Welcome back subscribers. It’s Easter Sunday 2024 and what better time to share a flash memory of my comics collecting heyday.. hope you enjoy!
Happy Easter Satellite subscribers. I had no intention of writing this morning however while read my Twitter Pal Dave’s blog this morning I ran into a comic I have always had a particular fondness and memories of! As it is Easter Sunday as of this writing I’ll quickly share this story if for nothing else than to preserve my memory.
Part of growing up for me were weekly trips to the grocery store with my Dad! Thursday which must have been payday we’re guaranteed trips to the local Co-op or the new Sobeys store in Clarenville and always scored me an action figure or a comic, or two.. sometimes three!! I was lucky! Not only picking out great food like C3POs cereal (Spoiler.. it sucked) but I always got a “treat”.
I am in this pic! I could not find a picture of the Handy Andy store but I did find the Handy Andy dory used in the Clarenville Day festivities!!
I recall a weekend, it was particularly sunny so it was definitely summer. It seemed to be early in the day and my father needed to go to the local Hardware store called Handy Andy in my hometown of Clarenville, NL Canada. Andy’s was overlooking the water and on the corner of a turn at the beginning of Clarenvilles “Lower Road”. It was originally called Handy Andy Associate store and was located on Marine Drive in Clarenville Newfoundland my hometown! It sold camping and fishing gear, bikes, and automotive parts. I can still smell the bike tires!! It was filled with bikes, camping stuff, and seemingly endless Bike tires.. I cannot downplay that smell! It was here I got three of my favorite comics and my official introduction to Captain Carrot!
I LOVED this book!! Fun memories triggered here! I bought this at the afore mentioned Hardware store on a trip with my Dad at the age of 7! I had ONLY seen Captain Carrot in ads in comics and that DC insert up to that point, so I remember it was a huge deal!! They had a small wooden book shelf about mid store that housed a few car magazines, some decently sexist magazines of hot women, and in the middle of all that issues of Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew! They clearly didn’t rotate their magazine because there were three consecutive issues there that day and I begged my Dad to get them and of course he did!
This one sat around my house for eternity. My copy is respectfully battered and sitting in a box in my parents basement. I just felt the urge to preserve this memory!
Here are the other two that ended up leaving Handy Andy with me that day! Thanks Dad!
Well with that out of the way, go read my pal Dave’s blog post which triggered this memory in my mind! Enjoy! Tell him Hero sent ya!
Welcome Back, Satellite Subscribers! Where were you when Superman died? I was at a sports card kiosk haggling with a nearly criminal vendor to get Superman number 75 for an outrageous price as the world who had previously ignored comics as an art form were suddenly trying to grab a piece of the action. While the Man Of Steel would be killed in an elaborate storyline the story didn’t not end there, instead it became the catalyst for the introduction to Superman’s replacement!! This story isn’t just about a group of replacement heroes, in fact one of the four names we will come to meet just may be the Man of Steel himself!!! Confused? We were too back in the day…but for those living in a Space Satellite lets enlighten you!
BEGINNINGS..
Our voyage begins with the cosmic collision of two monumental DC Comics events: the Death of Superman storyline and its two punch aftermath—the Reign of the Supermen saga. These seismic events rocked the comic book universe, leaving fans both devastated and exhilarated. But why did Superman meet his untimely demise? What drove this hasty narrative choice? And how did it reshape the landscape of superhero storytelling?
Death of Superman: A World in Mourning
I sat reading The Death Of Superman series and could not get over the intense amount of sadness I felt as I read the pages in front of me. I had collected Superman off and on since 1980. Superman was a fixture on TV, the big screen, on T-shirts, lunch boxes he was everywhere. Superman simply represented growing up…and DC killed him off in the Death Of Superman storyline as a sure-fire way to stay competitive in a comics industry that was riding high on a bubble of sales and outside competition. DC had fallen behind Marvel and the new comer Image, and they needed to make the big shot, and that shot was killing the Man Of Steel! The success of the event was unprecedented. The Death of Superman became a cultural phenomenon. Fans flocked to comic shops, money in hand to witness the Man of Steel’s final battle. The event’s sales figures skyrocketed, revitalizing not only DC Comics but also another massive injection to an already flourishing industry. But the impact extended beyond Superman. Other heroes faced their own trials, and DC rebranded its titles under the “Triangle Numbers” banner, experimenting with storytelling formats, and it worked! It didn’t just sit with comic fans. However, the world took notice.
You could not escape it. It adorned newspapers, newscasts, magazine covers…the Death of Superman was mainstream news! The risk was worth the payoff!! For a minute, it seemed DC was BACK!! The problem was the DC big gun was dead…and now we had to figure out how to move on?
The Rise of Marvel and Image Comics
Marvel Comics and Image Comics were on the ascent. Marvel’s X-Men and Spider-Man titles dominated the market, while Image, founded by superstar artists like Todd McFarlane and Jim Lee, introduced creator-owned properties that resonated with readers. Spawn, WildC.A.T.S., and Youngblood were among the most successful books, pushing the boundaries of storytelling and art. The industry had not seen such sales heights. Artists were mainstream celebrities, and the names of Todd McFarlane and Rob Liefeld were known outside of the 24-page periodicals they created monthly. The Death of Superman was intended to break the cycle, and it worked…almost.Behind the scenes the team assigned to Superman’s death namely Jerry Ordway, Dan Jurgens, Roger Stern, Louise Simonson, and Mike Carlin had just killed off Superman and now began the herculean task of assembling the historic follow up. No pressure, right? It would be a bigger undertaking than anyone ever dreamed.
The Genesis of Doomsday
The story doesn’t begin without the creation and demise of Superman’s Achille’s heel himself…Enter Doomsday, a monstrous force with no formal backstory or any semblance of a moral compass. This chiseled rock style monstrosity named Doomsday emerged from an underground chamber, a green-clothed fist smashing through the Earth’s crust. He would go on a mindless destructive rampage, crushing everything in his path, including birds and snapping deer necks. No one could stop him…..Enter our hero, Superman. The two would engage on a massive battle that stretched over multiple issues with both characters literally killing each other to end the devastation. You see, Superman would save us all from our own Doomsday. Symbolic, right!!? With this big event out of the way now, our creative teams had to tell the story of life without a Superman.. and it was epic! With Superman’s demise, DC explored alternate ideas. Unused stories and characters floated in the creative ether. The industry buzzed with speculation. Would Superman return? Could someone else take up the mantle? The industry held its breath, awaiting the next chapter. That answer would come in 4 separate answers. The decision-makers at DC faced a monumental choice: how to replace Superman. The result?
Four new replacement characters emerged—Steel, Cyborg Superman, Superboy, and The Eradicator. Each claimed to be the true Man of Steel, sparking debates and intrigue. The advertising campaign teased that maybe these were not new heroes but somehow could be the Man Of Steel himself!! For the next year, fans would be told the story from 4 different perspectives as DC maintained strong sales on the backs of 4 untested commodities. Who were these 4 new Supermen?
Let’s introduce them, shall we!
THE MAN OF STEEL RETURNS…TECHNICALLY.
As the story goes, John Henry Irons Createdby Louise Simonson and Jon BogdanoveFirst Appeared inAdventures of Superman #500. Steel was on the surface a modest steelworker named John Henry Irons. He bore witness to Superman’s death and committed himself to carry on his legacy of heroism. Steel was one of the most striking new heroes. Creators placed him a shiny silver high-tech suit of armor. He became Steel, wielding a mighty sledgehammer and a flashy red cape and Superman symbol on his chest. John Henry Irons was previously employed by a corrupt tech company called AmerTek, which developed destructive weapons that were being placed in the wrong hands. Seeing that he was in danger, John Henry Irons faked his own death and went into hiding as a common blue-collar Iron worker who, in secrecy, was a top-level weapons engineer. Upon seeing an opportunity to help out, John became STEEL, forging his very own classic steel super suit complete with a super hammer. Hammers are no longer the sole property of Marvels Thor! Thankfully, complete with cool look and super fun hammer, Steel was very popular, and sales of his own book were strong out of the gate. John Henry Irons’ blue-collar vibe resonated with readers, and as if he were born in 2024, Steel equaled true representation for people of color and symbolized resilience and determination. It was kind of perfect! I loved his design, hammer. It just worked!! His quest for justice gave the character an unlikely bond with Superman’s former girlfriend Lois Lane, which aided in his wars with gangs, his former company, and a host of Supe’s rogues gallery.
SUPERBOY RETURNS…SORT OF!
The Superboy introduced in Superman #500 (June 1993)is Kon-El, a modern update of the original Superboy. This new version was a creation of writer Karl Kesel and artist Tom Grummett, Here is the hook…this was not the old Superboy back in action, no this was…get ready for it. A teenage clone of both Superman and Lex Luthor!! Anyone who read comics back in the day knew one of the big buzz words was “Clone” Ask any Spiderman fan! Or…you know what? Please do not do that! Trauma is a nasty thing. This new Superboy’s debut marked a significant departure from the classic counterpart, who was essentially just a young Clark Kent operating as a superhero in Smallville while growing into his eventual role as the Man Of Steel. His arrival, however, was one of the major high points of The Reign Of Superman storyline, and he became a fast fan favorite! Kon-El, like the aforementioned Cyborg, emerged as one of the contenders vying for the mantle of Superman. His design is what made this character! He was clad in a distinctive costume. He sported Black boots trimmed in yellow! His legs were covered in red spandex and a classic blue bodice with a vintage Superman symbol! Stealing a page out of the Avengers 80s run, he wore a slick black leather jacket , red gloves, and cool shades! Kon-El was the 90s wrapped up in a bow, and he was cool!
The hero was aware of his clone roots, and that fact always kept him questioning his own identity! His relationship with Superman’s love Lois Lane, who saw the potential in this punky young teen contracted by his relationship with Lex Luthor, who obviously saw him as a super weapon! His own self reckoning between his birth as a clone or a hero was a fun ride and spin on the character despite me just wanting young Clark back. I enjoyed this character to its most as he sought to carry on Superman’s legacy but to stand on his own as no ones replacement! In our circle, we loved the new Superboy! How could we not! He WAS the 90s in a smaller package! He was a youthful, fresh, brash version of the Man Of Steel and just the fresh air that the Superman books sorely needed! Superman had become unrelatable in the 90s, and Kon-El was just the ticket! Superboy (Kon-El): A teenage clone with attitude, sporting a leather jacket and sunglasses. His rebellious spirit captured the zeitgeist of the ’90s.
DC GETS ITS OWN TERMINATOR…
If you lived in the 90s, you would have been a fan of the Terminator movie franchise! At the top of the Box Office, T2 would take theaters by storm, and Arnold Schwartzenegger was the biggest star in Hollywood. With this into consideration, it was no surprise that one of our Supermen would be a Cyborg..or a thinly veiled Terminator with less than honorable intentions! Intro the maniacal Cyborg Superman! Hank Henshaw, the man who would become Cyborg Superman, made his debut in Adventures of Superman #466(May 1990). Henshaw was an astronaut at NASA, Henshaw faced a solar flare disaster during a space shuttle experiment. The radiation exposure caused his body to mutate, leading to the tragic demise of his entire crew. Henshaw directly placed the blame on Superman for the accident, as you must understand despite the fact Henshaw’s consciousness did survive! He was transferred into Superman’s birthing matrix. It would be here that the sinister creation was born as he crafted a cybernetic body identical to Superman’s, becoming the DC equivalent to the Terminator, the Cyborg Superman. Cyborg Superman was created by the legendary Superman visionary Dan Jurgens, Cyborg Superman’s unique origin is a wonderful blend of tragedy, science fiction, and cosmic intrigue which was exactly what 90s fans of Superman desperately needed. Cyborg Superman would debut alongside two other of his compatriots in Adventures of Superman #466 (May 1990).
He conveniently appeared following the Death of Superman, claiming to be Superman himself! Crafting a wonderful lie of being brought back to life through the magic of Kryptonian science Henshaw was a wolf in sheep’s clothing as his intentions were not to save Metropolis and fill in the legacy of the Man of Steel but rather to destroy the legacy of the man who caused his near demise!! The mystery surrounding Cyborg was part of his charm. On the surface, this character was a good guy filling in the void left by Superman’s demise! Beneath the surface there were holes in Henshaw’s plan that led Supes’ wife Lois and Steel uncover Henshaw’s secret and then its war in Metropolis after that with Cyborg Superman becoming one of the most vicious villains during this period! He would find another adversary in the form of Green Lantern as well and even eventually served as a member of the Sinestro Corps!! Cyborg Superman would inevitably be the catalyst of the end of the Supermen storyline as he back the central bad guy. His descent into madness and his battle with Mongul in the overall narrative was a key win for the series of titles! For the Superman franchise overall, The Cyborg Superman sold books! He was one of the headline characters on many of the key books in the title moving forward up to and including the return of the man of steel!!
