IDW Publishing from Diamond Distributors for October 17, 2018

IDW PUBLISHING

JUL180921    BATMAN SILVER AGE NEWSPAPER COMICS SLIPCASE ED    $99.99
JUL180833    GHOSTBUSTERS CROSSING OVER #7 CVR A SCHOENING    $3.99
JUL180834    GHOSTBUSTERS CROSSING OVER #7 CVR B LATTIE    $3.99
JUL180922    KING OF COMICS SC 100 YEARS KING FEATURES SYNDICATE    $39.99
JUL180826    OPTIMUS PRIME #24 CVR A ZAMA    $3.99
JUL180827    OPTIMUS PRIME #24 CVR B GRIFFITH    $3.99
AUG180802    REAL SCIENCE ADVENTURES NICODEMUS JOB #4 CVR A MCCLAREN    $3.99
AUG180803    REAL SCIENCE ADVENTURES NICODEMUS JOB #4 CVR B FOLEY    $3.99
JUL180873    RISE OF THE TMNT #1 CVR A SURIANO    $3.99
AUG180687    STAR WARS TALES FROM VADERS CASTLE #3 (OF 5) CVR A FRANCAVIL    $3.99
AUG180688    STAR WARS TALES FROM VADERS CASTLE #3 (OF 5) CVR B HOWELL (C    $3.99
AUG180734    TMNT ONGOING #87 CVR A WACHTER    $3.99
AUG180735    TMNT ONGOING #87 CVR B EASTMAN    $3.99
AUG180725    TRANSFORMERS OPTIMUS PRIME TP VOL 04    $19.99

Review: TALES OF THE BATMAN:Carmine Infantino

TALES OF THE BATMAN: CARMINE INFANTINO
DC COMICS – @DCComics

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

WRITERS: Gardner Fox, John Broome, Cary Bates, Gerry Conway, Don Kraar, Mike Barr, Geoff Johns
FEATURED ARTIST: Carmine Infantino
INKERS: Joe Giella, Murphy Anderson, Sid Greene, Bob Smith, Steve Mitchell, Mike DeCarlo, Sal Trapani, Mike Esposito, Neal Adams
COVER: Carmine Infantino and Murphy Anderson
ADDITIONAL ART: Jim Aparo, Adam Hughes, Bob Kane, Gil Kane, Charles Paris
ISBN:  978-1-4012-4755-3; hardcover (June 3, 2014)
520pp, Color, $49.99 U.S., $58.00 CAN

Batman created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger

Carmine Infantino (1925 – 2013) was an American comic book creator who worked as an artist and as an editor.  He began working in comic books in 1942 and was best known for his association with DC Comics, where he was a comic book cover artist, interior story artist, character designer, and editor.

Infantino was a major force during what is known as the “Silver Age” of American comics book.  In 1956, Infantino joined writer Robert Kanigher in DC Comics' first attempt at reviving a superhero from the “Golden Age” of comic books.  Kanigher and Infantino created an updated version of The Flash that would appear in Showcase #4 (cover dated: October 1956).  Infantino designed the Flash's now-classic red uniform with yellow detail and fashioned a new visual language to depict the Flash's speed, with both vertical and horizontal motion lines to make the Flash's figure a red and yellow blur.

In 1964, Infantino began his second DC Comics reclamation protect, when he was tasked with reviving the faded Batman line of comic book titles.  Infantino and writer John Broome introduced the “New Look” Batman and Robin in Detective Comics #327 (cover dated: May 1964).  Broome and Infantino abandoned the sillier aspects and fanciful characters that had crept into the Batman comics over the better part of two decades (such as Bat-Mite in 1959).

Under the guiding hand of this new creative team, the Adventures of Batman and Robin in both Batman and in Detective Comics took a detective-oriented direction.  Infantino's art for the “New Look” Batman and Robin was slick and streamlined.  He went away from drawing Batman in a style that was some variation of the art of Bob Kane, Batman's creator.  For the better part of three decades, most artists took their cue from Kane when drawing Batman comic books and newspaper comic strips, even if they already had their own distinctive style.

Carmine Infantino is the artist who visually and graphically and in terms of storytelling modernized Batman comic books.  From 1964 to 1968, Infantino was the lead comic book artist for DC Comics' flagship Batman titles.  Even when Infantino did not draw the interior art for Batman or Detective Comics, he usually provided the pencil art for the covers.

