Murder Tales

A bit of an oddity, where no artist info was available, and, even stranger, the run seems to start with 10 and 11, but here are Murder Tales #10 and #11 (November, 1970 and January, 1971) from World Famous Periodicals.

Happy Mother's Day To Scarlet Witch

A throwback to a happier time in comics, when Vision and Scarlet Witch took a (12 issue mini-series) break from being Avengers and concentrated on their family....here, covers to Vision And Scarlet Witch #4 and #12 (January and September, 1986) with art by Richard Howell...

...all to wish you a Happy Mother's Day. 

Oh, and Wanda had twins here (but later, things got SO much more complicated...)

Celebrating Artist Rick Veitch

Celebrating artist Rick Veitch on his birthday (May 7, 1951) with a pair of his covers (DC Comics Presents #85, September, 1985 and Swamp Thing #79, December 1988)...

..featuring the unlikely team ups of Superman and Swamp Thing.

Murder On An Elevator

Sometimes waiting for an elevator is murder...

...but not as bad as it is for these two covers to Crime Does Not Pay by Charles Biro (#34 and #35, from July and September, 1944) from Lev Gleason (such classic crime comics!).

Celebrating Artist Bill Sienkiewicz

Celebrating artist Bill Sienkiewicz on his birthday (May 3, 1958) with some of his earliest covers...

...featuring Spider-Woman, as Jessica Drew navigated her days as one of the west coast's earliest super heroes, fighting with the Shroud and Dazzler!

Spider-Woman #14 and #15 (May and June, 1979)

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Spider-Woman #16 and #27 (July 1979 and June, 1980)

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Spider-Woman #28 and Dazzler #15 (July 1980 and May, 1982)

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Thunderbolts

Fair warning, while this is about Marvel's original Thunderbolts team...

...there are some spoilers below for those who might not have read the comics.

After Onslaught, the Fantastic Four and the Avengers had disappeared off the Earth.  

Luckily, these new heroes, the Thunderbolts arrived...but why did Citizen V, Mach-1, Songbird, Techno, Atlas and Meteorite seem vaguely familiar?

Because...

...as revealed in Thunderbolts #1 (April, 1997) by Kurt Busiek and Mark Bagley...

...extra spoiler space...

...they were really the Masters of Evil!  

Baron Helmut Zemo (son of the original Baron Zemo) hatched the plan to pretend to be heroes and took the identity of Citizen V, with the Beetle (Abner Jenkins) as Mach-1, Screaming Mimi (Mimi Schwartz)  as Songbird, the Fixer (Norbert Ebersol) as Techno, Goliath (Erik Josten) as Atlas and Moonstone (Karla Sofen) as Meteorite!

As the series by Kurt Busiek and Mark Bagley went on, some of the villains stayed villains, as others came to enjoy their heroic identities.

Below, are the debut issues of the original members of the team....

Baron Zemo (as Phoenix, then Baron Zemo) Captain America #168 and #275

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Moonstone (as Karla Sofen, then Moonstone) Captain America #192 and Incredible Hulk #228 

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Goliath (too many identities) and Screaming Mimi (Iron Man Annual #7 and Marvel Two-In-One #54)

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Beetle and the Fixer (Strange Tales #123 and #141)

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Thunderbolts for a while, but also Masters of Evil!

Batman War On Crime

Batman:War On Crime (November, 1999) was the second in a series of treasury comics DC did with art by Alex Ross and written by Paul Dini (after Superman: Peace On Earth) that distill a character down to his essence, and showcase what makes that character special.

Here, it was focused on a short time in the life of Batman, dealing with corporate dealings as Bruce Wayne, and muggers as Batman, and he sees how these slowly relate.

The mugger he caught killed a man and woman at his robbery, with their boy, Marcus, as a witness.  Batman relates to this (having watched his parents die), and it weighs on his conscious.  Next night, stopping a gang, Batman sees Marcus there...but let's the boy run off.  Night after that, Batman confronts the gang again, but this time with Marcus there, and threatening to shoot Batman.  Batman talks him down, saving the boy, but knows there is much more to do.