Total ERADICATION
Then came the Eradicator, a complex character from the Superman mythos. This particular character is actually considered an artifact rather than a human like being! The Eradicator made its debut in Action Comics Annual #2 (1989). Initially, it was an ancient Kryptonian artifact created by a dying alien racing to preserve their culture and ideals. Like any great idea, there are always those who use objects or weapons of great power for the purposes of evil, as was the story on Krypton. When a militaristic faction on Krypton corrupted the device, it became the “Eradicator.” This sentient, humanoid being took on the form of a super human figure in the vein of Superman himself and also possessed many of Superman’s powers, including strength, speed, invulnerability, heat vision, and flight. Its mission? To force Kryptonian culture upon Superman and Earth. Yup, the Eradicator was the political radicalized character of the 4 new characters introduced! However, over time, its interactions with Superman would turn it into a reluctant hero.
As it would be when The Eradicator appeared in the Reign of the Supermen storyline, many mistook him for the real article…just “OFF” in a manner of speaking! So following Superman’s apparent death at the hands of Doomsday, the Eradicator stepped in to fill the void. It became one of the four contenders vying for the mantle of Superman. Clad in a black bodysuit with a middle section of blue in the middle adorning the classic Superman iconic sigil the Eradicator looked like he meant business. Stylistically they separated him for the genuine article Superman by giving him a pair of wide view sunglasses and the classic flowing red Superman cape was now directly attached to the right and left top flanks of the Superman symbol. In summary, he looked completely 90’s badass!! The Eradicator was wielding immense power and began a campaign in Metropolis sought to maintain order in a ham-fisted manner devoid of bedside manner. Its struggle to balance its Kryptonian heritage with its newfound humanity added depth to the character. Originally, within my friend circle, we had big hopes for this character, and at least initially, his brutal mode of justice was just what the doctor ordered for the book. However…if you ask meThe Eradicator was a mixed bag. Some appreciated its complexity and hard-boiled edge the new man of steel had, but honestly, his backstory was a real challenge to follow. Over time, it evolved, taking on different forms and purposes. In the 2005–2006 aborted Superman film script, “Superman Lives,” the Eradicator played a significant role. Despite occasional ups and downs, this character remains an integral part of Superman’s legacy, embodying themes of identity, sacrifice, and redemption. The creative team behind the Eradicator includes writer Roger Stern, who brought this enigmatic figure. Stern’s vision allowed the Eradicator to grow from the Kryptonian artifact to a powerful, interesting being with conflicting motivations. Artists Jackson Guice and Brett Breeding brought this new Superman to life with their take on his contribution to its visual design. It was apparent that his look managed to showcase both its Kryptonian heritage and the superhero of the day.
The Resurrection: Superman Returns
But fear not dear subscribers! Superman’s return was inevitable. The cosmic energies of the Kryptonian Matrix resurrected him, and the world rejoiced. The creative teams behind this resurrection—names like Dan Jurgens, Roger Stern, and Jerry Ordway—wove a tapestry of hope, legacy, and heroism. Their contributions echo through time, reminding us that even in the darkest hours, heroes endure.
Following a convoluted and overwrought story of Superman seeking escape from the afterlife DC went the long road around in concocting a storyline in which Supergirl who would actually be an Aline known as The Matrix transformed into Superman allowing him to be found alive amidst the wreckage mysteriously. The storyline following would be a slow burn as Superman reconciles his return and a return to his own life. DC did not hit the mark here, and the Return Of Superman storyline was not the sales success that The Death Of Superman and the launch of The Reign Of The Supermen was. DC pushed hard for LCS’s to buy up hard on his big return. However, event fatigue and multiple other market options had cooled the super books off.
If you live in 2024, the comic scene lives and dies on first appearances and new versions of classic characters. Modern Events like DC New 52, and Marvel’s too many to mention relaunches have lived and died on replacement character stories with recent versions of Spider-Man, The Punisher, Superman and many many others still cycling replacement characters in the mix in the name of driving the valuable sales and ticking off their respective fan bases. The theme has also become a very contentious and volatile issue that has effectively isolated factions of the fanbase, creating sales declines and divisions. However, at this moment in time, the Reign Of The Supermen was a financial success and still one of the most iconic storylines in Superman history. These 4 replacement heroes were one of the few examples of replacements being a good theme at the right place and the right time. What were your thoughts on these characters? Did you have a favorite? Who did you dislike the most? Let’s talk!!
End Transmission
Thank you, loyal Satellite Subscribers, for joining this cosmic expedition. Until next time, keep your antennas tuned, your capes fluttering, and your hearts soaring. Follow me on Twitter: @Charlton_Hero. Together, we’ll continue celebrating the Super-Blog Team-Up with more Replacement Hero Fun below!!
***YEARS AFTER THE SUPER-HERO SATELLITE IS FOUND DORMANT IN SPACE ..TODAY SYSTEMS ARE RESTORED***
*Systems Monitoring returning from sleep, awaken mode in affect…systems full Restored.* Welcome BACK Heroes!! It has been a LONG Time and I am SUPER excited to be BACK! There is no better time to return than with my baby..The Super-Blog Team Up!After taking a much-needed break from the blog I am back and this year will definitely be the Year Of The Satellite! More on that later!! We have so many things planned its gonna take an entire post to get to them all!! For those of you unfamiliar with Super-Blog Team Up we are a group of like-minded bloggers who come together multiple times a year to write about a singular topic on one designated day! Not only will you get to enjoy this post (Hopefully!!) but at the end you will find links to all our other top shelf writers! We have many long time authors who are back, we have a few who are making their return to the fold and several new faces (Or Pens as it maybe!!) who are now debuting members of the Mighty Marching SBTU!! Without further adieu….strap in heroes the Satellite is about to blast off to the not so distant past to talk about a subject that I had been meaning to do many years ago…The Walking Dead! The theme this month happens to be…
Transmission Date: Jan. 23rd 2019
The first thing you need to understand is that there was a dark period in my time as a comics collector where I moved away from the hobby that I loved due to economics. When I finally got back into comics it was on the heels of some new exciting books that spawned my returning passion for comics. In the late 90s I was driven out of comics a hobby that I loved. By the 2000s I was out of collecting completely as I had been priced out of the market. My pull list that was at 40 to 50 books a month had dropped to one or two and finally to NOTHING. It was a sad day. Through Wizard magazine from the magazine rack I stayed abreast of the business and following the big events going on in the big three. At least it was something. Podcasts however were a big source of fun for me and I was dumpster diving for whatever audio content related to things I enjoyed during the birth of the podcast market in the early 2000s. As I have mentioned many times before Comic Geek Speak was one of my go-to podcasts and the gang on there had spotlight episodes more so The Book Of The Month episodes! On August 2005 CGS put out its Book of The Month Club Selection: The Walking Dead
Little did I know I would become engulfed in this title like no other. It became almost an addiction..I could not put it down.
I had given up on most Image books around this time since many of the Superhero titles were gone by that period. Images offerings had not interested me for some time. However upon listening to the CGS crew rave about this book I wanted to know all about it. I had some time on my hands back then and I spent several hours a day reading comics on my computer. With one search, there was the entire collection..and a right-click later 35 issues of The Walking Dead were sitting on my hard drive. 35 issues was a daunting challenge but the CGS gang were rarely wrong in their recommendations so I was all in. I simply wanted to skim through the first few issues and get a taste for what my podcast compadre’s were raving about. For those of you who haven’t seen or read anything Walking Dead related let me set the table for you. The Walking Dead is a monthly comic book published by Image Comics written from the mind of one Robert Kirkman who was a relative unknown in terms of mainstream fame in the business at that point. That would change in years to come. The book was intentionally done in Black and White which was not mainstream popular at the time but still existed in some books. The book debuted in Oct 2003 but it would be 2005 before I ever gave it a glance. I remember reading the first issue of the Walking Dead and let me tell you I was….underwhelmed. It was a “meh” for me. I know…I know..you were expecting me to say great things about this book right!! That will come later. The artwork out of the gate was by Tony Moore and I just could not wrap my head around the art. For such a book with such a serious tone I just felt Moore’s artwork not the right fit for the title. It had a loose almost cartoony feel to the work and it was just hard to take the book seriously. I compare it to Joe Staton’s artwork from Green Lantern Corp fame in the 1980s, I just don’t like a cartoony look to characters facially. Both Stanton and Moore suffer from this “Fault” in their armor. I want to be clear it WAS good art but the damn faces drove me nuts. I was just turned off from it instantly. I valiantly read fours issues then stopped…for the time being. The story was solid enough though. A cop wakes up alone in a hospital only to discover that he is in the middle of the zombie apocalypse. Sounds simple right? Well I was enjoying the story but not much else. Kirkman wasn’t just writing about zombies killing people he flipped the script and wrote about the human condition as they navigate through this new Dead Filled world. Life as we know it will be scarier, bloodier and more violent than ever….and that’s just the humans…THEN you throw zombies into the mix!
The bare bones of the story follows police Officer Rick Grimes as he becomes the unofficial defacto leader of a group of Zombie Holocaust survivors as they manage their way through the harsh new world. The humans all struggle for shelter food and weapons and the real fight is with each other. In this world however there is no power or luxuries like running water or plumbing. To make matters ever worse when you get bitten by the undead YOU become a Walker yourself!! Factions are created, battle lines are drawn and as food and shelter runs out we find out that desperate people will go to great lengths to survive including imprisoning, killing and murdering each other. The people themselves..the survivors find out it is not the Dead they have to worry about, it’s each other…they themselves have become The Walking Dead! The realism of the tragedy of the breakdown of civilization and of the human condition is what makes this book amazing. As I said after 4 issues while I was enjoying the book..visually it was a turn off so I walked away. It would be 6 months later that I would see a random new issue of The Walking Dead for sale and I grabbed it to get a feel for what’s going on in the book. Things had changed…dramatically.
Tony Moore’s art was nowhere to be seen and now a guy by the name of Charlie Adlard had taken over. This moody almost gruesome brooding style was PERFECT for the book. As I thumbed through the pages I was shocked by something that happened. Core characters had died!!? It was enough for me to jump back in. I began anew with issue 5 and I have never looked back! On to the story…As Rick and his family work with a small group of survivors as they struggle to stay alive by just trying to find the basics to support life and to just live till the next day. The group are faced with the dilemma of having to kill others to survive..including their friends. They see loved ones pass and turn into walkers and have to kill them all over again. Rick is faced with the horrible prospect of killing his best friend. His wife is murdered with their unborn child. His son is hideously disfigured. Rick himself is dismembered when he loses a hand. That is JUST the Grimes family. Every character in the book is faced with an impossible disturbing task of being driven to murder to stay alive. It’s the central tragedy of this series and Kirkman masterfully weaves his characters through this awful depraved journey. What would YOU do to survive? If you look for one sentence to describe the Walking Dead is…NO ONE IS SAFE. No other book in its genre is known for killing off its core cast like The Walking Dead. You do not have to look very far to know that you best not get invested in any characters because each one comes with an unofficial expiry date! This is the central theme of the book. Well we find out that the answer to that question is that when faced with death good people become VERY bad people in a damn hurry as is the case with our subject here for The Super-Blog Team Up…Negan. But first before the Hardcore Bat swinging madman there was…this man..
The Walking Dead has had its share of villains. Stand outs like The Governor are a classic example of what this new world can do to a good human. Issue 27 of TWD we are introduced to Brian Blake, the Governor of the Town Of Woodbury. Woodbury is a town that survives and lives on like an almost normal community in the middle of a collapsing civilization. Blake is their charismatic leader whose ruthlessness and brutality are the cornerstones of Woodbury’s very existence. He leads with an iron fist and outsiders are NOT welcome unless there is something to gain by their association. The Governor was the bench mark villain for the majority of the series with his greatest hits include cutting Ricks hand off, mutilating Michonne, Killing Ricks wife and undead baby not excluding the outright brutal murder of many core characters. Central to Kirkman’s writing he always gives us this human element to even his bad guys. Later we see that despite the Governors ruthless commanding presence and heinous acts we see a real father who lost his daughter to the horrors of this new world of whom he is unwilling to let go. He keeps the “walkerized” version of his daughter Penney tied up in his apartment and feeds her body parts of his victims to her to eat. Eventually The Gov is taken down we and it is here we experience the true tragedy of this book. While the Governor is considered one of comicdom’s most ruthless villains he is but the learner when it comes to the crown prince of barbarianism himself..the Leader of The saviours…Negan! Just as Rick and The group of survivors have seemingly over come the evils of their new world and have settled into a peaceful existence in a new town and trying to rebuild some semblance of a normal life for everyone…then we meet The Walking Dead’s real super bad. His name is Negan and the world of The Walking Dead would be beaten into brutal submission by this new psychopath on the scene.
