The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode 016 - X-Men #11 (1965)

The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode Sixteen

X-Men #11 (May, 1965)

"The Triumph of Magneto!"

Writer/Edits - Stan Lee

Pencils - Jack Kirby

Inks - Chic Stone

Letters - Artie Simek

Colors - Someone who might prefer not to be named!

Cover Price: 12¢

The Essential X-Lapsed is back... and it's just about time to finally deep-six Magneto and his Brotherhood!  But, you might be asking - how could we possibly go about doing that?  Well, wouldja believe that we're going to get a "deus ex characta" to do it for us?!

Today we meet the Stranger, in a story that could only be called "The Triumph of Magneto!"?

Also: Some great mailbag content... both for the show, and from the actual Letters Page from X-Men #11!  Hope to see you there!

--

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The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode 015 - X-Men #10 (1965)

The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode Fifteen

X-Men #10 (March, 1965)

"The Coming of... Ka-Zar!"

Writer/Edits - Stan Lee

Pencils - Jack Kirby

Inks - Chic Stone

Letters - S. Rosen

Col... errrrs

Cover Price: 12¢

Today we take a trip to my second least favorite place in all the Marvel Universe... The Savage Land!  Listen to me mispronounce Ka-Zar's name about five-dozen times!

That - plus the original Letters Page discussion from the issue, the prehistoric Marvel Bullpen Bulletins, and the MIGHTY Marvel Checklist!

Also: An X-Tended X-Cellent Mailbag feature!

--

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The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode 013 - X-Men #9 (1965)

The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode Thirteen

X-Men #9 (January, 1965)

"Enter, the Avengers!"

Writer/Edits - Stan Lee

Pencils - Jack Kirby

Inks - Chic Stone

Letters - S. Rosen

Colors - We Don't Need No Stinking Colors!

Cover Price: 12¢

It's AvX -- Round One!

Yes, friends - this is the first official run-in between The Earth's Mightiest Heroes and the World's Strangest Teen-Agers... and, it's a battle for the ages!  And, by "ages", I mean it's like a three-page slap fight, that includes actual hair-pulling.

Also: The truth about Professor X's injury, a Letters Page where people won't shut up about Marvel Girl's "catseye" headgear and Iceman's booties, and much much more!

Join me, won't you?  I'm very lonely in here!

--

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The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode 012 - X-Men #8 (1964)

The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode Twelve

X-Men #8 (November, 1964)

"The Uncanny Threat of... Unus the Untouchable!"

Writer/Edits - Stan Lee

Pencils - Jack Kirby

Inks - Chic Stone

Letters - S. Rosen

Colors - ______!

Cover Price: 12¢

In which an X-Man threatens to quit the team and our heroes face off against a Brand-New (somewhat) Evil Mutant!  It's just another day in the neighborhood for the World's Strangest Teen-Agers!

Also: The first time where we see them being "Feared and/or Hated"!  A seminal issue, indeed!

All that plus - Letters Page Goodness, prehistoric Bullpen Bulletins, and Mailbag!

Special Note: There is a bit of a... temporal distortion in the middle of this episode.  I can't really explain it... but I couldn't scrub it out of my recording.  Apologies in advance for any confusion... we probably should just forget it ever happened.

--

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The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode 011 - Journey into Mystery #109 (1964)

The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode Eleven

Journey into Mystery #109 (October, 1964)

"When Magneto Strikes!"

Writer/Edits - Stan Lee

Pencils - Jack Kirby

Inks - Chic Stone

Letters - S. Rosen

Colors - Eh?

Cover Price: 12¢

Today we're covering the issue which finally caused your humble host to pull the trigger on Marvel Unlimited... mostly because he couldn't see himself attempting to track down an issue of Thor... and boy, is he glad he did - because this is a very fun issue, pitting the Odinson against our resident Master of Magnetism!  How can Magneto fair against Mjolnir?  Quite well, surprisingly enough!

Have a listen and find out for yourself!

--

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The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode 010 - X-Men #7 (1964)

The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode Ten

X-Men #7 (September, 1964)

"The Return of the Blob"

Writer/Edits - Stan Lee

Pencils - Jack Kirby

Inks - Chic Stone

Letters - Art Simek

Colors - The Unknown Colorist

Cover Price: 12¢

The Blob is back... and hanging out with, who else... Magneto and his Brotherhood!  Do the newly-graduated X-Men... without their mentor - but with their new field leader, stand a chance?  You don't wanna miss this one... or, ya know, maybe you do!

