Green Lantern #40, "The Secret Origin of the Guardians!"
October 1965
Story: John Broome
Art: Gil Kane & Sid Greene
The cover, by Gil and Murphy Anderson, is a grabber. One Guardian of a
delegation intones, "Turn in your power ring and uniform, Hal Jordan!
Alan Scott is replacing you as Green Lantern of Earth!" Hal, lunging
angrily at his Earth-2 comrade, sputters, "That has-been's not cutting
me out unless he can beat me in a power-ring duel!" Alan stands ready,
his ring-hand balled into an emerald-energy-radiating fist! Quick, turn
the page! The splash, apparently but not actually occurring a moment
later, has Alan shooting a ring-bolt at Hal, knocking him toward us!
Quick, turn the page!
A "come as you were" party at Earth-2's Gotham Broadcasting Company
serves to introduce Alan Scott, who, "20 years ago" was an announcer at
the company where he now presides. (By inference, he's now in his early
40s.) Also seen is Doiby Dickles, Alan's Man Friday, who had been a cab
driver. Doiby is a Derby-wearing, shaven-headed, diminutive
"dese-dem-an'-dose" sorta guy, straight out of Damon Runyan. During the
drive home in the old cab, "Goitrude," which was 20 years old 20 years
prior, the radio news announces that a large meteor is on its way toward
Gotham. Alan, now in the red and green costume, flies skyward and
shoots a beam in front of the meteor. It blasts right through... and
vanishes! Then... CRASH! Doiby had been watching Alan rather than the
road and drove straight into a tree! Instantly, Alan surrounds the cab
with a force bubble, deflecting the toppling tree, to the astonishment
of himself and his long-time confidant. They both know his ring is
ineffective against anything made of wood. Yet, with ring energy, Alan
is again able to lift the fallen tree, as well as some planks from a
wooden fence. He concludes that something about the meteor must have
eliminated the ring's weakness, and can't wait to tell Hal over on
Earth-One about it. Obviously, contact with a similar meteor might well
overcome the necessary impurities that keep Hal's ring from affecting
anything colored yellow. With that thought, he's off across the
dimensional divide.
Soon, at the Ferris Aircraft Company, pilot Hal Jordan receives a mental
summons from Alan, changes into costume and meets with his comrade, who
explains his good fortune. However, Alan's attempt to demonstrate his
power over a packing crate meets with failure. He is sheepish; it must
have been a temporary effect. Hal is intrigued by the odd turn of
events, though. Alan asks his ring to spell out all details of what
happened. The ring begins by explaining that what he was involved with
was not a meteor, but a packet of energy that had been created ten
billion years before! The ring's beam, upon contact, absorbed the
contents of the disembodied mind within.
In order to explain everything fully, the ring turns the story back to
its beginning, ten billion years earlier. We see the blue-skinned Oans,
an already highly scientific race who never needed sleep, whose infants
showed tremendous mental powers. The adults delved into the nature of,
well, nature, when not involved with sport and other recreation. Theirs
was a paradise but for one disturbing note: a malcontent named Krona.
His obsession was to probe the beginning of all things, in shocking
disregard of a timeless legend that to learn the secret of creation was
to destroy themselves and the rest of the universe. Krona has no use for
such legends, in spite of all pleas that he stop.
One day, his efforts paid off. On a monitor, he has received an image of
an enormous shadowy hand cupping a star cluster. But, when he probed
further back, a cosmic lightning bolt abruptly splintered his machine!
Krona survived only due to his immortality. But, at that moment, EVIL
was loosed on the universe! Brother killed brother! And the Oans, those
mental giants, knew that the cause was Krona's reckless ambition.
Confronted by concerned citizens, Krona declared his contempt for their
fears and announced his intention to continue his researches. Well, it
doesn't pay to mess with the Oan establishment, who disembodied his
consciousness, imprisoned it in an energy ball and send it hurtling out
to circle the universe. Then, feeling guilt over the actions of one of
their kind, they designated themselves the Guardians of the Universe and
established a corps of agents to combat the wickedness that Krona had
unleashed. Further, they imbued their power battery with radiation that
insured that none of them, and none in their power ring corps, would be
able to attempt what Krona had begun. The universe must keep its secrets
forever hidden. Eons passed, ring-bearers came and went, and the aging
Oans kept their promise.
Eventually Krona was forgotten by his fellows, but his ambitions lived
on. As he crossed over into the universe of Earth-2, he became aware
that its resident Green Lantern owed his ring power to occult energy, a
difference that could be exploited to result in his freedom. By willing
his energy-prison to increase in heat while entering Earth-2's
atmosphere, Krona brought attention to himself and gained the desired
reaction from Alan/Lantern. Then, through a prodigious act of will he
skipped across to the mystic beam and settled in Alan's ring. There,
outside his own universe, he was imprisoned again. But Krona, using his
own will, gave Alan control over wooden objects, knowing that the
ring-bearer would think at once of his friend on Earth-1. The moment
Alan crossed into Universe-1, Krona was able to detach and operate
independently again, at which point the ring had no further information
to report.
Hal's immediate reaction is that the Guardians must be notified, and
that he must find Krona. Alan corrects him, that it's something they
both must do, as Alan is responsible for Krona's freedom. Soon, Hal
achieves contact, and the pair is told that the Guardians were listening
to Alan's ring as well. Krona, he continues, is still on Earth but has
shielded himself from their probes. Doubtless he will continue his
investigations, resulting in the instantaneous destruction of the
universe. Further, the first results of his efforts will be a disastrous
outpouring of evil in his immediate vicinity!... and so Earth-1 will be
in great danger! The Guardians themselves are on the way to Earth-1 to
set up a temporary headquarters, but meanwhile it's up to the two
ring-bearers to keep things under control.
The pair rings out to Coast City, where the Coast River is suddenly
flooding its banks! To the left side of the channel goes Alan, who
freezes the enormous wave, while Hal, to the right, creates huge atomic
ovens, evaporating the water as quickly as it pours. A stranger
spectacle is Mount Pacific, which spontaneously tilts toward the city
and, like a huge whip, shoots a veritable tongue of boulders toward it!
Hal's emerald jackhammer and Alan's enormous handsaw break the flow.
Immediately, though, nearby clouds whip into a tornado! Our boys in
green seed it with silver iodide, turning it to a relatively less
harmful torrential rain. Then, suddenly, a Guardian appears, announcing
their arrival on the planet and calling the pair to join them at their
temporary HQ, since their very presence is now holding Krona's evil in
check. Soon, in an unused courthouse, the Guardians unceremoniously call
for Hal to turn in his ring and uniform while appointing Alan the new
GL of Earth. In this elongated retelling of the cover, Hal reacts with
anger and dismay, just as any of us would.
INTERLUDE: House ad for Brave & Bold #62 with Starman and Black
Canary's second team-up, also featuring Wildcat; then, Rocky &
Bullwinkle for Cheerios, as well as ads elsewhere for Cocoa Puffs,
Tootsie Roll Pops (twice) and Trix. Silly rabbit, comics are for kids!
A short while earlier, in a cave outside Coast City, we see that Krona
had set up an incredible apparatus. Peering into its monitor, he gloated
that this time he would discover the Secret Origin of the Oans.
However, just in case the ancient legend about such probing leading to
the destruction of the universe is true, he'd made plans to ensure his
own safety. But first, his mental defenses had warned him that the
Guardians had arrived on planet. In order to carry out his scheme, he
had to surreptitiously enter among them. So, he again reduced himself to
energy and slammed his consciousness into Alan's tornado-fighting body
while ejecting Alan's own ego. Soon, standing next to Hal and facing the
Guardians, Krona cast them under his spell to do his will: to issue the
incredible order for Hal to resign. Now, Hal challenges the "Green
Lantern of Earth-One," his rage blinding him to the fact that Alan's
world is properly if oddly termed Earth-Two, and they ring each other
for a few mighty panels. Krona reflects that Hal has surprising
endurance, and Hal muses that "Alan" sure has a temper, and then Hal is
knocked for a loop.
Soon after, Krona has transported the helpless Guardians to his cave, as
they reflect on Krona's dominance over them and Alan. Krona boasts that
his pleasure will be only increased by their terror when the Truth is
revealed. He then casts Alan's body aside and restores his own,
announcing at the same time that he has willed into existence a
duplicate of Alan's ring, a vital part of his plan. For, that ring is
not a part of the Guardians' universe, and should that universe
collapse, it will immediately take Krona to the universe of Earth-Two!
Bwa-ha-ha! Then, before the horrified Guardians, the on-monitor scenario
unfolds... the formless hand-like cloud... but now Krona must
recalibrate to go back further.
Meanwhile, Hal is roused by a telepathic call from Alan, who informs him
of the situation. Summoning his groggy will, Hal rings Alan's
consciousness into his own mind so that they can continue the fight
together. Alan guides Hal's flight through dark skies punctuated by
incredible lightning. Doomsday is almost upon them! Hal impels into the
cave and is immediately on the attack as Krona rings up a yellow shield.
Unexpectedly, Hal shoots a bolt through it, knocking Krona for a loop!
Krona rings him right back, but Hal charges forward again, and, Alan's
will joined to his, they deliver a solid uppercut, which leaves him
dazed. The Guardians seize the moment and destroy his apparatus, then
levitate the still-defiant Krona while scoffing at his belligerence.
Reducing him again to energy, they send him into an orbit that "will
NEVER intersect any planet or star!" Have subsequent writers found a way
around this yet?
Outside the cave, the boys chuckle good-naturedly over the inspired
trick of switching rings, so that Krona's expectation of a weakness
against yellow would be off the mark. But, Hal wonders, whose idea was
it? Makes no difference, answers Alan, and, grown people that they are,
both are satisfied with the conclusion. Alan flies off to return to his
own Earth, and Hal stretches in the sunlight, weary but glad that life
is beautiful again.
Writer John Broome schnockered us: we still haven't learned the Secret
Origin of the Guardians, but we do learn that they seem to have come
into existence first thing after Creation. Or maybe not, as they don't
want to take a look and risk everything in the process. Or maybe not. It
can be argued that since Krona created the duplicate of Alan's ring
while on Earth-1 that it is in fact part of the Guardians' universe, but
I don't see that this would affect his evil plan at all.
Gil Kane was delivering sizzling figurework at every opportunity, and
even in some of the static shots. We aren't looking up people's noses
too much at this point in hit career, and that's okay with me. The mecha
was showing no sign of Kirby influence, but the cross-dimensional
effects leaned surprisingly toward Ditko. Sid Greene's inks were by no
means understated, but still tasteful. The man really liked to apply
texture and must have been having fun with all that wavy hair. Murphy
Anderson's finishes will probably always be the fan fave, but Greene's
were nothin' to sneeze at either.
This story was reprinted in DC Special Blue Ribbon Digest #4, which is probably harder to find than this issue itself.
Tom Orzechowski
The archives of the Silver Age Reviews Yahoo Group, celebrating that classic era of comic books published between 1956 and 1972! (And occasionally beyond!)
Showing posts with label Tom Orzechowski. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tom Orzechowski. Show all posts
Batman 191, "The Day Batman Sold Out!"
Batman 191, "The Day Batman Sold Out!"
May 1967
Cover: Carmine Infantino and Murphy Anderson
Script: Gardner Fox
Art: Sheldon Moldoff and Joe Giella
Editor: Julius Schwartz
Batman stands before a TV camera, his head bowed, and announces, "Certain circumstances have arisen which compel me--by their grim nature--to give up my career as a crime-fighter!" Nearby, a nervous Commissioner Gordon tells a reporter, "I am stunned--overwhelmed! I know no more about this than you do!"
The story opens as Batman storms a subterranean atomic power reactor, startling the bald-headed operator. The perp, Ira Radon, has been behind some radioactive isotope robberies, and considers himself on the verge of becoming the greatest criminal in the world! Radon swings a metal claw and arm and yells, "If it means killing you--to protect all the years I've invested studying the art of radioactive criminality--so be it!" Lifting him overhead, Batman retorts, "You've got to do better than that! Or do you think you can wriggle out of my KATA GURUMA JUDO HOLD?" But, as Radon is thrown against the reactor door, he screams, "Aaagghh! I neglected to lock the door and I'm falling into the reactor chamber! Wh-what'll become of m-me...?" Batman leaps for the generator's switch as Radon screams, "I'll pay you back for this, Batman! As you have done to me, so will I do to you! An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth!" Batman thinks, "I never meant to fling him through that door, but he would never believe that!"
For weeks afterward, Radon's bandage-covered self rests, and he schemes. "The radiation dose changed my metabolism...so that if I should ever steal again, the radioactivity in my body--which I can never lose--will prove FATAL! Because of my expert knowledge of radiation--I know that the very act of STEALING would cause a reaction in my glandular and nervous systems--which my body could not tolerate! I'll pay Batman back--in his own coin! What he's done to me, I'll do to him! Because I must retire as a THIEF--I'll force him to retire as a CRIME-FIGHTER!" Radon soon escapes from the prison hospital.
And so, some months later, some reporters and a camera crew are called to Gordon's private office to witness the scene from the splash page. Batman goes on to say, "Tomorrow at high noon in Gotham Square I will hold an auction to divest myself of everything connected with my career!" To the many questions that follow, he replies simply that his statement stands as read. A few hours later, as Dick Grayson returns home from school, he is shocked to learn of the announcement by reading a newspaper headline! He runs back to the manor (no chauffeur service for schoolkids--rich or otherwise--in the late `60s!) and bursts into the library, where Bruce is doing paperwork and Alfred stands at the ready. "Bruce--I'm hurt! Why didn't you tell me about this phony retirement?" Bruce says again that his statement speaks for itself, and suggests Dick go upstairs and study. Dick, teary-eyed, looks to Alfred, who can only shrug.
The auction gets bids in the thousands for a Batarang, the Hot-Line Phone and so on, including the costume Batman is wearing at that moment!...all items to be redeemed the following day at the Wayne Foundation, with proceeds going (of course) to "the general welfare" of Gotham City. As the auction ends, Batman waves goodbye from the back of the departing moving van! "Farewell! I'll never forget you you--or Gotham City..." We see Penguin and Joker in their cells, both lamenting the loss of such a worthy foe.
Meanwhile, inside the van, Bruce pulls off his uniform while thinking, "If the world only knew the truth--which I dare not reveal!" The story then cuts back to a time when he was following two jewel thieves and had just hurled his last Batarang. "It's happening again!" A light beam suddenly flashed, spotlighting the Batarang. Later, in the Batcave, as he examined his Bat-weapons as usual, he was surprised to find that the Batarang was radioactive! Thinking back, he recalled that every darn one of the Bat-gimmicks, while in use, had been similarly, momentarily, illuminated! As he shines a "detection light" on the Batmobile, radioactive handwriting becomes visible over the entire car! In short, it informs him that indeed, all the anti-crime weapons are contaminated, and that he is, too! He is to auction off all the Bat-stuff in full public view and abandon the Batman role, and not resume the crusade in any other guise, as eventually he would show the same MO, and Radon will recognize him. Radon will then intensify the radiation, killing him! So, Batman muses, there's nothing to do but bow out of the picture! He then to applies make up and a wig so that, when he exits the van on a lonely street corner, no chance passerby would recognize Bruce Wayne.
