[Superman Fan Club] PRESENTS: Challenge of the Superfans! Week 8 An Issue a Week of Superman Silver and Bronze Age Event!

Welcome to Week 8 of a very special challenge / contest reading one single issue a week from the currently- digitized DC Universe Infinite collection of Silver and Bronze Age Superman and Family comic!

This time around: SILVER AGE!

THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD (1955-) #63 (December 1965)

When Supergirl rescues a movie actress and sees the movie crew attending to her every little need, she decides to quit being a heroine and search for romance and glamor as a Paris model. Superman her cousin freaks out.

I flipped through THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD (1955-) #63
  • Yes I did!
  • Oops, I did not!

0 voters

The current standings in the Challenge of the SuperFans 52 week Reading Event:

1 Like

Hmmm, I hope it’s ok to read this one.

1 Like

@DantheManOne1

@Clucktrent

@rudirepulsion.17860

@rexrebel

@bar-el

@thepringles1.19584

@CaptainYesterday

@patterson65.37405

@AlexanderKnox

2 Likes

:crying_cat_face: my iPad no longer works with the app! Don’t tell my boss I’m using my work computer to read comics. Off work time is fine right :joy: I’m catching back up I swear!

1 Like

I read this once before, and frankly I had hoped to never read it again, but I did in the name of the fan club. lol.

Seriously this story is one of the biggest examples of “has not aged well”. I do feel it is unfair to judge a story written in a different time through modern eyes. But when I read stories like this all I think is that yeah, the comic book industry was written and edited by men but I mean had those men never interacted with women before. Because I can’t buy even in the 60’s this would not read ridiculous to most women.

But it isn’t even that reading it in the 21st century it comes off objectively sexist that makes me deem this a bad comic. But even by the stories own logic it is so ridiculous.

For one with Wonder Woman specifically she literally has a guy who loves her for what she really is and doesn’t expect her to put on some act. So some random guy she just met makes her forget that and all she has to do to have him is act like a completely different person? Makes no sense.

And how would the guys just think they were dainty when they KNOW who they are. I mean not like their super strength just… went away.

And on top of that (yes I have a lot to say about this), even going by the stories logic wouldn’t being a “daint little thing” to get a guy to like you while being super in secret be a literal reason to use a secret identity. I mean can’t Supergirl just put on that act as Linda and get a guy and still be Supergirl. That is like literally how secret identities work.

On a final note while I guess arguable in the specific time this story was written it was a bit less so compared to now or even before. But they kept talking like being a superheroine was SO unnatractive, which made no sense given comic companies are well documented for sexualizing superheroines.

Yeah I am being hard on this one, like I said it is not just that it’s portrayal of women is both outdated but I doubt truly relatable to most female readers even back then (and why would a little boy who was the target audience for most comics back then have any interest in a story so full of “mushy stuff”) but even by it’s own logic it doesn’t make any sense.

Also the villain was stupid, why have the power to change faces if it won’t factor in any way into the story. He could have been a generic non powered mad scientist and the story would literally not play out any differently. Why even bother.

Ok NOW I am done tearing it to shreds. lol.

This book is mildly humorous in how out dated it is, but don’t feel it offers much else. It isn’t even so bad it’s good to me although some will probably disagree. And seriously I think that is the third time I read this junk… here is hoping it is the last.

2 Likes

yikes, I got to tell you the app’s been real funky for me lately on Android. I’ll hit a thread (like your Vroom birthday celebration) but I’ll end up in another thread for some reason over and over.

No worries, we’ll log you in as you get a chance to read!

2 Likes

Wow Dan, sorry, I didn’t realize you’d read this twice before, oops. Now that’s commitment to the Silver age Superman family!

I look at this challenge as kind of like going to a family gathering at Thanksgiving- some of the people there you really like, others drive you absolutely insane, but since it’s family, you take the good with the bad.

To me the other part of our attempt to read everything that has been digitized for the Superman and Family Silver and Bronze age is the historic value of studying all of this. There were plenty of 60s TV shows that were equally goofy and incomprehensible in how they presented women back then.

And a personal note, I was just excited to see a very early team-up of Supergirl and Wonder Woman even existed.

Last thought, and I apologize for being a little wordy here, no question we’re going to run into stories that just aren’t well-written. That’s all part of reading a genre that has a demand to be published regularly even today. It would probably have a better on this one if they had just taken the month off and let the owner of the company deal with less money that month lol.

3 Likes

I did enjoy the SG and WW team up , I wonder if it was their first? Typical type of story for the period, but entertaining nevertheless. Though, it could’ve been printed in the 80’s just as easily, today, I think not.

3 Likes

I thought I had a good deal when I bought this for $7 a couple of decades ago.

John Rosenberger is not a Silver Age artist I’m fond of. The years before this comic he did mostly issues of The Comet and Jaguar for Archie Comics. After this he worked on DC’s romance titles. He returned to the super hero side with Lois Lane in the 1970s and even a couple issues of Superman Family and Wonder Woman.

