Batman and the Outsiders #31 (1986)

Batman and the Outsiders #31 (March, 1986)
"The Truth About Looker, Part 4: Pawn of the World Below"
Writer/Editor - Mike W. Barr
Artist - Alan Davis
Letters - John Workman
Colors - Adrienne Roy
Cover Price: $0.75

Now, we've been covering Christmas comics for three years at this point... and I feel like during every go-round, we get an issue of Outsiders!  It's surprising for a property with so few issues (relative to DC's legacy books) to have so many Christmas issues!

I mean, the I feel like the Teen Titans are still living off The TT's Swingin' Christmas Carol! for a half-century whereas the Outsiders, for a time, were havin' one a year!

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We open, and it's Christmastime in Gotham City.  A pair of lovers might be forced to celebrate the Holiday without their mates... first, Greg Briggs, the husband of Emily... second, Sapphire Stagg-Mason, the wife of Metamorpho.  Turns out they, and the rest of the Outsiders, are currently in the down below... in the kingdom of Abyssia.  Batman, Black Lightning, and Katana are being held captive... while Geo-Force, Halo, and Metamopho are under the control of the Princess (who is one of the most Alan Davis-y looking characters you're liable to see).

Mousy Emily Briggs is also there... and way out in space, Haley's Comet is nearly ready to make it's once-every-seventy-something-years pass of Earth.  I remember that being a hyooge deal back when I was in the second grade.

The Princess of Abyssia demands a Priest to "transfigure" Mrs. Briggs... this turns her into Looker!

The with-it Outsiders are taken aback by this.  What's worse, Looker proceeds over to Princess Tamira's throne, and kneels before her.  The Priest announces that Looker is of the same blood as Abyssia's original ruler, Loron.

Emily is stood before a full-length mirror, where she gets her first look at her new bod.  She is captivated, and protests when they go to take the mirror away.  Tamira plies her with a goblet full of a concoction she calls "Obedience".  Sounds like the name of one'a those Calvin Klein fragrances.

Our attention now turns to Tamira's brother, the Zack Morris-esque Prince of Abyssia... who is about to be put to death.  When asked if he has any last words, he tells Emily that she is a "Looker"... which, appears to have triggered a post-hypnotic suggestion of sorts.  Looker uses her eye beams to roast Princess Tamira!

The rebels rise up, and amid the distraction, Black Lightning attempts to burn off his bindings.  Unfortunately, Geo-Force is there to perform a little noggin knocker with Jeff and Batman.  The rebels are commanded to kneel... and a few look to the heroes, just waiting for the right time to go back on the offense.

Prince Mardo and Looker make out for a bit, with the former promising to make the latter his queen.  He then commands her to, get this... crush Princess Tamira under a stone statue in her own likeness... and she does!  The Princess gets smooshed!

Looker's next order of business... blasting the Outsiders!  When Batman and Company come to, they are outside in the snow.  Mardo feels it important that they see what's to come.  Looker commands Haley's Comet to, not pass the Earth... but crash into it!

Ya see, Mardo's plan... is a pretty smart one!  The way he sees it, Haley's Comet will smash into the Earth, busting through the atmosphere and stirring up a torrent of dust which will block out the Sun.  Those not killed by the impact, will die off quickly, as without the Sun, the plants will die, and without plants, there'll be no more oxygen.  The Abyssians will wait out the Earth's recovery (they are apparently quite long-lived) and take the planet for themselves.  So, in his words, Mardo is creating a Nuclear Winter without the radiation!  We shift over to an observatory... and the Comet's shift in trajectory has not gone unnoticed.

Batman turns to the rebels and asks for a hand.  At first they're hesitant, but ultimately come around.  Unfortunately, Looker sees it coming and neutralizes the attempt.  Batman pleads with her that she's about to murder billions of people.  She only smiles.  Katana asks her to try and remember her husband, Greg Briggs.  Still smiling, she says "no".

Mardo takes Looker by the hand, removes her wedding ring from her finger... and crushes it!  This is what it takes to shock her back to her senses!  She blasts the Prince, and vows to be a pawn no longer!

Prince Mardo threatens to kill the Outsiders, but before he can do much of anything, Emily both frees those captive and brings the rest back to their senses!

A battle rages, and Prince Mardo sidles up to Looker and goes to stab her in the back.  Unfortunately for him, Katana is in the same room, and she strikes first!

