Giant Batman Alien Invasion

Batman, usually thought to be a dark knight, serving a lonely patrol over Gotham City was something completely different in the 1950s...


...he was a full-fledged alien hunter, with his partner, the Boy Wonder, Robin!


In the collection of 80 Page Giant Magazine #12 of July, 1965, the Dynamic Duo faced many an alien invasion, from the Strange Worlds Of Batman and Robin.


Take a look at the stories....

Detective Comics #256

Batman and Robin are taken to "The Captive Planet" from Detective Comics #256 (June, 1958) by Bill Finger, Sheldon Moldoff and Charles Paris (under an original cover by Sheldon Moldoff and Win Mortimer).



The captive planet is Tora, and Batman and Robin have to work to free captives to fight against alien invaders to this world.  Under the leader Boran, the dynamic duo destroy a machine holding prisoners helpless.  Torans and Earthlings unite, to fend off the invaders, with Batman. Robin and everyone else from Earth being able to return home.

Batman #93

Batman #93 (August, 1955) was the original home of "The Caveman Batman", a story by Edmond Hamilton, Dick Sprang and Charles Paris, with an original cover by Win Mortimer.


Bruce Wayne decides to help archeologist William Sayre, who says he found cave drawings of dinosaurs by cavemen (who didn't exist at the same time).  Enlisting the help of Professor Carter Nichols, Batman and Robin travel back in time via hypnosis (it was the 1950s....).  The dynamic duo meet a caveman with a secret identity, that of Tiger Man.  Working with Tiger Man, Batman and Robin defeat a villain named Borr (who has a secret weapon, that of a dinosaur frozen in ice).  The dinosaur gets free from the ice after Batman starts a fire, but dies quickly after.  Tiger Man promises to immortalize the events on cave wall, and Batman and Robin return to the present.

Batman #125

"King Batman The First" was the focus of Batman #125 (August, 1959) by Bill Finger, Dick Sprang and Sheldon Moldoff, under a cover by Curt Swan and Stan Kaye.
 
Batman and Robin end up in another dimension while chasing a criminal, with Batman joining a competition after finding out a resident was fixing the game.  Winning, Batman ends up being crowned King of Plaxius, where the criminal Batman was following, Gurney, finds out Batman's secret identity, and then gets Batman dethroned and imprisoned.  Selina, the girlfriend of Vol, Praxius' hero, frees Bruce, and they free Vol and defeat Rakk.  Batman and Robin still have to deal with Gurney revealing Batman's secret identity, until they lose their memories returning to Earth.

Newspaper Batman

This is a special feature, reprinting a series of Batman stories from Sunday newspaper strips from November 12, 1944 to December 31, 1944 by Bill Finger, Jack Burnley and Charles Paris, where Batman and Robin realized "There Was A Crooked Man...".

That is, the dynamic duo face a plot that is similar to the old nursery rhyme, "There Was A Crooked Man".

World's Finest Comics #91

Superman, Batman and Robin became "The Three Super Sleepers" in World's Finest Comics #91 (November-December, 1957) by Edmond Hamilton, Dick Sprang and Stan Kaye, with the original cover by Sheldon Moldoff and Win Mortimer.
 
The World's Finest trio chase a criminal into a mountain cave, where the thug traps them with knockout gas and Kryptonite.  The three heroes wake up a thousand years later, with the inhabitants looking use their time-ray to send the heroes to their home time.....except they are unable to since the device was stolen.  The trio face off against Rohtul, a descendant of Luthor, defeating him, but not finding the time-ray.  Batman figures out that Lora, one of the scientists, was really behind the theft of the time-ray, travel back in time, and prevent the criminal from sealing them in the cave.

Batman #112

"Batman's Roman Holiday" was one of the stories in Batman #112 (December, 1957) by Edmond Hamilton, Dick Sprang and Charles Paris (though not the cover one, as you can see, instead featuring the story that deals with Professor Milo).

