Books: Archive Editions

[woodwardiocom]

DC Comics is having a 50%-off sale on their series of Archive Editions, which will allegedly go until they run out of stock. (Ask your Friendly Local.) I took advantage of this. In roughly chronological order:

The DC Comics Rarities Archives

Despite being over 350 pages long, this beast only collects three comics: World's Fair Comics 1939, World's Fair Comics 1940, and The Big All-American Comic Book (1944). These are fascinating, for me, because they reprint the entire comic (sans ads). Many classic comics were anthologies, and when collected into Archive Editions, the non-superhero features tend to be left on the floor. This collection includes Hop Harrigan, the Ghost Patrol, Mutt & Jeff, and assorted Western, sports, and funny animal stories. And, of course, the first two issues are mostly "So-n-so goes to the Fair" stories, which are fun. Wish I could have gone!

Batman: The Dark Knight Archives, v2

This collects issues 5 through 8 of Batman. Our heroes are still in a very formative state, particularly when it comes to their villains. The Joker shows up, but no other recurring villain, and few are more than gangsters. However, this does contain the issue when Gordon makes them honorary policemen (instead of, as previously, vigilantes).

The Wonder Woman Archives, v2

Boy, howdy. Moulton Marston was a kinky guy. Watching him ring the changes on bondage and D/S relationships, as concealed in Nazi-bashing superheroics, is vastly entertaining.

The World's Finest Archives, v3

Team-up stories in which Superman, Batman, and Robin fight, mostly, aliens with odd powers. A few of these stories were collected when I was in junior high, and it's interesting to see which bits I remember. (E.g., in the story of the man who could duplicate himself, I don't remember the villain at all, but rather the gadgets and setpieces.) Still, possibly too many aliens for my tastes, and not enough stories which address the core Batman-Superman dynamic. (E.g., this series does not reach as far as WF 142, in which it is revealed that Wayne is really Bruce-El, a Kryptonian, exposed to gold kryptonite as a child. Or Is He?)

The Action Heroes Archives, v2

This collects Ditko's final work on Captain Atom, Nightshade, the Blue Beetle, and the Question. Fun, solid tales are gradually supplanted by stories in which the Question (and, startlingly, the Beetle) lectures against some aspect of society. It reachs the point where the Question is fighting an art critic (not a superpowered art critic, just a Walter Winchell type), and the Beetle battles a man dressed up as the spirit of apathy and uselessness. Plus, this volume includes the famous story where the Question leaves two villains to drown, saying he's not that kind of hero.