Infantino's work on the Batman titles over the four year period, from Detective Comics #327 to the cover of Batman #199 (cover dated: February 1968), for which he only provided the cover pencils, is collected in the hardcover comics collection, Tales of the Batman: Carmine Infantino.  Originally released in 2014, this full-cover archival collection also reprints Infantino's 1980s Batman work in Detective Comics #500 (cover dated: March 1981) and in The Brave and the Bold (issues 172, 183, 190, and 194 – 1982 to 1983).  There is also a story from DC Comics Presents: Batman #1 (cover dated: September 2004).

When I opened this book and saw the first page of Detective Comics #327, I was immediately struck by how different it looks.  Even 50+ years later, Infantino's art stands out as unique.  I have seen enough of the Batman comics that came before it to say this issue of Detective Comics represented a sort of evolutionary leap for Batman comic books.  In fact, in something unusual for comic books, Detective Comics seems new and “now.”  For a time, the relatively long lead time needed to produce comic books made them seem behind current events.  This comic book matched the looks, styles, designs, and visuals of the time, with some of the art resembling the design style known as “mid-century modern”.

Infantino made the world of Batman hip, modern, and urbane.  There is a James Bond quality to the graphical storytelling.  John Broome introduces adversaries for the Dynamic Duo that range from spectacular, colorfully costumed supervillains to conniving ordinary hoods.  Every one of them has fashioned some ingenious plan, wacky conspiracy, or over-thought murder plot that involves twists and turns and even secret agent-type gadgets.  Infantino's slick compositions and sleek draftsmanship make the entirety of a story seem more cool and stylish even when it ought to look like what it is – silly.

Infantino's “new look” Batman apparently inspired the mid to late 1960s, ABC television series, “Batman,” which starred Adam West as Batman and Burt Ward as Robin.  I also see the influence of Carmine Infantino's art on the Batman comic book artists that would follow him; Jim Aparo and Don Newton are two that come to mind.

If I had to offer specific reasons why you should buy this pricey book, I could name a few.  Well, this book reprints the first appearance of Barbara Gordon as Batgirl in the story, “The Million Dollar Debut of Batgirl!,” from Detective Comics #359 (cover dated: January 1967).  The book also reprints Infantino's Batman and Detective Comics covers.  Through his compositions for these covers, Infantino proves to be a master of motion, and these covers pulse with energy.  Sometimes, the entire cover illustration seems as if it wants to leap off the page because two dimensions cannot contain its vigor.

So, yeah, Batman fans, buy Tales of the Batman: Carmine Infantino.

A+

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


The text is copyright © 2016 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

-----------------

Review: WHO'S WHO Volume 1

WHO'S WHO: THE DEFINITIVE GUIDE OF THE DC UNIVERSE VOL. 1
DC COMICS – @DCComics

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

WRITERS: Len Wein, Marv Wolfman
PENCILS: Joe Orlando, Craig Hamilton, Carmine Infantino, Don Heck, Alex Saviuk, Scott Shaw!, Jerry Ordway, Marshall Rogers, Mike Zeck, Keith Giffen, Ernie Colón, Gil Kane, José Delbo, Howie Post, Greg Theakston, George Pérez, Chuck Patton, Steve Bissette, Jan Duursema, Eduardo Barreto, Rick Hoberg, Murphy Anderson, Curt Swan, Tod Smith
INKERS: Joe Orlando, Dick Giordano, Frank McLaughlin, Murphy Anderson, Don Heck, Scott Shaw!, Jerry Ordway, Marshall Rogers, John Beatty, Bob Oksner,  Ernie Colón, Gil Kane, Romeo Tanghal, Howie Post, Greg Theakston,  George Pérez, John Totleben, Jan Duursema, Eduardo Barreto, Rick Magyar
COLORS: Helen Visik, Shelly Eiber, Tatjana Wood, Joe Orlando, Greg Theakston
LETTERS: Todd Klein (production)
EDITORIAL: Len Wein with Marv Wolfman and Robert Greenberger
COVER: George Perez
32pp, Color, $1.00 U.S., $1.35 CAN, 45p U.K. (March 1985)

Who's Who: The Definitive Guide to the DC Universe was an encyclopedia of the characters, places, and things of the DC Universe, but it was published in a comic book format.  Created by Len Wein, Marv Wolfman, and Robert Greenberger, Who's Who began publication in 1984 one month before the release of Crisis on Infinite Earths, the 12-issue comic book series that changed the DC Universe of characters.  Who's Who ran for 26 issues, but there were updates (in 1987 and 1988) and spinoffs (including one for DC Comic's 1980s “Star Trek” comic book series).

