Counting Comics - Part 2

So 1st up let's talk about my YouTube channel name Thegreyman, it's an alternate spelling based on my nickname and the DC comics character the Gray Man, who is pretty obscure and related to the Lords of Order. He had a run-in with the JLA back in 1987, 1st appearing in Justice League # 2 in June and dying in November the same year in Justice League International # 7.

The Gray Man captured dream energy and could duplicate himself

So the 1st box of comics is sorted through and as I knew it would be it was all DC, we won't be seeing any Marvel comics until I start sorting through my upstairs boxes. Just 2 titles so far H.E.R.O. and Sandman Mystery Theatre.

H.E.R.O.

(1/2 - 22 = 21 comics)

The H-dial from H.E.R.O. originates from House of Mystery # 158 which came out April 1966. It's original holder was Robert "Robby" Reed who discovered that by dialling 'hero' he would magically be transformed into one. 

Later, in the books I recall from my younger years, there were 2 dials, found and utilised by 2 teens, Christopher "Chris" King and Victoria "Vickie" Grant. They lived in the New England town of Fairfax and fought crime in a number of different guises against a wealth of villains, all created by the readers who wrote in and won a t-shirt if their ideas were used. They appeared 1st in February 1981 as a special insert in Legion of Super-Heroes (Vol 2) # 272 then ran in Adventure Comics # 479 - 490, before going over to the The New Adventures of Superboy # 28 - 49 as a back-up story, which works out to be a 3 year run from 1981 to 1984. 

The book series I have here in my collection ran for 22 issues from 2003 to 2005 and focused on how the dial affected a number of ordinary people, Robby Reed appears again seeking to reclaim the dial for himself. It ran for 22 but I only have 21 comics as 1 & 2 are compiled together in one book.

In 2012 with the New 52 a new Dial H book was launched, it ran for 15 issues with a last appearance in Justice League #23.3 in November 2013.

Sandman Mystery Theatre

(1,4 6 -10, 13 - 70)
(Sandman Midnight Theatre 1995)
(Sandman Mystery Theatre annual # 1 - 1994)
67 comics

There are a number of characters in the DC universe with the name of Sandman. I think the 1st that I was aware of was the Jack Kirby created one from 1974. Garrett Sanford became trapped in the dream dimension only able to leave for 1 hour a day, he became the protector of the dream dimension and met up with the Justice League a few times. He started in Sandman # 1 in December 1974 and died in Infinity Inc # 50 in May 1988. I never read that many of his books but I think I liked his costume so he stuck in my mind.

I mention Sandman also known as Morpheus or Dream of The Endless in the video too, he was created by Neil Gaiman, Sam Keith and Mike Dringenberg and debuted in Sandman (Vol 2) # 1 in 1989.

This Sandman though is the original character to use the name, created by Gardner Fox and Bert Christman, Wesley Dodds is a Golden Age hero who wore a gas mask, fedora and trench coat and utilised a gas gun to send his enemies to sleep. He was a member of the Justice Society and All-Star Squadron and was later succeeded in the name by his sidekick Sandy. He 1st appeared in New York World's Fair comics in #1 in April 1939 and dies in JSA Secret Files and Origins #1 in August 1999.

In Mystery Theatre which ran for 70 issues from 1993 to 1999 wealthy investor and business man Wesley Dodds is plagued by prescient dreams of crimes which he feels compelled to solve. So he dons his mask and uses his patented gas gun and keen detective skills to get to the truth and apprehend the guilty. He is aided by Dian Belmont the socialite daughter of the District Attorney. The pair become lovers and remain together for the rest of their lives which makes me happy as they have such great interplay and dialogue in these books. It always bugged me in comics that the path to true love is so bumpy with the hero rarely getting the woman he loves, so it's nice that Wesley & Dian work out! 

In a co-incidental turn for this blog, much later in his life, after the events of these comics, Wes becomes aware of a plot by a mystic being called the Dark Lord to prevent the rebirth of Dr Fate. He travels up a mountain to meet the Gray Man to learn the place of Fate's arrival, he gets the message to his JSA colleagues and then leaps from the mountain top rather than tell the secret to Mordru who appears and threatens him with torture to get the information.

So he remained a total hero to the end and rests with Dian in Valhalla the cemetary for superheroes, with just 1 disturbance to his sleep during that awful Black Lantern episode!

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I have ideas to improve the look of the video for next time, not having the bright light from the window behind the comics for one thing. I might see if I can use a different video programme to make a split screen or have a small window for my face and a bigger one for the comics cam. We'll see what I can work out!

So here is the count so far of my collection

H.E.R.O. - 21 comics

Sandman Mystery Theatre - 67 comics
Collected books - 2

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Total 
DC comics - 88

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