Bring On the Back-ups: Thursday Two-fer! "With This Ring, Find Me Dead!" and "The Mystery Murder of 'Mrs. Batman'!" by Rozakis, Newton, and Hunt

Dig it, Groove-ophiles! Most folks think the late, great Don Newton's Batman debut was in Detective Comics #480 (August 1978), but in truth, Don's debut was a month earlier on a back-up strip called "Unsolved Cases of the Batman" in Batman #305 (July 1978), written by Bob Rozakis and inked by David Hunt, "With This Ring Find Me Dead!" was the first part of a two-parter that would climax in Batman #306 (September 1978) with "The Mystery Murder of 'Mrs. Batman'!" Of course, those of you well-versed in all things Batman know that the talented Mr. Newton would become a major Darknight Detective artist from 1979 until his untimely passing in 1984, making this two-parter quite a hidden treasure, don'tcha think?

Black and White Wednesday: "Marvin, the Dead-Thing! in One Is the Loneliest Number" by Milgrom and Marato

HooowOOOOOOO's it going, Groove-ophiles! Today we've got a black and white shocker from the unlikely but awesome team of writer (!) Al Milgrom and artist Esteban Maroto! Take a flying leap, Heap! You've lost your zing, Swamp-Thing! Don't call us, we'll give you a ring, Man-Thing! Marvin, the Dead-Thing is here to show you how a real swamp-monster swings! From Eerie #49 (May 1973) sing along with Marv (and Danny, Corey, Chuck and the guys) as we learn "One Is the Loneliest Number"!

Cover art by Enrich Torres (after Maroto?)

Groove's Faves: "Lightning Strikes...Thunder Kills!" by Conway, Swan, and Oksner

Greetings, Groove-ophiles! Remember the time when Gerry Conway was head writer of Superman, and he tried to "Marvel-ize" the Man of Steel with sub-plots, continuity, and "hip" dialogue? You don't? Well, it happened for a short while (long enough to land Merry Gerry the Superman/Spider-Man tabloid gig), and there were a few gems from that era. Superman #303 (June 1976) is one of those gems, at least to Ol' Groove. Conway (and artists Curt Swan and Bob Oksner) took a terrible villain, Whirlicane (most...horrible...name...ever...?) and put him in charge of the simply named but very much cooler Thunder and Lightning. Young Groove had a soft spot for that ill-fated pair of A.I.s, and their fate gave this tale the right bit of pathos to make it the kind of tale Superman story Ol' Groove really digs! Hope you like "Lighting Strikes...Thunder Kills!", too!

Cover art by Ernie Chua and Bob Oksner

Micronauts Monday: "Home Is Where the Heart Is!" by Mantlo, Golden, and Milgrom

We're back with more Micronauts, Groove-ophiles! If you've been keeping up, you'll notice that while we shared Micronauts #6 last month, we shared issues 7 (with Man-Thing) and 8 (with Captain Universe) even longer ago, so click those links and get on back h'year, Acroyear! Back? Okey doke, then let's dig in to ish #9 of our Micronauts saga, in which writer Bill Mantlo and Penciler Michael Golden continue to helm out microscopic marvels through their never-ending battle with the evil of Baron Karza, this time aided by inker Al Milgrom (who was also the mag's editor). We're going to the homeworld of Acroyear, baby, and have we got some mind-boggling action and a killer cliffhanger waiting for you! From Micronauts #9 (June 1979) let's find out why..."Home Is Where the Heart Is!"