So Negan’s tragic pre-outbreak story goes as such, he was a high school coach who had a reputation for intimidating and bullying his players. Negan (No last name given) lived a seemingly normal life with a job and a wife named Lucille (This name will become very crucial to our story a little later.) Negan was not a morally sound individual early on in his life and despite his outward happy marriage he was having an extramarital affair on the side. His whole world would fall apart prior to the outbreak as Negan discovers his wife has cancer when she collapses in front of him as they argued over this affair revelation. Negan rushes his wife to the hospital just as the outbreak begins, but he is too late. As his wife is placed on life support Negan desperately try’s to hang on to her and calls off his affair but it is too late. Lucille passes away when the power goes down and her life support system shuts down. As with all deaths in the Walking Dead universe our loved ones are reanimated as a “zombie” (Or Walker as we will call them moving forward). Negan has to make the decision to have his wife killed but he cannot bear to do it himself. Negan makes a deal with a child to do the honors for him, a trait we will see over and over when he becomes a leader. Out of the gate I love this origin. Every bad guy is at their best when it comes to their motivation. Negan’s guilt for his infidelity and the passing of his beloved wife scars him and drives him to become the monster we will soon see emerge.
Leaders rise…followers Follow.
As the story goes, Negan is on the run during the outbreak but happens upon a group of survivors led by a Walking Dead core cast member, Dwight. As we find out Dwight is no natural-born leader but a scrappy survivalist who manages to keep himself and his followers alive during the devastation. As Negan is welcomed into the fold it is clear the leadership foundation is weak with Dwight at the helm. It is only a matter of time as Negan uses his natural charm and hard-nosed foundation that Negan becomes their groups obvious emerging natural leader. Once in position of power Negan renames his group the Saviors, a group of which overtime grow into the hundreds. The band discovers ways to defend themselves against the walker hordes and creates a large communal compound and series of outpost satellite locations to maintain their way of life against the horrors of the walkers. Before long as the outside world collapses and resources become scarce, everyone is chasing food and supplies. Negan being a creative entrepeneur uses his sheer brute force, charm and intimidation to bully other groups the Saviors encounter to give up large shares of their supplies, weapons and food in exchange for their “Protection”. The tactic worked numerous times over and over as Negan and his Saviors began to stockpile weapons and supplies while other groups in the wild starved and struggled under their foot. That is until Negan and group ran into Rick Grimes and his posse.
Rick and his group had found their way into a place called Hilltop, a society that was seemingly surviving and self-sustained despite the horrors of the Outbreak. They had developed a government of sorts ran by the dubious Gregory They lived a basic but sustainable lifestyle. Farming and weapons making were trademarks of Hilltop and Negan saw great opportunity to offer his “Protection” to the Hilltop natives and in turn take their food and weapons. Gregory being a weak leader was living under fear of Negan and his group and had a bad habit of caving and conformity like a coward every time when Negan and the saviors came knocking. It didn’t take long before new Hilltop inhabitant Rick Grimes observed what was happening to the citizens who were sustaining a real living to have to hand it over to these bullies with not so much as a harsh word said in retaliation or compromise. Rick had seen enough and mobilized a strike force of the usual suspects.
We get a closer look to what Rick and his group are dealing with as we peel back the layers of their newest foe. We see that this once well-adjusted High School coach has transformed into a deadly brutal sadistic cult leader. Negan’s own people were also living in fear of his shadow. His own people are not spared mercy either as Negan hoardes the saviors women for his own sexual pleasure, taking whomever he wants at any time. Anyone who does not conform with his desires are dealt with….very harshly. Public beatings of his own people are common to set the example. Many of his people whom he dubs “disloyal” are literally horrifically branded facially and horribly disfigured to bear the living reminded of what happens when you show disobedience to Negan. Even former leader Dwight is the living embodiment of what happens when you cross the boss as he wears the branding scar on the side of his face and still stands by Negan in his war against Rick and the outsiders .
No Turning Back..
While Rick and the team are attempting to extinguish Negan’s handle on Hilltop they hit one of the Saviors main security outposts by surprise and kill several of Negan’s henchmen seemingly gaining the upper hand in the first real shot in what would be a War for the ages. This would lead to the most famous and irredeemable act of Negans reign of terror in The Walking Dead saga. When Rick and his group are surrounded by The Saviors and forced to their knees in a line up and it is here that Rick and Company are introduced to the King Of Swing himself..Negan. The leather jacket clad villain debuts with a barbwire baseball bat lovingly named after his dead wife Lucille. Ricks group is threatened with death as they endure a lethal game of Eeneee Meaneee Mineee Mo” to decide who will die to pay for the death of his men. When Negan finally painfully and slowly decides to flat-out murder core Walking Dead fan favorite Glen!
The act is one of the most heinous deaths in the history of comics! Glen is not only murdered in front of his friends but his pregnant wife Maggie is forced to endure his brutal demise as Glen calls out to her during the ordeal. Glens graphic death is Negan’s first stamp on the world of the Walking Dead and it sets the tone for what the character will stand for. It is interesting to compare the previous super bad The Governor with his contemporary Negan. While the Governor was a vile human being capable of horrific acts, Negans level of violence goes beyond anything the governor has dealt.
The Seduction of the Innocent.
One of Negan’s most heinous acts was not in fact the list of people he has murdered, had killed or desecrated but rather his obsession with the son of Rick Grimes. Carl Grimes a battle weary hostile teen by this point in our story has seen enough blood shed and death. He has grown tires of bowing to a homicidal maniac and takes matters into his own hand and goes to take out Negan on his own killing six of Negans men in the process before getting captured and faced with his own execution. Negan stops any attempt on Carl’s life and gains an admiration for Carl’s guts in coming after him. Instead of killing the headstrong teen he takes him under his wing and shows him all the riches he has gained as leader of The Saviors. Carl sees another side of this vicious killer and even begins to warm up to the man who murdered his friends. Negan in a moment where we see he is still a human under his hostile hard-assed exterior demands Carl remove his bandage from his head which covers an awful disfiguring scar that the young Grimes has kept under wraps since an horrific incident where he was accidentally shot in the head while fleeing a Walker outbreak. Negan humiliates Carl by exposing his wound and demands to even touch the inside the hole of the wound on his head where an eye once was now leaving only a deep hole.
Carl finally breaks down from the overwhelming pressure of Negans imprisonment and just the horror of the world he lives in. Seeing Carl break something happens to Negan..he finally shows sympathy for the first time and apologizes to Carl! This is a point in the character we had not seen up to that point. After this incident the Carl and Negan relationship is changed. Negan is protective of Carl and almost sees him in a Father/ Son dynamic. Negan and Carl have many interactions later through out the series but it is this odd overtone to his character that shows there may still be a human under that brash murderous character after all.
One of the main storyline’s in the chronology of The Walking Dead is the Epic All Out War story that documents the final end to the war between Rick and his Survivors against Negan and his Saviors. One of the cornerstones to The Walking Dead book in general is the theme of “No One Is Safe”. This is very apparent in this particular story and the body count on both sides escalates to epic proportions. The war finally ends with the main event of Negan facing his nemesis Rick Grimes. Rick and various bands of communities and splinter survivor groups come together to finally topple the Saviors regime.
The final battle between the leaders has not yet finished but when the bloodshed stops and its left with Rick face to face with Negan himself. Both sides have endured grave loss and it looks like the two warriors have had enough. Negan and Rick look like they have put their weapons down and agree to a truce…that is until Rick Grimes savagely cuts Negan’s throat leaving him for dead on the battlefield to end the bloodshed.
The Confinement
After all out war we are served with a time jump seemingly years into the future.Negan we learn has survived but has been imprisoned ever since the war. We see a haggard Negan who has basically given up on life and lives the rest of his natural life behind bars. For Negan this is a worse affliction than death. He has become almost unrecognizable in appearance and gone is the hulking womanizer and we now see a frail bearded long hair recluse. Of course he cleans up well and after Negan has been torn down and humiliated and that is exactly what Rick Grimes has planned he restores himself to his old look as he begins to plot his escape. All the evil this man has perpetrated to humankind his penance is to rot in a jail cell isolated eternally from civilized man….at least that was the plan.
Redeeming The Irredeemable.
Isolation has its merits. It allows a person to reflect on their life and their mistakes. I would like to say this character served his time, completely rehabed his image and spent the rest of his days making the world a better place ..right? Well in Negans own special way I guess!
Negan decides to adopt the “If you can’t beat em join em” philosophy..Negan using his persuasive powers uses a weak-minded pawn who visits his jail cell who also shares has a deep-seated hatred for Rick Grimes. With the help of his new Grimes hating minion Negan convinces the man to free him!!. The world has changed so much since Negan has been exposed to the outside world and the latest threat to safety and humanity are a group known as The Whisperers. Lead by the emotionless monster Alpha, a bald-headed female leader who along with Beta, collectively runs a group of survivors who conceal their human forms with Walker flesh and to camouflage themselves to be able to walk freely amongst the Walkers. THe Whisperers are very much still a threat despite many societal and technological advancement humanity has progressed since the original outbreak. The man named Brandon Rose the man responsible for freeing Negan tells him of this group and plans to bring him into Whisperer territory to possibly join them. Negan smelling another group takeover goes along with his rescuer ..but before he enters Whisperland, Negan murders Brandon in cold blood and goes to face them himself. Of course with Negan being the personality that he is he is almost instantly detained and imprisoned again. This time however Negan who is used to manipulating people from confinement gains the trust of their leader Alpha and eventually begins to build trust from the Whispers. Negan and Alpha begin to show moments of affection and Alpha after years of being a straight nosed emotionless leader of savage survivalists she unknowingly lets her guard down emotionally and lets Negan and his charms in. Negan shows his affection back the only way he knows how..
He beheads her…as a matter of fact he beheads her with a small knife in savage Negan fashion and in a weird way, but maybe not so weird for a character like Negan, THIS would be his redemption.
Making Peace
Often as humans if we have a disagreement, a fight or an all out estrangement with a friend, or family member we for the most part, attempt to make things right. We want to make amends. After the dust settles we hope to just move on with things..we extend an Olive branch. Negans proverbial “Olive Branch” was bringing the very HEAD of the enemies leader directly to his nemesis and drop it on the ground in front of him as an apology. Rick Grimes the leader and mortal enemy of Negan, who had watched his friends murdered, also who watched his own son be manipulated by this madman, and who attempted to murder him personally several times could only stand in shock. This man who was so evil, so vile, so irredeemable yet he had just ended the war between Rick’s group and the Whisperers. The man he had imprisoned for years out of public fear and outcry was suddenly loose and killing again for RICKS team!!? Negan at one point even saves Rick from certain death from a walker attack. He try’s to convince everyone his time in prison has rehabilitated him. Rick finally concedes to Negan and agrees to no longer jail him. The deal however is that Negan CANNOT live in their community..he will be for all intents and purposes EXILED! Negans past history could not be replaced but somehow he gained the trust and maybe a shade of respect from a man he cost so much. Negan however finds peace with the only person he was truly at war with..Himself.
Both men…and hundreds of other survivors faced horrible odds and did things that no human should ever have to face. Taking lives and seeing horrific tragedy that would break a normally strong person. These people have endured unquestionable horror and to survive committed unspeakable acts. While some are considered great leaders, others are seen as cold-blooded murderers and in the world of the Walking Dead we discover that the line that separates a Rick Grimes from a Negan is very thin. Indeed the truth about The Walking Dead is that “We Are All The Walking Dead…”
Well that is it Satellite Subscribers!! But the fun does not end as Superhero Satellite this year we are debuting the monthly Superhero Satellite podcast this summer! Stay tuned for that!
If you liked what you read…(or even if you didn’t) please feel free to leave a comment as we read and respond to them all! If you want to catch up with us on social media follow us on Twitter @Charlton_Hero or read our archives right here on the site! Till next time Heroes!!
End Transmission..
Thanks so much for reading and for sticking with us despite our year-long absence I have truly missed my readers. The good news is that there is SO much more to enjoy with the rest of our rag-tag group of Mighty Marching Blogging Brigade as Super-Blog Team Up Continues RIGHT NOW! Visit the rest of our team below!
Greetings Super-Blog Team Up fans..the band is back with another tale to weave into the fabric of the blogosphere. This round we tackle “Versus”. If you are reading this years from now some context is needed. In this year of 2016 Super Hero films are still big bucks at the box office and both Marvel and DC are hanging their hats on two films where their main “Good Guy”characters square off one on one. Dc’s Batman V Superman debuted to mixed reviews but a very large draw and is still making big money as we speak. On may 6th Marvel takes their shot in the war with Captain America: Civil War which trumpets the big battle between Marvels head honcho Captain America and Iron Man! Both films promise a full-scale battle of Hero vs Hero.
Fortunately comic book history is filled to the brim with tale after tale of Earths mightiest heroes battling each other, even villains vs villains, not to mention Super Team vs Super Team! So many examples of epic battles with the fate of the world hanging in the balance. Some battles have loved ones in danger and others where heroes secret identities hang in the balance. It brings us great pleasure here at The Superhero Satellite to bring you none of that! In fact this may be the shortest battle of Hero vs Hero in the history of comics. Without further adieu I present to you the moment when the Dark Knight, The Caped Crusader, The Bat, Batman took on the galaxies greatest protector, The GREEN LANTERN!! Okay…its Guy Gardner but he is a Lantern darn it! Anyways..on with the show..strap in and let’s get going to 1986..