The next day, as Bruce Wayne, he decides instead of raising the neighborhood Marcus was in to make way for a new project, instead that Wayne Foundation will invest in the neighborhood as is, to improve it for those who live there, showing the basic strength of Batman...not the bat motif, the gadgets or even the billionaire, but that he is just a man, fighting to make the world a better place, one day at a time.

Celebrating Artist Kerry Gammill

Celebrating the birthday of artist Kerry Gammill (April 26, 1954) with his covers to the Power Girl mini-series of 1988...

...wherein Power Girl, dealing with her new magical Atlantean background (it didn't stick) got drawn into the conflict between the Lords of Order and Chaos...fighting the Weaver and his minions, including Force (on the cover of #3), in between her appearances in Infinity, Inc. and the Doom Patrol.

Power Girl #1 and #2 (June and July, 1988)

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Power Girl #3 and #4 (August and September, 1988)

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Looney Tunes Daffy Duck Super Hero

Just a little throwback to the olden days with Daffy Duck, but in his Stupor Duck guise, on two covers for Looney Tunes, #170 (March, 2009) by David Alvarez and Mike DeCarlo and #262 (November, 2021) by Derek Fridolfs, showing life isn't easy for that superfowl. 

The Beginnings Of The Justice Society

Tracking the Justice Society of America down through the ages...

...here are a few of their biggest beginnings from the 20th Century...

...starting from the 1940s to the 1990s, with a little history behind each appearance...

The First Meeting Of The Justice Society Of America

The team first gathered in All-Star Comics #3 (Winter, 1940), with a cover by E. E. Hibbard, and main story by Gardner Fox and E.E. Hibbard, with chapters devoted to each of the individual members of the group who were in attendance at the meeting:  The Flash (Jay Garrick), Hawkman (Carter Hall), the Spectre (Jim Corrigan), Hourman (Rex Tyler), Sandman (Wesley Dodds), Dr. Fate (Kent Nelson), Johnny Thunder (a text story, as Johnny was not yet a member), the Atom (Al Pratt) and Green Lantern (Alan Scott), as well as an interlude with the Red Tornado (and hints that Superman and Batman were too busy to come).

Though the group had met before (though readers had yet to see that), the team just related individual adventures as they interacted and got ready for the next issue, where they would work as a team for the FBI!

This set the tone for many of their adventures, with team members coming (Johnny Thunder, Dr. Mid-Nite (Charles McNider), Starman (Ted Knight), Wonder Woman, Wildcat (Ted Grant), Mr. Terrific (Terry Sloane) and Black Canary (Dinah Drake), as well as two appearances over the decades by Superman and Batman), as the teams adventures ran until All-Star Comics #57 (February-March, 1951) (with a later adventure, detailing how the team had been convinced to retire).

Vengeance Of The Immortal Villain

The team resurfaced in Flash #137 (June, 1963) by Gardner Fox, Carmine Infantino and Joe Giella (with Infantino and Murphy Anderson supplying the cover).  Here, as old (like caveman old) Flash (Jay) villain, Vandal Savage (who was one of many members of the JSA's opposite number, the Injustice Society of the World, and using a few of their gadgets), plotted to capture the retired JSA members (at least close to the final line up of the team (Hawkman, Atom, Green Lantern, Johnny Thunder, Dr. Mid-Nite and Wonder Woman...), but hadn't counted on the interference of an alternate Earth Flash (Barry Allen) who crossed over to help Jay, and the two worked together to save team and defeat Savage.

This convinced the JSA members that they needed to gather occasionally, and they would find some Crisis that had them crossing Earths to meet their counterparts in the Justice League Of America, as the JLA/JSA team-ups began (with that first one giving readers the idea that the JLA was on Earth-1, and JSA was on Earth-2), adding new members of a grown up Robin and a new robotic Red Tornado, with the original heroes (well, at least Flash, Green Lantern and the Atom) occasionally teaming up with their counterparts away from their teams.