 
This time around, Professor Nichols was lost in ancient Rome, with Batman and Robin having to travel back to find him.  The dynamic duo find the Professor being held by Roman King Phorbus, ending up being captured...thought they make a giant balloon to escape, then the team go back to free Nichols and return to their home time. 

Batman #128

Batman #128 (December, 1959) saw "The Interplanetary Batman" by Bill Finger and Sheldon Moldoff, with Moldoff also providing the cover for this confining issue.


Alien Kraak, lands on Earth, getting help from Batman and Robin, as he is being chased by other aliens.  Only problem is, Kraak was a space pirate, and they capture Batman and Robin as criminals for the dynamic duo's honest mistake.  Batman helps Kraak escape, then they go to collect his stolen loot from the dangerous Forest of Peril.  Kraak tries to double cross Batman, but Batman was working with the local police of Ergon, who end up arresting Kraak and his associates for their crimes.

Batman #116

"The Winged Bat People" were met in Batman #116 (June, 1958), by Bill Finger, Sheldon Moldoff and Charles Paris, under a cover by Sheldon Moldoff.


Batman and Robin are flying in the Batplane when a hurricane throws them into another dimension, where they are mistaken for Bat-People and taken prisoner by the local queen.  Batman saves the queen from the Bat-People when they attack, and helps her find a traitor in her midst, her advisor, Arko.  Finding a local deposit of coal, Batman lights it on fire, with the hope the flames will ward off the Bat-People for years.  The explosion from this hurtles the Batplane with Batman and Robin home.

A truly odd collection of Batman stories, but it just goes to show how far Batman will go to protect Gotham...even to other worlds and dimensions!


The Batman stories aren't as out of touch with modern Batman stories, as writer Grant Morrison used Batman's meeting with Professor Milo from Batman #112 (and other stories from the 1950s collected in Batman: The Black Casebook of 2009) for a series of stories he did in the 21st Century for his Batman R.I.P. storyline.

Giant Superman Alien Invasion

Looking back, Superman faced many an alien invasion himself, all without help....

....and DC had dedicated an 80-Page Giant to that fact.

 
It was Superman vs. the aliens in 80 Page Giant Magazine #6 of January, 1965....

...and here are the menaces the Man of Steel faced!


 

Action Comics #234

"The Creature of 1,000 Disguises" is first up, from Action Comics #234 (November, 1957) by Edmond Hamilton, Wayne Boring and Stan Kaye, under a cover by Curt Swan and Stan Kaye.



Superman faces off against Gollo, an alien from the planet Zar who can shape change, and befriends a young boy named Johnny Miles.  Gollo finds Johnny, but become separated, as Superman returns the runaway Johnny to his family.  While searching for Johnny, Gollo comes to Metropolis and runs into Superman.  Superman realizes Gollo is also a young runaway, and reunites the lonely alien with his family, who shows them all of the new shapes he has learned, including that of Superman!

Adventure Comics #274

Stepping even further back in time, it's an adventure with Superboy (Superman as a boy) from Adventure Comics #274 (July, 1960), where the Boy of Steel faces "The Monster That Stalked Smallville" by Robert Bernstein and George Papp, and cover by Curt Swan and Stan Kaye.

Superboy brings an alien into Smallville that starts turning its citizens to stone, even a couple that try to leave, for a total of ten people turned to stone.  This upsets the law in Smallville who question Superboy, finding out the alien, 6-3kx, was from Zaron, and assigned to find ten criminal alien scientists that nearly destroyed Zaron, who were hiding in Smallville.  The ten scientists were also telepathic, being able to read the minds of everyone but Superboy, thus the reason he didn't explain his actions.

Superman's Pal, Jimmy Olsen #43

"Jimmy Olsen's Private Monster" came from Superman's Pal, Jimmy Olsen #43 (March, 1960) by Jerry Siegel, Curt Swan and John Forte, with a cover by Curt Swan and Stan Kaye.


