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Amph 1001 Comic Books You Must Read: 280. "Superboy" #49

Discussion in 'Archive: The Amphitheatre' started by Nevermind, Dec 13, 2010.

  1. Nevermind

    Nevermind Jedi Knight star 6

    Registered:
    Oct 14, 2001
    This is a book by Tony Isabella; when asked to compile this list, he said: "Only a thousand?" He says this is the Golden Age; people can enjoy reprints of early ones, and the great ones published today.

    I admit to not knowing much about comic books, and I hope this list will be an education.

    [image=http://xroads.virginia.edu/~ug02/yeung/actioncomics/images/cover.jpg]

    1. Action Comics #1

    Writer: Jerry Siegel

    Artist: Joe Shuster

    DC (June 1938 c. 1938 Detective Comics Inc.)

    "Superman saves an innocent woman from execution, slaps around a wife-beater, rescues Lois Lane from hoodlums, and then kidnaps a lobbyist trying to involve the USA in a South American war. Not bad for his first day on the job. Note: Action Comics was an anthology title; credits here and elsewhere in this chapter are only for the Superman story."
     
  2. ApolloSmileGirl

    ApolloSmileGirl Jedi Knight star 8

    Registered:
    Jun 18, 2004
    Um yeah, I must have left my copy of Action Comics #1 at my other mansion.......
     
  3. Ramza

    Ramza Administrator Emeritus star 9 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Jul 13, 2008
    Scans of reprints are out there, but I've yet to find a legal way to read any of it other than the first couple of Superman stories.
     
  4. ApolloSmileGirl

    ApolloSmileGirl Jedi Knight star 8

    Registered:
    Jun 18, 2004
    I know, I was just cracking wise. :p
     
  5. Nevermind

    Nevermind Jedi Knight star 6

    Registered:
    Oct 14, 2001
    It looks pretty rudimentary to me.

    [image=http://www.editions-deesse.com/imagesNSL/Action12.jpg]

    2. Action Comics #12

    Writer: Jerry Siegel

    Artist: Joe Shuster

    DC (May 1939 c. 1939 Detective Comics Inc.)

    "Superman teaches hard lessons to traffic violators, to dealers selling shoddy cars, to manufacturers building unsafe new cars, and to the mayour whose police force is lax in enforcing traffic laws. Ralph Nader would be so proud."
     
  6. Ramza

    Ramza Administrator Emeritus star 9 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Jul 13, 2008
    That's a... very random issue of AC to go with. I mean, the very next issue is the debut of the Ultra-Humanite, the first supervillain to square off against Supes - which, incidentally, makes him the first supervillain to battle a superhero, period.

    By contrast, AC #12 features a story so forgettable that... well, I forgot it.:p
     
  7. Nevermind

    Nevermind Jedi Knight star 6

    Registered:
    Oct 14, 2001
    Well, okay then!

    [image=http://www.coverbrowser.com/image/action-comics/13-1.jpg]

    3. Action Comics #13

    Writer: Jerry Siegel

    Artist: Joe Shuster

    DC (June 1939 c. 1939 Detective Comics Inc.)

    "Smashing a protection racket brings Superman face to face with the Ultra-Humanite, his first super-villain. Paralyzed from the waist down, Ultra possesses the most 'agile and learned brain on Earth' and is the power behind countless criminal enterprises."
     
  8. Ramza

    Ramza Administrator Emeritus star 9 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Jul 13, 2008
    You may have won this round, Tony Isabella, but I'll be back!:p
     
  9. Nevermind

    Nevermind Jedi Knight star 6

    Registered:
    Oct 14, 2001
    4. Superman #1

    [image=http://www.eatsleepgeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/action-comics-superman-1.jpg]

    Writer: Jerry Siegel

    Artist: Joe Shuster

    DC (Summer 1939 c. 1939 Detective Comics Inc.)

    "The first American comic book devoted entirely to a single character, it reprinted the Superman stories from "Action Comics" #1-4, with new material explaining his powers, showing how Clark Kent became a reporter, and introducing readers to Siegel and Shuster."
     
