All-Star Squadron and Woverine

 

Logan would have already been in operation when the All-Stars were formed, so it's not out of the questions that they would cross paths.  Hos healing factor would be a big help against that pesky Spear.

Liberty Belle and Union Jack

 

I always liked reading about these two wartime heroes, even if they never quite hit the A-list. They look great too - Union Jack's has a vary cool outfit and Libby Lawrence wears her jodhpurs well. 

Thor and The All-Star Squadron

 

It will be interesting to see what kind of role Thor will play in the next Avengers movies, seeing as he is the last remaining of the founding members (I'm not counting The Hulk, who is just green Mark Ruffalo now).  The real question is, will the God of Thunder survive the experience?

Liberty Belle and Miss America

 

I was looking into images for this cover and was pleasantly reminded that issue #2 of Miss America from 1944 featured a photo cover of  the title character.  I believe it actually may even be Venus Ramey, the real life Miss America from that year, in the costume.  Very cool to see golden age cosplaying done so well!

The Super Secret Service

 

I've been meaning to use Agent Liberty on a cover for a while.  I enjoyed the character when he appeared in the Superman titles and was disappointed that he never really caught on and became a more popular hero.  They presented a version of him on Supergirl, but it was a more villainous take that I didn't care for.  I have also been meaning to do a team of patriotic themes heroes, so this cover checked off a couple of boxes for me.

All-Star Squadron and Thunderbolts

Here are two teams perfect for a streaming series treatment.  Sure, I'd love to see both on the big screen, but they probably aren't considered high profile enough to get that chance.  The stories of second string heroes having to protect the home front during wartime or a group of villains masquerading as heroes and the effect that has on them have a lot of potential.  I can see both having success in a long form serial format.

Liberty Belle and The Invaders

Happy 4th of July!

It looks like the Disney/Fox merger is about to finally go through, which mean there should be no obstacle to using The Human Torch (be it Storm or Hammond) in the movies.  I understand the Namor has a similar situation with The Hulk's - rights issues mean he can't have a solo film, but can appear as a guest star.  Given the fact that we only saw the bulk of Captain America's war years in a brief montage, there's no reason we can't have an Invaders movie now.   Let's hope it's something that Marvel Studios considers one of these days.

All-Star Squadron and The Inhumans

I am glad that the original Justice Society members are poised for some kind of a return due to DC Rebirth.  I hope that also means that the extended cast of characters from All-Star Squadron will make some appearances as well.  Liberty Belle, Amazing man, Commander Steel, Tarantula and many others may not have been official JSA members, but I always enjoyed following their adventures.

This is only Part One of a Two-Part Epic - be sure to come back for the thrilling conclusion tomorrow!

Captain America and Liberty Belle

I remember being intrigued by the line-up of the All-Star Squadron after that series ended its first issue.  It was a mix of JSAers that I was familiar with, a serious Plastic Man, a few classic characters I remembered from reprints (Robotman, Johnny Quick, Shining Knight) and a couple of other heroes that I knew very little about.   It was good that writer Roy Thomas was able to fill in the histories of some of comicdom's first crimefighters, and I enjoyed reading the exploits of Liberty Belle and Firebrand as much as the Earth-Two A-listers that went in and out of the title. I am glad that Liberty Belle became a part of DC's legacy concept with her and Johnny Quick becoming the parents of contemporary hero Jesse Quick.

All-Star Squadron and The Sub-Mariner

I was looking over some issues of All-Star Squadron the other day and it struck me what a value each issue was.  Not only did you get lot's of heroes for your money, and great artwork by the likes of Jerry Ordway, Adrian Gonzales and Joe Kubert, the stories themselves were very dense.  Roy Thomas's love and knowledge of comics' golden age was clear with his very detailed scripts.  The artist were up to the task of interpreting his tales, and it was not uncommon to find 6 or more panels per page.  These comics felt like a full meal, not just a snack like too many of today's series with decompressed writing and large paneled pages that seem more concerned about original art resale than storytelling.

The All-Star Squadron and Spider-Man

I was glad to see a cover image for James Robinson's Earth Two series posted today on http://dcu.blog.dccomics.com/ but have to admit I am surprised to see it featuring Earth Two versions of the big three - Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman.  I figured that they would concentrate more on the trio of Alan Scott, Jay Garrick and Ted Grant.  It will be interesting to see if the big three will be a regular part of the series or perhaps killed off early on to serve as a motivation for the rest of Earth Two's heroes and a divergence point from the mainstream DCU. I am very glad to see Jerry Ordway getting regular work in the DC reboot, but I kind of wish he was on this Earth Two title... he is my favorite JSA artist, hands down.

This cover was tougher to do than I thought it would be.  I figured it would be a simple matter of swapping out The Tarantula for Spider-Man, but repairing and replacing parts of the background spider web was a pain!

The Thing and The All-Star Squadron

Having been a huge fan of the Justice Society, I was very happy when All-Star Squadron first debuted. Finally, here was an Earth-Two series where all the characters were in their prime! I loved that it gave a spotlight for lesser known characters like Johnny Quick, Robtman and The Shining Knight, and that it featured a more serious version of Plastic Man than the one I had seen before. Add to that gorgeous artwork by Jerry Ordway and covers by Joe Kubert, and you had a comic that always made it to the top of my stack. Writer Roy Thomas could sometimes get a bit wordy and bogged down by continuity minutia but his vast knowledge of the title's expansive cast more than made up for those minor quibbles. This series was clearly a labor of love for him. It's a shame that All-Star Squadron could not last after the ramifications of Crisis on Infinite Earths and I hope someday we will see a new take on the concept.