Secret Society of Super-Villains #1 (May-June, 1976)
"Attend --or Die!"
Writer/Edits - Gerry Conway
Pencils - Pablo Marcos
Inks - Bob Smith
Cover Price: $0.30
Over the course of the past few weeks, I've been trying to make good on a promise I made to the wife about... cleaning up the comics-areas of the house. Right now, I've got around three rooms full of the stuff, and since I'm constantly digging into boxes in order to write and/or talk about specific issues, it's... well, an absolute disaster.
It's almost a bit embarrassing, but I even shared a picture of my "progress" on the Twitta Machine.
In that li'l tweet I mentioned the fact that, when attempting to "organize" the stuff, it's just so easy to become distracted. It's sort of like visiting old friends... and, at the same time, discovering new ones! Such is the book we're going to be discussing today. It's a book that, clearly I picked up somewhere down the road, but I have absolutely no memory of it!
Now this is a special one, not only is it an issue of Secret Society of Super-Villains, not only is it the first issue of Secret Society of Super-Villains... no, no, no... it's even more special than that! Ya see, today we're going to be looking at Mark's first issue of Secret Society of Super-Villains!
Get excited! You know I am!
--
We open with Captain Cold and Mirror Master rushing away from a jewelry store, loot in hand. The N.Y.P.D. are in hot pursuit. Through some creative use of their powers, the pair'a villains are able to give the boys in blue the slip, and before we know they're back at their roach motel to divvy up the dosh. Turns out, these goofballs didn't quite hit the mother-lode they were expecting. While they were lookin' fer a six-figure total, they barely scraped together five. As they argue about whether or not they're "holding out" on one another, a rock comes flying through their window. On it, a note... with an invitation!
We shift scenes to Gorilla City, where boring ol' Grodd has busted out of his prison once again. He beats the heck out of the Gorilla City Guards, all the while annoyingly lecturing them on how walls and bars don't quite a cell make... or something. He laughs... and vanishes.
From here, we jump to the Special Security Federal Penitentiary Number Three, where Copperhead... the "Serpentine King of Crime" is currently busting out of the joint. Ya see, one of his followers smuggled his swell suit into the clink during meal time. The lackey reveals that he didn't work alone, and shares with him... an invitation! Now, Copperhead is the type of character I'd think of growing up when I'd compare Marvel villains with DC villains. He just strikes me as so ugly, and so boring.
Next stop, San Francisco... where Sinestro is answering an invitation of his own. He touches down, and changes his image a bit in order to appear more human before gazing up to the clandestine "Citadel Sinister". In a really cool bit, we get one of those old-fashioned "cross-sections" of the building, which tells us about all the works going on within. Why, they've even got a tailor up in there! Whoever's behind this is doin' it right!
Sinestro heads inside, and is greeted by a French woman calling herself Camille. She leads him to the elevators so he can head up to the lounge for whatever meeting is about to take place.
Once Sinestro is loaded in, and headed skyward, our "Camille" reveals that she is actually... Star Sapphire. Well, a Star Sapphire. Mr. Conway doesn't wanna spoil her story here... and so, I won't either... mostly because I'm not all that familiar with it! She flies up to the lounge, and it looks like our "meeting" is about to kick off. Worth noting, the caption mentions that Catwoman is a part of this "team", but we don't see her at all.
Now, as the baddies get settled in... they are suddenly attacked by: the Justice League! If you're thinking this might play out just like the image on the cover... well, uh... yeah, that's exactly how it goes. We spend three pages of the Secret Society fighting (and beating) some JLA robots. Woo?
This was all an exhibition, courtesy of their "host substitute"... Manhunter! Ay yai yai.
Manhunter introduces himself as a clone of Paul Kirk... and says he is here as a proxy for the actual leader of this Secret Society... whose name he won't reveal. He "sells" them on the concept of joining forces... and lists off some of the perks their association will enjoy. He informs the gang that he has been tasked with "testing" them... and declares that the testing will begin with Gorilla Grodd and Copperhead! Wow, I guess we'll get the most boring characters out of the way first!
Before we know it, the baddie tandem are headed to Jim Aparo's buddy Chuck's lighthouse! They're here to swipe a solid sphere of Plutonium... that is being guarded by like four guards and an old man. Feels like a pretty underwhelming "test", dunnit? I mean, one of these baddies is a giant genius gorilla. Anyhoo, Grodd takes out the guards... like in one panel, while Copperhead slithers up the side of the lighthouse, and beats up the "creepy old man" who is handling the isotope.
