The Brave & The Bold Index Part 17
Team-ups: The Long Goodbye Part 3
June 1979 – July 1983
#185: … & Green
Arrow, “The Falcon’s Lair”, W: Don Kraar, A: Adrian Gonzales.
The Penguin
sets a trap disguised as a Gotham socialite’s birthday
party filled with mechanical knights, killer falcons and fake Robins all to
kill Batman! Bats can’t make it, will
Green Arrow do?
Green Arrow’s last appearance in
B&B. He totaled ten appearances
(nine with Batman – more than anyone else – and one with the Martian Manhunter
in the first team-up issue in #50) in the comic. He ranks fourth among total
B&B appearances (only Batman, Flash and Hawkman have had more – Hawkman
with six issues devoted solely to him.
And that’s not counting Viking Prince and Silent Knight!).
Nemesis:
“Triple Threat”, (Burkett/Spiegle). The three remaining Council members make a
deal – whoever destroys Nemesis will become the new Head of the Council!
Nemesis infiltrates Jay Kingston’s manor, not knowing Kingston
#186: … & Hawkman,
“The Treasure of the Hawk-God’s Tomb”, W: Dan Mishkin & Gary Cohn, Art: Jim
Aparo.
The
Fadeaway Man steals treasures from Gotham ’s museums to
sell them to the highest bidder, unless Batman & Hawkman stop him
first! Penguin must have escaped – he
has a cameo during the museum auction eyeing the Gotham Eagle statue!
Speaking of
Hawkman, this was his last appearance (his 11th). He had six issues
as a try-out series (#34-36 and 42-44). His silver-age revival was second only
to the Justice League as a successful B&B try-out. He was featured in four
team-ups with Batman and one team-up with Aquaman.
Nemesis:
“In the Lion’s Den”, (Burkett/Spiegle).
Nemesis escapes Kingston Kingston
#187: … & Metal
Men, “Whatever Happened to What’s’ername?”
Writer: Charlie Boatner, Art: Jim Aparo.
Nameless,
the robot created by Tin (he called her Beautiful), was kidnapped by Platinum
Man (of the Metal Women, don’t ask…). Platinum Man rebuilds the Floating
Furies, the Gas Gang, the Missile Men and BOLTS to kill Doc Magnus and the
Metal Men!
I remember
Nameless, she has a brief cameo in Brave
& Bold #74!
Nemesis:
“Arena of Despair”, (Burkett/Spiegle). Kingston Kingston
Jill Weber
contributes again to the letter column – her second! Karen Wu’s second letter appears this issue,
too!
Another
B&B staple makes their last appearance. The Metal Men appeared nine times –
twice without Batman (teaming instead with Metamorpho and the Atom) and seven
with Batman.
#188: … & Rose
& Thorn, “A Grave as Wide as the World”, Writer: Robert Kanigher (Rose
& Thorn creator, and his first story for B&B since #52 18 years before).
A Nazi spy
on his death bed thinks he tells Hitler himself the location of a lethal
canister of nerve gas he had stolen during WWII. Instead of Hitler, it was a
neo-Nazi bent on destroying America
Rose &
Thorn was a reboot of a Golden Age Green Lantern villain and appeared many time
as the backup feature to Superman’s
Girlfriend Lois Lane. This was during the time at National when it seemed
the backup feature was more interesting than the lead – Black Orchid, Captain
Fear and Rose & Thorn are examples.
Nemesis:
“Gladiator’s Gauntlet”, (Burkett/Spiegle).
Nemesis fights off gun traps! Spike-filled pits! Bullwhip carrying
goons! A man with a hook for a hand! Knife tossers! Judo experts!
Exploding doors! I can’t watch
anymore! Tell me when it’s over!
#189: … & Rose
& Thorn, “Grave…” Part Two, W: Kanigher, A: Aparo.
The hunt
for the nerve toxin leads to Argentina
Nemesis:
“Betrayal”, (Burkett/Spiegle). Nemesis
evades more traps and rescues Marjorie. Kingston
#190: … & Adam
Strange, “Who Killed Adam Strange?” Writer: Mike W. Barr, Artists: Carmine
Infantino and Sal Trapani
Still in
the jungle in South America (where’s Thorn?) Batman is
sent by Zeta-Beam to Rann. With the use of the beam, Batman restores Adam
Strange to life, finds his killer and helps defeat alien invaders.
