Note to self: you have all of Camelot 3000. Stop buying it.

I was positive, but this cover didn't look familiar, and it was a buck, so here we are: from 1983, Camelot 3000 #8, "Judas Knight" Written by Mike W. Barr, pencils by Brian Bolland, inks by Terry Austin.

Morgan seems to have a lock on convincing Tristan to betray the Round Table: the knight had been reincarnated in a woman's body, and wasn't thrilled about it, as it was keeping him from his lover, Isolde. There was a lot of betrayal going round, though; as Arthur was currently moping over learning about Lancelot and Gwen. Overdramatically, he intones everyone had betrayed him, except his brother Kay. Yeah, you can see it coming in three, two...

Kay tries to get Merlin to talk to Arthur and break him out of his melancholy: it's out of his element, but Merlin agrees to give it a try. Then, unseen, Morgan's agent sneaks into Merlin's quarters, and smashes a pyramid-shaped charm. That charm had been all that was keeping Nyneve away from Merlin; and with it gone, she was taking him back! (I don't know much about that aspect of the Arthur legends, but without context, it looks like Merlin was being taken home and was about to get rocked.) Furious, Arthur checks Merlin's room, and finds Tristan standing over the smashed charm. It looks bad, but she swears she didn't do it, even if she was tempted.

Arthur circles the wagons, calling in Lancelot and Gwen, to get to the bottom of this; telling Tristan "...the sword Excalibur may cleave truth from falsehood," and would kill anyone who lies while holding it. Tristan swears she did not betray Merlin, while Lancelot and Gwen are able to say the same, but Kay hesitates. He had betrayed Merlin, but with good intentions: he had overheard Morgan and Tristan before, so he approached Morgan, asking for nothing for himself, hoping seeing Merlin betrayed would shake Arthur out of his depression. Of course he also thought Merlin would be able to resist Nyneve...and that Arthur wouldn't kill him for this betrayal.

Kay is sentenced to die at dawn, but is saved by an attack from Morgan's forces. Momentarily: he then sacrifices himself in the battle, to save Arthur. (If Morgan had waited a moment, for Arthur to execute Kay, she probably could've demolished the demoralized Round Table right there.) Thomas, who had first found Arthur, is badly injured; and made a Knight himself; as a new quest begins: to find the Holy Grail, to use it to save him from radiation poisoning. Morgan, watching them through her crystal ball, wants the grail for herself: she was infected with a lichen-looking growth. Tristan swears she'll force Morgan to make a man out of her; while Lancelot asks if Excalibur could offer them more divine guidance. Arthur confesses, while mighty, the sword didn't have any truth powers...but Kay didn't know that. 

I should take this afternoon and re-read the rest of this series; get it back in mind before I end up with another set of it.

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Are Ultron figures going to be like Doctor Who actors? Everyone's got a soft spot for one from years ago, and every time a new one is announced everyone decides they now like the last one. Thankless, really.

That said, I do prefer the last regular Ultron Marvel Legend, from 2021. The What If? Build-a-Figure I must have finished earlier this year: I think I caved on the Hawkeyes. But this current one; I don't like his head as well as the previous; who could chew on his little energy-effect more convincingly. And the new one's chest seems to have almost a crack? Which seems to be a common problem, I'm not the only one!

Still, I didn't pick up any of the rest of this wave yet; I guessed Ultron would be the first to sell out. And I swear I saw five Kangs on the racks at a local Target...I'm kind of thinking I can hold out a bit? Although, the Kang pile isn't as deep as the Ultron one yet. Read more!

"Buyers."

Is everyone that would buy from a space lizard questionable?...put like that, maybe? 

We are referencing some actual continuity today: the Baron Strucker LMD, from Captain America #274. It was blown up pretty good, but those things have a habit of turning up again; and the LMD managed to kill "Happy" Sawyer, Fury's boss from the Howling Commando days. Which might make the LMD more successful than any living version of Strucker?