  10. Rogue1-and-a-half

    Rogue1-and-a-half Manager Emeritus who is writing his masterpiece star 9 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Nov 2, 2000
    This looks like a great thread. I can't wait to see where it goes. Hopefully, once we get to Batman I'll be able to comment!
     
  11. Nevermind

    Nevermind Jedi Knight star 6

    Registered:
    Oct 14, 2001
    5. Action Comics #16

    [image=http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20080307162911/marvel_dc/images/thumb/9/9d/Action_Comics_16.jpg/300px-Action_Comics_16.jpg]

    Writer: Jerry Siegel

    Artist: Joe Shuster

    DC (September 1939 c. 1939 Detective Comics Inc.)

    The Contents of Action Comics #16
     
  12. Ramza

    Ramza Administrator Emeritus star 9 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Jul 13, 2008
    I sincerely hope it's not 1001 issues of comics featuring Superman. I was kind of hoping for some insight into Golden Age Green Lantern issues.
     
  13. Nevermind

    Nevermind Jedi Knight star 6

    Registered:
    Oct 14, 2001
    Patience, my young apprentice...

    6. Action Comics #18

    [image=http://www.coverbrowser.com/image/action-comics/18-1.jpg]

    Writer: Jerry Siegel

    Artist: Paul Cassidy (signed as Joe Shuster)

    DC (November 1939 c. 1939 Detective Comics Inc.)

    Last issue of the 30's.

    "A sleazy newspaper edition, working with blackmailers, kidnaps and drugs a senator. They they photograph him at a roadhouse with a lady of dubious morals. Superman stops the presses--literally--and chases the blackmailers out of town."


     
  14. Nevermind

    Nevermind Jedi Knight star 6

    Registered:
    Oct 14, 2001
    7. Jumbo Comics #1

    [image=http://www.coverbrowser.com/image/jumbo-comics/1-1.jpg]

    Writer(s): Will Eisner, Audrey Blum, etc.

    Artist: Bob Kane, Jack Kirby, etc.

    Fiction House (September 1938 c. 1938 Real Adventure Publishing)

    The debut of Sheena; early work by Will Eisner, Jack Kirby, Bob Kane, and Mort Meskin.
     
  15. Nevermind

    Nevermind Jedi Knight star 6

    Registered:
    Oct 14, 2001
    8. Detective Comics #27

    [image=http://robot6.comicbookresources.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/detective-comics27.jpg]

    Writer(s): Bill Finger

    Artist: Bob Kane

    DC (May 1939 c. 1939 Detective Comics)

    Yes, here's the debut of "The Batman" as he was originally called.

    "The Batman, created by Kane and Finger, made his debut in a six-page story plagiarized from a pulp adventure of The Shadow. Much of the art consisted of "swipes" from various sources, but the character would quickly become a model of innovation."

    [image=http://www.historyguy.com/comicshistory/batman_in_detective_comics_27.jpg]

    [image=http://my.execpc.com/~icicle/Batman.jpg]

    Wiki's summary
     
  16. Nevermind

    Nevermind Jedi Knight star 6

    Registered:
    Oct 14, 2001
    9. Marvel Comics #1

    [image=http://legendscrazy.net/marvel/images/marvel_comics_1.jpg]

    Writer(s): Carl Burgos, Bill Everett;

    Artist(s): Carl Burgos, Bill Everett;

    Marvel(November 1939 c. 1939 Timely Publications)

    "The android Human Torch and the angry Prince Namar the Sub-Mariner were instant sensations in this, the first comic book from the pulp-magazine publisher Martin Goodman. From the start, Marvel's heroes were often feared by the very humans they defended."
     
  17. Mr44

    Mr44 VIP star 6 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    May 21, 2002
    Of course that's not the more famous Fantastic Four's Human Torch.