Infantino’s
art is very good for his style at this late date. Too bad it is such a poor
story. Batman’s detective skills are at their nadir – he guesses who killed
Adam Strange and happens to be correct. He brings Adam back to life because the
Zeta Beam takes Adam back to earth in the same state he left. So how come it
doesn’t work in reverse and he returned to Rann dead? Mike W. Barr is better
than this!
Nemesis:
“Murderer’s Proxy”, (Burkett/Spiegle).
Council member Maddox hires a hitman to kill his mole in Kingston
#191: … & Joker,
:Only Angels Have Wings”, Writers: Don Mishkin & Gary Cohn, Art: Jim Aparo.
An
imitation Joker kills the Penguin (he’s back again!?) on live
television. The real Joker asks Batman to track down the killer. This story
makes for a better “team-up” than the classic #111.
This is the
third time a Batman villain appears as a guest, the second for the Joker and
his fourth cover blurb (along with #111, 118 & 130). He also appeared as
the villain in #s 68 and 141.
Nemesis:
“Dead Man’s Bluff”, (Burkett/Spiegle). Disguised as the assassin, Nemesis
convinces Maddox’s mole to turn himself in and implicate Maddox in Kingston
#192: … &
Superboy,, “You Can Take the Boy Out of Smallville…” Writer: Mike W. Barr, Art:
Jim Aparo. Len Wein takes over as editor.
Mr. IQ
tries to whisk Superman into the distant past to prevent Supes from foiling
IQ’s plot. Instead, he mistakenly switches the Superman of 1982 with the
Superboy of 1967! IQ tries to empower
his computerized brain that will take over the world with solar flares! Can
Batman and the Boy of Steel stop him in time?
Great idea
turned into (thankfully) a great story. Note that Superman was shown only in
silhouetted shadows – there is a touching scene where he avoided nearly being
seen by his parents. It was heart-wrenching to see him fly away instead of
seeing his parents alive again. Also, it was interesting watching Batman
“train” Superboy on using his powers more effectively (“don’t use your heat
vision to detonate a gun – you could hurt someone!” “Yes sir.”). Considering
he’s talking to someone who could break his neck with his pinky, Batman does a
very good job teaching and instructing the lad!
Nemesis:
“Operation Overkill”, (Burkett/Spiegle). Sole surviving Council member Irene
Scarfield tries to resurrect the Council. Nemesis, disguised as an actor in
Scarfield’s traveling troupe, overhears the plans to Operation Overkill that
brings a chill to his spine. Good thing the next stop of the theater troupe is Gotham
City
#193: … & Nemesis,
“Those Who Live by the Sword…” W: Cary
Scarfield
hires the terrorist group the PLA to kill a senator who is sponsoring a strict
anti-crime bill. Batman defeats the PLA and its leader Bloodclaw. Nemesis sacrifices
himself to destroy the last Council member in a helicopter crash. The scales of
justice have finally balanced. (Nemesis survives the crash, spends years
recuperating in a hospital and joins fellow Brave & Bold alumni the Suicide
Squad).
1983
#194: … & Flash,
“Trade Heroes and Win!”, Writer: Mike W. Barr, Artist: Carmine Infantino and
Sal Trapani
Little-known/long
forgotten Flash and Batman villains, the Rainbow Raider and Doctor Double-X
take lessons in self-confidence from a female Tony Robbins-like character and
nearly defeat our brave and bold comrades.
It is
announced in the letter column that issue #200 will be the last issue featuring
a Batman team-up format, and announces Batman
and the Outsiders, but provides no other information.
This is
Flash’s last appearance: six times teaming with the caped crusader, four times
with other superheroes and three times with the JLA, not counting cameos (#172
for example). Only Batman, Viking Prince and Silent Knight appeared more than
the Flash.
Infantino
drew the first Flash-Batman team-up (#67) and the last. These are the two
superheroes with which he is most associated. Infantino’s art isn’t bad here,
but still not very good. As with his later Flash
work, sometimes his art just doesn’t look realistic. But compared to more stylized artwork in
comics in the past ten years, it’s still very accessible.
#195: … & I
…Vampire, “Night of Blood”, Writer: Mike W. Barr, Art: Jim Aparo.
