Starman No More

"Starman No More" from Starman vol.1 #21 (DC, 1990) by Roger Stern, Tom Lyle and Scott Hanna

If that image reminds you of Spider-Man's costume in a trash can, it's because that's totally the reference they're going for. And appropriate, because the Will Payton Starman was a Marvel teen hero type, indeed, I'd call him the Firestorm of the late 80s. Tom Lyle seemed to specialize in youthful heroes (Robin, the Comet, and this), which made the first 30 issues, written by the always solid Roger Stern, a pleasant journey of heroic discovery. And though the costume's yellow and purple color scheme has always reminded me of those sugary two-toned lollipops (what are those called?), I never much minded. I suppose the black and red was better, but not as idealistic. After Len Strazewski came on board as writer, things sadly flattened out, though he managed to pump out 16 more issues before the book met its end.