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Post by Slam_Bradley on Dec 14, 2022 12:35:45 GMT -5
Do I dare ask what the Whiz kids powers were ?  I wish I had an appropriately snappy response but unfortunately he was just another Robin-style kid acrobat.
Cei-U! I summon the letdown!
Well...there is that incredibly powerful stream when he urinates. |
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Dec 14, 2022 13:01:46 GMT -5
In which Slam Bradley makes comments on the previous days choices. They may be acerbic, though almost never insightful, and have, apparently, become something of a tradition (which terrifies the crap out of me. What is wrong with you people?). The Death Battalion - Oh sure, Kurt pulls the Golden Age historian card to give us something really obscure. I honestly don't think I've ever read a GA story starring Mr. Scarlet and Pinky (were there ever worse names for a heroic duo? why didn't Wertham pull out these two?). I feel like The Black Clown is pretty problematic. But, neat. Terra-Man and the Penguin - I read a handful of the dollar World's Finest's, but this wasn't one of them. That's a weird team...so it's definitely got that going for it. And that's a good thing. The U-foes - I was never a regular reader of The Hulk, but oddly I know I had this issue. Because I know that I read the U-Foes at some point and I can guarantee it wasn't any of their appearances after this. That said, I have zero memory of this issue or them. So they clearly made a huge impact on my psyche. Thaddeus Killgrave, The Toyman, and Gillespie - We've talked and talked about avoiding Superman comics. C'mon...get with the program. Gas Gang - I did not think about The Gas Gang. And they probably wouldn't have made my list. But I'm super happy to see them here and in a double dose. As I've said I find most Silver Age books to be a hard go (DC even moreso than Marvel) but honestly villains like this are still super fun. The Masked Marauder and The Gladiator - I've read the issues you cited, though it's been a long time. I have a fondness for the Masked Marauder because he was in one of the first Daredevil stories I ever read (in one of the Marvel reprint mags that I'm too lazy to look up, maybe Marvel's Biggest Cash Grab). So Cool. The Brotherhood of Evil - Another somewhat goofy Silver Age group. I will say that Doom Patrol, to me, reads better than a LOT of DC's contemporaneous stuff. And there's a fair chance we shall see them again.
Mr. Nice, Mastermind and The Perfessor - This came out at the very tail-end of my buying comics in a comic shop. And I did not buy the Batman animated books (though I should have). But now I'm going to find this one and read it. So you've done your job, DubipR The Grapplers - I read MTIO semi-regularly in this era and I actually have that issue. I recognize the cover, but have zero memory of the book. Probably because wrestling is awful. The Royal Flush Gang Beyond - Batman Beyond is a bit of a blind spot for me. I was down on the concept when it came out, for no real reason other than to be contrary. So I need to look in to it because it's supposed to be good. The Zodiac - I'm sure I've read stories with The Zodiac in them. I'm sure I don't remember them. It's a wonderfully goofy concept. Which is fine as long as you accept that it's goofy and don't pretend it's serious. Tarantula and his Web Masters - I kind of feel that driver1980 does this just to mess with me. I've only been paranoid since everyone has been out to get me. The Super Apes (plus or minus The Red Ghost) - Man...how did I forget them? I don't think I'd have found room for them, but I do like them. So I'm glad to see them here monkeying around. COBRA - I was way too old for the tiny GI Joes and the cartoons and funnybooks thereof. So...I got nuthin. Libra's Injustice Gang of the World - I'm pretty sure I've read this because I recognize the cover. But I have zero memory of it. I love the Satellite era JLA nostalgically, but I'm terrified to actually revisit it, because I'm pretty sure it will not hold up. The Blitzkrieg Squad - I think that I've mentioned that, while I've read probably the majority of the Silver Age Marvel hero output, I've never read Sgt. Fury. Maybe some day. The only good Nazi is a dead Nazi. Nefaria's Washington Heist Gang - I can't remember if I ever got this far in reading the original iteration of the X-Men. It's not ringing any bells. Can I just say that The Porcupine looks absolutely ridiculous? |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Dec 14, 2022 15:58:59 GMT -5
