Unca Cheeks the Toy Wonder's Silver Age Comics Web Site!
- "The Most Dangerous Man
on the Planet..."
Of all the characters I've discussed on this board, thus far... none have
drawn more requests for "More Covers! More Info Text!" than My Very
Favoritest Hero of Them All the Batman. My goodness, but
you folks out there have excellent taste...! 
Hey... all you had to do was ask me once. I'll talk about the Dark Knight at the drop of a cowl.
One particular request I keep seeing, in my e-mail, is "More Robin pics!"
Alllllllrighty,
then; will this assuage your ravenous cravings, alla you Dick Grayson
fans out there...?
I've also
been asked "what's your all-time favorite Batman cover...?"
Welll... truth to tell I honestly don't think I could pick just one, unless... y'know... you were pressing the business end of a Glock up against my forehead, or something. (I imagine I just might be persuaded to select one then, by golly -- !)
In my opinion the Batman -- what with his being one of the two great comics "icons" (Superman, of course, being the other), and the shudder-inducing quasi-gothic motif he has going for him with that costume of his -- has lent himself to more Great Comics Covers than any other hero in the history of the field.
However:
that being said... I suppose I might allow as how the accompanying
cover, below, holds a particular "soft spot" in my secret fanboy heart
of hearts.
I think it's the creative usage of the book's logo
(something which wasn't quite as common back then as it is now, I'll readily
grant) which has always "grabbed" me. Certainly, it made the book practically
leap from the spinner rack and directly into your outstretched arms, back
when it first came out. (I remember seeing it for the first time, back
as a Wee Plushtoy, upon entering the drugstore where I bought all my comics
at the time, and thinking "ay, CARUMBA -- !!!")
This one
is kinda fun, as well... and not simply because it features yet another
in the seemingly endless gallery of stand-out cover jobs rendered by the
peerless Gil Kane, back in the 60's, either.
Pop Quiz, all of you Bat-hotshots out there who the heck is that broomstick-beboppin' hag on the cover, anyway? You've seen her before (albeit in greatly altered circumstance, and with an entirely different "look"...)
[cue JEOPARDY Theme, as the vast bulk of people reading this -- at this precise
moment -- scowl helplessly at the offending cover.]
BZZZZZZZZZZZZT -- !!!
I'm sorry; you lose. The correct answer is future Justice League member Zatana.
Yup; the League's resident sorceress was -- at the time this long-ago story took place -- laboring under a curse, and needed the particular problem-solving skills which only The World's Greatest Detective could supply, in order to have said enchantment "lifted." Since this particular ensorclement explicitly prohibited her from either a.) simply asking anyone for help, outright; or b.) identifying herself by her "true" name... this meant, of course, staging an appropriately attention-getting crime spree within the city limits of Gotham.
Yeah, yeah... go ahead and snicker, if you like. Just bear in mind,
however it worked.
This one
is yet another "favorite" of mine... and, this time, it pretty much is
the spectacular artwork which wins me over, time and again.
This time, the artist du jour is none other than the legendary Carmine Infantino, his own bad self.
The layout is intelligent, and instantly commands the viewer's fullest, wide-eyed attention. The linework and rendering are crisp, clean and clear.
Quite simply they just don't make 'em like this one anymore; it's a lost art (by and large) within the comics field.
I like this one, just because it's so shamelessly and gleefully goofy.
Admit it you're at least a little curious as to just what kind of story is going on underneath this cover, aren't you? Be honest, now; it's just us comics folk talkin', here.
(... boy... the Joker sure looks... I dunno... buff in that borrowed
Bat-costume, doesn't he? I guess Arkham Asylum finally installed that
state-of-the-art weight room, after all.)
... whereas the Riddler, of course, prefers the time-honored route of dry-swallowing
high-grade cattle steroids by the double-handful, judging from this
little beauty
The obvious faux rendering of the (normally) pipe-cleaner thin Edward Nigma aside... this, too, is nicely dramatic, without teetering over (as so many modern comics seem wont to do) into virtual self-parody. The black bordering along the top and sides of the cover (as well as the device of the jail cell door itself, of course) serves nicely to "frame" all the essential visual elements; more of the standard Infantino craftsmanship on display. The man surely could whip up a cover, couldn't he...?
More Great Covers... on the page immediately following -- !!!
The Silver Age BATMAN
PAGE ONE
PAGE TWO
PAGE THREE
PAGE SEVEN
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