--

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The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode 009 - Fantastic Four #28 (1964)

The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode Nine

Fantastic Four #28 (July, 1964)

"We Have to Fight the X-Men!"

Writer/Edits - Stan Lee

Pencils - Jack Kirby

Inks - Chic Stone

Letters - Art Simek

Cover Price: 12¢

It's the highest-profile X-Men guest-appearance yet... and perhaps their highest-profile appearance period!

Today the X-Men meet and fight the Fantastic Four... for the first of many times!  We're going to talk a bit about how this appearance might just have legitimized the world's strangest teen-agers to the fans of the wider Marvel Universe, and much more!

--

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The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode 008 - Strange Tales #120 (1964)

The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode Eight

Strange Tales #120 (May, 1964)

"The Torch Meets The Iceman!"

Writer/Edits - Stan Lee

Pencils - Jack Kirby

Inks - Dick Ayers

Letters - S. Rosen

Colors - Ehhhhh?

Cover Price: 12¢

The X-Men continue looming large over the early Marvel Universe... this time with their youngest member - the sixteen-year old Kid Kool himself - crossing paths with the youngest member of the Fantastic Four - Johnny Storm, the Human Torch in the pages of Strange Tales #120!

Will these two teen-agers forgo the "Superhero Team-Ups... the Marvel Way" formula... or, will we waste several pages of this short story with a Silver Age clashing of Fire and Ice?  You may be surprised... I know I was!

--

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The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode 6 - X-Men #6

The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode Six

X-Men #6 (July, 1964)

"Sub-Mariner! joins The Evil Mutants"

Writer/Edits - Stan Lee

Pencils - Jack Kirby

Inks - Chic Stone

Letters - S. Rosen

Colors - Eh?  Probably Somebody...

Cover Price: 12¢

Stop me if you've heard this one... it's the X-Men vs. The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants!  But, friends, that's not all... this time out, the Brotherhood is joined by Namor the Sub-Mariner, firmly establishing that the X-Men are part of the shared Marvel Universe!  Why, we even get editorial footnotes pointing us to recent issues of Fantastic Four and Avengers!

Plus: Starting today (and hopefully for as long as we can), we're going to be taking the pulse of the comics fan of the day, when we read and discuss the "Let's Visit the X-Men" Letters Pages!  Today we'll be covering the letters Stan and Jack received for issues #3 and #4 (appearing in X-Men #5 & 6)!

It's a good time as always... hope you'll give us a try!

--

The ALL-NEW ALL-DIFFERENT X-Lapsed Voicemail!

623-396-5375 (or, 623-396-JERK)... as in "Professor Xavier is a..." and not anything off-color!  Shame on you for thinking it was!

--

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The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode 5 - X-Men #5 (1964)

The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode Five

X-Men #5 (May, 1964)

"Trapped: One X-Man!"

Writer/Edits - Stan Lee

Pencils - Jack Kirby

Inks - Paul Reinman

Letters - S. Rosen

Colors - Wouldn't you like to know?

Cover Price: 12¢

Boy, I hope you're not already tired of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants... because, we're just getting started with them!

Today, we meet Jean Grey's parents... who have such a high opinion of Charles Xavier, they probably wouldn't even mind him creeping on their little girl.  They also don't seem to have a problem with the fact that she's the only young lady in a house full of teen-age boys.  Different times, I s'pose!

Also... the Brotherhood!  They do Evil and/or Morally Ambiguous stuff... it's kinda their gimmick!

--

The ALL-NEW ALL-DIFFERENT X-Lapsed Voicemail!

623-396-5375 (or, 623-396-JERK)... as in "Professor Xavier is a..." and not anything off-color!  Shame on you for thinking it was!

--

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The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode 4 - X-Men #4 (1964)

The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode Four

X-Men #4 (March, 1964)

"The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants!"

Writer/Edits - Stan Lee

Pencils - Jack Kirby

Inks - Paul Reinman

Letters - Art Simek

Colors - Idunno!

Cover Price: 12¢

The Seminal Slog that is X-Men #4!

