Sunday, January 26, 2014

2012 Strong Suits: Superhero Playing Cards Martian Manhunter and Zook art by Craig Bostick

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"J’onn J’onz had his own feature from 1955-1969—first in the back of Detective Comics and then in House of Mystery. About halfway through his run he acquired an alien pet from another dimension named Zook who talked in a kind of broken english/baby talk... With more powers than even Superman, it’s hard to imagine why the writers thought the Manhunter needed some help—especially from such a goofy character."
Despite his best intentions to post the art for 55 DC Silver Age hero themed poker cards five days a week, it took him most of the year to complete the task, but it was worth the wait. To answer his question, DC was trying to target a younger audience for the "Manhunter from Mars" strip, especially ahead of his transitioning from a back-up to lead feature. Zook pandered to the juvenile audience, and gave J'onn J'onzz someone to fight monsters of the month with after the Diabolu Idol-Head was opened. Also, it allowed Bostick to place a character largely unchanged visually in his first half century of operation squarely in the 1960s by pairing him with his otherdimensional friend in a delightful rendering!

Craig Bostick

1 comment:

LissBirds said...

The style is adorable--I like the way Zook came out.

This is such a great idea for playing cards. (And there is even an Adam Strange one...I'm impressed.)