A Gotham
gangster makes a deal with Batman – find the vampire killer that attacked his
daughter and Batman will be provided with incriminating evidence against a
rival gangster. In one of those coincidences that only happen in comics, the
rival gangster is in cahoots with the vampire cult The Blood Red Moon, sworn
enemy of Andrew Bennett (who tells the tale in his first person narrative
typical of the “I … Vampire” series).
I do not
recall if any other B&B tales were told in first person narrative. None spring to mind. Neither the Viking
Prince or Silent Knight tales, although some might have been. Some of the Sgt
Rock tales had sections told in first person. Lots of issues had “flashback”
scenes in first person, but a whole comic? This might be the first – I’m not
going back through 194 issues to find out!
Future
Flash scribe Mark Waid writes a (deservedly) scathing review of issue #190.
Constant letter writers TM Maple and Kent Phenis also contribute. It is hinted
in the letter column that after issue #200, Brave
& Bold will feature stories by new talent rather than team-ups. This
idea will turn instead into what will be a 19-issue run of New Talent Showcase beginning six months later in January 1984.
This issue
could have ranked with the Haney/Adams Deadman stories (#79 & 86) as a
great chapter in the guest character’s mythos. This tale, although a good
story, did not make you want to run out and buy House of Mystery. It is also
a rare case of bad Aparo art. Let’s put bad in quotes. The art is still
marvelous, but not his best. For one
thing: there’s hardly any background!
Instead of looking stylized, it looks rushed. You can actually tell on
which panels he took his time and on which panels he did not. This issue was in
desperate need of a finisher. Fortunately, even his poor artwork is better than
most . The reason? Well, by this time he
was doing other Batman books, including preparing Brave and Bold’s replacement!
Where this issue could have been a classic, instead it seemed like they
were buying time. The end is nigh.
#196: … & Ragman,
“The Two Faces of Midnight !” Writer:
Robert Kanigher, Art: Jim Aparo, doing his last Batman team-up for Brave
& Bold.
A banker’s
daughter is kidnapped by terrorists.
Batman and Ragman, each exhausted and wounded, take the other’s leads,
and costumes, to find her!
Another
great tale with a unique hero. If DC
really wanted to push this issue and issues 195 and 197, they would be
best-sellers. Instead they already had
their sights set on Batman’s new book.
#197: … (Earth Two)
& Catwoman, “The Autobiography of Bruce Wayne”, Writer: Alan Brennert, Art:
Joe Staton (who else but the pre-eminent Earth-Two artist?) and George Freeman.
The
Scarecrow’s latest trick is a gas that creates the realistic illusion of one’s
greatest fears come to life! Batman sees
Robin, Batwoman, Commissioner Gordon, Alfred and Clark Kent
Bruce
writes: “But lately I’ve had the feeling that time is somehow running short,
that endings are not so very far away.”
He was writing about his own death previously shown in Adventure Comics, but he could also be
writing about the end of his world’s existence – three years from now the Crisis on Infinite Earths will be
published: DC’s failed attempt to reboot their long and wonderful history,
eliminating any and all references to Earth-Two and these types of stories. Or
he could have been writing about Brave
& Bold’s demise in three months…
Back to
this issue: another great story, and a
fine addition to the Earth-Two Batman mythos. This tale has been reprinted in
several “Greatest Batman Stories…” anthologies.
These last three issues were
fantastic! Could it be that they were
trying to revive an interest in keeping B&B going, or were they trying to
make their last issues final blazes of glory? Regardless, overall the quality
of the tales (story and art) of B&B’s last year was phenomenally good!
Certainly more hits than misses.
#198: … & Karate
Kid, “Terrorists of the Heart”, W: Mike W. Barr, A: Chuck Patton.
It’s a
story that can only happen in comics: Terrorist group the Black Heart hire Karate
Kid bad guy Pulsar to kill their traitor, Katy. Katy escapes and hides out in
Karate Kid’s girlfriend Iris Jacobs’ apartment. Karate Kid travels to 1983 just
in time to get in the middle of it all! Oh yeah, Batman is after the Black
Heart too!
The letter
column features fans reaction to B&B’s “cancellation”. But the editors,
over the past few issues, have only stated that #200 will feature the last
Batman team-up and will change its format. Ominously, the editors do not
correct the mistake. The final team-up in #200 is announced.
#199: … & Spectre,
“The Body-Napping of Jim Corrigan”, Writer: Mike W. Barr, Art: Ross Andru and
Rick Hoberg.