Begin Transmission : May 4th 2016
DC had finished their massive crossover Crisis On Infinite Earths as detailed gloriously in past Super-Blog Team Ups and was looking to clean up many loose ends that resulted in its conclusion! Believe us there were a ton of them! The company decided after successful reboots of their core characters that they would pull all loose ends together into a bright red bow and make sense of all the individual titles by reforming their Super Team….The Justice League Of America! John Ostrander and Len Wein were the scribes in charge of reuniting DC’s heavy hitters under one banner. The story would be called Legends and it would take place over the course of 6 issues and multiple crossovers . It would be a jump on point for new readers and launched several new titles such as Flash, Suicide Squad and the brand new Justice League. In the story Darkseid wages a bet with Phantom Stranger that he will turn the world against earths Superheroes and uses a human political pawn as his catalyst. The end result sees DC’s finest come together to seemingly reform the Justice League and thwart Darkseid’s somewhat silly plot. Legends #6 boasts an all-star line up for the Justice League boasting Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Flash, Shazam, Black Canary, Guy Gardner, Dr. Fate , Changeling, Martian Manhunter and Blue Beetle! The band was back together and DC fans were excited for this league to continue on and protect this new DC Universe, Post Crisis. All was right with the world again…or was it?
Sadly this League would dissolve quicker than it came together. Superman declined the invite, Wonder Woman walked away quietly, Changeling went back to his gig with the Titans and Flash sped away disinterested in being bound to a team. It seemed the rug had been pulled out from fans who had suffered through some bad times in Justice League history with the ill-fated Justice League Detroit (which actually kicks some major ass and is a very fun read!) and With many JLA heavy hitters seemingly out of the mix for the next round of this new league, The new groups prospects of commercial success seemed significantly less. How can we have a JLA without the Trinity? (Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman) Well Writer/ Artist Keith Giffen along with J.M. Dematteis and Kevin Maguire would roll out the LEAST likely band of misfits the Justice League banner had ever seen.
So was born the Justice League International or the Bwah Ha Ha League as it is fondly recalled by the comics faithful. Giffen and DeMatteis would bring a very lighthearted comedic tone to proceedings.
The famous Justice League #1 from May 1987 sported one of the most copied covers in comics history with a family picture sort of cover sporting this new team with some very suspect looking participants. While the team boasted classic JLA heavyweights such as Batman, Martian Manhunter, and Black Canary it also assembled a far more unique crew than the JLA had ever seen. Many of which were imports from DC’s recent acquisitions from Charlton Comics, Fawcett, and the Kirby verse. The Blue Beetle, Mister Miracle, Oberon , Shazam and a brand new Version of Dr. Light rounded out this roster. One member however stole the cover with the now famous “Wanna make somethin of it??” Guy Gardner, a relatively lesser known member of the illustrious and complicated Green Lantern Corp filled out the roster. It was apparent that Gardner was bringing the “Attitude” to its ranks. One look at Batman’s face knows this team is already in trouble.
For those not familiar with the Justice Leagues newest Green Lantern would quickly grow to love the renegade Lantern. He originally debut in Green Lantern Vol. 2 Issue 59and from the get go we know that this Green Lantern didn’t play by the rules. In this issue The Guardians give Green Lantern Hal Jordan a lesson in humility by showing him what would have been if Guy Gardner had been selected by Abin Sur to wear the famous Green Power Ring rather than him. We can all be thankful it turned out the way it did. During his travels Gardner would be passed over many times to lead the Lanterns in favor of Hal Jordan and John Stewart but always held to his guns that HE was the one destined to lead the team…alas at the time this did not come to pass however it would be a core reason why he was tormented by being subservient to another leader.
Guy went headlong into battles with DCs greatest rogues gallery would find himself in a bad situation in DC’s fabled Phantom Zone where he would be beaten into oblivion and permanently injured. A victim of brain damage, Guy as a result was a moody , self indulged prick who commanded the leadership of the JLI. Gardner however was not taken seriously by his new team mates. This certainly wasnt the Green Lantern Corp. anymore!! Joining a new group would be a little “problematic” for Guy as we will see..
We all know the story of the Batman. Avenging his parents death, Bruce Wayne goes on a mission to rid the world of evil doers. Along the way he gains multiple sidekicks with Robin, Nightwing, Batgirl, Superman and many others. For all intents and purposes..Bruce Wayne was never good with relationships and no matter if it was with a partner, a love interest, or a Super Team, Batman’s relationships always turned out badly. Batman would be part of The Batman Family, The Justice League Of America and even The Outsiders…all of which were dysfunctional relationships to say the least.
Batman as well was never one for playing second fiddle to anyone and usually assumed the leadership role as would be the case with the latest incarnation of the Justice league International. After the downfall of Justice League Detroit former Leader, Martian Manhunter was reluctant to put the lives of another team in his hands as he felt squarely responsible for their demise. Batman took the reins while the group was in their bonding period. However…unlike anyone he ever teamed with, Guy Gardner was NOT a team player and it was up to Batman to put him in line. It was the battle of wills..The mysterious Batman VERSUS an ultra powerful ring wielder who has the power of the universe at his hands…only one would prevail in a Game of Thrones.
From the opening page of Justice League #1 Vol. 2 1988, Gardner was already front and center and plotting to do a grand take over of the leadership position of the mighty newly reformed Justice League. Tensions would fly at their first ever meeting as a group..and Gardner and Batman would get their first taste of each other..it was NOT love at first sight!
In fact Gardner’s overtures towards the leadership position would not only be rejected but it would lead to an all out breakdown of the team only in their first organized group meeting. Batman could see right away that despite his reluctance to once again lead a super team…this boat needed a captain..and FAST!
With Gardner upstaged in front of the team, it would not only intensify the fire between Bats and Guy. It was just the start in a series of confrontations..as Batman attempted to instill a sense of protocol to proceedings Guy would be there to challenge his every word..
Guys temper would make for some tense moments in the team’s business. Gardner had no respect for Manhunter’s word despite Jonzz being a longstanding leader of the original Justice League Of America. Guy also would have none of The Big Red Chesse’s (Shazam) words either, but when it came to Batman, Gardner would dare not step any further.
Batman would literally become Guys babysitter. At every outburst or irrational thought, Bats was there to shut Guys outbursts down and amazingly there was zero retaliation..
Despite Guys reluctance to fight Batman, he would antagonize The Dark Knight at every opportunity. Both parties were now in the advanced stage of their passionate dislike for each other. Gardner took every shot he could whether on the battle field or in front of their peers. Serious group debriefings were fertile ground for Guys barbs….as Batman continued to make mental note of his detractors poor attempts to get under his skin.
Batman continued to hold the Lantern at bay, but when the League had their back against the wall, Gardner challenged Batman’s leadership for the last time. The defiance, the outbursts, the smart remarks and the tantrums would come to a head. Gardner would build up the courage to put the money where his mouth was as once and for all, Guy Gardner challenged Batman for the coveted Leadership position of DC’s high-profile flagship super group.
All the pent-up frustration..all the years of being held back by his peers in the Green Lantern Corps and now again in the Justice League. Gardner even removed his power ring and with no more fear in his heart, Guy Gardner BIT!!
Guy Gardner handed his ring to Blue Beetle and rushed furiously towards Batman and FINALLY these two rivals would square off one on one, head to head in a battle to end all battles this war was finally settled…
With ONE Punch…
What? Were you expecting something different? A bigger battle? A drawn out brawl over the course of six issues? Nope not here…sometimes less is more. Masterpieces are not created in one stroke of the brush…this rivalry was the exception. Batman would go on to leave the League a short time afterwards but Guy would still not achieve the top spot. Batman would go on to lead again and even Guy many years later, would finally get his respect as a Leader in the Green Lantern Corps...but that my friends is another story for another day. If you are hungry for a fight the battles continue with our group of Fellow Super Bloggers…read more below!!
Today I have gathered the Satellite crew in the main cabin for what I like to call..reading time. Yes, a foreign concept in this technical world of cell phones and computers. Gather round the virtual library and marvel at some classics that may have passed by a whole generation of kids..Yes today is Scholastic Day at The Satellite!!
Begin Transmission: April 1 2016
I was a fan of school..although the younger me would dispute this many mornings struggling to get up out of bed. Overall if I look back I would not trade one day of the public school system. In our home town there were none of today’s craziness with guns and drugs and bullying..we came to school…hung out with our friends and at time at the most an odd fight would break out but would be settled in the court of the playground. Yes my fellow school goers were generally a civilized bunch and it was always good times. One very memorable thing that I looked forward to every month was a little 4-6 page pamphlet that teachers would hand out so you could order books and have them delivered to your school. The Scholastic Book Orderwas the Sears Wish Book of Public School!
Scholastic was an American based publishing company that offered discounted literature to school districts all over Canada and The United States.They distributed order forms to schools for kids and parents to browse and order books through their services. Scholastic did a great job marketing their titles to kids as they had access to all the latest trends, movies or show publications and would feature them prominently in their pages of their flyer. The flyers were usually 4-6 pages in length and each page would feature plenty of books and items for order. The front Splash page usually featured the most current popular books and deals while the inside of the flyers would offer a variety of offerings from various authors. Of course Scholastic was careful to have multiple circulars for all different age groups so that offerings to elementary school children would not be the same as the offerings to Teens in Jr. High.There were literally hundreds of books from time to time and the prices were never at gouging level..and they also had great savings on bundle packages where you could get a full series of books for one low price.
I ALWAYS looked forward to these book orders. Once you made up your mind on what books you wanted or could afford, you filled out a long rectangular order slip in the last page of the flyer and noted the items you wanted. You then bugged your parents to fork over the cash and depending on what they donated to the cause decided your literary fate for that month. I feel I always fared decently well..Now where to start??
I fondly remember some of my classic hauls. Early on in our elementary days I loved kids magazines such as Dynamite and Bananas. Both were variety magazines which usually had celebrities from the favorite TV shows of the day and an interesting interview or story about them on the inside.
Dynamite was the better of the two as it had a more serious approach and featured the things I loved as a kid like Star Wars, Different Strokes, The A-Team and Knight Rider to name a few. It also featured plenty of puzzles, quizzes and cartoons to keep you reading!
Before the internet I got my movie and TV news through Dynamite!! Bananas was a comedic almost Mad Magazine style of publication which looked and felt a lot like Dynamite in terms of content and layout but went more for laughs than telling news stories or interviews.Both were great launching points into reading.
As my interests changed so did my literary intake. Fun puzzle books and gimmicks were always a staple in the order forms.We didnt have the large selection of media offerings with CDs and video games like kids of today..nope..we had to write our own fun with great stuff like Mad Libs!
As a long-standing comics fan Scholastic offered higher brow reads so instantly I was drawn to my version of high education..Garfield!!The classic strip bound in a soft cover format were always a favorite of mine and one of my first ever grabs as a kid!! Yep I was introduced to everyone’s favorite Lasagna eating, ideological Cat on the ground level with this classic!! This was MY kind of literature!! Others in my class had advanced deep into The Hardy Boys , Nancy Drew and The Bobbsey Twinsbooks so this Hero was being left behind at the bottom of the literary food chain..that had to change..I couldn’t be ordering kids stuff when the rest of the class was ordering the equivalent to Shakespeare.
I traded in kids magazines and comic strip books like Garfield, andMad Libs for novels.I will admit some of my need to dip into the adult side of the pool was because of my love of cover art. I fondly remember buying the Lloyd Alexander Collection. The artwork was very fantasy like and it drew me in like a tractor beam. I will admit to merely skimming the adventures of young Taran but I had to have that art.If not for the fine folks at Scholastic I would never have dared take a chance on such an author!
So I would quickly realize that literary classics like a Wrinkle In Time and Oliver Twistwould not be for me..nope..I loved movie adaptations! So while others read higher brow selections I grabbed such classic as The Karate Kid!! It was perfect for me..it was short, easy to read and had a color photo section from the movie!!
Of course Science Fiction was always my “go to drug” so when I gazed upon Star Trek 3 The Search For Spock in the book order, I knew I couldnt wait! I could finally find out what happened to Spock after Wrath Of Khan! Our town didn’t yet have a movie theater so this book was one of the few ways of knowing the “Spoilers” that would happen in the movie!! Yes it was still the era of the VHS tape and I would have to wait sometimes over a year before our video stores would have this movie so I put the “X” in the box next to that novel on my book order and loved it when it came! It had a foil embossed logo and all! Nerd Heaven when it wasnt cool!!
As cool as Star Trek was my first passion was always Star Wars and Scholastic super served our kind with their variety of Star Wars fun!! I grabbed my Return Of The Jedinovel with awesome hand and light saber cover!! Guess what..didnt read a page! I devoured the 8 pages of color photos inside scrutinizing every last detail! As with Star Trek it would be a long time before I watched the film on VHS!