Jimmy Olsen gets a new pal after the energy of an explosion and Jimmy's signal watch brings an alien from another dimension to Jimmy.  The monster appears twice and leaves, then, appears a third time with a deal for the young reporter...to come back to his dimension for a time, after which, the alien will leave Jimmy alone.  Jimmy agrees, and once on the alien's planet, finds out the alien wanted him for a horror movie, with Jimmy as the lead monster!  After filming, the alien returns Jimmy to Earth.

Action Comics #216

When this story by Bill Finger, Wayne Boring and Stan Kaye (the last two doing the original cover) was featured in Action Comics #216 (May, 1956), it was called "The Super-Menace Of Metropolis", but was reprinted as "The Hyper-Menace From Krypton".


Alien machines attack on Earth, with Superman to stop them.  Tracing their path backwards, Superman finds that the machines were constructed by someone who had super powers.  While investigating leads on that (mostly other men who Lois Lane thought were Superman), Superman finds a rocket in the forest, with a robot in control of these machines.  The robot was made by Jor-El, Superman's father, to make machines to show Kryptonians the harshness of war.  Superman destroys the robot and machines to prevent them from menacing the people of Earth.

Action Comics #254

Bizarro wasn't an alien from another world when he first appeared in adult form thanks to Lex Luthor in Action Comics #254 (July, 1959) and Action Comics #255 (August, 1959) by Otto Binder and Al Plastino (under covesr by Curt Swan and Stan Kaye), but it still lead Superman to "The Battle With Bizarro" (combined with "The Bride Of Bizarro"). 

Bizarro wasn't even the first bizarre duplicate of Kal-El (there had been one earlier, when Superman was Superboy, but it was destroyed).  Bizarro had all of Superman's memories, though distorted, and was as powerful as Superman, without the weakness to green Kryptonite. 


This was only the first two tales of Bizarro (where the monster added a Bizarro Lois), but later tales established a world where many Bizarros lived (not on Earth), making a Bizarro family, so, Bizarro later became an alien from another world (the planet htraE), using Bizarro backward logic! 

Adventure Comics #245

Last, but not least, Superboy faced "The Mystery Of Monster X" in Adventure Comics #245 (February, 1958) by Otto Binder and Al Plastino (with the original cover by Curt Swan and Stan Kaye).



With a giant flying centipede being released from the Earth by a volcanic eruption, Superboy had to fight it to keep Smallville safe (even though the creature could manifest Kryptonite as well).  Realizing it was a mother looking for its egg, Superboy helped her find her young, and resettled them safely on another planet.

This collection of fantastic things and creatures is but one of 15 80 Page Giants, and not the only one to feature Superman...

....or a collection of aliens!

DC Invasion Crossovers Extra

Invasion aftermath...and a few extra secrets of the Invasion! as well.



Not every part of the Invasion! was covered in official crossovers, or its own 3 issues, and here are a few of the secret tales that filled in a few holes in Invasion!, and helped to place a few missing members of the DC Universe in one of its biggest events.

Suicide Squad and Titans

In Suicide Squad #23 (January, 1989 by John Ostrander, Kim Yale, Luke McDonnell and Karl Kesel), had Bronze Tiger, Vixen and Duchess facing the Warlords of Okaara and Thanagarians in Russia with the Rocket Red Brigade, Nemesis and Captain Boomerang fighting Khunds in Australia, and the introduction of computer guru Oracle (off-panel).  With New Titans #52 (January, 1989 by Marv Wolfman, George Perez and Bob McLeod), Speedy and Danny Chase were trying to find Titans to help in the Invasion! while the active members of the team (including Nightwing, Cyborg, Starfire, Jericho, Changling and Raven) were in space, finding out the history of Donna Troy/Wonder Girl.

Hawk and Dove and Power Company?

One of those Titans still on Earth, was the original Hawk (Hank Hall), and he participated in the Invasion! with his new partner, the new female Dove as seen in Hawk and Dove #1 (June, 1989 by Barbara and Karl Kesel, Greg Guler and Scott Hanna), filling in a little of their cameo in Invasion! #2.  Metropolis lawyer, Josiah Power, who would form the Power Company, got his powers from his metagene triggered by the gene-bomb detonated in Invasion!, and there were a few flashbacks to that time in Power Company Josiah Power #1 (March, 2002, by Kurt Busiek, Keith Giffen and Al Milgrom).

