Why do we love certain comics?There are comic books in my collection that virtually everyone would agree is a classic and is universally loved and adored.
And then there are comics like this issue of Green Lantern, that as far as I can tell, only I adore.
Cover dated Sept. 1965, the issue includes two stories, both written by the legendary John Broome and both drawn by the legendary team of Gil Kane and Sid Greene. I have to admit I was never crazy about Greene's inks on Kane - his style just seemed a little heavy for Kane's work - but even so, the issue is filled with amazing artwork.
The first story is a generic adventure featuring Black Hand, back when he was just another bad guy whose gimmicks were stealing power from Green Lantern's power ring and constantly reciting hoary proverbs ("Seeing is believing!"). (This was obviously long before he became a death-worshiping monster.)
It's the second story that I adore. It's a silly bit of business involving a towering alien called Brutus Force, who is essentially an intergalactic version of "Hulk" Hogan.
"Bru" has fought and defeated fighters all across the universe, but everywhere he goes he's told that Green Lantern is the greatest fighter. It happens so often that he develops a burning, murderous rage every time he hears GL's name.
He comes to Earth to prove he's the best, but GL refuses to fight him, because he only fights against crime. Undeterred, Bru goes on a crime wave, and only stops (natch) when GL agrees to fight him.
Here at the Comic of the Day we try not to give away the ending to comics - and I won't tell you about the outcome of the fight - but the next paragraph will talk about the last page of the story, so consider this your SPOILER WARNING, just in case you ever plan to track this issue down.
Here goes: obviously, GL wins the fight, Bru returns the stolen items and leaves the Earth. We see him on an alien world, where his manager is trying to cheer him up, saying that Green Lantern only won by trickery. Bru angrily cuts his manager off. "Don't ever say a word against Green Lantern! He is the greatest fighter in the universe - just like everyone said! Anyone who says different - has got to answer to me!"
His manager, of course is stunned at this turn of events (as was I, reading the issue). The final shot is of Bru's gruesome face, smiling at the reader, saying, "It was a good fight! He beat me fair and square..."
The idea of this fearsome foe turning out to be the ultimate good sport (and great sportsman) was entirely unexpected - and made for a surprisingly heartwarming ending to the (somewhat silly) story.
But I still think that's exactly the attitude everyone who takes part in sports needs - the ability to accept victory modestly and defeat with just as much grace. The world would be a better place, I tells ya!
Everytime I read that issue, I can't help but smile at that uplifting ending - that's why, for me, this issue is a classic!
Grade: A-
3 comments:
I re-read this issue recently so
it's fresh in my memory. First off,
you've got John Broome writing and
Gil Kane drawing. That raises it up
in my estimation among other books!
And I like Sid Greene's inks on Kane's pencils...sometimes Joe Giella's embellishings were a little flat. Greene was a touch more solid with his inks. But to each his own...
The ending of the second story WAS
so unexpected; we longtime readers
just don't expect that kind of twist in our rock 'em sock 'em
stories...and the pleasure of it
was, it worked!
As much as we readers like our formulas and tropes, it's a real kick when pros like Schwartz, Broome and Kane lead us along and
pleasantly surprise us in the end!
Sam Kujava
Sam, for whatever reason, few inkers worked for me on Gil Kane - I think he was his own best inker. But there were a few I liked, including Wally Wood. Didn't Ralph Reese once ink an issue or two of Conan by Kane?
Absolutely, Kane inked his own pencils the best..I own an original art page (Johnny Thunder
from All-Star Western) where Kane
embellishes his own pencils and it
is sweet! Wally Wood made anyone
look good, though his inks could
overwhelm a penciler's style. Ditko? Estrada? Staton? The finished results all looked like
Wood! With just a touch of the penciller's layouts shining through.
And I remember a Kane/Reese Conan or two, very nice stuff!
Sam Kujava
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