The next day, at Wayne Foundation, a disguised Bruce hands over $10,000 cash for the Batarang, thinking, "I `sold' that Batarang to myself by pointing to an imaginary person in the crowd!" Meanwhile, the escaped and unbandaged Radon reads of the auction and has to wonder who bought all the goodies at such high prices. He soon determines that all but one of the Bat-objects were bought by agents for the Wayne Foundation, and that they will be displayed in its museum! The buyer of that Batarang intrigues Radon, though: why would someone spend so much money on the thing? So, that night, Radon treks to the buyer's house on the outskirts of Gotham to find out why he bought it, what he intends to do with it. Entering the darkened house, Radon sees the Batarang hanging on the wall...and is startled by heavy footfalls! He's approached by a man-shaped figure coated in clay, who informs Radon that he's now a prisoner! Radon defies the figure, who'd obviously lured him there as a trap, and bathes him in the light of a lantern he's carrying: "I never gave Batman the death-dose of radiation--but I'll give it to YOU! In three seconds you'll be dead!" But, the clay giant moves through the lethal light and swats Radon backward over a desk, causing him to drop the lantern onto the desk! Radon is now within an easy reach of that Batarang, though, and he grabs it, threatening to throw it and shatter the protective clay. But, the advancing figure grabs Radon in a familiar judo grip: it's Batman! Radon pulls the Radiation Intensifier gadget from his pocket, but the Batman lunges forward and smashes it. Grabbing the nearby fireplace shovel, Radon runs at the clay-encrusted Batman...and into the beam of that radiation lantern that's propped on the desk, which kills him instantly! Nothing left to do but call the Commissioner and set up another press conference at the Wayne Foundation. There, a smiling Batman explains the need to lie to the good people of Gotham, and ask their forgiveness. All that Ira Radon stuff is old news, apparently. Time to move on.
Later, he explains to Robin and Alfred that he would have liked to confide in them. But, he knew that if Radon's plan had worked, Robin would have gone after the killer, and Batman didn't him to suffer the same fate. And, in the deep science moment, Batman explains that he covered himself in clay because, when it's heated to 2372 degrees Fahrenheit, it locks in radioactivity, and thus acted as a shield against Radon's lethal blast. (What, he baked himself in clay at 2372 degrees F?!) And, of course, he removed the radiation from the Bat-objects before putting them up for auction. "Eventually, I'll have the radiation removed form my body too." Good idea! Then, Batman suggests he and Robin go out on patrol, words the Boy Wonder thought he'd never hear again. The end!
Interlude: house ad with obnoxious campy sound effects: 80-Page Giant Superboy #138: Superboy and Krypto's most terrific battles! Twenty-five cents!
The letter column carries three letters, all disapproving of the new campy style.
Story two: "Alfred's Mystery Menu!"
Script: Gardner Fox
Art: Sheldon Moldoff and Joe Giella
"Through the rain-splattered streets of Gotham City sloshes the Batmobile on its nightly patrol..." Robin is getting anxious, as they're finding no sign of criminals...or of Alfred! Batman acknowledges that he too is worried about their butler's mysterious disappearance. On the dashboard, the bat-radar screen suddenly registers unexpected movement inside the Specialty Foods Shoppe. Inside, the Duo discovers three thieves, lifting not cash, but carefully chosen merchandise! The thieves are quickly taken down. At dawn, Batman and Robin drive back into the Batcave, still wondering after Alfred and beginning to fear the worst.
Meanwhile, miles away, Alfred watches the dawn, amazed that it's only a day since he was abducted. The limo brought him to Duke Kelsey, the newest inductee to the Millionaire Mobster Club! Kelsey wants to throw a banquet to mark the occasion, and so acquired a manservant in the same way he acquired his millions. Thinking quickly, Alfred agrees, realizing that his only hope of salvation is to "prepare a 'message menu'--and trust to their quick wits to fathom it!" Soon, he presents Kelsey with a list of the ingredients he'll need, and Kelsey sends his boys out to steal the goods, just as Alfred had anticipated. Grinning broadly, Kelsey slaps Alfred on the back, assuring him he'll be well taken care of when it's over. This causes Alfred to break out in a sweat, as he knows it signals his doom: he will not be allowed to live after seeing the faces of the other millionaire criminals. Soon, two thugs enter the room, carrying bags of groceries... "everything except fer that appetizer stuff!" Alfred feels some apprehension, as the appetizer list contained an integral part of his clue.
Later the same day, Bruce reads detailed accounts of robberies at various food stores the previous night. "Holy cryptogram," spouts Dick, as they realize that Alfred always manages to send them some sort of message regarding his whereabouts. Bruce then picks the lock and cracks the safe in Alfred's private pantry. With luck, the ingredients lists on the closely guarded recipes will give our boys the jump on the thieves. They quickly realize that, by thwarting the theft of the appetizers, the items were returned to their shelves and not catalogued along with the other robberies! However, enough gourmand specifics are on record as to give the Duo a general location. Then, out back of the Specialty Foods Shoppe, Batman finds the thieves' grocery list amid the previous day's floor sweepings! They now have a street name and address in the suspected district!
Soon, the Duo burst into the banquet room. In a scene reeking with TV choreography and lousy puns, they and Alfred take out the banquet party. Back home again, Alfred serves dinner to Bruce, Dick and Aunt Harriet. The end.
House ads: Detective 269(?), depicting Batman about to unmask before a blindfolded Batgirl! And, Justice League of America #53, with Batman featured prominently, as the gang is attacked by their own weapons, particularly the utility belt. Finally, Showcase #68 featuring the Maniaks, who were modeled on the Monkees, by way of Carnaby Street. (Weak.)
Letters to the Batcave-Extra carries a couple more complaints about the title's new style, with requests for the return of some of the old villains. Also, Tom Fagan writes about the year's Hallowe'en festivities in Rutland, Vermont.
We can assume that the lead story was written to fit the mawkish cover. This gimmick did produce some memorable covers, but it could leave the writers in tough situations. In this case, Fox did a fine job in making the auction a story centerpiece, and he even reasonably explained why Dick and Alfred were so out of the loop as to be in tears.
The story is festooned with the overblown sound effects, by Schwartz stalwart Gaspar Saladino. New readers, brought in by the Batman TV show, were presumably expecting them, while old readers seem to have been repelled. Simek and Rosen did them better at Marvel. Someone is going to have to determine if Marvel's emphasis on big sound effects was concurrent with, or predated, the show. It may just be that Marvel's manic style was the root cause of it all.
Shelly's art for these "New Look" stories was much removed from his exaggerated approach in the previous decade. Truth to tell, I preferred it the old way. The writing under Schwartz wasn't so much a step forward as a step back to the early/mid `50s, before the space aliens, and the writing and art on those holds up just fine. The new staid and serious style didn't suit the strange world of Batman nearly as well. Tom Orzechowski
May 1967
Cover: Carmine Infantino and Murphy Anderson
Script: Gardner Fox
Art: Sheldon Moldoff and Joe Giella
Editor: Julius Schwartz
Batman stands before a TV camera, his head bowed, and announces, "Certain circumstances have arisen which compel me--by their grim nature--to give up my career as a crime-fighter!" Nearby, a nervous Commissioner Gordon tells a reporter, "I am stunned--overwhelmed! I know no more about this than you do!"
The story opens as Batman storms a subterranean atomic power reactor, startling the bald-headed operator. The perp, Ira Radon, has been behind some radioactive isotope robberies, and considers himself on the verge of becoming the greatest criminal in the world! Radon swings a metal claw and arm and yells, "If it means killing you--to protect all the years I've invested studying the art of radioactive criminality--so be it!" Lifting him overhead, Batman retorts, "You've got to do better than that! Or do you think you can wriggle out of my KATA GURUMA JUDO HOLD?" But, as Radon is thrown against the reactor door, he screams, "Aaagghh! I neglected to lock the door and I'm falling into the reactor chamber! Wh-what'll become of m-me...?" Batman leaps for the generator's switch as Radon screams, "I'll pay you back for this, Batman! As you have done to me, so will I do to you! An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth!" Batman thinks, "I never meant to fling him through that door, but he would never believe that!"
For weeks afterward, Radon's bandage-covered self rests, and he schemes. "The radiation dose changed my metabolism...so that if I should ever steal again, the radioactivity in my body--which I can never lose--will prove FATAL! Because of my expert knowledge of radiation--I know that the very act of STEALING would cause a reaction in my glandular and nervous systems--which my body could not tolerate! I'll pay Batman back--in his own coin! What he's done to me, I'll do to him! Because I must retire as a THIEF--I'll force him to retire as a CRIME-FIGHTER!" Radon soon escapes from the prison hospital.
And so, some months later, some reporters and a camera crew are called to Gordon's private office to witness the scene from the splash page. Batman goes on to say, "Tomorrow at high noon in Gotham Square I will hold an auction to divest myself of everything connected with my career!" To the many questions that follow, he replies simply that his statement stands as read. A few hours later, as Dick Grayson returns home from school, he is shocked to learn of the announcement by reading a newspaper headline! He runs back to the manor (no chauffeur service for schoolkids--rich or otherwise--in the late `60s!) and bursts into the library, where Bruce is doing paperwork and Alfred stands at the ready. "Bruce--I'm hurt! Why didn't you tell me about this phony retirement?" Bruce says again that his statement speaks for itself, and suggests Dick go upstairs and study. Dick, teary-eyed, looks to Alfred, who can only shrug.
The auction gets bids in the thousands for a Batarang, the Hot-Line Phone and so on, including the costume Batman is wearing at that moment!...all items to be redeemed the following day at the Wayne Foundation, with proceeds going (of course) to "the general welfare" of Gotham City. As the auction ends, Batman waves goodbye from the back of the departing moving van! "Farewell! I'll never forget you you--or Gotham City..." We see Penguin and Joker in their cells, both lamenting the loss of such a worthy foe.
Meanwhile, inside the van, Bruce pulls off his uniform while thinking, "If the world only knew the truth--which I dare not reveal!" The story then cuts back to a time when he was following two jewel thieves and had just hurled his last Batarang. "It's happening again!" A light beam suddenly flashed, spotlighting the Batarang. Later, in the Batcave, as he examined his Bat-weapons as usual, he was surprised to find that the Batarang was radioactive! Thinking back, he recalled that every darn one of the Bat-gimmicks, while in use, had been similarly, momentarily, illuminated! As he shines a "detection light" on the Batmobile, radioactive handwriting becomes visible over the entire car! In short, it informs him that indeed, all the anti-crime weapons are contaminated, and that he is, too! He is to auction off all the Bat-stuff in full public view and abandon the Batman role, and not resume the crusade in any other guise, as eventually he would show the same MO, and Radon will recognize him. Radon will then intensify the radiation, killing him! So, Batman muses, there's nothing to do but bow out of the picture! He then to applies make up and a wig so that, when he exits the van on a lonely street corner, no chance passerby would recognize Bruce Wayne.
The next day, at Wayne Foundation, a disguised Bruce hands over $10,000 cash for the Batarang, thinking, "I `sold' that Batarang to myself by pointing to an imaginary person in the crowd!" Meanwhile, the escaped and unbandaged Radon reads of the auction and has to wonder who bought all the goodies at such high prices. He soon determines that all but one of the Bat-objects were bought by agents for the Wayne Foundation, and that they will be displayed in its museum! The buyer of that Batarang intrigues Radon, though: why would someone spend so much money on the thing? So, that night, Radon treks to the buyer's house on the outskirts of Gotham to find out why he bought it, what he intends to do with it. Entering the darkened house, Radon sees the Batarang hanging on the wall...and is startled by heavy footfalls! He's approached by a man-shaped figure coated in clay, who informs Radon that he's now a prisoner! Radon defies the figure, who'd obviously lured him there as a trap, and bathes him in the light of a lantern he's carrying: "I never gave Batman the death-dose of radiation--but I'll give it to YOU! In three seconds you'll be dead!" But, the clay giant moves through the lethal light and swats Radon backward over a desk, causing him to drop the lantern onto the desk! Radon is now within an easy reach of that Batarang, though, and he grabs it, threatening to throw it and shatter the protective clay. But, the advancing figure grabs Radon in a familiar judo grip: it's Batman! Radon pulls the Radiation Intensifier gadget from his pocket, but the Batman lunges forward and smashes it. Grabbing the nearby fireplace shovel, Radon runs at the clay-encrusted Batman...and into the beam of that radiation lantern that's propped on the desk, which kills him instantly! Nothing left to do but call the Commissioner and set up another press conference at the Wayne Foundation. There, a smiling Batman explains the need to lie to the good people of Gotham, and ask their forgiveness. All that Ira Radon stuff is old news, apparently. Time to move on.
Later, he explains to Robin and Alfred that he would have liked to confide in them. But, he knew that if Radon's plan had worked, Robin would have gone after the killer, and Batman didn't him to suffer the same fate. And, in the deep science moment, Batman explains that he covered himself in clay because, when it's heated to 2372 degrees Fahrenheit, it locks in radioactivity, and thus acted as a shield against Radon's lethal blast. (What, he baked himself in clay at 2372 degrees F?!) And, of course, he removed the radiation from the Bat-objects before putting them up for auction. "Eventually, I'll have the radiation removed form my body too." Good idea! Then, Batman suggests he and Robin go out on patrol, words the Boy Wonder thought he'd never hear again. The end!
Interlude: house ad with obnoxious campy sound effects: 80-Page Giant Superboy #138: Superboy and Krypto's most terrific battles! Twenty-five cents!
The letter column carries three letters, all disapproving of the new campy style.
Story two: "Alfred's Mystery Menu!"
Script: Gardner Fox
Art: Sheldon Moldoff and Joe Giella
"Through the rain-splattered streets of Gotham City sloshes the Batmobile on its nightly patrol..." Robin is getting anxious, as they're finding no sign of criminals...or of Alfred! Batman acknowledges that he too is worried about their butler's mysterious disappearance. On the dashboard, the bat-radar screen suddenly registers unexpected movement inside the Specialty Foods Shoppe. Inside, the Duo discovers three thieves, lifting not cash, but carefully chosen merchandise! The thieves are quickly taken down. At dawn, Batman and Robin drive back into the Batcave, still wondering after Alfred and beginning to fear the worst.
