard to imagine that style having much influence on future generations of comic fans, unless he tamps down the grandiosity and operatic emotions he portrays.

Characters like the bickering Fantastic Four, the brutish Hulk and the neurotic Spiderman are no heroes, not in the sense of the great men we look up to on television and the movies. They are not role models, men about whom to be inspired. Instead they are insipid antiheroic leads, out of touch with the mood of the 1960s. That may appeal to the Beats and poets, but Alan Ginsburg ain’t reading comic books.

Marcus can champion these characters all he likes, but mark my words, by 1969, Marvel Comics will be a mere footnote in comics history while the great heroes at National Comics thrive.

As I mentioned in my last essay for this journal, the costumed characters edited by Julius Schwartz at National embody all that is right and true about valor in American comic books. In Green Lantern, The Flash and the delightful “Adam Strange” in Mystery in Space, Schwartz and his team combine true heroism with real facts, giving Stan Lee and his staff of amateurs a lesson in professionalism, science and bravery.

Take the March's Flash, issue #135, as an example. The story in this issue is a disciplined, scientifically-based yarn in which The Flash and Kid Flash beat back an invasion from Korydon, “the sixteenth dimension of the cosmos.” The exciting tale begins with Kid Flash hearing a message from a beautiful (and stylishly coiffed) woman from another planet because his cellular frequency is set to her wavelength. The woman reports that her enemies have selected Earth as their next invasion location. Thankfully she is able to intercept Kid Flash and send this message. Even more thankfully, the Science Institute calls on The Flash to track down the mystery behind several strange weapons sent to Earth as part of the invasion.

What follows as part of the generous 26-page action tale is a delightful hodgepodge of science, story and super fun. We witness the power of mind over matter transforming Kid Flash’s costume, watch a super-scanner work like a color TV into another dimension (I wish I could persuade my parents to buy a color TV, whether or not it sees into another dimension!), and watch a revolution overthrow the warriors for another dimension.

Every month, editor Schwartz and artist Infantino join with their uncredited writer (or writers) to deliver stories that could come directly from the pulps, thrilling tales that tempt with action and delight with scientific fact – as in the editor’s note that mentions that “even paper can penetrate an oak tree if driven fast enough by a tornado!” Their heroes are steadfast and emotionally strong. They don’t bicker. They do what is necessary to win their wars.

Best of all, unlike the rough and tumble Jack Kirby style, “Secret of the Three Super Weapons” contains gorgeous clean line art by an artist I recognize as Carmine Infantino. Unlike Kirby’s rough designs, Infantino delivers sleek and smooth depictions of his characters. The Flash and his protégé are not muscle-bound monsters. Instead they are slick speedsters whose lean bodies carry them at superhuman speeds.

Mr. Infantino also delivers the lead “Adam Strange” story in Mystery in Space #82 (also the March issue) and again Mr. Infantino delivers his distinctively impeccable artwork to this take of a terrifying space threat that could destroy both Strange’s home planet Earth and his adoptive planet Rann.

In fact, “World War on Earth and Rann” opens with a scene that could come from those ugly creators at Marvel Comics and shows the difference between the two companies. Natives of backwards city-states of Rann are protesting Adam Strange’s presence on their planet, claiming that threats only began when he landed on their planet. Though these scenes are reminiscent of ugly moments in Marvel’s frightfully frustrating Fantastic Four series, this scene comes across as an elegant bit of real-world charm. Adam’s beautiful and beloved Alanna quickly tells Adam to move on from the complaint, so the couple can spend a romantic week together.

And so they do. After a ceremonial event, in which Adam is gifted a radiation detector, we get a tour of Rann, from its beautiful landscapes to a wonderful hunt to an amazing lunch in the ice caves of a tropical region of the planet. These sorts of charming travelogues would never appear in a Marvel Comic. They’re a delightful moment of characterization and world-building that allow the reader to breathe before the action starts in earnest.

That action starts during the lunch, as the ice caves become under threat from a giant flying lens. We witness Adam and Alanna flying and fighting the lens as equal partners (no sad wimpy Invisible Girl is she!) but Adam’s Zeta beam fires and he is returned to Earth. It’s an elegant transition to the threats Earth receives as a parallel threat is happening on our planet.

