Posted By Dan Greenfield on Jun 21, 2020 | 6 comments

BRONZE AGE BONANZA: Nannies, Surfers and Man-Bats — oh my!

—

Welcome to BRONZE AGE BONANZA — our monthly series that looks at the greatest covers of the Bronze Age — exactly 50 years later. For more info on this feature, click here.

—

Kind of a mixed bag this month, but of course Neal Adams, John Romita and Curt Swan make their presences known.

So dig THE TOP 13 COVERS OF JUNE 1970 — RANKED:

(And don’t forget: These entries are based on sale dates and not official publication dates.)

—

13. Nanny and the Professor #2, Dell. When I was little I had such a crush on Kim Richards. Who knew how that was gonna turn out?

—

12. Action Comics #391, DC. More proof that the Silver Age didn’t just end one day and the Bronze Age start the next. It was an evolution. Because look at this typically wacky Silver Age set-up.

Curt Swan pencils, Murphy Anderson inks

—

11. Superman’s Girl Friend Lois Lane #103, DC. I want devil pajamas like those.

Swan and Anderson

—

10. The Twilight Zone #34, Gold Key. This doesn’t give you any real idea what the story’s about but it’s damn unsettling.

George Wilson

—

9. Girls’ Love Stories #153, DC. You can never go too outlandish with romance comics, am I right? By the way, where did she get such a fancy mask in a hospital?

Possibly Dick Giordano

—

8. The Silver Surfer #18, Marvel. I dig the off-kilter perspective here, with Black Bolt shooting up from below. Marvel’s covers during this period were pretty crowded and this one certainly gives you a lot to look at. This was not only the last issue of the Surfer’s original series, the artists here are a bit of a mystery.

Herb Trimpe, Jack Kirby and Marie Severin may all have had a hand in this one.

—

7. The Witching Hour #10, DC. Ever notice how many Neal Adams covers were green? Seriously, it’s a thing. Anyway, like The Twilight Zone above, I have no idea what’s happening here — but I’d love to know.

Adams pencils, possible Giordano inks

—

6. The Brave and the Bold #91, DC. You know who’s an underrated Brave and the Bold artist? Nick Cardy, that’s who. Between Neal Adams and Jim Aparo, you sometimes forget his relatively brief run — though he turned in many a cover. As with everything Cardy, *Chef’s kiss*.

Nick Cardy

—

5. Fantastic Four 102, Marvel. It’s a decent John Romita job, sure. But even though this is a feature about covers, this gets extra points for being Jack Kirby’s last issue on Fantastic Four.

John Romita pencils, John Verpoorten inks

—

4. The Amazing Spider-Man #88, Marvel. Another really busy Marvel cover, but this one has historic impact — the first part in a trilogy culminating in the death of Capt. Stacy.

Romita

—

3. Vampirella #7, Warren. Comparing Warren mag covers with comics covers is sort of apples and oranges, but this feature would not be complete without them. And this is a particularly arresting image.

Frank Frazetta

—

2. Star Trek #8, Gold Key. I know it’s a photo cover so it feels like cheating, but damn, is this pretty.

—

1. Detective Comics #402, DC. Once again, Neal Adams tops the list with yet another classic Bat-cover. This isn’t even his very best and yet it’s streets ahead of anything else on the racks that month.

Adams

—

MORE

— The TOP 13 COVERS of MAY 1970 — RANKED. Click here.

— BRONZE AGE BONZANA: The 1970 INDEX. Click here.

—

Sources: Mike’s Amazing World of Comics and the Grand Comics Database.