Batman comic book cover gallery

[gothosmansion]

Batfanman,

I really liked that B&B issue, but I was so sorry to see the title go. If anyone has noticed, the price on that issue seems to be going up over the last few months, since it is the first appearance of Katanna. If you want a copy, you might better grab it before Suicide Squad came out.

Since Sprangfan mentioned finding something in the store that you didn't know was coming out...Here is one that I NEVER saw advertised and was thrilled and shocked to walk in the store and find. Although I already had the second Superman/Spider-Man team-up, I remember it being advertised. I do not recall seeing any ads for Batman vs The Incredible Hulk. At the time, Hulk was my favorite Marvel character, although Spider-Man would take over that spot a short time after this. Batman is, was, and always will be my favorite fictional character, so I was thrilled to see a team up with my favorite DC and Marvel character, written by one of my favorite Batman writers and my absolute favorite Hulk writer...to top that off, it was drawn by the great Jose Luis Garcia Lopez. When I walked in the store and saw this on the magazine shelf...I knew this was the comic I was taking home that day.

[BATWINGED HORNET]

Remember these books? Awesome Neal Adams cover.

I have this treasury and all i can say is there is only one Neal Adams. Brilliant master artist.

[BATWINGED HORNET]

Brave and the Bold #114 (Sept. 1974) features a thrilling Jim Aparo fight between two heroes, looking like it was to the death, for all of the violent energy in the two forms. Brave and the Bold was a great source for hero vs. hero action covers, probably more than Batman, World's Finest or Detective.

[Batfanman]

I rarely bought B&B - was not much into comics during the 70s but somewhere in the 80s #200 caught my attention. It was rare to see E1& E2 Batman in a story - I don't think they ever appeared together and this was the closest we got.

[SprangFan]

If this one didn't appeal to the average 7-year-old, I don't know what would.

[gothosmansion]

Sprangfan,

Another great Neal Adams cover.

Batwingedhornet,

I really like the 100 page issues and Aparo's early 70s output is hard to top.

Batfanman,

To enjoy Bob Haney's B&B, you have to pretend it is in its own universe and appreciate Haney's wild plot twists and imagination. Haney's Batman is uniquely his own.

However as much I enjoy Haney & Aparo's issues, my all-time favorite B&B issue was 197 from April 1983. Aparo did the cover by the issue was by Alan Brennert, Joe Staton and George Freeman. The story "The Autobiography of Bruce Wayne" tells how the Earth 2 Batman and Catwoman finally got married. This isn't just my favorite B&B. It is one of my favorite Batman stories ever, and if you haven't read it, pick up a copy. You will be glad you did.

[gothosmansion]

Normally, I only post comics that I own and usually scan my copies, so I hope everyone will forgive me for posting a comic that I only have a reprint of in Batman : The Dark Knight Archives. I thought this would be a good cover for Memorial Day. A lot of the Veterans from WWII are no longer with us, so if you know someone who fought in the war, remember to thank them for their service. My grandfather, who fought in the war and was in the D-day invasion, died in 2005 at the age of 85. I really feel like his generation was the “greatest generation.” Batman 30 August/September 1945. Cover art by Dick Sprang. Thumbnail, so click for larger version

[Batfanman]

I do recall that one as well - was a great fill-in-the-blanks story. Have to find it again.

Gothosmansion - that Batman #30 story is also reprinted in the recent Batman: The War Years compilation book.

Sprangfan,

Another great Neal Adams cover.

Batwingedhornet,

I really like the 100 page issues and Aparo's early 70s output is hard to top.

Batfanman,

To enjoy Bob Haney's B&B, you have to pretend it is in its own universe and appreciate Haney's wild plot twists and imagination. Haney's Batman is uniquely his own.

However as much I enjoy Haney & Aparo's issues, my all-time favorite B&B issue was 197 from April 1983. Aparo did the cover by the issue was by Alan Brennert, Joe Staton and George Freeman. The story "The Autobiography of Bruce Wayne" tells how the Earth 2 Batman and Catwoman finally got married. This isn't just my favorite B&B. It is one of my favorite Batman stories ever, and if you haven't read it, pick up a copy. You will be glad you did.

[Batfanman]

Here's another great 4 issue mini series involving Batman & the JSA. I really enjoyed this back when I discovered this issue in a used bin. It was very difficult to find the subsequent issues but I finally did. I don't think it has ever been reprinted.

[gothosmansion]

I haven't read that Justice Society story.

One more Earth 2 World War II story. Most of the B&B Batman/Sgt. Rock featured Batman with Rock in the modern day, and I believe this was the only one that took place during the war. This was the only one of the Sgt. Rock team-ups in B&B that wasn't written by Bob Haney.

[Mr.Freeze]

A toast to Poison Ivy on her 50th anniversary

[gothosmansion]

A toast to Poison Ivy on her 50th anniversary

My first exposure to Poison Ivy wasn't in a comic book, but in a Super Friends Golden Book called Challenge of the Super Foes. Ivy really wasn't featured as a main villain in any of the mainstream Batman comics of the 1970s, so I had no idea who she was.

As another aside, I have the early 80s digest Batman's Villains and it features a pinup that is supposed to be Batman's top 24 rogues. Ivy was not included. I really thing Ivy's inclusion on the 1990s animated series is what lead to her current popularity. Anyone else agree or disagree?

[BATWINGED HORNET]

As another aside, I have the early 80s digest Batman's Villains and it features a pinup that is supposed to be Batman's top 24 rogues. Ivy was not included. I really thing Ivy's inclusion on the 1990s animated series is what lead to her current popularity. Anyone else agree or disagree?

If that was the case, it would not be the first time a comic villain gained popularity by way of the filmed adaptation, as in the case of the Riddler from the Dozier series.

[gothosmansion]

In the 70s, Ivy appeared in Justice League, Lois Lane (taking on the Thorn in a backup story), World's Finest (taking on Wonder Woman), Secret Society of Super Villains, Super Friends, and Batman Family (taking on Batgirl and the Huntress). She did appear a few times in the 1980s.

Ivy appeared on this Batman cover in the 1977, but she was in the background of the story and not really a main player.

[SprangFan]

Here's another great 4 issue mini series involving Batman & the JSA. I really enjoyed this back when I discovered this issue in a used bin. It was very difficult to find the subsequent issues but I finally did. I don't think it has ever been reprinted.

Actually it just came out very recently in trade paperback form:
https://www.amazon.com/America-Vs-Justi ... ce+society

I enjoyed the series at the time, but it can be tough to read in one sitting, as it's dense with Roy Thomas' usual, wordy continuity gymnastics as he tries to sew up decades of sometimes contradictory JSA history into one neat package. The story actually takes on a sort of depressing quality now that we know DC would soon throw out all that history, anyway, making the whole thing an exercise in futility.

One more Earth 2 World War II story. Most of the B&B Batman/Sgt. Rock featured Batman with Rock in the modern day, and I believe this was the only one that took place during the war.

There was at least one other one, with a great cover (and interiors!) by Neal Adams:



If memory serves, this one depicts Bruce Wayne as working behind the German lines as an OSS agent (?) and little if any effort is made to hide his secret identity. It's tempting to consider this an "Earth 2" story, except that Batman is drawn with the yellow oval throughout(?). And later, when Bruce and Rock meet in the 70s, they refer to their shared past adventures in the war, which means Rock gets older but Bruce stays eternally youthful. Gotta love that Haney.

Note how Adams signs his name on the cover in "Kubert" style. Nice touch. Joe actually inked at least one page inside, too.