The tale flows in high action and dudgeon from there, with scenes of future fighter jets, visions of nuclear annihilation, and pneumatic technology fueling a human detective story. In a very satisfying ending, the villain of the piece is revealed not to be some craven, strange-costumed adversary but a scientist gone wrong. There’s a parable in the noble scientist driven mad by the destructive power he controls, and Infantino, Schwartz and the writer all display that story nobly. In the end, the citizens of Rann are proven wrong by the greatest power of all: the power of heroism.

In just 15 pages, readers receive an epic tale that spans two planets and multiple cities. The aliens are much more credible than those Stan Lee creates in his ridiculous tales, and science is always at the heart of these science fiction tales. In fact, science is so much at the heart of this comic book that readers also receive a one-page bonus “Giants of the Telescope” feature describing the incalculable impact William P. Rosse had upon the scientific world. Who says kids don’t want to learn as they read their comics?

For my final example of the superiority of National’s offerings I give you “The Defeat of Green Lantern” from March's Green Lantern #19. Again edited by the superior Schwartz, with art as always by Gil Kane, this tale again combines scientific knowledge with superior storytelling to deliver a tale Stan Lee’s cohorts can only dream of.

As happens so often with Schwartz-led tales, the core of the story lies with science. On the first story page, we witness an ally of Earth’s Green Lantern try to inform his colleague about a cosmo-storm that can increase “sunspot activity, atmospheric lights and odd magnetic disturbances.” As any faithful “Galactic Journey” reader (and anyone who passed a freshman high school science class) would know, these events are much more realistic than vague “cosmic rays” as a means for creating problems in the universe. It also is logical, as the writer depicts, that those disturbances should also cause problems with Green Lantern’s amazing ring.

The story centers around the craven villain Sonar, who has the nucleo-sonic ability to draw energy from sound and use that sound in a solidified manner. Sonar uses this amazing ability to try to bring recognition to his tiny European homeland. Brilliantly Schwartz and team give credibility to Sonar’s megalomania in a richer and more thoughtful way than Lee and Kirby do for the shallow Doctor Doom. (They also choose a much better name for their villain, but, again, what do you expect?) Of course, Lantern is able to defeat Sonar because his strong instincts make him realize his ring is acting strangely. Green Lantern’s heroic abilities win out over the shallow craven villainy of Sonar.

Mr. Marcus, you’re a smart man. That’s why I’m shocked and saddened by your professed ardor for some of the worst comics out there. You’d be better off reading the schlock of Archie Comics than the antiheroic, unscientific junk of Marvel Comics. On the other hand, maybe you should enjoy the adventures of the unfortunately named Spiderman as long as you can. Nobody will want to read the threadbare adventures Lee & co. are delivering. It will only be a short time till the name of the Fantastic Four reaches the dustbin of long-forgotten champions.

[P.S. If you registered for WorldCon this year, please consider nominating Galactic Journey for the "Best Fanzine" Hugo. Your ballot should have arrived by now…]

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Comics

[January 25, 1963] Astonishing! Amazing! Fantastic! Strange! (March 1963 Marvel Comics Roundup)

January 25, 2018 Gideon Marcus 7 Comments

[if you’re new to the Journey, read this to see what we’re all about!]

by Gideon Marcus

The Journey tries to cover as many media as possible to be a complete one-stop shop for science fiction and fantasy fans. Thus, we've long since branched out from sf magazines to cover books, movies, television shows, and comic books.

Interestingly, my journey with comic books mirrors my experience a decade ago with science fiction digests. At first, I just had the one subscription to Galaxy, and I picked up odd issues of other mags as they caught my fancy. Years passed, and by the time I started this column, I was regularly purchasing F&SF, IF, Astounding, and Satellite. As of today, the Journey covers every American sf mag and a British one (New Worlds) to boot!

Similarly, a few years back, I purchased random issues of Marvel and National Comics, but in no sort of set schedule. These last several months, I've found the constellation of Marvel's output very compelling, and my collection has expanded considerably.

