Sci-Friday: "The Hole in Reality's Heart" by DeMatteis, Newton, and Mitchell

Hey, hey, hey, Groove-ophiles! Here's a suh-weet sci-fi collaboration between three guys who truly knew how to make memorable comics, writer J.M. DeMatteis, penciler Don Newton, and inker Steve Mitchell. From DC's short-lived science-fiction comic Time Warp #4 (January 1980), here's "The Hole in Reality's Heart"!

Making a Splash: Frank Robbin's Invaders, Part One

While Frank Robbins' art, to this day, divides many Groovy Age fans, most agree that his work on Marvel's Invaders was primo stuff. Here's a stack of his stunning splashes to prove my point...

Here's a trivial tidbit: the splash for Giant-Size Invaders #1 was actually the second splash Fearless Frank penciled for that dazzling debut ish. Writer/editor Roy Thomas liked Robbins' first splash page so much it was used as the cover to G.S.I. number one-and-only!

Black and White Wednesday: "Comes the End Time" by Richardson and Alcala

Hey, hey, hey, Groove-ophiles! The last great mag turned out by Warren during the Groovy Age was The Rook. What made it great for Teen Groove, though, was not the lead/title feature (though I truly dug it), but the inclusion Alfredo Alcala's classic hero Voltar as a back-up strip. Now, at the time, I'd read about Voltar in Maurice Horn's The World Encyclopedia of Comics and I'd seen Alcala's work in places like DC's mystery mags and Marvel's various Conan comics, so I knew what to expect. Or so I thought. When I flipped to "Comes the End Time" (scripted by Will Richardson aka Bill Dubay) in The Rook #2 (cover-dated February 1980), I was blown away. I knew about Alcala's lush inks, his feathery line that made his characters look more like three-dimensional statues than drawings. But the full- and double-page spreads, the amount of eye-boggling detail--I wasn't ready for that. Are you?

Addicted to Alex Nino: "Check the J.C. Demon Catalogue Under...Death!" by Parente, Lillian III, and Nino

Here ya go, Groove-ophiles! Yet another awe-inspiring example of the amazing artistry of Alex Nino--this time on a story co-written by Bill Parente and celebrated Groovy Age DC letterhack Guy H. Lillian III. From House of Mystery #245 (July 1976), it's time to "Check the J.C. Demon Catalogue Under...Death!"

Random Reads: "The Sky Above...the Pits Below!" by Conway and Buckler

What it is, Groove-ophiles! Today's random read is a perfect example of what a random read can be! Gerry Conway had been working on a Thor/Hercules epic since Thor #221 (December 1973), first with Big John Buscema, then with Rich "Swash" Buckler. The big story wound up with Thor 229 (August 1974), but the loose ends needed tied up in ish 230 (September 1974) in Conway and Buckler's "The Sky Above...the Pits Below!" Not only was this epilogue a satisfying read on its own (the loose ends get tied up early allowing Thor and Herc time to get in a quickie adventure), but it iced the cake for regular readers. Something for everyone, and not once while reading it did we think, "Man, I wish Marvel would put out an encyclopedia so we could figure out what's happening here!" Enjoy!