The Quist are an actual Marvel alien race, that I know nothing about off the top of my head; but that gem is from the Target-exclusive Indiana Jones (Club Obi Wan). OAFE has a very nice review, assuring you that you will lose his accessories. Accept it! I haven't yet, but it's a matter of time.  

  Oh, and the Court Jester is as good a movie as any to represent earth, y'ask me.

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I was in a positively dire mood the other day, so I went to my local Comic Book Shop, and they had once again salted their cheap rack with books they know damn well I'm going to buy. Weird War, Time Twisters, Gold Key stuff! Flash Gordon versus Shark Men? I'm not made of stone! From 1979, Flash Gordon #21, "Wolf in the Fold" Written by John Warner, art by Frank Bolle.

The assorted battles and wars on planet Mongo had probably gone back-and-forth a few times at this point; with Ming currently less the imperial tyrant and more like a terrorist plotting against everyone. His Shark Men forces had infiltrated Prince Barin's Arboria, and one of Barin's most trusted men, Ferro, was also a Ming follower. The Shark Men plot to blow up a power plant and capture Dale Arden after she spots them, but she manages to free herself and fight the hell out of them; like this one she karate-chops in the spine? Kidney? Something.

In the end, Ferro kills his Shark Man partner, to save Barin; but not out of returning loyalty: the Shark Men's plan had failed, there was no force to occupy the city, so killing Barin then wouldn't accomplish anything. Not yet, anyway...Ferro sells it well, making himself seem like a leading citizen. I did pick up a couple more issues of this; I wonder if this plot goes on...

Also this issue: a Thor Hostess Twinkies ad I don't think I had seen before! Read more!

I had to make a quick check, to see if this issue's lead story was in the War That Time Forgot Showcase we mentioned last week. Nope! I also don't know why this series didn't get at least one Showcase collection of its own, either. From 1981, Weird War Tales #99, featuring "A Gauntlet of Giants!" Created and written by Robert Kanigher, pencils by Dave Cockrum, inks by Jerry Ordway! (Is it "Gantlet" or "Gauntlet"? They spell it both ways, between the cover and the lead story.)

A PBY 'flying boat' rescue crew fights hard to save a downed bomber's men, from a familar dinosaur-infested island. We mentioned before, there wasn't really much continuity in the WTTF stories, but a good amount of them ended with the survivors having no proof: in this case, the rescue crew's skipper is Section 8'd out of the service, for telling his superiors he had been fighting dinosaurs; while his crew hem and haw and look at their shoes, afraid of getting the butterfly-net treatment themselves. Thanks heaps, guys!

"A Match Made in Hell!" takes place during the British occupation of Bengal, and a viceroy of the Queen, the extraordinarily-British named "Col. Sir Aubrey Clegg-Haversham" is abusing the hell of out the locals, until he becomes smitten with the lovely Ivira. She claims per the rules of her sect, "only a husband may gaze upon a woman's body!" and I think the key word Aubrey missed in there was "sect." Maybe he misheard. Still, she surprises him by getting a bit handsy on their wedding night...(Written by George Kashdan, art by Ric Estrada.)

In "Man's Best Friend Enemy!" a WWII canine soldier is infected by a biological weapon, and his handler waits too long to put him down. Steve Ditko art, though, on another Kashdan story. "Divine Wind" is a rare story from the Japanese side of the war: a pilot's little brother is selected to be a kamikaze, but when the pilot dies, he still looks out for his brother. (Written by Mike W. Barr, art by Mar Amongo.) There's also the USPS Statement of Ownership, Management and Circulation; actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date, 225,585; and Batman in a Hostess Cup Cakes ad and the subscription ad! What more could anyone want? Read more!

Generation X should be way older. And way crankier.

I certainly am, anyway. Also, I don't think Jubilee is traditionally...built like that. Hell, I'm not sure Psylocke is built like that; the OAFE review of Monet notes the figure is probably bigger than it should be. Maybe in more ways than one. Still, I got a spare dirt cheap at Target, and thought I would see what I could do. The hands swap out, the neck could be a sticking point.

This week started out pretty well, then went south on me; but maybe wasn't a complete loss. We'll see you next week!