This month looks to be the crest of a wave, with Marvel's superhero introductions reaching a fever pitch, pushing the fare of Girls' Comics and Westerns to the background. And what a crop of heroes these are!

First up is the Amazing Spiderman. Since his first appearance just a few months ago, he's become popular enough to earn his own mag!

Unfortunately, the fans are the only folks this new hero is popular with. Everyone else thinks he's a menace, a phoney, a hoodlum, or some combination of all three. Leading the lynch mob is J. Jonah Jameson, editor of The Daily Bugle. Even Spiderman's death-defying rescue of Jameson's son (an astronaut) does nothing to rehabilitate his image.

That's a raw deal by anyone's standard. I wouldn't be surprised if ol' Spidey knocked over a few banks just for spite!

Undaunted, Spiderman decides that, if a solo gig won't work, perhaps he should join a team.

Of course, the Fantastic Four are sort of the glue that holds the Marvel-verse together, so it's inevitable that Spiderman should run into them. But it turns out that the F4 aren't taking applications.

I have to say that I like Spiderman, and a downer superhero is certainly a switch, but I don't know if I'm masochistic enough to put up with too much of this. I hope Peter Parker finds his feet soon.

Speaking of crossovers, look who makes an appearance in Fantastic Four #12? Noneother than the Hulk, now green instead of gray, and able to change into his titanic form and keep the brain of Dr. Bruce Banner (Hulk's human form) at will with the help of a machine.

Nothing like a bit of shameless self-promotion…

In this particular issue, the Hulk is blamed for a series of attacks on military bases throughout the country. But Banner is a sharp cookie, and through incredibly sophisticated sleuthing, finds the true culprit.

Fantastic Four continues to be my least favorite comic, in large part thanks to exchanges like this:

Charming as ever, Richards.

In this month's Hulk, Dr. Banner's form-changer machine is becoming more erratic. Will it last much longer? Also, the villain is the Master of Metal with… mastery over metal. Interesting power. I wonder if we'll see his like again.

Marvel's anthology mags continue to increasingly become vehicles for new superheroes. Journey into Mystery is the home of Thor, Asgardian God of Thunder.

Tales to Astonish is Ant-Man's vehicle.

Strange Tales might as well be titled Fantastic Four #12 and a half.

Tales of Suspense features the exciting debut of Iron Man, a superhero borne of crisis. Tony Stark, a millionaire playboy engineer, is captured in North Vietnam after an explosion lodges shrapnel near his heart. Tasked to make weapons by the nefarious Communist Wong-Chu, Stark instead builds himself a metal suit both to keep his heart going and to make an escape.

I don't know if Iron Man will be a recurring character, but I'd certainly like to see more.

So that's Marvel Comics for March 1963. A pretty exciting and momentous twelfth of a year, and reason to keep subscribing.

As for National Comics, well… anyone else want to write an article?

[P.S. If you registered for WorldCon this year, please consider nominating Galactic Journey for the "Best Fanzine" Hugo. Check your mail for instructions…]

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Comics

[June 7, 1962] Third-rate (the State of Marvel Comics)

June 7, 2017 Gideon Marcus 7 Comments

[Famed comics expert Jason Sacks returns with a not-unmixed appraisal of the current state of Marvel Comics – in particular, evaluating the raft of new heroes they've unleashed on the universe.

Jason is not a man to mince words, you'll see…]

by Jason Sacks

Tiny Marvel Comics is at it again. Less than a year after comics’ shoestring publisher launched the rough-and-tumble Fantastic Four, Marvel has expanded their offering of new action heroes. In fact, when I visited Spencer’s Drugs in beautiful Snohomish, Washington this Tuesday, I found three premiering costumed characters with adventures to consume. I’m happy to say these offerings are more entertaining than Archie Comics’s dull Adventures of the Fly and Adventures of the Jaguar, but they are nowhere near as entertaining as most of the comics published by National.