It's the first appearance of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants... including everybody's favorite former-mutant... The Pretender herself!

This issue takes a while to get going... but, gives us plenty of fun stuff to talk about!

Plus: Great Mailbag... and a brief discussion on Facsimile Editions!

--
The ALL-NEW ALL-DIFFERENT X-Lapsed Voicemail!
623-396-5375 (or, 623-396-JERK)... as in "Professor Xavier is a..." and not anything off-color!  Shame on you for thinking it was!
--
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The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode 3 - X-Men #3 (1964)

The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode Three

X-Men #3 (January, 1964)

"Beware of the Blob!"

Writer/Editor - Stan Lee

Pencils - Jack Kirby

Inks - Paul Reinman

Colors - ???

Letters - Artie Simek

Cover Price: 12¢

In which Professor X reveals which of his X-Men he loves the most... and, no... I'm not kidding.

Also: Cyclops gets his real first name, the Beast gets brainy, and Iceman attempts to eat himself.  On top'a that, we meet and defeat The Blob!

Plus: Great Listener Mail!

--

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The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode 2 - X-Men #2 (1963)

The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode Two

X-Men #2 (November, 1963)

"No One Can Stop the Vanisher!"

Writer/Edits - Stan Lee

Pencils - Jack Kirby

Inks - Paul Reinman

Letters - Sam Rosen

Colors - ???

Cover Price: 12¢

Welcome back to the least essential podcast with the word Essential in it's title!  Today our teen-age heroes are going to take on the dread threat of the villainous Vanisher!  What hope might they have against a foe who can... ya know, vanish?

Will Professor X have to get his hands dirty this time???  Let's find out!

Plus: We've already got a letter in the Essential Mailbag!  Hop aboard, we're havin' fun ova hea'!

--

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The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode 1 - X-Men #1 (1963)

The Essential X-Lapsed, Episode One

X-Men #1 (September, 1963)

"X-Men"

Writer/Editor - Stan Lee

Pencils - Jack Kirby

Inks - Paul Reinman

Colors - ???

Letters - Sam Rosen

Cover Price 12¢

Kicking off a brand-new X-Lapsed offering... in which we go all the way back to 1963 and revisit with our Original Five!  Lookitus being actual fake-ass comics historians, ova hea'!

Today we meet Professor Xavier, Cyclops, Beast, Iceman, Angel, and Jean Grey... as they do battle with the first ever Evil Mutant -- Magneto!  I mean, I ain't blowin' any minds here... this is X-Men #1, of course you know what happens in it!

It's my hope that this program will run concurrently with the main X-Lapsed series while we wait for shipments of new books to arrive.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on these Silver Age stories -- if there are any that especially stand out to you and you'd like to chat about 'em on the air - please don't be a stranger!

--

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Black Magic #6 (1974)

Black Magic #6 (October-November, 1974)
"The Thirteenth Floor!"
"Satan's Sister!"
"The Girl Who Walked on Water!"
"I Wouldn't Let Him Die"
Writer - Joe Simon
Pencils - John Prentice, Bill Draut, & Jack Kirby
Editors - Joe Simon & Jack Kirby
Cover Price: $0.20

Well, we're just about a week away from Halloween... so, we might as well have at least one installment of #boohauntedblog!

Let's kick it Bronze-Age and get down with some'a that Black Magic.

--

Our first tale opens with man named Clement Dorn... and he's not in great place.  He is contemplating suicide... even considering throwing himself out a window right then and there... unfortunately, or fortunately rather, there are too many people around, and he'd rather "go out" without a bunch of gawking witnesses.  I dunno, I figure there'll be plenty of gawking when he goes splat, no?  Anyways, he decides to hop into the elevator and go up a few floors for his jump.  He winds up... on the Thirteenth Floor!

The thirteenth floor is darkened... and looks kind of like a bank line-up, folks are standing single-file before a desk.  At the desk, a pair of nebbish fellows are "checking in" the patrons... of whatever this line might lead to.  Turns out, it's not entirely unlike an airport... folks in line are waiting for their flight.  Turns out... our friend Dorn ain't on anybody's manifest.

Then after the sound of a plane landing, a pilot all clad in golden gear emerges.  He's informed by the desk that not all of his passengers have checked in yet... and also, they've actually got one extra (Dorn, of course).

