A Cover a Day

[Steve W]

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.

[Jeff of Earth-J]

Odd composition. Is Thor actually standing on the Executioner's leg?

[Don Mankowski]

I feel sorry for the previous guy who had to hear "URANUS IS NEXT!"

Dave Palmer said:

Folks, don’t be fooled into buying some inferior system for shrinking things.  With the Brainiac system you are limited to people or cities.  With our revolutionary new system, you can shrink entire planets.  Imagine an entire planet under glass sitting on your coffee table.  You will be the envy of your friends and the talk of the town.

[Philip Portelli]

Did DC license the Flash to Spire Christian Comics like Archie?

[JD DeLuzio]

While usually Donald is the one behaving selfishly and doing questionable things, he's trying to do the right thing here, and his nephews (and Goofy) are entirely out of line. The Disney Ducks are dicks.

[Richard Willis]

This one tells me that the trend to have fake, old-timey photos taken didn't start in the 60s like I thought, but was a thing at least as far back as 1945. 

[Richard Willis]

I haven't read this story (it's either Red K or magic), but the cover is a little off. Why is the roof flying off? He didn't get taller. He may be fatter in the story than the cover, but he doesn't seem wide enough to burst it apart. Why do the walls of the booth seem to be imploding?

[Peter Wrexham]

Why do the walls of the booth seem to be imploding?

From Superman's massively-increased gravitational attraction?

Here's a remarkably implausible booby trap.  The typewriter (or at least, one specific key on its keyboard) must remain unused from the time the trap is set up to the moment the victim sits in the chair.  The chair must be exactly lined up with the pistol.  The secretary must hit the appropriate key while the victim is sitting in the chair, in the right place.  The secretary must hit the key much harder than I would think is normal to supply sufficient force to pull the trigger.  And how did the D.A. manage to pull the victim out of the way?  Are U.S. legal personnel usually faster than a speeding bullet?

The only explanation that makes sense is to assume that the secretary is actually Mr X, and the D.A. was already on to her.

[Philip Portelli]

When Bob Ross Attacks!

[Peter Wrexham]

I didn't get round to posting yesterday (I was otherwise occupied, attending a virtual convention), so here's a second slice of oddness from Mr. District Attorney.

Here we see the precise moment where the judge threw the case out, and cited the D.A. for contempt of court.

[Steve W]

"Hey guys - did you get that memo from Mort last week?  In order to increase sales, all DC covers must now depict a lion, displaying anthropomorphic qualities. I think I've got it covered this month with the latest Action cover.  What do you think?"

"Curt, I think it said gorilla, not lion..."

[Steve W]

And Peter, I actually ROFL'd when I read your description of the cover of "Mr District Attorney". Brilliant! 

Peter Wrexham said:

Why do the walls of the booth seem to be imploding?

From Superman's massively-increased gravitational attraction?

Here's a remarkably implausible booby trap.  The typewriter (or at least, one specific key on its keyboard) must remain unused from the time the trap is set up to the moment the victim sits in the chair.  The chair must be exactly lined up with the pistol.  The secretary must hit the appropriate key while the victim is sitting in the chair, in the right place.  The secretary must hit the key much harder than I would think is normal to supply sufficient force to pull the trigger.  And how did the D.A. manage to pull the victim out of the way?  Are U.S. legal personnel usually faster than a speeding bullet?

The only explanation that makes sense is to assume that the secretary is actually Mr X, and the D.A. was already on to her.

[Steve W]

The Blackhawk identity deteriorated swiftly once DC had taken the title over from Quality Comics. In the 40s Blackhawk monthly sales were measured in millions, often second only to Superman sales. After 1959 (when DC acquired the title) sales fell month by month until finally DC published the last issue in September 1968. The covers were generally awful, but reached a nadir here with issue #135. A villain with 1,000 hoops! Wow, I can feel the hairs raising on the back of my neck already! No wonder the team are running in abject fear!