I was a semi-regular reader of Wizard magazine back in my college (undergrad) years.  It's been quite a while since I bought an issue and I remember the last time I even bothered to pick one up at a comics store was about three years ago.  I remember asking the "Comic Book Guy" clone in the store where I was shopping why there was no price guide section in the magazine and he told me that Wizard had dropped the feature some time ago.  That was especially disappointing, because it was one of my favorite features of the magazine.  The price guide section always contained a lot of bonuses, like specialized character-related checklists and the "Bullet Exchange" tracking page for Golden Age comics.   For a while, the price guide section also included an interesting feature entitled "The Good Stuff" in which the writers and editors would share a little bit about good but relatively obscure title or run from a particular series.  It was kind of a fun way to learn about back issues that I might not normally consider picking up from the comic book shop.  In fact, in one edition of "The Good Stuff," I discovered a comic book that would eventually make it into the ranks of my "Wall of Fame":  Spectre #22. Well, if Wizard isn't going to turn folks on to "The Good Stuff" any more, I figure the least I can do is use greeklish.org to share a few of my picks every so often.  So here's my first look at some of "The Good Stuff" from my collection.


coverFantastic Giants, Vol. 2, No. 24 (Charlton Comics, 1966)
I love old Charlton Comics and when I found a decent reading copy of this issue a few weeks ago, I was happy to shell out a few dollars for it.  It's a 64-page collection of monster tales featuring artwork by the great Steve Ditko.  Included in the collection is a reprint of the origin of the great ape Konga.  Reading Konga's origin in "Fantastic Giants" is the next best thing to getting a copy of Konga #1.  "Gorgo" is a pretty good Godzilla-ish yarn, but my favorite story of this anthology is the odd tale of "With the Help of Hogar," which is set in South Africa, of all places.  The story features an exiled tribal leader named Manu who brings an alien statue to life in hopes that it will exact revenge on Manu's enemies.  It's a short narrative-style tale that's not overly detailed or complex and, like the other stories in the collection, it stands on its own merits as a quaint, old-school Silver Age classic.  Rounding out the book is the bizarre and offbeat tale of "The Mountain Monster."

Oddball Comics has a terrific and detailed write-up of Fantastic Giants Vol. 2 here.  And here's another great write-up on this book.


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DC Super-Stars #19:  War Against the Giants  (DC Comics, December-January 1975-76)

More old-school giant-themed madness!  I found this last week when I got on the floor to root through a newly acquired collection of back issues at Fearless Readers Comics in Dayton.  "War Against the Giants" is an anthology of Silver-Age reprints including a Superman tale written by former Marvel Editor-in-Chief Jim Shooter.  In this story, Superman battles the so-called "Superman Revenge Squad" and their giant robot named "Eterno the Immortal."  (Click here for a bit of "Best Blog Ever" ridiculousness using a panel from this story.)  This issue also includes two features illustrated by the legendary Gil Kane, one of which is a Green Lantern tale.  The final story is a Wonder Woman classic entitled "The Human Charm Bracelet," featuring some vintage Ross/Esposito artwork.  As far as comics go, "War Against the Giants" is just a really good read, plain and simple.


By the way, the Gem City Comic Con is coming to Wright State on April 6!