If you remember from my last visit to Galactic Journeys, I described how Marvel is an upstart company, mostly presenting giant monster comics for bratty young children while their larger counterparts National and Dell dominate in terms of both sales and quality. A longstanding rumor has it that Marvel is even distributed by the same company that has partial ownership of National, and that parent company limits editor Stan Lee’s small enterprise to no more than eight titles per month.

Heretofore, most of Marvel’s male-oriented offerings have been either of the giant monster or cowboy variety. For example, the May number of Tales to Astonish offered A Monster at My Window – a giant-headed green monstrosity instead of a Peeping Tom – while the same month’s Strange Tales offered an orange variation of the same idea called Mister Morgan’s Monster. Meanwhile, Rawhide Kid and Gunsmoke Western offer adventures similar to Maverick or The Rifleman.

After a rocky first few issues, in which scientific concepts were handled in haphazard manners and artwork by Jack Kirby was loose and awkward, Marvel’s Fantastic Four seems to have settled into a pleasantly fun beat. In the February issue, Lee and Kirby revived the classic Sub-Mariner, last seen about five years ago in a short-lived revival of his classic comic from the 1940s. The new yarn presented a delightful revival of the Sub-Mariner/Human Torch battles from the pages of the happily-remembered Marvel Mystery Comics. In FF #4, the hep, young Human Torch finds a down-and-out Sub-Mariner living on skid row. That then triggers a delightful epic tale in which Lee and Kirby return the former king to Atlantis, where he is reunited with his subjects. Namor also falls in love with Sue Storm, the distaff member of the Fantastic Four. Though he is defeated quickly, the revived Sub-Mariner seems an ideal adversary for the Fantastics.

That is, if the new villain Doctor Doom, who premiered in the April issue #5, doesn’t take that role first. This man in the iron mask has a connection with Mr. Fantastic, the leader and scientific genius of the Fantastic Four, and their relationship gives the story much of its fuel.

If Marvel gives the rest of their books this level of care and attention, they may be able to carve out a small niche on the stands next to the super-popular Dell and National lines. My spies at the circulation houses tell me that many Dell Comics, as well as National’s Superman line, often sell over a million copies per month while Marvel’s line sells barely a quarter of them. If Dell is Coca-Cola and National is Pepsi, then Marvel is more like Royal Crown Cola, a pleasant flavor that barely registers on most peoples’ attention spans.

As I mentioned, three new costumed characters premiere this week from Marvel. Amazing Fantasy #15 debuts Spider Man, while Tales to Astonish #35 marks The Return of the Ant Man! and Journey Into Mystery #83 presents a bold take on the Norse God Thor.

One has to wonder why the obsession at Marvel with many-legged creepy crawlies. Does Archie’s The Fly sell so well that Marvel feels the need to jump into the marketplace for heroes based on multi-legged critters? People, especially girls, hate spiders, so why would anybody would want to read the adventures of a spider man. My sister is terrified of spiders so whenever one of those eight-legged monstrosities ends up behind the icebox, my father always has to kill it. Why would my sister or anybody else want to read the story of a boy with spider powers?

Especially when that boy, Peter Parker by name, is such a nebbish? As Lee and artist Steve Ditko portray Parker in his debut, the boy is a bespectacled scientific genius, hated by his fellow high school classmates and living a cloistered life with his elderly aunt and uncle. Though he attends a public school, young Parker wears a suit and tie and attends a giant scientific exhibit of radio-activity, at which he is bitten by a radioactive spider. You have to give Lee credit for smartly using the scourge of our time to create the background for this hero.

Unfortunately, Lee then takes his debuting hero down a low road when he becomes – of all things – a pro wrestler. Parker puts on a mask and confuses an almost mindless pugilist. This shows the depravity and low levels that Lee is willing to put his characters through. Rather than having his hero nobly take up the hero’s game, as would happen in a DC Comic, Lee has Peter Parker don an absurd red and blue costume (with a full head-cowl – nobody loves full head cowls) and fully embrace a career as a wrestler.
Tragically, Parker’s greed gets the best of him, as his Uncle is killed by a robber who he easily could have stopped. After a quick battle, the hero discovers his failure, and this first appearance ends on a depressing down note.