With the sphere under his arm, Copperhead rushes back outside to re-board the Secret Society aircraft. Along the way, however, he is shot in the shoulder by a recovering guard. This causes him to go down, and drop the bauble into the drink. The plutonium is gone forever...
Gorilla Grodd decides that he ain't about to wait for his slithery compatriot... and, well... abandons him, to bleed out and/or get rearrested on the rocks outside the lighthouse! We wrap up with Grodd informing Manhunter that Copperhead "betrayed them"... which, I mean... I couldn't care less about the snake man, but that's just a jerk move.
--
Hey, this wasn't half-bad! Wasn't quite sure what to expect here... and, honestly, I'm still not entirely sure.
This was your standard "assembling the forces" sort of issue, which is fine. I'm kind of a sucker for stories like this... so, I don't have any complaints in that regard. I will say, if one of the big "gotchas" in the book is the revelation that the Justice League the Society spends several pages fighting are robots... maybe you don't put that on the cover? I mean, not that I'd assume the actual League would show up... and get beaten back by these geeks... but, still.
The characters we get here are a pretty good assortment... and I appreciate the fact that, even after a single issue, the "order" kind of changes with the loss of Copperhead. That gives this series a feeling that there are actual stakes... and, that we might lose (or gain) members at any time. They mystery behind the benefactor... which, I didn't want to have spoiled for me... but, did because I guess "knowledge is power" on the comics internet... and we all wanna look like we know stuff. Granted, I probably shouldn't get all that annoyed about having a near half-century old story "spoiled". Whatever the case, I won't spoil it, just in case people wanna find out for themselves.
I dug Gorilla Grodd abandoning Copperhead at the lighthouse... and even going so far as to lie about the snake-man betraying the Society. This shows us that there's no loyalty among baddies. This "team" is very different than their heroic counterparts. We wouldn't see Superman abandon the Flash in times of trouble... but, we will see the villains turn on one another in a moment's notice.
Overall... had a good time with Mark's issue of Secret Society of Super-Villains... though, I do wish the fella was a little more gentle with his copy. Writing inside the comic? Clipping out coupons (see below)? C'mon, Mark... think of your future, man! You could've been sitting on a $24 fortune right now!
--
Most of (Not the) Letters Page (dammit, Mark!):
--
PSA:
--
Interesting Ads (aka. I hope you enjoyed your 204 soldiers, Mark!):
Secret Origins #4 (July, 1986)
"The Secret Origin of Firestorm, the Nuclear Man"
Writer - Gerry Conway
Pencils - George Tuska
Inks - Pablo Marcos
Letters - John Costanza & Carrie Spiegle
Colors - Nansi Hoolahan
Assists - Paul Kupperberg & Robert Greenberger
Edits - Janice Rice
Cover Price: $0.75
I feel like I preface the same way every time we discuss Firestorm... but, this was a character (and a title) I never really glommed onto. That might sound like heresy, especially to say such a thing on the internet... but, I ain't about to lie to y'all and proclaim myself to be some sort of expert.
I've tried... Lord knows... to "get into" Firestorm. Mostly because, it's one of those books that I'm told I "should like". It's the most Marvel-ish of the DC books... and, as a Marvel Boy, should have felt more like "home" to me than many of DC's other standbys. And yet, I just didn't get it. Still don't, in fact! I like the idea, the concept, and even the character... just not enough to actually sit through a hundred issues (or pages) featuring him.
Maybe one'a these days I'll come around... til then, however, let's take a peek into (part of) his "secret origin". Perhaps this will help make all of those pieces fall into place for me?
--
We open with Firestorm on-the-job... and a little back 'n forth between his two halves. Professor Stein is happy that Ronnie is so excited to help the Pittsburgh P.D. with all of their troubles... but, really needs to be somewhere. What he's trying to say is, maybe some cats ought to be left in trees... or something. More like, let the actual police have some of the fun, I guess. The two split up, and... somewhat surprisingly (at least to me), it's Stein we follow back to the "real life". We rejoin him at Vandemeer University, where he's met by his... assistant (?) Wendy. She asks if he'd like to join her downtown for some Chicago-Style pizza. I'll... fight the temptation to mention that New York pizza is world's better. Stuffy ol' Stein declines the offer... and would rather just stand pensively in his window having a flashback...
... All the way back to his college days at Jessie Spano's alma mater, Stanford... err, Sanford. Likely a technical school having to do with waste management then? We catch up with him as he's being bullied by a very Tuska-looking tough guy. This is Brad, somethin' or 'nother... and he wants to cheat off of him on the upcoming "Semester Exam". Stein (who the bully calls "Stern") refuses at first... until Brad rams his finger up his nose... at which time, our man reconsiders.
