Lex Luthor is by far the villain most popularly linked to Superman. So much so that he has appeared in every live-action venture featuring the Man of Steel... save one. The Adventures of Superman television series of the 1950s did not utilize any existing comic book villains.
In this tour, we will take a look at the many actors who have portrayed Alexander Joseph ("Lex") Luthor in film and television.
We've previously toured red kryptonite from its first appearance in 1949 through its initial surge as a popular plot device in the 1960s.
Nowadays, Zatanna is considered one of the premiere mystical characters in the DC pantheon. She's been a member of numerous versions of the Justice League and she's appeared in live action (Smallville) and in numerous animated TV series (Justice League Unlimited, Young Justice, and others). But, her popularity and importance in the DC universe was a slow journey. In this tour we will look at her debut, and her rise to finally becoming a heavy hitter!
In the latter half of the 20th century, Saturday morning television was aimed solely at children. They didn't have to go to school or church, and had a few hours of television produced just for them! In the fall of 1973, kids who read DC Comic books waited anxiously for Saturday, September 8th, 9:00am to finally arrive! These kids (myself included) had been teased for weeks about a new cartoon that would debut that day. It was a cartoon that would team Superman, Batman and Robin, Aquaman, and Wonder Woman!! The producers may not have called this cartoon "Justice League", but for many of us kids, that's still what it represented!
This new cartoon was called Super Friends, and it became a huge success. So much so that over the next 12 years it would become a franchise with 7 different versions produced and aired on the ABC network.
I think it's time to take a deep dive into all the various iterations of Super Friends. If this sounds like something that might interest you too, strap in and join along in this tour!
Archie Andrews is one of the most well known comic book teenagers of the 20th century. His popularity soared in the 1950s and 1960s thanks not only to the numerous comic books in which he appeared but also to the numerous radio serials and animated television series that grew from the comics.
In 2017 the CW Network began airing a television series entitled Riverdale, featuring the Archie cast. It proved to be a ratings success. For many, this was believed to be the first live-action portrayal of Archie Andrews. But that belief couldn't be less true!
He didn't have any major success before Riverdale, but Archie did indeed have several other live-action attempts through the years. Let's jump on board the tour wagon and check them out!
Red Kryptonite! A variation of the green kryptonite that typically fell to Earth... remnants of Superman's home planet of Krypton. Red kryptonite's origins and effects have changed dramatically since its introduction in 1949!
Because red kryptonite became rather prolific as a plot device in the 1950s and 1960s, this tour will be broken down into several smaller trips, each covering a specific length of time.
On our first tour, we'll examine red kryptonite from its first appearance through the end of the 1950s.
This tour, in its entirety, will only cover stories where red kryptonite plays some factor in the overall storyline. Instances when Red K is seen in a display case, or simply talked about but irrelevant to a storyline, will not be included.
Do you think you know all about red kryptonite? Let's see! Strap in and get ready to tour red kryptonite's initial 13 appearances!
Batman & Robin. These characters are bound together in the public conscience just the same as Tom & Jerry, Laurel & Hardy, or Starsky & Hutch. They just go together.
Most casual comic book readers or television watchers are aware of Dick (Robin) Grayson. But how many would know there have actually been over a dozen characters who have assumed the Robin mantle? On this tour, we'll take a look at the many Robins to appear in the pages of DC Comics since Dick Grayson's debut in 1940.
Robin was the very first superhero sidekick, debuting in 1940. Robin was created with the notion that a juvenile sidekick might give the youngsters reading comic books a character they could more closely relate to. Another benefit to having a sidekick is that it allows writers to present more dialogue and less narration-boxes.
When I began my comic book journey at the ripe age of 9 (in 1973), I gravitated much more to group-themed titles. The Legion of Super-Heroes was my first exposure to the medium, and from there, I quickly branched out to the Justice League of America, the Fantastic Four, and one of my all-time favorite groups... the Teen Titans.
When this group's adventures first started being chronicled the characters were very early teens. But, by the time I was first exposed to the Teen Titans, they were hip and community-minded older teens, some in college, teaming to battle social injustice in addition to villainy. Their group had several members who had no actual superpowers and their rank also included the first African-American character I saw represented in comic books. As a child growing up in a very non-diverse small community in Maine, I found them all thrilling. I wanted to be one of them when I grew up!
In Greek mythology, Hippolyta (or Hippolyte) was the daughter of Ares and Otera, and she was queen of the Amazons. She wore her father's zoster (a war belt).
When William Moulton Marston (along with H.G. Peter) created Wonder Woman in 1941, he drew upon the Greek legends and named Wonder Woman's mother Hippolyte. She was the queen of the Amazons and a woman who had beaten Hercules in battle, thanks to her magic girdle. The goddess Aphrodite gifted Hippolyte, and her Amazon subjects, their own island (originally called Amazonia) to grow and thrive on, away from the influence of the evil ways of men.
