comic books – Page 124

The Justice League at 60, Part Three: Into Orbit

Tom Bondurant jumps into the ‘Satellite Era’ of the 1970s and ’80s this week, as he continues his look 60 years of the Justice League.

Check out part one and part two of this series!

What we’re calling the “Satellite Era” of Justice League of America began in November 1968’s issue #66, several issues before the team would move into its new headquarters stationed geosynchronously 22,300 miles above Metropolis. Still, writer Gardner Fox’s departure with #65 was the end of an era which stretched arguably back to the Justice Society; and successor Denny O’Neil was making changes even before the satellite was built.

Just as the Silver Age was dominated by Fox and artist Mike Sekowsky, the Satellite Era would be directed mostly by writer Gerry Conway and artist Dick Dillin. This period lasted until November 1984’s issue #232 (after which the team had moved out of the satellite for good); and of those 164 regular issues and two Annuals, Conway wrote 81 and Dillin pencilled 116. Because Conway arrived long after Dillin started, the two only collaborated on 39 issues. Nevertheless, one or the other was part of just about every JLA issue from November 1968 through February 1984.

The Justice League at 60, Part Two: Setting The Standard

Tom Bondurant continues his look at the different eras that have defined the Justice League with an overview of the team’s early years.

Check out part one in this series here!

On or about Dec. 29, 1959, newsstands received new issues of 10 comics series. Next to the four different Archie Comics titles and two Prize Comics romance series were four DC books: Sugar & Spike #27, Detective Comics #276, Strange Adventures #113 and (cover-dated February-March 1960) The Brave and the Bold #28. Like its fellow DC series Showcase, B&B had switched to rotating features and had just concluded three issues’ worth of the spy-centric Suicide Squad. Therefore, dominating B&B‘s cover this month was the title of the newest feature, Justice League of America.

Thanks to Strange Adventures #113, Starro the Conqueror was not the only tentacled menace on that day’s newsstands; but he was the only one being fought by a quintet of familiar superheroes. Martian Manhunter had been around for a few years in Detective; just a few days before, DC had published new issues of Flash and Wonder Woman; and on New Year’s Eve, readers would find a new Aquaman tale in Adventure Comics #269. The relaunched Green Lantern was the newest of the group, having concluded his three-issue tryout a month or so earlier, in Showcase #24. (GL’s solo book wouldn’t start until May 24, 1960.)

The Justice League at 60, Part One: Eight Eras

With the team’s first appearance arriving in December of 1959, Tom Bondurant looks back at the different eras that have defined the Justice League over the last 60 years.

The Justice League of America debuted on Dec. 29, 1959, in the pages of February-March 1960’s The Brave and the Bold #28. Therefore, since we’re in their 60th anniversary year, and since the feature is going through yet another transition, it’s a good time for a retrospective. This is an overview, so subsequent posts will examine each League era in more detail.

Although the JLA wasn’t the first all-star super-team – the Justice Society of America turns 80 on Nov. 22, 2020 – it casts a very long shadow over those which followed. Everyone from the Avengers to the Zoo Crew compares and contrasts with the League in one way or another. Indeed, there may not have been a Marvel Comics if (as the legend goes) its publisher hadn’t wanted a series to capitalize on the popularity of Justice League of America. Nevertheless, those groups’ successes have turned the League into something of a default. The Teen Titans are younger, the Justice Society is older, the X-Men are persecuted, the Defenders are ad hoc, etc. Over the years the League has tried its own various tweaks in attempts to stay relevant; but ultimately it’s reverted to the mean – a group of the “World’s Greatest Super-Heroes,” matched against comparable threats.

‘Deadpool’ returns by Kelly Thompson and Chris Bachalo

New series pits Deadpool against monsters and debuts in November.

Marvel’s infamous “merc with a mouth” will return this fall with a brand new series. Kelly Thompson and Chris Bachalo will team for a new Deadpool series that pits the wisecracking mutant against “the king of the monsters.” Which, I presume, isn’t Godzilla (although that would be cool).

‘Nomen Omen’ will haunt your dreams in October

‘It’s a story no one can protect you from.’

Just in time for Halloween, writer/RPG creator Marco B. Bucci (Magna Veritas, Memento Mori) and artist Jacopo Camagni (X-Men Blue, Deadpool The Duck) will tell a tale of witchcraft in Nomen Omen. The 15-issue maxi-series begins in October.

“This is not a comic-book, this is a ritual,” said Bucci. “It’s a story no one can protect you from. But don’t be scared: there’s power in names and by reading our book you’ll get a glimpse of how it works.”

