Tag Archives: Ric Estrada

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Showcase Presents Amethyst, Princess of Gemworld Vol. 1

First Published: September 2012

Contents: Amethyst story from Legion of Super-Heroes #298 (April 1983); Amethyst, Princess of Gemworld #1 (May 1983) to #12 (April 1984); Amethyst, Princess of Gemworld Annual #1 (1984); DC Comics Presents #63 (November 1983); and Amethyst #1 (January 1985) to #11 (November 1985)

Key Creator Credits: Dan Mishkin, Gary Cohn, Ernie Colón, Ric Estrada, and others

Key First Appearances: Amy Winston/Amethyst, Dark Opal, Carnelian, Sardonyx, Citrina, Herb Winston, Marion Winston, Emerald, Fire Jade, Topaz, Turquoise, Garnet, Moonstone, Diamond

Overview: Meet Amy Winston, your typical 13-year-old girl in America. For her birthday, she receives a mysterious gift containing an amethyst pendant. Amy discovers that the pendant opens a passage way to Gemworld, a magical land divided into 12 realms. When Amy travels to Gemworld, she is transformed into a 20-year-old woman known as Princess Amethyst, the heir to the throne of her realm.

Unfortunately, Gemworld is not a peaceful place. Dark Opal has plans to take over Gemworld and will stop at nothing to do so. But Amethyst and her loyal friends and subjects unite to stop Dark Opal. This would be easier to do if Amethyst could be a full-time resident of Gemworld. But she must constantly travel back to Earth to resume her life as Amy, and to keep her parents from going crazy with her sudden disappearances.

While the initial mini-series was ongoing, Amethyst got to make the obligatory appearance over in DC Comics Presents where she teams up with Superman for an issue. Unfortunately, this is the one brief appearance that really ties her into the DC Universe, other than the Wonder Woman poster hanging up in Amy’s bedroom.

Amethyst did return with a new ongoing series, letting us see more of Gemworld and new threats to the realms. Amethyst tries her best to balance her time between Gemworld and Earth, but the demands of the throne keep making it harder and harder to be a teenage girl.

Why should these stories be Showcased?: I checked out this series some when it was first released in 1983. I wasn’t overly sold on it, but I think that was also a time when I liked a lot of other books on the shelves more and my allowance was limited. So I probably never gave a fair chance back then.

Reading this now, I am intrigued and disappointed at the same time. There is a lot that works really well for this series. I want to know more about the various houses and see more of the back-and-forth between the realms of Gemworld. But this series suffers being reprinted in black & white. Much like Green Lantern, so much of the story is dependent on the book being printed in color. You need the colors of the page to help distinguish some of the characters. I’m also upset that the character has been relatively unused since the two series finished in the mid-1980s.

Footnotes:  The 1985 Amethyst series ran for 16 issues, plus a Special. The final five issues and the Special have not been reprinted.

If you like this volume, try: reading Promethea from Alan Moore and J.H. Williams III. This was part of the ABC Comics from Moore that DC put out in the early 2000s. Promethea tells the story of a young woman, Sophie Bangs, who is researching the ancient myth of Promethea for a college paper. Soon after, she encounters an ancient enemy of Promethea and then finds herself transforming into Promethea. Now Sophie must quickly learn her new powers and abilities before she is destroyed. This story mixes so many elements from different comics (Wonder Woman, Shazam, even Amethyst) and is gorgeously illustrated by Williams. This series is available in multiple formats, so it should not be difficult to track down.

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Showcase Presents Legion of Super-Heroes Vol. 5

Showcase Presents Legion of Super-Heroes Vol. 5

First Published: December 2014

Contents: Legion of Super-Heroes stories from Superboy #193 (February 1973), #195 (June 1973), and #197 (September 1973) to #220 (October 1976); and Karate Kid #1 (March 1976)

Key Creator Credits: Cary Bates, Jim Shooter, Paul Levitz, Dave Cockrum, Mike Grell, Ric Estrada, and others

Key First Appearances: Drake Burroughs/ERG-1/Wildfire, Tyr, Hunter, Infectious Lass, Porcupine Pete, Roon Dyron, Chameleon Chief, Sun Emperor, Esper Lass, Magno Lad, Micro Lad, Leland McCauley IV, Tyroc, Diamondeth, Laurel Kent, Earth-Man

Story Continues From: Showcase Presents Legion of Super-Heroes Vol. 4

Overview: It’s time to go back to the future with the fifth Showcase Presents volume of the Legion of Super-Heroes. If you have been reading along in real time, it’s been more than four years since DC released Volume 4, so this is a long-overdue return to the teenage heroes of the 30th Century!

With this volume, we see the Legion stories slowly starting to take over the Superboy title. For most of these issues, the title on the cover reads Superboy Starring the Legion of Super-Heroes. Beginning with issue #231. the title officially changes to Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes. The takeover is finally completed in issue #259, as the title officially becomes Legion of Super-Heroes. 

While we just get two new Legionnaires added to the roster in this collection (ERG-1, quickly renamed to Wildfire, and Tyroc), we see the supporting cast and ancillary characters start to develop. While some of these may seem like throw-away characters, talented writers such as Paul Levitz and Geoff Johns have been able to mine these stories years later and bring these characters back to prominence. For example, in Superboy #218, Cary Bates introduces a character by the code-name of Earth-Man. We don’t see this character for 30 years before Johns brought him back as the main for during his Superman and the Legion of Super-Heroes arc in Action Comics (well worth a read!).

In this volume, we see the end of the Dave Cockrum run with the Legion. Cockrum would leave in late 1974 to head over to Marvel to work on a little book called Uncanny X-Men. Have you heard of it? I thought so…. Cockrum definitely had a particular style with his costumes that he developed for characters, and many people have pointed out the similarities between the Legion for DC and the Imperial Guard at Marvel. (See my review of Essential X-Men Vol. 1 for more details.)