Humiliated, Stein drops to the ground to pick up his books. He's approached by Crystal Frost, who would like nothing more than to comfort him. Instead of accepting this, Martin tells her to scram... unwittingly setting off a series of events that would end in her becoming the villain, Killer Frost. Oops!
Next, comes the day of testing... and young Marty has himself a plan. He will indeed let Brad copy off his paper... but, here's the thing, he's going to answer every question incorrectly himself! This gets Stein a rather sizable knuckle sandwich.
We jump ahead to Stein using this beat-down as a way of digging down and finding his determination. He'd tune out the world completely, and devote his life to his studies. He'd eventually graduate, and receive both his Masters and Doctorate on the same day. From here, the world was his oyster... he'd get a great gig at S.T.A.R. Labs... and yet, even with all of these accomplishments under his belts... his self-esteem still sucked! Anytime he'd hear people laughing nearby, he'd automatically assume they were laughing at him. Whew, it's not just me who feels that way then...
All of his self-doubts and fears ultimately turn Martin Stein toward... the drink. He's self-medicating, and making no apologies. One night at the disco, he's approached by a beautiful (?) woman (it is a George Tuska drawing, after all). She is immediately smitten, and so, drags him out to the dance floor.
Seven days later... they're married! This is Martin's wife, Clarissa... with whom he was "deliriously happy". That's what we in the biz call "famous last words", right?
It doesn't take too terribly long for that other shoe to drop. Ya see, Ms. Clarissa... liked to spend money. What's more, she liked to spend money Marty didn't have. This leads to a massive blowup, that ends with Martin "putting hands" on her. He wrenches her arm, which freaks them both out... she ultimately storms out. They would eventually divorce...
... and so, Marty went back to his cruel mistress... booze. Around now, he's left S.T.A.R. Labs for a lead gig at Hudson Nuclear. Here, he designed the world's first fully automated nuclear power plant... or, at least that was the plan.
Now, nuclear energy was (and is) a hot-button issue... and so, there were many people looking to protest the development of this new facility... including a brutish looking fellow who refers to Stein as "Stern". This sends Martin reeling into a flashback to his tormented college days, and he shoves the dude into the fence. Turns out, it's just some other young knucklehead and not Brad-the-Bully. Stein's assistant, Danton Black sweeps our man away to a nearby car before he can do anything he might regret. They head directly to the bar so Marty can tie (another) one on.
The whole chat here is... weird, and kind of a heartbreaking look into the mind of a paranoid victim of bullying. Even though he's like top dog right now, he can't stifle the feelings that everyone views him as weak... and are laughing at him behind his back. Danton lent our man an ear... which seems like something a friend might do... but, in reality... he was just confirming his own suspicions that Martin Stein is a drunk. We jump ahead to a point in time where Danton decides he's going to steal an isotope... and, considering what he now knows about Stein... there ain't much he can do to stop him!
Danton tells Stein that if he dares fire him, the whole world will find out that he's a raging alcoholic. After being whacked with a briefcase, Stein decides calls his bluff...
... which is something he'll soon regret. Two days later, the entire operation is shut down. Stein decides "screw it", and proceeds with the launch anyway.
Turns out, at that very moment... a "racial" antinuclear group was putting some explosives in place to tank the entire place... and probably render much of the East Coast unlivable for a rather long time. I'm going to assume they meant to describe these goobers as "radical" and not "racial", right? The Prof gets backhanded when he attempts to intervene... and winds up laid out by the bombs alongside some kid named Ronnie.
The timer on the bomb ticks down... and Ronnie wakes up. Rather than rushing off to save himself, he decides to try and pull the Prof out of harm's way. This doesn't work out well for either of them! Also, Danton Black was still lingering around the place, and got hit with a blast of radiation himself! This is how he'd wind up becoming the villain, Multiplex.
From here, we get the quick and dirty on what Firestorm is and does... and our flashback finally ends. Stein stops to think s'more and decides life's too short to spend it alone with your papers. We wrap up with him joining Wendy and the gang at that pizza joint.
--
Now, up to this point I knew diddly and squat about Professor Stein. I mean, I knew of him... and who he was, but outside of pointing him out in a line-up, I couldn't tell ya all that much. This issue, I feel, did a great job of filling in many of those blanks for me.
I think, up to this point, I always just assumed the Professor was a cold, stodgy, no-nonsense, colorless, flavorless, odorless sort of character. Just something we dealt with while we waited for Ronnie's scenes. Does that make any sense? I mean, I'm coming at this as an ignorant outsider... but, the idea of following around the Professor for an entire issue, at first blush, seems like a really bad idea. Almost like we lost a bet or something.
