Tag: Brave and Bold reviews

Comics Reviews: Batman 311, Brave & the Bold 150, Warlord 21

Batman 311 coverBatman #311 – “Dr. Phosphorus is Back” – Steve Englehart/Irv Novick/Frank McLaughlin

This one starts with a quick recap of Dr. Phosphorus’s origin: a guy named Sartorus invested in an offshore nuclear plant, but the construction was shoddy and he got caught in an explosion that turned him into Dr. Phosphorus. He blamed everyone but himself and tried to poison Gotham’s water supply with his own radioactive body, but Batman confronted him and he fell into the reactor core of the offshore nuclear plant. Why are we getting a recap of that? Because the rebuilt reactor went critical for ten minutes and when Batman came to check it out, he found flaming footprints leading out of the core and off the platform. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Batman 311, Brave & the Bold 150, Warlord 21”

Comics Reviews: Batman 310, Detective 483, Brave & the Bold 149, Warlord 20

Batman 310 coverBatman #310 – “The Ghost Who Haunted Batman” – Len Wein/Irv Novick/Dick Giordano

This one starts with some guys robbing a museum in Gotham. By their clichéd accents, I can only assume they’re British. Batman makes short work of them, but is confronted by their boss, Gentleman Ghost. Ghost takes a shot at the Caped Crusader with a phantom flintlock, but when Batman grabs a shield from the museum’s collection to protect himself, the bullet turns out to be a magnesium flare that blinds him. Gentleman Ghost and his crew escape before Batman’s sight returns. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Batman 310, Detective 483, Brave & the Bold 149, Warlord 20”

Comics Reviews: Batman 309, Brave & the Bold 148, Warlord 19

Batman 309 coverBatman #309 – “Have Yourself a Deadly Little Christmas” – Len Wein/John Calnan/Frank McLaughlin

This is a Christmas-themed issue; despite the March cover date, it was probably on the stands in December of 1978. It starts with a bunch of muggers grabbing a young woman’s purse. She freaks out, saying it contains all the money she has left in the world, but the muggers aren’t moved by her pleas. In fact, they seem to think she got off light, since they didn’t rape her or something. The purse only contains five dollars, but before the muggers can go in search of more prey, Blockbuster comes smashing into the alley and kicks the crap out of them. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Batman 309, Brave & the Bold 148, Warlord 19”

Comics Reviews: Batman 308, Detective 482, Brave & the Bold 147, Warlord 18

Batman 308 coverBatman #308 – “There’ll Be a Cold Time in the Old Town Tonight” – Len Wein/John Calnan/Dick Giordano

This one starts with a guy named Jacob Riker watching Batman swing by his window and wishing the Caped Crusader could help him. But Riker figures he’s beyond anyone’s help and we soon see he’s right. Mr. Freeze shows up with some henchmen who look like frozen zombies and Riker says he’ll give in to Freeze’s demands, but Freeze wants to use Riker as an example, so he blasts him with his cold-gun, freezing him solid. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Batman 308, Detective 482, Brave & the Bold 147, Warlord 18”

Comics Reviews: Batman 307, Brave & the Bold 146, Warlord 17

Batman 307 coverBatman #307 – “Dark Messenger of Mercy” – Len Wein/John Calnan/Dick Giordano

This one starts with a mysterious guy giving a couple of gold coins to a homeless lady. The guy is all wrapped up in a green coat and hat and a red scarf, which maybe should’ve made her suspicious. Only moments after receiving the coins—which are apparently solid gold—she keels over dead. The weirdo places the coins on her eyes and limps off into the night. At the offices of the Wayne Foundation, Bruce Wayne is talking to Lucius Fox (in his first appearance) about a mysterious billionaire named Gregorian Falstaff. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Batman 307, Brave & the Bold 146, Warlord 17”

Comics Reviews: Batman 306, Detective 481, Brave and the Bold 145

Batman 306 coverBatman #306 – “Night of Siege” – Gerry Conway/John Calnan/David Hunt

This one starts with some shifty dudes unloading boxes from a boat in the middle of the night … definitely suspicious behaviour. Batman seems to agree, since he shows up and beats the hell out of them. The boxes are full of heroin and Batman realizes the boat is from a ship called the Golden Girl II. He goes to check it out, sneaking aboard the ship and cornering the owner, Hannibal Hardwicke. Apparently Hardwicke has been suspected of being behind the heroin traffic around Gotham for a couple of years, but he always managed to wriggle out of the grasp of the law. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Batman 306, Detective 481, Brave and the Bold 145”

Comics Reviews: Batman 305, Detective 480, Brave and the Bold 144

Batman 305 coverBatman #305 – “Death Gamble of a Darknight Detective” – Gerry Conway/John Calnan/Dave Hunt

This one starts with Batman rushing to the site of an explosion. The scene of carnage is STAR Labs, where a paramilitary gang are stealing something, using the explosion and a bunch of smoke grenades as cover. Their leader (Thanatos, who wears a skull mask) seems to have been expecting Batman and tells his soldiers to attack. Batman does pretty well, using the smoke to his advantage, but gets knocked out by a concussion grenade. Thanatos and his gang get away and Commissioner Gordon revives Batman. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Batman 305, Detective 480, Brave and the Bold 144”

Comics Reviews: Batman 303, Detective 479, Brave & the Bold 143

Batman 303 coverBatman #303 – “Batman’s Great Identity Switch” – David V. Reed/John Calnan/Dick Giordano

This one starts with Batman fighting Neanderthals. Don’t worry, he wasn’t thrown into the past by Darkseid (like that could ever happen!), he’s just fighting some thugs dressed like Neanderthals at the Natural History Museum. One of the cavemen bonks him with a rock and they flee. The guards find a stunned Batman and ask him if “Dodo Man” was trying to rob the Museum, but Batman’s too confused to give them answers. He leaves and notices the Bat-Signal outside, so he ducks into the shadows and changes into … Bruce Wayne? Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Batman 303, Detective 479, Brave & the Bold 143”

Comics Reviews: Batman 301, Detective 478, Brave & the Bold 142

Batman 301 coverBatman #301 – “The Only Man Batman Ever Killed” – David V. Reed/John Calnan/Tex Blaisdell

This one starts out with a charity antiques auction. The auction is an all-cash affair, which just seems like an invitation for trouble to me. Batman thinks so too and watches as the cash is transferred to the bank’s night depository. It seems like everything’s fine, except for a car passing by the bank very slowly. The bank wall suddenly explodes and a well-equipped (and well-coordinated) team of thieves goes into action. Batman jumps in and pounds them all before the cops show up. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Batman 301, Detective 478, Brave & the Bold 142”

Comics Review: Batman 299, Detective 477, Brave & the Bold 141

Batman 299 coverBatman #299 – “The Island of Purple Mist” – David V. Reed/John Calnan/Dick Giordano

When we last saw Batman, he’d been looking for someone who was leaving clues around Gotham to expose Batman’s secret identity. He tracked the clues to a penthouse in downtown Gotham and was greeted by a bright light and a mysterious figure. The figure turns out to be local Millionaire Baxter Baines (in a weird-looking dude in a purple cape) and warns Batman that if he steps out of the circle of light he’s standing in, he’ll die. Continue reading “Comics Review: Batman 299, Detective 477, Brave & the Bold 141”