In Who's Who, each of the characters, places, and things (for the most part) has its own page and is depicted in an illustration, pin-up, or technical drawing created by a comic book artist or a penciller/inker team.  Some of the artists are legendary comic book creators or are famous or are at least known for their association with DC Comics.  Others are comic book artists who were active working professionals in American comic books, including in independent and alternative comics, at the time of the publication of the original Who's Who.

At the recent Louisiana Comic Con (October 17 and 18th, 2015 in Lafayette, LA), I found a copy of Who's Who: The Definitive Guide to the DC Universe #1.  I once had several issues of this series, but I don't know what happened to them.  Although I actually once read some of the text, I really bought Who's Who for the illustrations.

First of all, I love the wraparound cover art by George Perez, especially the detail with “Arak: Son of Thunder” sitting on a rock outcropping.  Inside, there is also a lot to like.  I think that it is just great that the first illustration of this first issue is by the late, great Joe Orlando, a depiction of House of Secrets star/victim, “Abel.”  Seeing classic Flash artist, Carmine Infantino, draw “Abra Kadabra,” a character in Flash's “rogue gallery” is a treat.  Fans of Jerry Ordway's 1980s work for DC Comics will be happy to see his double-page spread of the cast of All-Star Squadron.

I can never say no to “Ambush Bug” drawn by Keith Giffen.  I can never say “No” to anything by legend Gil Kane, who offers a drawing of pre-Grant Morrison, “Animal-Man” and a drawing of his version of “Atom.”  I like Ernie Colón, so I was happy to see a few drawings from him, including one of “Amethyst: Princess of Gemworld.”  “Arcane” by the classic Swamp Thing art team of Steve Bissette and John Totleben is a highlight.  Classic Golden and Silver Age DC Comics artist, Murphy Anderson, offers a drawing of one of his signature characters, “Atomic Knight.”  Anderson also inked “The Atomic Skull” drawing by one of my all-time favorite artists, Curt Swan.

Greg Theakston did a good job with an “Apokolips” drawing, but I would have preferred that “Fourth World” creator, Jack Kirby, draw Apokolips for this series.  Eduardo Barreto is a fine comic book artist, but I wish that Jose Luis Garcia Lopez had drawn the Atari Force double-spread.

In the nearly three decades since Who's Who: The Definitive Guide to the DC Universe was originally published, much of its text is no longer relevant.  That is the result of DC Comics' numerous reboots and relaunches and “new directions.”  Still, this series can be of use as a reference source for writers, comics historians, and archivists, and especially for fans of DC Comics' bygone days.  Fans of classic and veteran comic book artists, of course, will want this series.  I plan on hunting down more issues.

A-

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux


The text is copyright © 2015 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

DC Comics from Diamond Distributors for May 28 2014

DC COMICS

MAR140242 ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #13 $3.99
MAR140239 ALL STAR WESTERN #31 $3.99
MAR140181 AQUAMAN #31 $2.99
MAR140212 BATMAN #31 (ZERO YEAR) $3.99
MAR140214 BATMAN #31 COMBO PACK (ZERO YEAR) $4.99
MAR140211 BATMAN ETERNAL #8 $2.99
MAR140227 CATWOMAN #31 $2.99
FEB140253 CATWOMAN TP VOL 04 GOTHAM UNDERGROUND (N52) $17.99
MAR140289 DEAD BOY DETECTIVES #6 $2.99
FEB140288 FAIREST TP VOL 03 RETURN OF THE MAHARAJA (MR) $14.99
MAR140184 FLASH #31 $2.99
JAN140368 GIRL WHO PLAYED WITH FIRE HC (MR) $29.99
FEB140238 HE MAN AND THE MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE #13 $2.99
MAR140246 INJUSTICE GODS AMONG US YEAR TWO #5 $2.99
MAR140178 JUSTICE LEAGUE DARK #31 $3.99
MAR140238 LARFLEEZE #11 $2.99
MAR140168 NEW 52 FUTURES END #4 (WEEKLY) $2.99
FEB140159 NIGHTWING #30 (EVIL) (NOTE PRICE) $3.99
MAR140237 RED LANTERNS #31 $2.99
FEB140256 RED LANTERNS TP VOL 04 BLOOD BROTHERS (N52) $16.99
MAR140280 SANDMAN OVERTURE #2 SPECIAL EDITION (MR) $4.99
MAR140183 SECRET ORIGINS #2 $4.99
FEB140251 SHAZAM TP (N52) $16.99
FEB140161 SUICIDE SQUAD #30 (EVIL) $3.99
MAR140201 SUPERMAN #31 (DOOMED) $2.99
JAN140356 TALES OF THE BATMAN CARMINE INFANTINO HC $49.99

