A BIRTHDAY SALUTE to artist Steve Rude… By JASON CZERNICH The 1990 World’s Finest miniseries by Dave Gibbons and Steve Rude — the latter of whom is celebrating his 69th birthday — caught me by total surprise when I saw it on the shelves of Same Bat Channel Comics (formerly Moondance Comics) at the Hampshire Mall in Hadley, Massachusetts, in June of that year. What a treat it was to see! I had no idea it was coming out—especially as Batman had just guested in the Superman titles weeks before in the now-classic “Dark Knight Over Metropolis” arc. I was blown away by both the story and the art and eagerly awaited each issue. To this day, I am flabbergasted that DC Comics has never given this series the oversize Absolute Edition treatment — because here are 13 REASONS this three-issue mini is the ultimate Batman/Superman team-up: — Dave Gibbons’ Writing. Gibbons is not just the incredible artist of Watchmen—he’s also a great writer. His plotting and dialogue are easily on par with many of the great superhero writers of his generation. He’s adept at crafting in-character interpretations of Batman, Superman, Joker, and Luthor, along with their supporting cast members, while coming up with an engaging plot. He even weaves in the theme of orphans to show both pathos and resilience when the story calls for it. Need further proof of Gibbons’ scripting talents? Check out the first Batman vs. Predator miniseries from 1991, or his 2004 Vertigo graphic novel, The Originals. — Steve Rude’s Art. Aside from a pin-up in Batman #400, this was my first exposure to Rude’s art. Wow! Rude — born Dec. 31, 1956 — could handle both the Man of Steel and the Dark Knight perfectly while visually depicting them as opposites in the very same image. He knew how to stage crowded scenes in which everyone portrayed had a distinct look, feel, and action. He even provided gorgeous, painted front and back covers for each issue. — Steve Oliff’s Coloring. Computer coloring was still a new thing in 1990. What Oliff was doing in these pages—and in other DC titles such as Legends of the Dark Knight’s “Prey” story arc—was very impressive at the time. The flashback scenes from the first issue especially stood out thanks to Oliff’s visual effects. — It Perfectly...
Scott and Dan hit up the comics racks from 57 years ago… This week for RETRO HOT PICKS, Scott and I are selecting comics that came out the week of Dec. 31, 1968. Last time for RETRO HOT PICKS, it was the week of Dec. 24, 1945. Click here to check it out. (Keep in mind that comics came out on multiple days, so these are the comics that went on sale between Dec. 28, 1968, and Jan. 3, 1969.) — So, let’s set the scene: For a weekly column ostensibly about old comics, RETRO HOT PICKS frequently goes into some pretty dark places. The news of a particular week is often grim, painting a stark picture of what was happening outside the panels of a four-color comic book. Among the most tumultuous of years was 1968, scarred by the assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy, the Vietnam War, race riots, a divided America, and the election of Richard Nixon as president. As 1968 turned to 1969, though, we were given something wonderful — a picture of ourselves taken in unprecedented circumstances: On December 29, a photo of the Earth from the moon’s orbit was released by NASA, along with a series of other pictures taken on the Apollo 8 mission, completed just two days before. The photo, called Earthrise, is one of the most famous in history and was taken by astronaut William Anders. It was the first color image of Earth taken from the moon by a person. Understandably, Apollo 8 has been eclipsed in the public imagination by the following year’s moon landing. But this was an enormous point of demarcation in the annals of human exploration — not to mention the space race: the first orbital flight around the moon with Anders and fellow astronauts Frank Borman and Jim Lovell circling 10 times before heading home. (They were also the first humans to see the moon’s far side. Lovell even became the first to vomit in space, forcing the three to dodge the chunks in zero gravity!) All kidding aside, however, Apollo 8, emblemized bv Earthrise, was soul-stirring and breathtaking, and a reminder that the steps getting us to the moon were nearly as awesome as the landing itself. IN OTHER NEWS — On Dec. 29, Joe Namath’s New York Jets beat the Oakland Raiders...
A glorious project that’s slated for later in the year…
Fred Van Lente pays tribute to the late, great artist, who was born 94 years ago…