As the dust settles, Looker releases Haley's Comet from her control and it returns to its natural trajectory.

The Abyssians all look to, well, Looker for leadership... which she relinquishes.  She hands the power over to the people, which I'm sure won't come back to bite her.

The Outsiders head home.  On the flight, Emily calls her husband to let him know she's okay.  He notices that she sounds a little different... but she assures him that she's fine, and they plan a place to meet.  Back in Gotham, Rex and Sapphire are reunited.

We wrap up with Greg Briggs meeting his wife in a suite at the Hotel Lancaster.  After initially thinking he'd gotten the wrong room, the Briggs' start goin' at it!  Merry Christmas, Greg.

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Not much of a Christmas issue, but a good one regardless!

I love the inclusion of Haley's Comet.  I'd wager that it was a big deal in my six-year old life for maybe 2-3 days... I honestly can't even remember if I saw it... or if it was even visible, but in looking back, it feels like I talked about the Comet for months!

Wanna talk about a scene that kinda shocked me.  I'm surprised they had Looker actually crush Princess Tamira under the statue!  I mean, that feels like a point of no return, doesn't it?  I get that she was under Mardo's control, but still... seems a bit extreme, though perhaps necessary.

Actually, what shocked me the most about this issue was probably the fact that it involved a race of "underworlders" and it didn't bore me to tears!  These kind of stories very rarely engage me... and I usually just "blur" through em in order to get to the good stuff.  This issue actually worked for me though!

I'd say it's worth a look (no pun intended).  We've already covered Part 1 of The Truth About Looker here on the blog (over two years ago!)... we'll eventually get to the middle two chapters.  This one is available digitally.
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Letters Page:

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On the Sixth Day of Christmas on Infinite Earths, I gave to you, Batman and the Outsiders #31, Captain Atom #13! Scooby-Doo! #139, Superman #369, Impulse #34, and a Flash (vol.2) #73 Discussion and Review.

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Batman and the Outsiders #5 (1983)

Batman and the Outsiders #5 (December, 1983)
"Psimon Says..."
Writer - Mike W. Barr
Co-Plotter - Marv Wolfman
Art - Jim Aparo
Colors - Adrienne Roy
Editor - Len Wein
Cover Price: $0.75

Going to wrap up the crossover we started yesterday.

I'll be adding these issues to both the Life and Times of Tara Markov and Collected Editions pages for easy consumption.

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Picking up right where we left off last issue, the Titans and Outsiders are flailing in the waters where the tiny island off Gotham sunk.  Batman and Robin both blame themselves... as one might assume.  Terra attempts to tap into her Earthy powers to re-rise the island, but proves to have been too weakened in the blast.  Lucky for her, she ain't the only Earth-Mover present... her brother, Brion, reaches down deep and actually manages to raise the island out of the Gotham Bay drink.

Everyone looks to have made it... except Beast Boy!  A worried Halo rushes to his side... and a little voice suggests she try some mouth-to-mouth resuscitation on the green fella.  That little voice, of course, belongs to Beast Boy himself.  Nice try, Gar!

At the same time, Batman begins directing traffic, telling both teams where to go and how to be... which kinda sticks in a certain Boy Wonder's craw... which, is understandable.

Meanwhile, on the mainland... Dr. Light makes another power grab, attempting to take leadership over the Mud Pack (not that Mud Pack).  This doesn't quite work... after all, they only do what Psimon Says.  The rest of the Fearsome Five make it quite clear that they now follow Psimon, which makes a ton of sense... any time they'd follow Dr. Light, they wound up in jail!  Ol' Artie gets chased outta dodge.

We shift scenes over to the Outsiders' headquarters atop the Wayne Foundation Building, where both teams get better acquainted... sorta.  Terra acts like a bit of a jerk, but that's kinda her gimmick... so the Outsiders shouldn't take it all that personally.  We do get a few "parallels" here, which is pretty neat.  Both Wonder Girl and Halo don't know about their pasts... Kid Flash and Black Lightning both do-si-do with retirement... it's pretty cool stuff.

After awhile, Batman calls for the heroes to assemble in the meeting room.  He and Dr. Jace have deduced that the Fearsome Five's target will be Manhattan.  Robin chips in with a bit of information from the NYPD police band...

... which Batman heeds, yet doesn't go out of his way to thank Dick for presenting.  It sure feels like Marv and Mike keep trying to paint the other-guy's guy as the whiner, don't it?