First Strike Aftermath

You may have noticed on the crossovers in the previous two articles that the crossovers were labeled either "First Strike" or "Aftermath".  For reading order, you read the First Strike issues between Invasion! #1 and #2, and the Aftermath issues between Invasion! #2 and #3, with reading the title crossovers with Flash first, then Manhunter; Superman first, then Adventures of Superman; Wonder Woman before Captain Atom; Firestorm the Nuclear Man before Starman; with Suicide Squad and Hawk & Dove happening between Invasion! #2 and #3, and New Titans and Power Company Josiah Power dealing with the Invasion! in general (but more or less around/before Invasion! #2).  

Atom and Superman

After the Invasion!, Atom (Ray Palmer) declined to rejoin the Justice League in Power of the Atom #9 (February, 1989 by Roger Stern, Graham Nolan and Keith Wilson) even as the team's membership was swelling (mostly as he didn't like Guy Gardner).  Superman had held to his promise and left Earth, with stories starting a lengthy outer space adventure, starting with Superman #28 (February, 1989 by Roger Stern, Kerry Gammill and Brett Breeding) and Adventures of Superman #451 (February, 1989 by Jerry Ordway).

Action Comics Weekly

Where was the crossover for one of DC's oldest titles, Action Comics?  Well, from May 24th, 1988 to March 14th, 1989, it was Action Comics Weekly, featuring short tales in serial form, featuring Superman and other members of the DC Universe.  The characters in ACW weren't left out of Invasion!, as Green Lantern, Black Canary, the Demon, Phantom Stranger, Deadman and Speedy were in various of the crossover issues....and Wild Dog even had a cameo in a panel in Invasion! #2!

L.E.G.I.O.N. and Justice League Europe

In the wake of widening of the DC Universe, there were a few new titles added to the line up, coming from Invasion!.  Starting with L.E.G.I.O.N. '89 # 1 (February, 1989 by Keith Giffen, Alan Grant, Barry Kitson and Mike DeCarlo), following the adventures of some of the aliens we met during Invasion! including Coluan Vril Dox, rock hard Dryadian Strata, mystery alien Stealth, Cairn police Garryn Bek, "the Durlan" and Talok VIII planetary champion Lyrissa Mallor (and, following their adventures showed ties to Brainiac, and later, the 30th Century Legion of Super Heroes!).  The JLI formed a European branch (rolling out from Justice League International #24) in Justice League Europe #1 (April, 1989 by Keith Giffen, J. M. DeMatteis, Bart Sears and Pablo Marcos), with new (or rejoining) members of Elongated Man, Rocket Red, Wonder Woman, Animal Man, Flash (Wally West), Metamorpho and Power Girl under the leadership of Captain Atom (who had strained his relationship with the rest of the JLI due to his history).

Even Snapper Carr (an honorary JLAer from the team's first appearance, who got powers in Invasion! #1), and a group of humans who also got powers (Dexter Fairfax, Moshe Levy/Dust Devil, Mrs. Levy, Amos Monroe/Crackpot, Fritz Klein/Frag, Carlotta Rivera/Jolt, and added cat alien, Churl Jenkins were the group called the Blasters, got a one-shot special, the Blasters Special #1 (1989) by Peter David, James Fry and Robert Campanella.  Their outer space adventures continued in the Valor title, and Snapper later reappeared in Hourman in the early 21st Century (eventually relating the fate of the Blasters).

Better still, the Suicide Squad story was recently reprinted in Suicide Squad: Rogues in 2016, the New Titans story reprinted in New Titans: Who Is Donna Troy tradepaperback of 2005 , and Justice League Europe #1 can be found in Justice League International tradepaperback #5 of 2011, so it should be easy to find these stories, along with the tales around them to add more meaning!