Meanwhile, miles away, Alfred watches the dawn, amazed that it's only a day since he was abducted. The limo brought him to Duke Kelsey, the newest inductee to the Millionaire Mobster Club! Kelsey wants to throw a banquet to mark the occasion, and so acquired a manservant in the same way he acquired his millions. Thinking quickly, Alfred agrees, realizing that his only hope of salvation is to "prepare a 'message menu'--and trust to their quick wits to fathom it!" Soon, he presents Kelsey with a list of the ingredients he'll need, and Kelsey sends his boys out to steal the goods, just as Alfred had anticipated. Grinning broadly, Kelsey slaps Alfred on the back, assuring him he'll be well taken care of when it's over. This causes Alfred to break out in a sweat, as he knows it signals his doom: he will not be allowed to live after seeing the faces of the other millionaire criminals. Soon, two thugs enter the room, carrying bags of groceries... "everything except fer that appetizer stuff!" Alfred feels some apprehension, as the appetizer list contained an integral part of his clue.
Later the same day, Bruce reads detailed accounts of robberies at various food stores the previous night. "Holy cryptogram," spouts Dick, as they realize that Alfred always manages to send them some sort of message regarding his whereabouts. Bruce then picks the lock and cracks the safe in Alfred's private pantry. With luck, the ingredients lists on the closely guarded recipes will give our boys the jump on the thieves. They quickly realize that, by thwarting the theft of the appetizers, the items were returned to their shelves and not catalogued along with the other robberies! However, enough gourmand specifics are on record as to give the Duo a general location. Then, out back of the Specialty Foods Shoppe, Batman finds the thieves' grocery list amid the previous day's floor sweepings! They now have a street name and address in the suspected district!
Soon, the Duo burst into the banquet room. In a scene reeking with TV choreography and lousy puns, they and Alfred take out the banquet party. Back home again, Alfred serves dinner to Bruce, Dick and Aunt Harriet. The end.
House ads: Detective 269(?), depicting Batman about to unmask before a blindfolded Batgirl! And, Justice League of America #53, with Batman featured prominently, as the gang is attacked by their own weapons, particularly the utility belt. Finally, Showcase #68 featuring the Maniaks, who were modeled on the Monkees, by way of Carnaby Street. (Weak.)
Letters to the Batcave-Extra carries a couple more complaints about the title's new style, with requests for the return of some of the old villains. Also, Tom Fagan writes about the year's Hallowe'en festivities in Rutland, Vermont.
We can assume that the lead story was written to fit the mawkish cover. This gimmick did produce some memorable covers, but it could leave the writers in tough situations. In this case, Fox did a fine job in making the auction a story centerpiece, and he even reasonably explained why Dick and Alfred were so out of the loop as to be in tears.
The story is festooned with the overblown sound effects, by Schwartz stalwart Gaspar Saladino. New readers, brought in by the Batman TV show, were presumably expecting them, while old readers seem to have been repelled. Simek and Rosen did them better at Marvel. Someone is going to have to determine if Marvel's emphasis on big sound effects was concurrent with, or predated, the show. It may just be that Marvel's manic style was the root cause of it all.
Shelly's art for these "New Look" stories was much removed from his exaggerated approach in the previous decade. Truth to tell, I preferred it the old way. The writing under Schwartz wasn't so much a step forward as a step back to the early/mid `50s, before the space aliens, and the writing and art on those holds up just fine. The new staid and serious style didn't suit the strange world of Batman nearly as well. Tom Orzechowski
Batman #164: "The Two-Way Gem Caper!"
Batman #164
June 1964
"Two-Way Gem Caper!
Script: France Herron
Art: Sheldon Moldoff and Joe Giella
Editor: Julius Schwartz
Reviewed by Tom Orzechowski
The cover was a tip-off. The sleek Infantino/Giella artwork looked almost like a
cover for the Flash. And, strangely, there was now a yellow circle around the
familiar bat emblem. Ah! The New Look!
One morning at Wayne Manor, Bruce finds Dick Grayson strumming guitar
and singing his regrets over a coming fight with Doc Holliday! Dick, looking
two years older than in the previous issue, is preparing to audition for the
Hootenanny Hotshots, who use local backup talent while on tour. Bruce calls
him away to clear up the inhouse "secret business" that Dick had somehow
not noticed. Surprise #1: to replace the long stairway to the Batcave... an
elevator! Once there, Bruce pulls aside some drapes to reveal...the new
sports-car style Batmobile! Now in costume, Robin is surprised that there's a
new route out of the Batcave. A winch still pulls the vehicle to the surface,but it
does not lead to their old exit through the barn. Instead, a remote-control
button on the dashboard opens a wide door in the rockface beyond the
mansion. There, a private road leads them to the highway, far from the
mansion itself.
Meanwhile, the Hootenanny Hotshots' tour bus heads toward Gotham. But,
just around the bend, a "Road Closed" sign is being positioned. A suspicious
but outwardly respectable-looking gent isn't about to let their sudden arrival
spoil his planning. He anticipates the unexpected, so every "Plan A" is backed
by an alternative "Plan B." The Hotshots were arranged, at the last minute, to
a performance at Gotham Square. This will draw a crowd, blocking traffic.. and
stopping his "big job" cold, unless he does someting about it. So, moments
later, he flags the bus to stop, and assures the driver that it's his job to guide
them into town over the adjascent dirt road so that they'll be on time for the
celebration. Later, the passing Batmobile brakes for this oddly-placed sign,
and Batman puzzles over it, as it indicates that the sell-tended road they just
took is closed for repair. Robin says that the Hotshots would be traveling this
way from their previous gig. Batman points to fresh, bus-type tire tracks on the
dirt road, and they follow.
In the woods up ahead, the helpful stanger directs the Hotshot bus to run over
a tripwire. This causes a plank bristling with spikes to flips up, puncturing all
four tires! Just then, the sleek Batmobile arrives and screeches to a halt. The
mystery man runs off, grinning knowingly, with the Duo, now on foot, in
pursuit. Mystery Man reaches some scrub growth just as the Duo leap for him.
He takes a sudden turn of direction while their momentum carries them
forward, hands first, into something that wasn't undergrowth at all. Their
hands are now trapped in a vine-y equivalent of a Chinese Puzzle Box... easy
to enter, difficult to escape! MM laughs as he drives off in the car he'd left
hidden just beyond. While he hadn't expected anything to go wrong, and
particularly not the appearance of the Duo, he set the trap just in case. His
watch shows it's 7:15, and he figures it will be well after 8:30 before the
Hotshots get a lift into town. By then, he'll be a million dollars richer!
Meanwhile, the Hotshots have freed Batman and Robin. Batman tells them
he'll have a bus sent from Gotham to pick them up, and that he'll have them
delay the celebration. Robin sees that the group is just as happy to stay put
and rehearse... and probably wishes he could stay with them... but Batman is
pensive. MM's motive is not clear. The look of things back in town, though,
give us a rough idea. It's 8:22, and MM parks in front of the new Gotham
Square Museum, which boasts rare treasures from around the world.
Interlude: house ads: the first Superboy Annual, with stories purportedly back
to the "Golden Age" (not); and Showcase #50, "I--Spy," reprinting King
Farraday stories by Kanigher, Infantino and Barry (choice!)
Part 2! At 8:27, a museum guard escorts the Mystery Man, now revealed to be
named Mr. Dabblo, into the main exhibit room. His Golden Aztec Pyramid sits
on a shelf, just a yard from the jewel-encrusted Pearl of the Orient. Dabblo is
assured that the an alarm will be set off if any of the objects is moved. Then,
it's 8:30, and Dabblo's Pyramid takes off like a rocket! The alarm clangs, the
two guards chase the Pyramid, and Dabblo, while pocketing the Pearl, yells
for more guards! Dabblo exits the building at a trot while the guards piece it all
together. They fire warning shots at his car,but he's safe behind its bullet-
proof glass and puncture-proof tires. Meanwhile, the alarm also sounded at
police HQ. The Bat-Signal is soon spotted by our boys inside the Batmobile.
Batman now shows Robin a new wonder of the age... a hot-line phone to
Gordon's office... right inside the car! A chat with the commish tells them that
Dabblo is headed for the waterfront, and that the cops are setting up a
dragnet.
At the docks, Batman sees that every street is blocked, and that Dabblo must
be cornered. A cop tells him that they have the car, but that the man has
vanished! All the warehouses are locked, and the fire escapes are too high to
reach. Batman, though, notices fresh chipped paint under one of the fire
escapes, and figures Dabblo got to the ladder the same way he and Robin
immediately do, by use of a rope. At the rooftop, they see footprints in the roof
tar, still warm from the day's heat. At the roof's edge, though, the tracks stop,
but Batman spots a rope tied to a pipe. He figures Dabblo used it to swing to
the next rooftop, and they follow. On the next roof, in fact, Dabblo crouches in
wait. When the Duo are in mid-air, we see the cover scene as Dabblo zaps
Batman with a gimmick that looks like a TV antenna. Batman regains his
composure at once, though, and his thrown Batarang smacks Dabblo while
he himself breaks his fall by snagging Robin's rope. Soon, on that far roof,
they spot the place where Dabblo was standing, but see no sign of the perp.
Batman wonders why, of all the methods Dabblo could have used, he went for
the electronic antenna thing? Could it serve some other purpose? They
quickly determine that, like the remote control for opening the Batcave's
tunnel door, it opens a secret hatch in the roof. Staring down, they see Dabblo
telling a cohort that he sacrificed his Pyramid for the more valuable Pearl...
and just then, Dabblo notices the Duo. They take them down. Batman forces
Dabblo's hand open, retrieving the Pearl, but Dabblo boasts that, in his final
two-way trick, it's going to be worthless. What does he mean, asks Robin.
Batman replies that, if exposed long enough to perspiration, which collected
in Dabblo's closed hand, an expensive pearl can be damanged. He then
simply wipes it off.
Soon, the delayed festivities begin, and the Hotshots sing a paen to Batman
and Robin. Dick doesn't feel so bad about not singing with them, since they're
singing about him. The end.
House ads: Flash #145: "The Weather Wizard Blows up a Storm!" And
Hawkman #2: "Secret of the Sizzling Sparklers!"
Shelly Moldoff's pencil work in this issue was more naturalistic than what we'd
seen for those years he'd tailored himself to match Bob Kane. It's a shame he
didn't get a chance to develop his own look earlier. At the same time, Giella's
calm line changed the series' tone completely. I have to wonder if fans of the
previous few years were turned off, and if the real old-timers felt that Julie had
gone far enough.
A cutaway view of the Batcave reveals a three-level setup, including a hangar
with an exit tunnel for the Batplane, a laboratory, workshop, and radio room.
Similar setups have been depicted over the years. The engineering
represented in all cases is staggering to consider. And, let's not even think
about the questions Bruce's accountants would be asking.
Sadly, Batman couldn't give the Hotshots a lift in the new, sportscar-style
Batmobile. The old boat would have carried them easily, as the passenger
area was sometimes shown to house a large crime lab, and the trunk was big
enough to hold two Whirly-Bats. Ah, the price of progress.
"Batman's Great Face-Saving Feat!"
Introducing the Mystery Analysts of Gotham City!
Script: France Herron
Art: Shelly Moldoff and Joe Giella
The narration tells that we are looking in on a unique and exclusive club, the
Mystery Analysists, experts at the business of solving bizarre mysteries.
There's a guy from the police lab, a crack reporter, Commissioner Gordon, a
novelist whose research had solved a disappearance, and Batman himself.
Arriving late and carrying a shrouded six-foot long object is a member
applicant, private investigator Hugh Rankin. Rankin is convinced he'll be
voted in because he's solved Gotham City's greatest mystery! He claims to
know what Batman looks like in his unmasked identity, and has the proof with
him!
There's an immediate and unanimous expression that the secret should not
be revealed. Batman disagrees, though. He and Rankin had recently worked
together, and Batman thinks they should not deny him the chance to reveal
his findings, as his membership depends on it. Rakin thus confidently
undrapes his exhibit, a mannekin in the familiar costume, but topped by an
head showing ordinary features and a bald dome. He calls on Batman to
confirm or deny the finding! Calmly, Batman walks to the dummy figure and
lifts his mask... to reveal an exact match!
The membership crowds excitedly around Rankin, congratulating him and
inquiring as to his method of detection. Batman is asked who he is in this
other identity, but he reserves the name as his own secret. The vote is then
taken, white balls for acceptance, but with even a single black ball forcing
rejection. To the amazement of the group, there is that single black ball. "But
why... and by whom?"
Later, Bruce tells Dick of the evening's events. Dick, whose leg is bandaged,
realizes it was Bruce who cast the black ball, as Rankin got it wrong, but he
wonders how Bruce knew to disguise his face to look like Rankin's dummy. It
began, Bruce replies, the night they were patrolling in search of a new gang,
the Trapeze Ten. Batman spotted some of them on a derrick, which had been
turned from a construction site toward the Gotham Insurance Company next
door. From the top of the derrick, the Trapezemen had thrown a grappling
hook to a ledge on the floor where the safes are kept. Batman sent Robin
down to block the derrick as an escape route, while he circled to the next roof
in order to follow them by swinging over to the same roof's ledge. Suddenly,
he was tackled from behind, moments before machine gun fire roared
overhead. The savior, Rankin, pointed out the gunner, posted to cover the
escape of the gang. Batman thanked him while indicating that he'd spotted a
glint off the gun and was prepared to dive out of the way. Batman then turned
and snared a convenient flagpole with his rope. While in motion he tied a
lariat, and used it to snare the trio of crooks on the ledge.
Now on the ground, Batman and Rankin exchanged professional
pleasantries, and we learned that Rankin has been after the Trapeze Ten, as
they'd robbed a couple of his clients. Rankin went on to say that he's learned
a lot about their methods, but Batman stopped him. Robin, after all, had not
been seen since this began. It turned out that one of the bullets got the kid's
leg, not badly but sufficiently to keep him off his feet for a while. Batman told
Rankin he'd continue the case on his own, and Rankin replied that he still
had an interest in it as well.
The gang laid low for nearly a week until reappearing one night at the
Gotham Skyscraper Heliport. There, a diamond merchant was relieved of his
merchandise by the end-man of a chain of five Trapezemen dangling out of a
helicopter! Fortunately, the cops had received a tip on the impending job, and
Batman arrived on the scene just as the `copter was heading away. At the
same moment, a sentry came out of the shadows to fire a flare gun ("VLOOP!")
and blind any possible pursuit. A split-second before, though, Rankin, weaing
protective glasses, leaped forward and, explaining that he recognized the
sound, clamped a hand over Batman's eyes. He explained that he knew
about the diamond courier and figured the gang would strike at the helipad.
Batman told him to call the police to have their own choppers intercept the
gang, and then to meet him on the ground. When out of sight, though, Batman
noticed a piece of pliable wax that fell through the eye opening of his mask
when Rankin camped a hand over his eyes!
Shortly, in fact, the gang landed, but not because police `copters forced them
down. Instead, they had a getaway planned through an abandoned subway
tunnel! Batman and Rankin gave chase. But then... "WHOOSH!"... Rankin
recognized the sound and told Batman they had to work fast! A deluge of
water was coming through the tunnel's roof! The gang was flooding the
tunnel to thwart capture! Rankin was already wearing his breathing mask and,
grabbing at Batman's face in a helpful gesture, offered him a spare! Batman
begged off, as he carries his own in the utility belt. The floodwater soon
carried Batman and Rankin close to the escaping Trapezemen. Batman
recalled that, when the tunnel was abandoned, an opening to the bay was
made, in case the tunnel was needed as drainage in times of heavy rain.