There was the holy trinity of Star Wars books :The Jedi Masters Quiz Book! Not for the casual fan. This book was written by a kid named Rusty Miller and was insanely detailed and the 425 questions would challenge George Lucas himself!! I fact I am certain that old George would not correctly answer some of these questions!!
I opted not to read much of the Return Of The Jedi Novelbecause truth be told, Scholastic had THIS Bad boy…The Return Of The Jedi Storybook!!The fully illustrated photo story book with a ton of photos from the film and plenty of narrative that made you feel like you were getting the whole story!! Years later I would get this same book in a hole in the wall book store in Buffalo New York with a hard cover!!
Occasionally if you order a promotional set of titles or spent a certain dollar amount Scholastic would reward that lucky kid with an awesome free poster!!They usually had some pretty cool giveaways. Luckily it was not always a cute cat poster..from time to time you would get awesome posters like this!! Always an incentive to spend more!!
Over the years I amassed a very large book collection but there was one book that always stuck with me that may be my favorite book of all the selections I ever ordered…yes the Coup De Gras is THE GREAT SUPERMAN MOVIE BOOK!! This book was visually striking and loaded with pics and info all about one of my favorite superheroes of the day!! It had a giant Superman poster inside, and talked all about the Superman films and behind the scenes of them. This was the Internet before the Internet was the Internet..Just go to Amazon and get this one..tell em Hero sent ya. Anyone out there have this one? Share your thoughts below!!
So to the fine folks at Scholastic, a big thank you from this adult who grew up reading because you offered it! Tons of great Scholastic memories still stay with me! The anticipation of order day arriving and getting that wonderful stack of books is just a great visual etched in my brain. So as we close the Satellite Virtual Library we want to hear from YOU our valued readers! What did you get in your Scholastic Orders? We want to know.
Till Next time heroes…Class time is over. Now back to your stations!!
When it comes to X-Mas all my readers know I am more than a little sentimental. Whether its the music, the food, or the Christmas catalogues, we all know the selfish side of us love one thing…THE GIFTS!! The old saying goes “It is better to Give Than Receive..” we all know its pretty damn cool to receive as well! This December my family have a very important date planned to share a fun event and that on December 18th. The 18th and not the 25th you may ask? That’s not Christmas you say..whats so important about December 18th? I call it a Geeks Christmas as fans worldwide will finally go to theaters to watch the debut of Star Wars Episode 7: The Force Awakens! Select members of our esteemed SBTU Crew have gathered around the Satellite Holo-tree and share our memories of a Galaxy Far Far Away… Pour Up some Egg Nog Heroes, and join us as we raise a Holiday Glass to Star Wars!
Begin Transmission: Dec 16th 2015
As a child Star Wars was more than a movie. It occupied a large portion of my childhood through Movies, Comics, and our topic today the Original Toy-Line! Many an hour was spent playing with these little plastic toys and their very cool accessories and vehicles creating my own episodes of the Star Wars Saga! Well in 1977 the Kenner Toy Company was more than willing to fill kids wishes in the valued 4th Quarter and as the holiday season approached Star Wars was at a fever pitch. Kenner was primed to deliver a massive influx of cash towards their companies bottom line and win the Christmas season. They would be conquering heroes of the lucrative Toy Market…then it happened. The production team could not deliver the toys to market in time for the Golden Holiday Season. In an act of desperation Kenner created the Early Bird Package. Yes under the tree at Christmas Star Wars fans in 77 opened ……(Drum Roll Please!!) an ENVELOPE!!!??
The STAR WARS EARLY BIRD CERTIFICATE PACKAGE (1977)
Kenner could not deliver the figures but to pad their losses they went for a “Made” money approach. Customers would be “promised” the action figures later in 1978 if they purchased the Early Bird Certificate Package. The package would include 4 items including a Certificate that you would have to mail in that was good for 4 Star Wars figures that would be mailed to your home between Feb. 1st 1978 – July 1st 1978.
(Back) The Original Early Bird Set Did NOT Include Han Solo, Darth Vader, or C3-Po? The Original promised line up were Chebacca, Princess Leia Organa, Luke Skywalker, and R2-D2
So you may ask what was a kid supposed to do with a stupid Early Bird Certificate? There were a series of steps involved.
Open your Certificate Envelope.
Fill out your Name and Address on BOTH portions of the Early Bird Certificate!
2. Tear Off Your Proof Of Purchase Card, write the date you mailed your Star Wars figures and store it in your records.
3. Set Up your STAR WARS Display Diorama that is included in the set! I will admit. I was a sucker for displays and playset’s especially when it comes to STAR WARS toys! The Display set itself was cheap but pretty nice! Collectors still struggle to find these in great condition and that is part of the charm of being an Early Bird Customer!
4. Next. Enjoy your enclosed set of STAR WARS Stickers! The detailing on the stickers were a little lackluster. It is clear that Kenner was struggling to rush something…anything, to market that Christmas in 77.
Early Bird Star Wars Sticker Set included with Kenners Early Bird Package
Once you have mailed off your certificate…all you had to do now was….WAIT. Fortunately for Kenner they were able to meet the deadline and there were no further delays and the very FIRST STAR WARS FIGURES ARRIVED in Feburary of 1978!!
The Original 4 STAR WARS Figures from 1978!
The Figures came shipped with a Thank You card, a white packaging tray and action figure stand tabs to insert into the base of the diorama display set included in the early bird package. As the saying goes “Good Things Come To Those Who Wait” applies to this situation as folks who were fortunate enough to purchase this Early Bird Package received possibly one of the most coveted Action Figure in the history of Action Figure Collecting! That figure would be the Double Telescoping Lightsaber Luke Skywalker.This figure is so rare that it was even featured on a recent episode of AMC’s Comic Book Men!
As cool as it sounded have a lightsaber tip that extended much further than many other of the like models of that particular original Luke. However it was disheartening to know it was very poorly crafted and the tip itself often bent easily making your lightsaber look very stupid. Check poor Luke above.
Included in the early Bird set as well was a not quite as rare as the Luke mentioned above) was a unique Chewbacca with a Greenish tinted molded Bow Blaster rifle was shipped with all early shipments of this set making it a very sought after variant! True fan boy collectors know that the early bird set with variant Luke and Chewie is a rare gem in the collecting universe!
While I did NOT have the good fortune of buying the Early Bird Packages in 1977 (I was only 3!!) I did however have the complete set of original action figures and still boast 75% of them to this day! Nothing were quite like the original toys.Yes they had far less articulation than their modern day relatives but they represented a changing of the guard in the action figure industry. The figure market that was previously dominated by bigger versions of action toys like the old 12 inch G.I. Joe figures as well as the middle sized and super fun MEGO collections popular in that day were replaced with the official dawn of the 3 3/4 era action figures when Star Wars fever hit!
Of course I was a collector who on every possible allowable occasion would get one of these gems at the store. I was too young to enjoy the Early Bird experience however, by the time the Empire Collection arrived this Hero was in full Star Wars Collecting Beast Mode!
At this point in the 80s however, leaving your figures mint on card was not an option, so all of my toys were open and well played with especially the Star Wars originals! I had plenty of vehicles and play-sets to go along with my figures so I basically felt like I had my own galaxy! I had an X-Wing, Darth Vader Tie Fighter, the AT-AT Walker, Boba Fett’s Slave 1,and many more! As for Play-Sets, I was fortunate enough to acquire Hoth, Cloud City, Dagobah, Jabbas Palace and the Grand Daddy of them all The Millenium Falcon! Of course as discussed in a previous Satellite post about my favorite Christmas Gifts I also had The Death Star!! Overtime..things broke, pieces went missing, poorly conceived trades occurred and my collection slowly died.
My collecting twilight was in my adulthood just at the time that it was announced that the Prequel movies were being released. The much maligned Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace was on its way and fans worldwide were exploding with anticipation as I was! I began re-building my collection. eBay was in its infancy and many folks didnt truly know how to post auctions and occasionally a seller would post something under a weird category and literally get zero interest. As was the case with an original Star Wars Action Figure collection. Like a speculative comics fan in the 90s who thought they would send their kids to college with their fortune they would amass after selling their collection I lucked into a carded original Star Wars Action figure set of 7 figures and bought them all for 10 dollars!! The figures were improperly categorized under “Dolls”and as a result I was able to jump start my collection!
Random eBay Auction Where You Can Still Get Lots Of Vintage Star Wars Stuff!!
From there I regained a Millenium Falcon, a AT AT Walker, new models of Star Destroyers, X-Wings, Tie Fighters, I even completed my Marvel Comics Star Wars collection and added a horde of new mint on card action figures! I even built myself my own collection room and filled it with mostly Star Wars merchandise! The ultimate geek cave was born!
I remain a true STAR WARS Geek to this day!
All would change one fateful day when I returned home from work and I entered my home through the downstairs entrance of my split level rental home. I noticed a piece of cardboard that looked like a toy package on the floor.I thought little of it as my kid always came away with a new toy when we visited the store and often would not wait until he actually got in the house to rip open his new toy! This was not out of character for our family so I did not give the packaging DNA evidence a second thought. As I walked the hallway to go upstairs to our main living space I noticed more packaging debris..that led to the closed door of my Toy room! I opened the door and to my complete horror ALL of my action figures were missing from the walls of the room..instead in the middle of the space was a mound of shredded packaging. My eyes surveyed the room as shock turned to anger and on my office desk where my Millenium Falcon usually proudly displayed was absent as well. The crown jewel had been stolen…I had a suspicion of what happened. This was not the work of an intruder..this type of carnage could only have come from a child..MY CHILD..my 3 year old son..who happened to be a big Star Wars fan and had his own great Phantom Menace action figure collection. As I gritted my teeth and exited the scene of the crime, I turned and stormed out of the room and headed upstairs where I heard the familiar chatter of my wife and children.As I walked up the stairs, inching savagely forward to the top level, one glance to the right I caught the culprit red handed!!
There, in the middle of my living room was my 3 year old son proudly swooshing a fully loaded Millenium Falcon in the air with a giant smile on his face completely lost in play! I looked in the kitchen just off the living room area where my wife looked out and simply said “He got into your room…” that was it. My anger at this point was at a terrible boil and I turned again to somehow rescue the remnants of my collection as my son set the Falcon down on the living room table and grabbed more figures still enthralled with his own little universe and with that I was disarmed. A flashback of my younger self reminded me of the sheer joy of playing with my toys and seeing him having that same experience actually made me happy. I was suddenly at peace with the fact that my kid was enjoying the exact same toys that I grew up on and you know that changes a guy. Many years of Father-Son Star Wars play would result and at that exact moment I grew up. I was no longer that adult who beat the kids to the store to clean out the toy shelves so I could add a rare piece to the walls of my man cave. I appreciated what it meant to be a kid who loved Star Wars and really THAT is one of those moments where you just know “The kids (MY Kids in particular!) will be alright!”
So just two days out from December 18th my family and I have a stack of movie tickets to Star Wars Episode 7: The Force Awakens and that former 3 year old son is now 15 and cannot wait to see the newest Star Wars film. My wife is also a pretty darn big Disney fan who enjoys a yearly trek to Disney World in Orlando to attend Star Wars Weekends and gets just as excited as the boys to meet the characters! Her Facebook profile is of her wearing her Star Wars T-Shirt posing with Chewbacca! Hows that for geek love..how can you not love a woman like that!! Then on my other side is my latest child who is six and during his many visits to Disney has defeated Darth Vader twice and Darth Maul in his last outings at Jedi Academy Training at Disney World. He is a fan as well with a great Lego Star Wars collection plus the family inheritance of the remaining portions of our collection!! I feel I have become Ghost Obi-Wan, My 15 Year Old Son is now Jedi Luke, and my youngest Offspring is Finn!! Generations of Star Wars love…The Force Is Strong in our Family..My Wife has it..My Children have it…and by god..I STILL HAVE IT!!
Well this is where I stop and get off..it has been my honor to share the passion I have for a Galaxy Far Far Away and all the characters that I really love to this day. I hope that tonight you and your significant others turn on one of these movies and you enjoy it as much as a fanboy I once knew in the early 80s whose every minute held his Luke Skywalker figure close and imagination ran wild!
Transmission Ended..
For MORE Super-Hero Satellite Star Wars fun read all past Star Wars posts from yours Truly, The Charlton Hero! Enjoy!
Be sure to check out the rest of the Super Hero Satellites own Star Wars related posts!!
“When a Collection Of The Worlds Best Bloggers Come Together To Protect The Blogosphere from The Depths Of Despair and Boredom. One Topic, One Mission, A Million Different Points Of View..Blogging Will NEVER Be The Same…Welcome To SUPER-BLOG TEAM-UP 4…TEAM UP TEAR DOWN.”