DC Invasion Crossovers Part 2

Invasion! was a three issue limited series by DC Comics in the later 1980s that crossed over with many of its titles.


Already covered some of them last time, here's the rest of the bannered crossovers of the time.

Firestorm

Firestorm was, at this time, a hero with his own mind, coming from the merging of Ronnie Raymond and Mikhail Arkadin (Martin Stein was not known to be part of the matrix at this time).  In Firestorm The Nuclear Man #80 (1988 by Robert Greenberger, Tom Grindberg and Sam DeLaRosa), Firestorm was recruited (along with his similarly nuclear powered friend, Firehawk) and Power Girl to battle Khunds (freeing Starman along the way), and the lot work to free America's first spaceman, Adam Strange (which happens in Starman #5).  In Firestorm The Nuclear Man #81 (January, 1989, by John Ostrander, Tom Grindberg, Arne Starr and Sam DeLaRosa), Firestorm returns to his normal life, but ends up reforming in Russia to help hero group Soyuz (young Russian heroes with mutant powers) fight Stalnoivok (a villain of extreme strength, who has gone mad battling aliens).

Atom

Ray Palmer was fighting his time traveling foe, Chronos, when the Invasion! hit.  The shrinking hero formed an alliance with Chronos in Power of the Atom #7 (Holiday, 1988, by Roger Stern, Graham Nolan and Keith Stan Wilson). freeing humans trapped by the Khunds. In Power Of The Atom #8 (January, 1989,  by Stern, Nolan and Wilson), Atom checks on the world's repair efforts (meeting Green Lantern along the way), finds that Chronos ended their truce by killing a Thanagarian Wingman (Ray thinking for a second it might be his friend, Hawkman), and goes to confront his foe as something bad happens for Earth (resolved in Invasion! #3).

New Guardians

The New Guardians were heroes that came out of the last DC crossover, Millennium, and were a group of heroes (Ram, Gloss, Floro, Extrano, Harbinger and not pictured, Jet) who, working with former Green Lanterns Arisia and Kilowog, faced the Warlords of Okaara in New Guardians #6 (Holiday, 1988 by Cary Bates, Joe Staton and Mark Farmer) with fatal results for a member of the team.  In New Guardians #7 (February, 1989 by Bates, Staton and Farmer), the team splits up to deal with the loss, and team sorceror, Extrano, gains a crystal skull to focus his power.

Doom Patrol

A later incarnation of the Doom Patrol, with original members Robotman and the Chief, and newer members temperature controlling Celsius, Negative Woman (similar powers to Negative Man), energy blasting Tempest, magnetic Lodestone and fiery Scott Fischer work with alien foe of the Patrol, Garguax (who was not invited into the Alien Alliance) against the Gil'Dishpan, to save Atlantis (along with help from Aquaman, Aqualad and the Sea Devils) in Doom Patrol #17 (1988 by Paul Kupperberg, Graham Nolan and Timothy Dzon), with the team losing a new member.  In Doom Patrol #18 (January, 1989, by Kupperberg, Nolan and Dzon), the team deals with the loss, as former Negative Man Larry Trainor is injured in a crash, and Negative Woman Valentina Volstok loses her powers, as the rest of the team gathers for the funeral for their fallen comrade (and leads into Invasion! #3, where another new member also perishes).

Batman and Spectre

Batman was recruited to battle Thanagarians, Durlans and Khunds in Cuba by Maxwell Lord in Detective Comics #595 (1988, by Alan Grant, John Wagner, Irv Novick and Steve Mitchell), and the Spectre kept the supernatural members of the DCU (Madame Xanadu, Deadman, Demon, Dr. Fate, Phantom Stranger, Tala and Zatanna) out of the conflict (with one exception, as seen in Invasion! #2), in Spectre #23 (Holiday, 1988 by Doug Moench and Chris Wozniak).