However, there was also an emergency exit ahead. If they could get to it, they
could take a shortcut. The pair hurried out and down to an alley, a route the
Trapezemen would have to take on the way to the bay (a plot point at odds
with the notion of the subway tunnel emptying directly into the bay), where
they would probably have a speed boat waiting. Soon, at the end of the alley,
Batman declared that one of them would have to stay there to hold the gang,
while the other carried out a plan he had in mind. This involved letting Batman
maneuver the gang into position before Rankin made his move. To achive
this end, Batman boosted Rankin up toward a high fisherman's warehouse
window, with Rankin leaning on Batman's head for support. A moment later,
the five Trapezemen turned a corner and rushed Batman. The Crusader
twisted and rolled away just as they hit, leaving them in a pile as Rankin
dropped a net from the window above. The gang members were they
dropped off at the precinct station.
Back in present day, Dick figures that Rankin planned all along to join the
Mystery Analysts by killing two birds with one stone... helping catch the
Trapeze Ten, and solving the mystery of the face behind the mask. Rankin
had determined Batman's weight when he half-lifted, half-shoved him out of
the machine-gun fire, and used wax to get an impression of the shape of his
eyes when the flare went off. Bruce tumbled to the scheme when he found the
wax, then specifically disguised himself while separated briefly from Rankin at
the heliport. When Rankin offered the breathing mask, he felt Baman's nose,
to get its shape. Finally, while Batman helped him up through the window,
Rankin felt the shape of the top of Batman's "bald" head. So he assembled his
clues, and so he was thwarted. Bruce offers that, still and all, Rankin did a
neat piece of work and will probably achieve membership one of these days.
The end!
Final house ad: covers for the first two New Look `Tec issues, #327 and #328.
The setup for Rankin's behavior showed so much synchronicity with the
actions of the Trapeze Ten that I was prepared for him to be their extremely
ingenious ringleader. Any other outcome relies too much on coincidence,
even for a Batman story. Oh well. Guess I wouldn't have made membership,
either.
Both stories were reprinted in Batman #240.
"Two-Way Gem Caper!
Script: France Herron
Art: Sheldon Moldoff and Joe Giella
Editor: Julius Schwartz
Reviewed by Tom Orzechowski
The cover was a tip-off. The sleek Infantino/Giella artwork looked almost like a
cover for the Flash. And, strangely, there was now a yellow circle around the
familiar bat emblem. Ah! The New Look!
One morning at Wayne Manor, Bruce finds Dick Grayson strumming guitar
and singing his regrets over a coming fight with Doc Holliday! Dick, looking
two years older than in the previous issue, is preparing to audition for the
Hootenanny Hotshots, who use local backup talent while on tour. Bruce calls
him away to clear up the inhouse "secret business" that Dick had somehow
not noticed. Surprise #1: to replace the long stairway to the Batcave... an
elevator! Once there, Bruce pulls aside some drapes to reveal...the new
sports-car style Batmobile! Now in costume, Robin is surprised that there's a
new route out of the Batcave. A winch still pulls the vehicle to the surface,but it
does not lead to their old exit through the barn. Instead, a remote-control
button on the dashboard opens a wide door in the rockface beyond the
mansion. There, a private road leads them to the highway, far from the
mansion itself.
Meanwhile, the Hootenanny Hotshots' tour bus heads toward Gotham. But,
just around the bend, a "Road Closed" sign is being positioned. A suspicious
but outwardly respectable-looking gent isn't about to let their sudden arrival
spoil his planning. He anticipates the unexpected, so every "Plan A" is backed
by an alternative "Plan B." The Hotshots were arranged, at the last minute, to
a performance at Gotham Square. This will draw a crowd, blocking traffic.. and
stopping his "big job" cold, unless he does someting about it. So, moments
later, he flags the bus to stop, and assures the driver that it's his job to guide
them into town over the adjascent dirt road so that they'll be on time for the
celebration. Later, the passing Batmobile brakes for this oddly-placed sign,
and Batman puzzles over it, as it indicates that the sell-tended road they just
took is closed for repair. Robin says that the Hotshots would be traveling this
way from their previous gig. Batman points to fresh, bus-type tire tracks on the
dirt road, and they follow.
In the woods up ahead, the helpful stanger directs the Hotshot bus to run over
a tripwire. This causes a plank bristling with spikes to flips up, puncturing all
four tires! Just then, the sleek Batmobile arrives and screeches to a halt. The
mystery man runs off, grinning knowingly, with the Duo, now on foot, in
pursuit. Mystery Man reaches some scrub growth just as the Duo leap for him.
He takes a sudden turn of direction while their momentum carries them
forward, hands first, into something that wasn't undergrowth at all. Their
hands are now trapped in a vine-y equivalent of a Chinese Puzzle Box... easy
to enter, difficult to escape! MM laughs as he drives off in the car he'd left
hidden just beyond. While he hadn't expected anything to go wrong, and
particularly not the appearance of the Duo, he set the trap just in case. His
watch shows it's 7:15, and he figures it will be well after 8:30 before the
Hotshots get a lift into town. By then, he'll be a million dollars richer!
Meanwhile, the Hotshots have freed Batman and Robin. Batman tells them
he'll have a bus sent from Gotham to pick them up, and that he'll have them
delay the celebration. Robin sees that the group is just as happy to stay put
and rehearse... and probably wishes he could stay with them... but Batman is
pensive. MM's motive is not clear. The look of things back in town, though,
give us a rough idea. It's 8:22, and MM parks in front of the new Gotham
Square Museum, which boasts rare treasures from around the world.
Interlude: house ads: the first Superboy Annual, with stories purportedly back
to the "Golden Age" (not); and Showcase #50, "I--Spy," reprinting King
Farraday stories by Kanigher, Infantino and Barry (choice!)
Part 2! At 8:27, a museum guard escorts the Mystery Man, now revealed to be
named Mr. Dabblo, into the main exhibit room. His Golden Aztec Pyramid sits
on a shelf, just a yard from the jewel-encrusted Pearl of the Orient. Dabblo is
assured that the an alarm will be set off if any of the objects is moved. Then,
it's 8:30, and Dabblo's Pyramid takes off like a rocket! The alarm clangs, the
two guards chase the Pyramid, and Dabblo, while pocketing the Pearl, yells
for more guards! Dabblo exits the building at a trot while the guards piece it all
together. They fire warning shots at his car,but he's safe behind its bullet-
proof glass and puncture-proof tires. Meanwhile, the alarm also sounded at
police HQ. The Bat-Signal is soon spotted by our boys inside the Batmobile.
Batman now shows Robin a new wonder of the age... a hot-line phone to
Gordon's office... right inside the car! A chat with the commish tells them that
Dabblo is headed for the waterfront, and that the cops are setting up a
dragnet.
At the docks, Batman sees that every street is blocked, and that Dabblo must
be cornered. A cop tells him that they have the car, but that the man has
vanished! All the warehouses are locked, and the fire escapes are too high to
reach. Batman, though, notices fresh chipped paint under one of the fire
escapes, and figures Dabblo got to the ladder the same way he and Robin
immediately do, by use of a rope. At the rooftop, they see footprints in the roof
tar, still warm from the day's heat. At the roof's edge, though, the tracks stop,
but Batman spots a rope tied to a pipe. He figures Dabblo used it to swing to
the next rooftop, and they follow. On the next roof, in fact, Dabblo crouches in
wait. When the Duo are in mid-air, we see the cover scene as Dabblo zaps
Batman with a gimmick that looks like a TV antenna. Batman regains his
composure at once, though, and his thrown Batarang smacks Dabblo while
he himself breaks his fall by snagging Robin's rope. Soon, on that far roof,
they spot the place where Dabblo was standing, but see no sign of the perp.
Batman wonders why, of all the methods Dabblo could have used, he went for
the electronic antenna thing? Could it serve some other purpose? They
quickly determine that, like the remote control for opening the Batcave's
tunnel door, it opens a secret hatch in the roof. Staring down, they see Dabblo
telling a cohort that he sacrificed his Pyramid for the more valuable Pearl...
and just then, Dabblo notices the Duo. They take them down. Batman forces
Dabblo's hand open, retrieving the Pearl, but Dabblo boasts that, in his final
two-way trick, it's going to be worthless. What does he mean, asks Robin.
Batman replies that, if exposed long enough to perspiration, which collected
in Dabblo's closed hand, an expensive pearl can be damanged. He then
simply wipes it off.
Soon, the delayed festivities begin, and the Hotshots sing a paen to Batman
and Robin. Dick doesn't feel so bad about not singing with them, since they're
singing about him. The end.
House ads: Flash #145: "The Weather Wizard Blows up a Storm!" And
Hawkman #2: "Secret of the Sizzling Sparklers!"
Shelly Moldoff's pencil work in this issue was more naturalistic than what we'd
seen for those years he'd tailored himself to match Bob Kane. It's a shame he
didn't get a chance to develop his own look earlier. At the same time, Giella's
calm line changed the series' tone completely. I have to wonder if fans of the
previous few years were turned off, and if the real old-timers felt that Julie had
gone far enough.
A cutaway view of the Batcave reveals a three-level setup, including a hangar
with an exit tunnel for the Batplane, a laboratory, workshop, and radio room.
Similar setups have been depicted over the years. The engineering
represented in all cases is staggering to consider. And, let's not even think
about the questions Bruce's accountants would be asking.
Sadly, Batman couldn't give the Hotshots a lift in the new, sportscar-style
Batmobile. The old boat would have carried them easily, as the passenger
area was sometimes shown to house a large crime lab, and the trunk was big
enough to hold two Whirly-Bats. Ah, the price of progress.
"Batman's Great Face-Saving Feat!"
Introducing the Mystery Analysts of Gotham City!
Script: France Herron
Art: Shelly Moldoff and Joe Giella
The narration tells that we are looking in on a unique and exclusive club, the
Mystery Analysists, experts at the business of solving bizarre mysteries.
There's a guy from the police lab, a crack reporter, Commissioner Gordon, a
novelist whose research had solved a disappearance, and Batman himself.
Arriving late and carrying a shrouded six-foot long object is a member
applicant, private investigator Hugh Rankin. Rankin is convinced he'll be
voted in because he's solved Gotham City's greatest mystery! He claims to
know what Batman looks like in his unmasked identity, and has the proof with
him!
There's an immediate and unanimous expression that the secret should not
be revealed. Batman disagrees, though. He and Rankin had recently worked
together, and Batman thinks they should not deny him the chance to reveal
his findings, as his membership depends on it. Rakin thus confidently
undrapes his exhibit, a mannekin in the familiar costume, but topped by an
head showing ordinary features and a bald dome. He calls on Batman to
confirm or deny the finding! Calmly, Batman walks to the dummy figure and
lifts his mask... to reveal an exact match!
The membership crowds excitedly around Rankin, congratulating him and
inquiring as to his method of detection. Batman is asked who he is in this
other identity, but he reserves the name as his own secret. The vote is then
taken, white balls for acceptance, but with even a single black ball forcing
rejection. To the amazement of the group, there is that single black ball. "But
why... and by whom?"
Later, Bruce tells Dick of the evening's events. Dick, whose leg is bandaged,
realizes it was Bruce who cast the black ball, as Rankin got it wrong, but he
wonders how Bruce knew to disguise his face to look like Rankin's dummy. It
began, Bruce replies, the night they were patrolling in search of a new gang,
the Trapeze Ten. Batman spotted some of them on a derrick, which had been
turned from a construction site toward the Gotham Insurance Company next
door. From the top of the derrick, the Trapezemen had thrown a grappling
hook to a ledge on the floor where the safes are kept. Batman sent Robin
down to block the derrick as an escape route, while he circled to the next roof
in order to follow them by swinging over to the same roof's ledge. Suddenly,
he was tackled from behind, moments before machine gun fire roared
overhead. The savior, Rankin, pointed out the gunner, posted to cover the
escape of the gang. Batman thanked him while indicating that he'd spotted a
glint off the gun and was prepared to dive out of the way. Batman then turned
and snared a convenient flagpole with his rope. While in motion he tied a
lariat, and used it to snare the trio of crooks on the ledge.
Now on the ground, Batman and Rankin exchanged professional
pleasantries, and we learned that Rankin has been after the Trapeze Ten, as
they'd robbed a couple of his clients. Rankin went on to say that he's learned
a lot about their methods, but Batman stopped him. Robin, after all, had not
been seen since this began. It turned out that one of the bullets got the kid's
leg, not badly but sufficiently to keep him off his feet for a while. Batman told
Rankin he'd continue the case on his own, and Rankin replied that he still
had an interest in it as well.
The gang laid low for nearly a week until reappearing one night at the
Gotham Skyscraper Heliport. There, a diamond merchant was relieved of his
merchandise by the end-man of a chain of five Trapezemen dangling out of a
helicopter! Fortunately, the cops had received a tip on the impending job, and
Batman arrived on the scene just as the `copter was heading away. At the
same moment, a sentry came out of the shadows to fire a flare gun ("VLOOP!")
and blind any possible pursuit. A split-second before, though, Rankin, weaing
protective glasses, leaped forward and, explaining that he recognized the
sound, clamped a hand over Batman's eyes. He explained that he knew
about the diamond courier and figured the gang would strike at the helipad.
Batman told him to call the police to have their own choppers intercept the
gang, and then to meet him on the ground. When out of sight, though, Batman
noticed a piece of pliable wax that fell through the eye opening of his mask
when Rankin camped a hand over his eyes!
Shortly, in fact, the gang landed, but not because police `copters forced them
down. Instead, they had a getaway planned through an abandoned subway
tunnel! Batman and Rankin gave chase. But then... "WHOOSH!"... Rankin
recognized the sound and told Batman they had to work fast! A deluge of
water was coming through the tunnel's roof! The gang was flooding the
tunnel to thwart capture! Rankin was already wearing his breathing mask and,
grabbing at Batman's face in a helpful gesture, offered him a spare! Batman
begged off, as he carries his own in the utility belt. The floodwater soon
carried Batman and Rankin close to the escaping Trapezemen. Batman
recalled that, when the tunnel was abandoned, an opening to the bay was
made, in case the tunnel was needed as drainage in times of heavy rain.
However, there was also an emergency exit ahead. If they could get to it, they
could take a shortcut. The pair hurried out and down to an alley, a route the
Trapezemen would have to take on the way to the bay (a plot point at odds
with the notion of the subway tunnel emptying directly into the bay), where
they would probably have a speed boat waiting. Soon, at the end of the alley,
Batman declared that one of them would have to stay there to hold the gang,
while the other carried out a plan he had in mind. This involved letting Batman
maneuver the gang into position before Rankin made his move. To achive
this end, Batman boosted Rankin up toward a high fisherman's warehouse
window, with Rankin leaning on Batman's head for support. A moment later,
the five Trapezemen turned a corner and rushed Batman. The Crusader
twisted and rolled away just as they hit, leaving them in a pile as Rankin
dropped a net from the window above. The gang members were they
dropped off at the precinct station.