 

The Untold Origin Of The Justice Society

Now, in the midst of the decades of JLA/JSA team-ups, the JSA was revived in a new All-Star Comics, adding a time-tossed Star-Spangled Kid and Power Girl, Superman's cousin to the team.  Halfway through that run, in DC Special #29 (August-September, 1977) by Paul Levitz, Joe Staton and Bob Layton (behind a Neal Adams cover), the origin of the team was revealed as the team was gathered by President Franklin D. Roosevelt as a top secret mission to stop Adolf Hitler from invading England in November, 1940.  FDR was able to get Batman, Flash and Green Lantern, and sent them, but they were not entirely successful, with Hitler planning to execute them with the Spear of Destiny (a magical item purporting to be the spear that was used against Jesus).  

Dr. Fate recruited Hourman to help him and save the trio...but that didn't quite work, with Hitler invoking some of the mystic power of the spear to summon the Valkyries (but additional heroes Dr. Fate summoned arrived...Sandman, Hawkman, Atom and the Spectre).  The Spectre especially was able to stop Hitler's sea fleet and disperse the Valkyries...and Hitler used them to guard an experimental plane he had to bomb the United States capital, and would have been successful if not for the last minute appearance of Superman.  After the Atom saved FDR from a rogue Valkyrie, the president suggested the heroes should form a team...and they did.

The Huntress joined the team during the remainder of the JSA's All-Star revival, and into their short run in Adventure Comics (the last of which had Huntress reveal to Power Girl what she knew of how the JSA retired in the 1950s....with the team's loyalty being called into question by Congress, and instead of revealing their identities, the team disappeared for a time).

This time, the team continued at least as part of JLA/JSA team-ups, as well a (sort of) revival in All-Star Squadron (which was 1980s adventures featuring the JSA, but set in the 1940s), which led to Infinity, Inc. (a group of heirs to the JSA as a team, with the JSA as supporting characters), and even another trial in America Vs. the Justice Society....all before the Crisis on Infinite Earths set in motion the events that led to the Justice Society being sentenced to limbo in Last Days Of The Justice Society Special, fighting a never-ending Ragnarok to keep the universe from ending, with only Power Girl, Dr. Fate, Star-Spangled Kid and the Spectre not being trapped in that limbo on the now (supposedly) one and only Earth.

The Gathering Of Heroes

But, you can't keep good heroes down, as in Armageddon: Inferno #4 (July, 1992) by John Ostrander, Dick Giordano, and Frank McLaughlin (and a few other artists like Tom Mandrake, Art Adams and Walt Simonson, with Mike Netzer and Joe Rubinstein on the cover), the JSA returned.  

In the previous issue (with art by Luke McDonnell and Bruce Solotoff), Spectre related to Waverider how the JSA was out of time due to the Spear of Destiny (and Kobra's attack on the Spectre) leading to near Ragnarok, but that combining their power, they could take the JSA out of the loop, and use them to fight Abraxis (an invader from another dimension, who was summoned to Earth, and empowered his minions, getting the time travelling Waverider to recruit heroes to fight him...but all this made time fragile, leading to extraordinary measures).

Still, this returned the JSA to fight Abraxis in his home dimension, where the JSA also empowered to the locals with their Ragnarok energies to help in the fight...and the nameless residents of Abraxis' hopeless dimension found hope with their power, and, replaced the JSA in their endless time loop (after the defeat of Abraxis), resulting in the JSA (plus Hawkgirl and Sandy, partners of Hawkman and Sandman) to be returned to the modern day.

The team had a few adventures (mostly Flash and Green Lantern, with their counterparts), and a slight JSA revival, before the disruption of Zero Hour (which sidelined the team for a time, until it's revival in 1999, leading the team to one of its most successful times)...but, that's a tale for another day....and later in the 21st century....

But, if you have been lucky enough to find this, make sure to check out many other articles and podcasts on the many years of the Justice Society, as we celebrate 85 years of the JSA, and you can find out where to find them checking the #JSApril hashtag, as well as a list at fireandwaterpodcast.com/JSApril.

