Making a Splash: Kane and Anderson's Batgirl

Dig it, Groove-ophiles! Way back in 1969/1970 (Li'l Groove's first grade year! Just tossin' that in there...) Gil Kane and Murphy Anderson provided the art for Batgirl and Robin's solo back-ups in Detective Comics. Capes, fists, and feet were a'flyin' from issues 384-397, with each young caped crusader alternating in two-part tales (thanks in no small part to the smashing scripts by Mike Friedrich and Frank Robbins). Today we're gonna focus on the Batgirl splashes: 384, 385, 388, 389, 392, 393, 396, and 397. We'll get to the Robin ones in the near future, and after 397, Kane stayed on for a little while longer with a few different inkers. Again, we'll get to those, too. But for now...it's Kane and Anderson unleashed on the Dominoed Daredoll!

(P) Raising Kane: "A Clue...Seven-Foot Tall!" and "Downfall of a Goliath!" by Robbins, Kane, and Anderson

Greetings, Groove-ophiles! Here's a double dose of Gil Kane greatness for ya! Not only do we get a classic Frank Robbins-penned Batgirl mystery, but we get the first appearance of Jason Bard, and awesome inks by Murphy Anderson! If that doesn't make ya wanna polish your "Have a Nice Day" button, I dunno what will! From Detective Comics #'s 392-393 (July-August 1969) here's a Tuesday Two-fer featuring "A Clue...Seven-Foot Tall!" and "Downfall of a Goliath!"

Famous Firsts Week: "The Supergirl Gang" by Bates, Mortimer, and Abel

Welcome to FAMOUS FIRSTS WEEK, Groove-ophiles! What better way to wish you a HAPPY NEW YEAR than to celebrate all week long with some of the coolest, most far-out debuts of the Groovy Age? Ready? Steady? Go, man, go!

After 10 years of guest-starring and Action Comics back-ups, Supergirl finally graduated to lead-feature status. With Adventure Comics # 381 (April 1969), Superman's cousin Kara replaced the Legion of Super-Heroes and enjoyed her first full-length tale. (I was gonna call it a "solo" tale, but Batgirl does guest-star in a sneaky way...) Written by Cary Bates with art by Win Mortimer and Jack Abel "The Supergirl Gang" doesn't set the world on fire, but it is fun and diverting--which is all we asked for our 15 cents, right? Though low-key, the series was a hit, lasting through Adventure #424 (July 1972) before Supergirl graduated to her very own mag which ran a solid 10 issues before being folded into Superman Family (which lasted an astounding 59 issues!).

Ready to dig on Adventure #481, Groove-ophiles? The Curt Swan/Neal Adams cover alone was worth the price of admission!

Tuesday Team-Up: Robin, Batgirl, and Man-Bat by Rozakis, Newton, Rogers, and Wiacek

Greetings, Groove-ophiles! Here's a forgotten fable sporting some outstanding art by two of Ol' Groove's fave Batman artists--Don Newton and Marshall Rogers. Bob Rozakis, the Answer Man, himself, was keeping the Batman Family (mostly consisting of Robin, Batgirl, and Man-Bat) truckin' along with some fun tales that reached back into the Silver Age and allowed him to strut his knowledge of Bat-lore. "The Man Who Melted Manhattan!" (Batman Family #13, June 1977) spotlighted Alfred Pennyworth by bringing back his "evil identity" from the early "New-Look Batman" days, The Outsider. And for his part, inker Bob Wiacek does a fine job of tying the whole extra-length story together, art-wise, as Newton and Rogers' styles are, to put it mildly, wildly different. And speaking of different styles, why not top it off with a Jim Aparo cover? Check it out!