Back in present day, Dick figures that Rankin planned all along to join the
Mystery Analysts by killing two birds with one stone... helping catch the
Trapeze Ten, and solving the mystery of the face behind the mask. Rankin
had determined Batman's weight when he half-lifted, half-shoved him out of
the machine-gun fire, and used wax to get an impression of the shape of his
eyes when the flare went off. Bruce tumbled to the scheme when he found the
wax, then specifically disguised himself while separated briefly from Rankin at
the heliport. When Rankin offered the breathing mask, he felt Baman's nose,
to get its shape. Finally, while Batman helped him up through the window,
Rankin felt the shape of the top of Batman's "bald" head. So he assembled his
clues, and so he was thwarted. Bruce offers that, still and all, Rankin did a
neat piece of work and will probably achieve membership one of these days.
The end!
Final house ad: covers for the first two New Look `Tec issues, #327 and #328.
The setup for Rankin's behavior showed so much synchronicity with the
actions of the Trapeze Ten that I was prepared for him to be their extremely
ingenious ringleader. Any other outcome relies too much on coincidence,
even for a Batman story. Oh well. Guess I wouldn't have made membership,
either.
Both stories were reprinted in Batman #240.
Action Comics #263: The “World of Bizarros!”
Action Comics #263
April 1960
The "World of Bizarros!"
Script: Otto Binder
Art: Wayne Boring and Stan Kaye
Editor: Mort Weisinger
Reviewed by Tom Orzechowski
The self-destructing Bizarro in Superboy #68 (Oct `58) must have inspired a
flood of letters, because in Action #254, only nine months later, the concept
popped up again. There, Lex Luthor used a faulty duplicator ray to create the
lifeless but thinking and animate Superman-Bizarro. The next month, Bizarro
Lois was introduced. These stories must have been equally well-received, as
amother eight months later the Bizarros were implanted firmly into the legend.
Action #254-5 are now recapped briefly, to the concluding scene of the
Bizarro couple leaving Earth to find a world of their own. This issue opens in
another solar system as they stumble upon a world of ancient ruined cities,
and claim it for their own. Bizarro-Lois wishes for friends, so Bizarro, with his
imperfect but nonetheless super brain, cobbles parts from an ancient
laboratory into another imitator machine! To Lois' request, he makes
hundreds of her, so she can have lots of friends. When they immediately
cluster around him, checking out his big muscles, she insists he step inside
the duplicator for the same treament. "Me want you for myself! So me make
enough Bizarros for every Lois Lane! Stay there till me through." she
demands. "Uh... y-yes, dear," he replies. Wow! I guess, without criminality or a
secret identity to occupy him, the big guy needs to be told what to do... and
knows it! He then leads his cohort to dissamble the ruins for their own needs.
Meanwhile, Superman himself is towing an asteroid that suddenly turned
radioactive into space and into a distant star. On is way back to Earth, his
curiosity is aroused as he spies a city that seems to be a crude copy of
Metropolis! As he zips through the place he sees nutty skyscrapers with odd
protruding flanges, a clock with its numerals in no particular order, leftover
building material and rubble everywhere. He goes into a restaurant to find a
clue, orders a meal, and finds himself increasingly disoriented on this world of
nonsense.
When it comes time to pay the bill, he's relieved at his luck in finding a lump of
coal on the floor. This he compresses into a diamond, to cover the costs plus
a fat tip. The Bizarro waiter is disgusted, though: "Bah! Diamond worthless on
our world! You must pay in coal like the others do!" ...which explains how it
was that he found the coal, which someone must have accidentally dropped.
But, the waitress has taken a shine to him. She pays his bill, and tells him to
wait outside, as she'll be off duty soon, and they can have a date! Instead,
Supes flees to a nearby movie theatre. His x-ray vision alters the molecular
pattern of the diamond to turn it back into coal, which pays his admission. The
film itself is shown in negative. Afterward, Superman has had enough of their
crazy sense of values and decides to show them how it's done right.
Borrowing someody's carpenter tools, he has the suburban tract all
straightened out and looking neat in a jiffy. He also manages somehow to
create growing lawns, and inspire leaves on the trees. Wotta guy! But, the
homeowners scream their disgust with the changes, and a Bizarro cop flies in
to arrest him for making things perfect.
As Bizarro-cop drags Superman away, our man offers that the problem can be
settled quickly if he's taken to the original Bizarro and Lois from Earth. They're
no help, though, as we get our first look at the Bizarro Code: `Us do opposite
of all earthly things! Us hate beauty! Us love ugliness! Is big crime to make
anything perfect on Bizarro world!" Trial is set for the following week. Since
he's broken the local laws, Superman submits to imprisonment. The next
morning, he's led off with a work gang. Surprisingly, it's composed of other
Bizarros. It seems the imitator ray didn't affect their minds, so they think and
speak normally... like good, decent folks, Superman muses.
Soon, the crew is put to work demolishing some graceful ancient statuary.
Later, while a guard dozes, one of the brain-normal Bizarros makes a break
for freedom. He warns Superman not to follow, as, if he doesn't succeed, the
penalty is severe. And, moments later, an alert tower guard shoots the
prisoner with a non-super ray! Superman catches him just before he hits the
ground. The prisoner resumes work, but is unable to do much in his
weakened state, so Superman assists unobtrusively with his longer-distance
powers. The hot sun brings another problem. The prisoner's costume itself is
no longer super and is being torn by stray flying rubble, leaving the poor guy
to face sunstroke. Since no guards are in sight, Superman uses his x-ray
vision at half power to give the Bizarro a "coat of tan" all over his bare skin,
which does the trick.
The next day, back in his cell, Superman is surprised to receive a visitor. It's
Bizarro-Lois #1, in what may be the first appearance of the "Lois Bizarro #1"
medallion. She will be on his jury, and will take his side and make them vote
that he is innocent... if he will marry her! She then lunges in for a kiss! There's
something about Big Blue that's irresistible to Bizarro gals!... and to think that
this is the one who was jealous when other Lois'es were leaning on her man!
Anyway Superman says sorry, but he'll take his chances in court. She tells
him he's a beast, and that she'll get the jury to convict him. His super-vision
confirms that Bizarro guards are vigilant, and that his Clark Kent robot is
holding down his job at the Planet.
Finally, it's the trial. The evidence against him is damning... the improved
houses, the coal-into-diamond affair. Also, he's handsome and speaks good
English. In summation, the prosecutor demands the supreme penalty! And as
for the defense counsel, well, Bizarros courts don't run the same as on Earth,
so there's no defense. Superman rises to plead his own case, but the judge
declares, "Defendant would only tell lies! Don't listen!" Superman uses his x-
ray vision to peek into the jury room, and finds that Bizarro-Lois #1 is making
good her threat. They soon return and report the guilty verdict. Superman is
shackled with Kryptonite cuffs and positioned before what he assumes is the
non-super ray device. But no! The cuffs weaken his system enough so that the
Bizarro ray will change him into one of them!
Continued next issue!... which I will review as soon as I find a ratty copy for six
bucks or so! Unfortunately, it's never been reprinted.
Otto Binder wrote all these early Bizarro stories. There's an unmentioned
irony in this one, that Bizaro's duplicator ray was imperfect, so it created (for
the most part) perect copies of its subjects.
A scripting kink peculiar to Weisinger's editorial preferences is that Superman
stammers when confronted with something new. When he isn't mired in those
"uh..." and "er..." hesitations, that is. It shows up in the Supergirl and Jimmy
Olsen scripts too.
I admire Wayne Boring's artwork no end. His depiction of Superman's flying
(as running) makes as much sense as the conventional apporoach. I'd go so
far as to say it actually appears more powerful in the way it shows momentum.
The insane Bizarro architecture he gives us here is as imaginative and
appropriate as the graceful spires and arches he gave to Krypton.
After all the buildup, it's a sad thing that the final panel was the cover scene.
Coming... Super-Attractions! In Jimmy Olsen, he becomes "The Wolf-Man of
Metropolis! In Superboy, the Boy of Steel meets Supergirl! And in Adventure,
we see how Superboy first met Luthor!
"Supergirl's Darkest Day!"
Script: Otto Binder
Art: Jim Mooney
At this point, it's still less than a year since Supergirl arrived from Kandor. She
was still Superman's secret weapon, and living as Linda Lee in the Midvale
Orphange.
One day, Linda notices the orphanage's cook is disracted while the meal is
beng overcooked, so she super-speeds into the kitchen and saves the day.
Later, as she listens to the radio while doing her homework: "Flash! A violent
storm is raging at sea! Superman isn't there patrolling for trouble! He's away
on a scientific space mission!" Attention criminals! The coast is clear for a few
more days!... well, I guess since the announcer didn't actually say that, no
criminals thought of it, so the only crisis in the world is at sea. Her telescopic
vision catches sight of a boy in that area clinging to a piece of driftwood. She
quickly doffs her pigtailed wig and flies out of a window in her brightly colored
costume, while fretting that she mustn't be seen. At sea, she flies under a
convenient whale, punches his lights out, then pushes him to scoop up the
shipwrecked lad and carry him to the nearest ship! The kid is rescued as the
whale recovers and takes his leave.
Onboard, it becomes apparent that the boy speaks only a language no one
recognizes. The medallion he wears seems to be a model of an atom, with a
nucleus and electrons, so perhaps he was a scientist's son. And, perhaps he
lost his parents in a shipwreck, so when the ship docks he is sent to nearby
Midvale Orphanage. There, the headmaster names him Johnny Blank. As he
shows the boy their fire safety equipment, he wonders if even this simple
information is getting through. So, Linda finds herself assigned to tutor Johnny
in rudimentary English. She finds him a quick study.
That night after bedtime, Linda is still reading when a wind storm howls
around the orphanage, causing a big tree to crack and fall toward the
building. Deciding nobody would see her fly out of her room into the
darkness, she skips the change into her Supergirl outfit and diverts the tree
while in her jammies. The next day, while on her way to tutor Johnny, Linda
catches a cry from another girl's room, and x-ray vision shows that a fire has
broken out behind the girl's locked door! No time to waste! Linda crashes
through the door! The girl was already overcome by the smoke and sees
nothing, so Linda is free to blow the smoke out the window whle extinguishing
the fire at the same time. Well, no one saw the super-action but others heard
the yell and are on the way. How can she explain the broken door and
missing fire? Fortunately, the first one on the scene is Johnny, carrying the fire
axe and fire extinguisher and haltingly telling her not to worry. The
headmaster arrives in moments and congratulates Johnny for the job. Linda is
relieved that the boy's arrival covers her part in the situation. She has to
wonder, though, if Johnny actually did cover for her. There's no way to
question him until he learns a good variety of words.
Some time later, on Visitor's Day, Johnny tells a pair of potential foster parents
that he'd like to live in America and not return to his former country. She's glad
for his opportunity to gain a family but needs to solve her own questions
before he leaves. That night, in the rec room, Linda demonstrates a kid's
archery set and challenges Johnny to a game off skill. He makes a bad shot,
though... Linda thinks the arrow has sailed over her head when it's actually
knocked her wig off! He quickly grabs a bottle of soda, shakes it, and squirts a
stream onto an exposed light builb, shattering it and darkening the room. He
then bends and retrieves her wig, telling her to put it on so the others won't
know she's wearing a disguise... and that he knows she had super-powers!
As he crouches, though, she catches sight of his medallion and realizes it
offers a clue to his origins. Before she can share the insight, though, the
headmaster arrives with news that Mr. and Mrs. Trent are on their way over to
make arrangements for the adoption! Linda decides to slip away and create a
diversion to buy herself some time. So, racing across town, she lifts the rear of
the Trent car from the ground so that the drive train is apparently not
responding to the engine. They arrange to have it towed to a garage.
But, flying past the headmaster's office, Supergirl overhears him talking with a
matron regarding the phone call he's about to make. Apparently, the
Peabodys have arranged to adopt Johnny if the Trents fail to arrive. In order to
block that call, Supergirl slips past a nightwatchman and stops the dynamo
that supplies electricity to all the telephones! When her x-ray vision shows that
Mrs. Peabody has hung up, she starts it running again!
Flying back to the orphanage, Supergirl prepares to tell Johnny she knows his
secret! It's long past lights-out, but her x-ray vision shows he's awake and
reading a book! He can see in the dark, which is how he found out about her
dual identity. He saw her pushing the tree aside during the windstorm. He is
from another world, and this fact prompted her to block the adoption attempts.
Sooner or later, she reasoned, he would return to his native world and leave
the poor foster parents heartbroken. The clue was the medallion, which her x-
ray vision showed to be of an element unknown on Earth. The boy confirms
that he is Valzorr the prince of a world called Korvia! His aunt and uncle were
the king and queen! He had left home one day to find a civilized world, but a
storm at sea wrecked his space ship! He dove out and clung to some
driftwood, and the crashing waves tore his native clothing to shreds.
Validated, she flies off to find his wrecked ship, which she quickly repairs.
They take the ship fo his home world and land on the floating city where his
family lives. Upon landing, they are met by Prime Minister Zoxxo. He has the
boy arrested in preparation for his exectuion. The crime: murdering the king
and queen! Grabbing the manacles from a magestrate, and ripping them
apart, Supergirl demands he receive a trial first.
At the trial, the Prime Minister makes his case using a beast (caged) that
breathes poisonous fumes. Their Atom Transporter Cabinet broadcasts its
now-scattered atoms into thin air. Using the principle that each person or
creature has his own wavelength, they use it to travel from place to place.
Stepping across the room, the Prime Minister tunes the Receiver Cabinet to
the wrong wavelength, and the beast doesn't rematerialize. The accusation is
that Prince Valzorr mudered the king and queen in this manner. Nobody
knows their private wavelengths, so the charge is that when they were
returning from a trip, the prince changed the Receiver Cabinet's wavelength
to prevent them from materializing. Their atoms are therefore now drifting in
space! Supergirl muses that it wouldn't have been murder if the king and
queen arrived back alive, so she steps forward to attempt to find the correct
push-button combination. The Prime Minister calls her a fool, as there are
millions of wavelengths and she has no chance of finding the right
combination of buttons. However, at super-speed, it takes only a little over two
million tries before she hits the right one! The king and queen materialize!
As they exit the Cabinet, Supergirl asks if Valzorr had done the deed on them,
and kindly queen says no, that it was the Prime Minister, in a power grab!
With all matters settled, the prince decides it's safe to stay on his world after
all, and Supergirl returns to Earth. She carries a note written by "Johnny,"
explaining that his amnesia suddenly ended, leading him to remember a
relative, with whom he has gone to live. The Linda Lee robot, which had
covered for Supergirl's absence, then dutifully returns to its storage area (a
fake tree) and all's well. The end.
