Posted By Dan Greenfield on Dec 18, 2024 | 14 comments

Scott and Dan hit up the comics racks from 43 years ago…

This week for RETRO HOT PICKS, Scott Tipton and I are selecting comics that came out the week of Dec. 18, 1981.

Last time for RETRO HOT PICKS, it was the week of Dec. 11, 1976. Click here to check it out.

(Keep in mind that comics came out on multiple days, so these are technically the comics that went on sale between Dec. 15 and Dec. 21.)

So, let’s set the scene: On the domestic front, it was relatively quiet but major headlines were being generated out of Poland and the Middle East.

Poland’s Soviet-bloc, communist government had declared martial law and arrested Solidarity union activists in a violent but ultimately futile attempt to crush the opposition to the authoritarian regime. On Dec. 16, riot police launched the so-called “pacification of Wujek” — an Orwellian term for massacre. Authorities broke up a sit-down strike by 2,000 at the Wujek coal mine in Katowice — with tanks and gunfire. They even shot at emergency workers who attempted to help the wounded. Nine miners were killed, and four police.

Dec. 13: Polish tanks enter the town of Zbaszyn.

The assault quelled the movement, led by Lech Walesa and others, in the short term but the lingering anger and angst hardened into resolve and by the end of the decade, the government was ousted. Twenty-five years after the massacre, a former commander and 14 officers were imprisoned for their brutality.

Amid the ongoing crisis, President Reagan condemned the Polish government for violating human rights and said the US would not give economic aid to Poland unless martial law were lifted.

Walesa was named Time’s Man of the Year.

My beautiful picture

On Dec. 15, what’s widely considered the first suicide car bombing destroyed Iraq’s embassy in Beirut, Lebanon, killing 61. Car bombs were not new, and suicide bombers had used vehicles to drive to a target, but this attack was distinct because the car was filled with explosives and detonated while it was being driven. At least 100 others were injured.

IN OTHER NEWS

— A miracle! On Dec. 18, a 19-month-old child fell from his family’s sixth-floor apartment in Manhattan — and survived without a scratch. His fall was broken by shrubs, and he landed in mud.

— On Dec. 18, Tom Brokaw wrapped up his tenure as co-anchor of NBC’s The Today Show. Bryant Gumbel would take over in January. Brokaw would join NBC Nightly News.

— The Broadway juggernaut Dreamgirls opened Dec. 20.

The dark comedy Neighbors, starring John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd, was the box-office leader. Didn’t like it. Other choices at the multiplex included the weird erotic finance thriller Rollover — yes, I said “erotic finance thriller” — starring Jane Fonda and Kris Kristofferson; Terry Gilliam’s Time Bandits; and, Raiders of the Lost Ark, which was still kicking around months after its June release. There was also the seminal Porky’s, which birthed a whole, regrettable ’80s teen-sex comedy genre.

Of course it was also Oscar-bait season, with theaters offering Reds, On Golden Pond, Absence of Malice and Chariots of Fire, with its omnipresent musical theme.

The most popular shows at the time included 60 Minutes, Dallas, Alice, The Jeffersons, Archie Bunker’s Place, Little House on the Prairie, MASH and its spinoff-in-name-only Trapper John, M.D.

Olivia Newton-John’s Physical, which upended her image as a “good girl,” topped the Billboard 100. Other hits included Foreigner’s unlistenable Waiting For A Girl Like You (No. 2);  Young Turks, by Rod Stewart (No. 5); Quarterflash’s MTV-friendly Harden My Heart (No. 8); and Journey’s anthemic Don’t Stop Believin’ (No. 9).

Foreigner 4 was the best-selling LP, with the Police’s Ghost in the Machine at No. 2, and AC/DC’s For Those About to Rock (We Salute You) at No. 3. One of the Rolling Stones’ best, the Frankensteined Tattoo You, was No. 8.

But don’t forget ’twas the season and there was a rad, new little tune that slowly but surely became a holiday staple — and one of the greatest modern Christmas songs of them all: the Waitresses’ Christmas Wrapping. There’s no official video and the one below is patently ridiculous given Christmas Wrapping’s clever subversiveness but, hey, the song is still great:

Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas, but I think I’ll miss this one this year…

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Scott Tipton, contributor-at-large, 13th Dimension

The Brave and the Bold #184, DC. I always loved when Earth-One Batman hung out with Earth-Two Huntress, his other-dimensional daughter. It gave him a kind of wistful glimpse of the life he would never allow himself to have.

Dan adds: One of the best issues of B&B ever. Mike W. Barr and Jim Aparo give us a memorable Christmas story that actually is echoed in the 2022 movie The Batman, though almost certainly unintentionally. The central mystery involves Bruce finding out that his father may have been crooked, undermining his whole reason for being. But really, as Scott points out, the story is about Batman and Huntress’ relationship and how they regard their respective fathers. Huntress, by the way, was one of the worst casualties of Crisis on Infinite Earths. The Helena Bertinelli version had none of what made the character special in the first place.

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Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man #64, Marvel. First appearance of Cloak & Dagger! The A-listers of B-List superheroes!

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Iron Man #156, Marvel. The Mauler was another villain I expected to have a much longer career than he did, mostly just because I liked his armor.

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Fantastic Four #240, Marvel. This isn’t a bad Byrne-Austin cover, but it does feel odd that we’re staring at the backs of everyone’s heads.

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Dan Greenfield, editor, 13th Dimension

Green Lantern #150, DC. Y’know, I’m not sure this era of Green Lantern has ever been collected. I’m actually pretty sure it hasn’t. (Correct me if I’m wrong.) Makes it a candidate for a DC Finest edition, right? Brought to you by Marv Wolfman, Joe Staton and Mike DeCarlo, with a Wolfman/Staton backup.

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The Phantom Zone #3, DC. Superman II came out this year, so of course there was a Phantom Zone miniseries.

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MORE

— RETRO HOT PICKS! On Sale The Week of Dec. 11 — in 1976! Click here.

— RETRO HOT PICKS! On Sale The Week of Dec. 4 — in 1969! Click here.

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Primary comics sources: Mike’s Amazing World of Comics, the Grand Comics Database.