Monday, October 22, 2012

A Cannon for Batman

"A Cannon for Batman" from The Brave and the Bold vol.1 #171  (DC, 1981) by Gerry Conway and José Luis Garcia Lopez
Running 200 issues between 1955 and 1983, The Brave and the Bold started out as an anthology series, briefly turned into a springboard for new superhero concepts (like the Justice League of America, Metamorpho and the Teen Titans), before resolving into Batman's team-up book. Over the years, the book had some seminal runs by Neal Adams and Jim Aparo, but my choice of splash (while by the superlative JLGL) is more based on the outrageousness of the chosen guest star. As I wrote in an article entitled Dynamic Duos: The Allure of the Team-Up Book, that is one of the elements that makes team-up books WORK. Scalphunter isn't just a hero from another time (the American Civil War), but a rather obscure one as well. That's what's so magical about a team-up book in a large and varied shared universe.

4 comments:

  1. As a writer, I get annoyed when I see titles like "A Cannon For Batman." I understand someone has to put catchy cover copy out there, i.e., Cry Havok!, but...man.

    That said, I'll never argue about any single word Bob Haney put on paper.

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  2. I do understand, that the Confederate Army was a bit more casual about its uniforms than the Union...but seriously...Purple?

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  3. Anything not to make it seem like Batman was a Confederate in his gray jam-jams.

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  4. Now, is this Batman-cannon Batman-canon?

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