Over the years her name would be modified to Hippolyta, and her island would be renamed Paradise Island, and then Themyscira. But one thing hasn't changed in over 80 years... she is the mother of Princess Diana, the young woman who becomes known outside of their island home, as... Wonder Woman.
In this tour, we will take a look at each of the actresses who have been cast to portray Hippolyta in live-action productions.
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One of my earliest childhood memories is when I absconded with a copy of a Fantastic Four comic book that was included on the magazine counter in my dad's Barber Shop. I hid it away in my room and read it over and over. I was fascinated by the people in special uniforms who were exhibiting different superpowers! I actually got scolded for removing it from Dad's business. But since his Barber Shop was actually the front room of our house... it wasn't that big of a problem!
My brief exposure to the Fantastic Four spurred a desire for other visually exciting stories, so I used my first allowance to buy my own comic book! It was a DC comic featuring the Legion of Super-Heroes. I was hooked! And while my young, pre-teen self gravitated more to DC, I never gave up on my Fantastic Quartet published by Marvel Comics. I faithfully collected Fantastic Four and Marvel's Greatest Adventures (a title that reprinted older Fantastic Four tales) from the early 1970s through the mid-2000s.
Shall we start a new tour? I say let's do it. All aboard! This will be a quick look at covers that have paid homage to the iconic cover of The Flash (vol. 1) #123, featuring "The Flash of Two Worlds". In case you might be unfamiliar with this particular issue, it is the first time the Silver Age Flash meets the Golden Age Flash. The story establishes the notion of the multiverse, a concept that's now universally utilized in all forms of comic books and science fiction. This issue is one of the most iconic comic books of all time. It ushered in a resurgence of the Justice Society of America, and provided a concept the DC could utilize when introducing many of the characters they would later acquire from Fawcett Comics, Quality Comics, and Charlton Comics into the DC universe.
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| The Flash #123, cover art by Carmine Infantino and Murphy Anderson |
Batman has had many female villains over his 85 years being published. Should you ask any comic book reader, or non-comic book reader, to name Batman's primary female villain, odds are quite high that their answer will be... Catwoman. She's been around almost as long as the Caped Crusader himself. As of 2024, there have been 11 actors who have portrayed Catwoman on television or in film. On this tour, we will present each of these actors and look at the projects that they appeared in.
Grab your ticket, and jump on board! Let the Catwoman tour commence!
In 1978 (the same year the Superman movie debuted), DC Comics began publication of a new title, DC Comics Presents. This new title was dedicated to teaming Superman with other heroes each month. After all, Batman had been enjoying this monthly team-up format since 1966 (the same year the Batman television show debuted) in the pages of The Brave and the Bold. DC Comics Presents had an impressive 97-issue run, ending in 1986. The cancellation was due to the events of the Crisis on Infinite Earths maxi-series that redefined the DC Universe.
The Justice Society of America holds the distinction of being the first superhero "group" or "team" ever published in comic books. Their first appearance was in All-Star Comics #3 (January 1941). The team's adventures were published through the end of the DC Golden Age, with their last adventure published in February 1951.
When DC's Silver Age began in 1956, it wasn't long before the Justice Society made a grand return! In this tour, we will look at all the Justice Society of America members from the team's debut through the publication of DC's Crisis on Infinite Earths maxi-series, which forever altered the Society's continuity.
When I was 12 years old, I discovered a coverless giant-sized Batman comic in one of the boxes of outdated comics sold for a nickel or dime (depending on size) at Andrews Tobacco Stand in my hometown of Calais, Maine. This particular comic was filled with reprinted tales originally published in the 1950s. Among the many tales was one containing a character called Batwoman. From the story, it was obvious this was not her first appearance. In fact, Batman and Robin treated her as part of their "team". Who was this woman? Why had I never heard of her before now? What happened to her?
I became obsessed with finding out all I could about this intriguing woman... clad in shadowed yellow and red, who at some point before I began reading comics, had been a regular partner of the caped crusader!
In this tour, I'll take a look at every comic book that featured the original Batwoman (Kathy Kane) on its cover. Along the way, I'll provide some narrative to provide some insight into her character and some of her adventures with Batman and Robin.
In 1967, new Legion of Super-Heroes scribe, Jim Shooter, wrote a story where, rather than a teen Superboy traveling 1000 years into the future to visit a teen-centric Legion of Super-Heroes.... instead an (adult) Superman travels 1000 years into his future to visit an "Adult Legion".
This story foretells the fates of nearly all the existing Legion of Super-Heroes members of the era, as well as predicting some heroes destined to eventually join the team.