The story was sure all over the place. The mundane enforced life of minor feats
at the orphanage must have been frustrating to a being who could repair alien
technology, learn an alien language and solve a political crisis, all before
bedtime. Out of courtesy, we won't address the concept that, only a year prior,
she'd been an ordinary hormone-ridden teenager who had never left the
asteroid of her birth.
Mooney was drawing Supergirl with a young teenager's trim figure, an
effective contrast to Wayne Boring's bulky Superman in the lead feature.
Mooney would have done well to have kept the young physiques in mind when he was drawing the Legion a few years later.
For this story, Supergirl's skirt was red. Was the color scheme going back and forth in the early stories? I thought the red worked better.
Supergirl's hair was drawn short, similar to the way Curt Swan was always drawing it on the covers. I preferred this look to the longer hair style Mooney gave her not many issues later, if only because the shorter hair could be shown effectively windblown. Her longer hair, like Superman's, was never mussed. Perhaps, as her hair grew, he presented her with a jar of Kandorian hair gel.
The "World of Bizarros!"
Script: Otto Binder
Art: Wayne Boring and Stan Kaye
Editor: Mort Weisinger
Reviewed by Tom Orzechowski
The self-destructing Bizarro in Superboy #68 (Oct `58) must have inspired a
flood of letters, because in Action #254, only nine months later, the concept
popped up again. There, Lex Luthor used a faulty duplicator ray to create the
lifeless but thinking and animate Superman-Bizarro. The next month, Bizarro
Lois was introduced. These stories must have been equally well-received, as
amother eight months later the Bizarros were implanted firmly into the legend.
Action #254-5 are now recapped briefly, to the concluding scene of the
Bizarro couple leaving Earth to find a world of their own. This issue opens in
another solar system as they stumble upon a world of ancient ruined cities,
and claim it for their own. Bizarro-Lois wishes for friends, so Bizarro, with his
imperfect but nonetheless super brain, cobbles parts from an ancient
laboratory into another imitator machine! To Lois' request, he makes
hundreds of her, so she can have lots of friends. When they immediately
cluster around him, checking out his big muscles, she insists he step inside
the duplicator for the same treament. "Me want you for myself! So me make
enough Bizarros for every Lois Lane! Stay there till me through." she
demands. "Uh... y-yes, dear," he replies. Wow! I guess, without criminality or a
secret identity to occupy him, the big guy needs to be told what to do... and
knows it! He then leads his cohort to dissamble the ruins for their own needs.
Meanwhile, Superman himself is towing an asteroid that suddenly turned
radioactive into space and into a distant star. On is way back to Earth, his
curiosity is aroused as he spies a city that seems to be a crude copy of
Metropolis! As he zips through the place he sees nutty skyscrapers with odd
protruding flanges, a clock with its numerals in no particular order, leftover
building material and rubble everywhere. He goes into a restaurant to find a
clue, orders a meal, and finds himself increasingly disoriented on this world of
nonsense.
When it comes time to pay the bill, he's relieved at his luck in finding a lump of
coal on the floor. This he compresses into a diamond, to cover the costs plus
a fat tip. The Bizarro waiter is disgusted, though: "Bah! Diamond worthless on
our world! You must pay in coal like the others do!" ...which explains how it
was that he found the coal, which someone must have accidentally dropped.
But, the waitress has taken a shine to him. She pays his bill, and tells him to
wait outside, as she'll be off duty soon, and they can have a date! Instead,
Supes flees to a nearby movie theatre. His x-ray vision alters the molecular
pattern of the diamond to turn it back into coal, which pays his admission. The
film itself is shown in negative. Afterward, Superman has had enough of their
crazy sense of values and decides to show them how it's done right.
Borrowing someody's carpenter tools, he has the suburban tract all
straightened out and looking neat in a jiffy. He also manages somehow to
create growing lawns, and inspire leaves on the trees. Wotta guy! But, the
homeowners scream their disgust with the changes, and a Bizarro cop flies in
to arrest him for making things perfect.
As Bizarro-cop drags Superman away, our man offers that the problem can be
settled quickly if he's taken to the original Bizarro and Lois from Earth. They're
no help, though, as we get our first look at the Bizarro Code: `Us do opposite
of all earthly things! Us hate beauty! Us love ugliness! Is big crime to make
anything perfect on Bizarro world!" Trial is set for the following week. Since
he's broken the local laws, Superman submits to imprisonment. The next
morning, he's led off with a work gang. Surprisingly, it's composed of other
Bizarros. It seems the imitator ray didn't affect their minds, so they think and
speak normally... like good, decent folks, Superman muses.
Soon, the crew is put to work demolishing some graceful ancient statuary.
Later, while a guard dozes, one of the brain-normal Bizarros makes a break
for freedom. He warns Superman not to follow, as, if he doesn't succeed, the
penalty is severe. And, moments later, an alert tower guard shoots the
prisoner with a non-super ray! Superman catches him just before he hits the
ground. The prisoner resumes work, but is unable to do much in his
weakened state, so Superman assists unobtrusively with his longer-distance
powers. The hot sun brings another problem. The prisoner's costume itself is
no longer super and is being torn by stray flying rubble, leaving the poor guy
to face sunstroke. Since no guards are in sight, Superman uses his x-ray
vision at half power to give the Bizarro a "coat of tan" all over his bare skin,
which does the trick.
The next day, back in his cell, Superman is surprised to receive a visitor. It's
Bizarro-Lois #1, in what may be the first appearance of the "Lois Bizarro #1"
medallion. She will be on his jury, and will take his side and make them vote
that he is innocent... if he will marry her! She then lunges in for a kiss! There's
something about Big Blue that's irresistible to Bizarro gals!... and to think that
this is the one who was jealous when other Lois'es were leaning on her man!
Anyway Superman says sorry, but he'll take his chances in court. She tells
him he's a beast, and that she'll get the jury to convict him. His super-vision
confirms that Bizarro guards are vigilant, and that his Clark Kent robot is
holding down his job at the Planet.
Finally, it's the trial. The evidence against him is damning... the improved
houses, the coal-into-diamond affair. Also, he's handsome and speaks good
English. In summation, the prosecutor demands the supreme penalty! And as
for the defense counsel, well, Bizarros courts don't run the same as on Earth,
so there's no defense. Superman rises to plead his own case, but the judge
declares, "Defendant would only tell lies! Don't listen!" Superman uses his x-
ray vision to peek into the jury room, and finds that Bizarro-Lois #1 is making
good her threat. They soon return and report the guilty verdict. Superman is
shackled with Kryptonite cuffs and positioned before what he assumes is the
non-super ray device. But no! The cuffs weaken his system enough so that the
Bizarro ray will change him into one of them!
Continued next issue!... which I will review as soon as I find a ratty copy for six
bucks or so! Unfortunately, it's never been reprinted.
Otto Binder wrote all these early Bizarro stories. There's an unmentioned
irony in this one, that Bizaro's duplicator ray was imperfect, so it created (for
the most part) perect copies of its subjects.
A scripting kink peculiar to Weisinger's editorial preferences is that Superman
stammers when confronted with something new. When he isn't mired in those
"uh..." and "er..." hesitations, that is. It shows up in the Supergirl and Jimmy
Olsen scripts too.
I admire Wayne Boring's artwork no end. His depiction of Superman's flying
(as running) makes as much sense as the conventional apporoach. I'd go so
far as to say it actually appears more powerful in the way it shows momentum.
The insane Bizarro architecture he gives us here is as imaginative and
appropriate as the graceful spires and arches he gave to Krypton.
After all the buildup, it's a sad thing that the final panel was the cover scene.
Coming... Super-Attractions! In Jimmy Olsen, he becomes "The Wolf-Man of
Metropolis! In Superboy, the Boy of Steel meets Supergirl! And in Adventure,
we see how Superboy first met Luthor!
"Supergirl's Darkest Day!"
Script: Otto Binder
Art: Jim Mooney
At this point, it's still less than a year since Supergirl arrived from Kandor. She
was still Superman's secret weapon, and living as Linda Lee in the Midvale
Orphange.
One day, Linda notices the orphanage's cook is disracted while the meal is
beng overcooked, so she super-speeds into the kitchen and saves the day.
Later, as she listens to the radio while doing her homework: "Flash! A violent
storm is raging at sea! Superman isn't there patrolling for trouble! He's away
on a scientific space mission!" Attention criminals! The coast is clear for a few
more days!... well, I guess since the announcer didn't actually say that, no
criminals thought of it, so the only crisis in the world is at sea. Her telescopic
vision catches sight of a boy in that area clinging to a piece of driftwood. She
quickly doffs her pigtailed wig and flies out of a window in her brightly colored
costume, while fretting that she mustn't be seen. At sea, she flies under a
convenient whale, punches his lights out, then pushes him to scoop up the
shipwrecked lad and carry him to the nearest ship! The kid is rescued as the
whale recovers and takes his leave.
Onboard, it becomes apparent that the boy speaks only a language no one
recognizes. The medallion he wears seems to be a model of an atom, with a
nucleus and electrons, so perhaps he was a scientist's son. And, perhaps he
lost his parents in a shipwreck, so when the ship docks he is sent to nearby
Midvale Orphanage. There, the headmaster names him Johnny Blank. As he
shows the boy their fire safety equipment, he wonders if even this simple
information is getting through. So, Linda finds herself assigned to tutor Johnny
in rudimentary English. She finds him a quick study.
That night after bedtime, Linda is still reading when a wind storm howls
around the orphanage, causing a big tree to crack and fall toward the
building. Deciding nobody would see her fly out of her room into the
darkness, she skips the change into her Supergirl outfit and diverts the tree
while in her jammies. The next day, while on her way to tutor Johnny, Linda
catches a cry from another girl's room, and x-ray vision shows that a fire has
broken out behind the girl's locked door! No time to waste! Linda crashes
through the door! The girl was already overcome by the smoke and sees
nothing, so Linda is free to blow the smoke out the window whle extinguishing
the fire at the same time. Well, no one saw the super-action but others heard
the yell and are on the way. How can she explain the broken door and
missing fire? Fortunately, the first one on the scene is Johnny, carrying the fire
axe and fire extinguisher and haltingly telling her not to worry. The
headmaster arrives in moments and congratulates Johnny for the job. Linda is
relieved that the boy's arrival covers her part in the situation. She has to
wonder, though, if Johnny actually did cover for her. There's no way to
question him until he learns a good variety of words.
Some time later, on Visitor's Day, Johnny tells a pair of potential foster parents
that he'd like to live in America and not return to his former country. She's glad
for his opportunity to gain a family but needs to solve her own questions
before he leaves. That night, in the rec room, Linda demonstrates a kid's
archery set and challenges Johnny to a game off skill. He makes a bad shot,
though... Linda thinks the arrow has sailed over her head when it's actually
knocked her wig off! He quickly grabs a bottle of soda, shakes it, and squirts a
stream onto an exposed light builb, shattering it and darkening the room. He
then bends and retrieves her wig, telling her to put it on so the others won't
know she's wearing a disguise... and that he knows she had super-powers!
As he crouches, though, she catches sight of his medallion and realizes it
offers a clue to his origins. Before she can share the insight, though, the
headmaster arrives with news that Mr. and Mrs. Trent are on their way over to
make arrangements for the adoption! Linda decides to slip away and create a
diversion to buy herself some time. So, racing across town, she lifts the rear of
the Trent car from the ground so that the drive train is apparently not
responding to the engine. They arrange to have it towed to a garage.
But, flying past the headmaster's office, Supergirl overhears him talking with a
matron regarding the phone call he's about to make. Apparently, the
Peabodys have arranged to adopt Johnny if the Trents fail to arrive. In order to
block that call, Supergirl slips past a nightwatchman and stops the dynamo
that supplies electricity to all the telephones! When her x-ray vision shows that
Mrs. Peabody has hung up, she starts it running again!
Flying back to the orphanage, Supergirl prepares to tell Johnny she knows his
secret! It's long past lights-out, but her x-ray vision shows he's awake and
reading a book! He can see in the dark, which is how he found out about her
dual identity. He saw her pushing the tree aside during the windstorm. He is
from another world, and this fact prompted her to block the adoption attempts.
Sooner or later, she reasoned, he would return to his native world and leave
the poor foster parents heartbroken. The clue was the medallion, which her x-
ray vision showed to be of an element unknown on Earth. The boy confirms
that he is Valzorr the prince of a world called Korvia! His aunt and uncle were
the king and queen! He had left home one day to find a civilized world, but a
storm at sea wrecked his space ship! He dove out and clung to some
driftwood, and the crashing waves tore his native clothing to shreds.
Validated, she flies off to find his wrecked ship, which she quickly repairs.
They take the ship fo his home world and land on the floating city where his
family lives. Upon landing, they are met by Prime Minister Zoxxo. He has the
boy arrested in preparation for his exectuion. The crime: murdering the king
and queen! Grabbing the manacles from a magestrate, and ripping them
apart, Supergirl demands he receive a trial first.
At the trial, the Prime Minister makes his case using a beast (caged) that
breathes poisonous fumes. Their Atom Transporter Cabinet broadcasts its
now-scattered atoms into thin air. Using the principle that each person or
creature has his own wavelength, they use it to travel from place to place.
Stepping across the room, the Prime Minister tunes the Receiver Cabinet to
the wrong wavelength, and the beast doesn't rematerialize. The accusation is
that Prince Valzorr mudered the king and queen in this manner. Nobody
knows their private wavelengths, so the charge is that when they were
returning from a trip, the prince changed the Receiver Cabinet's wavelength
to prevent them from materializing. Their atoms are therefore now drifting in
space! Supergirl muses that it wouldn't have been murder if the king and
queen arrived back alive, so she steps forward to attempt to find the correct
push-button combination. The Prime Minister calls her a fool, as there are
millions of wavelengths and she has no chance of finding the right
combination of buttons. However, at super-speed, it takes only a little over two
million tries before she hits the right one! The king and queen materialize!
As they exit the Cabinet, Supergirl asks if Valzorr had done the deed on them,
and kindly queen says no, that it was the Prime Minister, in a power grab!
With all matters settled, the prince decides it's safe to stay on his world after
all, and Supergirl returns to Earth. She carries a note written by "Johnny,"
explaining that his amnesia suddenly ended, leading him to remember a
relative, with whom he has gone to live. The Linda Lee robot, which had
covered for Supergirl's absence, then dutifully returns to its storage area (a
fake tree) and all's well. The end.
The story was sure all over the place. The mundane enforced life of minor feats
at the orphanage must have been frustrating to a being who could repair alien
technology, learn an alien language and solve a political crisis, all before
bedtime. Out of courtesy, we won't address the concept that, only a year prior,
she'd been an ordinary hormone-ridden teenager who had never left the
asteroid of her birth.
Mooney was drawing Supergirl with a young teenager's trim figure, an
effective contrast to Wayne Boring's bulky Superman in the lead feature.
Mooney would have done well to have kept the young physiques in mind when he was drawing the Legion a few years later.
For this story, Supergirl's skirt was red. Was the color scheme going back and forth in the early stories? I thought the red worked better.