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I'm sure New Yorkers would be thrilled Superman and Wonder Woman ceded jurisdiction to a jock and Professor McFloatyhead.

90% sure this isn't a rule when Batman's on the JLA. Ever. From 1982, Fury of Firestorm #4, "The Icy Heart of Killer Frost!" Written by Gerry Conway, pencils by Pat Broderick, inks by Rodin Rodriguez.

Killer Frost has sucked the heat out of most of New York, freezing everyone except Firestorm in their tracks: in the best comic tradition, instead of being corpsecicles, everyone could be revived, maybe, if the Nuclear Man can stop her. But, she knows she's got him over a barrel, and starts making demands: namely, for Firestorm to bring her Burt Reynolds Curt Holland from Hollywood. Before Firestorm can run that little errand, he just has to maybe fight his way past the Justice League, who arrive to take over the situation. But, Firestorm worries they would only make things worse, pointing out Superman himself got beat by Frost before, and he was fighting to save his friends and family.

A short fight, before the distraught hero realizes that wasn't helping. Despite describing themselves as the "pros," the Leaguers are pretty understanding, too; with Zatanna pointing out an "unspoken rule" of the team: "The hero on the spot has primary responsibility." In the JLA satellite, Firestorm catches them up on the situation, and reveals what had been a secret to most of them: his true identities, Ronnie Raymond and Professor Martin Stein. While Stein works on a portable refridgeration unit to stop Frost (despite being able to do stuff like launch icicles, she didn't have traditional ice powers; she drained heat, so if she herself was frozen she was powerless) Ronnie and Red Tornado try to recruit Curt Holland, who declines. Still, Ronnie has a plan, and Firestorm brings "Holland" to Frost, who immediately tries to murder him with a kiss. It was really a disguised Red Tornado, who had the freezer implanted in his android body; and he and Firestorm are able to draw enough heat from her to knock her out. The pair are then able to gradually heat up New York and save the citizens, glossing over what would be a ton of flooding and water damage; yay, happy ending!

I'm fairly certain the cover for this one was on a DC house ad at the time, but I first read it this week! Read more!

"Vibe."

Ah, when all else fails, time for crowd scenes with figures I've probably bought recently! Read more!

Aw, man, Cooper doesn't even make the cover!...'Copper'? That doesn't sound right.

Oddly enough, I've never picked up the Showcase collections for the Metal Men; partly because I never see the first one, and partly because I already have the Walt Simonson issues in the should-never-be-out-of-print Art of Walt Simonson. Also surprising: I didn't already have all of this one: from 2011, DC Comics Presents: Metal Men 100-Page Spectacular, mostly written by Keith Giffen and J. M. DeMatteis, mostly drawn by Kevin Maguire!

While this starts with a reprint of the Bob Haney-written Silver Age: the Brave and the Bold #1, the rest is the complete run of back-up stories from Giffen's 2009 Doom Patrol, which I have most of but I don't think I added it to my pull list until it was already on the chopping block for cancellation. The Metal Men stories are fun, but that's all they are: there's barely a lick of development or drama, but maybe that's the way to go with them? They're largely resistant to change, or change and then quickly change back--malleable, you might say! One change should have stuck, though: the addition of new team member, Copper; but one running joke is that most of the team seems to forget her on a regular basis. (I thought she was from Giffen/DeMatteis/Maguire, but Copper was actually an earlier addition, from 2007's Superman/Batman #34!) I'd love to have her back in the lineup again, like she took two years off to hitchhike across Europe, then just told everyone she had been there the whole time, and they bought it...I wondered if maybe the guys weren't building up to something, like the reason Magnus and the others never remember her was that she was some kind of plant; but now I kinda doubt that: in the last couple stories, they gave Magnus his own lab assistant/wacky sidekick, which really feels like overegging the pudding there. Read more!

So I don't start work until tomorrow, but I'm home from vacation, and it was a lot of fun! Got some biking in and a lot of reading: the latest Stephen King--Fairy Tale, which may or may not be his latest, the way he writes--some Haruki Murakami, several Star Trek paperbacks, the somewhat unnecessary sequel to Joe Haldeman's the Forever War, Forever Peace. Didn't read enough comics, though.

