(P)Raising Kane: "The Night of the Snake" by Kane with O'Neil and DeZuniga

Hey, hey, hey, Groove-ophiles! You liked Gil Kane's western wonderment a couple'a weeks ago, so Ol' Groove has decided to treat ya to yet another little-seen GK western classic. "The Night of the Snake", from All Star Western #6 (April 1971), pointed toward the title's metamorphosis to becoming Weird Western Tales about a year later (mystery maven Joe Orlando had taken the editorial chair the issue before--wonder why the change took so long?), but on top of that it is one of the most gorgeous art jobs of the 70s! Plotted by Gil Kane, scripted by Denny O'Neil and penciled and inked by Kane and Tony DeZuniga, prepare your peepers for pictorial perfection!

Making a Splash: Sal Buscema Team-Up

Y'know, Groove-ophiles, Our Pal Sal Buscema penciled and/or laid out over 30 issues of Marvel Team-Up (starting with ish #20, January 1974) during the Groovy Age. That's a bunch! His powerhouse layouts always grabbed Young Groove--still do! And although Our Pal was at the mercy of his finishers a lot of times due to the Dread Deadline Doom, you could always count on him to deliver some superbly socko Spidey and friends splashes! I'm not gonna run all of 'em (not today, at least), but I do wanna share my Top Ten splashes (including interior and double-page splashes, natch), just so we can plant our peepers on a ton o'Sal superbadness (like that made-up woid?) all in one slide-n-glide. Dig?

 

MTU #40 (September 1975)

MTU #45 (February 1976)

MTU #82 (March 1979)

The Forgotten Batmen: "Clues of the False Faces!" by Robbins, Brown, and Cardy

Hey, hey, hey, Groove-ophiles! Today we're gonna dig the art of Forgotten Batman artist Bob Brown as inked by one of the masters of mood, Nick Cardy! Ol' Groove thinks they make a great artistic team and turn out a pretty cool Batman! Top that with a twisty Frank Robbins mystery, and you have "Clues of the False Faces!" from Detective Comics #430 (October 1972). Dig it!

Black and White Wednesday: "Well, Come on All You Big, Strong Men..." and more by Stern, Byrne, and Vohland

Greetings, Groove-ophiles! Ol' Groove is getting so excited about the upcoming Captain America: Winter Soldier movie that I can hardly stand it! Cap has always been at the tippy-top of my list of fave Marvel characters and I've loved Chris Evans' turns as Cap in The First Avenger and Avengers, so April 4th can't come soon enough for moi! That being said, yers trooly was in the mood for some Cap history...and one of the all-time best articles on the life and times of Steve Rogers was written nearly 40 years ago by Roger Stern for FOOM Magazine #8 (late 1974). "Well, Come on All You Big, Strong Men...", as well as shorter articles on Bucky and the Falcon were illustrated by John Byrne and Duffy Vohland. As most of ya know, in the early 80s, Stern and Byrne teamed for one of the best Captain America runs of all time, but that's a story for another time (and another blog). I bet you'll dig these articles on Cap, Falc, and Bucky--these heroes will be quite different from the movie versions--but underneath it all, Ol' Groove has the feeling they won't be too terribly different after all...

Cover art by John Romita, Sr. and Mike Esposito

The Boys from Derby: "The Frame" by Cuti and Staton

What it is, Groove-ophiles! Today we're gonna hit those mean streets with Nick Cuti and Joe Staton's Michael Mauser! From Vengeance Squad #5 (December 1975), prepare yourself for..."The Frame"!

Random Reads: "Labyrinth of the Grotto Minotaur!" by Uslan, Estrada, and Villamonte

Greetings, Groove-ophiles! We're gonna start our week with an ending--the final issue of DC's Beowulf mag! This final ish was a lot like most other issues, magic, monsters, barbarians, pretty girls. It was written by Michael Uslan as was every issue. The big difference is that regular artist Ricardo Villamonte didn't do his own layouts, they were handled by Ric Estrada. Villamonte did finish and ink the "Labyrinth of the Grotto Minotaur!" as well as provide the cover. Here ya go, Beowulf #6 (November 1976)!