Supergirl's hair was drawn short, similar to the way Curt Swan was always drawing it on the covers. I preferred this look to the longer hair style Mooney gave her not many issues later, if only because the shorter hair could be shown effectively windblown. Her longer hair, like Superman's, was never mussed. Perhaps, as her hair grew, he presented her with a jar of Kandorian hair gel.
Blackhawk #55; August 1952
Blackhawk #55
August 1952
cover: pencils/inks: Reed Crandall
"Red Ransom!"
script: ?
pencils: Reed Crandall
inks: Chuck Cuidera
letters: Sam Rosen
editor: Alfred Grener
The Blackhawks are "in America," finishing a meal at the table of Chop
Chop's cousin. His name is Wah Jung, and he is downcast. Recently, Red
China sent him a bill for $4,000 to cover taxes owed them by his uncle! "Uncle
Wah Po is only poor kite maker! How can he owe $4,000 tax? Is clazy!"
exclaims Chop Chop. Wah Jung laments that unless he sends the money,
Uncle will be executed! Blackhawk observes that this is a racket for milking
the off-shore kin of people still living in China. He sets his jaw and declares
that the only way to stop this is to go there, fight it, and get Uncle Wah Po out!
Many hours later, as the Blackhawk jets reach Red China, they take the step
needed to keep the mission secret: they watch for plane spotters! Then, a few
miles from the city where the kidnap victims are held, Blackhawk notices a
small village. After the team lands, they attack the occupying troops.
Blackhawk's gun is drawn, but the battle is fought with only their fists. They
then hide the jets in the village barns. Chop Chop drafts an ox-pulled hay cart
into service, and drives it into the city. There, he talks loudly with a farmer
about his envy for his rich brother in the USA. Some soldiers overhear this,
and haul Chop Chop down from the cart. They arrest him for tax evasion,
while impounding the cart as partial payment. Once the cart is in a storage
building within the prison compound, the Blackhawks emerge from the straw.
They subdue the prison's lone guard, and Chop Chop quickly locates his
uncle. Blackhawk sighs: "I wish we could help those other people, but there's
nothing we can do... at least for now!"
Their rush from the prison disturbs a flock of pigeons, who fly wildly and emit
strange whistling sounds! Chop Chop explains that it is a custom to fit
bamboo flutes to the pigeon's tails. The music attracts some guards, who take
our unarmed guys before their General Klang. The General chortles that he is
not fooled by their prison-busting. Blackhawk objects, but Klang continues
that Blackhawk knows very well that he, Klang, a much-decorated soldier, is
one of the few generals trusted with the location of the new secret weapon
that the Russian scientist Strogoff is building there in China. This weapon will
destroy the democratic nations! Klang will get another medal! He has the
team (and Wah Po) bound with ropes and sent by river boat to the High
Command. While en route, Blackhawk notices the fireworks that mark the new
year. This gives him an idea, and, pulling out his cigarette lighter (!), he sets
fire to the junk's low-hung sail. As the guards scramble to extinguish it, he cuts
his bonds on a fallen rifle's bayonet , then sets loose the team. They knock out
the guards. The junk soon drifts to the docks of a town. The team evades their
captors under cover of the paper mache New Year's parade dragon.
Soon they make their way to the local prison, where they see General Klang's
car parked outside. If they could trick him into driving to the weapon's location
tonight, one of them could tag along on top of his car and direct the others via
their belt radios. Uncle Wah Po volunteers, as it is an "honorable" custom
among his people to pay debts before the new year ceremony ends. This is
his chance to pay a part of the great debt owed to "you great fighters for my
country's freedom." Blackhawk assents, and lays out his plan. Since the
General has a thing for medals, he and the boys overtake one of the sentry
posts (using rifle butts as clubs... no shooting!) and comandeer its phone.
Presumably affecting a Russian accent, Blackhawk phones General Klang
and identifies himself as Professor Strogoff! "Stalin has heard of your service
to the Red Army and wishes to award you a medal here tonight!" The
General's car leaves at once, with Wah Po riding the roof. Much later, Wah Po
radios in from within the factory's storeroom, and gives general directions.
However, the factory is camouflaged and cannot be seen from the sky!
Blackhawk laments unless they can spot some sort of marker, they cant make
a direct hit... and only a direct hit can wipe out the factory. Wah Po tells him to
watch the sky for a white bird, as it will tell him where to bomb. The boys have
no idea what to make of this comment, but they take their jets to the skies
anyway. When they reach the vicinity of the factory, a gleaming winged shape
rises skyward! Wah Po has made a bird-shaped kite of luminous paper!
Blackhawk is not eager to bomb the place, as Uncle is there flying the kite, but
Chop Chop assures him that Uncle is glad to give his life in the name of
saving many others. So, as his bomb bay doors open, Blackhawk declares,
"So long, Wah Po! You're one of the bravest little guys I ever met!" He goes on
to praise the brave Chinese nationalist resistance fighters, and the guys sing,
"We salute all men who bravely fight, For freedom that is theirs by right...
WE'RE BLACKHAWKS!" The end!
Chop Chop is featured in a four page big foot humor story. While laboring
over a hot stove in the Blackhawk kitchen, Chop Chop gets a telegram. He's
inherited money from a distant relative in the old country, too much money to
count easily. A celebration banquet is held, but he's not concerned about the
tab. The inheritance attorney's bill, likewise, gives him no pause... until the old
Chinese bank notes are tallied. They're worth about 1/4 of what he's spent.
He ends up at a hot stove at the hotel, musing philosophically: stew pot is
better than jackpot... much less trouble! The end!
"The Rocketmen!"
Script: ?
Pencils: not Dick Dillin
Inks: Chuck Cuidera
Letters: Sam Rosen
Actually, they're wearing harnesses attached to small rotor blades. The
splash shows the Rocketmen firing their automatic weapons at the team, who
are firing back. Nobody is getting hit. As the story opens, the team is paying a
social visit to the "remote mountain republic of Kahara". Blackhawk comments
to the President that the citizens aren't worried about the danger of invasion.
The President replies that theirs is rugged terrain, with few flatlands where
enemy planes could land. The airstrip is well guarded. Parachutists are no
danger, either, for any raiding party would be trapped. Yes, their little republic
is safe. (By implication, there are no roads!) But, suddenly...! An explosion
destroys the arsenal! The raiders are wearing parachute jumpers' uniforms
and carry automatic rifles! The Blackhawks run to the arsenal, which is
conveniently across the street from the Presidential building, and punch the
raiders half senseless. But, the invading commander shouts an order and the
raiders retreat swiftly behind a nearby hill, where their rigs are parked.
Strapping them on, they zoom vertically skyward, giving the Blackhawks a
good strafing along the way. Our guys race to their jets and give chase, but
the Rocketmen have the advangage of maneuverability. For good measure,
they throw containers of an inky fluid over the jets' canopies. The guys have
no choice but to set their "jet robot controls" for automatic landing. Blackhawk
has slid his canopy open, and sees that one of the rotor rigs is flying sans
Rocketman! They must have shot him before he was strapped in! The things
must be remote controlled. Blackhawk then leaps from his cockpit across to
the gizmo!.. secure in the knowledge that Chop Chop, who flies with him, can
take over.
As the rotor flies back to the secret base atop a mountain, Blackhawk hangs
on. He is finally noticed and put under guard. He is then taken to their leader,
who is dressed in Renaissance garb and is busy painting his model, Lisa, she
of the enigmatic smile. Blackhawk asks if he's the one who invented the
rocket suit, but the leader demurs. He had only improved on DaVinci's 15th
Century winged flight machine, though he had also taken the name.
Blackhawk argues that he's slinging mud on the name of a great painter,
inventor and humanitarian. This new-age pirate DaVinci is bored now, and
has Blackhawk taken away. DaVinci returns to his painting, and asks Lisa
what her strange smile may mean. She replies that soon, he shall know.
Later, in his cell, Blackhawk muses that his captors have taken his belt radio,
leaving him no way to get word to the men. Suddenly, outside the cell, Lisa
clocks the guard and gives Blackhawk his belt and radio, while urging him to
get the team there quickly. He radios them with a plan to stop the Rocketmen
for good. Sometime later, a guard alerts DaVinci that the Blackhawks are on
the way, and he sends the Rocketmen to finish them off. But, the team has
slung nets between their planes and they scoop the raiders from the sky.
DaVinci is furious, and is further surprised to discover that Lisa has freed
Blackhawk. She fumes that she freed him because her husband was
murdered by DaVinci when he saw she resembled historic DaVinci's model.
She had sworn to ruin him when the time was right. Her smile simply masked
her contempt, and dreams of revenge! She and Blackhawk have come too
near their captor, though, and he shoves them off balance. This gives him a
moment to strap on a nearby rotor suit. From above, he takes a shot at them,
prompting Blackhawk to strap on a rotor and follow. They fire at each other! As
DaVinci leans to one side, he exposes his fuel tank, and it takes the shot. As
the madman falls in flames to the ground, Blackhawk thinks, "Perhaps it was
justice after all!" The boys fly away singing yet another stanza of their song.
The end!
"The Horror Bomb!"
Script: ?
Pencils: not Dick Dillin
Inks: Chuck Cuidera
Letters: Sam Rosen
"Once the mighty Voda Armament Works had been an arsenal of the free
world! Then the black ominous shadow of the Iron Curtain dropped over it!
What was the carefully guarded secret of the super-weapon being
manufactured in the Voda Armament Works?" No, this isn't the other side of
the first story. In the radio room on Blackhawk Island, Chuck intercepts a
message, with no identifying call letters, from a secret transmitter somewhere
in Rugaria! "Need your help at once. Voda will launch new secret weapon
tomorrow! The last time I saw--" at which point it breaks off, signed Klev.
Chuck wonders why it breaks off in mid-sentence, and Blackhawk figures it's
deliberate. Since Klev assumed the message would be interecepted, he
couldn't give a location. The Secret Police would have been able to drop in
before the team could arrive. Therefore, Klev sent the first line of a song that
would be well known in America, but just gibberish to any Rugarian
interceptor. The significant missing word is... Paris! Andre comments that,
were they fly to Rugaria, they would not be permitted to land. Blackhawk
figures this will work to their advantage, since, as hostile aircraft, they will in
fact be welcomed... as prisoners!
Soon, as they fly over Rugarian airspace, Olaf frets, an attitude soon justified
with the arrival of antiaircraft fire! Blackhawk determines he's not ready to land
yet, and doesn't mind if the Rugarians want to waste their ammunition. As the
flak starts to come closer, Blackhawk figures it's time to surrender, particularly
as they've flown near the Rugarian capitol. Seeing a convenient cloud bank
below, and content it will be up to the team to be prisoners... Blackhawk bails
out! Upon landing, he changes into the "peasant clothes" he'd brought along.
As he wanders the capitol, Blackhawk muses that the place is called the Paris
of the Eastern world. Presumably, this is where Klev is to be found. After
wandering for a couple of hours, Blackhawk figures he's found the place... an
inn out of whose upper windows wafts "The Last Time I Saw Paris." At the
apartment door, Blackhawk is greeted by an attractive woman in a tight red
dress. To her visitor's surprise, she responds that women can also be patriots.
She had been an engineer at Voda for several years before tyrants seized the
country! She knows she's not trusted anymore. It was only days ago she
learned about the "monstrous weapon" being made there. It defies
description, but is larger than any such explosive ever made. Tomorrow, it is
to be launched against Yugovia, the next country over! This will be the
beginning of a new world war! Blackhawk determines that the bomb must not
be launched. If she can smuggle him into the Voda Armament Works, he''ll
take over from there.
The following morning (shades of Howard Chaykin), Klev, wearing the same
red dress, and Blackhawk walk toward Voda. A nearby newsboy shouts that
the Blackhawks has been captured, with a huge ransom demanded. (From
whom? These guys have always been self-directed!) Blackhawk is glad they
landed safely, as he knows he's going to need the backup. Klev walks them to
a heavily fenced-in area. Only the most trusted workers are permitted near it.
Blackhawk approaches the lone sentry, who asks for his credentials;
Blackhawk punches his lights out while grabbing his rifle. Another sentry
approaches, but Blackhawk shoots him in the chest. As they enter the formerly
secure area, they see a rotund rocket about half a city block long. The pair
climb the two-story gantry, push a guard to the ground, and enter the control
room. Klev thinks she can operate the controls. Blackhawk replies that he`d
just as soon die one way as another, and that they'd better leave pronto! The
enormous missle is quicky aloft.
Klev is of the opinion that Rugarian planes will soon pounce, so Blackhawk
radios the guys to cut short their visit. Olaf then crosses the cell to its door ("By
Yudas! It's about time!"), grabs the guard... who'd obligingly had his back to
them... by the throat, and yanks his skull against the metal bars. Chuck grabs
the key ring from the guard's belt. Exiting the cell, Andre and Hendy punch
their way past a couple more guards, and the guys too are quickly aloft. Soon
they catch up with the big bomb, and win the dogfight with the Rugarian
planes. As the bomb passes the Rugarian border, Blackhawk sets its autopilot
to take it back where it came from. He and Klev bail out, secure in the
knowledge that Rugaria will never again attack its peaceful neighbors. She
seems to be left to her own devices where they landed, in an open field miles
from nowhere, while the Blackhawk jets soar away to the tune of yet another
stanza. The end!
Twenty-eight pages of illustrated story and an unrelated two-page text story
for one thin dime! DC comics were still 52 pages thick in 1952, but I'd say this
was still a good value.
There had been reviews of some later Blackhawk issues the last time I was
hanging out here, and I thought an earlier look back might be informative.
This inbetween era saw some surviving heroes turn into commie busters. The
mighty Blackhawks had always been sticking their noses into other countries'
business, so the Reds were just another regime to overcome. The peculiar
fighting machines were not yet the dominant theme, though the War Wheel
would be the cover feature for the next issue. The series would lean in that
direction for the rest of the Quality days. DC, who took over in January `57,
made it a central thrust.
Chop Chop remained a weird caricature until about January `56! One
wonders if his makeover had anything to do with DC's imminent assumption
of the series. Meanwhile, his cousin is depicted as an ordinary looking guy, as
are every one of the Chinese troops and villagers.
The stories are lively and, interestingly, get more violent as the comic
progresses. The rest of the team are given very little to do at first, to the point
that it's mostly down to Blackhawk and Chop Chop, but that third story does
expand their roles enough to pepper in their trademark, heavily accented
catch phrases.
