Superhero comic books were on the decline in 1950, but Superman was not, thanks to a…
Dan Hagen
Dan Hagen is a retired newspaper journalist and editor, a former journalism professor, and a mighty comics presence in print and on the web. You can find Dan's work at... danhagengreatcaesar.blogspot.com, justimaginedanhagen.blogspot.com and captaincommentdanhagen.blogspot.com
JUST IMAGINE! April 1975: Who Stalks the Night?
Accustomed to goofy sitcoms like The Munsters and The Addams Family, the gothic trappings of dated…
JUST IMAGINE! January 1954: Tanks for the Memories
Though not armed to the teeth, the Human Tank prided himself on being as tough as…
JUST IMAGINE! January 1966: Wonder Wheels
The one-two punch of James Bond’s Aston Martin DB-5 (with modifications) on the big screen and…
JUST IMAGINE! November 1964: The Contents of an Attaché Case
James Bond’s attaché case, in the novel and film of From Russia With Love, was a…
JUST IMAGINE! June 1960: Thrills Times Three
The first time I saw Batman — at least I think so — I was 5…
JUST IMAGINE! May 1974: Legacy and the Living Weapon
Iron Fist, a superhero created by Roy Thomas and Gil Kane for Marvel Premiere 15 (May…
JUST IMAGINE! December 1939: The Name is Phantom, Bob Phantom
I always suspected that Bob Phantom, an early MLJ superhero, added the friendly, aw-shucks “Bob” just…
JUST IMAGINE! November 1962: The Zenith of Superman
DC Comics offered 29 titles for sale during the month of November 1962, a dozen of…
JUST IMAGINE! January 1942: The Cat Who Followed Green Lantern
You might call DC’s Golden Age character Wildcat an elemental superhero, verging on the generic. Created…
September 1965: The Astral Avenger and the Blonde Bombshell
In 1965, Murphy Anderson’s resplendent renderings turned a pair of pairs into a winning hand. Although…
JUST IMAGINE! August 1960: Hercules in the 20th Century
I particularly enjoyed the Superman stories that featured Lex Luthor’s time- and space-hopping super-science. They presented…
JUST IMAGINE! January 1950: Tarzan of the Dells
Dell Comics specialized in heroes made famous in other media — characters like the Lone Ranger,…
JUST IMAGINE! October 1941: Wish Upon a Starman
Starman came late to the party. Although DC’s Man of Night didn’t show up until three years…
JUST IMAGINE! July 1962: The Boy With Ultra Powers
Ultra Boy, the Super-Legionnaire introduced in Superboy 98 (July 1962), had the right pedigree, anyway. He…
JUST IMAGINE! January 1961: Showcasing the Sea King
By 1960, the Flash and Green Lantern had already been revised and revamped in DC Comics’s…
JUST IMAGINE! October 1966: Reassessing Romita and Rhino
I admit it. I cooled to The Amazing Spider-Man, a title I’d loved from the beginning,…
JUST IMAGINE! October 1960: Trouble Nearby? Shine the Signal in the Sky
Ah, the mysterious, looming Bat-Signal. What a fascination it held for readers. Batman’s flashy-cool accoutrements —…
JUST IMAGINE! October 1963: Red Planet, Green Arrow
The Brave and the Bold 50 (Oct.-Nov. 1963) began the team-up tradition that would culminate in…
JUST IMAGINE! September 1941: The Wild, Wild Winged Wonder
What could you expect to find on an ice giant planet like Neptune? Well, extraterrestrial giants,…
JUST IMAGINE! January 1905: Is He in Heaven? Is He in Hell?
Pitting his scalpel-sharp wits and his protean powers of disguise against the forces of mass-murdering fanaticism,…
JUST IMAGINE! November 1951: The Day the Comet Still Stood
In Strange Adventures 14 (Nov. 1951), in an apparent nod to the 1951 film The Day…
JUST IMAGINE! April 1977: The Quatermass Memorandum
Prof. Quatermass: “If we found that our Earth was doomed, say by climatic changes, what would…
JUST IMAGINE! February 1961: Frankenstein Meets Superman (Sort Of)
Superman editor Mort Weisinger was always alert for the latest child-pleasing trends. He scanned movie posters…
JUST IMAGINE! November 1936: Time for a Mystery Man
Largely forgotten now, he was the first masked hero in comic books. But the Clock’s hour…
JUST IMAGINE! May 1961: The Ghost in the Machine
Writer Robert Kanigher was particularly good at coming up with concepts for fantastic adventure stories that…
JUST IMAGINE! April 1965: Reflections of a Golden Age
They might well have gone in another direction. DC’s popular revivals of its 1940s superheroes had…
JUST IMAGINE! September 1962: The Experimental Hulk
By the third issue of the second title of the Marvel era, The Incredible Hulk, it…
JUST IMAGINE! May 1960: The First Time I Saw the JLA
The first time I saw the Justice League of America, I was 5 years old, at…
JUST IMAGINE! June 1973: Talk About Larger Than Life
Ironically, the 1930s pulp superhero Doc Savage had a major influence on comic books, but a…
JUST IMAGINE! June 1975: In a Mirror Darkly
Battling bodies careering into and right through arcane architecture — this superhero feature was clearly something…
JUST IMAGE! February 1957: The League of Death-Cheaters
If Hollywood had turned Jack Kirby’s Challengers of the Unknown into a movie in the 1950s,…
December 1965: Letting Catwoman Out of the Bag
You frequently see it reported that, because DC was gun-shy about the Comics Code, the Caped…