I plowed through the Showcase: War that Time Forgot, which actually took me a while: it's more than a bit formulaic. Every time some soldier throws a "pineapple," drink! But that's OK: Robert Kanigher hit a formula that worked, and kept at it. These weren't intended to be collected, there's barely any continuity in the stories. There may be more continued stories in the Young Love collection; which I didn't find a listing for on Amazon right now; which is partially why I bought it. It was on sale, and who knows when I'd ever see something like that again; but it's more of a historical curiosity for me, so it's slow going as well. Although, the plots have mildly surprised me twice so far: one story where the heroine realizes her doctor love-interest wasn't going to work out, and moves on; and one extra-bonkers one where a girl refuses to let a friend steal her man, even if she has to pull him out of a car wreck to prove herself...! There's a ton of John Romita art in YL, I'm not sure if I've even got that far yet.

At a glance: the WTTF stories collected here were from 1960-66, and the Young Love stories were from 1963-66, so they were probably on the racks at the same time! 

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I've probably watched a month of baseball this week; I don't remember this, but...

From 1970, DC Special #9, reprinting "Challenge of the Headless Baseball Team!" from 1962's Brave and the Bold #45, written by Gardner Fox, pencils by Carmine Infantino, inks by Joe Giella.

No secret, but I've been out of office all this week. We'll be back to closer to our usual nonsense next week, so have a good weekend!

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This doesn't appear to be the peak of DC's printing prowess, but still.

I don't get this title, but writer Mike W. Barr would use it again for an issue of Mantra! From 1985, Batman and the Outsiders Annual #2, "Dissembler at the Wedding" Written by Mike W. Barr, pencils by David Ross, inks by Dan Adkins.

This was the wedding of Rex (Metamorpho) Mason and Sapphire Stagg, after a few hiccups; like a duplicate Rex showing up at the altar and kidnapping Sapph, and poisoning everyone there. Late arrival Bruce Wayne is able to save them, then change to Batman, and has to clear the usual suspect: Simon Stagg, who never approved of Rex seeing his daughter, but had got poisoned with everybody else. The gas was the handiwork of an old foe of theirs: Tremayne, a traitor scientist from Brave and the Bold #58, Metamorpho's second appearance! Tremayne had lost Sapphire's mother to Simon and never got over it, so had built a new mantis-robot and "chemical mimic shape-shifter "Even Steven" to help him get Sapphire instead. He was pretty old and seemed more than a bit senile, but, he was on the ball enough to hire help against the Outsiders: the Masters of Disaster! Neither Tremayne nor Simon seem like a catch, even if they were probably both rich. Sapphire looked like her mom and was gorgeous but a bit soft. Her standing up to Tremayne and saying she wasn't her mom, was like a Spider-Man lifting a heavy thing moment for her.

The Masters had faced the Outsiders before, maybe a couple times by now; and the youngest, Windfall, seemed soft on Halo. This time around we learn why: Halo resembled her dead mom, who had been killed by her sister, New Wave. The team couple, Coldsnap and Heatstroke, are distracted at a crucial moment by a junked solar battery, which they think they can use to cure their condition: their powers hurt each other, so they could no longer touch. Unfortunately for them, Katana and Batman assume they're up to no good, and trash the machine, and them. Rex fights his way past the mantis-robot, then faces Even Steven, who copies not only his powers, but his love for Sapphire: Steven sacrifices himself, taking Tremayne with him.

Long-suffering unfrozen-caveman lackey Java fails to stop the Masters from escaping, while Rex wants to call off the wedding, feeling he couldn't put Sapphire in any more danger. Simon, who probably wasn't turning over a new leaf here, has to admit this one wasn't Rex's fault, and his element powers had saved her. The couple is finally wed; although there was a subscription ad for the Batman-less Outsiders, so there wasn't a ton of time left: Rex wouldn't survive to the end of the series, but would be back in Invasion! and Justice League Europe. Read more!