Begin Transmission
I remember the day I saw Superman and Spiderman teaming for the first time. It was monumental. Every comic fan at some point or another mulls over the thought of Dream Team Ups. What if Spiderman teamed With Superman, What if Batman teamed with Wolverine? Over the years DC and Marvel made a lot of these team ups happen and made them into a reality. Super-Hero Satellite tackled one of those in the Official Super-Blog Team Up Prequel when Superman teamed with Captain Carrot and The Amazing Zoo Crew! DCs experimental run in the very early 80s saw a lot of team ups you would never dreamed of would happened. One of which I present to you today. Superman teams with 80s Iconic Toy Franchise The Masters Of The Universe! It did happen and boy do we have a lot of ground to cover..this topic could only be contained in the pages of the Super-Blog Team Up 4 ….TEAM UP TEAR DOWN!!
In 1981 action figures were my life. My toy case was filled with Star Wars, Bionic man, Micronauhts, and very soon a toy called He-man. A very simple sounding name for a hero as it was intended. Mattel, following the success of Star Wars trilogy sought to capture some market share in the figure market with a new line of toys “inspired” by Conan The Barbarian fame..unofficially of course. After battling off a lawsuit with the Conan people Mattel launched one of their most profitable and iconic toy lines in history The Masters Of the Universe collection.
The Masters Of the Universe collection or MOTU for short, was a Mattel’s meal ticket back to the action figure market. He-Man and company exploded! Anyone who remembers this line of toys remembers a group of figures that were muscled up, action pose ready that were unlike anything out there at the time. I remember getting a great selection of these toys I believe for Christmas of 81. Boy did I get the motherload. In my first foray into the He-man toy line I received He-Man, Skeletor, Battle Cat, Panthro, Teela, Stratos, and Beast Man. Throw in Castle GreySkull, and The Battle Ram!!
Hows that for an intro!! So with the success of the toy line the next logical step was He-mans introduction to the small screen!! He-Man and the Masters of the Universe the animated series debuted on airwaves across the nation in 1983. The opening would be one that kids of the 80s would have engrained into their heads..Without further adieu..Satellite Bring up the video wall..He-Man and The Masters Of The Universe intro please!!
Everyone back on deck Heroes! The Masters of The Universe cartoon was a staple in my house. I have seen every episode probably 3-4 times each. I loved that show and its characters!! Click below to re watch this great series..that’s right, all in one click..that’s what we do.
Outside of my play time in Eternia, the rest of my life was spent as a super comic nerd! If anyone asked me what my favorite comic book publisher was in the 1980s I would proudly say DC with great vigor!! I loved everything about them but what I loved was their Super-Heroes. They were always The Nintendo to The Sega, They were The Coke to The Pepsi, The DC Heavy was The Man Of Steel himself. No one was bigger and more recognizable than Superman. In saying that, DC used Superman at every stop to push other properties. Supes was guaranteed bank and the publisher knew that putting him in a book with anyone would instantly give that property instant cred in the eyes of comic book readers..like old Hero here! Superman teamed with everyone but the kitchen sink. DC even went so far as to team him with Captain Carrot and The Amazing Zoo Crew. The Folks at the Satellite pieced together a great Prequel..Check out the link below the picture below!!
As Satellite readers hopefully who have read the Prequel DC tried something radically different in 1982 by giving Comic fans a real bang for their book with the DC Prevue inserts. As stated these inserts were standalone stories meant to introduce readership to new characters and concepts. The idea was to introduce the new hero or team inside the pages of a best-selling title to provide maximum visibility to this new potential break out concept. Superman was usually the anchor. DC did this twice with their latest acquistion..Matells Masters Of The Universe!! In the years prior to the World killing Crossover Crisis On Infinite Earths, DC was pretty liberal with their use of alternate realities, timelines, and worlds. It lead to a seamless insertion of the MOTU characters and worlds to simply become another “World” in the grand scale of the DCU in 1982! Yes Eternia was officially a reality in DC!!
DC created a very unusual version of Eterniavery different from the one seen on the Cartoon show a little later. Still seemingly set in medieval times This Eternia boasted over the top technology and mystifying magic all at once! Magic and Swordplay were the center of its concept. With Curt Swan, of long time Superman fame and legendary Comic Book penciller extraordinaire, took his stab at the Toy franchise and did a Masterful job of it. The characters were directly in line with the toy line visually but what was not carried over from the Comic book to the show was the language. Eternians talked like they were out of a Shakespeare novel. The verbage was very grandious. If you were a fan of the show you would know that He-man and friends did NOT talk like this!! Check out the panel below as He-Man, aka Prince Adam is challenged by a patron at the bar on Eternia who had just made fun of his sidekick Cringer (Battle Kat!) Whats unique about DC’s version of Eternia is that number one..He-Man is a drinker?When did you ever see bars on Eternia in the TV show? He-Man also refers to Teela as “woman” so it is decidedly male dominated planet as well. She-Ra would NOT stand for this!
Gone as well is the famous Transformation scene thats featured on every show on the Cartoon version of He-Man and The Masters Of the Universe…we all know what I mean. On this page we see that the Sorceress is responsible He-Mans and Battle Kat’s transformation!!Gone is the famous “By The Power Of GraySkull” raise your sword and transform gimmick..
He-Man is simply turned into his more powerful self by the all-powerful Sorceress..
At this point we meet the “Demonic Skeletor” Enemy of “Thy ” World? Skeletor is seen with his right hand man Beast Man in front of the Mysterious Castle Grayskull! The Grayskull Playset is undoubtedly the best play set in history! Okay maybe the Star Wars Death Star is better but this thing rocks people!! Believe! Skeletor and his sidekick discuss his need to unveil the secrets Of Castle GraySkull so he can rule the world with this knowledge! However one thing remains,…. to gain access to the Castle, Skeletor must have a power sword..which he does..but to gain entry you must have TWO!! The action figures themselves came bundled with a sword a piece for He-man and and a piece for Skeletor. Both had flatbacks and for some reason the two could connect together and allow the holder of the two united swords access to the secrets of Grayskull..
Its time to take a break…We will be right back AFTER THESE MESSAGES..
How cool are the He-man toys? I cannot describe the amount of joy these thing gave me..plus after I was done role playing in Eternia, He-Man and gang made great additions to my wrestling figure federation I also ran from my bedroom floor. He-Man, more specifically Power Punch He-Man won the title many times! Okay while on the topic lets talk best original MOTU toys..here’s the
Satellites Top 5 Most Underrated MOTU Figures:
5. Ram Man:One of the very few figures that broke the He-Man mold. Ram Man was the Eternia’s version of the Juggernaut and wore a huge metal helmet that he used to smash through things. You push down on his head and his legs, which we based on a spring ,were physically joined together and did no contain any articulation. Press down on his head Ram Man squat to the ground touch him again he launched into action!!
4. Moss Man. The MOTU line used the same basic body mold over and over at will and in some cases the same figure altogether. Beast Man one of the original MOTU super-bad’s was turned green, stripped of his armor, and covered in green “moss’ like fur. A very unusual toy but friggin awesome. My Moss Man was stolen on a camping trip as a child when playing in all things..The woods. I guess his camouflage was just too good. I’ll find you one day Moss man!
3. Two Bad: The Conjoined twin alien heads which shared a torso. This was another figure that maintained a unique mold and was very cool. The toy had great double punching power and two great alien heads! I played the death out of Two Bad and feel he’s a must have in any MOTU collection!
2.Extendar: The Armor covered Knight in the MOTU collection. Extendar was a silver armor covered classic Knight Of The Round Table style of figure. His uniqueness however was in the fact that his head arms, waist, torso, and legs all extended to make Extendar a giant. He was a highly touted figure in the collection as he toiled playing double duty in my imaginary wrestling figure collection!
1. Fakor. Okay okay..its was He-Man painted blue.Literally that’s all Fakor was. He was a Robot He-Man clone That Skeletor created to infiltrate He-Mans inner circle. No one would notice if He-Man was Blue now would they? Even so, I loved Fakor during his short run in my collection as he was an early victim to the arms and leg figure exchange..He-Man figure collectors know what that means!
WELCOME BACK HEROES!! Back to our story..Beast Man and Skeletor converse on how they are going to break into Castle Grayskull. Outside the Grayskull, Skeletor talks about the need of having both halves of the Power Sword to open the castle. Beast Man notices Skeletor only has one half, but he tries to use it to open Grayskull anyways. The result? The opening to a great inter-dimensional worm hole in clouds form that opens on Earth!! The impact of Skeletor,s assault was so great, its effects were felt on Earth.!! As with Superman..he has a history of falling into such portals …and today would be no different..
Superman is transported to Eternia in short order. He was investigating the giant cloud/portal and as always he is sucked in like a tractor beam and lands with a Thud directly in front of Castle GraySkull. Thelingering foes Skeletor and Beast Man look on like they have just seen Santa Clause!. The unusual part of this is not only how passive the Eternian’s are with Superman’s grand entrance but how non-chalant Superman is by being transported to yet another dimension. Apparently no big deal for the Man Of Steel.
Skeletor knows that this is not cool and quickly figures out that this guy in Blue spandex falling from the sky is his enemy!! Not giving any time for Superman to recover or gain his bearings Skeletor goes on the attack on this Other Worlder. Both spend a moment to mock each other as Skeletor calls Superman a `Strangely Garbed Foe while Superman sees Skeletor as a Skull faced clown with the Over Grown pocket Knife.Ahhh The 80s!!
The fight is on as Skeletor tries to slice Superman in half but to know avail as Supes batters the Eternian with a barrage of body shots. Beast Man joins the fray and is dispatched easily in ultra 80s fashion as Superman simply takes him on a loop de loop and dumps him handily on the ground. Skeletor resorts to the magic of his half of the power sword and forces Superman to be blown off in the distance. Waiting on hill observing the disruption is He-Man himself on his gentle steed Battle Kat!
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He-Man rushes to Supermans aid recognizing him from ancient Eternian lore. This goes to show that the DC Universe was always a part of DCs elaborate Multiverse of the 80s Pre Crisis. With Introductions out of the way, He-man and Superman are soon joined by Man at Arms riding the Wind Raider!
Okay, its pointless product knowledge time. The Wind Raider was one of the first and best MOTU Vehicles and makes a very early appearance here.MOTU toys were always emblazoned with deluxe painted artwork as seen on the Wind Raider box art!! Note the original Wind Raider was mean for a single figure. So in this case the Comic book had it right!!
Original Wind Raider plus He-Man!!
A great footnote here The Wind Raider like the Toy is a single passenger Vehicle however in the original He-Man and the Masters Of the Universe Television Show The Winder raider is a much larger capacity vehicle.
Pause for ONE TO GROW ON.. Take It AWAY MR T!!
Now Back To The Show..
The Triple Threat of He-Man, Superman, and Teela’s father Duncan, aka Man At Arms (Where is Duncan..has he abandoned his friends??) go after Skeletor. He-man swings for the fences with his battle-axe but not before Skeletor uses the magic of his half power sword to cast a hypnotic spell on Superman. Skeletor turns Supes on his own team instantly and the battle of the century begins..He-man vs Superman..one on one for the inter-dimensional title. Superman attacks first stopping He-Man assault on Skeletor but The Most Powerful Man In the Universe easily turns the tide employing The Giant Swing into a power bomb!!
Superman no selling He-Mans attack goes toe to toe with He-Man in a slugfest. Looks like DC will not look bad in comparison to Matell and He-Man is driven to the ground with a solid Superman upper cut ending the `Battle Of The Century only seconds into the fight. Winner is Superman..and DC.With He-Man out..and Man At Arms nowhere to be seen,,Skeletor commands the Man Of Steel to open the doors to Castle GreySkull and reveal its secrets to him at once! With fists raised Superman roars towards the gates of GraySkull..
Superman still fighting his hypnosis, cannot stop Skeletor’s spell, but comes up with a plan on the fly. If only the Man Of Steel can distract Skeletor long enough to utilize his heat vision to create a Molten barricade around Skeletor and block the spell of Skeletor. That’s right Superman melts rocks to form a rock cocoon around the evil one. Superman is able to stop his spell just in time as not to impact The Castle! Skeletor bursts free of his confinement in Molten rock and swears he will cast yet another spell on Superman. This time Superman is ready for Skeletor’s magic and He-man (who has already forgiven and understood why Superman attacked him,) returns to watch the fray. Superman apparently has a plan to lift Skeletor out of harms way. Exactly where was Superman taking him?
With Skeletor having been to this dance once to often, he pulls the old disappearing act. Superman still taken aback from the events of what just happened has no time to chat with his new friends as he notices a Time Space warp in space with his Super Vision and has to hustle so he can get back home to earth and bids a quick fare the well to his Medieval friends.
