Game Archives Books

deserves the big screen treatment. Far more interesting than the X-Men, this is the story about a group of people who become superheroes through no fault of their own (its the result of machinations from somebody, but you'll have to read the series to find out), and how they deal with being "different". Negative Man, Robotman and Elastigirl are three of the most tragic figures ever to grace the comic page and their stories are far more pathetic than anything in X-Men(not that I don't like X-Men). Read the series. You won't be disappointed.

Doom Patrol, as represented in the first volume of their Archives Edition, was an interesting attempt in the 1960s at DC to expand the notion of what makes a super-hero, along with Deadman, Challengers of the Unknown, Eclipso, and Metamorpho (most of these heroes created by Bob Haney, the author behind the Doom Patrol). Their resemblance to the X-Men is obvious although DC was never able to create an environment where the oddball heroes fit in as well with Superman, Batman, et al, whereas the X-Men never seemed out of place in the Marvel universe. But Doom Patrol's biggest weakness was its lack of stand-out villains. The X-Men had Magneto and his Brotherhood of Evil Mutants while the Doom Patrol struggled along with General Immortus and the Brotherhood of Evil. The Doom Patrol stories are still quite charming, though, and show great promise for what could have been. It was an adventurous experiment at DC to create a team of outcast heroes that is worth checking out.

Found this to be one of the best archives that DC has to offer. And from one of the least popular series they had. The art and stories are superb. And still stand today. I had reservations about getting this. But when DC announced that there was going to be a new Doom Patrol series coming I decided it was time to get to know these characters all over again. And guess what. Not a single disappointment.
Pick this up if you get the chance. You will not be disappointed. So glad I did. Already ordered Vol.2. So enjoy.

They were four damaged people: Rita Farr, a beautiful actress who, while shooting on location, was exposed to a gas that gave her the power to vary her height; Larry Trainor, a daring test-pilot who flew through a belt of radiation, and come through with the ability to release an embodiment of negative energy, but only for a minute at a time; Cliff Steele, a race-car driver, until the crash that destroyed everything but his brain, which was transferred into a robot body, and; Niles Caulder, the brilliant genius who brought these people together as a force for good. They are Elasti-Girl, Negative Man, Robotman, and the Chief: the Doom Patrol.

Contrary to popular belief, DC Comics figured out pretty quickly that rival Marvel Comics formula of character-development was something that they needed to infuse into their own line. The problem was that they were very hesitant to do this with their big gun characters: Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman, iconic characters that never had any of the problems Spider-man did. However, DC had no problem creating new characters in the Marvel style: fantastic characters with a down-to-earth core.

Perhaps the best example of this approach is the Doom Patrol. This was a team of strong individuals who found themselves possessed of powers that they didn't want. Indeed, for these characters, there was very little hope of ever being normal again. So, they did the next best thing: they fought people who were in worse shape than them, hell-bent on spreading evil.

Arnold Drake's writing made the most of the bizarre premise. The villains were sinister, vile, and above all, quirky. Of course, while General Immortus, the centuries-old genius, was perhaps the team's most persistent enemy, by far their best loved was the Brotherhood of Evil. Led by the Brain, a disembodied brain, and Monsieur Mallah, a surgically enhanced gorilla, the team was the Doom Patrol's counter-part; misfits that sought revenge on the world.

Amazingly, Drake's scripts never stretch credibility to the breaking-point. He stayed within the rules he set for himself, and never forgot that his heroes were suffering, and not always in silence. They pined for normality, they wished for acceptance, they bickered amongst themselves. At the same time, he never let the action get bogged down in the team's personal traumas. Moreover, Drake tailored the stories to spotlight the unique abilities of his characters, while examining the strengths and weaknesses of their individual personalities.

Bruno Premiani's name is not one of those artists who immediately named when discussing comic book greats. He probably should be. As his artwork proves here, Premiani had a strong sense of realism. He made the most of his talented line work, grounding his art with a realistic sensibility that further underscored the bizarre tone of the series. One only need to look at the gorilla Mallah, and the extraordinary detail he paid to the character's design. Truly, Premiani was a craftsman, and deserves much more recognition.