Bob Haney can write some outrageous and wonderful tales, but when he goes off the rails, watch out!

Brave & the Bold was edited at this time by George Kashdan. He also had Aquaman, Seas Devils, Blackhawk and Metamorpho in his portfolio and would add Teen Titans (written by Bob Haney) later in 1966.

So yes, Super Chicks/ Wonder Chick, all the same guy.

I suspect the story would have been better off in an issue of Wonder Woman. You get a full issue and the creative team has more invested in the issue. See Wonder Woman #177 for a much better effort.

“You may be a great hero…but in the romance department–well, just ask Lois Lane!” OK there’s a great line.

Wonder Girl (who was Wonder Woman as a girl) was erased in Wonder Woman #158 the month before. It’s not the last time Bob Haney will ignore that.

In the actual comic there is a page devoted to “Unsung Heroines” that informs the reader of accomplishments of women in history.

At least the third chapter is good. The last winks at the end were a nice touch.

NOTE: I looked and Wonder Woman #177 IS on DCUI. It was the last issue before “Mod” Wonder Woman took over.

3 Likes

I’ll add Wonder Woman 177 to the list of Silver and Bronze Age Superman and Family comics digitized on DCUI for us to eventually read as we work on examining every available issue.

3 Likes

Your list of the other books edited by George Kashdan, the editor of this particular Brave and Bold comic, notes many of the favorite series of my youth in the sixties that are heavily featured on one of the bookshelves in my home office. I was just reviewing the one issue of Sea Devils I own as well as the Showcase Edition I have of their fine adventures. I have a handful of Metamorpho issues from the late 60s, a couple that are really gorgeous, featuring him in some sort of Egyptian conflict. I have an issue of Teen Titans from back then with them fighting some guy who was driving one of those dragster-Munster type hot rods.

Too bad, no Superman Family to be seen in this issue for us to read it LOL

I need to pick up some of the 1960s Blackhawk adventures. I just have the first volume of the archives and frankly it’s pretty offensive stuff from the early 40s.

I also occasionally pick up superhero comics of the 60s from the Archie line. I have a couple of issues with the Jaguar from that time. The Comet is one of the strange-looking heroes I’ve ever seen. I mainly saw him with the Mighty Crusaders.

2 Likes

I loved the art in this one! The movement was fantastic! :00_wonder_woman_1982: hair was gorgeous

image

All the little panel direction arrows were necessary and kinda funny! I love having these super gal pals in the same comic! This was almost as great as a Lois & Lana comic!

2 Likes

Great hair and free French lessons! What more do you want out of a comic I say!

It was a similar style of hair that hypnotized me into marriage about 48 years ago.

2 Likes

Many of the writers of this era tried way too hard to make the characters sound hip. I think they were about a decade behind on the lingo.

2 Likes

I’m pretty sure DC comics published The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis a few years before with the same type of hep talk, maybe not the same writer, so they had no idea they were behind the times LOL.

2 Likes

Brave and the Bold #63

THING THAT STRUCK ME THE MOST
There is great truth in the basic premise of this comic: many people who seemed destined for great things, great service to others, have fallen hard because of love / romance smitting them. Think of all the recent politicians who are now tossed out because of inappropriate images they have sent to others they are attracted to. Anyone recall a president named Clinton? on and on…and that’s the tip of the Titanic iceberg…

@DanTheManOne1 makes a great point above- this temptation to get distracted or worse by admirers / fans who throw themselves at them very much could happen to superheroes in costume, just like it does to police, firefighters, etc. They don’t need to go to romantic Paris as fashion models for that to be a great story arc.

I always find it interesting when I see themes from the Silver Age comics popping back up in Modern Superman comics. Superman also goes to Wonder Woman when Kara appears after 25 years in the storyline also made into the animated film Superman Batman Apocalypse- do I have that right @Bar-El ? I think it’s been almost a year since you held the watchalong for it.

Above is why I don’t wear bracelets…magnets everywhere dontchaknow?

I want to state that overall I am glad this is digitized for us to legally view this comic. There are still gaps in what is available on DC Universe Infinite comics library for Brave and the Bold, some of my very favorite issues in fact from my 1960’s youth (Black Canary / Starman teamups) along with cool Metamorpho first appearances etc. But my philosophy on this is: let’s enjoy what is here, the things we can control etc.

1 Like

For those of you too young to understand, here’s a point of reference:

Another problem was the villain. He’s a bad guy who has some minor shape shifting ability, but it’s extremely limited, since his face changes based on how he feels (A fox head when he feels “foxy” etc.). Besides, his scheme has nothing to do with his power, all of which makes for a bland, unmemorable antagonist.

2 Likes

So a poor man’s James Bond villain LOL

2 Likes

Close, in the Superman/Batman comic The Girl from Krypton, and it’s animated adaptation in S/B: Apocalypse, Wonder Woman basically abducts Supergirl to take her to Themyscira to train and hone her skills, much to Superman’s ire.

2 Likes