In summary: You could not have done this Team-Up any quicker. The whole story while really cool, is mega rushed. Superman literally falls from the sky, has a light tussle with Skeletor,and even He-Man , gets hypnotized , stops Skeletor and rushes back to Earth in a wormhole. The whole time, He-Man and friends act like it’s any other day. Love the vintage Curt Swan art. Mr. Swan is one of my all time definitive Superman artists, so I was pumped to see him do the cross over. Swan has a real grasp on He-Man and friends. His inspiration is directly from the Matell Toy line as is seen with the depictions of Man At Arms, Skeletor and Beast Man. Hilariously the depiction of Eternia as an old world Shakespearean society is pretty far off in what we see later in the Animated Series and subsequent spinoffs, and Movies. The Eternian dialect is pretty entertaining as seen in these pages. I am glad they made the change to everyday linguistics in the animated show. The declaration and focus on the 2 halves of the Power Swords is also a storyline not often referenced in the Animated Series. He-man himself does not perform the transformation or do the whole “I have The Power” bit. That’s key…say what you want. Having the Sorceress simply transform Prince Adam and Cringer is just not cutting it People!! Overall, the excitement this book created at the time was all the hype I needed as a bright-eyed 8-year-old comic book fanatic! The kid in me still gives this story a thumbs up..the adult in hindsight gives it a “Where the hell is the story??” As well I leave you all with one final question..exactly what was the point of putting Man At Arms in the story with The Wind raider when he did not even show up in the battle?? Hmmmm…
Hope you have enjoyed this stay on Eternia, setting Coordinates for our next mission. Heroes strap in..Super-Blog Team Up continues…plenty more to read as Team Up Tear Down continues all over the Blogosphere..please read and follow all the blogs below..you will not be disappointed! Super-Blog Team Up…Unite!!
14. BronzeAge Babies:When Friends Like These ARE Your Enemies (FF/Doom, Batman/Joker, Warlock/Thanos, and Cap/Red Skull),http://bronzeagebabies.blogspot.ca/
If you liked these /SBTU covers and artwork, you will LOVE the great Mashups of The SuperTeam Family. The site that takes Comic Book cover team ups to the next level!! The Teen Titans & DNAgents cover was inspired by one post of that sites great work! So I give full credit to the fie folks at STF for the inspiration! Click here to visit THE SUPER TEAM FAMILY Website!
SUPER BLOG TEAM UP RETURNS JANUARY 2015
SATELLITE Extra: Remember that 1987 Masters Of The Universe Movie starring Dolph Lundgren? No? Then check out the trailer!!
Welcome back Satellite Subscribers! The team and I on the Satellite have pillaged the time streams of my youth and using the memory analyzer I have purged several historical publications that were of great interest to me as a child of the 80s. No, it was no great work of literature..it was not the Bible..although I could have used a few passages back then! Outside of my documented interests in Comic Books and Action Figures..I also had consistent exposure to Coloring Books. Some of my fondest memories of road trips, camping excursions always fall back to the memories of my old companion, the coloring book! All hands to the conference deck as I enlighten our team of heroes on coloring heroes!
Transmission Begin: Nov 28 2013
So as it may be, this post is more or less a gallery of my room closets book shelf. From time to time my parents, to occupy me, would by me one of these coloring books. If it was a trip to the Doctor…a coloring book followed close behind. A trip to visit my Grandmothers usually spawned several coloring books from numerous runs to the general store for a snack run!! Here are a few of the books that were forever locked in my consciousness all of which I personally owned!
Fantastic Four Meets The Witch. One of my all time favorite stand out books. Was always a BIG Human Torch fan..now I could color him!
Out of all the Coloring Book lines available to me during the early 80s ,the vintage Whitman line of coloring books were the best. Whitman publishing company, was a major publisher of children`s books from the early 1900s to the 80s. Many of the titles were liscensed books from popular TV shows and Comic book heroes. Whitman was essentially my entry drug into the world of Coloring Books. One of my first memories of Camping as a child brought me to Dildo Newfoundland..yes insert joke here. One trip to a local general store later and I had my earliest coloring book purchase that I can recall. The Fantastic Four Meet the Witch. The story was very simple. The Witch is picked up by government radar and causes havoc for the U.S. Government. Here comes the F.F. to save the day. Whitman was not known for elaborately drawn books, but that was a good thing. The pages were easy to color as well I was an avid artist at the time so the characters were easy to redraw!
Its Clobberin Time with the crayons! Whitman Coloring Books were simplistic but fun to color!
Even though this book always has a special place in my memories This Amazing Spider-Man Coloring Book always drew me back to it for years later and even as an adult I have flipped the pages of this one!
Not being the best colorist, I decided that I would be unable to draw a dime begin a colorist in the comic book industry but my favorite thing about this book was the simplicity of the art, especially Spidey! It was a proverbial `How To Draw`as a kid! Thanks Whitman..now I can at least draw this good to this day!
Holloway’s General Store always brought a coloring book on my sleep overs at my Grandparents! The upstairs craft part of the store was always well stocked with Whitman classics like these!
`Buck Rogers was HOT on TV in the early 80s and the Buck Rogers action figures comprised some of my early action figure collections. I had Buck, Twikie, Kane, Draco, Tiger Man and the Draconian Guard!
One of my early forays into action figure collecting! The Buck Rogers collection. A perfect companion to my coloring book.
Buck was lucky enough to have a sequel to his own coloring book! he was THAT popular!
I will not lie..Star Wars was MY space fantasy. As much as I liked Buck Rogers NOTHING and I mean NOTHING captured my imagination like the Galaxy far far Away!
Star Wars was the ultimate in coloring fun and Kenner not only produced a swarm of excellent action figures but amazing Star Wars coloring books with Live Movie Stills as covers! Even some had special studio publicity shots that were amazing!!
Who would not buy this coloring Book.
The Star Wars Coloring Books loosely told a story much like the famous `Little Big Books`they usually told a chapter from the movie and always had a nice happy ending.Others were a mishmash of traced movie scenes, Toy ads and Comic Book pages..and possibly even traced by a drunk. I submit for your approval..
Shamelessly traced from Howard Chaykins work in The Star wars Marvel Comics Series.
Hey this looks familiar!
So artists clearly didn’t care much about their artistic output as some could not even draw a straight line while tracing! I put this before the courts as evidence number 2.
Sloppy ass art work!Check out that platform they are standing on..as well as the side panels next to Leia. Anyone have a ruler for gods sake!.
Some images however hit the nail on the head . The right blend of accuracy and simplicity!
The ONLY Toy to put Star wars on my play time back burner was G.I. Joe! The Joe’s were incredible. They had a figure for every job in the military. They had the best vehicles and accessories, one hell of a cartoon show..as well as friggin awesome coloring books!
YO JOE!! This Joe Coloring and Activity book was a staple at coloring time!
The Joe’s did double duty at my house as I bought up every new coloring book I could find! The interesting thing about these books were the attention given to supplementary characters! Rock and Roll and Grunt were featured!! What ever happened to Rock and Roll?? He was the original BIG gunner before Road Block! No Love I tell ya!
The ORIGINAL 80s Joe’s were always my favorites! This was magic for me at my young age. Yo Joe!
I had a very respectable amount of Masters Of The Universe toys and even this coloring book. He-man was highly revered at my house!
Masters Of The Universe, especially The Action Figure line, were huge in my town. He-Man and Skeletor and the gang were huge additions to my action figure line up! Even though actually role-playing in the MOTU world was not their long-term purpose as they were all eventually absorbed into my fictional playtime wrestling league. That is another story for another day! The MOTU coloring book had longevity at home. I literally rode this one to the grave. It still lasted months after going cover-less! I was always a fan of the cover art and I think that’s what gave it its longevity! The cover features He-Man riding on the long forgotten Battle Ram. This is a very early toy that debuted in the pages of the old He-Man mini comics that came packaged with MOTU figures . It was very rare to catch glimpses of this vehicle as the classic Wind Raider was the one most prominently in the cartoon series!
This Laff a Lympics coloring book was a book that featured many stars of cartoons we did not get in our area!
Hanna Barbera Cartoons always a favorite, were aired on a limited basis in our area of Canada , but this Coloring Book opened my eyes to my favorites Blue falcon and Dyna-Mutt! This book allowed me to see stars like Magilla Gorilla,and others I had never seen before! It was a wake up call that our cable package was horrible!
The Good Old Boys Never meanin no harm!
From time to time my parents would surprise me with a JUMBO Coloring/Activity book!! These could literally be 500 plus pages of pure coloring fun and always were a hefty price in our day. The Dukes of Hazzard was a favorite of my fathers who liked vintage cars and country music. I was bestowed this super sized coloring book! I loved it! 8.95 was a mega price to pay..it may as well been a hundred dollars as that was big money to pony up in the early 80s for a coloring book no matter what the size. The cover always got me as well..pre-photoshop days..these guys did okay!
I was a DC Kid in the 80s..still am..and THESE were my Super Heroes! You might call this the Secret Origin of The Super Hero Satellite!
The Coup de Gras of Coloring Books was the DC Super Heroes Big Big Book! This 448 tome was the best of the best. It was a Coloring book / Activity Book of epic proportions. A full-fledged adrenaline rush of coloring fun. I have a fond memory of this book and it was the center piece of my coloring piece collection. There was no tracing involved in this one. The art in the book was directly taken from the comics and it was fantastic! This was no ordinary activity book. This book had challenging puzzles and mind-boggling games. THIS was the best book of its kind and if you can find it on eBay just grab this one! I’ll show ya why!
SuperMans Game Page!
Batman’s Word Search! Try your best! Solve it yet?
Jokers Word Ladder! These games were no pre-school fun for sure!
Even though my god given skill was drawing and never so much coloring, when I look at my kids coloring books and cannot help but smile. I just wish that one time I could pass along my son a pack of crayons and the DC Super Heroes Big Big Book and say “You will thank me later!” Shutting down historical archives..Heroes back to the iso chambers we have a big destination planned for our next stop…strap in we are entering our next destination on our time stream…Christmas…Later Heroes!
Transmission Ended:
Satellite Extra Coloring Book Gallery..
My best friend Jason at the time had this one..it always drove me crazy and I always had coloring book envy over this issue!
JAWS 2!! This is one book I scored with one of my numerous sleep overs to my Grand Parents as a kid! Awesome cover!
Saturday Morning faves The Smurfs gave me a Smurfy time with a crayon in this bad boy!
More craziness from Spider-Mans Oyster Mystery parody!
Okay Heroes…PUZZLE Time!
If you have enjoyed this post there are many more to check out here at the Super-Hero Satellite. Contact me directly on Twitter @Charlton_Hero and use #SuperHeroSatellite to join in the conversation!
“The Day They Walked Away..” A 6 part Limited Series Presented by The Super-Blog Team Up
Welcome back Satellite Subscribers and welcome aboard to our new visitors. This is a very special post today as I have invited a few friends to join me from across the internet to help weave a tale in many parts. In the title you may have noticed the term Super-Blog Team Up. Over the past few years I have had the honor of speaking with a few folks who run their own blogs all of which I visit quite frequently. The Super-Blog Team are yours truly, Charlton Hero, representing the Super-Hero Satellite , and other blockbuster blogs like LongBox Graveyard, Chasing Amazing, Silver Age Sensations, Flodo’s Page, and The Fantastiverse. So before we begin, this post is part 4 in a 6 blog post series so I encourage you to check out the first 3 posts in this series (All links at the end of this post!)..If you already have done so, then enjoy this next installment!
Superman: The Man Of Steel. Pop Cultures definition of the term Super-Hero.
Hey Satellite Subscribers welcome to a very special edition of The Super-Hero Satellite. This technological masterpiece known as The Super-Hero Satellite, tracks all Super Powered Heroes from all parts of the galaxy. Heroes protect us, stop the occasional inter-dimensional threat, thwart an approaching alien invasion, save a kid from a burning fire or simply stop that pick pocket on the corner street. They are a role model, they are our icons, they are what we strive to be in our daily lives. Their duty is a weight so heavy only those blessed with that something extra can bear..They are Super Heroes.
Superman through the ages..
What happens when our Heroes simply can no longer bear that responsibility. What happens when the Super Powered that walk among us finally cannot sacrifice any more…This is the story of Kal- El, The Son Of Krypton. Sent from a doomed planet to fulfill his destiny as earths number one Super Hero. The son of Jor-El went on to become the face of Americana. The face of Earths real Mightiest Heroes..The Justice League. This is the story of the price of being a Super Hero , about the day he walked away..when he returned..when he made the Ultimate sacrifice..and the day he became one of us….This is Superman. He may have been the most human out of us all..
A World Without Superman??
From the early days of the character, Superman was the ultimate Super Hero. He had the Cadillac of super powers. He was virtually invincible, he could run as fast as the Flash, He was stronger than any Green Skinned Hulk, He had X-Ray vision, he had Heat vision, super breath, and by god he could fly! Superman’s powers of course varied as the times changed and throughout his many incarnations. Superman from his inception in the pages of Action Comics number one, to his numerous incarnations on the small screen, and to the screens of Hollywood and beyond, the one thing all incarnations have in common are his need for acceptance or to just be “normal”. Common through all genres of the character is the love story we all know between Clark Kent and Lois Lane. It’s an essential story thread that almost all Superman writers have used as a nucleus to The Superman character. It is also the contributing factor to Clark’s constant search for humanity and was the only thing that ever made Superman quit being a hero.
