Merry Christmas 2019!

Season's Greetings, Groove-ophiles! As is our tradition in Groove City, we're sharing a favorite mag from the Groovy Age Yuletide Season, this time it's Freedom Fighters #1!

Back on December 9, 1975, DC unleashed Freedom Fighters #1 (Quality Comics heroes Uncle Sam, The Ray, Black Condor, Phantom Lady, Doll Man, and Human Bomb) on the spinner racks, and boy, was Young Groove ever glad! That snazzy Ernie Chan cover just begged to be bought, and the interiors by Ric Estrada and Mike Royer looked like fun (as was the story by Gerry Conway and Martin Pasko)! Len Wein and Dick Dillin had already introduced us to the super-team from Earth-X in Justice League of America issues 107-108 (June-August, 1973) and I really dug 'em, so finding this mag was quite a thrill! Ol' Groove hopes you get a kick out of it on this particular Christmas Day (or whatever day you might be reading it) four color memory!

The Story Behind the Story

And it wouldn't be a Christmas post without giving you a glimpse into Groove's Goodies for this year:

All the best to you and yours this Holiday Season! See you next year with the new, weekly Diversions of the Groovy Kind! Pax!

Grooviest Covers of All Time: Nick Cardy's JLA, Round 1

Greetings, Groove-ophiles! In the early 1970s, the great Nick Cardy became DC's go-to cover artist in much the same manner as Gil Kane had done over at Marvel. This meant DC had some awesomely classy covers populating the spinner-racks of the day. Some of Young Groove's faves came during a long run on Justice League of America from the end of the twenty-five cent/fifty-two page era to the 100 page/sixty cent era; issues 99-104 and 106-109 (March 1972-October 1973). Tons of heroes handled with grace and power. Yeah, Cardy rocked!

Thanx, Grand Comics Database for the scintillating scans!

Making a Splash: Dick Dillin's Annual JLA/JSA Team-ups, Part Two

We're back with more great summertime/JLA/JSA/Dick Dillin memories, Groove-ophiles! Today we're covering 1973-1980, and things get bigger and better than ever! After bringing the Seven Soldiers of Victory out of limbo (literally!) in their 1972 team-up and rescuing Earth-X and the Freedom Fighters in '73, our two super-teams supreme spent most of the rest of the Groovy Age meeting other groups of heroes from different times and/or earths.  SHAZAM! and the Fawcett heroes. The Legion of Super-Heroes. A time-displaced group featuring Jonah Hex, Enemy Ace, and the Viking Prince. The New Gods. Even writers Cary Bates and Elliot S! Maggin and editor Julie Schwartz! That was some great run of comix!

And still, good ol' Dick Dillin was there to make these ca-razee stories, not only work, but look cool! It was fitting that when Mr. Dillin passed away in 1980 he'd finished the first part of a JLA/JSA summer team-up. It featured the New Gods and Ol' Groove thinks that final story might've been Dick's best work ever.

Thank you, Dick Dillin, for making all those summers even more special.