Batman entered my life on May 21st 1966, when the TV show debuted on Southern TV in the UK, four months after it had premiered in the US. But it was four months later that I acquired my first American comic featuring Batman - Brave & Bold #67, the first ever team-up of Batman and Flash.
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| © DC. |
Looking at my Thorp & Porter calculator, I reckon the book appeared on UK newsagent spinner racks at the end of October 1966. By this time I had been fully exposed to the TV series, had acquired the Cherilea play figures, the 4-Square Batman paperback, a toy Batplane fired by catapult, and had been bought my first pack of Batman cards.
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| © DC. Brave & Bold #67 - splash page. |
Brave & Bold #67 - “The Death of The Flash” - was written by Bob Haney, with artwork by Carmine Infantino , inked by the prolific Charles Paris. Carmine Infantino had been a frequent artist on B&B since issue #45 , illustrating Strange Sports Stories, but this was the first time he’d drawn Batman in the pages of this particular book, now that B&B had been re-invented as a superhero team-up comic. Infantino was the natural - perhaps only - choice, as he was strongly identified as the main Flash Artist and had been drawing Batman in the pages of Detective Comics since the advent of the New Look in 1964.
Re-reading the comic today, I am reminded that my first impression of the comic was formed by the splash page of Batman facing the reader and holding a dead Flash in his arms. I found this idea both shocking and confusing ; shocking because I don’t believe I had encountered death in comic book pages before, and confusing because I had not considered that other superheroes inhabited Batman’s universe. Who was this Flash?
Writer Bob Haney was acquiring a reputation as a writer of Batman stories which sat outside of canon, but were wildly entertaining. This story is full-on 'Haneyverse'.
The story involves a crime club which has developed “speed sneakers” using radiation, so that its members can steal valuables and out-run the police. In parallel, the Flash finds his super-speed is gradually killing him.
I won’t spoil the story (you must read it), but highlights include:
- Batman is a total klutz. Batman crashes first the Batmobile by driving down an alley too narrow to pass, and subsequently crashes the Whirly Bat into the corner of a building! (the Whirly-Bat was a staple in Batman's arsenal before the New Look, no engine - it appeared to be just a wooden chair with a helicopter rotor)
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| © DC. Batman crashes the Batmobile |
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| © DC. Watch out for that building, Batman! |
- Batman demonstrates convenient kit such as a jet pack revealed to be carried under his cape, as well as a segment of his utility belt that squirts enough black oil to cover the floor of an entire room.
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| © DC. Batman deploys the Jet-Pack |
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| © DC. Enough oil in the Utility Belt to float a tanker. |
The dialogue and panel captions are certainly tongue in cheek. I can’t quite make up my mind if Bob Haney’s “hip” commentary is trying to be authentic to appeal to teenagers, or is intended as a send-up. There are some great one-liners that now make me laugh out loud ; Batman calling Flash “FLASHER” ; the dialogue by the villain referring to their “Male Midget Member”.
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| © DC. Why is Batman calling Flash "Flasher" ? |
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| © DC. Male Midget Member ? |
And finally after many chases and some clever detection, Batman finally tracks down the villains’ lair which has a huge sign “Accelerated Gentleman’s Club” on the outside. At age 7, I had no inkling of what a ‘Gentleman’s Club’ implied.
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| © DC. Secret HQ of the "Accelerated Gentleman's Club" |
The ads in the comic opened up a whole new world for me. Free admission and rides at Palisades Amusement Park! (Did all US readers live in driving distance of New York?). Ads for G.I. Joe with kit we could only dream of in the UK. Plus everything in the comic was in colour!
This was not Carmine Infantino’s only issue of Brave & Bold. He subsequently drew B&B #72, which was a Spectre/Flash team up (well worth reading), but did not draw another B&B until 14 years later - issue #172, a Batman/Firestorm team up (“Darkness and Dark Fire”), which hit the stands in December 1980. That story could have been drawn in the sixties, apart from some concessions to the length of the ears on Batman's cowl. Even the Batmobile looks 1960s.. Written by (Gerry Conway , inks by Steve Mitchell)
A year later Infantino drew B&B #183 (Batman and The Riddler) “The Death of Batman” - the title perhaps a callback to the “The Death of the Flash” title of #67. (The artwork still evoked the 1960s, but the inks by Mike De Carlo detracted from Infantino’s pencils).
B&B #190 - was an Batman/Adam Strange team-up “Who Killed Adam Strange?” (there seems to be a death theme here), written by Mike W Barr, inked by Sal Trapani.
Finally, Infantino wound up his B&B tenure with issue #194 - fittingly a Batman/Flash team-up “Trade Heroes and Win” (Mike W Barr and Sal Trapani).
At age seven I was confused by the comic numbering of Batman, Detective and Brave & Bold, not really cottoning on to the fact that these were different titles, so it was not until I got serious about comics in 1971 that I started collecting B&B with a vengeance.
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| © DC. Justice League of America #91 |
One final comment: I believe that Brave & Bold #67 (apart from being the first Batman/Flash team up) was the first time that the Flash was to be killed (or apparently killed) in a DC comic. If a concept is popular, it gets done over and over. The cover of Justice League of America #91 seems to be an homage to the B&B #67 splash page.
Cheriben? Do you mean Cherilea figures? That Death Of The Flash splash page isn't a great example of Infantino's art. Batman's feet are too large and his head is over to the left-hand side of his body. I've got a great book which reprints every Infantino Batman cover and Batman tale from his own mag, plus Detective Comics. Surprisingly, there weren't as many as you might think.
ReplyDeleteLeft of the page, right of his body.
DeleteCherilea fixed! Thanks for the spot. That's what comes from not doing a final proof read.
DeleteYou're right - the splash page could have done with some work on the positioning of Batman's head, but the importance to me was the impact it had to a seven-year old only acquainted with the fun of the TV series where no-one got killed.
That Infantino book sounds interesting. His sixties artwork was so science-fiction-y with it's sparse backgrounds and straight lines and futuristic buildings. He did not seem to adjust the style from Adam Strange to Batman, which made his work on Batman pretty unique. He did tend to repeat perspectives and poses ; one of his favourite panel compositions seemed to be having a face half-obscured by the edge of the panel in the foreground, with some discussion going on in the background. His later work in the 80s was quite poor by comparison (IMHO), unless it was just the inking style being deployed by inkers less sympathetic to Indantino's style.
Yeah, you're right - his later work was a bit stilted and his layouts weren't as good. Like Kirby and Ditko, his art deteriorated as he got older. He drew the artwork for the reissued Captain Action figures 20-odd years ago, and it was pretty lacklustre.
DeleteI always enjoy reading stories of folks first comics/titles. I don't fully remember my first Batman comic as my brother and his pals read them so I would have seen their copies but it may have been Detective 181.That's strange as I also didn't realise that "The Brave and the Bold" , "Detective Comics" etc were different comic titles, to me they were the Batman comic. My first B&B was issue 100 but the first time I recall being aware of the title was seeing an advert for B&B issue 99, featuring the Flash!
ReplyDeleteYes, B&B #99 by Nick Cardy and Bob Haney, with a story about Batman going back to a family home on an island a bit like Mackinaw island. I think it was a twist on the haunted house theme with Batman becoming possessed, if memory serves. I think it was the last B&B Cardy drew, as Aparo became the regular artist with #100. Both great comics with stories that stick in the mind.
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