Crandall's art here is very strong. A great many Quality comics from April `41
until early `53 featured his covers. Then, abruptly, he shifted entirely over to
EC. As a big-time Blackhawk fan, I took a lot of pleasure in seeing his
approach evolve. Earliest, it ran to high drama mixed with comedy. Within
those dozen years, though, it became highly naturalistic. This sometimes
worked against the fight scenes, as he would often freeze the action, omitting
the customary speed lines. The result could be stilted, but it gave his imitators
at Quality an easy way to affect his look. This has led to a lot of very likely mis-
attribution. The situation has been compounded by the fact that Crandall was
sometimes inked by Chuck Cuidera, whose job, of course, was to bring his
imitators' similarities to the fore. Well, there were worse people to copy.
cover: pencils/inks: Reed Crandall
"Red Ransom!"
script: ?
pencils: Reed Crandall
inks: Chuck Cuidera
letters: Sam Rosen
editor: Alfred Grener
The Blackhawks are "in America," finishing a meal at the table of Chop
Chop's cousin. His name is Wah Jung, and he is downcast. Recently, Red
China sent him a bill for $4,000 to cover taxes owed them by his uncle! "Uncle
Wah Po is only poor kite maker! How can he owe $4,000 tax? Is clazy!"
exclaims Chop Chop. Wah Jung laments that unless he sends the money,
Uncle will be executed! Blackhawk observes that this is a racket for milking
the off-shore kin of people still living in China. He sets his jaw and declares
that the only way to stop this is to go there, fight it, and get Uncle Wah Po out!
Many hours later, as the Blackhawk jets reach Red China, they take the step
needed to keep the mission secret: they watch for plane spotters! Then, a few
miles from the city where the kidnap victims are held, Blackhawk notices a
small village. After the team lands, they attack the occupying troops.
Blackhawk's gun is drawn, but the battle is fought with only their fists. They
then hide the jets in the village barns. Chop Chop drafts an ox-pulled hay cart
into service, and drives it into the city. There, he talks loudly with a farmer
about his envy for his rich brother in the USA. Some soldiers overhear this,
and haul Chop Chop down from the cart. They arrest him for tax evasion,
while impounding the cart as partial payment. Once the cart is in a storage
building within the prison compound, the Blackhawks emerge from the straw.
They subdue the prison's lone guard, and Chop Chop quickly locates his
uncle. Blackhawk sighs: "I wish we could help those other people, but there's
nothing we can do... at least for now!"
Their rush from the prison disturbs a flock of pigeons, who fly wildly and emit
strange whistling sounds! Chop Chop explains that it is a custom to fit
bamboo flutes to the pigeon's tails. The music attracts some guards, who take
our unarmed guys before their General Klang. The General chortles that he is
not fooled by their prison-busting. Blackhawk objects, but Klang continues
that Blackhawk knows very well that he, Klang, a much-decorated soldier, is
one of the few generals trusted with the location of the new secret weapon
that the Russian scientist Strogoff is building there in China. This weapon will
destroy the democratic nations! Klang will get another medal! He has the
team (and Wah Po) bound with ropes and sent by river boat to the High
Command. While en route, Blackhawk notices the fireworks that mark the new
year. This gives him an idea, and, pulling out his cigarette lighter (!), he sets
fire to the junk's low-hung sail. As the guards scramble to extinguish it, he cuts
his bonds on a fallen rifle's bayonet , then sets loose the team. They knock out
the guards. The junk soon drifts to the docks of a town. The team evades their
captors under cover of the paper mache New Year's parade dragon.
Soon they make their way to the local prison, where they see General Klang's
car parked outside. If they could trick him into driving to the weapon's location
tonight, one of them could tag along on top of his car and direct the others via
their belt radios. Uncle Wah Po volunteers, as it is an "honorable" custom
among his people to pay debts before the new year ceremony ends. This is
his chance to pay a part of the great debt owed to "you great fighters for my
country's freedom." Blackhawk assents, and lays out his plan. Since the
General has a thing for medals, he and the boys overtake one of the sentry
posts (using rifle butts as clubs... no shooting!) and comandeer its phone.
Presumably affecting a Russian accent, Blackhawk phones General Klang
and identifies himself as Professor Strogoff! "Stalin has heard of your service
to the Red Army and wishes to award you a medal here tonight!" The
General's car leaves at once, with Wah Po riding the roof. Much later, Wah Po
radios in from within the factory's storeroom, and gives general directions.
However, the factory is camouflaged and cannot be seen from the sky!
Blackhawk laments unless they can spot some sort of marker, they cant make
a direct hit... and only a direct hit can wipe out the factory. Wah Po tells him to
watch the sky for a white bird, as it will tell him where to bomb. The boys have
no idea what to make of this comment, but they take their jets to the skies
anyway. When they reach the vicinity of the factory, a gleaming winged shape
rises skyward! Wah Po has made a bird-shaped kite of luminous paper!
Blackhawk is not eager to bomb the place, as Uncle is there flying the kite, but
Chop Chop assures him that Uncle is glad to give his life in the name of
saving many others. So, as his bomb bay doors open, Blackhawk declares,
"So long, Wah Po! You're one of the bravest little guys I ever met!" He goes on
to praise the brave Chinese nationalist resistance fighters, and the guys sing,
"We salute all men who bravely fight, For freedom that is theirs by right...
WE'RE BLACKHAWKS!" The end!
Chop Chop is featured in a four page big foot humor story. While laboring
over a hot stove in the Blackhawk kitchen, Chop Chop gets a telegram. He's
inherited money from a distant relative in the old country, too much money to
count easily. A celebration banquet is held, but he's not concerned about the
tab. The inheritance attorney's bill, likewise, gives him no pause... until the old
Chinese bank notes are tallied. They're worth about 1/4 of what he's spent.
He ends up at a hot stove at the hotel, musing philosophically: stew pot is
better than jackpot... much less trouble! The end!
"The Rocketmen!"
Script: ?
Pencils: not Dick Dillin
Inks: Chuck Cuidera
Letters: Sam Rosen
Actually, they're wearing harnesses attached to small rotor blades. The
splash shows the Rocketmen firing their automatic weapons at the team, who
are firing back. Nobody is getting hit. As the story opens, the team is paying a
social visit to the "remote mountain republic of Kahara". Blackhawk comments
to the President that the citizens aren't worried about the danger of invasion.
The President replies that theirs is rugged terrain, with few flatlands where
enemy planes could land. The airstrip is well guarded. Parachutists are no
danger, either, for any raiding party would be trapped. Yes, their little republic
is safe. (By implication, there are no roads!) But, suddenly...! An explosion
destroys the arsenal! The raiders are wearing parachute jumpers' uniforms
and carry automatic rifles! The Blackhawks run to the arsenal, which is
conveniently across the street from the Presidential building, and punch the
raiders half senseless. But, the invading commander shouts an order and the
raiders retreat swiftly behind a nearby hill, where their rigs are parked.
Strapping them on, they zoom vertically skyward, giving the Blackhawks a
good strafing along the way. Our guys race to their jets and give chase, but
the Rocketmen have the advangage of maneuverability. For good measure,
they throw containers of an inky fluid over the jets' canopies. The guys have
no choice but to set their "jet robot controls" for automatic landing. Blackhawk
has slid his canopy open, and sees that one of the rotor rigs is flying sans
Rocketman! They must have shot him before he was strapped in! The things
must be remote controlled. Blackhawk then leaps from his cockpit across to
the gizmo!.. secure in the knowledge that Chop Chop, who flies with him, can
take over.
As the rotor flies back to the secret base atop a mountain, Blackhawk hangs
on. He is finally noticed and put under guard. He is then taken to their leader,
who is dressed in Renaissance garb and is busy painting his model, Lisa, she
of the enigmatic smile. Blackhawk asks if he's the one who invented the
rocket suit, but the leader demurs. He had only improved on DaVinci's 15th
Century winged flight machine, though he had also taken the name.
Blackhawk argues that he's slinging mud on the name of a great painter,
inventor and humanitarian. This new-age pirate DaVinci is bored now, and
has Blackhawk taken away. DaVinci returns to his painting, and asks Lisa
what her strange smile may mean. She replies that soon, he shall know.
Later, in his cell, Blackhawk muses that his captors have taken his belt radio,
leaving him no way to get word to the men. Suddenly, outside the cell, Lisa
clocks the guard and gives Blackhawk his belt and radio, while urging him to
get the team there quickly. He radios them with a plan to stop the Rocketmen
for good. Sometime later, a guard alerts DaVinci that the Blackhawks are on
the way, and he sends the Rocketmen to finish them off. But, the team has
slung nets between their planes and they scoop the raiders from the sky.
DaVinci is furious, and is further surprised to discover that Lisa has freed
Blackhawk. She fumes that she freed him because her husband was
murdered by DaVinci when he saw she resembled historic DaVinci's model.
She had sworn to ruin him when the time was right. Her smile simply masked
her contempt, and dreams of revenge! She and Blackhawk have come too
near their captor, though, and he shoves them off balance. This gives him a
moment to strap on a nearby rotor suit. From above, he takes a shot at them,
prompting Blackhawk to strap on a rotor and follow. They fire at each other! As
DaVinci leans to one side, he exposes his fuel tank, and it takes the shot. As
the madman falls in flames to the ground, Blackhawk thinks, "Perhaps it was
justice after all!" The boys fly away singing yet another stanza of their song.
The end!
"The Horror Bomb!"
Script: ?
Pencils: not Dick Dillin
Inks: Chuck Cuidera
Letters: Sam Rosen
"Once the mighty Voda Armament Works had been an arsenal of the free
world! Then the black ominous shadow of the Iron Curtain dropped over it!
What was the carefully guarded secret of the super-weapon being
manufactured in the Voda Armament Works?" No, this isn't the other side of
the first story. In the radio room on Blackhawk Island, Chuck intercepts a
message, with no identifying call letters, from a secret transmitter somewhere
in Rugaria! "Need your help at once. Voda will launch new secret weapon
tomorrow! The last time I saw--" at which point it breaks off, signed Klev.
Chuck wonders why it breaks off in mid-sentence, and Blackhawk figures it's
deliberate. Since Klev assumed the message would be interecepted, he
couldn't give a location. The Secret Police would have been able to drop in
before the team could arrive. Therefore, Klev sent the first line of a song that
would be well known in America, but just gibberish to any Rugarian
interceptor. The significant missing word is... Paris! Andre comments that,
were they fly to Rugaria, they would not be permitted to land. Blackhawk
figures this will work to their advantage, since, as hostile aircraft, they will in
fact be welcomed... as prisoners!
Soon, as they fly over Rugarian airspace, Olaf frets, an attitude soon justified
with the arrival of antiaircraft fire! Blackhawk determines he's not ready to land
yet, and doesn't mind if the Rugarians want to waste their ammunition. As the
flak starts to come closer, Blackhawk figures it's time to surrender, particularly
as they've flown near the Rugarian capitol. Seeing a convenient cloud bank
below, and content it will be up to the team to be prisoners... Blackhawk bails
out! Upon landing, he changes into the "peasant clothes" he'd brought along.
As he wanders the capitol, Blackhawk muses that the place is called the Paris
of the Eastern world. Presumably, this is where Klev is to be found. After
wandering for a couple of hours, Blackhawk figures he's found the place... an
inn out of whose upper windows wafts "The Last Time I Saw Paris." At the
apartment door, Blackhawk is greeted by an attractive woman in a tight red
dress. To her visitor's surprise, she responds that women can also be patriots.
She had been an engineer at Voda for several years before tyrants seized the
country! She knows she's not trusted anymore. It was only days ago she
learned about the "monstrous weapon" being made there. It defies
description, but is larger than any such explosive ever made. Tomorrow, it is
to be launched against Yugovia, the next country over! This will be the
beginning of a new world war! Blackhawk determines that the bomb must not
be launched. If she can smuggle him into the Voda Armament Works, he''ll
take over from there.
The following morning (shades of Howard Chaykin), Klev, wearing the same
red dress, and Blackhawk walk toward Voda. A nearby newsboy shouts that
the Blackhawks has been captured, with a huge ransom demanded. (From
whom? These guys have always been self-directed!) Blackhawk is glad they
landed safely, as he knows he's going to need the backup. Klev walks them to
a heavily fenced-in area. Only the most trusted workers are permitted near it.
Blackhawk approaches the lone sentry, who asks for his credentials;
Blackhawk punches his lights out while grabbing his rifle. Another sentry
approaches, but Blackhawk shoots him in the chest. As they enter the formerly
secure area, they see a rotund rocket about half a city block long. The pair
climb the two-story gantry, push a guard to the ground, and enter the control
room. Klev thinks she can operate the controls. Blackhawk replies that he`d
just as soon die one way as another, and that they'd better leave pronto! The
enormous missle is quicky aloft.
Klev is of the opinion that Rugarian planes will soon pounce, so Blackhawk
radios the guys to cut short their visit. Olaf then crosses the cell to its door ("By
Yudas! It's about time!"), grabs the guard... who'd obligingly had his back to
them... by the throat, and yanks his skull against the metal bars. Chuck grabs
the key ring from the guard's belt. Exiting the cell, Andre and Hendy punch
their way past a couple more guards, and the guys too are quickly aloft. Soon
they catch up with the big bomb, and win the dogfight with the Rugarian
planes. As the bomb passes the Rugarian border, Blackhawk sets its autopilot
to take it back where it came from. He and Klev bail out, secure in the
knowledge that Rugaria will never again attack its peaceful neighbors. She
seems to be left to her own devices where they landed, in an open field miles
from nowhere, while the Blackhawk jets soar away to the tune of yet another
stanza. The end!
Twenty-eight pages of illustrated story and an unrelated two-page text story
for one thin dime! DC comics were still 52 pages thick in 1952, but I'd say this
was still a good value.
There had been reviews of some later Blackhawk issues the last time I was
hanging out here, and I thought an earlier look back might be informative.
This inbetween era saw some surviving heroes turn into commie busters. The
mighty Blackhawks had always been sticking their noses into other countries'
business, so the Reds were just another regime to overcome. The peculiar
fighting machines were not yet the dominant theme, though the War Wheel
would be the cover feature for the next issue. The series would lean in that
direction for the rest of the Quality days. DC, who took over in January `57,
made it a central thrust.
Chop Chop remained a weird caricature until about January `56! One
wonders if his makeover had anything to do with DC's imminent assumption
of the series. Meanwhile, his cousin is depicted as an ordinary looking guy, as
are every one of the Chinese troops and villagers.
The stories are lively and, interestingly, get more violent as the comic
progresses. The rest of the team are given very little to do at first, to the point
that it's mostly down to Blackhawk and Chop Chop, but that third story does
expand their roles enough to pepper in their trademark, heavily accented
catch phrases.
Crandall's art here is very strong. A great many Quality comics from April `41
until early `53 featured his covers. Then, abruptly, he shifted entirely over to
EC. As a big-time Blackhawk fan, I took a lot of pleasure in seeing his
approach evolve. Earliest, it ran to high drama mixed with comedy. Within
those dozen years, though, it became highly naturalistic. This sometimes
worked against the fight scenes, as he would often freeze the action, omitting
the customary speed lines. The result could be stilted, but it gave his imitators
at Quality an easy way to affect his look. This has led to a lot of very likely mis-
attribution. The situation has been compounded by the fact that Crandall was
sometimes inked by Chuck Cuidera, whose job, of course, was to bring his
imitators' similarities to the fore. Well, there were worse people to copy.
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