Superhero art at its pulpiest…
Out now
The world is filled with superhero movies and TV shows these days — Across the Spider-Verse is a smash and The Flash is getting heady advance reviews, for just two examples — but it’s fun to go back to the earliest days, when Hollywood first tried its hand at heroes who like to leap tall buildings in a single bound (or, at least, battle the Axis powers and take on villains ripped straight from the pulps).
So by all means check out Christopher Irving’s new Cliffhanger!, from TwoMorrows. The 160-page, full-color hardcover features deep dives into every superhero movie series of the ’40s and draws a line between the earliest sci-fi and adventure serials and the onset of television. It’s a well-researched, definitive account and I give it a high recommendation.
The book also reminds me how much I love old serial posters, so here are 13 — in no special order — most of which are featured in the book itself.
Dig it.
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Cliffhanger, listed at $39.95, is available now at comics shops and booksellers. You can also order it directly from TwoMorrows. Click here.
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MORE
— CAPTAIN MARVEL: The World’s Mightiest Superhero Serial. Click here.
— The Oddball World of 1949’s BATMAN AND ROBIN. Click here.
June 10, 2023
These posters are super-cool!