It's not hard to see why, although never a first-string book, "The Doom Patrol" is still remembered fondly today. It was a unique mix of absurd super-heroics and sharp character-drama. While DC recently made some questionable continuity decisions about these characters, they've wisely pulled away from them. So enjoy these wonderfully weird stories.

A group of disgruntled social outcasts with super powers comes under the guidance of a wheel-chair bound genius and is frequently called on to save a general populace they increasingly grow to despise.

You got it...the X-Men, right? Nope. The Doom Patrol.

The comparisons are immediate and striking (The Chief/Professor X, The Brotherhood of Evil/The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants), and given that Doom Patrol actually predated the X-Men by several months, one has to wonder if Stan the Man and the merry men at Marvel didn't pass out a few copies of Doom Patrol at editorial meetings.

But to the stories themselves: the characters are great. The heroes find that their powers have literally ruined their ability to lead normal lives. They are resentful. They find code names stupid and embarrassing and call each other by their first names. Even in attempting to forge relationships with each other, they frequently fail due to shattered self-confidence over their own perceptions of themselves as nothing more than freaks. Remember kids, this wasn't written in the 80's or 90's. This was written in 1963!

Arnold Drake's scripts are hokey by today's standards, with what can be called B-movie dialogue and plots. However, once you accept them on that level (don't look for the gritty realism of the 80's or 90's), they are great fun. Bruno Premiani's artwork is simply excellent, at places it reminds me of Brian Bolland. I agree that it is simply unfathomable that Premiani is not held in more esteem.

While X-Men became a mass market phenomenon, Doom Patrol has had what can be charitably called a star-crossed publishing history. No incarnation of it has ever lasted, although Grant Morrison gave it a great run in the early 90's which I recommend to anyone. Somehow, though, this is sadly appropriate for Arnold Drake's original vision of the quintessential unhappy super heroes. They just never got popular enough to sell out.

The next time you see Hugh Jackman or Patrick Stewart onscreen, or walk past the endless rows of X-Men compilations in a comic book store, do yourself a favor and find the DC section and introduce yourself to these characters. Take the Doom Patrol challenge: go for the original.

This here's my surprising winner for the best of the DC Archive editions. This ones kind of a greatest hits collection but the Golden Age stories hold up well, and are quite entertaining. Tho, the artwork for the older stories isn't the best, the newer tales have real nice artwork. I'd love to see a Volume 2 for Black Canary.

This DC Archive Edition of Golden Age and Silver Age Black Canary comics tales is a real goodie. The Judo-chopping , Ju-Jitsu-tossing crime fighter was always into heavy conflict with the criminal underworld and was, in many ways, a lineal ancestor to the tough-as-nails Cathy Gale and Emma Peel of t.v.'s "Avengers" years later. She also shared some common
ground with t.v. detective Joe Mannix (Mike Connors) and 50's pinup legend Bettie Page. Like Mannix she was always getting bonked on the head by the baddies, and, like Bettie, she was always getting tied up.

Somehow, over the years, the Canary always managed to get herself un-tied in time to save her life and catch the crooks, and, like Mannix himself, fortunately all that head-conking never resulted in permanent brain damage. so our heroine never got "punchy" on us.

These charming, exciting "old school" comics stories are lots of fun and showcase some fine artwork by some of those artist icons that are well remembered by long-time fans (certainly by "boomers"). A great deal of the work is by Carmine Infantino, who later would become a DC "staple" with his work in the Silver Age "Flash", as well as "Adam Strange" in Mystery In Space , the recurring "Space Museum" stories in Strange Adventures, and the "New Look" 60s "Batman".

Also putting in an appearance is Murphy Anderson, a very gifted artist in his own right, as well as Infantino's best Silver Age inker (apart from Infantino himself).

A special treat at the end of the volume is a two-part adventure illustrated by the late, legendary Alex Toth (world renowned for his late 50s-early 60s "Zorro" work for Dell), arguably the best graphics design/layout artist in comics. Toth's bold blacks and panel designs are always a blast and he is really clicking on this particular contribution.