In this tour, we will look at the many events this "Adult Legion" tale (Adventure Comics #354 and #355) would predict, and examine how many actually came to be! Get some popcorn, then sit back and enjoy the Adult Legion Tour!
In 1968, Wonder Woman entered what is commonly referred to as her "mod" era. Writer Denny O'Neil took over as the writer on her title, and promptly stripped her of her powers by having Paradise Island phase into an alternate dimension. Because of this, she resigned her membership in the Justice League of America.
In 1973 the Amazons and Paradise Island returned from their dimension hopping. As a result, Princess Diana regained her powers and soon began operating again as Wonder Woman. When she is asked to return to active membership in the Justice League, Diana doesn't remember ever taking a leave of absence. It soon becomes clear that Diana has no memory of the time she spent powerless. Because of this, she expresses concern about returning to the team because she worries her faltering memory might prove to be a danger to herself and the team. As a way of making sure she is fit, Diana is inspired by the 12 Labors of Hercules and asks if the Justice League members will monitor her next twelve adventures, and judge whether they find her fit to serve on the team.
This tour will briefly review The 12 Labors of Wonder Woman which were featured in Wonder Woman (vol. 1) #212 through #222.
The Doom Patrol is a team of misfits and outcasts who band together to battle evil and help mankind using powers they have been gifted with (or cursed with, based on one's point of view).
The original Doom Patrol premiered in 1963. Since that time, there have been numerous versions of the team that DC Comics has published.
Here at The Eggman's Comic Book Tours, we've already taken a look at the first two versions of this offbeat team. As we continue this tour, we'll look at the additional heroes who were members of more updated versions of the Doom Patrol beginning in 2001 through 2018. This is Part II of our look at the membership of the Doom Patrol. Fasten your seatbelts and let's put this tour into motion!
In 1963, two new superhero teams made their debut. Each consisted of members who were outcasts from society, and both teams were led by a man in a wheelchair. One of these teams was the X-Men, published by Marvel Comics, debuting in X-Men (vol. 1) #1 with a cover date of September 1963. The other group, published by DC Comics, was the Doom Patrol. This team made their debut in My Greatest Adventure #80... three months before the X-Men.
The Doom Patrol, like the X-Men, has had many incarnations. The Doom Patrol has never garnered the popularity of its Marvel counterpart team, but it has certainly had its share of popular publication periods over the years. In this tour, we will look at the various individuals who have been members of the Doom Patrol, in six various rosters, from 1963 through 2020.
Because of the longevity and accumulated membership of various Doom Patrols, this tour will be broken into two legs! The first leg commences here...
In Superman's very first appearance in Action Comics #1 (1938), readers are introduced to one of his regular costars... reporter Lois Lane. Two years later, Superman's arch-nemesis, Lex Luthor, debuted.
People with the initials L.L. soon became a mainstay in the life of our Kryptonian hero! In this tour, we'll take a look at the many characters with the initials L.L. who played a role in the existence of DC's original hero! The entries of this tour will be presented in no particular order. Enjoy the ride!
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As of 2024, there have been 11 actors who have portrayed the role of "Ma" Kent in television or film. In this tour, we will take a look at each of these actors and the vehicles that inducted them into the pantheon of DC Comic's greatest superhero.
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In 1973, an annual Justice League/Justice Society crossover story included a new team of heroes. These heroes resided on an alternate Earth that would become known in the DC multiverse as Earth-X. This team of new heroes was called the Freedom Fighters. As I read this two-issue tale, I was in fanboy heaven discovering these new characters. I eventually learned that the Freedom Fighters were characters who were originally published by another comic book company called Quality Comics. In this tour, we'll take a look at these Freedom Fighters and many other Quality Comics heroes. All aboard!
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| Justice League of America (vol. 1) #107, cover art by Nick Cardy |
DC Comics has a multitude of superheroes in its stable. With the possible exception of Batman, the hero with the best array of villains has consistently been the Flash.
On this tour, we will take a look at the Rogue Gallery of the Silver/Bronze Age (Barry Allen) Flash.
At the time of this posting (2024), there have been ten actresses who have portrayed the character of Lana Lang on television or film. This quick tour will take a look at each of them. How many do you remember?!
The history of (pre-Crisis on Infinite Earths) Steve Trevor is one giant hot mess! This character was put through the wringer over and over again. In this tour, we will try and break down the important moments in the life of one of Wonder Woman's primary supporting characters.
Heroes with wings have existed almost since the inception of the comic book superhero genre. In this tour, we will take a look at the many winged heroes who have been published by DC Comics.
Lex Luthor is by far the villain most popularly linked to Superman. So much so that he has appeared in every live-action venture featuring ...
