Joe Phillips is probably best known for his early '90s DC work on titles like Mr. Miracle and Legion of Super-Heroes, as well as his provocative gay pride images. More recently, he's taken to alternate universe movie posters, like a 1940s Hope/Crosby JLI road picture, or my personal favorite, Clark Gable as Iron Man. Here, we have Martian Manhunter cast with Bill "Bojangles" Robinson, a noted entertainer and tap dancer, alongside his frequent co-star Shirley Temple. I remember seeing some of their features on UHF in my youth, but Robinson literally worked minstrel shows in his heyday, so he's a tad problematic by modern standards. The pairing is clearly meant to invoke the Supergirl TV show, but I'll be honest, if anyone but an African-American artist had concocted this, I'd have dodged it with all due haste. It's cute though, and Robinson had a history of advocacy to go with the... other stuff... so I figured the piece was worth a look here.
Joe Phillips
