Ok, how about this for an idea. We take it in turns to post a favourite (British spelling) comic cover every day. This went really well on the comic fan website that I used to frequent. What we tried to do was find a theme or subject and follow that, until we all got bored with that theme. I'd like to propose a theme of letters of the alphabet. So, for the remainder of October (only 5 days) and all of November, we post comic cover pictures associated with the letter "A". Then in December, we post covers pertaining to the letter "B". The association to the letter can be as tenuous as you want it to be. For example I could post a cover from "Adventure Comics" or "Amazing Spider Man". However Spider Man covers can also be posted when we're on the letter "S". Adventure Comic covers could also be posted when we're on the letter "L" if they depict the Legion of Super Heroes. So, no real hard, fast rules - in fact the cleverer the interpretation of the letter, the better, as far as I'm concerned.
And it's not written in stone that we have to post a cover every day. There may be some days when no cover gets posted. There's nothing wrong with this, it just demonstrates that we all have lives to lead.
If everyone's in agreement I'd like to kick this off with one of my favourite Action Comic covers, from January 1967. Curt Swan really excelled himself here.
Discussion and voting on future monthly themes takes place on the "Nominations, Themes and Statistics for A Cover A Day" thread. Click here to view the thread.
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I agree with all of the above (I too was an avid LSH fan during the late 60s and early 70s) but i always put the rare appearances of Supergirl down to continuity. Supergirl was visiting the 30th century from 1967/8, but Superboy was visiting from circa 1953/54 (?) (more continuity issues there). Superboy was allegedly hypnotised every time he returned to his own time to forget the existence of his cousin (by whom?) but this could/would impact on any conversations between the two as Superboy would not be aware of his adult self or any experiences that he was yet to experience, whereas Supergirl would be only too aware of the adult Superman. A continuity nightmare! I agree that Mort generally regarded her as an 'honorary' member rather than a full one, because it suited everyone
Supergirl was redundant and did create all sorts of continuity headaches. I think it was Supergirl who planted the "post-hypnotic suggestion," although Saturn Girl could have been a big help.
The doomed romance with Brainiac 5 was a nice touch.
Supergirl did serve as a handy plot device. Fly through a cloud of red kryptonite on her way to the future and instant story (e.g., Satan Girl #313, The Unknown Legionnaire #334).
I have always found this interesting since for 60 years I've always thought Element Lad could take them all out with a wink of his eye, so to speak. ... Was this ever addressed?
In the Silver Age? Not that I recall, and I was looking for it. (Commander Benson might recall an episode, so I hope he's reading this.) It occurred to little me that Element Lad was the most powerful Legionnaire, but he was never depicted that way.
Sorry to be delinquent in getting back to you on this, Cap, but I just saw it yesterday. After a quick bit of research, I found only two instances in which Element Lad's status as one of the most powerful (if not "the most") was ever suggested---and then, only by inference.
At the conclusion of "The Triumph of the Legion of Super-Villains", from Adventure Comics # 331 (Apr., 1965), the Legion of Super-Heroes challenges the Legion of Super-Villains to a winner-take-all contest. To make it a fair combat, the Super-Hero Club agrees to send only three of its members to face Lighntning Lord, Cosmic King, and Saturn Queen. The Legionnaires selected are Superboy, Mon-El, and Element Lad.
By implication---since the Legion would send its three mightiest members to face the super-villains---that puts Element Lad in the big three. And, as shown in the climax of the tale, his super-power is key to the defeat of the LSV, something which might not have occurred if the Legion had sent its traditional Big Three of Superboy, Mon-El, and Ultra Boy.
The second inference is seen in "The King of the Legion", from Adventure Comics # 375 (Dec., 1968). In one chapter of this tale, Mon-El, Element Lad, and Bouncing Boy are dispatched to capture the mind-altered Dartalg, of the heroic Wanderers, as part of a contest to determine which Legionnaire is the mightiest (long story). During this sequence, we see Element Lad doing just what Mr. Palmer put forth: E-Lad uses his transmutation power on the anti-lead serum in Mon-El's bloodstream, changing the kryptonite, the vital element in the serum, to iron; thus, rendering the anti-lead serum inert.
Mon-El succumbs to traces of lead in the near-by rocks. Obviously, Element Lad would not have to rely on the fortunate presence of lead in the area; he could have zapped some up himself by transmuting any near-by element into lead. So, clearly, Element Lad has a devastating advantage over Mon-El.
On the other hand, it was Bouncing Boy who won that particular round of the Mightiest Legionnaire challenge, so one might have to reconsider Element Lad's standing, after all.
Hope this helps.
Fourteen Avengers
Hard to believe now, but 100 issues in, there were still only 14 Avengers. And at the time, I hadn't considered the Hulk a member since Avengers #2, and thought his inclusion here was a stretch.
The Hulk wasn't the problem! It was the Swordsman! He was fighting the Avengers in his last appearance!
A Swanderson cover in a most unexpected place!
Not sure if anyone's presented John Forte's inks over Curt Swan's pencils yet but here's an example, courtesy of the Grand Comics Database.
One reason why I loved Curt's covers was 'simplicity'. I certainly don't mean that in a patronising way. Charles M Schulz's dictum was always 'only draw what's necessary' and that seemed to be a philosophy that both he and Curt subscribed to.The proof of this is an ability to copy a Swan cover. A Kirby cover is virtually uncopyable - so much tiny detail and light/dark shadow - but Curt's are always a joy to try and re-create. Action #355 is a fine example.
X-Men #14 introduced the Sentinels.
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