Instead... what we get is... pretty damned good! We (or I) meet this Martin Stein, and find him to be downright relatable! Someone with as many flaws as he has accomplishments... and, I tell ya what, this is one very successful fellow. While I do feel that the alcoholism angle might be like an "easy" way to give him a vice or a failing... everything that led up to that actually felt organic and meaningful. What I'm trying to say is, seeing him turn to the drink didn't feel "outta nowhere".
My main takeaway here, if I had to pick one, is despite Stein's many successes... at the end of the day, he still sees himself as an impotent (in the helpless sort of way) victim of bullying. These bits really resonated with me, in that... I (and I assume many) can definitely relate to such feelings. I can't quite say that anything I've done (or will ever do) could measure up to ya know nuclear ingenuity... but, I've had my fair share of "successes". Unfortunately, anytime they might be acknowledged, I suspect whoever's speaking is being either sarcastic or patronizing.
Even today, though... as a dude in his forties... if I'm in a classroom, and I hear a group of people chuckling... I automatically assume they're laughing at me. It's really hindered my ability, self-esteem, and self-efficacy over the years. I feel like I'm too busy guarding myself to allow myself to just "be". Ya know? I'm not a drinker, thankfully... I guess my vice is the back-issue bins. If I were starring in this issue, I'd jump from having my face rubbed in the dirt to my rubbing my own face in some ancient newsprint. There's an image for ya!
Anyhoo, outside of all the heady-stuff, this was still a great little primer on Stein. I really appreciated how Multiplex and Killer Frost's origins were tied in here. Thought that was a neat little bit of completistness... completionism... whatever it is I'm trying to say. The art from George Tuska was.... Tuska-y. I swear Bully Brad showed up in every crowd shot here... even though he actually didn't. I guess what I'm trying to say is... some of these characters looked very "stock".
Overall... thought this was pretty cool... and, I learned a whole lot about Professor Stein's origins... from, ya know, a half-dozen reboots ago. I don't know how much (if any) of this still stands in our current DC Comics landscape... and, ya know what... I bet the folks actually collecting paychecks at DC don't either!
--
(Not the) Letters Page:
--
Interesting Ads:
Detective Comics #506 (September, 1981)
"Who Dies for the Manikin?"
Writer - Gerry Conway
Pencils - Don Newton
Inks - Steve Mitchell
Letters - Ben Oda
Colors - Adrienne Roy
Edits - Dick Giordano
Cover Price: $0.50
I've been a little cranky lately... maybe I'm just starting to crack up? Anyhoo, rather than sticking with "current year" stuff, I'm going to run back to yesteryear to discuss something that hopefully won't cause me to question my fandom!
It's weird... for the first three 3-4 years of this blog's existence, the criticism that kept popping up was that I was a blind "DC fanboy"... I was too forgiving of them, I made excuses for them, I praised things that weren't worthy. Well, I think I can safely say that ship has finally sailed...
--
We open ten-months ago on an overpass of the Gotham River Parkway. A flaming car goes careening through a partition, and plummets down onto the street below. Batman swoops in to survey the damage. He manages to tear the white-hot door open, and retrieve the still-living driver. Upon setting her down to get a better look, it is clear that she is beyond badly burned. The rubberneckers that have gathered beg Batman to cover her mangled body.
The woman is loaded into an ambulance, and will most likely survive the ordeal. Then, the Fire Marshall shows up and chats Batman up while he's tinkering under the hood. Our man discovers fragments of a bomb... so, it looks as though this vehicle's inferno-end was premeditated. But why?
Before we get an answer, we're zipped back to the "present". Bruce is doing some dumbbell curls, and watching a news program... featuring a few stuffed-shirts talking smack about the Bat. One of these geeks is running for Mayor, and puts the blame squarely on Commissioner Gordon, who he'll demand a resignation from when he wins the election. Some nice "subplot bubbling" here! Almost forgot that writers used to actually think so far ahead!
Bruce hits the shower, then goes clubbing to keep up his playboy facade. Worth noting, he and his date decide to party at Studio-52. 52? There's that number again! Ya know, one of these days I'm going to try and compile a list of all of the pre-52 "52" mentions. I wonder if it's just a bit of confirmation bias, where the number "52" just stands out to me... or, if this "number fetish" was always there!
