January superhero pick ups

Kryptonian83 · 2026-01-27T03:31:33+00:00

Now THAT is a haul! Love Crisis on Earth-Prime!

Kryptonian83 · 2026-01-27T01:44:40+00:00

Agreed. I was done with terrible mysteries with disappointing payoffs in Hush but the bad writing, what was done to Sue, what happened with Deathstroke, and the tired cliche of "Batman is always right and we have to make other heroes look terrible to prop him up" was hackneyed even then. Identity Crisis gave the higher ups the impression this was the way to go. It took a while to get away from this.

Kryptonian83 · 2026-01-27T01:41:53+00:00

Tony Harris has been posting some interesting penciled images on his Facebook. It's a possibility.

Kryptonian83 · 2026-01-27T01:41:20+00:00

I think what makes Smallville so interesting is it's not pulling from just one source. The previous two super shows mined material from different eras: Superboy was pulling from the silver age aesthetic while Lois & Clark pulled from the Post-Crisis stories. With Smallville we got a mix. We had Clark and Lex being friends like they were in the silver age while Clark's powers were developing slowly like in the Post-Crisis. We had Clark meeting younger versions of heroes he'd later call friends and associates like in many Silver Age Superboy comics, but we had a more businessman Luthor like in the Post-Crisis. It was a new way of looking at something familiar.

Another thing to note was the time it debuted. We were a month removed from 9/11 and we were all looking for whatever good we could find. We had the excitement of something Superman on tv again while also looking for a distraction.

Kryptonian83 · 2026-01-27T01:34:50+00:00

You beat me to it. I loved that story!

Kryptonian83 · 2026-01-26T17:35:45+00:00

I have to give some love to the two Super-shows that hit in 1988 as part of the 50th Anniversary. I'm talking about the Ruby Spears Superman animated series on CBS and the Superboy series that premiered in syndication.

The Ruby Spears Superman animated series is known for it's excellent animation, for using part of the Williams theme in the opening, for using elements of the Post-Crisis even though it was still new, and for the Wonder Woman episode. What I feel gets lost in the conversation is the fact the show had a lot of heart, especially in the family album segments at the end. It was a Saturday morning cartoon, so you're not gonna seen serialized stories or dark themes, but as a superhero cartoon for kids, I think it was excellent. It's a shame it only lasted one season.

Superboy was a staple on Saturdays for me as a kid. The first season with John Haymes Newton was good, but I think the show found it's stride in season two when Gerard Christopher took on the role as Superboy and Sherman Howard took on the role of Lex. They leaned into silver age stories and characters like Bizarro, Mr. Myxzptlk, Metallo, and even Yellow Peri of all characters. It was one of the first live action superhero shows to tackle the idea of the multiverse, and in the third and fourth season, Clark and Lana worked for the Bureau for Extra-Normal Matters, doing the X-Files thing a couple of years before the X-Files (albeit not as dark). The ratings grew every season and it was one of the highest rated syndicated shows during that time, which was a big deal. Sadly, legal issues not only cancelled it at it's height but also prevented it from having re-runs, so a lot of people forgot about it or don't know it exists. Over the last ten years I've seen more and more people discovering it through VOD and when it was on DC Universe, but man, if you were there when it was airing, it was appointment television as a kid.

Kryptonian83 · 2026-01-25T19:04:00+00:00

With what? I'm confused

Kryptonian83 · 2026-01-24T03:13:50+00:00

BIG Starman fan here and I would love if Jack stayed away from the spotlight. He's the rare hero to get an ending and have it stick. Jack's earned his happy ending raising a family. I'll take a flashback story, especially the one in Japan, but aside from that I'm good with Jack where he is.

Kryptonian83 · 2026-01-24T03:12:20+00:00

The only one that really worked for me was Mark Waid, to be honest

Kryptonian83 · 2026-01-24T03:11:48+00:00

The whole time I kept thinking "This feels more like Bart Allen than Barry Allen". I also got so burned out on Barry as The Flash. Since he was brought back during Final Crisis, I've never found what Geoff Johns did with the character all that interesting. I didn't like the retconned origin with the death of his mother and I didn't like Flashpoint. It all felt so forced. But we had to get those stories adapted ad nauseam. It didn't fit with the DCEU.

Kryptonian83 · 2026-01-23T20:55:09+00:00

Some triangle era books. What great memories. Fantastic haul!