This blatant rip off of Batman’s origin is the icing on the cake of this lame and frustrating story. There are many markers here that this Spider Man will never take off as a hero, from this unappealing civilian character, drawn by S. Ditko as a complete loser, to the unappealing storyline around professional wrestling, to the awful costume and the lack of a good villain. Any attentive observer of comic books has to question why Lee and Ditko believed this character would have (eight) legs that would stick to readers’ hearts.

Even the comic he appears in shows that Marvel understands Spider Man is a loser: this comic was titled Amazing Adult Fantasy for its previous several issues and presented fantasy tales slightly better than Marvel’s normal pablum. This month, Marvel removed Adult from the title in a tacit implication that these stories are for kids only. Next time they can remove the word Amazing as well. Give me an issue of National’s Challengers of the Unknown or Sea Devils over this pap any day.

Also appearing this month is another hero inspired by creepy-crawlies. This hero, who Marvel hopes will attract a buzz, is Ant-Man. (Incidentally, recent Marvels have also featured a giant scorpion and the story The Man in the Bee-Hive; has editor Lee been studying for an insect-keeping examination?)

Though ants are loved even less than spiders, at least the origin of Ant-Man makes more sense than the Spider Man story. As presented in Tales to Astonish #35, Ant-Man is simply a scientist who discovers a special formula to shrink himself, which triggers an adventure that could have come from the outstanding 1950s flick The Incredible Shrinking Man.

See, scientist Henry Pym has developed both a shrinking formula and an anti-radiation formula. The Commies thus want to kidnap Pym to gain his knowledge of the anti-rad ability so they can safely launch a nuclear war. Pym fights back, donning a flashy red suit as the Ant-Man. Of course he defeats the baddies in the end. The story has some effective scenes – there’s a great moment in which stinger ants crawl up a commie’s leg and defeat him – but this story is only marginally more successful than the one introducing Spider Man. At least it stars a more conventional leading character, since a brilliant scientist is inherently much more interesting than a sad teenager who dresses as a spider. In any event, this Ant-Man is much less interesting than the brilliant Atom (one of Julius Schwartz’s proud publications) at National Comics – and his name is silly, too.

Thor, premiering in Journey into Mystery #83, is the best of these three premiering heroes, but that’s like comparing a Perry Como song to a Bobby Vinton song. I’d rather be listening to The Loco-Motion and reading National Comics than Vinton and Marvel, but when you have to listen to music, Vinton will do.

Marvel’s reborn Thor is the Norse god reborn in the body of frail doctor Donald Blake, “helpless without his cane”, who journeys to Norway for unknown reasons and becomes enmeshed in a battle with the rocky green Stone Men from Saturn. The Stone Men resemble the statues from Easter Island and are the same old hokey Marvel monsters, but this new hero seems like he could be an up-and-comer. The uncredited artist – who seems to be the same man who drew the adventures of Ant-Man – delivers a dynamic tale that uses storytelling that’s different from the clean lines I’m used to seeing in the pages of The Flash or Green Lantern. The approach is bold and intense, with frequent use of blackout panels.

Of course, the storyline with the stone men from Saturn is a typically rotten Marvel storyline, still another kiddie kreation of giant monsters battling to destroy the Earth. This terribly cliched plot would have fit comfortably in previous issues of Journey into Mystery. Hopefully Marvel will bring the whole background of Norse mythology into this comic and allow readers the chance to see Loki, Odin and the amazing Asgard. Hopefully, too, Marvel will rectify their coloring mistake and color Thor’s hair red, as it should be.

Mark my words: June 5, 1962, will be a date that is quickly forgotten when someone one day writes the history of comic books in America. Thor might be remembered by a few, but you can bet your bottom dollar that this Spider Man will be quickly forgotten. Thankfully I was able to pick up this month’s issue of The Flash this week to wash the awful taste out of my mouth.

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Comics

[Mar. 14, 1962] State of the Art (Marvel Comics: May 1962)

March 14, 2017 Gideon Marcus 12 Comments

by Gideon Marcus

With just three weeks to go before I attend the comics-themed science fiction convention in the Los Angeles area known as "Wonder Con," I think it's high time for an update on what's going on in the world of Marvel Comics. As I related earlier, Marvel (formerly Atlas) seems bent on rebuilding a stable of superheroes to complement their line-up of Westerns and Model mags.