According to the press release, Nomen Omen is “a tale filled with witchcraft and secrets that will rewire the rules of urban fantasy.” The 15-issue maxi-series will launch from Image Comics this October and feature alternative covers by Olivier Coipel and Becky Cloonan.

Milligan + Allred teaming for an ‘X-Statix’ spinoff next year

This week’s ‘Giant-Sized X-Statix’ brings old friends and new surprises.

Fans who were happy to see the team reunite again in the pages of this week’s Giant-Size X-Statix #1 will be positively, um, ecstatic to see the final page.

(Spoilers for Giant-Size X-Statix #1 below)

Haberlin + Hine team up for ‘The Marked’

New series from Image Comics due out in October.

Brian Haberlin and David Hine (Sonata) will re-team for a new series from Image Comics titled The Marked.

“The Marked is my chance to do magical, dark and sexy,” Haberlin said in the press release. “The world may seem familiar, but what lies beneath is certainly not. A world readers of my old series Aria and The Wicked will recognize and maybe we’ll even see some characters from those books appear along the way in this new series!”

Marvel reveals ‘Strikeforce’ for September

New title by Tini Howard and German Peralta features “ruthless” heroes.

After teasing a new “ruthless” super team last week — perhaps one to compete with the Savage Avengers at the Ruthless Olympics — Marvel’s The Pull List program has unveiled a new title, Strikeforce.

Hero and his sidekick clash in ‘Banjax’ #1 [Preview]

Rylend Grant and Fábio Alves team up on a new title from Action Lab Entertainment.

“Banjax” is my new favorite word. It’s a verb that, according to Merriam-Webster, means to “damage” or “ruin.” When it’s a noun, it means “A mess or undesirable situation made as a result of incompetence.” Finally, it’s also the title of a new comic from Action Lab Entertainment.

Aberrant writer Rylend Grant has teamed with artist Fábio Alves, colorist Edson Ferreira and letterer HdE for Banjax, “a dark and decidedly wicked superhero noir that pulls no punches, that suffers no fools, that repeatedly gets knocked down, but always gets back up again with a smile,” according to the press release.

Here’s the book’s description:

Sevy’s ‘biggest, boldest, craziest story’ ‘Triage’ coming in September

New series from Dark Horse features a nurse fighting for survival on a strange world.

Phillip Sevy of Tomb Raider and The House fame is set to debut his first creator-owned series from Dark Horse, Triage, later this year. The series features a nurse who wakes up on another world and has to work with two strangers to survive being hunted.

“For my first creator-owned book, I wanted to try and the deliver the biggest, boldest, and craziest story I could through the lens of one singular vision,” said Sevy in the press release. “In Triage, I wanted to go as big and as personal as possible. From writing to penciling to inking to coloring (with amazing letters by Frank Cvetkovic), I’ve been killing myself to deliver a story that is exciting, fun, audacious, and human. Evie has become one of my favorite characters I’ve got to work with. At its core, Triage is about discovering your identity amidst the chaos and enormities of the world around you.”

‘Marvel Comics #1000’ brings together 80 creative teams for one 80-page story

Anniversary project celebrates 80 years of Marvel.

After teasing a whole lot of creative teams on Twitter and in its comics this week, Marvel Comics has announced Marvel Comics #1000, an 80-page comic that arrives in August.

According to the New York Times, the story will start at “day one” for Marvel, in 1939, and each page will correlate to one year in Marvel history — and will be created by a different creative team. Names that Marvel has announced include current Marvel creators like Mark Waid, Al Ewing (who helped architect the project), Saladin Ahmed, Jason Aaron and Gerry Duggan, as well as key creators from Marvel’s past, like Tom DeFalco, Ron Frenz, Erik Larsen and Rob Liefeld. There’s also folks who haven’t done comics before, like basketball star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Taboo of the Black Eyed Peas and The Goldbergs creator Adam F. Goldberg.

“Our characters are mentioned in so many different ways and in so many different mediums and we always keep track,” Marvel Editor-in-Chief C.B. Cebulski said. “Now these distinguished individuals are able to contribute back to the comics they grew up on.”

Alex Ross will provide the cover:

Ward + Kivelä bewitch bullets in ‘Tommy Gun Wizards’

Christian Ward writes a new comic featuring Al Capone and magic.

Eisner-award winning artist Christian Ward will take a rare turn as writer in Tommy Gun Wizards, a new miniseries coming from Dark Horse Comics this summer.

Ward, who co-created ODY-C and has worked on Marvel titles like Thor and Black Bolt, is joined by artist Sami Kivelä, who worked with Saladin Ahmed on Abbott and on Zenescope’s Realm War, among other comics. Ward will provide covers as well as colors on the interior art. He’ll also draw back-up stories for each issue.

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this: