"Pantheon" is apparently one of those names everybody gets a shot at.

I'm more familiar with the Marvel version from Peter David's Hulk run, but DC took a run at it first: from 1983, World's Finest #296, "The Pantheon, Part 1: A World Upheaval!" Written by David Anthony Kraft, co-plotted by Ron Fontes, pencils by Ross Andru, inks by Mike DeCarlo. Cover by Ross Andru and Klaus Janson.

Huh, we blogged the previous issue last year, and snarkily hoped the last couple years of this title weren't all about how Superman and Batman weren't bestest friends anymore. No, this was an era where they didn't hang out together and didn't say they were friends all the time, but have to note how much they still appreciate each other all the time. Much more natural-sounding, absolutely. This was a more Batman-centric issue, and the start of a three parter; mostly setting up the new threat of the Pantheon. They seem like techie, action-figure ready thugs at the start; but are being changed by exposure to, or possibly huffing on, "the warm glow of the living diamond."

Not even once, kids!

Batman spots the crew, robbing the Metropolitan Museum; but has to let them go in order to save a shot guard. Later, Superman has a similar fix: still unseen, the Pantheon attack an airport, shoot up the place, and steal a plane. Supes is stopped from pursuing them, since he has to get the wounded to the hospital. Not yet realizing they were on the same case, Batman works the clues, while Superman has to contain earthquake damage, which is escalating to the point that he wonders if earth was going the way of Krypton. Batman discovers, the gang was going to Mount Ossa in Africa; but they were a step ahead: they allow themselves, to be forced to land by the local government, then kill everyone that gets in their way. Batman gives chase, but the jungle seems different, almost primeval; and Bats even thinks he might have seen a brontosaurus. He then fights several of the new Pantheon, who now seem to have a more finished, inhuman look. Batman is knocked out, while on the other side of the world, Superman discovers bizarre, diamond-like roots... 

This almost feels like a good start; but I think this run had a lot of one-off or short-term villains. Good on them for not just trotting out the usuals, but these new baddies may have gained less traction than your typical Firestorm villain. I don't think there was even a Suicide Squad member in the bunch!

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So their friendship was circling the drain for two years? That sounds Super-fun to read.

It's not that long in the scheme of things, but seems like a lot of issues. From 1983, World's Finest #295, "Daughters of the Moon" Plot by L.B. Kellog (probably Kellogg), script by David Anthony Kraft, pencils by Jerome Moore, inks by Frank McLaughlin.

We saw the last issue of the series, #323, some time back; but the World's Finest team was having trouble before then; starting the previous issue and with Batman telling the Justice League to blow in Batman and the Outsiders #1. Still, Superman is there for his friend, as he lies dying at Cape Canaveral. Earlier, Batman had been brought in to investigate the destruction of two military satellites; with lead scientist Professor Nakamura, General Armstrong, and astronomer "Karl Hagen," a barely-veiled version of Carl Sagan. Hagen is opposed to putting weapons in space, and seems the likely culprit; but that night as Batman examines the rocket, he is attacked by three costumed women: the Moondancers!

The ladies had a moon-shaped flyer, and a plethora of powers: Harvest Moon introduces herself while growing ten feet tall and tackling Bats; which in some stories I feel like he would somehow be prepared for, but not today. New Moon had a cold beam, but after the rocket is destroyed, Batman is laid low by a gas bomb tossed by Crescent Moon. Batman goes down hard, but as the Moondancers escape, they console themselves that their "advisor" wouldn't have given them lethal weapons. Or would he? Hagen explains to Superman, Batman had been hit with some kind of alien virus, and he could be dead before earth's scientists could figure it out. Remembering all his good times with his friend, Superman races to find a cure; while predictably, Gotham City goes completely off the rails without Batman there.

Superman discovers a new energy source in a comet, and races back to earth to use it in Batman's cure; while Armstrong is virtually drooling at the idea of getting it for military use. Batman is a little embarrassed to be saved by Superman, since things had been strained between them lately. Superman then heads to Gotham, to calm things down there; while the Moondancers are sent to steal the new energy source, under the notion of eliminating nuclear weapons worldwide. The groggy Batman is no match for the Moondancers, but joins Superman to go after them, and their advisor: it's Scooby-Doo rules there. Still, the Moondancers had been working towards nuclear disarmament in good faith, and in somewhat of a change, this time it's Batman that lets them go! 

I don't think all of the next two years plus this series had left were all about how Superman and Batman weren't that close anymore...man, I hope not.

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Well, a little Maguire is better than none.

This series ran for like two and a half years, but Maguire's name on the cover sold me on this one: from 2013, World's Finest #12, "The Price of Fame" Written by Paul Levitz, pencils by Kevin Maguire, Geraldo Borges, and Robson Rocha; inks by Kevin Maguire, J. P. Mayer, and Wayne Faucher.

I'm not entirely up on my post-New 52 continuity, but I believe this was set in the modern Earth-2, where Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman had all apparently died while taking out Darkseid? Pardon me if I'm in error; Huntress does have a line about them landing on that earth; but currently Power Girl was an up-and-coming tech mogul in her secret identity of Karen Starr, with Huntress as her slightly-surly bodyguard. This month, Karen finally gets a meeting with rival/potential partner/maybe love interest Michael Holt, that goes abyssmally wrong when he reveals himself as Desaad! A more hands-on, and handsier, version than usual; but he mentions being in exile there: either unable to return to Apokolips, or maybe not having an Apokolips to return to. Desaad only lets Karen and Helena see his true form, while his bodyguards defend their boss, unaware he was a monster.

Unfortunately, Maguire doesn't do the whole issue; and while Borges and Rocha do a good job, there's a sudden shift to costumes mid-issue, as Huntress beats up some Yakuza types in search of intel. Power Girl isn't thrilled about having to leave a party for that, since after years of being Superman's secret weapon, she dug being famous. But, fame is fleeting, as the press seems to turn on Karen Starr, despite a very cheesecakey Time cover. And things go worse: Karen's Cambridge lab is blown up, drawing the heroines away, for Desaad to Boom Tube in tanks, wiping out her main office, and killing her assistant. Furious, they resolve to go underground, until they can find and end Desaad...which, I think took them a few issues.

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This was a bad issue for follow-up. Adam's lucky he was rescued, that could've lingered like a Claremont subplot...

And we'll take a moment to check out the rest of 1980's World's Finest #262, starting with "Siren of the Sargasso" Written by Bob Rozakis, pencils by Don Newton, inks by Dan Adkins. A senator goes overboard on a fishing trip, and Congresswoman (Barbara!) Gordon asks Batman to ask Aquaman to look for him. Said senator had taken a dive after a blonde vision, which was Atlena of Atlantis--the pre-sunk version! This also doesn't go into the "blondes are evil" that a lot of DC's aqua-stories get hung up on; but she had tried to save her people by opening a hole to another Phantom Zone-like dimension, which not only didn't work but still sucked people in now and then. With Mera, Aqualad, and a pod of whales, Aquaman manages to tow out a few refugees before the dimensional rift seals up again, and they have to wait for it to re-open to save the rest. They may still be waiting!

Perhaps not waiting as long, "The Ghost of Adam Strange" visits Hawkman: archaeologist Adam is inexplicably bored visiting ruins on Rann with his wife Alanna, and an idle wish to be back on earth is granted by a legendary "id-beast," which could kill him. Trapped in a ghostly form, a medium is able to put Adam's consciousness in Hawkman; then Shayera and Red Tornado help bring Adam back with the JLA transporter. Next month appeared to be Adam recounting recent events on Rann, which sounds like a try-out to replace Hawkman! (Story by J. M. DeMatteis, pencils by Ken Landgraf, inks by Armando Gil.)

Finally, another nice-looking Don Newton story: Captain Marvel, in "The Captain Marvel of 7,000 B.C." (Story by E.Nelson Bridwell, inks by Dave Hunt.) Billy Batson is visited by the Champion from before recorded history, who gained powers from the magic word "Vlarem" and a different roster of gods. Together they thump the various Sins, and set the Rock of Eternity in place: the Champion is the young wizard Shazam, who was the Champion for like 30 centuries before everyone forget those gods. Not bad! Read more!

"You haven't seen the last of the Pi-Meson Man!" Um, actually...maybe they should've put air holes in his cell.

There is pretty much zero chance I'll ever collect all of World's Finest, but I suppose it's not impossible that I'll run out of Bob Haney ones to blog about. Mildly surprised this one wasn't him, though. From 1980, World's Finest #262, "The Power of the Pi-Meson Man!" Written by Denny O'Neil, pencils by Joe Staton, inks by Dick Giordano.

I would guess O'Neil found some info--like the name--pi-meson, or pion somewhere and thought that was good enough for today's bad guy, scientist Pincus Bridger, who was irradiated when his experimental reactor blew up. Contaminated and forced to live in isolation, he blamed the mayor and all of Gotham City, for commissioning the reactor: geez, why not blame your high school physics teacher, that'd make about as much sense. Pincus causes havoc with his invisible projection, the Pi-Meson Man; but blind little girl Betsy Pyatt can see him. Pincus decides no witnesses, and tries to burn down her orphanage to kill her. Classy.

Batman quickly comes to believe Betsy can see P-M Man, who chases them even to the Batcave. (He says he doesn't know or care where they are, he just wants to kill the girl; that's O'Neil making a lampshade concession to Batman's secret identity.) Visiting Pincus in his containment cell, Superman realizes he was projecting something, and follows it to the Batcave, but he can't touch him. Superman takes Batman and Betsy to Gotham University's atom-smasher as a trap, first blasting the Pi-Meson Man with particles, then trying to reunite it and Pincus's body, punching him out and cramming him into a lead cell. The final caption indicates the Pi-Meson Man would return, but nope! Well, maybe O'Neil realized pions have a lifetime measured in nanoseconds. This really felt like O'Neil channelling Haney, but the next issue was "The Final Secret of the Super-Sons!" which seems to draw a line under that type of free-wheeling, somewhat more fantastical story; although Haney was writing Green Arrow that issue.

Also this issue: the conclusion to the Green Arrow Auntie Gravity two-parter! In which GA does nothing. Black Canary's been captured by Auntie and her boys, one of whom wants Canary instead of a dumb ol' mail-order bride. Dinah may actually be so pissed she yells loud enough to disintegrate her gag, kicks the stuffing out of the boys with her arms tied behind her back, then shouts down Auntie. Not playing today, I see. ("Gravitational Boom-a-rang" Written by Gerry Conway, pencils by Romeo Tanghal, inks by Vince Colletta.) And the ever popular Statement of Ownership, Management and Circulation: Paid circulation, actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date, 85,194. With maybe 137,000 returns! Or allegedly returned...some of those are probably floating around out there.

She's not even done with them there! Geez, I think Canary kicked those guys so hard their sentence will be over before they regain consciousness... Read more!

We saw "Thou Shalt Have No Other Batman Before Me!" on Monday, but surprisingly the second feature of World's Finest #255 was just as long! "Nothing But a Man" Written by Elliot S! Maggin, pencils by Trevor von Eeden, inks by Vince Colletta.

The outgoing mayor of Star City, the wheelchair-bound Jack Major; wants Oliver Queen to succeed him. That's maybe the least of the endorsements Ollie's gotten, like Congresswoman Barbara Gordon, Green Lantern, and bags of cash from Bruce Wayne! His opponent seems a well-meaning but easily led shrub, and his handlers push for Ollie to appear on stage at an event, with Green Arrow: Ollie wasn't officially believed to be the archer, but a lot of people had noticed the resemblance. Ollie's campaign manager, Dinah, makes a quick call to Carol Ferris, to get Green Lantern to appear as Green Arrow. Later, Clark Kent announces live for WGBS, as most of the League turns out to stump for Ollie: Supergirl obligingly sits down to duck the word balloons. 

Aquaman makes an announcement that as far as they knew, Ollie was unaware of their endorsements; and election day Ollie votes early but still goes out to see voters. He is then abducted and taken before mobster Thaddeus Cable, who tells Ollie he's going to own him, just like he owned Jack Major. Ollie scoffs, but Cable has...transcripts? Did he get a deal on a stenographer? Still, Ollie recognizes Major's phrases and wording, and is convinced it's legit. He offers a deal, not just to look the other way, but to be an active partner..."when hell freezes over!" Ollie throws some doodad into the fuse box, then switches in the dark. He also gaslights the mobsters a bit: did Ollie change in three seconds, or did Green Arrow get him out the window? Maybe Ollie should take a page from Matt Murdock's book and get a "I'm not Green Arrow" t-shirt.

GA takes the transcripts, which include "the records of every operation since nineteen freaking fifty-five!" Cable calls out the hit order for Ollie and Major, and they try to whack them that night at campaign headquarters...with GA, GL, Black Canary, and Superman in the building. Actually, Supes doesn't even tag in, Ollie had slipped him a tip about the transcripts going to the D.A. Ollie maybe goes too rough on one of the hitters, but is interrupted by Major, who has a massive coronary and dies; before Ollie can confront or forgive him. 

Ollie was possibly losing a close race, and makes a bit of a concession speech before the shootout. Later, Clark Kent calls Ollie, who was exhausted and out, but Dinah answers. Clark thinks Ollie may have actually won the election...but through the mob's fix? And Dinah tells Clark to bury it: after fighting the mob like that, she feels he was safer as Green Arrow than Ollie Queen...and doesn't want him to fall into the same trap Major did. Huh?  A bit of a muddle at the end, there.

I feel like the intention may have been to show how hard it is to buck the political machine; but I also don't buy it since Supergirl's endorsement alone probably should've carried him? DC's heroes were usually more beloved than Marvel's; their word should've carried more weight.

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I'm surprised that title hasn't been used 40 times since.

It's been over six months since the last Bob Haney World's Finest we checked out here, so it's time for another, coincidentally about six months after the last issue! From 1979, World's Finest #255, featuring "Thou Shalt Have No Other Batman Before Me!" Written by Bob Haney, pencils by José Luis García-López, inks by Dan Adkins and Frank Chiaramonte.

This is only a 20-pager--with a teaser splash page--that probably could've been spun out into six months of comics nowadays. Mid-newscast, Clark Kent gets a note from Morgan Edge, regarding a bank robbery happening right then, and Edge wanted Kent to cut in with it. Instead, at super-speed Supes subs in an "obsolete" and non-functional Clark Kent robot, and zips out to check the bank robbery, finding it to be a movie filming. He returns to the newscast, and doesn't mention the 'robbery,' immediately drawing Edge's ire. The 'robbery' doesn't come up again, since Edge doesn't care and probably wouldn't have anyway: the bump in ratings would probably be worth a later half-hearted retraction, anyway. Edge punishes Kent--and his camera crew--with an assignment to cover the Harvest Festival in Dalton Corners. Which is...somewhere? The crew indicates it's some nowhere in the corn belt, so why are they covering it? Human interest?

To stick it to his crew, and maybe liven up his own day, Clark switches to Superman for a quick appearance, then checks out the town. It's built on a raised mound, which Supes kind of shrugs off as probably flood protection; but then sees the cops chasing Batman! The cops catch, and pistol-whip, 'Batman' after they unmask him: they tell Superman it's a local criminal, dressed up to burgle houses, but that doesn't ring true to Supes. The costume was too accurate for a common burglar to have thrown together, and Superman had overheard him say he got it out of the attic at the old Wainwright place. Investigating, he finds the house dilapidated and deserted for years, but also covered in swastikas! Behind a family photo, he also finds a newspaper article about a "Bat-Man" operating in town, predating Bruce Wayne's Batman! Superman then visits the town's newspaper to check their files, and the building explodes on him! That never happens to Batman, but I guess he's not as much a newspaper guy.

With his TV crew and the cops coming, Superman switches back to Clark Kent; but the cops immediately bust him, accusing him of blowing up the building to liven up his story. This is of course caught on camera, but in jail Clark's one phone call isn't to Edge, but to Bruce Wayne, who at least gets a chuckle out of it. Superman ducks out of jail in the dead of night, and back at the newspaper uses super-speed and recall to put the files back together again. Re-visiting the Wainwright place, Bats notes the swastikas weren't Nazi ones, but Indian. He also finds another clue: Wainwright's library card. While Superman returns to jail, Batman first checks the library then does some follow-up incognito as Bruce Wayne. Bruce then bails Clark Kent out of jail, because he needs to send Superman to Australia: Wainwright had last checked out a book on sheep ranching there, and had bought tickets east but then gone west. The cops are watching them, though, as well as the TV crew, who drive by to tell Clark Edge has fired him...again.

Batman tails the cop, by hiding in his trunk, to "the sacred spot" of "Gitchka." He finds a weird cult, with a giant wicker bat-head? Although, their outfits and the staff Batman gets knocked out with appear to be bird-themed? In Australia, Superman visits the new Wainwright ranch, and the son and grandson of the late senior. The son had been the Dalton Corners Bat-Man, but says it had been horrifying and he and his own son will never go back. Meanwhile, in Dalton Corners the giant swastika'ed bat-thing comes to life: calling Superman, the Wainwrights realize the cult had found the right chant to animate Gitchka; and the three fly back. Superman is not effective against Gitchka, but the Wainwright grandson has the Bat-Man costume, created by his great-grandfather, a medicine man. The camera crew had called in the WGBS helicopter, which Batman commandeers, and the Bat-Man jumps from it to stab Gitchka in the eye. Superman saves him from falling, and then a quick page to try and make sense out of all this: only the youngest descendant of the medicine man had the power to defeat Gitchka; and the crews had got a ton of that on tape, a story that gets Clark grudgingly rehired. He kinda looks a little smug about it, too!

Probably six flavors of cultural appropriation here, but while the "Indian" Batman costume wasn't too bad, why did the Wainwrights have a modern Batman costume in their abandoned attic? Where would they have seen the details for it? What, a plot hole in a Bob Haney story? No way. And while the Indian costume is prominent on the cover, it doesn't get a big splashy image like you'd expect.

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80-Page Thursday: World's Finest Comics #249!

I'm really tempted to just post the cover from this one: whatever you imagine from it, is probably way better than the actual story! How do you have the "vampire of steel" and the Phantom Stranger and still drop the ball? From 1978, World's Finest Comics #249.

The only fun bit in "The Vampire of Steel!" is Superman repeatedly choosing to hang out, but seemingly decline to help Batman, based on his code to "never give super help to corporations or private persons--even friends!" The rest is squandered, like mythical undersea vampire creatures, a Jacques Cousteau-style undersea conservationist who you know is going to be the bad guy--he's named 'Kalamari,' for pete's sake. Batman is about as mysterious as a kid wearing his underroos and almost as effective, and the Phantom Stranger can apparently breathe and talk underwater, yet never visits Aquaman. Jerk. On to the next one! (Story by Bob Haney, pencils by Kurt Schaffenberger, inks by Tex Blaisdell.)

I thought we had blogged either the prior or next chapter of this Green Arrow/Black Canary serial, "Will the Costume Make the Hero?" Written by Gerry Conway, pencils by Trevor Von Eeden, inks by Vince Colletta. Ollie had been ruined financially by Deleon, who added insult to injury by buying his old mansion, then finding the Arrowcave, proving Ollie was...Batman? I think I missed one of Deleon's steps there, but he needs 'Batman' to defend him against Hellgrammite, who has Black Canary captured. She manages to shatter her prison, and beat down the bug baddies's men, but gets knocked out again. Hiding in the shadows, his beard anyway, Ollie makes a convincing Batman, until he goes into action: he has no idea what's in his utility belt, since it's not labeled, and gets tangled in the cape and falls over!

Knowing Deleon was probably going to go to Hellgrammite--part of his scam, supposedly giving old gangsters new lives--Ollie thinks his career is probably over, but Hellgrammite forces Canary to call him for help. Even webbed up, though, Canary is still fighting to free herself: she does like a challenge. Hellgrammite turns on his men and Deleon, intent on covering his tracks and stealing the Green Arrow's identity, but still dressed as Batman Ollie manages to stop him. Deleon was killed, and Canary wonders if Ollie couldn't get his money back, but he claims he doesn't need it, then acts a little too possessive with Canary and pushes her away. Did I say a little? He's being a jerk.

Next, the Creeper's World's Finest debut! I think he'd stick around maybe seven issues, but here in "Moon Lady and the Monster" Jack Ryder and his supporting cast are security for a network's Elvira-like horror host as she's stalked by an old partner. It's a bit of fun, but I don't think sticks the landing--I wanted Moon Lady to go on, but apparently the ratings got her.

Then, an unexpected lead (that's on the cover...) and an unexpected guest-star: Wonder Woman, with Sgt. Rock! With Rock hypnotized by Doctor Psycho! And aliens! The latter are 100% unneccessary, as I'd rather see Rock and WW kicking Psycho back and forth. I don't know if he very much resembles later versions of the character, though.

Seriously, they could beat on him for chapters, I'll allow it. Another DC Necronomicon, though. Read more!

There's time-travel, prehistoric alien wizards, and flying tigers; yet Batman's most excited about letting his pores breathe.

I exaggerate, but seriously, not really. From 1982, World's Finest #282, "The Joy-Bringers!" Written by Cary Burkett, pencils by Irv Novick, inks by Frank McLaughlin.

Superman and Batman come down on some petty thugs like the proverbial ton of bricks, since they're still recovering weapons stolen from the Fortress of Solitude by the Weapons Master. Supes saves Bats from getting shot in the back once, but they're both caught flat-footed when a downed thug reaches the time-displacer and zaps Batman. Furious, Superman rapidly checks the settings on the weapon, then takes off to prehistoric times to save his friend; while the thug smugly notes Superman won't hurt him, as that was against his code. 

In said prehistoric times, Superman is surprised to be lassoed by flying tiger-riders, who are quickly joined by Batman on his own tiger mount. Batman explains he's been there a month, and these guys were cool; although Superman knows there shouldn't be anyone there in that time period. Again, Batman seemingly shrugs it off: they were the alien Eldiran, the "Joy-Bringers." Supes is understandably skeptical, but they do seem okay: they were prepping earth to develop higher life-forms later. Batman seems taken with them, and extremely cheerful not to have to wear his mask or any of that. Still, when Superman is sent to deal with a volcano that resisted the Eldirans' magic, Batman notices one of them seemingly up to something, and masks up, he's back on the job. In a fairly typical World's Finest split, Superman fights a giant lizard in the volcano, while Batman has to stop the lizard's master: the head of the Eldirans had been getting on in years, and wanted to tank their mission on earth so he could spend his last few centuries back home.

Afterwards, the remaining Eldirans send their former leader home, and Supes and Bats have to head out as well. Returning right when they left, the smug thug catches another lump from Superman; while Batman wonders if he will ever feel the peace he had with the Eldirans. It's weird to think of Batman just checking out of his life like that, but those flying tigers did have batlike wings, so...

We may look at the other features later: this was the last "Dollar Comic" issue of the series, it would take a more standard format going forward. Green Arrow had two more back-up stories to go before being transferred to Detective Comics, but this issue was the end of the Hawkman and Shazam! stories. Which seems like a bit of a surprise, at least for Hawkman: he had been searching for the missing Hawkwoman, who conveniently arrives to save him in the last three panels! ("Doctor Katar and Mister Plert" Written by Bob Rozakis, pencils by Carmine Infantino, inks by Rodin Rodriguez.)

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I tell myself that like every morning, too.

The other day at the Comic Book Shop, I got a pile of books before they made it to the quarter bins! Starting with this one: from 1973, World's Finest #220, "Let No Man Write My Epitaph" Written by Bob Haney, pencils by Dick Dillin, inks by Murphy Anderson, cover by Nick Cardy.

Aw, this was the second of a two-parter? Wait a minute...I have absolutely no recollection of the lead feature, but I've blogged the previous issue! The Metamorpho back-up feature, anyway. The lead story features Supes and Bats in search of El Monstro, a Swamp Thing-like brute who's giving Nazi gold to the peasants and may be Carlotta Esteban, a nude girl! How could I forget something like that? Well, Haney stories hit me like watching low-grade horror movies with a hangover, I may black out occasionally.

Carlotta can't stay in human form long, but monster-form is better for revenge anyway. Batman feels that; but Superman says her revenge is illegal, and she's not supposed to have that gold, either. They split up to continue searching for the downed U-boat; but Bats had already found it, and wanted Supes out of his way while he "saved El Monstro from herself!" Supes wasn't fooled, and heads to where Batman had been looking. Meanwhile, cruel landlord Don Ernesto and his lawyer tell the peasants that they can't buy their land with illegal gold, but they can pay him "a modest rental" by working in the mines! Or get murdered, if they want to get uppity. Batman saves a peasant, but is then held at gunpoint by the lawyer on horseback! El Monstro saves Batman, who then goes to Ernesto's hacienda, which had previously been the Esteban estate before Ernesto had Carlotta framed for her father's murder. Oh, and "she masqueraded as a boy all her life," for...reasons? (At a guess, to dodge getting married to Ernesto?)

In the attic, is a colossal painting of Carlotta, in her male disguise, and in a fetching dress: Batman seems impressed. El Monstro agrees, she was pretty smokin' back in the day. Bats tries to get her to give up the quest for vengeance, because everyone knows that's just for boys--no, because killing Ernesto would make her the bad guy. She clobbers Batman, then smashes through to Ernesto, as his lawyer either falls or jumps out the window. Ernesto flees to his old mine, with El Monstro and Batman giving chase; then tries to start a landslide to kill them, but falls in himself as well. Ernesto is killed, and El Monstro gathers the battered Batman and heads back to the sub, which Superman has found--but he gets hit with depth charges from the local government, "atomizing" the sub and the treasure. Um, no...Earlier in the story, Supes noticed diesel fuel on Bats to catch him in a lie; here a bomber sneaks up on him.

A government copter also hits El Monstro with defoliant--they seem pretty on top of things, why were Supes and Bats there again? Bats can only...throw his bat-rope in frustration, as Carlotta, seemingly mortally wounded, plunges into the water and "vanishes...dissolves...forever!" Forever forever? Swampy-sludge monsters have a way of coming back, but apparently that was that. Not a great showing, guys. Haven't got to the Metamorpho back-up yet, maybe later this week for that.

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Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice has its problems, but one (of several...) that got me was that Gotham City and Metropolis were so close together. In terms of geography, that is: Metropolis is all sunshine and glass while Gotham all crime and gloom, but they were basically across the street from each other. Yet they were still treated like separate jurisdictions...but why? They were right there! I always figured they were at least a couple states apart; but today's book provides evidence to support BvS! From 1982, World's Finest #275, "Summer Nights, Winter Days!" Written by Paul Kupperberg, pencils by Rich Buckler, inks by Frank McLaughlin.

Today's weather calls for unseasonable heat in Metropolis, and a full-blown blizzard in Gotham; even though they're "not a dozen miles apart." Putting aside "since when?" the guys already have their hands full, with Batman dealing with looters, and Superman with a warehouse fire. Like every single other day, then...teaming up to work the case, Bats starts working through the usual suspects for weather control, while Supes checks for a missing NASA satellite. Neither lead really goes anywhere yet still points to the culprit: Mr. Freeze, in an abandoned but posh Russian satellite. (Perhaps Freeze refitted it, with his one henchman.) Freeze had been siphoning heat from Gotham and dumping it on Metropolis, presumably because it had to go somewhere; and his big plan was to turn Gotham into his "own perpetual winter wonderland!" and secede from the U.S. with it. Well ahead of his time there, even though his old costume here looks weird now. His revamp in "Heart of Ice" was still ten years away.

Also this issue: "Archer in a Cage" Written by Mike W. Barr, pencils by Trevor Von Eeden, inks by Larry Mahlstedt. Huh, we blogged the next issue in 2012, around when Arrow was first announced, replacing the proposed movie, which would've featured Green Arrow in a "super max" prison. The final season for Arrow was recently announced, and they just finished a lengthy Ollie-in-prison storyline! I don't know that they necessarily were inspired by this run, though. With Ollie still in prison for refusing to name a source, Dinah has to do the legwork this month, saving a bank-robber's illegal immigrant family from a shakedown by a mob wannabe.

Next was "Soul Shriek!" (Written by Gerry Conway, art by Dan Spiegle.) Onboard a cruise ship, Zatanna fights a restaurant critic who has mysteriously picked up a magic scream power. No fishnets in this one, though.

Then, Hawkman in "Matter, Matter Everywhere!" (Written by Bob Rozakis, pencils by Alex Saviuk, inks by Rodin Rodriguez.) After Shayera had left him (she could do better!) Hawkman is a complaining wreck, but still trying to clear her name in the theft of some artifacts from the museum they both worked in. Flash makes a brief appearance to tell him, hey, at least your wife's still alive. (That page has the smallest panel for the longest awkward silence ever.) Hawkman finds one of the stolen artifacts had in fact been replaced, with a duplicate made of pure aluminum; which would be even more difficult to make than stealing the original!

It's the work of recurring Hawk-villain Matter Master, who has a wand not unlike Weather Wizard, and a complete wizard outfit to boot! (Which of course is completely obscured by a hat and trenchcoat, even with his wizard hat under that!) MM's plan was to change the artifacts into "fakes," wait for them to be discovered, then steal them from police lockup and change them back. But his capture doesn't clear Shayera, as he claims to have had an accomplice...

Lastly, "The Snatching of Billy Batson!" (Written by E. Nelson Bridwell, pencils by Don Newton, inks by Dan Adkins.) A mobster kidnaps Billy Batson, in order to extort Captain Marvel into killing a gangland rival. You see the flaw in his plan, there. It's up to Captain Marvel Jr. to save him, with the help of a close-enough lookalike: their friend Magnificus Sivana! Who is rocking the same look as Peter Hinwood in Rocky Horror Picture Show. Wonder if that was intentional...

And a Hembeck strip on the Daily Planet page!
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