Superman

Superman had his two issues after Invasion! #2, the Aftermath issues, starting with Superman #27 (January, 1989 by Roger Stern, Kerry Gammill and Brett Breeding) with an exhausted Clark Kent (Superman), getting some rest, while Gangbuster goes to attack Luthor (who is protected by Brainiac, though not that well, as Brainiac went into a coma trying to read Gangbuster's mind), then Gangbuster is confronted by the Guardian, who finds out that Gangbuster is.... next in Adventures of Superman #450 (January, 1989), revealing who this Gangbuster really is, and leading Superman to decide that it is too dangerous for him to stay on Earth (and we also see the prototype Supergirl, Matrix, with the Kents in this issue).  Superman prepares to leave Earth (but events lead him back for Invasion! #3).

Justice League International

The current Justice League is pretty busy fighting Khunds with Wonder Woman, so Mr. Miracle's assistant, Oberon and future hero, Booster Gold, are left to defend their HQ in  Justice League International #22 (1988, by Keith Giffen, J. M. DeMatteis, Kevin Maquire and Josef Rubinstein) from miniaturized Khunds.  The team regathers in Invasion! #2, plus many other heroes, and in Justice League International #23 (January, 1989 by Giffen, DeMatties, Maquire and Rubinstein), sees the gathering of the Injustice League (Big Sir, Cluemaster, Major Disaster, Multi-Man and Clock King, and the not pictured Mighty Bruce) form to raid a Khund ship, with disastrous results (for the Injustice League), facing Guy Gardner (then, onto Invasion! #3, and meeting more heroes).

The invasion had ended, and the pieces needed to be picked up....and they were in Justice League International #24 (February, 1989), with an expansion of the current JLI of Blue Beetle, Fire, Guy Gardner, Ice, Batman, Mr. Miracle, Captain Atom, Rocket Red, Booster Gold and Martian Manhunter), into a new team with Elongated Man, Wonder Woman, Power Girl, Animal Man, Metamorpho and Flash (Wally West) (and Hawkman and Hawkwoman leaving).....with more on that to follow, and of these stories, only the Justice League Internationals have been collected so far (#22 in their 3rd TPB, and #23 and #24 in their 4th)!

But, wait!  There is more!

DC Invasion Crossovers Part 1

Invasion! was a three issue mini series in 1988, by Keith Giffen, Bill Mantlo, Todd McFarlane, P. Craig Russell, Al Gordon, Josef Rubinstein, Tom Christopher, and Bart Sears, covering a gathering of the Alien Alliance (headed by the Dominators) to unite against the heroes of Earth.

The first issue was devoted entirely to the Alien Alliance, and the kidnapping of humans from Earth to be tested for a genetic anomaly....which some people on Earth were found to have, that allowed them to manifest super human abilities when hit with extreme stress or danger.

This first issue set the stage for First Strike and Aftermath (the second and third issues of the series), as well as the two issues of individual titles of the heroes of the DC Universe, some of which are detailed below.

Flash

The Flash of Invasion! was Wally West, who, being Kid Flash until the supposed death of his mentor, Barry Allen, fought on as the Flash.  Flash fought the Durlans (shape-changing aliens) in Cuba, where his father (Rudolph West) was also hiding in Flash #21 (1988), and Flash #22 (January, 1989), in issues by William Messner-Loebs, Greg LaRocque and Larry Mahlstedt, and Flash also worked with the Manhunter.

Manhunter

Manhunter was a man named Mark Shaw, who worked for the Manhunters (precursors to the Green Lantern Corps), but turned against them, and became a bounty hunter of super-villains.  Manhunter was paid by Wally's mom to go down to Cuba to help Wally (thus he also ended up fighting the Durlans as well, using his training and energy baton) in issues of Manhunter #8 (Holiday 1988) and #9 (January, 1989) by Kim Yale, John Ostrander, Frank Springer and Pablo Marcos, in tales intertwined with those of Flash and Invasion!