Then... another pilot, this one dressed in all black with a red cape, enters the scene.  He's told that his passenger has arrived... and Dorn fears that it might be him.  It's not.

Realizing the destinations of the "flights" offered on the thirteenth floor, Dorn starts to panic... he asks if he can leave, and they're all "Yeah, of course..." after all, he's not on the manifest.  On his way out, he overhears that the passenger they're waiting for is a woman.  Next thing we know, Dorn is waking up in the elevator.

With a new lease on life, our man heads outside the building... and witnesses a woman being hit by a car... right on schedule for her "flight".

Our next story opens with a woman named Lisa.  She is attempting to visit with her abusive twin sister, Peg.  After being told by some dude that "she ain't here" she runs into a fella by the name of Mark Kenyon.  He becomes rather enchanted by her, and takes her to a gross little diner to get to know her better.

He learns that Peg, her twin, is a "bad girl"... always getting into trouble... like, serious trouble.  Anyhoo, this chance encounter blossoms into a serious relationship, and three months later, Mark pops the question.  She, unfortunately, cannot say yes... she's still dealing with her twin-sister-flavored trauma.

Mark decides it's time for him to become a bit more proactive... and maybe try and track down Peggy himself.  He visits some of the seedier areas of town... and while everyone he speaks to knows of Peg, none of them know where she is.  He does finally happen across her though... and wouldn'tcha know it, she's the spitting image of Lisa.  Starting to see where this is headed?

Mark tries to reason with her... telling her that she's sick, and needs help.  Which... I mean, that's probably the worst thing he could've said.  She refuses to come with him... and later on, Lisa tells Mark to just leave things alone.  Curious...

He doesn't, though!  Mark visits Peggy yet again... and almost winds up getting shanked!

Mark returns to Lisa's apartment... but, she's not home.  Her landlord approaches to see if she can help him... and here's where the other shoe drops... as far as the landlady knows, Lisa doesn't have a twin sister!  Mark heads inside and, when he finally puts two and two together... someone enters behind him!!!

Our final story (not counting the text piece) opens with a couple of businessy fellas watching a young girl walking on water!  Apparently, she can walk up walls too!

We jump back to earlier that day where the nerdier businessman, Ernie is trying to convince his partner Walt that he'd seen young Anna Marie Kunowski performing the amazing feat.  He takes Walt to Anna's house where she demonstrates her ability to walk up walls.  Seems weird to have a pair of middle-aged dudes visit a 14 year old girl... but, whattaya gonna do?

Next, she demonstrates her ability to walk on water.  Walt and Ernie posit that it's a simple case of mind over matter for the girl.  She's so out to lunch that she doesn't realize that gravity is a thing... and as such, isn't governed by its laws... or something.

The next day, our heroes are already putting the wheels in motion to exploit this girl and her amazing "powers".  They've already arranged with a lawyer for contracts to be written up... they're going to take this show on the road!

After work, they pop in for another visit with Anna Marie.  Her mother answers and tells the awful men to stay away.  Bout time, right?  Anna bursts in the room and proceeds to share her tale of woe.  Ya see, she walked down a wall in front of a kid named Tommy Nagle.  Young Tommy thought it was a heckuva gag, and so... he opened a third story window, and attempted to walk down the wall himself.  This didn't end well.

Our heroes still manage to convince Anna Marie to perform her feat for "the press".  They want her to show the world that, get this, gravity... is strictly for squares!  Ay yai yai.  Later on we rejoin our trio at the lake... and "the press" shows up.  "The Press" is... just one dude with a pencil.

Anna Marie takes her first step onto the lake... and plummets underwater!  Ya see, after seeing what happened to Tommy, she has a fear of falling... game over, man.  Ernie and Walt are outta luck... unless they find another kid so out to lunch that they don't know they can't fly.

We wrap up with a text-piece... but, nobody reads those anyway.  It's right here if ya want it!

--

The thing about these old horror titles... I enjoy 'em, but I can't really point to "why".  They're not exceptionally good (or bad)... they usually end in the most anticlimactic ways... and it's really hard (at least for me) to get truly engaged when they only get six-pages to tell the stories.

Not to say I'd want to see any of these tales bloated out to "novel-sized epics" or anything... I just have difficulty really forming any attachment to characters and concepts with so few pages.

