MORRISON MONDAYS!
By BILL MORRISON
In a previous column, I reminisced about my collection of Third Eye’s Marvel black light posters, and in doing so I touched on an issue of Radioactive Man that was set in 1971 and featured a send-up of the classic Denny O’Neil/Neal Adams run on Green Lantern/Green Arrow.
That article was so jam-packed with images of the Marvel posters, and a few pages from the Radioactive Man book, there was no room to show the cover. Now, that regrettable exclusion is hereby corrected as I present the cover to 1994’s Radioactive Man #216. The layout is by Steve Vance, with finishes by yours truly, and colors by Cindy Vance. Since we were doing a parody of the aforementioned saga by O’Neil and Adams, we chose to lampoon Green Lantern/Green Arrow #85, the iconic and sensational “My ward is a junkie!” drug use cover.
Seeing the two covers side-by-side, a burning and controversial question comes immediately to mind: Do rich, single men still have wards?
No, scratch that! The more important question is “What’s worse, a junkie or a dirty hippie?” You decide!
Bonus! Since we’re going for “relevance” — the watchword of early ’70s comics — here’s the back cover: a parody of the famous toy soldier ads that were ubiquitous in comics of the ’60s and ’70s!
Script by Steve Vance, art by yours truly, color by Cindy Vance.
—
Want more MORRISON MONDAYS? Come back next week! Want a commission? See below!
—
MORE
— WHAT IF the 1949 BATMAN and ROBIN SERIAL Posters Were Drawn by DICK SPRANG? Click here.
— CHAMBER OF CHILLS #19: A Lovingly Lurid SIMPSONS Birthday Salute to LEE ELIAS. Click here.
—
Eisner winner BILL MORRISON has been working in comics and publishing since 1993 when he co-founded Bongo Entertainment with Matt Groening, Cindy Vance and Steve Vance. At Bongo, and later as Executive Editor of Mad Magazine, he parodied the comics images he loved as a kid every chance he got. Not much has changed.
Bill is on Instagram (@atomicbattery) and Facebook (Bill Morrison/Atomic Battery Studios), and regularly takes commissions and sells published art through 4C Comics.
June 2, 2025
Oh that’s hilarious! I remember seeing the original GL/GA issue when I was on vacation at Yellowstone Natl. Park! I must’ve been about ten and it didn’t grab me then, so I bought a Dark Shadows comic instead. As I got older, I appreciated the “relevant” era and I really, really appreciate the Radioactive man spoof! Thanks!