Same Story, Different Cover: I saw a spider with eight Chinese menus in his hands / Crawling through the streets of Soho in the rain

Now here's an interesting one...

L: Amazing Spider-Man #95 (April 1971), pencils by John Romita Sr., inks by Sal Buscema
R: Spider-Man Comics Weekly #128 (July 21, 1975), pencils by John Romita Sr., inks by Sal Buscema
(Click any picture to Ben-size)

I'm guessing someone at Marvel UK's London offices actually knew that Westminster Bridge (which runs across the Thames by Big Ben Tower and the Houses of Parliament) is not Tower Bridge, which is actually about two and a half miles downriver.

366 Days with Alfred Pennyworth, Day 98

Page from Batman:Full Circle graphic novel (May 1991), script by Mike W. Barr, pencils by Alan Davis, inks by Mark Farmer, colors by Tom Ziuko, letters by Todd Klein

Maybe I'm Amaze-d: The Invincible Iron Maze

It's time for your Friday Night Fun 'n' Games! And here's something that crackpot inventor Tony Stark has cooked up for us...an Iron Man maze! Can you solve it before Robert Downey Junior takes his next drink? Try it and find out!

"Metallic Maze" from Pizzazz #16 (January 1979), artist unknown
Click picture for the solution but hey not until you're done ya big cheater-pants!)

366 Days with Alfred Pennyworth, Day 97

Panels from Detective Comics #243 (May 1957), script by Edmond Hamilton, pencils by Dick Sprang, inks by Charles Paris

Today in Comics History, April 6: In Gotham City, even more Kanes are discovered

...to go along with Kathy Kane...Kate Kane...Elizabeth Kane...Montague Kane...Debra Kane...Bob Kane...Cassandra Cain......Gil Kane (happy birthday!)...Kandy Kane...


from Detective Comics #598 (DC, March 1989), script by Sam Hamm, pencils by Denys Cowan, inks by Dick Giordano and Frank McLaughlin, colors by Adrienne Roy, letters by Todd Klein
...Big Daddy Kane...Horatio Caine...Commander Cain...Kaine Parker...Edgar James "Cobber" Kain...walking cane...the Classical Association of New England...

Whose Comic Book Is It, Anyway?

It's just another day in Metropolis...a day where Lois Lane survives a grenade attack...in her underwear!




Panels from Superman Family #212 (December 1981)

...and on a day when Jimmy Olsen escapes from a deathtrap in his underwear...



...is the same day that Clark Kent watches Lou Grant.



Let's look at another day. Today, Lois Lane escapes being kidnapped by a gun-wielding crazy maniac taxi driver (in other words, a taxi driver):




...and Jimmy Olsen takes out a pair of organized criminal weasels using only his wits an an Ikea Kvart lamp!



It's the same day that Clark Kent sneezes.



"Oh, come on," you're saying. "It's not fair to judge what Clark does...after all, we should look at what Superman is up to!" Well, reasonable enough...



Oh, good work, Superman. You re-heated a cup of coffee.

So: your fine Superman line of comic books from DC! We all know who the star of them is, don't we?



Yes, truly, this was The Greatest Lois Lane Story Ever.

366 Days with Alfred Pennyworth, Day 96

Page from Batman: Gotham Knights #69 (November 2005), script by A. J. Lieberman, pencils by Al Barrionuevo, inks by Bit, colors by Laurie Kronenberg, letters by Pat Brosseau

You were expecting maybe...? (Snappy Answers to Stupid Questions Department)

For all their vaunted popularity in their own particular worlds of excitement and amazement, comic book characters sometimes aren't very good at recognizing each other...even when it's dead obvious. I mean, you can forgive blind-as-a-bat-who-got-hit-with-radioactive-waste-in-his-eyes Matt Murdock of maybe not recognizing his pals Foggy Nelson and Karen Page...or is that Heather Glenn? You know, put a headband on her and it kinda looks like Gwen Stacy, don't it...?



Maybe the problem, therefore, is just that instead of a superhero, everybody seems to be expecting somebody else!



Or maybe, just maybe, too many people are stuck on the obvious.



So let me now present to you a literally virtual gallery of Smart Answers to Stupid Identifications of Comic Book Characters. Enjoy, won't you?





I had to look this next one up. Here's who Gabriel Heatter is. (It's a nice pun, too, even if it's misspelled. Whoever said that spontaneously combusting androids don't have a sense of humor? I think that was Namor who said that, right?)





Sometimes even civilians get mistaken for superheroes! I know I am frequently asked if I am the Incredible Hulk, especially when I am wearing my Hulk Hands. Bully Smash!











How square is Clark Kent? So square that he can't even get the lyrics of "Rubber Biscuit" right!




Finally, we must all bow down before the king of being mistaken for somebody else...this guy:



...whoever he is.

366 Days with Alfred Pennyworth, Day 95

Panels from Batman Annual #20 (1996), script by Doug Moench, pencils and inks by Vincent Giarrano, colors by Pat Garrahy, letters by Tim Harkins

Today in Comics History, April 3: Jim Gordon gets a little too personal on his Facebook page

from Detective Comics #598 (DC, March 1989), script by Sam Hamm, pencils by Denys Cowan, inks by Dick Giordano and Frank McLaughlin, colors by Adrienne Roy, letters by Todd Klein

Today in Comics History, April 3: General Grievous's Diary Becomes increasingly disturbing

from Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #73 (DC, July 1995), script by James Robinson, pencils and inks by John Watkiss, colors by Digital Chameleon, letters by Willie Schubert

366 Days with Alfred Pennyworth, Day 94

Panels from "The Son of the Joker!" in Batman v.1 #145 (February 1962), script by Bill Finger, pencils and inks by Sheldon Moldoff, letters by Stan Starkman

The Zen of Batman: Hippies

From Batman: "Louie, The Lilac" (October 26, 1967), written by Dwight Taylor; directed by George Waggner

366 Days with Alfred Pennyworth, Day 93

Panel from Batman #74 (December 1952-January 1953), script by Bill Finger (?), pencils by Dick Sprang, inks by Ray Burnley, letters by Ira Schnapp

Today in Comics History, April 2: How Clark Kent won his third Pulitzer

from "Whatever Happened to Superman?" in Action Comics #428 (DC, October 1973), script by Cary Bates, pencils by Curt Swan, inks by Murphy Anderson

Ten of a Kind: Sisterhood of the Improbable Pants

(More Ten of a Kind here.)