Black Canary Archives, Vol. I ....get one. It's a keeper.

Another one of DC Comics' excellent Archive editions, this volume centers on the Golden Age female superhero, the one and only Black Canary( the one that appears in the Birds of Prey comic book is her daughter, and is thus Black Canary II). Black Canary(a.k.a Dinah Lance) was one of the few prominent female superheroes in the early days of comics, the only other famous examples being Wonder Woman and Supergirl.
These tales(which span from the 1940's up to the 1970's), include the following issues: Flash Comics # 86-104, Comics Cavalcade #25, DC Special Edition #3, The Brave & The Bold # 61-62, and Adventure Comics # 399,418-419.

This collection includes adventures from her entire solo career, from 1947 to 1972, starting with a support role in the comedic crime strip, "Johnny Thunder" (a minor character from the WWII-era DC lineup), and moving on up to a brainlessly goofy hippie-era plotline involving a women's lib group that was actually a front for a notorious criminal mastermind. It's all good stuff; not too substantive on the writing side of things, but nice light fun nonetheless. The best part is Carmine Infantino's artwork, which was highly imitative of newspaper cartoonist Milton Canniff, with a rugged yet stylish flair -- very different from the fluid, slapdash style Infantino adopted later in the '50s and '60s. I really enjoyed reading this one, and found it less repetitive than other volumes in the series... It's also nice to see one of the lesser, neglected Golden Age characters finally get their due, particularly one as foxy as the Lana Turner-ish Black Canary... Wish they'd do a DC archive for Wildcat, as well!

This book not only contains Black Canary's Golden Age appearences, but also includes some of her Silver Age appearences too. Very nice volume that covers a lot of Canary's early history. Like the fact her first appearence she was described as being a villian, although she stole from criminals only. Then she bacame a hero fighting, early on, with Johnny Thunder (Who should get his own volume to. Email DC and say you want one!) Canary then went on to do a solo gig in her own feature in Flash comics. This volume even shows her team up with Starman - which now in DC history is when Canary had an afrair with Starman.
So if you want to find out about the early adventures of Diana Drake, the first Black Canary (Diana lance, now appearing in Bird of Prey, is her daughter) then buy this volume!

Excellent reading. Considering what NASA is now working
on; (The X-43A); I'll say these guys were definitely
visionaries in 1962, with a manned flight of an X-50.
Warner Brothers, It's time for the Green Lantern!

The second volume of the sect starts reprints from Issue 6.

We see the Green Lantern Corps for the first time, an involved story of the Guardians and GL's greatest foe Sinestro.

Plenty of Kane and Fox what more can anyone ask?

Green Lantern has always been an interesting member of the 'super hero' group by DC. As a boy, I used to look forward to the Justice League of America comic to see him in action. Later, when I discovered he had his own title, I began to buy it as well.

The character is uniquely human has an interesting story thread -- the mysterious guardians at OA, Sinestro (the renegade green lantern), Carol Ferris, and so on. Like The Flash, many of the characters come back for encores and give readers something they're familiar with - something to come home to.

This book, volume two in the GL series, is a fine addition to the growing DC Archive collection. Nicely hard bound, it consists of 222 full color pages on quality paper featuring 14 complete adventures of the Silver Age Green Lantern.

Features in this volume are the origin of Sinestro, how Green Lantern came up with his oath, and a battle between GL and the Flash. Great stories all.

If you enjoyed the Silver Age of DC comics -- if you liked the exploits of Green Lantern -- if you like well-done stories (for a comic book), this book will not disappoint you. It makes a fine addition to the first volume of the series. I hope they make a third.

The rest of the oath?

.... no evil shall escape my sight. Let those who worship evil's might, Beware my power, Green Lantern's light.

~Paul~

I highly recommend this book to all Green Lantern fans! It contains the early adventures of Hal Jordan...and even has a guest appearnce by The Flash (Wally West). Trust me, when you start to read it you won't put it down!