Checkmate

Ordinary men had to step up during the Invasion, and the knights of the secret government organization, Checkmate! were as likely as any to do the job.  Checkmate #11 (Holiday, 1988) dealt with humans working with the aliens to unseat the government in England, while Checkmate #12 (February, 1989) dealt with the knights keeping Cape Canaveral safe (and dealing with the Dominators last assault on mankind) in two stories by Paul Kupperberg, Steve Erwin and Al Vey.

Animal Man and Swamp Thing

Animal Man (the man with animal powers) and Swamp Thing (a powerful Earth Elemental both got a little involvement in the battle.  In Animal Man #6 (Holiday 1988 by Grant Morrison, Chas Troug and Doug Hazlewood), Buddy Baker (a.k.a Animal Man) faced off against a Thanagarian warrior and artist, with a little help from Hawkman, while Swamp Thing #81 (Holiday, 1988, by Rick Veitch and Alfredo Alcala) didn't have Swamp Thing in it (as the Dominators sent him away the issue before, fearing their plant-based technology would be vulnerable to a plant elemental), and this issue dealt with his wife, Abby Cable, dealing with a widowed alien.

Superman

Superman had two monthly titles at this time, so we deal with the First Strike issues of his here.  In Superman #26 (1988 by Roger Stern, Kerry Gammill and Brett Breeding), Superman dealt with the supernatural menace of Baron Sunday, as well as attacks by the Thanagarians and the machinations of Luthor and Brainiac, with Captain Atom looking for Superman, but only finding the Guardian (and a new Gangbuster emerging to help people in Metropolis as well).  In Adventures of Superman #449 (1988, by Jerry Ordway and Dennis Janke), Guardian fights Gangbuster while looking for Superman, finding the man of steel but losing Gangbuster.  Jimmy Olsen helps out, getting Superman to Captain Atom, and leading him to meet with the Dominators (and leading into Invasion! #2).

Wonder Woman

Wonder Woman is recruited to help by Black Canary in Wonder Woman #25 (1988 by George Perez, Chris Marrinan and Will Blyberg), helping the Justice League International against the warrior Khunds, while in Wonder Woman #26 (January, 1989, also by Perez, Marrinan and Blyberg), Wonder Woman works with Captain Atom and Etta Candy to free Steve Trevor from the shape-changing Durlans.

Captain Atom

Nuclear powered hero wrapped in an alien metal shell, Captain Atom, is recruited by the U.S. government to head up the response to the aliens in Captain Atom #24 (1988, by Cary Bates, Greg Weisman, Pat Broderick and Romeo Tanghal), with the JLI's Maxwell Lord, the Suicide Squad's Amanda Waller and General Wale Eiling (secretly of the Captain Atom Project), and they find a Durlan spy disguised as Steve Trevor in their midst (leading back into Invasion! and the later Wonder Woman story).  In Captain Atom #25 (January, 1989, by Bates, Weisman, Broderick and Robert Smith), the heroes celebrate what they thought was a victory until situation change (leading into Invasion! #3).

Starman

Will Payton was a man struck by a beam from outer space, allowing him to control his density, fly and limited shape-change, which he used to become the hero, Starman.  Dealing with a group of powered people called the Power Elite, Starman is recruited into the Invasion in Starman #5 (Holiday, 1988 by Roger Stern, Tom Lyle and Robert Smith), after being kidnapped by a Durlan, and then fighting Khunds with Firestorm, Firehawk and Power Girl.  Then, after Invasion! #2, in Starman #6 (January, 1989 by Stern, Lyle and Smith), Will is part of clean-up duty across the world, along with Green Lantern, Atom, Power Girl and Blue Beetle, and runs into the Power Elite again as time for Earth runs out....

Invasion continues...

...and the 3 issue mini-series is collected in tradepaperback, with Animal Man's issue in the Animal Man TPB of 1991, Swamp Thing in Swamp Thing: Infernal Triangles TPB of 2007, and the Superman tales would make it into a Superman: The Man of Steel Volume 11 (if there is to be one), and the Wonder Woman issues would be in the second Wonder Woman by George Perez Omnibus due out in 2017, with the rest of the tales presented here needing collection.....

....and more tales to follow in a new column!