The Royal Flush Gang Beyond - Batman Beyond is a bit of a blind spot for me. I was down on the concept when it came out, for no real reason other than to be contrary. So I need to look in to it because it's supposed to be good. The cartoon was really good, and still stands up well to this day and the original comic series that came out with the show was fantastic(much like the Batman: The animated series comic). There have been some slight diminishing returns in comic runs since then but that's true of most things. |
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Post by Myke Gee on Dec 14, 2022 19:20:40 GMT -5
12. Elements of Doom
The Elements of Doom are a villainous team consisting of humanoid living elements that battled both the Avengers primarily and the Thunderbolts sporadically. Although they began as mutated humans granted powers to control and manipulate elements, later incarnations included pure elements granted humanoid form and sentience. This group consists of about 51 elements. Members: Arsenic, Barium, Beryllium, Bromine, Cadmium, Californium, Carbon, Cesium, Chromium, Chlorine, Cobalt, Copper, Disprosium, Erbium, Europium, Gold, Hafnium, Helium, Indium, Iridium, Iron, Lead, Magnesium, Mercury, Neptunium, Nickel, Nobelium, Phosphorus, Plutonium, Radium, Scandium, Silver, Sodium, Tellurium, Thallium, Tungsten, Uranium, Vanadium, Zirconium, Vanadium, Phosphorus, Radium, Titanium, Neon, Plutonium, Vibranium, Platinum, and Neodymium. Creators: Bill Mantlo and John Byrne. First Appearance: THE AVENGERS #188 (1979)**** The Elements aren't a group that I've seen a lot. In fact, the only appearance that I've seen was their first. But, it made an impression. Or, should I say the concept made an impression? The idea of a group based on the Periodic Table of Elements and each member's powers being based on the element's properties seemed like a fantastic idea. The original lineup consisted of six members based on six different elements: Carbon, Chlorine, Cobalt, Phosphorus, Radium, and Vanadium. In my 14-year-old mind, that meant that there were, potentially, 118 members in that team. Honestly, I thought that they were a one-and-done team, but after a little research for this project, I learned that they made appearances in THE THUNDERBOLTS and that the team did expand. So, now I have some books to read. Cheers!!!  |
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Post by Paste Pot Paul on Dec 15, 2022 1:52:28 GMT -5
Here goes, its been a while but like riding a bike n all... 12. Batman/Judge Dredd: Judgment on Gotham
John Wagner, Alan Grant and Simon Bisley
Judge Death, Mean Machine, and the Scarecrow
  I was in my late 20s when this arrived, unemployed after leaving my first real job, and going through the big crisis of faith about comics. Its around this time that, sick of moving 4-5000 comics multiple times a year for the last 3-4 years, I made the decision to sell. I had lost interest in 2000AD recently, believing that the first 10 years of the title were by far the most creative and effective, and although there were the occasional strip like Zenith the Galaxy's Greatest Comic wasnt too Zargaz anymore. BUT the Biz, on Dredd and freaking Batman. No way, No how was I missing that or this  Its mainly Dredd's nemesis's (that just has to be wrong) that interested me but Scarecrows ability works well with the kind of absolute terror that Judge Death would invoke in most of us mere mortals. (Well to be honest it was Biz drawing the hell out of the book that was the #1 attraction) |
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Post by EdoBosnar on Dec 15, 2022 6:22:40 GMT -5
12. Elements of Doom (...) Wonderful - these guys were a near miss for me, and I thought nobody else would even think of them much less pick them. Glad to be proven wrong. |
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Post by Farrar on Dec 16, 2022 13:50:48 GMT -5