DC COMICS/DC COLLECTIBLES

NOV138235 DC COMICS NEW 52 JUSTICE LEAGUE 7 PACK AF BOX SET $99.95

I Reads You Review: CRISIS ON MULTIPLE EARTHS Volume 2

CRISIS ON MULTIPLE EARTHS VOLUME 2
DC COMICS – @DCComics

WRITERS: Gardner Fox, Dennis O’Neil
PENCILS: Mike Sekowsky, Dick Dillin
INKS: Sid Greene, Joe Giella
LETTERS: Gaspar Saladino, Joe Letterese, Milton Snapinn, Ira Schnapp
ORIGINAL COVER ARTISTS:  Mike Sekowsky and Murphy Anderson; Mike Sekowsky and Joe Giella; Carmine Infantino and Murphy Anderson; Dick Dillin and George Roussos; Joe Kubert; Neal Adams
COVER: Jerry Ordway
208pp, Color, $14.95 U.S., $22.95 CAN (2003)

Several years ago, I was one of the winners of a raffle at a local comic book shop (well, at least my version of a local comic shop).  The prizes had mostly been picked through by the time I visited the store again, but I ended up being lucky anyway.  Sitting on the prize table, almost alone, was a copy of Crisis on Multiple Earths Volume 2.

I am a fan of DC Comics’ Silver and Bronze Ages, and here was a book full of Justice League of America reprints from the late Silver Age and at the precipice of the Bronze Age.  As far as I was concerned, I won the raffle.

Crisis on Multiple Earths Volume 2 reprints the following Justice League of America issues with August to September cover dates:  #55-56 (1967), 64-65 (1968), 73-74 (1969), and 82-83 (1970).  The book also reprints three pin-ups that were originally published in Justice League #76 (cover dated: October 1969) and Limited Collector’s Edition C-46 (cover dated: August-September 1976).  Why did DC Comics pair two issues of Justice League of America?

Well, it starts with Flash #123 (cover dated: September 1961).  In a story entitled, “The Flash of Two Worlds,” the Silver Age Flash (Barry Allen) meets his Golden Age counterpart, Jay Garrick.  It turns out Garrick, along with the rest of the original Justice Society of America of the Golden Age of comics, inhabit an alternate universe.  This meeting of the Flash characters from two different comic book eras turned out to be a historic meeting.  Apparently fans liked it, and there were more such issues of Flash.

This set the stage for the first crossover between the Silver Age Justice League of America and the Golden Age Justice Society of America:  “Crisis on Earth-One” (Justice League of America #21, cover dated: August 1963) and “Crisis on Earth-Two” (Justice League of America #22, September 1963).  In this two-part tale, the Justice Society teams up with the Justice League to combat a team of villains from both worlds.  These evil-doers travel between the worlds using vibratory devices made by the Fiddler (a Flash villain).  After kidnapping both Flashes, they plan on committing crimes, and then, each villain will spend the money on the version of Earth where nobody knows him.

From that point on in 1967 until 1985, the JLA/JSA crossover became an annual event in Justice League of America comic book series.  I know that these JLA/JSA team-ups are essential stories that led the way to DC Comics’ universe-changing event series, Crisis on Infinite Earths.  However, I’m reading them because they are a kind of comic book that I like the most.  If you, dear reader, do need some historical perspective, Martin Pasko’s introduction to this trade paperback, “Crisis Behind the Scenes,” is excellent.

The stories in this book also reflect the changes going on in the comic book industry in the late 1960s.  Golden Age Justice Society of America and longtime Justice League of America writer, Gardner Fox (who had written 65 consecutive issues of the JLA series), gave way to then emerging new talent Dennis O’Neil.  Artist Dick Dillin became Justice League of America’s penciller.  He replaced regular JLA artist Mike Sekowsky, who began his comic book career when the industry was in its infancy (in 1941 with Timely Comics).  Even Sekowsky’s inker, Murphy Anderson (who also began working in the 1940s), gave way to Sid Greene and Joe Giella as Dillin’s inkers.

As I am largely unfamiliar with that era of comics, I didn’t notice much of a change in the creative staff, except in the kind of stories Gardner Fox and Dennis O’Neil wrote.  Fox’s JLA-JSA stories are fanciful, like children’s fantasy stories (Alice in Wonderland or The Wizard of Oz).  O’Neil’s stories are more cosmic, and the threats to the heroes are more immediate and dangerous.  Change and death are prominent themes, especially in the 1969 crossover.