Anyhoo, inside, Bruce and his gal get comfortable. Bruce notices a bizarre woman enter the scene, and beeline it over to the famous designer Kevin Clane (oy). She confirms he is who she thinks he is... then, clutches him by the throat and hoists him out of his seat! Bruce, uncharacteristically (hey, he's not in costume), attempts to intervene, only to be swatted away!
She continues to grip Mr. Clane's throat... before ultimately snapping it! She dumps the body to the floor, and nonchalantly exits the club.
Bruce ducks out of the place to change clothes. He is quick enough to confront the "femme fatale" before she can split the scene. He attempts to abduct the killer, but gets socked in the mush for his troubles.
She then... removes her fleshy disguise, revealing herself to be (as if the cover didn't already tell us)... not unlike a living manikin! I'm getting weird Shaye Saint John vibes here! She pummels the befuddled Bat for a bit, before this fella in a cap wrangles her into her car... leaving her "human suit" behind.
Batman collects her clothes, and decides to check in with his favorite fashionista... Catwoman. He gives Selina her outfit, and asks is she's seen this style of dress before. In fact, she has... the only difference is the fact that the Manikin's jacket had it's designer's label removed. She reveals an identical jacket in her closet... with a "Hoston" label sewn in.
And so, fearing he might be the Manikin's next target, Batman decides to check in with Mr. Hoston. The hoity designer dismisses Batman's concerns... which, we in the biz call "famous last words". No sooner does he p'shaw the deal than a firebomb is launched into his office! This goof seems to be more worried about his fabrics than his life... but, Batman is able to get him back "on task".
Batman wraps Hoston in his cape and bursts through a glass door into the "showroom" to escape the inferno. Unfortunately, the entire building has been locked down with magnetic locks... so, at this point... it looks as though they won't be getting out.
Now, this showroom is full of sharply-dressed mannequins. As Batman weaves through 'em... he hears the familiar voice of... the Manikin. He knows one of these "dolls" is actually her... but which? This is a very well done and wildly creepy scene.
Batman finds one mannequin that stands out... and, sure it's his baddie, he lunges at it. Wrong-o, Bats. After knocking the actual doll to the floor, another wallops him with a weighted golf-club!
This is, of course, the Manikin! She and Batman fight... while smoke and flame fills the showroom. Under a thick layer of black smoke, the warriors strike at one another. From the sooty facade, exits a single figure... the Manikin... and she now has her sights on Hoston.
--
Y'ever find a back issue in a, like, really grimy bin? Like a longbox that probably hasn't been gone through in years... and, you find this book you wanna buy, you pick it up... and, you can feel decades worth of "grit" on it? That's this issue for me. Every single page of this thing feels like it has a thin layer of sawdust coating it... I feel like I could shake this thing by the staples, and build a sizable sandcastle with all the "grit" that falls out. In fact, I've had to wash my hands a half dozen times up to this point, because it just felt so gross. Was the story worth the gritty struggle?
Well, yeah! I had a really good time with this one! It was an excellent issue! Creepy story, formidable foe... subplots... awesome art. I mean, what more could ya ask for? Really can't say enough good about it! I tell ya what, the bit with Batman walking among the mannequins might be one of the best designed/directed/drawn scenes I've seen in comics in quite some time! The tension was real... and, you know I'm not one for "live-action" (or even animated) adaptations... but, this is one scene I'd love to see "come alive".
Actually, my only "complaint" would be that I don't think I own the next issue! Hopefully once the world returns to normal, I can track it down so we can finish this one up!
I mentioned that our Manikin gave me Shaye Saint John vibes. If you're unaware of who/what "Shaye" is... well, Google at your own risk, it can be the stuff of "nightmare fuel". Very creepy stuff... that I ain't gonna link to! "Shaye" was the star of some experimental short-films (called "Triggers") created by a fella named Eric Fournier. The story has to do with a fashion model who was in a horrible car accident, which cost her most of her limbs. After "recovering", she put herself back together with mannequin parts. It might be even weirder than it sounds. In fact, over the past decade-plus, a lot of folks would refer to these films as "dark/deep-web" stuff. It's not anything quite that sinister, but it's easy to see why people felt that way. If you're interested, info on Shaye/Eric is pretty easy to find online, there are a bunch of vids on YouTube (including the episode of Unboxed, Watched, and Reviewed where I learned about it!). Last I heard the "official site" is bogged down with malware, so whatever you do, don't click on that one.
Oh, worth noting, there was a Batgirl back-up included in this one, but I decided not to include it. Gave it a flip-thru, figure maybe one'a these days I'll pop it in as an "Action-Plus".
--
Letters Page:
--
Interesting Ads:
