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The Spirit (April 20, 1941) “The S.S. Raven”
Will Eisner (editor, script, pencils, inks) Joe Kubert (colors) Sam Rosen (letters) The Spirit has had a wider narrative scope as of late, but never before have Eisner and studio attempted anything like S.S. Raven. It’s a phenomenally weird strip, all about a killer Navy boat, with an ornery, lovable sea captain narrating the tale from a dock. The story focuses on the ship’s murderous nature, with the captain—Ferguson—laying on the purple prose, always leaving…
All-Star Comics (1976) #72
Paul Levitz (script) Joe Staton (pencils) Bob Layton (inks) Adrienne Roy (colors) Ben Oda (letters) Joe Orlando (editor) This issue is another strong one for All-Star. Very strong. It gets there a tad cheaply—Golden Age Flash villain Thorn is now aggressively lethal, bumping off Keystone City randos for kicks. She’s also no dummy, knowing the Justice Society’s weaknesses (mostly the normie heroes and Green Lantern’s wood allergy); her wooden poison thorns make short work of…
The Spirit (April 13, 1941) “Croaky Andrews’ Perfect Crime”
Croaky’s tale is Spirit at its most didactic: crime does not pay. It’s also the strip stretching to center other characters, in this case Croaky and his best gal, Poison Mag. The Perfect Crime title is a tad misleading; Croaky’s crime is robbing some guy of a hundred thousand dollars and killing the poor sap. More appropriate would be Perfect Getaway, but that one spoils a bit. Because the crime is not perfect–the dying man…
The Spirit (April 6, 1941) “Introducing Scarlett Brown”
Will Eisner (editor, script, pencils, inks) Joe Kubert (colors) Sam Rosen (letters) If you want to explore the peculiarities of Spirit’s characterization and visualization of Ebony White, Introducing Scarlett Brown is probably the most fodder the strip’s seen to date. Ebony, of course, is the Spirit’s only confidant, best friend, assistant investigator, and occasional savior. Ebony’s single-handedly saved Spirit’s bacon at least two times, probably three. Eisner and studio just happen to draw him Sambo-style…
The Spirit (March 30, 1941) “Captured by the Underworld”
Will Eisner (editor, script, pencils, inks) Joe Kubert (colors) Sam Rosen (letters) The title gives everything away in this strip: the Central City underworld teams up (principally three gangsters) and successfully captures the Spirit. Not a particularly difficult feat, it turns out. They give Spirit some bad intel, and he walks right into a trap. Art-wise, it’s a beautiful sequence, lots of inky blacks and a fantastic establishing shot of the ominous waterfront. Glorious stuff.…
All-Star Comics (1976) #71
Paul Levitz (script) Joe Staton (pencils) Bob Layton (inks) Adrienne Roy (colors) Ben Oda (letters) Joe Orlando (editor) Even leaving aside the delightful implication Green Lantern and the Flash are sharing a bedroom as part of GL’s rehabilitation (Joan does not appear, wink wink), this issue of All-Star once again succeeds thanks to the absence of the Justice Society. The issue opens with Huntress, Star-Spangled Kid, and Wildcat fighting the Strike Force at Gotham Stadium.…
The Spirit (March 23, 1941) “Dipsy Dooble”
Will Eisner (editor, script, pencils, inks) Joe Kubert (colors) Sam Rosen (letters) The Dolans—both Commissioner and Ellen—are back this strip after a few weeks off. The Commissioner’s sick of Ellen just going to teas or dances; it’s high time she settles down with a husband or gets herself a job. Ellen’s already ahead of Dolan (a theme this strip)—she’s got a new job as a boxer’s manager. She’s found a poet palooka named Winthrop Boombershlag…
Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes (1978) #235
Paul Levitz (1), Gerry Conway (2) (script) Mike Grell (1), George Tuska (2) (pencils) Vince Colletta (inks) Jerry Serpe (colors) Milt Snapinn (1), Ben Oda (2) (letters) Al Milgrom (editor) Joe Orlando (managing editor) Hang on, it’s Vince Colletta inking both stories? I knew he was on the strange backup from Gerry Conway and George Tuska (Tuska on Legion is fun). But Colletta also inks Grell on the feature. And I think it’s been my…
The Spirit (March 16, 1941) “Introducing Silk Satin”
Will Eisner (editor, script, pencils, inks) Joe Kubert (colors) Sam Rosen (letters) Satin is an incredible strip. It’s a mostly action strip, with three master thieves planning a team-up heist in Central City. They’re all displaced from Europe: Cedric’s British, Anton’s French, and Satin’s… Satin. They’ve also got an American sidekick monikered “Asphalt,” who doesn’t figure in much except during the setup. The strip opens with men all waiting for Satin to arrive; she shows…
The Spirit (March 9, 1941) “Toy Planes”
Will Eisner (editor, script, pencils, inks) Joe Kubert (colors) Sam Rosen (letters) Spirit and Ebony are on the job for the G-men, trying to crack a spy ring planning on destroying munitions factories with “robot planes.” The robot planes, as the Spirit will later explain, are really aerial torpedoes. The villains launch them from Europe with such precision, they don’t need adjustment until they near their target, when a light signal can aim them. And,…