The stories reprinted in this volume are by John Broome and Gil Kane, both masters of the medium in their prime. Herein you will meet for the first time (or revist as they were the first time) alien Green Lanterns, the rogue Green Lantern Sinestro, and the Green Lantern Corps. See GL travel to a future where he is unknown only to himself. Wittness the begining of Green Lantern's legendary friendship with The Flash. These stories, even moreso than those in volume 1, set the plots in motion that would keep Green Lantern exciting for over 35 years. These are the very best stories from the Silver Age of Comics.

This book features beautifully executed illustrations of both male and female Byzantine fashions from the empire's many ages. Adapted from works of late-antique and medieval art, the drawings present emperors, aristocrats, townspeople, country people, clerics, and soldiers. The introduction gives an overview of terms pertaining to Byzantine clothing. Explanatory notes, including reference to the time period and to the class of individuals represented, accompany each drawing. Finally, the closing pages contain small depictions of the various hats, hairstyles, and footwear worn throughout Byzantium's long millennium. A valuable resource for students of Byzantine history, and a genuine visual treat.

I would recomend this coloring book to any young artist, especially one that loves history. Actually, I think all the Dover coloring books are great: very detailed and beautiful!

When I've got a Tom Tierney coloring book, I know I'm in for a world of fashion fun. I own several of Mr. T.'s coloring books - and have enjoyed all of them immensely.

I always have a creative blast with Tom's coloring books. He draws each person as an individual with interesting expressions and body language which I find invites me to create dialog for the character, especially since there are usually two figures per page.

Tom also supplies interesting facts about the fashions being worn and the time period.

The fashions and figures are always very well drawn. Some of the designs are intricate, if a child finds the smaller lines difficult to manage, I would suggest just color over the design/pattern on the clothes--it will still look wonderful--if you use something which allows the design to show through the color.

I do them with markers that won't bleed through, and colored chalk applied with Q-tips.

An ideal coloring book for anyone who enjoys coloring people and costumes/clothes.

Highly recommended.

As an educator of history I feel that this is a great outlet for the precocious child or the history buff-collector. Money well spent!

This particular coloring book is gorgeous and well-rendered. I've never had any complaints about Dover's coloring books, and this one is no exception. The artist, Christy Shaffer, has an amazing imagination. Her artwork is fluid and has so much movement and life. I also like the fact that the pictures aren't 'busy'. The detail is focused on the fantasy horses without adding a lot of landscape clutter. Ms. Shaffer also earns points for avoiding making every one of these into unicorns.

My personal favorites are the 'sea horses' - the drawings are so graceful and have real feeling for the way both fish and horses move through their elements.

I do glass painting and polymer clay and this book is a great inspration and just plain fun ,,,very good pics to use with crafts...B.W.

Christy Shaffer has created an excellent array of magical creatures - easy to color, but intricate enough to be interesting. I originally bought this book for my 4 year old daughter, but after looking through it, quickly rescinded it. Since you can use these images - royalty free - for graphics and crafts applications, I decided to make a collection of ceramic plates with my favorite images. Enjoy!

I give this crossoword puzzle book two thumbs up.

I bought the big book of tv guide crosswords recently and absolutely love it! The book is laid out great and I love the different theme pages. I would definitely buy more of these books. They're a lot of fun!

Dover books are such a good value. This is a great way to learn new vocabulary and the child really enjoys it.

I enjoyed sharing the educational information with my child. The book is a wonderful tribute to women of excellence. I am looking forward to the next installment. BRAVO!!!

I'll admit, I've got a personal bias towards this volume of the "Legion of Super-Heroes" archives -- this book happens to contain the stories that form my first-ever exposure to the Legion. When I was a kid, an uncle of mine gave me a DC Blue Ribbon Digest collecting the stories in which the Legion faced the Fatal Five, recruited Shadow Lass, built their new Headquarters and battled the Dark Circle. Jim Shooter and Curt Swan are responsible for most of the stories in this volume, and did some of their best work here. This book is full of classic, old-fashioned superhero excitement, and while I've been getting the Legion archives since Volume 1, the nostalgia factor alone makes this one my favorite.