It isn't long before the heroes arrive in Manhattan's Central Park where Psimon and Dr. Light are duking it out (so to speak).  The good guys seem to choose Dr. Light as the lesser of two evils, and lash out at Psimon.  Good thing Zatanna mind-wiped Batman back in the long ago, ain't it?  Well, it's a good thing for Arthur Light, anyway.

Before the skirmish ends, a mind-controlled Halo strikes at the heroes... this gives Light the opportunity to slip away, or it would, if Black Lightning weren't there to zap him good.  Raven slips in to sooth Halo's soul.

We shift scenes over to the Empire State Building, where the Fearsome Five are making their way toward the antenna, hopeful that it will give Psimon better range for use with his newly souped-up powers.  They flip a switch (for some reason... ceremony, perhaps?) and before we know it, the people of New York City are under his control.

Well, not everybody.  Ya see, the heroes have headed over to Titans Tower, where Dr. Jace has created a ray to shield whoever is hit by it from Psimon's mental powers.  Pretty convenient, innit?  Anyhoo... the heroes all bathe in the light.  Meanwhile, Dr. Light spills the beans on the Five's plans.

The heroes head toward the Empire State Building, which does give Gar the opportunity to pretend to be King Kong and invite Halo to be his Fay Wray.  Smooth.

Batman's on the ground directing traffic, he insists that none of the controlled civilians are injured... which, really ought to go without saying, right?  He then breaks the crew into teams... and it's here that Robin has finally had enough.  He pulls rank and rejiggers Batman's teams... while telling him off!

The heroes make their way into the Empire State Building... and make extremely short work of the Fearsome Five Four.  Like, extremely short work.  I'm not the biggest fan of these geeks... and even I think they were jobbed out here.

Once Psimon is stuck in stasis, all of the New Yorkers come to.  We then wrap up back at Titans Tower.  We learn that Dr. Light escaped... but didn't take his costume with him!  Looks like he quits (for now)!

Terra and Geo-Force celebrate their unexpected reunion with a hug... during which, Tara laments the fact that she has to betray the Titans... who now consider themselves friends with the Outsiders.

Finally, Batman and Robin make nice... and officially end their hero/sidekick relationship.  For now, they are both bonafide heroes and team-leaders in their own right.

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Okay, a quick... but satisfying enough ending to our two-part crossover.  We have a few things to unpack...

Same as yesterday, let's start with a look at some Bat-Family Drama.  It's with this chapter that we see Robin start with the passive (and not-so passive) aggression... and in light of how things went down in New Teen Titans #37, it's kinda funny that Mike W. Barr writes him this way.

I remember during my early days in the fandom, we'd hear about creators being protective of their characters.  Like, the ones in their creative "fiefdom".  They wanted to have a certain amount of "say" over the characters they write when they appear in other peoples' books... which, I mean, I don't hold that against 'em!  It only makes sense, from a characterization standpoint that you wouldn't want guest-appearances to contradict character-beats in the home book.  I wish more writers were as protective these days!

They don't always get it right (I'm thinking of that Punisher/Wolverine "crossover" from the early days of Jemas/Quesada Marvel... woof), but I like it when characters are kept "in-character" regardless of which book they appear in.

But what I'm getting at here, is... yesterday, Marv paints Batman as a whiny, passive-aggressive sort... and today Mike kinda flips the script, and adds some whinge to Robin.  I mean, all's well that ended well, but I still found this kinda interesting.  I wonder if either writer took issue with the way "their guy" was treated?

Let's look at the Markov's for a moment.  Terra looks to be having second thoughts about the ramifications of her betrayal.  I wanna make it clear, she never wavers from the plan... but, does seem concerned with how it might ultimately affect her brother, Brion.  This is a point in the "Terra's not evil/insane" column... from here, the "Judas Contract" betrayal looks to be... just a job.  Since this was scripted by Barr... I'm not sure how "official" this depiction is.

The Fearsome Five... I said it yesterday (and earlier today), they're not my favorites... but, c'mon... the poor goofs got jobbed out here, didn't they?  Very seldom am I an advocate for stretching out a story, but this probably could've done with a Part Three.

Overall... there's a lot to like here!  Batman and Robin bury the hatchet... with the latter seemingly being "graduated" from his sidekick role and being seen more as an equal by his mentor.  I'd say it's definitely worth a look.  This arc has been collected a whole bunch, and this issue is available digitally.