The Most Iconic Comic Book Cover Of Our Time. Action Comics #1
From his debut Superman’s interest in Lois Lane has always be central to his character and is a basis for his social life as his alter ego Clark Kent. Superman constantly put his own life aside to save the lives of those on earth..but mostly the apple of his eye..Lois. From the start Kal-El was smitten with Ms. Lane.
Where would the world be without Lois and Clark?
The comics medium played with Clark’s yearning to be normal on several occasions and most times it was all due to his relationship with Lois. Tiring of the Super-life and wanting to settle down Superman called it quits many times!! One of the most memorable covers dealing with the subject was Superman Vol. 1 Issue 298 . Superman unknowingly under the influence of his neighbor Mr. Xaiver is mentally torn between being Superman or staying as his alter ego Clark Kent. Even though this story which ran three issues was a throw away with little consequence, the theme of Kal-El battling with this very decision is a common theme in all forms of Superman media.
“Who Took The Super Out Of Superman” Mr. Xavier, Clark Kent’s mysterious neighbor, is an alien named Xavier who changes Superman into only being able to use his powers when in costume. Superman believes that his body is trying to tell him to choose either Superman or Clark, and reject his other persona.
Sometimes, especially in the Golden or Silver age, Superman simply quit being either himself or his Alter Ego…many of these stories were short-lived and their impact on continuity was very minimal if anything back in the day. The struggle to be the Super-Hero or just a normal mortal was always one Clark struggled with!
Clark always some how was pulled into a particular direction by Lois. His choices usually hinged on whether Lois was around or the trouble she found herself in on a particular day. To be honest Superman spent most of the Golden Age and The Silver Age rescuing Lois no matter if it was in the pages of the comics he was featured in such as Action Comics or his own Superman title. Heck his chivalry was always in the spotlight on the small screen as well. Fleischer studios Superman cartoon had Clark always there at her call!
“Clark Kent, Get Out Of My Life!”Superman decides to live without Clark Kent, and battles Solarman, a sun-powered villain, while Xaiver (Clark’s scheming neighbor) robs Clark Kent’s apartment.
While early DC writers tinkered with the idea of Superman or Clark Kent calling it quits they never ever really pulled the trigger..that is until the 1980s where Superman went through a renaissance of sorts. The 1980s began with the a clear template of what the Man of Steel would look like for the majority of the 80s.Christopher Reeve and his 70s movie titled simply “Superman” was a runaway hit at the box office prompting the 1980 sequel Superman 2! This movie dealt with the idea of what would happen if Superman gave up being Superman and became a normal human assuming his alter ego of Clark Kent permanently!
Superman 2. Long thought of as the BEST of all four original Superman Movies!
In Superman 2 the basic plot is that Lois Lane learns Clark’s secret that his is indeed the Man Of Steel. Superman surrenders and is so strong in his feelings for Lois decides to give up the cape and become just Clark! Kent agrees to marry Lois which is a consistent theme in all eras of Superman lineage, but this marriage has big one problem. Superman agrees to sacrifice his powers to marry Lois, but is unaware that three Kryptonian criminals he mistakenly released are now about to conquering Earth.
Clark is determined to finally show Lois he is serious about his love for her and decides that he will give up his powers completely so he can live a normal life at her side for the rest of their lives. A noble gesture as seen in the movie!
Clark sees the error of his decision and decides that he will not allow his adopted home be overtaken by his fellow Kryptonian’s. A powerless Clark has a wake up call in a diner when he attempts to defend the honor of his love Lois only to come to the grim realization that he sacrificed his power and gets his ass handed to him..this scene serves as his sign that the world needs Superman! Guess what..Superman returns and General Zod and his cronies are sent back to the phantom zone with a one way ticket from The Man Of Steel!
The events in the movie are a message to everyone including Kal-El that the world NEED’s Superman and he needs them as well. Everything wraps up neatly with the criminals vanquished and Lois retaining any recollection of Clark’s identity is erased from her conscious. In a funny loose end at the end of the movie Clark decides to pay a visit to the man who handed him a beating as a human in the diner and well..lets just say it does not pay to be a bully!
The comics themselves used a number of themes after that from the movie but perhaps the best example of this comes at the very end of DC’s Silver age. DC had the need to somehow organize the history of its Superheroes and give the DC universe a defined sense of origin. The 50s, 60s, and 70s, produced many continuity bending throw away stories that confused many readers and writers trying to tie years of history together in a sensible fashion. The characters did not age, and thus were burdened with years of continuity baggage to where it was impossible to present the audience with a clean universe where everything made chronological sense. From these seeds grew Crisis On Infinity Earth. It revamped the entire history of the DC Universe and gave all heroes a fresh start..at least for several years.
Crisis tied up all Silver Age Loose ends and it was a vehicle for DC to in essence end Superman as we knew him..this lead neatly into the final issue of the series..
Alan Moore penned an epic FINAL Superman tale called “What Ever Happened to The Man Of Tomorrow” which many hold in high regard for its impact. The end of the Silver Age Superman was a final tribute to the Man of Steel in which he gives up and actually disappears forever ..literally. It begins 10 years after the last silver age issue of Superman where the last days of Superman are recapped from the words of a now remarried Lois Lane Elliot. Lois recaps the events leading to Superman’s last days on earth as he simply walked away forever after what he felt was the last straw for him as a hero. She tells the tale of Superman’s long guarded secret has finally been exposed to the public, and the earth shattering consequences of that revelation. Those close to Superman are killed by Super Villains extracting revenge upon the Man of Steel forcing Superman to do the one thing he always stood against..killing..
“What Ever Happened To The Man Of Tomorrow” Superman has broken his own code to never kill, Superman, in penance, voluntarily enters a chamber containing a sample of Gold Kryptonite (which would permanently drain him of his powers), and disappears into the Arctic wasteland. When the other heroes enter the remains of the Fortress, they find only Perry White, his wife, and Lois still alive. Superman’s body is never found, and it is assumed by all parties that he wandered into the Arctic wasteland, powerless, to die.
Superman walks away as not to endanger his loved ones..and for Lois..
The end of the Silver Age brought the dawning of a new era. DC revamped many of its titles and Superman was one of the first on that list. The Mini Series penciled by John Byrne, simply called the Man Of Steel, hit the reset button on the character we all know as Superman.
In the The Man Of Steel #1, the planet Krypton is shown as a cold and emotionally devoid planet, an concept Byrne borrowed from the 1978 film Superman. Kal-El was not an infant sent from Krypton to Earth, rather, his fetus was placed in a “birthing matrix” equipped with a rocket engine and Jor-El’s experimental warp drive, with Kal-El gestating during the trip to Earth. Once the rocket landed, Kal-El was fully “born” on Earth. A huge contrast to the Adopted Alien Son on Earth theme that was the basis to the original character.
I picked up The Man Of Steel trade on a summer vacation in Toronto Ontario Canada after searching aimlessly for a comic book store. I ended up setting for a book store in a mall in Renfrew Ontario and I saw it on the shelf. Despite it being well outside of my price range I did walk away with that book! I still own it and appreciate it to this day. I loved John Byrne’s Superman, in fact, outside of Curt Swans version of the Silver Age Superman, Byrne’s is the best! Byrne created a Superman that did not pretend to be anything but what he was. In Byrne,s version, Clark Kent was not the school nerd and social outcast as Clark was portrayed as on film and in early comic books, instead he used his power to be the head of the Football team and was actually popular in school! Byrne attempted to ground Superman in reality. Gone where the Superboy years, Superman family, Super Pets and Giant keys to the fortress of solitude. A lot of what made Superman great was washed away for a more realistic version of The Man Of Steel. Clark,s parents were no longer dead but rather important cast members, a nice touch! Hell Ma Kent even sewed Superman his first suit!
The Series set the table early for Clark just wanting a normal existence outside of his Superhero..but as with every other attempt to lead a normal life The Cape always won out and Superman always returned to duty no matter how many times he walked away!
Superman’s home world of Krypton was no longer the thriving futuristic civilization of the Silver age it now represented the sterile version seen in the Superman movies! Two themes that remained though were Superman’s fondness of Lois Lane and his conflict with wanting to be normal.
Even Byrne’s Superman actually gave up and went home after his first brush with the pressures of fame..even though he finally found the courage to be the biggest Superhero in the world his confidence was shaken early!
Lois and Clark the TV series was highly rated and changed the way DC wrote these characters or sometime.
The character of Superman in the 80s was bound editorially by DC side projects and after a resurgence in popularity Superman returned with a vengeance to the small screen with Lois and Clark: The Adventures of Superman. The impact of this series cannot be overlooked. The show was very much grounded in the Byrne era mythos and lead Superman to his final fate. DC protected the characters and their onscreen characters and made sure that the stories in the comics did nothing to go too far out of sync with the show.In a funny side note DC had planned to pull the trigger on a modern-day Lois and Clark wedding to boost struggling sales however the TV show Lois and Clark negotiated with DC as to have the comic book wedding and the TV event wedding coincide and DC gave in and agreed. Plans however had already been in motion so there were a number of starts and stops and unplanned storyline fixes to keep the interest in the wedding in the pages of the comic. Superman and Lois had been married many times in the comic books.
The Clark and Lois union was one that had been around for ages but uniting them was the wrong answer. Writers stumbled to find interesting stories now that The Man of Steel was off The Market. It literally killed The Lois and Clark show as viewership plummeted and the show was finally cancelled in its 4th season after being moved to two different nights attempting to capture a new audience. In the comics the same was happening. It seemed fans who clamored for Lois and Clark to get hitched got cold feet and sales figures for the book and for DC in general were lower than anticipated.
In The 90s, DC would launch its final arrow in its sales quiver in the form of a Superman event known as DOOMSDAY.The Death Of Superman would showcase yet another example of a hero stepping away per say. Seeing the carnage caused by a mysterious alien monster known to the world as Doomsday Superman goes on a mission to hunt and stop the beasts reign of destruction all over the U.S. Many heroes fall at the might of Doomsday including the entire Justice league. In a final touching moment Superman ..Clark no longer wants to keep his loved ones in danger (A theme shared by Moores Silver Age Send Off mentioned above) and makes the final sacrifice he could make..he gives his life. As Superman prepares for what is fated to be his last stand he says goodbye to those he loves..including finally Lois.. and as he always did..goes to save the day..Super heroism at its best.
The final stand of The Man Of Steel. Superman says goodbye to the woman he loves before defend the world against a savage monster Doomsday..ultimately giving his life!
The day Superman died in the pages of comic books was one I will never forget as I literally ran to the store where I normally bought comics only to grab the new stand copy. I only managed to get a damaged copy crushed in the back of the rack, so I went to my last resort, a shady card kiosk in our main mall that sold event comics at hideous prices and he had a pre-bagged Superman #75 for $25 bucks on its launch. I coughed up the dough…which was considerable at the time as my job was a grocery clerk at a local grocery store Sobeys, but I brought it home so I could peruse my news stand copy and watch Superman and Doomsday go toe to toe one last time..
Hero Fall. The last stand of the greatest of them all! The Death of Superman was monumental!
The final panel of Superman #75 always stuck with me and always sort of bothered me. It felt final this time. Superman had gone away before. He had quit several times as well…but this time…MY Superman was gone. Yes he did return eventually but he was different after this event and now with the official New 52 Reboot my Superman may never return. Maybe one day with the help of this Satellite we can look back in time and find our Man Of Steel and bring him back home.
Shutting down historical archives…Heroes return to your posts and strap in tight. We are going to continue our course to the 90s, We have scanned the historical time streams and have located our next transmission..bringing it up on-screen now..prepare for Time Travel sequence countdown..Next stop New York City…The Daily Bugle. We need to find a reporter who will help us complete our series. Lets find Peter Parker…we need to warn him of the clone!
End Transmission…
To read all chapters in the 6 Part Limited Series click on the links below and enjoy!..
For Part 5 Of The Epic Super-Blog Team Up the next destination in our travels can be found by clicking the link below..onward to Chasing Amazing..Mark…take it away!
If You have enjoyed this blog contact me on Twitter @Charlton_Hero and join the conversation using #SuperHeroSatellite Thanks for reading! Big thanks to those who contributed to this epic tale. The Super-Blog Team Uppers, Paul, Mark, Jeff, Flodo, and La Monte who helped bring this vision to life. Thanks guys..till next time the team re-unites!
Super-Hero Satellite Extra: Superman Extra “Quit gallery”
Okay..I am leaving for the last time!
I swear Ill just go away this time…you will never see me again..I am serious!
Original Wind Raider plus He-Man!!
If you have enjoyed this post there are many more to check out here at the Super-Hero Satellite. Contact me directly on Twitter @Charlton_Hero and use #SuperHeroSatellite to join in the conversation!
The SuperHero Satellite 