Celebrating Lee Majors

Celebrating the birthday day of Lee Majors (April 23, 1939).  A known star, he became a mega star as the lead in the Six Million Dollar Man, a TV movie of the week on ABC as pilot Steve Austin, who, after surviving a crash, was rebuild into a cyborg super agent, who went on missions for Oscar Goldman of the OSI.  After a few more TV movies, it became a weekly TV show that lasted 5 season, even spinning off a companion show featuring Steve's girlfriend, Jaime Sommers (who had her own accident requiring bionic replacements, making her a Bionic Woman).

But....what if there had been a sixth season?  

Well, Dynamite Comics did that, having Steve encounter the Bigfoot again, as well as introducing Maskatron (a foe of the Six Million Dollar Man in toy form, finally seen confronting Steve here).

A fun romp, with covers by Alex Ross.

Six Million Dollar Man: Season Six #1 and #2 (March and April, 2014)

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Six Million Dollar Man: Season Six #3 and #4 (May and July, 2014)

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Six Million Dollar Man: Season Six #5 and #6 (August and September, 2014)

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Happy Easter 2025

A happy Easter to all, as Woody Woodpecker tries to have one with his niece, Splinter, and nephew, Knothead, but it seems the eggs are a little more lively on this John Carey cover to Walter Lantz Woody Woodpecker #42 (April-May, 1957) from Dell.

The Flintstones Celebrate Easter

Get ready to celebrate Easter with Fred Flintstone and his daughter Pebbles, as they do on this cover by Ray Dirgo for Flintstones #45 (May, 1976) for one of the 50 issues featuring the Flintstones that Charlton published.

Remembering Artist Earl Norem

Remembering artist Earl Norem on his birthday (April 17, 1924 - June 19, 2015) with two of his painted covers for the Emergency magazine for Charlton, featuring the adventures of paramedics Johnny Gage and Roy DeSoto of Fire Station 51 in the Los Angeles area, under the guide of the medical staff of Rampart hospital including Dr. Kelly Brackett, nurse Dixie McCall and Dr. Joe Early.

The issues are Emergency #3 and #4 (November, 1976 and January, 1977).

Celebrating Artist Amanda Connor

Celebrating the birthday of artist Amanda Conner (April 12, 1967) with a revival...when DC brought Power Girl back to the JSA, she still had her new Atlantean history behind her...but, with the 4 issues of JSA: Classified, Power Girl's original Pre-Crisis history as cousin to the original Superman came back (as did, some pre-Crisis ties, like the Legion of Super-Heroes, the Crime Syndicate of America, the Huntress and the Psycho-Pirate) as the world braced for the Infinite Crisis!

JSA: Classified #1 and #1B (September, 2005)

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JSA: Classified #2 and #2B (October, 2005)

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JSA: Classified #3 and #4 (November and December, 2005)

Showcase On Windy And Willy

When is a reprint not a reprint?  

Well, when DC didn't have the rights to the Many Loves of Dobie Gillis any more, they took that early sixties series, made some modifications to make it a little more later sixties, and thus was born Windy and Willy, a series featuring to lovable beatniks Windy and Willy, who seems to resemble Maynard G. Krebs and Dobie Gillis...and their Showcase issue and 4 issues (with adapted story issue covers next to them are below).

Far out!

Showcase #81 and The Many Loves Of Dobie Gillis #26 (March, 1969 and October, 1964)

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Windy and Willy #1 and The Many Loves Of Dobie Gillis #18 (May-June, 1969 and March-April, 1963)

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Windy and Willy #2 and The Many Loves Of Dobie Gillis #25 (July-August, 1969 and September, 1964)

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Windy and Willy #3 and The Many Loves Of Dobie Gillis #20 (September-October, 1969 and July-August, 1963)

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Windy and Willy #4 and The Many Loves Of Dobie Gillis #17 (November-December, 1969 and January-February, 1963)

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