#12 Dragon Fly, Silken Spider, and Tiger Moth in Batman #181 Created by Robert Kanigher and Sheldon Moldoff Most of my choices are firmly rooted in nostalgia, and this one's a prime example. This was one of one of the first superhero comics I ever read. Yes, this comic marked Poison Ivy's debut, but I never particularly cared for that character. Instead, I was mesmerized by the three "world public enemies" shown below. Like a lot of kids I was fascinated by living creatures--you know birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, fish, and yes insects (we didn't live in the country but we had all those great Herbert Zim nature books at home). So I was especially intrigued by the insect/arachnid-themed Dragon Fly, Silken Spider, and Tiger Moth! They're rivals but as you can see in the second panel, they agree to join forces to gang up against Batman and Robin.  But their alliance is short-lived, as we move into Golden Apple of Discord territory.  Now the fact that they didn't seem to have any special powers or abilities should have been a tip-off to me that these three weren't intended to be long-term characters. And as I began to get more into superhero comics and back issues, I was disappointed to find out that they'd had no previous appearances; I realized they had been created specifically for this issue and were basically disposable  What a waste of great costumes and intriguing super-names. Oh well; later on I became aware of Marvel's Wasp and Black Widow later and that helped me get over my disappointment somewhat. Anyway, Batman #181 was this trio's last appearance until 1995 when they (or post-Crisis versions thereof) show up as a singing group (wtf??) in Batman: Shadow of the Bat Annual #3 (Year One: Poison Ivy). In 2007 they also popped up in a few comics ( Batman #670, Nightwing #138, Detective Comics #838) that were part of The Resurrection of Ra's al Ghaul arc.
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Post by Prince Hal on Dec 16, 2022 14:12:50 GMT -5
Farrar , not only a good choice and write-up, but a shout-out to Herbert Zim, too. Well done. 
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Post by Cei-U! on Dec 16, 2022 14:34:20 GMT -5
Farrar , not only a good choice and write-up, but a shout-out to Herbert Zim, too. Well done. No foolin'! I must've had half a dozen of Zim's books, including this one, as a kid. Wish I still did.
Cei-U! I summon the blast of nostalgia!
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Post by EdoBosnar on Dec 16, 2022 15:22:38 GMT -5
Farrar , not only a good choice and write-up, but a shout-out to Herbert Zim, too. Well done. No foolin'! I must've had half a dozen of Zim's books, including this one, as a kid. Wish I still did.
(...) I think we had about dozen of them in the same bookcase as our encyclopedias - and we did live in the country, Farrar. I loved those little books and I, too, wish I still had them. Thanks for posting that cover, Prince Hal, it brought back some pleasant reading memories... |
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Post by Deleted on Dec 17, 2022 10:14:27 GMT -5
Gas Gang - I did not think about The Gas Gang. And they probably wouldn't have made my list. But I'm super happy to see them here and in a double dose. As I've said I find most Silver Age books to be a hard go (DC even moreso than Marvel) but honestly villains like this are still super fun. A dose of the Gas Gang? Pun intended, sir? |
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Dec 17, 2022 13:06:08 GMT -5
Gas Gang - I did not think about The Gas Gang. And they probably wouldn't have made my list. But I'm super happy to see them here and in a double dose. As I've said I find most Silver Age books to be a hard go (DC even moreso than Marvel) but honestly villains like this are still super fun. A dose of the Gas Gang? Pun intended, sir? Always. |
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Post by Farrar on Dec 18, 2022 18:10:23 GMT -5
I checked and I think I have a few more somewhere (they may be in another residence), but I did find these two   |
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Post by Cei-U! on Dec 18, 2022 18:17:20 GMT -5
I checked and I think I have a few more somewhere (they may be in another residence), but I did find these two Had 'em both!
Cei-U! I summon the Waybac Machine!
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Post by EdoBosnar on Dec 19, 2022 3:40:42 GMT -5
Had 'em both!
Cei-U! I summon the Waybac Machine!
Me, too (although the Zoology book had a different cover). Also had these: |
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What a waste of great costumes and intriguing super-names. Oh well; later on I became aware of Marvel's Wasp and Black Widow later and that helped me get over my disappointment somewhat.