Replacing Cockrum was Mike Grell, whose first published comic book work was these Legion issues. Grell brought a new level of detail to the artwork that had not been seen in Legion stories to date. Following his run on Legion, Grell would do memorable work with Green Lantern, Green Arrow, and Jon Sable.

Why should these stories be Showcased?: I’ll give you two great reasons why this should be Showcased: Dave Cockrum and Mike Grell. The two artists defined the look of the Legion in the 1970s. Whether it was co-creating new characters, or developing new costumes for the characters, Cockrum and Grell are the key components to the Legion’s success in this era. The story structure remains the same as from previous volumes, but we see the signs that the title is moving towards a more traditional comic with stories carrying over across multiple issues. By all means, pick this up for the art if nothing else. But I think you will enjoy the stories, too.

Footnotes: This volume includes the first issue of the Karate Kid solo series. This series ran bi-monthly for 15 issues, and it has not been reprinted in a collected edition.

If you like this volume, try: the 2011 Star Trek/Legion of Super-Heroes mini-series from IDW. Written by Chris Roberson, with art by the Moy brothers (Jeff and Philip), the series unites the greatest heroes from the 23rd Century with the greatest heroes of the 31st Century. Most of the senior crew of the Enterprise (Kirk, Spock, McCoy, Uhura, Sulu, and Chekov) find themselves on a planet where they meet a squad of Legionnaires (Cosmic Boy, Saturn Girl, Lightning Lad, Brainiac 5, Chameleon Boy, and Shadow Lass). After the obligatory skirmish between the two groups, they unite to work together to battle a common set of enemies, Q and Vandal Savage. The main covers for the series were done by Phil Jiminez, but the variant covers were done by legendary artists long associated with the Legion, such as Mike Grell, Keith Giffen, and Steve Lightle, among others. This has been collected as both a hardcover and a trade paperback, so it should be relatively easy to track down a copy. And while this isn’t a perfect story – and most media crossovers are not! – the Star Trek/Legion of Super-Heroes mini-series is a fun read.

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Showcase Presents Super Friends! Vol. 1

Showcase Presents Super Friends! Vol. 1

First Published: May 2014

Contents: Super Friends #1 (November 1976) to #24 (September 1979)

Key Creator Credits: E. Nelson Bridwell, Ric Estrada, Ramona Fradon, Kurt Schaffenberger, Denny O’Neil (as Sergius O’Shaughnessy), and others

Key First Appearances: Wendy Harris, Wonderdog, Jayna, Zan, Gleek, Bushmaster, Jack O’Lantern, Rising Sun, Thunderlord, Icemaiden, Little Mermaid, Olympian, Tasmanian Devil, Doctor Mist

Overview: In the Great Hall of the Justice League, there are assembled the world’s four greatest heroes created from the cosmic legends of the universe! Superman! Wonder Woman! Batman! Aquaman! And the three Junior Super Friends, Wendy, Marvin, and Wonderdog! Their mission: To fight injustice, to right that which is wrong, and to serve all mankind!

Super Friends! was launched to capitalize on the growing popularity of the Saturday morning cartoon on ABC. We get the core members of the Justice League training the next generation of heroes. The first group, featuring Wendy, Marvin, and Wonderdog, quickly graduated in order to make room for the next class, featuring the Wonder Twins and their space monkey Gleek.

White there are a few multi-part stories, most of these are self-contained stories that provide a fun adventure in 17 pages. Plenty of cameos abounds in these stories, where it was a guest appearance by other characters or even references to other companies. In issue #5, the Super Friends host a telethon to raise funds for United Charities. At one point, Anthony Stark calls in from New York City to pledge $75,000. Not to be outdone by a marvelous contribution, Batman slips away so that Bruce Wayne can call in and pledge $100,000.

Why should these stories be Showcased?: Absolutely, this series should be featured in a Showcase Presents. I hope that DC gets a Volume 2 onto their schedule soon to wrap up the second half of the series. This is a fun all-ages book that serves as a good introduction to the DC Universe, without having to know all of the backstories of the various characters. With Ramona Fradon doing most of the art, we are reminded of how diverse her skills were, to adapt the animated style of the show two decades before the “animated style” became trendy with the Batman: The Animated Series books. This is one Showcase volume that I am already looking forward to re-reading sometime soon.

Footnotes: So the big question remains: are these stories in continuity on Earth-1. If you asked E. Nelson Bridwell, he most definitely said yes. Throughout the series, references were made to other events going on in the DC Universe, such as Batman’s break-up with Silver St. Cloud. While the Hall of Justice was used as a training center for the Junior Super Friends, they often had to go to the Justice League satellite orbiting 22,300 miles above Earth. Many other JLA members (Flash, Hawkgirl, Green Arrow, Elongated Man, etc.) make appearances in the book, wearing their costumes of that era. Many of the world-wide characters introduced were later be united in the Global Guardians. Bridwell wrote the series to be a part of the DC Universe but aimed at a younger audience than most DC books of the time. 

If you like this volume, try: tracking down issues of the Justice League Adventures (2002-2004) and Justice League Unlimited (2004-2008). Following the success of the animated Batman and Superman series of the 1990s, Cartoon Network launched an animated Justice League series in 2001. To support that project, DC launched a “Johnny DC” book, using the animated style used in the cartoon. Admittedly, many people do not give the Johnny DC books the time of day, viewing them only as the “kids” books. But there are some very good issues in these runs, featuring stories by Dan Slott, Adam Beechen, Mike W. Barr, and many other veteran creators. As innovative as the CN show was, consider these an extension of the show, telling the stories that they didn’t have time to tell.