Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen #135, DC Comics, January 1971 – Artist: Neal Adams.
For me was a three way tie between Jimmy Olsen #135, Four Color #135 with that beautiful blue background and Amazing Spider-Man #135, I looked at all 3 for a while and decided I loved the ridiculous chaos of the Supermen melee that consumes the bottom half of the Jimmy Olsen cover.
Here are some thoughts on #135s. Did Johnny Cash read Blackhawk? Wonder Woman #135, good thing they didn’t lick him! Hulk #135 an homage to Steranko’s classic annual #1. Secret Hearts #135, imagine this comic in a CGC 9.6 with White pages! Incredible Hercules #135 (regular cover) is a sweet looking cover.
Girls’ Romances #135 just because it let us know we have our own Cyrano de Bergerac in our midst, the romantic in you is starting to shine through Mr. Meli.
Sweethearts #135, a true classic!!
A great comic book cover matching each day of the year, 1 through 365. Please chime in with your favourite corresponding cover, from any era.
I…um…You’re kidding, right? This is some Jimmy Olsen Award spoof that I am not getting, right? Because it couldn’t be today’s pick, could it? I mean…no way…over Amazing Spider-Man #135?
And even the much appreciated reference to Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire” in Blackhawk can’t soften this blow.
This book is so near and dear to my heart that I didn’t even mention it because I assumed that I was too biased. Unlike Pep #132 I have a solid position in this apparently quite scarce in grade issue, and the 9.8 is one of two books that I immediately received an offer for after winning it in an auction. (Three if you count Hedy.) In comparison to any cover it has so much: Adams, Kirby (albeit by reference), color, action, comic book nuttiness. In Olsen context it moves to another level.
Derrick, you are clearly not just wearing your ASM fanboy t-shirt, pin, cap, and socks, but even the ASM “action scene” briefs today. I can see that ASM is engaging but only in the simplest visceral sense. This cover is my perfect anti-Romita example. The faces are one step away from Gil Kane faces. Jimmy Olsen #135 is Ardbeg Uigeadail to ASM #135’s Canadian Mist.
Loved the Johnny Cash reference. Hulk was kind of cool but too much gimmick for me. I had exactly the same reaction to Secret Hearts but I think Photoshop has been put to work in GCD – here is an image of the Savannah 9.8:
https://comics.ha.com/itm/silver-age-1956-1969-/romance/secret-hearts-135-savannah-pedigree-dc-1969-cgc-nm-mt-98-white-pages/a/121121-12510.s
I also was this close with Incredible Hercules but the girl’s expression ruined it for me.
You know what they say about a man with a large nose. (He needs a large handkerchief etc.)
#136 not delivering anything extraordinary but more than its share of weird/anachronistic stuff. I am going with Tomahawk mainly for the composition and background image. Points off for Son of Tomahawk getting into this socially critical confrontation immediately after his Elvis impersonator gig. I also liked Famous Funnies (I am convinced that the blonde guy is only hearing “blah blah blah” as he is considering something very interesting), Fightin’ Marines (Charlton romance/war crossover with a really boss car), Uncanny X-Men (homage of swipe of homage done right), Unexpected.
Falling in Love – “Girls! Read all about… The Other Side of Love!” – this is a Code book?
Heart Throbs – “I love you – why don’t you do what I want?” Impeccable reasoning.
Lone Ranger – huh what?
Marvel Tales – this one finally made it clear that levitating/moving buildings were Atlas’s equivalent of DC’s giant hands.
JOWA to Girls’ Love Stories. Another in the line of lurking “creeps”, and similar to the floating buildings, finally suggests some pattern behind this. Is there some secret thrill to being stalked? According to my majority female immediate family the answer is resoundingly “no”. So maybe go a bit deeper and suggest that the writers in these days _were_ the lurking creeps in real life, and they could play out their fantasies of getting the girls through these stories. To the (presumably mostly female) readers, I suspect that this situation was compelling in the same way as that of Unexpected.
I have to defend ASM #135 here, great book and a great cover that narrowly missed the call. I think the Romita Spider-Man rendering on #135 is one of the classic poses for the character bettered only by the uber classic pose on Spider-Man Treasury #1.
Thanks for the defense of the ASM #135 cover, Walt. As you noted, it is one the classic Spider-Man poses, and the visual effect is heightened by the unique construction of the cover and its division of the storyline into its components.
And Chris is right – I am Spider-Man fanboy – but enthusiastic cheering is warranted when your favorite player hits a homerun like Romita did with this cover.
I think this was a close call. The Spider-man cover is classic bronze… and I do like the Hulk cover even if it is a bit ~cough~ dated…but the JM cover I think edges them out to that melee factor. The romance book left me cold, as did the Wonder Woman, and BlackHawk… the Hoopster… are you serious?