Like I said with yesterday's Hex #1 review... these stories all feel like episodes of Twilight Zone... unexceptional, at points completely predictable... but with the ability to stick with ya.

I think the "meatiest" story we get here is probably the Lisa/Peggy twin deal.  I mean, it was predictable from the word "go", but I had a pretty good time with it.  Sometimes knowing exactly how a story is going to turn out is a turn off... other times, you just enjoy the ride.

The "cover story" about the Thirteenth Floor... another predictable one, to be sure.  The symbolism was so blatant, I'm not even sure we could even call it that.  Enjoyable enough... and, I'll admit, the twist ending kinda surprised me.  Wasn't expecting to see that poor woman getting hit by the car!

The "water walking" story was more of a comedy than anything.  Outside of that one Tommy kid falling down, the stakes were incredibly low.  Just a couple of shysters trying to exploit a girl so out to lunch that she doesn't realize she can't walk on walls and the like.  It was silly... and ended the best way possible.  Ernie and Walt, dejected and back to their mundane jobs... however, now with a taste of "hope"... they're not going to give up on finding another dopey kid whose "abilities" they can take advantage of.

Overall, you get a pretty good package here.  Three short subjects that don't overstay their welcome.  If you don't have any hangups about "getting comfortable" with short stories (like I do), I bet you'll dig this lots.  Naturally, this issue isn't available digitally.  If only Batman were in it!  If you're gonna dig for the single issue, it shouldn't break the bank!

--

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1st Issue Special #6 (1975)

1st Issue Special #6 (September, 1975)
"Dingbats of Danger Street"
The Works - Jack Kirby
The Inks - Mike Royer
Cover Price: $0.25

Finally... their story can be told!  Ladies and Gentlemen, today we're going to meet the Dingbats of Danger Street.  Hey, that rhymed!

This has been a post over two years in the making, about an issue that has been one of my "white whales" for even longer than that!

You all know me, if you've visited this blog a time or two... you know one of my obsessions is 1st Issue Special.  And finally... finally... with today's post, we've covered all of 'em!

This is an event so tremendous, I even engaged in some MS Paint-level image manipulation to "create" and add a new side-banner to the humble site.

Consider it a placeholder... until I, uh, ya know... become talented at manipulating images.  Either way, if ya click the pic... you'll be whisked away to our dedicated 1st Chrissue Special page!

Anyhoo... we're finishing some long-undone business today, so let's get right to it!

--

We open by meeting our titular stars, the Dingbats!  If there was any doubt these were Kirby Kharacters, wait'll you get a load of their names.  First, we've got Good Looks... which is debatable, then Non-Fat... with a great big hot dog in his mitt, Krunch... the big guy, and finally the insane-looking, Bananas.  A Kirbier bunch'a guys I've never seen.  Anyhoo, their introductions are cut short when Jumping Jack bursts through the scene, followed by a member of the "Fuzz".

Jumping Jack gets all caught up in Krunch's "exerciser"... which is basically a gigundous rubber band.  This snaps the baddie back, and the officer is able to apprehend the red-clad geek.  Turns out though, he's hidden some key evidence.

All of the excitement caused poor Non-Fat to choke on his hot dog.  Krunch decides to employ the Danger Street Heimlich, which is just slamming the poor geek across the alley with a karate chop to the back.

Turns out, Non-Fat wasn't choking on frankfurter... but a small cylinder with a film-strip inside.  Looks like that was Jumping Jack's "evidence".  The Dingbats try and figure out what's so important about a strip of film... it's not like it's big enough to fit a whole movie on it, so what's the point?  Non-Fat rushes up to Krunch and kicks him in the backside... which hurts his own foot.  This looks like it's going to be his gimmick.

Just then, the Dingbats are held up at gunpoint by the real baddie of the issue... The Gasser, who really wants that film strip!

The kids don't waste a beat handing over the evidence.  They ain't gonna get shot over a strip of film that probably doesn't even have a full movie on it.  Oh, and Non-Fat runs up and kicks the Gasser in the butt... which is no more effective than last time.

It does, however, provide enough of a distraction for Krunch to lunge forward with sock to the mush.  The Gasser responds by... gassing the gang.