Last year saw the introduction of the Fantastic Four, which is now up to issue #4. More on them later. This month, the new superbeing is The Incredible Hulk. I hesitate to use the word "hero" since The Hulk doesn't seem to be a good character, at least, not yet.

Dr. Bruce Banner is a brilliant physicist, in charge of development of the "G Bomb." This device doesn't seem to do much expect shoot out a burst of gamma rays. In the Marvel universe, this appears to cause unpredictable (but non-deadly) instant mutations.

As the countdown for the first test approaches, a young man drives out onto the test grounds. Banner, a man of conscience, races out to help him. The doctor's treacherous assistant, a Soviet spy, activates the bomb anyway, and Banner takes the full brunt of the blast.

This turns Banner, at least temporarily, into a Mr. Hyde-type character. He is possessed of incredible strength and an implacable desire to destroy. The Hulk (so named by a terrified soldier) still retains some human intellect, but he does not know that he was originally a human scientist.

It turns out that Banner's transformation is tied to the day/night cycle. As the sun dawns, The Hulk reverts to his original form. For at least twelve hours a day (more, at the poles!) Banner is himself.

Of course, no supercreature exists in a vacuum. There is a fundamental corollary of Newton's 3rd Law in the comics universe. The Hulk's nemesis is a deformed Communist supergenius: The Gargoyle!

There's not much of a fight here. Gargoyle incapacitates The Hulk and his sidekick (the rescued youth)

But in the flight back to Russia, the gray beast becomes Banner again. The scientist uses his terrific brain to revert the Gargoyle, who was created with radiation, too, to human form. This robs him of his superpowers, but lets him die… a man!

I leave it as an exercise for the reader whether it is better to be ugly and gifted or comely and unremarkable.

Inside this issue of The Hulk, there was an ad for two other Marvel mags. They just happen to ones I'm already inclined to pick up, so I'll give you a peek in them, too:

"The Magazine that Respects your Intelligence" and "The one that doesn't!"

Marvel goes in for anthology mags. Amazing Adult Fantasy is essentially watered-down The Twilight Zone.

For instance, the self-aware vignette about the fellow who gets taken to Mars and ends up in a zoo (like that The Twilight Zone episode with Roddy McDowell, q.v.).

Or jokey bit about how Stan and Steve come up with ideas…

Or the one about the Castro lookalike who is killed by the plague after shooting down the American plane that was coming to (not) Cuba with the cure…

Or the title piece about the fellow who breaks the time barrier and comes back to a frozen Earth…

You decide whether or not these stories respect your intelligence.

Over in Fantastic Four, The Torch has a tiff and leaves the group. Collateral damage ensues:

That's just the B plot. The A plot introduces a new supervillain, though he doesn't seem all bad. It is Namor, the Sub-Mariner, who first appeared back in a Marvel predecessor mag back in 1939! He has lost his memories and is residing in a skid-row rehabilitation house. But the Forceful Four coax his memories back, and the Lord of Liquid vows revenge for humanity's ravaging of the seas.

But first, he takes a detour down Lovers' Lane…

Honestly, I think she's better off than with Reed, destroyer of motorcycles, diminisher of women.

Can Namor be defeated? Do we even want him to be? You'll just have to read the magazine and find out! It's probably worth your time just for all the beefcake (fishcake?) this issue features…

See you in the funny papers!

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Comics

[Nov. 28, 1961] Friendly Competition (The Case for National Comics)

November 28, 2016 Jason Sacks 11 Comments

Erica Frank and I have both extolled the virtues of superhero comics; I pumped Marvel while she was a National fan. Now, famed comics expert Jason Sacks weighs in, mostly to tell us that Erica's taste is far better than mine. He's probably right…

by Jason Sacks

Several weeks ago, the Traveler posted a short, mostly complimentary review of the new Marvel Comic The Fantastic Four. He liked the comic’s heady mix of fact and science fiction, as well as its inclusion of a female character in its cast.

