The 4th of July 2022

This year, I'm celebrating our nation's birth with two of the most patriotic superheroes ever created: Captain America and the Shield.

Technically, the Shield was the first to be published with a cover date of January 1940, with the good Captain coming along with a cover date of March 1940.

Both have extraordinary physical powers and both are really smart. And, of course, both are living embodiments of our nation's flag.

The Shield lasted until issue 65 of Pep Comics, where he was replaced by a teenager named Archie Andrews. (Archie had been featured in stories since issue 22, but finally took over the comic completely with the 65th issue.)

Cap lasted a bit longer, until his 73rd issue in 1949. He was briefly revived as a "commie-smasher" in the 1950s (with some of the first comic book art by a very young John Romita Sr.), but his revival only lasted a few issues. He didn't really return--for good this time--until Avergers 4, when the team found Cap trapped in an iceberg. The rest, as they say, is history.

I had both of the collected editions pictured above back in the days of La Casa Del Terror. Now? Thanks to my friends at Amazon Marketplace, I have both editions again.

Have a happy and safe holiday, all.

Every Picture Tells a Patriotic Story 7/4/21

Back in 1976, America celebrated its bicentennial in a miriad of ways: Concerts, fireworks displays, TV specials, patriotic movies, toys, etc.

Marvel Comics chose to mark the occasion by having their signature patriotic hero, Captain America, travel through time fighting the good fight in multiple eras in the "treasury"-sized story, Captain America's Bicentennial Battles.

Written and pencilled by Cap's co-creator, Jack Kirby, and inked by a host of Marvel talent (including Incredible Hulk artist Herb Trimpe and Conan the Barbarian penciller Barry Windsor Smith), Bicentennial Battles tells about that one time Cap went bopping around through various historical moments in America's history--from the Revolutionary War to the Civil War to other moments of conflict in our nation's history--at the behest of a mysterious fella named Mr. Buddha.

This isn't exactly a single story as much as it is a series of set pieces for Cap to fight through, all the while gaining a greater understanding/appreciation of how America came to be what it was in 1976.

I had the original Treasury Edition (much larger than a standard comic book, but printed on cheaper paper) back in 1976, along with several others featuring reprints of Spider-Man and the Hulk as well as the occasional original story (Superman vs. the Amazing Spider-Man was the most prominent of these, being a joint production of Marvel and DC), but lost it along with everything else when I had to abandon La Casa del Terror.

But, like so many other items from that time, I've been able to replace Captain America's Bicentennial Battles with a reissue recently released by Marvel Comics. It cost a bit more than the original, but it's also printed on much nicer, heavier paper than the original was, making it easier to appreciate Kirby's epic artwork.

From me--and, I'm sure, from Cap and Jack as well--I wish you all a happy and safe Independence day.

Every Picture Tells a Story 7/3/13