I enjoyed reading this trade paperback, and I would recommend it to JLA fans.  Crisis on Multiple Earths Volume 2 makes me look forward to finding the other volumes in the Crisis on Multiple Earths trade paperback series, although I do wonder how many are currently out of print.

B+

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux


The text is copyright © 2014 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for syndication rights and fees.

Leroy Douresseaux on Legion of Super-Heroes The Great Darkness Saga The Deluxe Edition

Legion of Super-heroes: The Great Darkness Saga (Deluxe Edition)

DC COMICS
WRITER: Paul Levitz
PENCILS: Keith Giffen with Pat Broderick, Howard Bender, Carmine Infantino
INKS: Larry Mahlstedt with Bruce D. Patterson, Rodin Rodriguez, Dave Hunt
COLORS: Carl Gafford, Gene D’Angelo
LETTERS: John Costanza, Bruce D. Patterson, Ben Oda, Adam Kubert, Annette Kawecki, Todd Klein, Janice Chiang
COVER: Keith Giffen and Al Milgrom with Drew R. Moore
ISBN: 978-14012-2961-0; hardcover
416pp, Color, $39.99 U.S., $47.99

If there are superhero comic book stories that deserve to be called legendary, then, The Great Darkness Saga is legendary. It may be the most famous Legion of Super-Heroes comic book storyline, and DC Comics is bringing The Great Darkness Saga, first published in the early 1980s, back to print.

No, make that DC Comics is celebrating The Great Darkness Saga with a new book, Legion of Super-Heroes: The Great Darkness Saga The Deluxe Edition. This 416-page (7.25in x 11in) hardcover reprints Legion of Super-Heroes #284-296 and Legion of Super-Heroes Annual 1. The Great Darkness Saga started in #290 and ended in the double-sized #294, but the event was foreshadowed before it actually began in a half-year’s worth of Legion of Super-Heroes comic books. After the end of the epic, the series continued to deal with the repercussions on the Legionnaires.

Written by Paul Levitz and largely drawn by penciller Keith Giffen and inker Larry Mahlstedt, The Great Darkness Saga is basically about the Legion of Super-Heroes war against the forces of Darkseid. The New God quietly reawakens in the 30th century and hatches a complicated, but ingenious plan to both revive his powers and to finally conquer the universe and subvert it to darkness.

Unaware, the Legion of Super-Heroes is in a state of flux with retirements and resignations, and also with Legionnaires moving to reserve status. Older members find themselves feeling replaced by newer members and also dealing with their own adult issues and midlife-like problems. Personal problems become team problems, and personal and professional failings take a toll on the team. When Darkseid’s minions attack, the Legion basically wakes up with their lives like a house on fire.

The Great Darkness Saga was of its time and ahead of its time. The character drama and storylines captured the best elements of two of the most popular comic book series of the time, Chris Claremont’s soap operatic Uncanny X-Men and Marv Wolfman’s emerging New Teen Titans. As the story gets deeper into the conflict with Darkseid, the Legion of Super-Heroes basically establishes the template for series-wide and company-wide crossover events that are common today.

In a more compact manner and with fewer characters (although there are lots of Legionnaires) than most crossover events, Paul Levitz takes readers across the 30th century version of the DC Universe to experience a super powers fight club, in which the superheroes try to stop their existence-as-they-know-it from blinking out in favor of eternal darkness. Levitz deftly balances sustained battles with electrifying, fleeting glimpses at other clashes. This epic is the stencil for Crisis on Infinite Earths and its children; one might even recognize Marvel Comics Secret Invasion in this.

One also cannot help but be impressed by how Keith Giffen and Larry Mahlstedt drew this without the art ever looking hurried or rushed. There is a consistency to the storytelling, and the compositions, also stunningly consistent, are impeccable in their professionalism.

What would a grand hardcover collection of classic comics be without some extras? Legion of Super-Heroes: The Great Darkness Saga The Deluxe Edition offers the standard sketchbook material and bonus cover art, but by far the best extra – the one that really makes this collection – is the inclusion of Levitz’s plot for issue #290, the opening chapter of Darkness. This detailed plot breakdown (one paragraph for each page) will be a treat for Legion fans and of importance for those who want to write superhero comic books.

The Great Darkness Saga was popular at the time of its publication, but because it was so ahead of its time that it seems of this time; so it deserves the deluxe treatment. Legion of Super-Heroes: The Great Darkness Saga The Deluxe Edition is one of those pricey books that should have place in the home of every reader of superhero comic books.

A+