And Ann B. Davis as Alice.
Secret Origins
DC Comics (1961) replica edition (1998)
Thankfully the last of the anthologies for a while, because these take a long time to read through and write a review for, Secret Origins is another reprint of reprints. These stories come from other comics that are either origin stories for the hero or something close to the hero. You’ll see what I mean as we go on.
DC would later create a series that was just flashing back to character’s origins rather than reprinting classic issues. So we’ll be seeing this title again. The New 52 is also doing a Secret Origins series, which considering the lack of communication versus DiDio or Johns have some last-minute idea, probably won’t help fix the convoluted mess that is the New 52 continuity.
Superman/Batman: “The Origin Of The Superman-Batman Team”
Worlds’ Finest #94 (June, 1958)
WRITER: Edmond Hamilton ARTISTS: Dick Sprang & Stan Kaye
Luthor escapes from prison and he has access to Kryptonite, but Superman would rather work with the mysterious Powerman than the Dynamic Duo. As Batman and Robin flash back to how they first met Superman they find parallels. The Gotham heroes first met Superman when they learned a crook from their city had acquired Kryptonite. The trio worked together to stop them, but Superman, instead of telling them the crooks had guns, sends them to observe instead. In the present however, Luthor has a destructive ray gun but Batman realizes how to counter it. Basically it keeps coming down to Superman not trusting two other heroes and not wanting Batman and Robin to risk their lives for him both times…even though risking their lives is something they do often and in the present at least he should have trusted them by now. Oh, and Powerman is a robot. So I wasn’t fond of this story. Superman was kind of a jerk for not trusting his friends.
Adam Strange: “Secret Of The Eternal City”
Showcase #17 (December, 1958)
WRITER: Garnder Fox ARTISTS: Mike Sekowsky & Bernard Sachs
Archeologist Adam Strange finds an Incan treasure…and Incans still guarding it. During his escape he his hit by a “Zeta beam” and transported to the planet Rann. Years ago Rann sent the beams as a form of communication but after hitting space radiation it turned into a transporter beam. Adam helps the lovely Alanna protect Rann from aliens who want a meteor that is housed in a city that only appears from the fourth dimension every 25 years. After stopping them the transporter effect reverses, sending Adam back to Earth but determined to track where more beams will hit to return to Rann. Somehow people know things they shouldn’t and I don’t know if the “Adam Strange is returned to Earth” part of the story wouldn’t get annoying after a while but it wasn’t a bad story otherwise.
Green Lantern: ““The Planet Of The Doomed Men”
Green Lantern #1 (July/August, 1960)
WRITER: John Broome ARTISTS: Gil Kane & Murphy Anderson
This is the first appearance and origin of Hal Jordan and anybody who doesn’t know this story by now must be new to comics. The presentation of the origin, an energy copy of Hal taking to the Guardians, is different. One thing I do find interesting is that the Guardians are keeping Hal in the dark as to their true nature and the existence of the Green Lantern Corp. Usually when you see Hal’s origin he’s almost immediately dragged to Oa to start his training. Here he’s still doing the usual thing but without training or knowing who keeps contacting him through the battery, in this case to fight a monster on another world.
Also, the powers of the ring really took a long time to define, didn’t they? Here he can create liquid oxygen, but nowadays all a GL can do is create solid light constructs. The ring would be given even more powers before settling down with the constructs tradition, but the color yellow impurity (which would get stupid later on as writers would find any excuse to limit Hal’s power) is still here. It’s a pretty good introduction but I’m glad they made the changes they did later on.
Challengers Of The Unknown: “The Secrets Of The Sorcerer’s Box”
Showcase #6 (February, 1957)
WRITER: Dave Wood ARTISTS: Jack & Roz Kirby & Martin Stein
Wait, Martin Stein? Was the professor that was originally one half of Firestorm named after him? Anyway, four thrillseekers who also are interested in science or flying airplanes and stuff crash land and somehow come out of it without a scratch. Deciding they’re living on borrowed time, they decide to push their limits, and their luck. This story begins with the Challengers being offered a million dollars (most of which they plan to give to charity) to open a box. They aren’t told what’s in it, and we don’t get to see them do it because that’s where the story ends. I’m not sure sure if that’s where the original ended or where the reprint ended (I doubt they’d cut it off for the replica) but it’s disappointing because it cuts off like that.
Green Arrow
Although the Green Arrow and Speedy origin is worse because there’s no actual comic, just an uncredited text account of how Oliver Queen was marooned on an island and learned to create his trick arrows to survive plus a paragraph or two of Speedy’s origin. It really wasn’t worth it. Did they really have to pad out a page?
Wonder Woman: “The Secret Origin Of Wonder Woman”
Wonder Woman #105 (April, 1959)
WRITER: Robert Kanigher ARTISTS: Ross Andru & Mike Esposito
It’s only partly Wonder Woman’s origin. The rest is “Wonder Girl” doing all these amazing feats getting the Amazons to Paradise Island, so it’s also Paradise Island’s origin. It’s just one where “Wonder Girl” does most of the work. Seriously every other panel calls Diana “Wonder Girl” so much I’m even more surprised they got that wrong in Teen Titans. It’s also odd to see Aphrodite, Athena, Mercury, and Hercules (especially Hercules since later writers would charge Hercules and Hippolyta’s rapist and having Diana hate his guts) granting her superpowers as a baby. I would have rather they just published her actual origin like most of the other stories here.
Manhunter From Mars: “The Strange Experiment Of Dr. Erdel”
Detective Comics #225 (November, 1955)
WRITER: Joe Samachson ARTIST: Joe Certa
Most people probably knows J’onn J’ones’s origin from Justice League but this is nothing like that. A scientist creates a robot brain that can break the space/time continuum or something and accidentally brings another scientist from Mars that can shapeshift. All of this is too much for the Earth scientist and he dies, the only man who can reverse the brain’s system and send J’onn home. After traveling the world learning that crime still exists on Earth (because advanced science ended crime on Mars and I would love to know how that works) and decides to fight this crime thing as police detective John Jones. No Martian Manhunter action this story which is too bad but still a better origin story than the last two.
The Flash: “The Story Of The Human Thunderbolt”
Showcase #4 (October, 1956)
WRITER: Robert Kanigher ARTISTS: Carmine Infantino & Joe Kubert
This is the Barry Allen origin we all remember, where Barry became a crimefighter because he was inspired by his favorite comic book instead of his mom being murdered by the Reverse Flash. Not surprising that comic creators who almost seem to hate comics but all but worship Batman(‘s origin). I like this one better. Writers and editor realized that not everyone needs to become a crimefighter only because of some personal tragedy. Plenty of cops, soldiers, firefighter, and doctors take those professions without someone dying. Odd that the first story has the fastest man on Earth going against the slowest man. That seems like a story best saved for after we’ve seen this new Flash in action. Still, I like this origin much better than what we’re given.
Overall, I liked the stories presented, with only minor complaints (except for putting Green Arrows origin in text instead of actually reprinting the story). Obviously you should either go with the replica or comiXology’s reprints (if the exist of these stories or whatever system DC is using when you read this). I just wish today’s superhero stories were updates of these rather than completely ignoring/being afraid of them.
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