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New Teen Titans #37 (1983)

New Teen Titans #37 (December, 1983)
"Light's Out, Everyone!"
Writer - Marv Wolfman
Layouts - George Perez
Embellisher - Romeo Tanghal
Colors - Adrienne Roy
Letters - John Costanza
Co-Plotter - Mike W. Barr
Cover Price: $0.75

I can't believe it's been over two-years since our "Life and Times of Tara Markov" series.  Feels like... well, a while ago, sure... but, two years plus?!  Dang.

Click the image to visit the dedicated page

Back in 2016, I'd left this Titans/Outsiders crossover out of that... as it didn't seem to be as Terra-centric as the other issues I'd chosen to cover.  Though, it is important for her, and the revelation that she and Geo-Force are family... I just didn't think it was Terra-as-Judas focused as the others.

We're going to begin rectifying that... right now!

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We open with a shot of Fearsome Five member, Gizmo zipping over to Tri-State Penitentiary, where some of his teammates are currently being held.  Inside, Shimmer is being attended to by a prison guard.  She is being bombarded by a stasis beam which keeps her from using her transmutation powers and escaping... that is, of course, until Gizmo tinkers with security system.  From here, we hop to the men's side of the clink, and find Shimmer's brother, Mammoth punchin' through a wall.  Easy peasy.

As he goes to leave, he runs into the leader (soon to be former leader) of the Fearsome Five... Dr. Light!  Artie begs to be let out, and after being made an offer he couldn't refuse, Mammoth decides to set him free.

Outside, the guards and officers stand by, stiff as statues... how can this be?  Well, enter: Psimon.  Dr. Light tries to pull rank, referring to himself as the leader of the Fearsome Five... and gets put in his place rather quickly.  It's like I always say, if you constantly have to remind people you're the one in charge, you're probably not.

The Five head over to their New Jersey digs, and get cleaned up.  Shimmer flips through the newspaper, and happens across a photo of Dr. Jace, who she recognizes from her (and Mammoth's) childhood in Australia.  Ya see, Jace's studies have to do with infusing super-powers into ordinary folks (like we'd seen with the Markovs).  Psimon suggests that if Jace were to strengthen the Fearsome Five's already present powers, they'd be unstoppable!  Gotta say, probably not the worst plan I'd ever heard.

From here, Marv reminds us that the book we're reading isn't called "The New Fearsome Five", and shifts the story over to Titans Tower.  New member, Terra has been given the "thumbs up", and for the most part, everyone seems to dig having her around.  She begins pressuring the team to give up their secrets, which... isn't the smoothest way to convince people you're trustworthy.  Donna hems and haws, and then... Terra's wrist-communicator thingie starts to go off.  She chooses not to fill the Titans in on what this means.

We gentle readers, however, will soon learn that beeping is her Dr. Jace alarm.  No kidding.  She runs off, fearful that Jace could spill the beans about how she came to have her powers to the Titans... which would somehow make them realize she's a double-agent.  That's quite the leap of logic, but as a paranoid goofball myself, I'll allow it.

And so, Terra heads in the direction of her wrist-alarm... which leads her right into battle with the Outsiders!

Lucky for her, the Titans decided to follow along... which quickly evens up the odds.  I'd have sworn the Titans were a known entity by this point, and the Outsiders might recognize them and perhaps not be all that keen on fighting them... but, whattayagonnado, it's comics.

The skirmish continues for a little while, until the arrival of... Geo-Force.  It's revealed here that Brion and Tara are brother and sister... and that Tara received her Earthy powers a year before Brion did.

With all the confusion now behind us, we find out that the Outsiders and Terra have the same goal... finding Dr. Jace.  They enter a nearby building, which Jace had been working out of... and see that her laboratory door has been transmuted into lead.  Hmm...

Donna suggests they all settle their tea kettles until they meet with their respective team-leaders.  Speaking of whom... we pop over to stately Wayne Manor, where Bruce and Dick are having a rather contentious conversation.  Dick suggests they end their professional relationship, as their concepts of justice have diverged quite far apart at this point.  Bruce... seems hurt by this, and worries that Dick might want to end their friendship as well.  Worth noting, Jason Todd (pre-Crisis, redhead) asks if he can be the next Robin here.