All-Star Comics (1976) #70
Paul Levitz (script) Joe Staton (pencils) Bob Layton (inks) Jerry Serpe (colors) Ben Oda (letters) Joe Orlando (editor) Last issue, writer Paul Levitz found a Hallmark moment amid the chaotic infighting of quinquagenarian white male superheroes and their surrogate daughter (Power Girl), whom they all berate or dismiss. Sole exception: Dr. Fate; respect. Though maybe not once we get to the end of this issue, but then, grace. Anyway. It was a watershed moment for…
The Spirit (March 2, 1941) “Dead Duck Dolan”
Will Eisner (editor, script, pencils, inks) Joe Kubert (colors) Sam Rosen (letters) Argos is a singular Spirit strip. Not because of its formal artistic qualities, which are strong in places, particularly in the establishing shots, and altogether perfectly fine. Rather, its content and connotations. The strip’s about a regular Joe who encounters a space alien and can’t get anyone to believe him. Eventually, this fellow—Sam Smith—will enlist the Spirit’s aid. And the Spirit’s not sure…
The Spirit (February 23, 1941) “Invasion from Argos”
Will Eisner (editor, script, pencils, inks) Joe Kubert (colors) Sam Rosen (letters) Argos is a singular Spirit strip. Not because of its formal artistic qualities, which are strong in places, particularly in the establishing shots, and altogether perfectly fine. Rather, its content and connotations. The strip’s about a regular Joe who encounters a space alien and can’t get anyone to believe him. Eventually, this fellow—Sam Smith—will enlist the Spirit’s aid. And the Spirit’s not sure…
All-Star Comics (1976) #69
Paul Levitz (script) Joe Staton (pencils) Bob Layton (inks) Elizabeth Safian (colors) Ben Oda (letters) Joe Orlando (editor) This issue’s writer Paul Levitz’s magnum opus on the book so far. It’s an action-packed issue—most of the pages are just Justice Society members fighting, whether amongst themselves in the Batcave (holy set-piece, Batman!) or against the Gotham P.D. The cops zap Power Girl with some seventies Earth-Two ray guns and almost kill her; is the reaction…
The Spirit (February 16, 1941) “Radio Station WLXK”
Will Eisner (editor, script, pencils, inks) Joe Kubert (colors) Sam Rosen (letters) WLXK is a beautifully plotted strip, with lots happening in a very short amount of time. A rather unlikely amount of time, actually, but considering part of the plot has kids listening to the Spirit kick ass on the radio and cheering along… Eisner and studio have all the slack they want. The strip opens with radio station owner Marion Dale refusing to…
Teen Titans (1966) #50
Bob Rozakis (script) Don Heck (pencils) Joe Giella (inks) Jerry Serpe (colors) Milt Snapinn (letters) E. Nelson Bridwell (associate editor) Julius Schwartz (editor) Writer Bob Rozakis—and I mean this statement as a compliment—has a wonderfully juvenile vibe for Teen Titans. Their dialogue is very groovy, maybe a little too groovy for 1977 (though they are down with disco, thank goodness), and Rozakis seems to be targeting a younger audience than the cast. The Titans are…
The Spirit (February 9, 1941) “The Substitute Spirits”
A week has passed since last strip, and the Spirit still hasn’t let Commissioner Dolan know he’s alive. Ebony points out he’s being unkind to a friend, and Spirit’s surprised to realize he’s got affection for Dolan. Now, despite Dolan constantly trying to pull one over on Spirit, Dolan’s always concerned for him. They’ve been pals since the first strip; the strip’s used to open with a preamble mentioning Dolan being his only friend; not…
Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes (1977) #231
Paul Levitz (script) James Sherman (1), Michael Netzer (2) (pencils) Jack Abel (inks) Elizabeth Safian (colors) Ben Oda (letters) Joe Orlando (editor) The Legion of Super-Heroes had cover title billing with Superboy for over thirty issues before this issue. It’s one officially titled Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes in the indicia. Even more—literally—they’re going up to fifty-two pages an issue. To celebrate, writer Paul Levitz, pencillers James Sherman and Michael Netzer (each handling one…
The Spirit (February 2, 1941) “Davy Jones’ Locker”
Will Eisner (editor, script, pencils, inks) Joe Kubert (colors) Sam Rosen (letters) Davy Jones’ Locker is a straightforward strip, but only because Eisner doesn’t allow it to get bogged down. There’s plenty of potential for it to drift, and Eisner doesn’t want any of it; any tangents would affect the verisimilitude. The strip opens with a group of sandhogs (underground urban construction workers) deciding they’re sick of the politicians and builders taking credit for their…
DC Special (1968) #29
This special is the result of a letter to All-Star Comics about the origin of the Justice Society. Someone wrote in wondering about the canon, and, after diligently doing some research, DC staffers discovered the 1940 comics didn’t come with an origin issue for the Justice Society. The team was already together in their first appearance. So the All-Star team of writer Paul Levitz, penciller Joe Staton, inker Bob Layton, and editor Joe Orlando are…
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