SOME OF MY FAVORITE DC COMICS STORY ARCS
So somebody today on a DC Comics fans page asked fellow members to post their five favorite “DC Events” of all time. And then provided a list of storylines that included Crisis on Infinite Earths and all the post-Crisis usual suspects (Death of Superman, Nightfall, Infinite Crisis, Blackest Night, Final Crisis, et al).
My initial response was to yawn and mutter under my breath, “Not this stuff again.” Then I gave the question some deeper thought and - being the rapidly aging, unapologetic Baby Boomer that I am - offered the following response:
•. •. •
First, I’m going to begin by stating right up front that my definition of “DC Events” is going to be different than yours, because in my mind the term can be - and SHOULD be - used to define story arcs in regular ongoing series as well as all these mini, maxi and limited series titles you’ve listed here.
Secondly - and this is likely to offend some of you, so apologies in advance - of the titles listed here the ONLY ones I still enjoy reading after all these years are Crisis On Infinite Earths and Legends. Millennium was okay in the first reading but has lost its luster for me over the years; same with the whole Death/Return of Superman thing, which today reads more like a primer on how to manipulate your audience into spending their money than an example of solid storytelling. Of the other titles on the list, most of them came out after I’d quit buying comics on a regular basis and so I never read them - and those few I did read didn’t do anything for me.
So with THAT introduction out of the way - and with my two favorite titles on your list, Crisis and Legends, more or less relegated to “Honorable Mention” status because of their essential ubiquitousness when it comes to creating such rankings - I’ll share with you my list of five personal favorite DC “event” storylines ever. (And yes, the list is going to show my age; that sort of thing is unavoidable when you’re within spitting distance of 60 years old and still discussing favorite comic books):
1. Green Lantern-Green Arrow: “The Killing Of An Archer/Green Arrow Is Dead!/The Fate Of An Archer” - Three-part storyline that appeared as a backup feature in The Flash issues 217-219, 1972
2. Superman: “Kryptonite Nevermore” (a.k.a “The Sandman Saga”) - Multi-part story arc published in published in Superman (Volume 1) issues 233-235, 237-238, and 240–242, 1971
3. The New Teen Titans: “The Judas Contract” - Four-part story arc published in issues 42-44 of Tales of the Teen Titans and Tales Of The Teen Titans Annual No. 4, 1984
4. Justice League of America: "Crisis In Earth-Prime!" - Five-part story arc published in issues 207-209 of Justice League of America and issues 14-15 of All-Star Squadron, 1982
5. The Original Ra’s Al Ghul Saga (a.k.a “Tales Of The Demon”) - Seven-part story arc originally published in Detective Comics issue 411 and Batman issues 232, 235, 240, and 242-244, 1971-72
FIVE “HONORABLE MENTIONS”
(in addition to Crisis On
Infinite Earths and Legends
as stated above)
1. Batman: "Who Knows What Evil--?" - Single-issue story in Batman No. 253, teaming the Caped Crusader with The Shadow (whose adventures were being published in a DC series at the time), 1973
2. Superman: “The Amazing Story of Superman-Red/Superman-Blue” - Single-issue “imaginary story” originally published Superman issue 162, 1963
3. Superman: "Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?" - Two-part story arc originally published in Superman (Volume 1) issue 423 and Action Comics issue 583, 1986
4. DC-Marvel Special: “Superman vs. The Amazing Spider-Man: The Battle of the Century” - Special oversized comic jointly published by DC and Marvel, the second following their collaboration on MGM's Marvelous Wizard of Oz, 1976. (And yes, this WAS an event.)
5. The Atom: "Sword of the Atom” - Multi-part storyline told over the course of one four-part mini-series, Sword of the Atom (1983) and three subsequent Sword of the Atom Special issues published in 1984, 1985 and 1988. Even though I was in my 20s by the time these titles were published, the combination of super heroics and Tolkienesque fantasy for a time really reignited my childhood love for comic books.
In : Pop Culture
Tags: comic books
John A. Small is an award-winning newspaper journalist, columnist and broadcaster whose work has been honored by the Oklahoma Press Association, the Society of Professional Journalists, the Associated Press, the National Newspaper Association, and the Oklahoma Education Association. He and his wife Melissa were married in 1986; they have two sons, Joshua Orrin (born 1991) and William Ian (born 1996).
Mr. Small is the News Editor and columnist for the Johnston County Capital-Democrat, a weekly newspaper headquartered in Tishomingo, OK. He obtained his nickname, "Bard of the Lesser Boulevards," from a journalism colleague - the late Phil Byrum - in recognition of the success of his popular newspaper column, "Small Talk." (In addition to the many awards the column itself has received over the years, a radio version of "Small Talk" earned an award for "Best Small Market Commentary" from the Society of Professional Journalists in 1998.)
John was born in Oklahoma City in 1963; lived in the Bradley-Bourbonnais-Kankakee area of Illinois for most of the next 28 years (with brief sojourns in Texas and Athens, Greece, thrown in to break up the monotony); then returned to his native state in 1991, where he currently resides in the Tishomingo/Ravia area. He graduated from Bradley-Bourbonnais Community High School in 1981, and received his bachelor's degree in journalism from Olivet Nazarene University in Bourbonnais in 1991. The years between high school and college were a period frought with numerous exploits and misadventures, some of which have become the stuff of legend; nobody was hurt along the way, however, which should count for something.
In addition to his professional career as a journalist he has published two short story collections: "Days Gone By: Legends And Tales Of Sipokni West" (2007), a collection of western stories; and "Something In The Air" (2011), a more eclectic collection. He was also a contributor to the 2005 Locus Award-nominated science fiction anthology "Myths For The Modern Age: Philip Jose Farmer's Wold Newton Universe," edited by Win Scott Eckert. In additon he has written a stage play and a self-published cookbook; served as project editor for a book about the JFK assassination entitled "The Men On The Sixth Floor"; and has either published or posted on the Internet a number of essays, stories and poems.
He has also won writing awards from the Veterans of Foreign Wars and the National Library of Poetry. He is a past president of the Johnston County Chamber of Commerce in Tishomingo; was a charter member and past president of the Johnston County Reading Council, the local literacy advocacy and "friends of the library" organization; served as Johnston County's first-ever Americans with Disabilities Act coordinator in 1994-95; served two terms as chairman of the Johnston County (OK) Democratic Party; and has taught journalism classes for local Boy Scout Merit Badge Fairs. He is a member of the New Wold Newton Meteorics Society.