That review troubled me because it praises material I consider to be second rate. Marvel is, unfortunately, a schlock-house. Several years ago Marvel specialized in Twilight Zone-style twist-in-the-tail yarns (which the Traveler discussed in 1959). Recently, though, Marvel’s output has descended into juvie monster stories. The Fantastic Four #1 is not much more than a full-length version of those same moribund tales with the addition of derivative super-powers. The ugly art from Jack Kirby only makes things worse. He should go back to drawing love comics and leave heroes alone. I can confidently say Jack Kirby has no future in costumed-hero comics.

A look of the covers of any month’s releases from this second-rate publisher proves this point. The enormous monster on the cover of The Fantastic Four#1 is similar to the titanic creature featured in nearly every other Marvel book released recently. The outrageous Monsteroso from the October Amazing Adventures #5, the Mohawked Brutto in the October Tales of Suspense #22, and the ridiculous green giant Fin Fang Foom in that same month’s Strange Tales #89 all fit the same general template.

the Marvel monster who wears shorts!

These Marvel creatures are all bites from the same rancid apple. They represent a juvenile collection of clichés and ridiculousness barely suited for even the most dilapidated drive-in.

Conversely, industry leader National Comics is delivering truly outstanding science fiction comics. In comics like The Flash, Green Lantern and the new Atom a team of talented creators deliver tales that combine fiction and fact in ways that should make people like John W. Campbell smile.

I beg a little indulgence as I tell you about the fascinating Mr. Julius Schwartz, the editor of those comics. Schwartz is one of the leading lights of older style science fiction fandom and pro-dom. In fact, he was a pioneering fan. With Forrest J. Ackerman and Mortimer Weisinger (himself an editor at National, on the Superman titles), Schwartz co-published one of the first “fanzines,” The Time Traveler, in 1932. That mimeographed masterpiece caught the eyes of fans and pros alike. In it, the writers and editors praised the writing of many of the greatest writers of the field while also presenting fiction by aspiring pros.

A rare copy of the fanzine that started the career of the brilliant Mr. Schwartz, Time Traveler. Note future National Comics editor Mortimer Weisinger is also listed on the masthead, as is the famous “pro-fan” Forrest J. Ackerman.

That ‘zine caused a small sensation among fans and professionals. It led to all three men moving into the field full time. Schwartz opened the Solar Sales Service agency, where he represented writers such as Howard Philips Lovecraft, Alfred Bester and Ray Bradbury. After a decade as an agent, the owners of All-American Comics tapped Schwartz to join their staff as an editor on their line of super-heroes including Green Lantern, Dr. Mid-Nite, Hawkman and The Flash. As he gained experience at All-American, and as AA merged with National Comics, Schwartz moved into science fiction comics. He established himself there as a notable editor on such brilliant sci-fi titles as Strange Adventures and Mystery in Space. Those latter two series were perhaps the finest sci-fi comics published since the amazing E.C. Comics disappeared in 1954.

Schwartz brings his same passion for science fiction to his editing of super-hero comics. He also evokes fond memories for longtime fans. The great editor mines for creative gold in places that revive memories of the past while evoking the jet age in which we live. He has set to work reviving the names of some of the members of the much beloved Justice Society of America (moribund since 1951). As part of that effort, our man Schwartz has delivered to readers sleek new versions of such revered names as the Flash, Green Lantern, Hawkman, and (his latest revival) The Atom.

On “The Atom”, Schwartz collaborates with writer Gardner Fox (a veteran of such magazines as Amazing Stories and Weird Tales) and artist Gil Kane. The background of our new hero has a solid foundation in the same sorts of ideas you might discover each month in the pages of Worlds of If.

The Atom is scientist Ray Palmer (named after the editor of such notable publications as Amazing Stories, Imagination and Other Worlds). He is a researcher at Ivy University investigating matter compression as a means for fighting overpopulation. Palmer has a breakthrough and finds he is able to shrink matter. In typical style, when he sets aside his research to indulge in a little fun, Palmer finds himself in an emergency. To save himself and his girlfriend, Palmer uses the shrinking ability and discovers he has amazing abilities. I anxiously await the second part of Palmer’s saga next month in Showcase #35.