    The original Human Torch was an android who burst into flame when exposed to oxygen. Since people feared him, he was encased in concrete, escaped, and then was finally buried in the desert where they tested atomic bombs. The modern story gets a little muddled, because for years, the original android Human Torch ended up being the Vision, who served on the Avengers. A later story came along which revealed that the Vision was actually a second android similar to the Torch, who just thought he was the original, and the Human Torch had actually survived all those years. Whew..

    But anyway, both the Human Torch and the Sub Mariner most certainly represented "monsters among men" who fought bad guys despite being rejected by the society they were fighting for.
     
  18. Nevermind

    Nevermind Jedi Knight star 6

    Registered:
    Oct 14, 2001
    10. Flash Comics #1

    [image=http://comics.drunkenfist.com.s3.amazonaws.com/slideshow/flash-comics-1.jpg]

    Writer(s): Gardner F. Fox

    Artist(s): Harry Lampert, Dennis Neville

    DC(January 1940 c. 1939 All-American)

    "The prolific Fox created such legendary heroes as the Flash (the fastest man alive), and Hawkman (the reincarnation of an Egyptian prince who fought modern-day evil with the weapons of the past and the assistance of his paramour, Hawkgirl)."

     
  19. Ramza

    Ramza Administrator Emeritus star 9 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Jul 13, 2008
    Huh, I had no idea that the Flash and Hawkman debuted in the same book.
     
  20. Nevermind

    Nevermind Jedi Knight star 6

    Registered:
    Oct 14, 2001
    11. Pep Comics #1

    [image=http://scoop.diamondgalleries.com/public/news_images/4/84609_217194_2.jpg]

    Writer(s): Harry Shorten, Jack Cole

    Artist(s): Irv Novic, Jack Cole

    MLJ(January 1940 c. 1939 MJL Magazines)

    "The Shield was the first patriotic superhero, while second-stringer Comet would become the first super-hero to die in his own strip. But MLJ's quirky superheroes would soon be overshadowed by Archie Andrews and his pals."


     
  21. Chancellor_Ewok

    Chancellor_Ewok Chosen One star 7

    Registered:
    Nov 8, 2004
    If that doesn't scream proto-Captain America, I don't know what does.
     
  22. Champion of the Force

    Champion of the Force Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Dec 27, 1999
    That was my first reaction as well. By how much does this character pre-date Cap?
     
  23. Rogue1-and-a-half

    Rogue1-and-a-half Manager Emeritus who is writing his masterpiece star 9 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Nov 2, 2000
    I've done a detailed review of The Case of the Chemical Syndicate in my Batman thread. But it's a strange story. It's just about six pages long and the story itself is utterly lame. Very, very rudimentary Batman.
     
  24. Mr44

    Mr44 VIP star 6 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    May 21, 2002
    The Shield came out about a year before Captain America (Jan 1940 vs March 1941) And remember, the original Captain America carried an angular shield, nothing like his current vibranium alloy round one:

    [image=http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/c/c7/Captainamerica1.jpg/220px-Captainamerica1.jpg]

    Although the Shield was much different than Captain America. The Shield was almost Superman-like, being invulnerable, able to make great leaps, and having supervision. In fact, the "Shield" was actually an acronym of the powers he had, and really didn't have anything to do with his patriotic theme:

    Sacrum
    Heart
    Innervation
    Eyes
    Lungs
    Dermis

    Which is actually rather clumsy and awkward, if you think about it.

     
  25. Nevermind

    Nevermind Jedi Knight star 6

    Registered:
    Oct 14, 2001
    That's just very strange.

    12. Planet Comics #1

    [image=http://www.coverbrowser.com/image/planet-comics/1-1.jpg]

    Writer(s): Uncredited

    Artist(s): Dick Briefer, Malcolm Kildale

    Fiction House(January 1940 c. 1939 Love Romances Publications)

    "This was the first comic book devoted entirely to science fiction. As with the rest of the Fiction House line, it would be noted for its sturdy heroes, beautiful heroines, solid writing, and some of the finest comics art of the decade."