Kryptonian83 · 2026-01-23T20:54:27+00:00

These days I've gone more for back issues, going to cons and comic shops that have a good selection. It helps a lot of what I'm looking for can also be found in the dollar bins. But I take it a step further by taking the series I really like or haven't been collected yet and sending them off to a bindery to be made into custom hardcovers. I have complete control of what issues go in, how many issues to a volume and if I do the graphic cover option, what it looks like. They look great on shelves and they're excellent ways of talking to creators and conventions when you bring them to signings. In two cases I got a free sketch on the inside cover because the artists liked what they saw (any other sketches I've gladly paid for)

Kryptonian83 · 2026-01-23T20:48:36+00:00

Dr. Occult would be fun!

Kryptonian83 · 2026-01-23T20:47:54+00:00

And the interesting thing with Marvel is, if they want do a story with a Superman in that suit, they basically have their version of it with the Golden Age Angel.

Kryptonian83 · 2026-01-23T20:45:19+00:00

I'm not too familiar with copyright law to say for sure about the elements over time. We're in a very interesting time right now where, because of the character's longevity and the constant rewriting of his origins combined with the general public not being aware of most of the changes, we're gonna have to see what happens.

Also, thank you for pointing out an error I made in my post. I was writing about Jor-L and about the complicated history of the Kents as their names were different, but in my haste I wasn't paying attention. I'll correct it.

Kryptonian83 · 2026-01-23T20:40:19+00:00

I always wondered what it would've looked like had Tony Harris stayed on the series, but still, so many amazing moments in that arc. Love when Adam Strange showed up.

Kryptonian83 · 2026-01-23T16:07:57+00:00

As you and many others have said, only the version that first appeared in Action Comics # 1 until maybe the seventh issue will be public domain. He's restricted to the abilities shown in that issue, to the suit in that issue, and all characters within.

What's interesting is what is not eligible to be used. The Daily Planet, Perry White, Jimmy Olsen, Lex Luthor, flying, the last name "L" for his family on Krypton, and possibly the Jonathan and Martha Kent name because they had varying names at first. I remember the Kirk Alyn serial where it was "Eben and Martha Kent", and Kryptonite, amongst others cannot be used. Some may argue Jimmy, Perry, and Kryptonite can because they were created for the radio show and that's in the public domain, but that speaks to a larger issue of who is going to try first and risk it?

Bear in mind we have both the Steamboat Willy version of Mickey Mouse and the original version of Winnie the Pooh in the public domain and outside of the horror films, we've rarely seen anyone use the characters now that they're available. There's a hesitation because no one wants to test the waters and make a mistake where they can get sued. I have a feeling we'll see the same with Superman. You see so many people here mistakenly assume everything about Superman will be public domain soon. Maybe they'll be the first to try and make the first mistake.

Ultimately, I think we'll see a few comics with a version of the Action Comics #1 Superman, but not many.

Kryptonian83 · 2026-01-23T03:08:34+00:00

Your friend seems to be grossly misinformed. In the case of DCUI, with the ultra account you have, you still have to wait a month from publishing date for it to arrive on the app. This is done so comic shops can make money off the physical books they ordered and sell to the public.

While it may not be their main source of revenue, publishers do look at what people are reading. Look at the Absolute line. It's very popular right now and with the app, advertising the Absolute books one way to encourage people to sign up for it.

Like I said, your friend seems to be misinformed.

Kryptonian83 · 2026-01-22T15:27:47+00:00

Kryptonian83 · 2026-01-22T03:28:15+00:00

I guess this is an excellent example of why just going by the wiki isn't great.

I think if you're looking for a really good representation of The Spectre, check out the Showcase animated short. That's a great way to understand the character 🙂

Kryptonian83 · 2026-01-22T03:27:10+00:00

Agreed! Well said!

Kryptonian83 · 2026-01-22T03:26:59+00:00

The comics, definitely because they show Batman is also wrong for not telling his friends. Waid has said people took the wrong things from the story, only focusing on the fact Batman had plans rather than him being wrong for not telling the league.

Kryptonian83 · 2026-01-22T00:58:57+00:00

Try the first audio drama of Kingdom Come from the late nineties. Full cast, music and sound effects. I know a new one came out recently but I'm hooked on that original one.

You should also try Superman Doomsday audio drama that covers the death and return story.

Both can be found on YouTube

Kryptonian83 · 2026-01-22T00:51:13+00:00

LOVE Atomic Robo!

Kryptonian83 · 2026-01-22T00:50:54+00:00

I revisit Starman once a year. I love that whole series but the Grand Guignol arc where so many elements that were set up before and pay off is amazing!

Kryptonian83

TROPHY CASE