We rejoin the Fearsome (don't call 'em Fatal) Five... and, whattaya know, they've got Dr. Jace in their clutches.  Psimon mentally tortures her because he wants to know the "results of her investigations"... I thought he just wanted her to amp up his powers?  Oh well.  She doesn't wanna help... but, eventually comes around.  That just goes to show... you can never trust a Manhunter.

We shift next to Titans Tower, where the Titans and Outsiders plan their strategy.  It's... interesting, Batman keeps trying to needle Robin about his methods... seems the big guy might be a bit distracted (and maybe just a bit butt-hurt) here.

The discussion is interrupted by a video-call from Captain Hall.  Batman immediately waves him off, however, Robin asks him to speak.  It's going to be like this the whole time, innit?  Anyhoo, Hall tells of a break in at Bio-Tron Labs, where all of the steel doors had been transmuted into paper... which is kinda Shimmer's thing.  Also, mud-men... which is kinda Jace's Earthy thing.

The heroes head over to take a closer look at the mud-men.  Raven takes the lead and attempts to empathically "link" to one of them.  She is able to see (and project) the Fearsome Five and Dr. Jace in the mud-man's memories.  Worth noting, Jace does appear to be an unwilling accomplice.  Also worth noting, Terra doesn't seem to recognize her... but plays along like she does.

Raven then leads the heroes downtown to a dilapidated Bar at the Bowery.  Inside they meet an Archie Bunker lookalike who tells them about a strange man who came in... and took all of the patrons when he left.  Batman and Robin do a bit of Tec work, and find a trace of Tetryl... Dick links it to Psimon, who had been a physicist before having a window for a head.

Kory recalls reading that Psimon (as a civvie) had worked in a lab on a tiny island off Gotham City... and so, that's our next stop.  Wouldn'tcha know it, she was right!  The Fearsome Five have collected a new bunch of geeks for Dr. Jace to "enhance".  Just as the normies enter the change-chamber, the Titans and Outsiders burst through a nearby wall!  Man, if I had a dime for every wall the Titans have ever burst through...!

Naturally, a fight breaks out.  Raven heads off to procure Dr. Jace... leaving the heroes to fight the Five, and a new gaggle of mud-men.  When all hope looks to be gone for the baddies, Psimon flips a switch... and sinks the tiny island into Gotham Bay!

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I know I'm like a broken record sometimes... a lot of the times... all of the times (bound to happen doing this every day), but man... they did not skimp on story back in the 80's!  Had this crossover happened today, it would occupy at least six issues.

Now for me... the strongest part of this issue was that half-page discussion between Bruce and Dick.  You know me though, I'm a big-time sucker for Bat-Family dysfunction.  Thought that scene was very telling... we can see that Bruce and Dick have very different views on their partnership/relationship.

Dick seems like he can view his feelings for Bruce on both a professional and personal level.  Removing one does not necessarily negate the other.  They can still be pals in the "real world", they're just not going to go on patrols anymore.  Bruce doesn't seem to have this ability, and takes this suggested separation personally.  His initial reply has to do with dissolving their friendship!

Just thought that was interesting/telling.  Later scenes depicting Batman trying to undercut/question Robin's authority really illustrates how close to heart he's taking this professional "divorce".  Taking a step back, I thought Jason Todd suggesting he become the next Robin cool to see... I'm not sure I noticed/paid much mind to that during earlier reads.

Terra gets a bit of a spotlight here... but, certainly isn't the focus.  She's still digging for information from the Titans... and is pretty obvious about it at this point.  You'd almost figure the Titans for fools... but, they're just being played up as naive for believing only the best of people.

Terra reuniting with her brother Geo-Force was cool.  I'd like to think this would only cement people's thoughts that she'd eventually "come around" and become a hero.  Though Geo-Force wasn't exactly a tenured character at this point, it still links her to another super-team.

The Fearsome Five... ehh... I've never really been all that big on them, though I will say this was a pretty good showing for them.  Dr. Jace is another character that always bored me... plus, every time I type her name I get the Wheeled Warriors theme playing in my head.

Overall... this was a good time.  Great Bat-Family dysfunction, which, if you ask me... is worth the price of admission all on its own.  Luckily, everything else is quite well done as well.  Perez/Tanghal's take on the Outsiders was super!  This issue/crossover has been collected six ways to Sunday... it is also available digitally.

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