After a melee during which The Gasser loses both the film strip and his pistol (criminal mastermind here, folks!)... he rushes over to his nearby creep-van and takes off.  He's unaware to the fact that Dingbat Non-Fat stowed away on the roof...

... well, until Non-Fat makes his presence known, anyway.

We shift scenes over to the Danger Street P.D. where Jumping Jack is being interrogated.  He's bein' tight-lipped, as you might imagine.  He ain't talkin' bout no evidence.  Just then... the Dingbats burst in... with that very evidence.  They're willing to hand it over, so long as the Fuzz gives them a hand rescuing their buddy.

Jumping Jack uses this momentary distraction to... break out!  Let's hear it for not restraining the friendly neighborhood super villain!  He dives out a window to freedom.

The Dingbats presume that wherever Jumping Jack is headed, it's probably where their buddy Non-Fat is.  They insist on accompanying the police in their pursuit... and, get this, the Lieutenant thinks it's a fabbo idea!  Law Enforcement is pretty loosey-goosey on Danger Street.

The Fuzz and the Dingbats are able to track Jumping Jack all the way back to The Gasser's van... which is conveniently parked in a dead-ended alley butted up against the pier.  The police snipers swarm to the nearby rooftops and our buddy the Lieutenant tries to, uh, reason with the baddies.

The Gasser's not havin' none of this, and lets fly with a brand-new gas... one that ignites when it hits the air.  Seems like a trigger I'd never wanna pull... but, then again, I'm not the Gasser.  He does manage to singe the Lieutenant's arm, so it wasn't a total waste.

Or was it?  Bein' burned only enrages the Fuzz... and he rushes in to deliver one hell of a dropkick on the Gas-man.  Before the bad guys know it... they're staring down the barrels of a whole lotta guns.

As the dust settles, the Dingbats break into the Gasser's van where they find... Non-Fat, and he's as stiff as a board.  He's not dead, mind you, he's just been zapped with some "freeze gas".  Also in the back of the van, an Executive... who I suppose was the point of this entire issue.  Alrighty then.

We wrap up with the Lieutenant finally getting a name (Terry Mullins).  He offers the Dingbats his aid any time they need it.  For his kindness, Non-Fat rushes up and kicks him... and hurts his own foot.  The Dingbats slink away, leaving ol' Terry with the idea that... these kids have probably had some bad experiences with adults.  He's going to have a tough row to hoe if he ever wants them to see eye-to-eye.  Of course, this is an issue 1st Issue Special not starring the Warlord, so this is all pretty moot.

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Well, this was just goofy as hell... wasn't it?

Let's start with our "heroes"... they're some of the "purest" Kirby kids I've seen in a long while.  Everything from their names, to their positively charming "raw" dialogue... I gotta wonder what his future plans were for this gang... or if he had any at all!

When I first started doing my research on 1st Issue Special, back in the long ago... this was the one I had to do a double-take on.  I mean, sure... Lady Cop is wonderfully weird, but she's been something of a punchline for... ever.  Nobody really talks about the Dingbats... and when I saw this cover, I was immediately captivated.  It's something I couldn't even believe existed.  Hell, I'm holding it, and just read it... and I'm still having a difficult time!

Something I find myself doing anytime I read some 1970's DC Kirby... I wonder if the characters he'd introduced were ever earmarked to appear in Marvel Comics.  Thinking about the New Gods, and Mister Miracle by extension... Manhunter... Darkseid... and now, the Dingbats!  Like, were these guys maybe supposed to be the (ever faceless) Yancy Street Gang?  It's fun to consider.

Something I think about when reading 1st Issue Special is... why did they choose this story for their "pitch"?  So many of these FIS installments have had the weirdest stories... that kinda defy the "pitch premise".  I mean, look at this one... did anything happen here that would make you get out a piece of paper, write a letter, buy a stamp, lick and affix that stamp, and trudge your way up to a mailbox?  I'm not so sure.

I mean, I dug it... found it amazingly charming... but, I'm kind of okay with it being a one-and-done.

Overall... as a novelty, I'd say this is a must own.  You know how we roll here at the Infinite Earths... if you come across an issue of 1st Issue Special in the wild... you grab it!

And with that, we finally put 1st Issue Special to bed.  Remember, we've now got a dedicated page for all-things 1st Issue.  Check it out for a trip down weird street!

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