Ray Palmer represents the destiny of America as an outgrowth of scientific discovery. Green Lantern represents our aspirations in space. As President Kennedy reminds us, America will be going to the moon and beyond in the next century. If that is true, I want our astronauts to be like Hal Jordan. He is a test pilot who has no fear. Jordan is ready to battle whatever evil comes his way – even in the far future.

In his September/October issue number 8, Jordan travels into the 58th century. The residents of that long-away century draft Jordan to become the leader of their great society.

Green Lantern travels into the far future to fight these surprising beasts

In fact, Green Lantern is already a member of another great society. Hal discovered in Green Lantern #6 (May/June 1961) that he is the member of a kind of extraterrestrial police force led by a group calling themselves the Guardians of the Universe. That idea seems ripped right from the pages of many classic pulp magazines, but with a modern twist. With sleek art by Kane, this series has rocketed to the top of many fans’ reading lists.

While The Atom and Green Lantern present some of the smartest sci-fi action comics of all time, Schwartz’s crown jewel has to be The Flash.

This new Flash takes his cue from the much-beloved 1940s Flash. As with Green Lantern, however, this is a modern Flash tailored for Baby Boom readers. The new Flash is crewcut cop Barry Allen, who donned a sleek red suit to become the fastest man alive. Since moving into his own solo comic in 1959, The Flash has presented some delightful science-oriented tales. That has included clever descriptions of friction, atomic cohesion and even the theory of continental drift. Each of these adventures have been drawn by Carmine Infantino, a brilliant cartoonist uniquely equipped to deliver sleek, delightful line work.

The cover to the brilliant “Flash of Two Worlds”

The story par excellence, the chapter that shows Schwartz’s incomparable intelligence, is The Flash #123, the September 1961 issue. That month, the creative team pulled off an idea I never expected to witness: the chance to see Barry Allen and Jay Garrick racing alongside each other. Though Barry imagined the original Flash was just comic book star, he actually was able to meet his idol.

How did Barry manage that amazing trick?

Through one of the cleverest ideas I’ve ever come across: parallel worlds.

an explanation of parallel worlds

Parallel worlds! What a clever concept. This idea is a brilliant revelation for a reader such as me. Imagine a counterpart of yourself, the same but deeply different, existing in a dimension vibrating at a different frequency from ours. Imagine how their experiences would vary from yours, and how their world might contain subtle changes.

This clever, innovative idea struck me like a revelation. For us long-time readers of comics this seems a clear signal that the revival of the august Justice Society of America may be coming soon. That means we could witness Green Lantern and the Atom meet their counterparts. It also means the possible resurrections of classic heroes in new guises. If the Atom can be revived, how long will it be before we see Black Canary, Dr. Fate, even The Spectre?

Left to right, Mr. Schwartz, writer Otto Binder and editor Raymond Palmer.

Yes, my friend the Traveler can celebrate that badly drawn kid stuff over at tiny, decrepit Marvel. National Comics is the place to find brilliant science fiction in comic book form. Drop your dime for some of the comics edited by Julius Schwartz and tell me if you don’t agree.

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Alter Ego 7

And That Was the End of Solomon Grundy? by Richard Kyle

Alter & Captain Ego, written and illustrated by Biljo White

A Hot Idea by Rick Strong, with art by White

One Man's Family: The Saga of the Mighty Marvels, by Roy Thomas, with art by White

The Gilded Age of Comics, by Shel Silverfish

The Tragic Monster, written and illustrated by E. Nelson Bridwell

Readers Write, by Otto (Eando) Binder, plus other letters

Batmania 1

Editor's Notes

The New Look, Biljo White and the Batmanians

Profiles on Collectors: John Wright

Comic Oddities

Pro Spot: Model T to T-Bird, by Russ Manning

The New-New Look, by Bill Ryan

Who Are the Batmanians?

Metaphysical Miscellany

Psychedelic Review: Vol 1, No. 3, 1964

Nature Retreat Therapy

The Scholarly Druids

55 years ago: Science Fact and Fiction