The Spectre
enlists Batman’s aid to find the body of Jim Corrigan, who was kidnapped by a
sorceress who will use Corrigan’s body as earthly host for her astral lover. If
she succeeds, Spectre will be unable to regenerate and will cease to exist!
The editors
announce #200 will be the final issue in the letter column.
#200 Batman &
Batman (Earth Two), Smell of Brinstone, Stench of Death” Writer: Mike W. Barr,
Art: Dave Gibbons.
$1.50!! Aw, it’s the last issue, let it go…
Earth-Two
1955 (the year B&B began): After a series of robberies, Batman and Robin
finally defeat Brimstone. Earth-Two 1983: Hate is all that has kept Brimstone
alive. His hatred of Batman is so great; when he hears of Batman’s death, his
mind passes into his Earth-One counterpart where another hated Batman still
lives! Earth-One 1983: Brimstone causes riots in Gotham and eventually traps
Batman in the same lava “hellpit” Batman escaped 28 years before! Can Batman
escape – er – again – in time to save Gotham , catch
Brimstone and find out who the heck Brimstone is? Well of course he can, but he
never figures out Brimstone’s Earth-Two secret. And he never will.
“Batman and
the Outsiders”, Writer: Mike W. Barr, Art: Jim Aparo. Batman and the Outsiders
protect Mikos from his own terrorist subordinates – who vow to kill Mikos
(under his own orders) for the glory of the cause!
Oft-requested
Batmite finally appears in Brave &
Bold in a one page comic.
For the
first time since Nemesis, new characters were introduced – Halo, Geo-Force and
Katana. They are the first new B&B superheroes
since Metamorpho, who is also a member of the new Outsiders.
One last team-up
and one last try-out. The try-out was a
success: the Outsiders going on to their own series (replacing Brave & Bold
on DC’s roster) and lasting for several years afterward. Later incarnations link
the Outsiders (still featuring the resurrected Metamorpho) as a splinter group
of the Teen Titans. Appropriately, both
groups began in Brave & Bold. The
third incarnation harks back to the Batman-formed play-by-their-own-rules meta
group.
It was
trendy at DC for a while to introduce new groups by mixing new characters and
old. At times it worked brilliantly (the Teen Titans), at times it was an utter
failure (the Justice League of America
***
And that’s
it! After 262 new stories and 28
reprints Brave & Bold was gone. We’ve seen them all – from the Atom to
Zatanna. We’ve been from Camelot to
Hell, from Rann to Oa and all points in between. We’ve seen knights and dictators, Vikings and
terrorists, ordinary citizens and supermen, hard-working cops and pliable
freaks. From King Arthur to Satan, from
Queen Elizabeth II to Snapper Carr. It
was quite a ride.
Team-up
books were not necessarily on their way out with B&B’s cancellation – there
were only four in existence by this time.
But the cracks were showing – Marvel
Two-in-One was canceled one month before Brave & Bold with issue 100 (June 1983). Solely on the strength of their stars (as
opposed to the quality of material), Marvel
Team-Up was cancelled on February 1985 after 150 issues, and DC Comics
Presents’ last issue was September 1986 with issue #97. Subsequent attempts at team-up-books (mostly
by Marvel with Spiderman Team-Up and
a revived Marvel Team-Up, didn’t last
long. Although supergroups would come
back to popularity, with JLA, JSA, Avengers, Defenders and others being
vigorously revived, the team-up book is probably gone forever.
The Brave & Bold format, as discussed,
probably wouldn’t have fit into DC’s paradigm after 1983. That includes to this day. Kevin Smith brought up the prospect of
bringing back Brave & Bold with
Green Arrow, but it has yet to come to pass.
But history
won’t judge Brave & Bold by its
team-up years, praiseworthy as the Haney-Aparo issues were. B&B will be more known for its first
fifty issues – the Viking Prince, the Justice League, Hawkman. And rightly so, but the team-up stories were
also good, quality fun. Some were fantastic! Some of the very best stories
appeared in the last twenty issues of the magazine’s run!
DC still
trots out comics under the Brave &
Bold banner to preserve its copyright, but they have all so far failed to
capture the wonder and wonderfulness of B&B’s glory years; B&B’s very best issues.
All two
hundred of them.
Next: Fun Facts
Copyright (c) 2012
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