Back Issue #7 December 2004 (magazine review).

I managed to get the seventh issue of Back Issue recently, which specialised in super-teams. One thing I’ve been careful about is keeping a wish list, because I’m likely to find what I’m after in one of the missing issues I’m still catching up on. This happened here, as editor and writer Michael Eury looks at The Brave And The Bold, much of which was written by Bob Haney, who ignored any semblance of continuity with the rest of the DC Universe, if there really was much outside the LSH at the time, and drawn by artist Jim Aparo. It really was a team-up book for Batman with all manner of characters.

Writer Mike W. Barr takes a further look at Bob Haney’s work, especially when it came to how the readership was changing, although Haney didn’t always seem sure whether he wanted to adapt to what was needed.

Michael Eury interviews Jim Aparo and, bearing in mind this was long before the more recent TwoMorrows book on his life, gets some useful insight, especially into how Aparo kept up with the appearances of all the characters. As Aparo points out, he had the opportunity to draw most of the DC Universe, while also noting the characters Haney tended to avoid.

One interesting selling point for this issue is a guide to the guest stars, though not the villains, in both DC and Marvel Comics team-up books. If there is a major criticism, it is that the listings are arranged alphabetically rather than by comic-book house. However, if you ever wondered whether you missed a particular team-up, or whether it happened at all, this checklist is handy.

A feature that later moved over to Draw!, but appears here, looks at team-up pencil work in covers, splash pages and comic-book pages. The front cover was based on one of these by Curt Swan, later inked by Murphy Anderson, and is shown here. I don’t think it’s just me, but although Superman’s physique is dead on, poor Batman seems to have a torso problem. His legs also appear to be about the same length as his torso, which would make him look awkward standing up. One of the lessons I learnt when drawing was to compare the lengths of limbs with the torso in perspective to make sure the proportions were correct, so this was easily checked. Even so, there is a decent selection of artists’ work here that should whet your appetite.

Looking at these early issues shows a few features that have either evolved or stopped over the years. The Pro2Pro feature seems to be one of them. In this instance, Peter Sanderson asks creators involved with the Fantastic Four a series of questions and gathers their answers. Obviously, they aren’t discussing the subject with each other, but it’s interesting how many of them give similar responses. The FF’s status as Marvel’s premier title has been superseded by Spider-Man and the X-Men over the years, but the family aspect remains at its core, no matter how much the team has been shaken up.

The second Pro2Pro feature in this issue is a double interview with writer Mark Evanier and artist Will Meugniot about their creation, DNAgents, which emerged from the edges of their animation careers. Speaking of which, Evanier gives a lot of insight into that side of the animation business, especially the fact that series bibles can be ignored. I had assumed they had to be adhered to rather than merely used to sell the series. I never read DNAgents but, oddly, I didn’t learn very much about the comic book itself here.

There’s also a guest editorial by Denny O’Neil about the problems of team and team-up books. I agree with him about the imbalance between Superman and Batman, but it lasted for many years. You do have to wonder whether the Kryptonian was slumming it to study his mate’s detective techniques.

There’s a lot of other material here, so treat this as a sampling of what I wanted to comment on. Considering I reviewed Back Issue #5 last month, seeing the letters column here relating to it is still fresh in my mind. Like all TwoMorrows publications, the letters pages are used not only for comments but also to pick up on errors. None here this time, but they do become an entertaining read.

GF Willmetts

July 2026

(pub: TwoMorrows Publishing. 89-page illustrated magazine. Price: varies. ISSN: 1932-6904. Direct from them, you can get it digitally for $4.99 (US))

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